PJ (Hyunjin) short story collection

Are you going to kiss my model?

The bright white lights of the university makeup practice room reflected sharply off the smooth mirror surface, casting cold light over the empty worktable. I tapped the laminated tabletop anxiously with my fingers. My chest tightened with sudden exam nerves. Ten minutes earlier, the makeup model I’d booked had texted to cancel, and right before the final practical evaluation I’d been left completely stranded.

Then, the heavy glass door of the practice room swung wide open with a loud click.

"Did someone call for a savior? Or did you just want to see my face?"

Hyunjin walked smoothly into the room. His voice was full of that familiar, confident mischief of his. He was a business major in a building on the exact opposite side of campus, but ever since we’d sat side by side on the first day of this semester, we’d been inseparable best friends. He read my stress-filled expression at a glance and shrugged off his jacket. His black hair fell perfectly around his eyes.

"The model bailed," I complained, my voice rising an octave from desperation. "There are only 30 minutes left until the exam starts. I have to finish a high-fashion editorial look with bold color blending and accessories."

Hyunjin let out a smooth, amused laugh and immediately stepped into my workspace. He hopped up onto the height-adjustable leather makeup chair, then adjusted the white headphones hanging around his neck with long, elegant fingers like a pianist’s. "Say no more. Use me. I even wore my seashell necklace today, so your styling is already halfway done."

"Hyunjin, this is a really deep pinkish-red eye look," I warned, lifting the shadow palette. "You’ll look like a high-fashion runway model."

"Great. That sounds super glamorous." He shot back at once and flashed a dramatic, seductive wink. My heart thudded hard beneath my ribs.

Following my professor’s required instruction to take reference photos of the lighting, I pulled a small retro digital camera from my makeup kit and quickly snapped a test shot. Hyunjin immediately leaned toward the lens and rested his chin on both hands. His face was far too beautiful for a Tuesday afternoon.

"Hold still," I instructed. My voice trembled slightly as I stepped closer, moving between his knees to start the makeup.

The moment I moved in close, the lively teasing from a moment ago vanished without a trace, and a suffocating silence filled the practice room. Under the dazzling vanity lights, nothing could be hidden. My fingers brushed softly along his cheekbone to steady his face, and with my other hand I spread the vivid pink pigment across his eyelids. Hyunjin had gone completely still, his eyes gently closed. Standing so close to him, I could feel his warm, even breath against my cheek. His long fingers, tense, kept worrying the heavy silver ring on his thumb, and the usual noisy version of him was gone; all that remained in his gaze fixed on my lips was deep, quiet focus.

Twenty minutes slipped by in the taut tension of skin touching skin. I blended the deep red, adjusted the necklace hanging at his collar, and tousled his dark hair to build volume until the editorial look matched the reference photo perfectly.

"Done. We just need to take the photos, then hurry back to the lecture hall," I said, panting as I lifted the digital camera for the final confirmation shot.

Hyunjin tilted his head slightly and struck one flawless natural pose after another beyond the small digital screen. It was breathtakingly beautiful. The vivid crimson around his eyes, set off against his white skin, made his dark gaze feel unbelievably deep and seductive, creating an air no one could dare approach.

I scrolled through the playback on the little monitor, staring blankly at his face on the screen. I was so completely dazed that all sense of filtering had escaped my mind.

"Wow, you’re really unbelievably pretty," I muttered to myself without meaning to. My eyes were still fixed on the screen. "Honestly, it’s cheating for your face to be this pretty."

For a moment, the practice room fell into perfect silence.

Startled, I looked up from the camera screen. Hyunjin was staring straight at me, mouth slightly open as if in shock. A pink blush as vivid and bright as his shadow spread rapidly up the back of his neck. His once-confident model mask had shattered, and under the bright lights he couldn’t hide how absurdly, heartbreakingly flustered he was.

I belatedly realized what I’d just blurted out and almost choked. "I-I meant the makeup! The blending! The color theory is really beautiful!"

A teasing but unusually shy smile slowly spread across Hyunjin’s face. He let out a low, breathy laugh, then leaned forward from the chair and invaded my personal space. "Oh, really? Color theory? You definitely said 'your face,' pretty girl. I heard you perfectly."

"Hyunjin, be quiet," I stammered, trying to back away, but he was faster. My face was burning red as if it might burst.

His long, elegant hand reached out and gently wrapped his fingers around my fleeing wrist, stopping me. As he pulled me back toward the chair, sudden, overwhelming heat swirled in his dark eyes and pressed heavily on my chest. The playful teasing was gone in an instant, replaced by raw, unguarded sincerity.

"Hey, don’t run," he whispered. His voice dropped into a low, soft baritone, sending a pleasant shiver down my spine. He looked up at me beneath the dazzling vanity lights, his thumb slowly tracing circles over my skin. "If it’ll make you feel even a little better... I’ve been thinking the same thing since the very first day of this semester. I keep circling around this practice room on purpose, just to watch you work. I like you so damn much."

I stared at him, clutching the digital camera loosely against my chest, completely breathless. "Y-you’re serious?"

"Every single word." He murmured with a soft, relieved smile on his lips. He pulled my waist firmly toward his knees and lifted his head, wrapping me safely in his broad arms. "So, are you going to kiss your model now? Or should I completely ruin your practical exam?"

I let out a light, trembling laugh and lowered my head to meet his lips. It was a slow, aching, sweet kiss. Under the bright practice room lights, the nerve-wracking college exam was turning into the brightest, happiest beginning of ours.