Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Seulgi clutched the handle of her old suitcase, its wheels wobbling as she stepped out of the taxi onto the cobblestone path of Chaehwa Girls’ Boarding School.

The driver muttered a quick “Good luck” before peeling away, leaving her alone with a duffel bag slung over her shoulder and the weight of her scholarship letter in her pocket.

First day, first chance, and she already felt like a smudge on Chaehwa’s polished surface.

The school loomed ahead, its ivy-covered spires piercing a sky too blue for her nerves. Marble statues of the founders flanked the entrance, their stone eyes judging her duffel’s faded straps. She tugged at her sleeve, humming to steady her racing heart. The email from the housing office had been clear: Room 304, Third floor, East wing. Her new start. Her only shot.

The hallway lights hummed softly overhead, too bright for comfort at 7:43 AM. Seulgi stood stiffly outside Dorm Room 304, duffel bag on her shoulder and her suitcase pressed against one leg, the school-issued keycard pinched between her fingers.

She glanced down at the email for the sixth time.

Welcome to Chaehwa Girls' Academy! Your dorm assignment is Room 304, Third Floor, East Wing. Please check in before 8 AM. Tap your keycard to enter.

Tap your keycard.

Right.

Seulgi raised the card again and tapped it against the black sensor by the door. A small red light blinked. Nothing else.

Tap.

Blink.

Tap.

Still locked.

“Maybe I’m early?” she murmured, though she could already hear the low hum of someone blow-drying their hair in a room down the hall. Girls chattered behind a partially open door two rooms down. Definitely not too early.

The email said 304.

She checked again. Still 304.

Seulgi hesitated, she pressed her ear to the door. No sound. She reached for the doorknob and twisted.

It opened with a quiet click.

“…Huh.”

She peeked in.

The first thing she noticed was the scent. Light. Clean. Faintly floral, like expensive fabric softener and something vaguely citrusy. The second thing she noticed was that it looked nothing like the shared dorm rooms she saw on the website.

A floor lamp glowed in the corner. Books were neatly stacked on the desk, and a fur-lined chair was draped with a blazer that looked more couture than uniform. Her brows furrowed as she took it in. There was only one bed in the room, smack in the middle. Her housing orientation booklet had said two students per room. Two beds. Two desks. Two closets.

But nope, there’s only one bed. A wide, fluffy-looking thing with a very obvious lump of blankets in the middle.

Her brows pulled together. “This can’t be right…”

This was supposed to be a shared room, wasn’t it?

Where was the second bed?

She dragged her modest suitcase in anyway, the wheels making a traitorous squeak across the polished floors. Slowly, cautiously, she approached the bed and placed her suitcase right at the foot of it. It landed with a heavy thump.

The blanket lump moved. Shifted. Groaned.

Seulgi froze.

“What the fuck?” A groggy voice, low and scratchy with sleep, muttered.

The blanket moved, was thrown off, actually and a girl sat up with messy hair, long lashes, and an expression somewhere between sleepy confusion and mild irritation.

She blinked at Seulgi, then looked down at her legs, where Seulgi’s suitcase had very rudely landed.

“Ow.” She winced, shifting, and reached for her legs. “Did you just…did you drop your suitcase on me?”

“S-sorry!” Seulgi stammered, scrambling to put her suitcase back. “I didn’t know there’s….I thought it was empty!”

“…Who,” the girl croaked, sitting up fully, “are you?”

Seulgi opened her mouth.

Nothing came out.

“I…uh…I think…I live here?”

The girl stared.

“What?”

“I mean, this room. They assigned it to me.” Seulgi held out the keycard like it could explain everything for her. “I got an email.”

The girl glanced at the card, then back at Seulgi, then at the suitcase. Her face scrunched.

“There’s been a mistake,” she said flatly, flopping back into the pillows and throwing an arm over her eyes. “There’s definitely been a mistake.”

“I-it says 304—”

“This is my room.”

“I think it’s mine now too?”

That made the girl peek out from under her arm. A smirk played at the corner of her lips. “Wow. You must be new.”

Seulgi’s cheeks burned. “I—I am.”

The girl pushed herself upright with a sigh, brushing her hair back and fixing Seulgi with a slow once-over. “Scholarship?”

Seulgi blinked. “How did you…?”

The girl didn’t answer. She just leaned forward and plucked the student ID off Seulgi’s lanyard, flipping it once between her fingers.

“Woo Seulgi,” she said, “Mhmm.”

Then she extended her hand. Her smile was lazy, almost amused, like this was just the start of her entertainment for the day.

“Yoo Jaeyi,” she said.

Seulgi took it, heart hammering. “Woo Seulgi,” she repeated awkwardly.

“I just said that,” Jaeyi replied, but not unkindly. She stretched like a cat, then dropped her arms with a sigh. “Well, Woo Seulgi. This is my room. Mine alone.”

Seulgi fidgeted. “I’m really sorry, but the housing office—”

“It’s not your fault,” Jaeyi said, already sounding bored. “It’s the school’s fault.”

Seulgi said, her voice smaller. “Maybe…but they told me 304 and—“

Jaeyi was already lying back down. “Not my problem.”

“But…what if this year, they assigned a roommate to you?” Seulgi tried to reason. “They emailed me. My name was on the—”

“Trust me. It’s not.” Jaeyi’s smile turned sharp, her voice firm.

Seulgi faltered. She wanted to argue. She really did. But Jaeyi had the kind of confidence that made you second-guess yourself even when you were right. She shifted awkwardly, shoulders curling inward. “Okay.”

She stood frozen for a second, then turned, shoulders heavy. “I’ll go… talk to them,” she muttered. “Maybe they’ll fix it. Sorry again.”

She picked up her duffel bag and suitcase, turned toward the door, and tried not to look as humiliated as she felt.

But before she could step out, she heard a sigh behind her.

“Wait.”

She turned.

Jaeyi was pushing back her covers, standing up, tall and languid in her tank top and boxers. Her legs were pale and smooth and Seulgi’s brain short-circuited.

She gulped.

Her eyes traveled up before she could stop herself and there was Jaeyi, already staring at her, smirking like she knew.

Seulgi squeaked and looked away. “I—I’m sorry!”

“Relax,” Jaeyi said, amused, as she padded to her cabinet and pulled out a school uniform. “Let’s go clear this up. Since I’m in a good mood, I’ll help you find your actual dorm. Okay?”

Seulgi blinked. “Oh. Um…thank you.”

Then Jaeyi reached for the hem of her tank top. Seulgi caught a flash of her waist before immediately squeaking and looking up at the ceiling, eyes wide.

“Sorry!”

There was a quiet laugh behind her, but Jaeyi didn’t say anything. A few moments passed.

Then Seulgi flinched when she felt something soft brush her chin. She looked down. Jaeyi stood in front of her now, fully dressed, one finger hooked lightly under her chin, tilting her gaze back up.

“You’re cute,” Jaeyi murmured. “Are you a freshman?”

Seulgi shook her head, stumbling a step back. “I—I’m a senior.”

Jaeyi’s smirk widened.

“Perfect.”

She turned on her heel and walked toward the door, like this entire mess had somehow landed in her favor.

“Come on, Woo Seulgi.” she said.

And Seulgi followed.

The hallways of Chaehwa Girl’s Academy gleamed with polished tile, sunlight filtering through tall windows and catching on sleek lockers and glass-panel doors. Seulgi tried not to trip over her own feet as she followed Jaeyi, her suitcase wheels thumping against the floor, duffel bag heavy on her shoulder. She had to take three steps for every two of Jaeyi’s just to keep up.

Jaeyi had changed into the school uniform, but of course, hers didn’t look anything like the pressed and proper version Seulgi had seen in the welcome packet. Her skirt was shorter, pleated just so to swish around her thighs. The blazer was tailored, nipped at the waist, with a custom school crest pin glittering gold near her collar. She wore ankle boots instead of the regulation loafers, and her long hair was twisted into a loose, perfect ponytail.

It was the kind of uniform that screamed don’t bother trying to copy this, you’ll just look like a try-hard.

Seulgi, by contrast, felt like a pack mule trailing behind royalty. She swallowed and tugged her cardigan tighter around herself. Her own outfit looked…humble, at best. Her sweater was plain gray and a little too big, sleeves rolled up neatly. Her skirt was the right length, her ID lanyard perfectly aligned. She looked like a girl trying not to get in trouble.

"Try to keep up, aegiya," Jaeyi called over her shoulder without even turning around.

Seulgi blinked. “Aeg—?”

Her cheeks turned hot.

Did she just call her baby?

Jaeyi didn’t even look back. She just kept walking like nothing had happened, phone in one hand, her stride confident and unbothered.

Seulgi scrambled forward, dragging her suitcase a little faster, willing her face to cool down.

Students parted as Jaeyi passed. Some turned to watch. Others whispered. A group of girls near the vending machine actually straightened up, like they’d been caught slouching in front of a queen.

Seulgi blinked.

They passed a group of students on the stairs, “Sunbaenim, good morning!” one girl chirped, waving a little too eagerly.

Jaeyi didn’t slow. She offered a lazy, almost distracted smile. “Morning,” she said, without turning her head.

The girl beamed like she’d been handed a handwritten blessing.

Seulgi blinked. Another pair of girls at the end of the hall whispered behind their hands, watching Jaeyi as she walked. One even nudged the other and tilted her chin in their direction. A girl, who seems to be an athlete, half-raising a hand as if to wave, then thinking better of it.

No one spoke. They all just…watched Jaeyi.

And then glanced at Seulgi like trying to calculate why she was beside her.

Seulgi kept her eyes down. This was worse than she’d feared.

They turned a corner toward the academic buildings, and Jaeyi veered past a courtyard where students were taking photos under a tall silver sculpture. Seulgi blinked as her eyes landed on a sleek, glass-paneled structure at the edge of campus. A new wing. It stood out even more than the rest of the school, state-of-the-art architecture with frosted doors and tinted windows.

The glass doors of the building gleamed under the sunlight.

Etched in steel above them were three sleek words:

YOO INNOVATION CENTER

Seulgi’s eyes widened.

Yoo.

As in…Yoo Jaeyi.

Her brain scrambled to catch up. On the school website. On the brochure. Top student. Debate champion. Honor Society president. Face of Chaehwa. A glowing smile. Long, glossy hair. A blazer just slightly off-regulation.

Yoo Jaeyi.

There had been a whole paragraph about her academic achievements, her debate wins, her leadership in like, five different organizations.

And, apparently, her family funded half the school.

Oh.

Oh.

Seulgi nearly choked on her own realization.

The housing office sat tucked between the library annex and the administrative wing, an unimpressive glass door marked only by a small plaque that read Residential Services. Inside, it smelled faintly of air conditioning and printer ink. Rows of student folders sat behind the front desk, manned by a lone admin assistant who looked far too cheerful for a Monday morning.

Jaeyi didn’t knock. She strode right in.

“Hi, Ms. Lee,” she said breezily, leaning one elbow on the counter.

The woman looked up, startled for half a second, then immediately relaxed when she saw who it was. “Oh! Jaeyi. Good morning, sweetheart. I thought you already moved in.”

“I did. That’s the problem.” She tilted her head toward Seulgi, who had just awkwardly wheeled her suitcase inside. “There’s been a mix-up, she got assigned my room.”

Miss Lee blinked at Seulgi. “Oh?”

Seulgi cleared her throat, stepping forward. “Good Morning Ma’am. I—I got this room assignment by email. Room 304.” She held up the keycard again, as if it hadn’t failed her spectacularly already. “But the door didn’t work, and when I went in, she was already there, and—”

“And dropped her suitcase on my legs,” Jaeyi added blandly.

Seulgi’s eyes widened. “I didn’t mean to—”

Miss Lee was already typing rapidly into the desktop computer. “Let me just check… what’s your name?”

“Woo Seulgi.”

Tap. Tap. Scroll. Pause.

Miss Lee frowned.

“Ah,” she said, squinting at the screen. “So… it seems like there was a clerical error. You were actually supposed to be assigned to Room 403.”

Seulgi blinked. “Four-oh-three?”

“Yes, but it seems we gave Room 403 to another student during orientation when the mistake wasn’t caught.” She scanned the list. “A Woong Seul-ki. Quite similar names. I’m so sorry, this shouldn’t have happened.”

Jaeyi crossed her arms, visibly unimpressed. “So fix it. Move the other girl.”

“We would,” Ms. Lee said quickly, “but there’s… another issue.”

She looked at Seulgi again, guilt creeping into her smile.

“It looks like all the other dorms have been filled.“

“All of them?” Seulgi asked, trying not to sound as crushed as she felt.

“We had a few more enrollments than expected this year. A couple of transfer students, and more seniors opting to stay on-campus instead of commuting. So every room’s already taken.”

“Wait, so where can I stay?” Seulgi’s voice came out thinner than she meant it to. She hugged her duffel bag to her chest.

Ms. Lee looked vaguely embarrassed. “We’re working on temporary accommodations. Maybe converting one of the guest lounges, or seeing if the faculty dorms have space. In the meantime…”

Seulgi’s heart sank. In the meantime?

“There is… an option.”

Seulgi perked up. “There is?”

Ms. Lee gave her a careful look. “We have a small room available. It’s technically not part of the student housing list anymore, but if you’re willing to be flexible—”

“I am,” Seulgi said quickly, almost too quickly. “I don’t mind at all.”

“You haven’t even heard where it is yet.”

“Doesn’t matter. I’m fine with anything.”

Jaeyi shot her a skeptical look.

“It’s in the basement level,” Miss Lee added. “Originally used by a staff member during renovations. The space is small, but it’s clean and private.”

Seulgi hesitated.

The basement?

Her grip on her duffel tightened. It wasn’t ideal, not even close, but she’d worked too hard to be here. Late nights, tutoring, mock exams, interview prep, part-time jobs. She could sleep in a broom closet if she had to.

“I’ll take it,” she said, standing straighter. “It’s fine.”

Jaeyi’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Wait. The basement? You mean the one with the rattling pipes and no windows?”

Ms. Lee’s polite smile strained. “It’s temporary,” she offered.

“No,” Jaeyi said, sharp and immediate. “She’s not staying there.”

Seulgi turned to her, confused. “It’s okay, really. I don’t mind.”

Jaeyi’s gaze didn’t leave Ms. Lee at the desk. “You’re talking about the old custodian’s room. No windows. The radiator rattles. Smells like bleach and damp floorboards.”

Miss Lee flushed. “We’ve cleaned it thoroughly since then—”

“She’s a student,” Jaeyi said flatly. “Not a mop.”

Seulgi’s mouth parted, stunned.

Jaeyi turned to her, arms crossed, face unreadable. “You’ll stay with me.”

Seulgi blinked. “Wait. What?”

“I don’t do roommates,” Jaeyi said. “But I’m also not going to let the school shove a scholar into a basement closet because they can’t count.”

The words hung in the air like a suspended chord.

Ms. Lee looked down, embarrassed.

Seulgi’s heart skipped. She stepped forward. “You really don’t have to…”

“You’d rather sleep in a dungeon with a boiler?” Jaeyi asked, raising an eyebrow.

“…No.”

“Then that’s it. You’re staying with me.”

Seulgi stared. “…Thank you,” she said, quietly.

Jaeyi didn’t respond, merely glances at Ms. Lee then she pulled out her phone as she gives orders. “Give her access to 304. I’ll clear a space.”

“You—you’re sure?” Ms. Lee asked, voice small.

Jaeyi shrugged. “You’ll owe me. But yeah.”

Ms. Lee hesitated, then sighed and tapped back into the system. A few clicks later, she reached into the drawer and slid a fresh card across the desk toward Seulgi.

“This will now give you access to Room 304.“

Seulgi took it with both hands, giving a small bow. “Thank you.”

Miss Lee offered a thin smile. “We’ll update the records officially by tomorrow morning. Please… do your best to get along.”

Jaeyi didn’t respond. She just turned on her heel and tossed over her shoulder, “Come on, aegiya. Let’s go set up your side.”

And with that, she walked out the door again, expecting Seulgi to follow.

Which, of course… she did.

They walked in silence for a while.

Or rather, Jaeyi walked. Seulgi trudged.

Her suitcase bumped against her ankle for the third time in two minutes.

Jaeyi moved like she was late for something, quick, confident strides that didn’t allow much room for stragglers. Her ponytail swayed with every step, neat and deliberate, like everything else about her.

Seulgi’s duffel bag was digging into her shoulder. She adjusted it with a grunt and quickened her steps.

Still, the distance between them grew.

And again, from several paces ahead, Jaeyi called out casually, “Keep up, aegiya.”

There it was again. That word. Aegiya. She wasn’t sure she’d heard it right the first time, but now there was no mistaking it.

She keeps calling me that…

Seulgi blinked and nearly tripped over her own foot trying to catch up. Her calves were starting to burn.

A few more steps. Just a few more…

She stopped.

“Wait…just…hold on,” she panted. “I gotta catch my breath.”

She leaned forward, resting her palms on her knees, breathing hard.

Jaeyi had gotten a few strides ahead but paused when she noticed Seulgi lag behind.

She turned around slowly, then crossed her arms, studying Seulgi like one might study a strange new creature.

She tilted her head.

“Such a baby,” she said, clicking her tongue. Then, to Seulgi’s shock, she walked back toward her and grabbed the strap of the duffel bag right off her shoulder.

“I’ll carry it.”

Seulgi blinked. “You don’t have to—”

“I’m not asking.” Jaeyi slung the bag over her own shoulder with ease, like it weighed nothing. “You’ll move faster if I carry it,” she added. “Besides, you look like you’re about to fall over.”

Seulgi opened her mouth to protest, but… she wasn’t wrong.

“…Thank you,” she muttered, feeling her ears go pink.

Jaeyi simply hummed, already walking again but this time a little slower, just a step or two ahead instead of five.

Seulgi followed, still red-faced, clutching her suitcase handle like it was the only thing keeping her upright.

She hesitated, then blurted, “Why do you keep calling me aegi?“

Jaeyi glanced over her shoulder.

Seulgi stumbled slightly under the weight of her question. “I’m not a baby,” she added. “I’m a senior. Same as you.”

It came out a little more breathless and whiny than she intended. Her voice cracked on the last word, and she immediately wanted to shrivel into herself.

Jaeyi glanced down at her from over her shoulder, eyes sparkling. Her smirk curled slowly.

“Oh?” she said. “You kinda sound like one right now.”

Seulgi’s face burned hotter.

“That’s not—I’m not…” she trailed off shyly.

“You’re small,” Jaeyi said simply, as if listing off a fact. “You have chubby cheeks. You make little noises when you’re flustered. It fits.”

“I don’t!”

“You do.”

Seulgi huffed, looking anywhere but Jaeyi’s face.

Jaeyi just smiled wider.

“Don’t worry. I think it’s cute.”

Seulgi nearly tripped over her own suitcase.

She made a small squeak of surprise, which, of course, only made Jaeyi laugh.

They made it back to Room 304 just as the sun began slanting golden through the windows.

Jaeyi unlocked the door with her card and pushed it open, stepping inside first.

Seulgi stood just at the threshold, suitcase in one hand, uncertainty weighing heavier than her duffel bag.

Jaeyi dropped the duffel bag on the floor by the foot of her bed with a soft thud.

Without a word, she shrugged off her blazer, tossing it over the desk chair. Then her fingers reached up and began unbuttoning the top of her uniform shirt, casually, like Seulgi wasn’t standing right there.

Two buttons undone. Three.

Seulgi stared, then yanked her gaze toward the floor so fast her neck cracked.

She was still staring at the floor when they both spoke at once.

“I can sleep on the floor—”

“We’ll share my bed for tonight.”

They blinked.

Seulgi lifted her eyes.

“You…what?”

Jaeyi raised a brow. “What did you say?”

“I said I can sleep on the floor,” Seulgi mumbled, eyes now fixed firmly on a speck of dust on the floorboards. “It’s fine. I don’t mind.”

“You’re not sleeping on the floor,” Jaeyi said, like it was obvious. “What are you, a monk?”

Seulgi blinked. “I just thought…I mean, you don’t do roommates—”

“I don’t,” Jaeyi agreed, stepping closer, unbothered. “But I also don’t let people sleep on the floor like stray animals. Especially not cute ones.”

Seulgi made a strangled noise in response.

Jaeyi smiled. A slow, almost smug one.

“I have a queen bed,” she added, gesturing to said bed. “There’s space. Unless you kick.”

“I don’t.”

“Snore?”

“No.”

“Good.”

Seulgi stayed awkwardly near the door, eyes flitting from the closet to the desk.

“So,” she started, clearing her throat. “Do you think the school would…let me request another study table? And a cabinet? I mean, there’s usually two of everything in dorm rooms, right? Two beds, two desks…”

“Probably not,” Jaeyi cut in, tone casual, unbothered. “You heard Ms. Lee. All rooms are full. They probably don’t even have spare furniture lying around.”

“Oh,” Seulgi said, biting the inside of her cheek. “Makes sense.”

A beat passed. Then Jaeyi tilted her head. “I can get you those things.”

Seulgi blinked. “You can?”

“Mm.” Jaeyi’s voice was soft, smooth. “But you’ll have to do something for me in exchange.”

Seulgi tilted her head. “What?”

Jaeyi didn’t answer.

Instead, she took a step forward.

Then another.

Seulgi backed up instinctively, her spine brushing the closed door. She felt her breath catch in her chest as Jaeyi drew closer, too close. Close enough for Seulgi to feel the heat rolling off her skin, to catch the faint scent of her perfume, sharp and clean and expensive.

Jaeyi’s gaze swept over her, unreadable, slow.

Seulgi didn’t know what to do with her hands. She clenched them by her sides, pulse thudding in her ears.

“W-What do you want?” she asked, voice a breathy mess.

Jaeyi didn’t answer.

She leaned in, one hand braced on the door beside Seulgi’s head, the other resting casually on her hip. Her hair brushed Seulgi’s cheek as she lowered her mouth to her ear, her voice a velvet murmur, “I’ll think about it… aegiya.”

The word curled like smoke in the air between them.

Seulgi shivered.

By the time she opened her mouth to respond, Jaeyi had already pulled away, smirking to herself as she moved across the room.

Seulgi stayed frozen by the door, heart hammering, unsure if she’d just been threatened or flirted with and half-horrified to realize she kind of liked both.

She stayed pressed against the door, her hands still fisted at her sides like she didn’t trust herself to move. Her ears were hot. Her thoughts were louder than ever, rattling around in her skull like loose coins.

What just happened?

She tried to rationalize it. Maybe Jaeyi was just messing with her. A rich girl’s idea of teasing. Or hazing. Or maybe that was just…how she talked. Maybe calling people aegi and leaning close and whispering things against their ear was just a rich-girl dialect she hadn’t learned yet.

Seulgi pressed her palm lightly to her cheek. Still warm. Still breathing too fast.

Jaeyi, meanwhile, was unbothered. She’d kicked off her shoes and climbed onto the bed with the grace of someone who’d always known comfort, one leg folded beneath her as she lounged back against the headboard and scrolled lazily through her phone.

Trying to busy herself, Seulgi wheeled out the study chair and sat down stiffly. She pulled out her phone and opened the school portal. Her fingers fumbled more than once. The screen loaded her class schedule, but she barely registered any of it. Monday: Lit, Chem, History. Tuesday: Advanced Math, Bio, English. She scrolled. Scrolled again.

Behind her, Jaeyi shifted, the bedsheets rustling softly. A breath. A low hum.

Seulgi glanced back before she could stop herself.

Jaeyi’s gaze was on her. Not sharp, not direct, just there. Watching. Curious. Like Seulgi was some puzzle she hadn’t decided how to solve yet.

Quickly, Seulgi turned back to her screen and tried to focus.

Jaeyi had looked perfectly relaxed. Like nothing had happened. Like she hadn’t just cornered her roommate and whispered something that made Seulgi's stomach flip and her spine spark.

This was going to be fine. She could handle this.

But even as she stared blankly at her schedule, she knew the truth.

Surviving Room 304 was going to be a lot harder than she thought.

Seulgi closed the bathroom door behind her with a soft click and exhaled. Alone at last.

She did her business, washed her hands twice, mostly just to buy herself a little more time and stared at her reflection. Her cheeks were still warm. Her thoughts still scrambled.

When she finally stepped out, Jaeyi was no longer in uniform. She’d changed into a cropped sweatshirt and loose joggers, her long hair tied into a low bun that somehow made her look even more untouchably elegant.

She looked up from her phone the moment Seulgi emerged. “You can change too, you know.”

Seulgi blinked. “Oh. Right.”

“No classes today. It’s orientation week. All boring speeches.”

“Okay.” Seulgi crouched beside her suitcase on the floor and unzipped it, rummaging through her neatly packed clothes. She could feel Jaeyi’s eyes on her, sharp and quiet, standing just behind her shoulder.

It made her hyperaware of every motion. The way her shirt rode up slightly as she leaned forward. The way her elbow bumped the suitcase handle.

Then Jaeyi’s voice again, low and casual, “Wear that one.”

Seulgi paused. “This?”

Jaeyi nodded at the soft blue hoodie Seulgi held. “Mm.”

Seulgi nodded too, flustered, and grabbed a pair of black leggings to go with it. She stood and scurried off to the bathroom again, closing the door behind her.

When she returned, she found Jaeyi still standing there, waiting.

Jaeyi looked her up and down once, then gave a small nod. “We match.”

Seulgi looked at her hoodie, then at Jaeyi’s. “I guess.”

Jaeyi smiled, just a little. “Let’s go.”

“Go?”

“To get you your bed.”

Seulgi perked up. “They found an extra one for me?”

Jaeyi was already reaching for her keys and slinging a small purse over her shoulder.

“No, silly,” she said, walking past. “We’re buying one.”

Seulgi was left standing as she tried to process what Jaeyi just said. She snapped out of it once she heard the door closed behind Jaeyi.

“Wait! Jaeyi!”

Seulgi’s voice rang out a little louder than she meant. Jaeyi was already a few steps ahead, halfway down the corridor.

At the sound, Jaeyi slowed. Seulgi jogged to catch up, clutching the sleeves of her hoodie, then hesitating for a second before reaching out and lightly grabbing Jaeyi’s wrist.

Jaeyi turned her head, looked down at the contact, then looked up at Seulgi with her brows slightly raised. A slow, teasing smirk tugged at the corner of her mouth.

Seulgi realized what she’d done a second too late.

“S-sorry…I just…wait—” She let go like she’d been burned, stepping back so quickly she nearly tripped over herself.

Jaeyi tilted her head, still looking at her.

“I-I can’t afford to buy a bed right now,” Seulgi stammered. “It’s fine, really, I can just sleep on the floor—”

“I told you,” Jaeyi said calmly, “I’m not letting you sleep on the floor.”

“But…”

“I don’t want to force you to sleep with me either…” Jaeyi added smoothly, her voice dropping into something soft and teasing.

