After I finished showering, I stand up with my back facing the mirror. I look back, and a dark blue bruise decorates the area just below my left shoulder. I sigh, and start dressing. At least the vase didn’t hit my head. It still feels numb when I try to move my arm, but I guess I’ll get used to it soon. I may not be comfortable while sitting on a chair with something behind my back or leaning on concrete wall, though.

     I look at the window above my bed, and the sunlight bathes my room. Such a bright weather for a gloomy day, at least for me. After cooking breakfast for myself, I hear the gate being opened. Is that Mr. Jang? Or for worse, it could be Mr. Shin. I run to peek from the window, and see Mr. Jang walking on the lawn with a traveling bag on his hands. I rush downstairs, and open the door for him. “Hello, Miss Song.” Mr. Jang looks happily surprised.

     “Hello, welcome back.” I secretly glance at Mrs. Kim’s door, and it’s silent from there. “I’m glad to see you. I have something to talk about.”

     I bring him to the backyard and told him what happened last night. Mr. Jang’s face turns concerned and worried, especially at the part where Mr. Shin was throwing things. He covers his mouth with one hand, and looks at the ground silently.

     “Yes, it happened often… But I never heard him throwing stuff. Yesterday must be scary… Were you hurt?”

     I told him the part where I got hit, and Mr. Jang looks very terrified. “But… I’m okay. Sehun dragged him outside.”

     “Their rent actually ended last month, but the poor lady says she has nowhere to go so I let them stay.” Mr. Jang admits. “I will take care of them… You must be uncomfortable. Are you sure you’re okay? Do you want me to go with you to the hospital?”

     I shake my head slowly. “No, thank you. I’m relieved we think the same way about Mrs. Kim.”

     I go back to my room, and sit silently on the edge of my bed. This is the time when I miss home the most. I want Mom. Your little daughter was hit by a vase, and now she’s all alone in this room, away from home… Sigh.

     I reluctantly take my phone, and my thumb scrolls the contacts list. Who should I call? Dad might be exercising in Japan right now. Mom must be doing the laundry, or going to a morning assembly. My older brother, Sejoon… Is it night or day in Germany? My friends might still be sleeping.

     I decide to call Baekhyun, and he picks up the phone with a steady tone. “Hello, baby cousin.”

     “No training today?”

     “I have one at noon. What’s up?”

     “Uh… So…”

     I told him what happened last night, and Baekhyun didn’t let out any response. When I signaled the finish sentence, he calls my name. “Song Seah.”

     “Yes?”

     “ARE YOU CRAZY? MOVE OUT OF THAT PLACE, NOW.”

     I pull my phone away from my ear. “But I’m—“

     “That crazy man will come back! He lives there! Do you think I would let you live in that house?”

     “But he rarely comes—“

     “Yeah, and when he does, he does it with a bang. Literally.” I’ve never heard Baekhyun being this mad. “I’m going to tell Mom.”

     “Oh no—please please no.” I pull a part of my hair. “No no. Please.”

     “Seah, you’re not safe.”

     “I know, but I have Sehun here—“ my tone fades, realizing what I’ve just said. “And Mr. Jang, the landlord. He’s very nice.”

     “I’m still telling Mom. Bye, I’ll call you.”

     I hang my head, and the call ends. This way, I’m going to be dragged to my aunt’s house… And she will call my mother… And everyone will know.

     I’m a bit disturbed of what I said earlier, though. Am I now depending on Sehun? Or, at least, I start to acknowledge his existence.

     I shake my head, and eat the breakfast I cooked. Moving out wouldn’t be that bad… But it’s inconvenient to pack again after only a week.

*

     My aunt kept her voice calm and composed when she called me in the afternoon to ask me to go to her house, but her face doesn’t hide anything when I arrive there. She drags me to the living room, and everything is expected. “Seah, you must move here, immediately. I will call a moving truck. We’ll go shopping for utilities if there are things you need. Okay? Wait, now let’s go to my room, I want to see the wound. Is it bad?”

     “Aunt, Aunt.” I softly push her hands away from my arm. “I’m okay. There are other people in the house, they’ll help me out.”

     “But the landlord wasn’t even present when it happened, and Baekhyun’s junior might not be home later!” she starts to raise her voice. “Seah, I haven’t told your mother. I’ll call her right now.”

     “Aunt… I feel bad for Mrs. Kim, the poor lady.” the image of Mrs. Kim’s teary face comes to my mind again. “Then she’ll be alone…”

     Aunt massages her temple, and sighs. “I’ll give her a job. I need someone to help on one of my side businesses, maybe she could do something.”

     My eyes widen. “Wow. Really? Oh my God. Thank you, Aunt!”

     “We still don’t know what to do with her husband, but let’s make those two things a priority—you moving here, and that lady. Okay?”

     My shoulders drop, but I finally nod. “Okay.”

     I ask her to wait for one more day, and when I’m on the subway, my head is filled with the chaotic process of packing. Hah.

     It’s Saturday night… What should I do? I want to meet Jongin. I purposely take a route to downtown, and now I’m sitting in a café, thinking to try out my luck. I dial Jongin’s number, and I take deep breaths to calm myself down. Even the dialing tone is making me tense.

