Someday

 Beijing, China

 The Beijing Capital International Airport looked like an enormous formicary but instead of ants, there were countless people pacing up and down the spacious building. Many airplanes arrived and set off every hour and in one of them, there was a particular pair of a girl and a boy.

 Minseok first appeared on the terminal, his suitcase trailing behind him. He occasionally glanced back to make sure that Seoeun was following him; he always felt obliged to protect and help her when her brother wasn’t around. That was just part of his character, part of him.

 It was like Seoeun had fallen into paradise. Although travelling was a passion of hers, she had never flown with an airplane before. The airport was simply gigantic and her head couldn’t even comprehend how people managed to survive in this jungle without getting trampled. Her eyes darted from a crowd to another, the monitor which showed the scheduled flights and the airplanes that could be seen outside the facility. Yes, she was not the kind of person to like cramped places but now everything was new and fascinating to her; like a baby, discovering a whole new world.

 “How about we first check in the hotel and then visit the Forbidden city?” Minseok suggested as they were loading their luggage in a taxi near the airport.

 “Sounds good!” the girl exclaimed and helped her friend. She sat in the taxi and waited for Minseok to get on. The car engine roared and they set off to their hotel which was located in the other part of the city so they had to travel for quite a while to get to the place.

 Once again, Seoeun was caught staring in awe through the window. It was not like a week ago, when she gazed through the window of the family car, where every place they visited was familiar to her. She relished the new feeling of fascination building inside of her, growing with every second that passed. Tall skyscrapers were proudly towering over the city, as though they were its guardians. Thousands and thousands faces swarmed in front of the girl’s eyes as they skimmed through the crowd. There were countless signs with Chinese hieroglyphs written all over them. Seoeun had trouble reading them but she could still pick up some words like “Restaurant” and “Takeout”. At the thought of delicious Chinese food, her stomach grumbled. She loved Chinese food, especially when it was homemade. It reminded her of her childhood. An old lady living next door would bring her and Baekhyun some homemade Chinese food every now and then. “For my favourite twins prince and princess.” The woman said every time she visited them with a steaming pot in her hands.

 “Beijing’s streets are full of life, just like any big city, actually.” Seoeun commented upon seeing it herself. Minseok smiled absentmindedly in response but didn’t say anything.

 A little sigh escaped the girl’s lips as she savoured their first trip around the city. Soon after, they arrived at their hotel, already pulling the suitcases to the entrance of the building. After checking in, Minseok and Seoeun parted and each headed to their own room, which would be their home for the next four days.

 Seoeun flopped on her cushiony bed and stared in her folded hands in her lap. Her dream was embarking in the ship of reality. In fact, she didn’t feel anything different from the day before or the day before it. Minseok was with her, that was what mattered, right? Her affection towards him would guide her to happiness beyond compare, or so she thought. The girl ped her backpack and took out a thick notebook. Its once bright orange covers were now worn out with a few scratches here and there, tinted in a gloomy and ashy shade of the colour. Seoeun traced every edge as if she wanted to memorize it, although she already knew the item as the back of her palm. Her fingers brushed over the slightly faded tag stuck to it. Fragments of summer, she read the title in her head, a delicate smile gracing her lips.

 Her phone buzzed and took her out of her thoughts. She hastily shoved the notebook back in her backpack and hurried out of the room, writing a short response to Minseok’s message.

 “I can’t believe this…” Seoeun exclaimed as she vigorously rummaging through her backpack while waiting Minseok in the lobby of the hotel.

 “What’s wrong?” he popped just beside her, with a serious and concerned face. The girl jump in surprise but she quickly recovered.

 “I forgot my sunscreen!” she cried in desperation, flipping her bag and causing all her belongings to fall on the glass coffee table.

 Minseok laughed it off and playfully ruffled her hair “You become such a brat at times.” He laughed again. Although he didn’t laugh much, his melodic voice resonated so beautifully in Seoeun’s ears and in those moments his laughter sounded like the loveliest song. Her cheeks turned a bright shade of pink and she tried to hide behind her curly dark brown locks. “But you’re still my best friend. Let’s go, we don’t want to make the emperor wait for us, do we?” he took her hand and hurried to the exit.

 Seoeun enjoyed the warmth of his palm as much as she could until he let her go, right after they got on the bus. Taxis in Beijing were too expensive and they didn’t need one as long as there was public transport, much more affordable than riding a cab.

 They were soon standing in front of the Meridian Gate of the Forbidden City. With its glorious height and vibrant crimson red paint, the gate emitted nothing but grace and respect. As soon as they stepped through one of the gate’s gateways, Minseok and Seoeun could literally feel the Front Court soaked up with so much history and events, it was overwhelming. Even the air had this odd texture and scent – heavy yet sweet and alluring, just like old books with yellowing pages. And the both loved it.

 They loved every part of their journey so far. Although it was merely two days after they had set off from their home, they were already in love with the feeling of it.

 The two friends crossed the meandering Inner Golden Water River over one of the five bridges, still speechless at the glorious sight before their eyes.

