Yoona stared at her cellphone’s screen for a whole minute, trying to come up with something witty to say that early morning. It was five am, and it was cool out – the early morning sunlight just starting to break into the dark sky. The stark white screen made her eyes water slightly and she sighed, burying her face into her pillow for the nth time.

This would probably not be the last time she did this, but at the moment she didn’t care. At the moment, all Yoona cared about is whether she could make up her mind long enough to type a ‘Good morning’ message to Changmin or to Donghae – seeing as he was back from his business trip and Eunhyuk had just so happened to come by last night to steal her best friend away from her all the while hinting that ‘the great fish alien’s really sorry for what he did’.

She knows she probably shouldn’t forgive him – much less talk to him yet – but this was Lee Donghae… she had loved him for two years. It wasn’t something she could just let go in almost two months’ time.

And then there was Changmin. Changmin with his tall frame, his dark eyes, his broad shoulders, his warm hands, his uneven smile… In less than two months, he had become such a fixture in her life that it was almost impossible for her to imagine never meeting him that night. Yoona wasn’t sure if things were going to fast or if this was just how things progressed in some relationships. She hadn’t been in many – Donghae was her first – and so this was new to her. She surprised herself for not feeling uncomfortable around him… sometimes there was awkwardness, but those moments never lasted long. Yoona wondered why it was this way.

“I’m over-thinking this.” Yoona murmured to herself, sitting upright on her bed and sighing. She looked around her bedroom, stark-white and unusually neat at the moment, and felt a sense of resignation. She stepped down her bed, padding towards her closet – opening it without thinking and picked out clothes to wear for the day.

She had another one of those fortunate off days from school and she was determined to go about it alone. At least, for the time being, so she could clear her head.

However, it seemed like fate had other plans.

Yoona’s eyes strayed over to her dresser – onto the framed photographs standing on top of it and on to those she simply stuck on the wall. There were the photos of her and her sister, her father, her mother… snapshots with Hyoyeon at various events throughout their highschool days, some with of them with Donghae (she strained her eyes away from those)– and then there were the polaroids she took with Changmin’s sisters… and of course, Changmin.

Her eyes stayed on one of such polaroid. This one was after he had gotten his haircut and they had gone to the hospital to check on Sooyoung. The sisters had mercilessly – slapping his nape jokingly and laughing. Yoona had tried not to laugh as Changmin decided to mock-wrestle Yuri, pinning her head under his arm while grabbing Sooyoung who tried to wriggle away from his grasp, and instead she took pictures. Somehow Yuri had managed to get away and asked for the camera, demanding that her brother and she sit next to each other for a picture.

He put his arms around her waist and she leaned back against him like it was the most natural thing in the world. She remembered the soothing drum of her heart beat pick up during that soft contact and she felt herself blush. Picking the image up in her hands, she stared down at it; biting her lip from letting a small smile creep into her face. Instead, Yoona pursed her lips – tracing the outline of their picture together.

Suddenly, she thought of something to say.

[Good morning. I think it’s time you meet my dad… What do you think?] Yoona watched as the little envelope disappeared from the screen. Moments later, a new envelope appeared on her screen.

[I think I’m ready to meet your father. But somehow I’m nervous. Oh, and good morning to you too.]

Yoona let out a chuckle – picturing his anxious face before typing another message. [Don’t be. You’ll do fine. You know everything you should know.]

A new envelope. [Mr. Im will be the judge of that.]

[Do you have work until late today?]

[No. The construction site’s closed for the day. I’ll be at the café instead. Why? Do you miss me already?]

[Not really. ㄱㄱ]

His reply was quick. [I’ll see you later then. And I missed you too, Choding. ^^]

There was the soothing drum again. Yoona patted her cheek with one hand and took a deep breath. How would he know when she didn’t know for sure herself? [You are a tiresome flirt, Broody. (Also we need better nicknames.)]

[Hahaha I think having Hyoyeon around when I visit you at your university has given me that side effect. You like it though. (I think so too.)]

She did. This she had to admit, and she shook her head. [Aigoo. I’ll see you later. ^__^ (I’ll call you Giraffe!)]

[YAH. (Deer!)]

[I was kidding! But aren’t they in the same animal family? How about Darling~?♥]

She could imagine him shaking his head at her reply and waited patiently for his. When it arrived, her heart skipped a beat.

[Honey.♥ See you later.]

Yoona watched her reflection in the mirror, with her flushed cheeks and pursed lips keeping in a smile. They were certainly comfortable with one another; that fact was for certain. Her eyes leapt towards the picture in her hand once again and stuck it on the side of her mirror. She sighed in contentment, shaking her head while smiling.

“Maybe I’m over-thinking this… but, it’s nice to feel this again. Even if it is just pretend…”

Moments later, as she finished preparing to go out for the day, the doorbell rang. Curiously, she peeked out of her window and squinted at the person standing at the door. The magnolia tree her family had in their lawn had gotten so big and was blooming – it made it impossible to recognize who the person was. And so she bounded down the stairs, her hair fluttering about her shoulders.

“Who is it?” Yoona asked upon the third doorbell, yanking the door open. She lifted her eyes – and immediately wished she hadn’t.

Lee Donghae stood with a small smile, his hand up in greeting. He looked as devastatingly handsome as the last time she saw him – the night he broke her heart and left her to pick up the pieces alone. She opened and couldn’t find her voice to speak.

“Yoona,” he said her name softly, “Hello.”

Minho was not the type to poke around someone else’s business when it didn’t involve him, and normally he would have turned a blind eye when a good friend of his starts absentmindedly wiping the café’s windows with a faraway and melancholy look in his eyes. But today was no ordinary day (these kinds of days were happening more frequently, he noticed and grinned) and seeing Changmin – Silent sadist Shim Changmin – in an almost dreamlike state was beyond reasonable circumstances.

Shim Changmin was whipped. He was head-over-heels and then some. Minho knew what it looked like (he saw it on his face everyday when he got ready for a date with Yuri), and the grin on his face could only go a little more at cutting his face in half if it were physically possible.

Heck, we’re practically brothers! Minho thought, tossing the washcloth into the sink in the back and wiping his hands on a towel. He turned back to look at Changmin starting to wipe the same window for the nth time and grinned, shaking his head as he unfastened his apron. I might as well tell him that he looks like an idiot standing there before any of the customers notice and think he’s weird.

“Changmin-hyung.” He placed his hand on the older man shoulder, snapping him out of his reverie and wiggled an eyebrow at him. Minho tilted his head towards a door at the back. “Let’s go take a break, yeah? Kyu-hyung’s got some sandwiches reserved for us at the back.”

Changmin looked at him distractedly but nodded nevertheless, turning towards the door. He was able to remove his apron and dispose of the rag he was using just moments ago in one sweep as his long limbs took him past customers, the bar and then to the door. When Minho caught up with him at the back room, he was already half-way done with a ham and cheese sandwich. Cho Kyuhyun, their friend and the manager, stared at him in confusion for a moment before looking back at their silent friend munching away. “What’s wrong with him?” he asked, crossing his arms and stood beside the younger man. Minho shrugged as Kyuhyun nudged him with an elbow.