#ikonicshelves

[restlessmaknae]

tears & raindrops mingle

In which you bump into the CEO of a nearby bar when you are just as heart-broken as him, and it doesn’t seem to go well at first.

♦ Pairing: bar CEO!Yunhyeong x jewellery shop CEO!reader/you

♦ Genre: fluff, light angst

♦ Words: 4.1k

♦ Warning: mentions of cheating (on other characters’ parts)

♦  Dedicated to: @flora-jimin​ for the Spring Fic Exchange based on the spring rain prompt! I really hope you enjoy my story as I’ve really enjoyed writing it! 💖

Song Yunhyeong had the most horrifying day ever. It wasn't enough that he got to know that the girl who had been his girlfriend for 3 years and to whom he had proposed a month ago was with him only for his money. He even eavesdropped that she was planning to hijack the success of his business using his weakness (aka her) against him. She knew that he would do as much for her as he could do within his power, but he would have never thought that she would want to ruin the image of his bar by a scandal. She said that she would gladly be found humping with another man in Yunhyeong's office, caught by a gossip magazine's journalist who was hungry for any juicy details in the CEO's life.

The young man couldn't believe his ears. Where did it go wrong? Was she a traitor from the beginning? How could he not see it? It's true that Yuri and him had almost the same opinion of everything and had almost the same preferences but was it all for just to seduce him? Was it all fun for her? While he knew from the beginning that Yuri was nowhere near as rich as him, it never bothered him. He didn't have a say in which family he was born into and she didn't have a say in it either. So why? Why did she do it? Was she really that heartless? Was Yunhyeong that terrible at reading people?

He was raging, feeling like a volcano that could erupt anytime soon, as he walked down the corridor from his office to the security guards and IT guys' office, bursting in without knocking on the door first. Everyone assumed that he was in a bad mood if he wasn't being dead polite.

"Do not let Kang Yuri into the bar ever again! Not today. Not tomorrow. Never!" He yelled frantically, and his fervent reaction was enough for the guys to shut their mouths and don’t ask about the reason behind his command. He shot another glance at them before he turned on his heels and shut the door behind him, listening to the echoes while he walked down the corridor.

He pushed the emergency exit door with all his power as he stepped into the chilly midnight air. The moment he stood outside, he was showered by rain, but he didn't mind. He didn't mind that his expensive suit was about to get totally drenched, he didn't mind that he would look like a fool who got caught in the sudden downpour that was so common in spring. He didn't mind. He was used, he was betrayed, he was being played. He couldn't care anymore. He wasn't going to go home anyway; he needed some time to himself to decide on the least problematic and most peaceful way to end whatever was going on between him and Yuri. Even if she didn't deserve it.

While he was just standing there in the rain, inwardly enjoying being hit by the merciless raindrops, you bumped into him and murmured a quiet apology. No matter how gentle he usually was, he couldn't take it today.

"I don't think I've heard what you said," he blurted out coldly, the air becoming even chillier around him. The equally soaked you was about to walk away, then suddenly turned around to face him. You were examining him, eyebrows furrowed in question, looking all businessy in your black women's suits, stylish high heels and designer bag. You wore an expensive necklace that stuck to you like second skin due to the raindrops claiming their place on your exposed neck.

Yunhyeong had no idea if you were always this stern, fierce flames dancing in your eyes, or it was the situation that made you uncharacteristically frustrated.

"I've said I'm sorry," you repeated again, lips in a firm line. "There must be something wrong with your hearing." You fixed the bag on your shoulder as you shot him a glare and was about to turn around again if Yunhyeong's words wouldn't have stopped you.

"Are you really trying to play this game?"

"I wasn't the one who started this," you stated matter-of-factly, the dancing flames in your eyes starting a more fervent routine than before. You seemed unfazed by the rain that was pouring onto you, not caring about the condition of you expensive dress. Funny how you seemed all tight and rich (and annoying), yet you let your designer bag get soaked in the rain. Not to mention your perfectly braided hair.

"You bumped into me," he pointed out as he took a step closer to you. He didn't seem to intimidate you though. Maybe it's because you were as tall as him with your high heels, or maybe you had just enough pride in you not to be swayed by a man like him.

"That was accidental. Haven't you heard about accidents?" You got back at him immediately and took a step closer to him, so that you would be even closer to him, your faces only an inch away. Yunhyeong could hear the erratic beating of your heart and wondered if he had played a role in its state.

"Oh yes, I did. I certainly did." He nodded nonchalantly, bitterness scratching his throat. "I've accidentally eavesdropped a conversation today that made me realize that my fiancée's with me only for my money. You can tell that I don't like accidents," he confessed straightforwardly, not caring if you knew who he was or if you would pass on the news. He didn't care. After all, his fiancée has wanted to do something similar to him.

"Today, I've accidentally walked in on my best friend having sex with my boyfriend of four years whom I've thought would marry me soon. And if that's not enough, they did it in our apartman, on my birthday, before I was supposed to go out for dinner with him. So you can tell that I don't like accidents either," you told him without a blink of an eye, without being ashamed of the past events. It's not like Yunhyeong thought that you should be ashamed. After all, it wasn't you who had cheated on your boyfriend.

On the other hand, the fact that you got to know about it today and you seemed so composed surprised him. A lot. On top of that, he was convinced that boyfriend of yours must have been either completely dumb or just another chaebol who didn't care how much money he lost by such a scandal. If it was ever going to surface.

"You look like you need a drink," Yunhyeong said quite emotionlessly, even though his grudge against you wasn't so powerful anymore. He began to understand you a bit more.

"Oh yes, I do." You nodded, half-laughing and half-snorting.

"I'll buy you a drink."

It was a mere offer on his part. If anything, it was a kind one. He knew you both had your own hardships to deal with, so he assumed that a drink or two may come in handy for you. On the other hand, you didn't take his side.

"I don't need your pity."

"If not for your douchebag boyfriend, then for your birthday. I'm the CEO of Full Moon, and I would need a drinking buddy anyway. You can join or you can go home drinking alone." He shrugged, his vision getting blurry because of the raindrops that got into his eyes. The rain didn't bother him though, it felt like as if it was going to wash away all the events from the day, all the bad that had happened. Even though he knew a mere spring downpour couldn't solve his problems, at least it wasn't sunny to make him feel even worse.

You weren’t bothered either. You were standing fierce and tall, clothes getting soaked and hair looking like a lost girl’s.

"I'm not going home," you blurted out after a few seconds of complete silence, except the sound of rain.

"Exactly." Yunhyeong bobbed his head agreeingly, and waited a bit before he headed back to his own bar. He wasn't surprised when you followed him, it wasn't that hard to imagine after seeing the flames in your eyes that became more powerful when you declared that you wouldn't want to go home. Considering that you had mentioned having a shared apartment with your boyfriend, he could understand why you didn't want to go home.

So you did. You followed him into his bar, taking a seat on the black leather seat beside him, elbows resting on the cold surface of the wooden counter. You enjoyed the slight jazz music that was playing from the speakers, the dim light that illuminated only what was needed to be illuminated and the rest was left in mysterious darkness, the chic yet somewhat fitting design of the whole place, black and burgundy being the dominant colours. There were only a few people at this hour, but considering that Yunhyeong had introduced himself as the CEO of the bar, you weren’t afraid that you would find yourself outside the place because of closing hours.

He ordered himself a drink and so did you. You seriously needed something strong, hoping that the euphoria that the alcohol would bring would be enough to erase the picture of your best friend getting down on your boyfriend, or at least to help to ease the pain. Anything but to face the consequences.

"So did it happen to you today, too? Getting to know about your fiancée's true intentions?" You couldn’t help but ask since the young man himself seemed so easily annoyed by a simple act of carelessness on your part. He must have gotten to know about it lately or he must not have been over it yet.

"Yes." He nodded, an aghast sigh escaping his lips. "I wish it didn’t happen today though. I should have known about it before. I wouldn’t have proposed to her then," he explained, eyes staring far ahead, breathing more erratic than it should have been. You looked at this heartbroken young man and wondered if he was really that blind to not see the signs or his fiancée was that good of an actress. After all, you couldn’t see things coming your way either. Maybe you were both too lost in your own feelings that you didn’t catch up to what was going on around you. Maybe you both just wanted to be loved and feel loved.

"It’s still better that you got to know about it now than if it happened later," you pointed out with a tilt of your head, thinking of the consequences of a later revelation. They hadn’t gotten married yet, so at least he didn’t need to worry about that part if he decided to leave his fiancée for good.

"Maybe." He nodded hearing your words, and you could definitely feel the sorrow in his words. It soaked through his voice, his shirt, his actions. He was a heartbroken man, his confessions dripping rawness and desperation. No matter how much he tried to hide it, you could see the real man behind the mask, you noticed his intense gazes and momental daydreams.

You soon fell into a comfortable silence that only the light music from the speakers interrupted. Your drink was ready in no time, and the barista put down both your order and the man’s order at the same time. You exchanged a glance with the CEO as you reached for the glass.

"Cheers!" He said, holding up his shot of vodka.

"Cheers!" You emulated his actions and consumed the soju in one-go. You immediately felt the warmth spreading through your body, the alcohol making its way through your system. It wasn’t a very familiar feeling as you didn’t drink a lot. In fact, you only drank if it was socially required at parties or other events that were more about your money than you personally. Sometimes you really hated your life. Sometimes you were thankful that you could start your own business because you were born into a rich family. Sometimes you imagined being just an ordinary woman, sometimes you enjoyed the glamour. It was nothing new though; the chaebol life had always been ambivalent.

"Oh, and happy birthday!" The CEO added after he gulped down his own drink and visibly flinched when the taste hit in. You bobbed your head as a sign of gratitude.

"Maybe it’s not my day but it can be my year," you added with a bittersweet smile as you looked at him, his lips also curling upwards. It wasn’t a friendly smile though, it was more like an empathetic, an understanding one. It was genuine and raw, it was all you could have asked for in such a situation.

"You’re right. You deserve better."

You had no idea what to say. You didn’t even know each other, you had met half an hour ago, and he was already talking about you as if he had known you all your life. It was weird, this kind of act right at the beginning of your conversation when you were so used to people sugarcoating their words or outright lying to you, keeping their distance from you when they got to know who you were. He either didn’t care or didn’t know how it was supposed to be.

"You don’t even know me," you remarked rather confusedly, hoping that he wouldn’t take your words the wrong way. He didn’t though.

"No one should be cheated on," he mused out loud, keeping the eye-contact for another minute or so before he turned back to order another round. Then, he casually loosened his necktie and stared far ahead.

You assumed that you two had more in common that you would have previously thought, and this night was enough to prove you right. More than enough.

The next morning you woke up at the exact same spot you talked to Yunhyeong the day before. You probably dozed off after your fourth bottle of soju because you had no recollection after that, hence the location seemed fitting. You didn't mean to stay the night, you didn't even mean to drink so much, but through the shared sorrow and compassion somehow you found talking to the CEO quite enjoyable. He was a breath of fresh air after meeting so many lifeless, two-faced rich people you had the chance to encounter. He was intelligent, not the obvious one, not even the fake one, yet the way he connected the dots and looked at the world was saying it all. He was kind and considerate too, not the pushy type though, he had just the right amount of curiosity. He was also a lot kinder throughout the night than compared to the way you met. Maybe it was because you went through kind of the same, or maybe he was usually this kind. You didn't know, you knew only a tad bit about him.

When you opened your eyes, you needed a minute to realize where you were and why you were there.

You stood up, but you immediately knew that it was a horrible idea when you needed to hold onto the bar counter, so that you wouldn't fall down.

"Easy there," a familiar male voice suggested gently, yet you could detect a bit of amusement behind his words. You could already feel him smiling even without properly looking at him.

"I'm perfectly fine," you tried to reason as you turned around to face a perfectly sober Yunhyeong with a neatly ironed shirt and clean cotton pants. So you were the only one who got knocked out last night. Good to know.

"Your reflexes wouldn't say the same." He giggled to himself before his features became solemn again. You eyed each other for a few seconds before he made his way around you and got behind the counter, filling a glass with water. "Here. You must be dehydrated," he added while a faint smile was dancing along the edges of his mellow lips. You knew that he was right as your throat was as dry as a desert, yet you needed a moment before you reached for the glass to gulp down its content in one go.

You put it down with a satisfied sigh, and looked back at Yunhyeong.

"Thank you." You bobbed your head as a sign of gratitude, hoping that he wouldn’t expect too much of you in such a state. You wouldn’t say that you had a headache or that you were that hungover. However, you definitely felt the heaviness in your body and you were definitely thirsty like never before. You should have eaten the night before, too, you reckoned as your stomach growled loudly.

"Seems like someone’s hungry," the CEO commented with a lopsided smile that you wished you could swipe off his face. You weren’t used to such cheekiness, especially not from someone who was your age (as you had discussed that you were the same liners). Yet, there was something childishly innocent about his playful behaviour you couldn’t quite pinpoint. He had this duality, and you weren’t sure when to take him seriously and when not to.

"It’s okay." You shook your head. "I’ll grab something on the way to work," you declared as you looked at your watch and realized that it was time you headed out for work. Even though you were the owner of your very own jewellery shop, even though you could have come by any minute and you could have skipped any day without notifying anyone, you weren’t one to abandon what you’ve been working for years, and you were definitely not one to call in sick just because you had a drunk night.

"Are you sure you don’t want to eat here?" Yunhyeong inquired with a quirk of an eyebrow, but you nodded anyway.

"Yes, I’m sure. You’ve already done enough."

"It was nothing, really." The CEO shrugged like it was really nothing when it was more than you could have asked for. Even though it wasn’t intentional, at least you had somewhere to sleep, at least you didn’t need to face neither your boyfriend, nor your best friend, and at least Yunhyeong kept you company. Come to think of it, it wasn’t that bad of a night despite the horrible events that led you to the bar.

"Thank you, Yunhyeong," you repeated with a grateful smile for which the young man just shook his head.

"No problem. You can come by anytime," he offered with a soft smile, and you felt odd under his stare. Maybe it was because you were still very much affected by what happened the day before, or maybe it was because you had lost all faith in males, and there was this gentle young man showing you that not all guys were as much of an asshole as your boyfriend was. Or ex-boyfriend. Whatever. There was still something left to discuss with him.

"I will," you promised equally casually, and headed out of the bar with a lighter heart and a newfound acquaintance in the same district you had your own shop.

As both your shop and Yunhyeong's bar was on the same shopping street (which was said to be the most chic in Seoul), you didn't hesitate a lot when you finished with work in time, and didn't feel like going straight home. Yunhyeong even paid for your drinks every time you were there even if you insisted that you earned enough, so you could pay for your own order. When it came to business, he was as serious as no one you had met before, yet when he was off-work, he wasn't so stern. He joked around a lot and whined like a child even though he was already in his mid-twenties. He seemed like such a brat sometimes. He was also very enthusiastic and curious, so when you showed him around your shop for the first time, he looked around like Alice in Wonderland. It was odd seeing him among all those fancy rings and necklaces you were selling, and it was even more weird because he was a male. You didn't like stereotypes but males were rare to find in your shop.

Truth to be told, you weren't used to having a companion almost every day. You tried to be on good terms with your employees, but none of them were close to you. Not to mention your family. You didn't hate them, but you didn't even fancy spending time with them when it wasn't necessary. You were thankful for what you had, yet you had such different mentalities that it was difficult not to pick a fight with them whenever you spent time together.

With Yunhyeong, you weren't lonely even if you had just broken up with your boyfriend and had also lost contact with your best friend after what had happened. You knew that it was over, but you decided to give a chance for both of them to explain themselves, and it didn’t go well, to say the least. You ended up drinking at Full Moon yet again, complaining to Yunhyeong about what those two had dared to bring up as their excuses.

You didn’t keep count of the weeks and months that passed by because you were always looking forward to each and every day to meet Yunhyeong, to get to know him a bit more. Despite your initial dislike towards him, he turned out to a very gentle, attentive and incredibly funny young man, and soon your days became filled with his contagious laughter and self-made meals because the CEO loved nothing more than cooking.

This is how you actually ended up in his house one day after he had insisted that he would want to teach you how to cook one of his favourite meals. It was about half a year after your first encounter and also your first time to visit his house.

It was all going well as Yunhyeong was a very patient chef, and he didn’t make you feel completely useless even though he did most of the actual work. You weren’t a kitchen fairy, but you’ve tried your best, and worked as diligently as you would do at your own shop. It wasn’t until a careless turn on your part and his closeness that the atmosphere became somewhat awkward. You had just turned around to look at him and ask what else you could do, but he was already behind you, so you practically bumped into him and almost lost balance but he caught you in time. He grabbed you by the waist, and even when he could see for himself that you were stable, he didn’t let you go. You didn’t care though. You were more focused on his face. To be precise, on his eyes.

