Krystal’s getting used to it. This has been her routine for the longest time. Clock in at 8AM, work, often overtime then commute home. No spontaneous plans, and definitely, no one waiting for her outside her office.

She leaves work a little later than usual and sees a familiar car parked not too far away. She stops on her tracks, puzzled, then eventually shrugs the idea and convinces herself that she’s imagining things. She walks again and nearly drops her things when she sees who’s standing by the entrance. He’s leaning with his back against the wall, one foot propped up behind him. He has earphones and sunglasses on. He turns to her and she stares.

“What are you doing here?” Krystal asks, ignoring the crowd of her officemates looking and whispering as they pass by.

“I’m waiting for someone… You work here, too?” Minhyuk says in a serious tone, but with a smirk on his face.

Krystal isn’t amused and repeats the question.

“Kidding. Waiting for you, of course. Come on.” and he walks towards his car, like it’s normal, as if they haven’t just cut off any form of communication for a month and 5 days (Krystal denies counting), unless mutual likes on instagram count as communication.

He proceeds to the driver’s seat. He doesn’t open the door for her, he never does, but he doesn't turn on the engine, doesn’t move, until she’s settled in the passenger’s seat. She follows him and enters the car without a reason. She sits, with so many questions in her mind. She begins with the simplest one.

“Where are we going?”

She sees him scrunch his forehead before answering.

“I really don’t have a plan. Do you want to watch a movie?”

“Okay…”

She’s confused. If she had a hundred questions upon entering the car, she has thousands now, because Minhyuk is awfully quiet during the 15-minute drive, with his brows knitted together, and a serious, no, nervous, look on his face.

Okay, so she chose the movie, an indie film about love and heartbreak. It has good reviews and deserves more attention. She’s sure she would have loved it, if she weren’t feeling cold and distracted by Minhyuk’s behavior right now. He’s staring at the screen, but his mind seems elsewhere. Despite this, he takes Krystal’s hands with both of his when he notices that her thin shawl isn’t enough to keep her warm. He’s apologetic for being the cause. It was his idea to watch the movie without warning in the first place.

She definitely has millions of questions now. They watch until half the credits before they stand and walk down the cinema aisle. Without a word, Minhyuk takes Krystal’s hands and intertwines their fingers. Her heart skips a beat. She squeezes his hand just lightly, relishing the feeling of their hands as a perfect fit. They walk without looking at each other.

He lets go of her hand. For a second, she feels disappointed, before realizing they’re near his car. As usual, he sits in the driver’s seat while Krystal climbs to the passenger seat. He looks more stoic than ever, not even bothering to put his keys in the ignition. He probably feels the weight of Krystal’s stare… because Krystal finally has the courage to ask, to start questionin