*MINIJ’S POV*

 The sky was a dark black and the stars in the sky shined brightly. There wasn’t much bright lights around, just the few street lights that shone on the road. My hand lazily hung out the window, small raindrops hitting it. Pulling into his driveway, I felt quite envious that he lived in such a peaceful neighborhood. The crickets’ songs were quite vivid in the silent area. I picked up my belongings and hopped out of the car, aching for a shower. I pulled my phone out of my back pocket, checking the time; 8:23.

 The whole day was filled with activities. It hadn’t even occurred to me how tired I would be. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the day.

 “Can we shower?”, Haewon asked, naturally using aegyo.

 “Yeah. We have two bathrooms. The girls can use the one upstairs, next to my room. The boys share the downstairs one”, Hoya nonchalantly replied, already walking towards the front door of his humble home.

 “Yah! That’s unfair! There’s only three girls!”, Sungyeol complained.

 “We can’t share a bathroom with them. We’re different genders! Once they’re done with everything, we can use that bathroom.”

 And it was settled.

 Haeun being the eldest, we let her use the bathroom first. I sat on the stairs with Haewon, chatting about our day. Her cheeks were flushed; a light pink. She endlessly fawned over Woohyun.

 When Haeun was finally done, she thanked us and walked descended down the stairs. I let Haewon use the bathroom next, knowing i’d take the longest. She walked into the bathroom and I heard the shower turn on. The sound of the water hitting the shower floor was calming, and I fell into a world of slumber.

 I felt a slight shake on my shoulder, waking me up. I found myself  laying across the carpeted staircase. My neck was a bit cramped and my face was slightly imprinted from the carpets texture. I got up, grabbed my bag and towel and walked into the bathroom. The air inside was already warm, evidence of the heat from it’s past uses just a few minutes ago.

 I undressed and hopped in. The water hit my skin, sending a warm feeling throughout my body. It felt nice. Peaceful.

 My tiredness seemed to disappear as the water flowed down my face. Suddenly, I just felt like singing. And that’s exactly what I did.

 I sang my lungs out, even cracking on a few notes- but I didn’t care. No one was around to listen anyway.

 Once I finished my shower, I hopped out and changed. Now in a warm, loose longsleeve and polka dot pajama shorts, I wrapped my towel around my wet hair.

 I stepped out of the bathroom and the cold air immediately contacted my skin. I rubbed my arms for a bit of warmth.  

 “You sing pretty loud”, he chuckled

 “Oppa! What are you doing up here?”, I covered my body.

 “Minji, relax. I was grabbing blankets”, Myungsoo chuckled. “We need to keep warm when we sleep.” It hadn’t even occurred to me that I was singing in someone else’s home.

 “Don’t you think I sing well?”, I wagged my eyebrows and laughed.

 “Ani. You sound like a donkey”, He smirked.

 “Aish”

 We walked down the stairs together, carrying a normal conversation.

 Hoya’s home felt cozy and warm. Once we reached the bottom of the staircase, Haeun was waiting by the front door.

 “Myunggie, I’m leaving now. My dad’s secretary is here. I’ll see you on monday”, she announced. There was a calm cuteness in they way she spoke, and to be completely honest, I hated her for that. My voice was almost like a cartoon’s- not attractive.

 “Ouh, Kure? Alright”, he walked over to her and hugged her, “See you on monday.”

 *MYUNGSOOS POV*

 I hugged her goodbye and watched her leave. Somehow, I felt the sight should’ve made me sad or something along those lines, but it didn’t. My heat didn’t ache nor did I feel myself really miss her.

 I walked back over to Minji and led her to the living room. Where everyone was waiting, except for Sungjong, who was in the shower. The only person who hadn’t showered was Hoya. Now that the upstairs bathroom was free, he went to shower.

 We sat in a group, watching T.v.

 “The Heirs”, had just aired their new episode, and the girls badly wanted to watch it- so we let them.

