Carla looked up to the skies – it always amazed her to see the beautiful blue skies receive the sun shine. As she walked with her uniform on, she turned her iPod on and listened to her idol and crush Gongchan, together with his band member Sandeul sang ‘Too Much’.

“Ya!” A man suddenly tapped her shoulder. “You’re smiling like an idiot, you know! Let me guess… you’re listening to B1A4’s Gong Chan again, aren’t you?”

He cleared his throat and started singing a line from the song ‘Too Much’. “Geuriumeun kkeutdo eomneun bada; tto geuriwo geuripgo geuriwo, yeojeonhi geuriwo geuripgo geuriwo. See? I’m better than your Gong Chan!”

Carla stopped and turned to look at her best friend. “CHOI YOUNG JAE. You know how much I like this cutie guy! Can you just please bring me to South Korea to meet him?” She pulled his arm and tried to do an aegyo.

Young Jae squint his small eyes. “Aigoo, even Koreans won’t buy your aegyo!”

Carla rolled her eyes. She suddenly slapped Youngjae’s shoulder that made her groan in pain.

“Ouch! You little brat! You may look like a baby but you’re badder than ahjummas!” Youngjae cried and held his shoulder in pain.

Carla laughed evilly. “It’s worse, Young Jae, not ‘badder’! Did you really learn English here in the Philippines since you were a preschool?”

Young Jae pouted. “Aish! Talk to me in Korean straightly, you little evil. Let’s see how your tongue will get tied up!”

Young Jae and Carla continued to tease and laugh at each other as they went to their school. This was a usual day for the both of them. Ever since they were in pre-school, they went to school together with their own mother. When they turned 10, they started to go to school together alone that they could be mistaken as a couple. But they were best friends.

Only best friends.

And it hurts the bright and bubbly Choi Young Jae a lot.

As they both reached the school, Carla quickly went towards the locker room while Young Jae followed her.

“Aish, you don’t have to do that every morning, Carla!” Young Jae complained, but he kept on following Carla as she searched for the right locker. “I swear if you go to South Korea, you’ll see better Koreans than that new student!”

“64, 65, 66! Here!” Carla muttered as she stopped by locker 66. She looked to her sides to check if someone was there. She then got the lollipop she bought from Tous Les Jours and taped it on the locker.

Young Jae rested his back on the locker beside locker 66. “He won’t like you unless you reveal yourself,”

Carla chuckled. “This was IU’s moves in Dream High! Maybe it will work for me too,”

“Those are dramas, Carla. This is real life! Those sweet things never work for us,” He reached his hand out and moved his fingers to his direction. “Come on, give me the lollipop. I’ll even thank you for that,”

“No way!” Carla got Young Jae’s hand and pulled him away of the lockers as fast as she could. “We have to move fast or else he might see us,”

“He never thanked you.” Young Jae shoved Carla’s hand off of him.

Carla chuckled. “Come on, we’ll be late for Physics class!”

“I’m serious,” Young Jae held Carla’s hand. “You will have to confess one day. If not, you will have to let him go,” Young Jae sighed and looked on the ground. It hurts to give such an advice to Carla, when he couldn’t imagine Carla confessing to the owner of locker 66.

He let go of Carla’s hand and continued walking to their classroom. Carla was dumbfounded, but she followed Young Jae.

The class started and Carla paid attention to the professor. Being a scholar student, she always tells herself that she cannot fail any subject and that she should always put her studies first.

“Motion,” The professor said and wrote the word on the whiteboard using a marker. He turned back to face the class with a smile. “According to Albert Einstein, ‘Nothing happens until something moves,’”

Carla wrote the sentence on her notebook. “Nothing happens until something moves…” Carla thought to herself. She looked to her left side and watched her crush listening to the professor very well.

“Ever since he came to the school, I felt more motivated to study. I am thankful that for the first time, I felt my heart flutter… But do I really have to move for something to happen? Do I really have to confess to him?” She thought to herself as she admired the boy more, seeing how focused he was on the topic.

“Carla!” The professor called, which made her snap out of reality.

“S-Sir?” Carla answered nervously.

