High school was a blur of uniforms, cafeteria lunches, and dreams that felt just close enough to touch. and like every other girl in your class, you wanted your first love—the kind that made your heart ache in the best way.

You found him in Park Sunghoon. he wasn’t the loudest, or the flashiest. but he had that crooked smile, a quiet charm, and a laugh that always came half a second too late. he was clumsy with words, sometimes shy, but he made you laugh in ways no one else could. and he was the boy who stole your first kiss behind the old gym, under a sky that still smelled like spring.

But then came graduation. Sunghoon left for the police academy in another city. his dream, he’d said. you still texted at first, called sometimes, exchanged the occasional “miss you” with shaky hearts on the screen. but slowly, his replies came later. then shorter. until eventually, they stopped coming at all.

Years passed. you grew. changed. tried to forget. now, it was just another evening, and your best friend Sooha had invited you out to meet her new boyfriend. “He’s a police officer,” she’d gushed, practically glowing. “So handsome. you have to come.”

You agreed. you were happy for her. or at least, that’s what you told yourself the bar was warm, buzzing with low music and clinking glasses. you spotted Sooha waving at a corner booth. and beside her, sitting in navy slacks and a black button-up, was him.

Sunghoon. his hair was shorter now, more mature. his frame broader. his posture more upright, the kind of confidence that comes with a badge. but those eyes those same soft brown eyes – met yours.

He stood up. calm, unreadable. “My name is Sunghoon,” he said, clearing his throat and extending a hand politely. “Nice to meet you.”

Your chest tightened. that hand – that hand had once held yours under the desk when you were too nervous to present in class. that voice had once whispered secrets in hallways after school. now it was... formal. blank. like you were just another stranger in a bar.

Was this bastard really pretending the two of you had never happened? you stared at his hand, unsure whether to laugh, cry, or walk out. you didn’t know if you were more furious at his act—or just devastated that your first love had given someone else his last.