The next day was the same of all days; the only difference is that, he was blatantly curious of what had happened yesterday. Whatever her reason is, he doesn’t know. Her expression yesterday was a little bit conflicted that it affected him. He wasn’t able to sleep well that night and his roommate was also shocked to see how silent and serious he had become. It might be because something has really bothered him. He doesn’t know the reason either. Such curiosity has eaten him up. He wondered what that girl by the bench wants to say to him.

                    He made his way to his seat by the window as the class started. He propped his elbows up, resting his chin on it as he gazed at the outside world through the window. The rustling leaves swayed with the wind as it went inside the room with no permission. It’s autumn, where the leaves fall incessantly along the pavements and create a rather crispy tone beneath the soles of his feet. He was, all the time, silent as his mind flew to the girl he saw yesterday. Thinking about it, isn’t that the same girl he always sees whenever he passes by that place every autumn?

                    His forehead creased at the realization and moved uneasily in his seat.

                    How is that possible?

                    He frustratingly sighed at this and focused his all on the professor. Squiggles on the blackboard didn’t help his mood at all; it made his mind grew more uneasy. He was irked at how he was feeling… Like this was not what he wants to think right now, like it’s not worth thinking right now. He ran his hands through his hair and as the bell rung; he swiftly stood up and left the room silently. He marched through the busy hallways, attempting to put on an invisibility cloak so no one can see his unmasked expression.

                    It’s not our business to think about this. I have so many things to do and distractions are not welcomed.

                    Unfortunately for him, his friend had also pushed his way through the crowd and reached him within a minute. From the looks of it, his friend can feel that he was irked at something. His friend knows that he is as a carefree person who doesn’t really care about anything else but himself and his close friends. His friend reached up to him and walked by his side.

                    “Woke up at the wrong side of bed?” His friend glanced at him, knowing that he was not in the mood for some chitchat. He stealthily anchored his duffel bag and pushed his way through the crowd, away from his friend, and out of the school. His friend was surprised at this but he didn’t anymore run up to catch him. Whatever it is, his friend was pretty sure it has something to do with ruining the daily routine he wants to have for the rest of his life.

                    When he was out of school area, he stopped to catch his breath.

                    Who was I running from? Am I afraid of people asking about my feelings?

                    Such thoughts are encircling in his head as he walked at the pavement leading to home. He, then, reached that fork in the road that he usually passes through. On normal days, this would have been a routine… But in this particular day, he felt his heart built up in anticipation. At this sudden of unknown happiness, he shook his head and tried to remove any expectation and lingering emotion on any of the things that are connected with that weird girl from yesterday. He looked down and, unintentionally, glanced at his watch. It’s exactly 2:59 PM.

                    Isn’t this that time of the day when she was by this place yesterday?

                    There’s no denying it. For some reason, he is very anxious to see her again. His eyes lingered to that fork in the road where she will hopefully emerge from. His watch, silently ticking, counting the milliseconds of her arrival. He doesn’t know why he’s waiting for her but as his own pair of legs start to walk up to the bench in between the two huge trees, he then realized that he needs to settle this one so he can move on.

                    As expected, he saw her. Dressed in a light brown dress beneath a blue denim jacket and dark brown espadrilles, she emerged from his sight. She walked cautiously while he lazily reclined his body to the bench, awaiting her rather clumsy entrance. She slowly stepped on the pavement, eyes on the floor, towards the bench and without knowing, towards him. She took another step again and straightened up when she smelled a whiff of cologne that was near her. This was utterly familiar. She was shocked.

                    Meeting this stranger had, unintentionally, become his main focus for today and now that she’s in front of him, his curiosity heightened. He inclined his head to eye her curiously. She was short and petite. The way she walked a while ago gave him an idea that the girl really does have something to say to him and was stopped shortly when he cowardly walked away from her yesterday. The way her hands clasped and unclasped each other anxiously made him all the more curious.

                    Not able to contain the big question mark in his head, he stood up from his seat, towering over her. The rustle of his shoes against the pavement caught the girl’s attention making her look up at him. He was in front of her and the fullness of his face welcomed her gaze. She looked away from the sudden eye contact and bit her lips to suppress her nervousness. She wanted to tell him that she’s strong through her actions but the way she is acting right now is the complete opposite. He cleared his throat and it was like a signal for her to look up at him again. Rather the shy and the mysterious aura of yesterday, they caught each other’s gaze… And for a brief moment, it seems that they were lost in each other’s eyes.

                    Few seconds have passed when she broke off eye contact and awkwardly looked away as she placed her gaze on the floor once again.

                    “Uhm…”

                    He can feel her nervousness by the tone of her voice. It amused him because he knew that she was surely pressured to speak in behalf of the air of awkwardness around the two of them. She gulped silently, drowning the clogging of her own throat. If it’s possible, may her voice box utter a tune to appease the situation. On the other hand, he watched her silently, half of his lips curling upward.

                    Ok… Breathe in. Breathe out. She nervously said to herself.

                    He waited for her. He won’t walk away anymore. Yesterday won’t repeat itself again. He will wait for her.

                    As if on cue, he saw her look up to him. Her eyes twinkled a bit as her eye smiled at him. She held her hands up to him, signalling a hand shake.

                    “Hi. I am Chaerin. What’s your name?”

                    He saw her smiling at him and looking at him straight in the eyes, awkwardness and insecurity aside. He bit his inner cheeks to suppress a wide smile that is threatening to come out of his cool countenance. He inched his way towards her and held her outstretched hand.

                    “Seunghyun. My name is Seunghyun.”