04/27/2026 Chaewon - Crushie Plushie

“Have you ever regretted not confessing to your crush when you had a chance?” 

“What should I give to her?” I asked Chaewon, my best friend. We’re in a gift shop in the middle of the streets of Seoul. It’s a day before Christmas Eve.

“Just pick something cute!” Chaewon said. She’s far away and not even looking at me. Her focus is set only to cutes stuffs around us.

“How? I mean, I bought you since… since you’re a girl! You know me, I don’t know what girls want. I’m clumsily hopeless in love.

“You’re too cheesy, you know?” She turned around, wearing that “I’m done with this guy” face.

“That’s why I bought you, I kept telling you that. Help me choose what… what do girls like?” She kept saying choose the cute stuff, but the cutest thing I only saw at this moment… is her.

I have had a crush on Chaewon, my best friend, ever since we were kids. I found her cool at first, but I never thought I would fall for her head over heels.

“Fine, I’ll help you. But, who’s this unlucky girl?” She closed the distance between us, and it froze me. She’s my kryptonite, my weakness. I act cool in front of others, but all I can do right now is stare at her and admire her whole existence.

“I.. uhh– just a girl I met in the other class.” I lied. But she’s right, she’s unlucky to have me like her.

I’m afraid I might lose her.

But, I’m much more afraid if I let these feelings linger in me longer.

Tomorrow, I’ll confess to her. This is now or never, but I’ll choose now. I don’t want any more regrets.

“This! I like this!” She points at the snowman plushie.

“Okay, I’ll take it.” She likes it, I must get it.

“W-wait! I changed my mind, pick this instead.” She points to another plushie, the one that’s sitting at the far left.

“No, I’ll get this.” She already said she liked it, so I should get it.

“O-okay, whatever.” Her mood changed in an instant.

I paid for the plushie while she waited outside the shop. It’s freezing.

“Hey, why are you here? You could’ve waited inside; it’s freezing out here.” I said, I can see her hands trembling in the cold. I took off my scarf from my neck and put it into hers. I’m trembling on my own, but not with the cold, but with nervousness.

“T-thanks.” She said, smiling shyly.

“Ehem– l-let’s go?” I said, breaking my stare from her. Her cuteness is too much for me to handle.

“Wait.” She holds my jacket’s sleeves, preventing me from leaving.

“You’re really going to give that plushie to that— whoever that girl is?” She asked me.

“Y-yeah…” I answered.

“You really like her?” She looked at me, concerned and worried. She knew me, I’m hopeless when it comes to love.

“Yeah, I’m not going to back out this time. I’ll tell her what I really feel.” I’m determined to let her know what I truly feel.

She was there when I tried to flirt with a girl I met at a coffee shop, and I walked out. She was there when I tried to ask the popular girl for a dance on our night out, and I backed out. And she was there when I asked her friend for a date, but I was rejected.

But all of it is because I plan to confess to her.

(Flashback, first attempt)

I tried to confess to her by giving her a coffee with a heart latte art on it, but I heard them teasing her about being with the most popular guy in our batch. It was during our educational trip to a coffee art museum.

“Is this good? It’s a heart, right?” I looked at my latte art, and it was like an apple. I don’t care, I just tell her it’s heart.

“Whoooooo! You looked good!” I heard our classmates teasing them, her, and the most popular guy in our batch.

Honestly, they looked good.

“Here, have this.” I gave the coffee to a random girl and walked out. They saw me, and I can even feel Chaewon’s eyes behind me.

Rumors spread that I tried to flirt with the girl, and I backed out.

(Flashback, second attempt)

I tried to confess once again during our students’ night out.

“Right, I should ask for a dance. Though I’m don’t know how to dance.” I’m walking towards her, contemplating whether to ask her for a dance and confess to her.

She’s just standing there, as if she’s waiting for someone.

“Can we dance?”

It’s not me who just asked her; a guy just approached her, and they danced.

She looked happy, and I didn’t dare to ruin it.

“Ah– ahhhh!” The popular girl suddenly bumped me, and I accidentally held her hand.

“A-are you okay?” I asked her, I don’t know how we came to this situation.

“Y-yes, thanks.” She answered. Other students started to look at us.