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━━━  " 📂 " ‍..⃗. ༉

𝘾 𝙍 𝙔 𝘽 𝘼 𝘽 𝙔

! chapter twenty two ─── ʚĭɞ

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"There's no way he rejected you." Yeori frowned as she walked alongside Jugyeong, yet again on the way to school. Monday had come once again, much to her chagrin, and she had spent Sunday doing not much more than working for a couple of hours in the shop and her homework as her father took Donghyun to another football practise.

Of course, she had to feign ignorance at the news. Like many other people she knew, she had a reputation to uphold and she wasn't going to allow that to be tainted by letting anyone, absolutely anyone - let alone Jugyeong - that she had been running around with Suho spying on her and her idiot of a date.

"Well... I suppose it was a rejection." Jugyeong said to herself, sad in the face of it. Yeori rubbed her friend's arm soothingly. "He texted me to say that he had a girlfriend and he was trying to cheat on her with me."

"Damn bastard." Yeori shook her head. "He's an idiot for doing that, I'm so sorry, Jugyeong." 

"It's for the better, I guess." Jugyeong sighed. "Oh well." 

"Now that we're going to the maths class, maybe you'll meet somewhere there." Yeori decided, slipping her arm into the crook of Jugyeong's elbow. That evening, as much as she was dreading it, they had their first study session, Soojin having picked out a café over the weekend. Yeori, admittedly, was more excited to try new warm drinks than anything else, and she was certain that if she found one she liked enough it would convince her to keep coming back irregardless of how much she hated maths. 

"Maybe." Jugyeong looked more apprehensive than Yeori had imagined she would be. "How do I tell Sooa?" She asked. "It was her friend." 

"You know, I don't think you should worry about that at all." Yeori replied. "She won't have known him that well, a friend of a friend or something, and she'll be more upset by what he did than anything... what are you doing?"

Seojun had arrived on his motorbike, pulling into the parking space to the left of them. Jugyeong had broken away from Yeori, and had begun taking pictures of him as he was getting off. 

"What are you doing?" He asked, when Jugyeong looked down merrily at her pictures, his attention turned to Yeori. "What is she doing?" Yeori could only shake her head and shrug. 

"Your mom said to stop riding your motorcycle." Jugyeong replied, holding her phone away from his as he reached to try and delete the evidence. 

"I'm seriously dumbfounded." Seojun scowled.

"You shouldn't ride it if your mom tells you not to." Jugyeong said, quite haughtily. "Right, Yeori?" 

"She's the wrong person to ask." Seojun said pointedly, smirk coming to his face as he crossed his arms. "Yeori's always liked my motorbike, regardless of what my mom says."

Yeori winced, and Jugyeong glanced towards her. "It's true." She nodded. "My greatest flaw, really, because his mom is amazing... and you! Why didn't you tell me your mom got out of hospital. I would've come to see her yesterday."

"I thought she would have already called you and told you." Seojun shrugged. "Oops."

"Geez." Yeori grumbled. "I'll wait for you to finish your conversation with this idiot over there, Jugyeong. I'm trying to keep some peace of mind these days... but make sure you threaten him a couple more times for me." 

"Hey - Yeori." Seojun called after her and she turned around. "Did you eat this morning?" She shook her head. "Here." He tossed her what looked like some kind of energy bar from his blazer pocket. She caught it, coming to a stop and awaiting her friend to rejoin her. 

But all of a sudden she was looking up and Seojun was running away whilst Jugyeong chased him, for whatever reason. Either way, as Yeori slowly followed after them whilst still savouring the bar she had been given, she was entirely convinced that whatever Seojun had done to be chased, he had deserved it.

"They're sickening." She murmured to herself as she entered the classroom, where she found Taehoon and Sooa in the midst of another pointless argument that ended in Taehoon jokingly begging for forgiveness as he cupped her cheeks, complimenting her in far too many ways considering they were in the classroom.

"Hey, Hyunjae, you're in my seat." Yeori approached, watching as the boy moved with murmured apologies. "Thank you." She added, with a smile, as she sat down. 

In front, Jugyeong slipped into her seat and Sooa appeared in front of her, beginning to question her on how it had gone. Jugyeong began slowly, glancing back to Yeori, who nodded slowly to reassure her, before explaining what had happened, showing Sooa the text.

"Were you rejected?" Seojun asked, and he and his little group burst out laughing. "How do you get rejected so quickly?"

"Han Seojun." Yeori snapped, turning around in her seat. "What do you think you're saying, huh?" Seojun stared at her. 

"What about your peace of mind, huh?"

"Do you think it ruins my peace of mind if I'm sticking up for my friend because someone's being a dick?" She asked, pointedly. 

"Yeah, well..."

"Well, what?" Yeori repeated. Seojun shook his head and fell quiet. One of his friends was still laughing, she glared at him and Seojun reached out to hit him over his head, forcing him quiet as well. 

"I forgot how violent you both were." He murmured to himself, as Yeori turned back around in her seat.

Across the room, sat by his usual window, Suho ignored her inquiring gaze. That didn't matter. Whatever he had done, it had worked, and Yeori would deal with Seojun and whoever else if they made fun of Jugyeong for it.