"In another life
I would make you stay
So I don't have to say
You were the one that got away
The one that got away"

The One That Got Away- Katy Perry

He was pretending to sleep. Making fake snoring sounds to help his cause. After her confession early, he was absolutely delighted to be reminded that she only loves him, and only him.

Jongin loved it, he felt needed, cherished, and loved. 

His eyes are closed; listening to her voice read “Dear John” by Nicholas Sparks.

She read, “…I finally understood what true love meant...love meant that you care for another person's happiness more than your own, no matter how painful the choices you face might be.” 

He heard her voice trail off into a suppressed sob. Carefully, Jongin opens one eye slightly to glance at Mia’s face. Tears streaked down her lovely cheeks, falling upon the book she had stopped reading.

His heart ached; he was the reason for those tears. She loves him deeply, yet he couldn’t see her as more than a best friend. A best friend he holds dear to his heart.

Yet he couldn’t help but wish that she would only love him.

He was selfish.

He quickly closed his eyes again, pretending to be asleep, as he noticed that her sobbing stopped.

“Kim Jongin…” he noted that her voice was hoarse from the crying, “…is 12 years of unrequited love enough?”

A twisted feeling started in his stomach; he prayed that she wasn’t thinking what he assumed.

Mia closed her book and placed it on the coffee table. Cautiously, trying not to wake up Jongin, she got up from the couch and placed his body in a laying position with his head on the arm rest.

She ran her fingers through his bangs, and leaned in to give him a kiss on the forehead.

He smiled secretly, still faking his sleep, all of his earlier doubts washed away.

With a breath she inhales and slowly breathes out her decision.

“I think it’s about time I stop hoping that one day, we could be more than friends…” her voice filled with sadness.

All of a sudden Jongin’s worries came back, flooding his heart with an uneasy feeling.

Maybe it was time for him to halt his selfishness.

He has to let her go…

…but why does he feel hesitant?

---------------

“Jongin!Kim Jongin! Wake up, you’ll be late for school!” a female voice called for him to wake up.

He grunted and pulled his blanket over his head to block out the noise.

“Lee Mia, let me sleep for five more minutes!” he complained.

The blanket was yanked from him and the blinding light made him squint.

“Yah! I am not Mia, can you not even recognize your own mother’s voice?” Jongin’s mom scolded. He blinked and sat up from his bed, glancing around his room there was no sight of his childhood friend.

“If you’re wondering where Mia is I saw her leave her house around an hour ago…I wonder if she has student council activities again?” Kai’s mom yanked him up and pushed him towards the bathroom. “Hurry up and get ready, breakfast is done.”

Kai nodded still confused, Mia would always wake him up in the morning…she’s done so for the past 3 years. He glanced at the clock in the bathroom.

7:20am…school didn’t start until 8am and it only took 10 minutes to walk there from their houses. Why would she be at school at 6 am?

The weirdest part for Kai was the fact that she didn’t even leave a message for him.

------------------

Kai made it just in time for class with a couple minutes to spare.

“Kai!” Chen waved for his friend. Kai waved back to his friends who were in their usual spot in the back of the class. He searched for Mia but she was nowhere to be found.

“Hey,” he greeted as he sat himself into his assigned desk. Chen, Chanyeol, Sehun, Baekhyun, Tao all greeted him back, but where was Kyungsoo?

  “If you were wondering where Kyungsoo-hyung is, there’s your answer,” Sehun nodded his head towards the two people that just entered the classroom.

Kyungsoo was smiling as he was walking besides the person Kai had been looking for all morning.

Mia.

Kai frowned slightly, he knew about Kyungsoo’s infatuation for his childhood friend.

“Ah, morning Kai,” Kyungsoo greeted Kai normally as he sat down in his assigned seat.

 He ignored Kyungsoo and glanced at Mia, “Morning.”

She smiled her usual smile, but for some reason it seemed a bit…forced.

“Hey.”

Kai’s frown deepened.

No ‘Morning Jongin?’ or ‘Your tie is crooked’ or ‘Sorry I didn’t wake you up this morning?’

But he was in no place to complain she wasn’t his mom, or girlfriend. She had no commitment to those things.

