Chapter 9: Glitter, Chaos, and Rainfall Confessions
Wonie's POV
College fest week was loud. Like, headache-level loud. Every club had a booth, there were streamers flying into people's faces, and someone kept blasting K-pop remixes from 2007. Constantly.
But weirdly, I didn't hate it. Maybe because for once, my life was busy enough to distract me from the emotional landmine I had been dancing around.
I wore a denim skater skirt, white crop tee with butterflies embroidered at the hem, and my favorite pink sneakers that always made me feel like I had my life together (I didn't). Hair? Wavy. Natural. Slightly chaotic, just like my brain. Lips? Glossy. Because coping = pretending.
Grace showed up like she was auditioning for a teen drama reboot —Glitter eyeliner, oversized varsity jacket, and combat boots with black mini skirt. She wore Liam's name tag like an accessory.
Maya had cat ears on.
Don't ask.
She said it was for the "Manga and Art club," but she didn't change out of them all day. She paired it with oversized overalls, chunky boots, and a lollipop she didn't stop chewing for 5 hours.
Liam…Liam wore a tight white tee, college basketball jacket, ripped jeans, and those charming dimples that made half the fest girls swoon. Including Grace, who kept "accidentally" bumping into him every time he stood still.
Grace: "Wonie, do you think Liam's biceps got bigger or is it just the jacket? Maya: "Oh my god, Grace. He's literally next to you. Liam, smug: flexes dramatically "It's both." Me: chokes on soda Grace: "See? Wonie agrees!" Me: "No, I'm choking. Literally choking."
Later...
Maya: "Guys, if I flirt with the cotton candy guy, do you think we can get some for free?" Grace: "Already did. Got us three sticks and his number." Me: "...You are terrifying." Liam: "I love this for us."
We laughed. We took messy selfies. We did karaoke at the music booth (Liam and Maya screamed Blackpink, don't ask). Grace tried to win a plushie for Liam, and Liam ended up winning it for her instead.
And for a moment — just a small one — I didn't think about Jungkook at all
It started to rain.
Like, really rain.
We all screamed and ran in different directions.
I ducked under the big banyan tree near the library — and guess who was already standing there?
Jeon Jungkook.
Jungkook's POV
She saw me.
I saw her.
Her hair was damp, sticking to her cheeks. Raindrops glittered off her lashes. She was laughing when she got there — until she noticed me. Then... silence.
She didn't walk away.
She stood beside me, close but cautious.
I didn't know what to say. But I knew I had to say something.
"You've been avoiding me," I muttered.
She raised an eyebrow. "Says the guy who vanished from my life without a single text."
Fair.
I looked down at the wet grass, kicked a pebble with my shoe. "I owe you the truth."
She didn't respond. Just waited.
And so, I gave it.
Flashback — Back in Korea, high school
We weren't just close. We were inseparable.
Wonie and I had this rhythm — like we got each other even when we didn't speak. She was my safe space. My calm in the chaos.
Then... she wasn't.
That year, I started noticing Sooyun — the "it" girl. Popular, rich, the girl every guy supposedly wanted. And maybe because I was stupid, or wanted validation, or just curious about something new...I let myself drift away from Wonie.
I didn't even say why. I just started ignoring her.
And when Sooyun gave me the time of day, I grabbed it.
I started dating her.
She liked being seen with me — basketball captain, 'pretty face', future star. But she never saw me. Not really. And when she got bored? She dumped me in front of her entire friend group — loud and humiliating.
Wonie was there that day. She saw it happen. And she didn't laugh. She looked... disappointed.
I broke something between us. And I didn't have the guts to fix it.
I couldn't go back to her. Not after choosing someone else over the one person who had always been there for me.
So I left. Planned my college overseas. Escaped everything — especially her.
Back to Present — Under the rain
"I didn't leave because I had to," I confessed.
She turned her head slightly toward me, eyes guarded.
"I left because I was ashamed. I treated you like you didn't matter. And then when everything fell apart, I didn't even say sorry. I just ran."
She didn't interrupt.
"I thought... if I left, it would erase what I did. But I've never stopped regretting it."
Her lips parted. But no words came out.
"I'm sorry, Wonie. For ghosting you. For choosing someone who never cared. For acting like you weren't the most important person in my life."
I meant every word.
She took a deep breath. Her voice was quiet. "You really broke my heart back then, you know."
I nodded. "I broke mine too. I just didn't realize it until it was too late."
We stood in the rain.
Not as strangers.
Not as ex-best friends.
Just as two people... remembering who they once were.
Then she looked at me — really looked — and gave a small, sad smile.
"So... friends?"
I laughed softly. "I'd like that. If you'll have me."
She held out her hand.
I shook it.
No promises. No lies. Just honesty and a messy, long-overdue truce.
And under the rain, we smiled — finally back to being something again.