?(?? ? ? )? . . . . . . .
. . A seemingly "hard boy" with emotional walls built from past pain. Outwardly confident, sometimes cruel
. . A quiet, gentle girl who has endured bullying in the past. She's observant and strong, and often overlooked...
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the bell signaling the end of break rang, and students began filing back into the classroom. seohyun was still feeling the warmth of jake's compliment, her thoughts swirling with what had just happened. she was walking toward the door when she caught sight of joon leaning against the wall near the hallway, her usual mischievous grin plastered on her face.
"well, well," joon said, catching seohyun's eye as she approached. "looks like someone's getting a little attention."
seohyun froze, her face flushing slightly. "what do you mean?" she asked, though she already had a feeling.
"i saw jake talking to you," joon teased, pushing herself off the wall to walk beside her. "you two looked pretty cozy. i mean, for a guy who usually keeps to himself, i didn't expect him to approach you like that."
seohyun felt her heart rate pick up a little. "it's not a big deal," she muttered, feeling a little embarrassed by joon's teasing. "he just wanted to hang out after school."
"ohhh," joon replied, her grin widening. "after school? i see how it is. maybe i should start asking you for tips, huh? you're moving up in the world."
seohyun's face flushed even more. "it's nothing," she insisted. "just... a casual thing."
"uh-huh," joon said with a playful wink. "if you say so. i've been watching you and jake. there's definitely something there. you two look cute together." she leaned in slightly, her tone lighter. "come on, admit it—you've been catching feelings."
seohyun shot her a glance, half-amused, half-exasperated. "i'm not catching feelings. we're just friends. seriously."
"mm-hmm," joon hummed, her teasing not letting up. "just friends who can't stop smiling at each other, huh?"
seohyun didn't know how to respond, so she just rolled her eyes, trying to keep her composure. "you're impossible."
"i'm just telling it like it is," joon said with a wink, her grin never fading. "you know you're not fooling me, right? i see the way you look at him."
seohyun opened her mouth to protest, but joon cut her off before she could get a word in.
"look, i'm just saying, don't let him get away," joon added, a hint of seriousness in her tone, though she still had that mischievous glint in her eyes. "you're worth more than being someone's second thought."
seohyun's breath caught in her throat, the words lingering in the air. she didn't know how to reply, so she just nodded, feeling a strange sense of warmth in joon's words.
"anyway," joon said, her teasing returning full-force. "good luck with jake. don't keep him waiting too long. he might find someone else to smile at."
with that, joon gave her a wink and walked off, leaving seohyun standing there, her mind a little scrambled, trying to figure out what was real and what wasn't.
