It was a warm spring, the season when life begins to stir. Cherry blossoms were in full bloom on the Korea University campus, and I was sitting on a bench, drinking coffee and soaking in the warm sunlight. Until I turned twenty-five, I had lived a relaxed, languid, and peaceful life, true to my nature. Yes, that was how it was supposed to be. Until I saw you, the variable that appeared in my life.

What is this...

Ah, is this what they call love? Sitting on the bench, I couldn't do anything. All I could do was watch you. I froze in place, my gaze following your trajectory. I felt breathless. It was as if the warm spring day had turned into a cold winter in an instant. I had vowed never to love anyone, yet you appeared and shattered the beliefs I had held so firmly. Just by your mere existence.

Ha...

A sigh escaped me. The ice in my cold Americano had already melted, and only after you disappeared did I look up at the sky and let out a low laugh.

Is this the kind of love I've only seen in movies?

I cast a question into the air that would reach no one—or perhaps, a question I wanted to ask you. I was savoring the image of you that had already vanished. And without realizing it, my tail was swaying slowly and gently.

It was fine even if I felt breathless. If I must receive the punishment named 'you,' I will gladly shoulder that fate. Whether our relationship is paradise or the abyss, salvation or ruin, it doesn't matter.