“Why are you so nervous, you’re the one that agreed to this,” Eunmi said to herself, staring at her reflection. “Just convincing your parents that you’re madly in love with your best friend. While not letting him find out that you are actually madly in love with him.” She stared at herself for another minute before letting out a groan, falling face first onto her bed as she let the memory from last week take over her thoughts.

 

“I need a fake boyfriend,” Eunmi said, catching her breath as she sat across her best friend at the coffee shop.

 

“I’m sorry, what?” Jung Jaehyun choked on his drink, sitting up straighter as he hit his chest a few times.

 

“Annual family reunion,” she pouted. “I told my parents that I was dating someone a few weeks ago so they would get off my back,,”

 

“And this is a problem because…?”

 

“Well, I’m clearly not dating someone,” she rolled her eyes. “And I can’t go without someone with me, this will just be another opportunity for my parents to set up on another blind date with one of their friend’s son, I can’t go through that. I need someone to pretend to be my boyfriend,”

 

“A pretend boyfriend?” Jaehyun raised his eyebrow. “That desperate?”

 

“Yes,” she nodded, reaching over for the drink in Jaehyun’s hands. He slid it closer to her, watching her take a huge sip before speaking up.

 

“I’ll be your boyfriend,”

 

“What?” Eunmi balked, almost spilling the cup. “What’d you say?”

 

“I’ll pretend to be your boyfriend. Your family already knows that we’re close, it’ll be a believable story,”

 

“Jaehyun, this family reunion is basically a weekend used to barbeque and get drunk. And asking you to be my pretend boyfriend - ”

 

“I’m offering,” he smiled. “What are best friends for afterall?”

 

“Not fake relationships,” Eunmi scoffed, but she couldn’t ignore the butterflies in her stomach at the thought of them dating. She took a careful look at Jaehyun and saw that he was very serious. “Are you sure you’re up for this?”

 

“Of course,” he leaned in towards her slightly. “I’m going to be the best fake boyfriend anyone has ever seen,”

 

‘Don’t be dumb and play yourself like this, Yook Eunmi,’ she thought to herself, but her heart betrayed her when she found herself nodding. “I really owe you,”

 

“Eunmi!” Jaehyun’s voice came from her living room. “Ready to go?”

 

“Coming!” she called, sitting up. She took another look in the mirror, fixing the white t-shirt that was tucked into her black shorts so it hung off one shoulder to show off her tattoo. She sighed, picking up her sunglasses to place on her head and rolled her small suitcase out of the room in front of her. “Let’s do this,”

 

“Nervous, Yook?” Jaehyun smiled, taking the suitcase handle from her hands.

 

“Why?” she asked, taking her house slippers off for her black Birkenstocks.

 

“Nervous that I’ll be such an amazing fake boyfriend that you’ll fall in love with me for real?” he smirked.

 

“You wish, Jung,” she rolled her eyes. ‘Can’t stop me from doing something that I’ve already done,’

 

“We’ll see about that,” he said, pushing the bottom of her back out of the apartment. “It’s a four hour drive, I wanna get on the highway before traffic hits,”

 

“It’s 4:30 AM, what traffic?” she grumbled, but lead him to the elevator. The ride was quick and they made their way to Jaehyun’s car where she settled in the passenger seat as he placed her bag in the trunk with his own.

 

“So, you think we should come up with a cover story if your parents ask?”

 

“If? You mean when they ask,” Eunmi sighed, pushing the seat a little back and turned to face Jaehyun. “We’ve been best friends all these years, and somewhere along the line, our feelings became romantic and then you asked me out one day, and we’ve been dating ever since,”

 

“Nice and simple,” he nodded. “I like it,”

 

‘I like you,’ she thought to herself, shaking her head instantly at the thought. She took a peek at her phone screen it was only 4:39 AM. “I’m going to take a little nap if you don’t mind,” she said, turning her body under the seat belt so she was a little more comfortable. “Wake me up in like an hour, I wanna see the sunrise,” she yawned, already closing her eyes.

 

“You got it,’ Jaehyun smiled, turning the music down as his eyes were focused on the road.

 

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“Eun,” a masculine voice spoke, a firm hand shaking her body. Eunmi blinked a few times, her body stiff until she remembered where she was. “The sun is going to rise in ten minutes, come on,” Jaehyun spoke, holding out a cup of hot coffee to her. She sat up, taking the cup in her own hands, taking a sip and savoring the bitter drink. Jaehyun pointed at the door, gesturing for her to come out and she complied, exiting the car to sit on the hood next to him. The early morning breeze flew by, causing a few goosebumps to rise on Eunmi’s skin as she brought her legs closer to her chest, taking another sip of the coffee. “Cold?” Jaehyun asked, already standing up.

