Kilig(n.)- the sudden feeling of an inexplicable joy one gets when something romantic or idealistic occurs.

Ever since waking up in his arms this morning, she has had butterflies in her stomach, not truly believing that he was actually there with her. They had cooked breakfast together, eating and joking, until he got called away.

He had promised that their date was still on and for her to be ready by eight-thirty because he had somewhere special he wanted to take her.

She had taken her time tonight, picking out a cute outfit, beating her face to perfection, even added a few loose waves to her hair. All that day she had what seem to be a permanent smile on her face because this would be her first official date since being in Korea.

But her happiness soon came crashing down once he called. "I'm sorry Riya but something came up and I won't be able to make it. I promise to make it up to you."

Even though she understood his reasonings, she still felt a bit disappointed. Her mind began to wonder how often this would happen if they ever took it a step forward. She had to remind herself that he was an idol with a schedule that kept him busy often. But Dariya knew that she was the understanding type. Knowing exactly what she was getting into the moment she had found out who he was.

So instead of sulking, she found herself walking towards her place of work, figuring it was better than just seating in her apartment. She sat at a table in the far corner, lazily reading a book that she was barely paying attention too. For the last 30 minutes, she had been on the same page, rereading the same words without even realizing it.

Her mind kept going back to Sejun, no matter how hard she tried to think about something else.

"May I?" Asked a very familiar voice, causing Dariya to glance up, meeting Akeno's intense gaze. She could feel her face go warm, wishing that he wouldn't look at her like that. He had always given her the vibe of being able to see right through her, knowing all of her deepest secrets.

Smiling softly, she nodded, watching him place a cup of hot cocoa with marshmallows in front of her before taking the seat opposite of her. Her eyes lit up at seeing her favorite beverage, "Thank you Ken- Akeno-ssi." She corrected herself, knowing how strict he was about honorifics.

Akeno's eyes looked her over slowly, taking in how beautiful she looked tonight. He has never seen her with her hair down before since she always had it put up in some sort of updo. Either way, she did it, he liked it. "You had plans tonight?" He guessed, seating back in his chair, not once taking his eyes off her.

"I don't know many who dress up just to sit in a cafe alone." He answered after the confused look she had given him. She didn't think that she was that obvious.

"Maybe I wanted to look cute, hoping someone would notice me." She defended weakly, almost rolling her eyes at her own lame excuse. Dariya always looked presentable when she stepped out, just never to this extent.

"I noticed you." He said smoothly with a slight tilt of his head. A small grin peaking on his face as she looks away, surprised by his words. Picking up her hot chocolate, she at the marshmallows before taking a sip. "Be careful..." He reached out a moment late as she burned her tongue.

"." Dariya cussed lowly, quickly putting the cup back down on the saucer.

"Are you ok?" Akeno asked softly, now leaning a bit over the table to get a closer look at her. His fingers lightly brushing over her lips. Dariya stared at him, heat rising to her cheeks as he pulled away as if realizing what he had done.

"I'm fine. I'll just let it cool off a bit more." She reassured him, the slight sting on her tongue becoming more intense as she her lips. Her heart was beating erratically inside of her chest, her nerves beginning to get the best of her. 

Nodding, Akeno sat back, his worried expression turning into a more relaxed one. "I should've warned you beforehand." He muttered, running a hand through his hair. 

Dariya watched him with parted lips. "It happens." She shrugged nonchalantly. "Why are you here so late?" For as long as she has worked here, she has never heard of him being here no later than seven. He'd come in when he could, help, then would be out the door in a few hours. He seemed to be a man who always liked to remain on a schedule, which made sense from her observation of him.

"I'm taking a break from work, so I decided to stop by here for a while." He told her, averting his eyes to look around the slightly empty cafe. "And you?"

Dariya sighed lowly as thoughts of Sejun came flooding back. "I had a date....but sadly it got canceled."

A look crossed over Akeno's face, his eyebrows furrowing for a second. His mind began to wonder who asked the very thing he's been trying push himself to do. And who was stupid enough to cancel, especially last minute?

Dariya watched him closely, his facial expression makes it seem like he was in deep thought about something. "Do you have a girlfriend Akeno-ssi?" She asked suddenly, even surprising herself at her unexpected question. Even though she knew that it wasn't any of her business, she was very curious.

"No." He answered in a low voice. "But I am interested in someone." He revealed, locking eyes with her. There weren't many women who have been able to get his attention and those that did never turned out to be who he truly wanted to be with. Their attitudes too uptight, personalties dry as hell, perfect on the outside but never on the inside. Akeno knew that he could come off stand-offish but he was actually a sweet person, something that his aunt and mother often told him.

Women had the tendency to stare at him but only a few approached him or tried to indulge in conversation. He was never good at doing it himself, so when Dariya began to spark up a random conversation with him one day, it surprised him.

He liked how easily things flowed between them. How sweet her laugh would be when she cracked corny jokes. Her smile was always contagious. And her energy was so positive. She was way different than anyone he has come across, so he wasn't surprised when he started to feel something for her.

But for whatever reason, he has yet to actually ask her out and now he was nervous that someone else had beat him to it.

"Yeah? What's stopping you from pursuing?" She questioned, genuinely interested in his answer. Akeno was one of the most handsome men she has ever seen, so she found it hard that he wasn't already dating someone by now or at least talking to someone.

Akeno clasped his hands on the table and slightly leaned forward. "Because I'm not sure if she feels the same." He said seriously as his eyes looked over her face. He was attracted to her both physically and mentally, although there was still so much to know about her.

