Prologue: ... Yes, we were 4 inseparable friends*

That was a typical winter day, the snow was falling, and the bed felt like the coziest and warmest place in the world.

What can I say?

Yes, it's true that I feel nostalgic thinking that I should perform, what must have been the last time?! Oh, yes... At school.

Anyway, my name is Bin Sowon, a 22-year-old alpha. It's really nice to meet you, and right now, you're hovering in my thoughts. My psychologist said it would be good to write down my thoughts, as if I didn't already have enough trouble writing my own stories.

Yes, yes, I write novels. Be sure to look for me on your favorite reading platform.

Would it be right to advertise inside my own head?! I don't know, it doesn't make sense, right?

Today started in a very unusual way. One of my school friends called me, asking if I would go to the class reunion that would take place today.

Of course, my friend is still my best friend since that time, and just because of that, she called me. She saw me on bad terms with my ex-girlfriend.

When she called me, I was still tucked inside my bed. I had spent the whole night writing and just wanted some rest. Completely in vain. "Hm?"

"Sowon!"

She is also the only one to have the courage to call me in the middle of Saturday at 8 a.m.

Oh yes, if she had known it was her calling, I wouldn't have woken up. Sleep is always an author's priority.

Min-ji's screams echoed through my brain, and even now, it must have been echoing through my eardrums. Heavens, how could anyone be so outrageous?

"Sowon, you need to leave the house."

I stared at my phone's display, and she had actually called me before 8 a.m.

I don't know, sometimes I suspect that being her friend must be some kind of punishment. "Because? What time is it? Here I have everything I need: instant noodles and alcohol… Stop bothering me, Minji!"

Minji knew very well that I worked long hours and couldn't manage a conventional schedule even if I foreshortened myself a lot, it was impossible... Especially when the deadline was so tight.

My publisher is going to kill me, I'm sure of it.

I was very immersed in my own sleepy state, so Minji said a lot of things that I can't even tell what it was about, and I just found myself really awake when she brought up the forbidden subject: my ex.

"... When are you going to get over the breakup, it's been almost six months."

I woke up right away, she really knows how to get my attention.

It's true that I still have hidden feelings for my ex, but I no longer live in denial that we should be together.

It's also not like my ex-girlfriend would ever want to be with me again.

"…"

I can even imagine Minji's face listening to my silence, those cheeks in an evil smile. "I knew it, you were thinking about her again."

"I'm just working a lot... Don't overthink it."

Minji is a real villain who owns a den of snakes, just taking my peace and having fun with my love life, which is a real catastrophe.

An evil chuckle resounded from the other end, well, maybe that part was my imagination.

But Minji really suits a fairytale evil witch characterization; we're inside my head, I can imagine her however I want, right?

Really satisfying.

"Whatever, Eunmi and I bet money, if you don't come I'll get a free dinner."

Eunmi is Minji's girlfriend and also my school friend... Yes, we were 4 inseparable friends.

You might wonder why the bill doesn't add up; we were inseparable in high school and clearly split after graduating.

Me, Minji, Eunmi, and Jung-ah would always walk up and down like good friends wanting to spend our time amidst a good laugh.

I can't say exactly why Jung-ah distanced herself. Some say she traveled abroad, and others just say she married a rich and beautiful omega.

Anyway, even if I looked for her, she didn't seem to even exist as if all our memories were limited to a small fleeting breeze.

Sometimes we wonder if Yeom Jung-ah was just an illusion we created. Maybe yes, maybe not.

I still remember the sweet smell of strawberry that Jung-ah exhaled when she felt happy. She was a little different after all of us, and although we always thought that she would turn out to be an omega, she became a beautiful alpha.

Yes, if I really stop to reflect, maybe that's when things between us started to change.

Alphas can be friends too, right?

Whatever.

After we hung up, Minji, even without any belief that I would, sent me the address where the meeting would take place by message.

I would be lying if she said she was interested, I wasn't.

I didn't have any interest in seeing all the people in my old class... But the little curiosity about Yeom Jung-ah swept through my heart, and I just wondered if there was any kind of chance of her showing up at this meeting.

I couldn't even sleep anymore, and all I did was get up and get ready for what would be a leisurely lunch with friends.

I was filled with anticipation, and it took me a lot longer than I thought it would just put on makeup and choose an outfit that looked right.

As a writer, I spend my days lying in bed with a computer on top of me. It's not like there's a need for a car, but I was running late, and all I could do is pray that the cab driver would speed up as if her life depended on it.

Moments of tension as if I were in an action movie, maybe in the middle of the way, he would pass under a truck or even run away from the police in the middle of an exchange of fire. Yes, it would be really exciting.

All this was limited to my imagination, and I came out of my daydreams when we were already in front of the restaurant, and he just amiably waited for me to pay him and get out of his vehicle.

Yes, we didn't make fancy passes and not even the police came after us, but my heart was racing, and I could feel the adrenaline coursing through my body.

I also didn't understand why I was so interested in seeing Yeom again, but the cold didn't even hit me anymore; my body was warm.

In quick steps, I entered the restaurant, and it didn't even take long to find a table full of familiar faces, and the receptionist barely had time to ask me if I had a reservation; we could only hear Minji shouting my name and calling me.

I went to the table, and there were still a few empty chairs.

We went to a mixed school where omegas and alphas study together, so many couples were formed at that time.

It was really funny to see so many people I saw grow up together between slaps and kisses and magically engaged and even with children.

I'm getting old.

Minji got up to hug me, so embarrassing.

But it was impossible for me to feel anything but happy. It was the first time I had seen many of those people since leaving school... Well, maybe I'm lying. I would be at the height of happiness if I won the lottery... Or if I finally saw Yeom.

"Bin So-won!"

"Eunmi!"

A series of hugs started, everyone got up to greet me, and it was really a happy moment.

I didn't have time to think about who was present and who wasn't. I just came across Minji, Eunmi, and Yeom.

Yes, she was there.