,,Her blood is pumped full of caffeine. She's like a ticking time bomb now." The brunette behind the raised counter in her apron whispered to the guy next to her.
Sang-Hoon nodded in agreement and leaned even closer to her.
,,I just don't know if the blast will hit us or herself."
Even though I could hear them clearly, I kept my eyes on the black tea cup. It was neither the first one nor the last.
,,Will you tell us?" As I went deeper into my thoughts, Aurora's voice interrupted me again.
,,Hm..." I looked from one to the other. ,, ...why not."
My decision was based on the fact that I had nothing to hide.
,,So spill the beans mate." This time, Sang-Hoon spoke, leaning his elbows a few inches from me.
,,Oh, is it about that guy from earlier, isn't it?"
My gaze fell on Aurora, who mimicked the position of the boy next to her. She got an annoyed glare from me since she wouldn't let me speak.
,,He just forbade his younger sister to contact me in any way." My face made a strange grimace that united all the mixed feelings that had been trapped inside me so far.
,,And the reason?" Aurora raised an eyebrow in a gesture of incomprehension.
With a shrug, I rested my head on the palms that touched my temples, while gently massaging that area with fingertips.
,,Uh-huh, It seems that I am the only one not in the know..." Our attention was drawn to Sang-Hoon, whose presence and interest etched into my heart without the slightest hesitation.
,,The guy who practically saved you from the next blow, you know ... back then." She turned her gaze on him and subconsciously touched his nose softly, which felt the strength of Aurora's ex-boyfriend the most.
And that was the first time I saw the hardness in his face. However, when he looked away, it was as if out of shame. That's how it felt to me.
,,Ya." Aurora touched his forearm urgently, forcing him to look her straight in the face. His facial features softened, but there was still that one emotion I didn't have deciphered.
,,In fact, I never thanked you for saving me." I blurted thoughtlessly at the need that suddenly struck me.
After my words, he gave me a small smile that created the same thing on Aurora's face.
,,Thank you for pulling him away from me then and for protecting Aurora for the rest of the time he was dangerous to her." It was finally his turn to receive what he deserved.
,,I couldn't do it." That was his reaction. ,,If the guy who was more capable than me hadn't show up-"
,,But he had. And if it weren't for you, Byeong-Ho would probably suffocate me, Sang-Hoon." I deliberately left out the part about what could happen to Aurora. I didn't want to take the situation even further and give them both thoughts that neither of them deserved to have in mind.
,,Well, I guess I already know exactly who we're talking about. So go ahead." Sang-Hoon preferred to move on to the previous topic, which seemed more comfortable in that state.
,,You know what? There is nothing to complain about." I said as I replayed in my head the few minutes that left me so confused.
,,In the same breath that he entered my life, he left it just as suddenly. And it's not my business to stop him."
,,You just let it go?" Aurora frowned.
,,But she's got a point." Sang-Hoon spoke with a completely different comment from my friend.
,,Why should she keep someone in her life who obviously doesn't want to be a part of it?"
,, Because "obviously" he is interested in being a part of her life!" Her palm spontaneously hit his shoulder in an indignant gesture that I didn't quite understand.
,,Otherwise, he wouldn't have beat up Byeong-Ho right at the police station, taking the risk. Why would he do that?"
,,Cause he can't control his emotions?" Sang-Hoon answered right away with a frown.
,,How did you find out about it?" I got involved in the debate again, from which I was left out for a moment.
,,Well duh..." Aurora pointed to Sang-Hoon, who just shrugged. That's when I finally remembered the fact that he was taken to the police station along with Su-Jin.
,,He beat him unnecessarily so that they took him to the hospital instead of to the cell. It wasn't very wise of him." He showed us his point of view, but his eyes were fixed on the brunette next to him, as if trying to convince her of his truth.
,,He did it for Millie." She stuck up for herself. Or maybe ... for me.
,,Nah. He did it for his own ego." Sang-Hoon didn't let himself be persuaded.
If I were to describe what was happening to my mind while listening to their little fight, I would call it a conflagration. A fire that burned everything I was convinced of, leaving behind only burnt traces, which may or may not have led me to the source and truth of the whole state of affairs.
At this point, I was no longer certain if I wanted to know anything at all about it.
