time diplomat | kim taehyung ✔

| Kang 'Terry' Taehyun |

Astra had her spare mobile tightly clutched in her hand as the other one displayed the address where she would meet the agent who'd help her find Yeonjun. Changing into something comfortable, she stepped out, wrapping a warm scarf around her neck. 

The crisp breath of winter air swept through the pretty modern town of Seoul. Sidewalks painted with vermilion foliage caught her eyes- they were all real for once. The brew of warm coffee along with pumpkin pastries danced in the air, pulling Astra into hungry fantasies. People were already looking forward to Halloween- the lawns were decorated for the spooky season even though it felt a little too early. They were in thick coats and long, light-colored trench coats, looking snuggly.

The girl wanted to take pictures but, it might turn out rude to do that without permission. Posters of carnivals and announcements of seasonal contests adorned the walls with a vintage color- Astra found herself capturing the moments in the mobile she had. Those were things she'd never seen before.

The spinning carousel, the falling red maple leaves, Astra's sight moved left and right, trying to decide what she wanted to look at first.

"Voila!" She grinned. "This is perfect."

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

She, for a while, just stared at her mobile's glowing screen. The number flashing on the front was foreign to her. Nonetheless, she swiped, attending the call.

"Xanthe Astra. You there?"

"Yeah. You are?"

"Hey. The Historical Branch called out for me just a few minutes ago. You okay?"

Astra's eyebrows furrowed. "I asked 'You are?'."

"I'm hurt. You don't recognize my voice, really? Kang Taehyun here, kid."

"Ah . . . It's you, sir, Mr. Genius. The mastermind behind this 'interviewing famous people' shit." She grimaced as she heard Taehyun, better called 'Terry', laugh in the background. Surprisingly, the sound felt like it was so close to her. 

As a heavy arm fell on her shoulder, Astra turned around in surprise and saw the boy with his mobile held close to his ear. His bright red hair fell all over his forehead, he smirked, "Hey, babe. FYI, I just helped the Historical Branch to be back to work again." He shoved his device into his coat's pocket, raising his eyebrows.

"Hello, Taehyun. How are you? How are your days here?" Looking over to little children holding onto balloons, begging their guardians to let them on rides, Astra sighed, Taehyun's arm still around her shoulder. Teenagers like her lazed around on the benches, munching on things she's never seen before and lovers gazed over the sunset, feeding each other things that looked like pink clouds and apples coated with a layer of caramel.

"Hey . . . Look, we're gonna find Yeonjun. Okay?" Taehyun's soft voice caused her to slowly nod along as if she was a puppet on a string. Astra brought the lens of the device's camera to capture a set of balloons as a little boy wailed, watching them fly away. Taehyun chuckled, moving his other hand forward, and pressed his thumb on the screen to click out the scene as a picture.

"You wanna come home with me? I don't mind, honestly." He smiled, his cheekbones being highlighted causing Astra to doubt that the little bit of space left between them would prevent the heat radiating off of him.

"Yeah?" He gently hugged her, Astra's forehead hitting his chest as he soon pushed away from her and lend his hand. Grabbing it and feeling it warm up her skin, Astra blushed. Truth be told, Taehyun looked ravishing under the warmth of the golden sunset.