A DIFFERENT KIND OF MISTLETOE

I was sick this year and decided to stay in the dorms; everyone else was home or abroad for the holidays. I didn’t mind being alone, I never did. 

After you and the rest of the group left, I stayed in bed that whole day, no longer used to the quietness of the dorm but it was pretty nostalgic. I spent a few days alone, watching TV, drinking soup and eating all the food you guys left. I was trying to get better in hopes that I’d feel well enough to catch a flight and make it home before Christmas eve.

It didn’t happen.

I woke up on the afternoon of Christmas day feeling sick as ever. I slept again, hoping to feel better once I wake up.

When I did wake up, what surprised me was the smell of hot soup. I never remembered leaving soup on the table or anything, so that warm delicious smell confused me.

I walked out of my room, wearing my mismatched PJs and a blanket draped over my shoulders and my hair probably looking like a bird’s nest, and you were standing there cooking soup.

“Good morning sunshine.” you sang happily but didn’t spare me a glance, too focused on cooking the soup.

“Uhm… Jonghyun, what are you doing here?” I asked in confusion and that’s when you looked up at me. You smiled and simply said “Accompanying you for the holidays, silly.”

Apparently, you took the bus back to the dorms to accompany me for Christmas. You didn’t want me being ‘home’ alone, sick, on a holiday.

“You should’ve called so I could shower. I look like crap.” I said those words but sat on the dining table anyways, enjoying the wonderful aroma of the soup.

You laughed again and handed me a bowl of soup. (It was really good soup.)

“I wanted to surprise you.” you smiled and took a seat beside me, watching me intently sipping on your soup. 

“Besides, you look wonderful, Key.” I hit you on the arm for that because I knew I didn’t look ‘wonderful’, even if you claimed you thought so.

After a few more bowls of soup, we spent the rest of the night watching TV and just talking. At some point, you fell asleep and your head rested on my shoulders. I didn’t move because I knew you were a light sleeper and if I did you might wake up. 

After a while I fell asleep as well, I don’t know how or when, but when I woke up, you were holding my hand.

DEAR SECRET SANTA

Secret Santa has been an ongoing tradition in the company since our trainee days, but we never bothered to join until we actually debuted.

I got Minho. I was hoping to get you, Jonghyun, but I didn’t mind getting Minho either because you deserved a good secret santa; I at Secret Santa. 4 days into secret santa and Minho already caught me sneaking a gift by his bed.

My secret santa was the best. Breakfast after a tiring night, a change of clothes when I forget them, a new set of headphones, new pairs of socks. (because my socks somehow always end up in Taemin’s half of the closet and he never bothers to return them.)

I didn’t get gifts everyday, but I did get little notes. Some simply said “Good morning!”, while others said “You look good today.” When I had a bad day, a note on the bathroom mirror would say “Smile, Kibum! You look better when you smile. Plus frowning would cause wrinkles at an early age. You wouldn’t want that, right?”

All sorts of notes would be left at places where I do my daily routines; by the bathroom mirror, in the kitchen, on the tv, on my coffee mug. Everywhere. But it was an effective way to make me smile, and I think my secret santa knew that from the beginning because he never stopped with the simple notes.

On the last day of secret santa, everyone else got big presents, since it was the last one and we wouldn’t have it again until next year. But I didn’t get anything the whole day. I didn’t mind because the 3 weeks worth of notes and little gifts was already satisfying to me and I was already grateful for all those kind words. 

But on that last night, I came to bed to find a note on my pillow. “This is the last note. I don’t know if I’ll get you again next year, but I enjoyed seeing you smile at my notes. Always smile, okay?”

I never found out who my secret santa was until we started dating. 

Yeah, so that's the first part! This is basically gonna be 2 stories per part/chapter. so yeah.....