The corridor outside the auditorium buzzed with voices, footsteps, and the occasional clatter of stage props being dragged across the floor. The heavy velvet curtains had yet to rise, but backstage was already teeming with energy.
Tucked in a corner near the costume racks, five junior girls crouched on the floor, a tangle of uniforms, gossip, and wide-eyed curiosity. Their whispers rose and fell like a secret melody: hidden beneath the din, but urgent enough to leave echoes in the air.
"Did you see him during yesterday's rehearsal?" Min-ji's voice was breathless, as though simply recalling him had stolen the wind from her lungs. She clutched her phone, zoomed in on a photo that captured a fleeting moment, Si-hun mid-step, his partner's hand in his, the spotlight kissing the sharp line of his jaw.
"God, look at that face card. It never declines," sighed Yu-bin, tilting her head to examine the image. "The cheekbones, that jawline, even his freaking collarbones look sculpted. It's unreal."
Jiae nudged her glasses up her nose, voice skeptical but curious. "I don't get how someone can be good at everything. Dance, fashion shows, hosting events, public speaking, he's literally everywhere."
"I heard he rejected another confession this morning," So-eun added with a theatrical whisper, her tone deliciously scandalous. "Guess who?"
The group leaned in simultaneously.
"The girl from choreography club," she said, savoring the pause. "The one who danced opposite him in the couple performance. You know, the final duet with the spotlight dimming and everything."
Min-ji's eyes widened. "Tae-ri? No way. She looked like she was in love with him on stage."
"She is," So-eun said with authority. "She's had a crush on him for months. Everyone knows. But when she hinted at it after rehearsal, he just… smiled. Like this polite, distant smile. And then walked away."
"Cold," Yu-bin muttered, then shook her head. "But you can't deny it… they look good together. The way he looks at her, IT'S NOT JUST ACTING!"
Jiae crossed her arms. "Or maybe he's just that good of a performer. He knows how to sell chemistry."
"No," So-eun said softly, "there's something real. Did you see the way he steadied her ankle when she missed the landing during the lift? That wasn't choreographed. He rushed in, like he knew she'd fall."
The group fell silent for a beat, each of them visualizing that moment in yesterday's performance. The image shimmered between memory and imagination, Si-hun's strong arms catching Tae-ri mid-slip, the way their eyes locked, the quiet tension that lingered even after the music ended.
Then Minji's phone buzzed. She glanced down and gasped. "Wait, wait, you guys. Look at this." She held it up again. A photo, clearly taken in secret, showed Si-hun walking across the quad with someone none of them had expected.
A woman. Graceful, older, radiant in that unbothered way that only seniors carried. Her long black hair flowed behind her, a stark contrast to her white blouse. Si-hun was walking beside her, laughing- laughing, as if the entire world had faded and it was just the two of them.
"Oh my god, that's Seo-na sunbae!" Yu-bin nearly shouted. "She was the vice-president of the cultural council last year, right? I thought she graduated already."
"She did," Jiae confirmed, mouth slightly agape. "But she comes back sometimes to help the juniors organize big events. She's like… some kind of legend."
"She's not just a legend to him," So-eun added, voice dropping. "There's a whole other rumor: he's in love with her."
Minji gasped. "No. Really?"
"I swear, I heard from a second-year in stage crew," So-eun continued, clearly enjoying her role as the source of sacred knowledge. "He entrusts all his stuff to her before going on stage. Like, his phone, watch, even his necklace. She's the only one he trusts with his personal things."
"And he follows her around like a loyal puppy," Yu-bin chimed in, half-joking, half-awestruck. "Last month when she twisted her wrist moving sound equipment, he left his dance practice just to get her ice and wrap it for her. I saw it. He didn't even think twice."
"That's deep," Minji whispered.
"Do you think she feels the same?" Jiae asked quietly.
So-eun shook her head. "No one knows. She's so composed all the time. And he, he hides his feelings too well. But the way he looks at her…"
"He looks at her like… like she's the only thing he's afraid of losing," Minji murmured.