 Throughout the whole thing, they squealed and fan girled. They endlessly fawned over how “perfect the cast was. Especially the boys”.

 It was a funny sight, but the giddiness in Minji’s facial expression was quite cute.

 Soon, everyone had showered and was clean.

 “You all must be Hoya’s friends”, A soft voice was heard from behind.

 “Halmoni!”, Hoya shot up and walked over to the cute elderly women in front of us. We all bowed and greeted her.

 “We have bulgogi. Side dishes are in the fridge”, she smiled. “I’ll be upstairs, Hoya”, she nodded and made her way upstairs.

 The girls set the side dishes on the table and Hoya warmed up the food. The rest of us brought out all the drinks in the fridge, utensils, and cups.

   Once everything was set, everyone dug in. The food was really good. Especially because it was homemade. It’s a true fact when people say that homemade food is the best.

  I looked up from my food across of me, where my best friend sat. There were only small breaks between every spoon that entered . She still ate the same.

 She never paid attention to her surroundings. She just ate. More so because today was such a long day. She caught my stare, and froze. I chuckled at her and handed her a napkin. She chuckled back, wiping . She didn’t seem the slightest embarrassed.

 After eating, everyone craved for something sweet. Well. At least I did.

 Hoya brought out leftover cake, and everyone dug in. Now satisfied and full, They boys set blankets and comforters down in the living room.

 “I’ll sleep on the floor”, Minji offered, setting her pillow down first.

 “No way. You’re going to get all cramped. Sleep on one of the couches”, I argued.

 “No. I want to sleep on the floor. There’s more room to spread my legs on”, she argued back.

 “Minji”

 “Oppa”

 I sighed, knowing i’d loose. We were equally stubborn, but I always gave in to her.

 “Fine”, I set my pillow next to hers. “But you need to sleep with two pillows so you don’t get cramped”, I compromised.

 To end the night, we sat around the living room, telling stories and laughing. The television was on, being used as background noise. Once we all settled down, too tired to talk any longer, we laid our heads against our pillows and watched whatever was on television.

 I turned to check on Minji. Her eyes slowly drooping as she fought against her will to sleep.

 “Go to sleep, Minji-ah”, I softly chuckled.

 “I’m not tired”, she lied, opening her eyes as wide as she possibly could.

 “Liar”

 “im not”, she dragged out. Her eyes closed for a moment and reopened.

 “ah. Kure?”, I asked sarcastically. I looked around to find everyone else sound asleep. Haewon and Hoya slept on the two couches available and everyone else was on the floor. The only two people awake were me and Minji.

 “Everyone else is sleeping. Just sleep”, I turned my whole body over so that I was now laying on my side.

 “I don’t want too. Let’s just talk”, she said turning onto her stomach. She was obviously tired. It felt kind of heartwarming to know she wanted to stay up with me.

 And so we talked. Very shortly. About our childhood and memories. Like that one time she rode her bike into a fence. Or that one time I fell off the monkey bars. Or the time she got lost . All of that came up within a matter of 10 minutes, Her eyes frequently shutting. And that’s when I decided she needed sleep.

 I began to sing. The same song I sang before I left and the same song I sang when I carried her home on my back. She softly sang along, a small, toothless smile across her face. Her eyes shut. Her singing dulled down to mumbling and then silence. Only her slow breathing could be heard. An unexplainable feeling stirred inside of my stomach. I got up, slowly made my way upstairs and grabbed an extra pillow. I hope Hoya doesn’t mind.

 I quietly made my way back downstairs. With the lights off, I had completely forgotten about the small drop between the living room and hallway. I took a step and felt nothing underneath my foot. And I knew I was falling. Bracing myself, I turned to my side. My arm was the first thing to hit the floor. I bit my lip, preventing any yelps of pain from escaping my mouth. I looked up to check if anyone had woken up; No one.