Seulgi flushed. Her ears turned red. Her brain short-circuited.

“I mean…not that I…that’s not…” she stumbled over her own thoughts, waving her hands uselessly.

Jaeyi laughed, quiet, warm, and smug and took a step closer. Seulgi found herself instinctively backing up half a step.

“So…” Jaeyi said smoothly, “I’ll just buy you a bed. Mhmm?”

Seulgi looked up at her, lips parted. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears. It was hard to think when Jaeyi was this close, when her voice curled so gently into her space.

Then Jaeyi smiled, slow and disarming. “Can’t have my aegi feeling uncomfortable after all.”

Before Seulgi could reply, Jaeyi reached down and casually took her hand, fingers curling around Seulgi’s without hesitation, like they’d done it a hundred times.

Seulgi might’ve died a little inside.

She didn’t resist, couldn’t, just let herself be tugged along like a stunned baby deer.

This wasn’t normal. None of this was.

As they walked down the corridor, hand in hand, Seulgi thought dimly that this couldn’t be real. It had only been a few hours. She’d barely arrived. And already, Jaeyi had called her “aegi” more times than she could count, smirked at her like that, and was now literally buying her a bed.

Her heart couldn’t take it.

She followed quietly, blinking hard. Maybe she was dreaming. Maybe she hit her head on arrival. That would explain everything.

She was just a loser. A loser baby lesbian who definitely wasn’t built for this level of attention.

And somehow, she was pretty sure Jaeyi knew it too.

Chapter Text

Jaeyi didn’t let go of her hand.

They were already halfway down the third-floor stairwell, her grip warm and firm around Seulgi’s fingers. Seulgi tried, subtly, to pull away, once, then again but Jaeyi only held on tighter, as if to say don’t bother.

Seulgi bit her lip, eyes fixed on their joined hands as they descended. She wasn’t used to this much…contact. And certainly not from someone like Jaeyi.

By the time they reached the first floor, students were everywhere, lounging by the walls, chatting in the common areas, slipping out the main doors. A few glanced their way. A few more did double takes.

They’re looking at her, Seulgi tried to tell herself. Jaeyi’s the one they’re looking at. Not me.

But then her eyes caught a few girls whispering, one nudging the other while pointedly glancing at their hands.

Seulgi froze.

Still mid-step, she stopped walking altogether. Jaeyi came to a halt, their hands tugging between them. She turned back, brows rising.

Seulgi leaned in slightly, voice hushed but urgent. “Please let go of my hand.”

Jaeyi blinked. “Why?”

“People are staring,” Seulgi whispered.

“And?” Jaeyi’s expression didn’t change.

Seulgi hesitated. Her ears were pink. “Just…please, Jaeyi.”

For a second, they just looked at each other, Jaeyi’s gaze unreadable, Seulgi’s quietly pleading.

Finally, Jaeyi clicked her tongue and shrugged. “Fine.”

She let go.

Seulgi exhaled, heart still racing. She quickly tucked her hands into the front pocket of her hoodie as they stepped out into the afternoon sun.

Jaeyi didn’t say anything more about it.

But she smiled to herself as they walked side by side toward the school gates, as if she knew something Seulgi didn’t.

⸻

Outside the campus gates, a taxi slowed to a stop in front of them. Jaeyi reached for the door without hesitation, but a voice tugged her back.

“Wait,” Seulgi said.

Jaeyi paused, her hand hovering over the door handle. She glanced over her shoulder. “Mmm?”

Seulgi shifted on her feet, already nervous again. “C-Can we just take the subway instead?”

Jaeyi blinked. “Why?”

Seulgi swallowed, eyes fixed somewhere near Jaeyi’s elbow. “I… I want to pay for our fares. At least.”

It came out quiet, but sincere like she’d rehearsed it in her head a few times before deciding to speak.

For a second, Jaeyi just stared at her.

Then she leaned against the taxi door with a smirk, her voice low and amused. “You are adorable, you know that?”

Seulgi flushed on impact. “I’m…serious.”

Jaeyi raised both hands in surrender, laughing under her breath. “Okay. Lead the way then.”

Seulgi froze.

“I… I don’t actually know where it is,” she admitted, sheepishly. “I’m from Gangwon-do…”

Jaeyi looked at her like she was witnessing a kitten meow for the first time. She let out a low, incredulous laugh. “Oh my God.”

“I—what?”

“Nothing. Just…” Jaeyi exhaled through a smile, shaking her head. “You’re unreal, you know?”

Seulgi made a confused noise.

“Okay, come on, aegi,” Jaeyi said, reaching down and lacing their fingers together again. “Hold my hand so you don’t get lost.”

Seulgi blinked at their hands. “That’s not…! I’m not a kid.”

“Mmhm.” Jaeyi started walking anyway, dragging her along. “Then walk faster.”

⸻

They stood by the platform edge, just behind the yellow line. The low hum of the tracks echoed faintly through the tiled station, punctuated by distant announcements and the rhythmic beeping of ticket gates.

The air underground was a little warmer, tinged with the metallic scent of rail tracks and concrete. Seulgi held her ticket carefully between her fingers like it was a museum pass, glancing around every so often with wide, curious eyes.

Jaeyi watched her from the side, arms crossed, an amused quirk to her lips. “So,” she said, casually. “You’re from the province, huh?”

Seulgi blinked and turned, a little startled. “Yeah.”

Her gaze dropped for a second, then back up. “I’m from Sokcho, Gangwon-do. Small town. We only have one train that comes twice a day.”

Jaeyi smiled. “That explains a lot.”

Seulgi pouted slightly. “What does that mean?”

“You’ve got that whole…‘fresh off the mountain’ thing going on.”

“I-I do not!”

“You do.” Jaeyi chuckled, bumping her shoulder lightly against Seulgi’s.

Seulgi made a noise of protest but didn’t step away. “This is actually my first time in Seoul.”

That caught Jaeyi’s attention. “Really?”

Seulgi gave a shy nod. “I’ve seen photos and videos, of course, but…I don’t know. It’s different when you’re actually here. The buildings, the subway, the people…it’s a lot.”

“You’re handling it well,” Jaeyi said. “You haven’t burst into tears yet.”

“I almost did earlier,” Seulgi muttered.

That made Jaeyi chuckle.

“Why’d you decide to come here then?” She asked, “not that I’m complaining.”

“I just…” Seulgi went on, softer now, “I really wanted to get into Chaehwa. I studied all day and night for the entrance exams. Saved up, applied for every scholarship I could find. My school counselor thought I was crazy.”

Jaeyi glanced over at her. “Why our school?”

Seulgi shrugged. “It’s the best. And I—I wanted to prove I could be here. That I belonged, even if I’m not…you know, rich or anything.”

She studied Seulgi’s profile. There was nothing flashy about her. She didn’t talk big. But she was here.

And suddenly, Jaeyi didn’t feel like teasing.

“…Well,” she said, looking away before her expression softened too much. “You do belong.”

Seulgi turned to her, surprised.

“You made it, Seulgi.” Jaeyi added. “No one who works that hard doesn’t.”

Seulgi smiled. Small. Quiet. Shy.

Then the subway lights flashed in the tunnel ahead, growing brighter as the train neared.

⸻

The doors slid open with a familiar chime, and they stepped onto the train. It wasn’t packed, but most of the seats were already taken, except for one near the middle. Jaeyi nudged Seulgi toward it.

“Go on. Sit.”

Seulgi blinked. “Oh, no. You sit. I’m fine.”

Jaeyi raised a brow. “I would,” she said, voice amused, “but I don’t think you can reach the handles. I don’t want you falling and tumbling into some stranger’s lap.”

“I can reach,” Seulgi said, defensively, and looked up.

The handles swayed overhead. She could reach them…barely. If she stretched.

Jaeyi was watching her with an annoyingly knowing smile.

Seulgi huffed quietly and sat down.

“Thought so,” Jaeyi murmured, pleased.

For a couple of stops, they stayed like that, Jaeyi standing in front of her, one hand casually holding the pole, the other scrolling through her phone. Seulgi kept her eyes on the subway map above the door, trying not to glance too often at the girl looming over her.

Then, at the third stop, a rush of passengers stepped in. Among them was a woman carrying a toddler, swaying slightly with the motion of the train.

Seulgi stood immediately and gestured to the seat. “Here Ma’am.”

The woman smiled gratefully, settling the toddler on her lap.

But before Seulgi could even consider where to go next, Jaeyi grabbed her wrist and tugged her out of the way of the incoming crowd. They shuffled sideways until Seulgi’s back hit the door, and suddenly Jaeyi was in front of her, arms braced against the walls on either side of Seulgi’s shoulders, shielding her from being jostled by the crowd.

Seulgi’s brain stuttered. Her breath caught.

“Hold on to me instead, aegi,” Jaeyi murmured, her voice low, amused.

Seulgi stared up at her. “I-I’m fine—”

The train jolted forward.

Seulgi’s body pitched slightly and without thinking, her hand flew out and clutched Jaeyi’s sleeve. Jaeyi didn’t miss a beat, wrapping one arm loosely around Seulgi’s shoulders to steady her.

“That’s it,” Jaeyi whispered, close to her ear now. “Told you I’d keep you safe.”

Seulgi tried to focus on anything else. The station names. The ads on the wall. The exact number of stops left.

But at the fourth stop, even more people crammed in. A tight cluster of bodies pushed forward, and Jaeyi was pressed even closer, her hands landing on the door behind Seulgi to keep from crushing her. The space between them vanished. Their noses nearly touched.

Seulgi froze.

Her breath hitched, eyes wide as Jaeyi’s face hovered just inches from hers. Too close. Way too close.

Meanwhile, Jaeyi looked positively delighted.

Her eyes sparkled as she stared at Seulgi, clearly enjoying the proximity. “You okay down there?” she teased, voice barely above a whisper. “You’re not blushing, are you?”

Seulgi was absolutely blushing. Her entire face was on fire.

“I—No—I mean—stop looking at me like that—”

Jaeyi leaned in a fraction more, smirking. “Like what?”

“Like you’re…like you’re enjoying this.”

“I am.”

And there was nothing Seulgi could do except short-circuit quietly in place.

⸻

The train lurched again, forcing Jaeyi even closer, if that was even possible. Seulgi had never been this close to anyone, not like this, not with her back flat against a cold door and someone else’s breath warm against her cheek.

She could feel the heat radiating off Jaeyi’s body. Could see the way her dark hair framed her face, a few strands falling forward with the motion of the train. And Jaeyi didn’t move back. Not even a little. Her eyes were locked onto Seulgi’s face like she was studying something rare, something fragile.

“Still okay?” Jaeyi murmured again, softer this time.

Seulgi didn’t trust her voice, so she nodded.

Jaeyi smiled, then tilted her head, so casually it was maddening. “You’re kind of cute when you panic, you know.”

“I’m not panicking,” Seulgi lied, gripping the strap of her bag with white-knuckled hands.

Jaeyi’s smirk widened.

There was a soft chime. Another station. The doors on the opposite side opened this time, but more people entered from the far end, pressing the rest of the crowd tighter into their corner.

Jaeyi didn’t budge. Her arms remained braced on either side of Seulgi’s head, keeping her boxed in. Protective. Possessive. Teasing.

Seulgi’s head thudded lightly back against the door.

“You sure you’re not panicking?”

“Positive,” she managed.

“You’re holding your breath.”

“I’m not.”

“You haven’t blinked in like, a full minute.”

“I—!” Seulgi blinked. “You’re so annoying.”

“I know,” Jaeyi said sweetly. “But you’re the one who said you wanted to pay for our fare. This is the price.”

Seulgi’s brain could barely keep up. She didn’t know where to look, Jaeyi’s eyes, which were maddeningly amused? Her lips, so close now it was distracting? The stupid handle above Jaeyi’s head that she definitely could have reached if they weren’t currently pressed against each other?

“You’re messing with me,” she said, almost accusing.

“Of course,” Jaeyi admitted, unapologetic. “But not entirely.”

“What does that mean?”

The train jolted again, harder this time, and Seulgi lost her balance, not that there was much room to fall. Her hands found Jaeyi’s sides, instinctively clutching her hoodie to steady herself, and—

Oh no.

Bad move.

Jaeyi’s breath hitched audibly. For the first time since stepping onto the train, her teasing faltered, just slightly. Her eyes flickered down to where Seulgi’s hands were gripping her, then back up.

Seulgi let go immediately. “Sorry!”

“No, it’s…” Jaeyi’s voice trailed off, almost dazed for half a second before the smirk returned. “Wow. You are bold when you panic.”

“I wasn’t trying to…I just didn’t want to fall!”

“Mm. You sure you’re not trying to seduce me, aegi?”

Seulgi groaned and covered her face with both hands. “Oh my God.”

Jaeyi chuckled, low and delighted.

The train started to slow.

“Next stop,” she said. “We’re getting off.”

Seulgi peeked at her through her fingers. “Finally.”

Jaeyi leaned in, lips grazing the shell of Seulgi’s ear. “You’ll miss me the moment we step off.”

“No, I won’t,” Seulgi muttered, but her voice cracked halfway through.

Jaeyi laughed again.

And Seulgi, red-faced and heart-pounding, seriously began to reconsider all her life choices that led her to Room 304.

⸻

The moment the train doors opened, Seulgi shot out like she’d been launched. She didn’t run, exactly but her stride was suspiciously fast for someone who’d just claimed they weren’t panicking. Her sneakers squeaked on the tile as she navigated the station exit, muttering under her breath.

She ducked behind a nearby pillar, hands on her knees, breathing like she’d just escaped a near-death experience.

Which, in a way, she had.

“She was this close,” Seulgi whispered to herself, holding up her fingers with a sliver of air between them. “This close. Not even twenty-four hours and she’s already cornered me twice like it’s nothing.”

She pressed both palms to her cheeks, trying to will away the heat. It didn’t help.

“This isn’t fair. I’m just a loser baby lesbian. I came to Seoul to study. Study!” Her voice cracked, then dropped to a hiss. “Not…get flirted with like I’m someone who knows how to handle that!”

A shadow fell over her.

Seulgi glanced up.

Jaeyi stood there, hands in her hoodie pockets, hair fluttering a little in the breeze from the escalator. She looked impossibly calm, like she hadn’t just been seconds away from full-on subway cuddling with a girl she barely knew.

Her eyes found Seulgi’s. “Mall’s that way,” she said, nodding toward the stairs. “Come on, aegi.”

Then she turned and started walking like it was nothing.

Seulgi straightened, clutched her bag to her chest like a lifeline, and gave herself a silent pep talk.

“You’re fine. Totally fine. You’re just…being mildly harassed by the hottest girl you’ve ever seen. That’s normal, right?”

She exhaled, squared her shoulders, and took off after Jaeyi…at a respectable distance this time.

Aegi, she thought bitterly. Why did she call me that again?

She didn’t even know what would kill her first: the gay panicking…or the flirting.

Seulgi trailed behind Jaeyi like a shy duckling, always three steps back, always looking anywhere but directly at her.

Every so often, Jaeyi would glance over her shoulder and gesture for Seulgi to come walk beside her. And every time, Seulgi would halt like she’d been caught doing something scandalous.

“No, no, you go ahead,” Seulgi would mumble, waving her hands in protest. “You lead the way.”

Jaeyi would either sigh dramatically or smirk like she was in on some inside joke.

They passed boutiques, cafés, escalators that blinked with LED lights and Seulgi kept her distance, letting the sea of people act as a buffer between them.

Until they hit the crowd.

Apparently, some kind of mall event was happening, maybe a K-pop idol appearance or a fashion sale, Seulgi couldn’t tell. All she knew was that suddenly, the corridor was overflowing. People were pressing in from all sides, shoulder to shoulder, voices rising above the mall music.

She blinked, and Jaeyi was gone.

“Jaeyi?” she called out, head whipping left and right.

Nothing.

Just strangers brushing past, faces she didn’t know, bumping into her as they hurried toward whatever was happening.

Her heart began to thump a little too loudly in her chest.

“Jaeyi!” she tried again, voice swallowed by the noise.

A woman’s shopping bag hit her side. Someone else brushed against her back. She turned in a circle, starting to panic, holding her backpack close like a shield. Where did she go? What if they got separated for good? What if she couldn’t find her way back? What if—

And then—

Arms wrapped around her waist from behind.

Seulgi froze.

The hold was firm but familiar, not threatening. Her eyes widened, breath caught in her throat.

Then a voice, low and calm and maddeningly amused, murmured into her ear, 

“Relax. I’ve got you.”

Seulgi turned her head slightly. Jaeyi’s chin was nearly on her shoulder. She could feel the warmth of her breath, the soft pressure of her body against her back, and most of all, those arms, holding her like she belonged there.

“I—I thought I lost you,” Seulgi stammered, her voice small.

Jaeyi didn’t let go. “You did,” she said lightly. “But you’re easy to find.”

“W-what?”

Jaeyi leaned a little closer, lips brushing the shell of Seulgi’s ear as she whispered, “Because I was already looking for you.”

And just like that, Seulgi was back to malfunctioning.

Again. 

Jaeyi didn’t let go right away.

Even after the crowd thinned and Seulgi had clearly resumed normal breathing patterns, her arms stayed looped around Seulgi’s waist like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Eventually, Seulgi tilted her head and said, voice barely above a whisper, “You can let go now…”

Jaeyi leaned her chin lightly on Seulgi’s shoulder. “This is why I told you to stay close, you know.”

Jaeyi pulled back just enough to meet her gaze, smirking. “Unless you like getting lost in crowds, aegi?”

“I—I was close,” Seulgi mumbled.

“Not close enough, apparently.”

Seulgi opened her mouth, closed it again.

She couldn’t possibly say it out loud. That she stayed back because being near Jaeyi was short-circuiting her system. That her brain shorted out every time their hands brushed or Jaeyi leaned a little too close. That she was one flirty whisper away from dying on the mall floor like a Victorian ghost with heart problems.

Instead, she just nodded, eyes fixed on a completely neutral store sign in the distance. “Yeah. Okay.”

Jaeyi chuckled. “That’s what I thought.”

They walked the rest of the way in silence, Jaeyi now guiding them with a light hand resting on Seulgi’s backpack. Not holding her again, but just enough to let her know she was still there.

When they finally reached the furniture store, a friendly employee greeted them near the entrance, clipboard in hand. “Hi there! What can I help you two with today?”

Before Seulgi could open her mouth, Jaeyi answered, beaming, “My aegi needs a bed.”

Seulgi choked on air.

The employee glanced between them, taking in Seulgi’s flushed face and Jaeyi’s casual arm now draped across her shoulders. “Ah, got it,” she said with a knowing smile. “You probably want a queen-size if you’re sleeping together—”

“No!” Seulgi said quickly, eyes wide. “I-I mean….we’re not—we’re not like that, I’m sleeping alone! Just a single bed. A small one! A cheap one…please.”

The employee blinked, slightly startled by the outburst.

Then looked at Jaeyi.

Who just shrugged, utterly unbothered. “She’s shy,” she said, as if it explained everything.

Seulgi buried her face in her hands.

⸻

The employee led them deeper into the showroom, past sleek display sets and towering mattresses stacked like monuments to modern consumerism. Seulgi trailed slightly behind, trying her best to become invisible.

“Here’s our single-bed section,” the employee said, gesturing to a neat row of frames and mattresses. “You can try them out and see what feels best.”

Before Seulgi could even nod, Jaeyi had already plopped herself onto the edge of the first bed. She leaned back on her palms and looked at Seulgi expectantly. “Come on, try it. Sit.”

“I—I’m okay,” Seulgi said, hands waving nervously. “You can test it. I trust your—your butt. Judgment. I mean—judgment!”

Jaeyi snorted, delighted. “You trust my butt?”

Seulgi’s whole face turned red. “I didn’t mean— I just—Gah!”

“Relax, aegi,” Jaeyi said, patting the space beside her. “You’re the one who has to sleep on it, not me. Come sit.”

Seulgi reluctantly sat down, perching right at the edge like the mattress might bite. She bounced lightly once, then stilled, her hands clasped stiffly in her lap.

“Well?” Jaeyi tilted her head. “Comfy?”

Seulgi glanced at her, then back down at the mattress. “It’s…okay.” Her satoori accent slipped slightly. “Bit firm… but I think I can get used to it.”

Jaeyi’s eyes sparkled. “That was adorable. Say another sentence.”

Seulgi blinked. “Huh?”

“Your satoori,” Jaeyi said, leaning in, propping her chin on one hand. “It came out. Say something else. Please?”

“I—I don’t—I wasn’t—” Seulgi flailed, looking around as if she could crawl under a bed and disappear. “I dunno what you’re talkin’ about…”

Jaeyi gasped, positively beaming. “ There it is again! Oh my god, you are country.”

“Yah!” Seulgi squeaked. “I’m not—!”

“Say ‘This bed is nice, but my grandma’s ondol floor is better,’ ” Jaeyi grinned.

“I will not! ”

“Come on,” Jaeyi teased, poking Seulgi’s cheek. “You owe me for saving your life back there in the crowd.”

“I was not dying!” Seulgi said, flustered. “I was just… briefly distressed.”

“Uh-huh.” Jaeyi plopped down dramatically on the next bed over, arms behind her head. “We’ll get this one. You like this one, right?”

Seulgi sighed, defeated. “Yes. It’s fine. It’s cheap, right?”

Jaeyi waved toward the employee. “We’ll take this one. Please add it to the delivery list for Room 304 of Chaehwa Dorm.”

The employee scribbled it down, smiling brightly. “You’re a cute couple, by the way.”

“We’re not—!” Seulgi started again, but Jaeyi was already thanking the woman and guiding Seulgi away by the elbow.

As they walked off, Seulgi grumbled under her breath, “I’m never speakin’ again.”

Jaeyi leaned in close, voice low and smug. “Good thing I like the sound of your silence, too.”

Seulgi groaned into her hands.

Just then, Jaeyi turned to her, hands tucked into her pockets.

“Do you want to look at tables and a cabinet too? You’ll need somewhere to put your books and clothes.”

Seulgi hesitated. “Maybe next time. I… I want to pay you back for the bed first.”

Jaeyi frowned. “Silly,” she muttered, stepping in close. Before Seulgi could react, Jaeyi gently squished her cheeks between both palms, smushing her face like a soft bun. “You don’t need to pay me back.”

Seulgi blinked at her, wide-eyed, face squished and stunned.

“I want you to be comfortable,” Jaeyi said. “You can’t sleep on a mattress and then study on the floor like some sad scholar from a historical drama. Come on.”

“I can—mmmf—study anywhere,” Seulgi tried to say, but it came out muffled with her cheeks still in Jaeyi’s hands.

Jaeyi grinned. “Cute. But no. We’re getting you a table.”

She let go of Seulgi’s face and started walking toward the next section without waiting for a reply. Seulgi stood there for a second, cheeks still warm, lips slightly puckered from being held like dough.

“…She’s so generous, it’s scaring me.” she mumbled under her breath, then sighed and followed her.

They entered the study area section of the store, filled with neatly arranged desks in all shapes and sizes. Jaeyi was already browsing, glancing at a minimalist white one with a drawer.

“This one’s cute,” she said. “Simple, sturdy. You like white, right?”

Seulgi nodded slowly. “Yeah. That looks… nice.”

“You’ll need a chair too.”

“Wait—”

“And a little drawer maybe, for your stationery.”

“Jaeyi—”

Jaeyi turned to her with a smile, eyes bright. “Don’t worry. It’s all on me.”

Seulgi groaned quietly. “Please let me pay you back later.”

Jaeyi considered it for half a second. “Fine. If you insist, pay me back with coffee dates.”

Seulgi blinked. “What?”

Jaeyi leaned in, smug. “I’ll accept one cup of coffee per ₩10,000.”

Seulgi was speechless.

Jaeyi raised her brows. “It’s a very fair system.”

“…That’s a lot of coffee.”

“Good thing I like you.”

Seulgi turned away, ears red again. “God help me.”

They moved toward the cabinet section, and Seulgi did her best to stay focused, eyes on the price tags, not on the warm hand occasionally brushing against hers. She was inspecting a modest two-door unit when Jaeyi stepped past her to look at one of the taller ones nearby.

“This one’s nice,” Jaeyi murmured.

She opened it, checked the hinges, then suddenly turned back and before Seulgi could react, Jaeyi had taken her wrist and gently tugged her back a step.

Seulgi stumbled slightly and suddenly her back hit something solid.

The cabinet.

Jaeyi stood in front of her, just inches away.

Again.

Her hands on either side of Seulgi’s head, pressed against the cabinet as she leaned in to inspect the height. The third time this day that they’d ended up like this, too close, too warm, too much.

Seulgi’s breath hitched.

“W–what are you doing?” she whispered, wide-eyed.

Jaeyi, unfazed, tilted her head and calmly said, “Just checking.”

She leaned in a little closer.

Seulgi forgot how to breathe.

Then, just as suddenly, Jaeyi pulled back and stepped away, hands slipping into her pockets again like nothing had happened.

“Yep,” she said. “Perfect height for you. We’ll take it.”

Seulgi stood frozen against the cabinet, mind blank, heart in her throat.

Jaeyi didn’t even look back as she added casually, “That’s three times, you know.”

Seulgi blinked. “Huh?”

“That you’ve let me get that close,” Jaeyi said with a soft smirk. “I’m keeping score.”

Seulgi wasn’t sure if her knees were weak from the furniture shopping or from Jaeyi’s voice in her ear.

She needed to sit down.

—

Seulgi caught up with Jaeyi by the checkout counter, cheeks still hot from the cabinet ambush. She clenched her fists and finally blurted out, “Yah, what are you even doing?”

Jaeyi raised an eyebrow, amused. “What?”

“You keep—” Seulgi waved her hands vaguely, still too flustered to even describe it properly. “You keep getting close. Like. Really close.”

Jaeyi tilted her head. “Do I?”

“Yes!” Seulgi squeaked. Then, flustered again, she straightened and added, “I mean—yeah! You do. I’ve known you less than 24 hours and that’s already three times you’ve—” She stopped herself before saying trapped me like a prey animal.

Jaeyi didn’t say anything, just watched her with an unreadable expression, arms loosely crossed.

Seulgi scowled, embarrassed. “Is this… like… some rich city girl thing? Is this how you make friends in Seoul? You just…touch people a lot and get in their space and make them short-circuit?”

Jaeyi tilted her head, openly entertained.

Seulgi’s frown deepened. “I’m just trying to understand! You keep teasing and calling me aegi and getting all…close and stuff and I’m just…confused!”

Jaeyi leaned in slightly, voice smooth. “Confused but still letting me do it.”

Seulgi immediately flushed and took a step back. “I-I just want to make sure that it’s, like, a city thing.”

Jaeyi’s lips curved into a slow, infuriatingly pretty smile. “Yeah,” she said smoothly. “Something like that. City thing.”

