A/N: I'm really sorry that I haven't updated in an awfully long time, almost 4 months!:( I hope this doesn't disappoint you after a long wait. Enjoy~
Jenny Lie: Yeah, I know I'm cruel... but still, glad you like my story:)
whitesoeulprince: Wow, I haven't gotten such a long review in like, ever. Haha, thorough analysis of my fanfic:D Eh, I intend to keep the rating K+, so no bed scenes. But I can guarantee an interesting storyline, so look out for future chapters!
winnie78: Thank you for being such a loyal reviewer!
feistyandfierce: SoEul FTW:) I hope the ending turns out like that. Honestly, I have no idea where this is leading. I just write whatever pops into my mind:)
Musiclover24: That was one of the best compliments I ever received for this story:D
Satomika: Sure! I hope you enjoy this particular bit and once again, sorry I updated so late.
Karma: Yup I agree... Yi Jeong is such a bad liar:( I'm afraid he'll be getting worse.
pixiedustchoco: Thanks for taking time out to read and review! At least Math is over for me:D Jiayou for all your exams and chillax~
Guest: I'll try to avoid cliffhangers and thanks for the compliments:)
Sapsparrow13: Thank you! I'm sorry for the late update though.
animefreak5253: You like my stories! Did you mean this or also others I wrote?:P And again, I apologise for the late update:(
Guest: Thanks for liking my plot anyways:)
Agustine: Mmm yeah I agree. I'll include that!
Kasumi Izukawa: Thank you! I thought so too:)
AdrianaTavarez: I will and thank you for taking time to review :D
johnmajormrbluehippopotamus: Woah. Okay.
MKyara: Glad you discovered this! And there are lots of WB/GE moments you're looking for in this chapter so I hope you enjoy:)
(Woo Bin)
His long fingers drummed out a beat on the steering wheel, brows furrowed in concentration. The bouquet of thirteen long-stemmed white roses that sat in the backseat of his Lotus Elise SC seemed heavier than usual. Not that he had ever given white roses, or thirteen at that. Normally, it was a dozen full-bloomed red roses; the typical, classic romance. Girls always ate it up.
However, he reminded himself that this was Ga Eul he was dealing with. Innocent, pure, heavenly Ga Eul who would most probably bolt or hide away at the sight of crimson roses. Hence, he decided that white was fitting. Thirteen had a meaning too. It meant that she had a secret admirer that ought to be paid some attention.
Me.
She couldn't possibly understand the symbolism behind all these, but it was always better to be more meticulous about tiny details. Besides, being the Don Juan, such important information was habitually stored in an accessible drawer somewhere near the front of his mind.
"Woo Bin Sunbae!" Turning, Woo Bin saw Ga Eul hurrying towards him in brown boots with buckles round the shin. A pastel winter hat cupped her head and her coat flapped in the feathered wind. Her rosebud lips were curled up in an enthusiastic grin. Briefly, he wondered if she had ever gone to the dentist for braces. Her teeth were impeccably straight.
Reaching out for the door handle, Ga Eul settled into the canary yellow vehicle with easy familiarity. It wasn't entirely surprising, considering the many... interesting dates they had. He fought to keep the smirk off his face as he yanked the gear stick. He was glad she took his advice.
"Sunbae-ah, what fascinating activity do you have in mind this time?" A hint of sarcasm traced her voice. "Why, exactly, did you want me to wear long pants for this occasion?" Woo Bin couldn't help but feel slightly apologetic at the former sentence.
Fascinating was hardly used to describe bungee-climbing where one screamed her lungs out all the way down, or rock-climbing where one refused to move an inch after the third panel. It was also normally not used for pumpkin-carving lessons where the knife simply refused to cut through the skin of the vegetable, or aquarium viewing where all the fish did was hide in man-made caves or laze at the bottom of rocky sand.
All in all, it was an embarrassingly large number of failed dates for a Don Juan, especially him. At least, he thought as he sped past a red light, she still comes every time I ask her out. Something to be proud of. Yi Jeong would be jealous. But then again, maybe he's too busy with his new lady-love to care.