     No answer. I send a message instead, and the wait is just as nerve-wrecking.

Hey, Jongin. Are you busy?

     15 minutes, no answer.

     30 minutes, no answer.

      An hour.

     I my dry lips, and finish my coffee. I feel simply unhappy. Alone, lonely, in a strange place.

*

     Before the night falls, I arrive at the boarding house and it’s quiet. Mr. Jang comes out from… Mrs. Kim’s room? I approach him and bow. “Good evening… Why did you…”

     “Oh, Miss Song.” he gives me a slight smile, and he keeps opening the door. Yesterday, I was sure the wall beside the door is decorated by clothes hanged but now it’s gone… I go closer to see the room, and it’s now perfectly clean. Nothing. Only the furnitures.

     “What—Mrs. Kim—“

     “She…” Mr. Jang closes the door, and moves his hand to make me follow him to the dining table to sit. “She has decided to move. She doesn’t want to endanger you or everyone else in this house anymore.”

     “It’s so sudden.” I comment. “I didn’t expect this.”

     “Sudden, but reasonable.” Mr. Jang rubs his hands. “Mrs. Kim felt very guilty towards you. So she packed everything and left for her relatives’ house… I don’t know very much about her husband.”

     I look around the quiet room. “Do you have her phone number?”

     “Oh, yes, I have. I will send it to you.”

     I excused myself to go back upstairs. I’m feeling a bit at loss to find Mrs. Kim gone, but I’m excited to inform her about the job. At the end of the stairs Sehun was in the corridor holding his phone, and he seems to be looking for me.

     “Hey, Seah. Jongin asked me about where you are. Are you not bringing your phone?”

     “Oh… I just arrived, it’s inside...” at the mention of Jongin, I instantly search for my phone on the depth of my bag. “Thank you. By the way, Mrs. Kim—”

     Sehun just nods and I leave him for my room. With racing heart I discover a reply from Jongin asking what was wrong, and a missed call. I’m literally jumping on my toes while I’m trying to call him back, and I struggle to keep my breaths normal when he finally picks up. “Hey, Jongin, I’m sorry, I was on my way.”

     “Oh, it’s okay, Seah. I’m also sorry for the late reply, why did you message me?”

     “Uh… I wonder if you’d be free tomorrow. We haven’t met for awhile, let’s eat something good.”

     “I have a class tomorrow that would end at 1, how about that time? There’s a nice pizza place near our academy!”

     “Perfect.” the sound inside my chest is uncontrollable right now. “You can send me the address, I’ll be right there.”

     “Good, Sehun and I will be there once we’re finished.”

     My mood drops instantly. “Sehun?”

     “Yes, he had a joint class with me tomorrow. See you then!”

     I try to answer as brightly as I can, and after he hung up, I instantly reach for my pillow and scream as loud as I can. Ugh. Is it so hard to be just the two of us? Why does Sehun always have to be there?

     I fall to my bed, and control my breathing. It’s still better than nothing. I’m going to meet Jongin tomorrow, that’s everything I wanted… I could just ignore Sehun.

*

     Last night I also called Mrs. Kim and secured a meeting with her at a café beside the pizza place where I’m going to meet Jongin and Sehun an hour before 1 today. She looks careful and nervous in front of me. “Seah-ssi… I thought you didn’t want to see my face.”

     “Oh no, not at all.” I let out a soft laugh to make her comfortable. “I’m disappointed to see you leaving, ma’am… I feel sorry.”

     “I am sorry.” Mrs. Kim looks down to her lap. “And about my husband, too… I would like to apologize on his behalf.”

     I nod. “Now you just need to think about yourself, about your future, Mrs. Kim. You should be happy.”

     Her eyes get teary, but a smile blooms on her face. “I should.”

     “And…” I start to tell her about my aunt’s offer, and by the time I stop explaining, in a split second she starts to break down, and her cry is heard all over the café. Oops. Oh no. People start looking at us. And I can only look here and there awkwardly. I go to her seat in front of me to comfort her, and after awhile she calms down and she couldn’t stop thanking me. 1 PM is nearing so I gently tell her I need to go, and to just call me if something happens.

     I separated with Mrs. Kim and now I’m waiting in front of the pizza place with a happy heart. I relayed a good information for Mrs. Kim, I don’t need to move out, I’m going to meet Jongin in a few minutes on this perfect weather, not too sunny or cloudy… I feel giddy. This is going to be a wonderful day. The dance academy is across this street, Jongin and Sehun could be going out anytime…

     Finally they’re sighted… But is that a girl between them? Who could that be? I’d be happy if it were Seulgi, I wonder if she still recognizes me… As they spot me and go closer, I think it’s not her. She’s a small girl with round eyes and nice smile, she also looks younger than us. A student?

     “Seah!” Jongin waves at me as they get in front of me. “Have you waited for long?”

     I shake my head, and I fail to divert my sight from the girl. I try to let out a friendly, non-suspicious smile. “And this is—?”

     “Oh, this is Jisun, my girlfriend!”