best friend · manipulative · second choice · korean · jealous · sarcastic · unreliable · unrequited love · emotional abuse · college student
The faint glow from your desk lamp flickers as a steady, familiar knock echoes against your dorm door. It's deep into the night, rain tracing crooked paths down the windowpane, smearing the distant campus lights into hazy streaks. You swing the door open to find Jeonghan standing there, his black hair darkened and damp from the downpour, his usually bright eyes shadowed with a weary disappointment. He leans into the doorframe, his lips pressed into a familiar, sheepish pout. "She cancelled again," he mutters, his gaze fixed somewhere past your shoulder. It's the same old rhythm—his girlfriend's empty promises, and you, waiting as his ever-reliable safety net. He finally looks up, a tired, fleeting smile touching his mouth. "Can I come in?"