200301

Kim Sejeong blindly stares at the screen of her old laptop, unsuccessfully trying to concentrate on her essay.

Come on, it’s just two thousand words on pre-modern Korean painting. Come on, Sejeong, come on. The sooner you finish, the sooner you’ll be able to leave this crowded, noisy coffee shop.  

The autumn semester has yet to start but one of the professors was kind enough to disclose his curriculum for the upcoming module and Sejeong really needs to take advantage of the opportunity to finish some of her work beforehand. In September she’ll have to resume her shop clerk job full time and complete her other university related workshops. The least she could do for herself is to just get on with the readings and the yet to be formally assigned course work. Not everyone is as nice as to help her like this.

Her mother is at home which is why Sejeong is carrying all her valuables with her – anything that her mother could go and pawn off. Her laptop, her phone. The two delicate necklaces her aunt once gave her. All her credit cards and the check book. All the other things in their house should be too old to be worth much or too heavy to carry.

Her mother has been on her best behaviour and attended all her AA meetings but Sejeong cannot trust her again; never fully, at least. This happened before – this is all to cause Sejeong to let her guard down before the cycle starts again. While her mother’s previous abusive drinking buddy is now locked up, there are too many similar people roaming around just waiting to take advantage of her mother’s weak will and her own lack of physical strength.

Sejeong shakes her head, trying to get rid of bad thoughts. She came here to concentrate because god knows she is not able to when her mother is with her in such a closed space. Their flat is a small two room near Motgeol station but Sejeong needed to get away so she came to Millak instead. The coffee shop with the view on the nearby park was discovered by accident but quickly became her favourite spot. Quiet, hidden, seemingly abandoned. Perfect to avoid attention.

Well, that’s usually the case. Saturday lunch time seems a little different, though. Come on, Sejeong. Just finish this already.

‘Sejeong-ah?’

The woman looks up, a little stunned. She doesn’t have many friends, especially not ones that would call her so comfortably. There’s only Mina and Yeonjeong, both friends from the same major who have already graduated and are working. The only two people she can count on when things go south. And they have often gone south.

But it’s Son Seungwan, approaching her with a delicate smile on her lips and a few bags in hands. Looking at the beeper she’s carrying with her, she’s waiting for her dose of coffee as well.

‘What are you doing here? Studying?’ Seungwan guesses, peaking into the screen when Sejeong doesn’t reply, open and unsure of what to say. She eventually nods.

‘Are you… Are you also running errands?’ The younger woman asks in a small voice once she realises that it’s not really polite to stay quiet for so long, especially with Seungwan observing her for reaction.

Seungwan sighs as she sits down in front of her colleague.

‘It’s a long story,’ she admits after a long moment.

Seungwan wakes up a little after eight am, stretching her arms widely and immediately realising that it’s not her own bed she’s in. Her left arm hits the back of the coach she’s currently on and Seungwan groans, looking around as if through the haze. There’s a blanket covering her and her clothes are neatly folded on the chair on the side.

There’s a smell of coffee invading the living room space. Right, I stayed over.

Joohyun appears in sight, her face lighting up when she notices that Seungwan is awake. Or maybe more accurately said, conscious.

‘I’ve made some breakfast. Would you like to eat something?’

‘Coffee,’ Seungwan rasps, finally sitting down and looking around again. When her eyes land on the other woman, Seungwan does a double take. ‘Wow.’

Joohyun’s delicate right eyebrow goes up in polite curiosity at the exclamation.

‘You’re…’ Stunning. Perfect. Beautiful. Looking too damn good on a Saturday morning.

Seungwan clears .

‘You’re already dressed,’ is what Seungwan eventually says, looking away.

‘Oh, yes. I will have to go to work today, in an hour or so. There’s still so much to do before we open tonight.’

Seungwan knows that in her place, she’d just roll out of bed at the last minute, throwing on some clothes and not bothering with make-up but she’s obviously not Joohyun who has probably never looked out of place once in her life.

‘Thank you for letting me stay last night.’

