❝The Troublemaker's Reunion❞

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Silence. Shock. Frozen. 

And a long gaze of the two people meeting after almost a decade. 

The faint waves of the blue water were echoing in the whole silent court; the cause of the waves were the two people standing in the middle of it in a lost, yet long bore of their eyes into each other, together. 

The sight was unexpected; unbelievable. 

Inha's widened eyes bored into his exact round ones; her eyes slowly adapting the scene, and the sight of him standing in front of her, holding her against him safely until it started to hit her; and her heart began to pound behind her chest in a way that she found hard to breathe yet she could feel the rapid beat of his heart against her. 

Sehun had to take a good minute to believe the sight before his eyes; his eyes were boring into the pair of brown ones he had been longing to see; to meet, and the moment was here, she was standing right in front of him, holding him like her life was dependent on him but it was enough, it was enough for his heart to jolt up in a wild beat behind his chest. 

A wave of bliss was around; unknowingly behind the sudden wave of nervousness. 

Inha's eyes unknowingly noticed his change; but nothing was changed, only the rapid age of his had made him look more mature than before; he wasn't that teenager who had left nine years ago, because now before her eyes was standing a man; yet nothing changed. 

He was still the Oh Sehun from nine years ago. 

And sudden flashbacks of theirs had gone through her head like a bittersweet feeling. 

However, she wasn't the only one; he couldn't believe the sight in front of him, as his eyes continued to gaze at her with a blissful warmth in his heart, as after the longing of his heart he was finally seeing her face; matured, but still the same. 

She was still the Baek Inha from nine years ago. 

A sudden blur of their vision and their gaze averted away until he met her eyes again with a subtle yet confused smile on his lips as to what to utter at such moment yet all he could say was. "Hey?" 

The moment Inha had heard him; her mind was alarmed in a panic motion to immediately gasp as she instantly pulled away only to find herself in the pool drowning again with her arms flapping against it to splash the whole water on the man standing in front of her with a dumbfounded look. 

He was right; she hadn't changed. 

Yet he was quick to take a hold of her to pull her to himself again and Inha's arms wounded around his neck; in agape as she took heavy breaths again to meet his eyes to find him close enough; staring back at her with his arms around her waist, his hair damp pushed back with some drops of water on his face. 

But something was different; his eyes glinted differently and her heart couldn't stop her rapid pace but so was his. 

"I never really thought of this warm meet-up." 

He uttered; his voice deep sent a sudden chills down her system as her arms unconsciously tightened around him; feeling the chain around his neck against her wrist, and her lips parted. "Well, I never really thought of someone scaring the hell out of me either." 

And there it was, her sassy remarks that he missed. 

His system seemed to be paused for a moment; her voice went through his ears like a tickle yet he couldn't be bothered. 

At this point, he could never. 

Both of them stared at each other to break into their little smiles; awkward, nervous but somehow warm. 

His steps forwarded still holding her against him as Inha's steps walked backward still holding him back; not letting him go in a fear as her hold was tight around the collar of his polo shirt until he had taken her off guard through his action by lifting her up to place her on the edge of the pool while keeping the eye contact with her as Inha sat still to find him getting out of it afterwards. 

"Oh my gosh." 

Both of them turned to the voice to find Minho standing there with a shocked face. "What happened here?" 

"Someone's still not a swimmer." Sehun shrugged, taking off his watch which got wet while his corner of lips turned in a smirk as his eyes locked with Inha who was seated still until her lips parted. "Someone's still not a good walker." 

His forehead creased in amusement; something familiar clicked on his mind, and Inha seemed to be realizing the same as their eyes exchanged the same glint. 

Minho stared at them for a moment to recall the moments of theirs from years back as he couldn't help but smile. "You two really haven't changed at all," He trailed off as he stood by them. "Still fighting kids like you did back then." 

He walked to the locker room and came back with towels, and spare pair of clothes for them as he placed it on the bench where Inha's lab coat along with her phone and ID card was placed there and Sehun's eyes glanced at it with a realization to immediately look back at Inha who stood up at the same time to meet his eyes. 

"So, Ms. doctor?" He asked, his forehead creasing as a smile graced his lips, and Inha's lips stretched in a soft curve as she nodded. "Yeah." 

