C h a p t e r  F i v e

Having Eunji in her house was definitely challenging because she was a pain in the . She complained for every little things; why wasn’t pancake with maple syrup being made into the breakfast menu instead of baked bread or what will happen to her if she inhaled all of the dusts lying around the house. Still, Naeun tried her hardest to be the best host for her special guest. It was later that month, two weeks after Eunji had moved in, Naeun was in a tight condition. There was a new costume to buy for her dancing lessons and it cost a fortune. She had to use half of her savings and that was after a week of eating only bread for breakfast, lunch and dinner (which Eunji never failed to point out of course).

“I’m sorry but you need to get a job.” Naeun said as Eunji was out of the bathroom, drying her hair with the blue towel.

“What are you talking about?” Eunji asked nonchalantly before plopping on the couch, her legs straightened, “I never work before.”

“Well, you have to start now.” Naeun took a seat, pushing her legs down, “I can’t afford to feed you anymore, Eunji. If you want to stay here, you should at least pay half of the rent or help me with groceries.”

Eunji stared unbelievably at her, slightly gaping. She never had to lift a finger in her life before. Whatever Eunji wanted, Eunji will get it. But, Naeun had a point. She was tired of eating bread every day. Honestly, she would never thought that she would live in this kind of place with this kind of girl. She tried calling her parents since she was kicked out by her father but nobody picked up. At that thought, she felt a lump in and started to cry.

“Eunji! What’s wrong?” Naeun widened her eyes and scooted closer, her arm on her trembling shoulder.

“I just can’t believe that my parents would do this to me.” Eunji answered, burying her wet face in her palms. Naeun her back gently, trying to soothe her but she was loss at words. She pitied Eunji of course but her parents were no longer with her so she didn’t know how Eunji was feeling right now.

“I’m sorry, Eunji. That must have been awful.” Naeun said softly, “But you are an adult now. You need to start be responsible for your own life.”

Eunji sniffed, “But, how? I don’t know anything.”

“There’s always a first for everything. You just need to have the courage.” Naeun handed her a box of tissue, “How about this? I’ll talk to my manager into hiring you at the café. Okay?”

Eunji nodded as she wiped her tears and blew her nose. She looked at her right and Naeun was beaming encouragingly. Taking a deep breath, she said, “You’re a nice person, Naeun. And I’m sorry I was such a brat on our first meeting. I’m sorry I said those things and I’m sorry I troubled you enough. And thank you for everything.”

Dumbfounded by her sudden apology, Naeun blinked before shaking her head. She smiled and pulled Eunji into a hug, murmuring, “I’m glad I ran into you.”

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The scorching sun sweated her as Naeun leaned on the cold wall, heaving a sigh. She took a bottle of water and drank the content, feeling an instant relief as the water reached . Naeun was done with her afternoon shift and was taking a break at her safe place; the back alley before her dance lesson. She rummaged through her backpack for her pink notebook and ball pen. Ripping an empty page from the book, Naeun then began to write.

Hey Mr. Stranger,

How are you doing? I’m sorry I haven’t been writing for awhile. Things have been hard; at home, my workplace and the dance practice. Good news is I found a roommate. She was actually a stranger that I’d met before. She was rude and I really hated her but now that I got to know her, I discovered new sides of her. She is a big fan of romantic movies, for instance, and she has a beautiful voice. I heard her sing once in the shower.

I knew Blossom (she’s my best friend and yes that’s not her real name) didn’t like her at first but I’m sure they’ll get along. Scooter has been really nice to me and I’m so glad I met him.

By the way, I told you a lot of my stories, even the ones I’m not proud of, but I don’t actually know anything about you. I’m sure you know pretty much everything about me from all of my letters and I’m more than flatter to know your stories.

So, Mr. Stranger, what is your story?

Carefully, she folded the letter and kept it in her notebook. Naeun smiled, anticipation written all over her face as she thought of the reply she would get. She never told anyone about this mysterious person, not even Bomi. And she tells Bomi everything. She knew Bomi would find the whole thing creepy but Naeun liked it. It was her own little secret; the mystery writer and his/her letters.

Now, that is a whole new issue. She was pretty sure the writer was a guy because he signed the letter as Mr. but she didn’t want to take any chances. Just let it remained an anonymity.

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The boys had just finished their daily dance routines at The Street and headed to Pink Panda café for a nice breather with a flock of girls trailing behind them. As they stepped in, all eyes were on them; Naeun and Eunji included, due to all of the attention they were getting from their fan club. Eunji who had been working there for a week now was nudged. Heechul cocked his head, and Eunji grabbed the menus and went to their table.

“Here’s your menu.” She greeted with a smile, “Call me when you’re ready to order.”

As she left, Sungyeol craned his neck, obviously looking for Naeun. He saw her serving an old man a few tables away and his lips curled up.

“Oh, lover boy.” Woohyun cooed as he trailed his friend’s gaze, “Too bad she isn’t serving us.”

“Why?” Sungyeol flustered, “What are you gonna do?”

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