[PG-13] Caught in Between (9/25)
Title: Caught in Between
Characters: Kyuhyun/Taeyeon/Eunhyuk, Donghae/Jessica, Sungmin/Sunny, Siwon/Tiffany
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Friendship, Comedy, Drama
“Excuse me,” Jessica politely said.
Seohyun and Siwon looked at her in surprise.
“Hey,” Siwon greeted her back awkwardly. Even though she was friends with Tiffany, he could never get used to talking to Jessica. It was like winter around her.
“Do you guys know where Donghae is?” Jessica asked, smiling a little. “I, uh, need to talk to him about something. About school stuff.”
“He’s probably in the library,” Seohyun offered.
“Actually, he’s at the soccer field,” Siwon corrected.
Jessica smiled. “Thanks!”
Jessica found Donghae playing with a soccer ball by himself.
“Hey,” Jessica said. “I didn’t know you played soccer.”
Donghae looked surprised. “I don’t.” He looked around. “What are you doing here?”
“Why is it that every time I go talk to you, you always seem like you want me to go?” Jessica demanded.
“People might see you talking to me,” Donghae explained. “I don’t want to jeopardize your popularity.”
“That doesn’t matter anymore,” Jessica said with a sigh.
“Want to play?” Donghae offered after a short silence. “I’ll let you win.”
~ * ~
“Hey, isn’t that Sica?” Shindong asked Hankyung. They were hanging out at the parking lot, beside the field. Hankyung squinted. “Who’s that guy?”
“He’s her tutor,” Hankyung dismissed.
Jessica kicked the ball at Donghae’s stomach, causing him to fall backwards. Laughing, Jessica grabbed his hand to help him up.
“He doesn’t look like a tutor to me,” Shindong said with a shrug.
Hankyung watched as Jessica slapped Donghae’s arm, giggling. He was going to have to do something about this.
~ * ~
“Are you sure you’re alright?” Yuri asked Yoona.
“For the nth time, yes,” Yoona said. “Can we not talk about it? It’s been a week and it’s really just annoying me.” She looked around. “Where’s everyone today?”
“Tiffany’s talking to Mr. Park about getting extra credit,” Yuri began. Yoona rolled her eyes. Tiffany was such a nerd sometimes. “Jessica’s going to talk to her tutor, I think. And Sooyoung… I don’t know where she is.”
Yoona smirked. “I can only guess. So how are you and -- ?”
“Excuse me,” a deep voice said.
Yuri gasped and immediately looked at Yoona, who was stunned as well.
“Kibum,” Yoona whispered.
~ * ~
Eunhyuk nudged Taeyeon then nodded at Sunny, who was staring off into space.
“Hey,” Taeyeon carefully asked. “Are you okay?”
“Hmm?” Sunny responded when she realized someone was talking to her.
“Do you want to go home?” Taeyeon asked her.
“No,” Sunny said, shaking her head. “I thought we were watching a movie.” She glanced at Eunhyuk.
“Are you sure you’re going to watch?” Eunhyuk asked. “Because people actually get annoyed when people snore in the cinemas.”
“I do not snore,” Sunny said defensively. “Besides, I really do not want to go home yet.” It was when she felt the sadness the most, when she was alone to deal with her thoughts.
Taeyeon exchanged a glance with Eunhyuk. “Okay,” she said. “Maybe we’ll have to get you a mask, just in case.”
Sunny ignored their peals of laughter, watching Yoona and Yuri talk in the quad. Yoona was really pretty. Her hair was always glossy. Her face was tiny and clear. Her smile was amazing. No wonder Sungmin fell for her. She sighed, looking away. There was no point in dwelling on that. But she wondered if Sungmin was going to arrive any time soon. After a couple of minutes, he was a no show. Instead, it was some other guy who arrived.
“Hey,” Sunny suddenly said, tapping Taeyeon’s arm. “Isn’t that Yoona’s ex-boyfriend?”
Taeyeon and Eunhyuk looked. “Hey, you’re right!” Eunhyuk said excitedly. “That’s Kibum!”
“What’s he doing over there talking to Yoona?” Sunny demanded.
“They’re probably still friends,” Taeyeon said.
“But he’s her ex-boyfriend!” Sunny interjected. “What if Sungmin sees them talking and gets jealous? He’ll get hurt.”
Taeyeon and Eunhyuk exchanged a look.
