Chapter 10

It's Always You

                                                                                           

P.S  For those who haven't figured it out yet, our new character is GOT7's handsome Lead vocalist: Park Jinyoung. Just thought I should mention :)

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The first snow fell at the beginning of December and so did the next Football match that our campus played. I think it's a pretty bad idea to play in such chilly weather, it's honestly equal to suicide, but who would listen to me when I'm always so against it. For me, it's a big task to even move a finger in winter let alone play a whole match is death for me. Sadly my opinion doesn't matter or I would have banned the whole sport. But still, Christmas was nearing and I was excited to finally return home. 

Chanyeol and his team were practicing like crazy. And by that, I actually mean crazy. You wouldn't see them not dripping with sweat these days, every minute they found to spare, his team and he were driving each other mad. Sometimes, I have half a mind to march up to their captain, whoever it is, and give them a piece of my mind and request him to relax these poor people. Inspite of the packed schedule, Chanyeol still had enough time to tease me about Jinyoung. He was so sure that we were going to hit it off. Well, I must agree, Jinyoung was a fine man. Recently we've been running on each other in the library a lot. And the more I talk to him the more I feel that we get along so well. He had started to hang out with us which made it easier for me to see more of him. Just yesterday, he praised me in front of the entire class that how well I had prepared the assignment and I could just blush to my roots in response.

"Isn't he awfully gorgeous?" Yumi whispered in my ear at breakfast.

I raised my eyebrows at her. "Says the girl who just celebrated an anniversary with her own boyfriend."

She giggled. "I'm still allowed to do the fangirling." I rolled my eyes, shaking my head.

"I don't think I understand Chanyeol sometimes." She suddenly blurted out.

"Only sometimes?" I asked innocently.

"No, I'm serious. Everybody knows that he used to have feelings for you. He was so open about it. And then, he suddenly starts shipping you with Jinyoung. Don't you think that's weird?" Yumi wondered.

"That's because he never was serious with me. Come on, I told you that he said it himself. Plus, he's the one who introduced me to Jinyoung. Why would he do that if he felt otherwise?" I reasoned with her trying to make sense.

"Exactly. Either he's a very good actor and trying to bury his feelings or he was fooling around since the very start."

I nudged her to drop this topic because the trio along with Jinyoung slipped beside us on the lunch benches. Surprisingly Yoori didn't hang out with them that often now, which in my opinion is another bright point.

"Thanks. I loved it. Your choice is amazing." Jinyoung said handing me a novel of mine that I had lent him last week. I smiled, nodding at him.

"How was practice?" Yumi asked, plopping in a cucumber in . Baekhyun made a disgusted gag face at her direction.

"Pretty good. Jinyoung did exceptionally well today." Chanyeol commented slapping his back brotherly. "I knew it. I don't choose losers for my team."

Jinyoung smiled and replied. "I hope we all do well. I'm a new player and I've heard people looking forward to how I'll play. So either they will worship me by the end of the match or force me to live in a toilet."

"Oh, you'll do fine. No one forced me to live in the toilet when I lost a match. Though I would have died before they did that. My god, toilet water would have ruined my perfect complexion." Baekhyun said thoughtfully who, although, had wanted to encourage his teammate but ended up thinking about himself. He was caressing his cheek with his long fingers concerndly.

"You really can't resist admiring yourself, can you?" I shook my head. I was expecting an answer but he was suddenly busy staring at some girl across the hall. I rolled my eyes, shaking my head.

"Don't mind him." Junmyun said. "He's just jealous."

"Of?" I asked.

"Of your beautiful skin, of course." Jinyoung complimented me. I tried not to blush though the look on Chanyeol and Yumi's face was far too amused to ignore. I hate the wiggly thing they're doing with their eyebrows.

"You're coming to see us play, right?" Junmyun confirmed. "Come on, Mirae. You know so many people on the team. You should encourage them."

"What!? Don't tell me you've never been to a match." Jinyoung exclaimed. 

