Jimin Protectors ' Book 1 '

Chapter 87 '✅'

Author's POV :

The air in the classroom grew heavy with tension as Jimin's words hung in the air like a thunderclap that refused to fade. Ara's eyes widened, her heart pounding against her ribs like a caged bird desperate to escape. She couldn't believe what she had just heard—those words that seemed to shatter her understanding of everything she thought she knew about him.

The room fell into a suffocating silence, and all eyes turned to Jimin and Ara like spotlights on a stage neither of them had chosen to stand on. Taemin just wanted to grab his best friend and run out of this situation, his face burning with secondhand embarrassment.

Ara's mind raced like a storm, trying to process Jimin's sudden confession. She had never expected him to say something like that, not after all the confusion and mixed signals she had received from him. She thought he hated her, but... weren't they too young for what he just said? Her cheeks flushed crimson, and she stuttered, struggling to find the right words in the chaos of her thoughts.

Ara: "Jimin... I... I don't know what to say. This is so sudden. Why are you talking about marriage out of nowhere?!"

Jimin's heart sank like a stone dropped into deep water as he saw the surprise and uncertainty painted across Ara's face. He had taken a leap of faith, baring his soul for her to see, but now he feared he had made a huge mistake. All his nervousness rushed back to him like a wave, drowning him in regret. He looked down, his voice barely a whisper, fragile as autumn leaves.

Jimin: "I'm sorry if it's too much. I didn't mean to pressure you or make you uncomfortable. I just... I couldn't keep it inside anymore. I've liked you for so long, and I wanted to be with you. I... when you came to sit beside me, I thought you have the same feelings. I'm sorry, just forget what I said."

Ara's eyes softened as she saw the honesty in Jimin's voice and expression—like watching a wounded animal trying to hide its pain. She reached out, gently placing her hand on his, her touch warm against his trembling fingers.

Ara: "Can we talk out of the class? I guess all of our classmates are eavesdropping, watching what we are talking about."

She pulled Jimin, who walked with her like a lost puppy who just got rejected and wanted to hide in a small closet, his steps heavy with the weight of anticipated heartbreak.

***

Out of Jimin's Class

The hallway felt like a sanctuary compared to the suffocating attention of the classroom. Ara turned to face him, her heart aching at the sight of his downcast eyes.

Ara: "I'm sorry that I reacted like this. I didn't mean to hurt you."

Jimin kept looking down, unable to meet her eyes anymore. He just wanted to go home and cry in his mother's arms, to disappear into the safety of her embrace.

Jimin: "It's okay. If you don't like me, can I come back to my seat now?!"

She crouched down where his gaze was fixed, positioning herself to meet his eyes, and she smiled—a smile that held all the tenderness in the world.

Ara: "I didn't say I don't like you. I do."

Jimin's eyes widened and looked at her with eyes full of joy and hope, like sunrise breaking through storm clouds, but he frowned his eyebrows in confusion.

Jimin: "But!! You didn't agree with what I said."

Ara: "Jimin, no one is getting married when he is just in 8th grade. We are too young. I like you, and I want to be with you. About marriage, if we grow up and still have the same feelings, I promise you will get the yes you are seeking for. What do you say?"