Chapter 15: Chaeyoung

The people from the nearby village were forced to stare at how the storm aggressively returned the rain to the sea, because the latter has already given too much water to the clouds.

***

Sorry. I can't stop laughing.

"You should've heard her when we fell down," I share to the team. "It was like a whistle that traffic enforcers use!"

Carl, Dahyun, and Jihyo couldn't stop cackling while they're munching on the sweets that we got them from the amusement park.

"Chaeyoung-ah," Mina mutters. "Maybe we should even out the bump on your head. What do you think?"

Jihyo scoffs, slurping on the peach popsicle. "One date, and they're already like this."

"It's not a date," Mina quickly retorts at our boss.

"You guys could have invited us, but no. So, yeah, that's pretty much a date. At a theme park, nonetheless. How predictable can you guys get?"

My laughter vanishes as Jihyo, Dahyun, and even Carl go into a cacophony of oohs. I turn to the only male team member and shake my head. Of course, he knows that I'm with Somi.

"Hey Carl, aren't you going out for a smoke? Let me join you," I suggest, as I'm already sweating by the armpits.

He narrows his eyes, accompanied by a wry smile. "May I take Chaeyoung up with me?" Carl asks Mina, who scowls at him in return.

"I need one as well," Mina says before heading out the room.

"Unnie, why so clingy?" Dahyun jests, to which Mina gives her a flip of the bird.

***

Thankfully, since it's an odd time of the day, it's only the three of us on the rooftop.

"You know it's not true, right?! So, there's no need to tell Somi about it," I cry, hitting Carl's arm.

He sighs and clicks his tongue. "Would you relax? We're just making fun of you! So immature."

Immature?! They're the ones reveling in false claims!

"It's nothing, Chaeyoung-ah," Mina assures with smoke coming out of her stark red lips, which strangely makes her look like a femme fatale from one of the noir films I used to watch back in Toronto. "These kind of jokes are very normal in the workplace. Last year, even the Accounting department made an issue when they saw Dahyun helping Carl with his hoodie's zipper. Isn't that right, Carl?"

"Okay, okay...let's not go there," Carl warns, staring intently at Mina.

Interesting. Why does this sound like there's more to it? "Minari, what happened? Tell me."

Carl's already vehemently shaking his head, fueling the urge to find out further.

"Your friend here should probably be the one to tell you," Mina says with a smirk, making her look more seductive as she leans against the wall.

I redirect my sights to Carl, who has an apprehensive look on his face.

"Okay, okay! I accidently moaned while she pulled the zipper up, making everyone think she was giving me a handjob, okay?!" Carl hastily shares in an irritated tone.

Hearing that immediately sends me and Mina howling with laughter. And then, I see it-the gums housing her teeth. It's the first time, since we've met, that I've seen her having this much fun. I wish she would always be this happy, not the Mina I was with the other night. Seeing her like that...it was unbearable.

"How about I change the seating arrangement, and seclude the two of you in a table, huh?" Carl challenges.

"Go ahead, it's not as if we don't know the truth," I say, turning over to Mina, whose laughter drops into the little smile I've become accustomed to seeing.

A few seconds pass in silence and smoke.

"I can't believe I'm marrying Suh-yeon next week," Carl murmurs with a sigh.

"Why? Are you having second thoughts?" Mina asks him.

Carl shakes his head and flashes a goofy grin he's known for. "No, I'm excited-ever since we shared an apartment. It's like seeing what we'd be like if we're already married...only in advance."

His words remind me of an anecdote umma told me. Before marrying someone, you have to have at least lived with the person before considering marriage.

I haven't really lived with anyone else, apart from umma (Suh-yeon doesn't count at all). Probably the closest I got to experiencing that is the past few days with Mina, wherein we'd play video games, watch Netflix, while enjoying whatever she cooks.

Come to think of it, whoever she ends up with would be lucky. A little bored by her lackluster responses maybe, but lucky nonetheless.

***

Due to an unexpected job order in the afternoon, we were forced to clock out at 8:30 p.m. These fucking clients with their "urgent" requests. I wonder why Jihyo didn't put this off until tomorrow, since she's by the book about the turnaround time for creative work. Maybe she's trying to get in a good word from the bigwigs.

Mina's rushing to the bus stop, but I pull her by the wrist.

"Why are you in a such a hurry?"

She huffs, running her palm across her bangs. "To make dinner of course." She then proceeds to recite the ingredients of whatever she's planning to concoct.

I tug at her again. "Don't."

Mina tsks in annoyance as she looks at me. "Should we just go to bed without dinner then? This afternoon was a killer, mind you."

As the bus approaches, she tries to pry away from my touch, but I hold on tighter.

"Minari..."

"What?! The bus is here, let's go!"

"You've always been cooking meals for me these past few days."

"I know, that's why we have to go, okay?"

I now pull her with both of my arms, slightly slamming her against me.

"Can I just...treat you to a meal for a change? Then, then...let's just walk home together, okay?."