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Chapter Text

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January 17th
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"The top score holders—Ms. Yu and Ms. Kim—did outstandingly well for this project, as usual!"

"No wonder you two are the pride of this class. Perfect scores on the Literature exam yet again."

"Ms. Yu and Ms. Kim are the only students that have gotten 100 points for this History quiz. Excellent work, if I must say."

"Didn't expect less than perfection from you two—the smartest girls in Class B."

In the middle of a classroom stood two girls—good posture and attire, not a single wrinkle on their school uniforms, make-up and hair styling fitting the dress code—looking exactly like every teacher's dream students.

Kim Minjeong, blonde haired and radiating happiness on the right, and Yu Jimin, black hair with bangs and a tight smile on the left.

The whole classroom were observing them with envy, curiosity, but mostly admiration. How were they always the top two students not only in class, but in the whole school altogether? How were they so good at every subject and activity like it was second nature to them?

How was it even possible to be this perfect?

SM High's Class B students Yu Jimin and Kim Minjeong have yet again passed another exam without making a single mistake.

"No mistakes again, Minjeong. Good job," Jimin murmured as she held the girl's hand, squeezing it amidst their handshake.

"Good job to you too, Jimin. Hundred points as usual." Minjeong returned the gesture with a tighter squeeze.

That interaction looked respectful and very sweet at a first glance. Showing recognition, complimenting and congratulating your fellow classmate's great work seemed like a very considerate thing to do, right? A nice handshake, a little smug smile from one side...

Wait, was that a twitching eyebrow?

Why was it so cold in the room all of a sudden? Why were they engaged in a stare off that could start a wildfire in the middle of a blizzard?

Uh.. it must've been the wind, right?

They looked completely normal and unbothered... for those who used their eyes to smell instead of noticing the obvious..? Like, come on, really? Let's be honest—the effort was definitely there, but who exactly were they trying to fool when it was as clear as oxygen that they wanted to strangle eachother to death?

The whole classroom and teacher could literally feel the fire and
ice surrounding them as if a hard level final boss fight was about to happen before their eyes.

Over the course of a week, Jimin visited church every day, did online tarot card readings, sat in the middle of a circle surrounded by lit candles like it was a cult-like ritual, played Phasmophobia just to summon and manifest to ghosts, and prayed to the almighty God for days straight. She did all of that for Minjeong.

Well, more like because of Minjeong.

She prayed, begged and hoped for the latter to have made a mistake, skipped a question or forgotten to write her name in the sheets... but it was all in vain. Despite all of her efforts, the heavens above and the spirits summoned by her in-game ouija board have not fulfilled her wishes yet again.

By this point, she was sure life had a personal agenda against her. Because her rival, Kim freaking Minjeong, instead of miserably biting the dust and finally getting stuck in second place for good, passed her exam with excellence. AGAIN.

As for Minjeong, the condescending glare, flicker of irritation and scowl coming from Jimin was more rewarding than all the compliments she has received so far for her hard work. Being on the verge of surpassing Jimin, watching her eyes roll and jaw clench since 8th grade was her only source of amusement.

In present time, the teacher was giving his last words for the lesson when the class dismissal bell rang.

Most students exited the room, but some stayed—either to praise Jimin and Minjeong for their hard work, either to gossip around about the other classes, either to stare at the two girls from afar... and not-so-discreetly write on a blog specifically created to document their rivalry in real time.

Jimin, after checking which was her upcoming class and sighing in relief when she saw it was English, soon left the classroom to retrieve her books. Though, it didn't take longer than a beat for Minjeong to notice her absence and step out of the room as well.

All that the blonde girl wanted to do was follow her rival and be as insufferable as possible—and she had to inform Jimin that the council needed her to work on a quick task, but it could wait.

"Jiminiee~"

"Shut up."

Jimin didn't have to turn to know whose voice that was.

There were students chatting in the hallways, voices colliding with eachother, greetings echoing in the hallways, but oh...only one girl used that obnoxiously sweet tone when speaking to her. Jimin could never mistake it for someone else's.

"Leave, Kim. I don't want to hear it," she replied coldly without batting Minjeong an eye.

Jimin was peacefully trying to walk down the hallway to her locker, kindly smiling at the girls and guys waving at her—all while being completely aware of the fact that she was still, unfortunately, getting followed by Minjeong.

If this was a cartoon, there would be steam coming out of her ears and a volcano erupting on top of her head while Minjeong would be surrounded by sparkles full of mischief and a devilish smirk with it's own 'ka-ching' sound effect.

"Come on," Minjeong coaxed, "I know you adore hearing me talk about my grades. Aren't you happy that I got a perfect score, too?" She giggled, clasping her hands behind her back, attitude as bratty as it could get.

Jimin rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you definitely got it right. I'm so elated and overjoyed by your success," she replied sarcastically and finally turned to glare at the latter. "Are you going to go away now?"

"Nope," Minjeong grinned. "I'll follow you all around the world."

Jimin's upper lip twitched, though, it was nowhere close to a smile. "You're annoying, you know that right?"

"Annoying? Hmm, I wouldn't say I'm annoying..." Minjeong feigned innocence, lashes fluttering. "I think passionate is more appropriate. Don't you think so, Ms. Yu?"

"Just shut up." Jimin deadpanned.

Upon realizing that Minjeong wasn't planning to move away any time soon, Jimin chose to be the one to put a distance between them.

Though, she couldn't help but stop in her tracks when she heard echoing footsteps trailing behind her. She swore that if the same blonde girl with those big eyes that screamed mischief and behavior brattier than a spoiled American child was still following her, she would actually lose her mind and commit a sin worse than murder.

And to her surprise, yet not really, it was indeed—

"Kim. Minjeong."

Jimin grumbled, staring coldly into the dark brown orbs of the girl standing right before her eyes, too close than reasonable.

Minjeong hummed with her unmistakable grin, shifting her gaze upwards barely by an inch to keep the eye contact.

"Yes, Yu Jimin?"

The two did nothing but stare and observe eachother in suspenseful silence. It felt like a century had passed, but it was no longer than a few health-draining seconds of intense staring. Jimin was first to break the eye contact and clear her throat, crossing her arms over her chest, her English books in between.

"What is it?" She questioned with a raised eyebrow. Whenever Minjeong was around for longer than a minute, be all up in her personal space and stare at her like that, it usually meant there was something more to be said.

Before replying, Minjeong glanced at the books—and moved fast. She reached out to grab them in a flash before the taller one could even blink, held them close to her side and turned around, pretending not to have noticed the questioning look Jimin had shot her way.

"Go to the council's room and you'll find out. See you there~" Minjeong smirked and waved with her fingers, skipping away until she was gone from sight.

Jimin rolled her eyes with a groan, already used to these kinds of... gestures. Then she tilted her head and sighed to herself, checking the time on her phone. "There's few minutes left before class... What does the council need me for, now?" She shook her head, forcing herself to walk.

Her eyes were then stuck on reading the '104 Council Room' sign, hardly believing that she deliberately listened to Minjeong and actually came here instead of being a very responsible student and paying attention to her crucial English Listening Apprehension exercises. Those were her favorite, y'know...

"It better be important..."

Jimin rolled her shoulders and slowly opened the door, peeking her head. With squinted eyes, she examined the surroundings curiously.

First thing she noticed was a familiar blonde haired girl—a bored looking Minjeong leaning beside a bookcase, staring down the floor while kicking... imaginary rocks?

Surprise flickered in Jimin's eyes, curious to know how and when Minjeong managed to get here so quickly...and why the hell was she actually here instead of attending class? Interesting, Jimin thought. She was sure Minjeong wasn't being serious, but apparently she guessed wrong.

Then, her attention shifted to the other two council members—Chaewon and Hanbin from Class A. They were leaning infront of an opened window and watching their juniors play at the school sports field, both drinking strawberry milks and debating about best video game soundtracks. Typical of them.

Jimin cleared her throat to make herself present, murmuring, "Uh, guys? You needed me for something?"

The moment the three council members heard her voice, they turned their heads.

"There you are!" Chaewon smiled widely, stepping closer to Jimin and handing her a folded piece of paper. "Someone left this for you on the table. No idea who, though... Seems like it's anonymous."

Jimin blinked, examining the outside of the paper by turning it over and over. "Oh, I see. Is that why I was called here?"

"Nope, not just that. But those too," Hanbin joined in by pointing at a pile of documents right by the desk closest to him. "The principal left these and asked us to complete them by the end of the day, then return them to him. I finished my quarter, and so did the Kims. You are the only one left." He patted the pile with a grin.

Jimin couldn't help but inwardly groan while staring at the depressing pile of stacked papers. There weren't that many considering how much work the council usually did on busy days, but it would take her a sweet hour to finish everything if she had to re-check for any spelling or grammatical mistakes, plus sign them and bring them back to the principal.

Worst part? It looked like someone didn't seem to have any plans to leave.

"Can't I do them once school is over? I need to be in class in less than five—"

"I'll inform your English teacher that you will skip his class, don't you worry!" Chaewon cheekily interrupted the latter, patting her shoulders with a smirk. "And Minjeong came here just now and promised she'll behave and help you out, so... please don't bite her head off while we're gone."

"No promises," Jimin murmured, squinting at her supposed 'helper' who was definitely not whistling under her nose and ignoring her eyes on purpose.

Chaewon spared them a glance and sighed, "Just please be done with this so we can all peacefully study for the Maths exam."

"Fine," Jimin gave in at the mention of studying. She herself had to study too, and leaving her duty work unattended and unfinished were not a part of her vocabulary. "I'll be quick."

"Oh, thank you," Chaewon exhaled in relief, "And good luck. I'm sure you'll both need it." She waved before exiting in a rush, Hanbin following her steps no longer than a few beats later.

It was Minjeong and Jimin left in the room now.

The silence that followed afterwards was almost louder than the sound of the wind sweeping through the opened window. Almost.

"Just great." Jimin muttered to herself, already feeling exhausted.

Before beginning with her given task, she decided to check the letter first. She unfolded the paper with curiosity, squinting her eyes to read. It wasn't very rare for her to receive letters from admirers, harmless pranksters or her family from the other side of the country.

But anonymous ones? Those were very uncommon—since every admirer wanted to be acknowledged by her, it was unusual. It left her quite curious to know who would've written the letter.

Was it from a classmate? A junior? A student from another school? Maybe an outsider that saw her entering school and read her name tag? That one obnoxious guy from Chaewon and Hanbin's class who lost to her on chess two years ago and was still bitter about it? The football jock that has been trying to get her attention for months now? Maybe a possible secret scholarship for college? No, most probably not. Wait, could it be from the mysterious person who left her a box of cookies on her desk some days ago?

Well... it actually didn't take much effort for the code to be deciphered for this one.

She raised her eyebrow and scoffed, but she wasn't annoyed... for once. It was some kind of a silly confession letter, and by the looks of it, the anonymity part was just a cover.

'Yu Jimin, I have a big secret to share:

You see, the girl infront of you might be... in love with you. Don't tell anyone!!!

- A very anonymous person.'

Nobody would write something like this other than the most childish, obnoxious and unserious person Jimin has ever encountered.

Kim. Freaking. Minjeong.

"Anonymous? Oh, please—you obviously wrote this, didn't you?" Jimin called her rival out, meeting Minjeong's stare that was already on her.

"Who knows? Maybe I did, maybe I didn't." The blonde one chuckled, pushing herself away from the bookcase and walking closer to Jimin.

And out of nowhere, Minjeong casually placed her hands on Jimin's waist and pulled her in until there was barely any space between them. The move was so natural and easy that Jimin didn't even flinch or blink—as if it wasn't the first time this has happened.

"You can recognize my handwriting that easily, hm?" Minjeong mused and tilted her head. "I'm impressed, Jiminie."

In return, she received the nth eye roll of the day and a push on her shoulder—it could barely be considered as one though, because Minjeong didn't even budge an inch; neither did Jimin even try.

"Whatever. Why did you write this?" Jimin took a step back and extended her hands to the desk behind her, casually sitting on top of it and slightly leaning back.

Minjeong hummed as she eyed her, guiding herself forward to stand in between Jimin's legs, smooth hands sliding over the latter's thighs under her skirt all while keeping her gaze glued on her body. Minjeong was leaning closer and closer until she felt Jimin's breath hit the tip of her nose.

"Because I want your attention," she whispered in a low yet sickeningly soft tone, "all of it."

Jimin's breath hitched for a moment, but she masked it by forcing out a huff and looking unimpressed. "Not now, Minjeong. I have a task to do, so step aside before I push you away myself."

"Not even for a minute?"

"Minjeong."

"Pretty please?"

"Move."

Though, the way Jimin's palms gripped the edge of the desk betrayed her want to show any effort. Minjeong also noticed how Jimin didn't seem to act up on her words, but they always carried the truth, usually. Jimin would rather focus on her handed task than pay attention to her rival, which slightly saddened Minjeong—for reasons unknown yet obvious.

Minjeong's lips unknowingly formed into a pout, head tilted to match Jimin's gaze. "Do you really mean it?"

Jimin opened her mouth to speak—to confirm that yes, she really needed to finish her task and be done faster—but froze once she noticed the furrow in Minjeong's brows. It was clear Minjeong was hesitating, because the last thing the blonde one would do was to be a burden and be too persistent for anyone's liking.

The longer the silence prolonged, the more Minjeong's hands would twitch on Jimin's skin in hesitation. She looked down and sighed, forcing out a slight smile and a weak nod. Maybe Jimin didn't want to repeat herself, she thought, and maybe that's why the taller one chose to stay silent.

"Alright, I'll let you be." Minjeong slid her hands away, but felt a grip each side of her shoulders, making her look back up in a startle. "H-huh? What—?"

"Wait, don't go—I take it back." Jimin stammered, composure broken.

Minjeong's eyes widened, feeling hopeful after hearing Jimin's words. "Really?"

Jimin sighed, "Yes, really."

And despite herself, she chuckled.

"Just c'mere, silly."

In a beat, her arms flew over Minjeong's shoulders and around her neck, drawing her in until their lips were plastered together.

The blonde one gasped into her mouth and froze, but slowly felt herself relaxing, moving her hands to squeeze Jimin's waist in silent appreciation.

With more courage than before, Minjeong traveled one hand up to hold Jimin's jaw, caressing her cheekbone with her thumb. Jimin barely had the time to react when Minjeong suddenly bit on her lip and pulled a little, earning the opportunity to insert her tongue in and explore.

Jimin shivered at the sensation, shakily breathing out as she wrapped her legs around Minjeong's middle, nudging the latter to come closer. A soft hum made it's way out of her when Minjeong sneaked a hand under her uniform shirt, palm pressed to her lower back, fingers drawing shapes over her skin.

Their breaths came uneven and fast, touches became more frantic and yet still remained gentle. Kisses turned slower, deeper and more passionate, seeking more of the other.

Minjeong ravenously tasted and felt all of Jimin. From kissing her lips and caressing her skin, to leaving open mouthed pecks on her sharp jawline. Her hands squeezed and left finger prints all over the black haired one, warmth spreading through her body. Jimin released a sound dangerously close to a moan when Minjeong's lips latched onto her pulse point, teeth grazing just enough to tease but not leave a visible mark.

The blonde one left several more soft, harmless nibbles against Jimin's smooth skin and leaned back up to smack their lips in another fierce kiss, sucking in all of Jimin's sounds of pleasure.

But suddenly, it all stopped.

Jimin did it—she had to, because something didn't seem right.

She cupped Minjeong's face and pulled herself away while inhaling deep breaths, staring right into Minjeong's darkened puppy eyes.

"Did... did something happen?" Jimin questioned carefully, observing her.

She knew this wasn't the usual route Minjeong would take so abruptly, since Minjeong was never one to intensify things to such extent without dropping any hints about it or asking for consent first. This could mean one thing—something was definitely bothering her, to the point she needed Jimin to distract her away from it.

Minjeong, still panting and feeling hot all over her body, swallowed the lump in her throat before shaking her head dismissively. "No, nothing really, don't worry about it." She gently held Jimin's warm hands, thumbs brushing over knuckles, squeezing them. "Do you want to continue for a bit more?"

Unfortunately for Minjeong, her attempt at avoiding the question didn't go past Jimin's interrogation.

"Not until you tell me what's bothering you," the black haired one said calmly yet sternly, untangling herself away.

The room's atmosphere became heavy due to Jimin's finality in her voice. Minjeong felt cornered from all directions.

"Nothing is bothering me though, I—I told you." Minjeong replied quickly, accidentally stuttering mid speech.

Busted.

She formed an awkward smile. "Well, uh—" she already knew Jimin caught her, judging by her unmoving stare. "How about a kiss to change your mind?"

"No." Jimin deadpanned. "Nice try, but you just made it more obvious." She sighed, her features softening. "Come on, Minjeogie," she coaxed, leaning forward a little. "tell me what's on your mind."

Minjeong was instantly defeated.

"It's—" she exhaled. "It's nothing too serious... just Aeri..."

That was all Minjeong had to say for Jimin to understand.

She crossed her arms and clenched her jaw, already plotting on how to cover up a crime scene in her head. "What did she do? Did she hurt you? Steal anything from you?"

"No, not this time. She just—I don't know, it's weird..." Minjeong rubbed her forehead to get her thoughts in order, inhaling a deep breath before admitting, "she wanted me to get rid of the Maths club... or else, she'll come for you if I decline."

Jimin widened her eyes, at a loss of words.

Out of all people, Uchinaga Aeri wouldn't dare to come after Jimin.

Not because Aeri was scared of the council president, but because they weren't exactly on talking terms, nor in any terms whatsoever. Aeri was quite the troublemaker and delinquent from class D who wanted nothing to do with school education, while Jimin had the authorities under her feet because she was their responsible council president.

They lived in completely different worlds. Why would Aeri pick on her all of a sudden?

"She really said that? What did I even do to her—and what exactly does she have against the Maths club?" Jimin scratched her nose, deep in thought.

Aeri, despite her reputation, was a smart one—debatable if it's academically wise, but she was definitely logical, aka street smart. She was just as aware as everyone of Jimin and Minjeong's rivalry and how they've been going against eachother's throats and competing for the 'best student' title as if it would cure cancer.

It didn't feel like much of a threat, because this threat could lead to Minjeong's benefit rather than misfortune. (Though, Aeri clearly didn't know what truly was happening between those two...)

"I'm not sure," Minjeong scratched her nape, humming. "Maybe she needs the room for her sports club's equipment? Or she—"

She suddenly paused, blinking as a thought flashed through her mind.

"Hold on, is there someone in the Maths club that Aeri doesn't like?"

After hearing that question, Jimin clapped once in realization and pointed at Minjeong. That was a very good question, and Jimin had the correct answer to it.

"Ning Yizhuo." Jimin confirmed, voice tinted with certainty.

Minjeong widened her eyes, pointing back at the latter with a big grin. "Right! Wait—it makes so much sense now that I think about it. Nice guess, baby."

And oh, Jimin almost choked on air.

Her ears started burning at the tips and she lowered her head in embarrassment, fixing her hair to hide all evidence. She couldn't explain with words why a word like 'baby' made her so self aware all of a sudden.

She braced herself to act neutral, as if it didn't make the voices in her head scream. "They've been clawing against eachother's throats since what, middle school? I'm not that surprised," she shrugged it off with her hand, then looked out the window with a hum. "Though, we won't get rid of a whole club because of Aeri's problems with Ning. It's pointless."

After that statement, Jimin was too engrossed in staring at the blue sky to notice how Minjeong was leaning closer to her with an unreadable expression on her face. Minjeong smoothly wrapped her arms around Jimin's lower back, embracing her delicately.

"What if she does something to you, though?"

Jimin couldn't help but sigh, leaning into the touch and rubbing soft circles on the latter's back. "She won't," she whispered and turned her head just enough to look at Minjeong—only to catch a slight glimpse of the frown on her face.

Oh, this girl... She must be really worried, huh?

Jimin's gaze softened, pursing her lips thoughtfully before murmuring, "I mean, I can talk to her and suggest a different solution. But if it doesn't work, I'm sure I can handle a punch or two if she ever comes for me—"

"Wait, what?"

In a flash, Minjeong's frown was gone—replaced with the clearest look of bewilderment. Her posture was straightened, eyebrows furrowed in bafflement, stunned by how unbothered and calm Jimin was acting.

Jimin tilted her head, wondering why Minjeong reacted like that all of a sudden.

"What's wrong—?"

"You are not going anywhere close to her, Jimin. We will do it if we have to." Minjeong spoke with zero hints of reluctance in her voice, slightly surprising the latter.

In all these years that Jimin has known Minjeong, this was the first time the girl looked so... assertive and bossy. Her usual bright and playful self was completely gone and replaced by the current serious, intimidating one. It was a complete shocker.

"Woah, hey—calm down. I won't get hurt, don't worr—"

"Calm down and not worry? What are you—? How do you expect me to be calm right now? Aeri isn't some lowlife who's all bark and no bite, Jimin, and we both know it. Did you forget what happened to me last year?"

Jimin closed her mouth as she looked to the side in accepted defeat, memories of an unforgettable incident running in her head. It was the only time Jimin genuinely felt cautious and wary of Aeri.

A year ago, Minjeong had an altercation with Aeri that lead to a fight. And the reason was more than ridiculous. Aeri had lost her purse by the student council room and suspected that Minjeong was the one who found it and didn't return it.

It lead to threats being thrown here and there, majority of them consisting of Aeri hurting Minjeong if her valuables were not returned immediately. Of course Minjeong instantly declined the accusations, showed proof that she was innocent and chose to talk back to the threats.

But unfortunately, after that day, the blonde girl realized that she'd never manage to persuade or make herself clear to Aeri with words. That same night, Minjeong was forcefully pushed to an alleyway on her way home by Aeri without a way out. They fought—mostly Aeri did all the attacking, because it was clearly one-sided from the start.

It got to the point Minjeong couldn't attend PE classes for weeks due to injuries.

It was during midnight when Jimin heard several weak, hesitant knocks on her door. The scene she was greeted by was a barely standing Minjeong leaning on the doorjamb, holding onto her abdomen—her limbs were covered in bruises, blood stains all over her sleeves, shoes and hands. She had a busted, bleeding lip that still managed to form into a weak smile the moment their eyes met.

That view was the only one Jimin would never forget—and genuinely wish to never see again.

The two had an argument after a council meeting earlier on that same day, but all of Jimin's childish annoyance was completely gone the second Minjeong flashed her an apologetic look—a silent sorry for showing up late at night unannounced, for starting the argument and for not apologizing sooner.

Jimin swore, really swore, that the reason why she cried in the bathroom after Minjeong finally fell asleep on her bed was because something had gotten in her eye, not because it physically hurt her to see Minjeong in pain.

"Minjeong... it won't lead to that, I promise."

"A single promise can't really help you against Aeri and you know that! She almost left me unconscious that day and you want to confront her!?"

Minjeong didn't realize she raised her voice at first, but she instantly shook her head and frowned at herself when it downed on her. One thing she'd immediately regret would be to raise her voice at people who mattered to her—especially Jimin—so she quickly held Jimin's hands and placed long, lingering kisses on her knuckles as an apology.

"I'm sorry for shouting at you, baby—but I just don't want you to go through all of that too, okay? Let's just think of a plan. Like, we can say that the Maths club didn't have enough members so we needed to disband it? Or write a report file under the complaint section? Or—I don't know, just anything! Can we do that? Please?" Minjeong rambled in panic and cupped Jimin's cheeks, pleading with her puppy eyes.

Jimin didn't know what to say or do other than to blink because of the way Minjeong was acting—all scared and overly anxious. Jimin knew she acted like that only when she was worried a lot.

"Minjeong, listen," Jimin began, wanting to ease her mind, "Aeri can't do anything against me. I'm the council president, you know how easily I can figure out a way to defend myself by using my role, right?" she said, squeezing the blonde one's hands on her cheeks.

Minjeong nodded weakly.

"Then you know Aeri wouldn't purposefully hurt me, because I'm certain she's aware of that, too. Surely, she used me just to make you agree to it since she knows you wouldn't want to put other people in trouble. Trust me Minjeong, I won't get hurt if you say no." She assured, showing a soft smile.

"You trust me, right?"

Minjeong's eyes scanned her face and she felt herself gradually loosening up, returning the smile—albeit a small but no less softer one.

"Of course I trust you."

And exactly a beat later, her grin widened.

"You haven't shown that stunning smile of yours even once until now, princess." Minjeong squeezed the girl's cheeks, cooing at her. "I missed it," she chuckled.

