Wham!

The sound of a door being slammed shut echoed in the hallway of Aya's building apartment as she stomped out of her house. Her and her husband's house, to be exact. She could hear her baby's cry inside, probably woken up by the loud noise. She closed her eyes for a moment, instantly regretting her impulsive act and considering to get back inside to soothe her one year old daughter.

"Just this one time.." she promised herself while she gathered herself not to be tempted reopening the door, "For once, let her father do the job," she persuaded herself and decided to go out of the building for some fresh air.

Tonight was not the first fight she had with her husband, but usually he was the one who stormed off the house leaving her with their child. This time, Aya has had enough. She really needed a time for herself, otherwise she would go insane.

Thank God I look somewhat decent tonight. She thought as she looked at her reflection in the elevator's shiny wall. She was wearing a knee-length sleeveless black dress that she topped with a brown kimono-style coat she grabbed when she stormed out of the house. Below, a pair of ballet flats protected her feet from the ground.

She and her husband were supposed to dine out tonight before a fight ensued. The baby was unusually fussy when she was getting ready and her husband, as usual, didn't seem to notice her frustration at all. Like any other time, he was busy drowning himself on his phone as if his life depended on it. The built up frustration and resentment she had towards him finally exploded.

Finally getting some fresh air, Aya let out a deep sigh. She pulled out her phone to look into her contact list but soon realized that she didn't really have anyone to call on a moment like this. Tears threatened to fall out of her eyes remembering how she had gradually losing friends these last few years. She blew her breath into the open air and decided that there's no point in regretting it.

Aya walked to the curb and hailed a taxi. She told the driver her destination and observed the world outside from the backseat's window as the car drove around the city. She breathed deep taking in the essence of the city, the place she once used to explore but now only watch from her apartment's window. How things have changed for her.

The taxi driver's voice woke Aya up from her thoughts. She had arrived to her destination, a small bar she used to frequent when she was still single and actively working. She walked past the familiar entrance and went straight to the bar table, where a male bartender in his late twenties greeted her. She ordered a cocktail and took a seat there.

At times like this, alcohol tastes so sweet, Aya thought as she sipped from her glass. She looked around her watching people as they enjoyed the night, something that she wasn't sure she could do tonight. She missed her baby daughter already. She felt like such a bad mom for leaving her behind without looking back.

Noticing that her glass was almost empty, she turned around to call the bartender again but he already beat her to it, handing her a glass of whisky. She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

"From that guy over there," the bartender smiled as he pointed to a male about the same age as her sitting not far from her, "Don't worry, he's not a creep."

Aya took the glass and held it up as a small gesture of thank you towards the stranger. Actually, he's not really a stranger as Aya instantly recognized him as Lee Junho from 2PM. To say that she wasn't feeling elated by a stranger's attention was a lie, but she didn't expect him to approach her like he did after.

"A bad break-up?" Junho asked casually as he took a seat next to her. He has observed Aya since she walked in, her sighs and the look in her eyes intrigued him.

Aya put her palm in front of her face, showing him the gold band on her ring finger. Junho gasped in surprise and immediately nodded in understanding. "Okay, you're taken."

The two sat in silence as they both enjoyed the drinks on their hands. He should leave, Junho told himself. He, however, couldn't bring himself to walk away from her.

"Let's talk," he shot at her.

"Why should we?" Aya asked without really expecting an answer. She really needed to be alone, she didn't have the energy to involve herself in a meaningless conversation.

"Because you need to? I don't know, let's just talk." he insisted. Aya, however, kept her silence. "Fine then, I'll start,"

Junho put his drink on the table and swirled his chair facing her, "I was just dumped by a woman,"

Aya almost choked on her drink by the confession, "You? Lee Junho, dumped?"

"Mmhm. Apparently, she was cheating on me. I should be the one dumping her, don't you think?" Junho chuckled bitterly. 

"Wow. You must be feeling like ," Aya said and looked at him in pity when he drank his whisky in a big gulp, "Either way, you should be thankful now that she's out of your life,"

"You think so?" he asked, glad that he finally got her attention.

"Something that I realized a long time ago is that it's better to cut someone early than to live with resentment for having stayed, no matter how much you love them." she said while grimacing due to the bitter taste of whisky on .

"Is that what happened? You regret staying with your husband?" Junho asked, raising one of his eyebrows.

Aya glanced uncomfortably at him, almost regretting her words, "....not answering that." she pretended to focus on her drink in the hope that Junho would give up and leave.

Junho, however, felt that he hit the right spot and continued to probe, "What made you stay?"

She kept shut for a moment. Good question, she admitted to herself. She used to think that it was a natural thing to do to agree with and follow her husband's wishes. Now, however, she questioned it. What good had it bring her? She couldn't answer.

"I'm a mom." she finally chose to say, "I can't make decisions solely for my sake."

"But you're unhappy," Junho said, expressing exactly what's in Aya's mind, "You deserve to live for yourself, to do things that make you happy."

"Honestly, I've forgotten how. I don't know what makes me happy anymore," she smiled bitterly.

"For now, how about a dance?" Junho put his drink and stood up, offering her his hand, "No one's sad on the dance floor,"

With a small chuckle, Aya decided that it wouldn't hurt to take on the offer. It might makes her feel better or at least takes her mind off of her misery. She accepted his hand and followed him to the middle of the dancing crowd. To her relief, the music was playing an upbeat song, minimizing the chance of any skinship to ensue.

