13: Ice Cream and Nicknames

JAMIE POV The sun shined on my face as I opened my eyes. I looked around the room. It's Sunday. I sat up, stretched, and got out of bed. Then, I went downstairs to smell the sweet scent of pancakes.

"Good morning Elizabeth!" I said as I walked into the kitchen.

"Good morning Jamie!" She replied. "There are pancakes for you on the table." She added. I quickly sat down and ate. Then, my father came out and I bowed.

"Jamie, go to the market with Elizabeth today. I have a meeting to do here so I don't want either of you home." He said. Wow thanks.

"Okay." I answered shortly. Then, I went to my room, changed, and went back downstairs.

"Don't come back home until 5:30." He said. I looked at the clock.

"Appa, it's 11:30 right now." I said.

"So what?" He answered. I sighed.

"Never mind." I said. Then, I followed Elizabeth out and we walked to the mart together.

"Don't mind your father. You know how he is." She said and I rolled my eyes.

"He isn't even a real father. Fathers actually care for their children." I answered.

"Just have patience Jamie." She said back. When we got to the mart, we started getting the vegetables and the meat. Then suddenly, I heard a voice call me from behind.

"Jamie?" I turned around to see Taehyung. He smiled at me. "It is you! Hi!" He said. I smiled back.

"Hey Tae." I answered.

"Who is this?" Elizabeth asked.

"He's my friend from school. Taehyung, this is my nanny Elizabeth." I said. He bowed to Elizabeth and gave her a wide smile.

"Anneyonghaseyo! Kim Taehyung-imnida!" He said and she smiled.

"Anneyong Taehyung." She answered.

"Hey Jamie, Bangtan and I are going to eat ice cream at the store next door. Do you want to come?" He asked. I shook my head.

"Sorry, I ca-"

"She would love to. Go ahead Jamie." Elizabeth interrupted me. I turned to face her.

"But Elizabeth..." I started to protest.

"No buts. I'll get everything. Don't worry." She answered. "Go. I want you to socialize more." She added and I sighed before nodding and following Taehyung. However, before I left, I turned back around to make sure it was okay. She  simply nodded and walked off as we did the same.

"I like Elizabeth, she seems nice." Taehyung commented.

"Yeah, she's the best." I answered. Then, I followed Taehyung next door where I heard Jhope say,

"Finally, how long does it take for you to use the bathroom." Then, they saw me and their eyes widened.

"Oh hi Jamie!" Jungkook exclaimed.

"Hey guys!" I answered. I looked at Jimin and he smiled at me.

"Come sit here!" Jungkook motioned. I went to where he was and sat down between him and Jimin.

"What ice cream would you like?" Taehyung asked. "Pick two flavors." He said.

"Strawberry and mint chip." I said. He nodded and got up to order it for me.

"So Jamie, how did you and Taehyung see each other?" Jin asked.

"Oh, my nanny and I were at the market to get groceries and TaeTae came and invited me for ice cream." I said.

"TaeTae?" Jimin asked and I nodded.

"Aww, I want you to call me by a nickname too." Jungkook pouted. I giggled.

"Okay, what would you like me to call you?" I asked. His eyes lit up.

"Kookie!!!" He exclaimed. I laughed as I saw that he was also eating cookies n cream ice cream.

"Okay Kookie." I said and he cheered.

"Me too! Call me Hobie Oppa!" Jhope added.

"I want to be called Oppa too!" Jin added.

"Call me Yoongi Oppa!" Suga said.

"Namjoon Oppa!" Rap Monster added. I laughed. These boys...

"Namjoon and Yoongi? Are those your real names?" I asked and they nodded.

"Okay then. TaeTae, Kookie, Hobie Oppa, Jin Oppa, Yoongi Oppa, and Namjoon Oppa. Is that all?" I asked and they nodded.

"Wait! Call him Jiminie." Jhope added while pointing at Jimin. I turned to him to see him rubbing the back of his neck.

"Do you want me to call you Jiminie?" I asked and he shrugged.

