The Summer We Stopped Running

The last box wasn't nearly as heavy as it looked.

Naeun carried it carefully through the doorway of her new apartment, setting it down beside a growing mountain of cardboard boxes. Sunlight streamed through the large window overlooking the university campus, making the empty room glow warmly.

A smile tugged at her lips.

This was it.

College.

A fresh start.

"Naeun, that's all?!" a voice shouted from the kitchen.

She laughed.

"Yup!"

Leaving the box behind, she skipped toward the kitchen where Min-gyu was leaning against the counter, wiping sweat from his forehead with the sleeve of his hoodie.

His dark hair was messy from carrying boxes all morning.

Naeun grinned.

"You look exhausted."

"Exhausted?" Min-gyu pointed at the pile of boxes still visible from the kitchen. "I've basically been your moving company for the last three hours."

She gasped dramatically.

"Wow. And here I thought you were helping me out of the kindness of your heart."

"Who said I was helping willingly?"

Naeun reached over and lightly smacked his arm.

"Ow."

"You deserved that."

"No, I didn't."

"Yes, you did."

Min-gyu rolled his eyes, but a small smile appeared on his face.

For a moment, everything felt exactly the same as it always had.

Comfortable.

Easy.

Home.

They had known each other literally their entire lives.

Their mothers had been inseparable best friends since high school. When they both became pregnant around the same time, it felt like fate. Then, somehow, both babies arrived in the same month.

The two families lived next door to each other in a small countryside town where everyone knew everyone.

From the moment they could walk, Naeun and Min-gyu were together.

They learned to ride bikes together.

Walked to school together.

Got in trouble together.

They spent birthdays, holidays, vacations, and ordinary Tuesday afternoons together.

Everyone assumed they were siblings.

Sometimes they practically felt like siblings.

Back then, life seemed perfect.

Until it wasn't.

Naeun's smile faded slightly.

She remembered the phone call.

She always would.

A cold morning.

A ringing phone.

The sound of Min-gyu's mother crying.

A car accident.

Three words that shattered everything.

"They're gone."

Her parents.

Her older brother.

Gone in an instant.

Four days before her birthday.

Three days before Min-gyu's.

For months afterward, Naeun felt like she was drifting through a fog she couldn't escape.

Some days she couldn't even get out of bed.

Some days she couldn't stop crying.

Other days she couldn't cry at all.

But through every horrible day, there was always someone sitting beside her.

Min-gyu.

Whether he was making terrible jokes.

Bringing her snacks.

Or simply sitting in silence.

He never left.

Eventually, Min-gyu's parents legally adopted her.

They never treated her differently.

Never made her feel like she didn't belong.

Slowly, painfully, she learned how to live again.

And somehow, years later, they had both ended up here.

At the same university.

Starting the same chapter of their lives.

Together.

Just like always.

Or at least...

That was what Naeun thought.

Because lately, something felt different.

She noticed it months ago.

Maybe even longer.

Min-gyu wasn't acting like himself anymore.

He still texted her every day.

Still walked her home.

Still remembered her coffee order.

Still looked after her.

But there were moments now.

Strange moments.

Moments where he'd suddenly look away when she caught him staring.

Moments where his ears turned red for no reason.

Moments where he'd become unusually quiet whenever their friends joked about dating.

And lately...

He'd been avoiding her.

Not completely.

Just enough for her to notice.

Just enough to hurt a little.

"Naeun?"

She blinked.

"Hm?"

Min-gyu was watching her.

"You spaced out."

"Oh."

"Thinking about something?"

She hesitated.

"Just... college, I guess."

"Scared?"

"A little."

He nodded.

"Me too."

Naeun laughed.

"You? Min-gyu Kim? Scared?"

"Hey."

"You've never been scared of anything."

"That's not true."

"Name one thing."

Min-gyu opened his mouth.

Then closed it.

His gaze lingered on her for half a second too long.

Something unreadable flickered across his face.

Before she could ask about it, he looked away.

"Never mind."

Weird.

Lately, he'd been doing that a lot.

A silence settled between them.

Not uncomfortable.

Just different.

The kind where both people seem to be thinking about something they aren't saying.

Outside, students were moving across campus carrying suitcases and boxes.

A new semester.

New friendships.

New opportunities.

New beginnings.

Naeun smiled.

No matter what happened, she had Min-gyu.

Her best friend.

The person who had been beside her through every important moment of her life.

Nothing could change that.

Right?

Across the kitchen, Min-gyu looked at her and quickly looked away again.

His ears turning slightly pink.

Naeun didn't notice.

But Min-gyu did.

And unfortunately for him...

That was becoming a serious problem.