Mark’s siblings don’t seem to be bothered by his long period of absence from the restaurant table, although Joey does ask him on the way back what took so long. Mark tells him, along with his parents, the truth: he had met a friend and got carried away with the conversation. Mr. and Mrs. Tuan appear thrilled to realize that Mark would be able to find some entertainment during his time in Seoul. They were staying for two weeks after all. That night, Mark connects to their hotel’s wi-fi on his phone, and the first thing he does is visit Google Translate. He falls asleep afterward as fast as he can because he can’t wait to see Jinyoung the next day.

            Mark had always been a heavy sleeper though, because when he wakes up, it’s already nine in the morning; he realizes he had missed all three of the alarms that he had set. One glance at the clock hanging on the wall is enough to shift the gears in his brain. Mark rushes into the shower and dresses as quickly as he can, waking the rest of his family up in the process. He dons a casual white T-shirt with a denim jacket and pants before slipping on his most comfortable sneakers and bursting out the door with no words spoken to anyone. He hears his father open the door behind him, reminding him to be back for lunch, and Mark only raises his hand to acknowledge what was stated before dashing down the hallway.

            Approaching the bubble tea shop, he can already see Jinyoung’s figure through the window, sitting along and waiting patiently. Mark subconsciously smiles to himself; the boy hadn’t forgotten, and neither did he himself—although he did arrive a tad bit late… The bell attached to the door rings as Mark enters, but before he can line up to order, he hears Jinyoung call his name.

            “Markeu!” the brunette looks over to see his new friend pointing at the drink across from his own. Jinyoung is in a yellow flannel, making it hard for Mark to miss his location.

            The brunette is surprised that Jinyoung has purchased a drink for him. It isn’t even a milk tea, but a slushie, so it must have cost more. He’s grateful though as he approaches the table and takes a seat across from the other. Taking a glance at Jinyoung’s cup, Mark notices that the boy had ordered another caramel macchiato.

            “You like caramel macchiatos?” Mark asks, but then realizes it’s a dumb question.

            Jinyoung doesn’t seem bothered though, because he nods eagerly. He then shifts his gaze from Mark to the drink he had purchased for him. “That is lychee,” he says, causing Mark to take a moment to examine the white icy beverage in front of him. It was still chilled, leading Mark to assume that it had not been waiting for long. And of course, Jinyoung had not forgotten the boba pearls.

            “Thank you,” the brunette grins, poking the straw through the plastic covering on top. “But you really didn’t have to.”

            “I want to,” the younger replies quickly, which takes Mark by surprise because he doesn’t expect Jinyoung to understand what he had said.

            “Did you wait long?” Mark questions slowly. “I woke up a bit late, I’m sorry.”

            “No,” Jinyoung nods his head left to right. Mark finds it cute, but he won’t admit it. “You’re okay.”

            “I have something for you,” Mark shares as he retrieves his phone from his pocket. When he opens it, Jinyoung notices a letter in Korean on the phone’s notepad. He laughs lightly, confusing Mark for a bit.

            “Me too,” the black-haired male reaches into his flannel pocket and pulls out a folded piece of paper. He opens it, revealing a letter in English. Mark glances at it and can immediately see that some sentences don’t make sense. He could assume the same for his own; online translators aren’t reliable after all. Suddenly, Mark finally understands why Jinyoung is laughing. They both had made the same preparations for today. The two exchange letters and Mark almost snatches Jinyoung’s paper from his hands in excitement.

            Hi Mark! I’m Jinyoung. I’m from Jinhae, Changwon. It is in the countryside of South Korea. I am taking minutes away from (Mark assumes this means “taking time off from”) my career as a student at Howon University to complete a project of my own. I have toured Seoul and taken pictures of everything. I will make a group (Mark thinks the translator means “photo album”) of these pictures to bring back to Jinhae and show my family and friends there. I want to tell them that one day, I will earn enough money to take them here. I am almost done with this group (again, “photo album”) though, and will be leaving back home after the next two days. I still have one tourist spot left and that is the Han River. Will you join me tomorrow to visit? I will bring food for us if you say yes!

            Mark chuckles at the last line, but the paper prevents him from noticing the way Jinyoung immediately looks up at the sound of his laugh and blushes. He returns to the letter on Mark’s phone instantly afterward though to avoid being caught. The older male lowers the paper, catching a confused look on Jinyoung’s face as he tries to comprehend what Google Translate could not translate. Mark makes a mental note to look for a more credible online translator when he gets home.

            “You seu-kate-board?” Jinyoung asks him, eyes almost glittering in amusement. “That’s cool.”

            “Yeah, but I’m not that good,” Mark replies, shrugging his shoulders. “I can teach you some day.”

            “Okay,” the younger male’s eyes crinkle up to compliment his pearly whites that show. Mark’s breath is taken away and he has a bit of trouble replying to the boy’s next question. “So will you go?”

