Fans… fans… fans… they were the main people that Lee Hyukjae was running away from because they unfortunately discovered him when he went into Starbucks to buy a coffee, it annoyed him as well because he didn’t even get a chance to order. He kept running and then ran into a random building, hoping that the fan girls wouldn’t see him go in. Luckily for him, they ran by thinking that he went past the next corner.

A sigh of relief escaped his lips and he saw them walk past. He got out and saw a girl, who was wearing dark sunglasses, had been knocked over by the running fan girls. “I thought that fan girls would have at least the decency to help someone up if they knocked them over…” he thought. He walked over to the girl and helped her up. “Are you okay?” he asked.

The girl looked around aimlessly and gripped the stick that she had been holding in her hand. “Jaesun?” she said, smiling.

Just as Hyukjae was about to ask her if he even knew who he was, he slowly put the pieces together. Dark sunglasses, long walking stick, calling him by a name that wasn’t his. The girl was most likely blind. “Uhh…” he began, trying to break the news that he wasn’t who she thought he was. Because he now knew she was blind, he didn’t want to hurt her feelings.

Without warning, the girl’s arms flung around his waist and she started crying into his chest. Hyuk didn’t know what to do. But then she spoke. “Don’t you know how much I missed you, Jaesun? I thought you left me without caring how I felt. I thought you wouldn’t come near me again after I confessed my love for you last week in the lecture hall.” She continued to cry, her words turning into sobs.

Hyukjae still didn’t know what to do. But he did feel sorry for the girl. He held her and let her cry as his attention went to the name that was on her bag. It had a series of bumps under it, making him assume that it was Braille. He read the name above the Braille lettering and it was Kwon Ae Young. He then remembered that he had to be back at the KBS building in several minutes. He looked at the girl and sighed. He wanted to meet her again because something in him didn’t want to hurt the girl’s feelings. “Ae Young-ssi… I have to go for now but can we meet here again later today?” he asked.

Ae Young nodded. “Jaesun, there’s no need for formalities, you already know who I am…” she said. A slight laugh escaped her lips. “I’ll still be here when you get back…” she said.

Eunhyuk nodded and smiled at the girl. But then he reminded himself that he would have to say yes. “Of course… I’ll see you later then…” he said, patting her on the back and running towards the KBS Building. As he entered, he was almost out of breath and Leeteuk looked at him, giving him a confused look. Normally Hyuk was quick with coming back from a random coffee run, but this time he was cutting it close to Sukira starting. “Sorry hyung…. had to hide out from several fangirls that saw me…” he explained, purposely leaving out the thing about him meeting Ae Young.

The two Sukira DJs started their radio show and had Key from SHINee visiting them randomly. All throughout the recording, Hyukjae couldn’t get his mind off of Ae Young, He knew that she was just another girl. But he felt something special about her and it wasn’t because she was blind. The show came to a close and Hyukjae told Leeteuk that he would be back later because he was going to go do several things and since he was free after Sukira, he wanted some time alone.

Leeteuk looked at him confused again but just let him go. After all, the mama duck can’t always keep their baby ducklings in the pond. But before Hyuk could leave, he reminded him that he should be back early because they had schedules early in the morning.

The younger male nodded and then ran out of the KBS Building and back to the place where he left Ae Young and he couldn’t find her. He sighed, a little disappointed and then he saw her on another bench, with a book on her lap. It seemed liked she was reading. Slowly, he walked up to the bench and sat down next to her. “Hello Ae Young,” he said, in a kind tone, a smile on his face.

Ae Young’s fingers stopped moving and she smiled at him. “Oh! Jaesun! You came back…” she said. “I was just reading this book. There’s been a lot of hype about it lately and it took me a while to find a Braille copy.” She lifted up the book to show Eunhyuk. Unfortunately for him, even the title was in Braille.

“What’s it called?” he asked. He didn’t mean to sound rude in any type of way but he didn’t know what book it was.

