♣ ♣ ♣

The first thing that struck me when I slowly started waking up, was that it was incredibly warm. The second thing: I was completely entangled in Taehyung's embrace, and it was practically impossible for me to escape his cuddle-trap. But did I want to escape? Hell no. My lips immediately curve up into a smile as I snuggle closer to him, before allowing myself to just enjoy this incredibly heartwarming moment for five more minutes.

Taehyung and I had slept next to each other the entire night. I almost thought that I had been dreaming, but to the greatest relief I've ever felt, I was still wrapped up protectively in his arms. His calm and steady breathing tickled me as he was snuggled close to me, his face buried into my neck. I honestly couldn't ask for a better way to wake up in the morning, and now I will probably feel sad to wake up in an empty bed again after this. I want to cherish this moment forever.

But my stomach thought otherwise.

It suddenly decided to let out an embarrassing growl, indicating that it was empty and needed breakfast. Great, way to ruin the moment, stupid stomach...

Shortly after, a raspy chuckle was heard from behind me as I feel Taehyung's arms squeeze me gently before feeling him snuggle closer to me.

"Good morning to you too," he mumbles huskily with amusement in his abnormally deep morning voice. When you thought his voice couldn't get any more sexy than it already was... Holy macaroni, my whole body shivered with affection to this new experience that was equal to an eargasm.

"Morning, are you feeling better?" I mumble, twisting my body slightly to face him. His closed eyelids flutter open when he senses me shifting, revealing his captivating dark-brown eyes. The corner of his lips twitch upward slightly when our eyes meet, before allowing himself to flash me a small smile before closing his eyes again.

"I've never felt better in my life," he finally responds with a sigh. My smile grows even wider as I snuggle back into our original position and close my eyes as well.

"I'm glad you are."

Then we just lay like this for a while in complete, comfortable silence. But this time, the silence is interrupted by Tae's growling stomach. I giggle in amusement, while he groans behind me.

"Shall I go make us some breakfast?" I suggest with a chuckle. When I feel him nod beside me, I slowly try to get up, but his arms wouldn't let me leave. "Uhm, you have to let me go if you want food."

This time he responds with tightening his grip around me while shaking his head, tickling my neck in the process. I laugh at the sensation and sigh hopelessly.

"Come on, let me go or else we both will starve to death."

Taehyung lets out a sad sigh before finally releasing me. I slowly get up and sit on the edge of the bed, stretching lightly before standing up.

"Just keep resting, I'll bring the breakfast here when it's done. Anything in particular you want to eat?" I ask him while eyeing him in his almost sleeping state.

"Pancakes," he responds almost immediately. This boy really do love his pancakes.

"Pancakes it is. I'll be back soon," I reassure him before leaving the room. But before going down to the kitchen, I make a quick visit to the bathroom where I brush through my hair and rinse my face with water. When downstairs, I notice that it's almost eleven. Shit, I didn't check my phone, Areum probably wonders where the hell I am. But I was too hungry to think about that, so I just immediately started preparing breakfast for us.

Around half an hour later I'm re-entering Tae's room with a tray filled with pancakes, juice, nutella and some freshly cut fruit.

"Wanna continue watching where we left off last night?" I ask him as I put the tray down on the bed. He was completely immersed by the delicious food on the bed, gawking with his mouth open as he nod in response to me. I let out a chuckle and then prepare the tv for a continuation of the epic adventures that is anime.

Then a few minutes later, we're seated on the bed again and eating pancakes while watching the animated series. I also sent a text to Areum, telling her that I didn't feel too well and decided to stay home to rest all day.

My eyes immediately widen as they scan the slightly offending message I just received. How and why the hell did she immediately draw that parallel? She's smarter than one would think. I was actually aching to tell her everything, but I decided it was more appropriate to do that when we meet in person.

Oh, that's right, I almost forgot. Apparently, in the middle of October, there's an annual fireworks festival by the beach to mark the official arrival of autumn. I had actually been looking forward to it ever since she told me about it.

Sending that last text, I put away my phone to immerse myself back into the anime instead. We watched for another two hours before I noticed Taehyung dozing off again. I playfully roll my eyes at his cute sleeping state before carefully grabbing the tray which once contained our breakfast. Descending downstairs as quietly as I could to not wake him up, I put the dishes in the dishwasher and then started reflecting over what we should do for the day. He seems much better already, so I guess I could go through the papers that Mr Vong gave me -- also the reason I actually came here in the first place. But before that I feel that I really need to head home for a quick to change clothes and shower.

Carefully tip-toeing up the stairs to grab my phone and bag, I swiftly change into yesterday's clothes and once again leave Taehyung's bedroom, closing the door softly after myself.

"Where are you going?" his voice suddenly spoke, causing me stop mid-motion. I peek my head through the small gap to double check if he really had woken up. He's lying on his side, watching me warily, but still looking sleepy. I open the door again and take one step inside.