“Uh, Sun, Sungmin and Yoona have broken up,” Taeyeon told her.
“What?” Sunny exclaimed, startled. “When? Why didn’t I know about this?”
“Well if you bothered answering his calls and talking to him, you would know,” Eunhyuk said.
“Shush,” Taeyeon said, slapping his arm.
“What? I was just --,” Eunhyuk began but shut up when Taeyeon glared at him.
“They broke up,” Sunny repeated. “It doesn’t make sense. Why would they break up?”
“I suggest you talk to Sungmin about it,” Taeyeon said.
“I wouldn’t know what to say,” Sunny said, pouting. She was confused about this piece of information. Why would they break up when things seemed to be going so well for them?
“Sungmin’s going to be home early today,” Eunhyuk suddenly said, gaining a surprised glance from Taeyeon. “So, uh, you should go and talk to him after school. Bring soup. He’s probably very sad.”
Taeyeon looked at Sunny, who seemed to be considering it. “I can help you make some Ramyun,” Taeyeon offered.
Sunny nodded. “Okay.”
“I’ll go ahead,” Eunhyuk said, standing up. He motioned to Taeyeon that he was going to call Sungmin.
~ * ~
“Ms. Sunny,” one of the maids of Sungmin’s house greeted her, letting her inside the house. “Sungmin is upstairs.”
“That’s alright,” Sunny said. “I’ll wait in the living room.” She didn’t feel comfortable going straight to his room after not talking in a while.
“I’ll get this and heat it for you,” the maid said, getting the Ramyun she brought.
“Thanks,” Sunny said, going to the living room.
Sungmin’s living room had so many pictures of her, Taeyeon and Eunhyuk that it seemed like they lived there, too. They had pictures from when they were kids, running around in the house, carrying cotton candies. They had pictures during their elementary graduation with Taeyeon wearing no hat because Eunhyuk hid it. Sunny smiled. They had a lot of good memories. She wished things could never change.
“Sunny!”
Sunny turned around and saw Sungmin with a huge smile on his face. “Hi,” she said meekly. “I, uh, brought you Ramyun. It’s in the kitchen.” She stood there uncomfortably. “So… I’m here.”
“Took you long enough,” Sungmin said, still smiling.
“I really didn’t know until today,” Sunny said. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay,” he said.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been there for you. If I had known, I would’ve come sooner.” Slowly, she walked towards him and gave him a hug. “I’m sorry for not being your best friend in a time when you really needed me to be.”
Sungmin pulled away and looked intently at her. “That thing you said before…”
“What?” Sunny asked, her heart beating fast. She was pretty sure her cheeks were turning red.
“Is it true? Are you really in love with me?” Sungmin wanted to know. He wanted to hear it again.
“Sungminah, why are you embarrassing me?” she said, looking at the floor.
“I’m asking,” he said, touching her chin and making her look at him. “Are you?”
“Yes,” she confessed. “But I --.”
Sungmin cut her off with a kiss. After a couple of seconds of kissing, he said, “I’m in love with you, too. I’ve always been in love with you.”
Sunny pulled away. “Always? What do you mean always?”
“Always,” he said. “Since… ever.”
“What? Then why did you go out with Yoona?” She crossed her arms on her chest, pouting like a little girl.
“Because… like you said, it’s scary being in love with your best friend. It changes things,” he explained. “If you’d told me sooner then I would’ve told you and then we would have been together a long time ago.”
“Hey,” Sunny said, pouting even more. “Why do I have to be the first one to confess? Isn’t that a guy’s job?” Sungmin smiled sheepishly. “Am I the boy in this relationship?”
“Not the boy,” Sungmin said. “But you’re certainly the boss.”
Sunny smiled, putting her arms around his neck. “I like that.”
“I like it, too,” Sungmin said, leaning closer so that their foreheads were touching. “I love you, Sunny bunny.”
“I hate it when you call me that,” Sunny said, wrinkling her nose. “It reminds me of what I looked like before I had braces.”
“I thought you were pretty,” Sungmin told her.
Sunny rolled her eyes. “I love you, my Sungminnie.”
“Sungminnie?!” Sungmin interjected.
“If I’m Sunny bunny, you’re Sungminnie,” Sunny said with a tone of finality.
“I really like bossy Sunny bunny,” Sungmin said, kissing her again.
