#hivegetit

Considering how popular your ‘boyfriend’ is at school, you would assume he’d choose to attend the amusement park with his enormous number of friends yet oddly enough, he was persistent on going with you.

He wouldn’t stop spamming you through text about how there will be fireworks late at night and how he already bought the tickets, so you really couldn’t back out of it unless you wanted to be a dick. Though, when you think about your relationship with Lee Juyeon, it doesn’t make sense. What does going to Lotte World have to do with your fake relationship? If anything, it’s the last thing you deem necessary for your shared facade.

The goal is simple; make Juyeon’s ex-girlfriend jealous.

It all started when you happened to be the person in the booth behind Juyeon’s table, and accidentally eavesdropped on Juyeon’s outrage about his ex-girlfriend moving on way too quickly from him. He wanted her back, and in order to do this, he planned on tossing himself into a fake relationship so he could shove it in her face.

Unfortunately, he chose you, out of all people, because he was friends with everyone he knew. He didn’t know you, and therefore it made you perfect for his plan. The only reason you complied is because he bribed you with free bags of chips for a month straight, but he gave up on that promise after a week.

Now, three months later, the relationship hasn’t brought any hope of jealousy since, but the thing is—you’re not complaining. You know it’s wrong of you to wish that his ex-girlfriend would never return, but you’ve fallen for Juyeon, and you couldn’t help but want to keep him for yourself.

Despite being head over heels for him, you would’ve normally rejected his offer. It doesn’t matter if he bought two tickets and had one with your name written all over it; you would’ve told him to spend the time with one of his friends instead because in all honesty, the more dates you go on with Juyeon, the more you end up falling for him.

But you agreed to go with him this time because you made a promise.

You made a promise to yourself that this will be the last time you’ll associate yourself with Lee Juyeon.

So, right after school, you and Juyeon jumped onto a metro after giving your friends your backpacks to take home. You both remained in your uniforms because Juyeon refused to waste any time by changing. It was very apparent how excited Juyeon was. He had one earbud in while he uninvitingly rested his head on your shoulder. He restrained himself from snuggling up to your side, and yawned, scrolling through his phone to pass the time.

Meanwhile, all you could think about was how you’d planned on ending the relationship. You didn’t know how you’d word it or how you’d even bring it up, so it became all you could ponder, even when you both reached the park.

Your mind was cleared of your (rather condescending) thoughts when Juyeon pulled you into lines to get into the rides and the screams you both shared only brought you happy ones instead. You were usually never impressed with the attractions theme parks provide, but with Juyeon by your side, you saw everything with a different perspective.

While you were distracted with taking photos of the castle, Juyeon came up behind you and surprised you with a headband on your head. His smile was wider than ever, and he laughed when you spun around and shot him a glare. You chose to buy the same headband for him when he was distracted, the one with fox ears and a cactus atop, and he whined when you surprised him with it by forcing it upon his head. You both walked around while wearing them and Juyeon made the stupid mistake of keeping it on his head on a roller coaster. You gave him yours without taking ‘no’ for an answer, and he was hiding a bashful smile as he wore it around his neck while you dragged him around the park by his hand.

Amidst all the rides that provided sharp yet addicting waves of acceleration and thrill, you mainly looked forward to the bumper cars.

Each car could only hold one passenger, forcing you to separate from Juyeon. You didn’t mind—in fact, you both enjoyed it. You drove around the entire closure whilst holding back screams because of how Juyeon was chasing after you, constantly ramming his car into yours whenever he got the chance. His laughter filled the entire room when he had you locked against a wall, claiming victory once time was called.

The indoor rides had begun to reach their closing time, and you both only realized this after exiting the bumper cars.

As much as Juyeon had been here, he never went on the carousel.

Usually, when he’d gone to Lotte World, he’d be accompanied with friends or family and therefore it gave him no reason to spend his time riding a rather boring ride when he could be queuing for a more thrillsome adventure.

But with you, he was adamant on going on the carousel with you the entire day. He wouldn’t stop bringing it up in the middle of class (he sits behind you—go figure) and kept mumbling about how fun it’d be whilst dozing off on your shoulder in the metro. It was quite entertaining how a teenage boy could get this excited about going on a merry-go-round, so to see him so desperate made it hard to convince him that you both should ride it during nighttime. You argued that it’d look way prettier, and with a huff, he agreed.

