You should've been there, Jisoo
It was supposed to be at six o'clock in the evening when she was going to arrive.
But as I went through the hallway, feeling everyone's eyes on me, I knew I should have been happy, but how could I be happy when, as I sat down, I didn't see the figure of the person I'd been waiting for?
I shake my head off, focusing as I smile at my friends, whom I'm sure have been talking about things I barely know about.
"-- And, then, he kneeled down on one knee. Then, then," The owner of the medium-pitch voice raised her hand, showing a shiny gold ring that had a minimalist design on it." Then he asked me to marry him! Marry him!"
And they all laughed, saying how adorable and gorgeous Hyo-jong, Hyun-ah's now fiancé, proposed to Hyun-ah.
"You shouldn't have invited her here," A voice whispered beside me.
I looked at the person beside me and saw my one and only best friend, Lisa. Lisa was the first person I met during my first solo journey to Thailand, which was a huge mistake at first, because I hadn't met anyone who could speak English that well until Lisa. After she offered me to tour all around, we then became friends and have been inseparable since, and after seven years passed, she's been my best friend.
I tried to suppress a smile before I went back to watch my friends gushing about how amazing Hyo-jong's proposal to Hyun-ah was.
"I actually find her entertaining," I say, restraining myself from looking at the door that isn't too far away from me.
"She's stealing your spotlight," Lisa said, frowning as she glared at the group of friends in front of us. "I mean, it's your birthday. The birthday girl is supposed to be the center of attention. Not some girl who literally got engaged a month ago and hasn't stopped talking about it since."
I laughed at what she said, hitting her on the shoulder in the process, which earned a whine from her.
"Just let her be, Liz."
"I'm getting sick of it." I can sense the bitterness in her voice. "Do you want a drink?"
"I'm fine."
"You sure?"
I didn't say anything. Instead, I just hummed in response and continued to look at my friends who were now drinking liquor from the shelves. Lisa is now away from my sight, which I'm glad of. At that moment, I would have joined them, but I wasn't in the mood. I don't know why, but I wasn't just in the mood to be drunk.
And so I stayed still in my seat. I tried my best not to glance at the door that wasn't so far away from me, but I just couldn't help it. She was supposed to be here, but then she wasn't. How long do I have to wait?
I tried to open my phone, hoping for a text that perhaps– just maybe– saying she'll be arriving at any minute, but I didn't. Not even a single text, not even a small hi or anything– even a dot– was not there.
"Here," I glance to find the owner of the voice. Lisa was standing beside me, handing me a drink.
"I told you that I didn't want one," I say, taking the drink anyway.
Lisa seemed to ignore what I'd said. Instead, she sat beside me in silence and took a sip of her beer before speaking up. "She's not coming, isn't she?"
Instead of answering her question by telling her that Jisoo was going to come, I couldn't say anything at that moment. The only thing I could do was stare at the glass of scotch she had just handed me a while ago. Jisoo had promised me that she'd be coming early for my birthday. She promised, and even though I knew damn well that she wasn't good at keeping her promises to me, I still wanted to hold onto that hope—that perhaps she was going to come and she was just running late. After all, a promise is a promise, and I knew Jisoo wouldn't break her promise... right?
