Minji huffed and turned on her heels, "you guys are terrible, you know that?"

Danielle looked at Hanni, giggling, before looking at Minji again. "We know, and we are proud of ourselves for being so," she played along. Their giggles turned into loud laughter as Minji stuck her tongue out and turned around, stomping her feet while making her way into her room.

Meanwhile, Jun-seo was finally enjoying his cup of instant noodles while watching Oggy and the Cockroaches on his phone. You would think that having an intimidating resting face, he would be serious all the time, but if people could see how he giggled and smiled like an idiot when he watched cartoons, the perception toward him might change.

After he finished his instant noodles, Jun-seo went to his room and decided to take a shower.

—

Around 5.30 p.m., Jun-seo, who was chilling in his room, received a text from Minji; it was the location of the restaurant she wanted to meet up with him at. As soon as he memorized the address, he quickly climbed out of his bed and changed into a fresh pair of clothes; a dark button-up shirt, tucked underneath a similar black pants.

He looked over at his studying table and saw the unopened box of perfume that Wonyoung bought for his birthday a year ago. For a brief second, Jun-seo felt a hint of nostalgia as he recalled the time he was given the gift; they had been camping, and while their other friends went out to gather firewoods, Jun-seo and Wonyoung took the opportunity to go to the river and have a quick date.

It was one of the fondest memories in his relationship with Wonyoung. But the more he thought about it, the more it hurt, so Jun-seo sighed and closed his eyes, shaking his head before walking toward the table. He grabbed the box of perfume and stared at it for a few seconds—he was saving it for special occasions, but now that they were no longer together, he didn't see a point in not using it.

As Jun-seo opened the box and pulled the perfume out of it, he raised an eyebrow and chuckled to himself, "neat," he muttered before applying it. The smell was aromatic, woody with a hint of citrus, and there was also some sweetness to the smell (damn I feel like a connoisseur). It smells exactly like those cheap perfumes that he used to buy, but when he looked at the brand, he almost dropped the perfume.

The brand's name starts with a 'Y' and Jun-seo had seen the advertisement for it a few times. "Better not waste this," muttered Jun-seo again as he placed the perfume on the table and grabbed his wallet and house key before leaving his room.

As soon as he stepped out, he bumped into Jungwon and Jake, who just got home from class. In their hands were plastic bags that Jun-seo knew were filled with junk food and soft drinks.

Jungwon, who noticed him first, raised an eyebrow. "Oh, you are all dressed up. Are you going somewhere?" he asked, placing the bags in his hands on the floor by the archway into the living room.

"He is," Jake chimed in, walking closer to Jun-seo while taking sniffs of him. "Jun used a perfume, so... wait a minute," his eyes widened in realization. He took a step back and looked at Jungwon, and then at Jun-seo with a huge smile. "Dude, are you going out to meet with that girl from earlier?"

Jungwon's brows furrowed, "Wait, who is this girl you are talking about?" he asked, looking at Jake.

Jun-seo chuckled and scratched the back of his head, "ah, you caught me," he said to Jake before stepping toward him, covering his mouth before he could say Minji's name. "It's just a friend—I'm meeting an old friend," Jun-seo told Jungwon, hoping that his friend wouldn't see right through him.

Jake quickly took Jun-seo's hand off his mouth, nodding. "Yeah, I was talking about his old friend, but I couldn't recall her name," he said and subtly stepped on Jun-seo's foot. The two looked at each other for a few seconds before shifting their attention to Jungwon again.

"Ah... I see..." Jungwon nodded. He knew something was amiss, but he didn't want to push the matter further. "Well, you should be on your way then," he added before pushing Jun-seo toward the front door.

Jun-seo put his shoes on and smiled at them, "I might be home late tonight," he told them before opening the door. "I will see you guys soon."

"Have fun!"

"Bye!"

