airplanewishes (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
airplanewishes) wrote2010-09-28 09:45 am
airplanewishes) wrote2010-09-28 09:45 am
[PG-13] Caught in Between (23/25)
Title: Caught in Between
Characters: Kyuhyun/Taeyeon/Eunhyuk, Donghae/Jessica, Sungmin/Sunny, Siwon/Tiffany
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Friendship, Comedy, Drama
Taeyeon took a very deep breath as she stood outside Eunhyuk’s bedroom door. After having the whole week to contemplate about it, she realized that it really was time she talked to him about it. Apologies were in order, too. If it weren’t for her and her mess, this wouldn’t have happened. Eunhyuk’s life wouldn’t be in such disarray. Also, if it weren’t for her and her impulsiveness, they would still be the same best friends like before.
As she raised her hand to knock, she realized that the door was open. She quietly pushed it open and stepped inside, quietly closing it behind her. When she walked in, she bit back a smile. He was still sleeping, even snoring softly. He was comfortably snuggled in the comforter, his face half-buried in his pillow. She remembered all the times she woke him up during the weekends because he just loved sleeping in so much. It also reminded her of the times when she would fall asleep beside him since he took forever to wake up.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, she watched as Eunhyuk shifted his position a bit, making his hair cover his eyes. She leaned towards him and gently brushed the hair away from his eyes. She sighed as she thought about how she’s been so selfish. How could have she done this to the person who did nothing but treat her perfectly?
“Taeyeon?” Eunhyuk muttered, opening his eyes, squinting.
She immediately moved away and sat back straight. “Hey,” she quietly greeted. “I wasn’t sure whether to wake you or not.”
“Since when weren’t you sure about waking me up?” he asked, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. He turned to his bedside table and looked at the time. “What are you doing here so early?” It was only 8:15 in the morning.
“I wanted to start my day right and—.” She stood up and walked towards the closet. She stared at the packed bags then looked at him, who had looked away. “Are you going somewhere?”
“Kind of,” he awkwardly answered.
“Oh,” she said. “Where? I didn’t know you were planning a trip.”
“Yeah, well there are a lot of things you don’t know.” He said this softly, but she heard it clearly. It broke her heart.
“You’re right,” she quietly responded. “So… when are you leaving?”
“Tonight,” he answered, getting up and walking to the bathroom. After brushing his teeth and washing his face, he walked out, a towel in hand. “What are you doing here, Taeyeon?”
He asked her so pointedly and looked at her so coldly that she was unable to get the words out. In all their years of friendship, Eunhyuk had never been cold to her. He ignored her, yes, but still… he never presented himself coldly towards her. Tears pricked her eyes.
“I was wondering…” she began, but decided against it. “I can see you’re busy.” She gestured towards his bags. “I’ll just…” She smiled at him. “Enjoy your trip.” She took a step towards him and hugged him tightly.
Taeyeon squeezed her eyes shut as Eunhyuk wrapped his arms around her eventually, hugging her back with the same fervor. Although no words were spoken, both were sure that the hug spoke volumes about everything that’s happened. It also showed that despite everything, there was hope in overcoming it. But at a cost. He was leaving to forget, to start over. They needed to be apart. He didn’t think he needed to tell her that. She knew.
When they separated, her cheeks were stained with tears. She bowed her head so that he wouldn’t see. But he did see. Like with everything else connected to Taeyeon, he saw it clearly.
“Taeyeon,” Eunhyuk murmured, tracing his fingers on the tearstains on her cheeks. “I’ll be back.”
She started sobbing. “I wish you didn’t have to go. I’m sor—.”
“Shh,” he cut her off. “That’s not necessary. We’re stronger than that. We’re not best friends for no reason.”
“But I—.” She looked at him, finally meetings his eyes.
“I’ll be back then everything will be better,” he promised.
“What am I going to do without you?” she whispered, starting to cry again.
He smiled for the first time. “You’ll be fine. Just promise me one thing.”
“Anything,” she pleaded.
“Be happy,” he said, looking into her eyes. She looked away uncertainly. “No matter what it takes. Think of your happiness.” When she didn’t respond, he prodded, “Do you promise?”
She couldn’t say no. “I promise. For you.” She looked at him, searching his eyes.
He shook his head. “Promise for you.”
Taeyeon whimpered and pulled him into another hug. “I love you.” She said it so faintly, hoping that he didn’t hear it.
