Twenty two - Rome is built in ruins
let me hear your thoughtsJimin is overreacting.
At least, that's what her dad thinks.
Jung-dae knew right away that his daughter knows about his past, it's nothing that he can really keep from her daughter, especially when they're both in the same room where Jimin can hear everyone's thoughts.
He should have known it. The moment Jimin has told him about Winter, he should have realized that it must be something about that reading that they got when they were eighteen. He should have remembered about it, but it never really occurred to him until he saw his past lover again.
Maybe, he didn't remember because he never really believed it.
But seeing Tae-hee with her daughter, his mind instantly went to that old booth, finally realizing that Jimin's gift of hearing other people's thoughts is what that woman meant.
"Why are you so quiet?" Jung-dae asked his daughter on their drive back home. "Why did you suddenly decide you didn't want to sleep over?"
"You're really asking me that, Appa?" Jimin answered sarcastically as if it's an actual ridiculous question to ask.
"Yes, is there something wrong?" He added.
"Oh nothing, maybe that Winter is the daughter of your first love, nothing biggie." Jimin spat, eyes trained outside.
"Watch your tone young lady." Jung-dae warned. "Besides, that was all over, we were young and dumb and it didn't work out."
Jimin didn't answer.
"Believe me, it's all over. I don't feel anything for her anymore. Ji, I had few other girlfriends after her." He chuckled.
"That's not what I'm worried about." Jimin murmured.
"I don't see any problem, Ji. I told you, that was all in the past."
"She knows something." Jimin commented. "You don't remember the details, do you?" Jimin asked, looking at her father for the first time since they started driving.
"The details of what?"
"I heard from Winter's mom's thoughts..." Jimin said, "I heard that if she gets too close to me, she'll get hurt." Jimin said worriedly.
Jung-dae was not sure what his daughter meant. He cursed internally for not believing the old woman back then, and for not remembering anything that was said.
"It's not your fault, sorry. I was just..." Jimin said, sighing. "I was just worried. I don't know what it meant, but I don't want her to get hurt."
"Do you want to know why I never believed anything like that before, Ji?" Jimin heard her father say. "It's because knowing things like that.. Like those... They make you act on things you thought you're certain of." He hit the brakes as they come unto red light. "If you know what your future will be, will your actions cause your future, or are you unknowingly letting it come true because you know it's going to happen?" He added.
"Alternatively, if you try to change it because you know what's going to happen, are you unconsciously driving your actions to your destiny, or is it actually destined to happen that way?" Jung-dae said before driving again.
"Ji, what I'm saying is, don't let any of those things affect your actions and decisions. At the end of the day, you have your free will, and all your actions are your own responsibility. Not anyone's, not some stupid reading's."
-
Karina decided that she cannot leave it all to fate.
If there's anything that she's too afraid to happen, that would be Winter getting hurt.
So she decided to distance herself and let the girl live her normal life. Something she'll never really have if she's with Karina. Something that Karina herself will never experience again, and Winter letting her experience it for a bit is already enough.
The first day was the hardest. Whenever she sees Winter's loopy grin, wanted to reflect the same thing. Whenever Winter would reach out to touch her, she would internally cave and wish she had let her. Whenever Winter tries to talk to her, she never wanted anything but to answer her and listen to her talk about things she's passionate about.
Whenever she hears Winter's disappointed thoughts, her heart felt like it's being shattered into million pieces.
Karina would watch her phone light up and read the notifications from her lock screen, unsure if she's laughing or crying or both whenever she sees Winter trying.
She wanted to unlock her phone and open Winter's messages, tell her she's a dork, tell her she's too cheesy, but prevents herself from doing so because she thinks she's doing the right thing.
Min-min baby: min-min unnie...
Karina stares at the screen, thumb hovering over the notification she wanted to open really bad.
Min-min baby: min-min baby is hungry
This baby... Karina knows she's missing her big baby so much.
Min-min baby: min-min baby needs cookies and milk
Karina almost lost her resolution, almost clicked on the notification, almost let herself succumb to the feeling, and just let it all go.
Min-min baby: ☹️
But Karina thinks how she never wanted Winter to get hurt, how she would do anything to prevent bad things from happening to her.
So she turns off her phone and cried herself to sleep again.
-
Karina tries so hard not to look at Winter whenever she tries to talk to her whilst at school. Karina almost wanted to give in every lunch and just join her. Karina would ignore the looks their friends would give her, unable to explain why she's avoiding the younger.
"Unnie, were you able to finish Miss Bae's homework?"
"Yes."
Yes, but it took me a long time because I would think about you in between, so I had to rewrite it four times because I would end up doodling your name instead.
"How about that project in chemistry?"
"Yes."
Yes, but I almost burned the whole house down because I was not paying attention to the chemicals I'm supposed to mix, not paying attention to the directions in the book, not paying attention to anything really because all I think about is you.
"How about—"
Karina puts on her AirPods and went back to doodling snowflakes, the songs on her phone not even helping her the slightest to cover Winter's thoughts about her.
This is torture..
-
Karina stops in her tracks when she heard Winter's voice booming in the campus speakers.
"This is the last one I'll be reading guys, but continue to send your messages and we'll go through it first thing tomorrow! Here's the final message.." Karina hears a pause from the speakers.
"To Min-min unnie, from your Min-min baby: I'm still waiting
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