The day of school festival arrives. The sun is shining brightly over the clear sky. Each class is busy with their booths and the school atmosphere gives out that festive feeling.

Mr. Jin’s class is also occupied with their tasks. Their classroom transformed into a cozy café.

            “Oh My God! You look so pretty!” Yumi says when she sees Seo Hyun.

Seo Hyun feels a bit shy. She’s not confident wearing this red see-through dress.

            “Don’t you think this is a bit obscene?” she asks worriedly.

            “What obscene? Your dress is a killer!”Ji Ah answers with thumbs up.

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Yonghwa arrives and sees that Seo Hyun is wearing one of the dresses he picked for her last time. She has her wavy hair down and she looks absolutely stunning in his eyes. Despite feeling spell bounded, Yonghwa controls his expression.

            “It looks good on you.” He compliments her.

Seo Hyun blushes.

They take the center stage and sing a duet. Seo Hyun feels very nervous during the first minute but Yonghwa helps her get by. She looks at him and he stares back at her as if he’s saying ‘You’re doing well’.  Seo Hyun’s pretty voice surprises their classmates that they stop with whatever they’re doing to watch. Little by little, she became comfortable and enjoys it.

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            “Here.”

Seo Hyun says thank you as she takes the canned beverage Yonghwa is giving her. He sits next to her. The sky is already dark and the booths closed. But the night is still young and everybody is watching the school program.

            “You worked hard for today.” He says.

            “You too…” she says back drawing a slight smile on his lips.

They got a loud applause from the audience earlier. After that, they accepted song requests that they performed. Their class café was a hit because many customers came. 

            “Where’s Yumi and Ji Ah?” he asks.

            “They want to watch the dancers closely so they…” she looks towards the stage side where Yumi and Ji Ah are. The two are busy watching the performers.

Yonghwa and Seo Hyun are sitting on distance away from the stage and crowd. They both think that their spot is just right. The sound is not that loud yet you can still see the show.

            “Yumi told me earlier that there will be a fireworks display after the program.” She tells him.

            “Yeah, I heard it too from others.” He says.

Seo Hyun smiles. She loves watching fireworks at the dark sky. Yonghwa glances at his wristwatch.

            “The program is about to end. Fireworks will be in a few minutes.”

She nods at him as a response.

            “Hyunie!”Ji Ah runs towards them. She’s carrying a box with a label ‘A Box of Romance’. “Pick one!” she says.

            “What is this?” Seo Hyun asks.

            “This is from the other section. It’s one of their booth’s main attractions. Ji Ah bugged a friend to let her use the leftovers inside.” Yumi explains.

            “This is really fun. Yumi got a great one.” Ji Ah says.

            “What’s great with asking out the least guy I like? I think I got the worst one from that box!” Yumi exclaims then pout her lips.

            “Maybe something good will come out of it in the end….You might find out that you had wrong perception about the guy you like the least….” Ji Ah tells her then turn to them. “Hyunie, pick one.” She offers once more.

Seo Hyun is hesitant.

            “Can I pick too?” Yonghwa asks Ji Ah. He thought that Seo Hyun would probably go for it if she sees him being sports about it.

            “Yeah….” Ji Ah lets him pick.

Yonghwa gets a chocolate bar with a note on the back.

            “Share it with the first boy/girl you thought of in the morning.” Yumi reads loudly.

Yonghwa looks at Seo Hyun for a moment and smiles a bit.

            “I guess picking isn’t bad after all….I got a free chocolate.” He says.

Seo Hyun decided to put her hand inside the box and get something. She got a card and gives it to Yumi.

            “Hold hands with a random guy while ____.” She reads. Seo Hyun’s eyes become wide.

            “This is absurd!” she gasps.

            “That is so exciting! Well, since the fireworks display is about to start, you do it while watching the fireworks.” Ji Ah says excitedly. She obviously ignores Seo Hyun’s reaction.

            “W-hat?! This is absurd and outrageous! To hold hands with a random guy is improper!” Seo Hyun says in a high tone.