She was just…

Just a childhood friend…

The school day passed by and things were the usual besides the fact that Mia seemed to be avoiding him a little.

Throwing his school bag over his shoulder Kai walked to the student council room to pick up Mia for their routine walk home.

With a quick knock he pushed the large mahogany doors of the student council room open. Mia sat at her usual PresidenMial desk signing away paper by paper, her black rimmed glasses threatening to slip off her nose bridge. She pushes them up and catches a glimpse of Kai’s figure.

“Ah, you’re here,” she said with a little bit of surprise in her voice.

“Yeah, I’m usually here to pick you up aren’t I? Ready to go home?” he asked. At the same moment the school’s Vice President walked in with a stack of folders.

“Kai you’re here,” Kyungsoo placed the stack on Mia’s desk.

“Once again, like usual,” Kai rolled his eyes. He was always at the office to pick her up after school, why did they think today was any different?

“Sorry, I just have a lot to finish before I leave school today,” Mia smiled apologetically and sighed at the stack of paperwork she had to finish filling out.

“I’ll wait,” he commented and was about to seat himself into the chair in front of her desk but she had stopped him.

Mia set her pen down and picked up a folder, not meeting eyes with Kai,“Actually, Kyungsoo oppa said he’d walk me home today…You don’t have to wait for me.”

What?

“I’ll wait,” Kai stated as a command more than a suggestion.

Kyungsoo put a hand on Kai’s shoulder, “It’s okay, I’ll make sure she gets home safely. You should go home first.”

Kai eyed his friend warily, with a sigh he straightens himself up.

“Okay…I’ll see you at home then?” Kai hesitantly comments as he makes his way out.

“Yup see you,” she replied, but not once did she look him in the eyes.

------

It was already 8pm and Mia was not home yet. Kai had kept watch, continuously looking out the window until he gave up and sprawled his body on his bed.

“Should I call her?...I shouldn’t have let him take care of her!” he spoke to himself in worry.

But right before he could call his childhood friend she burst through the door and slammed it shut behind her, right before slumping onto the floor out of breath.

Her face was flushed red, and breathing was uneven. Anger and worry washed over his face, had Kyungsoo done something to her?

“Mia! Hey, are you okay?! What happened?” he kneeled down to her level and checked for any signs of assault.

She held out a hand signaling him to calm down as she caught her breath.

A huge grin broke out on her face.

“I-I’m fine Jongin,” she panted as she ran her fingers through her hair, leaning her body against the door for support.

She finally called my name today…

He eyed her, “Then why does it look like you ran away from a ?”

She chuckled and her laugh was a melody to his ears after the moody day.

“We went out for ice cream…” she started to explain.

“We, as in you and Kyungsoo-hyung?” Kai asked in clarification.

“Yeah…then he took me to the nearby park, you know the one we used to go to all the time?”

Kai nodded.

“We had fun, I felt like a kid again…”

“Then?” Kai ushered her, holding his breath.

“He…”

“He?”

“Kyungsoo, he…he asked me out,” she finished with a soft smile on her face.

What?

Kai felt something stab his heart.

No.

Kyungsoo couldn’t just take away his soul-mate like that   

“Did you reply?” Kai asked in a whisper.

She paused, “No. I asked him to give me more time to think about it.”

“Then why are you so happy?” Kai sounded a little angry from her false demeanor.

“Someone asked me out Jongin! No one’s ever asked me out before! Let alone tell me that they like me in that way,” she blushed again. Kai clenched his fist.

I never did tell her how much she means to me…

“What are you going to reply?”

Mia pondered, “I-I’m not sure… what should I say?” For the first time that day, she stared straight into his eyes. Waiting for his answer…

His heart spoke…

You should say no.

But his mouth said…

“You should say yes...When would you ever get a chance to be with someone as charming and handsome like Kyungsoo-hyung?” Kai chuckled holding back his disappointment.

She kept quiet and kept her eyes locked with his.

“You’re right…then I’ll give him my answer tomorrow. Well, I’m going to sleep now. It’s been a tiring day,” Mia got up and left the room before Kai could bid her goodnight.

Why do I feel so unhappy, when I should be happy for her?

Kai couldn’t explain the rush of emotions that overwhelmed him at that moment.