Light High | •° RIIZE °•

17. FIRST ENTRY

???'s pov

After the surreal encounter with Seunghan, Hyeon stumbled into her room and collapsed onto her bed, feeling utterly disoriented. Her heart was still racing, a rapid thudding that seemed to echo the tumultuous emotions swirling inside her. It was fortunate that Minyoung wasn't there; otherwise, she would have undoubtedly noticed Hyeon's troubled state.

"Oh my god, what just happened? Am I sick?" she murmured to herself, pressing her hand to her chest to steady the erratic beat. The memory of Seunghan's tender touch, the way he cupped her cheeks and gently tucked her hair behind her ear, was seared into her mind. Every detail of that intimate moment made her cheeks flush hotly. She tossed and turned on her bed, unable to shake the image of him from her thoughts.

"Ugh, I'm so stupid," she scolded herself, repeatedly tapping her forehead—a habitual gesture when she felt overwhelmed by regret. The thought of her response to Seunghan's kiss gnawed at her. "I should have said yes. He must be feeling so down. This was his second rejection, after all. And Yeon, she was foolish to let him go," she muttered, a wry chuckle escaping her lips as she remembered her own past mistakes.

"Seunghan, I'm sorry. I guess I just didn't want any distractions from my goal," she whispered, her voice trembling with sincerity. Even though he couldn't hear her, she hoped that somehow he would understand. If circumstances had been different, if her quest for Yeon didn't overshadow her feelings, she might have accepted him.

Suddenly, Hyeon realized she was talking to herself. "What's happening to me?" she wondered aloud, her voice echoing off the plain white walls of her room. At that moment, a noise from her shelf caught her attention—a book had fallen to the floor.

"What's that?" she asked, her voice filled with lazy curiosity as she turned to investigate. There, lying on the floor, was the key she had taken from Seunghan. "Ugh, how could I forget about this?" she groaned, remembering she was supposed to meet Wonbin that day.

Reluctantly, she dragged herself off the bed and approached the mirror, checking her appearance before heading to his room. She wanted to look presentable, despite the whirlwind of emotions she was experiencing.

"Wonbin!" she called out as she entered his room. Her gaze fell upon him sitting at his study table, absorbed in his work. She took a seat beside him on the bed, peering at what he was doing with a mix of curiosity and distraction.

"What are you doing?" she asked, inching closer. Her attempt to engage him was met with silence.

"Wonbin..." she said, tucking a strand of his long hair behind his ear. The small, affectionate gesture made her think of Seunghan, causing a soft chuckle to escape her.

"What are you doing?" Wonbin finally asked, his gaze fixed on her. The question felt more like a mirror reflecting her own inner turmoil.

"What am I doing?" she replied, more to herself than to him, suddenly aware of how ridiculous her actions seemed. She had been caught in a moment of vulnerability, and it was becoming increasingly evident.

"Sorry, did I make you uncomfortable?" she asked, her voice carrying an edge of defensiveness. But Wonbin's frustration was directed at something else entirely.

"I'm not talking about that, Hyeon. I'm talking about why you're going around kissing guys," he said, his face flushed with a mix of anger and—was it jealousy?

"I did not go around kissing guys. It was Seunghan—he is, or rather, was your brother," she explained.

Her response seemed to inflame his anger further. In a swift, almost violent motion, Wonbin threw the books he had been working on and pushed her onto the bed, his body hovering over hers.