Minae's POV:

If there was anyone in the world that I hated the most at the moment, it was me.

I couldn't bring myself to believe what I had done, what I had said. It was like I knew I was going to regret it, and yet, I foolishly did it anyways.

But at the same time, I was relieved with what I had done.

Sure, dating Jongin sounded like a dream. Hell, it was a dream that thousands of other girls had. But for me, it was both magical and fearful. Something I wanted, but at the same time, didn't want.

Being the book enthusiast that I was during high school, I had read my fair share of love stories, and frankly, stories and real life weren't always in sync. It was always the one nobody that somehow ended up with the hotshot around town. But I knew better than that. Happily ever afters just didn't come around that often, and who was I to think that I would get one of my own?

If I was to point out one flaw with my personality, it would be how calculative I was. I was always trying to think ahead, to see what would be the consquence of every little action. Although it sounded cautious and smart, it sometimes prevented me from doing the things I wanted the most, which was why  I chose to become a barista. Coffee was the only thing that could take my mind off of such things.

To be honest, I had pictured the scenario of Jongin asking me out in my head multiple times. There was no shame in it. Thousands of other girls probably did it too.

But the problem was, each time, my little daydream would always end in something negative. And all of those negative aspects only added up, sending me the message and Jongin and I would never get along.

To begin with, he was the type to easily get jealous. Some girls tended to find that kind of cute, but I found it rather annoying. There was a certain degree of acceptance to everything, but he usually crossed that line and jumped to conclusions on his own. He just had that rash kind of personality. With Sehun working next to me, problems would be inevitable.

There was also the problem of his reputation. I knew what kind of people he came from, and I also knew that I didn't fit into that category. Those people were the ones that looked into every little detail, the ones that sneered at everyone below them in economic standards. I would never want to bring such difficulty onto him, even if it meant giving up on the possible relationship we could have.

But to be honest, my main fear was the typical fear that any girl in my situation would have. It wasn't anything specific to my case, but it was definitely worry-worthy. Being best friends with him was my medicine. He gave me the strength and comfort that I needed, and being my boyfriend would only help with it. But what would happen next? Jongin was bound to get bored of me and leave me some day, especially when tons of beautiful girls were throwing themselves at him. And all that would be left behind for me would be a broken heart and no one to help pick up the pieces.

I rubbed my eyes and stretched my limbs while walking out of the lecture room. Even knowing I had probably missed more than half of the information, I really needed that sleep since I couldn't get any last night. Constantly tossing and turning didn't really help me get energized because I was so preoccupied with thoughts of Jongin.

Lifelessly picking up my books and shoving them into my backpack, I suantered out through the door while noticing that I was the last one out.

I must have really been tired.

Heading over to the nearest vending machine, I rummaged through my backpack to find my wallet. Right as it seemed to get within my line of sight, I found myself being slammed against the wall, my bag lying on the ground with it contents spilled everywhere.

But I didn't really have the right mind to pick things up when I looked up to see who had been the offender.

There he was, huffing and pressing my shoulders to prevent me from running away. I bit my lower lip and looked at the ground, trying to avoid his gaze.

"Did you really think you would get away with it?"

"With what, Kai?"

He laughed a dry laugh.

"Funny how you stopped calling me Jongin all of a sudden."

"I just think that Kai sounds more natural coming out of my mouth."

Pushing him away, I bent over to pick up my stuff when he grabbed my wrist. Pulling me up, he wrapped his arms around my waist and I found myself being caught in his embrace.

I really wanted to shove him away. I really did.

But I couldn't.

How could I when the one that held my heart was currently offering me his?

"Jongin..."

It came out as a whisper, but I knew he had heard it loud and clear.

We remained in silence for a few minutes as he leaned his head on my shoulder. It was when I felt the wetness against me that I realized he was crying.

I had no idea what to do. Such a thing had never happened to me before, and he had probably never experienced such a feeling either. Jongin was never the type to show his weak side, and seeing it only made me feel even worse about myself. It made me realize that I was so easily able to break down his walls, but it also made me realize I had managed to hurt him at his most vulnerable moment.

"Jongin..."

"Sehun told me."

His words were muffled, but still audible.

I froze.

"What?"

He lifted his head and wiped away the tears, trying to avoid my eyes. Taking a sleeve, he wiped his eyes and kept them closed.

"I ran into him last night. At a club."

My heart sunk at his words, hearing about his old habit. The issue of running into Sehun hadn't sunk into my brain yet.

"He told me you were lying. That I had been tricked."

Opening his eyes, he bent down to see me eye to eye.

"Tell me, Minae. Did you really lie to me?"

I cast my eyes down in shame, wishing I could rewind time. But I knew I could decieve him no longer, so I nodded.

In that moment, he took a step back and gave me a sad smile.

"And I thougt you were different. At least you're being honest with me now."

He turned and started to walk away.

I wanted to scream and run after him, but my feet seemed to planted onto the ground. Thoughts were racing around my head, trying to think of what the best thing to do at the moment would be, but it seemed as if my mouth was working faster than my brain today.

"Jongin!"

Halting, he turned around and I found myself running to him, throwing myself into his chest and wrapping my arms around his waist.

The tears began to unconsciously spill out, large drops plopping onto my face one by one.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. It's... It's just that... I don't know. I was scared. Scared of our clashing personalies. Scared of ruining your reputation. Scared of what would come next. Scared... Just scared of everything."

I buried my face into his chest so that I wouldn't have to watch for his reaction, but my heart only seemed to be crushed when he pulled away. Biting my lower lip, I tried to stop the tears from actually bursting out now.

Great. He was rejecting me. He would never forgive me.

But to my surprise, he knelt down and wiped the salty tears off of my cheeks with his thumbs. Slowly getting up again, he kissed my forehead and wrapped his arms around my neck, pushing my face back into his chest.

"You're so stupid sometimes, Minae. Relationships are about solving those problems. About learning to move past them. They help heal people and teach them how to react at appropriate situations. And I know I'm only saying this from what I've heard since my memories with girls haven't exactly been the greatest, but I want to learn about the experiences with you. I'm not scared of what other people are going to think. Hell, I've never cared for their opinions. The only opinion that matters to me is yours. So just tell me... What is your opinion?"

My opinion?

It didn't even take a second for me to find my answer, something that was quite unusual for someone like me.

"I like you."

"What?"

Shoving his chest away, I looked up and wrapped my arms around his neck. Pulling him in, I planted a sweet kiss on his lips before slowly pulling away.

"I said that I like you."

And instantly, I found my lips being crashed up against his.