 

“No, I’m fine,” she said, but it was futile. He opened the back door of the car, pulling out a grey pullover and bringing it back, slipping it over her body before settling next to her. “Thank you,” she said, letting the long sleeves of his clothing cover her hands, taking a sip of the coffee. The two sat in silence, watching the sky turn from a dark blue-purple, shift into pink and orange, before lighting up in a bright blue. “I’ve seen the sunrise so many times, and it’s so beautiful every single time,” she smiled, leaning her chin on her knees. Jaehyun didn’t reply, uncommon for her snarky best friend, and she turned her head to see him already looking at her. “What?”

 

“Nothing,” he smiled. “Give me your phone,” he said. Eunmi gave him a puzzled look but handed him the device anyways. He unlocked her phone, opening the camera app before getting off the hood of the car so he was standing in front of her, pulling her closer to the edge so he could lean his back against her chest.

 

“What are you doing?” she asked.

 

“If we’re going to be in a fake relationship, we need to change our wallpaper to a picture of each other,” he said, holding the phone up. “Put your arms over my shoulder, do something cute,” he said, turning his face to smile at the camera. Eunmi felt the butterflies in her stomach flap their wings even faster Jaehyun settled between her legs so she could comfortably wrap her arms over his shoulders, interlacing her fingers together as they lay at the base of his neck. “Bring your face closer, we gotta make this cute,” Jaehyun gave her reflection a look.

 

“Okay, okay,” she said, scooching closer to his body. She undid the bun that her hair was in, letting it fall down her back as she ruffled it slightly, returning her hands to their original position and placed her chin on top of his head, smiling. Jaehyun copied her smile and took the picture.

 

“Let’s take a few more,” he said, leaning his head back so that it was against her shoulder, the top of his head leaned towards her own. Still smiling, Eunmi pressed her cheek against his head, letting Jaehyun hold one hand hold her arm that was across his chest, holding the other hand up into a peace symbol. Holding the phone at a different angle, Jaehyun turned his head to close his eyes and press a kiss on her cheek while the girl’s smile was still there as he took the picture. “That’s a cute one,” he said, studying the picture after he took it before looking back at the girl. “Right?” he turned the screen to her.

 

She couldn’t hold back the blush or smile as she held her phone in her hand, studying the picture. The two of them looked so intimate, even she thought that they were a real couple for a minute. The butterflies were flapping at a speed she didn’t think was possible, and she wasn’t sure how she would survive this weekend. “Yeah, I guess they came out nice,” she shrugged. Jaehyun took the phone into his hands and Eunmi watched as he tapped away on the screen, changing her home screen to the first picture, her lockscreen as the picture of him kissing her. “What about you?” she asked.

 

“Don’t worry,” he ruffled her hair, standing up straight to help her off the hood and the two walked back into the car. “Two more hours left, you going to stay up?” he asked.

 

“And have a karaoke session?” she questioned. “Of course,” she broke into a huge smile, connecting the aux cord to her phone as she scrolled through her playlist before smiling. “It’s not a road trip without this song,” she said, turning up the volume loud enough for the other cars on the road to hear, but she didn’t care.

 

“This hit, that ice cold. Michelle Pfeiffer, that white gold. This one, for them hood girls, them good girls, straight masterpieces,” Jaehyun belted out.

 

“Stylin', wilin', livin’ it up in the city! Got Chucks on with Saint Laurent, gotta kiss myself, I’m so pretty!” Eunmi continued, sending a flying kiss towards Jaehyun who pretended to catch it.

 

The two went on for an hour, belting out the lyrics to Eunmi’s playlist before her voice was too tired to go on. “You pick the song,” she said, pushing the phone towards him when they were at a red light. Jaehyun took the phone, typing for a few moments just as the light turned green. “Oh, I think I’ve heard this song before,” she said when a familiar melody started playing, her fingers tapping against her leg as the song started.

 

“To be young and in love in New York City. To not know who I am but still know that I’m good long as you’re here with me,” Jaehyun sang along, one hand on the steering wheel, the other elbow resting where the window was rolled down. Eunmi knew that Jaehyun was an excellent singer, having known the man since she moved into the apartment next door to his when she was 12 years old. At the time, she only knew that he played many instruments, but that fateful day when the two were driving late at night right after Jaehyun got his car for his 18th birthday, she the radio and that was when she heard Jaehyun sing for the first time. He was very shy about it, claiming that he wasn’t confident to sing in front of others, but with encouragement from the girl, he spent the rest of the drive singing.

