Kang Ji-won woke to the warm glow of the morning sun. Seeing it was already past 6:00 AM, he quickly got dressed for school. He grabbed the toast he'd put in the toaster earlier, poured a glass of milk, and finished his breakfast in a rush.
"I'm off to school!" he called out, shutting the door behind him.
Ji-won sped up his pace and reached the bus stop. "Thank goodness," he breathed. "I made it in time."
He took the bus and got off near the school, walking along the pathway with the other students. At the gate, he saw the discipline teacher lining up students who were late. Ji-won bowed respectfully. "Good morning, sir."
The teacher smiled back. "Good morning." He then turned to the late students. "Look at him and learn. Hey, Min Dong-shik! He's your junior; you should be setting an example, but you're the total opposite," the teacher said, tapping Dong-shik lightly on the head with his stick.
"Tsk," Dong-shik muttered, glaring at Ji-won's back.
Ji-won walked into the classroom, where his friends were chatting near the window. "Hey, Ji-won! You're late today," one of them said, raising an eyebrow.
Ji-won rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "Thanks to some nutcase's nonstop talking," he said, clapping Min-joon on the back.
Min-joon playfully slapped Ji-won's hand away. "Hey, watch it! I'm not that bad."
Ji-eun chuckled. "You were going on and on about your ex yesterday. I'm surprised you didn't talk his ear off."
Min-joon's expression changed, and he grinned mischievously. "Actually, it's not my 'ex' anymore."
Ji-won's eyes narrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?"
Min-joon's smile grew wider. "She called me this morning. She's giving me a second chance."
Ji-won's eyes widened in surprise, and he suddenly tightened his grip around Min-joon's neck in a playful headlock. "Yesterday, you were swearing off love, and now you're back in the game?"
Min-joon tried to wriggle free. "Alright, alright! I won't bluff about love again. Let me go!"
"Ask politely," Ji-won insisted, his grip remaining firm.
Min-joon's eyes sparkled with amusement. "I won't do it again. Please let me go,Ji-won shi !"
Ji-won chuckled and loosened his grip, patting Min-joon on the shoulder. "Good boy."
As he smiled, he caught Noeul's eye. He was staring at him with a smile of his own. Ji-won raised an eyebrow as if to ask "What?" and smiled back.
The bell rang, and the classroom erupted into a flurry of activity as students took their seats.
"That's all for today's lesson. Make sure to prepare for the mock test next week," the teacher said as the bell finished ringing.
"Bow! Class dismissed!" the class president called out. Then, the teacher added, "Class president, please collect all the exercise notebooks and submit them to the staff room."
"Okay, ma'am," said Kang Ji-won.
Ji-won collected the notebooks and headed out. "Want some help?" Noeul asked.
"Ah, sure." He handed some of the notes to Noeul, and they walked toward the teacher's office together. Once they handed them in, Miss Somi looked up.
"Noeul, are you here to help Ji-won? How kind of you," Miss Somi said, holding out two candies for them. "Ji-won, could you tell Min-hyuk to come and meet me?"
"Sure, ma'am," Ji-won said with a grin.
"If I had known I'd get candy, I would have helped you sooner!" Noeul said with a laugh once they were in the hallway. Ji-won gave him a side-eye. Noeul cleared his throat. "Just kidding."
"Hey, do you know where Min-hyuk is?" Ji-won asked.
"He said this morning that he wouldn't be in class today."
"And where is that bastard now?"
Noeul shrugged. "Probably at the playground."
"Alright!" Ji-won tossed his candy to Noeul. "A treat for helping me out," he said as he walked away. Noeul grinned at him.
Ji-won reached the playground and spotted his target. "Ah, there he is. Hey, Min-hyuk, you crazy idiot!" Ji-won yelled. Min-hyuk turned at the sound of his name. Ji-won waved and gestured for him to come over.
While Ji-won waited, a shout rang out: "Hey, watch out!"
He turned toward the sound, but a football hit him square in the face before he could even realize what was happening. He fell to the ground hard. Min-hyuk ran over, frantic. "Hey, Park Tae-oh! Shouldn't you be more careful?" he barked as he checked on Ji-won.
A handsome, tall figure—drenched in sweat but looking striking nonetheless—ran toward them. "People should be careful around the football field," the boy said as he reached Ji-won.
Dizzy and disoriented, Ji-won couldn't see the boy's face clearly as he tried to sit up.
"Hey, Ji-won, are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm okay..." Ji-won muttered, but blood began to run from his nose, and the world went black as he passed out.