*Clack*
The dark gold metallic gate closed and she walked through a stone path made for two cars two run through. High trees were at both sides and a slight cold was felt in the shadows made by them.
She walked for a quarter of an hour at a normal pace but she had yet to arrive. She could see two upper floors now, though; so she was closer to the house.
*Bzzt, bzzt…*
A buzzing sound came from her denim shoulder bag.
"Um?" She stopped, opened her bag, and took out her pink smartphone.
[Not My Clone] [Incoming Call…]
"Hmm…" She looked at the screen for a couple of seconds and before the call was missed, she slid her finger on the screen and resumed her steps.
//"Yo! So this is the phone number you are using.
//"Tch, I called you several times from the one you sent me a message and you are using this one. Are you feigning being a commoner again or what?"//
"Tsk, if you call me only to nag, I'm hanging up."
//"Ha! And here I was all worried. Since you sent me your subtle message 'I'm in Seoul' yesterday, I thought you will be coming to the house to stay."//
"Why should I? I left the house."
//"Correction. You left the Busan house."//
"It's the same."
//"How stubborn…
//"Anyway, need me to find you a place?"//
"Do you think I'm that useless?"
//"… No."//
"You…"
//"Haha… Of course not, my dear little sister, but I don't think you are in Seoul to stay as Namgung either so your big brother has been worried to death as you didn't come to sleep."//
"Strip that big brother facade, you are only nine minutes older and not even our mother will buy you are worried, you know?!"
//"Haha… how cruel…"//
"Um? I'm hanging…" Nam Ha-Eun said when the complete four-floor, old European-style mansion appeared before her eyes.
//"Wait, wait, I call you to have dinner…"//
"You know I hate exposition and you are all over the media now…"
//"Ha! Wait…"//
*Tap* She hung up and put her pink smartphone back to her shoulder bag.
'Though I do hate exposition, I have to do this.'
"Haa-"
*Bzzt, bzzt…*
Her smartphone buzzed again but she ignored it.
…
*Tan, tan*
After going up the steps before the entrance, she knocked at the big brown wooden double-door.
…
*Creak*
"Ahh…"
"Miss Nam?" A middle-aged man of foreign features in a black suit asked as he surveyed her from head to toe.
"Yes."
"Please, come in."
"Thank you, amh…" she replied with wonder.
"Roland Richards," he answered as he turned around to lead the way.
"Thank you, Mr. Richards." As she decided to act humble, she was polite and reserved.
"Please call me Roland, Miss Nam," he looked over his shoulder with his blue eyes.
"All right, Roland," she smiled at him.
"Sir Kwon won't be here till night. Miss Nam will have to wait."
"Sure," she smiled again.
Roland Richards didn't look at her anymore and focused on leading the way.
Nam Ha-Eun just followed him without any particular interest on the mansion's layout.
…
They arrived at a classic living room with big windows and a golden chandelier hanging above the oval wooden tea table in the middle of the four-piece brown sofa set.
"Miss Nam can wait here.
"There are some books in the bookshelves, if Miss Nam wish to read them, feel free of helping yourself."
Nam Ha-Eun nodded.
"Which drink may I bring, Miss Nam?"
"Oh, I would like some coffee," she replied as she stared at the books in the bookshelves, they seemed to be rather old.
"What type of coffee?"
"A mocha…" she walked towards the bookshelves.
Roland Richards dismissed himself.
Nam Ha-Eun passed her eyes thought the books' titles but didn't take any.
At length, she sat on the two-seater sofa and took her smartphone out.
[3 missed calls]
[1 message]
"…"
*Tap*
[3. Not My Clone]
*Tap, tap*
[11:30 pm at Notte Profumata. It's quite late so it should be all right. You can come with your chick nerdy looks if you want.]
'It's not only quite late, it is really late…' She rolled her eyes.
*Tap, tap, tap…* She closed the message's screen and opened one where she began to write.
*****
Hours went by and she only parted her sight from her smartphone's screen to reply to Roland Richards. Even when she was drinking her mocha coffee or eating the cheesecake with blueberries that were brought to her, she maintained her grey eyes and one hand tapping on the screen.
…
"You did come and I heard you have been waiting for long."
*Tap, tap, tap…*
Nam Ha-Eun didn't hear anything; she was concentrated tapping on her phone.
"However, it seems, you didn't feel so…" a low whisper sounded as the red-haired Kwon Chung-Hee turned his slanted light brown eyes from her to sit on the individual sofa.
…
Nam Ha-Eun furrowed her brows and stopped tapping on the screen.
"Are you done?"
"…" she turned her head around and her eyes met the handsome Kwon Chung-Hee, "Oh, you have arrived."
"…"