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"FOR the love of all humanity, son seungwan, will you slow down?" irene said in an annoyed tone, eyebrows perked up at wendy, who was still in a messy ponytail and her morning bathrobe. she was busying herself with arranging seulgi's clothes, which only consisted of no more than a few sweaters, leggings, and a few pieces of underwear enough for a weekend and the day after, and irene was feeling sorry for the bride, in an annoyed sort of way. "you shouldn't have to work your ass off like this."

"unnie, seulgi is my guest," wendy said, focusing on neatly folding a pair of jeans she had found inside the duffel bag, flashing seulgi a small smile, "it's only right that i make her feel at home."

"you're running on barely two hours of sleep, wendy, you need to rest yourself."

wendy glanced over at seulgi, who was still sulking after crying for what seemed like the fourth time since two in the morning, and just shook her head.

"wendy, you've even barely washed last night's eyeliner off from your face."

"i'll be fin—"

"you're acting like a mom, unnie, that's irene unnie's job," joy said from the other corner of the room, her legs crossed, scanning through her phone. 

yeri nodded along from the chair by the door. "you're acting like she's contracted some terminal illness or something, she just got her sorry-ass heart broken."

she was sitting on the bed of wendy and yoongi's spare bedroom at their two-floor apartment, which was surprisingly a bigger room than all of them had anticipated previously, where seulgi had run off to the night before, and where the rest of their friend circle were currently gathered in, remnants from last night's makeup still evident in their faces.

"hey!" said seulgi, who was still sprawled over the bed, in pajamas with her hair tangled, rolled her eyes at the younger whilst sniffling. "i did not get my heart broken!"

"tell that to the super dramatic five-minute speech you made last night," irene shot back, leaning back on the chair she was sitting in. yeri's eyes widened, and joy almost laughed out loud.

"okay, that speech was meant for wend—"

"we know, and it was cheesy yet inspirational, unnie." joy winked at her. "it reeked of double meaning. even the guests could smell it." joy's head perked up. "did i mention it was cheesy?"

seulgi sneered at her, the former's cheeks heating up in a reddish tone. "alright, look—"

"we're not over with you, miss 'if-you-love-them-you'll-let-them-go'," yeri teased.

"hey," wendy said, stuffing seulgi's last pair of jeans inside the closet by the bed's right side, "leave her alone, will you? she's got issues." she eyed the others, holding in a laugh.

seulgi looked at her with a stunned expression on her face. "okay, i've got issues?"

"don't worry, they're only small issues." joy was holding in a giggle.

"great."

"hey, hey, look." she sat beside seulgi, who had her arms crossed from underneath her sweater, and put an arm around her. "as much as i hate that you're having boyfriend problems at the best possible time, which, i may add, is the eve of my wedding—"

"they're not boyfriend troubles—"

"—as a close friend and probably the only person you've been used to living with for almost a decade, i still hate seeing you suffering because you tend to have your feelings all over the place," she continued, cutting her off again, laying the side of her head on hers. "and for the record, even though your speech was reeking of double meaning, part of me still loved how you got the courage to speak in front of everyone for me." she smiled. "it was really thoughtful of you."

"thanks, wendy." seulgi felt herself start to blush, but she couldn't look wendy in the eyes; not when she was just reminded of how she used her maid of honor speech card to practically tell jimin she was letting him go — which she really was planning on doing.

"to be fairly honest myself, i didn't think you had a poet in you," taeyeon said, emerging from the bathroom at the side of the room, redoing her brown-haired ponytail. she had come in first thing in the morning after seulgi's little incident, bringing a small tray of bread rolls over. "of all the times we've spoken to each other, which isn't a lot, i've been hearing far more complaints than anything else."

"you're forgetting she's a theater major, then, unnie," joy said, patting the empty cushion beside her to signal the elder to sit down. "a very satisfactory one at that."

"i was top of my class at one semester during senior year, what's your point?" seulgi asked, sneering at the younger.

"i used the word 'very', didn't i?" joy said, and seulgi sneered at her at some point.

"well, whatever it was," wendy said, getting up, "it was very touching."

seulgi couldn't remember half of the things she said last night, partly because the wine still made her hazy up to that very moment, but she did remember one thing: the look on jimin's face when he saw her stand up. his smile had melted away, and his skin seemed to glow. his eyes seemed to be screaming something only her own heart could hear - and maybe that was why she could only feel him as the other person in the room, apart from herself, and wendy.

she didn't want that moment to be the last time she would see him - she wanted him close to her, as closest as possible. but she couldn't get it that way, not right now.

"thanks."

wendy turned to seulgi and took note of the sad look that was becoming more eminent in her eyes, and decided to break the silence. "i think you're better off here than in your own apartment, anyway."

seulgi looked up. "what?"

"i think she's right," joy said, standing up, this time approaching seulgi's bedside. "two girls sharing an apartment and a guy is bound to have some complications, don't you think?"

"agreed." taeyeon was sipping on her coffee. "although it could work, the possibility is still pretty slim."

"well, if that's the case, then i'm glad i made the decision, then," seulgi said, slinging an arm around joy's shoulders and smiling. "i have to admit that part of me was drunk when i thought of that, though, the wine was just dying to kick into me."

