On Sunday night, Chan Yeol sat on the couch, trying to watch the latest episode of Running Man by himself. He and Ri Ah had made it a habit to watch it together every Sunday night, but he was quickly discovering that it was her presence that really made the show enjoyable. Now, as he sat alone in the living room, not even Giraffe Lee Kwang Soo's pathetic yet hilarious groveling to Commander Kim Jong Kook could keep him interested in his favorite variety show.

With a bored sigh, he turned off the TV with the remote in his hand and decided to take a stroll outside. To keep warm in the fall, night breeze, he kept his hands in his jacket pocket and with his eyes downcast, stared at the ground in front of his feet as he walked. A pebble came into view and he stopped in front of it. He made a silent wish for Ri Ah to miraculously return from her hometown, and treating the pebble like a coin being tossed in a wishing well, he pulled his right foot back and kicked the rock across the concrete sidewalk. His eyes followed the stone as it skidded with a light grating sound until it landed just short of a pair of feet, the shoes on them looking oddly familiar.

Chan Yeol's eyes shifted up the legs and torso of the figure until they landed on the face. His eyes widened in recognition at the unexpected sight of Ri Ah, who stared back with a surprised expression of her own at running into Chan Yeol. "Y-Y-You, what are you doing here?" he stammered in disbelief.

She pointed behind her shoulder, at the direction she had just come from. "I was walking back from the bus stop. What about you? What are you doing out this late?"

"I just…wanted some fresh air," he replied, a smile growing on his lips as it hit him that Ri Ah was actually standing a few feet away from him. Had he just discovered a new way to make wishes come true? Chan Yeol closed the distance between them. "Do you want to join me?" he asked, nodding towards the swing set nearby. Ri Ah smiled and agreed.

They sat down next to each other, swinging lightly while they're feet skidded against the gravelly ground. Chan Yeol finally decided to break the silence that had dawned on them. "I thought you were going to stay a couple days longer."

Ri Ah took a moment to put her thoughts together before answering him. "I was…but, it turned out, there really wasn't a reason for me to stay that long," she quietly answered.

"Then you should have called and told me you were coming back. I would have come and picked you up from the bus station so you wouldn't have to take a bus from there and walk back."

"I didn't want to keep you from watching your favorite variety show," she joked with a chuckle. Her expression turned to one of perplexity as she cocked her head to the side and stared at him. "Speaking of which, why aren't you watching it right now?"

"Today's episode just wasn't as entertaining." That was the truth to some extent. "So, what exactly did you go home for?"

Ri Ah breathed in the cold air around her before exhaling out a cloud of hot air. "I had some loose ends that needed tying," she cryptically answered.

"Loose ends?" he repeated, wanting more clarification.

She let out a small sigh as her gaze shifted down to her feet. "Well, I guess it was more of untying a knot." She turned her head to look at Chan Yeol with a tender gaze. "I've decided to finally move on from someone that I've been holding on to for too long."

Chan Yeol looked confused for a moment until he put two and two together and his attention immediately went to her left hand holding onto the chain of her swing, where a ring was no longer visible. His eyes widened slightly and his mouth fell open in surprise, but it soon curved upwards into a happy grin that he had to suppress by biting his lip. Was that pebble really magic? Because it had granted him much more than he had hoped for.

His heart started drumming at a fast pace as it hit him that this could be his opportunity, one that he had been waiting for a long time now. But his head couldn't seem to think coherent thoughts when this fortuitous chance was dropped on him like it fell from the sky. His mouth opened, but no words would come out. I like you. I've liked you for a while, and I probably will continue to like you for a long while. At the least he could have said those words, but all he could do was hesitate during those seconds that felt like minutes.

Ri Ah softly smiled at him, unaware of the turmoil he was going through inside. "I think that, even though it was long overdue, it's still good that I'm getting the closure I've needed now, when I'm going to England in a couple of months. I can leave with no strings attached."

And just like that, the opportunity was taken away from him as if by a strong, gust of wind. What did 'no strings attached' mean? If he did have the courage to confess a few seconds earlier, would she have rejected him, on the grounds of not wanting to start something with him when she was set to go abroad for four months? Or maybe, even worse than being rejected because of timing, would he get rejected because she couldn't return his feelings? The latter possibility weighed down on his already deflated spirits.

