I stared at him for a few minutes, not knowing what to say. I felt bad. He had a life, too, and places to go, but no...I couldn't risk anything. I didn't know his expiration date yet. I eyed his bare neck and opened my mouth to speak. "Can I...go with you?" 

Sehun raised his eyebrow. "I guess..." he said. "What's wrong?" I wish I knew what was wrong. I didn't know why I kept on telling him to stay at home when he wanted to go somewhere. Nothing held me back. My body did what it wanted to do; it had a mind of its own. It's a habit I have––I didn't even realize I told him to stay until I snapped back to reality. 

"I just, I..." I paused. I needed an excuse. I want some air. Say it, Dakota, say you want some air. It's too stuffy in here and you want to be outside. 

Sehun looked at the time and grabbed my hand. "Let's go," he said as he pulled me out. 

We walked hand-in-hand for a few blocks before he broke the silence. I'm glad Sehun finally said something. My heart was racing. He’d forgotten to let go and I...I didn't want to let go. I thought I was going crazy. Growing up, I was that quiet girl who only focused on her studies. Never did I think I would marry someone and start my own family. And now, here I was imaging what would happen if Sehun and I started dating. I was scared––scared that I was in love with someone whose expiration date didn't exist.

"I need to go to the library to borrow a text book. What do you want to do?" he asked.

I shrugged. "I don't know," I mumbled.

He paused in the middle of the street and turned to me. "Are you okay? You were acting a little weird back at the dorm."

I nodded. "I-I'm fine," I stuttered. Then he did something that made my heart beat like no tomorrow––he brushed his fingers over my forehead.

"You seem fine, but you aren’t," he said. "Tell me." 

Should I? Tell him something I've told no one else in my whole life? What would the consequences be? For some reason, I didn't feel scared as I debated telling him the truth. A droplet of rain touched my forehead. I looked up as the sky darkened a little. Is this a sign? Maybe this confession could wait. 

It seemed like just a drizzle. We started walking again since I didn't say anything. We stopped holding hands and that bothered me.

The library was three more blocks away when the thunder roared. Sehun pulled me into his arms as the rain came down. The sky was crying. A flush of red touched my cheeks when I realized we were so close. Rosy pink cheeks looked weird on me; normally, I was paler than anything. 

Sehun looked up and took his jacket off to shield the both of us. You know what they say, April showers bring May flowers. We walked to the nearest coffee shop and sat down with cups of coffee. It was warm inside, but Sehun was probably freezing. His white t-shirt stuck to his skin as he shook his hair out. Did he even try to cover himself?

"Sorry." I said. I felt so bad, what if he got sick?

He chuckled. "For what? My father always told me to protect a lady before worrying about myself. Are you okay? You're not wet or cold or anything?"

"I'm not but you are," I said. The right side of his body was drenched and his hair was soaked. "What if you get sick?" 

He sneezed and chuckled. "That only means it's your responsibility to take care of me," Sehun grinned. I rolled my eyes, I can't lie––I did blush when he said that. 

"Hey, you should do that more," he said. "You're blushing...Rosy cheeks look so cute on you." 

Wide-eyed, I touched my cheek and turned away to look out the window. "What are you thinking about?" he asked me. "You seem to like the rain. Is there anything you've always wanted to do in the rain? Jump in puddles? Stuff like that?" 

I said something that I never ever thought I would say: "I want to be kissed in the rain." I froze when I realized that sentence slipped past my lips. "What about you?" I tried to change the subject. 

"I want to be the one kissing you," he murmured. 

-----

Sehun got sick. I thought it was a cold, but it seemed worse than that. I had gone out after class into the city to pick up some medicine. He called me in the middle of it and said he wanted me home. "I don't feel good...I want to see you," he said. 

"I sleep better when I know you're here with me," he told me. I rushed home knowing he wanted to be with me. Liking someone really does change a person, doesn't it? 

I sat by his bedside after he took his medicine. I made a copy of the notes he missed in class today and watched him sleep. He seemed so peaceful. Too peaceful...