 I made my way to Minji, lifted her head, and set the pillow underneath her. I told her to sleep with two pillows. I went back to my spot and laid down, facing the roof. My eyes closed and my world turned black.

  *NARRATORS POV*

  Minji awoke to the sound of clanking. Her eyes slowly opened. She felt a slight headache as her eyes tried to adjust. A light illuminated on the ceiling. Her hand ran through the mess of blankets, searching for her phone. When she found it, she turned it on and the light immediately blinded her. After blinking a few times, her eyes adjusted and she checked the time; 2 in the morning. She stood up from her position causing her blanket to slide down to the floor. She noticed two pillows were where her head was. Must’ve been Myungsoo. She thought he could possibly be the one up, but then she noticed him sound asleep. His hair covered his eyes. One of his hands laid on his stomach and the other on his pillow. She took one final glance at him and walked towards where the light was coming from; the kitchen. Her feet touched the hard cold marble floor as she stepped into the kitchen.  A boy with christmas pajama pants and a white tanktop stood in front of her. His hair was slightly messy. His arms were bare and Minji couldn't help but notice how nice they were. He turned around, hearing the sound of her footsteps.

 “Ah, Did I wake you up? Mianhe”, Hoya apologized. “I just woke up and I got hungry so I was making myself a peanut butter and jelly and some tea. You want some?”, he offered.

 “Yeah. That sounds nice.”

 When the tea was done and the sandwiches were made, they stepped out into the yard. A few chairs were set around a table. They pulled two chairs onto the grass, and sat. Blankets were wrapped around their shoulders and a plate and their cups of tea sat on their laps.

 The sky was beginning to turn a bit lighter than it’s nights black color, but the stars still shone.The air was cold, but they remained warm.

 “It’s pretty out here”, Minji sighed.

 “I know”, Hoya softly chuckled. “One night, when I was much younger, I camped out here. With that girl”, he softly smiled. He wasn’t going to tell Minji her name. He didn’t want to. “The sprinklers went off, and wet our a tent. We ended up having to sleep on these chairs, outside of the tent”, he laughed at the memory. Hearing this story, Minji wished the sprinklers would go off right now. Just so they’d have a memory like that too. She took a sip of her tea and asked.

 “What were you saying? You know, back at the beach? You didn’t get to finish.”

 He took a moment to remember the scene she was speaking of.

 “Ah, right”, he took a bite of his sandwich. “Well. Do you see the stars in the sky?”

 Minji nodded, a bit confused.

 “Well, there’s someone I met. Her smile is brighter than any of the stars in the sky”, He looked beside him, the girl still staring at the stars. “She’s funny and smart. She tries to be independent. She smells sweet. Her cheeks are always a rosy pink when she’s happy. She’s quite popular with the boys”, He chuckled. “But she doesn’t see it. She doesn’t think she’s special, but she is. I know she hurts, but i’ve never seen her cry. The pain in her eyes just urge me to hold her. If she were to cry, i’d rather her cry in my arms than in her bed or in her shower. As the tears fall down her cheek, i’d wipe them away and kiss where they slid. I’d hold her and tell her everything would be okay. I’d tell her how beautiful she is. How I love the way she laughs. How I love the way she sings. How I love the way she eats. How I love the way she brushes her hair back every 2 minutes. How I love the way she thinks. How I love they way she taps her pencil and clucks her tongue when she’s thinking. How I love almost everything about her.”, He finished, his stare still on the side of her face, waiting for some kind of response.

 Minji on the other hand, stared at the stars as if they’d died. There was a weird sadness in her heart. It felt empty. It felt horrible. It felt absolutely draining. But, with a slight smile, she turned to look at him. Immediately, He turned back to the sky.

 “Does she love you back?”, She asked.

 “No. Actually, she loves someone else. And he’s always hurting her. Not physically, not even intentionally, but he is. And I sort of hate him for that.”, he sighed. Honestly, he never thought a girl would have caused such mixed feelings between their friendship. “He doesn’t even realize what he has. And if only she looked away from him, even for a bit moment, she’d realize there was someone who loved her perfectly, right there.”

