Love After Love...

Chapter 11: "I love you."

~6 months later~
Namjoon's POV:
I had still never mentioned my brother in front of Jieun, but she never asked me about it unless I wanted to talk about it. I was so grateful for that. As more and more time passed, and I got to spend my days and nights with her, she seemed like someone without whom I couldn't go even a day. Her presence was so positive and calming, it almost felt like heaven. I didn't know people like her existed. She was truly remarkable.

It had been 8 months since we officially were together, and this was, by far, the healthiest relationship I had ever been in. She was part of the reason I woke up every morning. Again, I didn't know about love. I felt devoid of it everytime I thought about the four-letter word that held so much weight. All I knew was I just wanted to see her every single day, I was addicted to her touch and her opinions really mattered to me. But everytime she mentioned something about her brother, I would feel a pang of guilt since there were way too many things I had hidden from her - especially about my own brother - when she was opening up, slowly and steadily. Even as we discussed our dating history, I hid the relationship that changed me forever. But then I let myself get lost in her scent, her hugs, her kisses and I would soon forget every other worry.

Jieun's POV:
I was hopelessly in love with the man. I thought of letting him know, mainly because I knew he hadn't thought about it. I wanted him to know what I felt since it felt like big information to me. At this point, all that mattered to me was spending time with him and letting him know what I felt for him. We were going to meet soon at the cafe, but I was in no hurry. I just wanted it to come naturally.

~At the cafe~

Jieun's POV:
"You look beautiful, as always," Namjoon said. I blushed. We made conversation, laughed, giggled, ate, hugged, kissed. Then I suddenly noticed a familiar figure approaching the cafe. "Jungkook?" I said. Namjoon turned in the direction I was looking and saw my brother.

Namjoon's POV:
I saw a very handsome man coming near Jieun. I couldn't help but feel jealous. He walked up to her and hugged her tightly. I felt physical pain. I couldn't see her with another man in her arms. Where I belong. But I couldn't let her know.

"What are you doing here? I thought we agreed you wouldn't come to the cafe anymore?" Jieun asked. I clenched my fists at the thought of someone following her. "I'm not spying this time. It was on my way!" he said. Spying?! Oh God, I was so close to punching him! "And who is this lovely gentleman?" he asked, looking at me. "Kim Namjoon, Jieun's boyfriend," I sternly replied. "Ooh he's possessive, I like him. Jeon Jungkook, it's nice to meet you," he replied, extending his hand for me to shake it.

Wait? Jeon? He was Jieun's brother! She had never mentioned his name, neither had I seen his face before so I didn't know it was him. A wave of relief washed over me as I smiled very wide. We shook hands and Jungkook told Jieun he was going to meet his girlfriend. "How do I look?" he asked. "Great, as always. Something special?" Jieun asked. "Uh... Yeah, actually. I'm going to tell her I love her," he said. "What?! Thats amazing! I'm so happy for you!" she said, hugging him. I smiled at the lovely siblings. Jungkook soon said goodbye to both of us, he seemed very nice, in a different way than Jieun, but he still was nice to talk to.

As he left, I noticed Jieun in thoughts. "What's going on in that beautiful brain of yours?" I asked, earning her precious smile. God, what I wouldn't do to keep that smile on her face. "He's gonna tell her he loves her. That takes courage. It's not easy putting yourself out there like that. I admire him for that," she said. Something in me said that this conversation was going somewhere I wasn't prepared for it to go. "Namjoon..." she softly said. The look in her eyes made me melt. She could have asked for stars and I wouldn't have said no. I hummed. "I wanted to tell you that I love you."

I felt like my heart beat had come to a standstill. But not in a bad way. And I was surprised at the way my heart was behaving. Although I wasn't prepared for this, I didn't feel repulsed. She continued, "I know you are not prepared for this, I can see it in your eyes. I don't need you to say it back to me. But I do realise that telling you to not feel pressured is not gonna help. Although it's futile, I really do need you to know that it's not important for me to hear it back. I just felt like you should know, because keeping it in my heart would drive me insane. So there... Having said it out loud feels so good!" She chuckled nervously. I couldn't say anything. "I dont know what to say..." I said. "It's alright. You don't have to say anything," she said with that smile. She was so damn understanding. The way she handled the situation pleasantly surprised me. Glad I was in this relationship, I just smiled at her.

Things got back to normal pretty quick as her witty sense of humour salvaged our conversation from becoming too much. Suddenly having a thought about Jungkook, I asked her, "Have you not told Jungkook about us?" "Oh, he knows. Hopefully he won't tell my parents. We had agreed he would stop spying on me and telling my father what I had been up to and how the cafe was going. We used to have a lot of fights about it. He stopped a few years back though, if he wanted to know, he would just call," she replied. "Why haven't you told your parents? I told my mom the day we made it official," I said. "What, really?!" she exclaimed. "Of course," I responded. She smiled, and said, "I dont know when I'll tell them, maybe soon? Can't say..."

We reached home, spent some quality time with each other, and as we cuddled, I saw her peaceful, sleeping figure and my thoughts wandered to her confession. I could just say I love her too. She's become so important to me. But if I was going to tell her that I love her, I wanted to mean every word, sincerely. How was I feeling so warm after hearing someone say that they love me? It was puzzling.

Pulling her closer than she already was, I slept clinging on to her like a koala.

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A/N : Discussing your dating history with a serious partner is important. It gives your partner a clear perspective as to what your dating life has previously been. He/She then starts to understand which topics are sensitive for you, and acts accordingly.
Namjoon shows some signs of taking Jieun's understanding attitude for granted. He also shows signs of getting out of a toxic relationship. But as we will soon understand, he has not been used to such an understanding partner and still is on the fence about how much Jieun means to him.