The following week went by fast. After an uneventful weekend, they came back to school. School was in full swing and homework was beginning to pile up. The group of four sat together at a table in the library, with multiple textbooks and worksheets scattered around.

    “I swear the teachers get together and plan when their tests should be… because I have 4 on Friday.” Jackson whined with a pained expression. Seeing his frustration, Seulgi and Joohyun laughed. 

    “I have 3 and they’re all my weakest subjects. God help me.” Minho replied, groaning and rubbing his face in defeat. Irene chuckled, watching him scratch out his work for math in frustration. He had the answer because he searched the question online, but he wasn’t able to get the answer on his own. In concentration, he unconsciously jutted out his lips and furrowed his eyebrows. Joohyun laughed at the sight. Minho, who was struggling with math was the one that breezed through english, rap, and dance. God really did gift him… just not in the academic path. Observing his features, her eyes trailed down to his paper where he started his math all over again.

    “The derivative of 2x is 2, not x squared.” Joohyun commented, hoping to ease his frustration over a simple mistake. Seulgi, Jackson, and Minho all snapped their heads up. It had been quiet until Joohyun had spoken. Seulgi and Jackson went back to their own work, while Minho looked back at his own paper to look at his mistake.

    “I really spent 20 minutes on this problem because I didn’t get that part. Oh my word.” Minho blurted, realizing his simple mistake. 

    “Hey Joohyun, maybe you should tutor Minho in Calculus.” Jackson piped up, laughing at his friend’s struggle. 

    “Yea, I think you’d have 2 struggling students.” Seulgi responded, rolling her eyes. Jackson had only gotten one question right… for the last 3 worksheets. Joohyun shook her head adamantly; she couldn’t handle the both of them. Suddenly, she felt a hand brush her hair. Surprised, she looked to the side where Minho was sitting.

    “You had a paper bit…” Minho trailed off, realizing that his hand was still touching her head. 

    “Oh.. oh uh thanks.” Joohyun stuttered out, unsure of how to respond. Minho cleared his throat and broke eye contact. Facing back to the front, he saw Jackson wiggling his eyebrows. 

    “Hey babe! You have something in your hair!” Jackson dramatically turned to Seulgi. He cupped her face and took an imaginary piece of paper from her hair. Seulgi swatted his hands away, rolling her eyes. As Seulgi and Jackson bantered back and forth, Joohyun looked to her side at Minho, catching his eye. Making eye contact, she smiled and mouthed thank you. Minho’s heart skipped a beat at this gesture. Before she could tell that he was blushing, he looked away. Joohyun’s smile didn’t disappear even when their study session ended and she headed home. A few feet away from the library, she heard footsteps run to catch up to her. Turning her head to see who it was, she breathed a sigh of relief after realizing that it was just Minho.

    “I’ll take you home. Seulgi and Jackson are going out on a date.” Joohyun nodded in thanks and started walking with him towards her home. They started talking about schoolwork and tests, which led the conversation to how Minho was good at dance and rap, something Joohyun admired. They continued chatting until she arrived at her doorstep. 

    “Thanks for walking me home Minho. Text me when you get home safely?” Joohyun asked, hoping that this could initiate further contact through texting. 

    “Will do ma’am!” Minho responded with a little salute. Waving goodbye, Joohyun stepped inside her home. Walking inside, she let out a happy squeal. Running upstairs, Joohyun threw her backpack on the ground and changed into more comfortable clothes. She jumped into her bed and picked up her phone, texting Seulgi. 

To: Seulgi

He literally walked me up to my doorstep!

To: Seulgi

He’s cute AND nice?! What more can I even ask for?!!!

    Throwing her phone next to her on her bed, she stared up at her ceiling in contentment. Junior year was definitely supposed to be a hard year, but she didn’t expect herself to start liking someone. Her ringer for text messages went off, and she checked her phone. Realizing it was just Seulgi responding, she pouted a little.

From: Seulgi

...Better calculus and biology skills? >.<

    Joohyun burst out laughing. Of course. She started typing her reply when her phone rang again and a notification popped up from Minho.

To: Seulgi

HE JUST TEXTED ME 

From: Minho

Just got home :) Wyd?

    Minho hit the send button and squirmed. Was asking wyd lame? Was it generic like every other guy? He didn’t want to be just another guy to Joohyun though. Sitting on his couch, his mind carried him back to the library when he picked a piece of paper out of her hair. He remembered how it felt. Her hair was soft and silky and his hand combed through it so gently. He remembered how her eyes flitted towards him, round in surprise. Her eyes were beautiful and brown, captivating him in them. 