A laugh escaped Ae Young’s lips as she closed the books. “Sorry. I forgot that you’re a seeing person. It’s The Hunger Games,” she explained. Her head bowed down and she blushed. “I can’t imagine how they would make little kids fight to the death as punishment…” she whispered.

Hyukjae was still confused on what Ae Young was talking about but he listened anyway. Ae Young, to him, seemed like a lonely girl that needs a friend. “It wouldn’t be bad if I pretend to be Jaesun for a while would it?” he thought. She seemed like a sweet girl.

Tiny raindrops began to fall and Eunhyuk looked up at the sky. “Ae Young… why don’t I take you home? You might get sick in the rain,” he said. He wasn’t even sure where she lived but considering her condition, he thought it might be best.

The girl nodded and got up. She put her book back into her bag and Eunhyuk took the bag from her as she got her walking stick. A smile appeared on Ae Young’s face as they began to walk towards her home. Her home wasn’t that far. Probably about two to three blocks away.

Eunhyuk had to make sure that she didn’t get hit by a car several times though. And he did feel a bit aggravated when someone honked the horn at them when they were trying to cross. But he felt grateful that he was in Ae Young’s company. They arrived at a small apartment and walked inside.

The apartment although small was rather beautiful. Even for someone who couldn’t see. In fact it was a little strange because she had artwork on her walls that had beautiful extravagant colors. The idol sat down on the couch and looked around. “Ae Young… you have such a beautiful home…” he said, being polite.

She smiled in his direction as she walked over to the stove and the heat to start brewing a pot of tea. “Thank you Jaesun,” she said. A blush appeared on her cheeks. She wasn’t sure of what to say to him. The two shared a silent moment and the pot started to whistle, indicating that the water was now boiled and it was time to put it with the tea. Carefully she took the teapot off the flaming stove and turned off the flame. She began to search for cupboard with the cups were and she felt hands beating her to where the cups were.

Hyukjae had gotten up and found the cupboard that had the mugs in it. He smiled his well known gummy smile even though Ae Young wouldn’t be able to see it. “Ae Young, let me help you,” he said. He took the teapot and poured the hot water in as he put the tea bag in at the same time.

Ae Young started laughing and Hyukjae just stared at her. “Jaesun, you haven’t changed a bit since we had that art project together…” she said. She walked over to the kitchen counter with her mug, placing it top and climbed up on the stool.

He couldn’t help but be curious. “I’m sorry but art project?” he asked. Once again, Hyukjae didn’t mean to be rude. But he couldn’t help but want to know what she was talking about.

A sigh escaped Ae Young’s lips. “I used to be a seeing person as well… remember? Until the fluid for cameras got into my eyes, leaving me blind….” she said, a sad tone in her voice.

Eunhyuk couldn’t help but feel upset as well, but he now understood why there were beautiful paintings and photographs of flowers hanging on the walls. His cell phone started to ring and he looked at it. It was a text message from Donghae asking where he was because everyone was looking for him. He gave a disappointed sigh. “Ae Young… I have to leave now. But I’ll be back to visit you tomorrow. And stop reading The Hunger Games, from what I know it isn’t really a tasteful book,” he said. “I’ll bring you some books tomorrow.” The young male didn’t actually read the Hunger Games before but from what he’s read online about it, it was close to that Japanese movie called Battle Royale and someone as beautiful and creative as Ae Young shouldn’t read such horrible things.

Ae Young nodded. But insisted that he finish drinking his tea first before he leaves.

He obliged to her request and quickly drank the tea before bringing it to the sink and washing it. He patted Ae Young on the back before making his way to the door. “I’ll come back tomorrow then…” he said.

THE NEXT DAY

Super Junior had just finished another rehearsal session for figuring out the choreography for the first song they will release for their fifth album and Hyukjae couldn’t help but want to ask Donghae for help. “Donghae, come here…” he said.

The youngest out of the Lee Brothers looked at him and walked over. “What is it, hyung?” he asked.

