She's been avoiding Karina like the plague lately, which is likely why she doesn't find out sooner. In fact, it takes Ryujin asking Karina if she's still going out with Yeonjun that night for Winter to realize something is going on.

"Who's Yeonjun?" Ningning asks from beside Winter, who's only half listening to the conversation as she twirls her spoon in her yogurt distractedly.

Karina doesn't get the chance to reply before Ryujin does, a teasing tilt to her voice. "He's Rina's boyfriend."

Winter's head snaps up, and she nearly spills her yogurt all over her tray as she looks over to the farthest corner of the table, where Karina is sat with a grumpy expression as Ryujin elbows her on the side.

Winter can feel Yeji's glance her way, but she's too busy noticing the blush starting to spread across Karina's cheeks at Ryujin's teasing to pay attention to her.

Karina doesn't even try to deny it despite how much Ryujin teases her and shares the details with the table. If that wasn't confirmation enough that Ryujin was telling the truth, the next few days certainly prove to be.

As it turns out, Winter actually knows Yeonjun, even though they hardly share any classes. Karina doesn't tell her, but Winter finds out from Yeji that Karina had met Yeonjun through the school's band.

She also learns that Yeonjun has a knack for accompanying Karina to her classes, getting her bag for her and giving her dopey smiles as he wraps his arm around her. Not that she wants to know, but for some reason she can't seem to stop bumping into them every time she's switching classes.

It makes her feel numb, at first. Other than the shock of finding out at their lunch table, she almost thinks she's fine with it. She'd been shocked, because somehow it'd slipped her mind that of course Karina wouldn't tell her-she's not Karina's person anymore; she's not the one Karina tells her secrets to or shares her crushes with. She'd been shocked, because she'd forgotten Karina could fall for someone that wasn't her-that she didn't have a monopoly on Karina's heart, even though Karina has one on hers.

After that first moment, though, she carries on with her days, resolutely ignoring every attempt from her friends to talk to her about the topic. She averts her eyes when she sees Karina, and tries to ignore how she now has to look away from Karina's boyfriend, too.

The bitterness she feels when she thinks of that word should be enough of a clue about how unpleasant it would be to actually be faced with him.

And yet, when she sees Karina dragging him to their table to eat lunch with them, Winter is met with a stronger desire to punch him than she's ever felt. It's even worse than when she sees Karina and Ryujin acting like nothing's wrong, like nothing's ever happened.

It feels like he's encroaching on her space. Their space-Winter's and her friends. He's not her friend. He's just the guy Karina is smiling at when he wraps and arm around her waist to whisper something close to her ear. The red hot anger that curls low in Winter's gut at the sight makes her food go bitter.

She stabs at her potatoes with more force than necessary, gritting her teeth and pressing her lips together to keep herself from saying anything. Ningning fidgets uncomfortably next to her, and Yeji throws Winter a pointed look when she can't help scoffing loudly when Karina laughs at whatever joke Yeonjun just told.

She doesn't even manage to laugh when Giselle leans into her side when they're discarding their tray and asks her if Winter wants her to stab him to spare her the trouble, too busy burning holes on his back with fuming eyes.

It's when they're all parting ways after discarding their trays that Winter is first met with the sight of someone else kissing Karina-the sight of him kissing Karina. She's met with the sight of Karina not pulling away and smiling genuinely up at him with a spark in her eyes that Winter remembers from when Karina was six years old and just understanding why people kiss each other.

Winter's completely, bitterly, and miserably jealous, and she fucking hates it.

"Soobin is nice," Winter says idly as she looks over at where Soobin Oh is laughing with his friends a few desks over. She's in study hall with Yeji and Ningning, and she has long abandoned her notes in favor of studying the boy from afar.

"Who?" Ningning asks, curiously looking up from where she'd been revising her Chemistry work. "Oh, Soobin."

"Do you think he's cute?" Winter asks, watching as one of his buddies jokingly pushes his shoulder.

She hasn't told anyone yet, but when she was waiting for Giselle so they could head to practice yesterday, Soobin came up to her as she waited and asked her out.