"Trust me, Ga Eul. It won't be life-threatening or remotely boring this time." He thought it prudent not to mention that it would not be life-threatening if nothing went wrong. Next to him, Ga Eul made a small noise that could be interpreted as a disbelieving snort or excited gasp. He preferred to think the latter.
"It better not, sunbae. I have no wish to die early." The sound sent unexplainable chills down the back of his spine and he suppressed a shudder. He was sure she hadn't meant it that way, but her voice was sultry for the first time ever since he had heard it. Maybe it was just the lack of his social life in the nightclubs.
(Yi Jeong)
He raised a hand in greeting and settled down on the couch, consciously aware of the fidgety presence next to him. Smiling inwardly, he covered her hand with his, and she looked up at him with blue-shadowed eyes. She offered a nervous smile as she read what his twinkling eyes conveyed. Relax.
"Who's this?" Jun Pyo frowned up from his video game.
Ji Hoo grinned, putting down his guitar. "Hi Eun Jae." Yi Jeong could hear the smile in his voice.
Recognition sparked in the former's eyes. "Ah, Eun Jae." His gaze flicked to the space between the both of them; where their fingers were intertwined. "You're together." He noted that his tone wasn't disapproving, or accusatory, merely interested curiosity. That had to count for something.
Still, the creased forehead did not smooth.
"But what about Ga—" A red blur shot across the room and hit Jun Pyo's stomach, leaving him winded momentarily. "Yah! Who threw this thing?" He snatched the object from the couch and held it up like a trophy. It was an apple.
Yi Jeong glanced sideways at Ji Hoo, who had his hand outstretched in the direction of the fruit bowl. If you took the pieces of his face apart, it looked like each part was having a convulsion. But when you put it back together, it very obviously formed the face of a man who was trying and failing to hold in the gallows of laughter rumbling deep inside him.
Yi Jeong didn't have much time to dwell on this—he swore to give Ji Hoo a hug later for saving his skin—because another disaster swept into the lounge in the form of Geum Jan Di. Tearing his eyes from Jun Pyo who was scowling and attempting to look dignified as he sat back on the couch, he raised his gaze unintentionally to meet Jan Di's.
Under her stare, he cringed mentally. It wasn't raw anger, merely plain disappointment, but that made it all the worse. The kind where you feel like you've let a good friend down, and the only thing you can do to appease her anger is that something that you don't want to do. Yi Jeong turned away guiltily.
There wasn't anything he could do. As Ga Eul appeared in his mind again, it felt as though someone was pushing a white-hot stick of fury into his heart. Suddenly, he wanted nothing more than to rage at her, and Jan Di. The lot of them are acting like it's my entire fault. What? Abandoning you, breaking your heart? What crap is that? If you wanted to play this game at first, then you should be aware of the consequences. You were the one who stupidly clung onto a promise that I never made.
It's your problem. It never was mine.
He became consciously aware of his hands. Hands that were gripping the soft fabric of the couch, knuckles that had turned white from the force.
"Yi Jeong?" Eun Jae touched his hand anxiously. "Are you okay?"
A smile slid onto his face. "It's nothing. I'm fine."
He couldn't bring himself to look at Jan Di again. The chiding, knowing look might just set him off balance and everything would be ruined. As conversation flowed, with Jun Pyo rightly keeping his mouth shut, his rational self returned. He wondered if part of his premature anger had been directed towards himself unknowingly.
(Ga Eul)
"Are you sure this is safe?" She tucked her hair behind her ear nervously, something that was becoming a habit in the past few minutes.
Woo Bin resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he checked the burner blast valves. "You realise this is the fifth time you've asked that? Relax, you won't die with me around."
Her bottom lip jutted outward in a pout and she turned away from him, preferring instead to look at the vast expanse of the field. The shimmery material of hot air balloon fluttered slightly as wind rolled across the field, mirroring her feelings. Ga Eul couldn't quite place it, but her heart… it was thudding just that bit faster than usual, beating just that much louder than usual.
