Hearts Entwined || PpoToz

CHAPTER 27

NO ONE POV

The days passed, and the tension between Seoyeon and Yooyeon grew thicker, almost palpable. Their once frequent interactions had dwindled to mere exchanges of short, clipped answers, mostly from Seoyeon. She was doing everything in her power to avoid Yooyeon, and Yooyeon couldn’t understand why.

Whenever Yooyeon tried to ask a question or initiate a conversation, Seoyeon would respond with a brief, almost dismissive reply, not even bothering to make eye contact. Yooyeon noticed, of course, and tried her best to spend time with Seoyeon, finding excuses to talk or study together, but Seoyeon always had a reason to refuse.

"I’m busy," Seoyeon would say, or "I’ve got something else to do," and each time, Yooyeon felt a bit more frustrated, a bit more hurt.

In the meantime, Yooyeon continued tutoring Jiyoung, focusing her energy on that since Seoyeon was shutting her out. But as the days turned into weeks, Yooyeon’s patience wore thin. She had had enough of Seoyeon’s cold shoulder and decided to mirror her behavior. If Seoyeon wanted to act like this, then Yooyeon would do the same. She poured her energy into tutoring Jiyoung, trying to push Seoyeon out of her mind, but it was easier said than done.

The tension between them only escalated. In class, they would find ways to get under each other’s skin, whispering loud enough for the other to hear, making snide comments that would quickly spiral into arguments. The rest of the class was used to their bickering, but lately, the arguments had taken on a sharper edge, and today was no different—except it was.

Today, their argument went beyond the usual teasing and taunts. It became personal.

Yooyeon had just finished explaining a math problem to Jiyoung when Seoyeon, who was within earshot, muttered something under her breath. It was loud enough for Yooyeon to catch, and she whipped around to face her, eyes narrowed.

“What did you say, Seoyeon?” Yooyeon asked, her tone dangerously low.

Seoyeon didn’t back down. “I said, maybe you should focus more on your own work instead of playing tutor all the time.”

“Maybe you should mind your own business!” Yooyeon shot back, her voice rising.

The rest of the class fell silent, sensing the storm brewing between the two. Mrs. Park, their teacher, sighed deeply, rubbing her temples in frustration. She had dealt with enough of their antics for one day.

“Enough!” Mrs. Park’s voice cut through the tension like a knife. “I’ve had it with the both of you. This ends now!”

But the damage was done. The rest of the class continued, but the air between Seoyeon and Yooyeon crackled with unresolved anger. When the final bell rang, the classroom emptied quickly, everyone eager to leave the charged atmosphere behind.

Everyone except Seoyeon and Yooyeon.

Seoyeon was packing up her things, ready to leave the classroom and put some distance between herself and Yooyeon. But before she could step out, Yooyeon blocked her path, her expression a mix of frustration and hurt.

“Seoyeon, stop,” Yooyeon said, her voice louder than usual. “Why are you ignoring me? Why are you acting like this? It’s hurting my feelings, and I want to know why.”

Seoyeon froze, her hand gripping the strap of her bag tightly. For a moment, she considered just walking away, but the raw emotion in Yooyeon’s voice made her pause. She turned to face her, eyes blazing.

“You really don’t know?” Seoyeon retorted, her voice rising to match Yooyeon’s. “It’s because all you do is stick to Jiyoung. Jiyoung this, Jiyoung that—everything is about Jiyoung! I’m sick of it!”

Yooyeon was stunned into silence, her mouth opening and closing as she tried to process Seoyeon’s words. She hadn’t realized how much her time with Jiyoung had affected Seoyeon—or that it had affected her at all.

Seoyeon’s anger flared one last time before she turned on her heel, walking out of the classroom without another word. Yooyeon stood there, rooted to the spot, her mind racing. She hadn’t known, hadn’t understood, but now that she did, it left her feeling hollow, unsure of what to do next.

For the first time, Yooyeon felt a crack in the foundation of their rivalry, a crack that exposed something much deeper. But as she stood alone in the empty classroom, all she could think about was how to fix what had just broken between them.

•••

Yooyeon sighed as she made her way to the library, her mind still reeling from the confrontation with Seoyeon. She couldn’t shake off the lingering tension from their argument, and it weighed heavily on her as she entered the quiet space. But she still had to finish her day, and that meant tutoring Jiyoung.

As she sat down across from Jiyoung, spreading out the textbooks and notes, she tried to focus on the task at hand. Jiyoung was smiling at her, ready to start, but Yooyeon couldn’t stop thinking about Seoyeon’s words. They echoed in her mind, relentless and piercing.

"Jiyoung this, Jiyoung that—everything is about Jiyoung! I’m sick of it!"

Yooyeon’s hands trembled slightly as she picked up her pen. She tried to go through the motions, explaining a complex problem to Jiyoung, but her heart wasn’t in it. Her thoughts kept drifting back to Seoyeon, to the way she had looked—so angry, so hurt. It was unsettling, and Yooyeon didn’t know why it bothered her so much.

She stumbled over her explanation, losing her train of thought, and Jiyoung frowned in concern. “Yooyeon, are you okay? You seem distracted.”

Yooyeon blinked, snapping out of her reverie. She looked at Jiyoung, who was watching her with a mix of curiosity and worry. It was then that Yooyeon realized she couldn’t do this anymore—not with her mind in such disarray.

“I… I’m sorry, Jiyoung,” Yooyeon began, her voice soft but firm. “I don’t think I can continue tutoring you.”

Jiyoung’s face fell, her expression tinged with disappointment. “Why? Did I do something wrong?”

“No, it’s not you,” Yooyeon quickly reassured her. “It’s just… I’m going to be really busy soon, and I don’t think I’ll have the time to tutor you properly. I don’t want to leave you hanging, so maybe you should find another tutor.”

Jiyoung’s disappointment was palpable, but she nodded in understanding. “I see… Well, thank you for helping me up until now. I appreciate it.”

Yooyeon forced a smile, but her mind was elsewhere. As she watched Jiyoung gather her things and leave, she couldn’t stop thinking about Seoyeon’s outburst. Why had Seoyeon been so affected by her tutoring Jiyoung? Why did it matter so much to her?

It was a question that gnawed at Yooyeon as she walked out of the library, her footsteps echoing in the empty hallways. She replayed the argument in her head over and over, trying to make sense of it, but no matter how hard she thought, she couldn’t find an answer that satisfied her.

Why did Seoyeon care so much? And why, Yooyeon wondered, did it matter so much to her that Seoyeon had been hurt by it?

As the day drew to a close, Yooyeon found herself standing at a crossroads, uncertain of what to do next. All she knew was that something had changed between them—something important. But what that change meant, and how it would affect them moving forward, was a mystery she was still trying to unravel.