Chapter 18 - 영화 (YEONG-HWA)[Movie]

Roxi P.O.V

I got a full night of sleep last night. Yoongi needed to go and stay at his studio over night so he wouldn't be able to visit today. I sat on my chair, my elbow resting on the kitchen counter as I scrolled through my phone.

'Maybe I should text Hoseok...'

I remembered he wanted to hangout if I ever found time in my schedule.

A wait for a few minutes and check my manager's reminders before I got his reply.

I thought about it for a moment and nodded as I agreed to the plan. He was just heading back from the main building so that gave me enough time to change into a plain blue long-sleeve, black skirt, black thigh socks, and black converse. I fed my dogs before putting on some makeup and put my phone, wallet, and keys in my black backpack. There was a knock on my door, I believed it was Hoseok so I opened up to see him smiling and dressing in casual clothing. His mask covered his mouth and nose but I could still tell it was him when I saw his unique eye-smile. I pulled my mask over my face and I locked my door as I left.

"How was practice?"I ask, as we walked to the elevators."It was alright, there were a few bumps here and there with the beat I was trying to create but I know I'll fix it soon. You?- Oh wait you have a break nevermind!"he rambles, correcting himself."Sorry, I get nervous in front of cute girls."

"Smooth."I roll my eyes at his cheesiness."Do you have a ride?"

"Suga-hyung took the car with Rapmon, so I took the train here."he explains.

"We can take my motorcycle."I propose, pointing over to the black bike across the street."Won't we get noticed if we ride the train?"

"I prefer hiding with the general public, and besides it's really hard to find parking around the cinema."he said,"The train station's just a block away."

I thought about it and agreed with him as we blended with the crowd, no one gave us any second glances and my heart pounded knowing that if one person recognized me then Hoseok and I were both screwed. Luckily, so one did and we made it to the train station right away. We paid for our tickets and sat in the seats nearest to the corner. We kept our speech to a minimum and only spoke through each other's eye contact. I got up when I saw him stand up and head toward the exit. I needed to quicken my pace to keep up with him, figuring I couldn't be able to lose a person as tall as him. I found myself at his side when we reached the sidewalk right in front of the theaters.

"What movie do you want to see?"he asks."Horror, romance, or action?"

"It's too early for a horror film...Is action alright?"We both agreed and bought our tickets, I was even able to persuade Hoseok to let me buy my own ticket. Even though he called me stubborn right after. We buy some snacks and sat in the very back, the theater started to fill up. The dim lights allowed us to finally take off our masks so we would be able to breath in some more fresh air for once. The theater filled up, a random person sat on either side of us, making me unconsciously scoot closer to Hoseok. He lifted up the armrest between us to create more room in the small space. The movie starts and the lights turn off. The two of us were silent and watched the movie, to be polite to the others around us. Halfway through I heard Hoseok yawn, his arm immediately resting over my shoulders a second later. I looked up at him, holding in my laughs as I saw him try to hide his pride-filled expression. I rolled my eyes, deciding to just enjoy the movie and cuddled into his chest to make him happy, his arm moving lower and resting just above my elbow. Soon enough the movie ended, leaving most of the crowd unsatisfied but they all left talking about it. Hoseok and I waited for everyone around us to leave before getting up, throwing our trash away and walking down the stairs toward the exit. Our conversations were left as quiet mumbles until we reached the sidewalk.

"How'd you like it?"he asked, walking into the train station.

"Your chest was really comfy."I chuckle, poking his redden cheeks."Ohhhhhh you mean the movie. Yeah it was alright."

"You shouldn't tease your oppa."he grumbled, wrapping an arm around my shoulders, giving it a friendly squeeze.

"But you looked so proud."I point out."It was cute."

Hoseok laughed and both of us squeezed into the train car. It was pretty crowded and only standing room was available, only a few inches were spared between him and I. Every breath we took let our chests graze from a mere moment before exhaling. More people were entering than leaving, making the train passengers shift away from the doors every stop. Soon enough people were as close as they could be to me, sure I wasn't claustrophobic, but the lack of room and being this close to a stranger made me feel just the slightest bit of discomfort. Suddenly I felt the hem of my skirt get lifted from behind. A chill ran down my spine as I cursed at myself for not thinking this through. It was so crowded I could barely turn around fully to give the person behind me a slap to the face. But even that idea could cause unwanted attention to get focused on me. I slapped my hand against the one that squeezed my inner thigh and traced the edge of my spandex to no avail. It took all I had to keep from back kicking the man. So instead I walked about a step forward, coming closer to the oblivious Hoseok who looked at me with a confused stare when I wrapped my arms around his waist and flushed our bodies together as the space behind me disappeared with the diffusion of people. The small tears that stung my eyes just enough to redden them, were hidden when I hid my face in his chest. The rest of the ride was met with a tension filled silence. Our stop came by and we squeezed through the crowd, Hoseok holding my hand the whole way out into the empty street. He was walking slightly ahead of me, leading the two of us back to the dorm building.

