The stars shine brighter with you

3

Jiwon was so happy to have made a new friend.

That day, they hung out together and went to the park, Seonghan showed Jiwon around Seoul and they got closer and closer with each passing day... Jiwon had an interesting thought about him. She thought that... even if he seemed content, he wasn't always fully happy. There was always some mystery behind his eyes.

As the days and weeks went by, they became very close. One day, they were having a serious conversation in an empty classroom.

SH: "Jiwon..."

JW: "Yes?"

SH: "I um..."

He stopped himself, wondering if what he's about to tell her is a good decision.

Jiwon waited patiently

SH: "I need to tell you something but it's really serious... please don't tell anyone."

JW: "Alright. I'll listen, I won't tell anyone. I promise."

SH: "I feel like I can trust you..."

JW: "I hope you can, because I won't break your trust."

SH: "Thank you... I know we met a few months ago, but you're one of my real friends and I believe you should know... it's quite hard to talk about this, um..."

JW: "Don't worry... take your time..."

SH: "I... I..."

He looked like he was on the verge of tears. Jiwon sat next to him, but not too close. She didn't say anything, to not pressure him into telling her. He finally got the courage...

SH: "I hurt myself..."

Jiwon was absolutely shocked. But... what was weird is that she didn't have a big reaction. She just stayed normally calm like usual.

JW: "Oh... okay."

SH: "I've been... bullied for that... before so it was... hard for me to tell you... I hope you won't hate me for that... but I had to tell you..."

JW: "Why would I hate you for that? Everyone struggles with something... it's alright..."

SH: "Thank you."

SH: "I told you because I felt I could trust you... and I know you'll see my scars eventually... so..."

JW: "Thank you for trusting me so much..."

SH: "Thank you for not shaming me about it."

JW: "I'd never shame you for that, or for anything..."

SH: "This is getting quite hard to talk about I'm sorry..."

JW: "I understand, don't worry."

SH: "Do you want to see? I'm not sure what I should say now, other than that..."

JW: "If you feel comfortable showing me, then, okay."

Seonghan lifted the sleeve of his hoodie. Jiwon was a bit scared, and felt really bad.

JW: "I don't know what to say except... I'm sorry you're hurt and I really hope you'll get better soon."

Seonghan's eyes welled with tears, he couldn't believe someone was so nice to him. Jiwon got so worried seeing it.

Soon, he started to silently cry, and Jiwon had no clue what to do. She just hugged him for the first time ever, the first of many. She thought it would be so awkward, but it wasn't. She helped comfort him...

SH: "Thank you" - he said under his breath, still embarrassed that he cried in front of Jiwon.

JW: "If you ever need someone to talk to, you can call me at any time."

SH: "Thank... you... again..."

JW: "You're welcome."

The bell rang, it was the end of school.

JW: "Let's go"

Seonghan nodded
Jiwon went into her dorm and he went into his. Jiwon put her jacket away and changed from her uniform, did her homework and then rested. She was playing a game on her phone, when, someone knocked on the door. She got up and opened it, to see the familiar, sweet and pale face of Seonghan.

JW: "Hey"

SH: "Hi... do you have time to talk or something?"

JW: "Yeah of course, come inside." - she was the most welcoming person he's ever seen.

They sat on Jiwon's bed and Jiwon asked

JW: "Is there something specific you wanna talk about? Or were you just bored? Because I am too."

SH: "Well... a bit of both. I'm bored, and I felt really thankful for the conversation we had earlier. It helped me a lot because I haven't really talked to anyone about that before, so once again, thank you so much."

JW: "You're very welcome, at any time."

JW: "Is there anything else you wanted to talk about?"

SH: "I still want to get to know you better... I'm trying to open up to people more, I usually have a hard time doing that."

JW: "Oh, well that's okay."

SH: "I hope you won't think of me differently because of my struggles."

JW: "Of course I won't. I have problems too, it's not something to be ashamed of and shamed for."

SH: "You're very wise... would you like to talk about it too?" - he tried to be as supportive as Jiwon is.

JW: "We can share stories, it helps to talk, at least for me."

SH: "I think that's a good idea..."