Jimin gawked at her and pinched the blonde's waist, scoffing as her lips formed into a thin line. "Seriously, Minjeong? Right now of all times? God, you can be so immature and annoying," but her words and stare held no real bite. Especially not when her lips betrayed her and tugged upwards into a fond grin.

"Oh? But I can see you smiling," the blonde's eyes squinted playfully. "Are you sure you're not smiling because you love me or something?"

Jimin rolled her eyes, feigning annoyance despite the red flush coloring her cheeks.

"Is that a yes?"

"...Maybe."

"Yes it is!"

Minjeong chuckled brightly at her shyness, throwing herself on Jimin as she placed many pecks on her pink cheeks, forehead, nose and her most favorite of all—the little mole under her lips. The black haired one couldn't help but giggle at the ticklish and warming feeling, not having any intentions to push the latter away.

Because this? This was something they had that nobody knew of.

For almost two years now, they've been secretly dating. Behind all that rivalry, snarky remarks and competition, there was hidden love behind all of their actions and words.

They didn't know how it exactly started, but on the evening when Jimin groaned and aggressively made out with Minjeong to shut her up after having an intense talk about the tasks given for the spring festival was the same moment everything changed. In the span of two months, they were slowly beginning to open up, to know each other better and getting closer—by showing secret smiles in lunch breaks, studying together in the furthest section of the library after school and holding hands under the desk during classes. It was a month before the summer break of their tenth to eleventh year when their relationship had it's official start.

It was Jimin who acted and fell first, but Minjeong fell twice as hard and deep.

When eleventh grade started, they had to figure out a way to keep their dating life a secret. They mostly spent their time in the council room alone, disguising it as helping eachother to complete work faster, or in the changing rooms during PE when nobody was around. They always found excuses to be together without growing suspicion amongst their classmates and teachers.

And no, dating wasn't prohibited. It was actually the most spoken, hottest topic in their school.

For that sole reason, they've been hiding everything from everyone so nobody would get too nosy and disturb them. Oh, and not to forget that the members of the blog about them would surely hire dispatch if their relationship ever comes to light. Because, honestly, it sounded too unbelievable that these two were in love outside of school while being on their own throats during it.

"Minjeong, I really need to do these files now." Jimin pulled herself away from the kiss attack, shooting her a knowing look.

"But I promised to help—"

"It's okay, I'll do them myself. You can just keep me company," Jimin assured, suddenly squinting and pointing at her warningly. "No funny business, though."

Minjeong feigned grumpiness, but still retaliated with a nod and a smile. She silently sat next to Jimin while the latter did her work, not wanting to disturb her as requested.

On occasional times, Minjeong would lean back on her chair and sigh fondly, arms crossed as she watched Jimin work on the papers. She was so focused it even surprised Minjeong. It was so easy for Jimin to lose herself whenever she switched to her council president self.

Honestly speaking, Minjeong couldn't understand why they were so into the whole rivalry thing, but it was all thanks to it that they became so close. Though, their silly competition was the least thing she cared about. Grades and praises from teachers and other students weren't important to her, but it was what made Jimin more proud and confident of her own knowledge, so it automatically made Minjeong feel better too.

Her girlfriend's happiness was double Minjeong's happiness.

Minjeong noticed how much Jimin had started to like studying by each passing day, so she took it upon herself to help her become the smartest girl in school and the best version of herself. She wanted to get closer to Jimin ever since her first day as a student of this school, but the only way to earn her attention was by getting better or the same grades as her.

Back then, Jimin saw that as a challenge and started studying more and more in hopes she wouldn't get surpassed by Kim Minjeong—the transfer student she thought was daring and very competitive.

Minjeong didn't mind acting like rivals with Jimin, not at all, but there was something else that she always pushed to the furthest point in the back of her head.

Sometimes, she'd just lay down on her bed and think... Why did it feel like they were rivals in school more than just two girls in love?

Minjeong didn't see any reason to talk about this with Jimin, believing it was just a moment of self-doubt or insecurity. But recently, she was having these thoughts more often than before.

Every time it was just them in a secluded area or the council room in school, with no prying eyes nor eavesdroppers nearby, the act and distancing was still ongoing. And now that they were in their last year, it was happening more frequently than before because of the abnormal amount of studying and exam preparations they had to focus on.

If Minjeong wanted to have a moment with Jimin, she'd have to wait. Always wait.

So now that it was just them in the room, Minjeong couldn't help but want to know what Jimin would do if faced with a harmless choice. Whether it would fit her expectations or not, she wanted to make sure it was just her imagination.

"Baby?" Minjeong called out, earning the latter's hum. She cleared her throat, anxiously tapping with her foot. "Since, uh, you know, the Maths exam is in a week, will you study tonight for it?" She asked, seeing the smirk of disbelief forming on Jimin's mouth.

"What kind of a question is that? Of course I am. Too worried that I might beat you or something?" Jimin chuckled with a raised eyebrow. "Don't you worry, I will snatch that best student title soon enough and put an end to this." She added with a smirk, eyes still not darting away from the paperwork before her. "Why do you ask when you already know, though?"

Minjeong hummed, wondering why this answer made her feel a little uneasy. It clearly was meant for teasing, but Jimin sounded so serious that it left the blonde girl confused and thrown off. It genuinely sounded like Jimin didn't truly care about anything else, but only beating Minjeong as a rival in school and putting an end to... this? What did this even mean in the current context? This, as in their little competition, or this, as in their—

Minjeong had to mentally slap herself, shocked that she almost thought about such thing.

Why did this mess with her head so much?

"W-Well, I wanted to ask if you wanted to come over... For an hour, at least?" She asked hesitantly, wondering if her girlfriend would finally agree.

Whenever there was a test the following week, or two weeks even, Jimin wouldn't dare to leave her house or invite someone over. She knew she had everything memorized and known by heart, but still—she wouldn't. All that Minjeong wanted to see was if Jimin would make an exception just this once.

Would she rather hang out with her girlfriend for an hour, or revise all week long for a test she was more than prepared for?

"I can't, I need to study. After it's all done, sure." Jimin nonchalantly replied while keeping her eyes on the sheets, earning a weak hum of acknowledgement from Minjeong.

Of course... What did Minjeong expect? Jimin to skip her very important studies just for an hour long hangout at her home—the same ones they haven't had in almost a month? Minjeong would be dreaming if Jimin was to ever agree to that.

She couldn't blame her at all though, because Jimin was a true nerd stuck inside a hot girl's body. Minjeong fell in love with her loserish side, after all. All she could do was respect her choice, but it didn't hide the fact that she felt saddened.

When would Jimin ever take a break from her studies? When would that girl let her duties go and spend some more time with her? What would make Jimin finally loosen up a little?

How can Minjeong help her with achieving that peace?

Can she even help?

Maybe... just maybe, Minjeong might've thought of an answer to that question.

"Alright, good luck with studying then," Minjeong flashed a quick, pursed smile, standing up from the chair to walk towards the door.

Jimin slightly raised her head up, watching the latter leave with pure confusion in her eyes. This was nothing like the usual Minjeong who would run to kiss her and say something cute or teasing before parting ways.

"Wait, Min—"

"I'll go to class now. 'Til later, Jimin!" The girl waved her hand, exiting without saying or listening to anything else.

Jimin furrowed her eyebrows, tilting her head. "Huh..?"

This felt... so strange and unusual in all kinds of ways.

She hesitantly put her pen down, slowly standing up and walking to the closed door to catch up to Minjeong. But to her shock, the second she opened it, the latter was long gone from sight.

"How is she always so fast..?" Jimin mumbled to herself, looking around the hallway before staring back at the unfinished papers.

She kept her eyes glued to the files, wondering what she should do. Her mind was telling her to follow Minjeong and ask if anything was wrong, but her body refused to move at all. For the first time ever, she hesitated to do what she has always been doing for years.

Would she let her duties as a perfect student and a council president go just to check up on Minjeong..?

She... shouldn't, right? Her duties were important and she can't afford to leave when those documents were staring down at her like that...

But what about Minjeong? Why did she sound so distant?

Jimin didn't do anything, did she?

Wait—exactly. She didn't do anything and that was the problem.

Minjeong must've left her so she could finish with her responsibilities in peace, right?

Right! That must be it.

Jimin shook her head, sitting back down to finish her paperwork with a poker face, as if her serious mode switch was turned back on.

Everything on Jimin's side went by smoothly afterwards. She finished her task, handed in the papers, attended her remaining classes for the day, and lastly, rushed back home to revise for hours straight until it was late midnight.

Her mind was so occupied with revising for the exam that she barely had a proper talk or a peaceful moment with Minjeong. Despite being classmates, they didn't really have the opportunity to be just...them and nobody else.

Other than five minutes alone daily in the council room—which would've been much longer if Jimin didn't cut them short due to 'leaving to study in the library'—they did nothing but continue their rivalry act infront of everyone at school.

But at least, she was at ease. All pages of her studies were revised perfectly and the only thing she had to do was fall asleep, wake up early and repeat everything for a whole week straight.

Wake up. Eat. Go to school. Eat. Go home. Eat. Study. Repeat.

Bless her soul, she was a big foodie and wouldn't dare skip any delicious meal thrown her way... Especially not the cookies Minjeong kept on leaving by her desk once a week, thinking that Jimin was still unaware of the person behind those gestures. Jimin had known for a while that she was the mysterious person, but chose to stay quiet and act oblivious.

Jimin followed this same routine all week, convinced that she was not missing out on anything—but in reality, she was.

Her mind had blacked out a very important part.

She didn't really focus much on Minjeong.

Like, at all.

It will be fine though, she had told herself. It wasn't the first time, nor will it probably be the last. After exams were done, she would spend her limited time pampering and calming down the storm that was to come. A clingy yet bratty and stubborn Minjeong—the one who always made an appearance after tests were over.

It was always a hassle to deal with such storm, but it was one Jimin wouldn't ever trade for anything in the world. Because a bratty and stubborn Minjeong was still her Minjeong.

Slowly, the days went on and on just like that. She remembered making out with Minjeong in the council room on January 17th at some point, but now—her eyes were glued to the date and hour on her phone.

January 24th, 08:57 AM.

In three minutes, the Maths exam would finally start.

And their 'who is the best student of SM High' competition shall continue.

...Right?

Chapter Text

—————
January 24th
—————

It was now 10:15 AM.

Pens rapidly clicked in and out of rhythmic patterns. Feet repeatedly tapped on the wooden floor in both loud and soft drums. Nervous glances were exchanged between the seated students. It was tense. Very tense.

The time to complete the Maths exam passed and the teacher was grading them on the spot; the highschoolers were forced to endure the pressure bestowed upon them. Everyone from Class B was on edge, palms sweating from anxiety—but not Jimin. Her sitting posture was a relaxed one, radiating suffocating confidence with composure that could end cold wars. It was obvious she studied more than enough and expected to hear nothing but perfect results.

"If you've heard your name, you can exit the room and head home for the day." The teacher announced, much to the students' relief. Girls and boys gradually began to exit the classroom, some with their heads lowered out of shame and defeat, some with smiles of pride and joy. Jimin, Minjeong and a few more students were the only ones left.

"Very pleasant work, Yu Jimin. I'm not surprised that you got a perfect score yet again. Feel free to leave."

After hearing the expected confirmation, a tug in the form of a smirk creeped up on the corner of Jimin's lips. She bowed her head politely, took her backpack and belongings with herself, and walked out the classroom with a prideful sway in her steps.

Though, instead of instantly heading home right away, she leaned on a vending machine relatively close to the classroom and patiently waited to overhear her remaining classmates' grades. Several more students were gathered in groups, seemingly having the same idea as her, but none stood close to her space.

Jimin acted subtle and nonchalant, while her classmates... not really.

"There's no way you guys think she might make a mistake, right?"

One of the talkative and engaging girls in their class—Ahyeon—was looking down on her classmates with crossed arms, ready to argue like her life depended on it.

They were talking about Minjeong.

"I'm more than sure Minjeong is gonna get those 100 points as well," she added, expression as smug as it could get. "Like, she always gets max score on Maths tests."

"Obviously she will, she's literally Kim Minjeong." A chill looking guy joined in on the talk, his tag showing the name Park Jihoon like a gifted title in bold, expensive letters, a knowing smile tugging on his lips. "Minjeong is like—what, number one smartest here?"

A loud gasp was heard.

Another girl, Jiwoo, jumped in the conversation with a harmless glare and mock defensive tone. "Excuse you—she is not number one smartest in our class," she grinned mischievously. "Jimin is the smartest one, period."

Jihoon snorted, pinning his finger on her forehead and giving her a light, playful push. "Sure, Ms. Know it all. Jimin is smart, yes, but if we're looking at the big picture—Minjeong is definitely more honourable. She has more grades in Science than Jimin."

"Yeah, but Jimin has more grades in Physics." Jiwon fought back, eyes narrowed in faux annoyance. "How about that, huh?"

More and more voices started colliding with eachother, firing up the 'who is smarter' debate even more. But undeniably, all students were very certain that Minjeong would nail her exam with little to no effort. Jimin was one of those students, too. She was humming to herself while checking up on her nails, not feeling the slightest bit bothered or nervous. Her gut was telling her that her girlfriend would get a perfect score as well. Minjeong always did—

"Uh, guys... I don't think she'll pass this time."

And boom... shaka-laka. (?)

Silence.

One of the quiet guys that always sat in the back—whose name was kind of forgotten by most, but thanks to the name tag showing his name to be Marcus—blurted out the most shocking thing of the day.

"Wait—" Ahyeon's eyes narrowed, stunned by his words. "You think she's going to fail? Like, not just make a mistake, but completely mess up the exam?"

He nodded.

"You're serious?"

He nodded again.

Everyone's curiosity was piqued, because it sounded like the most ridiculous statement ever. Kim Minjeong failing an exam? What kind of a stupid joke was that? Even Jimin, who wasn't really paying attention to their conversation at first, was now deeply intrigued and ready to hear his reasoning from afar.

A small group had surrounded his nervous-to-speak frame, impatiently waiting.

"What made you think so?" Jiwoo asked curiously.

"I... I was sitting behind her the whole time and I noticed something was... off, I guess?" He felt a little awkward because of the attention he was receiving, but the words of explanation flowing out of his mouth came with ease and certainty. Marcus was aware that his assumption must've sounded out of the ordinary, but he knew what he saw. "I know it seems like a joke, but I saw her looking at Jimin's back a few times." He admitted like it was the nation's biggest secret. "It was like... she was nervous? I swear, I saw how she wrote the right answer on the 3rd exercise, then changed her mind and circled the wrong one."

"The 3rd exercise was literally the easiest one of all, right? Didn't someone mumble the answer to us when the teacher wasn't paying attention?" Jihoon gasped out, eyebrows raised.

"Yeah," Marcus confirmed and sighed, "I don't know, maybe I'm just imagining it but... Minjeong looked like she didn't come prepared at all...

...Like she wanted to fail."

Jimin's heartbeat paced up at that. From hope, and from disbelief. Hope, because she had prayed for years that a moment would come where Minjeong had messed something up, marking the end of their competition, finally giving Jimin her deserved best student spot. And disbelief, because this didn't even sound like Minjeong to begin with. Writing the right answer just to change it to the wrong one? Not giving her all and making a mistake? Coming unprepared for an exam?

Yeah, right. As if Jimin would believe—

"Ms. Kim, are these really your test answers?"

—that...

All mouths were shut, eyes darting towards the slightly opened classroom door.

The eavesdropping group was staring and waiting, peeking their heads in just enough to see what was happening inside. It was safe to assume that the crowd was more than shocked by the exchange of words they heard next.

"Yes teacher, they are mine." Minjeong replied weakly, fiddling with her hands as the teacher was constantly writing with his pen on the exam list.

"I... I can't believe this. I always used to mark your papers without needing to use my red pen, but now the whole sheet is... covered in red ink! What happened, Ms. Kim?"

The teacher took off his glasses and straighten up on his seat, willing to pay better attention to the girl's explanatory words. He always wanted to make sure that all of his students could feel comfortable enough to share if they had trouble studying for any exams.

"N-Nothing happened teacher, I—I just didn't study well enough," Minjeong stuttered and politely bowed in a perfect angle, biting her inner cheeks to suppress her nervousness. "I apologize for the inconvenience..." It was the first time she had felt this much judgement and exposure, and she couldn't hide how anxious she felt underneath.

"I'm very... surprised, Ms. Kim. You always got perfect scores along with Ms. Yu, but now... I can't believe that I'm saying this, but you have completely failed this one."

Upon hearing that shocking information, Jimin widened her eyes and almost dropped her bag to the ground. Was she hearing the right stuff, or were her ears deceiving her? Did Minjeong actually fail the exam? Did her own competitive and intelligent girlfriend Kim Minjeong really mess up the exam?

No, there was no way.

No way.

"I'm sorry, teacher—I will make sure to do better from today on." Minjeong showed a forced smile and politely bowed her head again, clear proof of her unease.

The teacher sighed under his nose, shaking his hand with a weak smile of assurance, understanding that the girl must be nervous. "There's no need for you to apologize to me. I get that there could be hard times." He claimed with a nod, chuckling at his next thoughts. It was what everyone's first remark would be if they heard Minjeong's grade. "I'm sure Ms. Yu will be celebrating that she is officially the top student now." The teacher added; it made Minjeong nod with a weak chuckle.

"Yeah, she'll be... happy." She replied while scratching the back of her neck.

"Well, you're dismissed now. Try your best to do better from now on, okay? You can always reach out to me if you need assistance with your studies." He added before letting Minjeong leave the room.

As soon as the blonde girl was out of the classroom, chaos came without a warning beforehand. The very nosy and shocked classmates, who overheard the conversation, stared at Minjeong with pure, unmasked curiosity and confusion.

"You really failed?"

"You didn't study?"

"Was it that hard for you?"

"Does this mean you're not one of the top students now?"

"Did Jimin win?"

Questions were thrown left and right, and each and every one of them received a weak nod from Minjeong as a response. "Yeah, Jimin officially won this time. Once and for all." She mumbled her final statement with a weak smile, walking away while tightly gripping the back of her neck, rubbing and massaging it to ease the tension.

Minjeong, despite giving out the impression that she felt calm about the situation, was actually trying very hard not to stumble on her feet in an attempt to run away and search for a place to scream and let all the frustration out. All she needed right now was someone to check up on her, hug her tightly and tell her everything was going to be okay.

Minjeong really, really needed Jimin right now.

She wanted to be near Jimin, to be blessed by one of those rare, beautiful, reassuring smiles of hers, to hear her soothing voice, be asked a simple question about how she felt and what worried her, why it worried her, and lastly, to be embraced by her so the world could spin properly again.

It was selfish, it was pathetic. Minjeong knew she was openly seeking attention, but what else could she do? Who else would she seek for when her girlfriend was her only available source of comfort?

Why seek for anything else when she had Jimin?

Her head was filled with so many overflowing thoughts and doubts that it almost exploded her brain and left her crumpling to the ground. She couldn't believe she messed up a test this badly on purpose and deliberately lied to the sweetest, most helpful and respectful teacher in this school.

But she believed it was for something good. Minjeong wanted it to be for good. It was all for love... All for Jimin.

She did it so her girlfriend could finally feel less burdened by their childish rivalry, to feel free to relax and be herself—to be the Jimin Minjeong fell in love with.

But would this even help? Would putting an end to the rivalry bring the results she wanted to achieve? Would Jimin start showing her true love and care for Minjeong without having to blur the lines between schoolwork responsibilities and their relationship? Would Jimin even realize why Minjeong did this in the first place?

Was this even worth it?

Minjeong was hopeful, she always was hopeful and never stopped believing that one's good effort always paid off in the end, but she had to be realistic and think logically. She knew too well that Jimin would throw a little banquet to celebrate her victory the second she found out. It was all her girlfriend has ever wished for, after all.

But still, she wondered... What would Jimin do now?

"Kim. Minjeong."

And speaking of the devil, she was here.

The blonde girl abruptly came to a halt and snapped her head around in a startle. She felt herself shrinking as Jimin closed the distance between them, her lover's hands clenched into fists by her side, bag hanging loosely over one shoulder. Anyone could notice that she had a displeased look written all over her face, one that didn't hold any softness, but intimidating sharpness and an intent to start an interrogation.

Well, looks like there won't be any comforting happening for Minjeong...

"Uh, hi Jiminie—"

Jimin shot her a look. "Do not hi me right now. You did that on purpose, didn't you?"

Minjeong suddenly found the school grounds very interesting, gaze faltering to stare at the nearby lockers awkwardly. She didn't think that Jimin would be informed of the test results this soon (Minjeong had no idea Jimin was still in school and had stayed to hear her result), let alone figure out that her failure was a planned one and rush to confront her immediately about it. 

But Minjeong wasn't one to easily fall to exposure, especially not when she was under the impression that Jimin's words felt like a hard accusation more than a simple confrontation.

"I, uh... Uhm," Minjeong stammered. "I did what on purpose?"

"The exam, Minjeong. The exam." Jimin repeated herself monotonically.

"No..."

"Do not lie to me right now. Why did you do that?" Jimin closed the distance with a few steps, now standing right infront of her rival and very slightly tilting her head down to initiate an eye contact. Only a daredevil would try to break it, and Minjeong was not one to oppose to her when nothing about Jimin's mood radiated rainbows and sunshine. "You messed up your final grade for what reason exactly? Was it to prove something? Didn't you study a whole week for this test? Why would you fail?"

Minjeong scratched the back of her head and shrugged before mumbling, "It was you who studied all week for it, Jimin. Not me," as if it was obvious since the start.

But suddenly—she started chuckling.

It completely threw Jimin off guard. Her laughter didn't possess its usual brightness, Jimin knew that much just by the mere sound of it. The breaths in between sounded strained in a way, and the execution was... too hollow and forced. Minjeong laughed as if it was purely out of an old, nervous habit, as if she had to do this to feel less targeted in serious situations. As if she ridiculed the atmosphere more than finding humor in it.

"Now what? Are you happy now that you've won the competition?"

Jimin was taken aback by that question. She tilted her head to the side, wondering if Minjeong was being serious. "Are you actually asking me that right now?" Jimin bit back a groan when Minjeong nodded. All that the black haired one could do was sigh, say "It doesn't matter, this isn't about me," because really, it wasn't.

But deep inside? Oh, her smile was begging to be shown. In all honesty, if Jimin had to speak the real truth, she felt very exhilarated that she was soon to be the official top student now. After years of competition, years of rivalry and sleepless nights of studying like a lunatic, she had earned the title...

Though, it didn't hide the fact that her achievement didn't feel like a deserved win. It was unfulfilling, almost disappointing in a way. She wanted to know why it felt so unfulfilling, and why Minjeong had done something as stupid as that.

"Why would you mess up your final grade, Minjeong? Do you know how much this will affect your studies? Your future? What happened to wanting to be the best student in school? What was the—"

"Jimin."

Minjeong interrupted her to stop her incoming questions, staring up at her fierce orbs with an unmistakable frown. "Is that what matters to you right now—? What you really cared about this whole time? Which one of us would win the top student title, who would get the best grades?"

"Isn't that what we both really cared about?"

Oh.

Minjeong didn't know what happened right then, but she swore Jimin's might've shattered something. Was it her heart or the nearby window? Most probably the first option, because the sting inside her ribcage almost made her drop to her knees and fall deep into a neverending void.

Minjeong looked up through the blur of her vision and took a deep breath, trying not to get too lost in her own emotions. "Out of everything you could've asked me... Why didn't you ask about me first? How was I feeling, was I okay, was I having a hard time, was something bothering me? Was... Is this whole competition thing more important to you than how I feel?"

Jimin opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

She didn't know what to answer.

Her palms began to sweat and she felt herself staring into multiple blank point around her rival's face, imagining different outcomes of several scenarios in her own head. Whenever she took her time to think stuff thoroughly, it meant one thing: Jimin was genuinely worried. Why wasn't her voice coming out? She had the answer ready to be spoken in the back of her throat—I do want to know how you felt, yes, and I do want to know what must've been happening inside your head that made you purposefully fail the exam—but she couldn't voice it out after imagining the possible reactions she might receive.

Because her response still felt like the wrong one when it was the truth.

Jimin, in the end, exhaled through her nose and decided to stay silent, choosing the safest option—initiating skinship as a source of comfort. She reached out to grasp a feel of Minjeong's shaky hand, not wanting to make the latter misunderstand her silence as refusal to answer. Jimin ought to do this as a way to show that she didn't want to start  a fight or an argument, because now was not the right moment.

But it never came to that.

Kim Minjeong, the same girl she was in a relationship for almost two years now, and the same girl, who would do anything just to be close to Jimin and keep her all to herself until dawn if possible... for the first time ever, pushed her hand away.

