You’re staring at the warm hand gripping yours. You can feel how the owner of the hand is forcing himself to hold yours tightly when he doesn’t even have much energy.

You were quite startled when he abruptly grabbed your hand when you stood up after putting a wet towel on his forehead. The girl on the phone asked you to look after the Chicken Guy because she can’t go to the apartment herself since it’s still raining hard.

“D-don’t—“, he tries voicing and he seems having a hard time speaking “don’t leave,” his grasp loosen a bit but he tries tightening it as if begging (‘forcing’ if he’s in his normal state) you not to go.

Still looking at your hands in contact, you take a gulp. “I’m—I’m not leaving,” you look away “I’m just going to drink a glass of water.”

He remains clasping your hand for another five seconds before letting it go. You get out of his room only to lean back on the door and put a hand on your chest to let the wild beating calm. The back of your hand gently taps your cheek as if checking if your face is hot. Eventually, you go to the kitchen to actually do what you’ve said—drink.

Who’s that girl though? Is she the one he keeps on talking about?

Releasing a breath, you walk back to his room as you try to clear your thoughts. His head moves slowly, still with eyes closed, and you think you just heard him utter your name twice.

It must be my imagination. We don’t know each other’s names until now.

You quietly walk towards the bed to check on him. His eyes flutter a bit as if trying to look around. You see him constantly shifting as if trying to find a comfortable position—or maybe he’s trying make himself feel warmer because he seems to be trying to pull the blanket closer and closer to him even if there’s no space between it and his body already.

You lean down to adjust the cloth on his forehead but to your surprise, a hand grabs your wrist and pulls you while the other hand drapes on your back, enclosing you to an embrace. You feel his body relax right after the top of your body fell on him. Being on top of the blue-haired young man, you can hear his heavy breathing becoming calmer.

You slowly attempt to get up but the moment he senses you trying to do so, he pulls you closer and his arm on your back tightens its grip. You can almost hear your heartbeat thumping loudly.

You bite your lip as you unconsciously hold your breath. When he moves again, trying to make your position a little bit more comfortable, that’s the moment you realize that you aren’t breathing. As you exhale softly, you once again try to get up, but then again, it’s no dice—he just keeps on pulling you closer.

“Please,” he breathes.

As you try to keep a tear from falling, you whisper to yourself ‘Just this once’. You snuggle closer to him, moving your head towards his shoulder and putting your feet up on the bed. His arm that was on your back is now below your head, and the other that was holding your right arm is now resting on your hip.

He heaves a sigh of relief as you fix yourself beside him. He snakes his left hand on your waist to pull you closer (once again) to him; his other hand, hold your right shoulder as a support.

The weather is very cold since the rain still hasn’t settled down but you feel like you’re sweating from the steam getting off of your body. I feel pathetic. You bite your lip as you let a tear fall while asking yourself if the current scenario you’re in is really okay or not. Of course, it’s not. Why am I still even asking? Doesn’t he already have a girl—or, I mean… are they together now? Not yet? You clench your fist without realizing it. Who was the girl who called before? Man, I feel contemptible but I can’t stop—I can’t restrain myself. I’m so awful right now, am I not? You weep quietly and you don’t know if he noticed it or not, because he pulls you closer again and caresses your back as if trying to console you, but you let yourself go with the flow anyway.

The blue-haired wakes up few minutes before four in the morning. He squeezes his eyes tightly before slowly opening them. He stares at you with a soft expression in his eyes. He tucks the strand of your hair covering your eyes behind your ear before your cheek softly by his thumb. He smiles warmly as his chest throbs crazily. He presses his lips on the top of your head as he hugs you tightly again before going back to sleep.

“She’s sick,” you overhear a voice few feet from you “I think she caught it from me. She looked over me the whole night.” Your forehead creases as you continue hearing the familiar voice.

Who’s he talking to? You carefully open your eyes and see the back of the Chicken Guy facing you. He is holding his phone against his ear. You glance at the wall clock which reads 10:14. Before it sinks into you that you’re already late for work, you remember what happened last night. As if on cue, he turns to check on you. You glance at him and immediately look away. You remember how he pulled you and how you fell on top of him when you were supposed to fix the small towel on his forehead; and how you eventually fell asleep in his tight warm embrace. I slept beside him the whole night! Not to mention he was holding me in his arms!

