“There you are.”

The sudden voice came as such a shock to Sojung that it sent the book in her hands flying. Her comical attempt at catching the book made the other presence double over with laughter.

“Shut up, you scared the hell out of me,” Sojung hissed while clutching her heart.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t think you’d get so spooked. Why are you so jumpy anyway? Is that something saucy?” the person sniggered as they tried to reach for the book in Sojung’s hand.

“My name isn’t Jung Yerin,” the girl shot back and waved the cover of the book in her friend’s face. “It’s just a manga.”

“I thought we were here for reference books. Also, I didn’t know you were into these.” Yerin picked another copy of the book off the shelf and thumbed through the pages.

“I don’t, I was just looking at the covers to try to see what the hype is all about.”

“Well, if that’s the case, why don’t I recommend some?” Yerin grinned as she looked through the shelf.

“And since when do you read mangas?” Sojung cocked an eyebrow and placed the book back where she took it from.

“Since… I don’t know. High school. But that’s not the point. I’m reading an interesting one right now but it’s a webtoon.” Yerin hummed and pulled her phone out. She pulled up the tab and forwarded it to Sojung.

“Uhm…” Sojung looked at her phone and back at Yerin.

“It’s not explicit. Trust me. It has quite a wholesome plot. This is the author’s second work and it’s really popular now.”

Yerin could only sigh as Sojung scrolled through to check for herself.

“There are a few chapters so far but it’s still ongoing. The author updates every week. If you like it, then I’ll start showing you the good stuff,” Yerin clapped her friend on the back.

“Right… Good stuff…” Sojung narrowed her eyes and grabbed her research books from the empty spot on the shelf.

“Let’s go! I’m hungry,” Yerin said and began tugging Sojung to the checkout.

Sojung straightened her back and sighed as she felt a couple of joints pop. She’d been hunched over her desk for almost two hours now and her eyes were beginning to water after staring at her laptop for so long. It was definitely time for a break.

Flopping onto her bed, she closed her eyes for a few minutes before remembering the link that Yerin sent her earlier. She reached over to the nightstand for her phone and opened the tab. Now that she took a better look at the cover, she realized how cute it was.

The cover was a cute illustration of two girls in high school uniforms. It was the classic pair of a delinquent and student council, with one of the girls looking prim and proper and the other with her tie slack and sleeves rolled to her elbows. They were standing back to back but their hands were intertwined by their sides.

Of course, Yerin would recommend this to me.

Sojung would never admit it out loud but she was an absolute er for cliche high school love stories, especially when it involves the student council and a delinquent character.

The description further intrigued the girl.
 

When student council president Jung Sujeong was asked to tutor a classmate, she didn’t expect it to be Kim Minhee, the school’s resident delinquent. At risk of being expelled from the school after failing almost all her subjects, Minhee was placed into Sujeong’s care. However, after the first tutoring session, Sujeong realized it wasn’t going to be as easy as it seemed.

Sojung took a deep breath and began reading.

Page after page, she found herself into the plot and unable to stop. It wasn’t until a low battery notification appeared that she realized how much time she had spent reading. 

“Two hours??” her eyes widened in shock. She was only supposed to take a fifteen-minute break! She hastily plugged her phone to the charger and rolled out of bed. She spent another five minutes reading the same paragraph of her reference book before she was finally able to focus and push the very juicy webtoon plot out of her mind.

“So? Have you started reading?” Yerin asked as she took her seat beside Sojung, placing two cups of coffee down on the table. The latter gave her a side glance and nodded slowly.

“Aaand? How was it?” Yerin egged her friend for an answer. 

“I hate to admit, but I like it,” Sojung replied with a sigh.

“I knew it! Well, this is still an ongoing work so I suggest you ration out what little that’s available to avoid dying from suspense.” Yerin winked and laughed as she pulled out her lecture notes.

Just as Sojung laid her notes out, the doors to the lecture hall burst open. All eyes fell on the girl who was now bowing profusely in apology for the sudden commotion. Sojung recognized the girl to be the one who sat in the back row diagonal to herself. Looking at the time on her phone, Sojung saw that it was five minutes before the lecture would start. It was unusual to see the girl come in this late since she would always be seated and ready for lectures whenever Sojung walked in. The girl kept her head down and tried to tame her unruly pink hair as she hurried up the tiers to her usual seat.

