" Two cans please," Shana told the girl behind the counter, pointing at the cola cans in the fridge. She had stopped at the rest for a break from driving back home. It was sad saying bye to mum but she needed to get back home to sort things out. Her head hurt from being confused by what had happened with Jin. She was sure he was as confused as her as he had not even messaged or called her after he went back. She did not know if she should feel guilty or just take it as a " spur of the moment" kind of situation. She sat on the stool facing the big glass window overlooking the passing the vehicles. Her eyes closed when she thought of that moment. His lips tasted good and she had to admit to herself she felt good kissing him.
It took her the entire night the day it happened to admit that to herself. When she opened her eyes there was a smile on her lips. Her heart raced a bit. She was also trying to understand was she over Geo? she certainly did not miss him when she was with Jin. Shaking her head she walked out of the rest and started her drive back home.
Seven am on Tuesday morning her phone rang. She was still sleepy but with her eyes closed she picked up her phone " He...hello". " Miss Woo, Its Helen! sorry for calling you early in the morning but there is a place that just got listed, I feel you might like it. Would you be free today to see it?" Shana scratched her head and with a groggy voice replied " What time can you make an appointment?" Helen replied after a few seconds " There is an opening at Eight- fifteen" Shana Groaned. She was tired and wanted to sleep in but she also knew she had to get things sorted out " Ok Helen, text me the details. I will be there" she hung up and told her self Five more minutes.
Shana had a quick bath and wore a pair of white jeans and a blue denim shirt. A slight touch of makeup and drove to the location Helen had messaged her. It was about 15 minutes drive. She checked her phone while the red light was on. No message from Jin. It annoyed her that He was quiet. She found the place easily. The building looked nice from the outside. Helen was standing at the entrance. Shana got out of the car and walked towards Helen smiling. " How are you, Helen?" She asked politely. " I am great Miss. Woo. Hope your the same" "let me update you with the details before we go inside, one bedroom, 1 bathroom, has a dining area and a small living room. The kitchen is perfect for one person." Shana was quiet. She felt her heart sink. She had a two-bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment and now she was having to move into a smaller place. She felt uncomfortable but she knew she had no choice. She nodded as Helen spoke about the rent. They got into the lift and stepped out when the door opened on the fifth floor. Helen tapped the door and a few seconds later and a lady in her late thirties opened the door. " Hello, please come in " The lady and Shana was introduced to each other by Helen. They spoke while Shana looked around the apartment. It was cute and looked comfortable but Shana felt suffocated for some reason. It was small but she wanted to keep an open mind. twenty minutes later Helen and Shana were downstairs by her car. ' I like the place but I would like to see other places too. If I don't find a place I like better than this by the weekend I will call you."
Shana was driving back and she decided to stop by Jin's place and check on him. She rang his bell. She leaned forward and tried listing to any noise coming from behind the door. She heard someone talking and maybe a chair being moved. Frowning she rang the bell again. This time the door opened after a few seconds. Shana held a breath. a pretty, fair, tall with straight dark hair girl opened the door. She was wearing shorts and a sleeveless top. Shana tried hard not frown " Can I help you?" the girl asked. From behind Shana heard Jin's voice" Who is it, Ara?" He asked. She raised her left eyebrow looking at Shana. " uh.. I think I got the wrong apartment" she said quickly and walked towards the lift when she heard Jin calling out to her " Shana! Wait!". she pretended not to hear it and pressed the button for the lift to take her down. Jin caught up to her and held her hand turning her to face him. " Why are you leaving ?" He asked frowning at her. She herself did not know why. She felt her hands trembling and nervous for some reason. ' I did not want to disturb you" she managed to say " Disturb me? I was just after a shower getting dressed". She saw his wet hair and crisp white shirt he was wearing and she knew he was telling the truth. He shook his head and she guessed he realized what she was talking about. He ran his fingers through his hair and let go of her hand " That's my cousin, we returned last night from visiting our families and she stayed over." Shana opened her mouth to tell him she did not need an explanation but he was already pulling her towards his apartment. At the entrance she hesitated, He turned around and looked at her with a look on his face as if asking" now what?" she just smiled and followed him. As he guided her towards the kitchen she saw his cousin behind the counter. She looked up and looked surprised. " NOT the wrong apartment after all." She said mockingly with a grin. " Ara this is Shana, Shana my COUSIN Ara." Ara looked at Jin and questioningly " Cousin? is that what we are now?" Shana quickly glanced over to Jin. He was grinning and so was Ara. " Not right now Ara." He said laughing but being serious at the same time.
