"Let's go into the city," Kai suddenly announced to you at breakfast.

It was three days since the two of you first arrived at the pension - and after that incident with you phone. It was still locked up tightly in the drawer. You heard a few calls coming from inside, and it killed you to just let it ring. It was probably Baekhyun or Eena, wondering why you weren't picking up. However, you still had pride - you weren't going to beg Kai to unlock it. Anyway, there wasn't a key to unlock the drawer.

You placed the plate of scrambled eggs and pancakes in front of him at the table, taking your seat across from him.

You raised an eyebrow at him. "Why?"

Kai started digging into his food, pausing in between bites to say, "We're in London, dumbo - it's the city of tourism and Brittish accents. Don't you think we should take that advantage to go there? Do you want to stay cooped up in here all day long?"

You rolled your eyes at him and said sharply, "Well, not everyone thinks the same way you do, mister."

"Well, I'm pretty sure most people with common sense do," Kai said back, smiling at you with cheeks full of eggs.

You made a face and threw a napkin at him. "Jeez, don't talk with your mouth full."

After eating in mostly silence, Kai stood up abruptly, making you jump in surprise.

"Hurry up - we're leaving in ten minutes," he said, leaving the kitchen.

You stared after him, having the urge to throw the muffin in your hand at his head.

*Who's making him the boss of our daily routine??* you huffed. You sighed and slowly started to put the dirty dishes into the sink.

You started washing them, but literally ten seconds later, Kai called, "Two minutes!"

You sped up your pace and finished washing them. Anger bubbling inside you, you stomped up the stairs and threw open the door of the bedroom. You shouted, "DO YOU KNOW HOW TO COUNT MINUTES AND SECONDS OR ARE YOU THAT STU - "

You stopped midsentence and your eyes widened in horror.

Kai stood frozen in his place, a towel wrapped around his waist, water dripping from his dark hair and rolling down his chocolate abs. He stared back at you, not sure of what to do.

*WHY IS HE JUST STANDING THERE?? GET SOME CLOTHES ON YOU ERT!* you screamed inside, keeping your eyes on his and refusing to look down.

*LEAVE, FOOL! STOP STARING AT ME!* Kai yelled in his head.

Suddenly, Kai could feel his towel starting to slip lower and lower.

*!* he thought, but too late - before he could catch the dangerously low towel, it fell to the floor around his feet.

You squeezed your eyes shut and screamed at the top of your lungs the same time as Kai did.

*I'M SCARRED FOR LIFE THANKS TO YOU!* you grew dizzy and ran out of the room, leaving Kai to grab the towel and wrap it around his waist again in shock and embarrassment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The bus ride was silent on the way to the city, you staring out the window and Kai staring straigh ahead, both of you in a daze. It got so awkward between the two of you now after that explicit moment, and you couldn't stop thinking back to that weird event, your cheeks turning pink every time.

Kai also felt uneasy and tried to ignore that awkward moment, but he didn't know how to. That image of you, your eyes widening and screaming in horror - it made him feel embarrassed all over again.

*Ugh, you had to come in at the wrong moment, idiot.* Kai thought, shutting his eyes and sighing.

*He's such a ert! Ugh, what's wrong with boys and their hormones!* you thought, glaring at the passing trees.

The bus finally stopped at a bus stop in London. The two of you got off, and you stared at your surroundings in awe.

The bustling city life with people walking around felt like Seoul, but different. You loved the change in the atmosphere - so much more refreshing and lively.

"Let's go," Kai said, starting to walk across the street. You snapped out of your daze and quickly followed.

Everywhere was fascinating to you - the cars, the people, the street lamps, the buildings, everything. You wanted to spend more time gazing at everything, but Kai was walking to fast, making you jog to catch up with him.

"Where are we going exactly?" you finally asked.

Kai just shrugged. "Somewhere."

"You don't plan things out normally, do you?" you guessed.

"Yeah. I don't. Waste of time," Kai simply said.

*This...guy...* you sighed.

You and Kai came across a large space with intersecting roads and sidewalks. Straight ahead was a familiar sight.

Your eyes rounded and you pointed, "Isn't that the clock thingy?"

Kai rolled his eyes. "It's called 'Big Ben', stupid. Don't you know common sense things like these?"

You made a face. "Well, I don't know everything like you do, genius."

Kai sighed. "Come on."

You followed him down a long sidewalk deeper into the city. An idea popped into your head.

"Can we see the London Tower Bridge? I've always wanted to see it in real life!" you asked, smiling widely.

"Sure, whatever," he replied. "We need to take a bus though."

You and Kai waited for a while at the bus stop. You looked up at his face and saw a freckle on his neck.

*Huh, it's still there.* you thought, smiling to yourself.

