INVISIBLE STRINGS ~ Scoups [C]

🎀9

"But I—"

"It’s fine, Scoups" she said with a small, tired smile. "Let’s just focus on the project."

Before he could say anything else, Yeri appeared, waving at Y/N. "Ready to go?"

"Yeahh" Y/N replied, walking off with her friend without a backward glance.

Scoups stood there, the words he wanted to say caught in his throat.

That evening, Scoups found himself sitting on the bleachers of the empty basketball court. Mingyu joined him, handing over a bottle of water.

"You’re moping" Mingyu said bluntly.

"I’m not moping" Scoups snapped, taking a sip of water.

Mingyu raised an eyebrow. "Then what’s with the ‘sad puppy’ vibe?"

Scoups sighed, leaning back. "I screwed up, okay? She’s different now and I don’t know how to fix it."

"You can’t just expect her to go back to how she was" Mingyu pointed out. "If you really care, you need to show her you’ve changed."

"And what if it’s too late?" Scoups asked quietly.

Mingyu shrugged. "Then at least you’ll know you tried."

The next day, the class gathered in the gym for a team-building exercise. Groups were assigned randomly again and Y/N and Scoups ended up on the same team.

The activity was a relay race and each person had to complete an obstacle before passing the baton.

As the race began, Y/N and Scoups found themselves at the last leg, where they had to work together to cross a balance beam.

"Careful" Scoups said as Y/N stepped onto the beam.

"I’ve got it" she replied, not meeting his eyes.

They managed to cross without incident, but the awkwardness between them was palpable.

When the race ended, their team cheered, but Y/N quietly slipped away not lingering to celebrate.

That night, Y/N sat at her desk, staring at her notebook. Her thoughts drifted back to the camp, the project, and the relay race.

"I don’t want to care anymore" she murmured to herself, closing her notebook with a sigh.

Yeri entered the room, holding two cups of tea. "Still thinking about him?"

"No...." Y/N said firmly. "I’m thinking about myself for once."

Yeri smiled, handing her a cup. "Good. You deserve it."

Y/N took a sip, her resolve hardening.

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NIGHT

Scoups sat in the dimly lit room, the glow of his phone the only source of light. He stared at
Y/N contact for what felt like hours, his thoughts racing.

“What if I just call her?” he muttered, his thumb hovering over the call button.

But the memory of Y/N indifferent tone earlier that day stopped him.

Instead, he opened their chat and started typing.

Scoups: Hey… about the project, I was thinking we could—

He deleted it.

Scoups: Sorry about what happened at the camp—

Deleted again.