The day dawned bright and cold. Kuri shivered, groaning softly as she wrapped herself tighter in the fluffy blankets on her bed.

As she shifted into a more comfortable position, stretching her arm out and laying it on the bedside table, her ears registered the sound of paper rustling.

“Hmm..?” She cracked one eye open, wincing as the light stung it. She squinted as her eyes adjusted to the light, her hand groping around for that elusive piece of paper.

She finally managed to snag the note, which was folded neatly in half, and unfolded it, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she studied the words on the page. The note was written in Chinese, something she'd find amusing were it not for the fact that she could barely remember how to speak, let alone read, Chinese, especially in her groggy state.

She groaned and decided to wash up so that she'd be more alert when she returned, but before her feet even touched the floor, there came a knock on the door, stopping her in her tracks.

She was about to ignore the knock when it came again, making her huff in irritation and get up quickly to open it.

As soon as she flung open the door, however, she somewhat regretted it. All it took was one look, and all the memories of the previous day had come flooding back to her.

Tao stood in the doorway, looking dashing in a light grey coat thrown over a black shirt and skinny jeans.

“Hi.” He smiled, a boyish smile that made her heartbeat accelerate ridiculously. “... Hello…” She managed to get out, knowing she was definitely red by this time. It was when he raised an eyebrow at her dressing did she realize she was still in the clothes she had slept in, her hair tangled and messy.

“Are you going down to breakfast like that?” He asked, a sparkle of humor in his eye. “Of course not..!” She flushed at the thought, completely embarrassed.

“I take it that you didn't receive my note?” He laughed, reaching to run his fingers through her hair, untangling some of it. “I-I haven't read it… I'm sorry..! What was it about?” She asked, curious and somewhat guilty for not having read it.

“I asked if you'd like to have breakfast with me.” He grinned and leaned against the doorway. “But it appears you're not ready yet, so I'll wait.” He continued, and she hurriedly rushed into the bathroom to wash up, embarrassed at having him wait for her.

“I'll wait in the armchair by the window then.” He called as he stepped in, shutting the door behind him. Ten minutes later, she stumbled out, a hairbrush snarled in her unkempt hair. She stole a glance at him as she grabbed whatever clothes her hands touched, trying not to keep him waiting.

As soon as she pulled on her thigh high socks and sneakers, Tao got up from his seat.

“Finally.” He laughed, walking up to where she stood, and opening the door for her, playfully bowing her out.

As soon as he closed the door behind himself, he scanned her outfit and smirked. “We match.” He said, and she looked down at her outfit, which turned out to be a grey sweater thrown over a black skirt.

“Oh yeah…” She realised this just as Kris stepped out of his room, dressed simply in an oversized black shirt and jeans.

“Morning.” He greeted, barely giving them a glance as they walked towards the elevator that led to the breakfast hall.

Kuri barely replied the greeting, feeling her face grow hot as she stood between the both of them, who had begun exchanging small talk. The elevator was empty except for the three of them, and the walls suddenly seemed too confining.

Mercifully, the elevator stopped along the way, the doors opening to reveal a disheveled looking Baekhyun and a smiling Chanyeol.

“I thought you're rooming with Tao?” Kuri asked, confused when she saw the two of them together. “You shouldn't ask too many questions, especially this early in the morning.” Baekhyun grumbled, shoving past them to stand in the corner. The circles under his eyes spoke of a sleepless night, but what on earth was the blush on his face supposed to mean?

She looked up just in time to see Tao shoot Chanyeol a knowing smile, to which he replied by giving him a smirk of his own.

Wait what. Am I reading too much into this, or are Baekhyun and Chanyeol-?

She didn't even have time to dwell on this thought, for in the very next moment, the doors opened again, filling the elevator with delicious scents.

Kuri inhaled deeply, loving the scent of food that wafted on the air. Before she knew it, she was led to a small table near the window overlooking the city.

She looked down at the menu that had been handed to her, before looking up, startled, to see only Tao sitting across from her.

“Where are the rest?” She asked, confused as she scanned the crowded dining hall for a familiar face.

“They left. Kris spotted Luhan and went to discuss something with him, and Chanyeol and Baekhyun seem to have vanished along the way.” He explained, but somehow it held an edge of falseness to it, as though those were merely excuses to leave Tao and her alone.

Good God, Kuri, are you out of your damn mind? Maybe hanging around with idols has given you a big head, but remember that you're here for an assignment. An assignment, damnit, not to date and fall in love with idols who'll probably forget you once this trip is over.

“I'm leaving for Korea tomorrow.” He suddenly spoke, and she looked up, startled. She hadn't realized that while she had been deep in thought, he'd ordered a cup of tea for her, with a single packet of sugar and without milk. Just the way she liked it, and she wondered how he knew until she realized she had ordered this exact thing the day before, in that small cafe where they had stopped to rest and warm up.

“Really? Are you guys going to hold a concert there?” She asked, stirring her tea and trying to hide her emotions. She was going home the next day too, but somehow, over the course of this trip, a lot of things had happened, making the two days feel longer, much much longer. She still hadn't sorted out what she felt for Tao exactly, but she prayed it was anything but love. Love was not something she could have with Tao, and she knew it. She knew he knew it as well, but neither of them brought the subject up, not even to talk about the meaning of that kiss they'd shared.

He nodded in answer to her question, looking conflicted for a moment.

“I'll get you vip tickets and a backstage pass.” he finally said, and her jaw dropped at the sudden unexpected gift, but she nodded shyly nevertheless.

“Thank you.” She whispered, taking a sip of her tea even though it scalded her tongue. They fell into an awkward silence again, both pretending to be busy doing next to nothing as they dwelled on deep thoughts and fleeting memories.

“So what are you doing today?” She asked, and he snapped out of his trance, setting his fork down as he considered this question for a brief moment.

“Nothing much, I guess. The manager didn't give us a specific schedule so I guess it's pretty much a free day for us.” he shrugged, and looked towards her.

“What about you?” He asked, picking up his glass of juice and taking a sip. She shrugged as well, looking down at her tea.

“Then, if you're free, would you like to go on a date with me?”

[A/N hello!! :3 first of all I'd like to say that I MAY update less frequently from now on for a while (I suddenly have lots more stuff to settle now for some reason haha) so yeah haha ^^" I'm sorry about that >< also, thank you for stopping by <3 reads/reviews/votes are also always welcome so do tell me what you think guys <3 Also, thanks to my subscribers as well as commenters!! You guys really make my day and honestly I never thought I'd get noticed by anyone on this site since there are like literally almost an unlimited number of super good writers out there as well ;w; but thank you yeah! (: Thanks for brightening up my day with your subs and comments ^^ I promise I'll work hard to improve on my writing so that I can write a good story! (:]