a note from the author: hello everyone! it has been a while since my last author’s note and for that i apologize ^^;; if you are a regular reader, you may have noticed i updated quite a few times this week (usually i update one or twice a week). this is because the next few days and next week, i may not have time to update any chapters. reason being: it’s a holiday week so i spend time with family and i’ll be attending multiple days of a convention. additionally! since i’m here, i’d like to thank you – my readers – for your continued support. a big thank you to the users who have commented so far. your feedback and reactions are very much appreciated. also! thank you as well to the silent readers who are still sticking around to read. it means a lot to me. every, read, and comment counts.

so… that’s all i really have to say for now. thank you again and i hope you enjoy reading this chapter~!

The bus stop looked different at night.

Sooji tightened the strings of her hoodie to block out the winds nipping her neck and slipped her hands further into her sleeves. She had never been outside this late at night. What she would do to be inside her house, on her bed, under two comforters, drinking hot chocolate. With a sigh, she looked up to the sky and thought about what she was going to do when she got home. It was a Friday evening so doing homework would be lame, right? Maybe she might just binge watch a romance drama. ‘Boys Over Flowers’ was always a good time.

Leaning against the stop sign, she the last few minutes replayed in her head. A smile made its way on her face as she remembered the surprised look on Jinyoung’s face when Miyoung hugged him. He always had a deer-in-the-headlights look whenever Miyoung talked to him. She wondered if she should tell him one time so he wouldn’t look so spooked. She figured Jinyoung should appear happier when he was around the person he liked, not freaked out. She shook her head, pulling out of her thoughts. If there was one thing she was good at, it was getting distracted and missing what was right in front of her. The last thing she needed was to miss the bus.

Not long after, the bus’s brakes screeched to a stop in front of her. The engines hissed as the door swung open. From the window, she could see there were no other passengers at this hour. Of course, that was to be expected. Everyone was either already at home or wandering the city streets – not travelling from school. After boarding, she swiped her pass and made her way down the narrow aisle towards the middle of the bus where she usually sat with Jinyoung. For a second, she contemplated about whether she wanted to sit by the window, but ultimately decided against it. That was Jinyoung’s seat. It would be too weird.

Laying her head against the head rest, she turned her head and stared out the window as the bus began to drive. The scenery that was usually bright green and blue was a pitch black with her faint reflection staring right back at her. There were very little lights other than the cone shaped ones from street lights and a small blinking rectangle waving back and forth. Her brows knit in confusion – was that a cellphone light? Craning her neck from her seat, her eyes widened in surprise when she saw it was Jinyoung frantically waving his arms – cellphone in one hand – as he ran alongside the accelerating bus. When their eyes met, he pointed towards something above her head. The cord. Getting up, she pulled the cord and called out to the driver to stop and open the door.

“Sorry, sir!” Jinyoung’s voice came from outside the door as he climbed the steps to which the driver only disapprovingly grunted at. A high-pitched beep followed as he scanned his pass, and the driver started the bus again.

Jinyoung awkwardly navigated down the aisle to where Sooji was sitting, trying his best to keep his breathing steady after his bus chase. He felt more tired running after a bus than playing in an almost-two-hour long soccer game. Excusing himself, he slipped past Sooji and plopped into his usual seat by the window, chest heaving. Sooji grabbed her bag from under her seat, pulled out an unopened mini-water bottle she had gotten from the refreshments table at the soccer field, and offered it to her tired friend.

“Why are you here?” She asked, handing the water bottle to him, “Aren’t you supposed to be at the dance?”

Sooji couldn’t believe her eyes. Jinyoung – her friend who should have been dancing with his crush right now at the homecoming party – was a sweating, limp mess beside her on the bus ride home. It was the dance girls were bending over backwards for trying to get dates to, and he – someone whose crush was actually waiting for him to go – wasn’t going. There was no other explanation for his actions other than self-sabotage at this point.

Before he answered, Jinyoung took a much-needed drink from the bottle (more like he one-shot it). When he was done, he sighed and brushed his bangs back. A serious expression was on his face, “What kind of bus buddy would I be if I let you ride the bus home alone?”

With the way he stared intensely at her while saying something so cringe-y, she started laughing which caused him to break and laugh along too. Using her hand to cover as she laughed, she used her free arm to lightly punch him in the shoulder, “No really, why aren’t you at the dance? You should’ve just let me ride home myself. Miyoung was waiting for you! It’s not every day you get to spend the most important night of the year with the person you like!”

If he really thought about it, she was right. As first years, homecoming was probably the most important even they were ever going to experience. Still, he stuck with his argument and it didn’t seem to satisfy her no matter what. Defeated, he sighed and threw his hands up, “Alright, fine. I’ll tell you since you really want the honest explanation. To be honest, it’s because I didn’t buy a ticket beforehand. Even if I did want to go, I wouldn’t have been able to get in anyway,”

When Jinyoung turned his head to look out the window, Sooji figured it was best not to push any further. That’s how he cut an end to most conversations if he didn’t end it with ‘goodbye’. Sitting back, she slumped in her seat, pulled out her phone and began scrolling through her cluttered email inbox. She skimmed through the unread emails, quickly opening and exiting from each one since they were announcements not relevant to her. However, her eyes skimmed over the smaller text under a homecoming ticket sale announcement.

* Students who are officially part of the Lila Flyers (cheer) and the Lila Bandits (soccer) are granted free admission to the homecoming party.

This was a neighborhood Jinyoung had walked through a few times in the past. As the two students strolled along the sidewalk, Jinyoung observed the familiar households. He knew this neighborhood – in fact, he lived only ten minutes away and would walk through this street when he wanted to visit the library in the middle of town. Now that he thought about it, he never did ask Sooji where she lived before. He always just assumed nearby. This street was known for their large third floor houses. It was new as a residential area because a dying strip mall previously occupied the space. The further down the neighborhood they walked, the more anxious Jinyoung got. He had heard stories from his mom and dad that at the heart of the community were exclusive gated private houses. He wasn’t sure what he would say if she lived in one of those. What if he was being disrespectful the whole time and she was referred to as ‘ma’am’ or ‘miss’?

Jinyoung stuffed his hands in his pockets, “So, which stop is you?”

“This one!” Sooji stopped in front of an iron gate and raised an arm towards her house, “Welcome to Hwang Residence!”

Her house was a normal two-story one, but it was bigger than the ones in his area. It wasn’t a mansion, but it was sure protected like one. High stone walls surrounded the house so only the attic window and roof could be seen. Still, compared to the neighboring houses, her was still simpler by a margin. After a quick-once over, he looked down at Sooji, “So, since you don’t have tutoring… what are you going to do? It’s only seven… are you sure you don’t want to go to the dance? There’s still time and-”

“It’s okay, I’m not that big on parties anyway. I’ve never been to one aside from ones my parents’ co-workers invite us