**Chaeng wasn’t aware of what’s going on at the counter until she picked up her coffee to add more caffeine to her system. She’s getting dizzy now since she didn’t have enough sleep last night. Then she saw Mina standing outside the counter while Ryujin is behind her. Who are they? She thought. It looks like they knew each other since Ryujin was giggling behind her. But she’s not sure if Mina’s happy with what’s going on or not. Her face is calm, smiling every now and then, but doesn’t look like she’s enjoying their conversation.**
**It’s the guy with the messy hair that keeps on talking. He’s talking with his hand as if in a meeting and trying to explain something. Then the girl from his left laughed and slightly hit him on his arm. Mina nodded and smiled at the two.**
**Chaeng continued to watch them until this guy and girl took their seat at the table near the door, while Mina and Ryujin walked back behind the counter. Maybe to prepare something to eat and drink for them. Chaeng smiled, might be friends of Mina. And she suddenly feels happy to know that someone’s there to visit and make her smile. She knows that she’ll be coming back to her apartment sooner, and the probability of driving back here is lesser than half of a hundred.**
**Well, aside from the rooms and food are expensive, driving there ate up almost her entire day. And driving is something that she hates so much.**
*****
Ryujin: Eonnie…
**Ryujin closed the distance between her and Mina and whispered something in her ear.**
Ryujin: Sorry, but I’m really dying to know, and this thing bugged me since I was in grade school.
**Mina’s eyebrows turned into a straight line. She thinks she already knew what Ryujin wants to ask. But what makes it so disturbing is the fact that Ryujin’s making a long introduction instead of dropping the question directly.**
Mina: If you have a question, just drop it.
**Mina glared at her, which made Ryujin step back.**
Ryujin: Hmm… did you two have… you know. I mean… did you used to be… oh shit!
Mina: No… we didn’t. But I used to think that maybe I like him, too.
Ryujin: Oh… so he likes you? I mean, he confessed to you?
Mina: That was a long time ago, Ryujin. We’re both young and just exploring the different states of emotions that teenagers feel. You know what I mean.
**Ryujin nodded and continued to prepare Sana and Bam’s breakfast.**
Ryujin: So… you also thought about the possibility of being with him? I mean… a long time ago.
Mina: Hmm… I’m not sure if I did. And why don’t you finish that and bring it to them, instead?
**It’s not that Mina doesn’t want to talk about what happened between her and Bam several years ago. It’s just she’s surprised to see him today and she’s starting to hate Sana for always deciding for her. Why can’t she just leave her alone? She thought.**
**Mina took a deep breath. She needs to calm herself down since Sana and Bam requested her to join them while having their breakfast. Though she’s not interested in the offer, and she’d rather brew the coffee than sit and get uncomfortable with them, she needs to at least show respect.**
Ryujin: By the way, you haven’t said hi to the author yet, right?
**Ryujin abruptly muttered while topping the waffle with whipped cream.**
**Oh, shit! Mina had forgotten about her. Not her intention though, but the distraction she got from Sana and Bam kind of made her forget about walking towards her table to say hi.**
Mina: Can you… can you do me a favor? Will you say hi to her for me?
Ryujin: All right. What else do you want me to pass on her aside from that?
**Mina tilted her head to Ryujin for a second, then went back to working on her coffee bean again. The kid’s still busy making the waffles she’ll serve to their visitors.**
Mina: That some friends came in that’s why I couldn’t say it by myself.
Ryujin: Okay! No problem! And I’m done! I’ll just bring this to them.
**Mina nodded and followed Ryujin with her eyes. She needs to at least take another deep breath first before walking towards them.**
**Smile Mina, okay? This is just for a couple of hours. It won’t last the whole day so better wear your best mask.**
*****
**Dana was panting at three in the morning. That’s what her digital clock is telling her---3:00 AM. She wiped the beads of sweat on her temple with the back of her hand. This summer is toasting her. Why on earth we’re having this kind of weather. When it’s cold, it’s cold. But when it’s summer, it goes thru twenty-four-seven.**
**But that’s not the reason she woke up from her deep sleep. It’s because she had a dream of her again. And what makes her dream tonight different from the other nights she had her was… she mentioned her name. Yes, Dana heard it as if she’s screaming her name in her face. But Dana hates herself so much ‘cause she couldn’t remember it. She could feel the desire of the girl in her dream to tell her what she's longing to know and she wants to apologize for she couldn’t remember a thing.**
**Everything was clear except for the word she cried out on her. She closed her eyes again and let out a heavy sigh. “You’re useless, Dana. You truly are.”**
Ryujin: Uhm… sorry. Hello again.
**Chaeng immediately stopped typing in her laptop and turned her head towards Ryujin who’s standing two feet away from her. She could see how hesitant she was in interrupting her, so instead of giving her a confused look, she smiled.**
Chaeng: Hi, again, too.
Ryujin: Uhm… my sister just wants to say hi.
**Then they tilted their heads towards Mina in unison, and went back to each other after a second.**
Chaeng: Oh… all right. Busy day, eh?
Ryujin: Well, partly… and might be because that two friends of hers showed up this morning without notice.
**Oh, so that answers why she had a blank expression earlier. She was surprised to see them.**
Chaeng: Old friends?
**Ryujin nodded and hoping Chaeng won’t ask any further questions. She’s now afraid that she’ll say something again that might fuel another misunderstanding between the writer and her sister.**
Ryujin: Hmm... yeah. They all met in prep school. Sana’s her best friend and living in the same neighborhood. And that guy… Uhm… they’re close to them, too.
