Yumi decided to change.

‘I’ve liked Ji Ho for over 10 years, what’s a few more years?’

It was regrettable that they couldn’t become a campus couple, but it would be worse to cling to something already lost and drift apart from Ji Ho forever.

Right now, it was more urgent for Yumi to turn Ji Ho’s heart back to how it was before, when he didn’t set boundaries with her.

“I really almost fainted from shock that day. Since elder sister didn’t tell us anything, mother and I had no idea. You could have at least given your family a heads up. Elder sister, you’re too much.”

Yumi said to Ji Ho, mixing in a light laugh.

She only used to call Yi Soo ‘elder sister’ in front of Won Jin, but she decided to call Yi Soo ‘elder sister’ in front of Ji Ho from now on too.

Yumi didn’t know how Yi Soo had talked about her to Ji Ho, but she intended to appear like a good younger sister to Yi Soo in her own way.

“Are you on your way to have lunch with elder sister?”

“No.”

He opened the library entrance door and went outside.

It was lunchtime with many people coming and going, so Ji Ho was naturally conscious of those gazes.

Yumi didn’t grab Ji Ho’s arm or stand close to him like before, but he didn’t want to create a situation where such photos could be taken again like before.

Remembering his warning to be careful, Yumi also walked about two steps away.

Without much conversation, as they walked in the same direction, Yumi muttered carelessly as if talking to herself.

“If I had known elder sister was meeting oppa, I wouldn’t have said anything to Min Jae oppa… I didn’t even know that…”

Yumi deliberately called Min Jae ‘oppa’ familiarly, as if he was an oppa she knew well.

“I guess I made a mistake.”

Yumi continued speaking while glancing at Ji Ho’s reaction with just her eyes.

As expected, there was a subtle change in Ji Ho’s expression.

Yumi’s eyes sparkled.

“You don’t know, huh? Well, what’s the point of knowing about an ex-boyfriend? It would just make you unnecessarily concerned.”

Ji Ho clearly remembered the name Min Jae.

Yi Soo had said she wasn’t even in a proper relationship with that man, but was she close enough for Yumi to know him too?

‘She said she was telling me about her family for the first time.’

Ji Ho lightly furrowed his brows.

Noticing the subtle change in expression, Yumi secretly smiled in satisfaction.

‘That’s right. If little misunderstandings like this pile up, the day will surely come when things fall apart.’

“Oh my, look at me. I shouldn’t say any more.”

Yumi tapped her lips with three fingers as if she had made a slip of the tongue.

With Ji Ho’s personality, he probably wouldn’t ask Yi Soo about this directly.

Even now, he kept his mouth shut with a hardened face, not asking Yumi a single question.

“Well then, enjoy your lunch, oppa. I have an appointment, so I’ll be going.”

Yumi turned away cleanly, without lingering like before.

**

The last day of final exams.

Throughout the exam period, Yi Soo had been staying up almost every night.

She endured by sleeping only three to four hours a day and drinking all kinds of caffeinated beverages.

Yi Soo overcame her physical limits and took her last exam.

“It’s finally over!”

Ae Ra shouted in a relieved voice towards Yi Soo, who was coming out of the lecture hall looking haggard.

Yi Soo had dark circles under her eyes down to her ankles, and her hair was tightly tied back with a black band.

In contrast, Ae Ra had taken off the thick glasses she had been wearing until yesterday and even put on nice makeup.

“Ae Ra, you really look ready to go on a blind date right now.”

“It’s the last day of exams. I’m going out to play right after, so I had to at least do this much. It’s troublesome to go back home and come out again.”

Ae Ra laughed lightly.

“It looks like you’re going straight home? Aren’t you going to the end-of-semester party today?”

“What end-of-semester party? I’m in a daze right now and can barely keep my eyes open. I’m going to sleep as soon as I get home.”

Yi Soo was enduring extreme fatigue with sheer willpower.