Sojung unconsciously continued to watch the girl settle down and prepare for the lecture. As the girl pulled out her IPad, she caught Sojung’s gaze. Sojung, who was flustered to be caught watching a stranger, gave a quick smile. The girl blinked back at her but returned a polite smile and a nod.

Thankfully, the professor entered the hall and saved Sojung from further embarrassing herself.

“Do you like her or something?” Yerin whispered.

“What?” Sojung turned her head so fast she nearly gave herself whiplash.

“I dunno, you were just staring at her like someone who has a crush but doesn’t dare confess,” the girl twirled her pen around her thumb.

“Don’t be ridiculous. I don’t even know her,” Sojung frowned and turned her attention to the slides projected on the screen.

Webtoon.

No, study.

Webtoon.

No, Sojung, your finals are in two days and you still have five chapters to go over.

But I need a break, I’ve been at this for three hours.

Sojung slammed the highlighter down and took a deep breath as she leaned back, almost like she was bracing herself. She stared at her phone and back at the texts in front of her.

“Gah, I’ll take a break,” she threw her hands up in defeat. She grabbed her phone from the pile of books and jumped into bed. This time, she set a 40-minute timer for herself to avoid slacking off for too long. 

She ended up snoozing the timer twice to finish the chapter that she’d started when it first sounded. Checking the chapters, she realized that she was almost halfway through the story.

“No more until finals are over,” she said as if reprimanding herself. She left her phone to charge and proceeded to finish up her revision for the night.

“At last! Freedom!” Yerin exclaimed as they stepped out of the hall. Finals were over which marked the start of their year-end vacation.

“I think I’m gonna go home and sleep for two weeks before anything else,” Sojung said as she slung her bag over her shoulder.

“For once, I might do the same. I stayed up all night yesterday and now my eyes are burning,” Yerin blinked at Sojung and the latter nodded.

“You really should. They’re bloodshot.”

The pair began walking towards the bus station in silence. Yerin’s bus arrived first and the girl waved goodbye before climbing aboard. Sojung took a seat and stretched her legs out in front of her.

How should she spend her vacation? She had her head buried in books for so long that it felt weird to be free. Webtoons? It's like an addiction at this point. But maybe she could get more recommendations from Yerin. She was about to continue reading while waiting for her bus when she noticed someone approaching the bus station. She squinted for a better look and recognized the person as the corner-seat girl. 

The girl’s bangs were almost covering her eyes as she looked intently at her phone, seemingly unaware of her surroundings. She only looked up when she sensed Sojung. 

Their eyes met and the girl gave the same polite smile as before and bowed slightly before taking a seat on the other end of the bench. Sojung smiled and nodded back. She wondered if she should initiate some kind of small talk to at least ask for the girl’s name since they kind of knew each other. Glancing at the girl who was still looking at her phone, Sojung opted to stay quiet and mind her own business. 

Sojung got up as the bus approached the station. To her surprise, the girl had also gotten up and was now standing slightly to her right. Sojung watched as the girl tucked her phone in the pocket of her jacket and pulled out her transport card. Sojung also noted how the girl was almost a head shorter than her. This was probably the first time that they were standing so close to each other.

Sojung settled down near the middle and was about to pull out her earphones when the girl plopped into the seat next to her. 

“Hello,” the girl greeted softly as if not wanting to disrupt the silence of the bus.

“Hello,” Sojung greeted back. “Uh, we’re in the same lecture right?”

Nice one Sojung. 

“Yes, we are,” the girl laughed lightly. “Sorry, I hope I’m not being a bother though. I just thought that since we’ve been in the same lecture for a semester it would be appropriate to at least introduce myself. Jung Eunbi. Or Eunha, as my friends would call me.”

“Kim Sojung,” the taller girl replied and shook the small hand that was extended to her. 

Her hands are a little cold.

“I shouldn’t hold you up, see you around next semester Sojung-ssi,” Eunha smiled and switched to a seat in the back row. 

Sojung didn’t know how to react. As much as she wanted to tell the girl she wasn’t a bother at all, she didn’t know what else to say to the girl. 

Shrugging, she put her earphones in and shuffled her playlist before resuming her webtoon. She must have gotten so engrossed in it again that she jumped slightly at the tap on her shoulder. She looked up to see Eunha walking past her with a smile and waving as she got off the bus. Sojung waved back through the window as the bus left the stop. 

