no space ! MINSUNG

the party

The days blurred together after the library incident. Jisung had thought—hoped—that his argument with Hyunjin and Chan would blow over quickly. It hadn't been a huge fight, just a clash of stubborn personalities. But as the two weeks dragged on, the awkwardness remained.

Part of the problem was they hadn't actually had time to talk. Between classes, Quidditch practice for Chan, and Hyunjin being constantly swamped with his electives, it had been easy to keep avoiding each other. It should've been a relief for Jisung, considering how terrible he was with confrontation. He wasn't good at talking.

But the real problem, the one that buzzed at the back of his mind, was that maybe they weren't avoiding the conversation because they were busy. Maybe they were avoiding it because it was just awkward now.

"You know what you look like?" Selene interrupted his studying, although he was mostly overthinking than concentrating. "Like you need some new air. Let's do something fun, you've been too much in your head lately."

Jisung smiled. He had been hanging out with Selene a lot. What had started as simply asking for advice had turned into genuine companionship. They'd sit by the lake, and talk about everything and nothing. Selene had an easy way about her, a way of deflecting serious topics with sarcasm that Jisung found refreshing. Maybe that's why he hadn't really missed Chan and Hyunjin's company the way he thought he would.

"That's... interesting, but I'm not in the mood for anything today. I'm stressed and I just wanna nap once I finish this."

His gaze flickered to a table at the far end of the library—Hyunjin's and Chan's usual spot. Of course, the library was still their hangout. Just now, they sat separately because of Selene, which just added to the tension.

"Are you going to talk to them, or are you just going to keep avoiding it?" Selene asked, pulling him out of his thoughts.

Jisung sighed, running a hand through his hair. "It's not about avoiding, I thought things would brush off. But it's like they're waiting for me to apologize, and I don't even know what I'd be apologizing for."

"Maybe it's not about an apology," Selene suggested, her eyes following them. "Maybe they're just hurt because you're hanging out with me."

Jisung frowned. "That's stupid. They don't even know you. They're just being—"

"Protective?" she finished for him, a slight smile on her lips. "Trust me, they probably think they're looking out for you. People don't let go of their prejudices that easily."

"Yeah, well, they're being idiots," Jisung muttered. "I can hang out with whoever I want."

"True, but sometimes being right doesn't make things easier," Selene said with a knowing look. "You're going to have to talk to them eventually."

Jisung barely nodded, he didn't feel like it.

"And what about Lee? I thought the hot and cold strategy was making him want to eat his own flesh inside out." She asked.

"Gross." Jisung scrunched his face. "It was. But now... I don't know." He shook his head. "Every interaction is just mechanical. He asks for help—"

"Right, with your secret mission you won't tell me about."

"I help, he leaves, that's it." He ignored her remark. "It's not even an interaction. It's like a transaction. We're just... existing around each other."

Selene chuckled softly. "Sounds familiar."

Jisung shot her a look. "What do you mean?"

"Come on, Ji. It's the same thing with your friends. You're not talking about what's really bothering you, just like you're not talking to Lee about whatever's going on between you two. You can't avoid these things forever."