Jieun absent-mindedly sat on the bench. Her mind has so many thoughts running through it that she felt it might explode anytime soon. The realization that she’s head over heels in love with Jihoon should not come as a surprise to her, but it strangely did. Big time.

When she found herself worrying senseless about where he was, or how he is coping, it came so naturally that she didn’t put too much stock on it. The thing is, even when she’d decided not to “love” him in an “artist – fan” type of way, she couldn’t deny that there were days when she wondered about him. When she would hear news about him every now and then, she felt a pang of longing – the kind you feel when you think about an old friend from your childhood, or your mom’s homemade cookies which you loved as a kid.

But this time, she can tell it’s different. It’s different because it made her heart hurt in an indescribable way. She knew loving Jihoon from afar was hopeless even before (and she knew it was kind of stupid – the kind of “love” teenage girls go through but grow out of eventually), but even more so now that she knows he’s still hung up with Taehee and after she’d heard what he has to say about their “friendship”. It’s not even as if she’s hoping they could be something more than friends; what hurt was how her perception of them being friends was not even real – at least that’s what Jihoon’s words seemed to say.

He said he’s tolerating me.

That’s the worst part of it all. Because if anything, she thought they are truly friends. But apparently, they aren’t.

This is exactly why she never liked being close to people she’s working with. She usually assumes the best out of the people she meets and it usually ends up badly. Only Si Eon and Eana became close friends, all others were either just acquaintances she worked with once or twice; or worse people whom she thought were family, but were actually not. Her mind drifted towards memories she’d rather not think about. Just in time to save her from her overactive imagination, a man approached her.

“Excuse me miss, are you waiting for the bus to Seoul?”

“Yes.”

A worried expression painted the man’s face.  “The buses are running late. There’s a storm coming and the streets going to the county are flooded.”

It was only then that she noticed that it was raining pretty hard. She just managed to nod in response. The man reassured to give an update in case the schedules change.

Great, now even the heavens are in complete sync with this disastrous day.

She felt through her pocket, expecting to find her phone – but it isn’t there. She tried the other pocket and it isn’t there either. Hopeless. She has no cash and no means to call Si Eon for help. Not to mention she has no idea how to go back to JIhoon’s place from the bus terminal – which is her last resort.

I need to get my phone. It’s my ticket to get out of here.

Her pride won’t let her go back to Jihoon’s place now. Not that she could – because there was a torrential downpour outside. The wind also started getting stronger that a low howling sound could be heard.

Trying her luck, Jieun went out to see if she could hitch a ride from any passing vehicles. She stayed underneath a small shed along the road, which didn’t protect her very well from the rain. After a few minutes of staring at an empty road, she decided it was better to just wait it out inside the bus terminal. Shivering from the cold and feeling deflated, she ran towards the shelter of the terminal building.

**

The clock told her she’s been waiting for more than an hour and the weather seemed to get worse. She could also feel the beginnings of a cold coming.

The man who approached her earlier, probably a staff from the bus terminal, has not given her any update on what’s going to happen. Her best guess is that there will be no trips to Seoul anytime soon.

With heavy sigh, she got up from her seat and approached the ticket booth, where the man was sitting. She noticed that she was the only passenger waiting, not that the terminal had a bustling crowd when she arrived earlier.

“Hi, I just wanted to confirm of the buses aren’t coming.”

The man slid the glass window and gave her a disappointed look before responding.