Con couldn't shake the feeling that he was trapped in some kind of dream. A lovely dream that could burst at the seams at any moment. 

After parking, Con had allowed Ella and Taemin to drag him into store after store, until he was beginning to wonder just how many boutiques one little town could legally have. 

Shoes, clothes, jewelry. Both Taemin and Ella seemed to have a weakness for pretty things. All Con could do was watch in awe, impressed by the sheer number of things they were willing to try on and even more impressed by the number of things they actually bought.

Not one to really enjoy shopping himself, Con had been surprised by how much fun he'd managed to have. Both siblings had a dry sense of humor that had startled a laugh out of him more than a few times today. With them, Con was fairly certain he'd laughed more in the span of a couple hours than he had in the past year. 

It was a novel experience in some ways, finding not one but two people he genuinely enjoyed being around. They didn't drain him as the company of nearly everyone else did.

On the contrary. Whenever he started to feel weary or bored, all he'd have to do was draw the attention of one or the other. Something as simple as Ella grabbing his wrist or Taemin leaning against his shoulder sent a fresh burst of energy through his veins that rushed straight to his heart and made him feel wide awake.

He felt more awake than he had in a long time.

Con was sitting on a bench in either the fifth or sixth shop, just enjoying the sensation of not moving when Ella came out of the dressing room she'd disappeared into a few minutes ago.

"Wow." The soft exclamation made its way across his lips without his permission.

Both Parks had purchased various outfits ranging from cute to elegant, but this took the cake.

Ella tossed her hair behind her shoulders, first peering at herself in a nearby mirror before she turned to Con, eyebrows raised in question. He bit the inside of his cheek, searching desperately for a word. Any word.

The dress was a deep purple silk that wrapped around her slender figure, the skirt sitting just above her mid-thigh. The sleeves were off-shoulder, made of a sheer, billowy material that seemed to float with every movement. Black boots rose to her knees.

The rich colors made her pale skin even paler, and with her glossy, black hair she looked like something out of a dark fairytale.

Ella pouted, looking down at the dress. "Is there something wrong with it?"

"N-No." Con shook his head before scrubbing a hand over the back of his neck. "It's...You look great."

"You've said that about the last seven things." She turned to the mirror, twisting a little to try and glimpse the back.

Con grimaced, crossing his arms. "Well what else am I supposed to say?"

"That you like the color. It makes my skin look flawless."

Con looked her up and down before he could stop himself. A smile twitched at his lips. "I like the color. It makes your skin look flawless."

Ella sniffed, tugging at the top of the dress, drawing his attention to the delicate line of her collarbones. She tilted her head. "At least you're trainable."

"Like a dog," he replied, grinning.

Taemin rounded a rack of clothes, his nose wrinkled. He pointed at Ella's dress, gave her a thumbs-up, then shook his head at Con. "Not like a dog at all. I don't like dogs."

"I...what?" Con narrowed his eyes. "How can you not like dogs? Literally all they want is for you to love them."

Taemin's brow furrowed in thought and he gave Con a blank stare. Con stared back, not wanting to speak. It looked like Taemin was on the verge of some kind of revelation. Then, his face smoothed and he shrugged. "Still not a fan."

"It's more like dogs don't like him," Ella said, teasing.

"Right." Taemin nodded firmly, sinking onto the bench beside Con and leaning against him. "So it's mutual dislike." He stuck his tongue out at Ella. "They don't like you any better."

"Must run in the family," she said, a wry smile tugging at her mouth as Taemin snorted. She turned back to the mirror, her sleeves billowing. With a sigh, she ran her hands down her sides and nodded. "I'm getting this."

"Good." Con blushed as both of them glanced at him. He scratched at his jaw, allowing himself a last, quick scan of her in the dress. "It looks good."

Ella gave Taemin a dry look. "Heart of a poet, this one."

Her brother snickered as Con just shrugged an acknowledgement. It had annoyed Jenna too, but Con had never been a particularly chatty person. He just wasn't the type to use ten words where one would do.

Ella ducked back into the dressing room, and Con peered down at the handful of bags sitting at his feet. He shot a sideways glance at Taemin, who was staring at a jewelry case across the room. As soon as he opened his mouth to ask if they were anywhere close to being done with shopping, Taemin stood and dragged Con to his feet.

"Look at this." He crossed to the jewelry case, towing Con along. When they reached it, he jabbed a long finger against the glass, pointing out the piece that had grabbed his attention.

Holding in a weary sigh, Con leaned forward, eyes following the path outlined by Taemin's finger. He leaned closer to the glass when he found what had caught the other man's attention. Taemin tapped the glass with excitement. "I'll distract her. You buy that. I'll pay you back."

