“Come here. Fast.”

“What’s wrong?”

In the other end of the line, only uneasy breathing could be heard, until the voice resumed once again.

“Just come… please. I need you… right now.”

“Sungjong—I—“

“You’re the only one I can trust… please Yura. I beg of you come here.”

“I’m on it.”

The night before Sungjong’s exemption ended, Yura received a phone call from him telling her to come to his room ASAP. Yura was flustered. Why her of all people? But her thoughts were cut short; there was no time to think—only ample time to muster up a ton of adrenaline. She hopped into her mismatched slippers, wore a thick bunny jacket and dashed over to Sungjong’s room, arriving just three minutes after his call. She knocked three times and when the door abruptly opened, Sungjong’s eyes were barely slits from all the crying. Behind him, his bedroom reeked of misery. Myungsoo, his roommate, had moved to Sungyeol, Sunggyu, and Dongwoo’s room next door to give him some space.

Sitting opposite each other on his bed, Sungjong hugged his big teddy bear, letting it in all his tears. He just cried there while Yura tried her best to be supportive by awkwardly patting his shoulder a few times. Still, he appreciated the effort and concern.

“I’m sorry I called you here so late,” he said in between sobs. “It’s weird but I feel that you can keep me company the best right now.”

“Why? What’s wrong?” she asked, feeling a bit more comfortable upon hearing his words.

He broke into tears. “Jieun… Baekhyun…”

“Oh, please, no.”

“E-exactly.”

“Are you sure?” she inquired. “Maybe they were just hanging out; maybe you’re just overreacting, y’know?”

“No!” lashed Sungjong until he realized his insensitivity. He withdrew himself and assured her. “Sorry, it’s just…”

“It’s okay, I understand,” she said with a comforting smile. “Do continue.”

“They kissed, Yura. I saw them walking together, hands tightly laced until one of them stopped. The other stopped too and before I knew it, they were puckering up for a kiss. They looked like they came straight out of a drama—a perfect couple at face value,” he lowered his head, squeezing his skull so tight that it hurt him, but it was nothing compared to the aching pain in his heart. “As their lips were in tact, my heart broke altogether. The pain was like an explosion inside my chest and the aftermath… well… as you can see I’m such train wreck right now. I liked her so much… yet I was late. I even planned on talking to her for the first time as the real me tomorrow. I was so excited… but that’s all history now.”

“You still have to see her regardless. I mean, she’s our school mate. And maybe you’re in something like a Sunggyu mode wherein you still have a chance ‘cause the guy’s not as awesome as he looks.”

He shook his head and buried his head deeper into his teddy bear. “Baekhyun’s her perfect match; he’ll treat her well—I know it. I know when to back off. What’s sad is that I can’t do anything but move on.”

“You’re right,” said Yura straightforwardly. “At least you know what to do but hey, there are a ton of girls out there.”

“You sure? Would they really wanna date this?” He gestured his hands to mention his weary figure.

“Of course, you have to consider your insides too.” She giggled. “Don’t be so harsh on yourself. You have a great personality plus, minus the crying and all that, you honestly have great eyes. And the way you hug a teddy bear like that is kinda cute—“ She shut up before she could say anything misleading.

What the heck am I saying to him?

But all of them were true whether she denied them or not. She was, in reality, beginning to look beyond the fact that he was just another guy.

“You really think so?” His so-called great eyes were suddenly living up to its name causing her to blush and look away.

“Yeah, I m-mean…” She began to stammer. “Yeah—y’know. Like—“

The PA system announced that it was near curfew.

“I have to go, but I’ll be here for you ‘till you cheer up, alright?” she said as she extended her hand for a legit handshake. Taken aback, he shook hers with a slight grin—the best he could muster. Both were surprised by her sudden actions. It just came instinctively for her. Yura was never one to give her sympathy so easily to anyone therefore, she questioned why, of all people, would she give Sungjong such a privilege? The only answer she could think of was that the concern came so naturally; the moment she heard his mournful shrieks, she couldn’t help but want to be there for him.

The moment she got back to her room, Sungjong called her up. They talked for hours ‘till it was almost dawn. Yura just listened while he poured his heart out through the night, crying and crying ‘till he eventually fell asleep. Upon knowing his story from back to cover, she was able to come up with a conclusion: Sungjong knew how to love—he just didn’t know how to confess it.

Sure, she didn’t completely erase all of his sadness in one night—it was only realistic given that he had been crushing on Jieun for quite sometime. Still, Yura’s company had made him feel more encouraged to move on and start anew. As the days went by, he gradually recovered and found himself talking comfortably and hanging out with her more often.

Thank you for reading and I hope you guys enjoyed it~! :D