Park Jihyo’s Point of View

“I swear to god, Daniel if you don’t hurry up.” I warn Daniel, I obviously wanted to sound serious because if I don’t then the boy would just be damn slow. He looked up at me, he gave me a cute smile. He’s trying to tie his shoes, but he’s so damn slow!

“Please be patient, love. The ability to tie shoes is very important.” He laughed as he finished looping his laces. He gave me this gummy smile, his eyes disappeared and then I knew, I forgive the boy. 

“Important to what, exactly?” I asked him, I was tired. I had no time for his petty excuses. I swear to god if I had no feelings for the boy I would’ve left him a long time ago. He just smiled and put his arm around me. He’s very tall, he towered over me, I felt his heavy arms and I gave him a dirty look. He just smiled as he kissed the top of my head. 

“You smell good, shorty. What are we up to today?” He asks me, he’s looking at me with those gorgeous eyes. I just shrug.

“Dude, I was only going to buy ingredients for Jeong’s birthday.” I tell him unenthusiastically. He didn’t have to come to my place honestly. But he kept on insisting that we should go do the shopping together, it didn’t make sense. 

“Dude? Who the hell is dude?” He had this disappointed look on his face as we walked to the nearest shop where ingredients would be available. 

“What is it this time, Kang Daniel?” I asked him, I was pretending to be annoyed to see how he’d react. He just pouted.

“I am not dude. You don’t get to call me dude. I am baby. Call me baby, Park Jihyo, or else.” he tried his best to look like he was threatening me but he ultimately failed to do so. I just playfully roll my eyes at him. 

“Or else what?” I gave him this playful gaze and he turned red instantly. I just chuckle at the sight of Kang Daniel instantly turning tomato. 

“Nothing!” he just shrugged and rolled his eyes at me. I chuckle at the sight because he looked really sassy. I just reached for his hand instead and held it. “Besides, I missed you. I haven’t seen you in a while.” He muttered under his breath.

“Okay, okay. I understand your point sir.” I tell him. He seemed content with the idea that we go to a shop together and buy ingredients for Jeong’s birthday. I mean, it’s not much but I appreciate that he’s like this. 

“Sir?” He asked me, he seemed annoyed.

“I understand your point, babe.” I corrected myself and reached for his cheeks to give him a kiss. He smiled a wide smile. Goddamit, I can’t believe that I’m dating a big baby.

“Oh, anyway. How’s the situation with Nayeon?” He asked me as we both entered the supermarket, grabbing a basket on our way inside. “Is one enough, babe?” He asked.

“Ah, I think we’ll need two but let’s worry about that later.” I replied. I mean, I know the ingredients won’t fit in one basket but we’ll see. He stared at me as if waiting for my answer about the Nayeon situation. “Not much information about Nayeon, she hasn’t really contacted us since we left her there.” I replied. I’m honestly sad that Nayeon somehow cut all ties with us, but it’s for the best. 

“Wouldn’t she miss you guys or something?” He asked as we walked the aisle for Vegetables. I just stared at him, I honestly don’t know how she’s doing right now. He motioned me if he should grab some spring onions and I just nod. 

“Oh, I do not know. Jeongyeon visited her yesterday though. Girly literally came back at the crack of dawn.” I  chuckled. 

“Oh, so Jeongie at least visited her. That’s good babe, Nayeon must feel really alone over there.” He sighed as he reached for a pack of carrots. He held it up, asking me if he should put it in. I just nod. 

“Hold up, Jeongie? You call her Jeongie?” I try to hold back my laughter. He just stared at me like I’m some kind of a joke.

“She’s my bro, we play video games when I come over. You’re just jealous we’re friends!” He sticks his tongue out and I roll my eyes at him. I can’t believe I’m dating a big sassy baby. Who would've thought Kang Daniel, a heartthrob in the Engineering department in Yonsei University would turn out like this? I didn’t. 

“Whatever. Can you grab two packs of bacon, please?” I ask him as I tick items off of our checklist. He obliged and we continued shopping for ingredients. 

Buying the ingredients didn’t take that long, we both were in and out of there within thirty minutes? It’s actually quite nice the boy volunteered to come with me during shopping. He’s currently carrying the bags, I mean, he’s obviously quite strong plus we didn’t buy that much.