 “Can you imagine? We’re here and we’re together…” Minseok surprised the girl with his sudden outburst of thoughts. He wasn’t the one to speak out his mind, even if it was in front of his closest. Minseok was just someone who preferred to keep himself to himself. But his words felt warm against Seoeun’s ears. She already knew that he very much appreciated the fact that they were together, however, he had never proceeded to say it out loud. His words, despite being a tiny little tidbit of his mind, warmed her heart.

 “I’m still trying to process it. And speaking of this, I still can’t believe that we actually won the tickets. It was a chance of one in a million and we were the ones who won it!” Seoeun looked at him, excitement and gratitude glistening in her eyes. She was grateful that he was with her. That he chose to take her on this journey, not anybody else.

 Next stood the Gate of Supreme Harmony and behind it – the Hall of Supreme Harmony. It was the largest wooden structure in the whole complex as well as in the whole republic of China. With its 30 meters of height, it towered above the surrounding gate and square like the wise Emperor himself. Like the other buildings the couple had encountered, this one also had this ancient, almost mysterious aura around it. It was as if they had teleported to the past, when the Emperor and his servants still paced around this square arranging various meetings and ceremonies. The spirit of the long gone dynasties still lived and lingered in the thick air.

 “I want to take a picture with this statue!” Seoeun excitedly chirped, handing her camera to Minseok who smiled dearly, nodding his head. The girl stood beside a giant lion statue made of bronze. The boy took some pictures and then they asked another tourist to take a picture of them both smiling brightly at the camera. Oddly, people never mistook the both friends as a couple in love, unlike Seoeun and her brother. With Minseok it seemed as if they had this distance between them that was absent between the twins. There still was some natural skinship between them but nothing too wild. Whereas when she was with Baekhyun she would occasionally pinch his cheeks and he would playfully slap her ; it was natural with them as well but a different kind of natural when she was with Minseok.

 This time, however, when they took the camera from the tourist, Minseok proposed to make another picture. He turned the camera lens facing towards them and gently placed his arm around Seoeun’s shoulders. She was pulled towards his body and she suddenly got scared that he would hear or feel her heart’s loud banging. The expression on her face showed nothing but surprise and embarrassment. They had been friends for years, yet she still felt the tingles in her tummy whenever Minseok touched her, or said something nice. Up until now, she had realized that she was heels over head in love with him and there was no turning back. She had to confess but she still did not have enough courage to do so.

 In the end of their tour around the Forbidden City, Seoeun and Minseok went through the north Gate of Divine Might, which faced the Jingshan Park. The area was planted with numerous trees and flowers, which were blooming in their most beautiful colours, now that it was the beginning of summer. Ancient pavilions pierced the space above the trees, looking like five sharp arrows facing the sky. Each of the pavilions was painted in its unique patterns and colours and had their special form, unlike any other building. The two friends headed to the nearest of them. It had bright red pillars and a double round roof, painted in blue with intricate ornaments drawn by hand all over it.

 Minseok inhaled the fresh scent of the blooming flowers nearby and sat in the thick shade under the pavilion. Seoeun followed his action and let out a sigh of content. By far, the Forbidden City was her favourite. Not that they had visited any other sightseeing but she felt that this will remain special in her heart as the beginning of her dream.

 There, on the path that meandered throughout the entire park, was a couple, a boy and a girl, exchanging loveable gazes and holding hands. The wind tousled their hair and played with their laughter. Suddenly, Seoeun felt slightly jealous of the happy couple. She wanted to experience this too, with the boy she liked. In fact, she did experience it but it was not the same. Minseok didn’t know that she liked him. At least she had never told him and never gave him signs that she did like him.

 Then she felt the sudden courage to tell him. To tell him everything that was on her heart. There and then, she wanted to spill everything. How would he react? This question had always halted her and made her realize the risk. She feared his reaction. What if he rejected her? And what if he liked her back? Seoeun had no idea how would she react. Would she cry or smile? Everything consisted of million possibilities and different outcomes.

 That was the reason she never told him. Her own mind was stopping her every time she got the slightest bit of courage. The questions would immediately flood her head and every time she found herself recoiling.

 Someday, the girl thought, I will tell him. It’s just not today.

Author's Note

Hi, what's up! I'm back again with a whole new chapter, can you believe this? It was actually hard to write this because I had to make some research on China and the Forbidden City, but it's all my fault for choosing to write a story connected with travelling. If you wanna make it nice, better do some reserach! And so I did, and ended up reading the whole Wikipedia page for the Forbidden City, but I have no regrets, I love it! I kind of got dragged away as always but I still like the way this chapter turned out and I hope it doesn't sound like a travel guide written by a middle schooler.

Oh, and I forgot to thank the two people who actually upvoted this story, I love you so much, I can't even contain my love, can you feel it? Of course you can, that's why I write, because I love you :D.

Don't forget to subscribe and comment some nice stuff because I love reading these aaand until next time, love you!

P.S: Do you think I should write my name after the Author's Note? I kind of feel like an anonymous random creeper ranting useless stuff after every chapter... orz