“A single gentle rain makes the grass many shades greener.” -- Henry David Thoreau

    You sighed as you heaved your bag onto your shoulder, pushing the door to the office open and stepping out. A sharp crack from above your head shook you out of your thoughts. The rain was positively pouring down, a small river running through the parking lot.

    “That’s really the icing on the cake, huh?” you groaned to yourself, shifting your feet awkwardly. It had been a rough day; everyone seemed to be in a bad mood and wanted to take it out on someone else. Namely, you. And the rain definitely wasn’t helping you to turn your mood around.

    Taking a deep breath, you positioned your bag above your head and decided to just run for it. Splashing through the deceptively deep puddles, you ran straight for the bus stop which was, luckily enough, covered. Ducking under the multicolored shelter, you shook your bag to try and get the water off before sitting on the seat with a heavy sigh.

    A hint of movement made you look up. There was a guy sitting on the other side of the bench, his head hanging as he clutched a bouquet of flowers. There was something positively sad about the way his shoulders were slumped, making you think that you might not have been the only one to have a bad day.

    “Err, hi. Are you okay?” The question slipped out before you could even think about whether or not it was a good idea. The guy raised his head and stared at you. “Umm. Those are nice flowers.”

    He gave you a thin smile and stared back down at the flowers he was holding. “I’m not doing great, actually. These were supposed to be for my date, but...I kind of got stood up.”

    “Oh, that really . I’m sorry.” The awkwardness in the small space felt almost unbearable. “What’s your name?” you finally asked, thinking desperately of anything to break the tension.

    “Cha Hakyeon.” The guy finally smiled again as he stared into the rain.

    You nodded. “Well, Hakyeon, would you like to talk about it? I’m here waiting for the bus anyways, so if you wanted to rant…”

    And, to your surprise, Hakyeon took you up on your offer. He told you about the girl (pretty, flirty, maybe a little bit out of his league) and the proposed date (to the movies, then to a nice dinner), slowly becoming more and more animated as the story went on. It was fun to listen to him talk about how they’d met and why he thought she was cute, but maybe she wasn’t anymore?

    “Well, anybody who stands someone up for a date probably wasn’t the nicest person in the first place,” you offered, stretching your arms above your head. Hakyeon laughed at that, nodding in agreement. His laugh sent a little thrill through your chest. It was quite a nice laugh.

    “I think you’re right. Hey, why don’t you take these?” He held the bouquet out to you, and you grasped it delicately. “I don’t really have any desire to keep them.”

    You smiled as you lowered your head to sniff the roses. “That’s completely understandable. Thank you.”

    Just then, the bus rolled up to the stop with a squealing of the brakes, sloshing muddy water. You stood and grabbed your bag, gesturing towards the bus.

    “That’s my-”

    You stopped as Hakyeon said the words at the same time as you, also standing and gathering his things. With a smile and another laugh, you both climbed the steps onto the bus and sat down together as the bus peeled away.

    Maybe rainy days weren’t so bad after all.