"She called in sick today," said Hyewon.
 
Sakura slumped her shoulders, couldn't take her eyes away from Minju's table. "Do you think she's okay now?"
 
"I don't know. She said she's not in the mood to go to work today."
 
"Have you told her about what we've talked about last night?"
 
"Nope. It's your job now to tell her that. Not me, honey." Hyewon put emphasis on the last word.
 
Sakura scratched her nape, feeling shy and guilty.
 
"Do it today or else I'll kill you for making my friend cry, okay?" said Hyewon.
 
"I will. I will. I don't have plans of prolonging this either," said Sakura, sighing. "After last night all I wanted to do is just to straighten up things with her."
 
"But I think you've got to be a little tough. Expect she would resent you at first, or maybe push you away. It's a normal defense mechanism of a person who's hurt."
 
Sakura puffed her cheeks. "You're right. I'll go to her house after work."
 
"Sakura..." Hyewon called when she's about to leave. "This is the first time I'd seen Minju got swept off her feet. So please, please take care of her. I'm entrusting her to you because I know she'll be in safe hands."
 
Sakura smiled. "Thanks. I promise I will take care of her."
 
"You better be, or else..." Hyewon didn't finish her sentence, but she made a throat cut signal with her hand.
 
Sakura chuckled. "I'll remember that."
 
---
 
Sakura pulled her car over onto the side of the road. She rolled down her window about halfway to better see if someone's inside Minju's house.
 
Sakura grabbed her phone and dialed Minju's number. It took a few more rings before someone answered.
 
"Hello?"
 
Sakura felt happy hearing Minju's voice. But the small sniffs on the other end of the line pinche her.
 
"Minju?"
 
"Yeah. What?"
 
"Are you at home? You didn't come to work today." Sakura glanced at the house again.
 
"I was not feeling well."
 
"Oh. So, you're just home?"
 
"Yeah. Why?"
 
Sakura felt a little nervous knowing that Minju is just a few meters away from her. "Is your mom in there too?"
 
"Nope. Why do you keep on asking me things?"
 
"I... I'm right here in front of your house."
 
"What?"
 
There was a movement on the other end of the line. The sound of Minju's footsteps followed. Sakura saw Minju peeking through the window. Sakura fully rolled down her window and waved a hand.
 
"What are you doing here?" asked Minju.
 
"Uh, visiting you?"
 
"I don't need visitors now, Sakura."
 
Seeing Minju through the window made Sakura realize how much she missed this beautiful goddess. "I came here to talk to you."
 
"Is there anything else to talk about?"
 
"There is. There's a lot. Especially after what happened last night."
 
Minju sighed. "Go home, Sakura. I'm not in the mood to talk to you yet."
 
Sakura panicked when Minju walked away from the window. "But I need to explain to you what happened. I'll be waiting for you down here, okay?"
 
"I said I'm not in the mood to talk about it. I don't even want to see your face now."
 
Sakura massaged her aching head. "I need to talk to you, just one last time. If you don't want to talk to me ever again I promise I won't bug you after this."
 
There was no response.
 
"Just this once, Minju."
 
Another dead air.
 
Sakura's now starting to lose hope. "Please, honey..."
 
There was another long silence on the line before Minju finally sighed.
 
"Give me fifteen minutes." Minju hung up after that.
 
Sakura slumped back on her chair, relieved.
 
Waiting inside her car made her feel uneasy. This is the first time they will talk alone after that fateful Friday dialogue where she almost thought everything's over. Truth is, she really wants to make up with Minju but she hasn't prepared anything to say yet.
 
And Minju's in her monster mood which might make things more challenging.
 
After fifteen minutes she received a message from Minju: "Let's talk inside."
 
Right after she read the message, she heard a clanging gate being opened. Minju went back inside the house after opening the gate.
 
With hesitation, Sakura went out of her car and walked towards the house. She closed the gate behind her and inhaled before walking through the front door.
 
Sakura's eyes surveyed the area before taking another step to completely let herself in. The curtains were all drawn, making it a little darker inside. Minju was nowhere to be seen.
 
Sakura took a few more steps until she reached the living room where she saw the picture frames on the shelves. It was Minju's pictures from her childhood to her college years. There's another picture of a young Minju with a man--whom Sakura assumed to be her dad.
 
Sakura smiled. So cute.
 
"Make yourself comfortable."
 
Sakura turned around. "Oh. Hey."
 
Minju's wearing a purple t-shirt and denim shorts, holding out a glass of orange juice for Sakura to take.
 
Sakura can't help but marvel at the beauty in front of her; so simple yet so sophisticated.
 
But Sakura noticed something when she looked at Minju's face. Her eyes were swollen