“Chae Won ah, wake up”

Chae Won’s eyes fluttered open at the urging tone of his voice. She clumsily rubbed her eyes before trying to look at him without falling back to sleep.

“It’s already 5. Let’s go back to your room”

She nodded at his instruction. Again, that night, Chae Won and Joong Ki tiptoed passed the other dorms, and entered the female ground. Staggering, they finally reached her room.

It has been going on for three days. It seemed like a secret routine for the both of them. Every night, right after dinner, they would meet each other behind the overgrown bushes; now officially their secret hideout. That particular spot had been the place they spill out their regrets and even share their joy. That place had witnessed the both of them chatted like long lost friends till the night has gone late.

Then, they would run -on their tiptoes, trying not to wake anyone else- to Joong Ki’s bedroom. It was fun, enthralling and spine chilling at the same time. She loved the way the wind brush through her locks and the feeling of agility running through her veins. She had no idea she could run, she had no idea she could feel so free. As free as flying birds.

Only by his side, would she sleep soundly, without any nightmares ruining her sweet dreams. Joong Ki was her very own Sandman. His warm hug worked better than the sand Sandman blew in the eyes of children. His soft lullaby was more than any ballad singing angels could ever sing, and there’s no changing that.

His Toto was just enough for a single person, but sharing it with her was never a burden to him. And when he had sent her to her room every dusk at five, he would return back to his room with a smile, knowing that her sweet smell would still linger on his pillow. The smile would grow wider, into a nearly foolish grin as soon as he laid his head on the pillow. If he was asked to describe the way she smell, he would say she smelled of warm joyful summer with a hint fresh grass –sometimes he wondered if she had been hiding behind the bushes more than he knows about-.

If they would be running to Joong Ki’s room, then the journey to her room was spent with a leisure stroll, as if they were trying to drag on time. Clinging to his tone arm, she dragged her feet while her half lidded eyes fought the urge to close.

“Are we really going for a picnic tomorrow?” she glanced at him, a shy smile spreaded on her lips.

“Sure thing. It’ll be a new experience for us”

“How is that so?”

“Cho Ko and Jae Gil won’t be coming along so we don’t have to worry about two busy bodies sticking their noses in everything” his answer came with cheekiness and she giggled automatically.

They continued the walk past the assembly ground and into the female ground when Joong Ki’s steps came to a halt. He turned at her, “So what about food tomorrow?”

“Hey, I’m a part of the cooking team. Surely you don’t expect me to be totally clueless about cooking by now”

“Well, I dare not guess. Moon Chae Won is rather unpredictable”

His teasing form a pout on her lips, which he found very tantalizing. She resolved to just stay silent through the rest of the short journey as a sign of protest.

However, her ego and fury were short lived. The moment he tucked her in her own Toto, she can’t help but flashing a smile at him.

“I’ll pick you up at the main gate around 8.00 a.m. Be sure to wear something nice” he winked and immediately left, leaving Chae Won blushing in the dark. She hated to admit it, but the butterflies in her stomach had already took flight at the thought of a date with Joong Ki.

Life seemed so much better now. Lack of luxury and high class living could never compare to the kind of feelings she developed during the three days there.

She had friends, she had people who appreciated her and didn’t treat her like a puppet. She had a purpose to live. But most importantly, she had Song Joong Ki all to herself.

“Be sure to wear something nice”

Because of that single request, Chae Won found herself in the small village at the foot of the hill, with a chattering Cho Ko by her side.

“Unnie, that’s the shop I’m talking about. They have a few summer dresses” Exclaiming excitedly, the young adult pulled Chae Won’s wrist and brought the clueless girl in the shop. It wasn’t big. It was just a small hut, but neatly taken care of. It doesn’t smell stale like other wooden buildings. In fact, it has a flowery smell lingering in the air. The woman behind the counter herself looked flowery with the sunflower print shirt. The woman wiped her hands at the front of her shirt before smiling at her two customers, “Hi, Cho Ko dear. I see you brought along a friend. Do you girls have anything in particular?”

Cho Ko smiled back, “You see, this is Joong Ki oppa’s girlfriend. They’re going on a date afterwards so we’re looking for a summer dress”

The woman’s eyes instantly brighten up –Chae Won wasn’t sure if it was because she was receiving customers or the fact that she is Joong Ki’s girlfriend- and the smile grew wider. “Wow, that’s exciting, come here. I have just the right thing for you”

Well, ‘just the right thing’ seemed to be more of ‘things’ when Chae Won found herself in the dressing room surrounded by pairs of flowery, light dresses.

She let out a sigh, a rather excited one with a tiny hint of despair as she started undressing herself.

She had no other outfit to wear except the plain white hanboks supplied by the school. So, by hook or by crook, she had to get a dress for the date. No way in hell would she go out on a date with the hanbok. which was why, just an hour before the date, she was out dress hunting with Cho Ko in the nearby village.

Needless to say, Chae Won did want to look pretty. Even if she could only afford a simple dress, not the other accessories , at least she tried to appear more… flattering.

Realizing this fact, she grabbed the nearest dress to her and put it on. She had no idea why looking good for Joong Ki is her main priority now but she had no intention to find out.

Chae Won flinched as her fingers again –for the hundredth time- soothed the imaginary wrinkles on her new dress. Inside, she was praying hard that her little investment would pay off. She thought the colour scheme was too young for the taste but Cho Ko insisted that it brought her inner colour up. Whatever in the hell that means.

But since Cho Ko wasn’t a fashion disaster herself, Chae Won decided to follow her advice.  She glanced down –again, for the hundredth time- at her little investment, trying to spot any invisible lint of any sort.

She shifted her weight to her other leg and set the basket down. The weight was too much for her to bear especially in the morning sun. Having nothing to hold, her hand involuntarily moved to her hair, adjusting her braided hair; which Cho Ko had kindly did for the sake of her happiness.

Suddenly, the main gate opened from inside and a head peeked out. It was the head of someone she had waited for ten minutes in the sun.

Surprisingly, none of them could muster up a word. Instead, they star