**Chaeng nodded once and stared at Ryujin. She could see from her eyes and the way she talks that she doesn’t want to be asked further, and she wonders why. But she’s not in the position or rather Ryujin is not in the position to answer anything else, so she just let it go… for now.**
Chaeng: That’s nice. I mean, seeing old friends. Anyway, can you pass my hi to her, too?
Ryujin: Sure… sure… and uhm… I’m excited about your new story.
Chaeng: Well…
**She stared at the last premise written on her document.**
Chaeng: I’m excited for my readers to see it, too.
**Then she returned to her and smiled.**
Chaeng: Hope to see you on its launching day. Okay?
**Ryujin’s eyes widened, surprised by the early invitation she received from one of her favorite authors.**
Ryujin: Woooow! I’ll take this as an invitation from you, and I promise you… I’ll be there.
**Chaeng grinned. She knows that when Ryujin is there, Mina will be there, too. But she was sincere to invite Ryujin to the launching date, though there’s no definite time yet when she’ll finish this new story she’s writing.**
*****
**Mina’s watching her sister and Chaeng talk from her peripheral, which makes it so difficult to grasp everything that Bam was saying. All she knows is he’s talking about the life he had when he first arrived in Canada, and how different it was from the life he had where he grew up.**
Bam: Well, I miss the old days. I mean… us running around our school and even visiting you two in your neighborhood.
Sana: I miss the old days, too. When we don’t need to worry about things except for the weather.
Bam: Right! Right! I actually hate it when it rains ‘cause my mom always yells at me whenever I insist on visiting you two. But now I realized she’s right. I shouldn’t run around the street when it’s raining hard.
Sana: It’s actually because you always get fever whenever you play under the rain.
**Then both of them laughed. Finding their memories amusing. Although that story kind of made Mina smile, she knows she’ll be happier if she sits at Chaeng’s table than with her best friend and this guy who always shows up at her door unexpectedly.**
Mina: What… what made you come back here?
**Sana and Bam were taken aback by her sudden question. And Sana eyed her as if telling her what’s up with her unfriendly attitude. She, later on, realized that the way she said it was a bit rude.**
Mina: Sorry. Uhm… I’m just curious, you know. ‘Cause I think this is the first time you came back after a decade?
**Bam leaned forward, which made Mina straightened up and moved backward. But Bam seemed to not notice her little action.**
Bam: Hmm… twelve years to be exact.
Mina: Right. It’s a… it’s almost half of our lives, right?
Bam: Uh-huh.
**Then he glanced at Sana who’s smirking on his side.**
Sana: But before you answer her question, why don’t I leave you two? I have a meeting at ten, so I need to be at my office now and prepare for my presentation later.
**Then she stood up without waiting for their answers.**
Mina: Seriously? I mean, I have lots of things to do here, too. I can’t accommodate anyone except our customers.
**Bam cleared his throat. Looks like he’s not welcome here so he stood up, too, and readied himself to say goodbye.**
Bam: Oh… okay maybe I’ll rest at my grandma’s house now.
Sana: Come on Mina. Bam just arrived early this morning, why don’t you at least give him a couple of hours of your time. He came here first to see us. Why can’t you at least be a little nicer to him?
Bam: Hmm… it’s fine, Sana. I do understand. Besides, it’s our fault. We drove here without giving her a call.
**Mina suddenly feels guilty about how rough her attitude is. It’s not Bam’s fault if she’s in a rage right now. Whatever fire she’s feeling inside is because of Sana. She feels like Sana doesn’t care about what she thinks or what she feels. She just makes her decisions based on what she thinks is right for her, and not what she wants. She’s too inconsiderate. She thought.**
Mina: I’m… I’m sorry Bam. I’m just not in the mood to entertain anyone now.
Bam: It’s fine, Mina. Maybe, I’ll just visit again when… when you’re not that busy anymore.
**Mina nodded, but her eyes were at the unfinished plate of the two. She feels sorry for Bam, yet still furious with Sana.**
Sana: You’re unbelievable.
**Then she stormed to the door without waiting for Mina to defend herself while Bam stayed there for half a minute, feeling uncomfortable before he followed Sana at the door.**
**Mina took a deep breath. You’re better than this, but why act like a bitch. She nagged herself, then picked up the plates on the table.**
Ryujin: What happened?
**She didn’t notice Ryujin rushed at her, but she wasn’t surprised to hear her speak either.**
Mina: I’m just a bitch.
**Ryujin chuckled. It’s rare for her to hear her sister say something like that, and she likes it.**
Ryujin: Why? Did you say something that pissed them off?
**Mina continued to pile up the plates on the table, while Ryujin picked up the glasses and waited for her.**
Mina: I was too rough on Bam. But it’s not Bam’s fault, you know.
Ryujin: It’s Sana, isn’t it?
Mina: Yeah… I feel like she’s too inconsiderate and so invasive. She’s always like that as if she totally knew what’s good for me.
**Mina finally walked towards the kitchen while Ryujin sauntered behind her, thinking of the words to say.**
Ryujin: Maybe… maybe she just wanted you to feel better, you know.
Mina: I’m better… and if I wanted to confine myself somewhere, it’s none of her business. It’s my choice if I want to imprison myself there or not.
**Ryujin has nothing more to say. She kind of feels that Sana’s intention is okay, but the fact that her sister sees it differently is also reasonable. It’s her life, and no one should tell her what’s wrong and what’s not.**
Ryujin: I guess, you two need to talk about it. I mean, so you'll understand each other, right?
**Mina sighed. Understand each other. Maybe Ryujin’s right. She hasn’t told Sana what she needs. She always pushes her away, and maybe that’s the reason for this… misunderstanding.**
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