Your Reminiscence

The evening sun was starting to dip below the horizon, casting a warm golden glow over the city.

Sunghoon walked Eunha to her front gate, a comfortable silence between them. They had spent hours chatting and laughing in the cafe, the time passing much faster than either of them realized.

As they came to a stop in front of her house, Sunghoon looked at Eunha, a soft smile on his face. "I had fun today."

Eunha smiled back, feeling a wave of warmth in her chest. "Me too," she said softly, feeling almost shy. "It's been a while since I've laughed that much."

They stood there for a moment, neither wanting to be the first to leave. The warm evening breeze stirred between them, bringing with it the faint scent of flowers.

Finally, Sunghoon cleared his throat, his gaze flickering. "So, uh, I guess I should probably let you go in, huh?"

Eunha nodded, feeling a pang of disappointment. She didn't want the evening to end just yet. "I guess so," she said, trying to hide the reluctance in her voice.

Sunghoon hesitated, his eyes searching hers. Then, almost involuntarily, he reached out and brushed a strand of hair away from her face. Eunha's breath caught in her throat at the gentle touch.

For a moment, time seemed to stand still. Sunghoon's touch lingered against her skin, warm and gentle. Eunha looked up at him, feeling a strange mixture of vulnerability and excitement.

Then he seemed to snap back to reality, realizing what he was doing. He pulled his hand back, clearing his throat again. "Well, good night," he said, his voice almost gruff.

Eunha felt a pang in her chest at the loss of his touch. But she forced a smile, not wanting him to see how much it had affected her. "Good night, Sunghoon," she replied, her voice soft.

Sunghoon gave her one last lingering look, as if he wanted to say something more. But he just nodded, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Okay, well, I'll see you around," he said, taking a step back.

Eunha watched him walk away, feeling a strange mixture of sadness and confusion. She didn't understand why he had suddenly distanced himself, or why he had touched her hair like that. The whole evening had left her feeling shaken and confused, all the more intense because of her mixed feelings for him.

She lingered at the gate for a moment longer, watching his retreating figure. As he rounded the corner, she took a deep breath, trying to steady her racing heart.

"What the hell just happened?" she whispered to herself, still feeling the echo of his touch on her skin.

She shook her head, trying to clear her mind of the confusing whirlwind of emotions. But deep down, she couldn't deny the way her heart had skipped a beat when he had touched her hair, or the butterflies in her stomach when he had looked at her like that.

She knew she was in trouble.

With a sigh, she turned to head into the house, trying to push the confusing thoughts and feelings from her mind. But as she closed the door behind her, she couldn't help but feel a strange longing in her chest, a longing for the warm, playful smile that Sunghoon had shared with her just moments ago.

She shook her head, trying to clear the lingering feelings. She couldn't let herself get wrapped up in something that wasn't real, something that could only lead to heart break.

But as she climbed the stairs to her room, she felt the ghost of his touch lingering on her skin, a reminder of the unexpected connection that had started to grow between them.

Eunha collapsed onto her bed, staring up at the ceiling. The evening's events replayed in her mind, over and over, each time stirring up the confusing mix of emotions inside her. And no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't push away the memory of Sunghoon's gentle touch on her face, the warmth in his eyes, the way he made her feel alive.

Eunha woke up the next morning feeling groggy, despite a relatively restless night. She had spent hours tossing and turning, her mind replaying the events of the previous evening over and over again.

She dragged herself out of bed and got ready for school, her mind still distracted by the confusing feelings that had surfaced the night before.

As she walked to school, she found herself constantly glancing around, hoping to catch a glimpse of Sunghoon. But there was no sign of him in the usual places, and she felt a pang of disappointment each time she looked and didn't spot him.

She tried to shake it off, to focus on her classes and friends. But all throughout the day, her mind kept wandering back to the cafe, to the warmth of Sunghoon's smile, the sound of his laugh, the way he had touched her hair....

For the entire day, Sunghoon didn't show up at school. Eunha tried to tell herself that it was nothing, that maybe he was just sick or busy. But deep down, she couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong, that his absence meant something more.

Eunha found herself checking the front door and his usual seat beside her every few minutes, hoping to see him strolling through the doors or plopping down next to her. But each time, disappointment settled in her gut as she realized he wasn't there.

With each passing class, the feeling of unease grew. She tried to tell herself it was nothing, that he was probably fine. But her mind kept picturing worst case scenarios, imagining all sorts of horrible reasons why he might not be at school.

