Minju's pov-
I never thought I'd come back here.
Standing outside the old brick bookstore, it was as if time had frozen. The wooden sign still hung from its rusted chains, swaying gently in the breeze.
The same scent of old paper and dust lingered in the air, just like it had on the day we first met.
I hesitated, my fingers curling around the strap of my bag as I stared through the window at the familiar figure behind the counter.
Y/n was there, flipping through a book, lost in their own world like always.
Seven years. Seven long years had passed since I left without a word. Just because of a silly dream of mine.
And now, here I was, standing on the grounds of everything I'd been running from, unsure of whether I had the courage to walk through the door.
I wasn't the same person I had been when I left.
Back then, I was a girl with a heart full of ambition and a suitcase packed with dreams, determined to escape the small town that felt like a cage.
Y/n was my anchor, the one constant in my life, the person who made me feel safe. But that safety had scared me.
It felt too final, too small for the future I imagined for myself. So, I ran. And I didn't look back.
I thought time would help me forget them, that the ache would fade and I'd be able to move on.
But the more I tried to bury my feelings, the stronger they grew, gnawing at the edges of my heart until I couldn't ignore them any longer.
Taking a deep breath, I pushed open the door.
The bell above the entrance chimed, a soft, familiar sound that made my stomach flip. Y/n didn't look up at first, too engrossed in whatever they were reading.
I watched them for a moment, taking in the changes that seven years had brought.
Their dark hair was a bit shorter now, and there was a new hardness in their features that hadn't been there before.
They looked older, more worn, as if life had weighed them down in ways I couldn't have imagined.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and took a step forward. "Hi, Y/n."
Their head snapped up at the sound of my voice, eyes widening in surprise.
For a moment, they just stared at me, as if they couldn't quite believe I was standing there.
Then their expression hardened, the walls going up as quickly as they had fallen.
"Minju..." they said, with their voice rougher than I remembered. "What are you doing here?"
I opened my mouth to respond, but the words stuck in my throat. What was I doing here? I hadn't planned on coming back.
It wasn't some grand decision to return to my past and make amends.
I had simply found myself standing outside the bookstore one evening, my heart pulling me toward them in a way I couldn't resist.
"I wanted to see you," I finally said, my voice softer than I intended.
Y/n leaned against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. "After seven years, you just decided to show up out of the blue? What do you want, Minju?"
The bitterness in their voice cut through me like a knife. I deserved it, I knew that, but it didn't make it any easier to hear.
"I don't want anything," I said quickly, trying to steady myself. "I just... I never stopped thinking about you. About us."
They let out a bitter laugh, shaking their head. "Us? There hasn't been an 'us' since you walked away without a word. No calls, no letters, nothing. You made it pretty clear what I meant to you."
I winced at the harshness of their words, but I couldn't argue with them. I had been selfish.
I left without an explanation because I didn't know how to explain the fear that had consumed me.
I didn't know how to tell them that I was terrified of the life we were building together, of settling down before I had even figured out who I was. So, I ran, thinking I could outrun my own heart.
"I'm sorry," I whispered, my eyes stinging with unshed tears.
"I know that doesn't make up for anything, but I am. I didn't know how to handle it back then."
Y/n's eyes softened for a brief moment before the walls went back up. They were angry, hurt too and I didn't blame them.
I had broken their heart, and in doing so, I had broken my own.
"Why now?" They asked, with a voice quieter now. "Why come back after all this time?"
I looked down at my hands, fidgeting with the strap of my bag. I wasn't sure I had a good answer for that.
The truth was, I didn't have some grand reason. I wasn't here to beg for forgiveness or to rekindle the romance we once had.
I was here because I couldn't keep pretending that leaving them was the right choice.
Because no matter how far I went, no matter how many years passed, I couldn't forget them.
"I don't know," I admitted. "I thought I could move on, that I could forget everything and build a new life. But I never stopped thinking about you, Y/n. I never stopped wondering if I made a mistake."
They sighed, running a hand through their hair. "You think showing up now is going to fix things? That we can just pick up where we left off?"
"No," I said quickly. "I know we can't. I'm not asking for that. I just... I needed to see you. I needed to know if there's still something left, even if it's just a sliver of what we had."
For a long moment, Y/n didn't say anything.
They just looked at me, a gaze searching mine as if they were trying to find something, some clue as to why I had really come back.
The silence between us was heavy, filled with all the things we never said, all the years we lost.
Finally, they spoke, with their voice soft and tired. "You hurt me, Minju. You hurt me more than I ever thought possible."
"I know," I whispered, my heart aching at the pain in his voice.
"I never wanted to hurt you, Y/n. I thought leaving was the right thing to do. I thought I needed to find myself before I could be with you."
"And did you?" They asked, eyes hardening again. "Did you find yourself?"
I hesitated, unsure of how to answer.
Had I? I had spent the last seven years chasing after a career, moving from city to city, always looking for something to fill the void I felt after leaving them.
But no matter how far I went, no matter what I accomplished, something was always missing.
"I don't know," I finally said. "Maybe I did. Maybe I didn't. All I know is that none of it mattered without you."
Y/n shook their head, a sad smile tugging at the corner of their mouth.
"You can't just come back and say that, Minju. You can't expect me to just forget everything and go back to the way things were."
"I'm not asking you to," I said quickly. "I don't expect you to forgive me, and I don't expect things to go back to the way they were. But I needed to tell you how I feel. I needed you to know that leaving was the hardest thing I've ever done, and I've regretted it every day since."
For the first time since I walked through the door, Y/n's expression softened completely.
They looked at me with something other than anger, something I couldn't quite place, but that gave me hope.
"What do you want from me, Minju?" They asked quietly.
"I don't know," I admitted. "I guess... I guess I want to know if there's any chance for us. If we can start over, even if it's just as friends. I miss you, Y/n. I miss us."
They stared at me for a long time, eyes searching mine as if they were trying to decide whether or not that they could let me back into their life.
The silence stretched between us, heavy and thick with all the unspoken words that hung in the air.
I felt my heart racing, waiting for them to say something...anything that would give me a clue as to what they were thinking.
Finally, Y/n let out a long breath, their shoulders sagging as if they had been carrying a weight for far too long.
"I don't know, Minju. I don't know if I can do this again."
My heart sank at their words, but I nodded, understanding the pain they must have felt.
"I get it. I really do. I just... I'm sorry for what I did. And if you ever want to try, even just as friends, I'll be here."
For a moment, I thought that was it, that I'd lost them for good. But then, just as I turned to leave, I felt their hand on my wrist.
"Wait," Y/n said softly as they turn me around and looked into my eyes.
I looked up at them, hope flaring in my chest. Their eyes were softer now, the anger gone, replaced by something gentler, something that reminded me of the kid I used to know.
They squeezed my hand, holding it for a moment longer than necessary.
"I don't know if I'm ready to forgive you," they said quietly. "But I don't want you to leave again. Not yet."
I nodded, my heart swelling with a mix of relief and uncertainty. It wasn't forgiveness, but it was a start. And for now, that was enough.
We sat together in the quiet bookstore as the sun began to set, the tension between us slowly unraveling. There were still so many things we needed to say, so much we needed to work.
We talked and talked till our the day was over...
-make sure to stream illit's upcoming comeback!!