The next day clawed at Ben like a feral cat. He'd slept maybe three hours, if staring blankly at his ceiling counted. After Professor Song's latest assignment, something that felt less like coursework and more like a cursed infant left on his academic doorstep, he'd spent the night hunched over his Korean Economy textbook, highlighters staining his hands, forming survey questions like he was conducting a UN census. By the time he fell asleep, birds were chirping.
Now, with his brain pulped and vision slightly vibrating, Ben drifted across campus on nothing but caffeine and existential dread.
He stopped Minho and Ji-an, two of his classmates he actually knew, in the hallway, holding out the survey sheet like a feeble peace offering.
Ji-an chuckled. "Ben, you really need your beauty sleep. Look at those panda eyes."
Ben grumbled, voice like gravel. "My beauty sleep won't get me the grades."
Minho grinned. "Don't worry, chingu-ya, I'll fill it. You go take a nap or something."
Ben gave a weak thumbs-up. "Gomawo. You both are a lifesaver." [Thank you]
Minho smiled, and Ji-an winked at him.
Ben blinked. Okay, either he was hallucinating, or he'd entered some alternate dimension where people flirted with walking corpses.
As he shuffled out of class, held together by sheer stubbornness and vending machine sugar, he almost crashed into a familiar frame.
Terrence.
The other boy caught Ben by the shoulders before impact, raising a brow. "Why do you look like you've been to hell, fought a demon, and lost?"
Ben squinted up at him. "What are you doing here?"
Terrence gave him a look. "I go here. Did you hit your head on the way to class?"
"No, I mean, I thought you were training at PNU with Yuna noona."
Terrence looked at him like he'd just asked whether gravity still worked. "Dude, I have classes here. I will go to PNU after class."
Ben blinked before facepalming. "Right. Classes. I forgot. My brain is soup. I didn't see you guys yesterday. I thought… never mind."
They walked together, slipping into an easy rhythm. Ben quickly noticed something was off. Terrence was unusually quiet. Not in his usual 'I'm-above-this' type of silence. It was a thoughtful and brooding type.
"You okay?" Ben asked, frowning.
Terrence gave him a sideways glance, caught off guard. "Yeah, just been thinking."
Ben paused. "Wanna spill?"
"Not sure you can help, actually."
Ben narrowed his eyes, smirking. "Don't tell me, Yuna noona wooed you."
Terrence's face twisted like he'd tasted vinegar. "Do I look that easy to you?"
Ben laughed. "You look like the guy who thinks he's immune, until it's too late."
Terrence snorted but didn't deny it outright. They stopped at the vending machines. Ben got his usual chocolate drink while Terrence cracked open a soda. The fizz echoed in the hallway.
After a moment of silence, Terrence asked, "You ever get confused about your future?"
Ben turned to him, eyes wide. Terrence, the Mr Perfectionist, Mr I-have-a-plan, Mr I-am-good-at-everything, was asking that?
Ben said, shrugging. "Yeah, all the time. Not everyone's got killer grades and Olympic-level dance skills. But even people like you get confused?"
Terrence sipped his soda, leaning against the wall, his expression unreadable.
"Having options doesn't always help," Terrence finally said. "It's just noise. Too many paths lead to too many expectations."
Ben blinked. He'd never thought about it like that. He'd assumed people like Terrence had it easy. That if you were talented at several things, life becomes simple. Apparently not.
"Then maybe," Ben said quietly, "pick the one that feels right. Not the one that checks the most boxes."
Terrence stared at him, like he was weighing Ben's words, turning them over in his mind, before his face broke into his classic, infuriating smirk, "For a guy with the face of a dreamy second lead, you're surprisingly wise."
Ben choked. "Why are your compliments always so backhanded?"
Terrence actually smiled, making Ben blink in surprise, but he quickly shifted the conversation. "What emotion did you get for the dance?"
Ben winced, muttering lifelessly, "Desire."
There was silence for a moment before,
"PFFT—!"
Terrence burst out laughing. His stoic, emotionally unshakeable friend was cackling. His shoulders shook, and he had to physically wipe tears from his eyes.
Ben's eyes twitched. "You done?"
Terrence wheezed. "Desire and Daniel hyung??" He gasped for air. "No wonder you look like you've seen hell. That man only desires dance."
Ben sighed. "You have no idea."
Terrence clapped him on the shoulder. "Good luck surviving." He tossed the soda can into the bin and gave Ben a quick nod. "I've gotta run."
And just like that, he was gone.
Ben stared after him for a moment, drained but weirdly thankful for the laughter. Finally, he turned towards the studio, walking like a man heading to trial.