He was more than willing to put in the work if she allowed him the chance to do so.

Dariya swallowed as he looked at her with that familiar look that she could never understand what it meant. But she did know how it made her feel.

Akeno had a way of making her feel like he was touching her with his eyes almost. Caressing her skin without even having to touch her physically. And if she didn't know any better, she'd say that he was dropping major hints right now.

Clearing her suddenly dry throat, she picked up her forgotten hot chocolate and took a big gulp, ignoring the burning sweet liquid as it went down. Akeno watched her amusingly, that pretty smile of his stretching across his face making him seem much more boyish.

"Yo-"

"Dariya?" Called out a voice that made Dariya's movements freeze. She slowly turned her head in the direction of where the voice came from, spotting Sejun already walking in her direction. Her heart was already beating at an unhealthy rate and seeing him only added to it. Her lips parted, both shocked and nervous that he was here.

"S-ssejun?" She whispered as he stopped in front of her. His eyes moving back and forth between her and Akeno curiously.

"I've been calling you for over an hour now but you didn't answer, so I went to your apartment but you weren't there. I figured I'd take my chances and look for you here." He explained with a look she couldn't read.

Dariya was nervous, feeling like she got caught doing something she shouldn't have been doing. Instead of answering him right away, she reached into her coat pocket and pulled out her phone, seeing ten missed calls and five text messages from him. 

Shaking her head, she sighed loudly realizing why she hadn't heard any of his calls. "I forgot I put my phone on vibrate when I entered the cafe. I didn't want to disturb anyone just in case." She said truthfully.

Sejun blinked at her as a feeling rushed through him. 

He was mad. 

Her not answering his calls or messages only reminded him of how he felt the day before. He knew that canceling on her suddenly was messed up but in his defense, he really didn't have a choice. Still, so many thoughts ran through his mind on his way to her apartment. He really thought that he had messed up but it truly wasn't his intention to do so.

So many thoughts ran through his mind when she didn't answer the door. There was a chance that she could be sleeping but Sejun knew that Dariya wasn't the type to go to sleep no later than at least twelve. Remembering where she worked he decided to take a chance to search for her there, hoping that that's where she would be.

And to find her here with someone else just sparked something within him.

Whatever they were talking about seemed to have her undivided attention to where she didn't even hear him call her name the first two times.

Before Sejun had a chance to respond, Akeno spoke up, clearly sensing a sudden shift in the air around them. "You two seem to need some space, so I'll take my leave." He said kindly. "I'll see you later Darya-ssi. Have a good evening." Standing up, Akeno bowed slightly and quietly made his exit, leaving them to talk.

As Dariya watched him leave, Sejun's focus remained on her the whole time. He knew he shouldn't feel this type of way but he honestly couldn't help it.

"Do you like him?" He asked in a rush, the question almost forcing its way out of his mouth. He knew he sounded so childish but at the moment, he could truly care less.

Dariya stared up at him, completely thrown off by his unexpected question. "Sejun....I-i...." She tried to answer, stumbling over her words after a few seconds from being put on the spot like this. But to Sejun, that was all he needed to hear. She had given him the answer crystal clear.

Shaking his head, he took a step back. "It's fine, I get it. You don't need to explain." He said lowly, glancing at her saddened face. "I'll...see you around Dariya."

Watching him leave, Dariya's mouth seemed to open and close, not believing what just happened. She didn't mean what he thought she did. Quickly getting up from her chair, she powerwalked after Sejun, catching up to him in a matter of seconds. She hurriedly grabbed his forearm, pulling him to a stop.

"It wasn't like that!" She pleaded as he turned to face her. His face was hard, showing just how upset he really was. "We were just talking, that's it."

"But you didn't see the way that you were looking at him Dariya, I did." He may have never been this serious about a girl before but he wasn't blind. Her face showed how interested she was when she stared at him. "Its ok though, because you weren't even mine to begin with." He bit out. 

No matter how he felt, that was the truth and he hated it. This date tonight was going to be his chance to ask her to be his. He liked her so much and went way past just a little crush. This was real for him.

"I do like him," Dariya admitted causing Sejun to snatch his arm out of her grip. "He's sweet and nice to talk to....but he isn't you Sejun." 

She enjoyed Akeno's presence but he didn't make her feel the way she does about Sejun. He was special and she didn't want to lose that. There was a bond between them, a rare connection that Dariya knew she wouldn't find anywhere else.

And she didn't want too either.

Stepping up closer to him, she moved his bangs from his eyes and stared at him seriously. "I want you....nobody else."

Sejun searched her eyes for any sort of lie, something to tell him that her words weren't genuine and ultimately he didn't find any. Slowly, he began to let his jealousy go and come back to his senses. Linking his fingers through hers, he pulled her closer. "So can we make this an official thing? Will you be mine?" This wasn't how he planned things to go but he no longer wanted to call Dariya a friend, she was more than that.

Smiling, she placed a soft kiss on his nose. "Ye-"

Barely letting her answer, Sejun kissed her once, twice before pulling her into his arms and kissing her harder, more deeply. Her taste was something he felt like he would never get enough of. Moving away, he placed soft kisses on her cheeks, then her nose, chin, and her forehead before moving to her jawline.

The stood there staring at each other, completely forgetting about their surroundings but he didn't care.

Because at that moment, Sejun realized that he was truly falling for Dariya.