I remember the first time I saw my crush; it’s unforgettable because he’s the first and only one I’ve ever had. While some of my friends had dated since the 5th grade or even earlier, I’d never even thought about holding a boy’s hand. I didn’t get the fuss; I mean it was only a guy. I had three older brothers and they were annoying as hell and smelly to boot, I thought all boys were the same. But then I saw him; light brown hair that reached just past his ears, pale olive skin with deep set eyes that seemed to permanently be smiling and the prettiest lips I’d ever seen on anyone. Glasses rested on his face and gave him an air of intelligence and kindness that I couldn’t look away from. He was sweet and slightly dorky and just perfect.

For a brief moment our eyes had connected in the middle of a crowded hallway, almost like destiny. It was as if there was a tornado inside me; suddenly there was a whoosh and I felt... it. That emotion everyone was always talking about, those things that were usually attributed to nerves but took on a whole new meaning when you liked someone. The butterflies. Unlike the movies, time didn’t stand still and the push of teenagers trying to get to class created a wall between us. But from that moment on I was lost.

It was my first time experiencing puppy love and since I as fourteen years old, I gleefully did all the things I’d only read about before. When I’d found out the boy’s name because of his friends teasing him loudly in the cafeteria, I wrote DongWoo Shin on every notebook I owned. I penned love notes that I was too scared to give to him, and of course I thought of him constantly.

Now it was almost three years later and I stared at myself in my bedroom mirror, the vanity reflecting back a girl who’d just turned eighteen, youth still evident on her face. I tousled the faux goddess locs in my hair, pushing them around until the thick black tresses rested neatly across one shoulder. I scanned my reflection again, taking in my dark brown skin and full lips, tilted eyes, pert nose and the effect of the minimal makeup I’d put on this morning had on them. When I was finally feeling satisfied, I rushed to put on my skinny jeans, loose pink blouse and a pair of white flats. I checked out my appearance once more before I picked up my new book bag, happy that I had packed it the night before.

Alright, this may go without saying but I had been a bit of a nerd these past few years and old habits were dying hard. No one really needed to bring anything on the first day of school since it would just be paperwork and class introductions but some things were harder to change than my hair and clothes. One thing that I was determined to makeover this year though, was the shy portion of my personality.

High school wasn’t anything like it’d been on TV when I first become a freshman. In fact, in comparison it was stunningly boring. There were cliques but they were mostly just groups of friends, there was bullying but no one was getting swirlys in the bathroom in between class breaks, and there was drama but none of it was beyond anything we’d already seen in middle school with the exception of more people willing to make out in the hallways. Degrassi had failed me once again.

I had spent the last three years creating a small group of my own, people I looked forward to seeing every day and prayed fervently that they would be in my classes each year so that I wouldn’t have to talk to anyone else. My shyness wasn’t crippling but why make myself uncomfortable needlessly? At least I had felt that way until I’d seen DongWoo.

Called CNU or ShinWoo by pretty much everyone who knew him, I’d fallen for one of the most popular boys on campus. He was the captain of the basketball team, a member of a b-boy group and a part of the school’s symphony orchestra. I remember watching him play the piano, and the passion he exuded made me fall for him even harder. But in all of my high school years to date, I’d been unable to work up more than a ‘Hi’ when he walked past me in the hallway. And while I had made it my life’s mission to walk by often, beyond a slight nod in my direction, I was sure he wasn’t noticing me. But now senior year had come and I wanted to make a change. The first thing on my list; getting the boy of my dreams. I hoped that finally confessing how I felt, even if I got rejected would change my life, I was sure of it.

Stepping off the school bus at six-thirty in the morning was a killer for anyone, even if I was looking forward to my first day. A morning person I was not, but the girl beside me chattered happily, unaffected by our early start.

“Lani come on! What’s the worst that could happen?” My best friend Cheryl questioned as we headed towards the school building.

“Um… total failure and abject embarrassment?” I threw out as an example and Cheryl rolled her eyes. After 3 years of friendship, she was immune to my pessimism.

“Besides that!” She cried, brushing off my worries easily and I wished that I could do the same.

“I’m serious though. What if he doesn’t even want to get to know me, or worse he doesn’t even know who I am?” My heart stuttered at the thought, fear making my palms sweaty. I had talked myself up the whole summer in preparation for today, but now that the time I had come I was a bit of a mess.

Cheryl grabbed me by my backpack straps and halted our progress forward. I gave her a look as other kids made their way into the school, the freshman easy to spot because of their nervous energy and wide eyes. I had been the same once but teenage emotions had overruled all else. Cheryl pushed her pitch-black hair back from her face, and her pale blue eyes looked into mine, all teasing absent from the firm set of her lips.

