twenty

one year later.

opening her eyes, yumi sighed softly. she had had yet another dream of that dreadful day. she had the dream on many occasions; yet each time she opened her eyes to hopefully see him in front of her, he was never there.

climbing out of bed, she began to prepare herself for yet another long day of putting on a facade and fooling everyone but herself. as she walked into the hallway, yumi turned her head to see the door to the other bedroom open just slightly.

knitting her eyebrows together in confusion, as she hadn't been in that room in ages, she shrugged it off and went into the bathroom.

it didn't take long for her to get ready, her mid-length hair loosely braided and her makeup applied normally. however, when she was getting dressed, she couldn't help but feel like she should dress up a bit.

smiling at her outfit in the mirror, she felt pretty for once.

"pretty."

she thought about all the times he would tell her that, which only caused her frown to return once again.

without a second glance, yumi left the apartment and made her way to school.

➴➶➴

"are you ready to go?" wooyoung asked, as yumi walked from behind the counter of the cafe.

she nodded, smiling up at him, "yep!"

"you look nice," he complimented, gesturing to her jean skirt and creme-colored sweater, "what's the special occasion?"

yumi only shrugged, pushing open the door of the cafe, "i just felt like dressing up today."

the two walked along, joking and pushing one another like they normally did. but suddenly, as they passed yumi's apartment building, she remembered, "ah, i left my debit card in my apartment this morning!"

"how do you forget something like that?" wooyoung questioned, before waving her off, "don't worry about it, i'll pay for you."

she shook her head, "i'm paying this time!" the two had a stare-off, both of their stubborness and pride too strong to let themselves back down. smirking, yumi rose her hand up, and began to say, "you're the loser if you blink, one, two, three!" she snapped her fingers in front of his eyes, causing him to blink. "aha!"

"fine, go get it."

"i'll be five minutes max!"

yumi ran into her apartment building, and into the elevator that opened as some people filed out. she quickly pressed the button, the doors closing. sighing softly, she dropped the happy act that she put up whenever she was around people.

it wasn't that she was feeling unhappy; the problem lied in the fact that she didn't feel anything. for the last year, yumi only felt numb. like her life was put on pause, as if she was waiting.

well, she was waiting. she had been waiting, for a year. for what, you could probably guess. and she refused to lose hope, though the chances of him making a return were quite low.

finally reaching her floor, yumi hurriedly walked down the hall, and to her door. before opening her door, she stopped, as something felt odd. for some weird reason, a wave of deja vu suddenly fell over her as she turned the lock on her door handle. shrugging it off, she opened the door all the way.

blindly, she reached out to flip the light switch on, brushing her fly aways back with her other hand. as she walked towards the hallway, she mumbled a 'hey' to the brunette sitting on the couch.

making it to her bedroom, she finally paused, her eyebrows furrowed. suddenly, her eyes grew wide in realization, as she turned to run back into the living room.

stopping at the end of the hallway, her eyes began to water at the sight of the boy on her couch, who waved with his crescent-moon eyes and dimpled smile.

"tada!"

timidly walking forward with her eyebrows furrowed, yumi sniffled slightly, "is it really you?"

he nodded, standing up to walk towards her, "it's really me."

"b-but.. how?"

soobin smiled, pulling her into a hug that he had craved for a long time, "i have my ways."

"are you.." she paused, not knowing how to go about with asking her question, "are you here for good?"

soobin pulled away, gently grabbing her face in his hands, "i-"

the door to yumi's apartment opened, causing the embracing couple to turn and look. standing in the doorway, wooyoung looked at them with wide eyes. "uh-"

"wooyoung?" yumi asked, before realizing how awkward it probably was to see them hugging. stepping away from soobin, she blinked.

"i was wondering when he'd come back," wooyoung pointed at soobin, "do you know how long this girl waited for you?"

soobin's eyes went wide as he pointed at himself, "me?"

wooyoung nodded, "yes. she said you went on an experiment expedition in antartica, so you wouldn't have contact with anyone. she had no clue when you'd be back, but she refused to lose hope."

slowly turning his gaze to yumi, who's cheeks were swirling with crimson as she stared at the floor, he chuckled quietly, "is that so?"

"i personally thought you weren't coming back," wooyoung bluntly stated, "but ms. optimistic over here said she knew you would. she said something about how you made a promise, and that you weren't the type to break them."

"she's right."

wooyoung sighed, shaking his head, "unfortunately, i see that. well, i guess i should give you guys some privacy." with that, wooyoung left backed out of the apartment, making sure to shut the door behind himself.

"did you hear me?"

"hm?" yumi asked, slowly bringing her bashful eyes to his, which were shining with a look of complete adoration in them.

"when i promised that i wouldn't leave you," he stepped closer and closer, the gap between them slowly closing, "did you hear me?"

all she could do was nod, still awed at the fact that he was here, standing in front of her.

"i broke that promise," he frowned, "i'm sorry."

"you're here now, though, aren't you?"

soobin nodded, once again grabbing her face in his hands, "i am." yumi smiled as he gently squished her cheeks, "and this time, i can keep my promise."

"do you mean.." yumi trailed off, her wide eyes hopeful as she waited for his answer.

he grinned, leaning down to leave a chaste kiss on her forehead, "i'd be stupid to leave you again, wouldn't i?"

yumi grabbed his face in her hands as well, pinching his cheeks, "right. you'd be one stupid cupid."

he chuckled, bringing his lips onto her's in a long-awaited kiss. they could feel the other's smile as their lips moved together as one, almost like pieces of a puzzle that fit together just perfectly. pulling away, soobin's toothy grin still remained.

"but i'd be your stupid cupid."

-

and that's the last chapter!!! whew was that a ride lmao. i hope you guys enjoyed this story as much as i enjoyed writing it!! see you at the epilogue <3