 

If someone were to ask Eunmi, she would have to reply that it was Jaehyun’s smile that first wavered her heart when she was just 15 years old. She kept thinking that her fleeting emotions for her best friend were simply due to the fact that she had a difficult time making friends as she moved to Seoul in the middle of the school year at an age where friendships and social groups had already formed. She was lucky that the boy next door was kind enough to befriend her and eat lunch with her.

 

However at the age of 17 when she heard him sing for the first time, she knew that those emotions that she had been feeling were a full-blown crush, and she couldn’t do anything about it.

 

At the age of 21, in the car with Jung Jaehyun as he sang along with his sweet honey-like voice, Yook Eunmi knew that she was madly in love with her best friend, and there was nothing she could do about it.

 

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“My daughter!” Mr. Yook exclaimed, wrapping his arms around his daughter tightly, pressing a kiss against her forehead.

 

“Hi Appa,” she giggled, hugging her father. “I missed you too,”

 

“Wouldn’t be able to tell since you never call,” her mother’s voice came, but Eunmi could hear the playful tone in her voice. “Oh, Jaehyun, how nice of you to join Eunmi, but I thought she would be bringing a special someone,” she said to the man who was standing behind, a confused smile on her face.

 

“Actually, I’m not here as Eunmi’s best friend,” he smiled, one hand scratching the back of his neck. “Eunmi and I are dating,”

 

“What?” her father asked, looking between the two. “Dating?”

 

“I told you that there was something going on between the two of them!” Mrs. Yook exclaimed, a bright smile on her lips as she clapped her hands. “Oh, does your mother know, son? We’ve been waiting for this day for years, we always knew that you two were more than just friends,”

 

“Umma,” Eunmi groaned, her face turning pink.

 

“No need to be embarrassed, Eun,” Jaehyun wrapped an arm around the girl’s shoulder, bringing her closer to his side. “We’ve been dating for a few months Auntie, but we were waiting to tell you guys and my parents,”

 

“I was worried that Eunmi was lying to us when she told me that she was seeing someone. I wish she told me that you were this mystery person!” her mother chuckled, patting his back. “Why don’t you guys go up and get settled, I know you had to drive for a long time, get some rest. Your father and I have most of house ready, don’t worry. Your brother and sister-in-law should be here by lunch, everyone else will be coming in during the afternoon before lunch,”

 

“Are you sure, Umma?” Eunmi asked, but she was already turning towards the staircase. Despite the nap in the car, she was still tired from the little sleep she got the night before.

 

“You kids don’t worry,” Mr. Yook assured them, gently pushing them up the stairs. “Eunmi, last door on the left,”

 

“Thank you!” Jaehyun smiled, lifting both his and Eunmi’s bags up the stairs as he followed the girl leading the way.

 

“They bought it,” Eunmi sighed, flopping onto the queen sized mattress. “Thank God,”

 

“Told you not to worry,” Jaehyun said, placing the bags on the floor, flopping next to Eunmi on the bed. “Turn the aircon on, I’m so tired,” he groaned. Eunmi reached over his body to pick up the remote, turning the aircon on and letting out another sigh as she felt the cold air filling up the room. “You sleep too,” Jaehyun mumbled, throwing one of his legs over so it rested between Eunmi’s legs, his arms wrapping around her waist.

 

Eunmi was used to physical contact with Jaehyun. They had fallen asleep in the same bed a few times together, usually when they were binge watching a T.V. show or having a movie marathon, so it wasn’t uncommon to wake up the next morning and find Jaehyun next to her.

 

However, it was the first time that she was laying down next to him with the intent to sleep next to him, and with his limbs tangled up with hers, it was very intimate. ‘He’s only doing this in case Umma or Appa walk in, we have to convince them that we’re dating,’ she thought to herself, shifting so she was comfortable. She was lying on her side, her head facing Jaehyun and she could see that his eyes were already closed, his breathing steady as he slept with no care in the world. ‘Just once...just this once I’ll let myself enjoy it,’ Eunmi thought to herself, snuggling her head against his chest. She felt Jaehyun move so his cheek pressed against the top of her head as his grip around her tightened to bring her closer, and in that moment, she forgot about the fact that this was all pretend.

 

Ღღღღღღღღღღღღღღღღ

 

Jaehyun’s eyes opened first. He blinked a few times, trying to blink the sleep away. Once his vision cleared up, the first thing he saw was Eunmi’s sleeping figure clinging onto his body for heat. With the aircon , the room was freezing and the two had fallen asleep on top of the blanket. Jaehyun was dressed in a t-shirt and jeans, so while he wasn’t as cold, Eunmi was dressed in a t-shirt and shorts, Jaehyun’s sweater from before on top. Her legs were sandwiched between Jaehyun’s for some warmth and Jaehyun couldn’t help but smile. He pushed the few hair strands that were on the girl’s face, his fingers lingering on her soft cheeks.

