Half past four in the morning, Yena slides a zipper down from her eye-level until it completely meets with the bottom stop near her feet. She goes out from her small tent (in the park), throwing hands in the air and stretches her body for a few minutes. She enters inside the tent again for a short while, then coming out while carrying something in her hands.

 

A folding table.

 

She unfolds the table just before the sidewalk, adjusting its legs to be able to stand. After making sure the table is firm enough, Yena goes back into the tent once again. This time coming out with a box filled with almost any kind of drinks in several forms (cup, bottle, can, box) and also in variety (mineral water, coffee, energy drinks, and whatever drinks within the box). Yes, she’s opening her own drink stall before dawn because,

 

It’s a Car-Free Day.

 

It’s an event where a main avenue of the–usually bustling–city will be closed off from cars, inviting pedestrian to exercise on the street to their heart’s content from 5 a.m. to 2 p.m in every Sunday.

 

For the note, Yena herself loves to jog and exercise too although she only wants to do it with company, with her friends to be exact. On further note, most of them are such a heavy sleeper who doesn’t wake up early, unlike Yena. She also notices there weren’t many stalls opening that early meanwhile there are some people who choose to come jogging before the sun is up. Thus Yena plans to just sell drinks as she waits for the others to come to the site–to get her and starts their weekly jog.

 

“Aaack!”

 

Just when Yena's hand is about to place a bottle of mineral water (on the table), she hears a sudden yelp. Yena raises her head in instant, checks over her left side first in search of the voice. Nothing, aside of street lamps shining their melancholy yellow light onto the concrete asphalt road. Off to her right side and bingo! Her vision catches a figure on the ground, about ten meters from where Yena’s stall is.

 

It’s not even an option to do nothing, Yena quickly runs up toward the figure, bringing the bottle–still–in her hand without realizing because really, she just instinctively bolts her way.

 

The figure, or rather the stranger girl (as Yena’s eyes scanned while running over), is sitting still, unmoving on the ground. One of her leg is–flat footed–squatting meanwhile the other one just simply being bent on the cold asphalt. Her expression somewhat writhing in pain and her hand seemingly holds her squatting leg.

 

“Are you okay?” Yena asks, giving the girl a concerning look.

 

The girl looks up and shakes her head. Without any words, she gives Yena a disgruntled look for a moment then her finger straightly points at her own ankle afterward, indicating that she just injured herself.

 

“Oh.” That’s the only reply Yena can mutter before she squats down and putting her water bottle on the road. “Let’s straighten them first?” she asks, eyebrows pulling up and waiting for the girl’s response.

 

And the girl nods at her, lips still pressed and shut.

 

Hands ready, Yena grabs the girl’s leg and carefully straighten them one by one. She also removes the girl’s shoe to check her foot. Her eyes widening a little upon seeing the girl’s barefoot being red and quite swollen on the ankle area. Yena then takes her bottle in a rush, opening them and soaks the girl’s injured ankle with water (just half the bottle). She reaches her pocket afterward, taking out a handkerchief–she always bring one during a car free day–and pours the remaining water on it. Slowly and cautiously, Yena sticks the wet fabric on the swelling. She internally thanking god that the bottle she brought all along was a cold one and praying that it’ll help in reducing the swelling.

 

After doing all that, Yena fully rests her weigh on the road, sitting a bit to the side across the stranger girl. Who would’ve thought she’d be doing a good deed first thing in the morning? Moreover before dawn even comes on that day?

 

No one. Not even Yena herself ever imagines that.

 

In the meantime, Yena doesn’t have any intention to check the girl out in that way but the way she dressed truly doesn’t help her in any way. Black short pants revealing the warm tones of her thighs, a matching-colored buckle belt circling around her slender waist; a tucked white skin-tight shirt (with a straight black line on its short sleeves) allowing Yena to catch a glimpse of her body line.

 

What a city-girl, Yena thinks.

 

The girl’s hair is in a neat ponytail–it’s personally Yena’s favorite hairstyle–with arched but wispy fringe falls over her forehead. But, what about her face?

 

Cute and pretty.

