Operation: Plus One Pact

☾︎✿︎☽︎

Abby's phone blared loudly in the quiet of the early morning, jarring him out of his sleep like an annoying alarm. He groaned, shifting around carefully to make sure the pillow barricade Zoey made didn’t fall as his hand awkwardly reached across the nightstand to find the source of the noise.

Squinting at the screen, he saw it was Mira calling.

"Hello?" he answered, his voice rough with sleep.

"Finally! You picked up."

Abby rubbed his eyes. "What time is it?" 

"12 PM here in Seoul. So, like 4 AM there," she replied.

"And you thought that was a good idea?"

"Zoey wasn’t answering. She’s usually up before the crack of dawn."

"She's still passed out. Jetlag hit her hard." He sat up, yawning. "She put her phone on aeroplane mode. You know how she gets when people spam her phone while she's asleep."

Mira chuckled. “Anyway, Rumi and I wanted to check in. What happened at dinner with Gigi and Caleb?"

Abby's brow furrowed. "How did you even—"

"Roobin told me."

That fucking gossip, Abby sighed, running a hand down his face.

"How bad was it?"

He sat up straighter. "It was fine until Gigi brought up Zoey dropping out of college and belittled her for it. Completely unprovoked," he started. "But don't worry. Your awesome himbo swooped in and saved the day with my unparalleled charm."

"Should I be concerned?"

"Wow. Your lack of faith in me truly wounds me, Mira."

"Well, you 'swooping in to save the day' usually means you either did something stupid, or you accidentally set something on fire," Mira said.

Abby gasped, feigning offence. "I'll have you know I was the pinnacle of respectability."

"Mhm. I totally believe you," she replied sceptically.

He rolled his eyes.

"How is she, though?"

"She survived. That's all I can say."

"Yeah, but is she okay?"

Abby's gaze drifted to Zoey, who was drooling on her pillow. His expression softened. "I tried talking to her about it. She shut me down and asked me to drop it. So, I did."

"You didn't press?"

"Mira, you know we can't. It'll only make her close off more."

"Yeah, I know, I know...” Mira sighed. "But she is the biggest people-pleaser I know, and it’s worrying. I just hate how that two-faced snake takes advantage of that to get her way and bully Zoey. Just be on the lookout for her. Whatever you saw is just the tip of the iceberg.”

"It gets worse?" Abby let out a low whistle.

"There was this one time when she came over to Seoul. We were at this club having our girls' night," Mira started. "As soon as Zoey went to get our drinks, this bitch started talking all kinds of shit about her like she was trying to recruit us and turn against Zoey."

Abby's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Wow."

"It truly amazes me why Zoey's still friends with her til this day. But we can't exactly stop her."

"I know. Trust me, I know."

"I gotta go. Roobin's pouting at me."

Abby chuckled. "Tell him if he keeps pouting, his face will stick that way."

"I HEARD THAT, YOU STEROID JUNKIE." Abby heard Roobin shout from the other line.

"And tell your boyfriend not to disrespect Ruby and Rose," Abby added.

“Really, Abs?”

"Hey, my girls can beat Roobin's babies any day. I’m the Abs Saja for a reason."

“At least my babies come with emotional intelligence and aftercare. Yours just flex and call it foreplay,” Roobin grumbled in the background.

"Okay. I am hanging up. I don't need you two arguing over my phone." Mira said.

"Hey, we're not arguing. We're simply asserting our dominance." Abby countered.

"And I don't need any of your testosterone stinking up the air I breathe, thank you very much."

"Oh, c'mon, Mira, you know you love us."

"Yeah, in small doses. But having two men with egos the size of Texas in one room for an extended period is hazardous." Mira retorted

"Rude."

"You'll live. Tell Zoey if I hear any peep of Gigi being an intolerant bitch, I'm booking a flight to come whoop her ass."

"Will do." He replied. "Now go before Roobin explodes."

"Oh, you—"

The line went dead.

Abby chuckled, tossing his phone onto the nightstand. He glanced at Zoey, still sound asleep, her hair mussed and her mouth slightly agape. Even drooling on her pillow, she was utterly adorable.

"God, you're cute," he sighed, the words meant for no one but the stillness of the room.

☾︎✿︎☽︎

"Alright. Operation Plus One Pact is ready to commence." Zoey beamed as she stood next to the TV, which had been transformed into a makeshift bulletin board with papers stuck to the screen.

Abby stared at her, seated on the couch and looking over at the screen. "Operation what?"

Zoey rolled her eyes at his obvious disregard for her name, but she chose to let it go. "Operation Plus One Pact." She gestured to her sticky board. "Aka O.P.P."

"Wouldn't that be O.P.O.P.?" He arched an eyebrow.

Zoey shot him a look. "Let me have this, please?" 