But Eunhyuk smiled. “I love you, too.”
~ * ~
“Are you sure you’re going to be okay?” Tiffany felt like asking for what was probably the 10th time.
Taeyeon looked at her with a smile. “Yes, Fany, I’m perfectly okay,” she patiently insisted. She then went back to doing her homework.
Tiffany exchanged a look with Siwon then went back to rewriting her notes. It had been a day since Eunhyuk had left. They all went to the airport to see him off. Taeyeon kept on crying like crazy. Eunhyuk boarded late because she wouldn’t let go of him. Weirdly, this made Eunhyuk smile and chuckle as he hugged Taeyeon back tightly. After Eunhyuk had left, Taeyeon insisted on staying in the airport until his plane took off. Sungmin and Sunny, even Jessica decided to stay with her to make her calm down.
“Taeng, we can call him, you know,” Sungmin then said after Sunny nudged him.
“It’s fine,” Taeyeon said, shaking her head. She didn’t want to bother him at a time when he should be moving on.
“Hey!” Jessica cheerfully greeted, taking the empty seat beside Taeyeon. “Oh dear,” she said when she got a good look at her. “Didn’t you even think of putting concealer on?” Her bags were huge.
“I’m fine,” was Taeyeon’s only answer.
Jessica watched as Taeyeon pretended to be okay. She wasn’t sure what happened between her and Eunhyuk, but it seemed serious enough for her to cry like a little girl when he was leaving. She wasn’t even sure why he was going to Japan just before winter break. He could’ve just gone then. It seemed that a lot more was happening to Taeyeon beneath the surface. It wasn’t all about Kyuhyun.
“Where’s Donghae?” Siwon asked, looking around.
“He’s tutoring some girl,” Jessica answered nonchalantly.
“Jealous much?” Tiffany teased.
“Of course not,” Jessica haughtily said, shaking her head. “So… I was thinking,” she began again. “You guys should all go over to my house today.”
Sunny clapped her hands. “A party?”
“A small get-together,” Jessica suggested. “We could watch DVDs and get some ice cream…” She trailed away when Sunny and Sungmin raised their hands and waved at her to stop. Sunny mouthed Eunhyuk’s name. Jessica nodded, finally understanding. DVDs and ice cream was her thing with Eunhyuk.
Taeyeon then closed her books shut and stood up. “I think I’ll pass,” she nicely said, smiling at Jessica. She turned to Sunny. “I’ll see you guys at home.”
“You’re not coming?” Sunny asked.
“I promised oppa I’ll be home early,” Taeyeon reminded her. She smiled at all of them and walked away.
When Taeyeon was too far away to hear any of their conversations, Jessica turned to Sunny and Sungmin. “Okay, so what’s the deal? I’m dying to know what’s going on,” she demanded.
“Er,” Sungmin hesitated.
“As someone who practically had to do cartwheels to make her stop crying the other day, I think I have a right to know what happened,” Jessica insisted.
Sunny sighed in defeat. “You’re right. What happened is—.”
“Hi!” Donghae happily appeared out of nowhere, occupying the seat that Taeyeon vacated.
“Shush,” Jessica snapped at him.
“What did I do?” Donghae innocently asked, surprised.
“Just be quiet for a while,” Jessica repeated, glaring at him.
“Sica,” Donghae whined. The others watched in amusement as the two interacted. “You can’t just talk to me like that. When you think about it, I’m older than you.”
“Fishy,” Jessica began. Donghae immediately looked pleased at hearing her call him that. “Let’s talk later, okay? Sunny has something to say.”
Sunny then recounted what Taeyeon had told her and Sungmin, which had everyone gasping incredibly loud.
“So Eunhyuk’s in love with Taeyeon?” Siwon clarified, his eyes wide.
“Of course he is,” Tiffany agreed, nodding her head.
“It was pretty obvious,” Sunny added.
“When you think about it, it really was,” Jessica confirmed.
The three boys looked at each other.
“How was that obvious?” Sungmin wanted to know. Sunny giggled.
~ * ~
“Seriously, Donghae,” Jessica said in disbelief as he continued to ignore him. They had just left the school on foot, deciding to walk home.
Donghae purposefully didn’t respond, continuing to walk ahead of her. It had been like this since they left the others to go home. All of a sudden he just wasn’t talking to her.
