"No one here would even know that I'm alone. It's quiet as if it's someone that did not exist at all." - Dalchong of CHEEZE
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Her memories came in bits.
Her reason to live was gone.
Her life was falling apart.
She was all alone.
And she did...
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It's a Tuesday evening and business is slow. Chaeyoung prefers it this way. In the background, the speakers hum a slow gentle number to fill the emptiness of the coffee shop, she stares out of the windows and falls into deep thoughts that takes her to nowhere. She has no idea why is she here. The voice, her voice, told her to do so.
Within her peripheral vision, her eyes spot a clutter of post-it notes dotting the white brick wall near her seat. Curious, she shifts her chair so she can read out the words easily. Hundreds of wishes and desire spread across the fixture, Chaeyoung can only imagine how much sincerity is siphoned into every careful scribbles. Mustering her hidden motivation after so many aimless days, she reads every piece. Every. Single. One. Like a man on a mission. She feels like a child counting the stars under the night sky. It's foolish but Chaeyoung doesn't care. She is determined yet she doesn't know why.
In the midst of reading, the barista comes up to her and asks, "Trying to find yours? I had it over there."
Chaeyoung's gaze follows the direction he is pointing. A piece of post-it note similar with the other dangling on the far left corner of the wall. She recognizes her handwriting, small and squarish. Strange, she doesn't remember coming here before, let alone sticking a note onto a wall. It seems too cliché for her and Chaeyoung is no longer a teenager. Regardless, she reaches out and tears it away from the wall, still suspicous that it may be from someone else. To her astonishment, there is a short sentence, written in elegant cursive, beneath her own writing.
I, Son Chaeyoung, vowed to love Myoui Mina forever with all my heart. As long as you need me, I'm here for you.
I love you, Chaeng. Remember that.
Chaeyoung drops the note abruptly and clutches her head. It's throbbing so hard like someone is hammering her skull. Millions of blurry, heavily distorted images flood her mind. Unable to contain the incredible pain, she yelps and this time, her whirring mind projects an image as clear as crystal. Trying hard not to lose focus, she mentally stares at it and notices a couple by the window. A pair of girlfriends, giggling among themselves on the exact spot, where the present Chaeyoung is sitting now, at the same coffee shop. They're writing in between playful banters, oblivious to the other few regular patrons. Chaeyoung doesn't need to eavesdrop at what they're saying to know that the shorter girl is indeed herself, whereas the taller girl she is holding hands with under the table resembles her girlfriend. Yes, Myoui Mina, my girlfriend. Chaeyoung witnesses this memory plays out in her eyes with sorrow that washes her like a tsunami. She can't take it anymore so she mentally shut her eyes before she can see the couple kisses, like she perfectly knows they will.
She is still holding her head, resting on the table when the headache finally subsides yet the newly attained memory still fresh in her mind. She mumbles the words Myoui Mina a few times, the sound of her name so appealing in her ears and it feels so smooth at the tip of her tongue.
"Myoui Mina," she mutters again and feels her heart skips a beat.
Chaeyoung sits upright and looks around her warily. Chaeyoung sighs in relief as the barista is nowhere to be seen. The guy doesn't need to see her outburst. He must have walked away after showing her her note. The note! She suddenly thinks of it and quickly picks it up from the floor. She laid it on the table and smooth the creases with her palm, the two simple sentences staring back at her. This note is her clue to find the source of the voice, so precious she mustn't afford to lose it. Thanks to the note, she remembers the voice belongs to Myoui Mina and she is her girlfriend. But why, where, how? She doesn't know. She needs to find out.
As she is about to leave, the barista appears from the kitchen and calls out, "Leaving so soon?"
Slightly annoyed, Chaeyoung keeps her cool and smiles in response, "Yeah. Thanks for the note...and the coffee."
"No problem," he shrugs, "Mind if I ask you a question, though?"
Seriously, one minute of lingering is a waste of time, but she nods, "No, I don't. Ask away."
"Where is the lovely Mina? Are you guys alright?"
Suddenly, Chaeyoung's blood boils. It takes every ounce of her self control to not hit the waiter, whom she still has no idea of his name, right on his pretty face. What the fuck is he thinking to call Mina lovely? She is her girlfriend for God's sake. Who the fuck does he think he is? She clenches her fist, gritting her teeth and the guy must have noticed it too.
"Ah I'm sorry, I shouldn't have ask that," he quickly apologizes for touching a nerve.
"Yeah, you really shouldn't. We're fine, so mind your own business," Chaeyoung snaps. The corners of her lips twist in discomfort.
She doesn't regret bolting away from the coffee shop with a loud slam on the door.