Abby couldn't help but smirk. "Hey, if you're gonna name your plans after a rap song, at least make it accurate."

"That's not—will you focus?" She stomped her foot.

Abby chuckled, holding up his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright. I'm focused. What's the agenda for today, boss lady?"

"Alright. So I'll be going for dress fitting with Gigi and the rest of the bridesmaids. Obviously, Caleb's sister and mum will be there." Zoey pointed at the paper with a badly drawn doodle of her, Gigi and her bridal party.

"Got it," Abby said, nodding, trying to take this seriously. "You're going for dress fitting with the bride squad."

Zoey huffed. "Don't sound so disinterested."

"Whaaaaaaaat? I am very interested," he said, stifling a snort.

Zoey rolled her eyes. "You're doing a really poor job at hiding that laughter."

Abby cleared his throat, trying to regain his composure. "Right... Sorry. Go on."

"Okay. After this, we're going over to Caleb's sister's place for brunch. Meaning people are going to be there. And they're going to ask questions about us."

Abby nodded, trying to maintain a composed expression. "Right. Brunch with Caleb's family. Questions about our relationship."

"Exactly," she pointed a finger gun at him. "So, we need a story to sell them. We need a story that screams, 'We fell in love at first sight.' I'm thinking we can tell them we met on a cruise. At a concert—"

"Or a cornfield in Texas," he smirked.

"ABBY!"

Abby couldn't help but laugh at her reaction. "What? I thought we were looking for something that screamed love at first sight. What says that any more than a romantic night under the stars in the cornfields of Texas?"

"You've never been to Texas." Zoey reminded him.

"Well yeah, but I grew up in the countryside in the Jeolla province before moving to Seoul for Uni. I know what I'm talking about," he replied.

"I'm sure you do, cowboy," she quipped. "But the last time I checked, cornfields don't necessarily scream 'romantic.' They scream, like, 'country life' at best."

"I mean... I did accidentally see a couple raw dogging in the cornfields when I was like twelve." Abby shrugged.

Zoey gaped at him. "You’re joking.”

Abby shrugged. “I’m deadass.”

“And you watched that?”

“I mean….”

“Abby, that's gross!"

Abby feigned offence. "Hey, it's not my fault they didn't have the courtesy to do it behind closed doors."

"Okay, but—Ugh! We're getting sidetracked. We need a convincing backstory—"

"Or we can just go with our actual backstory." He suggested.

Zoey furrowed her eyebrows. "Our actual backstory?"

"Yeah. We met when you were a freshman, and I was a sophomore, through mutual friends. We found out we have a lot in common and grew close," he explained. "It's honest, authentic, convincing, and my geobug-i can survive the conversation without wincing, overexplaining and justifying our fake relationship.”

Zoey considered Abby's suggestion for a moment. "That… actually doesn't sound terrible."

Abby smirked. "Of course it doesn't. I'm a genius."

"That's a bit of a stretch, don't you think?" Zoey arched an eyebrow.

"Excuse you, I am very much a genius.” Abby crossed his arms and puffed out his chest. “My intelligence is both humbling and impressive."

"Abby, you still believe birds sit on power lines to recharge."

"Those are charging stations for them, Zo." He argued, completely serious. "Why do you think birds sit on those power lines without getting electrocuted? To charge up their batteries."

Zoey dragged her hand down her face. "They are living and breathing mammals made of flesh and bone. Not robots."

Abby rolled his eyes. "That’s what they want you to think. Birds are all tiny drones sent out by the government to spy on us. And that's a fact."

"Oh my gosh. I'm friends with a moron." Zoey rubbed her temples.

"You wound me, Zo," he feigned hurt. "And after all we've been through."

"If by that you mean depleting 85% of my brain cells, then sure."

"Well, someone has to keep things interesting," he replied. "If I didn't, your life would be dreadfully boring."

"Anyways,” she rolled her eyes, full rotation. Now that we have our story in order. How are we going to act like a convincing couple?"

"Oh, that's easy," Abby smirked, standing up and standing next to her. "You just hang onto me like this..." he put an arm around her waist, pulling her close.

Zoey stiffened slightly as he pulled her closer to him. "Okay, and?"

"That's all I got." He replied nonchalantly.

She gave him a sceptical look. "You can't be serious."

Abby shrugged. "I mean, we can also hold hands, give each other cringy pet names,” he smirked and wiggled his eyebrows. “Kiss.

Zoey's face turned red. "K-kiss?"

"Yeah. Couples kiss all the time—well, maybe not all the time, but you get the picture."

"So that means you... and me…" she muttered, pointing her finger at him, then her, flustered.

"You're going to have to do better than blushing and stuttering, geobug-i," He rolled his eyes playfully. "You need to act like we're crazy about each other."