“Donghae,” Jessica called again. “Ya!” she nearly screamed when he didn’t say anything again. She stomped her foot.
Still no response.
“Is this about earlier?” She sighed. “It was just that Sunny was in the middle of telling us about what happened between Eunhyuk and Taeyeon.”
Nothing.
“I wasn’t disrespecting you at all.”
He just went on walking, not even giving her a backwards glance. Instead, he placed his hands on his pockets.
“I didn’t mean to disrespect you at all,” she paraphrased.
Jessica pouted, fixing the strap of her bag on her shoulder. Donghae did this to her sometimes. He loved teasing her and making her annoyed. It was very effective coz it really got her worked up. But she wasn’t used to him not talking to her.
She got into step beside him and linked her arm with his. “Fishy,” she called him as sweetly as she could. His face twitched, nearly smiling. “Aha! I saw that,” she rejoiced, pointing at him. “Fishy!!!” she repeated, leaning towards him. “Please talk to me already.”
He shook his head.
“Doesn’t that mean you already are talking to me?” she asked, referring to him shaking his head. She sighed when he didn’t respond anymore. “I really don’t know what I did, but the silence is killing me.”
Donghae looked away, trying hard not to smile. Jessica was just too adorable for words.
“Please tell me what I should do so you’d talk to me again,” she said in a resigned tone.
Suddenly, he stopped walking, making her nearly trip. She untangled herself from him and shot him an icy glare.
“You really will do anything?” he asked.
“It worked,” she shot back, grinning. “You’re talking to me already.” He then gave her a shrug and started walking without another word. She caught up to him. “Fine, what do you want me to do?”
“Are you sure?” he asked, his eyes twinkling.
“Why, what do you have in mind?” she asked, suddenly fearful, taking a step back. He leaned his face towards her and tapped his cheek with two fingers. “I’m sorry?” she clarified, hoping she interpreted his actions wrongly.
“Donghae, what are you—?” she began to ask.
“Kiss,” he spelled it out.
Jessica took two steps back in surprise. Did she just hear him right? Did he just…? Donghae then shrugged and started walking again. Was he really not going to talk to her if she didn’t do it? Since when was he so confident about things like this?
And so they walked in silence.
When they reached Jessica’s house, Donghae waited until Jessica opened the door before turning to leave.
“Donghae,” Jessica called. Donghae stopped and turned around, facing her again. Jessica took a step towards him, stood on tiptoe and gave him a kiss on his left cheek. “Thank you for walking me home.” She gave him a small smile then went inside.
~ * ~
There was a bounce in Donghae’s step as he walked home. It didn’t occur to him that a kiss from Jessica could make him so happy, especially since he didn’t expect that she would grant his bigheaded wish. It would appear that things between them were going well. Although he wasn’t exactly sure what that thing was. They’d certainly become even closer in the past weeks. They spent a lot of time together. Her friends were his friends now and vise versa. Who would’ve thought? He never thought a geek of his stature could ever have a chance of going out with a queenka of Jessica’s caliber.
He wondered what she would do if he confessed his feelings for her. He had to stop denying to himself that he felt something extraordinary for her. It was extraordinary because he certainly didn’t feel this way when he asked girls out in the past. Also, this time around Jessica didn’t seem to want to slap him whenever they went out unlike what other girls had done.
He must’ve done something right in his lifetime to deserve this blessing. Jessica used to be just a girl from school. Now she was definitely more than that.
As he immersed himself in his thoughts, he didn’t notice the black, tinted car that was closely following him. As he stepped onto the road to cross the street, the black car suddenly swerved in front of him, almost knocking him over. Donghae fell on the pavement in his attempt to avoid getting hit.
He watched as the driver’s door opened. Black, expensive-looking, leather shoes met his eye as the driver got out and walked towards him. When he looked up, he saw Hankyung’s smirk.
“How does it feel to be lying on the pavement?” Hankyung asked, smirking even more.
“Hankyung,” Donghae replied evenly as he stood up and brushed his clothes of dirt. “Could you be more careful next time? You could’ve killed me.”
“That would’ve been a relief,” Hankyung retorted, the smirk never leaving his face. He nodded towards the car. “Get in.”
“What?” Donghae asked in disbelief.
“I said get in!” Hankyung growled. When Donghae didn’t move, he grabbed him by the arm, threw the door open and pushed him in. He then got in the car himself and sped away.
