“Is who gone?” You whisper back, the wide-eyed and panicked look plastered on his features beginning to be reflected into yours.

He peeks his head out the window, the rest of his body still obscured by the curtain. You follow his gaze as they scan around the room, trying your hardest to figure out exactly who he was trying to avoid. It takes a few seconds, but the stranger finally lets out a relieved sigh, stepping out to stand next to you.

“Sorry, I must’ve freaked you out.” He mumbles, rubbing the back of his neck, “I’ve been trying to hide from the pushy aunts all night long. They make it harder for me to do my job.”

You tilt your head to the side, completely confused. His job? You turn to face him, your gaze landing on the camera that hung around his neck. It doesn’t take long for everything to click, realization dawning on you just as his lips part to explain, “You’re the wedding photographer.”

“Yeah.” He nods, “But people have been trying to get me to dance with their single family members since the ceremony.”

“Let me guess, you’re not that much of a dancer?” You raise a brow, adding a bit of a teasing tone to your voice. Finding a source of entertainment in some random stranger was not on your agenda tonight, yet you don’t exactly have any complaints.

“I just want to take some pictures…you know, what I’ve been hired to do?”

The teasing tone in your voice grows, the corners of your mouth twitching upwards to form the smallest, most barely visible smirk, “And you thought hiding behind the curtains was going to help with that?”

“You don’t understand what it’s like.” He lets out a dry chuckle, briefly looking down at his feet.

“But I do though.” You nod towards one of the groomsmen, drunk and giving it his all on the dance floor, “I’ve been trying to avoid that guy’s advances for the past hour. I managed to lose him when I offered to buy him a drink.”

He follows your gaze, letting out a quiet laugh at the man trying to do tiktok dances to a slow song. He turns his attention back to you, seemingly deciding that it was now his turn to tease you, “He seems like such a catch though. You sure you don’t want to go home with him tonight?”

You roll your eyes in response, holding out a hand for him to shake instead, “I’m Yn.”

“Wonwoo.” He takes your hand, giving it a gentle shake before eventually letting it go. Shifting his weight side-to-side, he asks, “Are you a guest of the bride or the groom?”

“Both, kind of? I’m actually the florist, but the couple insisted that I attend. I wasn’t going to, but they paid me more than they should have so it was difficult to say no.”

“The flowers are beautiful by the way, really the best thing about this wedding.” Wonwoo immediately compliments with a grin, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his trousers.

You wave a hand in dismissal, “You don’t have to say-”

“I mean it. I heard all the aunties talking about it before they tried to chase me down.” He cuts you off before you could even say another word, offering you an actual sincere smile.

Not expecting this level of honesty and sincerity from someone you had met just a few minutes ago, you step back in shock. Coughing away the awkwardness that’s threatening to creep into your system, “Why are you still talking to me? Don’t you still have a job to do?”

“I’m still sort of afraid to get back out there.” He sighs, his fingers toying with the straps of his camera.

A silence falls between the two of you; not a tense one, but not comfortable either. You sway slightly to the melody of the string quartet’s rendition of “So This is Love” from Cinderella, eventually humming along to the familiar piece of music. Unbeknownst to you, the gears in Wonwoo’s mind had been turning at an alarmingly rampant rate.

“Can I say something crazy?” Wonwoo breaks the silence, hesitance lacing each and every one of his words.

Your eyes stay on the several couples that crowded the dancefloor, “Wonwoo. I already found you hiding behind a curtain, nothing you say will ever seem crazy to me.”

“Be my date for the rest of the night.”

“What?” You tear your gaze away from the dancing couple, blinking back at Wonwoo like he had just grown another head.

“Just stand close to me.” He looks down at his feet, his voice slightly shaky. Wonwoo takes a breath, steadying the rapid beating of his heart, “If they think I’m with someone, they won’t set me up with whoever they want. It’s good for you too.”

“How is this good for me?”

He looks back at you, his gaze piercing and rooting your feet to the tiled floor beneath them. Your breath gets caught in your throat, though you’re not entirely sure why.

“Well, no more drunk groomsmen trying to hit on you.” Wonwoo shrugs his shoulders, attempting to give off an air of nonchalance.

Though you see right through him. Maybe you just felt bad for him. Maybe you really just wanted to spend the rest of your night in peace without someone trying to pull you to the dancefloor every five minutes. Maybe you were simply intrigued by the handsome stranger who’s asking you for a favor.

“Yeah, alright. What do I have to lose? It’s just for a night.”

If only you knew what you were getting yourself into.

Wonwoo’s sure he must have lost his mind. Inviting someone he barely knows to a close friend’s wedding? What on earth is actually going on with him?

He has a drink in his hand, one that he’s barely taken a sip out of, watching you play several games of rock, paper, scissors with the flower girls and the ring bearer. There’s a giant grin on your face, one quickly replaced with fake frustration as you play up your disappointment in losing to a seven-year-old that you don’t even know. For a second, his gaze meets yours and you mouth something along the lines of ‘they’re really good at this game’. Wonwoo rolls his eyes and shakes his head, a small smile present on his face. A small part of him wishes he had brought his camera with him, but he wasn’t exactly working tonight.

It’s been a couple of weeks since he’s met you. When Seungcheol called and asked if he was bringing anyone to his wedding, his first reaction was panic. His second thought was of you.

He remembers the way his heart raced as he waited for your voice to replace the dial tone. His feet repeatedly taps on the carpeted floor of his apartment, the grip on his phone growing tighter and tighter with each passing second. How does he naturally bring this up? Would it even be possible?

Soon enough, you picked up the phone.

“Hello?”

“Yn!” He said your name a little louder than he intended, the nerves that flooded his veins took control of his entire system. “It’s Wonwoo, guy from the wedding a week ago?”

You laughed, “I know who you are. We exchanged numbers and I specifically put a note on your contact that says ‘wedding date for half a night’. What’s up?”

“Can I ask you for a crazy favor?”

“C’mon man, we talked about this. After I’ve seen you hiding behind curtains, nothing you say will ever sound crazy to me.”

He could practically hear the smile in your words, the thought of which put his mind at ease — at least, the tiniest bit of it. Wonwoo takes a deep breath, was he really about to do this? What if one of the people someone wants to set him up with is the potential love of his life? Wouldn’t that be worth all the pushy aunts, mothers, friends, and sisters?

Wonwoo thought about it for a second, then decided that it wasn’t.

“Are you free next Saturday?”

It took you a few seconds to answer, hearing footsteps and things being shuffled around on your end of the line. He assumed that you were checking your schedule, so he waited. The pit in his stomach could only grow deeper as he waited for your for your voice to fall on his ears once more.

“I don’t have anything planned. Why are you asking?”

“My friend’s getting married. Be my significant other for the night.”

Wonwoo pushed through the hesitance that’s settled in the depths of his mind and said every word in a single breath. Fortunately, you were able to catch every single one. He shut his eyes, preparing for your rejection.

“Sure. But you owe me for two things now.”

Maybe you had lost your mind too.

Because here you are, a few feet away, attending the wedding of someone you had never even met. As the date of someone you didn’t even know for longer than a month.

A hand on his shoulder and a familiar voice snaps him out of his trance. The man of the hour. Choi Seungcheol.

“What are you staring at that’s so important that you don’t even notice that I’m next to you?”

Wonwoo pulls him in for a hug, “Congratulations, I’m really happy for you.”

“Thanks, buddy.” Seungcheol pulls away, his fingers absentmindedly making their way to twist at the cool metal band that now adorned his left ring finger, a small smile spreading across his face. He then nudges Wonwoo’s shoulders with his own, “Congratulations to you too. I was actually surprised when the Jeon Wonwoo said he was bringing a date to my wedding.”

“Ha ha.” Wonwoo shakes his head, directing all his attention to Seungcheol, “You know, I’m still offended that you didn’t hire me to be the wedding photographer.”

“You wouldn’t enjoy much if you were working. I want you here as my friend, not as someone that I hired. Clearly it was the right decision since you even brought someone with you tonight.”

