a dream come true
Pairing: Cupid!Jaemin x Human!Reader (she/her)
Summary: As the son of Cupid, Jaemin has been surrounded by love his entire life. But what happens when he gets sent on earth to pass a test that will determine his whole life? And what happens when he breaks the only rule he was ever given?
Words: 16k
Story color: soft pink
Note: Hello! As you can see, this was supposed to be out on Valentine’s Day, but since I got really sick and kept up by a lot of work at my job, I only finished writing now. I hope you can still enjoy it and that you are excited for more! Always remember to spread kindness~
masterlist of 'nct as supernatural creatures'
Love. One word. 4 letters. Billions of songs about it. And almost every person on this world is craving it.
It’s a marvelous feeling.
Racing hearts, sweaty hands, butterflies in your belly. You name it all.
Jaemin has been surrounded by it all his life. Being the son of Cupid, it was given. From the moment he was born he learned the main aspect of love. From the basic fact of what it is to how to spark it in others.
He has never experienced it himself, being held up at the house of his father, having to learn everything about the subject of love.
“The lovers, obviously. This card represents a unique bond and deep connection between two people. Its presence in a reading reflects a very authentic relationship that is built on mutual trust and respect.”, Jaemins teacher speaks, showing him the said tarot card. “Then there also is the card two cups. This one often reflects the commitment made to one another within a monogamous relationship. Then there is one of my favorites. The ace of cups. It heralds a new relationship filled with excitement, joy and happiness. This is the type of bliss you once experienced as a teenager in love, with butterflies in your stomach and a desire to spend every waking minute with your new love.”
Jaemin doesn’t even listen anymore. He already knows all this stuff, having taught himself the meaning of the love tarot cards by reading the books about them in his dad’s library. Even though Jaemin spends every waking hour hearing about the subject of love, he can’t seem to get enough of it. Not of the facts and statistics, no, but of the actual experience of falling into deep and unconditional love.
At night when he is supposed to sleep, he sneaks out of his room to read novels, the once his father tried to hide from him. By now he almost read all of the once he found. Sometimes he catches himself daydreaming about how his life would be if he was a human, living down on earth and being free to experience life in his full grace. Going on late night drives, going to high school and prom, getting a job, going grocery shopping but actually just putting sweets in his cart, having movie nights where he just ends up falling asleep half way through the movie, buying a shitty car that breaks down at the most unfortunate moments, but keeping it because he build up an emotional connection with it and most importantly fall in love. Fall into unconditional, breathtaking, gut shaking, heart wrenching love. God, does he crave that. But he can’t have it.
Jaemin can’t fall in love. Why? Because his father forbids him to. Even though love is the most desired feeling, his father banned his son from feeling it. Because with love comes heartbreak. The pain that consumes your body, that converts your thoughts and changes you. It turns you into something you never wanted to be, broken and sad. It leaves you huddled up in a corner, shaking and screaming into the void. It’s something you don’t even whish your greatest enemies.
In Cupids eyes he saved his son from this potential misery. In Jaemin’s eyes his father represses him. He holds Jaemin back from living the life he always wanted to live. Jaemin feels trapped, wronged and alone, held back from the one thing he always desired to have.
“Jaemin? Are you even listening?”, his teacher asks him.
“Sorry, Ma’am.”, he stutters out. “I was just caught up in my own thoughts.”
She speaks, adjusting the reading glasses that are lying at the bridge of her nose. “Were you daydreaming again? You know what your father says about daydreaming. It’s-“
“A waste of time and keeps me away from my duties. I know, I know.”, he interrupts her. “I’ve heard this a million times before.”
“If you heard it a million times, then why do you keep doing it? You need to learn, and you can’t learn if you don’t pay attention.”, she says, taking her glasses off and looking at him with a stern yet slightly sympathetic look. She always confuses him. One moment she is the most stern and bullheaded person, and in the next moment she is empathic and friendly. It’s like she carries two completely different personalities inside of her and she switches them up however she likes. “You have a very big test soon, which dedicates your future, Jaemin. It’s not good to waste your time with unnecessary things like sinking into your thoughts and dreaming about other realities. You have to put your focus on the present, the here and now. You must realize the weight of your situation.”
Jaemin nods, knowing that her statement has its truth, but he doesn’t want to hear it. He doesn’t want to know the responsibilities he has to face soon, because this is not the life he wants.
“Okay, it’s getting late. How about you turn into bed earlier today and we continue with this tomorrow?”
“Yeah.”, he croaks out. “Sounds good.” His teacher gives him one last smile, before packing up and leaving him in the room by himself.
Instead of going to bed though, Jaemin grabs himself a book and sits down on the chair on his balcony. It’s crazy how his house, more like a mansion, is so big, filled to the brim with people, yet he feels so alone. His balcony is the only place he doesn’t have to feel that way. It’s like for a moment everything, his whole life, is different. He isn’t Jaemin, the son of the god of love and desire, no, he is just Jaemin, the boy with dreams and hopes. He doesn’t have responsibilities, he just exists. He breaths, he smiles, he feels. And most importantly, he dreams. He has the time to read and think about the life he will never have. And he does exactly that until the sun starts to peek out and the sky goes from dark to light.
“Your father wants to talk to you after breakfast.” Jaemin pauses, the spoon full of cereal halfway in his mouth.
“What?”, he lets out, thinking he didn’t hear right.
“Your father wants to talk to you after breakfast.”, the little angel repeats.
“Why?”, he asks, looking at the winged creature. He grew up around angels, most of them hired as maids around the house, doing the chores his father is too busy to do.
“I don’t know. He didn’t tell me. He just said it’s urgent. So, I advise you to hurry up and go talk to him.”
Suddenly losing his appetite, he drops his spoon back into the bowl and stands up. It’s pretty known to the common folk that the gods are occupied people, having to watch over the humans and do their assigned work. For your dad it’s finding two individuals with matching traits and hitting them with his arrow, to make them fall in love with each other until the end of their time. That keeps up most of his time. Because not only does he have to find people, but he also has to match things like personality traits, interests, hobbies. You name it.
That’s why Jaemin rarely sees him. Well, actually, he never sees him. Once in a blue moon maybe. If he’s lucky he sees him fly by and get a little hello from him, but that didn’t happen in a while. Especially with Valentines Day nearing. So, it’s understandable why his stomach dropped to the ground and his hands started to shake, the minute the angel mentioned his father.
A small ‘Come in’ is heard from the door after Jaemin knocked on it. He takes a deep breath, before opening the door to his father’s office and taking a step in.
“Ah, son, you’re here. Great. Take a seat, I will be right with you.” He watches as his dad scribbles down a few things into a notebook as he takes a seat on the chair in front of his father’s desk. His office looks exactly like you would imagine it to look. Pink and red. Hearts everywhere and a few arrows on the wall. The furniture a dark brown wood, creating a nice contrast to the bright pink in the rest of the room. When Jaemin was a child, he once asked his dad why he made his office look like a teenage girl who just experienced her first love. To that he just got a small chuckle and a short answer. “Because it reminds me of what my job is supposed to be.” That has stuck with Jaemin. To every normal person that was just a simple sentence, stating a simple statement, but to Jaemin it changed his whole view on his dad’s job. If his dad has to turn his office into an exploded love bomb, then the job itself can’t be the most enjoyable one. He knows it’s stressful and time consuming, but he doesn’t want to imagine how lonely and depressing it is to watch people constantly fall in love while all you do is sit in your office and work on the next couple. That’s definitely not the life Jaemin wants.
“I decided what your test is going to be about.”, Cupid speaks, sitting down on his chair. “You know how it is my job to find people who fit together and then bring them together.” Jaemin nods, intertwining his slightly shaking hands and lying them down on his lap.
To say he was nervous was an understatement. This test is important, not only to him or his father, but also to the other God’s. He has to proof that he was worth doing this job and if he fails this test… he doesn’t even want to think about that.
“I do this work from here, far away from where the love is actually happening. So I decided in order for you to pursue this work, you have to see it, face to face. I’m sending you down on earth and your task is it to make two people fall in love by Valentine’s Day.”
“Valentine’s Day? That’s in 6 days.”, Jaemin exclaims with shock layering his voice.
“I know. That’s why you’re going tomorrow.” His father turns to him, leaning his arms on the table in front of him and looking his son into his eyes.
“I’m sending you to a high school, teenagers are easy to set up and would potentially not be to hard of a challenge. But since this is still a test, there is one condition. You can not use any powers. All you are allowed to use is your knowledge of love.”
“How am I supposed to do that?”
“You can talk to people, do nice acts. It’s your part to figure that out.”
For a while both of them just sit there in silence, Jaemin having to let all of this sink in.
“I know this is a lot for you and you may think that it’s too hard, but I know you can do it, Jaemin. You are good at what you do and you do it with a passion, and that’s what matters.” His father smiles at him and Jaemin swears he could have teared up at that moment. The last time he heard his father told him encouraging words was probably when he was 7 years old and fell off trying to balance on a rope that the angels build for him. His father helped him up and told him to try it again, giving him the at advice that with time and practice comes knowledge and safety. So Jaemin tried and tried, over and over again, until finally he crossed the whole rope without falling off. Cupid hugged the younger boy and told him he was proud of him.
