“You’re such a boring bunny, no wonder no one puts up with you,”

“I wouldn’t be Kim Daeun if no one tolerated me.” Daeun smirked at Mingyu’s way before putting back the sixth Harry Potter book that she has been reading for three hours straight.

She walked around with the giant following her, complaining and whining.

“Aigoo Daeun, a nearby playground is right there! I can dominate that swing!” Mingyu tried to persuade the stubborn Daeun, but she didn’t even flinch.

She loved the library. She loved reading, writing, the smell of books, how the characters just seem to jump out of the page and how she feels as if she’s always in a new adventure every time she opens a new book. Reading was her joy, her source of happiness.

And, let’s not forget, her second source of happiness (also anger and sadness) – Kim Mingyu, her best friend.

Mingyu was the total opposite of Daeun. If Daeun wanted to go to the library, Mingyu wanted to play in the nearest amusement park. Daeun loved mild food and Mingyu liked his food spicy. Like fire and ice forced together, creating a bond that couldn’t be broken.

“Then go play with your beautiful swing. I’ll be here reading the next book quietly-“

“Ah, you’re no fun.” Mingyu pouted as Daeun laughed a bit, shaking her head.

She didn’t know why this boy stuck by her.

“Why don’t you go alone? If you need help, just shout.”

“Eh, I don’t feel like going anymore. Besides, Seungcheol and Doyoon hyung will pick me up later, and I don’t want to ruin my image letting them seeing me playing on the swing,” Mingyu reasoned as Daeun raised an eyebrow, stopping midway from getting a book from the shelf as Mingyu feigned offense.

“Yah! I’m telling the truth Kim Daeun!”

“Uh huh, sure, as if Kim Mingyu would tell the truth.” Daeun smiled before getting the book and sitting down, reading. Mingyu immediately got a random book from a shelf, sitting across from Daeun who immediately immersed herself.

She crossed her right foot over her left as she heard a shuffle. She looked at Mingyu to see him reading a book. She chuckled and went back to reading.

She reached up to scratch her nose when she saw that Mingyu was doing to same. She squinted her eyes and dropped her left hand on the table limply, Mingyu copying her. Daeun blew the bangs off her face in annoyance.

So that’s how you want to play it, huh?

Daeun stretched upwards as Mingyu did so. Daeun then scratched her head with her right hand as Mingyu reached down to scratch his to.

“Quit copying me,”

“Quit copying me,”

“I said quit it!”

“I said quit it!”

“You’re impossible,”

“You’re impossible,”

“I hate you.”

“I love you.” Daeun blinked as confusion settled in her heart, staring at Mingyu with wide eyes. Mingyu just continued smiling mischievously as Daeun shook her head. She must’ve misheard it, yes, a boy like Mingyu couldn’t possibly like a boring old bookworm like her.

Daeun continued to read for a few minutes when Mingyu slammed his book on the table, making Daeun jump in surprise.

“Are you quite alright?” Daeun asked Mingyu cautiously as Mingyu scratched his head in frustration.

“It’s just, I have to wait for the next book to know what happens next!”

“Okay, why don’t you tell me the story then?” Daeun comforted anxiously as she closed her own book, looking at Mingyu. Mingyu sighed before nodding, closing his book. He met eyes with Daeun.

“Okay, this is how it goes. There was this boy called Gyumin. Gyumin was a high school student, and he was quite popular with the ladies. One day, he saw a girl carrying a stack of books. He tried to greet her when she was so shocked, that she dropped her books! She looked scared of Gyumin, and before he uttered a word, she ran off,” Mingyu started the story as Daeun raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

“Anyways, after that fateful meeting, Gyumin went around and around the school to look for his bookworm girl. He found her in the library, of course, reading the first book of Harry Potter. He thought why would a pretty girl like her stay stuck reading the whole day? So he tried to make a conversation with her, and he failed. But did that stop him? Nope, not at all. Everyday, he would stick by his bookworm bunny girl until she started to talk to him.” Mingyu smiled dreamily, looking up in the ceiling.

By now, Daeun’s heart was thumping loud and fast, and she couldn’t seem to control it.

“The girl’s name was Eunda. Gyumin had a slight problem with Eunda. She liked another popular guy in school called Daehyun. Daehyun asked Eunda out, but after one week, he dumped her because he was just playing with her. Eunda was so broken and sad that Gyumin didn’t know what to do. So he didn’t the stupidest thing he thought of. He ran through the streets in Seoul at night, wearing nothing but a blank tank top and shorts, to go to the nearest stuff toy shop. He bought a large bear and gave it to her. Eunda stopped crying over that jerk Daehyun ever since.” Mingyu met eyes with Daeun who was already silently shedding tears as she remembered those times.

Mingyu reached out and caressed Daeun’s cheek.

“Eunda, for she was a cute and confused bunny, didn’t know that Gyumin has loved her ever since the stack of books fell from her hands. Gyumin was okay with that, as long as he gets to be with Eunda. Then, they go to this library together, and they ended up talking about each others feelings, before Gyumin played the copy cat game on Eunda. Daeun…I think you’re the only one who knows the ending to this story of ours. Would you mind telling me?” Mingyu asked sweetly as Daeun glared at him through her tears.

“You idiot. In the end, Eunda realizes her feelings for Gyumin and they live happily, ever-“

“After. Gyumin and Eunda. Mingyu and Daeun. Best friends, right? Then next is boyfriend and girlfriend, then husband and wife-“

“YAH! Since when did you start thinking about marriage?!” Daeun demanded playfully as Mingyu laughed childishly, swinging his legs under the table.

“So, does Eunda accept Gyumin’s feelings? For real?”

Mingyu held out his waiting hand as Daeun slipped hers in it.

“Why don’t we find out?” And then and there, even when the readers were shielding the sight with their books, even when the librarian kept on screaming for them to stop, Mingyu went around and held Daeun’s waist close to his, leaning on the table.

Daeun withdrew from the kiss, but Mingyu’s arms still lingered around Daeun waist protectively. They bent their foreheads together, smiling and laughing at the librarian’s shouts.

“You know what? I think I prefer this story over Harry Potter,” said the very first bookworm ever. 

I hoped you liked it xBtoBSungHyuK! :)