Chapter 13 - Sweet dreams or a beautiful nightmare

It was a blur, but it looked like I was at a pool party. I spotted Chaerin and she was intensely making out with Yongguk on some random bench near the pool. Jea was flirting with some guy while showing off her bikini figure which left me standing alone, which I hated. Moreover I felt stared at because I was showing too much skin for my own liking.

Where was I? Whose party was this and why did I agree to come to a party like this in the first place? I stood there awkwardly eyeing my surroundings when I spotted Yuna. She clung onto Daehyun’s arm while he was talking with some other guys. They were known as the cool guys, just like him. He looked handsome with his red shorts that ended somewhere around his knees, white t-shirt and his Jordans on. It was weird that he had clothes on since almost everybody was in swimwear. It was only then that I realized that all the girls were wearing swimwear while the guys were just casually dressed. I frowned. This must’ve been Seokjin’s party then, but I don’t remember him having a pool in his backyard… How could I have overlooked such a crucial thing?

I just couldn’t stop looking at Daehyun and I realized that I was acting like a creeper when I figured my eyes were still on him. I eyed Yuna shortly after, she seemed out of place since she was the only girl with the clothed group of guys and she would only nod and cling into Daehyun like she was just a trophy wife with her pretty figure and daring swimsuit.

I stiffened when I noticed Daehyun’s eyes averting to me. I saw him eyeing my body. His well-known smirk appeared and I immediately grew embarrassed. I looked at him and we made eye contact. His eyes were looking at me so intensely that I felt like he was seeing me . He was sort of, since I was only wearing a little - emphasize on little - bikini which was very unlike me to wear. Must’ve been Chaerin who convinced me to wear this.

I broke the contact by walking away since I was still embarrassed. I searched for a quiet place and walked towards this random barn. It sure was weird, who would have a barn in his backyard? I shrugged it off though and sat myself on some random hay stack. I sat there for a couple of minutes and let my mind wander about this weird party.

I froze when I heard a noise. I was alone wasn’t I? I hadn’t seen anyone when I entered. I quickly stood up, ready to escape any minute.

My eyes almost popped out of my sockets when I realized it was Daehyun that had entered. He was just standing there, hot and all. All I could do was stare and he had done the same. He didn’t say anything, we just had this little staring competition. Normally I couldn’t look people in the eye for that long, especially not somebody like him but I felt this confidence built up in me for some odd reason. He walked towards me all of sudden, which caught me by surprise. I didn’t want to show him that I was getting nervous around him so I just kept staring. He smirked when the proximity between us closed inch by inch. I stepped back - avoiding the hay stack - until my back hit the wall, cliché.

‘’I always wanted to do this. Ever since that first day I met you. That time when you tossed the ball back to me during PE, you remember?’’ He asked in a husky voice before kissing my jawline. I got so shocked, red and embarrassed all at once that I didn’t do anything but to let him be. He smiled against my skin before he trailed my jawline, showering it with kisses. It felt so wrong and right at the same time. What shocked me the most was that I was enjoying this. Does this mean that I like him? I couldn’t possibly, I barely know him. He was a mere acquaintance, a good looking, charming acquaintance.

‘’And I wanted to do this,’’ he continued while pecking my nose. I opened my eyes a little to take a good look at him, he had his eyes closed and seemed really into this moment.

‘’And this.’’ He kissed the spot near my dimples. He was being a tease since I just wanted him to actually kiss me on the lips. I wanted it so bad, to feel his plump lips on mine. Should I take the first big step, should I kiss him for real?

All I actually did was standing still though, letting him have his way with me. I was like his own little puppet right now. His playmate.

‘’And finally this,’’ he finished while locking his lips with mine. His hands were playing with the string of my bikini top trying to undo me of the tiny piece of clothing and I let him be, although I felt dirty and used somehow. He kept fumbling with the piece and failed to take it off, much to my relief. I felt so unlike myself but I felt so blissful at the same time too.

I felt wanted. Wanted by someone wanted. Wanted by Jung Daehyun. He kept kissing me and I felt so freaking hot, I felt like I would explode from this burning sensation on my lips, I felt-

‘’Aerin! My god you are burning hot! You’re staying home today as well!’’ My mother exclaimed while she sat herself on my bed. My eyes shot open and I was greeted with my simple room again. What the… have I been dreaming? Please tell me that I have been dreaming! My mother looked at me strangely, almost as if she knew what I had been dreaming about. I felt so embarrassed.