"Of course, she is." Minho smiled, almost patting her head but stopped with a grimace and earned a glare from her until her head was covered with the towel by him as he chuckled to find them drying themselves. "I really can't believe we're meeting like this." 

Three of them exchanged a smile until Minho got a phone call and with a huff, he left, not before asking them to change themselves like he used to do back then, because they were still like his kids regardless of the time, and age. 

A silence followed; something was in the air around them that made it awkward, nervous as both of them could only exchange a smile behind the glint of nervousness in their eyes that radiated in their smiles. 

It wasn't like them; but so much had changed yet they weren't. 

Inha had wrapped the towel around her as she wiped her face by the corner of it as her eyes couldn't help but glance at him; unable to believe that she had met him, that he was standing right in front of her drying his hair while his clothes drenched; Inha noticed how he suddenly appeared differently than before, he still stood tall, and muscular but it had changed. 

Then again, nine years is a long period of time; and the moment it got her, her heart hammered behind her chest as the moment of his departure crossed her mind, and that time it was so unknown to her that it was the last time she had seen him but here he was, standing in front of her. 

Her eyes moistened; so much has passed. 

He seemed to be having the same thoughts as he met her eyes; his eyes held her gaze for a moment as he stood just a few steps away from her yet the glint behind their eyes could tell; they were happy to see each other. 

A smile graced his lips. "You really haven't changed, Baek Inha." 

She frowned. "Like?" 

"Like you still didn't learn swimming." He chuckled, taking a seat on the bench and Inha scoffed, taking the place on the bench with the clothes, and Inha's belongings between them. "As if you are any exception? Already picking a fight with me." 

Both of them shared a look for a moment to look away with a chuckle. 

"It's a progress that I'm not seeing you crying."

"I did not cry." 

"You couldn't even stand up back then." 

"And you were being a jerk to me." 

He nodded with a smile as he stared at her; her black button down drenched but he noticed something different, her hair as he blinked a couple of times in surprise. "You grew your hair." 

Inha instinctively tucked a wet strand of hair behind her ear as a sudden nervousness hit her. "Yeah, I couldn't get time to trim it." 

He didn't say anything but kept his stare for a moment. "It suits you." 

Her eyes widened. "Did you just compliment me?" 

He frowned. "Why are you so surprised?" 

"You never compliment." 

"That's not true." 

Inha chuckled, and he shook his head to look at her. "How's Jinsoo and Yoojung?" 

Inha smiled; her eyes taking a glance at their friendship bracelet around his wrist to feel a wave of bliss. "They miss you." 

"Me too." He said, his voice low and Inha could tell from his expression as she tilted her head. "What are you doing here though?" 

He blinked a couple of times. "I just wanted to visit school but I didn't know I'd meet you here." He paused, as a smile graced his lips. "I'm glad, I did." 

Inha stared at him. "You visited here alone?" 

He frowned. "Can't I?" 

"No." 

"What?" 

"I mean, you're kind of an eye-catching celebrity." She gave him a look, and Sehun gave her a look back. "You aren't treating me like one." 

"Ah," She nodded, with a mocking smile. "I should take your autograph, Oh Sehun, I have several admirers of yours in my hospital." 

"Sure, bring them on." 

Both of them stared at each other; realizing how their conversation was going out of context, and it wasn't really but time was, the time of theirs had passed so much between them, and that the two of them weren't high schoolers anymore to chat about the summer vacations or the trouble they had caused, as this time, they were in front of each other with their achievements, the achievements they had worked hard for; the achievements where they had given each other the affirmation of motivation and the achievements they were living in right now. 

And this place was part of it; part of them. 

And suddenly, the moments of theirs here, in this place, flashed in their minds like a drifted pleasantness. 

At the moment, Inha's phone pinged with a ringtone that echoed in the silent court as both of them flinched, and she was quick to hold it against her ear as she conversed while excusing herself; Sehun stared at her with a lost trance, somehow he still couldn't believe she was right in front of him, and the glance at her lab coat to her ID card where he read her name highlighted with a general surgeon, and a wave of bliss ran through him. 