“Thanks, dad.”, he mumbles quickly, picking at the skin of his nails.
“Go back up and prepare for tomorrow. I’m going to send you down on earth pretty early.”
With another nod, Jaemin stands up and walks towards the door. But before he can grab the doorknob, his father speaks up again. “And Jaemin?”
“Yes?”, he turns around.
“Don’t fall in love with anyone.”
Day 1
Jaemin has been dreaming about going to high school ever since he started reading about them in books, but actually going to one – even if it’s just for a week – is making him completely nervous. He spent the whole night trying to make a plan on how to pass his test and he came up with nothing. Nothing at all. He never actually made people fall in love. Yes, he has read about it, learned all things about it and even watched his dad do it, but doing it himself is frightening.
Walking through the hallways is making that even worse. He never realized how many students there actually are in a high school. The halls are big, way too big for Jaemin’s liking. Everything is decorated with hearts and flyers that talk about Valentines Day.
“Na Jaemin?”, an elderly woman calls out his name.
“Yes.”, his voice cracks a little, making him clear his throat before continuing to speak. “Yes, that’s me.”
“Great. Follow me.”, she says walking through a door. Jaemin walks after her, ignoring the stares of some students. “This is a map of the school, and this is your timetable. It has all your classes on, where they are and how you can get to them. I assigned someone to help you get used to the settings. She should be here in any second.”
“She-“, Jaemin gets cut off by someone storming into the room.
“Sorry, Ms. Johnson, I overslept and then the bus driver started to flirt with me again and said he will only let me on if I go on a date with him, so obviously I said no. Then he had the audacity to say I should at least hike my skirt up a bit when sitting down to give him some motivation to drive annoying kids to school and then I almost kicked him in the nuts, but luckily-“
Jaemin has never heard someone talk so much in such a short amount of time. He stands there the whole time, mouth hanging open, trying to follow a thing you are saying.
“Y/N, sweetheart, you are rambling again.”
“Oh, right, yeah.”, you say, taking a huge breath. “Anyway, you must be the new guy. I’m Y/N and I’m in charge of making sure you are not getting lost in here.” You reach your hand out to Jaemin, which he takes and shakes.
This is the first time Jaemin catches a glance of your face. Never in his life has he seen someone this gorgeous, and he was surrounded by Gods and Goddesses growing up.
“I’m Jaemin.”, his voice comes out a bare whisper.
You on the other side try not to let your eyes bulge out of your head. You swear that you have never seen someone this mesmerizing before. It’s like he was sculptured by gods. And his smile, oh god his smile. It makes you want to throw yourself on your bed and kick your legs like a fourteen-year-old. And his hand - that you are weirdly enough still holding – is so soft. You have never held a hand that is so smooth.
“Since you two seem to get along well, I suggest you leave my office and get to class, before Jaemin gets detention on his first day.”
You just nod, letting go of Jaemin’s hand and grabbing your stuff. Holding the door open, you let Jaemin step outside first, before following him. You look around the hallway, seeing all the decoration and the couples walking around while holding hands. All you can do is roll your eyes. It’s not like you hate Valentines Day, you just hate the message behind it. Why would you create a day to show love to your partner, when you can do that every single day that you spend with them. It’s an excuse for people to show the love they neglected to show their partners over the rest of the year. It’s not about love, it’s about proving people something you are not.
“We have most classes together.”, you speak up after a few seconds. “What a coincidence, right? First class is Math, which I hate by the way, but the teacher is cool. He always has some Math puns, some of them are dad jokes, but others are actually laughable. Well, I actually don’t understand most of them, but I laugh anyway to get better grades.”
You speak a lot. That’s one thing Jaemin makes a mental note on. Not that that’s a bad thing. He just never had someone speak so much to him.
“You are not much of a talker, huh?”, you say as you two walk into your shared math class.
“Not really.”, he shakes his head, sitting down beside you.
“Any reason why or are you just a general introverted person?” A reason? He has never thought about a reason. He was just always a quiet person. Of course, he has his opinions and thoughts, but he doesn’t want to share them all the time. He much rather prefers them to stay in his mind and his mind only. Maybe it’s because he grew up excluded from most people, kept up in his room most of the time. He just never really had someone to confine in, so he simply never did share his mind with anyone.
“Guess I’m just an introverted person.” You nod, looking at him with narrowed eyes.
“What?”, he asks, confusion and maybe a hint of insecurity layering his voice. He feels a bit naked when you look at him like that, like he is an open book, and you can read every chapter of him with just one single look.
“Nothing, it’s just that I feel like you’re not exactly aware of the presence you carry.”
“I carry a presence?”, he looks down at himself. There is nothing special about him. He doesn’t wear anything out of the ordinary, nor has he done anything special with his hair and yes he applied a bit of concealer, but only under his eyes to hide the eyebags from not sleeping the night before. Other than that, he tried to look as normal and human as he could.
“Yeah, you have an aura to you. Something that makes people stop and stare. Haven’t you noticed that everyone in the classroom stopped talking the moment you walked in?” No, he actually hasn’t. He was so focused on listening to you, that he hasn’t paid any attention to the other students in the classroom. Looking around now, he catches a few of the girls in the first row look at him, but immediately looking away the moment he makes eye contact with them. How did he completely block that out?
“See.”, you point out. “You are so oblivious to it and that makes you even more captivating. It’s crazy. You could easily get with all the girls in this school if you wanted to.”, you pause, looking at his widened eyes. “Or guys. Sorry, don’t want to assume anything.”
“It’s fine. It’s just that-“, before he can finish his sentence, the bell rings, signaling that class starts. And on cue the teacher walks in. Guess you will have to continue this conversation another time.
While class went on rather smoothly, Jaemin feels lost in a trance. This is everything he has ever wanted. Sitting in a classroom, writing notes and learning something new. It feels like a dream to him, a dream from which he never wants to wake up.
“Okay, you are one of the weirdest people I have ever met.”, you suddenly say as you try to catch up to him. Jaemin was just about to find a quiet place to sit down and observe the people around him.
“What do you mean?”, he asks, walking a little slower so you can match his steps.
“I have never seen someone be so interested in math. You looked at those numbers like you love them.” Jaemin lets out a quiet laugh. “No, I’m serious. You looked at them like you want to ask them out on a date to a fancy restaurant where you eat overprized pasta and wine that tastes like petrol. Then after a successful date, you drop them off by walking them to their front door and before you leave, you give them a sweet kiss, but you don’t overdo it, since it’s the first date and you want them to crave more.”
Finally finding a good place where he can look over the whole school yard, he sits down. You take a seat next to him before continuing. “Obviously you will start to date and spend your whole high school life together. You become the couple everyone is jealous of, and your life is great. You take them to prom, where you promise to stay together always. But that is until graduation and you realize that you go to different colleges that are miles away from each other. Your whole relationship will face a very hard challenge, but as expected you manage it well. You facetime every night, visit each other on holidays and eventually you graduate from college. You move together, get jobs, and spend each Saturday night having a Disney movie night. On your 6th anniversary you ask them to marry you, to which they obviously say yes. After your amazing wedding, you start to have some problems. The secretary at the company that you’re working with is flirting with you and the numbers start to get jealous. You reassure them, but the insecurity of not being enough is slowly killing them from the inside. And what will help you through it? The decision of having children. Which you will have 10 or more with them. The end.”
The whole time Jaemin sits there with a smile on his face. How can a person come up with such a bizarre story in such a short time?
“Are you done?”, he asks, humor lingering in his voice. You roll your eyes, grabbing a lunch box from your backpack.
“My whole point is that you are weird.”
“Tell me something new.”, Jaemin says, grabbing something from his backpack as well.
“What do you have there?”, you ask, taking a bite from your apple.
“Just something.”, he states, trying not to let you see the things written in the notebook he took out. In the notebook stands everything he has learned about love over the curse of his life.
Jaemin looks around the yard, observing the people and trying to find a pattern in their behavior. When someone is in love you can see it in the way they carry themselves around the person they like. Their body language, like leaning forward while talking or fiddling with their hands. Their facial expressions, batting their eyes or biting their lips. The constant need of physical touch or the very obvious avoiding of any sort of physical contact. The lingering stares, the twisting of their hair or the staring at the ground whenever the other person passes them by. Jaemin knows all the signs and he can differ them from love and antipathy.
“You look like a creep watching the students.”, you cut off his thoughts.
“Hm?”, he lets out, bringing his focus back to you.
“If you want gossip about the students, you could have just asked me, you know? But looking at them like that will just get you punched in the face, so stop it.”
“Oh, sorry. I didn’t notice I was starring.”, he clears his throat and nervously plays with the hem of his shirt.
You let out a small laugh. “You’re cute when you get nervous.” He looks up at you, shocked at your statement, but you continue talking before he can think about it more. “But do you want the gossip?”
