i wake up and rub my eyes, the piercing sunlight leaking through the blinds. i groan as i remember all the events of last night. thank god it's saturday.
i turn and grab my phone, opening it to see a notification for a message.
from: taetae <3
hey, meet me at the special place by ten. don't be late.
what? i don't remember getting his number at all, and i don't definitely don't remember saving any number as "taetae <3".
i quickly type a reply.
to: taetae <3
okay.. but how tf did you get my number? also, why??
i hit send and get a reply almost instantly.
from: taetae <3
i added mine into your contacts whilst you were showering. you should get a password. my contact name is cute though, right?
i shake my head but stifle a laugh to myself. my phone buzzes again.
from: taetae <3
also, you'll see when you're here. go get ready, you only have half an hour. don't be late!
i look at the time. 9:28.
"shit!" i mutter and spring up from bed. as i am hastily getting ready, i wonder why i'm trying so hard to look decent and be on time to meet someone who i barely know. it's confusing how i feel; i feel as though since i have trusted him with my special place, which is one of the most sacred things to me, why not trust him personally too?
in thirty minutes i am ready, but i only have two minutes left to get there. he seemed very persistent for me not to be late, so i leave the house as fast as i can and speed walk my way to the park.
....
i hastily scramble my way through the familiar bushes, being careful not to ruin my hair. i burst into the small clearing to see taehyungs back. he turns and looks at me before checking his watch.
"hm.. only five minutes late. i'll accept that." he says, standing up and smiling at me cheekily.
i roll my eyes.
"where are we going?" i ask as he starts leaving.
he pauses for a second, and i can see the gears turning in his brain, debating whether to tell me or not. he eventually turns his head and looks at me.
"you'll see. i'll explain when we're there."
even though i am extremely confused, i follow him without any further questioning. as i walk slightly behind him, i realise that my mood is as gloomy as the skies surrounding me. obviously I'm not quite over the events of yesterday, and I'm not really in the mood to be trailing aimlessly after taehyung. i look up and see taehyung himself staring at me, looking concerned. he takes my wrist and gently tugs me so that i am walking next to him and not behind.
"look, i know you may not want to be spending your morning with a virtual stranger when you could be in bed hiding from all your responsibilities after last night," he says, as if he's been reading my thoughts.
"yeah, i can see it in your face," he chuckles slightly, "but the whole point of me dragging you out is that i want to try and cheer you up. i could tell that even though last night you told me you'd be okay, you're still thinking of it. which is understandable, of course. but i want to try and distract you from it; I've never really had anyone do that for me, and since you have trusted me with a place the seems very close to your heart, its the least i could do."
his slight smile turns into the cheeky grin i saw earlier.
"I'm still not going to tell you where we're going though, is a surprise." he finishes with a wink and i smile weakly.
we carry on walking for about fifteen minutes until we reach.. a field? i peer at taehyung quizzically and he smiles.
"don't worry, we're almost there. there's something here, i promise."
we carry on walking around a corner and suddenly a large colourful canvas appears on the ground with a basket attached to it. it takes me a moment but i soon realise taehyung has taken me to a hot air balloon.
"i hope you're not scared of heights." he says, smiling at me sheepishly before walking over to the people who were blowing up the huge balloon.
i can feel my stomach churning at the thought; I'm indeed scared of heights. despite this, i shuffle over to taehyungs location.
"the balloon should be ready to go in about ten minutes" one of the men maintaining the balloon informs us. taehyung nods and turns to me, looking concerned.
"oh no.. don't tell me you're actually scared of heights" he says, peering at me. i remain silent as i see almost disappointment wash over his expression.
"it's okay.." he sighs, "do you want me to take you home? i'm sorry, i should've asked you before i brought you here. i guess i just wanted it to be a surprise."
i shake my head slowly.
"no, it's fine. i'll get over it. to be honest, i'd rather be here facing my fear than be at home."
"okay. well if at any point you want to go, just tell me" he replies, and we wait in silence for the few more minutes it takes for the balloon to fill with air.
"all good to go guys. to make it go higher, pull that cord. you'll get the hang of it. you have about 30 minutes to an hour. have fun!" the lead man turns to us as the other men take their equipment away. taehyung nods and smiles at him, and the man leaves.
taehyung opens up the hatch on the basket and gestures for me to get in. i smile at him as thanks and climb in, my hands immediately gripping the sides of the basket. i turn around to see taehyung pulling on the cord and he certainly looked experienced.
"i like to go on these a lot. it's so calm by myself, it really helps clear my mind." he turns to look at me, "i hope it does the same for you."
i nod and look out at the horizon. we're picking up pace and are now higher than the trees, and surprisingly, it is quite nice. the cool breeze flows through my hair and refreshes my face. i can smell the fresh are, and everything really feels so tranquil. i turn to see taehyung looking at me almost proudly.
"it's nice, isn't it?"
i nod.
"yeah, surprisingly it is. thanks."
he smiles.
"you're welcome. we can come again one time, if you'd like."
i smile back, and admire the scenery for the rest of the ride, comfortable silence filling the air.