Minjeong scoffed, gaze faltering and portraying the one of a deeply wounded animal. "It's okay Jimin, don't start pretending to make me feel better. At least I'm glad to finally know what mattered the most to you." Minjeong spoke sharply with a bitter smile, looking away as a single droplet from the socket of her eye slid down her cheek.

Jimin faced the ceiling in defeat, fingers moving to her temple, massaging them in an attempt to compose herself. She thought this was going to turn into one of Minjeong's little bratty antics—and they weren't in the right place to be having such conversation.

But this felt different. The scary kind of different.

It felt too serious to turn a blind eye to it, especially with Minjeong tearing up. Jimin hated to see her rival's smile get replaced with tears and a frown. She hated seeing Minjeong cry, not knowing what to do to ease her pained heart.

"Minjeong, come on—"

Pause.

"—it's just a grade." Jimin spoke softly, not enjoying the view before her even the slightest bit.

It was gnawing at her heart to watch and observe how Minjeong fought back tears. She looked... so hurt and disoriented. But little did Jimin know that the reason why Minjeong was emotional wasn't because she lost the competition, nor because of the failing grade. Ironically, Jimin, despite hating the concept of hurting those closest to her, had not even a snippet of realization of how much pain she had just brought to the person she wished to never hurt.

"Oh my god, Jimin, it's not about..."

The blonde one paused mid sentence, having given up on explaining further, and groaned into her palms with her eyes closed shut. She couldn't believe that even during this situation, even after pinpointing that her issue revolved around Jimin's insensitive questions, her girlfriend's focus was still not on her, but on school.

Maybe it was pointless, after all. Minjeong hated to admit it, but she figured it wasn't possible to do anything when Jimin wasn't even aware what of the main problem was. It was hard to come into terms with this profound realization. Genuinely, she didn't know if she could continue doing this—not when she felt like Jimin's love was something she had to beg for in spelled out words, since her girlfriend's different priorities were always in the way of everything.

Minjeong gave up so much—her streak of earning straight A's, possibilities of receiving a scholarship to an elite college, a flawless diploma that could've put her in a huge advantage at any workspace she desired. She let go of her childish ego and pride so Jimin could shine the brightest amongst all students, be the best one of all with no restraint and no more pressure.

And in the end, what did she receive? The same, indifferent treatment as before? Not even a single, Were you okay? or, How are you feeling? Of course not. Instead, she got glared at and asked, What were you trying to prove?

And what did Minjeong really want to prove? Simple, obvious and easy—that she would, without any hesitation whatsoever, do anything just to put her girlfriend's needs first above her own. She knew that compromising was something that needed time to be learned when loving someone—it meant that it was okay to accept defeat and let go of something of matter.

Therefore, she had learned by time that it was okay to do some stupid things as long as her loved ones were happy. And Jimin, her girlfriend, had long ago taken the head of the spot, becoming one of Minjeong's top priorities.

But she realized something else—maybe Jimin never thought of her as someone deserved to be of priority to begin with. Maybe Minjeong was nothing other than a rival that Jimin could play the game of love with and use as a distraction pill whenever she felt like it.

Maybe... Maybe grades were what she always cared about. Not her. Grades.

"Jimin, we..." Minjeong choked up on her words, taking slow, tormenting steps back.

"...We should break up."

Jimin immediately widened her eyes, blinking as if she received the worst, most shocking slap to her face. "Huh? We what? Why?" She spoke with unmasked confusion, taking a step forward in a haste.

"Please listen, Jimin… I don't think that it's going to work out well for us if this continues." Minjeong noticed how Jimin was desperately trying to reach out to her—and the blonde girl let her do it this time, because she really wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt. Minjeong wanted to be sure that Jimin loved her despite everything, that there was still something left in her heart that cared and was willing to fight for her. Minjeong didn't want to let her go this easily. Not because of a reason like this. Not without seeing if there was a still chance.

"Why do think we should break up—I really don't get it??"

"You... don't get it?"

Minjeong words weren't edged with hostility, but surrender and weariness. She was devastated that Jimin was unaware of how heartless and ignorant she had been acting towards her, unaware of not acknowledging her feelings.

imin," she w"...Jhispered, voice bruised with sadness. "I really can't do this anymore... I can't." Then, she murmured, but loud enough for the other to hear. "But who am I kidding... You probably don't even care, since you don't love me—"

And at that, Jimin lost it.

"Kim Minjeong!" Jimin raised her voice, looking around them in horror. Once she was certain the hallways were empty, her head snapped towards the latter, whisper-shouting, "What are you even saying right now?! That's not true at all, and you know it!"

But to her shock, Minjeong's following expression revealed her hesitation and doubt.

It wasn't like Minjeong didn't believe her, but more like she didn't find it to be fully true. Not when her girlfriend had failed to show her real intentions and feelings time after time... after time. These days, it was all the time.

"Are you sure you still love me..?" Minjeong's voice betrayed her and it cracked, breaking the restraint of overflowing emotions as several tears fell and rolled down her rosy cheeks.

Jimin exhaled shakily, suddenly dragging the girl inside a nearby empty classroom, closing the door so they could have more privacy. Her movements were hasty, full of seriousness, but everything she did was gentle and careful. She pinned her to the wall right beside door, eyebrows furrowed and mouth twitching in exasperation, heavily breathing from concern because she couldn't recognize ever seeing such look on Minjeong's face. "Y-You can't really be serious about this, right? If it's because of the results, I'll help you get a better mark next time—"

That was it.

Minjeong snapped.

"I could fucking care less about the exam, Yu Jimin!"

Minjeong erupted in unsuppressed anger, cupping the latter's cheeks, eyes burning from rage, love, annoyance, affection...and more rage, and more love. She wanted to scream and scream and scream until her throat hurt. Until Jimin could finally see her. The need to be understood was forcing her to raise her voice without thinking about her surroundings, but she didn't have the endurance to keep holding on for much longer. Her soft heart didn't have the strength to pretend nothing could pierce through her walls without leaving a bleeding scar anymore.

It really hurt her to see that Jimin still believed this was about school.

"I care about you, for fucks sake! You're all I've always fucking cared about, but your only concern is this—this stupid rivalry thing and school!" Minjeong argued, voice strained with vulnerability. "Yes, I did purposefully get a failing grade so you could be the top student and make you happy, and I'm sure you are, aren't you? Don't avoid the question and tell me the real truth."

Jimin swallowed the lump in her throat with a lowered head. Her eyes fluttered close as a weak exhale broke the short moment of silence... until she nodded. "I... am."

She couldn't hide her competitive side's triumph that she could finally be above Minjeong (academically wise) and win against her long-term rival. But something else was telling her that she might have made a mistake by admitting it... And she did. A very, very big mistake. Because now, she had to answer a question that left her staggered and silenced, worse than being asked which parent she loved more.

"Tell me honestly. This whole time, did you see me as your girlfriend first, or as your rival?"

Staggered and silenced, because she didn't know which was the right answer. Minjeong has always been her rival since day one, but she was also her girlfriend for longer than most couples out there, even longer than some married ones that resulted in a divorce after the smallest, minor inconvenience. Both options seemed perfectly correct to her. And she hated that she took her time to think instead of answering immediately, because Minjeong's upcoming words twisted and squeezed at her heart in a way that she has never felt before.

"Jimin, I think... this is it for us."

She felt how Minjeong's trembling hands weren't in tact with her skin anymore, now resting loosely against her sides.

The amount of finality Minjeong's words possessed... it was terrifying.

Shit.

Oh shit.

It was seriously happening. Minjeong was breaking up with her.

"Minjeong, wait—please, let's talk about this properly. We can't just break up just like this!" Jimin's eyes darted all over her face, searching for a sign that Minjeong was still willing to listen or stay, even if was for a minute. But by doing so, she saw how Minjeong was hurting so, so much... and Jimin hated not knowing why.

"I—I can't just accept this andd let you go like that… I really do care about you, please, you have to believe me..!" She stammered with urgency, exhaling a breath as she felt herself instinctively embracing Minjeong's waist and pulling her in, her girlfriend's uneven breaths hitting the tips of Jimin's ears.

And then, she said it.

"Trust me, I... I love you."

It was barely audible because her voice got muffled against Minjeong's hair, but Minjeong still heard it loud and clear. And she wondered—when was the last time she heard Jimin say 'I love you' to her now that she thought about it? When did she really mean it? The last time she heard it was on their first anniversary, aka May 12th. Almost a whole year ago.

Oh, and it fucking hurt.

Jimin probably didn't even know how much Minjeong had hoped to not hear these words. Because why hadn't she said them all this time?  Why now, when her voice sounded so soft like silk and sweet just like honey? Why now, when her embrace held Minjeong as if she was savouring to be in possession of the most delicate flower in her arms? Why now, when she could've said it hundreds and hundreds of times before and made the shortest of conversations feel more special and meaningful?

Why now... when it felt like this would be the last time she heard those beautiful words?

In that moment, something broke apart. It was Minjeong's whole being.

Her knees gave out and she was leaning flush against the body of the girl in front, loud sobs meeting against Jimin's shoulder—the violent, body shaking kind that escaped from the lowest point of her heart, spilling out like a desperate cry for help. She felt Jimin tightening her hold—wanting to somehow protect her, to be there for her, pressing weak kisses against her hair, whispering, "I love you," to her ear again and again, each time with more sincerity than before.

"Jimin, I—I love you too. God, I love you too—" Minjeong's confession was interrupted mid sentence due to shortness of breath, hiccuping, wiping at her face with her sleeves, "but I can't keep doing this anymore... I-I'm so sorry." her voice came out like a whine, muffled against the shoulder of her soon to be ex lover.

She slowly leaned back and cuped Jimin's cheeks, examining her stupidly beautiful, worried face... God, how much Minjeong loves that pretty mole under her lips..., leaving one last peck on it before gaining enough strength to pull herself away.

Though, Jimin didn't let her go.

She leaned back in, cupped her face and aimed at her lips. Every time Minjeong tried to pull away, Jimin searched for her again, succeeding each attempt. She elongated the kisses, wanting to show how much Minjeong's sole existence meant to her the more she heard her weak sobs amidst the interaction.

She whispered, "I love you," followed by a light kiss, then left a grain of space to repeat "I love you so much, Minjeong," and re-initiated another kiss, much longer and softer. "I really, really do." Jimin barely pulled herself away to wipe at Minjeong's newly formed tears, gently cradling her face and caressing her stained cheeks with her thumbs, clinging to her like a lifeline. "I can't let you go, I just can't... Please give me a chance to fix this." She muttered in a delicate tone, pleading while staring into Minjeong's glistening orbs.

Minjeong wasn't blind nor deaf, she knew how genuine Jimin's words were. If this was her weeks ago, she'd have instantly fallen for Jimin's soft pleadings and love confessions.

But now? Minjeong wanted a change. She didn't want to hear her kind, thoughtful words only. She wished for more actions to be shown without having to beg for it. She wished for more... true, honest love.

If there was one thing Minjeong believed in, though, it was that Jimin would one day realize that what she did left her beyond hurt. She was certain Jimin would redeem herself, but until that day comes, this relationship must come to a pause.

"Jiminie..." Minjeong smiled as her hands reached up to squeeze the ones on her cheeks, but nothing about her smile said she felt happy. Minjeong, clearly, was devastated. "I'm sorry..." she whispered, gently holding both hands in her own, prying them away in a slow, tormenting motion. She knew that the longer this continued, the more pain they'd inflict on eachother by being this close.

Her action caused palpitations of panic to erupt inside Jimin's chest, eyes widening. Her hands scrambled away from the latter's soft grip, finding their way back to rest steadily over Minjeong's shoulders, intentionally squeezing them to keep her in place. "No, wait, Minjeong—! Please, just... Please promise me you'll wait for me," Jimin begged shamelessly, desperation audible in each following word. "Please, please wait for me. I-I promise to do better and become someone better for you. Please, do this one single thing... Wait for me."

Minjeong looked at her for a beat longer—and she felt it. Saw all of it. Jimin was serious, eager, vocally begging with her whole heart to be given a second chance. Her chest heaved with uneven breaths, her hands trembled, eyes glossed with unshed tears, and lips quivered. Everything about her proved how willing she was to do better.

Jimin wasn't planning to give up without trying. Not on them. Not after everything they've been through. And she wasn't going to apologize yet, because she needed to know what she did wrong and acknowledge it so her mistake would never happen again. Only then will she find a way to improve, to understand and apologize with her whole heart before seeking forgiveness. Jimin wanted to never be the cause of Minjeong's pain ever again.

That sole reason made Minjeong nod.

She pinned their foreheads together, then snuggled her head closer to the crook of her neck, breathing in Jimin's familiar scent from up close one last time. Jimin sighed shakily in relief,  wrapping her arms around Minjeong's lower middle with a weak, trembling hold. She didn't want to let go of the figure illuminating this irreplaceable warmth.

It was incredible. Has Minjeong really felt this delicate and... comfortable to embrace this whole time? Jimin just noticed this—but now, she never wanted to forget this strong feeling. Though, to her misfortune, Minjeong had already slipped away from her before she could imagine herself asking for more.

The second Jimin felt the emptiness Minjeong left behind, the agonizing heaviness tugged at her heart in an instant. She crouched to the ground as her silent tears left a trail of regret and guilt. The burning feeling at her throat swallowed her voice whole and she could only stare at the ground where Minjeong last stood at, her faint scent still lingering in the silence.

Jimin might have become the best student in school, but she didn't have the best girlfriend ever anymore in return to her success. She was the best student now, she was the winner of their competition...

But she lost Minjeong.

"Well, that was interesting..."

The suffocating silence was broken by someone.

Jimin physically flinched. She turned her head around and widened her eyes, not expecting to see a disheveled yet familiar student awkwardly showing themselves from under the teacher's desk.

"Ning Yizhuo..?"

Ning Yizhuo from Class C—the most gifted Maths student in this school, always wearing nerdy circular glasses and styling her dark brown hair in the form of a rushed, messy bun—straightened her posture, fixing the small wrinkles on her uniform before showing an apologetic smile. "Uh... Look, I'm really sorry that I didn't inform you two that I was here, but I couldn't just speak up in between... that." Ning scratched her neck with an awkward smile, but then she realized that her apology wouldn't really matter much. Jimin wasn't even paying attention to her words. "Are you… feeling okay?" she asked with worry.

Jimin couldn't help but silently scoff, dragging herself to stand up on her feet as she wiped her tears away with her shaking fingers. "Does it look like I am? Because as you can tell, I certainly am feeling absolutely amazing after getting dumped by my girlfriend. Thank you for asking." She showed a sarcastic, barely-there smile, making Ning look away with a wince.

"Sorry again, dumb question. I'm just surprised that you and Kim Minjeong are dating—I mean, were dating? Will be dating again in the—uh... maybe I should just stop talking about this, shouldn't I?" Ning grimaced.

"Yeah, maybe you should." Jimin sighed, sitting on one of the chairs, not a single spark of emotion being shown in her eyes. "Is this what heartbreak feels like..?" Jimin silently spoke out loud, staring at the wall as if it was her only source of keeping her grounded.

"Pretty much yeah, I guess.. I'm sorry." Ning replied weakly, sitting on the chair opposite of where Jimin was seated.

The black haired one sighed, resting her head in between her arms, hiding her face in her sleeves. "I really don't like what I'm feeling right now... Fuck, I miss her so much already," Jimin mumbled in a muffled way, quietly letting her tears stain the soft fabric of her uniform shirt.

"I don't think anyone would. It probably sucks," Ning tried to comfort the latter by patting her shoulder. "I understand if you want me to leave and give you some space. Should I leave or do you need some company?"

It wasn't like it mattered anymore to Jimin. Ning had heard their whole break-up talk, heard her beg like a homeless individual, desperately hoping to receive the smallest of reassurances that there could be a possible second chance for her to be together with her lover again in the future, so what was there to hide? "I guess... You can stay... but I just, I thought we... I thought we were doing okay this whole time..? I—I love her so damn much, Ning, why did this have to happen?" Jimin looked back up at the girl, noting how Ning was really trying to be of use by thinking of a response.

"From what I overheard," Ning began, a sheepish grimace forming at her lips, "I have a feeling that maybe...you're at fault." She pointed out the obvious, earning a weak scoff from Jimin.

"You think that I didn't realize that? I'm like, I dunno, confused?  What exactly did I do that hurt her so much?"

Ning couldn't help but be the one to scoff now. While she was forced to overhear and fall witness the whole break-up encounter with her own poor eyes and ears, she was wondering what Jimin must've done to get dumped like a sack of disposable garbage in the middle of a storm. But after hearing Minjeong's side of the story and her whole issue with Jimin's negligence—and not to forget the moment Minjeong broke like a set of cheap Lego blocks when Jimin said I love you... It looked so sad—Ning immediately realized what the case was.

Jimin must've been way too blinded by her school work, duties as a council president and, well, school altogether, to notice that she failed to show how much she truly loved and cared about Minjeong as her girlfriend. In anyone's eyes, Jimin would come off as inattentive, careless and ignorant of their relationship. "I'm in no position to tell you that, Jimin. You need to figure it out yourself if you really want to improve." Ning claimed, earning a surprisingly loud whine from Jimin. Someone was being petty and desperate, huh...

"Come on, just a hint at least? I need to earn her trust back, Ning... I must before she stops loving me. Please?" Jimin frowned and pouted, which made Ning grumble in defeat.

Pretty girls pouting were one of her soft spots, god damnit.

The Chinese girl was convinced that Jimin did love Minjeong a lot after that showcase of desperation, but figured that Jimin might've not realized that she wasn't showing proper attentiveness the whole time they were together. A little bit of help wouldn't be that bad, right? "Alright, fine. Just one hint, okay?" Ning showed one finger and Jimin nodded, paying full attention.

The latter then cleared her throat, standing up and stepping infront of the girl. Ning pointed at Jimin's head, gesturing the ground. Then at her heart, gesturing at the opened door of the room as a way to mention the blonde haired girl.

"There you go."

...

The hell was that?

Jimin blinked. "Wait, I'm a part of the hint?"

"Yup. Whatever I pointed at right now, that's what you need to work on." Ning said with a little smile, confusing the other even more.

If Jimin realized that she needed to figure out a way to differentiate between attending to her duties and to Minjeong, to stop bluring the line between love and responsibilities, then she would have an easier time to work on herself and what she should improve on. That was why she pointed at Jimin's head and gesture the ground, to implement that her head should focus on school. Then to her heart and at the door, that she should only think about the girl that just left the room with her heart and feelings without mixing the two up.

But Jimin was still clueless.

"My head and my... chest? Am I... Am I not pretty enough for her? Is my chest too small?" Jimin looked down at her torso, making Ning facepalm herself.

"Holy shit... For a top student, you're seriously dumb when it comes to love, Yu Jimin.." Ning side eyed the latter, making her scoff.

"Your hint wasn't even that good! Don't blame me, blame yourself!" Jimin looked away, making Ning shake her head.

"My hint was more than good," Ning actually wasn't sure if it was or not, but now it was too late to go back. "It's not my fault that you're just stupid." She clicked with her tongue, walking back to her seat and sitting down with a shrug. "Can't believe I can understand Minjeong better than her own girlfriend—oh, my bad, ex-girlfriend now for a reason!"

The audacity??

Jimin groaned in bafflement and was close to actually commiting a homicide, but stopped herself as a thought crossed her head. This whole time, she hasn't really asked Ning why she was here. "Why were you even here in the first place? Hiding under the desk, on top of that?"

"Oh, I was hiding from Uchinaga because I pissed her off." Ning admitted with an unamused shrug, already used to it.

Jimin squinted her eyes. "You made Uchinaga Aeri angry? What did you even do?"

"Funny thing is—I did absolutely nothing!" Ning threw her arms up, scoffing to herself at a recent memory. "Earlier, I told her to stop threatening me to leave the Maths club—but suddenly, she started chasing me all over the school like a madwoman! I can't believe that a pink haired lunatic like her made me run... What does she want from me and the club anyway?"

"Well.. Aeri kind of threatened the council too." Jimin informed, fixing her stance to start explaining. "She asked Minjeong to get rid of your club or she'll come after me." Jimin claimed truthfully, then bitterly chuckled to herself. "If her idea of coming for me was to break me up with Minjeong, then holy fucking shit—she did a great job."

"I don't think that's the case, Jimin. No one knew that you two were together. Not a single person even suspected it." Ning blinked, still trying to process it. "I thought you two... hated eachother? Aren't you long term rivals?" She questioned.

"It was an act to keep our relationship a secret in school. Outside, we were just a normal couple." Jimin sighed, looking down. "She should've told me that this rivalry thing was too much for her... I would've stopped being so obsessed with it and actually be more attentive." She sniffed, wiping the new round of tears off her cheeks.

"Oh? What would you have done, then?" Ning's supportive smile was tugging to show up, thinking that Jimin might realize her mistake much sooner than ever.

But the next words the taller one said completely took her out.

"I would've helped her study more instead of her getting a bad grade..." Jimin sighed, resting her head on her palm with a pout.

"Right as I was thinking you made some progress," Ning shook her head—

But suddenly, she clasped her hands together. "Wait. Can I make a deal with you?"

Jimin looked at her, nodding with no thoughts twirling in her head whatsoever.

"Okay, so—" Ning uttered, "if you manage to find a way to get princess bubblegum to stop bothering me, I'll help you with Minjeong. Like, give you tips and ideas to make her see your efforts. How does that sound?"

Despite the situation, Jimin slightly smiled at that. The offer sounded more than perfect for her. "We have a deal." Jimin agreed instantaneously, showing her pinky finger.

Ning smiled, standing up and running closer to the latter, intertwining their pinkies in a promise.

"I'll do my best to be of great service."

Meanwhile, on the other side of school, Minjeong was leaning on a railing on the large building's rooftop, grumpily drinking orange juice when she suddenly heard the emergency door getting blasted open. She turned her head around slower than usual, sighing unpleasantly when she saw the school's sports club captain and her so-called 'tormentor' notice her presence.

None other than Uchinaga Aeri.

"Ah—Kim Minjeong! Not who I wanted to see, but you'll do the job." Aeri pointed at the girl, walking up to her with a smirk.

Minjeong sighed, lowering her head. "Not now, Aeri... Just let me be for today."

But just as she expected, Aeri could not care at all. The pink haired one grabbed her by the back of her collar, pulling her so she could meet her gaze. "Does it look like I care? Just tell me if you got rid of the club or not," she spoke in a low voice, clearly not knowing that Minjeong wasn't in a good mood.

"I didn't, and I won't. Sorry Aeri, but I can't just get rid of a club because you were the one who requested it." Minjeong rolled her eyes, pushing the girl's grip away.

Aeri's smirk faltered, and instead, a scowl formed on her lips and her eyebrows raised from annoyance. The last time Minjeong acted stubborn didn't go well for the blonde one, so it was very surprising that Minjeong wasn't willing to listen, let alone be a brat and push her away by force. "You dared to act up again, huh? I guess you really do want me to mess with Jimin, after all."

Though, after mentioning the council president's name, the last thing Aeri expected was for Minjeong to crouch down to the ground and let her tears escape loudly. The shock that Aeri experienced from the sudden outburst left her standing still, blinking to process the occurrence.

"What the—why the fuck are you crying right now? Is it because of Jimin?" Aeri questioned with a surprised tone, getting startled when Minjeong was practically bawling her eyes out after hearing that name again. "Okay, uh, you can calm down now..."

Another sob.

"Goodness gracious, I won't hurt her—just shut up before someone hears your pathetic ass!" Aeri exclaimed in a whisper-shout, but Minjeong was still not stopping her cries. What exactly did Jimin do that Minjeong couldn't stop crying? "Can't you shut the fuck up already?" She crouched down next to the girl, gripping tightly onto her shoulders and pinning her to the metallic railing. "Why the hell are you making a scene?"

"Jimin hurt me," Minjeong sniffed, then faced downwards and hid her face in her palms to muffle her own sobs.

Aeri grimaced, not believing that Jimin would go as far as hurting Minjeong because of a silly competition. Little did she know that it wasn't exactly about their rivalry, but something much more… unexpected. "Wait, we all had an exam today and you failed it, right? Did she force you to mess it up? Did she blackmail you so she can win? Is that why you're crying?" Aeri asked in deep curiosity.

Minjeong shook her head and pointed at her own chest, clenching on her uniform. She choked on her next sentences, still looking down to let her tears fall, chest aching with every word spoken.

"Jimin... she didn't love me enough... S-She chose competition over me and—and it broke me... it broke my heart."

"Ha! I kne—Huh, wait, hold up." Aeri blinked and stood up in a flash, looking down at the girl in bewilderment. "What do you mean by love? Don't tell me—were you two fucking around this whole time!?"

