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". . .and that's how i almost drowned jake in the kiddy pool" aera finished, her eyes sparkling with amusement. chaewon laughed, the sound bright and carefree, slicing through the warm evening air.
jake sighed, clearly done with the teasing. "aera, if you haven't noticed, we're starving" he said, rubbing his stomach dramatically as if to emphasize the point. chaewon raised an eyebrow at him. "who's we? speak for yourself."
jake shot her an exasperated look. "fine. i'm starving." without waiting for a response, he spun on his heel and headed back inside, leaving the two girls behind. "wait for me!" chaewon called after him, her voice fading into the distance as aera was left standing alone.
and there she was.
alone with sunghoon. again.
the tension hung thick between them, heavier than the late afternoon humidity. she could feel it coiling in her chest, a familiar knot tightening as she avoided his gaze, focusing on the ground. her mind raced, running through the countless ways this could spiral into another fight. of course it was going to. it's what they did best.
"we should go back inside too" she mumbled, stood up and smoothed out her dress, eager to escape the weight of his stare. she didn't want to be here. didn't want to be alone with him.
sunghoon pouted, a teasing smile dancing on his lips. "aw, already?" he stood up as well but didn't move.
aera sighed, frustration creeping in. she turned to leave, but his hand shot out, grabbing her wrist before she could step away. the sudden pull yanked her closer than she liked, and her heart raced, but not in the way it used to. now it was irritation, an electric pulse of exasperation.
"stop it" he muttered, her voice sharper than intended. "stop what, exactly?" aera's tone was neutral, but there was an obvious undercurrent of bottled up anger.
"stop avoiding me. it hurts when you look at the ground instead of me when i talk."
there it was again—guilt clawing at her insides. she pushed it down, freeing her wrist from his grip with ease. locking eyes with him, she tried to maintain her composure. tried to stay distant.
