Thy Art | Park Seonghwa

1.4

It's funny how faith works and how stubborn it is when it comes to something it has decided upon. No matter how hard you want to avoid it, if faith says you can't then you might as well give in to that. Just like how Hwang Yunhee was as she sat on the wooden chair inside a brightly lit café with Hongjoong and San sitting across and Wooyoung beside her.

It has been approximately two weeks since she came face to face with Seonghwa and it has been two weeks since she ever had a peace of mind. A month ago, when she left Daegu, she was confident with her feelings. She was convinced she no longer would feel anything and would no longer be in any way phased if she was to meet Park Seonghwa. But there she was 14 days later, not knowing exactly what she felt and what she was allow to feel when she saw him again. She knew one of those was guilt but what are the rest.

"So, will you go?" San asked hesitantly as the table was quiet. Yunhee propped her elbows on the table, burying her face on her palms after. "It doesn't hurt to go, you know. He wouldn't do anything."

"Yeah, especially since he's engaged now," Wooyoung added, he didn't know why Hongjoong side-eyed him after but he continued anyway, "Seonghwa doesn't hold grudges if that's what you're afraid of."

The brown-haired girl lifted her head up slightly, "I just don't know what I'm going to say to him. He didn't tell you why he wanted to meet me so badly, did he? What if he asks about what happened 5 years ago?"

"Then you tell him," Hongjoong quickly answered, "it's been 5 years, I think it's about time you tell him why the fuck did you do all the things you did." She knew he was right but at some point she had thought, maybe she can live the rest of her life, not having to tell him the truth. "If you decide to go, he said he'll wait for you at Café de Horizon at 6. Now, go back to work." The clock kept ticking and by then she would've needed to sprint back to the grocery store so that's exactly what she did after bidding a rushed goodbye to the three.

Yunhee busied herself all throughout her shift. Stocking noodles, snacks, rolling at the cashier, she did everything to get her minds off of what she had to face. By the time she finished her shift, she went back to back between yes and no. She knew it wouldn't hurt to go and meet him. Maybe at this point, they could be friends as they're both no longer in high school. They're adults now. It took nearly 20 minutes of consideration and constant sighing before she decided maybe she should go.

~

Seonghwa walked into the café, with he, himself, not knowing what to feel. He didn't know whether or not he made the right decision by calling Hongjoong to relay his message to Yunhee of how he wanted to meet her and impulsively setting the time and place. He looked at his watch, realizing how he was too punctual while he knew she was going to run late.

15 minutes. That was how long he had to wait before he saw the oh-so-familiar visage standing by the door. Seonghwa swear he could feel his heart flip at the sight, he didn't want to admit it but just by a mere look of her, he was once again back in high school. The memories flooded itself back into his head. Every single one of them. He could cry then if he was allowed to but she soon found his eyes on her. Her steps looked hesitant but before she knew, she was already pulling out the chair fixed for her.

"Have you been well?" he uttered. What a classic way to start a reunion, she thought.

Her lips tugged into a thin smile as she nodded, "I have, have you?"

He smiled as well, but what he was going to answer her with would be everything but the truth. He wanted to tell her how he hasn't been doing well at all. How life was hard without her. How he's been living 5 years trying to bury his feelings for her only to have his efforts go to vain. But all he replied with was, "I'm glad to hear that. I've been doing well too."

The air was thicker than fog. They had only moved their lips to tell the waitress what they wanted to have and then it was only silence up until they finished eating. It felt suffocating for Yunhee, she couldn't believe she's eating dinner with Park Seonghwa after 5 long years. All the words she prepared on the way, became a jumble mess in her head as soon as she laid her eyes on his brown ones. She couldn't help it how as soon as she sat, talking things out with him became the last of her priority. She wanted to ask how he has been doing, more than clearing things up. She wanted him to tell her the truth when she asked. She wanted to know whether or not he's been taking care of himself well because it seems like he had lost more than a couple pounds. She wanted to ask him when did he dye his hair back to the dark shade of brown. But she knew better than to show how much she still cares for a man who was engaged.

"So...," he was first to broke the silence, "you work for both the grocery store and the 7/11?"

"Yeah, I am," she answered shortly, not knowing what else she could say.

"Is it hard?" his voice laced with concern but as wrong as it was, she wanted to pretend she oblivious about it.

"I want to be able to sustain my daughter's needs so even if it is, well," she shrugged slightly at the end. It had been quite a surprise for her to see how he wasn't in any way baffled by the mention of her daughter but what did she expect when they both have the same group of friends.

All these while, her eyes were everywhere as she answered him. Even when she could feel his boring into her face, she couldn't bring herself to lift her head up and look him in the eye. She continued to play with the leftover food on her plate as no words were exchanged. But her pupil dilated as she heard him call out her name. It was only then when she finally stopped looking at her plate like it was the most interesting thing ever. She finally looked at his face.

Her name tasted bittersweet on his tongue. He missed saying that name, he wanted to say it with all the love that he had but he knew then it wasn't the right time. When he finally had her attention on him, he took this chance to quickly say what he has been planning to these past two weeks. "The reason why I wanted to meet you was.." there was a pause and he wanted to mentally slap himself for being such a coward.

"To clear things up, isn't it?" She beat him to saying the next words but he quickly shook his head, confusing her slightly.

"No, I'm not," he said in a rush, "I actually.. Well.. before I go into it, would you mind telling me what's your degree..?"

She blinked a couple of times, making it obvious to him how she was befuddled at this point. "It's.. art.."

It took him a few seconds to finally say something again. "The creative team of my company... is in need of more people. I don't know if you still remember him but.. Choi Yeonjun, the blue-haired guy from our class back in high school, I made him lead that department. No one was able to satisfy him but he always admired your work, didn't he?"

"And....?" She knew where he was going, she really did. She slowly gulped as she saw him open his mouth.

"Yunhee, come work for me."