But I just feel bad letting him carry all this stuff.

“Tsk, I told you we should’ve just used my car.” I tell him, I feel sorry looking at him carrying all that stuff. “Come on, gimme the lighter one. I’ll help you carry.” I tell him as I motion for him to give it to me. 

“Here you go.” He hands me the lighter one, I smile because he doesn’t hesitate. “Plus, using your car would be a total waste. We’re like twenty minutes away from your dorm.” He insists, and I just stare at him. 

“A twenty-minute walk is still a twenty-minute walk, Kang Daniel.” I tell him while we were on our way back to the dorm. He just shrugs and we continue to walk. I mean, this man is insufferable but whatever, he’s my boyfriend so I’ll just have to bear with his stubbornness. 

“Babe, I’m kind of thirsty.” He starts complaining not more than five minutes into our walk. I just stared at him, annoyed this time. He just pouted and gave me this stare. “I can’t control it, babe. It’s not my fault my throat’s a little dry!” He defends himself, I just stare at him. This guy is taking so much time. 

“Here you go. Buy yourself some water over there.” I hand him the money and point at the convenience store which is steps away. He just smiled and he gladly took the money. “You’re going to help me prepare the food, I swear to god.” I warn him but he just happily strides inside the store. 

No more than two minutes later, he came out of the store with the most confused look on his face. With a half-full water bottle in his hand, he walked towards me. He seemed to be quite confused. 

“Want some water?” He asked me, still all confused. I stared at him and asked him what’s up and he just looked at me and looked back at the convenience store with all the confused pointing.

“What is it?” I ask him. 

“Well, you know your friend Sana?” He asked me, Daniel looked a little dumbfounded. 

“Of course I know Sana. What are you talking about, Dani?” I asked him, he just stared at me blankly. 

“So she works there, huh?” He asked me. I just stare at him. What is he talking about? Sana is supposed to be at school right now. I just stare at him, dumbfounded. He stared at me too and that’s when he realized I did not know any of this. “Holy ! Maybe that’s why she looked shocked when I greeted her! And you didn’t know about this?” He asked me and I just stared at him some more. 

“Can you please show me?” I asked him nicely. With grocery in our hands, Daniel guides me to the convenience store. At first I didn’t want to just barge in the convenience store since this might shock her. So me and Dani just kept a good amount of distance where we can just see her. 

“Baby, are you sure you don’t want to go inside?” He asked me. 

“No, babe. There must be a reason why she kept all of this to herself.” I tell him honestly. He just stared at me and I knew he understood what I meant. Dani and I looked stupid because we were hiding behind a bush. 

After the whole shebang with Sana, Daniel and I decided that it was best if we just go back to my apartment and prepare for Jeongyeon’s Mini Celebration. At first the brat wanted to play video games with Jeong in the living room. But I reminded him of his promise that he'd help me cook.

Preparing the food wasn’t that bad since the girls from the other dorm came over to help. Tzuyu, Chaeyoung, and Mina were nice enough to help me. That's why Daniel was able to play video games with Jeogyeon and Momo. It didn’t really take long before we were able to finish preparing everything. At around eight in the evening, everything was set, even the drinks. 

“To my bro, I wish you all the best and I hope you find true happiness.” Greets Daniel as he pours the birthday girl a toast. Everyone applauds and we all sing Jeongyeon a happy birthday, Momo swoops in to put a silly birthday hat on Jeong. 

“Ah, you look so much better with a hat!” Momo chuckles as she starts to grab a plate. She starts filling her plate with food together with everyone. Everyone was loud and just generally happy. It was nice, even Daniel is here. The boy is enjoying spending time with me even though he can’t be alone with me at the moment. 

“Hello everyone!” Sana greets us as she arrives. She’s the one to arrive last, and everyone just invites her to sit down and eat. “Wow, Happy birthday Jeongyeon! Thank you for the food!” greets Sana as she grabs her own plate. 

“Don’t thank me, thank Jihyo and Dani. They did the grocery.” Replies Joeng as she shoves food inside , she seemed weirdly enthusiastic but still, I know that Nayeon not being here is something that is bugging her. “Besides, I didn’t really want to celebrate this year but these brats were insistent.” She chuckles and I knew what she meant by that. 

