Chaptertitle: Sapid Dance and Confection Coffees

Part: 2/3

Summary: Jongin is intrigued and Yoona is inquisitive; subtle hints and shy glances are more than they need.

Withering leaves detach themselves from branches and falls. They descends while obeying the directions of the blowing wind, finally reaching the ground without as much of a sound, lying silently, accepting their fate as people walks to and fro while the branches awaits patiently for new leaves to grow and new flowers to bloom. The tree looms over, its thick bark a little too bent as it stands tall and mighty, providing shades with its full lush of red maple leafs.

The young teen leans against the bark a little too comfortably, one leg propped against the tree and the other fully stretched, supporting the weight of his body. There’s a digital camera hanging in front of his chest, supporting by a black sling. His bulky light brown backpack is casually placed on the ground beside him.

The smirk on his face is evident as his finger trails along the cracks of the tree bark, playfully tapping. It seems like his fingers are dancing on their own as his other hand raises to face the sky. He finally raises his head and squints through the little sunlight the leaves let pass, and his smirk slowly cease into a tiny smile.

Jongin is waiting. He does not like to wait, but Jongin is willing to wait for a certain someone for as long as eternity. His smile becomes a grin akin to a fool’s but it doesn’t affect how Jongin feels. In fact, Jongin is thrilled. He absolutely loves excitement, but this time it’s a little different. He feels like a high school little boy again. Excitement of anticipation eats into him and he feels nervous for the first time of the day.

His heart is beating too fast. Jongin thinks he can hear each heartbeat too loudly in his ears and hope that it doesn’t embarrass him when the time comes. He eyes his backpack with a slight uneasiness. He isn’t sure if he brought enough things to last. Jongin regrets not bringing his entire luggage with him but that would be too troublesome. Surely they wouldn’t need too much stuffs, Jongin assures himself.

It isn’t until when Yoona comes into sight did Jongin let out a breath of relief. Blushing slightly, Jongin watches Yoona running towards him, flushed but grinning happily anyway. Her whitish blue backpack looks nice against her soft green clothes. Jongin thinks everything about Yoona looks nice, especially the said person. He grins and waves back at Yoona, shrugging away the wild emotions in his heart that calmed him down yet stirred a storm within him at the same time when Yoona finally appeared.

The cocky grin is back on his face as Jongin shrugs away the wild storm within him. He does not understand what he’s feeling but for now Jongin thinks it doesn’t matter. Or maybe he’s just being a coward and escaping the truth, but Jongin doesn’t care. He has a vague idea but he’s too timid to admit even to himself for now. Grinning at Yoona, Jongin thinks that nothing else matters.

“I’m not late,” Yoona grins, her brows raised as she slowly walks towards him.

“I never said you are,” Jongin shrugs, “It’s me who’s early.”

Yoona rolls her eyes, smacking Jongin playfully on the shoulder. Jongin feigned to be hurt, only resulting in another punch to the same spot which actually did hurt at the second time. Jongin pouts, but Yoona can see the smile in his eyes. Jongin picks up his bag and the two of them continues walking.

“Where are we going?” Yoona tilts her head and asks.

“Truthfully: no idea.”

“What? Now where do we go then?” Yoona shrieks, slightly annoyed, “You’re incorrigible, Jongin!”

“Hey, it’s a ‘run away’! We’re supposed to just go where our feet brings us to!” Jongin argues, “Besides, getting lost is all the fun in a foreign country.”

Yoona shoots him a withering glare which Jongin ignored. He had been glared at too much by Kyungsoo (who, big eyes as large as saucers, are very scary) long enough to be able to turn a blind eye at anyone’s murderous glare. Yoona storms off in front of Jongin, refusing to admit that Jongin might be right.

The two of them walks a little longer before finding themselves really lost in the middle of the city. Yoona turns around and raises a brow at Jongin, who shrugs sheepishly. His eyes, however, spot a shop not too far away and an idea flies into his mind. Pulling the bewildered Yoona along, Jongin stops in front of the cashier and asks in his broken Chinese for a map.

“A map?” Yoona blinks.

“Yup, at least now we’ll know where we are,” Jongin smiles.

Yoona is momentarily distracted by that blinding, innocent smile. Her heart softens at the sight and nods, not trusting herself to speak. Jongin flips through the map for a while before marking down the spot they reside at currently.

“Where do you want to go first?”

“Any suggestion?”

“There’s something about Tian An Men Square or something,” Jongin mutters, reading off the recommendations below the map.

“Wait, I do have a place in mind…” Yoona suddenly pips.

Jongin lowers the map to look at her. Yoona blushes at the sudden attention from him but reminds herself that it means nothing. She couldn’t help but notices the twinkle in Jongin’s eyes when he speaks or when he’s thinking about something. There’s something about Jongin that struck her deeper than anything and Yoona isn’t sure what it is.

“Summer Palace, let’s go there.”

---

“Soooo… Care to remind me why are we here again?” Jongin asks, narrowing his eyes in a squint as he tries to look at the opposite side of the central Kunming Lake.