"I was just going home for a quick, to change clothes and all that," I explain briefly.

"You're coming back after that, right?" he asked with a slight worried look, a small pout formed on his lips. I chuckle and nod in response.

"Of course. We need to study today, so get some more sleep and prepare your brain for the mental torture Mr Vong has prepared for you."

Taehyung releases a muffled groan and turn around in bed, his back facing me now, before mumbling, "Fine. Don't be away too long."

I smile to myself and close the door after me. This cute idiot seems to hate being by himself. That realization, however, started making me wonder why he felt that way. Was he more lonely than he let people believe? I mean, his father seems to be away all the time, and he has no one else by his side to take care of him. His facade doesn't let anyone know what he feels or what he thinks, not even his best friends seems to notice how lost Taehyung actually was.

Taehyung, what are you hiding from everyone?

♣

Roughly two hours later, I'm back at his house again with clean hair, fresh clothes and a plastic bag containing some steaming noodle deliciousness. I make my way up the stairs and carefully open the door to Taehyung's bedroom, revealing a pouting teenager with a grumpy expression plastered on his face, sitting on the bed with his arms crossed. I suppress the laughter that almost came out the second I saw this hilarious scene before me.

"You said you would come back quickly!" he mutters bitterly, shooting me a glare when I enter the bedroom. "It's been two hours. Explain yourself."

I chuckle and hold up the bag, the sound of plastic ruffling made Taehyung's ears perk up and his expression changed from an angry one to curious in the span of a split second when his eyes focused on what I was carrying.

"I brought some food on the way here, sorry I took so long," I explain apologetically while walking up to the bed, plopping myself down on it next to him. My hand searched through the bag for his cup of ramen and handed it to him when found, along with a pair of wooden chopsticks. I pick up my cup as well and a short moment later, we start devouring our noodle soups with loud, satisfied slurps.

"I forgive you for abandoning me," Taehyung says with his mouth full. I flick his forehead, causing him to let out a whimper as he rubs the sore spot. "Ouch.."

"Don't talk with food in your mouth, or else you'll choke," I scold him, smirking playfully. He rolls his eyes and keeps eating in silence.

The ramen didn't live for long before we had completely devoured it all. The empty cups are now sitting in the bag again, waiting to be thrown out. Our bellies are content and food-coma is slowly taking over us.

"Thank you for bringing food and not abandoning me completely like I thought you would," Taehyung mumbles with a yawn as he makes himself comfortable in the bed, cuddling down beneath his bedsheets. I let out a chuckle as I lay down on the bed as well.

"Aww, you're scared of being left alone? I thought you didn't like people," I coo teasingly, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Pfft, me? Scared? I only tolerate people who brings me food."

I snort at his response. "So you tolerate me? I'm so honored."

"You should be."

"I still think you're scared of being alone."

"I guess I enjoy the company of people I tolerate."

I furrow my eyebrows at him. "You're complicated," I mumble, followed by a hopeless sigh.

A small chuckle leaves Taehyung's lips before he turns his head to the side, his eyes meeting mine. "You say that a lot."

"Because you are."

His lips curl into a smirk. "Likewise."

"I'm complicated? Bish, when?"

"And sassy."

"Only when you're being an ass."

"A hot ass, though, I might add."

Trying not to roll my eyes so hard that they would get stuck on the back of my head, due to his obnoxiously high self esteem, was painfully difficult right now. I curse myself mentally that I actually thought the same thing as him when I said it.

Without thinking, I grab the nearest pillow beside me and hurl it with full force square into his face. "Your confidence disgusts me."

He stares at me in bewilderment at first, shocked over the fact that I almost ruined his annoyingly perfect face. But then his frown turned into a smirk. A challenging glint ignited in his eyes, making them shine in a specific way that was impossible to explain with words. You just felt it in your stomach, like tingles mixed with dread -- it was intimidating but at the same time exciting.

In that moment I realized, I sparked the playful Tae to life.

My prediction was correct. Because a short moment later, his index finger was pushed into the side of my ribs, causing me to let out a shriek at the ticklish sensation.

"But you agree with me," he says, while his lips curved into a playful smirk. I narrow my eyes at him and earned my revenge by poking him back in his ribs, twice. His body twisted away from mine while a adorable squeal left his lips.

"Why would you think that?" I scoff, raising one eyebrow at him. I was trying really hard not to reveal any sign that I actually agreed with him, but I refused to give him the satisfaction.

His smirk only grew wider, making me curious and a little worried over what was going on inside his mind. The intense stare he was giving me at this moment was doing things to me. Internal things. Turning-up-the-heat-too-much things. He then softly chuckles, the sound soothing all my senses for the brief second it lasted, before he spoke again.

"Because you get flustered when I do this.."

