Chapter 41

"Miss you"

The sound of the bell echoed in the small convenience store as Na Ri took a step inside.

"Noona," Taehyun said and waved at her from behind the counter. With a smile on her face, Na Ri approached the young boy.

"I was wondering if you'd be here today," Na Ri said joyfully, "you're so hardworking, even being here on a National Holiday."

"Well someone had to be here," Taehyun answered and shrugged his shoulders, "stores doesn't close on National Holidays. Besides, I had no plans and I could use the money."

"Well I'm glad you're here, it's nice to see a friendly face," Na Ri said.

"Thanks," Taehyun said, "what are you up to these days? I haven't seen you in a while, I actually thought you left town."

"No, I've just been helping out my sister-in-law at the kindergarten she works at, but it's closed down because of the holiday," Na Ri said, "so we're just relaxing at home today."

"That sounds nice,"Taehyun said, "well I won't take up all your time, go get what you need, I'll be here."

"I will then," Na Ri said and started wandering the store, trying to remember the things Woo Jin told her to get. While looking through the shelves, she suddenly heard the bell ring again, and almost instinctively, she lifted her head and looked at the entrance, but as she did, she found herself frozen on the spot.

Just staring into his hazel brown eyes made her unable to speak or move and she simply stayed put, trying to wrap her head around the situation. Trying to figure out if it was real or simply her imagination playing tricks on her.

"Welcome, sir," Taehyun said, confirming Na Ri on the fact that this was indeed real, "can I help you with anything?"

"No, thank you, young man," Namjoon said with the same gentle voice he always spoke with, a voice Na Ri had almost forgotten the sound of, "I was just... looking for someone."

In the same second, Na Ri put back the things she took from the shelve, and while walking past Taehyun, she quickly said: "I'll come back later," before storming out of the store.

"Na Ri-ssi!" Na Ri heard Namjoon yell from behind her, but she just kept walking ahead without looking back.

"Na Ri-ssi, wait up!" Namjoon yelled again, but Na Ri just quickened her pace.

"I came all this way, are you seriously not even going to hear me out?" Na Ri slowed down after she heard the last sentence from Namjoon and before she knew it, Namjoon was standing ahead of her, forcing her to make a full stop.

"You're really fast," Namjoon said while trying to catch his breath. With Namjoon standing in front of her, Na Ri was finally able to take a good enough look at him; to realize it was actually him. 

Just like Na Ri, he was dressed in a big warm coat and with a scarf wrapped around his neck. His cheeks where slightly red from the cold and he had both his hands safely put away in his jacket pockets.

"It's been a while, haven't it?" Namjoon said and flashed a smile, making Na Ri look away immediately, "how have you been?"

"Fine..." Na Ri said, almost choking in the process of getting the words out. She couldn't remember the last time she felt this nervous speaking to another person.

"How's your cat? I expect you took her with you?" Na Ri nodded and so did Namjoon. He then took in a deep breath as he was getting ready to say something else, but Na Ri beat him to it, finally finding the strength to get the words out.

"How... did you know... I was here?" Na Ri looked up and for a second and locked eyes with Namjoon, feeling herself getting captivated by his presence, but she quickly looked away again.

"Ah... I spoke to Lee Min Ji-ssi," Namjoon said and suddenly felt a little shy, "but... I actually decided to come after I spoke to your mother again." Na Ri's eyes shot up by the mention of her mother and with a deadly glare, she looked directly at Namjoon.

"You... my mother... did she call you again?" Na Ri asked, feeling the rage inside her body.

"She did..." Namjoon said, "she told me... she told me you don't plan on returning to University. She asked me to talk to you. To... To bring you back."

"Bring me back?" Na Ri said, her blood reaching boiling temperature at this point, "I'm not going back."

"Na Ri-ssi... I understand it might be frightening to go back after all this time, but-"

"No!" Na Ri said and surprised Namjoon by interrupting him, "I'm not going back and I already came clear about this to my mom. She shouldn't have called you, she was being very inappropriate!"

"It's okay," Namjoon quickly said, "she's just worried about you, about your future and... so am I." Na Ri and Namjoon stood across from each other, both of them looking away while keeping silent, until finally, Na Ri lifted her head and spoke with a low voice.

"I appreciate your concern, but I'm not going back," Na Ri said and got ready to leave, "so if that's the only reason you came, then I think it's time you go back."

"Wait!" Namjoon said just as Na Ri was about to leave and he quickly reached out and grabbed her wrist.

"I didn't just come because your mother told me to..." Namjoon said while still holding onto Na Ri's wrist, "I came because I missed you! Because... I was worried about you and... I wanted to see you." Na Ri slowly turned around and looked Namjoon who had such an earnest expression on his face. It was hard to see if his cheeks were red because of the cold or because of embarrassment, but either way, Na Ri felt her heart beating faster when she looked at him. 

"Well..." Na Ri said as she gently pulled herself loose from Namjoon's grip, "you shouldn't have!" Na Ri quickly walked away before Namjoon could get a hold off her again, but he didn't even try this time. He just stayed behind, watching her leave.