"She doesn't even know the rules." Yumi added simply.

"Then why don't you join us on the match today? We wouldn't be playing but our team is going to watch it all the same. Come with us and we'll explain." Baekhyun offered generously.

"I'll think about it." I said reluctantly. Maybe one match wouldn't hurt. After Jinyoung had left to chat with someone else, they all started bursting like excited chicks. 

"Woah! He is so in love with you!" Yumi screamed. "Finally, our Mirae is going have a boyfriend."

"Oh please. It's not like that." I insisted though my heart denied. I admit I do feel something flutterng when I'm around him. It's a crush maybe? I mean that's how you feel when you have a crush, right?

"No, he likes you." Chanyeol cleared.

"It may be hard for you to believe but I am actually quite likable." I smirked before taking a gulp of my orange juice.

"No, I mean he likes you." He said emphasizing the word so I'd have no doubt regarding the context.

"How could you all tell with just this small interaction?" 

"He's always asking me about you." Junmyun held up a finger.

"He said he thought you're pretty at practice yesterday." Baekhyun winked at me. "And I've caught him staring at you several times."

"There you go." Yumi said clapping her hands, concluding the matter. I hung my head low in frustration. Though I had considered him I didn't want to make a move until I was confirmed.

"You know what? You all look like gossipy teenage girls!" I muttered under my breath. The trio looked quite offended to my amusement.

"I bet you 500 won that he's going to ask you out by the end of this year." Chanyeol offered.

"I'm not betting-"

"500 Wons, Mirae." He interrupted, holding out his hand at which I moodily stared for a minute.

"Do you promise to shut up until then?" 

"I suppose I could do that."

I grasped his hand in mine and pumped it firmly. "You're on, mister."

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"So who are we rooting for?" I asked, tightening my woollen blue coat around myself as I shivered. I was aready regretting my decision of stepping out to play. We were out in the stadium and the cheering crowd was getting my nerves. The trio, Yumi, Andrew, and Jinyoung were treating me like a chief guest, explaining to me every single happening on the pitch.

"Jung Academy." Chanyeol answered quietly.

"But I thought they were the rivals?"

"Yeah, but if they win then we'll be leading with 7 points though it still makes us -"

"Spare me the details, please," I said dryly.

As the game began, I realized just how much Chanyeol, Baekhyun, Jinyoung, and even Junmyun knew about football. All of them shouted suggestions to the players though I doubt they could be heard with the roaring cheers. I didn't have to listen to the commentary as Chanyeol and Jinyoung kept up a far detailed one, both at my sides explaning passionately. I found it pretty sweet. They looked at me shocked when I cheered loudly for a goal.

"You're enjoying it, aren't you?" Jinyoung said pleasantly as he brushed some strands of hair from my face and I nodded lightly, blushing.

"You'll have to come see us at our match," Baekhyun exclaimed.

"Us?" I asked, confused, creasing my brows. As far as I was informed, only Chanyeol and Jinyoung were on the team.

"You're joking, right?" Baekhyun gasped, his eyes bulging out. All of them became silent expecting my answer.

"Er, no," I said slowly hoping that he wouldn't throw me from the bleachers.

He clutched his heart dramatically. "I - I don't even know how to go on-"

"Oh, calm down Baekhyun. She has never been to a game. She must have always thought that you went along with the team only because you liked the game." Yumi defended me.

"That is hardly a point, Yumi." Baekhyun protested. "She should know."

"He plays goalkeeper," Jinyoung whispered in my ear and I thanked him.

A few minutes later Chanyeol was explaining another move to me. "Okay so you see how they're trying to make it look like the one on the front is going to score?"

"Why would they do that-"

"Look! He made a reverse pass to the one behind just at the last moment and he'll-" His voice downed in the cheers as the player he was pointing, scored a goal. My mouth dropped in awe.

"Woah! How do you know so much about their players?" I asked, impressed.

"Well, as Captain, it's my business to know." he answered with an air of pride.