“Yah, Jeongyeon unnie. I know you’re enjoying this, you don’t have to deny it!” Chaeyoung chuckles as she shoves more food in . She made a big mess by getting Kimchi juice on her shirt. Mina notices this and the kind girl hands Chaeyoung some tissues. 

“Happy birthday, pabo. I hope you enjoyed your day.” I tell Jeongyeon as I scoot over to her and give her the biggest hug. Jeongyeon seemed a little down, but I can’t blame her. Having to celebrate her birthday with us being incomplete is something to be a little upset about. 

Jeongyeon and Nayeon have known each other the longest. The both of them go way back, I mean both of them are the oldest anyway so that makes sense. They even attended the same high school together. Everything that’s happening lately is taking a toll on us. Everyone has been tired, wary, and just overall unmotivated to do anything. I understand them, completely. 

“I know things have been difficult lately.” Out of nowhere, Dahyun spoke. I haven’t really heard her talk the whole night. She just helped me prepare all the things but she seemed uninterested with interacting so we just let her be. She sounded serious. 

“It has been difficult, things haven’t been well.” Replies Sana, we all turn our gaze to her. I noticed that her usual upbeat self wasn’t present. She seemed beat, just overall tired. She sounded down. 

“Well, that is true.” Replies Tzuyu softly, she seemed to be careful with whatever she had to say. Everyone just stared, we all seem to be calculating what to say. I just stare at them, I feel so helpless because I couldn’t do anything about the situation. 

“I know I haven’t formally said anything about any of what's happening.” Says Chaeyoung out of nowhere. I stare at her, feeling sorry because it did seem like she’s been blaming herself for the whole situation. “I just want to say I am sorry. If it wasn’t for me, none of this would’ve happened.” She looked down, she sounded really beaten. I just sigh, my heart breaks for the little girl. None of this is any of her fault. 

“Chaeng-ah, nobody wanted for any of this to happen. That jerk would’ve figured out another way to know our address. None of this is your fault, okay? Please don’t think that way.” Says Momo softly as she pats Chaeyoung’s head. 

“I know, I just wish I could do something.” Chaeyoung replies. 

“Stay inside the dormitory and never leave the dorm alone. That’s the best thing you could do right now.” replies Mina sternly. We all look at her, she has a point. She’s right. We all need to huddle up and be together. 

“I just Nayeon unnie.” Says Sana. She looked down, she seemed really stressed. Everyone just stared. We all miss Nayeon unnie. None of this should happen. 

“I miss her too, Sana. I miss her too.” Replies Jeongyeon, I feel her reach for my hand. She wants me to hold her hand, so I held her hand. This is the least that I could do for her. 

“Anyway, we have Dani here. I feel safer that your boyfriend is here, Jihyo .” Says Momo jokingly. I see some of us smile, which was a good sign. 

“At your service, ladies.” He smiles and he does this salute sign. “I’ll be ready to beat that up if I catch him.” He says this seriously, and I just had to look at him and smile. I mean, who could ask for more. 

“This may sound lame but, I just wish I could rewind things.” Says Dahyun, she sounded serious. She doesn’t look up though, she’s just staring at the floor. “I just wish I could do things right.” She replies. 

“I miss Nayeon unnie.” Declares Mina. 

The dormitory has become really silent. I prepared a birthday party for Jeongyeon so that we all could gather and just have a nice time together. But I guess, it’s too much to ask for things to become normal just for a short while. I just sigh, I feel my heart become increasingly heavy. Everyone was silent, nobody dared to speak. All of a sudden, we hear our doorknob juggling. We all lift our head up and stare at each other. 

“What the hell is that?” Asks someone, I do not know who because I was also taken aback by the doorknob jiggling. 

“It’s ten in the evening, who the hell could it be?” Asks Daniel. He seemed irritated. He’s become very protective lately. 

“Momo, did you invite your boyfriend over?” Mina asks Momo. Momo just stared at Mina and shrugged. 

“I uh, no. What are you talking about? I don’t got no boyfriend.” Says Momo directly. She looked around and stared at Daniel. “Dani, you should go check it. We’ll be right behind you.” She raises her idea.

