Chapter 3: The Gifts
Shy Boy Secret Santa
Why didn't you tell me you used to date Hyosung?" Kikwang yelled at Joon once they were inside Joon's house.
"Yeah!" Yoseob added. "It would have saved us a lot of trouble in getting her a present."
"Wait, you didn't know..." Kikwang started to ask Yoseob, surprised. "No, not important. I meant, you know I like Hyosung. Why didn't you stop me before?"
"Honestly?" Joon went and sat on the stairs of his house and played with his hands in his lap. "I thought that I had no more feelings for her, that they had all gone away. And they have." He noticed Kikwang and Yoseob staring at him. "But I couldn't help but feeling jealous, angry when you two were together. But I didn't want to discourage you. You two look good together."
"Joon, I-"
"If you say that you're sorry, I'll hit you," Joon quickly replied to Kikwang. He took in a deep breath. "Discouraging you would get everyone nowhere. You, me, Hyosung. Besides, we're all friends here." He smiled. "Also, it's better to move forward rather than trying to go back to something that is in your past."
"...Whoa." Yoseob and Kikwang were left almost speechless. "Did Joon just say something deep?" Yoseob stage-whispered to Kikwang.
"Why you-!"
~
The rest of the weekend went by quickly and peacefully for everyone. The atmosphere in Park Kyunglim's classroom was thick with excitement, everyone eager to see what their secret Santa got them.
"Settle down, class," Kyunglim cautioned her class. "So, this is the first day of your secret Santa. I know that you're all excited to find out what you received. However, receiving means there was giving, and there are some people who may have been too lazy to do the latter." Her eyes scanned the room. "That being said, there are many times during the day someone can give you their gift, and many times you can receive it. I will give you all the chance to check your desks before we start class." Slowly, each of the students made their way to their desks and peered into them, hoping to find a little package.
"Ooh!"
"Wow!"
"Hey, look what I got!"
One by one the students started to open their presents or muse over others' presents. Kikwang followed Joon to their desks in the back. He looked inside his desk and found a bag of Ghirardelli chocolates with mint filling.
"Hmm, kinda generic," Joon said, looking at Kikwang's gift. "So it's probably not me or Yoseob. Most likely it's someone who doesn't know you well, which is probably the majority of this class."
"I thought Park seongsaeng-nim said it would be no fun if we guessed our secret Santa," Kikwang said, confused.
"Of course not!" Yoseob said as he walked over to Joon and Kikwang's desks, holding a small, red electronic noise maker. "She meant it's not fun if you know who your secret Santa is. Trying to guess who is your secret Santa is half the fun of secret Santa! Let's see... it's obviously not me or Joon, and even if it was, I wouldn't say anything. Maybe it's someone like - Hyosung?" Yoseob's eyes landed on a certain gummy smile bearing girl.
"Hyosung?" Kikwang asked, dumbfounded. "Why did you-"
"Annyeong!" Hyosung greeted the trio. "Hi Joon. Hi Yoseob-ssi. What did you guys get?"
"I didn't get anything," Joon said as he sat down at his desk. "Yet."
"That's fine." Hyosung nodded. "Who's your friend?"
"Oh, him?" Yoseob asked. "This is Lee Kikwang."
"Kikwang?" Hyosung's face immediately lit up. "Oh, my mother told me about you. You live in Seocho, right?"
"Neh," Kikwang said quickly and softly, not very sure of his words.
"Yes, I'm your neighbor, Hyosung!" She smiled. "It's nice to-"
"Class, start settling down now. Class will start in a few minutes," Kyunglim said from her position at the front of the classroom, interrupting Hyosung.
"Oh, I better go now," Hyosung said. "See you, Joon and Yoseob. Nice meeting you, Kikwang-ssi." She bowed and smiled before walking over to her desk.
"So tell me, what do you plan on doing with 'Kang Saeho.' " Joon turned to Kikwang. "Since it seems Hyosung knows who you are now. Are you just going to forget about it?"
"I can't do that," Kikwang said quickly. "It's just, I find it easier to talk to people, to her, as Saeho. Besides, I need 'Saeho' for Hyosung's secret Santa presents."
"Why? What did you get her?" Joon asked. He was quickly answered when he noticed several girls rushing to Hyosung's desk.
"Hyosung-ah!" Sunhwa said. "What did you get?"
Hyosung dug through the silver gift bag and pulled out a mirror. A note was tied to the mirror, written on in impressive calligraphy.
"Yeah!" Yoseob added. "It would have saved us a lot of trouble in getting her a present."
"Wait, you didn't know..." Kikwang started to ask Yoseob, surprised. "No, not important. I meant, you know I like Hyosung. Why didn't you stop me before?"
