‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾ CHOI AERA ☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙
"Miss, are you sure you are okay?" Cindy asked for the hundredth time.
I laughed at her and said, "It's just fever, Cindy."
"It's because of last night," she murmured as she collected all the food she prepared for me to eat. I sighed as I remembered what happened last night.
My mother came home earlier than expected again, she was drunk. Upset about what was happening to the company or something and she saw me. My body is well acquainted with her beating but once in a while, I do get sick because of it. Especially now since I have also been exhausting myself because of school.
"Yeah, but it'll pass. I just need rest." I assured her and she nodded defeated as she walked out of my room.
After a while, as I was starting to fall asleep. Cindy suddenly opened the door and walked in with a knowing smile on her face. "Miss, sir Jake is here to see you."
"What?! Why is the here?" I flinched as I stood up and my head gained a sharp pain.
Cindy helped me get back to lying on my bed and spoke, "He called you earlier, miss. But you weren't awake so I answered it."
My eyes widened at her and asked in disbelief, "And you told him?" she then proceeded to laugh nervously and looked at me with an apologetic look. I sighed and simply rubbed my temple, "Just let him in then," I whispered. Suddenly, I feel conscious about what I look like.
Gosh, I must look like shit today.
As soon as he got into my room, he rushed to sit beside me on my bed. He looked so worried that I couldn't help but melt. "Aera, what happened?" his tone softens with concern.
"Just a slight fever," I told him as I looked down at my hands. I am a very confident person, maybe even too confident. Especially because I'm always around my big-headed best friend. But with Jake, I feel so shy and small.
Damn, Jake. What did you do to me?
I felt the back of his hand on my forehead then, it traveled down my neck. His soft touch gazed at my skin and all it did was give me shivers and butterflies.
"It's not a slight fever, you're burning up." He looked angry for a while but then as he looked at me, his eyes softened and he continued, "Let's get you to the hospital."
I held his wrist and shook my head, "No, Jake, it's fine. I just need rest."
"Bub," he whined after he heard me disagree with his suggestion.
"Please, Jake." I rubbed my thumb on a portion of his arm as I held it tightly.
"Alright," he sighed and turned around slightly before addressing the young girl who was looking at our interaction in awe. "Cindy? Can you get me some cold water and a towel? Thank you."
Cindy quickly followed his instruction and rushed downstairs. Jake removed his coat before coming back and sitting down on the edge of my bed.
"Are you going to play doctor today?" I teased him and he laughed.
He hummed and nodded before answering, "Yes, I'd be your personal doctor."
"Wow, how lucky. I got Sim Jake of Enhypen taking care of me." I chuckled, "Don't you have a schedule of something?"
He looked hesitant but answered nonetheless, "I canceled them," he said as he looked down trying to avoid my gaze.
"Jake!"
He quickly looked at me as he heard disbelief laced in my tone, "Don't be mad. They understood!"
Before I could even complain even further, Cindy came back with the stuff Jake asked of her. Jake rolled his sleeves up before letting the towel soak with water.
He started giving me a bed bath which ultimately made me feel a whole lot better. He also placed another folded towel on my forehead to ease my fever.
Suddenly he stopped and became quiet. I looked at him curiously and when he saw me looking at him, he coughed and said, "I'll lift your shirt up a little, okay?" He blushed as he asked permission, "Is that okay?"
"Yes, Jake. It's fine." I laughed at how he looked. His ears are starting to redden. "Why are you turning red? Shouldn't I be the one who's flustered right now?" I teased him which got me glared at.
I laughed as he continued to get flustered while taking care of me. He lifted my shirt slowly, my breath hitched as his hands grazed the skin on my stomach.
However, the butterflies I felt quickly turned to stones when he abruptly stopped and asked, "Wait? What are these?"
My bruises. He saw them.
I quickly snatched the hem of my shirt and pulled it down so that he wouldn't be able to look at them even further.
"Why do you have so many bruises there?" His voice was laced with concern and wonder. I didn't know what to answer.
"I-"
"Miss fell down the stairs yesterday!" Cindy interjected as she heard Jake's question. "That's why she has bruises, sir." She looked disoriented trying to lie to him and because of nervousness she even fumbled with her words. "And I think it's also the reason why she has a fever today."
Jake looked back at me as Cindy finished, "Bub?"
I looked at Cindy expressing my gratitude before answering Jake, "Yeah."
"You've got to be careful, look you even have bruises on your arms." He sighed as he looked over my body trying to see if I had more bruises.
"I'm sorry," I said as I looked down, apologizing not because of the reason he knew but because of lying to him.
I felt his lips on the top of my head which made me look up at him who has concern written all over his face. "Just please be careful next time."
"I will." I smiled at him.
"I love you, bub. I'd do anything to protect you." He kissed my forehead.
I sighed.
And I'd do everything for you not to get involved with my mess of a life.
