Perhaps it was the giddiness of the previous night, or maybe it was just the feeling of a good night’s sleep after blowing off stress and anxiety- Hyebin felt like a new girl. She was sitting at her desk, facing the huge poster of her and her friends, unable to focus properly on the book in her hands. Yes, she loved to read, and yes, she loved Literature class with a passion like no other student, but the tale did not cause her the normal tranquility it would have. Instead, today it seemed to drag on as she struggled to finish the reading assignment due the following day of school- which was still a weekend away. She swung her feet like a child, biting her lower lip from quirking up into the same foolish smile that seemed to make an appearance every few seconds at the thought of last night, which felt more like their night.

            “Get me a drink?” Junhoe asked her over the booming music. He was sweating lightly from all the dancing he had done with the boys. Hyebin was no dancer, and she was more so an awkward creature that seemed to have three legs and a talent to move off rhythm more so than on it, but Junhoe and the boys were dancing machines. Every girl seemed to swoon as they tore it up on the floor, and Hyebin herself was enjoying the view from the edges of the circle that formed to gawk over their powerful movements. It was the expression that Junhoe made as he danced that she enjoyed the most; the way his dark eyebrows seemed to relax, that spark of life shining in his eyes and his lips lifted into something between a smirk and a smile. Nonetheless, he was enjoying every moment of it, and so was Hyebin.

            “Of course you’re too lazy to,” Hyebin replied with a teasing smile, and he waved her away with a flick of his wrist in a good- natured way. He knew she was more than willing to do it for him, as she had asked him prior for food, which he had also willingly brought her (with multiple snarky comments on her appetite). Hyebin made her way to where one of the small drink stations were set up. The employees, who wore white collared shirts and professional black pants, were serving different drinks, from water to sodas to even smoothies and the nonalcoholic versions of drinks like pina colada. Hyebin stared at the white clothed table, unsure of which drink Junhoe would enjoy. She knew he was not picky, but she also knew that he had clear preferences- it was just a matter of how well she could distinguish his likes from his dislikes.

            “Thank you,” he said with a grin as she handed him a glass containing a dark, bubbling liquid. In the dim lighting, it just looked like plain soda, and she watched him tip the contents into his mouth. He pulled the glass back, his eyebrows furrowed together, and his nose crinkled slightly. “Kim Hyebin! You know that I despise grape soda.” Hyebin doubled over in laughter, before handing him another glass, this time a pink slush of strawberry daiquiri. He took it with a weary hand, giving her a look of mock distrust. Still, he sipped it and pretended to choke on some imaginary toxin.

            “Hey, I did not spike that one!” Hyebin said, narrowing her eyes at him. He let out a small chuckle, ruffling her neatly curled hair.

            “I’m kidding. But for that grape soda, I think you owe me a dance.” Her eyes rounded in surprise, staring at him in disbelief. Of all the torturous or embarrassing things he could conjure in his mind, he had to choose the most appropriate one of the moment, which also happened to be the very thing that Hyebin could not fathom of doing.

            “You want me to dance with you?” Hyebin squawked, pointing at herself. He nodded, laughing slightly as he knew why she was so against it. But to him, her awkwardness as she tried her very hardest to dance was adorable, and so was the miserable fail after fail as she could not quite move along to the beat coherently.

            “Just one dance. It won’t be so bad, unlike a certain cup of grape soda.” He said, gently grabbing her thin wrists to drag her. She struggled for a bit, not enjoying the idea of letting him have a slow dance with her. She would undoubtedly step on his feet more than a few times, and stumble around, despite it being literally just swaying. She finally felt herself cave in when she realized that he would not let her go.

            “Fine. Just this one dance. You’re leading it.” He grinned like a child, acknowledging his victory silently. The DJ was speaking into his mic, calling out every couple or pair to enjoy a more romantically paced mood with a few slower songs. Junhoe stopped somewhere in the jumbled throng of students, in the midst of random students all swaying while standing in close proximities of one another. He took Hyebin’s hands, bringing them to link behind of his neck. He then drew her closer as he wrapped his arms around her waist. She tensed up, unable to think of what she was supposed to do in this situation, so she focused on her feet.

            “I’m sorry!” She squeaked as she stepped on his foot for the nth time. Not even a minute had passed, but she felt as though it were forever. He stopped moving, dropping his hands from her, and she pulled back, afraid that she had angered him. Instead, his eyes were looking at her face, peering at her with amusement and slight exasperation.

            “You don’t have to be so much like a block of wood, babo. Loosen up a little. Never mind, loosen up a lot.” He returned to their previous position, and Hyebin let out a small sigh as she tried to relax. She leaned her head against his shoulder, her head tilted to the side and he shifted his arms slightly into something more like a loose hug. A silence was filling their little bubble, but there was also something else; peace. They were in their own world, with only each other to notice and not anyone else. Hyebin finally began to get the flow of the music as she allowed Junhoe to guide her, and she let out an inaudible sigh of happiness. What else could she ask for in this moment? Here she was, able to slow dance with the guy she had fallen for since the beginning of school. Even with the undeniable emotional roller coaster she had taken because of him, it was all worth it for this.

