If You

Assignment

Emily hefted the box a little higher and nudged the door open with her elbow. "Here's the last one," she called.

"What are you doing?!" Jiyong exclaimed, taking the box before she could protest.

"It's not even that heavy," she huffed.

"You shouldn't be lifting anything," he countered, setting the box on the table with several others. "We have to be careful about-"

"The anemia, I know," Emily finished, rolling her eyes. "I'm not helpless."

"I know," he said, kissing her on the forehead, "but I like taking care of you."

He went back to the window and Emily looked around the apartment. "I almost feel bad about not living in the house while you're away," she said. "Such a beautiful home sitting empty for months at a time, and spending extra money on the apartment."

"Hush," Jiyong chided as he wrangled a curtain rod above the window. "You make it sound like we can't afford to do whatever we want."

Emily knew countering this was pointless, even if her thrifty southern sensibilities were having a hard time adjusting. "Did you really need to take a whole day off just to hang curtains?" she teased. "I could've hired someone."

"Maybe, but would they have my artistic eye?" he said, clipping the rings to the curtain.

"Those are for the shower curtain, Mr. Artist."

"What the-" Jiyong looked at the rings more closely and sighed. "To be fair, I did think those rings looked a little flimsy," he said as he climbed down the ladder.

Emily's phone buzzed and she checked it. "Daesung and Seungri are almost here," she said. "How are you feeling about the meeting?"

"I told you, I'm fine," he assured her, grabbing the correct rings and sliding them onto the curtain rod. "The recruitment officer I talked to seemed optimistic that I'd get a nearby assignment, so I don't think there's anything to worry about."

He climbed down and stepped back to admire his work. "What do you think?" he asked.

Emily examined the arrangement and sighed. "You were right about the gray," she admitted. "It does look nice with the wallpaper."

"Like I said, I've got the eye," he said, then there was a knock on the door and Jiyong smiled at her. "It's open," he called, putting his arms around her.

The guys came in and Seungri let out a whistle. "Nice place," he said, taking in the room with a sweeping glance.

"Nice color choice," Daesung said appreciatively, nodding at the curtains.

Emily rolled her eyes. "We get it, gray's a nice color," she said. "Are we ready to go?"

"I didn't realize you were in such a hurry to meet with military officers," Seungri commented.

"I'd rather get it over with and know where they're sending him," she said, squeezing Jiyong's hand. "Maybe I can convince them not to take you at all."

Jiyong just smiled and shook his head at her. "Let's go," he said, grabbing his sunglasses.

The recruitment office was in a part of Seoul Emily hadn't been to, and the unfamiliarity didn't help her anxiety. "Do you feel sick?" Jiyong asked concernedly. "Should we pull over?"

"I'm okay," she promised, gritting her teeth hard.

They parked near the entrance and all of them entered the building together. Emily sensed a subtle change in the guys' demeanor as they crossed the threshold, making them stand taller as they approached the receptionist. "Kwon Jiyong, Kang Daesung and Lee Seunghyun to see Major Jeon Jaehyun," Jiyong said respectfully.