Chapter Text
The room was littered with clothes, strewn all over the place, coloring it in different tones of pastels and neutrals, an abstract piece of art not matching the calm blue color the walls were painted in.
A shuffle of feet hurrying down the hallway connected to the room was the only sound heard in the entire apartment, and soon after the owner of said feet appeared in the room, clutching a dress in their hands . Y/N sighed and put the dress to her shoulder to see how it would fit her and if she should choose it or not. Looking at the mess she created in her room, she sighed once more, finally deciding on the green dress before she starts creating an even bigger mess to clean up after all this is over.
Placing the dress next to the shoes she picked and the small star themed bag, she goes on about cleaning the clothes she threw all over the place. She smiles as she picks some of them, groans as she remembers how and why she got others, and slowly cleans her room,even though she only put them aside in a heap on her bed, so she will just have to sort through them later.
Looking at the clock, she smiles and slowly makes her way to the bathroom, intent on getting ready for the big event happening this evening. By the time she is done with getting ready, there was only one hour left before it happened. And if she was relaxed and in a happy mood until then, now the butterflies started fluttering around. Her nerves were tingling with excitement and anxiety crept from somewhere in the dark corners, poking at her weak points in the armor, whispering how everything could go wrong.
Trying to take deep breaths to calm herself back down, she looked at the clock and saw that only five minutes passed, and her butterflies turned into a swarm, bubbling inside her body, making her feel both like she is floating, and like she could sink into the floor any minute. She could only hope this evening would go right, and talked to herself, in a calm voice, albeit her tone was one octave higher than usual.
"You can do this! It is not like you have never talked to him before, you just have to be yourself. It is just your first official date with NamJoon...oh my god, it is OUR FIRST DATE!" and with the realization, her entire calm flew out the window and reality crashed into her. They have been talking during the filming week, and have been around each other for hours on end, but never alone. Anxiety filled her mind as she wondered where they were going, if she even dressed correctly, what if he takes her somewhere fancy and she makes a fool of herself.
"Why didn't you ask him where you're going, fool?!" she cried in indignation at herself for forgetting how to be proper due to excitement of him asking her out. He did tell her to dress nicely, but that was the only clue she got from him, and staring at herself in the mirror, kneeling on the floor, she wondered how exactly did she look right now.
The green dress went well with her skin tone, and was not flashy enough to draw attention. She liked this dress because the material was comfortable enough to wear for hours, and even though it was not a summer dress, it let her skin breathe. Also, her wardrobe contained only two dresses, this green one and the flowery one she bought because it reminded her of cherry blossoms. But that dress, she swore to wear only when she finds an entire field filled with blossomed flowers or cherry blossoms trees, and do a photoshoot there. So that only left her with the green dress, which reached her knees, and the black flats put aside next to the door were a match for the dress and her earrings in shape of black stars, to match her bag.
Instead of thinking she looked beautiful to impress NamJoon and knock him over with her beauty, she bit her lower lip as her eyes lowered from the image staring back at her and she tried hard not to let the tears flow from her eyes. She felt rather simple, too easy to lose in the crowd, not good enough to stand by him. And anxiety took advantage of those thoughts, implanting self-doubting seeds throughout her mind, hoping to bring her down more. Before the tears could fall free from their confined space, her phone buzzed, and before her mind could agree to cancel the date, she saw the buzzing was caused by an incoming message from NamJoon.
Her heart started beating faster, her worries somehow flying out of her mind, hurriedly picking the phone to read the message. Just a silver of a worry entered her mind, wondering if he had the same thought as her and wanted to cancel on her, or worse, never talk to her again. But reading his simple 'Hey, we are two streets away from you. Wanna wait downstairs for us?" made her smile giddily, and then wonder by what he meant 'we'.
