My supervisor is rearranging the saltshakers. She does this with an alarming frequency. The theater is in a between films nighttime lull, and I’m using the opportunity to scrub the buttery popcorn feeling from my arm hair.

“Try this.” She hands me a baby wipe. “It works better than a napkin.”

I accept it with genuine thanks. Despite her neuroticisms, Anna is my favorite coworker. She’s a little older than me, very pretty, and she just started film school. She has a cheerful smile—a slight gap between her front teeth—and a thick, singular stripe of platinum in her dark brown hair. It’s a nice touch. Plus, she always wears this necklace with a glass bead shaped like a banana. I admire someone with a signature accessory.

“Where in the bloody hell did that come from?” asks the only other person behind the counter. Or more precisely, on top of the counter, where her ridiculously attractive, boyfriend is perched. He’s the other thing I like about Anna. Wherever she goes, he follows. He nods toward the baby wipe.

“What else are you carrying in your pockets? Dust rags? Furniture polish?”

“Watch it,” she says. “Or I’ll scrub your arms, Baek.”

My supervisor is rearranging the saltshakers. She does this with an alarming frequency. The theater is in a between films nighttime lull, and I’m using the opportunity to scrub the buttery popcorn feeling from my arm hair.

“Try this.” She hands me a baby wipe. “It works better than a napkin.”

I accept it with genuine thanks. Despite her neuroticisms, Anna is my favorite coworker. She’s a little older than me, very pretty, and she just started film school. She has a cheerful smile—a slight gap between her front teeth—and a thick, singular stripe of platinum in her dark brown hair. It’s a nice touch. Plus, she always wears this necklace with a glass bead shaped like a banana.

I admire someone with a signature accessory.

“Where in the bloody hell did that come from?” asks the only other person behind the counter. Or more precisely, on top of the counter, where her ridiculously attractive, boyfriend is perched. He’s the other thing I like about Anna. Wherever she goes, he follows.

He nods toward the baby wipe. “What else are you carrying in your pockets? Dust rags? Furniture polish?”

“Watch it,” she says. “Or I’ll scrub your arms, Baek.”

 “As long as you do it in private.”He grins.

They moved here recently. Byun Baekhyun has gorgeous brown eyes and mussed artist hair. He attends college, but despite his unemployment, he spends much time here at the theater. And because he’s beautiful and cocky and confident, everyone loves him. It only took a matter of hours before he’d weaseled his way into all of the employee areas without a single complaint by management.That kind of charisma is impressive. But it doesn’t mean I want to hear about their private scrubbings.

“My shift ends in a half hour. Please wait until I’ve vacated the premises before elaborating upon this conversation.”

Anna smiles at Baekhyun, who is removing the giant ASK ME ABOUT OUR MOVIE-WATCHERS CLUB! button from her maroon work vest.

“Miso’s just jealous. She’s having Minseok problems again.”She glances at me, and her smile turns wry.

“What’d I tell you about musicians? That bad boy type will only break your heart.”

“They’re only bad because they’re lame,” Baekhyun mutters. He pins the button to his own outfit, this fabulous black pea coat.                                            

“Just because, once upon a time, you guys had issues with someone,” I say, “doesn’t mean I do. Minseok and I are fine. Don’t—don’t do that.” I shake my head at Baekhyun. “You’re ruining a perfectly good coat.”

“Sorry, did you want it? It might balance out your collection.” He gestures at my own maroon vest.

My phone vibrates in my pocket.

“Hold that thought,” I tell Baekhyun.                                                                       

It’s a text from Song Mirae:

u wont believe who i saw jogging in the park. prepare yrself.

“Miso!” Anna rushes forward to catch me, but I’m not falling. Am I falling? Her hand is on my arm, holding me upright. “What happened, what’s the matter?”

Surely Mirae saw Shin hye. Shin hye was the one exercising in the park, as a part of her training.Of course it was Shin hye! I shove the other possibility down, deep and hard, but it springs right back.

This parasite growing inside of me. It never disappears, no matter how many times I tell myself to forget it. It’s the past, and no one can change the past. But it grows all the same. Because as terrible as it is to think about Park Shin hye, it’s nothing compared to the pain that overwhelms me whenever I think about her twin.

They’ll be seniors this year. Which means that despite the no-show this morning, there’s no reason why her twin wouldn’t be here. The best I can hope for is some kind of delay. I need that time to prepare myself.

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