---

 

It was a snowy day in Hogwarts. The usually bustling and full hallways were unnervingly empty and silent. Most of the student body had gone home to spend the holidays with their family or friends. The few who remained, however, were greeted by an almost unrecognizable Hogwarts, void of constant chatter and footsteps.

 

Kang Seulgi sighed as she watched the falling snowflakes from a window. The Gryffindor common room was quite empty; most of the people who had stayed were either outside playing in the snow or in Hogsmeade. It was lonely, especially since most of her friends had gone home. Her brother had advised her not to go home since it was apparently safer to stay in Hogwarts. Her family has been a part of an association that was found to have connections to the Death Eaters. It was a huge mess and her family did not want her to be apart of it.

 

Seulgi was brought back to reality with the sound of the common room door opening. She quickly turned her head to see who had come in. It was Kim Namjoon, a tall, handsome and well-known prefect of the Gryffindor House. He was quite an intellectual fellow and she was quite acquainted with him, her being a fellow prefect.

 

“Oh, Seulgi… I didn’t expect to see you here,” he remarked upon seeing her.

 

“Me either,” she replied. “I mean, I didn’t expect you to be here too.”

 

“Well, you know,” he said while rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, “with the whole mess going around right now… My family decided it would be better for me to just stay here.”

 

“Same, actually.” She was surprised. Namjoon was the last person she’d expect to be involved in an incident regarding the Death Eaters. Then again, she had never expected her family to get into this kind of mess either.

 

“Kinda unnerving seeing the Common Room this quiet, huh?” He joked. “If it were like this all year round, being a prefect would be way easier.”

 

“No kidding,” she agreed. The two watched the snow falling outside together. “But it would be lonely, don’t you think?”

 

Namjoon smiled. “You’re right. It’s funny that we became attached to all the noise and chaos, considering how many headaches it’s given us.”

 

Seulgi could only nod in agreement. Just thinking about all her friends who weren’t with her to make the days bearable and the fact that they were all back in their homes with their families made her a bit envious.

 

“Homesick?” he asked her with an understanding look.

 

She gave him a small smile while nodding. “Can’t help it, I guess. It’s a bit lonely without my group of friends around. I hadn’t expected Hogwarts to be this empty.”

 

Namjoon thought for a bit in silence before answering her. “I’m meeting up with a few of my friends at Hogsmeade. Perhaps you’d like to come? Butterbeer always helps cure a percentage of my homesickness.”

 

Seulgi didn’t think twice. “Thanks… Sure, why not? What’s there to lose anyway?”

 

“Great! We’ll leave at around 5. See you here, then?”

 

Seulgi nodded. “Honestly, I’ll just be here ‘til then.”

 

--

 

Hogsmeade was freezing cold but the warmth of all the shops, the glow of all the lights, and busy noise of all the visitors made up for it. As beautiful and enchanting as it was during the day, it was no match for the view at night. The carols being sung, the smell of cookies being baked, the laughter of children who played… It made Seulgi almost feel like she was back at home.

 

Almost.

 

“Who’s joining us for tonight, anyway?” Seulgi asked as they neared upon The Three Broomsticks. “There’s no one who really stayed behind from Gryffindor aside from us.”

 

“Well,” Namjoon was saying as they entered when Seulgi saw him.

 

Relatively tall, features beautiful and charming, prefectly messy blonde hair, Park Jimin was a sight to behold. And a sight Seulgi hated to see.

 

He was Slytherin, after all. And a stuck up Pureblood, at that.

 

Although born a year younger, he got into the same batch as Seulgi and Namjoon for being quite talented with his wand. And he has never stopped tormenting her since.

 

It wasn’t quite a secret that Kang Seulgi and Park Jimin had never gotten along since the moment they laid eyes on each other.

 

“You have got to be kidding me,” she said as she stared at him.

 

Namjoon was quite confused by her reaction when she saw that she was looking at Jimin and the group of his friends.

 

“It’s quite a mixed group since everyone comes from different houses, but trust me, they’re all cool,” he assured her, not realizing the reason of her reaction.

 

“I’m not going to waste my time talking to Park Jimin,” she said stubbornly. She was on her way out when Jimin turned and saw the pair.

 

A small smirk appeared on his face.