“Yeah, sure. Why not?”
“Okay, so the couple that you looked, well more stared at, is Renjun and his girlfriend. She doesn’t go to school here, but she visits him whenever she can. It’s kind of cute, but when you spend just 5 minutes with Renjun, you won’t find it cute anymore. All he talks about is his girlfriend and that 24/7. ‘Oh, I miss her.’ ‘I hope she thinks of me.’ ‘Why can’t she just go to this school.’ ‘Have you seen her new pictures? She looks like an angel.’ Ugh.”, you make a puking sound, to which Jaemin just snickers. He finds that cute. Imagine having someone that loves you so much that the only thing they think and talk about is you.
“Anyway, let’s get to the juicy part. There is this guy, Mark, and well he has to be one of the most awkward human beings to ever set a foot on this earth. I had to do one biology project with him, and he couldn’t even look me in the eyes. I think girls just intimidate him. Anyway, I heard that he has a crush on this girl named Cherry. I don’t know her real name, that’s just what she goes with. But he seems to be down bad with her, but he is too awkward to make a move. Honestly, he is a hopeless case.”
Jaemin listens attentively, practically hanging off your lips at this point. “I don’t think he is a hopeless case.”, he says, scribbling in his notebook. “I mean just because someone is awkward around the person they like, doesn’t mean that they will never eventually find love. I think he just needs some encouragement, someone to hype him up and give him some confidence.”
You look at him with your eyebrows raised. “Are you some kind of love coach or what is happening right now?”
Jaemin freezes upon you saying that, not knowing how to react to that. “No!”, he exclaims. “I mean, no, of course not. I just feel bad for him.”
“Why? You went through the same thing?”
“No, not really. I mean, I never had a crush on someone before.”
“What?”, your voice comes out louder than you wanted to. “You never had a crush before? How?”
“I don’t know. I just never did. Can we please change the subject? Don’t you like have friends that are waiting for you?”
“First of all, rude how you desperately try to get rid of me. And second, I do have two best friends. But they are sick today. Well, no, they stayed at home to play video games.”, you roll your eyes as you say that. “Stupid boys, they must attend every competition and will even skip school for that. They purposely left me all alone at school, but it’s fine, because now I can hang out with you.”
A small shade of red appears on Jaemins cheeks after you say that. He feels the slight burn and immediately brings his hand to his face. He has never blushed before. That was the first time, and it was because of you. You didn’t even compliment him or flirt with him. You simply just stated that you can hang out with him. Nothing more, nothing less.
“Anyway,”, you say, packing your bag again. “I have to go before I miss my bus. See you tomorrow?”, you ask.
“Yeah, see you tomorrow.”, he sends you a small smile.
He watches you leave until he can’t see you anymore, before letting go of the breath he didn’t realize he was holding. Taking his notebook, he reads the notes he wrote over and over again, until an idea pops up in his mind. The awkward boy you were talking about, might be the key to making Jaemin pass his test.
Day 2
Jaemin spend the whole night taking and perfecting his notes. He figures that the best way is to get close to Mark, earn his trust. From there on he just has to ask the right questions, get Mark to admit his crush and then help him with some simple tips. It’s a piece of cake.
“Question.”, Jaemin says as he walks up to you at lunch, sitting down next to you.
“Oh my god.”, you exclaim, putting a hand on your chest out of shock. “You scared the shit out of me. Can you not sneak up on people.”
“Sorry.”, Jaemin sheepishly rubs the back of his neck.
“You have a question?”
“Oh yeah. Are you close with Cherry?”, he asks, taking out a water bottle from his backpack and taking a sip.
“Why? You want to steal her from Mark?”, humor laces your voice, but Jaemin doesn’t get that. Instead, his eyes widen, and his ears turn into the shade of a tomato.
“No! Of course not. Why would you even think that?”
“Relax Jaemin. I was just joking.” After you say that, you can see his body visibly relaxing. It’s kind of cute, you think. “To answer your question, no not really. I have chemistry class with her, and we worked on a project together. She is really nice, but we never got close. She’s got her own friend group.”
“Okay, thank you.” Before Jaemin can continue the conversation, you both hear someone call your name.
“Y/N, darling.”, two boys walk up to the table you sit on and take a place at either side of you.
“Ah, so you decided to finally come back to school instead of wasting your time on stupid games.”
Jaemin watches as the three of you interact. This must be the two best friends you mentioned yesterday. As Jaemin continues to watch he notices the two boys having completely different body languages. That’s another thing he learned over the years. Analyzing people based on their body languages. It has helped him a lot to see who he should talk to and who he should avoid.
The boy to your left has his shoulders up, not in a defensive way, but more in a shy way. His light brown hair badly needs a haircut, as it falls into his eyes and he has to brush it away with his fingers every few seconds. He seems like a quiet and reserved person, more like Jaemin himself. Someone who hides his thoughts and feelings.
The second boy on the other hand, seems like the most open person. He carries himself with a lot of confidence that you can see by the way he enters a room. He is aware of the eyes that are on him, and he enjoys the attention. The boy has a relaced presence, like nothing in the world could ever stop him. And just from that bit of information Jaemin can gather, he feels jealous. Because the black-haired boy is everything Jaemin ever wanted to be.
“Yeah, I mean we felt bad for leaving you alone.”, the guy on your left says, with a guilty look on his face.
“Yeah, we just couldn’t leave our dear Y/N alone and miserable any longer.”, black haired guy sing-songs as he wraps an arm around your shoulders. Jaemin feels a weird feeling appear in his chest upon seeing that, but he tries to ignore it before it expands. “But as I can see, you are not so alone after all.”
The attention of all three people is suddenly on Jaemin. He tries to muster up a smile and holds out his hand. “I’m Jaemin. I am new here.”
Both boys look at each other before chuckling. “Nice one that you got there.” Jaemin lowers his hand again. You scoff at your two friends, feeling bad for Jaemin, who looks at the three of you like a lost puppy.
“Guys don’t be so mean. He is just trying to be polite and make a good first impression.”, you reason with them before removing your friends arm from your shoulder and giving them both a slight punch for being so rude. “Now be nice and introduce yourselves.”
“I’m Jeno.”, the one on the left says, giving Jaemin a soft smile. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Haechan.”, the one who had his arm wrapped around you speaks up.
“Now that we all introduced each other, Jaemin can be added as a final member to our cool friend group.”, you smile. “Maybe he can be a good influence on you two and stop you from playing so many video games.”
“I doubt that. I bet Jaemin plays as much as we do.”, Heachan voices, sending Jaemin an expecting look.
“No, I actually never played video games.”
You gasp in delight, reaching over and grabbing Jaemins hands. “Thank God. Finally, someone who is not obsessed with those stupid games. Oh, Jaemin we will get along so well.”
⋆。゚☁︎。⋆。 ゚☾ ゚。⋆
Jaemin ends up at the school’s library after school. In his physics class he hears people raving about Mark’s abilities in the physics department. With that knowledge Jaemin wants to tell Mark he needs someone to help him with physics, a tutor is what it’s called. And the perfect match for that is Mark himself.
“Are you Mark?”, Jaemin asks a boy sitting at a table.
“Yeah, why?”
“I’m Jaemin and I’m new here.”
“Oh yeah, I know who you are.”, Mark says, dropping the pen he was holding.
“You do?” Jaemin tilts his head to the side, clearly confused by the statement.
“Yeah, dude. Everyone’s talking about you. You became some kind of legend around this school.”
“Huh? Why?”
“I don’t know man. They just say stuff about how handsome you are and how you look like a Greek god.” Jaemin’s shocked for a few second. He didn’t think the people in this school would even notice him, but now they are comparing him to the Gods? He feels blessed and guilty at the same time. Where he comes from the gods are the highest powers and admired by everyone, his father being one of them. They are known to have visuals like sculptures and strong, dominant personalities. So yes, he feels very honored to be compared to them, but he could never actually be like them. He is not on their level and will probably never be. “What’s up, dude?”
“Well,”, he stutters out. “I heard you are good at physics. I’ve been really struggling with that subject, and I was thinking that maybe you could help me a little, so I won’t fail my next class.”
Mark looks unsure for a second, putting his hand on his forehead and sighing. “Dude, I would really like to, but I have so many tests coming up and my mom is literally going to chop my balls off if I fail any of these.”
“Oh.”, Jaemin lets out a sound of disappointment. “No worries. Good luck with your tests.”
He turns around to leave, saddened that his plan didn’t work. Seeing the boy’s reaction, Mark starts to feel bad. Maybe he can spare a few hours tutoring him.
“Dude, wait up.” Jaemin lifts his head and turns around to look at Mark. “Meet me here tomorrow after school and we will go over some stuff, okay?”
Jaemin’s eyes light up at that. “Really? Thank you so much, Mark. I really appreciate it.”
“No problem.”