    “-ho! Minho! How many times do I have to call you for dinner?” Minho’s mom yelled at him, wanting him to join them for family dinner. 

    “I’m going!” Minho rushed into the dining room. Sitting down, he saw his phone screen light up and realized it was a text from Joohyun. Sneaking his phone under the table, he quickly typed out a response. 

    They spent the night texting and when they met up the next day at school, they felt a lot more closer. Unconsciously, they became more touchy with each other, lightly tapping each other when they were laughing and poking for each other’s attention. This didn’t go unnoticed by Seulgi and Jackson, who watched with amusement at the two flirting with each other.

    “I can’t deal with these two being flirty. We weren’t like this!” Seulgi exclaimed at Jackson, fake gagging. Jackson laughed in agreement, while Minho and Joohyun just turned beet-red. The bell rang and they separated to go to class. The week passed in a similar manner. They met often at the library, and Minho started receiving a lot more help from Joohyun, who was more conscious of him and his work. The eye contact and shared contact made both of them fall for each other even more. By the end of the week, they were sure of their own feelings, but a little confused about the other.

    “I don’t think I failed my calc test… but I definitely did not get anything higher than a B.” Minho remarked as he met up with the other three on Friday.

    “I failed 3 out of 4 of my tests… I know it.” Jackson replied, burying his head into Seulgi’s shoulder while letting out fake sobs. Seulgi pat his head in comfort, even though she was rolling his eyes. It was still a mystery on why Jackson decided to take hard classes when he obviously couldn’t handle them all.

    Minho felt sorry to Joohyun, who had unofficially started to tutor him when they studied in groups. He even asked questions when they were texting, which had led to a few facetime calls that ultimately ended in a little frustration but mostly happiness from understanding. He felt bad for taking up her time when the result was probably less than satisfactory. He sighed and unconsciously pouted, trying to think of a way to make it up to Joohyun.

    Joohyun peeked over at Minho, who seemed really deep in thought and upset about whatever he was thinking. Believing it was because he thought he failed his test, she reached up and ruffled his hair in comfort. 

    “It’ll be fine. We can work harder on the next text and if you do well on the final everything will balance itself out.” Joohyun said reassuringly, moving her hand to pat his shoulder. Minho felt himself blushing again and instead of meeting her eyes, stared at the floor. His voice was caught in his throat, so all he could let out was a small grunt of confirmation.

Jackson smirked at his friend struggling to even make eye contact with Joohyun. Bumping his shoulders into his girlfriend, he motioned with his head to look at Minho and Joohyun. Seulgi had to keep in her laugh and only breathed out with her nose because of Minho’s inability to look at her best friend.

    “Hey, you guys wanna grab boba?” Jackson asked the group, knowing everyone was tired from all the tests and studying. Jackson and Seulgi made eye contact and with her smile, he knew she was in. Joohyun looked at Minho, wondering if he was going. Minho grinned as a yes and Joohyun nodded after seeing his response. They set off to go to their local boba shop and was at the door when Joohyun’s phone went off. 

From: Mom

Can you come home right now? Your sister needs help on this essay and it's due midnight. 

    Joohyun sighed. “I think I have to go home. My sister needs help with an essay.” She couldn’t help but feel a little upset. Seeing Seulgi start to say bye to Jackson and Minho, Joohyun stopped her. “It’s fine, you can stay here. It’s daylight and I’m going to be taking roads with more people on it so I’ll be safe.” Seulgi furrowed her eyebrows, weighing her options. Knowing that she would brush off her excuse and walk her home, Joohyun opened the door and shoved Seulgi and Jackson in, saying bye. She made eye contact with Minho while shoving them in, and realizing that he might try to walk her home like he had been doing, she shoved him inside too. Once everyone was in the shop, she waved bye excitedly and set off home. Stopping to put in her airpods, she started playing her favorite hits from the 1990s. She started to walk and nod her head to the beat, enjoying the music and the scenery around her.

    Meanwhile, Minho, Jackson, and Seulgi were in line for the boba shop. The couple was facing the cashier and ordering, while Minho kept glancing back out of the shop to see where Joohyun was. 

    “Can I get a milk tea boba and lychee green tea with boba please?” Minho handed the cashier the due money. 

    “Why lychee green tea?” Jackson asked confused on why he was ordering two bobas. “Oh for your younger sister?” He guessed. Seulgi, who knew what Joohyun’s favorite drink was, smiled knowingly.

    “It’s for Joohyun~~” She teased Minho. 

    “An order for Jackson?” The person from behind the counter announced. Jackson went to grab his and Seulgi’s drinks. While he left, Seulgi couldn’t help but question Minho.

