It was New Year’s Eve—a day where people enjoyed themselves. But that wasn’t the case with a certain woman.

Jung In groaned, running her hand through her messy brown hair. It used to be neat, but being separated from her fiancé was driving her crazy. It didn’t help much that she hadn’t seen him for the past hour, and she kicked at the grass before quickly stopping herself. They hadn’t offended her in any way. Dialing his number again, the sound of an ambulance wailing made her heart jump to and she closed her eyes, trying to calm herself down.

Heading towards that direction anyway, she shouted loudly so that, if he were to be nearby, he would be able to hear her. She heard his distinct ringtone, the absurdly cheerful one he’d specially set for her calls and heaved a sigh of relief when she saw the back of the man. There he is. Jogging over, she noticed the body on the ground, a white cloth over the entire body.

“Jongdae! What...”

The phone fell to the ground with a small ‘crash’, and her hands fell limply to her sides.

 

 

The man laced his fingers through hers, his grin brightening up the entire sidewalk and she blushed softly, looking away quickly. Their hands fit together perfectly, like puzzle pieces that had been separated for too long. His hands were a little rough and dry, hers smooth and when Jung In squeezed his hand, Jongdae raised a brow.

“Kiddo, let’s eat ice cream. My treat.” The woman grinned, and he mocked hurt, his frown exaggerated.

“Don’t we share the same wallet? How can you say it’s your ‘treat’?” She snorted, rolling her eyes in the most obnoxious manner before pulling her hand out of his grasp.

“Forget it then.” Turning on her heels, she acted as though she was heading somewhere else and the man laughed, grabbing her wrist. Despite being dry, his hand was warm and she turned expectantly.

“You know I was kidding, babe. Ice cream?” Jongdae batted his eyelashes, and she felt something stirring in the pits of her stomach. She smirked at how adorable he was, and shook her head playfully. Laughing, she slipped her hand back into his and swung their arms, skipping to the stall.

“One chocolate, and one… green tea.” She smiled to the cashier, a simple one only meaning to thank him, and gave a small wave to the man sitting on the grass. He only pouted before looking away, seemingly annoyed at something and she scowled, wondering what was wrong.

Taking their ice cream from the counter, Jung In nodded her head at the friendly cashier and walked to her fiancé, having no problems in her heels. She knew he had been watching her, since his head had turned away too quickly and grinned, scooping up a spoonful of his chocolate ice cream.

“Open up for the airplane!” She said in a singsong, and the man snorted before opening his mouth wide. She knew exactly what he was about to say, pressing the cold spoon against his lips.

“My ice cream is not wasabi-flavored.” He laughed, biting the spoon and pulling it out of her grasp. Holding it in his hand, he mocked anger.

“Go feed that cashier instead.”

“Are you jealous, kid?”

“Yes.”

“Well that’s too bad.”

“Yah, you’re supposed to comfort me!”

“He’s hot.” She pretended to ponder over it; absolutely loving the theatrical gasp he gave her, and the way his eyes widened.

“You’re a bully.”

“I’m not. I’m just,” she scooped a spoonful of her ice cream and smiled, “stating the—” The lips that captured hers were urgent, and she laughed softly into the kiss, putting her spoon back in the cup as she let her hands run through his hair. A palm on her cheek, the other wrapped around her back and she willingly scooted closer with a giggle.

The ice cream remained on the grass, forgotten.

 

 

His eyes. 2 years ago, that was what made her gaze pass over the boy, yet return to him. He wasn’t tall, or exceptionally hot but there was this spark to him that drove her breath away. He definitely is handsome, though. He stood there beside his parents, laughing and raising his glass as the middle-aged man opposite them spoke. The suit accented his sharp features, his loosened tie and ed collar highlighting the fact that he was still a teen and she smiled without having to tell she herself to.

The talkative man seemed to be spurred on, and as he exclaimed in wonder over things she hadn’t thought worth her attention, she pressed the glass against her lips. The boy seemed to choose that moment to turn his head, and his originally smiling eyes were now empty. She pitied him.

All of a sudden, she felt lucky that she’d worn her favorite dress, and chuckled under her breath. The boy continued scanning the ballroom disinterestedly, as if looking for something or someone to brighten up his day and when he looked into her eyes, she nearly dropped the glass. He wasn’t merely handsome. He was beautiful. Do I look away? Or should I smile? Panicking inside, she was jostled out of her thoughts when the man before her put his hand out, and she noticed a song had begun playing.

