summer love
Summer Love
Taemin/Krystal
→ Because they've been giving me too many feels lately. I've never been to San Francisco, hence the inappropriate description of the place. I apologize. ㅠ ㅠ Inspired by this. Happy birthday, Byunbaek! ♥
“Are you being serious right now.”
“Oh, believe me. I’m dead serious.”
The two boys eye each other for another good minute before Taemin jumps up to tackle the older boy in a hug.
“Jinki hyung I love you so much you’re the best brother ever!” He screams into the other’s ear before letting go.
“Yes, yes. Now don’t get all excited. We’re leaving next week. Why don’t you learn some English phrases? So you’ll at least find your way back when you get lost.” Jinki advised, smirking at his excited brother.
“You’re right. Be right back, hyung!”
Taemin hurries towards the stairs, closing the door to his room before fishing for his phone under his bed. He dials a familiar number and hears a few rings before the other person picks up.
“Jongin!”
“What do you want. Why are you screaming.” The other boy deadpanned.
“Guess what Jinki hyung just told me. We’re going to California this summer!” He chattered excitedly.
“Are you fucking kidding me? What about the summer dance class you signed us up for?” Jongin yelled exasperatedly.
Oh. He scratched his head. Taemin forgot about that.
“I forgot about that. Guess you’ll have to do it on your own.”
“I hate you. I don’t want to teach bratty little kids how to dance! Hyung, don’t abandon me. Please. I’m begging you. No. Don’t go. I’ll hate you forever.”
He rolls his eyes.
“Jongin, you’ll live without me. Besides, Sehun’s there. Maybe you can finally talk to him after you ran away sputtering thinking he’s a girl.”
Jongin groaned before saying, “Again. I hate you.”
“I can’t do anything about it though. Jinki hyung booked the plane tickets already.”
“Why are you going there anyway? Can’t you go to Jeju instead? It’s nearer. And cheaper.” The younger boy pointed out.
“I’m hanging up, Jongin. I have to learn English.” Taemin sing songs, pulling the phone away from his ear.
He hears Jongin say, “Bring pack palm trees!” before the line went dead.
Taemin laughs and swivels in his computer chair before pulling up a website that says ‘English Made Easy’. He spends the next two hours stumbling over his r’s and l’s and he discovers that English is not easy at all. He whines and promptly gives up because he learned nothing after everything he read. He buries his face on his pillow and dreams about the sun and cool beaches.
To say Taemin’s excited is nearly an understatement because really, he is. It’s not every day your brother tells you you’re going vacation for the rest of the summer and in California, nonetheless. He knows his Jinki hyung is going for ‘business purposes’ and is just dragging him along because he doesn’t want Taemin to live on ramen for the next two months. Jongin tells him he’s a ‘lucky bastard’ because he gets to go to places while he’s stuck with a bunch of obnoxious kids prancing around and calling it dancing. Taemin tells him everyone is not born to dance unlike him who can already do a perfect pirouette at the age of five. Jongin huffs and tells him, “Like you’re any different.” and Taemin just laughs at him because who would know Jongin’s a year and six months younger than him.
While his Jinki hyung takes care of all the stuff needed for the trip, Taemin’s left dreaming about California until Jinki chucks a half eaten piece of toast at him and advises him to start packing his things already because he doesn’t want Taemin whining about the lack of boxers to wear. He climbs up to his room enthusiastically and drags the unused suitcase from under his bed. He has half of his clothes cramped inside when the day ends and Taemin ends up putting most of his boxers inside the suitcase. Jinki just laughs at him.
A week passes by quickly and suddenly, it’s the day before their trip. Taemin’s bouncing off the walls with his excitement while Jinki’s exhausted already just watching him. Most of the furniture were draped with a white cloth and they already informed the ahjumma next door that they’ll be gone for two months (and a half). She agreed that if mail arrives, she’ll keep it until they come back. They were eating takeout for dinner so there won’t be any dishes used.
“Hyung.” Taemin drawled out while munching on a chicken leg.
“What?”
“Do you think I can find a girlfriend there?”
Jinki hits him in the head with a takeout box.
Taemin whines while rubbing at his head because he was only kidding. Kind of.
They’re boarding the plane and the other passengers are sliding into their seats. Jinki’s already settled in his seat, earphones plugged carefully in his ears. Taemin looked at the window in awe because they’ll be up the skies soon. The sun streamed through the glass window and Taemin holds his hand up in the light. He smiles because he thinks it might be his best summer yet.
Taemin stuck his head out the cab’s window and stared in awe at the city. The buildings were sleek and tall and buzzing with people. The sun was shining, making everything else look brown and yellow. Taemin can see a big red bridge in the distance and he wanted to bounce in his seat happily because they were in San Francisco already. Jinki was still looking like sleep next to him and the younger didn’t try to bother him. His brother can get cranky when he wants to. After a few more minutes, they were finally standing in front of a large house with their bags around them. It looked like it needed some cleaning, even from the outside. Taemin figured it wasn’t used very often. He didn’t mind though, because just a few blocks from where they’re staying is the ocean. The water gleamed under the sun and the waves crashed towards the shore. Taemin grinned. This is gonna be fun.
“Taemin. Will please help me with the luggage first before you start gawking at the beach?” Jinki criticized, looking at him disapprovingly.
“Relax, hyung. You’re supposed to breathe. We’re in San Francisco. Breathe.” Taemin advised while trying hard not to laugh at his brother’s incredulous expression.
“Shut up, please. I’m still jet lagged, okay. So for the love of God, carry these bags inside.”
Taemin laughed and obeyed.
He lugged their suitcases inside noticing a thin layer of dust covering the furniture. The floorboards creaked noisily when they walked towards the living room.
“Hyung, why are we here? It’s like a house from a horror movie. Maybe someone will haunt us at night.” Taemin pointed out.
Jinki looked at him, still looking like death.
“The company let me use it for our stay here. We can’t stay at a hotel for two months. Do you want to live on ramen for the rest of your life?”
“I didn’t say anything. It’s good enough, I guess. At least the beach is just around the corner.”
“Yeah, whatever. I’m sleeping. Goodnight.” Jinki informed while retreating to the second floor to get rid of his exhaustion.
Taemin chuckled and mutters ‘ahjussi’ under his breath. He heard a door close before the house became quiet again. Their bags were sprawled on the floor and Taemin sighed, not knowing what to do. He looked out the window and smiled. The weather was too nice to be cooped up inside the house so he scrambled in his backpack for a paper and scribbles a quick ‘Hyung. Went out for a bit. Be back soon. - T’ He puts it in the table, using a small rock he got outside as weight. He locks he door, just in case. A cool breeze blankets him as he weaved his way through the houses to get to the beach. When he gets there, a handful of people were scattered across the shore. He stayed out of the sand, opting to walk in the pavement instead. Stores were on the other side and Taemin can smell fried food wafting in the air. He checked his pockets for change but found none. He wasn’t that hungry anyway. He continued looking around, stopping once in a while to peek at some of the stores. He discovers a store that sells bubble tea and thinks how much Sehun would like it. He was almost halfway down the road when a tire ran over his feet. Taemin starts yelping in pain, hopping on his other foot. He looks up and sees a girl with long brown hair sitting on her bike while staring at him. She didn’t look American at all.
“Sorry!” She yells in English and Taemin answers her with more yelping.
Another girl rides past her and shouts, “Krystal, come on!”
‘Krystal’ starts pedaling again and looks back to yell, “Put some ice on it! And sorry!”
Taemin whimpers because he didn’t understand anything at all.
“What happened to you?” Jinki asks when Taemin entered the house, still limping.
“Some girl ran over me with her bike. Hyung. It hurts.” The younger whines while plopping on the couch.
The house was cleaner now and didn’t smell like old socks anymore. And Jinki looked a lot better.
“First day overseas and you get in trouble.” Jinki says while placing Taemin’s injured foot on the table.
Jinki removes his sneakers and takes a look at his injury. He promptly pushes Taemin’s foot out of the table. The younger wails in pain.
“It’s not even swollen. Stop being a crybaby, Tae.”
“But it hurts.”
“Whatever. We should shop for groceries. I want chicken.”
Taemin wants to cry because his hyung doesn’t understand his pain.
They end up shopping for groceries later that evening because they didn’t know where the nearest store was. Jinki had to play charades with a cab driver to finally get to where they wanted so here they were, lingering around frozen food while his brother tries to figure out how much chicken to buy. Taemin sighs because this could take a while. Leaving their cart beside Jinki, he wonders around, looking at the produce displayed in every stall. He comes across the milk section and grabs tall box to drop in their cart when something yellow caught his eye. He picks it up and attempts to read the writings on the cover. His eyes widen because it’s banana milk. Well, he thinks it is because of the banana printed at the left corner and it’s in the milk section. He cradles both boxes in his hands, satisfied, and starts going back to where Jinki was when something stabs his foot. He cries out loud because it’s the same foot the bike tire ran over earlier.