The following silence said it all.

Aeri held her head in her hands, left in complete shock. She thought she knew everything and anything about everyone in this school, but oh, guess what? None other than the perfect little council president Yu Jimin used to be dating the second biggest nerd Kim Minjeong this whole time! Weren't they literally rivals? What the hell?

"I'm seriously going to check all of my resources after this." Aeri murmured, shaking her head. "Okay, but I swear I'm going to push you off if you don't shut up now." She lightly kicked the sobbing girl's leg, just enough to make her come back to her senses.

"Do it then," Minjeong replied with a sniffle.

The athlete scoffed with widened eyes, almost laughing. "Do you think I'm some sort of a k-drama antagonist or something? Gosh, I can't believe that you're even talking back to me right now." She raised an eyebrow, nudging Minjeong's leg with her foot more aggressively just to make her show a reaction.

But Minjeong wasn't even responding nor moving. She was crouched up against the railing, drowning herself in her sorrows.

It looked pitiful.

"Just how much did Jimin hurt you that you're like this? I never thought that she knew how to love people..." she smirked, "y'know, because of how much she studies and all. Maybe she forgot to love you because of her duties, huh?"

Aeri didn't really expect a  response when she said that. It was a thought spoken out loud at first, an accidental one, with a hint of mockery that she decided to add after realizing her slip up. She thought it might be able to provoke Minjeong—poke at the bear a little by pushing her buttons—and maybe make her snap the truth out. But she was stunned when Minjeong didn't reply. The blonde only looked up at Aeri with her teary eyes.

...

"Oh."

It left Aeri frozen. Was that actually the case?

"Did she break up with you?" She asked despite herself, squinting her eyes.

"No... I did."

"No fucking way. You broke up with Yu Jimin?! You did, but not the other way around?" Aeri exclaimed, walking around in circles while her smile of disbelief was visible. She knew something had been going on between those two, but the least thing she expected was them to have been in a loving relationship. It was so far from what she initially thought. Aeri was convinced that those two had dirt on eachother, like embarrassing stories or pre-puberty photos, and was the only reason why they had this competition going on.

"I thought it was weird that you declined my request last week. I was sure you'd agree since you two were always competing against each other, but now I understand why you didn't. You were dating that princess Jimin in secret all along..." Aeri mumbled, getting startled a little when Minjeong scoffed angrily.

That must've hit a spot.

Minjeong's limits were pushed. "Can you shut up now? I'm literally trying to calm myself down and you're absolutely not helping me at all!"

"Why the fuck are you acting so feisty all of a sudden? I'm trying to be civil with you for once and you're being all pathetic and whiny." Aeri scoffed, giving another swing of her foot to Minjeong's leg, but a harsher, less merciful one this time. "Be lucky that you're not who I'm looking for at the moment, dimwit." She rolled her eyes.

"Who are you looking for..?" Minjeong hesitantly asked, rubbing the spot where Aeri kicked her to ease the sting.

"What do you mean who? Isn't it obvious that I'm searching for Archimedes's reincarnation?"

"...Who?"

"Ning Yizhuo, you fucking idiot."

Ah, right. Because Ning and Maths? Yeah, okay... Minjeong thought it was a little out of the ordinary that Aeri knew who invented Maths... but not like it mattered, anyway.

"Do you know where she is?" Aeri asked impatiently, cussing in displeasure when Minjeong shook her head after a moment of thought. "Tsk... That four-eyed prick always hides away before I can get to her," Aeri hissed to herself, "and she doesn't even fucking run for more than three seconds, god damnit!"

But suddenly, Aeri faced Minjeong as an idea popped up in her mind. The blonde girl was so lost in her own head that she got startled to her bone when Aeri crouched in front of her. "Do me a favor," the Japanese one started, "get Yizhuo out of the club and I'll give that Jimin of yours a peace of my mind so she can stop hurting your little heart. You like that idea?"

"What are you planning to do to Jimin?" Minjeong sniffled, paying attention to the pink haired one.

"Anything you want." Aeri grinned.

But she almost experienced a whole whi-whiplash when Minjeong's suggestion had nothing to do with what she had in mind.

"Help her figure out her mistake."

"Are you for fucking real right now? How am I supposed to even do that when I have no idea what she—" Aeri frowned with a look of disappointment, then blinked. "Wait, not loving you right. Okay, I guess I do know—but still!? What the fuck?"

She couldn't understand how Minjeong was always so... nice and positive. It was partly the main reason why she couldn't stand the blonde girl at all, because no matter how much Aeri hurt her, trampled her, cursed at her and left her with bruises, she still had some respect and decency left. Even now, she wasn't trying to fight back or run away after everything Aeri has done to her.

"I-I have an idea." Minjeong gulped, sitting on the ground and asking with her eyes for Aeri to do the same.

To sit down on the dirty ass ground??

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"Fucking hell..." Aeri grumbled in annoyance as she followed along begrudgingly, now seated and feeling annoyed at herself for listening, arms crossed.

Minjeong, relieved of her retaliation yet still cautious, cleared her throat and spoke. "Try to give her some courage, or guide her in the right direction if you get the chance… and in exchange, I'll help you with Ning. Does this sound okay?" She suggested, worriedly searching Aeri's face for any signs of disagreement. Whenever Aeri was silent and 'tame', it either meant that she was about to lose it or was thinking very deeply.

Thankfully, luck was on Minjeong's side because Aeri seemed to agree to her idea. "Alright, fine."

Minjeong tilted her head. "Really?"

"Yup. As long as you do your part, I'll do mine. If you fail to get four-eyes out of the club, I'm not going to be nice to you for disappointing me." Aeri warned, standing up and fixing her skirt. "Now, if you may excuse me, I have a loser to look for."

But before leaving through where she came from, Aeri pointed at the girl with a displeased look. "And don't cry like that, dumbass. It clearly wasn't you who hurt her in the first place, so get your shit together and stand up right. All of you nerds are such crybabies, goodness…" Aeri rolled her eyes, finally walking with a sway to the exit.

Minjeong slightly smiled to herself, looking up to the sky in wonder. She didn't know how much she could trust Aeri, but this was the only way the Japanese one's violent and rude behavior could possibly come to a momentary stop.

And who knows? Maybe something better could come out from their deal...

Chapter Text

—————
February 13th
—————

Quite a lot of time, around three weeks or more, perhaps, had passed since the exam day, and neither did Jimin or Minjeong speak much to each other.

They only exchanged a few hums and nods during their council work related talks, which was a very noticable change for those who knew of their previous dynamic. Chaewon, Hanbin and other members of the council were almost too stunned to speak when no glares or witty remarks were exchanged between the two.

The usual kind of meetings, where at least two members had to be prepared to drag Jimin away from jumping on a stubborn Minjeong to snap her neck, or be ready for war if the blonde one was the annoyed or bothered one—that energy was just gone. It was quiet now, the kind that came after a massive calamity drowned by silence.

Nobody knew what must've really happened, just suspected that there must be a lot of unspoken things.

And it wasn't just the council who noticed the shift in the air. Their classmates, other students from the course, juniors, most teachers did—even the canteen lady that served everyone's lunch, too.

Word about Minjeong's failing grade spread fast like gossip amongst grandmothers. Rumors and theories were the biggest topic of discussion in that one blog about the girls. Some believed it was on purpose to end the competition, some thought it was out of kindness or an agreement between her and Jimin, and some were convinced Minjeong just didn't know anything about Maths and was cheating on all tests the whole time until she got caught at last.

But whatever the truth was, what nobody could deny was the difference in how they were acting.

Their classmates remembered how the two used to do the smallest acts of consideration, like sharing spare pens before lectures out of courtesy or exchange greeting glances. Now, they weren't even willing to acknowledge eachother's existence during class, let alone in the hallways or lunch breaks. Oh, and those accidental eye contacts from before? Gone. Vanished. Nada. As rare as a straight man in a gays only bar.

It was a very drastic change not only for the standbyers, but for the two girls, too. It was even worse than just a shift of behavior or keeping their distance. It was a change in their daily lives that affected both instantaneously, emotionally, and very much physically.

They would lie if they said it wasn't hard to get used to the sudden change... because to Jimin, it was tougher to handle than imaginable.

In most of their classes, they would sit an arm's reach apart or next to eachother without uttering a single meep or a sigh. Their sitting order was set like that, so that couldn't be avoided, to their hearts' misfortune. Minjeong was the one who minded her own business and played the nonchalant part, while Jimin was visibly struggling—always on the verge of flipping the classroom upside down because of Minjeong's agonizing silence.

But what could Jimin do other than slowly come into terms with it? They were exes now because of her mistakes... but God, she could not believe that Minjeong was really her ex.

The girl she yearned for every passing day, fell asleep listening to her old voice messages at night and urged to hold tightly again wasn't paying any mind to her anymore. The resulting effect was as brutal as ever. Jimin had only recently realized how dependent she really was on Minjeong to have a nice day.

Because the blonde used to play a very important and—if she's being being truthful to her own heart—the most significant part in her daily life.

Jimin would drag herself home after school and be greeted by a blue, oversized hoodie hanging on the rack. It was the one Minjeong always wore whenever Jimin's heater was against them and stopped working properly. Minjeong had said it was her favorite because it smelled like warmth, familiarity and soft flowers... aka, like Jimin.

There was also the stripped flannel that was neatly folded and placed on top of her drawer. It was Minjeong's one that Jimin kindly borrowed from her closet and wore as pajamas whenever they had sleepovers together with the many stuffed animals she had won for Minjeong to cuddle with as they watched movie marathons.

But the hardest things to ignore were the scattered pieces of memories placed all over Jimin's room.

There was a small album of photos sitting on a shelf from a year ago when Jimin was celebrating her birthday with her family and Minjeong. She was hugging, laughing and dancing with her rival in them, blowing out the candles and having the best 18th birthday a girl could ever wish for. She remembered how they shared a sweet, long kiss in the balcony under the night sky after the small gathering, giggling and uttering lighthearted promises and silly confessions. It was Jimin's best birthday, all thanks to Minjeong.

That album wasn't her only struggle, because right above her bed was a whole row of printed out pictures taped to the wall, all from their dates. There were two specific photos, though, that always managed to snatch her attention and bring a little smile to her face. Placed side to side, both taken on their first date as an official couple. On the left picture, Minjeong was smiling like a mischievous dork and holding up an ice cream cone for Jimin to taste test. And on the right one was the aftermath—Jimin's whole cheek, colored in white from the vanilla frosting, playfully glaring at Minjeong who was puckering her lips forward to kiss the stains, feigning innocence.

Their latest photo on that same row was a polaroid one from almost two months ago. They were wearing matching sweaters for New Years, smiles so big and radiant that they could bring dead flowers back to life. Minjeong had a little birthday hat on her head, face beaming in happiness, excited to be Jimin's first kiss of the year and first kiss as a nineteen year old.

And Jimin regretted one thing while looking at it. That she hadn't said I love you to her even once that time, while Minjeong had confessed nearly dozens of times and still made every word sound sincere, like it came from the depths of her heart.

Jimin had tried telling herself to stop staring, to look away and pretend she saw nothing, to forget about the memories and put all the stuff inside a box for the time being. But she would always freeze, unable to do anything other than to reminisce. How could she ever get rid of the few remnants she had left of Minjeong when she missed her this much?

Every time Jimin unlocked her phone, she frowned when there were no messages or missing calls. Yesterday, when she was scrolling through her gallery to find a copy of the curriculum to give to Ning, a private album with nearly a thousand photos of Minjeong made her suddenly forget why she opened the gallery app in the first place.

She was so close to changing her wallpaper.

So close.

But Ning had smacked the living hell out of her and thankfully brought some sense back to her head. If anyone peeked over Jimin shoulder and saw what her phone's lock screen would've been—a blurry selfie of how Minjeong was soundly sleeping on top of Jimin, nuzzling her nose on her nape—their past relationship would get immediately exposed.

It was a form of torture. Jimin almost failed to hold in the urge to just say, Fuck it, turn to the side and kiss Minjeong every time they sat this close.

But Minjeong wasn't even sparing her an ounce of attention. Not anymore.

Her smile wasn't as bright as it used to be, neither was it directed to Jimin. Her eyes didn't glow the same way they used to and she looked... tired. Drained of life. Like a ghost of herself. Jimin had no idea how many times she wished she could go back in time to change the past and be the one who would bring the light back to her again...

"Ms. Kim Minjeong?"

Suddenly, the classroom's door got opened and all of Jimin's thoughts were temporarily ceased.  Someone, with authority in the school probably, had just called for Minjeong... right now? Really? During class?

Jimin glaced at the source of the familiar voice, blinking once the moment she recognized the person. It was the Maths teacher.

He peeked his head, scanning the surroundings before spotting Minjeong. With minimal gestures of his hand, he motioned for the blonde girl to come with him. Minjeong nodded slowly and calmly did so, ignoring the stares of curiosity and concern she received from the whole class. It was quite easy for her to do that, since she was quite unfocused and too spaced out to pay attention to her surroundings. The walk to his office was fast and quiet, but not exactly uncomfortable... Thankfully. When they reached the door, he kindly opened it and invited her in with a smile.

The moment the door clicked shut behind her, she muttered, "Did I do something?" with mild curiosity as she sat down on the small cushion opposite of his desk.

The teacher followed suit and sat on his office chair, clasped his hands together, and showed his gummy smile and a reassuring headshake that it wasn't very serious. "You've done nothing of concern, Ms. Kim, so there is no reason to be worried at all," he spoke gently. "I called you here so we can have a very quick talk regarding your test results from the last exam."

The blonde one sighed, nodding that she was paying attention to what else he had to say. She truly hated that specific topic for many reasons unnameable, but had no choice other than to listen. It wasn't like she had a choice to begin with.

"Not too recently, maybe two or three days ago, a member from the Mathematics club came up to me and personally volunteered to help you out with your future studies." He informed. "She seemed very eager to help, so I wanted to inform you that starting today, she'll be your tutor until the next exam."

Well, that was certainly a surprise for Minjeong. "Wait, really? Who—"

"Sorry, teach! Was I late?"

Minjeong's head whipped around, her eyes widening the moment she recognized the volunteer to be none other than Ning Yizhuo, the president of the Maths club itself, opening the office door and revealing herself.

"H-Huh?" Minjeong choked, not having expected Ning to show herself out of everyone. "You volunteered to be my tutor?" She asked with a pointed finger at Ning.

"I sure did! I'll do my absolute best to help you improve... hopefully." Ning smiled sheepishly, slightly fixing her glasses in place.

The teacher clapped once, liking how determined Ning seemed to be despite her awkwardness. "Alright, since you two seem familiar with eachother, I suppose Ms. Ning can let you in the details. But for now, you can go back to your classes and continue your school day with no disturbance." He gestured with his hands for the two to leave through the door, and they complied obediently.

Minjeong kept on taking a few glances at Ning in confusion while Ning was very sweetly humming to herself. "You know that I'm actually good at Maths, right? You didn't have to volunteer to be my tutor and only bother yourself with more work than needed." Minjeong spoke silently, albeit guilty, but Ning shook her head and flashed the latter a shy smile.

"I know that already, but I just wanted us to become friends, if possible? So I thought, what other way to do so than studying together?" Ning admitte, making Minjeong hum in surprise. She didn't expect this to be the reason why Ning volunteered to help, but it didn't sound that bad nor burdensome.

"Yeah, I guess... I'm okay with that." The blonde one scratched her head with a slight smile, head turning to the corridor where they had to part ways. "Well, uh, I'll be heading back to class now."

But before she could take the first step, Ning tapped on her shoulder. "By the way, do you want to revise some stuff during our shared Literature class later? I still need to give you 'homework' or whatever. Teacher's request, not mine." She suggested with a hopeful smile.

Minjeong nodded without much thought. "Sounds okay to me."

"Great! See you later then!" Ning waved and walked further into the hallway.

Many seconds have passed, yet Minjeong was standing still, eyes darting between the brunette and absentmindedly aroun the building in pure confusion. This whole exchange happened so fast that she barely had enough time to process what was going on. She was still in school, right? Right. And she still had a class to attend? Yup, yup. Her classroom was nearby, too? Yeah, perfect.

It was only a beat after when her mind began to catch up with her surroundings that she came to realize something. An opportunity, if she could name it.

Basically, if she and Ning manage to become friends in the near future, could there be a chance for her to talk Ning into reconsidering leaving the Maths club? She couldn't help but find this as a possibility. She wasn't willing to risk getting on Aeri's bad side again, so she could at least mention something about the club to Ning if they do grow closer. It sounded like a solid, doable plan, didn't it..?

Maybe, yes...

Minjeong shook her head to break free from perplexity, deciding that she should plan this later and instead focus on the present. She skimmed through with a few steps, entering back inside her own classroom, though with a puzzled look.

The moment the door clicked open, Jimin instantly plastered her eyes on the girl. She watched how Minjeong tilted her head a few times at her own thoughts, conflict and confusion written all over her face while walking back to their shared seat.

The black haired one slightly smiled to herself, finding Minjeong's thinking expressions amusing, just like always...

"Jimin, eyes on the whiteboard."

Oh... OH?

Jimin blinked a few times, surprised to hear Minjeong speak to her after all the silence. But her little moment got shattered when realization hit her a beat too late.

She was still staring.

"Oh, yeah, you're right—" Jimin turned away in a flash, "I—uhm... nevermind. Sorry." She stammered from embarrassment, hiding half of her face with her palm, gaze shifting to the front.

Minjeong really wanted to chuckle and tell her that it was okay to continue staring, that she looked so adorable when shy—but she didn't have the strength to. Not when the latter still hasn't figured out her mistake yet. And not when it still hurt to look into her eyes and pretend everything was fine.

She hated being away from Jimin for so long, but she knew it would definitely be worth it in the future. Not only for herself, but for Jimin as well. For them. Maybe it was delusion, maybe it was doubt, maybe she was wrong by doing this, thinking it would help them, but it was too late now. They broke up, yet their hearts (Minjeong was confident that Jimin felt it, too) still chased eachother to feel complete again,

Minjeong knew that no matter what, she would always love that girl and wouldn't stop giving her chances to prove her sincerity.

Why did she have to be so in love with a loser (affectionately) like her?

"H-Hey, uh… Uchinaga Aeri?"

Meanwhile, Aeri was sitting on a bench near the school fields and chuckling at cat memes, aware yet ignoring the fact that she had enough missing attendances to get her expelled but wouldn't do anything about it... for now. She glanced up at the mention of her name—only to squint in complexity. Why the hell was a male individual, one of the school's outcasts, coming closer to her? And speaking, too? God, she should've brought a pepper spray...

She rolled her eyes with a sigh of displeasure, putting away her phone and focusing on what ridiculous words he had to say.

"What do you want?" Aeri yawned, barely interested, staring at her nails. Wow, she should definitely get them fixed and shorten them a little. They've grown quite a lot. But the nail artist had done such a great job at designing that she felt hesitant to destroy them like that. Maybe she should pay her another visit, shouldn't she? How much did these cost again?—

"So...you know it's going to be Valentine's Day tomorrow—"

Oh, right.

She almost forgot he was still here... wait, did he say Valentine's Day?

"—and I wondered if... if I can have the right to ask you to be my date—"

"No way this is happening."

The nervous guy couldn't even finish his words; Aeri had doubled over laughing hysterically at him in the span of miliseconds. She pretended to wipe at her fake tears, staring him down with a condescending smirk, eyes full of mockery. "You seriously thought I'd agree to go out with someone like... you? Oh please, spare yourself the embarrassment and get lost before I beat you up for wasting my time." She shook her hand, a clear gesture ordering him to leave, still in giggles.

But to her dismay, the awkward admirer now looked at her with shaky, pleading eyes. "Just one chance, please! I promise I may seem like a typical nerd to you, and I know that you're not fond of us, but... I'm more interesting than the others!" He stammered, his persistence visible.

Well... fine.

"Aha..." Aeri squinted her eyes, standing up from the bench. "Are you into girls who do sports, by any chance?" she asked.

He slowly nodded his head.

Then, she hummed thoughtfully, grinning—before kicking his calf, forcing him to lose his balance.

The guy fell backwards on his back with a groan, glancing up, only to be left in shivers because of how Aeri was staring down at him—leaning her upper body lower and lower, hands on her hips, smirk faltering to an unhinged grin mixed with amusement.

"Wrong answer." She snickered, leaning back up to straighten her posture and started looking around. "Since no one is here, I might just make use of this chance. Haven't had the opportunity to mess with your kind in a while." She cracked her knuckles, crouching in front of the now petrified guy. "Which side of your face is your favorite, hm?" She asked with a fake smile.

"M-My left side..." He answered silently, closing his eyes shut and flinching as he saw Aeri moving her hand.

To his surprise, instead of her hitting him immediately, she took off his glasses.

"Left side, hm?" Aeri hummed as she gently threw away the glasses aside. "Then.. I'll be nice this time because you apparently have a thing for girls who do sports. That's very cute," she sarcastically spoke, moving her fist to his right side of the face for a punch, giving it a gentle slap at first, like she was mocking his fear of her. She wanted to let him know that he wasn't going to escape the inevitable.

"You ready?"

"N-No..."

"Aww. Too bad."

Aeri punched him anyway.

The guy groaned, instantly holding his cheek after Aeri had unleashed a bruising knuckle-hit to his cheekbone. Funnily, the punch was not even a hard one. She barely used her strength, but he seemed to be so sensitive, skinny and weak that even a slight scratch from an animal might leave a long lasting scar on his body, let alone a punch. She caressed her knuckles with a pretentious pout, humouring his weakness by pushing on his shoulder lightly just to bother him.

"You're right about being different from most nerds. Because you're a funny one, you know?" She fluttered with her lashes, giggling in amusement. "I mean, what even gave you the idea that I'd agree to go out with someone like you?" She continued to chuckle to herself, now standing up from the ground. "Was it a dare? Or... do you actually like me?"

The guy tried to stay silent and not become a bigger laughingstock, but he couldn't help a light grunt because the impact of the hit was lingering on his skin for longer than he had expected. If he knew, if only he knew that this was going to happen, he wouldn't have dared to approach her.

"It's so funny how you nerds think anyone would ever like you. This is not like in the movies or your comic books—this is reality. I know it must be sad, but the truth hurts, doesn't it?" Aeri faked a pout, only to land a second hit with her heel aimed at his knee. It was just as gentle as her previous punch, but apparently, it was strong enought to make the unfortunate guy whine out another groan in pain. Aeri, certainly, did not see that coming. "Jeez, you're one big of a whiny fella. It's not even fun anymore, because all you do is cry." She squinted, pretending to feel bad. "Just get lost and never come close to me again."

She temporarily crouched down to the ground to grab his glasses and throw them back towards him, but noticed something peeking out of his pants' pocket. Aeri raised an eyebrow, recognizing it to be a piece of crumpled up paper.

"Oh? What's that over there? Is it the love letter you prepared for me? Aww~" Aeri mocked him with a grin, reaching her hand out forward to grab the paper, looking at it with curiosity. She opened it, reading the first sentence.

Her first reaction was to blink and reread what she thought was an alternative version of the English language.

TheThreePl4yerz's fantasies and interests in Sony, Electronics and Xbox (PRIVATE)

What the fuck?

"Ah, those are the video games stuff—" She was saying until she glanced at the text written below. "Wait... Oh my, is this a letter in nerd language? No way," she cackled, too curious for her liking. "Will this thing tell me what Xbox finally means? I remember my brother mentioning he wanted to get himself one and..."

But his urgently speaking voice stopped her from continuing her monologue.

"N-No, don't read it!!"

He desperately tried to stand up, but Aeri stomped her foot on his ankle to make him stay low and shut up. "Sit still for a moment, will you?"

She started to read it…

...

Oh.

Disgusting.

So that's what Sony Electronics and Xbox stood for...

She pursed her lips to suppress her laughter, pointing mockingly at the bruised up guy. 

Aeri was laughing, but it was actually just a facade. Beneath it, she has never felt this grossed out before. She didn't expect to read such disturbing letter. More precisely, she didn't expect him to be a very disgusting human being behind his nerdy persona.

"You want to treat me like an object, you want to chain me up to a wall, you want to bre— Oh! It's not just me," she squinted her eyes.

But the next sentence she read left her in utter shock.

"You wish to own... Ning Yizhuo forever? You want to fuck her relentless until she desperately begs you to—What the fuck is this?"

She huffed out a gasp disguised as laughter, holding her palm over her forehead in shock. "Woah, I didn't expect you to be such a pervert... And it looks like it's not just you, other people have written in this as well." she said with a grimace, but her expression changed to surprise when he managed to escape and sit up, gaze shifting up to glare at her in fury.

