rating: G

genre: romance TO THE MAX

word count: approx. 900+

Breathless, Soojung ran alongside Jongin as he tugged her forward by the hand, his pace eager and seemingly urgent. It was late at night and they were running through the empty halls of SM Entertainment. Under different circumstances, the silence would have been eerie; but it was hard to be freaked out by the emptiness when their hurried footsteps echoed in and out of the halls, their airy laughter getting caught up in between their breaths.

“Jongin, why'd you take me here?” Soojung asked. While their line of work didn't grant them many romantic settings – if not none at all – she would have thought he would have chosen somewhere less stale. These rooms were all too familiar to Soojung, and she wouldn't bother coming here on her own unless she didn't have a choice.

“Just keep quiet and follow me,” Jongin answered. He slowed down to a stop, still gripping her hand tightly, and unlocked one of the several dance rooms before taking the both of them inside.

“What are we doing here?” Soojung whispered. The concept of quiet was impossible when her mind screamed with curiosity. With wide eyes, she looked around the room, the droning silence overwhelming her ears.

She watched Jongin as he sauntered off to the stereo, completely ignoring her question, and plugged his MP3 device into one of the stereo's many chords. Soojung rolled her eyes.

“You aren't going to dance for me, are you? I understand it's your passion and everything, but I would be just as entertained by dinner and a movie.”

Jongin kept his back turned to her as he scrolled through one of his playlists. “We'll save that for the next date, princess.”

Soojung sighed, pacing around the middle of the room. Looking down at the floor, she stared at the numerous scratches and scuff marks decorating the hardwood panels. Then she looked up, scoffing inwardly at the infamous cloud-patterned curtains before seeing herself in the huge expanse of mirror on the long side of the room. Her dark hair was trimmed, the same length it's been for the past who-knows-how-long, and her bare face looked bright – save for the dark circles around her eyes, of course.

Before coming here, Jongin asked her if she was tired, to which Soojung lied by saying no. She supposes he already knew the answer; but a few moments spent with him in their reality were worth more than a couple of hours spent with him in her fantasies. It's one of those love symptoms, Soojung thinks. One would sacrifice anything to spend more time with their loved one. What were a few winks of sleep compared to being with Jongin alone?

Suddenly broken out of her reverie, Soojung perked up as Jongin played one of his songs.

Soojung made an incredulous laugh. “Are you serious?”

Jongin only grinned, his almond eyes boring into hers as he walked towards her. “Don't act as if you don't like it,” he said. He held out his hand to her, bowing in an amusing manner. “May I have this dance?”

“You – I can't believe you!” Soojung laughed again. She took his hand anyways, her own lips quirking into a grin as she said, “Although, I don't see why not.”

Jongin held her hand in his as he rested his other hand against her waist, his fingers bending along with her curves. With his years of dancing expertise, he led the two of them around the room with ease, swaying along to the tempo of the music. Sliding his hand to the small of her back, Jongin pulled Soojung closer, resting his chin on the top of her head as she leaned against his chest. His heart was racing like a bird fluttering incessantly inside a small cage; but oddly enough, he didn't worry about whether or not she could hear it. He was always transparent about his feelings for her, so it wasn't like he was ever self-conscious about it.

Soojung swayed with him, pressing her cheek against his chest and breathing him in. She closed her eyes, not out of sleep, but in appreciation of this moment. She wanted to savor it. To preserve it. She wanted the two of them to stay there forever, untouched and undisturbed by the pressures of the outside world. Then again, Soojung doesn't think she'd appreciate these moments as much without the pressure. Having free time for herself was rare – having free time with Jongin at the same time was even rarer. And isn't it true that rare things are the most valuable? The most memorable? Soojung certainly believes so.

Pressing his lips against her temple, Jongin murmured, “Do you still think it would've been better if we went to dinner and a movie?”

Soojung drew in a slow, deep breath, her eyes still closed.

“Nope,” she eventually answered. “I'd choose this over dinner and a movie any day.”

author's note: John Legend's "All Of Me" is perfect, I tell you. PERFECT. This is a quick late-night whip since I felt like writing, but I didn't know what to write, so I drew something out of my Magic Jar of Writing Prompts. The name of the jar is still in progress, but basically what it is is a jar filled with folded pieces of paper. On each paper is a short sentence that I'm supposed to inspire a story from - the prompt I drew today had "slow-dancing" written on it so tadaaaah xD I'm hoping these kinds of exercises will keep the writer's block away. Until the next update, everyone! - Ella