Changmin woke up to the feeling of something tapping his hand. He groaned and tried going back to sleep. He still felt tired of all the events that have transpired the night before.

After successfully making her drink the medicine, Changmin watched over Sooyoung religiously until she fell asleep. She woke up three times, chilling and calling his name. Of which the poor boy has to calm her down right after he has stopped panicking. With one hand on her head and the other clasping her weak hand, Changmin must've finished humming the entire discography of Seo Taiji before Sooyoung fell on a more comfortable sleep.

The soft light from the lampshade fell against the contours of her skin. She looked so beautiful as she slept on peacefully that Changmin simply contented himself with watching her. He stayed that way, unmoving and kneeling on the floor, until sleep took over him.

"Min?"

Changmin groaned as the tapping grew a bit stronger but his eyes automatically opened upon hearing the voice.

"Honey!" His head snapped up to see Sooyoung looking at him.

"Honey, what is it?" He sat straight and inwardly cursed when he felt his legs ache. He had fallen asleep on his knees and the feeling of ten thousand pins and needles pricking his muscles pounced on him. Changmin tried to mask the pain as he waited for Sooyoung to speak.

"It's cold." She breathed laboriously. It was only then that he noticed that he had been sleeping atop her blanket.

"S-sorry." He quickly lifted his arm from the bed and gently pulled the blanket up to her neck.

"Is it warmer now?" He asked her with a smile.

Sooyoung nodded her head slowly. Changmin was about to open his mouth and tell her to go back to sleep when she spoke again.

"Min..."
"Hmmm?"
"Sleep with me."

Suddenly, he forgot the gnawing pain on his lower limbs as his eyes grew large and his jaw fell open upon hearing the words.

"W-w-what?!"

Sooyoung raised her head from the pillows and chuckled softly.

"Stupid. The bed is too wide for one person and I don't want my husband sleeping on the floor after taking care of me."

It was a good thing the heart was situated inside the body, protected by layers of muscle and tissues that nobody can see it when it beats wildly. That was what Changmin thought as he felt his heart race upon hearing the words my husband from her. It was shallow, yes, but the overwhelming feeling of warmth and happiness enveloped him from the tips of his hair to the nails on his toes that he has to stop himself from shouting for joy.

He stuttered as he stood up shaking.   "Y-you m-mean s-sleep w-with you on the bed?"

The girl heaved out a sigh and sat up straight with all the strength she can muster. She reached out for his arm and pulled him with her. Changmin, who was still reeling in surprise for what was happening, simply stared when Sooyoung straightened his legs on the bed and pulled the blanket up to his waist.

The night was serene and the digital numbers on the bedside alarm clock read 3:15 but the stillness did nothing to calm his heartbeat. Not when he was sitting too close to her; not when she was placing his arm around her waist; and most importantly, not when she was looking straight at him with that beautiful smile on her face.

"You don't want to?" Sooyoung asked with a pout.

He lied down almost immediately. It was all he could do to stop himself from kissing her.

Oh, the things she can do to him.

Changmin closed his eyes and pursed his lips tightly, making the girl laugh. He then felt her lifting his left arm before she lied down next to him. Sooyoung pulled the rest of the blanket all the way up their shoulders and then snuggled against his chest.

He swallowed a lump in his throat when she placed her hand on his waist and pulled them closer together.

"There. It's much warmer." He heard her whisper softly.

His heart was still beating loudly but the warmth of Sooyoung's body against his own calmed his spirits. Despite being fully woken up, he closed his eyes and waited for sleep to come back.

"Min..."
"Hmmm...?"

Changmin waited for her to continue. When she didn't, he moved his body to the side so that he was facing her.

"What is it?" He whispered.
"Hug me."

Sooyoung had always been straightforward but never with things like this. Changmin felt his pulse race again as the words echoed inside his head.

Is she serious? What should I do? Oh my god, what if she's just joking?

Doubts swarmed him as he continued debating with himself. It was only when he felt Sooyoung loosen her hold on his waist that he threw all inhibitions aside and quickly wrapped her in an embrace.

"Took you so long." She mumbled inaudibly.

"You saying something?" He whispered against her hair as he tried to suppress the huge smile on his face.

The girl merely grunted and then slid her right arm beneath his body, hugging him back tightly, as he buried her face deeper into his chest.

"Aigoo... wife, you do know this position is dangerous, right?" He knew he shouldn't be teasing her at three in the morning but it was the only way he could think of to at least make sense of what was happening.

