Written for: eunhaxoxo ; By beccadanielle8d

A/n: I wrote this in third person, that's my style forte. I hope that's okay! Also, this was more of a romantic comedy than just romance, but I hope you like it anyway! ^^

 

There was a knock on the door. In the midst of studying, Eunha really didn’t have time for literally anyone. She had even put watching Exo’s live concert from this week aside because it was crunch time and finals were coming up soon. (To be honest, she was going to watch it later, but now she was at least trying to study.) However, the knocking persisted until the person gave up and just came in.

“Hey!” Eunha grumbled at the sight of her best friend, Yebin. “I’m trying to work here. Some of us want to pass our exams.” Yebin tossed herself onto Eunha’s roommate’s bed, and Eunha was grateful that her roommate wasn’t around right now because she hated anyone touching her things. Especially Yebin. The girl didn’t know what personal space or privacy was, at all. “What do you want?”

Yebin fanned herself with a couple strips of paper she was holding in her hand. “Oh, nothing. I just happened to get this concert tickets for this crappy band that definitely isn’t as important as finals, and I thought you might want to go with me.”

Eunha frowned. “Why would I want to see a crappy band with you?”

“I dunno,” Yebin shrugged. “Because you’re obsessed with said band, and I figured you ought to meet them at least once in your life. You know, since the tickets include a meet-and-greet. Unless you don’t like Exo anymore, and you finally got over the monkey-looking rapper…”

At the mention of Exo, Eunha shrieked. “The band is Exo?! You have tickets to see Exo?” She jumped up and clawed at the tickets in the other girl’s hand. Yebin laughed, chucking the tickets at Eunha, who read the title on them and yelped again. “How? How did you even manage this?”

“Just lucky,” Yebin said casually. “I’m gonna run away now, before you have a mental breakdown. I’d tell you not to lose those,” she nodded at the tickets Eunha was holding on to desperately. “But I don’t think I need to worry.” She got up and left as quickly as she’d come.

“Thank you!” Eunha cried as the door closed. “I love you!”

Eunha sat on her bed, giving up on her studying for the night. Three days. This concert was in three days. She looked up at her wall, adorned with posters; in the centre of them was her Exo posters, one of M and one of K. How many hours had she spent staring at those posters, longing to get to meet her favourite band? She heard about concerts all the time, but she could never afford tickets. And now, she was going. Even more, she would get to meet them.

I get to meet Chanyeol! Not that she wasn’t excited to meet the rest, but Chanyeol was her favourite. He was seriously perfect. He was tall and dorky and gorgeous, and his laugh was so great it made her smile. He just seemed so playful and fun, yet somehow truly sincere. And to get to experience that first hand, not just through a computer screen… She couldn’t wait.

It’s only three days, she thought. Gosh, she didn’t have any time to mentally prepare herself for this. She was going to meet them and make a total fool of herself, no doubt. But whatever. This was Exo. She was going to see Exo. Was this even real?

She stared at the tickets in her hands, memorizing every word. Apparently, it was.

“

Three days later, she still couldn’t believe it. Her and Yebin stood in the fan-signing line clutching their albums to be signed, and Eunha was actually seeing Exo. They were right there, twenty feet from her and this was impossible, but no, that was definitely Do Kyungsoo and he was so much cuter in real life, and beside him was Kris who looked far less severe than he ever tried to be for shows. Next to Kris was Chanyeol, Eunha knew, but she couldn’t get a clear view of him, and that was beyond frustrating. Let me feast my eyes on him while I can! Who knows when I’ll ever get to see him again. Probably never, knowing her luck. Even now, in the same room as him, she couldn’t see him. Ugh.

They reached the table, and Yebin handed her album calmly to Sehun, giving him a comfortable smile. Eunha wished she could be composed like Yebin, but in her mind she was just screaming because that’s Sehun! That’s the little maknae right there, in the flesh, oh my goodness. Somewhere along the line, she must have died, because how was she even confronting Exo right now? Yet Sehun signed Yebin’s album and returned it to her, and then his eyes were on Eunha and she wanted to scream, but instead she just pushed her album towards him. Yebin watched her with amusement as she moved on to Luhan.

