You're My Melody

Chapter 5: Grateful

“What do you want to do right now Seohyun-ah?”  Jaejoong asked the absent minded Seohyun who was sitting at the passenger seat beside him. She never spoke a word since they left the coffee shop. The lights outside the car caused shadows to form on her face and Jaejoong could see a feeling of sadness mirrored in her eyes.

“Huh?” Seohyun asked startled. “I… I don’t know.” She was so determined to make her birthday special but she never thought of the best way to do it.

Jaejoong knows he can’t take her to public places if he wanted to avoid the prying eyes of people. Being together in the car is dangerous enough. He considered cooking something for her. Not a bad idea, he thought.

“Let’s go buy groceries…” he finally decided and without waiting for Seohyun’s reply he turned the car around and headed to the nearest grocery store.

It was already late and there were only a few people at the grocery store doing their last day shopping. Some people glanced their way and it made her feel a little uncomfortable. Jaejoong, on the other hand, seemed to be oblivious to the stares pointed at them.

Jaejoong bought so many things and Seohyun had no idea what he’s planning to do. He seems to be in high spirits as he picks up a couple of canned goods, hot sauce, and other stuff while Seohyun was just tagging along. Although it was her birthday, Jaejoong seems to be more excited than she is. She looked at his face and she noticed dark circles around his eyes. He may not look like it but Seohyun could tell he’s tired.

“Jaejoong-sshi is this really alright??” Seohyun asked feeling guilty that Jaejoong missed his chance to rest although it was obviously Jaejoong’s fault that they were doing shopping in the middle of the night instead of lying in bed sleeping.

“Call me oppa. And yes, it’s fine unless you would rather spend time alone than hang out with me.”

“No, I mean… I hope I’m not bothering you in some way.”

“Don’t be silly. Let’s just have fun, ok?” Jaejoong dismissed the topic and focused on the two canned tuna on his hands trying to decide which of the two would taste better in kimchi jiggae. After giving it a lot of thought he decided to purchase the two. He then continued looking for other things he needed to buy and making sure he didn’t forget anything.

Seohyun didn’t move from where she stood and just stared at Jaejoong like he was some kind of an angel sent from heaven to mend her heart.

“Oppa,” she called out to him which made Jaejoong look back. “Gomawoyo…” she said and she meant it.

Jaejoong came closer. He just couldn’t resist that shy smile she gave him. When he was close enough he bent a little so their faces were at the same level. He wanted to kiss her but he fought the urge to do so because if he did all hell will break loose and he couldn’t let that happen. So instead he just smiled then said, “Think of this as payment for returning my phone.” He ruffled her hair and she protested, “Hey!” Jaejoong chuckled then went back on filling the cart with groceries as if nothing happened.

Jaejoong, despite Seohyun’s protests, bought one huge cake, and groceries enough to feed 10 people. What he was doing was already too much and Seohyun feels like she doesn’t deserve any of it.

 “Where are you staying, Seohyun-ah?” Jaejoong asked.

“At a hotel.”

“Our place is better then. Common~” Juggling three bags of groceries with one arm and holding Seohyun’s hand with the other, Jaejoong led Seohyun back to the car.

“Where are we?” Seohyun asked when Jaejoong finally stopped the car.

“Our house. This is where we live in Tokyo for the past 3 months. We have to keep it a secret otherwise we won’t be able to sleep in peace.” Jaejoong explained. “Come in.”