I heard from someone, somebody, he said that; the universal law of love is; love will occur when a man meet his destined women at the right moment, at the right place. The sparks will erupt from the eyes of the beholder, and then dived into their soul, carved deeply on their hearts. Both threads of life will entwine, knitting themselves into blanket of love.

If that so, why I am, the person who believed and hold this law at heart; suffering like this. To where the sparks had gone I wonder, when the only thing that I can feel is the stings behind my eyes, preventing the tears from falling. On why my life threads had tangled I ponder and become a bitter lump of bile in my throat leaving it congested. Moreover, about the love blanket, oh how the blanket had thorn, leaving me bare to this pain.

“You should just dump her HyukJae. She’s not worth it.” I opened my lethargy eyes and stare at the boy as he said this. DongHae, one cute brunette with a cheerful personality I must said. I knew him since a year ago. We shared music and dance classes together. He is not someone that I particularly like or dislike, it just that I used to his presence around me. He is just an acquaintance that I never seriously put my thought on. Today, it just happened that we stranded in this dance studio together, unable to go home with no umbrella in this wild November rain after our dance class.

DongHae casually flipped his brown hair and pulled them in a messy ponytail, he continued vomiting his mind, “You should know by now, girl like her, she will date anybody who is looks like on two feet. It might sound harsh, but deep inside; you know it is the truth."

"There will be always be someone else, or anything elses. She’ll say that you weren’t paying enough attention to her, you did not love her enough, you weren’t a good kisser, or even not good enough in bed, anything, and the next thing you will be seeing her kissing another man in front of your very nose.”  DongHae keep on rambling.

Felt suddenly annoyed, I ran my fingers in my damp red hair, partially covered my eyes with my hand, tried to shun him out of my view. ‘Nosey lad, like he knew anything about her.’  

Smacking my lips, I think about the girl. Ah, the girl that this handsome man being babbling just now was my ex girlfriend. Yes, I said it right. She was, meaning whatever happened between us had passed, and she is now, my ex.

Concentrating my gaze to my shoelace, my already battered mind cannot help but to re-bleed again when I think about how easy she dumped me this morning. She called me just before my class start, as easy as changing her shoes; she casually uttered the death verdict, and walked away. Leaving me gasping, dying inside.

And, just like a cliché in romance novel, the rain start to pour down. I hate love novel, and I hate cliché the most, but at that time, I thankful of the rain. The big drops that fall heavily from the sky were as if God’s extended hands reaching out and embraced me in His arms. The rain that effectively drenched me from head to toes, also effectively masking the tears that soon followed the bang. I just stare at her retreating figure in silence, like an idiot I am, I failed to utter a single intelligent syllable, or even a sad sobs. I heard my small bitter laugh at this thought. ‘Once an idiot; is always an idiot HyukJae.’

“How long had you been with her?” his bright voice pierced trough my hazed. DongHae is surely a talker. I felt my annoyance steadily boiled into anger. I am angry not only of DongHae’s persistent trait, but also mostly to myself. I knew she would leave me someday and today is just ‘the’ day that she decided to leave.

As DongHae said, she always whined about this and that. Want to go here and there. Why don’t I be more like this person or that guy. For half a year, I lived and endured them for her. I did it because I wanted, no; I needed to put meaning in the ‘relationship’ that we shared.

Even after everything that I did, she will prove that I am not good enough. Always lacks of something. Now, I clearly see, the only thing that lacked in our relationship; is her love to me. She just waltzes her way from me in the arms of her new man, as if I was not even there. In addition, to add on a jagged scar to my dignity, she chooses to throw me away the morning after we have our first . Ironically, a stupid me thought, the heat and lust that we shared last night was love. Again, I chuckles a bitter laugh, a laugh that is so bitter, with not even a glint of humor in it. I almost vomit at this point. Feeling despised of me.   

I closed my eyes and smiled a little while wiping my face with my towel. “It had been sometime, and I had my share of fun while it last, or I should say, lasted.” I opened my eyes and met two brown orbs. I saw DongHae’s eyes lit a little at this. He smiled widely, not even bothered to hide his happiness at my suffering, he said, “Good for you then, I’m glad. You are just too nice for your own good HyukJae, being with girl like that, you only end up hurting yourself.”

Touché DongHae, for a person I rarely communicate with, he able to read me like an open book. I am amazed. I wonder, was it because of his ability, or it was from his own experience in life or was it I am so easy to read and to be fool off.

