Page 59 of XOXO

“Our manager came early and waited in line,” Jaewoo explains.

Poor Nam Ji Seok. “Is that in his job description?”

“Placating needy and hungry boys?” Nathaniel answers. “Yes.”

Angela keeps sneaking glances at Jaewoo from across the table, probably assuming he’s sitting with us because Nathaniel and Sori are.

“We’re just here to eat lunch,” Jaewoo says, “then we have to go back to the studio.”

“You came all the way here to eat lunch?” This from Gi Taek.

“Today was macaron day,” Nathaniel says. “We wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

As Nathaniel engages Gi Taek and Angela in a conversation about the merits of dining-hall food, Jaewoo shifts closer to me.

“You haven’t tried the macaron yet?”

I’m a bit overwhelmed by his presence. The chairs in the dining hall are already pretty close together, and he’s leaning toward me. I can smell his cologne, a subtle, fresh scent, like a sea breeze.

“I was saving it for last,” I tell him, “but Nathaniel makes a good argument.”

I reach for the macaron and bring it to my lips. I feel self-conscious, because he’s watching me, but then I bite down and the sweet explosion of flavors in my mouth is incredible. The combination of the crisp outside and the soft and chewy inside, plus the raspberry buttercream in the middle.

I groan, “It’s heavenly.”

“Yeah?” Jaewoo laughs, a bit unsteadily.

With his chopsticks, he picks up his macaron and places it on my tray. “Have mine too.”

I beam at him. He’s giving me his macaron. It’s like he’s giving me his heart.

I look up to find Sori studying us, her expression unreadable.

“No, it’s fine,” I say. “You should eat it.” I return the macaron to his tray.

“If you’re not going to eat it, I will.” Nathaniel reaches over, grabs Jaewoo’s macaron, and pops it into his mouth.

That night, I’m sitting on my bed writing a paper for history class, when Sori abruptly turns toward me from where she’d been doing homework at her desk. I almost yelp in surprise because she’s wearing a bright-red sheet mask

“So, you and Jaewoo.” It’s a statement.

“Me and Jaewoo, what?”

“Don’t be cute with me.” She looks away, taps her heel against the bottom of her chair, then returns her gaze. “You’re not worried that I’ll tell my mom?”

“Will you?” Honestly, it never occurred to me. She might be the daughter of Joah’s CEO, but she’s also my friend.

Still, she takes her sweet time in answering, taking off her sheet mask and using the tips of her fingers to tap the essence into her skin. She’s wearing a Minnie Mouse towel headband to keep her hair from her face, which she adjusts.

“No,” she says, after I’ve pretty much watched her preen herself for a minute and a half. “Before I was your roommate oreven Nathaniel’s girlfriend, I was Jaewoo’s friend. He deserves this.”

“He deserves... me?” I grin. “’Cause I’m so great?”

She rolls her eyes. “He deserves to be happy.”

“Wow.” I didn’t think anything so cliché could feel so good. She thinks I make him happy?

She continues, “I don’t want to say, ‘you don’t know him like I do.’”

---