Kyungsoo unlocked his cellphone to check if he was at the right place. It was a casual dining restaurant, too fancy for the occasion in his opinion, located a few kilometers from the city center.

When his mother had told him about setting him up on a date with one of her friend's daughter, he had been unwilling at first. But he had done this a few times before too, going to the date he was set up on to placate his mother and then politely detaching himself by showing subpar interest in the girl and their surroundings. Most of them didn’t mind, having been set-up by parents themselves and they usually parted amiably. None of them had managed to catch his attention enough to actually pursue. Even if his mother did wonder, why it never worked out with any of the girls, she hadn’t directly questioned him about it. This time though, she’d seemed more concerned and hopeful, so he’d have to be careful to not mess this up too much and be as polite as possible.

In other words, it was just another day for him to dine at a fancy place, and go back home to his peaceful life.

He tried to find the picture of the girl he was going to meet, that he hadn't bothered opening since his mother had sent it to him as he walked up the steps to the restaurant, and absent mindedly greeted the waiter at the reception. Then he turned to look at the picture.

His heart stopped when he saw the girl’s image. It can't be......something must have gone wrong......he couldn't believe what was right in front of his eyes.

He looked up, eyes sweeping the hall he was standing in, looking for the one person he so wanted and did not want to see. And fair enough, he found her siting on a table in the corner of the hall near the glass windows. Even though she had her back to him, he could tell from far away that it was her.

With a ray of hope that his eyes were playing tricks on him, he took heavy steps towards her, his heart beat quickening with each one.

Within touching distance, he reached out his hand and patted her shoulder.

…..................

Taeyeon had dropped Seungwan at the restaurant fifteen minutes before the decided time, so she could make herself comfortable.

"You look beautiful. Just be brave", The slightly older girl had told her with a reassuring smile, before leaving.

Seungwan found the table reserved for them, and fixed her clothes. The waiter came to take her order, but she asked him to come later.

It's okay, you can do this, she tried to calm her racing heart. It’s about time you confessed and destiny has given you the perfect opportunity. She smiled and touched her cheeks with her hands, trying to cool them. She had tried her best to look good, Taeyeon and Soojung had helped her a lot and now it was only a matter of her luck how things turned out.

She was still busy encouraging herself, when she felt a pat on her shoulder. She spun around to see the person she had been waiting for.

“H-Hello, Kyungsoo shii”, She croaked out and internally slapped herself. Stop stammering!

The guy looked like he’d been dumbstruck. He kept staring at her like he’d seen a ghost, not responding and Seungwan started to falter under his stare. He probably noticed her discomfort and cleared his throat, looking away.

"Hello Wendy shii", he greeted back. "I am quite surprised to see you here"

"Really? Did you-did you not know?", Seungwan was a bit surprised to hear him call her 'Wendy' as he always called her by her real name. Well, not always, considering they’d only interacted what once? Twice?

"No, I-I did, I just…..let's get seated first, shall we?", he asked and went to sit across from Seungwan, loosening his tie. Seungwan frowned. He looked a little bit….disappointed? Angry? She didn’t know what to make of the vibes coming off of him, just that they weren’t good. The waiter asked them for their order, but Kyungsoo told him away saying they would order in a few minutes.

"So....what brings you here?", He asked, intertwining his hands in front of him on the table and levelling his eyes on her. 

"Same as you...I guess", Seungwan replied doubtfully. What kind of question was that? She wondered. Maybe he's just nervous, like me.

"Oh me? My Mom set me up on this......I really wasn't willing", He laughed, but the sound lacked any mirth.

"S-same here, I guess", Seungwan didn't know what else to say.

Kyungsoo sighed loudly and sat back in his seat. He doesn’t look happy….

"Excuse me please, I need to use the-the restroom", Kyungsoo told Seungwan as he got up from his seat quickly, not meeting her eyes.

"Okay", Seungwan replied softly but he was already out of hearing range. She took a deep breath. And then got up to go to the restroom herself.

…............................

God, why is this happening to me? Kyungsoo asked himself, as he stood over the sink in the restroom. He had been asking himself the same question for the past ten minutes, pacing back and forth in the small room.

It was like no matter what he did he did, everything just led back to her. The more he tried to stay away, the more he had to confront her.

But not anymore. He wasn’t going to let this go on any longer. He looked up in the mirror resolutely, and took a deep breath. He was going to have to tell her off.

…………………………………………

He was already at the table waiting for her, when Seungwan came back from the restroom. He looked up and smiled as she came near it, but it didn't reach his eyes. She smiled back anyhow, admiring how handsome he looked in the suit he was wearing, something she’d failed to notice first.

