Chapter Text
Running makes her feel alive. The wind against her face. The track beneath her feet. The speed that makes everything in her peripheral blur.
"Focus Karina! You only have one minute to beat your own record." Coach Lin shouted.
She looked up and saw him, smiling.
That smile. That goddamn smile.
Him holding the makeshift banner and sporting his awfully beautiful smile is maybe the best reward she could have. Not that she would admit that to his face.
"Don't trip, Ina! Don't get too excited to get to me." Yoshi said while laughing. It made Karina roll her eyes but smiled nonetheless.
Being on the same team as your best friend doesn't really equate to a peaceful life, if anything it makes it even more annoying, that's what Karina has always said but deep down, she's glad to have him. Be it on or off track.
She crossed the line and slowed her pace. Her heart hurts. Her lungs begging for air. But she likes it. She loves every bit of it.
"Here," Yoshi gave her her water bottle. She took it and drank the hell out of it. "I thought for a second you're gonna trip." He continued and laughed which earned him a scowl.
"Shut up! You're so loud, it's distracting." She said in between breaths. "If I know, you're really making a distraction so I wouldn't beat your record." She retorted.
"Bro, we both know you can't," Yoshi said as he patted her head like he's talking to a kid. Karina swatted his hands and gave him another death glare before walking away.
Yoshi laughed even harder, finding her sour mood funny. He followed her, jogging and put his arms around her shoulders. "It's okay. You'll be fine, you've got plenty of time to beat that. No pun intended," he said consoling her in a mocking way.
The two have been bestfriends since they were in kindergarten.
One day when they were at their school playground, Karina seemed to have lost something on the ground and Yoshi noticed that. He came and asked her. "Hey, what are you looking?"
She got startled for a bit and answered, "it's my heart pin. The red one." She said and pointed at the front pocket of her denim overalls. She got blue, yellow, orange and the one missing, the red one.
She was at the brink of crying, the red was her favorite. Yoshi noticed that and started to look. After a minute or two, Yoshi finally found it. "I found it!" He shouted like he just found a treasure. or maybe he does because since then Karina would always sit, play and eat her lunch together with Yoshi. Until now.
He found her heart pin but little did he know he found something more valuable than that.
---
"Can you stop?"
"What?" Yoshi innocently asks while he keeps on bumping Karina's right shoulder.
They were sitting at the bleacher.
"Aren't you supposed to do hurdles?" Yoshi is a long distance runner but he still needs to do hurdle drills and he hates them.
"Ugh! I hate them. They always scrape my knees." He threw his head down and twisted his body to face her and put his forehead on her shoulder.
"Awww," she mockingly said. "Do you want cheese for that whine?"
"Kanemoto! What are you doing?" Their Coach shouted, almost cursing. "Hurdles now!"
-
"There's an orientation tomorrow. But you're excused not to attend because we have training so I'll see you guys tomorrow morning. That’s it for today, guys. Great job everyone!"
Karina turned to his best friend. "Can you give me a ride home?"
"Don't you have your bike?"
"It's flat. I haven't changed the tires yet"
"Fine. I'll just drop you off real quick. I need to see Jihoon anyway." He said as they walk to the bleachers
"Why? Can I come?" She asked with excitement in her eyes. "Oh, is Yujin gonna be there?"
Yoshi gave her a questioning look, "No, you can't, and no, Yujin is not there." He took their duffle bags and continued, "we're buying her a gift for her birthday on saturday."
She pouted like a kid who didn't get something she likes. "You know sometimes I'm questioning myself why am I even friends with you, and I even made you my best friend." She rambled and even made a fake gagging sound.
"Bro, we both know you can't live without me," he said. “Besides, I was the one who found your heart, remember? Of course I'm your best friend.” She knew he was talking about the pin she had lost before, but she cannot help the blush creeping up on her cheeks by just the thought that it could be about something else.