< Jongyun Seok 🔍 📞

Today

💖 The library is very busy today

🏀 The cafe too 😭!!

💖 Haha but I do wish you guys were here..

🏀 you miss us don't you 😏

*seen*

🏀 hey

Jongyun Seok, you there?

Are you busy?

Where did you go?

😭 Seok-ssi~~~~~~~

The day dragged on relentlessly as I worked tirelessly at the cafe. The fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, casting a harsh glare over the rows of chairs and tables lining around the room. Despite the quietness veiling over the cafe, today was anything but tranquil.

I furrowed my brow in frustration as I glanced down at my phone, once again met with the disappointment of unanswered messages and ignored calls. It seemed as though he was deliberately avoiding me, leaving me to wonder what could have gone wrong.

Lost in my thoughts, I barely noticed the commotion brewing around me. The once peaceful haven of my work was now overrun by a crowd of restless customers, their voices mingling into an indistinguishable cacophony. It was as if the the world was conspiring against me. I usually never felt this irritated with respect to the liveliness of the place but today just seemed very different.

My thoughts shifted to every reason why Jongyun had left me on read. He obviously bore the brunt of the pandemonium as he attempted to manage the influx of visitors single-handedly. I couldn't help but feel sympathy for him, knowing all too well the strain of shouldering such a heavy burden alone.

A small moment of respite came in the form of a fleeting interaction with a young boy, his eyes bright with excitement as he eagerly accepted a cup of hot chocolate from me.

Behind me, Yunjin let out a loud sigh, her frustration mirroring my own. We were both weary from the relentless demands of our work, our exhaustion palpable as the clock struck seven.

With a sigh of relief, I leaned back, grateful for the brief reprieve of break time. Yunjin trudged wearily into the backroom, and I followed suit, turning the sign on the door from 'open' to 'close' with a sense of finality.

Yunjin let out a heavy sigh as she tossed her apron onto a pile of boxes, collapsing onto the cushioned chair at the far end of the room. I mirrored her actions, sinking into the chair opposite hers, but my attention remained fixated on my phone, my mind consumed by unanswered messages and missed calls.

"Songjae Woo!" Yunjin's sharp voice shattered the silence, causing me to startle and drop my phone to the floor in surprise. I blinked at her, a mixture of shock and frustration evident on my face.

"What? You were the one sticking your face in that phone," she retorted, picking up my phone from the ground. I quickly snatched it from her grasp, hastily dusting it off with my clothes in a futile attempt to hide my embarrassment.

"Was that Jongyun? You were texting him? Since when?" Yunjin's accusatory tone cut through the air, her sharp gaze fixed on me. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, unsure of how to respond.

"Uh, we text sometimes," I mumbled, avoiding her penetrating stare as I slipped back into the chair. Yunjin's expression softened slightly, but the familiar twitch of her eye betrayed her suspicions.

Nervously, I began stirring the straw in my coffee mug, the clinking sound echoing in the tense atmosphere of the room. I couldn't quite pinpoint why I felt so uneasy under Yunjin's scrutiny, but her uncanny ability to sense when something was amiss only served to exacerbate my nerves.

"What are you hiding, Songjae?" Yunjin's voice sliced through the tension, her eyes boring into mine with an intensity that made me squirm.

"I-I mean, it's nothing," I stammered, attempting to brush off her probing questions.

"Of course, it's nothing. Why are you so jumpy then?" Yunjin's skepticism was palpable, her words hanging in the air like a looming accusation. I felt as though I was under interrogation, a dim spotlight shining down on me, exposing my every secret.

I tried to muster my usual air of nonchalance, shooting Yunjin a condescending look in an attempt to deflect her inquiries. But it was futile; she wasn't about to let the conversation slip away so easily.

"Because you screamed. What else is there to it?" I replied, my voice tinged with frustration.

Yunjin's gaze remained unwavering, her determination unyielding. "I know something happened between you and Jongyun."

My heart clenched at her words, a rush of memories flooding my mind-from the innocuous beginnings of our conversations to the weighty exchange we had shared earlier that day.

"Nothing happened-" I started, but Yunjin cut me off before I could protest further.

"You're lying, Songjae. I don't even know why you're lying," she insisted, her voice tinged with disappointment.

"I'm not-" I began, but Yunjin interrupted once more, her tone unrelenting.

"I can tell you are. Don't fool me, Songjae."

I sighed, feeling the weight of her scrutiny bearing down on me. "Come on, stop it, Yunjin," I pleaded, hoping to steer the conversation away from the uncomfortable truth.

"Yunjin? Not Yun? What did you do, man? It's serious, isn't it?" Her words hung in the air, heavy with unspoken implications.

"It's not, come on. Finish your coffee, we have to work after this," I deflected, desperately trying to change the subject.

"It's about Jongyun, isn't it?" Yunjin's question hung in the air, unanswered. I avoided her gaze, my eyes fixed on the surface of the liquid in my mug, its dark depths mirroring the turmoil within me.

