𝕤𝕙𝕒𝕜𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕥𝕙 —

just at the word ‘hotdog’ naeun’s entire face scrunched up in disgust. “i really can’t believe, one that hot dogs are still sold and two that somebody ever thought to make them,” she gave a short amused laugh following her words. “now, pickle relish? not as bad, it’s actually a good addition to a veggie burger,” she gave the other a nod. her smile only grew wider and wider at jia’s words, “closest friend? oof, you spoil me with words jia,” she mused, “i wouldn’t say they’re terrified of you,” nae started her lips pursing as thought about her next choice of words, “i’d say intimidating, and that’s because they don’t know you like i know you,” she knocked her friend softly in the side. “no laziness, noted,” she nodded, she already knew how seriously jia took her parties and that’s why they were some of the best at the school, “i say impose as much as you want, there hasn’t been a good theme party in a while,” she begun rambling on her ideas for themes already popping into her head, “but, we can’t do anything too overdone, you want to be original.”

nae held up a packet of barbecue sauce and ketchup to the other with a short raise of her eyebrows, “the nugget usuals,” she said opening one back and squeezing it on to the plate in front of her. “it really taste normal to me, but i’ve been vegan since like freshman year of high school so, i have kinda of forgotten what ground beef tastes like,” she shrugged her shoulders taking another bite. “good, i would have been offended if i wasn’t,” she mused to her friend giving her a goofy friend, “could you imagine how terrible a party with all people you don’t know would be?” she shook her head with a short laugh, “oooh, you came to the right person then, what were you thinking? like full costume thing or something more chill?”

jia nodded in agreement. “good. as it should be.” at naeun’s next words she shrugs, tossing her dark her over her shoulder. “totally get that. i haven’t had a hotdog in five years and just thinking about it makes me a bit sick.” she cringed at the thought, shaking her head. “pickle relish, too, just — ugh. no. not my thing at all.” changing the subject, she waved it off playfully. “of course! i can’t have my dearest friend absent at my party, who am i going to talk to? besides, anyone that knows of me is terrified of me. i could look their way and they’d cower in fear. as they should.” she smirked, winking at naeun. “but hm. i don’t want to impose too much on people, but i also don’t want them coming in casual wear and calling it a day. laziness is not — and will not — be a thing at any of my parties, thank you very much!”

any amount of confidence nami might have previously held on keeping himself composed faded when ezra’s arm slung around his figure, pulling them closer. it didn’t help that nami felt grossly warm in comparison. even with the cold sinking into his skin - the bonus of that being that it excused the pink tinted cheeks that took over his face, now. “… very big,” he agreed, clearing his throat after as he attempted to re-compose himself, somewhat. “oh, yeah! that sounds really good. i really like the tom kha kai! really? if it’s being called bomb, it has to be good,” he said with a dramatized roll of his eyes. “no, no - you look good.” for the briefest of moments, nami imagined himself stopping to place his gloved hands on the other boy’s face in a cheesy attempt to warm his face up, but of course, actual nami merely shook his head in argument. “it’s… it’s cute on you, anyway. i can’t imagine what i look like…” with that, he attempted to cross his eyes and focus in on his own nose, but after a few seconds of failure, he moved on. “uh… what made you wanna go to dinner with me? or is it just because you saw me?” with a nervous brow raised, he wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to hear the answer. he was confident it was the latter, but there was a small amount of hope that ezra purposely searched for him. “we can do it more often, too! i really like the family dinners, but they can be pretty stressful sometimes, too. it’s hard to keep up conversations sometimes when you’re scared of… your parents overhearing, and i don’t know - my parents are pretty dramatic. i say one wrong thing and i’m sure they’d act like they had to move across the country and get new identities.”

was ezra an evil person? definitely. was he just out to make hadley’s day worse and worse, just to get a kick out of it? also definitely. but she wasn’t about to let him know how much his words and choices affected her - they were both skilled liars actors, so all she did was give him a smile. she wasn’t an idiot. “well,” she repeated mockingly. “of course, i know that, dear cousin. it’s not the snails. cheese, butter and wine are major parts of french cuisine, and they have a negative effect on my skin. i did my research. both dishes you mentioned contain wine. now please, mind your own business.”

