As soon as Jimin left the kitchen I leaned against the sink and let out a huge sigh. What the was happening? Why was he here? His mom had promised to give me the day off if he ever was supposed to be around.

I tore off my rubber gloves and went out to the restaurant. His mom was at the cash register.

“Mrs. Park!” I hissed. “Why is Jimin here?”

Her brown eyes widened in shock. They looked so much like Jimin’s that sometimes I found it hard to look at her. I turned away now.

“He’s really here? He didn’t say a word to me!”

“Can I go home?” I mumbled.

She looked at me, pity in her eyes. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. Normally, I would say yes, but…” She looked out at the restaurant and I followed her gaze. The place was packed for the dinner rush. Young Jae was running around like a chicken with his head cut off trying to wait on all the customers.

“I understand!” I said, trying to appear cheerful. “I’ll get back to work right away.”

Mrs. Park pressed my hand kindly. “Cheer up, honey. It had to happen sooner or later.”

I nodded. “I know." I ducked back into the kitchen before she could see my tears.

I closed the door behind me, leaned against it, and sighed. I wiped my eyes on my apron. I didn’t care if it was dirty; I felt too sad to give a damn.

“Are you crying?” a quiet voice asked me.

I looked up, startled. Jimin stood there looking at me, concern clearly written on his features.

“No,” I lied, scoffing. “I had to help chop onions in the main kitchen for a moment. Why are you in here?”

“My dad asked me if I could help with the dishes after I ate lunch," he answered me quietly. Jimin pulled an apron over his head and put on a pair of rubber gloves. He tossed my pair over to me. “Looks like we have a lot of work to do.”

“Great,” I muttered, pulling on the gloves. “This is just great.”

“I’m sorry,” Jimin murmured. “I honestly didn’t know you worked here.”

“If you did, what would have changed? This is still your family’s restaurant. If anything, I’m the one who should leave.” I picked up a sponge and scrubbed hard at a particularly nasty speck.

“Don’t,” Jimin said, his voice firm. I looked at him in surprise. He stared back at me, his beautiful brown eyes serious. “Don’t give up this job just because you feel uncomfortable. Please. I’ll only be here for a month.”

“Um, okay.” 

Jimin dived in to the sudsy sink and started washing dishes. He quickly finished expertly cleaning five dishes while I still worked on one.

“I forgot how good you were at washing dishes,” I said softly.

He smirked. “One of the many skills of a restaurant owner’s son.”

We continued washing dishes in silence for a little while.

“So you moved back here, huh?” Jimin asked finally.

“Yup.” I handed him a clean dish and he put it on the drying rack.

“Why? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“I needed a change of scenery," I responded simply. I wasn’t about to tell him that I cried every time I went into the bathroom and saw his toothbrush in the holder.

“You did always love Busan," he murmured.

I hated this. I hated that he knew me so well and yet we were standing here almost like we were perfect strangers. It killed me to stand next to him and know that I probably would never kiss him again, no matter how much I wanted to.

“Yeah, I still do. I love the sea and the mountains.”

I could feel him staring at me while washing dishes, but I ignored him and concentrated on rinsing the soap off of a plate.

“Ah!” The plate slipped from my hands and cracked into shards on the floor. I bent down to clean it up and found Jimin already on his knees, carefully placing the broken pieces into his apron.

“Are you okay?” he asked me, glancing at my hands for signs of blood.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” My voice shook. Jimin looked into my face, concerned.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. It’s fine.”

He quickly threw the broken pieces in the trash and bent down to look at me. He tilted my face up to his level with his index finger. I found it hard to breathe.

Jimin’s eyes raked over my face, looking for signs of an injury. Finally, he let out a sigh of relief and took his finger away.

“Looks like you’re okay," he decided. His tone held such tenderness and I melted. He didn't hate me?

He started to stand up and without thinking, I reached out and grabbed the hem of his shirt.

“Jimin?” I called him, unsure of what I was about to say.

He glanced over at me with soft eyes. “What’s up, baby?”

At that moment, the kitchen door opened with a bang. We both jumped, startled.

“Jimin!” Young Jae’s face broke out into a wide smile as he strolled into the room. “Long time no see, little buddy.”

I stood up gradually, in a sense grateful for the interruption. I had no idea what I had wanted to say to Jimin and my heart had been sent into overdrive when he called me baby.

I looked over at Jimin to see how he felt about being called “little buddy.” His gentle expression had immediately turned stormy. I snickered to myself. He could always be such a kid about those things.

“Hello, Young Jae," he said, his voice stiff. “How have you been?”

Young Jae threw an arm around me. I looked up at him, shocked.

“I’ve been doing great. Ever since I reunited with this beautiful girl.” He winked at me. I looked away. Could this situation be any more uncomfortable?

“Do you know him?” Jimin demanded, glaring at me. Wait, what? Why was he glaring at me?

“Um…we used to work together, apparently. He was a gym teacher at the school where I taught literature.” I said, trying to duck out of Young Jae’s grip. He only squeezed me tighter.

“Young Jae," I complained, pushing him away. Jimin just watched us. I couldn’t read his expression.

“Are you two dating?” he asked quietly.

“Yup!” Young Jae flashed me a huge grin.

“No.” I replied with a scowl. Why was this happening to me?

“What do you mean, no?” Young Jae demanded, turning to look at me. “We’ve been on dates before.”

“One date,” I corrected. “We just went to the amusement park.”

“And on a romantic picnic to see a meteor shower,” Young Jae added. I flushed. I did not want Jimin to hear this. What would he think of me if he knew I had dated so soon after our breakup?

