"Crap!"

Jiyul was woken by quiet curses and the shifting of weight on the bed before her alarm even rang. She lifted her head slightly to look back at G.O, who ruffled his hair and paced around the room in frustration. And suddenly she remembered the promise he made last night before she fell asleep. Giving in to lethargy, she let her head fall back onto the pillow, shutting her eyes tight in hope of shutting all thoughts out. But her attempt failed as soon as that soothing voice spoke.

"Mianhae, Jiyul. I woke up late. I'll try to succeed on my first try!" he quickly said, leaving the room. His voice was coarse from having just woken up. Despite feeling awfully groggy, her mind was able to quickly piece everything together.

"I'll make eggs tomorrow then!"

She remembered the cheerfulness in his voice as he said that just yesterday morning, when she walk out on him. It didn't feel good then, to turn away from the face that she adored, the voice that made her heart race. And yet G.O was able to nonchalantly turn away from her everyday, whenever she started to get chatty. She wondered how he was able to do that without feeling anything. And the only explanation she could come up with was still the same answer for all of her doubts; that he no longer loved her.

Jiyul stood before the mirror, examining her reflection. She was never too affected about her appearance. She may not be a beauty, but she never thought she was ugly. She let out a deep breath as she wondered how it was possible that the man that once made her feel so beautiful now gave her a million insecurities.

"Jiyul ah, are you done? You're going to be late for school if you don't hurry!" G.O said as he leaned against the bathroom door.

"I'll be out in awhile." she replied, her heart skipping a beat when she heard him speak. She had always wished he would show such concern, worry for her punctuality at school and rush her as she hogged the bathroom, even if it would irritate the hell out of her. And for the first time in so long, she finally got it.

She opened the bathroom door, stepping out to find G.O sitting at the edge of their bed, staring at his cellphone with a smile on his face. If it were before, she would have been a real bugger and questioned him until he shared his joy. But all she did was look away, making her way out.

"Breakfast is ready, Jiyul. And it was a success! I did it in one try!" he exclaimed, tailing behind her as she walked to the kitchen. Indeed, the sunny-side-up that sat neatly on her plate looked perfect. And he didn't burn the toasts this time. This was definitely not a sight Jiyul had expected to see.

"Good job." she simply said, sitting herself down.

G.O's eyes widened. His heart welled up with joy at that compliment, even if it sounded indifferent. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he could picture the smile on Jiyul's face and imagine the cuddles he would have gotten if not for him messing up their relationship. But still, that didn't bring him down. Every word he got from Jiyul was now incredibly precious. He watched as she ate, his happiness filling up for the hunger that wasn't completely satiated. He didn't have class that morning so he didn't have to prepare for school. He just changed into his casual t-shirt and jeans, not even bringing his bag as he drove Jiyul to school. He waited anticipatingly for her to notice and ask him about it, but she didn't.

"Bye." she said, opening the car door.

"Jiyul." he quickly called out before she left, "What time do you end school?"

"5pm."

"I'll pick you up, ok? Don't go off on your own!" he grinned, waving her goodbye and then driving off before she could reject.

-
 

"Ya! Yoon Jiyul! Where'd you disappear to after class yesterday?!" Inyoung yelled as she slammed both palms on the table infront of Jiyul. Jiyul jumped slightly, startled by Inyoung's loud voice that captured the attention of everyone in the room.
 

"Quiet, Inyoung!" she hushed, putting her finger to her lips as she gave Inyoung her puppy eyes.

 

"Answer my question! What happened and why haven't you been yourself lately?" Inyoung urged, sitting down.
 

"It's really nothing." Jiyul insisted, "I've just been getting less sleep. That's all."
 

"Is it about G.O?" Inyoung questioned, ignoring Jiyul's claims of being fine.

"Inyoung ah..." Jiyul sighed in exasperation at her persistence. Though Inyoung and Jiyul have been friends since high school, even before G.O and her got together, Jiyul never told her when anything went wrong. She trusted her best friend completely. But she was never one to share her worries or pains.

"Did the two of you fight?"
 

"No, Inyoung, we're perfectly happy together. Nothing is wrong with our relationship. In fact, we're going on a date right after this." JIyul rambled frustratedly in one breath, in hope of shutting her up for good.
 

Inyoung gave her a skeptical look before turning her attention to the lecturer who had walked in, extinguishing all the scattered murmurs across the room.

After class ended, Jiyul made her way out with Inyoung, squeezing through the crowd in the hallway.

"I need the bathroom...You leave first. I'll text you later." Jiyul said, bidding her goodbye to Inyoung. As Inyoung passed the gates, she noticed a familiar car parked at the sidewalk. She looked around, searching for it's owner. And there he was, casually pacing back and forth, his eyes scanning through the crowd excitedly for his girlfriend, her best friend. She approached from behind, tapping him on his shoulder.

"Oh, Inyoung ah!" G.O greeted, "Where's Jiyul?"

"She'll be out in awhile." she replied, analysing G.O as he nodded his head with a thoughtful expression.

"Has Jiyul been acting weird recently?" Inyoung randomly brought up, causing G.O's smile to fade a little.

"What do you mean?"

"She's been daydreaming a lot lately. She seems really troubled, always lifeless and all. Did something happen?"

G.O's heart sank. He hated to think that their relationship was weighing her mind down and taking away the best thing about her, her liveliness.

"Did she tell you anything?" he cautiously asked.

"No. All she said was that you're taking her on a date today. And then she kept smiling to herself after she said it."

It took a while for G.O to register that.

"Really?" he gasped softly, his face brightening and his smile returning, ten times wider than before.

Inyoung nodded with a raised brow, confused by his excitement.

"Whatever, weirdo couple..." she muttered, "I'll get going. Bye!"

G.O grinned, waving Inyoung goodbye. He liked what he had heard and was extremely thankful towards Inyoung, though he wasn't sure why he should be. He checked his watch for the time, unable to take that smile off his face.

"Weirdo couple?" he mumbled, repeating what Inyoung had labelled them as. He quietly giggled, looking to the floor bashfully.

"What are you doing?"

G.O jumped, holding his hand to his chest as he turned to Jiyul, startled.

"I was...w-well, I was waiting. Hehe. For you..." he stammered, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

"Well I'm here. Let's go."

She headed towards his car. G.O quickly followed behind her, his cheeks in to stop himself from smiling.

"Where are we going?" Jiyul asked.

"Let's go fishing..." he suggested with hopeful eyes as he waited for Jiyul's answer.

"Ok." she shrugged. G.O gave up trying to hide his smile. He thought about the phone call with his mother just a while ago.

"Byunghee ah, it's been so long since you visited. When are you going to bring your girlfriend to see us?" his mother nagged through the phone.

"Mianhae, omma." he mumbled, feeling sorry as Jiyul was mentioned. His parents lived all the way at the other end of South Korea, and due to inconveniences, they haven't met Jiyul once. He wanted them to...but how was he to tell them of their current situation? How was he to tell them that the son they were so proud of broke the heart of the most precious girl in his life? How was he to confess that he was on the verge of losing her?

"I want to see her. Bring her over some time!" she urged.

"I will, omma. I'll bring her home real soon..." G.O whispered, tears welling up in his eyes as he forced a smile.

The light turned red. And as soon as the car came to a stop, G.O turned to Jiyul.

'I'll bring her home as soon as I win her heart back, omma...' he thought to himself.