Six

Small Universes Around Us
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Seoul University —— 2020

It felt like a dream, but she wasn’t sure if it was a good one or a bad one. 

Haeun tried to will herself into not reading more into Taeyong’s text than she should because she was pretty sure that was the whole reason he lashed out at her in the first place. Just because he wanted her to help volunteer didn't mean that everything was back to normal or that he had feelings for her. But at the same time, she couldn’t get rid of the bitter taste of Taeyong still being so distant; so out of reach. 

She did her best to dust away the part of her that ached to feel sorry for herself and wallow in despair and instead remember the parts of herself that shone the brightest before she found out how Taeyong didn’t remember. It was the only way she'd be able to survive being so close to the person she loved. She needed to be herself and not let her insecurities and fears get in her head. It would only push him away for good. 

Regardless, she was proud of herself for confronting Taeyong and her own feelings. It felt nice to get that off her chest. It might have worked against her when she boldly confessed to liking him but she knew that she owed it to herself to be honest. And it had to be a good sign that he still wanted her to come. 

That’s what she had to keep reminding herself when she went out to meet him on the day they had agreed to volunteer.

She ran up to him in the quad, eyes lit up and excited and for a second he wondered if she had forgot what she had said to him before. How heavy their last conversation was. She seemed completely different. Happy.

“I saw the puppies in the morning during Doyoung’s shift. They were so cute, oh my god. He said that the kittens were coming in the afternoon, do you think they’re already here?” She asked, nearly shaking in anticipation. 

Ah, that made more sense, she wanted to see the animals.

He paused for half a second, taken aback by her enthusiasm before he felt it growing on him too, “I saw them a little while ago. They should be waiting for us.”

She held down a squeal, bouncing on her feet, “Well what are we waiting for? I need to see them!”

Her giddiness was infectious and soon he found himself picking up speed before the two of them were sprinting across the quad, laughing, nearly slipping when they made it to the table. Jaehyun jerked his head up from his clipboard his eyes flickering between the two of them cautiously.

“You guys are here 15 minutes early, can you at least pretend not to be total nerds?” He muttered, his smile giving away his anger. 

Taeyong grinned, causing the president to raise a brow, “We just wanted to see the kittens before our shift.”

Jaehyun pulled his gaze to Haeun and she could tell he was probably surprised seeing the two of them together…smiling. 

When she was avoiding Taeyong, she had avoided Jaehyun too just because usually where Taeyong went, Jaehyun was nearby. She smiled sincerely, even if Jaehyun couldn’t remember how close friends they once were, even closer than they were now, it was nice that he was at least still in her life. Looking out for her.

“Alright losers, they’re in the blue pen. I’ll get someone to walk you through what you need to do today but it’s mainly just information stuff, we have people from the actual shelters taking care of the adoptions and sponsors.” He explained. 

Haeun had already moved towards the pen, ignoring Jaehyun who just huffed in annoyance. Taeyong moved to follow her but Jaehyun stopped him, “You guys are good?”

“I don’t know.” Taeyong said softly. “I think so. But I also think she just really wants to see the animals, so it's hard to tell.” 

Jaehyun’s lips twitched as he handed over the clipboard to him, “Well, try not to lose any of the animals and have fun!”

Taeyong trailed after Haeun, lingering over her shoulder as she played with a small kitten. He took the moment to properly study Haeun and the lines and curves that made her up while trying to understand why he reacted so emotionally when it had to do with her. 

“Hey, I have a few questions about the adoptions.”

Taeyong snapped his attention away and turned to the pretty girl who was smiling at him with a flyer in her hand. Giving one more glance at Haeun, he turned away and led her back to the table.

He tried to stumble through her questions that were getting increasingly personal when he quickly realized that she was flirting with him and he wasn’t sure why it was making him uncomfortable. He did his best to try to navigate through the conversation, but he kept fighting the urge to look over at Haeun. Did she think he was rubbing this in her face? That he was flirting with this girl just to make her feel bad? He didn't want to hurt her again. 

Finally taking a risk, he glanced nervously at Haeun only to find her paying no attention, her focus on the group of freshmen girls she was talking to, leading them to the pin with the kittens. He couldn’t remember who or what he was talking about as he watched her laugh along with the girls when the kitten tumbled over her lap. 

“Excuse me?”

He snapped back to the girl was giving him a dirty look. He cleared his throat and tried to continue talking to her, explaining the program but she just rolled her eyes, uninterested before walking away. 

“I—.” He muttered.

He tried to spend the rest of their volunteer shift focusing on talking to students, doing very little to cross paths with her, but Haeun was more distracting than he anticipated especially when her laugh would ring through the entire open quad. His attention would immediately spiral to her whenever he'd hear it, curious as to what could make her laugh so heartily and make her smile so brightly. 

What was happening to him?

“Taeyong?”

He flinched at Haeun’s voice, they barely spoke the entire 2 hours, “What’s up?”

She gave him an apologetic smile, “I know I have another hour but Mark’s soccer team is playing their first game and I wanted to stop by.”

