a sigh of relief.
the day was finally over.
wiping her sweat with the back of her hand, she untied the apron resting around her waist.
satisfaction washed over her as she earned some breathing room.
she hung the apron up on the rack next to its identical twins.
"hey kid. we're closing up." she heard her fellow worker call out to someone.
there was still someone left?
she grabbed her backpack and exited the kitchen curiously, just in time to hear the bell above the door jingle—signaling the individual's departure.
well.
that was a mystery left unanswered.
probably just another annoying 13 year old anyway.
another sigh.
she was going delusional.
whatever.
"good night, seolhyun."
"'night aera."
she bid farewell to her friend cleaning the tables, and exited the workplace in a daze.
starry skies.
a waning crescent.
and a bright, pearly, pure smile.
"oh, hey.. aera."
he scratched his nape nervously. "funny seeing you here."
"..go home, kamal."
she turned around and took a few footsteps down the sidewalk.
suddenly, something told inside her to look him in the eyes.
those big eyes.
and so she spun back to face him.
fourth time.
"hey."
loud.
he was caught off guard.
she'd never addressed him so clearly like that before.
"um.. y-yeah?"
"..thanks."
and with that, she continued her walk into the night.
with him following close behind.
☽
she brought out a few coins and dropped them into a box—walking down the isle and turning to sit on the inside of the 7th seat from the front, 5th from the back.
mental note.
he followed suite; standing and holding onto one of the bars above this time.
soon enough, the vehicle's engine sputtered, and chug of the wheels began.
it was a calm, silent ride under the stars.
the gentle hum of the wheels and quiet murmurs of the passengers had been lulling her.
her head drowsily drooped before long, lightly thwacking against the window as she fell half-asleep.
she continued to shake her head, attempting to stay awake as to not miss her stop.
"..."
she had slept.
it couldn't be fought.
her eyelids had won the battle and got heavy; shutting off her brain and removing her from
interacting socially with the outside world.
stop 1; gangnam-gu.
stop 2; samcheong-dong.
stop 3; gwangjin-gu.
where exactly did she live?
should he wake her up?
it'd been almost 2 hours since they'd gotten on the bus..
and there was no one left.
"where are you two going?" the announcement boomed with a raspy voice. "did you miss your stop?"
"ah! i'm really sorry, sir!"
he hurriedly made his way over to the sleeping figure that was her, shaking her shoulders.
"aera! aera, wake up—i don't even know where you live! i literally just met you today please get up i don't want to take responsibility plus i'm really tired and hungry."
silence.
no response.
what the actual..
"p-park aera!"
nada. zilch. nothing.
"what is happening?!"
in a state of panic, he grabbed at his hair and intensified his meltdown.
"son, you good back there?" the bus driver called.
no.
kamal hueningkai was definitely not good at the moment.
