red string | jay

twenty two

"let's go, it's past lunch time. i'm literally dying of hunger," juwon whined dramatically, clutching her stomach as she leaned on ina's desk.

ina chuckled at her antics, barely glancing up from her screen. "you're always dying of hunger. every hour."

"it's called a fast metabolism," juwon huffed. "you wouldn't get it."

"uh huh. enjoy your fast metabolism and spicy noodles," ina said with a teasing smile. "i'll be right there, just need to finish this report."

juwon squinted at her suspiciously. "you always say five minutes and then show up thirty years later."

"i promise i'll be there in, like, actual five minutes," ina reassured, holding up her hand like she was making a solemn vow.

juwon gave her a skeptical look before shrugging. "alright, but if there's no food left, i'm blaming you." and with that, she strutted out of their section.

ten minutes passed—because of course ina lied—and she finally closed her laptop with a tired sigh, stretching her arms over her head with a little yawn. she grabbed her phone, smoothing down her hair as she made her way to the cafeteria.

just as she reached the door to their section, she instinctively glanced over her shoulder toward jay's desk.

empty.

a weird, uninvited wave of disappointment crept up her spine.

but... why was she disappointed?

it wasn't like she was waiting for him.

before she could dig too deep into that uncomfortable thought, a voice spoke right into her ear.

"looking for something, angry bird?"

ina flinched hard, spinning around so fast she nearly stumbled on her own feet. "oh my god—"

jay stood a little too close behind her, clearly amused at how startled she was. she lost her balance for a split second, but before she could fall, jay's hand moved quickly to steady her, resting firmly on her lower back.

"chill," he said with a cocky smile.

she rolled her eyes and lightly smacked his hand away, even though the spot he touched still felt warmer than it should've. "you're the worst."

"debatable," he said, shrugging as he walked beside her. "you heading for lunch?"

she nodded, not trusting herself to say much with her heart still beating a little too fast.

"alright, let's go. after you, my lady," he said, dramatically gesturing with his arm like a knight.

she scoffed and walked ahead, but deep down, those two little words—my lady—were echoing in her mind like a broken record.

get a grip, ina.

truth be told, she knew something had shifted inside her. ever since that night at the hospital, when she saw jay cry—really cry—for the first time. all the walls she'd built around herself when it came to him had started cracking. and now here she was, tripping over her own feet because he stood too close.

but she wasn't ready to go there. not now. maybe not ever.

because how could she even think of seeing jay in that light?

"damn, are you thinking about world peace or something?" jay's voice cut through her spiral.

"nah," she replied without missing a beat. "just plotting your murder. the plan's almost ready, so live your life to the fullest while you can."

he snorted. "a guy really can't have a normal conversation around here, huh?"

"and what would we talk about, park jay?" she asked, stepping into the elevator as he followed behind.

"i don't know," he said, leaning casually against the elevator wall. "what's your favorite color?"

she turned to him slowly. "wow. what an incredible conversation starter. you must be bagging all the hotties in town with lines like that."

he laughed again, a genuine one this time that made his eyes crinkle. "can't lie, i'm pretty smooth."

"smooth like gravel," she muttered, earning another amused grin from him.

the elevator dinged and they walked out together, still bickering lightly as they made their way to the cafeteria.

"bagging the hotties around town, huh? what's with the gangsta language, kim ina? i expected better from you," he teased.

ina responded by throwing up ridiculous, exaggerated gang signs with her hands, wearing a smug grin like she just dropped a mixtape.

jay burst into laughter, throwing his head back. "you are a literal clown."

"story of my life, jay. story of my life," she said dramatically, before spotting juwon and heeseung waving them over.

"you guys finally made it," heeseung said, raising a brow as they sat down.

"did you order already?" jay asked, sliding into the seat beside ina.

"yep. food's on the way," juwon said with a proud nod.

as if on cue, their trays arrived and everyone immediately dug in, the quiet hum of utensils and satisfied sighs filling the air.

"you guys wanna try the malatang? it's especially spicy today," heeseung said, nudging his bowl forward.

jay eyed it suspiciously. "i've never had the courage to try malatang before."

"what? you're missing out," heeseung said, clearly scandalized. "go ahead, just one bite."

encouraged by everyone staring at him, jay grabbed a pair of chopsticks and slurped up a decent amount.

the reaction was immediate. his eyes went wide, and within seconds, he broke into an aggressive fit of coughing.

"guess he can't handle the spice," juwon said, barely holding in her laugh.

ina and heeseung cracked up, ina especially amused as she gently slid a glass of water toward him while still giggling.

jay, through teary eyes and coughs, accepted the glass and gulped it down like his life depended on it.

"instead of helping, you guys just laughed," he wheezed. "what if i was actually dying? would you still laugh first?"

all three of them exchanged a look before ina answered, deadpan. "honestly? yeah."

more laughter erupted around the table.

jay groaned dramatically and returned to his food, muttering something under his breath about betrayal.

but despite his complaints, he couldn't stop the small, lingering smile tugging at his lips.

because ina had been the first to offer water.

and even if she'd laughed, she was laughing with him. not at him.

what was this feeling?

he didn't know.

but it was starting to feel a lot like something real.