Jihyo put the keys to their hanok on top of the counter. After a lengthy farewell to Jihyo’s family, Jongkook drove them off to Gyeongju that afternoon. It was a quick journey, but lengthened due to Jihyo’s insistence that they drive by a restaurant to grab food for the trip. Jongkook took it as a cue to about her weight, earning him a smack on the head.

The hanok they had rented was a bit separated from the rest of the other tenants, and was overlooking a beautiful scenery of nature interspersed with traditional structures. Jongkook carried their luggages into what looked to be the living room, before turning and seeing two doors down a small hallway. “Which one are you taking Sooyeon-ah?” he asked.

Jihyo was staring out a window, but was successfully taken out of her thoughts when Jongkook called out her name. “What do you mean?” she asked in confusion.

Jongkook simply turned his head towards the doors in a silent answer. Jihyo laughed, “Ah Oppa, why are you even asking that? I’ll stay wherever you’re staying!” She took both their luggages and hauled them into the room farthest down the hall. Jongkook followed suit, only to find that Jihyo had now taken her claim to the bed.

“Yah! We’re still in outside clothes! Change first!” Jongkook approached her, taking her by the arm and pulling her to get her to stand. Jihyo let her weight get dragged up before yanking down Jongkook to fall on top of her.

Jihyo giggled at their proximity (and partly at herself for her audacity to pull him to her), but also felt a sense of admiration at Jongkook, upon seeing him immediately rest his arm on the bed to put his weight off of her. “Sooyeon-ah, I could’ve crushed you,” Jongkook said softly, looking anywhere else but her face, trying to keep himself distracted from how close they were now. Jihyo was thoroughly amazed at how a man like Jongkook could look so cute when he was shy.

“But you didn’t Oppa,” Jihyo said, resting her arms around Jongkook’s neck. “Why won’t you look at me?” she asked. That caught Jongkook’s attention, and he stared into her eyes, making Jihyo wonder whether she’d just agreed to melting in his arms by getting him to look at her. Jongkook brushed away some stubborn strands from Jihyo’s forehead.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Jihyo felt the question slip from her lips.

Jongkook chuckled, and it did things to Jihyo. “Just moments ago, you were asking why I wasn’t looking at you, and now you’re complaining that you have my full attention?” He lightly brushed the tip of his nose against hers, before saying, “You’re funny, my beautiful Jihyo.”

Jongkook flipped them over to lie on his back, letting Jihyo settle her head upon his chest. They laid down for a while in silence, basking in the presence of one another. Jihyo drew circles on Jongkook’s chest absentmindedly, while he closed his eyes, his hands resting on Jihyo’s waist comfortably. 

“We should do this more often,” Jongkook said, breaking the silence. When Jihyo raised her head and looked at him with questioning eyes, he added, “Take a break, I mean.”

“I’m not sure how we’ll manage that outside of the holidays, Oppa,” Jihyo thoughtfully said. “Don’t you have a lot of things lined up? You’re opening a YouTube channel too right?”

“Eung. And then you’ll be doing that fantasy show,” Jongkook mused. “But at least we’ll still see each other every Monday. And then, we still have our Friday bike dates. It’s going to be a challenge for us Jihyo-yah, but we’ll be fine,” he finally said, pulling Jihyo in to kiss her forehead.

There was a comfortable silence after that. Neither Jihyo nor Jongkook wanted to pull away. That cold winter afternoon, they were each other’s warmth. Jihyo loved the comfort Jongkook brought to him; it had been different from her past relationships. Jongkook was still one of her best friends first and foremost, but the familiarity was now laced with butterflies every now and then. There was something unspeakable between them, but Jihyo knew that whatever it was, it made Jongkook a perfect companion for her.

Jongkook, on the other hand, just felt that he was at the right place. After he and Jihyo decided to take things slowly, she encouraged him to take on more work, a welcome change from his past relationships. Jihyo had always been supportive of him, never asking for too much, but now that it has been within the bounds of a committed relationship, he felt even more grateful for the trust and support she gave him.

If this happened a decade ago, it probably wouldn’t have turned out for the better. Jihyo probably would have searched for the frivolities of a first romance, while Jongkook would have been too defensive of his work. But, given their years of living and their long friendship, they have grown to unconditionally offer love, security, and support to each other.

“I think we should send Haha-oppa something this holiday season,” Jihyo broke the silence again. “I mean, this did happen because he was too nosy.”

Jongkook hated to admit when Donghoon was right, but in this case, his dongsaeng nailed the head on the coffin. Getting him and Jihyo to consider dating was probably the best thing his best friend has ever done for him. But a certain thought interested him.

“Geurae, we should,” Jongkook relented before adding, “But do you really think we wouldn’t have gotten together if not for Donghoon?”

“I certainly wouldn’t ask you out. You know that’s not my style, Oppa,” Jihyo answered immediately. “But would you have?”

Jongkook considered his answer, before saying truthfully, “Probably not.” Then, after a beat, he asked, “Does that bother you?”

“Ani,” Jihyo said. “I can only get offended in hindsight because, now, I like being with you. But back then, you know how we were about us.” She laughed, “At least, we have a choice on the matter. It’s not like we’re predestined or something.”

Jongkook chuckled too, before adding, “But didn’t that fortune teller say that I’m like the water that’s supposed to quench your thirst.”

They both laughed, remembering their usual new year episodes, but eventually the laughter gave way to more discussions of whether fate was real and how much people can really control their destinies. Jongkook enjoyed opinionating with Jihyo, considering how rare it was to get her to talk. In that moment, Jihyo continuously spoke her mind, and asked Jongkook questions that challenged his own ideas regarding the topic. 

“I think we can control our lives and make choices. But I have to say, I really think what we’re born with and what we’re destined to find in our lives is based on our past choices. Don’t you ever wonder what you were in your past life?” Jongkook asked. 

“Na? I really think I was just a commoner in my past life. Probably grew up surviving on my own,” Jihyo nonchalantly said. 

“Do you think we were together in our past lives?” Jongkook probed. 

Jihyo thought for a moment, “Depends. I think you were a warrior in your past life, Oppa. Do you think you would have married a commoner?”

Jongkook answered, “I probably would if I love the person.” There was a beat after that; Jihyo knew what Jongkook meant by that sentence. He continued, “For what it’s worth, while I’m still a bit skeptical about fortunes