“Okay. Cool. Coolcoolcoolcool,” Seulgi mumbled, internally combusting. “I should get used to it then…if I want friends.”

Jaeyi chuckled under her breath. “Maybe,” Jaeyi said, then gave her the smile, a little tilted, a little too knowing. “Sure. Let’s say this is how rich city girls make friends.”

Seulgi squinted at her. “You’re making fun of me.”

Jaeyi turned to the counter and told the clerk they’d be needing delivery for Room 304 of Chaehwa Residence. Over her shoulder, she called out, “Maybe. But you’re fun to make fun of.”

Seulgi stared at the back of her head and muttered, “I don’t think Seoul is safe for me.”

Chapter Text

They stepped out of the mall just as the sky was beginning to soften into early evening light, the receipts for Seulgi’s bed, table, and cabinet folded neatly in Jaeyi’s hoodie pocket.

“I want dinner,” Jaeyi announced.

Seulgi glanced at the time on her phone. “It’s only five.”

“Exactly. Early dinner.”

“But we have curfew,” Seulgi said, brows furrowed. “Aren’t we supposed to be back before seven?”

Jaeyi just smiled and shrugged. “You’re with me. It’s fine.”

Seulgi blinked at her. “That’s not how rules work.”

Jaeyi turned to her, eyes suddenly wide and imploring, lips forming a perfect pout. “But I’m hungry.”

“No…don’t do that—” Seulgi stammered, backing away a step like she was under attack. “You can’t—”

“Can’t what?” Jaeyi said, eyes wide, voice small. “Convince my roommate to feed me?”

Seulgi groaned, weak to the performance. “Fine,” she mumbled. “But let’s be quick. I don’t want to get in trouble.”

Jaeyi grinned, triumphant, and they made their way into a burger joint nearby, bright neon, padded booths, a bit loud but not terrible.

Except just as they were about to walk in, the door swung open and a group of Chaehwa students exited, three girls, all in casual weekend clothes but with the unmistakable gloss of money and polish.

“Jaeyi?” one of them lit up immediately.

“Hey, Ara,” Jaeyi greeted.

Seulgi paused, instinctively half-hiding behind her like she wasn’t sure she was allowed in the scene.

Ara stepped forward with a smile, looking between Jaeyi and Seulgi. “I didn’t know you went out. Who’s this?”

“My roommate,” Jaeyi replied smoothly.

Ara blinked. “You have a roommate?”

“Apparently,” Jaeyi said with a small shrug, reaching out and tugging Seulgi closer by the strap of her backpack. “Just happened.”

Ara’s gaze dropped to where their arms almost brushed. “Huh. That’s...new.”

Seulgi, for her part, bowed slightly. “Hi,” she muttered, voice low and awkward. “I’m Woo Seulgi.”

Ara gave a polite smile, but the air had shifted slightly. “Nice to meet you. Well…we won’t keep you. Enjoy dinner.”

Jaeyi offered a smile. “Of course, you should get going. Don’t want to get caught outside after curfew, yeah?”

Ara nodded slowly, though her eyes lingered too long on Seulgi. The other girls gave polite goodbyes, none too warm.

As Jaeyi and Seulgi stepped inside the restaurant, Seulgi cast one last glance back, and saw Ara still watching them, expression unreadable.

Then Jaeyi pulled out a chair for her.

And Seulgi felt it: a cold shift in the air behind her, the weight of every stare.

She suddenly felt that maybe it was a mistake to be seen with Jaeyi outside campus.

The stares from those other girls hadn’t exactly been warm. More like knives wrapped in lip gloss and long lashes. She wasn’t used to being looked at like that. Like she didn’t belong. Like she’d stepped into a place that wasn’t built for her.

But she forgot all about it when Jaeyi leaned in across the table and asked, “What do you want to get?”

Seulgi blinked, startled out of her thoughts. “Oh. Uh...I’ll just get the same thing as you.”

Jaeyi tilted her head. “Wait. Have you had a burger before?”

Seulgi’s mouth dropped open. “ Of course I’ve had a burger before! I may be a country bumpkin, but we have burgers too, you know.”

Jaeyi smirked. She liked that little frown Seulgi made when she got flustered, lips puckered, eyebrows scrunched, ears starting to pink. “Okay, okay, sorry aegiya ,” she said, laughing, hands raised in surrender. “I’m just asking.”

Seulgi muttered something under her breath and dropped her gaze to the laminated menu. She started flipping through it with all the intensity of someone trying not to combust from embarrassment.

Jaeyi rested her chin in her palm and watched her.

“Anything else you want aside from a burger?”

Seulgi nodded slowly, biting her lip as she scanned the photos. That one small gesture made Jaeyi’s eyes linger, longer than she probably should’ve.

That lip bite should’ve come with a warning.

Then Seulgi looked up and pointed. “Can I get this too?” She was pointing at a pile of fries loaded with cheese, grilled onions, and some kind of sauce. “Animal Fries?”

“Anything, aegi ,” Jaeyi said softly, her eyes still on Seulgi’s lips. Then they flicked up to meet her eyes, and she smiled. “I’ll order it now, then?”

Seulgi nodded. “Thanks. Uh…do you want to split the bill?”

Jaeyi was already standing. She turned like she hadn’t heard a word Seulgi said, walking toward the counter with practiced ease, her wallet already in hand.

Seulgi stared after her, flustered. “...Guess not.”

—

While they waited for the food, Jaeyi stretched her legs under the table, looking far too at ease for someone who’s definitely gonna miss curfew.

Seulgi sat across from her, upright and unsure, fingers fidgeting with the straw wrapper until it was torn to shreds.

Jaeyi glanced at the mess of paper and then back up at her, amused. “So, what kind of roommate are you?”

Seulgi blinked. “What do you mean?”

“Like, are you a night owl? Do you snore? Will I wake up to find you alphabetizing your sock drawer at 2 A.M.?”

“I—no? I mean, I sleep early. Usually. And I’m pretty organized. I don’t like mess.”

“Usually?” Jaeyi echoed, lips twitching.

“Well... if I’m studying, I stay up late sometimes. But I use a clip-on light so I won’t wake you,” Seulgi added quickly, like she’d already prepared a roommate resume.

Jaeyi watched her, amused. “So you’re the considerate type.”

Seulgi shrugged. “I guess. I just don’t want to be a bother.”

“You won’t be,” Jaeyi said, surprisingly soft.

That made Seulgi pause. She looked at her, cautious. “Why are you asking now? You already let me move in.”

“Well,” Jaeyi shrugged, “I figured if you were a complete nightmare, I’d just sedate you and keep you in the closet.”

Seulgi stared, alarmed.

Jaeyi snorted. “ Joking. Mostly.”

“...Right.”

There was a pause before Seulgi cleared her throat and dared to ask, “So what kind of roommate are you?”

Jaeyi arched a brow. “I wouldn’t know. You’re the first.”

That got Seulgi’s attention. “Really? But… why? I mean…don’t all students get assigned roommates?”

“They try,” Jaeyi said, leaning back, one arm draped lazily across the seat. “But my family has…arrangements. I’ve always had my own room.”

“So...” Seulgi fidgeted with the edge of her napkin. “Why’d you say yes to me?”

There was a flicker in Jaeyi’s eyes. She rested her cheek on her hand, like she was trying to decide how much to say. Then she said simply, “Maybe I was curious.”

“Curious?”

“You’re...different.” Her gaze drifted slowly over Seulgi’s expression. “You’re not like the people I usually have to deal with. You’re not trying to impress me.”

Seulgi’s ears went pink again. “Why would I try to impress you?”

Jaeyi grinned. “Exactly.”

Their number got called from the counter.

Jaeyi stood up leisurely. “Stay here, I’ll get it.”

Seulgi opened her mouth to protest, but Jaeyi was already walking away, her long hair swaying behind her like some sort of shampoo commercial. Seulgi slumped back in her seat with a sigh, muttering to herself, “This is so weird.”

But her lips were tilted up.

—

By the time Jaeyi returned with the tray, the sun had already dipped below the skyline, casting the burger place in soft golden tones. The smell of grilled meat and warm fries settled between them as Jaeyi set the tray down and slid Seulgi’s food toward her.

Two burgers, one regular, one double patty with extra cheese; a large basket of animal fries loaded with sauce and grilled onions; and two drinks. Seulgi stared at the spread like it was a mirage.

Jaeyi sat down and unfolded her napkin like she was at a five-star restaurant.

She picked up her burger with careful fingers, angling her pinky slightly, taking dainty, precise bites like she was being observed by royal judges.

Seulgi tried to mimic her. She really did.

But the second she took a bite, the flavors hit all at once, juicy, messy, cheesy, a little sweet from the grilled onions. Her eyes widened like she’d just tasted heaven.

“Oh my God,” Seulgi mumbled, around a mouthful. “I’ve had burgers before, I swear, but this…this is insane.”

Jaeyi blinked at her in amusement. “Yeah?”

Seulgi was already going in for another bite, mouth full and burger dripping slightly. “So good,” she muttered, cheeks puffed, looking borderline emotional.

Jaeyi just smiled and watched. “Slow down, aegi. You’ll choke.”

But Seulgi wasn’t listening, she was moving on to the fries now. She picked up one smothered in sauce and cheese and took a bite, eyes closing in bliss.

“This,” she said solemnly. “This is dangerous.”

Then, in a burst of enthusiasm, she turned toward Jaeyi with the basket.

“Try this,” she said, holding out a fry. “You have to try this.”

Jaeyi leaned back lazily, lips curled. “You’re offering to share?”

Seulgi nodded, too caught up in her excitement to register the setup.

Jaeyi tilted her head, lips parting. “Then feed me.”

Seulgi hesitated, blinked once, but Jaeyi just stayed like that, expectant.

So Seulgi, dumb and innocent, leaned in and carefully brought the fry to her mouth.

Jaeyi took the bite, slow and easy, lips brushing Seulgi’s fingers just slightly.

“Mm,” Jaeyi said, chewing. “Not bad.”

Seulgi, short-circuiting, turned her focus to her burger, trying to pretend her whole face wasn’t hot.

“You’ve got something,” Jaeyi said after a second.

Seulgi looked up.

Jaeyi pointed, amused. “Sauce. Right there.” She motioned to the corner of Seulgi’s lips.

Seulgi wiped at it. Missed.

“Still there.”

Another try. Still missed.

“Let me, aegi,” Jaeyi said, voice soft.

Before Seulgi could process anything, Jaeyi lifted her hand, gently swiped her finger across the corner of Seulgi’s lips, and then with full eye contact , slipped her finger into her mouth and licked it clean.

Jaeyi leaned back like nothing happened. “Better,” she said casually.

Seulgi short-circuited on the spot.

“Wh–why didn’t you just use a napkin?” she squeaked, nearly knocking over her soda.

Jaeyi shrugged, sipping her drink like nothing happened. “Rich city girl thing, I guess.”

Seulgi stared at her. At her calm. Her confidence. Her finger. Her smug smile .

She took another massive bite of her burger just to shut her brain up.

—

The street outside the burger place was already buzzing with rush hour noise, honking cars, chatter, delivery riders pulling in. Seulgi glanced at her phone: 6:12 p.m.

Her brows pulled tight. “Do you think… we’ll make it back before seven?”

Jaeyi, sipping her drink as they walked, glanced sideways at her. “Probably not.”

Seulgi nearly tripped. “ What? ”

Jaeyi looked at her again, this time with a teasing little smile. “Relax. Curfew doesn’t kick in until the first day of classes. That’s tomorrow.”

Seulgi slowed her steps. “Are you sure?”

“Super sure,” Jaeyi said smoothly.

Seulgi wanted to believe her, but something prickled at the back of her mind. “Didn’t you tell Ara and the others earlier to hurry back before curfew?”

“Hm?” Jaeyi didn’t look at her. “Did I?”

“Yes,” Seulgi said, eyeing her warily. “You said something like ‘go back fast, before curfew’ or whatever.”

“Huh. Maybe you misheard,” Jaeyi replied, casually adjusting the strap of her bag.

Seulgi stared harder. “I don’t think I did.”

Jaeyi kept walking, lips twitching but eyes focused straight ahead.

Seulgi stepped in front of her, narrowing her eyes. “You ’re lying .”

Finally, Jaeyi laughed.

“Okay, fine,” she admitted, holding up one hand. “Technically, yes. There’s curfew.”

Seulgi’s panic returned in full force. “Yoo Jaeyi! ”

“But,” Jaeyi stepped closer. “You’re with me. ”

Seulgi blinked.

“We’ll just say you accompanied me to take care of something important,” Jaeyi added breezily. “They’ll understand.”

“But what if they don’t?” Seulgi frowned, still tense. “I don’t want to get marked or start off with a bad record or—”

Jaeyi sighed dramatically. Then, without warning, she reached out and cupped Seulgi’s cheeks in one hand, squishing them together.

Seulgi made a muffled “mmpf!”

“Don’t worry, aegi,” Jaeyi said, tilting her head, her grin widening. “Just come on.”

Seulgi looked up at her, cheeks still gently smushed between Jaeyi’s fingers, heart thumping a little too fast in her chest. She tried to glare but only managed a confused pout.

Jaeyi let her go with a soft pat-pat on the cheek. “Cute,” she muttered.

Seulgi stared at the subway doors like they might offer a way to teleport home instantly.

They made it onto the train just in time, slipping through the doors before they hissed shut behind them.

The car was crowded, humming with the low buzz of conversations, the occasional announcement crackling through the speakers overhead. Seulgi’s eyes darted around nervously then landed on a miracle.

Two seats. Together. Empty.

Before she could fully process it, Jaeyi had already nudged her toward them, and they sat side by side, legs brushing. Seulgi nearly sagged in relief. After all that subway-standing tension earlier, she wasn’t sure she’d survive another round of Jaeyi standing too close, leaning in, brushing against her whenever the train shifted.

Sitting was better.

Marginally.

That is, until Jaeyi draped her arm across the back of the seat behind Seulgi. Not touching her exactly, but close enough that Seulgi could feel the presence of it, the subtle heat of her.

Jaeyi sat like she owned the whole train. One leg crossed, back relaxed against the seat, head tilted slightly as she scrolled idly through her phone. She looked entirely at ease, like she belonged in designer jackets on cramped public transport.

Meanwhile, Seulgi sat a little too straight. Her bag clutched in her lap. Shoulders tight. She could feel Jaeyi’s arm, how was it not touching her but still touching her?

Jaeyi turned to her. “You okay?”

“Y-Yeah,” Seulgi mumbled. “Fine.”

“Okay,” Jaeyi said, and smiled. “Good.”

Seulgi made a quiet, wounded sound and pretended to read the subway map.

The ride wasn’t long. Just long enough for Seulgi’s brain to fry itself in the warmth between them, the steady rhythm of the train, the subtle brush of Jaeyi’s hair against her shoulder once when the train swayed.

When they stepped off, the sky outside had darkened to a dusky blue, the edges tinged gold from the last traces of sunset. The gates of Chaehwa loomed just ahead, lit by elegant lamps casting soft pools of light on the path.

6:56 PM.

They made it.

Seulgi checked her phone again, just to be sure.

“We’re not late,” she said, relieved. “Thank God.”

Jaeyi gave her a sideways glance, amused. “Told you I’d get you back in time.”

“You told me there wasn’t a curfew,” Seulgi muttered.

Jaeyi shrugged, unbothered. “Details.”

They passed through the gates side by side, Seulgi still clutching her bag like it might ground her, Jaeyi walking with casual grace, hands in her jean pockets.

“See?” Jaeyi said as they neared the dorm building. “Barely even counts as late. You survived.”

Seulgi exhaled slowly. “Barely.”

Jaeyi leaned in, voice low and teasing. “Next time, maybe you should trust me.”

Seulgi didn’t answer, but the tips of her ears turned red.

—

They were nearly at their dorm building when a woman called out, “You—”

Seulgi stopped dead in her tracks, turning toward the voice like a kid caught red-handed. Her stomach flipped. The woman striding toward them wore the official navy blazer of Chaehwa staff, ID badge swinging, clipboard in hand, expression stern behind rimless glasses.

Seulgi opened her mouth to explain, to apologize, to panic.

But the woman’s eyes flicked past her.

Paused.

And landed on Jaeyi.

Her entire posture changed. Not softened, exactly, but adjusted . The stern edge pulled back. Her mouth closed again.

“Ah,” the woman said. “Never mind.”

She gave them a short nod, one that, somehow, managed to acknowledge only Jaeyi and kept walking.

Seulgi blinked. “Wait, wha—?”

She turned to Jaeyi, confused. The older girl met her look with a raised brow, almost smug.

I told you so.

Seulgi narrowed her eyes.

“Is everyone just afraid of you or something?”

Jaeyi didn’t answer. She just started up the stairs.

They reached the third floor in relative quiet, save for the low squeak of Seulgi’s shoes and the distant hum of hallway lights. Just as they rounded the corner, Seulgi slowed.

Boxes.

Her boxes.

Right outside their dorm room door.

Her bed frame, cabinet, and table, all flat-packed and taped up with stickers that read “ROOM 304 – YOO JAEYI.”

Seulgi blinked. “Oh. It’s here already?”

Jaeyi stepped past her and unlocked their room with a nonchalant flick of her wrist. “Express delivery, of course.”

Seulgi crouched beside the boxes, inspecting the shipping labels. “I guess I’ll be up all night building these,” she muttered, starting to push them inside.

“I’ll help you, aegi ,” Jaeyi said sweetly, already grabbing one of the lighter boxes and sliding it across the floor.

Seulgi paused. Eyed her, skeptically. “Do you even know how?”

Jaeyi met her gaze and smiled, the kind of smile that could mean anything. “I can learn.”

Seulgi stared a second longer.

“…You’re going to make me do all the work.”

Jaeyi smirked. “But I’ll cheer you on.”

—

Once all the boxes were inside, Jaeyi dusted her hands off and said, “Let’s wash up first before we start.”

Seulgi nodded, already tugging at the tape on the biggest box. “You go ahead.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah. I’ll get started with the bed.”

Jaeyi shrugged and disappeared into the bathroom, a towel slung over her shoulder.

While she was gone, Seulgi moved the cabinet and table boxes out of the way, creating a clear space in the middle of the room. She sliced open the bed frame box, pulling out panels, screws, and instruction booklets. She was just finishing up sorting the parts, asian squatting in the middle of the floor with a board balanced across her knees, when the bathroom door creaked open.

Seulgi glanced up.

And promptly forgot how to breathe.

Jaeyi stepped out, her hair wet and curling slightly at the ends. She wore a loose white tank top and black boxer shorts, her skin still damp and dewy from the shower. She was toweling off her hair lazily, completely unconcerned by the way the fabric of her top clung lightly to her side. Her gaze flicked to Seulgi and paused when she saw the look on her face.

Seulgi made a strangled sound in the back of her throat.

And immediately lost her balance.

She toppled onto her butt with a thump, the panel on her knees sliding to the side. “Oof—!”

Jaeyi smirked. Just a little. But, to her credit, she didn’t tease. Didn’t say a word.

She just crossed to her side of the room like nothing happened, humming under her breath as she opened a drawer.

Seulgi, red-faced, scrambled up, grabbing her towel and toiletries like her life depended on it.

“I—I’m gonna—shower,” she said, her voice cracking mid-sentence.

Jaeyi nodded without looking. “Okay, aegi. ”

Seulgi bolted for the bathroom like her butt was on fire.

—

From behind the bathroom door, Seulgi heard Jaeyi call out, “I’ll try and start assembling, okay?”

“O-okay!” she answered, already stepping into the shower.

A beat later—“Ack!”

She nearly slipped trying to lurch back from the scalding water, one foot sliding on the slick tile as she fumbled for the knobs. Steam billowed around her as she crouched like a startled cat, yanking the handle toward cold.

“You okay in there?” Jaeyi called.

“I—I’m fine!” Seulgi squeaked, her voice bouncing embarrassingly off the bathroom walls.

The water was cooler now, but her cheeks and forehead were already flushed and stinging. She sighed, tilting her head back against the tile.

Get it together, Seulgi. Jebal.

Twenty minutes later, she padded out of the bathroom wrapped in the scent of soap and failure. Her hair was damp and uncombed, curling slightly at the ends. She wore an old, oversized shirt that reached past her hips and a pair of frayed cotton shorts. She rubbed a towel along the ends of her hair, trying not to meet Jaeyi’s eyes.

Jaeyi looked up from where she was crouched by the bed frame, screwdriver in hand and her expression softened instantly.

“Awww,” she cooed, “you look like a sleepy little puppy.”

Seulgi flushed deeper, tugging the hem of her shirt down.

But then Jaeyi’s gaze sharpened, frown tugging at her lips as she stood. “Wait…your face is red. What happened?”

Seulgi froze. “Ah—it’s, um—”

Jaeyi was already in front of her, eyes scanning her face with concern. “Your forehead, your nose—”

“It was just—just the water,” Seulgi mumbled, rubbing the back of her neck. “It was too hot. I didn’t notice.”

Jaeyi frowned and stepped closer, cupping Seulgi’s cheek with a cool hand. Seulgi let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. Jaeyi’s hands were cold. Blessedly cold.

Without a word, Jaeyi tucked damp hair away from Seulgi’s face, fingers skimming lightly across her temple, down to the nape of her neck. Then her hands returned to Seulgi’s cheeks, cradling her again.

“Be careful next time,” Jaeyi murmured, frowning slightly. “That must’ve hurt.”

“It’s not that bad,” Seulgi said, trying her best not to glance at Jaeyi’s collarbone. Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Jaeyi tilted her head, smiled faintly.

Then leaned in and kissed the tip of Seulgi’s red nose.

“I’ll check the water temperature next time before you go in,” she murmured.

That did it. Seulgi completely malfunctioned.

She stopped breathing, then started coughing, loud and awkward, pulling away fast. She reeled back, bent over, trying not to choke on absolutely nothing.

Jaeyi blinked. “What now? Are you okay? Can you breathe?”

Seulgi held up a hand, still coughing. “I just— cough —I think I swallowed wrong? Or something?”

Jaeyi exhaled in relief, chuckling as she rubbed Seulgi’s back. “You really are an aegi. ”

“Am not,” Seulgi rasped, still red-faced and wheezing.

“Are too.”

—

By 9PM, the bed was finally done.

The frame stood steady, the mattress set, the sheets tucked in, and the pillows fluffed. It had taken them nearly two hours to finish, even though it shouldn’t have.

Seulgi started off strong, focused, competent, sleeves rolled up and hair tied high as she read through the instructions and sorted the bolts and tools with calm precision. For a while, Jaeyi just watched her, clearly entertained.

Then came the distractions.

“Oops,” Jaeyi said with a grin after “accidentally” brushing her fingers against Seulgi’s wrist while handing her a washer.

“Hey, do you need a backrest?” she asked as she plopped down behind Seulgi and leaned her chin on her shoulder.

“I feel like this angle makes your jawline look really sharp.”

“Can I take a picture of you like this? You look serious and cute, like a carpenter’s apprentice who doesn’t know she’s on camera.”

Seulgi tried to ignore her. She really did. But by the fifth comment and the second time Jaeyi "accidentally" poked her side when she reached over her, Seulgi had to sit back and sigh, muttering, “Do you want to build this bed or kill me?”

Jaeyi grinned, utterly unrepentant.

Still, when Seulgi yawned for the third time, head tipping forward briefly before snapping up, Jaeyi eased off. She stopped teasing and got on the floor beside her, quietly helping to hold parts in place, passing screws, reading off steps. They fell into rhythm.

Now, with the last pillow in place, Seulgi flopped onto the bed face-first with a deep, satisfied sigh.

A moment later, the mattress dipped beside her, and she felt fingers combing gently through her damp hair.

She opened one eye.

Jaeyi was sitting cross-legged at her side, smiling down at her with something warm and soft behind her eyes.

“What?” Seulgi asked, voice muffled in the pillow.

Jaeyi tilted her head. “You know, I always wanted a pet when I was a kid.”

Seulgi turned her face slightly, still buried in fluff. “Oh…”

“My parents never let me have one,” Jaeyi continued, gaze still fixed on her. “Said it would be hard to take care of.”

Seulgi blinked, unsure where this was going. “…Okay?”

There was a pause. Then Jaeyi added, “But you’d make a great one.”

Seulgi’s eyes shot open fully. “Huh?”

Jaeyi smirked. “You’re all soft and pliant. You squeak when you get startled. You even curl up when you sleep…like a puppy.”

Seulgi sat up instantly, cheeks puffed in disbelief. “What? Earlier I’m an aegi , now I’m a pet ?”

Jaeyi laughed, delighted. “You don’t want to be my pet?”

Seulgi stammered. “N-No! Of course not!”

“Then what do you want to be?”

Seulgi hesitated. “A… friend?”

“Mmhmm,” Jaeyi hummed, amused. “You sure?”

She nodded, more quietly this time. “Y-Yeah. Back home…I didn’t have a lot of friends. So…it’d be nice to have one.”

There was a pause. Then Jaeyi smirked.

“I don’t want to be your friend, though.”

Seulgi’s face fell. “Oh. Well… roommates, then, I guess.”

Jaeyi’s grin widened. She muttered something under her breath. “You really are clueless.”

“Huh?”

“I said,” Jaeyi stood and stretched, voice lilting, “I want to be your best friend.”

Seulgi sat up straighter. “Really?”

“Yeah, why not?” Jaeyi was already walking toward her own bed. “Never had a country bumpkin for a best friend before.”

“…That’s rude,” Seulgi muttered, but she was smiling as she said it.

Jaeyi flopped down onto her bed. “Goodnight, aegi.”

Seulgi grinned as she settled back onto her mattress. “Goodnight…and thanks. For all the help today.”

Jaeyi didn’t respond right away, but she was smiling at the ceiling.

Chapter Text

It had been five days.

Five days since they began sharing a room at Chaehwa Academy, with its gleaming marble hallways, meticulously manicured gardens, and uniforms that cost more than the monthly tuition at her previous school.

Five days of Yoo Jaeyi.

Seulgi had never lived with someone like Jaeyi before. Not just because she’s rich…not just rich, rich-rich, the kind that makes others invisible, but because she’s…like the sun with a gravitational pull. She walks into a room and everything orbits around her without her even trying.

She flirts like it’s breathing. Teases like it’s instinct.

And Seulgi? She’s become her favorite target.

⸻

Every morning starts the same now. Seulgi wakes up to the sound of the window blinds being drawn open, too fast. Light slashes through the room and straight into my eyes.

“Rise and shine, aegi,” Jaeyi says sweetly. “We have classes.”

Seulgi groan and buries her face into her pillow.

Jaeyi always laughs. Always. Then she tugs the blanket off Seulgi and she’s forced to wrestle it back. Once, Jaeyi sat on Seulgi. She was too groggy to react fast enough, and Jaeyi’s laughter echoed in her bones for the rest of the day.