~ * ~
“Hello!” Taeyeon said happily, answering her phone with a smile. She had just talked to Sunny, who gave her a call, saying that she and Sungmin were together and that they were going out to celebrate.
“You sound happy. Is it because I’m calling?”
Taeyeon paused in confusion for a moment then smiled. “No, not really,” was her reply. “Why are you calling?”
Kyuhyun chuckled. “What are you doing?”
“Nothing,” she answered curiously. Eunhyuk suddenly had to do some errands for his parents. “Why?” She had just arrived home.
“Do you want to go out?”
Taeyeon’s heart skipped a beat. She had to silently take a deep breath to calm herself down. Every time Kyuhyun asked her to go out, she just felt giddy. “What do you want to do?” she asked.
“We could watch a movie or eat out. I just don’t want to be stuck at home.”
“Oh,” she responded disappointedly. And here she thought that he really wanted to go out with her.
“What’s wrong?” He noticed the change in the tone of her voice.
“Nothing,” she lied. “Uh, sure. I’ll be ready in 30 minutes.”
“Great! See you in 30.”
Taeyeon hung up and turned to go upstairs.
“Are you going out?” Heechul demanded. It was obvious that he’d heard her phone conversation.
“Oppa,” Taeyeon said, surprised. “Uh, yeah. I’m meeting Sunny at the mall,” she lied.
“Why didn’t you two just go together?” he inquired.
“Sungmin wanted to buy some stuff and was in a hurry,” she told him. “We won’t be home late.”
Heechul looked at her intently for a moment then went to the living room. Taeyeon breathed a sigh of relief.
~ * ~
Kyuhyun smiled as he stopped the car in front of Taeyeon’s house. He was happy that she said yes. Even though they’d been going out a lot, asking her out still scared him. He tried to sound as casual and nonchalant as he could whenever he called to ask her to go out. He was being careful. He knew how she felt about dating and relationships.
He got out of the car, walked to the front door and rang the doorbell. Taeyeon immediately stepped out, closing the door behind her.
“Hey,” he greeted with a smile. “You look good.” She was wearing a yellow sweater over a green shirt with white shorts and sneakers. Her hair was tied up in a bun, wisps falling on the side of her face. He began wondering again how it was possible for her not to have had a boyfriend before.
“Uh thanks,” she said, smiling back, eyeing his white shirt, black vest and jeans with sneakers. She couldn’t believe how good he looked in anything that he wore. “So what are we doing?” she asked as they got in the car.
“What do you want to do?” he wanted to know as they pulled away from her house. She merely shrugged. “So what were you doing when I called?”
“Why?” she asked.
“You sounded happy about something,” he relayed.
“Oh that,” she said, smiling again. “Sunny and Sungmin are finally together.”
Kyuhyun chuckled. “Finally?”
“They’ve always had this thing for each other but was just too scared to admit it,” she shared, shaking her head. “It had to turn into a huge mess before they could tell each other how they felt.” She chuckled. “It’s a relief. Sunny being depressed has been driving me crazy.”
“Does this change anything about your outlook on love and relationships?” Kyuhyun boldly asked, glancing at her as they turned a corner.
Taeyeon thought about it. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “Sunny and Sungmin may be one of a kind. And we don’t even know if they’ll last.”
“You’re a very positive person, you know that?” he teased.
“I’m not saying that they won’t last. Of course I want them to be together forever,” she said at once, rolling her eyes at him.
“But…” he prodded her.
“I’m just saying that we don’t know what may happen,” she finished. She shrugged and looked out of the window. They were approaching the mall.
“I wonder what would make you stop being so skeptical,” he mused as they entered the mall parking lot.
She looked at him. Maybe she was being a hypocrite. How could she keep on saying those things when her feelings for Kyuhyun were questionable?
“You okay?” he asked, looking curiously at her.
She smiled. “Yeah.”
They decided to watch a horror movie. For some reason, all movies that were showing that time were in the horror, suspense-thriller categories. Kyuhyun asked Taeyeon if she was sure she was okay with watching a scary film. She told him that it was better than romantic comedies.
After buying popcorn and some gummy worms, which Taeyeon loved, they went inside the cinema and found their seats. As they sat down, Kyuhyun lifted the armrest placed between them and placed the popcorn there so they could both have easy access to it.
