Chapter 12:

 

"Again." 

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"Again." 

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The dance captain slams her hand on the glass mirror with a loud thud and barks, “The performance is in two weeks and y'all cannot even perfect the chorus?!" 

 

All of the dance team members standing in front of their captain immediately bow and apologise for their mistake. 

 

For the past few days, Seulgi has been unusually quiet, opting to spend recesses alone in the dance studio with the excuse of rushing out their choreography for the annual concert. Everyone knows it’s because she does not want to meet a particular person. 

 

And, during their practice sessions, Seulgi would be extremely harsh when they make mistakes, often lashing out at the members until they burst into tears. 

 

Seated in front of all her members, Seulgi just lets out a frustrated sigh and commands, "Again." 

 

"Seulgi, stop." Jongin suddenly speaks up before Seulgi plays the music. 

 

Seulgi looks up to meet Jongin’s eyes and hisses, “Jongin, we don’t have any more time.” 

 

“They've been practicing non stop for more than an hour." Jongin gestures to the members around them, who are all soaked in sweat and panting hard, but none of them are complaining. 

 

She immediately feels bad for them. "We shall break for 10 minutes." 

 

“Yes, Captain!”

 

The members finally let out a sigh of relief and all of them fought to run to the nearest water cooler to get a drink. 

 

Seulgi continues to sit there in silence alone, as none of the members dare to talk to her since she has been in a bad mood recently. Only Jongin comes and sit beside her. 

 

Sensing his presence, Seulgi mutters to Jongin while her head is still buried in her arms. "I'm sorry for venting my anger at y'all."

 

"Well, it's understandable since she did embarrass you thoroughly in front of the school and almost blown both of your covers. You should be angry.” 

 

Seulgi shakes her head and sighs, "The anger has already disappeared long ago. I’m just frustrated.”

 

"Hey, this isn’t fair!” Jongin protests, “Last time you were angry with me for one full week when I tripped you for fun during track lessons in front of your teacher crush." 

 

"That is different and you are different. For Joohyun's case, I do feel guilty for saying those things to her. It all came out the wrong way because of my anger." 

 

“I see.” 

 

"I don't get it, Jongin. What did I even do wrong?" Seulgi looks up and asks Jongin with a deep frown on her face. 

 

Jongin looks at her and asks carefully, “You finally want to talk about that day?” 

 

The topic of that incident has been a taboo topic ever since it happened. After Irene ran away that day, an enraged Seulgi announced that she would cut all ties with whoever that dares to mention one word about that incident or mention the other girl’s name in front of her. 

 

Seulgi refused to talk to anyone about it, thus other than Irene, no one else in the school knew what exactly happened that day. 

 

The reason for their argument has since become the biggest mystery of SM High. 

 

“Yes.” Seulgi raises an eyebrow, wondering why is he even asking so much. 

 

He proceeds to ask with caution again, “Are you going to cut ties with me...?”

 

This ignites the girl to smack his arm hard and reassure him impatiently, “No, I’m not. Happy?” 

 

“I was checking just in case!” He complains, rubbing his arm. Jongin lets out a sigh then starts on the main topic of discussion. 

 

Why was Irene so angry that day?

 

“That’s what I cannot figure out. All I’ve been doing the past few days is to be more considerate of her. Do you think I don’t want to hold her hand whenever I want?”

 

“Well..”

 

“Do you think I don’t want to spend my entire recess with her?” 

 

“I...”

 

“Or take walks around the school with her?” 

 

After her long ramble, Seulgi looks at Jongin expectantly, waiting for his answer. The poor, clueless boy forces out a reply, “Um, I don’t?”

 

She nods and continues to vent her frustration, “I’ve been going crazy from trying to hold myself back and yet, she flared at me. What am I supposed to do?” 

 

This time when Seulgi look at Jongin for an answer again, Jongin has a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips with a knowing expression in his eyes. 

 

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

 

Jongin nudges her playfully, “So, you do like her?” 

 

His words instantly made Seulgi fluster. She quickly explains herself, “I-I mean I do like spending time with her but I don’t know if I really-“

 

“You obviously do. If not, why are you so bothered about not being able to spend time with her?” Jongin shots her a teasing glance, making Seulgi turn her body away from him. 

 

“I said I like spending time with her, as...friends you know! It does not mean anything...” Seulgi whispers back, but even herself does not believe the lies. She buries her head in her arms and lets out a loud groan as she feel the heat flooding her cheeks. 

 

“Are you embarrassed because you caught feelings so early?” 

 

“Shush! We are supposed to be figuring out about what Irene is thinking instead of me!” Seulgi suddenly turns around with a sharp glare at Jongin. She threatens, “Do you want me to talk about Soojung?” 

 

“Fine, you win. Back to the main topic.” Jongin waves the white flag to Seulgi’s satisfaction. 

