As U-jin nestled his head on Eun-kyung's shoulder, he surrendered to sleep, unconcerned with the shocked stares cast his way.
"Coward," the group turned their attention to Diego, who merely shrugged. "He's probably pretending."
Eun-kyung, now without U-jin to kick off the game, pondered aloud, "So, who's going to start now that U-jin is indisposed?" Her gaze lingered on U-jin, still resting on her shoulder.
Mun-hee took it upon herself to fill the void, confidently twirling the bottle until it came to a stop in front of Diego.
"Truth," Diego declared before Mun-hee had a chance to speak.
"I've always wondered why you reject my classmates. Do you have a girlfriend, by any chance?" Mun-hee inquired, but instead of responding, Diego burst into tears. "She isn't here."
All eyes were fixed on Diego as he seized a full bottle of soju and swiftly downed its contents. His thirst not quenched, he reached for another, only to have Eun-woo intercept and confiscate the remaining bottles, retreating to the kitchen.
Desperate, Diego resorted to repeatedly striking his head against the desk. Heartbroken, he cried out, "Come back to me."
Ga-ram whimpered, "So, the game is over?"
Eun-kyung sighed and attempted to gently lay U-jin's head back on the desk before joining Eun-woo in the kitchen.
"Eun-woo," she called out as she caught sight of him placing the soju in the refrigerator.
"What?" he responded, closing the fridge door.
"I need you to reject Mun-hee if she asks you for a ride," she stated.
Eun-woo raised an eyebrow, sensing the connection to Si-woo. "Does this have to do with Si-woo?" he enquired.
"Of course. I'm assisting him, and you should too. You're well aware that Mun-hee likes you, aren't you?" Eun-kyung clarified.
"Perhaps, but I will do my best to decline her, though it will undoubtedly be challenging," Eun-woo conceded.
"Just inform her that you'll need to drop off U-jin and Diego first, then mention that you'll be so exhausted that you won't be able to make it to her house after dropping them," Eun-kyung instructed.
"Alright," Eun-woo agreed as they made their way back to the living room. Soon after, Mun-hee hurriedly approached him, her eyes filled with pleading desperation.
"Senior Eun-woo, please, can you drive me home?" Mun-hee implored.
"Um... I... I mean, I... might..." Eun-woo stuttered.
"He won't be able to, since he'll be driving U-jin and Diego home," Eun-kyung interjected.
"Can't he drop me off before them?" Mun-hee questioned, her confusion evident.
"Perhaps..."
"He mentioned he would be sleeping over there due to his exhaustion as well," Eun-kyung interrupted, gesturing to Eun-woo to play along. However, he continued to stare at her strangely until she discreetly hit the back of his leg. Suddenly, Eun-woo began clutching his shoulder and feigning pain.
"Oh, well, in that case, maybe I should call a cab," Mun-hee mused, reaching for her phone in her pocket.
"Have you forgotten that I'm here?" Si-woo spoke up, snatching her phone from her hands.
"And have you forgotten that you have a sister? The car you drove here can only accommodate two passengers, so give me back my phone," Mun-hee retorted.
"I'm not going back home. I'll be staying here with Ga-ram. Si-woo, please bring my clothes tomorrow," Eun-kyung announced.
"That won't be necessary. You let me borrow your school uniform once, and I still haven't returned it," Ga-ram informed.
"Well, then everything is settled," Eun-kyung declared, prompting Si-woo to escort Mun-hee out. Eun-kyung assisted U-jin as they made their way to Eun-woo's car, while Eun-woo did the same for Diego, who continued to cry for his girlfriend.
"Please take good care of them," Eun-kyung said, as she began walking back towards the house.
"Eun-kyung," Eun-woo called out.
"Hmm?" She turned, but he mumbled that it was nothing. She waved at him and said, "Good night. If you wanted me to say something, you shouldn't be shy about it." Eun-woo smiled in response as Eun-kyung entered the house.
Ga-ram and Eun-kyung ensured tidy up everything before retiring for the night.
The following morning, they were greeted with a hearty soup that Ga-ram's mom had prepared for them, to their delight.
After the meal, they hurriedly made their way to the bus stop where Ga-ram always caught the bus on weekdays to go to school. Eun-kyung was filled with excitement, knowing she would be boarding a bus for the first time in the novel. As the bus arrived, they boarded, and Ga-ram used her card to pay the fare. Although the bus was crowded, there were still a few seats available. Eun-kyung initially wanted to sit in the front, but then she caught sight of a familiar face—cold pale blue eyes, arched eyebrows, a straight nose with a blonde messy bedhead and pale pink lips. He could easily be called the "Ice Cold Prince" if he were to enter the entertainment industry. She quickly went over to greet him.
