Window to freedom °•Minsung•°

25)

Yoona was a lovely woman.

Minho had thought so since he had first met her, wearing her lab coat in their hometown's high school.

She was shorter than Minho, rocking a head of pink wavy hair she often tied up in braids. She always wore pretty dresses, no matter the weather and loved pairing them up with mismatched tights and weirdly colored shoes.
Her face was average but became shiny as the sun when she smiled, bringing happiness to everyone around.

She was sweet, kind and considerate but also had a quick sense of humor and loved teasing others.

For years, she had been Minho's most intimate friend. They had been joint at the hip for all of high school, united by their passion for reading and for all things science.
Then suddenly, at the party after their graduation Yoona had kissed him. And Minho had thought:

"Well maybe this immense affection I feel for her was love all along"

They had started dating.

Minho had chosen to pursue geology and Yoona had gone to chemistry instead, but since their buildings were close on campus and their timetables incredibly matched, they had still managed to keep seeing eachother often.

They understood what the other thought with a single look, never argued and always supported eachother no matter what.

So when Minho's mother had suggested for them to get married, it had seemed a great idea to him.

He had proposed and Yoona had said an enthusiastic yes.

But now, as he walked hand in hand with her through a Christmas market, it didn't feel like the best of ideas anymore.

"...this town is so pretty, you were right Min" she was saying, overjoyed.

"It's totally yor vibe, sis" responded Changbin.

"Right?? I'm honestly starting to think we should move here permanently after the wedding"

At that, Minho snapped out of his thoughts:
"What?"

Yoon gave him a sweet smile:
"You heared me"

"But your job, your friends... Are you sure?"

She shrugged:
"Min, I hated my job anyway and I can still visit my friends. 'sides, you're so happy here and I like it too so..."

Minho looked at her, baffled:
"So I can keep teaching...? I can keep the flat?"

Yoona nodded.

Without thinking, Minho swooped her up into a hug making her laugh:
"Thank you, thank you, thank you..."
he said and pressed a kiss to her cheek.

"You're welcome, idiot" she breathed with a little blep.

Minho's mood improved considerably after that.

He felt almost happy as he picked up a pair of funky earrings for Yoona as Changbin distracted her.
He felt almost happy as Bin narrated his gym-trainer adventures making them both laugh.
He felt almost happy while they decorated a make-shift Christmas tree in the corner of the flat.

Almost.

When dinner time started nearing in, Minho closed himself in the kitchen as the two siblings unpacked.
Finally alone, he stole a glance to Jisung's chat.
He had seen the message but hadn't responded. His profile picture was also gone.

Minho was starting to worry.

As he cooked he couldn't help but think of everything that was going on.

Now that he had something to compare his relationship with, it was becoming increasingly obvious to him that there was something wrong in what he felt for Yoona.
Sure, he cared about her. Like really, really cared. He was still convinced she was his soulmate. But the relationship was...lacking in some way compared to how he felt around Jisung.

He wasn't really attracted to Yoona.
Not like he was attracted to Jisung.

Minho shook his head and stirred up the filling to the cannoli he was making.

Another thing he had realised and that had made him feel even worse was that Jisung didn't know he had a fiancee. For all he knew Minho was single. So what they had done wasn't wrong in any way in Jisung's perspective.

Minho had deceived him. He had omitted something of incredible value and now, well now it was too late.

Admitting the truth meant losing Jisung. Not admitting it meant deceiving him further.

Once the cannoli were ready, Minho sighed deeply. He was about to cry.

"Min? Do you need help with the table?" asked Yoon that second.

Quickly, Minho wiped his tears away and took in a big breath.

"I have no time for this"

"Yeah, actually" he said, trying to sound cheerful.

He didn't want to hurt Yoona. He wouldn't.

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