Supernerd! MARK

21 | three-way street

"Well, I'm not a kid, Chaerin, alright?!" I snap, and upon seeing her eyes waver, I know that I fucked up. "Chae-"

"Save it. I'm sorry for caring, then," she mutters before storming out of the front door.

I bite my lip, shutting my eyes as I feel tears start to form behind my lids. I feel an arm wrap around me, knowing that it's Mark.

"It's okay," he whispers, rubbing the back of my head soothingly. I faintly hear the front door close, and I assume that Haechan had went out after my roommate.

"I fucked up," I choke out a sob, and I feel Mark shake his head.

"No, no," he assures me. "It's not your fault. You can't please everyone, Yena. But you should have just let me tell her the truth."

"It wouldn't be fair to you," I mumble against his chest.

Mark hugs me a little tighter. "Thank you for keeping my secret."

We stay like that for a while, and it is only when my sobs start to subside does Mark pull away. "Don't worry, okay? It's Chaerin— she'll come around," Mark says, wiping my wet cheeks with the pads of his thumbs. "Are you tired?"

"I don't think I'll be able to sleep, honestly," I admit.

"It's okay. I'll stay up with you." Mark takes me by the elbow, leading me to his room. "Let's skip school today, hm?"

I nod mindlessly, not even realising that a new week had started. With the way my life has been going lately, I don't think it matters all that much, anyway.

🕸️

My apartment is seemingly void of people the moment I reach home, and I'm not sure if I should feel relieved or not.

For the most part, I was hoping to catch Chaerin so we could talk things out. Our fights never last long, but it doesn't change the fact that I should be the one to apologise first.

When I was in Mark's room last night, I could only barely hear the sound of the front door opening and closing, signalling that Haechan had come home some time in the middle of the night. I didn't see him then, nor did I see him before I left. I'm only hoping that he had managed to calm Chaerin down, though I know that it is unlikely seeing how furious she was— or still is— with me.

"Chae?" I call out, slowly trudging towards her closed room door to give it a knock.

"She's not home," another voice says, causing me to almost jump out of my skin.

"Gosh." I raise a hand to my chest, turning to face my other roommate. "You scared me."

Sera leans against her doorframe. "She's not mad at you, you know."

"Well, she should be," I sigh, exiting the threshold to our rooms to flop on the couch. "I messed up bad."

"I know you have your reasons for not telling us," Sera says as she runs a soothing hand up and down my back. "But as your best friends, of course we couldn't help but to worry about you."

"I know," I mumble, rubbing a fist over my right eye. I feel like I've run out of tears, my tear ducts now nothing but a dry desert. "I'm sorry."

"Haechan was here last night," Sera changes the topic. "Chaerin's kinda stupid, isn't she? Always trying to push people away, yet the very person she claims to hate is the same person to help her calm down."

I smile softly, and it makes me feel a little better that even if I had failed in being a good friend, at least someone was there to take up my spot.

"How are you feeling? They messed you up real bad," Sera says, and despite her bluntness I find myself laughing at her words. "Though you do look kinda badass right now."

"I'm fine," I chuckle. "I will be."

Our front door opens, and the both of us turn around to see Chaerin taking off her shoes. She doesn't seem to notice our presence until she feels our attention on her, and when she continues to stand in the hallway instead of going straight to her room, I take it as a good sign.

"I'll be in my room," Sera mumbles, giving me a reassuring pat on my forearm before disappearing.

—

Kind of a filler chapter, sorryyyyy. 😬