‘That’s no problem. It was getting late, anyway, not very safe to go back by yourself when drunk.’ Seungwan nods, her expression turning a little grim. ‘And I hope Seulgi can make up with Jongdae soon.’ Seungwan sighs, nodding again. Joohyun saw right through her but still let her stay.

Seungwan just really didn’t want to be there when the two of her friends were to inevitably clash in an attempt to sort out their issues. Seungwan does have to admit that Seulgi’s behaviour is a little unusual – although of gentle character, she is usually not afraid of facing her problems head on. If there was anything, she’d probably come to Seungwan first, either for advice or simply to complain. Seungwan doesn’t think there was anything out of ordinary in her best friend’s attitude when they briefly talked on Wednesday upon Seungwan’s return to their flat, before Jongdae came over and Seungwan locked herself in her room, looking through ideas for new scripts. Thursday was hectic at work and Seungwan came home late again, merely exchanging greetings on her way to the bathroom but she was on the phone with Minseok at that time, trying to work out the scheduling problems; she didn’t really pay attention when she passed Seulgi by. By the time she had a moment to emerge from her own room and grab a bite before sleep, Seulgi was already in her room, probably asleep.

So when Jongdae ambushed her about the issue on Friday, there wasn’t really that much she could tell him.

‘The opening is at seven, isn’t it?’ Seungwan asks, trying to change the topic. She gets up, folding the blanket neatly and grabbing her clothes from the chair as well as a small cosmetic purse with essentials from her bag.

‘You can come a little earlier though, there’ll be wine and snacks. Seven o’clock is just when we’ll formally greet all the guests.’ Joohyun gestures at the space on the other side of the room. ‘How about you go and get yourself ready in the bathroom first? There’s a spare toothbrush under the sink, too. I’ll set the table in the meantime.’

Seungwan thanks the other woman and sparing no time, locks herself in for a quick shower and a change of clothes. Ridding herself of the t shirt Joohyun lent her to sleep the previous night, Seungwan pulls her jeans on, discovering that her cell is still in her back pocket. She unlocks it, checking the messages.

Yerim’s sent her a meme which Seungwan doesn’t understand but she replies with a hahaha anyway. Her half-sister doesn’t look like the type of person interested in the Internet culture so this is probably her way of keeping their relationship going. Seungwan only renews her invitation for a guitar lesson to avoid complete awkwardness of a lack of follow-up and moves on.

There’s not much, just some work related emails that she really doesn’t feel like replying to on a Saturday morning so she doesn’t. Instead, she pulls up Seulgi’s contact and gives it a try.

Her two attempts go unanswered.

She doesn’t have much luck with Jongdae either so she gives up, only texts him a what’s going on? as she finishes combing her hair. She receives a short message ten minutes later when she’s already at the kitchen table, drinking her coffee and munching on a piece of toast.

‘He says they’re on their way to Changwon to see his family, will probably stay overnight,’ she narrates for Joohyun with full. ‘Why would they suddenly go there?’

‘Have you tried calling Seulgi again?’ Seungwan shrugs.

‘She’s not picking up. I’ll just have to leave it to them, I suppose. I’m a little worried but if they’re together, it can’t be that bad, right? They’ll probably let me know in due time.’

They eventually move on to different topics and both leave the flat together around nine, parting ways in front of Joohyun’s building.

‘Are you sure you don’t want me to give you a ride?’ Seungwan declines, smiling at her friend.

‘The subway station is just around the corner. Plus, I’m not going home just yet. I’ll drop by the supermarket first, our fridge is literally empty.’ Joohyun smiles back, nodding.

‘Thank you… for last night,’ she says meekly, but sincerely. ‘I guess it’s been a while since I just let myself… be. Enjoy things. Not since I entered high school, anyway.’

‘Well, that’s a pity,’ Seungwan replies but her tone is light-hearted. ‘I don’t know if I’d be able to fit into your upscale preferences but if you want somebody to take you around the block and point all the best street food, I’m your gal.’

‘I’ll remember that.’ Joohyun smiles again and they part ways at the door, the older woman turning back to the underground parking lot her car is in.

