Chapter 1
26 Memories of Love1. Airplane
She couldn’t remember exactly when it was when she first had feelings for him. It occurred to her that it must have been the first time when they had met, in the airplane on the way to Greece. She had been extremely tired that day, but pleased at the thought of being able to finally visit Greece. She had been asleep the moment she sat down, and didn’t wake up until she felt someone shaking her arm.
“Good afternoon Miss, would you like to have your meal?” The air hostess had smiled politely and asked before she could even shoot daggers at the person next to her for waking her up. She smiled and thanked the air hostess as she received her meal before turning to her side.
“Hi, it’s nice to meet you.” Before she could even say anything, the stranger had smiled and spoke first. Staring straight into his eyes, she felt all her irritation fade away as she took his all his features. She thought he was rather good-looking.
“I’m Ryeowook, what’s your name?” He spoke again in that clear and beautiful voice of his, and she melted into that soft smile straight away. Blinking a few times, she finally replied,” It’s Min Ae.”
And then, they launched into a long conversation throughout the whole flight.
2. Beyoncé
They were cuddling on the sofa on a late Friday night, watching a rerun of a music programme. Ryeowook smiled lovingly at his girlfriend who, at the moment, was trying to identify a few idol groups to no avail He chuckled when she finally pointed and said, “Super Junior!” when the group appeared on screen. This was the only idol group Min Ae knew by heart, considering the fact that her boyfriend was one of the members. It was good enough for Ryeowook though, that she managed to remember all s’ names by heart when she met the group for the first time.
Because Ryeowook remembered how shocked he was when they first met, and the only celebrity she knew for the past 22 years was Beyoncé. Ryeowook had then found out that she worked as an artist, drawing out her masterpieces at various places that she didn’t bother to watch television much, which is why she didn’t pay attention to any of the celebrities. Sometimes, he would even laugh at the thought of her telling him how she had known Beyoncé---It was when someone was screaming out her song that she ruined her drawing right on the spot simply because that someone had a horrible pitch. She was glad to know that Beyoncé was actually a singer with wonderful vocals after that incident.
3. Confession
“Oppa? Why did you call me out in the middle of the night?” Min Ae asked, as they sat on a park bench in the park near her house. The surroundings were so quiet that only the sound of crickets could be heard.
Ryeowook had called her out suddenly just as she had just submitted one of her deadlines. Not that she minded that it was close to almost 1am in the morning, because she loved every minute they had managed to spend together ever since they’ve met.
“There’s… something I want to say to you.” Ryeowook shifted in his seat uncomfortably, as he stared into those honey orbs melting into his. He took a deep breath as Min Ae cocked her head to her side, signalling for him to continue.
“I know that it hasn’t been long since we first met on the way to Greece, but ever since then I have loved every moment spent with you. I really like you a lot, and I want to spend more time together with you. So…Will you be my girlfriend?” He rushed out whatever he had been repeating to himself for the past few days. His heart thumped as he looked at Min Ae, who was silent. Had he messed up? It wasn’t the best confession, he thought.
“Are you cold?” He suddenly blurted out without thinking. Min Ae gave a stunned expression as she spluttered out, “What?”, still shocked from Ryeowook’s confession.
“Just say yes and I’ll make sure you never have cold feet.” He said hastily. It was a pick-up line one of his hyungs taught him, and he was told that this would work, although he didn’t know what it meant. Min Ae stared at him with large eyes before bursting out into fits of laughter. A blush heated up on Ryeowook’s face, but he didn’t regret confessing when Min Ae finally gasp out a ‘yes’ between the fits of giggles.
4. Daffodils
It has already sort of become a habit for the couple to go to their favourite secret hideout whenever Super Junior finishes another of their album promotions or when Min Ae has another big exhibition in the art gallery. They would take a day off their work and drive a long way up into one of the gardens they had found and owned in the countryside. In the gardens it was planted full with Daffodils by Min Ae herself. It had been her suggestion at first, to visit this garden after every big event. With every event, she planted another new bed of daffodils.
Ryeowook had never understood why Daffodils were Min Ae’s favourite flower. He had always thought that roses were a girl’s favourite, regardless of how mainstream it was, which was why he gave her a huge bouquet of roses for their first anniversary together. Min Ae had smiled, and thanked him, but he could see that she wasn’t that enthusiastic about the flowers. It was until one day when he came across Min Ae’s sketchbook, which was filled with different drawings of daffodils, that he found out her favourite was Daffodils.
Once, he had asked her while she was planting another bed of flowers into the garden, but she only smiled and asked him to help. He obliged, of course, but the question kept pressing in his mind. He wanted to know the answer.
That night, he decided to search the meaning of flowers on the internet, and he scrolled to Daffodils, his lips stretched into a wide smile.
Daffodils: A new beginning
From then on, Daffodils became his favourite flowers too.
5. E.L.F
Min Ae grasped Ryeowook’s hand tightly, her face showing signs of nervousness as they stood outside the door. They had been in a relationship for almost 6 months and Ryeowook has been persuading her to meet s. Finally, the day had come.
“Oppa? Do you think they’ll like me? What if I can’t remember their names?” Min Ae asked, her voice shaking. She had spent the whole night trying to memorise all s’ names, matching them to their faces.
“Don’t worry! My hyungs are good people! They’ll make you feel welcome! I’m sure they’ll like you, even if you can’t remember their names!” Ryeowook assured her, knowing how much effort she had put in to know s. He opened the door to reveal his hyungs all crowding in the living room, waiting for them!
“Welcome to our dorm!” They clapped, and the next moment they surrounded the couple, throwing scraps of shredded paper to act as confetti. Min Ae was surprised but she managed to give a small smile as she answered all their questions.
“Are you an ELF?” a member she remembered as Donghae asked.
“Elf?” She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, “no, I’m sorry, oppa, I’m a human.” She wondered why Ryeowook had a member who asks weird questions, but she looked even more confused when everyone burst into laughter.
“No, Min Ae, ELF is the name of our fans. It means Everlasting Friends, not the elf with pointy ears you were talking about.” Ryeowook explained, as her cheeks flushed with embarrassment upon realisation.
“Oh.” She uttered softly, wondering if she had messed up, but she gave a sigh of relief when everyone smiled warmly at him, with their leader announcing,” I’m going to make you an ELF someday!”
With that she had begun to form a new friendship with the members which would last a long time.
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