Chapter Twenty-two: Protective
Waking up with Jin was nice.
In that first-awoken haze, I shifted my weight a little, twisting to get comfortable, because my arm had fallen asleep. He smelled a little like alcohol, but mostly just like him... that distinct, Jinlike scent that I could never quite define. I wondered if I smelled that way to him.
He was still in the button-up and slacks from the night before. I was surprised he hadn't overheated, but, from his face, he was blissfully comfortable. I tilted my head up to kiss his jaw softly, then snuggled back in again.
I had been planning to just go back to sleep, but as the fog of sleep withdrew I realised; I was desperate for the toilet. Looking down at the arms around me, I wondered how exactly I was supposed to get out of this without waking him up. If this were a fanfiction, I'd attempt to remove myself carefully, trying not to wake him, but then wake him anyway, surprise both of us, and probably fall out of the bed and wind up in a compromising position.
This, however, did not account for the heavy sleeper that was a hungover Seokjin.
When I flung his arm off me, he just rolled over, groaning slightly, and the back of his hand smacked into the wall by my bed. Even that didn't wake him, though it must have hurt.
I managed to use the toilet and wash my face without any issue, then went downstairs to get some juice. It was late morning already. Making a glass for my drunkard boyfriend, I carried it upstairs with me, and set it on my bedside table. Getting back in bed, I shook him lightly. He was on his side, back to me, and didn't respond. At all.
I jutted out my bottom lip, jabbing him a little in the centre of his back. "Oppa."
This time, I was met with a sleepy complaint. "Go 'way..."
He began to snore, softly. No way. Had he really spoken in his sleep? Or was he just pretending to get me to leave him alone? Either option seemed viable.
"Ya, oppa..." he continued to snore. I sighed, and laid back down beside him, settling to just mess with my phone for a bit, until he woke up.
Except that dragged on a lot longer than anticipated, and I got impatient.
"Ah, first you bother me with drunken antics last night, and now you make me wait here bored while you sleep? Aish." I grumbled quietly, while he snoozed. Sitting up, I leaned over him, resting my arms on his side gently. His mouth was slightly agape, hair sticking up in all directions. It was cute.
Snapping a quick picture, I rested my chin on my forearms. "I guess I'll forgive you. Because you're cute when you sleep."
I was forced to straighten up as he rolled onto his back, then watched as he felt around blindly on the mattress. Slowly, his eyes opened in a squint, coming to focus on me. "Wah, creepy. Have you been watching me sleep?"
His voice was thick. He inhaled, deeply, stretching. I smiled, leaning back a bit where I sat on my knees. "You looked cute. You should feel fortunate your girlfriend can even find a face like that attractive."
His eyes were closed again, but he smirked somewhat, and I felt his hand come to rest on my lower back. "How long have you been up?"
"Bout forty minutes. It got boring." I chuckled, lightly, laying back down next to him as he patted my back.
"Then go back to sleep while I cuddle you." He said, pulling me into him and resting his forehead against mine. "Hungover Seokjin needs to sleep until at least 1PM."
"That's such a waste, you know how much stuff you can do in those hours?" I said, smiling slightly, but my eyes were shut now, too. He hooked one leg over both of mine.
"Well too bad, because you're not going anywhere." I snaked an arm round his torso.
"I guess I can deal with that." He chuckled a bit, and I opened my eyes. He was looking at me with a playful expression.
"Hungover Seokjin also really likes being the little spoon." I burst out laughing at that.
"Little spoon? Have you seen yourself?" He jutted out his lower lip at me.
"Excuse you, are you calling me fat?"
"Oh yeah, basically obese." I prodded his stomach, and he choked out a laugh.
"Ya!" I grinned,
"Okay, fine, you can be the little spoon." He grinned, and I giggled, "But I get to pick the movies next time we have a movie night."
"Deal." He was so going to regret that. He rolled to face away from me, sighing a little in contentment as I wrapped an arm around his slender waist. Weren't guys supposed to prefer being big spoon? That was what I'd always heard. But, as it stood, when had Jin ever lived up to my normal expectations of men in relationships?
He was... different. Not that I minded. He didn't fit stereotypes at all.
He'd already fallen asleep again. I rested my forehead against the nape of his neck, chuckling to myself quietly. Being the big spoon in itself was kind of nice. I kissed his shoulder. Being able to show simple affection like this was nice, too. If he'd been awake, this would have been embarrassing.
I wasn't sure when I'd fallen asleep again, but I felt Jin stir under my arm, and against my front. I sleepily withdrew my arm, letting him get comfortable, and then put it back, kissing the skin my face was pressed against softly.
Slowly, I was pulled from my rest at fingers combing through my hair, pulling it out of my face. My eyes fluttered open. I realised he'd turned to face me, his arm under my head. My face was in his chest.
