She looked at the two boys who was standing infront of her. She examined each face before saying, "He's just a friend." She said that as she put her eyes on Daehwi. There's a clear disappointment expression she could see on his face. She feels really bad at him right now. It wasn't like she didn't want to admit... Just she's hella confused now.

Woojin suddenly grabbed her hand and pulled her into his embrace, "Do you know now?" She quickly break the hug and gave a glare to Woojin.

"What the do you think you're doing?" She clenched her fist. Woojin really went over board this time. How could he ever thought about hugging her? That's so sudden though? And there were obviously nothing going on between them other than they got to pair up for an assignment. "I don't know what the hell is wrong with you but seriously, both of you are so childish." She rolled her eyes and went inside her home leaving the two boys behind.

ᶞ-ᶞ-ᶞ

Daehwi likes me? Lee Daehwi likes me? Wow. What a big news? The question is why now? Why now he must confess her feelings when she's obviously having a hard time right now with her own feelings. At a moment, she felt like there's something wrong when she's with Woojin but sometimes she could feel her heart beats really fast when Daehwi is around. 

Daehwi is her friend ever since before she knows what is love... So it's almost impossible for her to have feelings for him or does she? Well, as she thinks about it, it's really weird how Daehwi suddenly come to her house just to walk her to school. If he ever likes her, why he didn't do that from the start? Did he perhaps just want to play with her heart?

Her mind went through the past she had with Daehwi. There's a moment when Daehwi did nothing wrong but she scold him anyway. As a result, Daehwi didn't talk to her for a week and it really kills her. Everytime she tried to talk to him, Daehwi would either ignore her or pretends like he was talking to someone else even if there's no one around him. It really hurts her but at the same time she knows she was the one at the fault. Why the hell she scold Daehwi just because of her books went wet because on that day it's rain so heavily? It's not even his fault that the rain falls that day.

She will never understand herself and her short-tempered. She really needs to control but she just can't? She gets annoyed on little things. And it's actually surprised her like how Daehwi could handle it... Only then she realized how a great friend Daehwi is along all this time...

"Are you in there?" The knock on the door woke her up from her thought. She could hear her brother's voice outside.

"What do you want?" She asked him with no intent to open the door. She really didn't want to deal with her annoying brother, Jung Henry now.

"Nothing," He paused, "Just mum asking me to check on you." He said and leave the scene.

Aeri rolled her eyes, he is really nosy. She mumbled.

Aeri then took a shower and get ready to go sleep because there's nothing she could think other than Lee Daehwi and his confession...

It's going to be a long night.

ᶞ-ᶞ-ᶞ

"Good morning, Aeri!" Woojin greeted her as he took a sit beside her. Aeri took a glance towards the boy and rolled her eyes. It's really annoying to see his face early on the morning especially after what he had done yesterday. 

"What the hell do you want?" She replied it with an annoying expression; obviously showing that she is not please with his existence right now.

"Just," He shrugged. He thought about how the girl could turn to someone else in just a day. Yesterday, she went all bubbly around him but today she looks cold as ? Human is sure scary.

"Uh," She leave the class. She walked with nowhere to go and that's when she saw Daehwi. "Daehwi!" She called for his name. Daehwi turned his head but then ignore her. Aeri frowned, why the hell he is ignoring me?

"Daehwi!" She tried to chase her and she did it. She grabbed his hand as soon as she could reach her, "Daehwi," It has been third time since she said his name.

"What the hell do you want?" Daehwi snapped his hand and it startled the girl. She never thought that Daehwi would act like this. It's the first time he ever acted like this. 

"Uh," Aeri stuttered; losing words to say, "Just," She paused, staring at the boy's face, "Nothing," She lowered her head.

Without her realized, a bead of tears slowly coming out from her eyes. She is not this weak but why the hell she cried infront of Daehwi? Why the hell she feels really weak everytime she's around him? Why does she always feel like she wants to lean on him so bad? Why does she always think that Daehwi going to stay beside her no matter what happen when obviously one day, he will leave her... One day... He will eventually forget about him. 

"Got to go," Aeri turned her body and started walking when suddenly she could feel someone holds her hand. She turned around and could see it's Daehwi who stopped her from moving. She slowly lifted her head up and look at the boy. 

"I'm sorry," Daehwi said. He startled when he saw the tears in her eyes. He took a step closer towards the girl before wiping the tears using his fingers. "Why are you crying, stupid?" He pouted.