“Do you like Su Ho that much that you have to watch him pay attention to my discussion?” The professor asked and the whole class laughed and howled.

Carla’s eyes grew wide. She could not utter any single word. She felt blood rush to her cheeks as her heartbeats raced from embarrassment.

Su Ho took a quick glance at her but immediately turned to look down on his notes. He tried not to chuckle so as not to embarrass Carla more.

“If you can’t answer my question, perhaps answer my bonus question,” The professor said and sat on the teacher’s table in front of the class. “Explain the three laws of motion,”

Carla took a deep breath.

It was fortunate that she paid attention to her Physics class during her high school years.

 

Lunch came. Carla went to the library to avoid the people who saw the incident during her Physics class. She looked for a book that could lift up her mood. As she got tired from searching, she got a random hard-bound book and smacked it on her head.

“Aigoo, you’re so stupid Carla, you said studies first! What happened earlier? You distracted yourself! Babo, babo, babo!” She whispered to herself and kept on hitting her head with the book.

Suddenly, she heard someone clear his throat that made her stop hitting her head. She looked behind her and to her side, but no one was there. As she looked in front of her, she saw a familiar man from the other side of the row from the empty space where the hard bound book was placed a while ago.

“S-Su Ho?” Carla called as the man gave her a warm smile.

“Yeah, it’s me,” Su Ho whispered.

“W-What is it?” Carla asked timidly.

Su Ho chuckled. “Please don’t hit your head with a hard bound book. You’ll only hurt yourself. And…”

“A-and?” Carla asked, anticipating Su Ho’s next sentence.

“You’re a smart girl. You even impressed me a while ago when you explained the Laws of Motion to our professor. So don’t call yourself ‘babo’, okay?” Su Ho advised.

Carla gulped. She was once again speechless, this time, her heart was racing. Su Ho’s soft voice was like melancholy to her ears.

She ran towards the row where Su Ho was, to properly talk to him. She gave a 90-degree bow, knowing that Koreans do that to show sincerity with their apology. “I am so sorry for what had happened a while ago. I swear I won’t do that again! Choesonghamnida!”

Su Ho chuckled. He sat down and patted Carla’s head. “If you let me borrow that book, I’ll really forgive you,”

“Th-This?” Carla asked and read the title – Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

Su Ho nodded. “I like reading those novels. They help me learn English,”

“O-Okay… I just got it to hit my head,” Carla explained as she handed the book to Su Ho.

Su Ho chuckled. “Your Korean’s good. I guess you learned a lot from Young Jae,”

“Well, we were friends since we were kids…” Carla sat on the floor with Su Ho. “And when I liked KPop, he helped me learn Korean,”

“Really? Which band do you like?” Su Ho asked interestedly.

“My favorite is B1A4,” Carla giggled and scratched her head, feeling embarrassed of being a fan girl in front of her crush.

“Ah… So you know the song Too Much? Geuriumeun kkeutdo eomneun bada; tto geuriwo geuripgo geuriwo, yeojeonhi geuriwo geuripgo geuriwo,” Su Ho started singing the first line.

Carla decided to join Su Ho in singing the song, which was her favorite song. “Geuriumeun heulloganeun sigan amuri magabwado; I’m missing you, missing you, missing you, I can’t stop missing you, missing you, missing you…” They both smiled at each other as their voices blended well together.

“FOR YOUR INFORMATION, THIS IS A LIBRARY, NOT A STAGE!” Suddenly, the librarian came with her hands on her hips. “I want you out of the room now, before I call the dean!”

“Y-Yes, I’m really sorry,” Carla said and ran outside the library with Su Ho.

Su Ho laughed while Carla was stunned. Su Ho noticed the dumbfounded look on Carla’s face and immediately stopped laughing. “I’m sorry,” He apologized. “It’s just that… It was the first time I sang at a library. And you sang the song well,”

Carla smiled from the compliment. She felt her cheeks turn red and looked down on the ground, trying to hide her face from Su Ho. “I’m sorry I’ve put you in so much trouble today,”

“N-No, I’m okay. No harm done!” Su Ho reassured and patted Carla’s head.