“My friend is really excited to meet you guys,” Yebin told them. “She’s just too busy internally screaming to actually process speaking right now.” Luhan glanced up at Eunha, and gave her a reassuring smile, which didn’t really help anything. “I don’t even wanna know how she’ll be when we get to Chanyeol.”

“Chanyeol?” Sehun wondered, and Eunha tried not to hyperventilate because Sehun was talking to them, ugh ugh ugh. She cleared awkwardly.

“He’s my bias,” she explained, feeling her face grow warm.

“What about me?” Luhan teased, and she hid her face in her hands. “I’m just kidding.”

“I love all of you!” she promised. “Just, Chanyeol is… Chanyeol.”

“Yeah, but he doesn’t deserve someone as pretty as you,” Sehun said, mock-pouting. Eunha squeaked, and hurried to get Luhan’s signature, before nodding at the pair and moving on to Xiumin. She felt a bit calmer around him, because he had a very relaxing aura, and she was grateful because she needed to stay calm. Her big moment was soon. Like, two people away soon. Because beside Xiumin was Baekhyun, and beside Baekhyun was her imminent death.

She didn’t get the chance to take a deep breath and prepare herself a bit after she passed her album to Baekhyun, because Baekhyun apparently noticed her eyeing Chanyeol, and elbowed the boy, saying something to him that made Chanyeol look her way. And then Chanyeol was grinning and waving at her, and Yebin stared at her with a terribly amused look on her face.

“I think you just killed her,” Yebin noted to Chanyeol as he handed back the CD he had just signed for her. Chanyeol gave Eunha an innocent glance, and then smiled.

“Sorry,” he said.

“You don’t like this dork, do you?” Baekhyun asked her jokingly. Eunha nodded, blushing again. “Ewwww!”

“Don’t be jealous,” Chanyeol told him. “I can’t help it if she has good taste.”

There wasn’t much more to it than that. Eunha asked Chanyeol for a high-five just so she could say she got to touch him once in her life, and then she was continuing down the line through the rest of the members. After that was the concert, and although they weren’t in the front row, Eunha and Yebin had really good seats, and Yebin filmed the whole thing so Eunha wouldn’t have to worry about focusing on a camera instead of the band. And then it was all over, and they had to go back to their school, sleep, and get up the next day to study, study, study. But it was worth it, because it was the best night of Eunha’s life. She’d met Chanyeol, she had the signatures of all of Exo, and Sehun had even called her pretty.

Life went back to normal after that. Eunha took her finals, Exo continued performing. Meeting Chanyeol became a thing of the past. A week went by, and then a month, and Eunha was content with the fact that she’d met her favourite band, but she longed to meet them again. Maybe one day, she told herself. When she was done school and had less to worry about.

School break ended, and she began a new semester. She had lots of free time, since the workload was far less stressful at the beginning of the year than it was near finals. With that spare time, she liked to go to a nearby local park, often late at night. There was a certain tree there that she had sort of claimed as her own where she liked to sit under, or sometimes climb up into the branches of and read by flashlight. It made her feel adventurous to be there, even if she was just reading books, and no one ever bothered her (hem hem, Yebin).

On a night when she hadn’t visited the park in the while, and she had finished all her homework – which she decided was some sort of miracle, because she never finished her homework – she made a trip to the tree, even though it was getting pretty late by that point. It’s never too late for a good book, she told herself. Eunha reached the tree, and regretted not having brought a jacket because it was colder than she’d anticipated.

For some reason today, she struggled getting up to her usual branch, her bag getting snagged on twigs and such several times before she was up and comfortable. When she finally was happily set up, she pulled out her book and flashlight from her backpack, hanging the bag on another branch and then flipping the book open to where she’d left off. But she managed to fumble, and the book slipped out of her hands, dropping over ten feet to the ground with a resounding thud.

“Are you kidding me?” Eunha rolled her eyes. What is wrong with me today? She sighed, carefully setting her flashlight to hang pointing down at the ground, the spotlight shining on her fallen book. But as she did this, someone stepped into the path of the light, picking up the book and then squinting up at the flashlight.