"Maybe it is not a date, and we are just going out with the boys. Did I misunderstand everything?' she asked herself outloud, still standing up from the floor, getting her bag and her essential things like lipgloss, wallet, phone, wet tissues just in case, placing them inside. Turning to look outside her window, she sees the sky is clear and the sun is still filtering through the dusk clouds, making her smile as the pretty colors mix and match on the evening sky. With that, she closes the door to her room and walks to where her flats are at, putting them on and picking up her apartment keys, she steps outside her apartment. Taking one deep breath, she locks the door and walks down the stairs, feeling too excited to take the elevator, needing to move around to let out some of the excitement. Arriving at the exit of the apartment building, she steps outside, taking in the fresh and warm air of a spring evening in. It was not that cold anymore as it passed the middle point of spring, and nowadays, evenings got to be warmer than thought. Luckily, NamJoon did tell her they were going by car, and not to worry much about an extra layer of clothes for warmth. Her cheeks reddened at the thought of them sitting somewhere isolated and calm, leaning into each other and just looking at the stars.
Before her thoughts could dvelve deeper into imagination territory, she saw the white van she got used to these days drive around the corner, and her heart jumped into her throat. What was she supposed to do now, wait there, walk closer to where the van would park maybe, wave at them before they stop, smile and run before them? Her thoughts went into overdrive and her body decided on its own, before her brain self-destroyed itself. She took small steps down the stairs in front of the complex,and right before she could reach where the van stopped, the back door opened, and just as a small breeze blew by her, out stepped NamJoon.
He was dressed casually formal, a pair of black jeans outlining his long legs and well developed thighs, a black with small white stars shirt tucked in, and she giggled as she realized they somehow matched without even talking about it. Over his shirt, he had on a long, black coat, and his hair was parted sideways. He was looking handsome, more handsome than the last time she met him, or was that just her mind playing tricks on her? He stepped outside with a smile, stopping before he could walk towards her, mouth opening just a slight bit in shock, his eyes unblinking. She wondered if something was wrong, but before she could ask him, he shook his head and in two large strides, he was before her, taking her small hand in his large one.
"You look beautiful" he said, confidence and awe in his words, and he looked into her eyes, unblinking and not daring to move his gaze. "I almost feel like not taking you out like this, just so I could look at you for the entire night only" he said in a teasing tone, and he grinned before letting out a laugh. "But I am sure you are hungry, and so am I, and since we do have a reservation, how about we go eat, and I show everyone this beautiful woman in front of me chose to be my side tonight?" he asked and she blushed, a side effect of being by his side, but honestly, she did not mind it. She was getting used to being swept by just his presence, overwhelming and warming her heart.
He tugged on her hand and they slowly made their way to the car, and NamJoon helped her get in first, before seating himself next to her, closing the door. Kang Woo smiled at both of them, and she realized now who the 'we' was, and she smiled back at the man in the driver's seat.
"Good evening, Kang Woo-ssi" she said, her smile wide and bright; she liked this older man, something kind shining through his aura everytime they met, even though this was the second time she met him face to face, last time being when he drove her home after their confession.
"Good evening, miss" he replied to her, stopping himself from asking anything else as he saw NamJoon turn to her, ready to say something "Well, please excuse me, I will just bring up the window separator so you two have more privacy. I know where to go, so you two take your time in talking" he finally said, winking at them from the rearview mirror.
Y/N could only blush and nod before she felt NamJoon leaning close to her, and her heart almost exploded as she felt his shoulder touch hers. She was not ready to kiss him in such a confined space, especially with Kang Woo watching them from the front seats. Before she could reject the kiss, NamJoon's arm caught onto her shoulder, before sliding to the seatbelt next to her, tugging on it to bring it over her body and close it with a snap. While she was turning beet red due to her mind going straight into not so innocent thoughts, NamJoon was having fun teasing her, sitting still next to her, still leaned into her body, grinning as he could probably guess what went through her mind while he did all that.
Coughing once to get both of them back into reality as the van started from the spot, getting out of its parked spot, slowly gliding down the streets, NamJoon turned to sit properly back in his seat, his head still turned towards the woman next to him. His left hand wrapped itself around her right one, and as she turned to look at him, he gave her a smile which she returned. It calmed him down and he wanted to let every thought of his ramble outside his brain, but instead he asked her about her work week, listening in and answering her own questions. It felt tame and normal, but he liked it, it calmed them both down and she finally relaxed, her mannerisms shining through as she explained stuff while gesticulating with her left hand.
Before they could get into more questions, the van stopped and they finally heard the pitter patter of the rain falling down the roof. They both stopped and turned to look at the road and saw how it was raining pretty fast, and they looked at each other, mentally asking if they brought an umbrella.
