It was an exceptionally beautiful August with the sound of cheerful birds singing on top of trees and golden rays of sunshine painting the mackerel sky.

As far as Korean students were concerned, the school year had already started despite the beautiful weather and the effort to spend outside as much time as they could. Miyeon was also pouting sadly, looking up at the picturesque sky dotted with tiny cirrocumulus clouds while listening to Taeyeon’s enthusiastic chattering about her attempt to taste the well-known Peking duck.

They were walking side by side after taking the same bus, recalling those good old days before Taeyeon had left to China. Now, her student exchange program had come to an end and she was back again to start the new school year with Miyeon. Well, with one little twist; she was attending the junior’s classes because her mother insisted on repeating the grade as her Chinese trip was just a once in a lifetime cultural experience and not an educational course. As a result, they weren’t in the same year, so Miyeon would have to take the CSAT one year earlier than her best friend.

“Believe me, that guy is seriously way too gentle to be real,” her best friend stated with awe and shifted her attention to the girl walking beside her. Taeyeon suspiciously raised an eyebrow in question, making her doubt clear. Miyeon blushed ashamedly as she realized that she was totally lost in thought and tried to puzzle up the words she had said. “You have no idea who I was talking about,” she went on and her lips slowly curved into a teasing smile. Her chocolate brown eyes were filled with playfulness and sparkled like two little diamonds. That was what she had missed the most; when she was way too happy and couldn’t suppress her beautiful, angel-like smile. That girl was seriously too beaming to live in this degenerate world.

“Well, not really,” Miyeon admitted, nibbling her lips and cautiously shot her a timid smile. Taeyeon couldn’t hold herself back anymore, she immediately burst into laughter.

“Alright, I was talking about Mark, our new exchange student, but who cares about him when your favourite boy is coming just our way,” she started in a mocking tone which immediately turned into the typical ‘I exactly know what’s going on’ Taeyeon tone. She nudged her and pointed to a bunch of boys who were walking towards the school’s entrance door. They were chattering loudly and joyfully, sometimes bumped their fists together or slightly hustled each other but totally ignored everyone around them, they were just having fun.

Unfortunately, Taeyeon chose time moment to leave her alone because she noticed Byun Baekhyun pushing the entrance door and hastily ran after him. She watched as her silhouette faded away and let out a heavy sigh. She knew that there was a lot for the two to talk about but she really had to disappear at such an unfortunate timing?

She understood her because the couple had lots of quarrels regarding Taeyeon’s student exchange program which she signed before she got closer to him. Yet, they still got together and she still insisted on going to China. They had a serious fight on the day of her departure and didn’t even talk until she got back a week ago. Now, everything was a little bit awkward and confusing for them but it was obvious that they still liked each other. Plus, they had a lot of time to puzzle out their feelings and spend more time together as they were classmates from that year because lucky Byun Baekhyun was one year younger than her. Not to mention that he was one of Chanyeol’s best friends.

Marching on alone, the encounter was inevitable. It must have been fate but Miyeon and the squad reached the entrance door at the same time, thus they had to decide who would go first. It was a little bit embarrassing as the boys’ conversation suddenly stopped and it was followed by an awkward pause. Miyeon caught sight of the subtly smiling Jungkook and felt her face turning red. He got even more attractive during the summer break and looked manlier than ever. Nonetheless, when he shot his typical bunny smile and his cute cheekbones exploded, he was the same old Jungkook who she was so fond of. Not that she didn’t like him waggling his eyebrows or giving a smug smirk directed at her but she fell in love with that innocent-looking Jungkook who looked at her so dearly when they spent their birthday together a year ago.

“Miyeon-ah, so good to see you!” exclaimed Taehyung, grinning from ear to ear and subconsciously hugged her. It was a rather clumsy but affectionate hug but she was so startled to get such a warm welcoming that she could hardly speak.

“Good to see you, too, Taehyung,” she patted his back and waited for him to let her go. She noticed Jungkook gulping a little bit too edgily but shook off the thought right away.

