People Watching ★ 𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐒𝐮𝐧

29: All For Nothing

The words "I'm going to confess to Sunghoon" kept echoing in Sunoo's head long after Hanna walked away. He stood there, heart pounding in his chest, the weight of her decision crashing down on him like a wave he hadn't seen coming.

Jake was still rambling about Heeseung's return, completely unaware of Sunoo's spiraling thoughts.

"Jake," Sunoo interrupted, voice tight, "where's Jungwon?"

Jake blinked, pushing up his glasses. "Uh, probably in the classroom? Why?"

Sunoo didn't answer. He was already running.

"Jungwon!"

Sunoo burst into the classroom, breathless and frantic. His best friend sat at his desk, lazily flipping through his notebook like the world wasn't falling apart. He raised a brow, unimpressed by the dramatic entrance.

"Dude," Jungwon drawled, "did someone light you on fire, or are you just being extra again?"

"Hanna," Sunoo panted, clutching the doorframe. "She's—she's going to confess. To Sunghoon. Right now."

That got Jungwon's attention. He closed the notebook with a soft thud, leaning back in his chair.

"And?"

Sunoo stared at him like he'd grown two heads. "And?! I can't let her! I have to stop her!"

Jungwon tilted his head, annoyingly calm. "Why? Isn't this what you wanted?"

What I wanted.

The words tasted bitter.

Sunoo didn't have time for explanations. He grabbed Jungwon by the wrist, practically yanking him out of his chair.

"Just come on!"

The courtyard was too bright, too loud, too full of students laughing and chatting like the world hadn't just tilted off its axis.

Sunoo's heart raced as he spotted Hanna standing by the lockers—with Sunghoon.

Too late.

Sunoo skidded to a halt, Jungwon stumbling beside him.

They both froze as Hanna nervously adjusted her oversized cardigan, clutching a neatly folded note in her trembling hands.

"Okay, um, Sunghoon," she began, pushing her glasses up her nose. Her voice wobbled, and her cheeks flushed a deep red. "I-I know this is kind of random, but... can we talk for a second?"

Sunghoon, who had been pulling books from his locker, glanced at her with mild surprise. "Uh, sure?"

Hanna took a deep breath, like she was about to jump off a cliff.

"I like you, Sunghoon," she blurted, words tumbling out like she couldn't hold them back any longer. "And I've liked you for a while. Since... well, honestly, since you helped me pick up my stupid flashcards that one time last year. Which sounds dumb now that I'm saying it out loud, but it's true. And I was gonna say something sooner, but I got scared, so Sunoo—he, um, he helped me. A lot. He's the one who came up with everything. The tutoring, the meet-ups, the... the whole plan. He just wanted me to be happy."

Silence.

A cold, suffocating silence.

Sunoo stood frozen, the words slamming into him like bricks.

No. No, no, no—

He stepped forward, mouth opening to speak, to stop this train wreck before it crashed—

But the damage was already done.

Sunghoon's expression didn't change. Not at first. He just stood there, holding the note like it was burning his hand.

Then he looked up.

Not at Hanna.

At Sunoo.

And his gaze—sharp, wounded, betrayed—cut deeper than any words ever could.

"...So it was all an act?"

The words were quiet, deadly calm.

Sunoo froze. "What?"

Sunghoon took a step closer, the usual coldness in his eyes replaced by something raw.

"Every time you showed up. Every stupid conversation. Every moment you pretended to care," he said, voice trembling, "it was all just to set me up with her?"

Sunoo's breath caught in his throat.

Pretended to care.

"No," he said quickly, stepping forward. "It wasn't like that. I was just trying to help—"

"Help?" Sunghoon laughed bitterly, crumpling the note in his fist. "Right. Because that's what you do, right? Fix everyone's problems, play the perfect friend, while laughing behind their backs?"

"Sunghoon, stop—"

"Did you ever think about how I felt?" Sunghoon snapped, voice rising. "Or was I just another stupid task for you to check off? 'Get Sunghoon a girlfriend'—was that the goal? Did you even care about me at all?!"

The words hit like a punch to the gut.

Sunoo's throat tightened, tears burning the back of his eyes. He wanted to scream, to explain, to fix this.

But all he could say was:

"...Of course I cared."

Sunghoon's jaw clenched.

"Funny way of showing it."

Then he turned and walked away, the note falling from his hand like ash.

Sunoo stood there, frozen, the world blurring around him.

Jungwon, quiet until now, finally sighed.

"Well," he muttered, "that went worse than expected."

Sunoo didn't answer.

Because for the first time in a long while, he didn't know how to fix this.