Eunhyuk felt strange telling his best friend of his whereabouts the previous day. But he needed to find out what happened to Jaesun. Since he knows that he can’t pretend he’s Jaesun forever and he thought the best thing would be to reunite Ae Young with her first love. “Could you, Sungmin hyung, and Kyuhyun try to find out where a guy named Jaesun is? I met a girl yesterday, who was blind, and she thought I was him… and since yesterday, I’ve been pretending that I’m him but I don’t know how long I will be able to keep up with this act before she finds out,” he said.

The moment Donghae heard the word “girl” he started to suspect that his best friend had fallen for one until he heard that he was putting an act for the girl to keep her happy. “Alright hyung but it might take a little while before we find something about him… what’s the girl’s name anyway? Maybe it’ll help us find him as well…”

Hyukjae hesistated for a quick moment. But then decided that it would make them find Jaesun faster. “Kwon Ae Young…” he said. “And I have to go… I promised her that I would read her books that were happier than the one that she was reading…” Without waiting for any sort of answer he left the building and made his way towards Ae Young’s home.

He rang the doorbell and a voice was heard from the other side. “It’s open!” she called out, as if she already knew it was him. “Ae Young!” he exclaimed. “How did you know it was me?”

Ae Young smiled, sitting on the couch. “You did say that you were going to be back and I live in a peaceful neighborhood, so chances of there ever being a robbery in my house is slim. And I do have my walking stick in case it is a burgler,” she said, giving an amusing laugh.

Hyuk laughed with her and sat down next to her. “I got some books for you but the only thing is that I don’t have a Braille copy of them so I hope it’s okay that I read them to you,” he said.

“That would be lovely,” Ae Young replied. She smiled at him and scooted closer to him.

He smiled at her and opened the first book that he brought with him and began to read to her.

Meanwhile, at the Super Junior dorms, Donghae had informed Kyuhyun and Sungmin about finding Jaesun. They agreed and started to look online for information and even asked their manager for some help.

Sungmin couldn’t help wonder why the girl’s name and the guy’s name sounded so familiar. He looked at several old newspapers to try to see if he could find their names and he saw something. “Donghae, Kyuhyun, I found something…” he said, quickly.

The two of them ran to him and Sungmin pointed to the names and Donghae’s eyes widened. “I have to tell hyung…” he said. “Ae Young-ssi probably doesn’t know….”

At Ae Young’s home, both Eunhyuk and her were eating lunch when his cell phone buzzed with a text message. He picked it up and looked at it.

From: Donghae

Hyung, Jaesun died in a car crash last year…. I don’t know if Ae Young-ssi knows but there was a note that he left her that I don’t think she ever claimed…

Hyukjae couldn’t believe what he was reading. He couldn’t bear to tell the girl the truth of what happened to the actual Jaesun. He sighed, trying to figure out a way to tell her. “Several days won’t hurt will it?” he thought.

He smiled at her and told gave her compliments about her art. Telling her that he loved how the colors blended.

Ae Young smiled at him and asked if he would like to see her paint something.

A surprised face appeared on Eunhyuk’s face. “You’re still able to create art when you aren’t able to see?”

Ae Young nodded. “Please hand me some paper and paints, Jaesun…” she said.

He did as he was told and then he watched her slowly paint a beautiful picture. It was as if she was painting the ocean. After she was done she sighed. Words weren’t enough to explain what he thought about her artwork.

Sensing that he was flabbergasted, Ae Young explained that ever since she began blind, she still is able to imagine the colors and try to paint things to the best of her memory. Sometimes she wouldn’t know what color she was using but she knew that the would be correct.

Hyukjae smiled and then he realized the time. “I have to go home again, Ae Young. I’ll visit again tomorrow…” he said.

The girl smiled and leaned to kiss his cheek. “See you tomorrow, Jaesun…” she said, a small giggle passing from her lips.

