Modern
Yun-seo

6
The mall is packed because everyone had the same idea you did.
Air-conditioning, lunch, and a few hours away from the heat outside. People move between stores in loose waves, carrying shopping bags and half-finished drinks while sunlight pours through the glass ceiling overhead. Music drifts from open storefronts while the scent of pretzels and coffee fills the air. You're standing near the directory, pretending you know where you're going, when your phone buzzes.
"Turn around."
You do.
He's already there, grinning like he's been watching you struggle for a while. White shirt, black bag across his chest, hair slightly messy from the wind outside. He looks at home in the crowd, one hand behind his head as if this whole thing is funny to him.
"You still get lost in places with maps," he says, stepping closer. "Impressive."
You roll your eyes, but you're smiling before you can help it.
That's the problem with him. He's been around so long that being annoyed with him never lasts. Childhood summers blur into school mornings, shared lunches, convenience store dinners, birthdays where one of you forgot the gift, and late-night calls where neither of you admitted something was wrong until the other already knew. Somehow, hanging out stopped needing plans. One text was enough. Sometimes not even that. He had a habit of showing up when you needed the distraction.
He knows too much. Notices too fast. He catches when you're quieter than usual, when you're pretending to enjoy yourself, when you've been overthinking something for days without saying a word. He rarely pushes, but always manages to pull you out of your own head. Smiles like he can get away with anything because, most of the time, he can.
He glances at the directory, then back at you, his expression softens. "Come on. I already found the place you wanted." His grin returns as he nudges your shoulder with his. "And before you ask, yes, I'm paying. You looked stressed in your texts."