(Han Jisung pov)
Jisung was stressed.
With nationals in two days, the captain of the basketball team had to make sure to help the coach finish planning all the plays, run the team through last minute drills, and finish organizing bus/hotel details.
After he had been busy all day with school, practice, and planning, all he wanted to do was go get coffee from his favorite cafe and go home so he could watch some tv before sleeping.
On top of everything his car had broken down that morning so he had to walk to school and now his tired legs felt like they might not even make it to the cafe.
"Why in the world did I have us do so many running drills," Jisung muttered under his breath. He was in shape, his abs could testify to that, but his muscles had been constantly overworked for the past two weeks and it was suddenly catching up to him.
When he finally reached the cafe after what felt like forever, he almost fell down and kissed the ground with happiness.
He strode in with a newfound energy at the thought of getting coffee, and after ordering he went to sit down at a table in the corner, leaning back and closing his eyes.
He enjoyed just sitting there and listening to the noise of the cafe. It wasn't too popular so it wasn't very loud, with large windows and plants everywhere, giving it a very calming vibe with soft music playing in the background. Everything about the place just made you automatically relax.
Jisung was still waiting with his eyes closed for his drink when he heard a familiar laugh that made his eyes shoot open.
He almost instinctively turned to look for her and his eyes landed on her with the boy she had been with at the party. The boy said something to Hae and they both started laughing again.
"Are they dating?" He murmured incoherently to himself. He felt the protective feeling again but this time it felt more like an ache in his chest.
For some reason he couldn't take his eyes off her. He was captivated by her smile and the way it made her whole face light up. Her face was turned towards the sun that poured through the windows and it changed her dark chocolate eyes to the color of freshly brewed tea.
He was still staring at her when a server came over to give him his drink,"Ya know it's kinda weird to stare at a girl when she's on a date with someone else."
"Seungmin? Since when do you work here?" Jisung questioned, he had been coming to this cafe since his sophomore year and he knew all the current employees.
Seungmin shrugged,"Since yesterday. I need to start saving up more so that I'm not completely and utterly broke after we graduate and this place is really nice. Changbin also might've convinced the owner to let me work here even though they weren't hiring."
Jisung chuckled,"Nice. And I wasn't staring at Hae," He lied,"I was just wondering who she's with. Doesn't he go to our school?"
Seungmin looked at him skeptically for a moment before answering, "That's Park Jisung, he's in Hae's grade. He's really nice and he seems to really like Hae." He raised an eyebrow,"Why do you care who Hae's with?"
"Wha- I don't- I don't care who she's with," He cleared his throat and looked away, grabbing his drink to take a sip,"She's her own person, she can go on dates with whoever she pleases. Why should I care?" He said aiming to say it casually but it came out sounded slightly strained. Jisung didn't know why he felt so awkward but he didn't appreciate it.
Seungmin rolled his eyes, dusting off his official cafe apron, "You and your stubbornness. Well I have to get back to work, have fun stalking." He walked back to the kitchen, mumbling something about 'Idiot oblivious to his own emotions'.
Jisung shook his head and turned to face the window. He couldn't watch anymore of the date going on at the other side of the cafe. He tried to ignore them completely but when Hae's laugh met his ears again he decided he couldn't take anymore and he pushed back his chair to leave.
He was about to be out the door when he heard Hae call out,"Hey Squirrel!" He froze and turned to wave at her, ignoring the way the nickname made his heart pause.
She smiled her big, beautiful smile and waved him over. He obliged, walking over to her with a small, "Hey."
"Jisung, this is...well, Jisung," She chuckled awkwardly, "Jisung, this is my best friend Ora's older brother, he's a senior." She glanced between them like she was torn about something before slightly shaking her head and smiling again.
The boy- other Jisung apparently, sent Jisung a small smile and held out his hand for a handshake, "I'm Park Jisung, nice to meet you."
Jisung chuckled and shook the other boy's hand,"I'm Han Jisung, nice to meet you as well."
The younger boy hesitated before blurting out,"I really admire the way you run your team. You seem like a great captain."
Jisung smiled, he had put his blood, sweat, and tears into that team when he had been made captain after Chan graduated and he was pretty proud of his team,"Thank you, that means a lot to me. Well it was good to see you, I better get going."
Jisung thought he saw something like disappointment flash across Hae's features for a moment but it was gone just as fast,"Bye, see you for nationals," Hae waved slightly before pausing,"Wait do I have to ride on the bus with you crazy people?"
Jisung laughed,"Yeah unfortunately, but you can sit next to me if you want to, I promise I'll behave," He winked playfully, causing Hae to slap his arm.
"And that is why I'm sitting with Felix," She remarked, turning to the younger Jisung and sending him a small smile, "Sorry about him."
Park Jisung gave her a tight smile in return,"Its fine," He assured although the boy clearly didn't appreciate that another guy was flirting with his date.
Jisung took the awkward silence that followed as his cue to leave. He felt out of place and didn't want to intrude on their date anymore anyways.
As he was walking home, he felt the achy feeling again and he shoved his fist into his chest, trying to stop it. He couldn't figure out quite what the feeling was but he didn't like it.
Another thing Jisung couldn't quite figure out was why his brain kept replaying the image of Hae's gorgeous eyes paired with the sound of her melodic laugh.
The one thing he knew for certain though, was that he didn't want it to stop.
A/N
Ok so I actually really like writing in Jisung's pov anyways-
Fam I am just cruising til nct dream's comeback which is coming out at FOUR IN THE MORNING BUT IT'S FINE we're vibing and it's great
Stream Hot Sauce 🌶
I hope you liked the chapter! Thank you for reading! Ilysm!!❤
