baeriek

"candy, my laptop broke down again!" you hear jake shout from his room just as you're preparing to get ready for shower, choosing one shower gel out of the four you have and grabbing your towel before tying up your usually let down hair into a messy bun. sighing you walk out your room, keeping what all you held in your hand on the kitchen counter and entering his room through the half open door. he's sitting on his bed, a sheepish smile on his face, you turn to look at his desk to see his laptop closed, "maybe if you used your school laptop to study instead of playing games on it, it would stay healthy. but I assume you tricked me into coming here, it's not gonna work everytime yun," you click your tongue in feigned annoyance making him grin wider,"well it does work everytime though,"

"what is it?", asking in a sing song tone, you plop down on his desk chair, spinning in rounds with your legs slightly extended out swinging them subtly, hands gripping on the arms of the chair while looking up at the phosphorescent glow-in-the-dark stickers you forcefully put up on the ceiling of his room. "actually eunsang, she-" he starts hesitantly but you cut him off, knowing what he's about to say, "I told- no warned you not to get involved with her for a second time, didn't I?"

"yes but it happened and now she's after me all the time, she even showed up to my soccer practice yesterday! please just this one time, please help me get rid of her constant pestering," clamping together his hands he pouts, giving you his puppy eyes for a few seconds and when you don't show a reaction of any sort he resorts to bribery,"I'll buy you tons of watermelon lollipops! from your favorite brand that too!" his eyes sparkle with hope, expecting you to fall for it, like you do every single time but alas patterns break and so did your greed for sweets; or perhaps you suppressed it.

"no, i'm on a diet. I gave up on sweets, what if I get diabetes? will you," you point at him dramatically,"take responsibility?" to which his stance morphs into a stunned one for a moment before he's regaining the part of him which knows how you are like, "yes of course I'll help you take your meds and-" he raps quickly in a hurried note aware that you'll not let him answer if he's not fast enough but you still beat him to it, speaking over his voice, loudly so that his words are drowned out even though you hear them very clearly,"will you? NO you will not! so let me just shower peacefully before I develop the urge to lock you in the bathroom when you're in there later," with that you rush out the room swiftly incase he decides to use his strength against you to get you to accept his beseech; it doesn't help that he's training to become an athlete, a buff center forward in comparison to you who barely puts effort into doing even a little bit of yoga once a month. it's obvious he'll have you give in if he wants but he's too sweet to force you.

its comes as a shock to you when the next day, the first thing you see waking up in the morning and walking into the living room, is eunsang standing by the open kitchen's counter, clad in one of jake's dress shirt that you recognize from doing his laundry occasionally, pouring herself a glass of water. when she notices you, she's gives you a small, friendly smile which you know is fake, she's doing it just so to look good and polite in jake's eyes. but sad to say it's of no use, because she's not even there in his eyes to begin with, the moment the boy comes out of his room, his field of vision doesn't even find her, passing by her very visible figure like she's a microscopic bug to ruffle your hair in a dotting manner, morning voice coming out in an adoring essence,"good morning, candy," he smiles and scrunches up his nose when he notices the baby cat you both adopted last month, curled up in the corner of the couch,"and mei,"

wishing him morning in response you give him a look which silently delivers your question of what is going on, surely you heard them last night, but you didn't know it was her, you weren't even expecting her to be the one, she was like the last person you would have assumed. in return he sends you a flying look that he'll explain everything later.

"yunie~," your ears perk up at her voice, eyes narrowing in a deadly stare at the nickname you call him with leaving her mouth, it's certain now, like jake you have blossomed a definite possession over a nickname.

jake's eyes shift to look at you for a second and then he's running a hand through his hair, dropping his sweet conduct to get back into his usual cold fuckboy self, "you're still here? better if you leave soon, candy doesn't like all this," then walks around her to the other side of the counter, into the kitchen, opening the upper cabinets,"what do you want for breakfast candy? should I make you some toast? or do you want your usual dose of sweet?" he asks resting his palms on the granite surface and leaning against it slightly while turning to fix his gaze on you; completely ignoring the dumbfounded girl beside you, who clenching her jaw, gives you a weird stare before dashing into his room.

