Today's date is the 14th of February, and the year is 1650.

The capital of the Joseon Dynasty, Hanseong, is busy as usual. Merchants, scholars, noblemen and commoners are going about their daily duties. Somewhere in this busy capital lies a small bookstore. The bookstore is full of old manuscripts sold to the owner by aspiring authors. There are some religious manuscripts and poems written by intellectuals.

However, you notice that there aren't any manuscripts that tell an exciting story. By an exciting story, you think of something of the romance genre. You examine each and every bookshelf of your family's shop before you come to the conclusion that people in this dynasty are complete imbeciles. All you see are manuscripts written to worship the king. Please, there's a whole bookshelf dedicated to it. 

Your favourite section is the one with all the fictional manuscripts located at the very back of the store. It's too bad it's surrounded by prayer books and only takes about a quarter of space on the shelf. You squat in front of it and pull out a book; a romantic story, the first of it's kind you have ever seen. Your fingers run along the spine of the manuscript which is just several pieces of old paper held together by some thick string. You don't remember the author of the story, but you only know that the handwriting of the manuscript deserves a distinction. The of every Hangul character are sharp and each line drawn is smooth. 

"Yeonwoo! Would you please be a dear and watch the store? I have to go out!"  You hear your beloved mother yell your name at the front of the store.

You close the book, putting it back in it's original place. When you walk to the front of the store, your mother has already taken off to the market. You can't help but sigh and look around the empty store. Since you figure that no one is going to come any time soon, you take a seat at the wooden counter. From below it, you pull out a piece of paper, along with a tub of ink and your calligraphy brush of three years.

If one enters the store out of curiosity, they will probably ask you the question: what on earth are you doing? Well, the thing is, your dream is to be a famous author of romance stories. The idea of love sends sparks through your body whenever mentioned by neighbouring girls. You have to admit you were even jealous once when one of the merchant's daughters was married off to a handsome farmer.

You raise your head to look at the entrance of the store where the weather is breezy. Maybe I could start off on a spring day... The sun is shining, the cherry blossoms petals are dancing on the branches of trees   You close her eyes and start imagining the perfect scenario in your mind. Your head sways from side to side as you picture yourself standing under a row of cherry blossom trees as you wait for your one and true love.

"Halt! Scholar Park Chanyeol! Stop right there!"

"Get him before he runs off for good!"

You snap out of your daydream upon hearing the voices coming from outside. You peek over the counter at the entrance, thinking people could be having some sort of rebellion, and to your surprise a young man enters the store. You have no time to question him because he immediately hurries behind the counter where you are and ducks under it. He takes off his black gat since he won't be able to fit if he hides with it on.

The men, thankfully, pass the store after a few seconds. You keep your gaze on your piece of paper which starts off with the words, On a fine spring day... You don't know what to do or what to think because you have never seen this young man once in your life. You peek under the counter and the both of you happen to meet eyes for the first time. It is then you realise that this man has the features of a male god, he's good-looking, more fine than the handsome farmer who the silk merchant's daughter married last year.

"Are they gone?" His deep voice whispers.

"Yes, they are." You reply in your softest voice, averting your gaze away from him to look down on your lap.

"That's a relief. Thank you for letting me hide here." He crawls out from under the counter and sits cross legged next to you. A total stranger. 

The young man doesn't say anymore after that. You, Gu Yeonwoo, being extremely cautious, begin to bombard him with questions. "Who are you? Why were those men chasing you? Have you committed some sort of crime?"

The young man finally realises that he has intruded in your famiy's store and gets up all of a sudden but bumps his head. He grimaces in pain at how short the ceiling above the counter is, or maybe it's because of his freakishly tall height. You widen your eyes and you can't help but let out a small laugh at this young man's clumsiness. 

"Are all scholars supposed to be this graceless?" You ask, still trying to hold in your laughter.

"I'm not a scholar. What is a scholar anyway?" You raise an eyebrow and gesture your head at the young man's black gat made out of high quality horse hair. The string of beads on his hat also tell you that this young man is of a high class.

