Cold summer

Carrie stood at the edge of the bustling airport terminal, her gaze fixed on the sliding glass doors as if they might transport her back to another time. The cold air of Toronto curled around her, yet it was the past that sent a shiver down her spine, how stranded she was on her first day back.

"Do you think he'd recognize you?" Jae-wook's voice sliced through her thoughts, sharp and grounding.

She blinked, pulling herself back to the present. "Probably. I haven't changed much since I was a kid." She turned to him, narrowing her eyes. "But why are you here, anyway? Don't you have a mountain of work at the office?"

Jae-wook leaned against the luggage cart, an air of nonchalance wrapped around him. "Ava insisted I come along. Something about you meeting your 'first kiss.'" His lips curled into a smirk.

Carrie's cheeks flamed as she buried her face in her hands. "That girl is going to be the death of me. It wasn't even like that! He kissed me first, and we were ten."

Jae-wook shrugged. "You can explain that to him yourself." He turned her gently, her feet pivoting toward the figure striding through the arrival gate.

The world seemed to exhale in silence. Carrie's breath caught as her eyes met Taeyang's—dark, familiar, and laced with an echo of their shared past.

"Carrie," he said, his voice low and magnetic, threading through the space between them.

Her lips parted. "It's really you."

He closed the distance, his presence wrapping around her like a well-worn coat. "I've been wondering if you ever missed me." His arms encircled her, the embrace soft but certain. "I've waited so long to do this." His whisper brushed against her ear, warm and intimate.

Jae-wook's exaggerated eye roll could have spun the earth backward.

Taeyang stepped back, his eyes still locked on hers. "You still look like my little bunny. Haven't grown an inch, huh?" He ruffled her hair, the gesture both infuriating and endearing.

"Hey! I've grown a lot," she shot back, smoothing her hair.

"What are you now, 5'4?" he teased.

"Actually, I'm 5'4 and a half!" she said, hands on her hips.

"If we linger any longer, this might turn into a fan meet," Jae-wook muttered, glancing over his shoulder at a cluster of onlookers.

Taeyang turned to him, extending his hand. "You must be Jae-wook, Leo's friend."

"Best friend." Jae-wook's handshake was firm, his expression a study in mild disinterest.

"만나서 반갑습니다," Taeyang said, his smile disarming.

Jae-wook's brow arched. "I don't speak Korean."

"My bad," Taeyang said, effortlessly switching. "A pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure's all mine," Jae-wook returned, his voice even, though the undertone was sharp enough to cut glass.

Carrie cleared her throat, the energy tightening around them. "We should get going before your fans turn this into a scene."

"Right." Taeyang's easy grin softened the edges of the moment, and they followed Jae-wook to the car.

---

The highway unfurled before them, a ribbon of gray beneath a sky smudged with clouds. The car was a cocoon of quiet, broken only by the gentle strum of a guitar weaving through the speakers.

"Who sang this?" Carrie asked, her voice a delicate thread in the stillness.

Jae-wook's fingers tapped rhythmically on the steering wheel. "I don't know. One of those random playlist songs."

"It's nice." She exhaled slowly, the melody like a hand tracing circles on her back. "I need to know who this is."

She fished her phone from her bag, the screen casting a cool glow. A quick search pulled up the song: Cold Summer by Kim Taeyang.

Her head whipped around, eyes wide. "Wait—you sang this?"

Taeyang's smile was a slow bloom. "Guilty as charged."

She gaped at him. "This is incredible. Did you write it too?"

"Hm." He nodded, a shadow passing through his expression. "It was inspired by an old crush."

Jae-wook's knuckles whitened on the wheel, his foot pressing down on the brake. Hard.

The car jolted, Taeyang's head smacking against the window with a dull thud.

"Taeyang!" Carrie reached out, concern etching lines around her mouth. "Are you okay?"

He winced, rubbing the sore spot. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Carrie shot daggers at Jae-wook. "What the hell was that?"

"There was a chameleon on the road." His voice was smooth as glass, his expression unreadable.

Carrie narrowed her eyes "sounds like a lie to me"

"Believe what you want, I care less" Jae-wook said with a gentle smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

The car rolled forward, the music resuming its soft caress.

---

As soon as they arrived home, Carrie glanced back at Taeyang. Despite the safe drive, he looked undeniably uneasy, his mask still on, the brim of his cap casting a shadow over his eyes.

"You must be exhausted. Go ahead and take a shower while I try to whip up something to eat. Make yourself at home," she said warmly, her smile soft and welcoming.

"Thanks, bunny," he replied, the edges of his lips curling into a shy smile before he slipped down the hallway to the guest room.

"Bunny?" Jae-wook echoed, his voice flat and his expression anything but amused.

Carrie shrugged. "He's called me that since we were kids."

Jae-wook's eyes narrowed, his skepticism sharp as a blade. "He still likes you. And from where I'm standing, you don't seem any different either."

A playful smirk danced on her lips. "I've missed him, honestly, plus I believe that's the same for him. And since when did you start moonlighting as a matchmaker?"

"I'm not," he shot back, the words quick and sharp. "In fact, I don't like him. Not even a little."

Carrie crossed her arms, amusement glimmering in her eyes. "That's just prejudice talking. You're feeling threatened because he's also Leo's friend and, let's face it, he ticks all the same boxes as you, so it's probably jealousy"

Jae-wook let out a dry chuckle, the kind that sat heavy in the air. "You think so?" he said with a sassy eye roll, his voice a quiet challenge. Without waiting for an answer, he turned and walked away, leaving a storm of unspoken words in his wake.