 

That’s the only two words Yena can find to describe the girl’s visual. Her heartbeat was at a steady pace, but… after the short checking session, it‘s starting to be difficult to maintain the pace. It begins pounding, drumming, banging so vigorously in her chest like she’s in a sugar rush. Or maybe even like strong drugs being shot into her veins, being shot under her skin directly.

 

“How much for the mineral water?”

 

The girl’s question causes Yena to almost choke up due to the suddenness of hearing her voice. Especially because it happens when she least expect it to be (Yena realizes that she has been analyzing over the beauty in front of her). But then the time is just the time it takes for her to talk at least, yeah? Yena is unsure whether if it’s the girl’s soft husky voice in her ears or rather her angelic face that dilutes her mind, but, Yena thinks that maybe it’s also just about the damn time to get her to talk more too.

 

Well, it’s a big big city with pretty girls basically scattered everywhere. You can find them in every corner of the city and Yena fully knows they’re pretty much–almost–always the same; they come and go, whenever and wherever they want to. But to Yena, she has nothing to lose too when it comes to this kind of girl. Besides, she’s certain that no one is around to keeps an eye on them nor eavesdrop them conversing.

 

“Oh this?” she hints, eyeing the empty bottle just beside her and raises it for a brief moment. Then Yena throws her gaze back to the girl. “What if I say ‘telling me your name’ will be the precise cost?”

 

The girl blinks, letting out an airy giggles. “Then my name is quite cheap, don’t you think?”

 

Unexpectedly, she plays along with Yena’s game of words. Actually the reply makes Yena unable to think straight so she takes her time and just chuckles in amusement. But who is Yena trying to lie? Almost like an addiction, Yena can’t help to listen more to the other’s voice; wanting the other to speak more to her. “Fair point,” she muses, “do you usually jog this early? Don’t you feel… lonely?” Her brow arches at the same time she threw the last question.

 

“Let’s say I’ve never consider myself as lonely but…” The girl hums, clamping her lips as if she’s thinking and gathering words. “Now that you mentioned it, I guess I am? I prefer to come here early anyway because the road is practically mine alone. And the air is the most fresh too during this time. I like it better.”

 

“I guess you’re right… To be frank, I prefer to exercise this early too if only my friends shares the same mind as us.”

 

“Oh? You’re not here to just sell drinks?”

 

“Nope. That’s just for the meantime while I wait for those sleepyheads to come here,” Yena rants.

 

“Oh,” the girl chimes, “well, in that case, you just found a company right here then.”

 

“Sorry?”

 

“What I mean is… perhaps we can jog together, at this exact time, starting next week, if that’s okay with you…?” The girl clasps her hands on top of her stomach, fingers interlacing between each other. “Ah, the name is Jo Yuri, by the way,” she adds shyly, lowering her head and slowly fiddling her thumbs.

 

The moment Yena heard her telling her name, she screams ‘Oh sweet!!’ in excitement. Only internally, though. Yujin-ah, Hyewon-ah, sorry but I guess my jogging routine comes earlier from next week onward. Yena extends her hand forward which Yuri just gladly accepts it. “At this exact time, starting next week, we will jog together,” she repeats (what Yuri had told her), “it’s a deal. I’m Choi Yena, and–”

 

And is it out of line if I was to be bold to say “Would you be mine?” but of course, again, this is only what Yena have in mind. Her rational mind understands fully that this is still too early, adding the fact that they barely know each other–aside of their name and appearance, that is.

 

“And?”

 

“And nice to meet you, Yuri.”

 

Yena shakes their hands in the chilly air, flashing a smile to welcome a new beginning in her life. Unknowing if her feelings is going to bloom or not, unknowing if this is going turn into something more meaningful or not. One certain thing that Yena is going to do for now is none other than to welcome the girl, Jo Yuri, along with all the uncertainties she might meet in the nearest future.

 

[END]

 

A/N: Hell yeaaahhh our girls and BLOOM*IZ are coming this 17^th! Thank God, our long drought is finally over, I’m sooo excited to be able to see them again, we have done well with the wait fellow WIZ*ONEs TT

Anyway, thank you so much for reading and taking your time, hopefully it was an enjoyable story to read and see you all again!