WORDS. |Kim Seungmin

Twenty Five.

The customers kept flooding the café as if they were trying to stop Aria from getting to Seungmin. She wanted to go over there, sit down and ask him straight about all the questions that kept roaming through her mind. She never asked him personal questions like, where was his family? What happened to him to lose his voice? Why does he keep his room locked? What is the obsession with tattoos? Where was he before he shows up at their neighborhood and her college?

She never asked those questions before because she was afraid that she would be crossing the line. She waited for him to tell her. She expected him to tell her about his past when she told him about what happened with Felix. She expected him to tell her about his family when she told him how her father left them when they were kids and how her mother passed away in her senior year of high school.

She expected.

But never he met her expectations.

He would always listen, nod, and write down a few words, but never he opened up to tell her a single damn word about himself. And the few times he allowed her in his house, he restricted her to the living room downstairs or made sure his room was locked before he allows her upstairs.

Aria started wondering, how come she never noticed how weird that seemed?

No, she was always suspicious about him. He always left her with unanswered questions. She always felt that there was something hidden behind those sparkling eyes. But whenever she tries to look deep for the answers, those twinkles in them would distract her. His enchanting smile would leave her speechless. His few written words would blow up her mind.

Aria finally tore her eyes from his figure for the first time during the last hour. She looked down at the bubble tea refill in her hands and then up to Changbin. She nodded at him and he nodded back. He walked to the counter to replace Aria while she serves the tea to the quiet boy by the window.

Seungmin lifted his head up once he felt the glass being placed on his table. He looked at Aria and as always, smiled the widest ever. Aria's heart skipped a few beats and she was about to call off the mission she was on. She returned the smile with a smaller one, making a mental note to herself not to fall for his charms for just a few minutes.

She sat down opposing him and then cleared her throat. "I wanted to ask something. Actually somethings. I have many questions."

The boy let go of his pen and adjusted himself in his seat to give her his full attention. He nodded at her, giving her permission to ask.

"So," She started. "We've been friends for months now, but still I don't know much about you. Like, where did you come from and wher-" Aria stopped once she noticed a change in his face.

First, she thought he was annoyed by her question. But then she realized that he wasn't even looking at her. His face was dull and stiff. His eyes were fixed on something behind her. Aria looked over her shoulder, but there was nothing off. The scene was just the normal one with two new customers by the counter talking to Changbin.

Aria looked back at Seungmin to find that he was already up to his feet. In the speed of light, the hood of his dark blue hoodie was covering his head and almost all of his face. Then his legs peddled to the direction of toilets, leaving Aria speechless in her place.

What was that?