A/N: I really struggled with this one. I'd like to hear what you think of it. Drop me a line at the comments section. :)

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Shin Hye took three deep breaths as she waited for Min Ho who excused himself to go to the kitchen. Since Geun Suk left, she’s been trying to play it cool. The last thing she wanted was to look like a nervous wreck around Lee Min Ho. But that had proven to be harder than she thought since every gaze from him unnerved her. Even when she wasn’t looking him in the eye, she could feel him just watching her every move. And the fact that she was all alone with the man in this beautiful villa in the most romantic spot in all of South Korea didn’t help her cause.

Thankfully, her heart has calmed down a bit, although she can’t be sure it won’t race again once Min Ho comes back. She decided to look outside instead. Only the glass walls separated her from the most breath taking view. The moon cast a reflection on the sea that seemed to have gone still. She couldn’t feel the wind, but she saw the leaves of the coconut trees being ruffled slightly. There was a certain peace she felt looking at the picture – a calm she never found in the hustle and bustle of Seoul. Too bad I’m leaving tomorrow, she sighed.

She looked away in time to see Min Ho come out of the kitchen, carrying a bowl. He laid it down on the table carefully, as if it were something so priceless. It wasn’t hard to figure out that he probably slaved away in the kitchen for hours just to make it. And for someone who never really cooks, it was only natural that he treated it like his baby. Shin Hye glanced down at its contents. It was spaghetti alright – like Geun Suk told her. Except it didn’t appear to be the best spaghetti in Jeju as promised. But it certainly looked homey and appetizing. She ran the tip of her tongue across her lower lip. For some reason, she was excited. Or maybe just hungry.

‘I can’t vouch for the taste,’ he told her with a look of worry as he took a seat in front of her. ‘But I tried my best.’

Min ho pressed his lips together and twitched on his seat while looking around the table. Shin Hye tried to suppress a smile. She forgot how endearing Min Ho could be whenever he’s being self-conscious.

‘Eat,’ he said brightly.

Shin Hye was about to reach for her fork when Min Ho suddenly jerked back, making Shin Hye’s whole body jump in surprise.

‘Ah! Wine! Aish,’ he stood up again and raced to the kitchen. This time, she let herself chuckle while he was gone. He looked even more nervous than she was. When he came back a minute later, he was carrying an expensive bottle of Cheval Blanc and two wine glasses. Shin Hye watched with interest as he gave her a glass and meticulously poured the wine inside. His lips were pursed as he did, showing just how much concentration he was putting into it. After pouring some for himself, he sat down and scanned the table again. Shin Hye could swear he was checking a list in his head, if everything on the table was complete.

‘Relax,’ she finally told him. He looked up at her with a blank expression. She smiled reassuringly. ‘Let’s eat.’

Min Ho let out an audible sigh and slumped his shoulders down. ‘Yeah, let’s.’

Shin Hye reached for the serving fork and scooped some spaghetti to put on her plate. When she filled hers, she lifted it up and handed it to Min Ho. ‘Here.’

Min Ho hesitated, but Shin Hye reached for the empty plate in front of him and laid down the plate full of spaghetti in its place. ‘You cooked, I serve,’ she said as she scooped some more spaghetti to fill her plate. She sat down and grabbed her fork, eyeing her dinner. Ooh, it smells nice. ‘Jalmukketsumnida,’ she said cheerfully.

After eating one forkful, Shin Hye looked up and caught Min Ho staring at her expectantly. Startled by his intense gaze, she almost choked as she chewed. Min Ho’s eyes widened, standing up from his seat and leaning over the table. ‘Shin Hye-ah, are you okay?’

Shin Hye’s hand flew to stop him and covered . Min Ho sat back down, a look of panic still etched on his face, as she lifted the wine glass and sipped. She would have preferred water to wash it down, but there was none. She didn’t want to ask Min Ho for some since he was sure to kick himself for not thinking of giving her water in the first place. After a few seconds of composing herself, she gave Min Ho a pleading look. ‘Oppa, seriously. Let’s just eat like we normally do, eo?’ She let out a laugh. ‘And by the way, the spaghetti’s delicious.’

Min Ho’s expression brightened at the compliment. He smiled cheekily as he started eating. For a few minutes, they just ate silently, and Shin Hye could feel the tension between them again. She racked her brain for something to talk about. She knew that they were inevitably going to have a serious talk later, but for now, she just wants a light dinner conversation.

‘When did you–’

‘How was the–’

They looked down shyly at having spoken at the same time.

‘You first,’ Min Ho said, smiling.

