chapter seven

the cafeteria was louder than usual. trays clattered, students shouted across tables, and someone had brought a speaker that was blasting a remix too distorted to recognize. aeri weaved through the chaos, balancing her tray in one hand and holding her phone in the other, scrolling through a playlist as she reached her usual table.

yejin spotted her first. "you're late."

"wonwoo update?" sungmin asked, grinning.

donghyun scooted over to make space. "this better be good."

aeri dropped her tray and slid into the seat like she was the main event. which, in her group, she usually was.

"okay," she said, placing her drink down with unnecessary flair. "you ready?"

yejin leaned in. "hit us."

aeri lowered her voice just a bit, drawing them in like she always did when she had gossip worth gold. "he gave me a book."

"what?" donghyun blinked. "like... for real?"

"not just any book," she said. "he said—and i quote—'if you're going to keep sitting here, you should read something.' then gave me one from his bag."

yejin grinned. "wait... is that flirting? that's his version of flirting, right?"

"that's something," sungmin agreed. "that's more than he says to most people."

"then," aeri added, sipping her drink, "the next day, i walked with him to class."

"you're brave," donghyun said. "he's like allergic to people."

"he was quiet," she admitted. "but he talked. and—he thanked me."

yejin gasped. "shut up."

"no, seriously. he said thank you before going into class. like... genuinely."

"he's falling," donghyun said with a smirk.

aeri smirked back. "he's starting to. slow burn."

sungmin shook his head, clearly impressed. "damn. i thought he'd be impossible."

"everyone thought that," she said, glancing around the cafeteria. she spotted him, briefly, two tables down near the back wall—same corner, same tray of food he barely touched, same headphones around his neck. but he was reading something again, expression focused.

and for the first time since this whole thing started, her gaze lingered a little too long.

yejin bumped her shoulder. "you're not actually catching feelings, right?"

aeri blinked. "what?"

"you're looking at him like he's a love interest in a drama."

"i'm just observing my progress," she said quickly.

"mm-hmm," donghyun said, clearly unconvinced. "so what's your next move, master manipulator?"

aeri leaned forward, chin resting on her hand. "i'm going to win this bet. i'm going to make him fall for me so hard he won't even remember what being alone feels like."

"and then what?" sungmin asked, eyes teasing. "you crush him?"

"depends on how dramatic i feel by prom," she joked.

but her voice wasn't as sharp as usual.

there was a pause.

aeri looked down at her tray. picked up a fry. twisted it between her fingers. she wasn't sure why, but her chest felt tight for a second. not guilty—yet. just... tense.

yejin must've felt the shift, because she spoke softer. "hey. you know you don't have to go all the way with this, right?"

"it's a dare," aeri said. "we finish dares."

"just don't forget he's a real person."

"i haven't."

but the words felt heavier now. not because they weren't true—because maybe they were too true.

she glanced back at wonwoo's table again.

he hadn't looked her way once.

but she still felt like he knew.

like some quiet part of him could already see the cracks in her plan.