SONG ABOUT US || Lee Juyeon || Singer AU

Chapter 25; "I really like you"

I imagined Haknyeon sitting up on his bed, covering himself with blankets and plushies with marshmallows on his side.

I cannot believe your life right now.
It was true. I couldn't believe my life right now either. Back at home, things were waiting for me that twisted my stomach: Song Mina, the lies that I told my father, the whispering in every corner at school.

But out here, for the next two days, I was free from all that. I could forget it all, if only for forty-eight hours.

***

When I awoke, the sun was slicing the center of my room. I had slept late, past one o'clock, unable to budge from my impossibly comfortable bed, and my limps feeling fuzzy. I rolled out of bed and fell on my butt.

Grabbing a muffin on the glass table, I looked through the window. As the hotel was perched on the edge of a cliff, the sea view was spectacular. The small waves crested in the turquoise sea, birds hovered above the water, father's flapping in the rain.

The hotel to your tastes, madam?
A message from Hyunjae. I sat down in the large bay window and typed my reply.
It'll do. Though I don't appear to have a butler.
How awful. My people will fix it ASAP.
I laughed at his joke.

Wanna hang out? I checked at the time. If I got it moving, I could spend at least an hour before meeting Juyeon. I smiled and took a big bite from the muffin.
Hell yeah. Give me 15.

***

When I opened the door, Hyunjae was looking sheepish, and a little tired. He was wearing a white t-shirt with a zombie logo on it. He was also wearing black denim pants with a guitar strapped to his back, which seemed unusual. I had no idea he could play.

"Hey, your all right?" He cleared his throat.
"I feel kind of bad about yesterday."

"Why?"
"That dumb standoff I had with Juyeon. It was childish. I owe you an apology."
"You don't- it's fine."

"No, I do. I was acting like a jerk. I shouldn't have let him suck me in...God, he winds me up sometimes."

Tell me about it. I thought.
"Last weekend too, in the piano studio. I think I was a bit...off with you." He squinted one eye. "Forgive me?"

"That's sweet but you haven't done anything wrong." I nodded at his instrument.
"Why guitar?"
"You'll see," he said with a crooked smile. He glanced over my shoulder at the sea view. "Fancy a walk on the beach?"

~

"Have you thought about what you'll do when you finish school?" Hyunjae said as we were wandering along the shoreline. Our feet were leaving imprints in the damp sand, and they disappeared as we walked.

"A bit," I said, tightening my scarf and my beanie. It was cold down by the water. "My dad asks about it sometimes. He'll say things like, "This is an important year for you, Yoona," and I know he's right...but y'know."

"Yep," agreed Hyunjae. "Parents can be a pain sometimes. My mom and dad were cool about me auditioning but they never expected it to go anywhere else. Dad wanted me to be an architect."

We both laughed at this: Lee Jaehyun, the architect. Though, when I thought about it, it was easy to imagine Hyunjae having a normal life with a house, a dog, and a family.