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" As you drink a cup of warm tea
As you look above the Milky Way
You'll be alright, oh this is a Magic Shop..."
Magic Shop by BTS
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ARA'S POV
"I can walk by myself," I spoke up while glaring at Namju and Kyung.
They turned their heads to face me, both clearly not wanting me to go to the clinic alone.
I sighed at their stubbornness and waited for the pain from my ankle to go away since the Stage had already ended. But it was still there. I looked down to check on it and saw how the skin on my ankle looked irritated.
"Dammit..." I muttered under my breath as I found a flaw in being self-aware.
Then I looked back at the two boys in front of me and asked, "Alright, so who's bringing me to the clinic?"
"Obviously, me," Namju answered with a soft smile.
"Oh! Because it was your fault?" Kyung said making Namju glare at his friend.
"Look, I didn't mean to taunt Juda and Danoh earlier," my cousin spat back, getting annoyed at how Kyung was cornering him.
"But didn't you see Ara behind them?" Kyung added in, suddenly getting protective.
"Why don't you go back to class, Kyung?" I suggested hoping that he'd go back to the science lab to avoid an argument between him and my cousin but it looked like he wasn't listening to me.
I mentally groaned and decided to leave them behind. I quietly left the two behind and limped my way down the hallway. I was about to sit down on the floor when the pain in my ankle became worse but I instantly saw Dohwa across the hallway and thanked the timing.
"Hey, Dohwa! Mind helping a friend?" I called out with a forced smile.
Dohwa saw me right away and smiled at me but frowned when he saw my situation. He quickly ran over and started to ask me what happened and if I was okay.
"I'm not okay, like physically," I answered as Dohwa helped me stand up properly. "And it happened during the Stage."
"Oh, you mean- Wait, you got to change the Stage?" He asked before Namju and Kyung showed up.
"Ara, why did you suddenly leave? What if you fell and got hurt even more?" Namju scolded, making both Dohwa and I sighed in sync.
I glared at him and exclaimed, "I'd rather get hurt again than see you and Kyung fight, sheesh!"
Namju smiled at what I said while Kyung looked away from me to hide his blush. I playfully rolled my eyes at the two and looked back at Dohwa.
"Come on, Do. Let's go to the clinic."
"On it!"
Namju opened the door to the school clinic and Dohwa helped me walk inside. Kyung followed right after with Namju as I sat down on the bed across from the window. Then Kyung started to look for the first aid kit. I was surprised that he knew where it was since the school's nurse usually kept it somewhere only she knew, which annoyed many students. He was about to tend to my swollen ankle but Namju took the first aid kit from me with a protective glare. I gently chuckled at the two and looked over at Dohwa.
"I almost forgot to answer your question from earlier," I said with a wink.
Dohwa winked back when Kyung and Namju turned their heads to look at me in confusion.
"What did Dohwa ask you?" Namju asked as he placed an ointment on my ankle.
Then I replied back with a simple, "Oh, he just asked me if I changed any of my plans for today since he wanted to hang out."
"So did you?" Dohwa asked, curiously to which I nodded with a short smile.
"I did but there were some consequences when changing my plans."
Dohwa then looked down at my swollen ankle with a worried look.
Then I added in, "I'll be okay, Do."
"You had plans today?" Kyung asked in confusion while looking at his phone. "I thought you had night classes?"
My face went pale during the sudden mention of my night classes and I was just about to say something but Dohwa cut in.
"She, uh, prolly decided not to attend tonight's classes which could explain the consequences," Dohwa said, covering up for me.
Then Namju gets up and places the first aid kit away. "You two are acting really weird today," he pointed out with a raised eyebrow.
But then he chuckled. "How about we all hang out after school today?"
We all looked at my cousin in surprise and he continued on, "We haven't hung out outside of the school lately. I'm also worried about Ara's ankle, so how about Kyung and I tag along with you and Dohwa?"
"Uh... Ara?" Dohwa called out with a sheepish grin.
I mentally sighed and lied again with a forced smile. "Sure. Let's hang out!"
"Dohwa and Kyung said that they'll meet us at the mall in an hour," Namju informed me as we walked inside the house and towards the stairs.
He placed his phone away and was about to walk up the stairs but he stopped midway. Then he turned around to look at me and asked, "Ara, do you still like Dohwa by any chance?"
I stopped walking and stared at my cousin in surprise. His question caught me off guard and the fact that I'm hesitating was making me doubt something that I haven't thought about in a while.
Do I like Lee Dohwa? My character does... I think. But do I like him? After all, my feelings for Kyung are still here...
I raised an eyebrow at Namju and replied back, "Well, aren't you being nosy, cuz!"
Namju playfully rolled his eyes at me and said, "Look, if you still like him, then you should confess right away. You might after all lose your chance to do so."
I covered my mouth from laughing out loud and exclaimed, "Says the guy who wouldn't acknowledge his feelings for Yeo Juda."
