Yuna played guitar on the streets. A melody sprung out of the old instrument; Her fingers calloused from playing the bronze chords so much but it was never any trouble for her. As her fingertips plucked the strings carefully, she sang soft words - almost like a lullaby. Raging feet passed her, some bothered to leave a few bucks in her case, Yuna glanced up to the sky.

Looks like the clouds decided enough was enough. 

Had Yuna not been so careless, she might’ve just missed the rain. The raindrops flew past her sight whilst the top of Yuna’s head got drenched almost immediately. A brief pound occurred in Yuna’s mind causing her to stop singing — not that it would have mattered anyway, no one was going to stop to listen to a random college student sing while it’s raining. The figures of workers, children and families were just faint outlines by now.

 With droplets of rain fluttering off her lips, Yuna, quite dejectedly, released her guitar and let it hang around her neck by the strap.

How much she hated rain. Never being one for jumping in puddings or the clapping thunder, Yuna always got the worst headaches in rain. It was really nothing in particular except for the musty smell. And since mother nature loved Yuna so much, it rained on this spring day.

Searching around for the nearest cover, Yuna fumbled with her case as she spotted a nearby convenience store alongside the strip of buildings. Water splashed into her shoes yet Yuna couldn’t help but think about the condition of her guitar and case. They were quite expensive. She could afford a new guitar, maybe a better one than she had now, but this one was special. It's her first guitar and it already lasted this long, surely it can survive through these harsh conditions.

Finally stopping underneath the awning, Yuna found the need to stay outside the shop because of her... current drenched condition, otherwise she'd be inside in a heart beat.

As the rain increased in strength, Yuna wrapped her arms around herself to prevent shivering from happening. She checked her phone for the time and by now: her roommates would’ve made dinner already. 

Her hatred of rain just may have gone up a tinsy bit. Oh, she could be at home enjoying a delicious homemade dinner but no. She was stuck in the dark clouds and rain. How terrible life really was. Yuna leaned her head against the supporting pole. Nothing else was as tedious as standing out in the rain and waiting for it to stop.

Tuning into her internal radio, Yuna happily hummed songs to herself: a personal favorite, lemon by kenshi yonezu. At least something could keep her happy in this rainy hell. She bounced along to the music and was very tempted to start waving her arms around but no. That'd be a little too much and the store clerk would definitely think she's crazy.

And right when Yuna thought she was having a good time, something stops her. Well, of course with how things are going, nothing ever seems to go Yuna’s way.

She jerked her head to the sound of feet splashing. A girl was running straight at her, sprinting fast and holding her bag above her head; obviously desperate to get out of the rain. Was it just Yuna or did it look like she was running from something? A gasp left as the bright headlights of a car blinded her for a split second and a body slammed into her, seemingly hiding from the — and everything!

Without time to react, Yuna yelled out in horror as water splashed on every possible area on her body and clothes. Standing there frozen (quite literally and figuratively), the water rolled off her face whilst the guitarist blinked in shock. Oh hell no.

She was completely soaked. Before, Yuna could dry off with a few towel rubs but this? This? Oh this, she has to sit out in the sun and wait for her clothes to dry! Of course, Yuna may have forgotten what a washing and dry machine was but let’s ignore that. Though what couldn’t be ignored was the literal stranger hiding behind Yuna’s back, huddled up so no water could be splashed on them. Bitter times.

As a shudder ran through Yuna’s bones, she fixed her dripping bangs, moving them away from her eyes, and whipped the excess water off her hands. Wiping her face with her hands, Yuna let out a long groan and a whine following it. For a few seconds, she did feel angry with this stranger who decided it was a good idea to hide behind someone else to avoid getting splashed by water but beside that; Yuna felt nervous. She didn’t realize how hard the girl was clutching her hoodie. As if she was scared.

The cold feeling vanished and was replaced by heat as soon as the stranger wrapped her arms around her waist and clutched her tightly. What stranger does this? They didn't even seem bothered by the fact that Yuna was a random girl and just so happened to be there to witness a sad, sad water splash. Although, she would’ve felt bad if this girl got splashed by water in front of her so Yuna didn’t mind as much.

Eyes shut of the cold water and head down, a sigh almost left her lips in disappointment. Never did she think she was going to be saving some girl from getting splashed by water. 

“Hey.” Yuna held in her anger and tapped the arms around her. It seemed as if the girl came back to her senses, her movements jerking and clearly embarrassed (or so Yuna liked to think) that she just hid behind her.

“Oh my god!” The girl shrieked making Yuna wince as she turned to face her. ”I’m so so so ing sorry! Holy , I cant believe I just - I'm sorry it was just instinct and, ugh holy hell...” 

Much to Yuna’s surprise, the girl looked a lot more innocent than she thought. The heat on her face increased as she frowned softly. She was about to talk but instead found herself stopped as the stranger frantically patted Yuna’s wet cheeks with a handkerchief. Needless to say, her face became way hotter than it needed to be. And Yuna just hoped that she couldn't see or feel it.

“Ah um…” Yuna found herself speechless as the girl grabbed her hand and wiped the rain water off; every single finger. “It’s… alright I guess.”

