Evolution of a lover's heart | jjk

44

"You don't need to pay me back, I promise."

"I'll feel bad if I just... let you."

You pat the spot next to you on the couch, "I won't if it makes you uncomfortable, but trust me, I only offer because I want to. I like caring for you.

Jeongguk pauses, biting his lip before he mumbles, "hold on."

You wait while he leaves his living room, looking through the Netflix app on your phone in the meantime.

"Did you find it?"

You lift your head to see Jeongguk in the same hoodie as before, but he's traded his sweatpants for black basketball shorts.

"Yeah. Ant-man for the Marvel enthusiast."

He rolls his eyes just as the movie starts behind him, and you watch him plop down on the couch next to you.

"Only for a little bit," he warns, placing his legs on your lap.

"Of course," you agree, pulling the blanket out from underneath his calves and draping it on top.

Gently, you run your hands over his skin, from the middle of his shins down to the hem of his black socks and up all the way to his knees. Then, you focus on one leg, kneading the impressive calf muscle and reveling in the satisfied groan that leaves Jeongguk's lips.

That's how you spend the majority of the movie, you working through his gym-sore legs, his calves, and his thighs, and when you feel somewhat satisfied, Jeongguk pulls you onto his lap. You don't tell him that that's the absolute best way to 'pay you back' because you think he's already worked it out on his own, after all.

---

Although Jeongguk makes a lot of progress, it turns out that he has struggled with more things than you could've ever imagined.

One thing, you've certainly noticed. It's hard not to when he always pulls away the second your kisses and touches start to get heated. At first, you attributed it to his overall carefulness, but you can tell there's something more.

You never push him to do anything; always intent on letting him know that you don't expect to touch him, that it's his choice.

But six days after Jeongguk drove to your parents' house, he's on top of you, wine-flushed cheeks and mesmerized eyes.

You've returned from another successful restaurant date, kissing all the way up in the elevator, and somehow, you ended up on Jeongguk's bed.

When his skilled mouth finds your neck, you close your eyes and let out a breathy moan. One of your hands grips loosely at his hair, and the other is placed on his back, holding him to you.

It's still dark in his bedroom, no one bothered switching the lights on, and Jeongguk is all you feel. He smells like cologne and like love and like him, and you're so in love with everything about it. Everything about him.

But your hands long to feel his naked skin, and so you let the one on his back fall to his chest and the buttons of his dress shirt. He never minds being shirtless around you, in fact, nowadays, he seems to prefer it if the temperature allows it. Still, you unbutton the first button slowly to give him time to stop you, just in case.

And stop you, he does.

Abruptly, he sits up, one hand smoothly buttoning the shirt back up like nothing happened. "Hey, do you wanna watch Ant-man two?"

His eyes don't really meet yours, an indication that something isn't quite right, but you're so taken off guard by Ant-man two that you don't immediately question it.