starlight | choi soobin.

fourteen.

 soobin sat on the bench near the school courtyard, absently tracing the edge of his notebook with his pen. it was a lazy afternoon, the kind where everything felt muted, like the world was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen. the note he had left her the night before still felt fresh in his chest, a pulse he couldn't shake. his heart raced with anticipation and uncertainty, every second stretching out longer than the one before. would she reply? would she meet him again? or had he made things awkward?

he spent most of the day replaying the words he had written, trying to make sense of the weight they carried. they hadn't been grand declarations, not like the romantic gestures he had read about in books or seen in movies. they were quiet, simple. but there was something in them—something in his honesty—that felt more vulnerable than anything he had ever shared before. it had been the truest thing he had said to anyone, maybe in his entire life. the thought of her reading it made him feel exposed, raw, but it was also freeing. for once, he had said exactly what he felt, without hiding behind the walls he usually built around himself.

when the bell rang, signaling the end of the school day, soobin shoved his notebook into his bag and began walking to his next class. he didn't expect to see her right away, but he couldn't shake the feeling that something had shifted. that somehow, the space between them had grown smaller. he found himself walking more purposefully, looking over his shoulder more often, scanning the hallways for any sign of her.

he didn't have to wait long. as he rounded the corner by the lockers, he saw her standing there, leaning against the wall, her dark hair falling in soft waves around her face. she was holding a piece of paper in her hand, and her gaze was focused on it, her fingers running along the edges, as though she were trying to memorize the words on it. as soon as soobin saw her, he froze, his heart hammering in his chest.

for a moment, neither of them spoke. they just stood there, a few feet apart, the quiet of the hallway pressing in on them. the noise of students milling around, chatting, laughing, all of it felt distant. in this small moment, it was just the two of them, standing in the silence they had built together.

finally, she looked up, her eyes meeting his. there was a flicker of something there—something that felt like both recognition and something deeper, something that had been waiting to be acknowledged.

"soobin," she said, her voice soft, but with an edge of determination that he hadn't expected. "i... i read your note."

his chest tightened at the words, his mind scrambling to find something to say, anything to ease the tension. but all he could do was nod, his throat tight.

"and?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

she hesitated for a moment, looking down at the paper in her hand, as if considering her words carefully. when she looked back at him, there was a calmness in her eyes that made his pulse quicken.

"i've been thinking about it all day," she said. "about everything you wrote. about how you feel. and... i think i understand. i think i feel the same way."

soobin blinked, caught off guard by her words. he hadn't expected her to respond so quickly, to be so open with him, even though he had hoped for it. the weight of her response settled around him, and for the first time in what felt like forever, he found himself breathing again.

"you do?" he asked, his voice softer now, as though he were afraid to disturb the delicate moment between them.

she nodded, a small smile tugging at her lips. "yeah. it's... strange, you know? i never thought i'd find someone who feels the same way. i thought i was just... looking at the stars alone. but then you came along, and it felt like, maybe, we were both looking at them from different places, but still the same. i'm not good at this stuff, you know? i don't know how to be open, how to trust. but when i read your note, it felt like maybe i could be. with you."

soobin's heart swelled with a mixture of relief and gratitude. he hadn't realized how much he had been holding on to, how much he had been afraid of. but now, as she spoke, as she shared her own vulnerability with him, it felt like something had shifted between them. the space that had once felt so wide and filled with uncertainty now felt a little smaller, a little warmer.

"i get it," he said, his voice steady now, though the tremor of emotion still lingered underneath. "i never thought i'd be able to say any of this either. but it feels... right, you know? like it's the only thing that makes sense."

they stood there for a moment, the world around them fading into the background, and for once, it felt like they were both in sync. like they had found a place where they could both just... be.

"so," she said, her voice breaking the silence, "what now?"

soobin's eyes met hers, and in that moment, he knew. he didn't need to have all the answers, didn't need to know what the future held. he just needed to be honest, just needed to take things one step at a time. they didn't have to rush, didn't have to label anything. all he needed was her, in this moment, under the stars, where everything felt clear.

"i don't know," he said with a small smile. "but i think... i think we're on the right path."

she grinned, the tension between them lifting as she stepped a little closer. "yeah. i think so, too."

without thinking, soobin reached out, his hand brushing against hers. it was a simple gesture, one that felt natural now, as though it had always been meant to happen. she didn't pull away. instead, her fingers slid into his, and for a brief moment, the world around them seemed to fall away. it was just them, connected in the quiet way they had always communicated. not through words, but through something deeper, something they didn't need to define.

"soobin," she said softly, her voice laced with something new, something that felt like warmth. "i'm glad i met you."

he squeezed her hand gently, his heart light for the first time in weeks. "me too."