So she lives just a stop before me…

Despite limiting herself to one chapter a day, Sojung found herself up to date with the latest update; two weeks into her vacation. Now, she looks forward to the scheduled updates on Mondays. She had also managed to find the author’s Twitter account and so found out the author’s birthday and age. It was a big surprise when she found that the author was way younger than she had imagined; even younger than her. 

The author would often tweet photos of her illustrations on the IPad or little side doodles from the series which Sojung found to be pretty cute and wholesome. The author seemed to interact with her fans often, giving off a cheery and friendly vibe through her tweets. Despite being very open with her readers, her private life was a complete mystery. There wasn't a single clue to her true identity apart from the illustrated bunny on her profile picture.

Today was a Saturday. Sojung woke earlier than usual and so she decided to head down to the mart for groceries. Grabbing a cart, she began walking the aisles, thinking of the ingredients she would need. Turning into the spice section, her heart thumped when she spotted a familiar figure squatting by a shopping basket. She didn’t want to call out to the wrong person but the multiple earrings told Sojung that it was indeed her fellow lecture mate.

“Eunha-ssi?” 

The said girl flinched a little in surprise and looked towards Sojung. The latter mirrored the smile Eunha had when she recognized who had called out.

“Sojung-ssi! Surprised to bump into you here. You live around the area?” Eunha asked as Sojung approached her.

“Ah yeah, just a stop after you,” Sojung nodded. Eunha blinked at her. “Cuz we took the same bus that day right? And you said bye to me when you were getting off so I noticed.”

“Oh that, right, yeah,” Eunha nodded earnestly. “What are you getting?”

“I haven’t thought of what to cook yet so… I guess I was still browsing till I bumped into you.”

“You live alone?”

“Yep, but sometimes Yerin sleeps over or my parents visit and stuff.”

“That’s nice,” Eunha smiled and picked up her basket. “Do you mind if we shop together?”

“Oh.. Oh yeah we could do that,” Sojung said, mentally cursing at herself for swallowing her words. Why was she getting nervous anyway?

The pair walked the aisles as they engaged in a light conversation. Whilst they chatted, Sojung had filled her cart up with the ingredients she would need for the week.

“You can go ahead, I have more stuff anyway,” Sojung said as she lifted the basket from the cart and placed it onto the counter. During their conversation, she had insisted Eunha placed her basket in the cart so that the girl wouldn’t have to lug the basket around. The latter initially refused but eventually gave in to Sojung’s persistence.

Eunha had scanned half her basket when she realized she had forgotten something. 

“It’s okay, go get it, I’ll help take care of the stuff here,” Sojung said. The shorter girl quipped a quick thanks as she scurried off. It didn’t take long before she returned.

“Hmm? There isn’t any of what you needed?” Sojung asked when she saw that the girl had returned empty-handed.

“They have it…” the girl mumbled while tugging at the sleeves of her violet hoodie. “I can’t reach it…”

Sojung had to bite her tongue to prevent a laugh from escaping. It didn’t help that Eunha’s oversized hoodie made her look even smaller than she already was.

Cute.

“Would you like me to help?” she asked gently, resisting the urge to coo when her friend nodded like a child. Sojung followed Eunha’s lead to the sauce aisle and pointed at a bottle on the top shelf. With ease, Sojung grabbed it and handed it to Eunha who murmured another quick thanks and hurried back to the checkout.

“Thanks for the help, Sojung-ssi. I’m glad we had some time to get a little closer,” Eunha smiled as they walked out of the mart.

“It’s no problem, I should be the one thanking you for hanging around. Just call me Sojung, we’re… kinda friends now right?”

“I guess,” Eunha chuckled. “Erm… If it’s not too much to ask, do you mind if we switch numbers? Since we live in the same area, maybe we can hang out one day or something. If you want that is.”

“Sure,” Sojung smiled, hoping she didn’t seem overly eager at the opportunity. After keying her number into Eunha’s phone, they parted ways.

Sojung was unpacking her groceries when her phone chimed. Checking it, she saw that it was a text from Eunha.

Sojung smiled and plopped herself down on the couch. She didn’t know why becoming friends with Eunha made her happy but there was something about her that just drew Sojung in. 

What a charmer.

