Han Seo-yeon was halfway through replying to her boyfriend when an unknown number sent her a message.
Your boyfriend is cheating on you.
She stared at the screen.
Then she laughed.
"What?"
Another message appeared.
Don't believe me? Go to Han River Hotel. Room 807.
Seo-yeon's smile disappeared.
She read it twice.
Then a third time.
Her fingers hovered over the keyboard.
Who are you?
No answer came.
She tossed her phone onto the bed.
"This is ridiculous."
Jun-ho would never cheat on her.
He loved her.
At least, that was what she believed.
They had been together for almost three years. She knew his habits, his favorite food, the way he hated waking up early, the way he always called her before going to sleep.
He wasn't perfect.
But he wasn't a cheater.
Seo-yeon picked up her phone again.
Maybe someone was trying to ruin their relationship.
Maybe someone was jealous.
Or maybe it was simply a prank.
She opened her chat with Jun-ho.
Seo-yeon: What are you doing?
His reply came a few minutes later.
Jun-ho: I'm busy tonight. I'll call you later.
She stared at the message.
Busy.
Her eyes moved back to the anonymous text.
Han River Hotel. Room 807.
"No."
She shook her head.
She trusted him.
But...
What if?
Seo-yeon immediately hated herself for even thinking about it.
She placed the phone down.
A few seconds later, she picked it up again.
She couldn't stop thinking about the room number.
Maybe she should go.
Not because she believed the message.
She just wanted to prove it was a lie.
Then she could come home, laugh about it, and forget the whole thing.
"That's all."
She grabbed her bag.
"I'm just proving them wrong."
---
The hotel was busier than she expected.
Seo-yeon walked through the lobby, trying not to look nervous.
She checked the message again.
Room 807.
She entered the elevator.
Her heart started beating faster.
"This is stupid."
She almost pressed the button for the ground floor.
Almost.
Instead, she stayed.
The elevator doors opened on the eighth floor.
Seo-yeon stepped out.
The hallway was quiet.
Too quiet.
She walked slowly until she reached room 807.
She stood outside the door.
Her heart was pounding.
Maybe Jun-ho wasn't there.
Maybe she would knock, find an empty room, and go home embarrassed.
She reached for the door.
It opened.
Seo-yeon froze.
The door hadn't been locked.
She pushed it open slightly.
"Jun-ho?"
No answer.
She stepped inside.
Then she heard voices.
A familiar male voice.
Jun-ho.
And another voice.
Her best friend's.
Ha-eun.
Seo-yeon's breath caught.
She moved toward the bedroom.
The door was slightly open.
She pushed it.
And stopped.
Her entire world went silent.
Jun-ho was there.
Ha-eun was there.
Together.
They were both naked beneath the tangled sheets, so lost in each other that they hadn't even noticed the door opening.
Seo-yeon's face went pale.
She couldn't breathe.
She couldn't move.
She couldn't understand what she was seeing.
Her boyfriend.
Her best friend.
In a hotel room.
Together.
Jun-ho suddenly looked up.
His eyes widened.
"Seo-yeon?"
Ha-eun turned.
The moment she saw Seo-yeon, all the color left her face.
"Seo..."
Seo-yeon stepped backward.
Jun-ho hurriedly got out of bed.
"Wait."
She shook her head.
He moved toward her.
"Seo-yeon, please."
She couldn't hear him.
Her ears were ringing.
Her eyes burned.
She looked at him one last time.
He was the person she trusted most.
And he had just destroyed that trust in one second.
"Seo-yeon!"
She turned and ran.
She didn't wait for an explanation.
She didn't ask how long.
She didn't ask why.
She couldn't.
She rushed through the hotel hallway with tears already spilling down her cheeks.
Behind her, Jun-ho called her name.
She kept running.
She didn't stop until she reached the elevator.
The doors closed between them.
Seo-yeon leaned against the wall.
Her chest hurt.
She covered her mouth to stop herself from crying.
The elevator reached the lobby.
She walked out without looking back.
She didn't know where she was going.
She only knew she couldn't go home.
Not yet.
---
An hour later, Seo-yeon sat alone at the bar of a crowded club.
The music was loud.
The lights flashed across the room.
People laughed around her.
She didn't care.
"Another one."
The bartender looked at the glass in front of her.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
He poured another drink.
Seo-yeon picked it up and swallowed.
The alcohol burned her throat.
Good.
She wanted to feel something else.
Anything else.
She took another sip.
Her phone vibrated inside her bag.
She knew who it was without looking.
Jun-ho.
She pulled the phone out.
Five missed calls.
Three messages.
She switched it off.
Then placed it back in her bag.
"Never again."
She stared at the drink in her hand.
She had trusted him.
She had loved him.
And somehow, in one night, everything had disappeared.
She raised the glass again.
"Forget him."
She drank.
Then ordered another.
And another.
By the time the night grew darker, the room had started spinning.
Seo-yeon rested her head against the bar.
She was drunk.
Completely drunk.
And she didn't care.
She just wanted to forget the image that kept replaying in her mind.
But forgetting was the one thing alcohol couldn't give her.