“And The Game Begins”

And in the end, nobody wins when love begins to fall apart

And it's the innocent who pay when broken dreams get in the way

The game begins, the game nobody wins

{ Nobody Wins, Elton John }

Park Bom blankly stared at the warm caffé latte, the very first coffee beverage she made in her new job. She has been kept on a daze for quite a time now, trying to deem Donghae’s manner this past hour. He had brought Bom in this coffee shop, and she was thankful for that. But what have been bothering her were his sudden changes of attitude. Yesterday, when the conversation about her taking the job or not, Donghae went cold, and now – he was back to his old self – the coy Donghae – just like what he was when they first met. Sometimes, humans can be so hard to decipher.

“Bommie-ah,” she woke from her trance when she heard her new friend’s voice. Bom looked back, and smiled.

Gong Minji was a very sweet girl. But despite of that ambiance of her, Bom knew that this young girl had been through tough times. They just met a while ago when Donghae introduced her to the shop’s crew. It turned out that this was where Sunny, Donghae’s younger sister, had worked. That was why Donghae knew the crew so well. He said to her while they were walking their way to the shop that he had been always the one to fetch Sunny every time her time of work was over. And so far, Bom liked it here. At least she could busy her self, and be surrounded by nice people.

“What is it?” Bom asked.

“The caffé latte order from the old woman, is it ready?” Minji replied, her tone cautious.

“Ah! Yes – here is it,” her stiff posture a while ago soon vanished. She turned back, and held the warm mug, her smile was so wide. She smelled it, and the aroma of the coffee lingered in her nose. Must be fine, she thought.

“Here it is. Made with much care and love!” she extended her hand. Minji smiled before accepting the warm mug into her own hands, and muttered a small thank you, and then exited the area. Bom watched closely as Minji gave the mug to the old woman near the windows of the shop. She noticed that old woman was alone, and it brought a slight twitch in her chest, remembering old friends. She has always adored old people. She thought that they were the ones who were in most need of care from an affectionate individual.

Bom just stood there, frozen on her position. She watched her co-workers drift around the room. Kang Daesung – a warm-hearted boy whose smile never left his lips. Gong Minji – shy from the start, but when you had tried to see into her soul, you would find a strong-spirited girl.

The shop wasn’t that big, but was enough to accommodate their everyday customers. It was located a few blocks away from their house, and has a route of not hard to memorize. She also found out this morning that Donghae found a new job – thankfully – in a shopping center not so far from the coffee shop. So far, her job wasn’t giving her any difficulty. She wondered how long she would be doing this. She still has another job to fulfill, and she was hoping that this whole café thing wouldn’t be a burden in doing so.

***

Choi Seunghyun threw the tools inside the toolbox, and closed it vehemently. He wiped his greasy calloused hands on his pants, turning back to the 1958 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud he had repaired a while ago. He smiled to himself, proud of what he had done. Slowly, the life he had back then was starting to come back. His surely missed his last mobile, but this new baby in front of him dismissed every little thought about it.

“A beauty, isn’t?” Teddy placed a small pat on Seunghyun’s back. He gave this little gift to Seunghyun last night, and the younger man couldn’t get his hands off of the car and quickly started to work on it. It was a color of navy blue, and still looked brand new.

“This is interesting,” Seunghyun remarked. “And I can see where this is going. So tell me, where’d you get this?”

“Come on,” Teddy let out a dry laugh. “You don’t ask your people where they got their gifts for you. You don’t do that.”

Seunghyun arched an eyebrow. “Just make sure this is not going to get me in trouble,”

“Got that,” Teddy playfully winked and dug into his pocket for the keys. He threw it to Seunghyun’s direction and said, “Let’s check out how sick this baby is.”

***

Park Bom mulled over the newspaper on the table. Her new circle of friends around her was busy chatting and almost finished eating their lunch, and there she was – not feeling well. She didn’t have the appetite of taking any food right now. She felt nauseous and dizzy – even more when she took the medicine given to her by Donghae a while ago.

“Still not feeling well?” Donghae mumbled, tidbits of rice falling from his mouth.

Bom chuckled at the sight. “Still not feeling well,” she answered. She didn’t know why she suddenly felt ill, but one thing’s for sure – it was getting worse as time went by.

