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I hold up my hands. “Okay, okay,” I say in English.
“What did she say?” Colt asks as we leave the kitchen.
“That I shouldn’t let the poor boy starve and that we should go to a table so she can feed us.”
Colt chuckles. “I love your grandparents. They’re awesome.”
“Thanks. Are you close with your grandparents?”
“I only have one living grandparent. My grandmother. But she’s in a home.”
“Oh. Sorry.”
He gives me an assuring smile. “No, it’s okay. I don’t remember them much. You’re lucky you’re so close with yours. It must be great to see them almost every day.”
“Totally,” I say as we sit down at our table. “Halmeoni, Harabeoji, and my mom’s parents helped raise me and Mia. They babysat a lot when Dad was away filming and Mom was busy with work. And Halmeoni and Harabeoji had to take care of the restaurant, too. They are super people.”
He smiles. “Definitely.”
A server comes with the menu. I scroll through the options even though I know what I’m getting. My grandparents offer quite a selection, but I know what I love and I order it every time.
“Do you have a favorite?” I ask Colt.
“Yeah. I lovejapchae.”
I gape at him. “You do?Japchaeis one of my favorites, too.”
His eyes widen in surprise. “Really? Another thing we have in common. Maybe we should reconsider this wholefakedating thing,” he says with a laugh.
I force a smile, trying my hardest to keep my cheeks from heating up. If he knew how my stomach feels right now…
My thoughts take me away, to an alternate reality where Colt and I are a real couple and do real couple things. I make him the happiest guy on the planet and he makes me the happiest girl and we live happily ever after—
I internally gasp as my eyes widen. Do I…likeColt?
He makes me feel things I haven’t felt before. Ilikebeing with him. He makes me feel comfortable and happy, especially because of what he did for me after the whole fiasco with my app. He knows I’m his competition and he still tried so hard to help me. He’s so kind and selfless and funny and charismatic and has such a huge heart. And he’s one of the strongest people I know.
Could I be…falling for this guy?
No, no, no. Vanessa, remember?
Besides, I’m not supposed to meet my soulmate in high school. And it’s not logical to start something with another person when I have plans to go to MIT. I don’t want anything, especially a guy, to hold me back.
Anyway like I said, he wants to get back together with Vanessa.
Colt clears his throat and gazes down at the menu. “So I think I’m going to order a largejapchaeso I can stuff myself with no shame.”
“Same,” I say. “Although, I’m not going to pick your stuffed body off the floor,” I joke.
He laughs again. “That’s fair. I’ll have to somehow pick it up myself.”
After we give our orders to the server, I catch sight of familiar red hair entering the restaurant. “Mom!” I call.
Her head springs in our direction. With a smile, she walks over to our table.
“What are you doing here?” we ask at the same time, then laugh.
“I told my boss that I’ve been working too hard and wanted to take the rest of the day off,” Mom tells us. “He agreed. Sometimes, you need to stick up for yourself.”
