*SJK’s POV*

 The delicious smell of breakfast fills my nose and though I still feel groggy, I find myself opening my eyes. I had a good dream, an amazing one actually. In that dream, Hye Kyo and I were in some faraway land, chasing one another, laughing hard and just having fun. The dream was so good that I woke up in the middle of the night smiling, only to be surprised by the feeling of something warm wrapped around me.

I looked down, and my eyes widened upon seeing Hye Kyo sleeping peacefully with her head on my chest while embracing me. Aigoo, am I still dreaming? Have I still not woken up? I started asking myself, but then found it absurd. Of course I was, how else would I find her in my arms, hugging me?

I almost wanted to smack myself but then, such action would cause her to wake up. Even when it was just a dream, I didn’t want to disturb her. So, instead, I took another peek and smiled as I watched her looking peaceful. God, she’s so beautiful.

For a few minutes, I stayed still, watching her. Turns out getting sick has its benefits, you get to have dreams like this. I thought to myself. If this is just a dream, then I don’t want to wake up just yet.

Getting tired from craning my head, I gave up watching her then just lay down, enjoying the feel of her that close to me while slowly closing my eyes.

Oh how nice. If only reality was this uncomplicated, went my last thoughts as I slowly drifted away.

I sense something damp and cool on my forehead and come in contact with a small towel when I reach for it. Slowly, with my body still feeling a little bit weak, but better than last night, I get up from the bed and walk towards the kitchen. I couldn’t clearly remember what else happened right after we got to the car and she insisted that she drove.

I guess my brain was feeling too fuzzy and weak that I have are only vague and brief recollections. Her driving the car and helping me get inside the house. Me changing my clothes then getting on the bed with her assisting me. I think we even had an argument on who gets to sleep where, but that’s just it. That’s all I can remember. The rest, I don’t know.

My feet take me to the kitchen where the smell of pancake and eggs are strong and a few steps later, I find her near the stove with her back towards me, dancing slightly and humming to the tune of Dancing in the Moonlight.

I lean against the door frame while I watch, fascinated and enjoying the view of her swaying happily while cooking breakfast. If I could only wake up to this view every day.

Finally, moments later, she begins to turn, nodding to the beat and smiling as she goes then places the pancakes on the plate on the table, engrossed with what she’s doing that she still doesn’t notice me watching her from a few feet away. It’s only when she reaches for another plate that her vision flies towards my direction and she jumps slightly, her hand instantly flying towards her chest.

“Oh my, you’re awake,” she exclaims, still looking a bit startled as I approach her, grinning.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. It’s just that it was nice seeing you having fun that I didn’t want to disturb you,” I say, meaning each word and she rolls her eyes at me good-naturedly.

“Whatever,” she says, trying to dismiss me. “Come and take a seat, I prepared breakfast for you.”

“I can see that,” I and she turns towards me and gives me a look while I raise my hands in surrender. Instead of taking a seat as what she ordered, though, I take a few steps towards her.

“Let me help you,” I offer and she looks at me with a frown.

“Didn’t I tell you to sit?” she accuses.

“But I want to help..”

“I can manage. Now, go,” she tells me but I still don’t move. She rolls her eyes again. “Joong Ki! You still don’t feel too well. You need to rest as much as you can,” she adds, but I just look at her blankly, too stunned to see her wearing an apron with a wooden spoon in her hand, looking so domestic. The sight looks nice.

She sighs. “Joong Ki! Come on, you’ve been taking care of me the whole while. Now that you’re sick, which is my doing, let me do that, too, okay? Let me take care of you,” she says and finally, I blink then slowly nod.

“Good boy,” she says, smiling. “Now, sit,” she gestures towards the chair, and being the obedient and lovestruck fool that I am, I dutifully follow. “Stay there, okay? This will be done in a few minutes,” she says and I nod.

She returns back to what she’s doing while I resume watching her. Suddenly, our conversation while we’re on our way to the steakhouse last night comes back to mind.

I was trying to focus on driving and trying so hard not to glance at the beautiful woman next to me when she cleared .

“Ahem,” she went and my eyes instantly flew towards her.

