Chapter Eight Mia #2
As Celine settled into the other chair, Mia helped Kallie set up the camera on the tripod.
A weird sense of déjà vu filled Mia’s head when she saw the two contestants on the viewfinder. Not too long ago, she and Noah
had sat just like this on the beanbags of Ground Smoothie. Granted, it’d been a business meeting. Not a date. But still, a
lump formed inside Mia’s throat.
She pushed it down and took another step back. “Are you two ready?”
Noah and Celine nodded at her.
“Action! Go ahead and start the conversation.”
“So, you’re from Korea, right?” Celine asked Noah when they resumed filming. “That’s so cool. What’s it been like to go to school here?”
“It’s been mostly good,” Noah replied. “The language barrier was hard at first, but I adapted quickly. In Korea, I learned
basic English in school and self-studied with American movies and TV shows. And when I came here, I got into a fraternity.
Living in the house definitely helped a lot. It was like an immersion program.”
Celine laughed, and Mia winced at how unnaturally high-pitched the sound was. That was not her roommate’s normal laugh. She must have been really nervous. “Wow, that’s impressive that you’re going to school using
your second language! And you’re in a frat!”
Noah gave Celine what Mia now recognized as his fake influencer smile. It was handsome, charming even. But it wasn’t like
the ones that naturally sprung up on his face when he was talking. His real smiles were a lot less polished but—Mia begrudgingly
admitted—cuter.
“What about yourself?” he asked. “Are you from Asia or were you born here in the US?”
“I was born in San Diego,” Celine replied. “So I’m barely fluent enough in Mandarin and Shanghainese to understand my relatives
when I visit them once a year.”
Noah shrugged. “That’s good that you know both, though. Even if it’s a little bit. And San Diego can still feel like an eternity
away with LA traffic.”
“Right?”
Celine laughed again, and as they continued talking, Mia couldn’t help but notice how good they looked together.
With her flawless douyin makeup and long, gorgeous hair, Celine looked amazing.
And Noah . . . well, he was Noah. Perfect, as always.
At least physically. Mia felt like she was watching a rom-com.
Even though she absolutely did not want to ever date Noah, in this one moment, Mia wondered what she would look like on the screen in Celine’s place.
But as soon as she did, she had to stifle a laugh, earning a panicked glance from Kallie.
“Sorry,” Mia mouthed, moving farther back from the camera.
She didn’t think she was ugly, but she was no influencer. The only reason she was able to put on makeup tonight was thanks
to Celine’s videos. And even then, if Noah’s reaction was any indication, it’d still turned out terribly. Her hair had been
nice at least, but she’d hastily tied it back earlier, so it was probably a messy bird’s nest again.
As she watched Celine and Noah ease closer together on the lounge chairs, Mia concluded she would look ridiculous in Celine’s
place. She and Noah were just so different from each other that the viewers back home would surely laugh at them.
Celine tucked her hair behind her ears, recapturing Mia’s attention. “So . . .”
Noah cocked his head to the side. “So?”
“Okay, sorry if this makes things awkward, but I have to address the elephant in the room!”
Mia bit her lip, wondering what her roommate was going to say.
Noah gave Celine an apprehensive look. “What is it?”
“You’re like . . . famous,” Celine continued. “Why are you even here? What made you agree to be on this show?”
Mia could have imagined it, but Noah’s eyes seemed to shift focus, looking up from Celine to where she was standing behind the camera. Mia frowned and crossed her arms.
Noah’s reaction was immediate. His head tilted up, definitely looking at her this time. He frowned before focusing on Celine
again. So she hadn’t been imagining things.
“Ah,” Noah said, smiling again as if nothing had happened between him and Mia. “Just because I’m ‘famous’ doesn’t mean I have
a whole line of people waiting to date me. All the content I produce takes a lot of work. So I haven’t had much time for relationships.”
A small line formed between Celine’s perfect brows. “Then why start now?”
Mia stared down at the floor, pretending not to care about Noah’s response. But she had to admit that she was also curious.
Although she had worked hard on her initial pitch, she’d been surprised when he’d agreed to be on the show. Even more so since he’d never
said exactly why, just that he didn’t want to be single.
“Well,” began Noah, “what can I say? I’m a hopeless romantic at heart.
My older brother, Jae-hyun, always says that after college, dating becomes a bunch of apps and algorithms. I don’t want that.
I want to meet someone face-to-face. I want real love.
This is my last winter break ever. I want to fully take advantage of that time and meet someone as organically as I can, before
it’s too late.”
“Aw!” Celine gushed.
Kallie also made some kind of adoring noise, which was saying a lot. Noah gave the camera a dashing smile before leaning back
again in his seat. There he was. Noah Jang, charming as ever.
A million protests built up inside Mia. She covered her mouth, and it took all of her self-control to not burst out laughing
at Noah.
Really? The guy who literally said that every girl at a party wasn’t his type thinks he can meet someone organically on a
dating show?
She rolled her eyes. That, at least, she could do behind the camera without disrupting the scene. Or so she thought. Noah
shifted his gaze again, his eyebrows arching up slightly, as if to say Really?
Mia turned around. There. Now Noah couldn’t see her reactions.
“I’m a huge fan of your videos, by the way,” she heard Celine say. “You’re just so handsome and genuine! I don’t know how
you do it.”
Genuine? Mia scrunched up her face. Good thing she’d had the foresight to turn away.
Noah’s social media presence was many things.
Cool. Flashy and charismatic. Funny, even, on the rare occasions he did comedy skits.
But genuine? Even after years of watching his content and several hours of specifically studying him to pitch the show, Mia couldn’t pin down what kind of guy he really was. How was any of that genuine?
“Thanks,” Noah replied smoothly. “And how about you?”
“I’m a makeup vlogger,” Celine said. “I don’t have as big of a following as you, but I’m getting there.”
“Wow, that’s awesome. I’ll have to give you a follow sometime.”
“You already do. We DMed each other a few times.”
Mia widened her eyes, whirling back around just in time to see Noah freeze. Celine sat back in her seat, like she knew she’d
dropped a bomb.
“Ah,” Noah said. “Sorry, I get a lot of DMs. They all blur together.”
Underneath her makeup, Celine turned splotchy. “I see,” she said evenly. “Well, it’s okay. There’s a way you can make it up
to me.”
Noah raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”
“You can cuff with me, because, surprise! You’re my crush.”
Mia covered her mouth and tried her best not to scream.