‘’Aerin, are you alright? Your head looks as red as a tomato.’’

‘’It’s just the fever,’’ I answered while trying to act casually. Truth was that I was so confused and embarrassed with myself. The only thing I could do was to blame it on the flu and the fever.

‘’I can go to school now,’’ I said trying to convince my mother. Staying home with my thoughts wasn’t going to do me any good apparently, judging by that dream. It had felt so real that it scared the living hell out of me. Why was I dreaming about kissing Jung Daehyun and why was I enjoying it above all?

‘’Absolutely not. You need to rest Aerin. It will be good for you,’’ she told me with narrowed eyes. She must’ve thought I was crazy for wanting to go to school so bad. ‘’I’m going to the baking club after work are you going to be okay, or should I cancel?’’ she asked, her eyes looking soft and concerned.

‘’No, you should go. I’ll be fine. I feel much better now after all those hours of sleep,’’ and dreams I mentally added but scrapped right away.

I wasn’t even lying, I was feeling slightly better. My throat didn’t hurt as much and I got rid of the headache, at least for now.

‘’But you are burning hot!’’ My mother exclaimed again. I wondered if that was because of the fever or actually because of that weird dream but I suspected the latter since I felt like I was cooling down already.

‘’I’m really fine, mom. Go,’’ I assured her, she nodded.

‘’There is still cheesecake, eat it. It’s the only thing that always seems to cheer you up,’’ she chuckled before walking away. She came back seconds later though. ‘’Aerin call your father or me when something is the matter, okay?’’ Her face looked concerned and I knew she didn’t want to leave me now, although I was really fine. More fine than I had been yesterday at least and she had been working then too. Besides I was an 18 year old girl, I could take care of myself. She walked away again and I heard the door slam shut some minutes later, which meant she was really out now. My dad had been long gone already. I sighed, another boring day.

I was sitting on the couch staring at the television downstairs after I had taken a shower to collect my thoughts. It wasn’t really working since I had watched the television for hours now but I still had no clue what I had been watching all this time. I got out my phone that lay on the table, it was 6:53 PM already, and I had no message. Not even from Chaerin, which disappointed me a little.

My thoughts drifted off to that dream again. What was it about? Does this mean I like him? Why else would I have such a weird dream about him? I wondered if it was common to dream something like this.

I thought about all of this for a while but I quickly pushed the thought of liking him away. I couldn’t possibly like him. We had no real connection whatsoever. We met a couple of times, we had talked, laughed and it was fun, really fun because he was fun and he would make me laugh. He was handsome and I could be playful around him, but that couldn’t mean that I liked him right? Can you even like someone when you actually really don’t know their personalities that well?

I guess it was possible since some girls would have serious crushes even though the guy wouldn’t even know of their existence. I didn’t know, and I mentally noted that I should ask Chaerin - without actually make her suspect anything - what it meant when you dreamt about somebody like this.

I concluded that I didn’t like Jung Daehyun. Maybe I was slightly attracted to him, but that’s not the same as liking somebody. Chaerin had said so after all.

I stood up and made my way into the kitchen, remembering that there was still cheesecake in the fridge like my mother had said earlier. Maybe it could calm me down, it always did. I made myself a cup of tea - I still had to ease the feeling in my throat - before walking to the couch again. I was about to sit down and take a bite when the doorbell rang, which was odd. I hadn’t ordered anything, at least not something that would arrive any time soon and my mother wouldn’t come back for me right? She was about to be out until nine and so was my dad, my dad even later.

I got up to open the door and got the shock of my life when I discovered who stood on my doorstep. Was I dreaming again I thought while lightly pinching my leg to confirm whether this was dream or not. It wasn’t. It was actually Jung Daehyun on my doorstep.

I looked at him with big question eyes. He was wearing a black shirt and a brown leather jacket over that. I figured it was a bit cold for a jacket like that in January but I shrugged it off. The straps of his black backpack were visible and he also wore black jeans and black sneakers. His hair was styled perfectly and in his hand he carried two water bottles which made me frown. Or actually him being here in front of my house made me frown, and nervous, very nervous which resulted in playing with my hair already.