"my watermelon slush please," pouting your lips at him, you walk over to sit up on the kitchen counter, your dangling legs giving his lower thighs a light kick every two seconds. watching him prepare your drink first, you whisper in a low voice,"did you like make a friends with benefit kind of arrangement or something?" the thought of it disturbs you for some reason, it's not new for you to see random girls in your apartment, or to hear them while they're at it, but it still sort of gives you an uneasy feeling, something you don't like feeling.

"it was a last time kind of deal actually," he pauses to give you a quilty smile, finishing your slushy just as eunsang hastily steps out, wearing what you assume her clothes from the previous night, holding whatever she brought along. she observes as jake hands you the cup watching you take a sip,"is it good?" he asks in a tone way different than the one she's acquainted to him using with her and it makes her mad and sad, driving her to hurry out of the apartment.

your eyes follow her figure, flinching silently when she bangs the door close harshly,"aggressive," you comment, your hooded orbs as you drink from your favorite mug shifting back to him. "from what I've seen, you're way more aggressive," jake laughs softly, index finger coming to poke at your cheek tenderly.

you're about to talk back on his words when he cuts you off before you've even drank the liquid still cheeks full in your mouth,"we need to get the groceries this week, I have soccer practice tomorrow and the day after, so I think it'll be best to go today," he shuffles around, making himself some toast.

you give a nod of approval as if he's asking for permission but you know if you say no, then he's not gonna drag you with him,"I'm gonna go take a shower first then," hopping down, you place your empty mug in the sink, and skip to your room to take your bath supplies. "let's shower together," he says as you step out the threshold of your bedroom door, a playful mischievousness in his voice and expression. it's clearly a joke but you can't help feeling flustered internally, you've been keeping up with his flirty and touchy antics for the past year yet never found yourself getting used to it, he's too attractive to get used to; at least that's what excuse your brain gives you.

"and if we get locked in there, who's gonna get us out? you know the door lock has problems," you complain in a soft groan making you appear adorable in his eyes.

at that he stands straighter, a fleeting look of flabbergast clouding his face before he's breaking out in a teasing smile and brazenly narrowed eyes,"so does that mean if the lock was fine you'd actually shower together with me," he purposely stops all he's doing to stare at you, moving his eyebrows cheekily, provoking your sarcasm to come to the surface,"I never said that," sticking your tongue out at him, you close the bathroom door.

two hours later you're both strolling through the isles of shelving, bright florescent lighting, end displays of popular products, sale signs, banners with store mottoes, isle signs stating product location, rows and rows of household products. he's pushing the cart as you look around for items to cross out one by one the ones in your checklist. the way you both discuss and bicker over what to keep in the cart and what not to, anyone who sees you both would assume it to be a couple grocery trip, it feels as such too, how he insists on taking what you like while you argue that you're on a diet and need to cut down on the consumption and desires of your sweet tooth, it feels sweet, he feels sweet.

"i'm taking the pop tarts!" he shouts from two isles away and even though it's not a question your brain processes it as one as you answer shouting back,"...okay fine!" capturing the attention of an old couple who glance at you and say something you don't understand but you assume it's probably about how annoying you both are, shouting at the mart.

in the end jake convinces you to continue your diet later over the summer break saying that he'll help you and grabs a bunch of packets of your favorite snacks, your favorite brand's watermelon lollipops and not to forget the fruit itself. after the billing, he carries all the bags except the small one that held your lollipops, which he asked the cashier to pack separately, in case you'll want to eat one instantly.

on your way back, you both take the subway. you have a store near your apartment complex but because of the lack of fruits there jake had you come to the big supermarket miles away. due to the busy hour of a weekday when you board the train there's only one seat left, jake urges you to sit but you feel it to be unfair and demand that whoever wins in a of game rock, paper, scissors will occupy the space. he wins and as a result you stand in front of him, holding onto the metal pole with both of your hands, the bags resting at his foot.

it's just one stop through when jake suddenly pulls you on to his lap, adjusting you comfortably on his thighs and placing his hands on your legs in a possessive kind of manner. you turn your head to look at him, wanting to ask what on earth happened for him to do this out of the blue, and as your lips part, he whispers in your ear,"that creep right there kept staring you up and down," pointing with a discreet move of his eyes that'll only you're capable of understanding while he drills holes through his stern gaze fixed on the said guy. on the other hand when you find the cad, your mind grows hot with irritation, an abrupt and sharp impulse of anger growing in you.