Ningning glances over at Soobin again before glancing at Yeji, who's looking up from pretending not to use her phone to look over at Soobin too.

"I guess?" Ningning says with a shrug, while Yeji just raises her eyebrows. "He's in a band, I think. I mean, an actual band, not school band. He played at that last party the seniors threw."

Winter hums, biting the tip of her pen as she takes in this new piece of information. It's then that Soobin turns on his chair, causing their eyes to meet, and he sends her a boyish grin before Winter breaks their gaze with a bite to her lip.

She thinks back to how he asked her out yesterday, and she feels like an idiot. She actually didn't even realize he was asking her out at first-she'd thought he was just making conversation, talking about this new movie that was coming out that he was thinking of watching, so she replied honestly, saying she was in fact interested in watching it.

She only realized what was happening when he shoved his hands in his pockets and looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to confirm if she wanted to go see it with him.

She didn't know what to do, flustered all of a sudden under his attention, so she said she had to check with her parents, which is possibly the most uncool thing she could say, but he'd grinned at her and said she could text him if she wanted.

So now she has his number in her phone contacts, and maybe she shouldn't be considering it. But he's nice to her and he asked her out, so he probably likes her. He also wants to be seen in public with her, something Karina would never do.

And maybe, there is a part of Winter that wants Karina to see her with someone else, too, and make Karina realize that maybe Winter is not going to wait forever.

Soobin really is nice.

He dresses up for their date, sort of. His hair looks shiny and combed, and the collar on his shirt is popped open. Winter can see the silver necklace he's wearing, and he pulls it up for her to see when he notices her looking.

"I've always worn this one," he says, holding the cross penchant he wears on a silver chain, before showing her the other penchant. "This one I got recently though."

Winter steps closer as they wait in line for their tickets, running her fingers lightly over the detailed silver wing. "Does it mean anything specific?"

"I got it with my bandmates," he says, and Winter doesn't miss the way his eyes trail over her face before she lets go of his necklace. "Just a little trinket to remind me of what the music means, you know?"

For a moment Winter thinks he's messing with her, but his smile is genuine. "So music's your... wings?"

He shrugs, but nods, and Winter doesn't have to pretend to smile at that.

She'd feared this whole date thing would turn out being awkward, honestly. That Soobin would try too hard, and that things would be stiff and weird, but he is calm and nice.

Like, he does try. He offers to pay for her ticket, but doesn't put up a fight when she says it's fine and pays for it herself, and he rests his hand on her back as they head to their seats, but removes it once they're seated.

She can feel him glancing at her through the movie, but she's honestly too nervous to engage with him. She's never been on a date. She doesn't know what she's supposed to do, and she feels she might be coming off as rude by just focusing on the movie. But she wasn't lying when she said she was interested in watching it.

Luckily Soobin seems a lot more confident. He leans closer to quietly comment on how great the lead actor's hair is, and afterwards he doesn't lean back as far as before. He's so close that Winter's skin feels like it has electricity running through it, and if she focuses on him more than on the movie, she can almost hear his steady breathing by her ear.

She glances at him through her eyelashes. His eyes are focused on the screen, and there's a somewhat amused grin on his lips. He's cute. Most girls at school think he's attractive, and Winter can't deny that there's something especially charming about the way he carries himself. There's a certain air of confidence around him that she isn't used to.

Just when she's about to look away, he turns his face to look back at her, a smile spreading across his lips. He lifts his arm, hovering it above Winter's shoulders until she nods, then pulls her closer, pushing up the arm rest in between them so she can lean against him while they watch the movie.

It's actually pretty comfortable. Soobin is softer than he looks, and he smells really good, too.

Winter relaxes against his chest, feels his breath in her hair. It's soothing, and she thinks she could probably get used to this.

They go for ice cream after the movie. Soobin's arm is still wrapped around Winter's shoulders while they walk down the street with ice cream cones, discussing the movie and their favorite ice cream flavors.

It's so casual Winter almost forgets it's a date, but every now and then Soobin tightens his grip on her shoulders and grins at her, and she feels warm inside. He's obviously showing her off, but it's with such ease and a hint of pride that she has trouble keeping the smile off her face. It's everything she isn't used to, and everything she ever wanted.

