Saturday 4AM

The night was dark. The two of them stood in front of the convenience store just around the corner from the barbecue place they had a get-together with their former classmates.

Minzy felt his loud and fastened heartbeat radiating from his chest, flowing through his skin and thin material of the white t-shirt he wore.

He didn’t let go of her ever since they left the restaurant. The weather and heat of his body didn’t help her get by with how drunk she suddenly felt.

With his face cuddled into her neck and warm breath tingling her skin – Minzy felt pleasant shivers overtaking her body.

The street lights and those of nearby buildings seemed to spin endlessly in front of her worn out by the alcohol eyesight. If if wasn’t for him holding her this tight, she would’ve been able to keep walking.

Minzy heard giggles and ratty comments of the people passing by them.

“Jongin-ah? ...” she mumbled into his exposed collar bone. As always, his scent made her feel relieved. But was she ready to feel at ease in such a close presence of his after all this time? After the last words she heard from him before they parted years ago?

“I’m tired.” his voice was cold as ice. If only he could know how deep that tone in his voice cut into her heart. If he knew that it hurt more than what he said.

Words portending their breakup didn’t matter to her that much. Till that time she felt like she was able to recognize whenever he would like to her – but after that morning, did she lie to herself that she actually knew him like no other?

It was his expressionless face that convinced her that he wasn’t for her.

It wasn’t how they were… She felt her eyes watering waiting for more words to follow.

She wasn’t planning to cry in front of him. “What do you mean?” Minzy asked while automatically taking on the similar expression to his. That time she let him kill the so called butterflies in her stomach.

She was always good at it. Adapting to people based on who was near her. Letting many get all she had best from her and then getting nothing in return – that’s how it usually was.

What did you expect from him? She remembered how she looked at him that last time. His eyes were focused on some point she wasn’t able to reach.

If he was cold – she got colder.

Only what she went through after their breakup changed her. Her heart has taken another hit from someone she found dear. She wanted to give herself to him… but her rejected that.

Maybe she would’ve taken that breakup more lightly – only if it wasn’t so sudden. Just the previous day they were together. With him never letting go of her hand and how they almost did it in her own room.

Was he already disgusted with me that day? Minzy thought while grasping onto the whit shirt at the back of his waist.

Another thought crossed her mind – Is going back to what broke you good – Minzy-ah? She asked herself.

“Yah… Jongin-ah” she sadly whimpered into his neck while he silently kept her tightly wrapped in his arms.

“I really, I really wish that I was the one to break you...” she mumbled while slowly loosing touch with reality. The alcohol took over her. The moment she said the last word – she was out.

Jongin felt her limply sliding out of his grasp as her legs surrendered under her weight.

The tone of her voice didn’t match the harshness of her words. How did we come to this? He thought while looking at her and frowned miserably.

“I know.” he replied softly into her hair and in one movement lifted her up. She seemed lighter even though she looked healthier than before. Jongin thought with his his hands wrapped around her thighs and waist.

He kept walking down the streets. “Would it freak you out if I took you to your place?” Jongin thought and wondered what would be her reaction to the fact that he knew where she currently stayed.

“Am I a creep?” he asked while glancing at her sleeping in his arms. The fact that he kept track of her ever since he heard that she came back to the city – would it scare her? He sighed defeated.

Not seeing any other choice since he couldn’t just simply take her to the all-females dormitory at that hour – instead he took her to his place.

But was it better for her?

Minzy moaned in her sleep – they were 17 again.

The library was empty already and Minzy could clearly remember that thick smell of old books overflowing around her. Spending afternoons there was like her everyday ritual.

For the attempt to study in the number 1 high school in the country, she left her parents in the countryside and came to live with her aunt. While her apartment was small and cramped with the two little kids running around. Wanting to escape from the noise, Minzy found the library to be her sanctuary.

As tricky as the dreams can be – she felt nervous even before she saw him right beside her. How come she could already sense him being close.

Minzy felt his palm being gently placed at the back of her neck and surprised, with eyes wide open – looked at him while his warm fingers wrapped around her neck.

Tensed and unable to say anything back – she glared at him with her cheeks flushing bright red.