"Fine, let's say that I am a scholar." He takes a seat next to you. "I'm the clumsiest scholar to have ever existed. Do you recall those men chasing me just now? They were chasing me because I ran away from literature class. This is the first time I've ever successfully gotten out of educational grounds. Sungkyunkwan is really not the school to mess with. They're going to punish me for this when I get back... What do I do? I really don't want to get in trouble."

Everything before the word Sungkyunkwan doesn't catch your attention. You gasp loudly and instantly cover your mouth, your cheeks turning red in embarrassment. "D-did you say Sungkyunkwan?"

Sungkyunkwan is the most prestigious educational institute in Joseon. To be able to go there means that your father has to be one of the highest ranking noblemen in the city. This young man shoud've been thankful to be able to go there!

"Yes, Sungkyunkwan, the one and only." The young man flashes a smile at your shyness. "By the way, I haven't given you my name yet, have I? I know we may have nothing to do with each other, but I should introduce myself since you saved my life. As you may have heard from the men shouting for me earlier, my name is Park Chanyeol. And... yours?"

"Gu Yeonwoo..."

A corner of Chanyeol's lips quirk upwards as he tries to say your name on his tongue. "Gu Yeonwoo... Yeonwoo...  You have a nice name, Miss Yeonwoo. I'm sorry if we're suddenly getting to know each other without any formality."

"Oh, that's fine..."

This young scholar certainly has a way with his words. It is either that, or you are the sort to be easily flattered by nice compliments. Your cheeks start to turn redder than before and you cover them up with the long sleeves of your hanbok.

The scorching hot weather doesn't seem to bother you anymore. You have never felt any wind in your family's store before, but on this day you swear you can feel a tiny breeze entering the store, surrounding you and Chanyeol, brushing past your cheeks. The closed cover of your unfinished story moves slightly with the wind, and as you and Chanyeol are busy with your friendly exchange, the manuscript flips open to the first page, signifying the beginning of a Joseon love story.

Two days later, you are up to your usual routine. You hurry from bookshelf to bookshelf, making sure that each book is not out of place. While you are doing this though, you notice someone from the corner of your eye. You pause, and you can see some movements before this certain person disappears from the corner of your peripheral vision. 

Who in the world could that be? You think to yourself, and when the thought of a thief crosses your mind, you suddenly grab a straw broom propped up against one of the bookshelves. Your footsteps are unaudible as you near yourself to the suspicious person in the store with you. You can see that it is a man, from how his robes are poking out of the bookshelf he's hiding behind. Whether he might be a nobleman or a commoner, you cannot be bothered.

In your panicked state, you make a slow countdown of when you should attack. At the count of five, you pounce behind the bookshelf with your eyes shut, swinging the broom side to side in a careless manner. You can feel the broom hitting someone and the yelps of pain, so you figure that you're actually doing a good job. But for some reason, these yelps sound familiar to you, like a voice you have heard only a few days ago. A voice that managed to sway your heart.

"O-ow! Miss   Ah! Miss Yeonwoo   That hurts!"

This voice... Scholar Park Chanyeol?

You open one of your eyes to see, and to your horror, it really is Park Chanyeol. After your 'rampage', the scholar's robes have some straw bits stuck to them. His gat has fallen off his head and there are strands of his hair sticking out of his headband   he's all disheveled. 

"You're the scholar from two days ago! Scholar Park, what are you doing here?"

"I was just... looking around the place... The books here are nice and I'm having a break right now, so I thought I would come to see y-you   No, I mean the books! Yes, the b-books." Chanyeol stutters and you can see right through him, what his real actions are for.

You look at him unamusedly.

"Would it be a foolish reason to say... that I came here to see you?" Chanyeol clears his throat. "I mean, I just want to get to know you more. You seem like a nice person and I could not forget about our previous meeting where you saved my life by allowing me to hide behind your counter. Perhaps, Miss Yeonwoo, can we be friends?"

