TEENAGERS IN TOKYO
DISCLAIMER:
The following work(s) are fictitious in nature, including but not limited to characters and events. The content herein, coincidental or otherwise, is in no way a true reflection of the actual celebrities depicted, and is purely created for personal entertainment. No profit is being made. Any artwork is made by me unless otherwise stated.
teenagers in tokyo
yonghwa/seohyun ⌖ 676w → g
let's run away and don't ever look back.
Synchronized steps.
That is the first thing she notices, but the very idea of it has never occurred to her until now. It is never intentional, you see, for she possesses a natural poise - a sophisticated grace typically unseen except in those individuals with training. Seohyun cannot recall a time she's ever walked while looking at her feet. But today is different. It's a comfortably warm night, and the air smells faintly of sweet flowers and home.
She balls her hands into fists, clenching and unclenching, hidden in the baggy sleeves of her sweatshirt. Her heart is doing somersaults, and she remembers a saying she often heard from Tiffany 언니 that she feels is happening now:
"Does your stomach turn when you see him?"
"'Turn?'" Seohyun pictures her stomach rolling and is instantly amused by it. Yearning for clarification, she presses on, "Are you asking if I feel nauseous?"
"No!" she laughs. "I mean, do you feel nervous? Like you feel you can't breathe."
"Oh. Well ... I'm not sure."
That was then, and this is now, and she certainly does feel a little bit different - that maybe this is what she was talking about. She feels sick, but she knows she's well. It reminds her of the moment she shared with Yong at the fishing pond in late June, after he had finished explaining to her the significance of Love Light. She recalls feeling quite happy and empowered, almost like she could take on the world if necessary.
This feeling - right now - is nothing like that summer evening. Seohyun knows what she needs to do - what she wants to do - but she has her reservations. Will he think of it as something she's doing for his benefit? That she's not being genuine? To be fair, half of her has planned this moment only recently, mainly to prove to him that she does feel closer to him than he realizes; the other half believes it's just, well, right. Not that she knows how to start, and this is exactly her problem.
She hasn't realized that she's stopped until Yong, who is just two meters away, turns around.
He chuckles briefly, amused. "What are you doing?"
"Nothing!" she responds, and runs to catch up with him.
As they walk, she momentarily allows her arm to brush against his. They continue walking, and she wonders if he's noticed it at all, so she does it again, this time to adjust herself to the possibility of it - that she's actually doing this, and it's not as weird as it seems, that this has been a long time coming. Her heart is in her throat, and she almost feels like choking on it.
"Are you okay? You're acting strangely." Yonghwa is smiling, but only slightly this time, as if he's worried that there is something wrong with her.
At first, the words come out in a rush, all jumbled together, before even she can make sense of what she's said.
He laughs heartily this time and asks, "What?"
"Hand," she repeats, then continues, "Can ... I ..."
Instead of finishing, she points at his own and clasps her hands together, hoping that she's expressing her intention well enough for him to understand. She feels like she's seven and vulnerable, and all she wants to do is bury her face in her palms so he doesn't catch the blush spreading on her cheeks.
"You want to hold hands?"
"Ah, this is so embarrassing!"
"Why?" Yong shrugs and takes her hand in his, in a way that's almost too natural, like this is how they're supposed to be. As he leads the way, he reminds her that she needs to learn to say what's on her mind.
"Quickly," he emphasizes. "Just say it."
Then, he nudges her, grinning.
"You're not awkward this time."
"Ah, you're really ...!"
"짜식."
They continue walking, and even after she's purposely broken the timing of her steps, she is too distracted by his elaborate gestures and light teasing to notice that they've evened out again.