"Well, seems like it started raining, kiddos" Kang Woo started talking as he lowered the separator. "I can't park anywhere near the entrance of the restaurant though, so you will have to..." before he could finish the sentence, NamJoon opened the door to the van and looked at Kang Woo, telling him it is ok and running off into the rain.
Both the driver and Y/N looked after NamJoon running towards the store not far from them , his coat tugged over his head to protect him somewhat from the rain. Kang Woo sighed and muttered something underneath his breath, and Y/N slid closer to the open door, the chilly air licking at her uncovered skin, still feverish from the warm air in the car. She wondered if she should follow after him or if she should have caught onto him before he started running like that in the rain. Before either could say anything, the doors to the store opened, the light spilling onto the wet cement, and NamJoon stepped outside, a large umbrella in his hand and a wide smile on his face, clearly satisfied with what he accomplished.
He took large strides towards the white van, but a gust of strong wind and the wet cement plotted against him and he tripped on one of the slippery cement tiles and down he went , umbrella falling behind him right before he fell on top of it. Both people from the van wittnessed his fall and his pretty loud 'aurgh' as he landed on top of the newly acquired umbrella. Somehow, their first thought was 'of course that happened' before either could express concern, and Y/N reacted before Kang Woo could say anything.
She saw a discarded jacket somewhere in the back and she took it, holding it over her head for cover, and went outside the van, stepping carefully around the rain puddles. Finally getting closer to him, she saw the umbrella was not good for anything anymore, and his expression turned sour, and she felt somehow guilty at having thought about what a destruction god he was, just like his nickname.
"Are you ok?" she asked, extending her hand towards him, smiling slightly as she tried leaning over him to keep him covered a bit. He only sighed as he tried wiping his muddy hands on his long coat, ruining it in the process, and took hold of her hand, trying to push himself from the ground. The mud on his hand made it more difficult,and soon his hand slipped on the wet ground, taking him down again, and this time he took the girl down with him. She fell down on top of him, gasping in surprise as she sprawled on him, her legs trapping him underneath her and her body half leaned against him. One side of the jacket fell into her, covering one eye, and the hand she used to try and help him up was trapped between their stomachs, still linked with his.
He groaned as he fell again, and opened his eyes as an extra warm weight was added on top of him. Still dazed by the new fall, he pushed on his elbow to lift himself up, stopping as he felt warm air on his cheeks. Looking up, his eyes came level to her lips, and he stopped breathing and moving. Daring to look further up, he saw Y/N leaning over him, half her face covered with the jacket she was trying to hold up, her cheek red and her breathing was quickening by the second. He felt mesmerized and as he saw rain drops falling on her skin, his hand acted on its own.
Reaching for her, he took the jacket off her hidden face, exposing her skin, and he tugged the material so it was halfway covering and hiding them from the world and the rain. Letting go of her hand, his other hand slid up her exposed arm, feeling how the skin got wetter and colder by the second, his face turning into a frown at her being cold. Reaching her cheek, his eyes slid to her own, a smile tugging at his mouth as she leaned into him, both mesmerized and drowning into each others' eyes, and slowly he leaned into her, their breaths mingling, the chilly air of the rain evaporating between their warmth.
As soon as their lips touched, their eyes closed and the rain was forgotten, the jacket falling down onto them as his hand let it go, deciding it was better for it to rest around her neck, his fingers sprawled around the back of her head, trying to bring her closer to him as they kissed. Her hand slowly let go of the jacket as well, falling into the crook of his elbow, shyly going up the material of the coat, which was slowly getting damper, and before the kiss could get more intense or heated, they heard a slight cough from the side.
Their eyes snapped open before they broke their kiss, and they turned their heads at the same time towards the cough, and finally realized it was not raining over them anymore. Puzzled, they look at the side and see Kang Woo standing over them with the famous black umbrella NamJoon had during the days he was working on the film set, and they finally realized he saw them kissing, on the ground, in the rain, in public.
