from afar. | takata mashiho

✧ hello!

hi. my name is mok sori, and yes, my name literally means 'voice'. it's kind of ironic because i'm a thinker. i don't speak much. if at all, really. i read too; a lot. i used to be so stupid, believing that the universe is real and that one day i might find the one. and now i'm stuck here with deflated expectations in such a silent yet such a loud world.

✧ ༺━━━━༻ ✦

"sori-yah! are you coming down today?" that's my friend yuri. we grew up right next to each other in busan. she was literally living in the house right next to mine. we would visit each other everyday and run around town 'til night. we would scavenge through every food cart. heck the kind old ladies knew us so much that they would give us free food. ajumeoni thank you! sadly, no more homely soondae for me. living in seoul has kinda sucked the soul out of me. "uh, maybe?" i finally say after about a minute.
"sori you gotta be decisive!"
"hm. okay fine, i'll go with you. but i'm staying in the secret corner like i always do."
"fine. but it would be nice of you to socialise with the customers. you could even land a job!"
"i highly doubt that yuri."
"why not?"
"trust me. employers would not want to hire someone like me. it'd be too much of a hassle."
"but you are really hospitable and kind! isn't that what all service based occupations rely on?"
"mhmm."
"okay. let's go!" she grabs my hand and i reluctantly trudge behind her. the storm cloud in line behind the sun waiting for their turn in dictating the weather of the universe.

"sori! you gotta walk faster."
"hm?"
"please. walk. faster."
"ah okay." in saying so, i shuffle my feet across the floor, arms straight down and body bopping from side to side. "yah yuri. i'm a penguin."
"you look really stupid."
"thank you!"
"no worries." is it safe to say our friendship is goals? i mean, we have no other friends. except ms. yuri here could, if she wasn't so stubborn. everyone at school begs her to join our 'friend group' aka just her and i. and she just straight up says, "no." but hey, her bluntness and stubbornness are both just part of her charm i guess.

"hello!" she greets her boss and i shoot him a small wave. let's head to my favourite spot to think.
"hello yuri. please start setting up. you can get sori to help if you like too." yuri starts walking towards me. i anticipate her words. "sori-yah, would you mind helping me setting up the place, this morning shift is just me and yuna. it'd be cool to have another pair of hands to help, since yuna hasn't decided to show up on time."
"but i just settled down!"
"pleaseeeeeee~"
"fine." i scoop myself up and turn on the fairy lights. what a simple way to make a place look aesthetic. electromagnetic radiation within a certain portion of the electromagnetic spectrum on string. huh, breathtaking. i wipe down tables with a cloth and already start to feel tired. "thank you sori, i don't think yuri would've finished everything in time for opening." her boss chirps. i gesture him a 'no worries' and smile.

well, time to turn it down. i happily shuffle my sock-covered feet towards my corner — my cave — and rest my head. a big pupper situates itself onto my feet and snoozes upon hindered movement. one last thought runs through my mind: hello hello! i like to go to bookstores and sniff the books in the new additions section. my eyes close, the universe dissolving into black.

"mok sori! wake up! my shift's over." i feel like i've been blinded. i feel like i've been stuck in a kimchi refrigerator and can't move because my muscle cells have died from the temperature. "do you want anything to drink before we leave?"
"could you whip up a caramel macchiato real quick. doesn't have to be perfect."
"uh well, lucky for you, i already have one ready. and why a caramel macchiato? you never eat caramel, and rarely drink sweet stuff?"
"i don't know, it was just the first thing i saw on the menu board." i shrug as she hands me the drink, "thanks." the same pupper from before sits in front of me. "hello again," i check for his name tag, "ramen."