I saw Doyoon again.
The glance I hoped meant nothing, didn’t.

Even when we sat apart, our eyes found each other.
When we smiled, face to face.
When we walked together, talking.
When I leaned in and told him, gently, that something was on his face.
When I felt his gaze press against me like light through a window.

That’s when I knew.
The pull was mutual.

It was the last time I’d see him officially,
so I walked right up to him. No hesitation.
I had regretted all the times I’d acted against my heart.
Not today.

I left my seat and sat next to him.
Even as I spoke kindly to those around me,
all my focus was on Doyoon.
When he talked, I looked into his eyes, not his mouth.
Hoping he'd understand what was in mine.

When Doyoon walked, I walked too.
If he said something looked good,
I followed, smiling, saying I thought so too.

We couldn't stop looking at each other.
It was impossible to resist.
He mirrored my gestures.
When I folded my arms, he did too.
He leaned toward me without knowing it.

When someone asked where I was headed,
I said a faraway station I wasn’t even going to.
“I’m going far, don’t worry,” I said quickly,
then walked away in haste.

Sensing her departure, Doyoon followed behind.

They ended up in the same elevator with someone else.
They were supposed to say goodbye when they reached the second-floor parking lot.

But Harin didn’t want to.

So she asked,
“Could you drop me off at the nearest station?”

Doyoon agreed without hesitation,
as if he’d been waiting for her to ask.

They headed cheerfully together to the parking lot.

Harin sat beside Doyoon in the car.
Excitement and anticipation filled the space.

Though he’d said he would only take her to the station,
Doyoon turned the wheel and said he’d take her all the way home.
“It’s not too far,” he lied.
“I’ve done this before for coworkers.”

They kept asking each other questions,
talking,
laughing.

It was good—
even when they weren’t talking.

The traffic-heavy roads were better.
She disliked the ones that sped them along too easily.

They neared Harin’s home.
She didn’t want to part.

Should she confess her feelings?
Should she ask to hold his hand?
Should she ask if it was okay to kiss him?

So many thoughts crowded her mind.
But in the end, she did nothing.

It was too bright where they had stopped.
Too open.

So she simply reached out for a handshake.
And then got out of the car.

From behind, she watched Doyoon’s car blink its turn signal about 100 meters ahead.
Was he heading home?
Was he just waiting?

She stood there,
watching him sit for a moment.
Then, his car finally moved on.

She went home after watching him disappear from view.

An hour later,
he sent a message.

“Today… for the first time, I didn’t want to reach my destination so quickly.”

Reading it,
Harin felt her heart swell uncontrollably with joy—
and sadness.