тнє ∂єνιℓ ιη уσυ | נυηg ∂αє нуυη

Shadows

__________

Dae Hyun had been awake the majority of the night, and he continued to lie awake at three twenty seven in the morning. Gently he through Sae Jin’s hair, watching and listening to her sleep soundly against his chest. Jong Up was in the next room over, hopefully sleeping as well; but Dae Hyun? Dae Hyun was not getting a wink of sleep tonight, he was sure of it.

“You’re still awake?” she whispered, shifting against his body as she stretched out her legs.

“Trust me, I don’t want to be,” he whispered back, his hand gently cupping the back of her head to hold it against his chest. His lips pressed against the top of her head to silence his own speech.

“Is it me? Do you not have enough room? I can move over—”

“No, it’s okay,” he interrupted, pulling her back to him, “I just can’t sleep,” he emphasized, looking down to meet her gentle eyes. They looked up at him with worry, enough for him to reiterate that it was okay.

“There’s a lot on your mind, you usually sleep like a baby,” she whispered, letting her right hand fall down his chest, tracing over his warm skin before pulling her hand back, realizing what she had been doing. Dae Hyun’s face didn’t change. The emotion on it remained the same. But he didn’t know what else to say to her. He couldn’t tell her that he actually hadn’t been sleeping well for the past three nights or longer. He couldn’t tell her the reason for it either.

Dae Hyun could only agree, despite it being a complete lie. But they both fell quiet upon a disturbance in the bathroom. The light flipped on and they could hear the sound of the door being locked.  Jong Up, the only reason there would be a disturbance in the bathroom. Their voices were kept mute as they listened to the younger male move about the small room. The sink ran for a few moments, the sound of water splashing on the countertop was faint, but recognizable.

Sae Jin’s eyes shot around the room as she listened to the sounds being made before looking up at Dae Hyun who just shook his head and pressed a soft finger to her lips, keeping her silent. Soon enough the sink turned off, as did the light as the door was unlocked. They could hear the sound of the mattress springs under Jong Up’s light weight, but in the dead silence of the house, a pin dropping to the floor could be heard.

Without a word, Dae Hyun removed himself from the bed and ambled across the floor to the bathroom. The door was closed and locked, and the lock from the other door could be heard as well as it clicked. The light flickered on and Sae Jin turned her face into the pillow Dae Hyun had been resting on. What was wrong with her tonight? What was wrong with him tonight?

The toilet flushed and the light shut off as the door opened. Dae Hyun rubbed his sleep eyes as he made his way back over to his side of the bed. A few delayed moments passed before he fell back into the sheets. He waited for Sae Jin to cuddle back up to him, but she didn’t. She was turned away from him and he could only hope that she was fast asleep.

He closed his eyes, hoping to get some sleep of his own before he felt her slender fingers tangled with his. Her arm draped over his body, her chest pressing up against his back as she spooned him. He could feel her soft breath on his ear and he gently bit his lip. “Is this okay?” she asked. It wasn’t usual that the girl was the big spoon, but Dae Hyun had a more than adequate reply.

“Every man likes to be held occasionally,” he whispered back to her, tightening his grip on her hand. He could feel her warm breath shift from his hear to his bare shoulder, her lips touching it softly. She closed her eyes, as did he as he tangled his legs with hers, weaving them together. In moments, he could tell that Sae Jin was fast asleep, and he wasn’t far behind. His eyes fluttered, getting heavier by the minute until they closed and didn’t open again for the rest of the night.

But when he woke, she wasn’t on his back anymore.  In fact, she wasn’t even in bed at all. He looked around with sleepy eyes, slightly blurred from a heavy night’s rest as he reached around the bed, looking for her frame to pull back against his, but she wasn’t there. “Sae Jin?” he called quietly, but loud enough to be heard throughout the room, as well as the bathroom.  

