The street lamps had just flickered on, their yellow glow spilling across the quiet road. The academy loomed behind her, its gates closing with a heavy clang that felt like the period at the end of a particularly awful sentence.
Soon Hae adjusted the strap of her duffel bag and sighed. Her legs were jelly from the extra drills, her palms still sore from the punching bags. She had the distant feeling she'd left half her energy behind on the training floor.
And worst of all Nana's face kept floating into her mind like an unwelcome ad that refused to be skipped.
That hug… that kiss… that smug little look.
The memory twisted in her stomach again. She told herself it wasn't jealousy. No way. She was just annoyed yes, annoyed that someone could walk in, monopolize Lu Han's attention, and not even break a sweat during drills.
"Rabbit!"
The shout broke into her thoughts. She turned to see Fang Yu jogging toward her, Bai Cao trailing at a calmer pace.
"You didn't wait for us," Fang Yu accused, falling into step beside her. "We could have walked home together and complained about how cruel life is."
"I didn't think you'll still be around," Soon Hae muttered.
"We weren't. We went to the corner shop for snacks," Fang Yu said, already digging into a paper bag. She produced a steamed bun and offered it to Soon Hae like it was a peace treaty. "Eat. You look like you lost a fight with a treadmill."
Bai Cao gave her a side glance. "You mean a treadmill that was trying to kill her."
Soon Hae took the bun and bit into it. Warm, fluffy, faintly sweet. It helped, but only a little. "I had to stay for extra drills."
"Because you tripped over your own foot during dodges?" Fang Yu grinned wickedly. "Classic Rabbit move."
She groaned. "Don't call me that."
"Oh, but it suits you," Fang Yu said with exaggerated fondness. "Small, twitchy, wide-eyed… and apparently capable of screaming loud enough to break glass. The story about you thinking Lu Han was a ghost? Instant classic."
Bai Cao's lips curved into a tiny smile. "And now everyone knows Lu Han calls you that."
Soon Hae nearly choked on the bun. "He does not.. do.. that ..."
"Mm, he does," Fang Yu interrupted. "And the way he said it? Almost affectionate. You're special, Rabbit."
"I am not special," she snapped, heat creeping into her cheeks.
"Oh right, totally not special," Fang Yu drawled. "That's why he looked at you during drills today. Twice."
"He wasn't..."
"Twice," Bai Cao confirmed calmly, as if reporting the weather.
Soon Hae wanted to melt into the pavement. "Maybe he was just making sure I wasn't about to fall again."
"Or maybe," Fang Yu said with mock seriousness, "he was checking to see if his favorite clumsy creature survived training."
She elbowed Fang Yu lightly. "You're impossible."
"True. But I'm also right."
****
They walked in silence for a while, their footsteps echoing softly against the quiet street. The late summer night air carried the smell of street food fried pancakes, skewered chicken and the distant hum of traffic.
Finally, Bai Cao spoke, her tone softer. "You didn't like what happened today."
Soon Hae blinked at her. "What do you mean?"
"With the new senior," Bai Cao clarified.
Fang Yu leaned in like a gossip columnist. "Ohhh, here we go."
"I didn't care," Soon Hae lied too quickly.
Bai Cao's knowing look said otherwise. "You kept staring."
"I was staring because she… because she's suspicious!" Soon Hae insisted, waving her hands. "She barely trained today. And the way she clung to Lu Han like.. like..."
"Like she owned him?" Fang Yu supplied cheerfully.
"Yes! Exactly!"
"Mm," Fang Yu said, grinning like she found her new favorite topic. "And you didn't like it one bit."
"I didn't say..."
"Your face did," Fang Yu cut in. "You looked like someone had stolen your dessert."
Bai Cao tilted her head. "Or like someone had stolen something you didn't realize you wanted until it was gone."
Soon Hae stared at her in disbelief. "You two are impossible."
"Impossible," Fang Yu agreed, "and correct."
The thing was, their teasing had struck too close to something she wasn't ready to name.
It wasn't just Nana's hug or kiss. It was the way Lu Han had stood there not encouraging, not rejecting. And how everyone else had seemed to accept Nana instantly, like she belonged in a way Soon Hae still didn't.
She shook the thought away. "Anyway, it's none of my business. He can be friends with whoever he wants."
"Friends," Fang Yu echoed with a smirk that made it sound like she meant something else entirely.
Bai Cao, mercifully, changed the subject. "The festival's next week. Maybe we should go together after training one day."
"Festival?" Soon Hae asked, grateful for the diversion.
"The one near the river," Bai Cao said. "Lanterns, food stalls, fireworks."
"Oh yes," Fang Yu jumped in. "Perfect opportunity for Rabbit here to invite a certain senior"
"NO."
"Yes," Fang Yu said at the same time.
Soon Hae covered her face with both hands. "You two are actually evil."
***
By the time they reached her neighborhood, her mood had lifted partly from their relentless teasing, partly because it was hard to stay sulky when Fang Yu kept imitating Nana's dramatic hair flip.
They stopped in front of her gate.
"You'll survive," Bai Cao said simply.
"You'll thrive," Fang Yu added, dramatically throwing her arm around Soon Hae. "And when you do, I'll be right there to tell Lu Han I was your first fan."
"Goodnight," Soon Hae said firmly, pushing Fang Yu away before she could make another comment.
She slipped inside, the sound of their laughter following her up the path.
But when she closed her bedroom door and finally collapsed onto her bed, the quiet pressed in. She stared at the ceiling, the day replaying again in her head.
The assembly. The hug. The kiss. The look.
And despite her best efforts the memory of Lu Han glancing her way during drills.
She told herself it meant nothing.
She almost believed it.
---