Who I've Been Searching For | Sungjoy

Chapter 21: The Morning After

Joy woke up to Sungjae's snoring. She couldn't help it.

It was just so DAMN LOUD.

She sat up slowly, the blankets draped around her body like a cape and looked down at Sungjae sleeping beside her.

They had decided to stop after a few hours of lovemaking past midnight, although Sungjae had insisted that he could keep on going. Joy had instead told him it wasn't about his stamina, but more about the fact that they had the final meeting with SM Research later in the day.

It felt right sleeping with Sungjae again. His presence comforted her and gave her the strength and determination to see the mission until the end.

She lay back down and rested her head on his arm, tracing Sungjae's face with her fingers before she felt sleep claim her again.

--

Sungjae woke up with the sun glaring down on his face. Scrunching his face, he tried to lift his arm to block the sunlight but found that he couldn't move it.

Dazed, he looked over and saw Joy sleeping beside him, her head resting on his arm. Her hair was dishevelled, and her bare shoulder was just peeping over the white duvet, but to Sungjae, she looked like ethereal.

He rolled over and kissed her softly.

He watched as Joy's eyes twitched as she woke up.

"What time is it?" she asked him, still not willing to open her eyes.

"Early," Sungjae replied, trying to find a clock in the mess that they had created in the bedroom.

Joy finally opened her eyes and saw Sungjae staring back at her.

"What?" she asked him, covering half of her face with her blanket.

"Why are you so pretty?" Sungjae asked her.

Joy flushed as she hit him. "You're so cringy!"

"It's the truth!" Sungjae said as he took the hits, making Joy laugh.

Joy dove and pressed her lips against Sungjae's.

"Good morning," she whispered into his ear, her breath tickling him.

Sungjae kissed her cheek in response, letting his lips rest against her softness. "Good morning," he replied. "Shall we go get breakfast?"

"We need to shower first," Joy pushed Sungjae away.

"Are we showering together?" Sungjae asked, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"As long as we actually get clean," Joy mock-sighed, but she grabbed Sungjae by the wrist and dragged him into the bathroom.

--

Sungjae walked out of the bathroom alone, Joy having already exited earlier. He tousled his hair with the towel as he rounded the corner, searching for Joy.

And there she was, sitting by the window, looking out at the cityscape as she brushed her hair methodically.

Sungjae slipped back into the bedroom and withdrew his phone from his bag and returned to watch Joy who hadn't noticed him yet. Pleased with his sneakiness, Sungjae carefully angled the camera on his phone to take the perfect shot of Joy.

The sound of shutter going off instantly alerted Joy to Sungjae's presence. She turned around and found Sungjae grinning as he took another candid shot of her.

"What are you doing?" she asked him as she continued to brush her hair.

"I just want to preserve this moment," he told her as he looked up from his phone, giving her an eye-smile.