Two more days. Two more days was all he had with her before his mother and her father would return home. The days had gone by so fast, he had lost track of them almost. Two days; he couldn’t stand the thought of not being able to be so open with her anymore. How hard would it be? The door cracked open and Dae Hyun’s eyes shot to it, hoping for Sae Jin.

When her cute face emerged from behind the door, he smiled a cheeky eye-grin. “Good morning,” she whispered with a smile, creeping all the way into the room to close the door behind her. “I hope you slept well,” she added.

He stretched slightly, his body taking up the entirety of the bed. “I did,” he replied, “so well.” 

She moved to sit on the side of the bed and watched him, looked over his face and met his eyes multiple times as she reached up to his hair away from his eyes. “What time did you get up this morning?” he asked, watching her smile turn to a frown.

“Five thirty,” she replied.

“You were only in bed with me for two hours,” he said, his gaze shifting from her eyes to her lips, and back to her eyes as his soft fingers down her forearm that belonged with the hand previously combing through his hair. “There’s no way that’s enough sleep,” he said, his eyes looking between hers. The two pairs of brown orbs didn’t part for a while.

“It’s enough to last me the day,” she replied, her hand trailing down his bare chest, her eyes following as she touched over his warm skin. His hand rested on top of hers, feeling hers guide down his pale chest and his eyes followed as well before looking back to her face, watching her focus on her touch.

Sae Jin watched his chest rise and fall with his breath until her hand fell over his heart. It was an unconscious action, but she couldn’t help but enjoy the feel of it pounding against the cage of his chest, against her hand with a steady rhythm. Dae Hyun’s hand slid up her arm to wrap around her neck. In that instant, she could feel his heart beat a little faster and her eyes shifted back to his, which had closed as her face moved closer to his.

Their lips molded together in a soft kiss, his fingers gentle in her hair as he tried to tug her closer. It was a lingering kiss, and their lips didn’t part for a few moments. Sae Jin knew her heart was beating just as his was, the butterflies in her stomach going wild. The kiss ended with a soft suctioning noise, their lips parting reluctantly as both sets of eyes fluttered open. “You really are the devil,” she whispered to him.

A squeal fell from her lips as she found herself pinned to the bed, a warm and shirtless Jung Dae Hyun hovering over her. His lips fell to her neck, kissing it softly and down to her shoulder. “I’m all the evil you need, baby,” he whispered against her skin, causing her to shiver underneath him. His hand slid under her back, touching low on her waist to bring her body up into his. He leaned back down, his open lips meeting hers, letting his tongue fall into before there was a knock on the door.

Dae Hyun growled as he pulled away from her, watching her move out from underneath him and fix her clothes to answer the door. He moved back under the covers, closing his eyes to pretend he was asleep.  “Is he still asleep?” Jong Up asked.

Sae Jin nodded, looking over her shoulder at the older male. “Guess it’s a good thing today’s a day off. He didn’t sleep well last night,” she replied to Jong Up before turning to look at him. A smile lay across of her face.  “Would you like me to take you back?”

“No, that’s okay. Yong Gook is coming to pick me up here shortly,” Jong Up replied, checking his watch. The name caused Dae Hyun’s eyes to open and look towards the door. Luckily Jong Up was unable to see that he was awake.  “In fact, he should be here any minute,” Jong Up added with a smile, watching the girl in front of him continue to smile, though he could tell it was faked.

He had known the kind of relationship that Sae Jin and Yong Gook had, and for the most part, it was not a pleasant one. Tong Gook was a controlling man, and he wanted every part of the relationship he wanted with her to be based on his wants and needs. Jong Up was also aware of Dae Hyun’s step-in, going as far as to fight Yong Gook to protect Sae Jin.

She could see by the look in his eyes that Jong Up was evaluating the aforementioned situation. In Dae Hyun’s eyes, the only devil that existed was Yong Gook in regards to Sae Jin. The bell rang, bringing Jong Up out of his reverie. “That must be him,” he said, turning to walk downstairs. Sae Jin followed slowly, hearing the shuffling of the sheets, listening to Dae Hyun rise from the bed.

