Volume 3 Chapter 41 New Year's Eve Girl (Part 2) Second Watch

  Thanks for the reward from Beifeng Qianqi classmates ~

  This chapter is a bit short, mainly because I had to get into a girl's mindset, which was quite a challenge for me...

  January 1, 2005, snow

  It's been over 100 days since I came to this city. The season has transitioned from early autumn to severe winter. Every day is ordinary and busy, but I miss home a little bit.

  From Jeonju to Seoul, it's only a 3-hour drive. I used to think that going back home would be easy, but I underestimated the loneliness and isolation of being in a foreign place. At the company, I'm the only one from Jeonju, and they secretly mock my accent, calling me a country bumpkin. I know they're jealous, so I tell myself not to mind them, but it still makes me unhappy. Even though there's always something going on around me, I feel like I'm living on a deserted island. The only one who wants to talk to me is another foreign girl in my dormitory, but her accent is even worse than mine...

  Fortunately, I met Jun-hee hyung again soon."

  ……

  The pen stopped at this point, the girl who was writing under the desk lamp pushed her glasses and smiled sweetly.

  It seems that she remembered the Mid-Autumn Festival, remembered the dim and cold corridor in the basement, and thought of the changing room where she still likes to hide. For her, it has almost become a haven in this strange city, because another haven for her thoughts cannot always be by her side.

  The pen tip touched the paper and began to scratch again!

  ……

  He didn't blame me for escaping, although he also put on a serious face and said that if there's a next time, he'll really get angry, but I know he won't, just like the way he has always looked at me with eyes full of tolerance and warmth, like a dark warm spring that contains all my willfulness and melts away all my grievances.

  I understand his indulgence towards me, so although in the following days, he became very busy and inevitably neglected my existence, just like I had thoughtlessly imagined before. However, I didn't feel disappointed or hurt again because I knew that when he appeared next time, the warmth at the bottom of his eyes would still not fade away, and it would still shine over like the autumn sun, dispelling all the gloominess and chill around.

  Just like all the days in the past!

  Just like today!

  Today was a terrible day, I almost froze to death on the streets. Maybe tomorrow when people wake up, they'll be shocked that Korea has a 'snow-eating little girl', but such a tragedy didn't continue because of his appearance. He took me home to take a bath, eat and stay overnight.

  He proposed very naturally and I accepted very naturally.

  It's strange to think about it, but I'm a introspective and complex person, yet I agreed to stay overnight so easily and even lied to dad saying I was sleeping in the dorm. It's really a miracle that I didn't overthink things...

  It's as if we were familiar with each other from our past lives, and had a destined connection, so that's why we trust each other like this in this life - it must be the case!

  So I also like the feeling of being by his side.

  I wonder what he's thinking?

  I couldn't see through his thoughts, I was still too young, and his world was beyond my understanding. Just like I didn't know why he said he didn't believe in love, or why he wouldn't return Lin Xiujing's calls.

  All I knew was that he thought I had left, and when he showed that silent and speechless look, I secretly watched him, my heart aching to the point of being unable to breathe...

  ……

  The windowsill was calling out in the wind, and when she looked up, the dazzling lights outside were still shining brightly under the dark night sky and snow, without losing any of their sparkle. Taeyeon, who had casually tied up her hair, stopped writing with a confused expression, until the ink spread on the paper, at which point she lowered her head and quietly closed this brand new notebook.

  The notebook was a gift from him, saying it was a New Year's gift. At the time of receiving it, she even protested that he had given her such a cheap thing. In fact, she liked it very much because it was the first time he gave her a gift. On the title page, he also wrote: "To our forever lovely Taeyeon!"

  So even if she was muttering to herself, once she entered the bedroom, she still began writing down her first diary entry with a cheerful heart.

  The content is not very pleasant.

  Before long, a gentle knock on the door came from outside the bedroom: "Taeyeon, are you asleep?" Taeyeon hastily hugged her laptop and crawled back into bed, only then responding: "No, come in, oppa!"

  The doorknob turned, and Ahn Jun-hee, wearing pajamas, stood outside with a cup in his hand. The faint light from the hallway cast his shadow inside, and he raised the cup to ask, "Want some milk before bed?"

  "No way, I'm on a diet!" The girl said with puffed cheeks.

  "Losing weight? That's quite..."

  "Isn't it cute? Only when it's not pretty, boys will say it's cute, humph!"

  "Uh...alright!" An Junhe shrugged his shoulders and glanced at the still-lit desk lamp, reminding him to "go to bed early!"

  After speaking, the door was closed. When the last ray of light that had been cast in disappeared, Taeyeon quickly got out of bed and crept to the door, opening a small gap to secretly look outside.

  His gaze swept through the corridor at an angle, looking towards the living room. He turned around in the living room and sat on the sofa with that cup of milk, slowly drinking it down. His calm demeanor made it impossible to tell what he was thinking.

  At one point, he picked up his phone, fiddled with it for a while, and then pressed down heavily.

  "Hey... sorry, I didn't see that you had called... haha, how have you been? And you, don't stay out too late... yeah, yeah, I'm going to sleep now... happy new year!"

  A brief conversation ended with a slightly distant blessing, he threw down the phone, propped his forehead with both hands, and sat quietly for a long, long time.

  It wasn't until Taeyeon felt a bit chilly that she quietly closed the door and ran back to her bed, when a faint sigh could be heard from outside.

  At a young age, Taeyeon couldn't hear the emotions contained within, only feeling suffocated in her chest, confused and uncomfortable.

  She took a deep breath, casting aside the various doubts in her mind, hugging her notebook as she prepared for sleep. These things she still couldn't understand, but one day she would, just like she firmly believed that one day she would enter his world and walk alongside him.

  At that time, she will enjoy every breath filled with his flavor like today, and never receive a call like the one just now, never letting him sigh for her.

  "Go, go, go! Kim Tae-yeon!"

  In the quilt, the girl clenched her small fist to encourage herself. Then she covered herself with the quilt and took a few deep breaths. She didn't know what she was thinking in her head, but she started giggling and rolled around on the bed wrapped in the quilt.

  Perhaps it was his scent that caused the girl, who had been playing by herself on the bed for a while, to soon fall into a deep sleep. She didn't choose her bed, nor did she have any vigilant or apprehensive thoughts that would lead to mysterious dreams. She slept soundly until the next morning, and when she opened her eyes, the air outside was crisp and clear. The wind and snow that had lasted for several days had quietly stopped in the middle of the night.