“Please, Taehyung, just let her go unless you don’t want this poor girl to suffocate!” Hoseok joined in, rolling his eyes in disbelief but one of his trademark grins was forming on his lips. He looked exactly the same with his obsidian-black, slightly curly hair, smiling eyes and sloppy jeans. He was still good-looking but couldn’t defeat Seokjin who had probably got a new haircut because his hair looked a little bit shorter and it was just as neatly-cut as he had come from the hairdresser’s.

It came as no surprise that Yoongi now changed his hair colour from bleached blonde to mysterious grey but it actually suited him. Jimin was no longer the redhead but opt for the natural look with fluffy, brown curls which actually looked better than anything else before. There was no change in Namjoon’s hair colour or behaviour, he kindly waved at her direction but cautiously glanced at Taehyung who finally let her go.

Lastly, she couldn’t forget about the seventh boy who was coyly smiling at her, his jet-black eyes shining like attractive black little holes while his intense stare seemed to pierce into her soul. Oh boy, was he even aware of the fact that he was so appealing that it was almost illegal? He was like an addiction, a drug or the most dangerous sickness of all times; as you were spending time with him, you impulsively wanted more and more.

“It’s been such a long time since we last saw you,” Jimin ran his hand through his chocolate brown hair while the others nodded in agreement. “What have you been up to?” he asked and the curiosity in his voice didn’t go unnoticed. Everyone else also stared at her with their eyes wide open and shining with fondness. Miyeon couldn’t help but peeked a bit at Jungkook’s direction but immediately turned her face away when he shot her one of his typical smirks. That boy was unbelievable!

“Nothing much,” she shrugged but continued, noticing the boys’ disappointed glances. “Visiting my grandparents, reading a lot of mangas, watching animes and finishing an English course.”

“An English course?” Namjoon raised one of his eyebrows in question but after her confident nod, he flinched appreciatively. Hoseok was clapping heartily, Seokjin shook his head saying that she was way too good at everything, Jimin and Taehyung were grinning proudly as if they had finished the course themselves while Jungkook started at her open-mouthed. She wouldn’t think that it would be a jaw-dropping mark but for him, it seemed that it was.

“Maybe you should teach Jungkookie,” Taehyung blurted out with his totally innocent look which resulted in the golden maknae’s irritated grumble. The eldest immediately comforted him by saying:

“He’s not that bad.”

“I remember vividly that the first English sentence which I’ve heard from him was ‘I like you,’” Namjoon recalled the memory with a playful twinkle in his pitch-black eyes while the other guy’s cheeks suddenly flushed. He looked so embarrassed, exactly the opposite of the way too charming guy during dance practices. Miyeon giggled a bit but tried hard not to show her huge grin. She was having so much fun.

“Omo, what a cheeky boy!” Hoseok said, patting the youngest guy’s back and cheerfully guffawed. She looked at this almost ordinary situation and wondered how precious these guys were. They could never get offended at whatever the others said and even comforted each other during hardships. She almost forgot how much she liked the boys but whenever she almost did, they always showed up and reminded her that the feeling in her heart was still steady.

“I’m sure you’ll nail the CSAT,” Yoongi added rubbing his chin and suppressed a yawn. She felt delightful from the thought of him not even changing a bit because she liked the way he was. After his reassuring statement on the haters’ issue, she respected the boy even more and considered him as someone who she would go if she needed a piece of advice.

“Nah, don’t mention it on the first day of school, please,” she pouted sadly, thinking of the exams which felt closer than ever but still a little bit further at the same time. She always got goose bumps when she realised that it was her senior year. The last year with the class, the last year in high school and the last year with the boys. The last year with Jungkook.

“How about you? What’s up with you, guys?” she made an attempt to change the subject because she got nervous all of a sudden. However, the squad didn’t seem to mind her request and started sharing their stories about visiting relatives in Busan, trying out a new kimchi recipe, building a bird house, writing some poems which were published in a magazine or even making new choreographies. The golden maknae was characteristically quiet but proudly smiled at all his friends’ achievements.

Suddenly, someone cleared his throat and it turned out to be Jackson Wang who wanted to get to the entrance door but they were in the way. Of course, he teased them a bit as they bowed ashamedly and decided to continue chatting in the hallways but didn’t take the situation too seriously as he wasn’t that kind of guy. He even joined in and she soon found out that he was actually a quite talkative person.

