Y/N’s POV:
The crisp autumn air swirled fallen leaves around our feet as Hyein and I walked back from the library.
We’d been studying for our upcoming history exam, a subject we both found fascinating.
History, like Hyein, was full of stories, hidden details, and a depth that kept drawing me in.
“You know, that whole ‘rise and fall’ of empires thing is a bit depressing,” Hyein sighed, her voice soft like the rustling leaves.
I smiled, “It’s all about perspective, Hyein. There’s beauty in the fall too, in the way things change, and how they rise again from the ashes.”
Hyein turned to me, her eyes sparkling with a curious light. “You’re not as gloomy as you look, Y/N.”
I laughed, feeling a warmth bloom in my chest. “I’m just a sucker for the underdog story. You know, the ones where even after falling, they manage to find their way back.”
Hyein chuckled, her eyes momentarily crinkling at the corners. “That's quite a romantic way to look at it.”
My heart skipped a beat. I wasn’t sure why, but this conversation, these simple words shared on a brisk autumn day, felt different. It felt... significant.
We continued walking, the silence between us a comfortable lull, filled with the rhythm of our footsteps and the rustle of leaves.
As we walked, my gaze kept drifting towards Hyein. I found myself captivated by the way the sunlight danced in her dark hair, the way she effortlessly navigated the path, and the subtle curve of her lips when she smiled.
It was strange, this feeling that had bloomed within me. A warmth, a lightness, a yearning that I had never known before.
It was as if the world had suddenly come into focus, painted in vibrant colors I hadn’t noticed before.
And it was all because of her.
Hyein’s POV:
Y/N was a puzzle. A quiet, bookish soul who always wore a melancholic expression, but his eyes, when he looked at you, held a hidden warmth.
He was the kind of person who made you want to unravel him, to see what lay beneath those layers of quiet observation.
He’d been my friend for months now, and while I appreciated him deeply, there was something about him that intrigued me beyond friendship.
It was his way of listening, how his gaze seemed to hold your words in a silent embrace, and the way he always found the good in everything, even in the most disheartening of situations.
Walking back from the library, I couldn’t help but be drawn to his quiet intensity.
How he'd analyzed the rise and fall of empires with an almost poetic touch, making me see the beauty in even the most bleak history.
“You’re not as gloomy as you look, Y/N,” I blurted out, unable to hold back the thought that had been bubbling in my mind for weeks.
He laughed, a genuine, rich sound that surprised me. The sound of his laugh, a sound I'd never heard before, resonated inside me. It was like a hidden melody finally released, a secret he'd kept hidden for so long.
“I’m just a sucker for the underdog story,” he said, his eyes twinkling, “You know, the ones where even after falling, they manage to find their way back.”
His words struck a chord in me. The underdog. It reminded me of him, the way he seemed to hold a quiet strength within him, always ready to rise from the ashes of whatever life threw at him.
