Han's Morning
"Ahhh… my head. It hurts."
Slowly getting out of bed, Han glanced at the mirror. His eyes were swollen, his face pale and puffed.
I look ugly… he muttered.
Then the reflection of the clock behind him caught his eye. 8:45 a.m.
His heart dropped. Oh no. Class starts at 9!
Panic hit him. Why did I drink last night? No, no, no. Miss Kim will kill me. My attendance is already low—5 lectures, and I only attended 1. Why can't I just wake up on time for once?!
There was no time for anything except throwing on some clothes and brushing his teeth.
When he ran downstairs, another realization struck. Wait… my car. Seungmin took it.
He sat heavily on the stairs, head buried in his knees, one hand clutching his hair.
"I'm doomed…" he whispered. Then hugged himself tightly, murmuring, "It's fine, Han. It's fine. Let's just call a cab."
He unlocked his phone and quickly tried to book a ride. Nothing. No drivers.
At that moment, the roar of an engine pulled up in front of him. Chaewon arrived on a heavy bike, stopping right before him.
"Do you need a ride?" Chaewon asked casually.
Han's eyes widened. "Why are you here? Don't you have classes? Wait… are you stalking me?"
Chaewon tilted his head. "Aren't you getting late?"
Han bit his lip. He didn't want to go with him, but he was already terribly late.
Chaewon removed his helmet and handed it to Han.
Han blinked. "Then what about you?"
Chaewon, coolly: "I'll be fine."
Han frowned, putting the helmet back on Chaewon's head. "Don't be stupid."
Chaewon froze. For a moment, the world stopped. He could hardly breathe, staring at Han's face, his heart racing.
But Han quickly went inside, came back with another helmet, and sat behind him on the bike.
---
On the Way
Chaewon shouted over the wind: "Han, if you're scared, you can hold me!"
Han yelled back: "I don't want to!"
"What if you fall?" Chaewon insisted.
"Then I fall!" Han shot back.
Chaewon laughed under his breath.
It only took them seven minutes to reach the university.
Han quickly got off the bike, still wearing the helmet.
"Have a nice day," Chaewon said.
"You too," Han replied quickly before running off.
Did he just say that to you too? Chaewon smiled to himself, hitting the bike lightly as he got shy.
---
In the Classroom
Han rushed inside, panting. To his surprise, Miss Kim wasn't there.
It was his sister.
"Noona?" he blurted out, shocked.
Jiwoo raised an eyebrow. "Are you always this late to class?"
Confused, Han stammered: "N-No… not all the time."
"Go sit on your seat."
Then she turned to the class. "Students, let me introduce myself. I'm a professor at the University of Bristol. I'm here as visiting faculty, and I'll be teaching you Entrepreneurship this semester. That's all you need to know."
One student raised his hand. "What's your name, ma'am?"
"My name is Joon Jiwoo. Any other questions?"
Two more students raised their hands, but she glanced at them and ignored them completely.
"So, no more questions. Let's begin the lecture. But before that…" Her sharp eyes landed on Han.
"Mr. Joon Jihan, would you like to remove that helmet from your head? It's annoying to watch."
The whole class burst into laughter.
Students at the back whispered:
"She's mean."
"No, she's dope."
"Did you see how she ignored those students?"
"Maybe she didn't see them."
"No, she definitely did."
"She's beautiful though."
Han leaned on his friend. "Where's Miss Kim?"
His friend replied: "This is a replacement lecture. Didn't you check the class group?"
Han chuckled softly. "Nope."
His friend whispered: "Then how does she know your name?"
Han laughed a bit and shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe Miss Kim told her I'm always late."