“Sorry!” Someone squeaks.
Taemin sobs because what did he do to deserve this.
“It hurts. It hurts.” He says to himself.
“Taemin! What are you doing?” He hears Jinki shout.
“Hyung, let’s go home. Everyone’s trying to kill me.” Taemin informs dramatically.
Jinki rolls his eyes at that and drags the younger away.
Taemin sees brown at the corner of his eyes.
He e-mails Jongin that night (because international calls are expensive) and tells the other boy how his foot still stings because everyone in San Francisco apparently wants to crush his toes. Jongin laughs at him and says it’s never too late to go back to help him with the dance lessons. Taemin sighs.
Taemin wakes up early in the morning, even before the sun has completely risen. He steps out the house, closing the door quietly to not wake Jinki, and stands in front of the door. He looks at the ocean across the street and he rubs his shoulders because of the cool breeze. The waves crash towards the shore loudly, the white residue eminent from where he stood. He smiles. California was even prettier at sunrise. He waits for the sun to rise before slipping back inside. Jinki was sitting half-awake in the kitchen, pouring coffee in two mugs. He hands the other one to Taemin before taking a sip.
“You’re up early.” The elder observes.
Taemin shrugs. “I wanted to see the sunrise.”
Jinki nods and takes another sip.
“You know, I don’t have stuff to do for the office until tomorrow.” Jinki informs.
“Yeah? That means we can go to the beach together!” Taemin says excitedly.
“I guess I can play for a bit.”
“You need to take your shirt off, okay?”
Jinki chokes on a mouthful of coffee. Taemin just laughs.
The sun was scorching hot by the time they arrived at the beach. Many people were there already and the two of them had a hard time finding a spot. They finally found an empty patch of sand, next to a lady who was turning red from overexposure to the sun. Taemin laid out their things while Jinki lathers himself with sunscreen. His brother was wearing a visor over his head with sunglasses perched on his nose. As soon as he’s done, he gives the bottle to Taemin, expecting him to do the same. When Jinki’s done nagging at him for the importance of sunscreen, Taemin runs toward the water, carefully weaving his way through the people. A group of people were playing volleyball near the shoreline and he takes a quick glance at them. Before he can continue to the water though, the ball hits him square in the face and he plummets down on the ground, getting sand on his mouth. He sputters, face getting hot. People look at him and a girl runs towards him yelling, “Sorry! I’m so sorry!” He eyes the girl who crouches in front of him and sneers because she’s the girl who ran over him yesterday.
“You!” Taemin shrieks in English, wagging a finger at her.
The girl points a finger at herself. “Me?”
“Why is it me? Why is it always me? Are you trying to kill me? Do you people have some sort of grudge against Koreans? You crush my foot and now you hit my face with a fucking ball! Why are you doing this to me? Why?” He screams hysterically in rapid fire Korean.
The girl blinks at him and points at his face.
“Blood.” She replies in Korean.
This time, Taemin blinks at her because what the hell she can speak Korean?
“What?” Taemin croaks out.
“Blood. Your nose is bleeding.” She clarifies.
He brings a hand to his nose and feels something warm. He looks at it and oh.
Taemin faints.
Taemin wakes up with an umbrella hovering over him. He sits up straight and feels his head throb a little.
“Are you okay now? I’m really sorry.” Someone says in Korean next to him.
He turns his head really fast and finds the girl earlier looking at him apologetically.
“You can speak Korean?” Taemin blurts out instead of answering the question.
“Yes. Maybe because I’m Korean?” She says.
“You are?”
She nods.
“What happened?”
“My friends and I were playing volleyball earlier and the ball hit you in the face. Your nose bled then you fainted.”
“I did?”
She nods again.
“Are you okay now?”
“Ye-Yes. I think I’m fine.” Taemin mutters while standing up.
The sun was still shining and he cranes his neck to look for his brother.
“I’m Krystal, by the way. Krystal Jung.” She informs, thrusting a hand in front of her.
“And she says she Korean.” Taemin mumbles under his breath and shook her hand.
She laughs. “Jung Soojung, then. And you are?”
“Taemin. Lee Taemin.”
“I’m sorry again, Taemin-sshi. For yesterday and today. I’ll try to make it up to you.”
“Make it up how?”
“You’ll see. ‘Bye.” Krystal-no, Soojung-says with a wink before walking away.
Taemin pouts at her retreating figure and looks for Jinki.
Taemin doesn’t see Krystal, or Soojung, again until late August, almost a month (and about a week) left to their stay. She was riding her bike again near the beach, alone this time. Taemin eyes her from the end of the road where he stood, and notes how the sunset sets off her brown hair which was swaying with the wind behind her back as she watches the water.
“Now I know why you keep hitting people’s feet.” He shouts as she passes by him and she quickly pushed on the brakes, stopping in front of him.
She laughs and Taemin laughs as well because her laughter was contagious.
“Sorry about that, by the way. I have a habit of not keeping my eyes on the road.” She informs while hopping off her bike.
“Figures how I always end up injured when I’m near you.” Taemin jokes.
“I’ll be careful this time.”
She smiles and he can’t help but notice the way her face lights up when she does. They started walking together, with Krystal-Soojung-wheeling her bike instead of riding it.
“I’ve been wondering. What do I call you?” Taemin asks because he’s really getting a headache referring to her as Krystal or Soojung every time.
“Most of my friends here call me Krystal.” She says.
“But I’m not from here.”
She laughs again and replies, “You call me Soojung, then. My parents and sister call me that when they’re mad at me.”
“Soojung. Alright.”
Silence fills the gap and they can hear the waves crash.
“You know, I remember you said you’ll make it up to me for crushing my foot and hitting my face.” Taemin starts, a smirk playing at his lips.
“I did?” Soojung asks, faking her shock.
“Yeah, you did.”
She contemplates for a while before saying, “How about dinner? Would that be okay?”
“Hmm. I guess that would be okay.”
“It’s a date, then.”
They smile at each other before Soojung asks him what he wants to eat. Taemin just tells her that he doesn’t know anything and that she should be the one deciding because she’s the one living here. Soojung just nods and takes him to a fast food in the next block. The smell of fried food was heavy in the air when they got inside and there were a lot of people, mostly teenagers, waiting for their food. They sit at the further corner and Taemin starts looking around.
“So, what do you want?” Soojung asks.
“I told you, I don’t know. Maybe I’ll eat what you eat.”
She nods before standing up to the counter, talking in English to order their food. Taemin stares at her until she got back to her seat.
“What?”
“I didn’t understand a thing you were saying back there.”
Soojung laughs. “You don’t have to. It’s okay.”
Taemin pouts and fiddles with the leather in his seat.
“Why are you here in San Francisco?” She inquires.
“My brother was sent here to take care of some things for the company he’s working on and he dragged me along so I won’t die starving for two months.”
“Ah. So you’ll be flying home around September?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ve always wanted to go back and visit Korea, even just once. My parents are still planning it, though. They say we’ll be visiting when I turn 20.”
“How old are you now?”
“19.”
“Oh, so you’ll be going next year? You should give me a call so I can wait for you at the airport and when I see you I’ll scream ‘Soojung-ah! Welcome back to Korea!’. I’ll even show up with a placard with your name on it.”
Soojung laughs hard at that and the only time they had to stop was when the food arrived to their table. Their plates were filled with burger and fries twice as big as the one in Korea. A tall glass of chocolate milkshake was placed next to the plates and they start eating, tending to their hungry stomachs.
They keep talking in between bites and by the time their plates were cleared, Taemin already knows Soojung has a sister named Jesssica, or Sooyeon, and they moved when she was very little so she grew up here. She still knows how to speak Korean even though it’s been years since she’s last been there because there are days when their parents just start talking to them in Korean. They figured it’s the time they miss the country most. She learned how to swim when she was about seven years old and she’s been attached to the water ever since. She says the waves almost feel like home every time it washes over her. She dyed her hair brown when she was 16 because her jet black hair was drawing looks from her schoolmates. She likes to sing, and dance too, at times and when Taemin demands a song from her, Soojung just glares at him. In return, Taemin tells her a bit about himself too. His brother’s name is Jinki and how he’s the one who took care of him when their parents died in a car accident. How he’s been dancing ever since he can walk and how he met his friends in their numerous lessons together. How much he likes banana milk and how his favorite color is blue because it reminds him of the balloon his mother gave him when they last went to the carnival together as a family. When he’s not dancing, he likes to listen to music and sometimes he plays the piano too. Soojung insists to play for her and Taemin scowls, but ends up laughing instead.
The moon was already up when they start heading home. Taemin rides the bike and lets Soojung chase him until she shouts angrily at him. They walk again and talk more.
“My house is in the other street.” Soojung informs, pointing to a couple of houses down the road.
“We’re staying there.” Taemin says, pointing to the house. He can see Jinki waiting for him outside.
“Okay. ‘Bye, then. See you tomorrow.”
