When Soojung woke up that morning, she was surprised to recieve a message that was very out of the ordinary.
A message from Jeno.
Jeno
I'll pick you up in the back parking lot.
Demanding, why am I not surprised, Soojung thought as she typed her reply to Jeno.
Her fingers remained hovered over the keyboard as she recalled what Jaemin had said to her the other day, reminding her about how she really shouldn't be interacting with someone like Jeno.
It's for the cats though, Soojung thought as she got ready for the day, brewing her coffee.
I'm not going for him, we're literally feeding cats together. Harmless. It's not like I'm sleeping with him or anything.
Soojung stared at her phone, quickly sending the message to Jeno before putting her phone on the table, ignoring it as she finished getting ready for school.
...
Soojung
Okay, see you then!
"You seem happy." Renjun said, leaning over the counter to try to get a glimpse of Jeno's phone. Jeno quickly slid it in his pocket, making the art student pout.
"Just sealed a good deal, that's all." Jeno said but he was certain that Renjun could see through his lie.
"Mhmm." Renjun said, moving past Jeno to get some food.
Jaemin was already out of the house with Haechan, the two of them meeting up with Mark and Ayeon at school. Chenle and Jisung were also out, enjoying the remainder of the high school days.
That left Jeno and Renjun alone.
Renjun was without a doubt the most level-headed of them all, the one that was the most logical. One would rarely catch Renjun doing something stupid, unless it was something that Renjun had already known was dumb but had purposedly done it to prove a point. That was the type of person Renjun was.
In a way, Renjun reminded Jeno of Doyoung, someone that Jeno could easily talk to and trust with any secrets he had. Jaemin was a great friend, like a brother, but even Jeno knew that sometimes, Jaemin would let his emotions take over. Jeno had seen it when Jaemin reported Haechan's relationship with Ayeon to Taeyong.
Renjun on the other hand, wasn't like that. He was upfront and honest all the time, and although the truth could hurt sometimes, Jeno respected it.
Which is why Jeno stood there, the mug in his hands as he thought about whether he should really confess about the real reason why he was staring at his phone.
"Do you ever gain any satisfaction from being with different girls all the time?" Renjun asked.
I guess he wants to talk about something else instead.
"Why do you ask?" Jeno said, partially because he didn't want to answer the question, partially because he was genuinely curious.
"I don't know." Renjun said as he sat down on one of the stools, picking off parts of the bun he heated up and placing them in his mouth. "I just don't see why people do things like that. It just seems... weird."
"I mean, seeing different people keeps things interesting." Jeno said, trying to make excuses. Renjun shrugged.
"Don't you ever get sick of it? Like don't you ever just want to pick one person? Or do you ever get attached?"
"No?" Jeno said but the fact that it came out as a question made Renjun raise an eyebrow. Jeno quickly cleared his throat with a cough. "If you're asking if I want to date like Haechan and Ayeon, the answer is no."
Renjun simply placed another piece of the bun in his mouth and Jeno could tell that he had heard what Jeno said but chose not to react.
"I don't know, Jeno. Even though things didn't end well with Seolhee, it doesn't change the fact that you were happy back then." Renjun stated.
"What are you implying?" Jeno asked, knowing there was a lot more to Renjun's words as he stood up, returning the plate to the sink.
"It's just that the Jeno that you put out into the world isn't the Jeno I know. It's not the Jeno we all know." Renjun said before walking pass Jeno to his room.
...
"Do you have any hobbies?" Ms. Kim asked as Soojung replaced the woman's bandages.
"Not really." Soojung told her. "I'm pretty busy with my studies and my work here so I don't really have time for hobbies."
It seemed as though Ms. Kim was beginning to warm up to Soojung and the girl wasn't sure if it was a good thing or not as Ms. Kim was a chatty person. Very chatty.
At some points, Soojung wondered if the woman was gaining her memory back but she would always mumble to herself afterwards, convincing Soojung otherwise.
"That's unfortunate." Ms. Kim said as Soojung moved to her other leg. "What about likes and dislikes? Dogs or cats?"
"Cats." Soojung answered without a moment of hesitation. "Kittens are the absolute cutest things on this earth."
"Really?" Ms. Kim asked and Soojung noticed that the woman had sat straighter. "Wasn't it always puppies for you?"
"For me?" Soojung asked back, surprised. We've never talked about this before.
"Am I just saying weird things again?" Ms. Kim mumbled. Soojung nodded her head.
She must be tired, Soojung thought as Ms. Kim let out a loud yawn.
"Are you almost done?"
"Almost." Soojung said, securing the last of the bandages. "There."
Ms. Kim nodded, giving Soojung a small smile as she left the hospital room, making her way out to the hallway.
Soojung sighed as she stretched her arms above her head. She was fully aware that Ms. Kim's burns would not heal and the woman needed to have her skin replaced but apparently, without any family or insurance, Ms. Kim's hospital bills could not be paid for, meaning that she could not get surgery. The only thing that the hospital could do was continue to replace her bandages, which was basically Soojung's main job.
Soojung felt bad for the woman. Even though Soojung had moved to Neo City for school, living away from her family, she still occaisionally called to keep in touch with them. Soojung couldn't imagine a life without them, and felt terrible that Ms. Kim had no one for her.
It must be so hard, Soojung thought as she looked up to see Jaemin waiting for her.
"You've been taking longer and longer." Jaemin said to her, which was when Soojung remembered that Jeno was picking her up.
"You can go ahead first." Soojung told him. "I can take the bus."
"You shouldn't bus this late at night." Jaemin warned her but Soojung shrugged.
"Doesn't the gang need you?" Soojung replied. She watched as Jaemin hesitated for a moment before narrowing his eyes.
"How did you know that?" Jaemin asked her. Soojung bit the inside of her cheek, trying not to let Jaemin know that the question had caught her off guard.
"You're a medical student. I'm sure that's very useful in a gang like the Pheonixes." Soojung said before whispering. "Plus, I'm probably going to take a while and the patients are starting to stare."
Jaemin glanced around and sure enough, a few patients were already giving him looks just because of the leather jacket he wore.
"Okay fine. Get home safe, I don't want to do my labs alone." Jaemin said, turning towards the exit.
"See you." Soojung ask, internally praying that he didn't bump into Jeno on the way out.
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