“I will but something tells me that we’ll meet again very soon.”

She cringed and shook her head fervently, in a futile attempt to get his words out of her head.

She had no idea why she was behaving like a little girl but she was not going to let it affect her any further. Something was off with her today but she was determined to get her act together. She guessed it had to be because of the stress she had been under for the past few days to settle her (dad’s) debts.

A sigh escaped her as she scooped the steaming tteokbboki up into a bowl. On the next beat, Ji Eun cast a worried look towards Sunyoung before she served the bowl to a customer half-heartedly. That look had only meant that she was not going to put this matter to rest and Sunyoung would have to give her an answer by hook or by crook.

“Yah, what’s wrong with you?” Ji Eun gave Sunyoung a nudge and then waved her hands animatedly, urging Sunyoung to speak up.

Sunyoung only smiled and bobbed her head to the loud music coming from the cars zooming by.

 “Nothing,” She mumbled and mindlessly threw the cloth within her hands to Ji Eun.

“Why? Is L.joe still on your mind?” Ji Eun questioned.

Sunyoung squirmed at that statement and looked away, belatedly realising that reacting in such a way could confirm Ji Eun’s machinations.

“Yah, so L.joe alone makes you this distracted.” Ji Eun grinned, coming to a conclusion right on the spot.

Fearing that Ji Eun would harbor funny thoughts in her mind, she lashed out, “No way would I fall for a hooligan like him. And stop calling him L.joe. We don’t even know him that well.”

“But…” Ji Eun hurried, not wanting to end the topic.

“Go clean up the tables…” She trailed off before facing Ji Eun again, “And I will go get some coffee for the two of us.”

As the wind tugged on her jacket, a shudder convulsed her body. She opened slightly, causing her breath to freeze as soon as it mixed with the cold air, forming a miniature cloud.

She zipped up her jacket and scrunched her face. Geez, she was never a fan of this weather.

“Coffee, coffee, coffee…” She hummed in that light-hearted tune which reminded her of Christmas.

Before she could get her coffee which was just a corner away, someone gripped onto her wrist and spun her around forcefully.

“Yoohoo, look what we have here. A fine lady all alone at 11PM in this dark alley.” A group of guys whose hair were all bleached in different kinds of colour began to close up on her and whistle in that annoying, sick pitch.

The initial excitement, which had fueled her to purchase coffee in this freezing temperature, had now dissipated. Sighing, she straightened her clothing, closing her eyes and leaned her back against the brick wall.

It was trifling to be getting into trouble even if you had tried to stay away from it.

She snorted at the sight of the rowdy hooligans and scuffed the ground with her shoe.

When one of the guys placed his filthy hand on her face, her fist tightened. She was all ready to send a punch flying in their faces till she realized she was being dragged away.

Wait. WHAT?

“Foolish girl, stop daydreaming and START RUNNING!” He yelled and their fingers intertwined together.

She had no idea why she did not stop him but she merely nodded and followed behind L.joe like a lost puppy.

It was only when they arrived back at her stall did she realize that she had been running away from those hooligans with another hooligan.

“Holy moly, no wonder you took so long. So I see, you have been catching up with your Prince Charming urh,” Ji Eun wriggled her eyebrows suggestively and pointed at their hands.

Gosh, it was only then when she found out he was still holding onto her hand. Her eyes widened and she quickly pried his fingers off hers.

“Aish, go away.” She scowled and slid to the right, creating an imaginary boundary between L.joe and her.

Ji Eun frowned at her actions and pushed her back to the left, “Sorry but our Sunyounggie is always this shy.”

“YAH, LEE JI EUN!” She protested, with anger bubbling inside her.

“It’s okay. I understand, Sunyoung.” L.joe commented and poked her cheeks with his knuckles.

“YAH LEE BYUNG HUN. Don’t call me by my name. We are practically strangers.” She replied, offended that he had the nerve to act as if they had known each other for years.

“Look who’s talking. You are the one who’s addressing me by my full name.” He rebutted and that made her half embarrassed and half frustrated.

Ji Eun squeezed herself right into that empty spot between the two of them and cleared , “Well, I would appreciate if you would stop arguing and tell me what had actually happened.”

“To repay her favour, I helped her escape from a bunch of hooligans.” The corners of his mouth curled upwards and he stared at Sunyoung, challenging her to refute his statement.

Grr, how she wished to wipe that arrogant smirk off his face.

“Well sorry sir. I wouldn’t blame you since we are strangers. However, I have to let you know that I have a black belt in taekwondo. In other words, it means that I am perfectly capable of handling that situation alone.” She shrugged and stuck out her tongue at him.

His expression faltered. A wave of guilt struck Sunyoung at that instant.

There was an awkward moment of silence till Ji Eun decided to break it.

“Well,” She paused, “but I’m still thankful that you have decided to step in and help our Sunyounggie. Do visit us tomorrow so we can better express our gratitude.”

With that, Byunghun lifted his head immediately and broke into a dazzling smile.

“That’s a promise then.”

Chapter 3 is up. Haha I am so inspired to write lately. Please leave me some comments! :)