Chapter 16:
I Am My Father's DaughterYejin's body was awake before her mind, the cloud slowly lifting as she rolled over closer to the heat that was radiating under the blanket. She felt her legs tangled with another pair that she knew weren't hers, humans only had two legs not four. The daze sleep was causing her left her very confused when her hands landed on something long, warm and firm. Cracking an eye open, thoroughly bemused by the extra legs and thing under her hands, she had to see what it was in her bed.
“Huh,” she breathed out mildly surprised.
Next to her was a sleeping Xiumin, no Minseok, Xiumin was a guarded man with high defenses and an attitude that rivaled Yejin's, but the man sleeping next to her had his guard down looking completely at peace. Next to her was Minseok and the realization made her heart race and the fog fully lift. It was his legs hers were tangled with, and his right forearm was what her hands landed on, his hand buried under the pillow.
Reaching out she brushed a few stray locks of wavy auburn hair off his forehead and temple, giving her an uninterrupted view of his sleeping face. The action made Minseok stir, a noise between a grunt and a sigh left his throat as he rolled over to face her. As his eyes pinched shut then slowly blinked open Yejin lowered her hand, pulling both of them to her chest as she watched him wake up. At first he opened his eyes seeing nothing then after several blinks his gaze focused and Yejin could tell he was seeing her clearly. Neither of them said anything as they just laid there with their eyes locked in a steady stare.
Ten minutes passed quietly and without rush in an almost pleasant tick-tock fashion. Part of Yejin never wanted it to end while another part –the sassy jester part– couldn't keep her witty remark to herself.
“Your apologies have greatly improved,” she said with a half smile.
Minseok pfft trying not to laugh at her comment, a smile pulling at his face as he used his left hand to tiredly scrub at his face. As he laid his arm along his side he met Yejin's gaze again, shifting his right one further under his pillow propping his head up a bit more.
“I should have seen that coming,” he huffed.
“Yeah, I'm not much of a 'good morning' sort of person,” she joked.
“I've noticed,” he murmured.
Yejin tittered as she untangled her legs from his so she could roll onto her stomach and lift her head off the pillows to have the higher view on him. Crossing her ankles below the blanket thoughts of last night drifting through her mind, then something he said hit her that she didn't quite comprehend in the moment came to her. Grabbing a pillow to hug to her bare chest Yejin propped herself up with it and her elbows as she eyed the yawning man beside her.
“You remember that night last month?” she inquired.
Wiping the tears away from the yawn he released a heavy sigh like he had been caught red handed but wasn't going to fight it. “I have a very high tolerance for alcohol,” was all he said.
She nodded.
Yejin thought about asking why he never said anything about it, but the answer she was bound to hear would be the same thing she had been muttering to herself since that night, along with his usual excuse of he was working. The only reason they were spending any time together was because Xiumin took his work very seriously and admitting he had gotten weak while on the job was something she could tell he was never going to admit.
Popping her lips she dropped her chin onto the pillow she held trying to find the right words to say what she needed to say. He spoke before she could.
“You're trying to kick me out aren't you?” he said almost insulted.
“Yeah,” she drawled guiltily. “I want to take a shower and a cappuccino when I get out. Please, I'll include bacon with breakfast.” She pouted as she kicked her feet against the bed.
“Make it a full English breakfast,” he haggled.
“Deal, now get out,” she shooed.
When he didn't move she thumped him with her pillow forcing him to roll out of bed. He groaned as he searched the floor for his clothes, yanking on his jeans to at least cover himself before gathering the rest of his attire and heading for the door.
“You are a bossy morning person,” he commented on his way out.
“Not just in the morning,” she called after him.
He said something else as he slid into the hall that Yejin didn't quite catch but it sounded like I don't want to know. She laughed as she tossed the comforter aside and shimmied off the bed. A literal good morning in the happening for the first time in ages, she couldn't remember the last time she had a smile on her face before breakfast. In fact, had that ever happened before? Maybe. . . Once, long ago perhaps, but Yejin couldn't recall it.
After a wonderful shower, humming a selection of 80's power ballads, Yejin wrapped herself in a fluffy cream colored towel and skipped to her closet to get dressed. One pair of gray skinny jeans, a purple and orange floral print top, and her hair twisted into a bun later she emerged from her room to the delicious smell of coffee that filled the condo. She made her way to the kitchen where a mug of the asked for cappuccino was sitting on the counter with extra foam. Scooping it up Yejin took a cautious sip, the temperature perfect and the taste heavenly. Smiling she took a longer drink enjoying the heat that filled her.
“Good?” Minseok chuckled.
Lowering the mug she turned to see him leaning in the archway between the kitchen and the dining room, a smirk on his handsome face and his eyes bright.
“I don't feel like I need to answer that,” she said. A smirk of her own crossing her face as she sat the mug back on the counter as she moved to get things out of the fridge.
“You're right, I know how amazing my skills are,” he said smugly.
Yejin snorted a laugh.
“Are you contradicting my words?” he questioned with mock horror.
With her arms full of the ingredients for breakfast she moved away from the refrigerator snickering with laughter as she placed the load down on the counter. As she turned back to face him, he was now holding a mug of his own coffee, and she said, “I would never do that.”
His gaze playfully narrowed at her. “I don't believe that for a second.”
“You're almost as smart as you are easy on the eyes,” she teased. She shot him a wink as she turned to start breakfast.
“Coming from you I'm not sure if that's a compliment, double insult, or you just looking for a way to call me an exceptionally good looking genius,” he remarked.
“Yes.”
Minseok chortled as she heard feet pad away out of the kitchen.
Peering over her shoulder she saw him gone and a soft giggle left her. Things felt brighter that morning, and Yejin had so much energy and enthusiasm as she cooked. That breakfast was roughly three times bigger than usual. After they ate and cleaned the dishes Minseok went to work on his laptop while Yejin the stereo to listen to some music while she read through any interesting news articles, which there really weren't so she switched to her favorite recipe website to find a new dish to try out sometime soon. It had turned into just another day.
“Hey,” Yejin said breaking the comfortable silence betw
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