“You guys are performing on the dance festival, right?” Jackson raised his eyebrows while looking mostly at Jungkook, Hoseok and Jimin. Miyeon knew that the three boys were at the same dance association, in the same team but never really saw them performing on a festival. She recalled the memories when the golden maknae let her watch some of their practices and made her even more speechless. That guy was exceptionally talented, small wonder why he wanted to be a dance teacher. He was a totally different person while dancing but she couldn’t mind it. He was charismatic, charming and undeniably y. Miyeon was surprised to see the change in his behaviour after coming up to her with his usual bunny smile and giving her a sweaty hug.

She shook her head to get away from the memory because now looking at him, it stung right at her heart. She had the chance to be her girlfriend but she was a coward and let him go. She didn’t deserve him but he still acted so affectionately!

“Yeah,” Hoseok responded with his joyful grin. “It’ll be our last performance, though. You know, before the exams,” he added with a little whimper and let out a weak sigh. Jungkook was staring far ahead, probably lost in thought and averted his eyes elsewhere but the others’ face.

“I can’t wait for it. I’m sure you’ll kill it!” Jackson threw his hands in the air in an excited manner which made the boys either bashfully smile or smugly grin.

“It would be hard to do better than you guys,” Jimin complimented immediately, making the blonde guy almost blush before he waved the idea away. Miyeon looked at them, totally confused and helplessly glanced at Jimin who was considerate enough to explain the whole situation. “Jackson and Jinyoung are also at the same association with us but in a different team. And these guys also have some killer moves, so we should practice harder in order not to get ashamed of our own performances.”

“Hmm,” that was all she could master, shifting her attention to the cheerfully giggling blonde one who she knew from school but never imagined that he would be capable of dancing. However, she believed Jimin and accepted the fact that he was pretty good.

“You know what?” Hoseok suddenly clapped his hands in excitement and made poor Kookie bounce in caution. Miyeon couldn’t suppress her chuckle, seeing the boy’s cute reaction. “If you have some free time, you can come and watch our performance. I’m sure you’ll have a great time,” he announced enthusiastically which immediately caused a huge combustion within the boys. They were all in favour of his idea and showed their approval of the plan, even Jackson assumed that she should come and see them. Miyeon listened to them, her heart thumping in bewilderment imagining the boys – and especially Jungkook – on stage, performing one of their incredible choreographies.

Nonetheless, she still cautiously waited for the golden maknae’s reaction who caught her staring at him and his lips slowly curved into a smile. His jet-black eyes were sparkling with beautiful blossoming flowers and shiny shooting stars. He nodded in agreement and although it was just a small sign, it was undeniably a small sign of love.

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world!” she exclaimed happily, making a mental note to herself to remember not to make any plans for the 27th of August when the performance would take place. The boys shared all the details and she couldn’t help but smiled like an idiot. Was it a chance for her to make things right? Or it was just a friendly invitation?

Whatever the case might be, she was sure that she would do anything to attend that festival.

▌▌

The following weeks flew by so quickly. She only realized that the dance festival’s day had come when she was staring at her figure in the mirror while trying out different outfits. As she was rummaging the clothes in her wardrobe, flashbacks and thoughts were scrambling in her head.

August was exceptionally quiet and peaceful as nothing extraordinary had happened. Her heart was finally at peace, knowing that her best friend made up with Baekhyun and was happier than ever. Plus, the squad slowly started acting just as naturally as they did before their break-up and it came as no surprise that they got along pretty well. She wouldn’t let herself believe that she deserves to be happy and surrounded by friends who would keep her company but they were good friends. Sometimes, they even accompanied her and Taeyeon at lunchtime, always making the other girl hysterically laugh who was getting used to the boys’ presence. Well, his boyfriend wasn’t happy about that but they spent pretty much every single second together, so lunchtime was only for the girls. And sometimes the squad’s, too but Taeyeon admitted that she didn’t mind having them around. She even acknowledged that it was impossible not to love them and suspiciously glanced at her, whenever Jungkook was around. She knew her well, so Miyeon didn’t even have to tell her everything; she had already become her relationship consultant.

