Jackson was trying to convince him to go... somewhere. Jinyoung wasn't really paying attention.
He'd been to an 8-week student training program at the local hospital last year, but Mrs. Wang wasn't an idiot and knew that an 8-week training program wasn't the same as a medical degree. So Jinyoung's main duties at Hillside Residences were taking care of the residents' non-medical needs. This included things like helping old Mrs. Kang get down the stairs and assuring belligerently anxious Mr. Jung that the Japanese were no longer out patrolling the streets, and that they hadn't for decades now. Jackson followed Jinyoung as he made the rounds, still pressing his case.
"Come on," Jackson said. "It's been over a month, dude. You need to get back out there. Plus, if you don't do this for me, it could ruin the one good things that's happened to me in a really long time!"
Jinyoung bent over to pick up a piece of trash on the ground. Then he turned to face his friend.
"Sorry, what were you talking about, again?" Jinyoung said. Jackson looked unamused.
"You remember that girl I told you I was talking to?" Jackson said.
"I... vaguely remember it," Jinyoung said. "Which one? The one with highlights? And she looks like a cat?"
"That very one," Jackson said, clapping Jinyoung on the chest. "She's smart, she's funny, she's hot, she is literally the girl of my dreams. And we're kind of dating now."
"I'm happy for you," Jinyoung said, walking into a kitchen seeing as this conversation was taking a turn that he'd rather the residents and other caregivers didn't hear about. Jackson followed, and Jinyoung noticed that his friend was dressed nicer than usual.
"Are you two going out tonight?" Jinyoung said, gesturing to Jackson's obviously new jacket and matching pants. Jackson laughed.
"Actually, we are," Jackson said. "There's a carnival that opened up for the weekend downtown, I'm meeting her there."
"So, what does that have to do with me?" Jinyoung asked. "You want my permission or something?"
Jackson laughed but then his face turned solemn quickly. Jinyoung wondered what it was he had to say.
"Well, the thing is," Jackson said, clearing his throat. "My girl's got a friend—,"
"Stop right there," Jinyoung said. "I already know where this is going. The answer's no."
Jinyoung skirted around Jackson and tossed the stray piece of trash into the bin. Then he grabbed a broom and started to sweep the floor. Jackson scoffed, grabbing the broom from him.
"You don't even know what I was going to say," Jackson said. Jinyoung narrowed his eyes at him.
"You were going to ask me to come with you on a double date," Jinyoung said. "And I don't want to."
"But why?" Jackson said, still hounding him.
"I'm working," Jinyoung said.
"Doing what? Changing bed pans and looking out for Japanese soldiers?" Jackson said. "You know my mom would let you have the night out tonight if I asked her."
"Don't ask her," Jinyoung said, giving Jackson a stern look. "We had an agreement, 15% of my rent for three shifts a week. You know I always stand by my commitments."
Jinyoung exited through the back door and headed for the staircase leading up to the rooms. Jackson ran ahead of him, though, and blocked his way. He had an expression of mock hurt on his face.
"What about our friendship, then, huh?" Jackson said. "What about that commitment?"
"Why don't you ask Youngjae to do it?" Jinyoung suggested, turning around and heading back to the kitchen. Jackson chased after him.
"Youngjae's got a girlfriend already," Jackson said. "You're the next best thing. Come on, you haven't even met my girlfriend, yet, I thought this would be a great way for all of us to get to know one another. And you may even end up liking her friend. She could help you get over Nawon!"
Jinyoung rolled his eyes. "No, thanks."
"Jinyoung, I am seriously worried about you," Jackson said. Jinyoung paused and stared at him.
"I've been hearing that a lot."
"Well, maybe it's because you go straight home from class every single day and you only come out for meals and you sleep with a crochet octopus every night."
"I don't sleep with that octopus," Jinyoung said, looking offended. "That octopus hasn't left my desk since I got here. You know I don't sleep with that octopus. Did someone tell you I sleep with that octopus?"
"No, of course not," Jackson said sarcastically. "You're just getting awful defensive about it because you just use it for decoration, right?"
