Always By Your Side

Knock. Knock.
“Coming!” I yelled. I put down the knife on the table and wiped my hand with the napkin that was hanging from my apron. I walked over to the door and opened it. “Minwoo. What are you doing here?” I asked, startled to see him.
“Jina, can I come in?” Minwoo asked in a low tone. Oh my gosh, he’s like that again. Something must have happened again. I opened the door wider for him to come in. He walked in and went straight to my bedroom. I knew what he wanted. I knew he must have a fight with her again. It’s always like that when he comes over.
I shut the door and went back into the kitchen. I took off my apron and put the food and the knife away. Then I washed my hand and went to my bedroom.
Minwoo was laying on my bed staring at the ceiling. I wondered what happened this time. I crawled into bed next to him. I let him rest his head on my shoulder as I wrapped my arms around him. Minwoo’s arm circled around my waist as I stroke his hair.
“It happened again? Is that why you came here?” I asked him softly. “Don’t hide it. I know why you came already.”
“Jina . . . ” He said. He seemed like he was going to cry any minute so I out my finger on his lips.
“It’s because of her, right? I know it is. Don’t try to hide it. I know you’re upset about it.” I felt Minwoo held me tighter. I continued to stroke his hair. “That’s why you came back to me. You came back here to calm yourself.”
“Jina, how come you’re the only one that understands?” he asked. I know it is true. I don’t know why I understand him. It’s probably because I love him . . . at least I used to. I don’t know if I still love him now.
The story of Minwoo and I goes back to when I was still in school. We were best friends. He was always there for me and I was there for him. Both of us were so close that we lived together in our own apartment. Not long after we went to college, he asked me to be his girl. Of course I agreed because I love him. We went out for few years until on the last years of college.
That year, there was a new girl name Kiara. She was my best friend. I knew that she likes Minwoo but I trust him not to cheat on me. I trust both of them. Not long after, I found out that Minwoo also likes Kiara. I overheard them talking about if they should tell me or not. They were in my apartment at the time. They didn’t know that I was in the bathroom. They thought that I was at school. I didn’t mean to listen to them . . . I wished I didn’t . . . but I couldn’t help it because they talk right in front of the bathroom.
Minwoo and Kiara actually never get the chance to tell me. It’s because I opened the door and revealed myself to them. At first, they were shocked to see me and thought that I would get so mad at them. Surprisingly, I didn’t. Instead, I told them that I was happy for them. I told Minwoo that he doesn’t have to feel guilty because I knew they liked each other in the first place. I also told him that I still wanted to be their friend. At that time, I didn’t want to let Minwoo go but I knew that I can keep him with me but I can’t stop his heart from loving Kiara. That was the day Minwoo moved out of our apartment to live with her.
About a year after that, Kiara started to hurt Minwoo’s heart. She started to flirts with other guys in front of Minwoo. Kiara and I doesn’t even talk to each other anymore. We weren’t even friends.
Everytime Kiara went out with another guy. Minwoo would always come to me like now. He would always come to talk to me. I don’t know if he still has feelings for me but sometimes I wished he wouldn’t come to me because it makes it harder for me to try not to love him.
Everytime he comes over, I would reassure him that everything is okay and tell him that I would always be there for him. He knows he can always depend on me to be by his side no matter what.