"I'll show him what the fuck he was staring at,"you mutter out, teeth gritted, and hands almost forming into fists while looking calm as ever. jake seems to catch on to what you're about to do and before you can get up from lap, his hold on you gets tighter,"okay, I know you hate this candy, but I don't want you getting hurt in any way, if he does anything I'll make sure to set him right, for now I think he got it that he's not gonna stare at you however he wants," his hand grabs yours and he caresses the expanse of your arm delicately like a soothing rub.

for the rest of the ride he manages to pacify you and when your stop comes he intertwines your fingers as you walk out the compartment, just in case you decide to give the dude a slap before leaving, you do wish to do that but instead just throw an aversive and loathful glare at him.

"I'm gonna roll on you all I want today," you declare like an important announcement as you roll from on top of his body to the the floor then back from the floor to the top of his body and then to the other side like the fur remover roller you have for mei as he lies on the fluffy rug typing away on his laptop an essay deadlined for tomorrow. a lighthearted laugh leaves his lips, feeling the weight of your body on and off,"you do this all the time, why are you behaving like it's the first," reaching behind to hold you still on his back he asks,"why are you sulking?" knowing all too well you do this either when you're over the top bathing in happiness or drowning in sorrow.

"I'm gonna gain weight now because of you, I'll see all the snacks and sweets in the pantry and not be able to desist myself from binge eating them," forming a fist you lightly punch the curve of his shoulders in consistent hits. he turns around in a swift motion and grabs you into a hug,"I love your belly anyhow, whether it's visible or not," giggling near your ear, he gives the plump flesh of your stomach a zephyr-like pinch, having you wince and recoil before you hug him back,"yeah whatever," his words make you feel butterflies, a turmoil of frenzy and fuzzy feelings, cheeks growing warm, and the warmth spreading all over your face.

you both stay like that for a while breathing in relaxation, and taking in the comfort of a hug, the room saturated with a restful and serene silence. you're the first to pull away,"you should finish that essay, I'll go do some studying for my test next week," getting up you leave him in the living room to spend the rest of your evening buried in books and your school laptop.

after all the studying for the following two days till the weekend, the first thing in the morning you do is put on despicable me on the tv, and switching on the ac, wrap yourself in a thin lilac charmeuse blanket to start your stress relieving movie marathon.

"yunie, can you pass me the watermelon in the fridge? the one from yesterday," you spare a quick glance towards the half naked boy wearing only a pair of sweatpants, black hair all dishevelled looking even more messier due to the perm he got last week, walking out of his room, headset resting around his neck, before your eyes return to focus on the movie playing on the tv screen. "yeah sure," he mumbles out softly in his raspy morning voice sounding probably like he stayed up all night again.

taking the half a piece of watermelon out and grabbing a spoon jake scoops out a small little portion, and going up to your slouched figure on the couch, extends out his hand which held the spoon of fruit towards your mouth,"here you go, candy," as a motion of feeding you, something he does quite often. after you've eaten it, he gives you the half cut ball of sweetness and sits beside you to see what you're watching.

not even a minute after, he's fidgeting about, pulling up to sit cross-legged,"do you want to go buy a new sofa at ikea tomorrow? this one's pretty small," he turns to look at you, raising his brows subtly,"well first of all I didn't plan to have a roommate and secon- I swear if it's for your carnal escapades I'm kicking you out!" it comes out in a yell, voice raising with every syllable before you throw a seed at him, which due to your bad aiming skills instead of landing on his face, falls and sticks to the skin of his chest.

keeping away the watermelon, you pick up mei and settle her on your lap, pulling back your blanket which had slipped off,"this is public space have some decency before you have such thoughts!" you laugh.

