Decieve || Hyunlix

Part 21. His Gift

. . . ⇢ ˗ˏˋ his gift ࿐ྂ

"Who was that?"

"Mine and Jisung's close friend, Chan. We all met around the time I transferred here, but Chan was a grade ahead of us. He and I even had a small fling, but it was really nothing." I laughed at the memory of mine and Chan's silly past.
It was comical to me, considering now we're even closer friends and can often joke about it.

"You used to like each other?" Hyunjin asked, changing the gear shift but not driving off yet. Something in his tone had changed just the slightest.

"Yeah, but it was very brief. I think we were both just bored and suddenly got closer, plus he was close with Minho and Jisung wanted there to be double dates. We ended on good terms though, clearly." I chuckled.

I had always been very grateful for someone like Chan. He was that one friend I had that, aside from my best friend, that I could go to about anything without fear of judgement. He always knew how to fill that caring, supportive role when I missed it with my family.

I never got the chance to thank him enough.

"I see." Hyunjin plainly responded, pausing before changing the gear shift again and beginning to drive off.
He had a stubborn glint in his eyes, as if frustrated or irritated. I knew he was a little jealous, and I thought it was just a tad funny. But I'd be lying if I said his jealous face wasn't attractive.
I chortled a bit before placing my hand on his arm that rested on the armrest next to him.

"Hyun, it was two years ago. I promise we have zero romantic feelings towards each other. He's a friend." I smiled assuringly to him.

He turned his gaze to me, at first serious but then it instantly softened with a smile.

He's so pretty.

"Promise?" He said after a quick sigh.

I put my hand on his to further ensure my words.
"I promise."

From there, the rest of the ride had a giddy feeling in it— like a teenage romance novel where you squeal when the two leads do something cute but you want more.

By the time we exited that suburban town of Seoul, we basically started driving around the city for a reason I didn't know. But nonetheless, I enjoyed his company beside me.

"Where are you taking us, Hyun?" I asked with a light laugh, to which he plastered a sneakily cute grin.

"Somewhere."

"Come on! That's too vague and you know it." I complained, to which he laughed at.

"It's your late-birthday, Lix. Everything has to be a surprise."

I crossed my arms with an annoyed, childish noise and sunk into my seat, making him laugh at me even more.
"Don't laugh at me, you jerk!" I whined with a slight laugh and swatted his bicep.

"Just be patient, darling, we're almost there. I want to go somewhere to distract you for a bit and let loose." He chuckled, and I couldn't help but relax at his warm tone.

After another few minutes of driving, he pulled into a parking lot of what looked like somewhere magical— one of my favorite places on this planet.