[ 13th December, 2018, 11:11AM ]
jaehyun has sent you a message
u awake so early?
aeri
yeah
jaehyun
why
aeri
wtf wdym why
jaehyun
YOURE ALWAYS ASLEEP TILL 1PM
aeri
oh.... ure right
aeri
its nothing
aeri
im going for brunch.....
or breakfast.... lunch?
jaehyun
with ur mom?
aeri
nope
aeri
kunhang
jaehyun
oh
jaehyun
kunhang?
aeri
yeah kunhang
aeri
remember the guy we met on halloween
aeri
that guy...... yea we're friends......
jaehyun
he probably likes u
aeri
and? do you have a problem with that
jaehyun
no
jaehyun
idc
jaehyun
its ur life anyway
aeri
well
aeri
ok.... i have to go
aeri
im gonna be late if i dont go out now
jaehyun
ok
jaehyun
have fun :) xd
jaehyun
ill just be hanging out with jungwoo i guess
aeri
alright
aeri
have fun with woo
jaehyun
hey uh
jaehyun
before u go
jaehyun
are u free on new years
aeri
yea why
jaehyun
jungwoo and i are gnna watch the fireworks
jaehyun
u wanna come?
aeri
id love to xdddd
jaehyun
awesome
[ seen ]
-
the truth was, kunhang and aeri have still been hanging out. the weird thing is, you would think that kunhang felt awkward and vice versa because of the whole confession thing you know? but then he didnt feel any of that sort, neither did aeri.
both of them acted like that day never existed. truthfully speaking, kunhang was okay. he was fine with hanging out with aeri because he had learned how to live with the fact that he had no choice but to just move on. and that's what he did, and now he's doing fine.
as for aeri, she was actually hesitant on this whole idea. she felt bad because it would be selfish of her to still be his friend and act like everything's fine when in reality it isnt, for him. but he kept reassuring her that it's okay, so she learned how to live with that too.
that day, they went for brunch. after brunch, they walked around town. went shopping for winter season, took pretty pictures of the sky and took one to two photobooth pictures that were placed on the side of the busy streets. they laughed, and ate, laughed again, ate again. and just like that the day ended.
he loved her more. but she didnt know.
-
[ 15th December, 2018, 2:12PM ]
jaehyun has sent you a message
u free tonight?
aeri
yes i am
jaehyun
how about now
aeri
not really
jaehyun
kunhang again?
aeri
no......
aeri
jaemin xd
jaehyun
oh him
jaehyun
where are you going
aeri
for a movie
aeri
im so excited to cry
jaehyun
sad one?
aeri
no.... i dont think so. idk jaemin picked it
jaehyun
do you wanna hang out with me and jungwoo later
jaehyun
after ur movie
aeri
ofc jae
[ seen ]
-
jaemin and aeri went to watch crazy rich asians in the movies. the two of them loved watching romantic films. when they used to go out, they used to always watch movies after school. after cafe dates. after doing school work. literally any time of the day, jaemin picked her up and they took the bus together to the theatres.
to aeri, it seemed like a dream. to be bestfriends again with her ex boyfriend. who would have thought it was possible? everybody kept telling her that if you're friends with your ex boyfriend, it's either you never loved him properly, or you still have feelings for him.
but it's not true. firstly, she definitely didnt have feelings for him. secondly, she did love him. she loved him so much. and when he left her for jisol, it broke her for months. until mark lee came and showered her with love, his version of love.
so that's false, right? she loved him, although she was sixteen. she gave him all she had.
at night, she went to hang out with jungwoo and jaehyun. her other bestfriends. jungwoo knew about hendery, she told him about it. but she kept it a secret from jaehyun. she just didnt think it was important, you know? i mean, there were things jaehyun kept from her too.
that day, she watched another disney movie with the two of them. they ordered pizza and they watched incredibles 2. they enjoyed it, a lot. jungwoo couldnt stop laughing and jaehyun couldnt stop eating. aeri enjoyed being in the presence of her two bestfriends again.
it's been so long since they hung out together, as a trio. and she was excited they would be hanging out to watch the fireworks on new years too.
