What Clothes Should I Wear?

“Hey, what do you think? Is it plain or just enough?” She showed you her fit, a plain white shirt, tucked in, and blue denim pants. You’re at an apparel store on the streetside of Seoul.

“It’s pretty.” You’re talking about her existence; you did not even look at the clothes she was wearing.

“Really? Do I need to put a belt and a clip on my hair?” She’s twirling like a doll in a music box.

“Huh? What belt?” You snapped. You’re daydreaming since you felt dreamy around her.

“Hmp. You’re not looking, aren’t you? Calling me pretty… as if I don’t hear it from you every time.” She whined, well, it’s true that you kept calling her pretty. But where’s the lie? It’s a fact.

You’re down to her pretty badly.

Does she know about it? No…? You’re not sure since she kept playing with you and your feelings. She’ll tease you about how you blush whenever you’re with her, and she’ll cling her arm to yours whenever someone mistakes both of you as a couple. 

“Hey! Snapped out of it! Will you?” She tapped your head with a clothes hanger.

“Aww! Sorry. It’s not like that, your fit’s pretty okay?” You snapped again. You just can’t help but be yourself whenever you’re with her.

“You’ve been staring at me— are you checking me out!?” She covered herself with everything she could; she’s looking at you weirdly. She mistook your daydreaming.

“Yes.”

“Wha– yes!? Pervert!”

“Huh? What the– no! I mean, I’m checking your fit since you asked me to, it’s not what you think!” You just realized what she meant, why she covered herself with a bunch of clothes.

“I know.” You heard her muffled laugh through the layer of garments covering her.

“Sighed.” You’re used to it; it’s like an everyday thing for you.

Isa is always asking your opinion on what she should wear and how she looks in it. It's a treat for your eyes and heart, watching the most beautiful girl you know swirling around, looking at you happily, and asking you how you feel about it.

You’re not even sure if what you feel is possible, since you kept falling in love with her every single day.

This time, you did fall in love again. She looks way too good in that plain white shirt and jeans.

“How is this? Is it good?” She asks you the next day, she’s wearing a nice dress with a variety of flower decorations. She’s glowing, the perfume she is wearing, making love with your sense of smell.

“It’s awful.” You lied.

The reason why? She’s having a blind date. A date with someone whom she hadn't even met, I know that’s how blind dates work. You had this urge to poke that guy’s eyes and make him literally blind.

It’s jealousy, but do you have the right to feel that way?

“Really? It’s that bad?” She frowned. You felt bad since she looked really pretty with it.

“Just kidding, it’s nice. I bet he’ll fall in love with you at first sight.” You take back what you said about being awful, at least you want her to feel happy.

“Like you did?” She jokingly asked you, she’s doing it again, teasing you.

“N-no, I’m not.” You’re not in the mood for it since she’s about to meet someone who you wished was you.

“Phish~ playing hard, huh?” Her cheeks twitched, and she spun again and again; she loves her dress. You don’t know what she meant by it, but you feel so down.

Later that day, she texted you, asking you to meet her. You wait for a minute in the shop she mentioned. The moment you saw her approaching, you already knew that she was mad. She stomped her feet all the way to you and dropped her bag on the table.

“That guy’s fucking rude.” She pulled the chair across you, its foot scraping the wooden flooring of the shop.

“What happened?” You sipped at the coffee you ordered while you were waiting; you ordered one for her, too.

“He kept creepily looking at me the whole time!” She vented out this built-up anger on you.

“WHAT!? WHO’S THAT GUY!! TELL ME HIS NAME!?” You yelled, can’t contain the sudden shared anger with her. You won’t allow it, you’ll make that guy pay.

“It’s fine, I already slapped his head off. I’ll never meet him again.” She sipped at the coffee you bought for her.

“As you should.” You calmed down; there’s too much tension, so sudden.

“I did a good job, right?” Isa asked your opinion again.

“Yes.” She did a good job, though you thought that slapping him wasn’t enough.

