Terms And Conditions Applied

Baek (YN) was just your regular, everyday university student.

He went to class on time, well, mostly on time. He wasn’t one of those high-achieving, front-row-sitting, hand-raising students, but he wasn’t exactly a slacker either. He hovered somewhere in that forgettable middle: decent grades, decent attendance, a half-decent social life that mostly revolved around convenience store runs and impromptu late-night ramen meetups with his roommates.

He had no tragic backstory, no secret genius talents, no big dreams about saving the world or revolutionizing science. In a sea of ambitious overachievers and quirky main characters, (YN) was a side character at best.

At least, that’s what he told himself.

But he did have a secret.

He was a rented boyfriend.

Not in the seedy, underground kind of way, more like the oddly wholesome, slightly ridiculous kind that made you question everything about modern dating. There was a site, a vetting process, and everything was strictly professional. People rented him for dinner parties, family gatherings, ex-encounters, and sometimes just to feel a little less alone on hard days.

It was a job. A weird one. A surprisingly well-paying one.

At first, it was just something he signed up for on a dare. Finals had fried his brain and his best friend dared him to make a profile on this rent-a-date site that was circulating around online. The form asked for normal things, photos, height, interests, availability. It felt like filling out a dating app, but with less pressure and a much higher chance of being ghosted by strangers.

He didn’t expect anyone to book him.

But people did. And they kept booking.

Maybe it was his unassuming vibe. The way he could blend into any role, charming and witty when needed, quiet and supportive when the situation called for it. Maybe it was just dumb luck. It wasn’t even that hard of a job, he just acted in whatever way his client liked and that was usually enough to do the trick.

Either way, Baek (YN) had carved out a niche side hustle as the go-to “safe option” for all your pretend relationship needs.

He never told anyone, of course. It wasn’t something you casually brought up over lunch.

No one at school knew. Not his professors, not his friends, and especially not his parents. Oh god forbid his parents know about his job on the side. If they did, he was sure that there was going to be a lengthy talk and maybe he would have to get his bags ready to leave their home afterwards.

Now as the week ended with a surprising look of no bookings, he took the time to relax from all of the stresses of the education system and the drain of acting as someone’s boyfriend by staying inside his dorm, doing nothing yet doing something at the same time — whatever that might mean.

He stared at his ceiling, his hand raised slightly in the air as he repeatedly threw a ball into the air. He’s been going at it for a good half an hour now, hoping to just waste away the hot afternoon on a lazy day.

BZZZT! BZZZT!

The boy turned his head to the sound of his phone vibrating beside him. That could only mean a few things. One, it could just be one of his messages from a friend. Two, a random notification from the many apps he had installed or three, he just got a new client. As he opened his phone, he soon found out what it was.

It was option three.

(YN)’s thumb hovered over the notification for a second longer than necessary, his eyes skimming over the name that appeared on the screen. His brow furrowed. He blinked once, sat up a little straighter, and blinked again just to make sure he wasn’t hallucinating from the heat.

Kim Yooyeon.

His heart did a weird flip. The kind of flip that usually only happened when he accidentally made eye contact with her during bio lab, or when she brushed past him in the hallway with the scent of clean laundry and something vaguely floral trailing behind her.

He couldn’t not know her. It was the girl in his 10 a.m. biology lecture, the one who always came early, always sat by the window, and always looked like she lived in a world slightly quieter than the rest of them.

They’d never really spoken, beyond a few exchanged glances and an awkward moment when they both reached for the same worksheet. But he noticed her. Of course he did. Everyone did, in their own way.

She was the kind of quiet that made people lean in rather than turn away. Soft-spoken, serious, always scribbling something in the margins of her notebook that didn’t seem like class notes. She wore oversized sweaters and tucked her hair behind her ear when she was thinking

“What could she possibly be doing here?” His mouth hung slightly, in slight shock and a ton of confusion.

(YN) tapped on their profile to get a closer look and sure enough it was her. The same girl who had everyone turn their way when she passed, even if she didn’t mean to.

He scrolled down to the details of the booking, half expecting it to be some kind of prank. Maybe someone had used her name. Maybe it was a mix-up. Maybe it wasn’t Kim Yooyeon from bio and just someone who happened to have the same name and looked exactly like her.

But no. It was her.

Eight hour booking. Monday afternoon. Café in Hongdae. No custom message. Just the standard.

“Please dress nicely and be on time.”

(YN) sat frozen on his bed, phone still in hand, the rubber ball forgotten somewhere under his desk now.

Was this a mistake?

He thought about cancelling. His thumb hovered over the reject button for a full thirty seconds. This was dangerous territory. She knew him. Not knew him-knew him, but she’d definitely recognize him. She wasn’t the kind of person who forgot faces easily. And if she connected the dots, if she realized who he was and what he’d been doing…

He would have to drop out. Change his whole Identity. Maybe even move to another province.

But then again… why would she book someone like him? Of all people?

Maybe it was because of the reviews left on his profile detailing how reliable his service was, not to be too much of a brag.

He let the phone fall back beside him and lay back down, arm thrown dramatically across his face. This was either the beginning of a deeply awkward disaster, or the most interesting weekend he’d had all semester.

He quickly picked his phone back up to the booking, trying to piece any clue there was to find a reason why she of all people was on the app but besides from the default message that was sent to him he found no reason.

Maybe scrolling down would help.

As his thumb swiped to the bottom of the page, his eyes widened. She wasn’t paying him the regular fee someone would do any other booking but instead she was ready to pay him for bookings throughout the week in one go.

His mouth went dry.

Not one date.

A week’s worth.

And it starts tomorrow.

Seven sessions. Paid upfront. Each one scheduled for different times—afternoons, evenings.

Who did that?

He sat up, brows furrowed in disbelief, staring at the total amount like it might vanish if he blinked too fast. This wasn’t just some quiet girl looking for harmless weekend company. This was a plan. A purpose. A mission, even.