Strings Attached ➤ Jay

|| Offbeat Conversations

🎙

Better Than Revenge -

*ੈ✩‧₊˚"She underestimated just who she was stealing from
She's not a saint and she's not what you think
She's an actress, whoa"🎶⋆⁺₊

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The Echo Room always smelled faintly of coffee grounds, warm wood, and something vaguely sweet — like sugar that had been spilled and never fully cleaned up. It was comforting in a way that the shop wasn't. Our shop smelled like vinyl and dust and history; the Echo Room smelled like the present. Like something alive.

Minhee was already waving at me from our usual corner booth, her silver hair catching the low light like neon. She looked like she'd stepped out of a music magazine spread — eyeliner sharp, jacket covered in patches, and her swallow tattoo peeking out from her collarbone. She'd claimed the booth by sprawling across half of it with her bag, her notebook, and a mug of something topped with too much whipped cream.

"You're late," Minhee announced as I slid into the opposite seat.

"I had to lock up," I said, tossing my jacket onto the bench. "Some of us have jobs that don't involve showing off new tattoos every week."

Minhee grinned, tugging her shirt down just enough to flash the swallow again. "Please. This one's classy. It means freedom."

"It means you're going to be broke in ten years from tattoo bills."

"Worth it."

Before we could go further, Nari arrived — her round glasses slightly fogged from the cool evening air. She looked... different. Again. Black jeans with rips in the knees, a band tee layered under a plaid shirt, eyeliner darker than I'd ever seen on her. It wasn't her usual soft-cardigan, pastel kind of look.

She slid into the booth beside Minhee, offering me a smile that felt a little strained. "Sorry. I had to change before coming."

"You look... edgy," Minhee said, eyebrows raised.

"Yeah," I added, trying to keep my voice light. "New vibe?"

Nari shrugged, fiddling with the sleeve of her shirt. "Just felt like trying something different."

"Different's good," Minhee said approvingly. "You look like you're about to headline a punk band."

Nari's cheeks flushed slightly, though I noticed her glance at me like she was waiting for my reaction.

I gave her a thumbs-up. "Nice. If you start smashing guitars on stage, though, we're fighting."

Nari laughed — but it was soft, almost distracted.

Jinwoo drifted over from behind the counter, balancing three mugs in his hands like he'd been born doing it. He set them down on the table without a word, then smirked when he saw me eyeing the foam art on mine.

"You're the only one I bother with hearts for," he said.

"You're disgusting," I told him, though I was fighting a smile.

"Don't I know it." He shoved his rag into his back pocket and leaned against the side of the booth, arms crossed. "So. What's the gossip tonight? Who's ruining their life first?"

"Byeol," Minhee said immediately.

"Me?!" I sputtered, nearly spilling my coffee.

"Yes, you," Minhee said smugly. "You've been acting like a lovesick puppy for days. It's embarrassing."

I choked. "I have not."

"Yes, you have," Minhee said, pointing her spoon at me like it was a weapon. "You get this jittery look whenever—" she paused dramatically, "—certain people are around."

I could feel my ears heating up. "You don't know what you're talking about."

Jinwoo's grin widened. "Oh, she knows. We all know. The whole city probably knows with how red you're turning right now."

I kicked him under the table. He didn't even flinch.

Nari, meanwhile, had gone oddly quiet, stirring her drink without drinking it. Her eyes flicked up at me, then down again.

We talked about lighter things after that — Minhee's new tattoo appointment, Jinwoo's never-ending saga with his landlord, Nari's upcoming exams. But every time the conversation lulled, Minhee found a way to loop it back to me.

"So, Byeol," Minhee said halfway through her second drink, "if you were going to write a love song, who would it be about?"

I nearly spit out my coffee. "No one. And it wouldn't be a love song. It would be about... tax evasion or something."

"Romantic," Jinwoo deadpanned.

"Hey, someone's gotta sing about it," I said, pointing my straw at him.

Minhee rolled her eyes. "She's deflecting again."

"Obviously," Jinwoo said.

"I'm not deflecting," I insisted. "I'm just not—" I cut myself off, realizing too late I had nowhere to go with that sentence.

Minhee smirked like a cat who'd cornered a mouse. "Not what?"

"Not talking to you anymore," I muttered, sipping furiously at my drink.

They both laughed, and Nari gave a small smile too — but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

After a while, Minhee and Jinwoo left to throw darts at the back of the café, leaving me and Nari at the booth. She was unusually fidgety, tugging at her sleeves, pushing her glasses up and down the bridge of her nose.

"You okay?" I asked quietly.

"Yeah," she said quickly. Too quickly. "Why wouldn't I be?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. You've just been kind of... not yourself lately."

Nari hesitated, then forced a smile. "I guess I'm just... changing things up. You know. Growing."

I nodded slowly, even though something about the way she said it didn't sit right.

We fell into silence until Minhee and Jinwoo came back, loudly debating whether dart throwing counted as a sport. The noise filled the space again, but a little part of me couldn't stop replaying the way Nari had smiled — like she was keeping something behind her teeth.

We stayed until close, the four of us huddled around the booth, laughing at Minhee's terrible doodles and Jinwoo's dramatic retelling of how he'd once dropped an entire tray of drinks on a customer. It was good, it was normal — or at least it felt like it was supposed to be.

But even as I walked home later, the night air sharp and cool, I couldn't shake it.

Nari's new clothes. Her quietness with me. The way she'd lit up a little more whenever Jay's name came up.

I told myself I was imagining it. That she was just in a weird mood. That she'd snap out of it.

But the static in my chest didn't agree.

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A/N: new bf new me :p