It’s a wonder how much can change in two weeks. Ever since they switched numbers, they’ve been exchanging messages almost every day. 

Today, they had plans to go for lunch and just hang around.

“What webtoon is that?” 

Sojung nearly threw her phone in surprise and heaved a sigh when she realised it was just Eunha.

“Jesus, you scared the hell outta me,” Sojung rubbed her chest and pocketed her phone.

“Sorry, I didn’t think you were that immersed,” Eunha giggled. “I also didn’t think you were into webtoons.”

“Well… Yerin recommended it actually.” Sojung scratched her head as they started walking.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, she said it was a good read.”

“What’s it called?”

“Chapters of a love story.”

“By Tosunmon?”

“You know this one?” Sojung’s eyes widened in surprise. 

“Yeah, I’m reading it too. It’s really interesting,” Eunha beamed. “What do you want for lunch by the way?”

“Oh sure, anything’s fine really.”

Eunha fished her phone from her pocket and pulled up a list of recommended restaurants in the area.

"Oh wow, you're really prepared," Sojung bit back her laughter but couldn't help as the corners of her lips tugged upwards.

It didn't take them long to decide on a small restaurant that served soy sauce marinated crabs. Over lunch, Sojung learnt that Eunha was a freelance artist. She was also a huge homebody and since it was the holidays, her sleeping schedule had become that of a nocturnal. 

“Explains why I get texts from you at four in the morning and a reply past noon,” Sojung sniggered at the discovery.

“You’re one to talk,” Eunha huffed, emptying her drink. Before Sojung could even get her wallet out, Eunha had already tapped her card on the terminal. Seeing the look on Sojung’s face, the shorter girl merely stuck her tongue out as she took the receipt from the staff.

“What shall we do now?” the taller girl asked, running a hand through her hair.

“I’m feeling up for some boba,” Eunha grinned.

“We just ate and you wanna sit around?” Sojung mockingly reprimanded, even placing a hand on her waist. “Let’s go for a walk.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes! Come on, the food won’t digest itself,” she said and looped her arm into Eunha’s. She only realized what she was doing when she felt the warmth of Eunha’s arm against her side. Seeing that the girl didn’t make a move to pull away, Sojung was slightly relieved that it wasn’t as big of a deal as she thought it to be. When did she become so touchy with acquaintances anyway?

“Food does digest itself though… I’d think your organs are broken if they didn’t,” Eunha sulked but let Sojung pull her along anyway.

Sojung honestly had no idea where she was going. Her mind was too preoccupied with the arm that she was still holding on to. 

Would it be weird if I let go all of a sudden? But if I don’t, do I just… keep holding it? What if Eunha gets uncomfortable? Is this creepy of me? Maybe if I-

“Sojung unnie?”

“Yes. Yes?” Sojung snapped out of her daze and let go of Eunha's arm.

“There's nothing much to see around here. Can we go get some boba now?” the girl pouted.

“Oh,” Sojung blinked. Just how long did she space out for? 

"So... I'll take that as a yes?"

"Ah, yeah."

Get it together, Kim Sojung.

-

“What do you want? It’s on me since you got lunch.”

“Black sugar milk tea please,” Eunha smiled. She drummed her fingers on the tabletop as she looked out of the window. The weather today was great. The sun was bright but the constant breeze made the summer heat bearable. She wondered what Sojung would want to do after this. Usually, she'd hate walking but the short walk earlier was so pleasant she kind of wanted to go again. But was it the weather or the company that elicited this urge?

“Here you go, miss,” Sojung said, getting Eunha’s attention.

“Why thank you, miss,” the latter replied without missing a beat.

The pair fell into a comfortable silence, sipping their boba and occasionally looking up from their phones to check on each other.

“Done,” Sojung announced. Eunha looked up at the older with questioning eyes. “I just finished reading the update. The slow-burn is honestly killing me.”

“You better not spoil it, I haven’t read it yet,” Eunha narrowed her eyes.

“Aw man, you know Sujeong was-”

“Oh my god, shut up!”

Sojung burst into laughter and held her hands up in surrender.

“Alright alright, I’ll quit messing with you,” Sojung let her hands fall to the table, still sniggering. Eunha swiped her hands on the side of her drink and flicked the condensation at Sojung who only cracked up more. In retaliation, Sojung too began flicking the droplets of condensation at Eunha. They were soon engaged in a childish squabble which left the table and their phones splattered with drops of water.

