Note:  Another lenghty chapter. TWs apply for the one in Chapter 8. I know there are some things I wrote here that are inaccurate and I'm really sorry about that. I tried my best to do my research.  Apologies again for any mistakes and enjoy! The good parts are coming, I promise.

Chapter 10: Betelgeuse

Since that night, Mina hasn't been the same. She couldn’t concentrate on her classes, and she totally forgot to study for that test she desperately wanted to study for. But because of the events that happened with Chaeyoung, she was a walking catastrophe.

She also mustered the courage to tell Sana, Dahyun and Jihyo about her feelings for Chaeyoung and what happened between them.

The friends never faltered when it came to comforting Mina. There were more visits in her apartment now. Nayeon would always try her best to cheer up Mina by making them talk about anything that could get her mind off of things. Sana and Dahyun would constantly visit her after her class and take her out to eat and Jihyo would accompany her in talking about their lessons and helping out with projects and on occasion she would be there for Mina when no one was available. Mina’s heart was full of the kind of dynamic her friends shared; they were the best support group.

Though, there were moments where she would spot Momo or Jeongyeon in the hallways and she would hide from them, hoping to not see the one person her heart was looking for.

It didn’t help that her parents have been contacting her recently and asking if she was going to take a small trip back home during her semester break, but she didn’t want to answer them. She has too much going on right now and talking to them might make things worse. A part of her wanted to stay to talk to Chaeyoung, maybe and if brave enough, she’ll finally tell Chaeyoung how she really feels to make her free from these heavy burdens she was carrying.

Mina was feeling better compared to the past week, maybe time on her own and with her friends slowly eased her worrisome brain. But she couldn’t explain to herself when she realized she was walking in the Visual arts building that day. Maybe her new found confidence made her crazy enough to catch Chaeyoung there and ask her if they can talk about what happened. It could also be because Nayeon was following behind her the whole time.

But as she found herself in a hallway, she turned the corner and her eyes immediately found Chaeyoung by the lockers. She was on her phone and looked as handsome as the last time. Mina felt her feet move on its own, like the attraction of a magnet, it was pulling her towards Chaeyoung. The attraction stopped when she saw a tall woman stand in front of Chaeyoung. She couldn’t recognize who the person was, at the back of her mind, it could be one of her friends. But she couldn’t remember what Momo or Tzuyu looked like from behind.

Her heart stops when she sees the tall woman lay a kiss on Chaeyoung’s cheek and the reaction coming from Chaeyoung makes her heart break into a million pieces. She watches the tall girl brush the hair from Chaeyoung’s face. The feeling she hated so much came back; she was obviously jealous, and heartbroken at the same time.

Was Chaeyoung already moving on? It’s only been a week since that happened and she could remember, clear as day, that Chaeyoung told her that she had feelings for her as well. Was it Mina’s fault for not telling her the truth?

The moment she locks eyes with Chaeyoung, she turns around and runs away. Nayeon calls out to her and chases her after. The moment she spots the bathroom she rushes in and goes into the first stall that was empty. Nayeon quickly stops Mina from closing the door and goes inside the cubicle with her. Mina dropped her face in her hands and started crying.

Mina trembles as she tries to tell Nayeon what happened, and it fills her best friend with rage. But Mina stopped her from exiting the bathroom. She begged Nayeon to just stay with her and Nayeon couldn’t help but listen to her pleas.

Nayeon did everything she could to comfort her friend. Mina could see it, but she felt like she'd lost herself in whatever sadness filled her heart. Every time Nayeon asks if she was doing all right, but Mina could only respond with a neutral expression and just says that she needs to concentrate on graduating. She was aware that it hurt Nayeon that she wasn’t telling her anything anymore.

One night, Nayeon came to visit her again, but Mina had no energy for whatever her best friend wanted to do. But something felt different. Nayeon was happier and she was cheery, like a schoolgirl in love for the first time. Mina thought it was a great distraction from her problem and she attempted to pry her friend for any information.

After a few attempts and a couple of adorable pouts, Nayeon finally confessed that Jeongyeon and her have made their relationship official. Mina was shocked at first but her heart softened because she has never seen Nayeon so giddy about someone ever. But Nayeon immediately told Mina to not mind her, knowing that she would rather not rub onto Mina’s face that her love life, again, was blooming.

