Wednesday Sep. 13 1300 hrs.

" Hello ?"

"Hey," I sighed, pushing past the doors of my uncle's building. "You free for the next 3 hours?"

"I got nothing but time, bro. What's up? You need me to slide right now?"

"Meet me at my house."

"Damn, can you say please?"

"Oh my god. Please."

"Now call me 'daddy."

I rolled my eyes and hung up the phone, storing it in the pocket of my slacks and putting a little more pep before my uncle summoned me again.

Kim Tae fucking hyung. There was no doubt that when I needed him I knew I could count on him, but you bet your sweet ass that he's going to be on bullshit majority of the time. That's why him and Jimin were so close. He wasn't dumb, but that sure was his tweedle dee.

Even Though I hung up the phone, I could still hear his smug little laugh in the atmosphere.
No less than 45 mins later, he showed up at my place dressed in some brown slacks and a cream colored button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Maybe I Could've specified what we would be doing, but I didn't expect this man to be job interview ready.

"Dude." I deadpanned, holding the door open for him.

"What?" He asked, looking down at himself "I got something on my shirt?"

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I sighed and exhaled a chuckle. "No man, just come on."

Closing the door behind after his entry, I trudged past him and headed into my bedroom to get him some work out clothes and trainers. When I came out, he was spread out on the floor playing with koko.

"Here." I threw the clothes at his head.

"What are these for?"  He asked, pulling them away from his face.

"We're going on a run."

And after about an hour of him fucking around with koko, getting dressed and getting two the hills, we finally ended up on the trail. Different conversations have sparked between us varying from the weather lately to Taehyung waiting on an upcoming phone call from the school district for an upcoming position.

Once we got to a nice little clearing where the trail opened up a little more, Tae decided to take a breath because his outta shape ass was slacking.

"Hol'on." He doubled over, trying to catch his breath. "Whew shit."

I shook my head and laughed, slowing down my jog to a complete stop. "You act like you've never ran 3 miles before."

He glared at me still trying to catch his breath, then dabbed the sweat from his forehead with his shirt. "Not in a long ass time."

"Well my bad, take a load off then since you wanna be a lil bitch."

He was so outta breath that he couldn't even curse me out loud, instead settling for a firm middle finger in my direction.

"So." He breathed, "Say what you gotta say."

I raised a brow. "What do you mean?"

"Don't do that. Don't give me that bullshit, kook. I know you wanna talk about something. Got me out here running and shit when we could went for some brunch or sumn"

"I don't know what you're— OuCH!"

This man threw a rock at my head, and when I looked at him he was about to toss another.

"Spill."

Rubbing my temple after being assaulted by a small igneous rock, I bucked at him like I was about to attack and he flinched dramatically then scoffed.

"Since you insist." I start, squatting down to my knees in a patch of grass. "I'm kind of in a dilemma."

"Ok, so what's up?"

"So you know that girl i met at the party right? The one I went home with?"

He raised his index finger to his chin, looking away in thought then snapped his fingers once he had it. "Oh yeah, I remember! y'all was dry humping on the dance floor."

"We weren't—" I said Defensively. "I'm not finna do this with you. We weren't dry humping, but yeah her.

"What happened afterwards? Did you.." He paused and shot me a dumb ass look. "You dipped in her Pannies huh."

"Why do you say it like that? But yes we smashed. It was... good. Like really good.. After that we just clicked and have been talking since then. I can barely get her out of my mind."

"Aw, cute." He smirked.

"Anyways.  So like I was saying. I can barely get her out of my mind. I have active thoughts of pursuing something with her and what things could be but with how my life is set up that shit would be highly unlikely for us."

"Hold on. Hold on. Pause." He said, shaking his head. "Kookie, how long has it been?"

"What do you mean? Since when?"

"Since you've met her?"

"I dunno, " I shrugged. "Maybe like 2 weeks? Why?"