 

“Well, well,” Jimin cried out, “Who did Namjoon bring? Looks like a familiar friend.”
 

Seulgi couldn’t help but get riled up at such a little thing. “Excuse me?”

 

It finally clicked in Namjoon’s mind why Seulgi had reacted the way she did. He had forgotten the infamous feud between Jimin and Seulgi. Although, everyone (aside from the two, of course) saw the feud as a bet whether the pair would end up together or not.

 

“I’m so sorry, Seulgi…. I forgot,” Namjoon was apologizing but Seulgi didn’t need to hear it. She simply smiled at him and waved it off.

 

“It’s okay,” she said. “But I’d rather not spend time here because I know I’ll only get riled up. I’m sorry, Namjoon.”

 

“No, it’s my fault for not remembering and being sensitive. It’s okay. You should leave. I told you, you don’t have to go or stay if you feel uncomfortable,” he assured her.

 

She shot him a smile before waving goodbye and leaving the shop.

 

Seulgi wondered around Hogsmeade, alone and shivering. It was quite ironic how she had ended up alone after she had decided to go here to not feel lonely. If it weren’t for the presence of an obnoxious somebody…

 

She cursed at him silently in her head. How annoying could he get! If it weren’t enough that he and kept getting her into trouble in class, he had to show up every single time she was in a good mood.

 

‘At least I can visit Honeydukes,’ she thought as she comforted herself with the brilliant sight of sweets in every corner of the shop. Honeydukes was one of her favorite places and she had spend a lot of her weekends visiting it with her friends.

 

She entered the shop with hopes and spirit high. Her eyes largened at the sight of all the candies. It was like being in heaven.

 

She made her way around the shop, examining and looking carefully at each option. She was determined to enjoy her evening, despite a certain someone’s presence, and candy always cheered her up. She ended up buying quite a lot and as she left the shop, a smile had cemented on her face.

 

She started heading back to Hogwarts when a figure came out beside her.

 

“Psst, Seulgi,” a familiar voice hissed.

 

She turned and in her annoyance, found the voice to belong to the one and only, Park Jimin.

 

“What?” she asked. “I’m kinda busy right now.”

 

“I need a big favor,” he told her as he agitatedly looked around.

 

She scoffed. “What makes you think I’ll help you?”

 

He sighed. “Look, I know you have no reason to help me. But I really need the help and there’s no one else around. So please.”

 

“Why don’t you ask your friends? Namjoon?” she asked him.

 

“It’s because I need a female for the favor,” he explained. “It’s not anything dirty, promise.”

 

She made a face before thinking. The thought of helping him didn’t really appeal to her but knowing he would owe her big time did.

 

“Fine,” she said.

 

“Hold my hand,” he told her ina quite agitated voice.

 

“Excuse me?”

 

He rolled his eyes at her. “Just do it. I’ll explain on the way.”

 

She grumbled as she clung on to his pinky. “You owe me big time.”

 

“Fine. But at least make it believable,” he commented before removing her hand from his pinky and interlacing his fingers with hers. His hand provided warmth to her cold fingers and although she hated it, she had to admit it felt nice. She was uncomfortable however, with the fact that they probably looked like a couple as they walked together because of it.

 

“What’s up with this, anyway?” she asked.

“A certain Slytherin girl won’t leave me alone because she doesn’t believe that I’m over her. This is the simplest way she’ll get to believe it. Believe me, I wish it didn’t need to be you but… she’s really insistent on getting back together and I really, really don’t want to,” he explained, almost apologetically.

 

She couldn’t help but roll her eyes. What did she even expect? Of course, Park Jimin, resident Slytherin playboy, would encounter problems such as these.

 

“You honestly think that she’d believe that you’re over her by spending time with a Gryffindor? And me, of all people?” she questioned him.

 

There was a moment of silence before he answered, as if he was formulating the right answer to say.

 

“I get it that I’m a Slytherin and Pureblood but honestly, I’m not one of those stuck up Purebloods who refuse to mingle with non-Purebloods. People seem to forget that I come from a family composed of mainly Gryffindors. Not to mention,” he pauses and smirks at her, “ I am Park Jimin. I hang out with all sorts of girls.”

 

Seulgi slapped his arm. “Man .”

