A/N - Um so yeah, we get to see my favorite couple fall in love several times in one fanfic! Personally, I thought this moment was cuter~~~ But you tell me what you guys think!

@thunbii - the real action in the past 'arc' won't happen for a few more chapters. Gotta get their love story written out first. And only once the past arc is done will you find out where Doongie is~ Kekeke, your feeling's may be on the right line...we'll see~~~

@ainnurdoongie - Ima soonja as well! :D  I'm the same! I used to never see what was the big deal with Hello KItty and then just because of Doongie and his soonja love, everytime i see something Hello Kitty I just squeal and go 'It's Soonja!' Curse you Doongie for changing my life's perception!

@womaninmblaq - Haha, yeah i couldn't resist NOT putting soonja in! I mean Soonja = Doongie. End story. This was suppose to explain why when Doongie gave Ji-eun her hello kitty phonestrap, he called it soonja. Oh, and thxs for telling me what the thundersky couple was! No idea how CL became sky but oh wells~ They're another fave couple of mine ^^ I believe there's a really cute fanfic called 'Chaton' about them~ That fanfic won me over on the pairing. Haha, and i gotta see that Thunder-IU vid as well now!!!

@wookielove - Yeah, Soonja sounds like a proper name to me as well but i felt it needed a meaningful origin and i had no idea where to get a 'meaningful name' from. I mean it could've been the cafe name or something, but that sounded kinda lame. So i went with this explanation. Maybe if it had a korean character meaning i could've worked with that...but...yeah...ummm i had no idea how to write it. So i made it up :p And i'm not in uni yet. It doesn't start till oct! So updating until then~~~

@HanSang - Haha thxs for the praise. I was a little uncertain about putting that explanation out but you puts my fears to rest! And you better bring out that pillow for this chap coz it's even cuter than the previous one!!! As for the 'unfortunately' well...that'll be explained in two chapters time! Await it~

Finally, thanks to Oobmib to subscribing! Woot~ The number is slowly but steadily climbing!!!

Chapter 33 – Returning to the past, they fall in love for the first time

Dara POV

“Hey, noona.

Do you remember how when I was little, my dream was to be a football player?

It was you who saved me after that dream shattered into a thousand pieces, and for that I was infinitely thankful. It was you who patted my head and hugged me when the going got tough. Well this time, it was Ji-eun who was there for me.

Don’t blame yourself. Please. Don’t think that you should have been there for me a second time, because that would be selfish of me to hope for that. I know that you had your dreams as well which is why I never spoke to you of my feelings. I wanted you to succeed, so please don’t regret what you couldn’t have done.

Because I was happy.

At least for a short while…”

2 years ago – January 2008…

“You have to sustain the note longer.” Ji-eun instructed him, giving Sanghyun an example with her high-pitched, clear voice. As Sanghyun as predicted, she had a beautiful voice. JYP didn’t know what they were losing.

He tried to mimic the key, but his voice trembled and he lost it again. “Aish.” He cursed. This was the particular note his singing teacher was constantly berating him for. As a singer, he needed to have absolute control of his vocal range but he wasn’t exactly good at it. So he had asked perfect singer Ji-eun for help.

It turned out she was three years younger than him, but the two of them got along as smoothly as ducks to water. “Try again.” She encouraged him. “Maybe it’ll help if you sit up straight and try to summon your voice from your diaphragm.”

Sanghyun straightened himself, conscious that his height suddenly towered over tiny Ji-eun as he did so.

“Taller!” Ji-eun complained. She got out of her chair and circled around him. She then pressed one small hand to his back, forcing his spine to straighten. Sanghyun his lips nervously at the touch of her cool hand. “That’s better, now try again.”

Sanghyun coughed and tried to sing the note, but suddenly his throat was completely dry. Instead, the key came out as a raspy scrape.

“Are you okay?” Ji-eun leaned over his shoulder to look at his face, in the process her hair tickling his exposed neck. “Do you want some water?”

“Um, yes please.” Sanghyun coughed, very conscious of her closeness and rosy cheeks. He was definitely not looking at her slim neck or her white skin or the way her lips moved like music. He was very glad when Ji-eun walked away to hand him a bottle of water which he gulped down.

“Hmmm, I think you need to try some breathing exercises first.” Ji-eun mused. Sanghyun wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and then handed the bottle back to Ji-eun.

“Thanks.” She mumbled, lost in her thoughts and then tipped her head back to drink from the bottle. Sanghyun stiffened. She was drinking from the bottle he had just drunk from! No wait, he had just drunk from the bottle she was using. Was this an…an…indirect-

Argh. Sanghyun shook his head roughly. Stop thinking such silly notions, he berated himself and rapped his forehead.

“Sanghyun?” It was Ji-eun, her face so close to his. “Are you alright, oppa?”

Sanghyun gulped as her bewitching black eyes filled his own. He could see the bridge of her tiny nose, sculpted perfectly and the soft, white skin she had. It made his mouth dry all over again.