"Sure, if you want. My friends call me that anyway. Since you are my friend now, it's cool if you call me that." He said. I smiled and nodded. By this time, Taehyung came back with my ice cream and I thanked him. Then, we all started eating as we talked. After a while, we decided to go out to the park. When we got there, all of the boys went to the playground and I laughed at their childish behavior. Meanwhile, I went to the swings and watched them as I swayed back and forth.

"Mind if I join you?" I heard a voice ask. I turned around to see Jimin.

"Sure Jimin... I mean... Jiminie." I said. He chuckled.

"You don't have to call me that if you don't want to." He said. I shook my head.

"No I want to. I just have to get used to it." I said and he nodded. Then, he sat down next to me and we swayed back and forth silently.

"So... Do you like your house and everything?" He asked. I nodded.

"It was easy to adapt to. Except for the fact that the view outside of my window is your room." I said and he nodded.

"Yeah it was kind of weird for me too at first, but I got used to it." He said.

"Good. School is good too. Anna and Rachel are great and so are you guys." I said.

"The only bad thing is Chelsea." He added.

"She can be... Feisty." I said and he sighed.

"She really does creep me out. She's crazy." He said.

"I just hope that I can avoid her." I said.

"At least you have a choice. Seriously...  Sometimes, I just want to hit her. I know that's a bit extreme but she really gets on my nerve. She's so fake." He said.

"I would probably feel the same way if I were you." I answered.

"But seriously no matter how hard I try, I can't fix her dancing. She is just awful." He said and I laughed. He smiled at me.

"You know, you're really beautiful when you laugh." He said. I froze and felt my face heat up. My heart started to beat faster.

"Th-Thanks." I answered.

"I'm sorry... I made the situation awkward..." He said while scratching his head but I shook my hands.

"No no, you were just being nice. Thanks for the compliment, and your really handsome too." I added to even things out. He smiled widely.

"I am aren't I." He said, making the mood less awkward. We laughed together before the rest of the boys joined us.

"Hey guys, it's already 5:30." Jhope said. My eyes widened in surprise.

"Really? Already?" I asked.

"I guess time flies when you're having fun." Jin said. I smiled and nodded.

"Guys I should get home. I can't stay out too late." I said and they nodded.

"You should walk her home Jiminie." Namjoon said. Jimin nodded and we split up.

"Bye Jamie!" They all said.

"Bye Bangtan!" I answered. Then, Jimin and I strolled back to our houses.

"It was fun today." I said and Jimin nodded.

"I agree. We should hang out more often." He said and I nodded. Then, we talked about random things and shared jokes and laughter. After a couple of minutes, we made it to our houses.

"Jamie, sleep with your window a little bit open tonight." Jimin said before we parted. I raised my eyebrow.

"Why?" I asked.

"I'll wake you up earlier so that you can eat breakfast and stuff. Trust me, it will make your day way better." He said. I smiled and nodded. He smiled back.

"Goodnight Jiminie." I said.

"Goodnight Jamie." He said while smiling. With that, we parted and I walked into my house and saw that Elizabeth was cooking and my dad was watching tv.

"Jamie." He called.

"Yes?" I answered.

"Who was that boy outside?" He asked. Why do you care.

"Just a friend. Why?" I asked.

"You better not be more than friends." He said sternly. I got frustrated at his words.

"Why do you even care?" I asked. He looked at me with deadly eyes.

"Are you trying to start an argument with me?" He asked with power in his voice. I took a deep breath.

"Goodnight. I don't want dinner." I answered quickly. At that, I marched up to my room and closed the door. Then, I laid on my bed and punched my pillow. Just leave me alone. Stop pretending to care. Stop pretending like you're fatherly. You might be my father by blood, but you definitely are not my father at heart. I put my head on the pillow I punched and I looked up at the ceiling. Mom, why did you have to leave? Why couldn't you stay? Tears formed in my eyes as I closed them. Why did my life have to turn out like this?