They take turns in the bathroom, though Jaeyi always insists Seulgi go first.

“It takes me longer to look this flawless,” she tells her, still in bed, scrolling through her phone like she’s not already perfect without trying.

(Which is stupid. And annoying. And a little true.)

Seulgi haf learned to avoid eye contact with Jaeyi in boxer shorts and a tank top. It’s dangerous.

⸻

Classes at Chaehwa are harder than expected. Not academically, Seulgi can handle that. It’s the people. The way they look at her shoes. The way they assume she’s a charity case.

But it’s different when Jaeyi walks beside her.

They nod at her. Step aside. And when Seulgi trails behind, Jaeyi loops her arm through hers and pulls her close like it’s the most natural thing in the world.

“This is my roommate,” she says breezily when people ask. “She’s mine.”

Mine.

Like Seulgi’s a pet again. Like she’s furniture. Like she belongs.

Seulgi doesn’t correct her. She just blushes.

⸻

Nights are worse. Or better. Seulgi doesn’t know anymore.

They study. Sort of. Seulgi tries to study while Jaeyi watches her from her bed like Seulgi’s a late-night drama. Sometimes she throws grapes at Seulgi just to see if she’ll catch them with her mouth. (She won’t.)

Sometimes Jaeyi talks, just to talk. About her vacations, her favorite shampoo, how she hates cucumbers, how she thinks Seulgi’s satoori comes out when she’s tired.

Once, Seulgi caught Jaeyi brushing her hair while she was half-asleep. She pretended not to notice.

When she asked Jaeyi why she was doing it, she just said, “Your hair’s soft. It calms me down.”

Then she smiled and added, “So do you.”

⸻

Seulgi thinks this is really how rich city girls make friends.

Jaeyi still calls her aegi. Still teases her. Still touches her, an arm around her shoulder, a brush of her hand on her lower back, a finger to her cheek to wipe off a stray crumb.

And Seulgi still short-circuits every single time.

But she’s getting used to her, she thinks. Not immune. Never immune.

Just…acclimating.

There’s a rhythm now. A push and pull. Seulgi says “stop it,” and Jaeyi says “make me.” Seulgi grumbles and complains and looks away, but she always ends up smiling.

Five days ago, Jaeyi was a stranger in boxer shorts. Now she’s brushing her teeth beside Seulgi. Using her shampoo because she “likes how it smells on her.”

Maybe this is how it starts, friendship. More specifically, friendship with rich kids.

Seulgi lets her brush her hair. She lets her peel oranges. She lets Jaeyi steal half her bed sometimes when she’s too lazy to climb into hers.

And Seulgi pretends not to notice that she doesn’t really mind.

⸻

[FLASHBACK: Day 1]

Seulgi stood in front of the mirror, frowning hard as she fumbled with the stiff fabric of her tie. Her fingers kept slipping. The knot kept leaning too far to the left. Her collar wouldn’t stay down. She tugged, grunted, tried again. It wasn’t working.

Behind her, Jaeyi leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, already dressed in her pressed uniform like she walked out of the brochure for Chaehwa. Polished shoes. Buttoned blazer. Long hair pulled back in a sleek ponytail that somehow made her look even more untouchable.

Seulgi didn’t want to ask for help. Didn’t want to need it.

But Jaeyi pushed off the door without a word, walked over, and reached up with practiced fingers.

“Relax,” she said, fingers brushing Seulgi’s throat as she undid the mess of a knot. “You’re not going to war.”

Seulgi mumbled something that sounded vaguely like I’m not nervous , but she doubted it came out right. Her ears were hot. Her cheeks, too. Especially when Jaeyi leaned in just a bit closer, smoothing down her collar with the kind of ease that said I’ve done this before.

“There,” Jaeyi said, voice soft but smug. “Try not to strangle yourself with it next time.”

Seulgi stepped back too quickly, caught her heel on the edge of her bed, and nearly tripped.

Jaeyi just smiled.

It was her first day of classes. Her uniform felt stiff. Her bag was too heavy. Her nerves were shot.

“I can walk you,” Jaeyi offered as she reached for her own bag.

“Oh—no, you don’t have to,” Seulgi said quickly, gripping the strap of her backpack. “You’re not even—We’re not in the same class…”

Jaeyi only tilted her head. “So?”

And that was that.

Seulgi didn’t know how to say no to someone who didn’t ask for permission in the first place.

They walked through the dorm hallway, down the staircase, and into the wide-open school corridors together. Seulgi kept her head down. She could feel the stares. She heard the whispers, half curious, half speculative. It didn’t take a genius to figure out who they were looking at.

But if Jaeyi noticed, she didn’t show it. She walked at Seulgi’s pace. She asked if her shoes were comfortable. She pointed out the vending machine she liked the most. She even offered to carry Seulgi’s bag, “just for today”, which Seulgi promptly refused.

At the entrance to Seulgi’s classroom building, Jaeyi stopped.

“Don’t let them eat you alive,” she said simply.

Seulgi blinked. “What?”

“You’ll be fine,” Jaeyi added with a smile. “Just…don’t let them get to you. And if they do, tell me.”

“…Why?”

Jaeyi leaned in slightly, that same unreadable glint in her eye. “Because I want to be the one to eat you alive.”

Seulgi made a strangled noise in the back of her throat.

Jaeyi grinned and turned away, leaving Seulgi blinking after her, tie perfectly in place, but heart beating completely out of sync.

⸻

[FLASHBACK: Cafeteria, Day 2]

The cafeteria smelled like overpriced bread and cafeteria-tier kimchi. Seulgi clutched her tray a little tighter, scanning the sea of tables for a familiar face, or at least a polite one.

She spotted Cho Ara at a corner table, surrounded by the usual crowd of well-groomed girls and their soft, calculated laughter. Seulgi didn’t know them well. She barely knew Ara, but they’d exchanged greetings the first time they met. Enough to maybe ask to sit.

One of the girls spotted her first. Her hand lifted in a wave, paired with a smile just a little too wide.

“Seulgi, right? Over here!”

Seulgi smiled, hopeful, and carefully made her way over, her tray rattling slightly with each step.

But before she could even sit, the girl was speaking again, still smiling, but not really.

“Wanna trade rooms with me?”

Seulgi blinked. “What?”

“I mean,” the girl continued, head tilting like she was being helpful, “I’m sure Jaeyi would prefer someone of her status. Less… provincial.”

Someone snorted behind her. Another girl whispered something under her breath.

Seulgi stood there, tray in hand, feeling heat rise to her cheeks. “I think she’s okay with me,” she said carefully.

The smile dropped. The same girl looked at her flatly. “Huh. That’s selfish of you.”

Seulgi didn’t respond. She didn’t sit. She just gave a short nod and quietly walked away, pretending not to hear the laughter that followed.

The next day, they didn’t wave her over at all.

And that was fine. She ate lunch alone. She always had.

Only this time, when she came back to the dorm, there was an extra melon milk on her desk.

A post-it stuck to it, scrawled in looping handwriting:

For surviving the jungle. – Jaeyi

Seulgi didn’t smile.

But she kept the note.

⸻

[FLASHBACK: Morning, Day 3]

The bathroom mirror was fogged at the corners, Seulgi’s reflection faint as she hunched over the sink, brushing her teeth in quiet focus. She liked mornings. Jaeyi is usually calm in the mornings,  giving her at least ten minutes of peace before the chaos began.

She was halfway through scrubbing when she felt it, arms casually slinking around her waist and a warm chin settling lightly on her shoulder.

She froze. Toothbrush still in her mouth, eyes darting up to the mirror.

Jaeyi blinked back at her through the reflection, sleep-mussed hair falling prettily over her face.

“Mmm,” Jaeyi murmured, barely stifling a yawn. “Wow. You really are country.”

Seulgi blinked.

“You use that kind of toothpaste?” Jaeyi added, lips curling into a teasing smile. “What is that, mint salt?”

Seulgi tried to protest, mouth still full of foam, which only made her gag slightly. She waved her toothbrush like a weapon of indignation.

Jaeyi laughed. “Don’t choke, aegi. I was just curious.”

Seulgi spat hurriedly, rinsed, and wiped her mouth. “It was on sale,” she mumbled defensively.

“Of course it was,” Jaeyi smirked, still clinging loosely to her like it was normal. “You’re extra cuter in the morning.”

“I—” Seulgi sputtered, face pink. “I’m literally just brushing my teeth.”

“Exactly,” Jaeyi said, squeezing her gently before stepping back. “So damn cute.”

Seulgi stared at her through the mirror as she shuffled out, yawning again and muttering something about coffee.

She finished brushing with her ears red.

⸻

[FLASHBACK: Classroom, Day 3 Afternoon]

The classroom buzzed with idle chatter as students shuffled in from lunch, sliding into their seats with the ease of familiarity Seulgi hadn’t yet earned. She stood by her desk, flipping through her things with growing panic.

Her notes. They were gone.

She scanned the floor, then turned to the girls chatting behind her, Cho Ara’s friends.

“Um,” she said, quietly, “have you seen my notes?”

One girl, perfect nails, practiced smile, tilted her head. “Notes?”

“I left them on my desk earlier, before lunch. They were in a red folder—”

“Oh,” the girl interrupted, eyes widening in mock realization. She pointed at the trash bin by the wall. “That? It was on the floor. Thought it was garbage.”

A flick of her hand. A smirk.

Laughter bubbled behind her, not loud, but sharp enough to sting. Seulgi followed the gesture with heavy limbs.

There, half-buried beneath a juice box and crumpled napkins, was her folder, creased, smeared, the corner torn.

She didn’t say anything. Just bent down and picked it up, brushing crumbs from the cover.

Her fingers trembled as she returned to her seat. Eyes down. Ears burning.

She told herself it didn’t matter. That she could rewrite them later. That it was fine.

But her hands kept shaking.

⸻

[FLASHBACK: Day 4]

Lunch break.

Seulgi stood in the middle of the bustling courtyard, tray in hand, scanning the sea of filled tables. Groups laughed under the shade of trees, uniforms neat, voices louder than hers would ever be.

They’re all eating outside today, per the dean’s commands.

Then—

“Seulgi-yah!”

She looked up. Across the courtyard, Jaeyi sat at a table surrounded by other students, upperclassmen, familiar faces Seulgi had seen from afar.

Jaeyi waved her over, grinning like they were old friends. “You didn’t think I’d let my roommate eat alone, did you?”

Heat crawled up Seulgi’s neck. Still, she made her way over.

When she sat beside Jaeyi, the table fell quiet.

Conversations slowed, then hushed entirely. One girl glanced at Jaeyi, then at Seulgi’s tray. Another pursed her lips, like she wanted to say something but didn’t.

Seulgi kept her eyes on her food. Jaeyi, meanwhile, popped a grape into her mouth and leaned her arm on the back of Seulgi’s chair, as if nothing was wrong at all.

“You forgot your milk,” Jaeyi murmured, reaching over to drop hers onto Seulgi’s tray. “You need it to grow.”

Seulgi ducked her head, hiding the smile that tried to form.

⸻

[FLASHBACK: Dorm Room, Night of Day 4]

Jaeyi was on Seulgi’s bed again, sprawled across it like she belonged there, arms lazily wrapped around one of Seulgi’s pillows. Her hair was damp from her shower, her legs dangling off the side, toes tapping the floor in a slow rhythm.

Seulgi sat cross-legged on the floor, back against her cabinet, pretending to read. But she could feel Jaeyi watching her. Again.

“Do you always blush this much when people touch you?” Jaeyi asked, voice light with amusement.

“I—!” Seulgi looked up, scandalized. “You—you’re always touching me!”

Jaeyi smirked, not even pretending to look guilty. “I could stop,” she said, propping her chin on one hand, elbow sunk into Seulgi’s pillow. “Would you like that?”

Seulgi turned away, ears red, gaze fixed stubbornly on the page she hadn’t turned in five minutes. “…I think so.”

A pause. Then—

“Too bad,” Jaeyi said. “I don’t want to stop.”

Seulgi let out a tiny groan and buried her face in her book.

⸻

[FLASHBACK: Day 5 – PE Class]

Seulgi bent over by the benches, tying her laces with quiet focus. She was almost done with the second knot when—

Clang.

Her forehead smacked against the edge of the metal bench. Hard.

“Ah—” she gasped, stumbling back onto her heels and clutching her forehead. A dull sting bloomed across her skin.

“Oops,” said a voice, flat and insincere.

Seulgi blinked up through the haze of pain. Cho Ara was already walking past, not even slowing down. Her hip had clipped Seulgi’s backside just before the impact, casual, deliberate.

Seulgi touched the spot just above her brow and winced. Her fingers came away with a light smear of red.

Nobody said anything.

She exhaled slowly and looked down again. Her shoe was still untied.

So she finished the knot.

⸻

[FLASHBACK: After PE Class, Day 5]

Seulgi stepped out of the bathroom stall, head still throbbing faintly from the hit earlier, only to stop short.

The bench where she’d left her bag was empty.

She blinked. Once. Twice.

Then panic gripped her chest.

She searched quickly, fingers trembling as she lifted towels, peered under the benches, checked the stall again. Nothing.

Someone must’ve taken it.

Her heart thundered in her ears as she hurried out, scanning the edges of the track field, the locker shed, the hedges. And then—

There.

Behind a bush, half-hidden, dumped like trash.

Her bag lay open, books spilling out. Seulgi rushed to it, dropping to her knees. Her textbooks were damp, soaked through at the edges where the sprinklers had just run. Her umbrella was snapped clean in half. Pens scattered. One shoe missing.

She gathered everything silently. Her fingers brushed over the name tag that had been clipped to her bag zipper, except it was gone.

She swallowed hard.

And went to class anyway.

With a cut on her forehead, damp books under her arm, and a bag that wouldn’t zip up all the way.

She sat in the back and took notes on loose paper. Nobody said a word.

⸻

[PRESENT: Dorm Room, Night of Day 5]

Seulgi sat curled up on her bed, knees tucked under the oversized shirt she threw on after her shower. The sleeves were damp from her wet hair, the ends clinging to her wrists as she held her textbook open in her lap.

But she wasn’t reading.

Her eyes were locked somewhere past the page, glazed and tired. A single drop of water trickled from her temple down to her cheek, but she didn’t move to wipe it away.

Her broken umbrella was stuffed in the trash.

She didn’t notice Jaeyi approach until a towel dropped over her head.

“You really don’t know how to take care of yourself, huh,” came Jaeyi’s voice, low and exasperated in that fond way of hers.

The towel began to move gently, patting, rubbing, her fingers warm even through the cloth. Seulgi didn’t reply. She just sat there, letting Jaeyi do it, trying not to melt into the touch.

Seulgi blinked slowly, letting her eyes close.

Jaeyi crouched down in front of her, hands stilling.

“Did something happen?”

Seulgi’s breath hitched. Her gaze darted to the side, to her wall, to anything but Jaeyi.

A soft frown tugged at Jaeyi’s lips as she pulled the towel back just enough to see Seulgi’s face. “Aegi,” she said, quieter now.

That word again. Seulgi tried to laugh, tried to smile, weak and crooked. “I’m okay.”

But Jaeyi didn’t buy it this time.

She stayed crouched, watching her like someone trying to solve a puzzle.

“What’s your first week been like?” she asked carefully. “You’re always so quiet when I ask about your day.”

Seulgi shifted. “It’s fine. I like most of the teachers. Some of the lectures are really fast-paced but I’m managing. The canteen food is okay…”

Jaeyi’s brow arched. “What about people? Friends?”

Seulgi hesitated. “Still figuring that out.”

Jaeyi sat down beside Seulgi, elbow on her knee, gaze serious now. “You’ve been acting weird all week,” she said. “People have been talking, too. About you. About Ara. I thought it was just stupid gossip, but…”

Seulgi’s hands gripped her towel tighter.

“Are the rumors true?” Jaeyi asked. “About some of the girls giving you a hard time?”

“What rumors?” Seulgi asked, blinking. She tilted her head like she didn’t understand.

Jaeyi narrowed her eyes. “How’s your first week really been?”

“…Good,” Seulgi said.

Her voice was calm, even cheerful. Just like her expression. But her hands were clenched in her lap, twisting the towel without realizing.

Jaeyi kept going. “What about in class? Or PE? Why were you so late coming back? And why—” she reached out suddenly, brushing Seulgi’s hair aside “—do you have a cut on your forehead?”

“Oh. That?” Seulgi laughed, nervous. “I, uh, tripped. Bench corner. It was nothing.”

“Is that why your umbrella’s broken?” Jaeyi asked, too sharp, too quick. “And your books? I saw your bag earlier. Something’s going on, isn’t it?”

Seulgi scrambled to think. “No, really. It’s just…it’s my first week, everything’s kind of a mess.”

“Did someone do something?”

“No.”

“Baby—”

“I’m okay,” she repeated, softer this time. “I’m just clumsy.”

“Seulgi.”

“I am! You’ve seen me, right?” She puffed out her cheeks and gave a little pout. “I’m like one of those inflatable tube things outside car dealerships.”

Jaeyi blinked. Then snorted. “You’re not that bad.”

“Not far off,” Seulgi insisted, playfully tugging the towel over her head again to hide.

It worked. Jaeyi laughed, and the worry in her expression softened, but not fully.

Still, she didn’t press more.

Seulgi smiled, this time, real but small. Her heart had stopped hammering.

She was learning.

This is how rich city girls acted, right? Touchy, teasing, and clingy. Jaeyi called her aegi, dried her hair, bought her melon milk without asking. It was different, but maybe this was just…how people became friends here.

She could learn.

She didn’t realize yet that Jaeyi wasn’t trying to be her friend.

—

Jaeyi was still watching her.

The flicker of amusement had faded from her eyes, replaced with something else now. Something quieter. Something like guilt.

She set the towel aside and reached out, arms wrapping around Seulgi without warning.

Seulgi stiffened.

“I’m sorry,” Jaeyi murmured against her shoulder. “For not being around more.”

Seulgi blinked. Her hands were caught awkwardly between them.

“I know we’re in different classes, but still. I said I’d help you settle in. And I’ve just been…busy. Too busy.” Her voice dropped, threaded with guilt. “Clubs, events, council stuff. Sometimes I forget I’m supposed to breathe, let alone check in with my new roommate.”

Seulgi slowly relaxed in her arms, shoulders sagging. “It’s okay. I mean, you’re the president. And you’re in, like, every extracurricular known to man.”

Jaeyi gave a small huff against her. “Still. That’s not an excuse.”

For a moment, Seulgi didn’t know what to say. Her arms hovered awkwardly before finally settling around Jaeyi’s back, hugging her in return, shy but warm.

“It’s okay,” she said again, this time more gently. “You don’t have to worry about me so much.”

Jaeyi pulled back just enough to look at her, brows slightly drawn. “Of course I do.”

“I’ll be fine,” Seulgi insisted. “I just…need to make other friends. So I’m not, you know. Alone when you’re busy.”

Something flickered in Jaeyi’s gaze at that. “Do you want me to introduce you to people?”

Seulgi hesitated. “Maybe. Eventually. I think I want to try on my own first.”

Jaeyi smiled faintly at that. “You’re braver than you look, you know.”

Seulgi looked down, flustered. “You keep saying I look like a baby.”

“Yeah, well.” Jaeyi reached out to ruffle her damp hair. “A brave baby.”

Seulgi swatted her hand away, cheeks pink. “You’re annoying.”

“I’m getting you snacks. Don’t go anywhere.”

“You don’t have to—”

“I’m your roommate. Of course I do.”

And just like that, Jaeyi was gone, the door clicking shut behind her.

——

The hallway was quiet when Seulgi burst out of their dorm room, wet hair clinging to her shoulders as she looked around.

She spotted Jaeyi just at the end of the corridor, one hand on the stairwell railing, about to go down.

“Jaeyi-yah!”

The name left her mouth before she could second-guess it. Casual, familiar, like it belonged in her mouth all along.

At the end of the hall, Jaeyi stopped just before the stairs and turned.

For a moment, she didn’t say anything. Then she smiled.

It wasn’t the usual soft, polite smile she wore for everyone else. It was the kind of smile that curled at the corners, that lit up her whole face.

She took a few steps back toward her. “Mhmm?”

Seulgi slowed as she reached her, breath caught in her throat. “Um—Can I come with you?”

Jaeyi tilted her head. “Why?”

Seulgi faltered. “Well… do you even know what snacks I like?”

She meant it as a deflection. I mean, it sounds way better than I just want to be near you.

But Jaeyi’s eyes narrowed in amusement. “Of course I do.”

And then she started listing them off.

“When you study late, you eat those chewy grape jellies,” she said, counting on her fingers. “You always have a snickers bar in your bag. I’ve seen you eat chocolate chip cookies in the hallway, like three times this week.”

Seulgi opened her mouth. Closed it.

How did she—?

Jaeyi just smiled again. “So yeah. I know.”

Seulgi didn’t have a single comeback to that.

“But okay,” Jaeyi said, turning toward the stairwell again, “you can come with.”

Before Seulgi could answer, Jaeyi had already linked their arms.

Seulgi stumbled a little, caught off guard. “W-wait—”

“Keep up,” Jaeyi said, already tugging her toward the stairs.

They walked in sync down the hallway, arm in arm, and Seulgi couldn’t decide if her heart was racing from the sudden pace or the contact.

They started down the stairs together.

“Wait,” Jaeyi said after a beat, glancing at her. “Do you want to grab a jacket first? You might get cold. Your hair’s still a bit damp.”

Seulgi groaned. “I don’t wanna go all the way up again.”

Jaeyi hummed. “Fine, then just hug me if you get cold.”

Seulgi went still.

Right as someone was coming up the stairs.

The girl passed them with a curious glance, eyebrows raised as she clearly overheard.

Seulgi’s ears turned red. “You—you can’t just say that where people can hear.”

“Why not?” Jaeyi said breezily. “You’re my roommate.”

She didn’t sound even a little embarrassed.

Seulgi didn’t reply.

She just kept walking, head down, dreading the rumors bound to start after that, their arms still linked all the way down.

——

The rain had softened into a misty drizzle by the time they left the dorm. The free-to-use umbrella stand had only one left. Jaeyi grabbed it with one hand and wrapped the other around Seulgi’s waist, tugging her in close.

Seulgi shivered a little, she hadn’t bothered to change out of her sleeping clothes: a big, loose shirt and cotton shorts. Jaeyi, at least, had sweatpants on. But neither of them mentioned it.

They crossed the school grounds quietly, the sound of the rain pattering against the umbrella. Seulgi noticed it after a few steps: Jaeyi’s other shoulder was getting wet.

The umbrella was tilted in her favor.

She glanced up. Jaeyi didn’t seem to mind. She was already stepping inside the convenience store, grabbing a basket like she knew exactly what she wanted.

Seulgi followed, but lingered by the front. Her brows were slightly scrunched, lips unconsciously forming a pout.

She was thinking, racking her brain.

When Jaeyi returned, the basket already half-full, she poked Seulgi lightly on the cheek.

“What are you thinking about now?” she teased.

“Do you even eat snacks?” Seulgi blurted out.

Jaeyi blinked, then grinned. “Not really—”

“I knew it,” Seulgi interrupted, triumphant. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you eat any. Except grapes. When we study at night.”

Jaeyi tilted her head, amused. “Is that what you were thinking about? What snacks I like?”

Seulgi nodded, then wandered toward the drink aisle. “Well, yeah. I feel bad. You know all my favorite snacks, and I don’t even know yours…”

She picked up a can of iced coffee and turned it over in her hand.

“What about this?” she asked. “You like coffee, right?”

But before Jaeyi could answer, Seulgi’s brows furrowed again. “Wait—no, you might not be able to sleep if you drink it now…”

She put it back, muttering under her breath as she scanned the other shelves, talking more to herself than anyone else. “Maybe something warm instead…but is that too much sugar…?”

Jaeyi just watched her, heart warming.

Then she reached out, pinched Seulgi’s cheek.

“You’re so sweet, my aegiya,” she cooed. “You really don’t have to overthink. I’ll eat or drink whatever you give me.”

Seulgi looked up at her, pink-cheeked. “But…you really don’t have a favorite?”

“I really don’t,” Jaeyi promised, smiling gently. “So it’s okay that you couldn’t guess. I’m already happy you tried.”

Seulgi eventually settled on a yellow can with bright lettering and a cartoon pineapple wearing sunglasses.

“This one looks fun,” she said, placing it carefully into the basket Jaeyi was holding. “It feels like something you’d like.”

Jaeyi paused. Her smile faltered for half a second, but only just. She glanced down at the can, then back at Seulgi, who was watching her expectantly.

She nodded.

“Yeah,” she said. “Looks tasty.”

“You don’t like it?” Seulgi asked, picking up on the hesitation.

“I’ll drink it,” Jaeyi said instead, soft but firm. “Promise.”

Seulgi didn’t push it.

They paid at the counter, and before Seulgi could reach for the bag, Jaeyi had already taken it, looped it onto one arm, and opened the umbrella with the other.

“I can carry—” Seulgi started.

“Nope,” Jaeyi said, slipping the umbrella handle into her grip and tugging Seulgi close again. She adjusted the plastic bag in her other hand and threw an arm casually around Seulgi’s shoulders like it was the easiest thing in the world. “Babies shouldn’t carry anything.”

Seulgi let herself be led, still a little shy in her thin sleepwear, but warmed by the proximity.

The rain hadn’t let up.

After a few quiet steps, Seulgi glanced up again.

Sure enough, Jaeyi’s far shoulder was getting damp.

The umbrella was tilted her way again.

She bit her lip, glanced at Jaeyi’s hand holding the umbrella, and gently reached up to adjust it, just enough to balance it over both of them. She didn’t say anything. Didn’t even look at her.

Jaeyi didn’t say anything either.

Just smiled, small and shy, cheeks dusted pink as they walked the rest of the way back under the rain.

The rain tapped steadily on the windows, but inside Ara’s dorm room, the mood was anything but calm.

Five girls sprawled across the space, on beanbags, against the headboard, legs tangled over each other. Open bags of chips lay half-finished on the floor. A curling iron cooled on the desk. Music played low from someone’s phone, but most of the noise came from their own mouths.

“I’m just saying,” one of them muttered, chewing loudly, “she thinks she’s better than everyone.”

“You saw her at PE, right? Always by herself. Doesn’t even try to talk to anyone.”

“She thinks just because she’s Jaeyi’s roommate, she’s special.”

Ara, lying on her stomach on the bed and scrolling through her phone, didn’t look up. “She refused to switch rooms,” she said flatly. “Like she knows it’s a glitch, but she’s acting like it’s her right to stay.”

“She’s totally leeching off Jaeyi,” another girl chimed in. “Jaeyi’s probably just being polite. You know how she is. Seulgi’s just too clingy to take the hint.”

“She probably doesn’t even like Jaeyi,” someone else sneered. “She’s just using her for the attention. I mean, Jaeyi’s the closest thing this school has to royalty.”