Eunha’s heart dropped down to the ground as her book had a moment before.

“Are you an alien? Or a tree fairy?” She swung out of the tree, dropping down beside the boy who had retrieved her book for her. “Oh, you’re a person,” he said, seeming relieved. “Seriously, I saw a book fall out of the tree and it was gonna be one of two things – either one, trees are making themselves into books, or two, an alien just dropped this.” He held up the book, and looked at Eunha curiously. She was busy trying to remember to breathe, and forgot the part where she should be trying to speak. Because she had just dropped her book, and none other than Park Chanyeol had picked it up. “What the heck were you doing up there anyway?”

“Reading,” she said, the word coming out far more steadily than her internal thoughts. But it was only one word. She wasn’t sure she could manage a whole sentence. Her heart was hammering in her chest. How had she just happened to stumble upon Chanyeol like this? She stared up at him, and he looked so… normal. Well, he was as gorgeous as ever, but he just seemed like an average person. Had he been walking through the park? He had to have been… Eunha had to remind herself that idols were still humans, and still did normal things like that, when they could.

“In a tree?” he wondered. She nodded. “You’re not homeless are you? Or an alien in disguise?”

“I – I’m not an alien,” Eunha told him, thinking that he was oddly obsessed with aliens. “Or homeless.”

“You hesitated,” Chanyeol said. “You’re an alien! And this book is probably written in a weird alien language, full of ancient alien secrets.” He began examining the book cover carefully, and Eunha felt a confusing mix of emotions. For one thing, she was in total spazz mode because she was casually talking to Chanyeol; alone, just him and her, not at an Exo event. For another, she was amused and a bit weirded out, because they were talking about aliens.

“You’re kind of crazy,” she blurted out, and then her eyes widened. Did she just call him crazy? Holy crap, she just said that. Great job, Eunha. Way to make a good first impression. Now he thinks you’re an alien and an . “Sorry – just – are you alright?” Smooth. Very smooth.

Chanyeol snorted. “I could ask you the same thing. You’re the one hiding in a tree with your spaceship, preying on innocent passersby.”

“It’s a flashlight!” Eunha defended. “And I told you, I’m reading. Or I was trying to.”

“And then you threw your book at me.”

“I didn’t throw it, I dropped it! And I didn’t know you were there!”

Chanyeol was laughing at her as she tried to clear everything up, and she felt her cheeks turning pink. At least it was dark. “I’m just joking,” he said lightly. “Although I do think it’s weird that you’re reading in a tree this late at night.”

“Well, if it’s so late at night-”

“Why am I here?” he finished for her. She bit her lip, not wanting to overstep. He didn’t know she knew him. He didn’t know she had a huge crush on him. She had given no sign that she even recognized him as an idol. So far, her game was strong. But had she just exposed herself, and her knowledge of him being the Park Chanyeol? “The only time I’m not busy is at night,” he admitted. “I like to go for walks sometimes, just to get some fresh air.”

Eunha nodded. She understood what he wasn’t saying. Sometimes, he had to get away from band members and fans, sweaty practice rooms and crowded concert halls. That was reasonable. And now, as much as she wanted to stay and keep talking to him forever, she knew she had to back off. Otherwise he would grow suspicious. And she liked the way he was treating her right now – just like a person, not a fan; and even though she knew who he was, she was treating him pretty normally herself. She didn’t want to ruin the moment by messing up.

“I won’t intrude, then,” she said slowly, taking her book from his hands and nodding her head. “Thanks for getting my book.”

“Are you always up in trees?” Chanyeol wondered. “Should I be watching where I walk when I go through the parks?”

Eunha shook her head. “It’s just this one,” she told him. “It’s the best one for reading that I’ve found.”

“I’ll let you go read then,” he said, taking a step back. “See you, tree girl.”

Eunha smiled at the nickname as she watched him retreat. Tree girl. She could live with that.

“

“Hey, tree girl, you’re still up there!”

