It has been gloomy all week. Minju has been stressed about all the stuff that she has to do, and dues to meet. She was sitting on the carpeted floor of her and her friend— Nako's apartment living room, in front of their coffee table— her laptop open, her books and papers scattered everywhere.

 

She has just finished a task, but it feels like no matter how much effort she puts into finishing all her tasks, it just won't end. One task after another, it's overwhelming.

 

Minju closed her eyes momentarily, leaning her body on the couch behind her. She wishes for time to stop even for a little while. And right when her body was starting to relax her phone rings. It was her mom calling.

 

Though she wants to ignore the call, she knows that she needs to answer it this time. Her mom has been calling her since earlier that morning, but she kept leaving it to ring until it stopped.

 

Minju took a deep breath before answering the call. "Finally! I've been calling since forever, little miss. Why aren't you picking up?"

 

"I'm busy." She simply said. "Why are you calling, mom?"

 

"Are you coming home for your grandmother's birthday?"

 

"I don't know, mom. There's a lot that I need to finish here."

 

"But it's your grandma's birthday and we haven't seen you for months! Can't that wait? We're your family, can you atleast give us some importance too?"

 

Minju finds it ridiculous that her mother was saying such things. Hypocrite. Minju laughs humorlessly. "Family, huh?"

 

"You're saying that I should give importance to all of you, but you, my own mother, couldn't even ask me if I'm okay." She took a deep breath, she felt all of her worries weigh her down even more. "I'm sorry but I don't even wanna see your face, mother. I'm tired of all your drama. Can you just please let me be?"

 

"You ungrateful brat! I raised you and gave you everything you needed to be where you are right now. And this? This is how you pay me? You have the audacity to talk to me like that! You're so—"

 

"Isn't that what you're supposed to do? You are the one who chose to birth me into this world." Minju cuts her off. "Did I choose to be here? No. Am I required to repay you for all of the things you've done for me and to be your servant for the rest of my life? Is that the reason why I was born?" Minju started to wipe the tears falling off her face.

 

"I get that you wanted me to be there, to— I don't know, maybe show me off to your friends, or pinpoint every mistake that I've made when I was younger? I get it, you enjoy that stuff, but can't you just ask me nicely? I'm having a hard time too, mom. I already told you that." Her breath is shaky in between sobs. "I would really appreciate it if you would care about me too."

 

She hangs up. Her mind went blank after that, overwhelmed with so many feelings that she couldn't process any of it. She wishes for it to stop.

 

***

 

"Unnie, have you seen Minju? Did she contact you?" Yuri asked Hyewon over the phone, worry can be heard through her voice.

 

"No, I haven't seen nor talked to her. Is there something wrong?"

 

"Nako said she heard someone crying while she was taking a nap. When she woke up, she saw Minju's things scattered in the living room, but she wasn't there. So she knocked on Minju's room and checked if she's there, but she wasn't. We've been calling her and she's not answering." Yuri's voice came out shaky, like she's trying to hold her tears.

 

"She's been having a hard time with work lately, and she's insisting that she's fine, but she's clearly not. What should I do, unnie?"

 

"I'll try calling her too and I'll call you as soon as I hear something from her, okay? Please calm down, hun. We'll look for her."

 

"Okay, unnie."

 

The call ended. Hyewon dialed Minju's number, pacing back and forth in her living room. Come on, Minju, pick up. It rang, but remained unanswered. She tries again, still no answer.

 

Hyewon stepped out of her apartment and started looking around the area for the younger girl. It was raining and there were just a few people passing by. Where in the world are you, Kim Minju?

 

Just a few minutes of walking she saw the younger girl, walking and completely drenched in the rain. Hyewon ran towards her, grabbed her wrist, pulled her below the umbrella—making them stand only a few inches from each other.

 

"Minju." Hyewon said softly. Minju looked directly into her eyes, looking lost. Without a word, the younger girl leaned her head on Hyewon's shoulder.

 

Hyewon could feel her shirt getting damp, not with the rain, but something warm— tears, Minju is crying. Hyewon didn't hesitate to caress the latter's hair.

 

"Minju, you're drenched, you might get sick if you don't get changed." Hyewon cupped her cheeks, looking softly into her eyes. "Do you want to come with me or do you want me to walk you to your apartment?"

 

"I don't want to go back." Minju said with a faint voice.

 

"Okay. Let's go to my place then." The younger girl gave her a small nod.

 

Hyewon noticed Minju's shivering so she took off her jacket and put it around the latter. They walked to Hyewon's apartment, an arm around Minju to keep her warm, while her other hand held the umbrella above their head.

 

*****

 

"Here, take a shower." Hyewon gave Minju a towel, oversized dark green hoodie, and black sweatpants. "I'll be making hot chocolate. Is that good or do you prefer coffee instead?"

 

"Choco's great." Minju mustered to give a small smile. The two of them aren't that close with each other, they've only had small interactions and short conversations. Usually, Hyewon stuck with Yena and Yujin, while Minju with Yuri, Hitomi, and Nako— their small circles inside their circle.

 

Which is why Minju was surprised when Hyewon suddenly pulled her, holding an umbrella over their head, comforting her, even offering to walk her home, and welcoming her to her apartment. She was just wandering mindlessly. She has a lot on her mind that she didn't even notice where she was, until that happened.

 

Minju walked out of the bathroom wearing the clothes that she borrowed from Hyewon. She found the latter talking to someone on the phone.

 

"Don't worry. I'll take care of her, she'll be fine… Yes, I'll call you later… Bye Bye."

 

"Uhm…" Minju trailed off, getting Hyewon's attention. The latter turned to look at her and walked towards her. "Let's put your clothes inside the washer