“Uhm… I-I’ll get going then,” Carla tried to chuckle to avoid an awkward silence. “B-Bye!” She quickly ran to the staircase. As she reached the last step, she jumped as high as she could.

“This is the best day ever! I must call Young Jae,” Carla got her phone and tried to call Young Jae. “Young Jae, where are you?”

“I’m eating at the cafeteria… I thought you’ll be at the library?” Young Jae asked.

“Young Jae... When you tell a girl to stop hurting herself, does it mean you care for her? When you pat her head and even sing for her and with her, does that mean you’ve gotten closer? And when you compliment her, do you really mean it?”

Young Jae paid attention to Carla’s words. He felt his heart beat racing. He usually tells her to stop hurting herself because he cares for her. He pats her head, sings for her and with her because they both share their favorite songs. He compliments her often because he really means it.

“Young Jae… I think I’ve gotten closer to Su Ho! We talked at the library and I can’t-“ Carla heard her phone beep. For the first time, Young Jae turned his phone off in the middle of their conversation.

“Y-Young Jae?” Carla felt worried for Young Jae. She quickly ran to the cafeteria. But there were no signs of Choi Young Jae there. “Where could he be?”

 

Carla’s classes ended. She had the same schedule with Young Jae, but he was not around after the lunch break.

“Carla?” A familiar voice called from behind.

“S-Su Ho,” Carla uttered and smiled.

“Aren’t you going yet?” Su Ho asked.

“Yes, I am,” Carla got her bag and stood from her chair.

“Is there a problem? You seem a little bit preoccupied…” Su Ho asked. “Is it because of the incident in the library?”

Carla chuckled. “No… It’s just that Young Jae suddenly disappeared after our break,”

“Do you want me to help you look for him?” Su Ho asked.

Carla’s eyes grew wide. “N-No, it’s alright. I think I can do it myself. Besides, I don’t want to bother you,”

Su Ho pouted. “Well, I’m not doing anything today…”

Carla scratched his head. “It’s okay; I can do it myself,”

“If you say so…” Su Ho pouted.

“Bye,” Carla waved her hand.

“See you tomorrow,” Su Ho said and they parted ways.

 

Carla kept on calling Young Jae’s phone, but it was turned off. She almost looked at every corner on their way home.

As she passed by a park, she saw a familiar figure sitting on the swing. She ran towards the man and gave him a back hug.

“YOUNG JAE! I was so worried for you!” Carla said, tears almost came out from her eyes. “I thought you were lost,”

Young Jae chuckled. “How will I get lost? I’m not a kid anymore,”

“But your phone suddenly turned off, I was so worried that someone might have planned on kidnapping you or… I don’t know; I just really panicked! I can’t lose my best friend like that!”

Young Jae held Carla’s hand. “You will never lose me. I’m always by your side,”

Carla walked to the swing beside Young Jae’s. “Why did you end the call then? It was the first time you did that. It really freaked me out,”

Young Jae sighed. “We should go home. It’s getting late,” He stood up and got his backpack.

Carla held Young Jae’s arm to stop him. “Why?”

“Why what?” Young Jae asked like he could not understand Carla.

“Young Jae, stop acting like you don’t know…”

Young Jae gulped. After a few seconds, he suddenly hummed and started singing an unfamiliar Korean song.

“When I was young, it helped me build my dreams
My small playground that was my everything in my young world
My own world in the old photos
The wonderland in my memories that I dreamed of and played in

Now I’m an adult so will you be my dream now?
I want to stay by your side and run around and play

You’re my playground, playground, playground
In your heart, will I find that dream that I lost as a child?
You are my playground, playground, playground
I’ll find a love that is better than the one in my fantasies
You’re my playground”

Tears fell from his cheeks which surprised Carla. She clearly understood what Young Jae sang. But she could not understand why Young Jae started crying.

“Y-Young Jae…” Carla called and patted his back.

“I’ve always thought of confessing my feelings like this to you…” Young Jae kept on crying. “I could not keep it any longer so I did it right now… Because hearing you talk about Su Ho, seeing you look at him hurts me a lot… So I did it right now, just to let you understand why I cut the phone call a while ago.”

Carla looked at him, not knowing what to say. She tried to process what Young Jae said before saying something.

