Chaeyoung's POV 

Where is he?! 

 

I scanned the room but Junhoe was no where to be found. 

 

I felt a pair of hands grab onto me. 

 

"Hey beautiful, what are you doing?" 

 

I tried to escape his grip but he tightened it. 

 

"Let go." I said. 

 

"Come on. Don't be cold. Let me get your number? We can hook up sometime." The smirked. 

 

I was disgusted. Does he really think girls are into this? It's just creepy. 

 

Once again I tried pulling my arm away from his grip but he squeezed my arm harder, causing it to hurt. 

 

"I said let go of me!!" 

 

He pulled me closer to him and ran his other hand down my back. 

 

"STOP!" I shouted and tried pushing him away. 

 

A fist went flying across his face causing him to fall onto the ground. 

 

J-Junhoe...

 

I've never seen him do anything like this. He didn't like violence. 

 

He kept punching the man and it was beginning to worry me. 

 

"Junhoe!" 

 

He ignored me. 

 

I saw that everyone's eyes were on us.

 

Before I could do anything Hanbin came rushing in. 

 

"That's enough!" He grabbed Junhoe but was pushed away.

 

"Junhoe stop! That's enough!" Hanbin tried to hold him back but it seemed like he wasn't listening. 

 

I was beginning to worry. This was a whole different side of Junhoe. We've been friends for such a long time and this is the first time he has ever been this way. 

 

"Junhoe! Calm down! Please!" I cried. 

 

I was so scared for him. 

 

I couldn't stop the tears from flowing down my face. 

 

I hated violence. I couldn't watch it. I couldn't see Junhoe doing such a thing. The blood. The groans of pain...! It was too much. 

 

Junhoe finally stopped. He looked at me in fear. All I saw was a man. A lost man. Who was confused yet scared. 

 

~~~

 

Jennie brought me to her house. I didn't want to be alone tonight after what had happened. I was very worried about Junhoe. I hope he's okay.. 

 

"Here" Jennie handed me a cup of water. 

 

"Thank you.." I took a sip and placed it on the night stand. 

 

"We don't have to talk about what happened—"

 

"He assaulted me..." I said under my breath but loud enough for her to hear. 

 

"C-can I give you a hug?.." 

 

I nodded my head. 

 

Jen wrapped her arms around me and laid my head on her shoulder. 

 

"I'm so sorry Chae.. I'll find out who that bastard is and have him locked up! What a ing scum..!"

 

I began tearing up as she patted my back. 

 

“Thank you for always being there for me.. ever since I flew out to New Zealand.” 

 

“Of course.. you’re like a younger sister to me.” 

 

“You know, you don’t have to carry all the burden by yourself?. I know this whole CEO thing is a pain but I’m always here if you need to talk. Jen...” 

 

She always kept to herself and pretended to be strong. I envied her. I wish I looked as confident and bold as she does. But I’m too much of a softie for that. 

 

“I know.. it’s fine though.” She reassured. 

 

“Also, Hanbin texted and told me that Junhoe has calmed down. 

 

She’s close with Hanbin??

 

“Oh.. you and Hanbin talk?” 

 

Her cheeks began turning red.

 

“Ah! Well.. it’s a long story..” 

 

She lowered her head down. 

 

“If you don’t want to talk about it then that’s fine.” I smiled. 

 

“It’s not that I don’t... I— I actually need some help..” She looked uneasy and embarrassed. 

 

I smiled at her warmly. 

 

“I’m all ears” 

 

“Hanbin and I use to date?... sort of??? Well I was busy with work, school, and my parent’s company. So him and I kind of drifted apart.. but it was all my fault!” 

 

I listened intuitively. Trying to understand the whole situation so I could come up with the best solution. 

 

“How was it your fault?” I asked.

 

“I hid some things from him. I lied.. he was always so patient and kind towards me but I took that for granted. I... I think I might’ve lost the best thing that has ever happened to me. I know it’s been a few years but I’m not sure why I’m still holding onto him?.. I dated a few guys to try and forget Hanbin but my mind always traced back to him. I hurt him.. I’m so stupid. I never deserved him...” 

 

Jennie wiped away her tears and let out a little chuckle. 

 

“Well there’s the story of my stupidity..” 

 

I wrapped my arms around the crying brunette and smiled. 

 

“You’re not stupid Jennie. I’ll admit you are in the wrong for lying and hiding things but I’m sure you thought that was the best solution at the time. We’re only human. We make mistakes in order to learn. If you don’t mind, may I ask what you lied about and what you hid from him?..” 

 

She fixed her head on my shoulder and cleared . 

 

“I lied about being busy all the time... the truth is, I was trying to distance myself from falling in love with him.. before Hanbin and I met I had already planned to move to New Zealand for my studies. So I thought, by distancing myself and drowning myself in school and work. It’d be easier to let go... but it hurt, like hell. I have so many regrets.. I’m such a horrible person Chae..” 

 

Her sobs grew a little louder as she finished each sentence.

 

“It’s okay Jen. You messed up back then so now you have the chance to clear all that up. Free yourself from the guilt and regret. I’m sure Hanbin has been waiting to hear the reasoning behind all of this. I think he deserves to know the truth.. you also need to let go of the burden so you can breathe freely.” 

 

She looked at me and smiled. 

 

“Thank you so much for this.. I feel like the weight was lifted.” 

 

I smiled back. 

 

“Sometimes you gotta let people take care of you. You’ve taken care of me for so long, it’s my turn to return the favor.” 

 

We hugged each other and giggled. 

 

 

End of POV 

 

