Who would've thought that one moment, and more specifically one cup of coffee, could change the entirety of their existence. For the better?
Arden is a 23 year old person living in Seoul, South Korea with their best friend Charlie. After an absolute...
I keep staring at the group of girls that are gawking at us, my body entering fight or flight mode. I quickly snap out of it and shake my head making the realization that we need to leave... like now.
Yeah, I chose flight.
I continue looking in the direction of the girls, but I reach behind me to start pushing Hyunjin away from the group, slapping his shoulder blindly. he was fumbling to get his mask back on his face as quickly as possible, but it was useless at this point.
Once the girls saw that we were beginning to back away, they all collectively started running in our direction.
"I am way too out of shape for this," I begrudgingly whisper to myself before grabbing on to Hyunjin's arm and attempting to pull him down a side street. He still seems a bit frozen in place, unsure of what to do, maybe accepting his fate?
His head whips around to face me after I yank on his arm a second time, pulling a bit harder now. He looked so dazed and afraid, definitely traumatized by all of those airport arrival disasters him and Stray Kids have experienced in their careers.
"Let's go!!" I shout as I give his arm a third and final tug. It finally looks like his brain has caught up to the situation, and he begins running behind me. I take him down a series of side streets and alleyways that run in between a myriad of shops and restaurants.
The entire time we're running, I can hear the girls behind us, their shoes pounding against the pavement in very desperate steps. Not as desperate as ours, though.
When I feel like we're finally creating some distance between us and the mini stampede, I pull Hyunjin down one final alleyway. It's a bit small and definitely easy to miss if you aren't looking for it.
Halfway down the alleyway is a large alcove containing a red door with a small set of stairs in front of it. The alley as well as the alcove are dark and damp, but it's looking like our safest bet. Plus, it was the only place I could think of in this area that could possibly work.
Before the girls reach the entrance of the alley, I turn and push Hyunjin into the alcove. I guess I pushed him a bit hard because his back hits the alcove wall with a thud, and I stumble forward until we're almost chest to chest. We both hold our breath as we listen for the sound of footsteps.
After a few seconds, we heard the group of girls run right past the alleyway and, more importantly, right past us. Now, all we could hear was the dripping water from a nearby leaky pipe.
Upon hearing the footsteps fade into the distance, we both release our held breaths and begin panting heavily.
It isn't until my breathing begins to slow that I realize how close I am to Hyunjin. I feel my face get hot from embarrassment, and I clear my throat while pushing away from him.
With a big sigh, I turn away from Hyunjin and begin walking towards the red door. The door is old and rusted over, pieces of paint chipping off of the corners. There are big scratches and bits of graffiti written on the door, and I half smile at the sight of my old hang out place. Can I call it a hangout place if I was alone when I came here?
"I'll be right back, wait here," I say to Hyunjin as I begin to climb the few steps up to the door, the metal slightly echoing through the alcove with every step I take.
"Wait, where are you going?" he questions, clearly still not feeling safe. I turn back to him and give him a sort of mischievous smile.
"Don't worry about it," i respond before turning back to the door and heading inside.
The door and steps:
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