Eunha glanced over the top of her book to see Chanyeol down at the base of the tree she was in, smiling at his familiar voice. This was the fourth time he’d come by in less than a month (although he’d told her there had been other times when she hadn’t been there). Eunha came to the tree more often, and later at night, hoping to see Chanyeol, although they still hadn’t even exchanged names yet.

“I thought you said I lived here,” Eunha noted, closing her book and jumping down from her branch.

“You do,” he assured her. “You’re a tree fairy. Tree fairies live in trees.”

“Whatever you say.” She’d grown so much more comfortable around him, and that was the happiest thing. It was a relief to not be a total deer in the headlights when she was talking to him. But it was pretty natural to have a conversation with him already. Chanyeol was so laid back, and she was usually an easy-going person herself, having no difficulty striking up a conversation with people at any time. Sometimes she could forget that this was a celebrity – who she had a crush on, no less – and not just a random local boy who happened to occasionally walk by this tree. Then there were other times when it would punch her in the face that she was talking to Chanyeol, and he even came by when she wasn’t there in hopes that she would be, just to hang out with her.

“It’s kind of weird, you know,” Chanyeol told her as they sat down between the tree roots. This had been a custom in the past two visits now. “I mean, I told a friend of mine about you. ‘Hey, Baek, I met this girl in a tree. I’m pretty sure she’s an alien, but she’s cool.’ Great conversation starter, don’t you think?”

Eunha laughed. “What did your friend say?”

“’Lay off the drugs, bro.’” Imagining Baekhyun telling Chanyeol that made Eunha giggle. Chanyeol nodded firmly, eyes wide and innocent. “Seriously, though. He thinks I’m crazy. Like, you make friends at school, or, I dunno, a café or a library or something. Meanwhile, I’m just, ‘Oh yeah, making buds in trees, yep’.”

“’Buds’. Was that a pun?” she asked sternly. Chanyeol pulled a face.

“It wasn’t supposed to be!” he said, looking displeased with himself. “Don’t laugh at me,” he added as she did just that.

As they had the past two meetings, they talked for a long time. It was weird, how easily things flowed between them. They were two strangers, after all. But Eunha had always been one for adventure, and though there were no dragons, she found her life had become fascinating because of Chanyeol. And she talked to him about all sorts of things – although she carefully avoided talking about idols and especially Exo – and he told her some interesting stories of his own. When too long, and not long enough, had passed them by, Eunha realized she needed to get home and sleep. She had class early in the morning.

“You should go,” Chanyeol told her, when she reluctantly checked the time on her phone. She nodded sadly, and got to her feet, Chanyeol copying. “Hey, tree girl, can I ask you something?” Eunha met his eyes, and waited, heart fluttering nervously. “I know this is a weird sort of friendship for me, but… what do you – I mean, who do you think I am?”

Park Chanyeol. The gorgeous rapper in Exo. The guy I’ve had a crush on for over a year now. The reason I have terribly high standards. “Uh, I guess… You’re a boy who I’m hoping won’t try anything on me?” she answered uncertainly. “And, you’re the only one who knows I come out here.”

Chanyeol gave a nod. “I wouldn’t try anything on you,” he promised. “But do you think… I mean, you seem pretty nice, and I think it’d be cool to be your friend. Like, away from the tree.” Despite the fact that she was slightly panicking over the idea he was suggesting, Eunha couldn’t help but snort when he said that, and he cracked a grin. “I’m serious! Would you ever be… not just tree girl, but my friend?”

“I…” Me, be friends with you? Chanyeol is asking me to be his friend? How many dreams had Eunha had like this before? And now, it was actually happening somehow. Bless this tree, she thought. May it live for a thousand years as witness to this moment. But Eunha couldn’t give a straight yes. She was still afraid to give herself away as a fangirl. “Do you got to Seoul U. by chance? It’s my school. I haven’t seen you there before, but…”

“No, I’m not in school.”

“You’re done already?” Eunha prodded, playing along.

“It’s… complicated,” was all he offered.

“Another story for another day, huh?” He nodded, and Eunha wondered if Chanyeol would sometime tell her about his celebrity status. “That’s okay, I guess. But, yeah, I would like to be your friend. Away from my sacred tree.” She smiled, and he returned it warmly.