"stop making me appear like a horndog!" he laughs along, whinning at your fictitious accusations in giggles and a look of faux disbelief.

"well that is exactly what you are but I'll stop if you make me some sweet soy-glazed potatoes," trying to strike a deal as if it's a bid you wiggle your brows at him, like an invitation to a challenge but in reality it's just jake having to prepare today's lunch which he does so often, that it's like you coming into the kitchen to cook is almost similar to a little kid coming to help their mother. "at least cut the potatoes? a little help as such will be appreciated and remembered," he puts his palm against his chest and bows, stifling a small laugh when you return the bow with a 'yes your majesty'

getting up from the couch you're about to head towards the kitchen when the doorbell rings, "yun can you get the potatoes out, I'll see who it is," you regret opening the door the moment you see the figure standing outside. not wanting to reveal the presence to jake, you close the door behind you, and the boy thinks of it as nothing because you've done it lot many times when your friends show up, simply because you don't want them to become his prey.

you look up amd down at eunsang as she stands all tall, hands folded, fully dressed fancy with a cocky expression, "I'm here to see jake," she states tilting her head to point over at the closed door, all the sugary honeyed act she keeps up around him no where to be seen. "and he doesn't want to see you, didn't he tell you it was the last time," as a counterattack you fold your hands as well, raising your head gazing at her tauntingly, the look in your round orbs carrying boredom. "are you jake? I said I want to talk to jake not you," scoffing, she rolls her eyes at you and clicks her heels as a sign of impatience. poking your tongue on the inside of your cheek, you close your eyes for a moment trying to calm the annoyance in you before it turns into anger, "and are you deaf? I said he does not want to talk to you," but what the girl says next makes it impossible for you to just stay still.

jake, the matter of subject on the other hand is busy washing and peeling the potatoes inside when he hears your loud voice, in a second one shout turning into many more followed by screamings which has him falling into a frantic mind. he quickly drops the potatoes and knifes in his hand and rushes out the door to see you and eunsang grabbing and pulling onto each other's hair which you shout way more loudly than eunsang's screams. his hands flail as he contemplates on what to do, how to stop this before he finds himself behind you, gripping eunsang's hands and removing them from your head to which her head snaps to look at him in shock. in another moment his fingers grasp the dip of your waist and he throws you over his shoulder and takes you back inside, your fisting hands hitting the expanse of his back as protest,"fucking let go of me! I'm gonna give her a good piece of my mind!"

putting your body down he holds the side of your arms and forces you to look into his eyes,"stop fighting all the time, stay here I'll talk to her, okay?" he speaks slowly as an attempt to placate you. when you trying escaping his arms, he asks again, this time moving to cup your face,"okay?" you sigh loudly before giving him a nod and with that he walks out to confront eunsang about why she suddenly decided to show up.

truth to be told, this was how he first met you, or maybe saw you. it was the day he was supposed to move in, he had packed all that was necessary for the rest of the week in his suitcase while keeping in mind to get all his other stuff later. the apartment being on the seventh floor, jake was waiting for the elevator to reach the ground floor and when it did, never in a million years did he ever expect to witness such a first encounter with his college roommate, that too a girl he supposedly thought of setting up a friends with benefit type of arrangement. the doors of the elevator had slid open to see you cornering a middle aged man, jake watched with his mouth hanging open, eyes bulging out, face still like stone and heart beat on pause from the shock of the scene- it's probably an exaggeration but this is how he remembers he felt when he saw you slap the man hard mumbling out in a fake laugh,"fun?", a smirk visible from your side profile as you futher kicked the man in the crotch,"this' fun?" asking with an expression of feigned innocence like you did not just do what you just did.

he was fascinated and at the same time horrified knowing you were going to be his roommate, he thought you were someone who beat up people just because they felt like it but turned out the man had apparently tried to or maybe actually did touch you inappropriately behind the closed doors. he had never before seen you in the campus, neither did he know your name until then and never was it his intention to treat you so good, like a little sister, calling you candy, it just somehow happened after he found your love for sweets and how you're so very different than what he had beheld the first time, contrastingly a kind of babiness that came out when he treated you almost like one.