 Minji felt a slight relief. It was selfish to feel this way towards his pain, but she wasn’t ready to watch him love someone else. But she knew she couldn’t make him love her. And again, she felt herself feeling envious towards a person she didn’t even know.

 As the night went on, the two fell asleep outside on the chairs. The sun began to rise. One figure awoke, and found the spot beside him empty. He shot up from his spot; panicking. He searched the living room, ran to the kitchen, and ran upstairs. He couldn’t find her. He ran back down the stairs. He took a quick glance out of the glass door that led to the yard and ran continued to walk back to the living room. He stopped and walked back to the glass door, finding two chairs out on the grass. He quietly opened the door and walked outside. The grass was a bit moist. He peeked onto the chairs, finding the two figures.

 He didn’t know what he felt, but he didn’t like it. Not a bit. Yet, he didn’t have the courage to wake her up. So, he silently made his way back into the house, laid back down, and shut his eyes- trying his best to fall asleep.

  Monday. It was monday once again, and they were all back at the dull, draining place they called school. What made it worse was third period was first.

 The bell rang, signaling homeroom.

 Minji, Hoya, and Myungsoo sat in their seats. Myungsoo kept his head against  the desk. Honestly, he didn’t feel too well. He didn’t know what caused it, but he was definitely sick. Yet, he insisted on going to school. His head ached and he felt sort of nauseous.

 The bell rang, ending homeroom and signaling third period. With a soft ‘see you later’ the three friends went to their separate classes.

 Upon entering class, Minji immediately searched for Sungjong and found him in his seat. She’d rather him be the first person she saw than Jaehwa.

 “Hey, Princess. How was your weekend?”, he smirked.

 “Good.”, she simply replied.

 “Did you spend it with your lover boy?”

 “oh, shutup.”

 They continued to argue and nag at each other. Sung jong tried to get up and walk towards Minji, but to no prevail. The teacher wouldn’t allow it.

 When third period finally ended, Minji walked as fast as she could. She couldn’t wait to talk to Myungsoo.

 But when she entered class, she found his seat empty. She felt worried. He came to school. He was on the bus and he was at homeroom. Where was he? She felt anxious through the whole period. Finally, recess came and she stormed out the door. She met up with the members, and asked them where he was.

 “He went home. Haeun broke up with him today”, Sunggyu said. Everyone felt a bit bad for Myungsoo, but what could they possibly do?

 Minji, on the other hand, couldn’t wait till school ended. He needed someone.

 When school ended and Minji got off the bus, She ran home. She threw her bag into her room, and picked up her cellphone. She dialed his number, pressed call, and held the phone against her ear. The phone rung and rung. and rung. and rung. She prayed he’d answer. The ringing stopped. She opened to speak, but a recorded women’s voice spoke.

 “Please leave a message at-”, She hung up and tried again. and again. and again.

 Meanwhile, at Myungsoo’s home, he was sound asleep. Yes, it was true that Haeun broke up with him. But, if he was going to be completely honest, it didn’t bother him. Actually, he was thinking about it for quite a while now. She was committed to her studies. They just weren’t compatible.

 After a few failed attempts, Minji gave up on trying to call him and ran to his house. She rung the doorbell and his mother answered. His mother kindly let Minji in. After thanking her, Minji ran up the stairs towards Myungsoo’s room.

 She entered the room and found him in his bed, sleeping. She sat next to him and slightly shook his shoulder.

 “Oppa”, she called. His eyes fluttered open, finding Minji in front of him.

 “Why’re you here?”

 “I heard Haeun broke up with you. Im so sorry, Oppa.”, she threw her hands around his neck.

 “oh. who told you?”

 “Sunggyu”

 “Really, Minji. It’s okay. It was bound to happen, anyway”, I shrugged.

