The Rare Ones - Vrene

22.

HER

"Stop following me around, and that's a warning -whatever you name is...." Irene paused.

"Bogum! Park Bogum." The boy said as if he knew she was waiting for it, a grin forming on his lips. 

"You won't be smiling soon." 

Irene dreamt vividly, she was right, the grin from his face was long lost.

She kept on standing at the far corner, staring at the recognized back that she thought would be easy to forget.

Life has some really conjugated pathways, one leads to another and then towards the end. But sometimes, there is this box without any escape.

It stays put,
never disappearing,

never fading. 

And all it has is remembrance of that moment which erased a part of yourself.

The wrenched feeling of pain, a display of each frame breaking and crashing down.

Unintentionally, you would find yourself in that box momentarily, watching it tormenting ..all over again.

Right now, Irene was back inside that box.

Taking her step forward one by one, latter doing same. They met between the shared distance.

Irene noticed how his hair were now falling on his forehead, and how his eyes had no challenge in it.

He gaped his mouth open, extending his hand to intact with her but stopped midway.

The two remained silent for few seconds.

"I'm not going to invite you in." was what Irene said with a painful intention, but what he heard was fear in her voice.

"..in your life or your house?" he asked unassured.

"you know the answer." the female provoked over chaos.

Her steps seemingly getting chained inside the box.

"I just wanted to see you." He mustered, finding her eyes clasping as if she wanted to wake up.
"..how have you been?" 

silence.

"..it has been a long time." Irene let out in a shaky tone, her eyes quirking past his shoulder.
"two years." Bogum replied.

He took a step ahead, resulting in her palm urging upward.

"I've missed you." he urged his own palm towards her, connecting them together.
His forehead almost too close to hers.

"Me too." the female whispered back, her palms unclenching from his hold.
"...but that doesn't mean I want you back." she took a step back.

The male bowed his head slightly.

"What was the reason?" words escaped from his mouth, and Irene saw the door of that box closing itself.

"Were you afraid?" He demanded, tone getting needy.

"...because I loved you?"
"..or because you loved me?" He stepped up again.

"I didn't." Irene was quick to correct him.
"I could've ... but you didn't let me." 

Spring, 2010 

Bogum watched Irene walk in the rain as the school ended, it was his first time encountering her after that argument.