--Flashback starts--

It was a late afternoon when Hanbyul dragged her feet to head over her new agency building in Hapjeong-dong—a building for trainees where they’re practicing. Her heart was pounding heart, yet she had no idea whether it was because of her nerveousness or because she was tired of running all the way to go there. She was catching up her breath. But unexpectedly, something else caught her breath once more.

There was a bunch of teenagers enjoyably dancing under the ray of sunset. They were shaped theirselves like silhouette in her eyes. But, to her surprise, only one looked brightly colored. Add that the light lived his figure up. Hanbyul blinked her eyes to make it sure.

He was practicing some dance moves, following the flow of the rhythm. She wished she could add ‘gracefully’ into it. Because, all she could grasp by observing him was only he was so into it. He was a kind of charismatic teenager who loved to sharpen his specialty publicly. He was wearing a white tank top with long black trousers. Even by distance, she could see those sweats rolling down on his face. His face… He was undoubtedly handsome. She was wondering if there were any like him—had white skin like snow and even looked so soft, so gentle, so tender. How could he look so admirable?

He was giving off a glow in front of her eyes. His chest was going up and down, following the pulsation of his heartbeat that helped him creating nice moves from his awesome gesture. She wondered how his heart beat sounded like if it was clearly audible—loud enough that she could overhear it even from a far. She couldn’t help wondering everything about him. Damn, it was embarrassing for her to feel that way when she knew nothing—not even a single tiny thing—about him.

But, really…

That was the very first...

A single move he showed made her halted from her pace. She was unconditionally captivated. She was charmed. She was mesmerized. For a moment, all she did was only standing across the road, holding her gaze to that captivating unknown teenager. She stood there quietly with her brain did nothing but to record his moves so that some other time—she’d interpreted ‘some other time’ with right away when she came home—she could replay and keep her stare on him again.

Then suddenly, with a last gesture, he stopped moving. He stopped dancing. He put his hands on his waist and tried to cease his breath. He looked tired and sweat buckets but it impacted nothing to his splendor appearance. He even looked more admirable.

If ever Hanbyul could do anything to wipe those sweats away, she would….

So, she could touch the contour of his smooth-looking face…

And that was when the silly thought of hers had her head in the clouds, the boy she was keeping her gaze on, furthered his eyes to… a particular thing. No, not a thing. She could observe his eyes’ movement. Oh yes, she could…

Because he landed his eyes right on hers.

And the world around them stopped for a moment.

Hanbyul shut her eyes and shook her head. The feeling it gave was still fresh and memorable. But as the lately flashback was erased, another scene quickly placed inside her head, leaving her with no choice but to recollect it again.

“Ah, it’s very cold. Aigoo.”

Hanbyul was running under the raindrops, hurrying to set herself in a shelter. It was still noon but, it was already dark and even got darker as the sky couldn’t wait any longer to cry and pour out its tears. The sky was clouded, dark and gloomy. As minutes by minutes Hanbyul waited, the rain got harder. It was raining cats and dogs. Her face was as damp as her black hair, and slippery if that could be added in. Rain succeed on saturating her with those cold liquids. Not to mention, her clothes got completely soaked. She looked awfully wholly drenched.

Hanbyul kept on rubbing both of her wet hands and blowing her breath onto them to find and feel some warmth left. She turned to the left and right to see if anyone was as unlucky as her. Then, she found no one. Her shoulders slumped down as she sighed, defeated. There was really nobody on the footpaths, and nothing on the mainroad, even cars, buses, and whatever vehicles didn’t appear. Its wheel-prints were erased by those raindrops that still weren’t willing to call it a day.

She was thinking if anyone would bring her to the said place or simply offer her a cup of hot coffee in a warm room. But, seeing nobody beside her, no one close to her and even the shops and parlors were closed as soon as the clouds cried, she quickly eradicate those pitiful wishful thinking and decided to just wait for a few more minutes as she didn’t know what would she do if the rain remained.

Hanbyul deeply sighed for the nth times today, broading her patience. She stood there, waited and waited but the heavy rain seemed have no plans to stop. She was ought to go to her new agency’s building right after her usual DJ schedule. And the rain didn’t help at all as though it didn’t give her permission to go there. Suddenly, as she remembered something, she put her hand inside her pocket, looking for her phone. When her hand found it, she put it out while muttering some of her last hopes.

“Oh dear,” she groaned.

Beholding her phone screen shows nothing but black plus blank space, Hanbyul closed her eyes tightly. Now, what could she do? She would never be able to pass through this heavy rain and be there in time. She suddenly blamed herself for not taking a public transportation or even bringing an umbrella or a charger for her unfortunately dead phone. She checked her wristwatch and realized that there wasn’t much time left.

“Ugh, as if I have a choice,” she mumbled in despair. ‘Yes, you indeed have a choice that’s to patiently wait more until primates lay eggs, leaves alone your agency matters and just go straight to home’, she thought while rolling her eyes.

