MIA

"D-date?"

I stuttered, the word catching me off guard. We weren't on a date, were we? I mean, on a date, you hang out with someone you like, but I didn't like him that way... I was just happy that we were talking like we used to, and sometimes my heart did this weird thing, but that didn't...

"Hey, where did your mind wander off?" he snapped me out of my thoughts. I blinked a few times, trying to shake off the daydreams that had me floating on a cloud.

"Oh, nothing, let's dig in," I replied, hoping he wouldn't notice the lingering smile on my face. He seemed unconvinced but decided to let it go for now.

I took my fork and began devouring the food in front of me. "Oh my...this is delicious!" I exclaimed between each delightful bite.

"You're definitely a chef," I declared, my mouth filled with gimbap. He laughed out loud, his laughter infectious.

"Well, thank you, and eat little by little," he advised. I nodded, savoring every mouthful, but then my attention was caught by something he dropped on his plate.

"What's that?" I asked, curious.

"It's a sauce, it just adds more flavor," he casually shrugged it off, but I wasn't convinced. The gimbap seemed delicious on its own, without anything extra.

"I'm good, thank you, though," I replied, not wanting to mess with perfection. I heard him sigh, and then I noticed him take a sliced gimbap from his plate and dip it into the reddish sauce. He stretched his hand and held the combo close to my face.

"What are you doing?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Just try it, Mia," he said, his voice slightly deeper than usual as he effortlessly said my name. I couldn't help but secretly wish he called my name more often. Slowly, I reached out for his chopstick and placed it into my mouth. The moment I bit into the combo, I knew I had found heaven.

"Where have you been all my life?" I exclaimed, staring at the sauce as though it was a genie fulfilling my wish just now.

"This is my new favorite snack ever!" I declared, looking at a happy Jackson as I took another sample.

"Better than a chicken burger?" he teased, causing me to pause with the sauced gimbap almost at my mouth. I looked at him, and he seemed flustered, scratching his head and averting his gaze.

"I mean...I heard Ethan say that it was your favorite, so now you're saying this is your favorite?" He stumbled over his words, and I couldn't help but giggle at this new side of him.

"You're funny," I muttered, pinching his cheeks and realizing how soft they were. "Well I do like chicken burgers, but I love gimbap now," I took another bite and playfully ate it, showing him just how much I enjoyed it.

"Hey, you have something there," he chuckled, raising his hand to wipe away a smudge on my lips.

This guy!

"Mia, your face is red again. Are you sure you're okay?" he looked worried, and I wanted to punch something.

"Why do you ask that every time? It's your fault I'm like this," I whispered under my breath.

"I'm fine, it just happens. Don't worry," I waved it off and secretly moved my chair a little farther away from him.

"Okay then, do you want to watch a movie?" he asked, taking our plates to the sink.

"I'm not sure, it's getting late," I glanced outside, even though it didn't really seem late. I was contemplating if I would be able to find a cab if I stayed here any longer.

"Oh, don't worry, I'll drop you off," he shrugged his shoulders and started washing the dishes.

"That's...not needed, Jackson," I simply said. He frowned at my words.

"Come on, Mia, let's finish our date with a movie," he said, using that word again. I didn't want to ask him what he meant because the word "date" had too many meanings.

I mean, I have dates with my mom a lot, so I didn't want to let that meaning cloud my mind before I thought too much about it.

This was a friendly date. Yes a friendly date.

"Fine," I sighed, plopping down on the couch. "You win. So, what do you have in mind?" He smiled at my words and quickly joined me on the couch, moving closer to my side.

I chuckled at his cuteness.

"Have you heard of 'Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse'?"

After the movie ended, I couldn't help but gush about how amazing it was. Jackson just as enthusiastic, his eyes shining with excitement. It was heartwarming to see him being his usual adorable self.

True to his word, Jackson drove me back home. Luckily, it was still early, and Mom wouldn't be back until six, giving me enough time to persuade Miles and Maddy to keep shut at least convince them to do their share of the dishes.

Siblings, I tell you.

"Here we are, milady," Jackson teased, parking his car beside the garage of my house.

"Thank you, kind sir," I responded, mimicking his playful tone. "You're still dropping me and Maddy off tomorrow, right?" I bit my lip, hoping he would agree. Truth be told, I loved the scent of his car, and even though I tried to act relaxed, my heart was racing just being with him in this cozy space.

"Nope," he replied, shattering my hopes.

"Why?" I asked, my voice tinged with disappointment.

