stardust | park seonghwa ✓

13

IT'S been months since I got my mark and I've still got no clue whatsoever about which of the two has got the same one as me. It's not like I can march up to them and pull their shirt down or something — that'd be awkward. Although I'm now more comfortable with them, I'm not close enough to the both of them to go, "hey bitch open up your shirt or something. I want to see who's got the same mark as me." So I can't help it when my curiosity grows and grows every day.

I've been standing in front of the bathroom mirror now. A while ago, I was intending to only be here to go to the toilet, wash my hands and fix my hair but as I was about to head out, my left shoulder started to burn so I hurried back and pulled down my collar, turning around and peek at the back of my shoulder.

The blueish mark seemed okay and I was almost relieved, but then I notice the colours were not just 'just there' — they were swirling in small circular motions. It was still somehow burning, like your muscles had been tired out so much it can burst, yet the inked words now seem a little bolder.

In order to relieve it, I pat my shoulder with my hand that I had running under cold water and once I feel like the burning feeling get a little better, I tug my collar back up and head out the door.

"Sorry, did I take long?" I ask as I sit down across from Seonghwa. He shakes his head no with a smile on his face.

Seonghwa and I are now back at the usual roastery that I'd definitely gone inside for hundreds of times. I'm surprised that this is only his second time being here, the first being the time we met a couple of months ago, when autumn was closing and the winter was just starting. Time flew by and in just a week, it will be Christmas. Needless to say, in the past couple of months, Seonghwa and I have gotten pretty close pretty quickly.

By now, I can comfortably stretch my legs and rest them on his lap from underneath the table. He rests one of his arms across my shins and the other on the table, elegantly stirring his cold drink with his (metal) straw and talks to me in his strangely calming voice with his eyes mindlessly wandering around the room.

A small part of me wishes he's my celestial partner, my star buddy, my soulmate. I mean, come on, who wouldn't want him to be? Everything about him was the closest thing to perfection and the more I let my eyes rest on him, the more perfect he becomes. Even now, doing something as simple as twirling his fork on his plate to take a bite of spaghetti pasta into his mouth looks as if he was born to do that.

Seonghwa clears his throat. "What are you thinking about?" he asks, setting down his fork on his plate, "you're usually not this quiet."

"Nothing," I smile at him, rolling out my shoulders to get rid of the ache before I set my weight on my elbows, "my arms are just a bit sore. Nothing too serious."

"What did you do?" he asks accusingly and the corners of his lips tugging up in a small smirk, clearly amused at me.

"Probably slept wrong, I don't know... and why are you laughing!?"

I know, I know I'm meant to sound a little bit offended but I can't help but laugh along with Seonghwa when he tries to suppress his own laughter. His cheeks are puffed, lips sealed tights and his eyes turned into moon-like crescents. When our eyes meet, Seonghwa looses it and shakes his head, throwing his hands up in the air, "I don't know!"

"At this point I'm not even surprised," Seonghwa retorts, "you could even show up with like, a dislocated finger or something and I bet you I wouldn't bat an eye."

My right eyebrow raises in an almost challenging way. "I'd like to see that."

I let out a sigh as I imagine the look of horror on his face if I ever get my finger dislocated. He would have a highly disappointed look in his eyes and he'd probably be holding my hand so close to his eyes to see where it hurt. Not a second later, we'd be off to the hospital and he would yell at the doctor for not letting me go first in the emergency room. With that in mind, I poke Seonghwa's stomach with my foot, making him flinch. "You probably wont stop fussing about it."

The man in front of me rolls his eyes before shoving my legs off his lap. He then looks up to meet my eyes and exhales. "You're right," he says, "I'll probably need to start putting a hazard warning sign on you soon."

My eyes travel down to his plate which are still half full with the plate of pasta. You know, I feel like I was done with mine ages ago, even before I left to go to the bathroom and it makes me chuckle. So, with my body leaning forward, I nod at the plate and looks at Seonghwa expectantly. "Can I help you with that?" I ask him.

"I thought you were full?"

The fork ends up in my hand nonetheless and I spin the noodles on to it, bringing them to my lips. "That was fifteen minutes ago, I'm hungry now," I tell him and take a bite from my fork.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Seonghwa waves his hand and slides the plate towards me, "I need to pick San up from the gym anyways."

"He'v a  gwown manfkdhf, vhy can't he go home by himselfghdlf?" I ask with my mouth full.

"Stupid idiot got a ride from Woo, forgot his friend had class and didn't bring his car, obviously," he explains before we hear the familiar tunes of Seonghwa's ringtone. I watch as he pulls his phone from his pocket, looking at the caller ID and flashes me an unimpressed his look when he lifts the phone to his ear.

"I'm at the roastery near the uni," he speaks to the person on the phone, maybe even before the other got the chance to speak. I hear a long screech from where I'm sitting, making me pause mid-bite. Seonghwa distances himself from the phone, cringing as he does so. He signals me to hurry up to which I nod at and slurp the rest of the spaghetti at record time.

"Yeah, I'm with Hyeshin," Seonghwa pauses to listen to what the other person has to say. "No, I can't tell her to gulp down the whole plate at one go — she'll choke!"

So I do my part, almost vacuuming the food into my mouth and wipe my lips with a napkin Seonghwa handed me.

"Well, it's your fault you went without thinking, marble-head," the blonde scolds, "you could've at least taken your bus card but no, your stupid ass took your H&N member card instead. What were you trying to do, bribe the driver with discounts?"

The last sentence makes me snicker as I sip the last of my drink. Seonghwa gets up after I stack up our used plates on top of one another, still on the phone as he tells the person to shut up and that he'll be there soon.

"Who was that?" I ask him, the both of us walking out to leave the eating place.

He scoffs. "Who else? San is an impatient little sloth."

"The way you try to cuss at him is interesting," I mention, "who insults people with marble-head and 'impatient little sloth'?"

"Don't question my choice of words," Seonghwa hushes me, "now we need to hurry up before San nags at me again. I swear my ears can fall off because of him and his annoying voice."

"Aww, sweet cousin love," I coo over-dramatically. Seonghwa gives me a side-eye and he walks a little faster (which is kind of unfair given the fact that he has longer legs than me and so I have to put in more effort in order to catch up to him).

I give him a sheepish laugh and pull his arm back so that he'd walk at the same speed as me. "Okay, let's hurry before San bites your head off, yes? But not too fast since I'm still digesting your spaghetti or else I'll ruin your car seats."

Seonghwa smiles at me. And a warm feeling blooms in my chest.

+

hello i've updated 2 other books of mine and wow can i say, i feel good today. except that it's super cold and i've been wearing this thick-ass jumper all day and night... and i live in a tropical country- lskjfd climate change people.

have a great weekend!! much lovesies, me owo♡