CHAPTER 18

"Ah," Hera tossed to the side. 

Her eyes were closed tightly, beads of sweat could be seen trickling down from her forehead. Soft pants could be heard escaping from on the silent night where most of the residence had already fallen asleep. 

She tossed to the side again. Her long, slender fingers tighten their grip on the pillow. 

The dream she had was long and dreading. It felt as if she was falling into an endless pit of darkness and as soon as she reached the end, a bright light shone into her eyes. 

"Ah!" Hera shrieked, her body immediately sat up. 

Her chest rose up and down. Her breathing unsteady. It felt as if she had ran a marathon. Her dark brown eyes searched the room. 

After a while, her breathing finally steadies itself. Hera let out a sigh, she raked her hair. Frustrated. 

Hera had lost count on how many times she had a sleepless night because of the nightmare. Everytime she wakes up, she would forget what it was.

But the lingering feeling of longing stayed with her throughout the day. Nothing had ever felt this worse.

Hera watched the night view outside her window. The high skyscrappers and the sound coming from the vehicles beneath her brought her comfort. 

She used to hate them. Seoul was very different from her hometown. The people here are much more distant, the air felt sickening and it felt as if nobody in the city had ever slept during the night. But, she is used to it now. 

Hera put her hair up into a bun, it had grew much more longer than it used to. Hera had never find the time to go to the nearby salon. She had been busy with the store afterall. 

She walked over to the kitchen stealthily. Hera did not bother to turn the lights up, she had lived here for a while now and could properly pointed out where all the furnitures are. 

After taking out a small water bottle with her, she then walked to the living room and propped herself onto the sofa that she barely had the time to sit on. 

The television across her immediately switched on after Hera lifted one of her index finger.

Maybe she was getting old. Hera found herself depending on her witchcraft even more these days. Something the younger version of her would rarely do. 

As Hera was swallowing down the water to quench her thirst, her index finger was busy swiping back and forth as she tried to find something that caught her interest. 

Boring. . Hera grumbled. It was almost 3 a.m. . She knew that the probability of her finding something interesting to watch was low. Most of the programs that were shown are reruns of soap operas, talk shows and also. . documentaries.

Her finger stopped when her gaze catches the closing credit of a documentary about youth unemployment in South Korea. 

The name that appeared on the screen looked very familiar to her yet it felt very foreign now. Jeon Wonwoo was written on the closing credit as the documentary director. 

Her eyes stared at the screen, unblinked. It was as if her gaze was glued to it. She could not seem to tear it away. 

How long has it been. . since she heard his name?

Suddenly the memory of him washed over her. Hera clenched her teeth, her chest felt as if it was about to explode. 

Her heart aches when the pieces of the memories hit her one by one. The memories that she tries to bury deep inside her heart was starting to sneak out. 

And in a blink, Hera lost control of her conciousness. She found herself falling onto the sofa. Her eyelids felt heavy. Hera tried to keep them open yet it felt like a one-sided fight. 

In just a mere second, Hera was engulf into darkness.

"Thank you, please come again!" 

The wide friendly smile on her face immediately washed away after the customer had left the store. The bell that was hung on top of the door frame chimed as the customer closed the glass door to their store.

It had been a very hectic day for the store.. Hera barely had the time to move from the cashier register since this morning. The customer kept on flooding in for her to do so.

The store had always been packed with customers ever since they had first open. It was most probably because people in Seoul rely more on witch doctors than regular ones.

Being a witch had it's advantages in the city. Most of the work position are dominated by witches. Witches are known to be efficient and it is a bonus that they know some sorts of spell like levitation that could help them minimize a company's workload. 

Eventhough she was used to the hectic situation, today in particular, Hera seemed to feel even more exhausted. Probably because of how much sleep she is lacking. 

Hera threw her gaze over to the glass window of their store. Watching the passerby with a blank expression as her eyelids felt heavier as seconds went by.

"Did you not sleep?" A hand waved infront of her.

Hera looked over to Jaeyoung and frowned. "No, I don't think your potion work this time." She slowly rested her cheek on top of the counter. 

Jaeyoung let out a chuckle, arranging the bottle of potions back on their places. Jaeyoung had been her close friend during her time in Lithuanian. 

Both of them were studying medical herbs and potions. It was not a mystery of why the two of them decided to work together and open up a medical store soon after they graduated. 

"I won't give them to you anymore," Jaeyoung said nonchalantly, sticking her tongue out to Hera who quickly raised her head upon hearing her words. 

Hera eyes were as round as a button. "Why!?" She whined, a small pout appeared on her lips.

Jaeyoung had a long pause while her hands were still arranging the packages. It was almost like she was trying to find the perfect way to reason with Hera. 

Jaeyoung shrugged after putting much thought about the matter. "Just because it's bad for you to take the potion in a long period of time."

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