Mystic Radio Ep. 9: Grand Opening Pt.2

(continuation of chapter 8)

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MC POV

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I drag Seven into my room and shut the door. Hands on my head, I start pacing in circles.

"Is this the time where I we put on some sexy music?" he asks with a sly smirk.

"Not the time Seven!" I furiously whisper to avoid the others overhearing.

He laughs and plays along, whispering with me. "So, pants stay on?".

My face flushes from embarrassment, "Yes, keep pants on dammit!" I say as loud as possible without risk of the others overhearing.

He chuckles and shakes his head. "Okay okay! I'm assuming we're here to talk about Jaehee?".

"Duh! You saw it too right? I'm not just imagining stuff right?!" I frantically ask.

"Yes, she got pretty flirty. But that might just be the kind of drunk she is." he reasons.

"Yeah." I agree. taking a seat on the edge of my bed, "So, not into me then?".

He takes a seat next to me. "She might also be one of those people that get more honest with booze.". Nudging my shoulder, he adds "If that's the case, then that's pretty encouraging right?".

"So you're saying I might have a chance? Right?" I ask.

"Well, she also said Zen was a different type of beautiful and-"

"Oh my gosh Seven, make up your mind!" I flop backwards, hiding my face with my hands. "You're making my brain hurt." I say, losing my hushed tone.

In a low tone, he says "Don't worry MC, seriously, it'll work out.". I peek out from behind my hands and he gives me a reassuring smile.

I sit back up, and he puts a comforting arm around my shoulder. "I can't help but overthink this stuff.".

"I know,", he rubs my shoulder a bit, "feelings are very complicated.". He removes his arm, "But you and Jaehee are pretty smart, you'll figure it out.".

"Thanks Seven. You always have my back.".

"Of course! I'm just glad we aren't whispering anymore.", readjusting his glasses, "Now, we should go out with the others or they might get weird ideas.".

"Luciel Choi I swear! Get your head out of the gutter!". I playfully whack him.

He strikes a pose placing one hand on his hip and the other on his head. "Make me!", then sticks his tongue out.

I laugh despite myself. 'Yeah, maybe Seven is right. I should just stop assuming. Maybe being seen different than Zen is a good thing!'.

When Seven and I get back into the living room, the first thing I notice is the two people missing.

"Where did Zen and Jaehee go?" I ask, trying to act as normally as possible as I reclaim my seat.

"They went out for a walk together." Yoosung says as he takes another sip of his drink.

As if on cue, the downstairs door jingles. We all turn in sync to see Jaehee and Zen arrive at the top of the stairs.

With Jaehee wearing Zen's jacket...

'Not a good different...'

An undeniable feeling of sadness washes over me. Chance? Yeah right. Even if on the off chance Zen doesn't like her, she likes him, and not me. 'She's straight' I repeat in my head. I knew this, I have known this.

...So why does it still burn?

I don't blame her for liking him. Even I can tell he's attractive. He's very nice and is in good shape, It would be hard to not like the guy. I can hardly compete with that, especially if she doesn't even know I'm in the running.

I-... I just wish she had picked me instead.

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Jaehee POV

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Zen and I get to the top of the stairs, only to be stared at by all the other members. MC in particular, is eyeing Zen's jacket still draped over my shoulders.

I quickly take it off and hand it back to Zen to avoid any misunderstandings. "Thank you for accompanying me on my walk Zen." I say before returning to my spot next to MC.

When I sit down, she subtly moves over, crossing her legs.

'Is she jealous?'

I want to ask but part of me decides its better not to pry.

I hope she doesn't think I'm trying to take Zen from her. I mean, he has eyes for her, so it wouldn't happen anyways. If anyone should be jealous, it's me.

It's not very obvious, but I feel a twinge of jealousy too... However, I'm not so sure how much I agree with my conclusion on why.

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A Few Days Later

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I put on my shoes, "MC, I'm heading out.".

"Okay!" I hear her say through her door. She then pokes her head out, "Have fun on your jog!" she says.

"Maybe calling off work on Sundays was a good idea after all." I tell her.

With that, I head out the door to see a familiar face, stretching on the sidewalk.

"Ah! Jaehee, are you ready now?" Zen asks.

I nod, "Yep! Whats our route?".

"I figure we'll go down to the park, do a few laps, then we come back.". His face lights up, "Ooh! We can go get some smoothies on the way back. I heard there's a good shop on the other side of town.".

