The Light of Dead Stars | KSJ

56

Dubai is a lot warmer than you expected, but even though you're tempted to stay indoors during the day, there's just so much to explore that you can't help but wander around the city.

When you arrived last Sunday morning, you checked in your hotel and then had lunch with one of the Board members based there. It was less tense than you expected, and he merely asked how sales are going and other general updates. You barely spoke and it was fine; the food was good and you were enjoying analyzing the tastes by yourself. You spent the afternoon eating and shopping, and though he didn't know, you saw Yoongi eye a necklace that had a "D" pendant, and you gushed internally at the smile he had.

The next day, you joined your husband in the business summit and watched him meet and converse with other wealthy people, introducing you and making sure you didn't feel too bored. You still felt it, though, that's why you skipped it the next day and went to the food expo across the street with Yoongi. You did it again the next day, and you enjoyed just eating and making notes, so that evening, you nursed a stomach ache while Jin simultaneously laughed and cuddled with you until you fell asleep.

It's your last day today and Jin is off to another meeting while you pack up for your mid-afternoon flight to London. He calls to say that you'll have lunch at this spot recommended by the cab driver he met, so you meet him and Yoongi there before heading to the airport.

"I'm already exhausted and it's just our first city," you pout at him while waiting in the lounge to board. "How do you do this?"

Dressed in his immaculate suit, your husband smiles at you adoringly and places his tablet on the table. "Well, I just keep working so when I get to the hotel, I pass out, and I always end up sleeping well and feeling rejuvenated the next day."

"That sounds lonely."

"It was," he chuckles. "I mean, I'd work out or swim or sometimes head to the hotel bar to drink but that's also to tire myself out. It's not so fun when you're not with me."

"I tire you out, too," you smirk, earning you a playful shake of his head.

"You do; it's my favorite type of physical activity."

You gush internally.

Thinking about the long-haul flights and busy days makes you tired. You're used to the kind of work that's a lot more stable in a sense that there's a routine you follow, a fixed plan for the week that you're faithful to, and so on trips like this where you're rushing out the airport to a meeting and where your body clock gets completely messed up, you're a lot more needy and clingy than usual, something you just realized.

Jin makes you feel stable in a lot of ways. He makes you feel calm and safe, too. He's so used to this life that being on-the-go is his default - constantly moving, constantly thinking. You haven't been in the lab for days and the work mode version of you isn't fully functioning when you aren't there.

And so you yearn for him, a lot more than usual. You cling to him at night and search for him in the morning, your hands wandering around his naked body, prompting him to pull you into the shower where you touch him some more because you know you're gonna have to let him go again for the day. You take photos of every single dish you eat without him and then spend the entire dinner and your joint bath at night talking about it.

"I like it when you're clingy," he says, taking your hand as you start to board.

"I was just thinking about how much I wanna smack myself for being exactly that! It's like... who am I? Why am I like this? Don't take me on trips anymore, Jin. I become so... needy."

"Now you're being dramatic," he chuckles. "I actually like this version of you. It's very affirming. Plus, we get to be the super good-looking power couple!"