Shin Hye returned the smile, hoping to lessen the awkwardness between them. ‘I was going to ask when you arrived.’

‘Early this morning. I was on the same flight as Geun Suk,’ he replied. ‘I thought it would be safer that way since he promised me he’ll wear something so flashy no one will pay the slightest attention to me. It worked. I was a total ninja; nobody even knew I was there.’

‘Ahh, kure? Geun Suk oppa would have dressed flashy nonetheless,’ Shin Hye joked.

Min Ho started chuckling. ‘You should have seen his outfit this morning. He was wearing a fur scarf.’

‘No way,’ Shin Hye replied, wide-eyed. Geun Suk had always pushed the boundaries of fashion, and she loved that about him. But a fur scarf to Jeju? Really? ‘He did not.’

‘Oh yes, he did. I couldn’t stop laughing when we were in the men’s room. But he just brushed me off and said I knew nothing about fashion.’

Shin Hye dabbed the napkin on her lips and shook her head. ‘I wouldn’t say that, oppa. I mean, your colorful sweaters in our drama? Bold fashion choices, if I must say,’ she taunted, trying not to laugh.

‘Ya! I told you not to talk about those sweaters!’

Shin Hye started giggling. ‘I’m still waiting for you to give me that fluffy pink one.’

Min Ho covered his eyes with the base of his palms. ‘Ugh. I can’t believe those damn things have been immortalized on screen.’

‘Billions of views,’ Shin Hye added, sipping her wine. ‘All over the world.’

Their laughter filled every corner of Geun Suk’s villa. Shin Hye realized just how much she missed Min Ho’s throaty chuckle, and the warm, comfortable feeling of their little conversations. They have always been able to talk about anything and everything, and they usually end up playfully teasing each other. Of course, she couldn’t discount the butterflies in her stomach whenever his eyes smiled as he laughed.

‘So how was your shoot?’ He asked, continuing to eat.

‘It was fine, except for Geun Suk oppa being weird the whole day. Now I know it’s because he’s been hiding all this from me,’ she looked around the room. ‘To be honest, I’m actually relieved.’

Min Ho’s brows creased. ‘Relieved?’

‘Yeah. I was a little scared that he...’ she stopped midway, and briefly studied Min Ho’s face. ‘…was trying to, uhh…’ Shin Hye bit her lip and regretted she even said anything. ‘Never mind, I was wrong anyway.’ She flashed him a nervous smile and lifted her wine glass for a sip.

‘Trying to rekindle an old flame?’

For the second time that night, Shin Hye almost choked. ‘What? No, of course not. That’s too extreme,’ Shin Hye countered defensively. ‘Geun Suk oppa is… well, he’s Geun Suk oppa. My best friend.’

Of course she shouldn’t have to explain herself, but for some reason, she felt an urge to clarify that Geun Suk will always just be a friend to her. Shin Hye could tell Min Ho’s expression changed a bit, but he smiled anyway. ‘Well, he’s a great guy. If I were a girl, I’d date him.’

In an attempt to lighten the mood again, Shin Hye lifted one brow mischievously. ‘Aren’t you already dating him?’

Min Ho leaned in closer, as if he was about to tell her something important. ‘That’s the thing. I think I might be. He gets clingy and upset when I don’t reply to his messages.’

Shin Hye laughed so hard she almost fell out of her seat, wondering how Min Ho could say that with a straight face. ‘Geun Suk oppa won’t be too happy we’re talking about him like this.’

‘Yeah, we should probably stop,’ Min Ho agreed as his laughter subsided. ‘I kind of owe him a lot.’

The silence that followed only amplified the fact that Shin Hye’s heart started beating wildly again. Maybe it was because his voice sounded so gentle and grateful. ‘I kind of owe him a lot.’ It alluded to a reality they’ve been trying to avoid all dinner: that this wasn’t a normal occasion. They were not together anymore, but here he was in Jeju making an effort to create a perfect dinner date. She was reminded again that Min Ho brought her here for a reason, and Geun Suk played a huge role in making that happen. Shin Hye still didn’t know what Min Ho wanted to tell her, and she wasn’t sure if she was ready to hear him, regardless of what it was.

Min Ho was looking at her intently. Shin Hye cleared , to at least fill the quiet room with a sound. Any sound. He broke his gaze and gave her a smile. ‘Time for dessert.’

He stood up and disappeared into the kitchen again, and Shin Hye exhaled deeply. Tonight was a puzzle to her. The few times that they fell back into their normal banter was comfortable and sweet, but then she’d suddenly remember and start to feel anxious around him again. She’s been trying her best to act as normal as possible, and forget the events of the past month – like the break up never happened, that they didn’t just exchange scathing words last week, that they didn’t share a hot, passionate kiss that spoke to them more than words ever could.

