Just Twilight

“How’s your body?”

“Huh?”

Junyoung blankly repeated the sudden question that had come out of nowhere. Beomjin asked gruffly, his tone curt.

“Didn’t you take the medicine from the nurse’s office?”

“Oh, I was sleeping the whole time... And now that I’ve slept here too, I feel a bit better.”

It felt as if the sharp thorns that had been standing upright were gently lying down. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, the silhouette of Beomjin’s figure became clearer. He was sitting slightly hunched over, his elbows resting on his knees.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“Just a little fatigue. I haven’t been sleeping well. I think I still have a bit of a fever, though.”

Junyoung murmured as she touched her forehead. Half-turned toward her, Beomjin said, “Wait,” and abruptly stood up. He descended the stairs with long strides, as if he could see perfectly in the dark.

Suddenly, a bright light poured in, and Junyoung shielded her face. Beomjin had turned on the light in the meantime. Watching him, she thought to herself, He really does have cat-like eyes, and then rubbed her own eyes as she spoke.

“From now on, turn on the lights when you go up and down the stairs. If you fall, it’ll be over in an instant.”

Beomjin paused as he filled a cup with water and glanced up at her. His well-defined lips curved into a crooked smirk.

“Who’s the one stumbling around? And you’re worried about me breaking my neck?”

“I’m not worried about you—I’m worried about being the first one to discover you.”

“How thoughtful of you.”

At her quick retort, Beomjin chuckled faintly. Looking down at him, she saw him pull something from his back pocket while holding the cup in one hand. She remembered him taking medicine from the nurse’s office earlier.

“I’ll come down.”

When she saw him preparing to climb back up, she awkwardly stood. But Beomjin frowned and shook his head.

“Stay put. You’re still dizzy.”

There was something about Beomjin’s voice that commanded attention. It wasn’t just because the light now revealed his piercing gaze in full clarity that she obediently sat back down.

Beomjin climbed the steep stairs swiftly, handing her the water and medicine while bent over slightly. Embarrassed, Junyoung accepted them with a sheepish expression.

“Do you have a headache too? These are the ones you brought from the nurse’s office earlier, right?”

“I have menstrual cramps.”

Beomjin sat a bit farther away, muttering irritably. A cold draft seemed to blow in from somewhere, and Junyoung hesitated before speaking.

“...Was that supposed to be a joke?”

“Shut up and just take the medicine.”

Beomjin’s tone was more of a growl, his cheeks taut with annoyance. Instead of intimidating her, it backfired. Junyoung couldn’t contain her laughter. She struggled to keep the cup of water from spilling as she tried to suppress her giggles.

“K-Kwon Beomjin has menstrual cramps! If I had even one close friend at school, I’d run to tell them right now! Hahaha!”

Unable to stop shaking with laughter, Junyoung braced herself against the bed with her elbow. Beomjin glared at her with clenched teeth and narrowed eyes.

“Yeah, well, not having any friends must be great for you.”

“I swear, I’ve never regretted not having friends more than I do now. I should’ve made at least one!”

Her laughter seemed endless. By the time she finally managed to take the medicine and water, she had spent a long time wiping away tears of mirth.

“Won’t your family be freaking out right now?”

As Junyoung set the cup down and caught her breath, she looked at him in surprise at his sudden comment.

“My family? Why?”

“You’re still not home at this hour.”

Beomjin’s gaze was angled slightly toward her. Junyoung quickly turned her head away, knowing he had likely caught the flicker of hesitation in her eyes. She bit her lip before letting out a small laugh.

“Maybe I’ll just sleep here tonight.”

“What?”

“That might be better.”

An awkward silence hung between them. They both knew what neither wanted to say. Beomjin, who had been sitting quietly, finally gestured with his chin.

“Go home. The bed’s mine.”

“You should stop sleeping so much. You’re always sleeping at school anyway.”

“Isn’t that rich coming from someone who’s been sleeping all day?”

“I was talking about normal circumstances. Today’s an exception.”

Junyoung’s responses came as smoothly as if she were reading from a script. Clicking his tongue in displeasure, Beomjin waved his hand dismissively.

“Cut the chatter and get up. I’ll walk you home.”

“No thanks. I’m staying here. You leave.”

As she made a move to lie down, Beomjin’s dark brows shot up sharply.

“Yoon Junyoung. Are you seriously being stubborn about this? You want to stay here alone in the middle of the night?”

“Who else would come here but you?”

Junyoung shrugged, and Beomjin took a deep, resigned breath, his lips parting slightly. She could tell he was using all his patience to suppress his irritation.

“Someone used to live here. Someone could still show up. Tonight, for instance.”

“Then you stay here too.”

Beomjin’s eyes, sharp and predatory like a bird of prey, wavered momentarily. Seeing this, Junyoung felt an unexpected awkwardness and darted her eyes away. She smirked slightly and added nonchalantly,

“It’s not like I’m saying we should sleep together or anything.”