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"Aera, you're here!" I heard Jungwon call as I entered the green room with their manager.
The guys were going to perform on different music shows and I decided to watch one. As soon as they heard Jungwon calling, the guys rushed in my direction.
"Stop hogging her, she has bruises!" I heard Jake's voice from a distance.
I giggled as the guys bombarded me with questions.
"What? Why?"
"Are you okay?"
"Do they hurt?"
"Stop! It's fine now, I took care of it!" Jake lightly pushed his way towards me.
The guys laughed at his demeanor and Jungwon spoke, "Stop being possessive, Jake. I'm her bias!" Jake's head snapped towards Jungwon which made the younger rush to defend himself. "What? It's true! She told me!"
"What?!" Now, Jake's gaze was on mine.
I bit my lip to stop myself from laughing, "What?"
"I'm your fiancée, I should be your bias!" He dramatically said as he pointed to himself.
"It doesn't work that way!" I rolled my eyes at him, "Plus, I just like how he performs!"
"But still, you told me you love me." He whispered as if it was a secret.
"I do love you," I whispered back.
He saw silent for a moment, his face got red and he still wasn't used to me saying those words back. But once he got around it, he sulked and pouted, "Then why is Jungwon your bias?"
"Because no one can resist my charms!" Jungwon said as he was moving away from us, "Right, Aera?" He winked and pointed at me.
I giggled and playfully pointed back.
"Nope, she's my fiancée so back off." He glared at Jungwon who simply laughed.
Jake, then, pulled me aside holding my arm. I flinched because of a slight pain I felt from his grasp. He was shocked and he completely panicked.
"Did I hurt you, bub?" I frowned, "Can I see?"
He looked at my arm that was still covered with purple bruises "I'm so sorry, " he sighed.
"It's fine, Jake." I touched his cheeks and assured him.
We both sat down on the couch as the guys were still getting ready before their turn to perform.
"Water, do you want water?"
"What about food? Are you hungry?"
I could help but melt as Jake kept asking me about how I was feeling. Taehyun was the only one who asks me if I need or want anything, and that always bites me in the back because, Taehyun would definitely tease me right after.
But with Jake, it felt different. I felt loved, "Jake, chill, I'm fine. I'm here to watch you perform not for you to take care of me."
"I'm just worried." He pouted as he played with my fingers.
"Don't be." I kissed his cheeks which physically calmed him down.
After a while, Jake was monitoring their performance so I took the chance to ask Sunghoon about something that Jake always wanted as a gift.
"Hey, Sunghoon?" I called, "Can I ask you something?"
He looked at me before glancing at Jake and answering, "Sure."
He stayed seated so I leaned in closer to him and whispered, "Actually can we go somewhere private? It's just something I want to get for Jake."
He led me to the room where the staff was. And as we settle he immediately asked, "Why do you want to get something for him?"
"Just cause." I shrugged shyly and he laughed before answering me.
"Damn, you definitely look in love now." He chuckled once again and looked down.
"What do you mean?"
He coughed before answering, "Well, the first time that we saw you, we knew Jake loved you but we aren't sure about your feelings for him." He looked at me and smiled, "But I guess something happened." He raised his eyebrow at me teasingly.
My eyes widen as I remembered Jake and I kissing, "Oh my gosh, did Jake tell you?"
"Well, he really didn't have to, after he came back that night he looked so dazed," He laughed then acted like he was thinking hard before teasing me even more, "Then you could add the fact that his hair was disheveled, and he had lip gloss all over him."
I covered my face because of humiliation, "Well, this is embarrassing." I tried to shake away the memories but it was hard to do so.
Sunghoon let out a breathy laugh and said, "It's fine, Aera. We're just happy that he's happy."
After that, we talked about what gift I could actually give Jake, it took us a while before Sunghoon got an idea.
"How about I just send you the game he always wanted, he hasn't gotten the chance to buy it so maybe that could be a great gift." He snapped his fingers as he remembered.
"Oh, that would be amazing," I exclaimed. "Thank you so much, Sunghoon."
He smiled at me, he opened his mouth to say something but was completely cut off by someone.
"Oh, Sunghoon, who are you with?" I turned to see a man about our age in all black.
"Ah, this is Aera." Sunghoon said uncomfortably, "Aera, this is one of our trainees, he's joining us as a backup dancer today."
"Oh, Hi, Aera. Nice to meet you." He smiled at me as he looked at me up and down.
I smiled politely and nodded before turning to Sunghoon, "Yeah, um... Sunghoon I think we should go."
"Yup, we better, he's a bit of a creep." He whispered before ushering me towards the door.
"Wait, wait, Sunghoon stop hogging the pretty lady. Why don't you leave us to..." He looked at me with a creepy smile on his face, "Get to know each other."
"I'd rather not, thank you." I sassed towards him.
