"Sure. Let's meet in the quad after school, if you'd like. I'll be waiting."

Jihyun noticed that he pretty much responded right after she texted him, but stared up at Aeri, who glanced back expectantly. "So? Are you going to meet him or what?"

"I'm scared." Jihyun stated plainly, feeling her fears manifest in her heart and worry growing in the pits of her stomach. 

"You will be okay," Aeri said reassuringly. "Do you want me to wait for you in case things don't go as you intend?" 

"Erm..." she mumbled, "no, I think I will be okay. You should go home, I don't want you to wait for me."

"Okay," her friend nodded and gently squeezed her hand. "I'm rooting for you. I hope things go well, and if they don't, well you already know what I'm going to do to his sorry ." 

"Thank you," Jihyun giggled, and for once that day, she felt her worries slightly decrease. 

After Aeri had left, Jihyun had waited a good five minutes before she started making her way to the quad. She definitely didn't want to meet Taeil so soon, and she started to regret her decisions, but she knew that she had to say something sooner or later. Her feet felt heavy and it was as if she was walking through a large pit of mud. 

Eventually, she made it to the quad and saw his handsome face shaded by the large tree that hung over him. She felt her heart race with anxiety and anticipation, but tried to appear as normal as possible before greeting him.

"Hello," she declared, hoping that he'd notice the feet of space that stood between them. 

"Hi Ji, would you like to sit?" He gestured to the spot next to him and she reluctantly nodded, settling a few inches away from him. They were silent for what seemed like an eternity before Taeil broke the silence with an awkward cough. "So... What did you want to talk about?"  

"Oh..." Jihyun mumbled, clearly disappointed with how this talk was going. "Well, I just wanted to talk about last night."

"Mhm, go on." 

She could feel her cheeks burn, as she continued, "Well, I just want to apologize. I was... insensitive... last night and I didn't mean to come across the way I did. It was rude of me to assume things like that." 

"Yeah it was," Taeil said simply and Jihyun stared at him in shock. 

"Excuse me? You don't have to rub it in, it's not like you were the ing nicest last night either." She was surprised at the amount of bite she had in her voice, but Taeil was as well, as he seemed clearly taken aback. 

"Listen Ji," he spoke up, "I just think it's unfair for you to think of such things about my friend when there's no evidence of that. Don't you think it'd be rude if I just randomly accused Doyoung of liking you?" 

"Okay, first of all," she retorted, feeling a familiar sense of anger rise in her stomach again. "That's stupid. He's one of your friends and I barely talk to him. Are you seriously going to try and somehow make me feel guilty by doing this? Secondly, I didn't say I wanted to accuse her of anything and who cares if I have evidence or not? It's so rude of you to brush off my concerns and then just defend her without listening to a word I'm trying to say!"

"Ji, you know I don't mean to brush off your concerns, but it's silly. Haemi isn't like that and you're overreacting," he tried saying gently, but at this point, Jihyun was fuming again. She couldn't believe the audacity of him. Was he really saying this again? Once was good enough, but twice made her feel sick to her stomach. 

"Thanks for once again brushing off my concerns," she muttered abrasively. "Literally, it's not hard Taeil. You literally just have to sit there, be quiet, and then listen. I never said that you were wrong or that I was right, I'm just saying I want to be heard!" 

"Okay, then just tell me everything right now," he said and Jihyun sighed. 

"At this point, will you even listen to me? It just feels like you're only trying to please me," she replied and Taeil grabbed her hand gently. 

"I'm listening," he said reassuringly, and Jihyun bit her lip, before caving in. She told him about how uncomfortable she felt whenever Haemi would just 'casually' put her arms on Taeil, and while she knew that it could be misinterpreted as a friendly gesture, she just didn't know how to cope with the fact that another girl literally felt so comfortable doing all that with someone who was taken. She couldn't understand how he just willingly accepted her into his arms after she ran towards him and jumped at him, like who does that right next to the person's significant other? 

Jihyun felt like boo boo the fool, retelling him everything that she disliked, and he gradually grew more and more confused, while Jihyun felt more and more pathetic. How could she have let herself go through all of this? Did she hate herself? 

"I'm sorry that you felt uncomfortable with Haemi and I guess I can see how those things could be misinterpreted," Taeil started slowly, deliberately being careful with his words. "But I'm going to assure you that Haemi doesn't mean anything by all of those things and I don't want to imply that you're overreacting, but just know that she won't do any of that." 

Jihyun stared back at him, feeling unfulfilled, and in that moment, she realized she was going to feel that for as long as she'd let it continue. "So..." she cleared , "what are you going to do now? Just one talk and then everything's okay?"

"What do you mean, Ji?" 

"I mean, what are you going to do about this? You and I both know that if we let this continue the way it is, someone's going to be resentful. Am I just supposed to sit here and watch Haemi squeeze up all over you? And then just chalk it up to it being just a part of her personality? Don't be delusional Taeil, we can't just keep putting bandaids over this issue and I'm going to be real with you, I'm pretty sure more than half of your friend group ing hates her too, just saying," she stated, feeling a surge of confidence go through her. For once that day, she realized that she was worth more than this. She deserved more than this. 

"What? My friend group loves her, where'd you get the impression that they don't like her?" 

"Taeil, you literally thought I liked her until I told you I didn't," she simply said. "Don't be mistaken, they're just being friendly."

"...Hm. Anyway, what do you want to do about this situation, then?" 

"I just want you to be clear about your boundaries with Haemi," Jihyun said plainly. 

"It's just how she is. She does it unconsciously," he replied, and she could feel shock coursing through her body. 

"So that's it? That's the excuse you're going to use?" 

"It's not an excuse, Ji," Taeil retorted. "I'm serious! I mean, I could have a talk with her, but I doubt she'd listen." 

"Are you even taking this seriously?" Jihyun shot back with a flame in her eyes. "You literally don't seem invested at all right now."

Taeil stared back at her with confusion. "You're so different right now. Why are you lashing out at me? I'm definitely invested, what do you mean? I'm just saying the truth here, Haemi won't change." 

Jihyun felt helpless. A million thoughts were coursing through her brain as she thought about what to say next. She had felt disrespected and that her concerns were brushed off once again, but suprisingly, she was resilient and remained strong. 

Yet at this point, there seemed to be only one answer, and she wasn't sure if she was rushing into it, but she cleared and suggested, "Okay then. If Haemi won't be willing to change, then I will be. Let's break up."