The rest of the day made my head ache. Jongdae had insisted that we take my mother and Sehun to the beach because "Look how beautiful the weather is today!" and everyone seemed to agree, leaving me to sigh in annoyance as everyone raced to get their swimming gear. Jongdae didn't bring any swim trunks with him, so he sat with me on the couch, fumbling with the hem of his shorts.

"Do you think it'd shrink if I got them wet?" He asked cluelessly, rubbing at the fabric.

I glanced over and shook my head, "I don't think so, I'm pretty sure it'd just smell like seawater after, though."

He merely sat back on the sofa, wondering if he should join the fun before nodding conclusively to himself. "I think I will sit back and watch our stuff."

"You don't have to do that if you want to get in the water," I said dismissively, leaning against the arm rest. Jongdae shook his head feverishly and sat up with excitement, his eyes glinting childishly.

"But I want you to have fun too!" He insisted. I stared back in surprise, caught off guard with how passionate he was about the topic.

"Oh, but I don't really like swimming..."

Jongdae's jaw dropped, as shock registered on his face. "No. Way."

"Yes way," I nodded. "I don't like swimming. First of all, I don't even like cold water and I think beach water smells gross."

"Okay fair," he pointed out. "But still! It's fun when you're playing around with everyone and splashing in nature's gift!"

My eyes narrowed as I stared at him. "Nature's gift?"

"Yes," he said seriously. "It's super fun! I hope you know that I'll have to drag you in anyway."

I merely rolled my eyes at his comment, and Jongdae laughed, taking my action as me caving in. There wasn't an easy way to say this, but even if he threw me into the ocean, I'd definitely do the same, but instead of the ocean, I would simply throw him into hell.

I tried shooting him a mean glare as I thought that, hoping that I'd be able to somehow telekinetically change his mind, but he simply started humming like an idiot instead and I gave up. Of course my intelligence couldn't compare to his peewee brain.

Jongdae sang on and on, his melody never seeming to stop, and even though I didn't generally like how whiny he sounded while talking, his singing voice was surprisingly quite calming. It almost lulled me back to sleep right then and there, as I silently closed my eyes, soaking in his tune. There were runs and various skips that I could identify, and I wondered if he ever got any formal training in singing.

Despite that, I wasn't interested enough to ask, but his singing really was nice.

"Okay, we're done Hayoung!"

The sharp call from my mother marching into the living room immediately startled me, and I jumped up in shock to see them with already blown-up floaties and goggles. Sehun even pretended to be using his snorkel and I stared in awe.

"Well, do we look good?" My mother asked, teasingly showing off her beach gear and Jongdae laughed from behind me.

"Yes! You look great. You too Sehun, you're gonna get a bunch of girls with how adorable you look," he joked, and Sehun groaned loudly in protest.

"I am not adorable," he insisted, crinkling his nose. Even though he said that, Sehun admittedly was pretty adorable with the huge floatie around his waist and the giant goggles framing his face. It almost made me feel like taking a picture as if I were his mom, but I fought against that urge, as he crossed his arms childishly.

"Okay okay," Jongdae relented. "You look very manly then."

"Thank you," Sehun replied curtly, as if he proved his point.

"Anyway," my mother interrupted, clapping her hands together. "Let's get going! Who's driving?"

That would've been a question if she weren't looking straight at Jongdae, who laughed lightheartedly. "Well, I do have a pretty decently sized car!" He stated, as he stood up eagerly to grab his keys.

My mother's eyes lit up as she watched him, probably admiring at how responsible her supposed "future son-in-law" was, and I couldn't help but sigh in annoyance. Literally why was my life like this?

Her gaze turned straight towards me after she heard my sigh, and blinked before asking, "Are you dressed for the beach?"

"No," I muttered back. "You know I don't like the beach or big bodies of water."

"Oh stop being a baby, nothing's gonna happen and Jongdae's gonna be there to protect you anyway!" She retorted, as if that was supposed to magically make me feel better.

I kept my mouth shut though - they'd never listen to a word of protest from me about him anyway.

After packing all the floaties, snacks, picnic items, and eventually ourselves into the car, we made the trip to the beach, and I sat in the front next to Jongdae as navigator. It was more like he was listening to the sound of Siri telling him what to do and him doing it, rather than me actually telling him what to do, but it worked anyway and I didn't have to talk incessantly about small, useless things, so I idled in my seat.

Sehun and my mother, however, were not faring well. They were fidgiting in the back, constantly asking how long it would take, and while I knew it was only an hour to the beach from my home, the ride felt like it had lasted for a whole day.

Jongdae entertained them, being the good sport he was but I already felt my patience running thin. It's not like I could really stand going to the beach when I didn't even like it.

Jongdae seemed to notice though, as I let out a small sigh and glanced over at me. "Are you okay?" He asked, concern in his voice.

I blinked back, surprised, but nodded back at him. "Yes," I said. "Why do you ask?"

"Just making sure," he replied in a noncommittal smile. "I wouldn't want you feeling under the weather at the beach."

"Oh."

Even though it was a normal conversation between the two of us, I couldn't help but feel slightly flushed, probably because of how caught off guard I was and because of how observant he was. I didn't expect his seemingly clueless self to realize, and even more so, I didn't expect to feel this good to be checked up on.