Seungcheol nods towards you, sitting all alone at the impeccably decorated table. Wonwoo follows his gaze and he’s unsure at which point in the conversation all the flower girls and the ring bearer decided to leave you to run around the reception hall. Still, there’s a look of endearment on your face as you watched the kids run around.

“They seem nice,” Seungcheol comments.

Wonwoo replies without hesitation, “They are.”

You wouldn’t have agreed to do him this favor if you weren’t. The smile that’s formed on his lips turns to a frown as he watches another guest make his way towards you. He takes the seat next to yours, leaning a little too close for comfort. His intentions were clear, and Wonwoo confirms it when your gaze finds his. Completely and utterly panicked.

“Excuse me.” Wonwoo mumbles to Seungcheol, giving him one final pat on the back before walking towards where you’re seated.

Seungcheol nods in understanding, a knowing smile slowly spreading across his face upon seeing the undoubtedly determined look in his friend’s eyes.

Wonwoo’s fists are clenched at his sides, his lips pressed into a thin line and his jaw clenched. He sees the sigh of relied that moved past you as soon as he places his hand on the other guy’s shoulder.

“Sorry, but they’re taken.”

He says it with such conviction that he almost doesn’t recognize the sound of his own voice.

It doesn’t take much for the guy to leave, Wonwoo taking up the seat instead. He raises a brow, a light teasing tone lacing his words, “I thought you were supposed to be helping me tonight. Not the other way around.”

“Hey, no one’s setting you up with their friends and family since I started introducing myself to everyone as your date.”

There’s a strange tug on his heartstrings when the word date leaves your lips. Perhaps he has lost his mind.

You weave through several other wedding guests, giving small nods to the people that you actually recognize and trying not to make eye contact with the people you didn’t. The afternoon sun is covered up by the biggest, fluffiest clouds. A gentle breeze blows through each individual blade of grass, the scent of freshly cut roses fills the air as some of the sweetest romantic music envelops the entirety of the reception venue. You look up to meet a very familiar set of eyes, the very reason you were at the wedding in the first place.

“Yn!” Jeonghan greets as soon as he’s within arm’s reach of you, “Thank you so much for coming.”

He takes you in for a hug, the brightest smile present on his face the second he pulls away. Jeonghan slings an arm around your shoulders and starts walking once more, as if he were leading you to somewhere.

“You’re looking absolutely stunning by the way.”

Almost immediately you recognize the teasing tone in his voice, the familiar glint of mischief in his eyes. He’s leading you to the dance floor, where you assume someone he knew would be waiting for you.

You shrug his arm off your shoulders and immediately stop walking, “No.”

“What do you mean no?” Jeonghan huffs, a pout forming on his bottom lip and a small crease now present in between his brows.

You sigh, voice very clearly exasperated when you reply, “I knew you were going to do this!”

Guests move continue to move in between and around you, offering Jeonghan quick words of congratulations as they made their way to the dance floor, the music becoming more and more light and upbeat. Your eyes can’t help themselves from looking for a very particular guest, knowing that the panic that’s slowly building in your system would be eased by his presence.

“Yn, sweetheart, you’re one of my favorite people in the entire world. I want you to be happy.” Jeonghan ignores the way you rolled your eyes at the pet name, continuing his small speech, “You haven’t even met the person I’m about to set you up with. He’s really nice and I think that you’ll really like him.”

“When will you stop trying to set me up on dates?”

Jeonghan laughs, though you could tell that he was being completely serious in his response, “I’ll stop when you get a boyfriend and it’s your wedding that I’m attending.”

“Lucky for you, I do have a boyfriend and he’s actually my date this afternoon.”

As soon as you got the invitation for his wedding, you were certain that he was going to try and set you up with someone. The thought of which filled you with an insane amount of dread each time you caught sight of it on top of your bedroom dresser. When his sister called you a couple of weeks before the wedding to ask if you were bringing a plus one so she could start working on the seating chart, you couldn’t stop yourself from saying yes.

You had the perfect person in mind anyways.

“Remember that time I accompanied you to your friend’s wedding and I told you that you owe me for two things?” You asked him just as soon as he sat down in front of you, “I need to cash in a favor now.”

Wonwoo squinted his eyes, judging from your choice of words and your tone of voice, it genuinely seemed like you were about to ask him to do something suspicious. He took a sip from the coffee you had just bought him, “As long as it isn’t illegal.”

“Why do you even think I would-” You stopped yourself from continuing, almost offended by his statement. You couldn’t tell if he was just teasing or if he really thought you were the type of person to commit an actual crime. Instead, you chose to take a deep breath, “I need you to be my boyfriend for my friend’s wedding on Sunday.”

“Alright, I’m free.” He chuckled, “Is this just going to be our thing now? Wedding dates for hire?”

You shrugged your shoulders, not exactly opposed to the idea, “I guess so? Try not to fall in love with me though.”

“Only as long as you try to do the same.”

Jeonghan’s fingers snapping in front of your face take you out of your brief flashback. There’s a look of disbelief plastered on his features, all thoughts of setting you up with someone completely leaving his mind.

“Why is this the first I’m hearing of this? Where is he? Are you ever going to introduce me to him? Is he even real or are you just saying this so I stop setting you up?”

His questions come one after the other, curiosity and excitement lacing each and every one of his words. Your gaze leaves Jeonghan, scanning the several faces in the crowd to find Wonwoo’s. When your eyes meet his, your hand immediately goes up to wave him over, “Wonwoo! Over here, come meet Jeonghan.”

Wonwoo strides towards where you and Jeonghan are, offering him a polite smile and a friendly handshake, “Really nice to meet you. Congratulations.”

Jeonghan nods, his eyes darting back and forth between you and Wonwoo, “Thanks. So how did you two meet?”

“Coffee shop.”

“Park.”

The two of you answer at the same time. You turn to face Wonwoo, wide-eyed and panicked as you avoid the accusing look of suspicion that’s beginning to make its way on Jeonghan’s face.

Wonwoo keeps his gaze on Jeonghan, his voice as calm and collected as ever, “We met at the coffee shop in the park.”

A breath of relief moves past your lips when Jeonghan’s sister interrupts your conversation before he could ask any other questions, excusing him so he could talk to other family members.

“That was a close one.” A nervous chuckle escapes his lips as he watches Jeonghan move farther and farther away from the two of you.

You grab ahold of Wonwoo’s arm, speaking as low as possible for fear of anyone overhearing, “If we’re going to keep this up, we need to figure out how to answer questions like that one.”

Wonwoo looks up at the sound of a bell ringing, signalling his entry into the quaint little flower shop downtown. Almost immediately, the sweet scent of flowers fill his senses. His eyes scan the entirety of the room, his gaze landing on the multicolored flowers that now surround him; everything from romantic red roses, bright yellow sunflowers, pretty purple tulips, and eye-catching orange begonias. It’s difficult to suppress the quiet ‘woah’ that moves past him as he takes everything in.

“Wonwoo!” You greet from behind the flower, baby’s breath in one hand and calla lilies in the other. “You got my gift.”

He nods, making his way towards you, “Mhmm. Delphiniums and a note that says come visit me, very important and tons of exclamation points. I assumed that it was urgent.”

“It is.” You grin, taking your eyes off of him to place the flowers in your hands into the mostly arranged bouquet. “Did you put the flowers in a vase and some water?”

“Almost immediately.”

Wonwoo leans against the counter, watching the way your hands moved several different flowers around, quick yet precise. He notices the way your tongue pokes the inside of your cheek and brows furrowed in concentration; he almost feels as if he’s intruding your work despite the fact that you had asked him to be there. You’re not working to any sort of music, silence falling between the two of you. One that he’s not exactly sure how to fill.

“Are you just going to stand there and stare at me? Or are you going to try and help me out?”

Your question catches him off guard; you weren’t even looking back at him, your eyes still completely trained on your work. His brows shoot straight up and his lips part, completely rendered speechless. He blinks back at you, the silence only growing longer as you wait for a response.

“Is that why you asked me to come here?” He finally finds his own voice, tilting his head to the side. Don’t you have anyone to help you? Do you run this place by yourself? Or did you just give everyone who worked here a day off? Concern fills his veins. You were one of the most sought-after florists in the city, this must be draining to do all by yourself. No matter how much you seemed to love your job.