“Listen girl, I love you ok? I supported you and this one sided relationship for three years, watched as you tore yourself up over a guy who you refused to talk to outta fear you weren’t good enough. But you need to know that you are, sis. You’re the best person I know and damn sure the smartest. I think what’s really holding you back is thinking that if he doesn’t like you then you’ll have to stop liking him. You’re not ready to give him up.”

“What the hell?” My bestie had just rocked my world. I hadn’t thought of it before but she had a major point. I was worried that ShinWoo would completely shoot me down in the harshest way possible, like something out of crappy a teen movie. The fact that I wanted to protect my heart had to do with it yes, but if he turned me down, could I honestly continue liking him with all the fluttering that I had enjoyed? But how had Cheryl read my deepest fears so accurately? 

“I watched a lot of Dr. Phil over summer break. So are you going to make your move or what?” She asked with a smile and I felt the knot in my stomach release.

“Yeah I’m doing it. I’m ready!” I spoke out confidently. I didn’t fully believe my own hype, but I had to fake it til I made it.

“Good because he’s right over there,” Cheryl pointed a slender finger in the direction of the school’s side buildings and I snuck in a long glance.

The object of my affection was surrounded by his boys and as per usual the loud jocks were teasing each other. ShinWoo had cut his hair over the summer, the shoulder length locks now sheared to ear height. A confusing mix of sadness and elation hit me; his hair had been gorgeous long but short hair worked wonders on him as well. The familiar pulsing of my heart beat began to pick up it’s pace as Cheryl wished me luck. Keeping in mind that putting one foot in front of the other and not tripping over my own feet would be the first step to success.

My approach was casual but inside I felt like I was on fire. I said a quick prayer of thanks that no blush was noticeable on my face but I felt the heat of embarrassment course through me at an alarming rate. I took this time to get a better look at my crush, noting that his outfit of joggers, long tee and hoodie were all in his favorite black color. Rarely did he go for color, sticking to white and black for all his clothing choices. I wasn’t mad at him though; he always looked good enough to eat. And if it was possible he had grown a few inches over the summer as well. He had already topped my 5’4 frame at 5’10 but now he had pushed a little past the six-foot mark. But the time to examine him had come to an end, I was only a few feet from my prey.  

“E-Excuse me,” I breathed out and the noise making around the circle of friends halted as they all stared at me. Feeling painfully shy, I bit my lip and continued.

“DongWoo could I speak to you for just a minute?” I asked, my voice trembling slightly and coming out higher pitched than I’d wanted. Seconds passed and ShinWoo’s eyes crinkled behind his glasses, the smile he gave me one of assurance.

“Yeah, no problem,” he grinned, his slight accent setting off internal squeals of delight deep into my body. Catcalls from the guys around us followed behind as we walked away from the group but I couldn’t think about that now. My confession still remained and that would be the real test. We moved away from the main path into the school as the courtyard slowly emptied of people and I looked down at my phone quickly to check the time. We didn’t have too much longer before first period but I was less worried about being on time, and much more concerned with baring my soul.

I turned to face the boy behind me and immediately I had to tilt my head upwards to meet his gaze. I gave him a shaky smile and went to speak. Before I could say anything though, ShinWoo reached for my hand, holding it gently in his own. Struck by the shock of it, I could only looked down at our intertwined fingers, moving between them and his face. Letting out an uncomfortable chuckle, the boy before me looked away and then quickly brought his brown eyes to meet mine.

“Lani, I’m really glad you came over to me today. I was…well I had planned on coming to talk to you too.” The guy I had only dreamed of speaking to rubbed his reddening ears in embarrassment and I felt a smile tug at my lips.

“I’ve liked you since I saw you freshman year and but I never had the courage to speak to you. You always gave off this untouchable aura and you were so smart. I didn’t think you’d ever talk to me.” He laughed again nervously and I felt my mind spinning. Was this really happening?

“I-I’ve liked you too, for a long time,” I muttered while still looking at our clasped hands in astonishment. I would’ve kept looking down, afraid to look him in the eye in case this was all just a dream but unexpectedly I felt warm fingers place themselves against my cheek. I looked up and ShinWoo bent down, his face deliciously close to mine as I blinked in surprise. 

“So then, I guess we’re together?” ShinWoo asked me hesitantly, a rosy hue leaking out onto his cheeks. I couldn’t help but give him a wide smile, my heart ready to burst. Instead of answering, I boldly took his hand in my own and looked up into the kind eyes that I’d grown to love. At that moment I knew that this year really would be different.

A/N: Boom and we're knocking them out guys! I hope you really enjoyed it, I know that B1A4 isn't as main stream as BTS but CNU was my first bias and they were the reason I got into Kpop so give them love!! What I have up next for you guys is something totally different from this fluff and more of a two-shot (cause your girl can't make something short even if it kills her) so look forward to it, and just as a preview, it's Monsta X! Please remeber to UPVOTE, COMMENT and SUBSCRIBE  for more updates! Much love guys <3