Chapter 2 - That destined Thursday

I sighed out in contentment once our school bell signaled the end of yet another completed school day. Surprisingly, the teachers had gone easy on us for the day, resulting in only a little amount of homework assigned for tomorrow – homework I, in all my determination, had already managed to finish during the classes.

‘’What are you doing today?’’ I heard someone say once I finished my thoughts about my academic life. I looked up from stuffing my books in my schoolbag. Right in front of my desk stood Kwon Soojin. Her signature smile was plastered on her face and I watched as she excitedly placed both her hands on my table.

I have always been a firm believer of the general idea of having certain friends for certain things. Chaerin, for example, was my best friend whom I could always turn to. I trusted her with my life and felt the most comfortable around her. Whenever I would feel down I knew I could tell her anything. Kim Chaerin also happened to be that one friend that knew me best – something that could be quite annoying at times too. Kim Jea was, for another example, a very close friend whom I could tell a lot to, yet I didn’t necessarily feel an urge to do that in the first place. She was a good friend and even a better listener, but still for some inexplicable reason I felt more comfortable around Chaerin. I suppose that Jea shared the same sentiment, because she too felt closer to Chaerin than she did to me. I was fine with that. Our friendship wasn’t a competition. It was just how it was. Jea did nothing in particular to make me feel that way about her just like I had done nothing to make her feel like that about me. She was still one of the closest friends I had. It just happened to be that I had a slightly better friendship with Chaerin. I know you’re not supposed to rank your friends, but frankly I did. The

The Kwon Soojin standing right in front of me was my buddy in class. She would come in third and last place if I were to make up my own imaginary rank of good friends. Admittedly, I didn’t know her that well. Our conversations were always rather simplistic and a bit superficial. However, I had noted how very fragile she could be at times. In result, I had to be careful with my words and actions around her. She was offended rather easily, not to mention how she could suddenly ignore you when she felt even the slight bit insulted. Besides that she was a slacker and she had no problem to let other person do the work that was originally intended for her. All of this sounds bad, but on the other hand Soojin could also be very kind, bubbly and funny. Thus I didn’t mind her annoying traits that much; they didn’t occur much anyway. Another interesting fact about Kwon Soojin was that she was also boy crazy; she liked to talk passionately about them. It was all she ever did. She talked about boys like Jung Daehyun, Lee Byunghun or Park Chanyeol for example. It was probably the main reason I knew of their existence besides occasionally passing them in the hallway or spotting them in our canteen. I wasn’t always interested in the rather monotonous topic consisting of the other gender. Though I suppose, sometimes, it was kind of interesting to hear who was considered hot and popular and for what reason. It came with the age – and hormones.

‘’I’m going over to Chaerin’s house. Watch something probably. You know, just…. chill.’’ I didn’t tell her that this plan would only take place some hours later. I feared that Soojin would ask me to accompany her to whatever place, just so we could appreciate each other’s company while sipping of a cup of coffee. Honestly, I just wanted to go home and have some alone time before going over at Chaerin’s. I still hadn’t watched the latest Naruto Shippuden episode. The episode was released a week ago and I desperately needed to see it today.

‘’Oh... alright,’’ sounded her reply. She looked rather upset. Her disappointment had only showed for a short moment, but I saw it nonetheless. I bit my lips uneasily and although I felt bad, I didn’t feel quite bad enough to give her what she wanted. After all, I really wanted to see that new episode!

‘’We should do something soon though,’’ I insisted with a small smile. She seemed rather happy about that suggestion. I watched her nod eagerly before she said to me: ’’Sure, we should!’’ After that, she said her goodbye with a wave before she eventually left the classroom. I followed only shortly after her and headed towards my locker.

Although the school was quite big in every aspect, the locker sections weren’t. In fact, in the short breaks in-between lessons or even just after school time it would become very cramped. It was annoying to say the least, but today it was surprisingly bearable. Somewhat satisfied with this, I hummed along to a pop song that had been stuck in my head for days. I carefully placed my books in my unorganized locker, slammed its small door shut and headed out. As I walked towards the exit of the school the thought of briefly paying my dad a visit crossed my mind. Per usual he would be working and I figured that this came in handy now that I felt the urge to eat something sweet and unhealthy. My father happened to own this little convenience store nearby the school – which proofed itself to be really convenient for me.

