“Twenty-seven.”

Taeyeon’s eyes are on the cue ball. White as a snowball, innocent as a baby. It obeys the law of physics and by that rule, she is able to control its destiny as well as the red ball it is about to hit. The middle pot is to the left of the red. She wants the cue ball to come to rest a little lower on the right to line up the shot for the black. Then it’s supposed to travel up from the black towards the cushion and stop somewhere above the other two loose reds. That’s the plan.

Her arm swings. Her cue stick rubs on her chin as it is drawn to and fro. Then, in a moment of confident precision, Taeyeon gives it the go.

Clack.

The cue ball hits the red, sending it rolling towards the middle pot. The red drops into the pot and the cue ball winds backwards to rest just where she wants it.

“Twenty-eight.”

She chalks the tip of her cue stick as she walks to take position behind the cue ball. Bending at the waist, she rests the base of her left palm and fingertips on the felt surface. It feels good. Perfect. She knows exactly where to hit the cue ball so it will travel to the right and bounce off the cushion.

Clack. Thud.

The black drops into the corner pot.

“Thirty-five.”

More chalk for the tip of her cue stick. She bends again. Lines up her shot for the red.

Clack.

“Thirty-six.”

With her mind already mapping out the next three shots, she chalks, walks and bends for the black.

Clack.

“Forty-three.”

She’s well on her way to taking this game on one break. Focus is the key. Eyes on the balls. Mind on the web of shots.

Clack.

“Forty-four.”

Clack.

“Fifty-one.”

A sudden movement in the audience catches her eye as she bends for the next shot. She is trained to ignore distractions but for some reason, the person’s face registers in her mind. Her ex.

Why is he here?

Blinking away from the figure, she refocuses on the cue ball. His image is still in her mind and it irritates her. She stands and backs away from the table, chalking the tip as she buys time to pull herself together.

Focus. I have the next three shots lined up. I can do this.

With a long exhale, she tucks the chalk into its little slot and bends again. This time, her mind is on the cue ball and the route it is about to take. She lets the adrenaline resume its flow in her veins and regulates her breathing. The cue stick is an extension of her arm. It is part of her. The feeling is back. She swings it and releases.

Clack.

“Fifty-two.”

Taeyeon exhales and smiles. Now for the next ball.

X

An hour later, Taeyeon is all smiles and shaking hands with the opponent she has just beaten.

“That was a good game, Taeyeon.”

“Thanks, Hyosseul. You played well too.”

The raven-haired woman smiles. “You didn’t let me play much at all.”

“That’s what I’m supposed to do.”

Hyosseul smiles and shakes her head. “Can’t say you’re wrong.

Taeyeon returns to her seat and retrieves her belongings. As she walks out of the arena, a waving arm catches her eye.  She regrets noticing the arm as soon as she sees the face it belongs to. He’s still as easy on her eyes as before but no longer easy on her heart. What is he doing here?

Her question is answered an hour later when she walks out to her car after doing the obligatory victor’s interview and changing out of her snooker competition suit.

“Hey, you.”

Taeyeon does not return his confident smile. “Hi.”

“So the cold treatment is what I’m gonna get from now on, huh.”

“I’m not sure what else you were expecting after doing what you did.”

“I’m here to apologize.”

Taeyeon looks him up and down before nodding. “Okay, apology received.”

His smile drops and he grabs her arm as she opens the door of her car. “Look, I came to talk to you.”

“You should have asked before coming because I don’t want to talk to you.”

“Don’t be like this. I know I screwed up. Give me a chance to mend things.”

“I think things are fine as they are now.”

His eyes appear right before hers, earnest and pleading. “One drink. One talk. That’s all I ask. Let me say my piece. You’ve always been a good listener.”

“Fine. I was planning to get a drink at Pot Shot anyway. You can look for me there.”

“Okay, but where is that?”

Taeyeon gets into her car without answering and drives off. She doesn’t care if he makes it there or not.