As the movie started and progressed, Taeyeon couldn’t help but think that the movie wasn’t scary at all. She began wondering whether Kyuhyun might’ve wasted his money since he paid for everything. So she decided to engross herself on eating the popcorn. Her right hand kept on coming in and out of the popcorn bucket. Kyuhyun had to wait a while for his turn with the popcorn.
“Aren’t you scared?” Kyuhyun leaned closer to her, whispering in her ear.
“Are you scared?” Taeyeon asked, looking at him ridiculously.
Taeyeon turned her attention back to the movie, thinking that maybe they should’ve watched or should’ve done something else. She put her hand in the popcorn bucket to get some more popcorn. As she was bringing her hand out, Kyuhyun’s hand popped in, touching hers.
It took both of them a couple of seconds to process what had happened. Kyuhyun glanced at her, while Taeyeon glanced at their hands in the popcorn bucket. She immediately withdrew her hand, as if burned. Heart beating fast, she decided to stick to eating her gummy worms. Kyuhyun got the bucket and placed it on the floor with a sigh. It was nearly empty anyway. He wondered what she was thinking as she looked straight ahead. He was sure that it made her uncomfortable.
Taeyeon wished that Kyuhyun would stop looking at her. It was a good thing that it was dark or he would’ve seen how much she was blushing. They just touched hands. It was no big deal. But what was the jolt of electricity that she felt? She took a deep breath, willing herself to calm down. She was just imagining things. She should concentrate on the movie.
And then the movie became scary.
She suddenly wished that Sunny or Eunhyuk was with her so she could grab onto them. She could sense people fidgeting on their seats as the scene became more intense and wrapped in suspense. As the crowd screamed, Taeyeon jumped and, unthinkingly, reached out and grabbed Kyuhyun’s hand, which was on his lap. Kyuhyun looked at her in surprise. Smiling a little, he squeezed her hand.
“You alright?” he teased.
She looked at him and smiled a little. “Fine.”
When he squeezed her hand again, that’s the only time she realized that she was holding his hand. Gasping internally, she immediately lifted her hand away. But, this time, Kyuhyun grabbed her hand and stopped her.
Taeyeon looked at Kyuhyun. As he looked back at her, he slowly and gently intertwined their hands together.
Characters: Kyuhyun/Taeyeon/Eunhyuk, Donghae/Jessica, Sungmin/Sunny, Siwon/Tiffany
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Friendship, Comedy, Drama
“Excuse me,” Jessica politely said.
Seohyun and Siwon looked at her in surprise.
“Hey,” Siwon greeted her back awkwardly. Even though she was friends with Tiffany, he could never get used to talking to Jessica. It was like winter around her.
“Do you guys know where Donghae is?” Jessica asked, smiling a little. “I, uh, need to talk to him about something. About school stuff.”
“He’s probably in the library,” Seohyun offered.
“Actually, he’s at the soccer field,” Siwon corrected.
Jessica smiled. “Thanks!”
Jessica found Donghae playing with a soccer ball by himself.
“Hey,” Jessica said. “I didn’t know you played soccer.”
Donghae looked surprised. “I don’t.” He looked around. “What are you doing here?”
“Why is it that every time I go talk to you, you always seem like you want me to go?” Jessica demanded.
“People might see you talking to me,” Donghae explained. “I don’t want to jeopardize your popularity.”
“That doesn’t matter anymore,” Jessica said with a sigh.
“Want to play?” Donghae offered after a short silence. “I’ll let you win.”
~ * ~
“Hey, isn’t that Sica?” Shindong asked Hankyung. They were hanging out at the parking lot, beside the field. Hankyung squinted. “Who’s that guy?”
“He’s her tutor,” Hankyung dismissed.
Jessica kicked the ball at Donghae’s stomach, causing him to fall backwards. Laughing, Jessica grabbed his hand to help him up.
“He doesn’t look like a tutor to me,” Shindong said with a shrug.
Hankyung watched as Jessica slapped Donghae’s arm, giggling. He was going to have to do something about this.
~ * ~
“Are you sure you’re alright?” Yuri asked Yoona.
“For the nth time, yes,” Yoona said. “Can we not talk about it? It’s been a week and it’s really just annoying me.” She looked around. “Where’s everyone today?”
