revived

“Crazy?” Geunhye repeated, stopping in his tracks. He shook his head a few times, even clicking his teeth for good measure. “Just a little bit.” He was already familiarizing himself with the insults Woobin threw his way, and Geunhye had just dismissed the words with being Woobin’s way of talking. I mean, who would insult Geunhye with the intention of hurting his feelings? 

Giggling at Woobin’s question, Geunhye had to hand it to the guy. For someone who didn’t want to entertain him, he kept doing the exact opposite. “I mean, you are still talking to me. And I did give you my real name, as criminally good it might sound. So yeah, I still think that. Are we still pretending we don’t like each other?” 

The kick he got out of talking to this guy really was making Geunhye’s day. As he walked down the sidewalk, he decided to go ahead and familiarize himself with the best coffee shop next to his new workplace. 

“See! You’re even starting to understand me. It’s only fair I get to understand you too,” Geunhye stated with a wide smile. “Hmm, what’s your favorite to get from a cafe-themed place? I’m about to go in this new coffee shop.” 

It was just a small question that Geunhye hoped would branch into something bigger.

   Woobin heaved a heavy sigh as he shifted onto his stomach, all the while peering pitifully down at his phone. It would be so easy to hang up. All he had to do was lean over, but even that was too much work. 

   “Oh, now my feelings are hurt.” He scoffs, giving his head a single shake. “You haven’t liked me this whole time? You’ve just been leading me on? I thought you were better than that.” Despite the fact that his words were clearly sarcastic, he hadn’t bothered to change his tone of voice. He continued to sound as uninterested as before.

   Having enough of the situation, he slowly manages to sit up on the couch before squinting down at his phone. “You’re going alone?” He clicks his tongue while leaning over to pick the phone up again. “I guess that I shouldn’t be surprised.”

Oh, she adores the sound of his laughter. Rina watches Woobin, the affection and tenderness in her eyes obvious, filling the edges of her smile. Seeing Woobin be so open and easy around her makes her happy in ways she’s never known before. He’s a blessing in her life. 

Rolling her eyes, Rina sprays Woobin again, shaking her head. “Yes, yes,” she huffs, turning back to her plants. “Not all of us can be so big, you know.” She certainly does, given her standing at barely four inches over five.

   He felt like he’d known you forever. It was a cheesy way of putting it, but nothing superior would come to mind. There was something about you that made his life feel full again. It felt as though, no matter what parts of the past still haunted him, you were enough to keep them at bay.

   Woobin scrunches his entire face up after being treated to another splash of water. “There’s not gonna be any left for the flowers, Rina.” He adds in the midst of a sigh. “Shouldn’t you be the one getting watered, huh? Or is this as tall as you’re gonna get?”

Rina’s laughter is soft, quiet, but still echoes through the foyer. There are a few people lingering around them to get to the lawn where the movie is being shown, but it’s not enough to take up the empty space around them. It makes her a little self conscious, thinking that her voice can and likely will be heard by anyone thanks to the acoustics, which prompts her to speak a little more quietly. 

“I’m not clumsy,” she insists, pushing Woobin’s hand lightly. Seconds later she takes a hold of it, already missing the warmth of it against her palm. “Through here.” Rina guides Woobin through the entrance when they reach it, tugging him after her by the hand. 

The air is just a bit cooler outside, the temperature having dropped with the setting sun. It’s a nice change, though, from the stuffy air that’s been around all day. Rina keeps close to Woobin as they navigate the lawn and the sculptures on it. There are plenty of people gathered to watch the movie, but plenty of space left open as well. Rina tugs Woobin to a little area off to the side, away from most of the visitors, and sinks into the grass. It’s still close enough to see without having to worry about missing out on anything. She smiles up at him as he settles, tucking her legs to the side, one hand settled in the grass to brace her weight on.

