Friday evening was a rough one for Jim. The guys had finished training early that day and decided to take a walk and enjoy some pork at a cafe. But Jim refused, complaining that he wasn't feeling well. He was in a terrible mood, and his heart felt heavy. He had not been himself for the past two days. The smile had disappeared from his round face, and his dimple hadn't appeared from sincere laughter in a long time. It all started after Jimin met Taehyung on the bus. That evening, the boys missed their stop and had to walk two blocks to get home. On the way, Taehyung answered Jimin's question about why he was still out so late.
"I didn't expect to see you here," Jim said, walking slowly alongside Taehyung.
"I was surprised, too," Taehyung remarked. "Do you always take this flight?" he asked.
"Yes, for a long time now," replied the boy, his heart trembling with fear of hearing unwanted words. "I thought you'd been home for a while," he began, prompting his friend to answer the question he had asked on the bus.
"I was already at the dorm," he smiled.
"Then why are you here at such a late hour?" Taehyung bit his lip, and his cheeks turned red. A strange smile appeared on his face, followed by a quiet chuckle.
"Well..." he began uncertainly. "Actually, I'm here because of someone..." He shyly hid his gaze under a mane of thick white hair that fell over his eyes.
"Ah," said Jim. He didn't dare ask, even though he already knew who it was. Still, the boy hoped.
"That girl," he continued. Jim's heart ached, and a current ran through his body. "With black hair... I'm here because of her."
"A girl?" Jim asked in a trembling voice.
"I've been watching her for two weeks to make sure she gets home safely. If I don't make the bus, I take a taxi and ask the driver to follow it until she gets off." Taehyung bit his lip again. "Ever since she moved into our dorm, I can't find my place. I don't know what's happening to me. I can't sleep peacefully. I can't eat. All I can think about is her. What do you think about these feelings? Are they love?" asked his friend.
Jim remained silent. He couldn't speak because he had lost his voice from what he had heard. There was a painful lump in his throat. It became harder to breathe, and now his heart was beating fast from pain. That night, the boy couldn't sleep. Everything inside him ached from suffering and the feelings he had for his neighbor.
After gathering his things, Jim left the building and hurried to the bus stop. Hiding his face behind a mask, the young man waited a long time for the bus. The warm spring weather following the recent rain was short-lived. The bright sun hid behind black clouds and showed no signs of reappearing. Thunder rumbled. Several large raindrops fell on the wet asphalt. A downpour began.
Jim was lucky because he arrived at the bus stop just a few minutes before the storm hit. As more and more people sought shelter from the rain, the bus stop became increasingly crowded. The boy squeezed into the far corner. It was difficult to see the road through the crowd. Finally, his bus arrived, and everyone rushed to the door to get out of the rain.
Jim was the last to board. The bus was crowded. Grabbing the nearest handrail, Jimin stared at the fogged-up window, thinking about his conversation with his friend and trying to see something through it. Suddenly, the bus braked sharply. The doors opened, and she jumped into the cabin.
Subin stood in the doorway, holding onto the handrail with one hand while trying to fix her hair with the other. Wet from head to toe in a light summer dress, she shivered from the cold. Goose bumps covered her body, her lips were pale, and water dripped from her hair. Clearly, when she got ready for work that morning, she hadn't imagined the weather would change so dramatically, with summer heat turning into autumn coolness and rain falling twice today—which she had already gotten caught in twice.
Jim's thoughts vanished in an instant when he saw his neighbor. His heart fluttered like a bird in a cage. It became stuffy, and he couldn't breathe. He tried to calm down, but it was difficult. He liked her so much that he couldn't take his eyes off her.
With each stop, the bus became more spacious. There was even enough room to sit down, but the boy was afraid to move. He thought that if he took his eyes off the girl for even a moment, she would disappear or Techon would appear beside her and hug her.
He began to sink into dark thoughts again, but he returned to the sweet reality of the moment when the girl looked at him. He would never forget that look. She looked straight at him with her big eyes, but she couldn't recognize her neighbor under his mask. The bus stopped again. The doors opened. Subin took a deep breath as if preparing to dive underwater. She jumped out the door and hurried home.
~~~~~~~~~~~***********~~~~~~~~~~~
The rain didn't stop for a second. In fact, it seemed to be getting stronger. Subin, soaked to the bone, walked slowly along the path, avoiding puddles. She covered her face with her hands to shield herself from the rain. Her body no longer felt the cold. The only things she felt now were sleepiness and aches in her body. Her legs could barely hold her up, and the world around her spun as if she had just gotten off a carousel.
Jim followed her. Completely wet, he paid no attention to the cold enveloping his body. He thought only of the girl walking ahead of him. Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind: "No, I won't give up so easily. I like her; I'll fight for her heart." These words echoed in his ears as if he had shouted them aloud. From now on, this motto would accompany him everywhere he went and in everything he did.
The girl barely made it to the entrance before stopping for a moment and closing her eyes. Jim slowed down at the entrance and watched his neighbor. His heart told him that something was wrong, but she continued walking. She entered the building and pressed the elevator button. Jim stood next to her, but she did not notice him because she had closed her eyes. Only when the elevator doors opened did she look at the boy, greet him with a sweet smile, and step inside. Jim followed her. He stood behind her.
The elevator took a long time to climb a few floors, as if giving Jim the opportunity to enjoy his neighbor's company. The sweet smell of her perfume intoxicated him. He wanted to breathe in her scent every day and feel his heart beat fast next to her.
The elevator stopped on their floor. Subin slowly stepped out into the hallway. She started looking for her apartment keys in her purse. Jimin took his keys out of his pocket and opened the door to the house.
The boys' laughter could be heard on the stairs. Having eaten their fill of pork, they were returning home. As always, they joked and laughed, letting their neighbors know they were home. Taehyung was the loudest. His giggles could be heard for miles. Jimin smiled when he heard their familiar voices. He glanced at his neighbor. She could barely stand.
Taehyung was entertaining his classmates with jokes when everyone suddenly fell silent. Namjoon and Jungkook were walking in front, followed by Jin and Suga. Behind them were Hoseok and Taehyung? who was looking down at his feet and didn't notice that everyone had stopped. He bumped into Hoseok's back.
"Aaah!" he exclaimed. "What's going on? Why did you stop?" But the guys were silent.
Taehyung went to the front to see what was causing the traffic jam and froze. Jimin was kneeling at the door of their house, holding the unconscious Subin in his arms. He stared with wide eyes at the boys, who could not understand what was happening either. The boy's heart ached. "Jimin and Subin... No, this is just a bad dream. I should be in his place." These thoughts echoed in Taehyung's head.
He didn't want to believe what he was seeing.