Autumn slowly approached as it began to be a little windy and cool in the mornings, trees slowly changing their colors from green to subtle orange, yellow or red, one after another.
Starting another fresh weekend together, Mark and Melanie ate breakfast together in a sweet café, near a lake. After that, they went shopping for some stuffs Melanie needed for a family party she'll attend this afternoon.
Wandering around at their ease with arms linked together, they would get awkward looks from people around; only Melanie could notice them. She started to be uncomfortable and tried to hurry her shopping session to get out of here.
They headed to their park before she could get home to get ready for later. She felt better when it was only the two of them; she could be her complete self with him; no judging eyes around. People are so closed mind to some type of relationships, it's pretty sad. Already just imagining herself telling her mother that she sees an asian guy...no she don't want to think about it.
Seating on a bench, Mark was embracing Melanie in his arms, chatting quietly before reaching for her lips. For him, kissing her was one of the moments he cherished the most with her. The feelings he felt through his entire body was unexplainable. Without the use of his eyes, every affectionate skinship moment with her was like a thrilling adventure for him.
Now gasping for air, Melanie rested her hands on his chest with her forehead still connecting to his, "I have to go..." Actually, she didn't want to go as she kissed him again. After few seconds, she broke the loving kiss. "I really have to go now."
"No, don't go..." Mark sulked as he kept his arms around her and kissed her again.
"Now you know how I feel everytime you attend your classes while i'm waiting for you to comeback and be with you again." she said to him with a smile.
"Yes, it hurts! I'm sorry to make you wait, but that ain't my fault."
She hit his chest, "I know that ain't your fault. However, today it's your time to suffer~"
"Don't go..." he pouted to her.
"I have to..." she chuckled.
He pecked her lips one last time and after that, they stood up to get ready to go. Before they could move any further, Mark held her hands and tilted his head down to her. Melanie watched him with sparkling eyes. She squeezed his hands waiting for him as it seemed like he wanted to tell her something.
"I've...never felt something like this before for someone..."
Melanie's heart started to sped up.
He continued "...it's so strong. Everytime i'm with you, just talking or hugging and...kissing, it feels so amazing that I can't properly describe it. I still don't understand why any guy came to you before. Am I weird?"
Melanie's eyes became watery, hearing him saying all these things. It touched her heart; she finally felt special for someone, someone that cared for her. She couldn't explain in words what she was feeling right now.
She stood up on her toes and kissed him tenderly one last time and only said these words, scared to fall in deep happy tears in front of him. "I don't think you're weird booboo." She grabbed her shopping bags and said "Bye."
"Bye bye." he said back softly. Melanie walked backward, still looking at the man of her affection with tears falling on her cheeks. She was so happy with him that she was afraid of something. The experience of finding someone who she's falling deep for and that's the same thing for him. is just wonderful.
However, she's terrorised that something's might break them apart cause when you are happy, there's always something bad that might break that happiness...and even end it.
Her family?
The judgemental society?
It was hard for her not to think about it, especially for a girl who likes to please everyone, forgetting about herself first.
***
Almost arrived in front of his house's door, Mark could feel a presence. A sweet perfume tickled his nose; it felt nice.
"Hi Marky!" a girl's voice said.
Marky?
"Uh, hi...You are?"
"Oh?? Your voice got deeper! You don't remember my voice?" the girl pouted, "It's okay since it's been 7-8 years..."
"Oh...Emma?"
"You don't call me GuiGui anymore? Yes it's me!" she yelled joyfully while tip-tapping her white cane on the floor to find him and went in for a hug. Mark just froze on place, not believing she was right here in front of him.
***
For the past days, JB has been doing this routine non-stop: going to College, do some homeworks and the project with Pamela and then go to the dance studio to work on his singing and dancing. He hadn't spend a lot of time with his friends, especially Mark. He'll try to change that, like Jr said.
Well, he was going to Mark's house before heading to the studio. He pressed the doorbell and Papa Tuan opened it, "Oh hi Jaebeom! You're joining us too for dinner?"