He laughed to himself then shook his head once more. "Because you're acting like you're about to ask for her hand in marriage. First of all, you just met her. I understand what it's like to feel an instant connection with a person after only a little bit of time, but you're going 60 mph in a 25."

"Woah, that's definitely not what I had in mind."

"I'm sure it's not. I'm just saying you could think she's great and all but you don't necessarily have to jump into anything so fast."

Standing up again, he stuffed his hands in the short pockets and nodded his head toward the trail ushering me to walk with him. Following suit, I dusted off any debris on my bottoms then joined him on the trail.

"Well now I feel like I shouldn't have allowed myself to get as close as I did to her." I said looking down at the floor.

"Oh come on, now you're not being fair with yourself. Don't feel guilty, I'm sure she's as  amazing as she was fine. Just take things a little slower, keep in touch and see where it goes. Don't get attached so soon. Just chill."

I took time to think about what he said as I continued our walk, just when a small vibration was felt on my wrist.

Emily:
Heeyyy puddin
Haven't heard from you in a while😅
Hope you're doing well
Seen ✔️

I swiped the message away, feeling like even more of a jerk.

"See," I sighed. "That's the thing though. Even if I did give it time to marinate, it still wouldn't work out either way and you know why."

Instantly, his tone went from empathetic to irritated. I knew this part of the conversation would frustrate him in some way, but I didn't know it would be that fast.

"Here we go with this shit."

"C'mon dude." I plead.

"No jungkook. Look, you've got to live your life how you want to live it. I understand what you do for a living. Do I agree with it? Hell no, but I've grown to deal with it. Why? Because you're my bro and I love you. Now I'm not saying it won't be Hard finding someone who accepts you for who you are, but that doesn't mean it's impossible either. 

"I know but—"

"Shut up with the 'i know but'. You said you're feeling this girl, right?"

"I mean yea but.."

"Then stop automatically assuming that it won't work." He said, smacking the back of my head "What's her name?"

I smiled inwardly at the thought of her name, then pictured her sweet smile. "Her name is Emily."

"Look at yo' dumb ass smiling." He clowned. "you never know if Emily could turn out to be your ride or die."

"My Ride or die? You're dumb." I laughed.

"I'm dead ass, man. Seriously. I've seen you turn down numerous women who were up there with Beyoncé for this wack ass career. For once you tell me that you may actually be into someone and you're already trying to bitch out."

"I'm not bitching out. I'm just...saving her from me."

"T'fuck does that mean jungkook?" He deadpanned.

"I'm Dangerous."

He rolled his eyes and exhaled a very exaggerated sigh. "This is coming from the same guy that has a pink birkin bag and matching booties for his dog."

"Leave koko out of this." I warned him but he saw straight through me. "My princess deserves it"

"Whatever." He dismissed "But seriously kook, you are not as bad as the person you think you are. Everyone has their own shortcomings and baggage. I'm pretty sure she does too. You don't have to keep ghosting her. Besides, she could be a serial killer for all we know, but you wouldn't know that because you tryna drop her like the ball on New Year's Eve."

"Yea...wait." I stopped in my tracks and let Tae continue to walk ahead of me, watching the back of his head. "How'd you know I was ghosting her."

He stopped with his back towards me, then turned slightly, giving me side eyes like he knew all my secrets. "I just know....puddin."

"She doesn't say it like that!" I said catching up to him.

"Come on slowpoke, it's about to start pouring."

* ~ ⏰ ~ *

Friday Sep. 15 19:34 hrs

"Here you are. One double western bacon burger with cheese for beauty with the Ray bans and a golden melt for her equally as the stunning curly headed friend" the waiter said, placing our plates down on the table then giving us an award winning smile. "You two ladies need anything else?"

"Yes, may I have a straw please and some ranch. Tanks"  Alexis blushed, bringing her plate closer to her.

"You got it." He assured, flashing his pearly whites again. "I'll be right back with that ranch and straws."