“That’s that third time you’ve asked,” Yoona rolls her eyes, slightly bemused at Jongin’s insistence at trying to talk into going somewhere that’s livelier, “Because I want to, okay? If you ask me once more, I will punch you.”

Jongin rolls his eyes as he continues to stare at the man-made lake that covers 2.2 squares kilometers. He had tried to drone the fact that ‘Summer Palace’ is no fun at all into her head and attempted to bring her to somewhere like the amusement park where at least they’ll have fun. But no, Yoona is just as stubborn as he is when it comes to what she wants.

“So unlady-like,” Jongin snorts. He still doesn’t look at Yoona who’s beside him; instead, he brings his camera to eye level and continues taking photos of the beautiful lake. Yoona shoots him a glare, raising her chin arrogantly. “Well, I never said I was lady-like.”

Jongin laughs (Yoona tries not to think that he’s adorable when he laughs), and turns to face Yoona, surprising her and in that moment the shutter of a click could be heard. Yoona pouts and smacks him on the arm while Jongin laughs and tries to dodge.

“Stop taking my pictures without my permission!”

“You like it,” Jongin cheeks.

Yoona rolls her eyes and huffs silently, “Let’s go. There are a lot of places to see. I don’t want to waste my time bickering.”

“Excuse me? You’re the one who always starts the bickers!” Jongin argues, yet following her at the same time as Yoona strides towards the exit of Yu Feng Pagoda. “I haven’t taken enough pictures of Yu Quan Hill!”

“You can come back anytime on your own,” Yoona rolls her eyes, “Beside I’m sure there’s other places worth your eyes and camera lens.”

Jongin pouts but doesn’t complain anymore as he follows Yoona round. He admits that he is able to return on his own anytime, but somehow the idea doesn’t make him happy. He tries to push away the thought that without Yoona, he doesn’t want to return and those strange feelings. Jongin, with his history of being a flirt, is proud to say that he had been around a lot of girls. However, Jongin does have to admit as much as he’s reluctant to, that he doesn’t understand girls too much, neither does he understand the feelings that he’s going through currently.

He doesn’t understand why Yoona is able to make him feel such things, but for some reason Jongin thinks he doesn’t mind. Even if it does confuse him from time to time, Jongin thinks it’s not that bad. Somehow, as long as Yoona is with him, Jongin is willing to be confused at these emotions that he doesn’t know. Jongin smiles to himself as he watches Yoona watches the scenery. The sunlight hits on her, making her shine like an angel. She seems to smile so happily and Jongin pouts to himself; maybe it isn’t that bad to walk around Summer Palace even if it’s too boring for him.

He follows her with a grin, taking pictures from time to time, and he also secretly takes photos of Yoona behind her knowledge. The sun burns down on both of them, and half a day passed when Yoona finally listened to Jongin’s constant complain of the sun is too hot, come on let’s take a break and I woke up too early today don’t torture me anymore I’m really starved.

“Seriously, are you a guy?” Yoona asks in exasperation, “What kind of guy complains this much like a grandmother?”

“I am not old!” Jongin yells.

“Then don’t act like one,” Yoona pokes the cheek of Jongin as she passes him one of the lunchboxes she brought from the store.

“I didn’t eat breakfast today,” Jongin pouts, feeling indignant.

“I didn’t tell you to wait for me,” Yoona laughs, much to Jongin’s chagrin. He pouts and resorts to attack his lunchbox while Yoona continues to laugh. She isn’t sure, but instead of eating her own food, she propped an arm under her chin and watches Jongin eats like a child.

“Seriously, you’re both a grandmother and five years old,” Yoona laughs as she takes out a piece of tissue to wipe the corner of Jongin’s lip. “Is there a need to eat in such a messy rush?”

Jongin freezes for a moment, before a tinge of pink flushes his cheeks. He snatches the tissue away from Yoona, surprising her with his quick actions. He lowers his head and hides his redden face from Yoona’s amused eyes.

Yoona thinks Jongin looks exceptionally adorable but chose not to comment. Instead, she chooses to look at the opposite side and eats her own food. Jongin, blushing, continues to eat in his own messy pace, much to Yoona’s amusement as she watches him from her peripheral vision.

Night comes and Yoona finds herself in a same room as Jongin.

“Why do we have to share?” Yoona asks, blushing slightly at the thought of sharing a room with a guy.

“Well, it’s such a waste to book two rooms when we’re only spending a night,” Jongin shrugs, “This room has two beds anyway. You don’t have to worry.” Jongin smirks at the red face Yoona who throws him a pillow that hits the unexpected him right on the face.

“You sure you want a pillow fight!” Jongin screams.

“I won’t necessary lose,” Yoona stuck her tongue out at him.

Jongin snorts as he throws the pillow back at Yoona who managed to dodge, part of it hitting her arm. Jongin laughs as he grabs his clothes and runs towards the bathroom.

“I’ll shower first.”

“Hey—wait! I’m a lady, I should be first!” Yoona protests loudly, yelling at Jongin who already disappeared into the bathroom.

