The group had lost track of how much time they had spent in the library.
The place was large as public libraries tend to be.
It had become very obvious, ten minutes into their search, that no one knew the way around except Wonwoo, albeit vaguely. The rest of the group had trailed behind him silently like a flock of sheep trailed behind their owner.

It was several more minutes before they made it to the right floor. Finding the books on local history took even more time, no thanks to the incredibly unhelpful librarian who seemed to be very displeased about having to work on weekends.

Someone let out a very loud, sad sigh, but everyone else was too drained to pay attention.
The girls had apparently given up on reading. Their respective books were open in front of them but the girls were huddled and whispering together.
Jihoon looked like he had given up on life but was still going. Wonwoo was tucked in a corner, reading glasses perched on his nose, his head in one hand as he skimmed through the pages of an ancient-looking book.

Soobin was trying to pass notes to Haeyoon even though she was sitting right across from him.
When Haeyoon threw Soobin’s fourth note back at him without reading it, Eunmi couldn’t help but smile sympathetically at the boy.
She turned to her friend again, “Don’t be cruel. He’s just being cute.”

Haeyoon only giggled.
“He knows I’m messing with him,” the girl said with a wave of her hand, but looked back at her boyfriend as if to make sure.

Eunmi too glanced at the boy, only to find him throwing finger hearts at Haeyoon. Eunmi let out a chuckle before turning to the book in front of her.
For a few seconds, the words on the page seemed incomprehensible to her. In all honesty, she couldn’t remember where she had left off. It felt like her brain was refusing to take in more information.

How long had it been since she and Haeyoon had decided to take a small break? How long had that break lasted?
Eunmi couldn’t tell.
It was like time moved at a different pace in the library.

Just as she made up her mind to actually go back to reading, someone at their table suddenly slammed their book shut. Startled, Eunmi looked up to find Jihoon staring ahead blankly, his nostrils flaring.
Her gaze landed on Soobin, who was sitting beside Jihoon and looked like he was ready to bolt. Haeyoon too looked a bit taken aback. There was pin drop silence for what felt like an eternity.

Wonwoo was the one who broke it.
“Should we call it day?” the bespectacled boy asked.

Jihoon appeared to come out of his trance.
He turned to his friend, shoulders sagging and uttered a single word, which sounded more like a plea.
“Please.”

“Oh, thank god,” Haeyoon let out a sigh of relief, “I’m starving.”

“There’s a really nice chicken place nearby,” Soobin said excitedly.

“Then let’s wrap this up and go there,” Jihoon suggested, standing up and picking up the book he’d been reading.

Soobin opened his mouth as if to say something but immediately shut it. His invitation to the chicken restaurant hadn’t been for everyone, it was obvious. Everyone but Jihoon seemed to understand.

It was incredibly difficult, suppressing the laugh that was bubbling up at the sight of Soobin’s face, so Eunmi turned the other way. Her eyes met Wonwoo’s, who gave her a mischievous smirk as he took off his glasses.
She couldn’t help the little giggle that escaped her lips as they both turned to take another look at the two boys.

“What?” Jihoon asked, looking defensive.
The other boy, on the other hand, still looked unable to form words.

“Nothing,” Eunmi responded with a gentle shake of her head, “you’re just cute, Jihoon.”
Said boy turned pink instantaneously.

“I’m not,” he protested, slinging his backpack over one shoulder. “Let’s go.”

“Yeah, let’s hurry up. I wasn’t kidding when I said I was starving,” Haeyoon stood up and started heading out. Soobin quickly followed suit.

The remaining two also began gathering their things in silence.
Eunmi was about to walk ahead when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned to find Wonwoo holding his hand out. For an insane millisecond, she thought he was holding out his hand for her to hold. However, the saner, more rational side of her mind prevailed and she realised he was offering to carry the book for her.

She looked up at him and shook her head.
“I can carry it myself.”

Wonwoo didn’t budge.
“It’s only one book.”

“Exactly.”
The boy didn’t retort but he didn’t move either. He still stood in front of her with his hand held out.

