ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝟙𝟡

• Yujin •

"Ting eonnie!"

A chorus of shout from the living room made me stop chopping, the name shouted made me freeze in particular. I haphazardly let go of the knife I was holding and quickly wiped my hands on the apron I was wearing.

I run towards the clamor and saw four bodies hugging the woman I've been missing for the past days.

Ting was pinching Youngeun's ear. "Yah, what are you doing here so late?"

"Sleepover. But shouldn't I be the one asking you that, Ms. Busy 24/7?"

"... Shut up."

"Nye nye— Oh, Yujin eonnie, Ting eonnie finally stepped out of her cave!"

"You little—"

Before she could finish what she wanted to say, I run to her and pulled her into a bear hug. Others might think I'm being overdramatic 'cause it's only been days, but I missed her. Even through texts, I felt like she was distant. It made me want to see her more but she kept saying she was busy and I didn't want to be a bother.

The others were teasing us about PDA but I didn't care. After a few minutes, I finally stepped back and glared at her. She looked away guiltily. As much as I missed her, I was also pissed. I angrily pinched her side which made her winced.

"Ow."

"That's for ignoring me! Don't you even bother lying about it, Shen Xiaoting."

"... Yes."

"So, you were really ignoring me!?"

"You said not to lie!?"

"YAH, ARE YOU SHOUTING AT ME!?"

"...No, I'm sorry."

Nope. Stay strong, self. You will not give in to those eyes. I turned my back on her and scoffed.

"Stay for dinner." I said while walking back towards the kitchen.

"Yes. I planned to." I didn't bother stopping the creeping smile on my lips since she wouldn't see it.

It took no time for me to finish preparing dinner. After which I called everyone to the table to eat. Throughout the meal I didn't bother looking or talking to Xiaoting who was sitting right beside me. She would still put dishes on my plate like how she used to when we eat together, but there was something new that I couldn't put a word on. Like, she was extra gentle whenever she says 'Eat more of this.' or 'Let me pour you some water.' Hmm, I'm not complaining anyway.

When we finished dinner, I tapped Ting's shoulder and motioned for her to follow me to the office.

We sat in front of each other. I stared directly into her eyes while she was looking at the table. I let the silence comfort me while I patiently waited for Ting to speak.

She took a deep breathe and said, "I'm sorry. For being distant the past few days when you didn't even do anything wrong. I just... I had my mind full at those moments. It kept bothering me and I didn't want to take my frustrations out on you and hurt you. But when I consulted with Shiro, she said that I was already hurting you by avoiding you..."

"She's right, Ting." I said softly. "At first I thought you really were just busy. But then, even your texts seemed like you didn't want to talk to me. That... hurt me the most— the thought of you getting tired of me."

"No! I could never get tired of you!" She said in panic as she rounded the table to sit next to me and hold my hand. I smiled at her actions. "That would be impossible in this life or the next. I'm sorry that my actions made you think like that."

I shook my head. "It's okay. It was partially my fault for letting myself overthink."

"No, it's not your fault. In the first place, I shouldn't be making any reasons for you to think like that." She said softly.

I squeezed her hand gently. Why does she have to be like this? Damned heart wouldn't stop beating.

"I get it. It's okay, really." I laughed. "We're acting like lovers who just had their first fight."

"We could be."

I almost fell off the couch at her reply. I laughed nervously and casually let go of her hands so that she wouldn't feel them sweating. Get yourself together, Yujin!

"Shen Xiaoting, don't tempt me. I might just propose to you right now." I said teasingly and leaned my head closer to hers.

She blinked. "Do you want our wedding indoor or outdoors? Simple or grand? Private or public?"

This time, I laughed for real. I don't know where this side of her is coming from, but I like it. Usually she would just lean back and keep quiet when I tease her like this.

"Don't laugh 'cause I'm serious."

I gradually stopped talking and stared at her eyes. Okay, I take that back. I don't like this. This is bad for my heart.

I pinched her cheeks and brushed off the butterflies I felt in my stomach.

"Okay, whatever you say, wifey." I let go of her cheeks and asked her a question since we were straying away from the main topic. "Anyway, care to share what made you avoid me?"

She looked away and sighed. I kept my gaze straight at her side profile.

"... It's kind of childish."

"Let me be the judge of that, yeah?"

"Well, you know how you have that collaboration with Cai Bing and have been busy with that lately?" I hummed in reply.

"And how you've been in interviews and shows with her to promote your music?" I nodded my head.

"Well..." I kept silent.

"... I was a bit— just a little, like almost this much," She put her index finger and thumb together while putting a small space in between. "I was concerned with how much attention she was getting from you while your fans seemed to love it for some reason."

I was confused. "I'm sorry, but I can't see where exactly does Bing come in between us?"

She spoke in a small voice that I wouldn't have been able to hear if I wasn't beside her. "... You were spending so much time with her. You also seemed to have been close with her from way back. You had matching necklaces and all."

I smiled even though I knew I shouldn't or else this baby won't look at me anymore. "Ting, jagiya," I said softly. "Were you jealous?"

She turned her body to the side away from me. I peeked at her face but I still couldn't see her expression. Though I did see that her ears were burning red.

She started talking. "It made me realize some things. One of which is that you have friends aside from our circle, those whom I don't know. Those who are probably closer with you than me. That thought made me... lonely."

My heart softened. "Ting, before I say anything, can you please turn around and look at me?"

I waited for a few seconds before she finally did.

"That's true. I may have friends besides you guys. Bing and I are longtime friends. We're close, but not as close as I am to you right now. If you think that I'll forget about you, then unfortunately for you, your stuck with me."

"... I understand. Really. I knew that I was just being childish."

"If you understand, then that's good. It wasn't childish, but I hope this won't happen again, okay? Let's talk about things like this rather than avoiding each other." I tucked a stray her behind her ears.

"... I couldn't understand why I acted like that."

"Well, you know what I think? I think it's okay for you to feel like that. You told me a lot of times that I was the only person you were really ever close with. You might have thought that I was getting taken away."

I think I saw hesitation on her face but it was gone as fast as it came. "... Yeah."

"Are we good now?" I smiled widely at her.

"Yes." She said and pulled me to hug her. I nuzzled my head on her neck.

"Will you stay the night?" I whisphered.

"I'd love to but I can't. I still have a few papers to sign. I have to reorganize my work, too."

I sighed in disappointment. "I guess it can't be helped."

We spent a few more minutes talking about whatever comes to mind. I know that tonight wasn't enough to satiate my desire to be with her but this will do.

This will just have to do, after all, we're just friends. This thought saddened me but I immediately shook the though away.