No, it wasn't apprehension for the balloon ride. It also wasn't the fact that Woo Bin looked exceptionally dashing in his black coat that had silver trimmings. It was simply intuition, accompanied by strange tingling in her fingers and toes, that told her something would be happening later. Something that had to do with the sunbae behind her.
"Ga Eul shii! Are you ready?" She turned. The hot air balloon had swelled to an enormous proportion, with the yellow-jacketed crew straining to hold on to the thick mile of string attached to the balloon. With his hair comically blown to one side, he operated the burner blast valve and a tight orange flame shot into the air.
(Woo Bin)
He watched as she came running towards the basket, her long hair flying underneath her woolly cap. Grinning childishly, she did a half-flip into the basket just as the crew released the aerostat. Deftly manoeuvring the balloon, he looked sideways at Ga Eul, who was leaning over the side, stretching her hands out.
"Sunbae?"
"Yeah?"
She beamed at him happily. "Thank you. I always wanted to do this, but I never had the chance."
Do what? Ride on the hot air balloon or ride it with me?
The wind tipped the balloon and he grappled with the controls. "Ga Eul ah, see that box there? Open it, it's for you."
Bending, she flipped the lid. The faint smell of roses wafted out as thirteen long-stemmed white roses emerged from the box.
"Sunbae, you have the same worn book every single man has," She teased, playing with the lilac ribbon on the bouquet. "Everyone gives roses. Isn't the Don Juan supposed to be innovative?"
The corner of his lips quirked up into a crooked smile. "But the worn book has proven itself very useful. All the girls fall for the same methods, don't they?"
Ga Eul laughed delightedly, her eyes crinkling. "Woo Bin sunbae, that's the most general statement I've ever heard. You just haven't met those who don't. But thank you anyway. The white roses are lovely."
"I guessed as much." She moved to stand next to him, their shoulders pressing. Suddenly, he was consciously aware of their close proximity, and his keen sense of smell picked up on her faint lavender perfume.
"So how are you and Yi Jeong sunbae?" She broke the silence.
He kept his eyes on the horizon. "Isn't that my line? How are you and Yi Jeong?"
"I meant after you intentionally injured him when I told you not to. It's fine, really. There's nothing for us to talk about anymore and it's just awkward if we meet."
She drew a breath. "At first it hurt a lot, but now it's just this dull ache, and even this is fading. Besides, you shouldn't blame him. We weren't even officially together at all, just me misunderstanding everything. Eun Jae unnie's really glad, right? She deserves this happy ending."
"I can't understand." The basket rocked under wind pressure.
"Of course you don't, sunbae." Mischief coloured her tone. Somehow, he felt her refusal to continue this conversation. "You and Yi Jeong sunbae are the same; both of you only reject, but you never get rejected. So you don't feel the country bumpkin's pain."
You and Yi Jeong are the same. The same. The same kind of people who hurt others in love. He wondered, with a painful pang, if she really thought that of him. But, is that not the reputation I have been building for myself?
As he fired the blast valve, something brushed against him. Her soft brown hair curled into loose ringlets, tickling the nape of his neck. Lavender wafted towards him again, and the need to express himself explicitly arose. I want to ask her. No, I need to ask her. That simple sentence pounded its way forcefully to the centre of his head, to the core of his heart.
"Chu Ga Eul?" Woo Bin had lost control of his mind, and hence his mouth. Don't say it!
"Hmm?"
"Do you…" Shut up! Don't say it! "I mean…"
Ga Eul turned to look at him strangely. "What is it? Spit it out, sunbae."
Woo Bin! Some part of his brain that still retained a portion of his sanity attempted to pummel him back into his senses. What's wrong with you? Do you wish to die an embarrassing a death or something along the lines of that? I mean it; don't say whatever you're going to say.
"Be my girlfriend?" Crap. You've done it.
She froze. "What?"
I can never express my immense gratitude to all you wonderful, wonderful readers out there who are so patient with me. Really, thank you so much for not abandoning this fanfic. I really appreciate it.
School's tough (I mean, when isn't it?), so I apologise for the late update. And the cliffhanger:(
Thank you again and again for being ever so patient:) I hope this chapter meets your expectations. By the way, reviews make my day!