Holding Your Hand: Part 2

Gentle sun rays cascaded down upon them as the sun setted in the background. Hongbinnie blinked slowly as she gazed up at the man walking beside her. He looked so much more gentle and handsome up close than before and Hongbinnie felt warmness heat up inside her from being this close to him.

She looked back down upon the ground they walked and smiled warmly. This was the first time a guy, other than Jaehwan, had ever personally walked her home like this, it excited her but also made her feel uneasy. She barely knew Taekwoon at all no matter how much she learned about him over the past hours she still didn’t know his true self.

Hongbinnie gently bit her lip, what if he wasn’t interested in her.

“Are you alright?” The sweet whisper of his gentle voice broke her out of her thoughts and made her realize they had just stopped.

Her cheeks turned red in embrassement, “Yes, I’m fine.”

Taekwoon only shortly nodded and continued walking.

They walked on for a short while with nothing to say. The breeze ruffling their clothes in the calm heart-pounding silence.

“Do you….remember when we first met?” Hongbinnie cautiously asked.

Taekwoon nodded softly, “Yeah.” His gaze wandering into the final rays of the sun in the sky. “It was rainy that day.”

Hongbinnie smiled softly at the memory.

“Sanghyukie, have seen my umbrella?”

Sanghyukie looked up from her desk where piles of books almost completely hid her from view. “Have you checked the closet?”

“Yes! Oh, wait! I found it!” Hongbinnie grabbed the umbrella quickly and begin to put her shoes on.

Her roommate Sanghyukie watched with slight interest, “Where are you off to in such a hurry?”

“Someone found my lost cat and they said they would meet up with me.”

“In this rainy weather? Be careful.”

“I will. I’ll be back before you know it!” Hongbinnie called out before the door closed behind her.

Rain falls from the sky like a rushing waterfall as she steps out onto the sidewalk at a fast pace, her umbrella keeping the rain from soaking her to the bone. Hongbinnie looked around at her surroundings as she walked quickly on towards the meeting place.

Turning a corner, Hongbinnie entered the small playground. Her eyes lit up as she noticed a man sitting at a nearby bench petting her cat. She quickly walked up to him, and as she did she noticed how he didn’t have an umbrella of his own and had wrapped her cat up in his own rain jacket to keep the cat warm and dry. Upon seeing the man soaked from the downpour but willing to withstand it just for her precious cat sent her heart beating like crazy.

As she got in front of him he stood up cradling the cat in his hands like he would a small child. That is the moment Hongbinnie realized just how tall he was and how deep and beautifully cold his eyes looked up close. “Is this your cat?” He spoke with just a soft voice almost like he was whispering, so soft and gentle, it almost made her blush.

“Y-yes. Thanks for finding her.” Their fingertips brushed each other's as he handed the cat over to her. “Oh and-”

“I don’t need an reward.” He smiled so warmly that rainy day it almost like a sunbeam had come down from the sky. His soft and warm gaze settled on her cat and he gently petted her on the head. “I’m just happy seeing that she is back safe and warm with her owner now.”

Staring up at this warm caring man who had been soaked to the bone just for one cat made her heart beat even faster in her chest. “What is-”

Right at that decisive moment, he looked down at the watch on his hand, “Ah, I’m going to be late. Sorry I have to go now.” He ran off into that rainy storm with no umbrella or rain jacket, and leaving behind only memories that could've been.

Hongbinnie watched him leave with a small aching in her heart. Softly she whispered to her cat, “He was such a nice man wasn’t he?”

All she got in response was a soft purring from her. “I wish I could see him again.”

They walked along in a comforting silence remembering that day.

“I never did give you the reward for finding my cat.”

Taekwoon softly shook his head, “I told I don’t need things like that. Happiness is such a better reward than money will ever be.”

Hongbinnie nodded agreeing, “But I just feel as if I need to repay you for your kindness. If it's not money that you want for an reward, what is something that I can do to repay you for your kindness?”

Taekwoon stopped walking almost immediately and Hongbinnie looked back at him, his hand hiding his blushing cheeks. “Maybe you can do something….” It was such a soft whisper that Hongbinnie had to come closer to hear.

He uncovered his face and looked down into her eyes with a nervous look. “Can I...can we….hold hands.”

It took a while for Hongbinnie to process the statement but once she did she didn’t know if Taekwoon’s face was redder than hers or not. They looked down at each other's hands so close together but so far apart. She wondered if Taekwoon felt the same towards her as she did him.

Silently, Hongbinnie nodded. Taekwoon slowly and softly took her hand in his. Both of their hearts beating crazily in their chests and warm feeling spreading throughout their body. Hongbinnie decide she quite liked the way her small hand fit into his larger one and how soft and warm it felt to be holding his hand like this.

Thier journey continued for another few blocks, only because Hongbinnie had taken him down the longer path instead of the short path to her apartment, but they found it worth it since they got to spend more time together, holding hands.

Taekwoon quite liked the feeling of her soft hand in his and he wondered if they could continue holding hands for eternity.

But before they knew it they were back at her apartment already, facing each other but still gently holding hands, not wanting to let go just yet.

“Do you want to come in? I can return your rain jacket for you and I bet my cat would like to see you again.”

He smiled almost as genuinely as that rainy day she had met him, “I would like that.”

Hongbinnie smiled the most beautiful dimpled smile he had ever seen and she led the way up to her apartment. Both still holding each others hand.