Rosaleen | Taehyung [✓]

EPILOGUE : END

It was a rainy day. The water poured violently on the empty road and the shop's roof.

The repair shop was bursting with customers. Most of them being old people, I found myself busy as I tweaked some parts of a grandfather clock. The owner was an acquaintance; someone I've been helping since the beginning of the year.

"You done there, lad?"

"Almost, Sir."

I mildly pushed the pendulum with a finger, and it started to swing promptly. I brought my ear closer and listened to the sound it made, making sure that the tick-tocks produced were evenly spaced; nothing sounded irregular.

"Done. It's up and running, again," I assured the old man. "I'll have it delivered back to your house."

"Thank you, young man."

He started off, holding a leash that was attached to his poodle. I waved at it, and it stared at me for a while before running off to its owner. The old man was a regular. He visited the repair shop so much that he knew about the incident that happened to me last month.

Rosaleen and I jumped off that bridge, I was sure of it. And yet when I was recovered they found no trace of her. Grieving has become my coping mechanism when dealing with it. When these memories come gushing in my brain, I choose not to push them away. Instead, I embraced them. After all, I loved Rosaleen, regardless whether she was a lady who lived back in the 1800s.

The wristwatch? It does exist, and it's tucked safely in my room. I figured that if Rosaleen never did have a grandmother that shared the same name─only off by one letter─then that extra S shouldn't be carved on the rim of the small clock, unless it served another purpose. I once checked, and I was right.

The name carved on it was spelled R-O-S-A-L-E-E-N. Rosaleen must've played with my mind, convincing me that it was spelled with the double S. She even fooled me with the my-grandfather-spelled-it-wrong pep talk. Looking back at it, I found it funny. That was the most humorous thing that she's ever done to me, considering that she was bad at making me laugh.

It was a long day, but the shop was on its closing time. I kept the other items in the glass counter, making sure that they're tucked safely away from things that could potentially damage them. It sure was hard operating the place alone again, but it still felt rewarding. Just a tad bit.

"Excuse me."

I glanced upon the door, expecting a late customer. I normally would explain to them why I can't be of service after working hours.

The customer surprised me.

It couldn't possibly be her. They looked too similar. I was staring deeply into her eyes as they sparkled. They reminded me of the ocean on a hot Summer day. They reminded me of her.

I rushed quickly to the door, hastily pulling it open. She was soaked in water and yet she seemed rather happy. Her hair was brown, just like Rosaleen's, but they were cut short; they barely reached her shoulders.

"Hey, I'm sorry for arriving this late," she apologized. She smiled brightly at me, her bubbly personality drawing me in. "I broke an alarm clock, and this actually isn't mine. Can you fix it?"

"Yea─Yeah, sure!" I stammered, taking the clock from her.

"Thanks!"

It took me a while to process everything that had happened to me. With the alarm clock on my hand, I spun around and walked up to the counter where I carefully placed it on. She followed me all the way inside, only to realize that her wet clothes were dripping on the floor and formed small puddles.

"Oh no! I'm really sorry!" She back off and exited the shop quickly.

I laughed at her funny behaviour.

"You're a funny person, you know that?"

"I am?"

She seemed reluctant about it. But slowly her features formed a grin, pleased to hear what I just said.

"Wow, thank you. Everyone else describes me as being humorless."

"That's not true─er─what's your name?"

"My name's Victoria."

"Victoria, that's not true! I think you're easy-going and can make a lot of people happy."

I smiled at her the same way I smiled at Rosaleen. I couldn't help but think that the two of them shared an uncanny resemblance.

END.

thankyou so much for reading 'rosaleen'! it actually means a lot since this was the first time this 2019 that i started writing stories again. i wish you a great day ahead! ♡

this has been a wonderful journey. signing off, kelly.