Addicted To You

26 - Be Quiet

The giant whale plushie under my arm was comforting, warm, and snuggly. I was groggy, my back hurt, and had no idea where I was when I opened my eyes. Jinki was on the pillow beside me, but the room was not mine. It was much brighter than I was used to.

As the last remnants of sleep dissipated, I remembered being on the sofa and Kyun covering me with a blanket. I was now in bed, so someone must have carried me. I smiled as I stretched and then cuddled the whale. It made me think of Minhyuk which brought those bittersweet feelings. Jinki reached out her paw to stretch, yawned, changed positions, and went back to sleep.

They had told me they would be in Jooheon's studio for a while and then Changkyun and Jooheon had a Zoom meeting later with their team in the US. I burrowed deeper under the thick thermal comforter, not wanting to leave its warmth. I stuck my arm out to get my phone off the nightstand and checked the time. It was 5:26 PM Korean time, which meant it was early morning at home. I had expected to sleep longer, but my body was very confused.

I texted the guys that I was awake. I talked myself into getting up and slipped into the adorable whale slippers and a purple robe that was waiting for me on the back of the dressing table chair. I went to the kitchen to feed Jinki and forage for snacks. I found an assortment of goodies and plenty of cup ramyun in the cupboard.

They had left everything I needed to make drip coffee, plus my favorite French Vanilla creamer was in the fridge. Now someone was going to have to teach me how to make it properly. I had a Keurig at home. It looked like I was going to have to work for it here.

I didn't want to fill up since they were bringing me food, so I stuck to the snacks. I examined each package, sounding out the Hangul. Some of them I recognized from my local Asian grocery, and some were new to me. I munched on a Choco Pie and a small bag of shrimp chips. I checked out the view from the tiny balcony while I appeased my growling stomach with junk food.

When I finished, I pulled out my suitcases and started unpacking. I put it all away and stowed the cases in the corner. We wouldn't be moving around this time. This would be our home for the next few months, so I wanted to make it as comfortable as possible. Jinki had her own bin for her sweaters and walking harnesses.

Looking around the apartment, I noticed several touches that I knew the guys had arranged, aside from the roses, slippers, robe, and Jinki's food. There was a framed photo of the eight of us at the falls in Helen. There was a pair of thick gloves and a fleece scarf along with a beautiful light blue cashmere sweater and matching fuzzy socks in a gift box on the table. I held up the sweater and fawned over its softness. It was obviously an expensive gift and I wanted to know who it was from. I needed to thank him.

I looked more closely at the trinkets I had spotted earlier. One was a Siamese cat figurine and the other was a beautiful whale-shaped glass dish that looked like it was a place to put rings and the like. The paintings had caught my eye earlier and I went to examine them. I realized they were made by Minhyuk. That made me smile, knowing I was surrounded by his artwork.

The paintings were whales, abstract images, and flowers mostly in shades of blue and green with yellow accents. The rich tones were echoed in the furnishings. The white walls and large windows made the whole place bright and airy. The deep blue sofa was filled with accent pillows in blue, green, and white. The throw on the back was white and furry, and very warm from what I remembered. It matched the rug that covered the floor in front of the sofa. I wanted to dig my toes into it but there was no way I was taking off the slippers yet. I was still cold, even though the room was warm and I was curious about how warm the floors really are. I would explore that later.

It was getting close to dinner time and my snacks hadn't carried me very far. The guys would be finished soon, so I washed my face, brushed my teeth, and changed into a fresh set of off-white joggers and the new sweater. The matching socks finished the outfit. I brushed my hair and left it down from the ponytail to keep my ears warm. I wasn't used to this kind of cold.