I want to be yours // viseul

~8~

Vivi was happy. She wasn't alone anymore, she had people who cared about her. They wanted to talk to her, they were interested in what she had to say. That hadn't happened since...had that ever happened?

But Vivi still had some responsibilities that would sometimes make her distant from the other girls. It had been a couple of weeks since their trip to the hotel pool, and the group had hung out every other day after school. Vivi had promised to go out with them more, but noticing how many late nights she was having, her mother became concerned.

"I don't want you messing around when you should be doing schoolwork," Her mother scolded as soon as Vivi picked up the phone. "What kind of things have you been doing? Drinking? Drugs? Vivi, have you been messing with boys?"

"Mom!" Vivi protested weakly. "I'm okay, I made new friends,"

"What have I told you? You don't need more distractions,"

"I'm not distracted," Vivi's voice grew quiet. "I'm weeks ahead on schoolwork-"

"Vivi, this is final. You aren't going out anymore. You have that job to do anyways, at the Kmart?"

"Yes," Vivi mumbled. "I'm sorry Mom,"

"I've got to go now, I'll call you soon,"

Her mother hung up.

Vivi put her phone down, trying to breath normally to stop any crying. She was fine. Her mother was right, she needed to go to her shift, there was no reason for her to be upset.

Vivi put on her coat and shoes, grabbing her phone and getting ready to walk to the Kmart. The sun was only just starting to set below the horizon, and Vivi checked her phone one last time before heading out.

Jungeun: hey, the seniors and me are going to a party tonight, if you wanna come

Vivi: cant :( I've got work. I'll go next time

It was true, although Vivi probably would've declined anyway. Parties meant hordes of sweaty boys and people who she knew she could never talk to. But the fact that she didn't have the option at all made her sigh in disappointment. It made her feel guilty sometimes, to resent her mother, but all she wanted was to be carefree like she was before her Dad died, before it felt like everything in her life went to hell.

Vivi meandered down the street to the Kmart, humming quietly to herself as she took her time to get to the store. The area around her apartment wouldn't be described as nice, but at least it was peaceful and quiet. It mostly consisted of alleyways and residential streets, so it was often abandoned with the exception of Vivi.

The store was open when she arrived, but the other employee barely spared her a glance on his way out, handing her the keys without a second thought. Vivi would be staying until the next employee got there, so she sighed and sat down at the counter, looking around the empty store to see if she missed any customers. She didn't, as usual, the store was empty.

Hours passed, and no one came into the store. Vivi busied herself with cleaning and restocking the shelves, throwing out the raw food that would go bad the next day and taking one for herself for dinner.

But at a certain point, all Vivi could do was sit and wait. She sighed dejectedly as the room was once again filled by dreary silence and the hum of fluorescent lights. She scrolled meaninglessly through her phone, trying to wait out her shift so she could just go home and sleep.

Jungeun: really wish you were here tbh :( I can't find anyone, I think I got here too early

Vivi smiled at her screen.