X

There are no familiar faces in Pot Shot other than the bartender so she sits at the bar. She is well into her customized Screwdriver cocktail (mixed with way more orange juice than usual) when he finally appears beside her.

“I can’t believe you left me in the parking lot just like that.”

“Excuse me, are you drinking anything?”

She smiles behind her glass as the bartender stares her ex down until he orders a beer. The bartender nods and reaches for the beer bottle, but not before giving her a wink. Let me know if he’s bothering you, is what it means and she appreciates it.

“Give me a beer.”

“Draft or bottled?”

Her ex looks at the bartender, annoyed. “Draft.”

The bartender meets Taeyeon’s eyes again before nodding and moving away.

“You left me hanging, Taeyeon. What the ?”

“I gave you the name of this place. You found your way here, didn’t you?”

“I get it. You’re pissed. You have every right to be. But I asked for a chance.”

“Aren’t you here now? Aren’t I listening?”

“You’re already biased against me.”

“If you had seen me doing what you did, you wouldn’t even be listening to me right now.”

“You don’t know that. I might turn out to be a forgiving soul.”

A mug of beer appears between them. “Your beer.”

“Thanks.” Her ex takes downs a mouthful of beer then stares at her.

“What do you want from me, Yong?”

“People make mistakes, Taeyeon.”

“You’re saying you made a mistake.”

“Yes. I’m admitting that. I’m admitting that I was stupid. The girl kept coming on to me. I told her I have a girlfriend but she didn’t care. She wanted me no matter what. It was flattering at that time.”

“So you cheated on me because you were flattered.”

“It sounds like it was easy but it wasn’t. I regretted it after the first time. But she was persistent. You have no idea how hard it was to keep her away.”

“Sounds like you had a hard time.”

“I did. I really did. I know it sounds ridiculous but it was hard.”

“It was so hard that you didn’t come for me until now.” Taeyeon turns and stares at him in the eyes. “Did she cheat on you with another guy?”

The flicker of hesitation in his eyes tells her all she needs to know.

“It’s not like that.”

“Oh, really? What’s it like then?”

“We broke up because I can’t forget you. You’re ten times better than her. It might sound ridiculous to you but that’s the truth.”

“It doesn’t matter to me anymore.”

He bends and whispers in her ear. “Compared to you, she’s like a dead fish in bed. You’re ten times ier.”

Taeyeon shakes her head. “Do you really think praising me and saying I’m better than her will get me back? I know what she looks like. Do you really think I don’t know why you ditched me for her? But I’m over it now. I’m done. And I don’t want you back.”

“You got another boyfriend already?”

“No. But my next lover will love me ten times more than you ever did.”

“I’m a good catch and you know that, Taeyeon.”

Taeyeon looks him up and down again. “You’re right. To most people, you’re good looking. But my eyes don’t think so anymore, Yong. I’ll take my chances on the next one.”

“Are you talking about me?”

Taeyeon turns and smiles. The voice belongs to none other than red-lips-brown-eyes decked out in a surprisingly rugged red-white plaid shirt and jeans ensemble.

“Hi, I’m Tiffany,” red-lips-brown-eyes says to Yong who looks like he lost his footing.

“Hi, I’m Yong.”

“Sorry to interrupt but I’m her date for tonight and we’re on a tight schedule cos I’m running late.” Tiffany points at Yong and meets Taeyeon’s eyes. “Is this guy a friend or someone you just met? Can we take off real quick?”

“We can take off real quick.”

“Great. Finish that pretend-Screwdriver of yours and let’s get out of here.”

Taeyeon’s right hand is taken by Tiffany so she empties the rest of the orange juice with her left, waves goodbye to the bartender who winks at her again, and gets off her bar stool. “Bye, Yong. And forget about me. I’m not going back to you. Ever.”

She follows the strong pull of Tiffany all the way to the parking lot, their hands never separating even after they get to Tiffany’s car.

“You’re not driving since you drank. Get in.”

“But it’s not really a Screwdriver. You said it yourself.”

“I’m the boss. Shut up and get in.”

X