 

When she first moved here, he was 13 years old. He was painfully shy around girls his own age as he went through puberty, but there was something about Eunmi. She had walked right up Jaehyun that first day and introduced herself, sticking her hand out for him.

 

“Hi!” the little girl exclaimed, her smile so big Jaehyun was convinced that her face was in pain. “I’m Yook Eunmi,”

 

“I’m Jung Jaehyun,” he muttered back. He could feel his ears turning pink as she girl took a step closer to him. He just wanted to make it back inside his apartment and practice his piece for his piano recital this coming weekend.

 

“I’m 12 years old, so I’m going to be entering the 8th grade. How old are you?”

 

“13,” he said. He was about 20 feet away from his apartment door. If he made a run for it, he just might make in, depending on how fast the girl was.

 

“Oh, so you’re only one year older than me! Let’s be friends! I have an older brother, but Eunjae Oppa is six years older than me and always busy studying so he doesn’t play with me,” she pouted. “But now that we’re friends, we’re going to play every day, right?”

 

He wasn’t sure when it happened. Some time after that day, Eunmi managed to bring Jaehyun out of his shell. He made many more friends, but Eunmi was his best friend. He knew that the girl had a hard time making friends and he was the only one that she talked to during school. He made sure to always make time for Eunmi, not because he felt the need to, but because he wanted to spend time with her.

 

He wasn’t sure when he fell in love with Yook Eunmi.

 

Maybe it was one of the many afternoons where he spent hours trying to teach her calculus with no success the night before her exam.

 

Maybe it was one of those late night Friday nights when they would be in her room, Eunmi fangirling over a boy group performance she was watching on her laptop with Jaehyun next to her, slightly jealous of all the attention that she was giving the screen until she would realize, wrapping her arms around him and changing the screen to a movie for the two of them enjoy.

 

Maybe it was one of his many recitals that Eunmi always attended, sitting front row with a bouquet of flowers to hand him afterwards, cheering the loudest for him.

 

Maybe it was 11 PM on the night of his 18th birthday. His parents had surprised him with a car for his birthday, and after all the birthday celebrations with his friends and family, he found himself in the car, driving to the 24 hour ice cream shop the next town over with Eunmi in the passenger seat, her eyes watching the passing cars. Jaehyun was quietly singing to himself, or so he thought.

 

“Amuri himkkeot dadado, Dasi yeollin seorap gata, Haneullo nopi nallin neon,” Jaehyun quietly sang along to the radio, his fingers tapping on the steering wheel as he was waiting for the light to turn green. He felt a weird look on him, turning his head to see Eunmi staring hard at him. “Why are you staring at me like that? Is there something on my face?”

 

“You were singing,” she said.

 

“No,” Jaehyun shook his head. Singing was something that he did quietly when he was driving home alone, when he was working on homework in his room late at night, when he was in the shower.

 

Never in front of people. Especially not Eunmi.

 

“Yes, you were,” she made a face. “What the hell, sing louder,” she said.

 

“I don’t sing,” he shook his head, his foot pressing on the gas.

 

“Yeah, and you also can’t play instruments,” she rolled her eyes. “Why didn’t I know about this?”

 

“My voice is not that great,” he denied, the tips of his ears turning pink.

 

“Hyun!” she exclaimed. “Your voice sounds like honey! Sing louder!” she said, tugging on his arm slightly. “For me, please?”

 

Jaehyun let out a sigh, looking over at the girl who was making puppy eyes. Eunmi didn’t need to beg or make puppy eyes. If she wanted him to sing louder for you, he would do it with no complaints. He reached over to turn the radio up, clearing his throat before he continued singing along. “Gilgo gin yeohaengeul kkeuntnae, Ijen doraga, Neoraneun jibeuro, Jigeum dasi, Way back home.”

 

With every word, his voice became louder and more confident until eventually Eunmi was clapping in the passenger seat, chanting “Encore!” over and over again.

 

He never wanted to leave that car if it meant Eunmi would stay with him.

 

Eunmi remained sound asleep as Jaehyun reached for his phone on the bedside table. Checking that the time was 11:48 AM. He knew that the two of them should be getting up soon but he didn’t want to leave the bed or Eunmi’s touch. Looking back at the girl, he felt her let out a sigh, goosebumps rising on his neck where her breath hit. ‘You must be having a good dream,’ Jaehyun chuckled softly. Turning the ringer off, he opened the camera on his phone, switching to the front camera so on the screen he could see their reflection. His hair was a mess, but Eunmi’s was in a similar manner. He brushed all her hair away from her face, lifting the camera so he could see his face staring back. His arm was wrapped around Eunmi’s body while she was cocooned against him, her face snuggled against his neck as one of her arms was draped across his chest, tightly holding onto his shirt. Turning his head, he closed his eyes as he pressed a kiss against Eunmi’s forehead, clicking the picture. Very happy with how it turned out, he set the picture as his new lockscreen, replacing the generic wallpaper that he had before.