~~~

 

 

Junhoe stared at his bruised up fists. He couldn’t believe what he had just done. 

 

Hanbin handed him some ointment and a glass of water. 

 

“What happened?” Hanbin asked as he sat down. 

 

“That was assaulting Chae..” He began fiddling with his fingers. Not wanting to look up at Hanbin. 

 

“Dude. You did the right thing. Why are you so down?” 

 

“Hanbin” He said in a serious tone and looked up. 

 

“What?” 

 

“Promise me you won’t tell anyone.” 

 

“I promise.” 

 

“Chae grew up with an abusive dad.. every night he’d beat their mom. I-I shouldn’t have done that..” 

 

“Jennie told me that Chae is doing alright. She’s scared but she’s managing herself.” Hanbin replied. 

 

“That’s good..” 

 

Hanbin got up and patted him on the back. 

 

“Get some rest. A lot has happened tonight.” 

 

Junhoe nodded his head. 

 

~~~

 

Hanbin’s POV 

 

I noticed a familiar figure walking and realized it was Jennie. 

 

“Hey!” I called out and jogged towards her. 

 

“Hey.” 

 

“How’s Chae?” 

 

“She’s doing better. It was a little hard for her to sleep last night so she’s still in bed.” 

 

I noticed the eye bags and chuckled. 

 

“What’s so funny?” She retorted.

 

“You look tired.” 

 

“Whatever. How’s Junhoe?” 

 

“He’s fine. He called out today.” I replied. 

 

“I hope those two get better. Seriously.. last night was chaotic.” She said in a worried tone. 

 

“Did your mom say anything?..” I asked. 

 

Knowing her mom she’s bound to get an earful.

 

“Not yet. I’ve prepared myself though.” 

 

“Yah! Jennie! Do you know how embarrassing that was?!” I began mimicking. 

 

We both laughed and she playfully nudged me. 

 

“You’re dumb.” She folded a few strands of hair behind her ear. “Did your mom pack you that?” 

 

“No. This is for Seulgi.” 

 

“Oh...” She said in a low tone. 

 

“I actually learned how to cook.” 

 

“Hopefully she won’t die of saltiness” She joked. 

 

“I’m serious! I’m a good cook now!” I smiled. 

 

“Okay. Whatever you say.” 

 

“You still like tteokbokki?” I asked. 

 

“Absolutely.” 

 

“I’ll make you some. To prove it to you.” I said confidently.

 

“This is scary..” she joked.

 

“Come on, you don’t trust me?” 

 

“Last time I trusted you with cooking I almost died.” 

 

“Dramatic.” I playfully pushed her. 

 

“Woah!” She shouted. 

 

Due to my fast reflexes I grabbed onto her arm pulling her towards me before she could fall. 

 

We stayed like that for a little. My heart began doing somersaults.

 

Her sweet scent hit me and I was reminded of the times I use to hold her in my arms. It felt like she was the missing puzzle piece. She fit perfectly. 

 

I felt her hands on my chest which surprised me. 

 

“Stupid!” 

 

She pushed me away with all her strength. Causing me to fall on the ground. 

 

She stuck her tongue out and began running away. 

 

“Jennie!” 

 

“Yah!” 

 

I began chuckling and dusted myself off. 

 

A hand reached out to me. 

 

I looked up to see Seulgi. 

 

She looked different today. 

 

Ah.. 

 

She did her hair and applied some make up. 

 

I accepted her help and got up. 

 

“Woah. You scared me.” I teased. 

 

“Want to end up on the ground again?” She threatened. 

 

“I’m joking. You look good” I chuckled. “But what’s the occasion?” 

 

“Shh.. men shouldn’t speak.” She covered my mouth with her hands. 

 

“Oh! Is this the food you packed for me?” She grabbed the bag from my hands. “Is this poison?” 

 

I removed her hands from my mouth and smirked. “Find out.” 

 

“Thank you for the food. I’ll see you later.” She smiled and walked away. 

 

That’s a little weird. She seems different today? 

 

 

 End of POV 

 