“Let’s go home,” Young Jae said dryly and wiped his tears away. He started walking while Carla watched him.

Carla followed Young Jae. She could not believe everything she heard. Her best friend liked her… But since when?

 

The next day, Carla walked to her school with the usual song on her iPod, She remembered how Su Ho sang it with her and felt her cheeks blush again. Suddenly, rain started to fall and she quickly brought out her umbrella.

She saw Young Jae walking to school and had second thoughts of not calling him, since it would be awkward.

“Babo! Why would you be awkward with your best friend?! Babo, babo, babo!” Carla used her hand to hit her forehead.

A car’s horn interrupted her from slapping herself like crazy. The window at the back door went down, revealing Su Ho.

“Didn’t I tell you not to hurt yourself? Hop on, I’ll give you a ride to school,” Su Ho invited.

“I-I can walk by myself. It’s just near,” Carla refused.

“You rejected my offer last time, I’m feeling sad about it,” Su Ho pouted playfully.

Carla chuckled. “Alright, thank you Su Ho,”

 

As Carla and Su Ho got outside the car, the students started murmuring and giving glares to Carla – including Young Jae.

“S-Su Ho, I think I have to go to the bathroom for a while. You can get going,” Carla’s voice quaked from all the glares.

“I can’t leave you when all the girls are glaring at you,” Su Ho whispered.

“H-Have I done something wrong?” Carla asked.

“Nothing. You don’t have to worry, I won’t let anything happen to you,” Su Ho patted her head and gave a reassuring smile.

Carla smiled back. She felt happy and safe with Su Ho. A thing she also felt when she’s with Young Jae.

 

Young Jae kept a distance from Carla the whole day. Carla could not tolerate this kind of ‘silent treatment’ so she gathered up the courage she have to talk to Young Jae.

“Anyways, as Albert Einstein said, ‘Nothing happens until something moves.’ Fighting, Carla,” Carla thought to encourage herself. She quickly ran to reach Young Jae, who was going down the staircase.

She suddenly bumped onto Su Ho, who was on his way to ask her out for dinner. “Carla!” He called excitedly. But because her mind was preoccupied at the moment, she did not recognize who the guy was.

Su Ho chuckled as she watched the anxious Carla run down the staircase. He then followed her until something changed his bright smile into a broken one.

Carla hugged Young Jae. “Young Jae!” She turned him around so that Young Jae would face her. “Please talk to me. My day is not normal when you don’t crack jokes and fool around with me. Please… I hope we can fix this,”

Young Jae looked at her eyes and smiled. “I just want to at least feel better without seeing you look at Su Ho. Can’t you grant that to your best friend?”

Carla felt tears form in her eyes. “You said you’ll always be by my side,”

Young Jae looked on the ground. “I’m sorry,”

 

As Carla reached her locker, she put some of the things she won’t need at home and locked it again. She was about to walk away when she noticed a sticky note and a lollipop on Su Ho’s locker which says: I don’t know, but a day without a lollipop on my locker feels incomplete. I tried to tape a lollipop on my locker, but it feels different.

“He was right. I forgot to tape the lollipop…” Carla muttered. She then brought out a lollipop in her bag and taped it on Su Ho’s locker. She added a sticky note on it which says: I’m sorry. – Your stupid admirer.

“But I told you not to call yourself stupid,” A man’s voice behind Carla’s back said.

Carla turned around, only to find Su Ho’s face inches away from her. “S-Su Ho,” She walked back, only to be trapped by the locker.

“You weren’t a secret admirer all this time,” Su Ho said and chuckled.

“W-What?” Carla asked and felt embarrassed. She knew this time would come – the time where she will have to confess to Su Ho, like what Young Jae told her.

“Carla,” Su Ho chuckled. “I was the secret admirer,”

Carla’s eyebrows furrowed. She couldn’t understand what Su Ho was saying. “W-What?”

Su Ho’s heart raced as he held Carla’s hand. “I guess I was too good at pretending that I don’t notice you,”

Carla looked at Su Ho’s hand on hers. It made her heart race too. She wanted to know what was coming, although she already knew what it was. But she wanted to hear it from Su Ho.