From then on, it’s just quick shopping full of bargaining about the price of pork on the local market and then internal complaining about the weight she has to carry by herself. She sends Seulgi another message, hoping for it to sound as normal and encouraging as possible but there is no reply – not that she expected one. Eventually, her running out of steam leads her to the nearby coffee shop and discovering Sejeong, dully typing away on her laptop.

‘It’s a long story. Maybe I’ll tell you some other time, no need to bring the mood down,’ Seungwan adds, not wanting to offend the younger woman. ‘I thought the semester doesn’t start until the beginning of September?’

‘I’m a little behind so I’m trying to stay on top of things,’ Sejeong confesses in a small voice, looking anywhere but at her companion. Seungwan nods, not wanting to press the matter further.

‘How are you liking the radio station so far?’ She asks instead. Sejeong smiles a little at the mention of her internship.

‘Oh, it’s great.’

‘Well, the tasks the writers’ room gives you are probably pretty menial…’ Seungwan scratches her head sheepishly because she did promise herself to pay more attention to the intern in their division and then her attention drifted elsewhere.

‘Oh, no! I really like it… really.’ There’s a blush on the other’s cheeks, as if she has become terrified of her own display of sudden enthusiasm. ‘Everyone treats me well.’

‘Sehun has nothing but compliments for you. Even said that team leader Lee likes your corrections better than his,’ Seungwan jokes but Sejeong’s eyes go wide, looking panicked. ‘It’s a good thing, of course! They all like you, they’re going to use some of your ideas for Park Chanyeol’s next programme. It’s a great opportunity for you to learn and they do want to help you. Don’t be afraid of talking to them, alright?’

Sejeong nods but Seungwan doesn’t think that she convinced her much.

‘Anyway, shouldn’t you be doing something fun at this time instead of studying? Meeting friends for lunch or going to the cinema?’ Sejeong only shakes her head, looking away. ‘Have you eaten yet, at least?’

‘I’ll probably just pick up some shinramyeon from the convenience store…’ She eventually mumbles and Seungwan frowns because it sounds like a daily occurrence for the intern.  

‘And then..? Then you’ll go home?’ Sejeong doesn’t say anything for a while again, looking like she really doesn’t want to get into the details but unwilling to admit anything. Seungwan sighs. ‘Well, then. Pack your bag, we’ll go to my place. I’m not a great cook but I bought some things for budae jjigae and I’ll make a simple pork bibimbap as well.’

The words alarm Sejeong because she starts shaking her head violently.

‘No, no! I couldn’t! I don’t want to inconvenience you-‘

‘It’s not at all an inconvenience,’ Seungwan denies at once, getting up. In that moment, her coffee beeper conveniently goes off. ‘Come on. You can finish your reading at the kitchen table while I make lunch. My flatmate is out for the weekend, I’d love to have company. I’ll be angry if you refuse,’ she adds in a jokingly tone though she immediately regrets it because now Sejeong looks scared and her fidgeting intensifies.

Seungwan sighs, putting her hand over the younger woman’s.

‘I’m just kidding. Of course I won’t get angry but it’d be nice if you can accept my invitation. I’ve been meaning to get to know you better but there always seems to be something urgent I have to take care of instead… Come on. You can ask me any questions about the radio station and I’ll finally make that phone call to my line manager to see about your assisting in my programme… Come on.’ She nods for encouragement.

Eventually, having made up her mind, Sejeong nods timidly and packs her belongings into her worn out rucksack.

‘Do you mind walking? We can take the subway but it’s just fifteen minutes on foot.’ Sejeong nods again and then nearly wrestles Seungwan for one of the shopping bags the older woman is carrying with her, wanting to help. In the end, Seungwan concedes.

After a short stroll, they reach her building. They enter the flat and Seungwan internally sighs with relief that the state of its organisation is passable. Seulgi is much more meticulous when it comes to the matters of tidying and that forces Seungwan to contain her own chaos in the small surface of her room.