“Babe, you got those peephole thingies. Right?” He looked at me and I shook my head. We don’t have those. But he just shook his head and stood up, we walked slowly towards the door while everyone followed behind him. When we got to the door, he stared back at us for a while. “Don’t you guys want to call the police?” He asked, he seemed a little shaken. 

Just before he was about to open the door, we heard a familiar voice.

“Goddamit, I swear to god these women are purposely trying to ignore me.” Says the voice. All our ears perked up and not more than a second later everyone raced to the door, trying to open it themselves. Poor Daniel was just kicked out of their way.  Finally, Jeongyeon got a hold of the doorknob and finally opened the door. 

“Nayeon unnie!” Momo calls out to her.

“What took you amateurs so long to open this damn door?” Nayeon says this as if she was annoyed, but I see it in her face that she’s trying to hide her smile. Jeong just stood there, but everyone else including me hurried towards Nayeon, hugging her and asking her how she’s been. It felt as if we haven’t seen the girl in years, some were crying and because of that, even Nayeon started crying. 

THIRD PERSON’S POINT OF VIEW

The night started off glum, because of one person missing in their friend group, everyone seemed to have become really withdrawn. But the moment Im Nayeon showed up on their doorstep, it’s as if color has been brought back to their dormitory. It was like this joy that they couldn’t believe was happening, it’s as if they were dreaming. 

“Nayeon unnie!” Cried Sana, she hurriedly ran to Nayeon and gave the girl the biggest hug she’s given. “I can’t believe it’s you.” Whispers Sana as she playfully touches the girl to make sure what she’s seeing is the real thing. Nayeon smiled at the sight. 

“Quit hogging her, I missed her too.” Declares Momo as she tries to Shoo Sana off of Nayeon. Everyone chuckled, but it can be felt that everyone was emotional at the same time. 

“Shut up Hirai, I wasn’t able to say good bye. We woke up and were just informed she went away.” Pouts Sana, tears welling up inside her eyes. 

It was true, no one in Im Nayeon’s dorm knew she would leave for the countryside the next day. It was as if the decision was made for her. The ones who knew and planned about Nayeon’s getaway were Jihyo and Jeongyeon. It only happened that Momo also insisted on going with them. 

“Hey, you three. Aren’t you guys going to hug me?” Asks Nayeon to her three remaining roommates. Mina, Chaeyoung, and Tzuyu just stared for a while until the three of them slowly walked towards the girl. Chaeyoung and Mina hugged the oldest girl at the same time. “Unnie is very sorry for not saying anything. I never knew it would go this far. I’m so sorry for leaving you guys.” Nayeon huffed, she seemed really sad about going away.

“It’s okay unnie, I know it’s been very difficult for you lately.” Says Mina as she gives Nayeon another hug. Nayeon hugged her back too.

“I missed you so much, don’t you know that? You didn’t even call.” Adds Chaeyoung as she goes in for another hug. 

“I’m so sorry. Unnie just wasn’t feeling well.” replies Nayeon as she hugged the girl.

“Don’t you know how much our dormitory felt empty?” Asks Tzuyu. Everyone stared at her, nobody expected her to say anything because everyone thought she’s not that emotional. But the truth is, Tzuyu is just like everyone. She’s human too and she feels things. She missed her older sister, tears welled up in her eyes. 

“Come here and hug me then!” Exclaimed Nayeon and everyone laughed. Tzuzyu walked slowly over to her older sister and the taller girl just melted in her unnie’s arms. Everyone just watched, with big smiles on their faces.

“I thought you’d never come back.” Sighs Tzuyu, she seemed really sad when she said this.

“You big baby, of course, I will come back. No stupid guy can come between our bond. We’re a family here and families stick together.” Says Nayeon assuringly as she hugged their youngest tighter. 

The night went on without a hitch. Of course, they invited Nayeon inside to eat. They all talked as if there was no tomorrow. It’s as if they haven’t seen the girl for years. Later that night, as a means of celebration they all decide to grab some drinks. They haven’t seen their eldest sister in more than a month plus it was Jeong’s birthday, they all think it was worth it to celebrate. 

As everyone drank and gathered around, Park Jihyo only had one thing in her mind. And that’s Sana. Ever since her boyfriend Daniel discovered the thing with Sana, Jihyo wasn’t able to properly concentrate during the day. The girl had tons of questions inside her head. Park Jihyo was wondering why Sana didn’t tell her anything. 

