Park Jihyo’s home was in the arms of her unnie, nuzzled tenderly against the eager limbs that held her close while being showered with constant kisses to the head. 

She belonged on that warm spot on Im Nayeon’s body, her ear against her chest where a soft beat played for her, something she considers a lullaby. Her husky and soft breathy voice--so vulnerable and tender--only for Nayeon’s ears to hear. And Nayeon knew that she was never at peace unless the exhausted leader, after finishing all her leader duties, finally succumbed to resting, cuddled against her. Nayeone knew she belonged like this, hugging Jihyo tightly against her body and covering her with the blanket, unable to resist kissing that head of hers, hearing her sleepy voice rumble close to her, almost unintelligible.

And a day just like this is when both of them needed each other. It was a crisp evening, the chilly breeze outside just the right temperature to shove the lovers together to indulge in the natural warmth of their bodies, the snow outside still strongly present but slowly giving way. A romantic weather for those who lavished on it, for those not grumpy enough to take advantage of what this cold season meant. Nothing like cuddling with a fluffy blanket, some hot chocolate ready by the bedside table to make the already sweet encounter even sweeter.

They certainly deserved it! They had all worked hard for the filming of Fancy and now Jihyo sleepily recounts her side of the filming, successful and fun but no less exhausting. A job well done. She did not shy away from telling her girlfriend how she fell on the pool of balls and how she fell asleep on it after a while. Well, perhaps that was a mind numbing dose of sleepiness making her brain fuzzy, because in normal circumstances she would have not admitted to neither in front of Nayeon. Of course, she makes it her mission to remind Nayeon that while she fell asleep on the pool, she would have never been as comfortable as she was in her arms at that moment.

Nayeon smiled wide, even if Jihyo’s eyelids were glued shut and she couldn’t see her favorite smile in the world. The only thing that indicates Jihyo being awake was the soft rubbing of Nayeon’s tummy and the playful poke on the pale girl’s ankle by Jihyo’s big toe. Her body had absolutely shut down aside from that, knowing that--in this state at least--Jihyo can’t move at all. She can’t sit up or stand up unless in total emergency and Nayeon liked it that way, especially when Jihyo’s motherly instinct and leader-side kicked in at full speed at random times.

Jihyo couldn’t feel anything but the soft breathing of her girlfriend, the way her big hands rubbed and squeezed her arm so tenderly, the way her fingertips drew all kinds of figures across her skin every now and then, sending a loving message or a tender little heart. Jihyo’s favorite part was when Nayeon’s hand went up to her head and brushed her soft hair, tucked it behind her ear and then travelled down her neck. Ooh, that beautiful tickle! Nayeon knew that Jihyo got all giddy and tender when she grazed her fingertips across a very specific patch of small hairs on the back of the leader’s neck. Tender in more ways than one, but this was not the time for that. Nayeon moves past that zone and gets to her back, giving a soothing rub all over. Going as far as reaching to Jihyo’s side, feeling her silhouette well before giving her flesh a loving squeeze. An appreciative squeeze, playful and cheeky, her fingertips digging into that ambrosial, soft skin for a moment before she retired them and went back to rubbing. That had been another message from Nayeon, a message that stretched far and wide from the very moment they met to the present. 

‘I love your body so much, and I will continue to love it, no matter what. Because I love YOU.’

Jihyo can almost hear the voice echoing in her mind, remembering the first time Nayeon told her that when she was, once again, scolded for gaining weight. She remembers the way Nayeon looked at her with so much love in her eyes, and she noticed that same look on her eyes tonight when Jihyo walked in with hunched shoulders, shuffling feet and a big proud smile. 

The big eyed woman couldn’t be happier than this. Unable to speak now--as if her voice had fossilized and given up its functions for the night, as if to say ‘we’re closed’--, Jihyo resorts to doing the same thing to Nayeon. She slides her fingertips daintily across her tummy, pushing up her loose shirt to show that nice skin. Well, to feel it rather, since she cannot open her eyes. Yes, not even for Nayeon! But she took advantage of this, amplifying her senses of hearing and feeling. Her palm slide across her midriff and tummy lovingly, listening to Nayeon’s breathing and her heartbeat.

The moment Nayeon’s breath hitched a second, Jihyo stopped and started to draw circles, feeling and hearing Nayeon’s adorable giggle.

“That tickles a little bit,” Nayeon said in the softest way possible, as if to not disturb Jihyo if she was asleep and sleepwalking. 

Jihyo smiles and giggles herself, giving that part of her body a squeeze in return. It was just as soft as the very first day she touched it. She feels the loving kiss on her forehead once again and smiles even wider. Then, her fingers got to dancing, smoothly gliding across this milky surface and creating letters one by one, not at all in a hurry. Nayeon hummed with every touch, the way each letter made her feel different kinds of tickles and sensations wildly amusing her, but the message was even more amusing. She had closed her eyes and felt each letter, putting them together in her mind and slowly smiling more as the message was clearly decoded before Jihyo even finished.

“I love you, thank you.”

It had taken her quite a while to get it all down, but Nayeon didn’t mind as the touch was heavenly and the tenderness overflowing. After all the hard work? She could feast on the love of her lover for quite some time.

Wait, she couldn’t open her eyes now. Doesn’t matter, she doesn’t need her eyes to say anything for now. 

“I love you too, Jihyo.”

Jihyo whined a little at how corny all of this was but relented eventually, resorting to burying her  face into Nayeon’s neck and hugging her closer. Nayeon was more than happy to hug her closer, tighter, to never let her go. And then…

Silence, peaceful silence. 

Jihyo didn’t pick up anybody’s phone to talk, Nayeon didn’t laugh or sing. Instead, they remained tangled, nuzzling closer if humanly possible and arranging each other’s blankets, making sure they both were nicely covered.

Yes, home was with each other. Peace existed when the two of them were together like this. Holding each other tight, there was no nightmare or stress that could ruin their sleep.