They walk around the block, and Winter sort of feels like they might be a couple. She's pretty sure it looks like they are to other people. But it's only the first date, and she doesn't have a lot of experience yet, so she isn't too sure about what is okay and what isn't.

When they round the corner and their ice cream cones are gone, however, Soobin's eyes flicker down to her lips. For a moment she panics, because she's never kissed a boy before and she hasn't kissed anyone in a while, but the moment he leans down and actually kisses her, she relaxes.

Soobin kisses her unexpectedly soft, but his lips feel different from what she's used to. She half expects them to taste like lipgloss, but they taste like ice cream and it's almost the same. His hand is large and strong when he pulls her in by the low of her back, his body solid against hers, and she has to stand on her toes to keep kissing him back.

It's also rougher and filled with a little more lust, but it's not worse.

His hands are still on her back, and other than pulling her in tighter it's pretty much all he uses them for. He slips his tongue into Winter's mouth, and she actually smiles, nervous butterflies fluttering in her stomach.

Kissing Soobin is nice. It's different, but it's still nice. He responds to what she does, and he doesn't pull away. And he kissed her first, which she's still not sure actually happened.

Winter pulls back when she starts running out of breath, and when she opens her eyes, Soobin's are still closed. His lips are still slightly parted as they curl up into a smile-a real genuine one.

Winter can't help but smile back. She wants to say something, but her mind is blank. Her lips are still tingling from kissing him, and there's a strange flutter in her chest she hasn't felt in a really long time.

Soobin is still staring at her with an almost admiring look in his eyes, and Winter decides she really likes being liked back.

He drops her off at her house later. He's a year older than her, so he already has his license, and while he's not the most careful driver, it's still pretty cool.

"I had fun tonight," Winter says, looking at him from the passenger's seat.

He smiles. "Me too. Do you think we can do it again any time soon? The part where I take you out on a date, I mean. We can do something else than see a movie and eat ice cream. Do you like Italian food?"

"You mean, like, pizza?"

"Or pasta, whatever you prefer."

Winter lets out a soft laugh. "Yeah, I like both."

"Sweet. Does that mean yes?" He looks at her with an eager look in his eyes and an easy grin on his lips.

"I guess," Winter says, her voice shaking a little, because he likes her enough to ask her out on a second date before the first one is even fully ended. He actually wants to see her again, outside of school.

"I'm already looking forward to it." Soobin grin turns into a genuine smile, and he leans over the console of the car. It's a bit of an awkward position, but Winter's eyes still flutter closed when he pecks her lips, and she almost leans back in when he pulls away.

"I think I can see your dad through the window," he says, nodding his head at the house. "I'll see you on Monday, alright?"

"Alright," Winter smiles. "And thank you for tonight."

He squeezes her hand. "My pleasure."

She takes a deep breath as she opens the car door and gets out. She can feel Soobin looking at her as she walks to the front door, but she forces herself not to turn around until she's about to step into the house.

He's still leaning over the arm rest, chewing his bottom lip. She gives him an awkward wave, and he waves back with a smile.

Her parents are waiting for her in the living room, and they look at her expectantly when she walks in. She's not in the mood to really talk about her night just yet, wanting to savor the moment for a little while longer. So she tells them the date and Soobin were both really nice, and dashes up the stairs, into her bedroom.

Her heart is beating against her chest as she plops down on her bed with a bright smile. She's not sure what she's feeling right now, but it's new and exciting and she thinks that maybe this could really work.

After texting Yeji about how much of a gentleman Soobin is-and how they already had their first kiss-she gets up to change into her pajamas.

Something catches her eye from outside her window, and she turns her gaze to where Karina's bedroom window is almost by instinct. The curtains are closed, but the lights are on, and Winter can see a shadow that is unmistakably Karina moving around.

It makes her stop, her pajama top still halfway off her torso, and stare. Not because she's trying to picture what Karina is doing, but because she realizes that this is the first time Karina has crossed her mind tonight.