“O-Oh, you’re leaving?” He asked.

She ran her fingers through the hair on the back of her head, “Yeah, if that’s okay?”

“Yeah, of course, thanks for helping out at all.” He said, tightening his grip on the clipboard.  

She gave a tight-lipped smile before draping her bag across her chest, she hesitated as if she wanted to say something before she turned to leave but he called out to her hopelessly.

“Haeun, I-I…I’m really sorry.” 

She gave him a smile that looked a little short of broken before walking away. 

-----

It wasn’t a surprise to her, that Taeyong drew people in without trying. 

She walked slowly to the soccer field, dragging her feet. 

He was always this alluring flame made up of confidence, kindness, and a big heart. People couldn’t help but gravitate to him, like a moth to a flame, that was how she fell for him every time.

But she wasn’t used to seeing people fall for him when she couldn’t claim to have him all to herself. 

And it was harder to pretend that she didn’t hear him flirting back with the girl.

She entered the field and watched the junior boys run after each other before climbing up on the bleachers and taking a seat. It was so early in the season that not many people were there watching. Mark spotted her quickly and even from the distance, she could see his smile when he waved. 

A few of his teammates looked over at her before their coach rounded them to talk strategy. A part of her wished she didn’t know any better,  that she could just be ignorant of all the pasts they shared together. No matter how happy those memories made her, even though that was all she had to keep her warm at night, she wished she could just forget it all. 

Or at the very least, forget until they could remember together. 

Because remembering alone hurt too much. 

-----

“Hey, man.” 

Mark glanced up at his teammate while wiping his face with a towel, “Yeah.”

“Is that your girlfriend on the bleachers?”

Mark choked on his sports drink before groaning when it burned up his nose. He pinched the bridge before glaring at his teammate, “No, dude, what the ? You’ve seen me with her before. She’s my friend and roommate.”

“I don’t know, just wanted to check.” He said with a careless shrug.

Mark stilled before glaring at him, “Check what?”

“If she’s single before I shoot my shot.” 

Mark snorted before turning back to his duffle, his shoulders relaxing, “Yeah, uh, good luck with that Haechan but she’s not interested.”

“How would you know?” He asked, offended.

Mark smiled to himself before pulling off his knee guards, “She has her eye on someone else.”

-----

“Weren’t you just here?” Taeyong muttered when Jaehyun came back to the booth.

Jaehyun grinned, taking the clipboard from his hands. “Johnny’s coming to take over and you’re somehow still moody despite being surrounded by cute little animals. So come on, we’re going to watch another litter of puppies run around.” 

Taeyong gave him a bizarre look as he was dragged away, “What are you talking about?”

Jaehyun just kept silent, a suspicious smile on his face until they reached the soccer field, “Oh no, no, no, Jaehyun this is not a good idea.” 

“What are you talking about? Some of our freshmen recruits are on the team, we need to show some support. This year they’re going to nationals. I know it.” Jaehyun said as they crossed the grassy knolls. 

Taeyong’s eyes searched the bleachers frantically until he spotted Haeun, “Haeun told me she’d be here. I don’t want her to think I’m following her.”

Jaehyun’s footsteps slowed down as a dubious look crossed his face, “Um…I don’t think you need to worry about her thinking that.”

Taeyong followed his gaze to Haeun, who was seated in the first row, smiling at a soccer player who was talking to her. A soccer player that wasn't Mark. He ran his fingers through his sweaty hair before lifting the ends of his shirt to wipe at the sweat, flashing a golden set of abs.

Jaehyun snorted, holding back a loud laugh, “What a smooth motherer.”

Taeyong tilted his head, watching the guy hold his hand out to her. She hesitated, giving him a scoff but he kept talking until she let out a defeated laugh and gingerly rested her hand in his before being led off to the field where all the other players except Mark had left. 

“Huh. Didn't know they knew each other.” Jaehyun said lowly, casting Taeyong a curious look before slowly walking the perimeter of the field to sit where Haeun just was. Taeyong stayed silent, just watching them interact

The three on the field didn’t notice them as Jaehyun and Taeyong silently watched Haechan kick the ball to Haeun. Mark was barely involved, just watching Haechan with a frown. Haeun laughed, turning with the ball and racing away, kicking it away as she headed for the goalie’s net. Mark snapped out of it and both he and Haechan screamed as they ran after her, their yells turning into cheers when she scored on the spot net. Haechan ran up to her, and lifted her up while she continued to cheer. 

If it wasn't obvious before, it was obvious now how people just came to like Haeun. Aside from him, she got along with everyone so naturally, it was kind of attractive how she could smile and weave conversations with people she barely knew. He admired that about her and wished he could be more like that. It must be nice to let people into your life so easily; to want people to get to know you. 

Yet when it came to him, she was different. Nervous, almost. 

Taeyong leaned back and let out a heavy sigh. Why did this feel weird?

“Hey guys!”

Both of them sat up when Mark called from across the field. Taeyong held his breath when Haeun's eyes landed on him. Her smile shrunk, then widened and then her gaze fell. He wanted to know what she was thinking. He wanted to know if she wanted him to leave.

