On the day Seo Yeon drifted away from him, Kwon Yool’s world came to a standstill.

Day by day, time moved on, but since that day, his time had been stumbling backward day by day.

If only he had been honest from the beginning, how much better it would have been.

If he had been like that, he wouldn’t have hurt her.

Kwon Yool blamed the past and regretted it every day.

Then, he remembered Seo Yeon’s words about taking time to think.

Though those words shattered him, they also filled him with gratitude.

He was grateful that she hadn’t pushed him away completely.

Even though they were apart, he believed that Seo Yeon was giving him another chance.

He wanted to believe it.
Kwon Yool treasured his time with Seo Yeon, even if it might be brief, and he didn’t want to lose it.

Could it change if he tried harder?

If so, then he was willing to do whatever it took.

No, he had to make it happen by any means necessary.

On the day he left Seo Yeon’s house with resolute steps, Kwon Yool headed back to the school library.

Someone might question his sanity, but in times like these, he had to try even harder.

He wanted to become a future that Seo Yeon could believe in and rely on.

From the beginning, he had wanted to be a man worthy of her, and he intended to continue that way.

Kwon Yool wanted to hold onto even a glimmer of hope.
If the beginning went wrong, everything had to start from the beginning.

Kwon Yool felt that if he didn’t do it that way, he might lose Seo Yeon forever, so he had to correct his troubled reality.

He forced his trembling heart to calm down and sat in the 24-hour study room.

In the farthest corner, he took out the most troublesome subject and thought as if reciting a spell.

“Seo Yeon, I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.”

Kwon Yool gripped his pen so tightly that his fingers almost lost circulation.

Then, like someone who had lost all emotions, he immersed himself in his studies.

He practically lived in the library, except for classes and meal times.
He didn’t attend the weekly dinner with Seokgu.

He even cut off contact with his cousin, Seo Hee, except for brief messages.

There was a day when he didn’t say a word all day.

At home, he only did the bare minimum and barely responded to questions.

Kwon Yool used his preparation for the civil service exam as an excuse to distance himself from everything voluntarily.

His friend, Won Joon, was the one who worried about him the most.

When he sensed a deep shadow hanging over Kwon Yool, he had a feeling that something was wrong.

“What’s going on? Huh? Yool.” he expressed his concern.

“Yool, talk to me. Want to have a drink with me?” he tried to persuade him.
“Why are you so obsessed like this? You’re going to collapse, you crazy person!” he angrily exclaimed.

Every time he did that, Kwon Yool would chuckle.

He thought it was better to be crazy about studying.

Otherwise, he felt like he might lose his composure and rush to Seo Yeon.

Kwon Yool was enduring, fearing that his small actions might make life even more difficult for Seo Yeon.

But oh, how resilient his memory was, like a camera, bringing Seo Yeon to his mind without fail every day.

The moments that once brought him the most happiness had turned into the most painful memories.

In Kwon Yool’s mind, her presence grew stronger with each passing day.
“I miss you…”

Kwon Yool muttered his longing, something Seo Yeon couldn’t hear, several times.

Then, with eyes that had lost their vitality, he returned to his books.

He had to pass, no matter what.

He thought that was the only way he could stand tall in front of Seo Yeon.

Kwon Yool was so engrossed in his studies that he couldn’t even feel his legs at times.

He thought to himself, “I might die studying like this.”

But his longing, firmly locked away, would occasionally overflow, and he couldn’t bear it.

Every time that happened, Kwon Yool wrote a letter.

In a situation where he couldn’t see or contact her, it was perhaps the only way.
Every day, after finishing his studies, he poured his heart out as if reporting on his day.

He wrote, then erased, as if venting his complex emotions.

“Sigh, what should I write?”

Kwon Yool’s heavy sigh cut through the humid summer air.

He wrote her name, “Seo Yeon,” and paused for a moment.

He missed her so much, didn’t want to say goodbye at all.

Kwon Yool struggled to contain his emotions and carefully chose his words.

Then, past midnight, he headed to Seo Yeon’s apartment as if punching in a time clock.

He glanced at the apartment building, dropped the letter in the mailbox.

Days passed. Each time he went, the letters remained piled up.
Have you already decided to part ways?

Or perhaps you haven’t checked the mailbox?

Kwon Yool despaired as he looked at the letters left behind.

But he didn’t stop.

One letter a day, and on days when he couldn’t bear it, he wrote three.

He wrote a total of 20 letters, and on the day he went with the 21st letter.

“Huh?”

The mailbox was completely empty.

For a moment, Kwon Yool’s heart jumped in surprise.