[CONTENTID1] A Coward. [/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2] Instead of coming clean about everything, I ended up mincing some words. I still wasn’t honest. [/CONTENTID2]

[CONTENTID3]

I moved out, kept in touch with my parents more frequently, and still exchanged messages with Heechul and our friend group, although I was starting to pull away, bit by bit.

Then, someone new came into one of the places I was attending. She had me intrigued the moment we met eyes, and she flashed a cute smile.

Intrigued, yes, but it was nothing compared to the feeling I got when I realized that I was starting to see Heechul in a different light.

But who am I kidding? I’m here right now because I wasn’t supposed to think about Heechul. I chuckle bitterly to myself. I should just focus on what’s in front of me right now. This was my own decision anyway.

Through some type of miracle, Heechul had slowly slipped from my mind. I changed numbers, but I still have his socials name at the back of my mind.

A few more months had passed, and I finally decided to take another step forward. I wanted to try and give the new girl a shot. A rough plan was laid out pretty nicely; ask her out to dinner after the field day and then see if I get rejected or not. Whatever, something like that.

Ping!

My phone pinged with a new message for four consecutive times, I was in the middle of arranging an errand for our SC president and pulled the device out after placing down the box I was carrying onto the table.

“Geng hyung. You’re coming to Hee hyung’s birthday tomorrow, right?”

“You promised we’d make the cake this year too. We have schedules tomorrow, but we can make the cake, right? We can leave it as a surprise on his desk, or something!!!1!”

“Hyung? :(“

“Are you still… really busy?”

I stared at the message, wondering for a split second why it wasn’t Heechul that was spamming be about being beside him while blowing the birthday candle. Ah, right. I didn’t really tell him my new number now, did I?

Before I had the chance to think of what to reply, the door to the room had opened and our year level’s representative stepped in. “Ah, Han Geng. Good work. Thanks for taking care of that.”

We chatted for a bit more before he tilts his head and asks me something. “Are you alright? I haven’t been seeing you getting dragged to the engineering building lately.”

“Huh?”

“You have friends there, right? Did you fight or something?”

“It’s… not like that. I’ve just been swamped with schedules.” I laugh it off, rubbing the back of my head while another faint sound came from my phone.

“… Alright, I wasn’t planning to pry. I was just wondering since you were always lively with that group so I asked.” He stepped further into the room, to the long table in the middle of the room. “Thanks again for this one. See you around.”

I nod once. “I’ll see you around, Jungsoo hyung.”