The Monday after the festival, everything returned to its usual rhythm.
Sort of.
Students shuffled back into classrooms with post-event exhaustion, desks slightly sticky with melted candy, and faint glitter still clinging to uniforms. But for Jiwon, something had shifted.
It wasn’t just the hand she had held.
It was what came after.
Jungwon had walked her home that night, their hands quiet but warm together, and when they reached her door, he’d only smiled and said, “Text me when you’re inside.” No pressure. No demands. Just him, as always—gentle, steady.
Now, as she sat at her desk in homeroom, she found herself watching him across the room without meaning to.
He was laughing at something Sunghoon whispered to him, hiding a grin behind his hand. Heeseung tossed a paper ball at Jay’s head while Jake tried (and failed) to take a nap. Ni-ki, ever unbothered, balanced a juice box on his forehead.
Jiwon smiled to herself. This had become a familiar sight.
Too familiar, maybe.
“Someone looks dreamy,” Sunoo whispered beside her, nudging her with his elbow.
Jiwon blinked. “What?”
“You were smiling at Jungwon like you were in a daydream,” he teased.
“I was not.”
“You were. Don't worry, it was cute. Slightly embarrassing, but cute.”
Jiwon shoved his arm playfully. “Shut up.”
Sunoo sobered a little. “How are you feeling… y’know, after everything?”
Jiwon sighed, staring down at her open notebook. “I’m still sorting it out. I was mad when he revealed it was him. I mean, I felt tricked. But at the same time... it was always him, wasn’t it?”
Sunoo nodded slowly. “He really likes you, Jiwon. I think he was scared to ruin something that felt real.”
“I know,” she said quietly. “And I think that’s why it hurts a little more. Because he was real to me, even before I knew his name.”
Sunoo offered her half his strawberry milk carton. “You’re allowed to take your time. But don’t wait so long that you forget what made you fall in the first place.”
She took the carton and sipped silently, her heart aching in a strange, sweet way.
-
Jiwon walked into the art room after class, needing space to think.
She didn’t expect to find Jungwon already there—standing near her easel, staring at the canvas she had painted during the festival.
He looked up when she entered, almost sheepish. “I wasn’t snooping, I swear.”
She raised an eyebrow. “You sure about that?”
“I got bored. And curious,” he admitted, stepping back to let her through. “I really like this one.”
Jiwon stood beside him, looking at the soft strokes and blurred skyline. It had been painted with emotion—uncertainty, hope, something in-between.
“Do you know what it’s about?” she asked.
Jungwon turned to her, serious. “Tell me.”
“It’s about wanting to say something,” she said slowly. “But not knowing how. So you paint it instead.”
He looked at her for a long moment.
Then, softly, “What were you trying to say?”
Jiwon bit her lip. “That... maybe I was falling for someone before I realized who he was. That maybe even if I was mad, I never stopped hoping it was him.”
His eyes searched hers. “Is that hope still there?”
She nodded. “It never left.”
Something in him melted at that—like relief, like gratitude, like he’d been holding his breath for weeks and could finally exhale.
Jungwon took a step closer, then paused, giving her space.
She didn’t move back.
“Can I try again?” he asked.
Jiwon smiled. “You never really stopped.”
And for a moment, it felt like the beginning again—except better.
Because this time, no secrets lingered between them.
Only everything they still hadn’t said... and now had all the time to.
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✓ 𝗜'𝗠 𝗖𝗨𝗧𝗘𝗥. yang jungwon
Fanfiction( 𝗜'𝗠 𝗖𝗨𝗧𝗘𝗥 ) "One dare, one text, and a whole lot of feelings." --- It all began with a simple dare-one that led to an unexpected connection. Jiwon Park, a quiet transfer student, received a random text that read, "I'm cute." Thinking it was...
