10:05 pm

I put on my one piece swimsuit, grabbed my towel and headed out. Hallways were filled with silence, almost deafening. I tiptoed, trying hard not to disturb anyone this late at night, and made my way to the college’s pool. I knew too well that the pool hours were already over but, being the sneaky me, I found a way to sneak in.

The water was as clear as crystal. Blue and relaxing. Putting my towel on one of the poolside benches, I took a deep breath before jumping in the deep side of the pool. ‘Yes! water’ I thought. Water was always the thing for me to relieve stress and to relax. I love water. I love the weightlessness feeling when the water glides over me and wrapping me in a cold cocoon. The water is alive and I feel alive just being in it. When I go deep under the water and exhale, I let the waves lead the way. I let the water guide my body back to the surface in a soothing motion. All I can hear is the sound of bubbles escaping my nostrils whenever I exhale. Being in the water was always the best feeling for me. When I get in, I don’t want to get out anymore.

I started swimming when I was four years old and working professionally when I was twelve. always being in the school’s varsity swimming team-since middle school- and having Jimin to come to our every meeting with other schools and cheer for me only motivated me more to win first place in every event. Funny thing is, I always hated sports and exercising but, I’ve never looked at swimming as a sport. I always thought of it as a way to relax and feel calm. Shutting the outside world when under the water was always comforting to me. Me being in the varsity swimming team and Jimin in the varsity kickboxing team, people at school gave us ‘sport couple’ nickname. Everyone thought we were a couple-not that I minded it-but Jimin would always laugh it off and tell everyone that we were just best friends. ‘Jiminiepabo’ that’s what I call him in my thoughts.

Giggling at the memories, I started swimming. Slowly and gently touching the water with my fingertips as I proceeded with freestyle. ‘so fresh’ I thought. I really needed this. Especially after the crazy events that happened yesterday. I still couldn’t believe that Jungkook kissed me. Why? I didn’t have any feelings for him and I thought he didn’t either but, his actions yesterday showed otherwise. The way he looked at me adoringly in the eyes, the way he smiled sweetly at me, and the way he cupped my face with his gentle hands and touched my lips with his own...they all seemed strange to me. We’ve never had that kind of skinship before. Just a friendly hug, a high five or nudging. Nothing so...intimidating. And what did he exactly mean when he said “I hope that this gave you the hint” after he kissed me? I had many unanswered questions in my head and even though I came here to run away from them, they keep haunting me again and again. Enough is enough, I decided and kept swimming.

Few minutes has passed and now I was lying on the water-like it was the most comfortable bed in the world-until I heard the door open and close, gently. I jerked up and quickly went over to one of the pool’s corners, hiding. When I peeked to see who it was, my eyes widened. ‘well, speaking of the devil” I thought “what is he doing here?!” I cursed under my breath and thought of many impossible ways to escape this situation but...I was too late

“Jihye?!?” the voice called, causing me to look up at the face I still wasn’t prepared to see

“J-jungkook…” I whispered

“w-what are you doing here this late?” he asked with a surprised tone

“I can ask you the same question”

“I-i..I come here every night” he said which caught me off guard

“e-every night?” I asked, now it was my turn to be surprised

“yea..”

“but why?”

“to relieve some stress”

“you don’t seem that stressful though” I commented

“oh yea? well, what are you doing here?” he smirked and I looked away, ready to leave when he jumped inside, causing the water to splash over me

“y-yah!” I combed my wet hair-which was now all over my face-back with my fingers while giving him a glare

“what?” he giggled and I shook my head. Turning around, I started to climb the ladders to get out when I felt him grabbing my wrist

“y-yah! l-let go” I tried to break free, but his grip only got tighter

“stay” he pleaded. I could feel my cheeks becoming warmer so I looked away

“I-i need to go...It’s late”

“just stay...please?” I sighed then nodded

“only for a few more minutes, okay?”

“okay!” his smile got wider as it stretched across his face “can you swim?” he asked, suddenly concerned

“if I couldn’t then what would I be doing here, pabo?” I giggled and flicked his forehead, he just chuckled

“let’s have a race then” he challenged “freestyle?” I nodded in agreement then we took our positions, ready to start

“one..”

“two…”

“three…”

“go!” then we began. I could tell by his moves next to me, that he was very skilled and fast! but not as fast as me. These competitions were a piece of cake for me. I was glad that I finally had something to be proud of other than good grades. Reaching the other side of the pool, I flipped, turning my body to the opposite side and pushed my legs against the wall as hard as I could to bring myself forward, then began swimming again. When I reached the other end, I stood up to see Jungkook also standing, looking at me with annoyed eyes

“yah! it’s not fair! you were too fast!” he nagged which caused my to shrug in response while giggling “it’s the first time ever that a girl beat me!”