When you both were little, you made fun of Kai for having that little freckle on his dark neck. "Did someone draw a dot on your neck with a super permanent marker?" you used to say, laughing. Every time, Kai would flick your forehead - hard - and you would start crying and running to the nurse and tell on him and he would glare at you and complain to her that you were making fun on him. The two of you would apologize to each other and play happily again.

*Where did those days go?* you chuckled softly, feeling a bit nostalgic.

Kai heard you chuckle and glanced down at you. He saw the nostalgic look on your face and wondered, *Why does she look so sad and distant?*

He had no time to ask her because the bus screeched to a stop in front of him. He boarded the bus and paid for the two of you. He led you all the way to the back of the bus and you got the window seat again.

Five minutes into the ride, the bus was just passing the bridge. Kai poked your shoulder and pointed out the window. You looked to where he was pointing and you squealed, "Wow! There it is!"

Kai forced himself to not smile. *Huh - she's cute when she's excited...*

He watched your facial expression become lighter and happier, her eyes glued to the bridge in fascination. Just watching her made him feel happy.

*Why didn't I feel this way before when I was with her? Why was I so hurting her so much before? Was it because she loves Baekhyun and not me? Do I feel jealous?* Kai wondered, his smile slowly fading off his face.

You turned to him and asked, "Can we go to the Buckingham Palace? I've seen so many pictures of it but I've never seen it up close? Please??"

Kai nodded, "Sure."

The bus slowed to a stop at a different street, but Kai knew his way around London and easily found another bus taking them to the palace.

You noticed how easily he made his way around the streets and turns. Curious, you asked him, "How do you know where everything is?"

"I've traveled a lot - America wasn't the only place I spend my time. London is practically my second home. My dad comes here a lot for work, so I used to follow him," Kai answered, staring out the window of their second bus.

You nodded slowly, taking in the new information. *I never knew he traveled here with his dad...There's so many things I've been out of date with you Kai...*

The bus finally reached the Buckingham Palace. When you hopped off the bus, your jaw dropped at the beauty of the palace.

"It's so big and pretty! I wonder how long it took the people to build this," you whispered in awe.

You looked up at him. "Can we go inside?"

Kai shook his head. "We can't - I think it's closed off to tourists on weekdays."

Your face fell. "That's too bad..."

Kai suddenly had an idea to lift your spirits. "How about we go see the London Eye?"

You had a blank expression on your face. "What's the London Eye?"

Kai facepalmed himself. *It's impossible to talk with a person who has no clue about London's sites.*

"It's a ferris wheel basically. You'll see - You'll like it," Kai explained shortly.

"Okay, why not?" you said, feeling a bit better. Suddenly, you heard your stomach grumble. You turned red, putting a hand on your belly.

"Let's eat lunch first," Kai suggested.

You and Kai walked a couple of blocks down to a busy street where food was being sold everywhere, delicious aromas wafting from all sides. Your mouth watered at the wonderful smells.

"What's good here in London?" you asked, sniffing all the food smells.

"Fish and chips is a classic," Kai said, a small smile on his face.

"Then let's go eat that! I've never tried fish and chips before," you said with excitement.

He brought you to a small shop that sold fish and chips. He went up to the register and said to the person waiting behind the counter, "Two fish and chip dishes, please."

You were surprised to hear Kai speak in perfect, Brittish accented English. It sounded a little deeper than his normal voice when he spoke Korean, but y all the same.

He glanced at you and saw the surprised yet pleased expression on your face. "What?"

You shook your head, "No, it's just that I've never heard you speak English before...You have a Brittish accent?"

He hesitated and nodded, muttering, "Yeah..."

"But I thought you lived in America for most of your life?" you asked as Kai took the tray of food and drinks, carrying them to an empty booth.

"I grew more accustomed to Brittish accents...Plus it sounds better," Kai said. He opened the package and you were hit with the delicious, savory smell.

"Oh...My...GOSH," you breathed, drooling over the food.

You picked up a chip and observed it. "Looks just like a french fry."

"That's cause it is," Kai said, starting to eat hungrily.

You took a careful bite and chewed thoughfully. "Yup, a french fry."

You started eating the food slowly, but your hunger took over you and you ate everything in a blink of an eye.

"Ugh, hadn't had this in a long time," Kai groaned, rubbing his stomach.

You nodded in agreement. "That was amazing."

He sat up in his seat and sighed, starting to clear up the packages.

"Here, I got it," you said quickly, cleaning up the garbage and piling it on the tray. You threw out the wrapping and put the tray away on the neat stack of trays.

"To the London Eye we go," Kai said in English.

"It's going to be so exciting! I can't wait!" you squealed back in English, hopping up and down.

Kai stood in place, staring at you with amusement on his face. *Her English sounds cute - unaccented but cute. Why is everything about you so adorable, Sukyung?*

You stopped jumping and looked up at him. "What?"