Eunmi sighed in defeat and handed him the book. It was no use making a fuss for something so trivial. After all, Wonwoo was just being nice. Also, the other three were hungry and in a hurry, she didn’t want to make them wait. That wouldn’t be a good idea.

Wonwoo gave her a smile that she interpreted to mean ‘Was that so hard?’

She gave him a smile that said, ‘No, but it felt unnecessary.’

Without exchanging any actual words, the duo made their way to the main desk where everyone was waiting.
Jihoon looked sheepish when he spoke, “I just realised none of us have issued library cards from this library.”

Soobin let out a dramatic sigh and Haeyoon face-palmed. Eunmi didn’t know how to react.

“I have a membership, guys,” Wonwoo spoke as though he was speaking to a group of toddlers, “I wouldn’t suggest coming here if I didn’t.”

The other four let out a collective sigh of relief. That at least, they had learnt to do as a team.
They stepped away from the desk and let Wonwoo talk to the librarian.
No one seemed to be in the mood for conversation. It was as if a dementor had their soul out of them.
Moments later, Wonwoo was handing them their books. They all sluggishly put their books in their backpacks before filing quietly into the corridor.

When the group finally stepped outside, each and every one of them took a deep breath of fresh air. They had been indoors for too long.
After taking a moment or two to soak up the late afternoon sun, they all headed out of the library compound.

Soobin had apparently gotten over the fact that he would not have Haeyoon all to himself. He lead the way to the restaurant quite cheerfully, in fact. Maybe his happiness had something to do with the fact that his girlfriend had linked their arms together.

The other three trailed behind the pair, their conversation not quite as happy as that of the couple in front.
Jihoon still seemed to need someone to vent to about Mr. Kang, so the other two listened. After a while though, his anger seemed to fizzle out and their conversation veered to more pleasant topics. Like the singer everyone loved who was about to release her first album in almost three years, the superhero movie that was currently in theatres, and the fact that it was basketball season.
Neither of the two boys played, they admitted, but they were avid supporters of their school team.
Everyone in Daeryun seemed to love their school, the students’ hatred mostly being directed towards the teachers.
Eunmi wondered if she would be able to develop the same kind of attachment to the place.

The three teenagers were forced to cut their conversation short when Soobin turned and announced that they had arrived.
The restaurant was tiny and tucked into a corner of a busy street.
Quickly, the group made their way inside.

A kindly middle-aged woman at the counter near the entrance smiled at them as they entered.
She seemed to know Soobin very well. When he asked her about ‘the usual table’ she gave them all a kind smile.
“I’ll always save a table for Soobin and his friends,” she said.
The said boy looked very pleased at those words and led the rest of the group up a flight of stairs with a satisfied grin on his face.

The upstairs area was basically a small loft which overlooked the entrance and the counter. There were only two tables in the small space, both empty. The space was obviously a lot more private than the crowded area downstairs.
The tables had four seats each so Wonwoo had to drag a chair over from the other table.
“Thanks for bringing us here,” he said to Soobin, “you guys must have wanted some time alone.”

At that moment, Jihoon, who had been reading the menu intently, looked up. His cheeks were tinged pink, eyes wide and his mouth was slightly open, as if he’d just had an epiphany. He let out a loud breath and shook his head.
“I’m sorry,” he breathed out, looking guilty. “I can’t believe I didn’t realise- I’m sorry for inviting myself.”

The couple exchanged a look, before turning to their friend.
“Oh my-!” Haeyoon started, “That’s not a problem, Jihoon.”

“Yeah, the food here too good to not share with others,” Soobin said, nodding vigorously.

“We’re fifth-wheeling here too,” Eunmi offered, shooting a look at Wonwoo, who nodded too.
The assurance from his friends seemed to make the boy feel better. He even smiled when Haeyoon said she was going to order half the menu all for herself.
After they placed their orders, the awkward tension seemed to dissipate.

One never notices the passing of time when one is enjoying it. The quintet found they had lost track of time for the second time that day, but for better reasons. With happy smiles, they went their separate ways, climbing onto their respective buses.

