You hang your apron on the hook, chewing on your bottom lip. You smile to the kitchen staff as they make their leave, leaving you alone in this humble establishment. The clock signals that it was 7.50 pm, a mere ten minutes before Youngbae is due.
After that phone call yesterday, he had decided that it would be best if you see each other face to face rather than over the phone. As much as you wanted to see him, you don’t think you’re quite ready. A year has passed and you are still unsure of your feelings. Would your heart beat faster when he walks into the room? Would his smile make you weak in the knees like they used to? Would there be spark again, after a whole year of being apart?
Such questions linger in your head, as you pace around the room. The sound of your heels hitting the floor muffles the sound of the door opening. It wasn’t until he clears his throat that you’re no longer alone.
You blink, staring at him for a second before bowing. “H-Hi,” you stammer.
The sight of him in front of you took your breath away. You’ve been imagining your first meeting every night since you’re apart. How would he look? Would he be smiling at you? Would he pull you into a hug? But now in the moment, none of those things are happening. He looks great, at least from what you can see. He’s in his full disguise mode – his hoodies up and glasses on. His lips straight, and he was keeping a distance from you.
But even with all that, you find your heart beat accelerating. You still love this man in front of you. There was no doubt; you still want him.
“You’ve been doing okay. I’m glad,” he says. You couldn’t quite tell what his tone is depicting, but it was anything but glad.
You smile, hoping it would cut the awkward atmosphere. “You’ve been doing well too, I see.”
He smirks, surprising you. Taking off his sunglasses, you could finally see the prominent dark bags under his eyes. Exhaustion clearly depicted on his face. “You think I’ve been fine?”
You shrug, unsure where this conversation is heading. “I mean, Alive been doing pretty well and I heard your concert was great. So, you must be doing fine. Am I right?”
“Did you really think I am fine after leaving you? Do you really think that?”
“You didn’t leave me, Bae. I asked you to.”
“I only left because you’re scared of me!” He’s yelling now. Your frightened eyes must have been noticeable as he takes a deep breath before continuing, “I kept remembering the fear in your voice when I held you too tight that night. How helpless you sounded. It scared me. It scared me knowing that you’ve been through something so traumatic and I… I didn’t notice it.”
You open your mouth to interfere, but he raises his hand.
“I didn’t notice anything. I was too busy being Taeyang that I didn’t notice the person I love the most is hurting with a pain I can never fathom.” He turns to look at you, tears brimming his eyes. “I realized I wasn’t good enough for you. I don’t deserve you.”
“No, stop talking.” You step closer, holding his face in your hands. “Just please, don’t ever say that. You’re so good to me, you’re the best part of me, Youngbae.” As if mirroring each other, tears spilled on his face as well as yours. “Don’t ever say that. I- I am here, better because of you. I wake up everyday for you, I went to get help for you.” Caressing his rough face, you smile. “Because I love you, so much. Because I want to be better for you in hope that maybe you’ll learn to love me again.”
Youngbae’s hand overlaps yours. “I never stopped loving you. I can’t.”
With that, you reach for his lips. The kiss was… gentle yet powerful. It symbolizes the power of your love to him and his to you. A power that is able to withstand any obstacle, any fear, any scare. A power that only gets stronger with time.
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A/N: Yay! It’s finally done. 5 months and it’s finally done. Woot! Now I can finally work on something else! Thank you so much to those who stayed with me over these 5 months, I’m really, really thankful. No words can describe how thankful I am. I really, really love you guys. All of you. Muahhhh x