minji couldn't sleep the whole night. y/n never texted or called which worried her. whenever they got into fights or arguments, y/n always came back.
but this time, she didn't.
minji laid on the bed, staring at the ceiling, waiting for y/n to call or text her.
nothing.
there was nothing.
—
minji didn't sleep the entire night. she got out of bed and went to make breakfast for the other girls.
they slowly woke up one by one and sat at the dining table, waiting patiently for breakfast to be served.
"unnie, where's y/n unnie?" hyein asked, looking around for her.
minji pretended not to hear her and continued making breakfast. hyein sensed that something was wrong. she got up and went to the bedroom.
her eyes went wide when she noticed that everything y/n owned had disappeared.
"guys, look!" she heard danielle shriek from outside and rushed out.
danielle showed them an article. it was about y/n.
minji's heart sank as she read.
[NEW! newjeans y/n terminates contract with ador, leaves the group + signs with new agency.]
"what? y/n terminated her contract?" hanni yelled in disbelief. minji just stared at the article, feeling numb. "why didn't she tell us?" hyein whispered, her eyes filling with tears.
"wait, let me try to call y/n," haerin said. she dialled y/n's number and waited. they waited and waited but no one answered.
the others tried to call her too but there was no response at all. minji felt guilty, thinking that it was her fault.
"minji, why don't you try calling her?" hanni asked, seeing minii stand there.
"I don't think that's a good idea," minji answered, looking down.
"why? did you have something to with it?" danielle asked. minji hesitated, unsure if she should tell them.
"she is your girlfriend, unnie," hyein said.
"I'm sorry guys... it's my fault," minii broke down crying. the girls were shock, seeing minji cry wasn't a common sight.
"hey, it's ok..." they tried to comfort her as her tears flowed.
—
a few months later, newjeans were making a comeback. they were excited yet nervous about making a comeback.
it would be their first comeback without y/n and they were nervous about it. minji had not been well after y/n left. she missed y/n a lot.
there was still no news of y/n until danielle found another article.
"guys! y/n unnie is debuting!" danielle exclaimed and showed them the article on her phone. part of them were happy for her but they still hated her for leaving the group and minji without any notice.
"wait, she is debuting on the same day as our comeback," hanni said. they took a closer look and realised. they were mostly worried about minji since they knew how heartbroken she was when y/n left.
"whatever," minji replied and went into her room. it felt so empty without y/n.
--
y/n debuted and the group came back with new songs. they were going to attend the same music show and this would be the first time they meet y/n again after months.
as they prepared for their own stage, the group couldn't help feeling nervous about encountering y/n again. the conflicting emotions they had towards her were overwhelming - happiness for her solo debut success, yet also sadness and anger for her abrupt departure without any explanation.
after y/n's their performance, they caught a glimpse of y/n backstage. tt was strange to see her there, no longer part of the group. minji felt a twinge of sadness, missing y/n and their time together.
danielle wanted to go up and congratulate her on the debut but stopped when she saw y/n with someone else. they noticed that it was winter from aespa. danielle thought it was reasonable since y/n is now under sm. they continued watching as y/n laughed and talked with winter, seemingly happy and carefree.
but then, y/n leaned in to kiss winter. minji's heart stopped as she watched y/n happily pull away from the kiss and hugged winter.
minji's heart sank as she watched y/n and winter embrace. she was upset and angry at the sight, her mind racing with mixed emotions. how could y/n do all these so shamelessly? didn't she care about the hurt she caused by leaving the group without any explanation?
the rest of the girls had also seen the kiss, and they exchanged looks of shock and confusion. as they made their way to their own performance, minji couldn't help but feel a sense of betrayal from y/n.
--
after the performance, minji ran off to buy a drink and calm herself down. that was when, she bumped into someone. it was no other than y/n. y/n paused for a bit and tried to walk away from minji, pretending she was not there.
minji reached an arm out and grabbed y/n's wrist, preventing her from leaving. "y/n..." she whispered as she pulled y/n closer to her.
"I missed you," minji whispered as she cupped y/n's cheeks.
"I'm sorry," y/n replied softly as minji caressed her cheek. minji's anger dissipated as she pulled y/n even closer to her.
"come back to us, y/n. we all missed you, especially me," minji pleaded. y/n frowned at the request, shaking her head as she slowly backed away.
"no, I can't," y/n said, pulling her hand out of minji's grip. "I have a new life now."
"why? we were in a group, y/n."
"no, I like things better as they are now."
"you don't miss me?" minji asked, tears welling up in her eyes.
y/n hesitated for a moment before answering, "I'm sorry, minji." tears started flowing from minji's eyes. she couldn't believe how harsh yet gentle the words that came out of y/n's mouth were.
"was it winter?" minji asked. y/n was slightly confused but soon understood and slowly nodded.
"what is it that she has and I don't?" minji asked, her tone slowly rising in anger. y/n stayed silent.
they stood in silence for a bit as y/n guiltily looked down. minji couldn't take it anymore and abruptly placed her lips on y/n's.
y/n was taken aback by the sudden kiss, but they didn't resist. as minji pulled away, they looked into each other's eyes, both unsure of what had just happened.
minji's expression softened as she spoke. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that. it's just...I don't understand why you would choose her over me."
y/n took a deep breath before responding. "I didn't choose her over you, minji. it's not like that. I care about you both in different ways."
"I still love you, you know," minji said.
"I'm sorry, minji. I'm really sorry. I just... fell out of love. and the slap... the slap kinda pushed me into making a rash decision, and I don't regret it."
"how could you say that?" minji asked, angered by the way y/n brushes off her past as as member of newjeans.
"I'm really sorry," y/n said and turned to leave.
minji didn't know what to do or say. she just stood there, feeling a mix of sadness and anger.
as y/n disappeared from view, minji couldn't help but think back to the time they spent together as members of newjeans. they had been so close, practically inseparable. but now, everything had changed.