-
[ 19th December, 2018, 5:12PM ]
aeri is sending a message
jiyeon reached out to me.....
jaehyun
WHAT THE HELL
aeri
yea shocking right
aeri
i was minding my business
aeri
doing my chores
aeri
and then my door bell rang
aeri
my mom got it
aeri
it was JIYEON BRUH
jaehyun
OMGGGGGGG
jaehyun
WHAT DID SHE WANT
aeri
she just went to hand me a box
aeri
which im assuming is a bunch of my stuff
aeri
that i left at her house?
or i gave her? i do not know
aeri
im gonna check at night
jaehyun
OMG DID SHE SAY ANYTHIN ELSE
aeri
she just gave my mom the box
aeri
and then said "tell aeri i said hey"
jaehyun
LOL
jaehyun
i wonder whats in the box
jaehyun
please update me okay
aeri
okay
jaehyun
im gonna go to the record store now
aeri
alone?
jaehyun
yea. just to sort my thoughts out
aeri
have fun :)
jaehyun
i will
[ seen ]
-
at 8:12pm, aeri sat down on her bed, looking at the box that was supposedly filled with all her junk. she just stared at it. not knowing how to feel because if she opened it, she knew she would look at her past self, her past life. the life before jung jaehyun. the life before she finally got to be herself.
and she was right.
when she took off the cover, it was filled with all of her stuff. her small plush toy keychain, she gave it to jiyeon because when jiyeon saw her keychain, she said she wanted one too. that was the only keychain she had. she got it when she was overseas. no way she would find it in korea. she gave jiyeon the one she already had.
when jiyeon noticed her keychain missing, aeri just blamed it on herself: oh it mustve fell on the way back home. till this day, jiyeon never found out the truth about this small item. there was this tshirt. a kid tshirt that printed out 'i'm with bestie'. their mothers got for them that that tshirt when they were six. they used it during every sleepover.
their last sleepover as an eight year old, aeri left hers at jiyeon's. aeri never got it back, especially because she couldnt fit it anymore at that age, she didnt care because they werent having random sleepovers anymore.
there were a few more things of hers left. each item unlocked a memory planted deep inside her mind. one of the very few memories left that actually filled her up with joy. when their friendship didnt become all about jiyeon. when their friendship was still about the both of them.
and under all that, placed a letter. she opened it, it was jiyeon's handwriting.
dear aeri,
how have you been? i know you blocked
me on every platform you had,
this was the only way i could reach you.
i was cleaning my room the
other day and i saw a bunch of your
things laying around. normally, when
i lose my friends and i find pieces
of them lying around, i would throw them
out of anger. curse them out. light them up on fire.
but i took your things and i looked at them
and i found myself smiling. i missed you.
i found myself missing you. and everything
that we once did. we were bestfriends, aeri.
we grew up together. and every night, i used
to think about the wrongs i did to you.
and i hated that jiyeon. i matured now,
i believe. the jiyeon now wouldnt have
been so egoistic, she wouldnt have thought
that everything revolved around her. the jiyeon
now would still have you by my side.
i see you walking around with
jaemin in school now. you're friends
with him again? im not judging. in fact, im
happy for you. the first time we stepped
in this school, i still remember you telling
me all about this boy who had the brightest
smile and fluffiest hair.
i'm happy for you, kang aeri. i hope you're
doing fine with your friends now, with jaehyun
i suppose. i hope your friends now care for you
the way i never did. i know what i did was wrong,
and it's unacceptable. but new years is coming
and i want us to start afresh.
we dont have to be friends again. i just hope
we can start off a clean slate. and if you dont
want to, i totally understand. if i were you,
i would block me and hate me too. but in time,
i hope you get to forgive me for what i did to you.
from,
jiyeon.
