Episode 25: It's not a date!

(Jin’s POV)

Repeating that phrase over and over in my mind, making it seem like the whole world around me is glowing magically.

“Jin still likes me!”

I jumped up and started to twirl around with the white dress I picked from the clothes I had.

“Haha” I was smiling and felt like I was floating in the sky.

The doorbell started to ring and it interrupted my beautiful daydream.

“Ah!” I quickly threw the dress on the bed and rushed to the door to find Minho already inside.

“You still didn’t fix the lock?”

I slapped my cheeks lightly and shook my head:

“And you still didn’t learn to wait?” I repeated in his same tone but he went inside anyways.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m pretty confident about your taste in clothes” he laughed.

I looked down at my sweater pants and green t-shirt.

“Humph” I shrugged “I’m happy the way I am now” I went to the kitchen “And you need to stop visiting early in the morning”

“Why? It’s fun to tease you when your eyes are still puffed and you look sleepy!” he was looking in the fridge and I kicked him on the back. “OUCH!” he bumped his head and I burst out laughing.

“It’s not like you’re homeless or let’s say room-less, why are you always having breakfast in here?”

“I didn’t want you to feel lonely and get gloomy in the early morning!” he was rubbing the back of his head.

“Aww, really~?” I blinked and felt very happy.

“It’s weird, you’re not going to hug me and say that I’m cute?”

“Hehe, not when I’m used to it”

“Fine, then I’ll make you miss me enough to run into my embrace first thing when you see me”

“Hahaha, you’d find a girlfriend and get married by that time Minho”

“Huh?” he suddenly cupped my face “Are you alright? Why are you in an overly-good mood that it’s making me suspicious?”

I brushed his hands away and carried on mixing the ingredients:

“Who knows~”

He folded his hands and kept staring at me suspiciously:

“Something’s not right” he tapped his jaw “I’m seeing butterflies and stars around you and it’s giving me the chills”

I glared at him.

“Yes, that’s better” he smiled then went to take a seat and wait for the pancakes I was preparing.

I heaved a small sigh and carried on cooking.

“It’s a real waste… after becoming this adorable to wear manly-clothes again you know?” he uttered out of the blue.

“You might be right but…” I looked down and grinned, remembering the first day I came to this academy and how I got mistook for a boy. “But I must admit, that the current me… isn’t the real me”

He remained silent:

“I came to this place in order to convince my father to accept my choice in life…”

“Being a tomboy huh”

I nodded:

“Maybe someone like you wouldn’t be able to understand me completely and many other people even think that I’m acting cocky and only trying to draw attention to me”

I clenched my grip around the pan’s handle:

“For all of those who looked down on me…”

I recalled the boys and girls who bullied me in kindergarten and in school -for getting a special treatment by the teachers and having a personal butler, without me being able to talk back on them or to defend myself.

“And for those who didn’t care about me..”

I recalled my parents, who were constantly busy, and as a child, I wasn’t able to spend a single day with them as a real family.

My mother kept forcing me to attend different classes in order to turn me into the perfect lady that she dreamt of having so I would marry a rich heir, become a good house-wife and give birth to the next heir.

“I had to become the way I am now to punish my parents for messing with my life”

“But aren’t you punishing yourself too?” he uttered with a deep voice.

“It doesn’t matter, since I grew to adapt to it, no, I grew to like my new self!”

“I like it too”

I grimaced. Yeah, he had to sneak a love confession to our talk every now and then.

***

“Wow, if people were to see us, they’ll think that we’re a real couple!” Minho held my hand as we walked down the street.

“S-Stop it, it’s really embarrassing” I kept dropping my head and trying to cover my face partly with my hand.

“I shouldn’t have agreed to your stupid request!” I squeezed his hand hard enough and he squeezed mine back.

“And…I…d-don’t regret it” he was gritting his teeth keeping up with my strength.

“A-Are you challenging m-me?” I was clenching mine too.

