HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EUNHYUK! :) Alright, back to the story!

The next day at the ski resort, we all went down for breakfast. Including you, for you said you wanted to move about instead of staying in bed the whole day. After breakfast, we headed to the lobby to send the adults off. That was when we bumped into Ae-young.

“Ae-young! Is that you?”Donghae greeted.

“Donghae! Oh, and Eunhyuk! Its been long since we last saw one another!”she smiled.

You looked at her, not knowing what to say.

“Ae-young, this is Haemin. Haemin, this is Ae-young,”I introduced.

“I’ve heard a lot about you,”you smiled as you shook hands with her.

“Same here! Eunhyuk talks a lot about you and Donghae whenever he updates me about his life,”Ae-young smiled.

“Oh,”you nodded your head before giving a smile which seemed a little forced.

This was that first time I’ve seen you being a little unfriendly to a stranger.

“Wanna go have a mug of hot chocolate while we catch up?”Ae-young suggested.

“Sure,”Donghae smiled.

As we  were all about to proceed, I remembered something.

“Haemin, aren’t you sick? You should go back and rest,”I turned towards you.

“Oh yeah! Why don’t I bring you back and accompany you in your room? Eunhyuk, you can go catch up with Ae-young,”Donghae suggested.

I had wanted to be the one accompanying you but I remembered Donghae wasn’t that close to Ae-young.

“Alright then. Rest well,”I ruffled your hair.

“Bye,”you gave me a look that sent chills down my spine.

Was that a look that said you didn’t want me to go? But what the heck was I thinking? You probably didn’t like me at that point of time. Ae-young and I then proceeded to the lobby to grab a mug of hot chocolate. We settled down on a sofa and began talking. She updated me about her life and that was when she was about to tear up when she spoke of her boyfriend.

“We’re going through a rough patch now,”she said softly.

“Well, you two will be okay after that! Aren’t all couples all like that?”I smiled.

“If only he was as caring as you, Eunhyuk. We really should have gotten together that time,”she looked me in the eyes.

“Er, Ae-young, I’m so sorry about that. It’s just, I really couldn’t bring myself to go into another relationship that time,”I tried to avoid her gaze.

“I know. You’ve told me countless of times,”she sighed.

There was silence before she spoke again.

“Anyway, are you attached now?”she asked.

“No, what makes you think I am?”I asked with a smile.

“You were the prince back in our school! Every girl had a major crush on you! Besides, you seem to be rather concerned of your friend, Haemin earlier on,”she eyed me.

“Of course, I’m concerned. She’s my best friend,”I explained.

“Oh,”she seemed relieved.

At that point in time, I was getting all confused by all the signs she’s showing. What was she hinting at? Well, months later, I knew.

“Anyway, it’s late. I need to go find my parents! See you around!”she patted my back before going off.

Before I left for our room, I went to get two mugs of hot chocolate for Donghae and you. As I opened the door to your room, your face lit up.

“You’re back!”you exclaimed.

“Here’s your hot chocolate,”I passed the two mugs to Donghae and you.

“How was the catching up with Ae-young?”Donghae asked.

You looked up and wanted to know as well.

“It was good as usual. Just talked,”I smiled.

“Yah, you’re hiding something, aren’t you!”Donghae nudged.

I didn’t want to tell him about what Ae-young had said. Moreover, I thought I was being over-sensitive and shouldn’t make a big fuss out of it.

“No! I’m not! Drink your hot chocolate!”I looked away.

That night, after Donghae and I nagged at you to rest well, we went back to our own room. We were leaving tomorrow and began packing up.

“Did you see Haemin’s face just now?”Donghae asked out of nowhere.

“When?”I asked.

“When I asked whether you were hiding something,”he replied.

“No. Why?”I asked.

“Her face seemed like, she didn’t believe that you aren’t hiding anything. Like she knows you didn’t want to tell us something. She’s correct, right? What did Ae-young tell you?”Donghae turned to look at me.

I then told him everything.

“Don’t tell me Ae-young has a thing for you,”he chuckled.

“Shut up,”I rolled my eyes.

“Okay, forget about Ae-young for the moment. I think Haemin likes you back,”he stood up straight.

“What makes you think that way?”I asked.

“Didn’t you see how reluctant she was to leave you alone with Ae-young? And when you came back, her whole face lit up,”Donghae shook his head.

“I’m her best friend. Of course, she’ll want me to keep her company when she’s sick,”I said.

“I really think she does like you,”Donghae said.

“You’re nuts. Someone as pretty as her would never like me,”I said.

“You’re not too bad yourself. You were our school’s prince charming!”he said.

Back in our previous school, the two of us were considered the most good looking ones around. Not that I’m boasting, it was absolutely true. If Donghae’s heart didn’t have Soobin, he would have been more popular than I was. So, I ended up sweeping all those popular titles they had back then like Prom King.

“I really doubt she’ll like me. Her previous boyfriend and I have no similarities!”I said.

“Have more confidence in yourself. Confess to her!”Donghae held me by my arms.

“You’re mad! We’ve only known each other for a year or so!”I pushed him away lightly.

“But you two seem like you’re made for each other! She seems to know what you need and vice versa!”Donghae kept pushing the idea towards me.

“Stop it, Lee Donghae. I will not confess to her. At least not now,”I said firmly.

“Fine by me! But this is one girl, you must get! She’s really the one for you!”Donghae patted my back.

Without Donghae saying, I knew that too. Everyone could tell how perfectly matched we were for each other. But I was a coward back then. I didn’t dare profess my love for you. I just had the feeling that you didn't reciprocate my feelings for you. You were like someone so beyond my reach. It made me ashamed, thinking that I could have you. But, hey, miracles do happen and we did have our own happy memories after that, didn’t we? Those memories were really my moments in heaven. Being with you, it makes me feel like I wasn’t living on earth but rather living in my fantasy. It was too good to be true. And because it seems like I’ve been living in my fantasy for far too long, you decided to give me a reality check by leaving me. Then, my world came crashing down. I was to deal with the harsh reality all alone. After you came into my life, I couldn’t imagine a life without you. I guess I was too used to having you around. This feeling is still around after a year. I still haven’t learnt to live without you, baby. Even after a year. Please come back to me.

End of Chapter

DarkAngel