You hand him a small knife and gesture to a pile carnations, “One of two reasons. Cut the stems at a forty-five degree angle and place them in that vase over there.”

“Alright.” He chuckles, moving around the counter so he can stand next to you and near the flowers you had just gestured to. “What’s the other reason?”

“If we’re going to continue this whole ‘wedding dates when needed’ thing, we’re going to have to come up with a decent story. Jeonghan almost caught us last week.”

Wonwoo gets to work, cutting the stems like you had instructed him to. Sunlight streams through the large windows, delicate flower petals catching the light. Several people pass the store, looking in awe at how beautiful everything is in bloom. He has no doubt that some wouldn’t be able to help but look at you too. There’s now a look of pure serenity on your face, and he can’t help the slightest of beats his heart had skipped.

“We have to stick with the coffee shop in the park story. Jeonghan and I have a mutual friend, Joshua, getting married in a month and I’m almost certain that he’s already told him about us.” You continue with a smile.

Though you shook your head and tried to seem annoyed, Wonwoo could tell just how much you cared for your friends. There’s a tone of endearment that laces your words, the corners of your lips quirking into a small smile. He looks back at his work, placing another carnation into the glass vase, a light pink tint dusting his cheeks. He was definitely not looking at your lips. And even if he was, it was only for a couple of seconds. You couldn’t have noticed.

“Is there even a park with a coffee shop?” Wonwoo asks, raising a brow at you, “It would ruin our credibility if one didn’t even exist in the first place.”

“There is.” You take a break from arranging, turning so that you’re completely facing him. “It’s a ten minute walk from here. I go there every Monday afternoon.”

“What’s with Mondays?”

“My busiest day. That’s when I open for orders so it’s a long day of talking and negotiating. I go there to take a break.” You shrug your shoulders and place a hand on your waist, giving you an air of nonchalance.

“Okay, so how did we start dating?”

“Hmm, how would you have approached me?”

Wonwoo places the small knife and the flower down, stepping back to look at you; less shocked and more taken aback, if there was even a difference. When he had first met you a little over a month ago, he didn’t expect you to be so bold.

“I don’t know, I guess I would have just asked to sit at your table and introduce myself?” There’s a sense of nervousness and uncertainty in his tone, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his jeans, despite the fact that this is all completely hypothetical.

You roll your eyes and nudge his side with your elbow, “Lame. Where’s your sense of romance?”

“How would you have done it then?” He takes his hands out of his pockets to gesture to you, a mixture of amusement and curiosity present on his features.

You purse your lips, thinking. It takes you a few seconds to think of a response, your foot softly tapping on the wooden floor beneath it. “I would have bought you a drink and asked the barista to write something cute.”

“Like what?” Wonwoo asks, indulging you on your train of thought.

“How about,” you pause for a few seconds, trying to build suspense, “…I like you a latte.”

He stares at you for a few seconds, blinking back in silence before letting out a scoff, “That was just as lame as what I said.”

“It was cute!” You counter, a proud grin spreading across your face at your punny pickup line.

Wonwoo couldn’t help but let a smile make its way on his features too, finding your happiness infectious; even more so when you jokingly hit his chest.

“That only happens in movies.” He argues back, unable to imagine himself in that sort of situation. “No one’s going to believe that actually happened. Let alone if I’m the one to do it.”

“You don’t know that!” You plead, forming an exaggerated pout on your bottom lip. “Come on, let’s make it part of our story.”

“Fine.” He gives in, looking down at his feet in hopes that you don’t notice the heat that began to rise to his cheeks.

You clap your hands together, clearly excited, “Nice! Okay, how long have we been together?”

Wonwoo shakes his head. He didn’t expect to spend his afternoon cutting stems and coming up with details of a fake relationship, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. Every now and then, his mind wanders to the vase of delphiniums that now adorned his living room. He remembers looking up its symbolism, ‘open heart, ardent attachment’.

Maybe he’s reading too much into your gesture, but he can’t say that he disagrees with its meaning.

“If you like him so much, why aren’t you on the dance floor with him? Why watch everything from the sidelines?”

Stupid Joshua with his stupid smile and his stupid challenging tone of voice. It’s like he’s seeing right through you and Wonwoo’s little charade. His arms are folded in front of his chest, a single eyebrow raised as he watches you gape as a response to his question. You and Wonwoo had answered all his questions perfectly; finishing each other’s sentences as if it were something both of you had rehearsed, because it is.

“Is interrogating your guests part of your duties as the groom?” You roll your eyes, not meaning to sound completely defensive. You frown, knitting your brows together, “Are you trying to say that I don’t like him? Because I do! If I didn’t I wouldn’t have brought him to both yours and Jeonghan’s weddings-”

Joshua chuckles, cutting you off. He throws his head back in laughter as if you had actually said something something funny, though you’re sure you didn’t. He shakes his head at you, as if he knew something that you didn’t. There’s a certain glint in his eyes, a mischief that reminded you of the one in Jeonghan’s.

He places a gentle hand on your shoulder, “No, no. I think that you do like him. You just seem like you’re holding yourself back.”

The frown on your features is replaced with a look of complete confusion. Your brows unknit themselves, your jaw unclenches, and your shoulders lose all traces of tension. You take a few steps back, shrugging his hand off of you.

Tilting your head to the side, you couldn’t help but ask, “What do you mean?”

Holding back? This isn’t even a real relationship. What the hell is Joshua talking about? He parts his lips, but before he could even answer your question, he spots something from the corner of his eye. A knowing smile makes its way onto his lips, nodding towards a figure that’s making its way towards both of you.

“Hey, here’s the drink you asked for.”

Wonwoo’s voice fills the air, handing you a glass. Your breath hitches when his fingertips brushes against yours, a slight tug on your heartstrings at the familiar feeling. It’s something that doesn’t go unnoticed by Joshua, glancing back and forth between you and Wonwoo.

Your grip on the glass tightens, a quiet exhale escaping your lips.

“We should dance.”

The words move past your lips before your mind could even process them, placing the glass down on the nearest table as if your arm was on autopilot. Next thing you know, you’re grabbing Wonwoo’s hand and leading him to the dance floor. You don’t have to turn back to know that he’s blinking back at you, confused and stumbling in his steps as you weaved through several other wedding guests.

You don’t know what exactly you’re trying to prove to Joshua, especially as your relationship with Wonwoo is completely transactional. You accompany him to his friends’ weddings, he accompanies you to your friends’ weddings.

“What’s this for?” Wonwoo asks, beginning to sway to the upbeat melody of the Dj’s remix of the greatest hits of the 2000s.

His voice halts your train of thought. Your gaze lands on him, taking in the endearing awkwardness of him doing — what you think is — the robot. You laugh through your words, ignoring his question and asking one of your own, “What are you doing?”

“Dancing.”

He hams up his movements, animated and exaggerated, eliciting more laughter from you. You can’t help but double over in laughter, tears threatening to escape your eyes.

Wonwoo grins at you, “Why are you laughing? I could have been an idol in another life.”

“Don’t worry, I believe that.” You nod, yelping when he suddenly grabs your hand and holds it over your head, twirling you around. “I thought you didn’t dance.”

He shakes his head, the tips of his ears turning red as he pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose, “I never said that, maybe it just depends on who I’m dancing with.”

The next couple of minutes are a complete blur. All you remember are hearty laughs, his hands occasionally finding yours to lead you into a new dance, sometimes bumping into other guests and muttering apologies, and the thumping of the bass from the large speakers matching the beating of your own heart.

When the music suddenly mellows out, you can’t help but completely halt all movements; taken aback. You’re standing a few feet away from him, the setting sun painting an enchanting picture from behind him. Streaks of pink, orange, and purple, with the golden haze of the late afternoon allowing for the most hypnotic sight. A small smile is playing on his lips, a soft look in his eyes when he gazes at you.

Reaching a hand out, he asks, “Dance with me?”

You can’t help the hesitance when you place your hand in his, trying — and failing — to make sure your heart doesn’t flutter when the warmth of his touch overtakes you. Your voice is shaky when you reply, “Okay.”