“Tiffany’s talking to Mr. Park about getting extra credit,” Yuri began. Yoona rolled her eyes. Tiffany was such a nerd sometimes. “Jessica’s going to talk to her tutor, I think. And Sooyoung… I don’t know where she is.”
Yoona smirked. “I can only guess. So how are you and -- ?”
“Excuse me,” a deep voice said.
Yuri gasped and immediately looked at Yoona, who was stunned as well.
“Kibum,” Yoona whispered.
~ * ~
Eunhyuk nudged Taeyeon then nodded at Sunny, who was staring off into space.
“Hey,” Taeyeon carefully asked. “Are you okay?”
“Hmm?” Sunny responded when she realized someone was talking to her.
“Do you want to go home?” Taeyeon asked her.
“No,” Sunny said, shaking her head. “I thought we were watching a movie.” She glanced at Eunhyuk.
“Are you sure you’re going to watch?” Eunhyuk asked. “Because people actually get annoyed when people snore in the cinemas.”
“I do not snore,” Sunny said defensively. “Besides, I really do not want to go home yet.” It was when she felt the sadness the most, when she was alone to deal with her thoughts.
Taeyeon exchanged a glance with Eunhyuk. “Okay,” she said. “Maybe we’ll have to get you a mask, just in case.”
Sunny ignored their peals of laughter, watching Yoona and Yuri talk in the quad. Yoona was really pretty. Her hair was always glossy. Her face was tiny and clear. Her smile was amazing. No wonder Sungmin fell for her. She sighed, looking away. There was no point in dwelling on that. But she wondered if Sungmin was going to arrive any time soon. After a couple of minutes, he was a no show. Instead, it was some other guy who arrived.
“Hey,” Sunny suddenly said, tapping Taeyeon’s arm. “Isn’t that Yoona’s ex-boyfriend?”
Taeyeon and Eunhyuk looked. “Hey, you’re right!” Eunhyuk said excitedly. “That’s Kibum!”
“What’s he doing over there talking to Yoona?” Sunny demanded.
“They’re probably still friends,” Taeyeon said.
“But he’s her ex-boyfriend!” Sunny interjected. “What if Sungmin sees them talking and gets jealous? He’ll get hurt.”
Taeyeon and Eunhyuk exchanged a look.
“Uh, Sun, Sungmin and Yoona have broken up,” Taeyeon told her.
“What?” Sunny exclaimed, startled. “When? Why didn’t I know about this?”
“Well if you bothered answering his calls and talking to him, you would know,” Eunhyuk said.
“Shush,” Taeyeon said, slapping his arm.
“What? I was just --,” Eunhyuk began but shut up when Taeyeon glared at him.
“They broke up,” Sunny repeated. “It doesn’t make sense. Why would they break up?”
“I suggest you talk to Sungmin about it,” Taeyeon said.
“I wouldn’t know what to say,” Sunny said, pouting. She was confused about this piece of information. Why would they break up when things seemed to be going so well for them?
“Sungmin’s going to be home early today,” Eunhyuk suddenly said, gaining a surprised glance from Taeyeon. “So, uh, you should go and talk to him after school. Bring soup. He’s probably very sad.”
Taeyeon looked at Sunny, who seemed to be considering it. “I can help you make some Ramyun,” Taeyeon offered.
Sunny nodded. “Okay.”
“I’ll go ahead,” Eunhyuk said, standing up. He motioned to Taeyeon that he was going to call Sungmin.
~ * ~
“Ms. Sunny,” one of the maids of Sungmin’s house greeted her, letting her inside the house. “Sungmin is upstairs.”
“That’s alright,” Sunny said. “I’ll wait in the living room.” She didn’t feel comfortable going straight to his room after not talking in a while.
“I’ll get this and heat it for you,” the maid said, getting the Ramyun she brought.
“Thanks,” Sunny said, going to the living room.
Sungmin’s living room had so many pictures of her, Taeyeon and Eunhyuk that it seemed like they lived there, too. They had pictures from when they were kids, running around in the house, carrying cotton candies. They had pictures during their elementary graduation with Taeyeon wearing no hat because Eunhyuk hid it. Sunny smiled. They had a lot of good memories. She wished things could never change.
“Sunny!”
Sunny turned around and saw Sungmin with a huge smile on his face. “Hi,” she said meekly. “I, uh, brought you Ramyun. It’s in the kitchen.” She stood there uncomfortably. “So… I’m here.”