"you weren't drunk, only tipsy," yeri said. "nobody gets drunk on wine."

"says who?"

"says me."

"says someone who barely gets drunk, college sophomore," joy shot back at yeri, who stuck her tongue out at her yet again.

irene chuckled a bit at her two friends. "well, the decision is a bit rushed, not to mention you were intoxicated," she began, taking a pillow and walking towards the other side of seulgi's bedside, sitting down across joy, "but it was probably the best decision at the time."

"one point for drunk seulgi."

seulgi made a face at joy and smiled at irene. "thanks for the support, unnie." irene held her hand at smiled at her, signalling her non-stop support.

"i'm with this, too, you know." taeyeon stopped to lower her mug and sit at the foot of the bed, pushing yeri along the way, who almost protested if it weren't for wendy, and sat along the foot of the bed anyway. "we all are."

"you guys are the best," seulgi commented, smiling, opening her arms to let the others in, including wendy, a big hug full of 'awws'.

"yeah, we know."

"although we're not going to help you get your stuff for you, you know."

"don't ruin the moment, snotface."

"clear some things up for me, though." the youngest of the bunch decided to break the silence as soon as they ended the hug, pulling away from each other and sitting back down their respective areas in the queen-sized bed. "last night, at the apartment, right before you left. jimin oppa, he stepped aside," yeri asked again for what seemed like the hundredth time, "then he let you leave? just like that?" 

"if you put it like that, yeri-ssi, you're making him look bad."  

"and i'm guessing we're all not trying to make him look bad, then?" irene asked, leaning at the frame by the foot of the bed. 

seulgi looked at her. "unnie."

"what? i was just asking, since he clearly has his way with girls." irene started checking her nails. 

"he's not a flirt," seulgi said. "i mean, well, he is a pervert, but he only ever does that with one girl at a time."

"and he's like that because...?"

"because he's hot and he gets to do that," yeri replied, munching on a plate of carrot sticks wendy had placed by seulgi's bedside a few moments ago. "i'm catching up right, aren't i?"

"yeah, well, in his defense, he needed someone else to hold on to, probably because seulgi unnie let him go," joy spoke up. "i mean, he did get broken up with. twice."

"he didn't get broken up twice," wendy said from the other side of the room. "his advances for a second chance just got torn down."

seulgi rolled her eyes. "guys—"

"you really can't blame him, y'know," joy said. "he gets to be emotional too, right? plus they weren't really together together, right? so he gets to find another girl he wants to be with, and it's okay."

seulgi tried clearing her throat. "unnie—"

"yeah, but with seulgi in the same apartment?" irene replied, flailing her hands. "that's like, what, a huge slap on the face for the ex-girlfriend."

"i'm sure it definitely would be."

seulgi rolled her eyes again and sighed audibly, partly annoyed that her friends were debating over her recent love troubles with her in the same room, talking as if she wasn't there.

"guys, i'm right here." seulgi sat up, her arms crossed, one of her eyebrows raised. "look, i get that you guys are concerned — way too concerned, if i could say so myself — with this whole jimin thing and me moving out, but you can't really point fingers at anyone, because one, it's not any of your breakups—" she stopped to point a finger at all of them, including taeyeon, who was sitting on the bean bag joy was sitting at a few moments ago, "—and two, it was both our faults, okay?"

"well, the first part was a bit true," joy agreed. "the part where none of this are any of our breakups. i've never had one this bizarre." the atmosphere turned really sour and awkward after her last statement, which made her freeze.

the air suddenly became silent, with seulgi leaning back again, pouting to prevent her tears from falling down.

"he started being too nice to me again when he moved in almost a year ago, when he should've been equally distant, since we broke up a fricking year ago and we're trying to make a new start," seulgi explains, biting her lip. "i, on the other hand, instead of rejecting his advances, let him in again, and i stupidly decided to call it off just when we've both fallen for each other again, because, like before, i am that stupid."

seulgi slumps back as joy tries to hold her hand, offering her a warm smile.

"and nobody's blaming you for any of it," she said to the elder, holding her hand tight. irene smiled at her as well, offering her support.

"yeah, certainly not us," taeyeon said, sneering at the other girls, "right?" a few annoyed nods and sighs were passed around, making seulgi laugh a little.

"i still feel bad about it," seulgi admitted, all of her friends' eyes on her, "and i'd probably still feel bad about it in a few more weeks, but thanks, guys." 

wendy sat down beside yeri, winking. "who needs jimin when you have us, right?"

"yeah, who needs a muscled, pretty-assed, cute-and-hot-at-the-same-time eye candy when you have us, right?" taeyeon asked, standing up to adjust her jeans.

all of their eyes, except for joy's, grew wide in horror. "unnie!"

"what? he's still kind of hot, you know, and cute at the same time—"

"unnie, you're like centuries older than him, you know that right?" yeri asked, holding in a laugh.

"hey, six years isn't a long time, okay?" taeyeon replied, raising an eyebrow at yeri. "and you don't get to speak for me, you've barely finished schooling."