“I’ve been waiting for the right time to come to confess to you how I feel. But I always see you with Young Jae, so I couldn’t make a move,” Su Ho chuckled and continued. “I’ve been thinking whether you really are just friends, but every day I watch you, you seem so close to each other. But when you told me at the library that you were just friends, I had my hopes up,”

Su Ho took the lollipop off of his locker. “When I saw you hug Young Jae a while ago, I felt the need to confess how I feel right now. Honestly, I get so jealous when you’re with him… But knowing that he’s your best friend, and I’m just a new friend, I can’t just ask you to avoid him. And I know he’s a special person to you, so I really can’t do that. But I like you, Carla. And the more I get to know you, the more I fall for you,”

Carla looked into Su Ho’s eyes. She can see and feel the sincerity of his words but hearing Young Jae’s name makes her feel anxious. Her best friend was sad when he confessed to her. Now that Su Ho’s also confessing to her, although she was happy, she can’t just ignore her best friend’s feelings.

“I-I’m sorry, I think I need to go home,” Carla walked towards the staircase.

Su Ho quickly followed her. “Carla, wait! Have I said something wrong?”

Carla stopped and gulped. “S-Su Ho… I can’t accept your feelings right now,”

“But… I thought y-you like me?” Su Ho asked.

Carla got the lollipop from Su Ho’s hand. She bit her lip to stop her tears from falling. “This isn’t the right time,”

“Then when?” Su Ho asked.

Carla froze on her spot. She had been waiting for this for a long time.

“Carla, I don’t understand… Is there something wrong?” Su Ho asked.

“Su Ho…” Carla looked on the ground. “I think… What I feel for you is only admiration,”

Su Ho could not understand, but her words seemed like rejection. “Well… That’s okay, maybe we can work this out? I’m… I’m not really rushing things…”

“That’s why this isn’t the right time yet…” Carla sighed.

Su Ho only watched as Carla ran away. She ran away with the lollipop. She ran away with his heart feeling sorry, thinking that he must have overwhelmed the girl’s feelings. Maybe it wasn’t the right time yet. Maybe he was too fast.

 

Carla kept on running as her tears kept falling from her cheeks. It was her chance, but she missed it. And she never know if Su Ho could still wait for her.

She just can’t see her best friend in pain while she enjoys her time with another man.

As she reached the nearby playground, she sat on the swing where Young Jae confessed. The rain started to fall, but she continued crying although she’s getting soaked in the rain.

Suddenly, she felt like the rain stopped pouring. But as she looked in front of her, there were still raindrops falling from the sky. As she stared above her, an umbrella was protecting her from the heavy rain.

“I told you, I’ll always be by your side,” Young Jae, the man who owned the umbrella said.

“Young Jae!” Carla cried and hugged Young Jae, making him stumble and dropped the umbrella. She didn’t say anything. She just continued to sob on Young Jae’s chest.

“What’s the matter?” Young Jae asked.

Carla sniffed. “I’m just glad, I have you back,”

Young Jae chuckled. He sighed and patted Carla’s back. “I’m sorry earlier. I thought of avoiding you, but it turns out, I only missed you,”

Carla kept crying which confused Young Jae. He pulled away and held Carla on her shoulders. “What’s the matter, Carla? Tell me, honestly,”

“If I told you, you might run away again,”

“I’m still your best friend, Carla. I’ll still listen to you no matter what that is,” Young Jae used his thumb to wipe the tears from Carla’s cheek.

“He confessed to me earlier… But I didn’t dare accept it,” Carla kept on crying.

“W-Why?” Young Jae stuttered.

“Because I can’t lose you. And I decided not to accept it because I don’t want to lose my best friend,”

Young Jae chuckled. “Carla, you didn’t have to do that…. I’m sorry,”

“So do me a favor!” Carla demanded. “Don’t ever leave me anymore, alright?”

Young Jae smiled at Carla. He patted her head and took his umbrella to protect themselves from the rain.

 

The next day, Young Jae decided to talk to Su Ho, one on one. After the laboratory class, Young Jae quickly asked Su Ho to stay while Carla joined her laboratory partner in the library to talk about their report for next week.