He was prepared for the pinch in his back but he didn't expect it when the girl raised her head and pulled back gently away from him.

It happened too fast. One second, he was frowning that she broke off her embrace; the next second, he was left wide-eyed in surprise as she moved upwards and planted a kiss on his lips before going down and burying her face on his chest once again.

Four seconds. Four seconds of having her lips pressed against his. Four seconds which felt like forever. Four seconds which he felt should have gone on to forever.

It was all too much, Changmin decided. Everything that has happened is too much for his poor heart to carry. He felt like crying, laughing, and screaming all at the same time. But there was nothing else he could do but to hold her tighter in his arms and kiss the crown of her head.

Sooyoung slung her leg over his left thigh and then remained unmoving against his chest; as if suddenly embarrassed of what she has done. She should have looked at her husband's face so that she could see the -eating grin that might as well as break his face in half.

Changmin's heart was doing somersaults; kicking and hitting his ribcage. He knew Sooyoung could've heard it but he didn't mind.

It was all too much. The happiness was so intense he felt something slid off his face and unto the pillowcase. He didn't need to wipe it to know that they were happy tears.

Morning was only a few hours away and he wished it wouldn't arrive soon.

Changmin swallowed once more before burying his nose against her hair again.

"Love you." He lipped silently as he her hair. He kept repeating the words over and over in his head until he fell asleep.
 

Probably the only thing better than waking up to the warmth of the morning sun touching your skin is the feeling of waking up to the warmth of someone's embrace.

It was something that never crossed Sooyoung's mind until that night. Lying on the bed, snuggled up under the covers, resting against Changmin's arms, and listening to the resonant throbbing of his heart---it was these things that brought her to sleep. It was also these that she has subconsciously expected once she woke up. Hence, the disappointment was apparent on her face when she opened her eyes to see the side of his bed empty and tidy.

Sooyoung sat up and blinked the sleepiness away. Her nose caught the aroma of freshly made banana pancakes from outside the room and a smile graced her lips upon the thought that someone was doing a good job of taking care of the house whenever she wasn't there to tend to it.

Well, that someone made an excellent job of taking care of you last night.

Like water gushing forth from a tap, scenes from the previous night flashed in her mind. It's as if she could still feel his touch when he scooped her up from where she lay weak and helpless under the tree; still remember the warmth he exuded when he held her close; still see the anxious look on his face as he patiently watched over her.

A warm, fuzzy feeling settled inside her tummy; tickling her and making her toes curl.

She could still clearly imagine how she woke up in the middle of the night to the sight of him beside the bed. Sooyoung remembered how she initially wanted to simply watch him sleep peacefully. Except that something---an indescribable, confusing wanting---forced her to tap him awake; to hear his voice and to feel him near her. So when he did wake up and the first word he uttered was the word she had secretly loved hearing the most from him, her defenses crumbled and it was then that she realized.

Shim Changmin... have I grown fond of you already?

A blush climbed up her cheeks and she pulled her blanket tighter around her body just as the door opened to reveal the person she was just thinking of.

"Oh, honey you're awake already. Good morning!" His mismatched eyes made its presence as he laid down the tray of food on the bedside table. He immediately crawled beside her and placed the back of his hand against her forehead.

"Good. Your fever's down. I wanted to make you porridge but I'm not very confident with my porridge-making ability as much as I am confident of my pancake-making skills..." He went on talking while he took a bowl of porridge from the tray. "...so I made both. Just say which one you prefer. Say 'aaah'."

Changmin skillfully scooped a spoonful of porridge and was about to feed it to the girl but was confused when he saw the blank look on her face.

"Syoong? Are you still sick?" The boy put the food back down. He held her cheeks with both of his huge hands and moved them from side to side. "Honey? Earth to Choi Sooyoung?" As if he wasn’t contented, he then went on and pinched her cheeks.

That made her crawl back into her senses right after. She pulled away from him, scrunched up her, nose and pouted.

“You’re treating me like a baby!” Sooyoung crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked disdainfully at him. He laughed at her childish action but put his hands down, nonetheless.

“That’s because you’re my baby.” He looked down at his lap as he said so. Sooyoung would have bet a thousand wons that he was blushing but she didn’t find the need to point it out. Not when she, herself, was turning red in the face too.

"Yah…” she said softly. “I can eat on my own~”

She intended to say