“You should have eaten something, Bommie-ah,” Daesung concernedly said.

There were no informalities. Just like that, the three – Minji, Daesung, and Bom – clicked. Bom knew that they were good people. Their kindness radiated, and she took it as a good sign.

“No,” she shook her head. “I think it’ll get worse if I eat something.”

“Bommie-ah,” Minji cooed. “At least drink that milk,”

“Yeah,” Donghae and Daesung said in union.

Bom glanced at the small glass of milk Donghae ordered for her a while ago. When he asked her what she wanted, she said milk was her favorite and she was not in mood for ordering a decent meal. Donghae pursued on getting something for her but Bom declined amiably.

She took the glass of milk in her hands, and drank. She glanced at the three who were smiling. She smiled back, only to be halted by Donghae pointing the presumably smudge of milk on her philtrum. She wiped it with the back of her hands. Maybe it was because of comfortable vibe oozing from the four and the quick connection of familiarity that brought them closer than before that they finished their meals smiling.

***

“I don’t really know what’s impressive – this ing car or your driving!” Teddy shouted at the top of his lungs as Seunghyun was driving at full speed. The town was pretty small, but there was this spacious place near the main road where most of the time was fully vacant. To be summed up, the thoroughfare itself has multiple forks – totally accommodating at times like this.

Seunghyun took a sharp turn as he spotted a dead end ahead of them. Teddy yelled at the sudden act, and then dropped the fabricating annoyance when he realized his companion’s reason. Seunghyun stepped on the gas pedal harder, and drove in full pace.

“You need to treat me for that!” Teddy shouted amid the violent wind going against their direction. He knew that Seunghyun knew that he wasn’t mad at anything. It was just his way of getting a free lunch – that was all – though he knew Seunghyun couldn’t possibly grant his dumb request considering the circumstances.

“You’re full of , Teddy,” they both laughed at Seunghyun’s statement, propelling to the end of the road – if there is any, conquering all the frail as they wished for a good stop.

***

Lunch time was pleasant. They were gone for a mean time, and left the managing of the shop to cousins Kim Taeyeon and Kwon Yuri. Donghae got back to his work and so did the three. The three muttered genuine thank yous to the cousins who were ever so patient with taking over when the two – and now three – were in need of help. Taeyeon and Yuri got back to their own businesses Bom didn’t bother asking.

And now that they were back on their work in the café, everything suddenly got uplifted. It was another windy and exhausting afternoon, and their customers were coming in extra numbers today. Good thing they had came back before it happened because Minji and Daesung were sure that the cousins has so many subtleties and working in a place like this was one of them.

Bom was starting to cave in, and she didn’t like it. This was her first day of work. She was supposed to make an impression to her coworkers – and herself, and not be a scrawny neophyte. And with the fact that the two were totally fine with it made her feel guiltier.

“Take a rest, Bommie-ah,” Minji soothed, caressing her back. She helped Bom to take a seat behind the counter while Daesung was scurrying everywhere because of the sudden outburst of costumers.

Bom didn’t want to fret over it – thinking that it would result to more pain for her – but she just couldn’t. Feeling another squeeze inside her brain, she stood up and smiled at Minji. “I will be all right,” she paced toward the counter. “Now go – let’s work.”

Minji was supposed to say another word about it but didn’t when she hear a faint shout from the back of their small café. She nodded her head and smiled to Bom, and got back to work.

The sunlight passing through the glass wall at Bom’s right wasn’t helping. She could barely open her eyes at the direction, and the heat was almost painful. She swallowed the lump building in , moving her body as she started to work, defying every ache she was feeling.

***

Seunghyun hastily parked his new car outside a small café house. He had seen this shop already for a few times and now was the only time he would take the chance to open its glass door. He glanced at Teddy only to see him smiling so smugly. “What’s with that smirk on your face?”

Teddy rolled his eyes at Seunghyun before saying, “I say you’re too preoccupied. Look at these people around you,”

Seunghyun did so. He must be really preoccupied for not noticing the stares they – or rather their car has been receiving. He presumed that this whole stare-and-whisper issue didn’t just start now; it must have been since he put the key in ignition.