   “I didn’t know that so many people would show up to something like this.” He says aloud, although it was more of a case of thinking out loud without realizing. Despite this, the volume of his voice juxtaposed the quiet atmosphere of the moviegoers. Continuing on blissfully unaware of the stares that he was getting, he follows you until reaching the spot that seemed to meet your standards.

   Glancing down at you for a moment, a bright idea pops up in his mind. Actually, the bright part was debatable. Quickly rubbing his hands together, as he was warming up to execute his master plan. “Incoming!” He shouts before plopping down on the ground next to you, wrapping his arm around your shoulder. Laughing uncontrollably, he leans back until he’s comfortably laying down against the grass.

   “Rina, Rina, Rina--” He casually hums under his breath while looking at the screen in front of them. “This better be a good movie.” He mumbles through a faint smile.

“whoa there mister, that’s a little bit presumptuous of you. i’m just here tryin to pass the time– if you’re not a fan of small talk you could just say so, ya know? or what– you fishin for compliments or somethin? nothin wrong with that.”

   “Isn’t that what I just did, though?” With a raise of an eyebrow, Woobin gives you a perplexed look, as if you were the odd one in this situation. He only scoffs after hearing your last remark. “C’mon. I’m not that desperate. I just think that the truth should be acknowledged.”

Fighting the urge to roll her eyes, she released anexasperated sigh. She hated this part; didn’t like to negotiate giving morethan she planned to which in most cases meant giving close to nothing inreturn. It worked more times than not, but she couldn’t always be so lucky.Either way each outcome always seemed to gain her more enemies than friends inthe end.

“I was going to offer you money,” She raked her eyes fromhis clean handsome features down to his sneakers, trailing her eyes upover the simple clothes he wore beforesettling her attention back on his face, judging. “But you seem to not have an interest in that aspect. So you tell me, what do you want?”

   Despite the fact that your gaze had caused his nerves to spike, Woobin kept up his usual cold front. It was his only real talent, after all. Crossing his arms tightly against his chest, he offers a slight chuckle in response to your snark statement. “Aren’t you smart. You read me like an open book. Should I call up your elementary school and let them know that you deserve a reading prize?” He tilts his head to the side, getting delight out of patronizing you.

   Glancing away at nothing in particular, Woobin takes in a deep breath before staying silent as though he were putting great consideration into his request. Finally bringing his attention back to you, he offers a fake smile. “How about we go on a date?”

━━━ EUNHEE COULD NOT SEE  the  end  of  the  garnered  crowd  gathered  on  either  side  of  the  stage  —  wrestling  for  a  better  view  of  the  idol  group.  amongst  the  group  of  people,  she  noted  the  unbound  anticipation  and  excitement  within  their  eyes.  part  of  her  felt  as  though  it  was  ❛ one  in  the  eye ❜  for  the  socialites  of  the  world.  she  had  read  on  numerous  occasions  how  tabloids  described  even  the  most  salacious  details  of  the  private  lives  of  the  rich  and  famous.  it  wasn’t  something  wholly  out  of  her  reach,  and  of  course,  there  had  been  many  times  she  had  stopped  at  airports  or  restaurants  for  pictures.  the  young  idol  felt  that  those  similar  in  her  lifestyle  hadn’t  deserved  such  intrusions  for  courting  fame  —  she  had  taken  actions  in  leaving  the  venue  as  fast  as  humanly  possible.  eunhee  had  to  admit  that  she  was  a  bit  bored  of  it  all.  she  could  not  bring  herself  to  express  more  than  a  smile,  and  curt  bow  to  those  in  front  of  her.  ❝  thank  you  for  coming.  we  hope  you  enjoy  the  rest  of  the  event!  ❞

   There was something that Woobin couldn’t stand about the situation that he was in. He refused to believe that so many people wanted to be in this crowd. Didn’t they have anything better to do? He could be asked the same question, but he’d ignore that for now. Although he was busy looking in every direction for a way out of the crowd, it was the voice over the microphone that caught his attention, causing Woobin to shift his glance towards the stage. His initial reaction was to scrunch his nose up in distaste. “Yeah, no thanks.” 

