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Glass BeadHongbin stared dejectedly at the ceiling of his dorm room, the only sound being the quiet buzz of his window fan. He couldn't stop thinking about Sowon and her current group of friends.
Hongbin had seen her first, loved and cherished her first, even kissed her first, even though she didn't know that. So why did things never go his way? He knew he should have confessed before she started at this new school, but he had been too much of a coward and chickened out at the last minute, afraid of rejection and ruining their relationship.
He let out a frustrated sigh, ruffling his already unkempt bed hair. His black tanktop and white basketball shorts did nothing to stave off the warm spring air, which wasn't helping with his agitation at all.
He'd planned to spend the weekend with Sowon, but he'd yet again been blocked by that Kim Seokjin.
Hongbin remembered him well, the little freshman who had his sights set on Jiyeon and almost ruined Wonshik's relationship. He was bad news and everyone knew it. The thought of him even daring to hurt Sowon or use her in one of his schemes was enough to throw him into a fit of rage.
If he laid there any longer, he was just going to get angrier.
Hongbin slipped on his tennis shoes, his red baseball cap, and grabbed his basketball bag off the wall by his door. Going to the courts always helped him get his head on straight.
He was going to take matters into his own hands now. No one was going to take Sowon away from him, not when he loved her first.
"HYORI!"
"SOWON!"
The two girls smiled at each other and waved happily. They hadn't seen each other since the coffee shop meeting, but they'd kept in touch.
Sowon was excited that Hyori was going to start school on Monday. Finally she would have a girl to call a friend by her side.
Sowon was going to hang out with her brother today. She hadn't seen him in a long time, so she was going to surprise him at his university. She brought Hyori along with her so that she wouldn't have to go there alone since she got lost in big places easily and wasn't very good with directions. She'd been reported missing more times than she could count. The signs were all confusing, and coupled with the different sounds of the world, it was all too much and Sowon would find her scenery blurring together.
"How have you been?" Hyori asked.
Sowon shrugged indifferently. "Busy. I seem to be getting pulled in all sorts of directions lately."
Hyori could relate. Her cousin Wonho and his new girlfriend had been insistent on dragging Hyori around as well. "So we're going to meet your older brother today? I didn't know you had a brother!" she said, diverting the topic.
"Yeah, his name is Wonshik. I technically have six brothers, though. You'll be meeting them today as well! They're always together. You'll love Hongbin! He's really nice and friendly."
Hyori thought it sounded fun and was slightly jealous of Sowon. She had so many people who surrounded her, would Hyori really be able to fit in so easily? It was something she'd always struggled with her entire life. Yet, here was someone just like her, who had a whole pool of boys surrounding her.
It was like the dramas she always loved to watch on TV.
Sowon seemed perfect at any angle. Smart, cute, and quite frankly all around good girl. It was no wonder so many boys wanted to protect her. On the other hand, Hyori was dark and edgy and awkward. She had one other guy friend besides Sowon and her cousin Wonho and she definitely wasn't as cute and helpless as her friend.
She envied Sowon, yet at the same time, she wanted to protect her. Was that even possible? She felt like she was staring at the heroine of a manhwa.
"Okay, so, I think Oppa said his dorm was in the middle of campus, right next to the recreation center. Can you help me navigate? I'm afraid I'm not great at directions." Sowon scratched her head sheepishly.
Hyori laughed nervously. She wasn't all that great with directions, either. But Sowon brought her along for company, so she'd be damned if she was gonna get them both lost.
"Why don't we head this way, and then work from there? You have your phone right? We can always call your brother if we get lost." Hy
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