“Creeping someone you just met. It’s scary.” She said, 

“Yes.” You nodded, agreeing with what she just said. You looked at her, who’s still in that dress you approved, she’s like an angel, and that guy’s the devil.

“You're already creeping at me, why the hell did I get violated when he did that?” She kept asking you with that same annoyed expression.

“Yes,” you nodded, but something's not right.

You re-analyzed what she just said. Since when did you creep look at her?

“See?” She’s grinning mischievously.

“NO! I DIDN'T! Stop it!” You sighed. She’s at it again.

“You already said yes, come on, admit it.” She’s smiling now, her mood changed really quickly when it comes to teasing you.

“There’s nothing to admit, I don’t do that.” You denied, you stared at her because you liked her, not because you thought something weird. Well, yeah, sometimes. But during the right time, and right place.

“Just say it, I won’t blame you. I’m hot.” She knew what others thought of her, including you.

“Yeah, hot… hotheaded.” You told her, laughing.

“Look.” She called your attention.

“Wha— aw!” The moment you lifted your head, her pouch was in the air, then hitting you.

“I’m not hot-headed.” She insists, but her actions are different. “Then tell me, where do you stare at when you’re looking at me. My face? My tits? My butt? Or my thighs?” She added.

You looked at her, speechless, jaws dropped. Her teasing went way too far this time.

“What the hell?”

“Your reaction’s fun!” She burst out laughing.

You watched her laugh at you, and you couldn’t help but laugh as well.

She looked pretty good in that dress.

“Ahhh~ hmmm~ ahhh~”

You put a handful of popcorn into your mouth, sweating, even though the cinema’s air conditioning unit is working fine. It’s so cold, in fact.

“Ahhhh~ yes~ uhhhmmm~”

Another handful of popcorn, you looked at the massive display in front of you. The actor’s eating each other; they’re so intimate.

“Is it real?” She just speaks.

“Oh my— what?” You were so focused on the scene, and you were startled by it. She was seated beside you, eyes stuck to the movie as well.

Both of you agreed to watch it since there’s nothing good to watch, but it’s your first time watching a movie together, so you both picked the most popular one. The most popular one at the moment is a mature one.

“The movie, are they doing it for real?” She’s talking about the actors doing intimate scenes with one another.

“You'd better keep that curiosity within you.” You sighed, pushing back her thoughts to her, this may lead to some teasing, you're afraid.

“Why? Where’s the fun? Okay, fine.” She agreed to it, as you thought, “What if, we’re the lead actors in that movie, will you really fuck me?” She suddenly asked you the most outrageous question you had ever heard from her.

“W-WHAT!?” You stood up, your voice went up a little, but it's so loud since you’re inside the cinema.

“What the hell?”

“Don’t yell.”

“So annoying.”

“Do it somewhere else!”

“Sorry, sorry.” You apologized, sitting back in your chair, embarrassed.

“Someone said, let’s do it somewhere else.” She loves teasing you; she’s having fun with it.

“Stop it.” You told her.

“Why? What if we’re in a movie and I did this?” She stuck her left foot and brushed your calves with it.

“Wha– what are you doing!? Stop it! God Isa.” You were about to shout again and remember not to embarrass yourself once again.

“Fine.” She said, you doubt that, she agreed with it way too fast.

“Good…” You sat comfortably and watched the movie again.

A minute after she agreed to stop it, she stuck her foot on your calves and brushed it.

“Is– sighed.” You looked at her and found her eyes glued to the movie as well, with that mischievous grin.

You gave up.

That day, she asked you how she looked before you two met up. She sent a photo where she wore a lovely pair of blouse and skirt.

She looked pretty nice in that blouse, and pretty naughty with that skirt.

“She’s going overseas?” You asked your mom who had talked with her mom.

They’re going overseas next month, and it hits you like a truck, no isekai.

“Yeah, her mom already bought tickets and arranged their flights. They’re going to stay for good in the States.” Your mom said everything they talked about.