“May I?” He offered her a smile, and she knew from one look that it was a practiced one. Raising her hand, she let it slip into his and smiled.

“Of course.” She herself couldn’t tell if she was being serious, or sarcastic. He’d almost forcefully dragged her eyes away from the boy, yet saving her from having to make a decision. As she rested her hand on his arm, she tried not to let the hand on her waist bother her and swayed to the beat, each step a routine one.

The entire time, she felt the boy’s eyes on her. It wasn’t an unpleasant sensation, surprisingly, but it wasn’t pleasant either. When it was finally gone, she was relieved but the sound of someone clearing his throat grabbed her attention. The song had come to an end.

“May I have the next dance?” The boy’s voice was smooth, calm and soothing, even sweet but not honey-covered like the man’s and she nodded, almost eagerly. Maybe she just wanted to escape her partner, she told herself. Or maybe, her mind whispered softly, you simply want to hold this guy’s hand.

Smiling softly, she slipped her hand into his warm ones, and he smiled back.

And that was when she knew she was trapped.

“My name is Kim Jongdae. Will you enlighten me with yours?” The words were like sugar, and despite having strange difficulties she managed to tell they were rehearsed ones. Smiling all the same, she looked right into his eyes.

“Oh Jung In. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Kim.” Her hand was rested on his shoulder, a simple gesture she hadn’t done with the man earlier on. She was all too aware of the rising temperature of her cheeks, of their close proximity, and of his knowing smirk.

“Please, Jung In, call me Jongdae. I must say,” he pulled back for the spin, and she turned gracefully with ease. Just like she had been glad for her decision to wear her dress, she was thankful that she’d put effort into learning the dance properly. “You look amazing.” He smiled again, his gaze a little distracted and she snorted lightly.

“Was that an honest comment, or honestly out of obligation?” She boldly smiled back, a challenging glint in her eyes and watched, as the boy’s gaze flickered—from annoyance or amusement, she could not tell.

“It hurts me that you think of me that way, Jung In.” The mask broke, and the boy smirked at her. There was this light in his eyes, a naughty one as a small curve played on his lips. “I’m getting refreshments. Would you care to join me?” Something told her he was lying, but she nodded her head anyway. After all, she wanted to know this boy better.

And that was exactly what happened.

The two laughed, clinking glasses occasionally as they talked about everything—from current schools, to hobbies, to friends and finally love lives. As she looked up, she met his arched brow and rolled her eyes.

“My boyfriends,” the word was said with a flourish of her hand as she leaned against the railing, “were all gotten out of business reasons.” She raised her head, meeting his unexpectedly soft gaze and felt the queerest sensation ever. It was a mix of excitement, nervousness and joy, with a pinch of something indescribable and as she kept her eyes on his, she could feel these feelings get stronger.

“I almost ended up with a fiancée once. Luckily, I persuaded my parents out of the engagement or I wouldn’t be here.” He laughed, and for some reason she felt the strange urge to join him. His voice was like a soothing melody to her ears, and she couldn’t resist her next question.

“If you hadn’t managed to,” a tentative glance was thrown at him before she stared at his lips instead, “would you be standing here with me?” She watched, as the boy visibly tensed up before relaxing again. His lips curled, and she looked back at his bemused eyes.

“If I truly loved her, no. How could I place my supposed engagement in jeopardy by going to such a secluded area with a beautiful girl like you?” She froze, her heart skipping a beat and blushed uncontrollably. Jongdae was a sweet-talker, she’d learnt over the past hour, but his charms never failed on her. She realized how he’d noticeably gotten closer, his lips ghosting over hers and as he leaned in, she wondered if it was the right thing to do.

No, it’s not, her mind screamed, but you know you want it. Sighing mentally, she stepped back with a small smile.

“I apologize, but I must be leaving. It was pleasant, having your company.” Locking lips with someone she’d just met wasn’t something Jung In would do. And she wasn’t ready to change for someone she’d just met.

“What, you’re not going to leave me a number to call?” She didn’t answer, and the boy smiled. This time, she knew the flicker of his gaze was purely from amusement. "Miss Oh, it was my pleasure.” As he bowed, the girl disappeared behind the curtains.

 

 

The next time they met, was in January, and—fortunately or unfortunately—they’d applied for the same prestigious college. On her very first day, she had spotted that smiling boy, and it was with ease. Friends surrounded him, unfamiliar faces and she smiled. It appeared that he didn’t befriend people out of business reasons.

