Taehyung stays still on the couch, trying his best to reach for the remote control to switch the television off. Seori has fallen asleep so quickly, not even ten minutes into the movie. His slight movement could have shaken her and she grabs his arm in panic, making him freeze.
"Don't leave", she says sleepily.
"No, I am not", he quickly covers her hand that is on his arm, caressing it softly while pressing soft kisses in her hair. "I am staying here"
He waits for a moment, not daring to even move the slightest. Seori shifts in his arm, sinking deeper into his hug and she mumbles something about his scent that pulls a small smile on his face, making him sigh softly to himself. He reaches for a small pillow, gently putting it behind her waist, making sure it supports her back so that she gets to sleep comfortably.
He contemplates carrying her to her bed but he remembers how hard it is for her to fall asleep and stay asleep at night, thus he decides against it. He sits still on the couch, breathing in and out softly, basking in the faded smell of her strawberry-scented hair mist and the musky smell of her perfume that has been lingering around him.
Her scent has been engraved in his head since the first time he smelled it at the stairs of the school - the day she lashed on him. Only if she knew the number of times he has replayed their little bickering in his head, remembering the tone of her voice and the expression on her face, she would have called him crazy.
He looks around her house, killing time as he tries to stay awake. He wants to stay awake until he is sure Seori is deep into her sleep and will not wake up in the middle of the night. He wants to be there if she happens to wake up that night.
Whenever he remembers how she had been when she woke up from her nightmare, a part of his heart breaks. It pains him to not know why she has been having these recurring nightmares but despite him wanting to ask her about it, he would rather let her tell him herself if she wants.
There is so much about her that he has yet to know. He wants to know. He wants to know every single thing about her - things that make her, her. But he does not want to rush her into these things.
Taehyung lets himself dive deep into his thoughts, staring into the dimness of the living room, and slowly drifts into sleep. But after a few minutes, he feels Seori jerking in his arm, waking in a jump, gasping as she grips the front of his shirt in slow motion like she is terrified of making a sound.
He quickly reaches for her hand, holding it in his, and pulls her closer.
"I am here. You are safe with me", he says while kissing her hair, wrapping his arm around her, and letting her bury her face into his chest.
She stays quiet for a long beat, her ragged breathing slowly becomes softer as she relaxes in his arm and after a while, she relaxes.
"Seori?"
"I-I had a nightmare", she says weakly, the pounding of her heart making her entire body so aware of everything.
His hand gently goes to her back, rubbing it gently to offer comfort. He can feel the heavy thumping of her heart under his fingers and he frowns at that, pushing her even closer to him.
"I am sorry"
"I-I need some time", she hides her face in his chest. "I want these images out of my head"
His hand slides up to cup the back of her head, caressing with utmost tenderness as he feels bitterness coating his tongue and his heart sinking at the sound of her weak voice. He realizes how much he dislikes when she is like this - so perplexed and disturbed by the nightmares she has no control of.
Without thinking twice, he gently pulls her up into his lap just so he can have her closer to him. Seori lets out a surprised gasp but before she can say anything, he shifts her on his lap, maneuvering her slightly so she can hug him properly with her face in his neck. He has one hand still caressing the back of her head while the other gently drawing circles on her back, wanting to comfort her in any way possible.
"Breathe slowly, Seori"
Her hands that are pressed in between their bodies slowly make their way around his body, holding him as she gladly rests her cheek on his shoulder, trying her best to calm down. She likes that he is holding her tightly and yet, it feels so gentle and soft. Taehyung is holding her as if she is made of glass - so careful and tender with her. She inhales his powdery scent, feeling the smell goes deep into her, calming her nerves like it is an elixir made specifically just for her.
He smells so nostalgic - like a scent that was forgotten once but now has returned.
"Seori", he calls her name softly.
She hums a reply, shifting slightly as she pulls away to look at him.
"Did you have a nightmare when you slept in my bed?" he lifts a hand to brush a strand of her hair to the back, tucking it behind her ear.
She thinks for a moment but then softly gasps when the realization hits her. She did not have a nightmare when she slept in his bed.
"You did not"
"I did not"
"You can sleep in my bed anytime"
Her sleepy teary eyes light up a little, and Taehyung swears his heart beats a little harder at the way her expression changes.
"Does the bed comes with you?"
Taehyung can not help but laugh loudly at the, his head dropping to the back for a second.
"Do not do this to me, Seori", he sighs, looking at her with his sleepy eyes.
"I am not doing anything", she yawns, covering her mouth with the back of her hand.
"Do you need anything?"
