BANE

29

She silently thank God that Geun Won seems fine and doesn't retch his food.

"Jalhaesseo!" She pats his head while complimenting Geun Won. He feels his face getting warm with her gesture.

She cleaned the table and brought it to the sink and arrange it in the dishwasher machine. Geun Won brought the glasses to her. But, just a few steps forward, the glasses slipped from his hands, startling both of them. He feels like the ground on his feet has turned into waves. He can't move. Geun Won is stunned at his place.

'No...no...not now. Please not now...' he silently prayed, willing for this vertigo to be brief and not going to be more serious.

Soo Ah recovered pretty quickly from the shock and after briefly washed her hands, she carefully reached for the broom and scoop to clean the shards of glass in a precise efficiency. Luckily its a pretty clean breaks and the shards are not the small ones that is harder to clean.

"Geun Won-ah...gwenchana?" she calmly touches his shoulder. Lines of worries etched on her forehead. In a blink of eyes, she was in his arms.

"A moment. A moment please..." Geun Won's voice trembled. He could feel Soo Ah's rigid body loosen up and she hugged him back.

In his embrace, Soo Ah could clearly hear and feel his labored breath. His hands trembles a little while his head is buried deeper in her left nape. That's how she knows that he's battling his bout of vertigo. She prayed hard to God that it's just a brief bout and subsides fast. She wants this night to be memorable for both of them, unmarred by his illness.

When she no longer feels his trembles, she broke from the embrace and motion to the sofa-bed in front of the huge television. She's determined to make today the most memorable for both of them. They're going to watch Scandal Makers.

Both of them sit comfortably and Geun Won dimmed the house's light from the remote control. When the movie starts, both of them already sat comfortably with their own blanket.

15 minutes into the movie, Soo Ah is already fully immersed with the comedic scenes. She had never gotten the chance to enjoy this popular movie back then. Unbeknownst to her, Geun Won's attention had been fully on her since the start of the movie. Her amused looks makes his heart flutters. With each of her smile, her giggles and her laughs, he didn't think he'll be able to get out of this black hole. Ever.

Soo Ah feels someone is staring at her from her right. When she looked at the source of the staring, Geun Won didn't even try to pretend to look away. 

"Yah! The movie is in front of us. Not on my face."

"Ara. But, looking at you is much more worthy of my time." 

Soo Ah feels her cheeks become warm. These days, Geun Won always makes her heart skips a beat with his gaze alone.

"Soo Ah ya,"

"Ne?"

"Can I sleep on your lap tonight?"

"Oh? Oh...o..okay." Without hesitation, he rests his head on her lap.

Although she can't process her feelings initially, she found herself to gradually relax. Now, her focus is no longer at the movie. She spaced out. It's as if all those things in the past get played in her mind like a fast-forward movie.

She looked at his peaceful face on her lap. That strand of hair on his forehead must have made him feel uncomfortable. From one stroke, she finds herself keep stroking his hair lightly.

"Geun Won-ah..."

"Hmm?"

"Are you happy today?" Soo Ah asked nonchalantly while her eyes are glued to the television. He knew that her attention is no longer at the movie.

After a comfortable silence, he reached for her hand.

"It is all up to you." 

This time, Soo Ah looked at him. 'What does he mean by that?'

"Rather than my feelings, I want you to be happy. Because I'm selfish like this. I don't want you to forget me. I want you to remember this feelings. Remember my face, my voice and my presence. Just...remember me with your good feelings, Soo Ah ya."

'...remember me with your good feelings, Soo Ah ya.' his last sentence echoes in her mind. Tears welled up and coursed down her cheeks.

Sensing that Soo Ah is in tears, he woke up and look at her in concern. He wipes her tears tenderly. His face inched closer to Soo Ah's and at the last moment when he locked his eyes with hers, he kissed her nose, her eyes and her forehead. Each kiss lingers for a moment before the next. In each kiss, she could feel how deep his feelings towards her is.

They locked eyes with each other again. He didn't kiss her lips. Soo Ah looks at his thin, slightly chapped lips.

Throwing all concerns in this world, she pulled him by the collar and kissed him fervently.

P/s: schewpid autocorrect! I didn't realize it's auto-corrected to vitiligo instead of vertigo.