“You’re like five I swear,” Eunha grinned as she wiped her phone screen on her jeans.

“Says the one who started it,” Sojung blew a raspberry. “Enough!” she pointed a finger at Eunha who had a hand raised, ready to shower Sojung with more condensation.

They decided to finish up their drinks and leave. It was just a little after three and neither of them wanted to go home just yet. It just seemed like an odd hour to end the day and though neither of them said it out loud, it was a mutual feeling that they didn't want to part ways so soon. Without a destination in mind, they walked down the quaint street in silence and soon found themselves at an empty playground by a park.

“Haven’t sat on one for ages,” Eunha smiled fondly as she sat down on the swing. She nodded to the swing beside hers, inviting Sojung to join her. The latter strode over gracefully and took a seat.

“Did you come out to play often as a kid?” Sojung asked as she lightly swayed herself back and forth.

“Mmhm. I used to go every day after school. I’d just sit around with my friends and talk,” Eunha said, turning her swing side to side. “You?”

“Same. I played a lot, and so I also got scolded a lot,” Sojung said, causing Eunha to giggle. “I would come home everyday with sand in my shoes and my mom would yell at me for leaving it all over the doorway.”

“I guess we were both cheeky children huh?” the younger girl chuckled. 

The simple question led to them talking comfortably about their childhood and high school years. They were so into it that they only realized how late it had gotten when the sky began turning shades of orange.

“Today was nice, I hadn’t had a good laugh in a while,” Eunha said while waiting for the bus.

“Me neither. Maybe we should hang out more,” Sojung smiled, stretching her legs out. Eunha did the same, eliciting a snort from Sojung which earned her a punch to the shoulder.

The bus came and they rode in silence till Eunha’s stop.

“Text me when you’re home?” Eunha asked as she got up from her seat.

“It’s just a stop away,” Sojung jested but agreed, seeing that the younger girl was serious about it. As she waved at Eunha through the window, she couldn't help but feel her heart swell up at the girl's simple question.

Once Eunha had freshened up, she shuffled to the kitchen to prepare some ramen for dinner. While waiting for the water to boil, a message came in from Sojung, reporting that she was home and about to make some dinner.

Suddenly, a brilliant idea struck Eunha.

She dumped the ramen into the pot and scrambled to her room for her IPad. This was a chance she couldn't miss.

As most holidays are, the week flew by pretty quickly and the next update was here before Sojung knew it. This chapter, however, seemed a little different. The protagonist had finally realized her love for the deuteragonist and was working up the courage to confess. To do so, she seeks advice from her best friend and to do so, meet up at a cafe that was similar to… the boba shop?

Come on Sojung, cafe architecture are fairly similar. Especially when they’re all going for a minimalistic look. Quit being ridiculous, she chided herself for slightly freaking out at the mere coincidence.

“I am melting.”

Sojung turned to the entrance of her apartment to see Yerin toeing off her shoes.

“It’s ridiculously hot today,” her friend whined as she passed the bag of takeouts to Sojung before going to put the ice cream in the fridge.

“We’re in the middle of a heatwave, I’m surprised your craving for ice cream was strong enough to get you out of the house,” Sojung chuckled.

“I hope it’s worth it,” Yerin sighed. “I’m gonna take a cold shower.” and with that, disappeared down the hall.

When Yerin returned, they unpacked the takeouts and tucked in.

“So what have you been up to?” 

“Reading the webtoon you got me addicted to,” Sojung sighed.

“That’s it?” Yerin deadpanned.”You need to go out more.”

“I did! Last week!”

“Alone?”

“With… Eunha,” Sojung said. She had forgotten to tell Yerin about how she had befriended Eunha over the past month.

“Oh? Looks like I’m missing something here. Come on, spill.”

And so she did. Sojung recounted how she had bumped into the girl at the mart and switched numbers which led to them going out last week.

“So you were on a date?”

“What?” Sojung squeaked. “No! We were just hanging out as friends!”

“I dunno,” Yerin shrugged. “From the way you described, sounds like a date to me. Do you like her for real?”

“I- What? Yerin, we hung out.”

“But you were going into all that detail of how she looked so soft and how you felt strange being out with her and how you were touched by her thoughtfulness because she asked you to text when you were home. I ask you to text when you’re home and you ignore me, I’m hurt by the difference in treatment here,” Yerin pouted and put a hand over her heart, feigning disappointment. 

