For the next week, Eun Ji didn’t meet up with Hoseok. She felt guilty when he called her every night to ask how she was. She lied saying that her ankle still hurt, not wanting him to ask her to go running. She felt guilty at how easily he believed her and how concerned he sounded every time she said it still hurt. He had offered to take her to a hospital more than once to have it checked out. When her ankle fully healed, she started requesting later shifts at the bar, opting to take on the unpopular closing shifts, which often had her there until the early hours of the morning. She used this as her excuse to not go running anymore. She would never admit it, but seeing the ring around Hoseok's neck had shaken her.

She felt foolish for being so upset over a simple piece of jewellery, but it was undeniable that after seeing the ring, every time she thought of Hoseok, a painful feeling settled in her chest. She had come to terms with the fact that her feelings for Hoseok were more than that of just friends, but she was aware that Hoseok had only just begun his journey to deal with his feelings for his ex-girlfriend and that her feelings would only be a burden for him. She hoped that by keeping a distance from him for a while, she would be able to properly deal with her feelings, without permanently damaging her friendship with him.

Hoseok watched her as she slipped out from behind the bar to collect the glasses scattered around the many tables. It was a Saturday night, and even though it was still relatively early, the bar was already extremely busy. He had been trying to talk to her since he’d arrived almost an hour before, but she always seemed to have a customer to serve, glasses to pick up, or something to clean. He frowned as she returned to the bar and stayed at the opposite side. He had noticed that her ankle had fully healed, Namjoon had confirmed that she had been able to walk normally since a few days ago.

It had now been almost two weeks since they had went running together and almost two weeks since they had talked properly. She had been responding to his messages, but he noticed that she had stopped contacting him first. Now she would only reply if he messaged or called her. It was a big change around as she used to often send him random messages, usually when she was bored and wanted to talk or if she just wanted to share some random meme or funny photo she had found. He had asked Namjoon if she had mentioned to him if he had done something to upset her, but Namjoon had only shook his head and told him she hadn’t mentioned anything.

Namjoon watched Hoseok as he watched Eun Ji serve a large group of customers. He and Yoongi hadn’t really spoken much to Hoseok about their attempts to get him out of his comfort zone by introducing him to Eun Ji. They had taken a backseat to see how their relationship would develop. They had both been surprised by how quickly the two of them gelled and how close they had grown over the past few months. Neither of them were sure exactly what type of feelings Hoseok and Eun Ji had for one another, but it worried them how Eun Ji seemed to be avoiding him lately. She had tried to be subtle about it, but Namjoon knew her too well for it to go unnoticed.

He had asked her about it, making it seem like a casual enquiry, but she had brushed the question aside, telling him that she hadn’t been avoiding Hoseok. He wanted to help his friend, it was obvious that her actions were having an effect on him. He sighed as he went down to help her serve the group of customers. Once they were gone, they had a few minutes’ respite. Namjoon looked up at Hoseok who was craning his neck to see her. He nudged her in his direction, “Go serve Hoseok. I’m gonna bring out the new stock, we’re running low on a few things.”

“I can get it.” She said, moving towards the back of the bar. “I would be a crappy gentleman if I made you carry those heavy boxes. Go serve Hoseok.” He said as he disappeared through the back, not giving her the chance to argue. She cursed quietly before heading up to Hoseok, putting a smile on her face. “Hey.” She said as she grabbed him another drink, hoping he wouldn’t notice how uncomfortable she felt. “Hey stranger.” He replied. “How have you been?” he asked, praying that she wouldn’t avoid him and that no customers would come up to the bar. “I’m good. Just been busy working.” She said with a smile. “How’s the ankle?”

“All better.” She said, her words failing her. When had it become so hard for her to talk to him? Hoseok sighed, “Eun Ji, is something going on?” he asked, leaning over the bar so that she could hear him over the loud music. Her palms grew sweaty with nerves from his sudden question and the unmistakable look of hurt in his eyes. “Nothing’s wrong, why do you ask?” she said as she picked up a cloth and ran it along the counter, pretending to clean. “We’ve barely spoken lately and I feel like you’re drifting away from me. If I did or said something to upset you, please tell me.”

She bit her bottom lip, her feelings of guilt multiplying tenfold. She hadn’t realised how obvious it was that she had been avoiding him. She had thought that she had been doing a good job at being subtle. She forced a smile onto her face. “Hoseok, why would you think you did anything wrong? There’s really nothing going on.” He frowned at her, making her more uncomfortable. A customer waved at her from the other side of the bar. “I have to go.” She said quickly as she turned to leave. Hoseok leaned over the bar and grabbed her wrist. “Eun Ji.” He said, his voice more than loud enough to be heard over the music.

She turned to face him, her expression shocked. “Hoseok, let me go.” She said as she pulled her arm from his grip. He sighed and sat back down. “I’m sorry, but we really need to talk.” She frowned at him and quickly went down to serve the waiting customer. Hoseok swore loudly, not caring about the funny glances he received from the people near him. Namjoon appeared in front of him, leaning forward to pat his shoulder. “Give her some time. I’m sure it’s nothing.” Hoseok nodded even though he was not convinced by his friend’s words.