Between Me and You

Three

"Good thing I wasn't there or I would've ended those guys." Mingyu huffs as he listened to Sujeong recount the events that happened last Friday night during lunchtime the following Monday. "But if Jun and Wonwoo walked you home last Friday, does that mean you're also friends with Wonwoo already? Because I think that would be a first."

"What do you mean?" Sujeong asks.

"I don't know if you've noticed but he doesn't really interact with girls unless absolutely needed much less hang out with them."

"I wouldn't call it hanging out, though." Yein tilts her head, remembering how Wonwoo kept to himself and let everyone else do the talking when they sent her home.

"Oh? But why do you look so disappointed?" Mingyu asks her jokingly. "Are you interested in him?"

"I guess you can say that." She shrugs. "I just want to be friends with him, that's all."

Suddenly, Sujeong started waving to someone, a huge smile on her face. Mingyu and Yein followed her gaze and saw Taehyung sitting at another table waving back at her.

"What was that just now?" Yein eyed her curiously.

"Actually, I went out with Taehyung yesterday!" Sujeong says, eyes visibly twinkling.

Mingyu almost chokes on his food but catches himself, lightly hitting his chest as if to clear out his food pipe. "You did?"

As much as Yein likes to see Sujeong making progress with Taehyung, she can't help but feel bad for Mingyu, but she can't do anything if he doesn't even want to admit his feelings for her, so Yein just sighs inwardly and congratulates her best friend.

"That's great! When did he ask you out? Is it an official date?"

"He texted me yesterday! And no, it wasn't a date! We just ate at an all you can eat buffet, I ate so much I forgot I was on a diet." She admitted with a bashful smile.

"And, what else did you do?"

"We just walked around the neighborhood and stayed in the park and we talked." Sujeong answers. "I had so much fun I wished the day would never end." She adds dreamily, making Yein laugh.

They left the lunch hall with Mingyu in a sour mood, Sujeong having no idea why and with Yein thinking of a way to somehow make him feel better.

Once they were back in class, Yein turned to Wonwoo who was staring at the board in boredom. "Hey Wonwoo." She whispered. "There's something I forgot to tell you."

Wonwoo looked at her quizzically. "Hm? What is it?"

"You were so cool last Friday! You looked like you were having so much fun!" She showed him two thumbs up. "And thanks for sending me and Sujeong home, you didn't have to do that, but you did."

He froze for a bit and cleared his throat at the sudden compliment. "Uhm, thanks. And no problem." He gave her a small smile.

She beamed at him and went back to doodling on her notebook. At this point, it would be okay to assume that they're friends now, right?

--

It was raining hard when class ended so Wonwoo decides to wait out the rain by doing some advanced reading in the library.

He passes by Yein standing by one of the aisles looking at the books carefully. She turns and waves with a big grin, as if she's seen one of her best friends.

Wonwoo smiles back despite himself and wonders how anyone could be so warm and friendly, especially towards him. He is well aware of his reputation in the school as a cold, stone-faced guy. It's not his fault he always looks pissed, he was born with piercing eyes. He remembers being in elementary school, making a lot of his girl classmates cry because of his perpetually angry expression which was actually just him squinting because he had poor eyesight.