~~~

 

Junhoe opened the door only to see Chaeyoung. 

 

“I-I was just about to knock.” The blonde said. 

 

“Come in.” Junhoe welcomed. 

 

They sat in the living room. 

 

Junhoe placed a cup of tea by the blonde and sat down. 

 

“Are you okay?”  They both said in sync. 

 

Junhoe chuckled and rubbed his nape. 

 

“How are you feeling?” 

 

He looked at Chaeyoung with worrisome. 

 

“I’m doing fine. Couldn’t really sleep last night but I’m okay..” she said while taking a sip of the tea. 

 

Junhoe couldn’t help but feel guilty. 

 

“I’m really sorry Chae..” 

 

“Why are you apologizing? You helped me. Thank you.” 

 

“Yeah but—“

 

“You. Saved. Me.” The blonde said sharply. 

 

Junhoe placed a bottle of melatonin pills on the coffee table. 

 

“I picked some up. In case you have trouble sleeping.. uh... I have my phone notifications on Incase you want to call me. I’ll annoy the hell out of you until you fall asleep.” Junhoe explained. 

 

Chaeyoung smiled widely. She was touched by Junhoe’s kindness. It meant a lot to her. The fact that he did all this. 

 

“Thank you Junhoe.” 

 

He smiled back at the blonde. 

 

She grabbed his hand and skimmed it. She noticed the bruises and wounds. 

 

“Yah! I knew you wouldn’t take care of this!” 

 

Chaeyoung took some ointment and a couple of bandaids out of her pocket. 

 

The lad moved his hand away. 

 

“It’s fine. Really.” 

 

The blonde glared at him and grabbed his hand. 

 

“Chae—“

 

“Gosh are you a kid?” She scolded as she applied some of the ointment onto the wounds. 

 

The blonde’s voice began to fade as Junhoe found himself staring. Chaeyoung has always been beautiful but he was surprised by how beautiful she looked this close up. Her eyes were so delicate and soft. Every glance was able to warm anyone up. Her nose was perfectly fit for her face. Not too flat. Not too sharp. Just perfect. Her cheeks were a little chubby and that’s where the nickname “Chipmunk” came from. Junhoe smiled to himself. 

 

His eyes lowered to her soft and natural pink lips. His heart began racing. He couldn’t understand why he felt this way or why he was admiring his best friends beauty. 

 

“Junhoe?” The blonde waved her hands. Snapping him back into reality. 

 

“Huh? Oh!? Thanks.” He quickly moved his hands and got up from the couch. 

 

“Jeez. Did you sleep last night? You’re so jumpy” 

 

“Y-yeah... It’s really hot in here? Is it hot?? It’s so hot!” Junhoe hurried towards the ac and turned it on. 

 

“It’s 60 degrees..” Chaeyoung raised a brow. Junhoe’s actions began confusing her. 

 

He looked at the thermostat and felt embarrassed. 

 

“Ah...” he chuckled. “I have to pick Sana up.” 

 

Chaeyoung’s smile faded. 

 

“Right..” she got up from the couch and grabbed her things.

 

“I’ll text you later?” Junhoe said. 

 

The blonde turned around and nodded her head. 

 

As soon as she closed the door Junhoe let out his breath. 

 

“What was that? Am I running up a fever?” He felt his face which was burning up. He slowly ran his hand down to his chest. He felt his heart beating like crazy and looked back at the door. 

