It is unmistakably obvious that Sica has moved in already. It is equally obvious she forget that she is sharing a room with someone. I gingerly make my way through the quagmire of crap that she has left in the room: strewn clothes, tennis racket, and discarded boxes.

A single bed is on either side of the room. On the far wall, a desk-one for me, one for her sit on the either side of the window. My desk has nothing. Hers has a computer, television and a speaker setup. I assume since the bed on the right is covered in clothes that Sica has claimed that side of the room. The dresser beside it is cluttered, the accordion door of her closet half open.

It has been six months since the last time I met her, and she asked me to rent a small house and share a room together. Sica is a slob. Not that I am a neat freak or anything, I mean, my mom has to threaten me with withholding my allowance to get me to clean my room, but let’s get real here.

Sitting on what I perceive to be my bed, my solitary suitcase and backpack on the floor beside me. Sica has three-fourths of the space already. If I was a newcomer my bad impression of her has formed: inconsiderate, disaster, slob, --  

The phone suddenly rings.

I know it can’t be for me. I haven’t given anyone the number yet. I am about letting the phone on desk go unanswered, but it goes against my nature. There is just something about the ringing of the phone that calls to me to pick it up. Even when I know it isn’t going to be for me. I snatch up the receiver.

“Hello?” I speak enthusiastically into the receiver, a little enthusiastic that it sounded awkward.

“Hey, is this Sica’s place?” A voice came on the line.

He has a smooth voice and I like it, it’s kind of y to me. It just sends a shiver of pleasure through me. Really strange. I never reacted that way to a guy’s voice.

“No, this is her roommate.” I don’t know what possess me to toss out a smart comment, but the guy laughs. Big mistake to make him laugh because deep rumble shimmers down to my toes and makes them curl. Laughter never makes my toes react. This is too totally strange.

“Pretty funny. Is she there?”

“Nope.”

“Okay, I’ll just call her later.”

I am just about to ask his name but he hangs up. I guess it was probably Sica’s boyfriend. I am reaching for my cell phone to call her when the phone on the desk rings again. I almost let it ring, but in the end, I don’t have the willpower to deny the siren’s call.

“Hello?”

Silence. Great.

“Hellooooo?” I repeat.

“Sorry, are you Sica’s roommate?” The voice asks.

The smooth voice I just recognized, this is still the same guy.

 “You still there?” he asks.

I am totally embarrassed. I swallow, clear my throat. “Sorry, I got distracted watching quiz on TV.”

Yeah, right, Yuri. “Uh, yes, I’m her roommate. She’s not here. Do you want to leave message?”

“Has anyone ever told you that your voice sounds incredibly y?”

I hold the phone away from my ear and stare at it. Has he said what I thought he has? My voice isn’t y. It’s kind of raspy-sounding.

I’m sure this guy must be a major player. He is coming on to me and he doesn’t even know me. What a creep! The fact that I was thinking the same thing about his voice only seconds earlier doesn’t lessen my irritation with him. What kind of guy calls for one girl and flirts with another?

“Do you want to leave a message?” I ask impatiently.

“What’s your name?” He asks instead replies my question.

“My name?” I nearly choke on my saliva.

“Yeah. I bet it’s as intriguing as your voice.”

“Hardly.” I say without my spirits.

“Let me be the judge. What is it?”

“Is that the message you want to leave for Sica? That you want to be a judge?”

I hear him laugh. Secretly I already fall for his laughter, for once again it makes the deep rumble shimmers down to my toes and makes them curl.

“Come on, what’s the big secret? I bet it isn’t something to be embarrassed, maybe?”

I shake my head and say sarcastically, “No.”

“Tinky winky?”

I ground my teeth together. “No.”

“Come on, there’s no way it’s as bad as my name.”

“What’s your name?” I ask bluntly.

“I thought you’d never ask. It’s Jiyong.”

I scowl. His name isn’t bad at all. He tricks me into expressing an interest in him.

“So I can tell Sica that Jiyong called?”

“Who’s going to tell her?”

 I swear I hear him smile. I know it’s impossible but it sure sounds like a smile in his voice. I relent somehow.

 “Yuri.” I frankly can’t believe that I let that word from my mouth.

“I like it.” This time I feel like he smiles triumphantly.

 “My mom would be thrilled to know she has your seal of approval.”

He laughs again. It was an infectious laugh. It makes me want to laugh with him, but I am so not going to play his game.

“Look, I’m really busy here.” I impatiently say.

“Watching quiz?”

“No, unpacking.”

“Aah, you just got there.” He speaks with understanding tone.

“Yeah.”

“Do you know where she goes?”

“Nope.” I shrug carelessly.

“It is nice to meet you.”

“We didn’t actually meet.” Obviously.

“Close enough. It’s nice to hear your voice, by the way.” I can’t stand the nerve of this guy.  

“I’m sort a busy here. Gotta go.” I say.

“Do you really have to go now?” Does he really have to ask again?

“Yes. Like I said, I just got here.” I roll my eyes.

“I even haven’t left a message yet.”

