Mindy carefully unlocked her front door and switched on the lights.

“Welcome to my house!” she announced dramatically.

Woo Bin gingerly stepped in and chuckled at her words. He had been to her place a couple of times – enough to know where she stored her snacks and which part of the sofa was the comfiest. Nevertheless, every time he came to her house, he would feel his spirits lifting up. It was a dainty little place. Wooden floorboards and wallpaper accompanied with orange lights. From the doorstep, a neat little dining room was on the left and a cosy living room was on the right. There was a balcony as well. The square dining table took up most of the space in the dining room and it has a lacy table cloth placed over it. A small flower vase with fake flowers stood in the middle of the table alongside a few prettily designed clay cups and a pitcher of water. There was a 32 inch flat screen television hanging on the wall in the living room. A coffee table was placed before the television, on a large piece of white woollen carpet that covered most of the living room. An L shaped sofa sat on the carpet, before the coffee table. The house reflected Mindy’s personality very well – warm and comforting. Even though she lived alone, it felt more like a home than his can ever be.

“I’ll go prepare the popcorn~” Mindy crooned while switching on the air conditioner. She headed towards the kitchen.

Woo Bin nodded and plopped himself on the sofa, making sure that it was the spot just slightly off-centre.

It was so comfortable that Woo Bin felt his eyes closing but without warning, the same suffocating sensation was back. Woo Bin felt that burning feeling in his chest. His heart started to pound faster and he could not breathe properly. His fingers ached to reach into his pocket and unravel the contents of a little box inside it. He sneaked a peak at the doorway of the kitchen and saw that Mindy was still occupied. He quietly walked towards the balcony.

The warm air was already sticking to his skin when he gently slid the balcony door close. He urgently took the box out of his pocket. Just as he was about to open it, a pang of guilt hit him. He took a deep breath. In his mind’s eye, he could see Mindy’s disapproving look and he could hear her words,

“Chew, don’t smoke.”

He clenched his fist and shut his eyes tightly, tensing up his face. The cigarette box was slightly crushed under his strength.

“You can do this. You can stop this,” he chanted to himself.

When he opened his eyes, he looked determined. He opened the lid of the small garbage can in the balcony and threw the cigarette box away. He reached for his other pocket and pulled out a packet of gum. He popped a nicotine gum in his mouth and went back into the living room.

Woo Bin stretched himself out on the sofa. He lied on his back, parallel to the television screen with the popcorn bowl on his stomach. He chewed slowly on the popcorn as he kept his eyes on the movie that was being played. Mindy had lost her appetite, while watching the film, and that was how he had managed to monopolize the popcorn bowl. She lied on her side, her figure crouched as she tucked her knees up. She had lost in kaibaibo and the movie choice for the night was a horror movie. The movie suddenly turned silent as the protagonist entered a dark room. Mindy whimpered. Something was about to jump out. Woo Bin gave Mindy a sideway glance and he almost chuckled at how terrified she looked right now. He knew that she could not handle horror movies but he loves them so much that nothing could get in between him and the movie. Mindy shrieked and grabbed Woo Bin’s arm. He froze. She had her eyes closed and was gripping onto his arm tightly. Woo Bin slowly sat up and asked her concernedly,

“Hey, you alright?”

She nodded her head vigorously but by this time she had already grabbed his arm as some form of protection and hid half of her face behind his broad shoulder. She knew that Woo Bin adores horror movies and she did not want to appear like a spoilsport. That was why she was desperately trying to endure this terrible ordeal.

Close, too close. Woo Bin felt his body tense up with Mindy grabbing onto him. Her face was literally right beside him and he dared not move. His hands stopped halfway towards the popcorn bowl and his expression froze. She was so close he could smell her. She has a subtle jasmine fragrance with a tinge of strawberries – sweet and inviting. He felt his heart start to race.

“Yah, at least be my body shield if you want me to sit through this with you,” Mindy whined, mistaking Woo Bin’s stiffness as unwillingness.

She did not feel awkward at all.  It was probably due to the environment she grew up in. Mindy always believed that platonic friendships between guys and girls exist. She had a number of such friendships back in California and skinship came naturally to her. She continued to watch the rest of the movie with just her eyes peering out from behind Woo Bin’s shoulder. She had begun to treat his arm like a soft toy and was cuddling it for support, holding it tight in her arms. She found comfort in his scent - musky and a little tangy. She was glad that he no longer had that tobacco smell.

Once