Three

“Let’s break up, oppa,” she breathed, before getting up from her seat.

Suddenly. Without warning. Out of nowhere.

I was taken aback by her words, to the point that I could only stare with widening eyes at her retreating back, who didn't even spare a glance back at me.

I was left there in the park; alone, speechless and confused.

But why? Why, Aeri?

Give me an explanation, Aeri. Please.

“Oppa, I need new clothes. Do you mind accompanying me to buy some?” Hyun Ae requested when I picked her up after her classes.

That was how I ended up walking aimlessly in the nearest department store, specifically in the clothes section. Hyun Ae had went to the fitting room with two pieces of clothing in her hands after asking for my opinion.

I strode lazily through the racks of clothes, with fingers lightly touching the garments that were hanged at the front of every stand, before a certain something—that was just a few feet in front of me—caught my attention.

Mint green. A mint green cardigan.

I quickened my stride to it before grabbing the hanged cloth and taking it out of the rack.

She would love this, I thought elatedly while caressing the soft fabric. The cardigan turned out to be an open front cardigan, the one with no buttons on it. Not to mention it was mint green too, just the shade of mint green that she truly admired. Her favourite colour.

And, as if on cue—as if God had actually answered the excitement in me—she was there.

There. In front of me. Just opposite to the rack that I was standing.

With her mouth forming a pout ever so slightly, eyebrows knitted, eyes trained on the hanged clothes in front of her, and hands busily searching through the garments, probably trying to find a piece of clothing that satisfied her preferences.

It had been eight months since I saw her. I missed her, so much.

Except that I didn’t know what to do at the very moment. I only stood there, frozen to the spot. My eyes, on the other hand –as if understanding my body's inability to move a muscle– proceeded on their own accord, trying to take in as much details of her features as possible.

Her hair was black that day, but she was still pretty nonetheless. Her handbag that was slung over her left shoulder was still oversized, and still had floral patterns on it. Not to mention that her well-manicured long nails were mint green too. I couldn’t see her feet at the time—due to the racks that were separating us—but judging from her current height, I could tell that she was wearing high heels. Or wedge heels. Probably one from her favourite brand.

Needless to say, she was still the beautiful Park Aeri that I knew. My Park Aeri.

Somehow, even though we were standing opposite to each other, she didn’t seem to notice my presence. One, because she looked in a hurry that she didn’t have the time to spare a glance up, and two, because she could have run away upon setting her eyes on me.

Overwhelmed by the flow of emotions, I felt like running to her. To be standing by her side once more. And show her the mint green cardigan in my hands. To show her that I still loved her, that I still remembered what she liked and disliked. Everything about her. The cardigan could probably wash the pout away from her face. It could possibly be one of the many pieces that she was searching for.

On top of that, there were so many things I wanted to say to her.

Aeri, Aeri, Aeri. My mind chanted her name.

Aeri, I can’t forget you.

Where have you been? Have you been okay?

Why did you change your phone number, Aeri?

Those two years and six months when we were together, can’t we continue the moments?

This period of eight months without you tortures me. I can’t sleep without thinking about you.

I miss your smile, Aeri. Your dimples too. Please smile, please?

I’m sorry if I did something wrong. I promise I won’t make fun of your bags anymore, if that’s what you hated to hear.

Let’s start all over again?

However, before my body could reflect the thoughts that ran through my mind, a guy approached and whispered urgently to her. She pouted even more at this, jutting out her bottom lip as a sign of utter protest, but I knew it was also a sign that there was nothing more she could do. The male, after forcefully putting the hangers in her hands back to the stand in front of them, grabbed her wrist and walked off to the nearest elevator, practically dragging her out of the store.

Enraged by his rough treatment on Aeri, I almost formed a step towards the pair, when a voice snapped me out of my trance.

“Oppa?”

In a spur of moments, I barely registered that Hyun Ae was suddenly standing beside me... and Aeri was out of my sight.

Not to forget, I might still be standing like a dazed person.

“Oppa, what happened? Are you okay?” Hyun Ae tugged lightly at my long sleeve while eyeing me worriedly.

I couldn't answer her immediately. Even though I was aware that my eyes were on her, I was still missing the focus that was very much needed. Thankfully, after what seemed like ages, I was finally able to collect myself.

I cleared my throat as a start before blurting out, “I’m fine, Hyun Ae-ah.” Before she could point out that I certainly didn’t look okay to her eyes, I diverted her attention by gesturing to the clothes in her arm. “How’re they?” I asked.

Other than the two pieces of clothes earlier, I briefly took note that there were a few more accompanying them.

Also, even though it happened for a split second, I didn’t miss the way her eyes glanced curiously at the mint green cardigan that was still in my hands.

“Oh. Yeah, they’re fine.” She grunted a little while adjusting her hold on the clothes, so that they wouldn’t fall. “I'm sorry for the wait. I’ll be paying now,” she smiled before heading to the counter.

Looking at her retreating back, I debated with my mind.

‘She’s not her, Changhyun. She’s not her.’

‘Don’t be stupid. Don’t do something that you’ll regret later.’

‘But Changhyun, it won’t kill, right?’

‘She wouldn’t know. Unless you tell her, that is.’

'Changhyun!'

In the end, my body took the better me, eventually ignoring the warning voices in my head.

“Hyun Ae-ah.”

She stopped on her track, before turning around with a questioning raised eyebrow.

I approached her and showed her the cardigan. “Why don’t you buy this too?”

A confused expression was evident on her face, but she reached out for it nonetheless before inspecting it carefully.

“It looks good on you.” I tried to ignore the fact that my voice trembled—my hands, too—when I added the last statement. It was clearly an attempt to convince her to buy the cardigan.

For a couple of minutes, her expression was unreadable. After briefly making sure that it was of her size, she finally said, “Alright,” a smile flashed, revealing a faint dimple on her cheek, “If that’s what you say, I’ll take it.”

Before guilt could hold me back and overwhelm me, I tugged the corner of my lips to give her a—what could be considered as a—smile, in return.

Because she's not you, I wanted to make her into you.
Because I miss you, I wanted to make her resemble you more.

[ A/N ]

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Posted: 25/12/2013, 01:45