As a young woman at the ripe age of eighteen, you realise that you do not have many friends. The last friend you talked to was the silk merchant's daughter, and she'd been married off, thus having to live with her husband miles away from the city. Now that the word 'friend' processes through your mind, you realise you are quite lonely with your parents being away most of the time, and that you do need someone to talk to. Scholar Park will be your first ever friend in months!

"Yes, I think I would like the sound of that." You grin at the male. "We can be friends, Scholar Park."

Scholar Park's gigantic eyes widen as a big smile of pure happiness takes over his lips, it even looks as if his ears are rising up. "Alright, from onwards today we are now friends!"

-----

Ever since then, scholar Park Chanyeol has been visting the store twice a week. You don't know how the boy has the opportunity to find the time, considering that life at Sungkyunkwan is bound to be hectic, but somehow he does. He always manages to show up two times a week. Even if it rains for the whole week, you know that the boy will eventually show up at the store entrance with water dripping down his gat and his silk garments completely drenched.

The scholar has also found out about your aspiration of writing a romance story, despite your best efforts in trying to hide it from him.

"Your calligraphy is good, but all this time you've been holding the brush the wrong way, Miss Yeonwoo." Chanyeol points out as his face rests on his palm.

"I've never been to school before, so I never learned... My father has never taught me either." You hope that Chanyeol doesn't find you uneducated or anything just because you don't go to school. You expect for the boy to at least be in disbelief or make a condescending remark, but he smiles understandingly, catching you off guard. 

You feel Chanyeol's hand overs yours that is holding the brush. He reaches another hand to yours and captures your thumb, shifting it into the right position. Then, with his hand on top, he begins to guide you. The brush makes a smooth black line downwards before you move on to and curves. With Chanyeol's guidance, the two of you eventually manage to write out the Hanja character for flower. Only Chanyeol understands what it means.

花

"Do you know what this means?" He asks.

You focuse extra hard on the character, but shake your head. "I've seen this word before, but... I don't know what it means."

"It means flower, in Hanja." Chanyeol takes another brush of his own and begins to write, this time, two new characters.

书店

"What about these two words?"

"Oh, this means book store. I know this because it's on our plaque outside."

門

"This one means door." You points out once Chanyeol has finished writing.

"You know so many words," the young scholar sounds impressed, "but how is it that you don't know a word like flower?"

You only manage to laugh and rub the back of your neck. "Though my father never taught me how to hold the brush properly, he did teach me a few Hanja characters. I never knew the character for flower was written this way though. It's beautiful."

"Well, you should start remembering it from now because I think that this character shares a lot in common with you, Miss Yeonwoo." Chanyeol clears his throat and looks away when you blink, asking him how so. "For a start, flowers are quite exquisite and delicate, much like you. D-don't you think?"

You don't notice this, but it is the first time you have ever felt your heart thumping at such an irregular speed. Chanyeol also seems to be feeling a bit shy from how he turns his head away after complimenting you. What's funny is that his ears start to shift from a peach colour to a tint of red. It's something of his that you find oddly adorable.

After the young scholar has gone, you find that the storyline for your story seems to have shifted. Your plot was originally going to be about a boy from another world who meets a girl in the forests of Gwangsan, but now it seems that it's more about a young girl who saves a young scholar from getting in trouble.

The moon is already shining bright when you wrap up your final sentence for the day. You leaves the manuscript open and blow out the candle before retreating to your parent's room behind the store. You reckon you are going to be dreaming of your sweet story tonight.

On a fine spring day, a young girl who helped her parents look after a book store met a young scholar. The scholar had been fleeing from officials of the school after running out of grounds. The girl thought that the scholar was an outlaw at first when he entered her store and hid under the counter, but slowly, his handsome looks and kindness deemed him innocent.

"Park Chanyeol, it's a surprise you didn't run out of literature class today."

"Scholar Do, just because I ran once doesn't mean that I will do it again. I've learned my lesson after running away once. Do you know how horrible the punishment they gave me was?"