"Because..." he leaned closer, our faces almost touching. "It's Saturday, fat cheeks," he whispered, pinching my cheeks and breaking whatever spell he had cast with his wn eyes.

"You still remember that," I said, removing his hands from my cheeks and pouting. "How could I forget? You were so adorable with those cheeks, and now they're gone," he tried to touch them again, but I swatted his hands away.

"First of all, it's called puberty," I retorted, rolling my eyes at his comment. "You outgrow certain features," I explained. He smirked in response.

"And secondly, I'm still adorable."

"No, Maddy is adorable," he teased, his eyes twinkling mischievously.

"How dare you?" I fake gasped. "You need to take that back."

"Why would I?" He continued to smirk.

"Just take it back," I insisted.

"No," he said, his smirk widening.

"Then goodbye," I playfully scoffed, opening the car door. "Come on, I was joking—" he began to protest, but I didn't let him finish as I shut the door and started walking toward my house, hearing faint noises coming from inside.

My steps came to an abrupt halt as someone grabbed my arm and spun me around. The sudden motion made my head spin for a moment before I recognized who it was. "Jackson?" I gasped, feeling a rush of warmth spread through my body as his hand lingered on my arm. "Who knew you could walk so fast?" he teased, causing me to roll my eyes.

"Why are you here? I thought you left," I tilted my head, awaiting an explanation. He looked at me, still speechless for a moment, before releasing my arm and cupping my cheeks with both hands. My eyes widened, and my stomach fluttered.

Is... is he trying to kiss me?!

"I'm not taking back what I said about you not being adorable," he declared, a smile playing on his lips as he locked his gaze with mine. It didn't matter that we were outside, with nosy neighbors nearby. In that moment, nothing else mattered.

"Okay..." I murmured, clutching my bag tightly, trying to maintain composure and see where this was going.

"You're not adorable, but yeppuda," he continued, his voice gentle,

"Huh? I'm what?" Did he just insult me in his language?

He chuckled softly. "Yeppuda means..." His eyes sparkled mischievously as he leaned closer. Panic gripped me, the air around us felt charged, and the sounds of passing cars seemed to fade away.

"Ahem." We both jumped at the sound of a cough, snapping us back to reality. I quickly moved away from him, my heart pounding. I turned toward the house and saw Mom holding Max in her arms, while he happily played with his toy gun. Miles stood at the entrance, leaning against the door, wearing a smirk on his face. And Maddy... welll, she looked ready to explode.

Kill me now.

"Mrs. Smith, good evening," I heard Jackson greet my mom, his voice sounding perfectly normal, as if they hadn't just caught us in a very questionable situation.

"Good evening, Jackson. What are you doing here? Please come in," my mom invited, oblivious to the tension in the air. That was definitely a no for me.

"Um, Mom, Jackson was just leaving, right?" I turned to Jackson, shooting him a pleading "Save yourself" look. He seemed to understand but chose to ignore it. Instead, he grabbed my hand and confidently walked toward my mom.

"Most definitely," he replied, and I felt defeated.

.

.

.

.

"Why didn't you tell me that Mom would be coming home early?!" I hissed at Miles, barely containing my frustration as I playfully smacked his back.

"Hey, I tried! Check your phone. It's not my fault you go into power-off mode whenever Jackson's around," he glanced over at Jackson, who was helping Mom in the kitchen. "I didn't go into power-off mode! We were just busy, that's all," I crossed my arms, trying to defend myself.

"Oh yeah," Miles wiggled his eyebrows, and I had a strong urge to shave them off. "Argh, I'm not as corrupt as you. We just talked and made gimbap."

"Really? You did!" Maddy squealed in my ear, and I almost reflexively swatted her away. "Was it good? Tell me it was!"

"It was, now could you back away? I smell fish sticks on you," I said, holding my breath. Maddy scoffed and quickly made her way into the kitchen. It didn't take a minute before I heard her voice again. "Jackson, Mia said you made gimbap. Could you make it for me, please?"

"Maddy!" I screamed from the living room, walking toward the kitchen. "Don't mind her, Jackson. She can get a little impatient," I gritted my teeth, shooting Maddy a stern look.

"Really, dear? You made that?" Mom said, sounding impressed with Jackson's culinary skills.

"Oh, yeah. Mom said I should at least learn how to make one dish," he explained, placing the plates on the table. I quickly grabbed some cups and set them on the table.

"Wow, that's impressive. I've tried to teach Mia how to cook, but she always ends up burning things," Mom laughed.