Mina could only give her encouraging words and said that whatever happens between her and Jeongyeon, she’ll support her in any way she can. But since then, Mina has been finding it difficult to hang out with Jeongyeon more. Nayeon insisted they go somewhere else, but it wasn’t in Mina’s character to make anyone feel unwelcomed. At times, they would be quiet, or Mina was quiet, and the couple would drift into their own world. There are moments where she and Jeongyeon would share glances and it made her want to blurt out and ask the other how Chaeyoung was doing. But she couldn’t.

She was afraid to know, maybe Jeongyeon would slap the truth on her, that Chaeyoung found someone else, and she was happier now. Maybe it’s best if things are left unsaid.

It surprised her when Jeongyeon took the chance to apologize to Mina for trying to hit on her the night of the drinking party. She appreciated the sincere apology, though there was a part of her that felt like she still couldn’t trust this person. But she took a breath and decided to give it a chance. Something she finds herself wanting to do for a while now.

Despite her kind words, she made sure Jeongyeon knew that she really didn’t like the flirting. Emphasizing that she needed to replace her lines with new ones and that it wasn’t appealing at all. Though, she felt guilty when she saw the defeated look on her best friend’s new girlfriend. She tries to tone it down and says that she’s just happy that Nayeon is happy and that Jeongyeon was a great source of it. Of course, she couldn’t let the moment pass without threatening Jeongyeon that she’ll immediately kill her if she ever plans on hurting or cheating on her best friend.

Jeongyeon responded with a nervous chuckle, since she doesn’t want to be killed at all. Nayeon overheard their conversation and playfully fought her. Mina was happy with this, despite missing Chaeyoung so much, she was happy to be with Nayeon and seeing her best friend drifted in the bliss of love.

Mina could only think of what to do next. Maybe she should move on, worrying about her internship that was going to start soon and it could be her only chance of getting a decent job that has any relation to her course. She wanted to think about herself for once and forget the idea that Chaeyoung could be happy with someone else right now.

Things start to take a turn when this one particular guy from school, who has been relentless with his advances since they encountered each other the first time about a year ago, and he would constantly show up whenever she finishes classes. He was a decent looking guy, but she couldn’t care enough to remember his name, and his annoying face made it hard for her to forget.

He wasn’t Chaeyoung, and he sure wasn’t a gentleman at all. She knows what he was trying to do, and she wishes it could just stop. She’s tried everything to let him know she wasn’t interested but he keeps thinking it’s a ‘okay I’ll try again later’.

But this one particular day, he has been extra pushy and told her that he’ll buy her a juice pack or something from the food court. Scared that he’ll make a scene, she begrudgingly accepts.

He left her to wait by the open grounds as he walked inside. She tries to find reasons to just quietly walk away before he catches her. But when she turns, she sees the same tree that she and Chaeyoung were before.

She remembers the way they sat next to each other, how they held hands and talked as if it was just them in the world. There was an ache in her heart when she replayed the memory of her seeing Chaeyoung with that tall girl in the hallway. Knowing that there was someone else’s lips on Chaeyoung made her swell with jealousy, but her heart was heavy. She wanted to see Chaeyoung so badly.

Suddenly before she could execute her escape plan, the guy shows up again and brings her an iced coffee. Knowing it was too late, she awkwardly accepts it and says a quiet thank you. Hoping that this encounter has come to an end. She tries to walk away but the guy starts walking with her. The disgust in her filled to the brim when he asked her out for dinner that night. She immediately said no, feeling that she’s had enough and was delusional to think that it would be unfaithful of her to accept it. But knowing that Chaeyoung was probably doing the same thing with other women, she was close to accepting this offer.

But she was vigilant, she didn’t want to do this. This wasn’t going to make her happy and she really didn’t like this guy. So she was firm with her rejection and said one last thanks and excused herself, lying to him that she had somewhere to go. She immediately calls Sana and asks her to meet her so that he doesn’t follow her. In moments, her friend shows up and with a signal, Sana knew what was happening and happily took Mina away.

Days passed and it felt like it was the worst time of her life. She drowned herself in school and her internship that didn’t even get to enjoy the first few days of their break. None of her friends decided to go home, knowing that Nayeon wanted to stay with Jeongyeon as much as she could.

