Sunlight hits Hoseok's sleep deprived face when y/n disconnects her call with her seniors. She walks into the tent. So does hoseok.
"Listen"
He immediately receives a dont-mess-with-me look.
He gets a little closer and gently grabs her shoulders so she could face him. His eyes get soft when he scrutinizes her face; dry blood covered her bruises, some of which hid behind her uniform.
It's hard to get used to these bruises when they're on your family.
"I've been thinking," he starts.
"finally," she interrupts and heaves out a sigh of relief.
"Haha very funny," the captain passes a sarcastic smile before continuing his speech.
The way he voluntarily switches his moods and focuses his brain never fails to impress her.
She could notice him hesitate.
"What is it?"
"I know it's been hard for the both of us."
He looks down at her hands as he attempts to hold them, prepared for her to retreat.
"we're in the middle of a crisis, it's only gonna get harder from here until it all ends"
But she doesn't.
"you know I was called here on an emergency"
He gently rubs the back of her hands with his thumbs.
"I'll be gone after we're done with this operation and when I return, you'd already be somewhere"
Her brows furrow as she concentrates, already predicting the outcome of this conversation.
"I just wanted to say that... I think you need a break," he looks into her eyes tightening his grip on her hands, "from me," he adds.
He pauses in anticipation of a reaction which he knows he wouldn't get that easily from his stoic beloved.
"I think it'll be better if both of us gave our complete attention to our work till this mission comes to an end," he continues, "I mean, I know we're still giving it our hundred percent but somewhere in the back of our heads we worry about a lot of things, always carrying around a face that pretends to be okay so one of us doesn't get worried and distracted coz if we did it might affect the lives of innocent citizens we are supposed to protect."
"I'll speak for myself, I feel like I really need to stop thinking about growth all the time. We haven't spent enough time together to be able to grow as partners, it only makes sense if we hit a plateau. It's normal, right?"
She nods.
"you don't have to call me when you're away if you don't want to. I'll understand that you're busy and stressed. I feel if we take a break from each other till this whole thing gets over, it'll be better for us. Not like it's gonna last forever, right? It'll just take about," he stops to calculate, "6 months... to a year maximum."
He sighs.
"I just want us to be happy," he mutters.
she responds with an understanding nod. She pats his left cheek lightly and leaves.
