You thought about the job that the coffee shop ahjumma offered to you. Well, you couldn’t rely on your sister forever, and you could use it to pay for the college fees. Your alarm rings loudly next to your left ear, and you dart up from your bed, hitting your head in the bunk above you.

You groan, massaging your forehead, staring at the closed window in front of you. You hear scattered feet in the dorm, and the yelling of your roommates.
“YAH,” yells Soojin to your blank face. “Class is starting!!! Did you forget?”
She waves her hand in front of you to break your empty gaze. You shake your head and nod at her, slipping your feet inside your chucks and hastily tying your shoes. You grab your books, which is stacked messily on the study table, and with your free hand, tie your knotted hair.

You walk into class with one untied shoe, random strands of hair sticking out and bags under your tired eyes. The sleeves of your oversized hoodie is so long that it covers your hands, which grip onto the spines of your textbooks. You slump onto your seat, immediately assuming your normal position: leaning on one elbow. As the teacher drones on and on, someone taps you on the shoulder. You twitch.

“Psst,” he whispers in a soft voice. “I knew I would find you in my class.”
Damn, this annoying guy is in my class again. Kim Him Chan. You coldly ignore him.
“Kim, answer question six of the textbook, please.” requests the teacher, staring at you.
Her spectacles reflect the sunlight from the windows. You weren’t paying attention, so you fumble through your textbook, scanning the endless amount of words and numbers which fill the page.

Him Chan slips a paper to your table.
0.293 x 10 (to the power of 9)
You say it out in a weak voice. The teacher glances at her textbook and shakes her head in disappointment.
“Nice try, you were close,” she patronizes. She scribbles numbers at the whiteboard. “The answer is 0.293 x 10 (to the power of 8).”
You glare at Him Chan, who gives you an apologetic look. How lame, he didn’t even get the answer right. Or did he do it on purpose?

As you walk out of the classroom, Him Chan finds his way next to you. You scowl at him.
“How old are you?” you question in an interrogating manner.
“Hm? I’m 17, born on April 19.” he answers with a cheeky smirk.
“Then I’m your noona. I order you to leave me alone.” you say, feeling superior.
“Noona?” he questions. “By how long?”
“I’m 17, born on April 11.” you reply.

“Then,” he says, leaning in closer to you. “Then I can call you just ‘Madeline’ and you can call me just ‘Him Chan’ since we're only a few days apart.”
“No, I will not allow you to call me as such,” you say superiorly. “And I would never call you as such. In fact, don’t call me at all, please leave me alone.”
“Arasso, arasso,” he says, backing off.
Something tells you that this won’t be the last time you’ll be seeing him again.

Your feet find its way to the door of a coffee shop. With your left hand, you hold tightly onto your application form and with your other hand, grip on the backpack that is slung on your shoulder. You open the door gently, bowing as you walk in.
“Annyeonghaseyo,” you say to the kind lady who grins at you.
“The usual, I guess?” she asks.
“Ani,” you tell her as you take a seat. “Uh, I liked how it was made for me the other day.”
The woman laughs softly, covering with her hand.
“Omo, so you like the coffee that the new employee brewed for you then.” she says.
You nod your head, and she smiles as she goes to order her new employee. She said that he knew you. How exactly?

She gently sets the coffee cup next to you as you read your book. You smile, nodding your head as an expression of thanks. You blow on the surface of the cup, showing circles of ripples on the drink, and you take a sip. Mmmm. It really does taste familiar, but you couldn’t quite place what the familiarity was.

The ahjumma walks slowly to you, and smiles as you finish your coffee.
“So, do you want to accept the job? It would be very nice if you could join me here,” she says.
You pause, and look through your bag for your application form. You take it out and look at it for a while.
“Uh, is it okay if I think about it?” you ask her. “I already filled it, but, I want to have more time.”
“Of course, of course,” she says as she takes your cup.
You leave with a gentle smile on your face. After a while, your smile fades into a blank expression as you approach the hospital entrance.

“Annyeonghaseyo,” you greet your father, sliding the door behind you.
You greet him even if he can’t hear you anyway. A habit, I guess. You sit onto the single chair next to where he lays, and you massage his hands. A fresh bouquet of flowers lies on the side table. Must be from unnie.

“Appa,” you say, with a desperate edge to your voice. “Get better, okay?”
Your voice catches at the end of your sentence.
“Promise,” your voice wavers, and your vision becomes blurry with tears. “P-promise me you won’t leave. Not like they all did.”
You remember Chunji, umma, and your unnie. You don’t remember Zelo, but he too left an empty void in your heart. You hold onto his hand gently.
“You’re all I have left.” you whisper, lowering your head on the bed. Tears drip onto the cloth of the white blanket. After a few minutes of silent tears, you breathe in deeply and wipe your tears.