Sojung could only sigh and lean back against the couch, hugging a cushion tighter.

“All I’m saying is that it might not be that ridiculous to entertain the prospect that you might have a growing crush on her.” the girl shrugged and took a sip of her soda.

Do I really…?

Sojung wasn't one to catch feelings so easily. She preferred to follow the textbook rule of being friends before getting into a relationship. But there was something truly special about Eunha that kept Sojung wanting more.

And that scared Sojung.

The friendship that was being kindled was going so well and Eunha was turning into someone she hoped could be a life long friend. Sure, Eunha could be a little loud and oblivious to her surroundings when she gets excited but she was also a thoughtful and good-natured person. There was something about her aura that made Sojung inexplicably comfortable around her.

"Geez, I didn't say that to get you into some emotional soul-searching mood, eat your chicken feet. It's gonna get cold," Yerin nudged her best friend with her knee. "If you don't, I'll eat it for you."

"Leave my chicken feet alone," Sojung scowled and began to put some on her plate.

She'll have to think about this later.

Taking in a deep breath, Sojung pressed the doorbell. She could hear the soft chime from behind the door and an even softer ‘coming!’. She ran a quick hand through her hair, hoping she looked presentable.

“Hey, come in!” Eunha beamed the moment she opened the door. Sojung returned the smile and stepped inside.

Eunha’s house was kind of how Sojung imagined it to be. Everything seemed to be neat and orderly and with the natural light from the open windows washing over the living room, it seemed almost like a display home.

Her room was equally neat with the only exception being her desk. There were a few books stacked up by the corner and papers that were scattered across the desk.

“Sorry, I was a little lazy to clean up,” Eunha rubbed her nape. “I’ll get you a drink.”

Sojung set her bag down by the foot of Eunha’s bed and looked around. The room was simply decorated and Sojung didn’t want to invade the girl’s privacy by poking around either but the sketches below an apple pen caught her eye.

“I hope it’s not ugly.”

Sojung spun around to face Eunha who was standing behind her with two glasses of water.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to be nosey,” Sojung lowered her head like a child that was caught stealing candy.

“It’s fine, did you think I was gonna chew you out for just looking at my desk?” Eunha giggled and set the glasses down on the papers as if they were coasters.

“Isn’t that uh... important? Like... They look nice, won’t it be ruined?” Sojung panicked.

“It’s fine, those are just for fun.”

“It kinda looks like… Is that Sujeong and Minhee?” 

“Oh yeah, I was trying to practice drawing human anatomy and the art style of this illustrator was really interesting.” Eunha tugged out a rough sketch from the side, handing it to Sojung.

“It looks just like the original,” the taller girl said. 

It was just a character study but Eunha had somehow managed to capture the essence of Tosunmon’s illustrations. She was so captivated by the sketch that she missed the glint of amusement in Eunha’s eyes.

“Can I keep this then? Since you said it’s just for fun.” Sojung asked, practically looking at Eunha with the best puppy eyes she could muster.

“I don’t know why you’d be so fixated on that but uh sure?”

“Thanks,” Sojung grinned and plopped herself down on the edge of Euna’s bed, carefully folding the paper in half. Eunha could only suppress her growing smile as she watched Sojung tuck the sheet of paper away carefully.

If only she knew that there was more to come.

“Eunha-yah!” Sojung called out from the living room. “We’re gonna be late, hurry up!”

A vague yell of acknowledgement was heard from the girl’s room. 

Sojung was currently over at Eunha’s place. They were going out for a movie today. A date? Kinda. They’ve been spending enough time together for Yerin to feel like she had been abandoned by the older girl.

“Don’t be so dramatic,” Sojung had rolled her eyes at her friend’s whines. But she couldn’t deny that there was some truth to that.

Just then, Eunha’s phone that was resting on the coffee table lit up. Sojung glanced over but leaned forward to take a closer look at a particular notification that caught her eye.
 

Mentioned by @ you

Looking forward to Monday already! xD @tosun.mon
 

The phone was scooped up before Sojung could blink.

“Let’s go?” Eunha asked, pocketing her phone.

“Tosunmon?” Sojung’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“What?”