Seori breathes in slowly and shakes her head before leaning forward onto him, hugging him as she rests her head on the side of his neck.
"A longer hug"
Taehyung smiles as he wraps his arm around her but suddenly she pulls away from him, startling him.
"I realized something", she begins, tilting her head slightly like she is thinking hard.
"What is it?"
"I fall asleep so easily when I am around you"
He stares at her for a moment before taking her hands, gently sliding his fingers between hers and bringing one hand to his lips, pressing a soft kiss at the back of it.
"I have been thinking about it too. You fell asleep right away just now"
"It is weird" she presses her lips together, eyebrows creasing like she is confused.
He says nothing, just sitting there watching her think hard, and a thought crosses his mind, making him break into a smile.
"Why are you smiling like that?"
"I had a thought", he clears his throat, face feeling warm suddenly.
"What kind of thought?"
He gives her a look before lifting a hand to touch her face. "I really like looking at you"
Her heart skips a beat at his words, her stomach twisting slightly feeling her entire body reacting to the gentleness of his voice when he spoke. A blush spread all over her cheeks, making her look down to hide the shy smile on her face.
Taehyung looks so elated at her reaction, his eyes practically gleaming as he looks at her.
"You need to stop making me go all flustered, you know", she pats her cheeks lightly, making him laugh at her action. "Okay, wait, I think I know why I can fall asleep easily around you"
He waits for her to speak, taking the chance to slide one hand around her waist.
"Maybe I feel safe around you. Or...my body feels relaxed when you are near me", she says nervously, as if took every ounce of her to say those words out loud. "I think, maybe"
He swears his heart stopped beating for a fleeting second, his body going completely still upon hearing her say those words. He blinks at her, trying his best to let every word sink into the back of his head.
Hearing her say he makes her feel safe feels like an honor. It feels like he has been bestowed something so precious to be trusted with. A part of him blooms at those words and it triggers a side of him he never existed before.
"Seori", he sighs her name, sitting upright, surprising her at the same time. "That's...a compliment"
In this position, she has to look up at him as he seems to tower over her with his height. Her entire body is suddenly so aware of their closeness - their bodies pressed against one another, their warm breathes mingling on each other's faces, their scents lingering in the air around them, and the way they are looking at each other as if they are trying to communicate things they are verbally scared to say.
"I have a question", she swallows hard, nervousness creeping all over.
"Yes, ask me"
"How did you end up liking me?", she averts his straight gaze, staring at his chest instead. "I know it is not because of my clumsy snarky ass"
"Could be because of your clumsy ass", he jokes, making her poke him in the waist.
"My ass is clumsy but classy", she laughs at herself after saying that, making him smile like a fool as he watches her.
"You asked a good question, Park Seori", he finally relaxes on the couch, leaning back and his movement seems to pull her forward, her palms resting flat on his chest. "I do not how and when exactly it happened, but it did"
He pauses, watching the way she is looking at him with interest like she is listening to him attentively.
"Do I need a specific reason for liking you, Park Seori?"
"Don't people have reasons when they like something or someone?"
"Something, maybe. But not when liking a person. I think if there is a specific reason to like someone, it might be quite unfair. If I have a very definite reason for liking you, it will be unfair to you because if that specific trait about you disappears over time, my feelings will disappear too"
A comfortable beat of silence passes between them. Seori does not look away, and Taehyung does not too.
"I like you because you are you. I rather let my feelings lead me than try to rationalize everything, finding reasons as if liking someone is something too scientific it needs a number of reasons to make the feelings stay"
"That...sounds complicated"
He smiles at that, one hand gently sliding to her back, purposely pressing her closer to him.
"Maybe liking someone does not have to be so complicated. You can like someone one day, but not like them anymore a minute later. Or, a month later. But you can also like someone and finds your heart opening up like it has been waiting for that person to spark something within them - like a shift you feel but not quite understand it", he lifts a finger to her face, gently tracing the side of her face and watch as her eye flutter under his touch. "Something shifted inside of me when I saw you"
She gulps silently, trying her best to focus on his words rather than the pleasant tingles on her skin as he slides his finger along her jaw.
"The more I look at you, the more I feel like I want to reach out to you", he smiles at her, seeing the way she blushes at his words. "I don't think I need a list of reasons to like you. I like you just for existing and I like to see it this way"
"Does it feel too fast?", she sounds concerned. "This whole thing"
"You feel everything is moving too fast?"