"I didn't know you were captain." I muttered and regretted it that very second. I wish I'd thought over it before blurting it out because, well, it there was deadly silence for one. Then they rounded up and looked at me like I was an alien speaking gibberish. Damn it, Mirae. You're in trouble this time.  When I looked at Yumi for support, she shook her head with an exasperated sigh.

"You're on your own with this one. I am stunned by your ignorance."

"But it's not impossible!" I whined. "No one in their right mind would give him this much responsibility." I defended myself, pointing at the said captain. "He's always joking around and..." My voice got quieter as Chanyeol started glaring at me.

"He's very serious when it comes to football." Jinyoung assured. I peeked a look at Chanyeol who was still in shock. I smiled sheepishly because I truly felt guilty.

The match ended shortly afterward and we all chatted, walking back to the building. Jinyoung was walking way too close that I could feel his sweet vanilla scent. I inhaled deeply in it as I smiled,e his presence. 

"I suppose I should get back to work," I said, yawning widely.

"Who does homework on the weekend?" Baekhyun pouted, folding his arms.

"People who don't want Madame Jung to murder them in class." I replied with a smirk.

"Yeah, I better hit the books too." Chanyeol scratched his head. "If I want to finish before midnight."

"Hey mate, what are you doing?" Baekhyun him, looking truly worried for his friend's sanity.

"Getting to work, of course. I have to work on the history quiz." Chanyeol replied teasingly. 

Baekhyun's eyes widened in horror. "What happened to you?" Then he turned to me and demanded in a louder voice. "What have you done to him?"

I held up my hands. "Hey, this has nothing to do with me."

Chanyeol suddenly reached out and tapped the shoulder of a younger girl walking near him. I recognized her as a student from our Science group, two years junior to us.

"Hey, sorry to bother you." He began. "But do you know who's the captain of our campus' football team?" He flashed her a dimpled smile.

She looked slightly thrown off by the question but answered tentatively, "Uh, You?"

"Thanks." He turned triumphantly at me.

I rolled my eyes. "That hardly proves that I'm the only one in this campus oblivious to this fact. Plus that girl was a student from the Science group. She would definitely know."

"And so are you." He pointed. 

Well, I couldn't argue with that.

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I had been walking around the library for an hour at least but still was clueless on where to find the right book for my essay. Looking inside the shelves for the nth time, I sighed in frustration. Who the hell can write an essay on 'Human vs. Robots'. It's just so damn confusing. I thought I knew every nook and cranny of our library. Seems like I was wrong. Because there was no book here containing that kind of information. The stupid thing was nowhere to be found.

"Damn it," I said angrily, shoving a book back into the stacks forcefully after finding absolutely nothing to help me.

"Taking your anger out on poor objects? Not so healthy, is it?"

I was startled by the unexpected voice. I hadn't noticed anybody behind me. I turned around and found myself looking at Jinyoung's grinning face. A part of me immediately noticed the way his eyes shone in the low lighting of the library. This minor observation blocked out all other thoughts. I inwardly slapped that part out of my mind.

"Yeah, I tend to do that when I can't control myself. But I'm working on it." I conjured up a reply when I regained my senses.

"Good. They don't deserve to suffer the famous wrath of Kang Mirae," he answered closing the distance between us.

"Famous?" I scrunched my nose. "I hardly think so."

"Are you serious? Your temper is legendary, my dear." He laughed quietly.

I shook my head and chuckled lightly. "Stop hanging out with Chanyeol. He's poisoning your mind."

"Don't worry. He's always praising you." 

I frowned. Really? How come he never does that often in front of me? 

"Plus. I think it's hard not to notice when both of you used to shout at each other across the common room. I was here the first semester, you know and I think everyone here has at least experienced one of your fights."

"Hmm...Maybe." I said, unsure. "I was just looking for some information for an essay but this ing library can help me no more."

He raised his eyebrows with a judging look. I clapped a hand over my mouth as I realized what I had said. 