Eunhye looks right at the tall male stranger standing in front of the item that she had wanted to grab. She hadn’t mean to stare at him creepily but she was too short to reach in front of him to grab the item without making it look awkward. She clears her throat when she sees the male glaring right back at her before she speaks softly. “Sorry. I wanted to grab that item in front of you but my arm isn’t long enough to reach without making it awkward.”

   He simply continues to keep his eyes on you. After all, he wasn’t going to instigate a conversation that he had little interest in having. It was the sound of your voice that caused him to look away. “Oh. Speak up next time.” He casually replies before backing up a few steps in attempt to make room for you. Looking back at you, Woobin gestures towards the open space. “It’s all yours.”

The stinging from the latest punch made him chuckle, Mino somewhat reveled in grinding on whatever ticked at the other’s nerves. Most of the time it would earn him a good scuffle with the other male but none enough to scare him away from repeating the same taunts later on. “Shut my mouth for me? Go on. You almost succeeded before, what’s one more try going to hurt.” he teased for a few moments longer before throwing his hands up to show that he surrendered. No matter the threats; no matter the sharp tongue Woobin carried it still wasn’t enough to push Mino away. “It’s always a war just to take you out to lunch. What do you have against being fed?”  

   It got under his skin like nothing else. The fact that, no matter what he said, Woobin couldn’t seem to keep you away. Sure, dealing with your antics gave him something to do, but there were times where he’d rather be bored out of his mind instead of dealing with you. Letting out a loud scoff, Woobin gives his head a shake before looking at you. “Why don’t you try to make some other friends? It might seem impossible, but you just might find someone desperate enough.” His words came out in a sarcastic tone. Shoving his hands into his jacket pockets, Woobin aimlessly glances around at nothing in particular until you spoke again. He was hoping that his uninterested demeanor might scare you away. Of course, that was wishful thinking. “Believe it or not, I have nothing against a good meal. It’s the company that I’m picky about.” 

The laughter startles her out of her trance. Rina blinks, looking down at the plant before her, and then turns to Woobin. His laughter is as precious as it is contagious. “What?” she demands, laughing herself. A light flush crosses her cheeks. Often times when she’s tending to her plants, she tends to zone out completely. This time is no exception. Scrunching her mouth, Rina turns and sprays Woobin with a light shower of the water in her bottle. “Don’t be mean!”

   At this point, it wasn’t going to matter what you said. After you had looked at him with that clueless expression, all composure had been lost. Granted, it didn’t take much to amuse Woobin. “What? Oh, nothing, nothing.”

Rina blinks, then laughs, shaking her head. “No, honey,” she says gently, “The new movie wouldn’t be a classic yet, considering it isn’t even out yet.” She squeezes Woobin’s hip with a chuckle. He’s still silly, even when he’s trying not to be. 

“No, it’s The Man With Three Coffins!” The excitement in her voice is obvious. “The one with Lee Bohee and Kim Myunggon!” When it becomes clear that the excitement isn’t shared, Rina bounces beside Woobin. “Oh, it’s such a good movie! I don’t want to spoil anything, but you’ll love it, I’m sure.” Or, so she hopes; it happens to be one of her favorite movies. 

When they arrive at the museum, Rina drops her arm from Woobin’s waist to dig her wallet out of her pocket. She holds her hand up, placing it against his chest before he can protest. “I’m paying this time,” she insists softly, voice firm despite the quiet down. She hands the usher the admission price, thanks him with a bow, and then takes Woobin’s hand and whisks him inside. 

Rina looks up at him as she turns to face him, walking backwards through the museum’s foyer. “It’s outside on the lawn,” she murmurs. This time, her voice is soft because of the echo; the walls around them are so high, and the space is so empty, noise carries like crazy.

   “Oh, you’re talking about a different kind of classic? Right, I knew that. I was just trying to make a joke. It was funny, right?” Chuckling stupidly, he looks to you for approval, hoping that it would somehow end his embarrassment. 