"I am not sure myself"
"It does not feel fast to me. Actually, it feels too slow to me as if there are several steps I needed to take to understand the growing feelings in me. I like you a little too much and to reach the realization felt like a long journey and I was impatient. I was too impatient to reach here - this point. This point where I can hold you like this and god, I don't know how much more I can be thankful for this"
"What do you feel when you look at me?"
"I feel alive, Park Seori. But at the same time, it feels like something is swirling inside of me that slowly makes sense as everything falls into place"
He takes her hand and places it on his heart, making her look at him confusedly.
"Looking at you brings me peace", he looks at her. "I hope it brings you peace too when you look at me"
She stares at their hands on his chest, her heart suddenly beating a little too hard as she feels every inch of her skin goes warm at his words. She was not ready for this conversation and every single he just said tipped her off her axis, and now she is struggling to sort her thoughts. There are too many questions to ask, and too many things to say yet she cannot decide what to say.
"Seori, don't think too hard", he says softly, as if he can hear her thoughts. "You are thinking a lot"
She nods slowly, pressing her lips nervously together. "I am just wondering how can a person like someone just like that. So fast and...so easily"
"Why do you think this is weird?", he leans forward, searching for her eyes. "Talk to me, Seori"
She sighs to herself before looking up, meeting his soft gaze that magically soothes her conflicting emotions. She wonders again, how can a look does so many unimaginable things to her heart.
'I like you a lot too, you know. But I am struggling to understand how and why. It feels too fast and too easy"
He looks at her for a moment, observing the way she seems a little unsettled and doubtful. He cannot find the right words at the moment, suddenly afraid of saying the wrong things that might scare her off more. He understands where she is coming from and she is not to be blamed for having doubts about whatever is happening between them.
It may not feel too fast for him but it may, for her.
"I am happy that you finally say you like me too", he brushes her face with the back of his fingers. "I have been waiting for you to say that"
She looks flustered for a mere second as if just realizing what she had said earlier.
"But don't push yourself too hard to think why and how this happened. Give us some time to figure this out, okay? You can always like someone as they are and as a whole. You can also choose to like someone more because you want to, and nothing else"
He swiftly leans forward to press a kiss on her forehead, startling her but at the same time, making her smile to herself when he pulls back to look at her face.
"I can sense the conversation is getting heavy and you are getting sleepy"
She looks at him and says nothing.
"Do you know my heart is about to explode right now", he sighs weakly. "Don't look at me like that, Seori"
She breaks out of her trance, amusement filling her eyes as she searches for his eyes. "Why?"
"I like you too much, that's why", he shifts on the chair, clearing his throat as he looks elsewhere.
Seori looks at him, watching the way he avoids her eyes and it takes her a while to realize he is nervous. She presses a palm on his heart again and gasps slowly when she feels the heavy thumping of his heart. She looks at up him, seeing the way his eyes waver the second their eyes meet.
"You are nervous"
"I am"
"Because of me?"
"Always you, Seori. God, my entire body is reacting to you right now", he sighs weakly, looking a little bothered at their closeness. "You drive me crazy, do you know that? I am suddenly too aware of you sitting on my lap, your voice that I like so much but I don't know why. Your scent and your eyes....they look so dreamy when they look at me. And... I feel stupid because I like everything about you so much"
Seori can feel how her heart just exploded in her chest, igniting every inch of her skin and her blood rushes to her head as his words slowly wipe everything out of her, leaving only the budding feeling that sends jitters all over her warm skin. She feels like she has been sent into another dimension with warm lights illuminating her, holding her in a gentle embrace while it feels her heart so full of an emotion she has yet to understand.
"Taehyung", she calls him, and he slowly looks up at her. "Can you close your eyes for a second?"
He looks confused but closes his eyes. Seori can feel his body tensing under her like he is anticipating whatever comes next.
Slowly she leans forward and kisses him, her hands sliding up to his face to cup his cheeks. She moves in his lap, pressing herself against him as she kisses her deeper, forgetting all her questions and letting her instinct take over instead. She feels his hand tightens at her waist and she sighs into the kiss when he kisses her back.
Taehyung pulls her waist to him, kissing her gently and letting her set the pace, smiling into the kiss when he hears her giggle slightly. When she pulls away, he seems to lean forward, following her lips only to find her smiling so sweetly at him, and immediately he cannot think of anything else.
They look at each other with twinkles in their eyes, softly catching their breath after the kiss and none of them moves at all for a long moment.
"Well, now that you have gotten your kiss, Miss Park Seori, are you able to sleep now?"
"Maybe", she shrugs her shoulders.
"If that is so, you can kiss me anytime if that helps you to sleep"
~~~~
NOTE
Double update because why not. Thank you for reading! <3