SanDeul leaned over and started tickling you. You let out a surprised shout before laughing. You quickly became worn out from trying to fight him off and from laughing so hard. Your sides hurt and when he finally stopped his tickling assault on you, you leaned against him as you caught your breath.

“Please,” you breathed, still gasping for air, “never do that again.”

SanDeul laughed lightly at the tired expression displayed across your face. He placed a soft kiss to your forehead and promised. You closed your eyes and enjoyed the silence and calmness that filled the room.

“____-ah,” SanDeul started nervously.

You peeked open your eyes and looked up at him. You took in his nervous expression and frowned as you wondered what it was that seemed to be bothering him. You guessed at what he was going to say, but you really had no idea. He had not seemed to be stressed out or anything as of late, so you hadn't thought anything was wrong.

Seeing that you seemed to be worried about what was on his mind he quickly grinned, though you could still tell that he was nervous.

“What is it, oppa?” you asked, trying to sound calm, though your heart beat was just a little erratic. You sat up properly and laced your fingers with his. You gave his hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze to let him know that you wanted to hear what he had to say.

SanDeul took a deep breath, his brown eyes locked on your entwined fingers. After a few more seconds of silence, he raised his eyes to yours.

“I love you,” he confessed.

Your mouth opened slightly at his words and you averted your gaze. Your mind went blank then and you remained utterly silent. A depressed look covered SanDeul's features and he released a heavy sigh that made your heart lurch.  You hadn't meant to make him sad.

“So... you don't love me, right?” SanDeul's voice was filled with uncertainty. He could tell that you were shaken and he knew he should have expected such a reaction from you, but still, it hurt all the same.

“It's not that... not exactly,” you said as he tried to pull his hand from yours. You tightened your grip so as to keep his hand still and his fingers locked with yours. You focused your gaze on his and worried your lip lightly as you tried thinking of something else to say. You had a feeling that no matter what you said, the damage had been done. You hadn't responded quick enough and now SanDeul was feeling hurt. “How do I know if I love you? Isn't it too soon to have those kinds of feelings?”

“You know, it's just like you to try and rationalize something like this,” SanDeul sighed. You couldn't be sure, but you thought that you heard bitterness in his voice.

“I really like you and I care for you. Isn't that enough?” you asked earnestly. “For now at least...” You bit your tongue slightly to stop yourself from speaking. You didn't want to make the situation worse.

“I understand,” he started slowly, the bitterness you thought you heard before was gone. “I think so at least. You don't want to rush into things, that's it, right?”

You nodded with a sincere smile, glad that he seemed to understand you.

He smiled in turn and said, “Well, I still love you. I'll just have to wait for you to return my feelings.” Your smile faltered slightly but you nodded.

XXX

A/N: Well, I tried something different. I tried being a bit more descriptive but I don't think that really panned out~ Sometimes, I kind of wonder where this story is going -_-