You didn’t even dare to look away, you didn’t feel like you knew how to do so. You were mesmerized, stuck in the moment, in the fantasy world that the situation created. You had never been this close to Yunhyeong ever before, and the close proximity did odd things to the state of your heart. You found it difficult to breathe properly, and your lips were parted because you were about to say something, yet nothing seemed right.

Then it happened. All of a sudden, only for a moment, your lips touched his, and you were even more mesmerized than before. However, your rational part made you back away and apologize immediately.

"I’m sorry. I really didn’t…" You started immediately but he cut you off.

"It’s okay, it’s really okay." He shook his head, then a lopsided grin started stretching on his lips. "I was just about to ask if it’s okay if I kiss you," he added with a nervous giggle and sheepishly scratched his temple.

You were so shocked than you didn’t even know what to say for the next few seconds. Your heart was racing so wildly that you were afraid that you would have a heart attack soon. Luckily, Yunhyeong saved you.

"Then, it’s my turn next," he declared as he hovered over you and waited for you to push him away, to reject him. Needless to say, you did neither, and so he kissed you while you could feel him smiling to himself. You did the same as him, your insides melting.

What an interesting turn of events when it all started with an innocent little cooking session.

[dat-town]

No Speed Limit | chapter index

Some people live to race while others race to live.

When an uptown girl's and street racer's worlds collide, their lives are bound to change. For the better or worse, it's hard to tell. In-between rivalry and unwanted sparks, there's definitely a bumpy road ahead (with no speed limit).

Written by: @inksonmyskin & @dat-town

Characters: Soyeon & Hanbin

Setting: street racer au

Genre: romance, action, slight angst

Warnings: sometimes swearing, alcohol consumption and occationally suggestive content

Words: ~28k

Chapters are coming on Sundays!

Chapters:

chapter 1

chapter 2

chapter 3

chapter 4

chapter 5

chapter 6

chapter 7

chapter 8

chapter 9

chapter 10

[ikonicallytyping]

Steps to a Happiness Extension Line 「bobby edition」

PREVIEW

kim jiwon aka bobby x reader

angst+fluff

Bobby’s POV

I went there early to her studio because I got bored at home and we were all going to her place eventually in a few hours. I didn’t think of it much. But I left to go back home and just go back to her studio when the others woke up. I’ll just go with them later is what I thought because I need to figure out what just happened.

(Rewind 1 hour to when he arrived at her place)

I always thought Y/N was dope. Her place being a studio itself, is basically an artist’s dream. The fact she has a bed in the recording studio too, she’s smart. She barely sleeps because she likes what she does and just keeps going. I admire that.

I walked into her place because she intrusted us with our own key (we signed a contract to ensure we don’t steal) and unlocked the studio to find her knocked out in the studio bed she claims she actually uses. We didn’t believe her really that she uses it since her actual bedroom is literally across the hallway but I guess she worked all night so the laziness kicks in right after.

I kneeled down to peak at her breathing lightly enough to know she’s sleeping but heavy enough to almost claim it as snoring. I find it hilarious because she sleeps in the same position as me. A blanket between the legs, the right side, and hugging a pillow. It’s coincidental. I like it.

Then she suddenly goes silent in her light snoring and shifts. She opens her eyes to the slightest and just stares at me. It’s quiet. I didn’t really know what to say so I just smiled a little, staring back.

She then reached her hand out and cupped my face...????? Y/N smiled half alive and she quietly asked me why I was here. I told her I just wanted to get a head start for the project. I could tell that everything I said though, went through her head as she blinks slowly trying to process it. I don’t think she was paying attention LOL

Her hand stayed cupped on my face. It’s warm and after I explained why I was there, she responded.

“I know we only been friends for a while this year.. but I am so proud of you. You really are so hardworking, funny, and such a happy person. I really like hanging out with you. We annoy each other but and I like it. I’m sure you hear it enough though...”

“Hear what enough?”

“That you’re funny, and talented.. and nice,, and handsome...”

“Who said I hear that a lot?”

“All the girls you talk to...”

“Why are you saying this? Are you perhaps, jealous” I laughed entertained by this. Is she unconsciously saying this?

“It’s a dream. I can say whatever I want. I won’t say any more though... wow you even fight me in my dreams. I just wanted to tell you some of what I feel towards you because I’ll never. Hmph”

I froze. What she feels towards me?

“What? Tell me all of it.” I asked her curiously shocked. It was too late though. She forced her eyes shut and dozed off into actual dreamland this time.

Wait, she actually likes me?

TO BE CONTINUED

————

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE or MERRY CHRISTMASSSS! or happy holidays!!!!

xmas break means part time job and being broke, what’s new tho hehe please look forward to more chapters of this!

check out my dk one on my masterlist.

- peanut

[xheartsigh]

Love written in pink

Jinhwan has pink hair, the others has left for holidays and Junhoe has serious heart palpitations that can't be healthy. (Or is he just in love?)

for @binkygee 💕

[wyvernlynch]

[00] ☙ inside the notebook of a random girl

by @wyvernlynch. picture by STIL on unsplash

genre: daily life, romace pov: first, in a form of a diary updates: every week

↳ the diary of a music producer.

↬ ❦ ↫

so. i hate cliché stories. and stuff that are just too mainstream and unplanned whatsoever. but a lot of times i have a tendency to want to write those kind of stories. and now that i think about it, a lot of my stories are cliché before polishing and re-writing about a gazillion times. but i never had the heart to publish them.

but i need stories. i need to write and i'm literally too busy with life to be able to plan every single detail in every single book i'm writing. so inside the notebook of a random girl was created. filled with my rants and imagination where i didn't edit (or edit minimally), and didn't plan (or plan minimally) everything.

summary: inside the notebook of a random girl or INBORG (yes i need another name but whatever) tells the story of eugene octaviana living and struggling as a music producer in korea. her choice of career leads her to meet stars and work with them. what people thought as a great job, she finds things a lot different than what she thought.

[lily-blue]

Wanna keep you close

☆ characters: bobby & you ☆ genre: fluff, best friends to almost lovers au, angst ☆ summary: You and Bobby are best friends but he tends to forget what being a friend means in both a negative and a positive way that is sweet and also really annoying at the very same time. ☆ words: 1,1k ☆ also: it’s a Christmas present for the lovely @restlessmaknae ♥ she is one of the loveliest girls in the world! I’m truly grateful for you (and I really hope that you’ll like this little nothing)! ♥

You met Bobby on the worst day of your life back in kindergarten when you managed to destroy your favourite, colourful stocking and also lost your crimson ribbon while you were playing hide and seek. He saved your teddy bear from another fatal accident when you threw a tantrum in the middle of the playground, not giving a single crap about the mud near the sand pit.

You two are best friends ever since and created your own tradition for the holidays in the first year of your high school years. Six years ago, it was a stupid and rather annoying accident that he downloaded the wrong movie, now, among your new friends and Hanbin’s first ever girlfriend from some other idol group, you choose Love Actually on purpose, desperately looking for an empty seat in the living room of their dorm. It was so much quieter and more peaceful when there were just the two of you!

Cuddling in Bobby’s embrace, you lose yourself in the young Thomas Brodie-Sangster’s performance because he’s such a sweetheart, you could squeeze his cheeks on the spot while you would try to shove him into your pocket in vain. Even his tiny body would be a big piece of cake for you, a much bigger piece that your throat could ever swallow. You lose it way before the final scene.

After you all finish the movie and Hanbin escorts his girlfriend to the front door, you go to the bathroom and take a shower while you wash your teeth under the shower head to save a few minutes, one foot already in the bed. You sure overestimated that small smack of energy that had left in you after your four-hour-long shift in the grocery shop where you’re the only part-timer. You have always wondered how that sweet, old lady could do all the hard work when you’re not around.

Ready to go to sleep, you find the couch less empty than you would prefer it to be but looking at the sleepy Bobby snoring like a wide animal makes up for all the nuisance he causes and you decide to let him be. He looks too cute with the flower patterned pillows surrounding his body.

You sit on your heels and watch his relaxed face, eager fingers playing with his silky hair that seems quite a mess now that he doesn’t fix it in every five minutes. A guy like him who tends to spend almost half an hour in the bathroom every single morning shouldn’t be effortlessly handsome because this way, all his routine appears to be nothing but a waste of time. You sigh when you realize that your careless attempt at pushing him into the arms of his sweetest dreams actually wakes him up.

He smiles and pats the tiny space on his right side. Chewing your bottom lip, you give in and lay next to his body. After all, who are you to refuse his offer when you’re finally alone?

Trying to keep your balance on the edge of the couch, you can feel his arm pulling you close, rough fingers caressing your back. Those tiny circles he draws on your skin dress your whole body in goosebumps.

A part of you hates it, how good it feels to be in his arms.

‘Please, don’t do this,’ you beg because you really don’t want to misunderstand the situation as your brain already throws the third theory at you, whispering one of your sinful desires into your ear. Damn you, how much you want him to look at you as Hanbin looks at his girlfriend.

But Bobby is different. He can be really clingy sometimes while on other days, he shuts you out completely, reading your texts but never replying them. On those days, you wish you could push him away and tear this nonsense bond of yours apart for good.

When your best friend pulls your head onto his chest, pushing the last drop of oxygen out of your lungs, his masculine scent leaves you literally breathless and you hate that how weak your voice sounds when you try to set yourself free.

‘Bobby…’ you say, repeating his name over and over again like a mantra or a prayer as if it could save you from your doom. But it’s useless. He wins and you lose at the moment he decides to hide his face in the crook of your neck.

He sighs and his hot breath tickles you ears, making it impossible for you to push him away because it feels so good, so right that the fact that you lose control suddenly doesn’t bother you at all. Desperate, your arm grabs the boy’s shoulder, head hot and ruby red, and damn, you almost forget your own name when you notice the fast pace, the murderous pace of your best friend’s heart. When you lift your head up, your gaze meets his confused eyes, both your and his mouth are open wide in disbelief.

‘Bobby…’ you whisper once again, a little rougher. Truth to tell, there are lots of things you want to say, starting with a light confession about the pleasant feeling that blooms in your chest whenever he takes a breath, deeper than usual, then describing that pinch of itching pain that spreads in your body whenever he pulls you close. Your stupid, stupid lips! Why can’t they move when your heart is ready to explode into shattered pieces right in front of his eyes!

Your mouth parts then closes, unsaid promises echoing in your mind when you notice the sweet pressure on your lips and his loving hands on your figure, long fingers brushing a nasty mop of hair out of your face.

You pinch your left arm to wake yourself up from this cruel dream but the dull pain doesn’t work and you almost choke, eyes open wide, when Bobby pecks your forehead and lets you go.

You grab his tee with an unsatisfied moan, cheeks deep crimson as your own voice fondles your ears. Was this really you?

Unable to look him in the eye, he ruffles your messy locks and leans closer to your ear. A sinful part of you wishes him to do more than putting some words carefully one after the other. But he is so predictable, always taking a step backwards when it’s time to move.

‘Sleep tight,’ he says and you roll your eyes, knowing perfectly well that there will be no more kisses for today. So, you let him hug you, telling yourself that you won’t regret this, that you’re not regretting this. Because why would you? Loving someone shouldn’t hurt you at all.

the end.

[netkon]

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[dat-town]

No speed limit | Chapter 9

Summary: Some people live to race while others race to live. When an uptown girl’s and street racer’s worlds collide, their lives are bound to change. For the better or worse, it’s hard to tell. In-between rivalry and unwanted sparks, there’s definitely a bumpy road ahead (with no speed limit).

Words: 2.8k

Chapter index

The air still smelled like smoke long after the fire was put out.

Hanbin let his arm with the phone fall back to by his side when the line went dead. He looked over his friends getting interrogated by police officers who also tried to keep the reporters away as much as they could but it didn’t stop the press from taking photos most likely for a future article. Hanbin hated that they came and looked at the burned down place as if it was a circus for their entertainment, that they used their tragedy as an asset to get some attention, to blow something off as big news even if it was ‘just’ a fire in the suburbs with only a few ‘kids’ involved. They didn’t really care that that car repair shop was their life, the only sort of income some of them had and phew, it was all gone from one moment to another.

It was really just luck because they were all in the front having an early dinner after working hours and they were joking around as usually. So free-spirited they didn’t even find the smoke’s distinguishable smell suspicious. Barbeques weren’t that rare of a thing around there after all. If it wasn’t for Bobby who went into the back to get a few more beer from the fridge who knows when they would have noticed the fire spreading from throughout the entire shop. Even with the guy’s alarming warning they barely escaped before the whole place blew up because of the chemicals on fire inside. Damn, it was such a mess.

“Hey, are you ok?” A hand patted his back and Hanbin sighed as he looked over Jinhwan, who looked dead serious for once.

“Yeah… it’s just a lot,” the younger frustratedly raked a hand over his hair.

He knew he should have only cared about them being alright but that car repair shop meant a lot to all of them and with their insurance they probably won’t see a won in return of the damage. The ground was all black and ruined where the place had been once and only a few burnt metal withstood the destruction of the flames.

“Did the cops said anything?” The driver pointed at the police car that left the spot just now with all the gathered information.

“Nothing much that matters. They will contact us when they have info yadda yadda. But according to the pyrotechnician it seems to be arson. However with no cameras or witnesses around we have nothing on the possible culprit,” Jinhwan grimaced and Hanbin let out a groan because he knew what this exactly meant: that most likely they won’t ever catch whoever did it.

They had quite a few petty enemies from the races and local gangs, so it was hard to tell who it could be and why. They even laid low for a while, so why now? It just didn’t make sense. Maybe it was only a few rascals who wanted nothing more than to cause trouble and vandalise strangers’ property.

“That sucks,” Hanbin buried his face into his hands, feeling totally useless. Lately everything was almost too good to be true. Maybe this one was the payback for all the good times.

“Yeah, I know,” Jinhwan agreed, understanding well how he felt. They were all quite devastated. Yet, he tried to find directions for themselves. One step at a time. “Look, I’m gonna take the girls home. You should head back, too. We will figure out what to do tomorrow.”

The racer nodded with a sigh, knowing that they can't do much more tonight and he watched the last of his friends leave. Despite the lingering smell of burns brought by the wind and the dark patch in lieu of the shop, the street started to resemble itself when all that attention died down. He was just about to get into his car heading home as he promised to both Soyeon and Jinhwan when a lean figure blocked his way.

“Hey,” the guy greeted him.

“Oh, hi Donghyuk,” Hanbin shook hands with the neighbour dance studio’s owner. The dancer was also interrogated as a possible witness but since he had a class while it all happened, he couldn’t tell anything. “Sorry for today’s mess.”

“It’s not your fault,” Donghyuk shook his head, sympathy painted all over his features. “Look, I didn’t want to get involved with the cops but thought you might need it,” he cleared his throat as he hands Hanbin a pendrive with a meaningful look. Neither of them needs to say anything more for them to know what it contains.

“Thank you,” Hanbin closed his fingers around the small storage device, nodding towards their neighbour.

“Let me know if I can help in any way around the shop,” the guy said as a goodbye and walked away.

Hanbin stared at his fist for a while before shoving the pendrive into his pocket and got behind the wheel. I had already gotten late in the meantime and he hated to make Soyeon wait in the dark, especially around a neighbourhood he lived in. He texted her that he was on his way before driving off. There were so many different feelings overlapping inside him that it was hard to tell which got him so worked up by the time he parked a block away from his apartment. Was it anticipation to see his girl again? Fear and anger mixed because of the recent event? Excitement to figure out who did it?

Turning around the corner his heart skipped a beat when he saw Soyeon there and a small smile made its way onto his mouth despite the circumstances. She noticed him right away too, standing up from the few steps of stairs in front of the apartment building’s door. But the smile froze to Hanbin’s lips soon after because a few meters behind the girl, a black car flashed its lights and he immediately knew what it meant. Nothing good, that’s for sure.

He had his guts twisted and turned as he gritted his teeth. Walking over the parking lot, he looked past Soyeon as if he didn’t even know her but slowed down when he reached her side.

“Go inside, I’ll follow you in a minute,” he promised in a whisper, dropping his keys into the girl’s open palm, fingers grazing against her hand just a bit longer than intended before he passed by her. He didn’t look back, didn’t confirmed that she did as he asked or not but he heard a door open and close, so he hoped she listened to him.

Yet, his steps were still jittery as he walked to the black minivan and got inside. As his back collided with the leather seat, he sat next to a man in his late thirties. With his Rolex and silk shirt, blowing cigarette smoke into Hanbin’s face, he looked more like a businessman than the gangster he was. But oh well, there was just a fine line between the too around the Ring.

“Still don’t like my offer?” The Ringmaster was known for going straight to the point, so Hanbin wasn’t surprised by his recurring question coming up again but the timing was quite suspicious.

