Louder Than We Speak - YJW
pairing : yang jungwon x fem!reader
total wc : 10.7k (tumblr won't let me post it all at once)
synopsis : best friends to lovers • yearning • one-sided? (or is it??) • tension
genres : slow burn • teen romance • high school romance
warnings : a bit of cursing
featuring : heeseung ( enhypen / evan ), yunjin ( le sserafim ), wonhee ( illit ), ni-ki ( enhypen )
now playing : Reflections - The Neighborhood
you and Jungwon have been inseparable since elementary school and everyone at school knows them as the best friends who are always together. But as time passes, small moments between them start feeling different, leaving both of them confused about feelings they never expected. Between school life, friendships, and growing closer than ever, they begin to realize that some things are harder to ignore than they thought.
Everyone at school knew two things for sure: you and Jungwon came as a pair, and trying to separate the two of you was basically impossible.
Nobody really remembered when it started. You had known each other for so long that people just assumed you had always existed side by side. Elementary school pictures had Jungwon standing next to you with messy hair and missing teeth. Middle school pictures had both of you making stupid faces at the camera. Even now, years later, not much had changed.
You and Jungwon had always fit together naturally. The kind of friendship that never needed effort. You were there when he cried after getting hurt during recess in elementary school, and he was there when you nearly had a breakdown over a terrible grade in seventh grade. You knew his favorite snacks without asking, and he knew exactly which expression meant you were annoyed before you even said anything.
Being around Jungwon felt normal. Comfortable, like muscle memory.
If you walked into school half asleep, he already had a drink waiting for you because he knew you skipped breakfast again. If he forgot a pencil, your hand was already reaching into your bag before he could ask. Hallways meant shoulders bumping together while you made fun of each other for absolutely no reason. Lunch meant stealing food off each other’s trays while pretending to be offended about it.
People noticed it. Obviously they did. Because somehow, no matter where you looked around school, one of you was always beside the other.
“Are they dating?” freshmen would whisper.
“Nah,” older students would answer immediately. “They’re just like that.”
That answer had never bothered either of you before.
Then again… things had started changing recently. Tiny things you didn’t think much about at first.
Things like how Jungwon had started looking at you a little longer than normal. Not enough to make it obvious, but enough for you to notice.
You’d be talking about something completely random — complaining about homework or telling him about some stupid thing you saw online — and suddenly you’d stop because Jungwon wasn’t responding anymore. He’d just be staring at you, eyes focused completely on your face. Then the second you noticed, he’d blink and casually look away like nothing happened.
“What?” you’d ask suspiciously.
Jungwon would stare at you for another second before shrugging. “Nothing.”
“…Why were you staring at me?”
“You literally were,” you’d reply immediately.
And then he’d smile with that stupidly addictive smile of his. The kind where his eyes got smaller and he looked way too pleased with himself. Lately, that smile had started making your chest feel weird.
Not in a bad way. Just… weird.
Still, you ignored it because Jungwon was always just Jungwon.
The same boy who cried because his ice cream fell on the ground in fourth grade. The same boy who tripped, trying to look cool in front of older students. The same boy who had always been beside you.
So there was absolutely no reason your heart should suddenly start acting stupid around him.
The thing about being friends with Jungwon for so long was that privacy between the two of you barely existed anymore. Not real privacy, anyway.
He knew your phone passcode because back in sixth grade you forgot your phone at lunch and shouted the numbers across the cafeteria without thinking. You knew his order at basically every place you went to because he got the exact same thing every single time. You knew when he was lying, when he was annoyed, and when something was bothering him even when he insisted he was “fine.” Somehow, he always knew the same things about you too.
So maybe that was why you noticed it immediately when he started acting differently. Not completely different, just… off.
At first, it was subtle. Like how he suddenly got quieter whenever you sat too close to him, or how he’d stare at you while you talked only to immediately look away the second you noticed. The tips of his ears also kept turning red for absolutely no reason.
Actually, scratch that. There was definitely a reason. You just hadn’t figured it out yet.
“Jungwon,” you said suddenly during lunch. “Hm?” He responded, looking up from his drink. You narrowed your eyes at him from across the table. “You’re acting weird.” He nearly choked on his drink. “What?” He asked quickly. “Weird,” you repeated slowly.
Jungwon stared at you with wide eyes before laughing nervously. “How?” he asked.
You tilted your head while squinting harder at him. “I don’t know. You’re just…” you paused dramatically, “…being weird.”
Across the table, Yunjin looked up so fast she nearly gave herself whiplash. Heeseung immediately looked down at his food because his shoulders started shaking from holding in laughter. Then Ni-ki completely lost it.
“No way,” Ni-ki wheezed while slamming his hand against the table. “NO WAY.”
Jungwon looked genuinely horrified. “Shut up,” he muttered immediately.
“You’re so obvious, holy shit—” Ni-ki started. “Ni-ki,” Jungwon warned. “I’m serious!” Ni-ki cried dramatically.
Wonhee blinked between everyone in confusion. “Wait, what happened?” she asked.
“Nothing!” Jungwon answered way too quickly. Your eyes narrowed instantly. “…Why are you sweating?” you asked suspiciously. “I’m not sweating,” he replied immediately.
“I’m not!” Jungwon cut you off loudly.
Silence filled the table for a second. Then Yunjin slowly covered her face with both hands. “Oh my God,” she groaned into her palms.
You and Jungwon both looked around at everyone else in confusion. “…What the hell is wrong with you guys?” you asked.
Nobody answered. Mostly because if anyone actually said it out loud, Jungwon probably would’ve evaporated on the spot.
The weirdness didn’t stop after that. If anything, it got worse.
A few days later, gym class got moved outside because apparently your teacher woke up and decided everyone should suffer. You sat beside Wonhee on the bleachers while dramatically fanning yourself with your hand. “I’m literally dying,” you complained.
Wonhee laughed beside you. “It’s not even that hot.”
“It absolutely is,” you argued immediately.
Across the field, Heeseung and Ni-ki were kicking a soccer ball around while Jungwon stood nearby. You weren’t paying much attention until Ni-ki suddenly yelled loud enough for half the school to hear.
“JUNGWON, PAY ATTENTION!”
Your head lifted immediately. Jungwon blinked in confusion. “…Huh?” he said.
The soccer ball slammed directly into his shoulder.
“OHHHHHHHH!” Ni-ki screamed instantly.
You stood up laughing so hard you nearly lost your balance. “OH MY GOD,” you yelled while pointing at Jungwon.
Jungwon stared at everyone in betrayal while rubbing his shoulder. Meanwhile, Ni-ki had literally dropped to the ground laughing while Heeseung looked genuinely disappointed.
“Dude,” Heeseung said. “What?!” Jungwon yelled back. “What do you mean, what? We passed you the ball!” Heeseung replied.
Jungwon frowned in confusion. “…You did?” he asked.
