“I have an idea, but if you don’t like it we can find something else to do,” Soohyun says, opening the shop door for Marina.

She thanks him with a smile. “Why don’t you tell me what it is before I decide? I think you’re off to a really good start with a painting.”

He grins. “I was a little worried it’d be weird, but I’m glad you like it.”

“It’s not weird. It shows you pay attention to people.”

“I think it comes with being the leader. I’m responsible for the other members, so I have to look after them and notice the little things.” Reaching the car, he walks to the other side and opens the door for her. “I guess I do it unconsciously now.”

“Thank you,” Marina smiles shyly. When Soohyun joins her inside, she continues, “It’s really sweet. It’s something I’d look for in a boyfriend.”

He laughs despite the unexpectedness of her confession when she immediately covers her face and glances at him with an embarrassed expression.

“Mianhae,” she apologizes, lowering her hands but looking at her feet. “I tend to speak without thinking when I’m nervous. I’m not trying to pressure you or anything.”

“It’s okay,” Soohyun assures her, starting the car. “I’m just glad I’m not the only one who’s a little nervous. I haven’t been on a date in a long time.”

Marina glances up at him, visibly relaxing. “I’ve never been on one.”

He looks at her with raised eyebrows. “There’s no way.”

“What?”

“You’ve never had a boyfriend. Ever,” Soohyun says in a disbelieving tone.


She shakes her head. “There was a boy in middle school that I got close to during our school trip, but he asked another girl out when we got back to school.”

He shakes his head. “I really don’t believe it.”

“Why?”

“You’re-” Soohyun glances at her before quickly looking back at the road. “You’re really pretty. And nice.”

Marina laughs, not looking at him either. “Thanks. I don’t really know either, but I’m telling the truth.”

“I believe you. It’s just strange.”

“I think it’s because I’m usually really quiet, so people tend to look over me.”

“But you talked with me just fine when we had just met in the park,” Soohyun points out.


“A lucky fluke,” Marina shrugs with a smile. “Jimin says I’ve gotten a lot better, but I’m an ongoing project.”

“Who’s Jimin?”

“She’s my absolutely insane best friend. Basically imagine if you took a fairy, made it life size, and fed it a ton of caffeine and chocolate. That’s Jimin.”

He laughs. “She sounds like a handful.”

Marina laughs too. “Oh, she is. I’m surprised Yongsool’s able to keep up with her.”

“Yongsool?”

“Jimin’s boyfriend. He joined our group when we got to university and was crazy about Jimin from the start, but she was already dating someone, who was an jerk by the way, so it took a while for them to get together.”

“Oh,” Soohyun says with a relieved sigh.

“What was that for?” Marina asks with a smile.

“I was a little worried he was someone you liked,” he explains. “With the way you called me ‘oppa’ so easily earlier, I thought...”

“There’s no one,” she quickly reassures him. “The last present I got was from my older brother, so that might be why I said that.”

“So you have an older brother?”

Marina nods. “A stepbrother, Jacob. He’s working back in the States now for an animation company. What about you? Do you have any siblings?”

“An older and younger sister,” Soohyun replies with a smile, thinking of how his sisters would react if they knew where he was. “Minhye and Dahye. Marina?”

“Yes?”

“I was just thinking, since we’ve started our ‘date’...how’d you feel about not using formalities?”

“If you want,” Marina smiles, slowly trying out informal language.

“Much better,” Soohyun smiles back, replying in the same way. “Makes things relaxed.”

She nods in agreement. “You still haven’t told me where we’re going yet, oppa.”

He stays silent for a few minutes before answering. “There’s a small cafe I know with a park a few blocks away. I was thinking we could grab some coffee or

whatever you’d like and then walk around, but...”

“But?”

“Since you’ve never been on a date before, I’m going to make sure this date is a really special one,” Soohyun smiles.

“It’s all right,” Marina protests as he parks the car on the street. “I really like your first plan. You don’t have to go out of your way to be nice to me.”

“I know I don’t have to, but I want to. Every girl deserves to be treated like a princess on her first date,” he replies easily. “I’d take you out for dinner, but that’s out since I already promised your mom I’d come to your house. So, what would Princess Marina like to do today?”

Marina blushes at the affectionate nickname. “Um...I don’t know. Could we start out with your original plan and see where we go from there?”

Soohyun bows as much as his seatbelt will allow before pulling out onto the street again. “As the princess commands.”

“Thank you, Prince Soohyun,” she giggles.

His smile widens at the sound even as his mind races to find a way to fulfill his new promise.

It doesn’t take long until they reach the quiet street. Soohyun parks the car and rushes to the other side, but is too late.

“I’m supposed to open the doors for you,” he pouts, catching the door as she steps out.

She pats his shoulder as he shuts the door. “I’ll let you get the next one, okay?”

“All right. It’s just down this way.” Inspired, Soohyun tentatively holds out his hand.