Though, with that decision, he was on the verge of sulking and cursing you out (which he does fairly weakly) when you two had to run across the entire indoor park to reach the carousel, but luckily the remaining worker saved you from the whines by letting you two inside.

With sixty-four seats, each and every one would end up occupied but because of the lack of people, only half of the horses were taken. You were thankful for this because it gave you a chance to have some alone time with Juyeon.

Or rather, your last few moments with Juyeon.

Little did he know about how you had finally planned on ending everything between the two of you. That included the forced words of affirmation and unconventional dates that Juyeon had excused with giving the relationship ‘life’. All of this would end soon because all of it was merely nothing.

You both hoisted yourself up onto separate horses that stood adjacent to each other with Juyeon taking the inner one.

Once you’d settled on top, Juyeon reached to hold onto your hand before the ride started, mindfully rubbing his thumb over your skin. You hated how he knows how to comfort you after being together for only three months, especially when the entire relationship wasn’t even a relationship; it was a joke. That’s how you saw it, at least.

When the horses began to move, infinite coos and ahhs were heard throughout the carousel. Although it was nighttime, the bright lights somehow managed to blind you. Regardless, everything was stunning. Your eyes remained captivated as you took in every detail crafted into the carousel, and you genuinely felt like you were floating on clouds as the horses raised you up and down.

The entire moment was bittersweet; it was filled with resurfacing thoughts about how you were able to hold Juyeon’s hand without him even knowing it was your last time holding onto him. Regardless, you thought it would be a rather nice memory to look back on and smile at.

“You were right,” Juyeon says, momentarily interrupting your thoughts. “It is prettier at night.”

You tore your gaze away from the golden specks and shiny metal to look at Juyeon. He had his head resting against the pole, and he smiled when your eyes caught his. He subtly squeezed your hand, and that’s when you noticed that he’d never taken his off of you the entire ride.

It wasn’t the carousel that made him feel so enamored. It was you. You were the one that contained all the beauty, and all Juyeon could do is become entranced by the simple sight of you.

He didn’t say anything else, and neither did you. It all fell into slow motion when the world seemed to disappear around you, allowing the lights of the carousel to provide a spotlight on the two of you.

It didn’t help how he looked at you ever so lovingly, making your heart soar for miles, and you wished that moment wouldn’t have to end.

Hell, you wished your relationship with him would last forever.

But your relationship with him wasn’t even a relationship, and eventually it would all come to a stop—just like the carousel.

Juyeon leapt off his seat and helped you down ever so gently. He didn't let go of your hand as you both left the vicinity, using his free hand to adjust the headband around his neck. Instead of spoken sentences of joy, all Juyeon did was laugh out of happiness.

True, sincere happiness.

And he only felt that with you.

Fresh air and an unwelcome breeze greeted you both once you stepped outside, and Juyeon instantly rushed you over to the bridge in front of the castle. You can’t help but smile widely at the colorful lights that managed to consume the both of you. Juyeon looked so beautiful as the colors of the rainbow flashed across his skin and uniform, and joining the sight were joyus screams coming from those remaining on the outdoor rides.

You both made it in time for the fireworks, and Juyeon shoved his way through to get the perfect spot against the ledge of the bridge rather than being in the middle of the crowd. The fireworks started shooting up into the sky, and Juyeon didn't even bother to take out his phone to record it all. Instead, he had an arm looped around your waist, keeping you close against his side while the show played out in the sky.

But throughout it all, the urge to spill out what’s been on your mind the entire day refused to stop prodding at your throat, so you turned to face him and called his name.

“Juyeon,” you said loudly over the cracks and booming sparkles.

Mesmerized by the sight, he didn’t remove his gaze from the sky. All he did was respond with a ‘hm?’, and his response left you unintentionally gazing into his eyes.

