Jaein's terrible period ended meaning no stomach cramps. Her wedding photoshoot with Doyoung and Jena was tomorrow and the actual wedding and reception was next weekend.
Honestly, she had a really good week especially since her and Haechan were becoming pretty close friends as of right now. They cracked a few jokes here and there so bonding was going great-or at least they were hoping.
"Did you hear about how that Jung Miyoung girl was pissing Erin off today because how she was trying to get all touchy with Mark?" Jaein asked as her and Haechan were walking in the hallways together.
"Are you suddenly Erin Son?" Haechan turned towards Jaein who looked ahead while they were walking.
"I don't know." Jaein shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. "Guess I got it from hanging out with her too much."
"Yeah, you definitely got it and I would prefer that you don't become like her." Haechan scolded the girl but in a jokingly way. He placed his hands on his hips and nodded side to side in shame. "I do not want two Erin's running around spilling tea everyday."
"Okay. I understand." Jaein chuckled at Haechan's state. His lips puckered up and honestly she was admiring how cute he was when he becomes all pouty and angry. "I won't say anything else anymore."
"I mean, we can talk about it." Haechan placed his hands down from his hips. The two decided to sit on a set of stairs while no one was around. "I find that girl pretty annoying too."
"Yeah, annoying enough that I have to fight for my seat next to you in class." Jaein rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. She was currently wearing Haechan's hoodie so it looked oversized to her. It didn't go unnoticed by Haechan, but he chose not to comment upon it.
"That I don't understand, like she could've picked anyone else in that class even Renjun. Actually, Renjun would probably just make her cry."
Haechan bursted out laughing with Jaein's last comment and looked at her pretty attentively. He placed his hand over her's where they were gripping on her knees. "You know, I wouldn't let that Miyoung girl touch either of us."
"I can very much tell." Jaein looked at him and maintained eye contact with him. "You make it so obvious when you don't want to be touched, literally."
"It's my tactic in putting someone in their most uncomfortable positions." Haechan bolted up from sitting on the stairway and dragging Jaein along while clutching her hand.
"Come on! We need to go get food off campus!" Haechan excitingly took her out of the school and made his way to his car.
"Show down! I have my camera bag on me and my camera so please spare some mercy!"
-
Haechan and Jaein went to a pasta restaurant that was famous among campus students. The sat in and ordered the designated pasta they wanted and now were served with bread while they were waiting.
"I haven't been to this place before?" Jaein scanned the restaurant. "Is it new?"
"Yeah, it opened like a year ago. I believe. I don't remember exactly." Haechan tried to recall but couldn't. He placed a piece of bread in his mouth.
"Oh. I wouldn't know cause I wasn't out that much at the time." Jaein just shrugged and decided to eat bread herself too.
"At least you got to check it out now." Haechan smiled at Jaein so that she can do the same. He wanted to make sure that she wasn't thinking anything negative based on her last comment. Thankfully, she didn't.
Their two pastas came and they both dug into it. Their conversations were rather funny and it was amazing how both of them laughed so hard like never before.
Not long after Haechan and Jaein finished their late lunch and fought for the bill. In the end, they both ended up splitting it. Now, Haechan was driving Jaein home from the pasta place in his car.
"I'm so full. I think I'm pregnant." Jaein rubbed her stomach while sitting in the passenger seat. Haechan gave her a weird look. "Food, obviously."
"Yeah, the amount of breadsticks you were eating was insane." Haechan responded to her seeing how s frail and small girl could eat so much. She was at a decent 5'3 height too.
"Bread is good." Jaein complimented the bread, remembering all that savory that she ate. "I've never eaten this good in ages."
"Well. I think we should go more often." Haechan lowly suggested as they came to a red light. Jaein smiled back at him and faced him.
"I would love that."
-
"So who's keeping you up at night?" Jeno leaned against Haechan's bedroom door while watching cousin texting someone while he was in bed, fully laying down.
Haechan turned off his phone and placed it next to him on the bed and got up sitting straight against the headboard, seeing that his cousin had made his entrance. "Some friends."
"Some friends meaning Jaein right?" Jeno raised his eyebrows, letting out a smirk. "You also don't usually text people, Haechan."
"Your right. I don't." Haechan crossed his arms as he stared off in the distance. "What brings you here to bother me today."
"Just wanted to talk." Jeno came closer and sat on the other side of the bed. "You know that we've all took into account on what's happening between you and Jaein."
"I'm aware." Haechan let out a long sigh, contemplating about the whole thing with Jaein. His feelings were all over the place and were not set in stone.
"So what's stopping you?" Jeno concerning tone grew, looking at his cousin who looked like he couldn't express his feelings.
"I'm afraid of us being strangers, again." Haechan finally spoke what was on his mind for the longest time. He was someone that kept his feelings to himself naturally so it was hard for him to even explain sometimes.
People mistake him as a crazy outgoing person but the reason why he was outgoing was because a high schooler named Na Jaein told him so.
"You know it's not too late to start over right?" Jeno asked Haechan who turned around towards him.
"I guess but what if-" Haechan had all these thoughts in his head but now was suddenly interrupted by Jeno.