"You will regret finding out about this, Aeri.." He murmured, making Aeri laugh even more.

"Regret? Boy, you look like you're going to cry to your fictional mommy for help, you loser. If you think you can do anything to me, you're so wrong." She finished the last sentence with a firm tone, harshly ripping the letter in two and throwing the crumpled pieces back at him. "Stay away from me or I swear I won't hold back and leave you with a broken nose the next time." Her fierce stare landed back on the letter, making the boy quickly grab the remains and stuff them back in place.

"This isn't the end, Aeri..." He uttered weakly before running off, leaving Aeri to laugh to herself from his embarrassing stupidity.

But she couldn't stop thinking about the thing she read. It clearly was a letter written by more than one guy, because of the mixed handwriting and difference in the ink. There was definitely more than one person behind this. All she wondered was if Ning—

"Aeri!"

The girl got startled for a moment, but a sigh of annoyance followed after her surprise. She really had almost all the nerds piling up to bother her endlessly and destroy her solace today, huh? "Kim Minjeong."

The unmistakable blonde slightly waved, walking over to Aeri while holding—oh God, is that a damn notebook? Unbelievable.

Minjeong laid down on her stomach on one of the benches, opening it up and writing something in it that looked like gibberish to Aeri. Out of curiosity, the Japanese girl took a slight step closer and leaned her head forward, seeing that Minjeong was... doing MATHS?

"Holy fuck, are you actually doing your homework? Next to me?" Aeri asked in a very judgemental tone.

"Not exactly homework, but a few exercises from Ning Yizhuo." Minjeong sighed. "I have no choice but to write the solutions to several equations as proof to show the teacher that Ning actually taught me something." She added, only to be weirdly stared at.

"Hold on—" Aeri shook her head and pointed at the girl accusingly. "Four-eyes Yizhuo is teaching you Maths? Since when? Aren't you nerdy enough to know more than enough already?" She asked in mild confusion.

"See, the thing is that she isn't actually teaching me anything. She apparently wanted us to become friends for some reason." Minjeong informed, shrugging before reminding the pink haired one, "And don't worry, I haven't forgotten about the deal we made. I'll try to avert her away from her club if I get the chance to speak to her."

Satisfied by her claim, Aeri smirked and crossed her arms, nodding. "You're finally listening to me without complaining or finding excuses. This is fascinating." She pleasantly hummed. Though, her happiness faltered after what Minjeong added.

"Don't forget your part of the deal as well, Uchinaga Aeri."

The way Minjeong said that sounded so serious, that even Aeri got curious as to what would happen if she didn't want to cooperate any longer. But to her dismay, she didn't really feel like doing that, especially not to this current Minjeong for some reason. Aeri was surprisingly a person who stayed true to her deals and promises. "I haven't forgotten, you sick dumbass. How stupid do you think I am to forget that easily?" Aeri rolled her eyes.

"Right..."

Minjeong then glanced at Aeri for a split second, raising an eyebrow in amusement at the way she was dressed. Nothing about her 'bully' said 'I love school', yet surprisingly, Aeri was one of the few students who never failed to follow the dress code...without the hair thing. But pink suited her a lot, and it wasn't exactly as distracting as most people might think. Her shirt was tucked properly in place, she never had wrinkles on her uniform, her tie wasn't loose, even after getting into one-sided fights most of the time, and her shoes, although expensive and unusual, were...

Wait.

Minjeong blinked, noticing something was wrong with Aeri's shoes. Specifically, there was a very eye-catching dot looking very out of place on the tip of her shoe. She furrowed her eyebrows, recognition flowing through her orbs as it became clear that the dot she was examining wasn't just a design error, but blood.

"Aeri... did you get into a fight?" Minjeong asked with worry.

"A fight? Uh, no... not exactly?" Aeri followed Minjeong's gaze, also noticing the stain. She squinted, a sudden disgusted facial expression framing her face. "Ugh, gross..." The last thing she wanted was that disturbing freak's DNA on her beautiful uwabaki that her brother paid a fortune for. "I did kind of get into a fight with a guy but trust me, I had a very valid reason to beat that fucker up after what I saw... What a pathetic creep he is." She excused herself, hastily rubbing the dirty tip of the shoe on the grass to clean it up. "He didn't even stand a chance, stupid ass idiot..."

Minjeong tilted her head, leaning it on her palm. She waited for further explanation.

Aeri turned her head to the latter and scoffed, not believing that the girl was actually asking her to continue talking. "I'm not going to tell you why, what the fuck? You're still a nobody to me, Kim Minjeong. Don't get your hopes up because of a simple deal we're doing."

Now, Minjeong was even more disappointed.

She couldn't lie, she did have a feeling that maybe Aeri wasn't just some spoiled athletic girl that hurt socially awkward and nerdy looking people for fun, but someone more than that—someone with her own story and unique personality. Though maybe, she was wrong and that wasn't the case. Even so, it still didn't make her lose motivation to find out more about her personality. Minjeong believed that Aeri could become a better person once she starts hanging out with the right people. In this case, that was Minjeong.

"Did he ask you for money?" She asked the latter, making her scoff and laugh in disbelief.

"A nerd? Asking me for money? No way. As if anyone would ever dare to ask me for some money." Aeri rolled her eyes. "Even the school doesn't."

"Okay, fair." Minjeong hummed, squinting her eyes. "So, it was a nerdy looking guy? Did he try to talk to you?"

Aeri looked back at the girl, pointing her finger at her. "I see what you're trying to do, Kim Minjeong. I'm not going to tell you." She said with finality.

Minjeong slightly smiled, raising one eyebrow. "Why not? Did you take a liking to him and you're embarrassed of it?" She provoked.

Aeri let her hand fall, not sure if Minjeong was trying to annoy her on purpose or if she was actually curious. Whatever the case was, Aeri was on her last straw. "I'm being very serious right now, Kim Minjeong. Don't you dare ever say that I might like a nerd, because I would not do that in a million years." Aeri prepared herself to walk away, only to be stopped by Minjeong holding onto her wrist.

"Okay, I'm sorry—I'll shut up. Just stay here and keep me some company, please? Whether you talk to me or not, it doesn't matter, just stay here…" Minjeong pleaded with a pout.

Aeri looked into the girl's eyes, suddenly feeling conflicted. Why was she feeling like that for her? She recognized the expression Minjeong had on her face was full of sadness and need. The feeling you have when you're desperate and alone, when you just want someone, anyone, to be near you.

Ah, right. It was almost Valentine's Day and Minjeong was away from Jimin. Aeri understood that now.

She blinked a few times, sighing in displeasure. Yet again, she did what Minjeong had asked of her. The nerd she finds irritating was now commanding her and using forbidden tricks (pouting) to beg for her presence. Wasn't it just the best day for Aeri?

"Fine. I'll stay for 10 minutes and then I'm out. I don't want people seeing me near you," she claimed in a monotone, sitting on a bench opposite of Minjeong.

The blonde girl slightly smiled, focusing back on her notebook without bothering Aeri anymore. She felt thankful that the latter understood that she was in need of some company.

Minjeong really, really wanted to be near Jimin, but she couldn't. It hasn't been too long since their relationship ended, but Minjeong hasn't stopped thinking about Jimin even one bit. The fact that it was nearing Valentine's Day didn't help at all, because this holiday was the only time they would spend all day doing stuff together without caring about school. Jimin would skip all of her classes just to be with Minjeong and take her out on a date, and vice versa. She really, really missed that... and her...

"Hey, Minjeong?"

Aeri's unexpected call-out got Minjeong's attention, bringing her out of her thoughts. "Hm?"

The Korean girl faced her, noticing how Aeri seemed a little hesitant to speak again. More like, she was embarrassed to be deliberately talking to Minjeong, because it was very out of character for her. "Do you still want to know? I mean, about the thing that happened with that guy?" Aeri asked, showing signs of nervousness for the first time ever.

Minjeong widened her eyes and nodded eagerly, "Yeah! Definitely!" putting her pen down and fully focusing on Aeri. "Okay, now I'm listening."

Aeri's eye twitched, but it wasn't from annoyance or anything close to it. More like, she was baffled to the point her brain malfuncioned and forgot how to blink properly. She looked at the pen then at Minjeong, then back at the pen, at the noteboke, and lastly, remained stuck on Minjeong as if she was having an eye contact battle with a lifeless painting of the sun. She wasn't even hiding how surprised she felt by the attention that was aimed at her. It... It just left her speechless.

Throughout her whole life, she was always surrounded by wealthy people who would usually do their own stuff first before doing something as time-wasting as listening to her words, so this action left her a little... confused. More than a little, actually. Very was the correct word. Very confused. Maybe... obscured, too? Definitely. As well as embarrassed that she was left as exposed as a domestic animal out in the wild? Oh, absolutely. Like some- okay, whatever, you get the point. She was left silenced for a moment.

"You, uh, you can finish your stuff first." Aeri stammered while gesturing at the notebook with both hands, suddenly acting... polite.

It was so off character for her, but thankfully, Minjeong hadn't caught her moment of weakness. Or maybe she was secretly enjoying watching her struggle and pretended she didn't see, which Aeri was not going to question right now. Not when she was the one who would get teased. And not just by anyone, BUT KIM FREAKING MINJEONG. A NERD. She would never let that go without any consequences, and surely Minjeong knows it.

"Oh, it's fine. I can do it at home." Minjeong shrugged it off, closing her notebook without keeping her eyes away from Aeri.

The pink haired girl had her mouth slightly parted open and head tilted to the side, wondering if this was considered as normal.

"Why are you like this?" Aeri mumbled in confusion.

"What do you mean why am I like this? Like what?"

"Like—you're all... patient? Being curious and saying that you're willing to listen to my words? I used to disturb you almost every single day, yet you haven't stopped acting nice towards me. Just why exactly are you doing that?" Aeri seriously asked, wanting to know the truth.

Minjeong looked down, scratching her head with a weak chuckle. Because right, Aeri had a point there. Why was she always nice towards her own bully?

"Because I want to understand you and be there for you, Aeri. It's clear that you haven't been shown what true kindness, consideration and forgiveness really is." Minjeong claimed with a sigh, drawing circles on her notebook's cover with her finger. "You're always surrounded by so many people, but how many of those people can you call your real friends? Can you honestly answer that?"

Aeri was about to speak, but nothing really came out of her mouth. She did have friends, dozens and dozens of them, but were they her true friends or just some other girls and boys she bullied nerds with in school?

Aeri scoffed, shaking her head. She hated to think deeply about things related to her life in case she'd start overthinking. And right now, Minjeong had made her doubt her own connections with people. Not like there were many to begin with.

"There's no need for me to tell you. Let's go back to the old topic. Do you want to know or not?"

Minjeong sighed, nodding weakly despite herself. She figured that they weren't close enough to be talking about such deep stuff. No, they weren't close at all, actually. They were just two girls with opposite personalities and principles, living in two different worlds, entangled in a matter that required some mutual cooperation. Of course, Minjeong shouldn't meddle in Aeri's business, but she couldn't help her own curiosity. She always wondered what Aeri was truly like. Was Aeri always a bully or was she forced to become one? What was her reason to despise academically smart people so much, and how did it all happen?

So many questions, yet it had one answer to it. Communicating. Once they proceed to talk more, to spend time getting to know each other, to get comfortable, Minjeong was sure that Aeri would open up sooner or later.

Maybe, Aeri might finally earn herself a good friend.

"I do want to know," Minjeong said with a smile. "So... you can tell me. I'm listening."

Chapter Text

—————
February 17th
—————

"...And he also had some stupid letter in his pocket."

"Uh-huh?"

"I thought it was for me at first, so I took it from him and started reading it."

"And?"

"It apparently was for me, but at the same time, it wasn't."

"Oh? Really?"

"Yeah. Yizhuo was mentioned in it, too. And the things written inside were..."

"Were..?"

"They were..."

"Aeri. Please. Don't do this to me... What were they?"

The silence that followed was murderous and too loud, until Minjeong broke it with her whining.

Minjeong was losing it... and Aeri was having the time of her life watching her suffer. Everything was going all according to her plan. The athlete was messing with Minjeong's crippling impatience mainly, solely, with zero guilt or remorse... on purpose.

To explain vaguely, Aeri was acting like the most menacing little shit. Ever.

"Guess what?" She grinned. "I'm leaving this to be continued—"

"OH, COME ON!"

Minjeong threw her head back, groaning like a neglected puppy deprived of it's treat. "Don't do me like that! What was in the letter??" She whined again, desperation to find out the story's ending audible in her words. It was hilarious how eager she sounded.

Aeri stuck her tongue out in amusement, pointing her finger at Minjeong almost like a challenge. "I'll finish the story some other time if you behave."

Minjeong gawked in disbelief and threw her arms up in defeat, but the moment Aeri laughed at her agony and faced a different direction, Minjeong secretly smiled to herself like a mindless fool witnessing an angel greeting her before walking up to the gates of heaven. She swore she saw Jesus giving a kiss to the top of Aeri's head somewhere in there, too... must've been the effect of daydreaming, huh.

She could be anything in that moment—annoyed, disappointed, furious, on the verge of ripping both her and Aeri's hair off—but she certainly wasn't stupid. She perfectly knew what Aeri was trying to subtly do. Clearly, the delinquent's goal was to prolong the story as an excuse to talk more with Minjeong during lunch break. Aeri's pride and ego would definitely not allow her to ever say such blasphemous admission out loud, but her acts were proof enough that she secretly enjoyed hanging out with Minjeong in her spare time—which was literally every lunch break.

Long story short, Aeri began her storytelling several days ago about the nerdy guy who tried to ask her out. She beat the living heck out of him in return for his confession, to which Minjeong didn't question much because it already felt believable enough, since that was something pink haired nerdhater3000 would do. Then, the following days, Aeri expanded the story by sharing small details about the 'disturbing' letter she spotted in his pocket. In conclusion, Aeri only spoke of everything in few parts, stopping at cliffhangers as if she was about to reincarnate herself into the Middle Eastern storyteller Scheherazade, narrating every tale from One Thousand and One Nights. It was a good tactic to keep someone entertained and curious, Minjeong had to admit.

"Are you really going to put me on edge every single time?" Minjeong's eyebrows were drawn together to form a line, a clear frown, but the secret part was that she found amusement in the situation rather than discomfort. "You're actually the worst."

The corner of Aeri's mouth tugged up, "Thank you, thank you," she nodded proudly as if receiving Minjeong's offence was an earned golden medal in a running competition. God, making people mad is always so fun, she thought. "You'll hear the last part soon enough. It's the most important part—but seriously, be very well prepared for it," she finished her sentence with a tighter, quieter tone, much to Minjeong's intrigue.

"Okay..? Was there something bad in the letter?" The blonde girl asked.

Aeri nodded once, less proud, instead confirmative. "Yeah, but I'm not giving you any spoilers. I'm only asking you to be prepared, because I'm know it will make that fragile heart of yours feel like shit for weeks straight," she rolled her eyes at her, a weary headshake noting her resignation. "Just letting you know so you don't start crying out of nowhere from panic, you snowflake."

Minjeong huffed, "Whatever..." but she couldn't help a grin forming at her remarks. Although the last comment sounded like shade, passive aggressive in a way and tinted with mockery, and was literally painting Minjeong as someone too sensitive, she didn't find any offense in it.

Aeri, despite concluding that her words were nothing but a simple heads-up, they felt more than that. At least, it was more for Minjeong. Even if it was barely noticable, Aeri's voice was a little too... soft. Too uncharacteristic. There was a hint of a nervous tremble in them, which Minjeong was sure it was the first time she has heard Aeri sound a little... unsure, wary. It was subtle, but noticable upon a closer look. There was a hint of consideration there; worry hidden beneath an expression of neutrality. It was a yet another first from the athlete's side.

Minjeong cleared her throat to keep the conversation going, not wanting to elongate the silence for too long. "Hm, I have a question though," she hummed. "Did it make you feel bad?"

Aeri tilted her head in thought, eyes searching around the sports fields to try and recount the exact words she read to remember how she felt about them. The moment they replayed in her head, a little shiver ran down her spine—both from discomfort and disgust.

If she wanted to act tough as steel and say it didn't affect her at all, she would be lying not only to Minjeong, but herself too. She would've completely forgotten everything about it if it was nothing by now, otherwise. Throughout her decade of studying in this school, she has never read something so disgusting nor encountered a student with a face as punchable as that guy.

The longer she thought about it, the more disturbed and grossed out she felt. Just how many more creepy, perverted freaks like him were writing such stuff about girls without their knowledge?

"Honestly?" Aeri sighed, "it did make me feel bad to some extent. Knowing how annoyingly sensitive and soft you can be, you might feel bummed for God knows how long. I'm saying this for your own good, so be thankful for it." Aeri scoffed, crossing her arms.

Minjeong chuckled. "Thank you very much for caring about my feelings, Ms. Uchinaga Aeri." She winked with a playful grin.

The other girl stared at Minjeong in stunned shock, not believing that she dared to utter such offensive words. "Uh, excuse me? Who the hell said I care about your feelings? I literally don't care about you... like, at all." She claimed in a defensive tone, which only proved Minjeong's statement to have some truth behind it.

"Whatever you say," Minjeong sneered, arms reaching to grab her notebook. "Anyway, do you want something from the canteen?" She suddenly asked in the middle of putting her stuff in her bag.

Aeri's gaze watched her move, blinking . "Why? Are you leaving?"

"Momentarily, yes. I got thirsty, so I'll go buy myself a drink. Do you want something as well?" Minjeong asked again, throwing the strap over her shoulder and letting the bag itself hang loose under her arm.

"Hmm… Sure, get me a drink too. Preferably, I want strawberry milk." Aeri requested, "And make sure it's cold, otherwise it's not worth it. I'd rather not dislike the taste of my favorite drink." She added, her attention drifting away to her new nails instead. The nail artist had done an exceptionally good job, as expected. The length, the design, the texture—oh, it was perfection.

"Strawberry milk?" Minjeong echoed, surprised. "It's my favorite, too."

"Oh? Really?" Aeri glanced at her with a tugging smile, but her expression changed to a calculated, poker one to hide all evidence. "I mean, uh—I didn't ask. Just go buy that milk." She said, then threw something towards Minjeong.

The blonde girl caught it, looking at what seemed to be a small, white purse. "Your purse? What for?"

"Money for the milk, you idiot. I'm not going to make you pay for it this time. Take it as compensation cash for listening to this story for heaven knows how many days now." Aeri crossed her arms above her head, stretching her limbs and shoulders. "And you better return with my purse intact, you hear me?"

"I will, I will," Minjeong assured. "I'll be back soon!"

She fully turned and walked away from the fields, directing her next route to the canteen while humming excitedly. She and Aeri were slowly becoming more friendly with one another, which started to improve her mood and lower her stress more or less. There weren't any unnecessary fights, useless arguments or bickering that always lead to something serious. There was nothing negative involved or happening between them, not counting the torturous slow unfolding of Aeri's story.

It only proved her theory to be right. Aeri was just an unlucky girl who wasn't used to receiving the same amount of kindness in return to her own kindness. Minjeong really wanted to change that and show Aeri how real friends act towards each other.

"Two cartons of strawberry milk please," she asked the canteen lady, giving two dollar bills for them. Once she had them handed over to her, she grinned slightly. Both milks were cold and in perfect condition to be drank. "Thank you," she said quietly before leaving.

And right as Minjeong was about to walk out the canteen with the drinks she bought, she was suddenly pulled into a corner table near the archway by the exit. A small yelp made it's way out of her mouth the moment her back was met against the cold wall and the rough surface of the wood she was seated on, squished next to a tough-looking girl who wouldn't let her move, two other girls sitting on the table with a smug smirk and crossed legs as if they owned the building. 

And to add to her dismay, these were one of Aeri's 'friends' that the athlete traumatized students with.

"Who do we have here, huh? Kim Minjeong exiting the canteen all alone? That's such a nice view!" The girl who was pressed to her side, Hyori, leaned close and laughed at how Minjeong's shoulders tensed in a blink, followed by the other two, Boram and Yewon, smirking in amusement at their victim's lack of comfort. 

"You see, I was having a bad day because my boyfriend isn't here to spoil me due to his sickness," Hyori faked a pout, raising an arm to wrap over the blonde's neck. "And I didn't bring any money today, unfortunately."

Minjeong then saw a flash of movement pass by her face, unaware that the reason why her hands weren't feeling cold anymore was because the two milk cartons weren't in her possession anymore. With widened eyes, she glanced up, her heart sinking at the view; Boram and Yewon stabbed the straws through the protective tin foil, drinking them with irritating innocence.

Then there was the other emptiness in her other hand. Hyori had snatched the white purse from her. "But thankfully, you showed up with this expensive purse to offer help." She hummed wickedly, giggling at her own words. "You wouldn't say no to me, would you? I'm sure, because you're one very kind girl."

She smirked. "You'd do anything so I can have my daily dosage of dopamine, won't you?"

But a surprised hum broke her speech.

"Doesn't this purse seem very familiar?" Yewon chimmed in as she leaned forward, pointing at the leather and tapping on it. "I swear someone we know has the exact same one."

"Wait," Boram snatched the purse, faced it towards the ceiling lights with narrowed, examining eyes. "Now that you said that, I can see it. Let me open it and..." but the words died on her lips, replaced by a dramatic gasp. She clasped a palm over her mouth in perfectly practiced, 'I have been waiting all my life for this' kind of theatrical manner. "Oh my god, this... this is our Aeri's purse, isn't it!?" 

"No shit?" Hyori raised an eyebrow, arm reaching to get a hold of the purse again.

Now, Minjeong was in actual trouble.

If her getting cornered by a manipulative, gaslighting chick and her two IQ-less loyal minions who were about to mess with her was bad, then this was twice as worse. Maybe even thrice.

She was a goner.

Minjeong realized the moment Hyori's eyes twinkled with unmistakable malice that this interaction was going to end in a disaster. Because no, they couldn't just ask for cash and leave her alone without being all dramatic and curious. Of course they had to notice Minjeong was carrying an unfamiliar purse and choose her to be their cash donor. Oh, and this was not just any purse, no no! AERI'S PURSE. UCHINAGA GOD DAMN AERI'S PURSE!

Truth be told, Minjeong was already used to their antics and didn't even question the situation at all. She'd felt the slightest bit nervous of what they would do to her despite knowing how it'd end, but nothing more or less if she put up with their requests without complaints. The easiest way to put a stop to their pitiful show was to fall victim to their pityfull acts and give them like, what, ten bucks and watch them leave with their sickeningly proud grins and giggles, off to emotionally torture another person like it was their daily job to act like beggars. This was nothing unusual, just the expected moment where Minjeong was faced to deal with a minor financial minus that would barely even do any damage to her wallet. They were easy to please, easy to forget. 

But what she wasn't used to, though, was spiraling and having to choose between three options: One, whether to pull out her own purse and hand them a few bills more to satisfy them; Two, to flee the scene and disappoint Aeri when she arrives empty handed (definitely not happening); And three, to grow a pair of balls and retrieve the purse without sharing that it wasn't hers, but Aeri's one that was handed to her.

But why wasn't she going to tell them who owned the accessory? Well, because Minjeong didn't want to involve Aeri. Even thought Aeri herself gave her the purse, Minjeong wanted to keep it a secret in case the athlete would feel uncomfortable about it or feel too bothered to admit that she gave it herself. 

And come on, who would believe Minjeong, anyway? 

"I...I bought the same one a few days ago, so just give it back." Minjeong tried to grab the purse back, but Hyori pulled it away with a suspicious smile. They were clearly onto her.

"Oh really? Then why is.. 'your' ID card inside the purse?" Hyori then showed an identity card, it being Aeri's one.

What... the... fuck?

Minjeong widened her eyes in shock—not because she was caught in 4k, red-handed and left with no excuses whatsoever, but because Aeri had entrusted her with her actual purse. 

...

How much did Aeri trust her that she gave her this?

Minjeong's hand shook as she attempted to grab it again, "Give it back." but her voice didn't waver. Her attempt unfortunately lead to no avail since Hyori was intimidating if she wanted to be, as well as much stronger physically wise.

"Nuh-uh! Nice try, but our Aeri needs to see this first. Oh, I'm so sure she'd love to deal with you because of this!" Hyori giggled as her hand shamelessly dove inside the purse, pulling out the first things that left her wide eyed and excited. "Oh, she was packed today! Sweet! Let's keep these bills for ourselves. Do you two want to go shopping for shoes afterwards?" She looked at her friends, getting exhilerated nods in return.

