The Director • Seo Changbin

01

The intoxicating smell of coffee, the light sound of chatter and jazz, the soft shades of brown bouncing off each other. A laptop on 47%, a binder and a few papers sprawled about. A girl shaking from frustration and caffeine overdose.

A simple girl from Canada. A girl attending a great film academy in South Korea in hopes of becoming a director. A girl ready to pull her messy cherry red hair out of her scalp, because she had to finish writing the script for her short film project that was due in a few days! 12 days to be exact.

Time appeared meaninglessly to the girl as she checked the time in this small cafe. '4pm... 4PM!? I WAS HERE FOR 6 HOURS??' The girl pulled her hoodie sleeves up her arms and stretched. 'Maybe one more chai tea, then I'll head home'. She pulls out her wallet, it was remarkably lighter than before she left home that morning. However, she wouldn't mind spending a months salary on their chai tea, it's absolutely heavenly!

She hopped out of her chair, picking up her notebook scanning over her ideas, lazily walking up to the front counter. The small action felt so insignificant, a small action that the girl did a lot, actually. Wandering about in a daze, absentmindedly moving as her mind was in another world. She's done it hundreds, if not thousands of times in this comfy cafe alone. However, she didn't expect this habit to end up with her walking into a taller figure, having hot coffee scold her small body. She was abruptly yanked out of her mindscape feeling the cold floor under her and the hot beverage covering her front.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" A voice above her shrieked.
She looked up to be met with dark brown eyes. Tears welled up in her eyes and she, the intellectual she was did the only thing that made sense in this situation. Frantically grab her, now ruined, notebook and rush to the bathroom, locking herself inside. She felt tears leave her eyes as she dropped the notebook and ripped her hoodie off her body.

She looked at herself in the mirror. Something new displayed on her torso, a large red mark that would later form into a burn scar. She grimaced touching her wound and sighed looking at her clothes. 'Great... I love this hoodie..' She grabs some towels soaking them in cool water before dabbing them on her wound. Gasping at the pain. 'Of all the fucking days!'

All of a sudden there was a knock on the bathroom door and a small voice behind it.
"Ma'am..? Are you ok in there? The man is worried that he burned you. He also offered his jacket for you to wear if you want it." A sheepish voice said. She made her way to the door unlocking it and cracking it open slightly holding her hand out. It was greeted with a soft fabric, she snatched it away closing the door behind her. The hoodie was very big compared to her original one, even though it was oversized. It was a black hoodie with white letters embroidered on the heart.

'SKZ?' She huffed, pulled the hoodie on, grabbed her clothes and notebook, and left the bathroom. She marched past the small employee waiting by the bathroom door and made it to her table where all her things still laid. Packing up quickly, cursing to herself. When she finished she'd hurriedly stomped out of the small establishment but was stopped by a hand grabbing her wrist. The already fuming woman spun around jerking her arm away.

"What?!" She huffed eyeing the man in front of her, her temper instantly flowing away. A man dressed in black head to toe with a baseball cap on and a pair of cute glasses stared back at her. He bowed multiple times before speaking.
"I-I'm sorry... I wanted to properly apologize for spilling my coffee on you, I didn't mean to... Are you burned? You can send me the hospital bill, I'm so sorry.." the man rambled quickly as he bowed.
"Nah it's fine. I'm not suing you or going to the hospital, I'll be fine.."
"No, you should get the burn checked out, it must hurt! God, I'm sorry!"
"Really, I'm good. But give me your number and insurance, I'll contact you." The girl said blandly, handing him her phone. He added his contact quickly handing the phone back to the small, yet extremely intimidating girl.
He hadn't noticed but her eyes were slightly red and her hair was a mess. He also noticed how huge his hoodie fit on the shorter.

She nodded putting her phone away turning to leave again.
"Oh, by the way, I'm Choi Baram.." she slightly grinned pulling her (technically his) hood over her head and walked out of the building into the cool fall weather.

•822 words•