The presentation had gone well.

It wasn’t too surprising considering the amount of rehearsing Irene forced her to go through. She had most of the script memorised the night before the actual presentation without even trying.

“In any case, love and hate are powerful emotions that drive the characters in Great Expectations. Powerful enough to subvert the norms imposed by society and sometimes even supersede logic.” She glanced at Irene quickly, before turning back to the class when she realised what she had done. “If you ask me, some people spend too much time fighting between emotional and rational thought, not realising that at the end of the day, both are equally as important.”

“Maybe that’s a radical proposition in itself, but if there’s one thing that I took away from the book, it’s that emotions, radical or not, are what assigns value and meaning to our rational decisions. In that sense, it might be good to think about whether we’re living with the right values, instead of whether loving or hating is radical.”

Wendy cleared . “Sorry, I kind of went on a tangent back there. Thanks, uh, for listening to our presentation. If anyone has questions, we’d be happy to answer them.”

The last sentence was just a formality. Answering questions was one of their assessment components. However, she was prepared to take a step back and relax a bit. Her project mate being Irene Bae meant that students were likely to direct questions to her.

The first person who raised their hand was someone she recognized as one of the people who paid for her essay services regularly. He was from the dance team and his eyes were trained on the brunette next to her. Wendy caught the way Irene’s eyes narrowed and she let out the smallest of sighs when the teacher signalled for him to ask his question.

“Irene-ssi, firstly, I want to thank you for the lovely presentation. I think ” Wendy could see why Irene reacted that way. Honey was dripping off the tips of his words. Even she had to concentrate in order to prevent her cringe from showing on her face. “My question is, do you like Pip?”

“What kind of a question is that?” Wendy retorted before she could stop herself. She caught Irene’s surprised look at the corner of her eye but she didn't turn her head to meet her gaze. She kept her eyes leveled on the student in front of her.

“We were all forced to read the book, Wendy-ssi. I found Pip dislikable, that’s all.” He shrugged nonchalantly. “You have to admit, Pip is selfish, ungrateful and makes stupid decisions. He’s a horrible character.”

She made a mental note to put him on the lowest priority when she restarted her services. Wendy was about to launch into a defense for the character when another voice spoke up.

“Yes, Pip is selfish.” Irene’s steely voice sliced through the air; it was decisive and left no room for arguments. Despite her annoyance with the guy, Wendy stepped back and allowed the other girl to speak. “He has a multitude of flaws and gets wrapped up in emotions easily. Dickens didn’t intend to make his character a hero. Pip was idealist who was misguided and valued the wrong things. But those characteristics and mistakes make him the most human and realistic character because he is a reflection of what people hate the most- themselves.”

Like her gaze, her voice was frosty. Wendy didn’t want to know how it felt to be on the receiving end. The chastised classmate didn’t look like he had anything left to say and Wendy thought it was a wise choice.

The next person who raised their hand hesitantly was the blonde who usually sat behind Wendy. She instantly broke into a smile when they made eye contact.

“This question is directed at either or both of you. What is your opinion about love and do you agree with the way love is exhibited in the book?” Chaeyoung asked.

Wendy glanced at Irene again. She wondered if the other girl would take the question, but her groupmate was gripping the edge of the table so tightly that Wendy thought the table would crack. Thinking that the other girl was nervous, Wendy directed the attention towards herself.

“In the book, we see Dickens trying to paint an idealistic picture with Pip’s envisioning of love. The only way to love without guilt is to love, wholly and unconditionally, without expecting anything in return.” Wendy thought about Pip, his obsession with chasing after Estella, waiting for her to develop feelings for him. None of those words were accurate as a description. “Pip was aware that loving Estella would be thankless, yet he continued because that was his definition of love. However, in doing so, he forgot how to love himself and the value of character.”

Irene was looking at her. She could see the other girl watching her carefully at the edge of her peripheral, but she carried on anyway.

“So, no. I don’t agree. Love isn't patient and kind and humble. Love is messy and horrible and selfish and bold. It's not finding your perfect half. It's the trying and the reaching and failing.” Her voice audibly shook on the last word. Her answer felt a bit too personal but it was too late to take it back now. “It’s...knowing that you’re not even an option, but you still do whatever you can to be chosen anyway. Love is being willing to ruin your good painting for the chance at a great one. That was...a lot, but I hope it answers your question.”

She was waiting for confirmation from Chaeyoung but her classmate’s jaw was still hanging. No one else was reacting.

Silence had never felt so loud. Wendy was aware of the dryness of ; a physical sign that confirmed she had probably said too much. From the way the teacher seemed to be taken aback as well, her answer had been unexpected.

Had she misheard the question?

Suddenly nervous, she turned to her group mate for support. Irene looked like she was about say something but the bell rang before she could. The disruption seemed to break the spell because the classroom came alive again.