Shit. Minjeong sighed, I'm so done for, she muttered in her own head, anxiously watching as Boram haded the strawberry milk away to Hyori to instead search in her jacket for her phone, while Yewon and Hyori gazed down on her like a soon to be devoured prey. 

Now, she might really be in trouble if this goes wrong in all ways possible.

"And since our little Minjeong over here lied to us..." Hyori's eerily calm voice rang in her ears as the delinquent glanced between the half-finished milk box in Yewon's hand, then at the one Boram handed to her to hold, smirking as an idea popped in her head. "Maybe we should punish her for her dishonesty, shouldn't we?" 

Minjeong instantly took notice of the reciprocated grin of rascality that the three girls shared as their stares fixated on the cartons of milk.

...God, she really hoped Aeri would trust her...

In the meantime, Aeri has been waiting and aimlessly doing something, like stretching for the dozenth time or re-checking the masterpiece of an art that were her new nails, with the sole purpose to avoid boredom for almost ten minutes when she received a phone call. 

She looked at the contact number, tilting her head when it was from one of her familiars, an acquaintance she barely spoke to unless it was to share a smoke or be annoying to nerds, aka Boram.

"Hey, what's with the call?" She asked with an unbothered, mildly curious tone.

"Hi Aeri~ You should come to the canteen. We found one of your favorite ones over here that stole your white purse."

"MY WHITE PURSE?" Aeri exclaimed and widened her eyes at that, gritting her teeth. "Be there in one." 

She hung up the call, scoffing loudly to herself as her hands moved in urgency, tying up her hair in a messy yet tight ponytail. "Damn you, Kim Minjeong! I told you to return with the damn purse intact!" 

A huff of annoyance and more curses later, she cracked her knuckles, now running towards the canteen at full speed and with purpose.

The second she entered inside the big canteen, her heavy steps silenced the chaos that was school noice. Everyone's glances were fleeting ones, shifting away just as fast in fear due to the undescribable tension that was following her like a shadow. Some even exited before finishing their meals to avoid any trouble or interference with whatever mess was to come next.

Aeri searched around every table like a hawk on a hunt, stopping when three familiar girls sitting by a corner table began gesturing for her to come with their hands. 

Her steps took her to them in a rush. It was then that she was finally greeted by the back facing her. That must be 'one of the favorites' that Boram mentioned in the call, she thought. But what Aeri didn't expect was that person to be covered in milk all over her uniform... specifically, strawberry milk. A little snarl betrayed her as she glared at the back of the person's head, making a mental note to herself to look for Minjeong afterwards and ask her how a twig of a skinny ass looking bitch managed to mob her.

Strange... Where the hell was Minjeong now that  she actually thought about it?

She shook those thoughts off, reminding herself to focus back on the current situation.

"Spill. What's this about?" Aeri leaned her hands on the table, not sparing any glances at the purse stealer's appearance yet.

"This muffin over here stole your purse and lied that it was hers so we could leave her alone." Hyori informed, waving the purse in her hands. She then stood up and walked over to her friends, arms crossed as she pointed with her head at the stealer, pretending to be sulky. "Not only that, but she denied taking accountability for it," she finished in an annoyingly pouty way.

Aeri arched her eyebrows in anger. Someone stole her purse from Minjeong's hands and dared to act innocent to avoid drama? Oh, she was so going to make this kid regret breathing in the same building as Aeri. And knowing that Minjeong paid for one drink using Aeri's own cash, seeing how it was spilled all over that filthy stealer's clothes was her last straw. That was the strawberry milk Minjeong bought for her, god damnit! 

And finally turning to face the culprit, the last face she expected to see was Minjeong's one. "Hi Aeri."

Aeri visibly struggled to identify if this was really her or a living doppleganger of Minjeong's who coincidently studied in the same school as them.

"What the hell?"

Minjeong pursed her lips into a timid smile, not knowing what to say to defend herself from embarrassment. "Sorry, but they caught me before I could lie my way out." She whispered.

"You did what—? God damnit, Kim..." Aeri shook her head, taking the purse from Hyori's hand and checking if the content inside was still there. 

In fact, Minjeong did stay true to her words and everything important was in tact, but some specific things seemed to be missing. Wait... so someone DID actually steal her stuff? And they made it fucking obvious? Obvious, how some might wonder? Well, very.  Like... bro, 70% of her cash was gone, of course she was going to notice it!?

"Where's... my money?" Her voice came out like a very hollow question, looking dumbfoundedly at Minjeong before facing her friends.

Hyori, Yewon and Bora shrugged and pointed at Minjeong with smirks.

And Aeri, with obscurity and disbelief written all over her face, followed the direction and stopped at the blonde. She leaned closer, head tilting in a way where half her face was covered by her own ponytail, mouth moving and mouthing "What the fuck are they saying?" silently, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

Minjeong looked up to match Aeri's confused gaze, secretly pointing at Hyori from under the table. "She took it all and is trying to frame me for stealing it." She whispered only for Aeri to hear.

"Deadass?"

"Deadass."

And for some reason, Aeri trusted her immediately.

"Hyori, give me the money back. Now." Aeri slowly faced the girl with an expression of anger, making her three friends flinch at the sharpness in her voice.

"I-It's not with me! That blonde bitch took it all!" Hyori tried to defend herself, but quickly froze on the spot when Aeri sternly slammed the table with her fists. This only caused her to get more stares from everyone around the canteen.

Minjeong bit her lip, lightly nudging the latter's foot with her own. "Aeri, stay calm..."

Minjeong tried to whisper to her, but Aeri was way too annoyed to listen. Right now, the pink haired one was enraged by the fact that Minjeong had done nothing but the simplest of things such as buying strawberry milk for them. And for what? Just to get it all spilled over her clothes? And most importantly, Aeri had paid up for one carton of milk, for goodness sake; she was absolutely not going to let that go no matter what.

She wasn't one to forget things related to money and lies as it came from her deep involvement in the world of the wealthy. It wasn't by choice, she was just born to be in a household full of nothing but business talks. Spending money with the sole purpose of not letting even a cent go to waste was what she was taught since she was a baby toddler sucking on her little thumb. 

Make connections with those who wouldn't use your worth and finance against you, her father used to mumble as short bedtime stories that they both used to giggle at. Only put faith in those whose purpose isn't to bring downfall to your financial status, her mother always implemented every time Aeri mentioned befriending someone. Be close to those who won't proudly lie to your face and pretend like you're just an asset to their benefit, was her brother's most recent advice.

Out of everyone, maybe she should've listened to him, because her rebelious ignorance lead to her acquainting people who wanted her money to be taken away—they were supposed to be 'friends'... Worst part? It all had to happen because Minjeong was the one who carried her purse.

Hah.

Ridiculous.

"Hyori, I'm going to say it to you one last time. Give me my money back. Immediately."

Out of fear, Hyori quickly put the bills she 'borrowed' on the table and ran off with the other two in a haste, leaving Aeri and Minjeong alone. Everything happened so fast in Minjeong's eyes that she swore time moved so quick. they, almost literally, vanished morbidly close to as fast as the speed of light. Today definitely marked the end of their 'friendship', because after this, surely none of them would dare to be face to face with Aeri ever again. Unless they were masochists, who knows?

The pink haired one grasped the money in her hands, counting all the bills and slightly smiling. Everything was all right now, perfectly in place and back in her possession. "Go to the fields. I'll be right back in two minutes." Aeri suddenly ordered, making Minjeong hum in confusion.

"Why? What are you going to do?"

"Just go there."

Aeri didn't say anything more, so Minjeong only sighed and did as she said in silence.

The moment Minjeong was out of the canteen, Aeri inhaled a deep, tired breath and walked up to the counter where the canteen lady was at and leaned on it lazily, pointing at something with her head—the fridge with all the strawberry milk. "Two of those and some napkins."

The canteen lady knowingly chuckled, putting the ordered items down. She squinted her eyes, humming with the kind of mischief Aeri was all too familiar with. "Two, huh? Looks like you and Ms. Kim are in better terms than before. Didn't expect you to ever be fond of smart ones other than—"

"Alright, alright, that's enough." 

Aeri urgently stopped her from continuing, looking slightly embarrassed and panicked. Totally a shocker. "It's just a one time thing. You better not say anything about this to anyone, you hear me?" She pointed a finger at the woman, making her nod.

"You have my word, Aeri-chan." Canteen lady smiled.

Minjeong was trying to blow on some stains from her uniform, weakly attempting to dry them up before anyone questions the bland pink-to-white design of the fabric when she heard someone calling out her name. She turned around at the exact moment Aeri waved the two things in her hands before throwing them towards her—one at a time, thankfully. 

Minjeong caught them and stared at the items in her hands with widened eyes. "You bought milk for me? And napkins too..?" She questioned with a softened tone.

"I didn't buy milk only for you, idiot. I got some for myself, too." Aeri waved her own carton box, drinking from a straw. She sat down opposite of Minjeong's bench, staring at the stains on her clothes with barely suppressed laughter. "Why did you lie that it was your purse, you dumbass? You could've said that I wanted you to buy something for me and get over it." Aeri stated, crossing her legs as she watched Minjeong wipe the damp stains on her clothes.

The claim made the blonde girl chuckle and look at Aeri in unfiltered disbelief. 

"You seriously think they'd believe me? Aeri, you gave me your actual purse with your important stuff inside. You've never done anything like this before. Not a single person would have believed me." Minjeong explained with a bitter chuckle, "Funny that it's always your purse that's putting me in tough spots." She eventually gave up on cleaning the stains with a groan, slouching with a pout. They were too dry to be cleaned anyway. At least she smelled like artificial sweetener, so that was something.

Aeri stopped drinking from her milk, staring at Minjeong with a sense similar to being squished flush against an asphalted road by a racing car that leaves the word 'REALIZATION' imprinted on the pavement after its tires drift over and away from her cartoonish looking self. If this was an animation, it would've looked funny. In reality, it was kind of sad. 

This really was the first time she had given her actual purse to someone who the whole school recognized as academically smart, or shortly, a nerd in Aeri's books. Why didn't she think it through? Of course Minjeong would get noticed by some of Aeri's friends that she had a purse oddly familiar to them with herself. 

She realized a bit too late that maybe, just maybe, she was at fault this time.

And it indeed was ironic that this mess happened because of a 'lost' purse... again. It made her think—what if her actions towards Minjeong were differently apprehended in the past? If their interactions were less about violence and ordering the other around, but more about casual talk and occasional greetings, would this have happened? Would Minjeong be treated and seen differently not only by delinquents, but Aeri herself, too? 

Damn. This was so stupid. She should've just given Minjeong a single bill and called it a day.

Aeri, for reasons that will be mentioned in a bit, felt guilty of her actions.

"Sorry." She muttered under her breath, making Minjeong hum.

"Did you say something?"

"I said sorry..." Aeri said it more loudly, but it was still muffled because she was basically mumbling it against her straw like a shy middle schooler.

Minjeong tilted her head, still not having heard her clearly. "I didn't hear—"

"I said that I'm sorry! Jeez, just how deaf are you?" Aeri exclaimed, scoffing and looking away.

"Huh? What?" She heard her this time, seriously, but it didn't ease her confusion now that she knew Aeri was apologizing. What for? Minjeong squinted her eyes, leaning a bit forward with a tilted head. "Just what exactly are you sorry for? You didn't do anything."

"Yes I did, you buffoon! If I hadn't given you my purse but just a damn bill, your stupid ass wouldn't look like... like this right now!" Aeri gestured wildly at Minjeong's clothes.

Minjeong exhaled thru her nose in amusement, a smile tugging at both corners as the meaning of the words downed on her. Aeri was apologizing. Because she felt bad.

Aeri. Felt bad. 

For her.

This was the first ever apology Aeri has said to Minjeong for a simple thing such as 'getting caught for carrying her purse'. It was the first, but it seemed like a genuine apology—and that's what mattered the most, because honestly... they had a long history with purses and all moments ended badly. But this particular one? This might just change everything.

"You're kinda right... but what's wrong with my clothes exactly? These stains make me look more fashionable, don't they?" Minjeong pretended to pose like a professional model by straightening her back and crossing one leg over the other, hands clasped over her knee with the kind of politeness that screamed formality, lashes fluttering and smile curling into those forced, innocent ones seen on every magazine ever.

It made Aeri slightly tilt her head, blink once before erupting in giggles.

"You look like a homeless person trying to impress a flock of pigeons, what are you even saying?" Aeri mocked her pose, which made Minjeong gasp dramatically in mock offense.

"How dare you disrespect my amazing fashion sense, Uchinaga Aeri! I look flawless, and very much gorgeous—and, I smell like corn syrup and sucralose, thank you very much!" The blonde one stood up, twirling around with an intoxicatingly smug million dollar grin.

"You..." Aeri couldn't hold it in anymore. She snorted, fingers pressed to her forehead, palm covering her eyes as she closed them, laughing silently to herself.

Until she broke in full-on wheezes, unrestrained, loud and real ones that left her pointing and clutching onto the edges of the bench for balance.

Minjeong's dramatic replica of a spoiled designer came to an end and she laughed along, feeling lighter and more comfortable to show her silly side to Aeri than ever before.

Something definitely had changed, in the best way ever. This was a thing new to both her and Aeri, but neither complained or questioned how and when the changes occured. Minjeong always had worn her heart on her sleeve, but never did she let herself be herself before her bully's eyes until this exact moment.

And Aeri wasn't one to do closeness and letting loose in general, but she was learning. Learning more about proper treatment, learning to hold herself accountable when someone needed to hear it, learning to see and understand her own mistakes and apologize.

She was learning what consideration, kindness and forgiveness really meant all thanks to her.

The girl she always used to order around and make use of wasn't just a nerd like any other one she has messed with. Minjeong had the kind of personality others couldn't come close to as comparison. She was a smart one, but did stupid things, said stupid things, and definitelly made a fool of herself like a circus clown just so Aeri could laugh. 

It was... Minjeong was so extraordinary.

"You're more fun than I thought you would be, Kim." Aeri said while wiping at her eyes, laughter melting into soft chuckles, crossing her legs in contentment as she started drinking from her milk again.

"Same goes for you." Minjeong followed suit.

They both stared at each other while standing in the same pose, same smile and everything, eyes throwing daggers at eachother with no heat whatsoever in between—all in the middle of thinking about similar things.

Were they slowly becoming friends?

—————
February 18th
—————

"Psst, Ning!"

The Chinese girl, who was calmly minding her business in the empty room that was the Maths club's one, suddenly heard her name getting called out, leading her to pause on her task and turn her head around. 

"Before you ask, it's not school related," Jimin informed before the latter could shower her with questions. "Can I come in?"

"Alright, make yourself comfortable." Ning then chuckled, watching how Jimin appeared like a curious cat tiptoeing on it's soft paws to the secret cabinet where its favorite treats were stored in.

Jimin sat beside her, body vibrating with the kind of intensity that came from suppressing her impatience for far too long, eyes wide with curiosity and questions begging to be answered. "So? Did the thing with you and Minjeong becoming friends work out?"

Ning scratched the side of her head with the end of her pen, showing both thumbs up and thumbs down with her other hand. "I mean, I think so? What's your definition of friends?"

"Talking a lot, sharing things about yourselves, hanging out after classes? Stuff like that."

"Oh..." Ning awkwardly smiled. "Then I'm nowhere near that."

Jimin groaned, mumbling words of disappointment with a pout, sitting on a chair next to Ning, tapping with her finger on the desk all sulkily. They had thought of a plan that included Ning getting closer to Minjeong and asking the blonde girl about how she felt about Jimin once they were friends, but it wasn't as easy as they thought. There was barely any progress and it's been quite a while now, almost a week left before reaching the marking point of a month between the present day and the day of Jimin and Minjeong's break-up.

"I've been trying to get to talk to Minjeong, but that girl is always off to God knows where during lunch time these days." Ning informed with a pout, then added defensively, "and before you ask why I didn't try to follow her, I did. But she suddenly poofs outta nowhere like a ninja, dude! One moment I see her, the other she just... disappears!" 

"Not even surprised." Jimin snorted, hardly judging Ning for losing track of Minjeong. It has happened way too many times to Jimin herself that counting on all her fingers, toes included, wouldn't even be close to the actual amount. That girl was just an expert at escaping the eyes of people.

Ning sighed in resignation, spinning her pen while rechecking the math equations Minjeong had handed her because of the 'forced' tutoring. But she closed the notebook with a twitching eyebrow, sighing in annoyance. "This girl doesn't even need help with Maths—she knows everything perfectly! I can't believe this..." She scoffed with crossed arms.

Jimin smiled to herself. "Yeah, she's very smart…" She spoke with a giddy smile, only to get smacked by a pen to her temple. "What was that for?!"

"For making me almost barf. I know you miss her a lot, but please, keep that lovestruck attitude of yours to a—" Ning then paused mid-sentence, squinting her eyes. "And speaking of that... did you do anything for Valentine's Day?" She asked curiously.

"Not really. What am I supposed to do? I'm not with Minjeong anymore, y’know, and I'm not interested in anyone else whatsoever." Jimin tilted her head as if the thought hadn't even crossed her mind at all.

Ning facepalmed herself with both hands and groaned, "You little IDIOT!" she threw the abused pen at the black haired girl with force and aim equivalent to piercing through her head with a bow and an arrow. She didn't even let the taller girl have a moment to question her outburst before making her point clear, "It doesn't matter if you're dating her or not—you should've gotten her some kind of a gift! What kind of a human being are you if you can't even do that for the girl you love??"

Jimin winced, stammering "No, I—but—but how was I supposed to know I should do that!? Maybe she doesn't even want to see me!"

"Or maybe—" Ning squinted her eyes. "Just maybe—she was waiting for you to bang on her front door and show yourself with a gift of appreciation, at the very least?" she ended her sentence with a ‘duh’ tone, as if it was the most obvious thing a living person with a crush on someone would do.

Jimin scratched her head in thought, recalling past memories that could help her case. She already knew that Minjeong wasn't the type to love chocolate or flowers since it was too cliche even for a helpless romantic as her, but still, she definitely appreciated them a lot during certain days. The blonde had said many times that no flowers should be wasted on bouquets, but planted on pretty pots to be taken care of instead, and how she preferred lolipops over chocolate, but wouldn't say no to bitter chocolate.

That gave Jimin an idea.

"Okay, I think I have a plan and I might need your help." Jimin slammed her hands on the desk in determination.

Ning averted her attention to her, crossing her arms while waiting for a further explanation. "Sure, what is it?"

"I'm going to need you to be my mental support for one specific thing, okay?"

"Uh...okay?"

Ning should've seen this coming.

That creature was anything BUT okay.

Exactly an hour later, Ning and Jimin were crouching like low budget spies, shivering from the smallest brisk of wind creeping up their flushed cheeks due to the freezing cold, stuck outside in the middle of the night, standing behind a tree next to Minjeong's obnoxiously nosy neighbor's front yard—who also owned a cat, that was definitelly rubbing on their calves not because it liked them but because it was on heat, but that's not important and neither did it matter. 

What mattered was that it was late, it was dark, and they could barely see anything nor be seen in return. Nothing was visible other ther than the faint glow of the flicking street light on their left, the moonlight that drapped weak shadows of the naked trees and cars parked by the pavement they stood close to, and most importantly, the soft, hue light coming from the only window that their eyes were fixated on. Pure darkness broken by several sources to give them better vision.

The black haired one's idea was to secretly leave a small pot with an aloe vera flower, as well as dark chocolate as Valentine gifts because both were Minjeong's favorites.

Oh, and the reason why Ning tagged along? Jimin was scared of the dark (she had one sided beef with Minjeong's neighbor because the two were quite... loud one night months ago and Jimin caught him throwing knowing glances at them, but couldn't admit it to Ning from embarrassment).

"Please Ning, it'll work! Can you just wait here and look out for me, please..?" Jimin pleaded with doe eyes and lips pointing out in a jutter, making Ning clench her jaw and groan inwardly. Pretty girls pouting was one thing, but attacking her with doe eyes too? Nuh, uh. Not this time.

"I'm not going anywhere, you dork." Ning scoffed silently, nudging the latter. "But I'm so sure you'll mess this up."

"Oh come on, I'm not doing anything too hard! All I need to do is just put the pot and chocolates on the ground and run away!" Jimin said with forced confidence, masking her nerves by releasing a chuckle, "Just watch," she did a gesture to the latter before going towards the front door.

And she did nothing.

Ning facepalmed herself, watching how Jimin was hesitating to do anything by walking in circles. "Didn't you say that it was easy?"

"I didn't say that it was easy, I said that it wasn't too hard!" Jimin whisper-shouted in defense, standing still right in front of Minjeong's door like a punished puppy waiting for its owner to let it inside after getting scolded.

Ning was amused by her struggle, but offered support despite herself. "Want me to press the button instead?" she whispered loudly, but Jimin shook her head.

"No, I'll do it... Sooner or later..." Jimin spoke in defeat, clenching on the aloe vera flower pot and chocolates.

She took a deep breath, staring at the front door that she always used to simply open without a notice and barge inside. It was the same door to the suburban house that was close to be as good as her second home, where she could freely spend time around Minjeong without any limitations or hesitations along the way. That same entrance now lead to a forbidden zone that she couldn't enter without being faced with a reminder that would haunt her for as long as she lasts; it was her ex's front door now. It still felt bitter and painful to admit that it wasn't like it used to be... they weren't like they used to be.

"When will you press it or should we try again next year?" Ning asked as she faked a yawn, dramatically fanning herself.

"Once I'm ready, don't pressure me!" Jimin turned and glared in pure blasphemy. How dare she assume that their status would remain as exes until then? The betrayal...

The taller one kept on staring at the wall next to the doorbell, but suddenly blinked when she felt something itching on her nose, right above the philtrum on the septum. She scratched the itchy spot, but it accidentally caused her nail to reach sensitive places and trigger her nerves to feel like a bomb was close to explode.

Basically, she made herself sneeze.

"Oh sh— ACHOO!!" 

The black haired girl sneezed so damn hard that she lost her balance, force so strong that left her stumbling on her feet as if the floor was lava, leaning her elbow on the wall to catch herself from falling flat on her butt. Though, she didn't realize that she accidentally pressed on a tiny, little button by the frame of the door that played a song—a familiar melody, a ring-ding-dong sound—when her palm fell flat on the vinyl siding.

She pressed the damn doorbell.

"FUCK!"

Everything, to her absolute horror and clownery, was seen by Ning—who had her hands pressed to her mouth to muffle her dolphin-like screams of laughter "She is so dumb..."

"I'm so dumb! Oh my god—I’m so screwed!"

Jimin was losing it in full panic mode, looking striked by shock like a deer caught in headlights while wondering what to do with the items in her hands. Should she just throw them away or what!? Wait and see what'll happen?? Or— OR WHAT!?? WHAT SHOULD SHE DO NOW!?!?

"NING, HELP."

Ning kept on switching between looking at Jimin and the unlit windows of the residence, suddenly shaking her head. 

That girl was a mess in distress. Thank god Minjeong was a slow door opener.

"Put those down and just run back here already!" She said hastily, pointing at the ground like an angry mother gesturing for her child to start moving.

Jimin groaned in disbelief at herself, putting the items down and dashing away from the front yard. "Damn it! You had one job, Yu Jimin! One job!"

But then, she stopped midway and looked at her hands. She forgot to put the small note she had prepared for Minjeong. It was just a little love letter, like the ones Minjeong anonymously left once and teased her with. Nothing too much was written in it, but maybe it could count as something meaningful if she used the right words... right?

Ning looked at her contemplating her life choices before she noticed the letter. 

"Are you serious?' she deadpanned and scoffed, pushing her with all of her will and might back towards the house. 

"Just be fast, you idiot!"

"Okay, okay!" 

Jimin somehow managed to not stumble after that harsh push. Her steps dashed to reach the front door in a haste, suddenly faced with another decision under stress, which was whether to leave the note under or inside the flower pot, in between the two gifts, or on top of the wrapped chocolate bar. It was thanks to Ning's grunt and shout "YU JIMIN!" that made her drop the note and let the wind decide it for her.

"SHUT UP OR SHE'LL HEAR YOU, GOD DAMN IT!" She squaled in horror the moment she backed herself away from the door, now running away with Ning as if she was in a sprinting race.

Ning, obviously, didn't run but speed walk like she was on a catwalk show, still laughing at Jimin's earlier sneeze. "How the heck did she put up with you?"

"Wish I knew..."

And selfishly, Jimin wished she'd do it again.

...In the meantime, Minjeong was watching everything occur on the sidelines from the shutters covering her room's window with a fond, entertained smile. She had turned the lights off in case she would get noticed, not wanting to cause even more panic to the already spiraling girl by letting her intrusive thoughts of whistling at her win. 

