tangled; park woojin

25

Choi Hayun almost jumped out of her seat when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked back and made sure she knew the person behind her so she can scream at whoever they are. Fortunately, it was only Soojin.

"You freaking surprised me," Hayun hissed at her. "What are you doing here?"

It was rare for Soojin to wander in a different classroom during break. Usually, Hayun would be the one to visit her, but apparently, today wasn't a normal day.

"It's a real mystery," Soojin began, "but then I remember. I was actually curious about something. How come you're not hanging out in my classroom when Youngmin, the love of your life, is there?"

"Ew," Hayun said. "I thought I pegged you as a person who wouldn't believe everything she hears."

"Don't even try to lie. I can't believe you showed Daehwi the letter first."

Resigned, Hayun sighed. "Fine. You caught me."

"I mean, it was already so obvious something was going on between you two," Soojin remarked.

"Like there isn't anything going on between you and Woojin," Hayun retorted.

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Soojin said. "Anyway, you're changing the subject. Spill."

So Hayun did.

✨✨✨

Hayun recalled telling Soojin that she and Youngmin "somehow" knew each other. She wasn't lying, though. They were acquaintances of some sort, co-members of some club, students from the same batch. Everybody knew them both, with Hayun being the most social of all butterflies and Youngmin being Soundcloud-famous. But they didn't actually interact until a week before school started.

Hayun remembered how corny their first interaction was. It was your classic omg-we-accidentally-swapped-gym-bags-and-then-we-return-it-to-each-other-and-keep-in-touch kind of situation. Youngmin's ID was in the gym bag Hayun had picked up, and fortunately, his number was there as well. It was a miracle that his phone wasn't also in the bag. Hayun then called him.

"Hello?"

"Im Youngmin?"

"Yes? Who is this?"

"I have your bag. You probably have mine."

"Oh, so this is yours."

"Yep."

"You don't happen to be a fan, don't you?"

"A fan of what?"

"Nevermind."

So that was how it went. They made arrangements to meet the day after to switch the bags back.

"Do you want to drink anything?" Youngmin asked her. They met at a local café in a department store.

"Nah, I'm good. Thanks, though."

"It's my treat," Youngmin said. "For giving my bag back, I mean."

"Well, you gave back mine as well."

"If you want, you can order it to-go."

At that, Hayun finally said yes.

"No offense meant, I'm not trying to avoid you or anything," Hayun said as she grabbed her drink and her bag. "I'm just have to start preparing for school so I have to go home."

"Oh. I never thought of you as a person who would do that."

"We just met. How would you know what kind of person I am?"

"We go to the same school."

"You're kidding."

"Didn't you read it from my ID?"

"... No."

"Oh."

"Wait. No way. You're the actual Im Youngmin?"

"Yeah..."

"You're in a group thing with Daehwi, then?"

"Yeah."

"He's nice."

"Yeah."

"So that was why you asked if I were a fan of yours the last time."

Awkward first meeting indeed. Everything would have gone well (read: they wouldn't have to see each other again at all) if they didn't happen to be attending the same school. But they did. All Hayun planned to do was exchange smiles or nods with him whenever they run into each other, but then Woojin and Soojin happened. Or trying to happen. Mostly with Woojin trying to make it happen. Or something.

Anyway, she had found a topic to talk about with him, and whenever that happens to Hayun, she can't keep her mouth shut. So after classes, on the day Soojin had told her about the "confrontation," she made it a mission to talk to him. Luckily, he was alone on a bench in the front lobby.

"Hey," she said to him and sat down.

"Hi."

"We haven't talked in a while."

"Yeah."

"So... I heard your friend kinda harassed my friend."

"Who? Donghyun? I swear to God, I wasn't involved—"

"Your other friend."

"Woojin?"

"Yup."

"What did he do?"

Hayun then told him what Woojin did.

Youngmin had a sour look on his face. "That's rich of him. He didn't even know Zico's in Block B until I told him so."

"Wait. Zico's a member of Block B?"

"Go educate yourself, you uncultured swine," Youngmin said and looked at her in disgust.

Hayun rolled her eyes at him. "Whatever. Anyway, make your friend apologize or something. Soojin feels so wronged."

"Okay. But honestly—I bet she hates hearing this—she didn't really strike me as the type to like hip-hop."

"Me neither."

✨✨✨

"And then?" Soojin asked impatiently, tapping her foot on the floor.

"The bell has rung, Soojin," Hayun told her friend.

"Make sure you finish telling me everything," Soojin reminded her. "Or I'll probably die because Daehwi knows more about this than I do."

"That's because I love Daehwi more."

"Make sure Youngmin doesn't hear you say that."