 

Pressing the home button, the camera closed to reveal all his other apps, but Jaehyun swiped passed them to the empty screen where there were no apps covering his wallpaper: a picture of Eunmi.

 

The picture was about three years old, one that she had no awareness about. It was taken at sunrise, the morning of Eunmi’s 19th birthday. It was the first birthday that she was spending in her new apartment alone, and as her best friend, Jaehyun took it upon himself to surprise the girl at midnight. They were up all night watching her favorite movies and Jaehyun even did face masks to please the girl. In the last few minutes of the moonlight, she dragged the boy onto her tiny balcony, standing at the railing wrapped in a blanket.

 

“Every birthday, I like to watch the sunrise,” she explained to the boy who was standing next to her.

 

“You like to watch the sunrise no matter what day,” he pointed out.

 

“Yes, but it’s even more special on my birthday. Each sunrise is different, you’ll never see the same one twice. Sunrises represent a new day, a new start, and your birthday represents you turning another year older, another year that you’ve survived on this beautiful Earth,” she said, her voice full of passion. “You see these beautiful colors that you didn’t even know existed until that moment, and just,” she let out a sigh. “Everyone needs to watch the sunrise at least once in their life.” She turned her attention back to the sky, taking in the changing colors of the sky. “Look,” she said softly, her cheek resting in the palm of her hand.

 

Rather than the sky, Jaehyun’s eyes were stuck on the girl and how the natural light was reflecting off her face in a way that only made her seem even more beautiful despite the fact that she was exhausted, moments away from sleep. Unable to help himself, he secretly took his phone out of his pocket, shuffling back a little from her so that he could get her side profile. After taking the picture, he still couldn’t help but have his gaze fall onto the girl.

 

“So,” she said, turning to look back at him, a soft smile on her lips. “What’d you think?”

 

“Breathtaking” Jaehyun smiled back at her, hoping that she couldn’t hear just how fast his heart was beating.

 

“Hyun,” Eunmi mumbled, her lips tickling his neck. “Sleepy time,”

 

“Wakey time, Eun,” Jaehyun chuckled, quickly closing his phone in case she would open her eyes to see his wallpaper. “Your brother and wife are going to be here soon, it’s almost lunch time,”

 

“But you’re so warm,” she groaned, scooching closer to his body, throwing a leg over his waist.

 

“Ten more minutes,” Jaehyun sighed. He was weak against all her wishes when she was wide awake, but sleepy Eunmi made his heart waver even more in a way he didn’t know was possible.

 

“Good Hyun,” she smiled, moving her head to rest on his chest, her grip on his t-shirt still tight as before. “Thank you for being here,”

 

“Anything for you Eunmi,” he replied, pressing a light kiss against her forehead. “Anything for you,”

 

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It was a few hours after lunch, and many more members of Eunmi’s extended family had arrived to the summer house. They were all somewhere around the property, most of them in the backyard. There were a few uncles by the grill, some aunts sitting and talking. Her younger cousins were running around in a game of tag, a few others playing soccer. Some of the older cousins hiding inside the house, appearing at random moments for food.

 

“Eunmi, why don’t you help me get the other beer crate from the cooler downstairs?” Eunjae, her older brother spoke up.

 

“I’ll go,” Jaehyun immediately stood up, handing his half empty beer bottle to Eunmi to follow the older man.

 

“So,” Eunjae started once they were away from the rest of the family. “When did you and Eunmi start dating?”

 

“It’s been a few months,” Jaehyun replied.

 

“Ah, I see. Eunmi never said anything to us about it,”

 

“We wanted to wait before telling our families. Since we’ve been best friends all these years, we wanted to be careful with our relationship and confirm that our feelings truly are mutually romantic,”

 

“And you like my sister?”

 

“Of course I do,”

 

“Jaehyun,” Eunjae stopped in his tracks. “My sister has known you since the day we first moved to Seoul. You two are very close, and you are a special person in her heart, and you may have been able to fool everyone outside, but I know that you guys aren’t really dating,”

 

“What? What makes you think - ” Jaehyun spoke up, feeling the tips of his ears turning pink.