Taemin waves and they start going on separate ways.
“Where did you go? It’s late.” Jinki scolds, opening the door so they can both go inside.
Taemin shrugs, just to spite him, and runs to his room.
“Hey. I’m talking to you. Lee Taemin!” The elder screams.
Taemin laughs while burying his head in the pillow. He looks up to stare at the ceiling and thinks about how fun it is to spend time with his new friend. He smiles before drifting off to sleep and dreams about beaches, bicycles, brown hair and pretty smiles.
The next day, they see each other on the way to the beach. Soojung tied her hair in a ponytail and is wearing a thin white shirt with red shorts. She waves at him from across the street and starts walking faster. Taemin narrows his eyes at her as she comes nearer.
“What?” Soojung asks when they were finally face to face.
“Aren’t you a tad bit overdressed?” He says sarcastically.
“It’s what I normally wear during summer.” She answers nonchalantly.
They walk slowly towards the beach, the sun already shining uncomfortably over their heads.
“You do realize that people are looking at you, right?” Taemin informs.
“No one’s looking at me, Taemin-ah. And why are you acting like an overprotective boyfriend anyway?” Soojung asks teasingly, stopping in her tracks to look at him.
“I-I’m no-not!” Taemin stutters, fiddling with his hat to hide his blushing cheeks.
Soojung laughs knowingly and just continues walking. Taemin fans his face with his hand and wonders what is possibly making him act this way.
They spend most of the morning standing near the water and running to avoid the waves. At lunch, they buy hotdogs from a nearby stall and Taemin buys a pretzel for Soojung. She thanks him and they eat under a shaded tree, letting the cool breeze wash over them. Soojung ends up spiltting the pretzel in two because Taemin keeps eyeing her when she was about to start eating it. They lie under the shade for a while, staring up the blue sky and trying to make out shapes with the clouds. Sometimes they talk, offhanded question and random comments. The wind blows harder and they stay seated under the tree. Soojung stars humming a tune gently and Taemin stares at her. He can’t help noticing the small smile on her face, how brown her eyes look under the daylight. Stray strands of hair were flying off in front of her face and he wants to reach out a tuck it behind her ear. Soojung stops humming and turns to look at him. Taemin looks away, cheeks heating up again. She chuckles and says something. About the weather, probably. He just keeps squinting in the direction of the ocean and hopes she didn’t notice.
They start heading home before sunset. Taemin keeps his hands behind his back the whole time while Soojung counts seashells. They keep walking before hearing the unmistakable sobs of a crying child. Soojung looks up and eyes the small boy before running to him while Taemin trails after her. She kneels in front of the kid and starts talking to him in hushed tones. Taemin keeps watching, even though he can’t understand anything she says, until the child’s sobs turned into quiet sniffles. She keeps talking to him, even wiping away his tears for him, till his parents comes running to get the child back. They talk a bit more, probably thanking Soojung, and they walk away with the child in tow. The small boy turns and waves at her again. Soojung grins and waves back. She looks at Taemin, still smiling, and he feels something flutter inside him.
Taemin arrives home to his Jinki hyung sitting somewhere in the living room with his laptop on the table, numerous papers scattered on the couch and reading glasses perched on his nose. He used a rubber band to tie his bangs away from his eyes.
“Dinner’s on the table.” The elder informs without looking up.
Taemin voices out some kind of strangled noise before plopping on the couch, covering his eyes with his arm.
“Taemin! Don’t sit there, my papers!” Jinki yells.
The younger didn’t flinch.
“What’s wrong with you? Did something happen?”
“Hyung. I have a situation.” Taemin says.
“And what exactly is this situation?”
Jinki’s looking at him now, peeling himself off of his work.
Taemin hesitates before mumbling, “I think I like someone.”
Jinki nods before asking again, “Is it a boy?”
“What? No!” The younger shouts incredulously.
“So it’s a girl. How is it a situation then?”
“I don’t know.”
“You tell her you like her, then. Maybe she likes you too, or something.”
Taemin pouts.
He doesn’t go out of the house for the next couple of days. When Jinki asks him why, he says he has to deal with his ‘situation’. His brother simply rolls his eyes at him before stepping out for work. Taemin spends his days in bed, refusing to go out even though the faint sound of the waves is singing to him. When he tells Jongin, the younger just states he’s being stupid for wasting the remaining days of his stay pent up inside the house. Taemin knows he’s right, but for some reason, he thought of seeing Soojung makes his palms sweat and his heart beating a little faster. He didn’t date much and the last person he ‘liked’ was a senior attending the same dance lessons as him. He was 14 then so he forgot what it feels like. He doesn’t know what he’s scared of, actually. Probably because he’s being too obvious, always blushing like a schoolgirl when they’re together. And also because he thinks everything’s happening so fast. He met her last month, had a few meals together, talked and he’s already feeling this. It’s a bit overwhelming.
Taemin stares up into the ceiling and sighs. This must be what falling in love feels like.
Jinki finally persuades him to get out of the house. Mainly because the elder shoved him out the door and locked it, for good measure, so he doesn’t have a choice. Taemin walks, not really knowing where to go, pulling out his earphones and putting it on. He’s not listening to anything though, so he hears Soojung shouting his name from behind. His stomach drops and he walks faster, pretending not to hear.
“Hey, Taemin!” Soojung shouts.
She’s suddenly in front of him and waving her hands to get his attention. She’s panting a bit and Taemin feels bad for ignoring her.
“Hey.” He answers coolly.
He’s quivering inside. He’s surprised his voice didn’t falter.
“What happened to you these past few days? I didn’t see you around anymore. Were you sick?” She asks worriedly.
Taemin clears his throat before answering. “Ah, no. Hyung… I helped him in something. That’s why… I, uh, needed to stay home.”
He hopes she wouldn’t see through the obvious lie. Soojung looks at him for a moment, unsure, and just nods.
They walk together, slowly. The wind was cool but the atmosphere was heavy and awkward between the two of them. Soojung tries to make small talk and Taemin just gives her a curt reply. He appreciates her for trying but she can’t really blame him since the main reason he can’t talk is because of her being there. They were back in their in spot last time and Taemin sits. Soojung, however, doesn’t. She keeps standing, looking down at him.
“Taemin-ah.” She calls out softly.
He looks up at her, gulping at how his name sounded when she said it.
“Did I do anything wrong? Why… why aren’t you talking?” Soojung asks, her voice breaking a bit.
He sees something flash across her features and Taemin panics because he wasn’t used to that.
“I-“ He starts.
“Don’t you want to be friends with me anymore?” She cuts off.
Taemin wants to say something but he can’t. Soojung’s bottom lip starts to tremble and he panics again. Her eyes were glistening with unshed tears and before he can do anything to keep it from falling, she starts running away. He feels something tug at his heart. He runs after her.
“Soojung! Soojung, wait! Soojung!” He yells at her back and hopes she’ll listen.
She slows down until Taemin catches up. He grabs her wrist and he can see she’s trying hard not to cry. She doesn’t look at him. He figures it’s probably better anyway.
“I-You didn’t do anything wrong. You were right about one thing, though.”
Soojung now looks at him and he breathes in.
“I don’t want to be friends. That’s the problem. I don’t-“
He’s out of words to say and his heart is beating so fast he can’t hear himself think. She’s staring at him in inquiry but he doesn’t know what to say next. He lets go of her and picks up a thin stick from the ground. He writes at the wet patch of sand for a good minute before eyeing her again. Soojung reads the ‘Jung Soojung, I think you’re really pretty-you make my heart flutter.’ carefully and she really wants to cry now.
“I… I didn’t step out of the house these few days because… after that day at the beach, when you tended to that kid… my heart… I… wavered. And I didn’t think I can look at you the same way after that.” Taemin trails off.
Soojung didn’t say anything, just continued to staring down, and he wanted the ground to swallow him whole because his confession was not cool at all. She finally looks up and Taemin prepares himself for the worse.
“You… are so sappy.” She says with a choked laugh. It comes out restrained though.
“You could’ve just told me. You didn’t need to give me a cold shoulder for how many days. I thought I did something wrong-You’re so… mean.” She finishes off.
“Sorry.” Taemin mumbles.
Silence blankets them for a while and he takes in the vastness of the ocean next to them.
“For the record, I like you too. If that’s what you’re trying to say.”
His head shot up at that and a small smile was playing at her lips.
“R-Really? Since when?” He stutters.
“While I was waiting for you to wake up from being knocked out by a ball. I thought, “This guy’s handsome when he’s passed out.” We spent time together and I thought you look even better when you’re conscious.”
Taemin laughs, really laughs because he can’t believe he didn’t do this sooner.
Soojung steps closer and buries her head in his chest. He stills for a while, arms hanging limply at the sides before relaxing into her touch. He hugs her back and he can hear her say something. Taemin just hugs her tighter and he grins to himself.
