Wednesday came quicker than I had expected. And since my last class had been cancelled, I was able to go home at 1:30. I didn’t tell anyone about the meeting today. If I told my siblings, they would find some way to track me down. If I told my parents, they would go to the next level of making sure I looked “presentable”. Since my campus was about twenty minutes away from my house, I got home pretty quickly and was greeted by our butler, who’s stumbled back after seeing me burst in through the doors. 

“Miss? Are you being chased?” I shook my head and sprinted for the stairs yelling at the top of my lungs.

“NOT YET I’M NOT! BUT I WILL BE ONCE MY PARENTS GET BACK!” I ran into my bedroom door, momentarily stopping me from my maniac marathon before I threw open the door and ran to the closet. I rampaged through my closet like a rhinoceros on a chase and went on a frenzy of figuring out what I should wear. Soon I heard a knocking and stopped my tirade to look at one of our maids standing there, eyes wide while glancing around the room.

“Miss Hana, can I help you look for something?” I slowly stood up and realized how insane I must look and felt the heat rush through my face. I cleared my throat and looked at her with, what I hope, a calm smile. 

“Sena, I need your help with something, but my parents can’t know about it .” Sena’s eyes flashed with concern, but she nodded with a smile. 

“What can I help you with?”

“I have a date in two hours, and as you can see, “ I flailed my arms around in panic, “ I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO WEAR!” Sena blinked at my outburst before grabbing my hand and pulling me towards the bed and forcing me to sit down. 

“Ok, let’s see.” I watched her pace around in front of me while tapping her cheek with her finger. “Where is the date going to be?” I shrugged my shoulders and she stopped to stare at me.

“He said he is coming here to pick me up.” Sena tilted her head before turning to look at the clock on top of my door. 

“Well we have two hours to figure this out. Should I call Madam Sora or Madam Anna?” I vigorously shook my head which caused Sena to heave a sigh. “Ok how about something nice but casual?Oh but if he is taking you to a fancy restaurant…” I watched Sena mutter to herself while walking back towards the closet, picking up the clothes that I had thrown out on the way. 

“Wouldn’t 4:30 be an awkward time to eat dinner?” I walked towards the closet when I didn’t hear Sena for a while. “Sena?” I screamed and jumped back when her head popped up from behind the door.

“Oops. Sorry miss. I found something that might work.” She pulled out a blue floral blouse with sleeves and a flowy mid calf black skirt. “It can be casual but also nice.” I grimaced at the skirt but Sena quickly ushered me away from the closet and pushed me towards the bathroom. “Go freshen up! I’ll help you with everything once you get done.” She pushed me in and pulled the door shut before I could refute. I heaved a sigh before pushing myself towards the showers and did my things. I wasn’t sure how much time had passed before I heard a knock on the door. 

“Give me a minute!” I yelled out and rushed to brush my teeth and put a robe on before opening the door. Sena had my clothes in her hand, which she pushed towards me. 

“Put these on and come out.” I grabbed the clothes and shut the door. After placing the clothes on the island, I stared at the skirt in disdain. I threw my head back and groaned before throwing my clothes on and left the bathroom. I stepped out to see that Sena had prepared my vanity table with makeup and hair accessories. Oh boy. Sena ushered me to the table and sat me down before busying herself with the make up. 

“Nothing too heavy Sena, please.” I heard her sigh before glaring at me through the mirror. I returned with a blank look and shook my head at her. She pouted but held back and moved behind me to brush my hair.

“So, how is Mr. Johnny ma’am?” I winced at the title and heaved a sigh.

“Sena I told you to just call me Hana when my parents aren’t around.”

“Sorry. Force of habit. But how is he? I know you met him at the charity ball.” I thought about last Saturday and looked away from the mirror to recollect the memories. 

“He...he’s not what he seems to be…” 

“Meaning?”

“Meaning that the image I had of him is completely different than what I experienced. When I saw him at parties before, he just looked blank. No expression, no emotions. Just stood in the corner with his friends and listened to them talk. I kept feeling hostility when I looked at him as he never cared to be around anyone else except his three friends.”

“I thought he was popular.”