⋆。゚☁︎。⋆。 ゚☾ ゚。⋆
As Jaemin walks out of the school, he realizes he has one problem. He doesn’t know how to make friends. I mean he has you now, but that wasn’t really a huge act, since you were put up with each other by the school’s secretary at the first day. And yes, he now has Jeno and Haechan as well, but that only happened, because you included Jaemin into the friend group.
Jaemin never had to make friends before. He was always content with being in his room and reading. At gatherings with Gods, he always kept himself out of conversations, letting his dad do that part.
What do you talk about with other people? What questions are okay to ask and which topic should he avoid bringing up?
“Penny for your thoughts?”, you ask, as you come up behind Jaemin.
Jaemin flinches, not expecting someone talking to him. “God, Y/N, you scared me.”
You let out a small laugh, putting a hand on his shoulder and rubbing it in a comforting manor. “Sorry, you just looked so adorable while being deep in your own world, I had to know what is going on inside your head. And now we can call it quits for you scaring me earlier.”
Jaemin lowers his head to hide the blush that was slowly creeping up his neck. He doesn’t understand the effect you have on him. “It’s fine. I am just very jumpy, I guess.”
You smile, walking in front of him so you can face him. “So, want to tell me what’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”
“How do you make friends?”, he asks, looking up and into your eyes.
“Friends? Why do you want to know that?”
Jaemin looks at you, not sure if he should tell you about his plan of befriending Mark. But he decides against it. What if you think that you don’t want to be friends with him anymore? Of course, he still wants that.
“Oh, just asking. I never really had friends in my old school, and I have some classes where you’re not in and it would be cool to not totally be alone in them.” He sees your lips quirk up at that.
“You’re so cute, you know that?” Another wave of blush hits Jaemin and this time he is too slow to hide it. You catch a glimpse of his crimson cheeks and something about that makes your heart beat faster.
“Well, I’m not the best at giving advice in that department. I only had Jeno and Haechan as my friends my whole life and never made any effort to be friends with anyone else. But maybe I can ask Haechan. He is some sort of social butterfly. He makes friends everywhere he goes.”
Jaemin nods at that. It makes sense, after you all left the cafeteria earlier to get to your classes, he has seen Haechan talk to at least 5 people on the way.
“How about you give me your number and I will text you as soon as I asked him?”, you ask, reaching for your phone in your pocket.
“I don’t have a phone.”, Jaemin states, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment.
“What? You have no phone? Not even a house phone.”
“Oh, yeah that I have. Just no cellphone.”, you shake your head, putting back your phone and grabbing a pen instead.
“You should really get one so we can get in contact outside of school as well.” You grab his arm and scribble down your number on it. “Call me in two hours with your house phone and then we can talk about the whole friend making thing, okay?”
Jaemin nods his head again, glancing down to your hand that is still holding his arm. “Speak to you later.”, you smile at him and give him a quick wink, before turning around and walking away.
‘I am so fucked.’, Jaemin thinks as he watches you leave with a fast beating heart.
Day 3
Jaemin is tired. Beyond tired. He thinks he might fall asleep while trying to pay attention in class.
He spent the entire evening and half of the night on the phone with you. It was planned that you two would just discuss the tips and tricks Haechan had, but somehow the topics shifted and the two of you started talking about anything and everything. Well, it was mostly you telling him stories about your life, but he didn’t mind that. He loved listening to your voice, hearing the different type of emotions you’re going through while talking. Jaemin has never done that - having a phone call. It’s so different from talking to someone in person. For him it feels like he can talk more openly. Phone calls have such a vulnerability to them. There is no one sitting in front of you, no one that can judge you for having your emotions. You don’t have to worry about your looks, if your hair sits right, if you have anything stuck in your teeth or if your clothes are wrinkly or not. You can just be you. You, your voice, and your thoughts.
Jaemin hasn’t seen you this morning and he is not sure how to face you. It feels weird after you shared so much of each other yesterday. Is he supposed to say anything to you when he sees you? Does he thank you for the phone call or for you opening up to him?
He doesn’t have enough time to think about that, because the bell rings, signaling that it’s the break. He grabs his things and walks outside the classroom but stops in his tracks. You are there, leaning against the lockers with your phone in your hand, your other one hiding behind your back. As you hear the students filling up the hallway, you look up to find Jaemin looking at you with a certain nervousness in his demeanor.
“Hey dear.”, you say, making your way over to him.
“What are you doing here?”, Jaemin asks, taking you in. Is he imagining it or are you even more beautiful today?
“Going to school? Am I not allowed to go to my own school anymore?”, humor laces your voice as you form those questions. There are meant in a teasing way, but for some reason Jaemin doesn’t understand that.
“No. I mean, you can go to school. I just meant to ask what you are doing in front of my classroom.”
You let out a small laugh, as you take his hand and start walking towards the cafeteria. “I was just kidding.”, you reassure him. “And I was just being nice and picking you up so we can eat lunch together. Or do you not want to eat lunch with me?”
“Of course, I want to eat lunch with you!”, he eagerly says, nodding his head and looking at you with wide eyes. He almost looks like a puppy and for some reason you find that incredibly adorable.
“Good, because I would have annoyed you until you gave in anyway.”, you smile up to him, seeing his ears turn red. “And I got this for you.”, you add, showing him your other hand with a red rose in it.
Jaemin’s eyes widen, as he slowly takes the rose from your hand. “Thank you, Y/N. But why?”
“Well, they sell roses in school as a little Valentine’s special and I thought I should buy you one as a little thank you present for our phone call yesterday.”
“You really didn’t have to.”, he says, still a little taken back by your kindness.
“It’s no big deal, Jaemin.” But you don’t know how big of a deal that is to him. You don’t know that that is the nicest thing someone has ever done for him, and he will keep the rose even when it’s old and withered.
You give him one last smile before walking into the cafeteria with him right behind you. Spotting Haechan and Jeno, you two take a place at their table.
“Great, you are finally here. Jaemin, we need your advice as the third male in our friend group.”, Haechan speaks up not even a second after you two sat down.
“Oh god, this can only be bad.”, you say, taking a sip of your water.
“Jeno here says that if you want to take out a girl for the first date, you should go to a fancy restaurant. Like pick her up with flowers, wear your best suit, eat together and then after the dinner take a little walk before dropping her off at home. But I think that’s so boring. Why not do something fun and memorable? Like going to an amusement park together. Not dressed up, but in your normal everyday clothes. It seems so much more authentic that way and I think the girl would be a lot more impressed afterwards. What do you think? Which date idea is better?”
“Why are you asking me? Shouldn’t you be asking Y/N because she is a girl.”
Haechan shakes his head, giving Jaemin a pointed look. “Y/N is weird. She never has good advice when it comes to dating.”
“Hey! That’s not true. I give great advice.”, you protest, pouting slightly and crossing your arms in front of your chest.
“Yeah, whatever makes you sleep at night. Anyway, Jaemin please answer the question.”
Jaemin thinks for a second, gathering all his knowledge before answering.
“Well, first of all, not every girl is the same. A lot of girls like going to fancy restaurants, but there are also some who absolutely despise that. I think you should first get to know their basic interests before asking them out on a date. What do they like? What are they into? Are they more of an introverted or an extroverted person? Do they like to stay inside more or go outside? Based on that you can decide which type of date would fit more. But if you can’t get that knowledge, I would always go with something simpler. A first date is there to get to know the other person and see if you two can potentially work in a relationship. While a fancy restaurant is a great place to sit down and talk, there is a lot of pressure around you. Rich people staring at you, having to constantly be aware how you look while eating and also getting interrupted at the most unfitting times by your waiter. So, I would not suggest that. An amusement park sounds like a fun idea and is definitely memorable, but it is not a great place to get to know each other. You can barely talk with all the noises, there are people constantly running into you and let’s not talk about the overprized rides and food. Just keep it simple. Maybe meet up in a cute little café, where you can sit down for a while and talk. Then take a walk, enjoying each other’s company. Watching the sunset together will give it a more romantic note as well and then walk her home and ending it with giving her a kiss on the cheek.”
All three friends look at Jaemin with wide eyes and their mouths hung open.
“Are you some kind of dating god? Why was this the best advice I have ever heard?”, Jeno says, not really believing what just happened.
“Man, you must be swimming in pussy.”, Haechan comments, leaning back in his chair. Jaemin blushes at that comment, not because it’s true – which obviously is not – but more of embarrassment of the word choice.
“Na Jaemin, I think I just fell in love with you.”, you say, putting a hand on your chest for dramatic effect. The blush on his cheeks gets darker, spreading around his neck and ears as well.
“I think you are not the only one who is falling for someone.” Jeno and Haechan both look at each other with a knowing look.
⋆。゚☁︎。⋆。 ゚☾ ゚。⋆
Jaemin is early, maybe a little too early at the school’s library. He just couldn’t wait and was way too nervous. After the encounter earlier where Jeno called him a ‘dating god’, he feels much more confident in his abilities. Jaemin was never so sure of passing a test in his life. His father will be proud of him.
“Hey bro.”, Marks greets Jaemin as he sits down in front of him.