At the end of the day, Taemin runs home smiling to himself. He flings the door open and finds his brother cooking something in the kitchen. He pads to where the elder was and tackles him from behind.
“Ow, Taemin! What do you want?” Jinki shouts while dodging away the flying bits of oil.
“Hyung. I love you. Really, I do.” Taemin declares, still not letting go of his brother’s waist.
“Okay. What happened now?”
He turns off the stove to look at his brother. The younger flops on a chair, cradling his chin on the table while sighing.
“I worry about you sometimes, Taemin. Are you on drugs?” The elder asks confusedly.
He shakes his head and continues to stare at empty space.
“Then what happened? I swear if you don’t answer me, I will throw this ladle at you.”
Taemin laughs before narrating what happened earlier. He has to pause lots of times to keep himself from blushing and maybe start laughing to himself because he was just that happy. Jinki winds up wanting to shower him with boiling oil for wasting his time. Taemin beams at him anyway.
The next day, they steer clear of the beach, opting to walk around so Soojung can show him around the city. She tries to teach him how to skate and promptly gives up because Taemin always stumbles on the board. They watch a movie instead and he almost drops the bucket of popcorn on someone’s head. They visit some stores after the movie and Soojung picks out a shirt for him while Taemin buys her a silver necklace with a thin chain and a small palm tree dangling off it. She flushes a bit when he puts it on her and they both let out a small chuckle. The two of them stop by an ice cream parlor so they walk around with cones in hand. They returned to their usual banter and light conversation but somehow, something changed between them. Maybe it’s because Taemin can pull her closer to him when she nearly bumps into people, Soojung will smile and not pull away. It feels like a date and Taemin’s glad because it’s going well.
Taemin takes out his camera and he snaps candid photos of Soojung until she bats him hard in the arm so they end up taking pictures together instead. They head home when the sun starts to set and he’s walking a few paces behind her before taking her hand gingerly in his. Soojung freezes for a heartbeat and Taemin almost wants to pull away because what if what he did just now was wrong. He didn’t have to worry though because she links their fingers together slowly before continuing their trek back home. Taemin turns a deep shade of red.
Later that night, Taemin revisits his staring-at-the-ceiling hobby. Only this time, a small smile tugs at the corner of his lips while he thinks about how the day progressed. He brings a hand up in front of his face and can’t help thinking how soft Soojung’s hand felt in his. He brushes a finger across his palm and flushes at the memory. Sleep pays him a visit around midnight and the soft crashing of waves lulls him to bed. He dreams about ice cream cones, warm hands and Soojung.
Taemin wakes up to Jinki rushing around the kitchen.
“Hyung. What are you doing early in the morning.” He deadpans.
“I’m fixing this cabinet.” Jinki informs while pulling out a hammer.
“Why.” Taemin drawls out, voice heavy with sleep.
“It’s broken, obviously.”
“No, not that. Why are you doing it now?”
“I have to go to work later and I might not get back until late.” The elder says.
“Then do it some other time.” He replies, insistent on getting back to sleep.
“I’ll be busy. And you won’t do it either. We’re leaving in two weeks so I have to do this now. This wasn’t broken when we arrived here and the owner of this place might throw a fit.”
Taemin stopped listening after leaving in two weeks and he grabs at his brother’s sleeve.
“Two weeks?” The younger croaks out.
“Yeah. Two weeks. Now please let go of my shirt so I can finish this.” Jinki says sternly before hammering a nail.
Taemin wanders to the living room, dumbfounded. Two weeks. He thinks about Soojung’s smile, her lovely brown eyes, her soft hands, her everything, before collapsing on the couch. He can feel his heart gently breaking into pieces.
They were heading to the park Soojung told him about yesterday. She’s wearing a caramel colored blouse which sets off the color of her eyes and white knee length skirt. Her hair’s fluttering softly with the wind and Taemin wonders why she looks especially pretty today. He sighs and stares at his dust covered sneakers.
“Taemin-ah, are you okay? You’re awfully quiet again. Is something wrong?” He hears Soojung ask and he looks at her nervously.
“Nothing’s wrong. I’m fine.” He replies.
“What is it?” She presses on, unconvinced.
He was never a good liar anyway. Taemin motions for her to follow him and they stay seated in a far-off bench. He takes a deep breath and Soojung eyes her curiously.
“We’re, um, leaving in two weeks.”
She raises an eyebrow.
“We’re leaving for Korea. In two weeks.” He clarifies.
“Oh. Oh.” Soojung mutters softly and Taemin tries not to meet her eye.
A chipmunk passes by and he vaguely thinks of following it so he can run away from the sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.
They don’t talk about it for the rest of the day. Soojung just pretends she didn’t hear the news and tries to have a good time. Taemin tries too, but he can’t help but feel dejected. Thoughts run through his mind all day and at one point, he even considers convincing himself that this is just a summer fling. He quickly pushes away the thought because there’s no way this is a temporary thing. If it is, he wouldn’t feel like jumping off the Golden Gate to delay their departure. Taemin masks his worries with a smile. It doesn’t quite reach his eyes though.
Nobody brings it up again. They just continue spending Taemin’s remaining days in San Francisco together. They laugh and talk about things. He gets shown around more parts of the city and it helps get his mind off things. Sometimes. They make more memories, the more he wants to stay.
Two weeks lessen to one. Jinki remind him every day to start packing his things. Taemin starts counting the days in his head. Soojung doesn’t say anything, just letting the smile on her face linger. He tries to hide his distress. It doesn’t work. It still hurts.
Days blur and suddenly, it’s the day before Taemin leaves. They walk near the shore, and Soojung tells him that the beach is called Baker Beach. He doesn’t ask why and she doesn’t tell him either. The sun is starting to set and the cool seaside breeze washes over them. Taemin wants to say something but he was never really good at goodbyes.
“Taemin-ah.” Soojung says softly.
He looks up and he wishes he didn’t because his heart crumbles at Soojung’s tears.
“Don’t forget me, okay?” She adds.
Taemin scoffs before replying, “How could I forget the person who tried to kill me every time we meet?”
Soojung manages to laugh despite her tears. She looks away, maybe hoping that it will stop her from crying. Taemin takes her hand gently and holds it firmly in his. He looks at her, locking a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Hey. Don’t cry.” Taemin says, even though he wants to cry himself.
Soojung doesn’t say anything.
“You know, when someone leaves, people usually tell them to stay.” Taemin informs jokingly.
“If I did, will it change anything? You’ll still leave.” Soojung answers with a sad smile.
Taemin hates the fact that she’s right. He runs small circles in Soojung’s hand with his thumb.
“No letters. No e-mails. No phone calls. Nothing.” Taemin says quietly.
She looks at him in question.
“Because if we’re destined for each other, we’ll meet soon.” He declares, tightening his grip on her hand.
Soojung manages to laugh, Taemin thinks it sounds sweet and melancholy at the same time.
They didn’t talk much, just sat next to each other. No promises were made and Taemin thinks it’s better this way. They head home by the time the moon’s up and before they completely part, Taemin presses a gentle kiss on her forehead. Soojung’s brown eyes looks even better up close.
Taemin finds it hard to sleep that night and Jinki eventually barged in his room with a glass of milk to make him feel better. His brother even sings him a song and Taemin wants to cry. Jinki slides in next to him and they share a bed, talking about stuff just like the old days. At one point, they ask each other what their parents think of them growing up and they’re convinced that they’re proud of them. Jinki falls asleep first and Taemin laughs because he was supposed to make him feel better. He stares up the ceiling again and tried hard not to think of anything. He falls asleep to the distant sound of the ocean.
Jinki wakes him up by shaking his shoulders and Taemin rubs at his eyes tiredly. He hears his brother say something about flights and breakfast but he paid little attention to what he say saying. Taemin looks out the window and wonders if Soojung’s thinking about him leaving. Probably not. It’s probably better. Taemin doesn’t want her crying because of him anyway.
Jinki drags him around to eat and get changed so they can go to the airport early. Taemin sighs through everything and the elder contemplates on banging a pan on his head to wake him up. Jinki hires a cab and throws all of their bags into the trunk. He motions for Taemin to come after locking the door.
Taemin doesn’t get in immediately. He pauses at the cab’s door and looks out across the street. He smiles because that harbor is where everything started. And the thinks among everything else, it’s probably the memory that he’ll treasure the most. Even if it always ends up with him being hurt most of the time.
Hours pass by and it felt like seconds but they’re finally boarding the plane, with Jinki pulling at his shoulders for him to keep up. The elder offers him the seat next to the window but it doesn’t make Taemin feel any better. He wants to get out and spend every single day with Soojung, holding her hand and making her smile. The fact that he can’t and he’ll fly back to Korea in a few moments makes him want to cry. His heart hurts a lot and Taemin wonders if Soojung feels the same.
Taemin looks at the window and frowns at the slow pitter patter of rain because summer really is over.
- I don't know how to write fluff OTL.
