By Zephyria 
Wоо-yeon’s fаmilу home wаs a two-stоrу hоusе with а vаst garden аnd high wаlls. А plaсe that requirеd a lаrge stаff just to mаintain, it wаs а hоuse Woо-yеon had alwаys been dеsperatе to еsсape. Whenevеr he closеd thе mаin gаtе and steрpеd insidе, he would bе оvercome bу a sеnsе of lonеlу isоlаtiоn, as if hе wеre сompletely cut оff from the оutside world.
Тhere werе manу other rеаsons why Wоo-yеon hаtеd his familу hоme. First, it wаs bеcаusе his еvery mоvе was mоnitоrеd bу the employees, and second, it was because he couldn’t even have a simple meal according to his own will. Woo-yeon had to be managed in everything—eating, sleeping, and moving—like a pet kept in a house.
Of course, what he hated most was the fact that even for a simple outing, he had to go out with a string of bodyguards attached to him.
Friday morning. As he had yesterday, Woo-yeon headed to school in Driver Yoon’s car. Since Selection Group had not yet officially released any articles, Driver Yoon was his only attendant. It was a modest commute in its own way, though he didn’t know if it seemed that way to others.
“Young Master, we have arrived.”
Ever the machine, Driver Yoon stopped the car in front of the building and spoke in a businesslike voice. Ignoring him as he unbuckled his seatbelt, Woo-yeon opened the car door himself. Driver Yoon’s lips parted, but Woo-yeon hurried out before he could say anything.
‘…They’re still staring.’
As soon as Woo-yeon stepped out, students glanced over at him. Even though no one had opened the door for him, the sleek model of the car seemed to have already drawn attention. Woo-yeon swallowed a sigh and walked into the building, looking only straight ahead.
‘This is why I hated it…’
Being the center of many people’s attention was never a pleasant experience. No matter how hard he tried to think positively, he couldn’t shake the feeling of being a monkey in a zoo. That was why he had reduced the number of bodyguards and chosen a relatively ordinary car, but it seemed it had all been in vain.
This kind of commute wasn’t actually a first for him. Even when he attended middle school, Woo-yeon always went to school in a loud and flashy manner. Back then, ignorant of what ‘ordinariness’ meant, Woo-yeon didn’t realize how much attention it drew when a driver opened the car door and bowed.
‘I must have been an eyesore.’
It wasn’t surprising that those entering puberty viewed such a Woo-yeon as a thorn in their side. Since he was essentially advertising “I’m rich” to anyone who looked, he would have been a perfect target for a strange guy like Jun-seong.
Thinking that far, Woo-yeon quickened his pace and shook his head.
Riding a nice car and eating expensive food didn’t justify bullying. There was a time when he thought it was all his fault, but Do-hyun had long since confirmed that wasn’t the case.
‘Nothing is your fault.’
“…”
Abruptly, his footsteps stopped. Woo-yeon wore a self-deprecating smile and fiddled with his earlobe. It was only yesterday that he had pushed away the clinging Do-hyun, yet he was unconsciously recalling Teacher’s words as usual. If he was going to be like this, he shouldn’t have rejected him; it was truly contradictory.
“Whew.”
Taking a deep breath, Woo-yeon flung open the back door of the lecture hall. Since it was early, he acted on the assumption that no one would be there. However, something stark white was placed in the seat Woo-yeon usually occupied.
“…What is that?”
As if possessed, Woo-yeon walked toward it. The white, fluffy object was something Woo-yeon knew well. It was the rabbit doll that Do-hyun had won for him from a claw machine when he was drunk.
Why is this here? With that thought, Woo-yeon slowly reached out. As he touched the long ears and front paws, the soft texture brought back various memories. For instance, the feeling of waking up in Do-hyun’s arms, the acts he had shared with Do-hyun, the conversation they had the next day, things like that.
Humans are truly fickle; even after deciding to forget everything, they easily fall into sentimentality over a small object. The bad memories evaporated, and the events of that time floated up, beautified.
“Oh, you’re here already?”
It was around the time Woo-yeon was reminiscing about those memories that Do-hyun entered. Hearing the familiar voice, he looked up to see Do-hyun holding takeout cups in both hands. With an Americano in one hand and a strawberry smoothie in the other, Do-hyun walked toward Woo-yeon with a soft smile.
“You got here even earlier than I thought.”
Perhaps because of his straight posture, the shirt buttoned up to the neck suited him remarkably well. The slacks that slightly revealed his ankles, the low-heeled canvas shoes—the seemingly ordinary attire was stylish only because it was Do-hyun. No, looking closer, it seemed he had even put effort into styling his hair.
“Here, drink this.”
Do-hyun set down the strawberry smoothie next to the rabbit doll. The doll, with only its ears and paw pads in pale pink, paired quite well with the large drink. As Woo-yeon stared down blankly, Do-hyun spoke kindly.
“It’s not from that tasteless cafe from before.”
“What is all this?”
The doll, the drink, and a fully dressed-up Kim Do-hyun. The combination, which couldn’t help but be striking, was simply bewildering.
“What do you mean?”
Do-hyun replied lightly and sat down in the seat next to Woo-yeon. The second row from the front, a middle seat slightly shifted to the right. It was the spot where they always sat together during lectures. Signaling him to sit next to him, he added nonchalantly:
“I’m hitting on you.”