"I'm still not going with you."
"Yes, you are. It's been long enough, Jinyoung," Jackson stepped in front of his friend and blocked Jinyoung from leaving the room. He gave Jackson a challenging stare, one that Jackson just threw right back at him.
"You keep saying you're over her, but the way you're acting isn't exactly convincing me," Jackson said. "You say you're over her, but you don't leave your place for hours on end and you avoid people and horde stuff. All I'm asking for is one evening. After that, you can go back to moping. Hell, you could mope tonight, too, but just do it while you're on this double date with me."
Jinyoung sighed and then leaned back against the kitchen island. He crossed his arms, still giving Jackson a stern, challenging look. He wanted to deny everything Jackson said, but his friend was much more stubborn than Jinyoung was. He knew that if he put up a fight, Jackson would outlast him. But the stern look on Jackson's face faded away and was replaced with a gentler expression.
"I'm telling you, this girl..." Jackson said, his eyes glossing over as he thought about his girlfriend.
"I mean, it's kind of too early to tell, but I just got a good feeling, you know?" Jackson said. "This is literally the first, ever, thing she's asked me for. Well, actually, her friend asked her to ask me for this favor, and you know how girls are with their friends' boyfriends. This could be like a test, you know? If I don't pull through, what is she gonna think?"
Jinyoung really did not want to go. But Jackson's little speech about his new girlfriend was the happiest he'd seen his friend in a long time. He'd never had a girl cheat on him, but he'd been unlucky in the dating department all the same. And he was right, girls were protective of each other. If Jackson didn't win the approval of his girlfriend's friend group, it would be a hard walk through life for him.
Jinyoung supposed one evening wouldn't hurt. And besides, if it turned out well, he may not have to accept Jisoo's proposal after all; he could just ask this girl to the gala.
"One evening."
Jackson fist pumped the air and then clapped Jinyoung hard against the chest again, momentarily knocking the air out of his lungs.
"Yes! You're the man!" Jackson shouted. "Whoo! Park Jinyoung, back in the game! Thank you, man. I promise it'll be painless. I won't even be mad if you decide to ditch her in the middle of it. I mean, I'll be a little mad, but you're not the type so—"
"Right, yeah, sure," Jinyoung said, rubbing the spot where Jackson had hit his chest. "So what time are we meeting them?"
"In like an hour," Jackson said, checking his watch. He looked Jinyoung up and down and saw that his friend was still wearing an apron. "So you better get dressed."
"Right," Jinyoung said. He was about to turn and go up to his room to change when he suddenly realized, he'd never asked Jackson a particular question: "So... who is your new girlfriend, anyway?"
"Jennie!" Jackson shouted over the noise of the carnival. "Baby, over here!"
He waved his arms over his head trying to get her attention. Jinyoung squinted a little, trying to see over people's heads at the girl who had won his friend's heart over. The girl with the highlights who looked a little like a cat. It was a warm evening, and the carnival grounds were swarming with people. Lights and sounds and smells abounded. Through the commotion, however, Jinyoung was able to spot a pretty girl with long, wavy brown hair. Her almond-shaped eyes had a certain feline quality, and her smile was more of a smirk. There was another girl next to her.
Jennie spotted Jackson right away. She tugged on Jisoo's arm and pointed to him.
"Oh! That's him, look over there, it's my new boyfriend!" Jennie said. Jisoo looked up and saw the boy waving his arms around, standing next to another boy who barely moved at all.
"Isn't he cute?" Jennie said, giggling. "Jackson!"
Jennie pulled Jisoo along as she navigated the crowd, closing in on where Jackson was standing, waiting for her with his friend. When they found each other, Jennie beamed at her boyfriend.
"Hey!" she said brightly. "We almost couldn't find this place. You'd think it'd be obvious with all the lights and the giant ferris wheel, but Jisoo made us get off at the wrong stop."
Jackson laughed, and so did Jennie, but Jinyoung and Jisoo could only look at each other with white, blank stares.