“Okay girls, thank you for your presentation. Please upload your slides on the portal and I’ll send you feedback on your paper by the end of the week.” Their teacher dismissed the rest of the class, while the two of them packed their things. Wendy caught Chaeyoung giving her a thumbs up signal as she left the class.

Soon, it was just her and Irene left. Her groupmate hadn’t spoken since the presentation ended. On one hand, Wendy was relieved that they made it through the presentation. With the content and analysis they had, she was more or less certain of their grade. On the other, for something that they’d worked so hard over the last few weeks for, the ending felt anticlimactic in a way. She felt slightly dissatisfied so she looked over at Irene, wondering if she felt the same.

However, the other girl’s gaze was unreadable.

Still, she forced a smile onto her face and extended her hand towards Irene for her to shake. Although Wendy didn't know what to expect, she knew she would regret not taking a moment to commemorate the end of their journey together.

This was it.

“Thanks for everything over the last few weeks. It was nice working with you, Irene Bae.”

Irene stared at her outstretched hand for a second. Wendy prayed her hand didn't tremble and give away how nervous she was.

It was an awkward thing to do, wasn't it?

There was a flicker of a smile on Irene’s face. Then, she accepted the gesture and Wendy felt a distinct softness as Irene’s hand met hers. “You too, Son Seungwan.”

Satisfied that she had probably gotten the best possible outcome, she grabbed her half zipped backpack with one hand; her laptop and notes in the other.

“I’ll, uh, see you around.”

She missed the way Irene’s eyes trailed after her as she left the classroom and shut the door behind her.

~~

Wendy was alone.

Things had changed so much within a short period of time.

A few weeks ago, she would probably have been at home, studying and writing reports. Yet, for some reason, she found herself sitting in the school library, waiting for Seulgi to finish class for the day.

She wasn’t hoping to see anyone.

Definitely not Irene Bae.

Irene was no longer a part of her life. As of a few days ago, they had literally and figuratively gone their separate ways after uploading their final slides into the online grading system.

They’d done it together. After the time they had spent on it, it didn’t feel right to not be sitting side by side when she clicked the option on her laptop.

The past week had been an attempt to give herself distance so that when their cooperative relationship, whatever it was, ended, it wouldn’t affect her. However it didn’t feel proper to part ways without meeting up one last time. There was a sense of finality in the last moments as her finger hovered above the trackpad.

After it was over, she had turned to Irene with a sigh of relief, exaggerated, of course, to lighten the mood. She had thanked her for suffering through four weeks with her, expecting a quip back from the other girl.

Yet, there was a strange look on the other girl’s features.

She couldn’t quite place a finger on what the emotion was, but she didn’t seem as relieved to be free of her as Wendy had expected. In fact, she looked troubled.

However, she didn’t think too much of it. It was probably her mind projecting her own emotions onto Irene. If she spent a few lingering seconds savouring, remembering the feeling of having the other girl near to her, it’s not like it would be hurting anyone.

She was aware that it didn’t make sense to feel sentimental about a project, it had only been four weeks anyway, but it wasn’t as though her feelings were logical to begin with.

A lot of people would give an arm and a leg to be partnered up with Irene Bae, even if it was just for one day. Within the four weeks, Wendy had cleared up their misunderstanding and established a tentative collaborative truce. She had technically succeeded in some way. Perhaps it was better to think of it like that, rather than a series of missed opportunities.

She stared at the amount of files still sitting on her laptop and smiled wanly. She almost missed the pair of curious eyes peeking around the bookshelf, followed by the emergence of a friendly face.

“Oh, Wendy-ssi! You’re staying late today. Not going home yet?”

“Hello Jisoo-ssi.” Wendy greeted with a genuine smile. She looked down at the open books in front of her and shook her head. “Not yet, I’ve still got things to do.”

“Ah, are you meeting Seulgi later?” Jisoo asked, checking the time on her phone screen.

“Oh! Actually, yes I am.” Seulgi had offered to teach her the basics of improving her fitness. Ever since they started using ball passes for conversation practice, Seulgi had been bugging her to join her for a “relaxing” after school workout. Although Wendy couldn’t see how working out could be relaxing, she had finally relented after Seulgi gave her sad puppy dog eyes.

“Cool, tell her I say hi!” Jisoo laughed warmly.

Wendy rarely encountered the two of them together at the same time so Wendy sometimes forgot that Jisoo was one of Seulgi’s close friends. They had similar temperaments and the same sense of humour, so it shouldn’t have come as a surprise when Jisoo for “stealing her lunch buddy”.

Jisoo was one of the few people who constantly made an effort to strike up conversation with her outside of class. It was part of the other girl’s extroverted nature, but it made Wendy feel like Jisoo thought of her as more than just the girl who helped with her essays. Even if it was mostly small talk and complaining about school work, the latter being more prominent on Jisoo’s end, she appreciated the other girl’s friendliness. Even when she had first transferred, it was Kim Jisoo who greeted her in the hallways and joked around with her in class that made her feel less alone.