"Thank you." We said in unison then the waiter hurried away, leaving Alexis and I alone to indulge in our food. We were having a small dinner date after a long week of work and school to catch up. It was something we tried to do often outside of meeting up when Alexis had new dress designs for me to try on for upcoming shows.

"So 'em," she asked, tilting her head to the side to toss her lush brown hair down her shoulder so she could bite off her burger. "you decided where you wanted your externship to take place?" She spoke with a full mouth.

I wrinkled my nose at the juice running down the corner of her then handed her a napkin. "I don't know yet. Maybe Dr. Bradley's marriage and family practice. I'm still trying to narrow them down."

"Hopefully you find one that is a good fit for you. I don't want you to end up in a shitty work environment for 5 weeks."

"I know, I'm just hoping that at least one of the offices I have in mind will have openings, and I'm not assigned at random by career services."

The waiter came back with our straws and ranch then bid us farewell for now hoping we enjoyed our meals. We stuffed our faces while having other casual conversations here and there until they died down and there was a nice silence between us and nothing but the sounds of us eating could be heard. However, it didn't last too long because Alexis's phone, which she refused to silence, kept dinging repeatedly since we sat down. We tried to ignore it but every once in a while she would pick it up to reply quickly and set it back down carelessly then groaning afterwards.

"ugh!" She said, picking her phone up again, tapping the screen aggressively.

"Damn," I said, wiping the burger juices from my mouth "Who got you so worked up?"

Alexis looked up from her screen and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Girl, it's jimin all up in my ass. He don't ever leave me alone. It's always whatcha doing, how's your day, whatcha doing. Lemme come see you...whatcha doing......when you gon stop playing. Like damn boy, let me breathe, please."

I just listened and laughed at her dramatics even though I knew she was genuinely frustrated. Alexis wasn't the clingy type, so this was a lot for her. She's so used to guys chasing her that she now finds it overwhelming and annoying when they're trying to press so hard. What has me surprised is that she's letting it ride out so long.

"You keep replying though."I Laughed taking a sip of my drink.

"Because."

"'Because what lex?"

She looked back down at her phone, then looked away licking soft pink lips.
"Because he's.." her shoulder rose as she searched for the word most appropriate then fell once she had it. "persistent."

"Alexis Michelle!" I gasped.

"Dont be out here saying my full name and shit."

"Has someone piqued your interest?" I wiggled my finger in her direction but was quickly swatted away like a toddler being popped on their hands.

"No! ...maybe. I don't know, I'm just entertaining it.. I reply when I'm in the mood for some play, but other than that he's a bug-a-boo."

"So you're currently in the mood then?"

"No!"

"Hmm, well as aggy as he seems, i think it's cute.." Dipping a French fry into the ranch that was originally hers, I swirled it around idly. "Must be nice."

"Ruh-roh, Trouble in paradise?"

"Eh.. it just that things were going kinda well with jungkook—"

"You mean Jung-papi."

"AnYWAys!" I laughed. " I thought things were going pretty well but the last time I heard from him was last weekend."

"Well that's not so bad. It's only been a few days, he could just be busy"

"Well its been about a week now.."

"Ohh...Well, it's not like you were together or anything. Just kickin it, so He's really not obligated to communicate with you outside what's already established."

"I don't know, I kind of feel like he's holding back though. I'll call one in a while and I feel like he ducks them. Same with my text. Every last one is getting left on read."

"Hold on." Alexis paused with her hand up and took a long sip from her straw, allowing her eyes to roll back as the strawberry carbonated beverage quenched her thirst then unlatched following with a small belch. "Excuse me."

"You're excused" I said amused by her un-ladylikeness. "I think he's being avoidant. I hope I didn't do anything wrong."

"Can I be honest?"

"Of course"

"He could be over the little high school romance, honeymoon phase you guys had going on. Has it ever crossed your mind that maybe you guys were moving a bit too fast? I mean, he could feel that way and that's why he's ghosting you. I'm not saying that's the case but it could be. We don't know for sure. I would say try asking what's up, but there's no guarantee you'd get a reply."