"I do not, but I would be glad to hear about it. I do know that you were unable to join us for last week's play, though."

"They kept me on school grounds for days! I couldn't leave at all. That was the reason why I couldn't join all of you." Chanyeol shivers at the thought of being cooped up in Sungkyunkwan for three days sweeping the grounds. "I've learned my lesson to not do it again. I've found someone nice out of school grounds, so I can't afford to be trapped in here again."

Scholar Do Kyungsoo widens his eyes. "Scholar Park, what do you mean by that? Hm?"

It is that this moment that Chanyeol realises he cannot let anybody know of you yet. Many of his friends would for sure. He avoids Scholar Do's eyes and tries to come up with an unconvincing reason. "B-By s-s-someone nice, I mean that old lady at the local tea shop! Haha, she's been so generous lately, even giving me a serving of tea!"

Scholar Do knows the Chanyeol has never been an outstanding liar. That is why he has a doubtful look on his face as he crosses his arms together. "Is that so? Doesn't the old lady at the local tea shop dislike you for always asking for discounts? She likes Scholar Oh and Scholar Junmyeon the most out of all of us."

"S-She likes me too, in some ways!"

Just then, one of the professors emerges out of the classroom behind them, shouting to the other youngsters kicking around a straw ball and another bunch of them wrestling each other. "Students, pack all your writing equipment with you! We're going on an educational trip, for the betterment of Joseon!"

And so, through the bustling streets of Hanseong a group of Sungkyunkwan students walk. The common people whisper amongst themselves. Children stop themselves from running, looking up at them with their mouths agape since a sight like this is not common. Some ladies passing them by giggle at Chanyeol and his friends who are at the back of the group when he glances over at them for a short second.

The majority of the students in the group are professional, taking notes of what is happening in the city. Meanwhile, at the back of the group, Scholar Byun is dragging Chanyeol and his friends to every eyecatching shop they can spot. It doesn't even bother them when their group has already walked out of their sight. They've already snuck out of school grounds a ton of times before, they know the city like the back of their hands. 

"This is marvelous! May I ask what this is?" Sehun tries to reach for another sample, but his hand is slapped away by Scholar Junmyeon. 

"It is ginseng candy, wise scholar. It is made with the finest ginseng in Joseon." The merchant bows his head a little at the six of them. "It is usually sold for ten mun each, but I'll give you a good deal of five for each."

Out of the six of them, Scholar Oh likes candy the best. They know that the younger one always has a stash of honey candy hidden in his robes and when the teacher is not looking he grabs the chance to plop one in his mouth. Chanyeol has been offered some of his candy a few times, but he isn't really a huge fan of sweet things. 

"I'll take ten of these!" Sehun hands over the money to the merchant in exchange for the candy before stashing them in his robes. He turns to his friends, "any of you want some? This is the first and last time I'm offering these."

Scholar Kim Jongin shakes his head. "You can eat them all by yourself and get a disease later on. You're going to die one day if you keep eating those. Give some to Scholar Lee, he has a younger brother."

"Or you can give some to me! Please, Scholar Oh~" Scholar Byun pleads.

"No, you already took some of my honey candy yesterday, and Scholar Lee is clearly wealthy enough to buy some of his own candy!"

Chanyeol rubs the back of his neck and mutters. "You could give some to me..." His friends immediately turn to face him confusedly, and he waves his hands in the air in to defend himself. "I've been interested in ginseng candy lately, so give me two."

Sehun blinks, still weirded out at the fact that this is the first time in years Chanyeol has asked him for candy, but he takes two pieces out from his robe and places them on his palm. "O-Okay, here you go, Scholar Park."

His friends are still staring at him like he's been possessed. "Why are you all looking at me like that? Let's go in front, I hear there are some nice handmade fans around here. Scholar Byun, don't you want to go see?"

"You're right, I've been needing one! All of you should help me pick!" Scholar Byun ushers them to follow him as he goes deeper and deeper in the market.