but for the note of it, it's safe to say he got attracted to you since the very first rencounter. he liked the aggressiveness that you held, not looking like it but having it very staunchly.

it takes him a few minutes to return, a small smile on his face as he closes the door behind him, like he just confessed or something, it grows even wider when his eyes find you,"stop cutting the potatoes so aggressively, they're gonna get smashed," he chuckles walking over to the kitchen and getting other things out. "she called me a slut for living with a guy like you and I was in the midst of giving her a lecture on actually how good of a person you are-" you place the knife on the counter with a thud and turn around to face him,"and you dragged me in!" whinning you pout your lips at him, brows furrowing.

watching you with amused eyes, he stops to give you a regaling smile, pursed lips stretching across his cheeks,"my darling candy, I'm only good to you," you glare at him wanting to supress the bubbles of jitteriness in your stomach rising through your chest but anyhow you still break into a smile which fortunate for you he doesn't see because you turn back as soon as you feel your lips twitching.

a month passes by in the blink of an eye, your routines and relationship staying the same as always, classes, his soccer practice and your weekly cleaning day; what's changed is his routine of bringing over girls, the number seeming to get less day by day, and what you haven't noticed- his display of affection towards you growing more and more. yet you think nothing special of it, assuming that perhaps now he got a grip, and has decided to better his ways, no longer wanting to be branded as a fuckboy. unknown to you it's not that but you.

after an all nighter the previous day, coming back from your classes you go straight to bed, changing you clothes and getting tucked under the blanket at around eight in the evening. jake returning from his soccer practice has plans to have a night out at the bar with his friends, unaware that you're already asleep he opens you room door, speaking in a voice way too loud for you to not wake up.

"candy, I'm gonna go out with jay and sunghoon! make sure to have your dinne- oh you were sleeping? I didn't know I'm so sorry candy," he mumbles out in a soft whisper towards the end, supressing a smile watching your sleepy form under the covers trying to rub out the drowsiness from your eyes followed by heavy blinking and a small pout,"it's okay no need to get up, go back to sleep, I'll be back in the morning," approaching the bed as you lay back down, he pats your head in a 'sleep well' before leaving; you hear the front door close just as you drift back into the blank canvas.

you don't know what time it is, but surely it's past midnight judging from dead silence you wake up to, that is except the constant ringing of calls, fumbling around for your phone you check to see a dozen calls from an unknown number and a bunch of messages from the same. opening the chat you find it to be jake's friend jay, whose apparently asking you to come get jake from the car downstairs, stating that the said boy being drunk is refusing to go back home with anyone but you, chanting your name, or asking where you are more specifically as jay has sent you quoted 'where is my candy?', whining for your presence and making it hard for his two friends.

sighing you put on a random jacket from your closet over your pajamas and go out to get jake, leaving the main door open because for sure there's no way you'll be able to open it while continuing to support his body weight, helping him stand stable. it takes you about twenty minutes to get him to the elevator and then through the door, all the while keeping him from falling all over you, as he giggles in joy hugging you from the side. you've seen him drunk a ton of times, more than you can remember but everytime it looks like he's not drunk even when he is, therefore it comes to you as surprise seeing this behavior of his. for all you know he's drank a lot today, more than he usually does as his friends told you after confirming that you're his roommate never having seen you before.

dragging him into his room you have him sit on his bed, going to his closet and getting him a pair of sweatpants from the many he has and the first shirt you find which happens to be the oversized one he bought very recently, you hand him the clothes. wetting a towel, you sit beside him to first wipe the sweat from his face and neck before asking him to change and sleep, wanting to leave to go back your room and sleep the leftover hours of the night. just as you turn away, his hand grabs your wrist and he stops you with his puppy eyes.

in the morning around noon jake is the first one to wake up and having no memory of the previous night besides the fact that he was drunk, he sits on his desk chair, hands in his hair, watching you sleep on the other side of his bed in his shirt. it's like he feels everything to be done from here, he did what he swore never to do, this was the very first thing he pinned on his mind as an important note: not using you even if he has very obvious feelings for you. he tugs on his hair in frustration, angry at himself for not staying in his lane when drunk and the moment he sees you stirring, waking up in seconds, looking around for a while before settling on his figure hunched in anguish. "yun? are you okay? is the hangover severe? should I make you something for it?" you ask in worry making him feel even more guiltier than he already has been.

