Unlike Before

It has already been a couple of days since Mina had been seat-mates with Chaeyoung. Chaeyoung was late for class again; it's not like it was a surprise. Is she painting?, Mina wondered. That must be why she's either late for class or just straight up skips it. Mina took out her phone to text Chaeyoung but then she remembers that she doesn't have her number. She made a mental note to ask for it later. You know, purely just for school purposes and stuff, nothing else. That's what Mina forces herself to think.

Mina kept looking at the clock on the wall. Only five minutes 'til lecture ends and Chaeyoung still wasn't there. She went to their next lecture alone. And the next. And the next. Until all of their classes were done. She hasn't seen any sign of the shorter girl.

She walked out of the school with one destination in mind. Maybe Chaeyoung would be at the smoothie place to fulfill the conditions she herself provided. On her way there, she saw the girl she was looking for. But she had her arms around another girl's waist, a smirk was playing on her lips. They were obviously flirting with each other judging by the way the girl laughed at everything Chaeyoung said. Mina doesn't know why she felt a pain on her chest. She doesn't know why she felt like running away and being alone. She doesn't know why she felt like she wanted to cry. But Mina couldn't do all of that. She had to fulfill Chaeyoung's conditions so she could do what she was forced to do.

After a few minutes, the girl giddily left. Mina took that as her cue to walk over to Chaeyoung.

"Minari!" Chaeyoung waved. "Sorry I wasn't able to attend class. I was busy doing something." Chaeyoung greeted with a bright tone.

"Yeah I'm sure you're busy flirting. Let's go." Mina's tone was cold and her stance was distant. Chaeyoung was left there with slightly open. Mina was already inside the smoothie shop when Chaeyoung got a grip of her senses and ran after her. Mina was already on her way out when Chaeyoung reached the shop. Mina shoved the strawberry smoothie towards Chaeyoung. She had no other choice but to take it. Mina then hastily lead the walk towards Chaeyoung's house.

"Hey! Minari wait!" Chaeyoung ran after her and grabbed her hand. It was gentle, quietly reassuring Mina that there was no need to hurry.

 Mina stopped on her tracks but she didn't face Chaeyoung. Chaeyoung gently grabbed Mina's shoulders and faced the girl towards her. Mina had her head down, her hair covering her face. Chaeyoung tucked her finger under Mina's chin and gently tilted her head up. Mina's eyes looked at anything but Chaeyoung's, which genuinely hurt the girl's feelings.

"Why are you like this? What happened? Did someone do something to you? Who? I swear to god-"

"It's nothing. Just stupid thoughts." Mina was quick to cut her off.

"Thoughts aren't stupid if they hurt you." Chaeyoung reassured her. "I'm here listen if you wanna talk about it." Mina just nodded and they continued their walk.

It was like the first time they did this. It was quiet, no one daring to break the silence. They eventually reached Chaeyoung's house. Chaeyoung just stood there. She didn't want to go inside. Not when something was bothering her. She looked at the melted strawberry smoothie on her hand. She wasn't really in the mood to drink it after what Mina did.

"I want you to tell me." Chaeyoung demanded.

"There's nothing to tell." Mina said with a small voice. It emanated disappointment and defeat. It bothered Chaeyoung so much, seeing Mina like this. She wasn't like before. Her stance says it all. Her shoulders were slouched and she had her head hung low the whole time. Chaeyoung grabbed Mina's hand and lead her inside. Chaeyoung didn't know what she was doing, but she's sure about one thing. She wanted to make sure that the girl was okay. She wanted to know why Mina wasn't her usual self today. She wanted the bright, talkative, and confident Mina back. She's never been like this to anyone before. Her heart never skipped a beat by simply seeing someone smile. She never felt nervous around someone before. She was never this happy to be with anyone. Chaeyoung was feeling and experiencing new things. It was confusing to discover this new side of her.

What are you doing to me Mina?