“Hey Mark.”, Jaemin smiles, nervously fondling with his hands under the table. This is it. This is his chance to prove everyone, to prove his father that Jaemin is worth taking the title as love god. All these years will finally be worth it. He can’t make any mistakes now. “Thank you again for agreeing to tutor me. It means a lot.”
“No problem, dude.”, Mark shrugs taking out the books he brought. “Well, how about we make a deal. Since I’m helping you with physics, how about you help me with something as well?”
“Yeah sure. With what?”
“Well,”, Mark starts, rubbing his neck in an awkward manor. “I talked to Haechan earlier and he told me about the great advice you gave him on dates and stuff like that. And I was wondering if you could help me as well?”
Jaemins gulps, getting even more nervous now. “I can try.”
Mark shows Jaemin a bright smile. “Great. So, I have this crush on this girl and believe me it’s been so long. And for some reason I can’t figure out how to talk to her or approach her without making a total fool of myself. Can you help me somehow?”
On the inside Jaemin is celebrating a huge party with confetti, balloons, and a band. On the outside Jaemin has to control himself to not let Mark see how happy he is at this request.
“Well, what do you know about her so far? What are her interests, things she likes, things she doesn’t like?”
Mark doesn’t even hesitate before answering. “She likes reading. I see her read almost every day. She is also obsessed with anything that has to do with cherries. That’s why her friends gave her the nickname Cherry. She likes to listen to softer music instead of loud and upbeat music. Sometimes when she listens to music, she closes her eyes like she takes in every single note and makes it her own. She loves fashion and likes to express herself through that. She doesn’t like the consistency of tomatoes because she thinks they are too squishy inside. Whenever someone opens a can of RedBull she crunches up her face in such a cute way because she hates the smell. She hates anyone who is mean to other people and is always the first one to stand up for the people who get bullied. She is also more of an introverted person and apparently hates small talk a lot which makes it harder for me to come up with something to talk to her about, because I don’t want to make her feel uncomfortable around me.”
Jaemins nods along as Marks speaks, trying to memorize the different facts he listed.
“You seem to know a lot about her already Mark and you should use that to your advantage. Talk to her about the things you know she likes. Like music or her clothes. That will make her see that you are interested in the things she likes and that you pay attention to her. Maybe even search for two or three songs that you can recommend to her.”
Marks eyes light up as he hears that. “That’s such a good idea. Thank you Jaemin.”
“No problem. If there is anything else I can help you with just tell me.”
“Well, actually, there is one thing.” Mark looks at Jaemin, unsure if he should ask or not. “There is this little get together tonight. It’s nothing big, just a few students from our debate club getting together, eating and talking. And Cherry will be there too. At first, I didn’t want to go, but maybe that could be a great opportunity for me to talk to her.” Jaemin nods, finding the idea good. “But I really don’t want to go alone, because I know the minute I see Cherry my brain will shut off and I won’t be able to talk to her anymore. Would you maybe come with me? It would mean a lot to me, because then there would be someone there to calm my nerves and maybe give me some positive affirmations every now and then.”
All Jaemin can do is look at Mark with uncertainty. Him? Going to a gathering with people he doesn’t know. That doesn’t sound like a very good idea. Jaemin is already awkward when it comes to new people but being in this world for the first time, not really knowing how teenagers his age actually act like, makes him scared. Intimidated even.
“Y/N is going to be there too.”, Mark adds on.
“What?”, Jaemin asks, having not listened to what Mark was saying.
“Y/N is going to be there. She is also in the debate team. I thought you were friends, so I just wanted to let you know. You wouldn’t be alone because she is there to keep you company.”
At the mention of your name Jaemin flushes. You would be there too and Jaemin will be able to spend a whole evening with you? How can he say no to that? So, he clears his throat, trying to hide the redness of his cheeks before muttering a small ‘sure’.
“Great! Jaemin you’re the best, man.”
⋆。゚☁︎。⋆。 ゚☾ ゚。⋆
Jaemin sits on Marks bed, waiting for him to return from the bathroom. He considered telling you that he will also go to the gathering today, but he has no phone to text you and unfortunately, he didn’t see you in school anymore. He tried to pick clothes out to look somewhat nice as well, wanting to make a good impression. But for who? You? No, surely not. Why would he want to make a good impression for you?
“What do you think? Is it too much?”, Mark asks after getting out of the bathroom wearing a new outfit.
“No, you look good, Mark. She will like it.” Mark lets out a relieved breath. Jaemin can practically feel the nervousness radiating from the poor boy. “Don’t worry too much. She will like you, Mark. Just be yourself and everything will be fine.”
“No that’s exactly what I’m worried about, being myself. What if she doesn’t like who I am?”
“Then she’s not worth it. Mark, you deserve someone who likes you the way you are and if she doesn’t than she isn’t the right person for you. It sounds harsh and it will probably hurt at first, but better let the person go before you go on and live a life where you have to be someone you’re not.”
Mark nods, letting the words sink in. “Wow, that was so deep man. Thank you.” He walks towards his mirror, checking his hair one last time. “I wrote a song about her.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, it’s not much and probably super cringey, but I put all my feelings into it.” Mark almost looks shy as he’s admitting that. It’s adorable seeing someone so in love.
“Why don’t you show it to her?”, Jaemin asks, watching as Mark mulls over the idea.
“I don’t think that would be a good idea. I think she would get scared off and it would put way too much pressure on her to like me back.”
“I get that, but it could also be a good way of keeping the conversation go, since you said she likes music.”
“I will think about it.”, Mark says, grabbing his phone and headphones, before turning back to Jaemin. “Ready to go?”
20 minutes into the gathering and Jaemin already knows this is not his world. There are way too many people, it’s way too loud and he got stepped on the toes at least five times already. Mark is still by his side, having spot Cherry already, but waiting for a good timing before approaching. “She is still talking to her friends. I can’t go there while they are still there.”
“Why not? I don’t think you will get her completely alone tonight, since you said she is more of an introverted person. She will most likely stay in her comfort zone which in this case is her friends.”
“Dude how the heck are you so good at this?”, Mark asks, shaking his head in disbelief. Jaemin just shrugs, looking around mindlessly. Well, maybe not so mindlessly. Maybe ever since he put foot into the building, he has been looking for you. But just maybe.
“Okay, now or never. I will just talk to her. I can do this.”, Jaemin can practically hear the boys heart beat out of his chest.
“Of course, you can do this, Mark. You’ve been waiting for this moment for so long. Go get the girl.” With one last reassuring look from Jaemin, Mark makes his way over to Cherry, leaving Jaemin by himself.
Jaemin keeps an eye out, watching how Mark nervously talks to his crush, but he can’t watch the interaction for so long, because he hears a familiar voice.
“I knew I didn’t imagine hearing your voice.” You stand in front of him, pulling him into a quick hug. Jaemin thinks he unlearned how to breath properly. You look gorgeous, absolutely stunning. You styled your hair and you changed out of your school uniform into a pretty dress. Everything about you screams beauty and it makes Jaemin’s heartbeat faster. But why? He shouldn’t be feeling this way about you. “What are you doing here?”, you ask after breaking the hug and looking up at him with a small smile.
Jaemin points into Marks direction. “I’m helping Mark out with Cherry. So, I’m practically just here as moral support and a confidence booster.” You chuckle a bit, amused by the way Mark nervously gulps as he made Cherry laugh at whatever he just said.
“That’s very sweet of you, Jaemin.” Jaemin just shrugs, giving the illusion that it’s not much. But on the inside, he is dying. Everything he said earlier to Mark was just to be nice. Of course, he meant the words, but deep down he hopes that all of Marks worries won’t come true. It’s the only chance Jaemin has right now. There isn’t much time left until he has to go back to his father. If the plan with Mark fails, there won’t be any other plan left and Jaemin will pretty much be doomed. And he can’t be. He won’t be because Mark got this.
“Do you want to go outside for a bit? It’s super loud and I think I need some fresh air.” Jaemin nods at your request and together you go through the front door to take a seat at the patio. It’s probably for the best anyway. If Jaemin stayed inside and kept on watching over Mark, he would drive himself and also Mark insane.
“I hate stuff like this.”, you say, while looking up at the starry night sky.
“You do?”
“Yeah, it’s not really my scene. The loudness, the amount of people and small talk. I hate having to talk to people I barely know about stuff that no one cares about. Maybe I’m just too socially awkward for it.” Jaemin nods, understanding this feeling. He has to go through the same thing too, at every gathering he has ever been at with his father. The gods are known for throwing the biggest parties that always ends up with the guests having had too much wine and something getting broken, creating a huge chaos. He would rather stay at home in his library, reading more human books and sinking into a world where he doesn’t have to face the weight the Gods puts on him.
“Me too.”, he says after a while, following your gaze up into the sky. “My father used to bring me to these parties with all his… coworkers. And I never felt like I belong there.” You turn to him with a small twinkle in your eyes.
“That’s the first time you ever mentioned anything about your family.”, you state, smiling at the way Jaemin is slowly opening more up to you.