Standing on his feet, his wide smile never leaves his face as DongHae walked closer to me. Still looking at him with half interest, I closed my eyes again, trying to close the world and to shut him as well. I startled and fidgeted a bit when I sensed a presence in front of me, invading my personal space. With all-too-wide smile, DongHae placed two earpieces to my ears.

“I know you are broken heart and everything, but right now, I need your expertise help.” Ignoring my obviously widening and questioning eyes, he kept on shuffled the songs on his IPod, searched his right tune. “This is the song that I composed and I had this dance to match with it. Seemed that you are the best dancer in our class, why don’t you help me with my choreography?”

For the second time today, I am amazed, no; I am speechless. How rude a man can be? With his above roof self-confident, have this man ever learnt a good social skill before? Like basic things about, on how to respect others? Or, even to shut his tramp when the other person is as clear as a crystal showing no interest in you? So unbelievable this boy is. Still ignoring my venomous stare, DongHae backed up several steps and stand by the middle of the studio. I was about to spat hurtful words to him until I started to hear his voice in my ears.

You are completely beautiful

I just can’t be without you, girl

You are completely beautiful

I just can’t be without you, girl

I think of what we were like when I first met you

Your bashful smile, your shy words, your cold hands

I thought of you every day

I couldn’t do anything (almost going crazy)

His eyes closed, brows knitted in concentrations. He mouthed the words perfectly, as if he can hear his song from afar. My eyes were blind by the explosion of beautiful sight in front of me. The stings behind my orbs seemed to become a sparkle of small lights.

Unable to turn my gaze away

Like a fool, I could only lose myself in you

I want to walk together with you for a lifetime

I will protect you, I love you, oh love

Cause you are so beautiful

Let me gasp against your lips, to say this phrase, “I love you”

Cause you are so beautiful

Just stay by my side (you belong only to me)

Careful steps, hands flies fluidly to the song. Mysteriously, I found my breath erratically irregular. My mouth suddenly felt dry, so dry that I might drink the whole river; yet still will be suffers of thirst. I swallowed hard, together with the bile that I held just now.

My beautiful, my beautiful, oh oh

It’s fine if time stops like this; it’s fine if we grow old

I love you, I love you, thank you, thank you

Occasionally, when there is a quarrel

I will cry as I kiss your lips

Cause you are so beautiful

Let me gasp against your lips, to say this phrase, “I love you”

Cause you are so beautiful

Just stay by my side (you belong only to me)

Browns orbs opened and his gaze met mine. Saying those beautiful words with emotions, as if it meant something. I turned my eyes sideways, unable to win the staring game that’s seems to last forever just now. It felt stuffy in here. I found myself tossing around in my sit; I looked around except to the artist himself. The reflections on the mirror do not help much with my avoidance. The humid weather with this suddenly hot room was not help much either. I discarded my thorn and worn blanket, trying to feel the new breeze, slowly blowing now. 

I’ve only given her my everything

I will love you forever, oh

Cause you are so beautiful

I want your lips to belong only to me

Cause you are so beautiful

I will never let go of these hands I hold so tightly

Ending his show so perfectly, I wonder why he still needs me to criticize his performance. ‘Think HyukJae, think, and say something, anything.’

 “That was beautiful; maybe it will be more beautiful if you have a partner dancing with you, you looked kind of… lonely on the stage alone like that.” Great, HyukJae, geniuses, like he ever need a partner or to improved anything from that ‘beautiful’ show.

“You think so? Wah, you are so rite. I always thought it lacked of something, hem, now I know."

Grinning like a mad man, that I afraid might split his face into two, DongHae once again stepped closer. Extending his hand to me he said, “Let’s go.”

Perplexed, I looked blankly at his hand and face. Rolling his eyes while grabbing my hand, he pulled me up on my feet. “Aish, Hyukkie, you helped me right? I know, I was annoying back then, but I still have my manners, therefore, let me treat you tonight. Let us hang out, have some drink with this stranger. Besides, it’s not like you have any date for tonight.” Defeated, I smiled weakly as he skipped his way out while my hand still warmly wrapped in his.

As we walked out of the building, the rain had stopped, leaving wet pavement marking its existence. I am not sure whether it is because of the reflecting shadows of the streetlights in the water poodles, or DongHae’s presence by my side, but one thing I know for sure, my bleeding and gloomy heart makes a summersault and jump excitedly at this point.

In the damp weather, we drank late into the night.

When I thought I would complain mostly about my ex-girlfriend, surprisingly, DongHae proved me wrong. We get along so well. We talked about everything, as random as the car model that we liked, until DongHae’s obsession towards aliens and weird stuff. We had fun. Just before I passed out from alcohol, he offered me to crash at his place for the night, which I gladly accept, as I am not convinced that I will survives my trip home without bruises, small cuts or even serious injuries.