Park Jihyo knew that Minatozaki Sana came from a well off family and working at a convenience store isn’t an option for the girl. She knew that Sana Minatozaki isn’t the type to make such brash decisions in her life, she knew that something was going on and Park Jihyo wanted to get at the bottom of this. 

Jihyo can see Sana currently talking to Nayeon. Nayeon as of the moment wasn’t alone, everyone huddled over her. There was Chaeyoung, Mina, Momo, and Tzuyu. Dahyun and Jeongyeon on the other hand were with Daniel, playing video games. 

“Hey, baby.” Jihyo whispers to Daniel. Daniel just nods because he can’t take his eyes off the game. Jihyo understood this so the girl leaned in and whispered. “I have to go somewhere, don’t come looking for me. Okay?” Says Jihyo and the boy just nods. 

“Is that like a code for something?” Asks Dahyun who wasn’t playing but just observing. Jihyo stared at the girl weirdly, as if giving the girl a warning. 

“Shut up, Dahyun-ah.” Laughs Jeongyeon as she pauses the game. “You say anything that comes to mind, I swear. Anyway, Here you go. I have to go and join the others.” Jeongyeon hands Dahyun the controller. Jeongyeon wants to go and chat with the other girls. 

“Perfect. Come with me then, I’ll be heading over there anyway.” Says Jihyo. They walked over and they were greeted by the other girls. Jeongyeon just somehow blended in. Jihyo however, had other plans. 

Jihyo tugged on Sana’s shirt and smiled at the girl. At first Sana just stared. “Minatozaki, want to go outside and chat?” Asks Jihyo, Sana just stared but the Shiba-inu knew what was going on. Jihyo then grabbed two bottles of Soju as a social lubricant, so that things wouldn’t get so awkward between them. Jihyo’s dormitory had chairs outside where people could talk, it was perfect.

“So, what’s up?” Asks Sana in a calm manner. Jihyo just smiled at her as she popped the firs soju bottle open. Sana stared at the soju bottle and smiled. “I don’t think I would be able to converse with you properly if I drink.” chuckles Sana. 

“Fine, I’ll drink this straight out of the bottle then.” Chuckles Jihyo as she took her first glug. Sana just stared at the girl and chuckled a bit. The night was quiet, the stars were out, and the air was cold. “I just feel like we haven’t really had a nice talk in a while.” Chuckles Jihyo. 

“Well, you know.” Shrugs Sana, the girl was at loss for words. She couldn’t really explain why she hasn’t really reached out to Jihyo sooner. Sana has always viewed Jihyo as someone who she could trust. Even though Jihyo was clearly younger, the girl was oozing out with Wisdom. Sana just felt safe around the girl. 

“Are things going okay with you?” asked Jihyo, she sat down comfortably. Jihyo was trying to make Sana feel at home, this way the girl would actually open up. 

“Jisoo-ah, I just feel like everything is falling apart.” Confessed the taller girl. 

Jihyo has always known that if Sana addresses her in her birth name, there really was something going on. Jihyo just stared at Sana, she felt how broken the girl was at the moment. Jihyo wanted to know but she didn’t want to push further. 

“Anything in particular you want to open up to me?” Asked Jihyo. 

“Just one thing.” Says Sana. 

Jihyo knew it wasn’t only one thing Sana was experiencing but it was fine. As long as the girl had an outlet, that was enough for her. Jihyo nodded as a go signal for Sana to talk. Sana had this desperate look in her eyes that Jihyo was always familiar with. 

“I’ve dropped out for this semester.” Confessed Sana. Jihyo was obviously taken aback, she just felt she needed to take a swig at her soju bottle. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing but she didn’t want to overreact. Overreacting might drive Sana away. 

“You dropped out of Medical school?” Asked Jihyo again, it’s because she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Sana stared and just nodded. What the girl confessed now connects all the dots. Jihyo now has some answers as to why they mysteriously see Sana working at a convenience store. “We both know it wasn’t your choice to become a doctor.” Says Jihyo calmly. 

“Exactly. That’s why I dropped off.” Sana says this as if what she did was reasonable. For Jihyo who has always been goal-driven, she thinks what Sana did was not good.

