A/N: "Italic" phrases are spoken in Korean, while normal phrases are spoken in English. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the shower of love. Enjoy! :D

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I was lost.
 

Like really really lost.

 
I was in an unfamiliar city, with a dead phone, with no money, and with no one to talk to. The sun was blistering hot and my feet already sore from all the walking I’ve done in search for my missing friends. Apparently, we were supposed to go to Sangwael Park to eat a refreshing lunch under a cool, shady tree together, but when I took a little while in the restroom during our stop over, they seemed to have forgotten about me and left with our bus. With my clothes, my money, my bag, my everything. All I had was a crumpled map of Seoul, which I didn’t really understand at all, my long dead phone drained by my un-wise addiction in Flappy Bird, and my sanity that was growing extinct by the second.
 
Finally seeing another passerby, I quickly approached him while frantically pointing at the map, and spoke with all the Korean words I could muster. “Um... Sangwael Park? Where? You know where?”
 
Though, just like the rest of the people I’ve talked to, he rapidly shook his head, noticing my overwhelming knowledge in their language. Not wanting to waste his time in digging the English language just to answer me, he scurried away, leaving me with a shattered hope. I clutched my hair in frustration and looked up at the bright, yellow sun.
 
“Why in the world is this happening to me?!” I yelled at no one. How the hell will I be able to find that park in this state?! After my frustration subsided, temporarily, I decided to take a short break and sat on a nearby bench. Not feeling very high-spirited at all, I just glared at the grey asphalt as if it was the most hateful thing ever.
 
How could a supposedly fun out-of-country trip become this wrong? Everything was going along as planned. We had an endless supply of delicious food, a special bus exclusively for our trip, and heck, we even had a private plane, all thanks to Eunnie, that insanely rich friend of ours! Everything was fine, until we made that stop over. Ugh. Just thinking about it makes me want to cry in frustration! How could they have forgotten about me?! Sure, I would’ve understood if they immediately returned after 5 or 10 minutes with amused faces saying, “Ha! We forgot about you. Our bad.” But for 30 minutes of not coming back? WHAT THE HELL??!!! I know there was about 11 or 12 of us and it’s hard to keep track of that much people, but still, WHAT THE HELL?!!! And we were supposed to go to M-Countdown after lunch! Eunnie even promised me herself. She said it would be her reaaaaaaally late belated Valentines gift for me, so I can finally watch my favorite K-idols perform live, and even have the rare privilege of meeting them backstage! Oh how wonderful could that be! Maybe... maybe I could even meet my dream husband, Infinite’s Lee Sungjong.
 
I suddenly blushed at the idea. I brought my hands over my face to cover my tomato-colored cheeks, and unconsciously smiled as I continued my wee daydream. Just as I was near the climax of my exciting imaginary love story, where Sungjong was about to propose to me and marry me and have little Sungjong juniors running around, a strong wind suddenly blew, taking away the laid out map on my lap. It swirled and flapped in the air as I frantically chased after it, but it was just so high that I wasn’t able to grab it no matter how high I jumped. Curse my small height! Why did I have to be absent when God showered blessings of long legs?!
 
“Hey, come back!” I yelled as if it could hear me. But of course, it continued floating like the total troll it was, and just as I was about to give up chasing, it suddenly stopped as it slapped over the face of another person. He stumbled a few steps backward, before quickly regaining his balance and peeled off the stupid map off his face.
 
“Mianheyo! Mianheyo, ahjussi!” I bowed so many times that I seriously thought my head was going to fall off. I was so embarrassed and afraid that I would be the one to ruin the image of foreigners in this country.
 
“Gwaenchanayo,” he softly said in a surprisingly soft voice, and with the little Korean I was knowledgeable of, I knew what he said was, “It’s alright.” I inwardly sighed in relief and finally looked up, but the map obstructed his face as he looked at it. “Seoul sajagayo?”
 
“I’m sorry?” I cringed as I feared he would scurry away, too, once he realizes I don’t understand much Hangul. He lowered the map in confusion to look at me, and his eyes widened as he saw my not-so-Korean face. And my eyes widened as I saw his face.
 