Chanyeol looks around his surroundings which look familiar to him. He has passed these shops many times before and if were to keep walking forwards, the bookstore will lie ahead. He glances at his friends who are crowded around a paper fan stall to help Scholar Byun pick. Figuring that he has about ten minutes for himself, he sprints over to the bookstore. 

Now that Chanyeol thinks about it, it has been days since he has last seen you. He misses teaching you new Hanja characters and watching your face turn crimson red when he compliments you. He enters the bookstore and catches sight of you behind the wooden counter like the time when you first met. It feels as if his heart is flipping inside his chest and he has to resist the urge to throw his arms around your petite figure. Park Chanyeol, what are you thinking of? Have you gone out of your mind? Just act like how you always do. 

Chanyeol takes a deep breath and attempts to walk over to you with his hands behind his back. He hopes that you will at least look up to see how sophisticated he is, but the heavens don't seem to be on his side. By the time you look up, Chanyeol is on the ground. He accidentally tripped over a darn rock. 

"Chanyeol? What are you doing down there?" You rushe over to him.

You bend down beside him. Your faces are a few inches apart from each other's. While you are checking if he is hurt, Chanyeol continues to be captivated by your beauty. Eventually, your eyes meet and the two of you hold your breaths at the same time. Chanyeol's eyes shift down to your lips which are a natural pink, soft and plump. They look so soft... Chanyeol could just kiss  

"You're bruised!" You lift his palm up for him to see and he backs away a little.

Chanyeol dusts the dirt off his robes and stands. "I-I'm fine! You know me, I'm a clumsy scholar. I just tripped." 

"Why are you here? Shouldn't you be in school?"

"We're on a short trip around the city today, and it just so happened I was passing by..." Chanyeol informs you and smiles. "Hey, have you ever tried ginseng candy before?"

You shake your head. "Candy? My parents never bought me any before. It would be a privilege for me to even buy one."

For a second, Chanyeol feels sorry for you. In your whole life, you tell him that you haven't even tried a small bit of it. He understands, because his family is much more well off than yours. Five mun for candy may not seem like a large amount to him, but to your family it could be used to buy rice. You have probably never had the time to indulge yourself in these things. 

"Then you can try some now." From Chanyeol's palm, he reveals two square chunks of ginseng candy wrapped in thin paper. 

When he gently places one on your palm, your eyes start to glimmer in awe. He watches as you unwrap the candy and place it in your mouth.

"How do you find it? Is it nice? Too sweet, or too bitter? Does it not taste as good as you thought it would taste? They say it's made from the finest ginseng in Joseon, t-that's why I asked for some. And I'm usually not the type to ask for candy." Chanyeol pretends to keep himself occupied by browsing through the various books in your family's store.

"So this is what ginseng candy tastes like... It tastes delicious!" Your eyes turn in to crescents moons, unaware that Chanyeol looks more ecstatic than ever.

He walks over to your side again. "Really? If that is the case, I'll get you some more. You should be prepared, Ms.Yeonwoo. I'm going to be delivering a lot more of these to you." If Scholar Oh is fine with me having some of his candy... 

"You don't have to do that! I'm already so grateful for this piece of candy, you really don't have to  "

Before you have the chance to continue, Chanyeol squeezes your cheeks together to stop you from talking. "I'll see you next week."

"Hey, Scholar Park! Are you in there?"

Chanyeol turns his attention to the entrance where his friends are waiting for him. "I'm coming out!"

He waves at you one last time with a grin plastered on his face and dashes out of the store. His friends ask him what he was in there for, but Chanyeol tells them he went in the store out of curiosity. They brush it off and Scholar Junmyeon suggests that they ought to be returning to school. On their way back to Sungkyunkwan, Chanyeol grabs Sehun by the arm, pulling him behind their friends.

"Scholar Oh, you have a lot of candy don't you? Could you consider giving me some?"

The next week Chanyeol finds himself taking you out to explore the city. The only place he has ever seen you in is the store, or sometimes, the back of the store. Instead of being trapped in your family's bookstore, you walk along the stalls while he trails behind you. Park Chanyeol would've fancied if he was a crown prince since he would have the opportunity to walk across the royal gardens with you and he would able to teach you calligraphy under a grand pagoda.

