𝓈𝒾𝓃𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 ─── ˢˡᵒʷ ᵘᵖᵈᵃᵗᵉˢ

¹¹. 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭

''  ᶜᵒⁿᶠʳᵒⁿᵗᵉᵈ ᵇʸ ᶠʳᶦᵉⁿᵈˢ ᶠʳᵒᵐ ᵗʰᵉ ᵖᵃˢᵗ ''

✧─✧──✧─────────────────────────────✧──✧─✧

When the couple saw one another early the following morning, neither of them mentioned what had happened the night before. They went back to their usual routine, with Sunoh making breakfast while Nari got ready for school, and each ignored the feeling of disappointment mixed with guilt that surfaced whenever they made eye contact. Though they tried to push the image of their unresponsive Love Alarms away, it flashed in front of their eyes every now and then and caused the silences in between their little conversations that had once been comfortable to turn slightly awkward now.

"Ready?" Sunoh asked quietly after they'd finished breakfast and put their shoes on.

Nari swung her bag over her shoulder and nodded to him, following him out of the front door and locking it behind her.

The two walked in silence for a few minutes before Sunoh gathered up enough courage to take Nari's hand, entwining their fingers and breaking the awkward atmosphere between them by asking her about their schedule for that day when she turned to look up at him in surprise.

Grateful that he had made the first move to ease the tension between them, Nari pulled a smile onto her face and proceeded to tell him about the lessons that they were supposed to have that day as she held onto his hand a little tighter.

─🌊─

Sunoh had been lost in thought when he bumped into someone while rounding a corner as he walked through the school corridors during break time. Raising his gaze to look at the wide-eyed boy in front of him, Sunoh felt his heart sink slightly as he instantly recognised him.

"Joo-won..." he uttered, trailing off as he struggled to think of something else to say.

Moon Joo-won was not only the heart and soul of the classroom—always making everyone around him smile and laugh because of his good-natured personality and funny jokes—but he was also the second closest friend of Sunoh's, with the first being Hye-yeon. The two had met at the beginning of middle school and had befriended one another because both of them were considered popular by the rest of the student body, but then they gradually found out that they have a lot in common. They listened to the same music and liked the same sport, and both wanted to be free of the restraints placed upon them by their rich and famous families. They used to spend a lot of their free time outside of school together, and they naturally grew closer. 

But recently the two hadn't spoken due to Sunoh's heartbreak following his breakup with Jojo which had resulted in him pushing everyone close to him away, including his two closest friends.

"Oh, Sunoh," Joo-won replied, his face forming an unusual blank expression.

Joo-won was known for his bright smile that barely ever left his face, and so to see him expressionless was very, very rare. Sunoh had seen Joo-won shoot such a look at people who didn't pass his vibe check a couple of times before, but he had never had that kind of expression directed at him before. 

The Hwang boy shifted on the spot, uncomfortable now that he was the target of Joo-won's blank stare.

"Hey," Joo-won greeted when he noticed that Sunoh wasn't leaving.