The next day, true enough, the news of Jennie and Joohyun’s marriage announcement were all over the news. Their names were not publicly announced but the merger of two companies and the marriage of CEOs’ daughters were mentioned. Seungwan stuffed her phone back in her pocket to avoid coming across the news anymore as she walks to the university.

Seungwan remembered the night before. She did not know where her words came from but somehow, it felt freeing. She knew how vague she came across to Joohyun that night. The girl seemed to not have any idea why she was acting that way. All the secrets were already messing with her head but she knew that one way or another, she had to at least talk to Joohyun. But not now.

“So I think we can go now on our separate ways, unnie. I really had a great three months with you…but if you need me as a friend, I’m always here,”

“Can we talk about this more, Seungwan?”

“What’s there to talk about, Joohyun unnie? We had a deal and we reached the end of it. Simple. You held your end of the bargain, and I held mine,”

“But why are you saying things like this is a goodbye,“

“Unnie, I’m just saying that our deal is over. You’re getting married soon, with your ex at that but it doesn’t mean we’ll stop being friends, you know.”

Seungwan didn’t have the right to accuse Joohyun of not being honest with her when in fact, she was too. Joohyun did not have any idea about the arranged marriage that her parents set-up with Chanyeol.

“But mine’s different though,” she reasoned to herself. “He’s not my ex nor have any intention to get married to him,”

“Wendy!” A shout stopped Seungwan from her musing.

She turned around and saw the tall girl, who looked like she came out of a runway again, running towards her “Joy,”

“Unnie! You said you’d call me when you get home,” the girl cutely whined as she crossed her arms in fake anger.

Seungwan chuckled at that. “Oh crap. I forgot. When I entered my unit, I immediately fell asleep. But anyways, I got home fine,”

“It’s okay, I knew you were okay,” the girl mumbled.

Seungwan scrunched her eyebrows, “What do you mean?”

The girl quickly looked at her watch and exclaimed, “Oops! I think we’re getting late, let’s just run, unnie!”

“Wha—“ she didn’t even get to finish her sentence when the girl immediately dragged her to run for eight blocks.

When they arrived at the university gate, Seungwan swore she can almost see the heavens due to exhaustion.

“Yah!” Seungwan breathed heavily as her hands fell on her knees. “I think I just had my workout for the whole month!”

Joy grabbed a bottle of water from her bag and offered it to the girl. “You’re so out of shape, unnie. That was like a cake walk,”

Seungwan glanced at the other girl and true enough, it looked like a cake walk for Joy, which was totally opposite of her who’s about to die in any seconds. The tall girl was not sweating nor breathing heavily. Oh my gods. How can she do that?

“How could you—“

She was not able to finished her sentence as the girl suddenly dragged her again inside the university and put an arm around her.

“Can you please stop dragging me?”

Joy clicked her tongue and shook her head. “But that’s no fun. Anyways, want to go for ice cream later?”

Seungwan hummed at the question.

“Joohyun unnie won’t be there. Just you, me, Mark, and Rosé from our class,”

“I didn’t ask,” Seungwan grumbled,

Joy shrugged her shoulders, feigning ignorance, “I just shared, which by the way, you should, too.”

Seungwan knew that Joy already had an idea about her feelings for the older. Her sudden disappearance yesterday might have added to the girl’s thought as well.

In a sudden bout of confidence, she let out the words that have been eating her inside since then, “I like Joohyun,”

“I know,” Joy replied nonchalantly.

Seungwan shook her head and explained, “No, I mean, like really like her,”

Joy playfully messed Seungwan’s hair, “I know, you ,”

Seungwan’s mouth went agape at that. “Yah!”

“You’re not very subtle with your looks and actions, unnie,” the younger explained as they walk inside the hallways of their building.

“But you’re good for her, unnie. Did you know that? And from what I’ve been noticing for the past few weeks, I think she’s good for you, too. You’ve been happier and --”

“--But I’m sure you’ve already heard the news,”

Joy let out a big sigh, “Ahhhh, I did. Did you know I was walking on egg shells today. I was so afraid to bring up that topic. Joohyun unnie told us last night. Look, from what I’m seeing, you two should just really talk it out. There are a lot of things you guys should clear up. Frankly, I just want to lock you both up in a room,”

Seungwan nodded, “I will. But not anytime soon. I can’t just really talk to her now or else I might do something I will regret,”

“Why would you regret something if it will make you happy?”

“I’m just afraid is all,”

“Afraid of?”

“Afraid that she’s not feeling the same,”

Joy stopped and looked at her unnie seriously, “You know, Wendy unnie. It’s not true that some things are better left unsaid because sometimes…you just have to let it all out without caring whether it will hurt you or not.”

___

It was inevitable that the news of their break-up and Joohyun’s marriage reached the campus’ gossips. There were a few students who consoled her in classes and hallways but Seungwan readied her script of “It just didn’t work out,” a smile and a sad shoulder shrug. But for Joohyun, it was different. No one in the university dared to ask her about what happened. The student body knew better than to ask.

A week had passed and Joohyun thought that Seungwan tried really hard not to come across her in the university. She still hanged out with Joy and Seulgi but passed up on opportunities that would let her see her. It was always funny when Joy makes up some lame excuses for her but Joohyun knew better. Although there were a few close calls where she almost saw the annoying hamster.

1.

Joohyun saw Seungwan coming out of the classroom once  with her friends. But as soon as the younger glanced at the end of the hallway, where Joohyun was, the hamster ran back inside the room.

“It doesn’t mean we’ll top being friends, my ,” Joohyun mumbles to herself as she saw how Seungwan purposely ran when she saw her at hallway.

“Something wrong?” one of the members for school paper asked her.

“No, I just saw a roach ran away,” the older grumbled as she heads to the editor’s room.

2.

The older was looking for a spot in the library with her debate team to discuss their next strategy for the next competition. It was afternoon so there were only few people in the library. They settled on a long table, adjacent to a table with a sleeping girl whose only visible feature was her hair.

Joohyun almost snorted. She knew the owner of that coconut hair.

The debate team started to discuss their plans and strategies when the girl from the adj