“That notification… Ah sorry, that’s a bit rude of me huh,” Sojung scratched her head and stood up. “Nevermind me, let’s go.”

“Ah, that’s probably my fan account,” Eunha said as they put their shoes on. Sojung, though still baffled and pretty sure she saw the account to be the real illustrator’s handle, decided to shake her thoughts away.

Besides, there were more important things to think about right now. Like how she was going on a date with Eunha.

Kinda. 

Sojung was starting to get seriously weirded out by the webtoon. At first, she thought of it as mere coincidences but now she wasn’t so sure. As the chapters progressed, the dialogue and actions of the characters seemed strangely familiar. Almost as if they were modelled after herself and... Eunha?

But how could that be? Who would know them well enough? It’s certainly not Yerin; the girl couldn’t draw to save her life. Unless…

Eunha is Tosunmon? 

Does that even make sense? Her friend is an internet-famous webtoon artist? That seemed like the most outlandish reasoning for it, yet it was the most logical. Every metaphorical arrow was pointing at Eunha, but what does Sojung have as proof other than a handful of metaphorical straws?

Today was the Monday that Sojung most looked forward to yet dreaded to come.; the day of the final chapter. She had gotten emotionally attached to the characters over the three-going-four months of updates. It felt like a bittersweet parting.

Making herself comfortable in bed, she got her phone out and began to read.

Sujeong and Minhee had finally graduated from high school and were preparing to enter college. Minhee had made her attraction to Sujeong very clear during their tutoring sessions but Sujeong made it equally clear that with college entrance exams right around the corner, she was not going to entertain any of Minhee’s flirtatiousness.

Now that they had graduated, Minhee was going to do whatever it takes to get Sujeong to date her seeing that the girl would have no other excuse to reject her.

Minhee was in a deep slumber. An incessant knocking at her door forced her out of bed. She stumbled to the door and flung it open to reveal Sujeong in a very familiar outfit. Khaki brown trench coat over a black shirt, blue skinny jeans and a pair of white sneakers.

Hang on a second…

Anxiously, Sojung tapped the screen, flipping to the next page. Her heart was starting to beat erratically and her mind was buzzing with thoughts that she could barely understand herself.

Minhee and Sujeong were now settled by the former’s dining table. Minhee was leaning on the table looking at Sujeong who was sat ramrod straight, visibly uncomfortable.

Upon further prodding, the president ended up confessing to a very surprised Minhee.

Caption boxes of Sujeong’s thoughts took up the next few black panels. The president had fallen for Minhee throughout their tutoring sessions.

Sojung began tapping through the pages, eyes shifting quickly as she tried to take in everything. 

Then, she stopped.

Her eyebrows scrunched together as she stared at a single panel of the characters. As if a lightbulb flickered above her head, Sojung dropped her phone and scrambled out of bed, stumbling to her desk. In her haste, she stubbed her toe on her chair but she didn’t have time to care about the throbbing right now.

Sifting through her desk, she pulled out the sketch that she had taken from Eunha over a month ago and hobbled back to bed. Carefully unfolding it, she placed her phone beside the sketch.

Lo and behold, the outfits on the character study matched the ones in the published chapter to a tee.

“Jung Eunbi you…” Sojung muttered under her breath as her brain pieced together all the bits and pieces. The chapters after they met turned out to be an illustrated diary, filled with inside jokes and references Eunha knew only Sojung would get.

Sojung felt a shiver coarse through her body at how Eunha managed to pull this off. That girl could be a pretty darn good actress when she wants to. 

Without a second thought, she grabbed the sketch and her phone and promptly left the house. She began walking towards Eunha's apartment. Each step became quicker and soon she had broken into a run. She entered the building, darted into the elevator and jabbed the button to Eunha's floor. The few seconds it took for the elevator to ascend felt like an eternity as Sojung tapped her foot impatiently. Her hands were fidgeting with the paper stuffed into the pocket of her sweatpants.

As soon as the doors began to open, Sojung had slipped through the doors and was now marching down the hallway to Eunha's door. 

Before her finger could land on the doorbell, she paused.

What the hell am I doing?

Why had she come to Eunha's apartment? To confront the girl about being a webtoon artist? Was it that big of a deal for her to be right at the girl's doorstep? 

Sure, she was about to give Eunha a piece of her mind for playing dumb this whole time but... Did she have to do it in person? Moreso, why was she so worked up after reading the caption boxes of Sujeong's confession? It felt like the butterflies were having a protest in her gut with adrenaline pumping through her whole body.

