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[Picture credit: @kpeditsforlife on IG]

1 year 3 months later

October

"We do it at the same time...on 3," Sana said slowly. Jun, who was sitting across from her nodded and breathed out deeply.

"One...two...three!" Sana counted down and the two of them opened the plain white envelopes in their hands.

Sana's parents, Jun's mother and Irene and Seulgi watched on anxiously.

They both had opened it, then unfolded the first sheet of paper. There was a short pause before screams cut through the air.

"I GOT IN!!!! I GOT INNN!!!!!!" Sana yelled.

"ME TOO!!! I DID IT MUM, I GOT IN!!!!!!!" Jun shrieked a split second after.

The other five people in the room joined in, creating a loud uproar in Sana's kitchen. They danced around in circles and the pair waved their University acceptance letters in the air jauntily.

5 months ago

"Listen," Jun said. "I think it's best we don't tell each other until we send our applications. I know it sounds stupid but, I don't think that we should interfere in any way with the Unis we want to go to."

Sana sighed and closed her eyes, but nodded in agreement.

"We'll figure out what happens between us after we find out," he said. "We may have to...we may have to take a break from each other or try long-distance or we may simply be within walking range...but I don't want you to worry about that."

Jun pulled Sana into a hug, knowing how stressed she was about being apart from Jun during their University years.

A week later, they met again after sending in their applications.

"We show each other in 3..." Jun began the countdown. "2...1!"

Jun had closed his eyes when he showed her the logos of the Universities he had applied to, but her yell snapped them open.

"NO WAY!" she cried. "We applied to TWO of the same Unis!!"

"REALLY?!" Jun shouted, and joined Sana as she jumped on his bed.

Present Day

Sana didn't even realize she had been crying until Jun wiped her tears away.

They had both been accepted into the two Universities they had wanted to enter the most; Incheon National University or INU, not so far from Seoul, and close to the ocean.

Sana was going to major in both Journalism and Creative Writing/Literature and Jun was majoring in Athletics and Sports (for running).

INU was well known for it's amazing athletics team, and Sana had found from her excessive research and digging that the most impactful journalists and writers were alumni of INU.

When all they shouting and yelling died down, the house was silent but for Luna's claws clicking on the wooden floor.

"So now what?" Sana asked, a waver in her voice as she sniffed.

"WE PARTY!" Seulgi yelled, and they started up their racket again.

Sana and Jun had been the last to receive their acceptance letters; Irene, Seulgi, Chungha, Hoshi, Suho, JB and Minghao had all been accepted already.

Unfortunately, Irene and Suho would have to face a 4-year long-distance relationship as Suho was going to University in France, but Seulgi and JB would be able to see each other often, as their Universities were less than an hour apart.

In the days that followed, Sana and Jun had a large 'Acceptance Party' with all their friends where they danced like their first prom night when they were sophomores and ate and conversed like it was the last time they had together on earth.

The weeks that followed after that were a blur of chaos, stress and busy schedules for the pair: packing; sorting out rooms; checking their dormitories; more packing; visiting the campus, etcetera, etcetera...

Until it was finally move-in day.

They had already said their goodbyes to their friends.

That morning was cold and grey and threatened to storm. Sana's parents and Jun's mother stood next to each other with their arms wrapped tightly around their respective child, wishing they were young again and wouldn't go away.

Sana was teary eyed and so was Jun, but they blinked them back and said their final goodbyes and went slowly to the Hyundai Accent that would take them away from their homes.

With their belongings already at the dormitories, the drive there would be made on their own with no large truck carrying their stuff trailing behind them.

Just before Jun opened the driver's door with the keys in his hand, he turned around and ran back to his mother, embracing her one last time and whispered, "Thanks for not giving up on me, mum."

He jogged back to the car, checking the boot was closed properly, then slipped into the driver's seat and waved as he pulled slowly out of his driveway and down the street, before turning onto the main road.

Behind them, their parents were in tears.

.

.

They arrived over two hours later in the parking lot of the INU dormitories. The pair slowly got out and looked at the white-brick buildings, probably with similar thoughts in mind.

Jun locked the car and walked forward, meeting Sana at the front of the car. He grasped her warm hand and felt a slight relief that she was there with him.

Then he looked at her and smiled. "Together?"

"Together," Sana replied.