"Dahyun, can you please give these rice cakes to our new neighbor?"
Dahyun looks up from her laptop and smiles at her mother. "I didn't know that we have a new neighbor," she said, standing up. "Waah, these look yummy!" she attempts to get one, but her mother slaps her hand away.
"This is for our neighbor!" Mrs. Kim gently pushed her daughter. "Go fix yourself first before facing them."
Dahyun checks herself. She's wearing a plain gray hoodie which looks really huge on her, along with her black pajamas which is a bit loosed. She's also not wearing any make up. But she doesn't even care. "It's not like I'm always gonna see our neighbors everyday. Besides, I really don't care if they find me unattractive. I was not born to please them," she tells to her mom.
"Yeah, you were only born to look good in front of that new classmate of yours. What's his name again? Hyunbin? Moonbin?" her mom asks, giving her judging looks.
"Mom! It's Hanbin! Kim Hanbin! Geez, how many times do I have to say his name for you to remember the name of your future son-in-law," Dahyun scolds her mom and playfully flips her hair. She was so proud of saying that Hanbin will be her future husband, but the truth is, she doesn't even have the courage to approach him in school.
The mere thought of her not standing a chance to get close to her crush just made her feel upset. Her body slumped and her mood suddenly changed.
Hanbin is Dahyun's first ever crush. She never thought that she will those butterflies fluttering inside her stomach, like how her friends describe it, until the day Hanbin entered their classroom. Her eyes instantly landed on him. It felt like time had stopped during that time. And when Hanbin accidentally made eye contact with her, Dahyun knows she already lost it.
"Okay, stop fantasizing and just give these to them," her mother wakes her up from her deep thoughts.
Dahyun just obeys her mother and grabs the tupperware full of rice cakes. Without even changing her clothes and even checking her face on the mirror, Dahyun left their apartment barefaced and plainly dressed.
She rings the doorbell.
A few minutes has passed but no one's opening the door.
"Umm, maybe they're not around. I should just probably go back later," she was about to head back to their apartment, until she hears the door clicks open.
She spun around, and with her big, bright smile she readies herself to greet their new neighbor.
"Oh! Hi Dahyun!"
Dahyun almost let go of the rice cakes she's holding when she comes face to face with the unexpected person she never thought will be their new neighbor.
"H-Hanbin?" she stutters..
Hanbin flashes her a smile. "Is that for us?" he asks, pointing at the tupperware she's holding.
"A-Ahh.. Yes. Umm, my mom made these for your family," she hands him the rice cakes.
"Wow, thanks! I'm really really hungry right now. My mom and my little sister went out to buy some groceries. I think they forgot to cook me some breakfast. Thanks a lot, Dahyun! You saved me from starvation," he pats her head and again gently smiles at her.
"Y-You're welcome," Dahyun shyly said. She tries her best not to make eye contact with him. Because first of all, her face is blushing mess. Second, she's barefaced. Third, she didn't even bother changing her clothes. Fourth and final, she looks like a mess.
Hanbin sensed her uneasiness and he can't help but chuckle at Dahyun's shy actions towards him.
He is not naive. He knows very well how she secretly glanced at him at school. How she cheers for him during basketball playoffs. Whenever he's absent and Dahyun will secretly makes notes for him to catch up on the lessons he missed, but she will pretend that it was not her who made those. But Hanbin knows that it's her.
He knows her so much.
And he won't hide the fact that he finds Kim Dahyun interesting.
By the time he peeks through their window and saw her, he instantly fix himself and did his best to look attractive when he faced her.
He is so happy to know that Dahyun is their neighbor. He will not have a hard time getting close to her since she just live next door.
At school, he can't seem to talk to her since a lot of girls are always hogging him and trying to get his attention which he finds annoying. Besides, Dahyun also has her own circle of friends and one of her friends seem to be a bit touchy to her. What's his name again? June? Junhoe? Whatever, that dude is seriously annoying.
Now that he and Dahyun are neighbors, he won't be having a hard time getting close to her. He will always takes the chance to talk to her, to visit her, or maybe perhaps for both of them to walk together in going to school and going home after. That will be perfect.
"So, I guess we will see each other more often," he said, shyly scratching the back of his head.
"Y-Yeah..." was all Dahyun can say. She was at loss of words the moment she saw him open the door. He looks really atrractive with that bed hair and plain white shirt. How could someone be this attractive in the morning.
"You look cute, by the way," Hanbin commented all of a sudden.
Dahyun's face instantly looks up at him, obviously shocked with what he said. "W-What?" she covers half of her face, not really confident with her bare face. "You're joking, right?"
"No, I'm serious. You look cute, Dahyun. No, scratch that, you're beautiful with or without make up. But I like it more when you're not wearing make up," Hanbin confessed.
"T-Thanks," she said. "Umm, I better go. My mom might be looking for me. I'll see you around, Hanbin," she slowly walks backwards.
"Okay, see you," he said, smiling at her.
