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8. Who Are You?

She felt a faint tickle along her side and wiggled her body a little in response. The sensation intensified into a swirling pattern that started from the side of her breast and made its way to the crest of her hip bone. Before it went any lower, she opened her eyes.

The image before her was soft and picturesque, one of those scenes you only see flashes of in a sappy music video with the male lead laying in bed with a perfect smiling face in a white t-shirt and the sun on full blast behind him. It was just like that but somehow even better with his sleepy eyes that seemed bright and blissful, his cute messy hair and minus the shirt and blinding sunlight.

His eyes focused at the points at which his fingers traced over as his head rested on his folded arm. He glanced up at her face and his lips curled up when he saw her eyes open.

"Sorry. I wasn't trying to wake you up. You just look so soft and my hands just kind of ended up there." He shrugged, now firmly gripping her hip instead of lightly caressing it.

She reached for him and pulled herself against his body, tucking herself in between his arms and against his chest, her arm wrapped tightly around his waist. His eyes slightly widened in surprise and he held his arm in the air, waiting for her to get situated. She settled against him, cheek resting against his bare chest, and his arms enveloped her.

He sighed deeply as his fingers made soothing circles on the corner of her shoulder.

"How dare you be so handsome first thing in the morning. I need a minute to compose myself before I can look at you again." She mumble against his skin.

He snorted.

"Do what you like, as long as I can keep looking at you. Honestly, you are too beautiful for me to bring myself to look away."

"Aish who knew I would be such a sucker for this cringey stuff?" She squealed and squeezed him tighter. He laughed and swept the hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear.

"How is your side? Does it hurt?" Her fingers hovered over the bandages near his hip.

"A little, but it feels much better than it did before. By the way, how could someone who told me not to do any physical activity for a week be so reckless with my body?"

"I...I just..." She searched for some reasonable excuse, but found none. "Sorry." Her cheeks flared with color.

He smiled and bit his lip at her reaction. "Stop being so cute, you're killing me." He sighed again, this time listlessly rather than out of contentment. "I wish I could freeze time." He muttered.

"What will you do when you leave?" She asked cautiously.

"Go home and figure out how to make up for my mistake."

"Will I really never see you again?"

"I wish I could promise you that I could. I wish there was some way I could stay. This is not something I could escape from, though. They will never let me leave and it's too risky for me to be with you."

"Are you sure you're not some playboy just saying this so you could sleep with me and then never speak to me again?" Her eyes narrowed and he laughed.

"Maybe it's easier to just say that. Then you can hate me and forget me and never feel any regret that I am gone."

"I don't want to forget you, though."

He didn't respond and she grew curious at the silence. She pulled her head back to look at his face. It was still and somber. His eyes expressed more than his mouth could; apologies, missed opportunities and helplessness.