Sae Jin stood at a good distance from the door after bidding Jong Up adieu. It opened slowly, revealing Yong Gook’s face. He shot a smirk in Sae Jin’s direction but she looked away from him. While Jong Up was ready to leave, Yong Gook moved further into the home. She took a step back and Dae Hyun could see it from the top of the stairs. “What have you been up to? I haven’t heard from you in a long while.” Though his voice was calm and sweet, the glimmer in his eyes was anything but that.  He reached out to touch her, and the second she slapped his hand away, Dae Hyun flew down the stairs.

He stepped between Yong Gook and Sae Jin, causing her to touch his hip to try and coax him away from Yong Gook. She could almost hear the growl that was marinating low in his chest, waiting to be released. “I thought I warned you, Yong Gook,” he growled to the elder male who scoffed and looked away. 

“I don’t remember a time when you were the one in charge,” he replied snidely. Dae Hyun’s shoulders pulled back causing the muscles in his chest to become more pronounced. Yong Gook laughed and shook his head. “You just don’t get it, do you?”

“The only one who doesn’t get it is you. I told you not to touch her. Stay away from her,” Dae Hyun spoke through gritted teeth.

“How sweet; older brother is here to protect you from the big bad wolf,” Yong Gook taunted. Sae Jin let a growl of her own through her teeth as she side-stepped Dae Hyun, shoving Yong Gook back a few steps before pushing him up against the wall. “I knew you’d throw yourself at me eventually. They all do,” he commented, winking at her, reaching up to touch her face when Dae Hyun stepped in, grabbing that hand to pull him away from Sae Jin.

Yong Gook’s back made contact with the opposite wall, causing the pictures on it to become crooked, one of them falling and crashing to the floor. Yong Gook grabbed Dae Hyun, pushing him onto the floor and through the broken glass on the carpet. Sae Jin could see the pain on Dae Hyun’s face as he grappled with the leader, flipping them over to pin him to the floor, connecting his fist with Yong Gook’s upper cheek.

The elder landed a punch just the same on Dae Hyun, and only then did Jong Up reappear on the scene, having waited in the car for ten minutes. He came through the door, looked at Sae Jin who stared back at him before she pleaded him to stop the two. Jong Up grabbed Dae Hyun’s shoulders and pulled him off the elder male. “What the hell is going on in here?” Jong Up yelled, watching Yong Gook get up from the floor.

Dae Hyun touched his bloodied cheek, inspecting the damage as best he could. “Dae Hyun got a little too defensive of his little sister,” Yong Gook commented.

“You crossed a line that you knew was set before you!” Dae Hyun yelled, rage replacing pain in his eyes as he lurched forward. Jong Up pressed his strong forearm against his chest while Sae Jin tightly wound her arms around his waist. Jong Up looked at Sae Jin before watching her grip tighten, allowing Jong Up to deal with Yong Gook.

Dae Hyun’s chest continued to heave as the two other males exited the home, the door slamming tightly behind them. On the floor lay a picture of Sae Jin’s mother, a shattered frame surrounding it. Sae Jin fell to her knees, gathering the broken glass in her hands. “I’m sorry,” Dae Hyun whispered to her.

“Don’t apologize,” she replied firmly, moving the picture to the countertop she could barely reach from her knees before she continued scooping glass up.

“I didn’t know what else to do. I didn’t know how to get him out—”

“Dae Hyun! Stop talking,” she commanded, standing after she picked up all the big pieces of glass. She carefully stepped around it to throw the shards in the trash before vacuuming up the rest. “You’re lucky none of that glass got into your skin,” she commented, entering the kitchen to wrap some ice in dishtowel. The first aid kid was pulled from the cabinet and Sae Jin pushed past the male into the main room.  Dae Hyun had no choice but to follow.