..

"Irene, can we talk in private?" Seulgi asked with concern as they walked down the hallway after class.

"Uh, sure," Irene replied nervously.

"Let's go to the rooftop," Seulgi suggested, taking Irene's hand.

Once they arrived, Seulgi held both of Irene's hands. "First of all, I want to apologize for scaring you that night. I also want to be honest with you. The thing you saw was fake. I was just trying to scare people for fun," Seulgi explained.

"I...I believe you," Irene hesitated before continuing. "I know you couldn't do something like that. But I was shocked and traumatized that night. Please don't do it again, especially for fun."

"I know, Irene. I'm so sorry. I promise I won't do it again," Seulgi apologized before hugging Irene. "You know what? The best part is that I met you because of that incident, and I'm thankful for that."

Irene was overwhelmed but hugged Seulgi back. "I'm thankful too because despite that horrible experience, I met someone who was sincere, caring, and even protected me. Thank you so much, Seulgi."

"I hope we can stay with each other for a long time," Seulgi said.

The bell rang, and they rushed back into the classroom, still holding hands. Wendy noticed and asked, "Are you two dating?"

Seulgi and Irene coughed in shock, and Seulgi quickly replied, "Of course not! We sorted things out and are just grateful to each other."

"Is that so? You two are acting very suspicious right now," Wen