“You said it yourself that you’re not a lady,” Jongin’s response is muffled due to the wall that separates both of them.

“I said I’m not lady-like, I didn’t say I’m not a lady!” Yoona hollers, “Don’t twist my words, Kim Jongin!”

Jongin’s laughter is her only response before the sounds of showers masks away everything else. Yoona, pouting and slightly annoyed, lies on her bed and covers her face with the pillow that Jongin had thrown back towards her. No fair, she tells herself. Though she doesn’t really mind, Yoona yawns in exhaustion as she flips through the channel, albeit she couldn’t understand any of it.

By the time Jongin walks out of the bathroom – his hair still dripping wet and his clothes tousled which he wore in a hurry – Yoona had already fallen asleep, lying on her stomach with a pillow propped beneath her neck.

“That idiot,” Jongin smiles, “She’s bound to get a stiff neck when she wakes up.” But he’s unwilling to wake the beauty up from her sleep. Looking innocently adorable, Jongin thinks it’s better to just let her sleep. She must have been exhausted, even if he was the one that lacks sleep between the two of them.

Yawning to himself, Jongin lies on his own bed and smiles. It doesn’t take too long for him to fall into his sweet dreams.

---

“It’s not fair, you got to choose the last time,” Jongin argues with his mouth full of bacon and egg.

“Eat properly!” Yoona smacks him lightly, “Fine, you get to choose this time. Any places in mind?”

“Kyungsoo said something about Beijing’s Bullet Train,” Jongin mumbles.

“Kyungsoo?” Yoona raises her brow at the new name. She never heard Jongin says much about other things about from planning about where else to go next and what’s next to do in their list. She realizes that she really doesn’t know much about Jongin, just as the same that he doesn’t know much about her.

Mulling at this, Yoona wonders what made her agree to his random decision of ‘running away’ with him. Who suggests such random and unexpected ideas to a stranger you barely know off and who in the world will even agree to such things? Yoona eyes Jongin who’s still munching on his breakfast like he’d never seen food for three hundred years and stifled an urge to smile.

Well, strangers can become friends; Yoona is stubborn in her beliefs.

“Oh, Kyungsoo,” Jongin nonchalantly shrugs, “He’s a friend of mine. He helped me research a lot of places to visit in Beijing. He’s a total ‘mommy’, but he’s awesome in his job too.”

“He sounds like a good friend,” Yoona notes.

“Yeah,” Jongin rolls his eyes, “Especially when he kicks me.”

Giggling, “Yup, he definitely sounds like a good friend.”

Jongin glares at Yoona before continue digging into his huge pile of breakfast. Honestly, the guy acts like he’d never seen food in his entire life! Yoona shakes her head as she eats her simple breakfast of toasted bread and ham with melted cheese.

Jongin had told her that eating cheese early in the morning is bad for the stomach but Yoona is stubborn. And a stubborn Yoona is almost impossible to change her mind. Although, Yoona thinks that considering the amount that Jongin’s eating, he’d have a higher probability of getting a bad stomach than her with a few pieces of melted cheese.

 “So, we’re taking the Bullet Train later?” Yoona asks, “Any destination?”

“Let’s just go along the flow,” Jongin replies, “There’s not specific place I want to stop at. Going with the flow isn’t that bad, at least we don’t have to plan too much. Sometimes you just have to act on impulse. Life’s like that, planning too much won’t work.”

“You put on a playful, cocky veneer but it seems you’re deeper than you shows,” Yoona smiles, amused.

“Well, when you first see the ocean, you won’t be able to tell how deep it is, won’t you?” Jongin laughs.

Yoona rolls her eyes but at the back of her mind there’s a voice that tells her that this guy is worth for her to ‘run away’ with him. Somehow, she found an answer to her question, although she isn’t sure if it’s the answer she seeks, she knows that it’ll become the answer she needs. Yoona smiles at Jongin and for some reasons, two heartbeats quicken.

---

The two of them are lost in the middle of an unknown city. It fits Jongin’s taste since he likes to disappear in the middle of the crowds and sometimes fades away into distant memories. Jongin’s the type that likes to lose himself in the middle of nowhere and finds thrill in meeting new people and accidently stumbling into unknown places that are more beautiful that he expected.

Jongin’s exactly the type to does things like this, and somehow, Yoona thinks she’s starting to be a little bit more like Jongin now. She’s the adventurous type that likes to try out new things, and Jongin is bringing her on a ride of roller coaster. Although she wouldn’t know when the ride will end, she knows she’s enjoying the whole ride of up and down.

“Hey, there’s always been one thing I wanted to try…” Jongin muttered.

“What?” Yoona blinks. Before she’s able to comprehend what Jongin meant, her eyes widen as Jongin blasts off music from his mp3 and starts dancing by the streets.

Yoona isn’t sure if she’s startled by his sudden actions, or perhaps slightly awkward standing there while people shoots them curious looks, or maybe she’s just too shocked to actually think through what just happened.

