Chapter Five: One Night, A Day and An Awkward Goodbye

The group marched into the open field for customary late-night games. Tiffany jogged up to Taecyeon, now dressed in a black jacket. Poking his arm, she pushed his vest on his hands while giving him her trademark 'eye-smile'. Taecyeon smiled in return, wearing his discarded vest before unconsciously resting his arm behind her lower back in subtle assistance. This small action was not to be left unseen by the suspicious Shin Bongsun.

"Ya, what's with the two of you?" She called after the couple, strategically placing herself in the middle of the young idols. "What's with the talking with the eyes bit?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Taecyeon replied nonchalantly, catching Tiffany’s eyes before putting up his poker face.

“There, you did it again!” Bongsun whined as Tiffany stifled a giggle.

Not able to keep a straight face, Tiffany caught Taecyeon’s eye as she tilted her head toward the direction of Yoona. Taecyeon understood. Patting Bongsun’s back, she proceeded to walking ahead to accompany Heechul and her co- member, leaving her Oppa with the now annoyed older girl. Taecyeon watched her longingly, unaware of the pair of eyes watching his.

“So tell me Taecyeon,” Bongsun whispered, her arm linked to the Beastly idol. “Why’d you pick Yoona when it’s obviously Tiffany you like?”

Taecyeon took a step back, literally taken aback by the comedienne’s comment. Regaining composure, he shrugged and pretended to disregard the question. Bongsun’s laughter resonated in the open field, noting the young man’s attempt to cover up.

“Ya, shut up.” Dongmin roared, tapping Bongsun’s neck with a fake Karate Chop.

Catching the attempt with humor, she pretended to choke and whined, “Why must you be so harsh, Oppa?”  

Everyone turned to watch the comedic display, with Tiffany instinctively hiding behind Teacyeon as the act took a violent turn. Taecyeon smiled, moving protectively in front of her—hands in his pocket as he tried to look inconspicuous. Tiffany leant against him, comfortably resting her hands and cheek against his back. He felt giddy, but opted to keep his poker face on. They stepped apart as the group turned their attention to the instructions for their late night game.

“You ready for this, Fanny?” Teacyeon whispered with a smile before feigning frustration. “Aigoo, I’m so unlucky. You’re Korean vocabulary is bad. Why did I choose you again?”

She frowned, “Maybe you shouldn’t have—”

“I was just kidding!” Taecyeon quickly interjected, turning to face when he heard sadness on her voice. Surprising even himself, he took her hands in his before saying: “There’s no one else I’d rather be with tonight.”

They stood still, both taken aback. Tiffany went deaf—the world went mute as she heard only her heartbeat. Taecyeon gulped as his brain raced as he tried to think of a way to undo the awkward pause. Clearing his throat, he threw his arm around Tiffany’s neck as he would do to his guy friends and shuffled her hair as he chided, “You’re my bestest friend, remember?”

Taecyeon’s fists curled with anxiety as he watched Tiffany limp towards Wonhee. Maybe he was exaggerating when he thought Tiffany was weak, but he definitely could not stand the possibility of Tiffany falling to the ground. Seconds ticked slowly, and as far as he was concerned, everything was in slow motion. He gulped nervously, trying to figure out how he could break Tiffany’s fall—just in case she loses to the older woman.

Luckily, Tiffany won the round quickly, but Taecyeon quickly air as he watched Saeyeon limp forward. He watched carefully, hoping Tiffany wouldn’t end upon the floor. He sighed in relief as Tiffany lost while standing. He clapped respectfully, sighing slightly in annoyance as he saw Junsu tapping Tiffany comfortingly. He frowned deeper as he saw Tiffany flash the younger boy her signature eye-smile.

Tiffany decided to rest on the ground, watching Taecyeon through the corner of her eyes. She bit her lip as she watched Yoona and Taecyeon talk comfortably. She gave them a tight-lipped smile as she joined the others in celebrating their win—only feeling slightly better as she saw Yoona give Heechul a hug.

Taecyeon noticed Tiffany’s off mood and decided to ask, “What’s up, Hwang?” He asked, his face unable to hide his worry.

“Uh, the sky, Ok,” She responded sarcastically.

Teacyeon chuckled, unconsciously weaving his arm around her waist. Tiffany blushed at the contact. They were silent, relishing the comfortable feeling of their current position. Taecyeon was about to break the ice when—

“Ya!” Heechul suddenly interjected, jumping in between the couple. “What’s that arm doing around my dongsaeng?”

Tiffany frowned. This was NOT good. Those guys were seriously too big for Taecyeon to beat. She bit her lip nervously, relaying  her thoughts to the camera as they filmed Taecyeon getting ready for his match.

“Poor Oppa,” She said with a frown, “Poor Taecyeon-oppa.”

Sensing her discomfort, Jo Kwon tried to divert her attention.

“Fanny-ah,” He called, “Aren’t you hot?” He asked referring to her bonnet.

“Oh, I am but I don’t have a cap right now.” She whined.

“Oh, I am but I don’t have a cap right now.” Yoona imitated her.

Tiffany’s eyebrows furrowed in false irritation. The two young girls fooled around, Tiffany’s worries forgotten. Well, at least until the producers called on Taecyeon to start the next leg of the competition. They caught each other’s eye before Taecyeon turned to walk away.

“O-oppa!” She called after him, her hand resting on his upper arm in comfort. “I—Good luck, I’m rooting for you.”

“You did great today, Tiff.” He enveloped her in a warm hug with his fingers running through her elegant locks.

They stood motionless, not caring if everyone else saw. Tipping her head to the side, she watched as he kissed her hair before pulling back. They broke apart slightly, eyes still on each other.

“Thanks.” She murmured as she tip-toed to give him a peck on the cheek—blaming it on temporary insanity.

“Wha?” Too shocked to continue his question.

“I said I’ll slap you if I didn’t like it,” She said with a coy smile, “I never said what I’ll do if I did.”

She turned to walk away, mentally slapping herself for the awkward things she said and did just now.

“Wait!” He called, jogging after her. “Tiffany I—”

“That was weird, wasn’t it?” She interjected, afraid to hear the ‘aren’t we just friends’ speech. “Sorry about that.”

“No it wasn’t.” He said, shaking his head vehemently, “I—”

Whatever he planned on saying was cut off as he decided to lean in, his lips seeking hers, his hands on her upper arms—hers holding on to him. But just as their lips were about to touch...

“Unnie, shall we ride together?” Yoona called to Tiffany, “I think they—oh!”

Yoona, blinked blankly as she saw the display. Her blank look was replaced by a teasing one as Tiffany wordlessly pulled her into the van that was taking them home.

“You could have just continued you know.” She teased the older girl.

“Shut up, Im Yoona,” Tiffany muttered, looking back to catch Taecyeon’s eyes. “It wasn’t like that.”