[EDITING]
When Jeon Jeongguk's sister gets engaged to his friend's brother, almost everything changes.
Desperate to hold onto a fragile friendship, Jeongguk is willing to get himself into sticky situations--even to the point of ruining his sister's...
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Chapter Forty-Two: To Have and To Hold
It was no longer a dream. His lips were on his skin, his hands held his waist. He could feel his chest heave against his own when he breathed, he could feel how his shoulders moved underneath his hands, could feel his hips against his own.
It might have seemed like something out of a dream, standing in the middle of a pool, holding onto each other, soaked from head to toe, with the moonlight trailing down like a shy ghost giving itself the liberty to watch. Shivering from the cold, dizzy and weak in the knees from the high of their emotions––Jeongguk was in no state to form a coherent thought.
And he couldn't. All he could do was clutch Taehyung, put his hands around his neck and hold on for dear life.
Taehyung was the first to speak. "Jeongguk," he murmured, so low that if Jeongguk weren't kissing him, he wouldn't have heard him. Then again, "Jeongguk."
He could feel his breath on his tongue. He tasted like pink lemonade.
"Taehyung," Jeongguk answered.
Slowly, they broke apart, their lips still hovering over each other.
"So ..." Taehyung said, trailing off, examining his eyes.
Jeongguk smiled. Which made Taehyung smile.
And then, they started giggling, pressing their foreheads together. They were weightless, swaying in the water as if they were balancing on a cloud. They were giddy, drunk, and high off their emotions.
Jeongguk shuddered. "We should probably get out of the pool," he said. "Before I freeze to death."
Taehyung staggered, and Jeongguk wondered whether it was the water pushing him or because he was drowsy from the kiss. Either way, he leaned in. "Okay," he said, kissing him again. A small kiss, soft. And meanwhile, Jeongguk smiled, a giggle escaping him.
"I'm sorry," Taehyung whispered––but he wasn't sorry at all. "I can't stop."
"Don't," said Jeongguk. "Don't ever stop."
They stood then, for a moment, taking in the stillness of the night, the murmur of the water.
Then, Taehyung took him by his hand. "Come," he said. "Let's dry off." He pulled him towards the edge of the pool and together they climbed out.
There were no towels outside so they had to wring their clothes so as to not wet the floors. The sun wasn't there to warm their skin, so they shook the water free like dogs shaking their fur.
"Brr," said Jeongguk, his teeth chattering a little. Taehyung noticed and approached him. He placed his hands against the side of his arms and rubbed them up and down, trying to warm him. It didn't do much, but Jeongguk felt better.