Ni-ki slowly looked toward you, then back toward Jungwon, then back toward you again. A dangerous smile spread across his face. “No fucking way,” he whispered dramatically.
Jungwon’s eyes widened instantly. “No.”
“Oh my God,” Ni-ki breathed.
“NI-KI, SHUT UP!” Jungwon yelled.
You stared at all of them in complete confusion. “Did I miss something?” you asked while looking toward Wonhee.
Wonhee shrugged, but the suspicious smile on her face said otherwise.
Later that day, you were shoving books into your locker when Yunjin suddenly appeared beside you out of nowhere.
“What the hell?!” you nearly screamed.
She ignored your reaction completely. “Do you like Jungwon?” she asked immediately.
Your hand froze. Everything froze. Even the hallway suddenly felt too quiet. “…What?” you said slowly.
Yunjin stared at you while you stared back. It basically turned into an intense eye contact competition.
“What kind of question is that?” you finally asked.
“A normal one,” Yunjin replied casually.
You slammed your locker shut a little too hard. “No it isn’t,” you argued.
Yunjin raised an eyebrow. “…Y/n, you answered way too fast.”
“No, I didn’t,” you replied immediately.
Your face suddenly started feeling warm again. Annoyingly warm. Because the stupid thing was… you wanted to say no. You really did.
But for some reason, the answer got stuck in your throat.
Yunjin noticed. Of course she did.
Yunjin had this irritating habit of looking at people like she could unzip their thoughts and dump everything out onto the floor. And right now, she was staring at you exactly like that. Slowly. Suspiciously. Way too knowingly.
“You hesitated,” she said immediately.
You scoffed. “I didn’t hesitate.”
Yunjin pointed at you accusingly. “You stared at the wall for like five seconds.” “I was thinking,” you defended yourself.
“Jesus Christ,” you groaned.
Yunjin crossed her arms before smiling at you. Not a normal smile either. One of those smiles that immediately made you want to leave the conversation.
“…You know what’s funny?” she asked. You narrowed your eyes suspiciously. “What.”
“You didn’t say no the second time.”
Your brain completely stopped. Actually stopped.
Because shit. Before you could even defend yourself, Yunjin suddenly looked over your shoulder and grinned. Your stomach dropped instantly. Slowly, you turned around.
Jungwon stood there holding two drinks in his hands.
Silence. Absolute silence.
His eyes moved between you and Yunjin while Yunjin looked way too innocent and you looked completely horrified.
“…Hi,” Jungwon said slowly.
Nobody moved. Nobody spoke. Then Yunjin suddenly patted your shoulder. “Okay! I’m leaving!” she announced.
“Wait—” you started immediately.
And then she walked away. Actually ran away. Traitor. Complete traitor.
You stood there awkwardly staring at the floor while Jungwon stared at you in confusion.
“…That was weird,” he said slowly.
Your laugh came out way too high-pitched. “Haha—yeah.”
Jungwon narrowed his eyes slightly before holding one of the drinks out toward you. “I got you this.”
You blinked in surprise before taking it carefully. “…You remembered?” you asked quietly.
Jungwon looked genuinely confused. “Remembered what?”
He stared at you for a second before his expression softened completely. Then he smiled. Not a huge smile, just a small one.
“Obviously I remembered,” he said casually.
You hated when he did that. Hated when he said things so casually that somehow made your heart start acting stupid for absolutely no reason.
Because for Jungwon, it was normal. Of course he remembered. He remembered everything.
Like how you hated pickles. Or how you always got cold in classrooms. Or how every single year around exam season you stressed yourself out while pretending you weren’t stressed at all.
He always noticed things. Always.
You looked down at the drink before mumbling quietly, “…Thanks.”
Jungwon stared at you suspiciously for a second before narrowing his eyes slightly. “…You’re acting weird.”
You nearly dropped the drink. “What?!”
“You are,” he said simply.
Jungwon crossed his arms. “You’ve been weird all day.”
You stared at him while he stared back at you.
Then suddenly, he stepped closer. Not by a lot. Just enough for you to notice. Enough for your brain to notice.
Your eyes widened slightly. “…What.”
Jungwon tilted his head while looking at you carefully. “Are you okay?” he asked quietly.
And suddenly, you felt really stupid.
Because Jungwon wasn’t looking at you weirdly. He wasn’t teasing you or trying to embarrass you. He looked genuinely worried. Like he always did. Like he had for years.
Your shoulders relaxed slightly. “…Yeah.”
He continued staring at you for another second like he was trying to decide whether or not you were lying. Then finally, he sighed. “Okay.”
You thought that was the end of it. You really did.
But later that day during your last class, your teacher decided to torture everyone with some horrible group project announcement. Groans immediately filled the room.
The teacher ignored every complaint completely. “Partners will be random.”
You immediately turned toward Jungwon.
Jungwon immediately turned toward you.
There wasn’t even a discussion. No words. No thinking. Just instant panic. Because you had done every single project together for as long as anyone could remember. Literally forever.
“Please,” you whispered dramatically.
Jungwon nodded seriously. “Please.”
Names started getting called one after another while students moved around the classroom.
Your smile dropped instantly.
Beside you, Jungwon suddenly went quiet.
You blinked before slowly turning toward him.
“…Jungwon and…” your teacher paused while looking down at the paper. “Chaerin.”
You stared at him. He stared at you. Neither of you moved.
For some reason, your chest suddenly felt weird. Really weird. Not sad. Not angry. Just… weird. Like something suddenly didn’t feel right anymore.
Jungwon looked away first.
But for some reason, you hated the way it sounded.
You hated the feeling immediately.
Which made absolutely no sense.
Because it was just a project. Not some life-changing event. Not something dramatic. You and Jungwon had worked with other people before, so why was your chest suddenly feeling tight and uncomfortable over something this stupid?
You looked down at the notebook sitting on your desk instead.
Your teacher kept calling names while chairs scraped loudly against the floor and students moved around the classroom, but everything sounded weirdly distant. Like background noise.
Because beside you, Jungwon wasn’t saying anything.
Normally he would’ve leaned over and whispered some complaint like, “We’re gonna fail,” or “Save me.” Normally he would’ve nudged your arm or made some dramatic comment.
You glanced sideways at him.
Jungwon was staring toward the front of the classroom with his jaw resting against his hand while his fingers tapped lightly against the desk.
You knew him well enough to recognize that immediately. He always did that when something was bothering him. Not angry annoyed, just… bothered.
You stared for another second before speaking quietly. “…You’re upset.”
His eyes shifted toward you. “What?”
“You’re doing the finger thing,” you pointed out.
“The finger thing?” he repeated in confusion.
You pointed toward his hand. “That.”
Jungwon looked down before immediately stopping the movement. “Oh.”
His expression shifted slightly before he looked back at you. “…I’m not upset,” he said.
