{ 4 }

I remember when we were yelled at for talking in the halls

I don't know why it was so fun even when we were punished

"Why do I have to wear this again?" 

"Because I said so."

"And that's supposed to convince me?" I gawked at her and raised my eyebrows; implying she was crazy for expecting me to wear this. The bracelet dangled from my fingers as I stared at it bewilderedly like it was some kind of a drag queen disguise I was forced to garb in. 

"Ya! It's not that bad okay?" Her lips curled into a mocking grin. 

"It's pink." I commented, my face scrunching up. 

"It suits your skin tone." She shrugged and smirked at me knowingly. She was clearly enjoying this. 

"It's pink." I repeated, and this time I stared at her with a desperate look on my face, my eyebrows pulled down in the hopes of receiving even the slightest ounce of pity; willing her to understand that there was no way I was going to wear this. Didn't she know that the first universal rule of Guys' Rules 101 is to never wear pink? 

"Yes, I'm completely aware of that, Captain Obvious." She rolled her eyes lazily at me. "You're such a whiner." 

"At least get me a blue one or something." I sighed defeatedly and slipped my hand through the hole in the bracelet and watched it slide to my wrist. It was a light wristlet and it felt right; and it gave me a warm feeling that it suited me perfectly. She must have taken a good thought on the size. 

"They were out of stock, what was I supposed to do? Besides, it looks cute on you." she nudged my side playfully using her shoulder, hiding a small grin. I was about to feel giddy that she just admitted I was cute, but then I realized that she was just teasing me. 

"You evil wench. I have a reputation to take care of." 

"And you have me to screw it for you." 

I let out a small chuckle and shook my head. "Remind me again how the hell did I end up being best friends with a pain in the queenka like you?"

I brought my legs closer to my chest and gazed at the bracelet donning my bare wrist. It was woven with different shades of pink, and braided gingerly with meticulous hands. I wonder where she bought this, why she bothered to buy this for us at all. But I liked it. I liked how the bracelet smelled like her; like the perfume that she wore, and how only by wearing it, I felt more connected to her. 

"Shut up, Baek. I am the best best friend out of all the best best friends in the whole wide world." She reached out for my hand and linked her pinky to mine and glanced at our wrists that were adorned with pink, woven bracelets situated next to each other. Then her eyes flitted up to meet mine. 

"Happy two months of a kick- friendship, you sarcastic ." She smiled widely. 

Friendship. 

I wished it was more than that. 

After that day we always stuck together like Astro twins

You were me and I was you

Habits were often viewed negatively by some people, an act of permanent doing that sticks with you like glue, even in your involuntary state. They were either sparked from when you were a child or only appearing now. She had a habit of twirling her hair around her fingers when she was bored and pouting her lips when she was waiting. I never asked her when she started practising those habits, because I loved watching her when she wasn't noticing. There wasn't anything much we had in common, but still she stuck with me like glue. Like a habit. 

On Saturday, she had dragged me to the beach located at the outskirts of town just to watch the sea. We had to take a bus trip to go there since none of us had took our license yet, but I didn't protest. Once we descended the bus and hit outside, it felt like the hot, bright sun was melting us away like ice blocks. A mix of salt and acrid could be tasted in the air. The sea was a wide expanse in front of us, blurring at the horizon. We were standing near the edge, looking out toward the shoreline. I never went to the beach before, so I didn't know what else could be done here instead of taking a splash in the cold water. 

The beach was deserted. This in itself was odd. Usually in the summer, at the height of tourist season, the island's beaches were always crowded, but today, it was like the place was reserved for only the both of us.

Haeri stepped a few feet in front of me, her sundress ruffled by the wind. The breeze blew her brown locks against her face, and she hugged herself as she closed her eyes and digested her surroundings. From the corner of my eye, I could see she was smiling. She must loved the wind. 

I walked up to her and stood beside her; the breeze pushing my blue t-shirt against my body. Her eyes fluttered open when she remembered I was also here. She turned her head to look at me and there was a sparkle in her eyes. 

"What do you think?" she asked, and I turned my attention towards the sea. I shoved my hands in my jeans' pockets and took a moment. After a few seconds, I smiled before turning to look at her again. 

"I love it." 

Love. It felt surreal to utter that word in front of her. I wondered what it would feel like if I was directing it to her. 

She nodded, a look of relief flooded her features. We didn't say anything for a while but then I couldn't hold back my curiousity any longer. 

"What are we gonna do here?" I asked, seemingly confused. 

"We could go skinny dipping," she said matter-of-factly, but she was biting the inside of her cheek, holding back a giddy smile. 

"Skinny. . .dipping?" I bit my bottom lip, my brows scrunched up in confusion. I had never heard of that phrase in my life.

