our delicate string | 최범규

3: strangers.

                                          — 💌 —

AERA WALKED INTO the coffee shop, fortunately it was only a few blocks from her home. but why would the boy who loved her insist she walk so far to see him? what was so urgent?

she panted as she saw the familiar boy sitting at the chair with an empty chair across him. "hi!" she wrapped her arms around the boy's waist as he looked at her rather uncomfortably. the girl soon caught onto his unfamiliar look.

"i-is everything okay?" she smiled at him. a lowly chuckle of nervousness rather than humor escaped her mouth. she took her coat off and placed it on the back of her chair, sitting down carefully.

the boy stayed silent as she rested her palm on his hand that sat clasped on the table. he removed his hand from under hers.

"what's going on?" there was no more smiling from Aera. her skin was rather paler than usual, she hadn't eaten all day and it just hit her. but the day did just begin.

"Aera." he called bluntly, refusing to make eye contact and staring at his lap. "how have you been?"

"i've been good. i'm so relieved you asked that, i missed you." she smiled. "i haven't seen you in a week though, but i didn't want to say anything because i thought you might be busy." she giggled and drank some of the water on the table. she picked up the muffin he had ordered her earlier and took a few bites out of it.

"yeah, i-" he sighed. "i just, i don't know how to say this."

somehow, she knew where this was going. he was her first and only relationship ever. it's been 3 years of them together but recently, she's noticed him become more and more distant.

"i met somebody." he said, bluntly.

"o-ok?" she looked at him, confused. "what does that even mean?"

her eyebrows furrowed at the blonde haired boy's words, putting the pieces together by herself. "y-you're kidding, right?" she noticed not a single sign of humor on his face. "you're breaking up with me? what's going on?"

"a month ago. i-i've been seeing her for a month now." he looked at his lap. "i couldn't keep the secret from you anymore." he looked up at the girl who was in utter shock, tears running down her face.

she had her hands clasped, in utter shock. "she makes me so much happier, darling." his hand reached out for hers and she took it back, baffled how he thought she'd be willing to hold his hand at that moment.

"don't call me that." she dropped her nice facade, she couldn't keep it up with somebody who betrayed her.

"a month? you've been with her for a month and continued to call me everyday and moment pretending to love me?" she scoffed as tears began to fall. "a-and you come back and pretend like everything is all of a sudden going to be okay when you were seeing somebody else when we were still together!"

"do you know how much i loved you?" she paused. "no, how much i love you? you're my everything, what did i do wrong." she watched as he stayed silent. "a-and you didn't even tell me anything. you just distanced yourself from me. were you never going to tell me?"

"you didn't do anything, trust me." he bit his lip, afraid to say the next sentence. "i just..."

"you what?"

"i..." he looked her in the eyes. "i..i just grew bored of you." he watched her do a double take as she blinked back her tears. "i'm tired of being with somebody who doesn't want to do anything fun, be spontaneous and adventurous, or even enjoy yourself. you were like a stranger i always knew." he sighed. "i wasn't happy with you like we were two months ago. i'm exhausted with you, i-i'm sorry."