After a thorough contemplation, I concluded that I was for a fact going to see my dad. That way I would at least be guaranteed to see him for the day, because the sad truth was that I didn’t see him around our home that often. My father was very passionate about his little enterprise and that in turn caused him to work really hard to keep the business going. I was very much proud of him for that. He however was too proud to leave some of the work to his employees – he only had two employees besides me. Ultimately, he was more to be seen at work than at home. All of It was unfortunate for my mom, because she would be done with work around an hour of six while the convenience store of my dad was open until ten in the evening. If it had been possible, I know my dad would’ve been open until somewhere around midnight and if that were to be the case he would not be seen home at all. It was already hard enough to convince him to go home earlier on Sundays, let alone to make him go home if the store would be open until midnight.

My thoughts about my father excessive work schedule were interrupted when I heard a voice calling for an familiar name; my name. I turned my head and noticed Jea jogging towards me. ‘’Hey stranger,’’ I said once she stood next to me. She gave me this cheeky smile before she did a quick glance around our school and asked whether Chaerin was still around somewhere. ‘’No I think she already left, but you could text her to be sure. Why?’’

‘’Nothing in particular. I just wanted to say hi to her since I haven’t seen her for the entire day,’’ she shrugged as she accompanied me to the school gates. ‘’Are you perhaps going to see your dad?’’

‘’Yes I am. Care to join me for a bit?’’

In response to my question, Jea got her phone out of her jeans pocket, checked the time and confirmed my request with a firm nod. She frowned once I started to walk towards the bike stalls. ‘’Why are we here? Are you cycling yourself to school now?’’ I nodded. With the extra use of a careless shrug Jea nodded too. ‘’I guess that’s more convenient than taking the bus.’’ I smiled faintly; at least Jea didn’t dramatize my choice of transportation like Chaerin had done.

While we walked in perfect sync we came to talk about how Jea was doing recently. She told me about how she was adjusting to her new life with her mother constantly being absent. Until recently, Jea's mom had accepted a job as an air hostess, which led her to be more in the air than on actual soil. It resulted in Jea technically living alone with her brother, Kim Himchan, who was only one year older than us. Although Jea needed to get used to the idea of practically not having her mother present most of the time she kept stating that it was a new challenge that she somehow liked. She had quickly learned how to take care of herself. By the time I asked her how her dad was doing she replied surprisingly calm, saying that he was doing just fine and that she had seen him a couple of days ago. They even had dinner together. Jea’s parents had divorced around three years ago. I still clearly remember how hard it had been for her back then, though everyone in her household had figured that it was probably for the best since her parents managed to fight almost every single day. Fortunately, the divorce went by quite peacefully. Jea had matured so much since then. I was impressed about how she had handled everything and in result I couldn’t suppress the smile that unknowingly crept up my face. Jea took notice of my sudden smile, frowned and asked me what the hell I was smiling about.

‘’Nothing I’m just... happy for you. That’s all.’’

‘’Well...'' she began with a sassy click of the tongue, ''...we are managing so I am indeed very happy right now. My dad is also helping out whenever mom isn’t around. I mean sometimes it takes five days for her to come home, but sometimes it takes two weeks and even a month of absence is possible.’’ Jea paused for a minute, gauging whether I was still listening and then continued: ‘’I mean she is mostly in hotels even when she is in Korea so I hardly see her. So yeah, I’m really grateful to him for being around whenever I need him. Lately you hear so many stories about the father leaving the children after a divorce. I used to be very scared about him leaving us behind too, but it turned out just fine. Besides, Himchan and I are getting closer too.’’ She chuckled, and suddenly thought of something: ‘’though… Himchan is turning our living situation into his advantage.’’ 

‘’What do you mean?’’ I asked her genuinely curious.

‘’We got the paradise to ourselves now, so his friends are over sometimes. Not every day, but you know quite often. It’s like I have six brothers now instead of one.’’ She shrugged carelessly and I couldn't tell whether she felt fine or troubled by the fact that she suddenly had more people coming over in her house..

‘’But does that trouble you?’’ I asked in somewhat of concern. 