After a while of more driving, we finally arrived to the beach and Jongdae paid for the entrance fee, quickly parking in the closest spot he could find, but my mom and Sehun immediately jumped out of the car with their floaties in tow.

"The beach!" Sehun hollered, loud enough for the other side of the world to hear.

"It looks beautiful!" My mother clammered, staring in awe at the water that sparkled ahead.

They couldn't even bear to wait, as they rushed to the water, leaving us behind with the rest of the items they didn't want to take. I let out a short groan as I stared at their carefree selves, before getting out and making my way to the trunk to grab all the items. Jongdae had beat me there though, and already had the blanket and umbrella in his arms, quickly ushering me to the sand.

"We're going to make the most of this day," he declared, happiness glowing in his eyes.

I glanced up and saw the childlike expression that he wore so obviously on his face and asked, "Are you excited?"

"Excited?" He turned to stare at me with awe. "I'm super excited! This is amazing. I haven't been to the beach in forever!"

He seemed so much like a five year old that it almost made me chuckle, but I held it back and watched as he arranged everything perfectly. The umbrella blocked out most of the sun away from the blanket, and he patted down on the shaded area, looking at me. "Sit!"

I followed his direction and sat obediently, waiting for his next comment, and to my surprise, he slathered sunscreen on his hand and started smearing it onto my skin. "Gotta stay protected, you know?"

"I'm gonna be in the shade though," I insisted, but Jongdae merely shook his head.

"You still have to protect yourself from the sun! It's important, even if the sun isn't hitting you directly, you know?" He explained, and I just rolled my eyes in response. "I'm being serious!"

"Okay mom," I mumbled jokingly, feeling slightly anxious as his hands massaged into my shoulders. He was being awfully gentle and his sunscreen lecture turned into a mini massage with him running his fingers over my skin slowly, kneading into my muscles.

"You're so tense," he murmured, feeling the knots along my back.

"Oh you know, it gets stressful when you're trying to get out of an 'arranged relationship' set by your mom," I uttered back, not noticing the slight shock on his face. There was a small pause after my statement and he stilled suddenly, causing me to turn back in confusion, wondering if he was offended by what I had said.

To my surprise, a serious look had taken over his face and he stared back at me with the most grave expression on his face.

"Can I ask you something?" He asked, his voice faintly cracking.

With a bout of hesitation, I shifted awkwardly to properly face him and replied, "What's up?"

Moments like these always made me nervous beyond reason. I had never seen Jongdae so serious, he was always so happy-go-lucky, and even though I only merely tolerated it, seeing him in this state frightened me.

"Can I..." He paused anxiously, gnawing at his lower lip. His eyes shimmered apprehensively, and while his gaze never left mine, it seemed to encapture me into a difficult trap to escape. The atmosphere grew thick and I found myself digging my fingers into the plush comfort of the towel, hoping for some reprieve. "Can I ask – seriously ask – about us?"

"U-us?" I stuttered, surprised at his question.

He stared back ever so calmly, however, determined to hear my answer. "Us," he confirmed. "I just want to know what you think about us because I just, I have no idea what to think. Some times I feel like you're warming up to me, but other times, I just can't tell and I don't want to be annoying."

I twitched slightly at how uncomfortable I was. It wasn't because his presence made it uncomfortable, but in the end, thinking about questions like that always left me in a frenzy. My throat suddenly felt dry, and I could hear my heart racing at a million miles per hour. Jongdae persistently waited, his hands tucked neatly onto his lap.

"Well," I croaked, after a few moments of silence. "I just... I don't know. I mean, it's weird to me you know? I haven't been in a committed relationship for years, it's weird..."

"What's so weird about it?" Jongdae didn't hesitate to reply and I shrugged weakly. There was never a real clear answer that I had for questions like that.

"Erm, I mean like... I don't know... After my last relationship, I just thought that... someone who is easy to get is someone that's easy to forget. I don't want to be forgotten," I clarified, wondering if that was a decent answer.

Despite that, Jongdae's gaze never changes, never wavers. He made no obvious sign of what his response was, and I anxiously draw my eyes towards my knees, unable to handle the tense mood. It was quiet for moments more until Jongdae cleared his throat and I sharply pulled my head up to look at him.

However, what met me was a look of disappointment and pure, raw annoyance.

"You think you're easy to forget? Actually, no scratch that, you think you're easy to get?" He retorted, a bit of a bite to his voice. "You're none of those and it's stupid to think so! But there's a limit to your words, Hayoung. It's hurtful for you to say that I'm going to forget about you so easily, especially since I've been so sincere about my pursuit for you. You know that I care so much, am practically obsessed with you and your happiness. Are you kidding me?"

I blinked uneasily, and bit the inside of my cheek in shame. Jongdae waited for a response, anything really, but there was nothing in my mind. It was a complete blank.

"Well," he coughed slightly awkwardly, moving to stand up. "I am gonna go and just... let you be."

Shock filled me and I contemplated if I wanted to stop him or let him go, twitching slightly in panic, but before I could even stand, Jongdae had already brushed me off and started walking towards Sehun and my mother. In the heat of the moment, all I could do was let my jaw drop.

Oh no. I just ed up.