The tension rose between the two students with Yuna trying to not watch the girl as she wiped herself down and the latter minding her business. What did Yuna do to deserve this? She seemed nice enough. However, this stranger may be annoyingly cute and nice (maybe a bit tiny too) but who knows, the pink-haired brat could be the devil.

“Why didn’t you stand inside?” She inquired and puffed air into her cheeks.

“Oh... I...” Yuna paused. No matter how irritated with the pink-haired beauty, she chose to remain passive, smiling softly at the girl. “If I did, I wouldn’t have saved your .” 

A glare was given towards Yuna. It was supposed to look angry but instead looked… anything else except the fact — one might argue that the stranger's glare was almost adorable.

The girl blushed, flustered at Yuna’s tactics, and took a step back from her. “Fair enough but if I didn’t come along, you’d probably be getting sick.”

Well, yes. There was no way to argue with that because Yuna already felt her nose run and her temperature rising abnormally. She thought she had a good immune system but it turns out to be the opposite. Rubbing her nose softly, Yuna nodded in agreement.

“I think I’ll get sick either way — that car splashed me quite a bit.” Yuna laughed.

“You might be right about that.” She muttered, locking eyes with Yuna and stared intently into the latter’s pupils. Like she was looking for something. Briefly, Yuna felt uncomfortable with the awkward staring until the stranger broke contact and pivoted towards the sliding glass doors.

“Come on, I’ll buy you something.”

Yuna’s eyebrow cocked up. “What? You really don’t have to do that-“

“Just... as a thanks for saving me.” A hand grasped Yuna’s wrist loosely, pulling her into the brightly lit store and for that blinding moment: Yuna swore she saw a tint of red on the girl’s cheeks. Letting herself be dragged along, a thought came to mind. She didn’t even know this girl’s name.

As the pink-haired stranger left her side to presumingly buy something, Yuna watched keenly while the girl grabbed multiple things from the shelf. A smile creeped onto Yuna’s lips. She looked like she was having so much trouble trying to hold the various food and drinks in her arms. Yuna wasn’t about to help her until the girl stumbled. The look of fear (for dropping her precious ramen) flashed in her eyes but before anything worse could happen, Yuna walked over.

“You're a klutz, you know that?" The taller took the things from her hands. 

“Hey! What are you doing?!” She sputtered, clearly embarrassed by the fact Yuna has to save her yet again. “It was supposed to be a surprise!”

Yuna only rolled her eyes at the statement. “We could be eating this…” She gestured to the ramen. “...instead of arguing about a surprise.”

The girl clicked her tongue and walked ahead of Yuna towards the cashier.

And if she was being completely honest, the stranger did look adorable right then and there. A soft smile formed on her lips as Yuna quickly followed behind like a lost puppy. The stranger had already started to pay, mumbling about cooking the ramen for them to which the cashier had no cares about. She took the plastic bag of other purchased items and waited with Yuna alongside the window seats for their ramen to be cooked.

“So,” Yuna looked over. “I didn’t get your name.”

She looked almost reluctant to give name and frankly, Yuna understood that well although in a different manner. Names were interesting after all, especially when you're part of a prestigious family but no one needed to know that.

“You can just call me Eunbi.”

Eunbi. Such a common name nevertheless it fit the short girl in a way Yuna couldn’t describe. It made her fight the urge to want to pat her head but she knew that was out of line.

Yuna opened to speak. She was a Choi; what would other people think of her? Sure she was a rich girl from a rich family but would this Eunbi even know who she was? For a brief moment, Yuna was going to say her full name then again, Eunbi didn’t even bother to say her family name.

“I’m Yuna.”

The cashier called Eunbi out for the ramen and since Yuna was so nice, she decided to help her carry the steaming cups. 

Yuna placed her cup, nose wrinkling as steam rose into her nostrils, and sat down at the window. She stared out the glass; fascinated at the misty scenery. It felt weird to be eating ramen with a stranger yet it wasn’t uncomfortable. Even with how much they seemed different, Yuna found herself relaxed.

A plastic bottle was put next to her as Eunbi sat down, giving Yuna a shy smile. “Here, pepsi is the best with ramen.” She said like a sponsor for the brand.

Breaking the chopsticks, Yuna thanked her silently before digging into her small meal for the day. The noodles were still semi-hard but she wasn’t about to complain as the warm broth heat her cold body. In the meantime, Yuna quickly grabbed a crumpled piece of paper from her surprisingly damp coat pocket, smoothing it out with one hand, and stared at the drowned-out graphite. If anybody else looked at the words, it’d look like a mad man’s writing. But Yuna could understand everything. The meaning behind every single word, the symbolism and secret things she’ll never tell about certain sentences.

The sight of her damp and crinkled sheet saddened Yuna, sighing as she pushed it aside.

“You write music?” Eunbi said with her cheeks full of ramen noodles.

“Yeah, in my free time I guess.”

Feeling the stare burning into her side, Yuna looked at Eunbi who was... well, she didn’t know what exactly the girl was doing but when she locked eyes with her, Eunbi’s head jerked away. A grin creeped onto her lips and laughed softly lightly.