Her internship was helping her keep her mind off of things. Being in an office and the people around her asked her to do these different tasks and attend government related meetings with them was refreshing. She could imagine herself being in this type of job. If it gets her to be close to being part of the United Nations, then she’s willing to work herself on sweat and blood just to achieve it.

Her supervisor was nice enough to help her out with anything. Her performance was great too. The first few days made a good impression on everyone. Hopefully it’ll secure her a spot to work there once she graduates.

Feeling out of character, she calls up Nayeon and asks if they want to have dinner together, even asking if Jeongyeon wants to join. She immediately says yes, and they meet up at Mina’s apartment where she prepared dinner. To her surprise, Jeongyeon decided to take charge and offered to cook instead. She can tell from Nayeon’s gushing expression that she was happy to see her girlfriend cooking for them.

The night went well, after opening a bottle of wine for them to share, they all were comfortable in their own conversations. Mina couldn’t stop herself from wishing Chaeyoung was with them. She’s always wanted to double date with Nayeon, and she could only yearn for the company of the one she’s so desperately in love with. But the feeling was starting to hurt her.

A sudden phone call stopped their cheerful conversation and the expression on Jeongyeon’s face made them fill with worry.

“W-What?!” Jeongyeon couldn’t contain her voice even if she walked away from the dining table. “Is she okay? What do you mean there was a lot of blood?!”

Mina’s heart stopped, she felt Nayeon’s tension as well as they looked at each other. Dying from anticipation from her partner’s conversation.

“She’s in the hospital now? Okay I’ll go get her. Thank you, Mincheol.” Jeongyeon ends the call and suddenly starts calling someone else. They could hear the ringing from her phone and Jeongyeon looked back at them and the expression on her face couldn’t be read.

“Momo? Are you with Tzuyu?” Her eyes are not leaving Mina as she speaks. “It’s Chaeyoung, she’s in the hospital. Her work mate called me and said she got beaten up by a group of guys.”

Nayeon could only hold from the shock. Mina felt her eyes water from hot tears forming. Mina stands up and quickly walks over to Jeongyeon, hoping to hear more.

“I don’t know. She hasn’t woken up yet.” Jeongyeon was now locking eyes with Mina. Watching her lips tremble as the tears streamed down her face. “I’ll go now. I’ll meet you guys there.” With that she ends the call and grabs her coat.

“I’m going too.” Mina says as she goes to grab hers as well. But Jeongyeon stops her.

“Mina, I’m sorry but I think you shouldn’t go.” Jeongyeon chokes on the words. Before Mina could argue, Nayeon grabs her hand gently. “I’ll update you with everything that happens. I’ll make sure she’s okay.”

“But I want to see her!” Mina shouts, the hurt in her heart was pouring out. She drops on her feet, and finally cries. Jeongyeon could only look away, she couldn’t bear to see Mina like this.

“I’m sorry.” Jeongyeon could only say. “I have to go.” Before she leaves, she grabs Nayeon for a hug and quickly leaves a kiss on her lips. Within seconds, Jeongyeon exits her apartment.

Nayeon drops down and embraces her crying friend. “I’m sorry, Mina.”

“Why didn’t you let me go?” She cries in her arms. Trying to throw soft punches on her friend’s chest. “What if she doesn’t wake up?”

Nayeon only stayed quiet, accepting all the punches her friend was giving her. She could only hold Mina tight and let her cry it all out. As much as she wanted to let Mina go, she and Jeongyeon have agreed that it wasn’t the right time for them to talk.

Mina hasn’t really given a solid plan on what she wanted to do. She hasn’t gotten back with Nayeon about her decisions with Chaeyoung. So the hesitation was there but they all agreed that Mina should choose Chaeyoung.

So even if it was clear that Mina wanted to see Chaeyoung due to how dire the situation is, they couldn’t. It’ll make Mina even more confused, there was a possibility she was just going to dust it under the rug like usual. This was something Mina had to make a decision and it had to come from her.

Nayeon held her for a while, until Mina passed out from all the crying and the wine that mixed in her body. Nayeon brought her to bed and waited for an update from Jeongyeon. Within an hour, Jeongyeon calls her to say that Chaeyoung is fine and that they were able to bring her back to her dorm room, they needed to stay with her until she woke up. After a few moments of silence, she apologized to Nayeon for making Mina break down like that.

