“What do I reply? What can I even say to this?” Byul and I stared at my phone.

Hey, this is minji. I got you number from hyun, I hope that’s ok~ can we meet for coffee sometime this week?

I stared some more. Why was she texting me? Did she have some ulterior motive? If it was a joke that they were playing on me, it wasn’t very funny. Ever since Minji had spoken to me that time at Sunggyu’s surpirse party, she had been smiling at me on campus every time we walked past each other, and it was really creeping me out.

I did nothing to encourage her, either. I was either too shocked or too suspicious to smile back and instead gave her a rather evil look. Did she mistake that for friendliness?

“Just go,” Hanbyul said after we were both thinking in silence. “Find out what she wants and if she’s just playing with you, or if she geninuely wants to be friends.”

I looked at her and she squeezed my arm. “I know you don’t want to, but I think she’s going to just keep trying until you at least hear what she has to say. Sunggyu told me that she asked him about you.”

“What? But why? I haven’t even done anything to her. I don’t want to go, Byul,” I wailed. “What if she tries to do something to me like throw coffee on me or something? I don’t want to be embarrassed in public…again.”

Byul bit her lip. “Do you want me to come with you?”

I shook my head. “Sunggyu will get mad.”

She sighed because she knew it was true. Sunggyu was extremely protective over Byul, especially from those sleazy cheerleaders. It was so cute because he would get angry everytime Byul went near any of them, even though she was more than capable of defending herself. He claimed they were a ‘bad influence.’

“No one else knows about this. Except….”

One name popped up into my head. Chansik. But I couldn’t ask him to come with me – could I? I knew he would do it. We hadn’t hung out ever since our physics project had ended and that brief time at Sunggyu's surprise, and I felt guilty that I had neglected him. He probably thought that our friendship was only for the sake of the project, but it definitely wasn’t. I was too busy dealing with my own heart and finding myself that I just, well, forgot.

“Text him,” Byul said, gripping my arm again, reading my mind like she often did. “Hana, he’ll do it. You can show her that you’ve found someone else and she can tell Woohyun. He’ll die of jealousy!”

“But – “

“You’re not going to be using him. Tell him everything that’s going on, and how you need someone there to help you and look out for you. You’re not using him because he knows exactly what’s going on. Kim Hana, listen to me. This is a good idea. Do it.”

I sighed. I had really had no other choice. I was so curious as to why Minji would be wanting to meet up with me, but I also knew I couldn’t go alone or I would just crumble. It would be like walking into a death trap by myself.

I quickly dialled Chan’s number before I could change my mind. He picked up after two rings and I spoke quickly to him, explaining the whole situation and letting it all out in one breath.

“…and that’s why I’m asking you to come with me. Because I’m scared.” I finished and exhaled the breath I was holding.

My heart thumped as I waited for his reply, but all I heard was laughing on the other end of the line.

My heart came up into my throat. If he didn’t want to come with me, I guess I understood that, but he didn’t have to freaking laugh.

“If you don’t want to come, then fine. Just don’t be so rude about it, Chan. I asked because I geninuely thought you would understand.” My voice was squeaky.

His laughing stopped immediately. Here I was, pouring my heart out to him and he was laughing at me.

“Wait, Hana, what? Come where? Dude, you spoke so fast I didn’t even catch one word.”

I could hear him snort again, and my heart did a weird flippy thing in my chest. I could picture his face all contorted into that eye smile of his.

I grunted and explained myself again slowly. It was painful and embarrasing to have to say it twice.

“Oh okay, I get it.” Chansik paused. “Wait, but why do I need to come with you? She won’t attack you, you’re in a public place. The waiters can just call the police, or something.”

I sighed and looked at Hanbyul, who was rolling her eyes at his stupidity.

“Sik! Not like that attack! Like, she might pour coffee or something on me. I don’t know. I don’t know what she wants, or what she’s really like.”

“Why would she want to pour coffee on you?” He asked curiously.

I sighed deeply and looked heavenward. “Sik, if you think it’s stupid, then you don’t have to come, okay? Just forget I asked.”

“Hana,” he said through a laugh. “I’ll come with you. Of course. But, I just don’t get why I need to be there.” He chuckled again. “Where are we meeting?”

“Hang on, I’ll call you back in ten minutes, I need to ask her.”

He said okay and hung up, but not before I heard him mutter something that sounded like ‘girls’ under his breath. I made a mental note to flick his forehead when I saw him.

