Finally…
I reached the end of her following list.
I stared at the screen.
No boys.
Not even one.
Except me.
All of them… were girls.
I blinked.
Then checked again.
Still the same.
A strange feeling of relief spread inside me.
"Thank God…" I whispered softly.
For a moment, I even smiled.
But then…
another question slowly appeared in my mind.
If there are only girls…
then why does she spend so much time chatting?
Something still didn't make sense.
That thought stayed with me the whole night.
Finally, I decided—
Next time she comes… I'll ask her.
But saying it in my mind was easy.
Actually saying it…
was something else.
For the next three days…
I kept practicing.
"How should I say it?"
"Should I sound serious?"
"What if she gets angry?"
"What if she stops coming to my house?"
At one point…
I even stood in front of the mirror.
"Somi… I need to talk to you."
I paused.
"…No, that sounds too serious."
I tried again.
"Somi, can I ask you something?"
I looked at myself.
"…Still weird."
I sighed.
"This is harder than exams."
Finally…
after three long days…
she came again.
This time…
for a drawing.
Just like always…
she sat beside me.
And just like always…
she took out her phone.
That same habit.
That same screen.
My heart started beating faster.
This is your chance.
I took a deep breath.
"Somi…"
She looked up at me.
Her eyes met mine.
For a second…
I almost forgot what I wanted to say.
But somehow…
I continued.
"You come to me for your homework…"
I paused, trying to stay calm.
"…but you don't really help."
She stayed silent.
"You don't even try to learn…"
My voice was still soft…
but now, a little firm.
"And… you just keep chatting on Instagram."
Her expression changed slightly.
I looked at her directly.
"Does your mom know about this?"
Silence.
Complete silence.
Somi froze.
Her eyes widened.
She looked at me like she couldn't believe it.
Maybe because…
I had never spoken like this before.
And then…
something happened.
Something I never expected.
She suddenly held my hand.
My mind went blank.
And then…
tears started falling from her eyes.
"Please… don't tell my mom," she said, her voice shaking.
I froze completely.
This… was not supposed to happen.
My heartbeats became even faster.
Not just because she was crying…
but because she was still holding my hand.
I quickly said,
"No, no… don't cry… I won't tell anyone."
I gently tried to calm her down.
"It's okay… I'm not going to say anything."
After a few moments…
her crying slowly stopped.
She wiped her tears.
Then…
she started speaking.
"I don't have any siblings…"
"No brother… no sister…"
Her voice was soft.
"And I don't really have friends in college either."
"I don't talk much to anyone…"
She looked down.
"So… I only have some online friends."
"I just talk to them… share my daily life…"
"To feel less lonely."
Those words…
felt heavier than anything she said before.
"I'm sorry… for my behavior," she continued.
"Please forgive me…"
"I'll help you from now on."
"I'll try to learn too…"
For a moment…
I didn't say anything.
I didn't expect this at all.
But somehow…
I understood her.
Maybe…
more than I thought.
Even though I was always scared to talk…
this time…
I spoke calmly.
"Look… you're not wrong."
She looked up at me.
Her eyes were still a little red.
Then I said, slowly,
If you don't have any friends then...
"Would you like to be my friend… Somi Park?"
She stayed silent.
Just looking at me.
And for the first time…
it didn't feel awkward.
It felt real.
And then Somi—