She assures her partner that it was alright, and she’ll take care of Mina. Telling her that it wasn’t like they had a choice. Before they could end the call, Nayeon made Jeongyeon promise that she has to make sure that Chaeyoung wakes up or she’ll be the one to put her in her grave if she doesn’t.

The morning came and Mina found herself awake and staring at her ceiling again. As if her soul left her body. Nayeon was sleeping soundly next to her in her bed. She grabs her phone to check if there was any update from Jeongyeon, hoping to see Chaeyoung’s name pop up again. But nothing.

She drops her phone on the floor and just lets herself drift off in her thoughts. The fear she had in her made her so dead inside. She couldn’t bear to see Chaeyoung get hurt like that.

The early morning was filled with silence. She wasn’t angry at Nayeon, and she knew that too, but she couldn’t keep any negative feelings she had throughout their time together. The only time she muttered any words was when she asked Nayeon if there was an update from Jeongyeon and each time Nayeon said no, Mina felt herself sink into a deep pit.

After an hour, they got a call from Jeongyeon and her friends and asked if Nayeon and the girls, including Mina, could meet them at the café nearby. Which they agreed. Nayeon had to make it clear to Mina that it was just the three of them because they forced Chaeyoung to stay in her room to rest. The feeling of just escaping and seeing Chaeyoung was strong, but Nayeon had a firm grip on her.

As the group entered the café, they could already see Jeongyeon, Momo and Tzuyu waiting for them at a long table, and they beckoned them to join. Momo starts the conversation and explains to everyone what exactly happened in Chaeyoung’s point of view. The three friends took turns telling them about what the guys said about what they would do to Mina, and the person in question could only sit in silence.

Disgusted by how men can just think of her this way, even more disgusted by the fact they hurt her Chaeyoung. Mina felt her tears fall from her eyes once they finished, they were all quiet and all eyes were on her again.

Nayeon and Sana held her hands tight and said they will do anything to protect her from that guy. Mina mentioned that she doesn’t know the guy’s name, but she does remember what he looked like. They also chimed in with a plan to report him to the police. But Jeongyeon had to tell them what Chaeyoung said, she started the fight and if they did report it’ll just be as close to a restraining order. But they had no proof, nothing solid enough to make it into paper.

With a deep sigh, Mina could only say thank you to the three friends for being there for Chaeyoung and decided to leave earlier than the others. She couldn’t bear to talk about Chaeyoung anymore, knowing if she stayed any longer she’ll just be another crying mess and it’ll be worse because other people were there. Before she leaves the café, someone calls her suddenly.

“Mina-unnie.” Tzuyu calls quietly. “I want to talk to you for a bit before you go.”

Mina was genuinely confused because they have never spoken to each other since they met. “Sure, Tzuyu. What’s up?”

The tall girl takes a deep breath and fiddles with her fingers. “I knew it was you who saw us at the corridor that day.” Mina felt like a lump was stuck in when she said that. She was caught. “But I wanted to explain to you that there’s nothing going on between us, we're really close friends, and I don’t have any feelings for Chaeyoung.”

She felt herself panic out of embarrassment; she shakes her hands in front of the tall girl. “No, no! It’s alright. You don’t have to explain yourself.”

Tzuyu could only smile at her reaction, but her smile dropped after a while. She purses her lips and looks at her again. “Chaeyoung and I had plans to work on a project at her dorm, but because she saw you she couldn’t concentrate.” She knew it was going to make Mina feel guilty, but she had to be honest. “She kept saying that she hurt you even more.”

Mina wasn’t sure what to say. She was so blinded by the hurt and jealousy that she didn’t even realize that the girl was Tzuyu. “I’m really sorry.” She said suddenly, looking back at Tzuyu. “I feel so embarrassed, I can’t believe I made that kind of assumption towards you. I’m sorry.”

Tzuyu waves it off and giggles. “No it’s okay, unnie.” She gently puts her hand on Mina’s shoulder. “I know I shouldn’t in, but Chaeyoung cares about you deeply and she does all of this out of love.”

Before Mina could reply, Tzuyu said she should go back and that she didn’t want to keep Mina for longer. It seemed that Tzuyu didn’t want to involve herself anymore, she bowed in front of Mina and walked back to her friends on the table.

With no hesitation, Mina leaves. There was a lot going through her