‘’Hey, aren’t you inviting me in?’’ He asked with a little smile after a long silence. I was so stunned once again, he sure had some nerve to come up to my house. What if my parents were here, wasn’t he intimidated by facts like these at all, was he this bold and carefree?

‘’I… I’m contagious,’’ I stuttered while closing the door a little, as if I didn’t want him to come in. He looked right at me and I started to blush because I was reminded of the eye contact in my dream. 

‘’Doesn’t matter, I have a high immune system,’’ he shrugged. ‘’So…’’ he trailed while looking at me, waiting for some sort of answer from me.

I didn’t know what to say. It would be rude to slam the door in his face and tell him to get lost, but I wasn’t really comfortable with this sudden personal visit. There was something very odd about this guy. It seemed like he had no shame whatsoever. People usually don’t come by an acquaintance, unannounced, expected to be let in right? What did he want?

I opened the door for him though, because he had almost insisted with the way he was looking at me. He eyed me entirely which made me feel self-conscious once again since I felt like I looked like a mess. I was wearing my woolen socks with my sweatpants and woolen sweater which had a turtle neck. My eyes were puffy and my hair was well… quite normal actually. Maybe I wasn’t really looking that bad, but I would be looking bad for someone like Daehyun, he probably had high standards about appearances since he had something going on with Yuna. Then again I didn’t know why this mattered at all.

‘’You want one? Jea told me your throat felt sore,’’ he asked while practically shoving the water bottle into my hand. Ours hands touched for a moment and I felt hot and nervous for those brief seconds because I was reminded of his touch in my dream. Those images of that dream really needed to stop appearing, it was screwing with me.

‘’I… have water myself,’’ I answered sheepishly. I still accepted the bottle though. He scratched the back of his head and only smiled. I figured he was only trying to be nice.

I walked towards the living room while Daehyun followed behind me. He sat down on the couch and I saw him eyeing my house. I sat down too, as far away from him as I possibly could. I could make him ill after all. There was this silence before I decided to break it, since I hated silence.

‘’Why are you here and… how did you know I lived here?’’

‘’Jea told me your address and I wanted to bring you the money, since you’re not showing up in school,’’ he answered simply.

Of course it was Jea who told him, I could’ve come up with that myself. She knew I was home alone so it wouldn’t surprise me if she actually thought she was doing me a favor by sending him here, which she wasn’t. I felt awkward in my own home.

‘’You could’ve waited until I was back in school again,’’ I stated, my voice sounded a bit hoarse so I sipped of my tea before I realized I should offer him something to drink too since he was here anyway.

‘’I could have, yes.’’ It was all he said. Not explaining why he actually got here if he could’ve just waited more days. I would probably be back tomorrow since I was feeling a lot better now. I just nodded before standing up.

‘’You want something to drink?’’ I asked not realizing that he had brought his own water bottle.

‘’Yes,’’ he answered nonetheless. I nodded, walked towards the kitchen and opened the fridge. We had coke, would he be satisfied with that?

‘’Do you want a coke?’’ I tried to shout, the sound came out hoarsily though which reminded me that I wasn’t healed just yet. He heard me fortunately.

‘’Yea, a coke is fine,’’ he shouted back. I nodded even though he couldn’t see me. I got a glass and poured the drink into it, while doing so my eyes averted to the cheesecake on the counter. I hadn’t put it back in the fridge yet, it was a bad habit of mine, one my mother hated. I could never put something back in its original place. Or at least, not when I was at home.

I decided to slice a piece of the cheesecake for him too. If he wouldn’t like it I would eat it myself, I figured. When I entered the living room again, a coke and cheesecake in my hand, I noticed that Daehyun was not sitting on the couch anymore. Instead he was facing the wall. It was the wall were all the picture frames hang. There were wedding pictures of my parents and pictures of a younger me, even pictures of me and Chaerin with our mom’s. I felt embarrassed since childhood photos were never pretty.

He turned around, now facing me, before muttering a: ‘’cute,’’ and sitting down again. I handed him the drink and put the cheesecake on the little table near the couch. His eyes widened at the sight.