Eunhyuk arrived back at the Super Junior apartments and Donghae ran up to him. “Did you tell her?” the younger male asked. Eunhyuk nodded, lying to him.

Over the past week, he continued to visit Ae Young, telling her about his day (leaving the stuff about being a member of Super Junior’s Eunhyuk out of course) and reading the books he had brought her. When one day, one of his fans caught him walking into her house and he noticed that there were paparazzi coming over to the blind girl’s house.

Hyukjae didn’t want to reveal that he isn’t Jaesun so soon. But he started to develop feelings for Ae Young as well. Sighing, he looked at Ae Young and held her hand. “Ae Young-ssi… I have something to tell you,” he said, gulping.

Ae Young tilted her head at the direction his voice was coming from. “What did I tell you about the formalities, Jaesun? Anyways what is it?” she asked.

The boy’s heart was beating quickly. He didn’t know how to tell her but he didn’t want the media invading her home and life, trying to find out what was going on between the two of them. It was better that he revealed the truth rather than some stupid reporter or fan telling her. “Ae Young-ssi… I’m not Jaesun… my name is Lee Hyukjae… also known as Eunhyuk from Super Junior. I’m sorry to tell you this but Jaesun has passed away in a car accident last year,” he said. It was the hardest thing for him to ever say. He felt like a doctor telling someone that their family member didn’t make it through surgery.

Tears started to form in Ae Young’s eyes. “So you pretended to be my first love…” she mumbled. She didn’t know how to feel. It was as if a whole building was coming down on her.

Eunhyuk sighed. “I’m afraid so…I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you the truth…” he said. He tried to stay as calm as possible so Ae Young wouldn’t over react and harm herself.

A sob was heard from Ae Young as she began to cry. “I never even knew… no one ever told me until now that Jaesun’s dead…” she said, in between her sobs.

The boy patted her back trying to calm her and she leaned her head into his shoulder. His arms wrapped around her body, letting her cry. He hated that he was the one to break it to her. “He did leave a letter for you though…” he explained as he took it out.

FLASHBACK

Donghae had told him that the police station still had the letter that Jaesun had in his pocket, hoping that Ae Young would come to claim it.

Eunhyuk nodded and the two of them went to the station to claim the letter, explaining that Eunhyuk would be the one to deliver it to Kwon Ae Young and that he probably should be the one to break the news to her.

The police officer nodded and handed him the note.

END OF FLASHBACK

He opened the letter and read it outloud to her since it wasn’t in Braille.

My dear Ae Young,

I’m leaving this letter to you and was hoping that I could read it to you once I come visit you. I’m sorry that I never spoke to you after you confessed your love for me. I never knew how to express mine so I wanted to write this letter to you so you could have it read by me. I loved you from the day I met you. It’s my fault that you aren’t able to see because I didn’t close the cap of the camera fluid that day in the dark room. And I couldn’t bear letting you know that it was my fault. I hope you forgive me and even if you don’t… I’ll still love you, even after death.

Love,

Jaesun

Tears started to fall from Eunhyuk’s eyes. Not only was it a sad thing to read outloud but at the same time, it was a beautiful letter.

Ae Young felt something wet landing on her and she lifted her head off Hyukjae’s shoulder. Her eyes were still tear stained. “Hyukjae-ssi… are you crying?” she asked.

A sniffle was heard and Eunhyuk replied that it was a beautiful letter. He couldn’t bear to tell her that he had feelings for her. But she broke the silence between them. “I have a question for you… if you knew… why did you pretend?”

Eunhyuk’s eyes widened. “I… I…” he began to stammer. “I.. think.. I like you…” he quickly added.

She smiled. “Even though I don’t know what you look like Hyukjae-ssi… I think that I like you too. Not as in love but as a friend right now… I’m happy that you told me about what happened to Jaesun and spending time with me,” she said. “And I would like to know more about you.”

The Korean male smiled and hugged her. “As long as you drop the formalities….”

Ae Young smiled. “It’s a deal.”

Finito

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