“Took you long enough,” Sungmin said, still smiling.
“I really didn’t know until today,” Sunny said. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay,” he said.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been there for you. If I had known, I would’ve come sooner.” Slowly, she walked towards him and gave him a hug. “I’m sorry for not being your best friend in a time when you really needed me to be.”
Sungmin pulled away and looked intently at her. “That thing you said before…”
“What?” Sunny asked, her heart beating fast. She was pretty sure her cheeks were turning red.
“Is it true? Are you really in love with me?” Sungmin wanted to know. He wanted to hear it again.
“Sungminah, why are you embarrassing me?” she said, looking at the floor.
“I’m asking,” he said, touching her chin and making her look at him. “Are you?”
“Yes,” she confessed. “But I --.”
Sungmin cut her off with a kiss. After a couple of seconds of kissing, he said, “I’m in love with you, too. I’ve always been in love with you.”
Sunny pulled away. “Always? What do you mean always?”
“Always,” he said. “Since… ever.”
“What? Then why did you go out with Yoona?” She crossed her arms on her chest, pouting like a little girl.
“Because… like you said, it’s scary being in love with your best friend. It changes things,” he explained. “If you’d told me sooner then I would’ve told you and then we would have been together a long time ago.”
“Hey,” Sunny said, pouting even more. “Why do I have to be the first one to confess? Isn’t that a guy’s job?” Sungmin smiled sheepishly. “Am I the boy in this relationship?”
“Not the boy,” Sungmin said. “But you’re certainly the boss.”
Sunny smiled, putting her arms around his neck. “I like that.”
“I like it, too,” Sungmin said, leaning closer so that their foreheads were touching. “I love you, Sunny bunny.”
“I hate it when you call me that,” Sunny said, wrinkling her nose. “It reminds me of what I looked like before I had braces.”
“I thought you were pretty,” Sungmin told her.
Sunny rolled her eyes. “I love you, my Sungminnie.”
“Sungminnie?!” Sungmin interjected.
“If I’m Sunny bunny, you’re Sungminnie,” Sunny said with a tone of finality.
“I really like bossy Sunny bunny,” Sungmin said, kissing her again.
~ * ~
“Hello!” Taeyeon said happily, answering her phone with a smile. She had just talked to Sunny, who gave her a call, saying that she and Sungmin were together and that they were going out to celebrate.
“You sound happy. Is it because I’m calling?”
Taeyeon paused in confusion for a moment then smiled. “No, not really,” was her reply. “Why are you calling?”
Kyuhyun chuckled. “What are you doing?”
“Nothing,” she answered curiously. Eunhyuk suddenly had to do some errands for his parents. “Why?” She had just arrived home.
“Do you want to go out?”
Taeyeon’s heart skipped a beat. She had to silently take a deep breath to calm herself down. Every time Kyuhyun asked her to go out, she just felt giddy. “What do you want to do?” she asked.
“We could watch a movie or eat out. I just don’t want to be stuck at home.”
“Oh,” she responded disappointedly. And here she thought that he really wanted to go out with her.
“What’s wrong?” He noticed the change in the tone of her voice.
“Nothing,” she lied. “Uh, sure. I’ll be ready in 30 minutes.”
“Great! See you in 30.”
Taeyeon hung up and turned to go upstairs.
“Are you going out?” Heechul demanded. It was obvious that he’d heard her phone conversation.
“Oppa,” Taeyeon said, surprised. “Uh, yeah. I’m meeting Sunny at the mall,” she lied.
“Why didn’t you two just go together?” he inquired.
“Sungmin wanted to buy some stuff and was in a hurry,” she told him. “We won’t be home late.”
Heechul looked at her intently for a moment then went to the living room. Taeyeon breathed a sigh of relief.
~ * ~
Kyuhyun smiled as he stopped the car in front of Taeyeon’s house. He was happy that she said yes. Even though they’d been going out a lot, asking her out still scared him. He tried to sound as casual and nonchalant as he could whenever he called to ask her to go out. He was being careful. He knew how she felt about dating and relationships.
He got out of the car, walked to the front door and rang the doorbell. Taeyeon immediately stepped out, closing the door behind her.
“Hey,” he greeted with a smile. “You look good.” She was wearing a yellow sweater over a green shirt with white shorts and sneakers. Her hair was tied up in a bun, wisps falling on the side of her face. He began wondering again how it was possible for her not to have had a boyfriend before.
