Chapter Text
Yummy Bacon Bites
"Here."
Iseul stares up at the bright yellow bag in Subin's hand. The words Yummy Bacon Bites were emblazoned on the front above a transparent circle that displayed small, round dog treats.
"Um, what?" Next to her, Duri lifts her head, shifting her attention away from the ladybug crawling on the grassy ground, and studies Subin, mirroring Iseul's confusion.
"Well? Do you want it? It's for Duri." Subin thrusts her hand out impatiently.
"O-okay. Thank you?" Only because she's not sure what else to do, Iseul plucks the treats from Subin's hand. Perhaps this was some sort of prank. Like that horrible one with Jiwoo's text messages. Ugh. Thinking of that still made her cringe in embarrassment. And infuriatingly, it turned out that Subin didn't even like Jiwoo that way. Her "boyfriend with a space in between". Suddenly, Iseul feels a strong urge to roll her eyes, or at least shove back the stupid dog treats. But Duri was already nosing at the package insistently, and Iseul could only imagine the heartbroken look she would receive if she gave it back. Bacon was Duri's favorite.
"What's this for?" she asks, tearing open the bag and selecting one for Duri. A swipe of hot tongue across her hand and it was gone. A second later, Duri's nose pushes against her hand insistently, the gesture amplifying the request sent through their bond. Iseul takes out another one, stroking that soft, white fur with her other hand.
"Oh, we were shopping for cat treats at this pet store and Jisuk accidentally threw that in the cart. The idiot actually thought it was for cats." A smirk splits Subin's face open, and to her surprise, the corners of Iseul's mouth tug slightly up too. Quickly, she presses her lips together to stop the smile from spreading. It wasn't even that funny. And she was still supposed to be pissed at Subin, or at least annoyed. In fact, the only reason she was only sitting here chatting with her because Subin had given Duri those dog treats.
Shaking her head, Subin laughs. It's more like giggling, actually, light and childish. Who knew that Subin could giggle.
"I mean, seriously. You'd have to be blind to miss the picture of the freaking dog on the front." Subin sighs, seemingly dumbstruck by Jisuk's idiocy. "Anyway, I thought Duri might want it so yeah."
Well, it was nice of Subin to think of Duri. For a split second, Iseul almost considers asking her to sit down and maybe chat some more, but then someone calls out her name.
"Subin, what're you doing? C'mon, we're heading out!" Jisuk, Wooin, and Jiwoo—Jiwoo—are standing on the other side of the courtyard. Oh. Despite the distance, Jiwoo looks as handsome as ever with his creamy hair shining in the sunlight. A tiny sigh escapes from Iseul's mouth. Of course her crush had to be someone unattainable. Although it had been more than than a month since she'd heard that Jiwoo was going out with Wooin, the sight of them together still sends a light pang through her heart, and not the good kind.
"Well, I gotta go now. See ya." Subin waves cheerfully at Iseul. Slowly, Iseul lifts her hand to wave back, but Subin has already turned around, striding over to her friends.
Iseul sighs again and glances down at Duri. Large, dark eyes stare back at her, shamelessly begging for more treats. Oh, what the hell. There wasn't much left anyway. She upends the bag and watches the brown pellets roll out onto the ground like pebbles. Immediately, Duri falls on the small pile as if she hasn't eaten for a month.
Choco Pies
Orion Choco Pie. Lotte's Custard Cakes. Chocolate Corns. Dried Squid. Honey Butter Chips.
Hmm...which one would Jiwoo like the best? He seemed like the type of guy to have a sweet tooth, so maybe the Choco Pies? Or perhaps he would prefer the chocolate corns.
"What do you think, girl?"
Duri doesn't answer, just stares up at her with that dog-smile on her face. Iseul can practically imagine her shrug.
Well. This was actually kinda sad. She'd spent all those months mooning over Jiwoo, but she didn't even know his favorite snack. And she needed to bring something he'd like. After all, it was his house that she was going over to.
Back then, she'd dreamed of going to Jiwoo's house as his girlfriend on a perfectly romantic date—Jiwoo would be the most romantic boyfriend ever—but tragically, this was not the case. Jiwoo had mentioned inviting his friends over to watch a movie, some blockbuster that had just come out, and Iseul had somehow gotten roped into it. She still wasn't sure whether or not Subin had truly invited her on a whim just because she and Duri happened to be sitting nearby at the time.
So why had Subin even invited her along? It's not like they were friends or anything. Friends didn't use crushes to utterly humiliate friends. Still, she was kinda looking forward to it...although seeing Jiwoo and Wooin together again might be a teeny bit awkward.
Focusing again on the snack display, she frowns. The Choco Pies seem like the safer bet. Everyone seemed to like them after all. Like Subin. At the Academy during lunchtime, the sight of Subin munching away at a Choco Pie greeted her every time she peeked over at them to catch a glance of Jiwoo. That was so freaking annoying. After the first few times, Iseul had decided that Subin was blocking her view of Jiwoo just to piss her off. Maybe she should pick another snack instead. Totally not out of spite of course. If she brought the Choco Pies, Subin would probably hog all of them anyway.