      Luckily, the silence that he was dreading didn’t happen as he was quickly caught off guard by your genuine reaction to the movie. “Oh, wow.” Giving your hand a quick squeeze, he keeps his eyes on you while laughing all over again. “Can’t say that I’ve ever seen it, but it sounds interesting, at least. Besides, I’m not the type to really hate any movie.” After all, movies were basically how Woobin would fill up his days alone. It would let him forget about his own reality. “If you love it, I’m sure that I will too.” 

   Seeing the museum for the first time, Woobin took a momentary look around, nearly missing the fact that you had paid for the movie. Only looking back over to you once he felt your hand in his again, Woobin starts to squint. “Ah, Rina. You didn’t have to do that.” He mumbles. “Let me pay next time, huh?” He doesn’t bother to put up much of a fight as he willingly follows you through the unfamiliar area.

Watching the encircled button for floor one light up, Geunhye allowed a silence to pass by for the two, a smirk accenting his features as the steel doors came to a close. He didn’t need the prying eyes of any onlookers attempting to venture into his business. “Break up with me? I think you’d be lucky if you even had the chance to call me yours.” 

The elevator dinged, signaling the end of the short ride and Geunhye exited the machine. Woobin… it was a start somewhere, he had to admit. “Ah, only your name is interesting? Okay, Woobin, my name’s Geunhye. Park Geunhye, to be specific.” He exited the lobby of the building, slipping on his sunglasses from the blinding sunlight and pondering over what exactly was on his agenda for today to begin with.

Nonetheless, Geunhye didn’t mind giving information in regards to himself, but he wanted to see how long Woobin would take to cave in and indulge Geunhye on at least one fact about himself. 

“I must say, it is indeed nice to meet you, Woobin. Though, I do think it’s only polite for me to know more about you if we’re already exchanging names,” Geunhye laughed, so very entertained by the situation and how it was developing. He might’ve been an annoying and chatty cat, but it was Geunhye’s strong point. Very much indeed, his strong point.

   “Ah, I get it.” He casually replies after your first remark. “You’re a little crazy, aren’t you?” Shifting in his seat, Woobin instead opts to lay on his back and lets out a loud exhale as he does so. Blankly staring up at the ceiling, he lazily rests his phone on his shoulder. “You’re unbelievable. You really think that I’d be desperate enough to hang out with someone like you?”

   Raising his eyebrows while staring at nothing in particular, Woobin lets out a snark scoff. “Is that your real name? That sounds like some alias that a criminal would use. I mean, that would explain a lot.” He mumbles before yawning extra loudly, hoping that you’d be able to hear his boredom.

   It was your request that made Woobin hesitate. How was he supposed to answer a question like that? It almost offended him. Pretending to have fallen asleep seemed like a good option. After a few seconds of empty contemplation, Woobin shrugs his shoulders despite the fact that nobody was around to see it. It was this gesture that caused his phone to slide off the couch and onto the floor. “Ah, shit.” Grumbling under his breath, Woobin peers over the side of the couch and catches sight of his phone, only an arm’s length away. Clearly displeased, he squints at it, but stays where he is. 

  If someone had asked Woobin why he had decided to go out today, he wouldn’t have an answer that he’d be willing to give. At this point in his life, he found himself at random spots throughout the day in attempt to find himself among other people. They didn’t have to like him or even notice him. As long as Woobin wasn’t alone in his apartment, he wasn’t as miserable as he could of been. But, this was one of the moments that Woobin wished he had stayed home. Seemingly out of nowhere, he had found himself drawn into a crazed crowd. Without any idea of what they were gathered for, he continued to push his way to the front, assuming that he’d be able to find an exit at some point. However, after making it only a few steps ahead, Woobin glances up. Of course, out of all the places that he could’ve ended up, he just so happened to find his way to an idol performance. Could the day get any worse?