Girl In The Winter's

Chapter 7

"Goddessa!" the girl had just parked her bike when Yuki's petite voice called out to her.

"Hi!" Sapa Ayumi with a smile, her long black hair in the ponytails showing her white collar, the weather this afternoon is very bright for the size of late autumn, the weather is very bright, everyone was unwilling to waste the opportunity to enjoy the warmth of the sun before winter came.

"Don't you forget this evening's show?" Yuki asked enthusiastically, they walked across the grass field which was almost filled with a group of students who were busy sitting in a chat enjoying the warm sunlight.

"The way tonight?" Ayumi looked at Yuki confusedly.

"Tonight is the opening of my mother's restaurant. Good Lord! how could you forget?!" Yuki raised both hands in disbelief Ayumi forgot the invitation from her mother.

"Oh I'm sorry, I didn't mean to forget it." Ayumi looked at Yuki with her black round eyes that looked very tired, "You know this past month I've been like a robot." He took a heavy breath, they resumed their journey towards the library, "Night I had to intern at the hospital, morning work at the cafe, afternoon until afternoon of college, and then I had to do an internship at the hospital, I only fall asleep two to three hours a day, I'm sorry, I forgot that the show is tonight," Ayumi said with a parched face that made Yuki grimace.

"Now I don't know if I should envy your genius or if I should be grateful that I'm mediocre." Ayumi smiled at the words of the glasses girl who was staring at her with eyes of pity.

Ayumi is indeed a genius, he managed to enter the medical faculty at UBC with full scholarship, he said, even this past month he was accepted as an assistant doctor at Vancouver General Houspital on the recommendation of the rector of the campus and it seems like soon the girl will get her doctorate.

"I'm not from a rich family like you Yuki-san," Ayumi said with a teasing smile before continuing her words, "So only my head is the capital to change my life line."

Yuki was silent for a while, he watched the girl from head to toe then he looked at Ayumi with a serious face, "Listen! You don't have to be a genius to change your life line." she pointed Ayumi up and down, "With a face like yours, all you have to do is find a rich man and marry him." Yuki nodded his head in seriousness, while Ayumi laughed out loud while shaking her head.

"I'm serious! Look, you're so beautiful everyone knows that except you of course, even just by looking like this you look amazing." Yuki again grimaced considering the genius of his friend was not included in terms of appearance, Ayumi prefers to wear jeans, jewelry or t-shirts and without the slightest make up.

"Hey there's nothing wrong with my appearance!" Ayumi looked down at the clothes she was wearing today, sneakers, jeans, a white shirt and a light blue cardigan. There's nothing wrong with his appearance, is there?

"But you'd look amazing if for example you wore a dress with a little make up and high heels." Now it's Ayumi's grimacing turn to imagine her riding a bicycle wearing a dress and high heels?

"Listen, you have such beautiful black hair, your skin is smooth white everyone who doesn't know you would think that you're spending your time in expensive spas and salons, not in ER rooms and cafes." Ayumi smiled listening to Yuki's babble, she leaned her body against the campus library wall, while Yuki stood before her excitedly commenting on her appearance.

"Your round eyes always look radiant and what makes all women jealous is your body that never fat even though you spend the rest of the restaurant." Ayumi laughed at Yuki's words, who was now folding her hands over her chest.

"Alright I understand you mean, you know Yuki, I think you're wrong to major in college," Ayumi said with a smile at Yuki who always looks graceful, graceful, her tiny body wrapped in a black dress with small flowers knee-length combined with a high both.

"You're right I should have majored in fashion." Ayumi nodded in agreement to Yuki's words.

"And you're gonna be a great fashion critic." Ayumi's words made both of them laugh.

"But my idea was so good? You just need to dress up a little, marry a rich man and then you use your genius to manage your husband's finances."

"If it's her man, I won't introduce her to you" Yuki replied with a laugh.

"Alright, Mrs. Grey, you have to study for the exam today and I'll enjoy my empty hour in the back garden, enjoying the warmth of the sun in the company of handsome men." Ayumi smiled seductively as she patted her bag gesturing that she was carrying a novel inside.

"For now, I'm so envious of your genius." Yuki rolled her eyeballs while breathing heavily, seeing that Ayumi was just laughing then started walking towards the back garden.

"Don't forget tonight or my mother will be very angry."