Sleepily, without much thought, I kissed his collarbone. The hand that had been messing with my hair stopped, briefly, then continue, and he chuckled quietly. "Ya, Ju-eunnie, were you always this kissy?"
I reddened a little, realising what I'd done as the sleeping-stupor faded entirely. I knocking my forehead into his chest, embarrassed. "Shut up..."
"What? It's cute." He said softly, tilting my head up. He pressed a quick kiss to my lips. "There is better, though."
I didn't really know how to react. One day, I'd be used to him kissing me. But, for now, I was bright red, trembling. Even more so when he kissed my forehead, my cheek, the corner of my mouth. He leaned back a little, tapping his lower lip with his finger. "The count's uneven."
Had he been awake for all those other kisses? His face told me yes. Shifting up a little, I did as he asked. He cradled the back of my head, deepening the kiss, absorbing me into the sensations until I realised I couldn't hold my breath anymore. I pulled back, hands on his chest. His eyes were dark for a second, before he smiled, kissing the tip of my nose. "Cute."
Attempting to even out my breathing, I laughed a little. "One day I'll learn how to breathe through my nose."
He chuckled, pinching my cheek as he licked his lips. "Well, practice makes perfect."
I smacked him for the cheesily obvious line, but smiled. "You feeling alright?"
He propped himself on his elbow and rested the other hand on my waist, just encroaching on my ribs. "Yeah. As hangovers go, not too bad."
"Ah." I sat up, twisting and grabbing the glass that had been forgotten on the bedside table. "I got you juice."
He sat up, too, giving me a side eye smile as he took it from me. "Ah, look at you, taking care of me. What is this role reversal?"
I rolled my eyes. "You're welcome."
He chuckled, taking a large gulp. "Thanks." Swigging it hastily, he seemed to be realising just how dehydrated he was. "How about you? You feeling alright?"
I blinked at him. "I didn't drink anything. Despite numerous offers."
He grimaced. "Proud of you. Not giving in to peer pressure."
I shook my head, grinning wryly. "There wasn't really a lot of pressure. You were all too wasted to force anything on anyone. Well, except Yoongi-oppa."
He tipped his head to the side cutely. "Oppa?"
"What?"
He grabbed me. "I'm your oppa."
I snorted. "Ya, what is this bad-romance-novel jealousy? It's just being polite." I didn't fight it, though, as he squeezed me against him. He let out a breathy chuckle.
"I'm your favourite, though, right?" I mock-considered his question.
"I dunno..."
"Ya, Ju-eun!" He let go of me, and I grinned, devillishly.
"Yoongi-oppa is a lot less of a nag.... and he didn't cause me trouble on the way home." Jin groaned a little.
"What did I do..?" I shook my head.
"I'm joking. You were just annoyingly touchy-feely." No need to mentioned that you whipped your dick out in front of me to whizz in the street. "Ah, and thought you were a parkour master... even though you were literally just jumping off the sidewalk."
He flopped down into the bed, burying his face in the pillows with a groan. "Jesus, how embarrassing. I'm such a dork when drunk."
"You're a dork when sober." I laughed, patted his hair. "Don't worry about it. At least you didn't try to make out with Yoongi-oppa."
At that, he sat up again. "Hoseok?"
I nodded, and he laughed. "Last time he was drunk I was the target of his kissing demon. That guy is such a hoe when he's had alcohol." His eyes were crinkled up in that cute way. He looked at me with mild worry that I couldn't place. "Did you have fun, though? Sorry we hijacked your celebration..."
I shook my head. "It's fine. I did have fun. And it was nice meeting your friends properly." He looked relieved, at that, and I slapped my hand down on his arm, "Next time you promise me a date, though, it better be an actual date. No tag-alongs."
He laughed. "Promise." He swallowed down the last of his juice, then put the glass down and stretched. The movement exposed his stomach, and he grinned when he caught me looking, wiggling his eyebrows. "Well, I'm feeling surprisingly good, so do you want to have that date now?"
"Now?" I echoed, surprised, and he nodded.
"Yeah, why not? You haven't got anything else on, right?" I thought about it, and smiled.
"Well, I have finished my exams... sure, okay." I brushed some hair out of my face, "We both need a shower first, though."
He didn't say it, but I could tell what he was thinking from his expression and the eyebrow raise. He just laughed when I punched him.
When we were both freshened up and ready to display ourselves to the outside world, we left the house, locking up. We decided to walk, since it was a rare day where there was a nice breeze to take the edge off the heat. He was in just a vest and jean shorts, with a baseball cap. He didn't normally dress this sporty, it was a nice change of style.
As for myself, I'd just slung on a thin blue sundress. I hadn't really thought about it too much, just finding something that would help me keep cool, with sunglasses to shield my eyes from the bright day. "Blocking out the haters." I'd told oppa when he'd mentioned them.
"The sun is a hater?"