“What are you doing?” Donghae asked, starting to feel apprehensive.
“I’m going to teach you a lesson,” Hankyung shot back, giving him a glare.
~ * ~
Heechul looked up from his kitchen baking when he heard the front door slam. He put his creation in the oven then wiped his hands on the hand towel on the counter. “Taeng, is that you?”
“Yes, I’m home,” Taeyeon said, appearing in the kitchen doorway. She dropped her bag beside the doorway and went around the counter into her brother’s open arms.
“How are you today?” Heechul asked, giving her a kiss on the forehead.
“Fine,” she answered with a shrug. She took a seat on one of the stools and poked a finger in the batch of brownies that he hadn’t managed to bake yet.
“Don’t touch that,” he said pointedly. “It won’t taste the same.”
She giggled. “Okay.” Standing up, she said, “I’ll just go and change.”
“Hurry up,” he called after her. “Go straight to the living room. These are almost done.”
When Taeyeon went back downstairs to the living room, Heechul was already seated on the couch, remote in hand. The brownies were on the table.
“Ya, what took you so long?” he demanded. “It’s already starting.”
“I hope you didn’t pick a cheesy movie, oppa,” she entreated, sitting down on his left side.
“Of course I did,” he said, putting an arm around her and making her scoot closer to him.
Of course he did. Out of all movies, he just had to pick 10 Things I Hate About You. She closed her eyes as the opening scene played.
He shook her awake. “It hasn’t even started yet.”
“This is Sunny’s favorite movie,” she grumbled, opening her eyes.
“I like this movie, too,” he reminded her, increasing the volume. He looked down at her. “Just bear with me, okay? I do want us to spend time together like you wanted.”
Sighing in defeat, she conceded, “Fine.”
Watching the movie, Taeyeon couldn’t help but think about Eunhyuk. And Kyuhyun. As well as everything that’s happened between the three of them. The beginning of everything was certainly interesting. Who would’ve thought that all of this began just because she had a hard time studying math in the library? When she thought about it, everything happened so unexpectedly and unfolded so dramatically. It was high school and yet there was so much drama. She was a kid.
“You alright?” Heechul asked her halfway through the movie.
“Fine,” Taeyeon mumbled in reply. She shifted in her seat, folding her legs and resting on them. “He’s a liar,” she suddenly said, referring to the main character. He looked at her. “I don’t know how he could wake up and face himself in the mirror everyday, knowing he’s deceiving someone.” He opened his mouth to say something, but she wasn’t finished. “And that girl,” referring to another main character, “how could she treat that guy that way, like he was her slave? Doesn’t she know that the guy likes her enough to do anything for her? How could she take advantage of him like that?”
“Taeyeon-ah,” he gently started, moving so that he could get a better look at her. “It’s just a movie.”
She sniffed. “Seems a lot like real life to me.”
Heechul took the remote and muted the TV. Facing her completely, he pointedly looked at her, “Is there something you want to talk about?”
“Sorry,” Taeyeon mumbled, looking down and starting at the beige material of the couch.
“Taeyeon, you never took advantage of Eunhyuk,” he slowly but firmly imparted. “Look at me.” He touched her chin and lifted her head so that she would meet his eyes. “You didn’t take advantage of him. You could never do that. He’s your best friend.”
“I know,” she whispered, looking away to hide her tears. “I just… I wish I could’ve treated him better.”
“If your idea of treating him better is pretending to love him back, then that’s just ridiculous,” he reacted.
“No, not pretend,” she retorted, shaking her head. “He’s easy to love.”
“Oh so you mean forcing yourself then?” he countered. “That’s stupid, Taeyeon.” He made her look at him again. “Do you know what he told me before he left?”
“What?” she asked. She didn’t even know that they talked.
“He said he wanted you to go back to your happiness,” he relayed. She looked away again. “I believe he told you the same thing.”
Be happy. No matter what it takes. That was what he said. But how could she do that to him? After everything that he went through for her.
“Stop thinking whatever it is that you’re thinking,” Heechul said, breaking into her thoughts. “The past is the past. Forget about it. It won’t change no matter how much you think about it.”
His eyes and demeanor softened when his sister gave in to her tears. It broke his heart seeing his sister shatter into pieces in front of him. Taeyeon had always been the tough cookie between her and Sunny. So this definitely showed how conflicted and how much pain she was feeling.