You gave him a look. Not because you didn’t believe him, but because you knew he was completely full of shit.
Jungwon stared back for a few seconds before sighing quietly through his nose. “…Okay, maybe a little.”
“A little?” you repeated.
He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “We’ve literally done every project together.”
For some reason, your chest softened a little at that. “…Jungwon.”
“It’s not like I’m transferring schools.”
“Then stop acting like I died.”
The corners of his lips twitched slightly. “…You’re dramatic.”
You stared at him in disbelief. “I’m dramatic?”
Jungwon smiled wider this time. “There she is.”
“You looked weird for a second,” he explained while keeping his eyes on your face.
Your eyebrows furrowed. “Weird?”
“Yeah,” he said softly. “You looked sad.”
Your stomach immediately did that stupid thing again. That annoying feeling where it suddenly felt like someone squeezed your heart for half a second.
Because out of everything happening around you—the classroom, the project, the noise—Jungwon noticed that.
For a moment, you just looked at him. Really looked at him.
The sunlight coming through the classroom windows hit the side of his face, making parts of his dark hair fall slightly over his eyes. He looked relaxed now, the earlier annoyance completely gone.
Then suddenly, he looked over and caught you staring.
“…Why are you looking at me like that?” he asked suspiciously.
You blinked quickly. “No reason.”
Jungwon narrowed his eyes immediately. “No, seriously. Why are you staring?”
Your brain instantly started panicking. Because you definitely couldn’t say:
“I was staring because I just realized I pay attention to your face way too much.”
So instead, you shrugged casually and leaned back in your chair. “I was trying to figure out why your hair looks weird today.”
Jungwon stared at you. Actually stared.
Then his eyes widened dramatically. “…My hair looks weird?”
You nearly laughed instantly. “Oh my God.”
Immediately his hand flew up to his hair. “What do you mean weird?” he asked quickly.
“No, no, no—” you started laughing.
“What do you mean weird?!”
At that point you were already fully laughing, shoulders shaking while Jungwon looked personally betrayed.
You covered your mouth while trying to breathe. “Oh my God, your face—”
“No because you actually panicked—”
A few people around the classroom started turning toward the noise. Heeseung looked over from two rows away with visible confusion on his face. “…Why does Jungwon look offended?” he asked.
Ni-ki squinted at the two of you before immediately grinning. “Oh my God, she bullied him again.”
Jungwon pointed at you dramatically. “She said my hair looked weird,” he complained.
Ni-ki stared at him for a second before immediately bursting into laughter.
And just like that, the weird heavy feeling from earlier disappeared completely.
Because Jungwon was sitting there looking fake offended while trying to fix his hair using his phone camera, and suddenly you realized something that scared you a little.
No matter how weird things had started feeling lately… no matter how confusing your thoughts were becoming…
Being with Jungwon still felt like home.
The project should’ve been easy. That was the annoying part.
It wasn’t some giant presentation or a twenty-page essay. It was just a two-week assignment with research, a slideshow, and a short presentation at the end. Something simple. Something you normally would’ve finished in like two days if you and Jungwon were working together.
But instead, you were sitting in the library after school with Minseo while staring blankly at your laptop as she talked about fonts.
“…I think blue feels more professional,” Minseo said while scrolling through different title options.
You blinked slowly. “Hm?”
“Like for the title,” she explained.
Minseo looked over at you carefully. “…Are you okay?” she asked.
Your eyes widened slightly. “What? Yeah.”
You’d been doing it for the last fifteen minutes without even realizing it. Not intentionally. Not because you were trying to.
Your eyes just kept drifting across the library.
Drifting toward the corner table.
Toward Jungwon and Chaerin.
And the worst part was that they weren’t even doing anything. Somehow, that made it worse.
Jungwon sat with his sleeves pushed up slightly while looking over papers spread across the table. Every once in a while, he’d lean over to point something out while Chaerin said something back. He’d smile politely, nod, then go back to working.
Normal. Completely normal.
He wasn’t laughing harder than usual. Wasn’t leaning closer. Wasn’t acting different. Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
So why the hell were you staring?
You quickly forced your eyes back toward your laptop. “…Sorry,” you muttered.
Minseo tilted her head. “For what?”
Your fingers started tapping lightly against the desk.
Slowly, you looked down at your hand.
You immediately stopped moving your fingers because—
That was Jungwon’s thing.
You stared at your hand for another second before frowning slightly. Since when did you start doing that?
You looked up quickly. “Hm?”
Minseo smiled a little. “I asked if you wanted to split the slides.”
You forced yourself to focus back on the screen.
You lasted five minutes before hearing laughter from across the library.
Your eyes lifted automatically.
Traitor. Absolute traitor.
Across the room, Jungwon was laughing quietly at something Chaerin had said. Not even loudly. Just smiling while looking down at the table.
And for some reason—some incredibly irritating reason—your stomach twisted slightly.
Not because he was laughing. Jungwon laughed with people all the time. He had friends. You had friends. None of this was weird.
So why did it feel weird?
You stared for a second too long.
Then suddenly, Jungwon looked up.
Your eyes widened instantly. Shit.
For a moment, neither of you looked away.
His smile faded slightly. Not completely. Just enough that it looked like he noticed something. Like he was trying to figure something out.
Then Chaerin said something beside him, and he finally looked away.
And for some reason, you hated the feeling that settled in your chest afterward.
The rest of the library session dragged painfully slowly. By the time you finally packed your stuff and left, your brain felt exhausted. Not because of the project. Because of yourself.
Because you were acting weird. Actually weird.
You pushed open the school doors and stepped outside, immediately feeling the cooler evening air hit your face. Students were scattered around the front of the building waiting for rides or walking home with friends.
You pulled your phone out of your pocket.
Because there was already a message waiting for you.
You stared at the screen for a second.
Then another message appeared.
Your lips twitched slightly before you typed back.
Less than ten seconds later, you heard your name.
You looked up immediately.
Jungwon jogged down the front steps toward you with his backpack hanging awkwardly off one shoulder.
You blinked at him. “…You left?”
He looked confused. “…Yeah?”
“No, I mean—” you glanced back toward the school for a second. “…Your project?”
“Oh.” Jungwon shrugged casually. “We’re done for today.”
Then he looked at you carefully. “…Why?” he asked.
You opened your mouth. Closed it. Then opened it again.
Because suddenly, you realized something.
You’d assumed he would stay longer. Assumed he’d keep hanging out with Chaerin after working. Assumed—
Jungwon’s eyebrows pulled together slightly. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
You stared at him for another second before narrowing your eyes slightly. “…Nothing.”
There was a pause. Then Jungwon narrowed his eyes back at you.
“…You’re doing it again.”
Your heart skipped. “…Doing what?”
You blinked innocently. “I don’t have a suspicious face.”
Jungwon stared at you for a second.