            “Hyunie, think of it as a dare. You are just going to hold hands…you’re not gonna date. The fireworks won’t take that long. The next thing you know is that it’s over.” Yumi says.

            “I don’t think I could do this.” She utters.

            “Yumi even asked Han Sook out on a date. C’mon…You’re not the quitter type Hyunie. You can do it!” Ji Ah encourages her.

            “But this isn’t right….” Seo Hyun contests.

            “Don’t worry. If you want, I’ll find a guy for you. I’ll make sure that he’ll do no harm to you.” Ji Ah says.

Seo Hyun worries. Though a part of her mind says that she has nothing to be scared about….it’s just a game….a game that she would absolutely not play but that’s exactly why she should. She needs to come out of her shell and try to do something that she won’t normally dare to do.

Yonghwa rises up his palm and Seo Hyun looks at the hand he’s offering.

            “I can be a volunteer.” He says. “At least, I’m not a random guy…” he adds. He knows how worried Seo Hyun is with the thought of holding hands and doing it with a random guy is even worse.

Yumi and Ji Ah smiles.

            “Yeah!Great idea. Yonghwa sshi isn’t just anyone. He’s a friend, right?” Ji Ah says.

            “It’s Yonghwa sshi so you have nothing to be worried about.” Yumi then takes Seo Hyun’s hand and put it on top of Yonghwa’s hand. “Take care of Hyunie, Yonghwa sshi.” She says to him.

            “I will.” He replies.

Seo Hyun blinks. She’s speechless.

            “Enjoy the fireworks!” Ji Ah says. She nods to Yumi and they walk away. They decided to give the two some privacy.

            “They look like a couple. So cute!”Yumi whispers adoringly.

           “They should date. It’s quite obvious that they have feelings for each other.”Ji Ah whispers back happily.

The fireworks display starts. Everyone is looking up. The colorful fireworks are gracing the dusky sky.

THUMP THUMP….THUMP THUMP…THUMP THUMP…

Seo Hyun’s heart beats greatly inside her chest as if it wants to jump out. She holds her breathe for she’s worried that Yonghwa might hear it. Her fingers seem to be paralyzed between his. She doesn’t know what to do.

            “Relax.” He says. Yonghwa feels her uneasiness. “Let’s just enjoy the fireworks.” He adds.

Seo Hyun stares at the sky like what Yonghwa suggested. Bit by bit, her nerve calms as the dazzling lights capture her attention. She began to enjoy what she is seeing and became comfortable holding the hand of the man beside her. Their eyes are on the sky but Yonghwa gives her hand a few gentle squeezes indicating that he’s enjoying the show too.

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The two are on their way home. They are walking side by side but neither of them is speaking for both are immersed in their own thoughts.

From the moment that sky lost its last spark, Seo Hyun’s mind is already occupied with wonder.What exactly is this? What feeling does she have for Yonghwa? Yonghwa is the very first person she became close with. He’s her friend….the first friend she made. He helped her a lot without asking for anything in return. He’s fun to be with and she knows that she can trust him. And for that, she knows…she wants to keep him next to her.

However, she starts feeling strange. Her erratic heartbeat, being self-conscious around him, and missing his face and voice at night….these are things that a person should not feel for a friend.

            “You look good together.”

            “You two make a good pair.”

            “The boy treats you in a special way….He adore you. Your heart does not lie…”

Yumi, Jia, and Yeong Won told her things that she just brushed off. Do they see things that she couldn’t?

Love…..that has been a foreign word for her. It had been long since she felt that way. She once fell in love with a guy she hardly knew. She only read about love in novels and she had always wondered about how love would actually feels like. When she met him, she felt things that her young heart had never felt and so she knows….she’s in love. She did her best to have that but ended up torn and betrayed. It was hard and painful that she stopped believing in the word love.

But this thing she’s feeling for Yonghwa is more intense. The way he makes her feel is twice as how she felt for that man once upon a time in her life. He’s the only man that makes her feel comfortable and nervous at the same time. Being with him, she feels anxious but she also feels comfortable like there’s no other place for her but there…next to him.Now it’s clear to her. She has fallen in love with Yonghwa.