"Honestly?" Joon went and sat on the stairs of his house and played with his hands in his lap. "I thought that I had no more feelings for her, that they had all gone away. And they have." He noticed Kikwang and Yoseob staring at him. "But I couldn't help but feeling jealous, angry when you two were together. But I didn't want to discourage you. You two look good together."
"Joon, I-"
"If you say that you're sorry, I'll hit you," Joon quickly replied to Kikwang. He took in a deep breath. "Discouraging you would get everyone nowhere. You, me, Hyosung. Besides, we're all friends here." He smiled. "Also, it's better to move forward rather than trying to go back to something that is in your past."
"...Whoa." Yoseob and Kikwang were left almost speechless. "Did Joon just say something deep?" Yoseob stage-whispered to Kikwang.
"Why you-!"
~
The rest of the weekend went by quickly and peacefully for everyone. The atmosphere in Park Kyunglim's classroom was thick with excitement, everyone eager to see what their secret Santa got them.
"Settle down, class," Kyunglim cautioned her class. "So, this is the first day of your secret Santa. I know that you're all excited to find out what you received. However, receiving means there was giving, and there are some people who may have been too lazy to do the latter." Her eyes scanned the room. "That being said, there are many times during the day someone can give you their gift, and many times you can receive it. I will give you all the chance to check your desks before we start class." Slowly, each of the students made their way to their desks and peered into them, hoping to find a little package.
"Ooh!"
"Wow!"
"Hey, look what I got!"
One by one the students started to open their presents or muse over others' presents. Kikwang followed Joon to their desks in the back. He looked inside his desk and found a bag of Ghirardelli chocolates with mint filling.
"Hmm, kinda generic," Joon said, looking at Kikwang's gift. "So it's probably not me or Yoseob. Most likely it's someone who doesn't know you well, which is probably the majority of this class."
"I thought Park seongsaeng-nim said it would be no fun if we guessed our secret Santa," Kikwang said, confused.
"Of course not!" Yoseob said as he walked over to Joon and Kikwang's desks, holding a small, red electronic noise maker. "She meant it's not fun if you know who your secret Santa is. Trying to guess who is your secret Santa is half the fun of secret Santa! Let's see... it's obviously not me or Joon, and even if it was, I wouldn't say anything. Maybe it's someone like - Hyosung?" Yoseob's eyes landed on a certain gummy smile bearing girl.
"Hyosung?" Kikwang asked, dumbfounded. "Why did you-"
"Annyeong!" Hyosung greeted the trio. "Hi Joon. Hi Yoseob-ssi. What did you guys get?"
"I didn't get anything," Joon said as he sat down at his desk. "Yet."
"That's fine." Hyosung nodded. "Who's your friend?"
"Oh, him?" Yoseob asked. "This is Lee Kikwang."
"Kikwang?" Hyosung's face immediately lit up. "Oh, my mother told me about you. You live in Seocho, right?"
"Neh," Kikwang said quickly and softly, not very sure of his words.
"Yes, I'm your neighbor, Hyosung!" She smiled. "It's nice to-"
"Class, start settling down now. Class will start in a few minutes," Kyunglim said from her position at the front of the classroom, interrupting Hyosung.
"Oh, I better go now," Hyosung said. "See you, Joon and Yoseob. Nice meeting you, Kikwang-ssi." She bowed and smiled before walking over to her desk.
"So tell me, what do you plan on doing with 'Kang Saeho.' " Joon turned to Kikwang. "Since it seems Hyosung knows who you are now. Are you just going to forget about it?"
"I can't do that," Kikwang said quickly. "It's just, I find it easier to talk to people, to her, as Saeho. Besides, I need 'Saeho' for Hyosung's secret Santa presents."
"Why? What did you get her?" Joon asked. He was quickly answered when he noticed several girls rushing to Hyosung's desk.
"Hyosung-ah!" Sunhwa said. "What did you get?"
Hyosung dug through the silver gift bag and pulled out a mirror. A note was tied to the mirror, written on in impressive calligraphy.
" 'When you look into this mirror,' " Hyosung read aloud from the note. " 'You will see something beautiful.' " She paused as she blushed. " 'It grows more beautiful each day, and it's beauty increases when you smile.' " Right at that moment, her famous gummy smile appeared. " 'I hope you have room for one more this afternoon. Someone will come who knows you are this beautiful. Your secret Santa.' "
"Omo! That is so sweet!" Most of the girls squealed with delight at the charming gift.
"Aw, that's... cute." Some girls were either disappointed or unimpressed it wasn't jewelry or something edible.