She had become the surgeon like she had dreamed of, and he couldn't be happier. 

But he wasn't there during that journey of hers and that thought hit him on the spot right there. 

"Oh, I have to go." 

He looked at her as she stood by the bench, and he stood up with a nod, "Yeah, you must be busy, because of the camp and everything," He trailed off, pointing toward the lab coat and Inha didn't know why she felt embarrassed by it as she chuckled it off. "It's just a meeting that Si-woo just reminded me of." 

"Si-woo?" 

"Kang Si-woo." 

Sehun's eyes rounded. "You both work in the same place?" 

Inha nodded, taking off her wristwatch which wasn't working because of the water now. "Things ended up like this." 

He nodded; feeling strange about the information. "Yeah, things really ended up like this." 

His eyes bored into hers and Inha couldn't understand the glint behind them. 

Soon enough, he gestured her to change as Inha attempted to walk past him, but he ended up taking the same side earning them the block of their ways as both of them looked at each other with Sehun attempted to step aside only for Inha to block his path at the same causing them to look at each other again with his figure towering over her. 

A wave of awkwardness held them behind their nervousness. 

"Stop." 

His palm held up and he was quick to step aside for her to walk, and Inha stared at him for a moment to immediately walk past him with a rapid beating heart behind her chest as a sudden flashback of theirs had hit her mind, and that time it was not like this, there was an awkwardness that time but it wasn't like this. 

Because there was a certain nervousness; a nervousness he had felt too but she'd be unaware of. 

Soon enough, Inha had walked out in the spare clothes while her drenched ones in the paper bag that she found inside and found him sitting still on the beach; his torso leaned forward with the towel wrapped around his shoulders but his eyes staring at the pool; the blue water in a lost trance. 

"He's really here." 

Inha mused, her eyes along with her mind still taking a hold of his sight, as it was so unexpected to meet him here of all places, and it was out of their imagination to meet him again considering his busy life; considering the circumstances that had led them where they are right now but there he was, sitting not so far away from her. 

"You're back." 

She heard him with a smile, and Inha nodded. "Yeah, I'm back." 

Sehun stood up to observe her in one of spare gym clothes, and he was reminded of that time again, which had him smiling to himself as Inha frowned. "You're not about to make a joke, right?" 

He let out a chuckle. "No." 

"Jerk." Inha blurted out, and her eyes widened along with his eyes. "It's been a while." 

"I didn't mean to-" She bit her lip. "You should change." 

He nodded, and walked past her as he noticed the look on her face; the flinch, and a mindfulness of her aimless words, something she didn't use to be mindful about but now she was, unable to decide if it was because they were meeting after a long time or something had happened in his absence that led her to be this mindful. 

Not long before, Inha found him walking towards her with a paper bag in his hand, and a chuckle left her lips. "They seem to have lots of it." 

He shrugged, and she gave him the black cap that was lying on the floor by his sudden throw along with his phone as he took them. "What about my watch?" 

"What watch?" 

"The watch that broke while saving your drowning self." 

Inha gave him a look. "That watch broke because you scared me enough to fall off." 

His eyes squinted, and Inha shrugged before checking the time. "I should go." 

He nodded. "I know." 

"We should meet up," She trailed off, with a smile. "Our squad." 

His heart skipped a beat. "Will they?" 

She nodded; a soft glint in her eyes. "They'd love to." 

He didn't say anything and Inha understood. 

She was quick to get her belongings, as her lab coat hung over her forearm along with her bag strap around her shoulder as she took a step back. "Then, see you." 

Sehun found her back retreating towards the door as he stood still, until she had disappeared from his sight leaving him in a strange feeling; the feeling he was so familiar with, and known of and before he knew it, he was already walking through the door outside. 

Inha had reached her car in the parking lot, to find a black car beside it with a man sitting on the driving seat as she frowned but shrugged it off until her phone pinged again, and knowing it was from Si-woo, she had answered it without checking the number. "I'm-"

"Baek Inha." 

Her heart skipped a beat, as the person behind the phone was not Si-woo, and the deep voice was too familiar to be forgotten and before she could have said something, his voice went through again. 

"Can you turn around?" 

