Looking at her now, he can’t help but think how much she has changed, since their first meeting.

She’s currently wearing a tight white shirt that shows off her curves, and a short blue skirt that lets her legs show. The canvas sneakers she wears give her a look of innocence, and, along with the way her hair is pulled up in a ponytail, she looks younger than usual, frailer than usual, gentler than usual. Compared to the combat boots and black outfits that she normally wears, she certainly looks different, now that her make-up and hair is done in order for her to look innocent and romantic.

Yet, despite her attire, he can still see his girl in her: She has that fierce look on her face, the one she displays when she’s deeply focused on something, and she looks straight at him, not trying to hide her attentions under fake shyness. The girl in front of him, that starts to move along with the music, dancing only for him in the cutest way she can manage, is still Lyd. His Lyd. 

He can’t help but remember the first time he met her, when she was only a stranger to him.

It was a bad day.

It just was: there was no need of a particular reason, of a saddening event or anything of that sort. It was just a bad day, and I could do nothing to change that.

It was like that with me. I could be the happiest person on Earth half of the time, full of positive thoughts… but that meant that the rest of the time, gloominess surrounded me. And tiredness. And despair.

This was just a part of me. And I had sort of accepted that. Sort of.

So, I knew that today would be a bad day, and I had known that since the moment I woke up. Up until now, nothing had proven me wrong: I had slept badly, my muscles were sore from the intense practice of the days before, all my fellow members had plans, and, on top of that, I had to go back to the grocery store to get the things I had forgotten the day before.

Perfect. Just perfect.

Not that I had anything against grocery stores. It was just that I really wanted to stay home and, well… sulk, I guess. I wanted to hide from the world in the dimly-lit room of my dorm, and stay there until the next morning. It seemed like a glorious plan to me.

G.O, however, didn’t think so. “You better buy the things you forgot to yesterday. If you haven’t bought them by the time I come back, you’ll be the one doing the cooking for the rest of the week.”  he had said. Was he crazy? We would all be poisoned, that was for sure, if they let me cook for them…

Anyway. I’d probably sulk some more on my own, and then make my way to the grocery store… After all, it was my day off, and I could spend it however I wanted to.

…

.

I fell asleep.

And I overslept.

No, that was an understatement. I slept the whole day, and it was now eight o’clock in the afternoon. And the grocery store was closing at 8.30.

I started running, hoping that I would get there in time. The last thing I needed right now after all, was to get scolded by G.O.

…

I quickly made my way into the store, browsing through the shelves in a careless way, purchasing the items that G.O had scribbled on the list the day before. I barely glanced around, focused on ending my task as soon as possible before the store closed (not that they would kick me out or anything, but I didn’t want to have people working overtime for me –I wasn’t that inconsiderate after all).

I reached the counter in a record time, and I patiently waited for the worker to check my items. I felt sleepy, drained, and most of all tired from everything. My head hung low, and I was lost in my thoughts.

I snapped back to reality thanks to the voice of the worker. “You know, chocolate usually helps”, she said, and I looked at her puzzled.

She was… different. She was a foreigner, and this was apparent not only from her distinctive non-Korean facial features, but from her outfit and make-up as well: she was dressed all in black, with clothes that fitted just right, and she was wearing lots of eye-liner that made her eyes look more intimidating than they must usually be. In general, she looked… fierce, kind of? She looked like the kind of girl you wouldn’t really want to mess with, because of her difficult character. But her smile was pleasant, I noted.

“…Sorry?” I asked, looking at her curiously, seeing how I hadn’t exactly seized the meaning of her question.

“No matter the problem, I’m pretty sure that chocolate can help” she explained, her smile widening. I decided right then that her smile was absolutely beautiful, seeing how it softened her features. I found it hard not to smile back, so I did.

“Wait a second, please” I told her, and I sprinted towards the shelves to buy some chocolate, as she had suggested. I choose white chocolate, my favorite kind, but the girl back at the counter didn’t really seem to share my love for it.

 “White chocolate is not technically chocolate, you know?”

“…Sorry?”  God, I must have really seemed bright in front of her, forming one-word sentences and being unable to hold a conversation with her…

“White chocolate doesn’t have cocoa in it, so it isn’t really chocolate” she explained patiently, but I could see that there was a hint of annoyance in her voice.

“Oh…” I said, frowning. It really wasn’t a good day for me: I could usually be charming in situations like that, or funny and entertaining… But today wasn’t my day, at all.  

