Jihyo pokes her head outside her room and listens. She hears the familiar sound of the TV in the living room, a plate breaking, followed by her father’s screaming. She wasn’t just back, she’d also returned a few moments before the fight. Jihyo closes her eyes and tries again.

This time, she crashes in an alley. Groaning, Jihyo picks herself up and rubs her back. Looking around, she couldn’t recognize where she was. Or when she was. So, she asks the first person around. “Excuse me! What year is this?” “Uh... 98?” “Holy shit.” Jihyo smiles hard.

She has no idea how it works, but she tries again by picturing her room and the year she wanted to go to. With another try, she jumps. And lands on her carpet. Jihyo looks at the time and realizes that she can stop the plate from breaking. So she bolts toward the kitchen.

“Mom, the plate!” Jihyo yells, grabbing it at the last second. She startles her mother, however, and the woman drops the snow globe she was holding, spilling its contents on the floor. “What is your problem?!” Her mom screams, and her dad starts getting up. Jihyo tries again.

Jihyo finds out that she can’t stop the fight. Something always breaks, her father always gets up. Jihyo tried everything, but it always ended up in tragedy. So, she stops trying. “Well, goodbye, then.” She realizes she can finally be free with these powers. She jumps again.

She lands in the future again, one year later. The streets look the same, and she figures she can deal with anything. Jihyo’s always felt better away from home anyway. Her parents never gave her anything but pain. It’s thrilling. She can go wherever she wants. She can live.

She had nothing on her, so whenever she got hungry, she could always go back to a time her parents were sleeping and get some food from the fridge, just to jump back to the future. It worked for the most part. Jihyo laughed every time. Then, she started making friends.

"Pay me a drink?" She slides on the counter toward a random guy. He looks at her skeptically. "Scram, kid." Jihyo rolls her eyes and goes back a few minutes. Tries again. "Hey. You alone?" She starts a conversation this time. By the end of the night, she gets her drink.

Jihyo has never felt so good in her life. She had limitless time, no more abusive parents hovering above her neck, and friends in various decades now. She felt absolutely invincible. "I could get used to this," She mutters from on top of a building in 2042, drinking a beer.

She meets her in 1995. Jihyo is leaving a store wearing the new clothes she'd purchased with an old man's money she'd stolen. She can't really get used to the 90's fashion, but she can't complain, either. It was her favorite period. Then, she bumps into her. "Hey, watch it."

"You watch it." The girl talks back and Jihyo blinks. She's felt so powerful these last few months - years? - that she forgot that people could face her head on. Jihyo finally looks at her properly and the girl is staring, waiting for an apology. Jihyo decides to try again.

"Woah, careful there!" Jihyo grabs the girl by her shoulders with a gentle smile before she bumps into her. "Oh, sorry," She chuckles. "I was distracted." "I could tell." Jihyo sees that she's carrying some heavy bags. "Need help with that?" The girl smirks. "Smooth, Romeo."

"Excuse me?" Once more, Jihyo is caught off guard. What was this girl's deal? "Fine, help me," The girl passes her one of the bags with a challenging look and Jihyo feels compelled to take it. "Where to, Juliet?" She mocks her. "Nayeon." "Huh?" "My name, dumbass." Damn.

They walk down the street and Jihyo tries to make small conversation because Nayeon is unpredictable and Jihyo doesn't like it. Maybe she could go back in time after thinking of an answer to all of her witty comebacks. Or maybe, for once, she could let time flow like it should.

"Here is fine." Nayeon says, grabbing her bag back. "Thank you, oh kind stranger." "You're welcome, oh sarcastic being." Jihyo shoots back, actually amused. They stare at each other at the porch of Nayeon's home. "See you around, Romeo." "Jihyo." "Don't care." Double damn.