“You’re in your first semester, third year of pre-med, Minatozaki.” Jihyo said this as if her life depended on it. Sana just stared down at her feet when she heard Jihyo’s commanding voice. 

“I know.But this isn’t what I want, Jihyo.” Sana says this, tears instantly streamed down her face. 

“Do your parents still send you an allowance?” Jihyo asked this. 

“Yes.” Shame can be felt in Sana’s voice. Jihyo couldn’t believe what she was hearing. 

“At least tell your parents that you’ve stopped going to school.  Tell them that at least.” Says Jihyo, she was disappointed. She couldn’t help it, she thinks Sana was acting like a kid. Jihyo knew that Sana needed some scolding.

“I’ve started working, Jihyo. When I earn enough, I’ll tell them. I just need to ---” Jihyo cut Sana off. 

“And what? Work as a cashier forever?” Asked Jihyo. Sana stared at her, this was not the response Sana hoped that she’d get. Jihyo stared at the girl, she couldn’t help but just be annoyed. “What do you want to be then? Tell me.” Asks Jihyo. Sana just stared at her.

“I don’t know.” Replies Sana. Jihyo couldn’t believe what she just heard. 

“Sana, sometimes it’s not just about you. Your parents just want the best for you. I know you want to hear something encouraging from me. But I’m being realistic. Just finish the degree and give them the diploma. That’s it. After that, you can do whatever you want.” Says Jihyo. Sana stared at her and that was when she knew and understood that Jihyo was right.

“But I’m a semester late now.” Says Sana. 

“Work until the next enrollment. Make a believable excuse.” Says Jihyo as she took another swig. Sana just stared at her. Sana wanted to say more but there were problems that are meant to be kept private.

Sana knew that what really bothers her is her problem with Kim Dahyun.

Inside the dormitory, everyone did their own thing. Dahyun and Daniel were having fun playing their video game, unaware that both their significant others are having an important conversation. Both of them just played and enjoyed their time. 

At the other end of the room were the girls, they still surrounded Nayeon. They couldn’t help it, they missed her. 

“So, what was it like? Living near the beach for that much time?” Asked Momo, she was very curious. Nayeon smiled, she thinks the question was very cute.

“It helped me calm down, for sure. But I missed your pathetic asses so I just really had to come back.” Replies Nayeon. 

“Was there no signal over there?” Asked Tzuyu, she is still sour about the fact that her Unnie didn’t call them even once. Nayeon chuckled and explained that she just needed to be alone and that meant she didn’t use her phone that often. While everyone asked Nayeon all these questions, Jeongyeon just sat there. She didn’t say anything, she just smiled and stared at Nayeon. She couldn’t believe her eyes. She can’t believe she’s back. 

Nayeon noticed that Joengyeon just kept staring, she didn’t call the girl out though. She knew what that meant, she just acted as if she’s not seeing anything. Even Nayeon can’t believe that what drove her to come back to Seoul is Jeongyeon. She knew the moment their lips touched last night that she’d have to come back to Seoul. Immediately.

Son Chaeyoung on the other hand stared and listened to everything. She was more of an observer. “It’s good that you’re back, Nayeon unnie.” Says Mina, her voice all shy and low.

“I’m happy to be back. Come here, Mitang.” Says Nayeon as she grabbed the girl for a hug. Mina sunk in Nayeon’s arms without failing, it looked natural. When their hug broke off, Mina sat beside her unnie. This time, Mina was blushing but no one really paid that much attention. Except for Son Chaeyoung. 

Son Chaeyoung stared at Mina, not sure what just happened. And then it all became clear to the girl. If all of this happened before Mina told her she also liked girls, Chaeyoung would’ve just let it pass. But no, she’s noticed a lot of things about Mina. She noticed how Mina acts around Nayeon. Chaeyoung just stared at how Myoui Mina looked at Nayeon lovingly. Mina’s eyes were bright, she looked at Nayeon as if she was the best thing in the world. 

Chaeyoung didn’t want to believe it at first but then she remembered that one time when Mina immediately let her go when she saw Nayeon. Chaeyoung felt her heart sink, she knew it wasn’t fair for her to think like this. But somehow, deep inside her, Son Chaeyoung suspects that Myoui Mina sees Im Nayeon more than just an older sister.