You had stopped counting dates with Junmyeon from that moment out. You had already decided in Italy you didn’t need any more to know you wanted to be with him and after your confrontation over the confessions that had surmounted in the foreign country; you were both at ease with one another.

You found that Junmyeon, whilst honest with his thoughts and desires, would still hold back a little at times, worried he was travelling faster down this road together with you.

You didn’t mind the catching up part though. Junmyeon equally had more to learn about you than the girl he had crushed over as a teen. You surprised him often and he kept you on your toes too. It was a good balance of romance and realism and after six months of being together, you woke up in the middle of the night and you just knew.

You would love Junmyeon for the rest of your life.

It was a surreal moment to bask in. The immediate joy that overwhelmed you from such clarity was soon hijacked with a rush of need. You wanted him to know how you felt, you craved to see his reaction and the concept of waiting until the sun rose in the morning seemed unfathomable. You would be worked up until you spoke everything to him, and given it was just a little after two in the morning, you didn’t know how you could even sit still for the next thirty minutes, let alone hours until it was acceptable to go out.

Blinking slowly, you realised that you only had one option and after flinging the blankets back, you got up and put on the clothes closest to you, collecting your bag from your desk and then pulled out your phone. You would simply call for an Uber and go to him.

That would ease your mind and give warmth back to your bones. The mere thought of waking up without being beside him had made you shiver once you had considered all that you had.

Making your way out into the lobby of your apartment complex, you went to order your ride, only to falter when you saw the familiar car outside. Your phone fell away from your view and you vaguely threw it in your purse before heading to the exit, your movements soon rushed. It was a sense of deja vu from your date months ago when you first went to his house, though you had been expecting Junmyeon then.

Just what was he doing outside your apartment right now?

Spotting your approach, Junmyeon jumped out of his car, his eyes round with surprise. “What are you… where were you going?”

“To you,” you announced from within his chest that you had collided with, laughing a little giddily as you breathed him in. You felt grounded, at home once more. “What are you doing here?”

“I missed you and couldn’t sleep. Sometimes I just end up driving and sitting here for a bit. It makes me feel closer to you,” he confessed and you pulled back to see the bashful smile he gave you.

Stretching up to peck his lips, you smiled back. “I love you, Kim Junmyeon.”

You expected him to freeze up like he had since the first confession. To rein in his sudden joy so it didn’t burst out prematurely. There had been a couple of times where you had gotten close to uttering those words to him recently, but it never came as easily as it did now. You continued with the comparison of how effortlessly they fell out in Italy, how warm you felt all over from expressing them. You knew this moment trumped the first. You weren’t falling anymore. He had caught you and your heart and now you were certain.

Much like the way you had jolted away with the sudden clarity of your own heart, you were amazed by how readily Junmyeon accepted it.

“God, I love you so much too,” he murmured, kissing you again. You melded into one, your bodies pressed together as much as your lips were.

And then you realised how little you had put on to come out in. Or, Junmyeon did. He looked at your mismatched outfit and chuckled. “You were in a rush?”

“To tell you I loved you. Do you accept me even when I look like a right state?” you teased and Junmyeon grinned, kissing your temples gently.

“Baby, you know I accept everything about you. Except you freezing in this night air. Come on, I’ll take you back to mine.”

Once in his car, you glanced back and forth at the man beside you, trying to