maybe lying was a shared family gene. it would definitely be able to explain why he and hadley always forced smiles at each other without their parents ever sending glances towards them — if anything, ezra could swear they thought the two actually got along. ha, if they only knew. “you’re allergic to these ingredients? hm, you should have told me that time i offered to cook dinner that one time,” he said, tapping his lip. the thought of hadley whining over the breakouts she’d get made ezra chuckle, even if he knew he shouldn’t. “they do have a salad here, by the way. it’s got anchovies, but no butter, cheese or wine, so it might work for you.”

of course, zoe had spotted jia before. she was scary, intimidating, and she wanted to stay far away from her. this gut feeling she had was telling her not to go anywhere near the girl, who seemed just so much older (although zoe knew from reliable sources that she was only 20). but, you know, when you’re spotted on the streets, walking with your books in hand because your messenger bag is too heavy already, and she asks you a question, you don’t say no. that would be even worse than answering - and besides, zoe had overheard a bit of the conversation already, and she knew the right answer to please jia. “yes, of course. what can i help with?”

upon closer inspection, jia could see that this girl was familiar. she couldn’t place exactly where she’d seen her, but she was very sure they’d crossed paths at least once. “perfect!” she said, clasping her hands together. she turned to face her before continuing. “my... classmate and i are having an argument and i need someone with all of their braincells in use to delegate. you look incredibly intelligent, so you definitely know the right answer to this question: briseis is one of the reasons of conflict between achilles and agamemnon in the iliad, right?” she raised an eyebrow at her, leaning back slightly and crossing her arms in anticipation.

♡ — zoe complimenting jia.

♣ — hadley discovers ezra crying.

☽ — taehyun wandering late at night, and ezra sees him.

↱ — jia and naeun getting lost.

☂ — minki giving ezra his sweater.

▤ — nami falling asleep on ezra.

♡ — raven complimenting jia.

✮ — stargazing with raven.

♣ + — maggie seeing ezra cry.

nae took a quick bite of the nugget in her hand as she cocked her head to the side,·“i think it’s tvp,” she shrugged,·“oh, also known as textured vegetable protein. i only really care that’s not made from a poor helpless animal and it’s tasty, so whatever it is it’s good for me,” she answered with a curt nod, she knew she sometimes fit the annoying vegan trope but it was just who naeun was.·“i like how you gave me a studious and fun answer there,” she eyed the other playfully a small amused smile turning on her lips,·“wouldn’t expect anything less of you with antigone and the party, am i on the invite list?” she asked lips quirking even further up.

jia nodded, swirling her fork in her noodles again. “right. what dipping sauce do you have with it?” she asked, peering over. “i hear tvp’s got the texture of ground beef.” she grinned as she tossed her hair over her shoulder, shrugging. “well, you know me. i’m a firm believer in enjoying what i do — could you imagine if you got roped into doing course you absolutely hated? how sad. my dad almost crucified me for doing classics until i told him it was for pre-law reasons.” she let out a chuckle, nodding. “of course you are! it’d be a travesty to not invite people i actually like. even worse if it’s all people you don’t know.” she leaned forward, eyes sparkling with mischief. “i’ll need your help figuring out the theme. and snacks.”

there were plenty of reasons for nami to hate the dinner parties, but he always focused on the positives. namely that he got to see ezra. his crush on the other boy built up until nami was counting down days until the next big get together. usually he mentally prepared himself beforehand, having enough time to plan out all the questions he’d ask and compliments he’d try to throw out without sounding too desperate. he hadn’t expected to bump into ezra beforehand, and the second he heard the familiar voice, his body tensed, looking down at himself. he looked… presentable, he guessed, but it wasn’t ideal. when a hand pressed against his back, nami’s eyes widened, letting out a nervous puff of a breath. “hey,” he said, his nose crinkled as he peaked up at the other. he still looked as pretty as ever, and nami nearly pouted at the sight before reminding himself to keep it together. “… right now? uh, sure.” he had homework, but it wasn’t like he could turn it down. it was his one chance of being alone with the other boy. the idea was as exciting as it made him feel queasy. “where do you wanna go? we can go wherever, i’m pretty hungry,” he lied, nodding eagerly. “i could eat anything. well… not, like, anything. i’ve never really liked that little german place around the corner? it was, like, okay, but definitely not a favorite for me… but that’s probably a weird thing to crave, anyway, right?” he paused for a breath, but not long enough to be interrupted. “unless you were really wanting to to go there - then, uh… that’s okay, too! i really don’t mind, i’m sure i could find something that doesn’t make me feel… disgusted. okay, disgusted is a strong word, more - ah, forget it. what were you thinking?”