My Summer in Seoul

They stood awkwardly like they were at an impasse, and then Dae-Jung straight up just went for it, grabbing Jay’s hand and holding it tight.

Were they—?

No.

Well—?

No.

“Eavesdropping your new thing?” Rae’s murmur sounded from behind me.

I jumped a foot, and my heart nearly stopped as I shoved him into the corner so they couldn’t see us. “What are you doing?”

“What are you doing?” He repeated the question. “Spying?”

“No! Yes.” I scowled. “I was concerned, okay? Jay was missing, and my job is to keep everyone safe, you could have told me he was bilingual, you know.”

“Yeah, he’s not in danger, or at least his body isn’t in danger. I don’t know about his heart.” Rae ran both hands through his long blond hair. “And you could have asked, you know.”

Damn him for being right. I quickly changed the subject.

“Is he…?” I licked my lips. “I mean, are they…?”

Rae’s dark eyebrows arched. “Are they what?”

I gulped. “Together?”

“Together? No.” Rae peeked around the corner. “It’s too much of a risk for both of them…”

“So Jay’s…” I nodded slowly.

Rae’s amused laugh made me feel dumb. “I think you should ask Jay that, but I know exactly what he’ll tell you.”

“And what’s that?”

Jay’s voice sounded from the left, scaring me shitless. “That sexuality is so much more than an are you or aren’t you?” His accent was so damn cute that it completely deflated my anger. “I like girls too, you know…” His eyes roamed over me slowly. I honestly hadn’t heard him speak a lot so had no clue he was Australian until now or that he understood every single word I said.

Awesome.

“Sorry, you’re not my type,” I finally joked after recovering from his cuteness.

Jay laughed. “I’m heartbroken.”

“Yeah, clearly.” I smirked.

Dae-Jung appeared behind him.

“Make sure he gets out of the apartment for me without being seen?”

Jay was asking me for this.

I couldn’t fail.

“I’ve got you,” I said quickly. “I’ll get him out.”

“Thank you.” He seemed relieved. “Not even sure how this little shit got in.”

Dae-Jung rolled his eyes. “I played a secret agent once in a drama…”

Jay moaned in annoyance. “Not this again.”

“Well, I did!” He winked. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Wait until after the Showcase.” This from Rae. “Things are… intense right now.”

Dae-Jung’s face fell. “Fine, I’ll just flirt with your new intern in the meantime until Lucas and your faces explode.”

Rae’s nostrils flared.

Even Jay looked pissed while Dae-Jung just looked proud of himself for provoking them again.

What was with this guy?

“C’mon.” I nodded toward the stairway. “Let’s get you out of here, Mr. Secret Agent.”

“Kind of has a ring to it.” He smiled, shoving his hands into his black trousers and shooting one last look at Jay. “Remember what I said.”

“Trying not to,” Jay fired back.

It was the first time I saw Dae-Jung’s confidence falter as he looked away and followed me silently off the roof and down the stairs.

I decided we’d take the elevator down to the basement then I could walk him from the first parking level around the back.

Nobody would be suspicious if he was with me anyway, and if they were, well then, I’d officially have my first scandal in Korea after pulling him in for a hug or something, anything so they didn’t suspect the guys.

“So…” I awkwardly rocked back on my heels as the elevator descended.

Dae-Jung was standing in the corner, arms crossed, his perfectly chiseled face frowning like he was trying to solve world hunger.

“How’s your day?” I may as well have asked about the weather. I inwardly groaned as he turned toward me with a mocking grin.

“Great. Perfect. Jay’s being an asshole as per usual, and now I’m getting babysat by the girl who doesn’t wear slippers.”

I gasped. “He told you!”

“Grace, it’s not hard, just take off your fucking shoes.”

I was going to murder Jay. “I forget, okay?”

“Try not to.” Dae-Jung smirked. “It’s gross. I mean, think about it, you’re walking around a large city for hours, going to practice where the guys sweat for hours.” He cleared his throat and looked away. “And then you’re going back to the apartment and taking all that dirt and grime right with you.” He made a face then shuddered. “Do you sit on your bed with your shoes on?”

“No,” I said defensively, because, well yeah, I’ve totally been guilty of that.

He scrunched up his nose. “Wear the slippers.”

The elevator came to a stop at the first parking garage level. “What else did Jay tell you?”

“That Lucas is still having a hard time, that he hates you, that Rae’s one step away from having an ulcer and getting sent to the hospital, and Sookie wants to murder chickens, but not because he wants to eat them, he just hates them that much.”

I snorted out a laugh. “Poor Sookie, I could see the headlines now: Maknae of SWT, Chicken Murderer.”