He reached the parking lot as he reversed the car to get into the parking lot. I commented with all seriousness in attempt to make him tense;

“Don’t scratch someone else’s car, I don’t need a police interrogation.”

He rolled his eyes and pushed the start button again so it would come up and stop the engine. We crossed the road and got over to the other side of the road as we stood in front of the bustling cozy restaurant. We waited for the waitress to serve us as she led us into the restaurant towards a two-seater. And it came on, the tune of the song was lightly hovering through the restaurant as it pricked our ears. Jiwon and I looked at each other before bursting into soft laughter. The exact same tune we were humming in the car earlier was playing in the same restaurant just like when we first heard it.

At the age of 13 and 14 we weren’t the closest little munchkins. Until one day, when we were both hungry and stopped by this restaurant. We entered and ordered our food and the melody came up filling the quiet restaurant. Jiwon who was fiddling with his phone, looked up as his eyes met mine who had done the same from the menu. Back then, our silence was awkward yet our hunger synchronized us for a meal together after meeting each other at the park nearby. The loneliness brought us together as the others were busy doing their own things leaving both of us.

Jiwon and I found the same interest in such a normal tune that we could feel the warmth in our eyes be detected by each other. The lyrics were beautiful and so was the melody which filled the restaurant. He had always had a love for music whereas I had always loved listening to songs that were meaningful. It just hits the heart. However, it was different for Kim Jiwon, he fell out of love, that music made him feel like it was the worst day which it already was as he was mourning in tears that day when she broke up with him and I met him. Sadly, such a simple music actually brought us together. His tears were falling as the song played in the background and I comforted him. Just like that, it soon led to our conversation about what we love and it soon I begin crying in his arms whenever I was feeling down and I managed to catch him when he was at his lowest.

As though we were both relieving the same memory, we jerk up to meet each other’s eyes. A small smile formed on both our lips as openly sang along with the lyrics egging me to join him which I gladly did, we were both ignorant of the stares that the table next to us were giving. Just as the song ended, a third voice cut through our laughter.

“Don’t scare my customers away!”

Both of us looked up to see Halmoni. Jiwon gave a small chuckle.

“I am such an amazing singer, they wouldn’t dare to run away.”

I stood up to give the old woman a hug as she held me tight in her motherly embrace. She ruffled Jiwon’s hair as he complained silently, but deep down we both knew that he didn’t mind what she just did. The older woman cheekily asked us as though she didn’t want us to be there yet we both knew she missed us.

“Why are both of you here?”

“To eat of course, old woman.”

Jiwon cheekily stuck a tongue out as Halmoni took the menu and smacked him with it as he whined loudly before she laughed a carefree laughter.

“I thought I saw both of you coming in so I decided to see if I was correct.”

“Your eyesight still as sharp as ever and here I am thinking that as a person gets older, your body starts to fail you.”

“No, you kids were just too noisy that even my poor old ear could pick up it was both of you.”

“So, both of your usual?”

Jiwon and I nodded as she waddled away to the kitchen after giving us a warm smile.

“That old woman still hasn’t changed.”

“Aye, stop calling her old woman.”

Jiwon scrunched his face up as he heard my comment.

Halmoni had been there, be it 6 years ago or 6 years later. She made sure that we were well fed before we left her Ramen shop. At the age of 13 and 14, we were careless kids. Both of us forgot out cash and she was the only worker there at that time as the restaurant was just a neighborhood shop then. She let us off after forcing us to clean up the dishes which made us closer as we played and joked around as she just shoo