“Awesome, we should go now or we’ll be late.” You your head at him and raise an eyebrow as your slip into your black oxfords. He grins knowingly but doesn’t say anything as he ushered you out the door.

Junhyung lay on his couch, feeling the cool surface of the fake leather on his skin. He had spent most of his day in the same spot, only clad in a pair of worn out basketball shorts and an old wife beater. He only got up to fix himself a bite to eat or grab a coke bottle from the fridge. He had been mindlessly flipping through the channels, not quite caring what was on the screen. Instead, he used the television as a sort of filler – something to make some sound in the background. He hated the silence and it only made him feel more agitated.

He took a sip from his fourth bottle of coke and pondered on recent events. Miyoung had just confessed to him and even asked him to think about it. He was grateful that she did as he wasn’t quite sure of how to answer her. He would be lying to himself if he said he didn’t feel attracted to Miyoung. She was pretty, smart, funny, and very easy to talk to. But he felt uncomfortable because Miyoung was also Gi’s friend.

At the thought of her, he covered his eyes with the back of his hand. I’m already over her, so why am I feeling guilty about liking Miyoung? He had been asking himself the same question over and over again but he couldn’t seem to find an answer. Hand still pressed upon his eyelids, he began to drift off into the subconscious…

“Happy Valentine’s Day Junhyung-ssi!” A girl boldly held her box of chocolates in front of his face as he tried to exit the school building – he was in a bit of a hurry.

“Um thanks Jae-ssi, but – “ The girl just smiled and shook her head.

“I already know what you’re going to say so save it. But take these anyway.” She pushed the box of chocolates in his hand and skipped off before he could say anything more. He glanced curiously at the box, momentarily forgetting why he had been so hasty to begin with – and then he remembered.

“Wait, Jae-ssi!” The girl stopped and turned; her short black hair bouncing as she did.

“Have you seen Gi today?”

“No, she wasn’t here all day, sorry!” She gave him a sad smile before turning back around and disappearing around a corner. He began to feel a little worried because Gi hadn’t answered his texts from break time and didn’t pick up her phone when he tried to call her at lunch. He fastened his walking speed, eager to find out where in the world Gi could be. He was quickly approaching the park when he felt a hand slip into his own.

“Surprise!” He jumped slightly when Gi jumped in front of him, holding his hand.

“Yah! Where were you all day? Why haven’t you been answering my texts? Why didn’t you pick up your phone? Are you sick? Do you have a fever?” He placed the back of his other hand on her forehead but she smacked it away and rolled her eyes.

“Hi Mom.” Junhyung frowned at her sarcasm and sighed.

“Oh don’t give me that face!” She pushed him slightly but he stayed where he was because of their linked fingers. He continued to look at her with the same frown and she began to pout slightly, and he finally smirked.

“Have you been dodging admirers perhaps?” He teased and she scoffed, punching him lightly on the shoulder. He then noticed that Gi had her left arm hidden behind her back for the whole time and he thought he saw a hint of red.

“What do you have behind your back?” He asked cautiously and she immediately stiffened.

“W-What are you talking about…” She stuttered, slowly backing away. Junhyung knew that she was getting ready to run but he wasn’t going to let that happen. He took one small step forward and narrowed his eyes. Gi looked down at her feet and still continued to back off slowly. And then it all happened in a flash – Gi had tried to turn and bolt but Junhyung instantly grabbed her arm and drew her back towards him. She stumbled a bit and blushed at the closeness between them.

“Okay okay fine, you caught me.” She slowly took her arm from behind her back and revealed a red box with white ribbon. Junhyung raised his eyebrows in surprise.

“I thought you said you didn’t do this kind of thing.”

“I don’t! Well I never used to…” She said. Gi seemed to be avoiding his gaze as he tried to piece everything together.

“So you skipped school to make these?” Gi took a deep breath and forced herself to look up at him. Junhyung was still completely oblivious to her intentions and she felt slightly exasperated because of that.

“Remember when you asked me if there was someone I wanted to give it to, and I said there was someone?” Junhyung only nodded, waiting for her to continue. She held up the box to his face and then said, “Happy Valentine’s Day Junhyung.” Her eyes were downcast and her heart was beating fast. She was expecting to get rejected like every other girl Junhyung has encountered hence the reason she was so hesitant about doing it in the first place. In truth, it did take her the whole morning to make the chocolates, but it also took her a bit longer to sort out what she wanted to do and how she felt. The one thing she couldn’t prepare herself for was rejection and that was exactly what she was expecting.

“Gi…you made these for…me?” He said slowly. She didn’t answer and let the silence do the talking.

“Yeah but if you don’t want them it’s okay, really…” She began to lower her arms and was determined to hurry away before he saw the tears that had formed in her eyes. However, he grabbed the box, encasing his hands around hers in the process. She let out a surprised gasp and stood frozen in place. A tear escaped her eye and Junhyung took one of his hands off of hers and placed it under her chin, tilting it upwards. They were now looking eye to eye – his piercing eyes looking into her tear filled ones.