Jade and Joshua were once the quintessential high school sweethearts, their young love blooming in the hallways of their school, filled with laughter and shared dreams. However, an unforeseen event shattered their once unbreakable bond, sending them...
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Jiwon woke up with a pounding headache, the remnants of last night's events swirling in her mind like a hazy dream. Sunlight streamed through the open curtains, flooding her bedroom with a warm, golden glow that felt far too bright for her aching head. Cursing under her breath, she squinted at the clock on her bedside table—it read eleven a.m.
As memories began to resurface vividly, she recalled the dinner with the boys, the uncomfortable argument with Joshua, and his insistence on driving her home. Looking down, she noticed she was still fully dressed, wrapped in Joshua's flannel shirt, its familiar scent clinging to her like a lingering ghost. A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she contemplated tossing the flannel into a corner of her room, but as she held the soft fabric in her hands, she found herself unable to part with it.
Frustrated, Jiwon reluctantly placed the flannel near her pillow and ruffled her hair, trying to shake off the remnants of sleep. Her eyes drifted to her Jordans, abandoned near the foot of her bed, a reminder of the chaos of the night before.
The memory of Joshua hijacking her car despite her protests flickered in her mind. They had shared a quiet ride home, an unexpected calmness enveloping them as they sat in silence. She had felt her eyelids grow heavy and, before she knew it, had surrendered to sleep. Joshua had tried to wake her, but when he failed, he had gently supported her, helping her into her apartment. She remembered muttering the passcode and him guiding her to her bedroom with a tenderness that made her cheeks flush with embarrassment. He had carefully removed her sneakers and laid her down on the bed, whispering a soft goodnight before shutting the door behind him.
His presence had been frustratingly comfortable, a warmth she wasn't prepared to admit she craved. With a hectic schedule looming over her—juggling work and her duties as a bridesmaid for Jayoung—Jiwon was often sleep-deprived, making the unexpected kindness all the more disarming.
Groaning, she pushed herself out of bed and padded to the bathroom, the cool marble floor sending a shiver up her spine. Catching a glimpse of herself in the mirror nearly made her scream. Her hair was a wild tangle, and her unwashed face was a far cry from the polished image she usually maintained. Grabbing her toothbrush, she quickly set it aside to reach for her face wash first.
After a refreshing thirty-minute bath, Jiwon emerged feeling much more like herself, her wet hair wrapped in a towel and clad in a fluffy bathrobe. She greeted the housekeeper, who was diligently tidying up and shared her plans for a month-long trip to France. With a wave, she made her way to the kitchen.
Surveying the fridge, she found nothing particularly appealing and settled for a can of iced coffee, chugging it down to wake herself up. As the housekeeper continued cleaning, Jiwon opened her laptop to check her social media, responding to messages and emails. A wave of confusion washed over her when she noticed the lack of calls from her manager, Hyunwoo. Then it hit her—she was on leave for five weeks. A smile spread across her face as she shut down her laptop and returned to her bedroom to start packing.
