Jieun narrowed her eyes when she stared at the last entry in the journal. She glanced up and looked at Eunji, whose cheeks were red. She looked down at the journal, rereading the entry until Eunji closed the book for her.

"Stop reading it, okay?" Eunji said. "It's embarrassing!"

"Did you answer him?" Jieun asked her.

"N-Not exactly…I kind of ran away."

Jieun dropped her jaws. Without thinking, she grabbed Eunji's wrist and started to drag her back to the special class. She could hear Eunji complain and stutter, telling her to stop, but she didn't. She continued to drag her until they arrived at the special class. She opened the door, searching for Daehyun.

Hyunwoo, who noticed her immediately, heaved a sigh and walked over to her.

"What are you doing?" he asked. "If you're looking for me, then I need you to come back later—"

"I'm not here for you," Jieun said. A few people in the background gasped. Everyone knew that Jieun came into the special class just for Hyunwoo. To hear that she wasn't here for her crush was breaking news. "Instead, do you know where Daehyun is?"

Hyunwoo blinked his eyes. He wasn't used to Jieun not looking for him. 

Is she trying to play hard to get? he wondered. "Daehyun? Um, he's not here—"

"Okay! Thanks!" Jieun said. She dragged Eunji away from the special class and started to walk away, searching for Daehyun.

Everyone started to look at Hyunwoo, who stood at the door, dumbfounded. It was completely unusual to see Jieun leave so quickly without Taemin forcing her to go. A few people waited for someone to make a move. They all stood still, waiting for Hyunwoo to say something.

Taemin came into the room. He stopped abruptly at the front door, surprised to see Hyunwoo standing still at the door. He stared at Hyunwoo for a second, hoping that he would move aside. When he didn't, Taemin cleared his throat.

"Um, Hyunwoo?" Taemin called. Hyunwoo snapped out of his dazed thoughts. "What are you doing?"

"Huh? No, nothing," Hyunwoo murmured. He paused. "Hey, do you know who 'Daehyun' is?"

"Daehyun? Yeah. He's that popular basketball player," Taemin said. "He's in our class."

"Popular and athletic, huh?" Hyunwoo murmured. "Is he smart?"

"Well, I assume that he can study because he's in the special class this semester," Taemin said. He frowned. "Are you sure that you're okay?"

"Yeah, yeah…" Hyunwoo paused. "Are they close?"

"Who's close?" Taemin asked. "Can you step aside? I'd like to go in."

Hyunwoo did as he said, but his eyes were still on the door. "Jieun and Daehyun."

Taemin frowned. "I don't know. I don't think so?"

"How could you not know?" Hyunwoo asked him. Once he started chasing after Taemin, everyone resumed to what they were doing prior to looking at Hyunwoo. "Aren't you her friend?"

"I don't know what happens to her every single time. If she wants to get along with a certain individual, then that's her choice."

"But…But what if Daehyun is suspicious?"

"Daehyun is definitely not suspicious," Taemin said. "At least, he doesn't seem to be in my eyes. If you really want to know about Jieun, why don't you go to Junhee? They have the same class this semester—"

When Taemin turned around, he was surprised to see that Hyunwoo was gone. He looked around, but his classmates swarmed around him, begging him for his opinion on whatever problems they had. He looked around a few more minutes before deciding to focus his attention on helping people.

"…Jieun and Daehyun?" Junhee frowned, trying to think of any situation where she had seen Jieun and Daehyun get close together. "Honestly, I don't really know Daehyun's personality or anything. The closest he's ever been to Jieun is probably when we still participating in the co-ed basketball group."

"Our school had a co-ed basketball team?" Chanyeol asked, surprised.

"Yeah," she said. "It wasn't that popular, though. I heard that it's disbanding." She looked over her shoulder and stared at Chanyeol, who towered over her. "Why are you here?"

"What? Am I not allowed to?" he asked. He stuck closer to Junhee, only to make her ears turn red.

Hyunwoo stared at the two with a disgusted look. It was clear that the two liked each other, but it was even more obvious that they were trying to hide their feelings from each other. Not only that, but he could tell that Chanyeol was being protective over who was approaching Junhee.

"So you're saying that there's nothing going on with Jieun and Daehyun?" Hyunwoo asked, wanting to go straight to the point. Junhee nodded. He let out a sigh of relief.

"But Jieun can be interested," Junhee said, pondering on Hyunwoo's question a little longer. Hyunwoo froze. She looked at Chanyeol. "You should go. You're not going to like our conversation from here."

"What? I can take it," Chanyeol said.

"Really? You want to hear about your crush being interested in some other guy?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Chanyeol awkwardly shrugged his shoulders. "W-Well, I might not be entirely interested in Jieun anymore…"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's just something you should—"

"Junhee!" 

The two stopped talking. Junhee smiled when she saw the familiar first-year approach her. Chanyeol scowled and stuck even closer to Junhee. Hyunwoo stared at the first-year, who gave him a respectful bow before turning his attention to the girl.

"Hey, Niel," Junhee said.

"I'm sorry, but I was wondering if you can come to our class once more?" Niel said. "We need help."

