[Today's Webtoon] “Are We Really Just Friends?” ... A School Romance, “Hard to Call It Friendship”

[Financial News] Baek Ji-young had hoped to make new friends at a new school and enjoy an ordinary high school life. She enrolled at a newly established high school to escape the rumors that had followed her since middle school, but her hopes were quickly dashed: the rumor that she was, as people put it, “keeping several people on the hook” had spread to her new school too. An unexpected person approaches Ji-young, who has not made even one friend a month after starting school.
The webtoon “Hard to Call It Friendship” is a coming-of-age school romance about a girl who wants to make friends and a boy who rarely reveals what he is really thinking. It delicately captures everything from the anxiety of teenagers unsettled by rumors and the scrutiny of their peers to the excitement of first love blossoming between friends and lovers. In particular, by exploring the ambiguous boundary between friendship and romance, it evokes memories of school days when it was hard to know where one stood between friendship and love.
Ji-young feels a curious sense of kinship with her classmate Yoo Ji-woo, who is plagued by rumors just like she is. She hopes that, given their similar circumstances, they might become friends who can open up to each other. But Ji-woo does not easily let any of their classmates get close. In the end, Ji-young gives up on trying to become friends with Ji-woo.
But when Ji-young gives up on approaching Ji-woo, Ji-woo’s attitude changes instead. Ji-woo, who had kept everyone at a distance, approaches Ji-young first, and the two quickly grow close. But the closer they get, the more another rumor threatens to trip them up. This time, talk that the two are dating begins to spread around the school.
Ji-young, who had struggled even to make a single friend, is once again caught up in the scrutiny of those around her. Ji-woo’s behavior is just as confusing: Ji-woo calls them friends, yet sometimes shows feelings that go beyond friendship. Ji-young wants to protect her relationship with Ji-woo, but the feelings that have developed between them are no longer easy to explain as simple friendship.
The work realistically portrays the relationship worries that just about anyone might have experienced at least once during their school years. The feelings of caring about how friends saw you and being unsettled by even a casual remark are fully reflected in the relationship between the two protagonists. The desire to grow close to someone and the fear of being hurt again intersect, making the story relatable. 
JIN handled both the writing and the art. JIN’s previous work, “If You Can’t Kill, Love,” surpassed 1 million cumulative views.
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