"I am sorry for making you wait-"

"So Wendy shii", he cut her off, surprising her. "Where do you see this going?", he asked her in a sharp tone.

"What do you mean?", She asked, frowning, her heartbeat picking up almost in dread.

"What I mean is – “, he spoke very clearly this time "I am not ready for or in need of a relationship right now. I have other responsibilities that are more important to me". Seungwan’s heart sank like a heavy stone.  He continued. "I have told my mother a thousand times not to set me up on dates like these, but she never listens"

Seungwan couldn't look up at him. She had always dreaded this, getting rejected by him. But she had never imagined it to be like this. And I was about to confess to him, like an idiot.

"I don't know what was your intention behind coming here, whether you even knew that I was going to be your date - "

Oh I knew. I knew it alright. She said to herself, feeling her heart sink. Tears were starting to form at the corners of her eyes, so she closed her eyes and bent her head, willing them to go away. She wasn’t this much of a sissy.

………………………………………………………………….

Kyungsoo noticed that she wasn't even looking up at him. No Kyungsoo, don't let this affect you if you want to end this for once and for all, came a voice from somewhere inside him so he continued.

"I hope you understand that me not being interested in a relationship has nothing to do with you" Liar, of course it does, his mind rejected his lie. Her mind did too probably. "I guess I just-"

"I think I should leave now. Thanks for everything", The girl suddenly got up, cutting him off mid-sentence and started to run outside after picking up her coat and bag. Kyungsoo was dumbfounded for a minute before he finally got his bearings back.

Was I too rude? He suddenly wondered and rushed after her.

……………………………………………………..

Outside, it had started raining, and Seungwan shivered, suddenly remembering she’d brought no umbrella with her. She swung her coat over her head, ready to make a run for it when Kyungsoo called out from behind her.

"Seungwan shii!", he called her by her real name as he came running to her side and tried to look at her face that was now covered with raindrops mixed with tears. But she looked away.

"Are you Okay?", he asked, almost as if he was concerned.

"Y-Yeah I'm fine, I just suddenly remembered I had something else I needed to get to so....", Seungwan replied non-chalantly, still facing away from him.

"Where do you need to go? I can drop - "

"No, I-I'm fine, I'll go myself!" She replied quickly, and stepped into the pouring rain, running in no particular direction.

She could hear him calling after her, asking her to take his umbrella at least, but she shut her ears to it. She wanted to cry and then she finally did, allowing the tears to take away the pain. I just want to disappear…..

_

"What happened?", Taeyeon asked, getting up from the bed from where she was sprawled out on her stomach as Soojung applied pain relieving cream on her back (her back had been hurting constantly since the day the jerk had jumped on her, so much about old wounds having healed), as she watched Seungwan enter the room in horror. The girl was shivering, completely drenched, hair frizzled and messy, eyes swollen from crying.

"It was horrible, Taeyeon-ah", Seungwan said as she started to cry again, taking Taeyeon into her arms. Taeyeon hugged her warmly, and realized how cold the girl was.

"It’s okay, you'll be fine", Taeyeon whispered into her hair as she rubbed her back.

"What happened?", Soojung was flabbergasted too. Taeyeon gestured her to be quiet politely and then gently pulled Seungwan away.

"Let's get you changed first", she asked girl who was sniffing now, her tears dried up.

As Seungwan went to change in the restroom, Taeyeon quickly made her bed taking out more blankets and asked Soojung to bring Tylenol and hot cocoa for her. She was glad that her aunt wasn't at home, having taken Sehun and Yerim along for grocery shopping after they returned from bowling or she would have completely freaked out seeing Seungwan like this. Her head flashed in anger for a second, thinking about what Kyungsoo might have done or rather not done to get her cousin feeling and looking like this.

After getting her covered up and warm, Taeyeon and Soojung asked Seungwan about what happened, as she sipped hot cocoa.

"I was already so wet by the time I found a cab", Seungwan ended her story, her eyes swollen but she wasn’t crying anymore. “I’m fine now though, so don’t worry about it, it was a bad idea going to this date”

"He's a jerk", Soojung commented, making a face and Taeyeon glowered at her knowingly. "What? It's true!", Soojung defended.

"Here", Taeyeon handed Seungwan Tylenol and water and after she had taken them, she tucked her in. She and Soojung left her to rest.

D.O. isn't this kind of guy though, Taeyeon mused as she paced across the living room, thinking over what Seungwan had recounted to her. Something must have happened, I'll talk to him tomorrow.

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A/N: Ahhhh, so a bit of a rollercoaster huh? Kyungsoo and Seungwan just aren't ready yet :( What are your thoughts?