Tangled Strings

Chapter 25: Running in Circles

The school halls felt different now. Not because they had changed, but because Chiquita had.

She walked like she had no care in the world, laughing loudly in groups that Ahyeon had never seen her with before. Her once familiar presence—always lingering somewhere close, always waiting for Ahyeon to acknowledge her—was gone. It was like she had vanished and been replaced by someone Ahyeon didn’t recognize.

And yet, Ahyeon still noticed her.

From across the cafeteria. In the practice room she no longer visited. In the parking lot, where she leaned against the wall, smirking at another girl, whispering something that made the girl blush. Ahyeon noticed all of it.

She told herself she didn’t care. She told herself that this was what Chiquita wanted—what she had been pushing for all along.

So why did it feel so wrong?

---

The rumors started almost immediately.

"Chiquita’s really out there these days."
"I heard she partied three nights in a row last weekend."
"She made out with some senior at the last gig."
"Isn't she in Baemon? Shouldn't she be focusing on that instead of flirting with half the school?"

Ahyeon ignored it at first. It wasn’t her business. Chiquita could do whatever she wanted. But then, one night, Asa cornered her outside the student council room, arms crossed and an unreadable look on her face.

“You see her, right?”

Ahyeon’s grip on her books tightened. “See who?”

Asa scoffed. “Don’t play dumb. You know who.”

Ahyeon exhaled, trying to push down the irritation crawling up her spine. “It’s not my problem.”

"Maybe not." Asa’s voice was cool, measured. "But you're watching. Don't think I haven’t noticed."

Ahyeon didn’t respond.

Because Asa was right.

She was watching.

---

That weekend, Chiquita showed up at another party.

Ahyeon wasn’t supposed to be there—she wasn’t the type to go to parties, much less ones that Chiquita attended. But Rami had insisted on dropping by, and Ahyeon, against her better judgment, had gone along with it.

She regretted it immediately.

The moment she stepped inside, she spotted Chiquita, surrounded by people, a drink in her hand, a sly grin on her lips. She looked different—her hair messier, her uniform skirt slightly shorter, the usual sparkle in her eyes dulled by whatever alcohol she had consumed.

She was draped over someone Ahyeon didn’t recognize, a tall girl with dyed red hair and hands that wandered too easily. Chiquita was laughing at something she said, tilting her head in a way that Ahyeon used to find endearing—except now, it wasn’t directed at her.

Ahyeon clenched her jaw and turned away.

But no matter where she stood, no matter how much she tried to distract herself with conversation, her eyes kept finding Chiquita.

The way she danced, the way she let others touch her, the way she leaned in too close—everything about it felt like a performance. A desperate attempt to prove something.

Or maybe, to forget something.

Rami nudged her. “You’re staring.”

Ahyeon immediately straightened. “I’m not.”