Ruhi gently tapped Zoya's shoulder.
"Let's go to the restaurant after we're done here, okay? Hana just texted me. The manager asked if we could come in a little early today."
Zoya nodded.
"Okay."
As they stepped into the corridor, she caught a glimpse of Minji walking past with her laptop tucked under one arm and a cup of coffee in the other.
For a moment...
Zoya almost called out to her.
But she was already gone.
Zoya remained where she was for a second.
Then she lowered her eyes.
"Maybe tomorrow..."
she whispered to herself,
"...will be easier."
She adjusted the scarf around her neck and stepped outside.
The cold wind brushed against her face.
Today...
it felt kinder than silence.
After finishing their university work, Zoya, Hana, and Ruhi headed toward the small family restaurant where they worked part-time.
Fresh snow covered the sidewalks, and every breath disappeared into the freezing evening air.
Ruhi rubbed her hands together dramatically.
"If this snow gets any worse, I'm quitting winter."
Hana laughed.
"You say that every day."
"And every day I'm right."
Even Zoya smiled.
For a few moments...
the weight on her heart became a little lighter.
The warmth of the restaurant welcomed them the moment they stepped inside.
The rich aroma of freshly prepared food replaced the icy air outside.
Plates clinked.
Customers chatted.
Soft music drifted through the dining area.
Everything felt comfortably ordinary.
Each of them slipped into their usual routine.
Zoya went straight to the kitchen.
After washing her hands, she picked up a knife and began slicing vegetables with practiced precision.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
The steady rhythm echoed through the kitchen.
Hana settled behind the register, checking bills and updating receipts with her usual neat handwriting.
Ruhi moved effortlessly between the tables, arranging chairs, wiping surfaces, and greeting customers with the bright smile she never seemed to lose.
Only Zoya's hands were busy.
Her mind wasn't.
Again and again...
it drifted back to the Dean's Office.
To Ji-won's words.
To Minji quietly walking away.
And finally...
to the tiny letter hidden inside Bamson's sweater.
By the time their shift ended, darkness had already settled over the city.
The three girls stepped outside together.
"I'm freezing," Hana complained, pulling her coat tighter.
Ruhi groaned dramatically.
"Forget freezing. I think my nose has officially resigned."
Hana burst into laughter.
"Come on. Let's get home before the rest of you resign too."
This time...
Zoya laughed with them.
It wasn't a big laugh.
But it was real.
At the Shared House
Steam rose gently from the soup pot as Minji stirred it in silence.
Sophia stood beside the sink, drying the last few dishes.
Every now and then...
she glanced toward Minji.
Something was different.
Minji hadn't been herself since returning home.
Finally, Sophia broke the silence.
"You've been quiet all day."
"I'm fine," Minji replied without looking up.
Sophia wasn't convinced.
"You and Zoya go to admin's office."
She paused.
"What happened?"
Minji stopped stirring for a moment.
"It wasn't the Admin Office."
Sophia frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"It was the Dean's Office."
Sophia blinked in surprise.
"The Dean's Office?"
"What happened there?"
Minji lowered the heat beneath the soup.
Her fingers rested quietly on the spoon.
"I'll tell everyone together."
Just then—
Ding Dong.
The doorbell echoed through the house.
Both girls looked toward the entrance.
Sophia quickly wiped her hands and opened the door.
A rush of icy air swept inside.
Along with laughter.
"We're home!" Ruhi announced cheerfully.
Hana held up a small paper bag.
"We brought dinner rolls."
"And..." Ruhi grinned proudly.
"...the chef gave us free pudding."
Sophia laughed.
"Now that's the best news I've heard all day."
Zoya stepped inside last.
Snowflakes clung to her scarf.
Her face looked calm.
Too calm.
Minji noticed...
but said nothing.
She quietly turned back toward the stove.
Soon, the comforting sounds of home filled the apartment.
Plates being placed on the table.
Coats hanging by the door.
