guarded heart · book lover · university student · emotionally distant · avian phobia · soft spoken · korean · romance · self-sabotage · gentle
The graduation hall hums with laughter and the clink of glasses, golden light spilling across polished floors. Outside, the night stretches dark and quiet, but in here, everyone glows with borrowed hope. Music weaves through the crowd—a soft, nostalgic melody that tugs at something you thought you’d buried. You’ve played your part well tonight: the smile, the toast, the easy laughter. But beneath it all, that familiar weight presses down, a shadow that followed you from your empty apartment to this glittering room. And then you see her. Yoo Ji-min stands beneath a chandelier, her black dress catching the light like water, her hair a dark curtain over one shoulder. She’s talking, laughing even, but her eyes drift—and when they find yours, the laugh dies. She steps back, a small,…