=What An Unfortunate Letter=

“Good morning, ahjus—I mean… Mr. Can you bring me to the nearest coffeeshop?” I asked a man maybe in his late fifties. It was obvious that he was one of my grandmother’s drivers. He was holding a rag and was cleaning a black Chrysler. He flashed on a full grin when he saw me.

“Oh! Hello to you, too, Suzy. Of course.” He said, the sound of his voice partially lowering because he opened the driver’s door as he placed the rag inside. He rounded the front of the car and opened the back door for me. I gave him a grateful smile but just when I was about to get inside, he closed the door.

“Ahjussi! What the—“ I was interrupted when instead of seeing the driver’s face, I saw a glaring Kim Jongin. I crossed my arms on my chest. “What the hell were you thinking?! What if my hand got stuck inside the car?!” I complained after seeing his right palm pressed on the car door’s window.

He grabbed my wrist and didn’t say anything. Another car stopped in front of the house’s main door. Jongin walked faster and I tried to cope up with his steps. “Can you please walk slower?!”

But he didn’t. I rolled my eyes and he let go of my wrist. He opened the back of the car’s door. He nodded at me to get inside. I just stared at it which earned me another glare from him. “Aren’t you going to get inside?” he said with a frustrated groan.

I looked at him bravely. “Tell me where we’re going first.”

He sighed and closed the car door again. “We’re heading back to Dr. Owens’ house. She almost killed my eardrums on the phone just a few minutes ago. She told me she’s going to kill me once the two of us get home.”

I shrugged not really caring that my mother just scolded him. “Then let us not go home.” I said as if it is the simplest thing in the world. He facepalmed and groaned in anger. He looked at me.

“Your mother will kill me if we won’t!” He yelled.

I scoffed and dropped my arms from my chest. “It’s still the same thing. We go home, my mother will kill you. If we don’t, my mother would still kill you. Oh, how unfortunate of you.” I gave him an evil smirk right after talking.

He took a deep breath. “I don’t care if she’ll kill me with an ax or a butcher knife once we get to her house. My life isn’t what is important to me today. It’s your health. So get inside the car. Pali!” He opened the car door again and literally pushed me inside and he followed after.

He instructed the driver to bring us home which caused me to frown nonstop on the way. I scooted as far away as possible from him inside the car and leaned my head on the car’s left window so I couldn’t look at him.

“Stop playing hard-to-get…” he muttered as he suddenly grabbed my arm. He forcefully pressed my head on his chest and placed an arm around me so I couldn’t get away. I rolled my eyes and frowned again. I was about to tell him he’s a bastard when he kissed the top of my head and whispered. “…we already got each other anyway.”

I tried my best not to smile but because I failed, I snuggled closer to him so he couldn’t see the smile on my face. I couldn’t really cover my face with my hand since his arm was wrapped around me. I heard him laugh lightly.

The car stopped and he removed his arm around me. I looked around the place as I run my fingers through my hair. I couldn’t help but smile. We weren’t at my mother’s house but in front of a cozy looking coffee shop. Jongin was about to get out first but I grabbed his arm which caused him to close the door again.

He frowned. “What?”

“Stay here. I don’t want to be in a same place with you.” I harshly told him.

His mouth parted as if he was arguing to himself whether he should follow my order or not. Before he could utter a single word, I got out.

But I was sure I heard him say ‘ing mood swing’ just before I closed the car door.

I went inside the coffee shop and was thankful that I got to put some shorts on or else the few people inside the coffee shop would assume I was a because I was wearing a boy’s button-down.

I simply ordered a cappuccino and asked the girl barista with my phone in my hand. “Uhmmm… What’s the wifi password?”

The barista stopped her work and sighed dreamily. I gave him a confused look but then I realized that she wasn’t looking directly at me but at something far behind me. I raised an eyebrow at her when she said, “Asian guys are… gods. I wanna take him home with me.”

That’s when I turned behind me and saw Kim Jongin walking inside the coffee shop. He was looking around the place, obviously looking for me. It was so unbelievable that he didn’t catch my gaze because he sat at the table-for-two. He was drumming his fingers on the table and his eyes were still wandering. I’m pretty sure he’s already panicking inside because he still couldn’t find me.

If only Jongin did catch my gaze when he walked in, he would immediately approach me here at the counter and would claim me as his. That would be an advantage for me. So that this ugly girl barista would get her eyes off of something that is mine.

I turned back to the girl barista and saw that she is staring at my Jongin with a flirty smile along with flirty eyes, that it could be enough to turn her round pupils to go heart-shaped. What made me go angrier is because when I looked at Jongin at the table, his wandering eyes stopped and he caught the gaze of the ugly girl barista.

I admit that the moment he walked inside this coffee shop, I was wishing he would catch my gaze but he caught the ugly girl barista’s gaze instead of mine. I was hurt and disappointed.

When Kim Jongin caught the ugly girl barista’s gaze, I expected him to smirk and to eye-flirt with her but thankfully, he didn’t and just stared at the barista with furrowed eyebrows. Jongin waved his hands as if saying ‘sorry, not interested’. And then he looked away.  

I smirked at the ugly girl barista whose attention is now focused on me. She has a disappointed look on her face.

I smirked in satisfaction.

“I’m asking you what the wifi password is.” I asked as I faked a smile. This is so annoying. I hate this.

The girl laughed nervously at me.

I raised an eyebrow. “What?” I demanded impatiently.

She bit her lower lip as if hesitating whether she should say it. It was as if what she was going to say would make me decide that I should find another place or something.

