At lunch, Nari placed her tray down with a thud and gave Miyeon a pointed look. “So, what did you say to Mr. Kang that turned him into Beetlejuice?”
Miyeon raised an eyebrow and sighed, settling into her seat. “Are you still on that?”
“Of course I am!” Nari exclaimed, incredulous. “That man is notoriously strict. He won’t let anyone off the hook, not even with the best excuse in the world. And yet, he lets you off with a warning? Come on, Miyeon. You’ve got to spill the secret—I could use it for... personal reasons.” She wiggled her eyebrows mischievously.
Miyeon chuckled, shaking her head as she took a bite of her food. “As if I’m going to let you use my tactics.”
Nari gasped dramatically, placing a hand over her chest in mock offense. “I’ll get back at you for this, you know.” She stuffed her mouth with food, chewing exaggeratedly, which only made Miyeon laugh harder.
As the laughter between them subsided, Nari glanced around the busy cafeteria. The low hum of conversations filled the air, but nobody seemed to pay them any mind. Everyone was caught up in their own worlds.
“So, where are your three clowns today?” Nari asked, taking a sip of her drink.
Miyeon rolled her eyes but smiled fondly. “Stop calling them clowns, Ri. They’re actually really nice.”
Nari snorted. “To you, maybe.”
Ignoring the jab, Miyeon continued, “They’re working on a project due tomorrow, so they’re busy. Probably holed up in the library or something.”
Nari nodded, and her gaze drifted across the room again. Miyeon noticed the sudden quiet between them and cleared her throat. “How’s everything at home?”
The question hung in the air, and Nari’s smile faltered. Her eyes dropped to the table as she played with her spoon, her voice lower when she finally responded. “Not much has changed. Mom still doesn’t care if I exist, and Dad’s too busy jetting around the world for 'business' to even remember he has a daughter.”
Her words were tinged with bitterness, and Miyeon’s heart sank. She knew Nari’s story all too well. Nari had grown up without the support of her parents. Her mother left when she was young, and her father, immersed in his work, barely acknowledged her. She had been raised mostly by a nanny, the only consistent figure in her life.
Miyeon reached across the table, squeezing her friend’s hand gently. “You know, I could always give your dad a piece of my mind,” she said with a playful glint in her eyes, pulling a pen from her pocket and miming as if she were going to stab it into the air. “Or you know… something more permanent.”
That earned a small laugh from Nari, who shook her head. “We can’t have you going to jail now, can we?”
Miyeon smirked, twirling the pen between her fingers. “I know how to cover my tracks. I could make it look like an accident.”
“That’s concerning.”
Miyeon shrugged. “Just a little.”
The playful banter between them lifted the heavy atmosphere, and they both laughed, their previous somber thoughts pushed aside for the moment.
That’s what friends are for, after all.
____________
Later that afternoon, with their classes done for the day, Miyeon and Nari found themselves strolling down the busy streets of Seoul. The city was alive with its usual hustle and bustle—street vendors calling out to passersby, couples walking hand in hand, and groups of friends enjoying the cool evening breeze.
After a while, they ended up at a small playground, about half an hour away from their university. The two settled onto a park bench, ice cream in hand, as they watched children laughing and playing. The setting sun bathed everything in a warm glow, casting long shadows across the park.
Nari was the first to break the comfortable silence between them. “So…” she began, her voice soft but curious. “How was it? In China, I mean.”
Miyeon raised an eyebrow at the sudden question and chuckled. “Why the sudden interest?”
Nari shrugged, her gaze following a little boy who had just tripped over his own feet while playing football. To her surprise, the boy didn’t cry or throw a tantrum. He simply got up, dusted himself off, and continued playing with a grin on his face. She sighed, almost envious of his resilience.
“I just wonder sometimes,” Nari admitted, her voice thoughtful. “You’ve never really talked about it.”
Miyeon glanced at the boy too, then sighed deeply, her expression turning somber. “It wasn’t easy. Especially not after… everything that happened. It was hard to be away, to face everything on my own. But I managed.” Her voice dropped, almost a whisper. “He helped me through it.”
Nari turned to her friend, sensing the weight behind her words. She wanted to ask more, to pry into the painful memories Miyeon had always kept hidden. But she also knew better than to push. Miyeon would talk when she was ready.
Even if eventually was not anytime soon, she was ready to wait.
“You know,” Nari said softly, “I’m always here for you, right? You can talk to me about anything. Anytime.”
Miyeon smiled, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “I know, Ri. I’ll tell you everything one day. Just… not today.”
Nari nodded, understanding. She had known Miyeon long enough to know that there were battles her friend had fought alone— battles she wasn’t ready to share just yet. But Nari would always be there, standing beside her through it all.
“Okay,” Nari said, her tone lighter as she forced a smile, “Then for today, let’s not dwell on the past. Let’s just enjoy the moment.”
Miyeon grinned, standing up and extending a hand toward her. “Deal. Let’s go.”
Nari took her hand, squeezing it tightly as she stood. Together, they left the park behind, walking side by side into the fading evening light, ready to enjoy the rest of their day— just two friends, finding solace in each other’s company, as they always had.
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Daylight To Her Midnight | YJH | Seventeen Fanfic
Fanfiction'I don't wanna look at anything else now that I saw you.' Coming from a wealthy family was never the major flex in her life. To others, she might come off as a rich spoilt brat but the reality was far from what they perceived her to be. In a world...