With a dejected sigh, he put on a smile. "This study abroad thing, it's already proving to be a life-changing experience, and you haven't even gone yet," he lightly teased.

Ri Ah nodded with a small laugh. "Yeah, I guess you're right." She glanced at her watch and was slightly shocked to see that it was so close to midnight already. She turned to Chan Yeol with an apologetic look. "Um, do you plan on staying out much longer? I have an early class tomorrow, and I kind of have some homework I still need to finish."

"Oh no, we can go back," he quickly replied. He stood up and held his hand out to her, smiling to himself as he noticed that she still wore his charm bracelet. As he pulled her up, she stepped on a small, fallen branch that rolled under her feet and made her lurch forward, right into Chan Yeol's arms that caught her. "Are you okay?" he worriedly asked.

Ri Ah's heart was pounding loudly against her chest as she looked up at him. They were so close she could smell the scent of his jacket that must have been recently washed from the aroma of ocean mist laundry detergent on it. She quickly released herself from his hold and kept her face downcast to hide her heated cheeks as a result of the intimate contact. "I-I'm fine," she answered with a clear of .

Chan Yeol stared at her quizzically for a moment before shrugging and leading the way back. Behind him, Ri Ah pressed her palms on her cheeks, trying to cool them down. Her pounding heart was probably just from the near fall, but why did her face feel like it was burning? It's not like the two hadn't hugged before, so what was different about this situation?

"What are you doing?" Chan Yeol noticed Ri Ah was straddling behind and had turned around to find her in a daze with her palms to her face.

Ri Ah quickly dropped her hands to her side. "N-nothing," she quickly answered before quickening her pace to catch up with him. Chan Yeol laughed to himself, not sure why she was behaving oddly, but finding the pink tint in her cheeks adorable; he thought it was from the cold weather. 

Later that week, Chan Yeol found himself in one of S University Medical School's various buildings, trying to locate the room Baek Hyun had texted him. He eventually found it and easily spotted Baek Hyun in the otherwise empty classroom, sitting at a bench and looking into a microscope.

"Of course you would be the only one still here, you over-achiever," Chan Yeol teased with a shake of his head. Baek Hyun looked up from his microscope and cheekily grinned.

Chan Yeol walked over and placed the plastic bag in his hand with the takeout food that Baek Hyun had asked him to bring on the table. "Thanks, I'm starving!" he exclaimed before pulling out his late lunch.

Chan Yeol took a seat on the stool next to him and glanced around the classroom covered with posters of various diagrams ranging from cells to organs, to whole organisms. "Are you sure you're allowed to eat in here?" He spotted a jar with what looked like some animal's brain floating inside on another table and scrunched his nose in disgust. "Or that you can even keep your food down?" Baek Hyun answered his question by placing a dumpling in his mouth and chewing. Chan Yeol placed an elbow on the table and rested his head on the palm. "So why exactly couldn't you get your own food?"

"We have a lab exam tomorrow and I have to make sure I ace it," he replied as he continued to eat.

Chan Yeol rolled his eyes at his ever-diligent best friend. "Then since it's testing time, the delivery rate is higher," he sarcastically said.

"But I get a best friend discount, right?" Baek Hyun asked as he elbowed him. Chan Yeol gave him an unamused, blank look. "You're really stingy, you know that?" Baek Hyun complained. "Fine, I got it, I owe you one."

As Baek Hyun continued to eat, Chan Yeol bit the inside of his cheek in contemplation, wondering whether he should ask Baek Hyun the question that had been bothering him since earlier that week.

"What are you thinking so intently about?" Baek Hyun finally asked him.

Chan Yeol decided to take the chance and ask him. "This is a hypothetical situation, but say there was this guy who's secretly liked this girl for a while now, but this girl is going to be leaving for somewhere far for some time. And she said she wanted to leave with 'no strings attached'. Does that mean she wouldn't want to start a relationship with the guy if he confessed?"

Baek Hyun slowed his chewing to a stop as he listened to Chan Yeol's question. He swallowed his food before speaking. "This is a hypothetical situation?" he skeptically asked. Chan Yeol frantically nodded. Baek Hyun snorted at his all too obvious friend but decided to play along. "Well, hypothetically speaking, if someone said they wanted to leave with 'no strings attached' then they don't want to have any serious commitment."