‘’Is this for me?’’ He asked excited. I just nodded before sitting down again and pulling my knees closer to me, resting my head on them. I eyed him while he was taking a bite, he seemed really into it since he started to dig in like he had never eaten.

‘’Wow, this is freaking delicious!’’ He exclaimed, looking like a kid. It was rather cute, I must admit. I react the same way when I eat a cheesecake. ‘’You know, cheesecake is one of my favorite foods actually,’’ he said before taking a big gulp from his coke.

It seemed we had something in common. I chuckled.

‘’This one is really good, where did you buy it from?’’ He asked, still admiring the cheesecake. This guy had so many sides to him. Right now he was looking like this adorable kid who loved eating, not the guy who had been playing with girls’ feelings, like he was doing with Choi Yuna’s, or the straightforward guy in my dream even though that was a dream and couldn’t define his personality at all.

‘’My mother actually baked it some days ago,’’ I answered.

‘’Seriously? I think I’m in love with your mother then.’’ His face looked serious but I knew he was actually joking. For some people his statement might be deemed inappropriate or rude, I found it quite funny though so I chuckled.

‘’You have to compete with my dad then,’’ I joked back. He started to laugh.

‘’Why are you actually here, Jung Daehyun?’’ I asked, shoving all jokes aside.

‘’Woaw, using surnames now. We’re getting serious here,’’ he laughed. I rolled my eyes playfully.

‘’I told you, I’m here to bring you the money,’’ he simply shrugged as if it made total sense to pay me a personal visit for that sole purpose. If he were Chaerin or Jea, then yes, then it would make sense. This however didn’t.

‘’What if my parents were here?’’ I asked, genuinely curious. Wasn’t he afraid or at least intimidated by this possibility? I knew I would been if I were to visit a random guy’s house and his parents would be home, what would they think of me?

‘’What about it? I’d still come. I’m not afraid of your parents,’’ he chuckled. ‘’Besides Jea told me you were home alone and nobody had visited you yet, which is why I figured to keep you company, but now you’re sitting so far away from me as if you don’t want me here,’’ he finished with a fake pout. He was joking again, but somehow his joke made my heart flutter a little bit.

‘’It’s because I don’t want you to get ill, I’m taking precautions,’’ I answered. I also didn’t want him near me since I would relive my dream, but of course I didn’t tell him that. Being ill was actually a good excuse.

He nodded as if he understood. He abruptly stood up and kneeled down next to his backpack which lay next to the couch. He seemed to search for something and when he found it he walked towards me, his stare made me quite nervous. ‘’Here, and thanks again. You are as sweet as they say,’’ he said while handing me the money he owned me. I raised an eyebrow at his statement.

‘’What? What do you mean with: as sweet as they say?’’ I asked dumbfounded.

‘’Guys talk you know,’’ he answered simply. It was the same statement I had made the first time I saw him at Jea’s.

‘’What do they say about me then?’’ He was making me curious, very curious.

‘’You want to know, huh?’’ He teased. I grew a little frustrated but then I realized I had done the same thing with him that time at Jea’s home, not explaining myself further that is. He however was probably already aware what girls were saying about him whereas I wasn’t. I wasn’t popular at all so it wasn’t common to have people talk about me, unless I was associated with Chaerin who was, like Choi Yuna, the type of girl many students talked about in both admiration and envy.

‘’Yes,’’ I answered truthfully.

‘’Don’t worry it’s nothing bad,’’ he said before gulping down the little remaining of his coke and deciding to drop this subject. It angered me a little since he was being a tease and I was really wondering who was talking about me - with him - and about what. I didn’t want to come off as desperate to know though, so I shrugged it off just like he had done.

Time seemed to go by fast, Daehyun and I were watching this random drama that was on the television. He kept asking me about this drama like I had seen it all before.

‘’But why would she do this, it’s not a normal move at all…’’ He would make remarks like this.

‘’Well I don’t know Daehyun, just like you I’m watching this for the first time. Just… wait for it to be explained later on,’’ I would simply answer him. He would just playfully narrow his eyes at me and then he would glance over to the television again, watching it intently. Sometimes I would glance over at him, watching his side profile. I noticed how his brows furrowed in a certain way and how he his lips while concentrating. It wasn’t any help with burying the dream I had about him so I looked away quickly, focusing on this television. Just like he was doing.

