R E A D E R
"Registration has began! We have to submit our application before it's too late, so I need you all to listen to me." Sarutobi's voice resonated in the art club room "Three members have to submit an individual piece of work, along with a group work to which every single member has contributed to." setting her dark brown orbs on me, she nodded in my direction "Obviously, you won't be one of the three. So, apart from Y/n, who feels confident enough to send an individual work?"
There was a long pause during which we were silently staring at each other. The fact that Sarutobi was on serious mode did not help at all; she was freaking intimidating.
At some point, Kwon broke the silence.
"We should vote."
We all agreed, silently bobbing our heads in agreement. The president could not fight that.
"Fine." she said "All of us will write two names on a piece of paper. Fold it then place it in that box." she pointed her finger at an empty box of tissues "Who wants to proceed to the counting?"
I raised my hand right away. "I'll do it since I won't be elected anyway."
The next ten minutes were quiet. We were thinking hard, willing to chose the most skilled members. Sarutobi was obviously one of them, but I couldn't possibly chose between the rest. They were all talented in their own way. But of course, some of us were better than others. And by us, I meant them (considering I was most definitely the least talented).
Eventually, the moment of truth arrived. One by one, I counted the votes and made sure to build up suspense to make it more interesting.
"Can you start already!" Kwon yelled
I read the first vote. "Sarutobi, Solene and Hyemon."
While I read the names, Jae wrote them on the blackboard and marked a cross next to each of them whenever they had votes.
"Hyemon, Jungkook and Sarutobi."
Jungkook's gaze and mine met, but he quickly looked away. Knowing him, he was probably being shy.
"Y/n," I frowned "Sarutobi and Sol—huh, someone wrote Solange instead of Solene." I scanned the room to discover who had written these names, but all my fellow members seemed innocent.
Solene timidly raised her hand. "It is Solange, actually..."
I pursed my lips, incredibly ashamed.
"Why don't you ever correct me?" I tilted my head on the side "Jae even wrote Solene on the blackboard!"
The girl with beautiful brown locks smiled sheepishly. "I don't really mind, as long as Jungkook gets my name right." then she turned to the quiet boy "You know my name's Solange. Right, boo?"
Cheeks tainted in a shade of pink, he rolled his eyes in a vain attempt to get her off his back. It only resulted in Sole—Solange giggling.
At some point, the president snapped her fingers so that we'd focus on what was really important.
I picked a new piece of paper. "Jungkook, Sarutobi, and Kwon."
Jae exclaimed. "Looks like president is doing it!"
The girl nodded with a serious demeanor, readjusting her glasses on top of her nose. She was excited, anyone could tell by the look in her eyes. "Soleil, Sarutobi and Jungkook. Next is Kwon, Sarutobi and Solaris. Congrats Sol', you're in top three!"
The young girl clapped her hands out of excitement, smiling widely.
"The last vote will be read in a few seconds. If Jungkok gets a vote, he will win. If Kwon does, we will have to run a new election opposing Jungkook to Kwon." Everyone was staring at me in anticipation, dying to know which name would come out. "Sol, Sarutobi, and Jungkook." I read outloud.
In synch, my fellow members clapped their hands to congratulate the elected. Our most talented members would represent Bangtan High. This was beyond thrilling! I was suddenly getting excited, willing to do my best along with my teammates to ensure our victory. Jungkook, Sarutobi, and Solange deserved it anyway.
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"Y/n, just draw a flower or something."
To make sure we'd submit our application on time, the art club stayed later than usual to complete the group work. It was a simple painting portraying the school's gate with seven headless students holding each others' hands in the front.
"Need a hand?" Hyemon asked as she watched me paint flowers around the characters. I nodded. "Seems like it." the girl chuckled and picked a brush
The both of us then painted in a peaceful silence.
"Where is everyone?"
She shrugged. "I think Kwon had to leave earlier. Jungkook and Sarutobi were at the vending machine. Don't know about the others."
There was a long pause before Hyemon spoke again. Her voice was unusually quiet, as if she was deep in her thoughts while spitting senseless words.
"I hope it'll work."
Curious, I turned my face towards her. She smiled to herself.
"This is our last chance." she added "Next year, most of us won't stay. Winning the contest would be a great gift for all of us, but especially president. She doesn't show it, but I know it means the world to her."
"Then we'll do our best." I smiled
We spent the next twenty minutes painting in complete silence, until we were finally done. At the same time, Jungkook and Jae appeared in the room. The latter called Sarutobi and Solange, so that we could take a final look at the painting all together.
I stood beside Jungkook with butterflies in the stomach as I stared at the painting. It was honestly beautiful.
"They cannot reject our application!"
We smiled at the words of the president. She spoke for a few minutes, mostly to thank us. After that, we exited the deserted school. Since it was quite late, Jungkook offered to walk me home.
"That's so sweet of you, but Haneul is waiting for me." I smiled
For almost ten seconds, he stayed silent. Then a frown appeared on his face.
"Who?"
I frowned as well. "Haneul? My boyfriend. Come on, I talk about him at least once a day!"
The boy shrugged. "Riiight." he rolled his eyes "I'll tag along."
"What?" I suddenly stopped walking "And why would you do that?"
"Why not? I've never met him."
I couldn't believe him. "You actually did! You don't even pay attention to him whenever he's around."
"You know how I am with strangers!"
"So, why would you want to walk with the both of us if you're uncomfortable around Haneul?"
There was a short silence during which I spotted Haneul, standing across the street. He waved at me. I did the same.
"You're my friend, and I want to know what kind of guy he is. Is it so bad to care for you?"
I didn't want to get angry when Haneul was only a few meters away. No matter how weird it would be to walk with my boyfriend and Jungkook, I couldn't just leave the latter behind.
"Are you embarrassed by me?" He cocked an eyebrow, looking down at me. For the first time, I thought he was extremely indimating.
Immediately, I shook my head no. "Of course not, but I know you!"
He then nodded his head, probably satisfied with my reaction. "Again, I would like to tag along."
My eyes shifted towards the poor boy who was still waiting for me in the cold. In a hurry, I made my decision.
With a heavy sigh, I nodded. "Fine."
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