he huffed a little embarrassedly at her words, a hum of self satisfaction passing through his lips as he mumbled slightly out of sheepishness, letting out a nervous laugh at her words as he shifted slightly, careful not to overly jostle chaeyeon in his arms, a tender smile spreading over his lips at the sight of her melting gently into his embrace. “i know you can take care of yourself..its just..well, i just wanted to pamper you for a good moment, that’s all.” his cheeks tint with colour as he ducked his head slightly in embarrassment. his shoes click against the polished tiles as he blinked down at her, eyes tracing the contours of her features affectionately as she pressed her frame into his. “somehow, i always feel as though i’d like to protect you forever, even though i do know that you are more than capable of taking good care of yourself, you know? maybe its a part of guilt, maybe its something else but, what remains i guess is the fact that i’d rather let myself suffer first than put you through anything similar to whatever happened in the past.”
his grip tightens around her frame as his lips set softly into a gentle but pursed line, placing her carefully down on the sofa in the changing room he had described.
“i thought i should be the one that’s telling you that. that you’re just something that i couldn’t ever ask for more.” he admits. “who knew that you’d beat me to the line first?” his fingers brush aside her hair, almost meticulous as he gently arranged her hair to tuck behind her ears. “next time i swear i’m going to be the first one to say something cheesy but meaningful to you, instead of the other way around.” he hummed, offering chaeyeon a cheeky little wink as he settled himself next to her, slinging an arm around her shoulder delicately. “and too reiterate your words just now, i think, that you’re the perfect body pillow.”
“ — and i know, all of it. but we can’t live in the past, dojun. because i already love you, more than you can imagine, and i hope that for just one night we can be free,” without the weight of the past upon their chests. for once, maybe she could breathe freely. “do you think that i’ll leave you? is that what troubles you and keeps you concerned? because you’re always talking about the concept of forever — and it doesn’t exist. life is unpredictable, cruel, but sometimes, it can be beautiful too. and i won’t leave you. that i promise. we’ve always been together. since the day we met. and even with all the heartbreaks and distance and misunderstandings between us, we were together. it’s just that we didn’t know it at that time. i’m always going to be with you. it’s just the life i was destined to live,” was it all just theatrics? or perhaps a wild hunch? whatever it was, she believed this wasn’t just a coincidence. maybe they had hated each other in a past life with fierce passion. so now they were destined to spend it together.
“well that was a short walk,” she commented as she found herself on the couch, hands reaching for his in her hair. “you know, dojun, not everything in life has to be a competition. you don’t have to keep striving for greater heights. let me have my moment because you’re aware of just how bad i am at this. but i’m not just talking about myself here. you need to show more compassion towards other people. basically i’m trying to tell you that you should treat others in the same way that you want to be treated. and i’m telling you this not because i hate you, but because i love you,” it was a soft plea followed by her leaving an even softer kiss upon his forehead, “very very much.”