 

 

~~~

 

 

Jennie’s POV

 

My mom barged into my room. 

She tossed some news articles in my face and let out a sigh. 

 

“How are you going to take care of this huh?!” She yelled. 

 

I rolled my eyes. 

 

Calm down Jen. Calm down. 

 

“I’ll apologize. Formally.” I said.

 

“That’s not good enough! Maybe if you didn’t have such hooligan friends! This wouldn’t have happened! Do you know how bad this makes the company look?!” 

 

I thought back to Hanbin’s mimicking of my mom and a small smile formed on my face. He wasn’t completely wrong. 

 

I faced my mom. 

 

“I’ll make a public apology. I’ll take accountability for this. But mom, please don’t speak about my friends that way.” I said.

 

She cleared . 

 

“Let me revise the apology beforehand.” 

 

She walked out of the room. 

 

God this is so annoying. 

 

I dropped my head onto the desk and let out a heavy sigh. 

 

I’m so tired of all this..

 

My phone buzzed. I grabbed it and saw that I received a text from Hanbin. 

 

He seems to always pop in at the bad times. 

 

“Has your mom said anything?” 

 

“Yeah. She gave me a piece of her mind.” 

 

“I’m sorry.. you feeling okay?” 

 

“Are you busy rn?” 

 

I waited for a couple of minutes. 

 

Hmm. He’s not like this? Usually he texts back really fast?

 

My phone buzzed and I immediately looked at it. 

 

“No.” 

 

“I need to relieve some stress. Want to bowl?” 

 

“Sure” 

 

I locked my phone and smiled. 

 

~~~

 

 

“Are you ready to lose?” Hanbin said as he began tying his shoes. 

 

I chuckled. 

 

“Let’s make a bet.” 

 

He raised a brow.

 

“What kind of bet?” 

 

“Loser has to grant the winner 3 wishes.” I said. 

 

He picked up a bowling ball and stuck his pinky out. 

 

“Deal.” 

 

I smiled and wrapped my pinky around his. 

 

~~~

 

He came back with some drinks and looked over my shoulders as I was typing my name. 

 

“Jen-“ 

 

He placed his hands above mine and erased my name. 

 

“Mandu” 

 

I sent him a death glare and punched his arm. 

 

“Oh yeah?!” I said and began aggressively typing. 

 

“Hanbinie.” 

 

I looked up at him to see that he was already looking at me. 

 

I haven’t been this close to him in so long. I swallowed thickly as my eyes fell down to his lips. 

 

“You’re up” he broke the moment and I quickly got up. Embarrassed by how long I was staring. 

 

God! What were you staring at!!?

 

I picked up the ball and let out a breath. 

 

You got this Jen. 

 

I extended my arm as I was getting closer to the limit line and let go of the ball. It rolled towards the middle and ended up knocking all the pins down. 

 

“STRIKE!” I shouted and walked back to the seats. 

 

“Good job.” Hanbin smiled. 

 

I watched as he rolled up his sleeves. He looked so attractive doing that. 

 

He picked up the ball and extended his arm. Letting go of the ball, only for it to fall into the gutter. 

 

I got second hand embarrassment but began chuckling as he looked back at me. 

 

“T-that was a warm up!” He defended. 

 

“Uh huh.” I smiled. 

 

He bowled and the ball ended up in the gutter again. 

 

He looked embarrassed but kept a wide smile on his face. 

 

“Warm up huh?” I teased. 

 

“I’m rusty. Plus you just got lucky” He said. 

 

~~~

 

It was our last bowl. I 289 had points. Almost a perfect score. Meanwhile Hanbin was stuck at 97. 

 

It was his turn to bowl. I felt bad so I walked up towards him. 

 

“Here.” I adjusted his arms. 

 

“Put are your arms like this. And when you bowl, you wanna make sure your posture is good.” I directed. 

 

I placed my hands on top of his as we gripped the ball and began demonstrating. 

 

“So when you get to this point, you want to let go.” I said.

 

He looked at me. 

 

“Is there something on my face?” I asked. 

 

I quickly realized the position we were in and moved away. 

 

“Try it”

 

I watched carefully as he followed every step of my instructions. We anxiously watched as the ball hit the first pin. Knocking all the pins down. Earning him his first strike. 

 

“Yay!!!” I shouted. 

 

“Woo hoo!” He cheered and wrapped his arms around me. 