Hanbyul has positioned herself to go against whatever in front of her, rain or shine. She was already stepped one foot when a voice was audible through the heavy pouring rain. She turned her head to the source immediately eventhough there was always possibility that she wasn’t the one to be called out. She was just following her heart that suddenly made a thump noise as if rivaling the sound of the rain to be the louder one.

“Hey!”

That unspecific yet attempting ‘hey’ got her eyes straightly focused to a certain spot, she was welcomed by a sight of a handsome creature—who she instantly identified was just about her age—standing a kilometer away from her with an umbrella in his hand. Was he the one who let his voice out? Did he… by any chance, call her out? Is he one of her longtime friends that accidentally spotted her bravely going through the rain? Or… Is he some kind of extremely generous stranger that’s even willing to help birds decorating cages? (But of course, she is no bird and there’s no cage) No matter who he was, Thank God. Finally, she met her living shelter in such a right time.

He was facing her and wait, hold up… He did something to his face as it looked to shift upward from a far.

Hanbyul blinked.

He was smiling…

No wonder…  She was petrified.

And what more to mention her latest state if was almost gaping while looking at him. She just stood there, suddenly immovable. She so wanted to know what might come next so she stayed glued on her feet. She was virtually hoping some dramatical scenes right in front of her eyes with herself as the actress. As she kept her eyes on him, he started to walk her way, approaching her.

Approaching her?

Maybe…

She slowly turned her head to the side, checking whether anyone was beside her. But, seeing none—her heart thumped faster and faster—she muttered to herself, “No way…”

The wide smile on his lips didn’t cease down as he walked and walked to her. It remained friendly and… surprising. It was indeed surprising—and unexpected, yes, it was beyond your expectation—to acknowledge that there was a smiling stranger willingly walking down the street to share an umbrella with you under the crying sky.

Wait.

Sharing an umbrella?

Park Hanbyul, you must be crazy.

Hanbyul gulped down some more when his figure was already as clear as crystals. Probably, she hadn’t seen a crystal before, but she knew it right that he was the guy she kept on her mind. The first guy audaciously invaded her mind all day since the first time she laid her eyes on him. He was the one who successfully captivated her with his moves… He was the guy that day...

As he came closer, his steps were surprisingly loud as if intentionally make her conscious of her surrounding. Nobody else was around her… No shops were opened… No raindrops interfered… There were only both of them. One with an umbrella in hand and one with soaked clothes… and an uncontrollable wild beating heart.

“Dear heart, why are you thumping loudly?” Hanbyul whispered hysterically as he stepped more and more closer to where she was standing. “Please stop it, someone is approaching.”

Maybe it was five more steps that finally his figure came out clear in front of her very eyes.

DUG!

Turbulence.

Her heart flared up in shock yet also filled with excitement. It was nearly out of her ribcage. She couldn’t be wrong this time… Because no one could make her feel this way. Only one person… And that person was the same person standing in front of her now, with a hoodied navy jacket, dark grey trousers and a bag hanging on his shoulder. He was all-smiling.

“Dongwook-ah?”

It was unavoidable, unplanned and unexpected that his heart leaped in an instant when he heard her mentioned his name. Mild. Soft. Gentle. It was pleasurable. He mentally slapped himself. “Be careful with what you’re thinking, dude,” he scolded himself, trying to restrain the sudden flutter in his heart.

He elevated his free hand and waved at her. “Hello there,” he smiled.

His smile was just so irresistible that she had no strength to prevent her lips curved a smile. And so, she gave him back a beautiful smile on her lips. They were in silence for that long seconds because none of them had intention to begin conversing. It was like their smile that represented what they wanted to say that time. Words streamed down within them only with a simple gesture—smiling.

Until finally, Dongwook broke the silence, yet his smile still made an appearance on his gorgeous admirable face. “Err, yeah. So… what are you doing here anyway?” He asked, gently. His brows curiously furrowed.

“Ah, me?” She answered. “I was about to go home.”

“In this heavy rain?” He asked again.

“It’s just rain, it won’t hurt,” She reasoned, grinning.

He shook his head softly, looking as if disagreed to what she said. “You’ll get sick and I don’t think it won’t hurt you,” he scolded.

Damn. Her heart thumped again. Didn’t he know that by saying that he got her eyes widen from its normal size and her breathing messed up? Oh, God, help! She was barely holding on!

Seeing she barely could react to what he said, he continued, “Are you serious on going home with this heavy rain and…,” he stopped for a moment while gazing her belongings, “No umbrella?”

Hearing that, she put herself together then, shrugged her shoulder as a smile once again was being lifted up on her lips. “Then, what do you want me to do?” She asked, placing her arms in front of her chest as if challenging him.

“Come,” He began. “I know you won’t refuse a bowl of hot soup.”

Walking past her, he subtly told her to follow him. She gaped at him, no words came out from . She looked at his figure who was wal