 

“I know you guys. Just because you’re holding hands, kissing her cheek, that doesn’t quite mean anything. I understand not telling your parents, but you guys have known each other for 9 years. If you two were dating for real, do you think it’s something that you two would have kept quiet with me?” Eunjae questioned, and Jaehyun knew that their act was caught, knowing the older man was right. “I don’t know what happened that caused you two to tell everyone that you’re dating, and while I consider you a good friend Jaehyun, Eunmi is my little sister and she’ll always come first for me. I don’t want this little pretend game turning into something that’s going to break her heart,”

 

“I wasn’t lying when I said I like Eunmi,” Jaehyun spoke up softly. “I’ve been in love with her for I don’t even know how long. I would never take advantage of her or hurt her, whether I be dating her for real or just pretending to be,”

 

“Does Eunmi know about your feelings?”

 

Jaehyun shook his head. “I’m just her best friend, but that’s fine with me. As long as I can still be by her side,”

 

Eunjae let out a sigh. “Someone is bound to get hurt. You two are both special people to me, and I don’t want to see either of you hurt because of this little charade,”

 

“I know what I was going into, I’m the one that came up with this idea,”

 

“You really are something, Jung Jaehyun,”

 

“I know,” Jaehyun let out a dry chuckle. “Just another idiot madly in love with his best friend,”

 

Ღღღღღღღღღღღღღღღღ

 

Eunmi wasn’t drunk.

 

But she also wasn’t sober.

 

It was about 10 PM and while she laid off the alcohol before so she could properly eat and spend time with her family, she was enjoying the bitter taste of beer as she closed her eyes, head leaning back on the arm chair she was sitting in. “Having fun?” a masculine voice asked, and she opened one eye to see her “boyfriend”.

 

“Mhm,” she nodded. “You?”

 

“You know I always have a good time when I’m with you,” he chuckled. “How much have you drank?”

 

“That is only my second bottle in the last, like, two hours,” she replied, placing the empty bottle on the table nearby. “I’m a-okay,”

 

“If you say so,” he said, chuckling. “I’m going to get a chair, be right back,”

 

“Wait, no!” Eunmi said, grabbing his wrist. “Sit here,” she said, standing up.

 

“No, it’s fine,” Jaehyun objected, but the girl was stronger than she appeared, shoving him until he was sitting in her chair. “What about - oh, okay,” he said, slightly taken aback by the fact that the girl sat sideways in his lap.

 

“This is better,” she said, leaning her head against his shoulder. “Plus, it would look weird if we were the only couple that wasn’t sitting close together,” she said, gesturing at everyone else.

 

“Whatever you say, Eun,” Jaehyun said, one arm around her waist to rest on her thigh, the other hand holding his own bottle of beer that he raised to take a sip. “Want some?” he offered, letting the girl take a sip out of his bottle. “So, your brother knows about us,” he said, his voice soft enough for only Eunmi could hear him.

 

“He what?” Eunmi pulled back slightly.

 

“He didn’t exactly corner me, but he did confront me about it. I couldn’t exactly lie to him.” Eunmi let out a frustrated sigh, her head coming back against his shoulder.

 

“I don’t think Oppa will tell anyone, maybe just Jin Ae, but that’s it,” she said. “I hope,”

 

“Don’t worry, your parents won’t find out,” Jaehyun patted her thigh. “I told you that I was going to be the best fake boyfriend ever,”

 

“Best fake boyfriend,” Eunmi repeated. She knew that this was all just pretend, but in her heart, she wished that he didn’t say ‘fake’.

 

Ღღღღღღღღღღღღღღღღ

 

It was around 1 AM that almost all the adults were back inside, turning in for the night. The backyard was cleaned for the most part, just kids toys thrown around the grass. While everyone else was inside, and Eunmi and Jaehyun were no exception. They were laying on the queen sized mattress, dressed in comfy pyjamas, although Eunmi was wearing the pullover that Jaehyun lent her this morning.

 

She swore she was going to give it back.

 

Eventually.

 

While Jaehyun had his eyes closed, moments away from sleep, Eunmi had her laptop resting on her thighs, typing away with the room light dimly lit.

 

“Go to sleep,” Jaehyun complained.

 

“I’m almost done with my paper,” she replied.

 

“It’s late,”

 

“Grad school waits for no one,” she chuckled.

 

“Who told you to take summer classes, that’s basically a crime,” Jaehyun whined, turning his body around as an arm came around the girl’s waist. “Let’s sleep,”

 

Eunmi froze, her typing halting. She had a feeling about agreeing to this fake relationship, and clearly, it was messing with her emotions. She already liked the boy so much, it was driving her crazy. This entire afternoon was basically a look into how a relationship with Jaehyun would be like and she hated it.

 

She hated how much she loved it and how much she knew that this was pretend.

