You and Bang Chan have been inseparable since the very beginning. Elementary school, middle school, high school—you’ve survived every grade, every project, every awkward phase together. Even now, in high school, with the two of you stuck in different classes, nothing has changed. The moment the recess bell rings, you’re out of your chairs and racing through the halls just to see each other. You gossip about your teachers, complain about homework, and laugh about things only the two of you understand.

He’s the popular one. The boy everyone watches when he walks by, the one the girls whisper about, the captain of the basketball team whose smile alone could send half the school into chaos.

And you? You’re the nerd. The quiet one with notebooks full of doodles and high grades, the one people tease because it’s easy. But you also happen to be a cheerleader—his cheerleader, the one who never misses a single game, the one always shouting his name the loudest from the sidelines.

It was a Friday night, and Chan had a home game. The gym was packed, the air buzzing with energy. You were there like always, pom-poms in hand, hair tied up, ready to cheer him on. You watched him run across the court, focused and determined, and you couldn’t help feeling proud. He was always in his element out there.

And, as usual, his team won.

You and the other cheerleaders did your victory choreography, the crowd roaring around you. When it ended, you immediately ran across the court toward Chan. He saw you coming and opened his arms without hesitation.

You jumped into his hug—warm, strong, familiar—and for a moment it felt like the whole world held still. A friend of yours snapped pictures, capturing the moment, but you barely noticed. You were too busy laughing into Chan’s shoulder, breathless with excitement and pride.

Then…

You heard it.

Laughter. Whispering. Stirring behind you. You paid it no mind at first—it was a game night, people always made noise—but something felt different this time.

You pulled away from Chan, still smiling, and turned slightly—

—and that’s when you froze.

Behind him, his entire team was lined up shoulder to shoulder. Every one of them was holding up a sign.

Together they read:

“WILL YOU BE MY GIRLFRIEND?”

Time stopped. The noise of the gym melted away. Your breath caught in your throat.

Chan looked at you, cheeks slightly flushed, eyes shining in a way you’d never seen before. Like all those years of friendship, all the recess meetings, all the whispered secrets and shared laughter had been leading to this exact moment.

“Say something…” he murmured softly, smiling with that nervous, hopeful curve of his lips that only you ever got to see.

And suddenly, your whole life—the popular boy, the nerdy girl, the years of friendship turning into something deeper—was hanging delicately in the space between you.