That finally shut him down.
I smirked in triumph as Namju blushed madly and scoffed at me before hurriedly walking up the stairs to his bedroom. I followed right after him and entered my bedroom. I started to look for an outfit for today's hang out and realized that I barely have any jeans in this wardrobe that Aunt Cha got for me.
"Looks like I'll be shopping today..." I whispered to myself as I chose a plain white tee, denim shorts, and topping it with a black casual suit.
I took a quick shower, making sure not to wet my hair and ankle. I left my bathroom and got ready. I was putting on my flat sandals by the time I heard Namju knocking on my bedroom door.
"Just a minute!" I called out as I placed my right sandals on.
Then I grabbed my phone and bag with my wallet and ID inside. I walked over to my bedroom door and opened it to see my cousin in a striped tee, boyfriend jeans that had ripped parts on its knee area, and white men sandals.
"It's good you're not dressed up too much," I joked while giving him a thumbs up.
Namju shook his head at me and we both left with 20 minutes left to spare. We went back inside the car and the family driver started driving to the mall.
"Did you two decide to match together today?"
That was the first thing Dohwa said when the four of us reunited by the mall's entrance.
I raised my eyebrow at him and wondered who he was talking to. I then noticed he was pointing at Kyung while looking at me. I bit the insides of my cheeks from blushing and glared at him.
"Oh, you're both wearing black," Namju said, after realizing that Kyung and I matched in some way.
Kyung raised an eyebrow at him just like how I did to Dohwa a minute ago.
He then, thankfully, changed the topic by asking, "So what are we doing first?"
The three boys then looked at me and I remembered how I didn't have that many jeans in my wardrobe.
"How about we go shopping first?" I suggested with an innocent smile.
Then both Dohwa and Namju took a step back leaving Kyung at his spot. Kyung realized what the two just did and he groaned.
"I'm not holding the shopping bags again!" He complained, making his three friends laugh.
"Why do I have a feeling that Namju has been spoiling me my whole life?" I whispered over to Dohwa and Kyung as we watched A3's leader order the saleslady to get one pair each of ripped jeans, boyfriend jeans, jeggings, and one black jeans.
Then Dohwa spoke up, "He's always been like that ever since we were children and-"
"Because you're like a sister to him," Kyung said, cutting his friend off.
I looked back at Namju and softly smiled at him as he paused for a second and told the saleslady to get another pair of skinny jeans for me.
Then he looked over at us and called for me to come over. I excused myself from Dohwa and Kyung and walked over to my cousin.
"I've chosen a few pairs of jeans for you to try on," Namju explained with a proud grin. "You can follow the saleslady to the dressing room and try on the jeans. Then when you're done, come back out here so that we can see if it suits you. Okay?"
I softly laughed at his bossy side and replied back with a quick 'okay' before following the saleslady to the dressing room. I took my time trying on each of the 'few' jeans Namju picked out for me and was surprised to find out that he knew my size.
"Maybe I should start calling him 'mom' from now on," I joked as I pulled the curtain to the side and walked out of the dressing room in the skinny jeans which were the last pair for me to try on.
Then I faked a cough to gather the three boys' attention. Namju who was busy asking the saleslady what kind of jeans would suit me turned around first. Then Dohwa, who was humming to himself while looking around the store, followed after, and Kyung, who was busy scrolling through his phone, looked up to face me.
All three of them looked at me. One was smiling proudly, the other was giving me a thumbs-up and the third was eyeing me up and down before looking away with a flushed cheek.
"This looks good on you, young miss," the saleslady said, snapping everyone's attention off of me.
"We'll take that then!" Namju exclaimed while handing his gold card to the other saleslady by the cashier.
Then he looked back at me and added, "Ara, you can change back into your clothes."
I nodded my head at him and went back to the dressing room. I changed out of the skinny jeans and back into my denim shorts. I left the dressing room and met up with the boys outside the store. Kyung took the shopping bag from Namju while Dohwa suggested, "Can we head over to the bookstore now?"
My eyes widened in excitement and I looked over at Namju, "Can we, Nam? There's a new manhwa that Dohwa and I have been waiting for."
Namju chuckled and said, "Sure, why not?"
Then both Dohwa and I intertwined arms and quickly walked over to the escalator. But we stopped when I hissed in pain.
"What's wrong, Ara?" Dohwa asked in worry.
I looked down at my ankle and groaned briefly. "It's just on the side of my sandal rubbing on the swollen part of my ankle," I answered him.
"Did something happen?" Namju asked as he and Kyung caught up to us.
"Ah, it's just my ankle, but I'm ok-" Kyung cut me off by saying, "Wait here," and runs to who knows where.
Then Namju knelt down and checked on my ankle. He sighed as he noticed the side of my sandal and stood back up.
"You should have chosen a different sandal, Ara," Namju said with a scolding tone.
I frowned at the sudden tone and was about to say something but Kyung came running back.