She raised her hand and pointed at something from across the room. The first thing that got inside my mind was because of Kim Jongin again. I thought that she is pointing again at him. I turned to my shoulder and figured out that she wasn’t pointing at Kim Jongin but at the medium-sized rectangular blackboard placed at the corner of the coffee shop and is visible enough to be noticed by the coffee shop goers.

There in the blackboard were words all in capital letters and in colorful chalk that it seemed like those words were written by a pre-schooler because it was quite a messy handwriting. It says: “PLEASE TALK TO EACH OTHER. WE DON’T HAVE WI-FI.”

Below the words were two drawings also drawn in colorful chalks. One was a wi-fi logo with a big ‘X’ at the center that indicated that wi-fi or internet is prohibited in this coffee shop and the other drawing were two clouds colored white and sky blue with the words ‘Okay?’ and ‘Okay’.

I sighed and turned to the barista. “Alright.”

I was about to pick up my cup of coffee when the barista left her place and was going somewhere and that somewhere is where my Jongin is seated. I quickly placed my cup of coffee back on the counter and blocked the ugly girl barista’s way with my arms raised on both sides. I’m pretty sure I now got Kim Jongin’s attention. “Where do you think you’re going?”

The girl gave me a confused and at the same time annoyed kind of looks. “I’m going to get the hot Asian guy’s order.” She said as if it is the most obvious thing in the world and rolled her eyes after. “Now, Miss, please get out of my way before you ruin my only chance of getting a potential boyfriend.” She added with a fake smile so that the people around us wouldn’t suspect that we were up to something bad… and also maybe because she doesn’t want to get fired because of arguing with a costumer.

She smirked and pulled down my arm that was blocking her way so she could proceed. I scoffed. I’m not going to let her go near him.

I grabbed her arm. “What the—“

I stopped her from talking by saying, “This is not a restaurant. This is a coffee shop. You shouldn’t take his order. Alright? Or else I’ll tell the manager to drag your out of here.”

The girl scoffed. “I’m the daughter of the owner…And who the hell do you think you are?” She asked with her arms placed on her chest.

I was taken aback. That was why she was so confident about getting close with my Jongin. She didn’t care if she would get fired for arguing with a costumer because she owned the place.

I was ashamed. Jongin was right. ‘ing mood swings’. If it wasn’t because of the mood, I wouldn’t be in this position: Ashamed. I didn’t know she owned this place, for heaven’s sake. She has the will to drag my out of here for invading her coffee shop.  

I looked down and bit my lower lip. I looked at her. “Look, I’m sorry, I didn’t know you’re—“

I squirmed when I felt an arm wrap around my shoulder. The girl’s gaze transferred from me to the person and her eyes widened and turned parted as if she wanted to say something.

I looked up and saw Jongin. I gave him a small smile but I know it wasn’t enough to indicate that I’m thankful he is here.

“Do you want to know her?” Jongin asked.

The girl gulped and tried to have a better posture maybe to impress him.  She smiled. “No, thank—“

Jongin tightened his hold on me and pressed me closer to him. I looked up and saw him looking directly at the girl’s eyes and is smirking. The girl’s smile faded when Jongin said. “She’s mine. She’s my wife and I’m here to pick her up. She’s prohibited to drink anything with caffeine because it might be bad for the baby.”

The girl’s eyes turned into saucers.

“Guess I’m not a potential boyfriend anymore, huh?” Jongin added with an amused look. “Sorry, miss. I’m not interested.”

The girl slowly stepped forward and ran out of the coffee shop.

Jongin and I watched her leave. When the girl’s already out of sight, Jongin turned to me. “Are you okay?” he said after removing his arm around my shoulder and held my chin so I could look up at him.

“Yes. Thanks to you, though.” I told him with partial sarcasm.

On the way back to my mother’s home, I couldn’t tell Jongin was nervous because my mother might kill him. I assume he still couldn’t get over with the scene we caused at the coffee shop earlier.

My head was lying on his shoulder because he forced me to.

“Do you know why I brought my bag with me last night when my clothes left trails from your bedroom?” he suddenly asked.

“Because you want your clothes to be washed?” I replied after removing my head on his shoulder so I could look at him.

He smiled at me and I gave him a small smile. He looked away and I looked at my lap.

“I was leaving.” He said.

Was.

So he’s not leaving anymore.

That’s a relief.

I immediately looked at him and figured out he was looking at me too.

“W-Waeyo?” I asked nervously.

He smiled once again and leaned in. He caressed my cheek with his thumb. “Just read the letter I left under your pillow so you’ll know the reason why I was leaving.”

 “There was a letter?”

He nodded. “You should read it. Because it’s the first time I wrote you a letter with you knowing that it was me who is Peter Pan and not Kris.”

I nodded. “I will surely read it later.”

His smile faded. “No!”

I gave him a confused look. “Why?”

He sighed and looked outside the car’s window. “Not now. You’re only allowed to read it once I leave and when I’m already miles away from you. I don’t want to see you cry because of me.”

My empty palms turned into fists and he saw it. Jongin looked away from my hidden fist and then he stared at me with sad eyes.

I swallowed back tears and looked at him bravely. “I’m not going to read it even after I die then, Kim Jongin. I will never read it. Not ever.”

“But why?”

I unclenched my fist.

 “Listen to me, Jongin.”

He tried not to meet my gaze so I grabbed his face so he would only look at me.

“I’m only allowed to read it when you leave and when you’re miles away from me, you said. If that’s the case, then I will never read it even after I die because you’re not leaving me. If I could just handcuff our wrists forever so you couldn’t leave, I would. Your letter has no chance to be read, Jongin.”