"That's tough," Jackson said. "You should have called me, we could have gone to get you two. Good thing you got here alright, though. Did you have any trouble?"
Jackson and Jennie flirted a bit more before they realized that their neither of their friends had said a word. Jennie tugged on Jisoo's arm, bringing her closer.
"This is my friend—"
"Jisoo?" Jinyoung said, finally. Both Jennie and Jackson looked startled at him.
"You two know each other?" Jackson asked.
"Jinyoung?" Jisoo said. Jennie and Jackson exchanged surprised looks with each other.
"Oh, so you guys have met?" Jennie asked.
"In a manner of speaking," said Jisoo, eyes wide and looking slightly panicked. Jackson started laughing gently.
"Wow. This is perfect!" he said. "I guess we can just bypass the awkward introduction stage, then, and skip right to making out!"
Jinyoung turned to Jackson with a slightly shocked expression, and Jackson pounded him on the chest again. "I'm kidding," Jackson said. "Loosen up, we're on a date with two gorgeous girls. At least act like you're having a good time."
"Have either of you two been here before?" Jennie said, jumping in and trying to chase away the sudden awkwardness. Jackson smiled at her. He reached out to take her hand and Jennie stepped closer to him, leaving Jisoo alone to face Jinyoung.
"Nope, never," Jackson said. "So, what do you girls wanna do first? Hey, wanna see me hit the bell on the high striker? I can do it, you know?"
Jennie leaned into his arm and laughed. "You are so full of yourself."
"You look so cute when you're teasing me."
Then, almost as if their friends had turned invisible, Jennie and Jackson turned and walked off into the carnival, hand-in-hand, giggling like a pair of newborn, love struck puppies. Jinyoung was left alone with Jisoo. He turned to her and sighed, not knowing what to do next. He wasn't expecting this. He wasn't expecting to see Jisoo. A few days had passed since she confronted him at his school about the whole fake boyfriend scheme.
She was wearing an army jacket over a striped shirt, plain blue jeans and black combat boots. A sharp contrast to Jennie's powder blue date night outfit. Jinyoung was also wearing a comparatively plain outfit compared to Jackson. Between the four of them, it was easy to tell which two were actually dating.
"This is awkward," Jisoo said.
"Yeah," Jinyoung answered. They stood there, quiet, for a long time.
"So..." Jinyoung said, braving the silence. "You asked Jennie to set you up with her boyfriend's friend?"
"I didn't know it was going to be you, if that's what you're suggesting," Jisoo said. She started walking with her hands in her pockets. Jinyoung fell into step beside her, trying to keep Jennie and Jackson in their sights.
"I guess that means you're still looking for a fake boyfriend, then, huh?" Jinyoung asked. "Was your plan to spring your business proposition on Jennie's boyfriend's poor unsuspecting friend tonight?"
In fact, that had been exactly her plan, but he had ruined that by being the one to show up tonight. But Jisoo wasn't about to admit that to him.
"You can leave if you want," Jisoo said. Jinyoung was taken aback.
"What?"
"I said, you can just leave if you want," Jisoo said. "I won't care."
He wanted to, actually. He didn't even want to come in the first place. But Jinyoung always prided himself in being the kind of person who does what he says he's going to do, and he told Jackson he would try his best to be a good date tonight, and he meant it.
"I don't care if you don't care," he said cryptically.
Jisoo cast him a puzzled look.
"That literally made no sense," she said.
They kept on walking through the carnival. Thick crowds of people meant that they bumped into people all the time, and occasionally knocked shoulders, but Jisoo was determined not to show any kind of reaction. They'd lost track of Jennie and Jackson after several minutes of aimless wandering. The last time Jisoo saw her, Jennie was standing by the high striker and Jackson had discarded his jacket to show off his muscles.
She was glad that Jennie was having a good time, but Jisoo had been looking forward to enjoying herself, too. It had been a while since she had been on a date and she loved fairs and carnivals. Thick crowds of happy people and a large array of sounds and smells provided a great scope for creativity.
