After Sunghoon and I slept for almost ten hours after the long car ride yesterday, we are now sitting in a small café in town and having breakfast together. I bite dreamily on my croissant and look out the window. Although the sky is so beautifully blue and the sun is shining, it's freezing cold outside.
"What do you want to do today?" Sunghoon asks, snapping me out of my thoughts. He sips his coffee. "How about a little hiking tour?" I suggest to my counterpart, stirring my hot cocoa until the whipped cream has completely dissolved, leaving only a light film.
"Do you think that will work?" he asks thoughtfully, raising his eyebrows. Due to my pregnancy, activities such as skiing or mountain climbing are eliminated, but still, according to my gynecologist, hiking, for example, is not a problem as long as I don't overdo it and pay attention to my body's signals.
"I'm pregnant, not terminally ill," I reply, rolling my eyes with a smile. "I just don't want this to be too much for you," Sunghoon worries, swirling his cup back and forth a bit before downing the last sip of coffee.
"If we pack enough food and drink and take enough breaks, I'm sure it won't be too much for me," I assure my husband, who is worrying far too much. I'm fine and want to take advantage of being here as much as I can, despite my pregnancy.
"Think of it as a walk, it's good for both of us after the long car ride yesterday," I add. "Alright...", Sunghoon finally concedes defeat and sets his empty cup down on the table. The wooden chair creaks slightly as Sunghoon leans back on it, returning my gaze from his brown eyes with satisfaction. "A walk in the mountains with my wife.... I'm looking forward to it."
After breakfast, we leave the café. With my shoulders hunched, I cross my arms in front of my chest as the icy wind makes me shiver. I might have guessed, despite the sunshine, that I should have put on a thicker jacket.
"Are you cold, Lola?" Sunghoon wants to know anxiously , who is walking right next to me. At my nod, he puts his heavy arm around my shoulders and pulls me closer to him to keep me warm.
After the short walk down the street, we reach the small supermarket in town, where we buy groceries for our stay in the mountain hut and our excursion later. Relieved, I drop my shoulders as the warm air blows toward me as I enter the supermarket.
"We should buy more water," I inform him, and am about to lift the six-pack of water bottles when Sunghoon grabs my arm. "Leave it, I'll do it," he says hurriedly, gently pushing me aside and loading the water into the cart. He then turns back to me, eyeing me anxiously. "I told you not to lift so heavy," he reminds me, pointing at my stomach.
"You're right," I agree with him and nod affirmatively before we continue our shopping. After paying for everything and loading it into bags in the trunk, we head back to the cabin in the mountains. Once there, Sunghoon carries the groceries into the kitchen and I set about unpacking them.
Suddenly, I feel Sunghoon's chest against my back. Carefully, he wraps his arms around my waist and breathes a gentle kiss on my cheek. Smiling, I reach for his hands, which he has clasped in front of my stomach. For a moment we just stand there and enjoy the closeness to each other. I can no longer imagine what it's like without him. With him by my side, I just feel so complete, secure, and loved.
"Do you want me to make us sandwiches for our trip?", I finally break the comfortable silence and turn my face in his direction to look him in the eye. "Sandwiches sound perfect," he replies and then moves away from me. "I'll help you," he adds quickly, and is just reaching for the package of toast when the cell phone in his pocket starts ringing.
"Aren't you going to answer it?", I ask as Sunghoon pulls out his cell phone and stares at the screen. Shaking his head, he pushes the caller away and slides the phone back into his pants pocket.
"Who was it?", I ask further. "Jay," Sunghoon answers immediately. "Jay?", I ask in confusion, frowning. "What could he want?" "I don't know, Lola. Let's just enjoy our togetherness," Sunghoon says with a pleading look, wrapping his arms around my waist to pull me closer to him. I tilt my head slightly back to look him in the eye. "All right," I agree with my husband, whereupon we return to preparing the sandwiches.
We finally set off in the early afternoon. After a half-hour drive, we reach the nearby parking lot of a hiking route that is very popular for hikers and walkers. The parking lot is quite full, which is probably due to the sunny weather. Since it is nevertheless icy cold here, I wear two sweaters under my thick jacket.Thus, the coming hours should definitely be endurable.
