• DARA •

 

I didn't know how to respond to Chaerin's confession. her eyes looked so helpless and innocent that for a minute there I forgot it was chaerin who had said that. I blinked, looking back at her in awe.

 

"You can come inside if you want." I finally say. sHe heaves a sigh of relief and slips out of the limo after me. I can hear her behind me as I saunter up the driveway and pull open the front door.

 

"Aunt ?" I call. "I'm home." She appears at the kitchen's entrance, a smile on her face. "Glad you're home, Dara. bom hasn't arrived." She suddenly spots chaerin standing awkwardly behind me and grins. "Oh! You must be Dara's new friend! Nice to meet you." She walks over and holds her hand out for chaerin.

 

sHe takes it. "Nice to meet you too."

 

Aunt winks in my direction and I shoot her a glare. She shrugs innocently. "We'll be out back." I tell her. "C'mon." I motion for chaerin to follow me. I led her out the back door and to the pool area. The pool's huge and I barely ever use it. It's mostly bom unnie and her loud group of friends.

 

I take a seat on a lawn chair and chaerin does the same.

 

"So," I say, breaking the silence. "You have something to explain?"

 

sHe shifts awkardly and sighs. "Cant you just drop it, Dara?"

 

I frown. "I can't drop it, CL. My own family's keeping secrets from me. Why my friend too?"

 

sHe sighs again and looks down at her hands. "It's complicated."

 

I groan. "Is that your answer to everything? Aishh, chaerin. I need to know why you acted so strange at the carnival. I need to know why you changed and..." I pause. "You can't trust me, ok?I promise I won't judge you."

 

sHe looks at me, that helpless look appearing in her eyes again. "Ok," sHe say finally, defeated. "I tell you."

 

I give her and assuring smile and wait. sHe glances around her surrounds for a while before looking back at me.

 

"I was happy." sHe begins. "I had an amazing life, amazing fans, and..." sHe looks down again. "and an amazing girlfriend." sHe looks nervous as her eyes meet mine again and she continues. "I loved her and she seemed to love me back. I've never been so in love in my life. I'd do absolutely anything for her, but..." sHe tugs at her shirt. "She was older than me by two years. I sometimes felt like a lost puppy when I was with her. I felt like some naive kid. One day...one day calls me and...and she breaks up with me. She tells me it won't work out because I was too young and immature for her. She said it was also driving away some of her fans just because she was dating me. But what really got to me was when she said I was immature. It never once crossed my mine that I was too immature for her. I was only 19...and she was 21." sHe closes her eyes for a second. "She broke my heart. For days I thought about what she said and decided that maybe she was right. Maybe I was to immature. I wanted to prove something to her. To prove that I could be mature. To prove that I can be the one she wanted. So I just started going to clubs, drinking, hooking up with a different girls and boys each night..." sHe exhales. "I kinda lost control. But i did feel more mature. Then...this morning...she called me for the first time in ages." sHe runs a nervous hand through her hair. "I don't know what to do."

 

"chaerin?" I ask her. "Was this girl...Tiffany?" sHe looks at me for a second and then nods, her eyes somehow watery.

 

"So that's it?" I say. "It was all over a girl? Over Tiffany? She's the one who changed you?" sHe nods and buries her face in her hands, not crying but on the edge.

 

Wow, I think to myself. That was it? It was all because of a girl? "Wait, chaerin?"

 

sHe looks up. "Yeah?"

 

"What does this have to so with you running away from me at the carnival?" sHe opens respond but closes it again, her face falling back into her hands. I throw her a sympathetic look and walk over to her, draping my arm around her shoulder in a friendly way.

 

"What is it?" sHe doesn't look at me while she talks. "I don't know. You...you make me forget things. Things like Tiffany, drinking, clubs..." her fingers draw invisible circles on the lawn chair. "I feel like myself when I'm with you. But I'm afraid..." her voice fades.

 

"Afraid of what?" I question. sHe looks into my eyes, a sad look mixed with anger and hope. "I'm afraid that'll you'll leave me just like Tiffany. I'm afraid that history will repeats himself if I get to close to you. I'm afraid that I'm falling in love with you when I shouldn't be."