"Well, well, well. What do we have here? Kang Mirae is swearing? Our prefect? Our role model? A strong candidate for the next Head Girl?" He chuckled. I laughed and hung my head low.

"So what were you doing here?" I asked casually.

"Looking for you. I was free so I thought of hanging out with you. I'm really surprised we didn't properly meet before because I think we really click. To be honest, you're like a magnet."

"Magnet?" I asked confused. His next words flew me away to a next level.

"Well, you attract me like one." He replied with the most charming smile and my heartbeat started running thousand kilometer per hour. I blushed red. I had no idea that he was flirting material too. 

I shoved him on the shoulder lightly. But I guess it wasn't as light as I had meant to because he stumbled backward. I gasped and reached out to grab him but we ended up clasping each other's hands. His face was only a few inches away and the expression on his face turned from surprise to an amused look.

I inhaled deeply in his scent, knowing that this moment wasn't going to last long. I felt like drowning in his deep, soulful, twinkling eyes. Standing at such a close proximity made my mind go blank and heart thumping. What felt like hours was actually just few seconds. He left my hand reluctantly and I returned to Earth.

"Uhh...I just..." Jinyoung scratched the back of his head. Why is this situation so awkward, damn.

"I'm sorry." I apologized for the hit, trying to compose myself.

"Ahh...no. That's nothing." Jinyoung smiled nervously, scratching at his nape. "Umm...I just remembered that I have practice so I should go."

I nodded.

"Good luck with your book."

. Oh yeah, I had totally forgotten that I was supposed to be working. He left and I placed a hand on my chest to slow down the heartbeat, still in a daze.

I had ditched my plan of writing the essay and I was wandering in the library and I passed by the newspaper stand in a corner. Most of the headlines consisted of Kim Youngmin and his antics. I walked over and picked the latest edition and started reading. It said that his first hearing was scheduled for tomorrow at Seoul Central District Court. I looked at the man's face closely. He looks too familiarHad we met before? I narrowed my eyes in confusion. There was something there in that face and I felt like I was missing something very important. I was probably too engrossed in it to notice Junmyun calling me.

"Mirae? MIRAE?" He whispered as loudly as possible and the librarian shushed us irritatedly.

"Huh?" I looked at him and wondered how long had he been standing there.

"It's nine o'clock. We have to do rounds." 

I nodded. "Okay, just a second." I returned back to the article to finish off the last lines. I watched from my peripheral vision as his eyes darted to the newspaper and he quickly held my arm and started to pull.

"Let's go." He said nervously. 

"Why are you sweating? It's December for heaven's sake!" I commented lightly. 

"Nothing." He said too quickly. "Oh and Mirae? I forgot to mention earlier. I wouldn't be here tomorrow so you'll have to the rounds on your own."

"Is everything alright?" I asked, concerned.

"Yeah." He said in a way that his tone itself sounded too suspicious. Junmyun couldn't seem to meet my eyes. I neared him and observed him closely. The world seemed to freeze when I looked at his eyes. My mouth parted in surprise when I realized the answer to the question that had been bugging me. My head whipped at the newspaper to take a look at the convicted man's face.

His eyes. Those deer shaped eyes. Just like Junmyun's eyes.

As though this was some sort of a trigger, because a chain of flashbacks began to flash in the back of my head. Every time Junmyun was too quiet and tense when this topic came up. When he would suddenly go back home saying his mother was sick. His unexpected departures. All those conversations when he resisted discussing his family. Then I recalled that time when Baekhyun once bragged in our earlier years that how Junmyun's family was so rich and that they had gone on a vacation together to Jeju. And when he had asked me for some time because he wasn't 'ready'. And just right now, he said he was leaving for home tomorrow. Tomorrow? The same day as Kim Youngmin's first hearing? I felt stupid for not realizing this earlier. After all, they had the same surname too.