"Look, I know your mind is still focused on the old Jaein who could potentially break your heart again and I completely understand that. But you also have to understand that her life has changed drastically in the past 2 years. Yeah it sucked that you didn't know but she's a much better person overall. I hope that you can learn to understand her especially the changes in the way she acts, the way she talks, and the way she conducts herself." Jeno went on.
"Can I ask what happened?" Haechan asked Jeno. "I mean I know she went to professional help and got diagnosed with PSTD and-"
-
Jaein and Renjun were holding hands at the party. Soon she was taken away by Nayeon to get a drink.
"Let's go drink girl!" Nayeon suggested and Jaein agreed.
"I would love some of that right now!"
What Renjun didn't know that she was suspicious gone.
"Renjun, where did my sister go?" Renjun heard Jaemin asking him where he was half tipsy. "Don't tell me you lost her."
"Oh shit. I didn't realize she was missing." Renjun got worried as him and Jaemin frantically were looking for her.
After finding a particular room. Nayeon was there in front of the particular room but what Renjun and Jaemin heard were screaming in agony.
"She's fine don't worry about." Nayeon just shrugged, knowing that this was her plan all along.
Renjun pushed Nayeon aside while Jaemin kicked open the door that was obvious locked and then saw the view with fear in his sister's eyes, crying.
"I'm sorry Jaemin, this is my fault." Renjun sighed at the sight.
"It's not your fault don't sweat it. I'm gonna beat his ass up." Jaemin proceeded to do his job.
-
"Wait? She told you that?" Jeno was shocked to hear that from his cousin. "It took her ages to tell me that."
"Yeah but that's not the point. I'm asking what happened when everything started and how she went through it without even seeing me for a whole two years." Haechan spazzed all his words out at once.
"Well, I assume you know after the breaking up with Renjun, the Nayeon and Youngbin situation." Jeno clarified to his cousin in which his cousin nodded.
"In the beginning, Jaein would lock herself up in her room for basically days. She only came out at meal times and at one point their mother was crying cause she didn't know how to be a better mom to be there for her. So eventually they sent her to therapy and it actually worked for her. Overtime, she got better but it also took a while for her to even speak to me, Mark, and Erin who came over to check up on her. At one point she was too scared to talk to Renjun too. But in the end Jaemin told us to keep it lowkey so that she doesn't get overwhelmed." Jeno took a deep breath, giving out his last statement.
-
"Jaein! Please come out of your room." Jaemin knocked on the girl's door. After her first session with the doctor she was still the same but she at least opened the door. "We have to eat dinner."
Jaein just silently follow Jaemin downstairs for dinner while he held her hand. She saw Jeno and their mom at the dining table waiting for her to eat dinner with them.
"I hope you don't mind that Jeno has dinner with us." Jaemin just said to his sister and she nodded taking her seat. "We are working on homework together that was all."
During the dinner, Mrs. Na was trying to converse with everyone but Jaein just stood quiet and ate her food. Even when they tried talking to her, she just nodded and just said yes and no. Jeno noticed the brokenness in Jaein's eyes, how she looked fatigued, how she look she wanted to tear up but most importantly, how she lost all of her cheerful personality.
-
"Eventually, she learned to trust her friends again and came back to school. That's why I never told you anything." Jeno checked to make sure if Haechan got angry or anything but surprisingly he was just quiet.
Haechan understood everything that came out of his cousin's mouth. Honestly he was a dickhead for shutting her out but at the same time he can't help but worry for her. Who knows what could go through in his mind.
"I'll think about it, but one thing for sure is that she's not getting away from my eyes." Haechan sounded determined after marinating Jaein's life story. Jeno smiled and patted his cousin on the shoulder.
"You're making the right decision and I support that, Mark does too." Jeno cheekily said.
"Mark?" Haechan was confused and Jeno showed him that he was on a call with Mark while having this conversation.
"He was supposed to scold you if my words didn't get through but guess not." Jeno smiled.
"I'm glad that you're making a good decision." Mark spoke over the phone. Haechan spoke into the phone back.
"At least next time tell me that your eavesdropping so that I can actually get a second opinion from my other cousin." Haechan made his remark and Mark agreed.
"I will. Next time." Mark laughed over the phone and the three cousins from different mothers started talking over other fun subjects.
-
"Jaein?" Jaemin called for her when she was about to walk into her room.
"Yeah?" Jaein came closer to him.
"Are you still mad at me?" Jaemin asked her worriedly.
"No?" Jaein questioned and suddenly remembered why he asked that. It was because how she ran off into her room during the trip. "I mean, it was good intentions but I can't stay mad at you.."
"Oh okay phew." Jaemin sighed in relief. "I thought you were still mad at me that you decided to run off to Haechan for the past week."
"I mean, him and I are on good terms." Jaein bluntly spoke to Jaemin as the topic changed. Based of Jaein's response, Jaemin had another question in thought.
"Do you love him?" Jaemin asked softly, looking into his sisters eyes who were doe and innocent-like.
"Even if I did, he might not love me back, but that's okay. Just as long as he's someone who I can be there for but also someone who's there for me, I'll be okay." Jaein gave her brother a reassuring hug before going off into her room. "That's a conversation that I should have with Haechan, so please don't worry. Good night."
-
i know it's a heavy chapter so please remember go to someone you trust when you convey these feelings