"Huh?" I croaked. His steady gaze was freaking me out. "Gosh, there must be something wrong with my hearing, because I could've sworn you just said you broke up with Irene..."
"I did."
"Wha–– Why? But you're halfway in love with her!" A train of thought hit me out of the blue, something I had read in some kind of girly magazine, "Is this, like, a guy thing where you get freaked out when you fall in love with a girl? And you have to 'distance yourself' to preserve your masculinity?" I glared at him. "Well, don't! She's the best thing that could ever happen to you! Don't jeopardize your happiness because of something stupid like this."
Because, ultimately, the most important thing was for him to be happy. And Irene would be perfect for that. I'd seen how he could break into a smile simply at the thought of her. She was perfect for him.
He looked astonished and slightly horrified. "What?"
"Your feelings aren't going to go away even if you run from them, you know," I said.
The glare was back on his face. "Boy, do I know that," he muttered darkly.
"That's why you should go back to her. Tell her you made a mistake, that you can't live without her," I said, nodding wisely.
His expression darkened further. "Don't go putting words in my mouth!"
"I know it sounds a little icky, but girls like that sort of thing," I informed him. "You have to be romantic sometimes. She'll be delighted."
"Okay, how 'bout this," he paused, then took a deep breath and said, "Jennie... I made a mistake. I can't live without you." Then he grimaced. "Damn it, there goes my dignity."
I ignored the pang in my heart. "Right. Now replace my name with hers and you're set." I made to walk past him, but he stopped me by grabbing my wrist with a growl.
I jumped. His fingers were ice cold. He must've been freezing out there in the rain.
"For the love of God, would you just let me finish!" he exclaimed in exasperation. "I broke up with Irene one month ago. I broke up with her and I have no intention of going back to her." I opened my mouth to argue, but he quelled me with a scowl. "Let me finish! I broke up with her because I discovered too late that I don't feel that way for her anymore. There's someone else I––"
"God, could you be any more fickle?" I cut in, giving him a disgusted look. "And you have the nerve to come lecture me on my fickleness?"
He gave me a look of irritation. "I can tell you're never going to let me finish what I want to say. So I'll just fast-forward to the end."
"It's not my fault you––"
"Jennie Kim," he said, in a voice that very effectively drowned mine out, "I like you."
Before my brain could even digest the words, I started shaking my head. "No. You can't just change your mind like that."
"Says who?" He sounded disgruntled.
"Says..." I flailed around wildly for an answer and settled for, "it's just common sense!" And when he didn't look the slightest bit convinced by my argument, "She makes you smile!"
He looked confused. "What?"
"She makes you smile," I repeated. "I've seen the way you talk about her. Just thinking about her makes you smile. She makes you happy! I'm like... the opposite of your dream girl." That statement of his still stung, even when I was the one quoting it. "You don't smile at me. You glare at me."
He glared again now. "Only because you're being such an idiot!"
I glared back. "Sorry for being an idiot then! Not everyone can live up to the standards of your dream girl."
He ran a palm over his face, looking like he would like nothing better in the world than to strangle some sense into me. Then he exhaled loudly. Once. Twice. Thrice. The third time was the longest yet.
"Stop sighing!" I snapped. I didn't like it when he looked so obviously frustrated. I also didn't like it that I was the reason he was so frustrated.
"If you don't feel the same way, just say so." The confidence he'd had was slowly starting to melt away and he was gaining a sort of wounded-puppy look. It made him look so vulnerable I would've given anything to get that look out of his eyes.
"I––" I bit my lip, "Dammit, are you blind?"
He stared at me. "Does that mean..."
"I've liked you for a long time now," I admitted grudgingly. Gosh. Mushy scenes like these really weren't my cup of tea.
I wasn't even completely sure I liked tea, come to think of it.
"Stop digressing," he said, as if he could read my mind. I was about to ask him when he added, warily, "It's that look on your face."
"Oh. Okay – wait. I have a look?"
"Stop digressing," he growled.
"Fine." He didn't have to get all huffy about it.
We stared at each other. I detachedly mused that the rain was lightening up.
"You were confessing your feelings for me?" he prompted after a while, presumably unable to stand my blank stare anymore.
"Uh," I said, "I thought I was done with that."
"What?" he asked incredulously. "That was it?"
"It was still longer than yours," I pointed out.
"Only because you kept cutting me off!"
"See, you're doing that glaring thing again!"
"You're being ridiculous."
"I am not," I muttered mutinously. I glared at the wet ground, at our shoes. He was wearing Converses that were completely drenched. Gosh. I was starting to feel bad now.
He was speaking again. "Now that we've established we both like each other..."
I looked up to see why he'd trailed off just in time to feel his lips land on mine.
It was... the coldest kiss I'd had so far. Not in terms of passion, but temperature. His lips were so cold that when they touched mine, I jumped at the shiver that surged through my body as a result. Then he tangled a hand in my hair and pulled me closer to kiss me properly, and I forgot about all the cold for a little while.
I'd never understood all that hoo-hah over kissing in the rain; I'd never found it particularly romantic, just very wet and uncomfortable. But this kiss, right here, right now, with the right guy – it surely was the best.
I discovered I was also drenched by the time we both ran out of breath and pulled away. He must've dropped the umbrella at some point. I found that I didn't really care. I would stand out in the rain for an hour if that was all it took to feel this way, to have him look at me this way – all of the time.
"So..." I found myself whispering, as if speaking any louder would shatter the perfection of that moment. "Where do we go from here?"
"Let's start from the beginning," he suggested. He used his left hand to lift mine and put it into his right. Once his large hand had closed over my smaller one, he shook it and said, "Nice to meet you, Jennie. I'm Taehyung."
Then he smiled, that brilliant smile that had captured my heart from the very first day. And now, with both of us standing in the rain, frozen to the bone and dripping wet, it still had the ability to warm me to the tips of my toes. His brown eyes were warm – I hadn't known such a color could be so warm – as he said, "I think you're the most amazing girl I've ever met. Will you be my girlfriend?"
"If you would buy me a bucket of milk ice cream on a regular basis, then why not?"
As it turned out, he didn't need any advice on how to win a girl over, after all.
<end>