part 5
 
he only came to regret it the moment it was nine in the morning the following day. he had walked into the café as a different yesung – not the yesung from a year before or the yesung from five years before or the yesung from ten years before. he was a different yesung entirely.
 
and that thought kept him happy all the way until he reached the counter and found the scrawny coffee machine operator – aka yuri’s co-worker who did most of her tasks on her first day here – monitoring the cash register. “good morning, sir. latte for you again?”
 
yesung shook his head. “where’s… where’s the girl?”
 
the boy sighed and gestured around the café. “we have a lot of female workers here.”
 
“no, I mean, where’s yuri?”
 
“oh, that really stubborn girl who insists on doing the cash register duties everyday? pssh, she quitted just now. just came by and dropped a notice that she can’t work here anymore.”
 
yesung stuffed his wallet into his back pocket and headed out the door in three wide strides, preparing to go look for her. he didn’t expect that she’d quit her job just to avoid him after his confession.
 
what the hell were you thinking, yesung asked himself. it only hit him as he was leaving the café that he had confessed to a girl who already had a boyfriend. if the badly-made confession didn’t blow his chance, confessing to a girl who already had a boyfriend definitely did.
 
but as he left and headed down the street to go to the bus stop, a familiar voice called out his name, stopping him in his tracks. he turned around to find yuri dressed in casual college clothes, with a backpack slung around one shoulder and an elmo file in the other hand.
 
“yesung!” she called out again, making her way towards him the fastest she could in a pair of heels she hadn’t worn in ages.
 
he walked towards her and gave her a glance from tip to toe. “this…” he made a brief gesture at her outfit.
 
then she smiled – the brightest smile of hers he’s ever seen, even brighter than yesterday’s – and shrugged. “do I look odd for a college student?”
 
he distinctly recalled that she was a night class student, not a full time student, so why was she dressed like that now… “aren’t you a night class student?”
 
“how am I supposed to graduate if I keep attending night classes?” she chuckled.
 
“so you’re attending full time college now?” he inhaled and exhaled, feeling a great weight being lifted off his shoulders. “is that why you quitted your job at the café?”
 
she nodded, glee showing in those pearly whites of hers. in every part of her, actually.
 
“how about funding your studies?”
 
“well, I figured it was time to let my parents settle that. they’ve been offering to do it since ages ago, and I, being the stubborn cow, just didn’t want to let them. but now I did!”
 
he was about to congratulate her, but stopped short when he recalled what was bugging him earlier on. “so—about the confession last night—“
 
she put a finger to his lips and shook her head. “no more discussion.” then she let her hand down, leading his eyes along the direction of her hand’s motion. “I’ll be your girlfriend!”
 
he looked up at her, so sharply that the crack from his neck was a little too audible. “but you’re dating—“
 
“yeah, I’m dating… you! as of now, at least.” the way her words had rolled off her tongue in that easy manner only conjured up more question marks in his head.
 
“what about your boyfriend?”
 
she sighed, but it was more of a sigh of relief than a sigh of despair. then she hooked her arm around his and started walking, past the doors of the café and towards her college that was around the next block. he still wasn’t comprehending it though.
 
“yuri, did you hear me? what about your boyfriend?”
 
“man, you’re pretty slow for someone like you… I broke up with him!” she gave another happy smile.
 
he had a slightly horrified expression on when he heard the last part of her statement. “what?”
 
she smiled. “just be glad I broke up with him for you.”

“but that’s so—“
 
“I’d rather have a boyfriend whom I didn’t feel lonely with, than have a boyfriend who makes me feel lonelier than I can ever feel.” she winked at him. “like I said, just be glad I broke up with him for you.”
 
after all the freaking out he did, her next line finally made him smile. “and I don’t feel lonely anymore.”
 
“at all?”
 
“at all.”
 
“good. but…” he trailed off, watching her bright smile darken a little. her expression almost changed altogether, but then he went on.
 
“but now, you’ll need to give me some time. I’ll need to get used to not feeling lonely anymore.”
 
//
 
(she didn’t like to feel lonely. he was almost used to feeling lonely.
 
and now?
 
she got rid of what she didn’t like. and he needs to get used to feeling the opposite.)