"I already told you a million times. I don't have a crush on her..." I mumbled under my breath as I lowered my head. I tried my best to avoid eye contact with the two of them, and they both knew very well that I was lying.

Sitting inside the café was a calm and pleasant setting, although having a conversation with these two was the opposite. Jimin and Jaehee sit beside each other and are practically snuggling against one another. I sat on the opposite side of the table, like the third wheeler I am.

Jimin snorts. "It's been years, and you still haven't admitted your feelings towards her." I looked up and finally made eye contact with her. I glared into her soul, wanting to bury the girl five feet under the ground.

"I still don't understand how Soojin is so oblivious," Jaehee added. In all honesty, I also don't understand how Soojin is so oblivious to all of this either. I've been hinting at this for years, wanting her to figure it out and trying desperately to make things more evident and clear.

"Why don't you try confessing to her?" Jimin bluntly said, I looked over at her as I furrowed my eyebrows. "You don't think I've tried?" I sighed, placing my chin on my palm.

"Thanks for confirming my suspicions, you just indirectly admitted your feelings. Also, the hell you mean? You've barely even tried."

Jimin's right, I barely even tried. The times I do try, it doesn't go the way I want it to. It's always three situations: someone interrupts us, I can never get us alone or that I'm a coward and can't confess either way. Most of the time being the third option.

Still, there shouldn't be an excuse as to why I haven't mustered up the courage to confess to Soojin. I've been crushing on her for a while now, well maybe longer than that. Three years to be exact.

Our friend group has seven of us, and we've all been friends since middle school. Soojin didn't have many friends and sat alone most of the time, both in class and during lunch. After becoming friends with her, we all became practically glued to one another. The seven of us are inseparable.

I once caught Soojin dancing in front of the bathroom mirror during middle school. I was honestly surprised, she was really good at dancing and I even encourage her to show the others or try out for the dance club.

She was really shy and hesitant about showing her dance in front of the others. I remember telling her not to be shy because we were all friends and she was really good at dancing. After this incident, Soojin became more confident and even tried out for the dance club later in high school.

During freshman year, I started developing feelings for her. I don't really know how it happened, and this may seem a little cheesy but I felt something change when I saw her give the biggest smile.

『••✎••』

I was having a study session with Jimin and Hyewon, and I wasn't exactly doing well in class right now. I needed a little help in some subjects and as much as I don't want to admit it, Hyewon is smarter than me and Jimin is ambitious about her goals.

Although Hyewon is younger, I still needed help because I haven't been fully focused on school, and I don't want anything distracting me. Clearly I've been doing the opposite. Soojin has completely taken over my mind.

I didn't think it was possible for Soojin to have this much impact on me.

It's been a while since the three of us have studied together, especially since Jimin and Jaehee hit it off recently and Hyewon is spending a lot of time with Jihyo.

Jimin is helping me prepare for an upcoming test on Thursday, and she keeps flashing and waving colored coded cards in my face every five seconds. She kept talking about the formulas for algebra, but I could barely even register what she said. I was too busy getting distracted from the text message I just received.

Jinnie 💖:
hi ssong! i just wanted to check up on you because of how stressed you seem to be the last few days

"Soeun unnie?" Hyewon spoke up with confusion written all over her face. I looked at the text message one last time before finally looking up at the two of them. Jimin and I sat on top of the bed, while Hyewon sat on the floor, back against the bedside with her papers scattered everywhere. "Unnie, everything okay?"

"Huh? Uh, yeah... It's nothing bad," I spouted, looking down at my phone again to respond.

big upcoming test soon but im fine jinnie!

I stared at my text message for a second, pausing and contemplating whether or not I should send it.

Jinnie 💖:
don't stress you'll definitely ace it! 🥰

"Who are you texting?" Jimin asked, raising an eyebrow. I met her eyes for a second, should I lie? No, she probably already has an idea on who I'm texting by the way I'm talking and behaving.

"Uhh, It's Soojin... She's just checking up on me."

Jimin laid down on the bed, turning her body towards my direction. "Aww, your little girlfriend is so caring." I nodded smiling, "She's so cute..."