‘’No, I was just joking. You and Chaerin should come over more often now though! Otherwise those new brothers of mine will drive me crazy. That’s why I’m looking forward to this Friday,’’ Jea halted in her steps and caught me by surprise as she suddenly made a grab for both my hands. She looked me sincerely in the eye and continued: ‘’we’re going to have so much fun! I missed you guys. I’ve barely seen you.’’ She let go of my hands. ‘’lately I’m always busy doing other things.’’

I was about to ask her if she had been catching up on her academics all this while, but she already commented about it before I could even open my mouth: ‘’my grades haven’t been that good. Admittedly, it was really hard for me to find the right balance between taking care of myself and studying. I got used to it now, but I got behind on my studies. I caught up with most of it now though. I will be around often again.’’

‘’Thank god,’’ I sighed truly relieved. I’ve missed Kim Jea. She wouldn’t really tell us what had been going on in her life and that had honestly concerned me. Everything seemed perfectly fine now though.

The universe had restored itself.

We arrived at the store only some minutes before five. The LED lights presenting the store’s name  – Convenience – almost blinded me and I was once again reminded of how typical my father’s pick for a name for the store was. Almost just as typical as my father himself. ‘’Aerin!’’ I heard the man in question call for me once he took notice me.

‘’I never thought I would see your face again, so I thought I would stop by,’’ I joked as I took a few more steps. My father roared with laughter in response. Admittedly, the gesture was a bit excessive. Then again my father’s laugh was for a fact excessive.

‘’You just have snack urges again,’’ he teased once he recovered from my seemingly very funny joke. Jea laughed along, although I highly suspected that she was still laughing because of my father’s laugh in the first place.

‘’Hi, Jea! Long time no see! How is everything going?’’ He asked once he finally seemed to notice that I had brought her along with me. While Jea and my father were catching up about everything in life, I searched for my guilty pleasure: soft gums. After that, Jea and I kept my father occupied for around thirty minutes. I still wanted to see my Naruto Shippuden episode and if we were to stay with him for any longer I wouldn’t be able to. I gave my father a tight bear hug before both Jea and I parted Convenience. I gave the same bear hug to Jea once we arrived at my bike and we had to say our goodbyes. 

It was exactly 7:16 PM when I arrived at Chaerin’s place. This time I had deliberately taken the bus, but only because it was a rather long ride to her house. How satisfied Chaerin would be, I thought to myself as I ringed the bell of house number 76. The door opened almost instantly and Mrs. Kim appeared with a kind familliar smile on her face. ‘’Aerin! How are you doing dear?’’ Before I was even given the time to answer I noticed Yejin running towards her mother. Her eyes sparkled once she realized that it was me paying them a visit.

‘’Aerin!’’ She exclaimed while hugging my waist tightly. I looked down at the adorable kid and squeezed her cheeks. Yejin was a five year old and really the little version of Chaerin in terms of looks – and antics. I had this soft spot for her and it was safe to say that she was quite fond of me too.

‘’It’s going to be quite the party here, isn’t it?’’ Mrs. Kim chuckled to herself as she gestured for me to enter their lovely home. Her statement was definitely meant as a joke, but still I had trouble placing it in context. I didn’t quite understand what she was referring to and so I just smiled and politely answered the question she had asked me before Yejin crashed into me.

I soon find out what Mrs. Kim had meant. When I entered the living room I found out that none other than Choi Yuna was there. The same gorgeous girl we had talked about just today. She looked up from the paper she was reading and gave me a small smile and acknowledging nod. I tried to imitate her, but failed to execute my smile and nod as effortlessly flawless as she had done. Not particularly amused by this, I looked at Chaerin. Chaerin’s whose face stood quite apologetic. One of my eyebrows naturally shaped itself in a charming frown and Chaerin looked away in wonder. Then, when she realized that she couldn’t avoid my gaze for forever, she said: ‘’Oh yeah, Choi Yuna, this is Park Aerin. Aerin, Choi Yuna.’’

Before I could say something, anything even, Choi Yuna spoke up already: ‘’I know.’’

