There was an ominous tension around them and Crystal wondered why. Both Suzy and her looked at the two man, the same kind of bewildered expression on their faces except the fact that Suzy was feeling out of place and somehow guilty, thinking that she was the cause of all these unneeded tension.

 “I’ll walk her to work”

HanBin could see the daggers that Mark was directing to him. If stares could kill, Mark would be a dangerous one. Without wavering, HanBin repeats his words and plastered on a smile on his face.

“I’m really okay Mark. You should bring Suzy to tour the school”

Crystal nodded and before she walked past Mark, she tilts her head and looked up to meet his eyes. A hand was gently placed on his arms; she patted it lightly to assure him that it would be okay.

Crystal was there right in front of him but Mark still has this longing to her, unable to let her go because he didn’t want her away from him, not even a second much less in another man’s presence.

Mark in turn grabbed onto her hands before she slips it off and smiled at her. Ignoring the presence of others, Mark tightens his hold of her hands and said,

“I’ll pick you up tonight”

Crystal smiled bashfully and nodded a few times with her eyes closed. She was blessed just by having Mark and his presence around; the secureness she could gather from him was something she didn’t want to lose it.

HanBin on the other hand was being too obvious with the way he looks at the couple. His breathing was thick and for a moment, he turned away from the sweet couple and shut his eyes forcefully, unwilling to allow the image to seep into his mind.

But Mark notices everything…

--

Mark sees no reason for this bubbly girl to smile at everything she sees. Suzy would skip a few steps and then look back at the guy and smile but only to be treated with a cold presence.

Mark was aware of the whispers going around them, words like ‘suitable’ and ‘couple’ were heard and the elder male couldn’t help but to cringe inwardly. Trying his best to suppress his impatience towards this situation, he tries not to put on a listless and annoyed look as best he could.

“Mark?”

Mark freezes because the girl lunge towards him and hugged his arm, bringing it close to her body… against her .

Mark squirm away, gritted his teeth with annoyance and looked at the girl with a cold stare. This would be good enough to send her a message, he thought.

“I’m sorry… I’ve never had friends and I thought…”

An exasperated sigh escaped from Mark’s lips and he looked down at the whimpering girl, her head hang low and hands kept behind her back as if she was punished.

Slightly feeling guilty about it, Mark frowns, walks towards her and said,

“Gwaen chana”

It was low and soft, hoping to assure the girl that it’s okay. Suzy immediately bob her head up and grin like the happiest girl in the world. Mark shrugs it off and his thoughts went to Crystal, the girl that has the opposite personality as Suzy.

--

"Gomawo”

Crystal and HanBin stopped right in front of ahjumma’s eatery and the two exchanged smiles. HanBin swear he could look at this girl forever, the way her lips curve slightly and then her sparkling eyes shaped into a crescent, probably making her the most adorable thing he sees.

He swallowed hard; the urge to hug her all of a sudden was so strong. One of his hands was raised, slightly leaving his sides but he hesitated because it wasn’t right for him to do what his mind told him to.

“Aniya, don’t mention it”

HanBin instead, raises his hands fast and places it on her head, ruffling her hair into a mess while chortling at the girl’s sudden change of expression.

Crystal duck away because of his mischievous act but it never fails to bring a smile back to her face at the end.

Crystal, if only…