I stood in front of the door to room 520, afraid to knock. I looked at the necklace, clutched tightly in my hand, and took a deep breath, trying to slow down my heart which seemed to be ratcheting around my chest.

   This one room had held so many happy memories for Myungsoo and I.

*Flashback*

   I collapsed on the bean bag, panting heavily. After dancing for an hour non-stop, a light sheen of sweat covered my entire body, even though I had already stripped down to a tee and shorts. “I’m never going to breathe normally ever again,” I groaned.

   Chuckling, Myungsoo walked over, taking a long swig from his water bottle. His bangs were drenched with sweat, and his chest rapidly heaved in and out. “I’m never going to walk again,” he breathed, sitting down beside me. “Here,” he handed me his water bottle.

   I simply stared at it for a moment before taking it – wasn’t this an indirect kiss? Myungsoo and I had been friends since middle school, and considering we were now in our second year of high school, it was a pretty long time. Yet still, it wasn’t until the recent past year that I had started to see him less as a boy, and more as a man. “Thanks,” I mumbled as I tentatively took a sip.

   “Hey, you want to try a different genre?” He asked, grinning.

   “Hmm?! You know that I only know hip hop,” I replied, surprised. We had become such frequent users of the dance studio that we had our own designated room. We didn’t dance for any other reason other than the fact that we liked to, and we enjoyed each others’ company.

   “Doesn’t matter, I want to try something.” Standing up, he reached out his arms to me.

   “How are you still able to move?” I groaned, but I took his hands anyway, and he pulled me up in one swift motion.

   Usually when he pulled me up, he’d let go right away. This time, however, he stood his ground, and I ended up bumping into his body, which towered over my small frame.

   “Sorry -”I froze as he put his hand on the curve of my waist, preventing me from backing away. My entire body tensed as his other hand brushed its way down my arm, intertwining our fingers together.

   “Let’s try slow dancing,” he whispered. He started to hum a soft, slow tune as he led me to the middle of the room.

   “Don’t blame me if I’m not graceful,” I pouted, getting over my shock as he chuckled. I put my free hand on his shoulder as we started dancing.

   I had never been so aware of anybody before. Every movement, every beat and every whisper our clothes made as we glided across the room seemed to burn itself into my mind.

   We were both still slightly sweaty from the previous workout, but I felt myself growing warm in a totally different way.

   In the couple of minutes where we slow danced for the first time, nothing was said. Nothing had to be said. Something seemed to form between us – a realization, an epiphany.

   We liked each other.

   Suddenly, he ceased all movement, and I bumped into his chest. He moved his hand from my waist to my head, holding it against his shoulder. My eyes widened for a moment before closing my eyes, leaning my head against the warmth and comfort of his body.

   “__________...”

   “Hmm?”

   He pressed his cheek on top of my head, one of his hands tightening around mine. “Will you be my girlfriend?”

*/end*

   Shaking my head to clear it of lingering memories, I rapped my knuckles against the door and stepped into the room.

   Myungsoo was already inside, sitting on a bean bag and scrolling through his phone. After seeing me walk in, he quickly put his phone aside and sat up straighter. “Hey,” he breathed. He dragged another bean bag in front of him, and gestured for me to sit.

   I walked swiftly across the room, plopping down on the bean bag and nervously tucking my hair behind one ear. “Hey…”

   “Sorry,” we both blurted at the same time. We both looked at each other, surprised.

   “I want to explain some things,” he said anxiously.

   “Wait,” I interrupted. “Before you say anything…I want to return this,” I smiled apologetically. I held out my hand and dangled the necklace from my fingers.

   He stared at it. “I gave that to you.”

   “Yeah, when we were still…”

   “You don’t like it?”

   It’s probably one of the items I cherish the most,I thought. “No, no, it’s beautiful,” I said hurriedly. “But I just think –”

   “Then keep it. I want you to keep it. Please.”

   He looked at me pleadingly, and I felt all the anger, all the disappointment and all the sadness from the previous day melt away between us.

   My nose tingled with tears as I suddenly felt a wave of emotion. “I can’t believe you left like that,” I whispered before I could stop myself. I didn’t care if he thought I was clingy or needy – I liked him a lot. Possibly even loved. I wanted him to at least know that he had hurt me.

   “I’m sorry. I want to explain.”

   I looked at him, wondering what reason he could’ve possibly had for treating me that way. Slowly, I said, “After six months, you want to explain?”

   “I know, I know! I’m sorry. Please, _____...”

   “After our friendship, our relationship…you just disappeared.” I said. “Even after yelling at me and breaking up so suddenly…you just changed schools without any notice! Now after six months without any contact at all, just when I meet somebody new and actually start to move on – you want to explain?”

   “I’m in an arranged marriage,” he blurted, eyes wide.

   My train of thought froze before disappearing altogether. “Arranged marriage?” I repeated dumbly.

   “Six months ago…my parents weren’t doing well financially. They said it was the only way. They said I had to. What could I have done, ______?” he began, giving me a pleading gaze.

   “You could have told me! That would’ve been nice,” I said, eyes wide with shock and hurt. “Don’t you – or didn’t you trust me?”

   “Would you have been happy? Would you have just let me go? My mom made me change schools – I didn’t disappear. Would you have just let me leave if I had told you?”

   My mind whirred, trying to take in the situation. He was right; I wouldn’t have just let go. I would’ve begged him to stay somehow, or at least find a way around the situation. Except, sitting here alone with Myungsoo, I couldn’t think of a solution. If he had told me this while we were still going out…what could I have possibly done?