 

They would go home Monday morning and this would all be over, and it felt even worse than being outright rejected.

 

It felt worse than being outright rejected but Eunmi still couldn’t help herself and enjoy this little game, ignoring the fact this was all fake. She took every little forehead kiss, every little hand squeeze, every little smile to heart and treasured it.

 

“Okay,” she whispered, saving her paper and shutting the laptop, placing it on the bedside table next to her. She switched the light off and lowered her body into a more comfortable position under the blanket. She could feel the heat radiating off Jaehyun’s body, but she didn’t dare move her legs closer to his, shutting her eyes as she turned her body away from him.

 

“Why are you so far?” he frowned, reaching over to pull her closer, spooning her from behind. “Much better,” he nodded, nuzzling the back of her neck with his nose. “Good night, Eun,”

 

“Good night, Hyun,” she whispered, knowing that she physically couldn’t speak any louder.

 

Ღღღღღღღღღღღღღღღღ

 

“Jaehyun! You’re supposed to make sure I don’t fall” Eunmi exclaimed. She, along with Jaehyun, her older brother and his wife, had brought their younger siblings to the lake near their summer home. They were spread out among the pool, the younger kids engaged in a huge game of Marco Polo near the shore while Eunjae and Jinae kept an eye on them. Eunmi and Jaehyun had been dragged into a game of chicken fight against her younger cousins, or as she thought of them, Satan’s children.

 

She loved all her cousins, she truly did, but the children of her father’s youngest brother were held to a special degree of love. They were only two years younger than Eunmi, but being twins made them seem even younger and immature.

 

“Minseok and Minyoung are clearly cheating, it’s not my fault!” the man said. “They need to be taken down, and if they’re gonna play dirty, we will too,”

 

“I would normally be against this, but it’s the twins,” she agreed. “Let’s do this,” she patted the top of his head.

 

“Be careful, Unnie!” Minseok chuckled. “We don’t want to hurt you or your boyfriend,”

 

“Oh, just get over here,” Eunmi rolled her eyes. “Be careful of Minseok, he’s definitely going to try to kick you,” she said to Jaehyun as they approached her cousins.

 

“Noona, you know that we love you, but a game is a game,” Minseok smiled, and it only fueled the older girl’s annoyance. She let out a fake gasp, pointing to the younger girl.

 

“Minyoung, your ring is absolutely beautiful!”

 

“It is, isn’t it?” the girl smiled, falling for the distraction. “My parents got it for our birthday a few months back, it’s absolutely - AH!” she let out a shout as she fell off her twin brother’s shoulders and into the lake.

 

“Shoulda held on to your sister,” Eunmi smiled. “Losers!”

 

“We did it!” Jaehyun exclaimed, letting the girl off his shoulders to hug her properly. “We finally beat them!” he repeated, showering her face with kisses, completely ignoring the complaints of the younger.

 

“Those two had to be taken down a few pegs, I can’t stand them,” Eunmi giggled, enjoying his touch on her body.

 

“Good job babe,” he said, his fingers combing through her wet hair. “Last person to the shore is a rotten loser,” he said, separating himself from her as he swam away

 

“You cheater!” she yelled, swimming towards the shore. “I can’t believe you,” she complained, walking closer to Jaehyun on land, reaching for her towel.

 

“You love me,” he stuck his tongue out.

 

“You wish,” she said, but couldn’t hold her smile back. “Come on, I’m gonna head back to the house.” Jaehyun quickly gathered their belongings, bidding goodbye to her brother and jogged to catch up with her. “I’m gonna go shower first,” she said, grabbing a change of clothes to enter the bathroom.

 

She came out ten minutes later, dressed in a pair of shorts and an oversized t-shirt tucked in, to notice that the bedroom was empty. Assuming that Jaehyun had left to shower in the downstairs guest bathroom, she flopped onto the bed, ready to scroll through her Instagram feed when she heard a ping. Turning around, she noticed that Jaehyun’s phone was left on the bedside table and she picked it, seeing that it was a text message from one of his friends, but his lockscreen got her attention.

 

As long as she remembered, Jaehyun always had a generic lockscreen, so to see the picture of them two, one where she was sleeping and cuddled next to him, it sent her heart beating ten times faster. She quickly put in his phone password, opening his album to send the picture to herself. Once she was done, she closed his apps, about to place it back on the table when she noticed his wallpaper. Swiping past all his apps so she could see the picture clearly, she noticed that the picture was one of her. She had no recollection of the picture ever being taken, and from the angle that it was taken, it seemed like she wasn’t aware that a picture was being taken at the time.