Pulling her into a hug, he whispered to her ear, “The only way you’ll stop crying is when you finally accept the person who can make those tears go away.”
Characters: Kyuhyun/Taeyeon/Eunhyuk, Donghae/Jessica, Sungmin/Sunny, Siwon/Tiffany
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Friendship, Comedy, Drama
Taeyeon took a very deep breath as she stood outside Eunhyuk’s bedroom door. After having the whole week to contemplate about it, she realized that it really was time she talked to him about it. Apologies were in order, too. If it weren’t for her and her mess, this wouldn’t have happened. Eunhyuk’s life wouldn’t be in such disarray. Also, if it weren’t for her and her impulsiveness, they would still be the same best friends like before.
As she raised her hand to knock, she realized that the door was open. She quietly pushed it open and stepped inside, quietly closing it behind her. When she walked in, she bit back a smile. He was still sleeping, even snoring softly. He was comfortably snuggled in the comforter, his face half-buried in his pillow. She remembered all the times she woke him up during the weekends because he just loved sleeping in so much. It also reminded her of the times when she would fall asleep beside him since he took forever to wake up.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, she watched as Eunhyuk shifted his position a bit, making his hair cover his eyes. She leaned towards him and gently brushed the hair away from his eyes. She sighed as she thought about how she’s been so selfish. How could have she done this to the person who did nothing but treat her perfectly?
“Taeyeon?” Eunhyuk muttered, opening his eyes, squinting.
She immediately moved away and sat back straight. “Hey,” she quietly greeted. “I wasn’t sure whether to wake you or not.”
“Since when weren’t you sure about waking me up?” he asked, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. He turned to his bedside table and looked at the time. “What are you doing here so early?” It was only 8:15 in the morning.
“I wanted to start my day right and—.” She stood up and walked towards the closet. She stared at the packed bags then looked at him, who had looked away. “Are you going somewhere?”
“Kind of,” he awkwardly answered.
“Oh,” she said. “Where? I didn’t know you were planning a trip.”
“Yeah, well there are a lot of things you don’t know.” He said this softly, but she heard it clearly. It broke her heart.
“You’re right,” she quietly responded. “So… when are you leaving?”
“Tonight,” he answered, getting up and walking to the bathroom. After brushing his teeth and washing his face, he walked out, a towel in hand. “What are you doing here, Taeyeon?”
He asked her so pointedly and looked at her so coldly that she was unable to get the words out. In all their years of friendship, Eunhyuk had never been cold to her. He ignored her, yes, but still… he never presented himself coldly towards her. Tears pricked her eyes.
“I was wondering…” she began, but decided against it. “I can see you’re busy.” She gestured towards his bags. “I’ll just…” She smiled at him. “Enjoy your trip.” She took a step towards him and hugged him tightly.
Taeyeon squeezed her eyes shut as Eunhyuk wrapped his arms around her eventually, hugging her back with the same fervor. Although no words were spoken, both were sure that the hug spoke volumes about everything that’s happened. It also showed that despite everything, there was hope in overcoming it. But at a cost. He was leaving to forget, to start over. They needed to be apart. He didn’t think he needed to tell her that. She knew.
When they separated, her cheeks were stained with tears. She bowed her head so that he wouldn’t see. But he did see. Like with everything else connected to Taeyeon, he saw it clearly.
“Taeyeon,” Eunhyuk murmured, tracing his fingers on the tearstains on her cheeks. “I’ll be back.”
She started sobbing. “I wish you didn’t have to go. I’m sor—.”
“Shh,” he cut her off. “That’s not necessary. We’re stronger than that. We’re not best friends for no reason.”
“But I—.” She looked at him, finally meetings his eyes.
“I’ll be back then everything will be better,” he promised.
“What am I going to do without you?” she whispered, starting to cry again.
He smiled for the first time. “You’ll be fine. Just promise me one thing.”
“Anything,” she pleaded.
“Be happy,” he said, looking into her eyes. She looked away uncertainly. “No matter what it takes. Think of your happiness.” When she didn’t respond, he prodded, “Do you promise?”
She couldn’t say no. “I promise. For you.” She looked at him, searching his eyes.
He shook his head. “Promise for you.”
Taeyeon whimpered and pulled him into another hug. “I love you.” She said it so faintly, hoping that he didn’t hear it.
But Eunhyuk smiled. “I love you, too.”