“Carla told me you confessed yesterday,” Young Jae started.

“Yes, I did,” Su HO nodded and played with his pencil.

“Su Ho… Please take care of her,” Young Jae advised, which confused Su Ho. “Her eyes and heart only see you, Su Ho,”

“Do you really think I have a chance with her?” Su Ho asked, his eyes sparkling of hope.

Young Jae smiled and patted Su Ho’s shoulder. “You’ll have her. She likes you so much and who would reject a kingka like you?” Young Jae complimented, which made both of them laugh.

“Since I’m his best friend, just please do me a favor.” Young Jae gulped. He then kept the smile on his face, not showing how much it hurts him to give an advice to Su Ho. “Please continue telling her how you feel for her, because whenever you confess to her, I know how happy she gets. Please don’t hurt her innocent heart. Whenever she puts lollipop on your locker, take it and say thank you. Whenever she’s silent, ask her what’s wrong and whenever she’s laughing, laugh with her,”

“I will! I can do that for Carla,” Su Ho said and raised a thumb up.

“And never forget her birthday. Make sure you celebrate it with a birthday cake,” Young Jae felt tears forming in his eyes, but he tried to control it. “Fighting!” He quickly walked out of the laboratory and shocked Su Ho.

Su Ho gasped. “It’s her birthday tomorrow!”

 

“So, what’s your birthday gift for me tomorrow?” Carla asked as she and Young Jae walk back home.

“Maybe a serenade from a handsome Korean man better than your Gong Chan… and of course, a birthday cake,” Young Jae replied and giggled.

Carla slapped Young Jae’s shoulder. “Could there be someone better than Gong Chan? That’s totally impossible, Young Jae!”

Young Jae crossed his arms. “Then don’t believe me if you don’t want to,”

Carla laughed and so did Young Jae. The skies were once again bright for her. Thanks to Young Jae, it was like the day had become better than yesterday.

 

Morning came. It was a morning that Carla always anticipated. The skies were brighter the usual. It was always like this every year.

It was her birthday.Her 19^th birthday - June 6, 2014.

She skipped as she walked towards the school. But it was odd that she haven’t seen Young Jae on her way to school but maybe he was getting ready for a surprise.

Carla went to her locker. As she opened it, a birthday candle lit up from a birthday cake, which surprised her. Only Young Jae knows her passcode, which was Su Ho’s birthday.

 “Happy birthday to you,” Someone started singing behind her.

Carla turned to face who it was – her crush, Su Ho. He sang with his gentle voice which made Carla melt. Her lips formed a smile, and so did Su Ho’s.

Su Ho took out the birthday cake carefully from her locker. “Blow your candle before it melts on your birthday cake,” He patted her head.

Carla then blew the candles. “How did you know my password?”

“He told me not to say his name, but I guess you know him already,” Su Ho scratched his head and bowed shyly.

“Aish! That Young Jae!” Carla thought. “A-Anyways, y-you knew my birthday?”

Su Ho nodded. “Didn’t you get my locker number? 6 for June and 6 for your birthdate? I didn’t have a chance to get to know you… So I tried asking a few of our classmates when I met you… They told me stuff like you look like a baby but you’re a prankster and as they keep on talking about you, they told me your birthdate… So during the time the lockers were available, I quickly picked the locker 66, thinking you would notice… But I guess you didn’t pick that up,”

Carla laughed which made Su Ho confused. She then noticed Su Ho’s expression. “Sorry, I just found that cute,”

Su Ho blushed from what Carla said and rubbed his nape. "I... uhmmm… I actually prepared something more,”

“What is it?” Carla asked.

“Well,” Su Ho pulled Carla towards the library. Before they come in, Su Ho paused for a moment and took a deep breath. “You… You sort of rejected me the last time I confessed… But…” He opened the door.

As Carla got inside, the library was dark. Su Ho held her hand tightly. A candle from Su Ho’s hand lit up, enough for her to see Su Ho.