“You guys are dating? Y-You went to the amusement park? And on a picnic?” Jimin repeated, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Well, not officially,” Young Jae said casually. “I’m slowly wearing her down. This girl still needs to forget about her loser ex-boyfriend.” He pulled my cheek playfully. I slapped his hand away.

“He’s not a loser,” I murmured.

“Any guy who would let you go is definitely a loser,” Jimin mumbled, turning his attention back to the dishes.

“What did you say?” I asked him, not sure if I heard him correctly.

He looked up at me with a blank expression. “I said congratulations. It’s nice to see you happy.”

Young Jae came from behind me and wrapped his arms around me. He kissed the top of my head. “I definitely plan on making her happy.”

“Young Jae!” I protested, struggling to get out of his grasp.

“Young Jae.” Mrs. Park’s voice could be heard at the kitchen door.

Young Jae let go of me with a guilty expression. I flushed and turned back to the dishes.

“Come back and take these orders out to the customers. Now,” Mrs. Park said pointedly.

“Yes, ma’am.” Young Jae meekly followed her out of the room.

Now it was just Jimin and I alone in the kitchen. We washed dishes in awkward silence until I finally said something.

“We’re not dating,” I scrubbed hard at a dish while trying to hide my embarrassment.

“You don’t have to lie,” Jimin said coolly.

“I’m not lying,” I insisted.

“It’s none of my business who you date,” Jimin responded nonchalantly. I flushed.

“You’re right,” I replied quietly. Somehow I felt hurt. I had thought, maybe just for a moment...No, it was just wishful thinking. Of course Jimin didn't care about who I dated. He didn't care about me anymore.

It fell silent again.

“You sure moved on quickly, though,” Jimin grumbled, almost inaudibly.

“We’re not dating! How many times do I have to say it?” I cried, frustrated.

“You went on a date,” Jimin pointed out stubbornly.

“It was just one. I didn’t even want to go, really.” I handed him a dish.

“What, you can’t say no when someone asks you to do something you don’t want to do? I don’t remember that part of you,” Jimin said snidely, snatching the dish out of my hand.

“What is up with you?” I demanded. “Like you said, it’s none of your business who I date. You’re the one who left me; remember that part of you?”

Jimin went quiet.

“Why are you here? Don't you have, like, work to do or something?"

Jimin cleared his throat. "I'm on vacation."

"Vacation?" I repeated, incredulous. "You don't get vacations."

"I do now." He practically snatched a dish out of my hand and rubbed it with the towel, a deep scowl on his face. "Listen, I didn't know you were gonna be here. I wouldn't have come if I knew."

Honestly? I knew we were broken up and all, but it stung to hear from his mouth that he didn't want to be around me. Did he hate me now?

"I mean...I can leave. I can find another job or something, like..." I trailed off. Where was I gonna find another job in time to make my rent payment? 

"I know that you need this job," Jimin said, his voice quiet. "It's just a bit inconvenient for me, seeing as how I'm here to try to get over you."

Wait...what?

"You're not over me?" I blurted out.

Jimin exhaled through his nose, a wisp of a smile on his face. "Nah, you think I could get over that quickly? We were together for a long time. It's been...an adjustment for me."

I didn't know what to say. To be honest, I was having trouble processing the whole situation.

"I'm not trying to your ego," he continued. "But I'm not gonna lie, it hurt me to see you with someone else. You really moved on that quickly?"

"You broke up with me. You don't get to just waltz in and judge all of my choices. My life as I knew it ended when you walked out of our apartment that day, so like," I turned away from him as tears gathered in my eyes. My voice caught in my throat and cracked as I tried to speak again. "You just...you don't g-get a say in my life anymore."

"Hey, hey, don't cry," Jimin peeled off his gloves and cupped my face in his hands. I tried to push him away, but he pulled me back in and brushed my tears away with the pad of his thumb. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I know I ed up, baby. I'm so sorry."

"No, no," I placed my hands on his chest and gave him a forceful shove. "No, stop. Don't...don't be nice to me. Don't touch me, don't apologize to me. I c-can't do it, okay? Just put your gloves back on a-and wash the dishes. You left me and that's it. It's done, so just...just shut up, okay?"

Jimin stood there staring at me for a moment, looking all wistful with his pretty, sad brown eyes and a soft frown. 

I plunged my hands into the soapy water, determined not to talk to him or look at him or pretend that he existed. It was just me and the dishes. No thoughts, no wondering what he meant by apologizing, no feeling slightly happy when he said he wasn't over me yet. Just me and the dishes.

Jimin pulled his gloves back on and joined me at the sink. I sniffled from time to time, but otherwise, it was relatively silent. 

"It's true," Jimin said softly. "I did leave you. It’s that part of me that I hate.”

I looked up at him, trying to figure out what he meant by that comment. His face went pink, but he continued to concentrate on washing dishes.

“What do you mean by that?” I asked him. Why? Why did he have to speak and say confusing things that demanded further explanation?

“Exactly what I said.” Jimin turned to look at me. He stared intently in my eyes. “I hate the part of me that decided to leave you.”

“Jimin,” a voice called. "We need you in the kitchen."

Both of us spun around. Jimin’s mom stood there, gesturing for Jimin to follow.

Jimin glanced at me before pulling off his apron and gloves and following his mom.

I watched him leave the kitchen. As he disappeared through the door, he turned his head and looked back at me wistfully, just for a moment. My heart pounded.

What the was happening?