"Oh, you know," she shrugged indifferently. "Stripping out of your clothes and plunged into the sea . It's another term for swimming." She stared at me and lifted her eyebrows expectantly. Instantly I felt the heat creeping up to my cheeks. God, was I blushing right now?

Haeri ended up bursting in laughter and I felt dejected that I didn't realize she was joking. Not that I wanted to go skinny dipping. With her. Dipping. Whatever. Damn it. I can't think straight. 

"Come on," she laughed and took my hand, dragging me towards the beach.

Your song on the last day of the school festival, the flickering summer sea

Our feelings that were precious because we were together

Like the deepening night sky

"Let's play Make A Wish!" 

"What are we, six?" I but she simply rolled her eyes at me. We were sitting near the sea, the gentle waves struggling over the course sand, the seashells as it slowly made its way back. Screeches of seagulls could be heard overhead, circling around the sky. 

"You know sarcasm doesn't suit you right?" she stuck her tongue out at me and it was my turn to roll my eyes at her. "Just admit it, Baek. You'll afraid of losing to a girl." she said, giving me a wicked grin. 

I narrowed my eyes at her curiously. She must have a trick stuck to her sleeves. 

"Just a heads up, if I win I'll wish for you to tell me I'm hot five times a day for one week."  

"Never in your wildest dreams." she smirked before nodding. "Deal." 

She digged her fingers into the sand and pulled a handful of them in her hands, forming a tower of brown granular that stood ten inches tall. She tapped the sides to flatten it, and then beamed at the result. She fumbled for something else in the sand and found a small stick that was washed away from the shore. She stabbed the stick on the top of the sand, like a flag to a castle. Then she glanced at me and her lips curled into a challenging grin. 

"I'll go first." 

I watched her slowly pulling away some of the sand from the tower that she made, her eyes deep in concentration. She chewed on her lips before exhaling a huge breath of air when she finally managed to pull away all the sand without letting the tower of sand fall over. 

"Beat that." she provoked with a sly grin on her face. Did I mention I was highly competitive? 

"Are you sure you want me to do this? I'd hate to make you suffer with the label of loser for the rest of the week."

She snorted, implying that she underestimated me. I rubbed my hands against each other and and puffed out a breath of air like I was preparing myself to lift up weights. After pulling my sleeves up to my elbow, I leaned forward and contemplated where was the lowest risk to remove the sand. I felt her eyes on me; warm and soft, but they sparkled with curiousity. She always had that look in her orbs whenever she gazed at me, like a curious toddler that wanted to know all the answers to the world. I wondered what was in the forefront of her thoughts. Did she wonder about me just as much as I wondered about her? 

I suddenly felt nervous, and I wiped the perspiration trailing down the side of my head. She's making me nervous and I didn't even know why. It was the easiest game in the world, but when her eyes lingered on me, I couldn't think clearly. The second my hand reached out for the sand at the bottom of the tower to pull it away, my fingers shook and the towering sand broke down into a downfall of granular avalanche. I yelled in disbelief when the tower crumbled beneath my grip and slipped between my fingers. The stick from earlier disappeared in the sand. 

Haeri burst into shouts of triumph just as I slumped back on my heels. 

I am bracing myself for the worst. 

Oh God help me. 

I slowly lifted my face to look at her with a expression that screamed have-mercy-on-me-I-don't-want-to-die-from-your-despicable-demands and just as expected, she had that wicked look in her eyes. 

"Don't you want to ask me what my wish is?" she feigned bafflement when I didn't say anything. 

I rolled my eyes at her exaggeration. "What is thy wisheth, thy highness?" I asked in my best Shakespearean accent and she laughed.

Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleas-

"A piggyback ride back to the station." she smirked.

. 

The friend label is a label that I got to hate

The feelings I've hidden still remain as a painful secret memory

She started singing Call Me Maybe--more like screaming-- off and being off key and at intervals of time, yelled in my ear purposely just to irritate me. 

Hey I just met ya!

And this is awesome!

But here's my phone number!

So call me maybeeee! 

Boy you came into mah life I miss you so bad, I miss you so very bad!

"Ya! All the lyrics are wrong, you dimwit." I grunted as my grip on her legs tighten that were hanging by my side. She ignored my remark and continued to babble incoherent lyrics and later on I found myself smiling at her cuteness. 

"Stop being so envious over me, it's really suffocating." she complained dramatically, her lips were so close to my ear that my neck tingled from her breath. 

I chuckled and gripped her legs tighter, in fear she'd suddenly disappear. We walked by the shoreline, my footsteps leaving deep impressions on the sand. I wished she couldn't hear my heart beat thumping rapidly against my ribcage. It was almost impossible to breathe when she was this close to me. Her breath was slow and soft against my back, and her grip on my neck tighten when she propped her chin on my shoulder. Her hair tickled my neck and face, but her approximity made me lose my sanity. She suddenly giggled and I turned my head a little to look back at her. 

