It was a normal day. Or, it was supposed to be.
Until Ms. Gomez, our homeroom teacher, smiled like she'd just swallowed a secret.
"Class, we have a new student joining us today. Please welcome…"
My stomach flipped.
"…Park Rei."
The door opened—and time stopped.
He stepped in like he owned gravity. Crisp uniform. Perfectly disheveled hair. That same unreadable expression, calm but dangerous. The girls gasped. The boys looked personally attacked.
I may have dropped my pen.
"Is he from a manhwa?" whispered Mina.
"Are we sure he's not a vampire prince?" added Sera.
"Are we sure I'm not dreaming?" said Hana, fanning herself.
I didn't say anything.
Because he was the boy I met under neon lights and fear. The boy who bled for me. The boy who almost kissed me in a hospital room that smelled like antiseptic and heartbreak.
Now, he was in my class.
"Park Rei, you can sit… next to Celeste."
Of course.
I could feel Jihan's stare all the way across the room.
---
At lunch, my girls and I sat at our usual table, gossiping over shrimp tempura and my latest webnovel draft.
"You seriously wrote about the kiss?" Mina asked.
"Not the kiss," I said quickly. "A fictional one. Inspired by… feelings. Maybe."
"What kind of feelings?" Hana teased.
"The dramatic kind," I muttered. "The kind that ruin your sleep and your word count."
Before they could prod more, a shadow fell over our table.
"Hi."
I looked up—and there was Rei. With a soft smile, like the world hadn't shifted under my feet the moment he walked into our lives.
"Hey," I said, trying to sound chill.
My friends stared like he was a designer bag on 90% off.
"I just wanted to say thanks again. For that night," he said.
"You got hurt for me. I should be thanking you."
He shrugged. "You helped me feel something again."
Okay, wow.
Why was he saying movie lines at lunch?
My heart was doing gymnastics, but I managed to say, "Glad you're here. Welcome to the chaos."
He smiled—and walked off.
I could feel eyes on me.
Especially his.
Jihan.
Sitting three tables down. Fork frozen halfway to his mouth. Jaw tight.
He saw the whole thing.
---
The rest of the day was weird.
Jihan didn't joke. Didn't tease. Didn't throw paper balls at me or call Monchi ugly.
He just… avoided me.
I felt it like a cold draft in a warm room.
When the final bell rang, I was already tense.
"Dad said I have to walk home today," I told Monchi via text. "Apparently 'sneaking out for banana milk' is grounds for temporary car grounding."
So I walked.
Until 4:34 PM.
Until I passed an empty classroom—
And heard my name.
"Celeste."
I turned.
Jihan was there. Leaning against the doorway. Eyes darker than usual.
"What's with you?" I asked. "You've been acting weird all day."
He stepped into the room. Closed the door behind him.
And then said it:
"Is he better than me?"
I froze.
"What?"
"Park Rei." He said the name like it burned. "Do you like him?"
I didn't answer.
He stepped closer. "Because I can't stop thinking about you. And it's driving me insane."
"Jihan—"
"I kissed you. You kissed back. And then he shows up, and suddenly you're writing chapters about someone else."
I swallowed. "That was fiction—"
"That was jealousy," he said. "And I hate it."
I opened my mouth to argue. To deny. To deflect.
But he leaned in.
And kissed me.
Not like last time.
This one was deeper.
Slower.
The kind of kiss that turns silence into music and memories into ash.
I forgot how to breathe.
I forgot everything but him.
When he pulled away, he was still too close.
"Now tell me if you still want him."
And he walked out before I could say anything.
---
That night, back at the mansion, I stared at my laptop.
Chapter 34 of my webnovel.
Supposed to be a sweet confession scene.
Supposed to be a moment of clarity.
Instead, I wrote six different versions of a kiss.
All of them were Jihan.
I shut the laptop.
Rolled over.
Stared at the ceiling.
I couldn't sleep.
Because that kiss?
It wasn't just a kiss anymore.
It was a question.
And I had no idea what the answer was.
Not yet.
But the next chapter?
Would change everything.
Celeste's POV
Monday morning. Birds chirping. Sun shining. My heart? Not okay.
Why? Because I spent the entire weekend rewriting my chapter thirty-four to stop thinking about that kiss.