Ara finally sat up, folding her arms over her knees.

“She’s a scholarship kid,” she said, voice cold. “They always get this way. Act like they’re too good for everyone. Pretend to be modest, but the second they get close to someone like Jaeyi, they cling.”

“What should we do?”

Ara’s eyes narrowed slightly, her lips curving in a faint smirk.

“We make her feel like she doesn’t belong. Like she’s taking up space that’s not hers.”

“Without getting caught,” another girl added quickly.

Ara glanced at her. “Obviously.”

There was a quiet pause, the air crackling with shared malice.

Then one girl grinned, sitting up straighter. “What if we make Jaeyi see it too? Like… make it seem like Seulgi’s obsessed with her. Creepy. Desperate.”

Another gasped. “Oh my god, yes. Like plant something in her room. Or messages. So she thinks Seulgi’s crossing lines.”

Ara didn’t respond right away. She just kept staring at her phone, thumb still idly scrolling.

But there was a sharp glint in her eye.

“We’ll think of something,” she said.

And the others smiled.

Chapter Text

STEP 1: Anonymous “Rumors” Spread

It started the way these things always did.

A whisper in the hallway. A glance that lingered just a beat too long. A soft snicker that quieted the moment Seulgi turned her head.

“She follows Jaeyi around. Everywhere.”

“She copies how she eats.”

“She rearranges Jaeyi’s things when she’s gone. Isn’t that weird?”

No one ever said it to Seulgi’s face. That was the brilliance of it.

Instead, they whisper.

“She watches her sleep, you know?”

No one knew who said it first, just that it was passed like a secret, wrapped in giggles, exchanged in corners and coat closets, always paired with a smug smile.

“Like, imagine waking up to that. Creepy, right?”

“Is it true?”

“Don’t ask me. I heard it from someone in their building.”

It came in snatches and fragments, someone pulling their bag closer when she walked by, someone else suddenly forgetting her name in group discussions, eyes darting away when she raised her hand in class.

At first, Seulgi thought she was imagining it. She had been withdrawn. She didn’t talk to people much. Maybe they just didn’t know how to place her.

But then it got worse.

A girl she didn’t know very well looked her up and down at the vending machine and said, “You know, it’s okay to have a crush. Just maybe don’t be so obvious about it.”

Seulgi had blinked, heat prickling up the back of her neck. “What?”

The girl laughed. “Nothing. Just…tone it down. It’s weird.”

That was the first time it sank in.

The rumors weren’t harmless.

They were about her.

Back in Cho Ara’s dorm room, the plan was unfolding as intended.

“She looked so confused when Mina said that thing about her being obvious,” one of the girls said, giggling as she scrolled through her phone. “Like she didn’t even know she was doing it.”

“She’s a try-hard. Of course she doesn’t know,” another added, rolling her eyes.

“She’ll crack soon. Either she runs away, or Jaeyi gets freaked out and kicks her out. Either way, we win.”

Ara twirled a pen between her fingers, legs crossed as she leaned back against her headboard. “Don’t overdo it,” she warned. “Subtlety’s more fun. She needs to feel watched. Like every move she makes is under scrutiny, even if no one’s saying anything.”

“We should drop more stuff in the year level group chat,” another girl offered. “Like pretend someone saw her lurking around the girls’ wing when Jaeyi wasn’t there.”

“Just be discreet,” Ara said. “Let it grow on its own.”

Seulgi sat on her bed that night, legs curled up, a book open on her lap but unread.

Her head rested against the wall, and the hum of the ceiling light filled the silence. Jaeyi was out late again, club meeting or council stuff, Seulgi didn’t even know anymore and the room felt twice as cold without her.

She pulled her knees tighter.

This school was starting to feel like a place with mirrors instead of walls. She couldn’t see what was being said, but she could feel it pressing against her back.

Her stomach twisted with a familiar guilt. Maybe I am too clingy. Maybe I really do just follow her around.

She hadn't meant to. She just liked Jaeyi. She felt safe with her. That was all.

So why did it feel like the walls were closing in?

—

Seulgi couldn’t not hear them. They clung to her on the walk back to the dorm, followed her into the cafeteria, sat heavy in the silence whenever she was alone. Every time she caught sight of someone leaning in to whisper, her chest tightened.

She didn’t know whether to look at Jaeyi less, so people wouldn’t think she was proving the rumors or look at her more, as if to silently insist it wasn’t true.

What Seulgi didn’t know was that Jaeyi had heard it all too. In the student lounge. On the quad. Even in a council meeting, when someone thought they were being discreet.

Jaeyi didn’t say anything.

Not because she believed it, she lived with Seulgi; she knew exactly how much of it was nonsense.

She just…didn’t care.

Let them talk. It would die down eventually.

But Seulgi’s shoulders were starting to hunch in the hallways. And Ara, watching from across the cafeteria, smiled like a cat who had just tested the lock on the birdcage and found it loose.

Back in their dorm, Jaeyi hadn’t changed at all.

If anything, she was even more herself, linking her arm with Seulgi’s on the walk back from the vending machine, brushing stray hair from her face, leaning over her shoulder when she was reading to comment on the way she chewed her pen cap.

The same clingy, flirty, too-close comfort Seulgi had grown used to.

But now, every touch, every look, felt…dangerous.

She watches her sleep.
She copies the way she eats.
She rearranges her stuff when she’s not there.

The whispers lived in her head even when the hallway was quiet.

So when Jaeyi’s arm slid around her shoulders, Seulgi ducked away under the pretense of grabbing something from her desk.

When Jaeyi leaned in close to show her something on her phone, Seulgi stepped back, mumbling about needing space to see the screen.

When Jaeyi playfully tugged her down onto the bed beside her, Seulgi laughed too brightly, untangling herself before they could settle.

Jaeyi didn’t comment. Not at first. She still smiled, still called her aegi , still draped herself over Seulgi like nothing had changed.

But when Seulgi thought she wasn’t looking, Jaeyi’s eyes followed her.

Confused. Curious.

And Ara’s plan was working, not because Jaeyi believed the rumors, but because Seulgi did. Not the content, maybe, but the power of them.

If she kept acting like before…if she kept letting Jaeyi hold her like that…one day, Jaeyi might believe it too.

Better to put walls up now than to watch Jaeyi back away later.

STEP 2: Plant Evidence in the Room

The opportunity came on a rainy Thursday afternoon.

Classes were still in session, the hallways near-empty.

Minji, Ara’s quietest, most unassuming friend, had a cousin in campus housing. With the right timing, a borrowed keycard, and a casual “I’m just dropping something off,” she slipped into Jaeyi and Seulgi’s dorm room.

The place smelled faintly of coffee and fabric softener. Jaeyi’s side was neat, almost sterile, bed made, desk organized. Seulgi’s was softer, more lived-in.

From her tote bag, Minji pulled the notebook Ara had prepared.

It looked cheap and well-used, the pages filled with cramped handwriting and messy sketches.

Half a page read:

“She touched my hand today. I’ll never wash it again.”

Another had a pencil sketch of Jaeyi’s sleeping face, hair spilling across the pillow, a smile that was almost worshipful in its detail. Beneath it:

“I could watch her forever.”

Minji tucked it into the bottom of Seulgi’s drawer, under old notebooks. Then, she moved to Jaeyi’s desk. She palmed a delicate silver necklace from a small jewelry stand, slipped a photo booth strip from the frame in the corner, and took a cherry lip balm from the desk drawer. All were hidden under Seulgi’s bed, wedged between a storage box and the wall.

She left the room looking untouched.

The discovery happened the next week.

A partner project for Literature meant Jaeyi brought Kim Sora, a classmate, into the room to grab a file from her desk. While Jaeyi was in the bathroom, Sora’s curious eyes roamed, Ara told her to look for anything unusual. She bent to pick up a pen that had ‘rolled’ near Seulgi’s drawer and she opened it to find a notebook awkwardly hidden beneath other notebooks.

One flip of the page and her brows shot up.

By the time Jaeyi came out, Sora was pale and mumbling something about having to leave early.

That night, screenshots started appearing in private group chats. By morning, the entire campus seemed to have seen them.

Do you think she’s okay?
Should we tell someone?
Imagine living with someone like that…

Freshmen started approaching Jaeyi in the cafeteria, their voices low and concerned:

“Unnie, are you… okay?”

“Do you feel safe?”

“Sunbae,” one asked hesitantly, “are you…okay? You know, with…her?”

Jaeyi frowned. “With who?”

They glanced at each other, eyes darting, before one muttered, “Just…be careful, okay?” and hurried off.

The first few times, she just blinked in confusion. By the fourth, when one mentioned Seulgi’s name and then refused to explain, irritation burned behind her polite smile.

“Why wouldn’t I be safe around Seulgi?” she snapped, sharper than intended.

They backed off, whispering as they walked away.

Meanwhile, Seulgi had no clue.

She’d been living in the library lately, burying herself in homework and extra reading just to avoid going back to the dorm when Jaeyi might be there.

From Jaeyi’s perspective, it was insult on top of injury, strangers tiptoeing around her as if she were fragile, and her aegi avoiding her like she’d done something wrong.

Her patience, usually endless where Seulgi was concerned, was starting to fray.

That afternoon, Jaeyi didn’t bother waiting for Seulgi to come back from the library. Enough was enough. If Seulgi thought she could hide behind stacks of books forever, she was wrong.

The walk across campus was quiet except for the dull hum of the lampposts. Jaeyi pushed open the library’s heavy doors, her eyes scanning the rows until she spotted her, Seulgi, hunched over a table near the back, a small desk lamp spilling light onto her notes.

A few tables away, three girls were whispering, their gazes darting between Seulgi and their phones. When one of them laughed behind her hand, Jaeyi’s eyes narrowed into a sharp glare that sliced across the distance. The laughter cut off instantly, replaced by stiff, awkward silence.

Seulgi must have felt Jaeyi’s approach because her head lifted and the moment their eyes met, she began packing her books with a sudden, almost frantic precision.

Jaeyi’s pace quickened. She reached her before Seulgi could sling the bag over her shoulder, catching her by the wrist.

“Seulgi-yah…”

Seulgi’s head dipped, eyes fixed on the table. “Y-yes?”

“You’ve been avoiding me.” Jaeyi’s pout was soft, but her tone left little room for denial.

“I haven’t,” Seulgi muttered, voice low. Her gaze flickered sideways, toward the girls who were absolutely not subtle about watching them now. She could practically feel the rumors writing themselves in their heads: Jaeyi finally confronted her.

Jaeyi’s hands slid from her wrist to her arms, thumbs brushing over her sleeves in small, slow strokes. “What’s up? You’ve been weird lately. And…” She frowned, frustration creeping in. “I don’t know why, but people have been asking me if I feel safe. Or some shit like that.” Her brows drew together, genuine confusion clouding her expression.

Seulgi froze, the air between them tightening. Her mind instantly jumped to the whispers, about her watching Jaeyi sleep, stealing her things, obsessing over her. And now, people were directly asking Jaeyi if she felt safe.

The words left her before she could stop them. “Do you?”

“Huh?” Jaeyi blinked. “What?”

Seulgi’s eyes locked onto hers. “Do you feel safe?”

For a moment, Jaeyi just stared. Then a laugh escaped her, confused, disbelieving. “What are you even—”

She didn’t answer. Not directly.

Seulgi’s chest tightened. That pause was enough. She does think I’m weird now. She just won’t say it. Maybe she didn’t feel safe, but she was too kind to say it out loud.

Seulgi stepped back, slipping out of Jaeyi’s hold. “I should go,” she muttered.

“Wait—are you going back to our dorm?”

She shook her head, avoiding her eyes. “I’ve got… an errand. You can go ahead.”

Before Jaeyi could argue, Seulgi slung her bag over her shoulder and left with quick, clipped steps. She didn’t look back, even though she could sense Jaeyi’s gaze following her.

The smirks from the nearby table burned at the edge of her vision as she walked out.

Jaeyi watched her retreat until she disappeared past the bookshelves.

One of the girls called over, sweetly: “You okay, Jaeyi?”

Jaeyi gave them a dismissive wave without looking back and followed after Seulgi, the tension in her steps sharp and restless.

Behind her, the whispers started up again. Fingers tapped on phone screens. By the time Jaeyi reached the library doors, the next round of rumors was already on its way across campus.

Something happened in the library. Jaeyi confronted the creep. It’s worse than we thought.

“Seulgi!”

Her voice carried across the quad, sharp enough to make a few heads turn.

But the girl ahead didn’t slow. If anything, she sped up, her small frame cutting through clusters of students with surprising speed.

“Seulgi-yah! Wait up!”

The sound of Jaeyi’s voice followed her, warm and insistent, but each call only made Seulgi’s steps quicker. She could feel it, the way conversations dimmed as she passed, only to spark back up again behind her, the flick of eyes on her back. She didn’t need to hear the words to know they were about her.

Jaeyi’s long strides closed the distance fast, but Seulgi’s smaller frame darted through the path with surprising speed. For someone with tiny legs…Jaeyi thought, mildly annoyed and vaguely impressed. She’s fast.

By the time they reached the campus gates, Jaeyi caught up, hand finding Seulgi’s elbow. “Hey—”

The reaction was immediate. Seulgi yanked her arm back, sharp and sudden.

Jaeyi stopped short, blinking. She’d seen Seulgi flustered, shy, awkward with casual touch but she had never felt her reject her like that.

If this were anyone else, Jaeyi’s pride would have bristled. But this was her aegi. Her Seulgi.

She softened, exhaling through her nose. “Baby, what’s wrong? Hm? Did I do something?” She reached out again, fingers brushing Seulgi’s sleeve—

“Can you just let me be?”

It wasn’t cold. If anything, the words were quiet enough to sound almost pleading. But they still landed like a small crack in Jaeyi’s chest.

“What?” Jaeyi’s voice was quieter now, tinged with disbelief.

Seulgi’s eyes dropped to the ground. “Please, Jaeyi…I’m sorry, but I just need some time alone, okay?”

The wind picked up, tugging at the strands of hair framing her face, and Jaeyi noticed the way her hands trembled slightly against her bag strap. Her whole posture was tense, wound tight like she’d been holding her breath for days.

Jaeyi’s instinct was to push, to demand the truth right there. But she hesitated. The distress in Seulgi’s expression wasn’t something she wanted to bulldoze.

She studied her for a long moment, the quiver of her lips, the exhaustion etched into her eyes, the way she seemed to be bracing for Jaeyi to insist.

Finally, Jaeyi exhaled and nodded. “…Just…be safe, okay?”

Seulgi nodded, lips quivering before she bit them hard. Without another word, she slipped through the gates.

Jaeyi stood there, watching her disappear into the evening light.

If she’s willing to go out and risk missing curfew, something’s really wrong.

Her fingers curled into fists at her sides.

She already had a suspicion, those stupid rumors from two weeks ago. She’d thought ignoring them would starve them out. Clearly, they’d only grown teeth.

Jaeyi turned back toward campus, resolve settling in her chest. Fine. I’ll find out exactly who’s behind this. And when I do…they’ll wish they never started.

From the shadow of the covered walkway, Cho Ara tilted her chin toward the campus gates.

“There she goes,” she said, lips curling as Seulgi’s retreating figure disappeared into the street.

Beside her, Minji snorted. “And there goes Jaeyi. Walking away. Perfect.”

It took all of three seconds for their laughter to bubble up, bright and mean.

“Guess our little project’s coming along nicely,” Ara drawled, twirling a strand of hair around her finger.

“Nicely? It’s working too well.” Kim Sora leaned against the pillar, watching the empty street. “If she actually leaves the school, that’s it. Game over. No more fun.”

“Exactly.” Ara’s eyes glinted. “I never said we wanted her gone gone. Just…out of Jaeyi’s orbit. Out of that dorm. And preferably miserable.”

“Like a stray dog nobody wants.”

They laughed again, some covering their mouths in mock delicacy.

“We should dial it back, then,” one of them said. “Let her stay. We’ll need someone to kick around next semester.”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Ara murmured, a slow smile spreading across her face. “We’ll make sure she stays. She just won’t want to.”

Another girl grinned. “So…Step 3?”

Ara’s gaze drifted toward the dorm buildings in the distance, her mind already turning.

“Step 3,” she confirmed.

“Details?”

Ara’s smile sharpened. “Don’t worry. You’ll like this one.”

STEP 3: The Last Push

It happened between morning lecture and lunch.

When Seulgi returned to her desk, there it was, deep, jagged scratches carved into the wood.

CREEP.

The letters weren’t careful or even. They looked hacked in, each line pressed hard enough to splinter.

Her chest tightened. She stared at it for too long, until the shapes blurred, until the voices around her blurred too, snickers from the back, whispers from somewhere to her left.

She set her bag down slowly, trying to keep her hands from trembling. She opened her notebook as if she hadn’t seen anything, but the word burned in her periphery.

By the time she reached her locker, there was a paper note taped to it. The handwriting was bubbly, almost childish.

Everyone knows what you’re doing. Leave her alone before you get reported.

Her fingers trembled as she peeled it away. She didn’t crumple it. She didn’t throw it out. She just…folded it into her pocket, like she needed to carry the weight of it.

She didn’t go to her afternoon classes.

She didn’t stop by the cafeteria.

Instead, she walked to the housing office.

Miss Lee blinked when Seulgi made her request.

“The basement room?” She asked, brows pulling together. “That’s…the old custodian’s quarters. It’s small. No windows.”

“That’s fine,” Seulgi murmured.

Miss Lee studied her, clearly about to ask more. “Is everything alright? You’ve been rooming with Yoo Jaeyi, haven’t you? Not getting along?”

Seulgi forced the corners of her mouth up. “No, I just…want my own space.”

A pause. Miss Lee didn’t believe her, Seulgi could tell. But she didn’t push. She just sighed and reached for a key on the wall.

The metal felt heavy in Seulgi’s palm.

Her suitcase was half-filled already from the last laundry day. The rest she packed in neat, careful layers, clothes, textbooks, toiletries. No decorations. No keepsakes. No signs she’d ever been there at all.

She didn’t touch Jaeyi’s side of the room.

Didn’t leave a note.

By late afternoon, the room was bare on her half, the sheets stripped, the desk empty.

Her feet carried her down to the basement, to her original assigned room, the one they’d told her was the “temporary” space, a dusty old custodian’s quarters with a single bed and one flickering light. It smelled faintly of cleaning supplies and old wood, but it was away from eyes and whispers.

When she shut the door, the sound echoed in the small space. She leaned against it for a long moment, bag at her feet, listening to the hollow quiet.

By the time Jaeyi returned from classes, all that was left of Seulgi in their dorm was the faint dent in the mattress where she used to sleep.

Jaeyi shoved the door open with more force than necessary.

She’d spent the entire last period drumming her fingers on her desk, barely hearing the lecture, just waiting to get back and finally corner her stubborn aegi.

She’d had enough.

Two weeks of whispers, of seeing Seulgi shrink in on herself, of watching her slip away one excuse at a time, it all clicked this morning. Jaeyi knew exactly who was behind it. She already had a plan.

She was going to tell Seulgi everything. She was going to tell her she believed her, that none of this crap mattered, and that she wasn’t letting anyone push her out of her life.

“Seulgi-yah,” she called as she stepped in, already half-smiling despite her irritation. “We need to—”

Her voice faltered.

The air in the room felt wrong.

Empty.

She turned her head.

Seulgi’s side of the dorm was…gone. The bed was stripped bare, the pillow missing. The desk was cleared of books, pens, even the crooked mug that used to hold a single mechanical pencil.

Jaeyi froze in the doorway.

“...Seulgi?” she called, even though she already knew there wouldn’t be an answer.

The silence was a slap.

Her fists curled without her telling them to. Her pulse was loud in her ears now, a hot, sharp drumbeat.

They did this.

Ara. Her pack of bottom-feeders.

Every poisonous whisper, every sideways glare, every smug, knowing smirk, Jaeyi could trace them all back to that little clique like smoke to fire.

And now they’d pushed Seulgi right out of here.

They thought they’d won.

They thought she’d just… let it happen.

Her jaw clenched until it ached.

No.

No, they didn’t get to touch what was hers.

They didn’t get to take her aegi away and walk the halls tomorrow like nothing happened.

By the time she found them, Ara and her minions weren’t going to be smirking anymore.

By the time she was done, this entire campus was going to choke on their own gossip.

Jaeyi slung her bag down on the stripped mattress and turned on her heel, fire in her eyes.

If she had to tear apart every hallway, open every locked door, shake the truth out of every lying mouth tonight, she would.

She was going to find Seulgi.

And tomorrow?

Tomorrow, Ara and her little court were going to learn exactly why nobody touched what belonged to Jaeyi.

The halls felt smaller tonight.

Or maybe it was just the weight Jaeyi carried with her, thick, sharp, and cold enough to make the air bend around her.

She moved fast, but not frantic. Her steps were steady, deliberate, like she already knew where she was going. Like she’d walk through walls if she had to.

The first student unlucky enough to cross her path got a hand on their wrist before they could blink.

“Have you seen Seulgi?” she asked, voice low, steady. No warmth. No smile.

The student stammered something useless, and she let go, not gently.

By the time she reached the next hallway, whispers had already spread ahead of her.

Jaeyi was looking for someone.

Jaeyi was angry.

No one had ever seen her like this.

Doors opened a crack when she passed, eyes peeking out, only to slam shut again when she turned her head.

She knocked anyway.

Three times.

Hard enough to rattle the frame.

When the door opened, she leaned in, all polite calm. “Seulgi. Did she come here?”

No?

She nodded once, but her eyes lingered just long enough to make the answer feel like it had better be true.

Up the stairs.

Down another hall.

The girls on the second floor were less brave, one tried to slip past her, and Jaeyi caught her by the collar, pulling her just close enough to speak into her ear.

“I asked you a question.”

The girl shook her head fast, eyes wide, and Jaeyi let her go without another word.

It kept going, floor after floor, wing after wing.

One girl muttered, “What’s going on?”

Jaeyi didn’t even glance at her, already moving to the next room.

The quiet of the night was broken by the sound of her knocking, the heavy click of her boots, the whispers that never quite reached her ears.

By midnight, the dorm’s group chats were blowing up.

She’s still at it.
No, I swear she grabbed my roommate.
Ara’s hiding in the art building until morning.

At some point, someone must’ve called the dorm admins. Jaeyi didn’t notice when they started following her, trying to talk her down. She didn’t stop when they told her to go back to her room. She kept going, checking laundry rooms, study nooks, storage closets, anywhere a girl with tired eyes and too-big sweaters might be hiding.

It wasn’t until three staff members physically stepped in front of her that she paused, blinking like she’d just remembered they existed.

“Miss Yoo,” one of them said carefully, “you need to stop for tonight.”

She stared at him for a long moment, and for the first time in hours, her lips curved, not into a smile, but something colder.

“Do you have her, then?”

“We do not, but, you need to stop. You’re waking the whole building.”

“Where. Is. She?”

Still calm. Still even. Her fingers twitched like she was resisting the urge to push past them.

“You’ll see her in the morning,” another admin promised, like they were talking down a dangerous animal. “We assure you, Miss Woo hasn’t rescinded her enrollment. She’s still here.”

Jaeyi’s eyes narrowed. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

The third admin gestured toward her dorm. “Let’s…just go back for now. You can speak to her tomorrow.”

Jaeyi let them guide her back, but her steps were reluctant, every muscle in her body pulled taut like a bowstring.

They locked the door behind her once she was inside.

They told her to sleep it off.

They told her she’d “scared the girls.”

Jaeyi sat on her bed, staring at the bare half of the room until the sun began to rise.

She didn’t sleep.

She didn’t stop thinking.

And when morning came, she had a plan.

The basement was quieter than she expected.

Too quiet.

The only sound was the occasional rattle from the pipes overhead, a hollow clanging that seemed to echo inside her skull. Somewhere in the dark, the radiator clicked and hissed like it was irritated to still be working.

The air smelled faintly of bleach, sharp and sour, but beneath that was something older, stale. Air that had been trapped too long. The small electric fan she’d found shoved in the corner spun lazily, pushing warm air around like it was doing her a favor.

No windows. No night sky. No way to tell if it was still raining outside or if the moon was bright.

She sat on the thin mattress, the springs digging into her hip no matter how she shifted. She could feel the metal frame under the padding, every edge pressing up into her bones.

Sleep didn’t come.

Instead, her mind looped the same thought over and over, how she’d left without even a note.

Jaeyi would have come back from class, expecting her. Maybe she’d look confused for a moment, then shrug. Maybe she’d be relieved. Maybe she’d even celebrate having the room to herself again.

The thought made Seulgi’s chest ache in a slow, stubborn way.

She curled up on her side, pressing her cheek against the flat pillow.

Jaeyi had been…her only friend. The only person who’d ever made her feel like she belonged, even for a little while. She liked her, too much, maybe. Enough that the whispers and the stares had started to feel like they might be right.

It was better this way.
Better for Jaeyi.
Better for everyone.

It’s not like she’d vanished. They’d still pass each other in the hallways. Maybe they’d even nod. Smile politely. Pretend nothing had happened.

Seulgi stared into the dark until her eyes burned, the hum of the fan loud in the silence.

Chapter Text

The second the lock outside her dorm clicked open, Jaeyi was moving.

Not walking, bolting.

She pushed the door so fast it nearly slammed into the startled dorm admin.

She hadn’t slept.

Not a wink.

Instead, she’d sat at her desk through the night, mind spinning like a predator circling its prey, except the prey wasn’t Seulgi. The prey was whoever thought they could make her aegi disappear.

The library was out, doors shut at 7 p.m. sharp.

The clinic? No chance. Nurse Park wouldn’t let anyone stay past curfew, especially not someone hauling their own clothes and books.

Friends? Seulgi didn’t have any, except her .

That left one possibility.

By the time she reached the housing office, Jaeyi didn’t bother with knocking. She shoved the door open, making Miss Lee jump in her chair.

“Is Woo Seulgi in the basement?” Jaeyi’s voice was low, clipped.

Miss Lee’s mouth opened, then closed. Something in her face faltered, pity, guilt, maybe both. “Yes,” she admitted quietly. “She came yesterday. Said she wanted her own space.”

Jaeyi’s jaw worked once, twice, but no words came.

Instead, Miss Lee slid open a desk drawer and pulled out a small silver key. “In case she won’t open for you.”

Jaeyi snatched it up with a murmured “thank you” that didn’t sound thankful at all, and turned on her heel.

Students turned their heads as she passed, whispering, but she didn’t even see them. Her focus tunneled. Each step took her deeper toward the one place in this school no one wanted to go.

The basement.

Jaeyi stalked down the corridor, the spare key cold in her palm. Every step she took, the burn in her chest got hotter, heavier.

She wasn’t angry at Seulgi for leaving.

She was angry at the world for making her feel like she had to.

