SEPT, 20TH
He stirs from his sleep, feeling just slightly disoriented. "Sseun?" he mumbles, blinking away the sleep from his eyes. The sunlight filters through his curtains, illuminating the said boy next to him, still sleeping soundly. He reaches a hand out and gingerly cups his jaw, stroking his cheek with his thumb.
He chuckles, inwardly. "Was last night too tiring for you?" he murmurs, quietly, eyes roaming his face. He startles a bit when Jackson holds onto his hand, eyes opening slowly to lock with his.
"I mean, I did do most of the work so yeah, it was kind of tiring. The blissful kind of tiring, though, don't get me wrong. How are you feeling, though?"
"I feel great," Jinyoung answers, smiling softly, as Jackson reaches out to brush a strand of hair falling into his face.
"You felt great, too, I'm assuming? In reference to last night," Jackson says, waggling his eyebrows, tone teasing. He laughs when Jinyoung shoves at his chest lightly. He wraps his arms around the younger and nuzzles his face on the crook of his neck. "Doing this with someone you like really does make a difference," he says, voice muffled against his neck.
Jinyoung traces invisible shapes on the older's back, humming softly. "It does, doesn't it?" he agrees.
Jackson tilts his head back to look at him, then moves up a little to indulge him in a lazy kiss; they roll over with Jinyoung lying on his back, Jackson straddling Jinyoung. Jinyoung eyes fall shut, his fingers tangling in the older's hair as Jackson nibbles on his bottom lip.
He gazes at Jackson when they separate, his palm laying splayed on his bare chest. He surveys the way Jackson's lips are pulled back in that soft smile of his, and his heart skids a little in his chest.
He falls just a little deeper, everyday.
"Sseun?" he says, lightly, reaching out to cup his jaw.
"Hm?"
"I love you, too, you know."
When Jackson sits back on his heels to stare at him with a look of slight surprise, Jinyoung wonders if he's said something wrong. He sits up, too, concern clouding his mind.
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Did he hear him wrong last night? His words, a figment of his imagination.
"Is it too early to say that?" he asks, visibly panicking. "I'm sorry, I didn't— I thought I—"
"Hey, no," Jackson interjects, squeezing his thighs gently. "Don't apologise, it's fine. I just— I was caught off guard. I thought you didn't hear me last night." He leans in, brushing the tips of their noses together, before tilting his head slightly to plant a quick kiss on his lips. "I love you," he repeats with gentle certainty, pulling away to look at him, hands finding their way into Jinyoung's. "I really do."
His sweet smile is back, and Jinyoung is fucking whipped beyond belief.
Something in Jinyoung's chest stirs. "Christ," Jinyoung mutters, staring unabashedly at his smile, "you're so annoying."
He pulls him in by nape of his neck, into a searing kiss. They fall back onto the mattress with a soft thump, in a mess of limbs, lips still connected and hands all over each other.
It ends up being messier than usual, and they break apart from each other in a fit of hysterical laughter, and while Jinyoung hates when things are messy, he doesn't mind this type of messy. Not when it's with Jackson, and not when his laughter rings in his ears like this.
"So what do you say about a round two?" Jackson asks, laughter dying down, hands on either side of Jinyoung.
"Round two?" Jinyoung repeats. "Well," he says, flipping their position with little to no effort so he's straddling the other instead, head tilted to the side slightly, hands splayed on his chest.
Jackson blinks up at him, half amused, and fully turned on by the sudden change in attitude. His hands finds Jinyoung's hips, drumming his fingers lightly on the spots he dug his nails into last night as he waits.
"How about I return the favour?" he asks, splayed hands trailing down to Jackson's sides, slow and teasing, watching as Jackson stares up at him, aroused; he pinches his skin gently, and it's enough to draw a muted gasp from the older, eyes closing briefly. It's satisfying, to know he has this affect on Jackson.
"Return the favour how?" Jackson asks, somewhat breathily.
Jinyoung grins. "I can ride, and I can do it well, if you catch my drift."
"Oh, fuck me," Jackson groans, pulling Jinyoung down for another kiss.
—
"It's already six?" Jackson questions, looking at the clock.
"Yep."
