His broad, slender back.

The spine line against the lean muscles, the shoulder blades giving evidence of long term weight loss, the pale skin gleaming in the warm daylight, from his shoulders down to the low waistband of his jeans, sitting on the edge of the bed, leaning forward with elbows propped against his knees…

Yoon had woken up to this sight.

He hasn’t left.

Yoon didn’t even know how thankful she was.

Watching him without drawing his attention, the girl saw how deeply lost in thoughts Baekhyun was. His head hung low between his shoulders, and even when the girl slowly got off the bed on the other side, to silently grab the dressing gown on the nearest chair and put it on, he didn’t hear, nor did he turn around.

Too disturbed to hear anything.

Until she walked around the bed and stood in front of him.

The lowered eyes caught the silk hem of the black dressing gown.

And he looked up, to find her looking down with a gentle smile.

Baekhyun looked away.

Not knowing what to say or where to look, he kept staring at the nearest wall.

“My biggest fear was to wake up alone.”

It finally made him turn back his eyes, finally finding his words. “I’m so sorry.”

She didn’t even budge.

“I’m so sorry Yoon…without your consent…I’m always losing my head and get carried away-”

She brought a hand to him, to caress his pale cheek gently.

He gave in with a sigh, to remain silent for the next several minutes, going through his jumbled mind thoughts and arguing with himself, and feeling her fingertips against his face.

Finally making up his mind to speak his mind, to speak his actual heart out, as he never had done before, being sober.

He took her hand off his face, and pulled her closer, until she stood between his legs.

“I don’t know what you mean to me Yoon.”

The eyes fixated on hers had nothing but absolute honesty.

“I really don’t know Yoon. All I know is that you’re endlessly growing on me. I had my own conditions I’ve put up for myself…that’s the way I protect myself from breaking down again. But you… It’s barely over I month since I first saw you but-”

The raw emotions on his face wasn’t lying or hiding the slightest bit, as he stood up, leaving no measureable space between them.

“I hate this… but I keep wanting you.”

“Marrying you was giving you my consent Baekhyun. It means you had it since day one.”

“Still…what girl would like-”

“Her man being drunk? But I never cared Baekhyun. Did I?”

He watched her smile in silence for a while.

“Why are you so good to me Yoon?”

“Because I’ve already decided to stay with you.” She smiled. “And I’ve given all of myself to you. It means there’s no turning back Baekhyun.” It required a slight lifting at her toes, and she enclosed the last of the space between them. Encircling her arms around his bare waist, she pressed her lips on his, and drew back to give him a smile of assure.

“Trust me. Life won’t be so bad when we have each other.”

She felt his chest rise against hers, and his abs tensing.

“So will you stop apologizing for your actions from now on?”

Still looking lost at her words and bewildered at her touches, he chose to stare in silence.

“And will you stop having all those restrictions, rules and regulations and let yourself do what you actually want Baekhyun?”

His answer finally came through a kiss, head slanting and nuzzling into her neck and kissing the reddened skin from the night previous, courtesy himself. Soon he raised his head to find and nibble her lips, while his hands found their own way through her tangled tresses.

A kiss after another, and another, slowly leading him to get rid of her dressing gown, finally allowing emotions to take the best of him.

Without darkness, without alcohol and without restrictions, Baekhyun allowed himself to give her the exact love he wanted to give.

The love he hadn’t known that had grown up in him.

“What do you want for breakfast? Or should we head out for brunch?”

He asked the girl who was snuggled at his side, once again.

“Just a sandwich would do Baekhyun… You don’t mind me dropping the honorifics and calling you by your name, do you?”

It brought up a slight smile to his lips for the first time that morning.

“Call me anything you want.”

* * *

Funny how someone who used to be so much in love, ended up being this awkward.

Yoon thought, watching the male sitting next to her on the couch, as if completely unaware of her presence next to him, and watching a baseball match with his eyes fixated on the TV.

“Is it that fun?”

He didn’t seem to hear, and it made her nudge his side.

“Oh, did you say anything?”

“Baseball.” Yoon pointed at the screen. “D’you like it a lot?”

“What baseball?” he turned and blinked at the sight on the screen. “When- when did the soccer match end?”

The girl couldn’t hide her smile. “If you aren’t watching, can I have the remote?”

“Sure, whatever.”

Handing over the remote control, he almost stood up from the couch, but returned to his rigid posture and stared back at the screen.

It was like his way of showing affectio