IZ*One (Minju ships one shots)

the last summer before the fall part 1 (Minyul)

Six childhood friends, all very different from each other, but got along so well you couldn't find one without the other five. When they were younger they felt invincible, not because they had everything they wanted, but because they had each other. Then came the horrible truth that sometimes you drift apart, and even though you felt like you were meant to be, turns out you weren't because the world is cruel and will find ways to mess everything up.

Can their friendship survive the test of time or will they let go and lose hope that they can still fix the mess they unwillingly made?

Kim Minjoo was three years old when she met Jo Yuri at the daycare their parents sent them to. It was hate at first sight when Jo Yuri stole Minjoo's cookie and ate it right in front of her without a hint of remorse on her smug little face. Of course, being the cry baby that she was, Minjoo cried so hard that even the teacher couldn't calm her down.

Jo Yuri panicked and started to cry too seeing as the other girl wouldn't stop bawling. See, Yuri has an older sister, and her sister would always steal her cookies when they were together so she thought that's how you show people affection. She didn't understand why the other girl with big brown eyes was crying, suddenly stopping her cries, Yuri leaned in closer to Minjoo and observed her face.

"Yah, you look like a frog!" That honest remark that only a child could get away with halted Minjoo's cries. If there was one thing in the world that Kim Minjoo loved as much as chocolate it would be animals, especially the cute green amphibians called frogs. As weird as that may be, Minjoo gave Yuri a big eye smile and giggled into her hand, of course, she had to give the other girl a nickname too!

"And you look like a hamster!" Thus follows little Yuri's half-hearted protests that she looks like a hamster. That was the day Kim Minjoo became Minjoo and Yuri, the big-eyed clumsy girl and the short-haired friend with a strong accent.

Minjoo and Yuri were seven years old and hanging out at the Kim's house when they met Jang Wonyoung. Apparently, Minjoo had new neighbors and the Jang's decided to introduce themselves around the neighborhood.

Minjoo, the kind-hearted angel that she immediately wanted to get to know the other girl. Yuri, on the other hand, was the more cautious one of the two, after four years of them being Minjoo and Yuri, she was skeptical about suddenly befriending someone else. Yuri would never admit it, but she was territorial of the slightly older girl. Minjoo was her first friend and she was Minjoo's. Curse anyone who tries to get in between them.

Alas, Yuri was also weak whenever Minjoo would start looking at her with those big eyes and looking like a pathetic frog. So of course, Minjoo and Yuri befriended the taller girl, who they would later find out is two years younger than them but taller, also she was super smart and was able to skip kindergarten altogether and start first grade with them next term.

Wonyoung's height always made Minjoo pout, to her it wasn't fair that the younger girl was taller than her. Yuri was already taller than her too, so when would she finally be taller than someone else? Of course, the Busan born was all too quick to tease Minjoo about her short height, not knowing that in a few years she would stop growing while Minjoo would be taller than average and that Wonyoung would grow to become a bean pole.

Despite the youngest girl's tall height, she still became their baby and the same-aged friends spoiled their baby 24/7 and gave Wonyoung everything she wanted. That day Minjoo and Yuri gained another friend and they became the three musketeers, being known by their elementary school as model-students acing every contest they joined be it academically or something related to the arts.

Minjoo and Yuri were nine years old (Wonyoung was seven) when they met Ahn Yujin during their third-grade sports festival at school. For all the talents the three musketeers had, sports was NOT one of them. Too bad they were all forced to join at least one event or else they'll fail PE for that term.