Junho surveyed the woman in front of him. Her long brownish hair moved along with her body, and he could see a smile began to form in her face as she swayed following the rhythm. The swift change in her mood was contagious and Junho soon forgot his own problems.

When the third song began to play, Aya started to feel hot and gathered her hair behind her head to tie them up in a high ponytail. The gesture took Junho by surprise and he could feel a sudden throb in his heart.

"You're beautiful.." he breathlessly said.

"Eh?" Aya snapped her head towards him, "Me? Beautiful? Pfft..." she stiffled a laugh. It had been a long while since someone said such a thing about her so it sounded like a joke.

"Wae? I mean it.. you're stunning.. like, very." he insisted.

Realizing that Junho was indeed serious and not teasing her, she froze in her place speechless, "Wow. I mean, sorry, no one said that to me anymore."

"Your husband must be blind," Junho said in annoyance.

A bitter smile made an appareance once again in her face. Her husband barely looked at her in the eyes lately, let alone commented on her appearance. At this moment, she realized that her life had come to a point where she no longer care how she looked. She had been living as a wife, a mother, and somehow she forgot that she was a woman first.

"You look kinda lost.." Junho said and led her back to their seat on the bar counter.

"Sorry," she said absentmindedly, "It just occured to me how far I've lost myself these past few years. I don't know who I am right now."

Junho asked the bartender for another serving of whisky for them and gave her his attention, "You know what, I get that feeling. Well, maybe not exactly, but I know how it feels to live your life not knowing whether you do it for you or for someone else."

"Exactly!"

"You thought you're doing the right things, but looking back, you get none for yourself." Junho continued.

Aya took a sharp breath at how Junho could describe exactly what she never could really spelled out to herself, "Wow." she finally managed to say.

"I totally sounded like a shrink, didn't I?" Junho laughed and took a big gulp from his glass.

"You should be one, it's not too late. There would be a long line waiting to see you," Aya joked.

"So, what are you going to do now?" Junho asked, seriously this time.

"...fix things?" she hesitantly said. She was unsure, but it was all she ever knew to do.

"Have you done anything wrong?"

"....I don't think so."

"Then it's not your job to fix it! It's not a surprise that you're unhappy if you always tried to mend things up when you're the one hurting."

"If not me, who will then?"

"Sometimes, things are just meant to be broken. Don't ruin yourself trying to save what can't be saved."

"No, that's not me. I know I said I don't know who I am anymore, but I'm sure that I can't just leave things as they are."

"You're such a pushover, aren't you?"

"Maybe, is that a bad thing?"

Junho gave no answer and just shrugged. He himself was the same. He could talk all he liked but at the end of the day he knew that Aya and he had that in common: they fix the things others didn't even know were broken.

He subtly glanced at the woman next to him, whose eyes etched with weariness and whose lips repeatedly let out a sigh. Junho couldn't escape from his conflicted feeling. Why did God brought him here? Why must she entered the bar that night? Why must he felt a deep connection to her? Why must she made him felt he needed to do something? Endless questions remained unanswered as he emptied his glass again.

Aya's phone she put on top of the table lighted up signaling an incoming message. The sender's name was writen as Husband and Aya hesitated for a bit before she pushed the notification open. She was ready for him asking where she was or an angry message telling her off for leaving him alone with the baby.

She, thus, was taken by surprise when the message thread only contained a single picture. Displayed on the screen was a photo of her baby daughter smiling wide as she ride on her father's belly. Contrary to what she pictured in her mind, the two seemed to enjoy playing together in her absence. Aya could almost hear her laughter behind the photo.

"Junho-ssi.." she called him by the name for the first time.

"Yes?"

"You said we shouldn't try to fix what's meant to be broken," she started, "But, how do you know you can't fix it if you didn't try?"

Junho sighed, "I guess that question basically sums up life. We live trying to be something, to gain something, or in our case, to fix something. Is there any guaranteed outcome? No."

"So you keep trying.." Aya left her words hanging.

"With the hope that this time the odds are in your favor," they both said in unison. The pair laughed realizing they have the exact same thoughts all along.

"Well, I think I should go." Aya put on her coat and stood up from her seat.

"Wait, I haven't learned your name." Junho realized.

"Aya, just call me that."

"Aya, can I borrow your phone?" Junho asked and she gave him her phone in confusion. He typed in something and gave it back to her. On her screen, she could see a row of number had just being dialed. "That's my number. Call me when you need someone to talk to." Junho carefully told her.

He tried not to give up to temptation, but as he said earlier, maybe the odds were in his favor this time. Aya smiled, she couldn't help but felt flattered. She hovered her thumb to Junho's number on her screen and bit her lips as she stood there composing herself. It would be a lie not to feel any sort of attraction to someone whom she connected to in a spiritual level.

Seconds went in a slow motion when Junho watched as Aya long pressed his number and select Delete. He was kind of expecting it but it didn't make it less disappointing.

"Ouch." he smiled bitterly.

"It was great talking to you, but.."

"It's okay, I understand."

"Thank you.." Aya conveyed, "Good luck to you."

"Let me tell you one more thing. There are two meanings behind a good luck, one where you sincerely wish well and one where you mean be well but not so well you forget about me." he teased, "So, which one is it?"

"Don't even try.."

"Okay, fine, I'll let you off," he gave her a smile and put his hands on both of her sholders, patting her dearly, "Good luck."