"what they really mean is that you—" wendy started, "—are better off here with us, and jimin is better off with that mina chick."

joy scoffed. "how'd they end up in the guest list, anyway?"

"namjoon got them to go," wendy replied. "you know how it is: yoongi and namjoon work at the same company jimin works at as a dancer. it's be impossible if they haven't met at least once during their time there, right?"

"yeah, i get that. what i meant is, well, is namjoon allowed to invite guests?" joy asked, slumping down a pillow. "i mean, he's the best man. it's not technically his wedding, so why would he be inviting anyone?" she looked up. "unless—"

"i allowed him to." wendy smiled at her. "i wouldn't want my wedding to become the sahara desert when it comes to emptiness, now, wouldn't i?"

"well, what about yoongi oppa's friends?"

"yoongi doesn't have many friends, he has colleagues — like, a lot of them— and he's invited them all, but only half of them even bothered to confirm they were coming."

"what about seulgi unnie?" joy turned to the elder, who was busy taking off her makeup with her sleeve.

seulgi stared at her. "the only friends i could even think of ever inviting is in this room, sooyoung. and one of them is the bride."

joy rolled her eyes. "well, that's awesome."

"and you being the maid of honor automatically pairs you with the best man," wendy said, nudging seulgi on the arm. "i mean, you are both single, so naturally—"

"jimin wouldn't pass up an opportunity to bring a plus one to any event," seulgi says, sighing. joy and yeri looked at her, slightly pouting, before speaking up again.

"look, just forget about him for a moment, okay? we can worry about his perky ass later." wendy shifted her position on the bed. "this jimin guy doesn't know what he's missing."

"you got that right," taeyeon says, nodding along.

"i mean, you're clearly prettier."

yeri scoffed. "unnie, what are you talking about?"

wendy looked at her, dumbfounded. "wha—"

"have you seen his date?" yeri hugged a pillow even closer to her. "he looked like he brought over the princess of japan, or something!"

joy's eyes widened just as big. "she's japanese?"

"couldn't you tell?"

"no."

yeri turned to them. "what was her name again?"

"mina," seulgi replied. "myoui mina."

"name clearly sounds japanese to me," she says. 

"i didn't ask for her name, yerim."

"her face looks like she bathes in the tears of the moon, for crying out loud." yeri looks up at the ceiling, along with joy, trying to remember what her face looked like.

"i heard she's a ballerina," taeyeon said, smirking, earning a glare from seulgi. wendy and irene were holding in their laughs. "she's been named swan lake princess for the ballet shows upstate."

"is she really?"

"she doesn't look like she speaks a lot," irene agreed, nodding. "but who needs to speak when you've got a face like that, you know what i'm saying?"

"why are we even talking about her?" seulgi asked, a hint of annoyance in her voice. 

"yeah, she doesn't look like she's worth the saliva." wendy looked at her with a cautious look on her face. "she's probably got like, huge cameltoe. no one's perfect."

joy and yeri's eyes both widened. "cameltoe?"

"that was a guess."

"and your guess just had to be something you can't get out of your head, didn't it?"

yeri rolled her eyes. "cameltoe or no cameltoe,  this mina chick seems neat. she'sing at life, unnie." joy took it upon herself to continue the statement: "she's winning more than you are."

seulgi sighed, leaning back down. "obviously." she sighed. "you guys are great friends."

wendy pursed her lips, slinging her arm around seulgi again. "seul," she began, scooting closer, "you're jealous, aren't you?"

seulgi looked at her. "was that not established the moment i got here?"

wendy's eyes shot at the other girls, looking around, gesturing them to seulgi. taeyeon sighed, and moved closer. "seulgi, look."

"look where? at princess japan's beautiful beaded swan princess crown?"

taeyeon raised an eyebrow at her. "no, i mean look at reality." she shifted closer. "the thing about love is that it blinds us and gives us tendencies to see or feel things that are not really true."

seulgi looked at her, and her eyes seemed to say a lot.

"so mina may have, what, the prettiest face on this earth, or the best dancing career someone at twenty-two could have."

a few inches away, yeri whispers at irene audibly, asking if mina really was twenty-two, with the elder only shushing her away.

"that's not going to matter, because she doesn't really have jimin, you know. and i think she knows that, too."

seulgi scrunched her forehead. "unnie—"

"i have a strong feeling jimin is still in love with you, seul, and he's currently just blinded by the fact that mina is there for him when he needed her." she held seulgi's hand tightly. "so unless you want to sit here doing nothing, and let jimin decide for real what he wants and who he loves, you can't get mad at her for anything at all."

seulgi sighed. she was right — when was taeyeon unnie ever wrong, anyway— but that was something, she had been thinking, she could never do to jimin. that was what started this whole thing in the first place: never hurting jimin the same way she did before.

so, in other words, mina was definitely staying.

"i think you're wrong, unnie." seulgi looked up and sighed. she smiled the most painful smile she'd ever done so.

"she's definitely winning at life."

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SO SORRY I GOT BUSY AND IT TOOK SO LONG but here's 25! only 5 more chapters to go!

- nayeonsbunny -