He couldn’t care less, anyway. He darted off and left Teddy drowning in his little delight. He pushed the door with the back of palm, his silver ring on his forefinger roughly making contact. His eyes automatically roamed around the room. He noticed that the room was so near to being filled up and the two people vexing over the fact. He stepped forward, planning to take the table at the far right when he heard an awfully familiar voice.

His head snapped pretty quickly to his left. He found the counter area and an old woman with her back facing him. She was talking to another girl whom face he couldn’t see because the old woman was blocking her from his eyesight. The woman, then, received this small platter of a slice of cake, and bowed. Now Seunghyun could see the other girl very clearly.

He didn’t like the sight.

He subconsciously sighed. For a moment, he considered that the girl wasn’t the same person he saw days ago for the girl a few steps away from him didn’t look very stirring as the first impression he had laid on her, but then – her voice.

Teddy followed his buddy’s gaze, and caught a view of a lady whom he considered lovely. He shook his head, walking to Seunghyun. He hit his back to get him out his, allegedly, sea of spell. “Pretty – that’s nice. But not really your type,”

Seunghyun coughed. “What does that mean?”

“I’ll give her a nine,” Teddy raised an eyebrow, grinning. “What do you think?”

“I think that we should get the hell out of here,” Seunghyun said, walking towards the door. Quick entrance, quick exit. He didn’t like any further fuss, and this girl at the counter would surely not help. “I’m not in the mood for a coffee.”

“Come on, what’s wrong?” Teddy recoiled, blocking Seunghyun’s way out.

That’s right – Seunghyun didn’t like any further fuss, so he took a seat and zipped his mouth. Only, his eyes spoke for him. He looked at Teddy intensely that the guy could only raise his palms up in surrender. Teddy strode over the counter area, and began his business.

Seunghyun took the seat where he was facing the glass wall. A few moments later, a boy whose face he couldn’t forget almost entered. Almost. The boy retreated when he spotted Seunghyun, his face showing all the fear he has for him. Face? Oh yeah, that long jagged scar which started from the boy’s right cheek down to his chin was inflicted by none other than Seunghyun. Choi felt a jolt of pride. After all these years, he was still feared. That’s right, buddy. You fear the right person.

Teddy took the seat in front of Seunghyun. An exasperated sigh came from his mouth. “That’s chick’s pretty, but disappointing,” he shook his head as he leant back to his chair. “You can’t even talk to her properly.”

Seunghyun sneaked a glance at the counter area. Can’t talk to her properly? Hell yeah, you can’t, he smirked.

“Anyway, remember the phone I received call last night?” Teddy asked. “’s getting good. In a short time, our lives will get pretty kickass.”

Seunghyun let himself get drenched in his thoughts for a little while. Teddy wasn’t giving him a useful chunk of information on his affairs outside the town. He was used to it, but he was pretty sure that this business Teddy has on his pocket was huge. He didn’t the idea of being his pawn all day and night, though he had accepted it by the fact that Teddy knew his – and he trusted the man.

“Excuse me?” a shy voice came suddenly.

Teddy and Seunghyun looked at their sides, and found a boy blissfully smiling down at them.

“Already ordered-”

“Yes,” Teddy cut him. “Got them.”

“Okay, thank you,” the boy bowed, and scurried away.

Seunghyun found himself following the man with his gaze. Seconds later, his eyes landed on the girl at the counter area. Something has changed with her look – he figured. It’s very noticeable – her eyes were droopy right now when back then, Seunghyun remembered, those eyes just magically shone – like stars burning bright. Fast paced and short lasting.

He sneered at himself. Stars burning bright? Never had he thought he has a spirit wanting to be a poet. How pathetic.

A few moments later, he found another girl at his side. She practically gave their orders, and walked away. He looked at the food now placed on the table, and felt his stomach grumbled. Starving – he was just starving, he explained to himself, but it seemed like he was convincing himself more.

“Anyway,” Teddy mumbled. “Where was I?”

Seunghyun just stared at him. He didn’t know the answer to his question.

“Oh, forget it,” Teddy said gloomily, cutting Seunghyun’s thinking thread that hadn’t even begun. “This one’s a treat,”

Seunghyun yet again stared at Teddy, and eventually the piece of cake on his fork on mid-air. Teddy swallowed it, and let out a moan which Seunghyun took as a delighted whimper. A minute didn’t even pass, and Teddy had already finished the slice of vanilla flavored cake.