- Hope you liked it tho. ^ ^
Taemin/Krystal
→ Because they've been giving me too many feels lately. I've never been to San Francisco, hence the inappropriate description of the place. I apologize. ㅠ ㅠ Inspired by this. Happy birthday, Byunbaek! ♥
“Are you being serious right now.”
“Oh, believe me. I’m dead serious.”
The two boys eye each other for another good minute before Taemin jumps up to tackle the older boy in a hug.
“Jinki hyung I love you so much you’re the best brother ever!” He screams into the other’s ear before letting go.
“Yes, yes. Now don’t get all excited. We’re leaving next week. Why don’t you learn some English phrases? So you’ll at least find your way back when you get lost.” Jinki advised, smirking at his excited brother.
“You’re right. Be right back, hyung!”
Taemin hurries towards the stairs, closing the door to his room before fishing for his phone under his bed. He dials a familiar number and hears a few rings before the other person picks up.
“Jongin!”
“What do you want. Why are you screaming.” The other boy deadpanned.
“Guess what Jinki hyung just told me. We’re going to California this summer!” He chattered excitedly.
“Are you fucking kidding me? What about the summer dance class you signed us up for?” Jongin yelled exasperatedly.
Oh. He scratched his head. Taemin forgot about that.
“I forgot about that. Guess you’ll have to do it on your own.”
“I hate you. I don’t want to teach bratty little kids how to dance! Hyung, don’t abandon me. Please. I’m begging you. No. Don’t go. I’ll hate you forever.”
He rolls his eyes.
“Jongin, you’ll live without me. Besides, Sehun’s there. Maybe you can finally talk to him after you ran away sputtering thinking he’s a girl.”
Jongin groaned before saying, “Again. I hate you.”
“I can’t do anything about it though. Jinki hyung booked the plane tickets already.”
“Why are you going there anyway? Can’t you go to Jeju instead? It’s nearer. And cheaper.” The younger boy pointed out.
“I’m hanging up, Jongin. I have to learn English.” Taemin sing songs, pulling the phone away from his ear.
He hears Jongin say, “Bring pack palm trees!” before the line went dead.
Taemin laughs and swivels in his computer chair before pulling up a website that says ‘English Made Easy’. He spends the next two hours stumbling over his r’s and l’s and he discovers that English is not easy at all. He whines and promptly gives up because he learned nothing after everything he read. He buries his face on his pillow and dreams about the sun and cool beaches.
To say Taemin’s excited is nearly an understatement because really, he is. It’s not every day your brother tells you you’re going vacation for the rest of the summer and in California, nonetheless. He knows his Jinki hyung is going for ‘business purposes’ and is just dragging him along because he doesn’t want Taemin to live on ramen for the next two months. Jongin tells him he’s a ‘lucky bastard’ because he gets to go to places while he’s stuck with a bunch of obnoxious kids prancing around and calling it dancing. Taemin tells him everyone is not born to dance unlike him who can already do a perfect pirouette at the age of five. Jongin huffs and tells him, “Like you’re any different.” and Taemin just laughs at him because who would know Jongin’s a year and six months younger than him.
While his Jinki hyung takes care of all the stuff needed for the trip, Taemin’s left dreaming about California until Jinki chucks a half eaten piece of toast at him and advises him to start packing his things already because he doesn’t want Taemin whining about the lack of boxers to wear. He climbs up to his room enthusiastically and drags the unused suitcase from under his bed. He has half of his clothes cramped inside when the day ends and Taemin ends up putting most of his boxers inside the suitcase. Jinki just laughs at him.
A week passes by quickly and suddenly, it’s the day before their trip. Taemin’s bouncing off the walls with his excitement while Jinki’s exhausted already just watching him. Most of the furniture were draped with a white cloth and they already informed the ahjumma next door that they’ll be gone for two months (and a half). She agreed that if mail arrives, she’ll keep it until they come back. They were eating takeout for dinner so there won’t be any dishes used.
“Hyung.” Taemin drawled out while munching on a chicken leg.
“What?”
“Do you think I can find a girlfriend there?”
Jinki hits him in the head with a takeout box.
Taemin whines while rubbing at his head because he was only kidding. Kind of.
They’re boarding the plane and the other passengers are sliding into their seats. Jinki’s already settled in his seat, earphones plugged carefully in his ears. Taemin looked at the window in awe because they’ll be up the skies soon. The sun streamed through the glass window and Taemin holds his hand up in the light. He smiles because he thinks it might be his best summer yet.
Taemin stuck his head out the cab’s window and stared in awe at the city. The buildings were sleek and tall and buzzing with people. The sun was shining, making everything else look brown and yellow. Taemin can see a big red bridge in the distance and he wanted to bounce in his seat happily because they were in San Francisco already. Jinki was still looking like sleep next to him and the younger didn’t try to bother him. His brother can get cranky when he wants to. After a few more minutes, they were finally standing in front of a large house with their bags around them. It looked like it needed some cleaning, even from the outside. Taemin figured it wasn’t used very often. He didn’t mind though, because just a few blocks from where they’re staying is the ocean. The water gleamed under the sun and the waves crashed towards the shore. Taemin grinned. This is gonna be fun.
“Taemin. Will please help me with the luggage first before you start gawking at the beach?” Jinki criticized, looking at him disapprovingly.
“Relax, hyung. You’re supposed to breathe. We’re in San Francisco. Breathe.” Taemin advised while trying hard not to laugh at his brother’s incredulous expression.
“Shut up, please. I’m still jet lagged, okay. So for the love of God, carry these bags inside.”
Taemin laughed and obeyed.
He lugged their suitcases inside noticing a thin layer of dust covering the furniture. The floorboards creaked noisily when they walked towards the living room.
“Hyung, why are we here? It’s like a house from a horror movie. Maybe someone will haunt us at night.” Taemin pointed out.
Jinki looked at him, still looking like death.
“The company let me use it for our stay here. We can’t stay at a hotel for two months. Do you want to live on ramen for the rest of your life?”
“I didn’t say anything. It’s good enough, I guess. At least the beach is just around the corner.”
“Yeah, whatever. I’m sleeping. Goodnight.” Jinki informed while retreating to the second floor to get rid of his exhaustion.
Taemin chuckled and mutters ‘ahjussi’ under his breath. He heard a door close before the house became quiet again. Their bags were sprawled on the floor and Taemin sighed, not knowing what to do. He looked out the window and smiled. The weather was too nice to be cooped up inside the house so he scrambled in his backpack for a paper and scribbles a quick ‘Hyung. Went out for a bit. Be back soon. - T’ He puts it in the table, using a small rock he got outside as weight. He locks he door, just in case. A cool breeze blankets him as he weaved his way through the houses to get to the beach. When he gets there, a handful of people were scattered across the shore. He stayed out of the sand, opting to walk in the pavement instead. Stores were on the other side and Taemin can smell fried food wafting in the air. He checked his pockets for change but found none. He wasn’t that hungry anyway. He continued looking around, stopping once in a while to peek at some of the stores. He discovers a store that sells bubble tea and thinks how much Sehun would like it. He was almost halfway down the road when a tire ran over his feet. Taemin starts yelping in pain, hopping on his other foot. He looks up and sees a girl with long brown hair sitting on her bike while staring at him. She didn’t look American at all.
“Sorry!” She yells in English and Taemin answers her with more yelping.
Another girl rides past her and shouts, “Krystal, come on!”
‘Krystal’ starts pedaling again and looks back to yell, “Put some ice on it! And sorry!”
Taemin whimpers because he didn’t understand anything at all.
“What happened to you?” Jinki asks when Taemin entered the house, still limping.
“Some girl ran over me with her bike. Hyung. It hurts.” The younger whines while plopping on the couch.
The house was cleaner now and didn’t smell like old socks anymore. And Jinki looked a lot better.
“First day overseas and you get in trouble.” Jinki says while placing Taemin’s injured foot on the table.
Jinki removes his sneakers and takes a look at his injury. He promptly pushes Taemin’s foot out of the table. The younger wails in pain.
“It’s not even swollen. Stop being a crybaby, Tae.”
“But it hurts.”
“Whatever. We should shop for groceries. I want chicken.”
Taemin wants to cry because his hyung doesn’t understand his pain.
They end up shopping for groceries later that evening because they didn’t know where the nearest store was. Jinki had to play charades with a cab driver to finally get to where they wanted so here they were, lingering around frozen food while his brother tries to figure out how much chicken to buy. Taemin sighs because this could take a while. Leaving their cart beside Jinki, he wonders around, looking at the produce displayed in every stall. He comes across the milk section and grabs tall box to drop in their cart when something yellow caught his eye. He picks it up and attempts to read the writings on the cover. His eyes widen because it’s banana milk. Well, he thinks it is because of the banana printed at the left corner and it’s in the milk section. He cradles both boxes in his hands, satisfied, and starts going back to where Jinki was when something stabs his foot. He cries out loud because it’s the same foot the bike tire ran over earlier.
