The following month was hectic due to the upcoming exams. The school building was filled with students drowning in thick books, scratching their heads in frustration and neglecting lunch time, favouring coffee over food.  

The group chat had remained fairly silent since the start of the month, with an exception of Seulgi who spammed it once in a while with jokes or complaints, only to be told to shut up.  

Seulgibear sent an image 

Seulgibear sent an image 

Seulgibear sent a video 

From Seulgibear: 

‘'I am so bored...’' 

From Seulgibear: 

‘'What are you guys doing?’' 

From Blunt-As-A-Spoon Yeri: 

‘'Telling you to shut up.’' 

From Seulgibear: 

‘'Wow rude...’' 

From Blunt-As-A-Spoon Yeri: 

‘'Bear, I will not hesitate to kick you out of this chat for a month. And nobody will mind it.’' 

From Blunt-As-A-Spoon Yeri: 

‘'So sssst, unless you got something useful to say’' 

From Seulgibear: 

‘'Everything that comes out of my mouth is smart and useful’' 

Blunt-As-A-Spoon Yeri removed Seulgibear from the chat. 

From Wise Master Sooyoung: 

‘'...Yeri...’' 

From Blunt-As-A-Spoon Yeri: 

‘'Don’t make me kick you out as well.’' 

Seulgi burst into the living room, waving her phone dramatically in her right hand, while pointing at it with her left. 

‘'She actually kicked me out!’', her voice sounded bewildered and slightly high-pitched. 

Joohyun turned around and leaned on the back of the chair, letting out a chuckle. 

‘'Why are you even surprised? You know Yeri is a woman of her word.’' 

‘'Well... she could be less of that...’', Seulgi murmured as she approached her friend. 

The monolid girl caressed the corners of the desk, her gaze indicating that she was somewhere distant, deep in thought, for a few seconds. 

‘'Everyone seems to be so...busy... Why are you all so stressed out about the exams? It’s still a month away from now... everybody is being way too serious about this...’' 

Joohyun carefully placed her glasses on the desk, not once taking her eyes off the girl standing next to her. Once again, there was something unusual about her. As if a problem constantly haunted her best friend’s thoughts. 

‘'It’s pretty funny, how after 10 years of friendship, we keep having this same conversation once or twice every 2-3 months.’' 

Seulgi frowned at the sudden statement, confusion written all over her face. 

‘'Not everyone is as gifted as you, Seul’' 

Joohyun tilted her slightly to the side and pressed her lips together in thought. 

‘'Too be honest, I still don’t understand how you do it. You procrastinate until the very last day, and  then you memorize everything after reading the lesson material for just once or twice. And on top of that you also understand every single detail! I’ve said this at least one thousand times, but I’m seriously convinced that you have some kind of photographic memory.’' 

‘'What are you even saying? Do you even know how smart you are? I really don’t understand why you overwork yourself this much. And apparently, it’s not just you. Sooyoung, Yeri... Seungwan...’' Seulgi bit her lip. ‘'You guys really need to have some fun, and not lock yourselves up 24/7 for a whole month, isolating yourselves from the rest of the world! You live off coffee and rarely ever eat actual food. I don’t see how that is helpful... ’' 

Joohyun couldn’t help but notice the small moment of hesitation and difference of tone in Seulgi’s voice at the mention of the blonde’s name.  

She got distracted by thoughts of Seungwan’s studying habits. 

Was she eating well? Was she getting enough sleep? Was she exhausted? Did she go outside in order to get some fresh air? 

The black-haired pondered whether she should text her or not.

What if Seungwan didn’t appreciate it or saw her as a disturbance? 

Although they had seen each other two days prior, Joohyun missed seeing the girl’s face.  

Ever since Seungwan had asked the older girl for her number, they had texted each other at least once every day.  

Meeting up on the balcony to talk, or simply admire the view together, had indeed become their thing. Sometimes it happened in the evening, after a long day of school. 

Or sometimes Seungwan would text her late at night, asking her whether she was awake. And Joohyun always was. 

She saw the darkness of the night as something strangely comforting and it made her feel sentimental. She was also more upfront about what she felt.

It was peaceful yet mysterious. 

Even though she felt uncomfortable discussing her feelings with others, something about the night made her feel more at ease. 

The most significant conversations with Seulgi had always taken place late at night and she cherished those moments. 