The group fell quiet again. Outside, a loudspeaker crackled to life: "All performers, fifteen minutes to curtain."
Yu-bin sighed, hugging her knees. "Si-hun… he's like this perfect painting. Gorgeous, untouchable, full of hidden stories."
"Tragedy," Jiae said. "It's always the handsome ones."
"Or the ones with layers," So-eun added.
From behind the curtain, voices echoed as the hall began to fill with an eager audience. Backstage, the performers flitted between excitement and nerves. And at the far end of the corridor, stepping into the chaos with a quiet kind of command, was Si-hun himself.
He wore a simple black shirt and tailored trousers, yet he looked like he'd stepped out of a fashion magazine. His raven-black hair curled slightly at the ends, brushing the nape of his neck, effortlessly tousled but artfully in place. His skin glowed under the dim hallway lights, clear and smooth, catching shadows like silk.
Girls turned as he passed. Some whispered. Others just stared.
But his eyes were elsewhere, searching. Focused.
A moment later, Seo-na appeared around the corner, clipboard in hand, her brows furrowed. Si-hun's entire expression softened. He moved toward her with the subtle urgency of a man drawn by gravity.
"You're here," he said, voice low but warm.
She glanced up, surprised. "You should be warming up."
"I was," he replied, pulling the silver chain from around his neck and dropping it gently into her palm. "Just wanted to see you before I went on."
Seo-na looked down at the chain, then back at him. "You're nervous."
Si-hun chuckled. "A little."
"You'll be fine," she said, and offered a rare, encouraging smile. "You always are."
He didn't say anything for a second. Then, quietly, "Stay till the end?"
She nodded. "I always do."
From the shadows, Min-ji and the others watched with wide eyes, their breath caught in their throats.
"He is in love with her," Yu-bin whispered.
"No," So-eun replied, almost reverently. "He belongs to her."
As the chatter about Seo-na sunbae faded into a contemplative silence, the group of girls shifted their attention. The atmosphere hung thick with romantic speculation, with sighs and dreamy stares lingering like perfume in the air.
Well, almost all of them were sighing.
"Okay, okay," said Na-ri, finally lifting her chin from her palm. Her voice was nonchalant, but her eyes gleamed with a different kind of spark. "All that straight stuff is nice or whatever. But have any of you paid attention to Seo-woon?"
Three pairs of eyes turned toward her.
"Seo-woon?" Min-ji blinked. "Si-hun's best friend?"
"That walking ray of sunshine?" Jiae added.
Yu-bin squinted. "You mean the guy who brought snacks for everyone on orientation day? All the departments?"
"Yes," Na-ri said firmly. "The guy who gives off golden retriever energy, always has extra band-aids, and somehow knows when someone needs an umbrella before the clouds even gather. That Seo-woon."
"He's cute," So-eun offered. "But not really the gossip type."
Nari leaned back, a smug grin spreading across her face. "That's because you're all looking in the wrong direction. You're too busy watching Si-hun dance with Tae-ri or trail after Seo-na sunbae. But no one's talking about the one constant in Si-hun's life."
Jiae frowned. "You think there's something… between them?"
"Oh, not just something," Nari said dramatically, crossing her legs. "Have you seen the way Seo-woon looks at him? Like he's sunshine and gravity rolled into one annoying, too-pretty package. And Si-hun? That smug idiot lets Seo-woon do everything for him."
"Examples?" Minji challenged, now intrigued despite herself.
"Every time Si-hun forgets his water bottle, guess who magically appears with one? Seo-woon. When Si-hun's shoelaces are undone during rehearsals, Seo-woon kneels to tie them. When Si-hun's jacket is left behind, Seo-woon brings it to him without a word." Nari counted each item on her fingers, triumphant. "It's domestic."
The other girls paused, blinking slowly.
"…Wait. That is kinda suspicious," So-eun muttered.
