The next day, school started like usual.
No yelling match with her mom. No awkward silences.
Just… peace. Which honestly felt weird in itself.
Aera sat in the car, still half asleep when her mom parked in front of the school. Lia was already there, waving.
As Aera got out, Lia leaned into the window.
"Aunty! If we take her to the mall this evening, you're okay with it, right?"
Her mom raised a brow. "Who is this 'we'?"
Aera, internally, Here we go again. Let the overthinking begin. 3… 2…
Lia grinned. "Me, In-su, Jake, you saw him yesterday with us and In-su's BFF, Jay."
Her mom's face relaxed. "Oh. If the boys are there, then fine."
Aera blinked. Wait what—?
"Nowadays, girls shouldn't go around alone. Too many creeps around," her mom said, glancing at Aera meaningfully. "And should I pick you up or is In-su dropping you?"
"I'll ask him," Aera mumbled. "If not, I'll call you."
"Okay then. Tomorrow's a holiday anyway. No problem if it's late. Go to class."
With that, her mom drove off.
Lia turned to Aera. "Hey girl, your mom's a whole softie now."
Aera rolled her eyes. "Whatever."
"And btw you didn't even tell me about this mall plan?"
Lia smirked. "SuRprISe✨"
Back in the classroom, Aera turned to In-su.
"Hey, can you drop me off at home after the mall?"
He gave a small nod. "Yeah, sure."
Aera texted her mom: In-su said he can drop me. See you later.
Evening – At the Mall
The squad met at the mall entrance, Lia, Aera, In-su, Jake, and Jay (a certified menace).
First stop? The horror movie.
Big mistake.
Halfway through the movie, when the ghost girl crawled out of the damn TV, Jake legit screamed. In the panic, he flailed and
smooch
His lips smacked right onto Lia's cheek.
Everything froze. Even the ghost paused for dramatic effect.
"Did you just—?" Lia blinked, stunned.
CLICK.
Jay, devil that he is, had captured the moment on his phone.
Jake and Lia turned their heads like synchronized robots.
Jay, with zero shame, "Memories~ "
Lia was red. Jake looked ready to dig his own grave.
Aera and In-su? Cackling quietly at the chaos.
After the movie, they headed to the arcade.
In-su stood behind Aera at the shooting game, guiding her hands with low key boyfriend energy.
"Hold it like this," he said, adjusting her grip. "Focus on the center."
Meanwhile, Jay and Jake watched from the sidelines like bitter single uncles.
"HEy dARlINg, cAN yOu teAch mE hOw To sHOoT?" Jay mocked, swaying like a drama queen.
Jake fake swooned into his arms.
Lia rolled her eyes. "Two clowns, no tent."
Aera nailed the final shot and won a huge teddy bear.
Later, when In-su dropped her off around 7 PM, she handed him the teddy.
"For you," she said, a little shyly.
He raised a brow. "Isn't this yours?"
"You helped me shoot. So technically it's teamwork."
He looked at it for a second, then nodded. "Thanks."
She walked into her house with a smile still hanging on her face heart a little lighter.
But that happiness?
It didn't know what was waiting inside.