"you don't even know any hangover recipes," he mumbles in an almost inaudible voice,"I can just search on the internet and try my best, it's not like I'll give you anything inedible," you joke trying to lighten the heavy atmosphere you feel in the air.

you sit up and are fixing your messed up hair when he speaks again, once more sounding as miserable as he has never before,"candy I'm," he pauses gulping to control the lump in his throat,"I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to, I don't why I," he stops again making you confused as to what he is wanting to say,"what are you saying? what apology?" it is when his eyes shift to stare at what you're clad in and staying there for a hard minute when you understand what he means, your cheeks grow hot at the realization but then his words dawn over you. even if it didn't happen the fact that he wouldn't mean it, want it, regret it has something in you twisting in pain, are you so bad? or that he actually really thinks of you as his little sister? that you read his affections wrong, assumed his feelings differently?

"why? because I'm not like the others you have been with? because I'm not like eunsang? or because I'm not her? the one you were smiling so hard after talking to? are you dating he-" eversince you've known him, it's the first time you hear him shout, never having heard him raise his voice at you, it has you flinch and listen attentively,"that's the problem! you're not like her! you're not like any of the others! you're special and I'm afraid I'll lose you, things will change and just I'll have to get over you without even getting a chance,"

you sit in silence for a while processing everything, and by that: jake likes you. when the fact settles in your consciousness, you supress the urge to laugh, understanding the situation in a bigger picture now. you slowly get up from your place and walk over to sit on his lap and taking in a breath of courage, cup his cheeks to give him a long peck, then mumble against his lips brushing yours against the softness of his,"nothing happened, but if you want I can give you a chance to date me, it's going to be hard though tolerating me, think wisely," it has him wide-eyed and mum in a trance, you can even feel the rapid beating of his heart through where you are pressed together.

"your lips taste like watermelon," he mutters out lowly, eyes locking with yours in an intense pull. this is definitely out of the box of outcomes of the situation he had made up in his mind.

"I had some in the morning before you woke up, anyhow yours taste like alcohol and your breath is horrible, go and freshen up," giving his shoulder a light push, you get up and leave the room to make something, probably as you said a recipe searched up on the web.

when he comes out later, he's back to the jake you know, the one who has his hair slightly messy and almost never in a shirt. "why were- are you wearing my shirt then?" he questions in genuine curiosity,"you practically begged me to last night while sobbing for I don't know what reason," you shrug, laughing as you see him make a flustered, surprised pikachu face.

a week later, around four in the afternoon an hour before he has to leave for his soccer practice, you approach his figure on the couch re-watching an episode of vincenzo. over the last few days you've sat down to talk things out, and put a label on your newfound relationship, and on his insistence made it official between you two that you're dating, which he soon reveals to his friends, and as a matter of fact they don't have a fuck to give, they barely knew you, he never even let you all meet and now that he's dating you, they could do nothing but be 'okay dude, we get it you changed'

"do you wanna play that pocky game?" sitting beside him you show him a banana flavored pocky stick, before you are able to have a taste of it, he snatches it out of your fingers and passing a comment,"if you wanted a kiss, you could have just said so," attaches his lips to yours, moving to hold the back of your neck. at first it starts out slow but then you end up making out for a good fifteen minutes.

he has you on his lap, back facing his chest as you rest you weight on him, while the both of absent-mindedly watch the scenes playing on the tv. his fingers play the strands of your hair, occasionally moving to trace random letters on the back of your shoulder. "my parents want to meet you," now his fingers come to poke at your cheeks, treating it like jelly,"as my roommate, they don't know we are dating, haven't told them yet. maybe we can when you meet them?"