Y/N immediately snapped out of her daze, and embarrassed, she quickly got up, getting the jacket that fell on the ground and trying to stay a bit aside so NamJoon could get up as well. The rain was hitting her shoulder and back, but she was honestly feeling too embarrassed by what happened to feel the drops hitting her skin. NamJoon noticed though, and as soon as he stood up, he gently took hold of her hand and brought her closer under the umbrella, which was shared between the three.
The atmosphere felt awkward and NamJoon wanted to tell Kang Woo to go with the umbrella and they would follow behind him, but the hyung beat him to it.
"Well, seems like that umbrella is dead for the world" Kang Woo said, pointing at the ruined umbrella on the ground " and so is your coat, NamJoon" he continued with a chuckle, pointing at the mud on the coat.
NamJoon sighed and wanted to apologize for everything, until he heard a snicker, and looking down, he saw Y/N's shoulders shake, before she finally let out her laugh, not too loud so as she won't disturb any passerby.
"I am sorry, Joonie" she said, slipping into the nickname she kept into her mind, and he was pleasantly surprised that she used it, but immediately relaxed into his stance, and chuckled alongside with her, letting her continue talking "I know I should not laugh, and I am sorry your coat was ruined, but it was funny. Your face while falling twice, that is" she continued, her laugh settling into giggles, before she turned to face him, her smile bright, her embarrassment forgotten. "Are you ok though? Did you hurt yourself?" she looked over his person carefully, hoping he did not hurt himself in any way.
This time, she gasped in shock as NamJoon brought her into his arms, her head on his chest, her arms trapped on her sides before she tried hugging him back, her fingers wrapping themselves into the sides of his coat, relishing the warmth his body emanated.
"I am ok" he finally said, his chest rumbling with every word he used and breath he took. It calmed her down, date anxiety burned and buried, and she breathed out a breath she never knew she kept locked inside her own chest.
"If we do still stay here, in the middle of the street, you are both going to get soaked to the bone and then catch a cold, kids" a third voice echoed from their sides, and they turned again to see Kang Woo still standing next to them, still holding the umbrella over them, this time leaning it more towards himself rather than them. Without saying anything, he gave the umbrella to NamJoon and walked to the van, turning once more to tell them " The reservation time has passed, so might as well just go for that one restaurant not far from here, a friend of mine owns it and would not mind keeping it a bit longer opened for you two to get dry, warm and eat" and winked at them, like he knew something like this would happen, and had extra plans in his mind, before going to his seat and waiting patiently for them.
Both people standing outside looked after the man, before looking at each other, and the first one to break the silence was NamJoon.
"Guess in the end, still Kang Woo saves the day huh?" he says with a sigh and a slight pout on his face, before realizing the rain is still not stopping anytime soon and Y/N was only in a dress in the chilly weather. "But I guess in the end, we could still take his offer and go have our date." he smiled at her, before turning to the side, his arm around her shoulders, taking her back to the van, his hand rubbing up and down her arm to make sure it is warm.
Y/N wanted to tell him she felt no cold, as the whole situation only made her explode in blushes and adrenaline, but his touch was gentle and relaxing, and it let her stay next to him, glued to his side, and honestly, she would rather let him think she is cold, so she could stay like that longer. The moment they were seated into the van, NamJoon reached in the back and brought out a blanket large enough for them to share, and discarding his muddy coat in the back, he leaned closer to her, both seatbelts tucked into place. Wrapping the blanket around her shoulders, he looked at her amused smile, a twinkle in her eyes and he leaned down, placing a kiss on the corner of her lips before placing his arm around her shoulders, leaning his head against her own.
It was warm, staying like this by her side, and she snuggled into him, and both had content smiles on their faces. The rain might have destroyed their first plan, but as long as they were together, even if they had to sit inside the van, they both agreed in their mind and heart that this first date was so them: caught in the rain, mishaps happening, and in the end it brought them closer, both physically and mentally. They were both content with this night, and the fact they did have a place to go and eat at was just the bonus they didn't know was waiting for them.
Kang Woo smiled as he watched them settle into each other and decided to take extra detours to the place he knew, to let them spend more time like that together, happy they finally let themselves be comfortable around each other. And bit by bit, the rain was slowing down to a slight drizzle, the stars twinkling through the dark clouds, making them disappear one by one as the weather cleared.