Strings Attached ➤ Jay

|| Collision Course

Of course he did. Of course.

It only got worse when Jinwoo sauntered over with a tray of drinks. He set down three sodas for the girls and one iced Americano for me without asking. Then his eyes landed on Jay.

"You must be the coworker," he said slowly, like he was sizing him up for a brawl.

Jay extended his hand easily. "Jay."

Jinwoo stared at it. Then went back to wiping the table with his rag. "You're the one she complains about."

I froze.

Jay's head whipped toward me, his smile spreading like wildfire. "She complains?"

Nari clapped both hands over her mouth to hide a laugh. Minhee smirked so wide she looked like a cat about to eat a bird.

I slammed my head into my folded arms. "I hate all of you. All of you."

Jay leaned closer, his voice silky. "So what exactly do you say about me, Byeol?"

"Nothing flattering," I groaned into my sleeve.

"Good," Jinwoo muttered. "That means she's honest."

The only way to save myself was to escape. I mumbled something about "music" and fled toward the stage, clutching my guitar.

The second my fingers touched the strings, the noise of the bar melted away. I strummed slow at first, then let myself fall into one of my songs — a half-finished thing about wanting to run away and stay all at once. My voice filled the space, the chords raw and a little jagged.

The room went quiet.

When I ended, applause broke out, warm and genuine.

But what rattled me wasn't the clapping. It was Jay.

He wasn't clapping. Not at first. He was staring, eyes sharp, like he was memorizing me down to my bones.

When I sat back down, Nari squealed, "You were amazing!" Minhee nodded like she was approving a fine wine. Jinwoo gave me his subtle little chin tilt of pride.

And Jay? Jay leaned close enough that his shoulder brushed mine.

"You didn't tell me you were that good," he said, low.

My stomach did a dangerous flip. "Shut up."

"No, seriously," he insisted, his eyes flicking over my face. "You're... unbelievable up there."

I shoved his arm. "Drink your soda before I dump it on your head."

But the damage was done.

Jay didn't shrink in the corner like I'd prayed. He leaned in. He told stories — some ridiculous, some surprisingly funny. He teased Minhee back until she was laughing instead of smirking. He listened to Nari rant about school as if it was riveting.

Even Jinwoo cracked a smile at one of his quips.

At one point, Jinwoo slapped the bar and said, "You know, for someone who looks like he irons his pajamas, you're not half bad."

"High praise," Minhee added dryly.

"Don't encourage him!" I snapped. "If you inflate his ego, he'll start charging people for eye contact."

Jay smirked, resting his chin on his hand. "Would you pay?"

I choked on my drink. "Absolutely not!"

"Liar," Nari sang.

I kicked her under the table.

The longer we sat there, the worse it got. Because Jay didn't feel like an outsider. He fit. Too well. He laughed, he leaned back in his chair like he belonged, he let Nari drag him into dumb games and didn't flinch when Minhee grilled him about his life.

And the worst part? He looked like he belonged with me.

Which was impossible. Unacceptable. Not in this universe or any alternate one.

So when Minhee leaned over and whispered, "Are you sure you don't like him?" I nearly flipped the whole table.

"ABSOLUTELY NOT," I hissed.

But then Jay caught my eye mid-laugh across the table, his gaze locking onto mine with something that felt too warm, too steady.

And my chest hiccuped.

No. No, no, no. This was dangerous. This was a glitch in the system.

A diamond ring didn't belong tangled up with earbuds. A boy like Jay didn't belong here, with me, in my corner of the world.

And yet here he was, laughing with my friends, staring at me like I was worth memorizing.

I took a sharp sip of my drink, gripping the glass so hard it squeaked.

I wasn't going to let this crash. Not if I could help it.

⚡︎⚡︎⚡︎

A/N: *wink wink*