I was nervous about seeing Jimin on the following Monday for our walk to school, the feeling passing when he grabbed onto my hand after we finished eating. I noticed that he wore his hair parted down the middle, giving it more texture and a better view of his face.

Before we could reach the school he turned to me, stopping us in our path. "Should we keep holding hands?" He asked.

"I want to," I answered, unlinking our hands at the same time, "but maybe let me tell Hobi about us first. Once I figure out what exactly to tell him." My brow pulled together in thought.

"Tell Hobi?" He questioned, his expression telling me he had more to say. "You two are just friends right, like there's never been something more between you?"

I shook my head. "No, he's just my best friend. He always has been, which means we tell each other everything." I clarified.

He nodded, leaning over to kiss my cheek. "Okay, tell him you're my girl, but there might be some things I want to stay between us." He whispered by my ear, all sense of shyness having disappeared.

Unfortunately I was on a different block than the both of them, unable to find Hobi in the hallway before class and just hoping that Jimin could keep quiet until I had a chance to talk to him. I went through my day, heading to Mrs. Crawford's classroom during lunch for the first meeting of the selected students for the Senior Planning Committee.

I saved a seat for Hobi, remembering that we signed up together, but he refused to meet my eye when he came in, immediately finding a spot at the far end of the table.

The president and top ranked student in our class led the meeting, reviewing the events we would be in charge of planning for the next and our final year of high school. I tried to take notes to keep up but my gaze kept diverting to Hobi, trying to read his face, his eyes frozen in one spot like he was working hard to keep them there.

I made sure to gather my things a minute before the meeting closed so he wouldn't be able to beat me out of the room. I caught his arm as he tried to race out of the door, pulling him back into the classroom and holding him there until it was only us left.

"What's your problem?" I asked. In our ten years of friendship Hobi had only been upset with me a handful of times, but right now I couldn't figure out why he was avoiding me.

"Are you with Jimin?" He replied with a question of his own.

I sighed. "Yes, who told you about that?"

"Not you." His response was immediate. "I saw you leaving his house the other night. Why wouldn't you tell me?"

It was exactly what I knew would happen if I didn't. "I've been trying but I couldn't find you all day and when I finally do I get this attitude. Why are you mad? I thought you liked Jimin." I crossed my arms over my chest.

"I do. I just didn't even know you liked him." He explained, tucking his hands into his pockets.

"I wasn't sure I did either because it felt different than just liking him. I didn't know how to talk to you about it because I was all in my head about the whole soulmate thing and if that's why I was feeling that way." I rambled.

He laughed, raising his brows. "Soulmate thing? I told you that wasn't real." He replied, reminding me of the night we found the box.

My eyes rolled without me even thinking about it. "I know, which is what I realized and why I accepted that I actually like him. So can you not be mad at me please. I promise I was going to tell you, but I didn't get the chance."

He seemed to be in deep thought. "You really never felt that way before?" He wondered.

I didn't quite understand where his question was coming from but I knew I would have to lie, because the same draw had always been there with him too. There was a moment of hesitation before I muttered, "No."

After confirming his forgiveness he gave me a long hug, the ring of the next bell interrupting and leading us to our separate classes.

Between school and balancing the time I spent with both of the most important boys in my life, I wore myself thin. My mom scolded me practically every time I left the house, in a rush to go out with Jimin or meet the study group we formed at the library. We joined Hobi and Gabby for more official double dates and things felt a little smoother between me and her, my relationship with Jimin casting me as less of a threat to hers with Hobi.

Jimin, I couldn't think of a bad thing about him and a part of that worried me. I was never able to stop comparing the way I felt about him to my friendship with Hobi, writing in my journals at night to process that I couldn't see a flaw in either of them. I always found that I came back to the box, back to wondering if the soulmate thing was real, trying to negate my thoughts by repeating Hobi's words to myself until I started to believe.

"It isn't real."

