"Have you ever met a stranger you recognized?"
One in ten thousand- that's how many people have someone predetermined for them. It's even rarer for them to actually find each other, but thanks to a special birthday wish, fate might just be on their...
A few minutes passed without either of them saying a word. Jungwon decided to leave her be, scrolling through his phone as usual while Yebin seemed to be texting someone with a nervous expression. He glanced at her every now and then, until finally realizing that she approached him after a bad day. He wanted to do the same for her.
However, she didn't look like she was in the mood talk at the moment. Taking his phone out, Jungwon opened SNS and clicked on the memory he had been notified about.
He grinned, tapping her shoulder. She turned to him, and he showed her the video before she could say anything.
Yebin's eyebrows raised slightly in amusement. "Is that you?"
Jungwon nodded, ignoring his own embarrassment. The video showed him from several years ago dancing to some upbeat song, wearing his Taekwondo uniform and looking like he was having the time of his life.
Yebin laughed a little, her frown completely disappeared. "You were so cute."
"Were?" Jungwon asked.
"Not that you aren't-" Yebin stopped herself after seeing his expression, realizing he was teasing her. She sighed. "Yes, 'were' in the past tense."
"How offensive." Jungwon clutched a hand over his heart, earning another laugh from the girl.
"Do you still dance like that?" Yebin asked, smiling.
"I guess you'll have to be the judge." Jungwon shrugged, causing Yebin's eyes to widen.
She pointed a finger to where they were seated at. "You'll dance for me right here-?"
"What? No!" Jungwon whisper-shouted, feeling embarrassed when several passengers gave them strange looks at Yebin's words. He placed his hand on hers, bringing her hand back down.
"I mean at the festival," he explained. "My friends and I have to sing for the concert, apparently they were running short of performers."
"More like Beomgyu forgot to send out invites to the artists we usually invite and ended up missing the deadline." Yebin sighed. She then clapped her hands together in amusement. "But I can't wait to watch your performance!"
"It'll be too embarrassing." Jungwon shook his head. "You can't watch it, okay?"
"Actually, as part of the festival documentation team, I'm certified to." Yebin shrugged with a cheeky expression.
Jungwon glared at her. "I'll be there to stop you from entering the concert gate."
"And I'll be there cheering and taking pictures," Yebin teased.
Jungwon's glare only narrowed, but he rolled his eyes when she just stared back at him with a smug smile.
The bus came to a stop at Jungwon's drop-off, and the boy slung his backpack over his shoulder before pointing at Yebin. "This argument isn't over."
She only laughed at his appalled face. "There wasn't one to begin with."
Jungwon mocked her, tilting his head from side to side as he walked to exit the bus. He could still hear her laughing from behind, and he couldn't stop the smile that made its way to his face. Even if he wasn't any help with what she seemed to be going through, he was glad he made her forget about it for a while.
Han Yebin shook her head jokingly as Jungwon left the bus, reaching for her phone as she heard a notification. Her face fell.
mom i just got off the phone with your teacher again let's talk when you get home
Somehow, the last fifteen minutes on the bus felt much longer than that. Yebin fidgeted with her hands, her mind just as busy. She thought of what she was going to say this time, or which apologies she would have to repeat. Still, she reached her stop far sooner than she wanted to.
Yebin stepped off the vehicle and walked home. The house door felt heavy as she pushed it open.
"Ah, you're here." Her mother walked out from the kitchen with a cup of hot tea in her hand. "Come, let's chat in the living room."
Dropping her backpack to the floor, Yebin took a seat next to her on the couch. She watched as the woman stirred her beverage, taking a sip before speaking.
"I heard your grades aren't doing so well."
"Yeah," Yebin said honestly. "I've been struggling."
"And yet you don't seem concerned about it," her mother noted. "I know you've been helping out at that school festival of yours, and getting back into your ridiculous obsession with photography. Your laptop's full of new pictures and editing softwares, do you think that's going to help you when I send you off to med school? If you even pass-"
Yebin looked up. "You went through my laptop?"
"Are you talking back at me?" Her mother raised an eyebrow.
"No, I just-" Yebin cut herself short. "I'm sorry."
"Do you know how ashamed I feel when I see my friends' kids with their awards and medals? I just wish you would try harder than this."
Yebin struggled to find the right words to say. "I-I'll do better, I swear."
"You're my daughter. Of course you will," the woman mused. She turned to her daughter, who was looking straight at the ground with an anxious expression.
Her mother then pulled her in for an embrace. "I'm only saying this because I love you."
a/n. jungwon's taekwondo dancing video is real y'all, it's on youtube hmu if you want the link lmao
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