His gaze watches everything about her â her stance, her posture, the position of her hands, her feet, her head, where sheâs looking, her expression. She looks a little tense, and he canât blame her; this is their first time in a while being out in public together. He canât quite remember when the last time was, but that was a signal that it was too long ago. He remembers going to Lotte World with her once, for Halloween, and also back to Busan earlier in the year, to visit his family and for her to finally see the region that he grew up in.
She looks tense, and Hyun wonders if this was a good idea. Admittedly, he is a bit nervous. While speaking to her, he keeps a bit of an eye out on the people around them, as well as their reactions. Thereâs quite a number of people present; heâs not sure who he may bump into. Part of him is hoping that will work a little in his favour. Do people pay that much attention to every single person when thereâs a crowd around?
He canât quite tell by her expression what sheâs thinking. Itâs nothing out of the ordinary. While Hyun often wears his feelings on his face, Jeiâs thoughts are more subdued. Theyâre like two sides of a coin, but two sides of the same coin nonetheless â inseparable, necessary, not the same without the other. In general, his own features are relaxed, and a little excited. He keeps a respectable distance out in front of so many wandering eyes, although not so far that theyâre only strangers meeting for the first time. Anyone can tell theyâre friendly, but heâs not giving suggestions that theyâre as intimate as they are behind closed doors.
âThe old one looked nothing like this~ Which was probably their intention. If it looked just like the old one, Iâd be suing. I remember going there once or twice, to see Hongjoong. I mean, it was nice, but not âniceâ nice like this new placeââ At her suggestion to enter, Hyunâs smile widens a bit more (if that was even possible), and he nods and goes into a small bow, his hands moving with a (probably unnecessary, in her eyes) flourish.Â
âAfter you, Miss Kim Jei~â
she can feel his eyes on her even without having to look at him. theyâve been connected for so long, even before they were dating - after all, their story started when they were still so young. their fated string is attached and while it may knot so much that it becomes a struggle, they still manage to find a way back to each other. his gaze stops where she ends, and vice versa. the world around them still turns, but in the end, they find each other.
it doesnât mean that this situation is easy for either of them. jei canât even remember the last time they were seen in public together in the daylight - was it way back in the baskin robbins, when hyun would visit and all her employees would swear they were dating when they werenât? can she even count busan, when it was filled with people much too old to care whether they held hands or not? sheâs not really sure how to act, whether she should stare him down like she used to back in the baskin robbins or at least give him the slightest of smiles like she did back in busan.
in the end, jei thinks that it doesnât matter. what matters most is that theyâre together, that hyun is trying and that theyâre on a date. as much as they have to keep it quiet, they know what this is. hyun is close enough for her to touch, for her to talk to - even if she canât touch him until theyâre behind closed doors, itâs enough to know that she can. hyun trying so hard for her right now is enough.
jeiâs pulled from her thoughts by hyun talking about the royal building, but her face doesnât suggest it. her head turns from the building and her attention is on him: everything about him, from the way his hair is styled up and out of his eyes down to his shoes. ( she tries not to think about how much she wants to mess up his hair. thatâs something that sheâll just have to do later. )  â right. iâll just have to take your word for it, wonât i?â she muses, eyes flicking to the building and then back to him.
immediately, her nose crinkles when he embellishes a bow, unable to help her expression from turning to one of distaste.  â do you really have to do all that?â she asks flatly, shaking her head.  â youâre a mess. letâs just go.â she strides to the building and pulls open the door, sighing still at the sight of how busy it is. Â
but even still, they look like theyâre just two friends catching up. it doesnât matter if theyâre seen.