And then, right on cue, as though the universe was listening in on their gossip, Na-ri's gaze drifted lazily past the racks of costumes to the quad just outside the open window.
"Oh my god," she whispered, suddenly sitting up straight.
"What?" Yu-bin asked, craning her neck.
"Look." Nari pointed, and the others followed her gaze.
Outside, the sunlight kissed the campus lawn, and in the middle of it like some slice of rom-com absurdity. It was Si-hun clinging onto the back of Seo-woon, who was giving him a piggyback ride.
Seo-woon was red in the face, trying valiantly to keep his balance, his arms hooked tightly under Si-hun's thighs. He stumbled a little under the weight. Si-hun, being taller and muscular, wasn't exactly light but he gritted his teeth and pushed forward.
Laughter trailed behind them, and somewhere, from a group of idle performers with a Bluetooth speaker, the soft intro of "Love, Maybe" from Business Proposal by Melomance began to play.
"Oh my god," Jiae choked out, covering her mouth.
Minji clutched Yu-bin's arm. "This is not happening."
"It is," Na-ri whispered with the awe of someone witnessing divine intervention. "This is the real ship."
Seo-woon swayed to the left, knees buckling slightly. Si-hun let out a small surprised laugh, he was clearly enjoying himself, too much to care that he was about to send his poor friend face-first into the ground.
Then, in a blink, Seo-woon tripped over a low step.
"Whoa---!" he gasped.
They went tumbling- legs flailing, arms instinctively reaching for balance.
And somehow, at the last second, Si-hun shifted his weight, pulling Seo-woon with him and flipping their positions. He landed on his back with a thud that echoed faintly against the cement. A beat later, Seo-woon crashed on top of him.
But not fully.
Seo-woon's hand had flown behind Si-hun's head at the last second, cushioning it from the fall, even as his own elbow scraped the ground. His face hovered just inches above Si-hun's, their breaths tangling, eyes locking in a stunned silence that said far more than words ever could.
"…Are you okay?" Seo-woon asked, breathless.
Si-hun blinked, surprised but clearly not hurt. "You're bleeding."
Seo-woon winced, only now noticing the scrape on his elbow. "It's fine. I'm used to falling for you."
There was a half-second pause.
Then Si-hun snorted, looking up at him with a grin he couldn't hold back.
"You're getting better at those," he murmured.
"Practicing," Seo-woon mumbled, voice a little too soft.
The tension hung thick between them: dense, electric. Their limbs were tangled. Si-hun's hand brushed Seo-woon's wrist. Their faces so close, every tiny shift sent a ripple of unspoken possibility through the air.
And then-
"WE HAVE KING LOBSTER IN LUNCH TODAY!!"
A scream broke the moment.
A herd of third-year engineering students stampeded past the quad, trays in hand, dragging their confused friends and creating the kind of chaos usually reserved for apocalyptic scenes or BTS ticket sales.
The chaos reached them in seconds. A particularly enthusiastic and heavy-set student barreled toward the food line, knocking into Seo-woon mid-sprint.
Seo-woon lost his balance again, this time falling forward, right into Si-hun's chest, his cheek pressed accidentally against the other's collarbone.
Si-hun groaned, both in impact and embarrassment. "This is becoming a pattern."
"Don't complain," Seo-woon muttered, trying to lift himself up without accidentally touching anything scandalous.
From the window, the girls stared in stunned silence.
And then, slowly, Na-ri leaned back again, smiling to herself.
"I told you," she said, smug and satisfied. "That's the ship."
The others said nothing but none of them looked away.
Outside, Seo-woon finally managed to stand, dragging Si-hun up with one hand while dusting him off with the other.
Si-hun gave him a sideways look, then bumped his shoulder lightly. "Next time, I'm carrying you."
Seo-woon rolled his eyes. "You couldn't handle me."
The music was still playing, laughter echoing behind them as they walked toward the cafeteria, shoulder to shoulder unbothered, unnoticed by most.
But not by Na-ri.
She watched them disappear down the hallway with a knowing smile.