Just as I promised my dad, we both went out on our lunch together. It’s really hard to make him agree with my choice of place to dine with because I choose to be at my aunt’s café. Even though he didn’t make a sound of disagreement to my decision, I knew that he wouldn’t want to be here even if this is the last place he has to be on earth.

“Sit down dad, why are you still standing there?”, I choose the seat a very corner to the end side of the café, since people haven’t filling the place up, I’d be able to get my favorite spot.

“I didn’t see the waitress…”,

“She’s there Dad, right behind you…”, letting him know after pulling him to sit down in front of me.

After we both had done with taking our individuals order for lunch, he started off to ask me about the institute, how are my classes going, are the lecturer being harsh on me and such, It’s my first year as a college student and he’s already asking me so many question. I don’t know what happened if I was to ask to get a job in the future?

“Dad, the food’s here, let’s eat first, then we continue to talk, alright?”,

This is what I get for ditching Eunjung at the institute; I just had to bear with him for the rest of lunch time… I’m not avoiding his questions but I’m afraid of what he might asks if I continue to let him interrogate me like this, what if he suddenly came up with his own conclusion and set up new rules even after the exams are up. I’m like 19, for me sake, Dad… He needs to just accept the reality that I’m already a grown lady and I need to be independent at some point too, sooner or later… I don’t even have a license for driving cars because he thought that I’d be wandering off here and there once got them. That’s just the point, I want to be free and he won’t let me, he needs to have a little faith in me to take care of myself, but he’s just so stubborn worrying about every little thing.

“Jiyeon, aren’t you going to finish your food?”, Looking at me up straight with his concerned looks he always wear.

“I have something to ask you, Dad…”, the shaking sound of my voice could be detected by him because I was hesitating, like big time!

“What is it?”,

“Eunjung was asking me to go and follow her to this place, and I was wondering if I could tag along with her next month?”,

“Next month? You girls already are off from your exams right? What about it?”,

As expected, he didn’t let me go off the hook no matter what, because he said no the second I explained him where the place was going to be at.

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I came back to the institute with such heavy head, and I feel like I might collapse any time soon. I couldn’t even see the way clearly because of the incredibly hot weather.  With my foot tumbling on each other I then fell on my palm hands as support from getting my face to get hit on the floor of the dirty hallways, the pressure to my palm was bearable until I heard this noisy babbling coming from afar.

“Jiyeon, where were you? I’ve been trying to call you, text you, even go to your class but you weren’t there, you don’t bother to answer me. Where were you, seriously?”, She blabbered her way up to get me on the ground.

I reached out for her hands and pull myself up slowly answering to her questions.

“I was having a lunch with my dad… I left my phone in silent mode… I took him out at my aunt’s place… Now can you help me get back to my class, I don’t think I could make it alone…”, Leaning closely on her and closing my eyes to prevent from the gleaming shining sun rays flashing straight into my eyes.

“You went to your aunt’s place with your dad?”, She asked sounded not so shocked as I expected earlier.

I just nodded my head a few times to let her know the answer; it was so hard for me to even open my mouth to talk.

I need to lie down a bit. Besides, I have all the time I need before heading home anyway.

“Eunjung, take me to the library.”,

“What for?”,

“Just leave me there for a while, I have to study for next paper anyway…”,

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“This place you were going, where is it? Is it far? Is it safe?”,

“Dad, I’m 19. I can take care of myself pretty well than you think.”,

“Will there be boys?”,

“Dad… Stop it. We’re going for a camp out at the usual lagoon. We’re still planning about it actually since we needed the approval from all student bodies. It’s a small gathering for all juniors and because it’s our last year as freshman, so Eunjung thought it would be nice for us to…”,

“Bond?”,

“Well, sort of… There’s going to be lots of people there, so you’d have nothing to worry about.”,

“No.”,

“I need to borrow this book a little longer than the due, it took me a while to understand what it says…”, sighing at the thought spinning around in my head to the librarian who is sitting alone at the counter.

“It’s okay. They did it all the time too…”, he looked at me with a soft smile on his face kind of flew my stress away as he signed the books to let me borrow them for some more time. “Let me know if you need more help in search for your studies.”, he went back to his seat and faced the computer.

I couldn’t stop thinking about today’s lunch, I thought that it was the perfect time for me to finally ask dad about the trip but he simply stated the rejection straight to my face. I’m not upset that he didn’t let me out, just incredibly disappointed to the fact that he still couldn’t trust me being independent. At the times like this, I wish I had a mother to back me up already…

I turned around to look at a few empty tables, shaking my head sideways I choose the one that’s very back right in the corner of the library. I put my head down on the table before starting with the freaking revision. The headache lessens a bit after I took some aspirins, but lying down like this won’t help me to get through with the plan. I noticed that the temperature is quite heated for a place wi