Regardless, one has to admit Jongin has the skills. Yoona thinks he might have added ballet to hip hop, but it’s hard to tell since she doesn’t dance. Jongin’s moves are powerful yet slick, strong yet gentle. Yoona knows the dance is sudden and without coordination, but for a moment it’s hard to tell. Jongin dances like his dancing are his soul, and every move is like water that flows along with the flow.

There’s a certain, undeniable charm that Jongin emits when he dances. It’s hard to ignore, and Yoona finds herself unable to tear her gaze away from the beauty that’s shining. It’s like he belongs to the stage, he belongs to where those gazes shines on him with awe and admiration. He’s flawless and perfect.

It’s the first time Yoona sees Jongin dancing, and she thinks her breath is taken away against her wishes. Breath-taking, Jongin’s dance is breath-taking. Before she knows it, the curious glances turned into amazement and squeals from sudden ‘fan girls’.

There’s a moment of unhappiness in Yoona when she sees the other girls screaming over Jongin. Jealousy, that’s the word. But Yoona refuses to acknowledge that she would be jealous. There’s not a reason for her to be jealous, right? They’re barely friends that somehow got together without a reason. Yoona bits her lower lips and tries not to be affected.

Jongin does a turn, and shoots her a seductive wink. Yoona blushes under the other girls screaming and before she knows it, Jongin grabbed her hand and when she finally realized, he was already dragging her along the streets as the two of them ran.

“Why are you always so unpredictable?” Yoona pants when Jongin finally stops, the scream long thrown behind them and they seems to be even more lost in the city.

“That’s what I do for a living,” Jongin joked.

“I never knew you can dance,” there was a moment of silence before Yoona breaks the ice, “And to dance this amazingly well.”

“There’s a lot of thing you don’t know about me,” Jongin smiles, yet to Yoona, there’s a certain sadness in those eyes that once twinkle brighter than the brightest star in the night sky and his smile seems forced.

“Yes, there is a lot that I need to learn about you,” Yoona gently smiles.

“…” Jongin doesn’t reply for once and Yoona is at a loss of what to do.

She doesn’t understand what happened to Jongin. From the time she knew him until now, he had always been cocky and cheerful. All the times, he had been the one that and brought a smile to her lips. There was not a moment when he’d be down or troubled.

Yet, at this moment, Yoona isn’t sure anymore. The playful, teasing, cocky guy is almost gone in that single moment. There’s a blanket of darkness and sadness that covers his beautiful eyes and at that instant, Yoona suddenly feels like she’s a thousand miles far away from the guy she once thought she was almost familiar with.

“Jongin…?” Yoona softly calls, “Is there any place you wish to go?”

“Yoona, follow me to a place.”

---

If Yoona had believed that Jongin’s dance is breath-taking, then she’s bound to be unable to take in the scene in front of her. Although she had only seen Jongin dance that one time, she could tell that he had skills other doesn’t have. His dances had been mesmerizing to the point that it hurts and Yoona thought she had seen in all.

Years of practice unfold in front of her eyes as Jongin lets it all out. He had brought Yoona to the nearest theatre. Although neither was given the permission, Jongin is used to sneaking around to get his way and Yoona quite likes the idea. And there, she stands as she watches Jongin dances on the empty stage.

The dance is too powerful, yet too gentle. There’s a certain sadness and loneliness that she is unable to shake off. Jongin’s dance tells a story; a story that she doesn’t know but is yearning to hear as long as he is willing to tell. She knows that he needs to let it all out, and her heart aches with his.

There’s bitterness and pain beneath the message he’s trying to convey, and Yoona finds herself wanting to know. She cannot resist the urge, the need to know his story. The glistening sweat on his body shines under the dim lighting and for once Yoona realizes that not everything beautiful is perfect.

Jongin’s imperfection is his greatest perfection; every single flaws of him draws her to him. He’s like a fallen angel that’s willing to endure the pain inflicted on him for a mistake that he didn’t commit. He’s like Lucifer, who fell to gloriously, who shines even in darkness. He fell willingly and Yoona finds herself falling with him.

Jongin stops when he’s finally out of breath and he falls to the floor. He leans against the wall and closes his eyes. Yoona slowly walks towards he who has fallen and sits beside him. She takes out a handkerchief and wipes his sweat gently, her gaze never leaving his contort face. She thinks there’s tears mixed with sweat but she doesn’t say anything about it. There exhaustion, pain and perhaps he’s trying to keep the tears in, unwilling to show weakness even when he’s alone.

“What happened?” Yoona softly asks, “Why are you a photographer and not a dancer with those skills of yours?”

“That is a story I do not wish to tell.”

“But you have to, or else you can never fully let go.”

“I don’t want to let go.”

He doesn’t spare her a glance as he pulls his knees to his chest, hiding his face in his arms. Yoona doesn’t force him, knowing that when the time comes he will tell. She pats his arm and a sudden urge to hug him fills her—which she did. She hugs him and closes her eyes, inhaling the mixed scent of his sweat and fresh mint. He stiffens but doesn’t shake her away, and the two of them stays in that position until the lights went off.