“Sorry!” Someone squeaks.
Taemin sobs because what did he do to deserve this.
“It hurts. It hurts.” He says to himself.
“Taemin! What are you doing?” He hears Jinki shout.
“Hyung, let’s go home. Everyone’s trying to kill me.” Taemin informs dramatically.
Jinki rolls his eyes at that and drags the younger away.
Taemin sees brown at the corner of his eyes.
He e-mails Jongin that night (because international calls are expensive) and tells the other boy how his foot still stings because everyone in San Francisco apparently wants to crush his toes. Jongin laughs at him and says it’s never too late to go back to help him with the dance lessons. Taemin sighs.
Taemin wakes up early in the morning, even before the sun has completely risen. He steps out the house, closing the door quietly to not wake Jinki, and stands in front of the door. He looks at the ocean across the street and he rubs his shoulders because of the cool breeze. The waves crash towards the shore loudly, the white residue eminent from where he stood. He smiles. California was even prettier at sunrise. He waits for the sun to rise before slipping back inside. Jinki was sitting half-awake in the kitchen, pouring coffee in two mugs. He hands the other one to Taemin before taking a sip.
“You’re up early.” The elder observes.
Taemin shrugs. “I wanted to see the sunrise.”
Jinki nods and takes another sip.
“You know, I don’t have stuff to do for the office until tomorrow.” Jinki informs.
“Yeah? That means we can go to the beach together!” Taemin says excitedly.
“I guess I can play for a bit.”
“You need to take your shirt off, okay?”
Jinki chokes on a mouthful of coffee. Taemin just laughs.
The sun was scorching hot by the time they arrived at the beach. Many people were there already and the two of them had a hard time finding a spot. They finally found an empty patch of sand, next to a lady who was turning red from overexposure to the sun. Taemin laid out their things while Jinki lathers himself with sunscreen. His brother was wearing a visor over his head with sunglasses perched on his nose. As soon as he’s done, he gives the bottle to Taemin, expecting him to do the same. When Jinki’s done nagging at him for the importance of sunscreen, Taemin runs toward the water, carefully weaving his way through the people. A group of people were playing volleyball near the shoreline and he takes a quick glance at them. Before he can continue to the water though, the ball hits him square in the face and he plummets down on the ground, getting sand on his mouth. He sputters, face getting hot. People look at him and a girl runs towards him yelling, “Sorry! I’m so sorry!” He eyes the girl who crouches in front of him and sneers because she’s the girl who ran over him yesterday.
“You!” Taemin shrieks in English, wagging a finger at her.
The girl points a finger at herself. “Me?”
“Why is it me? Why is it always me? Are you trying to kill me? Do you people have some sort of grudge against Koreans? You crush my foot and now you hit my face with a fucking ball! Why are you doing this to me? Why?” He screams hysterically in rapid fire Korean.
The girl blinks at him and points at his face.
“Blood.” She replies in Korean.
This time, Taemin blinks at her because what the hell she can speak Korean?
“What?” Taemin croaks out.
“Blood. Your nose is bleeding.” She clarifies.
He brings a hand to his nose and feels something warm. He looks at it and oh.
Taemin faints.
Taemin wakes up with an umbrella hovering over him. He sits up straight and feels his head throb a little.
“Are you okay now? I’m really sorry.” Someone says in Korean next to him.
He turns his head really fast and finds the girl earlier looking at him apologetically.
“You can speak Korean?” Taemin blurts out instead of answering the question.
“Yes. Maybe because I’m Korean?” She says.
“You are?”
She nods.
“What happened?”
“My friends and I were playing volleyball earlier and the ball hit you in the face. Your nose bled then you fainted.”
“I did?”
She nods again.
“Are you okay now?”
“Ye-Yes. I think I’m fine.” Taemin mutters while standing up.
The sun was still shining and he cranes his neck to look for his brother.
“I’m Krystal, by the way. Krystal Jung.” She informs, thrusting a hand in front of her.
“And she says she Korean.” Taemin mumbles under his breath and shook her hand.
She laughs. “Jung Soojung, then. And you are?”
“Taemin. Lee Taemin.”
“I’m sorry again, Taemin-sshi. For yesterday and today. I’ll try to make it up to you.”
“Make it up how?”
“You’ll see. ‘Bye.” Krystal-no, Soojung-says with a wink before walking away.
Taemin pouts at her retreating figure and looks for Jinki.
Taemin doesn’t see Krystal, or Soojung, again until late August, almost a month (and about a week) left to their stay. She was riding her bike again near the beach, alone this time. Taemin eyes her from the end of the road where he stood, and notes how the sunset sets off her brown hair which was swaying with the wind behind her back as she watches the water.
“Now I know why you keep hitting people’s feet.” He shouts as she passes by him and she quickly pushed on the brakes, stopping in front of him.
She laughs and Taemin laughs as well because her laughter was contagious.
“Sorry about that, by the way. I have a habit of not keeping my eyes on the road.” She informs while hopping off her bike.
“Figures how I always end up injured when I’m near you.” Taemin jokes.
“I’ll be careful this time.”
She smiles and he can’t help but notice the way her face lights up when she does. They started walking together, with Krystal-Soojung-wheeling her bike instead of riding it.
“I’ve been wondering. What do I call you?” Taemin asks because he’s really getting a headache referring to her as Krystal or Soojung every time.
“Most of my friends here call me Krystal.” She says.
“But I’m not from here.”
She laughs again and replies, “You call me Soojung, then. My parents and sister call me that when they’re mad at me.”
“Soojung. Alright.”
Silence fills the gap and they can hear the waves crash.
“You know, I remember you said you’ll make it up to me for crushing my foot and hitting my face.” Taemin starts, a smirk playing at his lips.
“I did?” Soojung asks, faking her shock.
“Yeah, you did.”
She contemplates for a while before saying, “How about dinner? Would that be okay?”
“Hmm. I guess that would be okay.”
“It’s a date, then.”
They smile at each other before Soojung asks him what he wants to eat. Taemin just tells her that he doesn’t know anything and that she should be the one deciding because she’s the one living here. Soojung just nods and takes him to a fast food in the next block. The smell of fried food was heavy in the air when they got inside and there were a lot of people, mostly teenagers, waiting for their food. They sit at the further corner and Taemin starts looking around.
“So, what do you want?” Soojung asks.
“I told you, I don’t know. Maybe I’ll eat what you eat.”
She nods before standing up to the counter, talking in English to order their food. Taemin stares at her until she got back to her seat.
“What?”
“I didn’t understand a thing you were saying back there.”
Soojung laughs. “You don’t have to. It’s okay.”
Taemin pouts and fiddles with the leather in his seat.
“Why are you here in San Francisco?” She inquires.
“My brother was sent here to take care of some things for the company he’s working on and he dragged me along so I won’t die starving for two months.”
“Ah. So you’ll be flying home around September?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ve always wanted to go back and visit Korea, even just once. My parents are still planning it, though. They say we’ll be visiting when I turn 20.”
“How old are you now?”
“19.”
“Oh, so you’ll be going next year? You should give me a call so I can wait for you at the airport and when I see you I’ll scream ‘Soojung-ah! Welcome back to Korea!’. I’ll even show up with a placard with your name on it.”
Soojung laughs hard at that and the only time they had to stop was when the food arrived to their table. Their plates were filled with burger and fries twice as big as the one in Korea. A tall glass of chocolate milkshake was placed next to the plates and they start eating, tending to their hungry stomachs.
They keep talking in between bites and by the time their plates were cleared, Taemin already knows Soojung has a sister named Jesssica, or Sooyeon, and they moved when she was very little so she grew up here. She still knows how to speak Korean even though it’s been years since she’s last been there because there are days when their parents just start talking to them in Korean. They figured it’s the time they miss the country most. She learned how to swim when she was about seven years old and she’s been attached to the water ever since. She says the waves almost feel like home every time it washes over her. She dyed her hair brown when she was 16 because her jet black hair was drawing looks from her schoolmates. She likes to sing, and dance too, at times and when Taemin demands a song from her, Soojung just glares at him. In return, Taemin tells her a bit about himself too. His brother’s name is Jinki and how he’s the one who took care of him when their parents died in a car accident. How he’s been dancing ever since he can walk and how he met his friends in their numerous lessons together. How much he likes banana milk and how his favorite color is blue because it reminds him of the balloon his mother gave him when they last went to the carnival together as a family. When he’s not dancing, he likes to listen to music and sometimes he plays the piano too. Soojung insists to play for her and Taemin scowls, but ends up laughing instead.
The moon was already up when they start heading home. Taemin rides the bike and lets Soojung chase him until she shouts angrily at him. They walk again and talk more.
“My house is in the other street.” Soojung informs, pointing to a couple of houses down the road.
“We’re staying there.” Taemin says, pointing to the house. He can see Jinki waiting for him outside.
“Okay. ‘Bye, then. See you tomorrow.”