 

Unknowingly, I wrapped my arms around him too. We both jumped up and down in excitement. 

 

We both stopped and looked at each other. 

 

His eyes pierced through me making me feel nervous. 

 

“Can you love birds keep it down?” A man argued. 

 

We separated from the hug and bowed at a 90 degree angle. 

 

“Sorry.” We said in sync and looked back at each other. 

 

“Good job!” I gave him a thumbs up. 

 

“Thanks to you” he smiled. “Are you busy?” 

 

“No. Why?” I asked.

 

“I want to take you somewhere.” 

 

“Lets go” I smiled.

 

 

~~~

 

“Woah...” 

 

I was at awe by the scenery. 

 

I stepped out of the car and inhaled the fresh air. You could see the whole city from up here. It was pretty. 

 

“Seoul looks so beautiful tonight.” I said.

 

“I use to come here a lot. After everything.” He said. 

 

I looked at him. 

 

“Hanbin..” 

 

He looked at me. 

 

“I haven’t been entirely honest with you...” 

 

“I know.” 

 

I was taken aback. 

 

“Y-you do?..” 

 

“I knew there was more to why you were being the way you were. It was confusing, why you’d suddenly act that way towards me.” He said. 

 

The atmosphere shifted so fast. We were back to this melodramatic feeling. 

 

“I’m so sorry Hanbin.. I did lie about being busy majority of the time. I lied about not wanting anything serious at the time. I didn’t want to fall harder for you.. knowing I was going to move to New Zealand... I thought it’d be easier that way. I thought I could forget you but it only brought me pain... I’m sorry.. you didn’t deserve all of this. You truly deserved better.” 

 

I felt anxious. A part of me felt so guilty and terrible while the other part of me felt relieved. I couldn’t live with those lies anymore. 

 

I couldn’t quite read his emotions. He didn’t really react. He seemed calmed. Not that I wanted him to react in any way but I thought this would be different. 

 

“You didn’t respect me enough to tell me the truth?.. I knew you lying but I waited to hear it come out of your mouth. I gave you the benefit of the doubt.”

 

My heart grew heavy at his words. 

 

“Jen.. I deluded myself into thinking you were just busy. I wanted to believe that. I told myself lies because I wanted you.. I wanted you so badly to point that it hurt. Waiting for you every single day?... while you were pushing me away?.. you never gave me a heads up about moving. You never told me anything. But I did. I told you everything because I thought that’s what we do..” 

 

I couldn’t hold back the tears. This was all too painful to hear. Every word jabbed into my heart. Breaking it to bits of pieces. 

 

This is what he must’ve felt.. 

 

“You hurt me so much.. I...I made excuses for your ty actions just because I didn’t want to believe what my friends were telling me. I wanted to see the good in you. I never understood you Jen.. I never understood why you did any of this?.. I’ve always been patient with you.. then months later I see that you’re dating?? Do you know how much that hurt?.. you told me I was your world but threw me away as if I was nothing? You replaced me so easily.. it felt like everything we had didn’t mean anything to you! It felt like all the words you said to me were meaningless. I told you my darkest secrets only for us to become strangers again?! You threw me away like I was nothing.. I could never forget that.. everything you say is just.. just meaningless now. You hurt me so much... I’ve become numb to everything.” 

 

I began sobbing and grabbed his hands. 

 

“H-Hanbin..... I-I’m so sorry... I’m so sorry...” 

 

He looked at me, tears filled his eyes but he wouldn’t let them escape. 

 

“I meant everything Hanbin.. I know I treated you coldly but I’ve always cared for you. You did mean the world to me. I liked you so much! I was so afraid..” 

 

He removed my hands from his. 

 

“I don’t want to be confused anymore. That day when you stopped talking to me. I made up my mind to never check up on you. I was so confused and lost. I felt so empty. I felt stupid because I couldn’t get over you. I grew to hate myself. I had sleepless nights. I...I never want to go through this again.. I can’t even wish heartbreak on you because I would never want anyone to experience such pain.” 

 

I swallowed thickly. The sobs grew heavier and heavier. I couldn’t stop crying. At this point I lost all my strength to hold everything in. I couldn’t say a word but cry. 

 

I deserved all of this.. I prepared myself and thought it wouldn’t be as bad but now that I’m hearing it... I feel so broken. I lost someone that meant everything to me and now I could never have him back..