Option one: Jongin could dial the number of the owl-eyed man that just gave him a ride back to his apartment. Kyungsoo didn’t seem to have troubles entering the apartment this morning, so he must have known the code. Option two: The tanned male could dial Yerin’s number, but be really awkward with her. Though he favored the first option, he didn’t want to be responsible for a car accident nor did he want to be scolded any more than he already had by his favorite hyung either. The second option it was.

Finding Yerin’s number took longer than anticipated because her contact was listed as ‘Jagiyah~’ with several heart emoticons following. Jongin shivered, not being used to calling someone so affectionately. Being a married man was not something he could easily adjust to. Tapping his foot impatiently as he let the phone ring, other tenants in the lobby began to ogle him. He gave a few curt bows and got some ‘oppa, I love you’s’ while waiting for his wife to pick up. Okay, now some people were starting to take videos of him. Damn it, why wasn’t she picking up? After the third try, he suddenly felt so stupid. Of course she wouldn’t pick up.

Ping

From: Jagiyah~ <3 <3 <3

You rang? -.-

Sent 1:48 pm

To: Jagiyah~ <3 <3 <3

Hey…are you at home right now?

Sent 1:49 pm

From: Jagiyah~ <3 <3 <3

You do realize that I can’t answer calls, right?

Sent 1:49 pm

To: Jagiyah~ <3 <3 <3

Yeah, I just realized not too long ago -.-‘

Sent 1:50 pm

From: Jagiyah~ <3 <3 <3

Good, I just wanted to get my point across. I just buzzed you in.

Sent 1:50 pm

Jongin thankfully entered the elevator, escaping the cameras trying to follow him through the lobby. Doors close and he leans back on one of the walls, chuckling to fill the empty space. He didn’t think Yerin was the type to sass, but it was refreshing. At least she wasn’t a completely submissive girl that always did aegyo like he thought. Even though Jongin liked things that were cute, too much cuteness made him want to hurl. Call him weird, but being around other members that constantly practiced aegyo in front of the mirror had that effect.

To his surprise, the door was already unlocked for him. Did he leave it unlocked when he left? But Yerin was there to see him and Kyungsoo off, so she could have locked the door if he forgot to.

“Welcome home, Jongin,” a computer automated voice startled him out of his wits, making him flinch. Did the apartment just talk? Even if this was the future, homes shouldn’t be able to just automatically detect who just entered. That’s just creepy. The former idol roamed around, trying to find the source of the computed voice. Were the speakers built into the walls?

“Come to the living room,” the voice sounded again. Another flinch. Jongin found himself obeying and removed his shoes before entering the living area. There he found Yerin sitting crisscross applesauce on the couch, typing away at her laptop at a furious speed. She looked up and the computer automated voice started again.

“So how was the visit to the doctor’s?”

“T-That was you?! I thought that was the apartment talking. I started freaking out,” Jongin nervously breathed and cautiously plopped down on the nearest couch. “And I thought you only used your whiteboard to talk,” Jongin suspiciously eyed the other.

“I just use what is convenient to me. I’m typing up something at the moment so I could also talk to you via computer,” Yerin continued typing without looking up.

“By the way, you shouldn’t leave doors unlocked. Someone else could have walked in that wasn’t me. It’s really dangerous, especially when you’re alone.” The words felt oddly familiar on his tongue as is it wasn’t the first time he said it. He lay on his back and just stared at the ceiling.

“Sorry. I was getting a drink of water and I thought you’d be back soon so I just unlocked it on my way out. I just wanted to get back to writing.”

“What are you typing that’s so important anyway?” Jongin inquired whilst staring at his hands in the air.

“I have to finish my manuscript for my next book.”

“You’re an author?” Jongin abruptly sat up which made him slightly dizzy.

“Easy there. And yes, I am an author. I don’t like to be a housewife that mooches off of her husband,” the wife smirked in contrast to the monotone computer voice. “Anyway, I’ll probably be typing for a while. Feel free to watch TV. Lunch and dinner are in the fridge for you to heat up. You might as well explore the apartment too since everything is unfamiliar to you now.”

So he did just that. He explored every room there was. The kitchen was cozy with warm colors on the walls. Although there were several items in the house that were Rilakkuma or Pororo themed, the house was actually minimal and simple. The main bedroom was much more spacious than Jongin remembered it to be. Then again, he was too busy fruiting out in the morning that he didn’t really notice much of his surroundings. A quaint veranda lay behind glass double doors draped with cerulean curtains. On the veranda, small potted plants sat on stands with none other than Rilakkuma and Pororo. He decided to leave them be and went back inside. The only room he had yet to explore was the guest room and the farthest room down the hallway.