No, it can’t be.

 
No, it can’t possibly be.

 
It was Lee Sungjong. The one and only Infinite’s Lee Sungjong! I must be hallucinating already! Why would a famous artist like him even be walking on the streets like this?!
 
“Omo! Dangsineun oegug-in!” he gasped in delight before breaking into a dazzling smile. I, though, still hasn’t gotten over the shock and kept staring at him with a gaping mouth. His expression turned into a concerned one as this time, he spoke in perfect English. “Are you lost?”
 
Still at a loss for words, I just nodded, like the complete retard I was. It was him. It really was him, and I can’t believe I’m acting like an idiot in front of him now. And I even called him ahjussi! I called him an old man! How shameful!
 
“Maybe I can help you. Where are you going?” his brows furrowed as he studied the map while waiting for my response. But I wasn’t able to utter anything immediately as I was busy studying his perfect face. His perfect hair. His perfect eyes. His perfect lips, and his perfect—“Well...?”
 
“SANGWAEL PARK! I’m heading Sangwael Park!” I spoke a little too loudly when his lovely eyes suddenly met mine. I mentally face-palmed. What a nice move, Lexie. Way to go for a first impression. “M-my friends will be there...”
 
“Ah, I know that.” He smiled, ignoring my dorky move, thank God. “It’s quite far from here, though. You will have to ride a bus.”
 
Aw darn. Bus needs money, and I didn’t have money. Great. “C-can I walk on the way, though?” I clutched the hem of my shirt as I braced myself for the embarrassment.
 
“Oh, you have no money?” Biting my lip, I nodded. I didn’t dare look up at him, afraid that I’ll faint already once I see another of his dazzling smiles. He lifted his arm to look at his watch and paused to think for a while. “Well, I still have plenty of time anyway. I  can help you find your way.”
 
My head shot up at this. For the second time of the day, my jaw dropped in utter shock, and I blurted out the words without even thinking. “But don’t you have schedules or practices or tapings today?!”
 
His eyes widened at this new knowledge, and surprisingly, he blushed and looked down at his feet. “So you know me? W-well, sorry for not introducing myself earlier! I didn’t expect a foreigner to recognize me! Annyeonghaseyo, I’m Lee Sungjong from Infinite!”
 
“H-hi, I’m Lexie...,” I unconsciously put out my hand, forgetting that it wasn’t their way of greeting, but much to my surprise, Sungjong took the handshake anyway. As soon as he let go, a funny tingling feeling remained on my palm as if I just touched a cloud or something magical. And as if on cue, my stomach grumbled extra extra loud. Great, way to go buddy! You have just betrayed your own feeder!
 
“I understand," he flashed a compassionate smile. "I haven’t eaten lunch either. Do you want to eat first?”
 
As much as I wanted to spend time with him, the person I might not ever be able to talk to again, I still knew my limits and didn’t want to be the reason for him to be late for some important schedule. Plus, if a paparazzi saw him with me, they might jump to crazy conclusions, and all hell will break loose! So I just shook my head with a forced smile.
 
“Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine once I’m with my friends.” His brows furrowed, as if wanting to question if I was sure about that, but then decided not to and flashed another smile.
 
“Okay then,” he gently folded the map into a neat palm-sized square, and put it in his jeans’ pocket. “Follow me to the bus stop. As soon as you hop onto a bus, it’s impossible for you to get lost.”
 
I timidly nodded and shuffled behind him with hands nervously clutching the hem of my shirt. I didn’t dare say anything, afraid to stutter or blurt out another stupid statement and completely ruin my image on him. I was just extremely lucky that he was a very considerate person. After a while of silence, he shyly glanced at me and cleared his throat.
 
“So, Lexie... What are you doing here in Seoul?”
Oh my God. He said my name. He just said my freaking name. “M-my friend... S-she offered us an out-of-country trip, and since she had a lot of connections here in Korea, she decided to take us here...”
 
