"I don't dislike you per se but I disagree with your opinion," Seulgi nicely tried to explain.

"I disagree with your opinion and I kinda dislike you," Sehun said.

"Well, I am not really fond of your personality either."

"Never mind, I fully dislike you," he corrected as he played with his pack of cigarettes to annoy Seulgi. It didn't exactly work anymore as she knew he wouldn't lit one of them in her presence but she still kept an eye on them every time he put them on the table and it was enough for Sehun.

Seulgi subtly rolled her eyes.

"Fair enough."

She actively pressed on her computer's keyboard as she tried to find the molecular number of another element.

"Why do we have to meet up for the chemistry homework too?" Sehun asked with his usual disinterested tone. "It's not something you need to do in team, it's individual work," Sehun emphasized to make the stubborn girl understand his point of view. "I'd definitely rather be somewhere else."

"Like where?" Seulgi genuinely asked.

"Anywhere else," Sehun chastised. Seulgi turned her head back to her assignment as if she hadn't heard anything and continued her task.

"Maybe if you were less mean, good things would come your way Sehun," she commented distractedly.

"Like you?" Sehun raised an eyebrow. "Miss Nice hasn't been very lucky in the love department though."

"What do you mean?"

"You clearly know what I mean."

"Explain anyway."

"Jongin doesn't even notice your presence. I doubt he would care enough about you to even remember your name if it wasn't stuck in Soojung's mouth 24/7," Sehun explained. "He isn't interested."

Seulgi stopped writing and swallowed her pride to not retort back. It was exactly what Sehun was looking for.

"And what about it?"

"What do you mean what about it?" Sehun frowned. "You don't care that he doesn't like you? At all?" 

"That's none of your business."

"Hm, thought so," Sehun grinned. "You're hurt aren't you?"

Seulgi continued her assignment in silence.

"My words opened a scar that you have tried to heal for months now, you're in pain because your heart is broken," Sehun said before taking out  a cigarette out of the package. "But see the bright side of it, Jongin is now free."

"He is in pain, not free," Seulgi mumbled. "Jongin is anything but free."

"Glad that you noticed you still have as much chances as before to get him."

"What do you gain from this Sehun?" Seulgi turned to ask him calmly. She was used to Sehun teasing her to no end but there were limits even to Seulgi's patience and she wished Sehun wouldn't test them so often. She glanced to the cigarette he was holding and then returned her attention onto him, he was looking at her in a strange way, as if he was contemplating her. Sehun remained silent for a bit while looking at her, was he examining her reaction? Seulgi couldn't tell but she definitely felt a bit self-conscious for the first time around him. She coughed to express her discomfort which brought a curious smile onto Sehun's face.

"Me? Entertainment."

He then pushed his chemistry books away and got up to go to his bed. He left the cigarette roll onto the desk where it reached Seulgi's fingers and startled her before telling her that he would take a nap. 

"If you're still here when I wake up, I'm calling the cops," Sehun grinned. He had never succeeded so much into bothering Seulgi before. Sehun somehow felt like he would sleep well this time.

Seulgi looked at him a few seconds, deep in thought, before returning back to her homework. She didn't talk for the rest of the night and just like she thought, Sehun didn't do anything when he woke up and saw that she was still there, finishing some notes at his desk. Seulgi had added various post-its into Sehun's chemistry book to help him finish his homework and even made a photocopy of her notes because she knew he never paid attention in class.

"Let's go," Sehun grimaced when Seulgi took her time to pack her bag. "It's already late enough, I have to be back before the dorm closes."

"You're saying this when you come back home at 3 AM at least four times a week through the window," Seulgi said as she closed her backpack. She checked one last time if she hadn't forgotten anything in Sehun and Jongin's room before passing by Sehun to get out of the room.

"You're spying me now?"

"You told me that yourself when you wanted to brag to me about your eventful life while I barely have enough friends to go to the movies," Seulgi reminded him.

"I really said that?" Sehun frowned.

Seulgi nodded before turning into the dorm's main corridor. They passed by the security guard who smiled at them and they bowed back, he was nice enough to never tell them anything even when Seulgi always left way after the visiting hours.

"I really am an ," Sehun thought out loud. He didn't seem very surprised or impacted by this realization, as if he just said it to say it. Seulgi didn't react neither, she knew Sehun would still go back to his snarky remarks as soon as he would get bored anyway. "Can I smoke?" he asked as soon as they got out of the building. 

Seulgi shook her head. "When I'll be gone."

Sehun put his pack of cigarettes back into his jeans' pocket and silently followed Seulgi's small frame in the dark streets. He would usually walk her back home until where the lights were bright enough in the streets for her to not be scared but once in a while, he would lose track of it and just stop once they had reached her apartment. Lately, Seulgi didn't seem to care where Sehun left her and just continued to walk until she arrived home.

"Let's stop here," Seulgi had said randomly. She did it again. "I'll see you tomorrow."

He didn't ask her anything nor told her to wait for him. Seulgi didn't turn back to talk to him, she always walked in front of him with her back facing him. Sehun started walking back to the dorm and lit up a cigarette as soon as Seulgi's silhouette disappeared in the dark.

He had noticed how quiet she had become in the past weeks and how she had stopped annoying him on purpose with her strong opinions. Since Jongin and Soojung's break up, Seulgi changed.

She had changed for the better Sehun thought, but he knew he was the only one thinking like that. But he figured he was probably the only one thinking at all. Sehun was aware that he was the only one who noticed the change in Seulgi. Jongin didn't care, Soojung was too busy trying to push Jongin away to notice and that friend of hers, Jisoo was her name if he correctly remembered, hadn't known a different Seulgi like he did.

Sehun let the cold air of October be filled with his rotten smoke as he let out a small puff of his used cigarette.

"There is no issue, this love is tainted," he sang before crashing his cigarette on the pavement. He then picked it up and put it in a trash can. "I'm turning soft," he grunted.

…

Jongin didn't know what to do anymore but he was proud that he had at least tried. He called her over a hundred times, he waited for her after class, he left messages in her voice mail, he even went to her house but Soojung was not turning back onto her decision. It was over.

"If you could only tell me why," Jongin begged. He promised it would be the last time, that he wouldn't try again after she accepted to talk. This talk was way overdue considering they broke up about three weeks ago but Soojung couldn't find the will to face Jongin just yet but she owed him this much.  She couldn't avoid him until kingdom come and pretend everything was fine. Jongin needed some sort closure and maybe an empty classroom during lunch wasn't ideal but it was the quietest place they had found in a short amount of time. They had to make it quick because Soojung had a class in not too long.

"I already told you why," Sooyoung sighed. 

"You only told me it was a mistake. How was it a mistake? What did I do wrong?" Jongin asked as he tried to not sound too devastated. He knew Soojung would feel even more guilty than she already looked and he couldn't let that happen.

"It is not your fault Jongin, you did absolutely nothing wrong. I already told you that," Soojung said.

"Then why?"

"There are certain things that we cannot control… and maybe I went overboard that time, I don't know what I was thinking… I shouldn't have done that, if I hadn't, we wouldn't be in such a situation," Soojung kept rambling. She looked agitated and somehow nervous and it was a very rare sight even for Jongin. Soojung had always been the calmest and thoughtful out