“Namjoo!” Yunyeong screeched when she dropped the bags clutched in her hands.

Strangely, in that very moment her chest felt superbly light and empty, even though it was hard to breathe. Perhaps she was just too shocked, but to this extent over Sehun? Namjoo couldn’t make sense of it. This importance…him…

Hwang Seona and Oh Sehun appeared so lovey-dovey, so perfect together and all-so happy that it was like an arrow to the heart. Cutting off the sight to save herself Namjoo spun around, a subconscious gasp of utter disbelief and pain shooting through her lips. She needed air. Yes, that’s what she needed. Air.

“Namjoo!” Yunyeong shouted after her as she began trudging away with a point-blank mind. Picking up the fallen bags the friend quickly hurried after her.

§§§§§

“Sehun!” Sungwoo loudly called out as he approached. A hard slap landed on Sehun’s back.

“You’re going to hurt him, careful,” Seona scolded from the side.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to hurt your little boyfriend.”

Seona narrowed her eyes at him, giving up with putting him in his place. Laughing awkwardly Sehun assured, “It’s ok. It doesn’t hurt much.” Turning to the guys he greeted, “Hey, what’s up? I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

“Someone snitched, so I heard you were back in town,” Sungwoo said. “Oh yea, we met Namjoo and her friend, too.” Jutting his thumb back they all glanced behind him to find Namjoo and her friend nowhere in sight.

Sehun frowned, “It’s not a good thing to lie, you know. She has her college orientation today. Why would she be here?”

“I’m serious!” Sungwoo exclaimed then turned to Taihee for help. “They were here. You saw them!”

“This guy isn’t lying,” Taihee nodded his head.

Sehun’s brows came together once more and he glanced into the distance, but couldn’t spot Namjoo anywhere. Why would she leave so suddenly if she was here?

“Anyway, what are you two doing here all alone?” Taihee changed the focus of their attention. “You two on a date?” He cackled and jabbed his fingers at the two.

Nearly blushing Sehun reached out to grab his hands telling him to stop. If it was a date he’d make sure no one knew where they were. Too bad it wasn’t.

“Sehun was helping me organize some papers for this semester’s club events,” Seona explained. “And why are you two here?”

“Why?” Sungwoo asked. “We can’t be?”

She scoffed at them and reached out to hit the guys. Turning to Sehun she said, “Since we got our coffees, I’ll send you home or rather, where you’re staying.”

“Actually, I was planning to look around,” Sehun said. “Do you mind?”

“No, go ahead.” Seona nodded then waved to the two guys. “Go home you two. Don’t follow us.”

“Fine, we don’t wanna intrude on your date anyway,” Taihee muttered playfully. “It’s good to see you, Sehun. See you around.”

After waving to the guys and watching them head off Sehun wandered around the mall with Seona. Preparation was always a last minute affair for Namjoo. Before heading back to surprise her with his return he thought he’d get her a backpack. It would be old school for Namjoo to lug her high school backpack everywhere with her in college, so he wanted to help her prepare ahead of time.

“Do you need new supplies for this semester?” Seona wondered as he browsed through the selection in the store. “I can help you get some for low cost. I know some foundations at the university that gives out supplies to students.”

“No, it’s not for me,” Sehun told. He took a fashionable backpack off the shelf, opened its zippers to observe its sturdiness, and checked all its pockets to make sure it wasn’t a dud. The moment he laid his eyes on it all he thought about was that it was something Namjoo would like. And it was all clear. No misaligned sewing that needed fixing or loose places that needed tightening.

“Then who?” Seona asked.

“It’s for Namjoo,” Sehun said then veered away from the backpack selection. He intended to merely check out, but walked away from the counter when he spotted shoes on display. Namjoo would need nice shoes to walk in if she didn’t want aching feet. Hanyang University wasn’t just a small university. Namjoo would need to be constantly walking. He knew her shoe size, so he didn’t need to worry about sizing the shoe up or down. Next, he debated for a second. Since he was buying her shoes he might as well buy her something to wear. Perhaps a sweater. The school air conditioner was always on, even throughout winter. Namjoo would freeze through winter if she didn’t have anything thick to wear.

“You’re buying all that just for her?” Seona wondered when he finally started toward the counter to check out.

“Yes.”

“You must be very close to her,” Seona commented. “Namjoo’s pretty lucky that you like her this much.”

Sehun slightly froze for a few seconds then turned to look at Seona. Embarrassed, he quickly excused, “No, it’s not like that. Namjoo and I are just very good friends. We don’t think of each other as anything more than a brother and a sister.” Laughing awkwardly, he added, “Seriously.”

“Then is there someone else you like?”

Flushing with heat neck down Sehun turned away, “W…what are you talking?”