"Ah? No, i'm just passing by to say hello to Mark." he said with his natural smile.
"Ah, come in my boy."
As he was now inside, he saw Mark talking and laughing comfortably on the sofa with a girl. That girl kinda seemed familiar to him.
"Hey Mark." he said as he came closer. The girl turned her face, intrigued by the smooth and deep voice. That's when JB remembered her; Mark's childhood girl friend. The both of them were inseparable because they had something in common: being blind.
They understood each other very well and Mark would always protected her as JB was a little mean to her. Children are mean...that's the youth.
"Emma, it's you?"
"Yes, who ask for me...?"
"JB. I mean Jaebeom; that's how you can remember me I think."
Long dark chocolate hair, fair skin, lean body, Emma had grown into a beautiful young lady. JB couldn't believe his eyes; the things he remembered about her was her rainbow braces and her face full of acne. After the day she had to leave for Taiwan with her parents, we had no more news of her. Mark had suffered the most.
"Oh Jaebeom it's you?" she said in a weak voice, remembering the hard times this guy gave her.
"Yeah, it's me. Don't need to be afraid of me anymore...the past is the past."
"Yeah, you're right!" she exclaimed as she returned to her bubbly self again. She stood up and headed toward JB before almost stumble on something. JB caught her in his arms right before she could fall.
"If JB was still the same, he would have let you fall." Mama Tuan said as she was passing by, making Mark giggle at her statement. She also remembered all the pranks JB would made to that poor Emma.
"I guess." Emma responded as she hugged him in a friendly way.
JB's phone suddenly rang...
"Jaebeomie, where are you?" his mother said lovely over the phone. Something smelled fishy, cause she would never called him like that...
"Um..." he firstly responded a bit shocked and confused at the same time, "I'm at Mark's house mom. You need something?"
"You forgot? Me and your dad went to get your aunt and cousin at the airport earlier. They're asking to see you cause you're the only one missing now. We'll have dinner soon, so come back home~" she continued in her rare adorable motherly voice.
Totally forgot...
"I'll be there soon...Omma." he ended up the call.
"Umm, I have to go now. Hopefully, we'll have time to talk another time?"
"Yeah, i'm staying for two months because of my parents work and i'll go back to Taiwan. I came with a friend; I hope we'll all hangout a lot while we're here."
"Of course!" Mark exclaimed, excited. "We have a lot to catch up...since you left."
Seeing the two of them now, JB didn't have a good feeling. However, he didn't say any more and just left saying bye to both of them.
He walked for ten minutes before finally reaching his home. He unlocked the door and...
"Omo Omo, look at my nephew! You have grown to be an handsome man" his aunt said as she was waiting for him in the living room. She then went to him with arms opened.
"Oh auntie!" JB said with his handsome smile as he went in her embrace. Sooyoung suddenly broke the hug and cupped his face in her delicate hands, "Look at you! But, you need to eat more; you look a bit skinny. Life in Canada must be hard on you uh?"
"Ah, no auntie. Don't worry i'm eating well," he giggled, "it's just that I have a lot to do these days..."
"Aww, okay Beomie. Come, you have to see your cousin, he can't wait to see you!"
She held Jaebeom's hand and guided him to the kitchen, where the rest of the family was chatting and giving jokes while cooking dinner together. He could hear Youngjae's loud voice. For the first time in a while, it kinda felt lively in the house. He had missed his auntie so much; she was so much more lovely than his own mother.
"Look who came home!!" Sooyoung yelled.
"Don't need to yell like that, Sooyoung-ah." her sister responded, a little annoyed by her loud voice.
"Ayeee, I'm just happy to see my Beomie again."
"Yeah Sora, she's just happy. Relax my dear." JB's father told her.
Then, JB made eye contact with his cousin, "Oh, Youngjae??" he exclaimed as he looked at him head to toe. He definitely changed to a good-looking young man. When the two of them were younger, JB thought his cousin would never grow handsome. His state was...something.
