jongho
I'll be a the Halazia convenience
store at 7

juniper was practically shitting herself on the way to the meeting spot. she'd been to this particular convenience store once before, on her date with jaemin, but she often went to the one closer to her dorm for necessities. she didn't know how to assure jongho that no matter what he looks like, she was going to be his friend. his looks didn't play a factor in her choice, and she needed him to know that.

she let out a sigh as the store came into view, her breath visible in the cold. june's stomach was in knots, and she had to focus on the pain in her fingers as she squeezed them to distract herself from throwing up.

as she walked into the store, juniper dropped into the first available seat she saw and pulled her phone from her pocket to let jongho know that she'd arrived.

it was quiet for a moment, and she was about to call him to make sure he received her text when the bell by the door jingled.

she let her eyes wander for a moment, not wanting to stare if the stranger wasn't jongho, but couldn't see much other than a stark blue hoodie. the bottom half of the man's face was covered by a black mask, but when his eyes met june's, she thought they were dazzling.

his widened a bit when he noticed her and instantly turned his back. juniper slowly rose to her feet, 65% sure this man was her friend. well, 65 is bigger than 50, she decided as she approached him.

"jongho?" she asked once she was close enough, doing her best not to invade the man's space. she was so curious that she had to shove her hands in her pockets to keep from playing with them.

the man turned at an awfully slow rate, but june knew better than to grow more impatient than she already was. this must have been a huge deal for him, showing his face to someone for the first time. juniper was lucky enough to be that someone.

the blue hoodie was pulled up to cover most of his face, and the black mask covered the rest. the only feature juniper could make out were his eyes, and they left her speechless. "hi, june."

his voice. the way he said her name. he was real.

"you're... you." she managed to stumble out after staring for what felt like minutes. "hi."

"hi," he said again, and june could tell by the light shake in his voice that he was smiling as widely as she was. "you're really pretty."

june felt her entire face heat up at the compliment. "i, um... t-thank you." she couldn't bite back her smile. "you have really pretty eyes."

as if he'd forgotten something, jongho's posture went ridged. "o-oh! i forgot..." then his hoodie was down, and his fingers were hovering over his ears, where the mask strings were wrapped.

and he was beautiful. juniper forced her mouth to stay shut as she stared at the man in front of her. she bit back the cheesy comments and tried to remember that the jongho in front of her was the same jongho online.

"damn. as expected from the goat."

he went red, and juniper couldn't help but laugh. "what?! you're so handsome, jongho!" he covered his face with his hands as he looked around the store at anyone who may have overheard.

when the coast looked clear, jongho turned back toward june with a large, toothy grin. "do you want to watch a movie?" he asked shyly, and june smiled. "yeah, i do."

nova
GIRL???????

nova

nova
YOI ON IAMJONGHO's IG?????

nova
YOU MET HIM??????
LIKE IRL??????

juniper
i diddddd

nova
OMG

nova
IS HE HANDSOME???

nova
HE HAS A NICE VOICE
IS HE NICE TOO???????

nova
i am nosy you cannot leave me
on delivered for more than 10
seconds i will cry

juniper
😭😭 IDK WHAT TO SAYY

juniper
we just hung out

nova
JUST
HUNG OUT???

juniper
i got to see his dorm

juniper
HIS SETUP IS SO ADVANCED
BRO IT MAKES US LOOK LIKE
STARTERS

nova
hold on

nova
you were in his DORM??

nova
ALONE??????

juniper
yeah ?

juniper
i'm still here actually 🤗

nova
HELDKWJDKEJDJKDWHAT

nova
i cant ask for pics right

juniper
he's right next to me 😭😭

juniper
we're watching tv

nova
IM

nova
okay

nova
are we sure he isn't a serial killer

juniper
i mean he's got a toothless plush
in his lap so i think we're okay

nova
🥹 toothless

nova
what are you watching?

juniper
tangled 🫶

nova
so we're keeping him.

juniper
LMAOOOOOO i'll let you know ;)

nova
OOH !

yangyang

yangyang
i have never been so jealous

yangyang
i cant even like it

yangyang
i am in PAIN

yangyang
WHY NOT ME??!!

felix
JUNI?????

felix
explain yourself 😞😢

yangyang
SHES CHEATING ON US

juniper
I AM NOT

felix
EXPLAIN THYSELF 😩😩

juniper
i met jongho THATS ALLLL

lia
no one meets jongho

lia
literally no one

lia
he's like

lia
the biggest mystery in
the streamer world

juniper
well

juniper
i met him !!

yangyang
j am ging to throw
a toddler tantrum

juniper
you do that :)

juniper
back to my jongho date !

yangyang
WAAAAAAAKSKNSNDM
KSJXN 😠😠😠😠😠😡😡
😠😤😤😤😠😠😡😡😠

"they're judging."

"they're not judging!"

jongho let out a sigh as his head fell to the side and landed on june's shoulder. "they are."

juniper didn't mean to freeze up, but the action felt so natural. he just noticed the tension, because before june could let her head fall against his, jongho was a foot away from her. "i'm sorry."

"for what?" she asked, brows furrowed. there was genuine confusion in her voice as she spoke, and june placed her food to the side.

they stared at each other until before she knew it, jongho was on his feet. "i-i don't know if you remember, but when i said i've never... dated before, i was telling the truth." slowly, juniper rose with him. "i remember."

"a-and i really like you..."

"i know."

"and i feel like i'm messing this all up."

juniper hadn't realized how close she'd been getting, but now they were much less than a foot apart. "you aren't."

without thinking at all, juniper leaned in. she shouldn't have been surprised when jongho ducked his head and looks away. her entire being went rigid. she dropped back onto the flats of her feet, embarrassed for being on her tip-toes, to begin with. "i'm sorry, jongho. we don't have to if you're not comfortable, alright?"

"no, i want to! i just..." he swallowed hard before taking a breath, clearly burdened by whatever he wanted to tell her. "dating isn't the only thing i haven't done." he struggled to meet her eyes. "i've never... kissed anyone either."

juniper was unable to fight the small smile that tugged at her lips, tipping her head to the side and slipping her hand into his. "i can show you if you want."

he was quiet, but after a moment, jongho took a slow step forward. "i want to."

with a nod, she leaned up again. june moved much more carefully this time and placed a slow, gentle kiss on his lips.

jongho went stiff beneath her, and juniper took a step forward as she twisted her head and slightly deepened the kiss. he softened but still remained unmoving. pulling away, juniper looked up at the beet-red boy and grinned. "you okay?"

jongho was the one to initiate the kiss this time, his mouth catching hers messily and by surprise. it wasn't perfect, but juniper smiled against his lips as she followed suit.

when she noticed his arms still glued to the sides of his waist, juniper gently took both jongho's arms in her hands and positioned them around her body before looping her own arms around his neck to pull him closer.

now she was beaming, pulling the boy close until she realized it may be too much for a first kiss. when they broke apart, jongho was giggling.

"what's funny?" june asked, but now she was laughing too.

"i just... i mean, i don't know how first kisses are supposed to feel, but i think i'm floating."

juniper's head fell back as she cackled, his grip around her hips tightening so that she wouldn't fall over. when she stabled, june sucked in a shaky breath and smiled at him. "oh my god, i'm actually really flattered right now. was it that good?"

"so good i want another one... if you want! i don't want to make you uncom—"

and just like that, their lips were once again glued.

•
1/3