The day after my parents left for their cruise, Taehyung and I decided to go to the beach. We got up early, packing my car full of food and everything else we would need. I stood in front of my mirror, turning from side to side, worried about how I looked in my bikini. I should really have bought a one-piece bathing suit. Taehyung’s loud knocking startled me. “Vicky, are you ready?” he asked, his voice full of excitement. “I’ll be down in a minute! Make sure we packed some towels ok?” he shouted his agreement before heading downstairs to check. I quickly pulled on my denim shorts and a t-shirt, deciding that there was nothing I could do about my lack of a one piece now. I slipped on my trainers and headed downstairs. “Ready?” I asked. Taehyung was practically bouncing with excitement, despite the ridiculously early hour.

It took us over an hour to drive to the beach. Taehyung decided to act as the DJ, plugging his phone into the stereo and singing along with all of his favourite songs. I swear I could listen to him sing forever. His voice is so deep and perfect. Luckily because it’s a weekday the beach wasn’t overly busy. There were a few families with young kids and a few couples around, but not as bad as the weekend would have been. We found a good spot, a little way away from the rest of the people on the beach, close enough to the ocean that we could go swim and leave our stuff, but not so close that when the tide came in we would have to move.

Taehyung immediately pulled off his t-shirt, making me freeze at the sight of his well-toned body. He looked at me, a huge grin on his face and I busied myself with unpacking our towels and other bits and pieces we needed. “Should we go swimming first?” he asked, his eyes glued to the glittering ocean that lay before us. I nodded, taking a deep breath as I pulled my t-shirt over my head, exposing my bikini. Taehyung kicked off his shoes then turned to look at me, his ears turning red. “Wow…” he breathed. “You're beautiful.” His hand shot up to cover his mouth. He muttered something in Korean before running into the ocean, launching himself in head first.

I chuckled at his action, a smile on my face from his compliment. I kicked off my shoes and followed him into the ocean. We swam around for a while, both of us playing around trying to do handstands in the water and see who could hold their breath the longest. This then progressed into a full blown water fight. Once we were tired out, we headed back to our spot, lying on our towels in the sand, letting the sun dry us. We lay in the sun for ages, just talking about everything and nothing. Taehyung took a million photos of us as we talked and ate. It felt so natural to be with him.

We stayed at the beach so long that everyone else left, leaving us alone as the sun began to set. We huddled together under my large blanket that I brought with me, Taehyung insisting on attempting to braid my hair for me. It felt nice, feeling his fingers combing through my hair as he tried to make a braid. It took him a few attempts, but he finally managed a pretty decent braid.

We sat side by side, listening to the sounds of the ocean as the waves gently crashed against the shore. I curled into his side, his arm naturally wrapping around me. “Cold?” he asked. I nodded against his shoulder. “A little.” I admitted. He pulled me closer against him, wrapping the blanket more securely around us. “I’m really happy you came to stay with us.” I said softly. “Me too.” He said as he leaned his head on top of mine. I let out a content sigh, wishing that I could stop time at this moment. Everything was just perfect.

The sun was setting, bathing everything in a warm glow. The ocean was sparkling in front of us. Taehyung’s body was warm against mine as he held me. Nothing could make me happier than I am now.

“Vicky?” I looked up at Taehyung as he called my name. “I really like you.” He said, his fingers linking with mine, his gaze held mine, but I could still sense his nervousness, despite his bold words. I smiled back at him, “I really like you too.” He gave me a big grin as he cupped my cheek with one hand, slowly leaning closer to me, giving me the chance to pull back if I wanted to. I held my breath as he got closer, my eyes fluttering closed as our lips met. Our kiss was gentle, almost hesitant at first. As if he expected me to pull away from him.

I deepened the kiss, moving my lips against his. I could feel his smile as his hand moved from my cheek to cup the back of my neck, holding me in place. We grew more confident, his tongue reaching out to ask for entrance to my mouth as my hand squeezed his. His tongue slipped into my mouth, lazily moving against mine as we took our time to savour the moment. Only when I was dizzy from the lack of oxygen did I pull away from him. He followed me, pressing quick kisses to my lips. I chuckled at his cute action. “I really like you.” He repeated, his forehead resting against mine. “I really like you too.” I repeatedly, my cheeks flushed from our kiss.

We stayed on the beach long after the sun had finally set. The drive home was slow, Taehyung insisting on linking our fingers as I drove, despite the fact that my car is a manual, therefore requiring me to change gears every now and again. When we reached home, we called for takeout, both of us feeling too lazy to cook after having such a relaxing day. We curled up on the couch, the newest episode of our favourite drama on in the background. Taehyung kept our hands linked as we ate, something which made me thankful for the existence of chopsticks, you only need one hand to eat.

When we were nearly finished eating, the familiar ringing from a skype call sounded. Taehyung picked up his phone, a huge smile appearing on his face. “My friends!” he said pointing at his phone. I paused our drama. “Talk to them. I’ll go upstairs.” I said as I moved to stand put he pulled me down beside him. “I want you to meet them.” He said as he answered the call. As soon as the video connected, I was bombarded with rapid fire Korean from both Taehyung and from his six friends.

I felt completely lost as they all talked over one another. Eventually Taehyung pulled me closer. “My friends!” he introduced them all one by one, all of them greeting me in English. I felt the need to practice my Korean growing as they quickly slipped back into Korean, after them making me promise to add them all on Kakao. I slipped away, letting Taehyung catch up with his friends. I couldn’t help but chuckle at his animated expressions as he talked to them. I headed up to my room and dropped down on my bed, a huge smile on my face as my fingers traced my lips, my thoughts full of the events that had taken place today.

I heard my laptop beep as a new email arrived. I pulled it onto my bed, happy to see an email from my sister. I really should message her more often. I read through the email, laughing at her stories since the last time we emailed.

The last lines made my blood run cold…

I can’t believe I only have a month left here! I’ll see you soon sis! Xxx

One month… I only have one more month with Taehyung before he has to go back to Korea. I heard his loud laugh from downstairs and tears began to well up in my eyes. What am I going to do?