It wasn’t supposed to be a date.
That’s what Jiwon told herself when Jungwon invited her out after class.
Just coffee. Just a walk. Just them.
But when she stood outside the quiet café by the park, dressed in a soft sweater and her comfiest sneakers, she realized—it felt like something.
Jungwon arrived two minutes later, holding an umbrella even though the sun was out. His hair was a little tousled from the breeze, his bag slung carelessly over one shoulder. He looked… soft.
When he saw her, his face lit up.
“Hey,” he said, smiling like it was the first time he’d seen her that day. (It wasn’t—it was the fifth.)
“Hey,” she replied, trying not to sound too breathless.
They sat inside near the window, sipping iced drinks and nibbling on shared pastries. The conversation was easy—full of teasing and laughter—but there were moments where their knees touched beneath the table, where their eyes met and lingered just a little too long.
It felt new.
Warm.
Real.
“So…” Jungwon said, fiddling with the edge of his cup. “How’s it feel to be on a not-date?”
Jiwon narrowed her eyes. “This isn’t a date?”
“I mean, unless you want it to be.”
She snorted. “You’re smooth.”
“Not really,” he replied, shrugging with a grin. “I just like spending time with you. Date or not.”
She didn’t say anything, but her smile gave her away.
-
Later, they walked through the park, leaves crunching beneath their feet. The late afternoon sun filtered through the trees, casting a golden glow on the path.
They didn’t talk much now—just walked, close enough that their arms brushed. And then, slowly, Jungwon reached for her hand.
She let him take it.
No hesitation.
No doubt.
They kept walking, fingers interlaced, like it had always been this way.
After a while, Jungwon spoke quietly. “Do you ever think about the first message?”
Jiwon chuckled. “‘I’m cute’? Yeah, I think about it a lot.”
He laughed too, then nudged her shoulder. “But you replied ‘I’m cuter.’”
“Because I am,” she teased.
He stopped walking for a moment and turned to face her.
“You know what?” he said, eyes softening. “You really are.”
Jiwon’s smile faltered—not because she didn’t like the compliment, but because of the way he said it. Like he meant every word.
Like this wasn't just a walk or a joke or a maybe.
This was the start of something.
She looked up at him, heart thudding gently. “Then what does that make you?”
Jungwon grinned. “Lucky.”
And for the first time, Jiwon thought: Yeah. Me too.
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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...