“Why? Are you curious?”

The latter turned to her with a small frown. “Well, I… just feel sort of bad because your guitar…”

“My guitar?” Yuna laughed although she couldn’t deny the cold sweat forming on her temples. Standing up from the chair, she inspected her wet guitar carefully and quickly realized what Eunbi was referring to. Her precious, one of a kind and beautiful black acoustic! It was soaking wet and more than likely filled with water. Yuna removed the strap around her next and kneeled on the ground with her distraught-looking instrument, taking off her hoodie to wipe it down. Until Yuna realized she was dumb and her hoodie was more soaked than her guitar.

A long groan came from the back of , falling down in frustration.

“Eunbi…” Yuna looked up at the ramen eating girl. “Do you have anything I can wipe it with?”

A towel was thrown at Yuna’s face, and thanks to her quick reflexes, she caught the fabric and wasted no time wiping down her wooden guitar. Though by how long it was filled and drenched with water, Yuna didn’t know if it could survive.

“Ah , this isn’t going to work!” Yuna whined and stood back up.

The latter looked down at her guitar, shrugging  before kneeling to trace the neck. “It looks and feels dry to me.” 

Yuna shook her head. “Yeah but it’s been wet for too long and — agh I’ll just get it checked out, whatever.”

Eunbi watched silently as Yuna, in a slumped form, picked up her guitar and placed it into the drying case. The caution in Yuna’s eye was practically gone. Like she had no hope for it anymore.

“I’m sorry.” Eunbi blurted out. “I can pay for repairs.”

Yuna stopped her movements. She blinked quickly, considering Eunbi’s kind gesture but she didn’t need the payment. All Yuna cared about was if the condition of her guitar was okay. Paying for the repairs was just the quick and easy part, plus it wasn’t like she didn’t have money.

“It’s not your fault.” The girl sighed, leaving her guitar in the case propped up against the wall. “And you don’t need to pay for anything, it’s my fault for not checking the weather before coming out.”

“Well it’s also the weather app's fault for not saying the correct thing!” Eunbi argued back. She looked at Yuna with shy but bright eyes, tempted to grasp Yuna’s calloused hands and convince her to let her do something. After all, she was the one who hid behind her and made her wet in the first place. 

“Please let me help you with something, I’d feel bad if I didn’t.”

She couldn’t exactly refuse, could she? Yuna sighed. Eunbi already paid for her instant ramen already and a soda, the girl already did more than enough but now she was insisting to do even more? Not that Yuna appreciates her kindness though Eunbi did her a favor of buying food.

“I really don’t know, you’ve already bought me food. I have no requests.” Yuna looked at her music sheet, staring at the faint words and crinkled edges. Something swirled deep in her mind, words suddenly appearing on the page as the melody continued. Her eyes widened, humming the melody as she grabbed her phone out of her pocket.

“Is it like the rain on a summer night?” Yuna paused, taking in a sharp breath before continuing. “Like a rain shower that passes without an umbrella.”

She could feel the strange look that Eunbi was giving her but Yuna could care less.

Stopping the recording with satisfaction, Yuna gestured to Eunbi for something to write with. The girl shuffled through her bag and grabbed a pencil, handing it to Yuna who took it out of her hands graciously. Silence remained between the two for a moment with Yuna writing down random lyrics and Eunbi watching in amazement. She hummed the words she could only understand and gasped in satisfaction.

“Yuna…?” Eunbi said shyly but the girl didn’t listen as she grabbed her phone yet again and put the microphone by her lips.

“Suddenly you came to me, wordlessly passing by. I tried walking faster but I couldn’t avoid it.” She sang softly, still not sure if it even sounded right but Yuna trusted herself.

A rush of inspiration flowed through her veins, her surroundings brightening in the stardust that appeared before her. Yuna blinked awkwardly at where she was. It wasn’t the white lights of the convenience store — rather it was more of the opposite. Stepping forward into the water, Yuna found herself relaxed at the banished sight of rain. She looked around curiously, lowering to touch the silky water beneath her feet. It reflected the clouds and blue sky above her, the world looking like an endless mirror. Then the stardust reappeared. It danced around her, almost playfully, and dropped into Yuna’s awaiting palm.

Until she was forced back to reality as a hand shook her shoulder frantically.

“Yuna? Hey I know I just met you but you can’t just blank out on me like that—“

The girl snapped her head towards Eunbi with stars in her eyes and a bright smile.

“Is that favor still in the air?” Yuna inquired.

Eunbi seemed more than excited, an imaginary tail wagging behind her like a puppy, and nodded frantically. “Yes! Of course!”

The mirrored ocean flashed in Yuna’s eyes. This could be her chance. She was serious, she’d always been serious about her music and she wanted others to understand the words that meant everything to her. Yuna was ready. Ever since she met the love of her life, she’s been ready.

“Can you… help me with my song?”

Except she needed a bit of help.

But that sleepless night, Yuna didn't really know what her words meant or what she was writing for. The purple clouds rushed over her head, raining on her frozen figure as she stood at a building's feet. She didn't dare to look up. The sight made her want to puke.

"What is the thing you desire most?"