"She's so silly..." Minjeong sighed to herself with a light chuckle, stepping downstairs to open the door and receive the gifts. The moment she did so, she looked to the right from curiosity—only to witness Jimin running away like an Olympic champion while getting scolded like a child and made fun of by someone she couldn't recognize earlier, but was surprised that it was actually Ning upon hearing the distinct Chinese accent.

"Hm? They must've become friends, too." Minjeong shrugged and smiled at the view, picking up the gifts with an ever bigger smile, grinning from ear to ear at the bar of chocolate. 

Jimin must've remembered her silly addiction to the bitter taste from a while ago, which was so sweet of her—even sweeter than the chocolate. And the cute, brown pot and miniature aloe vera? Oh, bless her soul, her heart might've just skipped two beats. 

She has been waiting for Jimin to do something, anything whatsoever, to show that she still cared and loved Minjeong despite their current status. Thankfully, the awaited sign finally arrived. A bit later than expected, but it was better than being too soon or way too late.

Her eyes scanned the surroundings before falling upon the note that was stuck between two cobblestones on the ground, leaning down to pick it up and read the message:

'Happy late Valentine's Day!

The person who wrote this can't stop thinking about you all the time. And how much they want to see you smile brightly again.

Here's a little secret: They really miss you, Minjeong.

From: Ji̶  Someone you might know well.'

"Someone I might know well, huh? Is that all she could think of?" Minjeong giggled, taking the gifts upstairs to her room.

She fished for some glue from the depths of her forgotten elementary school bag, fisting the air triumphantly when she finally found what she was looking for. Excitedly, she taped the gifted note inside her closet cabinet, staring at it with a little smile—as well as all the other letters she has received throughout the years from birthdays, holidays and occasional moments.

If she was honest, she liked the fact that Jimin wasn't rushing things, but taking her time to slowly gain Minjeong's trust back. Funny thing was that Jimin never lost that trust, but the blonde one had to play the hard to get part if she really wanted things to be different.

Minjeong appreciated it. 

A lot.

She might have fallen even more for Jimin because of this. Jimin was always considerate and sappy during the previous Valentine Days during their relationship, nut this flattered her even more than she could admit with words.

Because it meant that she was really trying.

Jimin was still in love with her despite them being in a tough spot.

Nothing mattered more than that.

"I miss you too, princess…"

Chapter Text

—————
February 28th
—————

It was the end of February now and every student was in the middle of dealing with preparations for the most awaited and actually fun event of every school year.

SM High's sports day.

Races, long jumps, tug of war, dancing and gymnastics—some loved the rush of adrenaline that followed during every competition, some hated it to the point they skipped everything altogether. Even some teachers did, especially the old as hell fossil looking ones. (Aeri's words, btw)

Senior and junior students were separated in groups all over the school, where the younger ones—8th, 9th and 10th graders—did less challenging ones in the indoor gym, while the older students—11th and 12th—were outside at the school's sports fields. Due to complaints from last year, though, the 11th graders weren't participating in any activities and instead went on a hiking day trip with each class' homeroom teacher (they tried to escape sports day altogether, but look where it lead them in the end), which meant that it was only the 12th graders occupying the fields for today's school event.

All classes from every course were divided into different teams. Class A was yellow, Class B was blue, Class C was green and Class D was red. Like the colors of the Microsoft logo, as the IT enthusiasts liked to jokingly call it.

As expected, since Aeri was the captain of the sports club, she took the head role for Class D, leading the red team. This time, since there were more participants than last year, she had the choice to recruit some members to her team from the classrooms which had more than needed members. Her options were quite open, varying from good to questionable to absolute garbage, but her final decision was... well, it definitely had something to do with questionable.

Aeri chose Jimin. Why? Because Minjeong told her to—no, she forced her to.

The Japanese was left with no choice but to follow her requests after all the intense negotiating they went through in the bathrooms. All she hoped was that nobody overheard their colliding voices and assumed the worst. She had to play her part of the deal and try to speak to Jimin, but still keep it low-key. Hard to admit, but Minjeong's appeals and reminders of their bet might've influenced her more than they should've.

Jimin, to say the least, was believed to be pretty bad at sports simply because she never did anything too outstanding during PE activities. Rumors said she was worse than a kid who always played air badminton with it's grandmother after school. Minjeong had assured her at least a dozen times in a minute that it was nothing but just a rumor, that Jimin wasn't bad at all (she has seen her stamina in bed, so she knows all the details... but Aeri didn't need to know too much).

Aeri doubted it, but it is what it is, she didn't have a choice whatsoever. The athlete really disliked to lose, so her last pick left everyone in her team very confused. "Why did you choose the council president but not someone... more active?" A classmate asked in a low whisper, hand partially covering his mouth as he murmured, "like Jihoon from Class B or Yujin from Class A? They're both agile and flexible, aren't they?"

No argument there; he was clocking that tea, speaking facts, no cap, no nothing. Aeri had no comeback prepared after his statement, so she cleared her throat before looking at him, shrugging with a timid smile like it perfectly explained her choice. 

"I felt like giving that one a try. She might surprise us all, who knows?" She sounded too unconvincing even for herself. And watching how Jimin was trying to stretch her body in a not so proper way made her sigh in disbelief. Yeah, this was going to be a disaster. At least, Aeri really hoped that this wouldn't lead to a massive mistake that might irritate her competitive side too much.

As for Minjeong, she was on the blue team along with her classmates, together with Ning, who was picked by Class B's captain to join them. Minjeong did what she always did, watching and cheering for her classmates, while Ning... she was just there as a girl on a mission.

The Chinese one was constantly on the move, eyes following everything Minjeong was doing and praying the blonde wasn't going to disappear before her like a martial artist using a makeshift smoke bomb to run away like last time. She and Jimin had agreed that the best time for Ning to engage more with Minjeong would be during the sports day, while Jimin could try to have subtle 'school related talks' with Aeri, if possible, and to ask why she wants the Maths club gone and why getting rid of it can't be possible... which might not happen, because Jimin doesn't have a death wish. Who in their right mind would deliberately try to talk to her?

And Ning, eager to finally have the chance to get closer to Minjeong and talk like actual friends with her today, spoke first in an attempt to stir up an easy conversation. "Hi, Minjeong! How are you feeling? Are you liking this so far?"

Minjeong looked up from where she was sitting, nodding as she took a small bite from her convenience store sandwich. "Hey there, Ning. I'm all good, and I do like it, yeah. We haven't won any competitions yet, but it's still as fun as I remember." She answered with a light smile, but her attention was casted somewhere else, facing that direction. "What's that for?" She asked by pointing.

Ning looked far ahead, squinting her eyes. "Uh... I think that's the long distance jump thing. Right now, we're losing pretty badly because your class sucks and..." her eyes widened at her slip up, stammering, "Uh, wait, I mean, our team isn't at their best... But! I heard the teacher say that if you manage to get more than 4 meters, you'll get dismissed from every PE class for the rest of the year." She explained in detail, pretending she didn't diss everyone in Minjeong's class.

Her words earned a loud hum and a gasp of surprise from Minjeong, her sandwich dramatically falling down her hands. "Seriously?! I'm so gonna try that next, what the heck? This is like, what? A free pass for PE!" She exclaimed and clapped her hands, swiping away crumbs of bread before standing up on her excited feet, her unfinished sandwich now left on the grass field; worry not, it was in perfect condition to be fed to a stray dog or a cat for later.

Ning opened her eyes wide, following Minjeong to offer support, though a hesitant chuckle betrayed her. "Are you sure you want to do it? We're competing against Uchinaga's team for that category," She then pointed at a specific girl. "and... God, I can't see her face properly, but I can tell the girl over there is quite tall and... uh, somewhat fast. And she's literally in Aeri's team! She seems pretty... and pretty good, from what I can see. I think I need new glasses, don't I..."

Right as Ning's ramble ended, the mentioned girl did a run and jumped, reaching up to 3.70 meters before landing on the sand.

Minjeong opened her mouth wide in amazement, but a little giggle escaped from her voice. Whether she was giggling to herself or it was a natural reaction to seeing someone whom you wanted to go up against do an impressive act was unclear, but she definitely felt giddy inside. And damn, she had to agree that the girl indeed was pretty. Minjeong's dream type of pretty.

She cleared her throat, straigtening her posture as she spoke in certainty, "I can do that too."

"You... can? You won't injure yourself, right? We're gonna need you for the race track." Ning doubted. "You're our only hope for that race, sorry to call your classmates ass but they're ass."

Minjeong didn't argue there.

But she did argue for the first part. "What? You think I won't do well?" Minjeong scoffed playfully, posing with mock confidence while pointing at herself with her thumb pressed to her chest. "You're currently speaking to Kim Minjeong, the girl who's known as Usain Bolt's long lost Korean daughter from Busan! You know, I just might be Busain Bolt—"

"No one calls you that, you idiot."

Minjeong snapped her head to the side with a yelp, startled by none other than Aeri. The athlete walked up to them while holding three sticks with red flags in her hands, pride flowing through her gaze. It meant that Aeri's team had won three competitions already, and it hasn't even been 20 minutes since the beginning.

"But I am fast!" Minjeong pouted, followed by Aeri's snort.

"Sure, you're fast, but not faster than me. I beat you last year, remember?" The Japanese one tilted her head, tone playful and an amused smile tugging at her lips. "And really? Busain Bolt?"

"Come on, it's funny!" 

Okay, maybe a little. Aeri couldn't disagree but neither could she admit it out loud. 

Minjeong was feigning grumpiness and flashed a barely there smirk to reply to her tease and bad attempt at playing nonchalant, but her smirk faded when she heard a scoff from her side. Right, she remembered that Ning was here, too.

Oh, this was going to be a mess.

"Don't be so proud of yourself, you show-off... Minjeong is a better runner, but you're too engrossed in glazing yourself to realize it." Ning mumbled, making Aeri roll her eyes in annoyance.

"Don't butt in our business, prick. You aren't even competing in the race, yet you dare speak like you own it." Aeri hissed, raising her eyebrows once with gritted teeth. "Be a good nerd and stay silent, will you?"

"I don't need to compete to be able to express my opinion, you know? And it's a fact that Minjeong is going to beat you easily this time." Ning said with a proud, taunting smile.

Aeri hummed, smirking. "Oh, really? Wanna bet?"

"What if I win?" Ning raised an eyebrow.

"Hm. I won't bother you if you win."

"Like hell you won't! All you know is how to be a parasite that people can't escape from." The brunette rolled her eyes, clicking with her tongue.

Aeri then walked closer to Ning, pinning her finger at the latter's forehead, not paying any mind to her earlier statement. "If you lose, you're going to do something for me, no matter what it is. Do we have a deal, or are you too scared?" Aeri tilted her head with a mocking smile, amused by the competitiveness and sheer annoyance burning in Ning's eyes.

"You little—...Fine. Deal." Ning furrowed her eyebrows, smacking Aeri's hand away. "Touch me again and I'll make sure that hand won't be able to see another light of day."

"Excuse me? Who the fuck do you think you are to tell me what to do, Four-eyes?" Aeri snarled and took a threatening step forward, glaring straight forward at the girl with glasses. She completely ignored the fact that their proximity was so close that it made Ning's breath graze the tip of her nose, as well as Minjeong's little sounds of confusion and attempts at calming them down. Honestly, they barely processed in her mind because of Ning's closeness.

Geez, why were they this close all of a sudden? It felt... weird.

"Do you think you're someone who deserves special treatment? Because you have no idea how wrong you are, Uchinaga." Ning bit back with a twitching eyebrow, refusing to step back and retreat. "I'll win that dare and oh, I'll make sure you will never be as carefree as you are right now."

"What are you going to do, huh?" The athlete smirked, body leaning forward in a taunting manner, arms crossed over her chest. "Ask me to do my very important homework on my own? To make me stop following nerds around because they're all scared of me?"

"I'll force you to hang out with the Maths club."

Aeri swore she almost fainted right then.

"You wouldn't dare," her voice trembled despite herself, a slight crack that showed her genuine worry. That was... terrifying. No way Ning Yizhuo was that cruel, right? "I don't need another Minjeong, so absolutely not. She's more than enough."

"Why are you saying it as if it's a bad thing? What's wrong with Minjeong?" 

"What's NOT wrong with Minjeong?"

"What do you mean..?" Ning turned to stare curiously at the blonde since Aeri's words sounded too ridiculous. As if Aeri had spent enough time to know what Minjeong was like, she huffed at her own thought. Minjeong looked like a little angel, didn't she? She seemed so nice and demure, so clearly, Aeri's statement came from her usual hate towards nerds in general.

Oh, and Minjeong, who definitely seemed to be still stuck complaining about their earlier dare that involved her, just looked back at them and had the most exasperated 'Really, dude?' expression, in disbelief that she could be face to face with such shameless ignorance and negligence.

Was she this invisible in their little world or what? Well, yes... Yes, she was.

Aeri and Ning, too invested to notice, simply paid no mind to her whatsoever. The two were a whole another level of deep into their childish bickering that her complaints and refusals barely clicked in their heads. They knew she was speaking something, but everything sounded incoherent and, easily said, unimportant. What mattered was this argument and nothing else.

It would not come to an end unless one of them leaves as a winner or the world randomly reaches its end.

Aeri blinked a few times, almost bursting in laughter at her thoughts. "What didn't you understand from that?" She mocked, shrugging. "She's nerdy enough as it is, I don't need a second or a third nerd wasting my time, y'know." Her sentence ended with a quieter finish, as if something bothered her the moment she said that out loud. Because she knew something was different about Minjeong, and the latter wasting her time wasn't the truth.

Minjeong caught the slight unease in Aeri, how her shoulders stiffened and how she avoided looking at her after that. Huh, that was strange, she thought. They've spent almost every day for the past month hanging out during lunch break, Aeri sharing her story and Minjeong writing in her notebook, both doing their own thing and being completely okay with that.

This whole time, Minjeong swore they were... okay? Like, not friends, not buddies, not anything that could be put into a label. Just okay... Were they even okay?

But a beat later, when Minjeong convinced her insecure self that Aeri might've gotten sick of her company, the Japanese looked at her for a split second and shot her a little nod. There was no smile tugging at her lips, neither was there any heat underneath her simple gesture. Nothing but a nod that showed everything that she couldn't explain with words.

As if she was a mind reader, she responded to Minjeong inner turmoil with her furtive glance. 'Yes, we're okay,' she tried to say, hoping that the simplicity of it would be enough to bring peace to them. Because Aeri didn't find her a waste of time nor a burden any longer, and Minjeong understood. She believed it.

Though, Ning, oblivious to the exchange, continued to add more fuel to the agument. "Minjeong is perfectly fine as she is, thank you very much. Once I win, you'll see that we 'nerds' are actually more fun than you'll ever be."

Aeri's ears perked up and she snapped her head forward, a throaty chuckle leaving her mouth, one of pure disbelief and shock. "More fun than me? Oh, you absolute idiot... The only fun thing about you outcasted nerds is how easy it is to pick at you and make you turn into a mess when your homework suddenly goes missing. Especially you out of all."

"SO IT WAS ALWAYS YOU WHO DID THAT TO MY HOMEWORK!?"

Aeri pursed her lips, a smirk begging to come out. "No..."

"I SWEAR TO—" Ning closed her eyes for a moment to regain her composure, exhaling loudly. "Just you wait. Minjeong is going to snatch that title from you and I'll make sure to make you regret ever bothering me."

"Wise words. But imagine," she squinted, pretending to be daydreaming. "I'm out there leading the race, and Minjeong is way behind me. What then?"

"That won't happen."

"Hm, sure." Aeri took a step back, her faux innocent smile appearing, "But hey, I might just be nice for once and help you with writing your resignation letter to the Maths club."

"I'm not going to leave it no matter what, Uchinaga."

"Oh, you will."

"I will NOT."

"You WILL—"

"GUYS??? CAN YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP?"

That was enough for now. Especially for Minjeong, because she endured enough and was going to break. Her cursing right now? This was nothing compared to how she acted when she was an inch away from actually losing it. This little outburst of hers was only the be... benin... gin... beninging... Beginning! Yes, the beginning.

"PLEASE can you two finally listen to me?"

Minjeong's groan eventually lead them to pay attention to her. She took advantage of the moment, stepping in between and pushing the two apart from each other before they make an even longer scene where the ending credits would start rolling a whole trilogy later from now. "You guys didn't ask me if I am okay with this!?" she pointed at herself dramatically, trying her upmost best to assert dominance. "Wanting to do this and that, show whatever and write a letter to whoever, like? Hello? I'm literally right here! And what if I don't compete in the end—?"

"You MUST."

Both said that at the same time, then looked at each other with arched eyebrows of pure disbelief.

"Don't copy me, blind freak." Aeri scoffed.

"You copied me first, unicorn barf." Ning scoffed as well, facing Minjeong. "I'll get going before I lose any more braincells by standing close to this dumb swine. Good luck with the race," She added before leaving the two alone to get some water.

"She did not—she did not just call me a swine, did she?" Aeri's shocked glare followed Ning until she was gone from sight, mumbling curse words to herself the moment the latter was fully away. Then she looked at Minjeong, squinting her eyes with an affiliative smile. "Anyway, you should lose."

Minjeong already saw this coming. "Do I really have to..?"

"Yes."

"But..."

"Come on..! Please?"

Wait what? Did... Wait, did Uchinaga Aeri just say please? PLEASE?

"...Did you just beg to me?"

"Shut up and do it, pussy."

Minjeong's shoulders slumped, head tilted down in resignation. She really wanted to win this time, she has been practicing for so long and was sure her improvement on sustaining good stamina and endurance levels could grab their team a well deserved win, but the last thing she'd want in return would be to disappoint Aeri. Though, at the same time, she didn't want Ning to be disappointed as well. They weren't exactly close, but Ning hadn't done anything bad nor did she deserve mistreatment. Minjeong was a softie by heart and this didn't only mess with her brain, but her emotions the most.

"Why did you both have to put me through this..?" She looked up to the sky, silently begging for any sentient being to appear in her stead and solve her problems.

Aeri shrugged with no guilt behind her gesture, patting Minjeong's shoulder in mock assurance. "Be lucky that I didn't pick a worse deal. It's simple, if you think about it. All you have to do is... well, lose!" she cackled to herself, giving her waist a  nudge before leaving as well, whistling a tune to herself as if she didn't leave the Korean girl on the verge of having an emotional breakdown.

Minjeong was so done for. So done.

This was it.

Either Aeri or Ning were going to hate her after this.

Oh my God, she was so done.

She—

"Nope," Minjeong shook her head and rubbed her face harshly, slapping herself once to get back to her senses. "No more of this. I'm... done. I'm done! Yup, I'm gonna calm down and just go with it. Exactly."

She had so many curse words piled up in her chest, ready to shout them all out like a witch casting lifelong spells, but a long inhale and exhale managed to temporarily calm her down. The last needed thing in her list was to smother herself with more stress or useless overthinking. Everything was already stressful enough, so there was no reason to think too deeply about it, she convinced herself. 

A part of her had to remember that whatever she was going to do was the main purpose of their deal. Minjeong helps Aeri with getting Ning out of the club (for who fucking knows what reason), and Aeri helps Minjeong with assisting Jimin and guiding her to improvement. She had to do this even though it made her stomach twist uncomfortably.

"Why can't they just get along, God damn it..." There has to be a reason, right?

After giving herself a long pep talk, Minjeong figured that the best way to distract her own mind would be to focus on the sports day ahead. Since the beginning of the sports day, her attention constantly wavered to where a certain girl kept on winning challenges after challenges in the long jump category. Tall, fast, pretty... who wouldn't want to challenge someone as talented as her?

That was literally her ex girlfriend she was still stupidly in love with, like c'mon now.

She decided she wanted to maybe try the long jump challenge to distract her mind a little and hopefully earn the first flag for her team, and definitely not because she wanted to see Jimin from up close and watch her in action. 

Minjeong walked up to the gym teacher sitting by the benches with a shy yet determined smile, pointing at the zone for long jumps. "Uhm... Can I challenge the red team?" She asked.

"Oh, Ms. Kim? Well, sure, feel free to try! You'll be the first person from the blue team who dared to do so." He spoke with a smile, surprised by her silent confidence, pulling out the flags from his back pocket and calling the girl from the red team over. 

"Ms. Yu, you have a challenger! Get ready to go first."

"Oh, another one? This is just a free point for—"

Silence.

The one and only Ms. Yu, none other than the council president Yu Jimin herself was there, who shocked the entire course because the rumor surrounding her that she was shit at sports got shut down faster than a bankrupt company the moment she stepped in the long jumps zone. Nobody knew that if there was one thing she was good at, it was jumping. 

Nobody other than Minjeong, of course, but even Minjeong was surprised when Ning pointed at Jimin and said that nobody had beaten her yet. And hey, today was supposed to fun for everyone, right? It didn't matter that Jimin was literally her ex who looked illegaly good while beating everyone's ass in long jumps, nope. And it definitelly didn't matter that Jimin was basically the red team's golden player instead of being the MVP in the blue team (that was all Minjeong's fault. If she hadn't forced Aeri to pick her, maybe they'd be leading... Tough luck.)

But what mattered was that Minjeong did not expect to see Jimin's demeanor change in real time.

Just earlier, Jimin had an intimidating gaze that scanned her opponents' weaknesses, the kind of aura similar to a lioness, a wall that nobody could jump over. That was her ex exactly a minute ago—but suddenly, she turned into a frozen animal, like a deer caught in headlights the moment her eyes spotted Minjeong standing next to the teacher. 

Jimin's voice faltered to the point it might've cracked as she whispered, "—a free point for them."

Well, that was awkward. Nobody caught that, right..?

"Sorry, what was that?" OH THANK GOD. "Did you say something, Ms. Yu?" The teacher stepped forward, but Jimin quickly regained her composure back and shook her hand, dismissing him away politely.

"Nothing teacher! I'll... uh, I'll go first." She smiled timidly, taking the first turn. Thankfully nobody saw her knees giving out for a moment. That would've been insanely embarrassing...

Minjeong cautiously stood on the side, watching everything Jimin was doing, not with the intent to stare at with heart eyes, but actually examine the way she did things as her opponent. She was trying to find any flaws or mistakes, but everything her ex was doing seemed just about right—exactly how it's supposed to be done. The other girl's stance, foot placement, her perfectly balanced run and long jump—it was too easy for the latter. 

Even Jimin was surprised. She managed to jump exactly 3.85 meters, beating her own personal record. 

Must've been Minjeong's presence bringing the best out of her, huh? The need to impress the one whom she had to win against left her in disbelief of her own self instead. It was pathetic how down bad she must be to feel so proud of herself for wanting to look cool infront of Minjeong.

To say that Minjeong wasn't amazed and a little nervous would be a lie. She has always been good at sports and her earlier statement about being a fast runner wasn't a dramatic act or an exaggeration, she was indeed quite the Quicksilver and professional when it came to zoomies. This time, though, she definitely felt a little unsure of her own skills.

But God... Jimin looked so cool just now. Confident, beautiful, radiating pride and joy... It was such a picture worthy view.

And, it also gave her an idea.

A pretty stupid one, she admitted, but it wasn't impossible, neither did it mean it was ineffective.

Minjeong glanced behind her, where Aeri and Ning stood and watched from afar. And with a little whisper, she mumbled a soft, genuine apology into the air. A weak sorry to the girls, because after this, she might not be able to do the race.

Determinedly, she stepped forward to stand behind a red line, taking in deep breaths to focus on the task ahead. When the starting whistle was blown and the loud sound rang in her ears, a small yet all consuming voice in the back her head suddenly took control and nothing mattered other than the distance between her and the ending line she needed to reach before jumping. Her competitive side took over.

As if possessed by Busain Bolt, the long lost Korean daughter from Busan of Usain Bolt himself (damn, what a long name), she made a run for it.

She ran and ran, reaching close to the end.

Just a few more steps.

Just a few more...

And she jumped.

Meanwhile, several eyes were on her. Other than the minor amount of curious and cheerful students and the gym teacher, Jimin, Aeri and Ning were spectating her intently, the foreigners watching from afar, while Jimin sat by the benches relatively close to the them.

The black haired girl kept her eyes glued to Minjeong with a little proud grin. As for Aeri and Ning, they watched with their eyes wide open and jaws dropped to the ground like two cartoon characters. They never knew that Minjeong was good at long jumps...but funny thing was, neither did Jimin.

The whole time, Jimin had a twisting feeling that Minjeong might not do that well. But when she saw her ex girlfriend running with passion against the wind, her cheeks slightly flushed due the mildly cold breeze brushing her skin, doing three long steps right before leaping into the air like an angel learning how to fly again—she smiled widely with a little chuckle.