Exam season went by quickly, moving in slow motion while we studied and then over in a flash, leading us right into summer break. I started working at my family's restaurant more, Jimin doing the same to help his mom, but even during his shifts I would find a way to sneak over so we could flirt across the counter and sneak samples of sweets.

We adopted a new sort of normal, Jimin joining Hobi and I on most nights that we talked and watched the stars from under my window. I kept Hobi and my late night ventures to the dance battles he participated in for just us. Even when we were kids he was an incredibly talented dancer, often making up routines that he made me watch over and over.

Now, a little older and leaner, he was unstoppable. There was an energy that moved through him that radiated to the crowd every time he moved. I usually stood at the front of the circle of people who surrounded the two competing dancers, watching in admiration as he won each battle until he was undefeated. I felt nothing but pride and excitement on those nights, until the night I didn't.

Hobi had just won the last battle of the night. I could tell that his opponent was pissed, talking trash from where he stood with his friends and probably triggered by a move where Hobi acted like a dog peeing on his leg.

I stood next to Hobi while he collected his winnings from Bae, the guy who hosted the battles. My attention turned to Forty-Live, only knowing him by the pseudonym he used, as he tapped Hobi on the shoulder.

"Hoya, I wanted to say congrats to the undefeated champ." There was an ingenuine smile on his face as he held out his hand for Hobi to shake. Just as Hobi extended his in return, Forty pulled his fist back, knocking Hobi across the cheek. His punch was sloppy and Hobi recovered quickly, sending one back that connected with Forty's nose.

I wasn't sure how it happened, but suddenly everyone around us was fighting, one guy behind shoved into another and leading to more punches until the entire crowd was at each other's throats. It took me a second to process the scene, catching sight of a girl aiming to slap me and ducking just in time, my heart racing as I responded with instinct, swinging at her with my fist so that she stumbled backwards.

To my right I could see Hobi, keeping a knee on Forty's chest as he tried to wrestle out of his grip from the ground. Hobi was looking around calling out my name when we locked eyes. I pushed through the few people between us, grabbing onto his arm as he pointed in a direction that would lead us out of the chaos, shoving people aside until we were free.

We ran from the scene hand in hand, coming to a stop once we felt there was a safe distance between us and the location.

After catching our breaths he turned to me, reaching out to grab one of my arms. "Did you get hurt? Let me see you, Sel." He grabbed my chin, turning my head back and forth before running his hands down my shoulders and arms.

"I'm fine." I insisted, the street light above us shedding a glow that showed me a cut on his cheekbone and blood that was nearly dry on his nose from where he head-butted Forty. His knuckles were the worst, busted open on both hands. "Let's just get home." I turned to start walking a few steps ahead of him, my body filled with adrenaline and my mind full of racing thoughts.

It was our luck that his parents were out of town on a business trip. We walked through the living room straight into the kitchen. Hobi sat at a bar stool, sighing before trying to speak. "Sel, I—"

I walked past him to the bathroom, reaching into the back of the cabinet for the first aid kit. "I need to clean you up first." My voice was shaky as the night sank in.

I started with his hands, cleaning them with peroxide and wrapping his knuckles with gauze. While I worked on cleaning his cheek he spoke again. "I'm an idiot. I should have never had you out there." He looked down. I lifted his chin, needing to continue bandaging his wounds. I used a q-tip to wipe the blood from the inside and outside of his nose. "Sel, are you okay?" He asked, locking his eyes with mine as I finished.

It was a question I didn't know how to answer. You'd think that I would have been afraid standing in the middle of a crowd of people fighting, but the thing that'd shaken me most was the thought of him being hurt worse than he was.

I nodded, reaching out to touch the bandaid I put over his cheek as a tear fell down mine. "Are you?"

He could see the worry in my eyes. "Hey, I'm okay." He pressed his forehead against mine as he nodded assuringly. It was only for a second, but the pull was a little stronger and I fought against every urge that led me to kiss him in comfort.