“Ah, you two are so dense!” her best friend rolled her eyes in annoyance one time, after she saw her waving at the golden maknae’s direction who immediately gave her one of his cutest sheepish smiles. “You still love him and he obviously still loves you! I don’t see what the problem is!” she flung her arms in the air, childishly whining. Even though Taeyeon was in her shoes not too long ago, she acted like a real expert now. Miyeon just nudged her and let out a sorrowful sigh as she continued.

“I don’t want to hurt him, okay? I’ve already broken his heart once, I don’t want to cause more pain,” she nodded her head in great disapproval and tried to shift her attention to the floor of the school’s hallway and not her best friend’s face. She would easily read her and she didn’t want that. Both of them already knew that it hurt like hell to say things like that but this is how things worked for couples who broke up. They still carried their wounds and even if their own scars healed, they weren’t sure about the other party’s condition.

“And what’s with his confession?”

“What confession?” she blinked innocently, although there was one particular conversation which she couldn’t forget so easily. His words were still as soft as a fluffy blanket and covered her with their fondness and warmed her heart. She got goose bumps, every single time the flashback popped up in her mind and couldn’t shake off that hopeful thought that maybe, just maybe it might have meant something.

“Even stars lose their ways sometimes,” Taeyeon quoted with her sweet tone and it sounded so different this time. “So poetic, by the way.” she mumbled to herself, examining her nails, probably thinking how that Byun Baekhyun guy had never said such a thing.

“That was a long time ago,” she resisted, still trying to persuade herself that he probably didn’t mean it that way. It could have been a reassuring comment of a friend, he didn’t mention anything about love or ex-girlfriends.

“Alright, maybe,” she rolled her eyes in frustration and ran a hand through her blondish curls.  “But if he didn’t like you, he wouldn’t invite you to the dance festival.”

“He didn’t invite me,” she added, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her right ear. She didn’t intend to be rude but wanted to make everything perfectly clear. Hoseok was the one who came up with the idea of her attending the festival and she was more than happy to give in. “One of his friends did.”

“But he didn’t protest,” Taeyeon pointed out and she knew that there was no point in disagreeing; she obviously lost the battle. She couldn’t deny that she was absolutely right. Jeon Jungkook wasn’t a toddler anymore; if he didn’t want her to be there, he would have said it. Yet, he didn’t.

Suddenly, there was a determinate knock on the door which made her bounce in surprise. As she was walking towards to open it, she made an attempt to snap out of her thoughts.

“Hey!” yelled Chanyeol with a joyful grin as she finally discovered who the owner of the knock was. “Have you seen my sketchbook? I literally can’t find it anywhere!” he tried to glance into her room and when she looked at her again, his eyes rounded and he let out a surprised squeal. “Oh, wow, where are you going? That dress isn’t something that you usually wear,” he commented, examining her from head to toe which made her blush so deep. He didn’t want to bump into her brother around the time of the festival because she didn’t want to explain the whole story. Why was she even going? Because her friends were there? Or it was all because of Jungkook? Well, she wasn’t even sure about her feelings, so she didn’t want to get tangled up in weird conversations.

“I’m going to a dance festival,” Miyeon answered after she had realised that there was no point in lying to him. His little brother just curiously raised his eyebrows in response and couldn’t suppress his teasing smile when he next started speaking.

“You’re going to see Jungkook, right?” he waggled his eyebrows and didn’t even budge when she slightly hit his shoulder, rather offended.

“I can wear dresses like that even if I don’t meet up with a boy,” she sniffed and gave him a frowning look. He couldn’t mope over her little act as he was having so much fun, seeing her Noona’s reaction out of defence. She was way too obvious.

“Hmm, I see what’s going on,” he rubbed his chin and acted like a total know-it-all. “He’s trying to get you back,” he cooed eagerly while twirling her around for a closer look. She was wearing a pretty, white dress with laces which was once a Christmas present from her granny but she never actually tried it on. Miyeon didn’t even think that there would be an occasion when she would wear it but this dress was the one that caught her attention while she was rummaging in her wardrobe.