Jihyo leaves Nayeon's house with her hands in her pockets, looking to the sky. She feels free to do anything, but doesn't exactly know what. Nayeon's face keeps looping in her head for some reason. "Get a grip, Park Jihyo." She mutters, and jumps to the future, where she's safe.

Jihyo can't stop returning to 1995. She pretends it has nothing to do with Nayeon. She just likes the music, the colors, the atmosphere. It's a good year. She wonders for how long she can fool herself. "You again." A familiar voice startles her. "Hey, Juliet." Jihyo greets.

"So what do you do for a living, besides stalking me?" Nayeon keeps walking and Jihyo follows her, automatically. She doesn't even know why. "I'm a time-traveler," She replies. "I go around time periods and eat a lot." "Cool," Nayeon smirks and Jihyo shivers. "I'm a barista."

"You're going to work right now?" Jihyo asks. "Yes. So scram, Romeo." They arrive at a small coffee shop and Jihyo can't help but to laugh loudly. "You're pretty darn rude, you know that?" "And you still follow me around." Nayeon looks over her shoulder, then walks in.

Jihyo sits on a bench outside the shop, because clearly Nayeon doesn't want her to come in. She stays there, pondering what she should do. She could jump to the time Nayeon leaves her shift. Or, she could wait. She hasn't waited for anything in a long time. It could be fun.

It really isn't. Jihyo forgot what waiting felt like. She starts biting her nails when time doesn't seem to pass, so she gets up and enters the shop anyway. "Welcome!" The waitress greets her. "Hey. Just a coffee, please," Jihyo smirks. "Tell the barista it's for Romeo."

Nayeon delivers her order herself. She nearly slams the cup on the table. "You're persistent, aren't you?" "What? Can't a girl get coffee around here?" Jihyo grins smugly and Nayeon rolls her eyes. "Stop distracting me." "I'm not doing anything." "You're here. That's enough."

The weirdest thing is that this whole thing is a mess, but Jihyo can't bring herself to go back in time to fix it. She likes the banter and the way they click without actually being proper and perfect. Jihyo thinks that 1995 is her favorite year yet. She sips her coffee.

"So, tell me what you actually do." Nayeon asks on her way back home. The evening is chilly, the sun almost set completely, and Jihyo accompanies her back home. "I told you, I'm a time-traveler." Nayeon scoffs, but doesn't push it. Instead, she bumps shoulders with her. "Nerd."

They arrive at Nayeon's porch and the girl turns to Jihyo with a lazy grin. "Thank you for being my escort." "It's a pleasure to escort Juliet herself." Jihyo bows crookedly and Nayeon laughs. "You're so dumb." "You like dumb." Nayeon leans forward. "Maybe I do."

Nayeon's lips land on the corner of her mouth and Jihyo closes her eyes for a moment. Her heart soars and her cheeks flush, and when Nayeon pulls back, she has a shy smile on her face. "Goodnight, Jihyo." Jihyo swallows hard. "Night. Nayeon." Time really seemed to have stopped.

Jihyo sleeps. She sleeps because she wants to be on this time period, and she wants to see Nayeon, and she wants to remember what a normal life feels like. But most of all, she wants the affection. For as long as she remembers, Jihyo has never received any type of affection.

It's jarring how easily Jihyo falls into routine after being detached from time for so long. Everyday she escorts Nayeon to work, waits for her shift to end, then walks her back home. Repeat. It's nice to feel normal. It's even nice to feel herself falling for her, slowly.

"Hey, traveler." Nayeon greets her one day and Jihyo has a dumb smile on her face as she offers her her arm. "Madame." Nayeon takes it, finding it endearing. "So, how are your travels?" "I decided to stop." "Oh? How come?" "I figured I like this time period." She's honest.

It happens one day, out of nowhere, and Jihyo is sure the universe is pranking her by being so good to her. "You should move in with me, already." Nayeon comments as they eat. Jihyo chokes. "Huh?" "You're always at my house, anyway." 'Oh. So that's what happiness feels like.'