Then suddenly, he stepped closer. Not enough to touch you. Just enough.
Enough that you could see his eyes properly. Enough that your brain suddenly forgot how to function.
“…You do,” he said quietly.
And for some reason, your heart immediately started beating way too hard over something so small.
Jungwon stayed standing in front of you for a few more seconds like he was waiting for you to explain yourself, but unfortunately your brain had suddenly stopped functioning normally.
He wasn’t even doing anything. He was just standing there with his backpack hanging off one shoulder while looking at you with slightly narrowed eyes. The late afternoon sunlight hit the side of his face, making parts of his hair look softer under the light. Completely normal. Completely harmless.
And yet somehow, the longer he looked at you, the more aware you became of every little thing. The way his hair had gotten slightly messy from being outside. The way his sleeves were pushed up a little. The way he kept staring at you like he was genuinely trying to figure out what was happening inside your head.
Then his eyebrows pulled together slightly. “Y/n, seriously, what is it?” he asked. “You’ve been acting strange all day.”
You blinked once. Then twice. Your brain immediately started scrambling for something believable because there was absolutely no way you could say:
Oh, I don’t know, maybe I spent half the afternoon staring at you across the library because seeing you sit next to another girl made me feel weird for reasons I still don’t understand.
So instead, you looked away casually and shrugged. “Nothing’s wrong,” you lied. “I just got a headache from staring at the computer screen.”
Jungwon stared at you for another moment. Too long. Way too long.
Because that was another problem with being friends with Jungwon for years—lying to him was horrible. Actually horrible. You could lie to teachers. You could lie to your parents. You could even lie to your friends pretty easily. But Jungwon? Jungwon looked at you for five seconds and suddenly it felt like he was reaching directly into your brain and pulling the truth out himself.
“Hm,” he said slowly while still staring at you.
“Hm?” you repeated suspiciously.
You narrowed your eyes immediately. “Why are you saying it like that?”
He shrugged casually. “No reason.”
The corners of his lips twitched instantly. “No, because don’t do that,” you complained.
“Do what?” he asked innocently.
“That suspicious thing where you clearly know something but won’t say it.”
Jungwon shrugged again. “I don’t know anything.”
You stared at him while he stared right back at you. Then he smiled. Not a huge smile. Just a small one. And suddenly, you knew he was messing with you.
“Oh my God,” you groaned before lightly shoving his shoulder. “You’re annoying.”
Jungwon laughed quietly and stumbled back dramatically. “Ow.”
“Ouch. That really hurt.”
“You assaulted me after school,” he said seriously.
You rolled your eyes, but you were smiling now. Actually smiling. And somehow, the weird uncomfortable feeling that had been sitting in your chest all afternoon had already started fading without you even realizing it.
Because that always happened around Jungwon. You could spend hours overthinking something stupid, convincing yourself that things felt weird or different or off somehow, but then he’d say something dumb and suddenly everything felt normal again.
You started walking toward the school gates, and Jungwon immediately fell into step beside you without hesitation. No asking. No thinking about it. Just naturally. Like always.
For a few minutes, neither of you said anything. There wasn’t really a need to. You had known each other long enough for silence to feel comfortable instead of awkward.
Then suddenly, Jungwon spoke. “…You kept looking at me today.”
Your feet nearly stopped moving.
Slowly, you turned your head toward him. Jungwon kept walking beside you with his hands shoved into his pockets while looking straight ahead like he hadn’t just casually destroyed your entire mental stability.
Your eyes widened slightly. “…What?”
He finally looked over at you. “You kept staring at me in the library.”
He noticed? Since when did he notice?!
Your entire body went still for half a second.
Not enough for Jungwon to notice. Hopefully.
Because there was absolutely no way he had actually noticed that. No way. You had been careful. It wasn’t like you were fully staring at him across the library like some creep. You just… happened to look up a few times.
Okay. Maybe more than a few times.
But that wasn’t the point. The point was Jungwon was not supposed to know that.
Slowly, you turned your head toward him. Jungwon kept walking beside you with his hands shoved into his pockets, looking weirdly calm about the entire thing. Weirdly casual. Like he hadn’t just completely destroyed your mental stability in one sentence.
“…I wasn’t staring at you,” you said while trying very hard to sound normal.
Jungwon looked over at you for a second before one corner of his mouth lifted slightly. “You know, for someone who isn’t guilty, you answered pretty fast.”
Your mouth opened. Closed. Then opened again. “Oh my God, shut up.”
He laughed quietly beside you. Not loudly or teasingly. Just that soft laugh he only really did around you sometimes.
You hated that your chest reacted to it. Absolutely hated it.
The walk continued after that, and eventually the conversation shifted back into something more normal. Jungwon started complaining about an assignment he forgot to finish while you complained about one of your teachers giving homework like she personally hated students. The conversation bounced naturally between dumb jokes and random topics the same way it always had.
But your mind kept drifting back. Because Jungwon noticed. Out of everything happening in the library, the project, Chaerin, everyone around him. He noticed you looking at him.
Your stomach twisted weirdly again.
“…And then Ni-ki had the audacity to blame me for it,” Jungwon was saying.
He looked over immediately. “…You weren’t listening.”
You blinked quickly. “I was listening.”
Jungwon stared at you while you stared right back confidently. Then he crossed his arms. “…Okay then, what did I just say?”
Silence. Absolute silence. Because shit.
You watched his eyebrows slowly raise. “…Wow.”
You immediately looked offended. “Okay first of all—”
Jungwon started smiling wider.
“No, because I was listening until—”
“Until what?” he asked suspiciously.
Until I started thinking about you.
Instead, you looked away dramatically. “Until I got distracted.”
Jungwon snorted beside you. “Life.”
He still looked incredibly unconvinced, but thankfully he didn’t push the conversation any further.
The sun had started lowering more by now, casting orange light across the sidewalk while cars occasionally passed beside you. Groups of students walked ahead of you in clusters, but somehow everything felt quieter than before.
Then suddenly, Jungwon slowed down slightly.
You looked over at him. “…What?”
He didn’t answer right away. He was just staring ahead at something.
His eyes shifted toward a small shop across the street. “Oh.”
You followed his gaze automatically. A convenience store.
Then you looked back at him. Then at the store again. Then back at him. Slowly, your eyes narrowed. “…No.”
Jungwon immediately looked innocent. “What?”
“What?” he repeated again.
He looked offended instantly. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You have a specific face.”
Jungwon stared at you in disbelief. “I have a face?”
“What kind of explanation is that?”
You pointed dramatically at him. “You do this thing where you stare at something and suddenly get suspiciously quiet.”
He blinked once before glancing toward the convenience store again. Then he looked back at you. “…I wanted ramen.”
You stared at him. Actually stared. “…You idiot.”
Jungwon immediately looked offended. “What?!”
“You made me think something serious happened!”
“You thought ramen was serious?”