"I'm not crying. It's just the dust got into my eyes." She tried to deny the fact that she cried just now. Who the hell going to admit that she cried because of him?

"Oh, is it?" He ruffled the girl's hair causing the girl to groan. Daehwi stopped himself from doing anything and put both of his hand behind.

Aeri fixed her hair after Daehwi put a mess on it. She gave a glare to the boy and Daehwi cutely passed a smile to him. He knows she couldn't scold him after seeing that smile.

"Are we okay now?" Aeri asked; she tried to forget the fact that Daehwi actually confessed to her yesterday or to be exact she wanted to stay only as a friend with Daehwi.

Daehwi lost words. Aeri would never give an answer to his confession. She would never admit that she actually has the same feelings as him. He sighed, "I need to go." He said and leave the girl behind alone.

"What the hell you just did, Jung Aeri?" She muttered, under her breath.

ᶞ-ᶞ-ᶞ

"Daehwi are you okay?" Jinyoung asked when he saw the boy was spacing out in class.

"Uh?" He startled, he passed a smile to him and nodded, "I guess."

"Is there something wrong with Aeri?" He asked. Jinyoung knows almost everything about Daehwi and Aeri. How Daehwi likes her so much since they're kids. How Daehwi actually notice every single changes on the girl, every day. He talked about Aeri to Jinyoung on his daily basis. Jinyoung is almost like a diary to him.

He smirked, "I could never lie to you, huh?" He said.

"Well, you're my soulmate. I just knew it when you're in trouble." Jinyoung started saying his cheesy words. He is really good at it. That's why a lot of girls in the school admires him. Other than having a small face, tall figure and obviously a perfect face that everyone going to fall for... He's a real example of manhwa boys.

"I accidentally confessed about my feelings to her yesterday," He sighed. It was really an accident. He never thought he would confess his feelings on a moment like that. He even had his own fantasy about confessing to girl on the first day of snow this year but seems like the plan would stay in his fantasy only.

"What?" Jinyoung's small eyes widened, "Why? I mean how you could confess to her?!"

"It's all Woojin's fault." He pouted and put his head on the table.

"Woojin?" He frowned, "Park Woojin?! The one that Aeri hates the most?" Daehwi simply nodded to his question. That Park Woojin guy... He's really annoying seriously...

"I think Woojin likes Aeri." Daehwi sudden statement make Jinyoung frowned his face even more, "I see it in his eyes. He looks like Aeri just like the way you look at Yuri."

"Yah," Jinyoung quickly put his hand on Daehwi's mouth to shut him up, "Don't talk about her right now." Jinyoung looked around him to see if Yuri is around. Yuri should never know that Jinyoung has a crush on her.

"Till when you're going to keep your feeling though?" Daehwi looked at Jinyoung who was obviously nervous right now.

"Say someone who accidentally confess his feelings," Jinyoung's words totally roast the boy. Daehwi rolled his eyes. 

"You're really annoying," He sighed.

"But still you love me, right?" Jinyoung shoved his face right infront of Daehwi which make Daehwi quickly pushed him away.

"Seriously, dude?" Daehwi gave a glare to Jinyoung. He could never imagine what his life would be without Jinyoung.

ᶞ-ᶞ-ᶞ

"Is he going to ignore for a week now?" Aeri mumbled alone as she walked, "He is not going to do that right? Or will he?" She whined. 

"What are you mumbling about?" A tapped on her shoulders startled her.

"Uh, Jinyoung. Hi," Aeri awkwardly greeted him and at the same time her eyes wandering around to find for Daehwi. Daehwi always stick around Jinyoung but she couldn't see him today.

"What are you looking for?" He smirked, giving a suspicious look to the girl, "Daehwi?"

Her eyes avoided the stare given by Jinyoung. She didn't know why but she could feel that she was blushing at the moment.

"Why are you blushing?" He giggled, "I just said his name only though?" 

"I am not blushing okay," She put the back of her hand on her cheeks and he could obviously feel that she's burning up right now. "And I am not looking for Daehwi."

"Oh, really?" Jinyoung provoked her, "I don't think so." 

"Jinyoung, stop it." She paused, there's nothing she could do here. Jinyoung will just keep annoyed her so it's better for her to leave the scene as soon as possible. "I got to go." Aeri said and quickly make herself as far as possible from the boy.

"Jung Aeri, you're so bad at hiding your feelings." Jinyoung shook his head.

