To Hyebin, her passion was for the arts. It was not that she would ever be an artist or something- she was very certain that she would love to be a psychiatrist or dermatologist of some sort- however, she knew that she had some natural inclination for liberal arts. Perhaps it was truly her father’s appreciation for such things, or her brother’s ability to compose such works in the music industry that became famous, but she had somehow seized this as well.

    For her, the unrequited love was like the scarring winter she was in at the time she learned it to be so. When Junhoe dropped the bomb of his and Jisoo’s relationship, the biting winds only felt harsher, the whiplash of the snow crippling her lungs stronger. She felt like nights were longer at the cafe, where she would often send Junhoe out to spend more time with Jisoo, who she knew lived a good half hour away, but would feel the loneliness like it were a knife. His happiness with Jisoo was infectious when he were around, but it felt too early; she was still in the mourning stage, although it didn’t show when he was there. How could she tell him that she was feeling pained everyday because he was dating one of the nicest girls that she knew he deserved?

    So she took it out. It was in her sessions at the gym, where she could only feel the blast of music erupting from her headphones. Her hair lashing from side to side, giving her a steady rhythm as her feet beat the belt of the treadmill. It showed especially, however, in the silence. Her late nights at the cafe, now more frequently alone than not, with a warm, strong coffee, and her trusty laptop, where she would type away. The pages would fill up with neat little Hangul characters, each with a purpose. These pages became more and more, until the sun would rise. And that was how Hyebin became a writer. She was not about writing newsletters, with current events, nor was she a scientific article researcher, although she made a point to research many mental diseases and such. No, Hyebin enjoyed fiction- in particular, the wrenching pains of heartache that she felt like she knew so well at age fifteen.

    “Another late night? Get some sleep.” Hyebin slammed the laptop shut, and she could see the intruder at the doorway, a flashlight in his hand, and his nose slightly red from the still chilly weather. Junhoe resembled a cross between Grumpy Cat and Rudolph the Red- Nose Reindeer, although a light smile gave him a pleasant glow as he dragged the chair next to her out, and plopped himself down. She let out a tiny sigh, feeling her eyelids drooping with sleep, despite the coffee. It were as if she were building immunity to caffeine now. He sighed, before scooting his seat over, and offering his shoulder as a pillow. She obliged, leaning her head. She had not seen him much- it was part chasing him away all the time, and partly him just naturally drifting to try to find time and space in his life for Jisoo. It was almost comforting to have him around again, with his cologne scent drifting in the air around her.

    “You wouldn’t know how many late nights I pull though,” Hyebin said in a quiet tone. It wasn’t that she was upset, nor was she challenging him passively to notice her more; it was her stating a simple truth. He truly did not know anymore because the seat next to her was more empty than filled. He did not know how many nights she found herself staring out the large windows of the cafe, wondering if she would see a familiar boy running in from the general direction of a certain penthouse.

    “I know. I’m sorry, I’ve been busy these days,” he reminded in a gentle tone. It was unusual at first to hear him so kindly, but Hyebin soon realized that it was because he was thinking of Jisoo. The things that girl did to him- it was what Hyebin was unable to do.

    “Do you realize school is ending soon for us? We have a few weeks left, and we’ll be in our second year.” The thought felt foreign to her, and Junhoe’s dark eyebrows furrowed, as though he were in thought.

    “Where did time even go? Gosh! I’m failing most of my classes too,” he said with a chuckle, although they both knew he did not care, nor did he try. She had noticed that he continuously seemed to love his time with the iKON boys in the dance room, rather than in the classroom or in the labs. He had never taken the initiative to choose electives to assist in becoming a doctor- in fact, his hours of free time were dedicated between napping in the library, dancing, or eating.

    “I’m still doing so bad. I have to stay up even more now,” Hyebin groaned. Junhoe smirked at her, his arms crossing over his chest.

    “See? Hard work doesn’t get you far- God given talent like me can give you a little bit of life,” he narrowly dodged a pack of post it notes thrown at him, and the room was soon filled with laughter. The two of them definitely did not spend much time together, but they both had too much pride to admit to missing the other’s presence. Instead, it was all taken out in this moment by their laughter; the previous accusing tilt in her voice gone in the echoes of joy.

    “I kind of missed this, but I realized how great it is to not have your big, fat snoring away while I’m trying to get some quality work done,” Hyebin said as she finally regained her composure. He let out a small huff of annoyance, before launching into a monologue of how his existence was the greatest gift in the universe, but Hyebin did not mind a single second she wasted to listen to his voice. It was a little bit of life indeed- Junhoe’s presence was like the warm spring wind that tagged along on her afternoon walks from school to wherever her destination was, whether it be home with Youjung or to the cafe for a day’s work. It was a companion she had never appreciated until the cold of the night crept up, and she realized how much his laughter was contagious to her.

    “-Anyways, I need help. Come on, let’s get out of here. I’m going to walk you home, and then go back to mine. Up, up, up!” Junhoe demanded, already seizing her belongings and shoving them, although carefully and in some sort of order, into her bag. Hyebin soon found herself being shoved out of the door and into the night air, and waited for Junhoe to lock the door to the cafe.

    “Wae?” The word came out in a confused splutter, and Hyebin almost face palmed from how pathetically unaware of the situation she seemed. Junhoe looked like he wanted to laugh at her, but took a serious and deep breath, before regaining his seriousness. His dark eyebrows furrowed once again, and there was a temptation in Hyebin to poke the space between them, to smooth it down and give him at least a peaceful expression.