“Was it you?” he asked with lips white in a firm line but he got laughed in the face.

“What? Behind that amateur arson? Don’t kid me, it doesn’t benefit me in any way. But I have eyes everywhere,” the man shrugged and Hanbin had to admit he was right. If he wanted to get his money, taking away a part of his income was no solution. But lately, the man was trying to persuade him to take an empty position in his gang and the racer wasn’t sure how desperate he was, so he didn’t say anything.

“Look, kid, I know you love racing, you love your friends and you loved that shitty shop. I’m offering you a way out of your debts and a job with easy money,” the man said and Hanbin hated when he acted like some kind of fairy godmother. As if it wasn’t him who tossed a once 16 year old kid into such situation.

“I won’t be your runaway driver,” he shook his head, determined to not let himself get swayed. He didn’t want to be more involved in criminal acts than he already was.

“Then deliver me the money, the whole sum by the end of the month. There won’t be any more extensions. If I don’t have it in my hands, I will take everything you own starting from that beloved car of yours, understood?” the Ringmaster growled as hostile as he really was. Hanbin nodded.

“Will you leave me alone once you have the money?”

“You act like it wasn’t an honour making business with me,” the man tsked and rolled his eyes running out of patience. “Just give me my damned money back and we are done. Now get out.”

“Make sure to bet on me next week ’cause I’m gonna win,” Hanbin promised with a confident smile, hands already on the handle.

“Girlfriend?” the gangster called after him suddenly, before he could open the door and there was a lump in the boy’s throat once again. Of course, the bastard had to notice. But he couldn’t see her face, so he couldn’t know who she was, Hanbin tried to reason but he knew it was in vain. If the Ringmaster wanted to find someone, he did.

“Leave her out of this,” Hanbin said through gritted teeth, willing himself not to do anything reckless and stupid. He knew the other was doing it on purpose, he found pleasure in kicking into people already on the ground.

“I will if you fulfill your part of the deal,” the man promised but it sounded like a threat and Hanbin was glad to leave the car behind. After he made sure the minivan disappeared from the sight, he jogged upstairs in the apartment building, knocking on his own door.

Soyeon looked utterly worried when she opened the door. Her face was pale and eyes narrowed in question. But she enveloped him in her arms as soon as he stepped inside with no questions asked. He must have smelled like fire and burns but she hugged him close as if it didn’t matter at all.

“What happened?” she murmured into his chest, sounding small. Hanbin stroked a hand down her back trying to soothe her and himself, too. Feeling her close grounded him.

“I need to tell you something. Let's sit down,” he suggested quietly and even though he didn’t want to lengthen the distance between them, he pulled away and taking her hand in his he led her to the couch in the small living room.

Silence only disturbed by their uneven heartbeats followed and Hanbin didn’t know how to start. It was like ripping off a bandage, he had to do it fast to make it hurt less he knew but he was still afraid of what Soyeon might think. She had never looked down on him because of anything but his past was something that never came up and she deserved to know.

“I’m in a debt. I owe a big pile of money to someone really powerful around here. That’s why I needed the driver job so bad and that’s why I participated in more races lately,” he blurted out quickly, worrying a lip between his teeth without taking his eyes off of their intertwined fingers.

“If it’s money...”

“No, I don’t want you or anyone to pay for it. It’s on me,” Hanbin cut her off early on, not wanting to hear any of it. He appreciated that she cared but it was something he needed to deal with. He got himself into this mess and he was this close to get out finally. “I was sixteen when my parents died. In a car accident, ironically. I had nothing and didn’t know what to do with myself and got into the wrong crowds. They introduced me the Ringmaster who paid me for simple deliveries. It was only later when shit went down that I realized I helped him dealing with drugs. I lost a package, a big one full of cocaine, so he basically owes me ever since. As soon as I learned how to drive he was the one who sent me to races, so he can bet on me and take his share while it gives me time. But lately he has grown inpatient, so it was him reminding me to pay.”

As his voice died down, there was a light, encouraging squeeze on his hand. As Soyeon tugged on it, he had no choice but to look up and to his relief there was no disappointment in her caramel eyes.

“Is this why the next race is so important to you?” she asked curiously, thumb stroking the back of his hand gently. She knew well how much money that meant.

“Yeah.”

“You can do it. I believe you will win and overcome it,” she told him while pressing a kiss on his knuckles lovingly. It warmed Hanbin’s heart and calmed his nerves.

“Thanks. It means a lot,” he said and he couldn’t even express himself with words. He had the fam behind his back and they accepted him as he was, true, but not even all of them knew about his detailed background story with the local gang. And Soyeon who just barely joined these circles could have been freaked out or even ashamed of him for having such life. But instead she seemed proud that he had come such a long way and supported in everything he did.

There was tranquility in the silence that stretched between them after such confession but they couldn’t forget about the circumstances. In the end it was Soyeon who tentatively brought up the topic.

“This Ringmaster… is it possible that ha started the fire?”

“I don’t think so. But...” Hanbin stopped in the middle of his answer to take out the pendrive from his pocket. “We will see.”

He quickly get his laptop from the coffee table and once the operating system loaded, he inserted the device. It had nothing but a video file on it and they exchanged a knowing look before clicking on play. The recording showed the back area of the dance studio but also a piece of the car repair shop too. For a while nothing happened but then a car pulled up at the sideway and two masked guys got out with bottles in their hands pouring their content on and around the wall.

They watch the video in silence but when Hanbin’s muscles tensed, Soyeon nuzzled closer and tried to pry open his heavy fists gently.

It was when the two guys got back into the car that the unmasked driver leaned out of the window and threw a burning lighter onto the liquid that got on fire immediately.

“Oh no... he didn’t,” Soyeon gasped when she recognized the figure on the frozen screen. “He’s a psychopath, he has gone crazy for sure.”

Hanbin didn’t say anything, just detached the pendrive from the computer and handed it over to Soyeon.

“It’s yours,” he said firmly which confused the hell out of the angered girl.

“What?” She blinked gaze shifting between the boy and the device that held all the evidence against Seungyeon. It wasn’t just a petty little crime anymore that their father could have saved him, they both knew it but Hanbin also knew that how much damage something like this could leave on her family. A scandal, all that press, the trials...

“Despite what he did, he’s your brother. I don’t want you to suffer because of this. So it’s your choice whether we use it or not,” he explained patiently with both his hands around hers. Out of the two of them now she was the more shaken up and he wanted to be there for her just like she was there for him.

“Of course you shou-” ld use it, Soyeon wanted to blurt out immediately but she was interrupted with a request.

“Think about it, don’t decide in a hustle.”

“Okay,” she huffed out knowing that Hanbin is right even if in that moment she wanted nothing else but to see his brother finally suffer the consequences of his actions.

This time the quiet was suffocating and heavy. It felt like rain pouring from above.

“Hey Soyeon,” Hanbin whispered as they cuddled on the couch and she hummed acknowledging him. “No matter how you decide, I love you too.”

His voice was soft and fond, honest and he smiled when he finally felt her relax by his side. Everything was so hectic and messy that he didn’t have a chance to tell her earlier but he needed to let it out now. Because even if their worlds were crumbling down around them, at least their love was constant.

[dat-town]

No Speed Limit | Chapter 1

Summary: Some people live to race while others race to live. When an uptown girl’s and street racer’s worlds collide, their lives are bound to change. For the better or worse, it’s hard to tell. In-between rivalry and unwanted sparks, there’s definitely a bumpy road ahead (with no speed limit).

Words: 2.6k

Chapter index

Kim Hanbin wasn't particularly fond of his reputation but he disliked even more that those Gangnam kids treated him like dirt.

In the Ring, this depraved outskirt of Seoul he was known as the Ringmaster's favourite, a puppy jumping at every order. The rumours also said he ran away from home by stealing his father's car at the fragile age of sixteen because that was when he first appeared on the horizon among the local gangs. People whispered behind his back that he not only dealt with drugs but lived on them too. They claimed he once beat someone half-dead because of a scratch on his car.

Lies. All of them. But nobody had to know.

Hanbin didn't bother correcting those who were in the wrong. Now that he was both feared and admired most people at least let him be. They gushed about him when he was there and only talked shit behind his back. There was only a small circle of people whom he had trusted with his life and who know enough about him.

However, one thing was true out of all those gossips running around about him: he was the best driver in the Ring and undeniably one of the bests in all Seoul. Cops had only caught him once during his rookie years and never again since, he was too good, too fast for that. And as somebody who lived off his driving abilities, he had to be if he wanted to survive in this cold, harsh world. That much he has learned since he was on his own.

He had worked  hard to earn himself a title here in the Ring, so when that almighty Jeon Seungyeon waltzed in here as if he owned the place, as if it was his innate right to get bows from left and right, he was pissed to say the least. That rich guy thought he was better than anyone just because he had money and a fancy, expensive car that could break in two at the first scratch. He had probably never knew deprivation since he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.

“Come again?” Hanbin slowly, unimpressed, borderline bored looked up at the big bulk of a man, taller and older than him. He didn't care about all that as he shrugged that perfectly manicured hand off his shoulder. Guys like him always just act tough and badass until they run back to hide behind their mothers' skirts. Hanbin has faced so much worse than him, so he won't be intimidated by a glare and flashy words.

“Are you deaf?” Seungyeon huffed, anger building up in him slowly, the vein popping at his neck.

His little crew laughed at his poor joke from behind and Hanbin rolled his eyes and put a hand on Bobby's chest stopping him in the middle of getting up to beat up the cool kids for messing in their territories. But Hanbin knew better than to make a scene, it would only benefit the politician's son.

“No but you're talking nonsense,” he answered coldly, eyes shooting daggers at the taller man.

Around them he heard the onlookers whispering, guessing the possible outcomes of this sudden encounter. There had been talks that the newly elected Gangnam mayor's son goes around in the suburbs looking for trouble, picking on people and not a lot of them dared to say no. But Hanbin had not much to lose anyway besides his pride and beloved car.

“So you don't want to race me? Ah are you afraid? What a coward,” the guy scoffed, his tone degrading as if he was talking to a stupid child. But if one of them was stupid, it was him with his ridiculous gelled hair, wearing a designer leather jacket and Rolex in a neighbourhood where people would have killed for there. And here he was, acting like a little prince so far from home, faway from his father's surveillance challenging the best of the Ring.

“Afraid of you? Hardly but I'm not a fan of wasting my time on newbies who think just because they can drive their fancy little car, they can race, too,” Hanbin answered as dry as the sand in the Sahara and he turned back to his group of friends sitting by his cars, clinking their beers after the regular Friday night race. Hanbin didn't even have a chance to celebrate today's victory or gather the cash, his share of the Ringmaster's profit from bets because Seungyeon butted into his business almost as soon as he got out of his car.

And now that annoying asshole grabbed his shoulder yanking him back.

“What did you just say, short stuff?” he hollered like an attention-craving child and Hanbin swatted his hand away irritatedly. He had some anger management issues in the past but he knew well this guy wasn't worth of starting a fight.

“Who's the deaf now?” he snorted and standing up straight, eyes fierce and wild, he croaked a brow at the rich kid. “I don't have to prove myself to you. Everyone here knows I'm the best. So if you want me to race with you,so you can get that glory you dream of, you have to offer something worthy of my time.”

For a long minute of two, they were staring at each other's eyes, unwavering, like two predators showing off dominance. It was a wordless battle and their audience of dozens of thugs, rascals or just young adults wanting to have fun hold their breath back waiting for something to happen. And Hanbin had never been one for backing off, for giving up, so it wasn't even a surprise when the big mouth Seungyeon sighed deeply in the end.

“Fine,” he shrugged and looked around, eyes searching for something, someone in the crowd. When he found what he was looking for, he flipped his arm towards a certain direction while his gaze settled on the current best of the Ring. “You can have my fierce little sister for tonight.”

First, there was silence, an awkward laughter and then a few people started whistling when it turned out he wasn't kidding by the stern look on his face.

“Why would I want anything fro-” from your little sister? Hanbin wanted to ask shaking his head but the words froze onto his throat when a girl, tearing herself apart from a barely adult guy, lunged at Seungyeon from behind.

“I'm not an asset, you asshole!” She spit on him furiously, long, black hair swirling in the air around her and Hanbin would have been a liar to claim his breath didn't hitch for a moment there. She looked like a beautiful, wild amazon, almost unreal but unlike her brother she didn't seem too outstanding, too Gangnam-like. She looked like someone who could get mixed up in their crowd. She wasn't too young, probably only a few years younger than Hanbin himself but still.

“Shut up, bitch,” her brother growled at her unapologetically and one of his friends yanked her back. The brutal way he treated her gave one more reason to Hanbin to hate this guy. “He won't win anyway, so you don't have to worry that he will dirty you.”

The crowd laughed, a few eww-d and for a moment Hanbin's eyes met with the girl's in the middle of this chaos. Her dark orbs were full of fire, pride and the kind of yearning for freedom that he has known well. HIs gaze slowly wandered downwards from the cupid bow of her plump, carmine red mouth, through the slim neck to her curvy body covered only in a crop top, jeans shorts and leather jacket. It was indeed a gorgeous sight but Hanbin didn't consider the offer because of her looks.

He wasn't that unattractive to not get laid if he didn't want to, a lot of girls were actually pretty willing just because of his mysterious bad boy reputation too, But offering his sister as a reward was far too big of a face of this guy. He was beyond confident, to the point it would be called arrogance and cockiness. Or else he wouldn't have offered his sister, right? And oh how Hanbin wished to wipe that confident grin off his face, to see him dancing back on his words, so he grinned wide at the last remark.

“Oh but it's not fun if you don't get your hands dirty,” he played with the word and tapped his fingers on his chin thinking before agreeing. “You know what? If you're that impatient to humiliate yourself today, in that case, we can start. Till the water tower over there and back.”

The triumphant smile on Seungyeon's face was ridiculous. Nobody has heard about his skills, so he couldn't have been good no matter how much his monkeys hyped him up. A good car didn't make the good driver, it was the other way around: a good driver could make a good race with any car. So it didn't matter that rich kid had the newest model of a car with a fabric roof that could be folded down and Hanbin still drove his black Nissan that had too many years and repairs in it. It didn't matter because unlike the other guy, he knew his car in and out and he was reborn on these streets, so he knew every corner and every traffic light.

“I will show you who should be humiliated, you pawn. If I win, you'll admit that I'm better in front of everyone,” Seungyeon grimaced as if he was disgusted just by looking at a ragged guy like Hanbin but the fact that he wanted to prove to be better told enough about his insecurity problems. Hanbin didn't say a word, just let him make a show, turning to the onlookers for applause while he got in the car. “Everybody heard the conditions, right?”

The audience cheered loudly and on cue every soul left the road to stand by the side and not in the way. Hanbin's friends patted him on the shoulder as they cleared from the hoof of his car. As he sat in the driver's seat, securing the safety belt, Bobby leaned over the window from outside and smacked him playfully.

“Are you out of your mind? Racing to get into a girl's pants? Are you that desperate, man? At least you should have asked for his Rolex.”

“Shit, you're right,” Hanbin laughed and they exchanged a knowing look with his best friend. Then Bobby gave him thumbs up with a huge grin and jogged off the road to join the others.

“Good luck, oppa!” One of the girls shrieked and the driver scoffed.

“I don't need luck.”

It had been a while since he hadn't believed in such things as luck or fate. He only believed in hard work that would pay its price. He started up the engine that growled like a hungry predator and he drove his car parallel to the white expensive one. Seungyeon grinned at him from behind his wheel with probably leather driver gloves on his hands and Hanbin almost laughed. The show-off! But he just glared at him coldly before looking ahead.

A girl was walking in front of their buzzing cars ready to take off her top to signal the beginning of the race when someone's shouting stopped her movement:

“Soyeon baby, you should go!” The guy from earlier who treated the girl - Soyeon apparently - like a ragdoll, now kept pushing her towards the road with a shiteating grin on his face.

Hanbin rolled his eyes and came to the conclusion that the girl couldn't have been any better than her brother as she was just there letting him do this. She must have lived for the show, especially with how quickly she agreed. The other girl left the field with a pout on her mouth as Soyeon stopped on the middle, separating line. She gave each driver a glare that would have killed them if it could. It was impossible to tell whom she wanted to win as she shrugged off her leather jacket slowly.

With his hand on the gear shift, Hanbin's Adam apple bobbed at the sight of the newly exposed skin and his eyes travelled down the beautiful tanned skin as the girl lifted the piece of clothing high. He shook his head slightly to get composed. He couldn't have let to get distracted, not now. It was a race for his pride after all. Not for the girl, he reminded himself.