"What's so funny?" I asked. 

"Baek." The way she pronounced that nickname still gave me butterflies everytime. "I need to ask you something." 

"What is it?" I could feel my heartbeat accelerating by the second. 

She bit her lip and pondered for a few seconds that felt like an eternity. She was about to ask me something personal, I knew it, I could feel it, but then she simply leaned in a little bit closer to me and snuggled at the crook of my neck. 

"Can't you move a little bit faster? We'll miss the bus if you don't." 

What do I say, we didn't have to play no games

I should've took the chance, I should've asked for you to stay

On the bus, I let her sit by the window, and we didn't talk for quite some time. It was killing me, the silence. I had always prefered to cloak and encapsulate myself with silence, but when I was with her, it was unbearable. Like a ticking clock that was incessant, a timeless galaxy of our own where words were suspended and both of us were separated by a thick, impenetrable wall. She was staring out at the window, and I was dying to know what was on her mind. I tried to initiate conversation when the bus pulled up at the stop that wasn't ours, but my voice got caught in my throat every time; like a giant fist squeezing it from coming out. 

Without realizing it, we arrived at her neighbourhood and both of us instantly got up from our seats. I let her got off first and slowly fell into step beside her. My house was actually a few blocks away from here and needed to pass a few more stops, but I needed to make sure she got back home safely. Even though she always insisted I didn't have to and got mad at me twice for wanting to walk her home after school. 

I didn't know why she was always defensive about that. Did she not like me walking her home? Was I going too far as a friend? But after arriving at the front of her gate, I realized she didn't acknowledge my intentions along the way nor she did asked me to go. A cobblestone path led up to a freshly painted house with small windows and a garden filled with tulips and daffodils. She must've helped her parents painted it yesterday since there were traces and spots of yellow paint hidden between her thumb and pointer finger. 

She whipped around and stood facing me. I averted my gaze back to her as I shoved my hands into my pockets to appear calm and collective but deep down I was feeling lightheaded. It was bizarre how much of an impact she can give to me, even by simply locking her eyes with mine. She looked hesitant, and I was searching her eyes for something else; please say something. 

Then I let out a sigh that I was holding for far too long. 

"It's getting late. You should go back inside." I said in a tone that seemed forced, and she simply nodded. I started to turn around and kept my eyes downturned, staring fixedly on the pavement. 

One step. 

Two.

Three.

Why isn't she stopping me?

Five steps. 

Six.

Seven. 

Eigh--

"Baekhyun!" she called out and relief washed over me. 

She ran towards me just as I whipped my body to face her again. She looked flustered, her face flushed from the bright sun, and her skin looked a little bit tan. Her eyes were deep set, and the different hues in her irises appeared like wet earth. I was about to open my mouth when she suddenly cut me off. 

"Whatever happens. . .you'll always be my friend, right?" 

"What?" My chest felt constricted. 

What did she say?

"You'll always be my friend right? My best friend, no matter what?" she reiterated, her eyes insistent, pleading me. 

I felt my hopes tumbling down in a sickening crash, shattering into a million pieces.

"I...I-I guess, yeah." I said hesitantly, and I felt a stab of pain somewhere in my heart; piercing until it reached its core. 

"Good." she finally smiled, a look of relief uplifting her entire face. Then without giving a warning, she wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled me into a warm embrace. She caught me off guard, and I lost the train of thoughts I had a few seconds ago. My mind swarm with all kinds of inklings, and she didn't let me go for quite a while. Slowly, I returned her embrace but I wasn't quite sure how best friends' hug. I wrapped my hands hesitantly around her small back, and then she squeezed me tighter. 

Hugs were supposed to give you comfort, but why did I feel so tormented? 

Finally her arms fell from my back and she pulled away. Instantly I felt a sense of loss engulfing me. 

"I'll see you tomorrow." she said, and gave me a small smile that made my heart clenched before walking back to her house. 

And it gets me down the unsaid words that still remain

The story ended without even starting 

{A/N} 

I'm so so sorry for the late update! I honestly didn't have time to update sooner because of school and I have my first test coming up in early March and I haven't studied yet lol. I'm such a wreck. But hey I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I apologized for any shortcomings, and hopefully I'll update the next chapter soon! Leave some comments and upvote! It would lift my spirits up :) 

I wanted to dedicate this chapter to Kimmykimkim29! She had helped me a lot by giving me ideas to overcome my writers' block and she's such a sweetheart. I owe you big time! :) Check out her writers' worshop here!