“Ah, so that’s why. Well, how did you get separated from them?”
I winced as I answered with the most stable voice I could muster. My heart was beating so fast that it seriously felt like it wanted to come out and just jump all over him. “They probably forgot about me in our last stop over. When I got back, our bus was gone, and I happened to leave my bag there... I waited for 30 minutes for them to return, but when they didn’t, I thought maybe the park was just nearby and I could get there myself. But I got lost and didn’t know my way back.”
 
I slightly pouted and kicked a stray stone as we continued walking. Wrong move. I suddenly yelped in agony as my foot started throbbing in pain. I knew my feet hurt from the long walk, but I didn’t know it was this hurt! Why did I have to kick that stone? Darn it hurt like hell!
 
“Are you okay? What happened?”

“My foot!” I whined as I clutched my shoe. I forced my eyes shut to keep the tears back inside and bit my lip hard, hoping to distract myself from the pain. I felt Sungjong crouch next to me, and gently pried my hands away from my shoe.
 
“You must have forced yourself too much. Here, why don’t you ride on my back? You might get amputated already if you walk any farther.”
 
“BWOHHH?” I blurted out in shock. Oh my God, so I have to be in so much pain and shock just to be able to speak Korean?! “Are you serious? What if your fans see you? What if—“
 
“Don’t worry about it,” He chuckled lightly and patted his shoulder. “Come on. Hop on. I won’t drop you, I promise.”

Though hesitating, I obliged and wrapped my arms around his neck. He effortlessly lifted me up and held onto me by the knees. It rather felt awkward, and I was afraid he would notice my panicking heart bouncing against his back. If ever he did, though, he didn’t say anything about it. He continued walking in silence, and I was actually surprised that he didn’t seem to have any problem carrying me. Most of my friends always teased me for being “chubby,” and Sungjong seemed frailer than I did, so I thought it was technically impossible. He should have been breaking into sweats any second, but he didn’t. Either he's secretly strong, or my friends were liars. 
 
“W-Why were you walking alone in the street?” I finally gathered all my courage to ask him.
“I asked our manager for a break. It’s been a while since I was able to pause for a minute and breathe, anyway. It wouldn't hurt to be absent once in a while. About paparazzi and fans, you shouldn’t worry about them. They don’t usually recognize without my makeup on, so honestly, I was surprised when you were able to recognize me. Plus, you were a foreigner. You don’t know how flattered I was.”
 
He laughed as he remembered that scene earlier, and I blushed. A smile broke into my lips. “You know, you speak English really well.”
 
“Jinjja?” He softly asked, and I could imagine him blushing again. My smile only widened at his cute humility. “I taught myself because I wanted to be able to interact better with our foreign fans. You’re the first person I’ve spoken to this long. I'm glad my hard work has paid off...”
 
I softly laughed. Really, Sungjong. How could you be so adorable? All along, I thought I was only obsessed with you. Now, I think I seriously I love you.
 
We passed by a small dumpling stand, and the aromatic steam of the delicacies being cooked seemed to pass under my nostrils enticingly. Before I could even fight it back, my stomach roared like an awakening titan.
 
“Seems like your stomach is growing impatient.” Sungjong chuckled, and I blushed in embarrassment. He gently laid my feet back down the ground and assisted me towards the stand. Without even asking me, he ordered 20 pieces of dumplings. At first, I tried to eat in the most refined way possible, but halfway through it, my mind went “oh what the hell” and I started ravaging the heavenly food. Sungjong only chuckled at me as he ate his own food calmly. As soon as I was finished, I quickly went back to shy mode to save what was left of my dignity.
 
“What’s wrong? Didn’t you like the food?”
“No, it was really delicious! It’s just that... I’m so embarrassed looking like this in front of you.”
“What are you talking about?” He laughed. “You’re actually so adorable! But if you still feel awkward, well...” He tapped his chin in thought, and suddenly turned around as he came up with a bright idea. He fiddled with something, and when he turned back to me, his mouth was stuffed with a giant dumpling on both cheeks, making him look like a squirrel. He even had his eyes wide and hands curled under his chin cutely to add to the effect. I looked at him in shock at first, comprehending what he was trying to do, before bursting into laughter at his oozing cuteness.
 
