Friday evening, during break before night study, Irina and Jinkyung stared openly at Seolhyo.
"You're… really dolled up today," Irina said.
Seolhyo lifted her hand mirror, checking her reflection. "Is my makeup okay?"
"You were already pretty," Irina replied flatly. "Now you're just showing off."
Jinkyung leaned closer, eyes sparkling. "So? What's the occasion? Got a date with Seojin?"
Seolhyo dabbed lip tint onto her lips, pretending to be casual."Seojin wants to celebrate my birthday. Just the two of us."
Irina blinked. "But we have night study. Isn't it too late after that?"
"We're skipping," Seolhyo said simply.
Jinkyung's brows shot up. "Skipping? Don't you hate skipping?"
"It's just once," Seolhyo replied. "Missing one night won't ruin my grades."
Irina crossed her arms, clicking her tongue. "Hmph. Seolhyo, that's how it starts. First you skip night study, then your whole life goes down the wrong path. All because you let Seojin influence you."
Seolhyo glanced at her, unimpressed.
"What are you even talking about…?"
She muttered under her breath, "You're one to talk. You used to skip classes all the time."
Irina squinted. "Did you say something?"
"I said," Seolhyo smiled sweetly, "you're just jealous because I have a boyfriend."
Both Irina and Jinkyung shot her deadly glares.
Before either could retaliate, Seolhyo's phone buzzed.
She checked and it's a text from Seojin.
She immediately stood, slinging her bag over her shoulder."Well, I'm heading out. Bye~"
She waved cheerfully as she left.
They waved back barely.
The moment Seolhyo walk out of the room, Irina collapsed face-first onto her desk. "Haaah… I'm so jealous."
Jinkyung rested her chin in her palm, still staring at the door Seolhyo had gone through. "I love her," she muttered, "but if she keeps rubbing that were single to our face ever single time…"
Her fingers twitched. "I might actually hit her."
On Seojin's side
Park Dong had his head sprawled across his desk, eyes unfocused.
"Fuck… why does time crawl when I'm in school," he groaned. "But the moment I'm in a PC bang or hanging out, it turns into a damn marathon."
Suwon, beside him, was busy doodling anime in his sketchbook, not bothered by Park Dong muttering.
Park Dong's gaze drifted and caught Seojin slinging his bag over his shoulder and heading for the door.
He jolted upright. "Hey where're you going? You ditching night study? Let me come too."
Seojin didn't even stop.
He glanced back, raised his middle finger, and walked out.
"…What the hell is his problem?" Park Dong muttered, before flopping back down and returning to his daydreaming.
-
Seojin waited by the stairwell, eyes flicking left and right, watching for any teachers.
Clear… for now.
Footsteps approached.
Seojin turned toward the source of the sound and froze for half a second.
Then he recognized the figure.
As soon as she got close, Seojin grabbed Seolhyo by the wrist and quietly pulled her along.
They slipped down the stairs together, crouching slightly as they reached the first floor.
Seojin peeked around the corner.
Clear.
They moved quickly toward the back of the building
Then Seolhyo froze.
Her eyes widened as she spotted a familiar silhouette ahead.
She leaned in, whispering urgently, "Seojin… Buchaekkol."
Seojin blinked. "Huh?"
Her voice trembled as she hissed louder, panic creeping in. "It's Buchaekkol!"
Seojin's face stiffened."…Oh shit."
Seojin tightened his grip on her wrist. "Let's go."
They sprinted behind the building, shoes slapping against the pavement until the back wall loomed in front of them.
"Climb," Seojin said quickly.
Seolhyo stared at the wall, horrified. "W–What do you mean climb?! I can't climb that!"
"I'll go first," he said without hesitation. "Then I'll pull you up. Okay?"
She swallowed hard, then nodded.
Seojin took her bag, slung it over his shoulder, and climbed up in one smooth motion.
Once he was on top, he leaned down and reached out.
"Come on."
Just as he grabbed her hands
"YOU! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING GET BACK HERE!!"
"Eeeek!" Seolhyo squeaked.
Seojin ignored the shout completely and pulled harder.
