chapter twenty seven

aeri and wonwoo sat together in the far corner of the school cafeteria, tucked away at one of the smaller tables near the windows.

he was quietly sipping from his juice box, flipping through pages of a fantasy novel he'd brought with him, while she poked at her lunch with a half-smile, occasionally stealing glances at him.

she still couldn't believe this was her life now—eating with wonwoo during lunch, like it was the most normal thing in the world. no teasing, no whispering bets, no fake laughs.

just quiet. real. warm.

"you always read during lunch?" she asked, nudging his book.

"not always," he said without looking up. "just when the company's boring."

she let out a mock gasp. "excuse me?"

his mouth twitched slightly, like he was holding back a smile.

but just before she could fake-offended her way into a comeback, someone stepped into their corner of peace.

yejin.

aeri froze, her fork halfway to her mouth.

yejin looked nervous, holding her tray like a shield. "hey."

wonwoo's eyes flicked up, just once, and then down again.

aeri blinked. "what do you want?"

"i just... can we talk?" yejin asked, her voice softer than usual.

aeri looked down at her lunch again. "no, thanks."

a beat of silence passed.

just as yejin took a hesitant step forward, aeri felt something underneath the table.

wonwoo's hand.

he gently took hers, just a light grip—barely there—but enough to make her pause.

he leaned in slightly, his voice a soft whisper only she could hear. "maybe listen to her."

aeri turned her head, surprised.

he met her eyes calmly, then stood up and grabbed his book. "i'll give you two a minute," he said, like it was nothing, and walked off toward the vending machines.

she looked after him for a moment, heart thudding.

then, slowly, she turned to yejin. "okay. talk."

yejin sat down across from her, tray untouched. she looked uncomfortable—something rare for her.

"first of all," she said, "i'm sorry."

aeri raised an eyebrow but didn't respond.

yejin took a breath. "i didn't mean to make you feel like your feelings didn't matter. when i said you were making a big deal... i wasn't thinking. i guess i was still stuck in that mindset of 'it's just a game' and... i was wrong."

aeri stayed quiet, letting her speak.

"donghyun and sungmin kept joking about it like you'd already won the bet, and i think i just got swept up in it. i didn't stop to realize it stopped being a joke for you a long time ago."

her voice dropped.

"and i didn't see how real it got. until you walked away."

aeri stared at her for a long moment, then sighed. "you made me feel stupid. like i was being dramatic for caring about someone."

"i know," yejin said, her voice cracking a little. "and i hate that i made you feel like that. i'm not saying i deserve your forgiveness right away, but i just... i'd really like to have my best friend back."

aeri's chest tightened.

for all their flaws, all their teasing and dares and games, yejin had been her closest friend since middle school. they'd gone through years of growing up together. birthdays, breakups, secrets, everything.

and even though aeri had changed... part of her missed that version of her life too.

she sighed. "you hurt me, yejin. more than i expected you could."

"i know," yejin said again. "and i'm sorry."

aeri looked down at her tray, then back up. "you're gonna have to earn it back."

yejin smiled faintly. "i can do that."

they sat in silence for a moment longer.

then yejin asked, "he's really into you, huh?"

aeri blinked. "what?"

yejin tilted her head toward where wonwoo stood by the vending machines, flipping through his book while waiting for his drink.

"he looks at you like you're a plot twist he never saw coming."

aeri felt her cheeks flush.

"...i think i'm into him too," she said quietly.

yejin grinned. "you think?"

aeri rolled her eyes but smiled.

when wonwoo looked back at the table and saw aeri smiling—really smiling—he gave the tiniest nod, then started walking back.

aeri watched him come closer and realized something.

this wasn't about who won.

this was about who stayed.