off limits ✧ zb1 applyfic

✧ seventy five

Finally, after mulling it over and spending far too many nights sleepless, Yujin had settled on a plan. Though he hadn’t been brave enough to ask Irang on a date in a while, he'd now gathered up the courage to, determined to see his quest through. It was all meant to be very simple: picnic at a park, fun conversations and laughter, and then boom! A kiss! That was probably how those things went, right?

He'd spent so long thinking of his friends' advice from back at Narae's birthday party, trying to think of which to follow. Which one would be most comfortable for him, which one Irang would like best. In the end, Matthew's perspective had seemed the most impactful. Granted, Yujin couldn’t quite say for sure what "mood" he needed to set for a kiss to happen. But Irang liked to eat, and she liked parks, so... Surely, that would be enough.

Sheepishly holding onto her hand, he led her to the picnic blanket he'd set right under a tree. On it, sat a large basket, filled with food he hoped she would find to her taste. When they reached the little area he'd prepared, Irang gasped.

"Wow, this is so nice!" she exclaimed, turning to him with sparkly wide eyes. "You did all this for me?"

"Uh, yeah."

Yujin certainly hadn’t expected Irang to hug him in response, but she came to wrap her arms around his waist, pressing her face into his shoulder. It was a quick, fleeting embrace, and just a second later, Irang was sitting down on the blanket. Of course, Yujin couldn’t recover as quickly. He stayed frozen there for a few seconds, an overwhelming warmth flooding his face, before finally sitting down with her. Looking so awkward wouldn’t fit the "mood". He needed to be a little more confident, for once. Which was not his forte at all.

Apparently too hungry to wait, Irang had already opened the basket and rummaged through its contents. In there, she found wrapped sandwiches of all sorts, and a box filled with homemade cookies. She lifted her head from the basket, a giant smile plastered across her face.

"You made all that?" she gushed, palpable excitement in her voice.

He chuckled, amused by her childlike wonder. "Yup, I did."

Well, that wasn’t the complete truth. It wasn't a lie either, Yujin had definitely contributed to it. He'd cut the tomatoes into slices, had buttered up the bread, had even cut the sandwiches into triangles. He'd stirred the cookie batter and had watched them rise in the oven, making sure they wouldn’t burn. But the rest had been done by Jiyeon. When he'd come to her asking for help with cooking, she'd gotten so excited she'd nearly planned a full ten course meal. He'd had to talk her down into simple sandwiches and cookies — a picnic didn't really have to be a five stars meal.

He preferred to keep Jiyeon's contribution to himself. Irang would surely find it less impressive if she knew his older sister had helped. And, well, he wanted to impress. That was kind of the whole point of this. Jiyeon would forgive him for not giving her credit this one time.

"You can pick whichever you want," he said as he pointed to the sandwiches. He'd made just a bit too many, so she would have many options.

Irang did not have to be told twice. She quickly went through every sandwich he'd prepared, holding each of them slightly open to check the ingredients they contained, before settling on one. Yujin decided to eat one of the ones he knew Irang would not go for, just in case she felt like eating a second one. He needed to make this date absolutely perfect. What he ate didn't really matter.

After the first bite, Irang's eyes turned round like beads. She turned to face him and, while she was still chewing, gave him an enthusiastic thumbs up. Some of the tension Yujin had been feeling left his body in one relieved sigh. Obviously, a sandwich could hardly be too disgusting to eat, he hadn’t attempted a gourmet dish for a reason. But Irang, always wearing her emotions right on her face, seemed to really like it. That made him feel a little proud.