~ * ~
“Are you sure you’re going to be okay?” Tiffany felt like asking for what was probably the 10th time.
Taeyeon looked at her with a smile. “Yes, Fany, I’m perfectly okay,” she patiently insisted. She then went back to doing her homework.
Tiffany exchanged a look with Siwon then went back to rewriting her notes. It had been a day since Eunhyuk had left. They all went to the airport to see him off. Taeyeon kept on crying like crazy. Eunhyuk boarded late because she wouldn’t let go of him. Weirdly, this made Eunhyuk smile and chuckle as he hugged Taeyeon back tightly. After Eunhyuk had left, Taeyeon insisted on staying in the airport until his plane took off. Sungmin and Sunny, even Jessica decided to stay with her to make her calm down.
“Taeng, we can call him, you know,” Sungmin then said after Sunny nudged him.
“It’s fine,” Taeyeon said, shaking her head. She didn’t want to bother him at a time when he should be moving on.
“Hey!” Jessica cheerfully greeted, taking the empty seat beside Taeyeon. “Oh dear,” she said when she got a good look at her. “Didn’t you even think of putting concealer on?” Her bags were huge.
“I’m fine,” was Taeyeon’s only answer.
Jessica watched as Taeyeon pretended to be okay. She wasn’t sure what happened between her and Eunhyuk, but it seemed serious enough for her to cry like a little girl when he was leaving. She wasn’t even sure why he was going to Japan just before winter break. He could’ve just gone then. It seemed that a lot more was happening to Taeyeon beneath the surface. It wasn’t all about Kyuhyun.
“Where’s Donghae?” Siwon asked, looking around.
“He’s tutoring some girl,” Jessica answered nonchalantly.
“Jealous much?” Tiffany teased.
“Of course not,” Jessica haughtily said, shaking her head. “So… I was thinking,” she began again. “You guys should all go over to my house today.”
Sunny clapped her hands. “A party?”
“A small get-together,” Jessica suggested. “We could watch DVDs and get some ice cream…” She trailed away when Sunny and Sungmin raised their hands and waved at her to stop. Sunny mouthed Eunhyuk’s name. Jessica nodded, finally understanding. DVDs and ice cream was her thing with Eunhyuk.
Taeyeon then closed her books shut and stood up. “I think I’ll pass,” she nicely said, smiling at Jessica. She turned to Sunny. “I’ll see you guys at home.”
“You’re not coming?” Sunny asked.
“I promised oppa I’ll be home early,” Taeyeon reminded her. She smiled at all of them and walked away.
When Taeyeon was too far away to hear any of their conversations, Jessica turned to Sunny and Sungmin. “Okay, so what’s the deal? I’m dying to know what’s going on,” she demanded.
“Er,” Sungmin hesitated.
“As someone who practically had to do cartwheels to make her stop crying the other day, I think I have a right to know what happened,” Jessica insisted.
Sunny sighed in defeat. “You’re right. What happened is—.”
“Hi!” Donghae happily appeared out of nowhere, occupying the seat that Taeyeon vacated.
“Shush,” Jessica snapped at him.
“What did I do?” Donghae innocently asked, surprised.
“Just be quiet for a while,” Jessica repeated, glaring at him.
“Sica,” Donghae whined. The others watched in amusement as the two interacted. “You can’t just talk to me like that. When you think about it, I’m older than you.”
“Fishy,” Jessica began. Donghae immediately looked pleased at hearing her call him that. “Let’s talk later, okay? Sunny has something to say.”
Sunny then recounted what Taeyeon had told her and Sungmin, which had everyone gasping incredibly loud.
“So Eunhyuk’s in love with Taeyeon?” Siwon clarified, his eyes wide.
“Of course he is,” Tiffany agreed, nodding her head.
“It was pretty obvious,” Sunny added.
“When you think about it, it really was,” Jessica confirmed.
The three boys looked at each other.
“How was that obvious?” Sungmin wanted to know. Sunny giggled.
~ * ~
“Seriously, Donghae,” Jessica said in disbelief as he continued to ignore him. They had just left the school on foot, deciding to walk home.
Donghae purposefully didn’t respond, continuing to walk ahead of her. It had been like this since they left the others to go home. All of a sudden he just wasn’t talking to her.
“Donghae,” Jessica called again. “Ya!” she nearly screamed when he didn’t say anything again. She stomped her foot.
Still no response.