So, she couldn’t help but look forward to share those meaningful moments with the girl who made Joohyun adore the night time more than ever before.  

However, during the past two nights there had been no sign of the blonde. 

Perhaps she had managed to fall asleep due to the excessive amount of energy spent at studying during the day.  And Joohyun kind of wished that was the reason. 

The thought of Seungwan dismissing her need for sleep in order to study, made the older girl feel unsettled.  

And the shorter girl did have the vibe of an achiever. Perhaps even an overachiever. 

‘'Earth to Joohyun, earth to Joohyun!’', Seulgi repeated, grabbing the older girl by her shoulders and shaking her. 

The latter’s heartbeat skyrocketed at her best friend's abrupt action, immediately snapping out of her train of thoughts. 

She took Seulgi’s hands in her own before pushing them away. 

‘'Seulgi! What the are you doing?’', she asked, sounding aggrieved.  

The monolid girl scratched her head. 

‘'Well what do you think? You weren’t listening, so I woke you up, since you were so obviously daydreaming away’', she stated very matter-of-factly.  

Joohyun pressed her eyes shut as she massaged her shoulder, murmuring a few curse words. 

‘'You could be gentler! Pff... is it really too much to ask...’', the latter sighed. 

‘'Was it really that bad?’', the taller girl asked, sounding concerned. 

‘'I don’t think you realize how strong you are...so yes, it was. Your hands almost broke my bones!’' 

‘'Sorry... Here, let me do that’', Seulgi nodded towards the older girl’s shoulders. She took another chair and sat down, facing  Joohyun's back. 

The latter felt her shoulders being gently kneaded and the pain in her muscles slowly decreasing at the touch. 

‘'So... you looked like you had stepped into an airship and flew away beyoooond the stars.’' 

Joohyun rolled her eyes at the overexaggerated description, a small smile appearing on her face. 

‘'Perhaps...’' 

She reflected on her previous thoughts and her smile grew a bit bigger. 

‘'Were you thinking about...’' 

The older girl could have sworn she heard Seulgi take a short but deep breath. 

‘'About Seungwan?’' 

Joohyun felt her heartbeat getting louder in her ears at the mention of the blonde’s name. 

‘'Ah... you really know me too well...’', she chuckled. 

‘'Yea... I-I guess I do...’' 

She bit her tongue at the sound of Seulgi’s shaking voice. It had happened quickly, a fraction of a second, but Joohyun was certain she had heard it. 

The kneading movements on her shoulders slowed down for a moment, indicating that the monolid girl was deep in thought, before picking up the pace again. 

‘'Seulgi... are you okay?’' 

‘'Huh, of course I’m okay!”', she quickly replied. 

She wasn’t. Joohyun could tell. 

What if she...is she... 

No.

There was no way that option was realistic. 

'’Why do you ask?’' 

‘'Nothing, never mind.’' 

Joohyun could feel her best friend frown in confusion. Fortunately she decided to move on from the subject. 

‘'So, what about Seungwan?’' 

She felt her stomach flutter. 

‘'Hm... after your speech about us locking ourselves up and how bad it is, I thought about her. I haven’t seen her for two days, so I can’t help but wonder... I mean, I meet up with Sooyoung and Yeri during the breaks, and you and I live together, but like I said... there has been no real sign of her, while she literally lives next-door...’' 

 ‘'Aha...’', Seulgi pondered on Joohyun’s words for a bit. ‘'That does make sense, yes. I wouldn't be surprised if she happened to be a perfectionist, so I can see where you are coming from.’' 

‘'Like, I know the group chat has been silent and stuff, but she is the only one who hasn’t said anything yet...’' 

‘'Maybe she forbade herself from spending time on her phone to concentrate or something’' 

What Seulgi said made sense, but somehow it didn’t comfort Joohyun in the slightest. 

‘'Have you seen her at school?’' 

‘'Hm... I don’t think I did?’' 

The older girl her lips in thought. 

‘'Do you think we should check if she’s okay?’' 

‘'Uh, if you think it’s necessary, I guess we could?’', she replied, not sounding very convinced. 

Joohyun turned around, abruptly stopping Seulgi’s hands from massaging her shoulders any further. 

‘'What if she gets annoyed or angry at me for disturbing her?’', she asked, feeling her anxiety grow. 

Her best friend frowned at the question and rubbed the back of her neck. 

‘'I mean, that is indeed a possibility...’' 

The o