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It was quiet. Well, it would’ve been if it weren’t for the incessant downpour of rain hitting the roof of the car Momo and Sana were sitting in.

There was palpable tension within the confinements of this four-door vehicle. Not because either party held any hatred toward each other. But because normally, Sana would be the one to break the awkward silence surrounding them by starting up a conversation. Now though, she was unsure if it would be an appropriate time to discuss the situation at hand. For a while, Sana was content with leaving her friend alone because she knew from experience that the best way to deal with a depressed Momo was to give her time. The downside to that plan was that time wasn’t a luxury they could afford. They needed to act fast if they were to have any chance of switching Momo’s major and Sana suspected this would be one the last opportunity she had to speak to her friend before she locked herself away in her room for god knows how long. Sana decided she had no other choice as she ran a hand through her hair and drew in a deep breath before breaking the silence.

“Look, I know you don’t feel like talking right now, I mean , I don’t feel like talking right now. But we need to work out what we are going to do.” Sana paused for a few seconds to take a peek at Momo to make sure she was listening before returning her eyes to the road. “it’s five thirty now so by the time we get back to campus, the dean would probably have left. So, I was thinking that first thing tomorrow, we beeline straight to his office before classes start, so we can discuss the possibility of you changing-”, Sana was unable to finish her sentence before Momo cut in.

“I’m not changing Majors Sana.”

“Momo, you heard the doctor, any more damage to your knee will be permanent, you can’t risk it!”

“I know,” she replied solemnly, “I’m dropping out of university completely.”

“What!?” Sana’s eyes shot in Momo’s direction. “What are you talking about?”

“I spoke with my parents last night because I wasn’t liking my chances of the doctor delivering good news today. We discussed my options, and both agreed that it would be best that I move back to Japan.”

“What!?”

It took a while for Sana to register what the girl beside her was saying. Leaving Korea? For Sana, the thought of not having Momo by her side wasn’t exactly something she had considered, like, ever. Ever since they met in high school they got along like a house on fire. They were, for all intents and purposes, a combo deal. The other friends they made over time would soon find that out. Any form of understanding that Sana possibly could have had if it were someone else was completely lost in the situation because, well, because it was Momo. This meant Sana’s initial instinct was flat out denial. “Momo you can’t just leave, you have your whole life here, your job, your friends. Your-”

“I know, but honestly Sana, I need time to think. Dance is the one thing in this world which isn’t food that I am truly, deeply passionate about. I think time away would be healthy, it would give me a chance to discover myself and maybe find something else I’m passionate about. I know it’s oddly presumptuous of me, but I don’t think I’ll be able to do that if I stay in Korea.”

“Why not?”

Momo sighs “I love it here in Korea and I have every intention of returning once I find myself again. But it’s something I feel that need to do on my own.”

Sana was conflicted, on one hand, realistically, what her friend was suggesting was completely ing ridiculous. Momo had already invested a lot of time and money into college, so to give up now would render all of it redundant. On top of that, Momo had just recently gotten hired at a nearby pet store thanks to their friend Tzuyu who already worked there and had put in a good word to the manager. Pair that with the sheer logistics of Momo packing up her whole life and returning back home, the thought of it happening was almost inconceivable.

On the other hand, Sana found herself surprisingly quite relieved, relieved that Momo’s injury didn’t completely kill the fire inside her. She hadn’t given up on herself just yet and instead opted for a do over, a second chance at possibly finding something else she was passionate about. Perhaps the emotion coursing through Sana most prominently at that moment was not sadness, but happiness as a result of how proud she was of Momo. It was at this point Sana realized she didn’t want to be a roadblock in someone else’s pursuit of happiness, especially someone she cared about a great deal. So, after a long-winded sigh, she finally conceded.

“Don’t think you’re getting rid of me that easily!” Sana whines. Causing Momo to flinch at the sudden outburst. “I’ll be visiting every chance I get you hear me Hirai! Christmas, birthdays, long weekends, spur of the moment 2-day vacations, regular phone calls, you name it. I’m going to bug you so much you’re gonna wish you had stayed! You better answer when I ring you as well and not just ignore me; international calling is expensive!”

“Facetime me then dummy.” Momo responded teasingly. “It’s free, all you need is an internet connection. And yes, I will answer, I always do! Eventually.” Momo couldn't help but chuckle at Sana’s sudden outburst.

 “I don’t have a clue what the future holds for me but, who knows, maybe my journey of self-discovery will be shorter than expected, Maybe I’ll come back really soon with a newfound drive and you won’t have even noticed I was gone.”

Sana smiled at the thought, though she knew it was impossible. Momo’s presence never goes unnoticed and neither does her absence.

“I personally don’t think it’s a very pragmatic solution. But at the end of the day, I just want you to be happy and if you truly think this idea is the right way to go about attaining said happiness, then I support you all the way.”

“Thanks.” Was all Momo had the strength to say in between quiet sobs that she (unsuccessfully) attempted to mask by coughing.

 “When are you going to tell the others?” Sana questioned.

“I don’t know. I don’t know if I should do it individually or all together. What do you think?” Momo says as she turns to look at the blonde seated next to her.