It was ridiculous, no, insulting, that anyone could look at Seulgi and think she deserved this.

She thought about the first time she saw her.

Not a day, not even a couple hours after meeting, she’d been teasing her, calling her aegi . People might assume it was because she flirted with everyone.

People had always accused her of being a flirt. And they weren’t wrong, she was playful, bold, and she knew how to make someone blush just to see if she could. But that wasn’t what this was.

The first time they met, Seulgi had barged into her life, literally.

Wrong dorm, suitcase slamming onto Jaeyi’s sleeping legs, startled apologies tumbling from lips that looked too soft for a boarding school this sharp-edged. Jaeyi had sat up, annoyed for all of two seconds…until she got a good look at her.

There’d been something about Seulgi, small, quiet, eyes darting around like she was memorizing every possible escape route, that made Jaeyi want to do two things at once: wrap her up and protect her from the world, and pull her closer until she never thought about leaving.

It wasn’t Seulgi’s face (though she was pretty in that unpolished way Jaeyi loved), or the soft voice, or the way she clearly had no idea how endearing she was. It was the way she seemed so untouched by the chaos of this place. The way she stood like she wasn’t sure she belonged anywhere.

And Jaeyi had thought, No. She’s mine .

She hadn’t even thought twice before teasing her, calling her aeg i, like the word had been waiting on her tongue all along. It was reckless, yes. Immediate. And when she’d bought the furniture, moved her in without hesitation, it hadn’t been about showing off. It had been instinct. If Seulgi didn’t have somewhere safe, Jaeyi would make one for her.

That was the thing people never understood about her. She didn’t waste her time on people she didn’t care about. This was the first time she’d actually wanted someone to stay.

And okay, maybe she’d turned the charm up to eleven that day.

Maybe she’d called her aegi before they’d even unpacked her clothes.

Maybe she’d marched out and bought her a bed and a desk before dinner.

But here was the thing, Jaeyi didn’t play like that with just anyone.

Flirting was easy.

Caring was not.

She didn’t want Seulgi on the floor, didn’t want her in that suffocating basement, didn’t want her anywhere she couldn’t see her. So she offered a bed, table, and a cabinet, paid for without thinking twice.

Seulgi had tilted her head, suspicious.

Asked if this was some “rich city girl” thing.

Jaeyi had smiled and said yes. Because saying No, it’s because I want you here. It’s because I want you would’ve been too much, too fast.

The truth? Jaeyi didn’t just want to be friends.

Not from day one.

So when Seulgi called them “friends” in that shy, careful way, like she was protecting herself from believing anything more, it scratched at something raw inside Jaeyi.

Friends didn’t make your chest tighten when they smiled.

Friends didn’t keep you awake at night because you wanted to know what they were thinking at that exact moment.

Friends didn’t make you want to rip the world apart just to keep them safe.

And right now, Jaeyi wanted to rip someone apart.

Because whoever thought they could take Seulgi away from her,

Whoever thought they could make her aegi hide in the dark,

They were going to learn exactly how bad of an idea that was.

Jaeyi’s fingers tightened around the key Miss Lee had given her.

Basement air was heavy, still. The door to Seulgi’s new room sat at the far end of the hall, chipped paint curling like it wanted to give up.

Jaeyi stopped in front of it, every muscle locked tight.

Her chest hurt, not with heartbreak, but with the slow, dangerous burn of someone who had been holding back far too long.

The old door groaned under Jaeyi’s shove, slamming against the wall with a loud thud.

Seulgi jerked upright on the thin mattress, hair mussed, eyes wide and dazed from half-sleep. The electric fan whirred uselessly beside her, stirring the hot, stale air.

“J–Jaeyi?” Her voice was small, like she wasn’t sure if she was dreaming.

Jaeyi stood in the doorway, chest rising and falling like she’d run the whole way here, though her steps down had been slow, deliberate. The overhead bulb buzzed faintly above them, casting shadows over her face that made her look more dangerous than angry.

For a moment, she didn’t say anything. Just took in the sight of Seulgi in this suffocating little room, knees tucked, the bed frame jutting through the paper-thin mattress.

“You weren’t in our room,” Jaeyi finally said, voice low but steady. “You weren’t in the library. You weren’t anywhere.”

Seulgi fidgeted with the blanket, unable to meet her eyes. “I… I just needed space.”

“Space?” Jaeyi stepped inside, the door swinging shut behind her with a dull thud. “From me?”

Seulgi’s lips parted, but no sound came out.

Jaeyi dropped the spare key onto the table beside the bed. The tiny clink sounded louder than it should have in the cramped room.

“What the hell, Seulgi?” Jaeyi’s voice cracked sharp in the cramped space. “You disappear without a word…do you have any idea what you put me through last night?”

Seulgi’s mouth opened, but no words came out.

“I tore through the whole campus looking for you, Seulgi. Woke half the dorms. They had to lock me in my room to get me to stop. And you—” Jaeyi broke off, pacing a single, tight loop before pointing at the bare wall. “You came here? To this dumpster? Why?”

Her voice had an edge that could cut glass.

She wanted to stay mad. She should stay mad.

But then, so faint she almost missed it, came a soft, shaky sniffle.

Jaeyi froze.

Her head turned slowly, and there it was: Seulgi, looking anywhere but her, lips pressed together, eyes wet.

The anger drained out of her like water down a crack.

She took one step closer, then another, until she was right beside the bed. “Hey,” she murmured, voice dropping into something warm and shaky. “Don’t…don’t cry, aegi. Please.”

Seulgi shook her head, lips pressed tight, but another sniffle escaped.

And that was it.

Jaeyi’s knees hit the thin mattress as she sat beside her, one arm wrapping around her shoulders before she could stop herself.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered into Seulgi’s hair. “I’m not mad at you. I’m just—God, you scared me.”

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, the fight gone from her voice entirely. “I’m sorry. I just…I can’t stand not knowing where you are.”

Seulgi gave a weak shrug, but her shoulders shook.

Jaeyi’s thumb brushed under her eye, catching the tear before it could fall.

“Don’t do that to me again,” Jaeyi said, quiet but firm. “If you need space, fine. If you need time, I’ll give it to you. But don’t make me spend another night wondering if you’re safe.”

She hugged Seulgi closed again, breathing a little easier now than last night.

When Seulgi’s breathing steadied a little, Jaeyi leaned back just enough to see her face.

“Okay, Tell me. Why are you down here?”

Seulgi stared at the thin blanket bunched in her hands. “I… just thought it’d be better.”

“Better?” Jaeyi’s brows pulled tight. “Better than what?”

Seulgi swallowed. Her voice was small. “I’m weird. I’m… a creep. You shouldn’t be around me.”

Something in Jaeyi’s chest snapped. “Is that what they’re saying?”

Seulgi flinched. “I’m too clingy. I follow you around. It’s—”

Jaeyi let out a sharp, incredulous laugh, cutting her off. “My god, Seulgi. If you were actually clingy, I’d love it.”

That made Seulgi’s head lift, just slightly, eyes wide with surprise.

Jaeyi’s smile was faint but fierce. “I know what they’ve been saying. I didn’t pay attention because I knew none of it was true. That’s on me.” She reached over, gently brushing a strand of hair from Seulgi’s cheek. “I shouldn’t have let things get this far. I should’ve shut it down before they even thought about coming for you.”

Seulgi blinked at her, like she wasn’t sure she’d heard right.

Jaeyi’s gaze didn’t waver. “You’re not the problem here. They are.”

Seulgi’s lips trembled. “You don’t get it, Jaeyi. Every time I walk down the hall, I can feel them looking at me…like I’m disgusting. Like I don’t belong here. And if you keep hanging around me—”

“They’ll start on me too?” Jaeyi tilted her head, a slow, humorless smile creeping in. “Let them try.”

Seulgi shook her head. “No. I don’t want you to get dragged into it. You have friends, a reputation—”

“Reputation?” Jaeyi huffed. “Aegi, I’d trade every single one of them if it meant you’d stop looking at yourself like this.”

Her hand found Seulgi’s, cold fingers, tense, and held on. “You’re staying with me. Tonight. Tomorrow. Until you graduate if that’s what you want. You’re not rotting away in this basement while Ara and her little fan club prance around thinking they’ve won.”

Seulgi’s throat worked like she was about to argue, but Jaeyi pressed on.

“I’ll handle Ara. And her minions. You don’t need to lift a finger. All you have to do is come back upstairs.”

Seulgi glanced around the cramped room, the thin mattress, the flickering bulb, the shadows pressed into every corner and her voice cracked. “It’s quieter down here.”

Jaeyi squeezed her hand. “And it’s lonelier. You’re not meant to be alone, Seulgi. Not when I’m here.”

For a long moment, Seulgi just stared at her. Then she whispered, “They’re not going to stop.”

“They will,” Jaeyi said, her voice low and sure. “Because I’m going to make them.”

“Jaeyi…”

“Come on, go back with me.”

Seulgi’s voice was barely above a whisper. “Are you sure? You…you don’t think I’m weird?”

Jaeyi arched a brow, but Seulgi pushed on before she could answer.

“What if it’s true? What if I do follow you around? Take your things? What if I do…watch you sleep?”

Jaeyi didn’t even blink. “I watch you sleep, aegi.”

Seulgi’s eyes widened.

Jaeyi leaned in, lips quirking. “Do you think I’m weird?”

Seulgi opened her mouth, closed it again, and muttered, “…maybe a little.”

Jaeyi chuckled, but there was no mockery in it. “Good. Then we’re both weird. Now pack your stuff.”

When Seulgi hesitated, Jaeyi didn’t. She was already folding Seulgi’s clothes, stacking her books, and shoving them into the suitcase like she’d done this a hundred times.

Seulgi finally sighed. “You’re not going to give me a choice, are you?”

“Nope,” Jaeyi said, zipping the suitcase shut with finality. She grabbed Seulgi’s hand, warm now, thanks to hers, and pulled her toward the door.

Seulgi stumbled after her, half-dragged. “Wait, are we really going—”

“Upstairs. Back to our room. And then I’m getting people fired.”

Seulgi blinked. “What?”

“Oh nothing.” Jaeyi shrugged. “It’s just some people knew you were down here, decided not to tell me, and instead thought it was cute to lock me up last night.”

Seulgi’s brows knitted. “They locked you in—”

“Yup. And I’ll deal with them right after I deal with Ara.” Jaeyi’s grip tightened just slightly, like she was making a silent promise.

The basement door creaked open, spilling them into the dim morning light of the hall.

Jaeyi rolled Seulgi’s suitcase with one hand; the other stayed firmly wrapped around Seulgi’s. Her grip wasn’t tight, but it was steady, like she wasn’t going to let go, no matter who was watching.

And plenty were watching. Students slowed in their tracks, whispering behind cupped hands. Some didn’t even bother to hide it, their stares sharp and lingering.

Seulgi’s shoulders hunched in, chin dipping toward her chest.

Jaeyi’s eyes swept over them all, her glare a cold, precise blade. Even the dorm admins who’d stopped her the night before froze under her gaze, stepping aside as if the hallway suddenly widened for her.

No one spoke to them. No one dared.

By the time they reached their room, Seulgi exhaled like she’d been holding her breath since the basement.

Jaeyi didn’t stop moving. She dropped the suitcase by the bed, grabbed the stack of folded sheets from the shelf, and began making Seulgi’s bed with practiced, quick movements. The sharp snap of the fabric and the quiet rustle of clothes being hung back in the cabinet were the only sounds in the room.

Seulgi stayed by the door, watching her.

“Hey, baby,” Jaeyi said suddenly, not looking up.

Seulgi blinked. “Mhmm?”

“You know what I’m excited about?” Jaeyi’s voice had that too-sweet edge that meant trouble for someone.

“What?”

Jaeyi’s grin was all teeth. “I have this plan for Ara and her little friends. Obviously, I’m not letting them get away with anything, you know?”

She tucked the last shirt into the cabinet, then patted Seulgi’s bed. “Come here.”

Seulgi hesitated, then crossed the room and sat.

Jaeyi immediately guided her down, pulling the blanket over her with the ease of someone who had done it a hundred times in her head. Then she sat beside her, one hand gently stroking through Seulgi’s hair.

“So,” she began in a near-whisper, “it’s not like this is the first time they’ve bullied someone. Ara’s just gotten used to thinking no one can touch her. But here’s the thing…” Her tone was low and calm, like she was talking about the weather. “…I’m very good at touching people where it hurts.”

Her fingers threaded slowly through Seulgi’s hair, nails grazing her scalp in careful, almost tender arcs.

“I’ve already got a list. Names. Dates. Screenshots. Every rumor she’s spread, every person she’s shoved, every little trick she’s pulled to make herself feel big. You know what happens when you stack enough of that in one place?” Jaeyi’s voice curled into a smile. “It starts to look like a noose.”

Seulgi’s breathing slowed, eyelids dipping despite herself. The cadence of Jaeyi’s voice, so soft, so steady, was at odds with the dangerous words she spoke.

Her touch was hypnotic, her tone steady and unhurried. Seulgi’s eyelids grew heavier with each word, exhaustion dragging her down. She caught fragments—“disciplinary board,” “parents,” “expulsion” She didn’t hear the rest. Sleep took her like a tide, pulling her under.

Jaeyi stilled her hand, watching the rise and fall of Seulgi’s chest for a long, quiet moment. Her gaze softened, only for Seulgi, before hardening again at the thought of anyone else.

Her voice dropped to a murmur, cold enough to frost glass. “They’ve had their fun. Now it’s my turn."

While Seulgi slept, curled beneath the blanket, Jaeyi sat at her desk with only the glow of her laptop screen cutting through the room’s dimness.

Her fingers moved fast, methodical, deliberate, not the casual scrolling of a bored student but the precise motions of someone assembling a weapon.

People thought she was “queen of Chaehwa” because she was rich, because she was beautiful, because she had a sharp tongue and sharper heels.

They were wrong.

She’d kept her title this long because she knew things. Everything. About everyone.

It had started as a hobby, a way to keep herself entertained between exams and school events. A little harmless digging here, a few screenshots there. Names, dates, whispered rumors no one thought would leave the locker room or the group chat.

Now, that little hobby had teeth.

Ara and her friends had made a mistake.

By the time Jaeyi was finished, her laptop screen was a mosaic of open tabs, chat logs, and security footage.

Yesterday (before she found out Seulgi was gone), she’d pulled aside students Ara’s group had harassed before, more than a few.

They talked. They always talked. No one said “no” to Jaeyi when she fixed you with that slow, disappointed stare, the kind that made you feel like your ancestors were shaking their heads in shame.

She’d requested campus CCTV footage under the guise of a “security concern” and as student council president, no one dared question it.

She dug through archived group chats and ancient school forum posts, piecing together years’ worth of their petty cruelty. Screenshots. Witness statements.

Timestamps so precise they might as well be coordinates on a map.

The file grew thicker by the minute, digital pages piling up until the folder on her desktop was heavier than a textbook.

This wasn’t just evidence.

It was a verdict waiting to be delivered.

By the time Jaeyi leaned back in her chair, the digital dossier on Ara and her minions was airtight. One click and their entire reign of petty cruelty would crumble.

She opened the student council email list, typed out the subject line:

“Emergency Student Assembly – Attendance Required”

Her message was short, formal, and vague, just enough to stir curiosity.

In light of recent concerns regarding campus safety and respect, all students are required to attend an emergency assembly tomorrow at 9 a.m.

She read it once more, smirk tugging at her lips, and hit send .

Just as the confirmation ping faded, she heard the faint rustle of sheets.

Jaeyi turned, and there she was, Seulgi,sitting up in bed, rubbing her eyes with a sleepy little pout. The sight tugged at something deep in Jaeyi’s chest. She had to physically stop herself from walking over, taking Seulgi’s face in her hands, and kissing her until they both forgot what breathing was.

Instead, she softened her voice.

“Hey…”

Seulgi blinked at her, nose scrunching.

“I smell,” she said flatly.

Jaeyi blinked, caught off guard, then laughed. “You do?”

Seulgi nodded gravely. “I’m gonna shower. I smell like the basement.”

God, Jaeyi thought, you could smell like garbage and I’d still—

She swallowed the thought, smiling instead, just quietly happy Seulgi was back here.

Seulgi padded around, gathering her towel and toiletries from her suitcase. Her deodorant slipped from her grasp, rolling under the bed.

“I got it,” Jaeyi said, crouching down and reaching into the shadowed space.

Her fingers closed around the deodorant…but also something else. A silver necklace. A photo booth strip. A cherry lip balm. All hers.

She pulled them out, frowning faintly in confusion, then noticed Seulgi’s face.

Frozen. Eyes wide.

“I swear I didn’t take those, Jaeyi. It’s not me, I— I—” Her voice pitched up in panic.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Jaeyi said instantly, rising to her feet and catching her by the shoulders. “Breathe. I believe you, aegi, okay? And even if you did take these—” She smiled softly, “—I wouldn’t care. You can take anything you want from me, and I’ll give them to you. Gladly.”

Seulgi’s trembling eased. She let Jaeyi pull her into a hug. For a long second, she stayed stiff, then melted, tucking her face into Jaeyi’s neck.

Jaeyi’s throat tightened when she felt the faint brush of Seulgi’s lips against her skin.

“Thank you… for being a great friend,” Seulgi murmured.

Friend. The word thudded dully in Jaeyi’s chest, but she didn’t let it show. She only smiled and pulled back.

“Stay here,” she said, nudging Seulgi toward the bed. “I’ll get the shower ready for you. Don’t want you burning yourself with too-hot water again, yeah?”

Seulgi managed a soft genuine laugh.

And Jaeyi decided right there she’d kill anyone who took that sound away again.

Chapter Text

By 8:15 a.m., their room smelled faintly of Jaeyi’s shampoo and the faint, toasty scent from the hair dryer. Seulgi sat cross-legged in front of Jaeyi’s desk, a towel around her shoulders, head tilted slightly forward as warm air ruffled through her hair. The school uniform’s collar peeked out, still a little rumpled from when she’d put it on half-asleep.

“What’s this assembly about, anyway?” Seulgi asked, her voice soft but curious. “Is it a club thing? Or…something academic? They didn’t say in the email.” Her fingers tugged at her sleeve, a nervous tic.

Jaeyi’s comb paused, her lips twitching into a secretive smile. “Oh, you know, just Chaehwa being Chaehwa. They love a random assembly to keep us on our toes.” She tilted the dryer, fluffing Seulgi’s hair with care. “Could be anything, new rules, some donor speech.”

Seulgi frowned, unconvinced. “But it’s so sudden. Don’t they usually plan these weeks ahead? What if it’s about—” She cut herself off, the rumors, Seulgi’s obsessed, watches Jaeyi sleep, steals her stuff, crawling back into her mind.

“Don’t overthink, aegi. It’s normal to suddenly have assemblies,” Jaeyi cut in smoothly, eyes focused on combing through a stubborn tangle.

Seulgi narrowed her eyes at the vague answer but didn’t push. “Huh. Okay.” She yawned, the steady rhythm of Jaeyi’s combing making her eyelids heavier.

Jaeyi laughed, switching off the dryer. “Don’t fall asleep on me, baby. We’ve gotta go soon.” She set the dryer down, her fingers lingering to tuck a strand behind Seulgi’s ear.

That earned her a small groan from Seulgi. The thought of walking into the gym full of whispering students instantly put a knot in her stomach. “Right. I almost forgot I have to… y’know… face everyone.”

She stood, turning to face Jaeyi, their heights aligning so close she could see the flecks of gold in Jaeyi’s eyes. Her stomach twisted at the thought of facing the school’s stares, the whispers that had driven her to that damp basement room. “I… I don’t know if I can do this,” she murmured.

Jaeyi’s grin softened, her hand reaching out to boop Seulgi’s nose with a playful finger. “You can, because I’m right here. Trust me, after today, everything’s gonna be okay.” Her voice held a promise, steady and warm, like she could bend the world to her will.

Seulgi’s lips twitched into a small smile, her cheeks warming. “Okay,” she whispered, trusting Jaeyi’s certainty, if only for now.

“Okay.” Jaeyi said lightly, unplugging the dryer. “Let’s go to the convenience store first. Snacks before stress.”

That, at least, got Seulgi’s full attention. “Okay, I like that plan.”

“Thought you might,” Jaeyi murmured, brushing a stray strand of hair into place.

The convenience store’s cold fluorescent lights hum above them. Seulgi beelines straight to the bread aisle like she’s been on a mission all day, eyes brightening at a row of neatly wrapped sweet buns. Jaeyi lingers by the door, smiling despite herself, her aegi is cute when she’s distracted by food.

She strolls after her, picking up a few Snickers bars along the way.

Seulgi turns, holding up a canned pineapple juice like she’s found treasure. “Jaeyi-yah, you liked this, right? You finished it when I bought it for you the first time.”

Jaeyi freezes for half a second. Oh. That juice. The one fruit she hates. She groaned inwardly, but Seulgi’s earnest look melted her resolve. She’d drink a dozen more if it kept that smile on her face, so she just hums and nods. “Mm. Sure did.”

A tiny regret prickles her, why did she ever tell Seulgi she’d eat anything she gave her?

At the cashier, Seulgi insisted on paying for their snacks this time, her fingers fumbling with coins from her worn wallet. Jaeyi leaned against the counter, watching Seulgi.

Afterwards, as they turned to leave, the store’s door chimed, and Kim Sora walked in.

Sora’s eyes widen the instant she spots them. She pivots, already halfway out, when Jaeyi’s voice cuts clean through the air.

“Sora-ssi.”

The girl stops mid-step, spine stiffening. She turns back, bowing quickly. “Jaeyi…hi.”

Jaeyi sauntered closer, her smile composed, almost friendly to the cashier’s glance. But up close, her eyes were cold, sharp enough to cut. Sora shrank back as Jaeyi stopped inches away, her presence towering despite their equal height. “You know there’s an assembly later, right?” Jaeyi asked, her tone deceptively light.

Sora nodded, swallowing hard.

“Well,” Jaeyi raised a hand, and Sora flinched, but Jaeyi only smoothed down her crooked collar, fingers lingering. “Attendance is required,” she said, voice low. “Make sure Cho Ara and your little circle are there, yeah?”

“Y-Yes,” Sora stammered, her face pale.

“Good. See you then.” Jaeyi’s smile returned, bright and untouchable. She turned, grabbing Seulgi’s hand with a gentle tug. “C’mon, aegiya.” They breezed out, leaving Sora rooted to the spot, the door chiming behind them.

Seulgi glanced back, warily. “What did you tell her?”

Jaeyi squeezed her hand, her grin softening. “Nothing. Just making sure everyone’s ready for today.”

The gym smelled faintly of floor polish and fresh paint, the hum of hundreds of students bouncing off the high ceiling. Seulgi followed in Jaeyi’s wake, the din pressing closer with every step. She kept her gaze down, the shuffle of her shoes loud in her own ears.

Jaeyi didn’t stop until they reached the very front row. She guided Seulgi into the seat, a firm but gentle hand at her shoulder.

“I’ll be right back after this,” Jaeyi said, stepping back toward the aisle.

Seulgi blinked at her. “Oh…you’re the one speaking today?”

Jaeyi’s mouth tipped into a small, knowing smile. “Mm.”

“Well…good luck,” Seulgi murmured.

That earned her a soft pat on the head, fingers lingering just enough to be reassuring. “If you feel nervous or anxious,” Jaeyi said, voice low so only Seulgi could hear, “just look at me on stage.”

Seulgi’s lips curved faintly. “Okay.”

Then Jaeyi turned, walking up the steps to the stage with the kind of calm that didn’t need to announce itself. She took the podium, adjusted the microphone, and let the room quiet on its own.

“In light of recent concerns regarding campus safety and respect,” she began, her voice carrying without strain, “I’d like to talk about what it means to have integrity…and to protect the friendships we build here.”

The gym stilled, save for the occasional creak of the bleachers.

She spoke slowly, deliberately. “Respect is not just about rules, it’s about how we choose to treat people when no one’s looking.”

A screen behind her flickered on. Messages appeared, screenshot after screenshot, every word cruel in its precision. The crowd murmured. Then came the grainy CCTV footage, hallway angles, stairwells, the shadows of shoves and snickers, someone’s shoulder jerking from the impact of a push.

No names yet. Just the evidence. The whispers grew, rippling like wind through tall grass.

Jaeyi’s expression didn’t change. “These are not stories I’ve heard secondhand. These are facts. Captured. Documented. And it’s important we see them for what they are.”

The last clip froze mid-frame, a familiar knot of students caught on screen.

She turned to face the room fully. Her next words were crisp, each one cutting through the air:

“Cho Ara, Kim Sora, Song Minji, Park Jiyeon, Lee Soomin, and Kang Jisung”

The names landed like weights dropped into water, the ripples of reaction spreading fast. Jaeyi didn’t need to raise her voice.

“These incidents were yours. Every student in this school deserves to walk through the halls without fear of humiliation or harm. And you—” she glanced toward their side of the gym, eyes like frost on glass “—owe them that respect.”

No swearing. No shouting. Just the truth, laid bare and undeniable.

From the front row, Seulgi’s chest tightened, not from fear this time, but from something sharp and warm blooming under her ribs.

Jaeyi stood there under the stage lights, the large screen behind her frozen on a still frame from the CCTV footage, Ara’s hand mid-shove, the other girl’s books scattering across the hallway floor. The room was so quiet you could hear the hum of the projector.

She took a slow breath, eyes sweeping over the students below like a hawk over a field.

“I could tell you why this behavior is unacceptable,” Jaeyi said, her voice steady, “but I think you’re all capable of understanding that for yourselves. Or at least, you should be.”

Her fingers tapped the remote. Another screenshot appeared: Ara laughing in a group chat, mocking a crying first-year.

“Ara,” Jaeyi says, voice even, “your group chat name is…creative. Not very subtle, though.”

A ripple of muffled laughter runs through the crowd. Ara shifts in her seat, cheeks burning, and Jaeyi doesn’t even give her the mercy of a pause.

“Here’s the thing about cruelty,” Jaeyi continued, the faintest hint of a smirk playing at her lips, “It has a way of leaving fingerprints. And I happen to be very good at finding them.”

She turned slightly, her gaze landing right on Ara and her friends, each of them frozen in their seats, faces pale, trying not to shrink.

“I’m not here to yell,” she said softly, almost kindly. “I’m here to make sure everyone knows exactly who you are.”

More images rolled. Witness statements. Time stamps. Anonymous reports that were now anything but anonymous. She didn’t embellish. She didn’t exaggerate. She didn’t need to.

And then, mid-sentence, Jaeyi’s eyes flicked toward the front row. Straight to Seulgi.

A wink. Small, quick, deliberate.

Seulgi’s breath caught, and then before she could stop herself, a small laugh escaped. It broke through the oppressive silence, light and warm in the thick air. Several heads turned toward her, but she didn’t care.