“No, your face made it serious!”
Jungwon started laughing immediately. Actually laughing this time. And somehow, you found yourself laughing too.
Of course after spending half the day overthinking your feelings and internally losing your mind over him, Jungwon’s grand dramatic moment turned out to be about ramen.
You were actually screwed. Because somewhere between elementary school and now, somewhere between shared lunches, dumb jokes, and walking home together after school you had stopped seeing Jungwon as just Jungwon.
And somehow, you still hadn’t figured out when that happened.
Things started changing after that, but not in some dramatic overnight way where suddenly everything felt different.
Because it happened slowly. So slowly that you almost didn’t notice it at first. Almost.
You started noticing little things. Tiny things. Things that had probably always been there but suddenly felt a lot louder in your head.
Like the fact that Jungwon always waited for you after class. Not because he had to. Not because you asked him to. He just did.
You’d walk out of your classroom after the bell rang and there he’d be leaning against the lockers with his phone in his hand, looking half-asleep and completely unbothered. Sometimes he’d be scrolling through something. Sometimes he’d be talking to Heeseung. Sometimes Ni-ki would be beside him making weird noises for absolutely no reason.
But every single time his eyes found you, his expression changed slightly. Just a little. His eyes softened. His posture straightened. And then he’d immediately walk over like he’d been waiting there for years instead of two minutes.
You noticed it on a Tuesday.
You had walked out of class already stressed after failing a quiz you swore you studied for, and before you even said anything Jungwon looked down at your face and frowned. “…Bad day?” he asked.
You looked up at him. “Huh?”
Jungwon shrugged casually while taking your bag off your shoulder like he always did whenever you looked tired. “The one where your eyebrows do this,” he explained before making a terrible imitation of your expression.
You stared at him. Then stared harder. “…Do I actually look like that?”
Jungwon looked completely serious. “Exactly like that.”
You looked away while muttering under your breath, “I do not look like that.”
But secretly, your chest had done that stupid thing again.
Because out of the thousands of people in school, out of all the conversations and noise and everything happening around him. Jungwon noticed your mood from one look. One look. You didn’t even say anything.
And unfortunately for you, once you started noticing things about Jungwon, it became impossible to stop.
You noticed that he unconsciously moved closer whenever you were walking together. You noticed that whenever you laughed really hard, he usually wasn’t even laughing at the joke anymore. He was looking at you.
You noticed that whenever someone called your name across the hallway, his head turned too. Like your name automatically got his attention.
You noticed that whenever you complained about being cold, he’d silently slide his hoodie onto your desk and act like it wasn’t a big deal.
And you especially noticed one thing: Jungwon touched everyone differently.
Not in a weird way. Just… differently.
Heeseung got shoulder punches. Ni-ki got fake annoyed shoves and head smacks. Wonhee got quick side hugs. Yunjin got sarcastic claps and dramatic thumbs-ups.
With you, his hand rested against your shoulder while talking. His arm brushed against yours while walking. His fingers absentmindedly tugged at your sleeve to get your attention.
Small things. Really small things.
But suddenly they didn’t feel small anymore.
And the worst part? The absolute worst part?
You started wanting them.
You started waiting for them. Waiting for him to sit beside you. Waiting for him to text first. Waiting for his stupid “where r u???” messages whenever you were late. Waiting for his laugh. Waiting for him.
It was pathetic. Actually pathetic.
Because now, whenever Jungwon was absent, school felt weirdly empty.
And you realized that on Friday.
You walked into lunch expecting to see him sitting at the usual table, but instead there was just an empty chair.
“He had a dentist appointment,” Heeseung said casually while opening his drink.
You looked at the empty seat. “…Oh.”
That was all you said. Just oh.
But suddenly lunch felt too quiet. Ni-ki was talking loudly about something. Yunjin and Wonhee were laughing. Students kept walking around the cafeteria like normal. Nothing was different. Nothing at all.
So why did it feel different?
Yunjin slowly looked at you. Then at the empty chair. Then back at you again. A smile slowly spread across her face. “Oh my God.”
You looked up immediately. “…What.”
Her smile widened instantly. “You miss him.”
Your eyes widened. “What? No—”
Because the words caught in your throat.
You looked back at the empty seat again, and for the very first time, you didn’t think of Jungwon as your best friend.
“I wish he was here beside me.” You mumbled
The realization followed you around for the rest of the day.
Not dramatically. Not in some oh my God I’m in love way. Just quietly. Annoyingly. Like a thought sitting in the back of your head that kept tapping your shoulder every five seconds.
Because once Yunjin said it out loud, you couldn’t stop noticing it.
You missed him in a way that felt stupid because he wasn’t gone. He wasn’t moving away or disappearing forever. He was literally just at a dentist appointment and would probably come back on Monday complaining about his gums hurting or something equally ridiculous.
And yet somehow the entire day felt slightly off.
You kept checking your phone without thinking. You looked toward the cafeteria doors during lunch. At one point, you even turned around in the hallway because someone laughed and it vaguely sounded like him.
Which was embarrassing. Actually embarrassing.
By the time school ended, you had convinced yourself you were just being dramatic. Completely dramatic.
After getting home, you dropped your bag beside your bed before collapsing backward onto the mattress and staring at the ceiling.
Immediately—immediately—you grabbed it.
And then immediately wished you hadn’t because the speed at which you moved was genuinely concerning.
But the second your screen lit up, your chest softened anyway.
You stared at the message for a second before laughing quietly.
You: that was your first text?
The typing bubble appeared almost instantly.
Jungwon: i’m suffering and that’s what u say
You: thoughts and prayers
You smiled without realizing it. Actually smiled.
Your fingers moved across the screen before you could think too much about it.
This time, the typing bubble took a little longer to appear.
Jungwon: but i can’t feel half my mouth
Jungwon: i tried drinking water and almost died
You snorted quietly to yourself.
A few seconds later, another message popped up.
Jungwon: school boring today?
Your eyes paused on the words immediately.
Not how was school? Not did anything happen? Specifically that.
You stared at the screen for a moment because suddenly you remembered the empty seat beside you at lunch. The weird feeling in your chest. The way everything had felt slightly off all day.
Slowly, your fingers typed back.
You: you weren’t there to annoy me
No typing bubble. No response.
Five seconds. Ten. Twenty.
Your eyebrows slowly furrowed. “…Did he die?” you muttered to yourself.
You stared at the screen harder.
That was his response? Not a joke? Not something dramatic? Just oh?
Your eyes narrowed suspiciously.
You: what is THAT supposed to mean
This time his response came immediately.
You immediately sat up straighter.
Because after being friends with Jungwon for years, you knew exactly what that meant. Exactly.
That stupid smiley face. That stupid fucking smiley face.
He used it whenever he was hiding something. Whenever he knew something. Whenever he was intentionally trying to annoy you.
Your eyes narrowed at your phone screen.