 

“You back from your shower?” Jaehyun asked, walking into the bedroom, drying his hair with the towel when he realized what the girl was holding in her hand. “Eunmi, that, um,”

 

“I need to go,” she said, dropping his phone on the bed to rush past him, out of the room.

 

Ღღღღღღღღღღღღღღღღ

 

Eunmi was very good at ignoring people if that was her goal. Jaehyun learned that when he tried to follow the girl and explain, but he was dragged by a few older relatives into helping prepare food for the second night of barbecuing. During the barbeque, she was too busy entertaining the children and talking to her elder relatives, only stopping by Jaehyun to grab a bottle of beer.

 

It wasn’t until later that night, after her shower when she was climbing into bed that she got the chance to talk to Jaehyun. She was exhausted and tipsy, having drinking more alcohol than she originally planned, but knew that she couldn’t avoid him anymore. “Going to run away from me again?” he asked.

 

“I’m not running away from you,” she said, lifting the blanket, getting in but keeping a reasonable amount of distance between their bodies. She was already not in full control of her actions, and it was not good to mix that with the fact that Jaehyun had the ability to make her lose her train of thought with a simple smile.

 

“You’re right, I was just imagining the fact that you were ignoring me this entire afternoon,” he said. “Eunmi,” Jaehyun’s voice softened, moving closer to her. “Am I making you uncomfortable?”

 

“I’m not uncomfortable near you,” she shook her head.

 

“Then what’s wrong? You’ve been ignoring me this entire afternoon,”

 

“We’ve been best friends for 9 years, and I don’t want to ruin the best 9 years of my life because of this game, this stupid little game. Losing you isn’t worth it,”

 

“Who said that you’re going to lose me?” Jaehyun said, moving so he was now right next to her, holding her hands in his larger ones. “You’re not going to lose me, I’m going to be right here with you,”

 

“But I don’t think I can take it anymore,” she whispered.

 

“I’m sorry that you feel bad for lying to your parents - ” Jaehyun started.

 

“It’s not that,” Eunmi cut him off. “It’s you,”

 

“Me?”

 

“I can’t handle the fact that you’ve been acting like the perfect boyfriend this entire trip. You hold my hand, kiss my forehead, call me babe, and you cause all these butterflies in my stomach, and then your wallpaper on your phone is a picture of me that I can’t remember you ever taking of me. It’s these little things that make me think I’m something special to you, and I can’t take it anymore because I’m hopelessly in love with you, and this whole trip has reminded me that no matter how much I love this, it’s not real,”

 

I’m hopelessly in love with you.

 

“You’re...in love,” Jaehyun started, “with me...?”

 

No response.

 

“Well, thank God,” Jaehyun let out a sigh. “This makes everything so much easier,”

 

“What?” Eunmi turned to look at him, but Jaehyun’s hands moved to cup her cheeks, bringing her face closer as he crushed his lips against hers.

 

Her reaction was almost instantaneous, her eyes closing immediately as her hands raised to wrap around his neck, one hand playing with his hair.

 

“Oh,” she said, pulling away to catch her breathe.

 

“Oh? That’s it?” Jaehyun questioned. “Eunmi, I have been madly in love with you for years. Your smile, your love for sunrises, the way your eyes crinkle when you’re laughing really hard, the way you can watch videos of puppies and babies for hours on end, I love everything about you. I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you. I’ve never loved anyone but you,”

 

“You do?” her eyes widened.

 

“I spend every hour, every second of the day with you, burning through the hours talking, and it wouldn’t be enough for me. You’ve been making me nervous since day one, and I love how being near you makes me feel alive,” Jaehyun stopped to take a deep breathe. “I was painfully shy as a child, and it wasn’t until you came and turned my world upside down. You changed me, for the better, and I don’t care what it is that I have to do, I just want you to stay here awhile, forever, because I know that I’m good as long as you’re here with me,”

 

“Please tell me this isn’t just a dream,” Eunmi said. Instead of replying, Jaehyun brought her lips against his once more, his hand against her cheek as he lightly rubbed it. Pulling away, he opened his eyes slightly.

 

“That good enough for you?” he chuckled, allowing Eunmi to move into his lap to kiss him once more.

 

“It scares me how much I love you,” she leaned her forehead against his.

 

“I don’t know what it is, but I have this feeling every time I’m near you. It’s a good feeling,” his fingers tangled in her hair. “Just look at who you’ve made me, Yook Eunmi,” he chuckled.

 

“You’re the same Jung Jaehyun that I met in the apartment hallway,” she chuckled, her fingers moving the hair away from his eyes. “I knew from the first time that we’d stay together for a long time,”

 

“I’m a different person, but it’s okay,” he smiled, pressing a light kiss against her forehead, the tip of her nose, then her lips. “I like me better when I’m with you,”