“Is it really?”, he asks. He knows he successfully avoided the theme since the last thing he wants to do is lie to you. And well, he can’t really tell you he is the son of the god of love and was sent down to earth to pass a test. That would just make him sound crazy.
“Yeah, not even when we had our long phone call. While I poured out my whole family story, you never once mentioned yours. Tell me more about them and your life before you came here.”
Jaemin takes a minute to think. He doesn’t want to lie to you, but he can’t not tell you something when you sit there, looking at him with wide eyes and an expecting smile. His gaze goes back to the sky as he tries to come up with something to tell you.
“My father and I always had a complicated relationship. He loves me and I know he does, but he is way too busy with work to show it to me. He is an important man and while I know his work means a lot to a huge amount of people, I sometimes wish things were different. I’m close to my teacher though. She is a huge part of my life. She taught me most of the things I know and while she’s still my teacher and had to be strict with me, she was always someone I could turn to when I had problems.”, he takes a few seconds to gather his thoughts before continuing. “When I was five years old, I walked into my dad’s office at night. He was working on a big project and couldn’t bring me to bed that night. I watched him concentrate on the papers for a few minutes until he noticed my presence. I told him I had a bad dream and couldn’t sleep, but that was a lie. I just missed him and wanted his attention. I think he knew, because the next moment he stood up, turned the lights off in his office and brought me back to bed. Back then I didn’t know how huge that gesture was, but now that I’m older I see how much love he subtlety showed me. Now I look for those signs in everything he does. I realized through that, that it’s not the grand gestures that count all the time, but rather the small things a person shows you over the day.”
You hang onto every word he says, clearly mesmerized by his voice. “Wow. I take it all back. That was worth thinking that you probably hate me and don’t want to be close to me.”
“You thought I hate you?”, he asks, shock lacing his voice.
“Yeah, you are so distant towards me. You don’t tell me anything about your life and while I appreciate the mysterious aura you carry, I would like it at more if you actually tell me something about you instead of me having to guess everything.”
“Oh no, Y/N.”, Jaemin exclaims, taking one of your hands in his. “I don’t hate you, quiet opposite to be exact. I could never hate you. I’m sorry I made you feel that way and I promise I will open up to you more.”
You smile at him, enjoying the way his hand feels holding yours. “It’s okay, Jaemin. I also don’t hate you. I think you are so sweet and caring, really. You are one of the most kindhearted people I have ever met.” Jaemin feels his heart begining to beat fast again. Is he dreaming or is this really happening? You take his other hand in yours as well, scooting over so that you sit closer to him. “I want to tell you something Jaemin. And I want to do it now before I back out like the coward I am. I think I really li-“, but before you can finish your sentence, the door opens and someone storms out of the house.
“Fuck this.”, the person yells in a frustrated voice. Wait. Is that Mark?
“Mark?”, Jaemin asks, watching the figure walk away. “Sorry, Y/N. I will be back in a minute. I just have to check up on Mark.”
“No problem, Jaemin.” He gives you one last look, before letting go of your hands and running after the person.
“Mark? Hey, wait. What’s wrong?”, he asks, finally having caught up to the said person.
“Everything’s wrong. God, how can I be so stupid? And to think I wanted to show her my song.”
“What? What happened?”, Jaemin asks with a panicked voice.
“She rejected me. Saying something about not wanting a relationship and that I’m not really her type. I don’t know man.”, Mark frustratedly runs his hand through his hair. “Thanks for trying, Jaemin. I really appreciate your help, but that’s it.”
“What? No, you can still-“
“No, Jaemin. I can’t and it’s fine. Again, thank you, but I just want to go home now.” With that Mark turns around, walking along the sidewalk and leaving Jaemin by himself yet again.
“Jaemin?”, you ask, putting a hand on his shoulder. He can’t do anything but look at the ground. Was that really it? Did all this work over the years get destroyed in just a few minutes? Jaemin just shakes his head, taking your hand of his shoulder and making his way home. He ignores your calls for him, the same way he ignores the feeling of his breaking heart. How is he going to fix this all?
Day 4
He feels bad. Not only did he leave you standing alone on the street at night, but he also dodged all your phone calls. He just couldn’t talk to you, to anyone, really.
Jaemin stayed up all night figuring out what to do, making new plans and trying to find a way, a solution, to fix everything. And he came up with nothing. Nada.
Now he stands in the cafeteria, watching you talk to Jeno and Haechan. He can’t face you, fearing that he hurt you too much with his actions. So, he just stays there, watching how Haechan wraps an arm around you and plants a kiss on your cheek. What if…? No, definitely not. He can’t possibly do that. But the longer he stands that, observing everything, he can see all the patterns. The way Haechan looks at you whenever you speak, even when you weren’t even speaking. It’s the same way he saw Mark look at Cherry, the same way he read about in all those books. Haechan and you are in love. Definitely. It’s obvious. But why does that thought make his heart feel weird?
Jaemin is too lost in his inner conflict, that he doesn’t even notice you approaching him. “Jaemin?”, you softly call out his name. He blinks a few a times, seeming like he just got back to this world, before looking at you.
“Are you okay?”, you ask, putting a hand on his shoulder. “You look pale.”
“I’m fine.”, he stammers out. “And you? Are you okay?”
You nod. “I am now that you are here. I was really worried about you after you just ditched me and then ignored my calls. I thought something happened or that I said something to scare you away. I couldn’t sleep all night.”
“No!”, he says almost too loud. “You didn’t do anything. Really. It’s just that something came up and I had to leave. I’m sorry, I should have just told you.”
“It’s okay.”, you reassure him. “As long as you’re okay now.”
“You’re not mad at me?”, he asks, looking at you with guilt shimmering in his eyes.
“No, I could never be mad at you.” A weird spark of electricity shoots through Jaemins body, but all he can do is ignore it. Haechan, all he has to do is think about Haechan and how he is most likely in love with you.
“Jeno and I have to go talk to Ms Kim real quick. Is it okay for you to keep Haechan company? He said something about dying out of boredom without us.”, you chuckle a little after the last sentence and Jaemin sees the fondness in your eyes. His heart breaks a little.
“Uh, yeah sure. I can keep him company.”
“Great. It’s not going to take long. Just 10 minutes.”
It’s awkward when Jaemin sits down at the table. Maybe he just makes it awkward, but he can’t seem to face Haechan and it seems like Haechan can’t face him either. They sit together, not talking, just sitting in silence.
“Do you like Y/N?”, Jaemin asks out of nowhere.
“What? Why are you asking?”
Jaemin just shrugs, not sure why he really asked. Maybe he is just so desperate to pass his test that he wants to find people in love. Or maybe it’s for a completely different reason. Does he even want to help the two of you get into a relationship? Why is he even behaving that way? He has two more days before he has to go back and after those two days he won’t see any of you anymore. Well, that’s just partly true. He will still see you, but he won’t be able to communicate with you anymore. So, he shouldn’t care. He should just get the two of you together, pass the test and make everyone proud. He should definitely not sit here, hoping that Haechan is not interested in you.
“I mean, Y/N is great. She is one of the most kindhearted people I’ve ever met.” Fuck, that’s not what Jaemin wanted to hear. It’s true what Haechan says, but it just sounds like someone talking about his crush.
“Why did you never ask her out? I mean you’ve been friends for a long time now and Valentine’s Day is tomorrow so it would be the perfect time to ask her on a date.”
“Ask her out? I don’t know what-“, but before Haechan can continue, you and Jeno return back to the table.
“I swear, Ms Kim is always sick on the most inconvenient days.”, you mutter in frustration. “Anyway, what have the two of you been talking about.”
“Jaemin just asked me why I never asked you out on a date.”
“A date?”, you ask as you look between Jaemin and Haechan, confusion lingering in your voice and Jaemin can maybe see a bit of disappointment in your eyes. But he probably just imagined that. “With Haechan? Never. Don’t get me wrong, but Haechan is like a brother to me.”
“Ouch, you here that guys? I’m in the bro zone.” Haechan puts his hand on his chest, making a hurt expression. “You’re breaking my heart, Y/N.”
“Get over yourself.”, you say, slapping Haechans arm playfully while grinning like an idiot.
Oh, the two of you are so in love.
⋆。゚☁︎。⋆。 ゚☾ ゚。⋆
„Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day.“ , Jaemin states as the two of you walk out of school.
“I know. It’s all over school.”
“Do you have a date?”, he asks, making you stop walking for a second. Is he trying to ask you on? Is that why he asked Haechan why her never asked you out?
“No, I don’t. Why are you asking?”
“Well, I thought that maybe Haechan asked you.”
“Haechan?”, you ask, shock lacing your voice. “Why would Haechan ask me to be his Valentine?”
Jaemin scoffs, maybe letting some pent of anger out. “Because you two like each other.”
“Like each other? What are you talking about? Have you gone completely mad?” Your voice raises not believing the words of Jaemin.
