𝗚𝗢𝗔𝗟 𖥻! seonghwa

( 16 ) dilemma

WANTING TO GET everything off of her chest to someone and figure out her feelings, chaerim invited gaeul and yeeun over for a sleepover at her place. they hadn't had a sleepover in a while, since they were usually very busy on this weekends, so it was a miracle that this one worked out.

there they were, piled in chaerim's bed eating candies and talking.

"guys, i wanted to say something," chaerim suddenly took on a serious tone. her friends urged her to spill whatever it was.

"seonghwa and i kissed. a lot of times." she didn't exactly know where to start, so she sort of just said it all at once, "and seonghwa called me pretty and told me he liked me. i told him i didn't like him back and that i didn't think it would be right for us to date but he said we could either be enemies or date, not just be friends. i'm just confused. i don't even know anymore."

they took a moment to process all of that, eyes widened.

"WHAT?!?" yeeun shrieked. on the other hand, gaeul laugh, "oh! that was just a joke, yeeun! she's teasing us... haha. right?"

"unfortunately, all of that was true," chaerim was now playing with her fingers.

"oh," gaeul trailed off, "so, you don't like him?"

"i'm not sure. i don't think so? how could i like him if all we do is fight? more so, how does he like me? this is probably just him teasing me again, right? also, we haven't even talked for over a week, so i guess it's too late to figure it out now."

yeeun bit her lip, "i don't know what to tell you, chaer. maybe he was pretending to hate you all along. think."

"maybe? i mean, our fighting is pretty meaningless anyways. we just tell each other that the other is ugly and dumb stuff like that. now that i think of it, i never truly meant anything i said. i don't hate him. i actually think he's handsome. he's really thoughtful and caring if you get to know him. i like his determination."

"oh my god, chaerim. you dummy!" gaeul smacked chaerim's arm, "you like seonghwa!"

"you basically just figured out your own dilemma," laughed yeeun.

chaerim went pale as if he saw a ghost, "i like seonghwa? i mean, maybe i do? i think i do. i like it when we kiss and i even like when he's bossy to me, which is kind of weird. oh no..."

"there you go! so, are you going to tell seonghwa? are you two going to date?!" yeeun enthusiastically asked, happy for her best friend.

"is that what i should do?" chaerim unsurely asked. "oh god this is not happening... is this weird?"

they both nodded, "what, no? you both like each other so the only thing to do now is date!"

chaerim nodded, convincing herself more and more, "i like seonghwa. seonghwa likes me. we should date." the butterflies in her stomach were going crazy.

"let's come up with a plan for chaerim to confess to seonghwa!" suggested gaeul, "first, you should go up to him and..."

𖥻

"...and just tell him you took your time to think about it and you realized that you really like him! and make sure you show that you're genuine. just like we talked about!"

the three now sat at their usual lunch table, patiently waiting for seonghwa to enter the cafeteria. chaerim was getting anxious as she watched the door.

and... it opened! there he was, walking alone and looking as handsome as ever. he was going to be the first person to sit at his usual table too, so they'd have perfect privacy when chaerim gave her big confession. the scene was coming along perfectly.

"there's seonghwa!" gaeul and yeeun excitedly told chaerim, who nodded with a smile, "i'll wait until he sits down and then i'll do it!"

so, they watched him like a hawk as he went through the lunch line to get his food and then walk towards his table.

yeeun softly questioned, "doesn't he usually sit right there? he's going the other way."

chaerim was going to respond until seonghwa placed his tray at a different table.

"who's that girl...?"

"yoon sangah."

chaerim bit her lip as she turned to her friends, a worried look on her face, "oh. it's just the two of them."

"d-don't worry, chaer! i'm sure more people will show up. it's okay for him to have girl friends!" yeeun assured her, then began to cough.

well, almost thirty minutes went by of just seonghwa and sangah sitting together. chaerim scowled as they laughed together.

"stop smiling, seonghwa! you look like an idiot. she can't be that funny!" chaerim growled under her breath. if looks could kill, those two would be dead by now.

gaeul carefully pet her arm, "you should look away. it's not doing any good. just eat your food! mmm so yummy!"

thankfully, the bell rang and chaerim stood up aggressively, smacking her palms on the table, "that fucker. already onto other girls now? what is this?!" she wondered why she was so jealous about this and if he was doing it on purpose. it made her wonder if he really meant his confession or if it was all just for the fun of it.

all of her confidence disappeared. now, she believe seonghwa was only trying to trick her all along, which made her more and more angry. chaerim didn't know what to do with this stupid crush he made her have on him, and all she wanted to do was ball it up and throw it in his face. she was like a storm cloud, striking lightning, and you didn't want to cross her path.

"there, there," was yeeun's sad attempt to calm her down.

chaerim shook her head, "i'm going to class. i'll see you guys later."

chaerim stormed out of the cafeteria alone, mumbling things like 'i didn't even like you anyway'.

yeeun turned to gaeul, who shuddered, "back to them hating each other, i guess?"

"i guess so." sighed yeeun, "gosh, i'm scared for seonghwa. i've never seen her so mad. she might actually tear him limb from limb this time..."