As soon as the words left his lips, I barely had any time to process them at all before he charges towards me, pinning my wrists beside my head, while his body was hovering over mine. His knees rested on the side of my hips, keeping my body from moving even a single millimeter. My heart starts pounding against my chest as he lower his face towards mine until the tip of our noses almost touch. At this point, I've probably lost my mind five or six thousand times. My mind was caught in a vortex of slight panic, major confusion and way too inappropriate thoughts, unable to untangle itself from the internal madness that Taehyung currently was causing. But somewhere, deep into the endless maze of thoughts, I actually found this situation quite enticing, and caught myself wanting him to continue. I really wanted to scold myself for falling for his charms so quick -- but it's Taehyung we're dealing with and honestly who would believe that I didn't daydream about these intimate actions happening between us on a daily basis.

I was slowly, but very surely starting to let the heat take over my body. It made the lower part of my stomach twist in a familiar way, a very sensual way that is.

To my fright, I was getting very turned on by this.

And it didn't help that I was studying his bottom lip that was trapped underneath his teeth, while his smirk was still taunting me. Oh, how I would love to feel his lips against mine.

No. I am not letting him get to me, further than he already has. As much as I wanted to lean in and bring my hot dreams to life, I collect the little sense I had left and pushed the unclean thoughts away. However, I couldn't cool my face down from the amount of heat it was radiating at this moment. Obviously he could notice the effect he had on me, since his annoying smirk was still on display. I guess I have to swallow my pride this once.

I inhale deeply through my nose, calming myself before speaking with a low, threatening voice. "If you breathe on me and make me sick as well, I swear to god I will skin you alive and feed you to the rats."

My words caused him to let out a small chuckle. Amusement was written all over his face.

"So feisty. But I proved my theory right."

I gulp silently, feeling that my throat was getting dry due to nervousness and the warmth our bodies produced at this very intimate position. What in the world was I supposed to say. I had no idea where this was going or where he wanted this to go. What was the point of all this? To make me agree with him? While my mind was spinning, I started wondering why I was keeping it away from him. I was obviously attracted to him -- in too many ways, I must add. He even revealed that it bothered him when I was with Jimin. I might as well reveal my hidden feelings as well, in the most sophisticated way I knew how.

"And what if I do?" My voice came out like a whisper, almost inaudible. But he heard me clearly.

His body tenses as the words slipped through my lips. I caught him off guard. He was blinking several times while looking into my eyes, searching and digging for something. Meanwhile, his eyes darkened. The previous glint of playfulness turned into something else.

Lust. They reeked with lust.

A long moment of silence followed. We both were probably drowning in thoughts, trying to read each other's minds to analyze this situation. And with every other second passing, I felt more and more tempted to let go of the little guard over my feelings I had left.

Finally, I felt I couldn't take this anymore. Even though I wanted to stay like this for a while longer, it needed to stop before it escalated into something that would be impossible to stop. It was too early to let go of the harness that held my feelings towards him in check.

"Uh, I think we should study now," I croak silently. My throat was clogged with so many repressed emotions, I couldn't speak up properly. It didn't help that my mind was still partly dazed, either. Same thing seems to bother Tae, because it took awhile for him to process my words and wake himself up from his own thoughts as well.

"Oh, that's right. Sure," he mumbles, almost nervously, while swiftly lifting himself off of me and stands up next to the bed, straightening out his t-shirt that had been wrinkled during the process of almost grinding against each other. Never thought I would experience that.

♣

After studying for the longest amount of time Taehyung's brain could properly function and actually take in information, we ended up briefly going through almost every paper Mr Vong had sent him. The tension between us after our little intimate moment had eased pretty quickly, thankfully, so our focus on the studies wasn't disturbed. To reward him, I treated him to some homemade panini with chicken -- which he had devoured like it was the first meal he had eaten in weeks. After eating, I decided to make us some hot chocolate, one of my secret recipes of course, which we drank while watching some anime.

By now, the night had taken over and the time showed soon to be eleven. We were both lying on Taehyung's bed, completely exhausted, both yawning loudly as the episode came to its end. It was probably time to go sleep.

"Will you stay again tonight?" Taehyung asks softly, his voice deeper than usual due to the lack of energy left in his body. I mentally smile to myself. Little did he know that I was prepared this time. While going home, I brought my toothbrush and some spare clothes. But I still wanted to borrow his t-shirt to sleep in. Because obvious reasons.

"Oh, I don't know... Will I?" I ask out loud, uncertain, but the playfulness in my voice gave away my teasing intentions. Taehyung immediately smiles widely before he jumps off the bed, grab me by the wrists and drags me to the bathroom so we could start preparing for bed. I just let him drag me with him while giggling at this cute behaviour of his.

After brushing our teeth -- of course not without smearing toothpaste all over each other's faces -- and changing into sleepwear, we finally climb into the bed, making ourselves comfortable under the duvet.

But before we let dreamland consume us, Taehyung cuddled up to me just like the night before, his arms protectively wrapped around my waist. And that night, I again fell asleep with a smile on my lips.

♣