“We’re supposed to be meeting up on Saturday for dinner, all of us, I say do it then.” Sana shrugs, earning an agreeing nod from Momo.

“Okay.”

The rest of the drive was quiet, both girls had run out of things to say. Sana was still trying to wrap her head around the thought of her best friend moving away. Momo, in the passenger seat, was fighting to hold back tears because perhaps the concept of saying goodbye to the friends she had made during her time in Korea was more heart-breaking than the loss of her dream career.

--

Meanwhile, in a nearby area of Seoul, another girl was dealing with her own drastic life changes.

--

4 hours had passed, and Mina was still deep in concentration as she hammered away at the keyboard on her laptop. While Momo’s coping mechanism for a broken heart was to take time alone to sulk and clear her mind. Mina took the opposite approach and flooded her mind with the contents of her research paper that wasn’t due for another 2 weeks. Both have their ups and downs, and both are rather effective up until a certain point. For Mina, that point was when she realized that she had actually finished what she was working on.

Predicting that she had probably blinked less than ten times in the last hour, Mina took the following moments to shut her eyes for a while and take a couple deep breaths.

Her eyes wandered around her apartment once she reopened them, observing. At a first glance, everything looked the same. Only, it felt empty. Likely because the other side of the bed, or the wasn’t occupied by a certain someone. There wasn’t a voice beckoning her to stop playing her video games and come to bed or a hand creeping up her thigh, coercing her to put down her schoolwork. Trivial gestures, sure, but they made her feel wanted. All of that was gone now, Mina was alone in her apartment.

In an attempt to suppress the oncoming emotions, Mina scrambled to find something to take her attention away from her own thoughts. This was when she noticed her phone sitting on the table next to her and reached for it, realizing she hadn’t bothered to look at it since she got home. The lock screen that displayed a picture of her and her now ex, was blurred by the messages she had missed since she decided to bury herself into her schoolwork. The messages were from a group chat she was in with her friends that were studying the major. It was their group chat they used away from the big group chat with everyone in it so they could discuss school in peace. Lately, however, the group chat was used to discuss other things, namely, Momo.

5:33pm - Jihyo: So how was the doctors? What did they say?

5:40pm - Sana: There will be permanent damage if she injures her knee again. So basically, dancing is out of the realm of possibility.

5:41pm - Jihyo: . How is she, is she okay? Can I ring her?

5:41pm - Sana: Actually, she’s kind of doing quite well? I mean, as well as she can be for someone who’s just had her dreams crushed. But I’m confident she will get through this.

5:41pm - Sana: She has some other news as well, but I think she wants to tell everyone in person this weekend. Are we still on for that?

5:42pm – Jihyo: Yes of course, Nayeon and I have been going back and forth about which restaurant we should book in for. At the moment we’re at odds between ‘Tequila Mockingbird’ and that Mexican joint a few blocks from Mina’s place, ‘Juan in a Million’.

5:45pm – Sana: Tequila Mockingbird? isn’t that a bar?

5:46pm – Jihyo: That’s what I told Nayeon, but she just shrugged at me and said, “What’s your point ?”.

5:47pm – Sana: LOL… Well, it isn’t a horrible idea. Plus, we wouldn’t need to book in there. Shouldn’t Chaeng be the one who gets to decide where we go anyway? She is the reason we’re celebrating after all.

5:50pm – Jihyo: I asked her, but she said she doesn’t really mind, so long as we are there.  

Mina’s heart sank halfway through reading Sana and Jihyo’s conversation as the thoughts of Momo and her injury came rushing back. I am the worst ing friend ever. She thought to herself. She knew of Momo’s situation but was so preoccupied with the drama taking place in her own life that she had forgotten all about her friend’s appointment today. I should text her. Was Mina’s first thought. Then she remembered that distancing herself from everything and everyone was just how Momo dealt with tough situations. She thought maybe it would be best to wait until tomorrow.

Mina navigated through her phone until she reached the text conversation screen between her and Momo. She took some time to scroll up and read a few of their past exchanges. A gut-wrenching sight really. As is turned out, a good portion of their past conversations were Momo checking up on Mina to see if she was okay as she was well aware of her and ex’s problems. The gut-wrenching part was that Mina had hardly reciprocated that support when Momo injured herself. Mina is well aware that if Momo knew of the guilt Mina was feeling she would get a smack on the arm for being stupid. Still though, she can’t help but feel immense sadness. The least she could do now would be to return the favour by offering her own support.

She tapped on the text box under their conversation and began typing.

7:30pm - Mina: Hey, Momoring. I heard the news and I’m so sorry. If you want someone to talk to, or a shoulder to cry on please don’t hesitate to give me a buzz. It’s an offer with no expiry date. <3

Mina didn’t expect Momo to reply, not tonight anyway. Momo was difficult to reach at the best of times and these were certainly not the best of times. Suffice to say she was surprised to see a reply from Momo when she returned from her hunt for food in the kitchen.

--

Momo had been crying uncontrollably since she faceplanted onto her own bed. Sana had to go to work so there was nothing and no one stopping her from doing so. That was until her phone started buzzing.

It was Mina.

Momo read her messaged and sighed. She knew Mina