 “It’s not okay if you had to come home for it”,

 “What? No. I came home because i’m sick.”

 “You’re sick?”, She jumped up and touched his forehead. “oh gosh, I’ll bring back soup. Hold on.”, she turned to walk away, when a hand grabbed her wrist.

 “don’t worry, umma made me soup.”, He assured.

 “are you sure?”

 “Positive.”

 Minji sat beside the sleeping figure. Just minutes before he went to bed, he ate. She felt worried he’d get nightmares or get hot or something would happen, she decided to watch him for a bit.

 and sure enough, He had a nightmare. She told him not to eat before he slept.

 She sat beside him as he softly whimpered. WIth a wet rag, she wiped away the sweat beading down the side of his face. Suddenly, tears escaped the side of his eyes. She felt panic. She wiped his tear away, but he continued to cry. She shook him lightly and called,

 “Oppa, wake up please.”

 When he awoke, he shot himself up, sitting in his bed.

 *MYUNGSOOS POV*

 I shot up. I felt sticky and gross. I looked around for where I was, and found Minji beside me. I sighed, realizing it was a dream.

 “What happen? I told you not to eat so close to when you sleep!”, she scolded.

 “yah! I just had a nightmare and you’re yelling at me!”

 “Ah. Mian”, she apologized. “What were you dreaming about anyway? You were crying”, She asked, wiping my forehead with a cold wet towel.

 In my dream, I had lost everything. Infinite. My home. The only one I had left was Minji. She was my support, but suddenly, she disappeared too. I was scared. Lost. Everything was dark.

 But I didn’t want to tell Minji. No

 “I just dreamt of being lost and stuff”, I nonchalantly answered, keeping the details to a minimum.

 She didn’t ask for further details, thankfully. She sighed and put the wet towel on top of my dresser. She looked around my room, and spotted my knee.

 “Aish, Oppa! What happen?”, she reached for my knee. I winced a bit. “Ah, Mianhe. What happen?”

 “At Hoya’s house, I fell. I forgot there was a drop and I fell. It ‘s not a big deal though”,I pulled her hand away. She got up, ran to the bathroom across of my room, and came back with a band aid.

 “At least cover it”, she said, putting the band-aid over it. I watched as she intently focused on it. It was a small cut, but she seemed very worried.

 Her eyes were focused on my knee, and she slowly put on my band aid, trying not to hurt me. But the pain seemed to vanish as I watched her.

 Her hair was up in a ponytail. Yet, she wasn’t any less beautiful. She blew onto my knee, and it tickled. Time seemed to stop at this moment. It was weird, but it felt so relieving that she cared for me so much. I don’t think I could ever live without her. She spent a lot more time on my knee than necessary, but I liked her touch. It took the pain away.

 The expressions on her face made my heart skip a beat.

 And that’s when I realized; I was inlove with her.

 All this time. She was right in front of me. I love her. Even as kids, and now.

 And then I realized, maybe I never really loved Haeun. It was just an infatuation. Only because I couldn’t come to confess to myself that I might possibly be in love with my bestfriend.

 The girl who played with mud at the age of 6 and liked to ride her bike down steep hills.

 But i’m done with arguing with myself.

 Im in love with Minji.

 And I can’t have her love Hoya.

 No.

  She fell asleep beside me. I dont know how, but she did.

 The same feeling from a few nights ago stirred in my stomach. Even when she was sleeping she was breathtaking.

 With her sound asleep, and a couple inches away from me, I leaned in. With every second I  moved closer, my heartbeat rose. And I felt the intensity. Only centimeters away, I stopped.

 My eyes glanced at her lips, and back up at her shut eyes. I can’t do it. Not like this.

 I backed away, the intense atmosphere dropping.

 I ruffled my hair, a bit frustrated between my mind and feelings.

 Damn, Minji.

 What the hell is going on with me?