As the days passed and Sunghoon still didn't show up at school, Eunha's anxiety grew. The days felt infinitely long, and she found herself constantly checking her phone, hoping to see a message or a missed call from him.

A week passed, and still, there was no sign of him. Eunha sat at her desk, staring out the window. The sky was a deep grey, and the rain poured down in heavy sheets, the raindrops tapping a steady rhythm on the windowpane.

It was Friday night, and she was supposed to be doing homework. But the words on the page in front of her swam together, her gaze unfocusing as she let herself slip back into her thoughts.

Out of the blue, her phone buzzed. Eunha almost jumped out of her chair in surprise. She looked down at the screen, her heart skipping a beat when she saw the name on the screen - "Sunghoon".

Trembling, she unlocked the phone and opened the message. It simply said "Can we talk?" but to her, it felt like a lifeline.

Without hesitation, she sent a quick message in response. "Yes, of course"

Her heart was racing as she waited for his reply, her mind racing through a dozen different possible scenarios for why he wanted to talk.

After a moment of hesitation, she typed back a simple message. "Where do you want to meet up?"

Her phone buzzed again almost immediately. "Can we meet at the park near your house?"

A small surge of hope fluttered in her chest. The park was only a few blocks away, and she could be there in no time.

Eunha hesitated for a moment, torn. She desperately wanted to see him, to find out what was wrong. But it was a Friday night, and her parents wouldn't let her go out this late.

"I can't," she typed back, her heart aching with disappointment.

"Why not?" he replied immediately, his message followed by a string of question mark emojis.

Eunha sighed, her heart sinking. She typed back quickly. "My parents won't let me go out this late. Curfew, you know? Can we meet up tomorrow instead?"

There was a longer pause this time before his reply came. "Yeah, tomorrow works. What time?"

Eunha thought for a moment. Her mind was still racing with questions and worries, but she had to make plans that her parents would allow.

"How about 2 PM? I can meet you at the park then."

There was another pause before his reply came. "Okay, works for me. See you tomorrow."

Eunha stared at the words on the screen, mixed emotions churning inside her chest.

Tomorrow. She would finally get to see him, to talk to him.

A part of her was relieved, finally having a date and time to see him again. But another part of her was still anxious, dreading what he would say to her, wondering why he had suddenly disappeared for a week.

She knew she wouldn't be able to get much sleep tonight, not with all these thoughts swirling through her head. She glanced at the clock - it was already 8 PM. It would be a long night, waiting for tomorrow.

Sighing, she closed the messaging app and set down her phone. The silence in her room seemed louder than ever, the rain pattering on her window the only sound breaking through the quiet.

She stared up at the ceiling, her mind racing. Images of Sunghoon flashed through her mind - his smile, his eyes, his touch. She could still feel the warmth of his fingers as he brushed her hair away from her face, the memory making her heart skip a beat.

She closed her eyes, trying to push the memory away. She needed to focus on something else, anything else, to stop herself from spiraling into a whirlpool of worry and hope and heartache.

As if on cue, her phone buzzed again, startling her out of her swirling thoughts. She looked down at the screen, expecting another message from Sunghoon. But instead, it was a call from Jake.

Eunha stared at the screen, feeling a wave of irritation wash over her. She didn't particularly like talking to Jake at the best of times, and the idea of talking to him now, when her emotions were all out of order, made her want to throw her phone against the wall.

But she knew that if she didn't answer, he would just keep calling until she did. So she grit her teeth and accepted the call, putting the phone to her ear.

"Hey," she said gruffly, not bothering with the usual pleasantries.

There was a brief pause on the other end of the line, and she could practically feel Jake's frowning disapproval through the phone. "Hey."

His voice was stiff and cool, as if he found her lack of enthusiasm annoying.

Eunha rolled her eyes, already feeling headache coming on. Jake had an ability to rub her the wrong way even on the best of days, and this was definitely not one of those days.

"Is there something you want, Jake?" she asked, unable to keep the irritability out of her voice.

Jake let out an impatient sigh, and Eunha could almost picture him rolling his eyes. "I just wanted to check up on you," he said, his tone still cool. "It's been a few days since I last talked to you."

Eunha suppressed a groan, feeling the weight of his possessiveness weighing down on her. She knew what his check-ups really meant - he wanted to make sure she wasn't talking to anyone else, especially not Sunghoon.

"I'm fine," she muttered, not bothering to put any effort into sounding cheerful or pleasant. "I'm just tired, and I was about to go to bed."

"Oh, really?" Jake said, his voice dripping with skepticism. "You're going to bed at 8 PM on a Friday night. Do you expect me to actually believe that?"

