The bus door slid open, and Hyoyeon quickly moved inside, to get out of the lashing rain. She smiled to the bus driver (the same man as ever), paid for her ticket and looked for an empty seat.

The bus was filled with many different people heading to work or school or college, all sleepy after the weekend. 

The only seat she could spot was near the back, next to a boy she'd never seen before. She was used to this, nearly every day she ended up sitting beside a complete stranger. Hyoyeon moved down the aisle and sat in the unoccupied seat, giving the boy a smile and sliding her dance gear under the seat. He studied her for a moment before giving a gummy smile back to her. 

He sat facing forward, his hands on his knees, his back straight.

They fell into an awkward silence. Even though they didn't know each other, Hyoyeon felt the need to say something, to greet the boy, or at least acknowledge his presence.

 Hyoyeon turned to introduce herself.

"Hey there," she said, her bright smile forming on her features. "I'm Hyoyeon," she stuck out her hand.

The boy looked at her. "Nice to meet you, Hyoyeon-sshi. I'm Hyukjae."

"Back at you, Hyukjae-sshi," Hyoyeon said, her smile not leaving her features. Some may find Hyoyeon "hyper" or "childish", but she wasn't really. She was just a bright and happy person, who wasn't afraid to talk to new people. "Where are you headed?" she asked Hyukjae.

"Me? Lee Motors, where I work. What about you?"

Hyoyeon nodded. She'd heard of Lee Motors - hell, everyone had heard of it; it was the biggest car company in Korea.

"Hyunsaek college," Hyoyeon informed the other. "I'm studying performing arts, dancing in particular."

Hyukjae looked at her. "So you want to become a dancer?" he asked. Hyoyeon nodded.

"When I was younger I used to dance," Hyukjae said, almost wistfully, remembering the afternoons as a child where he would have spent hours alone in a dance studio. "I loved it."

Hyoyeon tilted her head. "Why did you stop?"

Hyukjae looked uncomfortable. "Personal reasons."

Hyoyeon faltered. "Ah. I see." Suddenly, her shoes seemed very interesting.

The two fell into an awkward silence once more. Hyukjae scowled at the window.

Hyoyeon noticed this. "Something wrong?"

"It's raining."

Hyoyeon barked a laugh. "No , Sherlock."

Hyukjae shot her a look. "I hate the rain. And when my bus stops, I'm going to have to walk to the offices, which will take five minutes. I'm going to get soaked."

Hyoyeon laughed. "You should have brought an umbrella, Hyukjae-sshi."
"It's a bit late now," Hyukjae grumbled. 

The bus came to a stop, and Hyukjae stood. "I'm off here, Hyoyeon-sshi," he said, shaking her hand. "It was nice talking to you."

Hyoyeon smiled. "You too, Hyukjae-sshi."

Hyukjae began to make his down to the doors of the bus when Hyoyeon yelled after him.

"Hyukjae-sshi!"

Hyukjae turned to face her, eyebrows raised.

"Dodge between the raindrops, then you won't get wet!" Hyoyeon called. Hyukjae laughed, a laugh that was in between an "Aish, this idiot" laugh and a "funny joke" laugh.

Hyoyeon looked at the empty seat beside her.

Hyukjae.

The average nice guy stranger you'd sit beside on a bus.

A/N

LOL SHORT CHAPTER

All the chapters will be short, and sometimes Hyo will sit beside the same person more than once.

Comments are received with love.

-Viola