Jayjay's POV
It's been 2 days since that day at Adrian's house.
2 days since we all saw him laugh again… and honestly, it still feels unreal.
Today's Monday morning.
The sky looks a bit brighter than usual, and somehow, everyone in Section E seems lighter too. Maybe because we were all secretly waiting for this day.
As I walked beside Kiefer toward the building, we kept talking about random stuff—assignments, Valerie's new playlist, and Ci-N's latest joke that got us in trouble with Ms. Cindy . But deep down, we were both thinking the same thing:
Will Adrian and Ciel show up today?
The classroom felt half empty without them.
Their seats—side by side near the window—had been quiet for too long.
Even Valerie, who always acted fine, had been sneaking glances at that side of the room every now and then.
I dropped my bag on my desk and sighed. "Still no sign of them?"
Ci-N leaned back in his chair. "Maybe they're still on mission 'recovery mode.'"
"Or maybe Adrian overslept again," Kiefer said, trying to sound chill, but I saw that little hopeful spark in his eyes.
Then suddenly—
The classroom door open.
Everyone turned at once.
There they were.
Adrian walked in first, hands in his pockets, school jacket slightly unzipped. His hair was trimmed and neat again, but his eyes still had that quiet depth. Ciel followed right behind him, smiling faintly, waving at us.
For a second, no one said anything. Then—
"ADRIAN'S BACK!!!" Ci-N shouted so loud the next whole school probably heard him.
The whole room burst into cheers.
Adrian scratched his head awkwardly. "Ya… ya… stop shouting."
Valerie laughed softly , saying something in Korean, "이 사람은 부끄러워요. (He's shy.)"
I smiled. also we've all been taken korean lessons from her . Hearing her speak Korean in class just made everything feel normal.
Ci-N ran to hug Ciel . "Finally! You're back!"
David gave Adrian a light punch on the arm. "Good to have you, man."
Adrian smirked. "You too… sleepyhead ."
Everyone laughed. Even the air felt warmer somehow.
Later that day, during lunch, we all sat under the tree behind the school.
Valerie and Adrian were sitting a little close, sharing the same lunchbox —of course, that didn't escape anyone's attention.
"Should we call them Valdrian or Adrival?" Ci-N asked out loud.
Felix nearly choked on his juice. "Adrival sounds like a spaceship name!"
Kiefer grinned. "Then Valdrian it is."
I laughed so hard. "Perfect! Team Valdrian forever!"
Valerie turned red while Adrian looked like he wanted to disappear into the ground.
"그만해! (Stop it!)" Valerie shouted playfully, throwing a napkin at us.
Adrian added, "진짜로… 너희들은 미쳤어. (Seriously… you guys are crazy.)"
That just made us laugh even more.
For the first time in weeks, everything felt the way it used to be—
full of noise, teasing, friendship, and that strange feeling that Section E… was home.