The moment the jacket shot down, he stepped on the gas pedal and enjoyed the acceleration of the car. He switched between the clutch, shift, gas again and again with coordination movements and soon he went way beyond the speed limit. His dark car became one with shadows, going forward as relentless as one dark horse of the apocalypse.

In the rear mirror he saw Seungyeon not much behind, not enough to switch lanes before they reached the first traffic lights. Since Hanbin's lane was originally for the opposite direction, if anyone wanted to turn right when they reach the crossing, they could collide. And as they approached the corner, he noticed the huge truck just in time to step on the break, pull the wheel aside and get in the lane barely behind Seungyeon. He could almost hear the other guy's laughter. Stupid, if it was for him, he probably wouldn't have been able to stop the collision. As the truck passed them by, Hanbin went back to the other lane and sped up until he was in line with the white car. Meter by meter they were getting closer to the water tower and Hanbin knew well he had to drift if he didn't want to run into the fence around it. But since he was pretty good at that, he let the rich kid ahead with a smile as he slowed down a bit and while the guy struggled with a Y-turn, he pulled the handbrake into on position and let the car's back-wheels back out, turning the car completely around in lightning speed. But just as it reached 180 degrees, he switched the handbrake off and stepped on the gas pedal again shooting out in the right direction, toward the finish line. It was funny, watching Seungyeon trying to catch up with the dirt his car left behind but he had no chance. Hanbin arrived back to their original place six whole seconds earlier.

He let out a victory yell and as soon as he got out of the car, his friends and strangers alike surrounded him congratulating for another great win.

“As expected from our best,” Bobby hollered, girls screamed, guys were whooping and Hanbin took it all with a satisfied smirk.

“It was a piece of cake,” he claimed adrenaline still running wild in his veins as he got those high fives and congratulatory slaps on his arms and back. He enjoyed the joy and the attention, but his eyes were searching for his opponent, the rich guy with big mouth and even bigger ego. He wanted to see him walking away ashamed with his tail between his legs like the lapdog he was but it wasn't him whom his eyes found over the up and down jumping crowd.

Jeon Soyeon looked at him like one looks at a mystery waiting to be solved. She wasn't one of those shy girls who looked away immediately when their eyes met, she wasn't flirting either. She just merely stared back as if waiting what would be his next step.

Kim Hanbin wasn't particularly fond of his reputation and yet, sometimes he was ought to do something to keep it. So with a cold smile, he started walking towards her.

[dat-town]

No Speed Limit | Chapter 7

Summary: Some people live to race while others race to live. When an uptown girl’s and street racer’s worlds collide, their lives are bound to change. For the better or worse, it’s hard to tell. In-between rivalry and unwanted sparks, there’s definitely a bumpy road ahead (with no speed limit).

Words: 2.6k

Chapter index

Soyeon fell into the rhythm of Hanbin's life quicker and easier than he would have thought. She really wasn't the typical Gangnam girl anyone would have pegged her. She was fierce, witty and a lot more cooler and less rigid than the stereotype. Of course she had her moments though when she pouted and thought she could get anything but her life didn't revolve around designer bags and throwing the money out of the window. She didn't look down at him at all despite knowing that his living conditions weren’t the best. And what started out as mere physical attraction between them soon evolved into something more as they got to know each other day by day.

Dating Soyeon involved a lot of car rides, stolen glances in the rear mirror, half made-up excuses in front of her parents, so she could accompany him to the weekend races and well, a bunch of dumbfounded friends. When she first visited him at the car repair shop on one of his off duty days as her driver, whispers followed her figure. Every head snapped up hearing the click-clacks of her boots echoing in the garage, some guy from the corner even whistled Soyeon's entrance.

"Are you looking for something?" Yuna stood up from her chair where she was doing some finance calculations as soon as the girl stepped over the threshold. She might have recognized her from that night when Hanbin defeated her arrogant brother, Seungyeon, maybe she didn't but her tone wasn't as lovely as usually it was. She was pretty obviously judging the newly arrived girl in shorts and tank top even if she didn't dress any less provocatively.

But Soyeon wasn’t easy to intimidate. She raised her chin high up.

"Yeah. I'm looking for Hanbin," she replied and her voice didn’t waver even one bit. Her amusement of seeing the annoyance on the other’s face was barely a flash of glint in her chocolate eyes.

"And why exactly..."

"Hi babe," Hanbin cut off the complaining Yuna as he stood from the cover of an old Hyundai. Wiping his palms into the dirty rag by his side, he walked over to the newcomer, pressing a quick kiss on her cheeks.

He had been listening to the whole conversation and the radiating confidence of Soyeon filled him with pride. His fingers dipped in oil slid to her waist like they belonged there, a subtle reminder for everyone around what was his. Hanbin wasn’t a possessive person or a show-off - okay maybe he was when it came to cars - but after they discusses their mutual feelings, physical closeness to Soyeon was addictive. Whenever he had her around, his fingers itched to touch, to claim, to hold tight and feel her heartbeat against his. So it’s not that he was afraid any of his friends would try something with her but rather because he liked the sight of the faint blush on Soyeon’s cheeks whenever he was being touchy. Well well, it was her who complained about him not touching her enough back then, so now he made sure she didn’t get such stupid thoughts into her head.

“Babe?” Yuna echoed more puzzled than ever with her elegant eyebrows stick to the middle of her forehead. She scoffed as if it was so unbelievable but she didn’t know Soyeon, none of them did like him. In their eyes she was still the chick who became the prize of her brother’s stupid game.

“Dude, are you really fucking your boss’ daughter?” Someone whistled in disbelief from one corner and Hanbin wanted to throw something hard at Jinhwan for his obscene words. But he knew he didn’t mean anything bad by it. They had been friends for half a decade, they had had each other’s back in the most difficult times, so he knew the elder guy was just teasing shamelessly.

“What? Are you jealous?” Hanbin played along and based on the laughter that erupted around them everybody knew it was all chill. A few went back to work immediately, while others gathered around them curiously eyeing the first girl Hanbin brought back here.

“Guys, this is Soyeon. She’s nothing like her brother, so don’t get ideas,” the guy started off with introductions because he wanted to avoid any malicious comments about her being here to spy on them or any ridiculous claim like that. While working for her family, Hanbin had clearly seen that Soyeon despised nobody like her brother. He treated her like a fool and used every chance to get back at her. He was the reason why their circle of people, the rich kids were wary of Soyeon. Her brother made sure nobody approached his sister but luckily he wasn’t able to bribe or scare off Junhoe and a few university friends like Miyeon at least. Unlike her Hanbin was lucky enough to call a bunch of people his friends, almost like family and one of the reasons why he invited her over was so that the most important people in his life could meet. And if Soyeon was able to make some friends along the way even better. “She is also my girl, so show her some respect.”

“She can have all of mine if she’s able to put up with you,” Bobby, another teasing shit, hollered but Hanbin was used to this kind of behaviour and he just rolled his eyes with a huge grin on his face. Of course his friends wanted to make fun of him before Soyeon.

“Let me introduce these idiots to you,” he turned his head and whispered into her ear, mouth grazing over the dangling earring she wore. He felt the tremble the little action sent through Soyeon’s body and he was glad he wasn’t the only one affected by their newfound intimacy but this wasn’t the time, nor the place to venture into a new territory. First, she had to meet the fam.

After the small bumps and initial awkwardness of the first meeting, Soyeon became a frequent guest at the shop. She visited him regularly in-between races and after Hanbin’s official working hours. Eventually she got along well with everybody. Bobby treated her as if she was his fierce, long-lost younger sister which was stupidly endearing. In the meantime Jinhwan shamelessly encouraged her to bring her ‘ridiculously handsome’ friend along next time she comes. She laughed and promised she would, exchanging a secret look with her boyfriend because they both knew that their friends had the hots for each other. Haesoo gladly welcomed another girl in the gang and adored her fashion style which she never failed to compliment. Hanbin even jokingly complained once that he felt like a parrot repeating after her because he always missed his chance to be the first one to comment on Soyeon’s look when the younger girl was in the shop, too. His girlfriend just laughed hearing his whining and told him she didn't mind hearing it again.

Since Soyeon herself knew quite a bit about cars, she got a hang of their inside jokes quickly and was able to really be a part of their gang. The last one to let go off her prejudice was Yuna who refused to believe she was anything more than a silly rich chick playing with Hanbin’s heart until their little bet. It took only a few visits to reach the end of Yuna's patience and hostility. Soyeon merely suggested a bit of a change in the torque of the car for better performance but it made the other girl scoff.

“Are you speaking from experience or just running your lipstick mouth about something you have know idea of?” she grimaced clearly not giving enough credit but Soyeon wasn't one to let things like this go. It wasn't the first time to prove herself, so she didn't even hesitate pushing herself away from the currently fixed car, getting into the personal space of the other.

“Well why don't you find it out? Wanna hit the road?”

The little crowd around them hollered, it was an invitation for waltz but not the elegant kind.

“Are you for real? Sure, it's so on.” After her initial surprise, Yuna collected herself quickly and threw a challenging glance at the girl before turning on her heels, heading over her car. Soyeon turned to Hanbin one last time and flashed a bright, confident smile that looked better on her than any accessory. He gave her thumbs up and moved together with the crowd of people who all moved outside to the border of the road to see them getting lined up.

“Yuna has even raced in the Ring, she will demolish Soyeon-ah,” Bobby shook his head in a sad, sympathetic voice as he reached Hanbin's side. Next was Jinhwan to catch up with them.

“If she's able to keep up that's already enough to earn her respect,” he said eyeing the expensive car the politician's daughter had neck-to-neck with Yuna's older but race-trained car.

“Why are you letting her do this?” Bobby pushed his shoulder but they both gave the guy a disapproving look. However, getting between them had never crossed Hanbin's mind. The corner of his lips turned upwards.

“Because it's her fight and because she's going to win. She's a natural, believe me.”

He really didn’t get why the Jeon parents insisted on her having a chauffeur when she was an excellent driver herself. It might had had something to do with her schedules being monitored this way or that with a personal driver and car for each member of the family, they could show off their wealth. Or maybe they didn't want to give her that much control. But since he would have never understood Mr. Jeon's decisions regarding his family, Hanbin gave up pretty early on analysing his reasons.

The rules were easy: till the end of the street and then back, the signal for the start was given by Haesoo. Then everybody cheered for their favourite, screaming from the top of their lungs. Races were always a liberating way of having fun, a kind of hedonism, pumping their adrenalin levels up even if they were just small, in-house ones. They could show themselves, putting their talents on display and even if Hanbin had already seen Soyeon drive, he anticipated the race.

Both cars accelerated quickly shooting into the distance ahead and it was impossible to tell which one of them would be the winner. The U-turn in the dead end of the road was the trick. Whoever manages to take that faster will most probably gain enough leverage to secure their first place. From this distance the two cars seemed like nothing more than colourful patches but it was easy to tell when they arrived to the turning point.

Everybody screamed and shouted gathering around the vehicle that got back first and they exclaimed their congratulations loudly as soon as Soyeon opened the door.

“Oh my gosh, that was so sick, girl!”

“Never knew you had it in you, damn.”

Hanbin smiled proudly and endeared seeing her shyness at all these compliment. He made his way through the small mass of people.

“Congrats,” he said with a grin and welcomed the girl in his arms gladly, the nice, sweet scent of her lotus shampoo filling his senses. Her head was just by the crook of his neck, the perfect height to hug if you asked them. He could forget about time and place in serene moments like this.

The gathering around them slowly dissolved, the guys going back to work one by one.

“Let’s go for a ride,” Hanbin suggested because he knew the perfect place he wanted to show his girl.

“Stay safe, kids,” Jinhwan singsonged while leaving and Hanbin really threw his dirty rag at him. Luckily, Soyeon didn't care or at least she didn't comment on it as she walked around the car. She threw her car key at him and he caught it on instinct.

The drive was a pleasant one talking about everything and nothing, reminiscing old memories and speaking about making new ones. In these moments they forgot about the obvious differences in their lives, about the almost inevitable end and they were just living in the moment.

“Wow,” Soyeon breathed in awe when they arrived to the parking lot of one of the most popular lookout spots outside of the busy city life. On a weekday, this late there was barely anybody around and they had a first row view on the illuminated, neon jungle of Seoul. It was like staring at million stars fallen on the ground. “It's beautiful.”

“So are you,” Hanbin blurted out no matter how cheesy it was because he enjoyed the sight of the blush creeping onto the girl's face all to much. Slowly he leaned over the gear shift, watching every small reaction of her, the way her eyes flattered close, mouth slightly parted and he closed the distance between them. At first it was slow, exploring each other but with every flick of tongue and hands on skin the temperature had risen around them and it wasn't enough.

“You were so hot challenging Yuna,” the guy whispered into the seam of her mouth, voice rough and raspy.

“Just then?” Soyeon asked teasingly, eyes glinting in the dark like cats do and Hanbin's breath hitched when her soft, little hand found the zipper of his full body uniform at his neck.

“No, you're hot now too,” he admitted with a gulp, sneaking a hand over the naked expanse of skin by her waist. The girl seemed to approve his answer with a hum and painfully slowly she pulled down the zipper revealing a simple white tank top under it. Sneaking her hand between the two materials they resumed kissing but it became pretty uncomfortable after a while.

Hanbin unbuckled both of their seatbelts and pushed his seat farther back between heavy panting.

“Come here,” he mumbled against her swollen, strawberry-flavoured lips and with a hand firmly on her thigh he helped Soyeon over the middle of the car and pulled her into his lap. She sighed satisfied when she could push off the uniform off his shoulders finally revealing his biceps and tattoos peeking out from under the shirt.

It was the first time they advanced from simply kissing to something deliberately hot like this, so it was all new and exciting and even if Hanbin knew his way around girls, Soyeon seemed to drive him crazy. His hand found its way under her crop top getting  firm grip on her side, thumb stroking the edge of her bra as he kissed down on her jaw pressing open mouth kisses onto her swan neck and he worked on leaving a lasting mark on her skin, a reminder of his presence there. Hearing the girl moan when he sucked on the skin particularly hard was music to his ears and he relished in the feeling of her nails digging into his arm.

It felt like they made out for an eternity because they knew it's not safe going any further out here in the open, at such a public place but they didn't want to stop either.

“I wish we could stay here forever,” Soyeon whispered once they cooled down, her breath hitting the sweaty neck of Hanbin in a way that send chills down the guy's spine but he agreed with a hum and pulled his girl even closer to his chest.

They could worry the day after, that night he didn't want to care about anything.

[dat-town]

No Speed Limit | Chapter 3

Summary: Some people live to race while others race to live. When an uptown girl’s and street racer’s worlds collide, their lives are bound to change. For the better or worse, it’s hard to tell. In-between rivalry and unwanted sparks, there’s definitely a bumpy road ahead (with no speed limit).

Words: 2.6k

Chapter index

Hanbin knew that if he told anyone about having a hot girl over at his apartment and not doing anything beside throwing a pillow at her, most people would think he had gone nuts or started whispering about him playing for the other team. So he didn't tell anyone and apparently Soyeon didn't either because it had been weeks and there were no rumours about this little lie. Oh well they didn't even have to lie, just not correct the wrong assumptions. Bobby had been adamant at first trying to get those juicy details out of him but Hanbin wasn't a big talker anyway, so it didn't really surprised his circle that he didn't go around telling everyone that he got laid. Which he didn't.

He had bigger problems than that.

He groaned when the next blow send him to the floor clutching onto his stomach that ached from the hit it took repeatedly. His palms were scratched, proofs of the rough asphalt’s marks on his skin as he pushed himself up spitting blood onto the dirt. He got one more kick in his side and only then when he collapsed onto the floor with his pride stepped on did Giriboy told the other guys to stop and let him be. The exactor crouched down next to him and patted his bruised cheeks like a parent would do with a disobedient child.

“Look Kim… how many times do I have to tell you that we take deadlines seriously? Big boss won't be so forgiving every fucking time just because you're a mediocre driver and he wins whenever he bets on you. You owe him money, he wants that back, it's that simple,” he explains so helpfully one would think he really wanted Hanbin to get rid of the debt he wasn't even responsible for. Having a shitty family background and parents who overdosed on drugs is enough to chase him into it. Because of course they owed a large sum of money to their dealer who now kept coming at Hanbin to get it back.

“Two more month. Just two more,” he whispered almost too weak to be even heard. Giriboy leaned annoyingly close to his face to make out the next mumbled words, his vicious smile appearing right in front of Hanbin's hazy vision. “A big competition is coming up.”

One of the biggest actually and he planed to get out of here if he won. From that money, he could not only pay off the debt, but get rid of that shitty apartment and actually do something with his life. He didn't have big dreams, all he wanted was a simple life without dealers breathing down on his neck and a bunch of strangers attacking him in dark alleys on his way to the convenience store. He wanted nothing more than a few friends and a car to drive. Was it really that much to ask for?