“Is this about earlier?” She sighed. “It was just that Sunny was in the middle of telling us about what happened between Eunhyuk and Taeyeon.”
Nothing.
“I wasn’t disrespecting you at all.”
He just went on walking, not even giving her a backwards glance. Instead, he placed his hands on his pockets.
“I didn’t mean to disrespect you at all,” she paraphrased.
Jessica pouted, fixing the strap of her bag on her shoulder. Donghae did this to her sometimes. He loved teasing her and making her annoyed. It was very effective coz it really got her worked up. But she wasn’t used to him not talking to her.
She got into step beside him and linked her arm with his. “Fishy,” she called him as sweetly as she could. His face twitched, nearly smiling. “Aha! I saw that,” she rejoiced, pointing at him. “Fishy!!!” she repeated, leaning towards him. “Please talk to me already.”
He shook his head.
“Doesn’t that mean you already are talking to me?” she asked, referring to him shaking his head. She sighed when he didn’t respond anymore. “I really don’t know what I did, but the silence is killing me.”
Donghae looked away, trying hard not to smile. Jessica was just too adorable for words.
“Please tell me what I should do so you’d talk to me again,” she said in a resigned tone.
Suddenly, he stopped walking, making her nearly trip. She untangled herself from him and shot him an icy glare.
“You really will do anything?” he asked.
“It worked,” she shot back, grinning. “You’re talking to me already.” He then gave her a shrug and started walking without another word. She caught up to him. “Fine, what do you want me to do?”
“Are you sure?” he asked, his eyes twinkling.
“Why, what do you have in mind?” she asked, suddenly fearful, taking a step back. He leaned his face towards her and tapped his cheek with two fingers. “I’m sorry?” she clarified, hoping she interpreted his actions wrongly.
“Donghae, what are you—?” she began to ask.
“Kiss,” he spelled it out.
Jessica took two steps back in surprise. Did she just hear him right? Did he just…? Donghae then shrugged and started walking again. Was he really not going to talk to her if she didn’t do it? Since when was he so confident about things like this?
And so they walked in silence.
When they reached Jessica’s house, Donghae waited until Jessica opened the door before turning to leave.
“Donghae,” Jessica called. Donghae stopped and turned around, facing her again. Jessica took a step towards him, stood on tiptoe and gave him a kiss on his left cheek. “Thank you for walking me home.” She gave him a small smile then went inside.
~ * ~
There was a bounce in Donghae’s step as he walked home. It didn’t occur to him that a kiss from Jessica could make him so happy, especially since he didn’t expect that she would grant his bigheaded wish. It would appear that things between them were going well. Although he wasn’t exactly sure what that thing was. They’d certainly become even closer in the past weeks. They spent a lot of time together. Her friends were his friends now and vise versa. Who would’ve thought? He never thought a geek of his stature could ever have a chance of going out with a queenka of Jessica’s caliber.
He wondered what she would do if he confessed his feelings for her. He had to stop denying to himself that he felt something extraordinary for her. It was extraordinary because he certainly didn’t feel this way when he asked girls out in the past. Also, this time around Jessica didn’t seem to want to slap him whenever they went out unlike what other girls had done.
He must’ve done something right in his lifetime to deserve this blessing. Jessica used to be just a girl from school. Now she was definitely more than that.
As he immersed himself in his thoughts, he didn’t notice the black, tinted car that was closely following him. As he stepped onto the road to cross the street, the black car suddenly swerved in front of him, almost knocking him over. Donghae fell on the pavement in his attempt to avoid getting hit.
He watched as the driver’s door opened. Black, expensive-looking, leather shoes met his eye as the driver got out and walked towards him. When he looked up, he saw Hankyung’s smirk.
“How does it feel to be lying on the pavement?” Hankyung asked, smirking even more.
“Hankyung,” Donghae replied evenly as he stood up and brushed his clothes of dirt. “Could you be more careful next time? You could’ve killed me.”
“That would’ve been a relief,” Hankyung retorted, the smirk never leaving his face. He nodded towards the car. “Get in.”
“What?” Donghae asked in disbelief.
“I said get in!” Hankyung growled. When Donghae didn’t move, he grabbed him by the arm, threw the door open and pushed him in. He then got in the car himself and sped away.
“What are you doing?” Donghae asked, starting to feel apprehensive.
“I’m going to teach you a lesson,” Hankyung shot back, giving him a glare.
