Forever Beside | Joshua Hong

4

Julia woke up with a headache and dark semicircles under her pupils. She stayed seated in the edge of her bed for a few seconds. "Oh yeah, work." She mumbled, entering the bathroom.

She gazed out of her balcony with last night's leftovers, however this time, with a tiny smile. "I forgot this room came with a balcony." She glanced over to the trees, remembering what happened before she went to sleep last night, she asked, "If it was Joshua...?"

Her smile got wider, recalling how Joshua used to kiss her forehead because they were both embarrassed of kissing each other's lips. Joshua's kisses were sweet, gentle.
Like everything that he was to Julia.

She checked her watch and rushed out the door with her keys and office-bag. "Can I give you a ride to work?" She flinched at the sound. "Jun! You scared the shit out of me."

"So?" He asked, with glimmering eyes and a cheeky smile. "Okay." She said.

On their way, another car passed by and almost crashed. Junhui stepped on the breaks and his car honked. "BASTARD!" He cursed, only to get appeased by the woman in his front seat.

*

"Retard."

Joshua's jaw clenched, his grip on the steering wheel stiffened. "You have to move across town because the office over there needs a professional worker in the same section your working, he said. The one they have is still new, he said." He impersonated his boss.

He rushed his key into the door-knob and looked around. There wasn't much since he lived alone, in a way. He packed his things in to boxes and put them behind the moving truck. The work took a whole day, yet after the sun set, he was still raged with what his boss said.

He drove for a couple hours before he started to feel exhausted. He stopped at a gas station and came to the cashier to pay. He brewed some coffee for the road, overhearing a conversation between the guy behind the cash register and what seemed like his son.

"Another party, Liam?" His dad asked. "I won't come home drunk. Chill, dad." The redhead youngster with a spider tattoo on his neck replied, fixing his jersey.

"No jewels!" The old man raised his voice. Joshua switched his view to the pair. Liam groaned and took off his rings which looked pretty expensive, leaving the place.

Jewels.

"Jewel..." Joshua muttered. "Teens, am I right?" The cashier showed a face of dissapointment. "Uh... Yeah...." Joshua picked up his cafein-based drink and gave the other some money.

"Jule..." He went back to his car.

It was like magic.
The cup of coffee was still full but Joshua was wide awake along the way. He drove for a few more hours, his eyebrows furrowed, his mind trying its best to focus.

At last, Joshua got the keys to his new apartment room and quickly moved in his stuff. It was three in the morning, the next day. Ignoring his tired out body, he answered his door as soon as he heard a knock at the door.

"I'm sorry, but can you keep it down in there? I prepared a fruit cake but no one told me to prepare earbuds."
Their eyes met.
Joshua froze, but half of him tried its best to stay unfroze. "I'll keep it down, thanks." He accepted the fruit cake, attempting to close his door, only to get it pounded by the other. "THAT'S IT?" She yelled.

"YOU CALLED MY NAME LIKE IT'S A SPELL TO CAST A DEMON, YOU APOLOGIZED LIKE YOU JUST KILLED MY DAD BEFORE LEAVING ME IN THE COFFEE SHOP WITH PEOPLE STARING!" Julia gritted her teeth

"AND NOW YOU POOFED YOURSELF HERE AT 3 AM ACCEPTING MY FRUIT CAKE LIKE I'M A STRANGER!"

Joshua starred at her passionless. She felt like it was something wrong to do, but she landed her head in his torso, hoping for a reaction. "Why are you acting as if I'm not your girlfriend, Josh?" She asked.

He pulled away and pointed at a picture frame near them. Julia picked it up, cleaning the dust, exposing colours which shaped into a wedding picture.

"You're married." Her heart started to pump blood faster.

"I'm married." He replied.

Julia's thumb caressed the frame. "How can I be mad...?" She forced a smile, avoiding the taller's gaze. "I'm not supposed to be mad..." She said.
"You and Janha look good together."
She placed the frame while Joshua didn't say a single word.

He was always so sweet and warm. From his smile to his actions, Julia could know it was Joshua from miles away. But, at that moment, he was completely a stranger. She left the room to go back into hers.

"I don't know you anymore."

*