“Um, I’m okay…” he choked out. “It’s just…you’re a…a little…”

“A little?”

“A little close.” He said, squeezing his eyes shut. He heard Ji-eun jump back with surprise.

“Ah, sorry oppa!” she squeaked and Sanghyun opened his eyes to find her blushing furiously. “I didn’t realize I was making you uncomfortable.”

“No, no!” Sanghyun rushed to fix the situation. “It’s not your fault that you’re so beautiful-“

Then he caught himself. His hand flew to his mouth and he could swear his cheeks were heating up. Ji-eun looked up with a mixture of fascination and embarrassment in her eyes.

“Did you just say I was beautiful, oppa?” she asked shyly.

Sanghyun his lips again and tried to swallow. “Um…I might’ve said something along the lines of that.” He admitted, averting his gaze from hers.

“Do you think I’m beautiful, oppa?” Gods, why couldn’t she stop this, Sanghyun thought furtively as answers eluded him. “Oppa?”

“Of course you are, everyone in LOEN knows it.” Sanghyun stuttered.

Ji-eun stared at him. “I asked you if you think I’m beautiful, oppa.” She said plainly and in a flash, crossed the distance between the two of them to stand right in front of him. Then she lowered herself to face Sanghyun right in the eyes.

“Because I think you’re beautiful.” She whispered.

Sanghyun’s eyes widened. Him, beautiful? That was not a description men were supposed to be called by. “Uh, me…beautiful?” he said puzzled.

Ji-eun chuckled, her face growing pinker. “Okay, well maybe I shouldn’t call a guy beautiful. But seriously, you’re so perfect.” She said in a hushed voice, one hand reaching out to touch his cheek. “I’ve always noticed that.”

Sanghyun in a deep breath. “Well, I’ve always noticed that you are beautiful. And I’ve always thought that way.” He confessed in the heat of the moment. “I can’t help it because it’s the truth.”

He liked the way Ji-eun froze as if her brain couldn’t compute what he said and the way when it did process, her eyelids dropped and her lips pursed as if she was suddenly shy. He liked the way her lips moved. He liked everything about her.

Sanghyun leaned forwards to brush his thumb over her lips. “Oppa?” she whispered, feeling the dust motes swirl in the air and the haggard breathing of two people so close and yet so far.

“I like the way your lips move.” Sanghyun admitted, reveling in the softness of them.

“Only my lips?” Ji-eun pouted, though she was secretly pleased.

“Well,” A secretive smirk came across Sanghyun’s face. “I like your cheeks as well, round and rosy.”

That made Ji-eun laugh. “I like yours as well.” She , tugging on his own baby cheeks which she knew Sanghyun didn’t really like, but was a part of him that she loved. It made Sanghyun pout in turn, something that always made her heart flutter.

“And I like your eyes.” Sanghyun leaned in close. “I like your voice, I like the way you play the guitar with the utmost care as if you're a cat, the way you always dust your chairs before sitting down, the way your eyelashes flutter when you’re thinking and the way you never care how neat your hair looks.”

Ji-eun blushes, surprised at his attentive nature. She hadn’t even realized her eyelashes fluttered when she was deep in thought.

She decided to return the favor. “And I like the way you pout when something doesn’t go your way, I like the way your adam’s apple move when you’re about to do something you’re nervous about, the way you always straighten your clothes before sitting, the way you always slouch so that you’re the same height as me and the way you always let me walk first as if you’re watching my back.”

Sanghyun blinked with surprise. Did he always slouch so he could be the same height as her? It had just been an unconscious reflex.

Only then did he realize just how close he and Ji-eun were. Their noses were practically touching and Sanghyun could feel her breath on his lips.

“Oppa.” She whispered. “You can kiss me you know.”

Sanghyun forgot to breathe for a moment. “Who says I want to kiss you?” he whispered throatily, desperately knowing he wanted to but too shocked to go ahead.

“Oh,” Ji-eun gave him a knowing look. “I know.”

Then she leaned forwards and pressed a soft butterfly kiss to his lips. Sanghyun’s heart might’ve stopped for a moment right there and then.

“I like you, oppa.” She whispered and took his hand.

Sanghyun smiled foolishly. “I like you too.”

That made Ji-eun laugh out loud, a brilliant sparkle of light. “Well then, I guess we know what’s going to happen from now on, don’t we?” she and Sanghyun leaned forwards to gather her into a hug.

Really, he thought, his heart filled to bursting. What did I do to deserve her?

Present time…

“So Ji-eun and I started dating then. It wasn’t anything major. We were occupied with training most of the time, but whenever I was with her, I felt like I was floating on air. I don’t know what god was looking upon me that day, but I was happier than I had ever been. I always found myself thinking it was too good to be true.

And I was right.

Disaster happened, and it all started when Ji-eun introduced me to her family…”

A/N - Hmm hmm~ Next chapter, more sweet moments and Sanghyun meets Ji-eun's family! And isn't the photo the cutest thing ever?! ^^