 

He suggests, “Is it mood swings? I heard girls often have them during their period.” 

 

This ignites the latter to give him another slap again. 

 

“Are you dumb, Jongin? Didn’t you see how angry she was? How can it be merely mood swings?” She lashes out at him mercilessly, causing Jongin to protest. 

 

“I’m just giving a suggestion! There’s no need to scold me so harshly.” 

 

“Fine...I’m sorry.” 

 

“Eh?” Jongin suddenly blurts out, then turns to Seulgi with eyes wide from the revelation as he exclaims. “I think I know why she’s angry!” 

 

“Why?” 

 

Jongin beckons Seulgi to come closer, before he whispers the forum incident that happened a few days earlier before their performance into Seulgi’s ear.

 

After revealing everything, Jongin receives a hard smack on his arm instead of thanks from the other girl. 

 

“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” Seulgi snaps at Jongin. 

 

It was no wonder Irene was so angry. She remembers how the latter has emphasised during one of their afternoon walks that she hates it when people lie to her, especially when it comes from those that she care about. 

 

“For the past few days, you refused to let anyone talk about Ire...wait can I say her name?”

 

Seulgi grits her teeth in annoyance, “Yes!” 

 

“Hey, there’s no need to shout! Anyways, you didn’t allow anyone to even mention Irene’s name. How could I bring it up?” Jongin complains, which makes Seulgi facepalm upon hearing it.

 

“This is crucial information! Ugh, I don’t want to talk to you now. I need to find Joohyun now to explain everything. Then...I’ll confront those idiots who almost ruined my relationship.” Seulgi grits her teeth, determined to exact revenge upon her ex-friends who posted this picture on the forum. 

 

Jongin raises a concern. “What are you going to tell Irene? That it’s fake?” 

 

“The photo only showed our backview so I can just deny it.” Seulgi smiles to herself, thinking it is the perfect idea. 

 

However, Jongin thinks otherwise. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to continue lying, since she’s angry precisely because you lied.” 

 

Seulgi scoffs, “Do you think she would believe it if I told her the truth anyway?” 

 

The boy thinks about it for a few seconds and finally replies, “Hmm, that’s true.” He chuckles to himself and continues, “The truth is actually harder to believe than this lie. Ironic isn’t it?” 

 

“As if this isn’t your fault...” Seulgi grumbles, causing Jongin to slip out an embarrassed grin. 

 

“I’m sorry. Who told y’all to date so openly?” He teases her, causing the embarrassed Seulgi to brush him away. 

 

“Ugh, shut up.”

 

Now that Seulgi knows the reason for Irene’s anger, she cannot conceal her excitement any longer. She stands up abruptly to the surprise of her members and announces with a smile, “I’m going to talk to Joohyun now!”

 

Then, she runs away out of the dance studio at the speed of light before anyone could say anything. 

 

 

——

 

 

“What’s going on with Seulgi?” Jisoo scoots to Jongin’s side to ask him. 

 

The boy smiles to himself, “She finally figured it all out and she’s going to make up with Irene now.”

 

“What?” Jisoo gasps, a little louder than normal. 

 

“Isn’t it good news? We will finally see spring in SM High after the past few days of winter!” Jongin smiles and then narrows his eyes onto Jisoo. “Aren’t you happy?”

 

“Of course I am.” Jisoo lets out a nervous chuckle. 

 

Suddenly, they hear two knocks on the door. The sound of the door creaking open catches everyone’s attention. 

 

“Hi, I’m here to ask for the audio clips for your annual concert performance.” Wendy peeps her head in with an awkward smile on her face. 

 

It has definitely been awkward between the dance club members and the council ever since their friends fought. 

 

“Hi Wendy. Regarding those, we can just email it to you later.” Jongin stands up to greet her, rather awkwardly too. It is the first time the two of them has exchanged words since the big fight. 

 

“Thanks.” Wendy replies with a smile, but her facial expression suggests she does not want to leave yet. She takes a quick scan around the dance studio and then asks, “Is Seulgi here?”

 

“Oh, she just ran off to find Irene.” Jongin replies. “Looks like peace will return soon, don’t you think? We don’t have to be awkward like this for long.” He slips out a wolfish grin. 

 

“What?!” Wendy shrieks out, scaring all of the dance club members. “Why did you let her go? Does she even know why Irene is angry?”

 

“Uh...because of the photo? It’s fake, so there’s no problem. Seulgi is going to clear it up with Irene and then, it will be alright!” Jongin slips out a nervous smile, facing Wendy’s expression that is getting darker by the second. 

 

She replies in a scary voice, “At this stage, you’re still lying to me?” 

 

The dance studio breaks out into whispers, wondering what photo are they talking about and what lie their captain has said.

 

Not wanting anyone to catch on, Jongin walks to Wendy with a serious expression and mutters, “Can we talk about this outside?”