‘Make yourself comfortable,’ Seungwan says, quickly putting away the things she doesn’t need and sorting through the lunch ingredients. ‘I’ll give you some juice, alright?’

Sejeong sits down stiffly, clearly wanting to look around but having no courage to.

‘Come on! You can open your laptop if you’d like. Or should I put the TV on?’

‘Can I help with anything?’ Sejeong asks instead and Seungwan nods, not wanting to fight her on yet another matter.

‘In that case, you can start cutting vegetables first.’

Talking to the intern is quite difficult because she doesn’t really say anything unless prompted and even then, one needs to nearly pull her by the tongue to get even a few words out of her. Seungwan cannot really hold it against her though because the other looks mostly spooked, not impolite so she resigns herself to carrying the chatter, going from topic to topic, especially those related to her work place she thinks the other might want to know about.

They spend another hour like that before they finally sit down to the meal. Seungwan observes pleasantly that the soup is not too sour today of all days and finally sends a message to Minseok about Sejeong’s helping out with their show before she forgets again.  

It’s after three when they take note of the time. Seungwan is quite satisfied with the progress between them because in the last half an hour she’s managed to get Sejeong to relax and even smile twice.

‘Do you have any other plans today?’ The other shakes her head.

‘I should probably go, though. I’ve already taken up too much of your time today…’

‘Nonsense. Actually, I was going to ask if you felt like going to an event with me,’ Seungwan interrupts before they once again have a chance to get into a silly argument and a litany of sorry and thank you and you’re welcome and no problem. ‘I got invited for an opening at the BIFF Art Centre, it starts at seven but we can just go earlier, there’s food and drinks and all that.’

‘Oh, no, I couldn’t.’ Sejeong seems terrified of everything, hands unconsciously gripping the table to stop herself from trembling.

‘Come on, it’s no fun going by myself.’

‘I don’t have anything to wear, it seems very formal-‘

‘You look about my flatmate’s size. We’ll find you something glamorous. We might actually bump into somebody I know there, apart from Sehun. It’s his sister who’s hosting the exhibition.’

There’s more protesting and declining of the offer before Sejeong finally realises that she will not win this one and therefore dutifully follows Seungwan to Seulgi’s wardrobe to try something on.

‘Are you sure your flatmate won’t mind..?’ There’s the last gingerly asked question.

‘Not at all. She’s the nicest person, maybe you’ll meet her one day.’

Joohyun arrives back at the venue around five thirty. They’d worked on the organisation until the last minute and then she quickly drove back home to change. Thankfully, this time there were no problems with the catering company. Since this was an event mostly under her supervision, the only people there were her team and the hired crew, as well as the employees of the exhibition centre. Thankfully, Junmyeon didn’t show up like he always had the habit to, just to check up on her. Joohyun is glad – whether he finally understood their situation or not, she didn’t know, but at least he seemingly learnt to stay away.

Joohyun finds herself looking forward to Seungwan’s arrival, instead. She doesn’t know how much time she’ll have to accompany the other but it would be nice to walk through the exhibits together and maybe discuss the photographs if anything catches their eye. Maybe they could go for a drink later-

Joohyun frowns. Why would they go for a drink later when there’s going to be plenty of beverages here? She shrugs off the thought that caught her off-hand.

First guests start arriving after six and Joohyun approaches them all one by one, trying to exchange at least brief greetings before the formal introduction and then the more informal mingling. The dreaded reporter with a heavy Bucheon accent from Seungwan and Sehun’s radio station shows up and Joohyun agrees for a short interview later, wishing that Yongsun would come and do it instead. But her friend is already on maternity leave, merely sending her long messages all day long of how bored she is at home and how overbearing her doctor husband is over her safety.

Joohyun still smiles at their silliness even if she can’t relate.

Finally, Sehun appears at the door and Joohyun welcomes his entrance with relief, eager to get away from the crowd for a moment. She personally hands him a leaflet with relevant information on the event.

‘Did you come alone?’ Her brother smirks at the abrupt greeting.

