“So how was it?” I asked Chanyeol with a smile as we walked hand in hand in my subdivision. We got back home from UP right after we served as translators for an afternoon to Kuya Mark, just in time for dinner that my mother prepared just for Chanyeol. Yes, my mother loves my boyfriend more than me, it’s quite sad really. But right now, we’re strolling around my neighbourhood to walk off all the food we ate and to savor all the time we’ve got with each other. “Hmmm, I had lots of fun jagiya. Can we go back tomorrow? And eat isaw again?” Chanyeol told me with a boyish grin, as he squeezed my hand grasped in his. “No.” I told him with my free hand slapping his arm next to me. “If that’s the only food you’ll eat for the remainder of our stay then you will REALLY get sick.”

“But! But! You said it’s clean and safe to eat them!” He gave me a pout in turn and stopped walking altogether. “Why can’t I have them everyday?” I rolled my eyes at his tone and removed my hand from his so I would be able to place them on my hips to give off a menacing look. “Jagiya~” He whined at me as he slid his arms around me, which made my arms rest against his. “Oppa, you can’t eat isaw only ok? It’s going to be bad for your health. Maybe before we leave, we’ll go to UP once more ok?” I told him with a soft smile while I buried my face at the crook of his neck. “Hmm, ok. Remember that you’re the one who promised that to me, jagiya.” He replied, his voice muffled by my hair which he is now toying with one of his hands. I gave a nod and squeezed his torso for reassurance before we were enveloped with a comfortable silence.

“I talked to your parents.” Chanyeol suddenly said as we remained in our position, hugging each other in the middle of the sidewalk. I was about to raise me head from the crook of his neck, but the hand that has been toying with my hair, kept me from raising it up to look at him. “They asked me about you, you know. They wanted to know, how you were doing in Seoul and such. Were you happy? Do I know your plans in the near future? Will we be visiting them again, soon?”

“Mmm.” I murmured to assure him I’m still listening. The fingers at the nape of my neck that kept my face in its place, started toying with the hair at the nape of my neck as he continued on. “It was this morning actually, when you were taking a shower and I was eating breakfast with your parents.”

“More like you were eating the entire breakfast my mother cooked while they watched you.” I retorted in good humor. He let out a sound, waving off my comment. “Welll… there WAS one more thing that I told them apart from the answers I gave out to their questions jagiya. And I’m sure that you’ll be as surprised as they were.” Chanyeol started, his fingers still relentless in their ministrations with my hair which was the reason why I’m suddenly feeling sleepy. I kept quiet and he continued on, “I don’t know why I even said those words to them but I’m positive that what I told them was the complete truth and I will never, EVER, take those words back. I’m just glad that they weren’t against it, well your Dad was at first but your Mom quickly helped me in convincing your Dad otherwise.” I can already picture my boyfriend’s grin as he continued recounting to me his conversation with my parents this morning, his words barely registering in my head due to the fact that I was getting sleepy from the hypnotic way his fingers were running through my hair. “Jagiya, do you know what I told them? I told them that I love you so much and that I’m so lucky to have you. I told them that I’d be stupid to let you go, that’s why I’m planning on proposing to you once I’ve proven myself that I AM man enough. That’s why for the mean time while I worked my very best to deserve you, I’ll give you a ring to symbolize my promise to you and your parents before I truly propose to you. Although, you might have to wait for the promise ring though becau - ”

Chanyeol’s words got cut off as I wrenched myself away from his embrace with my eyes wide open in shock. The only word that registered in my head from what he told me was something along the lines of proposing, parents, ring which was pretty much all I need to sober me up from my half asleep state. “A.. ar.. are you p..proposing to me?” I stuttered at him in surprise. I have never really expected that Chanyeol would do something like this (hoped maybe) and commit himself to such a serious relationship with me despite our young age. I’m flattered and all that but I can’t help but feel as if I’m tying him down from doing something great if he does push through with… why is he chuckling and telling me that I’m so cute? Huh?

“Jagiya, I said that I want to give you a promise ring symbolizing my promise to your parents and to you that I won’t propose to you until I’ve proven myself. I’m not proposing to you right now.” He grinned at me, his eyes crinkling in mirth. “You should’ve seen the look in your face!”  He laughed out loud and I gave his side a pinch in exasperation. Really, this boy will be the death of me. “Is it so shocking that I would do something mature like propose to you?” He asked me with a boyish grin. I had to smile at his choice of question. He was so confident and had such faith in my feelings for him that he didn’t even bother ask if my reaction to the idea of him proposing was in anyway my way of telling him that I’m not serious about our relationship. Some people might say that this line of thinking would be arrogant and presumptuous but Chanyeol is very simple minded when it comes to love. The drama and complicated twists that you’d see in a television series or in a movie, are things that would never fleet to Chanyeol’s mind. If he knows that he loves me, and that I love him just the same, to him that’s all he needs to know and feel. Even the thought of breaking up would never turn up in his head, I would know considering he would ask me why people do this when one of our friends would break up from their boyfriend/ girlfriend.

“No, no.” I told him with a smile, gazing at his eyes. “It’s just, I thought that it’ll be too soon if you were to propose to me right now. I want you to reach your full potential before we settle down into such a huge commitment with each other. I want you to be able to experience a lot of things that the world has to offer to you.”

“That’s why I’m just giving you a promise ring right now. I know jagiya wants to excel in her career as well, which is why I’m not proposing right now too.” I had to bite my lip at his sweet words and I hugged him once more. “So where’s the ring?” I asked him quietly after a few seconds has gone by since his last words were uttered. I felt Chanyeol stiffen in my arms at this and one of his arms lifted so that he could scratch the back of his head. “Well about that… you see, I don’t technically have the ring with me right now. I didn’t get the time to buy one for you. But I promise that after our world tour, you’ll have the most amazing, the prettiest and shiniest ring there is in the world!” Chanyeol promised me determinedly and all I did was chuckle at him.

“Alright then, I’ll hold you to that but Oppa I don’t care if I have a ring or not. I’m yours completely even without it. Even if you give me a candy ring instead. I don’t care. All I need is you.” I said to my boyfriend with a soft smile, and I detangled myself from his hug and I tiptoed to give him the first (of the many more in the near future, that I promise you) kiss we ever had that I initiated.