Her comment surprised me. I didn’t expect Choi Yuna to know me. Apparently she noticed my surprise because she quickly corrected herself. ‘’I mean, I know of you. I have seen you in school.’’ A godlike smile that could turn anyone into envy appeared on her face and I nodded sheepishly, not quite sure how to respond to this. Although it was odd in itself, I guess it did make sense for her to know of me. Many people in school knew each other by name and face. Still it felt strange that she would know of me – even when I had known of her too.

‘’Oh. Nice to meet you,’’ I said sheepishly.

As it turned out, Chaerin had failed to mention that she had made an appointment with Choi Yuna to work on her assignment today. It was a very stupid mistake of her. First of all, because we had talked about Choi Yuna during lunch break and second, because it didn't explain why she couldn’t just text me to tell me that something had come up. I knew Chaerin however and so I knew that she was, one, too selfish to let me go since Choi Yuna wouldn’t be around that much longer after my supposed arrival and, two, because she probably wouldn’t want to disappoint me after she had so persistently insisted for me to come over. In any way, the situation at hand was rather annoying. I wasn’t mad at Chaerin for the dumb stunt she pulled. Or at least, not per se. However I did feel really useless in the following hour; like the loser friend of Kim Chaerin who stuck on her friends side even when that friend needed to do assignments with other people. I was probably overreacting, but still I couldn’t help to think that Choi Yuna must have thought of me in that way.

And so I just sat on Chaerin's couch, scrolling through Facebook feeds. And while I was utterly bored, Chaerin was seated at the coffee table laughing away with Choi Yuna. It made me wonder if they were actually working or just goofing around. I suspected the latter but wisely kept my mouth shut about it. When Choi Yuna finally left – after a good forty minutes – Chaerin apologized like a million times to me. I only rolled my eyes and though I told her that I wasn’t particularly mad – just annoyed – she didn’t quite buy it because she kept apologizing. I ‘forgave’ her just to be done with the situation and we finally had the quality I was promised much earlier. We watched an anime, only because I knew she was annoyed with that ‘childish ’ – her ignorant words. She didn’t protest once, probably because she was still convinced I was mad at her. We watched a romantic anime called Itazura na kiss. After watching about five episodes I could tell that she liked it.

Only Chaerin was way too proud to actually admit that to me.

When I went to Chaerin’s place again – two days after I officially met Choi Yuna – I found out Choi Yuna was present again. Only this time she was leaving at the exact same time I was about to enter. We politely exchanged greetings. That was actually all for that day. After the first encounter on that Monday, Yuna started to greet me regularly at school. Not just with a smile, but with actual words. She would do it every time we would see each other in the hallway and it was safe to say we vaguely knew each other.

And us knowing each other led to that one destined Thursday.

That destined Thursday the day managed to get by faster than normally. Humming to myself, I headed to the bike stalls. The school’s square was crowded and I figued that that made sense given that students were always eagerly heading home after the final bell. Usually I wasn't as eager in getting home,because normally I would stick around the school to chat some more with Jea and Chaerin.

But on that particular day I couldn’t find Chaerin nor Jea.

I did spot Choi Yuna though. She was happily talking and laughing with a guy I couldn’t see the face of. His back was facing me and for some reason I found myself intently staring at the exchange between the two. I watched Yuna playfully hit his arm – which struck me as a her not-so subtle way of flirting. Admittedly, it made me the slightest bit curious about who this guy exactly was, but not nearly enough for me to actually find out.

Quickly forgetting about the obvious flirting, I unlocked my bike and walked all the way until I was at the main path. I could only go straight from now and was about to jump on the saddle of my bike. That’s when I noticed Choi Yuna’s eyes on me. She smiled her signature smile and excitedly waved at me.

And then she waved me over.

I frowned automatically and glanced around me in confusion, only to conclude that there wasn’t possibly anybody else who her gestures could be directed at. After all, her eyes had been set on me. With my bike in my hands, I hesitantly took steps in their direction, all the while wondering what she possibly could want from me. 

The mysterious guy was about to turn around, curious about who had caught Choi Yuna’s interest. I glanced at his shoes as the distance between us shortened. He wore red Nike Air Blazers that day. The same ones I coincidentally owned.

And when I looked up, I realized that those shoes belonged to none other than Jung Daehyun.