The piercing call of an alarm drags you all too unwillingly from slumber, and with this undesirable rousing comes a muffled groan. You shift and drag your hands across your face, pausing when you feel movement beside you.

"Sorry," you murmur quietly, "did I wake you?" Something warm encircles your waist and you feel more than see your lover hum a negative and shake his head. Even so, there's a small amount of guilt that sprouts in you, knowing he was supposed to have the day off, for the first time in months. That should've meant sleeping in with the dogs to keep him company while you went to work, not him waking with you.

Just as you're thinking this, you hear barking outside the bedroom, accompanied by the sound of tiny claws clacking against the floor. You tap the arms that have caged you against the bed and they reluctantly release you so you can say good morning to Oscar and PJ.

When their food bowls are filled and they've settled down somewhat, you temporarily lock them in one of the other rooms to return to your own. He's sitting up in bed when you come back in, a serious case of bed head and hints of sleep still making his features softer than usual. It's a sight you don't see often, and secretly one of your favorites. It gets even better when he smiles at your reentry and pats the bed next to him. Grinning, you climb back up and nestle beside him as he pulls the blankets back over you.

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah they were just excited by the alarm I think."

"Good. Now where were we?" You giggle as his arms close you in against him, and you savor the comforting warmth of his presence and tilt your head to smile mischievously up at him.

"You were convincing me to stay in bed with you," you reply as he leans down to kiss your forehead. Though his eyes are playful as he looks at you, everything about his touch and the way he shifts to pull you closer is slow and gentle, actions tinged with sleep and a reluctance to let you go. The two of you so rarely get quiet moments like this. He's always been good about making time for you since you started seeing each other what feels like yesterday, but small dinner dates and movie nights (where he falls asleep on your shoulder and you follow suit until the dogs remind you to sleep in bed not on the couch) are not the same. You scarcely ever have the chance to just sit and be with each other, to marvel at the way just being next to him makes your heart feel like a balloon that might pop. It's no wonder he's doing everything in his power to savor it.

"Well, is it working?" He asks, nose brushing yours. You close your eyes and smile again.

"Maybe a little... But I really should get up soon." Your last words are verbalized as a half sigh and it's clear he can see the idea alone of going to work is exhausting you. Normally you adore your job, but there's been so much stress, you can feel it in the way sore spots in your body seem to scream as you move to get up. He sighs.

"What time do you need to go in?"

"As early as possible. We still have a lot to get done for this project and since I'm spearheading it..." You trail off as he gently pushes you onto your side and reaches across you for your phone. Before you can protest, he shows you the screen, your timer app pulled up and the numbers one and zero sitting happily together above the ‘start’ button.

"Ten minutes. You can take ten more minutes to sleep, and then go. No one will know, and then you'll be better rested to handle it." You know he's right, so rather than object, you sink down into the bed, enjoying the comforting warmth of him settling next to you. Your eyes close and do your best to forget about the mountain of work waiting for you, choosing instead to focus on the way the bed cradles your exhausted form just right, and the soothing feeling as he runs his hands along your back and shoulders to send you tumbling into blissful sleep.

When your alarm goes off next, you sigh in annoyance, but upon opening your eyes you notice that you definitely feel a little bit better than when you first awoke. Your boyfriend is still sitting in bed next to you, this time scrolling through something on his own phone. And even bothered to get dressed, it seems, even if it means only throwing on a black tee that’s beginning to fade and some sweats. He looks up when you straighten and stretch, and smiles when you lean over to kiss his cheek.

“Have I ever mentioned how much I love you, Park Jaebeom?” His grin turns impish, but you don’t like it any less.

“Not nearly enough.” You swat at him but it’s half-hearted and he dodges it easily. Instead, he catches your wrist and tugs you closer so you end up with your head on his shoulder and arms around his neck. You linger there for a few moments, legs settling on either side of his so you can wrap yourself around him as much as possible. With the faint scent of laundry detergent filling your nose from his shirt, you murmur something that sounds like well I do into the cotton, and his arms tighten around your waist.

“I know. I love you too. Now go get ready so you can come back here later and you can fall asleep while I watch some movie you have no interest in.” You sigh and detach yourself to get dressed and put on as much makeup as you can be bothered with. Though any good mood your lazy morning has afforded you will have disappeared when you get back, at least you know you have something, and someone, to look forward to.