“Yes? Is there something wrong?” I asked her. Is there something on my face that you keep staring at me and making me feel so self-conscious? I wanted to add, but decided against it.

“Where are you really taking me?” she asked for the nth time and I breathed.

“I told you, you’ll know when we get there,” I simply answered, focusing on the road.

“Why won’t you tell me?” she asked but I decided to ignore her. “Fine! Since you won’t tell me, I’ll just guess,” she said as she turned towards me and I feel beads of sweat forming on my forehead.

“Is it the market again?” she asked. “I hope not. I didn’t put too much effort sewing this dress only to be ruined if we ever bump into those wooden crates again,” she said, probably remembering that time when she bumped into one while we were on our way to buy her clothes, causing a hole to form in her shirt. Well, my shirt, actually.

“No,” I curtly answered, feeling her burning gaze at me.

“Okay, then. Maybe Kwang Soo’s restaurant again?” she asked but I shook my head.

“No? Hmm. Where could we be going…” she started to think while I tapped the steering wheel with my fingers. “Wait, why are you acting so nervous?”

“M-me? Nervous?” I stuttered. “I’m not.”

“You are.. Wait, are you somehow taking me to a place where you used to take your former girlfriends to? Your dating place. Maybe you’re afraid that we’d bump into one of them, huh?” she raised a brow at me.

“No. What made you think that?” What made you think that I had a girlfriend?

“Well, since you’re acting so fidgety and…” she started and I decided to return the question back to her, so as to remove the spotlight from me.

“You seem to know a lot about dating. Did your ex-boyfriend, that one at the party, take you to such dating places you speak of?” I asked and she was suddenly quiet for a few seconds.

“Not Won Bin,” she said, turning to face the window.

“What? Not him?” I asked, confused.

“Won Bin’s a jerk,” she answered and I found myself agreeing. Yes, he is. You don’t deserve someone like him. Someone like….

“I’m talking about somebody else,” she said and I looked at her.

“Another ex-boyfriend?” I asked, curious and she shook her head then smiled.

“No, not ex-boyfriend. He wasn’t an ex-boyfriend. We weren’t together…. Officially,” she said and I found myself more and more confused. “I don’t know what you really call it, but he’s more of like an almost boyfriend or something like that. We had a mutual understanding passing between us. He liked me and I.. I liked him, too,” she said and suddenly, I felt jealous. I didn’t know where the jealousy was coming from.

“And?” I prodded, I was feeling a bit upset, but I wanted to know further. I wanted to know what happened.

“Well, he had to move away since his father needed to be assigned somewhere else. He didn’t want to, but we both knew that he didn’t have a choice. So, he still went, but before he left, he kept on telling that he’d come back and find me in the right time,” she said. “I don’t think that’s going to happen, though since it’s been years a decade, even. We haven’t seen each other since then. I met Won Bin, got into a destructive relationship with him then moved away for college and grad school. Our lives went on without one another.”

“Anyway, we were still young, I was 16 back then and I might have just mistaken it as a puppy love or something. I don’t think it would’ve developed further anyway. We were young and naïve, we weren’t aware that life isn’t that simple. So yes, that’s it. To make the story short, ours was a love story that ended way before it even began,” she said, giving me a tight smile.

“What about you? Any horrible love stories, crazy ex-girlfriends or even almost lovers to tell?” she asked and I shook my head. “What? I told you all those and you won’t even tell me one? Aigoo, so unfair!” she pretended to sulk.

“It’s not that,” I said and she looked at me. “I can’t tell you one because I don’t have one,” I added and this time, she looked at me, shocked.

“What? As in you didn’t have one? You haven’t had a girlfriend before?” she asked and I shook my head. “Unbelievable. You’re just joking.”

“I’m not,” I said. “I’m kind of the traditional type of guy,” I told her, but she still had her arms crossed over her chest.

“I don’t want to get into a relationship unless I’m sure that I’m really in love.” Like with you, but you’re too far from my reach. I wanted to tell her. “I want to be able to give my full devotion to the woman I fall in love with. I am not interested in temporary things