Wonho was three days late.

It was three in the morning but he didn’t care. He was late and he needed to see her fast. When he arrived at her apartment unit, the light was off and it was too quiet to his liking, even though he was well aware that it was indeed three in the morning. She was probably sleeping, but he knew he needed to be there regardless the time.

He pressed the doorbell, waiting anxiously for an answer.

It wasn’t long when the door clicked softly. The girl he had been expecting appeared behind the door. She didn’t look like she had been sleeping, but she looked so pale and sick.

“Wonho.” She said softly.

“I’m sorry,” Wonho frowned, “I’m sorry I couldn’t make it to your mother’s funeral.”

The girl cupped , tears bursting from her eyes.

For the whole nine years he had known her, it was his first time seeing her cry. She didn’t even cry when in front of him when she broke up with her boyfriend of three years.

It broke him to pieces to see her breaking down.

Wonho stepped inside and pulled her slim frame into an embrace. She cried hard on his shoulders for hours, until she fell asleep. He wouldn’t be surprised if she told him that she hadn’t been crying before he came.

Wonho tucked her into bed and ten lied next to her. He held her hand and just watched as she breathed calmly in her sleep until he unknowingly shut his eyes.

Wonho could feel her moving slightly. He opened his eyes. The digital clock at the bedside table across him showed 6.05 a.m. The sky was still dark, but it will get bright soon. And then his eyes landed on hers. Jaehee was awake, but she was still in her position, lying down and facing him.

“Wonho.” She called him.

“Hm?” He reached for her face. His thumb traced the glistening trail of her dried tears along her cheek.

“Thank you. For being here.”

“Jaehee yah,” hecalled her, his voice soft and soothing. He scooted closer to her and pulled her close to him. Jaehee temporarily closed her eyes as she inhaled his smell. For the first time since her mother passed away, she finally felt at peace. Wonho’s arms tightened around her, and she hugged him back, albeit a bit timidly. She had had a crush on him for awhile now, and she could tell he felt that way about her too. She was just afraid that if she acted too bold, he might reject her, because of his career and all.

“I really want to be with you.” He kissed the top of her head. “I really want to take care of you, and grow old with you. Will you let me?”

Jaehee slightly pushed him away and looked into his eyes. Her eyes were wet with tears again.

“I’d love to.” Jaehee nodded.

“Ssh… Don’t cry…” Wonho kissed her forehead, and then her lips.

-

It had only been six months since then, but a lot had changed. Monsta X, the band that he was in had had a breakthrough. They were wildly received in so many countries and were in demand everywhere. Everyone got really busy, and sometimes they were so tired that work almost became unbearable. Their leader tried to keep everyone in a positive mind, and though he felt bad for not always being with her, Wonho was thankful that Jaehee was always supporting him.

Wonho just got back from an oversea schedule which had lasted three days, but a couple of weeks before that he was so busy with the preparation of a comeback he didn’t see Jaehee at all. They only communicated through social messengers. Jaehee was always a strong and independent girl, but sometimes Wonho felt like he had to step up his game and be a better boyfriend she would want to depend on.

Ever since her mother passed away, Jaehee had been living alone in her old apartment. There was big pro to it, though. Wonho liked it that he could just crash at her place anytime he wanted, given the limited time he had he could spend with her. Jaehee didn’t mind him coming at random times too.

And today was like that too. Wonho did tell her that he will be coming around eight o’ clock, only just so he could surprise her by arriving at six. He didn’t even press the bell. He had the key of her apartment, so he sneaked in quietly. Jaehee was in the kitchen, preparing for what seemed like their dinner.

She was standing buy the kitchen counter, scrolling through her tablet for a recipe. She had her apron on, her hair put up in a messy ponytail. She was humming to Monsta X songs, completely comfortable and unaware. That was when Wonho crept behind her and surprised her with a backhug.

Jaehee gasped loudly, turning around abruptly only to let out a relieved sigh when she found out that it was Wonho.

“I thought you’re coming later?” she rested her palm on her chest. It felt like it was going to jump out. Despite going official since six months ago, she still got butterflies and massive heart pounding whenever she saw him because they rarely meet face to face.

“I lied.” Wonho smirked. That mere act alone caused her knees to turn jelly. She tried to hide the fact though. But then, Wonho stepped closer to her, in fact so close she could his breath on her skin. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her so close to him there was no space left between them.

“I missed you so much.”

A bubbling happiness filled inside her, causing her cheeks to blush. “I missed you too.” After a while, he loosened on her. Jaehee looked into his eyes, smiling shyly.

“When did you get back?”

“Mm, a couple of hours ago. I went straight here form the airport.”

“You must be tired. Get some rest while I prepare dinner.”

“Oh, but I want to help.” Wonho rested his palm on the kitchen counter, trapping Jaehee in between.

“Oh, you don’t have to. I can-” her sentence was interrupted when Wonho pulled on her hair scrunchie, letting her long hair fell free.

“Your hair had grown longer.” He commented, his voice deep and low, slightly husky as he said it.

Jaehee laughed nervously. She gently placed her palm on his chest, trying to push him away.

“Wonho, I have to make dinner. My hair would get into the food.”

Wonho just smirked. He refused to let her go just yet. It had been so long, he needed her. He wanted to feel her. His fingers played with her long hair and his other arm was wrapped tightly around her waist, pressing her body towards his harder.