She liked people like that.

He suddenly looked up, as though realizing someone was observing him and she looked away a little too slowly. His grin brightened up his face, and she swore he was the Sun of the hall. She watched, as the boy excused himself from his circle of friends and began heading over, and panicked.

So she did the first thing she thought of—she turned around, but not without a small wave of goodbye. The confusion that lay open on his face made her snort, as she left the hall.

 

 

That night, she danced more than she ever imagined for herself to. Her ankles were sore, her shoulders were stiff, and her headache was killing her but this was what she had to do. Because this was January 11, and ever since she was 16 she’d been doing this. Finally, she was 19.

Smiling, she bowed and excused herself to the washroom, and sighed. She longed to take those heels off, to mess up her ridiculous hairdo and remove her makeup but she couldn’t. She had her obligations. Sighing, the girl stared at her manicured nails, wondering if she should change to a more natural colour and design the next time. Staring at her reflection in the mirror, she smiled to herself. You can do this.

As she turned the corner, she nearly fell over and quickly looked down, only to see a little girl playing with the hem of her dress. All anger she’d felt dissipated, and she bent down into a squat, no matter how awkward the position was in heels.

“What are you doing here?” The child looked up, her big eyes blinking innocently and she grinned, gesturing for Jung In to go closer. And when she did, the little girl pressed her small hand against her cheeks.

“Pretty unnie!” The girl blushed lightly, laughing when the kid began playing with her hands. “Why are your nails like this?” Jung In looked about, wondering where the girl’s parents were before shrugging, sitting down beside her.

“Because unnie got them painted.” Her eyes widened again, forming a cute ‘o’ as she nodded excitedly, her brown ringlets bouncing. She was adorable, and she didn’t wish for the dirtiness of this world to ever taint her.

“I want to get mine painted too!” As the little girl giggled, the two talked more and she found herself having more fun in the simple 10 minutes than the past few hours. She was so innocent yet cheeky, and she couldn’t help but find her similar to a certain boy. Upon closer inspection, she realized the girl’s eyes were so familiar. Even the way she grinned, her strong jaw despite being so young reminded Jung In of that boy, and she looked up at someone’s voice.

“Min, where are you?” It sounded more like someone singing loudly instead of shouting, and she watched as the little girl bounced to her feet.

“Oppa!” And she realized why they looked so similar.

“Fancy meeting you here, Miss Oh.” The boy was in a different suit, his tie over his shoulder and his cuffs loosened. His eyes were wide from recognition, the simple expression so much like his sister’s and she laughed.

“I should be saying that, Mr. Kim. After all,” she grinned and held the little girl’s hand, “it is my birthday.” She watched, as the child in the boy’s arms cheered. Her eyes were curved to small crescents, her arms up high and the boy laughed; his facial features an exact copy.

“I should have expected it, Jung In. This annoying kid is my sister, Min. She’s 6.” As though that was her cue, the girl jumped out of his arms and ran over to Jung In, the brightest grin ever on her face.

“Oppa, marry pretty unnie!” And the two teenagers froze, the heat on their cheeks rising and the girl seemed unbothered, grabbing Jung In’s hand and placing it in her brother’s. She seemed so innocent and excited, and the boy ruffled her hair.

“Go play with Jongin oppa for now, good girl.” As she hopped away, Jung In sighed.

“She’s cute.” The boy looked over, an incredulous look on his face.

“Of course she is. Whose sister do you think she is?” Jung In pursed her lips as though to think about it, before clicking her fingers.

“She has to make up for what you lack, Jongdae.”

“Yah!” They laughed at their absurdity, before realizing they were still standing near the washrooms. It wasn’t a particularly good spot to be talking at. She stared at his arm that blocked her way, and he gave her the look as if demanding for her to do something about it. Snorting, she linked arms with him and he grinned, his eyes beautiful crescents.

That night, she danced barefoot. She let her hair down, and though she couldn’t remove her makeup or change into more comfortable clothes, it was better than nothing. The boy had his suit loosened, his hair messed up, and he smiled. It was a truly beautiful night.

But all beautiful things had to come to an end.

As she smiled, her heels back on, Jung In turned to leave, only to be pulled back by the boy’s hold on her wrist. She frowned, turning back around and gasped softly when she felt the soft lips on her nose.

“You would scream if that were your lips.” He laughed, and she tried to calm her frantic pulse but to no avail. He looked into her eyes expectantly, as though waiting for her to do something and she smiled. The girl held on to one side of the suit and pushed it off the shoulder, leaning in. As she stepped back again, she was satisfied with the product and put the suit back on before he noticed it.

