Water Heart | P.Sh

| 53 |

In the morning I was woken up with a small pat on my stomach before it slowly began rubbing small circles against my skin, from how my chemise slowly had ridden up during the night. I let out a small huff before lifting both of my arms to lay over my face.

"Did I wake you?" a gruff voice questioned behind me and I shook my head quietly, letting it lull back and forth on the uneven surface beneath it.

"A pat on my stomach did," I murmured and rubbed my eyes, "can I get like... five minutes more?"

"Why five minutes?" he chuckled and I smiled slightly as I turned my head around to look up at him through one squinted eye.

"You never ask a woman why she just need five more minutes," I reminded him and he hummed quietly before rubbing my arm softly as he just stared down at me, "why are you staring?"

"You never ask a man why he is staring," he retorted in a mocking tone and I lifted my hand backwards to smack him softly, somehow almost ending up poking him in the eye, "hey!" he complained with a small chuckle as I let out a small laugh and dropped my arm down yet again.

"Did you feel cold tonight?" I questioned and looked back up at him.

"Not that much," he shook his head quietly, "you're very warm."

"I know I'm hot," I hummed and turned my head back around once again, slowly managing to open my eyes some more, "you know... I could get used to this."

"I wouldn't mind," Sunghoon admitted and picked at the sleeve on my chemise, "we should go get dressed for the day."

"What do you even have to put on? Didn't you sleep in your clothes?" I let out a small laugh as I managed to sit up and look down at him.

Instead of getting an answer he just smiled contently at me, not showing his teeth or anything, just smiling. He almost seemed fond by how he was smiling up at me.

"What?" I questioned and he just shook his head quietly, "oh come on. You already know I love you, you can't possibly say anything that is more embarrassing than one sided love," I urged and nudged his shoulder.

"I just... my heart did a funny thing," he admitted and I looked over at him before slowly smiling, "no," he warned as he noticed the small smile spreading on my face, "no Soomin."

"Eyyy, what are you? Turning into a small little Lover boy?" I teased and he closed his eyes tightly before sighing deeply as I let out a small laugh, "of all times your heart decides to do a funny thing it is the time I look like a complete and utter dead mess."

"I think you look beautiful right now," he corrected and I smiled a small smile down at him, "absolutely beautiful."

"Turn time back about a month and you would say I looked like a misshappened troll," I reminded him and got up from the hammock, letting my feet touch the cold wood under my feet as I straightened down my chemise, to actually cover halfway down my thighs again, "I'm gonna go get dressed now and then we can eat breakfast together."

"Wear the green skirt, please," Sunghoon called out as he sat up in his hammock and looked after me as I walked down towards the dress room.

"And what if I don't?" I chuckled and turned to face him.

"Then at least the green chemise," he excused and I continued to look at him in amusement, "I just think green is a really nice color on you."

"You know... one day... mostly after the curse is lifted, I'd like to see you in something else but those black shirts," I pointed out and he just nodded.

"Because you know the curse will be lifted," he remarked in amusement before letting out a small cough.

"It's my womanly senses tingling," I excused and tapped the side of my head, "now I'm gonna go get dressed in whicever color I like," I decided and turned on my heel, listening to Sunghoon's laughs and coughs behind me.

It hadn't hit me at first, but slowly the sound of his continuing coughs had sparked a small worry in the pit of my stomach. What if the curse actually wouldn't work out? What was I going to do then? Despite crying profusely, most likely.

I grabbed an oil lamp before continuing down to the dress room. By now I had gotten dressed enough times that I knew how to do it properly myself on this ship. Sometimes I did miss my baker dresses, the flowery patterns that would cover them and the tie front corsets, but my new skirts over my chemise was much easier to put on and faster.

Beforehand I always struggled with the multiple skirt layers and the tight corset shirt over my chemise, now I just had to tie a skirt around my waist and put on my belt. That was basically all I had to do now, and I could do it in five minutes or less, whereas before I had to use at least twenty minutes to just get my skirt layers on.

I quietly picked out one of my dark chemises along with one of the back skirts in the chest. My belt laid where I had laid it last night, making it easy enough for me to differentiate between Jiyeon's and mine. Which might be just alright because as I had come to find out, they were two different sizes.

As I wandered back through the under deck I blex out the oil lamp and put it back in its plce before looking back to Sunghoon, who barely had bade it out of his hammock yet.

"I'll go up and find breakfast," I excused and he looked over at me before slowly smiling.

"I like your chemise," he spoke up making me snort at him in disbelief.

"I'll go up and get breakfast for us, be up soon," I warned and he immediately nodded at me as he rubbed his face in both of his hands.

I rushed up on deck and glanced around, noticing the crew crowding around a specific place, sending the message of that being the breakfast this morning.

"Soomin," Jay called out from the helm and I turned to look at him as he let the helm be under Jungwon's watch and he wandered down to me, "with the current wind and underwater streams we've had lately I think you can expect about a week."

"A week?" I questioned him in confusion.

"Till you're home," he explained and I blinked at him in shock, "you heard me."

"I'll be home in a week?" I exclaimed at him and he immediately nodded at me, "are you serious?"

"Unless sudden weather changes should come upon us then that's what our calculations say," Jay nodded before turning towards the helm, "right Jungwon?"

"Aye!" Jungwon piped in to agree as my grin slowly grinned.

"So now you know, sleep tight these days," Jay remarked with an amused smile on his face before I brought him into a hug, "Oh -- okay."

"Thank you for being kind to me while I've been here," I murmured and he patted my back softly.

"It's the bare minimum," he excused softly before pulling away from me, "get some breakfast, alright? The sun is already scorching today, you'll need proper food and water."

"Of course," I nodded and hurriedly rushed over to the crowding around breakfast.

For the entire morning I seemed to be vibrating in my spot out of pure excitement. I simply couldn't stand still the whole morning.