Therefore, here I am, at his place. After taking my much-needed shower, I put on his shirt and pants. A little bit loose on me, but I felt comfortable, warm or nearly felt..secured having them wrapping my body. His apartment was small; only consist of a bathroom, and cabinet which become his ‘kitchen’ and his super single size bed.

“You live alone?” I asked him as he stepped out of the shower in his wife beater and shorts, drying his hair off.

“Em, my mom and brother are at Mokpo, they seldom come here. Mokpo is so far away you know.”

Nodding my head to his answer, I make myself comfortable in his bed. “Is it really ok with you for me to sleep here, I mean, sharing your bed? I can sleep on floor.” curious, I searched for his face.

Still smiling lightly, he said, “It’s ok, being alone, without a girlfriend is kind of lonely, so, to have someone to share my bed is fun, even though that said person with a flat chest and a bulge in his pants.” DongHae winks playfully at me.

Feeling the heat crept onto my face, I threw a pillow towards the man. “Hey! It was you who asked me to sleep here, tonight, Hae.”

“Hi hi hi.. so feisty.” He catches the pillow with eased and started to climb onto the bed.  

Settling down beside me, shoulder to shoulder, we stare at the dirty ceiling in silent. DongHae took a deep breath before saying, “You know, Hyukkie, I am genuinely glad you broke up with her, really. I am sorry if my harsh words ever offended you in any way, but, I think, you deserved someone better.”

I can’t exactly pinpoint when HyukJae had changed to Hyukkie, and DongHae changed to Hae, but listening to the nick names passed between us is such a pleasure to me. “Why you say that?” I swallows my own spit to ease my suddenly constricted throat. Still gluing my eyes towards the plain ceiling, I silently waited for the answer. The stretched between us and the mattress deepens as I felt DongHae shifted and faced me.

Brown orbs, softly dug my face, his melodic voice sang it way into my ears, “I don’t know, maybe because I never believe in relationship that only based on . I despised them. Or maybe because I understand how you feel right now, maybe it is because the way my ex dumped or hurt me before, or simply because, for me, you are beautiful and deserves more than that.”

My eyes suddenly widens at his remark. Is it hurt, or is it care, or worries that I heard from this stranger. Why he put up with me to this extend is still a wonder for me. My heart convinced that he deliberately stayed with me after the class and entertained me, just to make me feel better. But, why? It is not as if we are two best buddies, the person that I’ll turned to when I get hurt, or a shoulder that I usually leaned on when things get tougher, we don’t even share a joke before. I turned my head and faced him. What I saw afterwards astounded me. With eyes shut closed, lips slightly apart; soft light bath him in a beautiful glow. DongHae looked so tranquil and younger this way.

I blamed it to the moment or even to the cool weather or it might due to my rebound state for the move I did next. I hesitantly traced his beautiful features with my finger. My wandering finger makes it stop as it reached DongHae’s thin lips. I rubbed my thumb along his lips as I scooted closer. I stopped an inch before his face and stare in silent. My breaths markedly become shallower and rapid, pressing my chest to the point of uncomfortable. I put my hand on my maddening heart. My alcohol-intoxicated head unable to digest the situation in hand now, getting drunker then I already am, I closed the gap between us.

The sudden surge of desires that flooded me soon after our lips touched makes me shuddered. The contact was so brief yet it felt like eternity. The simple pact on the skin makes the sparks, the thread, or even the blanket from my previous shuttered love that I grasped tightly in my heart thrown out of the window just like that. ‘This is madness HyukJae,’ my head screamed. Feeling guilty, I withdrew from the kiss that I stole. I looked up and found myself was caught red handed by my ‘victim’ as I was greet by his two brown orbs.

My face red in embarrassments, feeling sober all the sudden, I shot myself up immediately. “Mianhe, DongHae, I don’t know what am I doing, I must be drinking more than my body can handle, please forgive me.” I closed my eyes and bows deeply in front of him.

I raised my head up, as I didn’t hear any comeback from him. Face blank, he keep on staring at me. I fidgeted on my feet. Swallowing my spit hard, I turned my attention towards the floor. Biting my lips, I know, it was all over for me right now. Scratching my non-itchy nape, I excused myself out. “I guess I should be going now, urm, thank you for your company and the drinks.” I wore my pants in an awkward silence. I can feel DongHae’s eyes dug my back intensely while my hands trembled putting on the buttons.