“what do you mean a girl? can’t girls be better than some boys?”

“I’m not too sure about that” he shrugged, putting on an -I-don’t-give-a-- expression. I splashed some water to his face and mumbled “ist!”

“this kid! seriously!” he jumped towards me, attacking my sides which caused me squealing loudly so he took both of us under the water so no one hears us. He was still tickling me while holding me tightly from behind so I wouldn’t escape. My screams got muffled by the water and soon I gasped for air. He brought us back up and I began breathing heavily while trying to hold in my laughter.

“yah! you can let me go now!” I laughed, pointing at his arm which was still wrapped around my waist

“what if I don’t want to?” he smirked and I splashed him with more water this time. He tried to hide his face behind my back but I was splashing him mercilessly while laughing out loudly, so he took us back under the water and turned me around to face him. I was still laughing and he stuck out his tongue at me, but never letting me go. He pressed my body against him to prevent the water from taking me away from him. I could feel his toned chest pressing against mine and at that moment, I thanked the lord that I was under the water so he couldn’t see my reddened face. I found us to be in a dangerously close distance so I punched his chest to let me go ‘pretending’ that I was actually gasping for air.

When he finally let me go, I quickly swam to the surface, panting heavily as I tried to gasp for oxygen.

“Jeon Jungkook! are you crazy?!?!” I looked at him, annoyance written all over my face which he only chuckled “did I say something funny?!”

“you’re just so cute” he shook his head while little laughs escaping his lips. I just stared at him in disbelief until his laughter died down. There was a moment of silence between us as we just stared at each other in the eyes till I broke it

“I should probably leave now” I turned around, ready to leave when I remembered something

“um...Jungkook?” I turned to look at him again

“yes?”

“a-about yesterday...what did you mean when you said “I hope that this gave you the hint” after you um...uh..er-”

“after I kissed you” he said calmly

“y-yea…”

“oh? I thought you already got the hint, though?” I just tilted my head in confusion

“well, I guess I have to make it clearer this time” then he approached me with long but slow steps. I stepped back until I felt the cold wall against my back. I flinched and when I looked up, I noticed that he was already cornering me, staring deep into my soul. He was so close that I could see every single drop falling from his damp hair onto his muscular chest and sometimes on his forehead. Little drops of water combining with others and sliding down his torso, changing directions every now and then due to the bumps of his six packs. He bent down to my level and breathed in my ear, causing each and every strand of hair on my back to stand up

“Kim Jihye...I like you”

My eyes widened at the sudden confession. ‘how much did I try to avoid this fact’ I reminded myself. After yesterday, there was a part of me that kept telling me that he might like me but I tried so hard to avoid it ‘cos I knew that this would be one-sided and I never wanted to break anybody’s heart...especially Jungkook.

Jungkook then lifted his head to look at me. He smiled. The sweetest smile anyone has ever shown me before. Love and care evident in his eyes. He bent down again to put a gentle kiss on my still wet cheek. The peck only lasted for a few seconds but to me, it seemed like hours. His warm lips against my cold cheek felt too good, but I had to resist! ‘he belongs to someone else’ I told myself before pushing him away by his chest.

“J-Jungkook-ssi, thank you for everything b-but I c-can’t...I can’t...You’re somebody else’s” I looked down, avoiding his questioning eyes

“I do not belong to anyone, Jihye” he started “but I’m willing to give you my heart. I know this is sudden and you might be overwhelmed but, take your time thinking this through, please.” I was speechless, out of words, and didn’t know how to react at all so I just nodded.

Having nothing more to say, I turned around and climbed the ladders. Once I was out of the water, I quickly grabbed my towel and wrapped it around me and started to leave. When I was at the door, Jungkook’s voice called out

“goodnight, Jihye” I turned around to see him smiling lovingly which I returned with a sheepish one instead before stepping out.

When I got to my dorm, I noticed that the lights were already off with Minseo’s door still shut closed. Tiptoeing to my room, I proceeded to the bathroom to wash up but before doing so, I check the time ‘Holy moly!’ It was 1:45 am! ‘I’ve been out for that long??’ I cursed then quickly undressed and stepped into the shower. Whenever I closed my eyes, I couldn’t stop my mind from replaying all the events that happened earlier. Annoyed and frustrated, I washed up as quick as possible and got out, putting on a new set of pajamas and plopped myself on my bed but that still didn’t help me from replaying the previous events.

‘ugh! Jeon Jungook! If I don’t get enough sleep, I’m gonna blame it all on you’ I groaned and tried to clear my mind for the thousandth time… failed.