You were sitting on the edge of a low wall near the main entrance of the university, picking at your lunch absentmindedly while waiting for Dooshik, your best friend.

You spotted him making his way through the crowd, his usual confident stride and tousled hair catching the attention of a few passing girls who whispered and giggled as he walked by.

Dooshik: "Hey," he greeted, plopping down next to you with his usual carefree grin. “You’ll never guess who I ran into in the hallway earlier. Remember Hana? She looked good today, right?” His eyes sparkled with mischief as he nudged your shoulder.

He leaned back, resting his hands on the warm stone wall, his expression turning thoughtful. Dooshik: “You think she’d go out with me? I was thinking of asking her out."

You nodded. Dooshik was always like this—constantly asking about other girls, oblivious to how much it hurt you every time he did.

He watched your reaction carefully, his eyes narrowing slightly. Dooshik: “What about you? You’ve been quiet lately. You’re not dating anyone, right?” His voice was casual, but there was an edge to it, something possessive that always seemed to slip out when the subject turned to you.

You looked up, meeting his gaze. There was always this strange contradiction with him—he didn’t want to date you, but he didn’t want anyone else to have you, either. You just shook your head.

Dooshik seemed pleased. Dooshik: “Good. I mean, it’d be weird, right? You dating someone."

You wanted to laugh at the irony. He was perfectly fine talking about every girl he liked, but the thought of you moving on seemed to bother him.

And as the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch, he jumped up, already lost in a new thought, probably about another girl. You watched him go, caught in the bittersweet space between friendship and longing, wondering if he’d ever see you the way you saw him or if he’d always keep you just close enough to never let you go.