Honor and Glory | ATEEZ

037

"Hot and bothered," San tutted, repeating my words yet again as I squirmed underneath his gaze.

"Well we can't have that, can we?" he said, and I shivered again as he stepped even closer to me.

His body felt warm against mine, which was new, but that could also just have been my own body temperature going haywire as my mind began to swirl with thoughts about the ice elemental.

He was standing so close, his body pressing against mine, that I felt like I almost couldn't breathe as I stared into his beautiful grey eyes.

I had to look away.

He moved his head to my side, whispering in my ear which only made me shiver again.

"I had no idea you felt that way," he said, his voice so low that it was barely anything but a breath that ghosted over the skin on my neck, leaving a trail of goosebumps in its wake.

"I'll keep that in mind, then," he said, and a moment of silence passed between us before he continued.

The only sounds in the quiet forest were our soft breathing and the sound of my irregular heartbeat.

"Goodnight, princess," San finally whispered, pushing himself off the tree as he walked back out of the forest and into the clearing where the others were heading off to sleep.

Leaving me behind, completely breathless and all alone

My heart hammering, my mind blank, and worst of all, flustered.

When morning finally came, I was awoken by the crescent sun's rays' blinding light hitting my face, warming my cheeks, and probably turning them rosy.

I rubbed my eyes, yawning and stretching my arms above my head as I curled up closer to Seongwha who I had fallen asleep with last night.

I didn't want to be alone with my thought.

I couldn't be alone with my thoughts.

And because I didn't want to cry over my mother's death, or think about San's words from last night, I had snuggled up close to the darkness elemental as he had always made me feel safe and content.

"Yeosang, Wooyoung, and Jongho have gone out to look for more food. They thought it was better to save the rest of our provisions for the trip and eat something else in the meantime."

Seongwha's voice was nothing more than a whisper.

He sounded tired, and I completely understood him, simply nodding my head and yawning again.

I turned my back to the ravenette, and he followed my movements, laying on his side as well as he hugged me from the back.

The way he pressed against me made me feel small and safe in his embrace.

I couldn't help but crack a smile as a series of images and memories popped into my head.

"This reminds me of the sleepovers that we used to have," I mumbled.

"Except for the lack of comfortable mattresses and pillows, and the overwhelming smell of grass and dirt here."

Seongwha laughed, though the sound was muffled by my hair as he pulled me even closer and planted a small kiss on the top of my head.

I opened my eyes and took a moment to admire the clearing in front of us, watching how the morning sun's rays covered everything in a warm golden light.

Without realizing it, my gaze flickered to San who was sitting a little further away from Seonghwa and me, locking eyes with San's grey ones as they flashed with an emotion I couldn't quite place.