 

I keep my jaw from hitting the ground. sHe's...falling in love with me? I never meant for this to happen. I only meant to bring back the real chaerin and be a good friend to her. What falling in love? That wasn't part of the plan. Now I was the one that was afraid. I was afraid that I rejected her, that she would only change for the worst and not for the better. I was afraid that I would break her heart just like, or maybe worse, than Tiffany. I didn't want that to happen. I didn't want thing to turn out this way.

 

But right now... The way she was looking at me with those , brown, innocent, and hopeful eyes... I didn't know what to say. I didn't know how I felt towards her. Did I feel the same way? Did I?

 

"I'm sorry, Dara." sHe says at last.

 

I crinkle my forehead. "For what?"

 

"I don't know. For everything?" sHe shrugs. I wrap my arms around her tighter and press my lips to her cheek. I feel her tense up but dhe doesn't react the way like she did eariler. sHe just calms down.

 

I don't know what happened next. My lips began to slowly inch their way from her cheek and to her lips. Why? I have no idea. It was as if something was controlling me. Part of me...part of me was eager to find out how her lips tasted like.

 

"Dara-ssi!" bom unnie voice singsonged, startling us. I quickly pull away from chaerin before my lips could meet her.

 

"Um, hey." I say awkardly as bom unnie skips in through the back door clad in a pocka dot bikini.

 

She looks between chaerin and I, a curious look on her face. "Hey again." She half-smiles. "You guys just disappeared from the carnival."

 

"Yeah," I mutter. "There was an emergency."

 

"bom?" dongwook appears, his chest bare and his muscles defined. I remember when I used to have a small crush on him back when bom unnie first met Taeyeon. I chuckle to myself. It took me forever to get over him.

 

"Hey, Dara!" Dongwook grins before literally front- flipping into the pool.

 

bom unnie rolls her eyes. "Show off." She dives in after him, a perfect, flawless dive. I wonder where Taeyeon is?

 

"I should get going." chaerin blurts, standing up. I nod, oddly disappointed. "Ok. See you around?"

 

sHe kinda smiles. "See ya around." sHe begins to make her way to the door, but pauses. "Are you free tomorrow?"

 

I chew on bottom lip. "Yes?" It comes out sounding more like a question but chaerin doesn't notice.

 

sHe grins. "Can I take you somewhere? You showed me your most memorable spot and...and maybe I should show you mine. What do you think of picnic?"

 

I feel a smile tugging at my lips. "Sounds brilliant."

 

chaerin beams. "Great! See you tomorrow, Dara-ssi." I let my smile show. "Bye, chae." sHe disappears and I fall back on the lawn chair. dongwook and taeyeon seemed occupied at one corner of the pool, chatting about hell-knows- what. I can't stop thinking about chaerin . sHe finally opened up to me. Finally. But...she might be falling in love with me? I didn't see that coming. I still hadn't figured out my feelings for her but she sure as heck did make me smile and being with her was just...I don't know. Unexplainable.

 

I wondered what her most memorable spot was. Did it involve tiffany? I hoped not. sHe had to forget her and move on with her life. Did she forget chaerin? Was she ever in love with chaerin to begin with? So many question ran through my head. So many unanswered questions.

 

• Tiffany •

 

I stared at my cellphone, chewing on my bottom lip and thinking about whether or not to call her again. sHe seemed so different. So changed. Why? There was a point in my life where I was absolutely convinced I was in love with her . Maybe I was. I never figured it out. Then people began to question me and our relationship. They told me I was too old for her and she was too immature. I agreed, remembering how sometimes chaerin would say something that I would find completely childish. So I broke up with her, deciding it was for the better.

 

It's been months now and...and I can't seem to get her out of my head. When I was with her, the world seemed to be far away. Maybe it wasn't over. Maybe she didn't hate me. Maybe she would give us a chance again. I pushed my phone aside, deciding to call her again tomorrow. I had to forget about what others thought. A part of me needed chaerin in my life.

 

_______

 

Author's Note: SURPRISE!! lol what do you think guys ? Will dara fall for chaerin ? Or will Tiffany find away to take chaerin back? Hmm....