The Girl I Almost Met | Jeon Jungkook

Lone Wolf

My feet pounded against the pavement as I ran for the bus stop. I was late this morning due to a storm in the night. The power had gone out and my alarm hadn't gone off. I hadn't been this late since she started showing up, sitting quietly at the opposite end of the bench.

For the longest time, I was the only one out here, in the dark, waiting for the bus this early. I worked in the flower industry and had to be to work in the dead of night. Local florists from all over came to the market daily to get the freshest flowers possible for their stores. And they came super early.

I didn't know her name. I didn't know anything about her. Judging from her uniform though, my guess would be that she cleaned office buildings at night and was on her way home—her day ending as mine was just beginning. Crossing paths with her was one of the best parts of my day, and I looked forward to it. In fact, I started setting my alarm extra early each morning so that I could get to the bus stop first, so as to not miss one single moment with her.

That wasn't likely to happen today though. I was so late; I was even afraid of missing the bus entirely. I kicked it into high gear, running as fast as I could for the last couple of blocks.

When the bus stop finally came into view, I slowed down. The bus wasn't there—and neither was she.

I walked the last few steps toward the long empty bench, my eyes searching down the street. Neither the bus nor the girl were visible in the distance. I checked the time, smiling at the realization that I wasn't actually late at all. Chuckling to myself, I was glad I had stuck with the workout plan I'd started recently. I wasn't even out of breath from running.

As I sat on the bench staring at the streetlights reflected in the puddles, I remembered the first time I saw her, three weeks ago. She had been sitting on the bench already when I got there. She didn't even acknowledge my presence as she huddled in the far corner of the wooden bench, suddenly pretending to read a book pulled from the bag at her feet. The constant flickering of the street light overhead would have made it nearly impossible to actually read anything.

I sat as far away from her as I could get, leaning forward, my elbows resting on my knees. It was going to be a long day and I hadn't gotten enough sleep the night before. I probably looked a little grumpy, but I wasn't really; I was just still tired.

I watched her out the corner of my eye with interest. She watched me out the corner of her eye with apprehension. I shook my head and trained my eyes downward at the ground between my feet, sighing. I was no threat to her, but I understood her fear. She was sitting alone on a dark city street at 3:45 am, and she didn't know me.

Her phone rang and she quickly pulled it out of her pocket, "Hi Mom."

I could hear her mother's voice at the other end of the call, but her words blurred together, not that I was listening.

"Yes, I'm at the bus stop. I should be home soon."

I looked down the street, seeing the headlights of the bus finally coming into view.

"No, I'm not alone," she said, giving me a furtive glance. "Mama, I can't say right now; he's too close."

Her voice dropped to a whisper, which I still heard clearly. "Ok, he's got shaggy dark hair, multiple piercings, and well-built arms covered in tattoos." 

I smiled at her description of me, as general as it was. She'd noticed my arms. I couldn't help flexing them a bit, just in case she was still looking. And I did need a haircut, but I usually pulled it back in a ponytail at the top. That morning I had forgotten and my hair hung down into my eyes.

She got off the phone as the bus pulled up in front of us. "Yes Mama, I'll keep an eye out. See you soon."

Like the gentleman that my mother had raised me to be, I silently waited by the open door for her to board first. A thrill went through me as her soft eyes briefly lifted up and connected with mine. I smiled at her as she passed by and offered a hand as she stepped up into the bus. What surprised me though was the pepper spray clasped firmly between her fingers that hadn't been there a few minutes before.

Now, sitting here and thinking about it, I realized she thought I was some kind of thug, which would account for the way she'd kept an eye on me after that. To this day, we hadn't said a word to each other. Perhaps I should break the ice and introduce myself; maybe it would set her mind at ease.

"Hello, my name is Jeon Jungkook," I practiced saying the words out loud. My voice shook slightly from anxiety even though I was the only one here.

You sound like an idiot.

I had always been shy around girls, fumbling my words when I tried to speak to them. All my friends had girlfriends, even when we were back in high school. I couldn't even imagine talking to a girl long enough to let her get interested in me. And so I was the only lone wolf in my pack of friends.

I sat a few more minutes staring off into space, hearing the bus pulling up only when it was right in front of me. As I stepped up onto the first step, I heard the girl calling from down the street.

"Wait! Oh my goodness, please wait!"

She was running, huffing and puffing as she tried to get to the bus before it left. Her bag, large enough to hold a weekend's worth of stuff, banged against her hip with every stride she took.

I leaned back against the door of the bus to make sure the bus driver couldn't close it; he was always grumpy and didn't like to wait for anyone, ever.

"Come on, man! I've got a schedule to keep. We can't wait for her," he griped at me.

I put my full weight against the door. "We'll wait," I said firmly.

She was almost there, just a few more seconds until she reached the door. The bus driver took his foot off the brake and let the bus coast a few feet ahead.

"Stop!" I shouted at him. "There's no reason for her to have to sit in the dark by herself for forty minutes waiting for the next bus just because you're a disgruntled ass!"

By the time I finished shouting, she was jumping up onto the step beside me. Her face was red and she was out of breath, but she looked up at me and whispered, "Thank you so much!"

Those were the first words she ever spoke to me. Encouraged by them, I opened my mouth to introduce myself, but instantly swallowed the words, knowing they would never come out right anyway.

I plopped down into the closest seat and sank my head into my hands, wiping the sweat away from my brow. I was going to be alone forever at this rate.