 

“Ouch! How original!” he exclaimed as he put his hand over his heart in fake hurt.

 

She rolled her eyes. “Is it Jennie Kim that you’re avoiding?”

 

“Ding, ding, ding! How’d you guess?”

 

“I mean, I did see you two snogging in the hallway for the entire student body to see,” she explained and he turned red.

 

He shivered. “She’s hot but I regret everything,” he said. “Way too into me. I can’t deal with all that clingyness.”

 

As they approached their destination, Seulgi’s eyes widened.

 

“No way. I am not going in there with you.”

 

Jimin rolled his eyes. “Look, I need to make this look believable. I promise I’ll make it up to you. Big time.”

 

She shot him and look before sighing. “Fine. But you better believe that you’re going to owe me ‘til the day you die.”

 

And the two entered Madam Puddifoot’s Tea Shop, one of the hottest restaurants for couples.

 

The two settled down and ordered some drinks. They looked around to see all sorts of lovey-dovey people beside them. Seulgi gagged. The thought of being in this shop with one of the guys she despised the most was mind boggling to her. But her inner romantic couldn’t help but admire how in love all the couples were.

 

“Look at how in love everyone is,” she remarked.

 

Jimin shrugged. “I don’t really see it.”

 

She snorted. “For a playboy like you, shouldn’t you know love when you see it?”

 

“I don’t really feel love, sweetheart,” he replied as he batted his eyelashes. “I just go out and snog girls I find attractive.”

 

“Oh, come on,” she said. “You must’ve fallen in love at least once, right? Or at least have liked someone genuinely?”

 

He simply stared at her for a moment before sighing. “I suppose… There was this one girl--”

 

The arrival of their drinks interrupted his sentence. Seulgi sipped from her cup as she beckoned him to continue. “Go on.”

 

“I mean… It’s nothing, really,” he said as he rubbed the back of his neck and pushed back his hair. “It was a long time ago. She was the prettiest girl that I had ever seen in my life. Like, honestly… She was just… Wow. I’ve never seen anyone like her.”

 

“Well, what happened?” Seulgi asked.

 

“I don’t know. I was… afraid? I couldn’t muster up the courage to talk to her. I don’t know why but I ended up ruining everything. Maybe out of frustration. Maybe out of desperation? I don’t know. I just wanted her to notice me. So I resorted to the most stupid soultion possible: I was a complete to her.”

 

“No surprise there,” Seulgi joked as she laughed.

 

“Ha. Ha.” Jimin sarcastically replied.

 

“Continue.”

 

“Well, obviously, she ended up hating me. So I gave up on her.” His eyes were quite distant and he looked away from her. He was usually good at hiding his emotions but she could see the cracks showing the regret and sadness that was within him.

 

She frowned at the story. “That’s quite sad.” She remarked as she slapped his arm.

 

“Ouch! What was that for?” he hissed as he rubbed his arm.

 

“Why are you so stupid? You shouldn’t have been such an . Who knows what would’ve happened if you weren’t so annoying? She might’ve actually ended up liking you back!” she exclaimed.

 

He smiled at her bitterly. “Well, I was stupid. It’s never going to happen now. So why spend so much time looking back at something that never was?”

 

She pouted. “ But you should really go tell that girl what you feel. I mean, if you still like her, of course. You just have to be a little braver!” He rolled his eyes. What a Gryffindor thing to say.

 

“She might punch me in the face in reply,” he joked and they laughed.

 

The drinks they had ordered were easily finished in a matter of time and the two set out. Jimin caught a glimpse of a familiar face who was not at all pleased or convinced at the events unraveled. Jennie was on her way to him and he knew that she wasn’t sold on the entire charade.

 

“Seulgi,” he whispered as they walked towards the Christmas tree, “I owe you one more huge favor and I really don’t wanna resort to this but it’s the only way she’s ever going to leave me alone tonight.”

 

She sighed. “Ok, but on the condition that you tell that girl from your story how you feel about her.”
 

“What?” Jimin asked. He turned to see Jennie getting closer and closer and in panic, he agreed. “Fine. Fine.”

 

“Ok. What is it that you need me to do?” Seulgi looked up to him as they stopped walking.

