It was nearly 2 AM as Mino walked out from the public library after trapped there for almost 6 hours. The final exam had already begun. No one wanted to fail, including Mino. He didn't want to retake the subject as it may be turned to be a pain in the . Once was more than enough.

Summer was already around the corner as the weather started to be a bit warmer than the last couple months. Mino did not dislike summer, but still, he preferred spring more than summer. The hot weather that crashed over him made him decided to get some cold beers in the nearest convenience store.

Beer and ramyun, no ones could beat how glorious it would taste. It was a perfect match.

As he finished with the payment, he went to the nearest empty seat beside the huge see-through window. The window was really big and you will be able to see straight to the street in front of the store. It was Mino's favorite spot, as he took a moment to enjoy his meal alone, his eyes would be mindlessly wandered to see people, to see cars, to see the tall building, to see his surrounding, in which he found it captivating.

There would be something that caught his attention whenever he spent his time here. Until someone distracted him with her strange question.

"Did you ever feel at peace whenever you are alone?"

For a moment Mino stared at her blankly. He was obviously quite surprised by her sudden appearance and random question.

"Well, I do love being alone but only when it comes when I need a time to be alone."

"I don't feel that way." That girl stared at Mino for a moment, her eyes looked rather small but it was really captivating to be looked in a long time. "I do enjoy being alone. Having a company is really not my cup of tea."

Mino remained silence, he was thinking and guessing what was something that girl wanted to convey but she wasn't easy to read, she wasn't an open book, never was and never been. She was like a book with an absolute glue sticked over the cover, her book was never left opened.

"Don't you feel lonely?"

"No, I don't." She smirked, her finger started to play around, she made a circle motion over the tip of the can beer.

"If I were you, I would be lonely." Mino smiled sweetly as he opened the beer and pushed it toward her. "People will always need a company, either just to talk, like you and me right now, or as a place to rely on."

She didn't touch Mino's beer at all, instead she shifted her gaze to look at him.

"Being lonely is only a way to protect us from something we don't want to express." Mino continued as she finally took the beer Mino had offered.

Seulgi remained silence as she let those word consumed her thought just like how she let the beer ran through the whole system of her body.

For the first time, she was feeling defeated.

It felt like someone had forced to crack open her shield.

Seulgi was always be vulnerable, she was not the type of person that was full of hope, she was the pessimistic, not because she couldn't do but because she did not want to.

She was a bundle of mess — that was what she thought as her mind started to wander, she tended to think about something that happened five years ago, or something that happened an hour ago, or something that could happen ten years from now on. Her mind was like a hurricane, it was a wreck, full of despair, as she kept it by her and only her.

As much as she wished no one could find out, she did not know that someone was already guessed and it would only trigger him to get to know her better.

She was like an ocean; mysterious, beautiful, wild, free and yet so lonely.

—••—

Two months after the sudden encounter, she never appeared or visited the store again. It was contrasted with Mino, he came to visit the store almost every night, he waited at the same corner the last he visited, he was hoping to see her again. But a hope was merely a hope sometimes.

She never showed up.

New semester had begun. Their summer holiday ended in a blink of eyes. Mino was not the only one who felt desperate about the new semester, everyone was desperate.

Mino sighed a relief as he finished to submit all the classes he wanted to take this semester. This semester will be a remark of his second year in uni as a visual design and art student. He wasn't the best ones at study but he also wasn't that bad, obviously he had a talent — that was what his lecturer say about him and he was glad that someone had acknowledged his talent.

Drawing would always be Mino's greatest pleasure, he was a great painter, his love for drawing was immensely big, drawing for him was something he could express, all the pent up stress he had, he would poured it down through the canvass. Drawing was his sweet escape, so surviving the first year in the uni would be easy, he thought. However, he was wrong.

Nothing came easy when you were in uni.

This would be another one hell of road, Mino's thought, at least this time he was more prepared than before.

"Mrs. Johnson..." Mino wasn't sure whether Seungyoon had asked him or gave statement. He looked at his best pal beside him not amused over the fact that he got straight A's during the first year. Mino might have a talent but Yoon had a brain, he was a genius, and it was make sense if he got the best score amongst everyone. "She was scary, are you sure taking her class?"

Mino bite his lower lip, he looked rather hesitant as he stared back to the computer screen and seemed busy to re-reading the course submissions.

"I'd rather to choose Mrs. Johnson's class than taking Mr. Brant's class while I'm breathing. Thank you very much."

Mr. Brant was known as the savagest, he won't mind to give his student a bad score or even worse, failed them, if they couldn't exceed his expectation over you meanwhile the measurement of his expectation toward you would be remained unknown. To fulfill his expectation was a hard thing to do, because he was the perfectionist, no one could guess what he wanted.

Mrs. Johnson was also savage, but less savage if it compared to Mr. Brant. She was strict, but she was very objective.

"Make sure you won't be late to her class." Yoon suggested.

"She is good, right?"

