So, we first met at the park-

No, it was at the coffee shop down the street. You took me to the park on our first date.

-on a rainy day in October.

Nope. It was a snowy day in January.

What? How do you know?

I was getting my New-Year’s-Resolution-that-I-know-I’ll-fail-at-but-just-to-make-me-feel-better Espresso from the coffee shop down the street. Why do you always forget this?

…Oh, that’s right. Thank goodness you quit that annual coffee. It was getting in the way.

Ha, I know ri- Wait, what do you mean by-?

Anyhow, it was a snowy day in January…

The snow whirled around Joonmyeon. Ankle-high in the clumpy mottled blanket, he shivered and bit his lower lip. He quickly pulled the hood of his sweatshirt further down over his head and hurried his steps, the frost stinging his exposed fair skin. He didn’t know why he didn’t dress warmer. After all, he did check the whether earlier and saw with his own two perfectly-working eyes that the highest would be 35oFahrenheit/2oCelsius in the afternoon! Even less thought-out was his plan of choosing the fifteen-minute walk instead of taking the five-minute bus ride.

I’m finally here…

He was filled with relief. Joonmyeon ventured a cautious hand from his self-hug to pull down the nearly-frozen doorknob of Lilac’s front door. Lilac was the cozy coffee shop adjoined to the library where he went to study after school. Even though school was still out for winter and New Year’s break, Joonmyeon never failed to visit the library daily. One of his favorite things was getting comfy in his favorite spot with a good book and a warm, relaxing beverage.

Just as his hand reached the knob, Joonmyeon received the shock of his life when the door swung open and something – or rather someone – ran into him. The next thing he knew, he was on his back half buried in snow. The wind was knocked clean out of him; hot, steamy liquid was seeping through his clothes and down his chest. The only thing he could see was a mop of long brown hair. The only feeling he was aware of was a pressure holding him down. The only sounds penetrating the howl of the wind were two labored breaths, one belonging to himself and the other to an unfamiliar being.

A shrill gasp was let out from the person on top of him, and suddenly the extra weight vanished. In place of the never-ending sea of brown was a face – a girl’s face. A split second later and two baby pink blue mittens flew up to cover .

“Oh my! I’m so sorry! I really should’ve been paying more attention to where I was going,” the girl apologized in a rush, rapidly blinking her eyes and rising to her feet. Joonmyeon attempted to sit up, catch his breath; his gaze now rested on her fluffy pair of brown Ugg boots. “I was just in a hurry because I’m late to a friend’s place because of some issue with transportation and there was a hold up in the coffee shop just now, and, you know- well I guess you don’t know since, after all, you don’t know her- at least I don’t think- well anyway, she’s very strict about being on time and the occasion is pretty urgent I suppose so…”

Joonmyeon hardly heard any of the girl’s babble. His eyes trailed upward from her brown Ugg boots to her dark navy skinny jeans; her right knee had a white patch of a different kind of fabric sewn on it. Out of seemingly nowhere, the girl grabbed his hands and hauled him to his feet. She’s really strong, for a girl, he mused as he brushed snow off his pants.

As the girl rambled on, Joonmyeon scanned up to her furry white sweater, one he didn’t exactly see every day: the brisk-looking face of a woman, with a rather outrageous bush of curly pink-and-purple hair, above what appeared to be a ship made of newspaper floating midair.

…I never knew you felt that way about my sweater. I liked that sweater! And your interpretation of art is terrible – simply terrible. Haven’t you ever heard of art?

And you’ve heard me tell this story how many times now? Must you interrupt at the same places every time?

That sweater did me good and stuck with me through thick and thin. It was like my soul mate.

I… am going to pretend I didn’t hear that.

The sleeves extended down to the palms of her hands. A black canvas shoulder bag hung at the girl’s left elbow from her fall. She quickly adjusted it so it was slung from her shoulder. But her hair was what really caught Joonmyeon’s eye: it was dyed a deep orange-red, tumbling in layered curls down her back and chest all the way to the middle of her torso. On top of her rich, silky hair sat a snug crocheted beanie of bright scarlet, standing out in contrast against the dull and plainness of the winter surroundings. It of all things had somehow stayed in place. Something he noticed while observing her beanie was that she wasn’t very tall. He wasn’t complaining though; he was below average height himself, much to his distaste, so he was still at least a few centimeters above her eyelevel.

Overall she was a pretty girl, but Joonmyeon didn’t think any more of her. She talked too much and appeared far too clumsy. Her fashion sense was a unique one and didn’t appeal to him as very attractive. He’d seen far worse, but still, he’d seen far better. Thankfully, her voice wasn’t one of those high-pitched nasally ones that would typically belong to “that girl” at the top of her clique; instead, it was somewhat deep for an average girl of her age. Nonetheless, from all her babble, it was annoying enough.

Before Joonmyeon could more carefully take in the girl’s face, the words “repay you” suddenly punctured his hurricane of thoughts. “Wait, what?” he blurted out, interrupting the girl midsentence.

However, she didn’t seem to mind one bit. “I was just saying, I spilled my Espresso all over you, so I feel obliged to repay you-”

“Oh, that’s not necessary at all,” Joonmyeon replied, attempting to hide his impatience. The afternoon was slipping by, and he had really been looking forward to a good read in the library. “It’s actually quite nice since I didn’t dress warm enough, and your drink feels very…” He paused in search for the right word- “pleasant.”

The girl stared at him with an expression of non-comprehension before she burst out in a series of high-pitched, giggly laughter that made Joonmyeon cringe. “You didn’t let me finish,” she said once she had calmed down. She overlooked this stranger’s forced grin and continued. “I was going to say that I’ll repay you for your spoiled clothes, and in return, you pay me for the New-Year’s-Resolution Espresso I didn’t get to drink.”

Joonmyeon blinked. He couldn’t quite process the fact that she wanted him to buy her another Espresso. “You’re… what? ‘New-Year’s-Resolution-’?”

“Yea, yea.” The girl waved dismissively. “My friends tease me about it a lot. Don’t get started on that one.”

Not to mention outspoken even with a stranger, Joonmyeon added to his mental list of things he was already beginning to dislike about the girl.

“So, shall we get to it or what? Time is ticking! Oh, wait.” The girl halted in her steps on her way to the curb. “We haven’t even properly introduced ourselves yet.” Then, reaching out a hand, “Hi, my name is Hwayoung. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Joonmyeon,” he said, hesitantly shaking her hand. “It’s nice to meet you too… I guess,” he added under his breath. Talk about awkward.

“Now, let’s get you some new clothes; you must feel awfully sticky in those!” Hwayoung promptly turned and hurried to the curb and across the street, as the green pedestrians’ light was about to turn red. Joonmyeon confusedly attempted to keep up. “Hey, sorry to say but I’m going to be a little late,” Hwayoung said.  Trying to spot the person to which she was talking, it took Joonmyeon a while before he realized – to his own embarrassment – that she was on the phone. “I know, I know. And this will be the last time- promise! …Well, I’ll try… Well, see, I bumped into someone and- ah never mind, I’ll explain when I