The sun was still warm above the university lawn when Sunwoo exited Professor Park's office, internship application in hand, nerves slightly more settled. Just as he turned the corner near the economics department lounge, a familiar shout echoed across the corridor.
"YAH! Is that the legendary ghost of Sunwoo Han back from the dead?"
Sunwoo turned just in time to catch an incoming flying arm—thwap!—a smack on the back from none other than Kang Do-hyun, his best friend since middle school, dressed like a trust fund influencer in loose beige trousers, white hoodie, and sunglasses... indoors.
"Still dramatic as ever, huh?" Sunwoo coughed, trying not to stumble.
"Look at you!" Do-hyun gave a mock gasp, circling him like an appraiser. "Thinner. Dark circles. Brooding energy. Who broke your heart, man? Or is it just poverty?"
Sunwoo smirked. "Among other things, yeah poverty."
From behind Do-hyun, a couple of their other classmates trailed in Jun-seok, tall and sarcastic, and Taemin, the mellow gamer. All three of them pulled Sunwoo into the break area like he hadn't been missing for weeks.
"We were actually placing bets," Jun-seok said, sipping iced Americano. "I said you'd come back as a monk. Taemin guessed prison."
Sunwoo chuckled as he took a seat. "Sorry to disappoint. Neither. Just... life happened."
Do-hyun leaned in, suddenly serious. "Hey, man. I know something heavy went down. We heard about your dad. We didn't want to push. You know I'm here, right?"
Sunwoo nodded, touched for a moment. "Thanks. It's been hard… and other complicated stuff happened."
"Oh, I love complicated," Do-hyun grinned, immediately ruining the mood. "Did you elope? Adopt a secret child? Robbery?"
Sunwoo gave a dry laugh. "Close enough."
"Wait, what?!" Taemin's jaw dropped.
"Ignore him," Sunwoo waved it off quickly. "Just a lot of family drama, loans, legal mess. You know… basic life tragedy checklist."
"Bro…" Do-hyun leaned back with mock sympathy. "You should've called me. My dad knows like five lawyers and a guy who fakes IDs. He helped me create an American citizenship in ninth grade just for fun."
"Yeah, we all heard the story of your phase of pretending to be 'Daniel Kim from LA'," Jun-seok muttered.
Do-hyun flipped his hair dramatically. "That was my cultural exploration era."
Sunwoo smiled, the tension in his shoulders finally easing. Being with these idiots it felt like breathing again.
"So what now?" Taemin asked. "You back for good?"
Sunwoo nodded. "Yeah. I've got stuff to fix, but I need to keep up with classes. Also trying for that J&H internship."
"Damn, you're going full-on responsible adult mode," Do-hyun mock-wept. "Who's this serious man, and what has he done with my best friend who once microwaved ramyeon without water?"
Sunwoo snorted. "I'm still that guy. Just… broke, tired, and marri.. I mean miserable"
The laughter that followed was sharp and then abruptly stopped.
"Wait." Do-hyun blinked. "What did you just say?"
"...that I'm broke?" Sunwoo offered.
"No no no. The other part. The 'something like marry' part."
Sunwoo hesitated. Crap. "Nah, you heard wrong"
Do-hyun narrowed his eyes.
Jun-seok tilted his head. "You okay, bro?"
"Yeah" Sunwoo said quickly, waving it off with a half-laugh.
But Do-hyun's playful grin faltered. His eyes stayed locked on Sunwoo for a second longer than usual, eyebrows subtly knitting together. A slight twitch at the corner of his mouth said he had caught the stumble but he didn't say anything.
Instead, he leaned back slowly and sipped his iced coffee. Quiet for once.
Sunwoo noticed but didn't comment. The conversation drifted into safe territory group project.
By late morning, Sunwoo had slipped into his first lecture of the day. The classroom buzzed with energy with students and professors. Sunwoo his thoughts scattered but grounded enough to keep up. Being back in class felt strange—like trying to wear an old pair of shoes after walking barefoot through a storm.
After the lecture, he joined his final-year project group in the library alcove. The atmosphere was chaotic in a familiar way everyone arguing over frameworks, deadlines, and how to split the work. His teammates welcomed him with a mix of relief and annoyance.
"You finally decided to show up," said Minji, half teasing, half scolding.
"Hopefully, I didn't miss that much," Sunwoo defended, sliding into his seat.
"Only the planning, outline, and division of work," she shot back.
He smiled faintly. "I'll catch up. Just let me know what part I'm taking."
They spent the next hour sketching rough timelines, setting up Trello boards, and making passive-aggressive jokes about who never checks the group chat. Sunwoo focused, taking notes, occasionally glancing at his phone to check the time.
1:47 PM.
He stood up just as they started discussing the technical specs.
"Hey, I have to step out. Something urgent. I'll update the doc tonight."
No one argued. They all had lives outside the campus chaos too.
By 2:05 PM, Sunwoo was back outside Professor Park's office, holding a small stack of printed forms. The corridor smelled of old books and cleaning fluid.
He took a breath, knocked, and stepped in.
Park looked up from her screen.
"You're on time," she said without looking impressed. "That's rare."
He nodded. "Here are the follow-up documents and internship profile draft. I made sure to match the structure you recommended."
She scanned the pages briefly, then looked up. "Efficiently done. Keep this up and you might actually impress someone at J&H."
Park tapped her pen against her notepad. "You've been through something. I can tell. But don't let life be your excuse. Let it be your resume."
He met her eyes and nodded again, this time with a steadier resolve. "Understood."
As he stepped out of the office and made his way back down the hallway, the afternoon sun poured in through the tall windows, casting golden streaks across the floor.
Back on campus, Do-hyun stood under a tree, sipping from a vending machine soda and scrolling his phone. He saw Sunwoo approaching and slipped the phone into his pocket, face unreadable.
"You good?" he asked.
Sunwoo gave a small nod. "All done."
Do-hyun hummed, then added casually, "You know… for someone who's just 'miserable', you're being weirdly responsible lately."
Sunwoo chuckled, brushing it off. "Guess I grew up while you weren't looking."
Do-hyun smirked faintly but said nothing else. That same look still lingered in his eyes a quiet suspicion but he let it die in the silence between them.
For now.
By the time Sunwoo and Do-hyun stepped out of the economics block, the sun had settled into its lazy afternoon glow warm but not scorching. The clock struck just past 3 PM.
That's when a familiar voice rang out from across the courtyard.
"Yah! You two look like you're plotting a heist."
Soojin, bouncing toward them with her ever-carefree energy. Her ponytail swayed behind her as she approached.
Do-hyun's brows rose. "If it isn't Miss 'I Only Respond to Msgs Once a Week'. What miracle brings you here?"
She ignored. "I had classes. But I figured I'd find Mr. Ghostboy here eventually." She looked at Sunwoo with a raised brow. "And look it worked."
Sunwoo gave a small, polite smile. "You really think I'm that easy to track down?"
"No, But you're boring. So you'll always end up here eventually."
Do-hyun snorted. "She's not wrong."
Soojin glanced at them both. "So… what are you two doing now?"
Sunwoo shrugged. "Nothing planned."
"Then let's go get some air," she said. "That corner café near the hill? They have decent mandu and a rooftop view."
Do-hyun raised his hands in mock surrender. "Lead the way."