The sun glowed orange as it started its journey below the horizon.
Once again, Eunmi found herself alone with Jeon Wonwoo. The bus was almost empty. The laughter and chatter from before had faded. All that remained were small smiles on each of their faces.

The boy cleared his throat, making Eunmi look up at him. She almost gasped when she found him looking right at her. Having his eyes on her always made her nervous. His eyes were sharp and his gaze intimidating, she knew she wasn't the only one who sometimes found it hard to look him in the eyes.
Nothing had anything to do with that stupid prank of a letter.

“Did you have fun?” he asked, taking a glance at his watch and then coming right back to look her in the eyes.

“Fun?”

She must have looked funny, because he let out a laugh the moment he realised she had nothing more to say.
“My bad,” he chuckled, “five hours in a library is never fun.”

“No!” Eunmi found herself protesting. “I had fun after the library.”

“The food was good too,” the boy said with a nod.

“We should be glad about Jihoon's misunderstanding, I guess.”

“Yeah, he's great.”
Eunmi let out a little hum of agreement before, embarrassingly, opened up in a yawn that she had to struggle to cover. She apologized hastily.
Wonwoo just shrugged.
“I’m sleepy too,” he said, settling comfortably into the uncomfortable bus seat.“You can sleep if you want.”
With that he closed his eyes.

Eunmi gripped her backpack to her chest and closed her eyes with a sigh.
Her parents hadn’t called to ask when she’d be back. It didn’t matter though, she’d be home soon enough.

When the bus stopped, she immediately opened her eyes. She hadn’t fallen asleep, just been in a sort of limbo. That hazy state between dreams and reality that made you feel like you had been sleeping for a thousand years.
She sat up straight, hands flying to her hair to make sure she hadn’t been a sight to gawk at for other passengers.

“Good evening,” Wonwoo’s voice greeted her.

She looked up at him, slightly embarrassed.
“Let’s go.”
She hurried out of the bus.
She thought she heard Wonwoo chuckle as he followed behind her, but she was probably wrong. Wonwoo seemed to be more of a chuckle a day kind of a guy.

It was darker now after their thirty minute nap on the bus and neither of them left like striking up a conversation. Despite the fun they had had at the restaurant, the day had been quite draining. For the first time maybe, the silence between them wasn’t awkward.

Eunmi was busy looking around, trying to memorise the way back home from the bus stop when Wonwoo suddenly came, quite literally, to a screeching halt.
She stopped too and realised they were near the spot they were supposed to part ways.

“Oh, we’re here al-”
She stopped mid-sentence when she saw the look on Wonwoo’s face.
His eyes were a fraction wider than usual, fixed on a spot ahead of them, but he looked like the blood had drained out of his face. He looked like he had seen a ghost.

For some reason, her heart dropped when she saw him like that. She placed a hand on his arm. His muscles were clenched.
“What's wrong, Wonwoo?”
Her eyes travelled from his face to the spot his eyes were fixed on. There was no one there. A little farther, a man was walking in the direction of her neighbourhood.

When she looked back up at Wonwoo, his face was as impassive as usual.
“It's nothing. I just thought I saw some...thing.”
Eunmi, however, wasn't convinced.
“I should wear my glasses regularly,” he added with a chuckle.

Even if it was something, Wonwoo wouldn't tell her, she realised. With a single nod, she took her hand off his arm. He gave her a tiny smile and she had to smile back.
When they separated only a few steps later, she couldn't take her mind off the fact that he had seemed to be in too much of a hurry to go back home. A brief ‘bye’ and a wave, then he had rushed up the hill to his house.

Was that unusual? She didn't know. She didn't know him well enough.
She cursed under her breath as her mind drifted off to the words in the damned letter.
“He was always sitting there behind you looking like he wanted to tell you something.”
Why would he ever want to tell her about anything that was important to him?

Author's Note:
How long has it been since I updated?
Is anyone still interested?
Anyhoo...if you're reading this, I hope you're at home and safe.
Stay in, stay safe, guys!

xx Hoonie