I bow at him one last time before I closed the door behind me. On his bed, DongHae, still in deafening silence, he slowly raised his hand and touched his lips where I just kissed him. He must be so mad at me right now.

I dragged my heavy feet, soundly against the pavement. I hung my head low, so ashamed of myself. How could I let myself caught in the moment like that? He had been so nice to me for the entire day, keeping me accompany, when even I didn’t realized that I needed it the most. I bet if I wasn’t with him just now, I’ll be crying alone at the dark corner of my room, devastated over my pathetic lost love. I reached the children playground which in between DongHae’s apartment and the train station.

‘Ah, it’s already 2 a.m., the last train had long gone. The next one will be on 5 a.m. I have another 3 hours. I need to cool off my head, so I guess; spending a night here, wouldn’t hurt much.

I lay on the slide with both of my hands behind my head; I looked up to the sky. I silently hummed DongHae’s self composed song as I closed my weary eyes. It is a little bit cloudy tonight, but they still unable to cover the shining stars up there, the cold night breeze lightly caressed my face, makes my shivers a bit. What a lovely night for lovers, I mused, they can cuddle in each other’s arms while counting the stars at night like this. Smiling a little, I can’t help to think, this night will be better if I stay in DongHae’s bed with DongHae’s warmth by my side, but that will never happened again in future as I just blew whatever fragile bridge that clung us together. For good. Groaned heavily upon my own stupidity, I closed my eyes.

What about love again? Why it had only will occur between a man and a woman? Is the law still relevant to me, or is it the same law applied when I experienced a circus in my stomach and an orchestra in my heart when I kissed him just now? I surely doesn’t see any sparks, nor saw any threads knitting themselves into a blanket, but what I felt was so real. Everything I ever learnt about love exploded into small dust, carried away by the November wind with that simple kiss. Nevertheless, I was mad as I failed to recognize it earlier, and just ponder about it when it’s all over. DongHae must have hated me so much now, taking advantage on him like that, when I knew he hated ‘shallow relationship’ based on like that.  

Just before I doze off, I heard footsteps approaching me. The footsteps getting closer and closer until it stopped just beside me. Curious, I opened one of my eyes and peeped at the intruder. Two round eyes, which were too close to my face, startled me. I looked at DongHae, still in his wife beater and shorts, with an umbrella in one hand. I sat from my position and faced him.

“DongHae-a, what are you doing here?”

“Looking for you.” He casually said.

“How do you know I’m here?”

“I don’t, my feet did. They just dragged me here.”

Trying my own luck, I looked him in the eyes and asked, “Why are you looking for me?”

Shrugging his shoulder, “Hem, first, because it is already late, not everyone is nice in this neighborhood,  you might come across with any of them, and you might get hurt. Second, this is raining season, and I don’t want you be caught up in the rain, and thirdly..”

I can felt his hesitation as he paused for a while. Looking everywhere but to me, what I heard he mumbled with his clenched teeth makes me smile.

“And thirdly, my bed felt empty and cold without you occupying it.”

“Ok, I can argue with the first two reasons, but your last one caught me hanging here. I really didn’t want ‘that’ to happen, especially to someone who had helped me a lot today didn’t I?” My gummy smile grew wider and wider. Closing the distance between us, I reached out and held his free hand in both mine.

“But Hae-a, don’t you feel afraid that I might ‘molest’ you again in you sleep? I’m a dangerous stranger you know.”

DongHae laughed heartedly at this. “Molest me? I was about to ‘molest’ you if you didn’t kissed me first just now, stranger.”

Surprise, surprise. As he held my hand and gently entwined our fingers together, he started to walk back to his apartment. “Yah, let’s have some sleep tonight, you still have morning class tomorrow, right?” Nodding my head slowly, I ‘Em-ed’ at his question.

“DongHae-a, what you think will happen if we get back into you single bed tonight?”

“Hem, when you insisting like that, I must say..  a ‘very’ interesting thing going to take place, but of course, it needed both you and I to make it happen.”

I chuckled at his vake answer. I looked into his eyes and tighten our fingers together.

Hem, tonight is going to be an interesting night indeed. So I guess, the law of love doesn’t really apply between us, all you need to fall in love is the person that you grew to like and a perfect kiss to make it happen, and love will occur at any time, at any given place and to anyone.

Fin***

Credits to: DongHae, the composer and the singer of Beautiful, EunHyuk, the dancer, the owner of the pics (sorry, I edited em a bit) and Yamagata Satomi, mangaka of That’s Another Law of Love.

btw, readers, read and comment ne? appreciate it^^