"First years should stick with first years only!" Chanyeol snapped, trying to chase him away.

Niel flashed Chanyeol a fake smile. "I would definitely ask you for help, but you have zero interest in music, so I'm afraid that I can't ask you for much."

"You've been very annoying for the past few days," Chanyeol said.

"Aw, that's a little hurtful to hear."

"He's right, Chanyeol," Junhee said. "You can't be so mean."

"But—"

"Look," Hyunwoo said, catching Junhee's attention. If anything, he didn't want to feel left out. He knew that there was something going on between the three, but he didn't care. "Since you look busy, is there anyone else I can talk to who's close to Jieun? I've already tried talking to Taemin and he told me to come to you."

"I guess you can try talking to Dasom," Junhee said. She frowned  a little. "Why are you so interested in Jieun's private life?"

"What? I'm not," Hyunwoo said, defending himself.

"This isn't like you. You're usually the one running away from Jieun, not chasing after her…"

Before Junhee could say anything, Hyunwoo ignored her and started to walk away. She looked after him a bit longer before Niel gently tugged on her sleeves. She turned around, only to see a smiley Niel. She smiled back, but jumped back in surprise when Chanyeol stepped in between them.

Alright, this is it, Hyunwoo thought, arriving at Dasom's and Byunghun's classroom. He was about to knock on the door, but stopped himself when he remembered what Junhee had said earlier.

It wasn't like she was wrong or anything. She had a very valid point. For years, he had been trying to push Jieun away from him. He had never seen her more than just an annoying neighbor who attached herself to him. Even now, he was trying to push her away by trying to get her to focus on something else.

He paused and placed his hand over his chest. An uncomfortable feeling started to spread throughout his chest. He gulped uneasily and just looked at the door. Was he feeling worried? Perhaps scared? Maybe it was because he wasn't used to Jieun being uninterested in him. Maybe that's why he was feeling so empty in the inside.

"Alright, later Byunghun."

Hyunwoo widened his eyes when the door opened. He looked into the eyes of the boy who had opened the door. Daehyun, surprised, stared at him before gasping.

"Was I supposed to help? Were you looking for me?" Daehyun asked. He scratched the back of his head. "I'm sorry, Hyunwoo. I came here to talk to Byunghun about something."

Byunghun poked his head out the door to see why Daehyun didn't leave the room. "Oh, hey, Hyunwoo."

"H-Hi," Hyunwoo greeted. His eyes were still on Daehyun. He frowned, trying to figure out what was so good about the boy.

Is it because he's an athlete? Is that why Jieun's so interested in him? Hyunwoo wondered. I'm not that bad when it comes to sports. She would overlook such a simple flaw for me. Why would she look for someone like him?

"Um, Hyunwoo?" Daehyun said, trying to call him back into reality. "What should I do when I get back to class? I left because people told me that I didn't need to help them, so…"

"What were you guys talking about?" Hyunwoo asked.

To his surprise, Daehyun started to turn red. The athlete quickly covered his face with two hands and let out a loud sigh. Byunghun sympathetically patted Daehyun's back.

"It's okay, it's okay," Byunghun said.

"What? What happened?" Hyunwoo asked curiously.

"He confessed to the girl he likes," Byunghun revealed. Hyunwoo's heart stopped. "The girl didn't respond to him, and now he's just waiting."

"W-Why would he come to talk to you about that?" Hyunwoo asked, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck. "Is this, girl, um, your friend by any chance, Byunghun?"

"Yeah," Byunghun said. He was thinking about Eunji and failed to notice that Hyunwoo was thinking of Jieun. Hyunwoo's turned white. "But I haven't heard anything from her. Daehyun just came by to ask if she said anything."

"Do you think she's interested, though?" Daehyun asked. "I feel like I did it too suddenly."

"If you weren't immediately rejected, then doesn't that mean that she's a little bit interested?" Byunghun asked.

He's right, Hyunwoo thought, feeling sick. Jieun would've definitely rejected Daehyun right away. Is she really not interested in me anymore? What did I do wrong?

"What if she hates me?" Daehyun asked, dreading for the worst.

"No, she's not the type who would hate people who tell them their feelings earnestly. Besides, she takes confessions into deep consideration. I'm pretty sure that she's consulting with Dasom as we speak," Byunghun told him. "Like I said, feel a bit more confident."

"What is that I'll see her soon at club meetings," Daehyun murmured. "Gosh, why did she have to join the basketball club as a manager?"

Wait, what? Did Jieun join another club? Hyunwoo wondered, frowning.

"Relax. It's not like you did much with her in the beginning," Byunghun said. "But I'm surprised. I didn't think you were interested in Eunji."

Hold up. Hyunwoo stared at Byunghun. "Wait, you guys are talking about who?"

"Eunji," Byunghun said. "Wasn't it obvious?"

"Who did you think I was talking about?" Daehyun asked him.

"W-What about Jieun?" Hyunwoo asked him. "Doesn't Jieun like you?"

"What? The last thing I remember is that she was squealing over you," Daehyun said. "Doesn't she have a huge crush on you?"

