Mae's eyelashes fluttered as she read the text Min Cheol just sent her. It had been a long time since he last showed her one of his compositions. Wasting no time, she typed in: Who would reject listening to your songs?

An audio file was sent to her just when she hit the send button. It had been a long time since Mae listened to one of Min Cheol's drafts. It was a composition completely made by him; the raw, unpolished sound that slipped out of his fingers naturally with whatever he had in mind; the pure melody crafted by him, untouched by any other soul. Mae felt like she would finally get to sneak into the corner of his mind again and see how much his thoughts actually changed. She clicked the play button after blinking a few times, holding her breath.

Unlike how fierce Min Cheol presents himself to be on stage, his composition was very soft and slow. The sound of piano mixing with electric guitar in the back, grooving with the drum beats and bass, it sounded very pleasing to her ears.

Min Cheol waited for 5 minutes before he grew impatient and asked: How is it?

Mae looked at the message, but didn't reply, still listening to the melody for the third time. She waited until the sound died down to answer: It's you.

Min Cheol raised his eyebrow but didn't reply, seeing Mae was still typing.

Im Yeomrim: I missed this.

Im Yeomrim: A lot, honestly.

Im Yeomrim: I hope you get to put this in the next album.

A smile appeared on Min Cheol's lips even before he realized. She was too good for his ego. He replied, still smiling: Not the next album, but soon maybe.

Im Yeomrim: You mean after two years? -.-

Min Cheol: Maybe.

Im Yeomrim: Well, I guess I can wait. Don't make me wait too long though.

Im Yeomrim: Did you write the lyrics yet?

Min Cheol: Not yet, but I will.

The texting continued, even when Min Cheol was on his way going back to his dorm. Mae always had a way to keep the conversation running. She didn't really need to make an effort; she was just naturally good at it.

......

October slipped its way in, the holiday season started as Mae and Caroline welcomed the day they had to go back to their homeland. No matter how much Mae whined about coming back to China, if she was to be completely honest, she missed this place immensely.

China has three major cities: Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. Beijing is a city that is filled with history and power; it would either tempt you into its beautiful trap or suffocate you for not being able to climb up the ladder. Shanghai, usually the foreigners' favorite, is a city full of temptation; its gorgeous city light has the power to seduce anyone stepping a foot in its arena, you will soon find yourself indulged in the sweet smell of riches. Guangzhou, however, unlike the two, is the most laidback of the three, it's often hard to identify the invisible societal grading just by looking the people on the streets; it's also named as the greenest city of the country.

As Mae and Caroline stepped their foot out of the Baiyun Airport, they couldn't help but feel a sense of nostalgia rushing over them, the feel of finally coming back home.

"The old master is waiting for you," the chauffeur slightly bowed at the sight of Mae and Caroline, holding the car door open for them.

"Thank you, Mr. Zhou," both the girls slightly bowed their heads while entering the car, thanking the old man who had been serving their family for the past forty years.

It didn't take them much time to reach home, where they were greeted by few of their cousins who jumped to hug them.

After the girls let go of each other, someone tapped Mae's shoulder.

"Yo!"

The deep voice caused Mae to almost jump as she turned to face the person she hadn't seen for months.

"I didn't know you would come back!" Mae's eyes widened at the sight of her brother.

"Well, I am the boss of my own company, I get to take a holiday for myself," her brother reasoned as he flipped his hair, the right corner of his curved up.

"Ya, Lin Zi Yan(林子焰)!" Caroline grabbed his shoulder and folded her arms around his neck, "How have you been, you brat?"

"Let go of me, Carol! I mean it!" Lin Ziyan almost choked as he kept on slapping Caroline's arm.

Caroline loosened her grip as she grinned looking at him. Despite being in their late twenties and having a respectable job/business where their employees and juniors look up to them, these two have always had a way to act like kids when they were in each other's company. Mae always wondered what their colleagues would think if they ever get to see these two at home, acting like siblings who are still in elementary school.

Mae then pulled Caroline and walked towards the backyard, where their grandfather usually rests. The backyard was very peaceful, unlike the hall room that was now in chaos because of the visit of young people. Here, there were only sounds of the Mother Nature. An old man in his late seventies sat on a white bench, gazing at the scenario, his hands resting on the crutch which stood straight on the grass.

"Grandpa," Mae gently uttered, as she sat down on the bench beside him, while Caroline sat on the other side.

The man turned to look at them, an amiable smile instantly bloomed.

"Oh, you little brats! You still know that you have to come back! I almost thought you forgot your own country and this poor old man," he complained, yet his smile reached his eyes. He was nodding as he looked at the two beautiful granddaughters he had.

"Grandpa," Caroline hugged him as the pitch of her voice slightly rose. She crinkled her face, her lips slightly pouting, "How can I forget this handsome man?"

Grandpa laughed at her words, lightly cuffing her.

Caroline's squeezed her eyes close, whining.

Mae just watched them while giggling.

Suddenly, her phone lit up, showing a message from Min Cheol – he replied back to her after a day, coming back from his schedule. Just as she opened her lock screen, Caroline snatched the phone away from her, "Hey, hey, focus on our handsome grandpa, or else he will become angry."

"So I am a grumpy old man to you?" their grandpa shifted his gaze to Caroline.

"I said you are handsome!"

They kept on bickering for another few minutes while Mae glued her eyes to her phone, she just wished she could get it back and reply to Min Cheol. God knows when he would become free next!

Caroline wasn't stupid, she realized how Mae was looking at her phone. She gave it to Mae while teasing her, "I see that you guys are texting each other pretty often these days."

"Texting who? My little Yanlin has a new boyfriend?" Grandpa also joined in the play as he focused his eyes on Mae.

"He's just a friend, not my boyfriend!" Mae protested, she was definitely not prepared to introduce Min Cheol to her family, not until everything worked out as she planned.

"Yet," Caroline added, a smirk playing on her lips.

I hope you all liked this chapter! If you did, please don't forget to vote and/or comment!

I also published a new book "Andy Talks" where I will be talking about kpop stuff, check it out if you are interested!