in life, nothing goes the way you want it to. it naturally comes your way

∞

the next morning, kibum left for work before lalisa had woken up and so leaving the girl to eat breakfast with her best friend.

chaeyoung, thankfully, never came up with the topic of the night prior and soon, both girls had to leave: with lalisa having to go back home to change before going to college and chaeyoung having earlier classes.

the thai girl as soon as she arrived home let her body fall onto the couch and closed her eyes. the first she'd seen when turning her phone that morning had been her father's messages — but she didn't read any of them.

she knew she had lessons in two hours so lalisa decided to take another nap, but it had not even been five minutes since she was about to drift off when there was a knock heard on her door and her bell rang.

confused, she sat up. who would be coming to find her?

and hesitantly, the girl stood up from the couch and taking cautious steps towards the entrance. looking through the 'magic eye', she was shocked to see who stood there.

and quietly, she stepped away from the door. she was about to turn her back on it when hearing her house phone ring inside her bag and her eyes were quick to turn to the side.

she made the mistake to leave her bag at the entrance of the house.

the knocks stopped — but instead, a thick voice was heard from the outside.

"lalisa, I know you're, I can hear your phone." said nichkhun from the other side. the girl closed her eyes in frustration before letting out a sigh, she turned around.

she turned the key and opened the door, her head peeking out first and she stared up at her cousin who was looking down at her with a scolding look.

both of them were quiet. when seeing his eyes narrowing and his lips being tightened into a line, the girl gave in.

"I... I didn't feel so good..." she tells a white lie. "and I left quickly."

"you can't just do that." she tried to keep her eyes down on the ground and felt the pressure in the atmosphere. "he didn't seem to make a big deal out of it — luckily, but still, that was just extremely rude, lalisa. do not do that ever again." he scolds her. lalisa hesitantly nods her head.

"now, I will send you his number and you will call him to apologise." the girl looked up to her cousin almost panicking. and even when noticing this, nichkhun just continued to stare down at her with the same look of before.

he pulled out his phone and not much later, lalisa's phone vibrate and a ping was heard. he put his mobile back into his pocket and crossed his arms.

"I'm not going to watch you do it — you can't be that immature, can you?" he almost challenged his cousin who was already imagining herself in a corner with the way the tone the male was using. "I'm trusting you to message him, lalisa, do it as soon as you can."

and hesitantly, lalisa nodded. both bid their goodbyes in the tense atmosphere and lalisa still stood behind the door when having her cousin go away.

the thai girl breathed in deeply and exhaled a tired sigh before moving back into the living room. she didn't want to text an apology to minho — he was also mainly at fault for not even speaking a word during the time they had sat on the table, was he not?

lalisa shook her head before now deciding to go take a shower to change clothes.

∝

during two times of the week, after her classes, lalisa would work part-time in a design shop, selling all types of clothes. the shop she worked was quite well known in the market industry for having their own brands and even having celebrities coming to check the clothes they had to offer.

lalisa loved her part-time job, this was one out of two as the other one had been in a dance studio where she gave classes to kids of ages 7 to 11. she was satisfied with what she currently had and did.

right now, she was organizing the clothes that customers would try to put back in other places instead of the original places they got it from and was rearranging the sizes, putting them in order.

"lisa!" one of her co-workers called out and she turned to face them with a smile. mina came rushing to her, wearing a slightly panicked look on her features. "I need your help."

the thai girl fornwed slightly but nodded her head. "sure, what is it? did something happen?" mina had an unsure look on her face.

"not really — you understand more of the makeup and perfume stuff right?" lalisa nodded her head slowly. "then please, this customer needs help with it and I don't know how to handle it."

"but why are you there, that isn't your section. where's sooyoung? isn't she supposed to be there? or even tzuyu?"

"tzuyu is sick so she isn't in for today, and sooyoung — she left me in charge of her job." the japanese girl lowered her voice in a whisper.

lalisa let out a sigh before nodding her, placing the last piece of clothing on the racket and grabbing gently onto mina's hands.