"Ara!" He called out, making all three of us turn his way.
My eyes widened in surprise when I saw Kyung holding a newly bought black flip-flops in his hands. Dohwa then whispered in my ear in an unfamiliar tone, "If I didn't check Secret's character list back then, I would have thought you and Kyung were paired together by the Writer."
I blushed at what he said and watched as Kyung got down on one knee and said, "Dohwa, help Ara stand."
Dohwa gave me his arm again and I grabbed onto it for support. Then Kyung carefully took my sandals off and placed each one of the black flip-flops on for me. This whole time I didn't notice Namju suspiciously eyeing Kyung, so when I did I glared at my cousin and mouthed, "What are you doing?"
Namju sighed and mouthed back, "What?"
I shook my head at his protectiveness and then Kyung stood up. I was about to thank him but I realized how close we were. I clenched my free hand as my other hand was still on Dohwa's arm. For a few seconds, we stayed in the same position until Dohwa faked a cough. I then let go of Dohwa's arm and quickly thanked Kyung who said, "You're welcome," before grabbing the shopping bags and walking off.
I rubbed my cheeks after looking away from Namju and Dohwa and started walking to the escalator with Dohwa beside me and Namju behind us.
"There's something I want to tell you," Dohwa whispered as we both entered the manhwa section of the bookstore.
I was looking at some black and white manhwa before looking over at my best friend. "Yeah? About what, Do?" I asked while wondering why he was whispering since there was literally no one else in the section that we were in.
"Your character doesn't like me," Dohwa answered with a small nervous laugh.
"What are you talking about Lee Dohwa?" I asked after a minute of processing what he just said.
"You don't remember but you told me on the day of the accident that you started to like someone else but couldn't tell him since... he was already taken in a way ."
I furrowed my eyebrows out of curiosity. "So... Who is it that I like?"
Dohwa shrugged. "You didn't tell me who it was."
"Well, that's just..."
"Annoying?"
"Super," I muttered under my breath as I looked back at the black and white manhwas.
Then Dohwa whispered again, "You'll figure it out sooner or later... But Ara?"
"Hm? What now?" I whispered back, not looking at him this time.
"...If it's Kyung, I think you should stop," he replied back, making me stop breathing for a few seconds.
He then added, "I just don't want you to get heartbroken. It's my character's pain to experience that, not yours."
I bit my bottom lip at what he said and looked at him before saying.
"You truly are my best friend, Lee Dohwa," I said with a warm smile. "Thank you for always looking out for me. But Do, whoever it is I like even if it's Kyung, I can't avoid getting heartbroken. It's part of growing up. Even if I'm just a character in a manwha."
Dohwa looked at me and sighed. But then he smiled back at me and said, "To the second leading characters of Secret, I hope we can get a happy ending in this manhwa."
🌼 A/N: (it's quite long btw BUT PLS READ!)
I'M OFFICIALLY BACK ON WATTPAD! (no more hiatus breaks- for now lol)
I am so sorry for the long wait. 😭 I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. Originally, it was supposed to be longer but I decided to cut it off at Ara and Dohwa's conversation in the bookstore.
I planned to have this chapter and the next one just to be the A3 and Ara since we rarely have any scenes of the four friends. I also noticed that some of you don't like Kyung and Ara to end up together... 🥺 I'm sorry to say this but there's a possibility that they're going to end up together. I just don't plan to make it happen since I still have two more characters of mine to appear in the story. One of them already showed up in the former chapters. I won't say where though. 🤧✋🏻 Then in a few chapters the second character will show up. 😊
I don't want to disappoint any of you since I could tell you're all enjoying The Second Heroine so far. But this is my story. And I'm really sorry if you don't want Kyung and Ara to end up together. But I've been planning this story since 2019, and I don't want to change anything anymore as I find it hard to connect my story to the K-Drama's plot. So just hang on, LCVENIs. I promise everyone will get a happy ending in this fanfic. 😤
I hope everyone's doing okay during this pandemic. If any of you got to read my last author's note, I'm okay now. 😊 Mental health is good. Physical health is good. Emotional health is slightly tipping- depends though. I'm a very emotional person. Anyways, enough about me lmao.
Here are the pictures of Ara, Dohwa, Kyung, and Namju's outfits. 💖
(Imagine Minju wearing flat sandals- 🤣)
I hope y'all have a good day or night! To those who just started school, good luck! Study well and keep up the good work! 😍 I'll be cheering for you from the Philippines haha. Mine starts next month though so I've got at least two more weeks left of summer vacation. 🙃 Istg being an art student is fun but can be boring due to online classes. I hope we can start to have face-to-face classes soon. 😭 For those who have face-to-face classes, take care of yourselves! Drink lots of water and eat well. ❤❤❤ Ayt, I'm going to end this long ass author's note and start working on CHapter 36. 🌼
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[ published - 8/21/2021 ]