“A big competition, huh?” the exactor spit on him and let out a mocking laugh that hurt almost as much as the punches. “I heard you had money to buy new car components but not to pay us?”

Hanbin just gritted his teeth willing himself not to throw back any insult return before they really beat him to half-dead. He needed his car to get money, so of course he needed to spend money on his car, so that it could be in its best shape.

“If we gave you two months you wouldn't even be able to pay the interest,” Giriboy clicked his tongue while he sat back on his heels. He pretended to think out loud giving him more time to suffer, to feel miserable and humiliated that his life is basically in the hands of a tyrant. “You get one month and if you don't pay back the whole amount interest included then we will meet again and we won't be so kind.”

The driver just grunted as he acknowledged the new offer and let out a breath when the footsteps started to fade away in the distance. He wasn't sure how long he stayed there lying on the hard ground that was cold even after the scorching heat of summer Sun that shone on it all day. It took him quite some time to gather enough strength to get up, standing to his wobbly feet and crawl back home, the beer and bread he wanted to buy long forgotten.

“Shit bro, they got your good this time,” Bobby grimaced when he saw his best friend's swollen cheeks and split lips next morning. The car repair shop where they both and a few more from their crew worked was busy even in early morning. The others only greeted him nonchalantly or hissed at seeing his beat up face. Two of the girls in the corner whispered about something while keeping their eyes on their duo.

“You should see my ribcage. It looks like some fucked up, rotten eggplant,” Hanbin shrugged and threw his bag onto the floor next to the stall he usually worked at. Among them there was not much privacy or anything to be shy about, so he quickly got out of his shirt and kicked off his pants to put on his mechanic uniform instead. He was in the middle of putting his arms in it when Bobby grabbed the hem of his undershirt and pulled it up to see the expressionist painting blooming on his chest and stomach.

“Fuck. That's not good,” he mumbled letting go of the material. Genuine worry flashed in his eyes as he watched Hanbin get into the uniform properly. “What are you gonna do about it?”

“I dunno. Participate in more races maybe?” Hanbin sighed. Even after taking painkillers he had a tough night, he could barely think, not to make plans about how to get the money as fast as he could. A month of small races and working here he knew wouldn't cover it all, especially now that the boss increased the interest on it.

“What about a job that pays more?” Yuna walked over to them followed by Haesoo closely. The sisters were the only female addition of their small crew but they could take apart a car and put it back together like it was nobody's business.

Hanbin knew the two of them just wanted to help, this entire community was their safe haven, like a chosen family that supportive each member but he knew the usual requirements for well-paid jobs and without any kind of certificate he had no chance.

“I'm a high school dropout. Where they would take me?”

“I actually know the perfect job for you,” Haesoo exclaimed with enthusiasm which Bobby was watching warily but Hanbin didn't notice any of it. “A friend of one of our cousins works for this super rich family and they need a new chauffeur.”

“You mean personal driver?”

“I guess.” the girl shrugged tapping her chin while thinking. “I don't know exact details but I can get info for you about the pay and the application process. It's what you like and know how to do, right? To drive, so...”

“Yeah, thanks Haesoo. That would be cool if you could get a number for me,” Hanbin nodded, hastily agreeing because what was the worst thing that could happen? They reject him and then what? It wouldn't have mattered. But it was worth a try, especially since the girl was right: driving was the activity he enjoyed most in this world and it came to him the easiest, so getting paid for doing that seemed almost too good.

To get the job was actually easier than he thought. After he got the contact info and talked with some assistant of the family, he had to submitted a copy of his driver licence and a paper to prove his clean record. Then he was called in for a test drive with eleven other applicants and he finally met the owner of the voice from the calls' other end. Both his manners and driving skills were tested but according to him, it went well. Pretty well in fact because two days later he got the job. He was sent an elegant uniform and a contract to sign, then he was called in to start working from Monday.

“Oh man I never thought I would live the day to see you in a tuxedo,” Bobby snorted when he saw him fully dressed in his shiny new black and white uniform that morning. It was a famous brand, a high quality suit, so Hanbin had no reason to complain yet he missed his less rigid clothes. It felt like he was tucked in some kind of prison of clothes wearing this well ironed shirt and pants.

“Are you envious?” Hanbin croaked a brow at his friend jokingly while fixing his cuff links.

“Well chicks dig guys in tuxedos, so… In your shoes, I would be careful with the old man's wife,” Bobby joked and quite a few of the others present joined the laughter. Hanbin just shook his head. He didn't care about wives committing adultery or daughters drooling at his sight. He was in it for money and the money only. He didn't even care what kind of family he had to drive for as long as they had money, it was enough for him.

“Or get yourself a sugar mommy,” Jinhwan yelled from his place and laughter erupted again at the eldest's stupid joke.

Hanbin checked the time on his watch and knew he should go soon if he wanted to be on time on his first day of work. But before he could move an inch, Yuna stepped in from of him with a shy smile and blush on her cheeks.

“Your bruises heal nicely,” she commented quietly as she take out a cotton pad from her makeup bag and leaned closer to apply some foundation and powder over the fading marks on Hanbin's face.

The boy inhaled sharply as the girl ever so slowly worked on the perfect outcome. He waited patiently because without her help he probably wouldn't have gotten his job anyway if he showed up at the interview like the ragged thug he really was. After she was satisfied with the result, Yuna pulled back examining his features before her eyes settled on his lips.

“Oh your lips healed already,” she remarked poking on the not anymore sore spot on the boy's mouth playfully. Well, it has already been a week since the incident, so luckily all the bruised and wounded areas got better and less painful.

“Yeah. Thanks Yuna,” Hanbin smiled as grateful as he could. He was indeed lucky to have the whole crew having his back for this.

“Don't mention it,” the girl shrugged and walked away just as fast as she came.

Not much later Hanbin was off to go too, so he bid his quick goodbyes and got into his car. As he drove off the suburb shop, all his friends hollered after him and Bobby even joked that he shouldn't forget where he came from once he got together with crazy rich chick. From the outskirts of the city the more he approached the downtown worn one-storey houses were changed to tall apartments with barely any place between them and when he left the busy part of the city behind, the Gangnam luxury welcomed him. His car was clearly out of place and he got a few looks while turning into the driveway of a smaller palace-like house at one corner. After identifying himself, the security guard told him to park in front the garage that had four identical black Audis in it. Woah, they sure were on a different level.

“Good morning, Mr. Kim. Please follow me inside. The family wishes to meet you,” the assistant he met the other time greeted him as soon as he got out of the car.

He tried not to stare too much while he looked around in the fancy house as he was led into the living room. There sit a couple in their 40s in elegant clothes and serious expressions on their faces.

“Mr. Jeon, Mrs. Jeon, let me introduce you the newest addition to our staff. Mr. Kim will be the personal driver of Miss Jeon from now on,” the assistant introduced them and Hanbin didn't forget to bow deeply in front of his new employers.

“I hope he will deal with her better than the earlier ones,” the woman muttered and it peaked the boy's interest. How bad that girl could have been to chase away his previous drivers? He sure hoped she wouldn't be some annoying twelve-year-old with an obsession about idols because he might not take that too well either.

“Welcome, Mr. Kim. I hope you will ensure my daughter's safety and make sure she follows her schedule,” Mr. Jeon reached for his hand and shook on it firmly.

“I will try my best, sir,” Hanbin nodded and started to get slightly nervous from all this big fuss around the whole situation. Not to mention that the man in front of him looked strangely familiar but he couldn't tell from where.

“This is the car key. You will get it every morning here and have to hand it in after your working hours. And this is your work phone. Make sure to be always available. It has every number in it you need and you get Miss Jeon's schedule texted to you the day before. You can find today's in the calendar app already,” the assistant handed him the two items but before he could check what's his exact job for today, footsteps echoed on the staircase closeby.

“Soyeon, your new driver is here. Don't you dare sneak out!” Mrs. Jeon raised her voice and when Hanbin lifted his head to see who caused this stir in the motion, his jaw almost dropped. “And how many times do I have to tell you not to dress like that in university?”

Hanbin's mind barely recognized all the complaints the woman made as his eyes got fixed on the slim figure ascending the stairs. The girl wore leather pants with crop top and a jacket thrown over her shoulders. She flipped her long, black hair with such elegance only their kind had as her gaze lazily settled on the small crowd in the living room.

Her sharp gaze met Hanbin's only for a moment but he could tell she recognized him, too. There was a moment hesitation in her movements before her perfect mask was back on.

“I don't have time to get changed. I'm out,” she turned her back to them and walked in confident strides towards the garage. She had the same fire in her that burnt when her brother lost that stupid bet. That was actually quite impressive.

“Good luck, Mr. Kim,” the politician - oh of course, how could he not recognize him? - ushered the driver to go after her and it was the first time since he got the job that Hanbin actually thought he will need luck to deal with it.

Because now he got to drive around the girl who was offered to him as a prize, the girl he thought he would never see again, the girl who had been on his mind more times than he would like to admit.

[restlessmaknae]

rainy season

Who wouldn’t want to stay inside while it’s raining outside when their boyfriend is the one and only Bobby?

♦ Pairing: boyfriend!Bobby x girlfriend!reader/you

♦ Genre: fluff, fluff, fluff (+comedy)

♦ Words: 1.6k

♦ Season Series with soft bf!iKON: Yunhyeong // Donghyuk // Chanwoo // Bobby // Hanbin // Jinhwan // Junhoe

♦ Dedicated to: the one and only @lily-blue who was my beta and the reason I decided to double-bias (now I’m triple-biased ^^) ❤️

♦ A/N: You can also check out iKONICShelves which is a brand new iKON network for writers and readers in the iKON fanfic community (all platforms!).

Sunday Morning was being played on the radio while you were making pancakes for breakfast. You were humming along the song, a satisfied smile painting your mellow lips as you flipped yet another fizzing pancake.

You knew the chocolate-cinnamon flavoured sweet treat was Bobby’s favourite even though at first it was a mere attempt on your part. You saw this recipe while you were flipping through a food magazine one day and the unusual pancake immediately caught your attention. You decided to try it out yourself, and as a huge foodie Bobby was, he had to be the first one to taste the outcome. You vividly remember how content he was and how many hugs he gave you for such a delicious breakfast, so ever since then, whenever you were in the mood to make pancakes (or your boyfriend asked for it), you went with Bobby’s favourite.

This time was no different. You were pretty sure that the sight of his favourite breakfast would totally make Bobby’s day, that’s why you opted for the chocolate-cinnamon pancakes this morning.

As soon as you gently placed the finished pancake on a plate, a hand reached for it and the pancake was immediately gone.

“Hey!” You exclaimed frantically. “Be careful! It’s still hot!” You reprimanded your boyfriend who couldn’t care less about your warning. Even though you could still see the sleepiness in his eyes (not to mention the way his hair looked like a bird nest), he was already very energetic. If he was this mischievous early in the morning, you knew he would be up to no good during the rest of the day.

“It’s okay, babe,” Bobby grinned widely, his eyes sparkling with tiny little dots of playfulness. “I can take it. I’m also hot,” he added rather shamelessly, earning an eyeroll from you. Nonetheless, no matter how hard you tried to remain stern, you soon burst into laughter.

You couldn’t deny that being Bobby’s girlfriend was anything but plain. He was the definition of uniqueness, warmth and unpredictability. You could never really be prepared for what he was up to, sometimes he was being cheesy, sometimes he was being dirty-minded as hell. Sometimes he didn’t remember that you’d told him to change the lightbulbs, yet sometimes he took out the rubbish without you saying anything. Though there were two dates he would always keep in mind: your anniversary and your birthday. He would purposefully not let you fall asleep the night before your birthday, so he could be the first one to wish you happy birthday. Not to mention the anniversary dates. Boy sure knew how to surprise you each and every time.

He may have looked quite intimidating at first (small wonder you didn’t dare to approach him even if he was one of the most frequent customers at the café you worked), yet he was a real softie inside. He still carried around the Winnie the Pooh plushie he was given when he was younger, he could play the guitar, drums and the piano, yet he would never shove any of his musicality down your throat unless you wanted him to (you never protested though), he always complimented you no matter how badly you did something or how inedible your meals were, and he never once failed to make you smile when you were under the weather. He was a particularly good listener and always had a useful piece of advice to share, yet he would never let you leave him hanging when he saw that something was bothering you.

His cheeky side was also one of the endless things you loved about him (and the list just kept going), thus you couldn’t be mad at him when he stole the first pancake and tried to make up for it with childish excuses.

“Sit down, and I’ll bring the fresh ones to the table,” you suggested as you poured some of the pancake mix into the pan.

“How about I watch you from here instead and steal every pancake you make?” Bobby reciprocated rather brassily, making you go on full-blush mode in a second.

“Yah, Kim Jiwon!”

“What?” he raised a challenging eyebrow in question while he closed the gap between the two of you. He was grinning so widely, you could see his bunny smile showing which was one of the seven wonders in the world (in your opinion). He may not have been the definition of beauty, yet he was sure attractive and adorable as hell. “You can’t resist me?” he asked as he reached for your waist and brought you closer to him.

You could see the fire burning in his orbs, the heat already creeping up your neck. Bobby didn’t usually fancy skinship, but when he did, he was as touchy as no one else you’d ever met. Just another example of his duality.

“You are such a tease,” you huffed, pouting at the boy.

“You’re lucky it’s raining,” he pointed at the window which was tainted by tiny little raindrops. Yet, the calming sound of the rain was just another background music to your cozy scene, and you couldn’t mind it. “You have to spend the whole day inside with me, the biggest tease in the world,” he smirked as he let go of you, not wanting the pancake to get burnt (or you to get too embarrassed).

Either way, you were thankful that he took some steps back because you weren’t sure you could stand on your feet as steadily as you wanted if he kept on invading your personal space.

“So what do you want to do now that we are stuck inside?” Bobby inquired genuinely curiously as he took a seat beside a table. You turned back to the pan, taking care of the next few pancakes while you were pondering.

“I don’t know,” you shrugged. “Maybe we could watch a movie?”

“Didn’t you say you want to watch an animated movie?” Bobby recalled the last time you two were watching movies and it was an angst Japanese one with one of the main characters dying at the end. Right then and there, you told him that you want to watch something cheerful and lighter next time, an animated movie seeming like the perfect choice.

“Yeah, that’s right,” you nodded, letting a sweet smile accompany your words. You knew your boyfriend remembered such trivial things, yet it warmed your heart every time you experienced his attentiveness first-hand.

“How about Hercules? Or maybe Mulan?” the boy was sure quick to come up with suggestions, but it came as no surprise since he was the bigger animation fan out of the two of you. You usually enjoyed light-hearted romances or comedies more. However, being Bobby’s girlfriend came with many advantages and one was becoming a fan of such movies for children. You couldn’t mind though; as long as you two watched it together, it could be anything. (Okay, maybe not anything, but you all get it.)

“Which one is better?” You turned around after you finished with another pancake and waited for the next one to become golden brown and crispy. The boy looked like he was in deep thoughts as if you had asked him the “which one was sooner? The egg or the chicken?” question and not his preference regarding Mulan and Hercules.

“I’d say Mulan. Just because Mushu is a legend,” he announced with wild gestures, prompting you to shot a confused glare at him. Wait? Should you have known who Mushu was? Had he mentioned anything about some sushu-mushu?

When Bobby caught your rather puzzled expression, his eyes became twice as wide as before.

“What? You don’t know who Mushu is?” he exclaimed as if you had told him that you don’t know who the current president of South Korea was. He even rose from his seat, his utter bewilderment showing in every single one of his moves. “Then, we are watching Mulan today. The first and the second movie as well. Period,” he announced hastily and finally sat down again.

You let out a carefree laughter as you watched his little play, your heart melting at his childish pout. He went on rambling how ground-breaking Mulan was, especially when he was young, you paying your full attention to him. No matter what he talked about, you adored listening to him because he could be so enthusiastic and immersed; you didn’t have to look at him twice, you could immediately see when he was engrossed into something that meant a lot to him.

Of course, Bobby’s choice was the perfect choice for that rainy day when neither of you felt like leaving the flat. Instead, you were watching the movies on Bobby’s laptop while both of you were on the couch, you snuggled up to his chest, resting your face just above his heart, getting lost in the cacophony of his heartbeat. He was gently caressing your cheeks, then he went on playing with your hair, and he also started drawing invisible lines on your back while you were watching the second movie. He was like a child while he watched one of his favourite movies of all time, gasping at the right scenes (even though he stated that he had watched Mulan at least 50 times already), pretending to despise the confession scenes and getting all emotional when everyone thought that the main guy character died.

Needless to say, Bobby was a piece of art himself, so despite all your efforts to focus on Mulan only, your eyes always found their way back to your boyfriend’s face just like stars always find their way back home.