“No stop” he pulled his hand away “I don’t want any of us to end with broken bones, not when we’re getting these strange looks from people”

I glanced around us, and indeed many people were whispering as they looked at us. I gulped.

“Damn..” I whispered.

“Haha, serves you right”

So Minho said that he won’t go out with me to buy clothes unless I dressed in the cutest dress I had. I refused at first but he begged and begged then threatened that he’d kiss me if I don’t and there we almost ended in a fighting match.

“At least if you’re going back to being the unattractive Jin again, allow this humble prince to see Cinderella for the last time” and he had to kneel before me and wear that serious look and I couldn’t refuse.

Damn it, he gets me every time he mentions the Cinderella tale.

“Oh! A photo-booth!” he yelled as soon as we entered a big shopping center.

“So what? We’re not here to take pictures!” I severely opposed.

“Don’t be stubborn! Come on!” he pulled my arm and we both ended inside the booth.

“Now smile~” he was smiling at the camera.

“No!” I pouted

“Then say Kimchi~~” he brought his face next to mine.

“H-Hey!”

And the pictures were taken with him giving me a peck on the cheek and getting out with a bleeding nose. Yes, I punched him.

“You’re so not lady-like!” he was speaking in a funny way as he tried to stop the bleeding of his nose.

“That’s for what you did!” I retrieved the pictures and hurried to delete the one that caught our kiss.

“D-Don’t delete it! ...Whyy??” he was whining.

“B-Because you broke the rules that said not to treat me as your girlfriend”

I looked at the screen to delete the other pictures but he pressed the printing button before I did.

“I don’t care if I’ll faint because of the bleeding but I won’t allow these valuable pictures to go to a waste!” he quickly snatched them away.

“G-Give them back! Ah!!” I was trying to reach them, standing on the tips of my toes but he only raised his arm up making it impossible for me to reach them.

“Hey! Stop blocking the way! If you’re done then don’t make other people wait!” A sharp voice interrupted us from behind, I jerked as I saw a couple.

“S-Sorry!” Minho and I bowed at them in an apology and I tried to use the opportunity to snatch away the pictures but couldn’t since he was very sharp.

I clicked my tongue.

“Let’s just go”

I walked ahead and looked around us:

“Ho ho ho, I’m a real genius” Minho was laughing in an awkward way.

Probably for the picture that showed me alone, since he managed to hide while it got taken.

“I’ll cherish this one until the day I die” he happily said.

“Do you want it to be today?” his words struck a nerve.

“Tsk”

***

I headed toward the first store that sold sport-attires.

“She really is doing it, oh gosh” he facepalmed as I entered the shop with a big smile.

“Hello!” the clerk greeted us with a welcoming tone.

I directly headed toward the displayed sweaters and sneakers.

“Hehe, buying a gift for your boyfriend?” the clerk laughed as she watched me.

“Heh, more like buying them for herself” Minho uttered in a bored tone making the clerk tilt her head.

“Woah!” I raised my face to look at the big screen “They’re even airing last night’s game!”

“Eh?” the clerk was speechless.

“The Premier League’ matches I mean!” I explained.

“R-Right” she raised a brow at me.

I went to check the clothes again.

“Minho, which fits me better? The blue or the red shirt?” I showed him the shirts.

“I see no difference” he narrowed his eyes and nodded.

“Fine then I’ll buy both!”

“Show some mercy to me at least” he sounded like he was about to cry and went to sit at the ball shaped seat.

It didn’t take me long time to finish picking the clothes since I couldn’t try them on anyway since the fitting rooms were occupied by men.

“You’re buying all of them?!” Minho stood beside me as we were in front of the cashier.

“Yes” I beamed as I gave the cashier my card.

“Won’t it be expensive?” I knew where this conversation was going so I chose to ignore him.

“Hm? Miss do you have another card?” the young man gave me a bewildered look “This one won’t do”

How weird.

I nodded and brought out another golden card, he slid it in the machine but then gaped.

“This one doesn’t work as well”

I was shocked, taking out the third and last card. But it was the same thing.

“No way…”

**To be continued.