There wasn’t much to see in the guest room, only a futon and some decorations on the wall. What was the last room used for then? Was it just a storage room? The former idol turned the knob and gaped.

“Holy !”

Jongin’s thunderous steps echoed in the hallway as he rushed back to the living room and skidded around the corner to the halt. Hand on her heart from the sudden alarm; the author looked up from her computer to see her husband grin from ear to ear with crescent moons for eyes.

“You didn’t tell me we had a personal practice room!” the male fidgeted like an overly excited child. Yerin took a deep breath before reaching for a pillow to throw across the room for the almost-heart attack. The pillow missed as man-child raced back down the hallway with arms flailing in the air. Sighing, her lips quirked into a faint smile at the sight of her childish husband again.

The following hours were spent in front of mirrors, dancing to whatever music came up on shuffle. Sweat trickled down and made the dancer’s clothes uncomfortably sticky, but he felt alive. Fluid movement turned into art forms rather than cheap techniques. His muscles ached like before, but it was a good ache. It was a reminder for him to keep pushing forward. To be honest, his lower back didn’t hurt as much as he remembered it had. If anything, his body was in better condition than when he was labored by SM.

Once in a while, Jongin would go to the kitchen for another bottle of water and peer out of the bar window to check on the other’s progress. Her eyebrows were usually furrowed and her hands would be occupied by typing or by flipping through pages of books to reference. Amidst her search for information, Yerin’s hand almost knocked over the vitamin water on the table which clearly wasn’t there before. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a sweaty retreating figure and grinned. The author took a sip and paused for a stretch break before resuming her manuscript.

Night was already falling by the time the dancer decided he was at his limit. He sat with his legs spread apart and palms supporting him from behind as he breathed in more air that his lungs were much deprived of. Staring back at his own reflection, he took in the changes in his features he hadn’t noticed before. Bags under his eyes were less prominent and his jawline looked sharper (if that was even possible for Kim Jongin.) If anything, he looked more of a hunk than before. No wonder he still had that insane amount of popularity even though he’s in his thirties. Realizing how weird it was to check himself out, he staggered out of the room to go take a shower.

***

The shower was definitely refreshing. Jongin would have gone straight to bed, but his steps led him back to the living room. Still on the couch, Yerin was lazily typing with one hand while keeping her bangs out of the way with the other. He leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, clearing his throat to gain attention. His wife whipped her head towards his direction before going back to type on her laptop.

“Is there something you need?” The computer voice choppily spoke.

“Yerin, have you even taken a break yet?” She nodded, but Jongin still wasn’t satisfied with that answer. “Have you actually eaten properly?” At this she thinned her lips to a straight line. The dancer clapped and moved towards her, plucking away the various books lying haphazardly and finally plucked away the laptop from the female’s lap.

“Good, because I haven’t eaten dinner either. Let’s eat together,” Jongin gently pulled up the other by the wrist to stand. Despite the protests, they ended up having a dinner of fishcake stew with other Korean side dishes to accompany them. Though both of them were tired, the male noticed how the author sitting across from him would sometimes stare off into space while chewing or occasionally rub the sleep away from her eyes with her balled up hands. It wasn’t hard to guess that staying up late nights was her usual routine. He really wanted to tell her to just relax for the rest of the night, but he understood work was work. Of all people, he understood that concept the best with all of the stage practices and consecutive schedules with no end. The efforts were worth it though, seeing how one gets to do what they enjoy while others are happy from the fruits of their labor.

The dancer offered to wash the dishes, insisting for Yerin to continue her work as soon as possible. Jongin soon retired to bed after debating whether he should wish the other goodnight as it is only polite, but ultimately went straight to the guest room, not wanting to disturb the other’s concentration. Sleep never came to him as he tossed and turned, contemplating the day’s events. He still couldn’t come to completely accept over ten years have passed without his knowledge. Maybe if he woke up tomorrow, then he would wake up to be twenty one again. Or if he really had just forgotten everything, then the memories would come flooding back. Either way, these thoughts were not putting him to sleep. He grabbed the pillow next to him and stuffed it his face to suppress a groan.

What would make him forget everything in the first place? Jongin had heard that regression was usually triggered by not wanting to face the present, therefore reverting back to a child-like state from not being able to cope. He wasn’t acting like a child though; he thinks he’s in his twenties. What would make the former idol want to go back to the stressful idol days? Most importantly, what was so stressful before the memory loss that he would specifically not remember up to the point of meeting his own wife? The questions all led back to the mute author still typing away on the couch.