Not only were the fireworks being reflected in the depths of his pupils, but they also held a sparkle that didn’t shine in the sky; one you believe could only be seen through Juyeon’s eyes when he was with you. The way it shimmered reminded you of how special you considered Juyeon, and it gave you a reason to hold onto what you have with him.

But you knew you couldn’t do it for any longer, especially when you couldn’t prioritize a fake relationship over your heart becoming permanently shattered because of what you feared as the end result.

“I don’t-...I don’t think we should do this any more.”

Juyeon became stiff and the smile on his lips fell. The grand finale was filled with countless fireworks all being shot up at once, filling the entire sky with fireworks before it was all gone. They died out in not only the sky, but in his eyes, and the sparkle is nowhere to be seen, leaving his gaze dull.

He doesn’t ask ‘what?’ or ‘huh?’ like usual because for once, he understood what you were implying.

“This as in…our relationship?” he warily questioned, hoping that he just misunderstood things, but alas, his thoughts are proven otherwise when your voice croaks.

“Fake relationship,” you corrected through a mumble. Your heart ached when you caught sight of his downturned features, you ignored it to the best of your ability because from what you knew, it could all be an act.

You forced your eyes to dart towards the ground, only catching sight of the rapid footsteps that passed the two of you. Many were exiting the amusement park with laughter and playful teases while you remained with Juyeon, hopeless and lost.

“What makes you say that? Say that we shouldn’t do this anymore…Y/N?”

“We’ve been doing this for three months,” you whispered. You picked up your head, looking up at him with tears glossing your eyes. “Three months, and to be completely honest, I don’t think this is going anywhere. We lost a purpose for this relationship, so everything between us just seems so…pointless.”

Juyeon parted his lips as if he wanted to retaliate, but seeing that you had more to say made him stay silent.

“Your ex-girlfriend…she’s happy, and I think it’s better if we break this off so we could continue with our own love lives.” You nibbled on the inside of your lip, trying to decipher Juyeon’s thoughts while looking into his eyes. “Juyeon, I think it’s better if you find someone to love instead of staying in something that’s fake.”

“Fake…you’re saying everything is fake.”

Juyeon wasn’t the type to cry, but seeing him broken was worse than having tears cascade down his cheeks. His eyes barely held an ounce of hope and his gaze was like a puppy with downturned ears.

“No,” you rushed to whisper, quickly reassuring him by bringing a hand up to his cheek. “Not…not everything, but this relationship? It’s not real.”

“So that’s why you want us to part—because we’re not real.” He slightly bobbed his head as if he understood, looking away from you, but he continued to lean into the warmth of your palm, using it as support.

You didn’t want to confirm nor deny his words, so you apologized.

“I’m sorry.”

You were about to leave, but your interlaced hand with Juyeon refused to do so.

And he noticed this.

“That’s not it,” he concluded, breaking the silence. Your eyebrows furrowed due to confusion.

“...What?”

“It’s something else, isn’t it? Why…why?” Juyeon wished he could form his words better, but he couldn’t. All he can do is ask ‘why?’.

Why on a day like this? Why during the moment when he felt the happiest he’s been in a long time? Why…why did you think about letting go when he treasured you so incredibly much?

“There’s nothing else,” you quickly denied, keeping up with your act. “This relationship is fake, so it’s better we end it to avoid wasting anymore time.”

“Then why haven’t you let go of my hand?”

His cautious, dejected whisper made you break the facade you’ve been trying so hard to hold up. The tears brimming your eyes finally became visible under the moonlight, and your eyes fell shut to prevent any droplets from slipping out. You instinctively leaned forward to rest your forehead against his chest, pouring out the truth.

“Because I don’t want to,” you replied, unconsciously latching your teeth onto your lower lip. “I don’t want to let go of you. I’m not prepared for the day your ex-girlfriend finally realizes she wants you back. I’m not prepared for when you’ll break up with me for her, and before you say anything, I know that’s what we agreed on, but the more I think about it, the more my heart aches.

I can’t do it. My heart can’t harbor the amount of pain when you leave me for someone else, so I figured it’d be easier if I was the one who let go first. It was never meant to be something I wanted to hold on for eternity.” You paused to take a breather, unsure if Juyeon heard you at all through the incessant chatter from the people around you. You then laughed, dry of all humor, in an attempt to brighten the mood. “I’m sorry, Ju, for being weak and falling for you—it wasn’t supposed to be like this.”