After all, Bobby was your home now.

[dat-town]

No Speed Limit | Chapter 5

Summary: Some people live to race while others race to live. When an uptown girl’s and street racer’s worlds collide, their lives are bound to change. For the better or worse, it’s hard to tell. In-between rivalry and unwanted sparks, there’s definitely a bumpy road ahead (with no speed limit).

Words: 3.1k

Chapter index

Kim Hanbin wasn't one to complain.

Sure he didn't grow up in an ideal neighbourhood, his parents weren't rolemodels and life had threw him onto harsh concrete but he had dealt with it, he had gotten up. He endured the slaps and punches, he had come across every obstacle he had crossed and he had fought his way through if he had to. He knew it would have been in vain to wish for a better, shinier life, no,  he didn't want to be a charity case or someone to pity. Instead he gave his blood and sweat to make a name for himself. He wasn't one to give up either.

But Jeon Soyeon made him reconsider.

Oh no it wasn't that bad, nothing too brutal and he wasn't sure which of her doings chased her earlier drivers away. She didn't complain endlessly, nor tried to do her makeup in the car yelling at him to drive slower, in fact she hadn't criticized his driving style at all but she didn't make his life easier either. However, instead of behaving annoyingly and almighty like a typical Gangnam girl the reasons rather laid in different aspects.

It was the way she dressed, her style balancing on the fine line between tomboy-ish and girly. She most often wore comfortable, loose clothing paired with a skirt or shorts in the summer heat. Hanbin couldn't not notice how nice and smooth her legs were and he had caught himself staring multiple times while watching Soyeon exiting the car. It was in the smiles too, those secret ones she had hidden in the corner of her mouth while she was texting with someone or those suppressed ones whenever she found something funny, for example when he quickly changed radio station when a cringeworthy Twice song came up just to find an equally lovey-dovey boy group song on a different station. It was in the glint of her ebony eyes whenever she held his gaze through the rear mirror, those dark pits were rather cold on most days but sometimes he could catch the fire in them. Be it after an argument with her brother, being annoyed or even passionate about something, it was there. What's more, it was in the confidence she walked and in the pride that made her chin held up high.

It all prickled his skin.

He could feel that something in his lower abdomen crawling its way upwards waiting for him to just break and snap. It's not like she was doing these things on purpose, at least Hanbin doubted she was that sneaky. Still, he found her more and more attractive each day and in his weakest moments, he wished he didn't waste the chance he got all those weeks ago.

But the day when he really changed his mind about her being just another rich girl ungratefully dissatisfied with her life was supposed to be like any other. He was driving her home from her best friend's home when the car started to give out rattling sounds whenever he accelerated. The engine had been emitting an annoying ticking sound ever since morning but Hanbin didn't have time to check on it. He thought it would be fine to do after he finished with work but with the sound getting louder he didn't want to risk a malfunction. So he pulled down the road and undoing his seatbelt he made a move to get out but Soyeon's voice stopped him in mid-actions.

“Is there something wrong?” she asked with eyes boring into his through the mirror.

“I will handle it,” Hanbin simply dismissed her question. What would a girl like her know about cars anyway? It's not like telling her about the chance of the engine being blown could help at all, most likely it would freak her out.

With that, the guy got out of the car and opened the hood to check on the engine. The first thing he noticed was the nose-itching oil smell and he quickly registered the open oil cap. Nothing else seemed off which didn't explain the weird sounds but he closed the cap, shut the hood and sit back into the vehicle. He barely started the engine again, went forward 10 meters, the rattling sound was back. Sighing he stepped on the brake again and got out. This time he took off his stupid, fancy jacket throwing it onto the passenger seat and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt underneath. Working in a car repair shop and fixing up his own baby taught him a lot of mechanical things, so he had quite some idea what can be the problem, but he knew it would be a quite slow process if he kept going back and forth, so putting his pride aside he leant back into the car.

“Miss Jeon...”

The name always tasted foreign on his lips but Soyeon had never said anything about being annoyed of his formality and this was what his job required, so he stuck to it whenever he couldn't avoid talking to the girl. At her name, she looked up with her mouth in an unimpressed, firm line and crooked a brow questioningly.

“Would you help me with the car? Just starting the engine, nothing more,” he explained and didn't know what he expected. For her to be offended by the mere thought of doing the dirty work? Being absolutely laic about cars? Whatever it was, he certainly didn't expect to see pleasant surprise and a bit of pride flashing in her caramell orbs.

She wordlessly got out of the car not even waiting for him to open the door and sat in the driver's seat with practiced movements.

“Okay, now start it,” the oil cap popped off again and the pistons barely started moving but the sound was there. “Stop.”

He leaned down not minding getting his hands dirty as he tightened a few components, fixing up anything that looked just a bit off. They kept going back and forth, starting the engine, stopping, fixing but it seemed pretty useless and Hanbin was getting annoyed. Damn, he must have missed something obvious. Surprisingly Soyeon wasn't whining like a lot of busy, rich girl would have done and she didn't left either to catch a taxi home.

“Have you checked the rings?” she leaned out of the front window when still nothing changed after long minutes of trying.

“Of course I checked the-” Hanbin snapped but froze in mid-sentence when he realized he haven't tightened the ones on the cylinder's sides, just the ones on the end of pistons. So he did that now and voilá, the crackling sound ended. Huh, so she knows something about the cars. Honestly, the driver would have never guessed or was he only being judgemental?

“Nice catch,” he cleared his throat after he closed the hood of the car. He wiped his oily hands clean in a cloth from the glove compartment and they both went back to their original places without saying another word. Hanbin didn't bother putting the jacket back on and only when he looked back in the mirror he saw the faint blush on Soyeon's cheeks. Good thing he wasn't the only one affected then.

The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful. When he pulled up in the driveway and went around the car to open the door for the girl, instead of walking away without saying anything, he spoke up.

“Have a nice evening, Miss Jeon,” he bowed respectfully, painfully aware of the watching eyes through the cameras. The change in his behaviour didn't go unnoticed by the girl either who mumbled something under her breath.

“Pardon?” Hanbin blinked, waiting for her to turn around and say it to his face. She looked over her shoulder, coal black hair falling on her back like a curtain. Her eyes were like onyx, dark and mysterious but there it was, the fire in them that made his breathing a little more difficult.

“Call me by my name when my parents aren't around,” she said firmly, leaving no place for objections. It was the tone of an arrogant Gangnam girl and yet, it didn't annoy Hanbin.

“Okay,” he nodded slowly and licking his lower lip he already played with the taste of her name on his lips rather than the usual formal greeting. “See you tomorrow, Soyeon.”

Driving Soyeon around after that didn't become easier. In fact, it had only brought more difficulties. It was harder to say no to the urge to look back at her. But that would have been plain stupid. He needed this job, he needed the money and there were some boundaries coming with it despite their past… or especially because of that. It was better if he kept his distance. But she really, really didn't make it easy to keep his composure.

When Hanbin checked Friday's schedule and saw that the girl would be celebrating her birthday with friends, he knew that was gonna be a long day. But working overtime meant double pay, so he didn't complain. Not even when beside Soyeon two chatty girls got into the car in the evening. All three of them wore pretty daring clothes but Hanbin's eyes caught on Soyeon the most. She wore a flannel skirt with a dark crop top and a leather jacket thrown over one shoulder. She looked like she had the time of her life laughing along with her friends who requested to be driven to Shine, one of the most famous clubs in Gangnam.

“You haven't told us your new driver is so hot,” the ginger one of the unfamiliar girls whispered shamelessly scanning Hanbin's features in the rear mirror while the other one gasped.

“He can hear you, Soojin,” she warned her friend who apparently didn't seem to care because she just shrugged. But much to Hanbin's pleasure they quickly changed topic as they started talking about this or that celebrity visiting this certain club and they were guessing their chances of meeting them. The guy behind the wheel needed a lot of power in him not to roll his eyes.

“We're here,” he exclaimed once he parked not far from the neon lights of the place and the girls got out one by one leaving Soyeon last.

“Hey, it's gonna take a while so… I don't know, make yourself busy or nap, I will text you when I wanna leave,” she turned around before getting dragged away by her friends who yelled 'birthday girl' all over the streets.

Hanbin was actually relieved when he was finally left alone in silence and he had to admit that a nap sounded very tempting but in such a lively area, during the busiest time of a Friday night, he couldn't really, so instead he was texting with his friends and scrolling mindlessly on his phone, even playing a few sudoku game out of sheer boredom. Time ticked by painfully slowly, each minute felt like a little infinity and everyone somebody left the club, his head snapped up expecting to see the girls leave.

It was well past 2AM when he finally recognized the wild red-haired girl supported by another as they were walking down the street.

“Hey!” he yelled at them rolling down the windows but the two girls didn't stop. So he had no choice but to get out of the car quickly and run to catch up with them. He could tell it from far too but neither of the two was Soyeon. But at least she wasn't the totally drunk one. “Hey… where's Soyeon?”

At his question and sudden presence the girls froze.

“Um… I thought she left already. We lost her on the dancefloor and she didn't answer when I texted her that I will take Soojin home,” the brown haired-girl, Miyeon if Hanbin remembered correctly, looked up and explained only to be interrupted by the very drunk Soojin.

“'n whatcha doing, handsome?” she giggled when she noticed that they stopped in the middle of the street.

“Shit, I didn't want to leave her there. I...” the partly sober girl seemed conflicted as she looked down at the other one gripping on her arm. She was obviously thinking about going back but Hanbin didn't want to trouble her further.

“Don't worry, I will get her out. Take care of your friend and leave Soyeon to me.”

“Thanks,” Miyeon nodded to him with a tired but grateful smile and the two girls got into the first taxi they could catch.

Hanbin wasn't sure it was part of his chauffeur tasks to make sure the birthday girl didn't get in trouble in the club but not doing anything would have gone against his moral sense.

“I didn't sign up for this,” he muttered and with a deep sigh he walked towards the club's entrance.

Of course he had to pay an entrance fee about the quarter of his monthly payment but at least it was the Jeon's credit card this time. The club itself was even flashier, larger and more chaotic inside than he would have thought from the outside, so he had to look closely to find Soyeon under the artificially dim lights. Around him there was a mass of people grinding on each other, making out on the couches or flirting shamelessly at the bar. Sure the decorations were fancier but the people here were doing the same things his circle of people did on the streets for free. So if paying an arm and leg for it wasn't being a snob, then nothing else could have compared.

“That's it, baby, show them what you got!” A man hollered by the bar and Hanbin automatically turned around at the harsh voice. He scanned the area, his gaze running through the girl's figure who danced on the top of a table quite seductively but he moved on without a second thought. He actually needed a moment for the realization to hit and his jaw literally dropped when looking back he recognized Soyeon in the girl. She had left her jacket somewhere else but it was unmistakably her, so Hanbin elbowed his way through the crowd to get to her and her audience.

“Soyeon,” he called out her name loudly when he reached the table and he was actually surprised that the girl's head snapped to him immediately. A beautiful, loose smile spreaded on her mouth as he reached out her hand.

“Hey Mr. Cold and Mysterious Guy, wanna dance?” she crooked an eyebrow challengingly. She was obviously drunk, her tone and the lack of focus in her eyes were all telltale signs of her high state. When she realized he wasn't gonna climb up to the table (they wouldn't have fit anyway), she jumped to the ground but as she lost her balance, it was only Hanbin's grip on her arm that kept her up.

“No, not really. We are leaving. Now,” he stated clearly and firmly trying not to get affected, not now, from the way Soyeon clinged onto him, fingers curling around his collar, hot breath fanning his throat. She looked mesmerizing even now with sweat drops rolling down on her beautiful tanned skin and with wide, blown eyes.

“What a buzzkill! Let the girl have her fun. Don't you see we were enjoying ourselves? Who are you to her anyway? Her boyfriend?” One of the guys from around stood up, annoyed that the show got cut off and he grabbed Soyeon's elbow pulling her towards him.

“And if I was, would you take your filthy hands off of her?” Hanbin scoffed and swatted away the guy's hand, sneaking his onto the girl's cheek, cupping it gently.

“Soyeon… I will take you home, okay?” he was trying to make the girl look at him but she kept dozing off as if she just lost all her energy suddenly. But at last she wasn't trying to protest.

“Okay,” she nodded and turned around to wave to the others more enthusiastically than she should have. “Bye, guys.”

Maneuvering with Soyeon on one arms and getting out of the club as quickly as possible was another challenge but when they were finally at the car, Hanbin let out a relieved sigh. He had no idea the hardest part was still coming with helping Soyeon in the car. She had a bit of coordination problem, so he helped her get seated without bumping into anything. When he was trying to pull back after fastening the seat belt he was stopped midway by the girl grabbing on his neck tie. Their faces were barely centimeters apart and Hanbin's breath hitched in his throat at the realization. He could see every mole, every eyelash clearly up this close and he couldn't not notice how Soyeon's hazy eyes focused on one thing only: his lips.

“Do you know you touched me for the first time today?” she whispered sad and melancholic, yearning lacing her delicate voice. “You should touch me more. I like it.”

The confession was so straightforward, so sudden that Hanbin tore his hands away from her waist and shoulder as if she burnt him. However, the lack of contact seemed to dishearten the girl as her fingers slid off his neck tie. Only then he could breathe again.

“Am I really that unattractive to you? Are you disgusted by me?” she mumbled and even her voice changed with the unshed tears. Turning her head away and closing her eyes her trembling hands curled into the material of her skirt, and the sight made Hanbin's heart ache. It was almost unimaginable for him that a hot girl like her could think that.

Now that he had held her close he realized he also yearned to touch but right now she was under the influence of alcohol, proving her wrong would have been wrong on so many levels. He had no plans of taking advantage of her, especially not in such a vulnerable state.

“No. It's not about that,” he shook his head but as Soyeon's head fell forward, he doubted she heard him on the margin of dreamland. He gently adjusted her head on the seat and brushed some messy lock behind her ear, careful not to wake her up. Under the silver light of the moon, listening to her even breathing and the loud thumps of his own heartbeat, it was a moment like no other.

Before driving her home, he said one last thing not caring if they got lost in the wind and the moon kept his wish as a secret.

“Happy birthday, Soyeon,” he whispered.

[restlessmaknae]

liar paradox

I love you, she said. (Am I lying? You never know.)

♦ Pairing: iKON’s Yunhyeong x OC

♦ Genre: angst, angst, angst

♦ Words: 1.1k

♦ Inspired by: iKON’s I’M OK & the liar paradox

♦ Warning: - 

I love you, she said.

I love you too, he said.

Yunhyeong believed her.

He believed every single word that left her crimson lips, sugarcoated sweet little nothings and lies dipped in the sea of truth. He followed her words like children follow their mother’s orders, not questioning how and why, doing everything nevertheless, moving mountains if needed. He fell in love with her words, the way they danced along the edges of her mouth, following every single one of its curves and corners. He became one with her words, wanting to be what she wanted him to be, wanting to resemble the man she had always talked about.

Silly, I’m just lying, she said, making him believe that she was lying, yet she didn’t actually lie, but that’s exactly why she was telling the truth, and oh he should have known better, oh he should have believed anything but the devilish circle of lies she had built up during the years. No matter if she was telling the truth or lying, he could never tell, he merely wanted to believe that she was always honest with him. As if someone like her could ever be honest; lies to her were like drugs to an addict. The more she used, the more she wanted to get her hands on, sucking the life out of everyone who was around her and wanted to take care of her.

I know you aren’t. I’m not a fool, he said.

He was really a fool, a fool who was yearning for the loving gazes, the lipstick-stained marks on his pale skin, the lustful whispers into his ears, the shiver-inducing feather-like touches all over his body. He needed it, he needed it all. He was just as helpless as a lost child in the forest, in fact he was helplessly stuck in his own cage made of unrequited love, fear of abandonment and the human need to be loved and feel cared for.

„Is it too much to ask?” He cried, salty tears sliding down his defined features, staining his skin-canvas with transparent lines, dotting his cheeks like raindrops on an autumn night. Tears became his second skin, he couldn’t get away from them, he couldn’t run away from them. His fate was chasing after him. „Is it really too much to ask for love? A love without lies?” He cried out, his words resonating from the stern walls that could do nothing but to listen to the ugly sobbing of the young man, watching the downfall of a lovesick fool, being as heartless as the one who had broken his heart.

You aren’t good enough, she said.

How could I be enough? he asked.

By changing for the better, she replied.

He should have known better than to believe her. He would never be enough, it was a lie from the very start. A very sweet, very promising lie, to be precise, one that was deceiving as the most beautiful rose in a flower shop; because the most outstanding, the most shining ones have the most number of thorns and the most hurtful thorns. The interior is always hollow, he should have never thought otherwise.