Her eyes were quick to look over her shoulder to find him standing further away from her; standing by the entrance gate with his phone against his ear, and something else was familiar too, as the sudden flashback of their airport moment crossed her head where they were standing just like this; further away from each other. 

"I got your number from Minho hyung." He spoke, running his hand through his damp hair with a smile and Inha's eyes could only stare unknowingly at him as she hummed, a smile gracing her lips. "Don't lose it this time." 

He nodded. "Not this time." 

Both of them stared at each other for a moment as her lips parted. "See you later, Oh Sehun." 

"Later, Baek Inha." 

The phone was hung up, and Inha was already driving her car out of the parking lot until she heard his name again but by a man as her eyes looked through the side mirror to find the man from the same car earlier standing by Sehun who stood with him as his faint scolds went through her ears to him who stood nonchalantly. 

A chuckle left her lips as she drove away. "He's still as reckless as before." 

She rounded the corner with a smile; a sense of blissfully relieved feeling of meeting the old friend again, but was unaware of how he was feeling the same, and how his eyes didn't leave the sight of her until she disappeared. 

They have met again, and so much was ahead of them. 

________________________________________

3:01 pm 

The white hallways kept being echoed with the rushing footfalls of the people; the aroma of the medicine had beamed in the place where it's place was from the beginning, the lobby was filled with some patients seated on the huge area of the sitting area where the television was set in front of them like a theater with the reception desk was occupied by the head nurse of in charge; and a few doctors could be seen on their duties, or some of them were taking a break from it. 

One of them was seated on one of the chairs in her scrubs; Baek Inha. 

Her stare on the television where the screen was showing a soap opera at the moment, but her eyes were blank, lost to be said with her hands gripping the paper cup filled with the coffee yet her mind was somewhere else; somewhere the unexpected moment had happened this morning; the unexpected meeting with the person whom she least expected to meet. 

She had never predicted the meeting with Sehun, nor she had predicted how she'd feel while meeting him after a long time, after how she had seen him the last time at the airport, and how she'd feel after that difficult time of keeping her feelings to herself, that she had buried in her heart years ago. 

Something that didn't come to her with an ease but life didn't also welcomed her with an ease either and she went through both of them; unpleasantly but strongly. 

And after meeting him had brought the flashbacks of her life; their moments, and somehow her heart had thud with a feeling of nostalgia behind a bittersweet sensation yet it brought a warmth; a warmth of finally meeting the one person whom she had been yearning to meet, not just as a person who had made her realize the feeling of affection but someone who had also motivated her ahead. 

However, there was a certain emotion; something differently familiar but non-understandable. 

Not at the moment; but it will be, at the right moment. 

"Inha?" 

The next moment, she felt a pang of stung on her forehead which had her lips let out a hiss but it was enough for her to snap out as she rubbed her forehead to look at the person who had dared to do this deed to her only to find Si-woo standing there in his scrubs with a frown and a paper cup of coffee in his hand. 

"What was that for?" Inha questioned, and Si-woo took a chair next to her. "You weren't listening to me so I had to do it like old times." 

"Old times." 

She mumbled, and her mind recalled the moment of their meeting again, until she turned to him to find him sipping his coffee with a confused look towards her but her mind remembered the yesterday evening of theirs; the moment he had revealed his feelings for her but it was enough to send a wave of awkwardness in her as she looked away. 

"Not this, please." He let out a low groan, and faced her. "This is why I was hesitant about, for you to go all awkward with me." 

Inha pressed her lips together with a sheepish look. "How can I not?" 

"Before anything," He trailed off, his eyes turning gentle toward her. "I'm your friend, so treat me like you have been until now no matter how this turn out later or not, but," He paused, with a playful look. "Should I be thankful that you'd look at me a little differently than usual?" 

"Stop, seriously." Inha pushed him away with a scrunch of her nose and he chuckled, taking a sip again. "But what's with your new attire though?" 

Inha blinked at him to recall how she'd arrived back from the school in the gym clothes which was out of her character during her duty in the hospital, earning her lots of stares and whispers again, not that she ever cared about but it somehow cared her enough to remember the time of meeting that unexpected person there. 

"I met Sehun." 

Si-woo brought his cup down with a surprised look, as he stared at her. "At your school?" 