“Uh thanks,” she said, smiling back, eyeing his white shirt, black vest and jeans with sneakers. She couldn’t believe how good he looked in anything that he wore. “So what are we doing?” she asked as they got in the car.
“What do you want to do?” he wanted to know as they pulled away from her house. She merely shrugged. “So what were you doing when I called?”
“Why?” she asked.
“You sounded happy about something,” he relayed.
“Oh that,” she said, smiling again. “Sunny and Sungmin are finally together.”
Kyuhyun chuckled. “Finally?”
“They’ve always had this thing for each other but was just too scared to admit it,” she shared, shaking her head. “It had to turn into a huge mess before they could tell each other how they felt.” She chuckled. “It’s a relief. Sunny being depressed has been driving me crazy.”
“Does this change anything about your outlook on love and relationships?” Kyuhyun boldly asked, glancing at her as they turned a corner.
Taeyeon thought about it. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “Sunny and Sungmin may be one of a kind. And we don’t even know if they’ll last.”
“You’re a very positive person, you know that?” he teased.
“I’m not saying that they won’t last. Of course I want them to be together forever,” she said at once, rolling her eyes at him.
“But…” he prodded her.
“I’m just saying that we don’t know what may happen,” she finished. She shrugged and looked out of the window. They were approaching the mall.
“I wonder what would make you stop being so skeptical,” he mused as they entered the mall parking lot.
She looked at him. Maybe she was being a hypocrite. How could she keep on saying those things when her feelings for Kyuhyun were questionable?
“You okay?” he asked, looking curiously at her.
She smiled. “Yeah.”
They decided to watch a horror movie. For some reason, all movies that were showing that time were in the horror, suspense-thriller categories. Kyuhyun asked Taeyeon if she was sure she was okay with watching a scary film. She told him that it was better than romantic comedies.
After buying popcorn and some gummy worms, which Taeyeon loved, they went inside the cinema and found their seats. As they sat down, Kyuhyun lifted the armrest placed between them and placed the popcorn there so they could both have easy access to it.
As the movie started and progressed, Taeyeon couldn’t help but think that the movie wasn’t scary at all. She began wondering whether Kyuhyun might’ve wasted his money since he paid for everything. So she decided to engross herself on eating the popcorn. Her right hand kept on coming in and out of the popcorn bucket. Kyuhyun had to wait a while for his turn with the popcorn.
“Aren’t you scared?” Kyuhyun leaned closer to her, whispering in her ear.
“Are you scared?” Taeyeon asked, looking at him ridiculously.
Taeyeon turned her attention back to the movie, thinking that maybe they should’ve watched or should’ve done something else. She put her hand in the popcorn bucket to get some more popcorn. As she was bringing her hand out, Kyuhyun’s hand popped in, touching hers.
It took both of them a couple of seconds to process what had happened. Kyuhyun glanced at her, while Taeyeon glanced at their hands in the popcorn bucket. She immediately withdrew her hand, as if burned. Heart beating fast, she decided to stick to eating her gummy worms. Kyuhyun got the bucket and placed it on the floor with a sigh. It was nearly empty anyway. He wondered what she was thinking as she looked straight ahead. He was sure that it made her uncomfortable.
Taeyeon wished that Kyuhyun would stop looking at her. It was a good thing that it was dark or he would’ve seen how much she was blushing. They just touched hands. It was no big deal. But what was the jolt of electricity that she felt? She took a deep breath, willing herself to calm down. She was just imagining things. She should concentrate on the movie.
And then the movie became scary.
She suddenly wished that Sunny or Eunhyuk was with her so she could grab onto them. She could sense people fidgeting on their seats as the scene became more intense and wrapped in suspense. As the crowd screamed, Taeyeon jumped and, unthinkingly, reached out and grabbed Kyuhyun’s hand, which was on his lap. Kyuhyun looked at her in surprise. Smiling a little, he squeezed her hand.
“You alright?” he teased.
She looked at him and smiled a little. “Fine.”
When he squeezed her hand again, that’s the only time she realized that she was holding his hand. Gasping internally, she immediately lifted her hand away. But, this time, Kyuhyun grabbed her hand and stopped her.
Taeyeon looked at Kyuhyun. As he looked back at her, he slowly and gently intertwined their hands together.