“Um…” Minjeong was caught off guard, “well…”

  She was in the middle of a dilemma where she could literally just say that ‘she’ could be that person that Jimin is looking for, but then, that would mean to say that she’s going to be forced to voice it out for the sake of not hurting her, which could only lead to more complications if she could remark. Lying could only lead to more misunderstanding. 

 She did mention that she would like to make her best friend confess, and then what? Minjeong wanted to slap herself for saying such an idiotic statement. She was so preoccupied by the thought of Jimin dating Jeno, that she forgot to consider Jimin’s feelings.

“You two!” 

  Uchinaga Aeri marched towards them with a stern expression and continued saying, “We all know that you two couldn't keep your hands off each other, but please do remember that we’re in a public place where a display of public affection is not tolerated by the majority of unfortunates who couldn’t even mingle because people like you love to taint public places with your infectious diseases instead of just keeping it to yourselves.” She dropped each word like she was chasing someone.

“We’re not—” She started to retort but Aeri seemed like she wasn’t interested to hear some of her excuses.

“Please continue your display of carnal desire in a much more discreet place. I think that would be very much appreciated, don’t you two agree?” She gave a mocking smile and just stood there eyeing them with her judging eyes.

 Minjeong was too speechless to even utter a word. Jimin was also so stunned that her face turned red and started fanning it with a hand.

“So?” Aeri continued to speak mockingly. Both of them were both confused.

“Are you just gonna stand there like morons or will you go to your respective classrooms? Because I don’t have the luxury of time to lecture you both when it comes to making decisions that you could literally just do if you don’t lack common sense.”

  Both of them would like to say something back but they know that arguing with Ms. Know-It-All, Uchinaga Aeri, would literally mean signing up for a long hour of debate.

“Come on, go now,” she made a shooing motion, “ta-ta!”

❖

Minjeong and Jimin were forced to separate because Aeri wouldn’t stop watching them like a hawk until they entered their respective rooms. In their third period, both of them had different classes. Jimin had English Lit while Minjeong had Lab. 

  As much as she loves to stay with Jimin, there's no way she could have handled that situation smoothly. Even though they got verbally assaulted earlier, she was a bit thankful that Aeri showed up because she had no idea how on earth she would get out of that dilemma without making a fool out of herself.

  Right now, she has a bit of time to ease her mind and ponder on some of the most important things she needs to do.

Jimin.

  Minjeong will be tackling a very serious matter that she hasn't really given any thought to before. Like what she’d mentioned before, she does acknowledge that she does have a teeny weeny crush on her best friend.

  But she never really dwells deeper on that thought because she always reminds herself that she loves Jimin dearly in a platonic — sisterly love kind of way.

 She loves her like no other. Loves to take care of her, loves to be everywhere with her, loves to make her happy. But she doesn't know if that kind of love she's feeling for the latter is the kind of love that would make her see Jimin differently. Not like a sister nor like a long-time friend, but more like a lover. A lover that she’d love unconditionally.

  But come to think of it, she does unconditionally love Jimin. She very much prioritizes her happiness more than her own. She’d rather make herself uncomfortable just to make sure Jimin would feel settled and comfortable.

  Maybe she does love Jimin in that kind of way. Maybe it’s not just an illusion that she’d created for herself just to justify her lack of affection. Maybe or maybe not. 

   Minjeong let out a long sigh. This is getting serious and complicated. She's utterly conflicted. She doesn't know what she'll do once she meets Jimin later.

“Be careful. You might hurt yourself.” She heard someone say.

  Minjeong was assigned to cut the stomach of a preserved frog with a scalpel. She totally forgot to say to her lab partner that she got shaky hands because she was too busy doing her inner monologue.

“I’ll do it.” Her partner said and grabbed the scalpel from Minjeong's hand.

“Thanks. Sorry, I've got shaky hands."

“I can tell.” The latter smiled.

  Minjeong examined her lab partner. A tall black-haired girl with a pretty smile. That's how she describes her. Minjeong wasn't really good at remembering people's names and faces, so the girl wasn’t that familiar to her.

“My name’s Kazuha, by the way.” Kazuha cut the preserved frog's stomach with ease and Minjeong tried to assist her by lifting the skin of the frog using a forceps.

“I'm Minjeong. Are you a new student? How come I’ve never seen you before?” She asked due to curiosity.

“Is that your way of flirting with people?”

  Minjeong blamelessly blinks. She wasn't trying to flirt. She was genuinely asking a legit question. She couldn't understand why Kazuha would ask such questions. Well, unless, she was doing it on