“Come on. It’s so obvious. You like each other. Everyone with eyes can see the attraction you two have for each other.” Jaemin can’t believe his own words. Why would he say stuff like that so openly and why does it completely wrench his heart to do so?
“Well obviously your eyes are not working. Haechan and I are just friends, and it will stay that way. If we liked each other, we would have confessed by now, believe me.”, you spit out, your voice far from being the nice and carefree you that Jaemin is used to. “And why do you care anyway? You just come here acting like we are at a freaking dating show. First Mark and Cherry and now that that didn’t work out you obsess over the next people you met. Well, let me tell you something Jaemin, that’s not how it works. That’s not how life works. You can’t force love onto anyone and everyone. God damn it, you act like your life depends on matching up people.”
“It does.”, he mumbles, looking down at his shoes.
“What?”
“Nothing.”, he just says. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to make you upset. I was just trying to help.”, he says, running a hand through his hair. “I will just go home. See you tomorrow, Y/N.”
He turns around, heading towards his home. Tomorrow he will go home and tomorrow he will have to face the disappointment he has caused. He will have to life with that for the rest of eternity. What will he do? Will he not have a job? What will his dad have to endure when the gods talk about how much of a disgrace his son is?
“Jaemin.”, a voice calls out for him. “Wait up.” You catch up with him, grabbing his wrist to stop him. “I’m sorry. I was… what I said was too harsh. I just got so mad, because I thought you will ask me to be your Valentine and then you said all those things about Haechan and I just thought ‘Why is he so oblivious? Doesn’t he realize I want to go out with him?’.”, you ramble, trying to explain the whole situation. All Jaemin can do is stare at you with wide eyes.
“You like me?”, he asks, his voice breaking.
“Yeah, isn’t it obvious? Well, apparently it isn’t since you didn’t get it. I have been trying to flirt with you, send you signs, you know.”
“I thought you were just being nice.”
“Oh god no. Believe me Jaemin I almost peed my pants every time I said something witty to you. I was definitely flirting.”
His brain stops working. You like him? But how? He hasn’t done anything special to make him likable. Oh no, you like him. You actually do and he has to go tomorrow. He has to go, and he doesn’t even get the chance to take you out.
But what’s worse is the tingly feeling Jaemin got at your confession. The way his heart fluttered, his hands got sweaty, and a smile of pure happiness graced his lips. He knows that feeling. He has studied it for all his life. Jaemin likes you. Jaemin has done the only thing he wasn’t allowed to do.
But now it makes sense why he gets so nervous around you, why he blushes when you compliment him and why he can’t stop thinking about you anywhere he goes. He broke his father’s rule. Not only did he fail his test, but he also broke the only rule his father has given him. He fell in love with you. Damn you and your rambling and your cute smile and your funny jokes.
“Jaemin? Is everything okay? You look pale.”, you hold his arm as he starts to tumble a bit. “Hey, take it easy.” You walk him over to a bench to sit him down and take out your water bottle so he can take a sip.
“Want to tell me what’s going on?”
“I can’t.”, he whispers, not trusting his voice right now.
“You can’t what?”
“I can’t like you back. I just can’t.” A tear runs down his face, not wanting to accept his fate. He is so close to the life he always wanted. He goes to school, found friends, and even found some that likes him. But he can’t have it. What a bittersweet tragedy.
No words leave your mouth. What is there to say?
“It’s not that I don’t want to, believe me I do. But I can’t. I have to go tomorrow and after that we will never see each other again. Well, I will see you, but you won’t see me. And I don’t want to give you any false hope that might make you hold onto me. You shouldn’t, you can’t. We wouldn’t have a happy ending.” You let him get the words out, before grabbing his hand and making him look at you. The sight of him ruins you. His cheeks glister with tears, his eyes red and his lips quivering.
“Jaemin, please tell me what is going on. Why do you have to leave tomorrow and why can you see me, but I won’t see you? Please tell me the truth, I know something isn’t right.”
More tears stream down his face, but there is no hesitation when he tells you the truth. “I’m not who you think I am. I’m not human like you are. I’m the son of Armor. He sent me down here to do a test in which I have to set up two humans until Valentine’s Day without any power and just with the knowledge I gathered from the years of training. It should prove that I’m worthy of taking his job as the god of love, but I failed. I failed him and all the other gods.”
For a second, you want to laugh right at his face and tell him he is delusional, but then you see the waterfall of tears rolling down his face and you stop yourself. Maybe that’s why everyone says he looks like a god, because he is one, well at least has one as his father. That’s why he has such a strong presence whenever he enters the room. And that’s why he wanted to set up Mark and Cherry and you and Haechan so desperately. It all makes sense now.
“That’s why you thought Haechan and I are in love? You needed to set someone up before you go back tomorrow.” He nods, wiping the tears on his face.
“I needed to. It was my only chance of passing the test.” You nod, grabbing his hand and standing up. “What are you doing?”
“I’m bringing you home.”
“Why?”
“Because we only have a few more hours left, and I would like to spend them with you.”
⋆。゚☁︎。⋆。 ゚☾ ゚。⋆
Upon arriving in Jaemin’s apartment you are taken back for a few seconds. You know he has to leave tomorrow, but you didn’t expect his apartment to be so… empty. There was nothing but a small kitchen and a mattress on the floor.
“Sorry. It’s not much. We knew I was just staying for 5 days.” Jaemin throws his backpack and jacket in the corner of the room, before flopping down on the mattress.
“Are you hungry? I can order us something. I know a really good pizzeria that makes pizza that is to die for.” You try to lighten the mood a bit, but Jaemin is too kept up by his own mind to notice. He just hums in approval, staring up at his ceiling.
You give the pizzaria a quick call, before walking over to where Jaemin is laying.
“Scoot over.” He does as you say, making some space for you to lay down beside him.
“Tell me what’s going on in that beautiful mind of yours.”
Jaemin sighs, turning on his side to face you. “I wish you didn’t tell me that you liked me.” You’re taken back by the sudden boldness of his words. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m happy to hear that you like me back, but it’s making it so much harder for me to leave.”
You nod at his words, reaching over to put your hand on his cheek. “I know and I’m sorry for his whole messed up situation, but isn’t it better knowing I feel the same thing, than never knowing that we had a chance in the first place?”
“I guess so.”, he says, looking back up at the ceiling. You sense that he needs time to sort out the mess in his head, so you keep quiet.
When the pizza arrives, you two eat in silence, both not knowing what to say and how to handle the situation.
You lay down again, but this time you pull him towards you so that his head rests on your chest. He closes his eyes, listening to your heartbeat. Jaemin wraps his arms around you, basking in your warmth and enjoying the first and probably last time he gets to hold you this close.
“If I could have it my way, I would ask you to be my Valentine for tomorrow by showing up at your house in a nice suit and flowers in my hand. Then I would give you the best Valentine you would ever have with cute self written love letters and compliments that I would shower you with over the day. But that won’t stop. Every day that I see you I tell you how much I appreciate having you in my life, how graced I am to call you mine. At least one day of every week I would plan a date for us to go on. Our relationship would bloom, and we would be that type of couple everyone’s jealous of. We graduate and start a life together. We have our ups and downs, but no matter what we always come back to each other. We would grow old and wrinkly together, sitting at the patio in our rocking chairs, watching our grandchildren play in the garden.”
A lonely tear rolls down your face, but you wipe it before Jaemin notices it. “God, that’s so cheesy. But I love it Jaemin.”
Jaemin sniffles a little, trying to hold in the tears that are threatening to leave again. “I can’t imagine that with anyone but you.”
He hugs you even tighter, feeling the exhaustion of the day catching up to him. He tugs his head into your neck, inhaling your calming scent as he closes his eyes.
“Maybe in another universe.”, you whisper, stroking his back. “Maybe in another universe we can be together.”
You leave a kiss on his forehead as you feel his body giving in to sleep. But you don’t sleep. You stay awake, holding Jaemin tight and thinking of any possible way of making Jaemins’ dream come true.
Day 5
Jaemin opens his eyes as the light shines through his window. He feels his head throb and his eyes burning.
“You’re finally awake.”, you say as kneel down in front of his mattress.
“What are you doing here?” You chuckle a little as you hear his sleepy voice and watch him rub the sleep out of his eyes.
“I stayed the night, don’t you remember? I couldn’t possibly leave you alone like this.” You pass him the bowl, taking a seat beside him. “And I stayed to say that you might want to check your voice mail.”
“My voice mail?”, he asks, standing up and grabbing his house phone. He presses a few buttons before a voice starts playing.
“Hey man.”, he instantly recognizes this voice. “I asked Haechan were you are and he told me that you and Y/N called in sick today, which is weird since it’s Valentine’s Day and I bet you would have received a ton of flowers, but that’s not my point. I wanted to apologies and thank you. Turns out Cherry thought I was trying to play her and get her into bed. She didn’t take my confession serious the other day. So, she came up to me today and asked me to be her Valentine. I don’t know what happened, but I’m not going to complain. Thanks for believing in me, man. I will see you tomorrow and get well soon.”