However, today "Whoaaaah!" he exclaimed, making everyone laughed at his reaction, except Youngjae saying "Wae? Wae? Wae?" in a defensive behavior. "You're shocked uh?"
"Wow, come here!" JB said as he went to hug him. Since he was the only child in the house, when Youngjae would come, he was like his little brother. In his early ages, JB's family would go to South Korea for summer vacation. The two kids would sleep in the same bed; JB being the oldest would hug Youngjae tightly to protect him from the dark. Little cuties~
Too many years had passed away without seeing each other and he felt a little alone since then. He wondered why his aunt wouldn't come to Canada to stay closer to them.
"Jaebeomie? Go get the table ready for me." His mom said in that lovely voice again, sending odd shivers down his spine cause he wasn't use to that kind of affection from his mother. He thought she was trying too hard to be a good mother in front of her sister, showing how well she was taking care of him. What's with that competitive mind?
"Leave it to me Beomie, i'll help your mother. Go talk with Youngjae, you two have a lot to disscuss I think." Sooyoung said while winking as she tapped his back. This little action made him smile.
"Come with me Youngjae, you will sleep in my room." JB said cheerfully while Youngjae followed him naturally like a good dongsaeng.
Arrived in his room, Youngjae exclaimed in his native satoori (dialect) from Mokpo, "Whoah, your room is so big!" and then let out an english word,"Amazing!"
JB chuckled. The loud boy he played with until his early teens was always the same and he missed him.
He gave him a visit of his room and helped him organised his stuff while they were conversing, and telling jokes to each other. They also quarelled when Youngjae would made fun of him, like real brothers.
"Where i'm going to sleep hyung?"
"On the floor, where else? Do you want to sleep on the same bed as me?" he said in a teasing tone.
"Oh no hyung! We're too old now for that hahahaha!!!"
"You'll sleep on my bed while i'll bring another mattress and sleep on the floor instead."
"Boys!! Time to eat!!" Sora yelled from downstairs.
The boys went downstairs and headed to the dinning room to sit next to each other. Maybe Sora wasn't as motherly as her son would like her to be, but she definitely was a great cook and liked to invite people home...depending on who it was, of course.
"I see you still can cook perfectly, Unnie" Sooyoung said.
"Hm hm, everyone like my cooking!" she stated.
"You should teach me some of your recipes in the next two weeks, while i'm here."
"I don't know if i'll have time...we have to get things ready for the wedding." Sora ended, bringing the mood down again. The wedding was one of a good relative's daughter, not someone really close to, but it's still family...
Hwanhee cleared his mouth as he wanted to speak up, "So, Youngjae? How is school, you're doing good?" JB's father would always asked about school, grades and stuff, one of the reasons why his own son would avoid chatting with him. It seemed like it was the only thing that interested him. Therefore, they wouldn't talk a lot together.
"Ah, school?..." Youngjae looked a little embarrassed, "it's going great!" he chuckled a little bit.
"Hm, you're blushing? School doesn't seem that great." Hwanhee said with a smirk.
Sooyoung took her son's defense, "That's because he want to leave school for a while." she said bluntly.
Hwanhee and Sora gasped in incomprehension, mostly glaring at Sooyoung. JB only looked at Youngjae waiting for an answer.
Sooyoung continued, "That's because a JYP Entertainment staff saw my handsome son talents in singing and he was accepted in JYP."
Hwanhee and Sora didn't know about the music industry in Korea, so they blinked their eyes in confusion. JB coughed when he heard that, chocking with the food still in his mouth. Youngjae patted his back, "Hyung gwenchana?"
He nodded and made a sign with his hand showing he was alright, drinking some water. He faced his cousin again and whispered "You're...you have been accepted to JYP??"
__________________________________
Hi!
Well well, what can these people of their past bring to them...good or bad things?
I wonder who is really Emma to Mark...
Does Melanie has good reasons to be afraid of loosing her happiness, which means Mark?
Comment your thoughts~
Malory :)