The more Su-Jin went through my head, the more my heart stirred in an effort to shake off the marks he had left on it.
And I felt rage.
For forcing my mind and heart to argue, as well as two people I considered real friends. That I went to see him in the greenhouse back then. That in my weak moments only the sound of his bass guitar could soothe me. I felt rage because of Ma-Ri.
While I was mulling it over, I was becoming more aware of my feelings towards him.
,,No reason is needed for me." I muttered spontaneously.
,,What did you say?" Aurora turned her head to me, after she had been exchanging a few words with the boy next to her so far, which I had all dropped unintentionally.
,,Hm?" I glanced from one to the other again, while I put a cup of almost cold tea to my lips.
,,You just said something, didn't you?" She answered me with an annoyed look.
,,I said I don't need his reason. Neither do I care."
,,You're so dumb." Was her primary reaction.
,,Nah, mate. I just don't have self-destructive tendencies." Once again, my heart wanted to cry for this answer, to hit me at worst, but my brain stretched its palm towards me to congratulate me.
,,Savage." Sang-Hoon nodded appreciatively as Aurora dealt him another hit with her palm.
,,She's too much of "savage"!"
The bored look I gave her was, yes, just a ruse. Even so, she responded appropriately when the cup was taken from my hands.
,,Caffeine was enough for you today. Your brain overdoes it with overthinking." She said while she poured out the rest of my tea into the sink. ,,It's for your own good." She added after looking me in the face again.
A chuckle came from Sang-Hoon, but as I turned my gaze to him, he immediately began to shake his head in disapproval.
We spent a few more moments in the debate until I decided to return home.
I didn't take a walk on purpose, preferred to use the bus, just in case. There was no need for me to get involved in something I would regret later.
In our apartment, I went straight to the bathroom, where I filled a tub, into which I poured a few grains of bath salt with the scent of lavender.
As soon as I undressed and tied my hair in a bun, I was immersed up in pleasantly hot water up to my neck while listening to my playlist.
It was so pleasant that later I suddenly opened my eyes, realizing that I had nodded off, and from the water in which I was still lying, chills began to appear on my skin.
Another awakening came when I perceived that the reason I woke up was the unceasing sound of knocking on the front door.
I squinted into the light for a moment as I decided to ignore the lingering sound.
I knew Aurora was taking her keys, and if something unexpected happened, she would call me.
So my eyes closed again, in the half-sleep I was still in, and let my body enjoy a little of the heat that still remained and radiated from the water.
In a few minutes, my phone, which had been placed by the sink, started ringing anyway.
Thus, when I forced my body to move, my skin was drenched in the cold air that made me shiver.
Eventually, however, I managed to grab it between my fingers before the person on the other side cancelled the call. After pressing the green icon, I instantly put the phone to my ear.
,,Hey, Mill. Will you come open for me?" My roommate's voice came through the speaker, which I almost rolled my eyes at.
,,Where are your keys?" I frowned as I fastened the towel around my torso.
,,Probably in the locker room forgotten on the hanger. Move, mate." She spoke briefly before cancelling the call.
With my body shaking from the cold air, I walked across the living room to the hall, where I unlocked and then opened the door.
,,I brought some leftovers!" Aurora lifted a plastic bag above her head while I cleared the way to our apartment and let her pass by.
,,What time is it, actually?" I pinched my nose bridge between my fingers as I was trying to bring myself together from the cat nap.
,,It's a little after six o'clock, today we closed a lot earlier cause boss wanted to make a closing and paychecks." She answered me while we both went to the kitchen counter, where she started unloading cakes and sandwiches.
Then she loaded some of it on a plate and in a few seconds she was sitting on the couch with the TV on in front of her.
,,Oh and! Don't know what this is?" She took a folded piece of paper from her jeans pocket and held out her hand with it.
,,It was half-tucked under our door." She added as I examined what she was holding from distance.
I approached her and grabbed the thing between my fingers, displaying a confused expression.
When I opened the paper, there was five-line musical staffs, on which was a sheet music inscribed in black pen.
There was only one person came to my mind who could have left it there.
My heart started pounding hard against my rib cage as I was putting it all together.
I nervously buried my fingers in my hair and released it from the bun.
Su-Jin was here.