"We skipped classes just to waste time lying in bed?"
"Well, you were the one who suggested this."
"...Wow," Jackson mumbles, sitting up, raking a hand through his hair. He looks over at Jinyoung, who's lying down, phone in hand. He squeezes his thigh, and Jinyoung glances up at him.
"Hm?"
"How about we go somewhere?"
"Where can we even go at this hour?"
"To the beach."
"Not exactly one to get sand in my shoes."
"Isn't that why you bought those sandals of yours?"
Jinyoung heaves a resigned sigh, pulling himself up into a sitting position. "You're not going to stop bugging me until I agree, right?"
Jackson grins, latching himself to Jinyoung's arm. "You know me too well."
"You're driving."
"Fine by me."
The ride is filled with small talk as they truck along to the beach, with Jinyoung swatting away Jackson's hand during intervals when Jackson tries to hold his hand. "You're driving, don't take your hands off the wheel."
"It's just one hand," Jackson argues, but gives up eventually when Jinyoung doesn't give in, stubbornness over the safety of driving with two hands overcoming everything else.
Once parked in an empty lot, they hop out of the car and head down the short, winding path, where the cement meets sand at one point.
"I can feel the sand seeping into my sandals," Jinyoung grumbles as they walk along the shoreline, his hand intertwined with Jackson's. "Why did you want to come to the beach anyway? And at this time?"
"I'm a sucker for those scenes in movies where the couple goes on romantic walks on the beach at night," Jackson explains, swinging their arms gently between them. "And the sea breeze is comforting, and the smell of the ocean is... Nice, for a lack of a better word. Helps me clear my head."
Jinyoung hums a tune softly, nodding his head.
They come to a halt, turning towards the ocean. "It is nice," Jinyoung agrees. He gazes out into the stretch of the endless sea, the smooth surface lit up by the moon hanging high up in the sky. It's shrouded by clouds, with rays of light filtering through. His eyes roam the night sky, the stars winking down at him overhead. He squeezes Jackson's hand. "It's nicer when it's with someone you love."
He feels Jackson squeezing his hand back, and a smile tugs at the corner of his lips. "That's a round about way to tell me you love me," Jackson says, tugging Jinyoung down to sit on the sand next to him. He guides Jinyoung's head to his shoulder, fingers threading through his hair.
"God, I really do," Jinyoung says, sliding his eyes shut for a brief moment. The distant sound of crashing waves against the rocks seeps into the silence between them, and the cool night breeze ruffling through his hair makes for a calming effect.
"Really do what?"
"Really do love you. This... I meant it before, and I mean it now."
"I know you do," Jackson says, reassuringly. "And I meant it, too." He pulls Jinyoung closer. "And I will continue to mean it, forevermore. How about that?"
Jinyoung pulls away to look at Jackson, regarding him with an expression of amusement.
The soft, pale glow of moonlight illuminates his face. Jinyoung uses this as a chance to sweep over the details, memorising them one by one.
"That's cheesy," Jinyoung says, voice quiet.
"You made it cheesy first." Jackson cups his jaw, and Jinyoung falters a bit.
"Are you going to kiss me by the beach like they do in those romantic films you seem to talk so highly about?" he asks, a lilt to his voice as he gazes at Jackson with soft eyes and a tender smile on his lips.
"Yes. In fact, I'd go even a step further and make love with you here if it wasn't illegal."
Jinyoung chokes back a laugh. Way to shatter the moment.
"Even if it wasn't illegal, I wouldn't want sand up my ass. Or people to see us." He clears his throat. "Public sex is off the table until further notice, sorry."
"Do I have to make another powerpoint on why that shouldn't be off the table?"
As Jinyoung conjures up an impromptu argument to counter that ridiculous suggestion, he's silenced when Jackson presses a kiss to his forehead, then another to his lips.
And Jinyoung melts, like he always does, because it's Jackson, and Jackson's the only one who could ever, and will ever, have such an affect on him.
Forevermore, probably, he thinks, smiling into the kiss.
—
a/n: I'm glad the last chapter was alright, because the next few chapters will be a bit of a ride, and I am once again apologising for a completely different reason this time around.
Until then :))
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