aaaa we're near the end

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Chapter 42

Once that she noticed she was nowhere near the coffee shop, she covered her mouth as she went to the nearest bench.

Oh my gosh, Hwang Yiyeon, did you just say all of those words to Yunseo?! That was rude!

She mentally hit herself as she sat down.

To be fair, she started first.

Yiyeon sighed as she continued walking. Her feet took her to the mall, of all places. She sat on a bench near the entrance and contemplated everything that had happened in the last thirty minutes. 

I found out that Yunseo ordered those girls to hurt me. I also found out that she had always despised me. Never did she really treat me as a comrade, which is a shame, though. I always thought of her as a dear friend. Now, who cares? Seriously, I hope her plane crashes—

She stops the mental debate with herself as her phone rang, and to her curiosity, it was Jeno.

"Is everything alright?" She said as soon as she answered.

"Yiyeon," Jeno started, his voice stained with worry. "You're not... hurt, right? We have been calling you for the last hour, but you weren't picking up!"

She raised a brow, "Really?" She quickly browsed her phone history, but then sees that there weren't any missed calls at all. "There aren't any missed calls, though. Oh well, must be the service," she sighed.

"Why do you sound so calm?!" Jeno said, and if she could guess correctly, he's probably running along the sidewalks, basing on the cars honking. "Where are you anyway?!"

Yiyeon pressed some icons on her screen and placed her phone in her ear again, "I have sent you my location. If you can, could you... go here? Please?" She sighed, not wanting to recall today's events.

"Of course, my love."

***

Jeno arrived in less than ten minutes, and Yiyeon couldn't be more relieved. 

"Do you not like the ice cream flavor?" Jeno asked her while walking. "As far as I remember, you liked chocolate, right?"

She nodded, "Don't worry, it's not the ice cream flavor..." Yiyeon smiled weakly.

They headed towards a restaurant once they finished eating their snacks. To add some more to Jeno's worry, Yiyeon didn't even let him fix the chair for her.

"Everything alright?" Jeno asked and placed his hands on top of hers, "You have been quiet. Is something troubling you?"

Yiyeon sighed, "What was your relationship with Yunseo?" She asked and looked at him in the eye. "I think you clearly had an idea on what's about to happen when you asked if I was hurt..."

The boy in front of him was taken aback, "She... blamed you for everything, didn't she?" He sighed and looked down. "To clear up things... no, we weren't in a relationship, nor would I ever want us to be," he said. "Though, we used to hang out a lot as kids... so I guess you could say that we were childhood friends?"

"What? Why didn't you tell me this even when we were dating?" Yiyeon raised a brow.

"Because I didn't think of it as a big deal," Jeno explained. "I didn't know that she would become the girl she is this day. She was different, trust me."

"Then did you know that she was the one who ordered the girls to hurt me?" Yiyeon asked, now teary-eyed. "Was that why you reported it to the dean?"

Jeno's eyes widened, "N-No! It's not like that, Yiyeon, I swear!" Jeno leaned forward. "Jaemin, Shotaro, Renjun, and the others told me everything they found out through the old photos in the club room."

"Photos?" Yiyeon asked.

The boy sighed, "I'll explain it to you later, but please, don't think of it that way," he looked down. "Although what I'm saying right now might sound as excuses, but believe me, Yiyeon..."

She took a deep breath and squeezed his hands, "I'm not doubting you, Jeno..." she pressed her lips into a thin line. "Still, I think that it really was because of me that you two drifted apart," Yiyeon sighed. "She had mentioned that you two were close, but not until you stopped watching the volleyball matches because I left the team... and somehow, I do feel guilty."

"She's dumb if she thinks that it was the reason why I stopped watching your former team's matches," he scoffed as he rolled his eyes.

The waiter arrived and served their orders, to their excitement. The two thanked the guy as they began eating.

"What do you mean?" 

Jeno sighed, "She confessed her feelings, but not that I did not notice it, anyway." He paused as he tried to remember the other details, "Back then, I did not care, but it has come to my attention that she has been distributing photos of me around, and it crept me a lot. These photos were in the club room, and that's how Jaemin and the others found out that maybe she might hurt you..." 

Jeno looked at Yiyeon who was listening intently instead of eating. "You don't have to feel guilty about anything, okay?" He said and placed his chopsticks down. "Even if I were to turn the clocks around, I don't regret meeting you. I don't regret talking to you that day. I don't regret anything at all, especially when it comes to you, Yiyeon..." he smiled. "Well, maybe minus the fact that I had not realized that it was Yunseo who was making you suffer all along."

Yiyeon smiled, "I'm thankful for you..." she sighed and began eating. "Though I still think that you need to talk to her. Give her the closure she needs. I mean, not that you guys had a past romantic relationship, to begin with, but I don't know... to give her peace of mind, I guess?"

Jeno nodded, "Okay, I'll do that." He smiled.

"I'll also apologize for being mean earlier. Not that I didn't mean what I have said... it's just that... she used to be my friend."

"You're too good for this world, you know?"

- tbc.

happy new year! <3