“Then go home, wash up and rest a bit, then come out in the evening. It’s the last day after all, you should relieve stress by having fun.”

“What are you going to do until then?”

“This unnie has a plan. Want me to tell you? You can join if you’re interested.”

Ae Ra’s eyes sparkled as she linked arms with Yi Soo, and a fragrant scent of cosmetics wafted over.

“No, I’ll pass. Have fun with your plans.”

“Call me later if you change your mind.”

After parting with Ae Ra, Yi Soo headed straight home.

On her way home, Yi Soo took out her phone and turned it on.

She checked her missed calls and messages one by one.

−Good luck on your exam today. I’ll call you when it’s over. You won’t turn off your phone today, right?

It was a message from Ji Ho.

Yi Soo had turned off her phone and hadn’t met Ji Ho at all since the exams started.

They only exchanged brief greetings via text in the mornings and evenings.

During exams, their paths didn’t cross because Yi Soo was studying in the lecture hall, and her schedule for going home was irregular, making it difficult to meet.

The longing she felt for the first few days seemed to have become manageable, perhaps because she had gotten used to it.

−I just finished and I’m on my way home. Good luck on your exam and call me when you’re done!

Yi Soo sent a message to Ji Ho and closed her eyes, which had become dry, on her way home.

As soon as she arrived home, Yi Soo put down her bag and went straight into the bathroom.

She put bubble bath in the tub, turned on the hot water, and came out.

She took out a cold beer from the refrigerator to drink while taking a half-body bath, and also grabbed a Bluetooth speaker.

While waiting for the hot water to fill, Yi Soo sat on the edge of the tub and blankly watched the soft, fluffy bubbles rise like cotton candy.

After waiting for a while, she immersed herself in the hot water filled with bubbles.

She took a swig of the cold beer with her tired body.

The beer that went down her throat spread coolly throughout her body.

As she leaned back and lay in the tub languidly, the soft bubbles emitting a lemon scent seemed to relieve the fatigue clinging to her entire body.

‘Ah. This feels so good.’

After finishing her half-body bath, Yi Soo washed up and came out to check the clock on the wall.

It was 1 PM.

She dried her hair and changed into her most comfortable clothes.

Ji Ho said his exam would end around 3 PM, but could she stay awake until then without falling asleep?

Perhaps thanks to the bath, she felt even sleepier than before.

Maybe because it had been a while since she drank, or because she drank with a tired body.

The effects of just one can of beer hit her hard.

On top of that, her body felt like it was sinking into the ground as the tension released.

Yi Soo found it difficult to keep pushing up her eyelids that kept closing no matter how much she tried to keep them open.

Leaning her languid body on the sofa, Yi Soo typed a message to send to Ji Ho on her phone.

−I’m so sleepy from not sleeping for days that I might fall asleep. Let’s meet tomorrow. Sorry.

Yi Soo stared blankly at the screen before pressing send, then deleted the message tap tap tap.

They were supposed to meet after a week, so Ji Ho would probably be disappointed.

And it was Yi Soo who told him to come over on the day exams ended.

‘I really want to see him too, but what should I do…’

Yi Soo typed a new message on her phone

−Ji Ho, I’m so sleepy I might fall asleep now. If I don’t answer your call, come to my house…

She paused mid-message and pondered.

To tell him to come over, she’d have to give him the door passcode.

Even though he was her boyfriend, she hesitated a bit about sharing the front door passcode.

‘But if I don’t do this, we probably won’t be able to meet today…’

After a while, Yi Soo seemed to make up her mind and continued typing the message she had stopped.

−Come to my house and wake me up. The passcode is…

Yi Soo wrote down both the building entrance and her front door passcodes and pressed send.

Even during the brief moment of contemplation, Yi Soo’s mind was becoming increasingly hazy.

Now she could sleep with peace of mind.

Yi Soo fell asleep as soon as she got into bed.

**

As soon as the exam ended, Ji Ho checked his phone.