"Young-chul," she called out, but he was gazing out the window, with earphones in both ears. She had to gently remove one earphone, and as he turned to face her, his expression filled with malice softened upon realising it was her.
"Oh, it's you. What is a princess like yourself doing on a bus?" he asked.
"I came with Ga-ram," she replied as Ga-ram caught up with her.
"Hi," Ga-ram waved, and he nodded in response. They then took seats in the row behind him since his seat was occupied. Eun-kyung chose a seat near the window and sat down.
The bus came to a sudden halt after a five-minute ride. "Wait, have we reached already?" Eun-kyung questioned.
"Damn it," Young-chul exclaimed, sitting upright.
"What's wrong?" Ga-ram stood up as well.
"Can we switch seats?" he asked Ga-ram.
"Sure, okay," Ga-ram agreed, and they swiftly swapped seats.
More passengers boarded the bus, and Ga-ram recognized someone. She smiled and glanced back over her seat, saying to Young-chul, "You could have just said you wanted to avoid someone, but you know you can't do that forever."
Eun-kyung felt left out and stood up to ask Ga-ram what she meant, but then she noticed someone familiar who had the power to brighten even the saddest moments. It was a face with beautiful blue eyes, a small nose, plump pink lips, long brown curls, and flawless radiant skin. Compared to Young-chul, this person was like the embodiment of spring, deserving the nickname "the warm-hearted goddess."
"Seo-ah, over here!" she waved, catching Seo-ah's attention. Her smile grew when she saw who was next to Eun-kyung.
"Oh, Young-chul, you're here too?" she asked, but he remained silent.
"I was the one who called you here, and you didn't pay any attention to me," Eun-kyung faked a cry as she sat back down.
"No, I didn't mean to. Here," Seo-ah said, opening a box and revealing a macaroon wrapped in transparent plastic. Eun-kyung happily accepted it with a smile.
"Young-chul, I brought some for you too. Here," Seo-ah said as she began searching her bag.
"No need," he declined.
"But... you should, since you don't eat breakfast at home," she tried to reason.
"I said no," this time his voice grew louder.
"Okay," Seo-ah sniffed, sitting close to Ga-ram.
"Why are you so cold to her?" Eun-kyung whispered, but he chose to ignore her.
After fifteen minutes, the bus stopped in front of their school, and they all got off, embarking on their journey to the school building.
Young-chul was walking ahead, with Seo-ah following closely behind.
"I sense something peculiar between those two," Eun-kyung observed, her gaze fixed on Young-chul and Seo-ah.
"They're merely friends," Ga-ram assured her.
"More like lovers," Eun-kyung quipped, teasingly.
A car came to a halt beside them, and U-jin, Diego, and Eun-woo stepped out. However, Diego quickly moved to the driver's seat and drove away in the car.
"What's new?" Ga-ram greeted them.
"Good," Eun-woo replied, while U-jin continued to stare at Eun-kyung. Unsettled by his gaze, Eun-kyung decided to ask a question. "Why isn't Diego wearing his glasses today?"
"It's because he broke them yesterday, and his mother has forced him to wear contacts for the rest of the semester," Eun-woo chuckled.
"That's quite harsh of her," Ga-ram remarked.
"Why do you say that?" Eun-kyung inquired.
"Diego dislikes wearing contacts, so I suppose his mother is punishing him for drinking outside. She always does that," Ga-ram complained.
Eun-kyung noticed that U-jin remained silent and stared at her. Annoyed, she asked, "What's the matter?"
"I missed you," he finally spoke up.
"You've got to..."
"These seniors seem oblivious to the fact that they are running late," Mun-hee said as she zoomed past them, with Si-woo in tow. In response, Young-chul and Seo-ah, who were at the front, started running.
"Shouldn't you guys run too, since your teammates are doing so?" Eun-woo asked the ladies.
"We're not kids," Ga-ram retorted.
"The last one to reach the classroom building is a piranha!" Eun-kyung declared as she took off.
"Stop running, fish!" Ga-ram yelled, following closely behind.
Eun-woo glanced at U-jin and then back at the running girls. "I won't be the piranha," he declared before sprinting off. U-jin shook his head before joining the race as well.