"Open it."
"They're sneakers. But why?"
"I saw your torn sneakers—the one you always wear—and I thought, hey, this is the perfect birthday gift."
"You didn't have to. It must be expensive."
"It doesn't matter. Do you like it?"
"Yes, I like it very much."
"Then give me a smile. I want to see your dimples."
"Stop it. You're making me blush."
"Hahaha! I like it even more that you're blushing."
"Stop teasing me! But Danny…"
"Hm?"
"…Thank you."
* * * *
Kyunghee loved to run.
She didn't know what it was about running she loved so much, but she just did.
She loved it more than she liked dancing. When she ran, the air that whipped through her hair almost made it feel as if she was flying. In a way, it felt as if freedom could be touched, if only for during that mile. When she ran, her mind was freed from the grasp that reality chained down on her. She didn't have to think about anything, didn't have to feel anything, and the world ceased to exit.
She supposed this habit of hers—correction: this love for running of hers—started when she was fourteen. She'd pick up her sneakers, no matter how torn and old they were, slip it on and run for miles on ends.
Kyunghee especially loved to run in the rain. It wasn't the best thing to do; in fact, really stupid if it was any other normal human-being in their right mind. However, she was awfully stubborn and she was often not in her right mind when her emotions did the talking. On several occasions, she was bedridden with a terrible fever that incapacitated her from showing up to work as a result.
Some people drink to cope with stress, some people read or write. As for Kyunghee, she ran. Running helped her release tensions, running calmed her down and, frankly, it was the only thing she could say she was proud of. It was something that gave her joy, something that nobody could ever take away from her. It gave her a sense of pride whenever she finished a mile, sweat trickling down her sides as a form of trophy. Perspiration had never been so beguiling.
Running kept her grounded through all the shit life contains. When she ran, nothing else mattered except for the wind that slashed against her skin and numbed the dulling pain deep inside.
Simply put, she ran to forget. She ran to numb herself whole.
How she wished she could be running right now. Instead she was stuck in a cab on her way to work—the mundane things of life. Kyunghee relaxed into the back seat and leaned her forehead against the window as Seoul's night scenery passed by in a blur of colourful street lights. But she was accustomed to these street lights of boredom and repetition.
Her eyes darted up to the mass of sky overhead. There were dark clouds rolling by with a faint hint of a drizzle. Everything looked so grey and gloomy. Earlier it had been pelting cats and dogs, but the rain had died down by 4 PM. Snow still covered the ground but they were slowly turning into a pile of brown, wet slush.
Inside the cab, the heat was turned on way too high so it became kind of claustrophobic.
Kyunghee rolled the window down then lifted her head, closing her eyes to enjoy the fresh air grazing her skin and cooling her down. She imagined a nice spring day and herself slipping into a pair of sneakers. She ran up the block, down the block, then circle it again and again.
Unknowingly, the corners of her lips curled into a smile.
*SCREEEEEECH*
Her whole body lurched forward before she was roughly pulled back into place by the safety belt. Her lips were parted, alarmed, but she was speechless from the shock. Her heart nearly fell out of place from the sudden sharp brake by the cab driver.
"What the fuck? What the hell is he doing?!" The cab driver growled frustratingly, followed by a series of angry honking. The cab driver craned his neck towards Kyunghee with furrowed eyebrows. "Are you okay, Miss? I'm so sorry about the sudden brake, but that man jumped out of nowhere and I had to stop before I hit him."
"I'm alright," she answered. Thank goodness her seatbelt was on. That scared the shit out of her. What kind of person was so reckless? But she wasn't affected as much as the cab driver because he was back to cussing the stupid idiot that walked out blindly onto the streets.
"Is he fucking crazy?! Only crazy people will jump out in the middle of moving traffic. Where is his brain and common sense?! What is wrong with people these days?!" The cab driver rambled on furiously.
Kyunghee tilted her head slightly to the side and leaned forward in her seat, trying to look through the windshield to see what was happening outside. There were cars honking everywhere. She realized they were in the middle of an intersection. The cars on the opposite road had stopped driving as well. The car next to theirs had stopped too and its driver was honking and looking peeved just like hers. No cars were moving at all, creating a traffic congestion right in the middle of the intersection.
Then she saw the crazy man the driver was referring to.
The man had just gotten up from the ground. Standing two meters directly in front of her cab, in the center of the intersection causing all of this commotion, was a tall, muscular man in casual clothing. His back was turned toward her, but it looked like he was breathing heavily from the way his shoulders kept moving up and down. His fists were clenched by his sides. He looked tense. He was staring at something in front of him—a car that was quickly getting away.
Her cab driver rolled down his window and cussed heatedly, "Hey, you motherfucker, if you want to die then go somewhere else! Don't throw yourself out in the middle of a busy street! Don't bring other people down with you!"
That caught the man's attention and he whirled around on his brown, leather combat boots. He did not look happy. In fact, he was scowling in anger and there was a deep, don't-fuck-with-me-I'm-already-pissed-off frown on his face. His jaw was set firmly and his eyes were ablaze, giving off an intimidating aura even from the distance.
"Get out of the way! You're blocking everyone!" The cab driver continued relentlessly. Kyunghee wasn't sure if it was a good idea since the man already looked so murderous at the moment. "Don't you have eyes to see where you're walking?"
Something lit up on the man's dark features and he stormed over to the cab driver's door, lowering his head to the window. Instinctively Kyunghee moved back into her seat as if that would help create a safe distance.
"Get out," the crazy man demanded without wasting breaths. His dark, intense eyes bore into the depths of the cab driver's soul. His voice was deep, gruff and authoritative, meaning all business and no play.
"Excuse me?" The cab driver was shocked.
So was Kyunghee.