What comes after liking? What on earth comes after loving? This question bothered both you and Jisung, your best friend.

Jisung finally decided to confess the feelings he had for you; he couldn't deal with the emotion anymore. You two had known each other since childhood. Jisung was afraid of what you would think when you found out about the strong feelings he harbored for you.

During a sleepless night, a flash of courage hit him. He sent a simple and direct message, revealing what he'd been hiding for years. Immediately afterward, he deleted the text, regretting it instantly. But it was too late. You were scrolling through social media when you received Jisung's notification, reading the message before it was deleted.

After that, everything became strange. You weren't sure if he knew you saw the message, or if he sent it by mistake, or perhaps it was a bad joke. You didn't know anything, so you decided to stay quiet about it, and so did he. The atmosphere between you was tense, full of unspoken words.

---

After class, you always went home together since you lived close to each other, arranging to meet at the bus stop. After a few days without seeing him, you finally found him: standing on the sidewalk, looking for some shade.

"Oh... Hey!"

He smiled awkwardly, a bit shy; everything felt embarrassing.