“Cool,” he said happily. “I guess I’ll give you my number then, and we can actually plan to meet up sometime.” Eunha’s heart stuttered. Chanyeol was going to give her his number.  Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! This isn’t even happening, oh my gosh! Act calm.

“Could I maybe get your name first?” she asked lightly. “Or should I put you in my contacts as ‘tree boy’?”

He chuckled. “I’m not the one who lives in the tree, remember? And my name is Chanyeol,” he added, holding out his hand. Eunha swallowed nervously, staring at it.

“Eunha,” she replied finally, taking his hand and shaking it. Then she pulled away and took out her phone. “What’s your number then?”

From then on, she wouldn’t have to worry about slipping up and calling him by his name when he hadn’t told her. From then on, she wouldn’t have to sit in a tree at night in hopes of seeing him. From then on, Eunha and Chanyeol were friends.

“

“You choose some pretty weird times to meet up, you know.”

Chanyeol shifted in his seat nervously. He and Eunha were sitting in a café at nearly eleven-thirty at night, sipping on coffees that he had bought them. This was the seventh time they had met away from the tree. They texted each other often, even when they couldn’t get together because of Chanyeol’s busy schedule and Eunha’s schoolwork. The pair had gotten to know each other well, and had really blossomed into good friends.

But Chanyeol still hadn’t told her about his career as an idol. Eunha was patiently waiting for the day he would trust her enough to let her know. Three months since the first time they’d met at the tree had gone by though, and he still hadn’t said a word.

“Yeah, my schedule… it’s kind of weird.”

“For a guy who doesn’t go to school, I’ll say,” Eunha agreed teasingly. “You must be a popular guy, if the only time you have for your tree friends is after most people have gone to bed.”

“Does that bother you?” he asked guiltily. Eunha shook her head.

“I don’t mind,” she assured him. “I just can’t help wondering what you do all day, every day that keeps you so busy all the time.”

Chanyeol sighed, putting down his coffee cup, and Eunha bit the inside of her cheek fearfully. Did I go too far? But he simply said, “Come for a walk with me,” getting up and heading outside, letting her trail after him.

“Chanyeol?” she said quietly after a moment of silence between them. He didn’t say anything, just took her hand abruptly and continued walking. After a while, Eunha recognized the path they were on, and it wasn’t long before they had reached her tree. Their tree.

“I’ve been meaning to tell you,” he began carefully. “Uh. I’ll get straight to the point, I guess. I’m – sort of an idol. A member of Exo. That’s… yeah. That’s why I’m always so busy.”

Eunha stared, stunned. Not because she didn’t know. But because he had just dropped that on her out of nowhere. No warning, nothing. Just… bam. “Exo? Like – the rookie band from SM?”

“We aren’t really rookies anymore,” Chanyeol told her. “It doesn’t matter. Yeah, that’s the one.”

Eunha’s mouth fell into an ‘o’ shape, and she stayed quiet for a moment, pretending to take in this information. “Well. That’s… huh.”

“Is – is that okay?”

Eunha frowned. “What do you mean?”

Chanyeol took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled it. “There’s something more I have to say.”

More? News about Exo? They weren’t breaking up, were they? No. Maybe they were going on a world tour or something, and he was going to tell her he’d be away for a while, so they wouldn’t be able to hang out. Eunha tried to read something in his eyes, but he was blocking her out.

“Just… I know I met you in a tree, and I think that’s a really solid way to start any relationship,” he said jokingly, before growing serious. “But when I first saw you – after I realized you weren’t an alien, of course – I couldn’t help thinking… Well, anyways, for the past couple of months, I’ve gotten to know you, and I feel so comfortable around you. I mean, with other girls it’s like, I’m nervous and feel like I have to put on a good show and everything. But… you never make me feel like I need to pretend, you know? I feel like I can just be me around you, and I’m never that way with girls. And I’m not afraid to tell you – I really like you. You’re the kind of person I’ve always wanted to meet. I was just looking in the wrong places, I guess. Like, not in trees. But seriously, I like you, Eunha, and I hope that doesn’t freak you out. Wow, sorry, I’m springing a whole lot on you right now. I won’t say anything else.” With that, he mimed zipping his lips closed, and watched her worriedly for a reaction.