“That’s the thing! He is popular! So popular that people flock to him and try to keep a conversation with them even though he never seems to look towards their direction unless he needs to…but” Sena stopped brushing my hair and looked at me through the mirror. 

“But?”

“He is really sweet. From the short meeting to the phone calls, I could tell that he wasn’t what I thought he was like. He tries to keep conversation going and he genuinely wants to know about my family. You should have seen him with the kids Sena! He didn’t look uncomfortable at all around them. If anything, he wanted to know what they had to say to him and the kids enjoyed talking to him. Although Jeno had to go say that I was getting married in order to grow up.” I heard a snort and looked at Sena who was holding a palm against and her shoulders were heaving. “Hey! This is not funny!”

“Sorry Hana, but you have to admit that it was a little funny.” I pursed my lips and looked away but couldn’t help but think about how Johnny wasn’t what I thought of him to be. I felt a brush go through my hair again so I sat up straight to make it easier on Sena. I soon heard my phone go off and saw that it was a message from Johnny. 

“Hey, can you send me your address.”

“Oh yeah! Yes, hold on sorry.” I quickly sent out my address to him and glanced at the time to know it was already...3:45! My eyes popped out and I struggled to lean over my table to look at the make up. 

“Sena! It’s already 3:45!” 

“What?!” Sena whipped her head around to look at the clock on top of my door before turning back towards me and pinned up the sides of my hair to make it into a half ponytail. I grabbed the lipstick and quickly smeared it on before grabbing at the eye liner and tried to draw the top of my eyes. 

“Sena hold on a minute!” It took me a minute to finally get the liner on, which Sena saw because she soon pulled to the back of the chair and bushed the end of my hair out. 

“Okay wear you black wedge pumps!” And she ran out while I tried to stop her.

“SENA YOU KNOW I HATE HEELS!!”

“TOO BAD!!” I grumbled about how heels were the bane of my existence because I could feel my back crying out in pain when I wear them. Sena soon ran into my room holding the pumps and placed them on the floor in front of me. I sighed before placing my feet in them, already wincing at the uncomfortable feeling of not being stable. Sena then handed me a black clutch and then ran around my room grabbing stuff. 

“Sena I really don’t think it’s going to be formal. Especially on a Wednesday afternoon.” Sena took my clutch and dropped my phone and a few other things in there before handing it back to me. 

“Probably not. But you can never be too prepared for something like this.” She glanced over me before nodding her head and gestured towards the door. “Let’s go wait downstairs.” I walked out of my room and gripped the railing like my life depended on it and tried to walk down without slipping down the stairs.  My phone had vibrated when I reached the bottom. I fished for it through the various things that were dropped in there earlier and grabbed it out after seeing it light up.

“Hey, I’ll be there in about 5 minutes.”

“Ok.” I whipped my head towards Sena, who jumped pack at the sudden movement. 

“Thank you so much for your help Sena. I know if you weren't there, I would still be sitting on my closet floor.” I sighed and pursed my lips at the image. Sena laughed however, and shook her head.

“This is part of my job description. By the way, you know your parents will find out about this right?” I dropped my head and sighed dramatically causing Sena to giggle.

“As long as they aren't here now. Mother would have dressed me up into a ball gown and stilettos if she knew about this.” I heard our doorbell ring and looked at Sena in confusion, her face mirroring mine. I walked towards the door and looked through the peephole but I flinched back when I saw who it was.

“Who is it?” I turned towards Sena freaking out.

“It’s Johnny! What do I do?” Sena blinked at me before frowning.

“Uh, you open the door?” I blinked before facepalming and turned back towards the door. I took a deep breath before opening it and Johnny was standing there holding onto a bouquet a white flowers that looked like cones. I glanced at the flowers before looking up at Johnny to see that he looked stiff. 

“Uh, hey!” I waved but deflated on the inside. You really at not being awkward.

“Hey! Uh, these are for you.” He handed the flowers over to me and I tried to take it without dropping my clutch at the same time.

“Thank you! They’re beautiful!” I smiled at the flowers before looking back at him. “Would you like to come in? I want to put the flowers in a vase.” I opened the door a little wider but Sena coughed in the background.