She did not tell you anything about it.

You’re best friends, and yet you heard it first from your mom.

You haven’t confessed yet, you haven’t told her what you felt, and yet she’ll go away, leaving you.

You always watched her from afar, but still, you're close to her.

What's stopping you from telling her what you feel?

It’s because you know yourself, you're not good enough for her.

…

“I heard you’re leaving? Why not now?” You asked her, trying to play it cool, even telling her to leave immediately. Sipping coffee through the white cup.

“I plan to tell you once it’s surely settled, and now, it is. We’re moving to the States next week.” She smiled at you, no playfulness, no teasing, no mocking, just the pure smile of a friend.

“Yeah…” Both of you looked far away. It’s something so sudden for you that you didn’t know what to expect.

You should tell her what you feel.

Before it’s too late.

“Let’s date.”

Everything went on in silence.

Time stopped for a moment.

It’s not you who said that.

“Let’s date. For real, I’ve always been into you. I feel like I should’ve been more honest to myself, with you. I like you, please, let’s date.”

She confessed. It’s heart-tickling, you want to scream joyfully, and you want to hug her at that moment.

“I don’t know how to tell you, but I like you as well.” Those words just went out of you; it’s not something you want to say that you think for hours; it’s just pure love.

“Want to have sex?” She said that the pure smile she wore shifted to a wicked one.

…

…

…

“Y-You!” Your face turns red. It’s not anger, it’s blood rushing all over the right places, on your head and down to another head.

“Just kidding. It’s official, right? We’re going out.” She’s at it again, teasing you like the way she used to.

“I guess. Yeah.” You nod, right, you’re dating. You and Isa are finally dating.

“Let’s go, where do you want, motel or my house?”

“Isa!”

(7 years later)

“You’re so beautiful.” You told her, she did not ask you this time how she looked. That wedding dress looked perfect on her. She’s as beautiful as the first time you saw her.

“Thanks, you look good too.” She points at the tailored coat you wear, which is white and pleated delicately.

“So finally.” You know that this is a special moment.

“Yeah, don’t walk away, watch me walk that nave and sweep every flower on the ground with my dress.” You can tell she’s nervous, but she still has time to joke about it.

“Yeah.” She’s glowing, and this time, you’re not feeling dreamy with her.

…

“Woooh! You look so pretty!”

“Here comes the bride!”

“What a dress! Way to go!”

“An angel in a wedding dress!”

Everyone’s telling her that she looked good in that dress, she didn't need to ask me anymore whether what clothes she would wear and how she looked at it.

There, she walked in the nave, sweeping every flower on the ground as she told me. The guests are clapping nonstop, and some even kept shouting how pretty she is. Then she stopped the moment she reached me.

“I told you. I’ll sweep the ground and slay this dress.” She told you, smiling.

“Yeah, go.” You told her.

She walked past you.

On the way, the priest and her groom were waiting at the altar.

She’s looked once more to you over her shoulders.

“Thank you.”

You know what she meant; she thanked you for picking that wedding dress for her.

“Thank you, Isa.” You thanked her too, for everything, and wished her good luck.

It’s fine.

Both of you tried.

It didn’t work out as we expected.

You sat at the same coffee shop where both of you confessed, start and ended your relationship. You remember how it went.

(6 years ago)

"Is coffee really this cold?" She asked you. Both her hands gripped the cold cup.

"No, it's not. It was hot earlier, but it cools over time." You told her, tears dropped. Your love is like that coffee, it's warm at first, but it turns cold.

“Let’s remain friends,” Isa said, her own tears flowing on her cheeks.

“Yeah.”

You loved her, and she loved you back

But something ain't right for the next month, maybe because she’s overseas, or the time both of you had when she was still beside you is not there anymore, or maybe because it’s just the way destiny tells both of you you’re not meant to be with each other.

It didn't work, really

Time, space, and impact. All changed.

“Let’s just be friends, it worked fine that way.”

The end.