---

Yoona isn’t sure what time it is when she woke up. Somehow, the two of them are no longer in the theatre. She wondered how did Jongin brought her out but doesn’t ask. They were at a small apartment, much to her surprise. Of all the things, she expected a hotel room. She isn’t sure if anyone rented apartments in Beijing.

When she walked out of her room, another surprising view came into her sight. She blinks, making sure she’s not dreaming because Yoona isn’t sure that she’ll even dream of Jongin cooking, without blowing the kitchen. Silently, she takes a seat at the kitchen table and watches him cook.

He had never been the type to cook in Yoona’s opinion. In fact, she was pretty sure he’s the type that doesn’t know how to even boil water. A small smile graces her features as she watches him; it seems that Kim Jongin likes to surprise her from time to time, doing things out of her expectation.

“Where is this place?” Yoona asks.

“It seems this city rents apartments for tourists,” Jongin replies, his attention on the bacon he’s sizzling, “I was quite surprised to find out, but I figured it’s better than staying in a hotel.”

“A refreshing change,” Yoona smiles.

The two of them ate their breakfast in silence and Yoona tries not to marvel at how wonderful Jongin’s cooking is. Just what else can he do? Yoona smiles in amusement. Albeit the food are just simple bacon and sunny-side-up eggs, Yoona still think it’s the best breakfast she had eaten until now. After all, it takes skills to actually not destroy the egg, Yoona smiles as she thinks.

“Let’s climb the Great Wall today,” Jongin suddenly suggests.

“The Great Wall of China?” Yoona asks, “But… Isn’t it dangerous?”

“Come on, you got to climb it or else you can’t say you’ve been to Beijing!” Jongin argues.

“I don’t want to know who told you that,” Yoona mumbles dryly.

Jongin stuck his tongue out at Yoona. Yoona laughs and threw him a piece of bread which Jongin did manage to dodge this time. His eyes shone and he threw the piece of bread back at Yoona; the two of laughs as they started throwing pieces of bread and spoons and forks at each other.

Neither of them mentioned what happened the day before.

---

At that moment when she had been standing at the bottom of the Great Wall, Yoona had almost, almost believed that maybe it wasn’t that bad. Sure, the stairs seems to never end as it climbs to the top and it had lasted for thousands of years, it will be able to last right now, right? There were so many other tourists that are also climbing up the Wall; Yoona had almost been convinced that nothing bad would happen.

And that had been her thoughts when she hasn’t started the climb. She really feels like punching Jongin right now if it isn’t because they were currently in a very dangerous position and no, Yoona does not want to fall down about a thousand miles because of one single, careless mistake.

“Hey, it’s not that bad…” Jongin chuckles, albeit sheepishly under her glare.

“If I die, I will make sure you die with me,” Yoona hissed, trying to cover the fear that’s eating into her. Not that she’s afraid of heights, it’s just that who wouldn’t feel their heart shaking when you’re standing about a few hundreds, or even thousands, miles above the safe grounds? Not the mention that the stairs doesn’t help, really.

Jongin stretches out his hand for Yoona to grab as she tries to climb up the tall curvy step. She wonders if thousands of years ago the Great Wall had also been in such a condition. Or perhaps it was because of the years of constant blazing sunlight and thunderstorms that quite took away its past majestic form. Yoona is downright terrified.

He chuckles softly at the sight of her expression. He had once thought that she was the type of girl that is never afraid – not even when the sky falls or the ground crumbles. It seems that he had over-estimated her. He grabbed her hand tighter and doesn’t let go. They had managed to climb at least half of the current Wall they’re residing at, and Jongin thinks that maybe it’s enough.

Yoona takes a seat on a random bench while Jongin went to buy two bottle of iced water. Looking past the walls beside them, Yoona thinks that maybe it might not be too bad. Apart from being on a plane (which is safer, by the way), Yoona had never been to a height this high. When the fear slowly fades away, Yoona finds herself a little excited. The clouds seems so near, like she’s able to touch them if she raises her hand. Freedom from the vast sky rushes into her and Yoona smiles.

“You’re beautiful when you smile,” Jongin compliments, passing her the drink by pressing it to her cheek, satisfied by the yelp she lets out.

“Don’t scare me like that!” Yoona chides, taking the water and shooting him a glare that Jongin shrugs off. She heard what he had said, but chose to ignore it as a small blush tinges her cheeks. She brushes if off as the heat, although the weather had been quite cooling.

“It’s nice here, don’t you think?” Jongin softly asks. He leans against the wall and looks downwards, past the grass the stones with weird fading words carved on it. His camera in his hand, yet he isn’t taking a single photo.

“This place isn’t that bad,” Yoona grudgingly agreed. If it isn’t this high…

The sun shines on both of them, and Jongin’s deep russet hair seems to reflect a wine color. It’s mesmerizingly beautiful, and exotically alluring. Yoona knows it’s wrong for a girl to be staring at a guy like this without shame, but she couldn’t help it. Jongin may look like any normal guy, but there’s a unique charm about him that draws people to him.