“No!” she squealed huffily and shook her head in disagreement. From Chanyeol’s point of view, it was acceptable that he misunderstood the whole situation as he didn’t know that Hoseok was the one who invited her. He wasn’t the only one, though, who acted like that. Everyone seemed to misinterpret their case, even Taeyeon insisted that Jungkook wanted to get her back. Not like she would mind it but instead, she decided to wave the idea away. Why would he even do such a thing? “So, you say that it’s a bit too much?” she asked curiously, looking down at her dress and then up at his little brother. Oh, how she wished that she could wipe off that small smirk on his face.

“No, no, not at all,” he raised his arms in defeat and gave her an affectionate smile when he continued. “You look beautiful, Noona,” he stated in his usual, loving little brother tone and playfully ruffled her hair. His compliment made her heart leap and couldn’t even suppress the smile that crept onto her face. “Should I be worried?” he raised one of his eyebrows in question but her instincts told her that he didn’t even take his own question seriously. “Someone might attack you on the way to the dance festival, you know. Nowadays, there are several creepy freaks on the streets.”

“I can take care of myself,” she stated mildly and her confident response set him at ease. His shoulders loosened and his lips slowly raised into a grin. Miyeon suddenly pinched his cheeks, simply out of amusement but he didn’t seem to mind it. He just laughed at her while his warm, caramel-brown eyes formed happy, little crescents.

“Take care.”

“I will,” she nodded joyfully and waved at the boy who decided to go back to his own room.

Miyeon closed the door while her mind seemed to dwell on those sorrowful months when things were terrifyingly different. When Chanyeol wasn’t her lovely, little brother but almost a stranger who she couldn’t reach out to. Luckily, those weeks didn’t last forever as Baekhyun convinced Chanyeol that Dara was lying and Miyeon was right. He eavesdropped when Dara was once messing with her, blurting out that she didn’t even love the guy, she only needed him to hurt her. It was not until the weekend – the same weekend when Jungkook stayed in her house while Chanyeol was with his buddies – when the beagle line played “Truth or dare” that everything was revealed. After that, as soon as his little brother frantically got home, he bowed ashamedly and asked for her forgiveness. She was so startled that she couldn’t even say a thing. Instead, she let him embrace her while listening to his whispered sorrys.

That day changed everything and the two started acting like nothing had happened. After that weekend, Chanyeol even made a scene with Dara and told her off for lying. She didn’t see him being so furious for the time being but silently gloated at her victory. His brother’s movement resulted in the tranquillity of the following days and weeks. There was no more bullying, no more scoffing and no more rumours. Nothing.

Nonetheless, she wasn’t brave enough to consider making up with Jungkook. Not then, not when her scars hadn’t healed yet. But now, starting the new school year, boosting her self-esteem during the summer break, she knew that the time had come. She was pretty brave, or at least brave enough to give it a try.

▌▌

Everyone was buzzing around the stage of the Big Hit Dance Studio’s Autumn Dance Festival which was held outdoors. She excitedly bounced as she arrived but started to dread the sight of the huge crowd and tried to peek over people’s shoulders. She was craving for a familiar face and pouted sadly when she realised that it was almost a dead case. There were so many people, she suddenly felt so small and elegantly dressed compared to the hip-hop lover spectators who wore shabby trousers and colourful T-shirts.

All of a sudden, she felt a slight pat on her shoulder and when she turned her heel, she saw a familiar face, standing right in front of her.

“Oh, Seokjin, thank God!” she let out a relieved sigh and her face slowly dissolved into a half-smile. The handsome guy looked puzzled for a moment, not knowing why she was so grateful that he showed up but then, he gave one of his cutest proud grins.

“I know, right? Every single day, I thank God for my handsomeness−“ he started smugly but was cut off by an excited scream.

“You came!” Taehyung exclaimed, slightly shoving the elder guy who rolled his eyes but not in annoyance. Soon, Namjoon and Yoongi showed up behind the childishly giggling Taehyung who insisted that he had noticed her from several hundred meters and ran to welcome her as soon as possible. The other two guys were walking in their usual pace but got there on time when they started discussing Miyeon’s dress.

“You look pretty.”

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