“You and that mouth…”

“Didn’t we already silently agree? Why we both need this place?”

Her murmured words seemed to stop Beomjin from his grumbling. Instead, he paused, gazing at Junyoung’s profile as she stared somewhere off into the void. His voice came, quiet but steady.

“For you, it’s a place to study.”

“And for me, it’s the only place I can rest.”

She hadn’t expected to say something like that to anyone, but somehow, it felt inevitable that she would say it to Beomjin.

He was the only one with whom she shared the same needs and the same space, though they’d never spoken about it out loud.

Junyoung turned to meet his gaze. As if hammering a nail, she spoke firmly,

“I can’t go home.”

She figured that this much would be enough for him to understand. Perhaps it was even the same reason he had come here at this hour.

Beomjin, who had been staring at her with calm eyes, eventually stood up abruptly. As Junyoung watched his broad back descend the stairs with heavy, deliberate steps, she impulsively called out.

“Thanks.”

His body staggered noticeably, as if her words had physically shoved him. Startled, Junyoung let out a panicked shout.

“Hey! I told you, one wrong step and you’ll die! Be careful!”

“Shut up. Just go to sleep.”

Dismissing her concern with an apathetic tone, Beomjin flopped into the chair she always sat in and slumped forward onto the desk. Junyoung peeked down at him, a small laugh escaping her lips.

Why does he always act like he’s sleep-deprived? It’s not like he doesn’t sleep at night, is it? He’s always leaving with me when I go home, anyway.

…Still, even if I asked, he wouldn’t answer.

“Kwon Beomjin.”

“What.”@@novelbin@@

“Turn off the lights.”

Once again, that sigh, as though he were summoning the last vestiges of patience. But soon, the light went out. Junyoung chuckled softly and lay down on the bed.

Even though the place was unfamiliar, it felt oddly comfortable. The darkness of the early morning was so deep that it could have triggered a primal fear, but it didn’t. Not with Kwon Beomjin downstairs.

When did his presence stop feeling like a threat and start being reassuring?

As she tossed and turned, Junyoung wrinkled her nose. Earlier, she’d been so exhausted she hadn’t noticed, but now the mattress smelled familiar.

A faint scent of dust, sunlight-dried laundry, and—layered beneath it all—the smell of Kwon Beomjin. It was dry yet oddly soft.

Junyoung quietly gathered the thin blanket and cautiously buried her nose in it.

There’s no way he uses cologne with that personality, but this smells pretty nice.

He really is different from how he looks.

“Menstrual cramps… Heh, menstrual cramps…”

“Before I kick you out on your butt, go to sleep.”

His voice, low and on the verge of losing patience, rumbled through the still air. It had a weight to it, different from earlier. Feeling this, Junyoung clenched her teeth to stifle her giggles and closed her eyes.

She wondered if she could fall asleep again after sleeping so much already, but her body sank into the mattress. For the first time in a while, she felt like a deep, restful sleep was waiting for her.

As her breathing steadied, the corners of Junyoung’s lips curved gently into a smile.

3

The blue sky and warm breeze. The weather was perfect. Junyoung brushed at her still-damp hair, her eyes naturally drawn to the broad back a few steps ahead. She had to bite her lip to keep from bursting into laughter.

She had woken up to the smell. The smell of ramen—cloying and a little sickening, but enough to remind her of how hungry she was.

Soft light had crept into the house, signaling that dawn had broken. Pulling back the blanket without a sound, she sat up and peeked downstairs. She could see the crown of Beomjin’s head.

He was stirring the bubbling ramen with chopsticks, letting out a long yawn.

“Sleep demon,” Junyoung mouthed, a quiet laugh escaping her as she too yawned widely.

Compared to yesterday morning, her body felt much lighter. It had been so long since she’d slept so deeply, completely vulnerable. The fever was gone, and the heavy ache that had weighed her down had lifted. Apart from her slightly sticky clothes, everything felt great.

I’ve always wondered something.

Her voice, still hoarse from sleep, startled Beomjin enough that he turned sharply, wincing as if he’d hurt his neck. He grimaced, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. Junyoung suppressed a laugh as she pointed to the pot.

“Does your family run a ramen factory or something?”

Beomjin glanced at her, his face unreadable, before turning back to stir the noodles. His indifference made her mutter under her breath about his lack of manners. As she descended a step, the light suddenly came on.

“Turn off the light. I can see fine.”

“I don’t want to be the first one to discover you.”

Using her own words against her, Beomjin’s comment made Junyoung burst into laughter.

“True, you wouldn’t just be the first to discover me—you’d be the prime suspect too.”

“Me? Why would I? What motive would I have?”

As he moved the pot to the desk, Beomjin scoffed. Junyoung shrugged as she came down the stairs.

“Maybe you just couldn’t stand me hogging your beloved bed all day.”