cupid's mistake

prologue

"what are you so afraid of?"

as the city lights begin their nightly dance, the night sky above transforms into a celestial tapestry. the inky black expanse becomes a canvas for a myriad of stars, each one punctuating the darkness with its ethereal glow. the moon, a silvery crescent, hangs low, casting a gentle radiance upon the urban landscape.

a silent hum escaped the lips of the female. she glanced at her partner, "what do you mean?"

"you're afraid."

"oh." instead of answering back, the cupid faced him, "you're afraid too."

"i'm not." her friend denied. she chuckled, "you are. i can read you like an open book, yeonjun."

"what am i afraid of then?" he huffed, facing her. y/n contemplated. should she tell him? should she not? should she just avoid the question? she didn't know. 

"are you ignoring me?" yeonjun blurted out. he looked away, facing the sky instead. his head rested against the wall behind. y/n copied his actions but hugged her legs instead, humming. she shook her head, indicating a 'no' as a response.

"what do you think i'm afraid of?" she asked instead. her friend snickered, "you could've just told me you don't know what i'm afraid of. you didn't have to avoid it."

"i'm not. i wanna know your thoughts first."

"hm..." yeonjun hummed. he gave a look to the girl sitting beside him before looking away. "i don't know actually. but, something within me just wants to tell you that whatever you're doing now is right. there are no mistakes made so i don't think it's worth dwelling on it."

her eyes slightly widened and smile almost faded, "what makes you say that?" yeonjun could only offer her a half shrug. silence then hung in the air, anticipation creeping up on y/n's soul. she was growing curious. was her cover a waste? does he know? did she make another mistake? her heart was beating quicker than ever. by instinct, she started nibbling her lower lip— something she does when she gets nervous— but yeonjun had already faced her, thumb on her lips. "don't do that. you always do that when you're anxious." he remarked.

"i do?"

"yes." upon hearing his response, y/n hung her head low. yeonjun stared at her, removing his big hands from her face. "i noticed that you always do that when you're nervous. there were many instances you nibbled on your lower lip, like today when you saw that couple at the park and when we were at the convenience store and you weren't acting like yourself. you looked.. sort of nervous." yeonjun rambled. y/n could only observe him, mouth snapped shut. taking a final breath in, he continued, "you know, you could always talk to me if there's anything bothering you."

y/n chuckled, nudging him. "how about you talk to me when there's anything bothering you, especially if it's love related. i can always help." this time, yeonjun scoffed. "forget about it. i'm serious, y/n. i want to help you."

"i want to help you too, yeonjun." y/n shook her head, agitated but slowly softened, "i know how to help you."