This love has a good feeling but that is even scarier.With this young body as a disguise, she doesn’t even have the right to be in love with anyone. She knows that this will lead to no good and if she let herself be greedy for this love then she would just hate God.

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Yonghwa feels weary. Seo Hyun isn’t saying a word since they left school. Did he make her feel awkward because he held her hand earlier? He knows that she only sees him as a friend but he couldn’t control himself at times. He loves her and he can’t always pretend that he doesn’t.

While he’s holding her hand earlier, he’s very happy. He’s imagining that she’s his girlfriend and they’re on a date. He doesn’t want to make her feel uneasy that’s why he’s not telling her how he truly feels. He just doesn’t want her to run away from him so he chose to be a coward.

The bus arrives and they board. There are empty seats at the back and they sit. Five minutes passed and Seo Hyun is still looking out of the window quietly. Yonghwa breathes in and blows out some air before breaking the silence between them.

            “So hungry….” He says making Seo Hyun looks at him.

            “It’s been a long day. I ate only a little because it was so busy…How about you? Aren’t you hungry?” he asks her.

            “No, I’m fine.” She answers.

Yonghwa takes out the chocolate bar from his pocket. He un-wrapped it and offers Seo Hyun some.

            “That chocolate….You’re supposed to eat it with the first girl you thought of this morning, right?” she says with wide eyes.

            “That’s why I’m sharing it to you.” He says. “The first girl that comes to my mind when I woke up this morning….it’s you.” Yonghwa sounded so serious making Seo Hyun speechless.

            “I was thinking if you will do well in our performance. That’s why.” He adds.

Seo Hyun blinks and smiles shyly.

            “Ahh….so it’s like that” she says.

            “Yes, that’s all. Wait, don’t tell me you wish that I’m really thinking of you?” Yonghwa teases her.

            “What?! Why would I?!” Seo Hyun says in defense. “That would be insane.” She adds trying her best to cover the truth.

            “Yeah. I couldn’t imagine. But to fall for me won’t be surprising anyway.”He jokes while pulling the collar of his jacket like a cool guy.

            “Look what hunger does to you….” Seo Hyun shakes her head lightly. “Don’t starve yourself again….You’re head is getting big.”

Yonghwa chuckles.

            “I’m big-headed? Just don’t let me find out that you’re telling everyone that you’re in love with me.”He continues to tease.

            “I’d probably lost my senses if that happens.” She says.

They smile at each other. Yonghwa offers her the chocolate again and Seo Hyun breaks off a piece and they eat.

            “Isn’t it tasty?” Yonghwa says.

            “Hm.” She nods while nibbling the chocolate.

Their eyes meet for a second and Seo Hyun breaks into a chuckle.

            “What?” he asks.

            “Swollen-headed…” she teases him.

            “You’re not going to let that go, are you?”

She shakes her head and laugh.

            “I can feel your head ‘till here.” She jokes while pretending to touch his head a few centimeters away.

            “Whaa….exaggeration…Stop it…” Yonghwa tells her while smiling too.

Seo Hyun secretly gazes at Yonghwa. She loves him that’s true….but it’s not right to involve him like that. She finally came up with a conclusion…everything will be fine as long as she doesn’t tell him. Making him love her too would be the most heartless thing she’ll do so it’s better not to speak a word of it. She decided to love him secretly within this close range…in a form of a friend.

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[Author's Note]

Happy Friday people! Thank you sooo much on your support for this story. Please leave your comments and if this chap gets a lot then I promise to update quicker. Anyway, here's a teaser for the coming chapter.

[Next Chapter Teaser]

They walk towards their room but they stop by the door upon noticing the serious atmosphere inside. It is quiet and everyone’s eyes are on Yonghwa and Bae Suzy. Yonghwa is on his seat. Suzy stops in front of his desk and puts down her cake there. He looks up at her.

            “Jung Yonghwa, I want you to be my boyfriend.” Suzy declares with confidence.

Seo Hyun swallows hard.