“You’re cute, Sehun,” Seona grinned and he wasn’t sure if she was teasing him or if she meant it. “I’ll wait for you outside.”

His heart leaped forward as he watched her walk away.

§§§§§

Worriedly glancing over at Namjoo, Yunyeong asked, “Hey, are you all right?”

The friend had taken over the wheel. Namjoo had been so out of it that when they got to her car she just sat in the driver’s seat staring out the window for five minutes. Finally, after kicking her out of the seat they were on the road home. Namjoo hadn’t bothered a word, just sat there kind of slouched staring at nothing.

“Namjoo,” Yunyeong called again. Speedily taking her eyes off the road she glanced over at the longtime friend. “Say something, will you?” Yunyeong helplessly sighed when Namjoo turned her face away from her to stare out the window.

In all the years of their friendship she had never seen Namjoo sulk to such an extent before nor had she witnessed Namjoo crushing on some guy so hard. And to think that loser of a guy was Oh Sehun.

Everyone knew how close Namjoo and Sehun were. The bond between them was unspeakable, unbreakable that no one dared cutting through it. The two were practically like glue at each other’s sides. All friends had basically accepted the fact that no one would ever be closer to them than the two themselves. It had always been like that. Yunyeong suspected they would have gotten even closer living together. Other people might have felt a tinge of awkwardness moving in to live under one roof with a friend, but in the case of those two, it didn’t exist.

Stamping her toe on the brake at the red light Yunyeong turned to Namjoo with a sudden flash of anger. “Should I cut that ? How great does she think she is that she should be the first person Sehun sees after coming back?! Lets go back there and put her in her place!”

Turning toward her with a frown Namjoo asked, “Why would you do that?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” Yunyeong retaliated. Slamming the wheel with her hand she muttered, “Sehun must be ing dense if he doesn’t realize by now that you like him. And to think you guys live in the same place.” Huffing a breath of frustration, she turned to glance at the red light then turned to Namjoo again. “Why can’t you just tell him you like him? Is he really worth it? Lets go out, lets go find someone who’s a thousand times better than him. There are men out there, you know, who are a hell lot better than dumb Sehun.”

“I don’t like it, too,” Namjoo quietly admitted. “But I like him so much, I just can’t help it.”

“Then don’t just sit there quietly,” Yunyeong told. “If I were you I would have told him ages ago and who cares if he doesn’t feel the same way. He’s just a stupid guy, like any other guy out there. He’s no different than them. So what if he doesn’t like you, you accept it and move on, find someone better. Have pride, Namjoo. This is why my mother says you should find a man who loves you more than you love him, that way you’re guaranteed to live a fruitful life.”

Namjoo weakly smiled in reply, but didn’t say any more.

The friend sighed once more and drove off when the street light turned green. “I mean it, Namjoo. Why let Sehun be all that?”

She fiddled with her fingers and said, “He likes her.”

“Did he tell you that?” Yunyeong wondered.

“No.”

“Then he doesn’t like her,” Yunyeon merely pointed out. “Don’t jump to stupid conclusions by yourself. You hear me?”

Namjoo remained quiet until they were near her house. “I wish he saw me that way.”

“Oh, Namjoo,” Yunyeong said with heart going out to her. By then she had already pulled into the drive way and the car came to a halt, cutting their conversation off short.

“Thanks for coming back with me,” Namjoo changed the topic stepping out of her car. “Sorry, you had to come all the way here.”

“It’s no problem. I’ll grab a cab home,” Yunyeong assured. She listened to Namjoo close the car door and wondered how best to comfort her love drunken friend. She easily realized that there wasn’t much she could do to cheer up Namjoo’s heart. This was something only her friend could do for herself. “Lets go out sometime for a girl’s night out. Don’t think so much, ok? If you need to, give Sehun a punch or two to feel better.”

Namjoo broke out into a laugh before waving to her.

§§§§§

“Thanks for the ride,” Sehun said after grabbing his belongings from the trunk of Seona’s car.

“You’re welcome,” she smiled. “It’s good to have you back in the city. Lets hang out more this semester.”

He nodded gladly and watched her get into the car before driving off with a wave. Exhaling happily, he turned to head into Namjoo’s house. He’d told her parents beforehand about his return, but had kept it a secret from Namjoo. It was obviously meant to be a surprise and he’d particularly chosen today because of her college orientation. Today wasn’t like any other day. Today was the day she received her student ID and the day she was one step closer to becoming a college student, and he intended to make it special.

“I’m back,” he called out upon opening the door to poke his head in.

Namjoo’s mother, by the stove, greeted him ecstatically. “Sehun! Welcome home!”

Getting up from the table where he was peeling the roots of green onion, Namjoo’s father got up to welcome him. “You’re back! How was the trip? We should have come to get you at the station.”

