Playboy

Épilogue

Sehun

The breeze felt incredible against Sehun's face as he walked the streets of Myeongdong. The sun was out and shining, providing just the perfect amount of heat. It was a great day for meandering around and browsing the many shops the area had to offer. After all, Sehun hadn't been out to Myeongdong in a while. There were surely new things to see and buy.

As he walked, a little jewelry shop caught Sehun's eye. There was a pair of glittering earrings in the display case, their beautiful stones shimmering in the natural light. For a moment, Sehun wondered why he had been so drawn to the shop. It was just a small place, and it wasn't like he had anyone to buy jewelry for. Then, he realized it was the same shop that he had once purchased a ring in. This shop was where he had bought Eunji a ring with a pink opal flower for their anniversary.

When Sehun realized this, he also noted that it had been just over a year since he had said goodbye to Eunji forever. As he stared at the earrings, he wondered how she was doing, what she had been up to. He wondered if she had fallen in love again, or if she was content just running her little coffee shop. He missed their coffee. He wondered if Baekhyun and Chanyeol still worked there. He wondered if Lay was still providing the pastries for the shop. Sehun hadn't thought about Eunji in so long that so many questions arose when he finally remembered her.

Sehun smiled as he thought about Eunji; her bright smile and her uplifting personality. When they had parted ways, he had been devastated. He even moved to an apartment closer to Luhan's and further from Eunji's to make it easier not to run into her. It had taken months for Sehun to come to terms with Eunji's decision, and when he did he chose to completely block her from his mind.

Sehun sighed. It had been so long, but all it took was a little jewelry shop to bring all the memories back. He missed having Eunji in his life not just as a girlfriend, but also as a friend. She had been so amazing the whole time he knew her. She had met him as an incorrigible playboy, and had changed him into an honest man. He had to admit, he still had a ghost of feelings left for Eunji. The past year, he hadn't had a single girlfriend or hookup.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Sehun turned away from the shop to continue on his way. When he looked up and across the street, he made eye contact with a girl. She was holding a plastic cup with bubble tea in it, walking at a leisurely pace. When their eyes connected, she stopped in her tracks. Sehun wondered why. Had something about him captivated her? She squinted at him as if trying to discern something before widening her eyes and briskly walking away. Sehun gathered that she must have mistaken him for someone else.

He started to walk down the road again, glancing occasionally into shop windows and at other people. Eventually, he passed the bubble tea shop that he and Eunji had gone to on their anniversary. When he glanced curiously in as he passed, the door swung open and the person leaving nearly collided with him.

"Oh!" They cried out. "I'm so sor-...Sehun?"

Sehun blinked and looked down at the girl in front of him. Her sunglasses were huge, covering most of her face, and her hair color was different, but Sehun knew exactly who it was.

"Eunji?" He spluttered, incredulous.

"How are you?" She asked, moving a little so that they weren't standing directly in front of the door. "It's been a long time."

"It sure has been." Sehun nodded in agreement. "I've been fine, nothing special. What about you?"

It was strange having small talk like this after having the relationship they had had a year ago.

"Nothing new," she replied, "just running the shop."

"Is it still going well?" Sehun asked.

"Oh, yeah." She nodded emphatically. "Business is great."

"That's great." Sehun smiled.

"It feels like it's been forever," Eunji said after a moment of awkward silence between them.

"Do you want to..." Sehun faltered, thinking about the terms on which they had parted, but ultimately decided to go with what his heart was telling him. "Do you maybe want to grab some coffee or lunch or something and catch up?"

"That sounds nice." Eunji seemed surprised, but agreed.

"Is your phone number still the same?" Sehun asked, a little embarrassed to admit that he had kept it all this time.

"Yeah, it is." She nodded.

"I'll text you, then." Sehun smiled awkwardly.

"Yeah." She nodded again and turned to start walking away before whipping around to call out. "Sehun?"

"Mhm?" He raised an eyebrow.

"When I, uhm," Eunji said, blushing, "when I tell Sunmi about this, because you know I will, do I get to call this a date?"

"I'm going to go with yes," Sehun answered, smiling from ear to ear as Eunji grinned with a nod and turned once more to leave.

As she walked away, Sehun noticed a ring on her finger. It was a simple gold band atop which sat a carved pink opal rose. She kept it. After all this time, she kept it. Maybe the ring wasn't the only thing that had survived their year apart. When Eunji had called out his name, Sehun felt the same pain in his chest that he had felt all that time ago. Maybe he still loved her, and maybe she still loved him. He didn't know, no one did. But that was the best part. From here on out, he had another shot. And maybe, just maybe, they could get it right this time.

~fin~