Although the parking lot is quite crowded, we only occasionally encounter other hikers or families with their children coming towards us, while Sunghoon and I follow at a leisurely pace hand in hand the flattened path that leads us along a small stream.
During the whole walk I hardly speak a word, as I am far too busy marveling at the breathtaking view. Although Sunghoon tries to cover it up, I keep catching him eyeing me from the side, smiling.
"What is it?", I ask eventually, looking at the young man with a questioning look. "I don't know which one of us has the prettier view," he replies, brushing a strand of hair out of my face. "You are simply the most beautiful and strongest woman I have ever seen in my life," Sunghoon continues, smiling with satisfaction.
Not knowing what to say, I lean forward slightly toward him, stretching my neck a little to close the gap between us and kiss him. It's a short, yet soulful kiss, expressing my love and gratitude to Sunghoon.
"I love you," I murmur against his lips as I pull away from the kiss. Sunghoon rests his forehead against mine and opens his brown eyes, which immediately burn deep into mine. "And I love you," he replies with a smile.
"You are such a cute couple, shall we take a picture of you?" inquires an elderly lady walking past us with her dog. Immediately in front of us, she finally stops and looks at us with a smile. Sunghoon and I exchange brief glances before we both nod.
Sunghoon hands the woman his cell phone before standing next to me and wrapping his arm around my waist. With a smile on my lips, I lean my head against his shoulder and place my hand against his lower back.
The nice woman takes several photos of us before she gives the phone back to Sunghoon. We scroll through the photos and somehow it makes me happy to see them. I think apart from all the photos taken at the wedding, these are our first photos together. We should definitely take a photo together more often and capture our memories together because once we are old, we will surely look back on them with satisfaction.
"Thank you very much," Sunghoon thanks the elderly lady as I pet her dog, a golden retriever, who is happily running around me. "I wish you both very good luck and stay well," she wishes us, winking at us before we say goodbye and she continues on her way in the opposite direction.
After our almost two-hour walk, during which we took several breaks, we reach the parking lot where Sunghoon and I parked earlier. Exhausted, I sink into the comfortable seat and close my eyes. I exhale in relief and rub my ice-cold hands together to warm them up.
"Are you okay, Lola?" Sunghoon asks anxiously as he gets in on the driver's side. He eyes me from the side and places his hand on my thigh. "Everything's fine Hoon," I assure him. With a smile on my lips, I open my eyes and fix them on Sunghoon. "After the long car ride yesterday, the walk really did me good. I'm just a little tired."
"Let's go home, I'll turn on the fireplace and cook something while you rest, okay?" he suggests, gently stroking my cheek. I close the small gap between us to place my lips on my husband's, which feel familiar and warm. Sunghoon returns the kiss, cupping my face with his hand and not letting it go.
"I like that idea," I breathe against his lips as I slowly pull away from our kiss. Smiling, Sunghoon turns away from me and starts the engine of his Bentley. On the way back to the mountain hut, I find it incredibly difficult to keep my tired eyes open. I am all the more relieved when we finally arrive and get out of the car.
After I have taken off my thick winter jacket and slipped my boots off my feet, I go into the living room, where Sunghoon is just about to light the fire in the fireplace. Smiling, I lay down on the comfortable sofa and watch him.
"Like this," he says as the relaxing crackle and fills the room and rises from the floor. His eyes meet mine and for a moment he just stares at me. I wonder what's going through his mind. "I'll make us something to eat," he finally adds, leaning down to brush a few strands of hair from my face with his fingers before placing a kiss on my temple.
He places another kiss on the tip of my nose and wants to rise, but I reach for his face and pull it down to me again to kiss him on the mouth. Sunghoon gently returns the kiss. "Stay with me.", I mumble into the kiss and pull him down to me so that our bodies are touching.
He presses his body a little tighter against mine. Soon after, the gentle kiss turns into a passionate kiss where our tongues join and melt together as if by themselves. But before it can come to anything more, Sunghoon suddenly breaks away from me.
"I'm going to cook now," he says, wanting to get up from the sofa again, but I clasp his wrists. "I'm not hungry yet," I whisper, looking at him urgently. Smiling, he returns my gaze. His muscles relax and before I understand myself, his lips are on mine again.
While I undo his belt, his fingers wander under my thick wool sweater where he tampers with the clasp of my bra. A/N: Yeahhh goodnight