She seemed to pierce my discomfort, because she quickly added, all annoyance gone: “But as long as it makes you happy, I’m pretty sure it doesn’t matter whether it’s chocolate or not.”

I smiled brightly at her, expression mirroring hers. She was nice, I decided, and I tried to talk a bit more with her, despite the obvious awkwardness of our discussion.

“So, you don’t like white chocolate?” Lame, I know. But can you blame a man for trying?

“No, not really…” she trailed off.

“Then what is your favorite kind of chocolate?” I inquired further, and to my surprise, she replied by bringing a finger to her lips, winking at me and saying: “It’s a secret”.

I was often described as an idiot by the press, but I certainly knew how to spot a girl flirting with me. And she was flirting with me right then, in a subtle and tasteful way. I blinked a few times, but then I quickly played along, making my voice lower and leaning in a bit, as I replied: “Well… are there ways to find out?”

She stepped back, the counter in between us, and handed me the bill, smiling still.

 “We’ll see…” she said, and suddenly, it didn’t seem such a bad day anymore.

Their first meeting was awkward, and it almost seemed as if she disliked him at the beginning. To be honest, Joon wasn’t sure about how their relationship would progress –if it would progress. They were too different; he had thought so plenty of times.

But now, there they are, with Lyd putting up a show for him, just for him. It’s not perfect, that’s for sure: Hye Rin is a bit too energetic, Myu Ri way too shy, and his own girl is constantly trying to ease the frown on her face and replace it with a smile –and failing to do so, as she is way too concentrated at what she’s doing.

It’s not perfect, but Joon can feel the sincerity through every movement of hers.

And, when she looks into his eyes, holding onto his gaze with her own as she mouths the lyrics of the song to him, it suddenly becomes perfect. Because, for the first time perhaps, Lyd isn’t afraid of looking at him without masking her feelings or emotions. She looks at him, simply, as she dances, and she now seems to enjoy dancing more, to enjoy performing more. 

It’s perfect now, he thinks, as she flashes him a bright smile –a smile that is directed only to him.

“Believe in me right now”, she says, and Joon does just that, without any difficulty. He believes in her, in them, as the song reaches its end.

The girl with the black combat boots or the girl with the short skirt; the fiery feisty girl or the cute and innocent one; it’s all Lydia, he thinks, when their performance ends, and all of his fellow members get up, screaming like their own fans at one of their concerts.

It’s all Lydia, he repeats, and she’s his. And that’s why he quickly gets up, hugging her from behind, inhaling her perfume, her scent that is unique in the world.

He missed this, he realizes. He missed her.

“Thank you”, he whispers, and he can feel her smile at first, and then laugh, when he adds: “You really are the cute kind of girlfriend, in the end… You should probably call me oppa as well.”

She turns around, and he’s sure for a second that she’ll hit him. However, the girl simply faces him and says in a fake severe way: “Don’t get too used to the cute act okay? And I’m not calling you oppa. Like never.”

“But whyyy?” he replies, even though it doesn’t really matter how she calls him, as long as she’s in his arms. “After all, you can’t just call me by my stage name… It’s weird.”

He recognizes the look she gives him right away: it’s the one full of mischief that makes her eyes twinkle, when she has found the perfect way to make him embarrassed or flustered.

“Hmm… I have a better way to call you, I think.”

“And what is that?” he asks, eager to know the answer.

As she leans in to whisper in his ear, he knows that this girl will be, eventually, the death for him. “Chang…sun.”

His name coming out from her lips makes him blush, and he can only mutter a shy “I like it” as a response.

But Lydia being Lydia, continues to catch him by surprise. “I like you” she says.

And of course, being the bold girl that she is, she takes the initiative first, and kisses him. It’s a careful kiss; it’s a soft and caring one; and Chang Sun thinks that it’s exactly as it should be.

~~~

A/N: 

I'm so, so sorry for not updating for so long. I'm really sorry, honestly. I'll work harder from now on, I promise! ^^

Lots of thanks to: HaNeulDk and liana9493, for requesting which part they wanted to see from Joon's POV. I hope that you both enoyed it, thank you so much for reading the story and commenting regularly on it! And thanks as well to all of you who subscribed, upvoted or commented, you really make my day when you do~

I'll work hard for the next chapter, so please expect it. Feel free to subscribe, comment, upvote, message me... Just anything! XD

Have a nice day! :)

SikyGreen.