A response was found caught in his throat, leaving him quiet for minutes on end, and you don’t have the courage to look up at him for his reaction—so when Juyeon pulled his hand away from yours, your heart plummeted into the pit of your stomach. Nothing could stop the tears from pouring down your cheeks, not when you were in the arms of someone that didn’t love you, at least from what you assumed.

You were prepared to be ditched, left alone, but instead you were met with his hand wrapped around your nape, pressing you closer into his embrace while his other arm locked around your torso as if to keep you secured and protected from others. It pained him to see you like this, to see you broken because of him and his stupid selfishness.

“Y/N…I’m so sorry.”

You couldn’t stop your tears from wetting his shirt, hating how his actions always made you feel so comfortable, but what couldn’t be helped was his words that tore your heart to shreds. You bunched up the material into your fist, wishing he’d say anything more; just something.

Or maybe it would’ve been better if he’d left you.

It was better than holding you while also rejecting you at the same time.

“Let’s make this real.”

Perplexed, you reluctantly looked up at him. You weren’t prepared for the expression that masked his features. It was one that mirrors yours with a glint of faith lingering in his eyes.

“Please,” he begged. “I’m sorry for calling this a fake relationship from the very start when everything was so real…to me, it was real, so let’s make it real.”

He combed his fingers through your hair, tucked a few strands behind your ear, and then cupped your cheek. You remained speechless, unsure of what to think, and Juyeon sucked in a sharp breath.

He knew it was either now or never to say something because if he didn’t, he would lose you in a heartbeat.

“After a month of us being together, my ex, she pulled me aside after school one day to talk,” Juyeon explained, recalling the very moment. “She said she noticed the way I looked at you. She said it’s the same way she looks at her own boyfriend, and she said the reason she moved on so fast is because I never looked at her like that. Nevertheless…she was happy for how I found someone to finally give my heart to, and that talk…it made me realize how much you mean to me.”

“So…the spontaneous dates-”

“-were just an excuse to spend more time with you,” he continued. “I’m sorry, for letting you believe otherwise. I should have said something earlier, I-”

“Juyeon,” you started, cutting him off, but he didn't falter.

“I like you.”

Despite the fireworks being long gone, they had resurfaced within your heart, making the organ burst with the three simple words. He caressed your cheek while awaiting an answer, for you to pull away, to reject him, but you closed your eyes once more and leaned into his touch.

“I like you too—so, so much.”

You could only laugh when you catch how his smile returned. You reached up to take the headband off his neck while he rested his hands on your hips, watching your every movement. You adjusted it back onto his head, and the close proximity of his face made you giggle. He leaned in and hovered his lips over yours teasingly, whispering a sentence that has you seeing sparks before giving you full permission to dive in for a long-lasting kiss.

“Then let me be officially yours.”

The next few days you tried to get to know Eric from a distance, paying attention more to the things he would say in the break room and during closing. You only had a week to find him a gift but you were drawing blanks. You couldn't even get him a gift card because you didn't know what he liked. You knew nothing about him besides your perception of him and his personality.

Coming in to open the store one morning, you saw that you had been paired with Eric according to the schedule, making your shoulders sag with dread. “Ugh, him again.”

“Wow, am I really that bad, y/n?” Eric walked over to the cash register to get ready for the day. He was on time, leaving you stunned by the unusual change.

“I’m sorry. That was such a rude thing to say.” You bowed your head, feeling guilty for what you said.

“It's alright.” Eric patted you on the arm before walking over to unlock the door at the front of the store.

You went to lean against one of the mannequin displays by the entrance as you waited for customers. It was always dead in the morning which was why you preferred opening versus closing. One day you plan to ask your manager if you could just open the store by yourself, it wasn’t necessary for someone to be there to help you. No one wants to shop for a shirt at 10 in the morning.

Eric popped up behind you, starling you out of your train of thought. “Pretty boring this morning, right?” He sat on a table next to you, pushing aside the clothes on top of it so not to ruin the folded stack.