“Actually, why don’t I take that for you, miss?” I turned in time to see Sena grab the flowers from my hands. “I don’t want you to be late for your date. I’ll take care of these.” She opened the door wider before nudging me out the door. “Enjoy you two!” She closed the door before I could say anything and glanced at Johnny who looked back at me and chuckled.

“Shall we?” I nodded and we walked towards his car. I glanced at him from the corner of my eye and saw he was wearing a nice white button down shirt where his sleeves were folded up to his elbows and faded jeans with black shoes. Yep, I overdressed. A beeping sound caught my attention and noticed Johnny holding his keys out towards his car. I was about to reach for the passenger door when he stepped forward and opened it open. 

“Oh..uh… thank you.” I definitely felt the blood rushing up my face while I got into the car. He closed the door and walked around the front before opening his side and got in and started the engine. I grabbed the seat belt and clipped it on before the car pulled away from my front yard. It was silent for a few minutes and I just gazed out the window not knowing what to do or say.

“How was class?” I turned my head towards him and he glanced at him before facing the front again. “Sorry did I scare you?” I shook my head though and looked towards the front too.

“No I’m fine. Class was ok. A little boring to be honest. My second class was thankfully cancelled so I was able to leave sooner.” I heard a chuckle and glanced at him to see him wearing a small smile. 

“Yeah I always loved days when class was cancelled. Especially when my friends and I had the same class. We would go play basketball at the court nearby the school or just go home and eat.” I smiled at that and nodded my head. 

“Yeah usually I would just drive around or go spend the day with Sora and the twins. How was your day today?” I saw him scrunch his eyebrows and blinked at the expression. Should I not have asked?

“My day...it was ok. It could have been better but I’ve had worse.” He shrugged his shoulders but I was a little worried about not seeing the frown go away and thought of something to change the subject.

“The kids asked about you.” That seemed to have worked because he was full on grinning now.

“Really? What did they say?” I smiled and turned to look at the scenery.

“They really want to see you again. They really like you. Apparently when you mentioned the words “sleepover”, it stuck to them for the past few days because that’s all they will ask about. They want to know when we can have a movie filled sleepover.” Johnny laughed while shaking his head, the smile not leaving his face at all.

“What did you tell them?” I giggled before looking at him.

“I said they had to wait a month. Poor things looked really crushed.”

“Aww, maybe we can take them out for a day to the zoo or park.” I couldn't believe my ears. This guy really wanted to spend a day with these kids. And he looks happy about the plan! “Or would their parents not like that?” Oh shoot! I shook my head and smiled at the idea.

“No, they would love that actually. Thank you.” He shook his head at the end of my comment though.

“Don’t thank me, I like those kids! They’re really bright for their age.” I nodded my head with a small smile growing on my face. We were turning right and I wanted to call Taeyong and yell at him about Johnny doesn’t make me have heart attacks when he drives. I huffed and crossed my arms at the thought.

“What?” I looked at Johnny, who gestured towards my arms. “You just huffed. Did I do something wrong?” My eyes went wide and vigorously shook my head while waving my hands back and forth.

“Oh no no! Not you but my brother. When he takes right turns, he turns as if his life depends on how fast he can turn the car. When that happens, I’m usually screaming because I can feel my side of the car go up and it does not feel pleasant at all. I mentioned to him multiple times that I don't want to meet death so early because of his right turns but he thinks I’m being dramatic.” I sighed at the memories and shivered when I heard Johnny laugh. I made a face at him and shook my head causing him to laugh more. I turned away and laughed behind my hand at the drama of it all. He has a really nice laugh. We soon reached a little cafe with large windows on the side. 

“We’re here.” I unbuckled my seat belt and stepped out of the car at the same time as Johnny reached to my side. “I felt that it was too late to get lunch and too early to get dinner so I figured we can go to a cafe. Is that ok or..?”

“Oh no that’s fine. I was actually thinking the same thing. Have you been here before?” We walked towards the door and there was a small chime when it was opened. I walked in first and I looked around the building. Oh this place looks very nice. The walls and the floor had a warm auburn tint that made the place feel homey. 

