VIII

“Dongwoon-ah, where are you going?” HyeMi fluttered nervously around her boyfriend.

“I’m just going to meet up with a friend, okay?” He leaned down and kissed her gently to calm her down. “I’ll be back soon. Saranghae!” He blew a kiss before running down the stairs.

HyeMi twisted her hands together uneasily. “Why is he in such a rush?” she wondered, voicing her thoughts.

“Who is he meeting with?” The girl let out a loud shriek, turning so fast she almost fell over. Sitting on their couch was a young man who looked to be a little older than herself.

“Who-Who are you?” HyeMi pointed a shaking finger at the intruder.

“Doesn’t matter now.” His face was cold and empty – the only emotions she saw were sadness and anger. “Who is he with?”

“He said he was meeting a friend,” she responded slowly, inching towards the couch as if hypnotised.  “He didn’t say who.”

The mystery boy looked her up and down and shook his head regretfully. “What an idiot. Doesn’t he know he already has a beautiful girlfriend here already?”

“He has another girlfriend?” HyeMi cried.

“I don’t know.” The boy shrugged carelessly. “Why don’t you go and see for yourself?”

Frightened of the trespasser, HyeMi quickly yanked her coat off its hook and ran down the stairs.

~~~~

“Look, there he is!” The boy had followed her outside and was now pointing to her boyfriend…who was talking to another girl animatedly. “Wow. I wonder who that is?”

“D-Dongwoon,” she whispered brokenly, unable to believe what she was seeing.

“Wait! Listen to me!” a girl cried. HyeMi turned her head to the right and saw a pretty girl around her age running towards her. “Don’t listen to him!”

“Who are you?” Confused, HyeMi turned back to the boy who had an expression of deep hatred on his face.

“Listen to me, HyeMi!” the new girl said urgently. “You love Dongwoon, right? He’s your boyfriend. You’ve been dating for 3 years now. Why would he throw that away? He’s never acted suspicious before, right?”

HyeMi nodded. “That’s true,” she agreed. “Dongwoon and I love each other. He would never cheat on me.”

“But the proof is right in front of you!” the boy growled, pointing towards Dongwoon and the mystery girl.

“You can’t judge!” the new girl retorted. “Who knows? Maybe it’s a classmate, an old friend, a cousin…you can’t judge, HyeMi. If you want to know, just ask him. Just tell him the truth, and he’ll understand.”

“Or it could be an ex-girlfriend, come to win him back,” the boy added lazily. “He’s quite the catch. Why would he choose you?”

“Because he loves her,” the new girl snapped. “HyeMi, listen to me. You and Dongwoon are soulmates. True love. Just go and ask him, okay? He will understand.”

HyeMi felt comforted by the random girl’s words and took a few steps forward.

“You stupid girl, HyeMi!” the boy yelled. Despite their loud voices, no one else seemed to be noticing them. “Why would Dongwoon choose a worthless loner like you? He’s a kingka, and you’re a loser.” At the familiar insult, HyeMi paused and turned, doubt and uncertainty obvious on her face.

Rather than argue back, the new girl screamed at HyeMi instead. “HyeMi! Get off the road!”