Jaeyi’s smirk deepened. She turned back to the audience, her voice silk and steel. “Let this be a reminder,” she said, “that titles and popularity will not protect you when the truth is this loud.”

Ara’s eyes dropped to the floor. The rest of the gym stayed silent, all of them watching their queen dismantle her enemies piece by piece, without ever raising her voice.

“And lastly, these rumors about Woo Seulgi.”

Jaeyi doesn’t raise her voice once. She doesn’t need to. The microphone carries every word with crisp, unshakable clarity.

“Well,” she says, clicking to the next slide, “let’s address the diary.”

The projector throws the image on the gym wall, pages filled with shaky handwriting about watching her sleep , hearts drawn in the margins, sketches of Jaeyi’s face. The murmurs swell, the crowd leaning in.

Jaeyi tilts her head, calm as a blade.

“This was supposedly found among Woo Seulgi’s belongings. It was supposedly hers. It was supposedly proof she’s…” her mouth curves in faint distaste, “…obsessed with me.”

She lets the whispers spread a heartbeat longer before clicking again.

CCTV stills, timestamped. Minji slipping into Jaeyi’s room, pulling something from her desk, then stuffing it under Seulgi’s bed.

“Manufactured. Planted. A lie from start to finish.” Her voice stays steady, each word dropped like a stone into still water. “Ara, Minji, Sora, Jiyeon, Soomin, Jisung. You thought you were clever.”

Another click, a clip of Ara bumping Seulgi to make her out of bakance and hit the metal bench. Gasps.

“You weren’t clever. Just cruel.”

Her eyes sweep the room, daring anyone to meet them.

“Let me be perfectly clear: Woo Seulgi is my roommate. She is my best friend . She is under my protection. And anyone who thinks they can harass her, isolate her, or touch so much as a strand of her hair…”

She looks right at Ara’s row.

“…will answer to me.”

Her gaze drifts then, finds Seulgi, still sitting in the front row, half-stunned, half-warm-cheeked from the attention. Jaeyi’s expression softens for a beat.

Jaeyi’s smirk sharpens before she returns to the mic.

“Rumors are easy. Proof is harder. I suggest you remember that the next time you think about manufacturing either.”

The murmurs in the gym hadn’t died down by the time Jaeyi stepped off the stage. Ara and her little entourage were stiff in their seats, faces pale under the fluorescent lights. The principal, stone-faced, had already made his way to the aisle where they sat.

“You six. Office. Now.”

It wasn’t loud, but it carried. The crowd parted like water, watching as the six of them stood, some muttering protests under their breath, others trying to keep their heads high. Every step toward the door was an unspoken walk of shame, eyes from every direction tracking them.

Seulgi sat frozen in her seat near the front, heart hammering. She glanced at Jaeyi, who was coming back down from the stage. The girl’s expression was calm, almost bored but there was a glint in her eye like she’d just won a war.

When Jaeyi reached her, she leaned down slightly, speaking low enough for only Seulgi to hear.

“See? Told you I’d handle it.”

Seulgi swallowed, torn between relief and disbelief. “You didn’t just handle it…you burned their entire world down.”

That earned her the faintest smile. “And I’d do it again.”

From the doorway, the principal’s voice called the names again, sharper this time, and Ara shot Jaeyi a look full of pure venom.

Jaeyi didn’t flinch. She just tilted her head, slow and deliberate, the picture of control, before turning back to Seulgi. “Come on. Let’s get you out of the spotlight for a bit.”

Jaeyi walks Seulgi all the way back to their room, her pace slowing when she notices how drained Seulgi looks. She unlocks the door, ushers her inside like she’s shepherding something fragile, and immediately checks the snack stash.

“You have enough?” she asks, already pulling out a pack of her favorite chips and dropping them into Seulgi’s lap before waiting for an answer.

Seulgi blinks, a little stunned by the gentleness. “Snacks?…Yeah.”

Jaeyi narrows her eyes at the “yeah,” clearly unconvinced, and makes a detour to her desk. She unplugs her laptop and sets it down in front of Seulgi. “Here. Watch something. Something dumb . Don’t think too much.”

“…huh, where are you going?” Seulgi asks, holding Jaeyi’s laptop in confusion.

“Don’t get crumbs on it,” Jaeyi says, ignoring her question and already halfway to the door. “I’ll be back.”

When she reaches the principal’s office, she doesn’t knock, just walks in like she owns the place. The principal straightens in his seat immediately. Ara and her five friends are already there, sitting stiff and avoiding her eyes.

“Miss Yoo,” the principal began, voice careful.

“I’ll make this quick,” Jaeyi doesn’t sit. She stays standing, all coiled elegance and cold fire. “They failed to uphold student conduct standards,” she says evenly. “That alone is grounds for expulsion.”

Ara’s lip curled. “You’re overreacting—”

“Quiet.” The word was soft, almost polite, but it landed like a whip crack. “If I wanted to, I could have you all dragged out of here by your hair. I’m here because I’m giving the school the opportunity to handle this…internally.”

The principal cleared his throat. “We’ll investigate, but—”

Jaeyi pulled out a usb drive and, without looking at it, slid it across the table. “You don’t have to. I’ve already done the investigation. Video, audio, timestamps. Witness statements.” She met the principal’s eyes. “You’ll find it all in that folder labeled Idiots. ”

Ara’s friends shifted uncomfortably.

The principal hesitates. “Miss Yoo…you know we can’t—”

“Why not?” Jaeyi cuts in. “Because their parents have money? Because you’re afraid of a few board members?” She leans forward, voice dropping. “They targeted a scholar. They lied, harassed, planted evidence, and smeared her reputation in front of the entire school. They did it under your watch.”

Ara shifts uncomfortably, but Jaeyi’s gaze pins her in place. “If I can prove it in front of every student in that gym, then you can enforce the rules. Unless, of course, you’d like me to call my father and explain why his donation to this school is funding bullies instead of honor students.”

The principal swallows. “Miss Yoo, the board—”

“I don’t care. I expect them removed from campus immediately,” Jaeyi continued, tone calm, almost bored. “If not expulsion, then fine, transfer. Somewhere far enough that I never have to see their faces again. I don’t care if it’s your satellite campus in the countryside. Get them out of Seoul.”

The principal hesitated. “That’s… a severe measure.”

“You’ve seen the evidence. You know I’m right.” Jaeyi’s voice was even, almost kind.“And you know who my family is. Do you really want me to explain to my father why his daughter isn’t safe at your school?”

That shut him up. “We can arrange that.”

Jaeyi straightens, her expression softening just enough to be condescending. “Good. I wouldn’t want this to happen to another student. Especially one under your protection.”

As she leaves, she doesn’t look back at Ara’s group, just lets the sound of her heels echo in the hallway like a gavel hitting wood.

When Jaeyi finally slips back into the dorm, the irritation from the principal’s office still clings to her shoulders, until her gaze lands on the lump on her bed.

Seulgi’s there, curled up against the headboard, Jaeyi’s laptop propped on her knees, a bag of chips open beside her. One of the pillows is tucked between her side and the wall, like she’s trying to make herself as small as possible in someone else’s space.

The sight pulls the sharpness out of Jaeyi instantly.

When Seulgi notices her, she startles a little, then blushes.

Jaeyi arches a brow, amused. “My bed, my laptop…anything else of mine you want to claim?”

Seulgi straightens instantly, tucking her hair behind her ear. “The outlet’s next to your bed. The laptop needed charging,” she says quickly.

Jaeyi’s smirk sharpens. “Mhm. Or maybe…” she tilts her head, “you just missed me.”

Seulgi scoffs, the tips of her ears going pink. “You’re delusional.”

Jaeyi just laughs, tossing her tie onto her desk, shrugging out of her blazer. She kicks off her shoes, every movement deliberate but unhurried, then climbs onto the bed.

Seulgi shifts like she’s about to get up. “Here—”

“Wait.” Jaeyi’s hand presses gently to Seulgi’s thigh, a quiet but certain anchor. “Stay.”

Seulgi freezes mid-motion, then sits back down, awkwardly spreading her legs again. She pauses the movie, setting the laptop aside.

Jaeyi moves closer, crawling up until she’s between Seulgi’s legs, her head finding a home against Seulgi’s stomach. She exhales in a heavy flop, like she’s finally let go of the day.

Seulgi goes rigid, every nerve firing at the unexpected weight and warmth against her. Physical touch still feels like a language she hasn’t learned to speak.

“Can you cuddle me?” Jaeyi murmurs, voice pitched softer now, almost a whine. “I’m so tired.”

Seulgi hesitates. Then, slowly, carefully, her arm comes around Jaeyi’s shoulders, her other hand sliding up to comb through the sleek fall of Jaeyi’s hair.

Jaeyi sighs, melting into her with no resistance. Without lifting her head, she reaches for the laptop, presses play on the paused movie, and lets the sound fill the space.

It’s quiet for a while, the only movement Jaeyi’s steady breathing and Seulgi’s absent-minded stroking of her hair.

Then Seulgi speaks, voice low. “Thank you.”

Jaeyi tilts her head up, heavy-lidded. “For what?”

“For…having my back. With Ara and the others.”

Jaeyi huffs a small, dismissive sound and drops her head back down. “Don’t mention it.”

Her words were sleepy, but it carried a weight that made Seulgi feel warm inside.

Jaeyi’s breathing evens out before Seulgi realizes she’s fallen asleep. The movie’s still playing, so Seulgi carefully reaches for the laptop at her side, clicking pause. She sets it down on the nightstand with the precision of someone handling an explosive, making sure not to jostle the girl sprawled over her.

With one free hand, she tugs the blanket up over Jaeyi’s shoulders. The moment the soft weight settles on her, Jaeyi shifts, tightening her hold around Seulgi’s waist as if afraid she might slip away.

A low murmur escapes her, something incoherent, half a word swallowed by sleep. Seulgi freezes, waiting to see if she’s woken her. But Jaeyi only burrows closer, her cheek now pressed to Seulgi’s sweater.

Seulgi lets out a quiet sigh. Her legs are starting to tingle, pins and needles threatening mutiny, but there’s no way she can move without dislodging the human heater wrapped around her.

So she just…stays.

Her eyes linger on Jaeyi’s sleeping face, her lashes resting lightly against her skin, her expression soft and unguarded in a way Seulgi rarely sees.

The memory of Ara’s sneer flashes in her mind, followed by the sharp, cool way Jaeyi had cut her down in front of everyone. No hesitation. No second thought.

Seulgi swallows, the weight of it settling in her chest. She’s never had someone stand up for her like that, not like this.

Her fingers twitch slightly before brushing a stray lock of hair from Jaeyi’s face.
“…Thanks,” she whispers, though she knows Jaeyi can’t hear her.

She leans her head back against the wall, resigned to the fact she’s not getting up anytime soon.

And maybe, she doesn’t really mind.

She kept still, staring at the ceiling while the soft sound of Jaeyi’s breathing echo against her stomach.

Her legs were numb, her arm was pinned, and Jaeyi was practically half-sprawled over her like she owned the space, which, to be fair, she kind of did, considering this was technically her bed.

This must be what really close friends do, Seulgi thought. Like…best friend level close. Maybe even extra-best friends. Yeah.

She glanced down. Jaeyi’s hair was messy from sleep, her lips parted slightly. Without thinking, Seulgi brushed a few strands away from her face. Yup. Totally normal.

Friends fix each other’s hair when they’re asleep.

Her heart was beating too fast, though. Weird. Probably because she was still wound up from the whole Ara situation earlier. Adrenaline or something. Definitely not because Jaeyi’s hand was resting under her shirt where she’d bunched up the fabric in her sleep.

She swallowed.

This was…nice. Safe. Warm. No one had ever held her like this before, not even her mom when she was a kid. Jaeyi’s just the affectionate type.

It didn’t occur to Seulgi that Jaeyi wasn’t like this with anyone else. It didn’t occur to her that friends didn’t usually curl up around each other like puzzle pieces, or whisper in their sleep, or call someone “under my protection” in front of the entire school like some kind of declaration.

Nope.

In Seulgi’s head, this was just friendship at its purest.

She smiled to herself, cheeks warm. “I’m really lucky to have a friend like you,” she whispered.

And somewhere, in whatever dream Jaeyi was having, she probably sensed the universe playing a cruel joke on her.

Seulgi’s eyes had grown heavier with each minute, the warmth from Jaeyi’s body seeping into her like a lullaby. She’d told herself she was only staying like this because Jaeyi had fallen asleep first, and it would be rude, maybe even mean, to wake her up just to move.

Besides, friends could cuddle…right? Sure, it was close, and Jaeyi’s hair tickled her chin every time she breathed in, but that was normal. Totally normal. Friends looked out for each other, and if that meant letting her arms wrap around Jaeyi’s waist and fitting her like a puzzle piece, then so be it.

Her brain refused to consider the possibility that her thumb tracing lazy circles against Jaeyi’s hip meant anything beyond comfort. Or that the subtle perfume clinging to Jaeyi’s hair made her heart beat a little faster. Nope. Just friendship.

Jaeyi shifted in her sleep, pressing back into her, and Seulgi instinctively tightened her hold, chin dipping to rest against the top of Jaeyi’s head. Yeah. This was fine.

Absolutely fine. Friends did this all the time.

She didn’t even notice when her own breathing matched Jaeyi’s, her chest rising and falling in time with hers. Eventually, with nothing left to distract her and the room filled with the slow hum of the air conditioner, Seulgi drifted off, still curved protectively around Jaeyi like it was the most natural thing in the world.

They slept the entire afternoon away, Seulgi unknowingly becoming the big spoon to Jaeyi’s small spoon, her obliviousness a quiet tragedy for anyone watching.

Jaeyi woke first.

The curtains were still drawn, the room wrapped in a warm, lazy dimness. She turned her head on the pillow and found Seulgi’s back to her now, facing the other side, hair messy, breathing even. The clock on the nightstand read 1:04 PM .

With a soft sigh, Jaeyi shifted, sitting up against the headboard. The mattress dipped, and maybe that movement was enough, Seulgi stirred, rolling back toward her. Still asleep, she burrowed into her side, one arm hooking loosely around Jaeyi’s waist.

Jaeyi froze.

She’s never done that before. Not once. It was always Jaeyi initiating the touching, the leaning, the tugging Seulgi close.

And now Seulgi was the one seeking her warmth.

Jaeyi could feel her pulse pick up. She kept still, afraid to break the spell, and tried not to think about what would happen if Seulgi ever started being clingy on a regular basis. I’d never survive. I’d just…disintegrate on the spot.

Her hand moved before she could stop herself, brushing the messy hair from Seulgi’s forehead. She leaned down, heartbeat in her ears, and kissed her on the forehead, light, lingering.

When she pulled back, she nearly jumped. Seulgi was awake. Eyes blinking up at her in slow focus, lashes still clumped from sleep.

The tips of her ears turned pink.

“Good afternoon, sleepyhead,” Jaeyi murmured like nothing happened.

Seulgi groaned softly, shutting her eyes again and burrowing into the pillow, face hidden, the picture of someone refusing to acknowledge reality.

“Late lunch?” Jaeyi asked.

The only reply was a muffled hum that could’ve meant yes , no , or go away .

Jaeyi laughed under her breath, reaching for her phone. She was about to check nearby restaurants when a notification caught her eye, a message from the principal.

It’s been arranged. Ara and her group will be moved to another branch. In exchange, six students from that branch will transfer here.

She read it twice. Relief spread through her like warm tea on a cold morning. She didn’t care who these six strangers were, Ara and her little pack of hyenas would be gone, far away from Seulgi.

She put her phone down and looked back at the lump in her bed, still curled under the blankets. Let them move the entire school around if they want. As long as you’re safe.

Chapter Text

Joo Yeri was used to people staring.

It wasn’t arrogance, it was just a fact of her life. The kind of fact you eventually stop noticing unless someone points it out. She’d been told more than once that she was “the campus Barbie,” which made her laugh every time. She didn’t exactly see herself that way, but she wasn’t blind, she knew she had the kind of looks that got her free drinks, quicker service, and invitations she never asked for.

Still, popularity was exhausting when there was nothing new to it. Which was why, when the announcement came, she almost hugged the principal.

Yeri leaned against the chair in the principal’s office, her manicured nails tapping a cheerful rhythm on her designer bag. The room smelled of old books and lemon polish, its mahogany desk dwarfing the five other girls seated beside her, strangers, mostly, except for Hana, who’d once borrowed her lip gloss.

Everyone else looked nervous, glancing between each other like they were about to be scolded. Yeri sat comfortably, one leg crossed over the other, hands folded on her lap.

Principal Bae cleared her throat. “Thank you for coming, ladies. I have significant news.”

Yeri’s eyes sparkled with curiosity, her head tilting like a puppy’s. The other girls shifted nervously.

“Due to recent…developments at our Seoul Branch,” the principal continued, her voice clipped, “six students have been removed from their roster. You six have been selected to transfer to Chaehwa Girls’ Boarding School, Seoul Branch, effective immediately.”

The others exchanged murmurs, half confusion, half disbelief.

Yeri, on the other hand, smiled. Seoul.

Finally.

She’d been stuck at the Daegu branch for over a year now, ever since her parents decided a “change of scenery” would be good for her after they moved for her father’s business. Which, fine. She’d adapted. Made friends. Took over the social ladder in record time. But Daegu wasn’t Seoul. It wasn’t the city she’d grown up in, where she knew every café worth visiting and every boutique worth blowing allowance money on.

The thought of being back in Seoul felt like slipping into her favorite heels. Comfortable. Familiar. Home .

The principal’s eyes landed on her for a moment, probably noticing her smile. “You seem pleased, Miss Joo.”

“I am,” Yeri replied honestly. “I’m from Seoul. I’m excited to go back.”

One of the other girls, a short-haired one who always sat at the back of class, whispered, “Lucky you.”

Yeri gave her a polite smile, then turned her attention back to the principal.

“Why us?” Hana asked, her voice small. Yeri glanced at her, noting the worry in her eyes.

“Your academic records and extracurriculars make you ideal candidates,” the principal said, though her tone suggested there was more to the story. Yeri’s lips twitched. Developments probably meant some juicy drama. Seoul was never boring.

“You’ll be briefed about the changes at the Seoul Branch once you arrive,” Principal Bae continued. “For now, pack your belongings. The transfer will take place tomorrow morning.”

The meeting ended, and Yeri stood, slinging her bag over her shoulder. “Chaehwa Seoul Branch,” she said under her breath. “Let’s have some fun.” she murmured, already imagining her grand return. Whatever drama had cleared the way for her transfer, she was ready to light up Chaehwa’s halls and maybe make a few real friends along the way.

The moment they were outside, one of the girls muttered something under her breath and stomped off. Yeri didn’t bother listening. She had better things to do than comfort a stranger.

Like packing. And calling her girlfriend.

She walked the familiar path to her dorm room, phone already in her hand. She had a lot to pack, her clothes alone could fill three suitcases, but her heart wasn’t in the logistics. She was too busy smiling at the thought of Choi Kyung’s face when she tells her the news.

Yeri tapped Kyung’s name on her screen and lifted the phone to her ear.

The line clicked.

“Hello?” Kyung’s voice came, warm and just a tiny bit distracted, like she was half-buried in a book.

“Babe,” Yeri drawled, leaning against her doorframe, “how do you feel about seeing me a lot more  from now on?”

“What?”

“Guess who’s transferring to Chaehwa Seoul Branch?”

There was a pause, followed by a soft gasp. “No way. You’re coming here?”

“Mm-hm. They’re moving me and five other girls tomorrow. Which means…” Yeri’s smile grew wider, “…we can actually have real dates instead of video calls. And I can bring you coffee after your insane study marathons.”

On the other end, Choi Kyung laughed, a bright, slightly awkward laugh that Yeri adored. She could picture her perfectly: black bob tucked behind her round glasses, probably sitting cross-legged on her bed surrounded by textbooks, her sweater sleeves pushed up. Kyung was nothing like the glitzy crowd Yeri usually drew in, she was gentle, endlessly curious, and so adorably earnest it made Yeri’s chest ache in the best way.

“That’s…wow, that’s the best thing I’ve heard all month,” Kyung said softly. “You’re not just teasing me, right?”

“Would I tease you about something this big?” Yeri leaned back in her chair, smiling up at the ceiling. “We’re going to see each other all the time now. I can finally take you to that patisserie I keep talking about. And you can take me to your secret hideaway comic book shop.”

Kyung groaned playfully. “I don’t have one, you silly…but wait, why though? What happened?”

Yeri twirled around in her chair, “Some drama with six girls getting kicked out, I think. They needed replacements, and I’m one of them. Which means…” She lowered her voice, teasing, “I get to annoy you, like, all the time now.”

Kyung’s laugh was shy but warm. “You’re gonna drag me to every cafe in Gangnam, aren’t you?”

“Obviously,” Yeri said, her voice warm and sure. “Now, I have to pack a ridiculous amount of stuff, so keep me company while I do it.”

As Yeri began pulling open drawers and folding clothes, Kyung’s voice stayed constant, chatting about her classes, the new movie she wanted to see, and the little bakery near her school. And with every word, Yeri felt more certain that this transfer wasn’t just good news, it was the start of something even better.

The next morning, Yeri woke up before her alarm, a rare feat she decided deserved applause. The sun had barely risen, spilling pale gold light through the curtains, but she was already dressed, oversized sunglasses perched on her head, a cream cashmere sweater, and fitted jeans that made her look like she was on her way to a casual magazine shoot rather than a school transfer. Her hair perfectly styled, and her suitcases zipped up and ready.

Her side of the room looked unusually neat, only because most of her belongings were now tucked inside her pastel luggage set, lined up by the door like well-behaved soldiers.

Dragging them out into the crisp morning air, she made her way to the parking lot. The school bus waited with its engine idling, exhaust curling into the cold. The five other transferees stood in small clumps, chatting in hushed, excited tones, their own bags piled beside them.

Yeri tossed her suitcases into the bus’s storage compartment with a flick of her wrist, then climbed aboard, sliding into a window seat near the back. She took out her phone immediately, thumbs flying over the screen.

[Yeri 🌑 ] On my way~ Be in Seoul soon-ish. Prepare my welcome parade.

Almost instantly, Kyung replied with a shy but sweet:

[Kyungie ☀️] Just be safe, please. I’ll see you soon. Love you!

[Yeri 🌑 ] Love you more!

Yeri smiled to herself, tucking her phone away. The thought of being in the same city as Kyung in just a few hours made her chest feel light.

Satisfied, she slipped into her assigned seat near the window. The ride was going to be at least three, maybe four hours depending on traffic. Perfect excuse to catch up on sleep, and she had every intention of arriving in Seoul looking fresh enough to make her girlfriend blush.

She popped in her wireless earbuds, queued up a soft playlist, and reclined against the seat with all the ease of someone who had long mastered the art of beauty sleep.

Still, her mind wouldn’t quiet entirely. She couldn’t help but wonder about the real reason behind the sudden transfers. Six girls plucked out of campus and sent to Seoul with barely a day’s notice? Sure, the principal had offered some vague explanation about “administrative reassignment,” but Yeri had an inkling it wasn’t that simple.

And if her gut was right…this probably had something to do with a certain childhood friend of hers.

Yoo Jaeyi.

Yeri smiled faintly at the thought, tugging her blanket scarf a little higher around her neck.

She wasn’t going there to cause drama. But if drama happened to wander into her path?

Well. She’d be watching with popcorn.

A gentle nudge to her shoulder dragged Yeri out of her doze. She blinked groggily, pulling out one earbud just in time to hear the girl sitting across the aisle say, “We’re here. Look.”

Yeri straightened immediately, pushing her sunglasses down over her eyes to peer out the window. Sure enough, the bus had just rolled past the tall wrought-iron gates of the Seoul branch campus. Beyond them stretched a sweeping drive lined with meticulously trimmed hedges and cherry blossom trees that were just starting to bloom, their pale pink petals dancing in the breeze.

Students in pristine uniforms walked in clusters along the pathways, some glancing curiously at the arriving bus.

“Finally,” she murmured, already feeling a jolt of anticipation wake her faster than any coffee could.

Her pulse picked up with a mix of excitement and curiosity. She stretched languidly, fixing her hair with practiced flicks of her fingers before pulling out her phone again. No new messages from Kyung, but that was fine, she had more pressing priorities.

The bus rumbled to a stop in front of an impressive building, three stories of pristine white stone, the school crest gleaming over the arched entrance. Staff members waited outside with clipboards, ready to greet them. Yeri smoothed her hair, dabbed a little lip tint from her pocket mirror, and grabbed her bag. Always arrive looking presentable; first impressions were currency.

The group was shepherded inside for a short orientation with the principal, a brisk overview of campus facilities, class schedules, and “the importance of maintaining the school’s reputation.”

Yeri smiled sweetly through it all, nodding at the right moments, though her mind was already three steps ahead. She had no intention of wasting the first day on unpacking alone.

As soon as she and Hana was shown to their dorm room, a bright, modern space with pale wood furniture and a neat little desk by the window, she wheeled her suitcases in and mentally filed them under deal with later . The instant the principal and staff excused themselves, she was already mentally ticking off her to-do list:

1. Drop luggage in new dorm. (Done.)
2. Smile politely through whatever welcome spiel the principal had prepared. (Done.)
3. Track down Yoo Jaeyi and extract every single morsel of gossip the universe owed her for this mysterious transfer.

That last one made her grin to herself. It had been too long since she’d seen her childhood friend, and Yeri had every intention of showing up in Jaeyi’s space unannounced, leaning casually against a doorframe, and saying something irritating just to watch that perfectly composed expression twitch.

Yeri grinned.

“Oh, Jaeyi,” she said under her breath, voice sing-song with anticipation, “I hope you’re ready for me.”

And with that, she stepped out into the hallway, the thrill of the hunt already in her stride.

The Seoul branch was alive with movement, students crossing courtyards with books in hand, others darting between clubrooms, the air buzzing with chatter and the occasional sharp clang from the music room.

Yeri strolled right through it all, utterly unbothered by the fact she had no classes until tomorrow. While her new dorm room sat untouched and unpacked, she was on a mission far more important than folding clothes.

She peeked through classroom windows, the corner of her lip twitching whenever a student inside looked up in confusion. She even stopped a few people in the hallway, flashing her most winning smile as she asked,

“Hey, do you know where Yoo Jaeyi is?”

Most didn’t. A few shrugged. One vaguely pointed toward the south wing.

By the time Yeri reached the cafeteria, she figured she deserved a break. She bought herself a cold drink, idly sipping as she scanned the room in case her quarry was here. No such luck.

It wasn’t until she cornered another student by the vending machines that she finally got a lead.

“Jaeyi? Pretty sure she’s got history right now. Room 2-14.”

Bingo.

Yeri made her way up the stairs, sipping the last of her drink as she approached the room. She peered in through the narrow glass panel on the door and there she was.

