Byuuur!!!

Chaerin let her body inside the bath-tube filled with warm water. She rested her head on the head board of the bath-tube. Closed her eyes, she tried to relax. She felt like riding roller-coaster. Today. She still remembered how nervous herself in the morning, mix-matching her cloth just to make her presentable enough in front of her new boss – Lee Seunghyun aka Lee Seungri. Then, the sudden disappointment she felt when the head designer – Park Bom – informed about the sudden change of their monthly meeting. She once thought that maybe, her day will ended up boringly as she took a walk over the park near the office. But, the biggest surprise she got of the day.

Her encounter with Seungri.

And those kiss.

Chaerin abruptly sat up. She folded her legs, brought her knees close to her chest. Slowly, she brought her fingers to her moist lips. It wasn’t her first kiss, so why? Why... it kept lingering in her consciousness?

It was also not the kind of kiss that she hasn’t experienced. She has shared that kind of heated kiss before with her ex. But, why? Why... even when she just remembered about it, it sent an exciting feeling which left her with another expectation?

Expectation of being touched by him.

Chaerin splashed her face – as well as her dirty head – with water. Is she crazy? Who is she that hoped something like that happened?

”Should we become more than acquaintance?”

Suddenly, Seungri’s question earlier appeared. One of his questions back when the two was waiting for the bus at the bus stop. Chaerin even still remembered well the whole conversation she shared with him.

***

”Do you really... not want me to drive you home?”

Seunghyun asked Chaerin who was busy typing on her phone. The two sat side by side on the bench at the bus stop, waiting for the bus to arrive.

Chaerin stopped typing, then looked at Seunghyun whom sat next to her. ”Maybe... another time? Don’t you have an appointment with your mother?” She asked back, reminded the latter about his short call with his mother earlier.

”Nah, the dinner with my mom can wait. How can I let a girl go home by herself?” Seunghyun was still with his determination on driving her home.

Chaerin barely knew that the man next to her was hard-headed type person. Also, it seemed that once he set on something, he was determined to make it true. ”Do you underestimate me, Seungri-ssi? I’m not a little girl, you know?”

She pretended to be mad by Seungri’s words earlier. But, Seungri was still looked the same, like he didn’t intend to draw back from the fight. So, she threw another counterattack.

”Also, we’re just...” Chaerin paused as she searched the correct term to call the relationship between them. Despite his silence, Seunghyun asked her to continue through his eyes. ”We’re just... acquaintance. Nothing more. How can you...”

Chaerin let her sentence unfinished. After saying those words, she felt Seunghyun’s gaze lifted from her. Which was, for unknown reason... pained her. Slowly, she looked up at him whom already shifted his attention to the crowd road ahead them.

”Then...” Seunghyun paused as he got his gaze back on Chaerin. He leaned closer to her. ”Should we become more than acquaintance?” He asked, his brown eyes still harbored on hers.

More than acquaintance? What is he meant by that?

”I mean, you shouldn’t call us as mere acquaintance, Chaerin-ssi.” Seunghyun said as he gave more distance between them. With his boyish smile, he continued. ”Even after the kiss we shared earlier.”

The mention of that kiss made Chaerin felt her face got hotter. She was sure that her face was in complete red, like a cooked crab. And to her misery, those embarrassing sight was like an entertainment to Seunghyun’s eyes. It looked like it hasn’t enough for him. So, he tried to push further. He brought his face just an inch away from hers.

”Wha-”

Screeech!!!

If not for the bus’s brake’s noise, who knows what will Seunghyun did to her? As the bus with the assigned number already arrived, Chaerin abruptly got up from the bench. She was too embarrassed that she dashed right to the bus. But, luckily enough for Seunghyun. Just right before Chaerin board on the bus, he was succeed in catching her left hand.

”Text me when you got home.”

Seunghyun let go of her hand right after saying it and winked to her. He stood on his spot watching her board on the bus. He even waved his hand to her when Chaerin sat on the seat next to the window.

***

”Aaargh! It’s so embarrassing!”

Chaerin screamed out as she got out of the bath-tube. Right at the time she came out from the bathroom, her phone rang. It was her sister whom called her.

”Yeobo-”

”Chaerin Imo! I miss you!”

Chaerin almost jumped out of surprise when she heard the sudden outburst did by her beloved nephew. She missed that little boy, and all of her longing disappeared completely once she heard his voice from the other line.

”Miss you too, Dear Sang-ie.” Chaerin replied with a smile on her lips.

”Imo, hold on. I want to switch it to video call.”

The call ended immediately after the little boy said it. But then, Chaerin’s phone started ringing again. She swiped the screen of her phone, then she saw her nephew together with his parents through the video call.

”Imo! I miss you so much!”

How Chaerin wished that she was there together with them and pinched that chubby cheek of Sanghyun’s endlessly.

”How many times you want to say it, Hyun-ah.”

Chaerin heard her brother-in-law scolded his son lovingly. She just smiled seeing the two, they were never tired to pick on each other. Then, Chaerin sent her sight toward her sister.

”Imo, I have seen your photos with that young man! Who is he?”

The mention of photos, immediately made Chaerin’s face got redder. Suddenly, she remembered how she and Seungri posed. Not only once that Seungri brought her to get closer to him, hugged her, and made her heartbeat uncontrollable.

”Imo, are you alright? Your face is red, are you catching a cold?”

There was a worried tone in Sanghyun’s voice when he asked. Not only that. His previous smile, his curious face, already turned into a worried expression just in a second.

”Don’t worry, Hyun-ah. Your aunt maybe just remembering several embarrassing things that made her face flushed like that.”

”I can hear you, Jingyo-oppa!”

Both father and son burst into a merry laughter after Chaerin replied with that annoyed cry. Chaerin pouted her lips as if she got annoyed for real, but not long till those pout turned into a smile. Those sudden video call was miraculously made her felt like coming back home.

”Omo! It’s time for my piano lesson. Imo, I will call you later. Bye, bye!”

The display on Chaerin’s phone screen suddenly changed, it seemed that little Kwon Sanghyun gave the phone abruptly to other person. And... it ended to be his mother, Kwon Sandara. Chaerin only saw her sister through the video, no more her nephew or her brother-in-law there.

There was no words be spoken between the two sisters. It was the awkward smile of Dara which broke the ice.

”You... you looked... well.” Dara started the conversation with a lame words.

Chaerin didn’t find the right words to reply that, so she decided to nod as her reply. She saw her sister was restless. It seemed that the older sister was in deep thought to continue the talk.

”Your brother-in-law was right. I... I’m getting worried for nothing. I... I also has been too harsh to you. I’m only care about myself and overlook about your wellbeing. I’m... sorry, Chaerin.”

Chaerin felt her