Eyes Full Of Stars || Park Sunghoon

29 ¦ Caught in a Lie

Lost in thought, I stand in front of the mirror hanging in the guest room and comb my brown hair, which falls wetly over my shoulders. A soft knock on my door makes me pause.

Immediately after, the door opens a crack and Teresa pokes her head in. "Can I come in?" she inquires of me. "Of course," I reply, nodding, and let my comb disappear back into my toiletry bag that Teresa brought for me from home. 

Since it's already late in the evening, I put on the most comfortable clothes I could find among my clothes right after the long, refreshing shower. With a cup of tea, Teresa enters the room and closes the door behind her, while I sit down on the edge of the big four-poster bed and look at her curiously. 

"I made you some calming tea," she informs me, setting the still-hot tea down on my nightstand. As she does so, she keeps her brown eyes fixed steadfastly on me. Her penetrating gaze tells me that Teresa has something on her mind. "Thank you," I say meekly, averting my gaze from her. 

"I overheard last night that you had a nightmare," Teresa informs me, approaching my bed. I nervously tug at the bow of my sweatpants as the middle-aged woman joins me on the edge of the bed. As she does so, I feel her brown eyes continue to gaze into my face. 

I reach for the cup and stir around in it with the spoon. Carefully, I bring the cup to my lips and take a small sip of the tea. The tea is still hot, but not so hot that I burn myself on it. I feel the warm liquid run down my esophagus and finally reach my stomach. I continue to avoid Teresa's gaze. 

"I take the fact that you're avoiding me as a sign that you know what I'm getting at," Teresa states offhandedly. She's known me since I came into this world. I sometimes even think she knows me better than my own mother. Teresa has always been the first person I told when something happened in my life. 

When I met a boy, when I went on a date, when I kissed someone. Teresa always knew about everything, sometimes way before I even told my best friend Leela. My stomach clenches at the thought of Leela. I wonder where she is and what she's doing. I wonder if she misses me as much as I miss her. 

The last time we saw each other was at Yeosang's birthday party. How can it be that time passes so quickly on the one hand and feels like half an eternity on the other? 

"Is there something you want to tell me?" the middle-aged woman asks straightforwardly. I choke on the hot tea and begin to cough. I immediately set the cup back down on the nightstand and look at Teresa with widened eyes. "I-," I put in, picking at my nails. "No." 

"Fine," Teresa replies, shrugging her shoulders. At that, I don't miss the disappointed look on her face as she rises from my bed. "Wait," I sigh, staring at her slender back. With raised eyebrows, Teresa turns back to me. "I'm sorry I don't tell you as much as I did back then." "You're just growing up," Teresa states with tears in her eyes. "I'm just having a hell of a hard time accepting that." 

"You'll always be a part of my life regardless. You're like a second mother to me," I inform the middle-aged woman. Her features change abruptly; the smile on her lip dies and her brown eyes glaze over. 

"Did I say something wrong?", I want to know. "No," Teresa replies, shaking her head and pulling the corners of her mouth up into a smile. Gently, she strokes my damp brown hair before rising from my bed.