Jungwon: just made me smile
Your fingers stopped moving completely. Actually completely.
Because suddenly your room felt very, very quiet.
You stared at the message for way too long. Once. Twice. Three times. You reread it again anyway.
That was literally it. Such a normal sentence. Such a harmless sentence.
So then why....Why was my heart suddenly beating so hard?
You ended up staring at your phone for an embarrassing amount of time after that. Long enough for the screen to dim twice. Long enough that you unlocked it again just to reread the same message like the words were magically going to rearrange themselves into something else.
That was literally all it said. No heart emoji. No weird implication. No dramatic hidden confession between the lines. Just five completely normal words that somehow had your heart acting like you had sprinted up five flights of stairs.
You dropped your phone onto the bed before covering your face with your hands. “Oh my God,” you groaned into your palms.
Because there was absolutely no way. No way at all.
You were not about to become one of those people who smiled at text messages. Those people used to annoy you. You used to see edits online with captions like when his message got me giggling and kicking my feet and think there was no way people actually acted like that.
And now here you were lying on your bed staring at the ceiling while a stupid smile slowly appeared on your face before you immediately forced it away.
You looked at it immediately. Immediately. Shit.
Your lips pressed together tightly before you typed back.
Three seconds later another message appeared.
You stared at the screen.
Because technically, he didn’t do anything. That was the problem. He didn’t do anything at all. He just existed. He kept saying completely normal things in a completely normal way, and somehow your brain decided to lose its mind over it.
You sighed dramatically before rolling onto your side and typing again.
Jungwon: u sound suspicious
Jungwon: goodnight i guess
You stared harder at the screen.
Your eyebrows slowly pulled together because something immediately felt wrong. Very wrong.
You looked at the time at the top of your screen.
You looked again. Then again.
Jungwon literally never slept before midnight. Ever. This was the same person who once called you at one in the morning because he “wasn’t tired” and wanted to complain about a movie ending.
Slowly, you sat up straighter before typing again.
A few seconds passed before another message finally appeared.
You stared for one second before bursting into laughter. Actual laughter.
Jungwon: I THOUGHT IT WAS LATE
You: you’re actually stupid
You: did the dentist remove ur brain too
You smiled so hard your cheeks actually started hurting.
And somehow, somewhere in the middle of the conversation, you realized the weird feeling from earlier had disappeared again.
Because Jungwon was there. Even through a phone screen. Even through dumb messages and terrible jokes. Just there.
Then your eyes slowly drifted upward through the older messages. Toward kind of. Toward you weren’t there to annoy me. Toward just made me smile.
Your smile faded slightly. Not in a bad way. Just softer.
Because lately, things had started feeling different. Not between you and Jungwon exactly. Jungwon still acted like Jungwon. He still called you randomly. Still sent ugly pictures. Still walked beside you after school. Still looked for you first.
Because now you noticed things. You noticed when he texted slower. You noticed when he laughed harder around you. You noticed whenever his attention wasn’t on you.
And that thought sat quietly in your chest while you stared at your phone screen.
Because for the first time in years, you found yourself wondering something you had never really wondered before.
Did Jungwon notice you as much as you noticed him?
Monday came way too fast.
Usually weekends felt short because school was annoying and time apparently loved moving at the speed of light whenever you actually wanted a break, but this one felt weirdly long.
Not because anything happened. Nothing happened. You stayed home, watched random videos, ignored homework until the last possible second, and texted people occasionally.
Texted Jungwon a lot, actually.
Not intentionally. It just… happened.
Little things. Stupid things. Pictures of ugly shoes you saw online. Complaints about assignments. Random “look at this idiot” messages with screenshots attached.
Normal things. Completely normal things.
So normal that you definitely didn’t stare at your messages smiling like an idiot whenever his name popped up. Absolutely not.
Which was why Monday morning should’ve felt normal too.
Because for some reason, your brain had suddenly become painfully aware of Jungwon’s existence.
You were standing by your locker fixing your bag strap while half asleep, mentally preparing yourself to survive the day, when you suddenly heard footsteps coming closer.
Then a hand landed lightly on top of your head.
Your entire body froze instantly.
“…Morning,” Jungwon said casually.
You looked up immediately. And immediately regretted it.
Because he was smiling. Not even a huge smile either. Just one of those small sleepy smiles where his eyes still looked tired. His hair was messy too, like he barely bothered fixing it before leaving the house.
For a second, you just stared at him. Actually stared.
Then your brain finally restarted. “Oh my God, don’t touch my head.”
Jungwon looked offended immediately. “What? Why?”
You opened your mouth, then immediately closed it again because you suddenly realized you didn’t actually have a reason.
You just knew that the second his hand touched your head, your heart did something incredibly embarrassing.
So instead, you quickly looked away and adjusted your bag again. “I just said don’t.”
Jungwon narrowed his eyes suspiciously at you.
Then slowly, very slowly, his hand started lifting again.
Your eyes widened immediately. “…Jungwon.”
He looked completely innocent.
You immediately took a step backward as he started laughing.
“No no no—” you said quickly.
“I’m not doing anything!” Jungwon argued through his laughter.
“Your face says otherwise!”
You pointed dramatically at him while trying very hard not to smile, and Jungwon just stood there laughing at you. Actually laughing.
Then suddenly, he blinked.
His smile softened slightly. “…You missed me.”
Your smile dropped immediately. “…What?”
Jungwon looked way too calm. Way too casual. Like he hadn’t just thrown an actual grenade directly into your brain.
“You missed me,” he repeated.
Your eyes widened instantly. “Excuse me?”
“I missed one day of school and suddenly I’m getting messages asking if I survived, asking if I ate, asking if my mouth still hurts—”
“I was being nice!” you interrupted immediately.
Jungwon slowly crossed his arms before tilting his head slightly. “…So you didn’t miss me?”
Your mouth opened. Closed. Then opened again.
Because suddenly Jungwon didn’t seem like he was joking anymore.
Well… maybe he still was. But he was looking at you. Actually looking at you. Waiting for an answer.
And your stupid heart started beating harder because you suddenly realized something terrifying.
You didn’t know the answer anymore.
Or maybe you did know. Maybe that was the problem.
Because somewhere in the last few weeks, missing Jungwon had stopped feeling like missing your best friend for a day.
It felt like something else. Something bigger.
And for the first time, you had a feeling Jungwon was starting to notice things too.
The rooftop thing started accidentally.
Like genuinely accidentally.
One afternoon, Heeseung had already gone home for soccer practice, Yunjin and Wonhee left together because they had plans, and Ni-ki disappeared somewhere claiming he was “starving to death.” You and Jungwon walked out of class slowly with your bags hanging off your shoulders, both looking equally exhausted after surviving an entire day of school.
“I’m too tired to go home,” Jungwon complained dramatically while dragging his feet down the hallway.