“Dinner can wait.” Wonho crushed his lips on hers. He was gentle at first, but dominant and bold. The kiss grew hungrier and impatient, causing her knees to grow weaker that she had to hold onto him harder. She accidentally let out a couple of timid moans. Wonho smirked to her reaction. He knew that she would feel embarrassed to let out such sounds, but teasing her was fun. When he pulled back, her face was completely flushed, and her hair was all over the place, which made him want to have her even more. He decided to let her have it easy for the time being. He helped out with preparing dinner, sneaking up little kisses on her jaw and her neck from time to time.

They had dinner together and then cuddled on the sofa. The tv was on, but none of them was paying attention to it. They simply had a quiet conversation, catching up with each other. Wonho voiced out his concern about not seeing her often enough, but Jaehee convinced him that she was fine. She loved all the videos and pictures he shared with her daily, but Wonho complained that she didn’t do that for him enough in return. Being an interior designer, she said things could get mundane. Meeting with her boss, meeting with the suppliers, meeting with the clients, spending a large amount of time on the computer to produce construction drawings, she had nothing interesting to share. Wonho begged to differ. He wanted to know everything about her, whether she was tired or happy or lonely. The most mundane things in life are important for him if it was about her. Wonho managed to convince Jaehee to share more about her daily whereabouts, and then they made out. That night, they made love for the first time.

-

Two years into their relationship, they were still together. The dynamic had changed by a lot, and by now, both of them were considering if it was right to keep being together. Monsta X was at the peak of their career. Everyone from different age groups, recognized and adored them. They had a couple of chart topping albums under their belt and Wonho’s recent solo debut were a big success. If he didn’t decide to focus on music, Wonho could have starred in a couple of box office movies looking at the many offers coming in.

Jaehee on the other hand, had been busy with her job too. She worked over twelve hours for almost everyday. They met less and less, and sometimes none of them cared anymore because they were too tired. They didn’t fight a lot, but that worried her more. When they did meet, they didn’t spend time long enough to rekindle their feelings towards each other. It felt like their relationship had reduced to no more than skin deep.

So they decided to take a break. It had been three months, and it was as if they were freed from constraining shackles called commitment. None of them bothered to contact each other, and when they felt like it, they held back, thinking it would be awkward.

One day, Jaehee got into an accident from a construction site visit. She had a bad case of head injury as well as a concussion. She was unconscious for three days, and was told by the doctor that she might need to spend some time in the hospital until her full recovery. She had few friends and relatives coming to visit, but later on at night, she would feel so lonely.

It came as a surprise when Wonho suddenly showed up, along with the other Monsta X members. They were all very supportive of her relationship with Wonho, and helped out a lot to make their relationship works.

Jaehee was touched that they went out of their way to visit her at the hospital. She was not sure whether they knew about Wonho and her taking a break though. After some short chat, they all left, except for Wonho.

It was quiet and awkward for a while.

“They don’t know about us yet.” Wonho suddenly said.

“I see. When are you planning to tell them?”

Wonho lowered his gaze. He avoided the question without any excuse.

“How did it happened? How could you get so careless?” His tone slightly reprimanding.

“It was an accident. No one could see it coming. It just happened.”

 Wonho sighed, burying his head in his hands.

“It’s hard.” He said. Jaehee was a little confused. What did he mean?

“It’s hard without you, baby. When I heard that you had an accident, I was so scared. When I think that you could be gone, I just… I’m a mess.” His eyes had gone red, he was holding back his tears.

“Wonho…”

“It’s not right, Jaehee. Us not being together, it’s not right.”

Tears rolled down Jaehee’s cheeks. “Wonho, I… Honestly… I really wanted to meet you. I wish you could be here by my side, because… It really hurts without you. But.. That’s too selfish, isn’t it?” Jaehee continued to sob. Wonho reached for her hand and kissed it over and over again.

“No. It was all my fault. I want to be good to you, Jaehee. I want to be better. Let’s start again, and don’t ever, ever leave me again.” Wonho took a deep breath. “I love you so much, Jaehee.”

“I love you too, and I’m sorry for everything.”

Wonho got up from the chair and sat at the edge of the bed. He hugged her tight, and just savored the time quietly like that. By now, they both realized they would only be at peace in each other’s arms.

-

Two years and eleven months into their relationship, including their three months break, now both Wonho and Jaehee were stronger than ever. They both knew how to surprise each other and make their relationship fresh despite not being able to meet often. As always, for being a celebrity, it was a taboo to let anyone know that he was in a relationship. It was Christmas Eve so they simply planned to have a special dinner at Jaehee’s apartment. Even though he was still busy, his group hadn’t been active for the past few months. He was lucky to not have any special schedule on Christmas Eve.

“Hey.” Once again, Wonho surprised her with a backhug while she was getting the table ready. She was dressed in a tight black dress which complimented her curves well, and he was in a tailored suit. The light was dim, but looking at the way she was smiling at him, he could tell that she was blushing.

“You never use the doorbell, don’t you?” She laughed.

“I’m your boyfriend. the doorbell.” He smirked.

Jaehee rested her arms around his neck. “You look so handsome today.”

“And you look gorgeous.” Wonho abruptly pulled her closer to him, earning a gasp from her as their bodies brushed against each other. A soft music was playing in the background, it was the playlist he had sent to her yesterday, for the sake of tonight’s dinner. Wonho didn’t feel like having dinner yet. Instead, they just swayed their bodies together along the soft music.

“I have missed you so much.” Wonho told her, even though they just met yesterday.

“I missed you too.”

To his surprise, she kissed him first. It wasn’t the first time, but that didn’t happen often. When she did, he was the one who got jelly knees.

Her fingers fiddled with his short hair while Wonho rubbed his palm up and down her small back, pulling her closer as their kiss deepened. From the look of it, they might have their dinner way, way later into the night.