Jongin knows Yoona is looking at him, because he’s looking at her without hiding too. The blush on her face seems to be lightened by the sunlight, shining a different kind of pink that Jongin thinks suits Yoona. Yoona’s amygdaliform eyes are too beautiful; they tell stories of their own and Jongin finds himself drowning in those beauties. He thinks Yoona is really, really beautiful.

“You’re truly gorgeous,” Jongin whispers.

Yoona tries not to blush as she thinks that Jongin is even more vibrant.

---

“How many days have passed since we ran away without a reason?” Jongin asks, his voice muffled as he stuffed his face into his pillow.

“I lost count,” Yoona shrugs. The fact is that she never counted; unwilling to remember. “Does it matter?”

“Nope,” Jongin replies, “Just curious.”

It’s hard for both of them to remember how many days have passed in their moments of happiness. Neither was willing to bother themselves with the number or dates. Both of them couldn’t remember when they had decided to run away, neither could they remember on which day they went to which places, or how many days they’ve spent in different areas.

Jongin and chose to off his phone and stuffed it inside his bag where he wouldn’t be able to see it and remember while Yoona had very conveniently took the battery out of her phone and left it behind in the hotel she used to stay. She knows it’s weird of her to do that, but somehow, Yoona wanted to leave something behind. Although why had she chosen her phone’s battery, well maybe because it had been the first thing that came to her mind.

“Do you think today is Wednesday or Thursday?” Jongin asks.

“Why can’t it be Friday or Saturday?” Yoona retorts.

“I want it to be Sunday or Monday!” Jongin replies.

“Did you say Wednesday and Thursday previously?” Yoona asks, rolling her eyes.

“I don’t care for the exact date,” Jongin smiles, “I just want to know what you think.”

Yoona blushes but doesn’t answer. She hides her face in the thick book she had bought from the bookstore earlier that day when they had passed by. Jongin had disappeared towards the CD corner and when they met up again, she’s not exactly surprised to find him with three albums.

“Why do you even want to read at this timing?” Jongin had asked.

“It’s a habit,” Yoona stuck her tongue out at him; “I like it.”

“Fine, don’t blame me when I blast music later,” Jongin winks, “It’s a habit, after all.”

That’s when Yoona realized that she had been tricked by Jongin, and needless to say, getting hit by such a thick book with such strength unfit of a lady does hurts. Jongin doesn’t want to go through it a second time, but he still blasts the music as promised, ignoring Yoona’s death glare.

“No, I’m serious. Why are you asking?” Yoona asks.

“I said nothing,” Jongin grins, “I’m just curious.”

“Jongin, there’s no such things as ‘nothing’.”

“Nothing is anything, and that’s that,” the conversations ends with Jongin walking back to his room and leaving Yoona feeling strangely restless for the rest of night.

---

Feeling peeved since she woke up, Yoona refuses to speak to Jongin. The poor guy, feeling exasperated, had to pull out almost all the tricks he had before she lets out a small smile against her will and that’s when Jongin pulled her out of their rented apartment.

“Will you stop with all the grab-and-run?” Yoona asks.

“Nope, I like doing things like that,” Jongin shakes his head and smiles at Yoona.

She rolls her eyes and smacks his head while wondering why they are in a park again. The last time they met in a park had resulted in some unexpected endings with a pregnant woman, an irritated bossy nurse, a bewildered Yoona, a very confused someone tell me what in the world just happened Jongin and a healthy newborn that wouldn’t stop shrieking.

Of course, there was also the stolen rented bike and the angry uncle who yelled at both of them for half-an-hour in Chinese which neither could understand. Yoona giggles at the memory; it seems funnier remembering it at the second time.

When Jongin walked out of a rental shop with two bikes, Yoona raises her brow at him, “I thought someone told me that he’s never going to step into another rental shop ever again.”

“Did that someone really?” Jongin asks, feigning surprise, “Well, I don’t see why that person has to be so extreme.”

Yoona laughs at Jongin’s antic as she grabs the bike he placed in front of her and rode off before Jongin could react. She laughs at his “Hey! Wait for me!” and squealed as she raced down the path, feeling the wind around her.

“Just because you can ride doesn’t mean you need to show off,” Jongin, who finally catches up with her, pouts indignantly, “You’re not the only who can ride.” He grumbles and somehow Yoona finds that hilarious.

The two of them raced each other down the different paths of the park, avoiding people at the same time. Yoona had almost crashed into a tree when Jongin almost ran someone down. She had laughed too hard to realize where she was heading. Jongin mumbled that it was karma for laughing at my misfortune.

When they were finally exhausted, the sun is already setting. Yoona bought both of them ice creams from the corner store and they found a random bench to sit, their rented bikes parked beside them.

Winter is soon approaching, and what’s better than eating ice cream in a cold weather? Both of them enjoy their frozen sweets as they watch the sun set and the children playing at nearby playgrounds. There were a few couples that walked past them, beaming in happiness and delight at the fact that they had each other to accompany.

Yoona smiles softly, albeit the two of them are not a couple, she does thinks she’s very blessed to have him by her side. She can feel the warm he radiates as his shoulder touches hers. The comfortable silences envelope both of them once again and Yoona is more than glad to have Jongin around.

