soulmate ☽ chuuves

02.

chuu didn't have work that day and so slept in for as long as she wanted. after waking up, she turned on the radio and went to the kitchen. she started dancing to the soft rhythm that followed her moves while getting ready to make her morning coffee. humming the lyrics to the song, she went to the refrigerator to get some milk when the doorbell rang.

"oh?" she raised her brows and put down everything from her hand. jiwoo quickly brushed through her messy morning hair with her hands and walked to the door.

good thing she put down what she had in hand before opening it, because the view that appeared in front of her would've made her drop everything that moment. "god, i should've at least washed my face!" she thought to herself immediately. so embarrassing.

the girl on the other side of the door was ethereal. her chocolate brown hair - much like the hot chocolate chuu was so used to making in the cafe - spread down her shoulders effortlessly beautifully. it gave her even prettier face a gentle frame. the stranger had light red lipstick on, a white shirt with casual jeans. but in chuu's mind, she appeared as an angel; with the halo, bright flowy dress and wings even. she went speechless.

"you cool?" the stranger spoke up. her voice suited her atmosphere so well.

"sure. yeah!" chuu woke up from the daydreaming. who could this beautiful stranger be, and why is she standing at my door in the morning? this might actually be a dream.

"i'm the new neighbor. yves." she held her hand out.

jiwoo shyly accepted the handshake and smiled. this has to be a miracle! the gorgeous girl she just met ten seconds ago is living in the apartment next to her, that means seeing this face probably almost everyday! chuu felt a bit embarrassed for already falling so hard for the newbie. they met that minute, so why is her heart already beating so fast? she had a feeling this was something much more than just meeting a new neighbor. like something was happening.

"i'm jiwoo. but everyone just calls me chuu." she said, smiley.

"i just came to ask if you had any instant coffee? i don't really have anything, you know." yves giggled. chuu, still blushing, her smile frozen on her face, swiftly nodded.

"sure, i do! just a second." she ran back to the kitchen and grabbed the box of coffee she just prepared for her breakfast. she went back and handed it to the sweet new girl.

"thank you." she nodded lightly. "i'll give this back soon."

"you don't need to." jiwoo leaned against the doorframe, trying to keep herself calm.

yves thanked again, turned around and disappeared. now that was nerve wrecking, chuu thought while sighing and closing the door after her.

she gave her breakfast coffee away, and so decided to quickly dress up and drop by her favorite cafe. standing in the mirror and brushing through her light bangs, her mind couldn't stop working and wondering what gave her the strange feeling when meeting her new neighbor. she didn't wanna think too fast and assume anything about whether she could be the person she's been waiting for, but the idea definitely came to her mind.

she put on her coat and searched through her pockets from reflex. she expected to find a charm there, maybe, but all she got out was a tissue and some change.

while waiting for the subway, she shifted her weight from one leg to another. it was cold and she's been standing there for nearly ten minutes. just more time to think about her encounter earlier today.. will the magic of soulmates disappear if she's looking for her own sign everywhere? it should come naturally, after all. she sighed and her breath was visible in the cold air.

the metro arrived and she got on, searching for a free space. when she finally found it she took it and hugged her bag that she put in her lap. however, there was another space beside her. there was a book on it, but there was this strange aura coming from it, like there was a purpose behind it being there. jiwoo glanced around. is it someone else's? why is no one moving it away so they can sit down?

she carefully lifted it and read the front page.

the little match girl?

chuu was sure she has heard about this one before. she flipped the book to read the summary on the back.

"a small poor girl is trying to sell matches because she was ordered to do so by a strict father. he didn't allow her to come home until it would not be done, othervise she would get a beating. she tried to sell matches, but because of the cold, she died on the frozen sidewalk. she tried to warm up with the matches which she held in her hand. when she lit each one of them, it pointed to those events that she always dreamed of.
every time matches were extinguished, the magic would disappear. when she lit the last match, she saw her dead grandmother she loved very much and she eventually took her to heaven."

she slowly remembered the storyline. the fact that this exact book was just there, laying around on the metro like it had its own seat sent shivers down jiwoo's back. she opened it on the first page and felt something falling into her lap. this can't be, she immediately thought. is this what she's been waiting for? she quickly got it and lifted the tiny object closer to her eyes to see what it is. when she realized it is what she thought it was, chuu smiled brightly and almost started jumping up and down in front of everyone.

the small silver swan charm that she held between her almost shaking fingers answered all her questions.