‘Is this your way of asking me about Seungwan? We didn’t really make any plans together but I’m sure she’ll be here soon.’

‘Who said anything about her, huh?’ Joohyun defends herself, hoping that there is enough foundation on her face to cover up the emerging redness of her cheeks. ‘I’m asking whether you have a date. You never bring anyone.’ Sehun shrugs.

‘These days it’s hard to find somebody who wouldn’t drive you crazy every five minutes,’ he mumbles and Joohyun looks at him suspiciously but lets it go.

‘Some people from your radio station are here, by the way.’

‘Baekhyun hyung?’ Joohyun confirms. ‘I’ll say hello later when I see him.’

‘The table with refreshments is over there.’ She points to the corner. ‘Make yourself comfortable. I’ll go and talk to the other newcomers.’ Sehun’s hand on her arm stops Joohyun and she looks back at him in question.

‘Hey, is… Junmyeon hyung already here?’ Sehun asks, looking at his sister hesitantly. Joohyun blinks.

‘Erm, no, not yet. He’s not the organiser this time. I’m not really sure he’ll even feel up for it, to be honest. He doesn’t need to be here.’ The woman sighs. ‘But if he does, you don’t have to avoid him or anything. I’ve already told you, your relationship with him doesn’t have to end just because ours has.’ Sehun only nods.

It’s six forty three when Joohyun finally notices Seungwan over somebody else’s shoulder. The younger is next to the table with alcohol and appetisers, a glass already in hand and looking at the food with great interest. Joohyun nearly smiles at the sight, at the last moment remembering that she still has company so she cuts it short and excuses herself under some pretence. She makes it to the table in no time, startling the other with a hand on her shoulder.  Seungwan turns around.

It’s the first time Joohyun sees Seungwan looking all dolled up. Her make-up is unusually strong but it brings out the colour of her eyes. Her short hair is styled in light waves and she’s donning an elegant burgundy dress. It’s strapless.

Seungwan grins at Joohyun’s stunned expression.

‘Got you, didn’t I? I told you I wouldn’t embarrass you. Do you like my new dress?’

‘Very pretty,’ Joohyun eventually agrees, not sparing the outfit a single glance but Seungwan misses the intense gaze, taking a sip of her champagne.

‘Thanks for the invitation, I’m actually having more fun than I thought I would.’

‘Have you been here long?’ Joohyun clears , trying to switch back to her work mind set.

 ‘We’ve arrived maybe ten minutes ago? I had to call a taxi, I didn’t want us walking into the subway dressed like this… Ah, here she is.’

Before Joohyun has a chance to react, another woman comes over and Seungwan grins again, loosely putting her arm over the other’s shoulders despite being slightly shorter.

‘This is Kim Sejeong, we work together.’ Sejeong looks clearly startled at the choice of words, looking back at Seungwan.

‘Oh,’ is all Joohyun says, blinking a few times to process the information. Sejeong seems slightly younger, hunching slightly as if trying to take up less space but she’s pretty. She’s wearing a green dress and white sandals.

‘We were hanging out today, so I invited her to be my plus one. Can you, please, tell her that it’s perfectly alright for her to be here? She’s been afraid this entire time that she’s not welcome.’

‘…Of course. The more the merrier,’ Joohyun affirms with a second of delay, still caught by surprise. She clears again. ‘Any friend of Seungwan’s is welcome here. Please, help yourself to whatever. The exhibition will be accessible for viewing in a few moments. If you’d excuse me now, I have to go and prepare for my greetings.’

‘Sure, see you around.’ Seungwan smiles again and Joohyun reciprocates weakly before parting ways with them.

She doesn’t know why she’s so shocked, of course Seungwan can have other friends. It was Joohyun herself who signed off Seungwan’s plus one invitation, after all.

She doesn’t have the time to come to terms with whatever it is that’s actually bugging her about it when she sees junior curator Ha and none other than Kim Junmyeon by the podium, clearly waiting for her.

She can only sigh again. This is going to be a long night.

A/N: Please comment and upvote if you liked! Have a good day!

*Title: IOI - Downpour