“Don’t make this weird.” He pulls you closer to him, much closer than you expected, taking your other hand and placing it on his shoulder, “We’re dating remember?”

The lowness of his voice sends shivers up your spine; the music is much slower, more romantic than the ones that previously had been played. You gulp, “Right.”

Both of you sway to the gentle beat. A comfortable silence descends between the two of you, only broken by the soft sound of Wonwoo’s voice. He’s humming along to the song, his lips just by your ear. Your eyes had been on all the other couples on the dance floor, but you can’t help but pull back to look at him.

You had never seen him this up close, and you can’t help but let your gaze trail over every single one of his features; the length of his lashes, the bridge of his nose, the curve of his lips.

“How come one of the most prolific photographers in the industry has to resort to a fake date for his friend’s weddings?”

You knew exactly what you were asking, how is someone like him single? You’re surprised when Wonwoo shrugs his shoulders, his grip on your hand ever so slightly tighter.

“I don’t know, I was always focused on my career. Love became an afterthought.”

Skepticism laces your tone, raising a brow at his answer, “So you’re telling me you’ve never fallen in love or at least been attracted to someone?”

“I wouldn’t say never, it’s just-” He pauses, as if this were the first time he’s ever considered the thought. It takes him a few seconds to finish his sentence, but his voice grows softer like he was shocked by his own answer. “I’ve never met anyone that I liked enough to actively pursue or to enter a committed relationship with.”

You nod, looking down at your feet and trying to process his words to the best of your ability. Part of you almost couldn’t believe it, has even tried?

Wonwoo spins you around and pulls you even closer, so close that you think you could hear the beating of his heart. Or was it your own? Regardless, it snaps you out of your train of thought.

“What about you? Why is the most sought after florist in the city resorting to a fake date for weddings?”

You didn’t think he’d ask the question back. Chewing on your bottom lip, before letting out an exasperated sigh, “It’s not that I didn’t try. Believe me, I tried. I went on blind dates, let people set me up on dates during weddings, nothing ever clicked. It all felt forced, I wake up and I have to convince myself that I like this person. Eventually, I just stopped trying… Love is supposed to be easy.”

Your words come quicker than expected, but you could tell in the way Wonwoo gazed at you that he followed every single one. He tilts his head down, his glasses sliding a few centimetres down the bridge of his nose.

Unable to help yourself, you push his glasses back up; you’re so close that you couldn’t tell whose heart skipped a beat. Before you could even question it, the music stops. You force yourself to take a couple of steps back, pulling away from his embrace. Almost immediately, you feel a loss of warmth. Taking a deep breath, you remind yourself that none of this is real.

“What happened? I thought you stopped trying.” Wonwoo mutters, watching you kick your shoes off and practically throw yourself on top of the couch.

You are the last person he expected to walk in his studio, especially at nine in the evening and all dressed up. He stands in front of the couch, hands in his pockets and waiting for your response. But you could only sigh and lean your head back, screwing your eyes shut like you were trying to block him from your view.

“It felt like I was forcing things.”

Wonwoo takes a seat next to you, keeping the tiniest bit of distance. He’s uncertain how close is too close, but he’s unable to come up with an answer as soon as he feels your arm barely brushing against his own. Thump thump thump. He’s never been this aware of the sound of his own heart beating, but he swallows the feeling down. Though it didn’t go as planned, you were just on a date with another man.

“Are you?” He asks, keeping his gaze ahead. A brief silence falls between the two of you, Wonwoo breaks it with an awkward cough, “I mean- were you actually trying to force things?”

A chuckle escapes your lips, surprising him. He turns to face you, wide-eyed. Was his question stupid? Did he sound stupid? Maybe he shouldn’t have asked in the first place and just let you wallow in your own stress-

His breath hitches when he feels the pad of your thumb in the space between his brows; a soft but quick upward motion, like you were trying to smooth out the crease that he didn’t realize had formed. Your face is closer than he thought it was, the corners of your mouth quirked upwards ever so slightly. His lips part, but not a single word escapes him. You shake your head and lean back.

“Don’t frown too much, you’ll get wrinkles early.” You tease with a smile, “And your question was fine, by the way, I was just thinking about whether I should answer you with the truth.”

“How did you know that I was freaking out over my question?”

“Maybe I just know you better than we both think.” You nudge his shoulder with your own, your tone of voice somewhat playful until it drops to a more serious one. “And to answer your question, I think I was just trying to prove myself wrong.”

“Did you?”

Wonwoo doesn’t mean to pry, but then again, you did show up to his studio sort of unannounced; he should at least get a few answers.

“I think I did.”

He remembers your words earlier, his voice much shakier than he wants it to be, “Are you telling the truth?”

You lean towards him, a tiny smirk present on your lips, “I guess that’s for you to figure out, hm?”

Before Wonwoo could even think of a response, you push yourself off the couch and make your way towards his desk. You were already halfway there when you call out, “So what were you doing before I rudely interrupted your night? Sorry about that, by the way.”

His mind wanders back to the texts he had gotten a few minutes ago:

[ yn ] : went on a date. didn’t go well :/ he won’t even drive me home and there are no available cabs…

[ yn ] : luckily, a certain someone’s studio is just a five minute walk from the restaurant ;) maybe that certain someone owes me favor and could drive me home?

Wonwoo’s unsure as to who owes who more favors, but it doesn’t really matter at this point. Before he knew it, his fingers were already typing up a response and pressing send. He stands from the couch and follows you to his desk, his steps much quicker than normal.

“Just finishing up some work, got a few photos developed.” He stands beside you, watching the way your gaze took in all the photographs that are currently spread across his desk. “Your date was an asshole, by the way. He could have at least given you a ride home.”

The word feels foreign on his tongue, but no other word could capture the unexplainable anger and annoyance that coursed through his veins at the thought of you waiting for a cab this late at night.

“At least I have you, right?”

“Yeah.” Wonwoo breathes out, shifting his weight from side to side.

You take one of the photographs from his desk, bringing it up for closer inspection. A smile spreads across your face once you realize the subject of the photo, “This was from the wedding where we met…I didn’t realize you took a photo of me.”

He rubs the back of his head, cheeks turning the deepest shade of red possible. Truth be told, he had forgotten the existence of the photograph until this night. Still, he tries to keep an air of nonchalance, as if this wasn’t that big of a deal.

“Well, is it wrong for me to take a picture of my date?”

You tilt your head to the side, your eyes trailing over every inch of the photograph, “This wasn’t at the reception though. It’s still bright out- this was at the ceremony outside.”

Wonwoo can’t help but look at the picture in your hands as well. You were standing by the flowers that decorated the end of the aisle. The ceremony itself was yet to begin and people were scrambling around you trying to make sure everything was in perfect place. There’s a serene look over your features, a gentle smile on your face as your fingers delicately touched the petals of the flowers you had arranged. He remembers seeing you, the calm amidst all the chaos that surrounded him that day.

Before he could let out a barely believable defense, you tear your gaze away from the photo in your hands and turn to face him.

“It’s nice. Thank you, Wonwoo.”

You say it with such sincerity that he can’t help but be completely and utterly speechless. Thump thump thump. He’s never been this aware of the sound of his own heart beating, and he knows that he can’t keep swallowing this feeling down forever.

“You need to breathe.”

Watching Wonwoo pace back and forth in the farthest corner of the reception hall wasn’t really part of your Friday night agenda, yet here you are. A thin layer of cold swear covers his forehead, his mouth mumbling barely audible words over and over. But he stops as soon as the words escape your lips, taking a sharp turn to face you.

“I am breathing.”

He frowns at you, though his voice is mostly monotoned in his response, you could catch the slight panic that laces his words. You shake your head and move closer towards him. Wonwoo’s eyes widen when you place your hands on his shoulders, forcing him to look directly into your eyes. Your breath gets caught in the back of your throat, knees feeling like they’re about to start buckling under the weight of his gaze. Get a grip, you think to yourself, you should be helping him.

You take a deep breath, and almost immediately Wonwoo takes your cue. He follows, taking a deep breath as well as his eyes fluttered shut. You can’t help but let your gaze linger on the steady rise of his chest before letting out an exhale. He lets out an exhale of his own, still following your lead.

