— Winter vacation is here and Julia is getting ready to go back to her father’s house. It’s been 4 days since her performance. Everyone loved her on stage. There is even talk of her keeping the lead for the upcoming spring recital. Everything seems perfect, but her happiness is incomplete. She remembers that first day she said goodbye to Hoseok at his dorm. My life without him starts now. As she packs away her things, she keeps thinking to herself that it may be time to take that realization seriously.

*phone ringing*

Mom: Isn’t that Hoseok’s ringtone?

J: Yup.

Mom: That has to be the 100^th time today. Aren’t you going to answer it?

J: Nope.

Mom: Are you still mad at him?

J: He promised.

Mom: I know he did, sweetie, but you know how busy he’s been. You can’t blame him for it.

J: I can and I will.

Mom: You should have seen this coming. It’s going to get worse once he debuts, too.

J: I know this, mother. That is why I’m cutting him off now before he disappoints me again.

Mom: If you really wanted to cut him off, then you would stop staring at your phone every time he calls. Just pick it up already. I know you want to.

— Hoseok has been calling Julia for days. Ever since he woke up to that message, he would text and call her every free second he had. Today is the first chance he has to talk to her in person. He calls her over-and-over just to see if she’s home, but still no answer. He goes to her mother’s house anyway.It’s worth a try.

*knock knock*

H: Hey mom! She probably told you to tell me she’s not here, but can you help me out just this once?

Mom: I’m sorry, Hoseok. She really isn’t here.

H: Really? I might have a chance, then, since I know she won’t hit me in public? Where did she go?

Mom: Winter break started already. She’s on the bus home to Gwangju. I dropped her off an hour ago. I’m surprised. I thought you called more today because you knew she was leaving.

H: Oh…yeah…I just thought she wasn’t leaving until later. Thanks, mom.

— He didn’t know. How could he have forgotten? Last year, he even counted down the days until her return on his little desk calendar. How can so much have changed in so little time?

— Vacation goes by fast for Julia. She successfully ignores Hoseok throughout her entire holiday. She is proud of herself and she feels as if it is finally time to let go of her childhood crush on her best friend. Her bus arrives in Seoul and she searches for her mother in the crowd; but her mother is nowhere to be found.

H: She’s not here, Jules. I told her I’d pick you up.

J: Taxi it is then.

H: Wait! I’m sorry. I know you hate me for missing your recital and I hate myself for it, too; but there’s really nothing I can do about it now. Just let me make it up to you. I heard you got the lead for the next recital. I’ll bring the guys there and we’ll scream our hearts out until we lose our voices.

J: I think you’re missing the point, Hoseok. Do you really think I’ll believe you now when you say you’ll be there? And no, you can’t make it up to me because I will never have another “first time being a lead.” No matter how many times I dance lead in the future, it will never be the same again. It was a special moment for me; one that I always knew would come because of all the support I got from my very best friend. Every time I imagined myself on that stage, you were always there in the crowd. On that night, I put my heart into every movement that I did on stage because I didn’t want to disappoint you. I guess I didn’t have to try so hard since you didn’t even care enough to come.

— She could no longer hold back the tears. She catches a taxi as quick as she can and gets in; not even attempting to look back at him. He is paralyzed by the shock of her words. He knows he messed up, but he didn’t think it was this bad. As he watches her get in the taxi, only one memory crosses his mind. He is taken back to his first day of practice and his now proven realization: My life without her starts now.