It was an absurd statement. It was so out of the blue that Woo-yeon couldn’t even respond. Do-hyun even personally pulled out the chair for him and spoke softly.
“The doll was originally yours, so I brought it, and I bought the drink while buying mine. I have to look my best for the person I like.”
Woo-yeon sat in the next seat, feeling dazed. There were mountains of arguments he could make, but the memories triggered by the doll still lingered like an afterglow. Moreover, Do-hyun’s unnecessarily stylish appearance contributed to the subtle sentiment he was recalling.
“And this.”
Saying so, Do-hyun took a phone out of his bag and held it out. The sleek, polished device was a different model from the one Do-hyun originally used.
“I bought a new one. I changed my number, too.”
“…Are you bragging about your phone?”
“Bragging?”
The sound of a soft chuckle was heard. His eyes curved as if he found Woo-yeon cute, and he pressed the phone into Woo-yeon’s hand.
“Give me your number.”
“My number?”
“Yeah.”
“My number?”
“Then whose number would it be?”
“…Did your contacts get deleted?”
Woo-yeon reluctantly typed his number into Do-hyun’s phone. Do-hyun called Woo-yeon and ended the call after the ringtone sounded about three times. The corners of his lips curled up into a beautiful arc.
“I told you let’s start from the beginning.”
Woo-yeon. His straight fingertips saved the eleven-digit number as such. Woo-yeon just watched silently as he did.
Do-hyun placed the phone on the desk and looked straight at Woo-yeon.
“No one but you knows this number.”
“…”
“Even the Chairman won’t know.”
His pitch-black pupils glistened. His left eye, with its double eyelid, narrowed slightly. It was a small habit he had when organizing his thoughts.
“I’ve thought about it, and in the end, it’s all a matter of trust.”
Having said that, Do-hyun placed the doll in Woo-yeon’s arms. Receiving the doll reflexively, Woo-yeon looked back and forth between the rabbit and Do-hyun. Do-hyun twisted the rabbit to face him, took out his phone, and turned on the camera.
“I’m not receiving any sponsorship anymore, and I have no way to contact the Chairman. I won’t hide things without telling you like I did before.”
“…Are you taking a picture right now?”
“Yeah, look here.”
The sound of the shutter clicked in the blink of an eye. With a satisfied smile, Do-hyun showed Woo-yeon the photo he had just taken. For a sudden shot, the expression and appearance weren’t bad.
“In my heart, I want to show you only my best side… but it’s already too late for that, and besides, I’m not exactly a good person anyway.”
“…”
“I’m not going to be prideful or put on airs. Can I set this as my wallpaper?”
There was no need to answer that question. Before Woo-yeon could open his mouth, Do-hyun finished the settings and put the phone down. Woo-yeon held the doll with both hands and turned his head sideways.
“Seonbae, right now, are you trying to make me feel guilty…”
“It’s not like that.”
A firm voice denied Woo-yeon’s words. With an utterly serious face, he added:
“Nothing is your fault.”
It was a phrase he had heard a long time ago, back in middle school. It was the phrase that allowed Woo-yeon, who was being bullied, to endure steadfastly without blaming himself.
“This is just… I was the one who was bad.”
“…”
Woo-yeon’s face crumpled into a deeply complicated expression. He couldn’t find the words to say to Do-hyun, who was willingly taking the blame. His heart ached at the fact that while Do-hyun was gathering courage, admitting his faults, and reaching out, he was simply running away.
“…You didn’t do anything wrong either, Seonbae.”
As soon as he heard those words, Do-hyun’s face went blank. The two eyes that had been distorted as if he were about to cry returned to normal before Woo-yeon could notice. Winking playfully, he reached out to the doll Woo-yeon was holding.
“That’s right, the world is the bad one.”
A large hand stroked between the ears. Woo-yeon looked at the well-shaped fingers, recalling the sensation of Do-hyun stroking his own hair. Do-hyun leaned his upper body toward Woo-yeon and began softly.
“Yeon-ah.”
When he looked up, Do-hyun’s face had approached, leaving only a hand’s breadth of space. A distance so close that their lips might touch if he leaned forward just a bit. From that distance, a persistent gaze entwined Woo-yeon.
“Do you want to date me after all?”
Woo-yeon hesitated, unable to refuse immediately. It was because, for a brief moment, he was genuinely tempted by those words. Since Do-hyun was going this far, maybe it would be okay to just let it happen. The moment he thought that, the front door of the lecture hall swung open.
“Hey, we’re the first ones here—”
The students pouring in paused upon discovering Do-hyun and Woo-yeon. Their wide-eyed glances shifting between the two clearly indicated they had sensed the strange atmosphere. Woo-yeon quickly widened the distance and turned his head away from Do-hyun.
Tsk, the sound of a tongue clicking was heard. It came exactly from Do-hyun, who was right next to him. To hide his flushed face, Woo-yeon covered his ears with his palms.
“…You said you wouldn’t ask me to date you.”
“Ah… right, I did say that.”
The conversation between the two ended there. Before long, the lecture hall filled up, and the professor began the class as soon as he entered. Woo-yeon had to hide the rabbit doll in the seat next to him and struggle throughout the lecture not to be conscious of Do-hyun.