When we reach the fast food eatery, we receive a few strange looks, from several of the people working there, along with some of the customers eating there, too. I don’t blame them though, since we’re probably a little too overdressed for the occasion, but it’s okay. Yongguk and I sit ourselves down at one of the booths in the corner, and I suggest that we take turns to order our food, so that our spot doesn’t get taken. But he says no to this with a shake of his head, and tells me that he would help order my food too, so I gratefully tell him what I want.

Yongguk leaves, and then after a bit, returns with a tray of food, and I greet him with a smile. Voicing out my thanks, I then pull out my purse, asking him how much I owe him, while rummaging for my notes. But he brushes it away, and says that it isn’t necessary. I make a face at him, but he pretends not to notice, as he pops a fry into his mouth. His reasoning is that he hasn’t 'treated' me in such a long time, so this is to make it up, for our long friendship.

I grumble to myself as I un-wrap my burger, but he just chuckles at me, and says that I can pay for the food the next time we were to go out.

Honestly, Yongguk is just too nice.

As I take a bite into my food, I get a strange vibe that he’s rather distracted by something, and not in a good way, either.

So I try to take his mind off the negative thought, with the first thing that comes to my head. "Hey, do you know how ducks drink?" I pipe up.

Yongguk stares at me for a bit, before he decides to shake his head with a small amused smile. "I actually have no idea," he says.

I flash him a grin, just before ducking my head down, and then smoothly lifting it up, while clicking my tongue at a rapid pace. “Like that,” I respond, upon finishing my swift action.

It makes him instantly begin his rumbling laughter, and I giggle, feeling accomplished. "Here, do you want to see it again?" I offer, but repeat my imitation before he can say anything.

Maybe it's because of this silly crush, but I often find myself going out of my way to embarrass myself, just to get him to laugh.

Yongguk’s laughter sounds great, and seeing how his eyes would crinkle together with contentment, makes me feel all warm. By now, we have both finished our burgers, and were now finishing off our fizzy drinks. There are still a few pieces of chips left, which I decide to nibble on, for the sake of them just innocently sitting there. Yongguk and I find ourselves taking a walk down memory lane, as we begin to talk about some of the things that we remember, back in our university lecture.

I graduated not too long ago, (and am in the process of paying off the fees that I couldn’t pay off before) but since he’s two years older than me, it had been a while for him.

And luckily, he’s already paid off his fees, which means that the money he earns now can be focused more on him.

A cheeky grin suddenly appears on Yongguk's face, and seeing the mischievous expression makes me suspicious. "Hey, remember that time, when you were trying to open up that packet of peperos, but it somehow exploded, and almost covered the entire theatre?"

With a mental slap to my face, I grumble at the humiliating memory. "Ugh," I groan, "Don't remind me of that! Honestly, because of that incident, I was known as 'that-pepero-explosion-girl', for quite a while."

Yongguk chuckles at this, nodding in agreement, just before taking a sip of his carbonated drink.

"Oh yeah," I confidently begin, as my mind manages to dig up an embarrassing memory of his own. "Do you remember the time when Professor Yoon brought in his son, because there was no one to take care of him at home, and then—"

Yongguk cuts me off, as it is now his turn to shake his head with a groan. "Yejin-ah, no," he mumbles, but with a weak smile, nonetheless.

I can’t help but let out a laugh, and rebelling against his comment, continue on with my sentence anyway. "—you tried to do your aegyo when the boy was crying, but it just made him cry even more!"

Letting out a sigh, Yongguk then mutters something underneath his breath about never being good at the whole 'cutesy' thing, and how it makes him feel 'awkward'.

I pop the last fry into my mouth with a grin, "Oh well, thankfully Jieun was there, 'cause she handled him pretty well."

At the mention of Jieun's name, I see Yongguk suddenly stiffen up, which makes me immediately kick myself for being so careless. Stuttering out an apology, my eyes then awkwardly travel away from him. I then try my best to distract myself, by playing with the straw of my drink, knowing just how sensitive he was, (or more like is) whenever it came to her.

It’s clear how deeply he had fallen for her, and I remembered just how heartbroken he was, when he told me how she had lost feelings for him, and had moved on.

I would always sigh at this, I mean; Jieun, what's wrong with you? Can't you see just how great of a person Yongguk is?

"It's okay," speaks the blonde male, after a few seconds. Yongguk then shrugs his shoulders, "I've moved on, so it's fine."

I carefully eye him, "Are you sure...?"

He nods, but I can tell from his body language, that he’s lying.

And I guess with the way that I’m watching him, he knows that I know that he isn't exactly telling the truth, so he lets out a defeated sigh. "Well," he starts, "I still miss her here and there, but it isn't as bad as it used to be. I just...Yejin-ah, I really loved her."

A sad smile comes onto my face, as I take in his heartfelt statement. "I know," I softly reply.

Yongguk then quickly apologises for ruining the happy atmosphere, but I shake my head, and tell him that it’s perfectly fine. He looks disappointed, and I can tell that he feels guilty, but I honestly don’t mind him venting to me about his feelings; because if it would make him feel better, then I guess that's all that matters.

Reaching out, I place my hand into his own, and pat it, trying my best to further reassure him, saying that as a friend, (ouch) I would always be there for him, if he needed it. He slowly takes my hand into my own, and with a grateful expression, he thanks me. And with the way he voices out his appreciation, I can feel so much emotion in it that my eyes are threatening to create some moisture.

Standing up from his seat, he then gestures for me to get up as well. "Come on, it's getting late,” he murmurs. “I'll take you home now."

———————————————

The car ride home is quiet, but peaceful.

But it’s not the 'awkward' type of quiet, where the air is filled with tension or anything. This 'quiet' is more like the type when everyone is just lost in their thoughts, and is just deeply pondering to themselves. Although, I’m actually just tired in general, from having such a long day, so my thoughts on getting home to my bed, is what’s keeping me from speaking. The sound of the soft engine, and the sight of the blurring buildings as we drive, was doing a great job at slowly lulling me to a sleep. I can feel my eyes getting heavier and heavier, but with all my willpower, I’m determined not to not doze off.

Soon, we reach our destination, and at the sight of my apartment building coming into view, it’s enough to snap my eyes open.

And now wide awake, I wait for Yongguk to stop the car, for me to undo my seatbelt, and then grab a hold of my belongings. I then say my goodbye to him, and he replies with a wave back, but just before I can open the car door, he prevents me.

"Yejin-ah," calls Yongguk, from out of the blue. "Thank you."

I turn around to look at him, knowing that he has more to say, so I wait.

"Thank you for today," he says. "Honestly, I really appreciate it."

I give him a warm smile. "No worries," I answer. "That's what friends are for."

Ouch, why does calling me his friend still hurt?

After all this time, the uncomfortable twist in my stomach should have stopped by now...

He gives me a small smile, and I continue on; "Yongguk, you're an amazing person, and if Jieun can't appreciate what she had, then someone else will." I jerk my shoulders up, "You'll find another person who's just as good—no wait, correction; you'll find someone even better!"

Yongguk laughs at my enthusiasm, and thanks me once again.

In return, I give him a peace sign, just before shutting the car's door, and with one last wave, I then proceed to make my way towards my apartment.