It was a quiet afternoon on campus, the kind where the breeze carried the soft scent of spring blossoms and the air felt lighter, even if not everyone's hearts did. The chaos of the past weeks had left the group drained, but also closer. Healing wasn't a straight line, and for some, the process was only just beginning.
Karina stood at the edge of the courtyard, her fingers trembling as she clutched a folded letter. She had rewritten it three times, yet the words still felt too small. Winter was beside her, unusually quiet, her gaze fixed on the ground.
They had debated this moment endlessly, going back and forth, unsure if speaking up was the right choice. What if they were too late? What if nothing could be repaired? But when Karina caught sight of Ara laughing softly with Ningning and Giselle in the distance, her chest tightened. The sound reminded her of what things used to feel like... before mistakes, before walls, before silence.
"Ready?" Winter asked, her voice low.
Karina's breath hitched. "Not even close. But we have to try."
Together, they walked forward.
Ara noticed first. Her laughter dimmed, the warmth in her eyes flickering as she saw the two approach. Ningning and Giselle followed her gaze, their expressions unreadable but not cold.
Karina stopped a few feet away, her heartbeat so loud it drowned the rest of the world. "Can we... talk?" she asked, her voice barely steady.
The pause that followed was heavy, but not hostile. Ara nodded once.
Karina swallowed, forcing herself to begin. "We've been thinking a lot. About everything. About what we did. What we said. What we didn't say."
Winter stepped up beside her, no sarcasm in her voice for once. "We were scared. Angry. Lost. And we took it out on the wrong people. On you."
Karina's fingers unfolded the letter, the paper crinkling from how tightly she held it. With a deep breath, she read aloud:
"Dear Ara, Ningning, Giselle, and everyone else we hurt,
We're sorry.
Sorry for letting our pain become poison. Sorry for hiding behind coldness and biting words because we didn't know how to ask for help. We thought pulling away made us stronger, but really, it was breaking us.
And when you reached out, we should have trusted you. But instead, we pushed you away.
You didn't deserve that.
We don't expect things to go back to how they were overnight. We just hope you see we're trying. That we want to change. And if you give us a chance... we'd like to start over."
Her hands trembled as she folded the letter back into her pocket. She lifted her eyes, meeting Ara's carefully. "We'll understand if you can't forgive us. But we wanted you to know the truth."
The silence that followed wasn't sharp this time. It was softer. Like the quiet that comes after rain.
Ara studied them both... their stiff shoulders, the way Winter's hands fidgeted with her sleeves, the nervous shine in Karina's eyes. Slowly, she stepped closer.
"I knew something was wrong," Ara said quietly. "And I won't excuse what happened... but I understand it more now."
Karina's breath caught.
Ara's lips curved into a small smile, not wide, but real. "If you're willing to rebuild... I'm willing to try too."
Karina blinked back tears, nodding quickly. Words stuck in her throat, but relief washed over her like sunlight breaking through clouds.
Ningning and Giselle exchanged a glance. There had been hurt, real hurt. But what stood in front of them now wasn't denial... it was honesty. And maybe that mattered more.
Ningning sighed, crossing her arms with a teasing lilt. "As long as you don't steal my snacks again, we're good."
Giselle added, a small grin tugging at her lips, "Or borrow my lip balm without asking."
Karina let out a teary laugh. "Deal."
And just like that, something shifted. The wall that had divided them began to crumble, not from some dramatic gesture, but from simple, sincere words. Words that mattered more than anything.
It wasn't perfect. It wasn't healed. But it was a start.
The group wandered toward the bleachers by the field, where the Dreamies sprawled out in their usual chaos. Winter hesitated, slowing her steps, nerves twisting in her stomach. She wasn't sure the boys would see her and Karina as anything but "the girls who messed up."
But Jaemin's voice cut through her doubt.
"Come on, what are you waiting for? We need an extra player for dodgeball!"
Winter blinked, startled. "What, no awkward stares? No passive-aggressive comments?"
"Only if you start cheating again," Jeno shot back with a smirk.
Renjun added dryly, "We're watching you."
The group burst into laughter, tension breaking like glass. Karina and Winter slipped into the circle, slowly but surely blending into the noise and warmth of everyone else.
It wasn't perfect. Not yet. But perfection wasn't the point. Trying was. And for the first time in a long while, they were trying.
Later, as the sun dipped low behind the rooftop, painting the sky in gold and pink, Ara and Karina sat under a tree near the track. The world felt quiet again, but not in the way it used to... this quiet was safe.
"You know," Karina murmured, picking at blades of grass, "I really thought I ruined everything."
Ara glanced at her, her tone gentle. "You didn't. You just got lost for a while."
Karina gave a small, shaky smile. "Thanks for finding me."
Ara bumped her shoulder lightly. "I had help."
From the bleachers nearby, laughter carried through the air. Winter was doubled over, laughing at something Chenle had said, while Ningning and Giselle teased Jaemin about his overconfidence in dodgeball. The sound wasn't cautious or forced anymore. It was real.
Ara leaned back against the tree, watching them all. Friendship wasn't just about sharing easy moments. It was about facing the hard truths, admitting mistakes, and choosing, again and again, to grow together.
And so they did.
A.N:-
- This is similar to a real life situation that happened to me some years ago, we are still friends to this day and so I taught why not get inspired by it and write it as my book plot.
