The Hidden Treasure

~30~

Hyejin opened the door to the book shop and as was her custom, she took a deep breath and breathed in the scent of books old and new.  It was the smell of familiarity and nostalgia.  She walked through the dancing dust particles that were floating around in the rays of sun streaming through the windows.  Once she reached the counter, she paused and looked at the class picture.   Her head titled to one side and she sighed.  She had been so happy to reunite with an old friend only to have it become a muddled mess of wrong assumptions, mistaken feelings, and now her confused heart. 

She looked at Namjoon's younger smiling face and she couldn't help but smile in return.  He had always been such a heart breaker with those dimples. 

"Hyejin!  You're just the person I wanted to talk to."

Hyejin looked up to see her friend Yoona coming towards her desk.  Her friend gave a wide distance to Namjoon's desk, where he was sitting, and as usual, nose deep in some book.  Hyejin saw her friend blush as she scooted past his desk.  She wanted to laugh but knew it would embarrass her friend. 

Yoona turned her back to the boy and faced Hyejin.  "I need help."

"With what?"  Hyejin looked up at her friend with interested eyes.

"Him," whispered Yoona. 

"You mean Nam-" A cool hand clamped over her mouth and a frantic looking Yoona glanced over her shoulder to see if the boy in question was listening. 

"Seriously, Hyejin?"  She sighed and released the girl's mouth.

"Sorry," whispered Hyejin, glancing around Yoona to see Namjoon still engrossed in his book.

"Anyway, I want to ask him to the dance that's coming up.  I just don't know how."  Yoona sighed and twirled some of her dark hair over her finger.

"That guy?  I don't think he can dance."  Hyejin smirked and looked back down at her text book.

"I don't care!  He's gorgeous!  Please!  You talk to him a lot.  Can you see what his plans are for the dance?  Please?"  She rubbed her palms together and pleaded with her friend.

"Why me?  We don't talk that much.  He just likes to antagonize me and harass me about my grades."

"So you'll do it?  Great!  I knew you would come though for me.  Let me know what you find out!"  Her friend quickly left the room before a slack-jawed Hyejin could answer.  Her eyes drifted to Namjoon and saw him look towards her as Yoona left.  She smiled sarcastically and jerked her gaze back to her book.

Soon she heard a noise next to her and she looked up to see her nemesis seated on the edge of the desk next to her's.

"So your friend wants me to ask her to the dance?"

Hyejin swallowed nervously. "You heard all that?"

"She was kinda loud," giggled Namjoon.

"So will you go with her?" Hyejin looked back at her textbook trying to seem uninterested in his response.

He folded his arms and looked up at the ceiling. "I...I'm not sure. Should I?" He grinned down at her, his dimples on full display.

Her heart did somersaults again and she tried to keep her face neutral. "Sure! Why not? She's a nice girl." Hyejin felt a twinge of jealousy creeping into her heart and she wondered where to could have come from.

"But I already found someone I want to go with." He brushed some invisible lint off his school jacket.

Hyejin's heart sank for some strange reason. "Oh really? Who's the lucky girl?" On one hand she wanted to know, but on the other she absolutely wanted to remain ignorant about his love life.