The People In Our Lives [KTH] ✓

2

Chapter 2: Han River

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Present

It was winter time. The sky was dull and the clouds darkened into a casket grey.

People desperately wrapped themselves in their thickest coats. The wind gushed fearlessly, making everyone tremble with discomfort. The weather showed no leniency.

During this time around, the streets were devoid of people. Those who claimed to love the outdoors and venture out to the world, were busy relaxing in the comfort of their homes with a warm cup of tea.

The city was illuminated with light, but lacked life. Some shops still had their Christmas decorations in place, hoping to fill people with the joy of the bygone holiday, just so that they can drop by and buy something.

This time of the year was Taehyung's favorite. He loved to walk on the isolated streets of Seoul and pretend like he was the only person in the world.

He could take a fresh breath of air. People gave him anxiety and sometimes he did the same with his intimidating looks.

With his neck vanished in his bulky scarf and hands hiding away in his pockets, he made his way to his usual place. Han river.

That was the one place where he had felt that being lonely was not such a bad thing. He found home there.

He kept his steps quiet out of impulse and fastened his walk. He was rather the impatient kind.

Every single time that he had visited Han river, there would be nobody at sight. He had an unusual instinct for timing. He always picked the right time of the day to be alone. It had worked in his favor all this while.

But not this time.

His curious eyes found a girl standing next to the bridge. She was clad in an over sized, thick cardigan paired with denim jeans. Her straight, brown hair was left to the mercy of the wind.

A camera hung around her neck as she continued to capture Seoul's glory with her trusted lens.

Taehyung didn't know why but stood fixed in his spot, staring at her. He was at a considerable distance from her, so he was sure that she wouldn't notice him.

It was something out of the ordinary. Normally, he would walk away at the sight of a person. But for now, he was in a mild state of shock.

It could either be the fact that his timing had proved him wrong or that the sight of the lonely girl gave him peace.

His legs unconsciously trailed towards her. What was he doing?

Before he could kick some sense into himself, his voice beat him to it.

"Hey."

The girl jumped on her spot, startled by the presence of a handsome stranger. She didn't expect anybody to be there in the middle of the night and she wasn't good at hiding how she felt about it.

"H-Hi."

He watched the girl squirm in discomfort. Who would want to talk to a random stranger at three in the morning?

"Sorry, I'll leave. I seem to be making you uncomfortable." With that, he turned around to go back home. He figured he'd come back some other time.

The stranger's eyes softened as she watched him walk away. In the short span of their meeting, she had noticed his disheveled appearance. His curly hair was tangled, his skin pale, his lips chapped and his eyes were tired. 

He looked sad. 

She had to do something before the guilt started gnawing at her stomach.

"Wait! Don't leave. You're not making me uncomfortable."

Taehyung stopped and looked back at her in surprise. Someone wanted to talk to him.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I was just a bit taken back. That's all."

His lips forced themselves into a polite smile and she returned the gesture.

"What's your name?"

"Taehyung. Yours?"

"Ella."

He nodded as he drew his lips into a thin line. The air had suddenly turned awkward. Their minds went blank as both of them tried to think of a conversation starter.

Taehyung still felt that he was making her uncomfortable. Before he could retreat back to his den, she spoke, "What are you doing here at this time?"

"I couldn't sleep. I come here pretty often."

Her eyes relaxed as she broke out into a genuine smile.

"Me too. How come I've never seen you here?"

"I usually come here when no one's around."

"That must suck. Han river is so lively when there are people around."

He chuckled slowly. "This comes from a person who's at Han river at three in the morning, with no people around."

Ella laughed out of embarrassment. Her shoulders settled as she started getting more accustomed to her new friend.

"It's just that I believe that the best pictures can be taken at this time of the day."

Before he could ask, she pulled her camera up to show him some of her snaps. His eyes admired the well shot scenes. He had tried photography, but his takes never came out this good.

"Wow, these are good. Are you a photographer?"

"No, it's just a hobby."

Taehyung's head tilted sideways in wonder.

"I wonder what's that like?"

Ella let out a scoff as she shook her head in disbelief.

"You don't have a single hobby?"

"I don't have anything as of lately." 

As soon as those words came out of his mouth, Taehyung's eyes widened as he looked away. He had said too much. Who says that to a person they've barely met?

Ella softly glanced at his tense form. She wasn't the type to judge, so she just wished he didn't worry so much about her driving him away.

His confession had caught her off guard, but it wasn't unexpected. Anybody from a mile away could tell that something was wrong with the boy.

She wanted to help him. She felt a sense of compassion towards the guy. She wanted to reach her hand out to him.

With small hesitation, she pulled out a piece of paper from her pocket with a pen. She always carried one for some reason. She quickly scribbled something and handed it to him.

A bewildered Taehyung curiously grasped the paper and studied it.

It seemed like an address.

"Meet me there tomorrow evening, probably around ten."

He gave her a look as if he was asking her for reassurance. She gave him another one of her thoughtful smiles as she nodded her head.

"Okay."

"Great. I'll see you tomorrow then, Taehyung. Bye."

His eyes immediately followed her disappearing shadow. His next reaction was to let out an incredulous chuckle and shake his head. 

"What a girl."

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A/N:

Are you ready for what's coming?

Thanks for reading<3