"You're getting tutored???" Yerim, Sooyoung and Seungwan all gaped at Joohyun after she told them everything.

She was going to be tutored by the Kang Seulgi that afternoon, and she felt nervously giddy, if that was a valid expression.

"You don't even like studying..." Sooyoung's voice trailed away. Joohyun shrugged. "My parents paid for me. Besides, she needs it too. Apparently it's for her school record. You know. College applications."

"But why her?" Yerim asked. "She's... strict as ." Yerim was apparently classmates with Seulgi during junior year, and she explained that it felt "suffocating" being in the same room as her, since they were complete opposites, with Yerim being flat-out y and Seulgi straightforwardly no-nonsense. Whatever Yerim did, Seulgi made sure to take note of it and reprimand her for it. And Yerim hated being reprimanded.

"She's not strict," Joohyun crossed her arms. "You're just an attention-seeking kid who finds it hard to keep their mouth closed and has issues on staying still and quiet." "The heck?" Yerim stood and pretended to land a punch on Joohyun's face. The latter laughed and stood up, as if ready to spar with her.

Seungwan sighed. “Good luck later, then.” She twirled a pen around her fingers, back and forth. “She’s a genius. She takes things seriously.” “Come on!” Joohyun put her hands on her hips. “I’m serious too!”

Joohyun’s friends looked at each other. Sure, everybody in school knows Joohyun to be pretty and mischievous, making her… pretty mischievous. And, sure, absolutely not everybody knows that Joohyun can be serious when it comes to things that mean important to her.

But was studying important to her?

Maybe some people would judge Joohyun for being the kind of student who settles for a passing score.

You see, Joohyun was different. And her friends knew that.

She loved parties and trouble; she loved running away and disappearing in the blink of an eye; she loved making plans and cancelling them to sleep through the day. She loved loud music and late afternoon sunlight; cutting classes and cafeteria food fights; dancing under the rain and late-night joyrides.

Joohyun was living for a life well lived. Not a life well scored.

But if this time Joohyun wanted to be proper for at least once in her life, who were they to question her anyway? It sounded as if they didn’t trust her. They were just her friends. She’d consult them for advice, but even if they offered a million of them, she’d still go on her own way.

And that’s why people also admired Joohyun. She stood her g