𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝 ⁿᵃ ʲᵃᵉᵐⁱⁿ ✔︎

(18) Yer a dumbass Na

"What did ya say?" Hagrid questioned. Staring was rude but Jaemin couldn't help himself from studying his face, which was almost covered by a beard. The gamekeeper impatiently tapped his foot against the floor, waiting for an answer.

"Ivy might be wandering around in the dark forest right now as we speak, but we hoped to see her here- with you." Yeji sighed, peeping through the small window of his hut to catch a glance of the said girl.

"Yer kids are very lucky. Found her almost dead in the heart of the forbidden forest. Poor thing...the trees probably gave her a fright." Hagrid opened the door made out of wood and led them both inside.

Ivy lay unconscious in a giant couch, oblivios to her surrounding. Her heart thumped in accordance with slow and shallow breaths, which meant she was still alive. A wave of relief came over to Yeji as she hurried to stand beside Ivy. She watched the slight rise and fall of her chest, her features appearing much softer in her sleep. There were no words to describe how happy she was to see her again, despite them being apart for only less than a few hours.

"Ya shouldn't be here." Hagrid said, "As soon as she wakes up, I'm taking you three to Professor Dumbledore."

"Aw come on Hagrid," Jaemin spoke. He took a few steps closer towards the giant, hoping to catch his full attention. "Let us go, please."

Hagrid seemed to hesitate for a moment before agreeing. Dumbledore had warned him about Ivy and her background story, alongside everything about her friends and brother. He didn't want any more trouble, especially a stupid bet caused by two reckless Slytherins.

"Thank you." Yeji said, looking up with a genuine smile which lightened up her whole face.

All thanks to Hagrid, the trio made it to the Slytherin dormitories on time before curfew, sparing a few seconds. Ivy didn't utter a word on their way back, still traumatised. Jaemin couldn't bring himself to ask her why she had dared to enter the forbidden forest without informing him, it was his bet after all.

"Sit here, I'll bring you a warm glass of-"

"Yeji, I want to go back to sleep...please." Ivy pleaded, blinking away her tears as she shared eye contact with her friend.

"Of course, darling. Let's go, we both need rest." And just like that, Ivy and Yeji left Jaemin standing alone in the middle of their common room.

"I'm very jealous of you, Pang!" Jisung pouted, resting his chin on the table and extending his long arms as he pretended to be upset. "You're invited to spend Christmas with the Na family...that's a huge honor."

Pang released a sweet chuckle before patting his head. "Jaemin invited me last night after his owl dropped a letter from his mother. I didn't know that she knew- well- that I exist?"

"Oh come on Pang. You're Jaemin's first ever girlfriend." Jeno spoke. "He probably wrote her on the same day you've agreed to be his."

"Oh...do their parents have anything against Ravenclaws?" Pang asked.

"Nope." Renjun shook his head, recalling the days he had visited Jaemin on. "His mother was one."

"Ooooo history might be repeating itself?" Mark jokingly asked, instantly causing the only girl in the room to blush.

Before anyone could talk further, Chenle walked into the scene with a small smile on his lips. The Hufflepuff had gone to check on his ill sister, who stayed on her bed coughing as she had caught a cold the night before.

"Ivy's feeling much better, but she's still sneezing and coughing like it's the plague." He informed.

Mark, Jeno, Renjun, Jisung, Pang and Donghyuck were waiting for Chenle to arrive after receiving an owl message from Yeji, who told them that Ivy was safe and probably sick after spending the night outside. She didn't mention anything about the bet, it was none of her business.

"Ah, that girl is making me go crazy." Donghyuck muttered, shutting his eyes closed and standing up to leave.

"Where are you going?" Jeno questioned.

"I know she only can have one visitor per visit, so I'm-"

"Don't go now, she already has someone in her hospital wing." Chenle interrupted, stealing the strawberry milk carton from Jisung as he was thirsty from walking all the way to the infirmary and back.

"Who?" Everybody chorused.

"Jaemin? Why are you here?"

Na Jaemin knew he had done something pretty awful to Ivy when he forced Yeji to inform him about the sick girl. The guilt sat on his chest, weighting it down heavily. After the incident he couldn't sleep a wink. He tossed and turned all night on his bed, overthinking about someone he didn't care about. For a moment he was concerned, but the feeling faded away after he reminded himself of who he thought she really was.

"Did you come to check up on-"

"Don't flatter yourself, Zhong." Jaemin said, his voice coated with unspoken warnings. "I'm here to tell you that I had nothing to do with this mess. I only came looking for you last night with Yeji because I wanted to make it up to you for ruining your exam. I've done my part now, so go ahead and mention our bet to our friends. You're the one who's responsible for your stupid mistake."

"Jaem-"

"Be glad that I've wasted my precious time on you. Goodbye." With that being said, he turned and left the wing, leaving her confused and sad.

"You little piece of- Why do you hate me so much, huh? Why me?" Ivy whispered to herself as her voice cracked. For the first time in her nineteen years of her life, her heart broke into small pieces, leaving it shattered on the ground as she stood up with tearful eyes.

"I'm done playing nice. If he wants to see me as his villain, I have no problem playing that part." She wiped her tears away with a tissue paper, mumbling that Jaemin did not deserve them. "I'm so done with you, Na."