“Mmmhm.” You wanted to enjoy the quiet this morning, not in the mood to talk to Eric at all.

“So, are you excited for Secret Santa? Did you get someone good?” Eric wore a smile on his easy face as he tried to make small talk with you. You did find him a little endearing, especially since he’s not bouncing off the walls like usual.

“I have no idea what to get the person that I picked.” You shifted your body so that you were facing Eric. “What about you? Happy with who you picked?”

Eric blushed, looking out the large glass window panes at the entrance of the store, “Yeah, I got someone that I really wanted.”

“Lucky you”, you muttered under your breath before hopping off of the display and walking away from Eric to go organize some boxes in the back.

-

Over the weekend you searched the mall looking for a gift that would be good for Eric. You thought about giving up and getting him a book, but you were sure that would be a lame gift. So here you were, walking aimlessly through the mall waiting for something to jump out at you.

You were looking at a bracelet through a shop window when you felt a tap on your shoulder.

“Hey, y/n! I knew that it was you I saw walk past me earlier.” Eric waved at you with a friendly smile on his face. “Christmas shopping too, huh?”

“Uh, yeah… I still have a few gifts to get.” You were surprised to see him outside of work, you didn’t know he lived in the area.

“Want to walk around together?”

You stared at Eric for a while, he seemed genuinely interested in hanging out with you. Figuring this would be the perfect opportunity to get to know Eric so that you could finally get him a gift that he would like, you nodded your head. “Sure, sounds fun.”

-

You walked into your job on your day off, a wrapped present in hand. Your manager planned for everyone to come in an hour before the store was set to open to exchange gifts. Normally you’d be irritated in having to come to work on your day off but your manager was closing the store for a while and giving everyone the week off for the holidays, so you didn’t mind today.

Standing next to your friend, you both waited with your other co-workers for your manager to call everyone together.

As you were chatting with your friend and another co-worker you heard the sound of jingle bells and looked over to see your manager waiting for everyone to pay attention to her.

“Okay guys! I have all of the gifts here behind me, thank you all for participating. You all work very hard and I appreciate everything that we do as a team. Look for the gift with your name on it first and then try to find the person who gave it to you.” She stepped away from the table, there were gifts lined in a row, all with the same wrapping paper so to not give away who brought what gift.

You walked up to the table looking for a gift with your name one it, eyes scanning across the table until you saw a tag that read, “y/n”, on it. You picked up the slender rectangular box, shaking it with curiosity. Walking over to the hide behind a rack of clothes, you opened your gift in private.

Tearing open the paper, you uncovered a small black box and took off the lid revealing the bracelet that you were eyeing for a few days ago. You gasped, looking around to see if anyone saw you. You opened the box again, pulling the bracelet out to admire it. A smile spread across your face as you realized who might have been your Secret Santa.

“Did Eric get me this?”

You turned around to find Eric, bumping into him the second you moved your foot.

“Oops— I’m sorry.” You looked down at your feet, suddenly feeling nervous in Eric’s presence. You held out the bracelet, making eye contact with him one more time. “Were you my Secret Santa this entire time?”

He grinned, “Yeah, I had to switch two times until I finally got you. I hope you like your gift, I saw you looking at it the other day.” He touched your arm tenderly, making you blush.

“Y-yeah. I really liked this bracelet. I can’t believe you got it for me. Why did you switch to get me, Eric?” You looked at him in the eyes, gnawing on the inside of your cheek anxiously as you waited for his response. You didn’t know when the butterflies started to show up but you felt them in your stomach now, fluttering as you stared into Eric’s eyes and down to his lips as he talked.

“I— I just really wanted to get you a gift.” He scratched the back of his neck, looking down to conceal the light flush that was appearing on his cheeks.

You smiled brightly, finding his shyness cute. “I got you too, you know. I’m glad I did too because it made me realize how sweet and fun you are. I’m really sorry that I’ve been so cold to you the entire time we’ve worked together.”

Eric laughed, “No way, you got me that video game?” You nodded, “I had no idea what to get you, I heard you mention this game when we were at the mall. You don’t have it already, right?”