Taking a break from my food, I leaned back in my seat and folded my arms. She had a point. Were we moving too fast? I didn't for a second consider how close we've gotten since our first meeting. It's possible that he could be too overwhelmed by the amount of attention I've given him.

Most guys usually just try to fuck anyway so I could've prolonged an interaction that didn't need to be prolonged. Maybe he was just trying to share a night? It didn't make sense though because he's the one that wanted to meet up again. Could it have been for part two?

Every memory I had recorded in my mind of him replayed in my head and I started to see myself as overbearing and clingy in each of them. The cafe, the ikea trip, the car sesh, the pet names and the fair date, all the times when he could've been pulling back and i—

"Cut it out."

"Huh?" I blink away my thoughts, coming back to reality. Alexis finishes chewing then swallows before speaking.

"Stop that."

"Stop what?"

"You know what. I can see it in your eyes. You're overthinking it. Like I said Emily, for all we know he could just be extremely busy and even if that's not the case either, whatever he got going on doesn't mean it's because you did something wrong."

"But I think—"

"Ya! Deja de hacer excusas!" She spoke sternly in her Spanish accent. "But nothing Emily!"

"I'm not making excuses."

"You are. Look, You don't have to be in each other's asses. He had a life before you shimmied your little caramel ass in his life. If you don't hear from him in the next few days then cut it a loss and continue to live yours. Get on with it. You can't be hung up on a dude you just met, no matter how cute he is. You understand me?"

"Understood."

"Good! Also, how about you let him come to you instead. It seems like you're the one who always hits him up first anyway, let him do it. If he really wanted to fuck with you, 'Em, he would." She said matter of factly.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. She was right and I needed to get out of my own head. Jungkook was a great guy but if he wasn't feeling the vibes anymore i need to be ok with that. I sat with my eyes closed momentarily, letting the food digest in my stomach then opened My eyelids slowly darting my eyes in her direction.

"You seem to give good advice when you're dealing with a similar situation miss pops pussy for persistence "

"Girl please, i don't have to explain myself to you" she mugged, standing up from the table "Get the check, I'm going to use the restroom then skate. I got to see a man 'bout a horse."

"Love you" She leaned down to give my temple a quick peck, and I groaned, reaching into my purse. "Wow.. you just gonna leave me here? You ain't about to see no man 'bout a horse, i call bullshit."

"You know it is," she sang, "I got dick waiting for me outside."

"Of course you do."

While I was still digging in my purse, from the corner of my eye I saw the waiter had come back with our check. I told him to hold on just a second longer so that i could grab my card, but as soon as I set the card on the table, he was gone again along with Alexis, the check, and the plates of food we finished.

I looked around the restaurant in confusion, holding my card between my fingers. They were both gone. Few seconds later the waiter came back holding a long receipt.

"Here is the receipt" He said, handing me the skinny piece of paper and not walking away before giving me one last flash of his charismatic smile. "I hope you enjoy the rest of your night, gorgeous."

"Thank you so much, you as well." I beamed. He gave me a lighthearted smile, then turned on his heels. I watched him walk away, stuffing my card back in my wallet then gathered my belongings and started my walk towards my car.

You sneaky little...

As I trudged through the dimly lit restaurant making my way to the front, I paused at the front doors before exiting.  It was raining again and this time it was worse than before.Taking another deep breath to calm my nerves, I pulled my hood over my head and prepared my umbrella. I needed to hurry up and get out of this weather before it takes a turn for the worse.

Pushing through the doors, I opened my umbrella then rushed to my car, fighting against the heavy rainfall, trying my absolute best not to get soaked. Once I reached my precious baby, I swiftly got in and pulled.

While on my way home, passing every light pole that illuminated the streets, I thought about what Alexis said earlier. Maybe the little trip to fantasyland really was over. I just had to be ok with that no matter how good it felt and know that it's for the best. I needed to get back on track and continue stay Lowkey anyway.

A small part of me hoped he'd come around though.

*Ding*

Seen ✔️

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