"Are you sure you don't want anything to eat before you go to bed?" asked Youngbae.  He flicked the lights on to his apartment and wheeled her luggage in behind him.

"Ani... I'm sure," Amina replied as she followed close behind.  She glanced around the familiar modern white wall surroundings and felt a melancholy feeling sweep over her.  "I'm just going to go to bed."  When they reached the end of the entrance foyer that split between the bedroom hallway and the living area, Amina paused.  She could hear Youngbae proceeding towards the bedroom, but her eyes kept staring at the living space in front of her.  Her mind faded to black and a deep sorrow overwhelmed her senses.  Amina could picture him sitting there... facing her.  The scene replayed before her eyes as if it were yesterday.

"Marry me."

She stared at the ring for several heartbeats before looking up at him.  But he already saw the answer in her eyes.

He dropped his hand.

"Bae-yah..."  Tears began to form in her eyes. "Mianhae..." she cried.

He turned away from her, but not before she saw the deep pain that slashed across his face.

"Oppa!"  She tugged on his shirt so he would face her.  "Look at me!" Tears rolled down her face as she tried to reach for him again.  "Please..."

"...Amina-yah."

Amina jerked her head around as Youngbae called her name.  "Neh?"  Her heart was beating fast, the emotions still caught up inside her.

It looked like she had seen a ghost.  "Are you okay?" Youngbae asked, a concerned crease pressed in-between his eyebrows.  He took a half step towards her.

"Ah," Amina half-smiled and nodded rapidly.  "Neh."  She started walking towards him.  "Did you put my luggage in there?" Amina asked lamely, avoiding his eyes, as she brushed passed him through the hallway.

"Neh," he replied, watching her closely.  He followed her back into the bedroom.  "There should be enough room in the closet, but if not, feel free to just move my stuff around."

Amina walked into the room and headed straight towards the walk-in closet.  She flipped on the light and froze.  A section of the closet was already cleared out... just like it had been the last week she spent at the apartment.  In fact, some of her clothes that she left on her last night were still hanging in its same place - untouched.  She gravitated towards a familiar drawer that she remembered emptying out for herself and opened it, finding her undergarments still folded the way she liked them.  It was as if... she had never left.  Amina walked back out into the room with a slight frown on her face. 

Youngbae was lounging against the doorframe but straightened when he saw her expression.  "Mwuh?"

Ignoring him, she ventured back into the living room and checked the wall near the kitchen.  It was still there... the ugly vase painting they had bought from their first date.  A tightening constricted her lungs and prevented her from breathing fully.  She took in a shallow breath and turned around, finding him watching her.  She had to be sure.  With a determined look, Amina pressed her lips together and walked back down the hallway towards him.  She turned at the last second, switching on the bathroom light.

"What are you looking for?" he asked worriedly.

She blinked back the sudden rush of tears as she stared at the cup holder near the sink.  Her toothbrush was still there... right next to his.  Maybe it was her hormones already acting up... she didn't know.  But all of a sudden, she felt like crying.  Amina turned around and faced him.

"When's the last time you lived here?" she blurted, her eyes accusing him softly.

He seemed taken aback by her question.  He pressed his lips together self-consciously, looking slightly away, before quietly responding.  "Not since you left." He watched her eyes widen slightly.

Amina let out a small gasp of disbelief.  That was... over a year ago. Blinking back unshed tears, she shakily replied, "T-that whole time?"  Her body trembled as she waited for him to respond.

Youngbae stepped closer to her, his brown eyes melting into hers.  He nodded slowly.

"W-wae?" She shook her head, not understanding.  Didn't he just move on or was she mistaken?  It was hard for her to fathom that he would not get rid of her things or at least have them removed and stored away.  But to leave them, untouched, waiting for her return... was beyond thinkable.  She didn't know whether to feel touched... or angry at him. 

Youngbae could see the conflicting emotions raging inside as her eyes flickered between his own.  She looked like she was tormented inside.  He became alarmed.  "What's wrong?" he asked.

"I don't..." Amina shook her head.  "I don't know..."  Her eyes pleaded at him helplessly.  "Part of me is angry at you."  She watched as his face closed up.  "Neh," she bitterly twisted her lips, "I'm angry at you because you've moved on, yet you still keep my things here... like a shrine." She cut off, so confused.  Biting her lip, she miserably added, "Then there's the other half of me...." she trailed off, feeling herself become more upset.  Amina lowered her lashes, a small tear escaping.

"Jagi... I really did wait for you," he pleaded; his voice deep and low next to her temple.

Amina nodded and quickly dried her eyes.  "I know..."  She looked up into his face.  "Mianhae. It was wrong of me... to expect you to wait.  I shouldn't have gotten mad at you about that girl."  She could see he was about to say something but cut him off.  "You shouldn't wait for me."  As soon as the words came out, she knew it was the right thing.  Her life was a mess.  The last thing she needed was to weigh someone else's life down with hers.  She sniffed back unshed tears and hardened her resolve.  "Don't wait for me."