Eric hugged you, wrapping his arms around you in a warm embrace. “No, I don’t. Thanks for getting it for me.” He let you go, leaving you feeling overwhelmed by how shy you felt around him. Who would have thought that you would have developed a crush on Eric Sohn?

You held out your bracelet placing it in his hand and holding out your wrist. “Can you help me with this?”

Eric nodded his head, quickly fiddling with the clasp of the bracelet and wrapping it around your wrist, and fastening it into place. As he tried to pull his hand away from yours you caught his fingers, intertwining them with yours. You tilted your head to the side as you asked, “Are you working today?” You watched as a smile spread across Eric’s features.

“No, why?”

You pulled him towards the front door, “I need to make up for lost time. We’re hanging out, it’s our day off.”

Kim Younghoon | 김영훈

The realisation comes through shared drinks under a night sky, watching you ramble about everything and nothing all at once. That’s when it hits him; he never wants to lose this. He never wants to lose you. The features he always seemed to admire glow under the moonlight and suddenly his breath hitches when you catch him staring – where he’d usually make a face, he’s blushing instead.

He doesn’t think he can confess. Not when everything’s going so well. Why would he risk ruining it? But his efforts are dashed when it slips out of him. Well, now you know.

Lee Jaehyun | 이재현

When he finds more and more comfort in hearing your voice, seeing your smile and hearing your laugh, it hits Jaehyun – he’s in love with you, he’s so in love with you. His days are brighter, you find him ‘randomly’ hugging you more often and your name never leaves him while in conversation with others. The others genuinely wonder what you’ve done to him, he’s never been so infatuated with you before.

It takes very little to convince him to confess – in fact Chanhee’s chasing him to make sure he doesn’t just word vomit his feelings. Please accept his confession otherwise the others might lose their mind-

Lee Juyeon | 이주연

Juyeon smiles just that little bit longer at your antics now, the realisation that he’s in love with you tapping him on the shoulder like a neat little reminder. His eyes say more than his words ever could, watching as you drag him into the next hair-brained scheme of yours. He’ll follow you to the ends of the earth, he realises. He’s in love with his best friend, and perhaps he always has been.

It’s in the middle of watching you play with a stray kitten that he says how he feels, the words spilling out of him without warning. He can’t keep it from you anymore, even if he might lose you as a friend

Kevin Moon | 문형서

It sorta just hits him, and everyone else can see it on his face – he can’t stop smiling whenever he thinks about you. He just seems to come alive when he’s with you, and you’re the first person on his mind when he makes plans. He finds cute items in the store, and he sees your face immediately. You’re everywhere he looks, and he’s perfectly content.

The confession isn’t even a thought. He just has to tell you how he feels, otherwise he thinks the others will beat him to the punch. He loves you, all he has to do is say it

Choi Chanhee | 최찬희

When the playful texts you two send each other start making him pause, when he starts thinking more and more about the flirty suggestions you both send each other’s way. It’s when he starts wishing that he could actually take you on those dates he keeps joking about, that it really starts dawning on him. He’s in love with you – his best friend.

So he takes that chance and makes those date ideas a reality with you, slipping his confession in and hoping you take it well. You don’t have to tell him your response, he’ll be perfectly happy as long as he’s beside you.

Ji Changmin | 지창민

It’s when you’re there, day after day, watching him in the dance studio while he works himself to the bone. When you’re there to help massage his cramps, to make sure he’s looking after himself, when you encourage him and praise his efforts. He’s convinced his eyes have changed, because when did he start getting butterflies around you? When did his heart beat at the thought of you?

His confession stays silent, tucked behind double meanings and glances that last just that little bit longer. Hopefully you’ll understand, because he can’t lose his best friend.

Ju Haknyeon | 주학년

He hears someone say how good the both of you look together as a couple and it’s the beginning of the end of his platonic feelings for you. He’s falling down the waterfall that is being in love with you and he doesn’t want any protective gear. His words get lost as he daydreams about you, and he stumbles to remember what he was talking about once you call him out for it. You’re all he can think about, nothing else matters

His confession falls over stumbled words and embarrassed smiles. So much so you need to stop him to get him to breathe—

Kim Sunwoo | 김선우

Sunwoo’s words become gentler when it hits him that he’s in love with you. The relentless teasing starts to ease because what if he hurts you? He’s shyer in your presence, constantly seeking your validation and praise – directly or not. Your opinion of him becomes the one thing he wants to keep as high as possible. He wants to become the best person he can be for you, he just hopes you’ll notice him for it.