Maybe she was the cause of the stress. But what could she have done? Yerin had been nothing but nice to Jongin this whole time and she seemed so mild-mannered. She’s probably hiding something from him; he could at least conclude that. How bad was the news for him to be in his current state? The blow must have been pretty heavy since he had faced weight-crushing pressure before from his band days. He had to follow expectations from not only the company, but from fans as well. Schedules never ceased with minimal breaks. Band members left, causing major adjustments to activities and performances. Work was equivalent to that of a slave’s for other’s entertainment. Even then, he could still dance and smile. Nothing broke him before.

Having enough of his own thoughts, the tanned male kicked the sheets bout to vent out his frustration. He lay on his side to see the current time was 2:37 a.m. Lights were still on in the living room judging from the amount of light that crept underneath the door. The blanket was tossed aside while Jongin was making his way out of bed. He needed to occupy himself from his inquiries and needed an excuse to do so. A certain wife should be in bed by now. There were limits to how much someone could work, and working at close to three a.m. at night was pushing a boundary.

Yerin sat on the couch, hands splayed over her keyboard while her head lay back, staring at the ceiling above as if she would find inspiration from boring white walls. Craning her neck from sensing another person’s presence, she met the eyes of a hesitant husband unsure of how to start the conversation. At the sight, she straightened up and typed words on the screen to speak.

“Jongin, what are you doing up at this hour? Can’t sleep?”

The addressed male cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his neck in apprehension while walking towards the female.

“I was tossing around in bed and I saw you were still up. You should probably get some sleep, too,” Jongin managed to reply without tripping over his words.

“I was thinking of stopping for the night too. I’m having writer’s block. Even though I’m physically tired, I don’t feel sleepy yet. Since we’re both up, do you just want to talk?” The author patted the seat beside her and before Jongin knew what he was doing, he was occupying that space. He had so many things he wanted to voice out before, but his mind seemed like a blank canvas. Yerin thought briefly before resuming to type again.

“Since you don’t really know much about me, I’ll introduce myself again. Hi, my name is Kim Yerin. I am 29 years old and currently an author. I was born in the Gangwan province of Korea and now I am living in Seoul. Do you want to know anything else about me?” Expectant brown eyes looked up to his and he thought of his conflict while lying in bed. This was his chance to get answers. He couldn’t pass it up. But if he wanted to know everything, he’d have to start from the beginning.

“U-um, actually, I want to know how we first met,” his eyes drifted to his lap and peeked up for the other’s response. Yerin playfully pursed her lips and began her reply.

“We first met when you kidnapped me from a restaurant.”

Jongin choked on his own spit.

“W-WHAT?!”

***

December 7^th, 2014

A girl was waiting patiently for her date to arrive at a family restaurant. Her friend had set her up on a blind date without consent and she felt guilty if she just turned down the invitation since her date was anticipating the appointment. So here she was, stuck waiting for someone that was already fifteen minutes late. The guy says he’s looking forward to the meet up but that jack doesn’t even bother to show up! She sighs for the nth time, regretting her decision and thinking of the possibilities to get away with murdering her friend. It’s not like she didn’t know how to. There were very interesting posts on Tumblr at late hours.

Checking the time on her phone, she only got more aggravated from calculating the time that had already passed since the scheduled time. She adjusted her clothes and her jet black hair that didn’t quite reach her mid back even though she made the effort to straighten her usually unruly locks. This was stupid. She shouldn’t have even taken the time to dress up this nicely. It was freezing outside and yet she chose to wear a skirt with leggings. People were starting to stare because a person usually wouldn’t come alone to a family restaurant and not even order anything.

A headache was coming and she could feel it. It didn’t help that a large party came in to celebrate whatever the occasion and were causing a ruckus. Well, she came all the way here, so might as well order something. Ten minutes later, the girl was eating samgyeopsal with frustrated chews. She had the manners to eat normally with the waiter present, but screw it. Everything was annoying today. First she’s waiting on her blind date that’s probably a no show and now the party that came in was being noisier than before with the addition of soju. Damn them and their loud laughs and cheering. Okay, maybe she was jealous of their cheerfulness while she was already a bitter old lady at the age of seventeen.

Not noticing how people around her were whispering and pointing, she also didn’t realize someone was approaching her. Reaching for a piece of pork on the grill, a tap on the shoulder stopped her mid action and she put down her chopsticks to see who was flexing her.

Good thing she put down the chopsticks.

“Hi, I’m you’re date for tonight. My name is Kim Jongin,” the male stated with a shy smile.

_______________________

A/N:  Hehe, a bit of a longer chapter, but everything is getting started! I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. A lot of plot twists to come (laughs in the distance.) Again, sorry for any errors~

Sorry for a later update than expected! I usually post a chapter after writing a chapter ahead but I've been sick >~< Anyway, my break started not too long ago so hope everyone else enjoying their break! Probably won't post until next week or later...  

~Audrey

P.S. Have a happy holidays and New Years everyone! Here is a present~ (Sorry if it's crappy!)