After taking a couple more breaths and exhales, you speak in the most reassuring tone you could muster, “You’re going to do great, okay?”

His eyes open at the sound of your voice, giving you the smallest of nods, “Okay. Thank you, I needed that.”

You take your hands off his shoulders and take a couple of steps back, getting a glass of an amber colored drink from one of the waiters that passed by. Handing him the drink, “Here.”

Wonwoo takes everything down in one big gulp, making a couple of small jumps afterwards to shake off his nerves. Too preoccupied with getting him to relax, neither of you had even noticed the groom making his way towards both of you.

Mingyu’s lips stretch out into a grin from ear-to-ear, “Is my best man ready for his big speech?”

Wonwoo looks to you in panic, lips parted and brows shot straight up. Your grin matches the one that’s plastered on Mingyu’s face as you nod profusely, “He’s ready.”

“Great!” Mingyu claps his hands together and slings an arm around Wonwoo’s shoulders, beginning to drag his best man towards the stage for his speech, “Would you let me steal Wonwoo from you for a few minutes?”

Chuckling, you shake your head at the pair, “Only if you return him in one piece.”

You wait for a few seconds before following them to be closer to the stage. Most of the guests had moved away from the dancefloor and are seated at their respective tables, looking up at Wonwoo with anticipating smiles. You stop walking just as soon as you feel like you’re in the perfect spot to watch his speech; close enough that you see him clearly, but far enough that you almost blend into the crowd of guests.

Mingyu hands him a glass of champagne for his toast before he makes his way to sit next to his new spouse. You watch as he takes three deep breaths from the side of stage, not unlike the ones he had taken with you a few minutes prior. It takes a few seconds of waiting, but he eventually makes his way towards the middle of the stage where a microphone had been set up for him.

He takes his finger and gives the mic a couple of taps to check it was working, but the feedback causes most of the room to cover their ears.

“Sorry,” He mumbles before letting out a nervous laugh, “at least I know it works.”

Wonwoo’s free hand makes its way to the pocket of his trousers, where you know a neatly folded piece of paper with a handwritten speech is waiting for him. To your surprise, he doesn’t take it out.

He clears his throat before speaking into the microphone, “I actually had a really long speech prepared but I know most of you here would rather get drunk and get back on the dance floor, so I’ll keep my speech short.”

The crowd laughs at his introduction, and you can’t help but join in either. Your mind wanders to a couple of nights before, on the phone with him as he tries to finish his speech. If you had known that he wouldn’t even bother using it, you wouldn’t have stayed up so late to accompany him. At least, that’s what you tell yourself in order to prevent your heart from skipping a beat at the sight of his smile.

“For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Jeon Wonwoo. The best man. Mingyu and I have known each other for as long as I can remember.” He lets the crowd’s laughter die down before he continues, his voice still slightly shaky from the nerves, “When we were younger, he and I talked a lot about our ideal types. You know- what they’d look like, their personality, all that. But, growing up means all that stuff gets thrown out the window. When you meet your person, none of the ideal or the fantasy matters- you won’t even remember it.”

You watch as his gaze momentarily leaves where Mingyu is seated, travelling through the crowd as if he was searching for something, or rather someone. He pauses his words until his eyes eventually lands on you, a glint of emotion within them that you couldn’t quite recognize.

“A really wise person told me—” he breaks eye contact with you and looks down at his feet, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards. Wonwoo looks back up at the crowd, “Love is supposed to be easy. It’s meant to be easy.”

Your breath hitches, eyes widening when you recognize the words you had once told him; you didn’t think he’d actually remember them. His gaze catches yours before he turns his attention back on Mingyu and his partner and you hear the beat of your own heart, ringing in your ears louder than you ever thought possible.

“Life isn’t without challenge, relationships aren’t exempt from that fact. I’m sure both of you will have steep mountains to climb or have to tread dangerous waters, but I also know that your love will pull through. Gyu once told me that love is now second nature to him…no matter how hard or difficult life is, he’s glad that one aspect of it isn’t. He wakes up and he’s in love. He goes to work and he’s in love. He gets into an argument with his partner, and still, he’s in love. He falls asleep and he’s in love. Never forced. Without having to think about it. In short, easy.”

The crowd is holding its breath, hanging onto every single word that leaves Wonwoo’s lips. So were you. Certainly, this is a lot better than the speech had originally planned. You don’t even remember the contents of his original speech.

“I’m happy you found your person, Gyu. I’m glad we both did. Hold onto them as tight as you can, because I know I will.”

For a second, you think your heart skipped an actual beat. You’re unsure if Wonwoo is actually looking at you, or at Mingyu and his partner, or at the crowd. Question after question flood through your mind: What does he mean? Is he talking about you? Or did he meet someone else? Is he still playing the part?

None of this is real. Your relationship isn’t real, right?

Wonwoo raises his glass to the newly wedded couple, signalling that his speech is coming to an end, “I wish you both a lifetime of love and happiness. Congratulations.”

The room erupts into a mixture of applause, cheers, and the sounds of silverware against glass, but all of that is drowned out by the beating of your heart. An unfamiliar warm, fluttery feeling fills your veins. It feels like a rug had been pulled from beneath your feet, or perhaps a heavy weight being lifted from your shoulders.

Up until you realize the possibility that he may not have been talking about you. The weight on your shoulders return, much heavier than it had been previously.

Your feet move as if they had mind of their own, moving through the crowd in a desperate attempt to find him. You frantically look for him, craning your neck and turning your head until you catch sight of his familiar features. The band continues their playing, an upbeat melody filling the entire room as people make their way back onto the dance floor. As your breathing grows quicker and the feeling in your chest turns tighter, you don’t even notice that you had bumped into someone.

Strong hands are on your shoulders, steadying you; the familiar scent of his cologne washes over you.

“Looking for someone?”

You respond to his question with barely noticeable teasing tone, “Yeah, you. I liked your speech.”

Wonwoo raises a brow, taking his hands off your shoulders and attempting to ignore the way his heart skips a couple of beats at your compliment. Most of the reception program is finished; all of the guests are either on the bar or in the dance floor, or making their way from the bar to the dance floor. There isn’t exactly much point to staying if you aren’t planning to do either. He takes a quick look around the room, watching the several sweaty bodies that moved together to the high energy beats from the speakers, and lets out a quick breath.

“Do you want to get out of here?”

You blink back at him, slowly, as if you were trying to decipher a deeper meaning behind his question. It takes you a few seconds to respond, but each one felt like an hour long for him. His breaths threatened to grow heavier, palms slowly growing sweatier, and lips parting to take back his question until-

Relief comes crashing down on him when you eventually nod, a small smile playing on your lips, the kind that pulled at his heartstrings. Then again, he had already realized that every single one of your smiles played at his heartstrings.

Wonwoo takes a quick trip around the room, saying his goodbyes to Mingyu and everyone else who knew him. If you hadn’t been busy making small talk with Seungcheol, you might have noticed the knowing look that Mingyu sent Wonwoo.

Soon enough, you’re sitting in the passenger seat of Wonwoo’s car. His fingers tap on the steering wheel, looking out at the empty road up ahead with a destination already in mind. If his best friend hadn’t gotten married a little ways outside the city, his little plan might have been delayed until after the weekend. On a Monday, at the coffee shop you frequent on that very weekday.

It definitely would have been delayed if you had said no to leaving the wedding early. Even more so if the cafe that he had looked up isn’t actually open for twenty-four hours.

He pulls up in the parking lot and puts the car in park. Turning to you, trying to give off an air of coolness and nonchalance, “Hold on.”

“I don’t think I have a choice at this point. We’re miles away from the city and I don’t think any cabs will be passing by anytime soon.” You chuckle, shaking your head and pulling your phone out so you have something to do while waiting.

He sprints out of the car and bursts through the glass doors of the coffee shop, speaking much faster than he normally would. It’s not like he’s in a hurry, it’s more so the way his thoughts have been sent into overdrive.

“Two coffees to go…and do you have a marker or a pen that I can borrow?”