Baek Hyun's over-analytical mind started to dissect the situation more as he rambled on to himself. "I mean, when you think about it, if two people don't have ample time to develop a relationship before one of them leaves for another country, then the chances of it succeeding during the time that they are separated are pretty slim, especially since long distance relationships are already difficult to keep." He looked over at Chan Yeol to see him dismally staring at the space in front of him and he quickly tried to mend the situation. "But," he started, making Chan Yeol look up at him hopefully. "If, hypothetically speaking, the two were already pretty close, because they were good friends or something like that, then you know, the chances of a long distance relationship working out are pretty good."

Chan Yeol managed a small smile at that hope, however there was still the matter of the whole 'no strings attached' thing and his expectations once again dropped. "But what does that matter if she doesn't want to start a relationship in the first place?"

"Well, did she say it in that context?"

"Not exactly…I mean, I'm not sure. It's more like...she was holding onto a past relationship, and she's finally decided to move on from it," Chan Yeol thought out-loud.

"I see," Baek Hyun said, nodding in understand. His mind was starting to put the pieces together as he remembered noticing the missing ring from Ri Ah's finger when he had last seen her, just a few days ago. That must have been what the ring signified. He looked at Chan Yeol with a bright glint his eyes. "So she wasn't necessarily saying she didn't wanting to commit to someone, but more like she wanted to clear the slate of something that was keeping her from moving forward. If that's the case, then I think you should definitely go for Ri Ah," he concluded with an encouraging pat on the shoulder.

Chan Yeol nodded as he let Baek Hyun's words soak in, but abruptly stopped when his last sentence finally hit him. "Yah, who said anything about me and Ri Ah? I told you, this was a hypothetical situation."

Baek Hyun scoffed loudly. "And why exactly are you asking about it in the first place then?"

"Because…I was asking for a friend," he adamantly lied. Baek Hyun gave him look that showed he obviously didn't believe in his words. Chan Yeol his lips nervously as he tried to make his lie more plausible. "Yeah, he's a guy in my…Economics class, yeah, that's right," he added while vigorously nodding, hoping that in doing so, it would make him believe in his own fib, because lying is always easier when you yourself can believe in the lie.

Baek Hyun simply shook his head at the pitiful sight of his friend lying through his ears. "You're still denying it? To your best friend since high school?"

"Just eat," Chan Yeol replied as he pushed Baek Hyun's food towards him.

Baek Hyun picked up his chopsticks ready for another bite. "Fine, don't admit it. But just so you know, I don't owe you anymore. I'll count my services in helping your 'friend' as payment for this food."

Chan Yeol rolled his eyes in annoyance, but he still smiled to himself as Baek Hyun's advice had heightened his mood.

Chan Yeol and Ri Ah sat together in the living room that Friday night, catching up on an episode of Answer Me 1997, the drama that the two had started together. Although they weren't able to understand some of the pop culture of the 90s, being too young to remember most of it, many of the problems that the young teenagers in the drama faced were still easy to sympathize with, which is what made the drama a hit for all ages.

It was a highly anticipated episode where the male lead, Yoon Jae, would be confessing his feelings to his childhood friend and female lead, Shi Won. It was the end of high school and Shi Won's birthday. The two would soon be separating and going to different colleges, which seemed to be the most opportune moment for Yoon Jae to finally admit his crush that had been slowly growing since the start of high school.

Chan Yeol sat on the edge of his seat, watching the scene unfold with full attention, and silently rooting for Yoon Jae's confession to succeed.

Yoon Jae: I like you. I like you a lot…The first day of high school was the first time I thought you were pretty. After that day, I always gave you a hint. I liked you. I wanted you to like me. But you didn't notice. Fine, maybe you had only ever seen me as a friend. So I should confess…

Shi Won: Can we just go back to being good friends again?...You're the friend who means the most to me. So, you'll still be my friend, right?

Yoon Jae:  If a man confesses everything in his heart to a girl he likes, like a pathetic fool, it means he has no intention of ever seeing her again. A friend? Yeah right.

Chan Yeol's face fell as he watched the two best friends break up and throw away their life-long friendship, all because one had admitted their true feelings to the other. He glanced over at Ri Ah next to him, wondering if the same would happen to them if he confessed. If he told her how he truly felt, but she couldn't accept those feelings, could they at least go back to being friends? Like they were now?

