"Please stay?"

When Aera stayed silent, Jungkook continued, "I know it might have surprised you. Heck, you might have thought I was a pervert, saying all these things so suddenly to you. But that's just how it is, right? As you said, I'm a stranger. And when we leave this place, get up from this bench, we might just keep on being strangers to each other. We might not even bump into each other again."

Aera didn't say anything, but she sat down again, listening to what Jungkook had to say. Her heart fell when he said that they might not even bump into each other ever again, but she brushed it off.

"I always say the things I feel and think to everyone, even to my friends. I do the things I want to do. Because, you know what? We only go through each day once, and my mother always said that going through routines every single day isn't the way to do it. And I believe that. Every single day we meet and pass by thousands of people, and we'll never know if they would become someone important to us if we don't start seizing the moment and talking to the people that catch our attention. And I've had a lot of people pass through my life and leave such a big mark on it, only for me to never see them again after we meet. So...I'm just saying that I'm sorry for surprising you and maybe you should loosen up, too?"

Aera knew what Jungkook meant, she even knew that this was the way she wanted to live - spontaneously and without the strict routines and schedules she had set for herself. But she felt offended that he seemed to be criticizing her way of living. She suddenly had the urge to assert that her way of living wasn't all that bad.

"I love my job, I love waking up early everyday, and I love going through my routine everyday. I don't need someone I barely know telling me how to live my life. If you're the type of person who lives in the moment and wanders around without a set routine everyday, then you should also be someone who's open to meeting a lot of different people. Even those who live their lives very differently from yours."

"I know, Aera-ssi. I'm sorry, I didn't mean it that way. It's just-"

"Could you please let go of my wrist?"

Jungkook, dumbfounded at the sudden harshness in Aera's voice, slowly let go of her wrist and let his hand drop silently to his side.

"I'm- I'm so sorry, Aera-ssi. I really didn't mean it that way. I just wanted to tell you what I thought and how I felt-"

"Really, there's no need. I appreciate it." Aera replied sarcastically before turning away from Jungkook who looked so torn and upset.

She already walked a few steps, not once looking back, when she heard footsteps behind her. Determined, finally, to go home and just get back to her routine, she walked faster.

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