When the drama had ended we talked about random subjects we could come up with. I didn’t learn much about him. He seemed to keep the topics about himself on the surface. Then again why would he tell me personal stuff and why would I want to know?

I hadn’t noticed my front door opening because I was too engrossed in my conversation with Daehyun and apparently the same had applied to him.

‘’Who is this?’’ My mother asked amused, startling me since I never heard her coming in.

I quickly got up, facing my mother before trying to explain the situation here. ‘’This… I…’’ I stuttered. My mother was smiling at Daehyun and I knew what she must be thinking judging from her facial expression, which embarrassed me.

‘’I’m Jung Daehyun, Mrs. Park. Nice to meet you. You have a wonderful home,’’ he interrupted me politely, taking away my struggle. I hadn’t noticed that I was holding in my breath before I actually sighed out in relief. For once I was thankful for an interruption, normally I hated being interrupted. I eyed my mom and she seemed somehow impressed by him. I couldn’t blame her, he was a handsome charmer after all.

‘’Jung Daehyun? Perhaps my son in law?’’ She asked while chuckling. I almost choked on my own saliva. This was typical behavior from her which is why I would never consider bringing a boy over. It was actually why I didn’t want Jung Daehyun over in the first place. My mother always tried to impress people of my age by making light jokes, this joke wasn’t funny however. Daehyun seemed to disagree since he laughed. I wondered how he could be so calm and charming in this awkward situation, I know I wouldn’t be if we were to change positions.

‘’No, ma’am. Just a friend from school,’’ he answered politely, his charming smile still plastered on his face. I really wanted to disappear since my mother seemed genuinely disappointed at his answer, which resulted in Daehyun actually laughing again.

‘’Oh,’’ was all she said. There followed this awkward silence. Fortunately Daehyun was a mood maker so he started a conversation with my mother.

‘’The cheesecake was delicious, Mrs. Park. Really the best I ever tasted.’’

‘’You really think so? I don’t bake cheesecake often since I’m not that fond of it myself. Aerin loves it though, and now you too. I will make it more often so that she can give you some in school,’’ my mother said with a smile. I scoffed, she was being very sweet, which I didn’t trust so I just narrowed my eyes at her. Besides she barely made cheesecake even though she knew I loved it, but now that Daehyun liked it she was willing to change her ways.

Daehyun stood up from the couch before grabbing his backpack and slinging it over his shoulder, which meant he was about to leave. ‘’I’d love that Mrs. Park,’’ he said while flashing his most charming smile. Could he really be in love with my mother I jokingly thought? ‘’I’m going home now,’’ he said to my mother rather than he said it to me.

She nodded before opening again: ‘’Nice meeting you Jung Daehyun.’’ Her eyes averted to me and I finally got her attention. ‘’Aerin is there cheesecake left? I’ll pack a piece for him since he is so fond of it,’’ she said before walking towards the kitchen. She wasn’t even waiting and listening to my response.

I looked at Daehyun and he seemed quite amused and excited even. He looked at me and mouthed a, ‘’your mother is the best,’’ Which made me laugh sheepishly. My mother came back two minutes later and she handed him the plastic bag that contained the cheesecake.

Some minutes later Daehyun had left, which left me with an amused mother. We were standing in the living room and I knew she wanted to say something.

‘’Is there something going on between the two of you?’’ My mother asked with glittering eyes.

‘’What? No?!’’ I defended myself. ‘’He’s just a friend,’’ I lied. I didn’t really see him as my friend, since a friend wouldn’t be able to make me nervous like this. Because you wouldn’t dream like that about a friend. I couldn’t explain that to my mother however. If he wasn’t a friend what had he been doing here? I couldn’t tell her that it was just in Daehyun’s personality, apparently, to randomly come by somebodies home even if you weren’t that close. He was a daring guy after all.

‘’That’s too bad, he looks like a nice boy and he’s handsome,’’ she smirked. I scoffed, my mom never smirks.

‘’Make him my son in law, will you?’’ She laughed jokingly before heading upstairs.

She left me astonished. Apparently I wasn’t the only one with a fever.

Since she had caught the Jung-fever.