The Misconceptions of You

Chapter 5: Perks of Having a Boyfriend

“Eunjin-ah…" she heard a voice of a little boy calling her name. She couldn’t tell who he was but she was pretty sure her heart skipped a beat just by hearing him call her name. She turned to see who it was only to get blinded by the light coming from her bedroom window. She realized it was already morning and she overslept. And the boy who was calling her name had all been just a dream.

It was the first wonderful dream she had in months. The rest had been nightmares that kept her waking up in the middle of the night panting and all sweaty. It’s good to be waking up from a nice dream for once although it was a bit disappointing because she had to wake up right before the best part where she could finally see who the boy is.

She was still thinking about the dream when she finally forced herself to rise up and take a shower. She didn’t get enough sleep because she was thinking about Taemin the entire night. That guy is really driving her nuts.

She was at her last year in college and that means she have to work harder now more than anything. After she took a shower and got dressed for school, she went downstairs and found a breakfast prepared on the table. Her mom probably prepared it before she and her dad left for office. Her sister Soojin must have been in school by now.

She ate in a hurry and left the dishes on the sink. She decided to wash it later when she gets home. Anyway, she comes home earlier than everyone else because her classes don’t take up much of her time. She study more at home and she’s not the type who stays up late partying. Call her weird but she prefers reading books than hanging out with her friends. They keep complaining that she doesn’t hang out with them anymore. She didn’t want to get too close for reasons she’s not ready to talk about just yet.

She checked her appearance on the mirror before leaving. She wore a simple shirt, skinny jeans and sneakers. Satisfied that she look ok, she grabbed her bag and headed to the door.

And then to her shock she found Taemin waiting for her outside.

He was leaning on the car looking comfortable as if he woke up on the right side of the bed and that he was having a really wonderful day and nothing and no one can ruin it. He’s wearing a lose white shirt, jeans, glasses to disguise himself, a matching cap that covers half of his face, and a smile that she came to love.

“Who are you?” she asked trying to tease him by pretending she didn’t recognize him.

“You really have to work on your memory lapses lady," he retorted back. “I’m Lee Taemin, if you forgot. We met a few days ago at the grocery store and then we met again yesterday-”

“Yeah, yeah… whatever,” she said cutting him off before he could start with a very long introduction.

Talking to Taemin is getting easier now. He has the ability to make the people around him feel at ease. She feels as if she was beginning to get caught in his spells. The awkwardness from the first meeting probably melted the moment he wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. It gave her comfort and an unspoken offer of friendship.

“Hop in.” he said while opening the door of the passenger seat.

“Wae?”

“Because I’m taking you to school, babo. Do you always wake up so late? Your sister left hours ago.”

“You met my sister?”

“Yeah. She was on her way to school.” Soojin leaves 3 hours earlier before she does which means he was waiting for more than 3 hours. That made her feel bad but since it’s not her fault that he decided to wait when she didn’t ask him to, there is definitely no reason for her to feel guilty so she shoved the feeling aside.

“I asked her about you and she shrugged saying ‘probably sleeping’,” he continued. “Seriously, Eunjin-ah, do you really have to always make me wait?” His remark reminded me of what happened 3 years ago and again she felt a twinge of guilt.

“Nobody asked you to.” she replied while at the same time trying to convince herself that there is no reason for her to be guilty at all.

“Good point.” He said with a smile while still waiting for her to get in the car. She didn’t think she will ever get used to this.

They were on their way to the university and for most of the ride the car was filled with an awkward silence until Taemin decided to speak. “What are you thinking?" he asked.

“Nothing," she lied. The truth is there were a lot of things going on her mind. What if she completely falls for him and then he suddenly decided to end this game they were playing? It will probably gonna hurt like hell.

When they arrived, he was about to get out of the car and open the door for her but she stopped him. "Don’t. They might recognize you." She got off before he can speak a word of protest and usher her out.

"Thanks for driving me here," she said.

"Anything for my jagi," he said with a smile.

She rolled my eyes. He's so sweet she couldn’t help but smile. She said goodbye then started walking away but she didn’t get too far when suddenly someone called her name.

"Eunjin-ah…" She suddenly remembered the dream she had with the boy calling her name but when she looked back instead of the boy in her dream she saw Taemin instead. He was walking towards her with long strides and a smile on his face. Just when she told him not to get out so he wouldn’t be recognized. She looked around, feeling uneasy. There are only a few people around so it’s probably alright. She hoped his disguise will do its job of hiding his face.

“I forgot something,” he said when he was right in front of her.

“What?” she asked a little confused.

“Lend me your phone." She gave him her phone. He pressed some keys then his phone rang and she realized he was trying to get her number on his phone and saving his number in hers. He gave her back the phone and said thanks.

She put her phone back in her bag then said goodbye again not letting Taemin bother her anymore.

She hadn’t gone far when her phone rang. It was Taemin. She looked back again but unfortunately he was already too far for her to see the expression on his face.

"I forgot something again," he said.

"What is it this time?" she asked trying to show annoyance but failed.

"I forgot to tell you how pretty you look today."

That single statement from Taemin made her day.

She couldn’t say anything afterwards. Even after he ended the call, went back in the car and drove away, she stayed where she was, tongue-tied and unable to move. He had the same effect on her just like the first time they met. She could still remember it clearly… the meeting that changed her life forever.