Soft laughter.
Warm food.
For a little while...
it almost felt as though nothing had happened.
Dinner was simple.
Soup.
Rice.
Salad.
Fresh dinner rolls.
Steam curled gently above the bowls as everyone settled around the table.
For the first few minutes...
only the quiet clinking of spoons could be heard.
Finally, Ruhi smiled.
"It smells amazing."
She looked at Sophia.
"You've become a professional chef."
Sophia chuckled.
"Don't give me the credit."
She nodded toward Minji.
"The soup is hers."
Minji gave a small smile but remained quiet.
Across the table...
Zoya slowly stirred her soup without taking a bite.
Every now and then she forced herself to smile at the conversation.
But her eyes...
were still somewhere else.
Still standing outside the Dean's Office.
Still watching Minji walk away.
Sophia finally set down her spoon.
"Minji..."
she asked gently,
"what really happened today in Dean's office?"
"The Dean's Office?"
Hana repeated, looking from Minji to Zoya.
"Was something wrong?"
Minji remained silent for a few seconds.
Then she quietly answered,
"It's about Bamson."
The room fell completely silent.
Hana blinked.
"Bamson?"
Minji nodded once.
"They wanted to ask about everything."
"How we found him."
"How we kept him hidden."
"How we looked after him."
"And..."
"...how he finally went back."
Ruhi looked relieved.
"So... that's all?"
"Yes."
Minji kept her answer short.
"I told them the truth."
"That we rescued him."
"Took care of him."
"And when the time came..."
"...returned him safely to Mr Jea."
Another silence settled over the table.
Hana let out a slow breath.
"So everything's okay now?"
Minji nodded.
"Yes."
"Everything's fine."
The words were simple.
But they carried no comfort.
Zoya lowered her gaze to the dish in front of her.
Hana frowned thoughtfully.
"Wait..."
She looked at Minji.
"If it was about Bamson..."
"...then why did they call only Zoya?"
"Shouldn't all of us have been called?"
Minji paused.
For a moment, she replayed the meeting in her mind.
Then she quietly replied,
"I think someone must have seen Bamson in the dorm that day."
She glanced briefly at Zoya.
"And at that time..."
"...Zoya was the only one in the room."
"So when the report reached the Dean's Office..."
"...her name was the one they received."
A brief silence followed.
Then Ruhi leaned back with a relieved sigh.
"Well..."
"I'm just glad you went with her."
She looked at Minji.
"Otherwise they might've suspected Zoya alone."
"That would've created a whole new problem."
Minji slowly nodded.
"Yeah..."
Her eyes drifted toward Zoya for a brief moment.
"I'm glad I went with her too."
For just a second...
Zoya looked up.
Their eyes met.
Neither of them smiled.
Neither of them spoke.
But both understood...
The day could have ended far worse than it had.
She knew the truth.
Minji wasn't angry anymore.
She was hurt.
And sometimes...
Hurt created a distance that anger never could.
Outside, snow continued falling quietly.
Inside...
the silence between two friends felt colder than the winter beyond the window.
Meanwhile… Seoul
The room lay in quiet darkness.
The curtains were only half drawn, allowing the distant glow of Seoul's skyline to spill faintly across the floor.
Outside, the city was awake.
Inside...
everything was still.
Jeon J shifted slightly in his sleep.
His breathing was uneven, as though his mind were wandering through memories it couldn't quite understand.
Then—
A voice.
Soft.
Gentle.
As though it had travelled a great distance just to reach him.
اللَّهُمَّ اهْدِهِ وَاغْفِرْ لَهُ وَارْحَمْهُ وَاجْعَلِ الإِيمَانَ فِي قَلْبِهِ نُورًا وَهُدًى
Allāhumma ihdihi waghfir lahu warḥamhu waj'alil-īmāna fī qalbihi nūran wa hudā.
O Allah, guide him, forgive him, have mercy on him, and place in his heart the light and guidance of faith.
