Two Steps Back | Bada Lee Fanfic

Prologue

I closed my umbrella and gently threw it at the soaking bench behind me. There's no point in using it. I was completely drenched from head to toe. It's a good thing my bag had some sort of water-resistant cloth, so my stuff inside remained dry.

A quick glance to my right to check whether Lisa's already coming made me notice a funny-looking figure on the opposite building. I scoffed at how stupid the person looked dancing in the rain. I mean, who would do that? There are far better ways to get hypothermia.

My laughter was cut short when the figure removed its cap, revealing waist-length hair.

"Oh, it's a girl," I exclaimed as if someone else were watching her with me.

Maybe it was curiosity, or maybe I just liked spying on someone, but I kept watching her as I waited for my ride. She had her back on me, so I couldn't really figure out what she looked like. Not that it mattered. What I was really curious about was why, of all places, she had decided to dance under the rain. For dramatic purposes? For inspiration? As far as I know, the university has a studio designed just for that—dancing. I knew because Lisa's been bragging about it along with her position in the group.

I watched closely how she smoothly brushed her wet hair with her fingers and got on with her choreography like the rain was barely there. I wondered if she could still hear her music or if she even had some music on in the first place. I could barely hear anything from all the rain, which, unfortunately, showed no sign of stopping.

As she executed a certain part of her choreography the third time, my phone rang from my bag. I pulled it out only to see Travis' name on the screen.

"Hey, baby. I'm with my cousin right now, so I couldn't fetch you. Hope you understand. Let's have a date tomorrow. Love you!"

"Hah! When have I never understood?! And yeah, sure, let's plan another date that you will cancel again tomorrow 'cause that's so fun!"

You'd hope I told him that, but he hung up before I could even open my mouth to respond. He's that thoughtful.

I stashed my phone back in my bag and slumped on the bench behind me, not minding how soaked it was from the rain anymore. I focused my eyes on the pavement and how the rain dropped at it freely and without caution, like it knew they were meant to fall on the hard ground, so there's no use being cautious. There's no saving them from hitting the cold concrete anyway.

My legs shook as I breathed through my mouth, and my fingers started tapping an unfamiliar rhythm on my thigh, another habit I do to calm myself.

I wasn't mad. I was irritated. There's a difference. It's not about Travis not driving me home. It's about him, once again, canceling something he promised he'd do. Was I being unreasonable? Illogical? Mean? Was I being too much?

A loud banging sound had me turning to my right, and I was reminded of the girl dancing in the rain.

"God, she's still doing it?" I asked myself in disbelief.

I squinted my eyes when I saw her stomp her foot, hitting a plant. She was saying something—at least that's how it looked from where I was—before executing the same step in her dance again. She seemed frustrated over that step, though honestly speaking, it looked good to me. But I'm no dancer, so I guess my opinion doesn't count.

It took her some time before she spun, probably moving on to the next step. She did that a couple of times, and then...

"Crap." She turned my way. She turned my way and saw me looking!

I cleared my throat and hastily dropped my gaze to my boots. A minute in, and I found myself justifying my actions. I mean, she was in a public space, an open area. What did she expect? It's not like she rented the place—or did she? Is that even possible?

I raised my gaze and scanned the place, carefully avoiding the area where the girl was, of course, and saw no one. That made me even more anxious, but still, it doesn't mean she had the place to herself, right? I was at the back of the campus, in the parking area. There's just no way someone would want to hang out there of all places, thus the emptiness. Plus, class had not even started that time yet.

I took a quick glance her way and saw how she was just standing there, unmoving. I was not sure if she was still looking my way or not. Like I said, I only took a quick glance.

"Take another look, just to be sure she's not about to approach and bitch over you staring at her like some creepy stalker," my mind told me.

As a child, I've always been applauded for my obedience, so I wasn't surprised when that's exactly what I did. I found her facing my way, still not moving. What I wasn't sure was whether she was really looking at me or something in my direction. Her cap was back on, tilted so low that I couldn't see her face.

A honk had both of our attention diverted. Once I saw the familiar car approaching the shed, I let go of the breath I didn't know I was holding. I was that nervous.

"Hop on, bitch!" Lisa called from the passenger seat, her side of the window down.

I gathered my belongings, pressed the automatic button on my umbrella, and was ready to go home when I glanced her way again. She was still facing me.

"Wow, look who's creepy now," I mentally noted, eyeing her tall, still figure.

Seeing as the rain continued its heavy downpour, I left my opened umbrella on one of the benches and waved at the girl. I got no response, but I didn't mind. I pointed at my blue umbrella, pointed at her, then made a motion to use the umbrella for herself. She tilted her head sideways, and that was enough response for me. I waved at her one last time, then made a quick dash to our car and got in. I was already drenched anyway. There's no point in bringing it with me.

"What was that? Why'd you leave it?" Lisa pointed at the umbrella I left after throwing me a towel.

I shook my head and started wiping my arms. "It's fine. Someone else needed it."

I didn't know it back then, but she didn't need it. She was fine with the cold. I should've brought my umbrella home with me that day.