Seriously, this guy wants me to throw the phone off. “Okay, fine. Do you want to leave a message, Jiyong-shi?” I stabilize my voice to not sound annoyed.

“Just tell her, ‘it was nice talking with your roommate and I wish I could chat with her a little bit longer but she’s kind of busy. Next time help her, so she can have leisure time to talk to me.’”

What kind of message is that? What the crap is he talking? I am almost reaching my boiling point. I need time clear my mind.

“Yuri-shi, is that too long?” he plays me. I know it so well.

I take a deep breath before I can answer him. “Of course not, I’ll tell her. So, that is it. I gotta go.”

“Fine. Bye, Yuri-shi.”

“Bye, jerk.” With a low voice I speak before I hang up. I don’t care if he’ll hear me or not. Jiyong. He’s not a big deal. We will never meet anyway, will we?

***

Dear Yuri

I’m going to have dinner with Jay

Be back late, don’t wait up.

I’ve bought you pasta for your dinner

Sica

After I finish unpacking my things and decorate stuff in the house I fall asleep. When I‘m awake I see a note from Sica is resting on my computer. She was back at noon and before dinner she’s gone already. Even though with her existence she still let me clean the house alone, including clean her messy territory.

So, eventually Sica has a boyfriend and the person is Jay, not the guy named Jiyong who called this morning, he’s just one of her friend actually. Why do I even bring him up? Well, about the morning incident. In the end I just told her that Jiyong called and he didn’t leave any message. What am I supposed to do if I tell her the truth? His message is nonsense. He just plays all along.

The phone rings. Has to be for Sica, but since she isn’t here…let it ring.

But I am too weak. I pick it up on the third ring.

“Hello.” I lazily answer.

“Yuri-ah.”

Speak of the devil. Jiyong. Gosh, I don’t like the way he sounds. Like there is secrets share between us.

“Yuri-shi.” I correct him.

“I am in the way making some friend. So let me talk informally, you mind?”

What I need to say right now is, ‘sorry I can’t hear you’ and pretend the connection lost then I hang up so it will really lessen my stress.

“Sica’s not here.” But the fact, I can’t let his voice go.     

“I know. She’s out with Jay.”

“Then why did you call?” I don’t know why I still talking to him. I should hang up.

“Your voice. It’s been haunting me. What do you look like?”

There’s a fact I hate right now, we’re in love with each other’s voice. What a lame.

 “Why do you so want to know?”

“Why don’t you let me know?”

“Angelina Jolie.” I randomly speak.

My words make him laugh. I feel the deep rumble that shimmered through me.

“Then I’ll be your Brad Pitt.” There it goes; he should stop teasing me because it won’t work.

“Where are you from?” he asks.

“It’s none of your business.” I stare harder out the window. Why am I answering this guy?

“I think you lose all respect for me.”

“You’ve made mistaken assumption that I had any respect for you to begin with.”

He laughs again. Then he quiets suddenly, and all I can hear is pounding of my heart.

“Dark hair,” he says quietly.

“What?”

“You have dark hair, and probably dark skin tone.”

“What does it matter?”

“Your voice sounds exotic.” I can’t deny that I’m flattered. Okay, I need to get out of his lines because I’m scared I start wanting to play his game.

“Well, I’ll tell Sica you called.”

“No, don’t tell her this time. I just called to talk to you.”

There was a strange shift in his voice that I can’t quite identify.

“You don’t want her to know you called me this time?”

“Let’s just say that it would be better if she didn’t know.”

“Well, why?”

“I gotta go, Yuri-ah.” I hardly believe that he just hangs up right away without answer my question first. As quickly as a heartbeat he is gone. Now he successfully leaves me ashamed. I should have hung up from the very beginning.

I drop the phone in cradle. To forget what just happened I eat the pasta that Sica’s bought for me then turn the TV on. I don't notice time clicking so fast, I hear the key is going into the lock. Sica's already home. I see my roommate walk through the door..

“How was the dinner?” I ask.

“Great. I'm so in love with Jay.” She sits on the vacant spot besides me.

I smile at her comment. It's good to see her happy. "What's up?" She asks casually.

“Well, nothing much. I'm just full and really bored and..." I end up unsurely.

"And?" She waits for something come up from my mouth. 

"He called.” I can’t stop myself from saying it. “Who called?” She asks absentmindedly. I thought she knows who the one I’m talking about is.

“Jiyong.” 

“I wonder why he didn’t call on my cell. I recharge it.” She pulls her cell out of her pocket and for some reason I panic.

“He didn’t want you to know that he called.” I say the truth, half of myself feel like I’m betraying Jiyong.

“Then why did you tell me?” She examines me with curiosity.

“I don’t know, maybe because we’re friends and I don’t want to have any secret between us, beside he’s your friend.” I emphasize.

She puts her hand on her waist and strangely looks at me. “Want to meet him?”

I stare at her in disbelief. She is just kidding, right? “Jiyong? No, thank you.”

“Yeah, you should meet him some time.”

I can’t even reply her last words. I just blankly look at her. Some of me still want to reject but some other is like frankly want to know what he looks like.