3 (1/1)

The air was much warmer than yesterday's, Ji Sung realised as she stepped out of Jong Dae's front door and slipped on her pair of boots that had been left out in the cold. Small chunks of snow lay untouched on the roadside, whereas others covered the once nourished and luxuriant plants that littered the park. The florae used to cover the park with a vast array of colours that would tire one's eyes if one was looking at the whole scenery in one go. Now, what laid in front of her was quite the opposite. And yet, she couldn't figure out why she just couldn't tear her eyes away from the snow-covered landscape.   Footsteps were heard behind her, soft and gentle, tapping against the cold, smooth rectangular pieces of parquet that were like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Ji Sung noticed that she was blocking his whole front door and his access to his shoes, so she quickly stepped out of his way to let him through. No words were exchanged when Jong Dae tied his shoelaces as slowly as possible, hoping to prolong their time together. A loud clicking noise was made when he locked the door shortly afterwards; this time there was no laughter, no anticipation, no playfulness evident in both of their eyes.  This time, he turned it anticlockwise. This time, he was shutting them out of their world and into the one which neither of them wanted to be in.  He walked over to her side, his presence providing her not only the warmth that her body wanted, but also his calming aura that she desperately needed. It was a Saturday today, and being the gentleman that he is, Jong Dae offered to walk her to the bus stop, a fair five minute walk away.  Ji Sung said yes, because honestly, she couldn't ask for more.  Just like any other couple would, they walked side by side, hand in hand. But underneath that, they were unlike any other couple. Both of them were aware of that, but they never showed it. Why would they, anyway? It was their little secret, one of the few things that they shared, together.  The silence that enveloped them, their usual comfortable one, allowed Jong Dae to ponder on his thoughts.  "What were his exact words?" questioned Jong Dae, his mind still semi-swirling in his daydream.  She knew who 'he' was without even sparing it a second thought. "That if my grades didn't improve he woul-"  "No, no. Did he say anything else?" He glanced towards her and saw her brows furrow in utter concentration.  "He definitely said that I should stay in my apartment more and go out less." said Ji Sung, still trying to remember the rest of the heart wrenching conversation she shared with her father. "Oh right..." she muttered when the words finally came back to her.  He hummed in response with an enquiring look that she was able to make out with her peripheral vision.  "Dad also mentioned that I shouldn't spend so much time with my friends," she scoffed. "Because according to him, I should acquire all of my time to study and not waste a single second on anything other than that." Ji Sung double scoffed. "In other words, he wants me to live in almost complete isolation and avoid all of my friends until our exams are over."  "Sounds really typical of him." He replied, reminiscing about the times when the two of them spent hours exploring every single nook and cranny of the city, their fun only to be interrupted by a phone call from Ji Sung's dad, ordering her to go home and finish up her unfinished homework.  As they continued their somewhat peaceful amble on the sidewalk, a thought suddenly flashed through Jong Dae's mind. He voiced out his query unhesitantly, casually. "Even Minseok hyung?"  "Even Minseok."  "That's weird."  "I know." She sighed. She unhesitantly added, "Feels off, doesn't it?"  "Slightly. Don't be worried about him, though, you know that he's just concerned about your future." He laughed. "Then again, when is he never concerned?"   Ji Sung let out a small, yet heartwarming laugh. Music to his ears, that's what it was. Nothing, not even the chirpy, lively singing of the birds he would wake up to every morning, or even the melodious sounds of the piano, could compare to her slightest, yet remarkably contagious giggle. Mere seconds after, he found himself laughing along too. At what, he had no idea, and he was pretty sure that she didn't have the slightest clue either. They were just laughing because they could, they were just enjoying themselves while they can.  She was swinging their connected hands around excitedly when Jong Dae stopped in his tracks.  The laughter stopped, the happiness subsided and the original, gloomy mood returned. Everything came crashing down so abruptly. Reality hit them, hard.  "Can I-"  "No." Ji Sung cut him off firmly. She knew that he was about to offer to spend the rest of the Saturday with her, and as much as she wanted that, she knew it wouldn't do them any good. "Prolonging this will only cause both of us more pain." She shifted to stand in front of him with their arms still linked, and looked down at their feet that were facing each others'. She inched a little bit closer to Jong Dae, he inched a little bit closer to her, both trying to close the small gap between their trembling bodies. In the end, he pulled her into a warm and reassuring hug.  "I would stay with you until the bus comes, but-"  "No, Jonggie."  "I know."  "Take care of yourself."  "Yes, mother."  "Study hard."  "Yes, mother."  "Don't stay up too late."  "I know, mother."  "Stop calling me that." She gave him a light, playful slap on his arm, smiling slightly. When she pulled away to look at him, he only stared at her with a bored expression, much like the one she would wear when she was forced to listen to her father's infamous lectures. "What?"   "Done nagging me yet?" He didn't wait for Ji Sung's response. "Study really, really hard, okay? Have some fun from time to time, don't stay cooped up in your apartment, it'll get soul-wrecking, trust me. And if we ever cross paths, anywhere, anywhere at all," Jong Dae lightly tilted her chin in order to make eye contact with her. "Remember to flash me that smile of yours that never fails to make me drool."  "I don't want you to drool in public, though." stated Ji Sung thoughtfully, tapping a single finger on her chin.  He shook his head, gazing at her with such affection, such admiration and such fondness that Ji Sung couldn't help but to return one with equal intensity. In a distance, he could see the faint outline of a bus moving towards the bus stop. It was early in the morning, hence their somewhat short-lived freedom and solitude. Jong Dae knew that it was her bus because the next bus would come in about an hour or so, and that was the bus that he had to take to get to his university.   "I'll miss you." She whispered, her eyes landing on their entwined fingers that were linking them to each other, linking them together. She didn't want to break this physical link, but she rest assured that the mental link would always be there, always strong and unbreakable.  Jong Dae hurriedly, yet somehow slowly, because they both felt as if time had slowed, had slowed for them, pulled her in and connected their lips. The kiss was quick and fast, but for both, it lasted long enough to be etched deep in their memories. He pulled away with reluctance, and with his lips still buzzing with anticipation, he murmured, "And I, you, Sunggie."  It was time to let go.  They didn't exchange any 'I love You's', because, at this moment in time, their love for each other was so apparent that it was needn't to say out their feelings. And after all, they knew what one another thought. Their gazes told each other of the amount of love they have for one another.  So as they parted, they couldn't help but to glance behind their backs every few seconds. She from the bus window, he from the sidewalk. When their eyes met, they smiled. When their eyes met, they felt complete. It was as if seeing one another was enough.   No, to them, seeing each other was more than enough.  They went their separate ways; Ji Sung on the bus that would take her back to her apartment, Jong Dae on the sidewalk that would lead him back to his house. Both going back to their normal lives, the one where neither were present in each other's.  She took a seat by the window on her left, watching the houses pass by her in a dull blur. All of the noises around her: the noisy whirring of the bus engine, the loud chatter of the other passengers, blended into a single noise that sounded soft, and most of all, insignificant, in her ears. Whether this was because she was bothered by all of the noises or because she just didn't have the energy to register to anything in her surroundings, she didn't know. What she did know, however, was that she longed and yearned for his voice to be the only sound that was continuously filling her ears. She wanted to hear his voice loud and clear, with absolutely no interruptions, shouting for her to come back and meet him at the coffee shop for an early morning breakfast with plates of bacon and eggs, endless mugs of hot chocolate with shaved chocolate that had been elegantly, yet rustically arranged on a dollop of the best whipped cream she'd ever tasted and occasionally, a dose of caffeine here and there. Even if she knew she had to reject his tempting offer, she wanted him to ask her.   He kept urging his feet to move forward, one after another, and not to turn around and run after her, who, he believes with all of his heart, is his future. All of the little noises around him were somewhat magnified due to the natural silence of the morning, the tapping of his shoe soles against the pavement that, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't manage to soften. The only other sound was his breathing, which sounded more like a sigh at this stage. Why must his be the only breathing filling his ears? Why couldn't he hear hers as her breath hit his skin, just like hers would when they had an evening to spend together and she had to tip toe, her mouth still barely reaching his ears, to tell him that she wanted to have street food for dinner, and not some fancy restaurant that he had placed bookings for, instead? Really, was it too much to ask for?  They both knew that the fate of their relationship depended on her exam results, that was common knowledge. But most of all, the amount of trust and affection they have for one another. The rest, laid in the hands of time itself. Only time would tell their fate; whether it would be good or bad, whether their feelings would be returned after being apart, whether they would be able to spend the rest of their lifetime together, but most importantly, whether they would meet each other again, really see each other again.  Whether fate would still be waiting for them, and whether there really would be breathtakingly beautiful plans ahead.     Ji Sung jerked awake almost immediately after the almost inaudible, yet awfully irritating buzz of her wristwatch sounded. Straightening her back and sitting upright, she extended her stiff arms and stretched her sore, jelly-like limbs, careful not to hit anyone around her by accident. Her previous napping position had caused her more aches than she could imagine. Yawning, she proceeded to wipe her eyes clean of any remnants of sleep.  Ji Sung took this bus countless and countless of times. So many times, in fact, that she knew with utmost certainty that it would take her 47 whole minutes to reach her stop; the one that was a short five minute walk from her apartment. She would always sit at the same old place: the multi coloured seat right before the exit door of the bus, because quite frankly, she enjoyed watching and observing people. It had taught her several valuable lessons, and it was also her preferred way to kill boredom on days when she couldn't fall asleep no matter how hard she tried, which were more often than less. Therefore it thoroughly surprised her that she was able to do so today, out of all days. She didn't expect herself to manage to shut her eyes at all.  When the bus stopped at the traffic light not far from her stop, Ji Sung reached through the straps of her familiar-feeling, light blue denim backpack that she had in her possession for well over 5 years. Lightly gripping the worn straps with both of her hands and fingering the loose thread on the right one, she stood up and joined the small line that had assembled in front of her to exit the bus. She was about to tap her bus card on the sensitive surface of the nifty gadget within arms' reach and was more-than-prepared to be startled by the bothersome beep it produced that had never failed to make her jump.   A voice behind her caused her to halt all of her planned actions.  "Miss," It said with utmost politeness. So much, in fact, that her mind started to question whether or not the owner of this voice had other intentions. "By any chance, have you dropped your set of keys?"  What Ji Sung hated the most, however, wasn't the sickeningly sweet yet arrogant tone of the voice, but rather how awfully  familiar, how well practiced and also how peculiarly normal it sounded in her ears.   She didn't want to turn around at all.  A/N ；对不起。。。sorry for making you wait, and then producing a short-ish, not very 'happening' chapter; chapter length will vary from now on, sadly.i'm so sorry, i truly am.hope you enjoyed, though.thank you for reading, readers!-Rach