He returns to the car, coffee cups in hand, only to find you sleeping soundly in your seat. Your head is resting on the window, your eyes fluttered shut, and the coat he had in the backseat now serving as your makeshift blanket. Wonwoo can’t help the smile that begins to play on his lips, shutting the door as quietly as he possibly can as to not wake you. Still, it isn’t quiet enough as you begin to stir awake at the sound of the car door closing.

“Sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it.” You speak through the yawn that moved past your lips, stretching your arms in the limited space of his car. Gesturing to the coffee cups that are placed in the cupholders between your seats, “Is this one mine?”

Your gaze flickers to the one closest to you. Wonwoo’s hand reaches for yours before you could grab onto the cup, panic lacing his voice, “Don’t drink it yet.”

“Why not? I’m sleepy.” You frown, taking the cup anyways.

He sighs, knowing that it’s pointless trying to argue with you. The car still remains in the parking lot of the twenty-four hour coffee shop, underneath a single lamppost and not another car in sight. The silence is filled by whatever song plays on the radio, not that he recognizes it anyway. Things definitely aren’t going according to plan, not with you taking sip after sip of the coffee he had just bought you.

“I guess this will be the last wedding we attend together, huh? With you already finding someone else.”

Wonwoo’s terrified he might have snapped his neck in the speed in which he turned to face you, eyes wide and completely confused, “What are you talking about?”

“Your speech.” You chuckle, albeit a little sadly. “You said that you were happy that Gyu found his person…and that you did too.”

“Oh.”

Tonight is definitely not going according to plan. Wonwoo watches as you continue to nurse the warm paper cup in your hands, running your thumb along the lid before eventually making small circles. Keeping your eyes on your hands, you don’t even dare to look at him anymore, and it breaks his heart.

“How did you meet?”

“Well…” Wonwoo rubs a hand on the back of his neck, continuing to keep his gaze on you despite the fact that you couldn’t meet his eyes. “I met them at a wedding.”

“Was it at Jeonghan’s wedding? Or Joshua’s? They have some really good looking friends. Honestly, I’m not that surprised if someone went up and asked for your number whenever I wasn’t next you, I mean- have you seen yourself? If I-”

Wonwoo’s unsure if he should laugh or stop you from your rambling, his heart doing a strange routine of sinking and fluttering from listening to your words. He lets you speak for a few more seconds before cutting you off, “You know, I think you’re one of the smartest people in my life, but you can be really dumb sometimes.”

“Huh?” You finally look back at him, taking another nervous sip from your cup of coffee.

He shakes his head before nodding towards the cup in your hands, “You’ve been taking so many sips from there that you don’t even notice that there’s something written on the side.”

You raise the cup to be level with your eyes, turning it slowly in your inspection of it as to not miss anything. A crease forms in between your brows, growing deeper as you give the cup a couple more complete turns before looking back at him, “There’s nothing written on this cup.”

“Shit.” Wonwoo hisses, taking the other untouched paper cup and handing it to you, “This one is supposed to be yours.”

Your fingertips brush against his when you take the cup from him, and almost immediately he catches sight of his familiar handwriting. Wonwoo holds his breath, watching the way you mouth the words that he had written just moments ago.

‘I like you a latte…’

Wonwoo speaks when you make no attempt to fill up the silence that had fallen between the two of you, “I was supposed to take you to this cliff overlooking the city with all the stars shining down on us, and I would hand you that cup.”

“Why would you that?”

“Well, you did ask me where my sense of romance was.” He sighs, looking up to trail his gaze over your features for any sign of discomfort, “Nonexistent apparently because I just gave you the wrong cup and did it in a random parking lot.”

“You were talking about me.” You mumble more to yourself than to him, like you had just ignored everything that he just said and finally connected the dots yourself. The corners of your mouth twitch upwards before they eventually stretch into a grin. You finally turn to face him, eyes bright as if any ounce of tiredness finally left your system, “Are you free this weekend?”

Wonwoo leans back in his seat, didn’t he just confess to you? You know the true extent of his feelings for you, right? He tilts his head to the side, his tongue poking the inside of his cheek as he tries to keep his nerves down. Are you actually about to reject him now?

“Why? Do you have another friend that’s getting married?”

You throw your head back in laughter, only confusing him even more. It isn’t until your laugh dies down and you look at him with a certain softness in your gaze that eases all the doubts that currently flooded his mind.

Reaching out a hand towards his and taking it in your own, “No wedding. I just want to go on a date with you. For real.”

“You beat me to it!” His tone is loud and accusing, almost in disbelief, but there a smile on his features and a light in his eyes. Wonwoo intertwines your fingers and presses his lips to your knuckles, hoping that it distracts you from the way his cheeks are beginning to turn the deepest shade of pink.

“You’re taking too long to ask!” You chuckle, removing your hand from his grip so you could cup the side of his face, “What do you say?”

Wonwoo turns his head to the side to press another kiss on the inside of your palm. He does it instinctively, the second he felt the warmth of your touch on his cheeks. He doesn’t think about this or the words that followed. They come out of him without much of a second thought. Easily, in the same way he had fallen for you.

“I’d love nothing more.”

taglist : @januarystars @itsveronicaxxx @bananablueeeeee @sdoulc @winnercirxle <3

The alarm in your head rings once you hear that familiar laughter, and you try to subtly glance to the side and find Chwe Hansol making his way to (presumably) his class with his usual group of friends: Seungkwan, Seokmin, Wonwoo, and his girlfriend.

Well, you don’t know if the girl is actually his girlfriend, but you’re pretty sure there’s something going on between the two of them even though there are also rumours about Wonwoo and Kim Jennie from Architecture.

Anyhow, you pretend to busy yourself with your locker as they walk closer and closer, enough for you to get a glimpse of their conversation.

“--didn’t you have a crush on that girl from one of your classes?” Seokmin teases cheerfully, though he doesn’t seem to have any control over his strength because Hansol actually stumbles from his nudge, almost crashing into you but the guy manages to catch his balance before it happens.

Hansol clicks his tongue at Seokmin’s sheepish smile before turning to you. “Sorry, are you okay?”

You stiffly nod at him as your heart beats faster, addressing Seokmin instead when you say you’re fine. Of course, Hansol has a crush on someone. What were you expecting, really?

Hansol holds your gaze for a second before he nods then turns away; you can see him scolding the older guy as Seungkwan and the other simply laugh at his antics.

You exhale a deep breath as you turn back to your locker, missing the way Hansol looks back at you and holds back a small smile to himself.

Another semester passes by just like that and you can feel the weather beginning to get colder. Autumn is about to pass, then. You’ve always been bad at handling winter, but at least the snow is always pleasing to the eyes as long as they’re not blocking roads.

You haven’t talked to Hansol again since that day; which isn’t that surprising, really. You have no actual plans of getting closer to him and you know that was just a one time thing. Did you expect him to start talking to you after that? No, you didn’t (yes, a little), because you know it’s unlikely—Chwe Hansol isn’t the type to broaden his circle just for the sake of it, anyway. You rarely see him with anyone other than his usual circle.

You slightly bow to the librarian as you step into the library, gaze rounding the room to look for an empty seat. Your eyes find Wonwoo, tidying up the books on the table before he scribbles something on a post-it, his presumed girlfriend asleep on the table with no care in the world. There’s a soft smile on his face when he softly pats her head and then walks past you to leave the library just like that.

You wonder if you’ll ever experience that.

You blink back the thought quickly. That’s not important now; what’s important is this unfinished paper on Music History that’s due in a few days. Why did you even take this class when it’s not even mandatory?

Huffing to yourself, you quickly drop down your laptop and your bag once you find an empty table by the window. After that, you don’t waste any time going through the shelves to find the books that your TA said would help. You could’ve asked the librarian to shorten your time, but there’s just something calming about going through the books yourself. Perhaps it’s the way it makes you feel like you’re putting actual effort into this.

You bite down your lip when you find Hansol on the next aisle, earphones on as he busily skims through the book in front of him, putting some books back while he’s at it. You quietly make your way to look on the opposite shelf, your back turned to him. For the love of everything that is good, you just can’t believe this stupid crush you’ve been harboring for him has lasted this long.