“Do you still feel embarrassed now?”
“No,” I forced in between laughs, and I saw him widely smiling as well. “I’m not embarrassed anymore. Thank you.”
“Well, now you have to.” He smiled mischievously as he showed me the screen of his phone. It had a picture of me laughing, clutching my stomach as if it would fall off. My eyes widened and I tried to grab it, but he was faster.
 
“Delete that!”
“No~” he sung and ran away. By instinct, I chased after him.
“I look ugly in there! Delete it!”
“Actually, I think it’s cute.” He grinned, and I tried my best not to blush, but failed miserably. He suddenly stopped and I almost fell over after a screeching halt, if only he wasn’t able to grab my waist on time. He chuckled at my clumsiness as he up righted me. “We’re here.”
 
I looked around and realized that it was already the bus stop. I knew I should’ve been happy that I finally found the right way to my friends, but somehow, as I stood there beside Sungjong, I felt my heart growing heavy. It meant that my time with him had to end. He looked up at the signboard to check the route of the bus.
 
“There are 4 stops before Sangwael Park. Once you get off, the park will be right in front of you. You’ll be fine then.” He smiled down at me, but I felt like there was something off. I looked down and fiddled with the hem of my shirt, reluctant to leave his side.
 
“You lost your smile again,” he bent down his body to peek over my face. He was still smiling, but it was obvious that it was forced. “Do you want me to give you something to lift your spirits up?”
 
I looked up at him through my lashes as my brows furrowed in thought. “What is it?”
He dug his hand into his pocket before talking it out again with his fist wrapped around whatever item it was. He looked at me expectantly before saying a very familiar line. “When you have too many thoughts...”
 
“Have a lemon candy!” I finished and beamed like a little kid, making him laugh. He rewarded me by dropping the lemon candy into my hands. I looked at it with shining eyes as if it was gold. No, it was gold! It was pure gold! Before even knowing it, I wrapped my arms around his waist for an automatic hug. I only realized what I have done after a few seconds, and I immediately pulled away with tomato cheeks. I glanced up at him and realized that he was blushing as well, except that he had an additional shy smile.
 
“Oh, there’s your bus.” He pointed to the arriving vehicle. “I hope you enjoy the rest of your trip.”
“Thanks for today. I know all I did was stare and stutter and be clumsy and dorky and all, but I hope you still enjoyed it somehow as much as I did. I won’t ever forget this.” I smiled at him and he returned it with an even more dazzling smile.
 
“Yeah, you were really fun to be with, Lexie. Now off you go.” He ruffled my hair before tapping my shoulder to encourage me to step onto the bus. He stepped aboard as well, only to swipe his card on the register, but he got out again afterwards. With hesitant steps, I claimed a seat near the window so I could see him, and he patiently stood there while waving goodbye. I lifelessly waved back, trying my best not to frown. As soon as I felt the bus move forward, I sighed and looked down at the candy in my hand. I shouldn’t feel so disappointed, right? Every nice things must come to an end somehow. At least I was able to spend time with him, and even saw that exclusive squirrel face of his! Just thinking about it made me laugh once again.
 
The bus suddenly stopped, and my head slammed against the back of the seat in front of me. God, how can my clumsiness be this extreme?! Instead of looking at the front at whatever caused the bus to stop, I poked my head out of the window to look back at the bus stop. Sungjong was already gone. My face immediately fell and I looked back down at my lap. Right, Lexie. Stop wishing for too much things. Grow up! Be mature! Accept your blessings and your losses! And stop being a clumsy dorky girl who bumps her head against everything!

Someone flopped down the seat beside me, and not feeling so good any more, I just glanced at the person's jeans, and saw a familiar map stuffed inside its pocket. Brows furrowing, I looked up to see who it was.

 
Sungjong.

 
My jaw fell open in shock, and for the third time of the day, made me look like a gaping fish. “W-why—“

“I had nothing else to do anyway.” He shrugged nonchalantly with a dorky smile on his face. “Also, na neo joahaneun geot gata.”
 
My brows furrowed at his sudden Korean phrase. “What does that mean?”

 
He looked down at me with a strange sparkle in his eyes.

 
 “I think I like you.”
 

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