However, Eunha’s mind had melted. On one hand, she was in chaos, because her long-time celebrity crush had just confessed his feelings for her. On the other, her calmer mind was still excited because she had actually developed a friendship with Chanyeol the past few months, and he was comfortable enough to tell her how he felt about her. She hadn’t screamed a confession at him; she hadn’t forced him to like her. He’d done this all on his own.

Wow. My life is actually a fairytale, and I hope I never, ever find the dragon. Let’s just leave it here with the prince and the happy ending, okay?

Finally, Eunha gave him a nod and a response. “Is – is there any other secrets you have pent up in there? Anything else ready to burst out?”

Chanyeol’s brow furrowed, and then he divulged, “I kissed my best friend once.” His eyes widened, filling with regret instantly. “Once! It hasn’t happened again. And I haven’t kissed any other guys since. And we’re still friends. He’s my band member, we have to be friends. But it’s not awkward between us because of it. Yeah, I’ve been meaning to tell someone that one for a while now. That’s not what’s important here.”

That is extremely important. He means Baekhyun, doesn’t he? Oh my gosh, Chanyeol and Baekhyun have actually kissed. That’s too good. Dang it, I can’t even tell the world! But she was still curious. “Okay, but now I have to know – why?”

“Why did we kiss?” Chanyeol asked. “Uh… Our fans talk about us a lot. You know how fans are – kinda crazy, you know? But…” His face turned pink. “I guess Baek got curious, so he asked if we could… yeah.”

“You regret it a lot, then?” Eunha . He shrugged. “Was it any good?”

“We’re getting off topic here!” But he was blushing a lot, so Eunha took it as confirmation.

“Right, sorry. You like me? Is that really true, Chanyeol?” He didn’t meet her eyes, bobbing his head timidly. “And you’re an idol. Wow. Did you wait to tell me you liked me after telling me about the whole band thing in hopes of impressing me? Like, ‘I’m a celebrity, date me!’”

“No!” he rebutted immediately. “It wasn’t like that at all! I – urgh.” He looked flustered. “I with words. You know how much I with words.”

“You always say that,” she agreed. “Yet you tell really great stories.”

“Well then, I at talking, especially when it’s important,” he edited. Frustrated, he took a step forward, cupping her face in his hands and pulling himself down to kiss her. Eunha’s mind screeched into overload as she felt his lips on hers, molding together warmly but urgently. After a moment he pulled away, eyes widening as his thoughts no doubt caught up with his actions. “I’m sorry!” he said immediately, but Eunha, surprising both of them, pulled him down by the collar of his shirt and brought their mouths back together. When she finally pulled away, they were both breathing heavily.

“I like you too,” she told him. “Even though you always drag me away from my studying. And even if you have a crazy life that you’re just deciding to tell me about now.” Even though I’ve known about you since long before you ever knew me. Even though we already met once before, and you thought nothing of me. She would tell him her secrets too, when her time was right. But for now, she was just taking in the brilliant smile and Park Chanyeol’s face as he realized her words. “I don’t know if your band allows for you to be dating, but-”

“We can figure something out,” he interrupted. “If you wanted to.”

“Okay,” Eunha smiled, and Chanyeol leaned in to kiss her again.

“

Their relationship wasn’t easy. Sometimes it was almost unbearable, due to the circumstances. But Eunha stayed by Chanyeol’s side through everything they had thrown at them.

After several months, neither of them had forgotten about the tree that had started their relationship. Chanyeol even carved their initials into the tree’s bark. One year exactly after they had met, they celebrated their anniversary in that same place – laying under the tree, with a flashlight hanging off one of the branches. Like that night a year ago, it was cold. But this time, Eunha had Chanyeol’s jacket, and his arms around her.

“I love you, tree girl.”

“What if I told you, after all this time, that I really am an alien?” Eunha . Chanyeol paused, thinking, and then smiled.

“I love you, alien tree girl.”

“Weirdo,” Eunha chuckled. “I love you too.”