"Okay, but like…. Us kissing? On purpose?"

"Girl, why are you acting like this is a new discovery. You've kissed Myungho when you guys were dating."

"Yeah, because he was my boyfriend. Not my best friend."

"And whose fault is it that we're in this situation, huh?" He pointed out smugly. "Besides, we're already holding hands and being disgustingly cute. I'm not planning on going all out and making out with you. Just a few pecks here and there. No big deal."

"Easy for you to say." Zoey groaned.

"Okay. How about we practice?" Abby suggested.

Zoey looked at him incredulously. "Excuse me? You want to practice...kissing?"

“Yeah, one of the rules of thumb in acting is practising and rehearsing,” he tilted his head slightly.0

“Won’t that get weird real quick?”

“Are you forgetting that I do theatre on the side? I know what I’m talking about.”

 “But—"

"Zo," he cut her off. "It's just a kiss. We're adults here. Stop overthinking and trust me a little.”

Zoey was hesitant at first but eventually relented.

"Alright," Zoey sighed, her cheeks still flushed. "Let's just get this over with."

Abby chuckled, finding her discomfort amusing. "Come on, don't act like you're being sent to the gallows.” He sat her down on the couch. “Close your eyes."

Zoey squeezed her eyes shut and puckered her lips.

Abby burst out laughing. "What are you doing?"

"Bracing for lip impact," Zoey replied, eyes still closed.

"You really think I'm going to crash my lips against yours like a freight train?" Abby chuckled, finding her absurd preparation endearing.

"God forbid a girl mentally and emotionally prepare herself.”

He rolled his eyes again and reached out to poke her nose. "Look at me."

Zoey opened her eyes, meeting his gaze with a mix of nervousness and determination.

He took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “You’re overthinking this, Zo. Just relax.”

Zoey sighed, her shoulders relaxing a little and took a deep breath. “Okay. I trust you.”

He gently cupped her cheek, closing the gap between them. Her breath hitched as his thumb brushed against her soft skin, as he leaned in, his lips mere inches away from hers.

Oh God. It’s happening. It’s happening. Zoey’s thoughts raced in a frenzy, and her heart thumped against her chest hard.

Then it happened. His lips touched hers.

Zoey's eyes widened, her face flushed red, and she was screaming internally.

The kiss lasted a minute until Abby pulled away, and Zoey already looked like her soul had just left her body.

He chuckled, pinching her cheek. “You okay there, geobug-i.”

“Mhm. Totally fine,” she answered, still in a daze.

He chuckled again. “Don’t pass out on me now,” he cupped her face. “Let’s try that again.”

“Okay,” she replied, slapping her cheeks to snap her out of her daze and put on her game face.

He leaned again, his warm breath mingling with hers. He could feel the tension in her body, and for a moment, he hesitated, but he then brushed his lips against hers. Light and tentative at first. Slowly, he deepened the kiss, moving his lips in a slow and languorous rhythm, coaxing her to relax.

Zoey slowly relaxed and leaned in a little more into the kiss.

Abby, feeling her respond, became more confident. His hand moved from her cheek up to the back of her neck, tilting her head slightly. Zoey gasped as he moved her to straddle his lap, her hands instinctively gripping his broad shoulders.

"H-hey-" she's cut off by Abby's lips back on hers, his tongue grazing her bottom lip, seeking entry, which she obliged to. Abby deepened the kiss, relishing the sweetness of her mouth. His hands travelled down her sides, finding their way beneath her t-shirt. His fingers explored the soft skin of her stomach, trailing a path up her torso to the curves of her breasts. Zoey moaned as her fingers twined in his hair, which caused a groan to escape from his lips.

Abby’s lips suddenly left hers and found their way to her neck, leaving open-mouthed kisses there. He could feel her pulse quickening beneath his lips as he reached the hollow of her throat. Abby then continued his trail to her collarbone, leaving a trail of hot, wet kisses down her skin.

She was panting as she instinctively ground her hips against his, which sent a jolt of heat directly to his crotch. Abby groaned, his grip on her hip tightening as he reciprocated the motion. He continued his trail of kisses down her chest until his hands cupped her tits.

Abby then shifted her back against the couch to lie on top of her, positioning herself between her legs. He looked down at her with darkened eyes, observing how her chest rose and fell with each breath. His hands moved to the hem of her shirt, bunching the fabric up to expose her stomach. His fingers danced across her skin, leaving trails of heat wherever he touched.

Her body shivered. Abby smirked, enjoying the effect he had on her. He continued his exploration, his fingers moving upwards, slowly revealing her tits. He leaned down, pressing his lips to the valley between her breasts. Abby could feel her breath hitching as his hands moved lower, his fingers reaching the waistband of her shorts.

Suddenly, the door slammed open.