Why Not Me?

Haewon and Jake watched the entire movie without saying a word to each other. Once in a while, they would steal glances at each other from the corners of their eyes, and when they saw the other staring at the movie screen, they would go back to doing so as well.

Unlike Jake, who was wearing a Jacket, Haewon was dressed in a t-shirt, so she was more affected by the cold air from the air conditioner.

As a result of this, the moment the movie ended, Haewon did not spare Jake a glance as she walked out of the hall in search of a coffee shop where she could get a hot cup of coffee to warm up her insides which seemed frozen.

She found a cozy little cafe/bakery across the street and went in. The owner of the place was a huge dark man with tattoos all over his neck.

After Haewon received her order of a hot cup of coffee and chocolate cake and was seated in her booth, she took out her phone and smiled when she saw she had received an apology text from Charlotte.

She texted back to let Charlotte know she was alright and at a cafe now and then sent Charlotte a picture of her coffee and cake before focusing her attention on her snacks.

As she ate, she thought about how she had run into Jake at the cinema, and she scowled. Of everyone she could possibly have run into in the cinema, why did it have to be him? She had not enjoyed the movie as much as she had wanted to because of his presence beside her.

She raised her hand when someone joined her booth and took the seat opposite her, and almost choked on the cake she had been munching on when she saw it was Jake.

She looked away from him flippantly, and because her mouth was full, she chewed with deliberate slowness as she deliberated on whether or not to speak to him.

She took a sip of her coffee to clear her throat and then glanced around to ensure that there were other available booths where he could have sat before looking at him.

"What are you doing here?" Haewon asked with a frown.

"Eating," Jake responded curtly.

Haewon scoffed, "There are at least five other unoccupied booths that are very far from me. You should have chosen one of those. Are you trying to get on my nerves?" Haewon asked in annoyance.

Jake nonchalantly looked around at the empty booths she had mentioned before looking at her again, "But, this is the only one you're seated on. You're not seated on those empty ones," Jake said as a matter of factly.

Haewon huffed, "Now I'm certain you're trying to get on my nerves. You're the one who asked me to avoid you and pretend I don't know you, and now you're the one…"

"There is no reason to get worked up. We are not in school right now. And I wanted to ask you something," Jake said in a very calm and unaffected voice.

"I am not being worked up," Haewon said as she folded both hands across her chest defensively.

Jake merely raised a brow as he watched her, and after a moment, Haewon exhaled deeply. "You can ask whatever it is that you want to and leave," She said, mostly because she was curious to know what he wanted to say.

Without taking a second to think, Jake said, "I want you to go to prom with me. Will you?"

To say she was taken aback by his out-of-the-blue request would be an understatement. But instead of responding, Haewon stuffed a piece of cake into her mouth and started chewing, wanting to use the time to think about his ridiculous request.

"Of all the guys in school, why would I want to go to prom with you?" She asked, looking at him like he had lost his mind.

The question took him aback and made him a bit uncomfortable. He had expected her to lash out angrily or say a direct No. He had not anticipated such a cold and calm response.

He knew for a fact that she had turned down every prom date request sent her way, and he knew she didn't interact well with the other guys in school despite the fact that she had a plethora of admirers. Was she comparing him to the other guys? Did she think they were better than him?

"Why not me?" He asked instead, wanting to know the intent behind her question.

"Are you kidding me? Have you spoken a word to me since you transferred to my school? Did you not hang up on me rudely when I called to thank you for your help? You do not have good manners, and I don't see any reason why I should waste my prom night on a jerk like you," Haewon said, and Jake nodded thoughtfully.

"So, that's it," He said, relieved to know she was only mad about his attitude towards her and not because she thought the other guys in class were better than him.

"That's what?" Haewon asked with a confused frown.

"Your reason. I understand. What if I apologized for my actions? Would that change your mind?" Jake asked, surprising her.

"Just a moment ago, you completely ignored me at the cinema…"

"You ignored me too," Jake cut in.

"No. I ignored you because you ignored me. The seat beside you was empty, and you didn't offer it…"

"If I had offered it, would it have made any difference?" Jake cut in once again, and Haewon huffed.

"I know you don't like me, so why do you want me to be your prom date?" Haewon asked with a frown.

"Because I like you most out of all the other girls in school," Jake said, and Haewon's heart skipped a beat.

She wasn't sure if she could take that as a compliment or not. She wanted to ask him if that was how he treated the girls he liked, but she did not want to get into another round of argument with him right now.

"Why?" Haewon asked, and Jake shrugged.

"You're not like the rest of them. You carry yourself differently, and you don't throw yourself on me," Jake said easily, and Haewon tried not to roll her eyes.

"I wonder why anyone would want to throw themselves at you with that attitude of yours. Why risk asking me when you can ask any of the other girls who would be more than eager to accompany you?" Haewon asked again, and Jake sighed inwardly.

The conversation had gone on far longer than he had thought it would. He had not considered asking her to prom or even entertained the thought of going to prom himself until his grandmother brought it up when he told her he had run into her at the cinema.

It had made him wonder why she asked him to give her such a shitty attitude the whole time if she knew she was going to ask him to take her to prom.

"Because I know you wouldn't be a bother. I won't bother you either. How about you consider it as a way of paying me back for helping you that night and getting you back your phone?" Jake asked, and Haewon raised a brow.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Think of it as returning a favor. Besides, after what happened at the last party you attended, wouldn't you feel better going with someone who can keep you safe?"

"I can keep myself safe!" Haewon snapped at him.

"Yeah. You did a good job of it the last. I'm not asking for too much. All I want is for you to accompany me to prom and keep the other girls away from me. I will do the same for you," Jake said, and Haewon sighed.

"I will think about it," She said, and Jake nodded.

"Fair enough. I hope to hear from you before Monday. You still have my number, don't you?" He asked, and Haewon shook her head, even though she had it.

"Why would I keep it? I deleted it," She lied, and Jake stifled the urge to smile in amusement.

"Alright. Hand me your phone, and I will give it to you," He offered, but she shook her head, knowing if she did, he would see his number already saved on her phone.

"If you have my number, you can just give me a call tomorrow to…" Before she could finish speaking, Jake dialed her line, and her phone, which was on the table, started ringing.

Jake glanced down at her phone's screen, and his lips twitched when he caught the name she had used to save his number.

'Mannerless savior.'

Haewon snatched her phone from the table immediately, her face turning red from embarrassment at being caught, "Oh, I didn't realize I still had it!" She said without meeting his gaze, and Jake smirked.

"I'll give you a call tomorrow," He said as he rose to leave.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Haewon asked before he could leave.

"What?" Jake asked in confusion.

"The apology. You haven't apologized yet. I will only think about it after you've apologized," Haewon said as she met his gaze squarely. She was not going to let him get away with his bad attitude.

Jake held her gaze for a moment and then gave her a nod, "I'm sorry for being a jerk," He said and waited until she acknowledged his apology with a nod before walking away.