you were home for the holiday.
the thought of your hometown, warm expressions on the town's people's faces, your family, some friends from high school-- they all were the reasons why your heart grew bigger while you were on your way to your parents' house from the train station. the weather was nearly freezing, taking a taxi would be a smarter choice but when you noticed how cold actually it was, you were also aware of the fact that you got closer to your destination.
well, even though your nose got red from the harsh wind, you still couldn't help but smile wider with every step you take. the coffee shop on the corner, the library on the opposite side of the road, the school building which you could see only the top of... everywhere felt familiar. because every little detail about the town itself was also a part of who you were. it is good to be home, you thought to yourself.
"there's gonna be a snow storm tonight, didn't you listen to the radio program?"
before your head turned to the owner of the voice, your mind was able to name him: it was kim jongdae. the boy with his shiny smile and honey voice. oh, and also he happened to be the boy you were in love with. at least, during the high school years.
"hello to you too, jongdae," you smiled trying not to show how childishly excited you felt inside. "is this seriously the first thing you told me after two years?"
you had gotten over him a long time ago. to be quite frank, there was no other way. even when you two were right beside each other, you were never the reason of his cute eye smiles or the target of his glances. distance only made it worse, with time you stopped talking completely. the worst part was that it didn't upset you as much as it should, because deep down inside, you expected it to happen.
"sorry," he answered in a giggly tone. "you just look like you're really cold and i wondered why you are outside in this horrible weather."
you tilted your head a little bit to make jongdae see your small sized suitcase. "isn't it obvious? i just arrived in the town."
"oh? is that so?" his voice gave away that he was embarrassed because of not noticing your luggage earlier. but he changed his expression with a huge grin in a second. "i would definitely offer to drive you to your house but i walked here myself. so," he said getting closer to you. "...what do you say? can i be your walking partner for this evening?"
you shaked your head, trying to stop yourself from laughing. actually, you would say no, just to give him the cold shoulder. but then again; with his eyebrows slightly raised, his face looking handsome with his charming yet childlike smile in spite of the stormy weather, there was nothing for you to do other than accepting. "let's go then." you added, trying to look serious but failing. "remind me later though, i should stay angry. because, you know, someone from this town never called me in a year or more."
jongdae just kept his smile on his face, even though it was a bittersweet one. "i'd be honored to get scolded by you but we got to take you home if you don't want your nose to fall of." you tried to smack his chest after his little teasing but because of him giving his scarf to you, your attempt was unsuccesful. "it's not thick enough but it'll warm you up a bit," he said as protecting you from the cold was something he did all the time.
maybe it was because he was so casual about this or maybe you did need to warm up for real, you didn't protest. instead, you gave him one of your sincere smiles. when he smiled back at you, you could feel your breathing got faster. kim freaking jongdae. what was his problem with you and your heart? you used to bite your lips, then count down and try every other calming techniques you ever saw on the tv when your eyes caught him entering the hallway of the school. after all this time, he still had the same effect on your weak soul. he had no mercy for sure.
after walking side by side for a little while, you noticed he was trying to warm up his hands by blowing into them. you chuckled while watching his struggle. "what," he whined. "hey! stop laughing at me! i gave you my scarf!"
you put your hands on your mouth but the laughs got even louder. "sorry, sorry," you tried to make it up to him with trying to look sorry at least. "you look so cute."
with that, he raised his eyebrows once again with a mischievous expression. "you just called me cute, y/n."
"yeah, idiot. i was there too."
he giggled like a little kid and even though it sounded extremely miserable even to you, you wanted time to stop just to watch his beautiful self longer. "yah! no need for self defense. i kinda know i'm cute already."
this time, you managed to smack his chest. but it only led to both of you laughing out loud in the street whereas everyone else was hurrying to get their homes. "shut up and give me your hand, jongdae!" you warned him after a couple of judging looks from people passing by you two.
"shut up? why do i need to shut up? you were laughting t- oh... my hand?"
he looked confused as hell and one more time, you realized that there was no way a human being could get over kim jongdae.
without thinking, you reached out and held his hands. if you stopped to reconsider doing this, you would never have courage to do so. sometimes, you had to remind yourself. thinking twice is not something wise. sometimes all you gotta do is believe in the magical spirit of december and let it do its thing.
"you let me borrow your precious scarf," you started to talk while jongdae wasn't even moving as if he didn't know how to react to all of this. "i needed to be your hero in return. but my gloves wouldn't fit to your hands and i-"
"did baekhyun tell you that i have this huge crush on you since our first year in high school? because if he did-"
"oh," he said slowly getting back to his senses. "oops. he didn't then. it's a good thing, right? him being a reliable friend and all that."
you couldn't care less about his friendship with baekhyun for the time being, so you just shushed him. "jongdae, did you really mean what you said?"
"yeah," he nearly answered as a murmur. however, you could feel his hand grabbing yours in a tighter way. "is it so bad? i mean-- me, your friend from hometown liking you?"
"you literally have no idea of what you've been doing to me all these years, dae, do you?"
he was so taken aback that instead of waiting for his answer, you reached for his pink looking lips and kissed them. it was a good feeling but couldn't be compared to what you felt when he kissed you back. you knew that his warmth would be the only thing you would remember vividly from that cold night. that, and him making you feel like you were home for real.
you had finally learnt that december was as magical as jongdae's enchanting smiles.
let's keep loving and supporting exo! and jongdae, baby, you are doing amazing! 💕
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