"What was all that back there? Were you missing my cuddles that much?"he chuckled, still too dense to realize why I came to him in the first place.

When I wasn't responding he turned around to face me."Hey are you okay?"

He seemed genuinely worried, letting go of my hand and standing in front of me."Come on, tell me what's on your mind."

I looked up at him, more tears threatening to escape from my tear ducts when seeing the look on his face. Maybe telling him what happened would make him more worried. But leaving him guessing would just make it worse. I sighed and decided to tell him as we were walking into the dorm.

"It's just...on the train."I whisper, scared as if someone would hear even though it was only him and the slow breeze that was created when we walked into the building."There were so many people. And I was wearing a skirt and someone...kinda...groped me I guess. Sorry if I made you uncomfortable when I went up to you."

We were in the elevator by then, the ride felt slower than normal. Hoseok looked at me wide-eyed, his mouth agape when I told him calmly. Even apologizing for going up to him for the chance of making him uncomfortable. What happened next was a blur. He had pressed the red 'Stop' button on the monitor, making the machine shakily stop before he stood back in front of me.

"...Why didn't you tell me sooner?"he asked,"I could've beat his ass for touching you."

I looked down and my next words came out as a mumble."I...I didn't want to get any attention. I could've stopped him but then we would've gotten caught and...I didn't know what else to do. I'm sorry Hoseok-oppa I just didn't know how to react."

My face was bright red from the embarrassment of realizing my own denseness. I closed my eyes, preparing myself to get scolded by him. I flinched when I felt his fingertips tuck a lone strand of hair behind my ear.

"Do I make you uncomfortable?"

"Hu-"

I opened my eyes, Hoseok was walking towards me. He didn't let up when our chest touched, only pushing my back against the wall so both his hands were on either sides of my head.

"I said...Do I make you uncomfortable? Is that why you can't trust me?"

He looked straight into my eyes, our bodies pressed against each other as I tilted my head and studied his features. He towered over me by at least five inches. His brown eyes were lighter than I realized. His body was firm against mine, but huggable at the same time. Then I noticed things I haven't had before. His gentleness when handling this situation was hard to see, but it was still there. The way the palms of his hands weren't touching the wooden wall behind me, as if he was ready to let me go if I really desired to do so. The look in his eyes wasn't dominance in the slightest, if anything they looked hurt and conflicted. A small shiver ran through his spine when I lifted up my hand, inching closer and closer to his left hand that wavered on the side of my head. Instead of whipping his hand away I pulled him into the most heartfelt hug I could muster.

"Of course not. I really trust Hoseok-oppa. He's really caring and funny."I smile, hugging him tighter."Please don't be mad."

Losing him as one of my friends would be the last thing I would want to do. I'd rather have him scold me now than think of me differently forever. Fear welled up in my chest when he only replied with a sickening silence, that was enough for me to understand his intentions. I gripped on his burgundy t-shirt, holding back the tears that I felt popping out of my eyelids. He finally moved, but only to walk to the monitor to unlock the 'Stop' button. Hoseok had pried my arms off of him, placing them at my sides without giving me a second glance after taking care of the static elevator. It started to rise, slower than normal. Or maybe it was just the illusion of the loneliness I felt without someone to cling onto whenever I cried. It was sending me back to a month ago. The same mindset I used to have was returning. All the progress I had made to try and be happier was melting away with each passing second. There as the familiar ding of the elevator opening, and I walk out first, my footsteps felt heavy against the carpet flooring and the distance to my front door seemed to only lengthen with the more effort I put into every rise and fall of my feet. I shuffled my hand through my backpack, stopping when I heard Hoseok call my name. I turn around to face him, hoping for a scolding. But I got something I was never anticipating I would ever get.

"I believe you."

I opened my mouth to say something in return, but the soft flesh of his lips pressed against my forehead stopped me in my tracks. He lingered there for a while before he pulled away slowly, maybe even uncertainly as his thoughts swirled with the eternal fear of getting pushed away. Hoseok turns around and opens his front door.

"Have a nice night Roxi."

The door closes, but the feeling of his presence in front of me never faded. The area where his lips came into contact with my skin was tingling. I couldn't help but rub that one spot furiously, a grin growing on my face as I turn to my dorm door, unlocking it with my shaking hands.

"You too Hoseok-oppa."