Yet, he believed her, he wanted to believe her, but he was literally fed with lies, and that’s what he got used to. After a while, it became a sweet treat, an exotic taste on the tip of his tongue that mangled in with her equally dishonest kisses. He didn’t know that lips could lie, that touches could leaving searing marks on the skin that was exposed just to be touched by those hands, and that hearts could break as quickly as a vase that falls to the ground, scattered pieces all over the ground, bleeding out on the battlefield. Loving someone was going to war, and only those could survive who weren’t weak, who wouldn’t dear to dream about a better tomorrow, about a better future and a better life, only those who had no room for emotions and sentimentalism.

“I’m okay, it’s not like I’m dying,” Yunhyeong exclaimed, voice scornfully unconvincing. It felt as if his own words had been laughing at him, pointing their accusative fingers at him, throwing disgusted flinches in his direction. He was already used to it anyway, slowly growing weary from the constant worried questions, from the bittersweet glances, from the unwanted attention.

Love is just an illusion, she said.

That was the only thing she was right about, and even though he would have never said anything about it, in fact he would protest with all his might, he knew better now.

“And only those will fall in love with the wrong people who want to believe in illusions. For whom reality isn’t enough,” he mumbled to the third bottle of soju in front of him, his rough fingers reaching out for the drink, his throat welcoming the bitter taste time and time again. “And you were the most beautiful illusion. My illusion,” he added after gulping down the remaining content of the bottle, mouth burning from both the strong taste of the alcohol and the heavy confession. He let the tears fall endlessly until there was no more left, until there was nothing left to cry about.

The wind blew between the buildings, its howling creating a melody for the wandering souls. The first rays of sunshine appeared on the horizon, just behind the bridge Yunhyeong was under, painting the sky light orange instead of pale lilac. The newly born day was ready to wave goodbye to the previous night, one that was leaving with all its heavy suitcases full of worries and heavy heartsighs.

Yunhyeong snickered at the sight, nothing could make his heart more broken than the possibility of a new day.

“I’m okay. Why wouldn’t I be okay?” He shouted into the silent dawn, scaring some seagulls off the rails. He fell to his knees, his legs giving in for the immense amount of feelings rushing through him, his body not being able to handle everything that had happened to him. “Why wouldn’t I…?” He cried, face buried into his own hands, chapped lips tasting the smoke and dust on his own hands.

Love is just an illusion, she said.

You can’t keep illusions to yourself, he said.

You eventually need to let go.

[restlessmaknae]

beware: woman on board!

When the mighty pirate captain, Koo Junhoe, has no choice but to take an annoyingly talkative rich female on board, he immediately regrets his decision. Yet, money is more important to him than his own pride.

♦ Pairing: pirate captain!Junhoe x rich!Minji (OC)

♦ Genre: fluff, comedy, slight angst in one scene

♦ Words: 4.8k

♦ Dedicated to: @binkygee aka my beloved twin soul who deserves the world! Thank you so much for being in my life, I’m so happy to have met you! You are such a wonderful person and I wish you all the best! Have a beautiful Christmas, dear! ❤️

Koo Junhoe had never had any luck with women. Especially not with women who had a lot of money, and especially not with women who not only had a of money but who were also annoying blabbermouths.

But Koo Junhoe was a man who didn't give up easily, and one woman could not break his persistence. Not even Ryu Minji who was a pain in the ass, the nuisance he didn’t need in his life. Even though she had promised him a very generous amount of money to be shipped to the furthest island possible (for that, Junhoe was pretty sure she was either exaggerating to look more dramatic or she had lacked more braincells than he himself did), her crazy rich antics were slowly getting on everyone’s nerves.

“Cap’, do we really need to keep up with her behaviour?” Chanwoo, the youngest member of the crew, inquired rather indignantly, quirking a brow at the captain of the ship.

Junhoe merely let out a frustrated sigh in response.

“She has a lot of money,” he reasoned as if it would have made up for all the things Ryu Minji had done ever since she was on board with Junhoe’s crew, starting from demanding a cup of hot tea when she arrived, asking a dumbfounded man to wipe the dust off the wooden place she would have wanted to sit on and wanting to have lunch precisely at 1pm every single day. She was lucky that Yunhyeong, the chef, had the heart of an angel, and he was rather glad to be able to share his food with someone who would finally appreciate it. It’s not like anyone else on the ship didn’t like his food, but they were boys, they didn’t compliment each other so easily.

“How much did you lose on that last bet?” Chanwoo inquired a bit too curiously for Junhoe’s liking, even though he knew that all of his crew members knew about his deals; he bragged about them whenever he won, and he kept his mouth shut when he lost.

Small wonder the others got suspicious when they hadn’t heard about his bets for a while.

“A lot, matey. A lot,” Junhoe admitted honestly, patting the younger boy’s shoulder. He didn’t like having Minji on the ship either (especially because it was his ship, his territory), yet money was what he needed in that moment, and if she was willing to give him money, he would endure the way Minji acted up.

Of course, he should have known that something like this would happen from the moment the obviously rich female showed up in the port, quite short of breath and with a surprisingly little luggage. She looked like she had just run away from someone, her hair in a complete mess, her features alarmed. Even though she had flipped her hair back several times while she was talking down to Junhoe and his crew members to convince them to get her on board, Junhoe could sense that something was wrong. Why on Earth would someone as obviously rich as her who could have easily bought a ship for herself would ever deal with a pirate? He had made it very obvious that he was one, so either she was completely stupid (which wouldn't have come as a surprise) or she had an exceptionally good reason to run away. From whoever and for whatever reason she wanted.

However, he decided to shrug his unnecessary questions off since he had nothing to do with the petite female’s business. Not like he would have wanted anything to do with her, except her money. For a while, he could listen to his crew members complain about the girl, but when one day she started whining because they sailed too fast for her liking, Junhoe couldn’t keep his mouth shut.

“Look! This is my ship, and I’m the captain, so I do what I wanna do. Whether you like it or not,” he practically spat the words, scoffing at the absurd request of Minji.

She looked obviously hurt by his tone and the way he told her that her opinion didn’t matter in the least, yet instead of asking herself why would he treat her so poorly (like any other intelligent human being), she counter-attacked him instead.

“This is how you treat a lady’s request?” She raised an eyebrow at him, her voice rising. Donghyuk was merely passing by at that moment, but he couldn’t stop himself from glancing in Junhoe’s direction, seeing the way the girl stood in front of the captain, her hands firmly on her hips, looking amusingly bossy for such a short woman.

“Aye, wench, and I’m not even gonna change the way I act.”

Minji couldn’t believe her ears; her eyes became twice as wide as before, burning from fury and frustration. She was trying so hard to say something back to him, opening her mouth several times, anger boiling up inside of her. In the end, she only managed a sentence out, and even that seemed ridiculous.

“You uneducated buff!” She shouted at him, throwing her hands into the air. Donghyuk found this the perfect opportunity to leave the scene, knowing all too well that Junhoe’s reaction to the girl’s outburst wouldn’t mean any good anyway.

Junhoe merely laughed it off. He had been called a lot of things in his life (including some particularly nice and some not so nice ones) despite his surprisingly young age as a captain, and not so despite his job as a pirate. So hearing her (kind of) polite cursing, he laughed like there was no tomorrow.

“Blow me down!” He pretended to be shocked, the words rolling off his tongue ever so naturally. “I’ll take that as a compliment,” he added, theatrically saluting to her before he went back to steering the wheel as casually as he always did.

“Do you even know what the word ‘buff’ means?” Minji retorted, challengingly wiggling her eyebrows.

She acted like a total know-it-all, probably to cover up the fact that she wasn’t the most intelligent girl on Earth. She may have been educated, but to Junhoe, intelligence didn’t equal knowledge. She was stupid enough to trust pirates, so he wouldn’t actually call her intelligent. Even though Junhoe’s crew didn’t like to use force against woman until it was completely necessary, it didn’t mean that she couldn’t be called names or be looked down while she was on the ship with them. (Both of which had already happened, but she was the one to blame for that, not his mateys.)

“How would I know?” Junhoe shrugged his shoulders, focusing on the vast sea stretching out in front of him instead of the girl. “I’m the Scourge of the 7 Seas!”

“The what?” The woman gasped, and the sight of her knitted eyebrows were much more hilarious than they should have been under other circumstances.

“See, we don’t speak the same language, wench.”

“Don’t call me wench!” She protested right away, puffing her chest out as if she had wanted to prove a point. “It’s making me feel inferior,” she added with a disappointed pout.

“Well, you are inferior here,” Junhoe admitted without a blink of an eye. Though he may have expected her to get mad at him, seeing her flushed face and the way her body was trembling in anger made it all worthwhile. She was such an amusing sight, whether she was annoyed, frustrated or confused. He was sure she could have made a really good street comedian.

“You… you…” She pointed a finger at him although her hands were trembling, so the effect she wanted to leave on him was anything but intimidating.

“Yes?” He quirked an eyebrow, enjoying the situation way too much.

“Just ship me to the next island and you’ll get your money.”

“With pleasure.” He tilted his head a little to add to the effect, making the woman fume even more as she turned on her heel and left the captain alone, throwing some deadly glances in his direction that he couldn’t see because he was staring far ahead, grinning to himself like the smug idiot he was.

 Minji was a real pain in the ass. Seriously. Junhoe had never had more headaches in his whole life than he did during the last week while Minji was turning the life on the ship upside down. She was acting like she owned Junhoe's most precious treasure, and he couldn't have hated her more for that. If there was something he couldn't stand, it was the people who made him feel like he wasn't the owner of his own his ship.

The other guys were obedient, that's true, and he was glad he managed to recruit such a crew. Yet, it didn't mean that they had to be obedient when it came to Minji too. But that's exactly what they did.

They did what she asked even if it was ridiculous, totally unnecessary or almost impossible. It was as if everyone had been under her spell except the captain of the ship himself. Junhoe tried to convince himself that he would get rid of her soon, yet he knew that considering the alarming weather conditions and the area they had sailed through, it would take a couple more days until they could reach any habited island. It didn’t help either that even his crew members tried to talk him into understanding the girl a bit more. He didn’t lead a charity organization, he didn’t need to show empathy towards a woman who acted like he owned his ship.

Though it was definitely interesting what Yunhyeong had told him one day.

“You know, she’s not that bad of a person. She just wanted to get away from her family, and I can totally understand why,” the chef remarked as if he was telling a story, looking up at Junhoe at the end of the sentence.

“What? Are you on her side?” he huffed, putting his hands on his chest. Wasn’t it enough that the other crew members were against him, now even the closest ones were trying to ask him to act nice? Hell no.

“No.” Yunhyeong shook his head immediately and raised his hands in front of him to indicate that he wasn’t there to cause any kind of misunderstanding or start a war of words. “I’m just saying that it couldn’t have been easy on her that she was forced into a marriage with a man who was treating her in an inappropriate way,” the chef babbled on and on, spilling the beans without noticing the slight raise of Junhoe’s eyebrows.

“What?”

“Maybe if you hadn’t been so obsessed with arguing with her, you could have got to know the same.”

With that being said, the chef went back to his own territory aka the little kitchen on the upper floor of the ship, and Junhoe was left dumbfounded in the middle of the open area, lips slightly parted hearing the other boy’s words. Sure, Yunhyeong could always get along well with others, he didn’t have that defensive mechanism in him that the captain of the ship had built during the years to avoid getting hurt and feeling guilty for every sinful thing he had ever done. He wouldn’t have become a respectful leader if he had left his emotions get in the way.

However, the fact that Minji was willing to share something so personal with Yunhyeong surprised him. But of course, it could have also happened that she had just spilled the beans without intending to tell him anything. She was a real blabbermouth after all.

After their conversation, Junhoe examined the woman a bit more in depth, looking for any sign that would indicate what she must have gone through before she got on the ship. On the other hand, he couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary, anything that would prove that she had a better reason to run away than to order the members of a pirate ship as she pleased.

Not until the day they had encountered some sirens did his opinion change.

 Minji was downstairs, looking at her nails, calling for someone (anyone) for the fifth time already. She was getting bored without a book, without anyone to talk to and without anything to look at. The ship felt like a prison sometimes, and she was definitely missing her grandiose room. Though whenever she thought of her home, a chill ran down her spine, reminding her why she had run away. She didn’t need a man in her life, let alone a man with no feelings, a man who would only use her to give birth to their child and a man who was also 24 years older than her.

Minji knew that not anyone can get what they want but she couldn’t stand it anymore. Her father had literally sold her to that old man just for the sake of more money, that’s why it wasn’t a surprise that she wanted to escape before she could even be properly sold. She didn’t want to step a foot into the old man’s mansion.

As stubborn as she was, she was willing to do anything to achieve what she wanted, so even if it meant that she had to bear multiple noisy and uneducated man drinking whisky and sometimes speaking a totally different language, let it be. It was still better than her arranged marriage.

Though it didn’t mean that she didn’t have her own requirements and preferences. She didn’t like if she was left alone for a long time, that’s why speaking to the ship’s chef was a pleasant pastime for her.

However, she was now left alone in one of the cabins downstairs and the ship was quieter than ever. She had no idea what must have happened, so she tried to call out for someone – to no avail.

“Come on! Can’t anyone tell me why we are slowing down? And why we had just stopped right now?” She shrieked as the ship had seemed to come to a halt. She immediately started suspecting that something was definitely not going as planned, but she couldn’t suppress her sarcasm either. “I swear these men can’t do anything without a woman on board.”

With that being said, she got to her feet and walked up the stairs to reach the upper floor. What she saw there made her blood run cold in an instant. All the crew members who were there seemed to be hypnotized by some unseen force, their faces showing no emotions, their features numb. They either wandered by themselves or looked at the waves of the sea very, very close to the edge of the ship.

As Minji walked closer, she realized what exactly they looked at. It wasn’t the sea they looked at; it was what was in the sea. To be precise, who were in the sea.

The waves hid their bodies well, but Minji could tell that they were sirens; sirens with flawless skin and seducing gazes. To her, their voices sounded awful but to the men around her, it seemed like it was like a lullaby; they were under its effect, they were ready to throw themselves off the edge just to get closer to the beautiful creatures.

Minji didn’t think her plan through when she noticed Junhoe walking closer to the edge of the ship. She rushed to his side, trying to wake him up, gently (and then not so gently) punching him, his face, his chest, his side… Junhoe still acted like she was invisible, not taking notice of her presence, nor her attempts to stop him. She had no idea how to get him out of this state, she had never even seen sirens in the first place. She wasn’t used to such dangers situations, that’s why she was helpless when it came to good solutions.

In the end, she did what seemed like her only choice. She didn’t think it through, she merely kissed the pirate with all her might. It wasn’t pleasant, of course, it was more like desperate. But it had an effect because Junhoe’s eyes widened as soon as she sealed his lips, and he seemed to have come back to life judged by his dumbfounded expression.

Minji was the first to back away after she saw that she had succeed, taking a few tentative steps back.

“Wait, what? What’s going on? Why did you kiss me?” he asked confusedly, looking at her with countless questions in his eyes. He was just coming out of his whole hypnotized state, so Minji knew she should have been a bit more patient, but he wasn’t the only one who needed help.

“I’m trying to save your life if you can’t see!” she shrieked, gesturing wildly but the pirate’s eyes could only see her and her rosy-coloured lips.

“By trying to kiss me?” He raised an eyebrow in question, her statement obviously making him even more confused. Minji’s patience was already wearing thin, she didn’t need the pirate’s useless questions to add more to her building frustration.

“If you looked around you instead of arguing why a pretty woman like me ever laid her lips on your dirty ones, you could see that we are in the middle of a siren attack!”

“Hey, my lips aren’t even‒” Junhoe protested fervently, but stopped halfway when he realized what she had tried to imply. “You said what?”

“Oh, these bloody men!” Minji huffed, not believing that she was the only one who had more than two brain cells on this damn ship. Men really thought of themselves as the dominant sex, but she wasn’t sure they could ever be able to lead anything without asking for a woman’s help. Seeing Junhoe and the other males on the ship, she started questioning how they even got there without losing a member here and there.

“Just help me distract your crew members or tie them to something until we are out of the siren zone!” Minji practically ordered him because he didn’t look like he took the situation seriously even though his eyes were roaming around.

“Do you want to distract them too by kissing them?” He turned back to her, slight amusement plastered on his annoyingly handsome face.

“You ungrateful buff!”

“Okay, okay, I’ll handle it from now on! Get anyone you can from downstairs, and ask them to help us out!”

“With pleasure,” Minji spitted as she rolled her eyes, not believing that it took so long for the captain to come up with a reasonably good plan.