    “Why don’t you ask her out if you like her this much?” Minho’s eyes widened in surprise at Seulgi’s suggestion. Was it that obvious that he liked her? If her best friend was encouraging it, did it mean Joohyun liked him too?

    “W-what do you mean? I don’t even know if she likes me yet…” He responded, trying to see if Seulgi would tell him if Joohyun felt the same way. Joohyun almost face palmed. How was he this oblivious?

    “You’re stupid. And blind.” She responded, while Minho’s name got called at the counter to pick up his drinks. Knowing that he was going to go after Joohyun to walk her home, Jackson and Seulgi waved goodbye as he picked up the drinks. Asking for a drink holder, he placed the two cups side by side and held it by the hand-holder. Raising his holder in thanks, he grabbed the straws and started out the shop. Lucky for him, he found Joohyun relatively fast because she was walking slow, vibing with her music.

    “Joohyun!” Minho called out, not realizing that she had her music almost maxed out. When she had no response and continued to nod her head to the beat, he walked closer to her. Hearing her hum the melody, he smiled. Even just humming, she sounded beautiful. 

    Side stepping in front of her, he cut her off her way of going. Startled, Joohyun gasped and flinched back, tripping over her own feet. Joohyun clenched her eyes shut, knowing that she was going to fall hard on her . Instead, she felt a warm arm scoop her up and she collided into a hard chest. Taking in a breath to steady herself, her heart skipped another beat when she breathed in his smell. 

    “You okay?” Minho asked gently, leaning backwards to check on her. Joohyun couldn’t raise her head to look at him so she just nodded. Joohyun didn’t need anyone telling her that her face was already red because she could feel the heat in her cheeks. Awkwardly shifting her weight back onto her own feet, she set distance between herself and Minho. 

    “Y-yea. I’m good. Thanks for catching me.” Joohyun looked up, slightly dazed. Minho was captivated by her lips- they were slightly opened and flushed red. Realizing he still had his arm around her, he quickly removed it and took her drink out of the drink holder.

    “I got you a drink.” Minho gently placed the cup in her hands, seeing her eyes light up because of the simple gesture.

    “No way!! Did Seulgi tell you that I liked lychee green tea?” Her eyes rounded at the thought of her best friend remembering what drink she liked. 

    “Uh… Yea! I didn’t want to third wheel with them so I offered to bring it to you.” Minho lied, not wanting to be caught remembering the small things she said. Joohyun popped open the straw and placed it in the straw opening. Grinning happily, she looked at Minho. Her eyes trailed past his face and into the chest she bumped into. She cleared and looked away in embarrassment, scolding herself for doing that in front of him. Minho noticed this and thought she was clearing because she felt awkward around him.

    “Have you ever tried the ice cream parlor next to the college?” Minho asked, trying to ease the silence. 

“No, but I heard it was super cute and a good date place… Maybe I’ll go once I have someone to go on a date with.” Joohyun responded jokingly, her eyes creasing. Minho laughed nervously. Should he ask her out? As he was getting the words out of his mouth, Joohyun continued the conversation by asking him his favorite ice cream flavor. The conversation, like usual, continued without effort. Before they knew it, they reached her house.

“Thanks for bringing the drink and walking me home. And catching me earlier I’m a mess.” Joohyun chuckled while digging in her backpack for her keys. Reaching into the inner pocket, she smiled triumphantly when she found it.

“Bye Minho! Text me when you get home.” Joohyun opened the door and was about to step in when Minho stopped her by asking a question. 

“Do you want to go with me to the ice cream parlor tomorrow?” Minho asked with a tinge of pink on his cheeks. This left Joohyun speechless. Was he? Was he asking her out on a date?? The wheels in her brain were on full activation mode. Realizing he was still waiting for her answer, she snapped out of her stupor.

    “Yea! I’ll see you tomorrow.” Joohyun replied. Smiling one last time, she closed the door behind her. Yelling that she would look at her sister’s essay after she changed, she ran upstairs. 

To: Seulgi

!!! I think I’m going on a date with him tomorrow!!

    Taking off her uniform and changing into sweats and a hoodie, she waited earnestly for Seulgi’s response. Seeing that it was taking her more than 5 minutes, she decided to go up to look at her sister’s essay. 

    While looking at the grammar and mechanics, Joohyun was immersed in making sure everything was correct and was in the middle of giving advice when her phone notified her of a message. Thinking it was Seulgi, she checked the home screen. Her heart stopped once she realized it was Minho, and with her heart beating quick she checked what he said.

From: Minho

Got home safe :) Wear something comfortable tomorrow. I want to show you another place that’ll require a little walking.