When you first realized you’ve been staring at him more than you would other people, you thought it would be a small, fleeting crush that would leave in two weeks at most. You had figured you’re just a little lonely because your friend recently found a new boyfriend and you wanted that giddy feeling too. Hansol does make a pretty good eye-candy in class anyway.

But you started noticing him more; his soft amused scoffs during class when Seungkwan whispers something to him, the way he never fails his presentations even though he looks like his mind isn’t in the class half of the time, the way he’d smirk to himself every time the lecturer tries to call him out for zoning out in class but manages to answer the questions thrown at him nevertheless.

And you know you’re deeper than you thought you were when you realize you even notice him outside classes: when he passes by the corridor, when he’s laughing with his circle in the cafetaria, or even when he’s just scribbling down something by himself the few times you see him in the library.

It’s nothing serious, obviously; you don’t know him personally, after all. You don’t even know if he actually knows you. But this… infatuation you have for him has lasted much longer than you thought it would ever be.

You still think about that time he almost crashes into you from time to time.

“Oh, sorry!” his voice startles you more than the way he bumps into you. You blink at the sudden weight against you, have you been zoning out?

“No, it’s okay,” you give him a tight smile, telling him it’s your fault for not being attentive to your surroundings. One that Hansol mistakes as a polite smile when you’re just trying your best not to be nervous around him.

“I’m always bumping into you, aren’t I?” he asks in amusement. “_____, right? We share some classes, don’t we?”

You nod and smile sheepishly at that, unsure what to say when you’re just frozen dumb in place because you didn’t expect him to be talking to you or even know you. You look down just so you won’t have to look him in the eyes, but, instead, you find the book you’re looking for in his hands.

Hansol seems to notice this, so he holds up the book and asks if you need it. “You can take it. I was just about to return it anyway.”

“Was it… not of help?” you ask, though you take the book from him anyway. “Or are you just finished with it?”

He chuckles at your question, one that you would’ve missed, because your heart is beating so loud in your ears, if not for the fact that your consciousness is paying full attention to him. “Not for me, no. What do you need it for?”

“Umm. Professor Han’s class.”.

“Oh, Music History?” he recalls the name of the Professor. “Then this should help. Seungkwan took that class too and I remember seeing him with this book when he was doing his paper.”

“Really?” you mindlessly exclaim. “I’m glad, then. Hanbin actually told me this would help and I just kinda believe his words.”

“Kim Hanbin is the TA?” he asks, and you’re kind of getting used to being in his proximity that your heart has settled back to its usual steady rhythm. Has it always been this easy to talk to him? “It should work well, then. He’s not the annoying type.”

You laugh at that, knowing the few TAs he’s referring to that’s opposite of Hanbin. But you don’t get to say anything because someone’s already calling for him from the end of the aisle (Yugyeom, you think. The tall guy from Composition class), asking him what’s taking so long.

“Oh, sorry!” he quickly says to his friend as he returns some of the books in his hands. He sends you an apologetic look, saying he has to go but hands you one more book that Seungkwan often used as a reference. “Good luck on your paper.”

You can only whisper a small thank you before he’s gone again just like that.

You’re not sure if you’re imagining things, but you feel like Hansol has been acknowledging you these days and you don’t know how to react to that. He’d catch your eyes when he walks by, sending you a quick smile that you don’t get to return because he’s already ahead of you once you register he is smiling at you. And then he’ll also wave at you when he finds you in a class before sitting down next to his friend as if what he does isn’t confusing you.

Maybe he’s being friendly, but your infatuation infused brain keeps on telling you that there must be something if he keeps on doing that to you.

Perhaps you’re delusional.

He has never tried to talk to you, anyway. That should mean more than the fact that he’s been silently acknowledging you since that day. You need to remind yourself that he’s just being friendly.

“You’re sighing a lot these days,” Somi says from beside you, her arm tightly circling yours even though she’s taller than you and it’d be more comfortable the other way around. “It’s annoying.”

You simply shrug, knowing that Somi does, in fact, know Hansol personally even though they’re not close or anything. But knowing her tendency to tease you like there’s no tomorrow, and her nonexistent hesitance to push you to him, you decide Somi should never find out about your crush for the guy even though you love her with all your heart.

“Come on, I thought we don’t hide anything from each other?” she pouts, shaking your arm.

You laugh at this, telling her it’s really nothing. “Look forward, won’t you? You’ll fall down again and I’ll just laugh instead of helping you this time.”

It has started to snow since a few days ago and, even though the snow isn’t that thick yet, Somi has made it her habit to stumble upon nothing everytime you walk across the field to make your way to the other building. Somi chooses to blame it on the cold like it makes sense.

From the corner of your eyes, you recognize Hansol, Seungkwan, and Seokmin making their way to your side. Your eyes lock with his, and you give him a small smile without giving him the chance to return it, pretending to nod at whatever Somi’s babbling about.

You look at Seungkwan beside him, teasing him about something until you recognize the shape of your name in his mouth. You blink owlishly at this, and you can see him playfully pushing Hansol to your direction in the subtlest way possible.

They’re getting close enough to be in your earshot now and your eyes accidentally meet Hansol’s again. Your brain registers the teasing words they’re spewing to him, and even though Hansol looks annoyed, you can tell that he’s about to actually greet you for once the moment his eyes meet yours.

So you do the first thing your brain tells you to do: turn to Somi and drag her with you so you’ll go past them quickly to deny him the chance to greet you.

Somi whines at the sudden force, asking you what’s your problem when she notices the three guys making their way to your direction. The fact that Hansol’s looking at you, the two guys childishly nudging him, and you avoiding his gaze is enough to get the gears in her mind working.

As if that’s not enough, your reluctance to look at her once you get to the other side only confirms her suspicion further.

“Soooo,” she grins the moment you pull yourself away from her. “What’s with you and Hansol, huh?”

“Nothing,” you cut sharply. You don’t even need to look at Somi to know her grin only gets wider at your reply, and you don’t need to hear what she’s going to say that you already shut her down by saying you don’t wish to talk about it.

“He’s pretty cute, you know,” she says anyway, her sing-song tone more annoying than it should be. “I approve. Always thought he’s the kind of guy who’s not interested in a relationship.”

“And what makes you think he is now?” You look at her pointedly, then quickly pull back your words once you meet her playful eyes. “Wait, no, don’t answer that. I’m late for class and so are you. Bye.”

You shake your head as Somi unashamedly screams she won’t drop it just yet, not minding the glare some students send her way for screaming in the corridor.

You’re lucky you don’t have any class with Somi today. But you know she won’t shut up once you see her again and it’s going to be a long day.

You’re finally in your last class of the day and you can’t wait for the day to end already. Thursdays are always busy because your classes are packed and you need to move buildings twice. Which is why you can’t even spend your lunch break with Somi (much to your luck for this time around), she knows you usually pack your lunch on Thursdays because your class after lunch break is literally on the other side of the university and it’s on the fourth floor.

What a way to make you exercise.

So you’d usually just go to the building early and bring your lunch with you to eat on the bench outside the classroom. Being late has always been something that irks you, and you’d choose eating by yourself over the anxiety of getting late to class just to eat in the cafetaria.

You sit down on one of the empty benches, mindlessly scrolling through your phone as you nibble on your bread when someone takes the seat beside you. You look up in confusion, because why on earth would someone sit next to you when there are a lot of empty seats on the other benches?

“Oh,” you blink when you recognize the person beside you, your heartbeat picking up once again from his presence. “Hi Hansol.”

“Hi,” he awkwardly says, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his coat. “Not going to the cafetaria?”

“No. It’s too far,” you force out a chuckle. He’s so going to mention what happened earlier, isn’t he? Maybe you should make a run for it while you can. “You?”

Of course, the other side of you longs to actually talk to him so it’s not that surprising that your mouth opens before you can even think further.

“Doesn’t feel like it,” he shrugs and the conversation stops there.

The situation is eating you inside out, Hansol looks like he’s going to say more but it seems like he isn’t sure how to bring it up himself. For once, you wish you were like Somi who can just blurt out things without hesitation.

“Uh,” he finally starts, making you look at him. “I’m sorry about earlier. My friends can be something, I’m sure you know.”

You laugh at this, telling him it’s okay as if you didn’t embarrassingly run away earlier the moment he got closer. “I see Seungkwan enough to know, I think.”

