❝𝙋𝙖𝙥𝙚𝙧 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙨❞

↳ EPISODE FIVE

I said it and I truly meant it.
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At the end of the school day, Shin-ae and I walked out together, yet at the same time separated by my overthinking. What if she kept it a secret because she was a two-faced person? What if all those years of our friendship meant nothing to her when it came to boys? I don't recall us ever sharing crushes- maybe since this was the first time we had a common crush, her true nature had been revealed.

"I can't believe that they gave us homework even though we just finished a stupid exam, ugh... I hate this school," Shin-ae grumbled, cramming all her books into her bag. I watched her in the corner of my eye while I carefully placed my books inside my own backpack. Shin-ae shook her head, slinging her bag around her shoulder, "C'mon, you're so slow, Mina... I wanna get home and sleep."

I sighed and flashed her a fake smile before grabbing my bag and following her out of the classroom. We walked side by side in the hall. Shin-ae seemed pretty energized; either because she skipped lunch and took that hour nap, or because she checked her phone in the middle of last class and saw that text from Junhyuk. God, her happiness was making me feel queasy.

"I think we deserve some ice cream to celebrate finishing our exam today," she grinned at me as we stepped out of the building. I stayed silent, causing her the tilt her head at me and wave her hands in front of my face, "Mina?" I blinked twice and shook my head before slapping both my cheeks with my hands, "Stop thinking about it, Mina, you're so obsessed. They can be friends, can't they? There's nothing wrong with them being friends. If two people want to be friends, then that's between them. You shouldn't have a problem with it."

"Mina," Shin-ae gave me a look, "Are you
okay? You're acting a little strange." I sighed and nodded, dropping my hands back to my sides, "Yes, I'm fine. It's just thinking about all these exams is making my brain fuzzy," I lied. She gave me a nod before smiling and suddenly grabbing my hand, "That means we go get ice cream to take our minds off things."

I bit my lip and mumbled, "Well, I kind of want to go straight home and sleep." I could see a disappointed look seep through and take the place of her happy smile as she let go of my hand, "Ah.. Well then let's hang out tomorrow? Then you can tell me all about-" she stopped abruptly and began laughing softly, "- Never mind."

I gave her a confused look. "I shouldn't have said anything," she sighed, "Well, I'll be at the ice cream parlor if you need me! See ya!" Before I could say a word, she ran off. Honestly, I was interested to know more about what she had stopped herself from talking about, but at the same time, I didn't care at all. At that moment, I decided to just shrug it off and head for home.

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"I like you, Mina," he said softly, a pink blush painted across his cheeks. I wasn't sure if it was because of the heat or if his feelings for me were really that strong. My eyes met his, desperately searching for the truth. Really, at that moment, I thought I was in a fairytale or some reality TV show with hidden cameras; but it was real life, not a dream, nor a prank, nor a story- real life.

See, I had read the whole situation with Shin-ae all wrong. She wasn't trying to keep Junhyuk for herself, no, she was trying to set me up with him! I couldn't believe it. I was in shock at myself. Of course, Shin-ae wouldn't do such a thing- we're best friends and no guy can tear us apart. I should have never doubted her. What my crush had been planning to do that night was confess to me- and that's also what Shin-ae had cut herself off about.

When I had gotten home with Minjae, I headed straight to my room to think more about Shin-ae and Junhyuk. Before I knew it, I ended up falling asleep and waking up in the middle of the night to the sound of my phone ringing.

"Hello?" I answered in a groggy voice. On the other end, I was met with a familiar, honey-like voice, "Mina, can we meet?" And that's how I got there; in that park, on that bench, next to Bang Junhyuk, holding hands.

Junhyuk intertwined his fingers with mine and gave my hand a gentle squeeze. I stuttered, my tongue seeming to tie in a knot, prohibiting me from speaking properly, "Y-Y.. B-Bu.. Me..." He chuckled a bit and rubbed his thumb over the back of my hand in circles, giving me small tingles, "You're cute, Mina. And you're clumsy at times, but I know you have a good heart-" he paused a moment to look in my eyes before continuing, "-I saw you that one time; you missed the bus to school because you helped that grade-schooler pick up his science project."

