Roseanne's Summer Vacation- Chapter 23
The green tree tops nearly formed a natural rooftop. The sun became a sparkling dot above. The surroundings were empty and peaceful. It’s been a long time since Roseanne’s last visit to such a dense forest. It’s quite unbelievable that it was located at the back of the Riviera Centre. Tae-jun knew the area quite well.
“Do you like it?” he asked.
Roseanne took a deep breath and exhaled. “It’s really beautiful.”
“Forests in Gdynia are a hidden attraction. They stretch for kilometres and you rarely meet anybody in the evenings.”
“Thank you for showing me this. I really appreciate it.”
Natasha stayed in the distance, probing the ground with a stick and checking the time. “We’ve got to go soon!” she yelled.
But Roseanne didn’t want to go. She wished this moment could last an eternity, though they’ve been there for half an hour. Why do the good things have to end so soon? She caught that thought. It reminded her of something from the past.
I wanted to see you today, and here you are. Can you read my mind? Do you know what kind of love I am looking for? No, you don’t. I mean… How could you? All I wanted was a boy who would appreciate me for what I am, not treat me like some trinket put on display. For a long time, I thought I had found a soul who understood me. He also knew how to make me smile. I felt good in his company; it wasn’t awkward at all, but he lived so far away. We couldn’t see each other every day, so I’ve been opening my heart to him in letters. And what did I get in return? One day, he ghosted me. With a snap of his fingers, he was gone. Click! He removed himself from my horizon, pretending he didn’t exist, pretending that nothing happened between us. Can you read my mind? No, you can’t. But you know how to play the game, the game played by cute boys before you. What will happen when you get bored of me? Will you ghost me, too?
“Why the sad face, Rosie?” Tae-jun took Roseanne’s hand, but she withdrew it forcefully from his grip.
“I’m sorry, but now that I think of it… We misunderstood each other. It would be great to have you as a friend.”
“I am your friend,” he said with sincerity. “We’re having a great time.”
Roseanne paused to reason with herself. Maybe it’s a cultural difference. Maybe I am making this too much about me. Would he behave the same if I wasn’t that emotionally engaged? I need to cool off, that’s for sure.
“Yeah, well, damn, friendship is best for me.” She couldn’t find the right words to express the message: Look, I’m sorry. Don’t become my boyfriend at this very moment.
“We’ve got to go!” Natasha screamed from the edge of the forest.
“I have to go…” Roseanne mumbled. “I’m going.”
As she ran to rejoin Natasha on a concrete sidewalk, she heard behind her back the faint “See you soon”, which was carried by the wind.
It was 5 p.m. already. Roseanne and Natasha came rushing from the side of the loading ramps for delivery trucks to rejoin Mr Orville and others outside the shopping mall.
“What were you doing behind the shop?” Mr Orville asked with worry.
“We’re sorry, sir, but there’s a big forest over there,” Natasha explained while gasping for air.
“Next time, you’d better tell me when you want to go farther than we agreed upon.”
“Understood.”
Thally raised a finger like a parent disciplining a child. “Naughty, naughty.”
“Shut up, you walking Letterboxd!” Natasha stuck out her tongue.
***
Tae-jun observed from a distance as the group boarded a bus back to the hostel. He wasn’t interested in Roseanne or any other girl, as a matter of fact. Completing the mission was the priority. It was a matter of Tae-jun’s personal pride to get the job done and move on to the next one. He hadn’t had a single failure so far.
As he was strolling through Świętojańska Street, he wished he could be on vacation just like Roseanne, to have a lot of free time to carelessly spend away on silly things. He didn’t have that in high school, and his employers never bothered to think about it.
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