i held on to my books as i walked through the school hallways. it had been a week of classes and i still could get lost in this place in a matter of five seconds.
after asking around for the location of the library, to at least five different people, i had finally found it. pushing through the doors, i looked at my watch. 4:05pm.
tucking my hair behind my ear, i glanced at the tables, trying to look for him. however, as i had suspected, there was no sign of him at all. i could've just quit and exited right back through those doors, but i couldn't give him the satisfaction of being able to say i wasn't there.
well, at least i could get some studying going.
i chose the farthest table from the door, hidden behind a couple of bookshelves. placing my books on it, i pulled the chair and sat down, deciding to open my algebra book and practice some of the exercises. i had always been good at math, and it had always been something i was quite interested in, however, i didn't know how to make a career of it.
maybe because i was more of a practical girl, engineering had always pulled me. however, it was a tough field and i often wondered if i'd have the skills for it, especially in a world where women are so often overlooked when it comes to more practical jobs.
i tapped my finger against my chin, reviewing some of the work i had to deliver by the end of the following week. i kept checking my watch, trying to decide when it would be a good time to actually give up, and i decided i would stay until five, at most.
because i finished my exercises within half an hour, i decided to just wander through the bookshelves and try to find a good book to read. getting to the fiction section, i searched for english books, which they didn't seem to have a ton. i chuckled as i found a copy of twilight in english, picking it up and staring at the cover.
"don't tell me you're team edward," why'd this kid have to show up at the worst situations.
"don't tell me there aren't any watches where you come from," i turned to him slightly, rolling my eyes. "you're late."
" could've been later, and could've not shown up. but i figured, if i was too late you would probably leave, and if i didn't come i would miss that annoyed face of yours," he smirked, shoving his hands inside his pockets.
"you sure seem to enjoy seeing my face a lot," i decided to bite, which could maybe lead to him stopping with his attitude. this, however, only edged him on.
"are you flirting with me, anastasia-ssi?" he faked a gasp. i huffed.
"if i was actually flirting with you, you'd be begging for me, actually," i said, without actually realizing what my words could mean. i put the book back on the shelf. shut up this moment, anastasia.
he lifted his eyebrows questioningly, almost as if asking me to prove it to him. this time, however, i didn't give him the satisfaction. "but now that you're here, follow me. we'll do some grammar exercises," i turned around and walked back towards the table i had been sitting at.
"i know what kind of exercises we could do," he said in a low tone, almost as if i wasn't meant to listen, which i unfortunately did. i decided to ignore him, however, my body didn't ignore him at all, as a slight blush covered my cheeks.
"sit," i pointed to the chair in front of mine, and he straight up ignored me and went around the table, taking a seat right next to me.
i shifted in my seat. somehow, him being this close made me feel uncomfortable like i had never felt before. i'd been close to guys before, and none had made me feel this uncomfortable. maybe it was because he smelled like a dream and his biceps were right against my arm, his forearms slightly grazing my own now and then.
we started with the basics of english grammar. he surprisingly listened to me, maybe he was truly interested in understanding some english, maybe he just didn't want me to report him misbehaving to ms jung, due to how his record was probably already damaged. i had him repeat a few phrases, trying to hide my smile whenever his accent or the way he said some things made him look just a tiny bit cute. but i'd never admit that.
"so, anyway, i've been meaning to ask you..." he stopped me mid-sentence as i was trying to explain how to conjugate the past perfect. "does your mom work for my parents?"
i nodded. "yes, she was hired as a marketing executive. that's why we're here in the first place."
"so... if my parents fire your mom, you'll have to leave?" i turned to look at him slightly. for the first time, i actually realized where he was going with this.
"yes, maybe. why, do you plan on blackmailing me with that or something? you know, i've watched a lot of movies where this happens and the hero always ends up winning in the end," i said in a serious tone. he burst out laughing in my face.
"once again, just seeing your face right there was worth it for me," he finally spoke after a few moments of laughter. "but you know, it's funny that i could basically influence your whole life, where you live, which school you go to... if only i wanted to."
"so what... does it make you happy to know that? because it would be so funny to ruin someone else's job?" i gritted my teeth. this wasn't even about me anymore, it was about my mother and how hard she had worked for her job.
"it makes me happy to know i'm in control," he reached his hand forward slightly, his fingers brushing against my own. he turned his head, and i could feel his breathing against my cheek. "i like being in control," he said in almost a whisper.
i hated how my body reacted to him. i was supposed to be angry, he had just almost threatened to have my mother fired. and yet here i was, a shiver running down my spine, my eyes closing and my teeth sinking into my bottom lip. i quickly snapped out of it, removing my hand and pushing my chair to the side, gaining some distance from him.
"yeah well, i don't care," i cleared my throat as he leaned back in his chair, his thumb running across his bottom lip.
"for what it's worth, i wouldn't do it," he shrugged. i gave him an inquiring look. "mess with your mother's work, i mean. i could hate you, but i have enough integrity not to blame your mother for it."
i nodded. i wasn't fully convinced, but there was something about the way he spoke his words that made me want to believe him. "why'd you come today?"
he seemed surprised by the question. "i told you, i wanted to see your--"
"no, i mean, why did you come, really? i don't know you at all and seeing my annoyed face as you call it can't mean that much to you," i explained, tapping my pen against my notebook.
he ran his hand through his hair and took a deep breath. "fine, maybe, just maybe, i actually want to learn english and i'm not that great at it."
"why is it important to you?" i asked, out of curiosity. maybe if i could know a bit more about him, if i could dig a bit deeper into who he was, i would figure out why he acts the way he does.
"i guess it's important to my parents, you know, because they want me to take over their business one day," he shrugged. "and i know i disappoint them a lot with what i do sometimes, so maybe if i can do this one thing for them, it'll almost make up for it," he spoke the last part a lot lower than usual, as if it was a secret.
"we always think we're a disappointment to our parents, it's in every kid's nature," i spoke. maybe that was something he needed to hear. "and you know, you can always change your ways if you think they feel that way."
"you say that like it's easy," he shook his head and looked at me. "you come from a very different reality, you know? here, every single one of us is expected to succeed. and if we start falling back, then we can never get back up."
"but clearly your parents want to trust you, if they speak about you taking over their business," i tried to reason with him. i felt like we had hit a topic that was maybe a tad too sensitive for him, and yet this was the moment i was starting to see him, the real taehyung.
"and i don't know if i deserve that kind of trust," he said, and i broke all my rules and reached out, grabbing his hand and holding it.
"you do, you can be a better you if you only want to," i said, and i saw him gulp. his eyes shifted between my own and our hands, and i quickly let go, blushing violently. he sat back up, his back tensing.
"i should go," he stood up, grabbing his things and shooting me one last look. it was almost like he wanted to thank me and yet the words didn't come out. "i uh-- i'll see you around."
i didn't even have the time to say or do anything else as he almost sprinted his way out of the place. i lifted my hand, waving goodbye to no one, my hand then slapping against my forehead. what were you thinking, anastasia?
i looked at my own hand, the same that was still bandaged, and held it against my chest. maybe there really were a bunch of reasons why taehyung was the way he was. and i was determined to find out all of them.
***
author's note:
finally a full on stae chapter! is that even a good ship name? taestasia? anahyung? nah, i do like stae better. also, i made a new cover, what do you guys think of it? and what did you guys think of these two?
let me know your thoughts in the comments and vote if you liked this chapter! thank you so much to everyone who has commented and voted so far, it really keeps me going and makes me happy to know people are enjoying it!