Clique (txtXitzy)

24. Day 70

TW: DEPRESSION, SELF-HARM, BULIMIA/ANOREXIA.

"Happy White Day everyone!" Yeonjun yelled when 8pm struck on the digital clock of their hall, signaling the end of the practice period. He galloped through the benches as if they were hurdles and unzipped his duffel bag, immediately sharing white chocolates to the girls in the court.

"Thank youuu!" Yuna squealed softly, slightly jumping out of excitement for the gift.

It had been more than 2 months together and the two teams had slowly developed a home out of the practice court in JYP's training building, and a home with each other's company. Ryujin had gotten closer than ever with Soobin and Beomgyu. Lia found a lot of comfort by confiding with Taehyun since she admitted to herself that he was perhaps the only mature and logical person she could reach out to anytime for advice or just a chat, and also because he was perhaps the only one she was truly bonded to out of her own group. Chaeryeong and Yeonjun would practice their 5- and 3-pointers together and talk or have fun in their free time, and Yeonjun would also spoil Yuna as if she were his own little sister. Kai also grew to be somewhat attached to Yuna, taking special care of her and making sure she was always in good conditions ever since the day he walked her home. He also let himself get coddled by Yeji whenever she was around. Even Beomgyu and Yuna who had a bitter past could make up and tease each other again, smile and laugh at each other's jokes and warm up as if nothing happened. For this, they were thankful that they could both move on well and live in the moment, treating each other like best friends.

Yeonjun and Yeji, on the other hand, became stiff with one another, despite Yeonjun's attempts to put everything back in place. She just stopped talking to anyone at all, and only mumbled things when they were truly important. When any of them inquired what was wrong, all she said was that she was tired. Yeonjun sometimes worried about her more than he should, but still refrained himself enough to not force anything on her. It made him sad sometimes. But that aside, they were all finally friends. Actual friends who helped each other in hard situations, who cheered each other up and shared a lot of good memories.

What took them so long just to behave properly to each other and socialize normally? Why did they have to go through so much drama just to achieve this kind of peace? Yeonjun sighed at those thoughts, grateful that their problems with their overachieving complex had melted away thanks to the kind and funny girls. He slumped down on the bench, right next to his bag, and wiped off his sweat. Since spring had come, the weather became warmer and the ten players began perspiring a bit more. He looked up and saw his teammates sharing their own gifts to the girls dearly, grinning in pride.

Then he turned his head to look at Yeji, who was packing her things in her bag with the hollowest aura he had ever felt. While the room radiated with each other's warmth, it was as if Yeji's soul was absent while her body was simply there. He couldn't help but do something about it. So he stood up and approached the leader, tapping her shoulder from behind.

Yeji faced him half-heartedly and scratched her ear, suddenly gripping her head in distress to quickly losing her balance. She held on to Yeonjun's reactive arms, raising his awareness as she tripped over.

"Yeji!" Yeonjun cried, shaking her as he slowly lowered his body on the bench where she could sit down and lean on him. Getting no response, he touched her neck and her forehead, surprised at her temperature. He got a grip of her wrist and grazed upon an uneven texture of her skin on the brace, bringing it closer to his eyes in disbelief.

She had cut herself up. And the wounds looked fresh, as if she had only done them a few hours prior to that moment. After a quick closer look, he observed that she had scars of old cuts placed all over her inner wrist, and simply staring at them broke his heart like never before. However, as soon as he heard the footsteps of the rest of the players, he swiftly hid her wrist under his arm.