"Mom!" I whined, feeling embarrassed. I glanced at Jackson and noticed him trying to stifle a laugh, but he settled for a warm smile instead.

He's so sweet.

"Mia, what are you staring at?" Maddy faced me, a mischievous grin on her face.

"Nothing, just thinking about how I'm going to tell Mom about what happened in the bathroom if you keep being nosy," I teased, and she froze.

"Exactly the face I want to see," I patted her head playfully before walking over to Miles.

"What did you tell her?"

"Remember the bathroom incident?"

"You little devil! I thought you promised you wouldn't use that against her," Miles laughed.

"Well, if you have someone like Maddy, use all the secrets," I laughed along with him.

"You two, quit your gossiping, and let's have dinner, including you, Jackson," Mom interjected, her eyes glancing over at him. He seemed happy to hear that.

"Thank you, ma'am," Jackson replied politely.

"You know what? Just stay the night. I'll talk to your mom about it. It's been too long, and I'm sure Mia would love that," Mom suggested.

No, I wouldn't!

"Oh, Mom, that's too much. Jackson must have a lot of work to do. I mean, we have so many assignments since tomorrow is the weekend," I quickly chimed in, feeling my heart race at the thought of having him stay over. It was already challenging enough for me to keep my composure around him, and now he would be sleeping under the same roof. That was a bit too much.

"I'm done with the assignments," Jackson chimed in.

"How? There were quite a lot," I questioned.

"Mia, you know I have a thing for always doing assignments in class," he shrugged, and I couldn't help but feel my plans being ruined.

"Oh, yeah," he just had to ruin it!

"So that's settled, Miles," Mom turned to him, "borrow him one of your shirts for the night, and I'll call his mom right now," she giggled, rushing to the living room to make the call.

"That's awesome, dude! We're going to have a blast. I need someone to challenge me in my game. You in?" Miles playfully punched Jackson's shoulder, and Jackson chuckled.

"Sure, why not? Count me in," Jackson replied, looking at me and calling my name asking whether I would love to join them.

"Oh, no, I don't play video games, but enjoy," I smiled at him, quickly making my way upstairs to my room.

"Guys, I need to call the guys!" I grabbed my phone and dialed the group call.

"Mia, this better be good. I'm watching 'The Good Doctor'," Sydney's voice came through the phone.

"Shut up, Sydney! Mia, what's the deal? Have you talked to Jackson about the whole Ethan thing?" Ariel asked, her voice muffled by the sound of her eating something.

"Yeah, we're cool. He's cool about it," I replied,"That's great! So what's wrong?" Ariel inquired. But before I could respond, there was a knock on my bedroom door.

"Hey, Mia," I opened the door and saw Jackson standing there, looking a bit down.

"Hey, Jackson. Are you okay?" I asked, concerned.

"Oh yeah, I was just wondering if you're cool with me staying here. You seemed a little upset about it," he said, his voice filled with genuine concern. I frowned at his statement. 

"Oh no, I'm really glad you're here. I was just worried that you might feel uncomfortable, that's all. I'm sorry if I seemed that way," I quickly reassured him.

"No, I won't. I actually enjoy hanging out here, and I plan on beating Miles in that new game he mentioned," he said with a playful smile. I laughed, imagining Miles' reaction when Jackson triumphed over him.

"Oh, I hope you do," I replied, a smile tugging at my lips.

"Jackson, where are you?!" Miles shouted from his room, searching for Jackson. Miles didn't make friends easily, so I wasn't surprised that a classic bromance was blossoming between him and Jackson.

"Well, have fun. See you later," I said, about to close the door.

"Wait!" Jackson stuck his head back into my room. I waited for him to speak, noticing how he nervously bit his lip, as if contemplating what to say or trying to charm an innocent girl.

"Don't fall asleep," he suddenly said.

"Why?" I asked, my heart racing. 

"I...I'll text you later," he replied, his gaze fixed on me.

"Oh, okay," I replied, trying to act cool and not let my blush betray me.

"Okay," he echoed, holding my gaze for a moment longer before finally pulling his head back and apologizing.

"Sorry, I have to go now." With that, he retreated from my doorway, and I closed the door, sliding down to the floor in a mixture of excitement and nervousness.

"Shoot, the guys!" I quickly grabbed my phone, remembering that I had been in the middle of a conversation with my friends.

"You better start from the beginning!" they shouted through the phone, and I couldn't help but think to myself.

What a night.