off limits ✧ zb1 applyfic

✧ ninety eight

Even back when they were young and not yet dating, Hao and Haewon liked to keep their time together inside either of their homes. Neither of them particularly liked to go out and meet people, and it felt much more natural to study or play music together, off in their own little bubble. Since they'd reunited and had reignited the spark between them, things had been much the same. Staying inside was just fine, cuddled up together as they read books, talking for hours about their lives and the future they wanted to build, side by side.

Needless to say, Haewon had been taken aback when Hao had texted her this morning, asking if she wanted to go shopping with him. Clothes shopping, that was. Ironically, Haewon would have understood if he'd meant grocery shopping — she thought doing such a trivial task together was surprisingly romantic. But clothes shopping? Well that just wasn’t like Hao. If there was one thing she knew about Hao, it was that he didn’t care all that much for clothing. Of course, he always made sure to be prim and proper when it came to important events, but aside from that, he never put much thought into his outfits. It was a good thing he looked effortlessly gorgeous in anything he wore, because he wasn’t one to waste time and energy on finding the perfect combination of clothes. No, he just wasn’t into fashion much.

Maybe that was why he hadn’t bought a single thing yet, despite their walking through every store they saw for the past hour. This entire invitation was a little weird, Haewon thought, but maybe he was indulging her. Not that she liked clothes any more than him. Hmm. The more she thought about it, the more she was convinced something was afoot.

She almost stumbled forward when Hao suddenly stopped walking. "Oh hey, let's go in that one."

Haewon's eyes followed the direction his finger was pointing in, landing on the storefront of what seemed to be a very, very fancy dress shop. Just behind the glass, mannequins were draped in lavish dresses, sequins and silk and lace all at once. That store was certainly not one where she would find the next useful staple of her wardrobe. It looked more like one she would visit if she had a wedding to attend. The type to sell you a dress you would wear exactly once.

"Why?" she asked as she turned back to him, one eyebrow raised. "It's not like I need a fancy dress for anything. Plus it won’t fit in my suitcase, so it’d just have to stay here."

Hao's smile stayed firmly on his face, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. "Oh, you know, I think trying on clothes even if you don’t plan to buy them is fun! Takes window shopping to the next level!"

There was something about the upbeat and overly cheerful tone of his voice that was a little strange. Haewon narrowed her eyes, looking for a sign of something on his face, but his smile eventually made her relent.

"Alright," she breathed out, shoulders drooping.

He did not wait a second more to pull her towards the store, a little too energetic compared to his usual state. From inside, the store was even more luxurious than the outside. Its high ceilings allowed a multitude of colorful dresses to be exposed on mannequins, as if they had entered a ball for inanimate objects. Haewon couldn’t look in one place for too long without her eye inevitablty being caught in all directions. There was an aisle filled with suits in the back of the store, but it was easily obscured by the plethora of gorgeous dresses expanding in front of them.

Haewon had to say, she was a little glad she'd walked in. Even if she wasn't going to buy anything, this was quite the sight to look at. One she'd sort of forgotten from her time in the dorms, where pajamas were always the dress code.

"So," Hao nudged her, his smile a lot more sincere. "Go ahead, pick your favorite."

"Should I? I mean, won't the employees be mad if we leave empty handed?"