You looked over at him. “You’re saying that like you’re about to run a marathon.”
“I might as well be,” he replied.
“School isn’t a marathon.”
You snorted quietly and shook your head before continuing to walk beside him. Then suddenly, Jungwon stopped walking altogether.
You almost walked directly into him. “…What are you doing?”
He stared toward a staircase near the back of the school for a second before glancing back at you. “…Come on.”
You narrowed your eyes immediately. “That sentence has literally never led to anything normal.”
Jungwon looked offended. “Wow.”
Jungwon ignored you completely and started walking anyway. Naturally, you followed, because following Jungwon around had basically become muscle memory years ago.
The rooftop wasn’t anything special. Actually, at first you almost laughed because after climbing all those stairs, all you found were a couple benches, fencing around the edges, and buildings stretching into the distance.
Jungwon looked around awkwardly. “…Okay wait.”
You laughed while dropping your bag beside one of the benches anyway.
But then ten minutes passed. Then twenty. Then the sun slowly started lowering.
And suddenly… you understood.
The sky shifted into warm shades of orange and pink while sunlight spilled across the buildings below. Cars looked smaller from up there. The wind felt cooler too. Everything looked quieter somehow.
Beside you, Jungwon had gone completely silent.
You looked over at him and found him leaning back against the bench staring ahead while the sunset reflected softly in his eyes.
“…Okay,” you admitted quietly.
Jungwon glanced over immediately.
You sighed dramatically before looking away again. “…Fine. This is kind of nice.”
His lips lifted instantly. “Knew it.”
After that, it became routine. Not officially. Nothing between you and Jungwon ever needed to be official. But somehow, after school, the two of you always ended up there. Sometimes with snacks. Sometimes with homework you both ignored. Sometimes with nothing except yourselves.
And you started liking it more than you wanted to admit.
Because school was loud. Hallways were loud. Life was loud. But up there, everything slowed down.
You talked about random things. Future plans. Dumb childhood memories. Things that didn’t matter and things that secretly did.
And lately, there had been moments. Tiny moments. Moments where one of you looked at the other for a second too long. Moments where conversations suddenly went quiet for no reason. Moments where your heart started beating harder over absolutely nothing.
Today felt like one of those moments.
The sky was painted orange again, and the wind had gotten colder than usual. You sat beside Jungwon with your sleeves pulled over your hands while staring quietly ahead.
“…You’re cold,” Jungwon said suddenly.
Jungwon was already pulling his hoodie over his head.
Immediately, you shook your head. “No.”
“You’ll complain for the next twenty minutes if you get cold.”
You narrowed your eyes suspiciously while Jungwon narrowed his back. Then without warning, he tossed the hoodie directly toward you anyway.
You stared at him for a second before quietly putting it on because arguing was pointless.
It smelled like his detergent.
And suddenly, you became very aware of the fact you were wearing Jungwon’s hoodie. Very aware.
You stared ahead again. Beside you, Jungwon wasn’t saying anything either. Actually… he’d gotten really quiet.
He wasn’t looking at the sunset. He wasn’t looking at his phone. He was looking at you. Again.
Except this time, he didn’t look away.
Your stomach flipped immediately. Not dramatically. Not movie dramatically. Just enough. Enough that suddenly you forgot what you were about to say. Enough that the silence between you felt heavier somehow.
Because lately, there had been words sitting between both of you. Unsaid things. Questions neither of you asked.
Jungwon blinked once. “…What?”
You stared at him. “…You were staring.”
You stared harder while Jungwon stared right back. Then he smiled slightly. Not teasingly. Not jokingly. Just soft.
And for some reason, your chest squeezed painfully.
Because the way he was looking at you didn’t feel normal anymore. Not best-friend normal. Just… different.
You didn’t know how long you sat there staring at each other. A few seconds maybe. Maybe longer.
Then your brain completely stopped functioning.
Because before you could think, before logic could catch up, before you could process literally anything, you leaned forward and kissed him.
Then reality hit immediately.
Your eyes widened. Everything widened. Jungwon looked completely frozen. Actually frozen.
And suddenly panic slammed into you all at once.
You pulled back immediately. “…I—”
Nothing came out. Absolutely nothing. Because what the hell were you even supposed to say after that?
So instead, your survival instincts apparently took over.
You stood up so fast your bag almost fell off the bench.
Jungwon blinked quickly. “Y/n—”
You grabbed your bag immediately. “Nope nope nope.”
Then you turned around and walked toward the rooftop door. Actually speed-walked. Then fully ran.
Because there was absolutely no way you were staying there after that.
Not after kissing Yang Jungwon.
Not after kissing your best friend.
And later that night, while lying in bed with your blanket thrown over your face, one horrifying thought repeated over and over in your head.
You actually kissed Jungwon.
…And then you ran away like a complete idiot.
You tried. You genuinely tried.
You laid down, closed your eyes, turned onto one side, then the other. Pulled your blanket up. Threw it off again. Stared at the ceiling. Stared at the wall. Checked your phone. Put your phone down. Then picked it back up three seconds later.
Because your brain had apparently decided tonight was the perfect time to replay every single second from the rooftop. Every. Single. Second.
You remembered Jungwon looking at you. You remembered how quiet everything suddenly got. You remembered how your heart felt like it was trying to beat its way out of your chest.
You buried your face into your pillow immediately. “Oh my God,” you groaned, kicking your legs slightly against the mattress out of pure embarrassment.
Because why would you do that?!
You sat up and grabbed your phone again. Nothing. No texts. No calls. Nothing from Jungwon.
Your eyes narrowed at the screen. “…Nothing?”
Now that somehow felt worse. Way worse. You had expected something. A dramatic WHAT WAS THAT? A confused Y/N???? Literally anything. But nothing? Actually nothing?
You stared at his contact for a few seconds before locking your phone and throwing it beside you dramatically. Fine. Whatever. You were not texting first. Absolutely not. Nope. Not happening.
Five minutes later, you grabbed your phone again. Just to check. Not because you cared. Obviously. Still nothing.
You stared at the screen in complete betrayal because now your brain was doing something even worse. Now it was thinking. Maybe he got uncomfortable. Maybe he thinks you’re weird now. Maybe he doesn’t know what to say. Maybe he regrets—
Your phone buzzed suddenly.
You nearly launched yourself off your bed. Actually nearly died. Your hands grabbed your phone so fast it was embarrassing.
You stared. Then blinked. Then blinked again.
That was his first message? Not why did you kiss me? Not what happened? Just—u ran away.
You stared at it for a few seconds before typing, deleting, typing again, deleting again. Because what exactly were you supposed to say here?
“Sorry for kissing you and then fleeing the scene?” Absolutely not.
Three dots appeared immediately. Gone. Appeared again. Gone again.
You dropped your head back onto the pillow. “Oh my God.”
