Book VIII: Unconditionally

2U

Joy's eyes fluttered open as she felt the warmth of Sungjae's arm slumped on her waist. She smiled, recalling what happened yesterday. She lifted her hand and stretched it in front of her to admire the ring on her finger. It's really happening, she thought. Gently, Joy turned to Sungjae, who lazily curved his lips to a smile, eyes still closed.

"Good morning...," he rasped while circling his thumb on Joy's bare stomach. "Last night was amazing, baby. You wore me out," he continued. Joy felt her cheeks flush from the compliment and tease. She pulled the blanket up to cover her face as she giggled. "Stop it..." she muffled.

Sungjae pulled the blanket down and hovered over her. "Wae? You didn't seem all that embarrassed last night," he teased. Joy felt the warmth of his presence with how close his face was to hers. She held her breath, seeing his hooded eyes staring at hers and his lips too close, she could almost taste them.

"Y-you're probably hungry. I'll make breakfast," Joy stuttered. She tried to get up, but Sungjae held her down. "Oh no, baby, you're not going anywhere," he hummed. Before Joy knew it, Sungjae's lips were already locked with hers, as he pulled up the sheets to cover them both.

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The pan hissed as a topless Sungjae fried bacon for breakfast. With only his boxers on, he walked over to the kitchen counter where Joy sat. She smiled adoringly at Sungjae, with a cup of hot chocolate in her hands. Joy closed her eyes as Sungjae brushed his lips on her temple. "This is a first for me," Joy said. Sungjae wrinkled his brows. "What do you mean? I've made you breakfast countless times," he asked.

Joy took a sip from her cup while holding back a giggle. "This is the first time a half-naked man's making breakfast in front of me."

"Yeah? Well, this is a first for me too," Sungjae stated.

"Hm? What is?" a curious Joy said.

"Making breakfast for my fiancée," he cooed.

Joy felt goosebumps and warmth on her cheeks spread. She softly slapped his chest. "Hajima...my fingers and toes are curling," she laughed. She sighed, ending her fit of laughter. "So am I going to be a cliché June bride?" she asked. Sungjae wrapped his arms around her. "Ani. Six months is the ideal time, right? We're doing it in May, to make our anniversary legally official," he said.

"Isn't that too soon for us, babe?" Joy wondered. He took her hand and played around with the ring on Joy's finger. "It's never too soon for us to get married. Besides...I can't wait 'til I have one like this on my finger too," he whispered to her. She was left speechless.

Sungjae cupped Joy's cheek with one hand and tucked a stray hair behind her ear with the other. He focused only on her slightly parted lips. Joy was still at a loss for words. In an instant, she felt the kitchen's temperature become warm. She raised her head to meet his gaze. And like in the movies, everything became a blur and their movements were in slow motion. Inch by inch, their lips came closer. So close, they could feel each other's breath.

A loud ringing suddenly blasted through the whole place, causing Joy to jump up and break their trance. A frustrated Sungjae heaved a sigh and walked over to his phone on the couch. He saw Eunkwang's number registered on the screen.

"Hyung! I was in the middle of something!" he whined to their leader. Sungjae's expression turned from whiny to serious, upon hearing Eunkwang's voice.

"Sungjae-ah, I'm at the CEO's office. You better get here quick. The others are on their way," the leader said flatly in an almost whisper.

"W-wae? Is something wrong?" he worriedly asked.