            “This isn’t too bad, right?” Junhoe whispered by her ear, and she nodded. The two fell back into silence, not wanting to shatter the softness in their situation. It was enchanting to experience this kind of emotion- it was muddled, nothing quite clear, but it was new. Junhoe never felt it once, not even while he was dating, and Hyebin had yet to experience it either. It was something deeper than just some happiness and peacefulness, but rather the feeling that all their fears were knocked away and only a door of fortune was showing in their lives. It was the feeling of not ever being alone in pain or sorrow, but having someone there to share it with. It was the feeling of a friendship that had grown so deep, it was hard to break.

            As the song dwindled to an end, and couples seemed to slip off the dance floor and the DJ resumed his playlist of dance songs, Junhoe pulled away from Hyebin. She was at a loss when the warmth left her but as she looked up to face him, it did not seem to matter. He smiled at her, his eyes meeting her own, and there was shared feeling of delight after the dance.

            “Not bad, although for my soul mate, you are lacking in foot coordination. I feel like an elephant trampled on me,” Junhoe said as he lead her back to their seat, causing Hyebin to slap his bicep. He winced. “Gosh, and to think you have such a temper while you’re all dolled up too.” Hyebin just plopped herself down into her seat, a childish smile lighting her face. And even now, the morning after, the same expression lit her face.

            “I give up!” She threw the book down onto the wooden table, and stretched. The clock read that it was something like right before the lunch- time rush, or 11:11 am to be more precise, and she grabbed her bag and made her way out the apartment, shouting for Youjung to give Bomi water if needed. She had made a small wish, hoping that her little plan would work, and she made her way through the crowded streets of Seoul. As it was Saturday, and a warm and sunny one at that, many people were out and minding their own business. Foreign tourists were excitedly bustling, and families were tending to errands. Hyebin saw couples go on dates and friends move in groups as they ran to their next destination excitedly. She made her way to a familiar café, owned by her favorite grandmother.

            “Good noon,” Hyebin greeted cheerfully. A few customers were seated, enjoying a brunch, while Granny herself was wiping the marble countertops with a rag. Her eyes crinkled into tiny crescents as she saw Hyebin making her way towards the counter.

            “Hello dear, how are you?” Hyebin gave her a small smile and a thumbs up. Granny nodded, before pointing at the quiet corner, a knowing look in her wise and old eyes. “I believe a special someone is there.” Hyebin didn’t feel embarrassed because it was Granny, but her cheeks flushed.

            “Can I order a green tea latte first?” Granny nodded, before moving about to gather the ingredients. Hyebin waited, leaning against the cool and hard surface of the counter. Something in her heart made it flutter at the thought of seeing his face after the dance. As she accepted the drink and paid the price for it, she slowly treaded her way through the chairs, trying her best to not make any squeak. She placed her cold drink on a table behind her, which was vacant, before standing behind a working figure, and slowly s her arms so her hands covered the eyes of the person seated.

            “Who is this?” His voice sounded surprised, but it was not panicky. “I swear, if it’s you Bobby, I will kick your -“

            “Boo!” Hyebin hopped into his line of vision, dropping her hands. She also hopped into a table, causing it to make a loud screech as the feet dragged across the wooden floor, and she winced as her hip seemed to throb at the dull pain. Junhoe tried his best to not laugh, which did not work, and he helped her up.

            “Like I said, you have to work on that foot coordination.” He grinned at her, before patting the seat across from him. “Sit down, and try not to destroy the café, or else Granny might be a little sad.” She turned back to grab her drink, and sat down in front of him, letting a small sound of disapproval escape her lips.

            “Just because I’m clumsy, you’re judging me aren’t you?” He shook his head jovially, before catching the look in her eye. It was doubt, but he could tell this was just her teasing him again.

            “I don’t judge you just because you’re clumsy. I judge you because you are the most uncouth girl ever who dances as if she has two left feet and seems to enjoy acting like a board of wood whenever she has to dance. And you also have an unnatural talent for being able to dance only offbeat. Seriously, I think you could be scouted like this,” Junhoe said with a straight face, and their eyes met. Then the café was filled with their sweet and loud laughter at his true his words were, but that only seemed to make it more amusing for the pair. Hyebin wiped a tear away, before staring at him as his own laughter began to subside and he too wiped away tears that had been induced by their laughter.

            “Says the boy who has the ability to get pissed off by a flavor of soda, and yet likes the actual fruit it is flavored to be,” Hyebin retorted, and he tried to think of something reasonable to say. Hyebin waited a few moments, before he finally replied.

            “Artificial flavoring is nothing like the actual fruit. Seriously, even the cough syrup can do better than that. You call that grape? Everything purple isn’t grape,” he said, and Hyebin began to giggle again from the sheer stupidity of his argument, and he too began to laugh once more at the silliness of their argument. And this was the best kind of laughter to Hyebin. There was no true meaning for it, but rather just the enjoyment of being with someone who was able to share the most ordinary yet amusing topics with you. To be able to discuss something so average, but in such a way that it tickled her insides and made her bubble with a vicious happiness. It was almost therapeutic, and it was a wish come true to have had such a wonderful time with Junhoe, past, present and future. 

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AN:

Hello! I am so sorry, and I'm not surprised if you guys hate me for the lack of anything in the past two months. I'm really sorry, but I guess life got hard, and I didn't have time. Reasons aside, I hope this short update finds you well and your wish for an update happened. I have another so double update so please read on :) I'm sorry once again, and I promise I'll try to spend more time writing and try to adapt a little bit better to what's been going on in my life. Love you all! :)