“What are you doing?” she asked dumbfounded.

“Minzy-yah? A bun? I haven’t seen that on you yet.” Minzy heard him and saw how he carefully measured each inch of her exposed neck.

“What are you saying? It’s … nothing much… how did you even pay attention to that?” she mumbled while avoiding his eyes and at the same time slipped out of his grasp. You ask – She thought – as if it wasn’t your fault, that you kept playing with my hair while sitting behind me yesterday. Minzy wanted but still didn’t say that into his face.

Remembering how he did that on purpose send another wave of heat to her flushed cheeks.

Minzy recognized how the corner of his lips twitched in that mischievous smile she usually got from him. The skin on her neck he just let go of still burned from his touch.

“How? you say – ...“ he mumbled with that arcane look in his eyes.

Minzy didn’t want to understand at that time. Back then men were not the center of her attention even though all other girls had – getting a boyfriend quick – set as a main goal.

He seemed to be nothing but a distraction at that time. She already had her goal and dreams back then and only for that reason her father let her leave the family house and aim for her bright future.

Compared to the path she set up for herself – Jongin was just one more classmate she had to put up with. But still why couldn’t she stop thinking about him?

With the memory of that day and her dithers, she woke up.

Sunday – 10AM

Dreadful headache was the first thing she felt after waking up. Minzy found it difficult to even open her eyes.

Instead of rolling to the side or off the bed, she just kept laying in silence. Why do I keep being reminded of those moments? She thought with furrowed eyebrows and only then started to realize and remember what happened last night.

“Kim Jongin...” she whispered and opened her eyes wide reminded of the kisses they shared. She touched her lips with fingers of her left hand. Can’t be… She thought devastated.

Embarrassed she felt like covering her face in hands. How could she let that happen? Minzy thought. Where is my pride? She asked herself, but knew that it was already too late for that.

Only when she tired to get her right hand from underneath the blanked she found herself wrapped in – she felt resistance. Some weight preventing her from moving freely was pressing onto her right side and when she lifted herself up slightly – Minzy found Jongin sleeping with his head resting on the side, close to her body, right at the level of her s and with one of his arms thrown across her hips.

Minzy blinked few times and looked around to find a completely unfamiliar place, with her heels and dress laying on the floor in the middle of the room. The rush of adrenaline in her veins made her headache lessen in an instant.

Dozens of different thoughts crossed her mind and the worst one peaked to the top 1 “tragic scenarios” when the blanket slid from her shoulders and Minzy found herself being there only in her lingerie.

“Kim Jongin!” she yelled and with all the might she found in herself – kicked him off of her and off the bed at the same time.

Startled and too late to react, Jongin fell on the floor with a loud thud! He then looked at her wary of what she was going to do next.

“What did you do…?” she stuttered while panting and wrapped herself into the blanket. In that swift glance at him she saw his concerned expression and adorable bed-hair, where only half of the hair of his head kept sticking up.

“We didn’t do anything! I didn’t do anything!” Jongin stood up in an instant. Embarrassed that he stood in front of her with a revealed top part of his body, Minzy averted her face and eyes away from him.

“What do you mean – nothing happened?!” Minzy panted and rolled off the bed as well. With the blanket tangled between her legs, she fell right after getting off of it.

Jongin went to her right after hearing her squeal.

“I can get up by myself.” Minzy snorted at him while trying to get up and keep the blanked so it would cover her tightly at the same time. Too embarrassed to face him – she pointed at her dress laying on the floor in the middle of the room.

Defeated and slightly amused by her sudden outburst – Jongin looked at both Minzy and the dress while shaking his head. “You woke up after I brought you here and … then you undressed saying that it was too hot for you.” he explained shortly, leaving her even more devastated.

“After you tried to undress me too – I had no other choice but to imprison you in that blanked bundle that you just woke up in. Since you fought me until you got tired – I just kept you on the bed by force and… that’s how both of us fell asleep.” he ended and she glanced at him over her shoulder for a split second only.

Unable to reply in any kind of way, she grasped the blanket’s edge and pulled it over her head after turning away from him.

“I