“Yeah, uh. I hope you don’t… find it weird?” he asks one more time.

“No, no. Don’t worry,” you wave your hands. “It’s kind of funny, to be honest.”

“I’m glad, then,” he sniffles a little against the cold. “It’s just that… you kind of just went past and I’m not sure what to make of that.”

You cough hardly at that, and Hansol worriedly pats you on the back and hands you the water bottle he sees sitting on the edge of your seat. You mutter a quite sorry after the cough dies down, gripping into the bottle for support before you address his words earlier.

“Um, sorry. I think it just kinda triggered my fight or flight reflex,” you laugh awkwardly. “I’ve just… always been awkward with new people. Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize, really.” His smile is more genuine now, as if relieved after he’s heard your answer. “I can tell why they can be overwhelming. But… did their presence weird you out that much?”

Or did you hear what they were saying? Hansol wants to add, but figures it’ll be better to keep it to himself in case you run away again.

You bite your lip as you contemplate on your words. Damn it. You’re an awkward person to begin with, something that you have come to accept as you get older. But you never thought it would amplify to this extent in front of Chwe Hansol, the guy you’ve been crushing on for the last 3 semesters.

“I… Um, they look like they were laughing at me so I just kinda… yeah,” you manage to make up a reason on the spot. Though, really, you’re just flustered that his friends were pointing at you with teasing grins to Hansol and your mind just kinda spirals down the abyss like you’re stupid.

“Oh my God, I’m sorry. I promise they weren’t laughing at you,” he quickly reassures you, afraid that you were offended. “I’m so sorry if you felt that way.”

“I know,” you scrunch your nose in embarrassment. “I know they weren’t laughing at me. It’s just that… I don’t know, I just feel embarrassed for no reason?”

Hansol sighs at that. He knows his friends are bound to push him into his demise one of these days, but he never thought it would be because of that particular moment with you. He’s finally gained enough courage to talk to you and they’re ruining it for him? No way he’s going to let them do that.

“They’re harmless, I promise,” he tries to comfort you, though you don’t look convinced for some reason. “I…. I really don’t want to say it like this. But… ugh. They were teasing me, so it should be me that’s embarrassed, really.”

“Why… would they be teasing you?” you dare yourself to ask, heart beating wildly as you wait for his reply.

“They notice I’ve been greeting you these days,” he frowns as he realizes how dumb that sounds out loud. “And… well, they rarely see me with a girl friend so they immediately assume I’m into you.”

Ouch. Assume, he says.

“Why would they think that?” you try to play it cool even though your heart drops at the implication, chuckling like it doesn’t make any sense. “Why would you be into me?”

You don’t see it, as you’re too busy staring at the floor instead of looking at him, but Hansol’s frown deepens at your words, not liking it at all. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

Your head quickly snaps back to him, wide eyes meeting his. No words seem to leave your mouth, though, so Hansol takes it to himself to fill the silence for once.

“I’ve been… wanting to talk to you for some time now,” he confesses, cringing at the way he sounds. “And I guess they kind of want to push me into it.”

“You… want to talk to me?” you blink repeatedly, pretty sure you’ve heard him wrong. “About what?”

Hansol chuckles softly before he shrugs to himself. “Anything, really.”

You frown at this, still not getting him, too confused that you don’t realize he’s slightly shifted closer to you, his thigh touching yours. “Anything? Why?”

“Have you always been this slow?” he asks with a laugh, his lighthearted tone assuring you that there’s no ill intent behind his words. Seungkwan would’ve laughed at his face if he knows Hansolis calling someone slow. “Do I need a reason to talk to you?”

“Well, no? I guess?” You answer, feeling your cheeks getting warm at his intense gaze. Have his eyes always been this pretty? You’d never imagined you’ll know, you’ve never had the chance to be this close to him, after all. “I’ve just always thought you’re more on the quiet side, really.”

“Been paying attention to me, huh?” he jokingly asks, eyes twinkling with mischief.

But you’re not exactly in the right mind to register his teasing tone nor your next words. “Is it that obvious?”

Hansol actually laughs at this, finding the whole interaction adorable by the seconds. He reassures you that he was just kidding though, and when you seem like you’re just going to get more embarrassed than you already are, Hansol quickly tells you it is himwho’s been paying attention to you.

“Don’t be embarrassed,” he smiles comfortingly. “I’d be honored, if anything. I told you I’ve been wanting to talk to you.”

“This is so embarrassing,” you desperately try to hide your face with your palms.

“If it helps, I’ve been meaning to talk to you since the beginning of the year, really,” he scratches his head in embarrassment, never knowing he’d ever tell you all this in this kind of scenario. “I just… don’t know how to approach you and not sure what to say either.”

This seems to help somehow, because you actually look up to him and stare at the guy in confusion. “You’ve known me since the beginning of the year?”

“We do share a lot of classes,” he simply explains. “Also, kinda hard not to notice you when you’re friends with Somi who makes her presence known everytime she steps into a class.”

Sometimes you wonder how you can be so close with Somi; because everything about her is the opposite of you. But perhaps it’s the difference that makes you both appreciate the other more, as you’ll always try your best to understand each other because you’re both aware you’re too different to jump into conclusions.

You’ve also wondered if her loudness would one day bring you troubles—never this though. You had never imagined Chwe Hansol would know about your existence because of her big mouth.

“Still…” you try to deny. Why, you’re not really sure.

“No ‘still’,” he clicks his tongue in mock annoyance, the gentle look in his eyes reminding you he’s not the least bit annoyed. “I’m actually glad I finally got to talk to you that time in the library. But I haven’t got the chance to actually talk to you again after that, which is why Seungkwan and Seokmin were trying to push me into you.”

You bite the inside of your cheek at the revelation. Hansol… is interested in you? It feels too much like a dream even though this is barely even the beginning of it. This isn’t a matter of insecurity, it’s just… unexpected. And totally something that is out of the ordinary scenario you’ve painted your life to be. This just seems to be something out of romance fiction, not your boring life that you’ve been quite content with.

“I… heard what they were saying, actually,” you truthfully confess. “That’s why I ran away. I wasn’t sure how to face you after hearing them tease you about your… uh, crush.”

Hansol bites back another sigh, he really should do something about those friends of his one of these days. But at least they’ve given him the chance to approach you and talk to you even if it’s initially to apologize. But he’s found much more than he’s expected and it’s not something he’s going to let go now that he’s here.

“Would it be too much if I ask you to forget about it?” he proposes softly.

You can’t even count the amount of time you’ve stared at him in confusion in the last 5 minutes, but Hansol never lets whatever doubt linger within you as he explains what he means almost immediately.

“It’s just… I’d prefer it if you hear about it from me,” he says, pretending like his heart isn’t about to burst out of his chest. Gosh, is this how it’s like for Wonwoo and his girlfriend too? He’s pretty sure he didn’t sign up for having his heartbeat constantly running like there’s no tomorrow everytime he’s about to say something to you.

“So you’re planning on saying it yourself?” you ask, surprised.

Hansol shrugs, playing it cool even though there’s a grin threatening to flash across his face at how adorable the whole thing is in his eyes. “If you’d let me.”

“I think I’d like that very much,” you scrunch your nose to hide your smile, still refusing to look at him.

“Promise you won’t run away once it happens?” he teases, the weight in his shoulder lifting once he sees you narrowing your eyes at him.

“Maybe if you don’t take too long that your friends need to push you to do it this time?” you bite back. Perhaps it helps that you’ve always had a crush on him, but, despite the fact that you’re still very nervous, there’s something giddy bubbling inside you that you can’t help but let out.

Hansol snorts, amused at how easy it is to talk to you once he gets you to open up. He notices the way your cheeks lift up despite your insistence in biting down a smile and he’s pretty sure he looks more or less the same as you are, as his face has started to hurt from holding back the grin.

“So we agree you’ll forget about it?” he makes sure, looking at you.

You look back at him innocently, feigning ignorance. “About what?”

Hansol laughs as he shakes his head, glad that you seem to be getting comfortable already. Maybe he should thank Seokmin and Seungkwan, after all.