            “To… the Han River?” Mark asks, earning a nod from the other. “Yes, I’d really like to go with you. Tomorrow at noon?”

            Jinyoung tilts his head and wrinkles his eyebrows in puzzlement.

            “Tomorrow at twelve o’clock?” the brunette rewords his question and Jinyoung nods before handing him a post-it note with the exact location he wanted to meet, as if he had it prepared in his pocket all along. Mark smiles because he gets a gut feeling that says their feelings are mutual.

            They chat for a bit more until both of their drinks are consumed. Mark glances at the letter beside him again and decides to ask Jinyoung if he can see the photos that he has already taken. The way Jinyoung’s eyes light up in excitement captivate the brunette; he feels as if he had just made the boy’s day by asking the simple question. His eyes suddenly dim though when he realizes he doesn’t have his gadgets with him.

            “It is at my hotel,” Jinyoung explains in steady English. Mark is a bit saddened by his answer, but the other is quick to attempt at a solution. “Do you want to come to my hotel?”

            Mark asks Jinyoung to return his phone before checking the time. Barely ten thirty. He decides he has time until lunch with the family.

            “Okay.”

            They board a bus after exiting the tea house, and Mark discovers that the hotel Jinyoung has been staying at is only three-in-a-half blocks away. As soon as the bus stops, the younger male is quick to pull Mark by his hand and lead him out to the hotel entrance. Even when they reach the elevator, Jinyoung refuses to let go of him; Mark wants to think that it is normal for this amount of skinship to occur in Korea, but at the same time, his heart is thinking elsewhere and accelerating at the thought of the other holding his hand. The elevator doors open and Jinyoung gently pushes the elder inside, and that is when he drops Mark’s hand. The brunette prays that the other doesn’t hear his silent whine of disappointment.

            Jinyoung’s room is on the twelfth floor. When Mark enters, he immediately notes the clothes scattered on the floor, along with opened bags of chips on the nightstand.

            “Sorry,” Jinyoung apologizes with a sheepish smile on his face. Mark can’t judge him even if he wants to. “I live alone here.”

            Mark laughs and nods in understanding. Jinyoung strides over to his bed and opens the laptop before beckoning at Mark to take a seat next to him. Mark notices the desktop wallpaper before Jinyoung can open his folder; it seems to be a picture with him and his family—heartwarming. From what he’s witnessed about the other, Mark can tell he is a boy who’s loyal to those he cherishes.

            “This is Lotte World,” Jinyoung introduces the first set of pictures which consist of a variety of colorful mascots and attractions.

            “Did you go alone?” Mark asks, as he observes Jinyoung’s incredibly focused photos. Not only is he amazed by the boy’s photography skills, he’s also intrigued by Jinyoung’s dedication to and pride in his work. At this point, Mark doesn’t want to think about the slender and smooth fingers tapping the arrow keys on the keyboard to advance through the photos.

            “Yes,” Jinyoung replies, and at that moment, Mark sees a selca shot of Jinyoung on the laptop screen with an ice cream cone in his hand. “But still fun.”

            That seems to be the last picture in the album of Lotte World, since Jinyoung closes it and opens another folder. “This is Myeongdong… shopping!”

            Mark chuckles at the younger’s enthusiasm. This set of pictures seem to be a little less carefully taken compared to the ones before, but Mark understands because from what he’s heard, the area is busy and always crowded with thousands of people. It’s hard to get a decent photo of the attractions, but even so, Mark deems Jinyoung’s photos impressive nonetheless.

           They go through several more albums of locations including the War Memorial of Korea and Bukhansan National Park. Mark finds these photos breathtaking, but what he finds much more breathtaking is the fact that Jinyoung tends to take a selca of himself at the end of each album. Mark is almost afraid because he thinks he’s falling in love with much more than the boy’s smile.  Before he can lose track of time, the brunette checks his phone to realize that noon was nearing.

            “I have to go, Jinyoungie,” Mark says, and is shocked at the nickname that slips off his tongue. He notices the way the younger’s expression brightens when he says his name that way though, and at that moment, Mark doesn’t care that it’s escaped his lips. “Your pictures are great… I’ll see you at the Han River tomorrow?”

            Jinyoung gets off from the bed and follows Mark to the door, choosing to his new friend out of the hotel. “I’ll see you,” Jinyoung says. “Bye, Markeu!”

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Author's Note: Surprise! As you guys can see, I've changed the length of this fic! It is now four parts instead of two, simply because I cannot fit what I want to write in two parts. Even if I could, they'd take longer to write, and I'm trying my best not to make you guys wait too long >< Hope the story is progressing at an appropriate pace~ and really hope you guys are all okay with four parts instead of two xD I must say, I am overwhelmed by the support I've received so far! It's all so unexpected, so thank you so much ♥