“I enjoy looking at beautiful people, and I decided a while ago

not to deny myself the simpler pleasures of existence,”

– John Green

Soundtrack: (x)

Three days have passed since Mina earned a new friend, which also goes by the name of Park Chanyeol. The name sounded nice coming out of - the way it resonated made him seem like a friendly, cheerful person to be around with. Despite being the tallest boy she has ever met and having a voice so deep that it might scare children away, he was actually… sweet, for the lack of a better word.

Chanyeol diligently brought her lunch boxes and a juice box for the past three days. He would leave her ward when it’s his time to volunteer at the hospital, but between breaks, he would pay her a visit with his lunch in hand. “There are so many people at the cafeteria at this hour,” would be his generic reply whenever she asked him why he would spend his lunch breaks with her instead.

Nowadays, the only places Chanyeol would spend his time at besides his own house and his college would be at the hospital, or with Mina to be exact. He didn’t know what was it about her, but she made a great companion to hang around with despite their odd meeting. She wasn’t afraid to disagree with him, and she definitely did not ogle over him the same way those young nurses did. And that was good enough excuse making her his friend.

“You know, my umma loves making these lunch boxes for you,” Chanyeol spoke that one afternoon as he kept his hands busy unpacking Mina’s lunch.

“I feel bad- it’s like she suddenly has another child to take care of. Taking care of you must’ve been quite the trouble, imagine having to add another one,” Mina replied with a hint of playfulness in her voice.

“Excuse you; I am never a trouble to my parents. I am such a saint. And don’t worry so much about it, the Park family loves food and we love people who love food. You’re only making my umma happier because she has a valid reason to feed another person now,”

Within the span of three days, Mina already knew so much about Chanyeol- she knew that he has an older sister who looks exactly like him, parents who have an Italian place somewhere downtown, and that he used to own a ferret, a dog and a cat (before he got allergic to dander and had to send them away), but he knew nothing about her except for her disease. He never asked her how many siblings she had, whether her parents owned any restaurants as well, or whether she was allergic to anything. Mina wasn’t sure whether he was genuinely uninterested or he was waiting for her to tell him himself.

“And besides, I also like girls who love to eat. Imagine this- what if I was having lunch with a girl who wanted to eat nothing but salad? I would look like a gobbling giant next to her. So why did you think I like to eat lunch with you? You’d make quite a gobbling giant yourself,” Chanyeol playfully suggested as he shut the lid of his metal container close before shaking it furiously, letting the food inside it mix well.

“Glad to know that you think of me in that light…” Mina grumbled before lightening up as her lunch was presented in front of her, a product of Chanyeol’s harsh shake of the lunch box. It was scrumptious- the sight of rice mixed with kimchi and pork strips was mouth-watering and she couldn’t wait to dig her chopsticks into the container.

It was true though- Chanyeol does eat a lot at such a short span of time. It was proven when he challenged Mina to an eating face off, over the lunch boxes his mother prepared for them both. He managed to finish his lunch box within the first ten minutes, cleaning every bit of rice that was in his container (that was also the moment Mina learned not to challenge him in any food competitions anymore).

“So… who is the guy that accompanies you here sometimes?” Chanyeol tried to sound non-probing and nonchalant, but there was nothing in his question that indicated he was being anything but a busybody.

“Ah, that guy? He’s Minseok oppa. He’s my next door neighbour. Why’d you ask?”

“He’s not by any chance your boyfriend, is he? Well, it’s nothing, it’s just… he doesn’t seem to like me whenever I pay a visit,”

Chanyeol can only stare in astonishment and mild awe as Mina did nothing but let out a rather hearty laugh at his comment. It was hard not to stare at her when she laughed, Chanyeol thought. It wasn’t because she was extremely beautiful- in fact, in his honest opinion, there’s nothing extraordinary about Mina’s beauty, but it was the genuine happiness in her face and the sincerity in her laugh that appealed to him. It was official- he definitely liked her laugh.

“My boyfriend? Who, Minseok oppa? Oh dear lord, no. Minseok has a boyfriend of his own- his name’s Luhan, someone he met at college sometime ago... and Luhan's... really pretty- prettier than me, in fact. He probably is still throwing daggers at you over the incident you caused that day- he did say to give him a call just so he could beat you up if you ever decide to do funny things to me... and, well- you really have no one to blame but yourself for that too, you know,”

Mina watched victoriously as Chanyeol’s cheeks turned a few shades deeper as he was reminded by the scene he caused sometime over the week. As true as his words were, nothing could beat the fact that he was nothing but an inflated drama king on that day. As far as their instant friendship goes, Mina could not forgo that incident- she will most probably carry it to her grave. It was just something you don’t simply forget in a friendship.

“Okay, we don’t have to talk about that, you know. I admit, I caused such an embarrassment to myself, so