Mine

Chapter 20

Jimin stirred awake, the heaviness in his limbs a sharp reminder of how deeply he'd fallen into sleep. The kind of sleep that wasn't planned or intentional but one born of pure exhaustion. He groaned softly, his body stiff as he shifted on the couch, struggling to pull himself out of the hazy leftovers of a dreamless slumber.

The first thing to catch his attention was the dim glow of the room heater stationed near the couch. Its soft, flickering light created uneven shadows that danced on the wooden walls of the small cabin, giving the space an almost surreal atmosphere.

Where... am I?

Blinking a few times, he rubbed at his eyes, trying to adjust to the stillness around him. The clock on the far wall came into focus, its ticking a sharp contrast to the silence. Just past 4 a.m. The world outside the window was shrouded in pitch-black darkness, save for the faint glimmer of moonlight cutting through the clouds and casting silver streaks across the glass.

He sat up slowly, the blanket draped over him sliding off his shoulders and pooling around his waist. The warmth it carried was unique, as if someone had carefully tucked him in. His gaze fell to the room heater once more, its orange glow wrapping him in a comfort that felt foreign.

It didn't take long for the pieces to fall into place, how he ended up here!

He froze as the thoughts pieced everything together, his eyes trailing over the room. Him tucked in warm blanket in a warm room with dim lights! She had thought to make him comfortable, the heater was placed nearby, the blanket draped over him so he wouldn't feel the night's chill. Even the lamp on the desk across the room had been left on, casting a soft light so he wouldn't wake to complete darkness.

The thought left him utterly baffled.

He stared at the blanket now resting on his lap, his fingers brushing over its fabric as if testing its reality. This wasn't something he was used to.

Someone taking the time, the effort, to care for him in this way when he had no such ties with them, but was that really the case? It was foreign, the feeling of pure care with no strings attached. It was unfamiliar.

It wasn't like Park Jimin lacked attention. Far from it. He was the kind of guy who could turn heads without trying, who could snatch crowds left and right with just one glance—or even no glance at all. His presence demanded attention, his aura was magnetic, and he was well aware of it.

Women and men alike gravitated toward him. Compliments, admiration, fleeting touches—all of it was second nature to him. He'd been appreciated, pursued, and praised more times than he could count. There were flings, dates, and the occasional deep conversations over a drink or two, but none of them ever lingered. None of them ever left a mark.

Because none of them had ever felt like this.

This quiet warmth, this unspoken care—it was different. It wasn't flashy or loud, it didn't come with flowery words or grand gestures. It came from someone who didn't even like him most of the time, who'd spent months meeting his teasing with sharp retorts and colder stares. Her sharp tongue and frost-laced behaviour, wasn't the kind what made her care obvious.

And maybe that's why it hit him so much harder.

The comparison of her usual bluntness and this unexpected tenderness left him reeling. A soft chuckle escaped his lips, low and disbelieving. "You're full of surprises, Maria" he muttered to himself, his voice barely louder than a whisper.

His mind wandered back to the countless nights he'd spent in hollow company, people who were drawn to the surface of him but never dared dig deeper. The nights filled with laughter that never quite reached his eyes, with compliments that sounded more like rehearsed lines than genuine words. And now here he was, floored by something as simple as a blanket and a heater.