ENCHANTED, kim namjoon

vii. if i could ride a bike

VII. IF I COULD RIDE A BIKE

For the second time that day, they were witnessing a couple fighting.

"I'm breaking up with you!"

"You don't mean that!"

With the both of them sitting on the sidewalk, they ate their hotdogs that they got from a nearby hotdog stand as if they were eating popcorn while watching a movie.

"It's not you, it's me!" the man shouted at his future ex-boyfriend. "I am sick of you!"

Baram's loud gasp was muffled by her stuffed mouth. Namjoon nodded as if he was saying that he shared the sentiment.

"Are you sure you're sick of me? As far as I'm concerned, you're obsessed with me! You love me too much, babe, and you know it."

The girl leaned over to Namjoon slightly to whisper, "I don't know anything about what's happening, but I'm pretty that was a foul move."

Namjoon pursed his lips to keep himself from laughing too loudly. She turned to him and saw that there was some mustard on the corner of his mouth, chin, and nose. A fond smile blossomed on her face, noting that her companion was so engrossed in the couple's argument and the deliciousness of the Viennese hotdog that he didn't notice how much of a messy eater he was becoming.

Taking a napkin from the small paper bag on her lap, she gently wiped the mustard that was on his nose, making his chews slow. He turned to her and she shook her head before casually continuing to wipe the mustard off his mouth to his chin. When she pulled away, he smiled at her with his mouth still full, making his cheeks look puffy and adorable.

"Why can't you be like her to me? We would have worked out if you were a fraction like her. Look at them! They probably don't have any problems!"

Baram and Namjoon froze, unable to even tilt their heads in the fighting couple's direction in fear of getting more involved in the heated fight. Once they could feel that the couple's angry eyes were no longer glaring at them, they sighed out in relief, stuffing their faces with their food more comfortably.

The couple went on to argue somewhere else down the street.

She tapped his knee to get his attention, "If we were a couple, what's something about me that would drive you crazy?"

He hummed, "I find it really attractive when you push your hair back when you get frustrated over something we're talking about—"

"Not that kind of crazy, but I'll take note of that," Baram quickly interrupted, punching his arm lightly. "I meant, what's something about me that would have drove you insane to the point that you'd want to break up with me?"

Realization flashed in his features and he quickly shook his head. "There's no way I'm answering that. I dated this girl once who asked me the same question and swore not to make the same mistake twice. I answered that she didn't handle criticism well and she broke up with me on the spot. I think she just asked me that so she had an excuse to tell me something she didn't like about me."

"I see where she's coming from. I dated this guy for a month. I asked him that question and he told me that I was too jealous, and then I told him that it irritates me how much he talked about his ex. Maybe that proved his point, but, man, he talked so much about how he misses her to the point that even I started missing her even though I never met the girl."

He nodded, "So, what is it about me that would drive you mad?"

Baram pursed her lips, her eyes scanning his features as if that would hint at a fatal flaw that would make her break up with him in their fictional scenario. She thought back to the past hours she spent with him and couldn't find any valid moment wherein he vexed her so much. All of her moments with him were thoughtful and memorable.