The corners of Ji Ho’s mouth turned up slightly as he saw the message from Yi Soo.

The passcode to Yi Soo’s house written in the message felt like Yi Soo’s heart towards Ji Ho.

Yi Soo had sent the message at 1 PM.

It was now 3 PM.

If she had fallen asleep right away, she might have woken up from a nap by now.

Ji Ho pressed the call button for Yi Soo’s number.

The call connected unexpectedly quickly, contrary to his expectation that it would ring several times.

“Hello?”

After waiting for a while with no response, Ji Ho took the phone away from his ear to check the screen.

The call was definitely connected, and the call duration was displayed, but there was no sound.

“Yi Soo?”

Ji Ho called Yi Soo again.

Still no response.

Ji Ho listened intently to the sound on the other end of the line, his brow furrowing.

Then he could faintly hear the sound of steady breathing.

It seemed she had pressed the button in her sleep upon hearing the ringtone.

Ji Ho chuckled.

‘How deeply must she be sleeping…’

After hanging up, Ji Ho headed towards Yi Soo’s house with excited steps.

**

The sound of the front door closing and the lock engaging was heard.

Ji Ho quietly took off his shoes and entered.

It was silent without a single sign of movement.

Although it wasn’t the first time, Ji Ho felt excited as if it were his first visit.

Yi Soo was nowhere to be seen in the living room or kitchen.

Ji Ho went to the bathroom as usual to wash his hands and also took out some water from the refrigerator to drink.

Then he stood in front of the tightly closed bedroom door.

Ji Ho’s hand trembled slightly as he grasped the bedroom doorknob.

After taking a deep breath, Ji Ho carefully pushed the doorknob.

As he opened the door, a subtle lemon scent filled the room.

Taking a step inside, he saw Yi Soo buried in the large bed in the middle of the bedroom.

An irrepressible smile spread across Ji Ho’s face as soon as he saw Yi Soo’s sleeping face, like that of a child.

Ji Ho tiptoed to the side of the bed.

“…Yi Soo.”

He called Yi Soo’s name in a voice so small it was questionable whether he intended to wake her.

It was just a pretense of trying to wake her up since Yi Soo had asked to be woken.

When there was no reaction even after waiting for a moment, Ji Ho moved closer to Yi Soo’s bed.

**

Yi Soo, who had slightly woken up, sniffed at the scent coming from somewhere.

It smelled so similar to Ji Ho’s scent…

Can you smell things in dreams too?

Yi Soo moved her nose closer to where the scent was coming from, without even opening her eyes, still half-asleep.

Thud.

Yi Soo’s nose bridge lightly bumped against a wide, firm wall.

‘Ah! What’s this?’

Yi Soo narrowly opened her eyes then closed them.

Something bluish appeared before her eyes then disappeared.

Yi Soo slowly opened her eyes again and tilted her head back to look up.

Then she saw a sharp jawline above her head.

‘Oh!’

Rolling her eyes left and right, she saw Ji Ho’s arm resting on her shoulder.

The bluish thing was the shirt Ji Ho was wearing.

It didn’t take long for her to realize that she was trapped in Ji Ho’s arms.

If she was being held like this, there must have been some movement…

She hadn’t noticed at all.

When did he come?

‘I told him to come wake me up, but he’s sleeping while hugging me?’

Yi Soo barely held back a laugh, finding it absurd.

Ji Ho’s embrace was cozy and warm, making her want to stay like this for just a little longer.

It felt like she could fall asleep again like this.

In the quiet stillness, Ji Ho’s steady breathing could be heard.

Yi Soo rested her cheek on Ji Ho’s chest.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Unlike Yi Soo’s heart beating wildly, Ji Ho’s heartbeat was regular and peaceful.

She had been held by Ji Ho many times before, but this was the first time lying in bed, making the situation strangely sensual.

‘It might be too awkward if Ji Ho wakes up…’

Yi Soo started to wriggle, trying to escape from Ji Ho’s embrace.