You can’t help but widen your eyes as your chest tightens with all of the sudden flashbacks from last night. Oh right, shoot! I’m late for work! You hastily seat up and move the blanket away when your head suddenly aches. Your body also seems sore, your eyes feel quite heavy and you feel weak.

He runs toward you and carefully holds your shoulder, “Just lay down again,” he demands “you’ve got fever. Also, don’t worry about work for today. Just rest”

He apologizes for not showing up for the past nights—he was sick, if it’s not yet obvious (he says he has a very weak immune system so he gets sick so easily and he played basketball with one of his friends while the rain was pouring). It’s not like he owes you some since you didn’t really agree to meet everyday—although it seem to be a silent pact, there’s nothing to explain. Besides, what are you to him exactly? No one in particular—just a random stranger whom he offered an umbrella one rainy afternoon in exchange for free chicken, a stranger who eventually became his snack buddy, and a gaming partner.

“Are you sure you’re fine now?” Wonpil asks when you get back to work on Monday.

“No worries,” you declare as you show him an ‘OK’ sign.

“But why is something still off?” He quizzes.

You unconsciously bite your lower lip and shift your gaze away from him. It’s just—series of scenarios from few days ago flash in your mind again. Not to mention, he visited you everyday to look after you, more than what you did when he’s sick. All you did was just take him home, put him to bed and put a cold damp towel on his forehead. But he brought you porridge, made you watch animated movies to keep you from getting bored (you both had Studio Ghibli and Makoto Shinkai marathon), brought his PSPs to play with you, do everything you want him to do—although he still kept on teasing you, he sure took good care of you, making sure you wouldn’t strain yourself and you’re entertained enough.

“See?” your best friend’s voice pulls you back to present “There’s really something going on.”

That afternoon after work, his grinning face welcomes you when you step out of the company’s building. You do the usual stuff—getting a snack and stays at the joint for few hours before going to the shed.

“Shall we go home early tonight?” he asks “Although it hasn’t rained, it’s really chilly. You just recovered from your fever”

“Says the one who was sick for four nights,” you roll your eyes.

The wind blows and the cold breeze embraces you. You shiver and clench your fist. Of all things, why did I forget my jacket? Your forehead furrows when you see him spread his arms (his hands are in the pockets of his coat, so the coat is spread open as he did to his arms). You raise a brow to question.

“Aren’t you cold?” He moves his eyebrows up and down as if expressing that he’s got an awesome idea. You crease your forehead again when you realize what he meant. “C’mon. It’s not like it’s the first time I’ll enclose you in my arms”

Your heart skips a beat. You notice that he did not directly regard it as a hug. Maybe not to make me feel awkward? You mentally flick yourself. But it still insinuates the same thing!

“I told you to—“

The next words are hung in the air when he suddenly wraps an arm around you, making your body be covered by his coat. It almost seems like he’s hugging you—if he’s not yet actually doing that. Of course, he’s not.

Geez, I told you to minimize doing this kind of things.

“Who’s J?” you voice that even you yourself is surprised. Where did that come from?

You feel him squeeze your shoulder and draw you closer to him as if assuring you of something. “A childhood friend.”

 The next day, he does another thing. He holds your hand and put it inside the pocket of his hoodie. It’s so sudden that you did not have the chance to pull your hand back but when you try to do so, he intertwines his fingers to yours and holds your hand tighter.

“You’ll be cold,” he utters nonchalantly.

You’re starting to tell yourself that it’s okay—what happened that night, sleeping while he’s embracing you the whole time, is fine, too; that your afternoon agenda is normal; that maybe the other girl is just a girl he’s thankful for; that maybe there’s really something going on between the two of you.

But just when you’re starting to think that way, you begin to doubt again when you hear a very familiar voice—that laugh that makes your chest tingle—having so much fun with a girl one afternoon. You’re on your way to the CEO’s office to submit some concept reports and reviews when you hear two voices laughing in harmony.