I glanced at the black mug in my hand, its surface glistening in the dim light of the break room. I could feel Yunjin's glare piercing through my very soul, her unwavering scrutiny stripping away the layers of my defenses. Maybe it was time to surrender after all.

"Yeah... it's about him," I finally confessed, my voice barely above a whisper.

"Okay, so what happened?" Yunjin leaned forward, her eyes searching mine for answers.

"I'll tell you after work-"

"We can extend our break. Either way, our boss doesn't care much as long as the sales are met," she interjected, her persistence evident.

I hesitated, unsure of how much I was willing to divulge. But Yunjin's unwavering support and understanding gaze softened my resolve.

"Something awkward happened, isn't it?" she prodded gently, sensing my discomfort.

"Hit a nail, huh?" She said adding to my silence.

I simply admitted with a wry smile.

Yunjin's resemblance to Jongyun in moments like this struck me. Perhaps it was the time they spent together or the shared experiences they had endured, but they both possessed a knack for cutting through the surface and delving into the heart of the matter.

"Sure did," I replied, my smile faltering slightly as I recounted the events leading up to our strained interaction.

Yunjin listened attentively as I poured out my heart, her supportive presence offering me the strength to confront my tangled emotions. I held nothing back, recounting every detail except for the swirling mess of feelings and the little argument that had left me questioning everything.

As time slipped away, Yunjin exhaled deeply, her hands resting on the table in front of her.

"Oh. So that's how you cleared the air," she remarked, her tone thoughtful.

I remained silent, grappling with the weight of the unspoken truths that still lingered between us.

"But then, Song, what was so awkward about it? There's something you aren't telling me, isn't there?" Yunjin's probing question pierced the air, exposing the cracks in my carefully constructed facade.

"Yeah, you're right," I conceded, my voice tinged with uncertainty.

"Why-" Yunjin began, but I interrupted her before she could finish.

"Because I'm not sure what to say myself. I don't know what's wrong with me, Yun," I confessed, my voice barely above a whisper.

Yunjin moved closer, her hand reaching out to comfort me as we sat together in a shared moment of vulnerability. I poured out every doubt and insecurity that had plagued me, my words tumbling out in a rush of pent-up emotions.

As I spoke, Yunjin's expressions shifted like the changing seasons, her thoughts a mystery to me. When I finally finished, I couldn't bring myself to meet her gaze, my head bowed in nervousness.

A heavy silence descended upon us, broken only by the rhythmic tap of my foot against the floor, a manifestation of my restless turmoil.

"You are jealous," Yunjin declared, a mischievous grin playing at the corners of her lips.

I bristled at her accusation, caught off guard by the smug look on her face. I had expected her to offer words of comfort or reassurance, not to hit me with such a blunt observation.

"I wasn't jealous. I'm not," I protested weakly, though even to my own ears, my denial sounded feeble.

Yunjin raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced by my feeble attempt at deflection. "Oh really? Then what would you call it?" she challenged, her tone teasing yet probing.

I hesitated, unable to find the right words to articulate the complex tangle of emotions swirling within me. "I don't know..." I admitted finally, my voice trailing off into uncertainty.

Yunjin's grin widened, her eyes sparkling with amusement. She had always possessed a keen insight into human nature, and her ability to cut through the facade and expose the truth was both unsettling and comforting.

As I sat in silence, grappling with Yunjin's revelation, I couldn't help but wonder if she was right. Was it jealousy that gnawed at me, twisting my thoughts and clouding my judgment? Or was it something else entirely, something I wasn't yet ready to confront?

***

Leaving Yunjin in charge of closing the cafe, I dashed down the road, my heart pounding with a sense of urgency. Her grin as she happily let me off the hook flashed at me, but I couldn't afford to linger. I had to see Jongyun.

He hadn't replied to my messages midway through the day, and a gnawing feeling in the pit of my stomach told me something was wrong. Even my calls had gone unanswered, despite my timing them precisely after his library schedule, a routine Yunjin and I had committed to memory.

Tracing my footsteps as if they were etched into my mind, I finally came to a stop in front of the library's entrance, gasping for breath. My bag slipped from my shoulders, saved only by the grip of my wrist, as my eyes scanned the area, searching desperately for the person I had sprinted all the way here to find.

Relief flooded through me as I spotted a familiar figure next to the vending machine, standing against the outer walls of the building. Jongyun was there, seemingly unharmed, and my smile reappeared, albeit slightly strained.

As I stealthily approached him, intending to surprise him, my smile faltered as my gaze fell upon the figure standing beside him. Sooyeong, with his arm draped casually over Jongyun's shoulders, was laughing at some private joke, their conversation known only to the two of them.

A wave of conflicting emotions washed over me, leaving me paralyzed in disbelief. My heart sank as I realized that Jongyun wasn't alone, and the sight of him with Sooyeong ignited a spark of jealousy within me that I hadn't even realized was there.