She brushed passed him and went inside the bedroom.

Youngbae turned around and followed her.  He grabbed her arm as she walked by the bed.  He let out a bitter scoff.  "Can't I just be with you?"

 Amina drew her arm back as close as she could but he held on.

"Or are you just going to keep fighting me?" he asked, his face full of agony.

She stopped struggling and allowed him pull her into the circle of his arms.

"I just want to be with you," he begged.

Amina's eyes remained wary as she gazed up at him.  She looked off in the distance and nodded.

"Is that a yes?" he prompted, peering at a slight angle into her face.

"I don't know," she answered with a forlorn shrug of her shoulder.  Her eyes were bleak with confusion. Amina shook her head at him.  "I don't know..." She watched as his eyes mirrored her own thoughts.  "I just feel... overwhelmed." She released a large shaky sigh and looked worriedly into his eyes.  "I just have a lot going on right now that I need time to deal with..."

He swallowed hard.

"I have to think about the baby..."  She took a deep breath. "...and how I'm going to prepare myself to be a mom. I still have my school to think about." She hurried on before he could speak. "Then there's my living situation and money to consider. Job options... To be honest," she rushed on, "I don't know if I can be anyone's girlfriend... let alone, a K-pop idol's girlfriend."  She looked at him helplessly.  "Does that make sense?" She creased her brows together.

Youngbae nodded, his solemn eyes suddenly turning teasingly hopeful.  "So... that's a maybe?"

A smile tugged on her lips and some of the anxiety left her.  Amina lowered her eyes so she wouldn't be tempted to give in.  She nodded.  "Maybe."  She looked back up at him. "I think we just need to ease back into it this time.  And not rush into things... just take it slow."

He his lips lightly, his eyes alight with mischief.  "I can take it slow."

"Stop it."  She warned sternly but failed horribly, feeling her sparkling eyes betray her. 

"Mwuh?" he asked innocently.

"I know what you're thinking."

He grinned, his eyes full of laughter.

"Bae-yah..." Amina whined, her lips curving up in a smile.  "I swear... I can never have a serious conversation with you!" 

He chuckled and lowered his face.  He rubbed his cheek lovingly against hers.  "Mianhae... I just don't like seeing you sad."

Amina released another broken sigh and reached up to wrap her arms around his neck.  She felt him pull her closer inside his embrace as he rested his face inside the crook of her neck.  They stayed that way for a moment, enjoying the feel of each other's bodies pressed up against one another.

"Mmm... I like this," he murmured against her neck.

"Mmm?"

"We should take it slow more often."

Amina giggled against his shoulder.

"Should I sing too?"

"Ani..."

"Hmm?"

"You'll just forget the lyrics again," came the lazy reply.

Youngbae growled in mock hurt as he swung an unsuspecting Amina off the ground. "Say sorry!" he ordered, biting back a grin.

"Mianhae!" Amina squealed, laughing as she felt herself gently free-falling back against the bed sheets.  She felt him hover above her, his body weighing down on top of hers.  "Mianhae!"  He snarled loudly into her neck, burying his face in the softness there.  She wrapped her legs and arms around him, laughing all the while.  Youngbae smiled as he lifted up on his elbows and peered into her flushed face.

Amina smiled up at him, her eyes warm and inviting.  Slowly he leaned down until his lips brushed tentatively against hers.  Amina closed her eyes and parted , pressing up against him.  The rough edges of his five o'clock shadow rubbed hard against her delicate skin like sandpaper, marking her his. She'd forgotten how much she missed that combination of roughness against his soft silky lips. He led the top portion of in between his lips and the inner seam before entering ever so slowly.  The hot searing wetness of his tongue overwhelmed her senses and made her lower belly tingle.

Her hands reached up to wrap themselves around his nape as he angled his head to plunge deeper inside . Slowly he began to his tongue against hers.  It was hypnotic the way he moved within her.  Over and over.... he rubbed and caressed her... sampling like it was their first time. He took his time and leisure, kissing her thoroughly and leaving no place untouched.  She felt the warmth of his hand on her and the gentle reassuring caress. She moaned into his mouth and felt him grow hard against her thigh.  She broke off their kiss.

She panted softly into his ear and could feel his wet lips against the side of her cheek.  Amina could hear him breathing erratically too.

"We should stop," said Amina breathlessly.  "I'm getting dizzy."

Youngbae leaned up on his elbows, his face flushed.  His eyes were concerned.  "Is it your head?"

She shook her head.  "Ani... my heart."  She smiled.

He grinned.  "This is probably the one thing we shouldn't do if we're trying to take it slow."

Amina solemnly nodded, her arms still wrapped around his neck. "We probably shouldn't sleep together again... For like six months."

An incredulous expression swept across his face. "I was thinking six days... or maybe hours?"

She laughed.

Leaning down, he pressed anothe