emotions | love alarm

3 ~

Chapter Three

As soon as Ae-ri sat down in her seat for school the next day, she knew something in the air had shifted. She looks around, observing the people around her carefully, trying to see any abnormal behavior, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

She bites her lip in dissatisfaction at not being able to figure it out, before getting ready for the day. Her hands reach for her notebook and some pens, her fingers flipping through the pages with ease. The guy that was her new roof buddy, Sun-oh, plops down in his chair, as sad as usual.

The people around her begin to murmur and she looks up from writing down the date on a fresh notebook page to try to analyze who the whispers were directed to.

That's so embarrassing.

He just keeps making it worse for himself.

Sun-oh sighs heavily and that's when she notices what was wrong. Somehow he was sadder than usual, more distant from reality, and she turns to look at him, her eyes attempting to find any indicators of another emotion.

Frustration. But not with anybody specific, more like frustration with himself.

She listens in for hints of what made him feel this way and catches onto an important deal.

Her love alarm rang in front of everyone and he didn't even get a single notification!

Oh, the girl again.

At finally knowing the issue at hand, Ae-ri directs her attention to more important things such as what books she would be reading after her Harry Potter one.

***

Sun-oh was completely out if it.

He tried to avoid Jo-jo at all costs but somehow he still heard the ding of unrequited love. He had vowed to hurt her with his gradual loss of affection, but he couldn't even lose feelings for the girl.

The only thing that rung in his head that helped ease the aching pain was the words of the girl, Ae-ri, who said that people would change for who they wanted to.

Jo-jo hadn't even tried.

He drags himself up to the roof only to find the girl with her nose in a book, an apple in her hand. He thought she seemed completely at home; the wind was picking up her curls every now and then, her eyebrows slightly furrowed, her body relaxed against the edge of the roof wall. Ae-ri tenses as she notices his presence and looks to glance at the newcomer.

Why the fuck?

She groans internally before giving him a nod of acknowledgement and continuing on with her current chapter.

For whatever reason, the girl made him feel safe; he felt she wouldn't judge him. So when he felt his throat start to close up, and a choked sob of frustration move its way out of his body, he immediately walked over to her for comfort.

Ae-ri was not in the fucking mood for waterworks as her favorite character had just died in her book, so she simply looked at Sun-oh perplexed. She looks into his eyes only to see that he didn't really know what to do, he just needed someone to console him. She was familiar with the feeling of pouring salt on an open wound but that didn't mean she enjoyed trying to empathize with people. He glances at her, trying to find words to speak but ends up crying harder.

Mans was really going through it.

She puts down her book and stands up, offering her new packet of tissues after he took her last one. He grabs a tissue just as she opens her arms questionably, as if the movement was foreign to her. He stops hiccuping for a split second as she looks up at him confused, "This is what people do right?"

Sun-oh walks into her arms and hugs her tightly, murmuring a soft yeah.

Ae-ri stiffens but thinks back to what her psychology said about human touch; she remembers to hug back after a second. Her arms wrap around his torso and she rubs his back soothingly, encouraging him to, "Let it all out," as she heard in a movie one time.

Sun-oh relaxes into her touch after a few seconds and she notices a vast reduction in the amount of tears he was shedding. Her touch was very comforting to him, and he could feel his hurt lessening as a result.

They both stay embraced, Ae-ri feeling her own heart start to fill with tenderness but choosing to repress it until further notice; his arms were warm and firm, more stable than a lot of things in her life, but she would stub her toe before admitting she liked the feel.

"Thank you," he whispers softly as he pulls away.

She nods and gives him a gentle nod before pulling her now damp hair away from her neck, tucking her hair behind her ear. Sun-oh looks down at her, her own eyes confused at the situation at hand, before clearing his throat, "I'm not usually like this."

"We are all prone to negative emotion. You shouldn't be so hard on yourself. You also really shouldn't let her--Jo-jo is it?--affect you so much," she says as a side note. Ae-ri takes a seat on one of the ledges nearby and he follows suit.

"I know, its just that today-"

"You rung her alarm, I'm aware."

Sun-oh bites his lip and runs his hands through his hair, "I feel so helpless all the time. She still has so much power over me."

"You are always in full control of your feelings, Sun-oh, don't allow for anyone to tell you otherwise--especially your mind," she says as she swings her legs back and forth. He looks at her in surprise at the emotion seeping through her voice--it was almost irritated.

"But she makes me feel-"

"Wrong," Ae-ri replies immediately. She shakes her head at him and watches as he looks at her in confusion and admiration. "You choose to feel things. Your body might have a reaction to love, but ultimately, you get to decide whether you want to feel something or not. Choose not to love her. It will take some time but you'll get there when you decide to gain more emotional intelligence," she explains more in detail.

"Is that why you are the way you are?"

Ae-ri stops swinging her feet and glances over at him to try to see if he was curious or condescending. Upon seeing his awaiting face she decides on the former. "Yes. I choose not to feel certain emotions in order to maintain a stable level of neutrality and content."

He nods slowly, grasping her words slowly.

The lunch bell rings and she gets up, grabbing her things. Sun-oh chooses to wait for her so they could walk together and soon they begin their way back to their classroom.

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a/n

:)