"okay, no worries." she reassured. "I'll handle it for you, so can you take care of this for me instead?" mina nodded happily and thanked her friend before letting lalisa make her way.

the thai girl looked around quickly before she quickened her pace, making sure to pay her hair down and pull down the pencil skirt she was wearing to not show any wrinkles on it.

lalisa had a polite smile tug upwards before finally reaching the cosmetics space, she looked around and saw a male standing at the 'may I help' stand where mina had been.

she carefully approached him. "excuse me? do you need any help?" she asked in a kind voice. a smile brightening her features even more.

but he hadn't answered and he stood frozen, making the girl confused for a few moments until he turned around.

and lalisa's smile had almost tugged downwards rather instantly.

choi minho looked down at her at first blankly until there was a glimpse of amusement present in his eyes.

he smiled cynically. "well, well — miss lalisa." lalisa put her hands behind her back and fidgeted with her fingers in a uncomfortable manner. "what a surprise to see you here — you work here, do you?"

the girl hesitantly nodded, her smile slowly tugging back up, but wryly. "yes, I do." she had her eyes flicker between places. "why are you in here, mister choi?"

"I came to buy something for someone." of course.

lalisa nods her head. "okay, what are you looking for? anything specific?"

"well — I am looking for a perfume that is quite light of scent, not something too nauseating, if you must." the girl nods her head and walks past him, stopping a few feet away to have her hands make a sign for minho to follow.

"the lightest perfumes we have are these ones," she walks him into an aisle. "they are one of our best brands, it can be quite strong when first applying it, but wait some time and the strong scent starts to fade." she picks one of the samples, offering it to minho.

"but — if you dislike the one with the strong scent then we have this one which is light and sweet, not nauseating at all — in fact, one of our best sellers." the girl remarks. lalisa had been completely immersed in work mode. "would you like a sample?"

the man nodded his head. "yes, please."

she reached out for the paper strip and sprayed the perfume from a fair distance onto it, she smelled it herself first quickly before having the strip to minho.

she watched his reaction as he smelled the strip of paper and closed his eyes, after a few minutes, he nodded his head with a satisfied smile.

"this would be the one." lalisa smiled in relief before nodding her head.

"right," she quickly put the sample perfume back before grabbing a closed box of the same brand. "would like to get anything else or just pay for this?"

"just for the perfume, thank you."

she guided him to the cashier and whilst she was wrapping the perfume, she suddenly came to a stop. the talk she had with her cousin earlier came to mind and how she needed to apologise to him.

her eyes hesitantly lift up to minho — he had been on his phone.

the girl tightened her lips into a line before sighing quietly. finishing on wrapping the perfume into a box and putting it in a plastic bag, she hands it over to the male.

"here's your perfume." she smiles politely. minho finally looks up and nods his head, taking the bag from lalisa, carefully.

"thank you, miss lalisa."

"no worries..." she looks at him and hesitated to part her lips to speak once more. "I—um, wanted to apologise — "

but before she could continue, the sounds of vibration and a smooth-sounding ring was heard. looking down, lalisa saw that it had been  coming from minho's phone.

and he had been quick to answer it.

"hello? choi minho speaking." his voice sounded so professional and suddenly lalisa became flustered and looked away from the male. "yes, of course, I was on my way to meet you. forgive me, there has been a problem with my schedule — I'm sorry for notifying you of it."

lalisa's hands gripped the edge of the cashier, she didn't know why, why she did she feel that way?

"oh, I need to keep my eyes on the road, I will call you soon. good bye, jinri." lalisa raised her head again and minho put his phone away into his pocket.

she swallowed the knot of nervousness in the back of her throat before speaking. "mister minho, I would like to apologise for last night." She said swiftly and, hopefully, clearly.

the male looked up at her but no surprise evident in his eyes.

"it was rude of my part to suddenly leave like that — I'm deeply sorry." she bowed her head.

minho hadn't said a word. not until he looked down at his wrist-watch.

"oh, that." he says, almost murmuring. "it's a good thing you realise, thank you for apologizing. I've taken it into consideration,"

the girl looked up at him slightly shocked at his response. it's a good thing you realise... he sounded rather arrogant if you were to ask lalisa.

he soon walked away after biding his bye and leaving her there, still in place wit her lips parted.

it took her a while, but when seeing he had gotten out of sight, lalisa gritted her teeth slightly.

"what a rude man."