Toward the Walk of Shame

14 {Suzy}

Suddenly, I thought of Squirtle with her rust and grime and was immediately filled with guilt. Like I was cheating on her for admiring another car.

Maybe I needed to sleep more. I think I was starting to get a little delusional.

"So, did you decide on which college you're going to yet?" I asked to kill the silence.

A small smile played on his lips, but his eyes remained straight ahead. "Would you kill me if I said Korea Univeristy?"

"Ha-ha, if you're going to Korea Uni and into the Law Department, then you better stop the car now so I can beat you up."

He let out a low whistle under his breath. "Can we wait until we get home first? I don't really want to have other witnesses around when you're whooping my butt."

"But it's no fun to do it in private."

Minho chuckled, but he didn't say anything else. And he refused to look at me. I narrowed my eyes at him, and fluttery waves of panic washed through me. "Wait, you're joking, right?"

"Sort of." He let out a snort and finally turned to look at me when we reached a red light. His eyes laughed down at me, and his dimple was like a crater in his cheek. "I decided on UOS for journalism. So at least I'll be nearby."

"Oh." Of course he wouldn't fight me for Korea Uni. He knew how much it meant for me. "So premed's definitely out of the picture?"

"Yeah, it would be interesting, and MyeongYang Uni's definitely where my parents want me to go, but I doubt I'd be happy."

This was something that had been troubling him all year, so I was glad that he finally had it figured out. And it was the exact decision that I thought he should make. "That great, Minho. It really is." I laid my hand on his arm and gave him a reassuring squeeze. "What made you change your mind?"

His eyes glanced down at my hand. "Actually . . . it's because of you."

"Me? How?"

"You know exactly what you want to do. And you worked your butt off to get there. Your passion and determination. . ." He shook his head. "I guess I just want that, too. To be in love with my job. Even if it means I'll probably have to spend my life eating canned beans and noodle soup while you're dining in five0star restaurants with judges and senators."

Touched that he thought so highly of me, I gave his arm another light squeeze. "Don't worry. I'll bring you as my date to one or two of the dinners. For old time's sake."

Minho snickered. "Thanks in advance for the free food."

"No problem." I pulled away and looked out of the window as he turned onto my street. "So I guess we'll be seeing each other a lot, then. If I ever get my acceptance letter."

"You will. They'd be stupid not to take you, and Korea Uni. Law School isn't for stupid people." HIs confident tone reassured me. "Are you glad I'll be close by?"

"Of course." At least now that I knew he wasn't out to take my spot. He let out a snort and I hit his arm. "Seriously, I am. It'd be nice to have someone there with me. That way I won't be too lonely. You know, when school starts and everyone hates me."

"Nobody hates you," Minho said with a frown.

"They do when it comes to school stuff. Don't lie."

The car grew quiet again as he puled up in front of my house. Finally, he cut the engine and nodded. "All right, maybe they do sometimes, but not me."

"I know you don't. That's why we're friends even though you're the valedictorian and I'm not." I was only half kidding. A part of me was still burning over not being able to give the speech. It was something I dreamed of doing when I was little. When I first learned what the word valedictorian even meant.