"What are you doing out in the cold?", Kyungsoo inquired upon spotting Seungwan sitting on the lone wooden bench in the garden outside the hall. He had been looking for her since the dance ended, thinking she must be somewhere in the hall but hadn’t been able to find her.

Seungwan looked up at him and Kyungsoo's heart lurched once again. The shimmer on her eyes, the soft glow on her face....everything about the way she looked then was perfect.

"I just didn't feel like eating. Think I'm coming down with something" She said.

Kyungsoo frowned. "Should we go get it checked?"

"No. It'll probably go away in a day or so. Must have been the frozen Thai take-out I ate yesterday", Seungwan said distastefully.

"You should be more careful. It's already very cold. Better not get sick", Kyungsoo advised and Seungwan smiled, making Kyungsoo feel a strange warmth spread through him despite the harsh coldness in the air.

She turned to gaze at the sky, the enchanted expression on her face enough to put Kyungsoo in a daze.

"So bright they are", She said, pulling the white trench coat she was wearing tighter around herself, her breath coming out in puffs of steam in the night air. Kyungsoo momentarily turned to look at the night sky decorated with specks of silver and smiled.

"They are", Not brighter than the stars he saw in her eyes though. He turned to look at her again, and felt a sudden urge to just close the distance between them and kiss the living day lights out of her. What? He shook his head to get the strange thoughts out of his head. She was going to freak out big time if he did that.

"Shall we dance?", He asked almost on impulse, as a slow song started playing inside the hall, its muffled melody reaching outside. They hadn't been able to do so inside (with her having been dragged away by Yixing), and since they were at a dance and as partners, it was almost a compulsion.

"Here?"

"Yeah", He got up and held out his hand. "Come on"

Seungwan debated for a moment before taking his hand. Kyungsoo put one hand on her waist underneath the coat she was wearing, and took her hand in his other one. Seungwan tried to fight the blush that was making its way to her cheeks owing to their proximity as she looked up to meet his fond eyes, him standing a few inches taller than her despite the stilletos she was wearing. After awkwardly steeping on each other's foot a few times, they eventually fell in step.

"Where have I seen you before?", Kyungsoo asked finally after having contemplated it so many times before, his gaze warm and not leaving her face.

A ghost of a smile appeared on her face. "Guess?"

"Uhh I don't know.....in my dreams maybe?", Kyungsoo let out a nervous laugh, only haif-joking. Because he wasn't sure he hadn't.

Seungwan laughed, the sound melodiously ringing in the silent night air. "No. Nothing that dramatic. We were in the same middle school"

"Really? How come we never met?"

"Just....we didn't really know each other then, I guess", Seungwan shrugged. But it was only half the truth because she had known him, known him and cherished him since then. Not that he needed to know about that for now.

"How come we never crossed paths? I'm sure we would have made great friends then", Kyungsoo thought out loud, wondering how things could've turned out if they had met then. But then again, considering he hadn't noticed her even for the first two years they had both been in this institution, he didn't really have much room to talk. Was I blind or what?

"Well we're here now, aren't we?", Seungwan responded softly and Kyungsoo had never felt more strongly for her. Over-whelmed with emotions, he hugged her closer, closing his eyes as he buried his face in her hair.

They swayed slowly in time, the world around them disappearing as their heartbeats united with their steps.

"I wish I could stay like this forever", Kyungsoo whispered softly near her ear, not caring for a second how she might interpret his words.

Seungwan smiled, despite the strange sensations created by the fanning of his breath on the side of her face. "Me too"

Kyungsoo's eyes fluttered open, and he moved his face slightly away to look at her. Seungwan opened her eyes too and met his intense gaze, not wanting to look away.

Why the hell were they doing this whole fake dating drama? What was stopping him from just confessing how much he loved her and showering her with all the affection he was keeping under confines? Just the thought that she might not be ready for it? Then I'll wait for you to accept. As long as it takes. He thought, wanting to tell her everything in a heartbeat.

"Seung, I – “

They were broken out of their reverie, by the harsh sound of a phone ringtone. Kyungsoo mentally cursed whoever it was, as he broke their embrace to fetch out his phone.

Park Chanyeol. Of course it had to be one of his block-headed friends.`.