Your face felt warm. Actually warm. Because somehow. Somehow he was acting normal. Too normal. Suspiciously normal.
Then another message came in.
Jungwon: my brain stopped working too btw
Your eyes paused. Then slowly widened.
Jungwon: i was literally sitting there like an idiot for five minutes after u left
Because suddenly, you could picture it perfectly. Jungwon sitting alone on the rooftop, staring into space with that confused expression he got whenever his brain lagged.
And for some reason, it made you laugh. Actually laugh.
Jungwon: heeseung called me and I ignored him because I was having a crisis
You snorted, covering your mouth even though you were alone. Why were you smiling so hard right now?
Your eyes drifted back up to the messages again. My brain stopped working too.
Your heart did that stupid thing again.
Because maybe… maybe you weren’t the only one feeling things anymore.
For the first time all night, you stopped feeling scared.
Only for your phone to buzz again.
Jungwon: don’t disappear tomorrow
Your expression softened instantly. Because somehow, out of everything he could’ve said, that was the one that got you
You stared at the message for an amount of time that honestly should’ve been studied.
Not we need to talk. Not what was that? Not let’s pretend that never happened. Just don’t disappear tomorrow.
Your chest felt weird again. Not the panicky kind from earlier. Something softer. Something that somehow felt worse because now you had absolutely no idea what to do with it.
You rolled over and pulled your blanket over your face dramatically. Then immediately pulled it back down because you couldn’t breathe. Then stared at the screen again. Then smiled. Then immediately frowned at yourself.
Because no. You were not doing this. You were not sitting here smiling at your phone over Yang Jungwon. Absolutely not.
Two minutes later you were still smiling.
Monday morning felt strange. Not bad strange. Not awkward strange. Just the kind of strange where you suddenly became aware of things that used to feel automatic.
Like fixing your hair before leaving your room. Like checking your phone every thirty seconds on the drive to school. Like the fact that your heart was beating stupidly hard just because you were about to see your best friend.
Your best friend. Who you kissed.
Your best friend who you kissed and then abandoned on a rooftop like a criminal fleeing a crime scene. Very cool. Very normal behavior.
You shut your locker a little harder than necessary and took a deep breath. Okay. Fine. You were alive. Everything was fine.
You and Jungwon had known each other forever. One kiss wasn’t going to suddenly erase years of friendship. Right? Right.
“…Why do you look terrified?”
You almost screamed. Your hand flew to your chest as you spun around. “Oh my God... what the hell?!”
Yunjin blinked at you. “…Was I that scary?”
“No, but why do you appear out of nowhere like some evil spirit?!” You said.
She narrowed her eyes, then paused, then narrowed them harder. “…Wait.”
No. No no no. Absolutely not. You knew that face. That was the face Yunjin made right before making everyone’s life worse.
“…Why are you looking at me like that?” you asked cautiously.
Yunjin stared at you. Then leaned closer. “…Did something happen?”
Your eyes widened way too fast. Way too obviously.
Because Yunjin’s mouth slowly fell open. “No fucking way.”
You immediately grabbed her shoulders. “Don’t make that face.”
People started turning around.
“What happened?!” she demanded.
Your hands flew to your mouth. Because fuck... You were smiling.
“Oh my God,” she repeated, looking like she had just unlocked a puzzle. “No because WHAT HAPPENED?”
Before you could answer, before you could even think, footsteps echoed down the hallway.
And somehow, you just knew.
You looked up and Jungwon had just turned the corner.
For a second, everything else disappeared.
The hallway noise faded. Yunjin blurred out of focus. Even your thoughts went quiet.
Because Jungwon looked up too. And stopped walking just slightly. Just enough that you noticed.
His eyes widened a little. Not dramatically. Just enough.
Then he smiled. Small. Soft. The same one from yesterday.
And your stomach immediately betrayed you.
Because now you realized something even worse than kissing him.
Kissing him didn’t change the way you looked at Jungwon. You’d already been looking at him differently for a while.
Now you were starting to realize… Jungwon might’ve been looking at you differently too.
For a second neither of you moved.
It was stupid, honestly. Completely stupid, because this was Jungwon. This was the same person who had walked into a glass door in eighth grade because he was too busy laughing. The same person who stole food off your tray and acted shocked when you got mad. The same person who had been standing beside you for years like it was the most natural thing in the world.
So why did it suddenly feel like seeing him for the first time?
The hallway noise slowly came back around you people walking past, lockers closing, someone laughing somewhere down the hall but your eyes stayed on Jungwon for a little too long. And his stayed on you too.
Then Yunjin looked between the two of you. Once. Twice. Then very slowly she said, “…Oh my God.”
Your eyes snapped to her immediately. “No.”
Yunjin’s face broke into the biggest smile you had ever seen on her face. “No no no.”
“What happened?” she whispered loudly.
“Something absolutely happened.”
You looked at her like she had betrayed you on a personal level, because now Jungwon was walking closer, and if she said one more thing, just one more thing, you were actually going to combust on the spot.
Then Jungwon stopped beside you.
And suddenly your brain forgot how to function again.
Because he was right there. Close enough that you noticed his hair was still slightly messy. Close enough that you noticed he looked tired. Close enough that you became painfully aware this was the first time you’d seen him since the rooftop.
You looked down. Then immediately looked back up because looking down felt suspicious.
Jungwon looked at you. You looked at Jungwon.
Your heart did something completely unreasonable.
Because out of everything he could’ve said—hi? Just hi?
Silence. Absolute silence.
Then Jungwon smiled a little. “…You didn’t disappear.”
You stared at him. Then stared harder.
Because somehow, out of everything he could’ve said, that was the one he chose. Not the kiss. Not the panic. Not the aftermath. Just—you didn’t disappear.
Something in your chest softened immediately. Really softly.
Because suddenly you remembered his message from last night.
And before you even realized it, you were smiling. Not big. Just small.
“…I said I wouldn’t,” you replied quietly.
Jungwon looked at you for a second. Then something in his expression shifted—small, subtle, almost invisible to anyone else. But you noticed.
His shoulders relaxed just slightly. Like he’d been holding tension there. Like he’d actually been worried you wouldn’t show up.
Then Heeseung suddenly appeared and threw an arm around Jungwon’s shoulders. “Why the hell are you two standing in the middle of the hallway like you just reunited after a war?”
You immediately looked away, trying very hard not to laugh. Failing.
Jungwon narrowed his eyes at you. “Don’t.”
You looked innocent. “Don’t what?”
You stared at him for two seconds.
And just like that, Jungwon was laughing too.
But even while laughing, something sat quietly in the back of your mind. Something that didn’t go away this time.
Because nothing felt broken. Nothing felt weird.
If anything… things felt more dangerous than before.
Because now you knew what it felt like to kiss him.
And now every time he looked at you, You wondered if he was thinking about it too.
tags : @rikissz @hoonfavv @heeyunkied
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