it all comes down to this moment. the thought runs continuously as charlie sat on the fire escape stairs. the very same place where she came into terms with how she felt about this stupidly tall birthday boy. all day long, she was distracted with scenarios of how this would go, one of the worst involved yonghwa never speaking to her again – not even if she offered him cupcakes everyday. she feels uneasy, contemplating hard if she should give the other gift besides the box of cupcakes that was resting on her lap – double icing just for the occasion. the other..gift is actually a suggestion seolmi gave playfully and she (shamelessly) considered.
the sound of approaching footsteps make her perk up, looking at the door and holding her breath as she waited for it to swing open. and when it does, she gets to her feet. the warmth rushing to her cheeks, butterflies in her stomach going haywire, and with so many things running through her mind, she just stands there and smiles, holding out the box for a solid five seconds before she could muster up a proper sentence, “double icing–” she pauses before she could blurt out ’double kisses’ like an idiot. “you know, j-just because…” she adds as approaches him with careful steps.
she opens the box to show him the cupcakes she made while trying to remember what she really wanted to say. as soon as she regains composure, she looks up at him with a soft smile, “thank you for being born.” whether or not what happened last time was real or her imagination matters less with every passing second. here goes nothing. standing on tip toes, charlie closes her eyes and plants a soft kiss on his lips. she pulls away and her gaze falls to her feet, coughing and letting out a quiet sigh before she looked up at him again, “happy birthday, kang yonghwa.”
He wasn’t sure what he was expecting.
I mean, in a way, he should know because he was the one who asked for it. A cupcake with lots of icing and this time, won’t end up on his face.
Yonghwa didn’t blame Charlie for cupcake punching him. For behaving the way he did, he absolutely deserved it. Besides, it was quite an experience and one that he likely won’t ever forget. That was the first time he got attack by something so soft and sugary. It was also the first time he kissed a girl and it tasted both sweet and bitter.
"Is my cupcake in here?” He extended his hands with a grin, ready to take the box from her, only to find out that she wasn’t quite ready to part with it. The two of them stared at each other, a hint of awkwardness gathering in the air as they waited for Charlie to speak but Yonghwa didn’t notice because he was too distracted by her smile.
The cupcakes were as cute as Yonghwa expected. No dorky puppy this time, these cupcakes looked like the ones you'd be able to get from the coffee shop he worked out. “They are beautiful. Thank you.” In response to his appreciation, she said something else wonderful.
Thank you for being born.
Yonghwa was rendered speechless.
And then she kissed him. Gently, like the way he did it last time. The only difference was the fact she didn’t run away after like he did.
Yonghwa looked down as she glanced up, their gazes meeting in the middle. He took a deep breath and told himself that it was alright to be nervous. Charlie deserved an answer by the point and he had a feeling she was ready for it. “Charlie, there’s something that you should know.” Yonghwa searched in his mind for the right words. “I like you,” he said. “I don’t know where these feelings would go, but you deserve to hear it. I really, really like you.”