“Thank you, everyone, for all your well wishes. It was a great honor to have your company, and I hope you’ve all enjoyed yourselves.” Jung In smiled, her hair still down and stepped back from the microphone. The entire time, her eyes were on a particular boy and even when she stood beside her parents, she watched him. As though he’d decided he could not handle the curiosity, Jongdae pulled his suit open and quickly put it back. She grinned, as he looked up with a smirk.

There, hiding behind his expensive tailored suit, was a pink lipstick mark.

 

 

“Minseok is going to lose it when he sees me.” The man laughed, completely soaked while Jung In shrugged, still laughing.

“And he’s going to shout at me.”

“With a mike, probably.”

“Well, you were the one who tried pushing me in! Psh, useless little—yah!” As she spoke, Jongdae grabbed her arm and in one grand maneuver, threw her into the sea as well. She glared at the laughing man, kicking him hard.

“Neither of us brought extra clothes.”

“Neither of us cares.” The two were reckless, fun-loving adults and she suddenly hit her forehead with her palm.

“What’s wrong?”

“Kiddo, we booked that restaurant, remember? I don’t think they’re going to let us in, all smelly and—” His lips sealed hers, the salty taste of seawater a peculiar one and she brought her hands up, running her hands through his hair, not caring about the fact that now, his hair was also wet.

As they separated, both breathless, she put her forehead against his and smiled. If it were possible, she would have stopped time and let it hang there forever. But there was no way for that to happen—all beautiful things had to come to an end.

 

 

“Happy birthday, Mr. Kim.” She put the red box out and smiled. The man liked cute things, best handmade, and many of his belongings were intricately designed. Even better, he was a playful man who secretly liked feminine things. And so, with the help of his brother, she found the perfect present.

“Dude, open ours together.” Jongdae jumped out from nowhere, and the man laughed before ruffling the boy’s hair. Truthfully, Jung In was late for the party due to other matters but she rushed over. She was in airport attire, in a hoodie and jeans, her long brown hair a little tangled but she didn’t mind. Casting a glance to her friend, she knew he didn’t either. She wondered why she bothered about his opinion, but deep inside she knew exactly why.

“I hate both of you.” He stated with an eye roll, and the two teenagers ran away before they were hit.

In her red box lay a hot pink mug, with their names signed over and over again. Jongdae had given him a simple lid for him to cover his mug since he knew his brother didn’t need anything. He had all he needed. All three did.

“I can’t believe I agreed to… that.”

“What?”

“Buying something like that. It’s not much of a proper present.”

“Well it is. And believe me, he’s going to love it.”

“I still can’t believe it.”

“I can’t, either.” The two were sitting outside the Kims’ house, throwing blades of grass into the water. She turned her head to look at him, his sharp yet dashing features and grinned.

“Stupid.”

“Silly.”

“Lunatic.”

“… I’m trying to not curse here, so… Acrid?”

“How profound, professor Kim.”

“Only with you, student Oh. Where is your assignment? It is long overdue!” As they laughed, the girl suddenly turned, grabbing his tie. It was purely and completely out of impulse, that she pulled the boy over and sealed his blabbering mouth with her lips. She stayed there for a while, feeling the wild hammering of her heart. It was too loud, and she wondered if he could hear it too.

‘There,’ she whispered against his lips, nervous, ‘my long overdue assignment.’ Was he going to change the topic all of a sudden, in his special way of rejecting here? Or was he going to blush and cover his lips like an embarrassed schoolgirl?

“That’s not good enough.” His voice wasn’t exactly deep, or y but she liked it. As he leaned in, the way he nibbled on her lower lip made her gasp softly, their tongues meeting gently, as though experimenting with each other before the kiss grew rough, hands running through each other’s hair and wrapping around the other’s waist or neck.

That night, the two lay beside the water, basking in the moment. They let the moonlight record that special moment, lest one person forgets.

 

 

“I’ll go get our stuff! Meanwhile,” the man threw his car keys and Jung In caught them effortlessly. “Please, take good care of my car.” He’d saved up by himself to buy it, so she knew its importance. Yet she wasn’t really into cars, hence all she knew was that it was branded. Expensive. Unlike her, Jongdae loved cars. And because of him, even his sister did too.

As she sat there, the woman opened the front two doors to air the car. It stunk of saltwater, and she scrunched her nose.