 

“Don’t freak out,” he whispered as he put his hand on her cheek and brought his face closer to hers. Before Seulgi even knew it, they were only breaths apart and she could almost feel his trembling lips as he closed the gap between them and their lips met.

 

This wasn’t Seulgi’s first kiss nor was she a stranger to kissing different people. But kissing Park Jimin gave her the feeling of every first kiss she had ever had and was going to have. The feeling wasn’t filled with grand fireworks and bursting of a thousand butterflies. Instead, it was sweet and shy and her heart, amidst the cold, warmed up. The kiss felt like a hot drink on a cold day, an hour well spent, dancing and singing out loud to one’s favorite song on the most terrible day, and the sight of a million stars in the night sky,  It was tender and soft but passionate. He kissed her with a genuine yearning, almost. Despite how wrong it seemed, it felt completely right. And Seulgi started to feel things she had never really felt towards this particular boy.

 

It lasted for a few more seconds before he finally pulled away. Both of their cheeks were tainted with a slight blush, both flustered at what had unfolded. Jimin looked around to see Jennie nowhere in sight and he gave out a breath of relief.

 

“I..I..um… I’ll walk you back,” he offered. “Just to make sure that it’s properly ended, in case she’s still watching.”

 

Still dazed and quiet confused, Seulgi only nodded.

 

Jimin slid his hand in hers, although a bit more shyly and the two walked home back in awkward silence. They couldn’t even bring each other to look at each other and they both walked with their heads filled with thoughts and unspoken words. It was quite a sight to see; both of them, cheeks red and hot, eyes distracted, hearts beating fast, hands interlaced with each other, making their way through the snow. Upon finally arriving to Hogwarts, as they walked down the hallways to the Gryffindor house, he cleared his throat.

 

“So… um… I’m sorry? For having to make you go through all of… that,” he apologized sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I didn’t really plan on kissing you. It just… I… Jennie--”

 

Seulgi cut him off. “You don’t have to explain. I get it. You still owe me big time though!” she exclaimed. “And you owe a confession to that girl.”

 

He laughed awkwardly. “Right…” He cleared his throat. “I’ll update you on that.”

 

They stopped in front of the corner leading to the Fat Lady’s portrait.

 

“This is me,” Seulgi said as she smiled brightly at him. “You’re not so bad, Park Jimin. I still hate you but a little less now.” She started to walk away when she realized they were still holding hands. “My hand…”

 

“Ah.” He removed his hand from hers.

 

There was an awkward pause as the two didn’t know what to say next. They shuffled their feet on the floor and stuffed their hands in their pockets.

 

“So…” Seulgi said as her voice trailed off. “If there’s nothing more to say, I’ll head back inside now.”

 

“Wait.” He stopped her. She turned back to him. “I… I…”

 

“What?” Seulgi asked as he walked closer to her. “You better not kiss me again, Jimin. I might punch you if you do.”

 

“I’ll update you about that confession right now,” he told her.

 

Her eyes widened in confusion. “You mean, you’ve already confessed?”

 

“Not yet but you’ll hear her reply in a few seconds,” he said as he came closer and closer.

 

Seulgi’s heart started beating like crazy and she could feel her cheeks redden. “Wha-what do you mean?”

 

“The girl I was talking about,” he said as he stood directly in front of her, only inches away, “was you. I liked you, Kang Seulgi. And I like you, even until now.”

 

She stared up into his completely serious face, devoid of the mischeviousness and obnoxiousness that she was used to seeing and she could feel a thousand butterflies in her stomach and her heart skipping a beat.

 

It was too much, seeing how close his face was to hers. The distance was driving her crazy. Her instincts took over and she didn’t leave herself to think her actions through. She found herself tiptoeing and wrapping her arms around his neck as she brought her lips closer to his. She realized that kissing him, kissing his warm, plump lips with her cold, delicate ones, would never not feel completely right to her and make her all to breathless. Gentle yet passionate, soft yet rough, shy yet filled with desire. It was like the feeling of finally breathing after a lifetime drowning in water, of finally knowing light after a century of darkness.

 

Kang Seulgi was not sure at all what the hell was happening and what she even felt. But, despite all the uncertainy, confusion and mixed emotions, she was sure of one thing.

 

She was completely and utterly addicted to the taste of Park Jimin’s kisses.

---