Yoo Jaeyi, head bent over a test paper, pen moving steadily.

Yeri’s grin widened. Perfect.

She leaned casually against the wall beside the door, positioning herself so there was no way Jaeyi could slip out without running into her. She considered calling Kyung to share her victory, but one glance at the time told her her girlfriend was probably in the middle of a lecture. No point in disturbing her.

Instead, Yeri settled into a comfortable stance, hands in her pockets, and let her gaze wander over the passing crowd. People-watching was almost as entertaining as the conversation she knew she was about to have, almost.

Every time the door handle so much as rattled, her smile twitched, ready for the moment her unsuspecting target emerged.

The class ended with the scrape of chairs and the shuffle of papers. Yoo Jaeyi stepped out, looking at her phone, only for Yeri to leap into her path.

“Hi, bestie! Missed me?” Yeri grinned.

Heads turned, students whispering about the new it girl cornering Chaehwa’s queen.

Jaeyi’s brows lifted slightly, but she didn’t look all that surprised.

“So you’re one of the transferees, huh?” she said, smoothly sidestepping.

Yeri pouted, catching up and linking her arm with Jaeyi’s. “Dude, it’s been a year. Not even a hug?”

Jaeyi stopped, turning to face her, one eyebrow arched. She studied Yeri, her designer bag, her flawless grin, then gave her shoulder a single, exaggerated pat. “Hey, Yeri. Welcome back.” Her smile was warm but smug, and she spun to keep walking.

Yeri rolled her eyes. “You’re so annoying sometimes.” She linked their arms again. “Anyway… about the sudden transfer? Know anything?”

Jaeyi shrugged, but the faint twitch of her lips gave her away.

“You do know something. Spill. I’m dying for some gossip.”

They stopped outside Jaeyi’s next class, Room 208, and Jaeyi turned, her smirk pure mischief. “Well, I made it happen,” she said, voice low and smug, then pushed the classroom door open and let it swing shut in Yeri’s face.

Yeri’s jaw dropped, “The audacity!” she huffed, fishing out her phone and dialing Jaeyi, mouthing through the classroom window, “Pick up, you gremlin!” Students inside giggled, and Jaeyi, rolling her eyes, answered just to avoid a scene.

“You’re so annoying!” Yeri whined, grinning. “Tell me everything, dude!”

“Fine, after class,” Jaeyi relented, her tone half-exasperated, half-amused.

“Great.” Yeri grinned. “Oh, by the way, what’s your dorm number?”

“Room 304.”

There was a beat. Jaeyi’s eyes went wide. “Wait—don’t—”

Too late. Yeri hung up, smirking as she strutted toward the west wing. Room 304, here she came. Jaeyi’s panic barely registered, probably just her usual drama-queen vibe. Yeri hummed a tune, already planning to raid Jaeyi’s snack stash and grill her about the scandal.

Back in the classroom, Jaeyi gripped her phone, heart racing. She’d forgotten about Seulgi, her shy, adorable aegi who blushed at a single touch. Yeri, with her flirty winks and unstoppable charm, was a walking disaster around her. Please, let Woo Seulgi be in class, Jaeyi thought. The image of Yeri, with her shameless flirting, in the same room as Seulgi made Jaeyi’s stomach knot.

Hopefully, Seulgi was in class.

Hopefully.

Yeri’s practically skipping down the hallway, phone in her pocket, smug from getting Jaeyi’s dorm number so easily. When she arrives, she realizes there’s a problem.

“Oh right, a keycard…”

She was about to leave when she hears faint music coming from inside. Not the type of music Jaeyi would ever play.

She’s got a roommate?

Yeri’s eyebrows shot up. Curiosity fully engaged, she rapped her knuckles on the door.

“It’s open!”

Yeri pushes the door open with a curious, “Hello…?”

And freezes.

Sitting at the small desk by the window is a girl with dark hair pulled into a loose ponytail, oversized sweater sleeves halfway over her hands, wide boba eyes flicking up from a notebook. She blinks once, twice, like she’s not sure if Yeri is real.

Yeri’s grin spread slow and wide. Oh, you’re adorable.

“Hi,” Yeri said brightly, leaning one shoulder against the doorframe like she owned the place. “What’s a puppy like you doing here?”

The girl blinks again, shoulders hunching slightly. “Um… hi?”

Yeri drops her bag and steps inside like she’s known her forever. “Hi, I’m Yeri. I’m Jaeyi’s best friend, which means—” she points dramatically between them “—we’re basically best friends now too.”

The girl smiles shyly, like she doesn’t quite know how to respond, which only makes

Yeri beam brighter. “What’s your name, puppy?”

“P-puppy?” the girl repeats, cheeks pinking.

“Yeah?” Yeri grins.

“...Seulgi.”

“Seulgi,” Yeri repeats, as if tasting the syllables, “Yep, fits. You’re totally a Seulgi. Look at you, big eyes, soft cheeks, ugh, no wonder Jaeyi never mentioned you, she’s probably trying to keep you all to herself.”

Seulgi’s ears go pink. “Oh, um—”

Yeri leans an elbow on the desk, grinning like a cat that’s cornered a particularly cute mouse. “So, do you bite? Or are you one of those sweet, waggy-tail types?”

Seulgi blinks, clearly caught off guard. “…Uh, I think I’m… friendly?”

“Friendly,” Yeri repeats, nodding like she’s analyzing a rare species. “Like a wittle Maltese?”

Seulgi lets out a tiny laugh, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “I guess… maybe?”

Yeri plops herself onto Jaeyi’s bed without asking, stretching out like she owns the place.

“So tell me, how’d you end up rooming with Jaeyi?” She props her head up on her palm, conspiratorial. “She’s notorious for never sharing a room. Like, ever. You must be special.”

“It was…a housing mix-up,” Seulgi admits, fiddling with the hem of her sleeve.

“What is she like as a roommate?”

Seulgi hesitates. “…She’s…nice?”

Yeri’s brows shoot up. “ Nice ? That’s the best you’ve got? Wow, she must really be holding back. Jaeyi’s usually more…,” she twirls a hand in the air, searching for the word, “…intense.”

Seulgi tilts her head. “Intense how?”

Yeri smirks, clearly enjoying herself. “Let’s just say she likes to turn her charm up to eleven when she meets someone she’s interested in.”

The words hang in the air, and Seulgi doesn’t quite know what to do with them, though her cheeks are definitely warmer now.

Yeri grins wider, like she’s found exactly the reaction she was fishing for. “Don’t worry, puppy. I’m just teasing.” She grabs her phone and scrolls casually, though her eyes keep flicking up to Seulgi like she’s watching a live drama.

“Hey puppy?”

“M-my name’s Seulgi…”

“Do you think Jaeyi’s pretty?” Yeri asks boldly.

Seulgi nearly chokes on her own breath. “W-what?”

“C’mon, it’s a simple question,” Yeri teases, laying on her back now, looking like she’s got all day to wait for an answer. “Is she your type?”

Seulgi’s ears turn red. “I don’t—uh—she’s…objectively pretty, I guess.”

“‘Objectively,’” Yeri repeats with a smirk, clearly filing that away for future teasing.

Somewhere across campus, Jaeyi is blissfully unaware that her best friend is currently planting all sorts of dangerous ideas in her roommate’s head.

Yeri spends the next hour happily demolishing Jaeyi’s snack stash, well, Seulgi’s stash really, since Jaeyi doesn’t touch snacks, and peppering Seulgi with questions. Seulgi finds herself answering more than she expected, the conversation strangely easy despite the relentless teasing.

An hour later, Yeri leans in, eyes sparkling with mischief.

“So,” she drawls, “do you think I’m pretty?”

Seulgi freezes mid-breath, cheeks already warm. “I—uh—”

That’s exactly when the door swings open.

“Yeri, I swear if you—” Jaeyi stops short. She’s slightly out of breath, clearly having speed-walked across campus, and the scene before her makes her eyes narrow to laser precision.

Seulgi is staring up at Yeri, pink-cheeked and wide-eyed.

Yeri is leaning in far too close, smiling like she’s found her new favorite toy.

“Yeri,” Jaeyi says, voice sharp. “Away from my roommate.”

Yeri tilts her head, pure innocence. “What? We’re bonding. You should be happy I’m making friends.” She ruffles Seulgi’s hair, earning a startled squeak.

Jaeyi’s jaw tightens. “I’m thrilled . Now leave.”

“Aw, relax, bestie,” Yeri laughs, grabbing her bag. “You know me, I’m just saying hi.” She keans in to whisper in Jaeyi’s ear. “She’s adorable, by the way. Really your type.”

Seulgi blinks between them, confusion all over her face. Jaeyi steps inside and shuts the door firmly behind Yeri, muttering something about “worst-case scenarios” and “never letting Yeri in here again.”

Out in the hall, Yeri’s already striding away, smug smile firmly in place. Oh, this year was going to be fun.

“What did she tell you?”

Seulgi blinks at her, swinging her legs idly where she’s perched on the edge of her chair. “Nothing important. We just talked… a lot.” She pauses. “Like, a lot.”

“Yeah, she’s talkative,” Jaeyi mutters, crossing to her bed to start gathering up the crinkly wrappers Yeri has left in her wake. “Too much most times.”

Seulgi tilts her head, the corners of her mouth curling up. “She seems nice though…”

“Not really,” Jaeyi says flatly, shaking out a blanket before tossing it aside. “You should stay away from her.”

“But she’s my friend now,” Seulgi says, pouting like that settles it.

Jaeyi drops the last wrapper into the trash and sits on her bed, directly facing Seulgi. “Is she now?”

Seulgi nods eagerly. “Yeah! She even has a nickname for me already!”

Jaeyi’s eyes narrow. “…What is it?”

Seulgi’s grin spreads, shy and bright at the same time. “She calls me puppy.”

Jaeyi’s whole body goes rigid. “The fuck did you say?”

Unfazed, Seulgi chirps, “You call me aegi, and Yeri calls me puppy.” She looks genuinely proud about it, like she’s just won some kind of friendship lottery.

Then she tilts her head again. “Is that another rich city girl thing? Making up nicknames for your friends?”

Jaeyi almost doubles over, comically, hands clutching her face like she’s on the verge of tears. Why did she ever tell Seulgi about the “rich city girl thing”? She’s just handed Yeri a free pass to flirt.

Jaeyi drags her hands down her face, peeking through her fingers. “…Puppy,” she repeats, voice flat like she’s tasting something bitter.

“Mm-hm!” Seulgi’s legs swing under the chair, her smile only growing. “She said it suits me. Isn’t that sweet?”

“No.”

Seulgi giggles anyway, completely ignoring the verdict. “It’s nice, though. Having another friend here. I didn’t think I’d make any so soon.” She tucks her hair behind her ear, looking genuinely touched. “She even said I should come hang out with her whenever you’re busy, so I’m not lonely.”

Jaeyi’s brows twitch. “Oh, she did , did she?”

“Yeah!” Seulgi nods enthusiastically.

Jaeyi exhales slowly, gripping the edge of her blanket like it’s keeping her from saying something that will get her arrested. “She’s very considerate,” she says, the sarcasm practically steaming off her.

Seulgi, oblivious, leans forward like she’s sharing a secret. “She also said you’re kind of scary.”

Jaeyi’s head snaps up. “Excuse me?”

“Not in a bad way!” Seulgi waves her hands frantically. “She just said people don’t really get close to you. Which I think is silly, because you’re actually really nice when you want to be.”

Jaeyi glares, but it’s the kind of glare aimed more at Yeri in absentia than at Seulgi. “She talks too much.”

“Mm-hm.” Seulgi nods, delighted. “I think we could all hang out together. You, me, and Yeri—”

“No,” Jaeyi says immediately.

Seulgi blinks. “Why not?”

“She’s…she’s a bad influence.”

Seulgi tilts her head again, confused. “She’s your best friend. Plus, she seemed really nice to me.“

“That’s how she gets you.”

Seulgi bites back a laugh, but her smile breaks through anyway. “You’re being dramatic.”

“I’m being realistic,” Jaeyi mutters, crossing her arms. “She’s trouble.”

Seulgi shrugs, still smiling. “She’s my new friend.”

“Uh-huh,” Jaeyi says, narrowing her eyes. “My friend first.”

“We can share,” Seulgi offers innocently.

Jaeyi stares at her, speechless, while Seulgi beams like she’s just solved a world problem.

Jaeyi has been reorganizing her desk for ten minutes now, not because it needed reorganizing but because it’s better than pacing like a lunatic. She’s not jealous . She’s just…deeply concerned about Seulgi’s safety around certain people.

Rich city girl things. That’s all.

Except, Seulgi shouldn’t let other girls do rich city girl things to her. That’s not a public service; it’s not a thing . That’s her thing. The cuddling, the hair fixing, the holding an umbrella just so—it’s all calculated. Purposeful. Flirting, even if Seulgi hasn’t connected the dots yet.

The idea of Yeri doing any of it makes her jaw tighten.

She pauses mid-motion, holding a pen she doesn’t remember picking up, and considers the logistics of smothering Yeri with one of the boarding school’s horrendously flat pillows. Probably doable. Messy, though. And there would be questions.

“Jaeyi-yah?”

She blinks, glancing over. Seulgi is sitting cross-legged on her bed, notebook in hand like she’s conducting an interview. “Mhmm baby?”

“What’s Yeri’s favorite color?”

Jaeyi stares. “Why?”

“So I can get her something nice,” Seulgi says simply. “She was so welcoming to me today.”

Jaeyi sets the pen down very carefully. “You don’t have to get her anything.”

“But I want to,” Seulgi says, as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. “Oh! what about snacks? Does she like sweet or savory?”

Jaeyi exhales slowly through her nose. “Aegiya.”

“Sweet, then?” Seulgi guesses cheerfully. “She kind of strikes me as a sweet person.”

Jaeyi’s eye twitches. “You’re sweet aegi, Yeri is anything but sweet.”

Unfazed, Seulgi flips a page in her notebook. “Okay, next, what’s her favorite subject? Does she like reading? Oh! Or sports?”

Jaeyi abandons her desk entirely and flops onto her bed, glaring at the ceiling like it owes her an apology. She can hear Seulgi scribbling something down, probably planning out friendship bracelets or matching keychains, completely unaware that she’s single-handedly fueling a slow-burning crisis in the next bed over.

When she still doesn’t answer, Seulgi pads over and leans over her bed, peering down.

“Hey,” she says gently, “you didn’t answer my questions.”

Jaeyi doesn’t even look at her.

“Jaeyi-yah,” Seulgi urges, rocking a little on her heels. “Just tell me what she likes. Please?”

Something in Jaeyi snaps. She sits up, grabs Seulgi by the wrist, and yanks her down onto the bed, wrapping her up in a sudden, tight hug.

“Why is it all Yeri this, Yeri that?” Jaeyi complains into Seulgi’s shoulder, voice muffled but unmistakably pouty. “You’ve already forgotten about me. I’m your roommate , remember?”

Seulgi freezes, arms hovering awkwardly because she doesn’t know if she’s supposed to hug back or wriggle free. “I didn’t forget—”

“Yes, you did,” Jaeyi cuts in dramatically. “All you do is talk about her now. You were not this excited to be friends with me, and now…”

Seulgi starts trying to wiggle free. “I—Jaeyi, I can’t—”

“See?” Jaeyi says, letting go with a dramatic sigh. She flops back onto the bed. “Now you don’t even want to hug me.”

“That’s not—” Seulgi starts, but her voice falters. Jaeyi’s sulking face is unexpectedly hard to look at without feeling…guilty? Bad? Something like that. “I’m just…excited I made another friend. That’s all.”

Jaeyi doesn’t answer, just stares at the ceiling.

Seulgi bites her lip, then blurts, “But—you’re my first friend here. And my roommate.”

“So?” Jaeyi mutters, not looking at her.

Seulgi feels her ears heating. She looks down at her hands, fidgeting. “…So you’re…different from Yeri.”

Jaeyi finally turns her head, one brow raised. “Oh.”

Her face warms, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips before she can stop it.

“Yeah…” Seulgi mumbles.

Jaeyi narrows her eyes just a little, the corners of her mouth curving like she’s about to pounce. “Different how?”

Seulgi frowns, caught off guard. “What do you mean, ‘how’?”

“You said I’m different from Yeri,” Jaeyi says, voice slow and deliberate. “So explain.”

“I—uh…” Seulgi glances away. “I don’t know, you just… are.”

“That’s not an answer.” Jaeyi shifts, propping herself up on her elbows, eyes locked on her. “What makes me different, Seulgi?”

Seulgi’s shoulders inch up toward her ears. “Well, you… you’re my roommate, so I see you every day, and you…help me a lot. And you… um…” She falters when Jaeyi’s expression softens, which is somehow even more distracting than the glare from earlier. “You do things.”

“Things?” Jaeyi prompts, sounding far too amused.

Seulgi scratches her cheek. “Like…fix my hair. Buy me snacks. Hold my hand when we walk. It’s…I don’t know. It’s nice.”

The last two words slip out quieter than she meant, and Seulgi freezes like she just realized she stepped into some sort of trap.

Jaeyi tilts her head, smile blooming slow and satisfied. “So…you like it when I do those things?”

Seulgi swallows, realizing too late there’s no way out. “…Yeah. I do.”

The silence that follows is thick, Jaeyi basking in victory, Seulgi too flustered to move.

Then Jaeyi leans back, looking smug.

“Good,” she says, settling under her blanket again. “Because I’m not going to stop.”

Seulgi stares for a beat, cheeks burning, before muttering something about needing to get her phone and practically fleeing to her own bed.

The bell above the café door jingles as Yeri and Kyung walk in, fingers loosely laced together. Kyung had shown up at campus unannounced to pick her up, which Yeri decided was both romantic and convenient, because now she had someone to unload her latest piece of Jaeyi-related intel on.

“I’m telling you,” Yeri starts, eyes bright with that unmistakable glint of gossip, “this is huge . Yoo Jaeyi, cold, ice-queen, impossible-to-rile Jaeyi, has an adorable roommate. Like…painfully adorable. We’re talking big brown eyes, soft cheeks, that whole ‘I don’t know how cute I am’ vibe. And the best part?” She squeezes Kyung’s hand for emphasis. “It’s so obvious Jaeyi has a thing for her.”

Kyung hums in mild interest as they make their way to the counter “Obvious how?”

“Oh, you should’ve seen her face,” Yeri says, tugging Kyung toward a table by the window once they’ve ordered.  “The second I so much as come close to Seulgi—”

“Seulgi,” Kyung repeats.

“That’s the roommate. Woo Seulgi,” Yeri explains quickly, like the name itself is important. “Anyway, the moment I lean close to her, Jaeyi gets all stiff, like she’s trying not to react but her ears give her away. It’s hilarious. And Seulgi, oh my god! Kyungie, she’s so sweet! I wanted to just scoop her up and take her home. We could adopt her, you know? Make her our daughter. Raise her to be just as charming as her moms.”

Kyung’s mouth twitches. “Our…daughter?”

“Yes!” Yeri insists, completely serious. “She’s polite, she’s shy in this ridiculously endearing way, and she doesn’t even realize she’s making Jaeyi lose her mind. It’s the perfect dynamic. And the cherry on top? It’s so easy to rile Jaeyi up now. I just have to say ‘Seulgi’ in the right tone and she’s halfway to glaring at me. I love it.”

Kyung listens patiently, occasionally nodding, the corner of her mouth curling in faint amusement at her girlfriend’s excitement.

When Yeri finally pauses to sip her iced latte, Kyung asks casually, “So, did you find out what’s with the sudden transfer?”

Yeri freezes mid-sip, eyes wide. “Oh. I knew I forgot something!” She sets her drink down with a thunk. “Jaeyi told me she’d explain after class, and then I got distracted by Seulgi being cute and completely forgot. Now I have to wait until tomorrow to find out.”

Kyung laughs, shaking her head. “You poor thing. Must be torture.”

“It is torture,” Yeri groans dramatically, leaning back in her chair. “Do you know how hard it is for a gossip queen to wait twenty-four hours for prime information?”

Kyung smiles at her fondly. “Somehow, I think you’ll survive.”

“No, I don’t think I will,” Yeri insists, pouting. “I was this close to getting the full story.” She holds up her thumb and forefinger with barely a sliver of space between them.

Kyung just laughs, eyes warm. “You’re ridiculous.”

“And yet you love me,” Yeri says with a smug little smile.

“That’s the real tragedy,” Kyung teases, making Yeri gasp in mock offense before launching into yet another tangent, this one about how she’s going to make it her mission to personally witness Jaeyi and Seulgi’s dynamic for research purposes.

Chapter Text

The library was quieter than usual, the hum of air-conditioning blending with the occasional rustle of pages. Afternoon light slanted through tall windows, spilling across rows of tables where students hunched over books and laptops.

At one of the corner tables, Seulgi sat with her notes spread neatly in front of her, pen tapping softly as she worked through a problem set. Across from her, Jaeyi leaned back in her chair, a thick hardcover propped open in one hand, the other idly twirling her pen.

It was one of those rare, golden hours in their week, the one free period they actually shared. Their schedules almost never matched; they didn’t have a single class together, something Jaeyi had already sworn to “fix” next semester. Seulgi wasn’t sure if she’d meant it seriously, but knowing Jaeyi, she probably already had a plan in motion.

Still, on days like this, they made the most of it. Sometimes they stayed in the library, sometimes they grabbed coffee in the cafeteria, sometimes they camped out in the student council office where Jaeyi ruled over her domain with a casual, frightening efficiency.

It had been a few days since the whole assembly incident, the public humiliation of Ara and her friends. Seulgi still didn’t fully understand how Jaeyi had managed it so cleanly, so decisively, but she was grateful nonetheless. Ever since then, her life had become…peaceful.

Almost too peaceful.

No whispered insults in the hallways, no petty shoves between classes, no deliberately spilled drinks at lunch. In fact, the shift had been so dramatic that Seulgi had even had a few students come up to her and apologize. They’d been awkward about it, fumbling with their words, but the gesture had been surprisingly nice.

And people were…friendlier now. They’d greet her in passing, smile at her in the cafeteria line, even ask to borrow her notes. It was strange, pleasant, but strange.

She glanced up from her work, eyes lingering on Jaeyi for a moment. The president looked utterly at home here, relaxed but still in control, her gaze flicking over the pages with practiced focus. Seulgi couldn’t help the small smile tugging at her lips before she ducked her head back down to her notes.

Peaceful or not, she knew exactly who she had to thank for it.

Their peace didn’t last.

The sharp click of boot heels on the library floor made Jaeyi’s head lift just in time to see a familiar smirk sauntering their way.

“Well, well, well, what do we have here?” Yeri’s voice was too loud for a library, which meant half the heads in the room turned briefly before deciding they valued their life more than eavesdropping.

Jaeyi’s eyes narrowed. “What are you doing here?”

“Studying, of course.” Yeri slid into the empty chair beside Seulgi as if she owned it, tossing her bag onto the table. Then she leaned forward, chin in hand, and gave Seulgi a wink. “Hi, puppy.”

The flush on Seulgi’s cheeks was instant. “Hi, Yeri-ah. Do you…want to join us?”

“Can I? I really need to study for this math test tomorrow,” Yeri said, already pulling a notebook out of her bag. She glanced up at Seulgi with an exaggerated pout. “You any good at math, puppy? I’m so bad at it.”

Seulgi’s blush deepened, but she leaned in to look at the page, scanning the messy notes with genuine focus. “Let me see…okay, this is just quadratic equations—”

Jaeyi’s gaze sharpened from across the table. Yeri’s body was angled entirely toward Seulgi, knees almost brushing hers. Seulgi was oblivious, pointing at an equation, already explaining it to Yeri.

Jaeyi slid one leg under the table, aiming a precise kick for Yeri’s shin,

“Ow!” Seulgi squeaked, jerking back.

Three sets of eyes widened at once.

“Seulgi?” Jaeyi’s voice was sharper than she meant it to be. She was already out of her chair, crouching beside Seulgi to inspect her shin. “I—oh my god, I’m so sorry. Let me see.”

Seulgi flinched back slightly as Jaeyi’s hand hovered near her leg. “It’s okay, it’s okay—really, I’m fine.”

Meanwhile, Yeri had caught on immediately and was now laughing into her sleeve. “Ohhh… that’s what that was. You were aiming for me, weren’t you, Jaeyi-yah?”

Jaeyi shot her a glare without rising from her crouch.

“It doesn’t even hurt,” Seulgi said softly, smiling a little as if to defuse the tension. She reached down and lightly caught Jaeyi’s wrist, stopping her from fussing over her leg any further. “Really. I’m okay.”

Jaeyi hesitated, her cheeks warming, not that she’d admit it, before retreating to her seat, trying to act like nothing had happened.

Yeri just grinned wider. “You two are so entertaining.”

After what felt like an eternity to Jaeyi, though, in reality, it had barely been twenty minutes, free period finally drew to a close.

Twenty painfully long minutes of Seulgi’s undivided attention fixed on Yeri instead of her. Twenty minutes of Yeri leaning in close, tilting her head, pretending not to understand just so Seulgi would explain it again.

Jaeyi had tried, more than once, to reclaim the moment. She’d leaned forward, asked casually, “Seulgi-yah, should we eat out for dinner later?” Only for Seulgi, eyes still on Yeri’s notebook, to murmur, “Let’s talk about it later, okay? I’ll help Yeri first.”

She hadn’t even looked at her.

Yeri, of course, had smirked and stuck her tongue out at Jaeyi from across the table like a brat who’d just won a game.

By the time the bell rang, Jaeyi was ready to drag Seulgi away herself. Instead, she stood, slinging an arm around Seulgi’s waist in a firm, possessive hold.

“You should get to your next class now, Yeri-ah,” she said, her smile sugar-sweet and nowhere near her eyes.

But Yeri only smiled wider, slipping her hand into Seulgi’s and giving it a playful tug. “Right. We’ll be going, then.”

Jaeyi blinked. We?

Before she could protest, Seulgi chimed in, “Oh, Yeri and I share three classes together.” Her tone was light, almost oblivious, like it wasn’t the most blasphemous thing Jaeyi had heard all week.

Yeri took that as full permission to drape her arm over Seulgi’s shoulders like they’d been doing it forever. “Yup. See you later, Jaeyi-yah.”

And just like that, Jaeyi could only watch, dumbfounded, mildly offended, and definitely more annoyed than she’d ever admit, as the two walked off together, Yeri’s arm still snug around Seulgi’s shoulders, her head tipped close as she said something that made Seulgi laugh.

It was a long walk to Jaeyi’s next class, and the sight stayed with her the whole way.

By the time the day wound down, Jaeyi had long since changed into her pajamas, hair damp from her shower, skincare routine complete. She was curled up on her side of the bed, laptop in hand, waiting for Seulgi to finish in the bathroom so they could start their nightly movie.