Kai rolled his eyes. "Oh great - are we starting to speak in English to each other now?"

A grin spread across your face. You placed your hands on your hips and said, "Why not?"

He shook his head and sighed, "Nevermind, you insolent little girl."

"Hey! Who are you calling 'insolent'? Come back here, you!" you protested, chasing after him down the street.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was starting to get dark, and night finally approached. You were tired from the long bus rides around London, but you weren't tired enough to go home yet - you wanted to desperately see the London Eye.

You had accidentally fallen asleep on the bus, but Kai shook you awake, "We're here."

You drowsily stretched and yawned as you got off the bus with Kai. You were falling behind a bit, half sleep walking. Kai looked back at you and yelled, "Come on, you lazyhead!"

"Who you calling lazy, buttface?" you murmured sleepily, rubbing your eyes.

Kai sighed. *She can be so annoying at times.*

He walked over to you and took your hand, waking you up immediately.

"W-What are you doing?" you stammered, pulling at your hand in his.

Kai gave you a stern look and pulled you along. "Just keep walking, stupid."

You blushed uncontrollably and let him drag you down the street.

Soon, you came across the gorgeous London Eye at night. Your jaw dropped, staring at the beautiful ferris wheel.

Kai smiled at your awed expression. "Wanna go inside?"

You stared up at him in amazement, hope filling your chest. "Can we?"

He nodded. "Let's go."

Hand in hand, you and Kai walked up to the huge attraction, the blue and red lights shining reflections onto the river next to it.

*I'm in love with London.* you thought happily.

Eventually, you found yourself in one of the little bubbles on the ferris wheel, looking down at the view below.

There was only the two of you - apparently not many people went on the ride at this hour. You checked your watch and understood why - it was already 11:45PM, the time when most people were in bed, asleep.

"Isn't the view grand?" Kai whispered, his hands folded behind his back and staring down at the view below.

You laughed, "Your British accent is really making it hard for me to take you seriously."

"Fine. This better?" Kai asked, switching back to Korean.

You nodded and smiled, also going back to simple Korean, "Yeah. It's more...you."

Kai's heart thumped in his chest, hearing you say such nice words.

"Don't you wish...Everyday you don't have to worry about anything? No school, no relationship problems, no hatred...Just you and the people you love?" you asked, staring out into the sky.

Kai turned his head and gazed at you, understanding what you meant. *Like the way I feel about you? I want to just stay with you forever, but it's so hard for me to come out of my hard shell - I can't express my feelings so easily, it feels like my chest is gonna burst...*

You sighed in content and shook your head, "Blah...I'm being weird again. Sorry about that..."

"Who do you think of when you hear the word 'special'?" Kai suddenly blurted, making you turn your head to him in surprised.

"Mm...I think of...my parents?" you said, but Kai shook his head vigorously.

"No, I mean...other than your parents," Kai said, looking at you hopefully. *Please say me.*

"Oh...Baekhyun?" you said again. Kai's heart shattered, his face falling.

"I think maybe it's cause we spend a lot of time together, and he's super nice and sweet. We've gotten pretty close," you explained, not noticing the change in Kai's face.

*Her heart belongs with Baekhyun, I see.* Kai sadly thought. But he was suddenly filled with newfound determination. *I'm going to make you only look at me, Sukyung. I'm sure of that.*

"But do you know who I think of when I hear 'special'?" Kai asked, looking at you with an unreadable expression.

*Why does he sound so serious?* you wondered, but asked, "Who?"

"You."

You blinked, not hearing right. "What?"

"I said you," Kai confirmed, staring at you with no jokes written on his face.

*Wait, is he being serious?* your heart thumped in your chest.

Kai slowly stepped closer to you. You stepped backwards, feeling nervous. *What is he doing?*

You kept stepping backwards until your back hit the glass bubble. Kai leaned down towards you, his face illuminated softly by the lights of the London Eye, shadows crossing his face in all the right places. He had such a serious yet serene expression on his face, making your heart beat faster and faster.

*Gahhh Kai what are you doing to me?* you thought, not able to stop staring into his dark eyes.

He leaned in closer until his nose touched yours. You felt his gentle breath on your neck.

Kai paused and chuckled, "You silly girl - why are you so nervous?"

"Because you're being erted again!" you hissed uneasily, glancing down at his nose touching yours.

Kai smirked before leaning in, his lips pressing against yours. Your eyes widened, but they fluttered shut when his soft lips started moving against yours. His hands slowly went up to your hair, it softly.

Fireworks started bursting all around you, the colorful lights making things feel so romantic like in those Korean dramas you watched all the time.

*This is a dream.* you tried to pull yourself out of this. But it was real. Kai was kissing you in the London Eye - a gentle, real one.

*This is what I wanted.* you thought happily, falling deeper into the sweet kiss and hearing the Big Ben ring midnight in the distance.