Jaehyun stood and cupped his hands around his mouth, “How about a friendly game?"

Joseon Dynasty ——1889

“Mom, are you serious?” Haeun groaned. “But the Royals are supposed to be visiting!”

Her father came in, wrapping himself up in a coat, “I’m sorry sweetie, we need to go visit your mother’s cousin which means we’ll be gone for nearly the entire day. You and Mark need to mind the store, especially when the Royals come by because there’s going to be so many people in the area which means more customers for us.”

“Which also means, no sneaking out and leaving Mark to do everything himself.” Her mother tutted before kissing her on the cheek. 

She rolled her eyes and nodded, “Fine. I promise.”

Once they left, she and Mark fell into a silent routine of preparing the shop for opening. After most of the work was done, she opened the large windows and gazed at the crowds of people fluttering around in excitement.

It wasn’t every day that the Royals would visit the town with no specific reason other than to see their people.

“Are they here yet?” Mark called out.

She hummed, “Almost. I can see the crowds coming near.”

Mark ran over and propped himself up next to he

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tang53 #1
Chapter 23: I love this story that I come across a few days ago. It is amazing and beautiful. I love how intact their friendship is and their loyalty to each other even after their reincarnation.
Shawolgurl
#2
Chapter 23: Hi.. new reader here!! I just stumble upon this story a couple days ago, and i just can't stop reading it. I literally read this non-stop until the last chapter. I enjoy reading this story so much!!!
I love the characters, the plot, their friendship, their conversations, everything . I don't think i've ever read story about reincarnations and soulmates that is so beautiful, well written and wholesome like this. Thank you for sharing this with us.
I'm looking forward to read your other stories. <333
Pennywise45 #3
Chapter 23: I've only read your nct stories, but I absolutely love them so much. Your books have me feeling a certain way and I'll be sure to check your other stories out. I literally don't know if I can move on from Small Universes Around Us and Maison des Fleurs because they are masterpieces.
supacha #4
Chapter 23: Thank you for writing this fic. You are fantastic and i hope you know that your fics bring joy and happiness to your readers. Its so full of love and i love it!
exiAkim #5
Chapter 23: This is the first time I finished a story here at asianfanfics after 5 years. I'm so glad I decided to come back here. I've been busy with work and life and stuff so it's hard and I want something to reward myself.
Thank you for the wonderful story!
I know it's so late already but I appreciate your work. The plot, the characters, the twist, and everything is wonderful. Can't wait to read all your other fics. Keep up the good work. Fighting!
AutumnLady94 #6
Chapter 23: I've always known that you are absolutely a sick writer but I just wanna beat myself for not reading this fic earlier. I've read your other fics and somehow I've always put this fic on hold. I'm ing mad rn. This fic is outstanding, no surprise, because you gave birth to this. Thank you very much for the mind-blowing plots, nonsense but intriguing scenes and heartbreaking love stories. I hope you well and never stop writing bombs. Let us know if you wanna do publishing. I'll buy without even thinking properly. Again, thank you.
EJ-ARMYz
#7
Chapter 23: I got interested when you up the first chapter, but i were busy with my studies and looking for internship opportunity. So it took me a long time to read your story.



I'm glad i got to read this now. It's mindblowing journey for me. I think you always write the story that connects with other people's life. I mean it's easy to feel attach with the character's feeling, behaviour and situations like i'm the one in the story. I also love how you potray the relationships between the characters as in love relationship and friendship. It's make me think that i need to appreciate more people in my life and what would i do if i lost them. So thank you for that! Hope to see more form you!! <3
Lemlouma
#8
Chapter 23: Dear author,

Thank you for writing such a heart wrenching story that made me tear up a few times too often~
Although this story sometimes left me thinking some parts were not making much sense, I'm glad I still kept on reading because as usual the confusion was solved with time.
You have created one of the most incredible love stories and I enjoyed it from beginning to the end, sometimes even wished for more detailed explenations, also found it refreshing how although it got complicated it was still so easy and simple sometimes - you did a great job in putting out your definition of 'soulmates' as if you had experienced it yourself and at the very least made readers wish to fine exactly that.

So thank you for the effort and I wish you to get even more support on this and all your other stories~
Greetings and the best of wishes from me
MissMong24 #9
Chapter 23: Ah, be still my heart. WOW that was such a rollercoaster! Loviet you never disappoint. This was so so so beautiful THANK YOU SO MUCH for taking the time to write this piece and share it with us. I was clearly able to feel the love the two had for each other and i also especially love how their friends were so supportive of them too. Goes to show how pure and kind haeun and taeyong are. I also really like that despite how hopelessly in love they are to each other but they still have their own close friends around them as well and i think it serves as a nice reminder to your readers that a romantic relationship cannot fulfill your everything, you also need your own set of friends who can support you in the ways that your significant other cannot.
MissMong24 #10
Chapter 17: OMG WHAT IS HAPPENING NOOOO