~ * ~
Heechul looked up from his kitchen baking when he heard the front door slam. He put his creation in the oven then wiped his hands on the hand towel on the counter. “Taeng, is that you?”
“Yes, I’m home,” Taeyeon said, appearing in the kitchen doorway. She dropped her bag beside the doorway and went around the counter into her brother’s open arms.
“How are you today?” Heechul asked, giving her a kiss on the forehead.
“Fine,” she answered with a shrug. She took a seat on one of the stools and poked a finger in the batch of brownies that he hadn’t managed to bake yet.
“Don’t touch that,” he said pointedly. “It won’t taste the same.”
She giggled. “Okay.” Standing up, she said, “I’ll just go and change.”
“Hurry up,” he called after her. “Go straight to the living room. These are almost done.”
When Taeyeon went back downstairs to the living room, Heechul was already seated on the couch, remote in hand. The brownies were on the table.
“Ya, what took you so long?” he demanded. “It’s already starting.”
“I hope you didn’t pick a cheesy movie, oppa,” she entreated, sitting down on his left side.
“Of course I did,” he said, putting an arm around her and making her scoot closer to him.
Of course he did. Out of all movies, he just had to pick 10 Things I Hate About You. She closed her eyes as the opening scene played.
He shook her awake. “It hasn’t even started yet.”
“This is Sunny’s favorite movie,” she grumbled, opening her eyes.
“I like this movie, too,” he reminded her, increasing the volume. He looked down at her. “Just bear with me, okay? I do want us to spend time together like you wanted.”
Sighing in defeat, she conceded, “Fine.”
Watching the movie, Taeyeon couldn’t help but think about Eunhyuk. And Kyuhyun. As well as everything that’s happened between the three of them. The beginning of everything was certainly interesting. Who would’ve thought that all of this began just because she had a hard time studying math in the library? When she thought about it, everything happened so unexpectedly and unfolded so dramatically. It was high school and yet there was so much drama. She was a kid.
“You alright?” Heechul asked her halfway through the movie.
“Fine,” Taeyeon mumbled in reply. She shifted in her seat, folding her legs and resting on them. “He’s a liar,” she suddenly said, referring to the main character. He looked at her. “I don’t know how he could wake up and face himself in the mirror everyday, knowing he’s deceiving someone.” He opened his mouth to say something, but she wasn’t finished. “And that girl,” referring to another main character, “how could she treat that guy that way, like he was her slave? Doesn’t she know that the guy likes her enough to do anything for her? How could she take advantage of him like that?”
“Taeyeon-ah,” he gently started, moving so that he could get a better look at her. “It’s just a movie.”
She sniffed. “Seems a lot like real life to me.”
Heechul took the remote and muted the TV. Facing her completely, he pointedly looked at her, “Is there something you want to talk about?”
“Sorry,” Taeyeon mumbled, looking down and starting at the beige material of the couch.
“Taeyeon, you never took advantage of Eunhyuk,” he slowly but firmly imparted. “Look at me.” He touched her chin and lifted her head so that she would meet his eyes. “You didn’t take advantage of him. You could never do that. He’s your best friend.”
“I know,” she whispered, looking away to hide her tears. “I just… I wish I could’ve treated him better.”
“If your idea of treating him better is pretending to love him back, then that’s just ridiculous,” he reacted.
“No, not pretend,” she retorted, shaking her head. “He’s easy to love.”
“Oh so you mean forcing yourself then?” he countered. “That’s stupid, Taeyeon.” He made her look at him again. “Do you know what he told me before he left?”
“What?” she asked. She didn’t even know that they talked.
“He said he wanted you to go back to your happiness,” he relayed. She looked away again. “I believe he told you the same thing.”
Be happy. No matter what it takes. That was what he said. But how could she do that to him? After everything that he went through for her.
“Stop thinking whatever it is that you’re thinking,” Heechul said, breaking into her thoughts. “The past is the past. Forget about it. It won’t change no matter how much you think about it.”
His eyes and demeanor softened when his sister gave in to her tears. It broke his heart seeing his sister shatter into pieces in front of him. Taeyeon had always been the tough cookie between her and Sunny. So this definitely showed how conflicted and how much pain she was feeling.
Pulling her into a hug, he whispered to her ear, “The only way you’ll stop crying is when you finally accept the person who can make those tears go away.”