“What are you doing?” Carla asked and laughed. “You sort of look creepy,”

Su Ho chuckled and suddenly another candle lit up which made her shrug and hold Su Ho’s arm tighter. It came from a man sitting on a piano. “I-I’m sorry that crept me out,”

The man sitting on the piano started playing a song. It was soft ballad music.

Su Ho again held Carla’s hand as he started singing a song in Korean. “The small fluttering of your wings, my attraction to you; your hand gestures seem to tell me to follow you,” Another light candle light lit up and a girl passed a lollipop to Su Ho. He then passed it to Carla and the latter received it with a happy but confused look on her face.

“Your sad eyes and your silent stories, whirled together on your heart that night on,” As he continued singing another song and he pulled her as they continued walking somewhere in the library. “I was mesmerized by your mysterious image and lost my one and only soul…” Su Ho suddenly left Carla, but she could hear Su Ho’s quick footsteps.

Another candle lit up. To her surprise, it was from an empty bookshelf and only a lollipop was resting on it which she took. It was the shelf where Su Ho saw her smacking the Harry Potter hard-bound book on her head.

She then found Su Ho at the other side of the rack, at the same spot where he found her hitting her head. He continued singing, “Completely drunk in your movements that I even forget to breathe,”

Meanwhile another candle lit up beside Carla. It was a girl giving her another lollipop and she pulled her somewhere while Su Ho ran towards her. As they met again, the girl stayed on one place as Su Ho gave her another lollipop and she chuckled to it. He pulled one of her hands and put it on her shoulder, while he held her other hand. His other hand grabbed her waist and they started to dance waltz. “Like a waltz, you sit lightly and I couldn’t take my eyes off of you. My eyes follow naturally follow you, each step you take,”

Su Ho stopped dancing and they walked again back to where the piano was. Another candle lit up, which belonged to another man, giving her a lollipop and offered him a seat where another lollipop was resting. She took the lollipop before sitting on the chair while Su Ho knelt in front of her, gave her another lollipop and sang. “Lead me, yeah, to the place where you live. Take me with you, oh, I’ll follow you even if it’s the end of the world.” Another candle light lit up and it was from another man – their Physics professor. He gave three lollipops to Carla and had a sticky note on it which says: “Nothing happens, until something moves. It’s just a yes or a no, Carla!” She chuckled to it while Su Ho continued to sing, “Please don’t go out of my sight, don’t disappear even when the morning comes, oh…” And with that, six candle lights lit up, as if morning really came. It belonged to six girls and they spread out, and each gave her one lollipop.

“Oh, the walk that I dream of… You are my one and only beautiful butterfly,” Su Ho ended his song and gave last four lollipops to Carla.

“Can you blow all the candles?” Su Ho asked.

Carla nodded. Su Ho guided her and held her hand as they walked through the different candles that lit up. As soon as Carla finished blowing it, the entire lights of the library were switched on. As her vision got clearer, she was amazed that the shelves were already on the side and a group of people holding a long banner which says: “Didn’t you say that IU’s lollipops worked out when she confessed in Dream High? Will it work out for me too? Will you accept my feelings too?”

Carla blushed, seeing that the group of people was her blockmates. What surprised her more was that the librarian was there and she was smiling widely, which was very unusual to see. That was when se realized that the librarian was really beautiful. And that everything bright was really beautiful.

She turned to Su Ho with a huge smile and pulled him for a hug. “Your efforts won’t be wasted,” She whispered to his ear in Korean.

“Is that… a yes?” Su Ho asked.

Carla pulled away. “I accept the lollipops and the guy whom I’ve been giving lollipops to every morning in school… It’s a yes, Su Ho,” She chuckled.

The entire people in the library clapped and Su Ho pulled Carla for an embrace.

“Happy Birthday!” Su Ho kissed her forehead.

“YA! This is still a library! Not a place for public display of affection!” The librarian suddenly changed her mood.

Su Ho and Carla’s eyes grew wide and they both giggled as they got outside the library. Suddenly, Carla’s phone rang. She got her phone out of her pocket. It was a text message from an unknown number.

