AND THEN ONE DAY, Seungyoon, who before had thought he would never even breathe the same air as her, found himself sitting next to her, squeezed onto a small wooden bench meant for two people but occupied by three.

 

Seungyoon, her and Jinwoo.

 

Seungyoon had always thought that on a scale that measured attractiveness, he would score a negative. He would have situated himself somewhere in the middle between 'undesirable' and 'repulsive'. And now he was sitting on a bench on campus, gnawing on the green plastic straw of the taro flavored bubble tea she had suggested he get.

 

Life was funny sometimes, wasn't it?

 

It would introduce a lonely loner to a girl so beautiful it took his breath away and then it would make the loner meet a new friend and then it would make it so that the beautiful girl and the new friend of the loner started dating.

 

“Maybe I should really call my father,” she spoke with sincerity, turning to Seungyoon. The movement made their bodies brush against each other. Her arm against his shoulder, his leg against hers. Oh truly, the world was a wonderful place sometimes.

 

They had been talking about this for a while now; her trying to persuade Seungyoon to accept her generosity. Because Seungyoon was anything but rich, it had always been clear that he would have to start looking for a job as soon as he entered uni. Well, he applied, got accepted and went to uni and had kept his eyes open for the last few weeks, had been actively seeking out, but to no avail.

 

She, on the other hand, just like Jinwoo, came from a family that was rather well-off. Had money they could waste on things Seungyoon didn't even dare dream about, lest he become angry and bitter because they would stay dreams infinitely. She had been trying to convince him to work for one of the businesses her father owned. Yet...

 

For some reason, Seungyoon found himself refusing her offer. He didn't want to rely on her. He didn't want to become a charity case, a poor little man in the presence of this couple, leeching off of them.

 

“I'm sure my Dad would like you. You're quiet but gentle and determined.”

 

She sank back against the wood after those words, letting out a tiny breath. For a moment, Seungyoon imagined what it would be like if Jinwoo wasn't sitting right next to them, napping with his head thrown back in a relaxed manner.

 

Would she say the same words? Would she say different words?

 

She probably wouldn't, but he could imagine saying her something different and it made his heart beat in his chest in an irregular rhythm.

 

“Gentle?”, he repeated questioningly, scratching a bit of skin just underneath the frame of his thick glasses. She always for wearing those, an old-fashioned model, but since it always made her giggle he kept on wearing them.

 

“Yes.” Her voice sound light and airy and her eyes were still closed. Seungyoon found his eyes gliding over her face, the little curve of her nose, the way her lashes let shadows appear on her cheeks and the rosé color of her lips. If he was in Jinwoo's shoes, he thought, he would probably kiss her every day.

 

As his thoughts trailed off, he didn't notice Jinwoo opening his eyes. The older one yawned slightly, covering his mouth with one hand, before reaching out with the other one to entangle his hand with his girlfriend's.

 

She smiled sweetly and Seungyoon almost blanched a little at the sight. He felt bad for himself, but even worse for being jealous of Jinwoo who had been nothing but a good friend to him. Kind, reliable and supportive, albeit a bit sluggish when it came to anything related to his studies. At the same time, Seungyoon couldn't help this feeling he got every once in the while, when the couple showed their affection for each other in such a small way that no one else would have noticed.

 

But Seungyoon, because he was accustomed to detecting each and every single shift of her mood, may it be miniscule or big, had noticed every interaction and each time it made the green thorns of envy sting his heart.

 

She turned to Seungyoon and then spoke, slowly and with hesitation. “How about this. You can work there for a week and if your superiors are happy with your work, you get to be permanent...?” She sounded a bit sheepish, aware that her attempt at persuading him wasn't that well thought-out. She bit her lip slightly and fixated her eyes on him, pools of brown that were meant to be stared into for hours. Seungyoon was sure that he could find every astronomical constellation in them if he searched hard enough.

 

“Just let him be,” Jinwoo said from the side-lines. He sounded sleepy, despite having taken a quiet nap, but his voice still had the relaxed and charming timbre that made girls swoon for him.

 

Seungyoon found himself nodding. “It'll feel unfair,” he half-argued, hiding his distress, although it was only half the truth. “To get a job just because of you.” He swallowed slightly and averted his eyes from her face like that would help make him more unaffected.

 

“Unfair?” Her cheeks reddened at his words as if he had suggested a serious malpractice. Immediately, he wanted to swallow his words, the very sentence that had caused her to take offense.

 

“I wouldn't suggest it if I didn't know that you are a hard worker.” Her lips quivered slightly. The dedication she defended him with and the faith she had in him, always managed to surprise him. She let go of Jinwoo's hand to encase his hand in her's. Seungyoon swallowed again, his throat feeling dry all of a sudden. The gesture made him want to squirm and stay like this forever at the same time. The way her small fingers held onto his hand, how warm and soft they were. He never wanted to let go again.

 

She spoke up, this time more softly. “Seungyoon, don't think too badly of yourself. I'm not saying this because you're a good friend of mine, but you really are amazing. You're studious, patient, empathetic and so much more. You shouldn't sell yourself so short.” Her little outburst of anger had been short-lived, dispersing so quickly that Seungyoon almost thought that he must have imagined it.

 

He blushed at her little speech all the way to his hair roots and his ears turned red. She brushed over his hand, caressing the dry skin with her fingers before disentangling their hands altogether. The fact tha Jinwoo was still present registered in Seungyoon's mind, distantly, but he couldn't put his mind into it.

All that he could think about was Jisoo.