"so suddenly though?" you think back to all whatever you have ever done to him for them to want to see you. perhaps they think of you as a snobby girl whose exacerbating their son's already unpleasant habits. when you find innumerous such happenings, you resort to look at mei laying on the rug in a peaceful sleep, mind wandering off to remind yourself to water the plants in the balcony and the few on the shelves inside to distract from the discouragement you feel creeping in.

"they've actually been wanting to meet you for the past three months, I was putting it off but now summer break is starting next week and I have no more excuses to give," hugging you, he rests his head on the curve of your neck, breathing in the smell of watermelon that surrounds you after you had basically half of a whole at lunch. "if you don't want to then you don't have to, I'll talk to them," he assures, not wanting you to feel obligated to agree, or force yourself despite being uncomfortable.

"no it's okay, we can go on tuesday. how long will the drive be?" you shift to face him sideways sliding to sit on the comfort of the couch with your legs hanging over his. "probably two hours or so? we can go and return on the same day," nodding, you start playing with his fingers, touch like knuckles and wondering why they look kinds red.

"I'll go prepare for my soccer practice now?" he doesn't mean to but it comes out like a question, not wanting to just brush you off. "we're never together in the campus, it makes me sad," you complain, moving away to let him leave to pack his duffle bag and change his clothes. "that's because we have completely different majors, it's not possible. besides you're not in any club either to stay after classes," it makes you ponder on whether you should try out for any club, after all these years doing something else besides studying but you have no idea what you should consider, having no knowledge on which clubs you could be eligible to join.

the entirety of jake's practice, you sit idle writing down options and cutting off ones you deem are not for you, but then you wish to come out of the shell of nerd you've created. all of it has you exasperated leaving you with the thought that you'll think of it later, no doubt discuss it with jake, yet by the time he comes back it has already slipped your mind and you've forgotten it much to your convenience until your visit to his family house.

it feels weird and exhilarating how his parents and his older brother welcome you, treating you so well even though they recognize you as nothing more than just his college apartment roommate who helps fix his laptop and tolerates the boy knowing the kind of womanizer he is; kind of feels like a successful meeting of in-laws when it's far from it.

they try their best to make you feel at home, during the lunch as jake had told them beforehand, his mother had a few sweet dishes prepared for you, and when you are done with the food in your plate they urge you to eat more, asking if you don't like it when you refuse politely. they talk to you about casual things such as your likes and dislikes, what major you are, whether jake treats you well, if you have any complaints regarding his behavior. it doesn't feel like you're meeting them for the first time, they make you feel so comfortable that you forget you're supposed to act poised, something you decided on the previous night.

in the beginning of your roommate journey, his accent, his voice was the first thing to attract you but slowly as you explored his personality you came to like him for more than just what attracted you to him. now you as you spend time with people closest to him, you understand where he got that from, the sweet person he is which you never expected a fuckboy to be, you didn't even have an ounce of hope that he'll acknowledge your presence in the apartment when you got to know about his playing around conduct, yet he turned out to be the sweetest boy you've ever come around in your life.

when you are sitting alone with his brother, while jake is away downstairs to bring you something sugary to eat, his brother takes it as a chance to disclose his thoughts,"you know until I heard him call you candy a while ago, I was under the impression that 'candy'," he quotes it specially with a movement of his index and middle finger,"is supposedly a cheerleader fling of his after I saw the contact name when he got a call the last time he was here," making an amused face, he smirks subtly watching jake walk up the stairs behind you, a plate of fruits in his hand and whispers so that it doesn't reach his younger brother's ears,"turns out it's you, I never knew he is the type to give such sweet, unique petnames,"

before you leave in the evening jake makes sure to tell them you're dating and that he's not playing around, it's an actual relationship that he's willing to give effort into and change his usual ways of living, to be better for himself and as well as for you. on your way here you had thought of a lot things, had a lot of assumptions and expectations even prepared yourself to hear things that'll stick to your mind but what stays in your mind now is completely unexpected and opposite of what the inner you had you composed for. it's all you can think of in the car and after you're back in the comfort of your familiar apartment.