"Yeah," Inha nodded; her eyes softening. "At our school." 

"So, how was it?" 

"It's been nine years," She paused, with a sigh to give him a smile. "So it was a little awkward but he hasn't really changed." 

"He still doesn't talk?" 

Inha gave him a frowned look. "He always talked." 

He shrugged. "He never talked to me though." 

"He did." Inha chuckled. "You just weren't in his conversation category." 

Si-woo gave her a look. "You're alright taking his side? So you forgot your friend now that your old friend has returned? Is that it, Inha? You were this type of character?" 

Inha gave him a done look. "You're talking too much, sunbae." 

"Did you tell Jinsoo and Yoojung about it?" 

Her head shook. "I want to surprise them," An excited smile graced her lips behind the sparkling glint in her eyes. "I can't wait to see their reactions when we are all together again." 

Si-woo stared at her and found a smile; a smile he was seeing after a long time, the smile he used to see when she was just a teenager, the smile that was hard to see these years but that smile had graced her lips as if it was meant to be for this moment. 

Meant to be for the one who was behind it. 

The thought had brought a strange feeling; a feeling of familiarity that he was known for and again, he didn't like it. 

Nevertheless, he smiled, because that's what mattered; her happiness. "You have become mischievous now." 

"I was always mischievous." 

Inha chuckled, standing up while drinking the last sip of the coffee as she threw the cup in the trash bin to walk through the hallway again alongside Si-woo with their conversation beginning but this time, it was the conversation about their duties; the duties that rested like a responsibility on their shoulders through the outfit wrapped around them. 

And, the duties came with different forms of fields; the field that was happening in the moment, in the corner of the city with a huge place, where the murmurs of people beamed around the place of a huge building that stood tall enough; few sounds of clicks echoing around by the photographer that stood on his ground to take the perfect picture of the two people standing and posing behind the lens of his camera. 

Oh Sehun and Lee Ah-Young. 

"A bit closer to each other." 

He uttered, tilting the camera and found Ah-Young's hand on Sehun's shoulder while his was on her back as they looked at each other; silently to feel the lights, and the sound of clicks perking their ears indicating that their pictures were being taken smoothly like usual, behind the usual gazes of people around them, something they had gotten used to, something they had to, something that happened so frequently that it had to happen. 

"And that's it!" 

Both of them were quick to lean away with a nod, as Sehun forwarded to his chair followed by the polite gesture toward the staff leaving Ah-Young with her stylist who was re-touching her makeup with her eyes glancing at Sehun to find him scrolling through his phone; and a smile on his lips, something she's been noticing since the moment this man has walked inside the studio, not something strange to find him smiling but this smile was different than his usual. 

She wanted to go there to ask him like she does as his friend, but remembering about the article about them from this morning had stopped her as she was grateful for him to come to the premiere of her movie but that also got him into something he usually detest to be in; a scandal, and she knew this because he himself had told her about him disliking any kind of attraction that comes between his work, and his people, or the people who might get hurt because of it.

Yet it had happened, and she was feeling guilty for it. 

She had taken her place opposite of where he was settled down; and grabbed her phone to find a message from him. 

'Sehun - I know I'm handsome but you're going to burn a hole in me'

Ah-Young had to raise her head up with a grimace toward him to type back.

'Ah-Young - Talk about yourself, your lips are about to rip off your face'

Sehun chuckled to himself, and Ah-Young had to be surprised as this message was surely going to get her a savage reply from him but got a chuckle instead; and the smile still rested on his lips. 

'Ah-Young - What's with you?' 

'Sehun - I met her.' 

Ah-Young gave him a frowned look. 

'Ah-Young - Met who?' 

'Sehun - Baek Inha.'

And the name alone was enough for her to gasp loudly as she looked at him. "No way!" 

The crew of people in the room turned to her with a flinch, and Sehun gave her a look while Ah-Young immediately apologized with a smile and found her friend silently laughing at her which earned him a glare but she was quick to brush it off as the information from him was much more important than the crew giving her the look.

Ah-Young - How? Where? When? I want every detail right now!'

A smile graced his lips, and the moment from earlier crossed his mind, the way