I blushed, giggling a bit, after realizing that he had remembered something that happened over a month before, "O-Oh, you remember that?" He nodded, "Yes, I do. You made me smile that day because I remembered something from when I was about the same age. It was the middle of May and I had dropped my project while trying so hard to catch the bus in the rain. I cried so hard in the middle of that thunderstorm because I stayed up all night to work on my project— and it was ruined. But that day I was so grateful because someone missed the bus for me in order to help me. That day, you reminded me of them and it felt good."

He took a deep breath and dug around in his bookbag before taking out his white Paper Heart, protected by its glass casing. "Mina," he spoke, clearing his throat and meeting my eyes, "Please take care of my Paper Heart. I'm entrusting it to you." I nodded, carefully taking his Paper Heart into my hands, "Yes, Junhyuk.. I'll take care of it. I promise I'll never hurt you or rip your Heart."

He nodded and gave me a smile, before sighing and looking between my eyes and lips. His brown eyes glistened under the park lights orange ray. I wanted so badly to kiss him, but I wasn't sure if it was the right moment- maybe it was too soon. Junhyuk took a deep breath and laughed softly before asking, "Mina, can I... Can I kiss you?"

I was taken aback; it was as though he was reading my thoughts. I nodded eagerly, but then laughed awkwardly, "Um.. y-yes."

Before I could truly prepare myself for my first kiss, Bang Junhyuk leaned in, his eyes shut, his lips poked out just a bit. I was hesitant despite my desire to connect our lips; he just seemed so unreal- everything about that moment seemed unreal. After a while, I finally gave in to the strong desire that allowed me to be pulled in by the magnetic force between him and me.

I wasn't quite sure what I expected to feel during my first kiss, but it was far more wonderful than I could have ever imagined it. My senses were heightened as though I were some superhuman- I could feel everything, hear everything, taste everything. Butterflies fluttered around in my stomach and I felt tingling from every part of my body. It didn't hurt, it didn't feel uncomfortable- it felt... amazing. Think of a hot summer day, and then drinking a nice, cool, refreshing glass of lemonade. That's what a kiss with Bang Junhyuk feels like.

The next day at school, Junhyuk spotted me in the hall on the way to class and pulled me aside to wish me good luck on my Language Arts exam with a kiss and another handwritten note. "Mina!" Junhyuk quickly jogged up to me, "We have ten minutes before we have to be in our testing areas. Come with me."

I followed him to an empty hallway where he placed a small handwritten note into my palm. I giggled, "Aw, thanks.." Junhyuk grinned happily but then suddenly sighed, giving me a sad look. "What's wrong?" I asked, reaching up and caressing his cheek (he was taller than me by a few inches).

"Well," he laughed a bit, scratching the back of his neck, "Is it okay if we keep this relationship a secret? I'm just... You might get bullied for dating me. I'm not exactly a fan-favorite when it comes to dating. I just don't want you to get bullied for being the girlfriend of someone who's a wannabe K-pop idol.."

I took his hand in mine and nodded, "I appreciate you wanting to shield me, but Junhyuk, I'm not ashamed to be in a relationship with you. I'm glad you're following your dreams." He smiled at me and shrugged, "I know, but..."

I nodded, "Alright. If you're not comfortable yet with sharing that you're dating me, then that's okay. Whenever you're ready." He beamed and nodded happily, "I knew you would understand," he said before kissing me on the cheek, "Thanks, Mina," he smiled, then leaving a quick kiss on my lips, intertwining our fingers.

As he left, the two of us felt wary of letting go of each other's hand, but we both knew we had exams, so in the end, we parted very slowly with an "I love you."

I said it and I truly meant it.

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Ah, Mina x Junhyuk! ♡♡
Episode Five ✔ Done!