 

“Okay, but can I ask someone else to come out too? I might as well clear all my doubts at once.” Wendy replies in a low voice, to which Jongin arched an brow.

 

“Who?”

 

“Sooyoung, can you come out for a moment?” Wendy suddenly calls out the younger girl, who is lying on the floor to rest. The girl widens her eyes upon hearing her name being caught. 

 

“Unnie, me?”

 

Jongin suddenly pulls Wendy out of the dance studio, causing the door to slam shut. He holds Wendy by the arms and asks her seriously, “You know about that too?”

 

Wendy flinches from his touch and hesitantly replies, “About Seulgi stealing Sooyoung from the cheerleading club?” 

 

“How did you know?” Jongin interrogates Wendy severely. “Did they tell you about it?”

 

“The problem is they not only told me, but also Irene.” 

 

“Oh ...”

 

“What’s wrong?” Sooyoung comes out from the studio and gasps in surprise when she sees Jongin holding Wendy by the arms. 

 

Jongin immediately lets go and explains in a fluster, “Its not what you think!”

 

Sooyoung glances at both of them awkwardly and slowly tiptoes to the studio door while saying, “Oops, I’m sorry. I don’t think you need me now so-“

 

“Park Sooyoung, the cheerleaders told them about your history.” 

 

Sooyoung finally halts in her step with her head held low. When she looks at Wendy again, her smile is replaced with a broken expression. 

 

Sooyoung shakes her head while stuttering, “N-No...they promised...”

 

Seeing Sooyoung like this, Wendy cannot resist but give the younger girl a hug. The younger girl immediately melts into her embrace and starts to sob. 

 

Wendy her back gently and mutters, “I wonder what did they do to you to make you like this.” 

 

 

——

 

 

The three of them found a quiet corner in the school garden to talk it all out.

 

Wendy told them about their entire encounter with the cheerleaders from their accusations about the dance club’s atrocities to the video. 

 

“She told you we did all of that? And, even showed you that video?” Jongin’s jaw is left open in shock. He snickers, “I’m really left speechless...that .” 

 

“Unnie,” Sooyoung finally speaks up in a soft voice. “You must not believe those people. All of what she said about Seulgi unnie was false.” 

 

“What exactly happened? Wait.” Wendy takes a moment to let her thoughts settle, as her mind is currently flooded with questions as both parties are saying different things.  

 

“Lets talk about Seulgi and Jimin first.” Wendy turns to Jongin, demanding a reply. “Tell me the truth. Why is there a video? They were obviously dating, weren’t they? So Seulgi lied?”

 

Wend suddenly bombards Jongin with so many questions that it makes the boy‘s head spin. 

 

“So which question do you want me to answer first?” The boy asks innocently, causing Wendy to almost explode. 

 

She takes a few deep breaths to calm herself down and forces out a smile, “Just...tell me from the start. Were they dating?”

 

“Oppa, they really dated before?” Sooyoung looks at Jongin, surprised. 

 

Looking at the two expectant pairs of eyes staring back at him, he lets out a sigh and prays that Seulgi and Jimin will not kill him for exposing the truth today. 

 

“Yes, they’ve dated.”

 

“OMG!” 

 

“Seulgi really lied?! That idiot-“ 

 

“Hey.” Jongin stops Wendy, before she continues to curse at Seulgi. “Listen to me first okay?”

 

After Wendy gives a hesitant nod, he then continues, “You can’t really say they were dating too because we busted them on their first date.” He cannot help but chuckle at the memory of that, which confuses Wendy even more. 

 

“Huh?”

 

Jongin begins, “In the video, didn’t we creep onto them and caught them dating?”

 

Wendy nods.

 

“That was their first date. Since they got busted, we kinda foiled their romance and they ended things about one hour after that video was filmed. So, you cannot really say they’ve dated because it ended before even it begun.” Jongin concludes with a shrug. 

 

“Ah...no wonder.” Wendy then starts to chuckle, “This is actually hard to believe and pretty funny.”

 

“I know right?” Jongin chuckles along too. “I can assure you that they are 100% friends now.” 

 

“Seulgi and Jimin kept this from everyone because it was an embarrassing past. Therefore, none of you know about it.” Jongin turns to Sooyoung while speaking. “Sooyoung, I hope you won’t tell others about it.”

 

“I won’t, oppa.” Sooyoung smiles back at Jongin sweetly.

 

The heartwarming moment between the two almost makes them forget the real purpose of their emergency meeting. 

 

“Oh no!” Wendy suddenly cries out, scaring everyone again. 

 

“Goddamit Wendy, stop screaming!” Jongin complains, “What’s wrong again?” 

 

“Irene is going to be even more angry at Seulgi if she lies to her the second time! That day at the field, I’ve never seen Irene that angry before. This time...it’s gonna be really really bad!” Wendy exclaims to them in a dram