"The biggest." He, as usual, was entertained by the dumb stuff I said. Squeezing my hand, he pulled me a little closer to him as we passed another couple on the sidewalk.
We soon reached the shopping district, packed with people. Jin laced his fingers through mine, and for that I was grateful, because it seemed almost like these strangers were trying their damnedest to separate us. Still holding his hand, I latched onto his arm with my free one.
We found a small café and got something to eat, then headed into a large shopping centre. He needed some new shoes, but we got distracted by anything and everything. There was even a pet store, for some reason, and we ducked in, peering in at various rodents, reptiles, and fish. A russian dwarf hamster pressed up against the glass of its cage, then burrowed into a dogpile of its brothers and sisters. When we came across a large python, Jin decided he'd had enough, so we left to actually go and find the shoes he needed.
While he was trying on a few pairs, I wandered the clothing store. I didn't especially need any clothes, but since when did one have to need clothes to buy them? I had money. It was the one thing I never wanted for. My replacement parent.
I was looking at some denim overalls when I felt a hand touch my arm. Expecting oppa, I turned with a smile, but it soon fell away. "What-"
"Don't- don't say anything." There was still a faint mark on Jongin's lip where it had split. "I'm just-" he drew in a breath, eyes flicking up to look at me, then away. His hand was still holding my arm. I couldn't breathe. "Can I talk to you?"
"What?" I just barely breathed the word out. My usual strength was failing me. "What- what on Earth could there be to talk about?" I was beginning to shake, slow trembles travelling up my spine. Just like before, he wouldn't let go when I tried to shake him off. "Get off me."
He looked scared, too. "You haven't got to be scared, I-" his eyes darted around, panicky. "I'm not a bad person!"
"You drugged me!" I seethed, my whole insides doing cartwheels, knees both tense and weak at the same time. His eyes went wide,
"Not so loud! Do you want to cause a scene?!" He hissed, and I must have looked incredulous,
"Yes! Get away from me!" Still, he would not let go.
"I'm just trying to apologise-"
He cut off, suddenly, staring past me. Jongin's hand fell from my arm. I looked over my shoulder. Jin stood a short ways behind me with a face like thunder. He had a pair of shoes in one hand. The other was clenched tightly.
"You have no reason to be anywhere near her. Especially not touching her." I was suddenly reminded just how tall my Oppa was. He towered over Jongin, looking doubly intimidating in the more casual clothes. His hand came to my stomach, pushing me back lightly, putting some distance between the other man and me. I wrapped my hands around his upper arm. He wasn't paying me any mind. "Unless you're here to grovel at her feet, you should beat it." I wasn't sure I'd ever seen him this angry. People gave us side-eyes as they passed. The finger of his free hand came up, lightly, tapping his lower lip. The same gesture he'd shown me earlier this afternoon, but with very different connotations. Jongin swallowed. "Would you like another?"
"Oppa!" I said, sharply, careful to keep my voice down so as to not attract attention. "Calm down!"
Finally, he looked at me. I managed to muster my confidence, now, the shakes having calmed a bit. He seemed irritated, "Calm down? You're telling me that? I should knock this guy's teeth out for what he did to you!"
The words felt wrong coming out of his mouth. My oppa, who was so gentle and warm. Soft. Who wouldn't even catch a bug for me in the house. I shook my head, squeezing his arm. "Think about where we are. It's not worth it." I turned back to Jongin, and he was staring at us, nervously. "Just leave. I won't forgive you and I don't want to hear your explanation." I felt a little guilt as his expression twisted, but the knife of anger in my gut stopped me from taking back the words. "Compensate by never doing anything like that ever again. And leave."
He stared at me a moment longer, then bowed, low. "I won't. I'm sorry."
And with that, he was gone. Jin exhaled, heavily, leaning his head on top of mine. "I really wanted to hit him."
I patted his stomach. "I know. Me too."
He laughed a little. "Are you okay?"
Straightening up, he looked me in the eyes. I smiled, somewhat shakily, and nodded. "...Yeah. Yeah. A bit..." I moved my hands around. "Wobbly. Adrenaline and all that."
His arms encircled me, protective. "Well, you haven't gotta worry about him anymore."
I laughed. "I think he's probably got more reason to worry about you."
"Too right." We headed over to the counter so he could pay for his shoes, and he grinned. "So, was I super manly? I was, right? Yaaa~ I bet you're even more obsessed with me now."
I giggled. "It was pretty manly, but you just ruined it by asking, Oppa." He jokingly slapped his thigh.
"Damn it."
- - -
Somewhat on the shorter side. Still 2.8k words tho so... yknow
Hitting a small amount of block now tbh. Like... not bad, considering we got to 22 chapters before it hit. Especially when you consider the fact that I started this book on the 23rd of July lol. (8th Aug now)
Anyways, vote, comment, all that good shit. I'm going ta bed.