“Have you ever wondered what it’s like to fall in love?” Jongin asks.

“What’s with the sudden deep question?” Yoona teases.

“I don’t know, how about you tell me?” Jongin replies, turning to look at Yoona. There’s seriousness in his eyes that surprises Yoona. It takes her a nanosecond to realize that he had not been teasing when he asked her that question. Feeling a blush creeping up her cheeks untimely, Yoona ponders on his questions.

“I’ll have to fall in love first before I’m able to answer you,” Yoona smiles, “But I think it’ll be a nice feeling.”

“Hm,” Jongin smiles, “Perhaps so.”

He doesn’t look at her again, but Yoona feels warmth on her hand. She doesn’t need to look to know Jongin is holding her hands. Words are stuck at as her blush deepens, although she doesn’t understand why. The two of them sits there awkwardly, shoulder touching shoulder and his hand holding on hers a little too tightly.

“How about falling in love with me?” Jongin suddenly asks, “How will you feel about love if I’m the one you’re falling for?”

Yoona realizes that no matter how much she ponders on the question, she wouldn’t be able to find an answer. So she doesn’t answer, instead she pulls Jongin closer and kisses him.

---

“Do you like me?”

“I thought that kiss had been the best answer.”

“Come on, I still want to hear an answer. In case I wrongly interpret your intentions.”

“Excuse me? I think that only has one answer.”

“I want to hear you say it.”

“…”

“Do you like me?”

“You know the answer.”

“I don’t, actually. The kiss had been quite unexpected.”

“Kim Jongin, you’re incorrigible!”

“You just realized?”

“Aaargh!”

“So, do you like me?”

Yoona doesn’t reply and Jongin doesn’t ask again, because Yoona pulled Jongin’s closer again and kissed him, albeit with more force this time.

“That hurts. I think my lips are bruised now.”

“Good. Now shut up.”

“You’re really not a lady.”

“I said stop twisting my words, Kim Jongin!”

Jongin grins, this time, he’s the one who closes off all proximity between them.

---

“By the way, where are our bikes?”

“Not again…”

“I’m not facing the uncle this time.”

“…”

“No worries, it’s an auntie this time—girls speak better with girls.”

“… I thought you said ‘auntie’.”

“…”

---

Jongin doesn’t stay. He’d been to more places than he can counts and he had not lasted at each place for more than a week. Most of the times it’s because of photo shoot, and half the other reasons is because he has a tendency to simply run off and travel to another country. He’s like a butterfly that doesn’t fly too high, yet is too impossible to catch.

It’s a new record for Jongin to stay in Beijing for nearly three weeks. He’s not the type to reminiscence about old memories and he doesn’t like staying at a place for too long. He doesn’t like to be bound, and staying at the same place for too long gives him that feel. He’s not the type that likes to have a home to return to, rather, he likes flying around from places to places. The world is his home; the sky is his roof and the ground is his bed.

Jongin kicks the sand beneath him as he waits for Yoona. They had agreed (after a night of argument) to go to the beach. The ocean is magnificent, Jongin agrees. But when you’d been to too many beaches in your life, even the most beautiful thing can get boring. Somehow, it’s different for Yoona. Jongin thinks that she has a story of her own that is connected with the sea, but he didn’t tell her his, so he doesn’t ask for hers.

He’s barefooted right now; his jeans rolled to his knee as he wriggles his toes in the soft sand. It’s not always that he gets to relax by such view, so Jongin tries to enjoy himself. His camera, like always, is by his side. The precious thing never leaves his sight, Jongin will never allow it. There are too many memories and secrets within and about, Jongin couldn’t bear to throw it away.

“Are you hungry?” Yoona yells from behind. She’s resting after having a crazy morning of water battle with Jongin. Both of them were thoroughly drenched by the time they decided to rest. “There are sandwiches if you want!”

“Leave some for me!” Jongin yells back and runs towards her. He wouldn’t trust her with food. With that black hole appetite of hers, if he took his time, he’d most likely have to starve for the day.

 “Do you have any plans?” Jongin asks, biting into a sandwich.

“What plans are you talking about?”

“After Beijing, where are you going?”

“I’m considering Rome,” Yoona chuckles, “I heard it’s a beautiful place.”

“Oh,” Jongin nods.

“What about you?” Yoona softly asks. The restless feeling from a few days is back and it doesn’t feel good. It’s like she knows something is about to happen and she isn’t sure if she’s able to stop it—she’s not even sure if it’s bad or not.

“…Kyungsoo called,” Jongin mumbles in caution, “They’re worried about me since I didn’t answer their calls for the last few days. Kris said there’s another photo shoot and I’m needed, especially since I missed the last one.”

“Missed the last one?” Yoona asks. She’s trying to push down the ugly emotions within her. The thought of him leaving doesn’t make her happy, but she keeps up the smile.

“I… Well, I ran away with you didn’t I? I didn’t appear for that photo shoot although I’m the main photographer.”