Chanyeol wonders where he should take you next. Has she been to a nice shrine before?

"Chanyeol?"

"H-Huh?"

"You've been spaced out for quite awhile," you laugh. "Let's go."

"You've already looked through everything?" Chanyeol pouts. "Isn't there anything you would like? A lot of girls wear jade hair pins nowadays."

"Jade hair pins cost a lot of money. I'm really fine, Chanyeol. I appreciate your kind thought." You reassure him, but Chanyeol still feels the need to get you something, knowing how you don't have many accessories. He knows he's pestering you too much and he can't help it.

"Are you sure you don't want anything?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I came out to spend time with you today."

Chanyeol blushes, baffled at your answer. "Ms.Yeonwoo, you really are too humble. If I can't give you something, I'll bring you somewhere nice."

He grabs the your free hand, lacing your fingers together. It is a bold move, considering that he hasn't done this to a woman before, and a sense of immense pride overcomes him. From under his black gat which is covering most of his face, the only thing visible to the passerbys and you is a smile worth millions. 

Gwangsan forest is notorious for having cherry blossom trees. It is a good thing they are still in season. You say you have never seen them before, and Chanyeol feels glad that he is the first person you can do all these new things with. It makes him feel special. Also, in your story, you mention that the two lovers meet under rows of cherry blossom trees.

Chanyeol guides you through alleyways of neighbourhoods until you manage to get past the city walls. You venture further away from the capital of Hanseong, feeling lighthearted at the same time. You walk past farms and once in awhile you stop to wave at the farmers and merchants pulling their carts to the city.

The hike up the hill to the forest is tiring, but the scenery is worth it. The two of you are greeted by many cherry blossom trees in full bloom. The swaying branches of each tree boast their smooth pink petals which flutter on to the ground. Chanyeol has heard his professors in Sungkyunkwan tell them that cherry blossoms are a symbolism of ephemeral beauty. Although they only last for a short amount of time, the beauty of them remain vivid in people's minds.

You turn to Chanyeol before enveloping him in a tight hug which renders him speechless.

"Thank you for bringing me here, Chanyeol. This is perfect!" You pull back and settle on the ground, flipping the pages of your manuscrip, unaware that you have left the young scholar confused because of your action. 

You can hear the boy clearing his throat before taking a seat on the ground next to you. He peers over at your story to see what you're writing about. "They're under the cherry blossom trees?"

"Mhm, but I don't know what's going to happen next. The two lovers walk along the pathway, but the boy suddenly grabs ahold of the girl's wrist. Then what happens?" You sigh miserably. "I honestly have no clue what to write."

"We could try walking along this path," Chanyeol offers a hand out for you to take, "maybe we can get some ideas if we admire the view. It's fairly easy to find an answer to this. Shall I help you?"

You gather your things and slips your hand in his. You begin the journey on the pathway, the rustling of grass sounding beneath your feet as you walk. Making conversation and jokes has become easy between the both of you and you admit you've become much more closer than before in terms of friendship. In the first place, you would have never expected that you would grow close to this clumsy scholar. 

"Have any ideas come across your mind yet?"

"No luck, I still can't think of anything. I was planning to make the boy confess his feelings, but maybe I should save it for later."

Out of nowhere, a lone petal finds it's way on your hair .

"You've got something on top of your head." Chanyeol takes a step closer to you and easily removes the petal with his hand. "There, it's off now."

You don't respond to him, you can't, because you notice that your bodies are close together. They're touching, and there's literally no space between the both of you at all. You look up at Chanyeol who is overtowering you, and he looks down. You gaze at each other, but you can't tell what Chanyeol is feeling. His dark brown orbs are void of any readable expression, they look entirely blank for a short second. The emotions that could be hidden in them, you want to know.

"U-Um, Y-Yeonwoo." It is the first time since they've m