Gone is the snarky quips as he confesses, exchanged for genuine words and searching eyes. Eyes searching for your response.

Son Youngjae | 손영재

He sees you working with kids and his heart skips several beats. Your smile, the way the kids adore you, even the sky could see how he falls in love with you. And then it hits him that you’re his best friend and oh god what is he supposed to do now? No one gave him a manual on how to deal with falling in love with his best friend, and even his hyungs can’t say anything else but talk to them.

So he does, and time just freezes as he waits for your answer. Was the hope worth it?

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It’s fine he gets it, it’s the holidays people are busy, they have their own plans. That doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt when all his friends forgot about his birthday. Eric had hoped that they might be planning a surprise party for him, but he was only met with disappointment as the day slowly passed with not a word of congratulations from any of them. He only received messages from his parents and sister who he couldn’t even see. He could barely pay his rent, let alone buy a ticket to visit his family back in America.

No, he wasn’t going to be sad, it happens to the best. He was just going to pretend like everything was okay. Eric had to make sure that he didn’t come off as someone sensitive to his friends, he didn’t want to lose them after trying so hard to befriend them. So when he got the invite to his department’s New Years’ party, he decided he would be his normal people pleaser self. This could benefit his future anyway, so why complain.

[New Years Eve]

“Here, I got the drinks you wanted, Kyungwon,” Eric looks at Kyungwon and his group of friends. They all eye Eric for a bit before laughing, casually thanking him while taking the drinks from his arms.

“Thanks, uh….,” Kyungwon doesn’t even look like he’s trying to remember Eric’s name.

“Eric. It’s Eric, remember?” He lets out an awkward laugh trying to seem unbothered.

“Eric, right,” he says, letting out a dismissive laugh. Kyungwon knew the game and he was going to play it. He was pretty influential in his school, he had a lot of connections the people wanted. Your school experience would be a nice walk down easy-street if you could befriend him. He wasn’t going to let people just use him with nothing in return, he would get as much use out of them as he could just like he was doing to Eric right now.

Eric tried starting up conversations with these boys he would call his friends, and they humored him, some of the topics went well others only led to half-hearted responses. In the end, Eric decided he needed some fresh air, it always felt so suffocating when he was with them. He went up to the rooftop hopefully there weren’t too many people there. Luckily there was only one person here and it seem they didn’t hear Eric open the door as they didn’t turn around. Eric looked to find a spot a reasonable distance away from the stranger, his eyes finding their way back to the other person’s position, only to find them suddenly climbing the fence.

No way, are they trying to…. Eric stopped his thoughts and his body took action. He ran up to the person and reached out his hand and roughly pulled at their coat. In the heat of the moment, he couldn’t control his strength, maybe a tug would have been enough. In the end, the person fell off the fencing and right into Eric.

“What the fuck?” you wince in pain, ripping your earphones out and turning to see who just did that. You saw an unknown man that looked like he had the wind knocked out of him. He seemed more in pain than you and you felt your anger lessen. Before you can voice your words of concern, he speaks first.

“What- what were you doing? Why would you-?!” Eric cuts his sentence off, that was a scary thought to finish.

“What? I was just-” you realize what he might have been thinking. “No! I wasn’t trying to jump!” Eric looked at you with disbelief, why else would anyone try to climb the rooftop fence?

“Then what were you trying to do?”

“Just… relieve some stress.”

“And how would you do that by climbing the fence?” Your excuse sounded stupid to Eric, it didn’t make sense.

“Look, I got a lot of people that care about me and I have a lot that I care about. I’m not going to throw it all away. Thanks for your concern, but it’s wasted on me,” you stand up dusting yourself off. You offer a hand to the stranger and he accepts.

“... Sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.” Eric offers a nervous apologetic smile

“I think that’s my line, you almost completely cushioned my fall, and it still hurt, so I can only imagine how you felt.”

