𝗨𝗣 𝗙𝗥𝗢𝗠 𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘, ᴅᴏɴɢ sɪᴄʜᴇɴɢ

eighteen

"Sicheng, listen to me." Yena took a quick sip of her drink, swallowing before pointing in the other's direction. "You don't have to pretend when you're with me."

Sicheng sat across from the short girl, staring at her before a scoff left his lips. "What are you talking about?" He asked in return.

"It's okay, Winwin. Just let it all out." She continued and Sicheng rolled his eyes. He had literally no idea what she was rambling about and truthfully, he didn't know whether he wanted to know or not. "Just admit it."

"Admit what?" The boy had no idea where this conversation was even heading but considering it's Yena he wasn't expecting it to make much sense.

"Admit that you secretly want a princess themed birthday party." A giggle escaped her mouth and she held her hand over her lips to suppress the fit of laughter that was dangerously close to breaking out.

"You... are insane." Sicheng let out. He wasn't one bit impressed with her but strangely, he couldn't help but chuckle along.

Yena continued giggling by herself and Sicheng watched her with so much fondness. She really was a great friend to have and she sure as hell waltzed into his life at the right time.

"Hey, hey, lover boy. I'm not Hyewon. Don't stare at me like that." Sicheng's eyes widened momentarily before quickly covering it up with the roll of his eyes.

"What's that even supposed to mean?"

Yena waved her finger right in front of the boy's face, narrowing her eyes at him. "Ah ah ah, we're not doing that."

"Doing what? Oh, my God, Yena, seriously." Sicheng let out an exasperated sigh.

"Fine, I won't say anything but just know everyone sees it. You're a terrible liar."

"Sees what?" Sicheng played dumb but Yena knew him well enough to see right through his bullshit.

Sighing, Yena leaned back into her chair. "I want to hit you with a pan so badly right now." She smiled at her friend and it freaked Sicheng out at how ominous it was.

The two sat at the campus cafe, Moon Palace, owned by Aeri's cousin, Taeil. They were lucky enough to occupy the seat right by the big window as it allowed them to see right into the street out front.

The familiar sound of a motorcycle engine roared outside and instinctively Sicheng and Yena looked out the window. Just in time to see Yuta and Hyewon pass them.

Yena watched Sicheng's reaction closely as the boy's gaze dropped to the cup in front of him. He stared deeply into the bottom of the object  like if he were to look away, it would disappear.

"Sicheng," The boy hummed, hesitantly breaking his eyes away from his cup. Yena offered him a small smile. One that didn't quite reach her eyes, but good enough for Sicheng to feel the sincerity behind it. "It's okay, you know? You don't have to keep it all bottled up inside all the time."

Usually this was the part where Sicheng would try to change the topic or at least play it off to get the attention off him, but he was tired now. He's been tired of pretending for far too long.

"I hate it." The first three slipped through his teeth, his voice cracking. He briefly glanced at Yena and she gave him an encouraging nod. "I hate that she's with him. I hate that I have to pretend to be happy for her. I hate that it had to be her of all people. And I hate that I can't move on no matter how hard I try."

By now, tears had started burning in his eyes and Yena's heart fell at the sight. "How long?" She cautiously asked.

Sicheng was silent for a moment. "I never knew it before but it was definitely since high school. We have so many memories together and I don't think there's really a specific moment that started it but it was the little things about her that made it so hard to not fall for her. Yuta better appreciate all those things or else he'll regret taking her for granted." Sicheng wore a bitter smile.

"I'm sorry, Win..."

The Chinese chuckled though it didn't seem very happy. "Can I tell you story?" He asked to which Yena nodded. "You pretty much know all our friends, right?"

Again, Yena nodded. "Yeah, uhm, I guess so."

"So, you know Mark and Aeri, right? They seem like the perfect couple. They're Hyewon's definition of love for some reason." He laughed to himself and Yena just quietly listened. "Back in high school, like our junior year or something, Aeri was actually dating Jaehyun. They were cute and all. My best friend was truly so happy but it was like there was just something different when Mark and Aeri were together. It was like the moment they met, it was so obvious they were meant for each other and Hye and I always had the suspicion that they knew it. It took Aeri three months before breaking up with Jaehyun."

Yena eyebrows furrowed. "So what happened then?"

"Mark waited a whole year before asking Aeri out. To not make things uncomfortable for Jaehyun, of course. A whole year, Yena. They were able to wait that long for each other and they're still committed to each other till this day."

"Wow..." Yena said, clearly intrigued by the story. Who would've thought this was what truly happened between the friends. "So, what? You're trying to be like Mark now?" She questioned.

Sicheng chuckled as he lifted his cup to take a long sip before shaking his head. "No, that's the thing though. Jaehyun was genuinely in love with Aeri. For the longest time, he tried to mess things up between them. Trust me, definitely not his finest moments but that's where the thing comes in."

Yena had a bemused expression on her face as she listened to the story. "I'm afraid of becoming like Jaehyun was. Trapped in an one-sided love. It's already beginning to consume me and I don't think I want to walk the same path."

Yena was at a loss of words. She couldn't get it over her heart hearing Sicheng bare his own heart out like this. It had been a good three months of friendship and although both of them had their own respective friends, Yena really did care for Sicheng with her whole heart. "Be honest with her, Win. You have to. For your own sake."

"No," He shook his head. "I can't do that to her. I can handle a lot of things but her resenting me would be the end of me. I can't ruin our friendship like that."

This time Yena shook her head with great adamancy. "You're going to break at some point, Sicheng and then Hyewon won't be one filled with resentment."

It was quiet after that. Sicheng was considering her advice as he took slow breaths to hopefully calm his mind. It wasn't like he just told anyone about his feelings, though he knew his friends knew but never had he voiced them out loud before.

Nevertheless, he knew Yena was right and he really didn't want her to be right. This wasn't just a simple argument about something trivial like the best ice cream flavour. Instead this was something that could change his life in many ways. He didn't know if he was ready to face that issue just yet.

"I'm sorry... It wasn't my place to say all of that." Yena spoke once she caught a glimpse of the frown on Sicheng's face. "We can change the topic if you're uncom-"

"No, you did nothing wrong." Yena looked at him, confused at first but then he smiled at her. "Thank you for letting me get all that off my chest. It's been kind of suffocating keeping it to myself. I know Jaehyun is sick of me as well." He sheepishly let out and Yena giggled.

"Always. That's what friends are for."

i wrote like seven chapters this weekend, lol. and i already apologize for them in advance 🙏