"I—" Con let out a long sigh when he realized Taemin had already darted off. Then, he couldn't help but laugh as he waved at a saleswoman who was just finishing with another customer. Smiling, she removed the necklace, handing it to Con so he could look at it.

He checked over his shoulder to make sure Ella wasn't about to sneak up on him and ruin Taemin's surprise. When he was sure the coast was clear, he lifted the pendant to peer more closely at it. 

Amethysts and chips of what Con thought might be obsidian were set in a delicate web of silver. All together, they formed a cluster of purple and black foxgloves dangling from a short chain. It would look beautiful with her newest dress.

"I'll take it," he said to the delight of the saleswoman.

Once more looking over his shoulder, he found that Taemin was talking to Ella in an animated fashion that demanded her full attention. He flinched instinctively at the price when the saleswoman rung him up, but he reminded himself that for the past year, he'd bought nothing except the bare essentials.

He could absolutely afford the necklace, and wondered how stubborn Taemin would get over paying him back. The saleswoman wrapped the necklace carefully, but when she reached for a bag, Con shook his head.

"It's a secret," he explained.

The woman's gaze drifted over his shoulder, her eyes darting back and forth with uncertainty. Con turned to find her looking at the siblings. When he turned back to her, she had wiped her confusion away, replacing it with a professional smile as she handed the small bundle to Con. He quickly stuck it in the pocket of his jacket.

"I'm sure whoever it's for will love it," she chirped.

Con blinked once, turning and catching Taemin's eye. After gathering their bags, they scurried across the shop to meet him at the door. Holding it open for them, Con managed to sneak a last look over his shoulder.

The saleswoman was watching them go, a puzzled expression on her face. Con frowned as he stepped out into the late autumn chill. He was distracted from his thoughts when Ella hooked her arm around his, pressing against his side as a cold wind blew her hair across her face.

Con trapped a few strands with his fingers, brushing her hair out of her face.

"It's freezing," Taemin muttered on Con's other side, making him jump. He turned to find the other man scanning the businesses strung along the street they were on. "And I'm starving. I vote we get out of the cold and have a really early dinner."

Con grabbed Taemin's arm, lifting it so he could peer at the watch on his wrist. He snickered, letting Taemin go. "It's four o'clock."

"You haven't eaten anything today either," Taemin said defensively. He frowned abruptly, turning his full attention to Con. "Aren't you starving too?"

"I..." Con paused, frowning as he focused on his stomach. Despite Taemin being right—that he hadn't eaten anything all day—he was perfectly fine. No hunger gnawed at him. There wasn't even so much as a discontented growl from his stomach.

Which...actually wasn't that weird. Con had failed to regain his appetite after Jenna's death, except in these last few days spent at the hotel. His frown deepened as he considered what had been different about today.

Aside from the fact that it was the first time in months he'd managed to feel relatively normal, nothing seemed terribly out of place... Except the body that had nearly crushed him and Ella this afternoon.

Letting out a sigh, Con chocked his lack of appetite up to the fact that healing from Jenna's death was a constant dance of one step forward and three steps back. And the fact that he'd nearly been made a corpse today himself.

"I'm okay," he finally answered. When Ella and Taemin exchanged a glance, Con grimaced at them. "I mean, I could eat if you two are starving. I'm just not very hungry myself. It's not that weird. I don't get that hungry anymore."

Taemin gave a slow nod while Ella looked up at Con, lips turned down at the corners. Neither asked him to elaborate, which was a huge relief. He gestured down the street. "Let's go find a place to eat if you're hungry."

"Starving," they corrected him at the same time.

Ella giggled, skipping out of reach when Con went to take some of her bags from her. "Let's go put this stuff in the car first. I noticed we parked near that diner we went to last time. I think I remember seeing fried chicken on the menu."

"Mmh," Taemin hummed, stealthily sneaking some of his shopping bags into Con's hand. At Con's raised eyebrow, he gave him a sweet smile, batting his eyelashes. Con sighed and Taemin laughed, which made a laugh rise in Con's throat.

Ella nudged her brother with an elbow. "Ga-ja."

"Yeah, that's fine," he said. "Just as long as I can eat something."

"Chicken," Ella said firmly, grabbing Con's free hand and pulling him after her. Taemin let out an indignant hiss and loped after them, flicking Ella's forehead when he caught up.

Con stifled another laugh, content to just bask in the moment. To let them remind him what being happy was like.

"Ga-ja" translates to "let's go".