Almost in slow motion, I felt like I had hit a home run. I slowly turned to face him, swallowing a lump formed inside my throat. He must have caught up on what was going on in my head because his head was up defensively. His eyes, wide and frightened. "Mirae." He started in a tone that was meant to calm me but the truth had hit me really bad this time.

Kim Youngmin was his father.

"You're-" My voice croaked and I cleared my throat. "You're his son."

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And there we go! I tried to end with a cliff hanger. It's not much but oh well. ;)

If you liked it then don't hesitate to press that little star up there! Please share your views too. ❤️

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Baekistry
Hey guys! Thank you for making time for my book. Don't feel shy to share your thoughts on the newest chapter ♥️

Comments

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Amsohappy
#1
Chapter 35: Wow!! I am sorry i am only reading this fic now, but i guess it's better late than never.
Thank you for this beautifully written love story.
ME_hunbaekyeolkaitao
#2
Chapter 35: This story was hell of a rollercoaster ride and i belive we all need a Chanyeol in our Lives!!! Oh will there be an epilogue??? Am just curioussss
juls27
#3
Chapter 35: All I care is that Chanyeol and Mirae is the end game!! I love it that they still feel the same after 5 years. It just clearly shows that they are meant to be from the very start. I like that you stick to their dynamic. The bickering and then being all fluffy is still there. I miss Chanyeol more because of this. TT.TT
Shawolgurl
#4
Chapter 35: Girl..what are you talking about?? This Chapter is PERFECT!!! It makes me realize how i need a Chanyeol in my life. LOL. I love reading about them adulting. And I'm so proud of Chanyeol and Mirae, look how far they have come.. thank you for the update <333
ftrapp2 #5
Chapter 35: I didn’t expect that … WOW!! I think this story is gonna be and gonna stay one of my favorites. It is just soo beautifully written ☺️ I really look forward to the next Update!!!
Stick
#6
Chapter 35: Wow...this was unexpected.... they're together now and I'm so happy......^^
Looking forward to the next chapter;)
Meeshma
#7
Chapter 35: After so many years of waiting got update and it was worth it ☺️..
maddlekabob
#8
Chapter 34: I came back to read this chapter and I never realized how Chanyeol really was the only person who challenged Mirae. Her parents, sister and Sehun really just accepted how Mirae viewed them and the world (don’t blame them, she’s a very logical and strong character) but Chanyeol was the only one who didn’t mind getting on her nerves and trying to get her to see things from a different perspective. I don’t think anyone else has considered Mirae’s feelings as much as Chanyeol. Whenever something happened, everyone acts in their own self interest, but whenever something happened, Chanyeol always thought of Mirae and how she would feel/want. But wahhhhh seeing them grow since the first chapter has me in tears TT
BlackWhiskers
#9
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww *endless sound of awwwwweeee*
Can i say just how much I loved this chapter? Chanyeol’s desire for her is sooo cute and it explains the actual time he had to wait until she felt the exact same. I’d have ‘canoodled’ her till the end myself, peppering her face with kisses and stuff, never letting her out of my sight! She should have understood where he’s coming from, ahaha, but I can’t exactly blame her. It’s in her personality to be dense and shy *in a cute way*
Once again, I’m admiring your ability to deliver such long chapters >< I miss when I was able to do that. It really shows your dedication.
You don’t have to apologize for taking your time writing. Life and school can be a . I’m in my last year of Uni and they have been constantly changing the date of our graduation exams. I’ve been stuck in a happy-depressed loop for months now!
I’m excited to see the remaining chapters of this story! I’m already missing it!!!!
juls27
#10
Chapter 34: You don't know how happy I am reading that Chanyeol and Mirae are finally together now. I'm crying happy tears. TT.TT You did well for this. I'm glad that they are still true to their character and there are still bickering moments but still in a romantic way. I want more of this and I think we deserve it after that slow burn. Lol. And also, I know there are still things you want to reveal like when did Chanyeol start liking Mirae, the handkerchief and of course their plans after high school. I'm really glad the wait for the update is sooo worth it. <3