Joon turned to Kikwang and glared at him. "You're using this to help your love life? What will happen when Hyosung finds out?" He paused, waiting for an answer.
"She doesn't have to know," Kikwang hesitantly whispered.
Joon shook his head. "A lot of people could get hurt because of this. Hyosung will be furious when she finds out!"
"She won't find out."
"Of course she will! Even if you don't tell her, she'll find out," Joon said. " 'Kikwang' and 'Saeho' are both too close to each other and Hyosung."
"Hey, guys, I can't get this to work," Yoseob interrupted as he fiddled with his new noise maker. Joon and Kikwang ignored him.
"This is the only way I can do this," Kikwang said. "The way I will do it."
"Fine," Joon said, giving up. "You do that." He turned around in his chair so he didn't face Kikwang.
"Hey, I got it to work!" Yoseob enthused, completely oblivious to Joon and Kikwang's argument. He eagerly pressed once of the buttons, curious as to what sound it would make.
"Ouch!" The sound maker made.
Kikwang and Joon turned towards Yoseob and his noise maker and glared.
"Sorry."
~
Hyosung waited at her usual table in the cafe after school. She started coming here almost every afternoon this winter, since she first stumbled across it in November. After all, it had the best hot chocolate. But now there was another reason she wanted to come here everyday. And that reason just walked through the doors of the cafe.
"Saeho-ssi!" Hyosung face lit up as she waved to Kikwang. He waved back with a smile as he walked to the counter to order his drink. Hmm, I wonder what he will order. Is he going to get hot chocolate again? Hyosung watched as Kikwang made his way to her table.
"Hey," Kikwang said. "Have room for one more?"
Hyosung immediately thought back to the mysterious note she received from her secret Santa. ...Hope you have room for one more... Hyosung showed a dazed smile. Does that mean Saeho...
"Yah, why are you staring at me?" Kikwang asked with amusement. "Am I that handsome?" He asked teasingly.
"What? Of course not!" Hyosung pushed Kikwang jokingly. That's silly, Saeho-ssi probably doesn't think that about me. That would mean my secret Santa would have to be psychic, and I don't think anyone in my class is psychic!
"Oh!" Kikwang pointed to Hyosung's drink. "Isn't the hot chocolate the best?"
Hyosung beamed. "I know! That's one of the reason's I keep coming here!"
From a distance, a handful of female patrons and employees observed the couple with envy, as well as a few guys. They were jealous of Hyosung for being so pretty and close to Kikwang, or just how happy the two seemed together. But nobody in the shop (or the world, for that matter) could deny the cuteness of the two.
"Ha, ha!" Hyosung laughed, unleashing another wave of gummy smiles. She took a sip of her hot chocolate. When she pulled her cup away from her face, a light chocolaty mustache was left on her upper lip.
"Oh, Hyosung." Kikwang reached for a napkin then across true table to Hyosung. "You got some chocolate here," he said as he gently wiped it off, ignoring Hyosung's flushed cheeks.
"Thanks, Saeho-ssi."
One by one, the customers left the cafe either because it was getting late or they couldn't stand the sight of the near perfect couple. The only thing that didn't make them seem perfect is that they weren't a couple. Kikwang and Hyosung were one of the last ones to leave the cafe. They talked all the way out the door and down the street. The kept walking together until Hyosung abruptly stopped a few blocks away from her house, realizing Kikwang was still walking with her.
"Saeho-ssi, isn't this a little out of your way?" Hyosung asked. "I wouldn't want you to get home too late."
"Huh?" Kikwang said. "Oh, no. It's fine. In fact, is it okay if I walk you to your house? We're near, aren't we? Besides I wouldn't want you going home alone while it's so dark out." Hyosung realized that it was later than when she usually started walking from the cafe.
"Oh, sure!" Hyosung said. "We can walk together!"
Now, it may seems Kikwang just wanted to walk Hyosung home, but in actuality, he forgot that "Saeho" lives in Seosho, not Seocho, where he lives. I'll just go in through the back door.
"So, which house is yours, Hyosung-ssi?" Kikwang asked even though he already knew. It's slightly yellow one, he thought with a smile.
"This one!" Hyosung stopped walking in front of the yellow house Kikwang was thinking about, causing him to lightly bump into her. "Well... It was nice to see you again, Saeho-ssi. Bye." Hyosung started walking up the stairs to her porch.
"Bye, Hyosung-ssi," Kikwang said as he waved briefly. As soon he saw Hyosung close the door, he started walking farther down the street. He planned to go to the street behind his house so he could get home without anyone, especially Hyosung, seeing. Hmm, it's getting pretty dark, he thought as he observed the darkening sky. If I do this again, I'll just walk with Hyosung then go home from there.