"Do you agree with him?" he suddenly asked. Ri Ah blinked the tears in her eyes from the emotional sight away before turning to him. "Do you think once you confess to a close friend, the two can't go back to being friends again?" He stared intently into her face as he awaited her answer.

Ri Ah sincerely thought about his question. If, hypothetically speaking, and this was only hypothetical, she should ever confess to Chan Yeol, who only saw her as a friend, how would their relationship change afterwards? The memory of her first day in Seoul, when she was at the swings with Chan Yeol, flashed by in her mind [Chapter 3].

Chan Yeol started to slow down when he noticed Ri Ah had stopped. “Oh, you’re staring at me. Have you fallen for this Oppa?” Chan Yeol asked with a smirk as he pointed at himself with his thumb.

“Yes, I have fallen for you,” she seriously answered.

Chan Yeol’s eyes widened in surprise. “Really?”

“You have a very infectious smile and laugh. How could I not fall for you?”

Chan Yeol's jaw dropped at her sudden confession. "Y-yah no matter how good-looking, irresistible, and perfect I am, you can’t fall for a guy that easily, Ri Ah. And we’re living together. If you say something like that so suddenly, things will be awkward between us in the future," he seriously advised her.

She didn’t even have to think of it as a hypothetical situation; it had happened once before. But reliving that memory now, his answer, strangely enough, made her heart sink a little. It didn't at the time; it was only a joke then. She concluded that it was because of the drama they were watching that her mood was so easily affected.

With a sigh, she reluctantly answered him. "I think…" Chan Yeol held his breath as he waited for her answer with a hopeful look on his face. "I think that I can understand where Yoon Jae is coming from. Sometimes, when you admit something unexpected like your feelings to someone who's only seen you as a friend, it can be difficult for them to return to the way things were before if they don't return those feelings. Things would probably become…awkward," she answered, using the exact word Chan Yeol had, almost a year and a half ago. The word suddenly had a more disappointing tone to it that it didn't have before.

Chan Yeol looked away with deflated shoulders. All the encouragement he had received from Baek Hyun's advice were crushed from Ri Ah's.

But while the episode they were watching centered on the heartbreaking scene of a life-long friendship crumbling with one confession, it ended on a lighter tone, with the two friends meeting by chance again at a coffee shop, a few years later. Maybe it would be an opportunity for them to rebuild their friendship, or possibly, rekindle a flame that had always been inside both of them.

The night continued with Chan Yeol and Ri Ah watching a marathon of movies. It was getting late now, close to 2 AM. Ri Ah's head had nodded off a few times already, but she was determined to stay awake and finish the current movie they were watching, even though she couldn't even remember the title. However her long day that started with an 8 AM class was quickly overpowering her will and she fell asleep with her head resting on the back of the couch and her neck bending in an uncomfortable way.

Chan Yeol noticed the discomfort on her face as she slept and carefully, so as not to wake her, pulled her head to rest on his shoulder. He smiled at her before pulling his phone out from his pocket. He held it at arms length from them, leaned his own head on hers, and pretended to be asleep before snapping a picture of them together. He stared at the final product with a grin and promptly made it his new wallpaper, replacing the previous one of him and Ri Ah at the zoo with the white tiger cub.

He thought about Ri Ah's words from earlier, and one thing stood out to him the most in what she had said: confessing to someone who's only seen you as a friend. Did she only see him as a friend? If so, then maybe he would have a better chance with her if she started to see him as something more. But with only a few months till she would be leaving, there just didn't seem to be enough time to show her a different side of himself, one that she might fall in love with, like he had fallen in love with her.

Chan Yeol glanced at his phone wallpaper again and softly smiled. It seemed for now, this would do. He would let her leave for England with 'no strings attached', but when she returned, she would definitely see him in a different light. He was determined to make her do so.

Author's Note

Yes, I watched Answer Me 1997, and yes I LOVED IT! I highly recommend it if you haven't already watched it because even if you don't understand some of the pop culture references, the emotions, angst, and story line are so believable and the editing is so engaging! Plus, you'll fall in love with all the characters as they grow and mature together that you'll be sad to see the show end.

February 8, 2013, 7:19 PM