Taemin waves and they start going on separate ways.
“Where did you go? It’s late.” Jinki scolds, opening the door so they can both go inside.
Taemin shrugs, just to spite him, and runs to his room.
“Hey. I’m talking to you. Lee Taemin!” The elder screams.
Taemin laughs while burying his head in the pillow. He looks up to stare at the ceiling and thinks about how fun it is to spend time with his new friend. He smiles before drifting off to sleep and dreams about beaches, bicycles, brown hair and pretty smiles.
The next day, they see each other on the way to the beach. Soojung tied her hair in a ponytail and is wearing a thin white shirt with red shorts. She waves at him from across the street and starts walking faster. Taemin narrows his eyes at her as she comes nearer.
“What?” Soojung asks when they were finally face to face.
“Aren’t you a tad bit overdressed?” He says sarcastically.
“It’s what I normally wear during summer.” She answers nonchalantly.
They walk slowly towards the beach, the sun already shining uncomfortably over their heads.
“You do realize that people are looking at you, right?” Taemin informs.
“No one’s looking at me, Taemin-ah. And why are you acting like an overprotective boyfriend anyway?” Soojung asks teasingly, stopping in her tracks to look at him.
“I-I’m no-not!” Taemin stutters, fiddling with his hat to hide his blushing cheeks.
Soojung laughs knowingly and just continues walking. Taemin fans his face with his hand and wonders what is possibly making him act this way.
They spend most of the morning standing near the water and running to avoid the waves. At lunch, they buy hotdogs from a nearby stall and Taemin buys a pretzel for Soojung. She thanks him and they eat under a shaded tree, letting the cool breeze wash over them. Soojung ends up spiltting the pretzel in two because Taemin keeps eyeing her when she was about to start eating it. They lie under the shade for a while, staring up the blue sky and trying to make out shapes with the clouds. Sometimes they talk, offhanded question and random comments. The wind blows harder and they stay seated under the tree. Soojung stars humming a tune gently and Taemin stares at her. He can’t help noticing the small smile on her face, how brown her eyes look under the daylight. Stray strands of hair were flying off in front of her face and he wants to reach out a tuck it behind her ear. Soojung stops humming and turns to look at him. Taemin looks away, cheeks heating up again. She chuckles and says something. About the weather, probably. He just keeps squinting in the direction of the ocean and hopes she didn’t notice.
They start heading home before sunset. Taemin keeps his hands behind his back the whole time while Soojung counts seashells. They keep walking before hearing the unmistakable sobs of a crying child. Soojung looks up and eyes the small boy before running to him while Taemin trails after her. She kneels in front of the kid and starts talking to him in hushed tones. Taemin keeps watching, even though he can’t understand anything she says, until the child’s sobs turned into quiet sniffles. She keeps talking to him, even wiping away his tears for him, till his parents comes running to get the child back. They talk a bit more, probably thanking Soojung, and they walk away with the child in tow. The small boy turns and waves at her again. Soojung grins and waves back. She looks at Taemin, still smiling, and he feels something flutter inside him.
Taemin arrives home to his Jinki hyung sitting somewhere in the living room with his laptop on the table, numerous papers scattered on the couch and reading glasses perched on his nose. He used a rubber band to tie his bangs away from his eyes.
“Dinner’s on the table.” The elder informs without looking up.
Taemin voices out some kind of strangled noise before plopping on the couch, covering his eyes with his arm.
“Taemin! Don’t sit there, my papers!” Jinki yells.
The younger didn’t flinch.
“What’s wrong with you? Did something happen?”
“Hyung. I have a situation.” Taemin says.
“And what exactly is this situation?”
Jinki’s looking at him now, peeling himself off of his work.
Taemin hesitates before mumbling, “I think I like someone.”
Jinki nods before asking again, “Is it a boy?”
“What? No!” The younger shouts incredulously.
“So it’s a girl. How is it a situation then?”
“I don’t know.”
“You tell her you like her, then. Maybe she likes you too, or something.”
Taemin pouts.
He doesn’t go out of the house for the next couple of days. When Jinki asks him why, he says he has to deal with his ‘situation’. His brother simply rolls his eyes at him before stepping out for work. Taemin spends his days in bed, refusing to go out even though the faint sound of the waves is singing to him. When he tells Jongin, the younger just states he’s being stupid for wasting the remaining days of his stay pent up inside the house. Taemin knows he’s right, but for some reason, he thought of seeing Soojung makes his palms sweat and his heart beating a little faster. He didn’t date much and the last person he ‘liked’ was a senior attending the same dance lessons as him. He was 14 then so he forgot what it feels like. He doesn’t know what he’s scared of, actually. Probably because he’s being too obvious, always blushing like a schoolgirl when they’re together. And also because he thinks everything’s happening so fast. He met her last month, had a few meals together, talked and he’s already feeling this. It’s a bit overwhelming.
Taemin stares up into the ceiling and sighs. This must be what falling in love feels like.
Jinki finally persuades him to get out of the house. Mainly because the elder shoved him out the door and locked it, for good measure, so he doesn’t have a choice. Taemin walks, not really knowing where to go, pulling out his earphones and putting it on. He’s not listening to anything though, so he hears Soojung shouting his name from behind. His stomach drops and he walks faster, pretending not to hear.
“Hey, Taemin!” Soojung shouts.
She’s suddenly in front of him and waving her hands to get his attention. She’s panting a bit and Taemin feels bad for ignoring her.
“Hey.” He answers coolly.
He’s quivering inside. He’s surprised his voice didn’t falter.
“What happened to you these past few days? I didn’t see you around anymore. Were you sick?” She asks worriedly.
Taemin clears his throat before answering. “Ah, no. Hyung… I helped him in something. That’s why… I, uh, needed to stay home.”
He hopes she wouldn’t see through the obvious lie. Soojung looks at him for a moment, unsure, and just nods.
They walk together, slowly. The wind was cool but the atmosphere was heavy and awkward between the two of them. Soojung tries to make small talk and Taemin just gives her a curt reply. He appreciates her for trying but she can’t really blame him since the main reason he can’t talk is because of her being there. They were back in their in spot last time and Taemin sits. Soojung, however, doesn’t. She keeps standing, looking down at him.
“Taemin-ah.” She calls out softly.
He looks up at her, gulping at how his name sounded when she said it.
“Did I do anything wrong? Why… why aren’t you talking?” Soojung asks, her voice breaking a bit.
He sees something flash across her features and Taemin panics because he wasn’t used to that.
“I-“ He starts.
“Don’t you want to be friends with me anymore?” She cuts off.
Taemin wants to say something but he can’t. Soojung’s bottom lip starts to tremble and he panics again. Her eyes were glistening with unshed tears and before he can do anything to keep it from falling, she starts running away. He feels something tug at his heart. He runs after her.
“Soojung! Soojung, wait! Soojung!” He yells at her back and hopes she’ll listen.
She slows down until Taemin catches up. He grabs her wrist and he can see she’s trying hard not to cry. She doesn’t look at him. He figures it’s probably better anyway.
“I-You didn’t do anything wrong. You were right about one thing, though.”
Soojung now looks at him and he breathes in.
“I don’t want to be friends. That’s the problem. I don’t-“
He’s out of words to say and his heart is beating so fast he can’t hear himself think. She’s staring at him in inquiry but he doesn’t know what to say next. He lets go of her and picks up a thin stick from the ground. He writes at the wet patch of sand for a good minute before eyeing her again. Soojung reads the ‘Jung Soojung, I think you’re really pretty-you make my heart flutter.’ carefully and she really wants to cry now.
“I… I didn’t step out of the house these few days because… after that day at the beach, when you tended to that kid… my heart… I… wavered. And I didn’t think I can look at you the same way after that.” Taemin trails off.
Soojung didn’t say anything, just continued to staring down, and he wanted the ground to swallow him whole because his confession was not cool at all. She finally looks up and Taemin prepares himself for the worse.
“You… are so sappy.” She says with a choked laugh. It comes out restrained though.
“You could’ve just told me. You didn’t need to give me a cold shoulder for how many days. I thought I did something wrong-You’re so… mean.” She finishes off.
“Sorry.” Taemin mumbles.
Silence blankets them for a while and he takes in the vastness of the ocean next to them.
“For the record, I like you too. If that’s what you’re trying to say.”
His head shot up at that and a small smile was playing at her lips.
“R-Really? Since when?” He stutters.
“While I was waiting for you to wake up from being knocked out by a ball. I thought, “This guy’s handsome when he’s passed out.” We spent time together and I thought you look even better when you’re conscious.”
Taemin laughs, really laughs because he can’t believe he didn’t do this sooner.
Soojung steps closer and buries her head in his chest. He stills for a while, arms hanging limply at the sides before relaxing into her touch. He hugs her back and he can hear her say something. Taemin just hugs her tighter and he grins to himself.
