Jaehyun walked into the class on the first day of senior year a few minutes before the bell rang and he couldn’t help but to wish he wasn’t there. He didn’t have any friends in his class and the only time he could see them was lunch. Although he wasn’t very familiar with the people in the class, everyone knew him. Jaehyun was known, mostly among the girls, for his visuals and it wasn’t uncommon for him to receive a few confessions a week. If a girl didn’t have a boyfriend, then she was basically crushing on Jaehyun. So, when he took his seat first in the back corner, it wasn’t soon until some female students tried to acquire the seats next to him and in front of him. 

Although he probably could’ve gotten with any girl in the school, he was set on one girl. Kim Min Seo. The only problem was, she had a boyfriend, and in fact, he was a terrible one. And it was very likely that Jaehyun became annoyed at her boyfriend, Doyoung, because he mistreated her. Although Jaehyun and Minseo were friends, they weren’t nearly as close as Jaehyun hoped they would be, and it was killing him every time he saw her pass in the hallways. So everyday, he would pass by her in the hallways just hoping that maybe one day, she would notice him. Although all her friends acknowledged him, she never did. 

“Hi!”

Jaehyun snapped out of his thoughts and turned to face a girl that he had never seen before. And a little confused, he simply replied the same greeting back to her. A little flustered, the girl had began blushing as she placed a small gift on his desk, wrapped in a bright pink bow. 

“You remember me right? We were in the same class last year!”

Jaehyun looked at her blankly before apologizing, sincerely not recognizing her. Although she was disappointed, she still smiled at him as she gestured towards the note on the gift before leaving the side of his desk. 

“Fighting! Do well this school year! From Jisoo :)”

Realizing that she was one of Min seo’s friends, he quickly put the present in his backpack and gestured to Jisoo to return back to his desk. A little too excited, she skipped back to his desk, grinning from ear to ear. “Yes?” she asked cutely, trying out Jaehyun, to see if he was into that type of stuff. However, he wasn’t. He smirked at her before saying, “I remember you now! You should sit here this year,” as he gestured towards the seat next to him, a.k.a the golden seat to all the girls. 

Trying to contain her emotions, she gasped quietly before putting her stuff on the desk as she smiled at Jaehyun. Although it was kind of like using her to get to Minseo, he didn’t care at this point. To be honest, he was incredibly desperate. 

Minseo and Jaehyun used to be best friends in elementary school but drifted away over the past years in high schools due to them not being in the same class. However, he’s liked her since elementary, and he really missed her. He liked how real she was, how her laugh brightens up the room, how she was fiercely independent, how she knew what she was doing with her life, how she smiled and enjoyed the little things in life, and how she always gave Jaehyun a sense of completion when he was around her. Although he thought about her everyday, he really didn’t even know if she thought about him at least once a week. 

He thought about her humor, her kindness, her sincerity, her smile, her personality, and her stupid boyfriend. 

To Jaehyun, Doyoung was an . It wasn’t just once or twice in which he had made Minseo cry. It happened so often that almost everyone knew about their relationship. Although Doyoung didn’t mind the attention, Minseo absolutely hated it. From day one, she always tried to stay out of drama or anything that would put her in the spotlight. However, it wasn’t hard for people to notice her. She was beautiful and incredible intelligent. Although she didn’t think so, in Jaehyun’s mind, she was so influential that she could change the hearts of millions, just like she did to him.

However, his thoughts were interrupted again when the bell rang through his ears, and it didn’t help that Jisoo immediately started talking to him. Ecstatically, she asked Jaehyun to eat at her lunch table, and of course he easily complied with a smile because he knew who would be there. 

As he walked towards the cafeteria, he definitely received some stares and Jisoo definitely received some glares. However, neither minded as they walked through the doors of the cafeteria, heading straight towards the table. As he looked at the people at the table, he was able to recognize all of them. However, Minseo wasn’t there, and his face definitely couldn’t hide the confusion.

“Where’s Minseo?” Jaehyun asked confidently, not wanting to seem too nervous in front of them. “Oh, she’s heading over soon with Doyoung, she just texted me,” said one of the girls at the table as she glanced at her phone repeatedly for reference. Jaehyun sighed before heading to the line to get food. He usually brought his own lunch, but at this point, he was too lazy to pack it every morning or night. So, he didn’t mind when kimchi friend rice was served to them. He could basically eat anything anyone put in front of him, well, except for raisins, so leisurely, he walked back to the table and sat down. Jisoo’s and Minseo’s friends didn’t mind him sitting there, especially since many of them were in his class this year or in his class the previous years. Although it wasn’t difficult for him to get involved in the conversation, all he could do was wonder about Minseo. It was fifteen minutes into the lunch and he was worried that she wouldn’t eat. 

However, after a few minutes, Doyoung walked in with Minseo following behind closely. They sat down and although they didn’t notice Jaehyun, Jaehyun could definitely notice that Minseo was crying. Although it seemed that everyone noticed, no one bothered to bring it up. And in an effort to raise up the atmosphere at the table, one guy had suggested that they all go out to eat korean bbq to celebrate the first day of their last year of high school and everyone quickly agreed, especially Jaehyun, who loved meat by the way. It was only then that Minseo acknowledged his presence at the table. Although he flashed her a grin, she quickly looked away, still embarrassed that traces of crying were prominent on her face. However, she truly did wish that she had smiled and waved back at him. To be honest, she missed their friendship too. It was Doyoung who didn’t want her to be friends with any guys rather than his friends, and she didn’t want to do anything to provoke him again. 