"Well," Yoon seemed lost in thought before he continued to speak, "You know, she is very strict, if you really want to pass her class all you gotta need to do is being strict to yourself as well, it means, if she asks you to do something then just do it." Seungyoon stated and Mino nodded as a reply.

"And make sure don't be late. She doesn't tolerate lateness."

Mino almost cursed as he realized if that class was starting in 8 AM. "Screw it, it's ing eight in the morning."

"That's why I asked you." Yoon rolled his eyes.

"You should have told me earlier!"

"I told you, stupid!"

That was it, Mino and Yoon would always end up bickered to each other over something unimportant. They might be fought and argued with each other a lot due to the their personality and preferences but no ones knew each other better than themselves.

"Ssh! Quiet!" The Librarian, Mr. Smith, that looked like a warder than librarian said, growled in low voice to keep them shut. For a moment Mino and Yoon were forgot that they were in library not public space.

Before Mr. Smith kicked them out from the library, Seungyoon had dragged Mino out by pulling his shirt. It was when he accidentally bumped onto someone he had been waiting to meet. His eyes were following her move.

Seulgi was on her way to the library when Mino bumped him. She yelped in pain as Mino's shoulder bumped onto her. She cursed under her breathe.

"W-wait!" Mino was trying to get her but Yoon had pulled him first. "Hey!" Seulgi wasn't heard him as it happened way too fast.

"Get off of me!" Mino exclaimed at Yoon which made him startled for a moment.

"What it is now, bro?" Yoon asked but all he got was seeing Mino dashed off of his sight. He whined but followed him behind after that.

It didn't take much time for Mino to find back Seulgi as he had been well aware of her appearance. Although he had seen her twice. He always remembered her foxy eyes and those red lips of hers. Scratch that lips, since it sounded a bit weird. Mino internally conflicted, but surely, her lips looked so pretty.

Seulgi was looking immersed by the book she was reading. 'The history of modern contemporary art.' — Mino let out a chuckle as he noticed what was the book she was reading until he realized on something, did she study in here too? But, Mino couldn't recall. It was obvious since there were so many students in his uni. 

Mino stared at her from a far, hiding his existence behind the wall that separated the hallway. He was hesitating to greet her as it may ended up all awkward. She must have forgotten him. He felt disappointed over the fact that she might forget him but it made sense since they were only meeting once. Even, he didn't ask what her name was.

Stupid, you are really stupid for not asking her name at least.

"Kang Seulgi?"

Mino shifted his gaze at Yoon which had showed up all of sudden. Mino was used to his sudden appearance so, he didn't even surprised by him.

"Who is Kang Seulgi?" Mino asked.

"The girl you are looking at."

"Her name is Kang Seulgi?" Mino looked at Yoon with a face full of curiosity. He had been curious about this girl and yet Kang Seunyoon knew it all. "How do you know her?"

"Basically because she lived next door."

"What the ?" Mino couldn't believe that Seungyoon was living nearby from her. He'd never seen her whenever he came to Yoon's place.

"Yes, her unit was across mine. But she just moved out, like, a month ago I think. I didn't know she would come to this uni as well." Yoon said, Mino was attentively listening at Yoon for the first time of their seventh year of friendship. Mostly he would let Yoon talked but listened to him, not so much. "But, how did you know her?"

"I don't know her."

"But, you seem curious." Yoon finally sensed something weird at his best friend.

"No, I don't." Mino titled his head as he head off to the canteen. He wasn't sure to tell about Yoon about her yet. But he seemed like couldn't even hide his curiousity as he kept glancing to where Seulgi at.

Yoon sensed something was not right might be happened with Mino. It has been a long time not to see Mino paid any attention to certain girl after he had broken up with his ex girlfriend two years ago.

For sure Mino was quite popular. Getting himself a girl was not a big deal, even when he did nothing every girls would be willingly lined up for him. However Mino was not the type of guy who loved to play a fire.

He was a great lover.

He fell hard and became easily attached with someone he loved.

But Seulgi was the extra opposite.

She didn't fall easily. She was someone that believed with no one but herself. For Seulgi, love was a fear that she needed to bury.

—••—

Fortunately, today's classes had dismissed. It was really all clear how most of students had been waiting to get over of all the courses today. Mino as well, felt relieved as soon as he finished his class today.

He always hated sculpting, it was hard and Mino was really bad at it. He preferred to stay in a studio with his pencil and canvass than spending his time to make a sculpted objects which more likely seemed like unknown object to his eyes.

His phone beeped, the text was coming from Hoon. He told him to go to their usual coffee shop, a coffee shop that Hoon owned.

Hoon was Mino's long time friend, he was also his senior in uni but he just graduated last year. After graduated, he opened a coffee shop which turned out to be better than expected. His coffee shop was always packed especially during lunch break and after office hour.

Mino head off to the mentioned place as he finished packing his stuff.

It didn't take much time for him to get there as it was located near his uni. As he stepped in, a strong scents of coffee beans greeted him, he always liked the scents of coffee, so it didn't really bother him.

Please Subscribe to read the full chapter