11:11 || Kim Jiwoong [???] ZB1

By the time they reached middle school, Jiwoong and Hyunbi’s friendship had grown stronger. They navigated the awkward years together, leaning on each other through every challenge.

One rainy afternoon during seventh grade, Jiwoong was waiting for Hyunbi outside the library when he heard raised voices.

“Why are you always alone? Too good for everyone else?” a boy sneered, shoving Hyunbi’s shoulder.

Hyunbi clutched her books tighter, her head bowed. “I’m not… I just—”

Before she could finish, Jiwoong stormed over, his eyes blazing. “Hey! Back off!”

The bully turned, sizing up Jiwoong with a smirk. “What’s it to you?”

Jiwoong didn’t flinch. “She’s my friend. You mess with her, you mess with me.”

The boy hesitated, clearly debating whether Jiwoong was worth the trouble. With a dismissive huff, he walked away.

Hyunbi let out a shaky breath. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“Yes, I did,” Jiwoong said firmly, his expression softening. “No one messes with you, got it?”

From then on, Jiwoong became Hyunbi’s unofficial protector, always watching out for her in the hallways. In return, Hyunbi supported him through his own struggles, though Jiwoong was more hesitant to share them.

---

That summer, Jiwoong and Hyunbi created a new tradition. Every Friday evening, they’d meet at the beach with a picnic blanket and snacks, watching the sunset while sharing their week’s highs and lows.

The beach became their haven, a sacred place where time seemed to pause. For Hyunbi, it was a world apart from everything else, where the whispers of the waves drowned out her worries and the sunsets painted her heart in warm hues. Jiwoong, with his boundless energy and playful smirks, had somehow wormed his way into that quiet world, his presence as natural and constant as the tides.

At first, she thought of him as nothing more than a distraction—a loud, carefree boy who seemed intent on dragging her along on his endless adventures. But slowly, as the days melted into weeks, she began to notice things about him.

Like the way his laughter seemed to ripple through the air, infectious and light, making her chest feel strangely warm. Or how he would pause during their explorations, crouching down to show her an oddly shaped shell or a tiny crab he’d found, his eyes sparkling as though he’d uncovered a treasure.

And then there was that evening on the dock.

The sunset painted everything in gold and orange, and she found herself stealing glances at Jiwoong’s profile, the way the light softened the sharp lines of his jaw. She didn’t know what prompted her to ask about the 11:11 wish—it had been a silly, passing thought—but when he turned to her with that raised eyebrow and mischievous grin, her heart did something it had never done before.

She ignored it, of course.

“It’s real!” she insisted, trying to keep her voice steady as his grin widened.

“Alright, what’s the big wish this time?” he teased, leaning closer, his presence suddenly all too close, all too overwhelming.

Her cheeks burned, and she looked away, pretending to focus on the sunset. “I’m not telling you. If I do, it won’t come true.”

But the truth was, she didn’t even know what her wish would be. Not yet.

After that, Jiwoong never let her live it down. Every time the clock crept close to 11:11, he’d nudge her or throw some ridiculous comment her way. At first, it annoyed her—the way he always seemed to be watching, waiting for her to glance at the time. But then she started to notice something else.

He wasn’t just teasing her. He was... indulging her.

He never mocked her wishes, not really. He didn’t roll his eyes or call her silly, even when he joked about candy gods and pure hearts. Instead, he played along, his voice always holding a hint of something softer, something almost tender.

And when she caught him staring at the clock once, right at 11:11, his expression serious and his lips moving ever so slightly, her heart skipped a beat.

Jiwoong pulled out a small, glass bottle.

“What’s that?” Hyunbi asked, eyeing it suspiciously.

“My wish,” Jiwoong said with a smirk.

Hyunbi gaped at him. “You made a wish? I thought you said it was silly!”

Jiwoong shrugged, tossing the bottle into the waves. “Maybe I changed my mind. Or maybe you’re rubbing off on me.”

Hyunbi laughed, shaking her head. “You’re impossible.”

But little did she knew, She started wishing for things then, real things, big things. Things like courage. Happiness. And—though she refused to admit it at first—Jiwoong.

It was a slow realization, like the tide creeping in without her noticing. But that night, as they sat together on the dock, their feet dangling above the water and the stars reflected in his eyes, she felt it all at once.

She liked him.

And it terrified her.