When I Grow Up (Seventeen Jeonghan x CLC Seunghee)

Four: When We Were Classmates

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Laying down her bed, Seunghee can't sleep. Just a while ago, the person she always dreamed of being near is finally a wall away from her. Jeonghan is renting the room next door. She keeps repeating this in her head just to make sure she's actually living in reality and not floating in some unknown dimension. She tugs at her blanket, turns to the other side and bolts around again. She'll turn into a spinning top if this continues. But she doesn't care. And she doesn't give a damn if she has insomnia all year long. Even if her eye bags eat away her eyes. She's near him at last. And she won't let this chance go to waste. Heaven allowed her this fated opportunity, she's thankful and she's overjoyed. Probably the happiest she has ever been in her life.

Then she starts smiling to herself, reminiscing the past. It all started nine years ago, when a cute little boy transferred to class 5-1.

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The teacher walked in the classroom followed by a boy who looked timidly at everyone infront of him. The whole class greeted the teacher, "Good morning Mrs. Yoo!"

"Good morning class. Well today, we have a new student joining class 5-1. Everybody, this is Yoon Jeonghan. He's from Gangnam district. He transferred here because his parents settled down in the area for the family business. Why don't we all welcome him?"

"Welcome to class 5-1 Yoon Jeonghan!" everyone in class said.

Jeonghan just bowed at them. The teacher smiled of his gesture. He's a very silent boy then.

"Okay, you can sit wherever you want Jeonghan," she told him.

And still silently, Jeonghan proceeded to a seat near the windows, at the last seat of the last row. Coincidentally, it was a seat beside Seunghee. He sat there without a word and Seunghee looked at him quietly too. Jeonghan noticed her observing him so he stared at her too. They didn't say a word to each other. They just stared into each other's eyes. They did not smile at each other too. They just cutely gazed at one another, clueless of what's to happen in the future. And soon the class started.

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It was their destined meeting. Day by day, they saw each other. Week by week, they shared the same classes, shared the same homework, the same activities and fieldtrips. Year by year, they went to the same lecture hall, laughed and played with the same group of people. For nine years, they stayed like that. For nine years they never had the chance to talk to each other privately about anything at all. They were always a person or a feet away but never did they have the opportunity to actually face each other like they did today.

So inside her room, as the clock strikes 3am, Seunghee smiles herself to sleep. It has been a long day. She can't wait for the next day to come. Starting that day, everyday is worth waiting for.

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She jerks a bit in her sleep. The sun has risen and it's already 8 in the morning. Seunghee is still slumping on her bed. She grumbles and reaches her bed side clock with only half of her eyelids open. She bolts up when she sees the time. And quickly runs to the bath for her early routine. "I can't be late!!!" she screams and scrams.

After a meager preparation of only 15 minutes, not even enough time to grab a piece of bread for breakfast, she makes a run to the door and steps outside in a very unladylike manner. "Coming through!" she says.

But she gets caught by someone the moment she sets foot outside. A neatly ponytailed Jeonghan is also just closing his door. They stare at each other both very surprised and thank goodness Seunghee's face doesn't blush furiously like others because if it does, she might die of embarrassment. Her face is already burning.