ᶞ-ᶞ-ᶞ

Daehwi was waiting for Aeri at the playground. He took a peek at his watch on his left hand. It strikes 6pm. Where the hell is this girl? She's not going to end up in any kind of accident right? He thought about how clumsy the girl could be sometimes. That's probably one of the reason he feels like he needs to protect the girl.

"Daehwi?" A voice calling out for him startled him.

"Uh," He stood up and gave a bow to a guy infront of him, "Henry hyung, how are you?" He politely asked.

"Sure, I'm fine." He replied while hit the boy's shoulders lightly, "What are you doing here? Waiting for Aeri?" His sudden question make Daehwi gulped.

"Uh," He stuttered but end up nodding his head, "Yeah."

"I thought you guys went to the same school," Henry frowned, "You didn't see her at school."

Daehwi shook his head without he realized, "Eh, I do see her." He quickly recover his mistakes. "It's just---," He lost words, "I just want, uh,"

"That's okay, I could understand what are you trying to say," He giggled upon of the boy's reaction. He knows that Daehwi likes his little sister. And he also knows that Aeri also likes Daehwi. It's just her ego plays the main role in this drama. She couldn't even admit that she likes the boy. Or to be exact, he was afraid that he might lost the boy. "Are you going to wait here?" Henry asked.

"Um, yes," He passed a smile to Henry. Henry then excused himself and went into the house. Daehwi could finally breath normally. Before he could ever calm his down after those question, someone called his name for the 2nd time.

"Daehwi?" Daehwi turned his attention towards the voice, "What are you doing here?" Aeri asked.

"Playing?" He answered, "Uh, why are you late?"

"Oh, I went to mart just now, to buy this," She showed a plastic bag full with stuff to Daehwi. 

"Oh," His eyes wandered around, he couldn't put his eyes on the girl. All he knows now his heart is beating like crazy, "I got to go," He grabbed his bag; wanting to take his leave from there as soon as possible.

Aeri stopped him by grabbing his hand. Daehwi automatically stopped himself from moving. He was really shaking at the moment. Aeri grabbed his hand? What the hell is happening?

"I think we need to talk," Aeri said. "Daehwi, look. You're not going to ruin our friendship, right?" 

Daehwi slowly turned his body around and look at the girl, "What are you trying to say?" He removed the girl's hand. He really knows where this conversation will lead them to. She will never say that she likes him. She will never admit to it. Never.

Aeri couldn't give any answer to her question. Because obviously, there's no answer to his question. She didn't know what is she trying to say or trying to explain. 

"You're going to ask me to stop liking you right?" Daehwi paused, taking a deep breath, "You're really the worst, Aeri. How can you not know I like you all this time? Are you really a stupid or what?"

"No, it's not like that," She tried to deny it when she didn't even know what she was trying to say right now.

"Stop it, Aeri. I'm already tired of your game. I confessed to you. And you keep giving excuses. If you don't like me then just say it. I could accept it. But to ignore my confession like it never happened, that's just so childish to be honest." Daehwi almost give up at the moment, "Since I couldn't say this properly yesterday, let me make it clear. I like you Jung Aeri, I don't know how it start but I just bound to like you. I tried so hard to refrain my feelings from getting any bigger but I failed. Everyday, I fall for you deeper than yesterday and I keep falling for you. And I don't think I could stop anytime soon."

"Just stop it Daehwi," She closed her eyes, she didn't want to hear any of this nonsense things anymore.

"Huh," That moment Aeri said that, he knows that she rejected her. "Okay, just forget about it." Daehwi shrugged and walked away from the girl.

One step... Two step... Three step...

"It's because I was afraid to lose you," Aeri sudden words stopped the boy, "I couldn't afford to lose you. I need you by my side forever. I am afraid. I am afraid if there's anything going wrong with our relationship, we're going to be drifted apart and you will leave me. You will not see me the way you see me before. You will not love me the way you love me before. I am afraid, Daehwi. I'm afraid that one day I'll be waking up knowing that you're not going to be by my side anymore."

Daehwi turned his body and smiled, "Why should I ever leave you Aeri?" He approached her and put her into his embrace. "I will forever be by your side now and forever." He caressed the girl's hair as he patted her back.

"Promise me that you're not going to leave me?" Aeri comfortably put her head on his chest.

"I promise and I hope you still remember your promise back then." Daehwi said.