"What?", He snapped in irritation as soon as he picked up.

"Where are you? And Seungwan shii? The performance is about to start!", Came the loud voice from the other end.

Uh-oh. Kyungsoo had completely forgotten that their performance was scheduled after they were done eating.

"They are calling us for the performance", Kyungsoo turned to tell Seungwan, disappointment dripping from his tone.

Seungwan on the other hand, was feeling like she had woken up from a dream. But only it hadn't been a dream, and the thought of how she had let herself get immersed in the moment was making her blush. She didn't dare meet his eyes as they walked back each immersed in their own thoughts.

It turned out to be a great performance, with everyone cheering at the top of their lungs when it ended. Seungwan felt over-whelmed with such a positive response, even though she had only been playing the piano but the sense of fulfillment and confidence that filled her was remarkable. And she had one person to thank for that, who was present alongside her.

"Thankyou", She whispered as they joined hands with each other and their friends and bowed to the audience.

_

Things didn't turn out as Kyungsoo had planned that night (which included something along the lines of confessing to Seungwan) as Seungwan left early with Taeyeon because she was feeling a little down and had tummy ache, leaving Kyungsoo to drop off Jongin and Soojung. He would have gone with her, had his brother not been overly-enthusiastic about watching the performances till the end. Which maybe had something to do with the fact that Soojung was still there, lightly flirting around with various guys and not paying any heed to Jongin, who she had walked in with (in the spotlight no less) making him feel surly and sour, though he pretended he couldn't care less.

He would definitely find time to tell her on Monday, Kyungsoo promised himself when he returned home that night.

_

"Are you okay, Mom?", Kyungsoo asked, a little concerned seeing as his mother had been sighing repeatedly while working on cutting the same radish for the past fifteen minutes.

"I am fine", Mrs. Do replied, shaking her head to get rid of her thoughts.

Kyungsoo gave her a long look. "I don't think so, what's bothering you?"

"It's....nothing. Just work-related stress", She gave him a tight-lipped smile as she turned to pour the radish off her cutting board into the brewing stew.

Kyungsoo frowned. "I am sorry I haven't been to the office in so long, tell me about it?" He had been trying to visit for a while now to get up to date with the things going on, but the past month had been a little busy for him.

"You don't need to worry about it. Concentrate on your studies", Mrs. Do half-snapped at him.

Kyungsoo grabbed her arm and made her turn to look at him, feeling guilty for not being there for his mother when she was clearly had been working to the point of exhaustion. "Tell me, Mom? You can always count on me, you know that right?"

Mrs. Do sighed, feeling more tired than ever. "It's just about that loan I took three months ago. You remember right?". Kyungsoo nodded, listening intently.

"It turns out, that I didn't research properly in the hurry I was and the loan I took was...", She paused, swallowing hard, the tension in her shoulders now evident as she bent her head.  "It was from a loan shark with…….questionable links”

Kyungsoo's heart skipped a beat. It didn't sound right one bit, but she didn't need to hear that from him then. "So, what's the problem? You are going to return it, aren't you?"

"I am....I mean, I was but....", Mrs. Do looked a little confounded.

"But?"

"But the deal suffered a loss, and now...", She paused, straining. "And they have given me a deadline for next week and I don't know where I am going to arrange the money from at such short-notice"

Being the business-oriented person he was, the danger bells had started ringing loudly in Kyungsoo's head. "How much is it?"

Mrs. Do looked up from beneath her lashes. "2 Million Won"

Kyungsoo barely restrained himself from gasping in astonishment. That was a big amount for a company like their's. "So, what are our options?"

"I have no idea", Kyungsoo saw the stress of the past weeks catch up to his mother in seconds.

"Mom....", Kyungsoo ignored the gnawing feeling of his heart plummeting, seeing his mother who was always strong as a rock in face of adversity cry like that and gently took her wrist leading her to the dining room to make her sit, before enveloping her in a warm hug.

"It's going to be fine....", He only came to realize now, how much she must have been keeping in to break down like this.

I'm going to make it okay, he thought with determination.

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A/N: Stay safe guys, stay in your houses. And read My Love That Is Forever.

Thankyou so much!