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I roll my shoulders. "You're responsible," I mumble, massaging my sore left shoulder.
Hyunjin gulps in panic, shifting in his seat. "I'm so sorry," he mumbles repetitively, "I thought your side was the window."
I hear Changbin snicker in the seat in front of me, so I kick my leg from the back of his seat and a cry of protest is heard from him.
"Now I have more reason to hold a grudge over you," I mumble, blowing a raspberry and lean back on my chair.
"Sorry," Hyunjin says, "I didn't know okay?"
I stay quiet.
"For the record, I actually want to be your friend," he adds. "And you're pushing me away."
I scoff, "that's nice."
Imagine it, Hwang Hyunjin―my supposed competition, rival and every other synonym out there for those two words―wants to be my friend. That's the funniest joke of the year, I tell you. You don't make acquaintances with your rival.
"But seriously, I feel bad," Hyunjin says, breaking me off my thoughts. "I didn't drool on you, right? I mean, it's not like I did but if I did, I'll feel even more horrible." He adds quickly.
"Doesn't change a thing," I tell him and crack my neck, trying to relieve the soreness of my shoulder.
Hyunjin pouts, "it's sore?"
"What do you think?"
"Yes?"
"There you go," I say without looking up from the screen of my phone.
Hyunjin whines, "why are you so mean ...?"
"I'm not mean," I defend myself, looking at him, "I just don't make friends with competition."
Hyunjin pouts even more, making me want to nudge his face away. "I'm sorry," he says, reaching out to pat my shoulder.
"What have you filled your head with so much to make it that heavy," I mumble, leaning away from Hyunjin's hand.
"Because my head is filled with so much knowledge," he grins, making me glare at him. "Aah," Hyunjin groans, "what's so hard about accepting my apology?"
"Nothing," I say, "you annoy me."
"Well you have to get used to it," Hyunjin tells me in a matter-of-factly way, "I'm going to be your teammate in the future, remember? So you're not a rival." He reminds me, waving an index finger in my face.
Instead of answering him, I look out through the window. Listening to him makes my ears ache and I need something to distract me from it. What I find outside distracts me alright as I find that the streets are unfamiliar to me.
Biting my bottom lip, I open the maps on my phone and find that it's eight stops past mine. I let my head drop and sigh. "Seriously?" I whisper to myself and curse.