Eunha gritted her teeth, feeling her irritation grow. "What's so unbelievable about that? I'm tired. I've had a long week."

Jake snorted, and Eunha could hear the condescending smirk in his voice. "Yeah, right. More like you're just avoiding me. What, are you too busy to talk to your fiancé these days?"

Eunha felt a wave of frustration wash over her, her patience wearing thin. She hated how Jake always assumed the worst of her, how he seemed to thrive on making her feel guilty and defensive.

"No, I'm not avoiding you," she retorted, struggling to keep her voice level. "I'm just tired. Can't I be tired?"

"Tired, huh?" Jake mocked, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "I'll bet. The real reason you don't want to talk to me is because you'd rather hang out with that loser Sunghoon. Well, I've had enough of him being around. I don't want you hanging out with him anymore. You're mine, not his."

Eunha felt a surge of anger at his words, the unfairness of his constant possessive attitude making her want to scream. She knew he didn't actually care about her as a person, only seeing her as an extension of himself, a possession to control. But she also knew that arguing with him would be pointless, only fueling his suspicions and making things worse. So she took a deep breath, forcing herself to stay calm.

"We're just friends, Jake," she said, her voice quieter this time. "There's nothing going on between us. You don't have to worry about him."

Jake snort again, not believing a word she said. "Friends, huh? I doubt it. You two always look awfully cozy together. And I've seen the way he looks at you, like you're some kind of prize to be had. I don't like it."

Eunha gritted her teeth, feeling her irritation mounting. "You're just being paranoid, Jake," she retorted, her voice sharp. "I told you, we're just friends. And he doesn't look at me like that. You're making things up in your head."

Jake huffed, clearly not convinced. "Oh, and I suppose he wouldn't mind if you told him we're getting married soon?" he said, a hint of smug satisfaction in his voice. "Do you really think he'd be happy to hear you're engaged?"

Eunha felt a pang of dread in her chest, knowing that he had a point. She hadn't thought about how Sunghoon would react when she told him she was engaged. She had been so focused on seeing him again tomorrow that she hadn't considered the implications.

"I don't - I mean, he might not-" she stammered, her mind racing. But before she could finish her sentence, Jake cut her off.

"Exactly," he said, his voice smug. "He might not be very happy about it. And then what? Are you going to keep hanging around him, knowing how he feels about you? Are you going to keep being buddies with him, even when he's probably planning to steal you away from me?"

Jake's voice was sharp, his words cutting through the silence. "Or are you the one who has feelings for him?"

Eunha was taken aback, startled by the sudden question. "What? No, of course not," she said, trying to sound casual. But inside, her heart was racing, a strange mixture of fear and guilt coursing through her veins.

"Are you sure about that?" Jake pressed, his voice dropping, the tone almost dangerous. "Because it sure looks like you two are getting awfully cozy these days."

Eunha felt a wave of unease wash over her, knowing that Jake wasn't going to let this go. But even so, she clung to her denial, not wanting to admit the truth, even to herself.

"I told you, we're friends. That's all. There's nothing going on," she insisted, her voice wavering slightly.

Jake let out a huff of frustration, clearly unsatisfied with her answer. "Oh, and I suppose you've forgotten about that date you went on with him, despite me telling you not to," he said, his tone cold.

Eunha felt a pang of guilt at his reminder, even though she knew she hadn't done anything wrong. "That was just a friendly outing, Jake. We just hung out, that's all."

Eunha frowned, feeling a twinge of irritation, wondering how Jake would have known about that. "How do you know about that anyway? Were you spying on me?" she demanded, her voice firm.

Jake scoff, as if the very suggestion was ridiculous. "Spying on you? Of course not," he grumbled. "I have friends, you know. They saw you and your little 'friend' hanging out together."

Eunha felt a flare of annoyance at his implication. "Well, you didn't have to send your friends to spy on me," she retorted. "I'm not a child, I can spend time with whoever I want."

"Oh, really?" Jake said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "And who told you that you could hang out with whoever you want? Because I remember telling you not to spend time with him. But clearly, you don't care about what I want."

Eunha felt a wave of frustration wash over her, her heart racing as she desperately tried to keep her cool. "What, so because you said so, I can't spend time with him?" she demanded, her voice rising despite her efforts to stay calm. "I'm not your property, Jake. I can do whatever I want."

Eunha felt a surge anger at his words, his possessive attitude driving her nuts. "Yeah, bye," she said abruptly, hanging up the phone before he could say anything else.