Hello Stranger

Finale Part 2- Not Too Late

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Now it seemed like time had a bone to pick with you specifically, or anyone who associated with you, and you were reminded of your terrible luck as you and Hyunjin raced through the hallway.

To the random onlooker, with the way he was holding your hand, one would assume that the two of you were escaping the party to engage in more frivolous activity, but strangely enough that wasn't the case.

"C'mon y/n!" He yelled, yanking your hand to his side, and you tripped over your shoes and crashed into his back immediately after.
"You try running in these!" You groaned, mentally wincing at the blister you'd have if you kept this up.
"Actually, I'm trying to fix that."
"Where are we even going?"
"To the girls' locker room," he responded matter-of-factly, as if you knew his plan all along.
"They lock those doors at night-"
"I know."

He didn't say anything more, pulling you through another doorway or two before stopping, checking his surroundings, and ducking into a janitor's closet.
You were greeted by the smell of bleach and window cleaner as he paused for a moment, looking between boxes of gloves on the shelf before he let out a relieved sigh.
His hand emerged from the mess with a ring of keys around his index finger, and your jaw dropped in shock.

"How did you know-"
"You and Minho met on the roof right?"
"Yes..."
"But you don't know anything about botany right?" He smirked, and you felt your face heat up, not aware that he had known about your semi-illegal lunch routine.
"No..."
"Well," he twirled the key ring, "you two aren't the only rule breakers on campus."
"Ooooooh," you faked a gasp, covering your mouth with your free hand. "And I thought you were a goody two shoes."
"I'm anything but," he giggled, pushing you back out into the hallway. "Now hurry, we have to be fast."

"You never said what all of this is for," you yelled, following his quickening pace once again. "Why are we going to the girl's locker room?"
"You're going to need to change into sneakers!"
"I mean yeah, now I am, but why-"
He stopped in front of the locked door, glancing at you with a look of determination in his eyes.

"Because if I were Minho, I'd want to hear what you told me on the balcony before my audition."

...

"You like him, don't you?"

A strange sense of deja vu washed over you and you blinked twice, unsure of how to respond to Hyunjin's question. The answer was obvious of course, but wouldn't he be hurt by the truth? Why didn't he look sad? He appeared almost...excited?

"Well...I guess there's no point in hiding it now," you sighed, and you could have sworn that his face lit up in front of you. "Aren't you mad?"
"Mad? Why would I be mad?" His face turned to one of confusion as he ran a hand through his light locks.
"Because...I asked you to the dance, and I have feelings for someone else," you mumbled, hands suddenly finding each other interesting as you felt the guilt creep into your head again.

"Honestly...I can't blame you."
"What?"
"I've found that love doesn't exactly have the best timing," he whispered, eyes downcast, and you wondered if he'd been in a similar situation. "But what does matter is what you do with the time that it does give you."
"That's...really wise of you to say Hyunjin," you almost gushed, surprised at the insightful things coming out of his mouth.
"Thanks, I've watched a lot of kdramas with my mom."

You laughed at the thought of Hyunjin, fully enraptured by a cheesy tv show and mentally taking notes in his head as his mother sat nearby, probably just as invested as him.

"You know what I think though," he said while smiling, changing his view to the distant city landscape. "I'm glad you confessed to me."
"Now you're just being confusing."
"Because," he chuckled, stealing a chance at your bewildered face, "it's nice knowing that someone liked me back then."
"I mean, how could I not," you mumbled, covering your reddening face with your hands, "you're a really sweet guy."
"And you're a really nice girl," he whispered, pulling a hand away from your face. "And if I were Minho, I would be over the moon to find out you had feelings for me."