"Tell Me You Hate Me"

Part Four

I walked into the ice cream shop and it was busier than usual, probably because it was such a hot day.

In the back, I put on my apron and washed my hands in preparation of serving the customers.

After several hours of scooping ice cream, taking orders, smiling, and ringing people up at the cash register, the flow finally slowed.

I was exhausted. My scooping hand ached, my feet ached, my cheeks ached, my brain ached. But at long last, closing hours arrived.

It was dark outside. I had to clean and close up the shop on my own and then walk home alone. Unexpectedly, Hyunjin walked through the door.

He looked like an angel stepping into the light of the shop; a familiar face after a long day is exactly what I needed.

Hyunjin- "What's up, Ugly?"

Nevermind. My face fell into a death glare but he ignored it and focused on the menu. The glare intensified.

I had already put the covers on every single tub of ice cream and locked the cases that enclosed them. Naturally, he made things difficult.

He ordered a half of a scoop of one flavor in each of the four different sections just so I would have to unlock and relock all of them.

I just stood there and continued to give him a dirty glare. Yn- "I hate you." Hyunjin- "Fine." He said delightfully.

Hyunjin- "Don’t get me my order. I’ll just file a complaint and spread bad rumors about this place and you’ll probably get fired."

Yn- "This is blackmail." Hyunjin- "It sure is." He smiled at me and I huffed in return before grudgingly getting his ice cream.

I made sure to take an extra long time and fidget loudly with the equipment to emphasize just how much he was putting me out of my way.

Then, I got an idea. Oh, revenge is sweet. Yn- "That’ll be xxxx dollars please." He paid and I handed his card back.

Instead of giving him his order, I waved him closer. He leaned in and when he was within reach, I smashed some of the ice cream in his face.

I placed the cone with the remaining ice cream (which was most of it) in his hand and laughed to myself so hard at how dumb he looked.

Hyunjin grabbed a handful of napkins, stuck his tongue out at me, and stomped out the door, disappearing into the darkness.

Once my fit of laughter died down, I finished cleaning up. I closed up shop, turned off the lights, and locked the front door after exiting.

I began walking down the sidewalk and as I neared a bench, the man sitting on it stood and approached me.

My heart raced and I tried to ignore him and walk past. When he started following, I picked up my pace and was almost running.

A pair of arms coming around me from behind made me stop. I shrieked and wriggled in an attempt to break free but his grip only tightened.

??- "Yn! Yn!" I stopped squirming upon hearing my name and turned in his arms to look at who the perpetrator was.

Hyunjin. What a relief. I thought I was going to die. I rested my forehead on his chest and caught my breath.

However, once my panic subsided, I grew impatient and upset with Hyunjin so I stepped out of his arms and smacked the back of his head.

Yn- "What the heck was that for? You nearly gave me a heart attack!" Hyunjin- "Well why did you run from me?"

Yn- "I didn’t recognize you, fool. A girl has got to protect herself." Hyunjin- "What on earth would I do to you? You know me."

Yn- "It’s dark out here. How was I supposed to know you weren’t some creeper? Beside, I thought you left."

Hyunjin- "I figured I’d wait and walk you home. After all, a girl needs protection." Yn- "And you’re my protector?" I teased.

Hyunjin- "Hey now! I spent the whole evening out here and didn’t get harmed. I think there’s something to be said for that."

Yn- "You could’ve spent the whole evening in there helping me clean up and then we could have gone home sooner."

He was silent for a moment, thinking of a comeback I assumed.

Hyunjin- "Well if I hadn’t been out here I couldn’t have proven to be a worthy protector because we wouldn’t have known if I could survive."

Yn- "Fair. But I don’t need a protector. I can take care of myself just fine."

Hyunjin- "Clearly. That’s exactly what I saw too when I had you pinned against me and you couldn’t escape."

We rounded a corner and our pace seemed to slow a bit and our steps drew slightly closer- almost unnoticeably so.

The streets were empty and the shops were closed.

Yn- "Maybe I didn't want to escape. Maybe I knew it was you and just wanted you to hold me tighter." I cannot believe I just suggested that.

Good thing it’s dark and he can’t see my furious blush. Instead of dwelling on what my words could mean, he argued.

Hyunjin- "You just said you didn’t know it was me! Babe, if you’re going to make a claim, you’ve got to make sure all of your points align."

Yn- "Perhaps I was using a different method than logic." My heart pumped adrenaline all through me and darn it if I didn’t have fun with it.

Hyunjin- "Oh yeah? And what method would that be?"

I moved in front of him, facing him and walking backward for a moment while I waved my hands between us like the clown I was, and said:

Yn- "The art of confusion." Then I turned and ran, giggling. He ran after me.

After a moment of chasing, he caught me but instead of stopping the momentum, he redirected it and I ended up in his arms, next to a wall.

…yet again. I grinned at him and waggled my eyebrows. Yn- "Is this the art of seduction?" He nodded.

Yn- "Interesting choice of method. Of course, I know that you’re an expert-" He smirked and I knew he was thinking about that encounter.

The man is still smug and proud about it. I mentally rolled my eyes. He inched closer and wasn’t playing anymore. However, I was.

Yn- "So really it’s only natural that you use it-" He kissed me.

And the adrenaline I mentioned before made a funky wave, dipping clear to my toes and stretching into my fingertips.

His mouth was warm and he kissed me like I was the last rays of sunlight before winter- like he loved me and wanted to hold onto me forever.

I kissed him back. To say I hadn’t had fleeting thoughts about this moment would be a lie.

But I had always squelched them because my head knew better than my heart and my head said that we hated each other.

-OH RIGHT! We hate each other! How could I forget? I pushed him back.

Yn- "Wait. Don’t you hate me? What is this about? Because, I swear, if you’re just teasing me right now, I won’t forgive you."

He shook his head and spoke softly Hyunjin- "I don’t hate you Yn. I never did. I only teased you because bickering with you was so fun.

"It brought me happiness because I knew you would always forgive me and every time I saw you I felt a little lighter.

"I knew there was someone out there that would still stick around despite my flaws. But now, Yn, all I ever think about is you.

"Everything I do, I do with you in my mind. And all of these thoughts make my heart ache because I’m not with you.

"And when you are near I’m filled with the desire to hold you and tell you how much you mean to me.

"But I could never do that because I value having you around too much." He took a deep breath and looked away.

Hyunjin- "I am so sorry. I didn’t mean for all of that to come out." I slowly approached him and placed a hand on his chest.

His heart raced and forced him to I look at me. I gazed into his eyes, hoping with everything in me that my eyes could portray my thoughts.

He didn’t have anything to be sorry for. My other hand snaked up behind his neck and I pulled his head toward mine until our lips met.

This kiss was different. This was my acceptance and response. In this kiss, I told him what I knew my words would fail to say:

That I wanted his love and that I felt the exact same way for him.

After the kiss, we walked home in a comfortable silence and held hands, both of us smiling. What a couple of idiots we were.