Jin walked over to Shana with some fresh juice. She was out in the balcony admiring the view. She welcomed the fresh Juice happily. He stood next to her quietly enjoying the cool breeze. " Everything ok with you?" He asked placing his glass on the table near them. She turned to look at him. His hair had grown which was almost covering his eyebrows. He was wearing his glasses. For some reason, she felt her heartbeat in her head. She realized how expressive his eyes were when he spoke. His eyes smiled when he smiled. She smiled at him and nodded. " I have to look for a place to move in to soon. I don't have much time left in the place I have now". She continued " Need a job soon too, so I can be a big girl and pay the bills." She said laughing at herself. He was smiling " Your growing up!" He said lifting his glass to her. " What kind of Job are you looking at?" asked Jin. " Well, I was thinking of applying to schools as I Studied languages. maybe I can teach" she replied. Jin jokingly said, " poor kids" hearing that she turned to him to say something when she saw someone on the other side of the door. Her Body froze and Jin followed her gaze. Geo stood on the other side watching them. Jin was the first to react. He waved to Geo and walked towards the door to greet him. Shana took a few moments to relax. She took a few deep breaths and decided the only way to find out if she was over him was to join them. She stood tall and made up her mind. They had moved into the tv lounge. She walked in ready to face Geo and whoever was there. April was with him, She stood up as soon as she saw Shana. Shana smiled the brightest smile as possible and greeted them. " Hi Geo and April". She felt Jin's and Geo's gaze on her. April's mouth was half-opened. She looked at the three of them in turns and all of them had the same expression. Was I too obvious? she asked herself. She was glad when Ara walked in taking the attention away from her. She had a package in her hand which she told something to Geo and handed it to him. Shana quietly walked over to April and Sat next to her. She was half expecting April to freeze when she saw her seated close to her, But April smiled showing all her teeth. Shana was the first to speak. " I am sorry about last time April, I needed time back then." April quickly placed her hands on Shana's. " Don't worry about it, I understand and I am sorry too we had to meet the way we did. It was all unexpected.'' Shana smiled and said, "Let's not get into details but I do wish you happiness and hope everything works out for the two of you." Shana said nodding. She nodded because she realized she meant it. Maybe because she cared for Geo and wanted him to be happy though he hurt her, But right now that hurt was less and she was happy for herself for being able to face them, unlike last time. Her eyes met Geo's and she gave him a gentle smile. He smiled back nodding. Jin said something to him and he turned his attention to him. She looked at April to continue to chat with her but she saw tears running down her cheek. Shana thought she had said something wrong and leaned closer to April. " Did I upset you?" April quickly turned to her and replied " No, No. I am sorry I just thought of something." she quickly wiped her tears and smiled again. They were both watching Geo and Jin. Ara sat on the opposite couch looking at something on her phone. Jin looked at Shana and then back at Geo and soon after that Geo looked at her with a frown. Shana felt her heart stopped. Her eyes widened. She had forgotten about the kiss. She looked at Jin hoping he had not told Geo about what happened, at least not right now. She stood up and walked into the kitchen. Hoping Jin would follow her. She took a glass to get some water from the fridge when she heard someone behind her. She quickly turned around and bumped her face into Jin's chest. He held her but he was trying hard not to laugh. She placed her hand on his mouth and with wide eyes questioned him. She did not have to explain much because she shook his head but continued to try not to laugh. " Will talk later," she said firmly. Just then they both heard someone clear their throat and they both knew who it was. Their luck Geo could not see them because of the fridge door being opened. Jin quickly grabbed some cans of beer and she just stood there with her glass of water.Jin walked away first and started talking to Geo and after a minute she joined them. Geo looked at her and raised his beer can. She smiled and sat on the counter stool raising her glass of water. Jin watched them and then looked at Geo and smiled amusedly. They spoke casually for a few minutes and then Shana left them to join Ara and April. After about an hour, April and Geo decided to leave and just then Geo walked up to Shana and spoke to her. " It was nice seeing you, maybe we all can go out for dinner some time". Shana looked at him and smiled thoughtfully. " yes! that would be nice." Geo took a step forward to give her a hug, She was hesitant but she did not want to show it. She hugged him back. She heard him exhale his breath and pat her on her shoulder. She relaxed and patted his shoulder back. They said their byes and a few minutes later Shana wanted to leave as well. " I will see you later" Jin told her and before she could tell him anything he grinned and closed the door. She was happy how the day went and she was happier than she hadn't had a panic attack like last time. She was also tired and wanted to relax or even sleep in early. She drove home that day smiling. She was happy she met Geo and April and be nice to them.
Eight-thirty pm her front doorbell rang. Shana walked from the kitchen to open the door. She was not surprised to see Jin standing there grinning from ear to ear. " You look happy" she said teasing him. He walked in behind her closing the door. " I am. It has been a good day, don't you think?". She nodded in agreement. He followed her into the kitchen. " I did not make much for dinner, I can order something for you? " she asked him while filling the cat's dish with food. " No, I won't be staying long, I am still tired after the drive yesterday. The reason I came by was after you left I contacted a few friends who I knew were renting out their places, I am free after work tomorrow we can go check them out together if you like." he said looking at his hands. Shana cheekily said, " you could have called." Soon as she said they felt shy, she turned her back to him pretending to do something. She did not hear him answer. She waited a few minutes and turned around. He was right behind her. Her lips almost touching his blue sweater. She smelled his scent. She felt her face starting to sweat finding him standing soo close. She wanted to turn around again but him being soo close was like him not allowing her to do what she wanted. She looked up to him and almost about to roll her eyes when he lowered his head to her ears and whispered " I wanted to see you" a shiver ran up her spine just hearing him whisper like that. She felt his lips brush her ears. Her eyes fluttered trying to focus on him. She looked into his eyes and he looked into hers. She heard the sound of him swallowing saliva. She was sure he heard her breathing. He took a step back but continued to look at her. She thought she saw tears in his eyes and when she was about to ask him, he started walking towards the door. " Jin?" she called out but he just opened the door and walked out. She stood standing looking at the door confused. Later when she was laying down in bed thinking of him, she heard her phone beeping " pick you up at five-thirty?" and she replied " yes"