Minjeong did it yet again. Made her heart thump loudly against her ribcage.

Her rival always surprised her in such amazing ways. She jumped exactly 4.13 meters, winning her first flag for the day... and unbeknownst to everyone, probably the only one.

When Minjeong fell on the sand with a little oompf, she was startled by her own success and how well she did on her first try—but sighed, closing her eyes to visualize how she should proceed into perfecting her next move. Yes, she was over the moon that she was going to get a pass for all of her PE classes and that she just won the long jump challenge against an actual humanoid version of a kangaroo, who coincidentially was also her ex lover that she still loved like a hopeless romantic, but she deadass had to focus for the nth time of the day if she wanted this to work. 

Her Oscar worthy acting was about to take effect any second.

"Uh—teacher, I think I hurt my ankle by accident..." She winced and pointed at her leg, portraying a very believable grimace on her face.

The gym teacher walked closer with two more students nearby to check up on her, all of them getting worried when they noticed she had her hand clenching and covering her ankle. "Does it hurt here?" He asked, gently removing Minjeong's hand to look at her wound, lightly pressing on it.

The girl purposefully winced a bit too loudly, nodding aggressively.

"What happened?" Ning had walked up to the group surrounding Minjeong with concerned eyes. The students explained the situation to her, making Ning gasp. "Let me help you go to the infirmary room." She showed her hand out for Minjeong to stand up, earning a weak nod in return. 

The blonde one carefully stood up, pretending to be in pain while fake limping and wincing.

On the sidelines, there was Aeri, who didn't exactly see what happened after Minjeong's jump and assumed it all went well. To her shock, she was now getting escourted inside to the infirmary. The execution was pretty good, Minjeong jumped exactly how she's supposed to, and neither did the fall in the end look like she landed wrongly, so how did she get hurt?

"Weird... She did well, though." She crossed her arms, thinking with a hum.

Though, her attention was then casted on a specific girl from her own team. Aeri noticed how the girl's eyes hadn't moved away from Minjeong even once—not even to blink. Maybe, she saw what happened to her, right? Not like it would hurt to ask, because after all, she needed to speak to her.

Aeri walked up to the spaced out girl, tapping on her shoulder. "What happened to Minjeong?" She asked curiously.

Though, the latter didn't answer her at first, because she was too busy following Minjeong with shaky and worried eyes. Aeri tilted her head, giving the girl a little push on her shoulder, which brought her back to reality. "Yu Jimin~"

"Huh?"

"Kim Minjeong. What happened to her?" Aeri gestured while pointing her head towards the building the mentioned girl was escourted to.

Jimin didn't even hide how she gawked at Aeri, wondering if she was hearing stuff right. Was this pink-headed delinquent actually asking about Minjeong's well being? "Since when do you care about Minjeong?" Jimin asked with a questionable tone, which might have come off as rude and accusing instead of curious.

"Are you— I do not care about her, I'm just asking," Aeri huffed. "I made a bet, so I don't want it to go to waste if she's injured." Aeri crossed her arms defensively, furrowing her eyebrows and looking away. She couldn't hide how her tone didn't have it's usual bite, neither how the annoyance in her gaze had faded into mild concern.

"A bet?" Jimin questioned with a tight frown, turning to Aeri with an unexplainable look in her eyes. "What kind of a bet exactly? With who?"

"Whether she wins the track race or not. A little nerd will do something for me if Kim loses, and I'll leave them alone if she wins. Good bet, isn't it?" Aeri smirked, but a grumpy scoff escaped her lips afterwards. "And now, there won't be anything because this nerd got herself somehow injured. What an idiot..." She mumbled under her breath. It was unbelievable to her how clumsy and reckless a human being could be.

Jimin closed her eyes, trying to stay under control of her emotions after hearing this. She already knew Aeri was ignorant and an annoying one to deal with, but that wasn't the only reason why she felt angry. Why would Aeri bet on Minjeong like that? And for what reason exactly? Because she wanted 'a little nerd' to do something for her?

Wow... 

Fucking unbelievable.

In a blink, she extended her arms and reached for Aeri's collar to pull her to herself, surprising the Japanese by doing so. Jimin glared at her with unrestrained fury, gritting her teeth.

"Are you stupid? Why would you do such thing? She's not an object for you to place bets on for your own benefit!" She hissed, tightening her grip.

Aeri pushed her off, a smirk of amusement being plastered on her face. So it looks like smartypants Jimin is mad. "Well, well, well. Looks like someone's a little angry, huh?" Aeri mocked with a little sneer, biting her lip—because an idea popped up in her head right then.

Wouldn't it be more amusing to challenge Jimin's inner anger and see how far she'd go for Minjeong?

"Hm, this is so strange, don't you think? I wonder why the top student is talking like she actually cares about Minjeong... Did you suddenly start getting bored because she's not interested in competing with you anymore? Do you want her to be your clingy rival again?" Aeri's devious smirk appeared, tongue sticking out in between her teeth. She was getting very excited just by the sole thought of pissing someone as composed as Jimin off.

By this point, Jimin had heard more than enough. She knew that Aeri was aware of her and Minjeong's previous rivalry, which only added more into her fury because of what she mentioned. Jimin didn't want anybody to talk so carelessly about what she had with Minjeong. Especially not Uchinaga Aeri, who had made Minjeong's life miserable in the past.

"Just shut up, Aeri. I'm saying it nicely before I regret doing something."

"Oh? Do what?" Aeri wiggled her eyebrows, clasping her hands behind her back. "Punch me? Kick me? Spit on me? Give me detention? Come on, will you tell me please? I'm so curious!" She provoked mercilessly, feigning innocence.

Jimin clenched her fists, eyes burning with thoughts close to commiting illegal crimes that even the idea of going to jail wouldn't be enough to hold her back (too dramatic, but she was really pissed). It really looked like she'd do something right then, it really did—

But her respectful council president persona took over again.

"Listen Uchinaga, just enjoy the sports day without starting any fights, okay? Just have fun and that's all." Jimin sighed, taking a few steps back and facing the other way.

Aeri watched her whole personality switch happen with that malicious smile—until she dropped it completely, blinking in puzzlement. She expected this to happen, for Jimin's composed self to take over and commit to peace, because it always did, but didn't think it would be this soon. Jimin really looked like she would take a step further, get angrier and try harder to defend Minjeong and herseld, but maybe Aeri was wrong.

Now she understood perfectly why Minjeong had said what she said on the rooftop a while ago—about feeling hurt and not chosen by her lover.

It was this bad? Oh... now she's a little bothered by this. 

Just a little.

Aeri's whole expression darkened and she scoffed, "Oh, how shocking. Of course you're using the good, reponsible student stunt to walk away like a pussy." She walked after the president, thrown a little over the edge at her irritating patience. "What can you even do other than running away, huh? You couldn't keep a normal relationship going, but you think you have what it needs to try and console me because I bet on your ex? Be for fucking real Jimin, you never even cared enough about Minjeong anyway. Why now, when there's no point of doing anything if you're always going back to where you started?"

Aeri suddenly stopped herself from talking, eyes widened.

Okay, she went too far. 

That was certainly not her intention, but her low temper forced her to bring out the little shit in herself and provoke Jimin about something too private and sensitive. (And no, she doesn't usually care about others' feelings about sensitive topics, but since it was related to Minjeong, she did care to a minimal extent. She wouldn't admit it out loud, though.)

Aeri's whole idea was to try and use this as an opportunity to drop a hint to Jimin to leave the fields and go check if Minjeong was okay... but it took a completely wrong turn. Maybe she should've been a bit nicer, not let her temper get the best of her... and definitely not mention their relationship at all. She wanted to prove a point, but it wasn't really needed for her to do so when she wasn't familiar with the details. She might've gone overboard with that claim.

But Aeri wasn't blind. She knew what was coming next the moment she saw Jimin slowing her steps, head turning to face her, not a single ounce of her council president persona visible in her.

Oh, Jimin was mad. Mad mad.

So Aeri played dumb. She shrugged, as if she had done nothing whatsoever, and slowly turned on her heel to walk away. The athlete expected something to happen then—and it was not surprising how predictable it was.

Aeri sighed, saying one thing to herself before doing what she should to defend herself. "Can't believe I'm doing this shit for your ass, Kim..."

The pink haired one then pulled out her phone from her front pocket, putting it behind her head and waiting with closed eyes. The reason why she did that was because she knew Jimin was on the move after hearing rushed steps coming towards her.

Jimin had dared to run at Aeri and attempt to jab a punch behind her back.

The impact was instant.

Aeri cursed to herself, grumbling unpleasantly as she rubbed the back of her head with one hand, the other one holding the phone with the currently broken screen. She groaned and turned around, ready to start complaining about the price of her phone—but instead blinked at the morbid view, slightly squinting her nose in mild displeasure.

Jimin, holding her knuckles in her palm, was looking down at their hurt state with a frown and a hiss before staring back up at Aeri with a glare.

The Japanese one switched between looking at Jimin and the phone, feeling slightly disappointed—but yet, she was surprised that Jimin decided to act violently. An outburst like this? Such thing has never happened before. That only proved how important Minjeong really was to her. Aeri might've been wrong this time, because Jimin did care a lot more than she should—

Wait. Right. The plan! She almost forgot about the damn plan!

Aeri cleared her throat, switching back to her bratty attitude. "You thought I wouldn't see this coming? You're so predictable that it's annoying," she shook her head, walking away with a hidden smirk. "Go to the infirmary already, you dumbass. Your knuckles are bleeding." She said while waving her broken phone. This was a chance for Jimin to be with Minjeong for a little bit at the cost of her poor Iphone 16. Oh well... back to Iphone 15 it is. 

"Say hi to Minjeong from me and let me know if she's doing well, will you?" She spoke pretentiously and stuck her tongue out, smiling cheekily. "Send my regards to her~"

"Wait, wha—"

Jimin then got surrounded by a few students, asking her worriedly what happened. The black haired girl instinctively switched to a nice and easy-going attire, telling them that she hurt herself by accident by bumping into a wall. It was the fakest, most unbelievable lie ever, but nobody had the heart or courage to question it because she seemed too spaced out. 

She... she couldn't believe what had just happened.

She quickly caught up on the intentions that Aeri had. The only thing that confused her a lot was how, why and when did Aeri find out about her relationship with Minjeong, and why it had to lead to Jimin getting pissed off to the point she got her knuckles messed up in the end. Like, what was the fucking point?? Even destroying a whole phone in the process!? But really, could Minjeong have told Aeri about... everything? Since when were they on tolerable terms—even sharing things to eachother?

All Jimin could do was feel annoyed that Aeri was acting like she didn't do anything whatsoever. That girl clearly provoked her so Jimin could grow a pair of balls and go check up on Minjeong.

"Damn you, Aeri... You're so annoying..."

"Does it hurt?"

Ning worriedly asked the moment Minjeong got a checkup and was given an ice pack.

The 'injured' girl sighed, looking down before nodding weakly. She felt bad for lying, but she had a reason to do so. She didn't want to disappoint none of the two girls with the race's outcome. "Sorry.." Minjeong said under her breath, but Ning overheard her and gently gave the blonde one a lighthearted push on her shoulder.

"What are you sorry for? If it's about the bet, I could care less about it. I'm sure Aeri is outraged now that it's not going to happen." Ning giggled to herself, but shook her head immediately. "I'm sorry for that... Our bickering got you in this trouble."

That was kind of true, but Minjeong didn't have the heart to say it. "It's not your guys' fault. I was being a little careless with... you know, this thing on my leg." Minjeong chuckled, sighing to herself in relief. Thank god that Ning didn't get upset.

But right then, a weak knock was heard on the door.

The nurse inside the room opened it, gasping the moment she did so. "Oh my— Ms. Yu Jimin! What happened to your hand?"

The moment Minjeong heard that name, something pulled at her heart in all kinds of way, but mostly in curiosity. Why was Jimin here as well?

"Oh, uh... Just a little accident, it's okay." Jimin lied with a weak chuckle. 

But it didn't go past the nurse's very observant gaze. "Just a little accident!?" She was not convinced, "What kind of an accident leads to this? Your knuckles are bleedi—"

A shout caught them all unprepared.

"They're WHAT!?"

Minjeong stood up from the bed to peek her head, surprising the other three that were in the room. 

Ning glanced at Minjeong's foot before looking at Jimin, suddenly chuckling to herself. "Ah, it was a lie all along, wasn't it.." She mumbled to herself, giving Minjeong a pat on her shoulder. "I'll go back to watch and support the team. Don't 'hurt' yourself so much from now on, hm?" Ning smiled knowingly, walking away from the blonde one. She walked past Jimin, giving her a wink and a thumbs up for good luck before dashing out the room.

Jimin sighed to herself, showing a reassuring smile to Minjeong before walking over to an empty bed and sitting on it to get her wound bandaged up and disinfected.

The whole time, Minjeong was intently watching with a concerned frown from behind the covers of her resting bed.  As much as she had to play the hard to get part, she couldn't help but worry a lot. She wanted to run and hug Jimin, kiss her pain away and tell her as many encouraging words as possible to make her feel better.

But she couldn't do that anymore. It wasn't in her place to be so concerned when she was the one who ended things.

The nurse put her equipment away, holding the wounded hand in her hand and re-checking if anything else needed to be applied. Once sure, her gaze landed on Jimin and she nodded. "You're all done and ready, Ms. Yu. Please be careful from now on, okay?" The nurse said with a little smile.

"I'll try to be, thank you." Jimin nodded back, caressing her bandaged hand with a weak exhale. At least it didn't hurt as much as earlier and the nurse was being very patient and gentle with her, she was glad for that and appretiated it.

"Feel free to stay here for as long as you need to. I have several matters to attend for a few minutes, but I'll be back in no time." The nurse informed, leaving the infirmary room without a second notice.

Now... Jimin and Minjeong were alone in a room. (unfortunately, not k-i-s-s-i-n-g.)

Jimin finally had the opportunity to check up on Minjeong, and now that it was just them, she didn't even think twice as Aeri's irritating voice rang in her head and forced her to act on impulse. 

Her steps were faster than her thoughts as she quickly dashed to the girl's side, giving her a slight startle. "Hey, is your ankle okay? Does it... hurt a lot? How are you feeling?" Jimin spoke worriedly, hesitantly stepping closer to stand an arms reach away from her in case Minjeong needed something.

Minjeong froze for a moment, looking down at her foot with a hum, but the upwards tug at her lips betrayed her. Jimin asked about how she felt, if she was okay, if anything hurt with so much concern—the kind of questions that were a rarity back when they were too busy being rivals, but now the latter had asked them without any reminders from Minjeong's side. 

Minjeong's heart might've skipped a beat at the slight improvement right then.

The blonde looked back up to match her gaze, pointing at Jimin's hand. "I'm okay, but... How did that happen?"

"Oh. This?" Jimin silently scoffed under her breath, masking it as a sigh. "It was Aeri's fault." She grumbled despite that, making Minjeong widen her eyes.

"Aeri caused it? Did she hurt you..?" She questioned with a weak, shaky voice.

Jimin was about to inform her of their little altercation, but she saw how worried Minjeong looked and how her lips had formed into the cutest, most worried pout ever. Damn it, that almost made Jimin want to kiss Minjeong to ease her mind...

She shook her head albeit hesitantly, choosing to keep Aeri's involvement hidden. "No, I... I hurt myself because I was too careless and Aeri was just there," she quickly thought of a fake excuse, although it might've only caused more confusion because of the look Minjeong shot her.

Oh she knows, she panicked in her head, think of something, Yu Jimin! 

In a rushed attempt to shift the focus, she gestured at the latter's leg awkwardly, "So, uh, I saw you limping when Ning escourted you here. Didn't your ankle hurt when you stood up?"

It must've done the job, becuase Minjeong looked like the gears started turning in her head after that mention. 

Right, she realized, Jimin thinks I'm actually hurt.

"My ankle... well," Minjeong looked down at her leg again in contemplation, sighing weakly before her act fell into pieces, suddenly chuckling. "Not at all, actually. I lied that I got hurt, because I didn't want to take part in a stupid bet." She revealed. 

Jimin blinked. "Wait, you lied?"

"I did."

"Does that mean you're... alright?" A little hum followed by a relieved yet small smile appeared at her face once Minjeong nodded as an answer. "At least you're okay. That's what matters."

Jimin's smile then widened upon realizing that this was the first time they spoke so much after a month or more. It wasn't as awkward or nervewracking as she expected it to be. No, she felt quite at ease to be speaking to Minjeong, actually. It was as if a part of her never forgot how comforting and simple everything used to be, and it made her heart feel lighter than ever before.

As much as she didn't want to believe it nor admit it, that hot-headed and annoying Uchinaga delinquent might have given her an amazing chance to have a one on one conversation with her ex by provoking her on purpose.

Minjeong caught a glimpse of Jimin's little yet radiant smile, making her reciprocate it as well though to herself. Out of everything, she missed seeing this side of Jimin the most. Watching how the girl she loved show glimpses of her bright side that always improved her mood was enough to fill up her stomach with butterflies.

"I was worried, but I... I'm really glad you're okay." Jimin shyly said with a slight chuckle, raising her hand and squeezing Minjeong's shoulder once in a comforting manner. 

She caressed the wrinkles on her sports shirt and let her palm rest on her bicep a few beats longer, indulged in the warmth coming from her skin onto the fabric. Had Minjeong always felt this warm and... nice to touch? It couldn't be because she was in love with her, right? That would be something she wouldn't really admit out loud because of how sappy it sounded. But how could she dissmiss this feeling when it felt like a blessing to have even the smallest contact, as if a part of her heart felt fullfilled and alive again?

Minjeong wasn't feeling any different. The blonde felt a shiver run up her spine at the prolonged touch, trying to gulp down the feeling of her pulse racing in her throat as if hiding it would stop the loud palpitations and flutters all over her body. 

She awkwardly looked away with a shy smile, hiding the rush of crimson coloring her cheeks. She had missed Jimin's gentle touches so much that this simple, innocent gesture made her feel flustered despite herself.

"Yeah, I'm okay—" 

She was saying until her eyes widened, hand suddenly aggressively tapping on her bed. 

"You're the one who's injured, though! Sit here and don't move your hand." She spoke in a demanding way, a complete 180 of her earlier flustered self. 

The serious attitude and demand in her voice forced Jimin to blink and obey with no complaints whatsoever. Whatever Minjeong wants, Minjeong gets, she should know better than to not listen.

The black haired one sat down on the edge, lightly caressing her bandaged hand with a frown and a pout. She was still upset by the fact that Aeri called her predictable, even though it was true. Because the more she thought about it, the more stupid she felt. Of course an experienced delinquent would know that if someone's limits were pushed and they get pissed off, they'd act upon their feelings and immedialy go for the first attack when the other side turns their back. 

How pathetic must've that looked, she wondered. Jimin really thought that the punch she'd give her would turn out to be good enough to shut Aeri up. Ah, how embarrassing...

"How did you get hurt?" Minjeong shifted to sit beside the girl, arms lightly brushing.

"It was so dumb..." Jimin mumbled without much thought, lost in her own self pity. "I punched Aeri's phone and it lead to this."

"Why would you try to punch her phone..?" Minjeong questioned with a look of judgement. Yes, she was aware that Jimin is capable of doing dumb things like any other human being on the planet, but punching a phone? That sounded so stupid that it felt like a joke.

Jimin, realizing she outed herself like a loser, groaned inwardly and cleared her throat, scratching her head with her other hand. "Aeri... did something." 

"What?"

Now, how was she going to answer that? Jimin was already out of excuses due to being exposed under Minjeong's curious yet concerned... 

Or... was she? 

"You see, Aeri, uh... She said something bad about you, that's why!" Jimin quickly thought of a response, giving an internal high five to herself, 

And her answer, to add to her bad luck, only made Minjeong more curious. "Oh? Aeri said something bad about me? Pfft, it's not like it would be the first or last time. What did she say?" Minjeong asked with a tilted head and a slight grin. It made her happy to see Jimin care openly and genunienly about her, even though Aeri must've had a reason to challenge Jimin by mentioning her straight on. What must've Aeri said that had Jimin punching phones and getting herself hurt..?

Wait. Jimin got hurt because of her, Minjeong realized that this was serious.

"You got hurt because of me..?" Minjeong uttered softly, which forced Jimin to turn to her in a snap.

I'll always get myself hurt for your sake... How much Jimin wanted to say that, but she felt too embarrassed and shy. "N-No, it's—it's not that big of a deal, don't worry," she gulped, but noticed that Minjeong's expression dropped, feeling guilt and shame.

Why did this girl have to be so soft?

"Why would you go that far, Jimin..? It's just Aeri, you shouldn't have taken her words seriously." Minjeong sulked sadly, looking down at Jimin's bandaged hand and hesitantly touching the gauze. 

When she saw how the taller one's fingers twitched in a failed attempt to hide the sting of the touch, Minjeong had to bite her lip to stop her emotions from overflowing. She hated the fact that Jimin had to endure this pain and Minjeong couldn't do anything about it. "I'm sorry for putting you through this..." 

Jimin exhaled silently, shaking her head. "It's not your fault, Minjeong. Don't apologize, it's okay—"

"How is it okay!? You got hurt! Your knuckles were literally bleeding when you came here and your hand just twitched right infront of my face, Jimin!" Minjeong slightly raised her voice out of guilt, pointing at the clearly injured hand.

"Minjeong. Really. It's o—"

"No, it's not okay! You shouldn't have done anything, but just let her be!"

"Minjeong."  Jimin stared. "Calm down—"

"I will not calm down," she said, but her voice softened a little though the firmness remained. "You know how Aeri is like, she always says things to get others fired up—"

"...Minjeong—"

"—so I don't understand why you did this! Why would you hurt yourself for something so stupid and—"

"Because I love you, Minjeong!"

Minjeong blinked at Jimin with a tilted head, but inside, she felt like her heart would explode because of how fast it was beating.

"You do..?"

"Of course I love you." 

Jimin's admission was soft and honest, as if the answer was already out there long before the question was asked, but she wouldn't mind repeating it all over again to the person who needed to hear it. "Why would I do all of this—get myself hurt for you, worry for you and be here to check up on you if I didn't?" She said gently and matched her gaze, wrapped hand awkwardly extending forward to cup the girl's cheek.

Even though her hand was injured and felt uncomfortable every time she moved it, all of the pain completely vanished the second she felt Minjeong's soft, familiar skin in contact with the tips of her fingers again.

"It's been so long without you by my side and I keep on missing you more and more with each passing day." She admitted, pausing to inhale before continuing," I keep on looking at our photos to remember how happy we were together, I can only fall asleep whenever I'm listening to your old voice messages and—and...fuck, I just—I love you so much Minjeong that I can't hold it in anymore and have to let it all out..."

Jimin admitted everything in one breath and was getting choked up, but shook her head and proceeded to add more, "But I do remember what you told me. That I should realize my mistake before trying to bring us back together. I promised you that I'll become someone better, so I'm not expecting you to respond to my outburst of feelings right now. But I promise that I'm going to show you proper love, because that's what you deserve, Minjeong. You deserve nothing, but the kindest and purest love." She spoke with a watery smile in the end, fingers craddling and caressing the small mole under Minjeong's eye.

The blonde looked at her longingly, gently caressing the wrist of the hand that was on her cheeks. Minjeong's eyes were shaking just as much as her heart's pulse was racing at the intimacy, "Jimin..." she whispered her name as a response instead, overwhelmed yet at ease, lost in the dark orbs of the girl before her gaze, that seemed to be glistening under the room's soft lighting.

They couldn't believe how they managed to control themselves at that moment. Oh, just how much Jimin wanted to lean forward and kiss Minjeong just then, and just how much Minjeong wanted to let it all out to the whole world that she loved Jimin back and never stopped.

But both had a part to act without rushing anything. It was all up to their next words and actions to decide their future relationship. It was all about proper timings and opportunities like these where they could let themselves feel vulnerable, be honest and certain with eachother, share how they feel and learn to communicate better.

And they surely weren't going to stop searching for such moments if it meant they could be together again.

"Will you continue to wait for me? For just a little bit longer until I sort it all out?" Jimin asked with her soft, endearing eyes.

Minjeong stared in awe and lightly nodded, a smile of assurance creeping up her lips. She didn't have any plans to stop waiting, anyway. If Jimin was the girl she'd call her one and only girlfriend and receive her true love again, she'd undoubtedly wait for months, even years if she had to.

Today was just a reminder that there was someone out there who sought for her just as much as she sought for them, too.

"I will."

"Promise?"

"Promise."