Words Collide

5 - Come As You Are

Buzz. That was the band's name.

"Ri Jeong Hyeok" yielded minimal results on the internet, but enough for Seri to at least confirm that the resident mute was, indeed, her music guy.

There was little information, only that two of its original members left. He was listed as one of the former members in their official website, and since then, their genre had changed from post-grunge alternative rock to rock ballads.

There were no details on why he'd left, or even anything about his accident that left him voiceless.

If she really wanted to get to the bottom of it, the only way was to ask the man himself.

What are the chances that he'll tell her?

A fat one.

If she mentioned to him about their chance encounter all of those years ago, would he remember? Would it even matter? In the end, they're still just strangers.

Still, they had a nice evening together, and she was sure he'd been interested. Their meeting was circumstantially cut short, and who knows what could've happened if they saw each other again, but she sure wasn't expecting a drastic change in personality.

Not that it wasn't warranted. The trauma he'd gone through had rightfully changed him. Gone was the charming, friendly guy who complimented her and wanted her around.

What was available now was a grumpy-grungy fusion of a hipster and a vagrant lumberjack whose idea of a conversation was relentless dismissal.

She knew his means of communication were limited, but he clearly had wanted to shut her out.

Meeting him again since that summer night, at least for her, had to have meant something. It couldn't just be coincidence that she'd find him again after so long, and being arguably the only person in town who understood sign language.

If she believed in fate at all, and she didn't, this would be a small taste.

She thought back to that night, conjuring an image of the suave, engaging boy who kept her company and made her comfortable when she was feeling overwhelmed. He talked to her normally, didn't judge when she criticized the music and talked heavily about herself.

If only she'd ask him about himself more, then she'd at least have some crumbs instead of chasing after a phantom with a search engine.

Why was it so important that she knew more about him?

She'd missed her chance seeing him again that night when Hye Ji had needed medical care, and for that she'd felt a certain loss that was unexplainable.

There were plenty of handsome, charming men she'd met before and after him, but none held a candle to how much of an impression he made. He was never pushy, had been a gentleman the whole time, made her feel relevant, and had the gentlest yet most masculine voice. Hypnotizing, even.

Now without his voice, what made Ri Jeong Hyeok the same guy she met so long ago?

A soft whining and a tug on her shorts steered Seri back to the culprit. She looked down to see the cutest Maltese puppy wagging its tail and staring up at her with big twinkling eyes.

"Oh my goodness! Aren't you the most precious?" She exclaimed and brought the puppy up to her lap. "Who might you be?"

Her aunt stepped into the house from the back porch and locked the door before answering. "It's Kat! We're dog sitting for Young Ae this week. She's going to Bali with her family."

While the puppy licked her hands, she raised one brow bone at the older woman.

"Who names their dog 'Cat'?"