Seunghyun was just on his second bite of the delicious peach mango flavored pastry Teddy had ordered for him when he heard a clatter of breaking plate or cup– he wasn’t sure. His head snapped quickly to his right where the sound came.

Bom couldn’t anymore stand her ground. The mug slipped from her hands, causing the people at the café look at her. She muttered audible apologies. She couldn’t even see straight right now. Her head was spinning and white hazy circles where forming in her eyesight. She noticed Minji was already on her side, keeping her from falling down. She was telling something, but her head was in no mood of analyzing what she was hearing. Minji kept blabbering near her ears as she fought hard to keep her stand. She sat down and started to speak in quite incoherent way. She muttered things like she was fine, and Minji shouldn’t mind her which completely didn’t make sense seeing her present condition – it was just a way out.

Dragged by the demanding number of customers, Minji left Bom, and got back to work. Bom uttered a soft sorry, and Minji accepted it with considering eyes of hers.

Seunghyun didn’t exactly know why his eyes were kept pulled by the girl’s presence. He felt a sense of familiarity – something between them considered them as acquaintances. Though covered by different thoughts, the connection Seunghyun has with the girl kept sending faint jolts of stimulating notions that he failed to decode.

Teddy finished his last gulp of cream frappucino he had ordered. He sighed with a smile on his face. This place has good food, and he considered coming back. He looked at Seunghyun who kept fidgeting his fork and playing the tiny bits of cake left on his plate.

“Hey,” he thumped on the table thinking that it might get Seunghyun’s attention – and it did. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

Teddy stood up, and dug on his pocket, searching for bills to pay their lovely meal. He carelessly dropped the money on the table, and strode his way out. Seunghyun soon followed.

Seunghyun was already pulling out his car from the faded yellow strip line which perfectly boxed it when Teddy groaned. He said that his house keys were not on his pocket so he tried searching around the car. He ducked down, starting his little hunt, and Seunghyun stayed still, though that meant that their attention-grabbing car would strut on the middle of the small street.

Before Teddy could even pick up his keys that he found just under the passenger seat, a loud gagging sound from the back caught their attention. Their responses were instinctively quick. Turned out that the girl from days ago didn’t just have a weird prose, but a pretty unladylike manner for she just puked all over the rear of the car.

“Pretty but could be really disgusting,” Teddy groaned. In situations like this, Teddy would always the one to step up. He was the wise man of the team, and had always acted as the speaker. Situations like this are his expertise of doing and solving, so Seunghyun let him do the work. He watched him at the side mirror.

Teddy patted the girl’s back as he muttered words of comfort, and it made Seunghyun feel like throwing up. If there’s one thing that shone as the brightest difference between the two, it’s their way of working things out. Teddy had always been the ‘we’ll get there’ type of man – patient and very meticulous of what he did while Seunghyun had always been the ‘I’ll do what I like’ type – brutally reckless and intolerant.  

 “Still not done there?” Seunghyun groaned. Boy was he getting impatient. He eyed the two at the mirror, the girl was done with her vomiting – good thing he couldn’t see what she had done because he was damn sure it was nasty – and he could see on Teddy’s face that he was starting to regret getting out of the car. He couldn’t help but to smirk and shook his head.

Seunghyun looked back, and saw the girl entering the shop. He thought that it must be over but he was proven wrong when Teddy came to his side and said, “She said she’s going to get something to clean her mess,”

Seunghyun couldn’t decide if he agrees or disagree on the girl’s thinking. He was convinced that her mess should be cleaned, but something was holding him back – he didn’t like waiting and getting himself into nonsense tribulation.

“Here she is,” Teddy informed. “Wait here,”

Seunghyun waited some more minutes, and when he looked back, the girl and Teddy were chatting. It annoyed him. “Dammit,” he cursed, and hopped off the car. What was Teddy thinking exchanging words with this nuisance?

He checked the tire and found no trace of disgusting vomit. “Seriously, man?”

Teddy glanced to him for a little while and Seunghyun saw a glint in his eyes. Seunghyun perfectly knew what it meant, and it just annoyed him further.

“Get in the car, Teddy,” he said, crossing his arms.

“I think your friend needs you now,” the girl from days ago said. She glanced at Seunghyun.