The Jihan kiss.
And yet, every sentence I wrote somehow morphed into:
> "He leaned in, and—"
DELETE. REWRITE.
> "His lips brushed—"
DELETE. DELETE.
> "Why is my brain a romantic soap opera with no chill?!"
I sighed dramatically into my locker.
"Trouble sleeping?" Mina asked, sipping her iced coffee like the queen of calm.
"Nightmares," I muttered.
"About the gangs?"
"No. About lips."
She blinked. "Oh."
Before she could ask whose, the classroom door burst open and Ms. Gomez walked in like she was carrying doom in a clipboard.
"Good morning, future heartbroken artists," she said brightly. "Group project time!"
The entire room groaned.
"Six members per group," she added. "You'll create a musical drama performance combining song, dance, and a short script. Theme: The Heart Wants What It Wants."
More groans.
My stomach dropped.
Please. Not me. Not now. Not with them—
"The first group is: Celeste Hwang, Mina, Hana, Sera…"
So far, so good.
"…Lee Jihan."
No.
"…and Park Rei."
NO.
I blinked at the ceiling like I was being Punk'd by the universe.
Jihan sat very still in his seat.
Rei tilted his head slightly, amused.
I raised my hand. "Ms. Gomez, can we—?"
"No trades," she said sweetly. "Fate has chosen. Also, your group will perform first."
Someone in the back whispered, "This is going to be so messy."
---
The moment class ended, we gathered in the music room.
"I just want to say," Mina began, "I'm not dying on this awkward ship alone. If anyone starts fighting, I will throw my cold brew."
"Noted," Jihan said flatly, arms crossed.
"I don't fight," Rei added. "I disarm."
"Disarm what?" I muttered. "My sanity?"
"Let's focus," Hana said. "We need roles. Who's writing? Who's composing?"
"I can do lyrics," Rei said.
"I'll do the melody," Jihan said at the same time.
They blinked at each other.
Not fighting.
Just… weirdly polite.
And somehow more dangerous than fighting.
"I'll do choreography!" Sera said quickly.
"I'll write the dialogue," I offered.
"Good," Mina said. "Because if we don't win, I'm blaming your main character energy."
---
We started working that afternoon.
And honestly?
The boys were shockingly professional.
Rei played piano like he was born with a soundtrack. Soft, melancholy notes. Every now and then, he'd glance at me during the sad parts.
Jihan, meanwhile, strummed his guitar, tapping out rhythms. He didn't look at anyone. Except me. Always when he thought I wasn't noticing.
We brainstormed the plot: a bittersweet story of two boys who fall for the same girl in high school—but she doesn't know who her heart belongs to yet.
I stared at the outline.
"This feels… familiar."
Mina smirked. "Art imitates life, babe."
"Shut up."
---
By the end of the session, we had the bones of the performance.
Jihan hummed something low and sweet—his melody for the boy who waits.
Rei added a counter harmony—soft and yearning.
They accidentally created magic.
And it hurt. In the most beautiful, complicated way.
"Okay," I said, snapping my notebook shut. "Let's meet again after class tomorrow. Please no explosions."
"No promises," Mina muttered.
As we left, Jihan caught my arm.
I turned.
He didn't say anything for a moment. Just looked at me.
Like he wanted to ask the same question again.
Is he better than me?
But this time, he didn't.
He just said:
"Don't let him write all the lyrics. He's too poetic. It's dangerous."
And walked away.
Back in my room that night, I stared at our group chat.
Group6: Heart Drama Club 💔🎭
> Mina: I'm making shirts. "I Survived Celeste's Love Triangle 2025"
> Hana: Who's playing who in the musical?
> Sera: Rei's character cries in act two. So dramatic. I love it.
> Jihan: I don't cry.
> Rei: Even music sheds tears, you know.
> Me: Can we please not turn this into a fan war?
> Jihan: 🧍🏻♂️
> Rei: 🎵❤️
I tossed my phone onto the bed and covered my face with a pillow.
How was I supposed to survive the next few weeks?
With two boys writing love songs… about me?
While pretending it's just acting?
And trying not to fall apart in the process?
Chapter 8 couldn't come soon enough.