PERVERSION

“first time here?” admittedly, she couldn’t help herself, couldn’t help the curiosity from seeping through the cracks of a carefully constructed wall of indifference as her fingers curl around the plastic in her palm, perhaps already a little inebriated from drinking a little earlier. it is honestly impossible to go to these things sober.

the lights look dim, naturally candy colored and filled with moving heads and occasional heaps of smoke near the ceiling. the nice view is very nice.

jimin’s steps are careful as he ventures further inside– walking like a spy in amidst thick lasers  the last thing he needs is to step on any toes. especially that of an angry drunk and he’s pretty sure there’s at least three of them lurking about. (it’s no party without petty bull.) once he found an area with just a few people, he sighed in relief with the shoulders and all. he rested his back against the wall– but not without the small shoulder bump– “oops.”

although the male in questioning didn’t look inebriated. actually didn’t look like the type to be there, if she’s honest. eunha might not have taken much interest in that of others, but she’s observant more than anything. and a face like this, eyes cut different and lips carrying a different air of a curve, certainly wasn’t one that she’s seen in places before.

he’s right, she knows, but eunha would never give him the satisfaction, instead she walks with him out of the building, a small laugh slipping past at his words. “what will you do? spank me? don’t you remember what happened last time you tried that?” she teases, stepping close with his prompting as she leans into his warmth, heart fluttering slightly at the gesture.

Not that he really ever got to see what she was drawing, he would simply be a drawing silhouette for a few hours in exchange for Park Eunha’s time. In actuality, Jaebum found it extremely brave of her to do something like this. It was ill-intended in the most backdoor way possible, to have someone that was willing to be a beard.

It was one of his father’s associates that threw this party, and of course they all insisted on seeing his “partner”/”date”/”pretty friend”. It was only the beginning of this habit, certainly not the last, and to everyone that didn’t attend Sunhwa - they were a fit couple.

Jaebum had commented on her appearance when he had picked her up, saying he liked it. Just, that he liked it. It was awkward enough to be in this situation, but he felt the need to be genuinely nice to her. Just for involuntarily being a side-social-concept of a “fake girlfriend”. 

He caught eye contact with a few of his father’s friends, who raised their glasses and smiled in greeting. Jaebum the gesture as he heard Eunha’s comment, which actually made him genuinely chuckle. They were facing each other, glasses in their hands that weren’t interlinked. Jaebum leaned forward slightly to kiss her forehead (mostly to save face but partially to allow for the close proximity), before mumbling in the same fashion.

“ Yeah, I know. Feeling’s kinda’ mutual. ” He then began to look elsewhere, raising his voice to a conversational tone (for the sake of accidentally being overheard). “ Thanks for coming, though. Really, didn’t think you’d actually agree to this. ”

Jaebum finished what was left of his beverage, putting it down on the table behind him. Then he looked at her; cue sincere eye contact.

Jesus. Why did he feel so fucking a p o l o g e  t i c ?

still, under the pressure of scrutinization, she wonders if this is really worth it. habitual apathy trembling ( eyes, heart, the way fingers curl tighter around glass ) in the face of judgement, attention remains her true enemy, prevarication its right-hand man, it is ironic that eunha even agreed to such an act, that the daughter to an actress was so poor at acting ( lying, yes, this is undoubtedly a lie, fueled by desperation of acceptance for one and unfiltered perversion of another ).

but she supposes jaebum has his reasons for picking her -- not because she wasn’t good at what she was supposed to do, but because she was willing, because she was cold and less likely to fall for surface gestures of the entire facade. his hand in hers is comforting, as is the kiss pressed against her skin, but eunha understands more than anything it’s fake.

and this, a thought entirely too comforting, eighteen years of age, she was already tired of that mess concept.

“mmn.” but she will try harder for his sake, eunha understands at the very least that jaebum had more at stake than she did, lips curved a muted shy smile as she steps forward, setting down the champagne glass in a table nearby to lift a dainty hand and adjust his collar. in the depths of her heart, she supposes there’s a modicum of pity that she just couldn’t shake off. not that she’d tell him, if anything, the jaebum now is as much as a facade as she was -- his temper, though eunha hasn’t gotten the opportunity to get to know, screams danger. 

and they weren’t that close to begin with.

“well, you did make an offer i couldn’t refuse.” it’s easier to stick to the semi-truth, although for the sake of things, eunha eases in bigger smile, flirtatious in the way slender fingers sliding over soft fabric. “hey,” she starts, mind calculating a plan to make this less of a semi-anguishing situation for the both of them. cocktails at 6, dinner at 7, eunha supposes they could “dance”--her eyes wander over to the ballroom floor, where a small amount of couples went about in merriment--but god had given her two left feet in exchange for skilled hands, she would likely cripple poor jaebum more than anything. 

“should we go for a walk before dinner? i heard they set up the garden for tonight.” decked out in lights with a new fountain set in and everything, as if setting up a “casual” dinner party in a hotel wasn’t upscale enough.

Taeoh wasn’t dumb, ok? Ok. But different people do deal with pain in the most weird and different ways so… “That’s kidneys stuff… When was the last time you drank water?”

He was willing to help. Despite all his negative traits he was a good kid and the girl was on the ground so that’s what he was supposed to do. Tae get down to sit back on his feet. 

“Grab my hand, I can pull you up and help you get to the bench or something, I don’t know.” 

thankfully, it is believable, or at least to a certain amount -- eunha cared for little less beyond that, not when the other seemed wholly absorbed in helping her. something she should feel sorry for, but who was it hurting? none, she supposes. none except the pangs of pain in her side. sports was indeed not her forte. 

“a while.” oh god, she really wasn’t good at this. lips pressed together, the third year hopes to pass for an expression of discomfort, reaching out to grasp onto the outreached hand while her other worked to move herself, exhaling quietly at his pull.

“thank you...” she trails off, realizing for a good measure that he didn’t know his name ( but to be honest, eunha didn’t know a lot of names -- at the least, his face was memorable, the third year remembers seeing two once. although the verdict’s still out on how her sobriety was at the time ). “i think i’ll be fine if i just--rest, for a bit.”

“oops, indeed.” eunha retorts with a knowing smirk, shifting slightly to lean her weight against his with a small sigh. “your type of romance can vary from dinner by the sea to me sitting on your face with petals around us, you sleaze.” 

he replaces his pout with a knowing smirk, arms crossing over his chest. oh how he loved to tease, especially if the end result was a possible blush or stutter. “ but, i can’t reschedule these reservations so we should really get going. ” hyunwoo comments, arm loosening to swing around her shoulders and pull her into the hall. closing the door, he sneakily places a peck to her jawline. 

“patience--” she chides, cut off by the pull as she steps forward, lashes fluttering at the peck. “i know,” eunha spares a small quirk of her lips, fingers playing with the hem of his coat absently, rubbing and tugging at the fabric. “i also know you like it though.” the second year hums with that, snaking her arm around his waist without much thought. all men like a challenge. even if it was posed as pre-dinner flirting.