With a slightly surprised look, Marina glances between his hand and his face before slowly slipping her hand into his.

    As his fingers tighten around hers, an overwhelming feeling of rightness floods Soohyun’s heart. He can’t help the simultaneous grin despite the normal part of his mind telling him to calm down.

“Are you sure it’s all right?” Marina asks as they begin walking down the street hand in hand, looking around at the few people on the street.

“They know me around here; my house is just up that way,” he explains, pointing with his free hand. “They won’t say anything. Besides, no one notices me when I go out anyway.”

“They don’t? But,...you’re an amazing singer and so handsome! How is that possible?”

Soohyun ducks his head at the unexpected praise. “I’m not really either of those.”

“But you are! You have to be one of the best vocals out there and your smile makes other people want to smile back,” Marina insists, squeezing his hand.

“You really think so?”

She nods.

“Thank you, Marina,” Soohyun smiles, feeling lighter for some reason.

Marina smiles back, laughing, “See? Just seeing you smile makes me happy.”

He laughs along with her, stopping short when he realizes they’d completely walked past the small shop. “Oops. It’s this one.”

This time, Soohyun successfully opens the door before Marina can.

Giggling, she precedes him inside and says, “Gomawo,oppa.”

He smiles and waves at the store owner, who smiles and nods back before going back to arranging some of the display. Leading Marina over to the space just before the counter, he asks, “What would you like?”

Scanning the drink menu, she mulls it over. “The iced white chocolate mocha sounds good. What’re you getting?”

“Still deciding.” As he debates between something new or his usual, he catches Marina looking longingly at the nokcha cakes through the glass. Smiling, he slowly loosens his hand from hers. “I’ll go get our drinks, okay? You can wait at the table if you want.”

“All right,” Marina smiles in return, walking towards the small table he’d indicated.

After ordering and quietly discussing something with the owner, Soohyun quickly returns to Marina’s side with the two drinks and a small paper bag.

“What’s that?” she asks, standing and looking at the bag curiously.

“You’ll see,” he replies, passing her her drink, taking her hand again, and leading her out the door. “One more stop before I show you the park.”

    This makes Marina want to know the bag’s content even more, but she waits and stays in step beside Soohyun as he brings her back the way they’d come. He stops in front of the stands of an open fronted shop, his nose scrunching up a little as he searches the numerous boxes scattered across the table.

Smiling when he finds what he wanted, he picks up two bracelets and holds them out to Marina. “What do you think?”

“They’re so cute,” she gushes, slipping a finger through one of them to get a better look.

Both bracelets are mostly braided black cord with a single, circular bead. A fish with pouting lips decorates each bead, one red and one blue.

“And look at this.” Holding the bracelets so the two beads face each other, he lets them snap together. “See? They’re kissing fish.”

“That’s so cool,” Marina laughs, pulling the bracelets apart and letting them draw back together a few more times.

“Then we’re getting them.”

“But-”

“You don’t want to have a cute couple bracelet?” Soohyun asks, teasingly guilting her with puppy eyes.

She chuckles and shakes her head. After he pays and slips the bracelet around her wrist, she says, “I just feel bad about letting you pay for everything.”

“That’s what a gentleman’s supposed to do,” he replies, securely tying her bracelet. “I wouldn’t want my mom to think she’d raised anything else.”

“Let me,” Marina says when he starts struggling to tie his own bracelet. With deft fingers, she tightens the knot before slipping her hand back in his and giggling when the two fish immediately snap together.

“Thanks.”

Marina smiles.“So where to now, oppa?”

“The park I wanted to show you is right around the corner.”

    With smiling faces, they set off and quickly arrive at the park’s entrance. Passing under the natural arches of old trees, Soohyun leads Marina towards a hill, but stops just at the bottom.

Looking down at her, he asks, “Do you trust me?”

She looks at their linked hands and back to his face. “What?”

“Do you trust me?” Soohyun repeats.

“Yes,” comes the slow answer.

“Good.” Letting go of her hand, he moves behind her and covers her eyes with his free hand.

“What’re you doing?” she giggles.

“You’ll see. We’re just going to the top of the hill.”

“Okay.”

Awkwardly waddling up the hill together, Soohyun gently tugs on Marina’s shoulder when they reach the crest. “All right. You can look now.”

Eagerly, Marina reaches up to pull down Soohyun’s hand. Keeping her grip on it, she sighs happily and leans against him as she takes in the sight in front of them. “Wow.”

    A wide, multi-ringed grove of cherry trees surrounds a shallow pond at the bottom of a small valley formed by the gently sloping hills. Most of the faded blossoms still adorn the trees, but some have fallen to the ground in a false snow, shaken from the boughs by a gentle wind that still blows.

Unconsciously, Soohyun hugs Marina’s shoulders tighter and rests his face against her hair. “I though you’d like it.”