Jun-seo walked out of the apartment building and looked behind him briefly, heaving a sigh of relief. He was relieved that Jungwon didn't find out that the girl he was going to meet was Minji. It wasn't that he wanted to keep it a secret, but he felt like he was being unfair by telling him right then and there that it was Minji when Jungwon was the one that has been a fan for who knows how long.

Shaking his head, Jun-seo shifted his focus on arriving at the restaurant before the agreed time to meet Minji. Fortunately, it wasn't too far from his apartment, so he could walk there. Once he got there, though, he saw Minji standing outside the restaurant, dressed in a light brown sweater underneath a black long coat, and a pair of black jeans.

Jun-seo's eyes were on her as she rummaged through her tote bag, pulling out a lipstick before applying it on her lips. As he got closer, he realized that it was a lip balm, not lipstick. "Hey, sorry I'm late," he said once he was within earshot.

Minji, still applying the lip balm, raised her eyebrows as she looked at Jun-seo. She quickly put the lip balm away and smiled, "oh, no. It's fine—I just got here myself," she said while shaking her head. She looked at Jun-seo, quickly scanning him head to toe before looking at the restaurant. "Shall we?"

"Yeah, sure," nodded Jun-seo, walking ahead to open the door for Minji.

—

For the rest of the evening, they ate and talked, getting to know each other a little better. Jun-seo learned that Minji decided to spend the remaining year of her degree in South Korea because her parents were moving back, and they were afraid that if Minji was alone in Canada, she would start hanging out with the wrong crowd.

Jun-seo also learned that her parents were doctors, and they decided to open their own private practice. "So, yeah... I wasn't too keen on the idea, but now, I think I can learn to like being here now," she said, her eyes glued on Jun-seo as she said so.

"I see," Jun-seo nodded and met her eyes, a small smile formed on his lips as he did. "Well, hopefully you will like it in our campus," he said and grabbed the scissors on the table, cutting some meat before placing them on her plate. Jun-seo gestured for her to enjoy them.

Minji thanked him and made a wrap. There was a question in her mind that she wanted to ask him so badly, but she was afraid that it might be sensitive, so she kept it to herself.

However, Jun-seo wasn't so oblivious as to not notice the look on her face. "Feel free to ask me anything. I won't get mad," he reassured her as he placed some meat on his plate as well.

Minji was caught off guard by his words that she paused on whatever she was doing. "Was I obvious?" she chuckled and grabbed a clove of garlic, placing it in her wrap. She quickly cleared her throat and took a deep breath, "well, if you say so... I was wondering, are you and Wonyoung dating?"

Jun-seo stopped what he was doing for a moment as he processed her question, "what?"

"I-it's okay, you don't have to answer that if it's too personal," Minji stuttered while shaking her head.

"No, no, no, I told you I won't get mad, and I'm not," Jun-seo said with a chuckle. "I was just not expecting that question from you. What makes you think so?"

Minji shrugged and looked at the meat on the grill, "well, I mean... earlier in class, you were sitting with her and the way the two of you interacted looked like you guys were... dating," she shrugged.

Jun-seo raised an eyebrow, chuckling. He wasn't expecting Minji to be observant. He chuckled and shook his head, "I mean..." he took a long pause before continuing, "we used to."

"What happened?" Minji asked almost immediately.

"Well... things... happened," answered Jun-seo. He took a deep breath and sighed, "I'm sorry, I uh..."

Minji smiled softly and extended a hand, placing it on top of his that was on the table, "it's okay, you don't have to explain if it hurts you," she said softly, shaking her head. As much as she was curious about the matter, Minji also knew to not cross her line. She believed that he would eventually tell her without her pestering.

Jun-seo stared at their hands before nodding, "thanks for understanding," he said and looked at her for a while. It has been a few weeks now since their first meeting, and Jun-seo could feel a connection with her, even when they first talked, but even more so now.

After a while, he cleared his throat and grabbed his chopsticks, "let's eat," he said and grabbed a piece of meat.