   “I’ve moved out,” he said softly, reaching over and covering my hand with his. My eyes widened – it had been so long since I felt his touch. “I’m not going to get married to somebody I don’t love. I’m sorry that it’s taken me so long to realize.”

   “B-but – all your talk about me being clingy and needy and –”

   “I lied,” he interrupted. “I’m so sorry, but I lied. It just made things a lot easier to have you angry at me and get over me quickly, rather than being sad about us separating. I still don’t know even now if it was a good idea, but –”

   “Do you have any idea how painful that was?” I murmured, sliding out my hand from beneath his.

   He shifted forward, grabbing both of my hands this time. “__________,” he said my name gravely. Looking into his dark eyes, the last six months seemed to fade away. Suddenly, it felt as if nothing had changed, and we were a couple again. “You were the brightest part of my entire life. Will you please give me another chance?”

   I bit my lip, debating – what did I want? All that time believing that I wasn’t good enough for him turned out to be a lie. He had had a reason for breaking up with me. Hell, he was even only pretending to think I was clingy!

   “You’re not…lying?” I whispered, unsure.

   “If you just give me some time…I’ll earn your trust back. We can just start out as friends. Please,” he begged, squeezing my hands.

   I supposed that there would be no harm to start as friends again. To rebuild our friendship, and to just see where it goes. The words ‘arranged marriage’ echoed around my head. He had a reason, my mind kept repeating.

   “You don’t think I’m clingy?” I questioned, wary of his response. What if it was a trick?

   “You are perfect. I’ll make it up to you – everything. I’ll give you time. I’ll give you love. I’ll win you back,” he said determinedly, staring me in the eye.

   My heart swelled with relief. Was this really happening? Dumbfounded and confused in my whirlwind of emotions, it was all I could do to nod.

   Myungsoo and I spent the afternoon catching up with each other. It was awkward at first, since it had been so long since we’ve seen each other. Yet at the same time, it was because it had been so long that when we started opening up again, stories flooded out of our mouths endlessly.

   He told me about how after five months, he couldn’t take his life anymore. He disliked his ‘fiancé’ (he made a face whenever he mentioned her), who he was forced to meet up with every weekend. His parents nagged at him constantly, telling him that he must treat her right, as it was the only way to help their family restaurant, which was crumbling down.

   He had moved out just three weeks ago, working part-time as a waiter to rent a small apartment with his other friends. He started coming back to the studio, where he frequently bumped into Jinyoung’s friends (he also made a face whenever he mentioned Jinyoung, for some reason) and eventually, started dancing with them.

   I told him about my upcoming exams, how our friends at school were doing, how they’ve changed, how I stopped dancing, and how I hadn’t changed at all. He interrupted me at the last point, contradicting me.

   “You seem a lot more confident – you shine even brighter. I was surprised when you talked back to me yesterday,” he teased, grinning.

   “That’s because you were being mean!” I pouted, getting more and more relaxed around him. While talking, we somehow ended up lying rather than sitting on the bean bags, rolling around the floor and reminiscing over our past inside jokes. Every little while, a memory from our past relationship would be mentioned, and a small wistful smile would take place on our faces before moving onto a next topic.

   “I was just shocked, okay? But seriously…you stopped dancing?” He questioned.

   “It gave me bad memories, at the time. It was kind of…our thing.”

   He paused before breaking into a smile. “Then we should pick it up again.”

   Then, just as he did before he first asked me to be his girlfriend, he stood up, dusted off his pants, and held out his hands to me.

   I smiled at how we seemed to be stepping right back into our own ways. “Why is it so easy with you?” I shook my head, taking his hands.

   He pulled me up swiftly before letting go and stepping back, which I was grateful for. Knowing that he still had feelings for me, I wasn’t sure what I would end up doing if I bumped into his body.

   “It’s always been easy with me,” he smirked ily. “It always will be,” he whispered.

---

   I opened the door of my house with a small smile stuck on my face. Myungsoo and I had gotten more comfortable with each other in just one afternoon, dancing (though I was rusty) and talking. Even after all this time, I was confident that at least our friendship could be rebuilt. On the other hand, however, I wasn’t sure if I wanted anything more. Our relationship was in the past, and perhaps we’ve both changed by now.

   Somewhere inside me, Jinyoung was constantly in my subconscious. Even after meeting him for such a short period of time, he had relaxed me, and was so fun to be around. His teasing, his smiles, and the way he comforted me yesterday – I was just starting to get close to him. But did I like him?

   I guess only time will tell.

   “Why’re you so happy?” my mother asked as I greeted her brightly.

   I merely shrugged, the same smile tugging on my lips. “It was a good day,” was all I said.

   Later that evening, my happiness only rose even more when I got a text message from Jinyoung.

   Jinyoung: Tomorrow’s Monday. Did you actually want to study at the library again?

   Me: My exams start next Wednesday, I don’t mind ~

   Jinyoung: Do you mind missing one day of school?

   Me: ???

   Jinyoung: Meet me at the same café tomorrow morning. Let’s go on an adventure >:D”

   Me: We’re going to play hooky?!

   Jinyoung: Classes are only study periods anyway!

   Me: You’re going to flunk me out of high school… :(

   Jinyoung: We’ll flunk together ;)

   After bantering for awhile, he eventually talked me into agreeing. Tossing my phone on my bed, I grabbed my towel, about to step into the shower.

   The months after Myungsoo left had been dull. I still had the same friends, of course, but for awhile, I was sad about the breakup. A dear friend and a lover, both suddenly gone. Yet, just when I finally meet a new boy, a hilarious, attractive, red-headed tomato, Myungsoo comes back.

   I wasn’t sure where my life was headed, but I was looking forward to finding out.