https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rs318YSYI54

Eric Nam - Melt My Heart

            Mark found it so adorable when Michelle freaked out when she saw a street vendor making bungeoppang.

            She gasped and told him, “You have no idea how much I was craving these in the US.” She pouted. Mark laughed and bought her one steaming hot fish bread. After thanking him, she hurriedly went in for her first bite.

            “Wait!” Mark shouted.

            Michelle’s mouth stopped midair, and she only moved her eyes to look at him. “What?” she mumbled.

            “It’s hot. You’re going to burn your tongue.” Mark replied. He took the bread from her, ripped off the fish’s head, and blew on the filling to cool it down.

            When he stretched out his hand to give her the head, he saw Michelle’s eyes that had a look of horror in them.

            He sighed, “I’m sorry, but ripping off the poor fish’s head was the only way to cool down the filling before you burn yourself, okay?”

            Michelle said nothing as she let Mark feed her. After her first bite, she exclaimed, “This is so much better than the frozen packaged stuff from Lotte back at home!! Please give me that.” She takes the rest of the fish bread away from Mark.

            He laughs and watches her eat her beloved fish bread. She eats so well, he thought.

            Mark and Michelle stroll leisurely on the streets that were festively decorated for Christmas. Heavily disguised, Mark walks a step behind her.

            Michelle turns her head and beckons Mark to walk next to her. “Come here!” she tells him as she pulls his arm to link it with hers. “It’s not every day that I get to spend time with the Mark Tuan.” She gives him a toothy grin.

            Mark’s heart flutters. He felt apologetic for not being able to spend time with Michelle even after she moved to Korea. After five years of Michelle’s undergrad and nursing education, they were finally reunited. Michelle had worked extremely hard to finish her education requirements in a short amount of time. After applying to many nurse practitioner programs in hospitals in Korea, she was finally accepted into Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, one of the top hospitals in the country.

            Michelle carefully looks up at Mark to analyze how he was feeling. She called him outside since he was stressed and was stuck practicing inside all day. “Are you less stressed now?” she queries. She watches as his eyes crinkle and sighs inwardly in relief.

            “I’m feeling a lot better now,” Mark replies. Surprisingly, she could hear him clearly despite his usual soft voice that was further masked by his scarf that covered his mouth. “Getting fresh air was a good idea.” He looked down at her.

            The brightly lit lights reminds him of home—although the displays at home were much more extravagant. Back in LA, he would go to Candy Cane Lane with his family or friends and be amazed at how the neighborhood would have so many different ideas each year. After going through the entire street, he and his companions would get hot chocolate or hot apple cider.

            Michelle brings her head up to meet Mark’s eyes and beams. Even though they were both extremely busy and barely saw each other, she was still glad that she had more chances to be with Mark and that she could at least have the liberty to do something as simple as walking with him, even in the cold that she hated so much.

            A strand of Michelle’s hair gets into her face, and Mark brushes it out of the way with one hand. Michelle catches his bare hands with her gloved ones. They were ice cold. “Aren’t you cold?? How can you be outside in this weather with bare hands??” she scolded him. Michelle quickly takes off one glove and puts it on one of his hands. She takes his one still bare hand in hers and stuffs it in her coat pocket.

            Mark is baffled. His heart flutters, but when he looks down at her, he’s met with the side of a grumpy, pouty Michelle. He chuckles to himself. He’s glad that he could even make her worry about him in person. Mark looks ahead as he slips both of their hands out of Michelle’s pocket and puts them into his. “I should act as the boyfriend, no?” Mark says smartly.

            Michelle just laughs and nods as she gets closer to him and tightens her grip on his hand. It felt so nice and warm to be so close to him.

            The couple finally gets to their destination and stops in front of the huge and extravagantly decorated tree.

            Mark smiles as he looks down at Michelle. She was in awe of the beauty in front of her. It was always Michelle’s wish to see the famous Christmas tree at the Rockefeller Center in New York City, but this was good enough for her.

            “It’s so beautiful…” Michelle comments.

            “Not as beautiful as you~~” Mark replies.

            Michelle laughs at his cheesy compliment.

            Mark lets go of her hand and hugs her from behind. “Are you warm enough?” he asks.

            Michelle blushes at the greater contact and nods, trying to hide under her thick scarf. A few snowflakes dance down onto the earth, and Michelle looks up and exclaims, “ It’s snowing!” It was her first time seeing “real snow” as she would like to call it. Of course she had seen “snow” at ski resorts with Mark and the Tuan’s and her family before and had seen “snow,” but this was the first time she was witnessing real snowfall.

            First snow… the two thought. Their later thoughts were the same. (つω⊂* )

            A nearby clock that struck 12 breaks their thoughts.

            “Merry Christmas Eve, Mark,” Michelle says.

            “Merry Christmas, Mish,” Mark replies as he pulls her in closer to him.

A/N: Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all my readers!!! I hope that you are having a warm and happy holiday season =] Please enjoy this chapter ;]

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." ~Isaiah 9:6