At the end of the day, Taemin runs home smiling to himself. He flings the door open and finds his brother cooking something in the kitchen. He pads to where the elder was and tackles him from behind.
“Ow, Taemin! What do you want?” Jinki shouts while dodging away the flying bits of oil.
“Hyung. I love you. Really, I do.” Taemin declares, still not letting go of his brother’s waist.
“Okay. What happened now?”
He turns off the stove to look at his brother. The younger flops on a chair, cradling his chin on the table while sighing.
“I worry about you sometimes, Taemin. Are you on drugs?” The elder asks confusedly.
He shakes his head and continues to stare at empty space.
“Then what happened? I swear if you don’t answer me, I will throw this ladle at you.”
Taemin laughs before narrating what happened earlier. He has to pause lots of times to keep himself from blushing and maybe start laughing to himself because he was just that happy. Jinki winds up wanting to shower him with boiling oil for wasting his time. Taemin beams at him anyway.
The next day, they steer clear of the beach, opting to walk around so Soojung can show him around the city. She tries to teach him how to skate and promptly gives up because Taemin always stumbles on the board. They watch a movie instead and he almost drops the bucket of popcorn on someone’s head. They visit some stores after the movie and Soojung picks out a shirt for him while Taemin buys her a silver necklace with a thin chain and a small palm tree dangling off it. She flushes a bit when he puts it on her and they both let out a small chuckle. The two of them stop by an ice cream parlor so they walk around with cones in hand. They returned to their usual banter and light conversation but somehow, something changed between them. Maybe it’s because Taemin can pull her closer to him when she nearly bumps into people, Soojung will smile and not pull away. It feels like a date and Taemin’s glad because it’s going well.
Taemin takes out his camera and he snaps candid photos of Soojung until she bats him hard in the arm so they end up taking pictures together instead. They head home when the sun starts to set and he’s walking a few paces behind her before taking her hand gingerly in his. Soojung freezes for a heartbeat and Taemin almost wants to pull away because what if what he did just now was wrong. He didn’t have to worry though because she links their fingers together slowly before continuing their trek back home. Taemin turns a deep shade of red.
Later that night, Taemin revisits his staring-at-the-ceiling hobby. Only this time, a small smile tugs at the corner of his lips while he thinks about how the day progressed. He brings a hand up in front of his face and can’t help thinking how soft Soojung’s hand felt in his. He brushes a finger across his palm and flushes at the memory. Sleep pays him a visit around midnight and the soft crashing of waves lulls him to bed. He dreams about ice cream cones, warm hands and Soojung.
Taemin wakes up to Jinki rushing around the kitchen.
“Hyung. What are you doing early in the morning.” He deadpans.
“I’m fixing this cabinet.” Jinki informs while pulling out a hammer.
“Why.” Taemin drawls out, voice heavy with sleep.
“It’s broken, obviously.”
“No, not that. Why are you doing it now?”
“I have to go to work later and I might not get back until late.” The elder says.
“Then do it some other time.” He replies, insistent on getting back to sleep.
“I’ll be busy. And you won’t do it either. We’re leaving in two weeks so I have to do this now. This wasn’t broken when we arrived here and the owner of this place might throw a fit.”
Taemin stopped listening after leaving in two weeks and he grabs at his brother’s sleeve.
“Two weeks?” The younger croaks out.
“Yeah. Two weeks. Now please let go of my shirt so I can finish this.” Jinki says sternly before hammering a nail.
Taemin wanders to the living room, dumbfounded. Two weeks. He thinks about Soojung’s smile, her lovely brown eyes, her soft hands, her everything, before collapsing on the couch. He can feel his heart gently breaking into pieces.
They were heading to the park Soojung told him about yesterday. She’s wearing a caramel colored blouse which sets off the color of her eyes and white knee length skirt. Her hair’s fluttering softly with the wind and Taemin wonders why she looks especially pretty today. He sighs and stares at his dust covered sneakers.
“Taemin-ah, are you okay? You’re awfully quiet again. Is something wrong?” He hears Soojung ask and he looks at her nervously.
“Nothing’s wrong. I’m fine.” He replies.
“What is it?” She presses on, unconvinced.
He was never a good liar anyway. Taemin motions for her to follow him and they stay seated in a far-off bench. He takes a deep breath and Soojung eyes her curiously.
“We’re, um, leaving in two weeks.”
She raises an eyebrow.
“We’re leaving for Korea. In two weeks.” He clarifies.
“Oh. Oh.” Soojung mutters softly and Taemin tries not to meet her eye.
A chipmunk passes by and he vaguely thinks of following it so he can run away from the sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.
They don’t talk about it for the rest of the day. Soojung just pretends she didn’t hear the news and tries to have a good time. Taemin tries too, but he can’t help but feel dejected. Thoughts run through his mind all day and at one point, he even considers convincing himself that this is just a summer fling. He quickly pushes away the thought because there’s no way this is a temporary thing. If it is, he wouldn’t feel like jumping off the Golden Gate to delay their departure. Taemin masks his worries with a smile. It doesn’t quite reach his eyes though.
Nobody brings it up again. They just continue spending Taemin’s remaining days in San Francisco together. They laugh and talk about things. He gets shown around more parts of the city and it helps get his mind off things. Sometimes. They make more memories, the more he wants to stay.
Two weeks lessen to one. Jinki remind him every day to start packing his things. Taemin starts counting the days in his head. Soojung doesn’t say anything, just letting the smile on her face linger. He tries to hide his distress. It doesn’t work. It still hurts.
Days blur and suddenly, it’s the day before Taemin leaves. They walk near the shore, and Soojung tells him that the beach is called Baker Beach. He doesn’t ask why and she doesn’t tell him either. The sun is starting to set and the cool seaside breeze washes over them. Taemin wants to say something but he was never really good at goodbyes.
“Taemin-ah.” Soojung says softly.
He looks up and he wishes he didn’t because his heart crumbles at Soojung’s tears.
“Don’t forget me, okay?” She adds.
Taemin scoffs before replying, “How could I forget the person who tried to kill me every time we meet?”
Soojung manages to laugh despite her tears. She looks away, maybe hoping that it will stop her from crying. Taemin takes her hand gently and holds it firmly in his. He looks at her, locking a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Hey. Don’t cry.” Taemin says, even though he wants to cry himself.
Soojung doesn’t say anything.
“You know, when someone leaves, people usually tell them to stay.” Taemin informs jokingly.
“If I did, will it change anything? You’ll still leave.” Soojung answers with a sad smile.
Taemin hates the fact that she’s right. He runs small circles in Soojung’s hand with his thumb.
“No letters. No e-mails. No phone calls. Nothing.” Taemin says quietly.
She looks at him in question.
“Because if we’re destined for each other, we’ll meet soon.” He declares, tightening his grip on her hand.
Soojung manages to laugh, Taemin thinks it sounds sweet and melancholy at the same time.
They didn’t talk much, just sat next to each other. No promises were made and Taemin thinks it’s better this way. They head home by the time the moon’s up and before they completely part, Taemin presses a gentle kiss on her forehead. Soojung’s brown eyes looks even better up close.
Taemin finds it hard to sleep that night and Jinki eventually barged in his room with a glass of milk to make him feel better. His brother even sings him a song and Taemin wants to cry. Jinki slides in next to him and they share a bed, talking about stuff just like the old days. At one point, they ask each other what their parents think of them growing up and they’re convinced that they’re proud of them. Jinki falls asleep first and Taemin laughs because he was supposed to make him feel better. He stares up the ceiling again and tried hard not to think of anything. He falls asleep to the distant sound of the ocean.
Jinki wakes him up by shaking his shoulders and Taemin rubs at his eyes tiredly. He hears his brother say something about flights and breakfast but he paid little attention to what he say saying. Taemin looks out the window and wonders if Soojung’s thinking about him leaving. Probably not. It’s probably better. Taemin doesn’t want her crying because of him anyway.
Jinki drags him around to eat and get changed so they can go to the airport early. Taemin sighs through everything and the elder contemplates on banging a pan on his head to wake him up. Jinki hires a cab and throws all of their bags into the trunk. He motions for Taemin to come after locking the door.
Taemin doesn’t get in immediately. He pauses at the cab’s door and looks out across the street. He smiles because that harbor is where everything started. And the thinks among everything else, it’s probably the memory that he’ll treasure the most. Even if it always ends up with him being hurt most of the time.
Hours pass by and it felt like seconds but they’re finally boarding the plane, with Jinki pulling at his shoulders for him to keep up. The elder offers him the seat next to the window but it doesn’t make Taemin feel any better. He wants to get out and spend every single day with Soojung, holding her hand and making her smile. The fact that he can’t and he’ll fly back to Korea in a few moments makes him want to cry. His heart hurts a lot and Taemin wonders if Soojung feels the same.
Taemin looks at the window and frowns at the slow pitter patter of rain because summer really is over.
- I don't know how to write fluff OTL.
- Hope you liked it tho. ^ ^