"If you want, we could stop in, sure." I tell him, stretching my legs a bit.

"Alright.". He throws a wink at me, "Race you to the park. Catch me if you can!".

I cant help but laugh as he takes off running. With a shake of my head, I follow close behind.


I collapse in one of the chairs at the smoothie bar. Between puffs of breath, I mutter "I don't remember running being this hard.".

Zen takes a seat across from me, "Honestly, you did pretty good considering you haven't worked out recently.". He gives a tired grin before wiping a stray bead of sweat from his brow with his forearm.

"Thanks for convincing me to start working out again. I didn't realize how out of shape I'd gotten." I laugh. Getting up from my seat, I ask "What drink do you want?".

"Strawberry banana. You don't have to pay ya' know." He answers.

"Who said I was paying?" I ask, giving him a teasing wink which makes him chuckle slightly.

I head up to the counter and get a strawberry banana smoothie for him, and chocolate coffee for me. When I get back to the table, he just shakes his head with a slight smile.

"You really do love coffee huh."

I take my seat and hand him his cup. "Well it's kinda the reason I own a coffee shop now.". Taken a bit by surprise at myself, I excitedly say "I own a coffee shop now! Like, a real one!".

Zen rolls his eyes and takes a sip of his smoothie. "Just noticed that? I know you dont actually wear glasses but, someone who had four eyes so long should be a bit more perceptive.".

"Oh so you're insulting people who need glasses now?" I prod.

He holds up his index finger, mouth slightly agape. After a moment of him thinking, he realizes there's no good way to reply to that. "Alright. You win this round, Miss Kang.".

I grab my chest as if I've been stabbed, "Ouch. Low blow Zen.". I chuckle and he joins in. "This is nice.".

"Yeah. It's nice we get to learn more about each other." he says with a smile.

My mood turns sour as my thoughts creep in. 'No wonder MC likes him. He's one lucky guy...'.

I purse my lips together and Zen notices. "Is something wrong?" he asks.

I ease my face and tell him "No, nothing is wrong. I'm just remembering all the cat projects Jumin had us do.".

He groans. "I will never understand why jerks are always the ones with money." he says, clenching his jaw.

"He isn't a bad person." I defend. "Just... An inconsiderate boss." I reason.

"Maybe. You've been around him a lot more, but my opinion is still the same.". He glances at his now empty cup. "Ah, I should probably go now. Want to hit the gym with me Wednesday evening?".

"The shop doesn't close till five. If we can do it after then, it would be nice, yeah." I reply.

"I'll come pick you up again then.". With that, he leaves the shop, and I head home.

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MC POV

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There's a knock on my bedroom door. "Hey Jaehee." I say, pausing my game. She comes in and sits on my bed. "How was you're, uh", I scratch the back of my neck, "your jog with Zen?".

"It was good! I actually just came to tell you in advance we're going to the gym on Wednesday after closing time. I don't know how long we'll be out so you don't need to cook.".

"Oh, alright... More time with Zen, how lucky.". I feel a twinge of disappointment in my chest.

"Lucky?". She cocks her head before realizing something, "Oh. Yes. Lucky." she says with a grin.

An awkward silence passes between us before I finally break it, saying "I should, um... I should get back to my game. Yeah.".

She quickly relies "Yes, I'm sorry for intruding!". She gets up and starts heading towards the door, "I should shower anyways.".

The door shuts with a click, and I let out a sigh of relief. Jaehee likes Zen. She likes guys in general. I tell myself this, but it still aches, and I... Even if it's not Zen, she'll find someone else. Someone better. She'll find a guy, and be happier that way. It's been six months...

I need to move on, and let her go.

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Chapter 9. End.

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A/N: Sorry that this Episode is so short! As said in the previous chapter, this was originally supposed to all be in one chapter, but my plans for this episode ended up being a lot more than I anticipated. The next chapter will be the usual length. See you then!

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The spaceship's sensors have caught the RFA members meaningless thoughts...

MC: "Should I download a dating app? Maybe I should try moving on, on my own. Feelings are hard, and stupid.".

Zen: "Working out with Jaehee was a nice change, but I wonder if it would be weird to ask her about MC...".

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Thank you for reading this chapter of Mystic Radio! If you liked it, make sure to leave a like and subscribe so you know when the next update is! Now, go enjoy some Honey Buddha chips, and I'll see you next chapter! ~Des