For just one dinner, she wanted to pick up where they left off: before all the hurt and pain. She wanted to be reminded of how good they were together. But that was more difficult than she anticipated.

When Min Ho came out of the kitchen, he was holding a cake with candles on them. Shin Hye’s mouth opened to ask, but as he approached the table and laid it down in front of her, she noticed there were words written on it.

Happy Birthday Shin Hye

She looked up at Min Ho whose hand was at the back of his nape, looking embarrassed. ‘I know it’s more than a week late and I wasn’t there on your birthday. Not that you wanted me there, but, uh…’ he struggled to find the words. ‘I wanted to show you that I didn’t forget and…’ he locked eyes with her ‘…I wanted to be there. But I wasn’t. So I had to settle for this. Happy birthday.’

Shin Hye’s eyes flitted from Min Ho to the cake. After a few seconds of her just staring at it, she blew the candles and leaned back on her chair. She looked up and smiled at Min Ho. ‘Thank you.’

‘You didn’t make a wish, did you?’

‘No. I already made a wish when I blew out the candles during my birthday party.’

Min Ho nodded his head, looking slightly disappointed. ‘Ahh.’

‘What’s funny was, Hong Ki told me I couldn’t possibly wish for anything more, that I already have everything,’ Shin Hye continued, sounding serious. ‘But there was one thing that popped into my head that I knew I didn’t have,’ she paused, carefully picking her words. ‘Do you… want to know what it was?’

‘Hmm?’ Min Ho looked nervous.

‘My birthday wish. I asked if you want to know what I wished for.’

It took a while before he answered. ‘What was it?’

Shin Hye looked down and tucked her hair behind her ear before facing Min Ho again.

‘Clarity.’

The sand tickled Min Ho’s toes as they walked barefoot on the beach. After dinner, he asked Shin Hye if she wanted to take a stroll outside since the sea breeze wasn’t too severe. Thankfully, she agreed. Min Ho thought that the villa was getting too stuffy with all the unspoken tension between them.

She walked at a steady pace a few steps ahead of him, her long, white dress swaying in the wind. Now and then, she would turn her head to different directions, perhaps absorbing the sights. Min Ho’s eyes, however, hasn’t left her back. Despite the scenery, she remained the most beautiful view there.

He was ready to talk to her, and finally pour his heart out. But he wasn’t going to lie – he was so nervous. He told himself he was prepared for anything, even for the possibility that she might not want him back. And that he was going to accept her decision no matter what. That was the consequence of his mistake, of his cowardice. If she didn’t want him anymore, then he was going to walk out of her life for good.

But the truth was, he has never been more scared in his life.

He watched Shin Hye take a seat on a beach chair a few meters away from the villa. Min Ho stopped in his tracks and put his hands in his pockets, hesitant to follow her.

Shin Hye looked up at him curiously. ‘Aren’t you going to sit down?’ She tapped the beach chair right beside hers.

Min Ho smiled and sat down, facing the sea. He’d been anxious the whole day so he never really paid attention to any of his surroundings. But looking at the ocean in front of him, it really was a lovely sight.

‘I could live here forever,’ she said softly.

Min Ho took his eyes off the view and turned to her. She was smiling so sweetly, causing Min Ho’s heart to drum loudly against his chest. Shin Hye always had that strange effect on him. She made him feel at peace, but at the same time, she rocked every part of his being. All he wanted to do right now was kneel in front of her and run his fingers across her cheek, then lace them through her hair. Lean in closer, breathe her scent, and kiss her senseless. The only time he’ll pull away is to take a few seconds to catch his breath and tell her…

‘I love you.’

He didn’t mean to say it out loud, but he thought his heart was going to burst if he didn’t.

Shin Hye turned to him, her brows furrowed and her lips parted. He knew she was startled, and that she didn’t know what to say back. Good. Because I’m not done yet, he thought.

‘I never stopped loving you,’ he continued. ‘And I won’t stop.’

Her eyes glistened under the light. He could sense her body go frigid at the sudden confession, but he didn’t want to take too long. She needed to hear him out.

‘I’m a moron. An idiot. I’m a coward. I was selfish and stupid. Because I was hurt and scared. But that’s not an excuse for what I did to you. You didn’t deserve that.’

‘I convinced myself that I was doing the right thing for both of us. But the truth was, I was running away. I was too scared of getting hurt again, an