But...it'd been pretty nice for Subin to invite her. She didn't need to be so petty over this. It was all in the past now. She wasn't even that obsessed with Jiwoo anymore. Taking a deep breath, she selects the Choco Pie package at the front. Who cared if Subin ate the entire pack. Just as she had vowed to stop obsessing over Jiwoo, she would no longer let Subin irk her anymore. It's all in the past.
A soft whine comes from the ground near her feet. Iseul glances down to see Duri staring back at her, and she can almost hear the words whispered in her ear.
"Alright, alright. I won't forget your treats."
***
It's still nerve-racking standing in front of Jiwoo's door. Iseul's hand is poised over the doorbell, the other hand gripping the Choco Pies tightly, but she can't bring herself to press it. This is ridiculous. Why the hell is she still so nervous? She was invited here; it's not like she's bursting in on them like some sort of weird stalker who found Jiwoo's address by googling him or something. (Okay, she had googled him a few times actually, but only out of casual curiosity.) This wasn't even the first time she'd been here although that time, Grandma had come along. But she wasn't some little girl who needed her granny for help.
Duri nudges at Iseul's waist with her nose, and she's grateful for the support until the sharp bark startles her.
"What are you doing, girl?" Iseul hisses under her breath, frantically glancing back and forth between Duri and the door. Oh no. They must have heard it. This was so embarrassing. What if they had noticed her standing out there like a weirdo?
The door swings open to reveal Subin's grinning face. Hurriedly, Iseul straightens up and plasters on a smile, trying her best to look cool and nonchalant as if she hasn't been standing here having a very minor meltdown for five whole minutes. Not that she's counting.
"Oh hey, you're here, come on in. Ooh, you brought Choco Pies!" The light flashes against Subin's lip piercing as she turns to usher Iseul and Duri through the doorway. The slight, warm pressure of Subin's hand against her back makes Iseul freeze for a second before the hand moves away.
"Guys, Iseul's here!"
"Oh, hi Iseul! It's great to see you." Jiwoo smiles up at her from where he's sitting on the couch next to Wooin. She stiffens for a moment, waiting for that familiar pang in her heart, but there's nothing. Wooin gives her a small wave, mouth stuffed with dried seaweed, and she manages to wave back. As she watches, Jiwoo holds up another piece to his boyfriend's mouth and she turns away.
"Oh huh, you got Choco Pies? Don't you know that Subin's gonna eat it all?" Jisuk picks up the Choco Pie package from the table and frowns at it. "She never leaves any for the rest of us."
"Shut up asshole! Like you don't pig out on rice puffs every freaking chance you get!"
Dropping the Choco Pies on the ground, Jisuk aims a childish kick at Subin's shins, which she sidesteps easily. Iseul hides a smile as she watches them tussle back and forth like feral toddlers, but then Subin glances up, pausing in her efforts to headlock Jisuk, and flashes her a lipsticked grin.
"Okay, I'll get the movie started now?" Jiwoo grabs the remote from the table and turns on the TV. Jisuk and Subin's bickering trails off and they settle down on the floor. Still standing awkwardly by the couch, Iseul lingers there for a moment until Subin motions to the spot next to her. Iseul sinks down on her legs gratefully, Duri lying down with her head on her paws. Subin really wasn't that bad. The possibility of becoming friends with her didn't seem that far-fetched now.
The movie's pretty good too. Iseul's normally not into these flashy, action-packed movies, but this one had a clever plot and best of all, a sweet romance. Watching the hunky lead actor sweep his love interest off her feet brings a smile to her face. Love stories like these have always warmed her heart. What would really be wonderful is getting the chance to be in a real-life one herself.
The end credits start rolling, and someone nudges Iseul's side.
"That was awesome, right?" Subin asks, around a mouthful of Choco Pie.
"Yeah, the ending was so cute! The two of them really are perfect for each other."
"Yeah, definitely."
"So..." She racks her brain for something to say. "Who was your favorite character?"
"Oh, it was the Widow for sure! She's fucking awesome. Did you know that she's one of the only people with no powers on the team? And she still beat that..."
And the afternoon goes by just like that. It's fun and lighthearted, just like hanging out with her other friends, and Iseul feels like she belongs there with them. Sure it did get a little messy when Jisuk and Subin had that food fight—her feelings regarding Subin had soured just the tiniest bit when that Choco Pie went over Jisuk's head and right towards her face—but hey, at least it hadn't hit her in the end. And that dark brown stain on Jiwoo's couch, however...suspicious-looking, would come off eventually.
Jiwoo. She hadn't even thought about him that much during the visit. He'd asked her how she liked the movie and they'd chatted for a bit about the characters and stuff. More interaction with him than she'd had in months. But the urge to replay their conversation, savoring it like a heaping plate of her favorite frosted cookies, doesn't come to her. It feels strange though not unpleasant, like finally putting weight on a broken leg that had just healed.
Turning her gaze from the car window, Iseul looks at Duri, curled up beside her on the car seat. Duri is a bit too big for the seat and the lower half of her body dangles off the edge, in danger of slipping off at any moment. Still, she raises her head to look at Iseul, mouth open in a dog-smile and tongue lolling.
"At least I still have you, girl." Duri yips quietly in response and Iseul laughs, hugging her best friend's head tightly.