SAY NO | JJK

⠀| ᴄʜᴜʀᴄʜ

~

⠀⠀she wearily stepped out of the suffocating taxi cab, heaving a loud sigh as she assisted the old driver with her hefty luggage from the trunk of his rented vehicle.

her black coat sheltered her torso from the gelid korean weather, and a trepidatious stare emerged on her face as she gazed around the strange (yet familiar) environment of the eerily silent street.

even though it was dark and there were no other wandering souls outside, she couldn't help but realize just how little this place had changed. and even though it was much quieter than the californian city in which she had previously resided, she somehow felt more overwhelmed and distraught here.

this town, despite its usual state of silence, was not at all peaceful—it was anything but that.

it did not provide her the ease that she hopelessly longed for. it did not relieve her anxiety. if anything, she became more strained and breathless with the inhaled air. her blood seethed from within and her lungs crackled as she timidly paid the old driver for his service.

finally moving onward, she rounded the corner of the block and began her short excursion to her parents' home—because her estrangement from it no longer made it hers.

the brunette came to an immediate halt when she came face-to-face with the bright red sign of her local café at the end of the block.

the coffee shop was desolate, lifeless, but the memories that roamed inside it somehow enlivened the place and caused shivers to trickle down her spine. it was because of those same damn memories that she loathed being back in hanam in the first place.

she knew this café like the back of her hand. she knew it,—mainly because it was where she'd spent her after school hours in,—but she despised it now.

"i'm studying at charlie's," she used to inform her concerned parents when they'd message her at 1:00 a.m. regarding her whereabouts. she was always found there at that hour.

she wouldn't actually be "studying," though.

she'd be seated in an obscure booth at the far end of the shop, hanging and shamelessly flirting with the cute boy from her english class. they had come to a natural agreement to meet every night in that same booth for "school" purposes, but they'd always end up fooling around and procrastinating on homework instead of focusing on their academic responsibilities.

she was too intrigued by him (specifically, by his captivating smile) to correctly prioritize her education. and so charlie's practically became her second home over the course of time—all because of that interesting boy.

she shuddered at the remembrance of his face.

she hadn't thought much about him since she left. she forced herself not to. she had primarily moved to the states for the acquisition of a bachelor's degree, but she had also seen it as her final chance to liberate herself from his trap.

she needed to move on. and, after four long years of studying abroad, she finally accomplished just that.

or so she thought.

just the sole thought of being back home weighed so heavily on her heart. she never wanted to return. but she had to. after all, her family was expecting a permanent reunion after the completion of her college career. she now regretted not pursuing her master's.

bite me, she huffed internally, fighting her conscience's warnings and deciding to step into the warmth of the bijou coffee shop to appease her curiosity. she'd been craving an espresso since the airport, anyway.