It says:

Carla! It’s me, your best friend, Choi Young Jae. I typed this in Hangul because I know you have fun reading messages in Hangul. Kekeke~ Did you like my birthday gift? I told you someone’s going to sing for you! And I know in your heart, he’s better than your Gong Chan! And did you like the cake? I helped Su Ho pick it! Don’t worry about me, best friend. I told you I’ll always stay by your side. So if there’s a problem or whenever you’re happy, always call me alright? Happy Birthday, I love you!

Carla felt tears forming in her eyes. Something was not right. “Y-Young Jae…” She uttered. “W-Where is Young Jae?”

Su Ho’s eyes grew wide. “Y-You didn’t know?! He didn’t tell you?”

“Know what? Tell me what?” Carla asked, panicking.

“He… went back to South Korea last night…” Su Ho said, feeling the pain Carla was feeling. Of course, Young Jae was a special guy to him, since it’s her best friend.

A tear fell on Carla’s cheek. “Will it cost much to call him in South Korea?”

Su Ho searched his phone from his pocket. “Here, use mine,”

Carla continued sobbing. He felt her heart break into pieces, literally. She quickly dialed the number Young Jae used.

As she called, it seemed like Young Jae hesitated to answer the call because it took him for a while, but then he answered.

“Yoboseyo?” He said.

“Young Jae!!!” Carla pleaded. “Why did you have to leave?”

“Oh… Carla,  Happy Birth-“

“Don’t you dare greet me a happy birthday! You ruined it!” Carla kept on sobbing.

Young Jae chuckled. “Carla, I realized that I have to follow my dreams in order to forget my feelings for you. I mean, I need something to make me happy for now… So I decided to go back to South Korea since I auditioned in JYP Entertainment and they said I passed. I wanted to tell you, but they needed me on the same date as your birthday so I had no choice but to leave secretly. I know you would cry in front of me when I’ll say this… So I just left like this… I’m sorry… But I promise I will call. And I will listen to all of your stories,”

“L-Like how we used to share stories when you were here?” Carla asked, almost out of breath. “Young Jae, I miss you,”

“I miss you too.” Young Jae said huskily and pain could be heard from his voice. He was also crying. “I’ll be back as soon as the boss gives me a break. If ever I debut, please promise me to support me like how you supported Gong Chan, okay?”

“Promise me that you’ll debut, okay? Then I’ll promise to support you too,” Carla sniffed and chuckled. “Don’t get the wrong idea; I’m happy that you’re reaching your dream,”

Young Jae laughed as well. “Yes. I’ll see you soon then. Happy Birthday! I love you,”

“Yes. Thank you so much, Young Jae… I love you too and… I’ll miss you,” She uttered and Young Jae hung up.

She stared at Su Ho, who was busy eavesdropping with their conversation. “I’m sorry it took long,”

“It’s okay,” Su Ho raised a thumb up. “But… are you alright?”

Carla nodded. “I feel better,”

“He told me that you like being serenaded… I’m sorry… I really thought you know he was leaving,” Su Ho apologized.

“It’s okay…” Carla took a deep breath. She then opened one of the lollipops Su Ho gave. “Want one?”

Su Ho suddenly leaned in and kissed Carla. Carla’s eyes grew wide and dropped the lollipop from her hand. She felt butterflies on her stomach and her heart almost burst out. Su Ho pulled away and patted her head. “Although it’s impossible, I don’t want to see you crying again.”

She held her lips and blushed. “I-I dropped the lollipop… I’m sorry…”

Su Ho chuckled. “You’re cute,”

She felt more blood rise to her cheeks as her face turned redder. She then looked to her sides, checking if people saw them. Suddenly, she pulled Su Ho’s collar and gave him a light peck on his cheek.

"Thank you for always making me happy,"

Su Ho chuckled. “It’s true that you only have an innocent baby face, but you can be so mischievously evil too,”

 

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this one-shot, especially to MissGengen! I really tried but I guess I'm still lacking. But still, Happy Birthday! And to my other readers, I also hope you enjoyed this one shot. AND AGAIN, THANKS TO BEAUTIFUL KILLER GRAPHIC SHOP FOR MY POSTER!!! :)

ALL CREDITS TO THE YOUTUBE UPLOADER OF THE LINKED VIDEOS USED IN THIS ONE-SHOT FANFIC.