They go on more dates. Two, to be exact. One to an Italian restaurant where they both end up eating pizza, and one to the beach that ends with them making out in the sand.

Winter is still getting used to showing public displays of affection, and she's still getting used to being with Soobin.

She can't read him like she's used to reading the people around her-be it her friends, or Karina-and sometimes he surprises her with a joke or a comment she didn't expect. But he's nice, and he's cute, and he treats her really well. He doesn't push for her to take her clothes off the way she's heard some friends talking about their boyfriends, nor does he make her promise never to tell anyone about the two of them. He's so different, but he's a good different.

She's pretty sure Yeji doesn't approve, because every time Winter mentions him-he's her boyfriend now, they made it official after he brought her home after the third date-she lets out a sigh and shakes her head. But Winter doesn't really care, or she tries not to, anyway.

Winter needs Soobin, to distract her from Karina. Whenever Winter's with him, she doesn't think about Karina as much, and when she does it doesn't make her chest tighten like she's having a heart attack.

It's not better, just different.

Three weeks after they start dating, Winter drags him to their lunch table. She can feel Yeji's disapproving looks on her, and Ningning and Giselle's unsure smiles. She also feels Karina's burning stare, and when she meets her eyes, she finds confusion and something distant written all over her face.

"Hi guys," Winter says, pulling Soobin into the seat next to her. "This is Soobin. Soobin, these are my friends. Yeji, Ningning, and Giselle, and Ryujin, and Karina."

They wave at each other, and Ningning says, "We have some classes together, don't we?"

Soobin nods and, with his arm wrapped loosely around Winter's waist, starts making small talk with Ningning, Giselle, and Ryujin.

Yeji's pushing her food around on her plate instead of participating, and Karina's still staring at Winter like she grew a second head, but Winter tries to ignore them the best she can. She doesn't have to explain why she is bringing her boyfriend to lunch with her friends-she ate lunch with his friends a few days ago and it was fine.

Winter holds Soobin's hand under the table and eats lunch with the other, listening to everyone's chatter and smiling back at Soobin every time he meets her gaze until Karina suddenly leaps out of her seat and yelps out something that sounds a lot like, "Baby!"

Winter's head snaps up just in time to see Karina throwing her arms around Yeonjun and pulling him towards their table.

There's a subtle twist in Winter's gut, and she subconsciously tightens her grip on the fork she's holding-and Soobin's hand. He squeezes back, kissing her cheek. She leans into him with a forced smile, her eyes on Karina and Yeonjun as they sit down on the opposite side of the table.

Winter's eyes pierce into Karina's for a moment, and the tension between them feels so thick it's almost physical.

But Yeonjun and Soobin obviously know each other, because they fist bump over the table and start talking almost instantly. Winter wonders if they really don't see the glaring that's happening between their girlfriends-she's pretty sure even Ryujin does.

Winter lets go of Soobin's hand and wraps her arm around his waist instead so she can lean into him. She can see the hint of a smile on his lips as he pulls her closer, but other than that he continues to talk about guitars to Yeonjun . It's not enough, Winter decides. She didn't bring him here so he could be buddies with Karina's boyfriend, so she pushes her tray away and turns into him to run her hand through his hairs.

He finally turns to look at her. "What's up, babe?"

She shrugs. "Nothing, you just look really handsome today."

"Yeah? You too." He leans in and kisses her-on the mouth. Right in front of Karina and Yeonjun . Winter smirks and kisses him back a little more feverishly than necessary, pulling him closer by his shirt.

Through half closed eyes, Winter can see Karina abruptly turning to kiss Yeonjun, and she instantly refocuses into her own kiss and slips her tongue into Soobin's mouth. He hesitates for a moment, because they're in the middle of the cafeteria making out, but then moves his hand to the small of Winter's back and gives in to the temptation.

"Uh-" Ningning says, but Giselle snickers, and Ryujin whoops a little.

"Jeez, get a room," Yeji snaps sharply, and Winter loses focus. She pulls back from the kiss, leaning her head on Soobin's shoulder, and fakes the brightest smile possible.