~
"Hyosung-ah! Where have you been?" Hyosung's mom said as soon as she entered the house. "You know it's a school night. Try not to stay out too late."
“I’m fine, umma,” Hyosung said. “I was with a friend.”
“A friend, really?” Hyosung’s mom walked over to a window by the front door and peered out, spotting Kikwang walking down the street. “Is that him? I don't recognize him."
"Yeah, that should be him," Hyosung said as he took off her coat. "He's new to town."
“Oh, is this the boy you told me about?” Mrs. Jeon asked as she continued to look out the window. “Saeho?” Hmm, that jacket seems familiar. It can be noted that the jacket that Kikwang was wearing was also the one he wore when he met Mrs. Jeon and some other neighbors. That looks like Eun Kyung's son. Nah, it can't be him. Eun Kyung's son is... Kikwang? Yeah, more than one person can have that jacket.
"Maybe..." A dreamy smile played at Hyosung's lips.
"Well, that's nice, dear." Hyosung's mom took one last look out of the window than walked away from it and to Hyosung. I'm sure I've seen him before, though. Mrs. Jeon turned away from the window and toward her daughter. "Now, I'm sure you haven't eaten yet. Let's go have dinner."
~
The over the next few days, Hyosung woke up feeling an anticipation for her secret Santa gift. It didn't matter if her secret Santa probably wasn't psychic and the gift probably wouldn't predict her experiences with "Saeho." She felt very happy with the gifts. They were all very sweet.
After she got the mirror on Monday, she received a box of her favorite chocolates on Tuesday. The box was green and red striped to fit the holiday season and another note was tied to the box written on in the same script.
These chocolates a very sweet, almost as sweet as you. You also like chocolate in liquid form too, don't you? I think I know someone who likes it as much as you.
The note brought an infinite amount of gummy smiles to her face and the hope that she would see "Saeho" today. She felt that her gifts were connected to her meetings with Kikwang, even if the thought was naive.
Later that day, she went to the cafe. As she expected, Saeho came. He ordered his chocolate and sat with Hyosung. He made a comment about how much he liked the drink and Hyosung couldn't help but think of the note her secret Santa gave her. Again, Kikwang walked her home and again, he had to enter his house through the door.
On Wednesday, she got a framed black and white photo of herself. The gift puzzled her at first, because she didn't know if her secret Santa thought she was a narcissist that wanted pictures of herself everywhere, but then she looked closer at the picture. It was beautiful. Even though it was in black and white, it conveyed a vibrance that was on par with a color shot. She wasn't looking at the camera, but into the distance with a distracted expression that announced that she was daydreaming. It looked recent, seemingly taken from the cafe she always goes to, but she couldn't recall getting her picture taken while at the cafe. She dismissed this fact, as the picture came out near perfect.
This gift also came with a note.
Beautiful, isn't it? I agree, but it isn't hard to take a good picture with this model. I know you can just look into the mirror I gave you and see the same beauty, but this is a lot lighter than a mirror, ke ke ke.
Hyosung didn't notice any hints at a visit from "Saeho," but she thought he would visit her as he always did. Even if it has only been a few days, it had almost become routine. She looked forward to it, maybe because it seemed to be the only time she saw "Saeho." But to her disappointment, he didn't come that afternoon. Hyosung told her self it was because the first few times they met were only coincidences, and that it didn't mean he would start coming every afternoon, like she does. There was a little part, though, of Hyosung that said he didn't come because he didn't want to be around her. Only a little part. A very, very small part. In all honesty, Kikwang just had a lot of homework that night, so he didn't go.
It was now Thursday. It's the beginning of class and Hyosung was anxious to open her gift. She picked up the box wrapped in red and green wrapping paper. She was especially excited for this gift as it seemed bigger than all the others. It seemed to be a shoebox. Hyosung lifted the top off. "Omo!"
Inside was a pair of sneakers. This is definitely bigger than the others. Of course, it wouldn't be her secret Santa gift without a sweet, mysterious, sometimes corny note.
You wanna d-d-d-d-dance, get your dancing shoes
She was immediately reminded of "Saeho" when they went to the karaoke bar. But what does that mean? Even though the gift was considerably bigger, the note was shorter than usual. Oh well, hopefully I'll find out a later.
I'm so sorry, this chapter was long overdue... it's already past Christmas and even New Year's season. I feel so bad... It kind of took long because the chapter was supposed to be longer, but I realized I hadn't posted in so long. Thanks for still reading everyone! I kinda forgot to mention this, but the Kikwang/Saeho thing is kinda inspired by Big Bang's Baby Baby/Last Farewell MV. The story should be coming to a close soon, one or two more chapters. Thank you!
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