I like her. 

Sojung gulped at the realization. The protagonist's narrated feelings were more or less what she had been trying to pretend didn't exist. It resonated so deeply within her that she was out of the house before she even realized it.

Sojung had been in denial that she liked Eunha.

"," she exhaled. Maybe she should go home and calm down before talking to Eunha in person. If she confesses now...

Sojung looked down at herself. Grey sweatshirt, sweatpants and white slippers? She whipped her phone out to check her reflection and god she looked awful. Her hair was in a dishevelled bun with tufts sticking out in different directions. Distraught, she pulled the hair tie off. No way in hell was she going to confess looking like that.

She turned towards the elevator and was about to make a getaway when the door opened.

"Sojung?"

The said girl froze like a deer in headlights.

Well .

"Eunha! I was just uh... Y'know..." Sojung racked her brain for an excuse but quickly resigned to her fate when she saw amusement written all over Eunha's face.

"Come in, I have a feeling you want to talk about something," Eunha laughed and reached out to grab Sojung's hand, pulling the girl inside.

Sojung settled down on the couch, mind and heart racing. All she could see in her head were the panels of Sujeong showing up at Minhee's house, confessing all of her pent up emotions and that wasn't helping Sojung one bit.

"So what's got you all freaked out?" Eunha asked, setting the mugs down on the coffee table.

"Well, for starters, this." Sojung pulled the sketch out from her pocket and waved it at the girl.

"Oh."

Eunha wasn't sure what to make of Sojung's expression. She didn't seem happy but neither did she seem pissed. Sojung simply looked at Eunha blankly as if waiting for her to say something. Should she apologize?

"I-"

"Busted," Sojung broke into a grin and Eunha felt herself letting loose a breath she didn't know she had been holding. "You sly little thing!" the older girl lunged forward and pulled Eunha into a headlock.

"I'm sorry!" Eunha squealed, grabbing at Sojung's arm. "I just wanted to tease you but it took you long enough to figure out!"

"I thought I was going insane!" Sojung ruffled the girl's now blonde hair.

It took a few moments before Eunha managed to pry Sojung's arms off. It was only then she realized how close they were sitting. Eunha also realized that she was still holding on to Sojung's arm and awkwardly loosened her grip.

"Sorry," Eunha pursed her lips. "I shouldn't have tricked you like that."

"I'll admit I was a little annoyed but then I became happy," Sojung chuckled. Eunha tilted her head in question and noticed how Sojung's gaze on her seemed softer than usual. "You brought me on a ride but you also helped me realize something I guess."

The blonde waited with bated breath and tried not to flinch when Sojung moved closer.

"That I'm really bad at guessing how the ending was gonna turn out."

"Oh," Eunha exhaled, failing to hide her disappointment. "Well, I'm glad you know sin-"

Her sentence was cut off by a warm body that was now embracing her. She could feel Sojung's contented breathing on her neck and the arms around her waist tighten.

"I like you, Eunha. I really do," Sojung said in such a gentle tone, Eunha felt like she was going to melt. "I'm sorry it took so long for me to figure out. Both my feelings and you being the artist--" Eunha snorted. "--But I got it in the end, so I hope I didn't ruin my chances with you."

"So you're turning the tables on me now, huh?" Eunha smiled and wrapped her arms around Sojung's shoulders.

"An eye for an eye," Sojung grinned when she felt Eunha relax and respond. Pulling away, Sojung felt herself grinning wider at the sight of Eunha's cheeks that were dusted pink.

"So... what does this make us?" Eunha asked.

"Two people who will write the chapters of their own love story?" Sojung wiggled her eyebrows.

"God... You did not just..." Eunha groaned and covered her face while Sojung cracked up at her own horrible pun.

"It was right there, I had to," Sojung couldn't stop smiling as she pulled Eunha's hands away from her face. "Well? You down for it?"

"I don't really have a choice, do I?" Eunha laughed. "You already have my heart."

With a crazed smile on her face, Sojung lurched forward and smothered Eunha in another tight hug.

She hopes their story would never end.

[A/N] This was inspired by Eunha who wanted to be a cartoonist when she was younger :P Hope everyone is doing alright still and healthy as always! Till the next story, take care!