Baekhyun knew that he shouldn't have kissed her so suddenly. To cross that line and change their relationship forever was something he could never take back but he couldn't stop himself. His body had moved on its own accord. As far as he was concerned, in that moment, there was no one else but them in the world. If he could be the one, even for a second, then it was worth the risk.

   Years of held back feelings rushed out as his lips met hers. She felt soft, her chapped lips somehow still supple against his. Neither moved for what felt like an eternity but then to his surprise, he felt her kiss him back. Taken aback, he opened his eyes only to be surprised how close she was, he could see every faint freckle on her cheeks. Was it possible that she felt the same way? He closed his eyes again and kissed her deeply; his hands sliding down to her waist, pulling her deeper into his embrace. Each second that went by left him craving more. She felt so familiar in his arms, as though she was always meant to be there. Baekhyun kissed her harder, parting her lips with his. He could feel her pressing against him, her hands grasping desperately at the fabric of his shirt. What did she want? A gasp escaped her lips as his hand slid down her leg. Could she feel just how much he wanted to be with her?

   They pulled apart from each other almost too soon. Baekhyun battled against the overwhelming urge to kiss her again and waited quietly, watching her every movement for the sign he needed. Her breathing was just as shaky and shallow as his.

   "I'm sorry," he said, biting his lip nervously. She began to focus on him, her palms resting against his chest and he couldn't help but smile out of happiness, "I really should've asked first."

   He expected Jeongri to smile back but then he saw the hesitation behind her eyes.

   She was looking at him strangely, as though she was silently asking a thousand questions that he couldn't hear. Silence enveloped them and the seeds of doubt began to sow themselves in his mind. Please say something… The longer he stared at her, the longer she continued to gaze at him with that unreadable expression. The rush of kissing her was beginning to fade and now only uncertainty lingered in the air. It prickled at Baekhyun's nerves, making him suddenly regret his actions. Please say anything…

   Finally, she spoke.

   "Baekhyun…"

   Her voice was quiet but it was unstable. Even the way she spoke was tinged with hesitation and he found himself gulping involuntarily.

   "Yeah?"

   "Why-" she stopped as though she couldn't find the words, "Why did you kiss me?"

   "Because I wanted to."

   He didn't need to think before the words spilled out from his mouth. The answer had come so naturally but she seemed taken aback by his abrupt reply.

   "What…?"

   The truth was coming out and there was no holding back.

   "I like you, Jeongri."

   She stared at him in silence.

   "Since when…?"

   He had never felt this scared but his heart continued to talk for him.

   "For a while now."

    dropped open a little but she didn't reply. The doubt continued to grow. Baekhyun had never felt so vulnerable, it was the first time he'd been so open with his feelings but he couldn't tell what she was thinking or how she was feeling. The only thing that comforted him was knowing that she kissed him back. It felt as though he was dancing with her on thin ice; that they were sharing a beautiful moment that could shatter without warning.

   "Jeongri, do you remember the last time we saw each before the war started?" he asked. 

   She looked confused by the sudden question.

   "That weekend…" she replied, "At your house."

   Baekhyun nodded. Hazy memories came back to him of how he'd invited everyone over for a barbeque. It had been the last weekend of summer, the final moment of freedom before they all had to go back to school. They had spent the whole day eating junk food and watching movies but there was a short while when he had been alone with her in the garden.

   "Do you remember how we ended up taking a photo together?" he asked.

   "Yeah," she replied, looking perplexed, "But I don't understand where you're going with this…"

   Baekhyun opened his bedside drawer and from within, he pulled out a small and weathered looking photo album. He handed it to her and watched quietly as she began leafing through the photo's one by one. There wasn't many. The first few were of his family but the last few were of their group of friends from back then. He watched how she smiled just seeing all their faces beaming out at her but then she flipped to the last photograph and he watched as her expression changed back to the one of confliction that had been troubling her ever since he kissed her. It was the photograph that he took with her outside in the garden, their happy, young faces smiling brightly.

   With a finger, she traced the outlines of their faces in silence.

   "I can't believe that you still have this," she said, quietly.

   "I didn't always have it."

   "What do you mean?" she asked.

   "When the war broke out, Yixing hyung called me to tell me to run. I was at home on that day and when I looked out of my window and saw what was going on outside, I ran," he said, "I had my phone and my keys. To be honest, I wasn't expecting to be gone for so long. I mean, 'war', that's just something that happens in the movies, right?"

   He could see that Jeongri was starting to look uncomfortable. Clearly, remembering the events of that day wasn't easy for her given her father's involvement but Baekhyun wanted her to know he wasn't blaming her. Wanting to reassure her, he wrapped his hand around hers and gave her a small smile.

   "It was months later until I was allowed to return and well… there much anything left. That's when it hit me. War is real. When I got back to the orphanage, I realised that the photos on my phone were the only thing I had left of my past," he said.

   She seemed taken aback, "I didn't know that you lived in an orphanage..."

   But Baekhyun shook his head, "I was there with Chanyeol. I'm not going to lie, it was a dark period of my life but knowing I had those photos gave me some strength. I printed them all off, all except this one though..." he said, briefly touching the photograph of them. 

   He could see that she was questioning him silently, not knowing what he meant by that. Feelings of melancholy washed over him as he struggled to stay calm.

   "I couldn't bear seeing it. We had been best friends since we were kids and overnight, you had suddenly become this… unreachable figure and- And I didn't know how to deal with that. I had all these confusing feelings on top of grief and exhaustation. It bugged me