“My friends and I came here a few times and we like their coffee. They have pastries too if you like it.” We walked towards the area where there was a girl taking orders, a menu behind her. 

“Is there anything you recommend?” I was raking my eyes through the menu and tried to find something that looked good.

“What kind of coffee do you like?” I looked at Johnny, who was eying the glass shelf that held all of the pastries. 

“Mmm, maybe something creamy and sweet?” He looked back at me before looking at the menu.

“Can you find us a place to sit? I’ll order something for us.” I nodded and turned around to look for a table to sit at, most of the tables were empty except for two. I walked towards the area with windows and saw a table that had two chairs. Figuring this was a good spot, I sat down and stared out the window to see the daylight dimming. Is it going to rain?” I heard the chair scrape back and noticed Johnny sit down before he looked out the window.

“Do you think it will rain?” As soon as I said those words, people started running as water started to drop rapidly from the sky.I blinked and looked back at Johnny. “Nevermind.” Johnny chuckled before turning back to look at me.

“Looks like we will be here for a while.” I glanced away trying to think of something to do when an idea popped into my head.

“How about we play the 20 questions game?” He turned to look outside before turning to look at me.

“Ok. I’ll go first. What is your favorite color?” I blinked but smiled.

“Any shade of blue.” He seemed surprised and tilted his head.

“Why?” I shook my head and smirked.

“It’s my turn.” Johnny huffed and crossed his arms but there was a small smile on his face. “Mm, what is your favorite hobby?” He seemed to think about it before answering.

“Hanging out with my friends really. That and traveling.” I smiled at the answer and opened my mouth but was cut off by him. “Nope. My turn.” I laughed before nodding my head.

“Ok fine.” Before he could ask, however, the barista came to our table and placed two mugs down and a plate with two spoons. 

“I have one white chocolate mocha with extra foam, one black coffee, and a slice of nutella chocolate cake. Enjoy!” The barista walked away and Johnny looked at me before gesturing towards the coffee.

“Try it.” I took the cup, making sure I had a grip and took a sip. I’m in love, this is delicious.

“This is really good. It’s exactly what I was looking for.” I took another sip and saw Johnny rip a few packets of sugar into his and looked out the window. This is really nice. 

“Now,” Johnny picked up his cup and looked at me. “Why blue?”Huh? Oh right right.

“There’s something about blue that makes me feel at peace. The color of the ocean, the sky, the color is calming.” Johnny nodded as he listened to my answer.

“Do you like the sky and the ocean?” He took a sip of his coffee while looking at me and I shrugged.

“The sky? Not so much. I have a fear of heights so I’d rather stare at the sky when I’m on the ground. But the ocean or the sea? I love the water. I love just keeping my feet dipped in cool water while the waves slightly hit me. Especially standing in the water is such an amazing feeling. Although one time I was at the beach with my family and I saw some kind of animal just floating up to shore and I didn’t know what it was and freaked out and made a run for it. Well as fast as I can run on water. Anna laughed though and went towards the animal to flip it over, calling it a horseshoe crab and said they were harmless.But the smell of salt and the feel of seaweed under my feet. I can’t even remember the amount of times I’ve watched Finding Nemo and listened to the soundtracks.” My eyes went wide and I stared at Johnny with worry. “Sorry, I got excited and got carried away.” Johnny placed his cup down and shook his head quickly.

“No! Not at all. I was interested, that's why I asked. You didn’t get carried away.” I pursed my lips however, and looked away. “Plus that gives you two questions to ask me.” I blinked but then remembered that he did ask two questions in a row and I laughed.

“I didn’t notice.” He shrugged and picked up his cup, causing me to pick up mine too. I stared at my cup trying to think up how to bring this question up but figured I should just straight up ask. “There was one question I was wondering, however.” I glanced up and saw him looking at me. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to though.” I noticed him go stiff and started wondering if I should ask this question. 

“Go for it.” He nodded but he looked down at his cup. Here I go. I sighed and went for it.

“I know it’s a little early to ask this but...why did you decide to court me?” Johnny’s head snapped up and I gulped.