MUFFLED GROANS

chapter 22 | Unconscious

"I don't know, I'm just curious about what you think of her..." she hides the real meaning, so I give her the most honest answer. "She's very sweet and kind to me. She helps me a lot at work, she seems to be a very considerate person," I do not glance away but read the emotions that her eyes are unable to conceal, and I watch them darken. "She seems to be a delicate woman..." I emphasize to see if she is going to unconsciously react to it, and her face reveals some disappointment, almost as if my words had hurt her.

"Don't you think the same?" I return the question, and without the need to hear a single word from her, I know her opinion is far from being similar to mine. "Hm. It doesn't matter," she avoids it. "I gotta go and apply that-"

"Wait," I grasp her arm as gently as possible. "It does matter to me. I want to know how you feel. I'm curious too."

"Her and I are not very close...so there's not much to say. It's always cold between us," she makes a completely different statement than Aylin did, and the emotions and sincerity I could not see in her eyes earlier, stand out in Lea's ones. "Oh...I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked."

"No, don't worry about it," she shakes her head and smiles so that no tension is left. "You need sleep. Your eyes look...bad but good, I don't know how to say it," she tries not to make this turn into an insult, but I pretend to be slightly offended. "Do I look that horrendous?"

"No! Not at all, you still look amazing," she hurries to clarify, but I cross my arms and do not show any satisfaction. "I don't know...this was pretty painful."

"No, Mister Jeon..." she closes the distance between us and wraps her arms around my waist to give me a hug, and I open mine right away to take her in an embrace. "I mean it. You're still perfect."

"You're so sweet," I smile and tangle my fingers in her hair, loving the feeling of her body against mine no matter how uncomfortable it is for me. My erection is still as prominent as earlier, and I do not even know why or how I got one.

"I hope she wasn't forceful...Be careful, please..." she whispers in my chest, and I glance down at her. "About what?"

"Don't let anyone use you...Don't trust everything she tells you...and...you shouldn't spend too much time with her..." she steps back to gaze up at me, and the feeling she makes me feel has a certain impact on my actions. I drift one hand up to her face and hold the side of it, loving this feeling more than I should. I stare into her eyes, some blurriness erasing the sharpness of her features. "I was planning on maybe going back tomorrow, does that mean I shouldn't?"

She moves her head to show confirmation. "I don't think this is a good idea..."

"Hm..." I breathe out and close my eyes for a moment, my vision making my head spin, I swallow and rub my thumb over her jawline, and I look into her eyes. "You're staying here this weekend, right?" I slip my fingers through her hair after feeling her skin warm up under mine, and she blushes hard. "I am. Why?"

"Just curious," I smile but move away from her so that our bodies are not touching anymore. "You should go to bed, sweetheart," I avoid being close to her for longer, feeling extreme aversion to my own thoughts and feelings. "I'll cook breakfast and call-"

"What have you drunk at her house?" she does not consider it as hers. "Red wine, why?" I get alarmed, wondering what is the reason for her to be so worried about what happened with her stepmother. Her eyes remain on me, no words coming out of her, they glisten, and she glances down. "Nothing. I just wanted to know," she walks away to leave.

What was that reaction?

The door closes behind her right after she went back into the bedroom that now belongs to her. I deeply inhale and free my lungs from all the air, feeling like I am not myself anymore, I go back to my bedroom to put an end to this day as soon as possible.