The voice mail ends after that, but Jaemin can’t stop listening. He repeats it over and over again until you take the phone away from him.
“Did that really happen?”, he asks, thinking he is still dreaming.
“Yes, Jaemin. You did it. You passed your test.” Tears forming in his eyes, but for some reason, Jaemin doesn’t feel happy or relieved. Somehow, he feels sad.
“What’s wrong?”, you ask, rushing over to grab his hands. “Why aren’t you jumping up and down with happiness?”
“Because I have to leave.”, his voice wavering a little. “I have to leave you.” Upon those words leaving his lips, you feel your heart break into a million pieces. You spend the whole night thinking about this, about him leaving. It is weird to say this, but it feels like you were hit by an arrow of Amor yourself. You shouldn’t be feeling such strong emotions towards a boy you only know since the beginning of the week.
“It’s okay.”, you whisper after pulling him in for a hug. He clings himself onto you, tugging his head into your neck as he lets out a sob. You have to hold back yourself from breaking down as well. “It’s okay. We’re going to be okay. It’s going to be hard at first, but eventually we will move on, and it will hurt less.”
“But I don’t want to move on.”, he says through his sobs. “I want you.”
“I want you too, Jaemin.”, you break the hug, taking his face in your hands and looking him into his eyes.
“I will always want you.”, you whisper before gently placing your lips on his forehead.
⋆。゚☁︎。⋆。 ゚☾ ゚。⋆
Goodbye. A saying when you part ways with someone and officially Jaemins least favorite word.
Saying goodbye to you was probably the hardest thing Jaemin had to do, but there was no way around it. After you hugged him, again and again, until all the tears were shed, an angel picked him up to bring him back to his home.
Home. He doesn’t even want to call it that anymore. It currently doesn’t feel like he belongs there.
“Your father is awaiting you in his office.”, Jaemin nods at the angels’ words. “And congratulations on passing your test. We are all proud of you.” He should feel some sense of pride at those words, but he doesn’t.
Jaemin knocks on the door before he enters the big room. Nothing has changed in the five days that he was gone, except for him. He changed.
“Jaemin.”, Cupid speaks, making his way over to his son. “You passed your test. Congratulations. I knew you would do it.”
Jaemin watches as his father walks around his office. “Don’t think I haven’t been watching you these past days.” Cupid points to one of the chairs in his office, signaling for Jaemin to sit down. “I told you, you are not allowed to fall in love. And yet you did. You broke the only rule that I gave you.”
Silence fills up the room for a few seconds, as Armor thinks about his next words.
“Tell me about her.”
“What?”, Jaemin stutters, clearly not expecting to hear that.
“Tell me about her. I want to know why you broke the only rule I gave you and risked yourself being banned from here.”
Jaemin takes a deep breath, knowing that his next words are going to have to carry a lot of meaning.
“Her name is Y/N. She is a human, as you probably know. She goes to the school you sent me to and-“
“No, Jaemin. Don’t tell me the basic facts about her. I already know so much. Tell me what made you fall in love with her.”
“Oh wow, where to start?”, Jaemin wipes his hands on his jeans, trying to ease some of the tension in his body. “Well, she is kind. I think that that’s the first thing I noticed about her. The way she talks to people and helps them no matter what. She is so selfless. Always looking out for others and putting her own worries aside. She rambles a lot and I think that’s the most adorable thing ever. Sometimes she doesn’t know when to stop and talks for minutes about the most random stuff to ever be heard. Oh, and the way she loves. I’ve never seen someone love so much and so unconditional. She has such a big heart and I love that. I love her. I love her so much.”
A small smile forms on his fathers face and Jaemin swears it’s been too long since he’s seen his father smile.
“You know I have to give you a punishment for your actions.”
Jaemin sighs, knowing that whatever follows will probably not be good. “Yeah, whatever it is, I will take it.”
His father walks back to his desk, taking a seat. “You know the Gods weren’t exactly happy to see you fall in love with a mortal. They’ve been quiet upset and I talked to them. Together we found a punishment that would make up for it.” Jaemin lowers his head, watching his hands nervously fidgeting.
“We decided to send you down to earth. Permanently. Of course you are allowed to visit every now and then, but your home won’t be here anymore. You will be mortal just like the other humans on earth.”
At his fathers’ words, Jaemin’s head shoots up. “What?”
“You heard me.”, his father says, his wings twitching a little. “You can pack your things and leave whenever you are ready.”
“But what about the job? I thought I was supposed to take over.”
“I think I can manage this job for a few eternities more.”
Jaemin just sits there, not knowing what to say or what to think.
“Dad, I don’t know what to say. How can I ever thank you for that.”
“Thank me?”, his dad asks. “Don’t thank me. It’s a punishment after all.” He sends his son a wink, before grabbing a pile of paper on his desk. “What are you waiting for? You should pack, before I change my mind.”
⋆。゚☁︎。⋆。 ゚☾ ゚。⋆
You never felt pain like this. Ever since Jaemin left, you have been curled up in your bed, crying your eyes out and ignoring all the calls from Haechan and Jeno.
You know they just care about you, but you don’t feel like talking to anyone. You just want Jaemin and no one else.
“Y/N?”, your mom asks as she knocks on your door. “Y/N sweety, there is someone at the door for you.”
“I don’t want to talk to anyone right now. Can you send them away please?”
But your mom doesn’t leave. “I really think you should talk to him. He seems kind of nervous, and he has flowers.”
Him? Flowers? Does Haechan really think flowers would make you feel better? With a groan you stand up, opening your door and ignoring the worried look on your moms face as you make your way downstairs.
“Haechan, you know I love you, but I really don’t feel like having company right now and I would love if you could leave so I can wither in self-pity.” You keep your eyes on the ground as you open the door, not wanting to reveal the tears on your face.
“That’s unfortunate, I would have loved to take you out on a date.” That’s not Haechan’s voice and those are definitely not Haechan’s shoes you are looking at.
In an instant you look up and can’t believe when you see Jaemin standing there. He is dressed in a black suit, his hair neatly combed back and a beautiful bouquet of flowers in his hand. “Jaemin?”, you ask, not believing your eyes.
“Yep, that’s my name.”
Tears fill your eyes as you look him at him, taking in his soft features. It feels like you haven’t seen him in months, while in reality it’s just been a few hours. “It’s really you?” He nods, having tears in his eyes as well. “But how?”
“I will explain it all to you later. But before that I want to take you out on the best date you will ever have.”
You take a few seconds, trying to control your feelings, but failing miserably and just letting your tears stream down your face.
“Oh, fuck it.”, you say, before leaping into his arms and pressing your lips on his. You hear him sighing into the kiss, letting go of the flowers and wrapping both of his arms around your waist. He pulls you as close as possible as he lets his lips speak all the words he could never put into a sentence.
In that moment you decide that kissing him is the second best feeling you ever get to have.
The best feeling of all is loving him.
And that you will until the end of time. In this universe and in every other one as well.
Bonus scene
The cafeteria table is filled with laughter. Jaemin can’t help but to admire the little friend group he made. Haechan and Jeno bickering over an unknown reason, Mark feeding a piece of an apple to Cherry and you, tucked under his arm, laughing at your friends.
“I swear,”, Mark starts to say. “I’m so glad everything turned out the way it did.”
“Why so sentimental all of the sudden?”, Haechan asks, eyeing his friend with a suspicious look on his face.
“I don’t know. I’m just happy.”, Mark shrugs, taking one of Cherry’s hands in his.
“Me too.”, Jaemin speaks up, catching the attention of his friends. “I’m also happy with the way things turned out for us.”
You poke his side, laughing softly at the way he flinches together. “Is my baby getting emotional?” A gagging sound can be heard from the other side of the table.
“You guys are gross.”, Jeno says, making Haechan nod in agreement.
You just roll your eyes, throwing french fries at their heads. “You’re just jealous that your discord kittens are actually 56 year old men.”
The two boys start to complain, but no one listens to the excuses they try to come up with.
“No, but seriously.”, Mark starts again. “If you hadn’t sent Cherry my song, we would never sit here.”
Jaemin eyes Mark with confusion written all over his face. “Song? I didn’t-“ But before Jaemin can finish his sentence, you elbow him into the side, making him groan in pain.
“Yeah, right? That was so clever and kind of Jaemin. I’m really glad the two of you ended up together. You make a great couple.”, you tell Mark and Cherry, making both of them show you a sweet grin in return.
Jaemin looks at down at you with his eyebrows frowned, but you just give him a warm smile and lay your head on his shoulder.
And that’s when he realizes that it was you all along. You sent Mark’s song to Cherry and you were the reason Jaemin passed his test and Mark and Cherry fell in love. It was you that made it possible for all of you sitting at this table together.
All Jaemin can do is pull you closer to him and plant a soft kiss on your forehead. He will talk to you later and express the gratitude he has for the things you’ve done. But for now Jaemin enjoys the moment of quietness that he has with the love of his life in his arms and his friends around him.
This is the life Jaemin always dreamed of having and now his dream finally came true.
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