But soon enough, the school day had passed by and it was only half an hour before it was time to leave to go eat korean bbq. It was his favorite, and he couldn’t wait to spend the night with Minseo and meat. Personally, he didn’t mind if he had to cook the meat, he just didn’t want Minseo to do it, and so he volunteered first to cook. Although it was a small effort to impress her, he also wanted to thank everyone else for allowing him to sit at their table and inviting him to dinner. And it wasn’t soon enough before they had all gotten drunk. They were sometimes loud, sometimes emotional, but most of the time, happy, and Jaehyun loved to see Minseo smiling at ease. 

Jaehyun was pretty good at handling alcohol, but even now, he felt a little tipsy. His head was spinning, but he was enjoying the sound of laughter. However, he didn’t take the time to notice that Doyoung and Minseo weren’t there. So of course, he leaned over to the guy next to him and asked where they were. Although it was difficult to make out what he was saying, Jaehyun figured out that they had gone for a walk. Of course, Jaehyun wanted to go out there and find them, and the alcohol wasn’t helping to control his actions very well. So quickly, he excused himself from the drunken table and grabbed his jacket on the chair. 

Although it felt like he was running, he was actually walking really slow. Even though you couldn’t really tell that he was drunk like the others, he was and he knew he was going to regret it tomorrow morning. 

As he was walking through the streets in order to find them, he closed his eyes and smiled to himself. However, that moment of happiness was quickly ruined when he spotted a girl leaning against a wall, crouched, and crying, and although he couldn’t see her face, he knew who it was. He sighed for a moment before walking over to her, taking off his jacket, kneeling down in front of her, and placing his jacket over her. When she looked up, their eyes met each other, and for the millionth time, his heart fluttered. And in an effort to comfort her, with the help of the alcohol, he sat beside and hugged her. Although Minseo knew that if Doyoung saw them, she leaned her head on his shoulder and allowed him to hug her. Unlike Doyoung, she could feel the love and sincerity in his embrace, and she missed that feeling of true love and security. However, that moment quickly ended.

“Min Seo!”

They knew who it was as they looked into each other’s eyes, both full of worry and sadness that this moment was ending. Although her eyes weren’t sparkling as they usually did, they looked absolutely beautiful. And so for once, he listened to his heart. He quickly leaned over and met his lips on hers. Although she pulled away quickly in shock, she quickly leaned in again and kissed him. Their kiss wasn’t merely as long as both of them hoped to be, but they both knew that she had to leave. So she quickly wiped her lips, took off his jacket, and ran to Doyoung, who was just about to turn the corner. Although Jaehyun was kind of love-struck, he overheard their conversation.

“Minseo, I’m sorry. I’m drunk and I got worked up again. I love you.”

Jaehyun held his breath, he truly hated him and couldn’t believe that he said this sappy stuff to her. However, she answered and for once he realized why they were still together.

“It’s okay. I love you too.”

He quickly looked down at his jacket and his arms that had so gently touched her just a few seconds ago. He smiled in defeat as tears had run down his face. 

For all the years that he has liked her, he’s never cried about her, even when she got in a relationship. He always had that sense of hope that kept him going, but that day, that hope was completely shattered. He knew that every time Doyoung would mistreat her, he would just apologize and she would easily and quickly forgive him. His heart shattered that she couldn’t be his, and he couldn’t help but to cry. He wanted to call her his, and he actually felt very confident about it when she kissed him back. But nonetheless, it meant nothing now.

So he slowly went back to the restaurant to meet Minseo and Doyoung who were sitting there already. Although it seemed that nothing even happened because of their fake smiles and laughs, it was killing Jaehyun inside. Especially when she wouldn’t even dare to glance at him. At this point, he couldn’t take it anymore and quickly told the table that he was leaving. After receiving some groans and complains, he laughed it off and left the restaurant. Although he was turning around, he knew that Minseo was staring at him leave and it broke his heart that he couldn’t feel those lips on his once again. But just as he got outside, he took out his phone and texted her for the first time in a long time. The alcohol took away his barrier, and he quickly pressed send.

“Minseo, in another life, you’ll be mine. Come to me first if anything ever happens.”

He sighed before putting his phone into his pocket and slowly walking away from the loud restaurant. However, Minseo quickly read the text message and without replying, she made an excuse to leave and ran out the door. Although he was pretty far from the restaurant, she quickly found the tall, handsome male and called out to him.

“Jaehyun!”

He looked around in shock, and a little relief as he smiled at her, signs of crying obvious on his face. She quickly ran to him, put her hands on his face, and closed the gap between them. Although he was shocked, he kissed her back as he slid her arms around his waist. And because he knew that this was probably the last time they would be together like this, he held her close, and held her close for a while as they stared into each other’s eyes. 

“Minseo?”

“Yes?”

“Don’t forget me please,” Jaehyun said quietly as he left her embrace and walked away. And for the first time too, she cried over Jaehyun.