"Wow, feisty one. Just how I like it." I rolled my eyes and tried to walk away but was stopped by a hand on my arm. "Hey, c'mon don't leave, I'm sure you'd have a wonderful time with me, let's get something to eat."
Sunghoon held his arm and tried to pry it off of me. "Dude, I seriously don't advice you to do that."
"What? Is she your girlfriend?" He glared at Sunghoon.
"No—"
"Then, I don't see any problem with me shooting my shot." He tried to pull me and I resisted, "Stop fighting, baby. C'mon, let's go."
"Let go of me!" I yelled.
Sunghoon forced him out of my grasp before pulling me behind him, "Dude, seriously. Let her go, you are not going to like what's going to happen to you if you don't."
"What the fuck are you talking about?!" The guy looked angry.
But before Sunghoon could even say anything, I was snatched from his back and I felt soft lips on mine. Jake kissed me in front of his members and all the staff in the green room.
Before I could even function what was happening, Jake was now in front of the guy and he looked really mad.
"Better shoot your shot the other way," Jake said, "Far far away from my fiancée" he laughed, and continued, "Oh and better yet try looking for another company to train under, I assure you Mr. Bang's going to hear about this."
Everyone felt the tension as Jake pulled me to the corner of the green room and he kept silent.
I was used to rude guys' attitude. I mean, I've been the center of that attitude ever since I was introduced to the public. A lot of guys are like that in the industry that my parents brought me up in.
Guys who think that they could have anything they want.
I thought Jake just needed some time to calm down but clearly, he still hasn't.
"Jake," I called, "Are you mad at me?"
"No." He said coldly still holding my hand tightly.
I place my other hand on his and said, "Then why aren't you talking?"
"Because I just saw my fiancée getting harassed by someone while I'm around." He looked back at me and his eyes glimmered with irritation.
"It's fine, Jake. Seriously." I said. But he didn't reply as he simply looked away. His body was still tense and everyone could see that Jake was not in the mood. "Jake please calm down, I don't like seeing you like this."
I sighed, he still wasn't looking back at me.
"Please, bub?" He looked at me surprised. It was the first time I called him with the endearment he has grown fond of.
I guess that did the trick. He looked like he forgot everything that happened and is so focused on how I addressed him. He calmed down.
After a while, he laid his head on my shoulder. "I love you, bub." He whispered.
I smiled before kissing the top of his head, "I love you too."
"Alright, love birds stop smooching, and let's get to work," Sunghoon interjected and usher Jake to follow
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After some days, Jake's schedule became hectic. I believe it's almost 3 weeks since we last saw each other, and I miss him a lot. We've been talking on the phone but that's different.
Suddenly, my room opened, and there revealed Jake with his disheveled hair with some of his make-up still on his face. I could tell by the way that he sighed heavily when he entered that he wasn't in the best mood.
"Bub?" I hummed softly, standing up from my bed to greet him. He doesn't really get a lot of bad days. Jake has always been positive and lively, even when he's tired from work. Because he loved what he was doing.
Most of the time it was me and my moody ass who would have bad days.
And during those days, his hugs were the best remedy. but tonight, it looks like it was my turn to comfort him. He slowly stepped towards me and he stopped in front of the bed as I lowered the volume of the TV.
"Are you okay, bub? Do you wanna talk about it?" I asked him as I reached my hand for him to take. Which he gladly did as he slowly climbed up the bed with me.
Jake never liked talking about the problem he's having with me. He always told me that he's only tired when I clearly could see that something is wrong. But he always says that he already talked about it at work, and he didn't want to bring negativity back home, back to me.
So instead of talking, he simply leaned his head on my shoulder as I played with his fingers. I hummed and brought his hand to my lips before placing a soft kiss on his knuckled to which he chuckled. "Are they overworking you? Just say the word and I would go to your company building and find Mr. Bang and give him a piece of my mind."
I tried to lighten the mood by joking and I felt butterflies as I heard his breathy laugh.
"As if you could take Mr. Bang," Jake said as he closed his eyes and nuzzled his head on my chest pulling me even closer.
"Watch me, I could!"
"You'd probably get lost in the building before you even find him." I laughed at what he said. I hugged him tighter as I realized that he looked better than when he first came in. I tried my best to distance his thoughts to something lighter.
We stayed that way for a minute, and we ended up watching whatever on TV with him lying on my lap as I brushed his hair with my fingers. I looked down at him and he has his eyes closed with a grin on his face.
"Bub?" he looked up at me as I called him, he looked sleepy, "Do you wanna go to bed?"
Instead of answering me, he looked at me even deeper. "I never needed anyone as much as I need you." he smiled before kissing the back of my hand.
"Don't break my heart, please." I could see tears starting to form in his eyes with the overwhelming emotions he was feeling. I couldn't help my emotions and I felt like I was going to cry as well.
Before he slipped to his dreamland, he uttered, "I'm begging you."