It took several seconds before Bom recognized the man before her. “You…” Choi Seunghyun – her temporary charge. She silently thanked God for letting him come towards her – it meant less difficulty – for now.

The glistening of her eyes didn’t escape Teddy’s eyes. He looked at Seunghyun. Just like that and they were locked in a gaze. There was something blaring from each other’s eyes that could mean something more than an unlucky incidence. Somehow, the invisible string connecting Bom and Seunghyun left Teddy out of the circle only abided for people cut from the same cloth.

The three of them were in silence for a few moments. Choi Seunghyun chose to break it, cutting his gaze with the girl. He didn’t need to look at Teddy when he said, “Get in the car,” and in a blink of an eye, he was already starting the car.

Teddy followed few moments after he asked the girl what was her name. Bom gave her full name, thinking that it might be a huge help since this guy who introduced himself as Teddy seemed like a friend of Seunghyun. She knew she needed something – or someone to connect her with him. Maybe Teddy was the one.

Bom watched the car drift off away from her.

Something inside her brain flicked, and she run off towards the car. How could she be so foolish to let Seunghyun away from her again? She should be making a way to stay close to him. She was becoming a huge disappointment, and she knew it.

“No, wait!” Seunghyun heard a shriek. He looked at the side mirror. He tried to step on the gas pedal a little bit harder, but he was too late. That girl can run.

It became worse when he found himself stopping. The girl, panting, was now on his side. And he could have sworn, he really couldn’t stand being close with this girl. He just couldn’t and he didn’t know why.

“Goddammit, what do you want?” he bellowed. Maybe it was a wrong move to look at her eyes because he always found himself locked in a peculiar gaze, but there was this shudder in every snap of eye connection that he found himself both frightened – but he wouldn’t admit, and being pulled to a whole another universe.

“You remember me, right?” she whispered.

“You know each other?” Teddy asked from nowhere. Apparently, his presence was so forgotten that the two almost wondered where the voice came from.

“No,”

“Yes,”

Seunghyun and Bom, respectively, said in unison.

“Oh, you haven’t mentioned her to me, Seunghyun,” Teddy chuckled.

“I told you I don’t know her,” Seunghyun snapped.

“Excuse me, lady, but,” Teddy toned his voice down and whispered to Seunghyun, “is she one of your hook-ups?”

The man in question could only roll his eyes. “Does she look like my type?”

“You didn’t answer my question,”

Seunghyun hit the wheel, almost laughing to himself, and said in a profound voice, “No, she is not,”

“Okay,” Teddy retreated, leaning back to his seat. “Good,”

Sensing that his business with Teddy was over, Seunghyun looked back to the girl on his left.

Bom smiled at Seunghyun. “Can I have a minute with you?” She glanced at Teddy for approval.

“Go on,” he said. “It’s interesting that I don’t know what’s going on,” he laughed really loud. He received odd stares in response. Not what he expected. Okay, fine.

“Please?” Bom whispered, only determination could be heard in her tone.

“No,” Seunghyun said harshly. “I don’t have a second and surely I don’t have a minute,” he arched an eyebrow at her. “So if you don’t want to be dragged around the town, better remove your hands off of the car.”

And as soon as Bom removed her hands, Seunghyun drove on so fast that she didn’t have any chance to utter more words. She felt like throwing up once again. She didn’t know what to do to get to him. And if chance didn’t let them fall together, she was guessing that she still hadn’t laid her eyes on him since their first encounter. A feeling she couldn’t figure out started to creep in. How could that guy be so tough? She was annoyed to him but more to herself. She groaned and kicked the asphalt ground. Pulled by unknown feeling, she let the thought that Seunghyun – a mere human was stronger than her. But she wise enough to tell that you don’t have to be the stronger one to win the match. If she could be the smarter one, she would definitely see herself standing alongside the victory lane.

Teddy’s nonsense talks were trampled by the loud beating of Seunghyun’s chest. Nobody had let him feel this way before. It was a different sentiment, something he still didn’t know.  And it pulled him farther to the side where that girl was not on. He was sure it wouldn’t be their last meeting, and when the next time came, he knew he would be damned.  

{Author's Note} I'm sorry if this took a long time to be put up. And yes,  it was just a little springtempo interaction. Let's take it slow. Hihihi. And oh,  we already have a poster for The Archangel's Flight! Yipee!