[27 MAY 2019 | DENISSE]
That day when the "rumor" came out, Hana confronted Cheol immediately.
Sensing the awkward silence, the others immediately walked out leaving Hana, Cheol, and myself in the conference room.
We just finished lunch but I couldn't muster the strength to stand, much less leave the room as fast as I would have wanted to.
Not because I had anything to do about the issue.
The shock was more because it involved Cheol.
Worried about causing a scene if I staggered on the way out, I stayed in my seat to compose myself.
I'll leave when I feel stable enough, as soon as an opportunity presents itself.
Hana, oblivious to my presence, continued asking Cheol, who did not attempt to deny anything.
He readily admitted to having met this "Alecx" a few times, a Carat he ran into under "strange" circumstances.
He explained that he found her interesting and mysterious, and just wanted to be friends with her.
Asked to describe "Alecx," he responded, saying, "She's Asian, but not Korean. She's kind of pretty and has a cute smile. Not so tall."
His lips curved into a half-smile while trying to recount the details of their limited encounter.
"I find her welcoming, easy to talk to, and fun. Her energy's quite contagious. But she can laugh loud, I mean intense. You should hear her."
Cheol smiled more and was almost on the brink of laughing himself as he seemed to recall a funny memory.
"Okay..? What else? What does she look like?"
Hana wanted to hear more about the girl's appearance, disregarding his seeming indifference to the gravity of the controversy at hand.
How can he not worry at a time like this, and still manage to smile?
Cheol squinted, seeming at a loss for words just then.
Trying to imagine how else to portray the "Mystery Girl," he shifted his gaze, and then his eyes met mine.
All of a sudden, as if a lightbulb flicked on in his head, he uttered, a little too abruptly.
"She's a lot like Denisse-ssi...actually."
He was nodding his head at Hana, affirming his statement as if it captured everything else he wanted to say.
He even turned to look at me as if pointing me out to Hana.
I felt like I was the defendant in a court trial and the key witness just pointed me out as the guilty one.
"Really?"
Surprised and dubious, Hana slowly followed his line of sight, to where I was seated.
She looked straight at me, realizing just then that I was still in the room.
Hana's searching eyes seemed to look for some indication that I knew something about what Cheol was saying.
I didn't know how to react, or if I was expected to respond at all.
"Well, yes. They're sort of alike but slightly different. You know, like twins, but not the same."
Both of them were now looking at me. I froze like a specimen under a microscope.
"Have you been seeing her since then?"
Hana continued to probe which made Cheol turn his attention back to her.
