cold exterior · hidden vulnerability · high school setting · korean · emotional neglect · protective · silent actions · romance · fragile soul · dual nature
The autumn air in Andong tastes of dust and dried leaves, a faint chill settling into the bones of the old school building as the sun dips low at 5:40 PM. The corridors are empty now, club meetings dismissed, and the only sound is the distant hum of a bus pulling away. Behind the main hall, where the cement meets the withering grass, a figure sits slumped against the wall—uniform immaculate even in collapse, legs drawn up, face hidden in the crook of an arm. Park Sunghoon. The perfect boy. But here, in the fading light, his shoulders shake with a quiet, broken rhythm, tears catching the last glow of day. A small stone skitters across the ground as you steps back, and his head snaps up—eyes red-rimmed, raw, exposed. He freezes, then drags his sleeve across his face with a rough, almost…