It was around five in the morning when my phone suddenly started ringing.
Half asleep, I reached for it blindly before looking at the screen.
Sihoon.
I frowned slightly in confusion before answering quietly.
"…Hello?"
"Jia," his voice came softly from the other side.
"I'm outside."
Still sleepy, I sat up slowly.
"What?"
"Look at the window."
For a second—
I thought I heard him wrong.
But somehow, my heart started beating faster anyway.
I quickly walked toward the window and pulled the curtain aside slightly.
And there—
standing outside in the cold early morning—
was Sihoon.
Beside him were Yian and Yoonji too.
I stared at them in complete shock.
Yian waved dramatically the moment he saw me.
Meanwhile, Yoonji looked half asleep like she regretted waking up this early already.
But Sihoon—
he was just quietly looking up at my window.
hurried downstairs after changing quickly.
The cold morning air hit my face the moment I stepped outside.
"…Why are all of you here this early?" I asked in confusion while looking at them.
Yian immediately pointed at Sihoon.
"Ask him."
"I was peacefully sleeping."
Yoonji nodded tiredly beside him.
"Same."
"But suddenly this guy started calling everyone at five in the morning like some emergency happened."
I slowly looked toward Sihoon again.
He stayed unusually calm despite everything.
Then—
a small smile appeared on his face.
"We're going somewhere."
I blinked.
"…Where?"
This time—
Yian suddenly grinned excitedly.
"To convince Minhu's dad."
just stared at him in surprise.
"…Now?" I asked slowly.
"That's exactly what I want to ask too," Yoonji muttered while fixing her messy hair.
"We literally woke up before the sun for this."
Yian let out a dramatic sigh.
"I haven't even processed life yet."
Meanwhile—
Sihoon stayed completely calm.
Like dragging people outside at five in the morning was normal.
Then he suddenly held up a paper bag in his hand.
"We have to prepare first."
I blinked in confusion.
"…Prepare for what?"
This time—
all three of us spoke at the exact same moment.
"What preparation?"
For the first time that morning—
a small amused smile appeared on Sihoon's face.
"Let's go to your house first," he said naturally.
"I'll explain everything there."
And somehow—
the confident look in his eyes made me follow him without asking anything else.
Before I could even walk toward my building—
Sihoon suddenly started walking ahead like he already knew the way.
The rest of us quietly followed behind him.
But after a few seconds—
Yian suddenly narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
"…Wait."
"How do you know where Jia's apartment is?"
My steps slowed immediately.
Yoonji also looked confused.
"…Yeah."
Then Yian looked directly at Sihoon again.
"Have you been here before?"
For a second—
both me and Sihoon looked at each other at the same time.
The atmosphere suddenly became awkward.
I quickly looked away first.
Meanwhile—
Sihoon rubbed the back of his neck lightly with one hand before answering.
"…Yeah."
"That night—"
But before he could finish—
Yoonji's eyes widened dramatically.
"WHAT night?"
She immediately stepped closer.
"Wait—"
"Did you stay at Jia's place before?"
Beside her—
Yian suddenly started smiling like he had just discovered something entertaining.
"Ohhh…"
"Now this is getting interesting."
Sihoon completely ignored both of them.
"We came here to discuss Minhu," he said calmly while opening the apartment gate.
"Not my personal life."
Yian immediately laughed.
"That means there is a personal life."
"There's no way you just said that and expected us to ignore it," Yoonji added dramatically.
I could already feel my face getting warm beside them.
Meanwhile—
Sihoon stayed strangely calm despite the teasing.
Then he looked back at everyone.
"Are you coming inside or not?"
His serious tone instantly made Yian straighten up.
"…Okay, leader-nim."
The four of us entered the building together, but somehow—
the awkward atmosphere around me and Sihoon still hadn't disappeared at all.
"Jia," Yian suddenly called out while looking completely exhausted.
"Where's the washroom?"
"I need to freshen up first."
Then he pointed accusingly at Sihoon.
"Because of this guy, I didn't even get time to wake up properly."
Yoonji nodded immediately.
"Same."
"I'm still mentally asleep."
Meanwhile—
Sihoon casually took off his shoes near the entrance like none of this chaos had anything to do with him.
I stared at him in disbelief for a second.
"…You're acting like this is your house," I muttered quietly.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Maybe because I know the way already."
The moment he said that—
Yian slowly turned toward us again with the most suspicious expression possible.
"…There are definitely stories I don't know about."
"Just go to the washroom first," Sihoon said calmly.
Then he slowly pushed Yian toward the hallway where the bathroom was.
"Straight and left."
Yian stopped walking immediately.
"…You even know where the washroom is?"
The silence lasted for exactly two seconds.
Then Yoonji gasped dramatically.
"OH MY GOD."
I instantly looked the other way in embarrassment.
Meanwhile—
Sihoon finally looked slightly speechless for the first time that morning.
"It's not what you're thinking," he muttered quietly.
But the small smile Yian had while looking back at us made it obvious—
none of them were going to stop teasing us anymore.
Yian and Yoonji disappeared toward the washroom side while still arguing loudly with each other.
The moment they left—
the apartment suddenly became quiet again.
And honestly—
the awkward atmosphere between me and Sihoon almost killed me.
I quickly tried to think of something else.
Anything.
Then I looked at him.
"…What exactly are you planning?" I asked softly.
"How are we supposed to convince Minhu's dad?"
Sihoon leaned slightly against the wall while looking at me quietly for a moment.
Then he lifted the paper bag in his hand again.
"We'll show him this project isn't meaningless."
I blinked slightly.
"…How?"
A small smile appeared on his face again.
"The only thing parents trust more than dreams…"
He looked directly at me while saying it.
"…is proof."
For a second—
I just stared at him silently.
Because somehow—
every time he said something seriously—
it felt like he had already thought ten steps ahead of everyone else.
Somehow, at that moment,
I felt like Sihoon had already planned everything before the rest of us even woke up.