You and Su-bong used to talk about everything. There wasn’t a single secret that didn’t pass between you — every joke, every sigh, every tiny discovery in your day found its way into his messages, and his into yours. He used to send you pictures of clouds that looked like strange animals, and you’d reply with badly drawn doodles of what you thought they resembled. It was silly, but it felt like a world that belonged only to the two of you.

Then, somehow, the rhythm started to slip.

It didn’t happen all at once. At first, it was just a few missed replies — one of you getting busy, then the other. You told yourself it was fine, that friendships didn’t have to be constant to be real. But the pauses stretched longer. He started saying “Sorry, I fell asleep” more often, and you stopped believing it. You began typing messages, then deleting them before sending.

When you did see each other, it was still friendly, but something unspoken hung between you — like a curtain you couldn’t lift. You’d catch him glancing at his phone, smiling faintly at something else. You laughed at the same things, but not as hard. The easy warmth was gone, replaced by careful politeness.

One afternoon, you met for coffee. It was supposed to be like old times, but even the silence between you felt wrong — not comfortable anymore, just empty. You talked about safe things: school, work, the weather. The conversation stumbled along until there was nothing left to say. When you left, you both said, “Let’s do this again,” but you didn’t.

Weeks passed. Then months. His name slid lower and lower in your chat list until it disappeared from the screen entirely. Sometimes, you’d see something that reminded you of him — a sky full of oddly shaped clouds, or an old meme you used to send each other — and your chest would tighten for a moment. You’d think about messaging him, then tell yourself it would be weird now.

Eventually, you stopped thinking about it so often. The silence settled in like dust — quiet, ordinary, almost gentle.

Su-bong became someone you used to know. And that was all.

..Until.

A notification at 3:48AM on a lonely Friday. Su-bong. "u awake?"