Author's note:

So. Guess who decided to update instead of studying for an upcoming exam on a major course? :3 

Anyways, thank you for the subscriptions! You guys make me happy~ Feel free to leave a comment after this chapter too! I hope you're enjoying so far.

II. Taking Leave

“You do know both of us would get in trouble if you stay here any longer.”

Her childhood friend, Kim Minseok, said with a defeated sigh as he placed down the warm cup of coffee that Minnah had been craving to taste since morning. His voice sounded annoyed and she saw the frown between his brows, but she sure felt that she was more than welcomed in his coffee shop even if she did arrive during closing hours. She always went to his coffee shop whenever she wanted relaxation, and of course, the coffee he makes was the best thing she had ever tasted.

“What? You want me to leave after serving me this espresso? I don’t think so.” Minnah slyly replied as she took a sip of the heavenly thing. Its scent tickled her nose and brought a soothing feeling to her mind. The three workers who stayed on duty to help Minseok close down the shop occasionally gave both of them curious stares, but she paid no heed to them. This public place was one of the most private places she could spend her time with, so she didn’t bother at all.

“Minnah,” he settled on the stool next to her, “You came here all on your own and as long as I can remember, you should be attending that after party. I don’t want to deal with your overacting manager if she finds out you drove all by yourself here.”

“Don’t worry. She won’t know.” Minnah waved it off.

A huge sigh escaped the barista’s lips, “Geez, what the hell am I supposed to do with you?”

“Come on, Minseok. I came here for the coffee. I wanted a break.” Minnah replied, “Besides, Mr. Kim Suk Jin himself gave me the permission not to attend the party, I see no problems with that.”

“All right.” His shoulders dropped down, “As long as I won’t get an earful from that manager of yours, got that?”

Minnah nodded and smirked, “Leave it to me.”

Her friend then stood up to carry on with his final tasks. As they busied themselves closing down the store, Minnah remained seated on her stool drinking the coffee Minseok served and quietly stared off into the paintings decorated on the store’s walls. It was quiet and peaceful, just like what she preferred. Soft jazz background music from the music player helped her relax even more and she mentally thanked her friend for not turning it off. She did often come here whenever she was too stressed at work, and Minseok was probably the number one person on the list who knew how to de-stress her. From sweet cookies to jazz music, he knew every way.

Good twenty minutes passed and her mind was finally temporarily free of all the worries. The other coffee shop workers had already left since they were done closing down for the day, leaving her and Minseok to themselves.

The guy took off his black apron and hung it on one of the clothing stands then he occupied the seat next to her. “So, what is it this time?” he asked.

At the same time, her phone which was placed to her left side atop the table, rang again for probably the sixteenth time. It was her father calling now. Her manager had probably given up trying to contact her as she finally realized that there was zero percent chance that Minnah would pick it up, so Ara possibly reported her disappearance to her father.

Minnah sighed. Even if it was her father calling, she did the same and ignored the call all the way. Normally, she would just turn off her phone so that no one could definitely reach her and she wouldn’t be bothered ignoring the call, but she wouldn’t want a repeat scenario when she had done that and her mother went all frantic, calling all reporters about her disappearance. It was so much pain to deal with. Even Minseok was dragged into that because she was at his coffee show when the press discovered her whereabouts. So, switching off her phone was out of the ignoring tactics.

She placed down the finished cup of coffee and propped one elbow onto the counter as she settled her chin atop her opened palm. “Should I just quit?”

She earned a chuckle from Minseok. “Well, I think you should rephrase your question to “Can I?””

The corner of her lips went upwards, “Touche.”

“Hey, I just don’t think that you can’t quit because of your manager and your parents… I think it’s because your real passion for modeling. We both know about that since we were kids, you’ve done so much to get where you are, after all.” He added, “If you can’t quit, I’d like to believe that it’s not because of your manager or whatever… but because you do love modeling.”

Minnah reached for his cheek and gave it a playful pinch, “I miss when you had chubby cheeks, Minseok…” she chuckled, “And you always know what to say. I wonder why our relationship never worked out before?” They did try dating before, but they both knew it just wouldn’t work between the two of them. She thought that she felt something more special towards him, and he to her, but they were highly mistaken.

Minseok gently swatted her hand away, taking notice how her hand had gotten so thin. But he chose to keep quiet about it since he knew her issues about her continuous weight loss, “Well, I think it’s because the only reason why we stay with each other is to each other’s wounds?” he jested, earning another unique laugh from the girl. “I think the best relationship we can have is this platonic relationship, no more and no less.”

Minnah sighed, “Any girl would be lucky to have you, Minseok.”

“It’s the thousandth time you said that.” He rolled his eyes, and then he went back to the main track of their conversation. He knew well whenever Minnah tried to avoid the real topic. “What are your plans, anyway? It’s your chance, right? Your contract’s expiring soon.”

“I’m thinking about leaving.”

“Hmm…” Minseok nodded thoughtfully, “Have you told them anything about it?”

She replied the negative.

“Got any thoughts where you’re gonna transfer?”

She solemnly shook her head again. “I haven’t made up my mind yet but… it’s clear to me that I just want to cut ties with that agency.”

“Hey... I support whatever decision you’re going to make,” he placed a supportive hand on her small, slender back, “But, it’s going to be tough, Minnah.”

A soft chuckle escaped from her lips as her empty eyes stared back at his concerned ones, “What’s new? My life has always been tough anyways…”

Silence once again took over. Minseok knew his boundaries and he wouldn’t want to take a step further that would obviously heighten her depression and anxiousness. His friend had always been a calm and composed person, but he was gifted with the ability to somehow see through her and notice the feelings she expertly concealed from others. Right now, he knew her mind was bombarded with mixed thoughts and emotions.

After all, his friend has always been a good daughter…

…and cutting ties with her current agency would also mean breaking her relationship with her parents.

.

.

.

It was 12 midnight when she safely returned to her condominium. Minseok listened to her throughout the night and accompanied her on the way home to make sure she wouldn’t suddenly disappear, because she did mention she wanted to run away if she could find the chance. She was half-joking but the idea seemed brilliant. To run away to a place where no one knew her, start over again, rediscover he true self… definitely a nice thought.

She slipped into her nightgown after taking a quick shower. Exhaustively, she slumped down to her king-sized bed and the after effect o