Seoulmates

Leaving

Morning came and went. Ella slept longer than was probably healthy. At last her dad walked in to her room and asked if she wanted to go get some groceries with him. Groggily, Ella sat up and said sure. With a quick look at her phone, she realized just how late it was. It was nearly noon and she had gotten absolutely nothing done. Slowly, she rose and out on a t-shirt and some basketball shorts. She threw her hair into a ponytail and slipped on some sandals.

"Ready, dad!" She yelled. 

"Alright," her dad yelled from downstairs. "Let's go."

Ella started down the stairs and remembered she had left her phone still charging on her nightstand. She quickly turned around and ran to her room. She grabbed her phone and ran down the stairs to the front door. 

"Which car are we taking?" Ella asked.

"How about the Mercedes?"

"Okay." She sad, walking towards the old black Mercedes. The car used to belong to her grandparents, but they gave it to her parents when they decided to move to Dallas. They didn't take very good care of it. The car had been nice in its day. The '98 Mercedes was top of the line when it was made. Features like climate control and leather seats made it pretty awesome. Unfortunately, Ella's uncles got their hands on it. Now there were rust spots and small dents and some of the screens were unreadable. Ella would miss this car, being as Ella was the primary driver of it. She drove it to school almost everyday of her junior and senior years of high school. She would miss the smell or the air freshener that her mom put in it. She would miss the little notes that her friends hid in little nooks and crannies once when she had accidentally left the car unlocked. She would miss the clicking sound that the tape player would make when she played music thorough it. Most of all, she would miss driving. In Korea, she won't be able to drive since cars and gas are so expensive there. Public transportation is going to be so fun. She thought.

"While we're out, are there any last minute things you need before you leave tonight?"

"Uh, I just need to buy some earbuds, some portable chargers, some music to listen to, and a good book for the flight. I can buy music through my phone, but if it's going to be a twelve hour flight, you better believe I'm going to need portable chargers."

"Alright," he chuckled. "Let's get you some portable chargers."

"That's what I like to hear!" The drive out of the neighborhood was quiet. Ellas decided that music was a must. A few years ago, her dad had bought a tape to auxiliary adapter thingie. Ella plugged the chord into her phone and put on "Monster" by EXO. A song she was obsessed with these days. She learned nearly all the lyrics by heart. Her dad rolled his eyes and smirked. He'll miss this when I'm gone. 

 After about fifteen minutes of driving, Ella's dad took an exit that eventually led to a Wal-Mart. Once they arrived, the went for the tech and book that Ella wanted. She picked two portable chargers and some Skull-Candy earbuds with a built in mic. Then they went to the book section and after some deliberation, she decided on a fantasy book with beautiful cover art. She didn't bother checking out the music section. She planned on buying music later on Naver or Google Play. 

They finished the rest of their shopping and headed back home. Ella blared BTS and 4Minute on the way home. Mainly only because they made her forget she was leaving. Good, hard music had that effect on her. Instead of focusing on what time she needed to be at the airport, she listened for counter melodies. Instead of thinking about trying to find her dorm, she hummed harmonies under her breath. It was the perfect distraction.

A harsh clarinet trill sounded and Ella looked down at her phone. Even though it was three in the morning in Korea, Yeonkyung had messaged her.

Eunji-ya! Igeol johahae? (Eunji! Do you like this?)