But she wasn't planning to run into Jinyoung here. If she could get him to leave, maybe she could at least sit on a bench and people-watch until Jennie was ready to go home.
"I'm sorry to disappoint you if you were actually looking forward to having a good time tonight," Jinyoung said, as if he had read her mind.
"But we both know that the more time we spend together, the more likely it is we'll fight. Jackson really likes Jennie, and I don't wanna ruin the evening by making this about me and you."
Jisoo was about to punch back with a witty reply, but she was surprised to find herself... touched by his concern for his friend. Jinyoung was staring ahead, dodging small children who were running wild with candy apples, his profile illuminated by the strands of light bulbs overhead.
"Jennie really likes Jackson, too," Jisoo said diplomatically. "She wouldn't stop talking about him the entire ride over. Yesterday, she came home late and then gushed to me the rest of the night. I... I did ask her for the favor, but mostly I was curious about him."
"Curious about Jackson?" Jinyoung asked.
"Yeah," Jisoo said. "I just wanted to see if the sun really does shine out his ass. The way she talks about, you'd think so."
Jinyoung actually laughed.
"How long have the two of you been friends?" he asked.
"Me and Jennie?" she asked. "We met at freshman orientation four years ago. Most people are surprised to find out that we're best friends."
"Why?"
Jisoo bristled. She loved Jennie, no doubt. She was kind-hearted and fiercely loyal and Jisoo trusted her with everything she had. But Jisoo sometimes could help but feel like her own faults became more pronounced when they were together. She sometimes wished they were the pair of friends that people mistook for sisters because of how similar they were, but the truth was, they couldn't be more alike.
Jennie was cool and chic. She was suave and confident and always knew exactly what to say. She was always two weeks ahead of every fashion trend and knew exactly what to say to get boys to buy her drinks. Jisoo wasn't jealous, though. She wasn't really even that upset, it's just that her self-esteem tended to fluctuate, especially when she couldn't meet her own expectations of herself.
"You've seen her," Jisoo said, trying to wave the question away. "She's... athletic and looks like a model and knows how to flirt and has been to Europe and... she eats kale."
Jinyoung scoffed. "And, let me guess: you don't eat kale? Wow. You're right. A kale-eater and non-kale-eaters, your friendship is doomed."
Jisoo scoffed to keep herself from laughing. "Anyway, like I said, you don't have to stay if you don't to."
Jinyoung stuffed his hands into his pockets and slowed to a stop. Jisoo followed suit.
"Actually... I've been meaning to talk to you," he said. Jisoo crinkled her brows at him.
"Why?"
Jinyoung let out a slow breath, chose his words carefully:
"If I said yes to your business proposal, how would that work?"
Jisoo was surprised. She examined his face to make sure he wasn't messing with her. When she found no trace of jest in his expression, she took a deep breath and started to explain:
"Well, first of all, you'd have to come in and meet Julie Kiyoko," Jisoo said. "So that she knows you're a real person. I'd have to set up a fake online profile or something and post pictures as evidence of shared history. There'll be company events, you'd have to come with me. Other than that, we won't have to spend another minute together."
"And how much would you pay me?" Jinyoung said.
"That depends on how much they'll pay me, and how well you do," she said. She held his gaze for a long time, giving him a stern look.
"Are you actually... saying yes to the deal?" she said, trying not to get her hopes up. Jinyoung bit the inside of his cheek, examining his options.
"Almost," he said. "But first, I have some conditions, too."
Jisoo scoffed. "No. You don't get to make conditions."
"Then count me out. Good night," Jinyoung turned and walked away. Jisoo's mouth fell ajar. She marched toward him, determined.
"Wait. Jinyoung!" she said, dodging people and screaming children to get to him. When she reached him, she grabbed the back of his shirt to slow him down and then stood in front of him. Jinyoung crossed his arms and looked at her expectantly. What a drag, she thought.
"Fine," Jisoo said, huffing her breath. "Name your terms." Jinyoung smirked.
"I need you to return the favor," he said. "I need you to come to an event with me."