She hurried down the stairs, looking for anyone who might be able to help them. Luckily, she found a sleeping boy on one of the wooden beds, so even if he wasn’t particularly happy to be woken up, he immediately ran upstairs when he heard what was going on. Then, Minji even found Yunhyeong who was in the middle of cooking (probably coming up with a new recipe), small wonder he didn’t realize that there was something going on outside of his precious kitchen. When he alarmed the chef, he looked so guilty as if he had been the one who asked the sirens to come by. Together, they went back to assist Junhoe as he finally came back to his senses and did everything he could to save his crew members. After they took care of the hypnotized boys, Junhoe focused on navigating the ship instead, so that they would be out of the danger zone sooner.

When all males were back to their own selves, Minji couldn’t help but let out a relieved sigh. Maybe she did care about them after all. Maybe that kiss with Junhoe was worth it after all.

 Minji didn’t want a proper thank you. She didn’t even want a nice sentence coming from Junhoe’s mouth, but at least she wanted a good damn word for saving the males’ asses. She may have been looked down because she was a woman and she was whining like a child (she was aware of that, bad family example, that’s it), but she felt like she deserved better after the siren attack, especially from the captain of the ship.

On the other hand, he seemed to be the only one who wasn’t thankful to her. Everyone on the ship thanked her or at least treated her better after they got to know what she had done for the crew (except the kiss part, neither Junhoe, nor Minji wanted to highlight this particular piece of information). Everyone but Junhoe himself.

It wasn’t until after a quite uneventful day that the captain did say something about what had happened before.

Minji was reading by herself in her “room” (a random corner that was said to be her room), elbows resting on the wooden table with the book in between. She didn’t fancy joining the pirates’ nightly conversations because they usually ended up in overexcited pirate songs and too much rum. Instead, she liked to have the time to herself, wondering about the what ifs just like this particular night.

“Hey. Can I sit down?”

The all-too-familiar voice asked from behind and she couldn’t help but let out a weary sigh. No matter how uncharacteristically gentle the captain’s words were, she really wasn’t in the mood for a conversation with him. Not after complete days of radio silence.

“It’s your ship, isn’t it? You do what you wanna do. Isn’t that right?” She raised an eyebrow challengingly, quoting the words the young man had spitted at her not long after she got on the ship. Well, he wasn’t the most hostile captain but at least he didn’t throw her out.

Junhoe also let out a sigh. Indeed, when two adamant people got together who could suffocate each other any minute, it was difficult to find a balance and let both of them have a say in the matter without trying to kill each other.

“Look, wench…” The captain started and not until he caught Minji’s dead glare, did he realize how he had called her. “I mean, look…” He hovered over the last part of the sentence but decided to drop his idea in the idea. It didn’t matter how he addressed her, what he was about to say was more interesting than mere nicknames. “I think we misunderstood each other,” he admitted bluntly, his sincerity not moving the girl’s heart.

“I would say we have quite different manners.”

“We can put it that way, too.” Junhoe was quick to react as he didn’t want to anger her even more, especially because he knew she deserved a proper thank you after the siren attack or at least she deserved to feel valued.

Yet, as an emotionally malfunctioning jerk he was, it was difficult for him to reach out for her after she had practically saved their asses. So what did he do? Instead of trying to talk to her somehow, he didn’t say anything. So typical of the almighty Koo Junhoe. He really didn’t know how to act around females.

“So uhm… thanks for what you’ve done for the crew.” For me, he wished to add but the confession was already weighing down on him, and his heart wasn’t sure it would be able to bear even more.

Minji’s features softened a bit upon hearing his words, but she was still more tense than usual, and he had no idea why. He really didn’t know how to approach women, so it was no surprise he couldn’t decipher Minji either.

“I may be annoying, and I may be just a woman, but I have a heart, and I couldn’t just let you all suffer like that. Let me be the only woman who causes you headache. You don’t need sirens for that,” she explained with a playful edge to her words, making the pirate laugh for the first time they met.

Even though he would have said it differently himself, he was sure that in her own annoying way, the gorgeous female was really taking care of them. They may have been upset at her for telling them to stop drinking too much rum or to stop shouting at the seagulls when they had already become tipsy, but maybe she did it in a loving way, they were just not used to such form of affection.

Though he was more interested in her future plans now that she seemed to have let go of the grudge against him.

"What are you gonna do?" Junhoe inquired, subtle curiosity easily detected from his voice.

"What do you mean?" She counter-attacked although she knew what he was trying to imply. She merely wanted to save herself some time until she could properly think over her answer.

"What are your plans after you leave the ship? Cause we'll arrive at a port city soon," the pirate explained, his intense stare piercing through her heart. She knew that it was a question she couldn't avoid, yet deep down, she didn't want to think about the future.

She was already accustomed to Yunhyeong's childish whining when the boys didn't compliment his new creations, she grew fond of Donghyuk's smile that outdid even the Sun itself, she was used to seeing Bobby sleep anywhere and everywhere he could, she didn’t even blink an eye when Chanwoo was telling childish jokes, and she was no longer unfamiliar with Junhoe's grumpiness in the morning. Or the way his eyes widened, and his jaw dropped comically when something didn't go as he had planned. Or the deadpan expression he fathomed when someone said something slightly insulting to him. Or the duality of his interior and exterior. Or the way he raffled his hair when the wind blew too strong. Or the smooth way (even smoother than usual) he talked after drinking too much rum.

Maybe she would miss all of these if she decided to leave the ship and with it the crew itself.

"I don't know, I didn't give it too much thought." Minji shrugged, her fingers playing with the hem of her dress. She knew it was her time to go, but the captain’s soon felt too soon all of a sudden.

"You can stay, you know," Junhoe offered rather seriously, but before she could comment on it, he added something more, taking back the serious edge of his words. "We won't throw you out of the ship."

"That's very kind of you." She let out a little giggle, letting the conversation soothe her nerves. She could see the sincerity in the pirate’s eyes (something that she had never expected to see in his orbs), and even if she wouldn’t admit it to herself, she was glad that he would like to see her on the ship in the future as well.

Maybe she wasn’t the only one who didn’t regret that kiss.

“I’m serious,” Junhoe stated matter-of-factly, earning yet another giggle from the girl.

“I know.”

“But of course, we won’t keep you back from leaving the ship if that’s what you want.”

“I know.” Minji nodded, her lips raised into a cheeky smile as she watched the always so confident and smug captain babble in front of her. It was a rather comical sight, and she enjoyed every moment of it, especially because she knew he was being embarrassed because of her.

“But if you want to stay, I can’t take it anymore and I have to tell you that‒”

“I know.”

“But I didn’t even finish my sentence,” Junhoe quirked an eyebrow in question, examining the girl’s features. She may or may not have known what he was about to say, but it didn’t really matter who would take the first step. She was willing to do it. After all, she saved his ass already, why wouldn’t she save him from another five minutes of embarrassment?

“I know.” She bobbed her head, then rose from her seat and closed the gap between her and the pirate. Junhoe was seemingly taken aback by her bold move but he couldn’t deny the way he tried to gulp down his nervousness.

Minji sealed his lips in the next moment, their kiss definitely more passionate and less desperate than the first one. Now, Junhoe was also having his fair share, enjoying it to the very end. The kiss was just perfect this time; it was exactly what they both needed after the recent events and what their hearts yearned for ever since they met.

After all, love and hate were only a tad bit apart.

[dat-town]

renaître de ses cendres

Characters: Jinhwan & You

Genre: angst

Setting: immortal au

Summary: Jinhwan has lived long but you make him want to live more.

Warning: character death

Words: 2.2k

for @lily-blue have the happiest bday my dear ♥

[original pic credit goes to bylove_951221]

Jinhwan has loved fiercely.

He has loved until death.

He has loved without meaning to, without doubts, without thinking.

Jinhwan has lived many loves. All of which he was fated to lose.

But only when he saw the light fade in your ever bright eyes did he think that the price of immortality was too high.

Jinhwan didn't like to talk about the time he was born into. He didn't like to talk about any of his previous lives. He had been around for a longer time than the Colosseum or the Great Wall of China and he had learned that he would be stuck in the past if he kept looking back. So he didn't. He always adapted to the current time he lived in and tried to make the most out of it, enjoying the small wonders of life. But sometimes he got desperate and lonely too and then he had enough of it but he couldn't die, literally couldn't. Yes, he tried, multiple times. He always came back.

It was one of those times. The ones in despair when he wanted nothing, just leave this Earth and this empty shell of him behind. He was all alone, not a soul would have cared if he just disappeared. He wished he could evaporate in the wind or dissolve in water, if he could just turn bodiless. After thousands of years he got bored of the face that looked back at him in the mirror. He started hating the very same sad eyes of his reflection staring vacantly ahead.

“Are you thinking of jumping?”

A young, curious voice startled him and his steps died on his tracks, feet stilling on the metal barrier of the bridge he was walking on. He spared one glance at the deep, dark waters of the rushing Han River under him, illuminated by the pearl white moonlight. Then he turned around gracefully, his balance not even shaking, airily like a tightrope dancer would have. Then his gaze settled on you, the pale girl standing by the fence in nothing more than a pretty flower-patterned dress, slippers thrown on the ground. You rested your elbows on the cold railing staring ahead with an inextricable look on your face. He couldn't really tell what you were thinking and what made you ask that ground-breaking question so calmly.

“Are you?” Jinhwan shot back the very same question without answering as he elegantly hopped down from the fence, casually leaning back to it after his feet hit the ground, merely a meter away from you.

You didn't seem bothered, not by the new proximity, nor the lack of answer but you hummed thoughtfully before answering.

“No but the fact that I could makes it so much easier to bear life. Because you know it gives the knowledge that I have chosen it. It almost makes me feel powerful,” you chuckled after the long and serious monologue.

You were talking so casually as if the mere thought of your mortality, the inevitability of your own death didn't scare you at all while most people would have been scared shitless. You were standing there in the middle of one of the highest bridges of your town staring down at the rampant water stirring up because of a coming storm. Jinhwan wasn't new to sudden summer downpours, he could feel it come in the air. You seem to pay no mind to it though. Eyes closed you enjoyed the weather and everything in the moment. Taking big breaths and letting out satisfied exhales like you had all the time in the world.

Jinhwan watched you in awe; it's been a while he had met such an unbothered soul.

Neither of you said anything, not until the first raindrops stirred up the silence coming fast like tears and their splash on the ground created a piano melody like nothing else. You smiled not caring about your hair and dress getting wet, not even when the water droplets slid across your body leaving goosebumps in their wake behind them. You inhaled from the humid air one last time before pushing yourself away from the fence and turning to leave.

But Jinhwan who had been staring and marvelling at you in wonder couldn't let you go just like that.

“Won't you catch cold?” he asked glancing down at your bare feet on the harsh, cold concrete. You looked down as if you were surprised by his question. Then realizing what he might have meant, you chuckled and shushed his question away with a flick of your wrist, tiny raindrops following the movement.

“It doesn't matter either way,” you shrugged with a secret smile pulling on the corners of your pretty mouth. Then grabbing your pair of slippers and with them dangling in your hand you danced away with cute little spins, humming a sad song in a way much happier tone than you were supposed to be.

You laughter was a melody in the wind that carried the lovely sound and the way wind played with your short locks and the moonlight reflected on your skin Jinhwan swore nature adored you just as his heart whispered him to.

Already when he first met you he was damn convinced you were like poetry, a moving art in pretty form, riddles behind rhymes and secrets between the lines. He couldn't wait to unravel the mystery that was you.

You met him on that bridge again.

And again and again.

You found yourself waiting for those meetings even if they made your heart soar. It felt like playing with the thought of having something that couldn't really be yours. But it didn't dishearten you, not when he made it so easy to fall.

You were in love, you knew it from the moment he took you to that observatory just to stare at the stars and talk about the meaning of life, being a sparkle of dust in the galaxy. But you knew that you were more in love with the idea of him, of someone who cares than actually with him. Because he didn't like to talk about things like his family, job or past. You had no idea who Kim Jinhwan was but you knew a man with gentle heart and the wisdom of generations. He was the most interesting phenomena you ever encountered and even when he was close he felt so far as the stars you both loved so much.

It had been weeks, months of casual meetings and you had become paler, lost weight and hair. He hadn't said anything apart from asking you to take better care of yourself but he must have known you couldn’t really help it.

“I am dying,” you blurted out after you finished slurping from your fruit smoothie and it might have been too casual to take it seriously because Jinhwan let out one of his typical, philosophical questions:

“Aren't we all?” he looked up at you with unsaid words hiding in his dark orbs: at least humans, the ones without ridiculous curses, he thought. You liked seeing secrets in his eyes even if you could never unravel them. At least you felt a little less bad for keeping yours. Like how your heart went crazy near him.

“No, I mean I know for a fact that I will die within a few months. I even have this cool hospital card because you know I'm a permanent guest there,” you chattered showing off the card to your room. You had years accepting the idea of dying, you were really ready for it. Or you thought you were until he came along.

Now that made Jinhwan dumbfounded. “What?”

You quieted down, smile fading at his sad voice and the blank look on his face.

“I'm sick, Jinhwan and no, it can't be cured. They have already tried everything.”

Suddenly it all made sense: why you were so accepting of the inevitable end. You’ve had your time to deal with it and had decided not to waste any moment, to enjoy the smallest miracles of being alive and to bring as much joy to the people around you as it was possible. But how was it fair? That life cursed him with eternal life but gave you – you of all people! - only so little? Jinhwan hated it.

“Hey,” you nudged his hand and he blinked, surprised, shaking his head to get rid of such thoughts. Your eyes were like unwritten fairytales, magical and infinite, pulling him in. You smiled almost too gently for someone who was meant to die so young, so beautiful. “I'm still the girl who danced around barefoot in the rain. Don't look at me differently. I just thought you deserved to know that you are hanging out with a dying girl before it gets worse.”

It did get worse pretty soon just as you predicted and warned him.

First you weren’t able to walk that much without sitting down for a while. Then you had hard time breathing sometimes. And once you got a seizure in the middle of laughing on something ridiculous like vines. After that they kept you in the hospital, no more free days out in the open, you were bound to machines because your organs started giving up one by one. You were saddened seeing your father's devastated face or your mother's tears, only Jinhwan treated you like nothing changed. He didn't even blink at the sight of infusion and the nasal cannula when he visited you in the hospital. He asked you if you dreamed anything nice lately and talked about the old neighbour lady's story that he heard that night. You were too tired of talking after a while, so you asked Jinhwan to speak in lieu of the two of you.

“What does it mean?” you softly asked tracing the tattoo on his forearm with your index finger a bit weakly. But he gently took your hand in his before it could fall from his arm.

“Reborn from the ashes,” he translated the French text without sparing a glance at it.

You smiled faintly hearing the words and averted your gaze from him to the darkened scenery on the other side of the window.

“That sounds nice. Starting over. I wish I could be a phoenix to do that,” you whispered, voice barely there, a little lifeless and his heart churned, breaking from the pressure, from the weight of all the confessions he didn't… couldn't tell you. Not now. It was all too late from you to hear them anyway.

“Do you want to hear a story?” he asked ever so lovingly and as it became hard to speak, you just squeezed his hand back as a sign of saying yes. So he took a deep breath and started talking.

“Once upon a time there was a young and foolish prince so arrogant that he wanted to become a god, so he searched for the key to immortality. It seemed to be a fruitless journey after years and years-long of pursuit but he still had nothing. He had bathed in virgins’ blood, read rituals and made a deal with all kind of devils, all of them turned out to be imposters… except for one. She was nothing but an old lady, he thought and he laughed when she offered him the eternal youth. She asked for nothing but a lock of the prince's hair. He was curious though, he had nothing to lose, so he cut a piece of his hair and gave it to her. The woman burnt it right in front of him while murmuring something satanic and then threw a knife at him. She was executed immediately for treason with the last words: you will live in regret burning on her tongue and only later, when his anger died down did the prince realize that the wound where the knife scratch him disappeared as if there was no wound at all.”

“What happened to him?” you breathed barely audible but listening very closely with your eyes closed.

“He has lived long and at first he found joy in his victorious life,” Jinhwan continued with the story, his steady voice slowly becoming hollow. “But soon he realized being unable to die was indeed a curse. Centuries has come and gone and he had become more and more distant. Sure he wasn't dead but he didn't feel alive either. Until one day he met a girl, a girl who showed him everything in life that was worthy of appreciation, that there's more to it than just living. She was a girl who was in love with life itself and the prince who was nowhere near a prince anymore wished he could give her more of that.”

The last of it was barely a whisper because the heart rate machine by the bed went still. Even the Moon dressed in silver mourned and the stars all around pitied him. His tears helped nobody.

Jinhwan has loved gently.

He has loved until death and even after.

He has loved truly, madly, deeply and he had lived to tell the tale because you would have wanted him to do that. To live.

To reborn from the ashes.