It was Monday again and I went to NUS for my teaching course. I had breakfast with Yi Xing as usual and he drove me to NUS. On the way there, we stopped at a traffic light and there was a bus stop at the side after the traffic light. I could see Ting Yi there, frantically looking at her phone and shaking it constantly. She kept looking at the buses that passed by but seeing that none of the buses could be taken to NUS, she dismally sat back down. I said, “Yi Xing, can you pull over at that bus stop in front?” He nodded and when the traffic light turned green, Yi Xing drove to the bus stop. Indeed it was Ting Yi that I had seen, so I rolled down the window and shouted, “Hi Ting Yi! Do you need a ride?”

Her face immediately brightened up when she saw me and ran towards Yi Xing’s car. She flung open the car door and sat at the backseat. Yi Xing said, “Hey watch it! The car door might break!” She quickly apologized to him and fastened her seat belt. Ting Yi said, “Oh my goodness, thank you so much for the ride, Joon Myun! I thought I was gonna be late, I just missed my bus this morning and that stupid bus refuses to come until 30 minutes later! But by then, I would have been late, by at least 20 minutes! Mr Chan would have killed me, thanks again Joon Myun!” I replied, “No problem, how about I pick you up so we can go to NUS together? It will be more convenient for you and I don’t mind, but do you mind, Yi Xing?” I turned to Yi Xing and he replied, “No, it’s fine. I don’t mind, as long as she doesn’t break my car.”

“Oh yeah, I should introduce you to my assistant, Yi Xing. Ting Yi, this is Yi Xing and Yi Xing, I think I have introduced her to you before.” I said.  Ting Yi said, “Oh hi Yi Xing! Joon Myun, you’re really lucky to have an assistant, how can you afford an assistant?” I replied, “I just do.”

Soon, we reached NUS on time and we went to class. On the way to NUS and even on the way to class, Ting Yi kept talking to me an asking me questions. I replied most of them but they were usually short answers. I wasn’t a very chatty and friendly person, neither was I an open-book. I was more of an introvert but out of politeness, I answered her questions one after another. She seemed extremely curious about me, wanting to know everything about me and my life. I wonder if she was always like this to others. She would stick to me like glue and we would hang out together. Sometimes even in class, she would talk to me but we both got scolded by Mr Chan in the end. She doesn’t seem to have much friends in the teaching course, they all didn’t seem as friendly and as approachable as Ting Yi. I’m still glad that I have made a friend in Singapore but I wish that she could mute her voice for at least 2 hours. I used to like the silence that I had back in Seoul but I never liked the loneliness and cold treatment. In Singapore, with Ting Yi around, those feelings in Seoul never came back to me, instead those feelings were replaced by her happiness, positivity and chattiness. She was somewhat like a bright Sun, to brighten up my day, but her sun rays might be too bright for me. I seemed to get the most extreme side of everything; the absolute isolation in Seoul, compared to the brightness over-kill in Singapore.

It was a bit annoying when she kept talking and I really wanted to zip at times, Ting Yi can really talk until the end of the world. Her questions led to other questions and sometimes, she got off-topic and started to talk about herself and more stories about herself. I would still listen, just like how I was trained to politely listen to my mother’s friends at those business parties. I had to admit that her stories were really interesting and funny, sometimes unbelievable. Seriously, she left home for 2 days?! She was unlike my mother’s friends, they would talk about their fancy life playing golf with others and gossip, mostly telling lies and utter crap but Ting Yi talked about real-life stories and all her dumb and silly mistakes she made in her whole life. It made the conversation more natural and real, something quite new that I rarely got to hear in Seoul. People that had the same status as I did would usually cover up their mistakes and pretend that it never happened, they had to act like everything was perfect. That used to be my life and my principle in life, what I was trained and brainwashed to be. I think maybe Ting Yi has changed that principle of mine slightly, what can I say? Wu Ting Yi influenced my life and principle in just a few days, how she does that is beyond my comprehension.

However, I was still much of an introvert and of course, my childhood has definitely and will influence me more than Ting Yi could ever. When I was a bit fed-up and annoyed with Ting Yi, I’d give her the silent treatment, causing her to feel awkward and stay silent for a while. But she never gave up, she would bounce back like a spring and continued her string of questions.

“Joon Myun, what’s your hobby?”

“Are you adjusting well to Singapore?”

“Do you hate the hot and humid weather in Singapore?”

“Or do you prefer the weather in Seoul?”

“You know I’ve never been to Seoul, there must be a lot of places to go. I’ve heard of Myeong-dong street and other places, but I really want to go to the SM building, just to pass by there and maybe I could even meet EXO there. AH imagine that, I could get their autographs and take a selca with them!!”

Ting Yi was speaking so fast that I could barely keep up with what she was saying. She was over-excited and fangirling for no reason. That's it, I've had enough of her talking.

“Stop.”

“Just please, stop talking for once.”

“It’s really annoying.”

“Why do you have to talk so much?”

“And why should I answer all your questions?”

Suddenly, she got up from her seat and she left. She walked away and there was finally silence. She stopped talking and she left. I can’t believe I actually said that, but… was it worth the silence?

// Was it annoying? Did I talk too much that he couldn’t take it? But still he shouldn’t have been so rude, how about a kind “I’m sorry but can you tone it down a bit?” He didn’t have to be so straightforward about it, just hint it and I’ll take the hint and I’ll give him his silence. I swear, in my life, no one has ever told me to stop talking! They all love it, they love my stories and they gladly reply to my questions. They even talk back to me and we actually have conversation! When I talk to Joon Myun, it is ALWAYS one-sided. Fine, if he likes the silence and if he is going to continue being so silent and not open up to me, I shouldn’t either. Is he the king or the president? NO. I can’t allow him to know so much about me when I don’t even have a clue about him! I will not allow that! I, Wu Ting Yi, will not allow that!

But… I promised myself that I’ll get to know Joon Myun, I really want to learn more about him. I really think that there’s something about him that is a real treasure that is totally worth digging up. Although I am so angry at Joon Myun, I think I’ll give him some alone time, I’m sure he needs his silence so I shouldn’t disturb him.

A journey is never without bumps and obstacles along the way, I wanted a challenge and I will persevere to the end! To get his friendship and know more about him, will NOT be an easy one. 

A.N: Hi everyone, this chapter was a little bit shorter than usual but I only had an hour on this computer, okay? I promise I'll do a better one. I've also realized that when I read my story, there is no sign of the 'POV' when I've clearly typed it out... TnT 

So, what I have done is that I have put this '// ' to show POV change, as you would know, it is always in Joon Myun's POV so I don't need to show that but when there are other POVs in the future chapters, I will think of something...

1. What do you think of Ting Yi in this chapter? Are you on Ting Yi or Joon Myun's side? 

2. Do you think Ting Yi's goal of her journey is as innocent as she says or do you think there is a secret intention? (haha ;) 

And that will be it! Thanks for reading, and until next time, goodbye! ^^