Chapter Seven

Twenty minutes has passed since he sent the text send. Zico was about to text her again when an incoming text popped up. Seriously? I would love to! I have something to attend later so what time do you want to meet? Zico looked at his watch. His mom sent him a text saying she'll be back so he has about an hour or two. After he told Soo Yi to meet him at the park in five, he got up to get ready. What made him text her he had no idea. He brought his finger back to his lips. A guy. A guy kissed him but he wasn't angry. Or was he? Zico hasn't felt so confused in his entire life like he does at this moment. He can't think straight. He shook his head. He can't be thinking about this right now. He got to put on his acting to the test. He can't let her read his mind. Hitting himself a couple times on the cheek he looked in the mirror. Smile! You can do this. After prepping himself he walked out the door. Arriving at the park took no time. He looked around and saw Soo Yi siting under a shaded tree. Walking over Zico noticed a box next to her. "What's that?" He asked, staring at the box curiously. She patted the spot next to her. "Picnic basket. I made lunch!" She answered happily. "I'm not sure about the taste since it was my first time cooking. So if it's bad, please let me know." She told him as she unpacked everything. After putting the food down, she took out two wine glasses. "I brought two drinks. Sparkling cider and of course blood. Which one do you prefer?" Zico pointed to the blood. He hasn't had any today. His mom only let him have a bottle a day so he better enjoy it before he went out later with his mom. "So what's this thing you have to attend." She shrugged. "It's a friend birthday. Here." She was holding a fresh green grape at my mouth. Those were his favorite. It's scary how much this girl knows. Remember, Zico, act.

He smiled and opened his mouth. She gently pushed the grape in, letting her finger graze across his bottom lip. He stood up and put his hand in front of her. "Come on." She grabs his hand shyly as he pulled her up to her feet. He intertwined their fingers. He could feel her hand tense up but it gradually loosen up."Where are we going?" She asked him bashfully. "You'll see." was all he said. After walking up a couple of stairs he opened the door. He let go of her hand and went to go sit at the edge of the building. Soo Yi quietly followed. "This is one of my spots that I like to come to think, when I'm troubled or just to relax. It's a nice place to get away from reality." He could feel her eyes on him but he kept looking straight. "Looking ahead, you can see the ocean. It gives me a peaceful feeling and I feel like all my troubles will just melt away." Soo Yi smiled. "It does feel like that and it's a lovely view." The wind started to blow and she closed her eyes, holding her hair back. She pulled it behind her ear and looked at him. "This is nice. Thank you for showing me this." At that moment their eyes locked. He looked down at her lips at the same time she looked at his. He started to lean forward and she followed his lead. The space between them was slowly closing. Their mouth only inches away from touching. Right when they were about too, her phone started to ring. "Oh!" Startled, she pulled her phone out quickly. "Yes.. I'm with a friend. Alright... I'm coming." She sighed as she stood up. "That was my parents. They're here to pick me up. Thank you for the date, I enjoyed myself." She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and ran through the door. Zico sat there for a couple of minutes. He felt...numb. He felt nothing for that girl. Feeding him the grape, holding hands, even when they almost kissed. His heart didn't race. He didn't feel butterflies. Nothing. He didn't feel anything. Everything he read in books, seen in dramas, he wanted something like that. Getting up, he vamped his way home. Right when he got there, his mom was coming out the door. "There you are! Come on birthday boy. We got to go but first come here." She tied a blindfold on his face. "Mom, why are you tying that thing on?" He could hear the car door opening and his mom helped him get in the car. "Don't worry about it love. We'll be there shortly. After what seemed like hours Zico finally felt the car stop. "You can't take that off yet!" His mom yelled just as Zico was about to rip it off. His mom got out and helped him. "What do you have planned?" curiosity hinting in his voice. "Something amazing for you." Was all she said. He could hear the door open. "Okay, you can take it off." When he took the blind fold off, the lights came on and he heard "Surprise!" And confetti rain down on him. He looked around amazed. All of his classmates were here, even a couple of the younger classmen. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY ZICO!!!" They all yelled in sync. He glanced over at his mom. "Surprise Zi Zi." She gave him a kiss on the cheek. "How.." He started but then a thought occurred to him. The night before the talented show, his mom was on the phone. "The night before the talent show, I saw you on the phone. Those weren't your friends at all..." It all made sense. He felt like she was hiding something from him but he was thinking about the show that night. "I know you wanted a quiet dinner with me but it wasn't my idea this time. It was-" someone came up next to him. "It was mine." He finished. He knows that voice all too well. He glanced over and as he thought, it was Taeil. He didn't notice it at first but now that he was paying attention, they were inside of his house. Great, Zico thought. He looked back at his mom. "I'm going to go mingle. See you." Zico went around talking to everyone. Everyone except Taeil. Taemin, Minho, Onew, Key and Jonghyun came up to him. "Happy Birthday dude." Jonghyun said as he gently punche'd him in the arm. "Yeah." Taemin chimed in. "Thank you for inviting us. Since we're in a lower grade then you, we didn't think you'll want us here. You're pretty cool. You have talent too." This time, Onew spoke up. "You should totally join us the next time we get together. I think you and Minho could make some magic together. Bring your friend, Taeil too. His voice is ridiculous. Right guys?" They all nodded in unison. Zico gave them a wry smile. "Sure. Let me know when you're free." Then out of the corner of his eye, he saw a person he wasn't expecting to see. He walked over to her. "So. The thing you had to attend... Was this?" She gave him a small smile. "Sorry. If I had told, Taeil would've had my head." She leaned in and gave him a hug. She whispered in his ear, "Happy birthday Zico. Thanks again for today. It made me happy." Then she pulled away.

Zico winked at her. "No problem. If anyone needs me, I'm going to be in the kitchen." With that, he walked off. He grabbed himself a water bottle out of the ice bucket and took a long gulp. "Zico.." Taeil called out timidly. "Please, can we talk? I-" right then, music began to play. "Sorry." Zico put down the water bottle and went to go join everyone who was dancing. All the girls was surrounding him, trying to get close to him. Even some of the guys. Then slow songs came on and everyone began to pair off. The girl who came up to him was Soo Yi. He held out his hand. "May I have this dance?" She gently put her hand in his and he pulled her close. His hand tightening around her waist. "You look beautiful." He told her. He wasn't acting. He really thought she looked good. She had her hair up falling down in curls and had on a light blue dress. The color goes well with her skin. Even though it was dark, he could see the blush showing in her cheeks. "Thank you." She said as Zico twirled her and pulled her back close to him. He then dipped her and that was the end of the song. He pulled her back up and he ended up pulling her a little to close. "Thank you for the dance young maiden." He said as he bowed. She giggled as she curtsey. "The pleasure was all mine." The party continued for a couple more hours. People eating and dancing. People coming to talk to him. The whole time he ignored Taeil but he could feel his eyes on him. Slowly everyone started to pile out the house saying the