The day I rescued you and everything changed (TxT's Soobin Fanfiction)

Chapter 15: What even is true love?

Realizing that out of all the current inhabitants in this apartment only Odi had had his dinner until now, I had made some ramen and now we sat on the couch again and ate. "Where did you get Odi from?", Kasumi asked curiously. "From the pet store down the street", I answered and laughed as I remembered that day, "Ari didn't like him. And he didn't like her. But to be fair, he didn't like anyone. My friends tried to get closer to him but every time he saw them, he would hiss and put up his spikes like with you earlier. It was kind of cute seeing my friends turn so soft around him suddenly. I had barely seen them so careful." Kasumi chuckled and answered: "Most people show an unexpected side around animals or babies. Do they get along now?" A bit embarrassed, I lowered my eyes and muttered: "I don't really have contact anymore."

And then I remembered and my head jolted up again as I said: "But one of them texted me recently, asking me if I still was alive. That must be maybe two or three days ago." "Have you texted back yet?", she asked and I shook my head. "Who was it? Like, what's his name?", she went on. "Beomgyu", I answered. "Choi Soobin, if you don't answer you friend Beomgyu within the next minutes, I will personally snatch your phone and do it for you", she scolded me and put her bowl aside, "He obviously still cares for you and at times like this, it's always good to have friends around." I bit my lip unsure, but her firm look made me realize that she wouldn't stop complaining until I did so. With a sigh, I got my phone out and searched for the chat with Beomgyu, fingers hovering over the keyboard. "Just write that you're sorry for not answering soon, but there was quite something going on here and you would like to catch up with him if he's having time for it", Kasumi mumbled in between her bites, again understanding what was going on with me. "Sounds good", I mumbled, "Thanks", and typed it in.

And only a few minutes later, I got an answer. Kasumi almost fell off the couch, trying to climb over to me to see what he had written. Laughing, I caught her to prevent her from falling and then gently held onto her until she safely settled down next to me. I opened the chat to see my friend's answer, but my mind was a bit too distracted with her scent in my nose and her shoulder touching mine. I needed to ask her which perfume she used.

Her exclaim made me snap out of it. "That's great. Say yes, Soobin, please!", she whined with a cute little pout. I read through Beomgyu's text again, this time concentrated on the actual content. "Oh, don't worry about answering late. As long as you're not dead yet, that's all I am asking for. We already were worried for you. Me and the others still meet regularly. You can just tag along next time if you want? You will be quite surprised to hear what had happened in the meantime." I looked into Kasumi's eyes. I felt nervous for no reason but looking at her reassured me that it was the right thing to do, so I typed in something and sent if off before being able to regret it. "I'd love too. Thanks, Beomgyu!", she read the text and then locked eyes with me, smiling fondly, "Great. I am proud of you, Choi Soobin."

•••••••

I had to keep her from leaving the apartment yet again in order to get something to celebrate and now she sat next to me, a bit sulky, but I knew she wasn't actually offended. "They surely would want to meet you", I told her and she turned to me with a questioning look. "Your friends?", she asked and I nodded. "After all, you're the first one to be able to feed Odi. And that even on your first try." She grinned and theatrically threw her hair back as she said: "Well, surprise, I am good at wrapping guys around my finger if I want to." I laughed though not doubting it for only a single second. "But I would love to meet them if you want me to", she then smiled softly. "I bet you would get along well", I nodded and she blushed. I grinned foolishly. My friends had liked Ari too at first. But other than her, I was pretty convinced that nothing could change that core mentality of Kasumi anymore. She had experienced enough and therefore was so much more mature than others her age. And then I realized that from the first moment on, this seemingly controversial combination of young appearance and mature aura was what had fascinated me so much about her. And to be more exact: What had impressed me.

•••••••

For some reason, I had decided to sleep in the same room with Kasumi even though she had warned me about her snoring. But I really didn't want to be alone this night. Or was it that I wanted to be near her? I couldn't tell but her presence surely still helped me to relax. It felt like home. She felt like home. "Kasumi?", I whispered into the darkness. "Hmm?", she gave back and I was relieved to know she was still awake. "How do you think life will go on for you now? I ended my relationship because I wanted to. You had your true love taken away from you even though you both didn't want it to happen", I asked. It was silent for a few seconds and I knew she gathered her thoughts.

Then she spoke up again, carefully choosing her words: "I mean... What even is true love? I don't think there's only one out there for you. We have way too many people on earth to waste our time with searching for that single one. That doesn't mean true love doesn't exist either but rather than referring to a person, I'd like to refer to the progress of being in love. I guess we just have to find someone who works out with us the best. That itself can be quite a challenge and it's such an important decision that it usually pays off to be a bit more careful and patient than to rush just for the sake of having a relationship. And I think once you find someone, true love is something that evolves as soon as you decide to make it work. Without holding onto a sinking ship, that is. You see, it's something complicated and fragile, something you may have to fight for, but it gonna be so precious that once you have it you know it was worth all the wait, all the hassle that comes with it. So, if you wanna know if I can find true love again even though Minhyuk was my true love – Yes, I do think so. One day once I am ready for it. And you too. And to be really honest – I could imagine both of us finding it sooner than we might expect." I thought about her words a bit and then mumbled into the darkness: "You know what? I think so too."