The time was 12.30am. Sungjin sat slumped way in the back of the last bus, watching the buildings and cars whizz by outside the window. He slipped further down in his chair (if his mother were there, she would reprimand him for slouching so badly), knees pressed to the the back of the seat directly in front of him. He unplugged his earphones and sighed, wiping his face down with his palm.

This was his routine. Whenever he got stressed - be it by work, from being homesick, or having to deal with the boys cooking up something that would get them all in trouble -  he would go out, take a long ride on the last bus, and get off at the terminal. Then somehow find his way back to the dorm. Perhaps after grabbing a bite.

The bus came to a stop, pulling Sungjin’s attention away from the window. It was rare for there to be any passengers at this hour - the bus normally whizzed past all the stops and headed straight for the terminal. Sungjin stayed in his lounged position, where he could see the entrance of the bus, but anyone walking in wouldn’t see him unless they came up to the seat right in front of his and peered over.

He watched as a girl boarded the bus, greeting the driver with a slight bow and a ‘good evening’ as she tapped her pass and walked towards the back before taking a seat a couple rows in front of him. She sat down quietly and Sungjin turned his head back out the window, proceeding to resume stoning observing the night view of the city pass him by.

After a few minutes as he almost fell asleep, he heard a soft strum of an instrument. His slightly groggy mind thought it was a guitar at first but he soon identified the sound to be that of a ukulele. He straightened up in his seat and peered over. Sure enough, he found that the girl from earlier had pulled out a white ukulele from the open casing on the seat next to hers.

She started strumming a familiar set of chords but he couldn’t quite place a finger on the melody. At least, not until she started singing. And good Lord, was he caught off guard. Her voice filled the silence of the bus, a little quiet at first - shy, almost.

But then she shrugged it off, thinking that no one else but the usual bus driver (who’s used to her random night bus busking) was around, and she sang a little louder, letting her voice carry its way clearly to him. He knew this song, he realised. Jaehyung and Younghyun were always singing it back at the dorm, and even on radio and tv shows.

Three little birds,
Sat on my window
And they told me I don’t need to worry

Her voice was soothing, and it made him feel relaxed, relieving some of the stress that was still pent up in him. He silently observed her from the back as she sang, leaning his head on the window. He closed his eyes and just listened as she sang, allowing himself to unwind.

In the middle of the first verse, however, she suddenly stopped. She fumbled with the chords and strummed a few more times, and he realised that she had forgotten the lyrics. She mumbled under her breath, repeating the line right before the one she forgot.

And maybe sometimes…

His eyes opened once more and the corner of his lips lifted in a half smirk. Without thinking, he parted his lips and continued singing the next line.

You got it wrong, but it’s alright

She jumped in shock when she finally came to the knowledge that she was not alone. She turned around to the owner of the voice she heard earlier, ears pink in embarrassment. She nodded - in greeting? Apology? Sungjin wasn’t too sure, and honestly neither was she.

She hurriedly reached for her casing to store away the little white ukulele but was stopped by the mushroom-haired boy (mind you, he didn’t bother to style his hair before he left the house).

“Please, don’t stop on my account.”

She remained quiet and blinked back at the stranger before her. Hesitantly, she spoke.

“But I… wouldn’t want to disturb your quiet bus ride.”

He flashed her a smile and she wondered how she didn’t notice how bloody attractive this mushroom head was at first. “Really, it’s no bother at all. I was enjoying the free music.”

She laughed at his response before fiddling with the instrument, unsure how to go about just casually singing as usual now that she knew she had a listener. She strummed a couple random chords before leaning her back on the window so that her side would face the stranger instead of her back, since it seemed a tad disrespectful to have her back to someone that was listening to her.

She began to sing again, but much more softly. Sungjin frowned, realising that she wasn’t singing as relaxed as she was before, her voice coming off a little insecure. So he joined in, effortlessly harmonising with her at various parts, making her smile in surprise and gain a little confidence to sing louder.

They finished the song just as the bus pulled into the terminal, the bus driver peering behind to tell them it was time to get off, and thanking them for making his time at work a little more enjoyable. They both bowed in response, thanking him and apologising for making noise at the same time, to which he assured them it was no problem at all.

Sungjin and the girl walked out of the almost empty terminal, stopping as they stepped into the cold night air. Sungjin stuffed his hands in his pockets, rocking on his heels before boldly turning to her and holding out a hand.

“This is kinda late, but hi, I’m Sungjin,” he introduced himself.

She shifted her ukulele bag from her right to left hand, holding it by the side handle before taking his hand in hers.

“Jangmi,” she stated simply.

“Well, Jangmi. Would you… like to grab a bite? If you’re free, that is. I know this great street stall nearby that’s open late.”

“Well…” she pondered, “my momma told me not to talk to strangers but I guess a stranger that knows the lyrics to one of my favourite songs can’t be all that bad, right?”

A/N: the song is 'Put Your Records On' by Corinne Bailey Rae