With a clumsy scramble, Seolhyo made it up to the top.
"Jump," Seojin said, already dropping down to the other side.
Seolhyo froze, clutching the wall.
She glanced back.
Buchaekkol was charging toward her, his face was fuming with anger, as thick stick raised high over his head.
Her heart leapt into her throat.
She squeezed her eyes shut and jumped.
Seojin was already in position.
He caught her instantly, arms wrapping securely around her waist as her body collided with his.
She stayed frozen, eyes still shut.
From the other side of the wall came a furious roar: "YOU TWO!! IF I CATCH YOU, I'LL ROAST YOU AND EAT YOUR LIVERS!!"
Seojin burst out laughing.
He shifted his grip smoothly and scooped Seolhyo up into a princess carry, breaking into a run.
He didn't stop until he was out of breath.
When Seojin finally slowed to a halt, he looked down and saw Seolhyo staring straight at him.
Then she broke in laughter.
"That's.. HAHAHA that's the most insane thing I've ever done!" she said then tapping his neck where her arm was hooked. "Put me down."
He gently set her on her feet.
As soon as she steadied herself, she pulled out a handkerchief and started wiping the sweat from his forehead, frowning in concentration.
"You were carrying me and two bags," she muttered.
Seojin smiled, letting her fuss over him. "So… where are we going?"
"To my house," he replied easily. "I already called someone to prepare food."
"What are we doing there?"
She took back her bag back from Seojin and started walking.
She fell into step beside him.
"Nothing special," he said, slipping an arm over her shoulder. "Maybe watch a movie. Anything. Just the two of us."
Seolhyo smiled, soft and bright."Okay."
Then she added, squinting at him, "But it better be fun. I sacrificed night study for this."
Seojin laughed as they headed toward the bus stop.
They soon arrived at Seojin's house.
Seolhyo looked around, taking it in again, a little more calmly than the first time. "This is my second time here."
Seojin grinned as he kicked off his shoes. "Yeah. The first time when we tried to go to Lotte World and failed miserably." He laughed. "HAHAHA."
"Ugh," Seolhyo groaned, dropping her bag by the couch. "That was such a mess. I was really looking forward to it too. We went all that way just to come back with nothing."
"Hey, it wasn't nothing," Seojin said lightly. "We still had fun… in a tragic way."
She shot him a look. "You call that fun?"
They moved into the Dining room, and Seolhyo stopped short.
The table was packed neatly arranged dishes, warm steam still rising.
There were her favorites too, unmistakably chosen on purpose.
"…Wow," she said quietly. "This is a lot."
Seojin scratched the back of his head. "They might've overdone it."
She walked closer, eyes scanning the food, then turned back to him with a half-smile. "They definitely did."
They sat down together and began eating, sharing food, feeding each other now and then, and laughing as they enjoyed the moment.
They finished eating, then moved into the living room.
Seojin dropped onto the couch first, letting himself fall back with a satisfied sigh.
He stretched his arms along the backrest and glanced sideways at her. "Come sit beside me."
Seolhyo didn't hesitate for a second before sitting beside him, resting his back to his body as she lean her head to his. "So… what do we do now?"
"Wanna watch a movie?" Seojin asked lazily.
She followed his gaze to the massive TV, then slowly shook her head. "I don't think I want to watch one."
He turned to her, curious. "Then what?"
Seolhyo looked at him for a moment, then quietly said, "How about you sing for me?"
"…Sing?" Seojin blinked.
"Yeah." She fiddled with the hem of her sleeve, then looked away, her voice dropping. "…Or did you forget what you said to me before?"
He thought for a moment then it clicked.
That night when Seolhyo got drunk.
She's incredibly cute that day I wish she act like that sometime
Seojin smiled softly. "Of course not. How could I forget that?"
He stood up and gently tapped her head.
"Wait here."
As he walked upstairs toward his room, Seolhyo watched him go, heart beating a little faster than before.
Inside, Seojin reached for his guitar hanging neatly against the wall.
Then he turn to the branded bag inside was the small, elegant box he'd bought.
He took both, exhaled once to steady himself, and headed back out.