“Oh no, don’t worry about it,” Sehun said. Then he glanced at Namjoo who was sitting beside her father to help him with the chore. He grinned widely, expecting her to welcome him back excitedly. His smile wore down a bit when a sense of disappointment dawned on him with her dull, “Hey, Sehun,” before shifting her eyes back down to the green onions.

With an effort not to turn the atmosphere awkward he scratched the back of his head and turned his attention to her parents. “You look busy, do you need help?”

“No, no. Don’t worry about us,” her mother said. “Go up and put your stuff away. We are just working on dinner.”

“Yes, go get some rest. You must be tired from your trip up here. We can catch up with each other over dinner, so don’t worry about anything,” Namjoo’s father warmly urged.

Unable to object Sehun nodded and glanced at Namjoo before walking away. She should be jumping up and down upon seeing him, be asking him about his summer, and telling him all the details about her college orientation. It was unlike her…to not talk to him.

At the top of the stairs he peered at Namjoo’s bedroom. The door was closed and he wondered whether she had moved anything around over the summer or if it was still the same. To think he had been waiting for her to happily greet him.

Pushing the door to his bedroom open he stepped in, part of him hoping Namjoo had left something for him as a surprise and that was why she was acting the way she was. He was wrong. There was no gift waiting for him, just a bare bedroom that looked the same as he had left it, though he could tell the sheets had been recently laundered. Was it the work of Namjoo or her mother?

Dropping his baggage onto the floor he sat down on the bed and stared over at the dusty picture frame of his family on the table top. Other than what he’d left behind to return to, he had taken the picture that commenmorated his and Namjoo’s friendship with him down to Daegu. It was a special keepsake. While touring the city and visiting sites with his parents he often thought about how Namjoo would like seeing this or that. Her summer in Seoul must have been the same like any other, boring.

Deciding that there was nothing to do upstairs and that he wasn’t in the mood to nap, he headed downstairs to help out with dinner preparation. Namjoo’s parents were having a conversation about someone’s daughter who recently got married after being discovered with her boyfriend in her house.

“It’s such a shame,” her mother commented. “She’s so young and to be getting married this young. Don’t you ever do that, Namjoo.”

“Why pick on our daughter?” her father asked. “She doesn’t even have a boyfriend.”

“You’re right. At least we won’t have to worry about that,” her mother grinned. “And we can trust Sehun.” Looking at him she said, “You can help look after her.”

“That’s right. Sehun’s trustworthy and he has brains,” her father teased with a laugh.

“You can say that but Namjoo may have a secret boyfriend stashed somewhere,” Sehun teased. “Right, Joo?”

“Sure,” was her monotone response then she raised her tone, “mom, I’m done! What should I do next?”

He felt ignored and crushed by disappointment again when she walked by with the bowl of green onions in her hands. Turning he watched her talk with her mom about what to do next and wondered if Namjoo had had a bad day. His attention turned when her father came up to talk about something else with him.

All the way throughout dinner Namjoo busied herself with eating. Spoke no word to him, but continued and jumped into conversations with her parents. Even though they sat beside each other Namjoo didn’t glance at him even once.

Right after dinner Namjoo went upstairs to wash as he retreated to his room. As he pulled out the bags containing her gifts he wondered why her mood seemed so off. He wanted to hear her voice, hear her talk about things that probably didn’t even matter, and most of all he wanted to catch up or just sit together as they usually did. Before they would know it, they would probably be busy and cooped up with their own studies. Sehun wanted to spend meaningful time together before that happened.

He turned to look at his door when he heard her walking down the hallway. Grabbing her gifts, he stood up and walked out. Her bedroom door was already shut leaving him to wonder if her day had been exhausting. Maybe he shouldn’t bother her, but he hesitated because he did want to talk to her before going to bed. At least have a small conversation or something.

Knocking on the door he asked, “Namjoo? You up?”

Pressing ear against the door he listened to her shuffle around in her room and quickly stepped back when the door lock clicked and it opened. Namjoo quietly looked up at him without first asking what he wanted.

“You ok?” he worried. “Is something bothering you?”

“No,” her voice was monotone again. “Did you need something?”

“Uh…well,” he held up the bags in his hand, “I just…I was at the mall earlier and I got you some stuff. Here.”

Namjoo’s eyes slowly drifted toward the bags. When she didn’t reach for them he ended up pushing them into her hands. “Take it,” he urged, “you’re usually last minute, so I thought these would be helpful for you. How’d orientation go?”

“It was ok,” she quietly replied.

“Oh…really?” he said with a clear note of disappointment. Her replies were so short as if she didn’t want to talk to him at all. Deciding he shouldn’t bother her anymore he said, “Then, I won’t hold you up. You should go to sleep. You seem kind of tired.”

And that was it. Namjoo closed the door in his face and he didn’t know how to feel about it.