“I do. It’s like a fairy-tale,” she says. Observing the scene in silence for a few more minutes, she asks, “Do you come here often?”

“I pass it every once in awhile when I do my morning run,” he replies, reluctantly sliding his arm away, sinking down onto the grass, and patting the space beside him. “I’ve never stopped, but I’m kind of wishing I had now.”

Marina sits beside him, her legs straight out in front of her and propping herself up by putting her arms behind her. “It’d be a really nice series of paintings. Like the same spot, but one for each of the seasons.”

“Do you always see the world like that?” Soohyun asks inquisitively.

“Sometimes,” she shrugs. “There’s so much beauty in the things that are just before our eyes and to try to capture that one moment of realization...it’s...I can’t really explain.”

“I think I understand,” Soohyun says slowly. “It’s like trying to share that feeling with others. Like with singing, you’re not just singing the words, but the emotions behind them as well.”

Marina nods vigorously. “Exactly.”

A small beep distracts them from the shared moment.

Marina takes her phone out of her purse and reads the text while Soohyun uses the opportunity to bring the paper bag from the cafe back out.

Putting her phone away, she smiles at him. “It was just my mom seeing if I’m having fun and to tell us dinner’s at six.”

“Guess we better eat these soon then so we’re hungry again by then,” he smiles back, offering her the bag.

Marina’s eyes light up as she reaches in and takes out one of the small cakes. “Oppa! You didn’t have to.”

“I like them too,” Soohyun laughs, taking one for himself and popping it in his mouth. “It’s not right to drink coffee without a little snack to go with it.”

“True,” she laughs, closing her eyes to savor the flavor.

“You and your mom don’t really look alike. Do you look more like your dad?” he asks casually, admiring the small nuances of her face as she enjoys the treat.

“That’s because she’s not actually my mom. She’s my stepmom,” Marina shrugs.

“You must be really close to her then. To call her ‘Mom,’ I mean.”

“I am. I don’t really remember my real mother. She died of cancer when I was three and Dad married Sarah two years later.”

Soohyun instantly regrets saying anything. “I’m sorry, Marina.”

Marina gives him a small smile. “It’s all right. I still have pictures of her and some of her things. My dad always tells me I have her eyes. Here, would you like to see?”

He nods, watching as she pulls out her wallet, opens it to a smaller pocket, and carefully extracts a small, slightly bedraggled photo. Soohyun leans in closer as she holds the picture between the two of them.

    A young woman with Marina’s dark hair and hazel eyes beams back at the camera as she holds a small, sleeping Marina securely in her arms. Arms hugging her shoulders, a young man with chestnut hair and the long lashed eyes of a dreamer beams as well. However, all his adoring attention is focused on his family, as if the rest of the world didn’t matter.

“I think she’s prettier than me,” Marina says softly, a finger across her mother’s face. “I wish I’d had more time with her, but sometimes it feels like she’s still here, watching over me.”

“I know how you feel,” Soohyun says in an equally quiet voice. “My dad was sick for a long time and died when I was in second grade. I couldn’t really understand that he was gone, but you’re right. They’re always with us.”

    Marina’s hand reaches for Soohyun’s even as he reaches for hers. The tiny click of their bracelets makes them both smile. The hand with the photo drops into Marina’s lap as her head drops on Soohyun’s strong shoulder. Resting his head on hers again, he listens to her breathe. Instead of feeling that the sudden somber turn in conversation has ruined their date, he can’t help feeling that it brought them even closer in the short time they’ve known each other. Although he wasn’t sure what, Soohyun was definitely sure there was something special about the girl by his side.

=========================

Annyeong and mianhae, my lovely readers! Jeongmal mianhae! *bows repeatedly* It's almost the end of semester so coursework is picking up which is why I've been so negligent about my duties as a writer. Again, mainhae! I'll try to be better in the future. About a certain detail of the story, I wasn't able to find Soohyun's older sister's name, so I just had to guess. Big congrats to him for keeping his family safe&out of media attention. Anyway, I hope you all like this update. And isn't the new poster pretty? ^^

turtle_chan: ke ke, thanks! Actually, this one's going to have a little more drama than my others, but it will be awhile because the story's still developing. Thanks for your support! ^^

Coralie_x_SHINee: Yay! Yes, Soohyun's definitely one of the biggest sweethearts out there.

Moony_Kat: ke ke, it's ok; I understood.^^ That may be my problem, but I don't know. You're not bad! I hope you did well on your test! Kitten hwaiting!

dreamwriter_97: Be careful when you spaz, arasso? ^^ UKiss is just going to get even cuter. ;)

MyCherryTomatoe: Chincha! Yay, another Soohyun lover! Do you have any idea how few Soohyun-biased people I can find? An even fewer Soohyun fics. =/ I'm glad my story made you feel better and I will continue until the story tells me it is done.

MewNikkiChan: Maybe...*looks away*Soohyun loves you too! ^^