I texted Minji back, and straightaway she said she was free, and asked if I wanted to meet her at the café at the mall in half an hour. I texted back yes and and then quickly called Chansik back.

“Hey, I’ll pick you up in half an hour, okay? Get dressed now. Look…… handsome!” I said to him quickly over the phone.

He snorted. “Hana, I always look handsome.”

I hung up on him.

____

“Are you sure we’re meeting here?” Chansik said as he fiddled with his shirt cuff.

I had made him go back into the house to change into something less..... hobo-like. He had come out of his house wearing basketball shorts and a muscle singlet. I mean, I liked what he was wearing, but it wasn’t really appropriate for the occasion.

“Here, I’ll do it for you,” I said impatiently, not standing his fiddling any longer. “Stay still.”

“Oh, Hana, hi, I’m sorry, I didn’t realise you were bringing someone!” A voice from above us made Chansik and I look up at the same time, bashing our heads together. It was Minji.

“Ow,” I said awkwardly as I stood up to give heri an awkward hug. “Hey, how are you?”

Beside me, I felt Chansik shaking with silent laughter at my formality. I nudged him with my elbow to shut up him.

"Are you two together?" She asked, eyes gleaming.

I chucked and we both denied to awkwardly.

She sat down opposite Chan and I in the booth and we placed our orders with the waitress who didn’t stop staring at Chansik, who was busy playing Candy Crush Saga on his phone with the volume extremly loud.

“Sik, turn it down,” I whispered. He turned and glared at me, giving me the shut-up-don’t-tell-me-what-to-do-you-forced-me-here look.

“So,” I said awkwardly again as our drinks arrived soon after. “What’s up?”

Minji smiled at me. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to believe it, or because it was actually true, but the smile seemed friendly and genuine. It went all the way to her eyes and, well, she looked actually happy to see me.

“Nothing! I just wanted to get to know you a little better, you know, after your history with Woohyun.”

I drew a sharp breath when I heard his name aloud. I also felt Chan next to me stop matching three fruits in a row in his game and grab my hand and squeeze it tightly. Hearing his name aloud was still a bit painful and uncomfortable.

“Um, yeah, sure,” I chuckled awkwardly again and took a sip of my drink so I could think of a reply, burning my tongue in the process and spluttering and choking.

Maybe she felt that I was still uncomfortable speaking about Woohyun; Minji didn’t mention his name once again while we in the café. We made small talk about university, what majors we were studying and about the latest episode of Revenge. I was glad because one, I really wasn’t ready to speak about such a raw part of my past, and two, because Minji and I actually turned out to have a lot in common. Beside her being a cheerleader and I studying engineering, we liked the same foods and TV shows and music.

I guess that’s why she and Woohyun also got along well. I felt depressed thinking about it in that way, but it was true. One reason Woohyun and I were so good together was because we shared so much, but now, here was another human being, with a lot of the interests he and I shared. And they were together.

We bid goodbye and she went off to meet her mom while Chansik and I went for a walk in the park.

After a few moments silence, he spoke up.

“So, remind me again, why did you need me there?” He grinned that handsome lopsided smile. “I couldn’t sense any coffee moving from her to cup to your head.”

I shrugged uncomfortably, feeling bad that I dragged him along.

“Sorry, Chan,” I apologised. “I actually thought she was going to – well, I – just, thanks for coming, yeah? I didn’t realise she was going to be so….”

“Nice?” He finished off for me. I nodded.

“I thought she was gonna be more…..”

“Evil?” He said again.

I nodded and elbowed his side again. “Hey! Stop finishing my sentences!”

“Hey, well then stop elbowing me! I’m gonna bruise there tomorrow, you know!”

I laughed loudly. “I don’t think so! I don’t elbow you that hard!”

“Hey, want me to try elbowing you?! It really hurts you know! Hey, want to see where you did it?”

Sik slowly lifted his shirt to show his elbow, waggling his eyebrows with a seedy look on his face.

I felt my cheeks grow hot and I started to run away from him so I didn’t have to see it. I mean, I wanted to, but....

“Help!” I screamed jokingly. “ert! Exposing himself to me!’

He cackled and ran after me, chasing me around the park.

“Sik, stop it!” I puffed as I stopped to catch my breath. “Hey!”

Chansik didn’t seem to see that I had stopped running and ran straight into me, knocking us both onto the ground in the sandbox, where other kids were building sandcastles.

We lay on the sand, breathing unevenly and just staring at each other.

“Hana, I –“

Chansik didn’t have the chance to say what he wanted to say, though. Because I leaned over and kissed him right on the lips.