colors ◇ seventeen | wonwoo

f o u r t e e n

when he hadn't seen her in almost three weeks, he decided to look for her. gaeul wasn't in her studio, nor was she in the restaurant that he had figured was her family's. wonwoo had asked the waitress, gaeul's sister, but she didn't know either.

"unnie, well, she comes and goes when she wants. even eomma and appa don't worry about her a lot," the girl had said, "there's nothing to worry about, they always said. she does what she wants. she can take care of herself."

the words had replayed in his mind for a while. he shouldn't have been surprised about it as he had always felt that it was that way with her. gaeul had always seemed to be able to hold her own, to always have control over her life. but there was also the realization that she could disappear from his life whenever she wanted. wonwoo didn't want that.

he walked passed one of the alleys that the two of them painted together and he stopped to admire their work. it was nothing too special, but he couldn't help the pensive feeling as he remembered painting with her.

there was a time when he didn't know her. before her, he hadn't been yelled at by an ajhussi for vandalizing, or actually vandalized the wall in an old alley. different hair colors were something he had only seen on the idols he watched on tv. he never anticipated whoever walked into the coffee shop before. wonwoo was already so used to having gaeul in his life. this sudden disappearance affected him a little more than it should.

he decided to head back to the coffee shop. it wasn't his shift yet but he was almost sure that she would stop by. he wanted to think she wasn't disappearing.

and on his way, he found her. she wasn't headed toward the coffee shop but to the art shop. wonwoo walked faster and managed to catch up to her.

he placed a hand on her shoulder and she jumped at the contact. gaeul spun around, offering a weak grin when she recognized him.

"wonwoo-ssi," she mumbled. "what are you doing here?" her words were a bit slurred but still understandable. wonwoo noticed the can of beer in her hand.

"you're drinking? in the middle of the day?"

she giggled softly, holding up the can. "you want one? i have some more in the studio." he shook his head in response but she grabbed his wrist and pulled him with her to the art shop.

it was closed that day and so gaeul had to get the keys to the shop. she handed him the half empty can and fished through her pocket for the key. she pulled it out and opened the door and walked inside. she didn't look back as if she had forgotten his presence. wonwoo followed.

inside the small studio, she walked up to the mini-fridge that wonwoo hadn't noticed the last time he was there. she grabbed a can of beer and opened it, taking a sip.

wonwoo held up the can that she had given him earlier. "you haven't finished this yet."

she shrugged. "you can have it." she sat down on the floor, in the middle of the room where there wasn't so much art supplies lying around. she patted the empty spot right next to her. "you wanna sit?"

he made a face and set the can down on the closest table before walking over and sitting down next to her. "where have you been?"

she leaned her head on his shoulder. "why are you asking? did you miss me?"

he rolled his eyes. "it's weird when you don't show up at the shop."

"yeah, i missed you," she muttered in a deep voice to imitate him. then, in her normal voice, she said, "is it so hard to admit that. i mean, we are friends. friends can miss each other when they haven't seen each other for a while."

wonwoo smiled at that. she said they were friends. that meant she wasn't going to disappear, right?

she was frowning. at first it had been an exaggerated pout that hid her genuine sadness, her eyes still holding a glint of mischief. but that moment was gone and suddenly he could recognize the sadness in her eyes. it was foreign but he was sure, especially when a tear had run down her cheek.

"why are you crying?"

she shook her head and turned away, wiping away the tears.

"you... you can cry. if you want," he mumbled. "i don't know what's wrong, but if you want to cry then go ahead."

and she did cry. her shoulders shook as she sobbed and all wonwoo could do was sit there. she turned to face him again and rested her head on his shoulder. he was surprised but didn't push her away.

she always looked so strong and in-control, but he realized she wasn't. he would always see the other side of her. he had forgotten that she could wear a mask to hide her true colors. he used to see her as the vibrant red, but now all he could see was grey and blue.

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a/n: idk if it's just me but i don't like wonwoo's character here... it's so boring, like there's no development in his character and it irks me for some reason idk i mean, gaeul is supposed to be the main focus of the story but i can't help but think i should have made wonwoo a round character here

and kinda related but not wonwoo or k-pop related but omg the Colors MV is <3 and Tyler Posey and Halsey and omg omg omg... but THAT PLOT TWIST THO it was sorta obvious but still OMG but Tyler Posey was still perfect tho lmao