𝗜𝗞𝗜𝗚𝗔𝗜. 𝗇𝗂-𝗄𝗂

𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗉𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝗂

𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗺𝗶 ( 傷み )
a state of pain without punishment

i can't be your love. look it's too trivial for you now .

inoue ria watched the boy from her place behind the bushes with a smile. park hanbin from class 3-4 was known by very few, yet she felt that his presence radiated a sort of warmth. even now as he smiled at his teammates, her heart fluttered in her chest as she giggled.

" boo ! " startled out of her reverie by a sudden presence, ria jumped. her bestfriend hong eunchae, stood beside her with a teasing smirk. " eunchae yah ! you scared me. " hand still on her chest, she tried to catch her breath.

the girl grinned mischievously, " sorry, i couldn't resist. " she turned her gaze to where ria's attention seemed to be focused. " so .. how's it going ? still spying on hanbin from afar ? " eunchae chuckled as she watched her friend turn a deep shade of red.

" well, i was planning on telling him today. i think six months of staring at the back of his head is more than enough. " ria remarked, her voice tinged with exasperation as she rolled her eyes. eunchae burst into laughter, " damn right it is, ria ! it's about time you made a move. " she declared, clapping the girl hard on the back.

" well, your man's coming this way, so now's your chance. tell me how it goes ! " the smiling girl left behind a stuttering ria as she ran away from the scene within seconds.

ria gulped nervously as she watched the boy take a gulp of water during the team break. slowly walking upto him, she tapped him on the back, " hanbin-ssi ? " he started, she had obviously given him a fright by appearing out of nowhere. " i .. i wanted to tell you something. "

he glanced up, eyes meeting hers for a brief second before falling back onto his phone. " yeah ? what is it ? "

she could feel the sweat dripping from her hands as she gripped her skirt so tight it could have torn. " hanbin-ssi, i've liked you for a while now. i just .. wanted you to know. " she flashed a bright smile at him, hoping to get a positive response, a flicker of recognition in his eyes, but she was mistaken.

her gaze shifted to the floor as his expression hardened, features contorting with a mixture of both confusion and disgust. " who are you again ? " his blunt tone cut through her like a knife as her head snapped up.

" e-eh ? " ria's heart sank for a split second, it felt like her world was crumbling at this callous rejection. she struggled to find the right words, but before she could form a response, hanbin abruptly turned and ran off, leaving her standing there, stunned and alone.

the walk back to her class would have been excruciatingly embarrassing and so ria decided to wait out the next two classes in the school library. sitting among the shelves, she began venting her frustration to the silent companionship of the books.

" can you believe it ? he was the first person i ever confessed to, and he had to be so rude, " her voice trembled with hurt.

her chest was heavy with disappointment and she sighed, leaning her head against a book. " you know, " she whispered, " i've always heard people say that unrequited love is painful, but i never really understood until now. "

" what's with all the noise ? " a deep voice startled her and she squealed in surprise, falling off her chair. she watched as one of the most popular boys in her school walked towards her, casually taking a seat beside ria.

she felt her heart beat faster with anxiety as she tried to compose herself. " it's nothing. i'm just experiencing .. unrequited love, you could say. " her voice was barely audible, but riki stopped flipping through the magazines, expression changing subtly.

" unrequited love ? " he echoed, he almost sounded amused at her predicament.

ria's cheeks flushed with embarrassment for the second time that day as she remembered who exactly she was talking to. she, inoue ria was having a conversation with nishimura riki, the school's dancer and most sought after guy.

she suddenly felt very small beside him, shifting nervously in her seat. " interesting. " he remarked, continuing his earlier activity.

her chair was pushed back in an instant, ria bowing to the male before her, " i'm sorry riki-kun ! forget i ever said anything ! " she stammered, quickly running out of the room.

as she fled the library, riki watched her go, utterly confused. his eyes fell on a white lip balm rolling around on the floor. he picked it up, a name written on it in bold black letters. pocketing it, he stared at the door the girl had just run through. " inoue ria, you're interesting. "

© cjayius