What’s taking him so long? With a small frown, Jung In closed the doors and made sure the car was locked before heading up to their apartment. His shoes were not outside the door, and she felt her heart begin to palpitate, in more negative ways than one. Checking inside anyway, she confirmed that he was no longer in the house and groaned.

She should have known the man was going to lose his way. The car was parked a considerably great distance away, but the bright red wasn’t exactly hard to spot. As the waited for the lift to reach the first floor, she tapped her foot impatiently and ran a hand through her hair. It was a little dry from all the salt, but she didn’t really care.

What mattered most was to find the man with a heart of a little boy’s, since his sense of direction was never that great.

 

 

“Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. Kim.” The 20-year-old bowed, smiling. “My name is—”

“We know. We’ve heard a lot about you.” She felt the prickly sensation of being watched as she stepped into the house, her heart beating too fast and hard for her comfort.

“What makes you think you’re worth our son?” The woman crossed her legs, elegance in every move and she felt like a mouse under a cat’s inspection. Taking in a deep breath, she wondered if this was what all females went through on their first meeting with her in-laws. She was about to answer them, when the man beside her groaned.

“Mom, Dad. Don’t do that ‘oh I’m going to scare my son’s girlfriend’ thing you did with hyung.” She turned, surprised and the couple laughed, their stern expressions immediately replaced by playful grins. Even Minseok was standing by the staircase, his pink apron oiled. A petite lady stepped out after him, a bright grin on her face and Jung In smiled, thankful.

“Well, you ruined it. Welcome to the family, Jung In.” With a disapproving scowl, the father stood up and smiled to the nervous woman.

Dinner was a little awkward at first, but soon the tension was replaced with joy as the six of them joked about. She soon noticed that Jongdae wasn’t simply cheeky by nature—he grew up in such an environment. She was glad to see the hot pink mug beside his brother’s bowl, and the man’s frown made her cough in embarrassment.

She liked every second of it. And if possible, she would’ve asked for this moment to last forever, or at least longer than it actually did.

But of course, the clock ticked on.

 

 

She vaguely remembered falling to her knees, as she realized the phone that rang was beneath the bloodied white cloth. And that was all, before she lost all strength.

 

It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

They were supposed to be sitting opposite each other, next to the window with a perfect view of the peaceful lake. She was supposed to be making difficult decisions between spaghetti and steak, while he was supposed to be whining for a second round. She was supposed to be kicking him under the table, and he was supposed to be asking for her to feed him like the kid he truly was.

Not this.

She wasn’t supposed to be in a morgue, waiting for the autopsy results. He wasn’t supposed to be lying on the table, apart from the cloth covering from his chest till his feet. She wasn’t supposed to be crying her heart out, her tears staining the damp dress and he wasn’t supposed to be lying there, unmoving.

“Wipe my tears and tell me it’ll be alright, kid.” She was older by eight months, and he tended to make use of that, pouting and asking for favors.

“Wake up, Jongdae.” He couldn’t be gone. Knowing his playful nature, he was probably hiding somewhere and this was all a huge complicated prank. Deep inside, she knew it wasn’t. She knew it was real. But she couldn’t wrap her mind around it. She couldn’t put it to heart.

The woman was inconsolable: there was simple no way he could be gone.

The police had called his family, and his parents had put all business deals aside to rush back from Canada. She could hear his father’s forced voice from where she was, and sniffed. Like her, that man had to be strong. She knew how emotional his mother could get. She could a little girl’s sobs, and felt her eyes warm up again. What about her? Who was supposed to be strong for her? Come back to me, Jongdae. Pat my head, mess my hair up, and pinch my cheeks. Kiss me, hold hands with me, and annoy me. Come back to me, kid.

Jung In supposed she would have to be strong for herself.

“Miss Oh, it is late and you should be leaving soon.” The officer’s voice was deep and slightly annoyed, but she didn’t pay attention to it. The series of loud cheers that she could hear, even from where she was, grabbed her attention. The clock struck midnight, and she looked out the window. Through red-rimmed eyes, she watched the fireworks display and smiled.

A new year had begun, a year without the man by her side.

 

That night in her dreams, they danced under the moonlight. They played in the water, fed each other food, and kissed. Things were too beautiful to end, and she wished for it to last forever.

That night, time stopped for them.

 

 

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There! Sorry, I should be focusing on my other stories but I wrote a oneshot instead /sorry not sorry/

Hope you guys liked it! ^^