“Oh, I’ve been through worse.” He chuckles, and you smile.

“So, what brings you to the roof?

“Out for some fresh air,” Eric’s friendly demeanor changes to gloomy. You could clearly see this was a guy who wore his heart on his sleeve.

“Same, uh, do you have any friends at this party?” You thought changing the subject would be better.

“Yeah, you probably know them, Kyungwon and-”

“Wait, Kyungwon?” you cut him off, shocked by his words. He didn’t seem like the type to be friends with Kyungwon.

“Yes, why?”

“Nothing, he’s kinda…,” you purse your lips before deciding to continue. “Your friend is kind of an asshole.” Eric bursts out laughing at your words, but then quickly covers his mouth like he was doing something bad.

“Ah, yeah I guess so.”

“If you think so then why are you friends with him?”

“Well, at first it was cause he was Kyungwon. I think everyone in this school knows how beneficial it would be to know him. Trying to befriend him was one of the first things I did after coming here so I’ve been following around him for a while and I saw he was kinda cool at times. It was then that I wanted to try being real friends with him, but I think I’m still just a nobody to him.”

“I don’t think a friend would make you feel like a nobody.”

“ …I guess acquaintances is the better word to describe our relationship,” Eric scoffs at his own words.” You wondered just how lonely this man was.

“Are you still trying to use him?” you bluntly ask him, he wasn’t exactly innocent in all this, whatever the answer he doesn’t answer. “You’re right everyone in this school knows how useful Kyungwon is, but I would rather work 10 times as hard than spend my college life trying to kiss ass to some douche bag that doesn’t care about me.”

“That actually sounds kinda nice…”

“Uh-huh, I think you’ll have a much better time doing that than being a lap dog.”

“Thanks for the advice.”

“What are strangers for?” Eric realizes that he hasn’t introduced himself yet.

“Hi Stanger, I’m Eric.”

“Eri-”

“Actually, my name is Youngjae,” you give him a questioning look. “Eric is my English name, but I prefer Youngjae.” Eric was a name he rarely used even in America, Youngjae wasn’t a particularly special name to him but he thought that he wanted to get close to the person in front of him. He wanted this person to call him Youngjae. He wondered why he introduced himself as Eric to Kyungwon.

“Nice to meet you Youngjae, I’m Y/N. First-year.”

“It’s my first year too.”

“We might be the same age then,” You proceed to tell him your birthday and he tells you his. “So your birthday just passed. It probably doesn’t mean that much coming from me, but happy belated birthday.” Youngjae feels his heart tickle and he smiles at you.

“Thanks, I-” He is cut off by the sound of the door opening. A couple burst through the door kissing. The girl jumps at the sight of the other two bodies there and pushes her partner off her.

“I told you there would be others here!” she yells, pushing them back into the building, and you and Youngjae are taken aback for a bit forgetting the things you were going to say to each other before you break the silence with movement.

“Don’t stop me this time.” Youngjae is confused by your word for a moment, then you start to climb the fence again. Your head pokes over the top and you scream, “THIS PARTY BLOWS! DAMN YOU HEEJIN FOR NOT COMING!” suddenly you hear a burst of laughter from behind you.

“So that’s what you were trying to do before,” Youngjae holds his stomach while laughing.

“Stop laughing. Come up here it’s your turn,” without hesitation, he follows suit.

“Kyungwon, I’m done following you…! AND MY NAME ISN’T REALLY ERIC, IT’S YOUNGJAE!” He shouted with all his will, it was kind of embarrassing but it felt good. Now it was your turn to burst out laughing and Youngjae couldn’t help but laugh too. You both eventually climb down after a laughing fit and Youngjae speaks up.

“I wish I had friends like you.”

“You really have no other friends?” Youngjae looks away. “Well, I think I can fix that. I have some friends that might be more your style, you take out your phone, ready to give him your number. And ask if he might know of your friends since you all went to the same school.

“Really?” He sounded hopeful and a little excited, it was kinda cute. Checking the time you caught the moment the time changed, and it was now the New Year. You look to Youngjae and smile.