If there is one thing that Ahn Sohee is not good at is confrontation. She once let her teacher in middle school call her So Lee for three months because she didn't want to correct him. And the same discomfort toward anything remotely confrontational is the cause of her distress right now.

"Are you okay?" Jiyong asked her a week later as he was driving her home, "You've been quiet lately."

Sohee, not wanting to reveal the real reason, deflected with an annoyed sigh, "I'm always quiet."

"Yeah but you're quietER now," Jiyong responded playfully.

She felt bad about being so cold to him. She knew that the only way to get her answers was to ask them, but the thought of having to show him how she feels... having to show herself how she feels... is mortifying enough that she'd rather be moody and revel in her own web of confusion and hurt. After her conversation with Krystal, all Sohee could hear every second of the day was the service trip. Suddenly, it was the only thing that people are talking about. Even her debate clubmates who were usually focused on the task at hand would spend fifteen minutes at the beginning of the meeting to talk about the trip. Even though it was not the intention, the mention of the trip always made Sohee's chest feel like it was being wrung dry.

What do I do... she wondered to herself as she silently watched Jiyong eat lunch and chat with his friends. She sat next to him, quietly eating french fries. She would nod and respond appropriately when they engage her in a conversation, but she was silent for the most part. It was getting harder and harder to look at Jiyong and not want to cry. It doesn't help that Jiyong seemed perfectly normal - he was still the same attentive boyfriend. But when he's not with her, she couldn't help but to wonder what he's up to and he's not with her a lot. I'm like that crazy girlfriend meme, aren't I? Sohee wondered. But weeks go by without Sohee being able to say anything to Jiyong and before she knew it, they were already on their way to Bali.

***

"YAAAAAAAA!"

Sohee couldn't help but to laugh at the reaction of her classmates who were running towards the crowded beach, embracing the sun. They arrived in Bali  a few hours ago and the only thing that everyone wanted to do was go to the beach. There was an issue with the hotel, so none of them could check in. But because most of them were already bouncing off the walls, their teachers told them they could go to the beach in the meantime. Thankfully, their hotel was conveniently located right across from one. She took a deep breath, taking in her surroundings. The weather was impossibly humid and it was ridiculous to be wearing black jeans and a sweater, but she couldn't change (neither could her classmates, though they were more than happy to just strip down).

The trip itself was fine. She had mostly remained quiet although the excitement and nerves of travelling abroad for the first time were overwhelming. Jiyong seemed to understand that to a certain level because he didn't mind when she held on to his hand for dear life on the plane. He only chuckled at her before continuing his conversation with his friends. In the back of her mind, Sohee wondered if he thought that she was stupid or naive. Apparently, the partner situation wasn't something officially assigned by the school and it won't affect the community service activities that they are taking part in. But from what she heard, it was more of a buddy system during the free time that they have each day. Before she could drown further into her own spiral of thoughts, she felt Jiyong tugging her sleeve, "Aren't you hot?"

She nodded, "Yeah. I'm sweating a lot," she tried to forget the feeling of the sweat on her back.

"Just go in your underwear," he , gesturing at their classmates who have mostly stripped down to their undergarments as they play happily on the beach.

She slapped his shoulders playfully and was about to call him a ert when Kiko walked past them in a lace bikini that really left nothing to the imagination. She peered at Jiyong to see how he is reacting but he seemed to be unfazed.

"Do you wanna go?" he asked.

She shook her head, "I'll just wait here."

"Are you sure?" he took a few steps towards the beach. He had already taken off his top and was visibly excited to run into the ocean.

She nodded, "Have fun," and before she could say anything else, he zoomed into the water.

A few minutes later, some of her friends from the debate team came over and invited her to sit on the blanket with them, and she gratefully followed suit. They were a nice company and Sohee was eager to take her mind off of Jiyong and this whole partner thing.

"Do you see Kiko?" one of her teammate, Yoo Ah, gestured at the short-haired skinny figur