"Well I'll come" Ayumi replied as she continued to walk away leaving her best friend who, although they were friendly, had a different nature. Ayumi who likes casual clothes is inversely proportional to Yuki who is fashionable, Yuki who likes to spend her time in a crowded place like a mall compared to the opposite with Ayumi who prefers her solitude befriends novels and music.

As he currently has less than an hour to spare then he will spend it in the back garden that is rarely visited by students while continuing to read his favorite novel. His steps suddenly came to a halt when he saw several people scattered in the park with sketchbooks in front of them, he squinted for a while and unwittingly a sweet smile rose adorning his beautiful face as his eyes caught the figure of a tall man with black hair walking leisurely among those people, who was not a happy person, his sharp eyes observed the sketches of his students.

Erik Kim, the man who has been present for almost a month, began by spending the day with them to enjoy the sunset at an altitude of 130 meters at that time, until now almost every day they met even though only a few minutes when the man visited the cafe where Ayumi worked for breakfast even sometimes he would drive Ayumi home to take a bath and change clothes before go to the hospital.

Ayumi smiled again at the man's appearance today, her tall body wrapped in black pants and a short checkered shirt showing her sturdy arm muscles, Ayumi liked Erik's expression at work which would only focus on the canvas before her, but honestly she preferred the man when smiling, her sharp eyes would glow gently but it was a rare sight, the man was more silent and expressionless and cold but somehow Ayumi believed that Erik was actually a kind, gentle and warm man.

***

His agile hands danced over the sketchbook, occasionally focusing his gaze on the object before him with a serious facial expression, sometimes fine wrinkles on his eyebrows. No one would dare to disturb or even just greet him at such a time. Erik Kim is a genius painter, at the age of 19 years he has done a solo exhibition in his country of South Korea, South Korea, the world came to know him when he successfully exhibited in Italy at the age of 22. Two years ago he was asked to help his friend to teach while at UBC as a lecturer in painting, he accepted it because it was considered a new challenge and apparently enjoyed it even though the students there dubbed it an ice sculpture because of his attitude that was too serious and cold, even they rarely saw him smile.

He closed his blue sketchbook, slowly began to rise from his place under the maple trees in the back garden of the campus, then went around to see the work of his students scattered in the park, sometimes he would give advice to them. Currently he deliberately invites his students to sketch in the back garden, the weather of Vancouver that feels warm is very dear to miss, he said, just like most other students who sunbathe on the grass field around the campus.

The corner of his eye accidentally caught the figure of the black-haired girl walking towards the maple tree where she was just a moment ago, as if her eyes got direct instructions from the brain now she was staring at the girl and forgetting her surroundings. The corner of his lips twitched into a smile even though it was only a few seconds to see the girl start to sit leaning under the tree, her legs were propped up, her hands were busy looking for something in the bag, he saw the girl frowning for a moment and he reflexively did the same thing, the girl smiled after finding the thing he was looking for. A novel? The habit of the girl is never separated from novels and earphones.

Ayumi put the earphones in her ear and began to open the sheet by sheet of the novel, somehow Erik focused his gaze on the girl and unwittingly he followed every mimic of Ayumi's face, he smiled and furrowed his brows as each girl did the same. The voice of one of the students call has returned his focus and mind back, he went around observing the activities of the students until his eyes caught the figure of the girl who has now closed his eyes, his head stumbled to the side and front, he unwittingly began to step his feet with wide strides towards the maple tree.

Erik sat beside Ayumi who was now asleep, slowly leaning the girl's head on his shoulder and taking the novel lying on the grass, he frowned as he read the book's title 'Mortal Instrument, then smiled in light of the incident at Stanly Park one month ago. He opened the novel Ayumi who is now in his hands with curiosity, before finally deciding to start reading from the beginning.

"Mrs. Kim." The voice of a student made him raise his head towards the three women who were standing in front of him by carrying a sketchbook on each of their hands. Erik just raised his eyebrows and looked at them with cold eyes as usual, he felt the head on his shoulder move slightly and he gently held the girl's head with his left hand so as not to fall off, he said, after feeling the girl calm down again he turned his gaze to the student who was looking at her with an incredulous look. Erik again raised his eyebrows and glared at his eyes as if ordering them to speak immediately.

"I'm sorry... We're done, can we go now?" The red-haired student whispered a little nervously due to the cold gaze of the man.

Erik looked at his students who were huddled not far from there watching him, not a few who gaped in disbelief at what they saw and not a few who were whispering, not a few, but he doesn't care. He just nodded in response as if afraid that he could wake the girl up.

***