Present Year 2023

It's a normal busy day, and the TV news channel noises in the background. 36 year old Taeyang, sees a clip on his iPad -- it's the annular solar eclipse to date. Looking at the clock it was 10 AM.

People where starting the crowd and look up into the sky from his window view. He sips the last straw of his pure black coffee, leans back and closes his eyes 

Slowly -- another one, when was that again? 

-~o*o~-

Year 2006: Palan-Haneul University

The spring breeze was blowing, and the Freshman Dorm was bustling as usual. Plenty of them were busy in the lobby—talking, meeting, even eating, and claiming their laundries. It was a high-energy atmosphere. They were all noisy, watching the live basketball stream from the television in the lobby.

Park Taeyang could hear his peers from afar as he walked towards the dorm. He looked up at the sky; it was a clear, cloudless night sky, and he could see all the stars except the moon. It was a new moon.

He went there to meet some friends and also for the recruitment spot for a certain club. It was a busy day with nothing exciting to do, so he decided to join this orientation when he found the ad on this interest club. He met the senior who had invited him.

Taeyang adjusted his cap as he looked at the other faces of those who seemed to have also been invited. He kept his eyes hidden below his cap's visor. Some looked familiar; others were new faces. But then his eyes met a view of two large plumps clothed in a pink shirt with white stripes. He suddenly caught the floral scent and immediately realized there was a girl in front of him. He calmly raised his head to see her face, wondering what she would look like.

He paused, studied her face for several seconds, and the first words he said were, "You look familiar."

The girl looked back with a puzzled gaze. Maybe she was intrigued. This boy always hangs out in their dorm lobby. She wondered if he was spying on her or stalking her. She was about to make such accusations, but then someone called her.

His senior caught eye on them and approached them, "Haha, you're finally here, Miss Yuna."

"Yuna"—that's her name; this was what registered in Taeyang's mind. He glanced at her; she seemed pissed.

-~o*o~-

So they all gathered and sat down in a small circle. Taeyang and Yuna were sitting next to each other. The usual getting-to-know and introductions happened. The orientation continued. Taeyang had a lively and carefree aura, so Yuna decided to forget her initial conclusions about him.

The senior said, Let's play a game to decide who will pair up for the task on the club's next month activity. By chance, Taeyang and Yuna were paired up. The games were all fun.

By the end of the meeting, Yuna had spoken to Taeyang.

"Let me try this on" as Yuna grabbed his cap in a stylish manner. She looked at her reflection from the window. Taeyang got a full view of her curves, toe to head. He was 166 cm, so this girl's about 162 cm.

In his most polite manner, he said, "Yuna, you are pretty. But just so, you're not my type, and I'm not stalking you."

Yuna heard the words and laughed. "I'm not your type?" She wondered how he concluded about the stalker thing when she never mentioned it.

"I can see how you looked at me earlier," Taeyang replied, referring to Yuna emanating her feelings that she was being stalked by him.

"Well, that makes it easy. We can be friends." She turned around and went back inside the dorm.

"Hey, Yuna! My cap!"

"I'll be keeping this, as your apology," Yuna said.

"What? What did I do?" was what crossed Taeyang's mind. "How about our task assignment?" he asked.

"I'll be in touch," Yuna softly said. "I got your number, didn't I?"

Taeyang was somehow pissed, as he was the type who wanted to get things done in a planned manner.

"Why didn't I get to have her number? I can't plan out anything. How am I supposed to gauge my time for running and playing at the internet café?" he complained.

He walked home to the apartment where he was staying, and as soon as he got to his bed, he slept.

Meanwhile, Yuna played with the cap while on the bed. Until her phone beeped. She looked at its screen, placed the cap on her side table, and decided to sleep.

======================================================

Some points to comment :)

Why did Yuna take Taeyang's cap?

What did Yuna see on her phone?