    “I think Jisoo is a little sad these days. Maybe it’s because of school, or family. How do I cheer up a girl who needs it?” His voice had that sound to it; that he cared. It was never that he did not care for Hyebin, but it was that he did all his kind deeds behind the scene; when she was sick, he had not failed to buy a bag of cough drops, before saying that Yunhyeong had been sick before and he kept a few spare cough drops in case. When she was tired from a night of studying, he would order coffee in a large size to share with her. He did this while claiming that he needed a certain amount of change, but Hyebin never missed the gratitude. But with Jisoo, it was up front and obvious; his normally playfully arrogant and relaxed attitude became gentle and attentive. She was just that special.

    “Well,” Hyebin thought for a moment. What did she herself need at this very moment, thinking about how the boy she liked was only liking another girl more and more? “You should be there for her, even when she pushes you away, or say’s she’s okay. That’s when she needs you more. We aren’t old enough to be the most mature of couples, but a hug or gift would be nice. Just be able to make her smile.” Hyebin launched into the speech, but inside she felt unsettled. It were as though she were begging him silently to do this for her. She turned to Junhoe, who was stretching his sharp jaw in a funny angle, making him appear similar to a llama the two had seen on the internet once. She found herself in a fit of giggles once more, and Junhoe smiled grandly, this time not lopsided, nor with a bit of arrogance.

    “See? It worked. Stop being so sad and shutting yourself into a dark cafe in the middle of night like you have no life. Youjung and Soorim were worried about you. We all were,” he said, looking ahead. A street lamp lit the way on the paved sidewalks, and despite the temperatures being slightly chilly, Hyebin felt warmed by his words. “We’re almost done with our first year of high school, and I know I act like a jerk and that I’m the most fabulous thing out there, which I am by the way, but I’m still your best guy friend, aren’t I?” Suddenly the title of “best guy friend” and “best girl friend” didn’t seem so much of a damper in Hyebin’s mood. It felt safe; secure. Sure, she would be number two in his priorities, along with iKON and everyone else. But Junhoe and her still had a growing friendship that was more precious than anything.

    “I can’t believe my best guy friend think’s he’s the most fabulous thing out there when he looks like a llama with a displaced lower jaw,” Hyebin said aloud, and Junhoe shot her a death glare, causing her to laugh once more.

    “And I can’t believe I risked my handsome, good looks to make my ungrateful best girl friend laugh, and all she can do is compare me to some peasantly llama!” He mocked being indignant and offended, but the night was still filled with their laughter. As they approached the apartment complex at which Youjung and her sister resided in, Hyebin sighed inaudibly. It was too soon to part from him, but it felt so wrong to think this way still. When would her immature heart learn that he was not, and could not, be hers?

    “Well, gomawo. Walk home safely, okay? You’re the number one llama in my life!” Hyebin said, before dashing in through the lobby doors. She could see him, fuming, but she stayed to make sure that he at least walked out of the apartment’s parking lot safely, before she smiled and made her way to the elevator. She could even handle the horrid music in the elevator, and as she stumbled through the front door, even at the unearthly time of 2 am, the lights were on and she could see Youjung studying away in her pajamas. The said girl turned, confused, before staring at Hyebin, dumbfounded.

    “Oh gosh, look at who’s finally home! Why are you here so late? Isn’t it dangerous to walk at night? Why are you here?” Youjung threw one question after another, and Hyebin let out a groan, before trying to take refuge in her room. It was to no avail; Youjung followed relentlessly, waiting for her replies. Hyebin tugged off her school uniform blazer, before sighing.

    “I’m late because I didn’t plan on coming here. Yes, it is dangerous, but Junhoe walked me, and I’m here because he walked me and forced me to come home.” Hyebin rattled off each answer just as fast as Youjung had thrown them at her, and Youjung just stared at her, eyes wide as owls’.

    “Omona, he did not! Well, I guess this is what happens when you’re the first ship to be made, and one of the first to sink,” Youjung said sadly. Hyebin rolled her eyes. Truth be told, she had said to Soorim and Youjung that she did not like Junhoe anymore, nor did she say anything about liking anyone. However, she was aware that the two most likely still, although silently, noticed her particularly biased behavior towards Junhoe.

    “Well, in any event, it’s nice that you came back. I was worried the only thing using your bed were the dust bunnies. You should really sleep a bit- no buts! You are sleeping right now, missy!” Youjung tried to act authoritative, with her pointer finger wagging at her in a ‘menacing’ way, but to Hyebin it appeared almost like a child trying on her mother’s clothes. It simply did not fit the girl with her normally four dimensional personality.

    “How’s Habinnie?” Hyebin asked instead, a small smirk rising to her lips. Youjung pinked instantly, her hands lowering into a more subjective pose.

    “I think you and Junhoe are way too close; you even have that smirk thing. Just go to bed,” she scrambled out of the room, and Hyebin chuckled softly, before throwing herself onto her bed. Yes, she did become close to Junhoe. By the end of their first year, he went from the once annoying and handsome stranger in her academy to a crush and still handsome best friend. But she did not regret her first year at all, and she only could wish that he did not either.

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Hello my lovelies! I'm sorry I've been so out of action, and I admit the last two updates (today and last time) were not so great- I've been sick on and off. Anyways, back to the story! I'm so glad you guys are still leaving me subscriptions, and I hope you guys continue to upvote, and comment, because I honestly love it when I can get to read your comments about the story. I admit, it's hard to write about a story where you're supposed to love someone but he does not seem to love you back- it's kind of realistic, but it's so hard sometimes! Like who wants to remember all those unrequited loves we had during high school? But it's life, and this story is about those times in our lives that seemed hard to us once, but we got stronger from as we grew up. I hope you guys comment and upvote- PLEASE do not be a silent reader, nor a stranger <3 Love you all!