“Oh…” Yoona nods. In a slight nanosecond Yoona felt a new warmth surge into her heart. The fact that he had abandoned such an important thing for her made her feel warm and fuzzy. But it didn’t last long; she remembers what he just told her. “When will you be leaving?”

“Honestly, I don’t want to leave,” Jongin smiles, albeit it’s forced. “I don’t want to leave you.”

“Silly,” Yoona smiles, “You can come and find me after the photo shoot, can’t you?”

“Yeah, I can. That’s why I’m asking you where you’re going after Beijing. So I’ll have an idea of where to search for you.”

Yoona kisses Jongin before he’s able to swallow.

“You have to come and find me, okay,” it’s not a question, it’s a command.

“Of course,” Jongin laughs, “I won’t make you wait too long.”

“I will smack you if you don’t come.”

“You believe that I’ll be able to find you again? Rome is quite huge, you know.”

“I believe in fate.”

“Shouldn’t you believe in me?”

“I’ll try,” Yoona teases.

Jongin pouts and tackles Yoona to the sandy ground as he kisses her breath away.

---

“Let’s go for some coffee.”

“Why the sudden craving?” Yoona asks, looking up at him from her book.

“It reminds me of the time when I suggested this whole ‘run away’ thing,” Jongin laughs.

“Okay,” Yoona laughs along.

There’s a coffee shop near their rented apartment. It’s a huge café, compared to the rest that they had been. With their Chinese that obviously didn’t improve over their extended stay in Beijing, Jongin managed to order a cup of peppermint frappucino for him and a cup of cranberry white chocolate mocha frappucino for Yoona.

“Cranberry with chocolate?” Yoona asks tentatively, “Are you sure…?”

“I don’t know,” Jongin shrugs, “But it’s good to try new things.”

“Stop making me your guinea pig,” Yoona smacks him on the arm.

“You make a cute one,” Jongin grins.

Yoona huffs and walks to the window seat, letting Jongin scrambles to follow her with both cold coffees in his hands. He smiles to himself at her short temper and places her cup of coffee in front of her. Yoona glares at him before taking a tentative sip. The bitterness of the coffee mixed with the sweetness of the white chocolate and sourness of the cranberry is a weird combination for her, but somehow they fitted nicely.

“Trust me, no coffee shop will sell coffees that doesn’t taste nice,” Jongin tells her.

“Fine, fine, you’re the expert when it comes to coffee,” Yoona rolls her eyes, the smile tugging at her lips.

“Not really,” Jongin smiles, pleased to finally see a smile on Yoona’s face. She’s not angry, he knows. It’s just that she likes to make fun of him just as much as he likes to . “Kris is the expert when it comes to coffee.”

“Who’s Kris?” Yoona asks. The name rings a bell at the back of her mind but she can’t remember where she had heard of the name. “The name sounds familiar. Does he appear on television or something?”

“Kris Wu, the prominent photographer that’s known for his artistry,” Jongin shrugs, “I’m not surprised if you’ve heard of him. He has appeared on televisions and top magazines.”

“Oh, you mean the famous gorgeous photographer that had once been a very renowned psychologist, right?” Yoona nods, finally understanding why the name was familiar with him. She had heard of him, in fact, her best friend is friends with him. Or to be more exact, her best friend has a crush on him.

“Yeah, the gorgeous guy,” the corner of Jongin’s lips twitched. Yoona tries to stifle her giggles at the fact that Jongin is jealous of his friend.

“What, are you jealous of his looks or his skills?” Yoona teases.

“Neither!” Jongin snaps.

“You’re adorable when you’re jealous,” Yoona smiles.

For an instant Jongin is stunned by the blinding smile Yoona has.

“I should be the one saying that,” Jongin blushes and pouts, “And I am really not jealous!”

“You don’t have to be,” Yoona smiles, “Because no matter how gorgeous or y that Kris Wu or anyone else is, you’re still the most charming one for me.”

Jongin blushes, but he grab Yoona’s hand tightly and gently kiss the back of her hand. Yoona’s smile is brilliant with happiness while Jongin continues to hold her hand, unwilling to let go for even a second.

“I’ll miss you, a lot.”

“I’ll be waiting for you,” Yoona softly whispers.

“I won’t let you wait for too long,” Jongin whispers into her hand, kissing it lightly. “I won’t let you wait for me for too long.”

---

“When are you leaving?”

“In three days’ time.”

“Do you want me to send you?”

“No. Don’t come. I don’t want to say goodbye, I don’t want you to see me leave. I’m afraid that I won’t be able to if I turn my head and see those beautiful eyes of yours. Don’t come. Even if it hurts, don’t come.”

“Okay, I won’t. But I still want to say goodbye to you.”

“Why?”

“Because only when there’s a good ‘bye’, there’ll be a better ‘hello’ the next time we meet.”

“Who said that?”

“I don’t know,” Yoona shrugs, “Maybe that Kris friend of yours when he was still a psychologist.”

“I doubt so,” Jongin laughs.

“Goodbye.”

“… Goodbye.”

---