Just when you take a turn at the end of the hall way, the door of the CEO’s office opens and you see Mr. Park goes out as he calls out ‘Hyung, Jamie’ to the people standing outside the office—an arm wrapped around the head of a girl, locking her, and her hair is tousled (a very familiar scene, you think).

Your eyes shift from the CEO to the Chicken Guy and to the girl. Each one’s lips are agape—like no one has been expecting this kind of situation. You swallow a lump as your grip on the folder you’re holding tightens.

“Sir,” you mutter almost a whisper, feeling your knees getting weak, as you hand him the papers while the blue-haired straightens up and the girl fixes her hair, “here are the concept reviews,” you bat your eyelids in attempt to calm yourself “just call me again if you need me.” Without waiting for his response, you turn around and walk away.

You tense upon hearing the very familiar voice calling out your name. He knows my name! You walk more swiftly but with his long legs, he catches up to you in an instant. He grabs your arm to make you stop and you hastily pull it away from his grasp and face him.

“You knew me all along?” You choke “And… ‘Hyung’? You’re Mr. Park’s—you’re a Park, you’re the CEO’s brother.” You exhale a sharp breath as you tell yourself how unbelievable it is. But come to think of it, there are clues—how Mr. Park reacted with your concepts, how he told you not to wait, how he suddenly acted especially nice towards you, how he knew where you were on that rainy night, and the grandmother! So I was right with that assumption? That the only way I can be that girl on his story is when his grandmother and the grandmother I saved which is the CEO’s grandparent is the same person.

Pathetic.

“Let me exp—“

“Hyung,” Mr. Park calls out. Just by hearing him call his older brother makes your ears itch. You squeeze your eyes shut as the chief motions his brother to leave you for now.

Not to mention, there’s also that girl. Who’s that girl? Jamie?  Isn’t she the one the blue-haired is interested in? If he kept on talking about the girl on the street, aren’t you that girl? Then who’s the one earlier? Is she the childhood friend—the  J? Or is she someone else—someone very special perhaps?

“Why are you here?” You hear Jackson’s voice behind your back an hour after.

You’re seated on the swing located in the company’s garden. You figured there won’t be people there because the employees usually go to the Rec Room, sports area, library, and café; or sometimes indulge themselves in their work.

You briskly wipe the trace of tears on your face before the CEO’s secretary goes beside you.

“I have to show you something,” he excitedly declares “I haven’t gotten the chance to show this to you the past weeks because you’re always with Younghyun and Wonpil.” He fumbles on the phone’s screen before he shows it to you.

As soon as the guitar plucking starts ‘JAE PARK Better Man’ shows on screen which makes your breathing hitch. The black screen slowly fades, revealing a young man with fringe up hair, square-framed black eyeglasses, a piercing on the left ear, running his hand on the neck of the guitar and the other tweaking the strings. Your lips quiver as you try not to break.

I’m the kind of guy

Hearing his voice is what it takes for you to burst. The guy who sang the song that Jackson made you listen few weeks ago was him all along—your speculation was right again.

Jackson panics at your sudden rupture. He instantly stops the video and puts his phone in his pocket, puts his hand on your shoulder and the other patting your back. “W-what happened? Why are you suddenly crying?” Instead of answering his questions, you respond with another batch of tears.

You can’t be thankful enough for having non-rainy days for the next days. You keep on avoiding the Chicken Guy, and even if he tried multiple times to talk with you, you just continued walking until he’d stop.

On the ninth day of playing cat and mouse though, the wind keeps on blowing powerfully. The sky looks gloomy, too. Please, don’t let it rain, don’t let it rain. You keep chanting in your head when you finish your work.

“A low pressure area trough will move through South Korea,” Wonpil informs “It’s said to bring heavy rain. Please be safe.”

You pace quickly after going out of the building. Not soon after, a hand grips on your arm.

“Let me go,” you deadpan.

As if he hears nothing, he leans down to carry you on his shoulder like a sack of rice. You keep yelling but no one is trying to help you. You continuously hit his back and kick your feet in the air but he’s as persistent—or even more. You feel a water drop on your arm and you almost cuss when you realize it’s drizzling.

The moment he steps on the shed, the rain pours. He lets you down and you immediately try to walk away but he swiftly pulls you back.

