1994.

08. CHERRY DARLIN'

CHERRY
DARLIN'

THE GENTLE SUNSHINE kissed at her pale skin as she put on her heart–shaped sunglasses, an accessory taehyung said was 'on trend' — whatever that meant. she closed her eyes, feeling the breeze comb through the wisps of hair surrounding her face, blow her ponytail back, and cut at her rosy cheeks.

taehyung's car was very tidy, with little touches of himself to the vehicle: yellow shades in the compartment, two apples as a snack, two air fresheners hung. he was a neat person, more or less the opposite of jeongguk. she remembered the empty cigarette packets and a small collection of lighters in his paint–chipped truck, the scuff marks on the leather seats and the arrangement of charms on the mirror.

not a slob, per say, but more so someone to defend the clutter by saying it was an 'organised mess'.

she shivered at remembering that damn truck, opening her eyes to see the stretch of road in front of her and a gas station in the distance. taehyung turned down the radio (no pink floyd playing, to her hidden dismay) to speak, a grin on his tanned face, "do you want anything from the gas station? food, drink... cigarettes?"

"an ice pop, and a pack if you don't mind," raesun smirked, seeing his playful eye roll.

he parked the car, and immediately, the scent of gas filled her nose. she exited with him and laughed as he struggled to get the pump from the dispenser, leaning against the hood.

"stop laughing at me and go get your shit," his hand scrambled in his jean pocket, practically throwing money at her giggling form, "and get me a soda while you're at it."

"ooo you're feisty today aren't you?" she chuckled, but obeyed his wishes as she left him to his struggles.

inside was quite cool, relieving her from the dewy sunshine outside. she pushed her sunglasses onto the top of her head as she scanned the assortment of ice pops in the freezer, bending over to search for the strawberry flavour.

she sighed as she collected hers and taehyung's desired items, the rush of memories all to familiar. the cashier must have seen this in her face.

"are you alright miss?" he asked. he looked quite young, with light caramel hair and a sweet face.

"yes, thank you," she mumbled, avoiding his inquisitive stare whilst he calculated the total. since she daren't meet his eyes, she looked at his name tag: jaemin.

nice name.

"that's $12.98 please miss," jaemin smiled.

she handed him the money, "keep the change, he won't mind," she gestured to taehyung, now struggling to put the pump back; she laughed at that, taking the plastic bang in her hands.

"oh dear," he commented on taehyung's lack of pump skills, his clear face pulling up a smile. the boy was so young, why was he working at a gas station in the middle of nowhere?

just as she was about to leave, his light voice called out behind her: "wait!"

she turned, brow raised and spare hand delving in the bag for the cigarettes. the boy shyly held out his own to reveal two lollipops, both cherry flavoured and adorned with small red ribbons.

he shrugged one shoulder, "to cheer you up. lollipops make me happy, i thought you'd like some for your journey," he scratched at the nape of his neck, faint peonies starting to bloom across his cheeks, "i would give you more but my boss would kill me even if they are little bits of candy. a–and i paid for them myself! don't worry."

he's too innocent for his own good — she took the lollipops with a grateful smile, noticing how jaemin retracted his hand to clasp them behind his back, "thank you very much. have a nice day."

"y–you too! safe travels!"

she left the gas station, taehyung sat in the car after successfully managing to put the pump back, with a grin on her cherry darling face.

— 雨 —

i love jaemin i had to put him in this somehow );

ik these past couple chapters seem like fillers but im just trying to adjust the whole storyline if that makes sense?? idk things will get more exciting soon hopefully aha

from, starr