"Yeah. From what I remember, Jieun's still into you," Byunghun agreed. He looked at Hyunwoo. "Did you seriously doubt Jieun's feelings for you? I mean, she literally screams how much she loves you every time she sees you."

"Um, well, when I saw her earlier today, she said that she was looking for Daehyun," Hyunwoo revealed.

Daehyun groaned. "Oh boy. So Eunji probably told Jieun."

"Now that you mentioned it, Eunji was with Jieun," Hyunwoo remembered.

"And they're looking for me?" Daehyun asked. Hyunwoo nodded. "Damn. Should I go and look for them, too, or should I stay back?"

"Are you prepared to get rejected?" Byunghun asked him. Daehyun bit his bottom lip. "Well, then you should avoid her a little bit longer. From what I know, Jieun is probably forcing Eunji to reply to your confession. She probably needs more time to think over it."

"You're right," he murmured. "Thanks, Byunghun." He turned to Hyunwoo. "I'll see you back at class?"

"Yeah," Hyunwoo said, nodding his head. He watched Daehyun walk back to his classroom.

Just when he was about to turn around, Byunghun stopped him.

"Were you jealous?" Byunghun inquired.

Hyunwoo blinked his eyes. "What?"

"Hm…So a guy like you can have feelings for someone like Jieun, too," he murmured, answering his own question.

Hyunwoo shot him a glare while turning red. "Don't you dare tell Jieun anything about this."

Byunghun raised his hands up defensively. "Well, you didn't state the specifics, so I'm in no position to spread rumors."

"Good." Hyunwoo paused. "But just between you and me, she's really not interested in Daehyun, right?"

Byunghun only smiled. "Why don't you ask her that? I need to go back and help my classmates."

Hyunwoo rolled his eyes, but walked away when Byunghun closed the door. As Hyunwoo walked into the halls, he climbed down the stairs.

Tap, tap, tap, tap.

As he climbed down the stairs, his mind was filled with thoughts of Jieun. How could he have ever doubted her? Was there a need for him to doubt her? Everyone knew that Jieun was crazy over him. So why did he feel like—for a moment—she didn't love him?

Tap, tap, tap.

He started to wonder what would happen during the autumn festival. Would she come over and hang out with him again, or would she do or her own thing? After all, he did push her to be more independent. It would be rude of him to tell her to stop finding her own path to life.

Tap, tap.

Then he started to wonder about his future with Jieun. Would she be there? Always? Sometimes? Never? The thought of never made him feel troubled.

Tap.

"Oh."

Hyunwoo looked up from the ground once he arrived at the first floor next to the vending machine. He looked at Jieun, who was along and ready to press a number on the machine. She blushed, and a feeling relief swooped over him.

"What are you doing here?" Hyunwoo asked her.

"Um, I was thinking of getting you a drink," she revealed. She pressed a button. The machine rumbled a bit before dropping a bottle of water. She picked it up and handed it over to Hyunwoo. "You've been working hard, I heard."

"Y-Yeah," Hyunwoo murmured, taking the bottle of water. "Where's Eunji?"

"Oh, Dasom's talking to her right now," Jieun said. "Do you have business with her?"

"No, no," Hyunwoo murmured. He looked around his surroundings. He suddenly recalled the moment where he had tried to put a move on Soojung without knowing that she was already dating Taemin. He even remembered how cruel he was towards Jieun at that moment. He covered his face with a mixed feeling of disappointment and anger. He groaned, causing Jieun to worry.

"Hyunwoo? Are you okay?" she asked. She widened her eyes when he squatted down. "Hyunwoo? Are you feeling sick? Should I get help? Should I carry you?" She turned. "I-I'll go get the nurse or something! I'll be back—"

Before she could leave, Hyunwoo grabbed ahold of the rim of her shirt. She stared down at him, while Hyunwoo slowly raised his head from the ground and looked up at her. Her heart squeezed at the new side of him.

"Can I get a hug?" Hyunwoo asked her.

Jieun's heart started to race. Her whole face turned red and her hand started to feel sweaty. She opened to answer him, but couldn't say anything.

Hyunwoo, figuring that she was too shocked to answer him, stood back on his feet and embraced her in his arm. He gave her a tight squeeze, which only made her squeal in the inside. 

"H-H-H-Hyunwoo?" Jieun stuttered, giving all her effort into calling his name. "H-Hyunwoo, I don't know what to do."

"What do you mean?" he asked. He could hear her hitch her breath.

"I'm too happy…!"

"It's just a hug."

"I know, but to me, this is a lot more than just a hug. I-I mean, you're the one who's hugging me," she told him honestly. There was a small pause. Then, in a small voice, she asked, "C-Can I hug you back?"

Hyunwoo paused. Before she had the chance to hug him back, he pulled away. She was still red, but she began to sulk.

"Eh. Maybe next time," Hyunwoo said casually. He twisted the bottle cap and started to drink the water. He walked past Jieun and eventually started to listen to her scolding herself for being too slow. A small smirk formed on his lips.

And here I was, doubting your love for me, Hyunwoo thought. He chuckled to himself. How stupid was I to think of something like that?