Jisoo was surprised. "What kind of event?"
"The bio department holds the Scholars' Gala every year honoring the graduates," Jinyoung explained, taking her arm and leading her away from a crowd of hooting teenagers so they could talk. Jisoo tugged her arm out of his hand again.
"It's a formal event, so you'll need something to wear," he said. "It's in two weeks. In the evening, starts around 7. Be my date."
Jisoo looked amused at him. "A quid pro quo," she said. Jinyoung stood up straighter.
"Seems fair, doesn't it?"
In spite of the fact that Jisoo had hated Jinyoung for the better part of ten years, she couldn't stop herself from thinking oh god, a boy is asking me out, and she hated how pathetic and girly the voice in her head sounded. She forced herself to remember that this was just a negotiation of a business deal, nothing more. She crossed her arms.
"Alright, then, fine," she said, trying to sound a good deal more reluctant than she was. "I'll go. Do we have a deal?"
Jinyoung held himself back from saying yes just yet. He looked Jisoo up and down. Despite all the things she had said earlier about being vastly different from Jennie, Jisoo wasn't ugly. Not by a long shot. Maybe she didn't look like a voluptuous Victoria's Secret bombshell, but her features were pleasing, heart-warming almost. Her eyes were shaped like half moons and they shined wide with wonder. And even though she could be overbearing and stubborn and over dramatic and petty and generally crazy, she more than made up for it with heart and fighting spirit. Jinyoung was sure she could have any man she wanted.
"Just out of curiosity," Jinyoung said, "Why me? I thought you said you hated me with the 'fury of a thousand burning stars.'"
"I still do. So?" Jisoo said. Jinyoung shrugged.
"Then why me?" he asked. "Why not just find some other guy that you like more, ask him out on a real date? Why do you need me? Do boys not like you?"
"Boys like me just fine, thank you very much," she snapped. Jinyoung smirked.
"So then why the fake date scheme?"
It was a question Jisoo had asked herself before. Why didn't she just settle for one of the boys she'd messaged online? She didn't she just work up some courage and ask Jaebum out?
"Because..." she said, bristling. "I believe in fate."
Jinyoung blinked. "That's not an answer."
"I wasn't finished!" she snapped. She took a deep breath.
"I know that somewhere out there is the right man for me," she said. "And I'll meet him someday when fate decides that the time is right. But for now, I can't force fate to show its hand, I have to be patient. But this isn't the way I want my own love story to unfold. It's embarrassing and dishonest and crazy, and... to put things indelicately, I'd rather do this with someone I have no intention of actually falling in love with."
Jinyoung looked into her eyes and he knew that she meant it. And he didn't doubt that she'd get her way. When Kim Jisoo set her mind on something, no one could stop her. He'd learned that in high school.
"And that means me, huh?" he said.
"One more thing," said Jisoo.
"What?"
"Our little high school rivalry," she said, almost as if this time, she had read his mind.
"What about it?"
"That has to be kept out," she said. Of course, she had considered the fact that she and Jinyoung didn't like each other when she was coming up with her plan. It might have been better if she'd picked a boy she had a better relationship with. But Jisoo didn't have many (or any) guy friends, and she figured it would be easier to fool Julie Kiyoko into believing she'd found love so soon after the interview if she could convince Julie that her boyfriend was someone from her childhood.
"I'm not saying we have to be friends or anything," Jisoo said. "But if we're going to make this work, if we're going to be business partners, all that baggage can't be there. I am totally fine setting aside our unresolved differences just this once. That's not a problem for me. But I have to know that this won't be a problem for you, either."
Of course, it wouldn't be a problem, Jinyoung thought. Unlike Jisoo, for whom the events of high school were as fresh as if they'd happened yesterday, Jinyoung had actually done some growing up in the four years they spent apart. There were things that happened back then for which he still hadn't forgiven her, but he was mature enough to leave the past in the past for now.
"Not at all," he said. Jisoo gave an assured nod.
"Good," she said. "Do we have a deal then?"
"I'm all yours."