You finish the last page of Secret, your eyes glued to the words, your heart racing with each twist in the plot. You’ve been absorbed by the story for hours, barely noticing the time slip by as you devour every chapter. The world of Secret—the characters, their struggles, their loves, their heartaches—captivates you completely. Finally, as you read the last sentence, your eyelids grow heavy. The weight of the book in your hands is the last thing you feel before exhaustion takes over, and you drift into a deep sleep right where you’re sitting.

When you wake up, it’s not to the comfort of your own room or the soft light of your reading corner. You blink, disoriented, finding yourself in a place that feels both too familiar and yet utterly strange. The world around you looks like the pages of the book you just finished. The schoolyard, the crisp autumn air, and the students in their uniforms—it’s as if you’ve been transported directly into the pages of Secret. Confusion grips you as you try to make sense of it. This can’t be real. This isn’t real.

But it is. You slowly push yourself up from where you’ve collapsed on the ground, your mind still trying to grasp what’s happening. There’s no denying it now—you’re in Secret. The world is alive, around you, in front of you, like a dream you can’t wake up from. You shake your head, trying to steady yourself, and take in the scene unfolding around you. Other students move through the courtyard, chattering in groups, while you stand there, an outsider to this world, trying to make yourself blend in.

You walk among them, doing your best to act casual, your steps tentative as you pass students who don’t seem to notice you at all. You’re not sure how long you’ll be here, but blending in feels like the only option. You don’t want to draw attention to yourself. Not yet, anyway.

Unbeknownst to you, Namjoo sits under a tree just a short distance away, his posture relaxed but his mind anything but. He wears a white sweater adorned with strawberries, a stark contrast to the somberness he feels inside. His hand holds a carton of strawberry milk, the bright pink color almost mockingly cheerful in the gray mood that hangs over him.

“Joo-da,” he murmurs to himself, his voice barely a whisper. “Where are you now? I promised you I’d make you proud. I’ll keep that promise. I’ll make sure he feels loved, too. Even if you’re not here anymore...”

He takes a slow sip from the carton, his eyes never leaving the distant students, but his mind is elsewhere. Yeo Joo-da—the girl he was supposed to love, the girl who was supposed to be his. But now... now she’s gone, and in her place, a new story begins, one he’s not sure he’s ready for. He wasn’t meant to love again. He wasn’t supposed to feel like this. But something about this place, about the fate he’s been forced to live in, gnaws at him.

And then, his eyes meet yours. You’re standing near a group of students, trying to blend in, but something about you catches his attention. You look... different. Not in a way that’s obvious, but in a way that makes his heart stutter in his chest. There’s a pull to you, something unexplainable. Something that makes his blood run cold and warm all at once.

You turn, seemingly unaware of his gaze, but something compels him to get up, to move toward you. He watches you for a moment longer, his grip tightening on the strawberry milk, before he stands and starts walking towards you.