The prayer wrapped around the silence like warmth.
Jeon J frowned in his sleep.
His fingers twitched slightly.
It felt...
familiar.
Not the words.
The voice.
As though somewhere inside him, his heart recognised it long before his mind ever could.
His eyes opened.
He sat upright, drawing in a slow breath.
The room was silent again.
Only the faint ticking of the clock remained.
He reached for the bottle beside the bed, took a few slow sips of water, then looked around absentmindedly.
His gaze stopped on the couch.
Bamson was fast asleep.
Curled into a tiny ball beneath his blanket, his little chest rose and fell peacefully with every breath.
A faint smile touched Jeon J's lips.
He walked over, sat beside him, and gently ran his fingers through Bamson's soft fur.
"Again..."
he whispered.
"I heard that voice again."
His eyes drifted into the distance.
"The same voice..."
"...I heard on the flight to Busan."
The memory returned with surprising clarity.
The woman sitting somewhere behind him.
A trembling voice.
that voice had followed him into his dreams.
He looked down at Bamson.
"Who are you...?"
The question escaped almost unconsciously.
After a long silence, he reached for his phone.
He pressed one familiar number.
The call connected almost immediately.
"Jeon J are you ok?."
Jea sounded fully awake.
"Did I wake you?"
"No, sir."
"What happened?"
Jeon J remained quiet for a second.
Then said,
"I need you to check something."
"Of course."
Jeon J's fingers rested lightly on Bamson's back.
"The girl..."
"The one on the flight to Busan."
"The passenger sitting ahead me."
"Did we ever find out who she was?"
Jea thought for a moment.
"No, sir."
"But we probably can."
"If you still have your boarding pass, the seat number will be on it."
"From there, we should be able to trace the passenger list."
Jeon J slowly nodded.
"Do it quietly."
"I don't want anyone else involved."
"I just..."
He paused.
"...need to know who she is."
"Understood, sir."
"I'll start as soon as you send me the seat number."
"I'll find the ticket."
Jeon J ended the call.
He immediately walked toward his suitcase.
The ticket...
He always kept it inside his passport.
It had to be there.
He opened the suitcase.
Lifted folded clothes aside.
Opened a document folder.
Found his passport.
A faint smile appeared.
"This should be it."
He opened it.
Nothing.
The pocket was empty.
His smile disappeared.
He checked again.
Then again.
Maybe it had slipped into another compartment.
He searched every pocket inside the suitcase.
Nothing.
His movements became faster.
He opened drawers.
Checked jackets.
Turned over notebooks.
Receipts.
Travel documents.
Everything.
Within minutes...
the neat room had turned into complete disorder.
Clothes lay scattered across the floor.
Drawers remained half open.
Papers covered the table.
But the boarding pass...
was nowhere.
Jeon J slowly stopped searching.
The silence returned.
Only this time...
it felt heavier.
He sat back down on the couch.
His shoulders sank.
For several seconds, he simply stared at the mess surrounding him.
Then he picked up his phone once more.
Jea answered immediately.
"Sir?"
"I couldn't find it."
There was a pause.
"The ticket..."
Jeon J's voice had grown quiet.
"I lost it."
Before Jea could respond—
the call ended.
Jeon J lowered the phone.
His hands covered his face.
He remained like that for a long time.
When he finally looked up...
his eyes were fixed somewhere far beyond the room.
"How am I supposed to find you now...?"
he murmured.
Beside him, Bamson stirred in his sleep.
The little dog let out a soft sigh before instinctively moving closer, resting against Jeon J's leg.
Jeon J smiled faintly.
He placed a gentle hand on Bamson's back.
"Maybe..."
he whispered.
"If we're meant to meet again..."
"...your voice will find me first."
Outside...
Seoul continued through another ordinary night.
Inside...
one unanswered prayer...
one forgotten boarding pass...
and one unseen girl...
had quietly changed the direction of someone's heart.
To be continued...
Regards
ZK💌