She's an open book, Sungjae. You just need to ask questions for her to open up. You need to ask questions for her to know which to tell you and which to hide.

Sungjae has been staring into nothing since the bell signalled for lunch to start. He did ask questions before but she always looked uncomfortable telling him everything. It was as if she was hiding more than half of her life from him. He wasn't sure how Joshua got that idea since he and Joy seldom talked. Sungjae only noticed them talk about school things, such as teachers leaving Joy's things to Joshua for some reason. That was about it.

Sungjae only stood up when he noticed Joy by the door. She looked nervous and shy. Maybe because of what she told him that morning. Sungjae shook his head and decided to try out Joshua's suggestion when they converse later on. He took his lunch from his bag and went to the door. Like the usual routine, Joy went ahead of Sungjae but at least, they were closer at that moment. Sungjae guessed it would only take a few days before Joy would let him walk beside her.

Joy went ahead and sat down before looking up to Sungjae. 

"Hm?" 

Sungjae only smiled at her to reassure her it was nothing. But it was a mistake since Joy looked away with a pink face. He sat down in front of her before preparing to eat.

"If something's troubling you, just tell me," Joy quietly said. "I mean, if this arrangement between us bothers you, just tell me. We could just stop."

Sungjae's eyes widened before he regained his composure. 

"Stop?" Sungjae chuckled. "I think it's refreshing to talk to you. I rarely talk to girls and this could be an exercise. Aren't you awkward with guys?"

Joy looked up before shrugging. 

"I'm not awkward with Taehyung, I think. And I'm not awkward with Sehun and Jong-in," Joy answered. "But I'm awkward with other guys."

"Like me?" 

Joy blushed furiously before shaking her head. She then realized what she did and nodded her head. But then she was confused and only sighed. 

"I'm not sure?" She questioned herself. "I mean, I'm still getting used to you."

"It's fine," Sungjae took a spoonful of rice into his mouth. "We're the same. I'm still getting used to you."

"I watched a video in Youtube where they said people could get closer if they keep talking to each other and look into..." Joy's voice trailed off as she looked at him. "Each other's eyes."

Sungjae was shocked from the sudden fact Joy shared. Was she implying something? He wasn't sure. He never understood girls after all. 

"Well, let's do it then," Sungjae looked at her. "I'm going to ask you questions and you're going to answer them. Deal? Since I think you know a lot about me already."

Joy hesitantly nodded before gobbling the last meat left in her lunch box. 

"What are you curious about?" Joy asked. "Let's have this hour be an honesty hour."

"Okay then," Sungjae snickered. He then thought for a moment about what to ask her. He wasn't sure what to ask her. He wasn't sure what to say. He stared into her eyes and noticed how sparkling they looked, especially when she smiled. She was highly anticipating his question, maybe she was thinking about the possible questions Sungjae would ask her.

"First of all, I've been noticing how much you avoid the topic about your sister," Sungjae inhaled deeply. "Can you tell me the truth about the relationship between you two?" 

Joy was shocked at first since why would Sungjae ask about her family? Specifically, about her sister? But nonetheless, she needed to answer it. She sighed before looking at Sungjae. Her heart pounded like crazy. After all, she never had someone stare at her for that long.

"My sister and I... We're polar opposites," she began. "She's the hardworking one, the perfect one and I'm, well, Joy. And I was never someone more than Joy. And she was someone more than me. She is Park Seohyun after all, Park Seohyun. She is loved by everybody and I'm not an exception. I love my sister, more than anyone in the world maybe. And I want to protect her. And there are conflicting sides inside me."

Joy went on about telling Sungjae about how much people compared Joy and her sister. She told him about how much people told her to be like her sister. Sungjae wasn't even sure if he saw a tear form in her left eye. She went on and on, describing how hard it was to love and despise her sister at the same time. She smiled bitterly when the school bell rang. 

"And that's where I end it," Joy told him before standing up. "Honesty hour's done. I'll tell you more if I get you know.."

"I understand," Sungjae smiled at her before standing up. The distance between them lessened compared when they first started their conversation. Sungjae felt like Joy was letting him enter this bubble she made for herself. But the bubble had lots of layers beneath the cover. It would take long before Sungjae could completely know who Joy was. But he thought the time wouldn't be wasted, he was really curious about her after all. 

"I heard you like skinship?" Sungjae said. Joy was flustered by the sudden words. 

"What? Skinship?" Joy laughed awkwardly. "Not really, err.." She sighed. "There's no use hiding it from you, isn't there?"

"I saw you with Jong-in a few times. And yes, I've noticed. You do pick on him a lot," Sungjae told her. Joy pouted. 

"It's how I show him my affection. I love playing around the black child," Joy chuckled. "We're really close after all."

Sungjae knew he had a goal to reach if he wanted to know more about Joy. And that was to be close to Joy like how Jong-in was close to her. 

"I hope we become that close though," Joy whispered to herself before smiling at Sungjae. "This is my room. Goodbye."