Wendy’s eyes darted to the pile of books in her hands and raised her eyebrows. That was an unusual sight. “Since when do you study?”

“Since you started having writer’s block.” Jisoo quipped back dryly. It was rare to find the other girl around any sort of books, much less textbooks. Yet, it was easy to mistake otherwise, with the amount of books in her hands at the moment.

“Writer’s block?” Wendy snickered. “Is that what people are calling it?”

Her classmate plopped down in the seat next to her in a disorganised heap. The books landed on the table in a messy clutter. Not that the table was neat to begin with, but she felt the need to move her things to give the other girl some room. Wendy tried not to think about how that seat used to be where Irene usually sat.

“Well, it’s better than calling it personal issues.” Jisoo stared at her pointedly. Wendy got the message.

Maybe she should have broadcasted something more professional to her usual clientele, but it was hard to summarise and simplify “sorry I can’t help with essays and school work anymore because I’m ghostwriting love letters and pretending to be my best friend to my best friend’s crush turned girlfriend. Not to mention, said girlfriend whom I’ve had to work with for a project and juggle complicated emotions for” to other people without raising too many questions.

“I’m...sorry?” She wasn’t. Not really.

She was well aware that Jisoo knew that too.

“Nah, don’t be.” Jisoo waved her off. At times like this, she really admired Jisoo’s candour. “It’s time people started revising on their own, anyway.”

“Are you one of those people?” She teased.

Jisoo gestured to the pile of books on the table as though they were self explanatory. Wendy had to stare for a few seconds before she realised that the books all looked brand new. After which, she promptly burst into laughter.

“According to sources A, B and C over here, evidently not. Don’t worry, I’ll just ask Jennie to help for English next semester if your hiatus is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.”

“Jennie Kim?” The brunette nodded. Wendy was appalled.

“But she’s not even in our class!” Jennie was the top student in Seulgi’s English class, she remembered.

“English is English.” Jisoo said confidently.

Wendy fought the urge to roll her eyes. She wasn’t wrong, but different teachers focused on different things. That was the reason for her personalised and teacher-specific notes. It was also why she was able to charge for her services.

She looked at the notebook page in front of her, noting the presence of scribbles and short notes she had written to herself about Irene and bit her lip. It was only a matter of time before Seulgi would take over all the communication. She wouldn’t have to be “Seulgi” anymore. Thus, it was time to move on and remove herself from the picture as Seungwan too.

“I’ll come back soon.” She reassured her, even though Jisoo repeated that it wasn’t necessary. It felt good to say the words out loud. She gently tore the sheet of paper out of the book and folded it up.

“This can’t continue much longer anyway.”

~~

As it turned out, having Kang Seulgi as a physical training coach was a nightmare. The sweet and bubbly girl who waited for Wendy after school was gone the moment she stepped into her training gear. In her place was a relentless dance senior who made it her mission to get her juniors in shape. She could see why the younger dancers respected her.

They were to run five laps around the park as a warm up, before Seulgi took her through an entire regimen to build her endurance. Seulgi hadn’t even broken a sweat during their warm up. Meanwhile, Wendy was beginning to see stars after doing three laps at Seulgi’s pace.

When she had asked Seulgi to give her some tips on how to build up her stamina, she didn’t quite expect this type of intensity. She deliberately put in an extra wobble in her steps as she shuffled towards the rest area, shooting a stare at Seulgi, who looked on guiltily and tried her best not to laugh. She did anyway. Wendy was too tired to care.

She flopped onto the floor, not caring if anyone saw her. She was going to experience sore muscles for the next few days, she knew.

She could hear a set of approaching footsteps as Seulgi moved towards her. She had every intention of ignoring the other girl until she caught her breath but her friend had other ideas. Wendy let out a yelp when she felt an ice cold touch against her calf, causing her to sit up to find the source. The taller girl was towering over her with a bright grin on her face and two bottles in her hand.

One of the bottles was handed to her, which Wendy accepted gratefully. She still couldn't speak but she gave her a weak smile and hoped that it was sufficient.

They sat in peaceful silence for a few minutes. Seulgi, content with listening to the chittering of people walking by, while Wendy closed her eyes and relished the sunshine that warmed her skin.

“Seungwan-ah, I’ve been thinking.” Opening her eyes, she craned her neck to face her friend. Seulgi was studying the pavement with a pensive look on her face. “Do you think I made the wrong decision to confess?”

That made her sit up.

“What did you just say?” The brunette didn’t move from her position as she repeated her question. Wendy stared at her in disbelief.

“Why would you think that?” After all the effort they put in together, planning, editing, writing; it couldn’t have been for naught. The girl in front of her was definitely not the same one who leapt around in excitement every time they received a letter from Irene, no matter how many times they wrote to one another. It made her wonder whether something had happened during one of their meetups that she was unaware of. “Did you lose feelings for her?”

Wendy had gradually stopped tagging