-
[ 22nd December, 2018, 6:34PM ]
"would you be friends with her again?" jaehyun asked. they were standing on a bridge. they found one that hasnt been filled with many strangers yet. jaehyun found it on the way back home from school one day and he got excited to tell aeri all about it.
because aeri liked places like that. he remembered that about her.
they were standing on top of a lake. they see the sun slowly setting and the beautiful orange gradient reflecting off the small ripples of the lake. aeri just stood there and rested her hands on the railing, admiring the scenery while the wind brushed against her skin.
"i dont know," was all she could bring herself to say about that situation. "what about you?" she turned the question around, then she turned over to look at him. "if you were me, would you be friends with her again?" she waited for jaehyun to answer.
it took him a long while before saying, "i guess. i mean, not bestfriends. but i would start afresh with her. if she said she has matured, i would believe it," then he shrugged, because he didnt want to make it seem like that was what aeri should do.
"but i dont know. i believe in forgiving someone just once. if they do the same mistake after the first warning, it isnt a mistake anymore. that's just pure evil," he stated his opinion. "but i know you like to give more than just second chances, aeri," he said.
she sighed, "is that bad?" she asked. "not necessarily. it just means you have a heart of gold," he smiled. his sentence made her roll her eyes, jokingly of course. it's been so long since they hung out together alone like this. the place was so quiet and the scenery was so beautiful, if they were together together, aeri wouldve snuggled up next to him by now.
she was freezing. winter was coming. they made a bet. what day it would snow. jaehyun bet on the 21st. jungwoo bet on the 25th. aeri bet on the 22nd. if jaehyun won, they would all have to jump into the ocean on christmas day, freeze themselves. sadistic idea.
if jungwoo won, jungwoo wanted to go on a road trip with the three of them. and if aeri won, both of them had to give her more than one christmas present. such a smart move. she never bet on anything before. and she bet that for fun because she had nothing else on her mind. plus, it was at the spur of the moment.
"are you cold?" asked jaehyun, his hands in his pocket, to warm himself. aeri looked at him, shivering. "what the hell do you think?" she scoffed, then let out a soft laugh, it made him laugh too. and before she knew it, he walked closer to her, wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his jacket.
it was big enough to fit the two of them. and suddenly it wasnt cold anymore. she found herself not shivering. aeri could hear his heartbeat from the position she was in. she hoped he couldnt feel hers, because it was beating super fast. she always craved jaehyun's touch.
because his touch made her feel at ease. it always gave her a sense of peace. it saved her from calamity. always.
"holy shit," jaehyun whispered to himself. "what? what's wrong? did i do something?" aeri panicked, she pulled away from his embrace. she looked up at him, who was looking up at the sky. "it's snowing," he smiled while saying that. his right arm still wrapped around aeri, he looked up at the sky and jumped up and down excitedly.
"aeri, it's fucking snowing!" aeri looked at him. he acted like he was 18. the sun setting, first snow, on a quiet bridge. does god hate me? she thought to herself. such a romantic setting, and yet, nothing romantic between them.
"guess i won that bet," she smirked, and jaehyun's smile turned into a gasp. "oh shit! you won! now i have to get you two gifts," he faked pouted. she nudged his shoulder. "come on, tell me what you want, i'll try my best to get it," he said. he waited for her to answer.
to be honest, nothing was on her mind. aeri didnt care what she got for christmas. as long as she was with her friends and family, all would be well. such a romantic setting, yet nothing romantic between them. she looked over at him and smiled, her eyes forming a straight line.
"let's just stay together like this," she spoke. then she cuddled right next to him. his arms around her tightened. and she felt the cold wear off around her. jaehyun was confused. "that'll be my first gift. this," jaehyun suddenly felt his heart rate go up. just like hers.
their skins touching, their hearts beating at once. such a romantic setting, and finally something romantic between them.