BELOVED BY THE TWINS

CHAPTER 14

"BELOVED BY THE TWINS"

by: Dark Flame Master

They sat down together under a large tree near the school away from the noise of the cafeteria and the other students. The air was quiet, only the sound of leaves rustling above them filled the space between their silence. Shin was still emotional from what he overheard but he tried to push it aside. He didn't want to cry in front of Juri again.

As they ate, Juri broke the silence. "I’m sorry about earlier," she said, looking down at her food.

Shin shook his head. "No, I should be thanking you," he said quietly. "And... I’m sorry, too."

Juri tilted her head, confused. "Huh? Why are you apologizing?"

Shin looked down at the ground. "I thought you were the same as them," he admitted. "I thought you’d laugh at me like everyone else."

Juri smiled softly. "I get it," she said. "But no, I really hate people like that. The ones who think it’s okay to judge others for no reason."

"Thank you for earlier though you look like an angry dusty white rabbit" Shin said to lift up the mood.

"What?" Juri said, chuckling to what shin has just said.

"Why?" Shin asked, genuinely curious now. He looked at her, waiting for an answer. "Why do you hate people like that?"

Juri hesitated for a moment, biting her lip as if deciding whether or not to say what was on her mind. After a few seconds, she sighed and spoke quietly, "Well, keep this a secret between us, okay?"

Shin nodded. "It’s not like I have anyone to tell," he replied with a small shrug.

Juri laughed a little at his comment though it was a sad laugh. "Well, the reason I transferred here is because... I was in the same situation as you."

Shin blinked, surprised. "The same as me?" he repeated, not quite understanding.

Juri nodded, her eyes darkening slightly as she recalled the painful memories. "Yeah. Back at my old school, I was dating this girl. Well, I guess I should say my ex-girlfriend now."

Shin’s eyes widened. "You... had a girlfriend?" he asked, surprised.

"Yeah," Juri said, her voice a little quieter now. "We were together for a while, but... we fought a lot. Mostly because she thought I was cheating on her."

Shin frowned, trying to process what she was saying. "Did something happen?" he asked cautiously.

Juri sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Yeah. There was this guy who confessed to me one day. He said he liked me but I turned him down right away. I thought that was the end of it. But she saw us talking and... well, she didn’t believe me when I told her I rejected him."

Shin stayed silent, listening closely. He didn’t know what to say but he could see the pain in Juri’s eyes.

Juri continued, her voice growing softer. "We had this huge fight. She accused me of liking him and no matter how much I denied it she wouldn’t believe me. I told her I loved her, that I would never do something like that. But..." Juri’s voice cracked slightly, and she took a deep breath to calm herself. "The next day, she kissed me... and then told me she wanted to break up."

Shin’s heart ached for her. He could see the tears starting to form in her eyes. "That must’ve hurt," he said quietly, feeling bad for her.

"It did," Juri admitted, wiping her eyes quickly before any tears could fall. "I didn’t want to break up with her but after that rumors started spreading around school. People were saying things like I was dating a girl or that I was just playing around with everyone’s feelings. No one believed me. Even people I thought were my friends turned on me."

Shin felt a lump in his throat as he listened. It sounded so much like what he had gone through. Being misunderstood, being alone... it was something he knew all too well.

"Are you okay now?" Shin asked, noticing how Juri’s voice trembled slightly.

"I’m okay," Juri said, though she didn’t sound completely convinced. "It still hurts sometimes but I guess I’m just trying to move on."

Shin nodded, understanding. "It’s hard to trust people again after something like that," he said softly. "I know the feeling."

Juri smiled weakly, appreciating his understanding. "Yeah, it is."

There was a pause and then Shin spoke again, his voice hesitant. "It’s true that I like guys," he admitted quietly as if testing the waters. "But... I’ve never really been in love with anyone before. I don’t know why they say all those things about me."

Juri’s eyes softened as she looked at him. "I don’t understand either. But it doesn’t matter, Shin," she said firmly. "It doesn’t matter what they say. You’re just... you. And that’s enough."

Shin blinked, surprised by her words. No one had ever said something like that to him before. He wasn’t used to hearing such kindness. It made his chest feel tight and his eyes began to sting again.

Juri stood up suddenly and extended her hand toward him, smiling brightly. "Friends?" she asked, her voice filled with hope.

Shin stared at her hand for a moment, hesitating. He wasn’t sure if he was ready to trust someone again. He had been let down so many times before. But as he looked at Juri’s sincere expression something inside him softened.

He shook his head slightly causing Juri’s smile to falter for a second. "No," Shin said firmly.

Juri’s face fell. "What? After I shared all of that, you still don’t want to be friends?" she asked, half-joking.

Shin chuckled a little, his usual stoic expression breaking into a small smile. "You can be my best friend," he said. quietly standing up and walking past her.

Juri’s eyes widened in surprise but then a huge grin spread across her face. "Hey! Don’t just walk away like that!" she called after him, running to catch up.

"Shorty" Shin said as he looked at Juri walking behind him.

"Stop calling me shorty!" Juri whined, jogging behind him as they headed back toward the school.

Shin didn’t reply but the small smile stayed on his face as they walked together. Maybe, just maybe, he had found someone who wouldn’t hurt him this time.

As they walked back to the classroom, Juri turned to Shin with a bright smile.

"Shin, let’s exchange numbers," she said, holding her phone out in front of her.

Shin hesitated for a moment. He wasn’t used to giving his number to people. But something about Juri seemed different. Maybe this time, it would be okay.

"Alright, here," Shin finally said, pulling out his phone and handing it over to her.

Juri took it happily and started typing in her number. "What name should I save it under?" she asked with a grin.

Shin thought for a second, then smirked. "Anything’s fine. But I’m saving your number as ‘Shorty.’"

Juri pouted. "Hmph! Then I’ll save yours as ‘Cutie,’" she teased, poking her tongue out playfully.

Shin’s eyes widened, and he stuttered, "Wh—what? That’s... um... that’s so embarrassing!"

Juri chuckled, clearly enjoying herself. "Too bad! It’s happening!" She quickly typed in the name on her phone. "Oh, and I’ll add a heart emoji next to it," she added, laughing softly.

Shin could only sigh and look away, his face growing a little red. "Whatever... do what you want."

When they got back to the classroom, the other students seemed quieter than usual. Shin could feel their eyes on him, but he tried to ignore them, as did Juri. They both sat down, pulling out their notebooks and focusing on the lesson as if nothing had happened.

The class felt like it dragged on forever. Every so often, Shin would glance sideways at Juri, only to find her scribbling in her notebook or tapping her pen on the desk. For the first time in a long while, he didn’t feel completely alone in the classroom. It was... strange.