“What the heck! Can’t you see it’s pouring hard?”

“I’m not blind!” You hiss “And leave me alone! Mind your own biz”

 He run a hand on his face as if trying to calm down, “Please. Let’s talk,” he breathes in, putting both hands on waist “I think I’ve given you more than enough time already to cool down. So let’s talk”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”

“There’s a lot.”

“Like what?!” You strike a sarcastic smile, “Like how you played with me since Day 1? How you acted like a jerk while I needed help? Then what? You came to me ‘offered help’ only to play with me further? Chicken, huh? What a cheat code. You made a fool out of me. And what the ef—I just let you?” You release a sharp air, “Do you know exactly what and how you made me feel this whole month?” Your eyes start to water, “You made me excited, you made me happy—delighted, you gave me thrill, you pissed the hell out of me but I kept wanting for more, I craved for the sound of your laugh, I yearned for the sight of your smile, you made me anxious, confused, one moment you’d make me feel like I was freaking special—like we’re something—then another minute, you’d make me feel otherwise. You made me friggin’ long for your presence even if we see each other six days out of seven. Heck! I kept missing you but you,” you sniff and you firmly wipe your tears using the back of your hand “You kept my feelings wandering around, making it feel like it has no certain destination—like it’ll be left meandering forever. And holy freaking sh*t! You held me in your arms for a whole night! What a combo you got there. You made me feel crazy, like you want me but you don’t. I kept asking myself what we are, what am I to you—maybe I’m just a substance to temporarily fill your void. Was I a quest to accomplish? Or an item to add in your inventory? For what? To increase your real life XP points? Or am I like a healer to keep your sanity? You made me feel all kinds of things but you just tricked me. Was it amusing?” You chortle sarcastically, “I’m sure you’re very entertained. Now if you may excuse me, I’m done being in your game,” you weakly declare as you turn and take a step

“I like you!” He proclaims making you halt. Even your heartbeat seems to pause for a second or two. “I just thought those trivial matter won’t change a thing; that what’s important is what we’ve shared, the times we’ve spent together, the bond we’ve made and the memories we’ve created—most especially, the feelings that are linking our hearts to each other’s; though unspoken, still certainly evident.” You feel him take a step closer, “I told you, I was just thankful at first but when I learned you’re working on my brother’s company, I decided to know you more—and when I did, I can’t help but be enticed by your character. You’re like a magnet that no matter how much I pull myself away, I still keep coming back—with just a smile, I fall back hard; with just a glance from you, I’m being pulled towards an endless pit, and the deeper I’m getting pulled, the deeper my feelings get; with just a single word—“

You force your eyes shut as you clench your fist. You decide not to hear any more of it so you take another step in attempt to go home despite the rain but he catches you again, holding your arm and making you turn to him. He abruptly leans closer which causes your eyes to widen.

You feel like your chest fall on the floor. You can feel his breath brushing your lips when his mouth is just an inch away from yours. You take a gulp. He sighs in surrender, not leaning further, before straightening up and pulling you in a hug.

“Can we take this kind of slow? ‘Cause I don't want to mess up,” he sings before he chuckles. You start to relax upon hearing that familiar song. You feel the breath of relief he releases before he kisses the top of your head and tightens his hold of you. “Let’s take this slow”

With 164cm as your height and him being almost 6 feet tall, you can perfectly feel and almost hear his heartbeat. It’s pounding crazily to the rhythm of yours. Your clenching fists start to loosen as you nod between his chest and arms. You can feel him smile even without looking at him.

“It’s Jae by the way,” he declares “Jaehyung Park”

His sudden introduction to himself makes you chuckle. After all this time, he only introduced himself just now. You shake your head a bit before draping your arms around his waist to reciprocate his embrace. The cold and rainy weather makes it more ideal.

I want to stay like this a little bit longer. You sigh. Don’t stop the rain, please. Please.

--

THOUGHTS THOUGHTS THOUGHTS???

That's the end--but MIGHT add another? Epilogue focusing on Jae's side??
AND AND, more info of Jae on the spin-off of this fic--"Let it Rain" (Okay not yet sure about that, but the plot keeps on invading my thoughts whenever I write a chapter of this story. You might have a clue about it already)