Na Ri walked down the streets of Daegu, her heart pounding in her chest like she had been running a marathon and she reached an area less crowded and with fewer stores, she found a small bench where she sat down to catch her breath. While continuing to try an control her breathing, taking in long deep breaths, she buried her face in her hands.

Her entire body felt heavy on the bench, like it was trying to push itself further into the ground as she sat on it. She was shaking all over her body and even if she tried convincing herself it was from the cold, deep down, she knew those two weren't related at all. 

A million thoughts circulated through her head, making her feel dizzy in the process. As if it wasn't enough for her mom to pop up in there, reminding her how much of a failure she would be if she didn't go back to University, now Namjoon could join her too, alongside her brother and everyone else that had expectations of her. 

Why should she? Who gave them the right to choose how she lived her life? Why did she have to listen to them? Why?

Na Ri slowly lifted her head, looking around the area while trying to distract herself from the never-ending train of thoughts taking over her mind. She looked at the people walking by, simply enjoying their holiday with their friends and family. She wondered how they did it, how did they manage to go through everyday without going insane? How did they handle all the obstacles life threw at them? How were they able to smile so lively when they walked by? Why wasn't she able to do so?

If life was a test, Na Ri surely had failed it a long time ago. No matter how much she had worked on her school assignments, she had failed the most important assignment she had, and at this point, she didn't know how to fix it. Was this simply how her life had to be? 

After taking in a deep breath, Na Ri got up from the bench, ready to make her way home while thinking of some way to explain to Woo Jin and Soo Ri why she hadn't bought the things they needed. She just couldn't go back to the convenience store right now, not after storming out like that.

When she opened the door to the house, she was just about to announce her return, when she heard several voices speaking inside. She quickly recognized her brother's and Soo Ri's voice, and she way too quickly recognized the third voice too. 

"Noona, is that you?" she heard Woo Jin call out to her as he quickly ran to the hallway.

"Why is he here," Na Ri whispered in an angry tone.

"Noona, calm down," Woo Jin said gently, "he's just worried about you, why don't you come inside so we can talk."

"I don't want to talk," Na Ri said and turned around, "text me when he's gone." Na Ri walked right out of the door and slammed it behind her, but just a few seconds after, she heard the door open again.

"Na Ri-ssi, wait up!" Namjoon yelled and Na Ri stopped, afraid anyone walking by would look strangely at them.

"It feels like you're always running away from me..." Namjoon said with a sigh, "I really wish you wouldn't do that." Na Ri tried to ignore the last part of Namjoon's sentence as she said:

"I thought I made myself clear already."

"You did," Namjoon quickly said, "I was just worried, you looked pretty upset when you left, so I wanted to make sure you got home safe."

"You don't have to worry about me-"

"I know, but I just do!" Namjoon said, sounding slightly annoyed and making Na Ri take a step back in the process, "I can't help it, I'm sorry if it's bothering you, but... your brother told me what happened." Na Ri widened her eyes and without realizing it, she immediately took a step closer to Namjoon again.

"What did he say?"

"He told me about your parents... he told me everything," Namjoon said while Na Ri was internally planning how to murder her brother.

"It must've been really hard on you, all this," Namjoon then said after a little while and Na Ri looked up, feeling herself choke up as that sentence left his mouth.

"It's fine..." Na Ri said, "I'm fine..."

"It's okay if you're not fine though," Namjoon then said, "who would be fine after finding out you have been lied to your whole life? Anyone would be furious, I know I would." Na Ri felt her blood starting to boil again and she took in a deep breath.

"So, what's your point?"

"Just, I understand how enraged you must feel right now," Namjoon said and continued on, "but you can't you stop your education!" Na Ri looked at Namjoon in disbelief of the straight forward message he was coming at her with.

"Let me ask you this," Namjoon said, "aren't you doing this to get revenge on your mom?" Na Ri looked away, having no intention of answering his question.

"Because, if that's the case, then your mom is still deciding what path in life you're choosing. You haven't broken free at all." Na Ri looked at Namjoon and felt the tears pushing on.

"I don't want to hear this," Na Ri said, about to turn around when Namjoon grabbed her hand.

"Okay, I'll go," Namjoon said, "just let me finish, then I promise to leave you alone." Na Ri looked up and nodded slightly, barely noticing how Namjoon was still holding onto her hand, creating a warm sensation that was slowly spreading to her entire body.

"Na Ri-ssi, I want you to be able to make decisions for yourself, but I don't want you to make a rash decision that can ruin your future. So I want you to think about it for a while before deciding, think about what you want. And if what you want is something completely different from the education you have been taking so far, then don't come back." Namjoon stopped talking and then looked at Na Ri while squeezing her hand just a tiny bit more before finishing off by saying:

"But... I really hope you come back."

Hello everyone!

What do you say, Namjoon is finally back, isn't that great? I hope you enjoyed the chapter even though it was a short one. Please leave a comment down below and let me know what you think.

Take good care of yourself and stay safe!

Love, Annalise~