I stand at the counter preparing the noodle packets as he rummages in the refrigerator. He brings out two of the bottles of beer and opens them, setting them down at two place settings he's laid out on the counter. I set down the two cups of noodles and sit at one of the place settings. He takes his seat beside me and turns to me.

"Thanks for making dinner," he teases. He holds the beer bottle up in a toast to me. 

"Oh it was such trouble to do it," I laugh, clinking my bottle against his before taking a sip. 

He digs into the noodles, slurping them quickly. "I wish I could take you out for a proper meal somewhere. If we ever get to go out to eat again." He pauses and thinks for a moment about the state of the pandemic. 

"Oh we will. This will pass and then everything will feel normal again," I say casually as I eat the warm noodles. 

"Do you really believe that?" He looks at me curiously. 

I nod, "This is hard, but it's happened before and it got better and after time it was like it never happened. It's tough now, but it will end. Life goes on," I say sipping broth from my cup.  He stares at me, motionless, and his expression changes.

"What did you say?" His eyes narrow.

"Life goes on. Spring still comes, even after a hard winter." When he doesn't speak I turn to look at him, he's still staring at me with a furrowed brow. "What is it? Do I have something on my face?" I ask teasing. His eyes suddenly grow wide. "What?" I ask.

He jumps up and runs toward the studio. "I'll be back I just thought of a lyric," he calls back as he disappears into the studio. I shrug and return to the noodle bowl. 

He's been in the studio for a long time and I hear music, the same music he first played for me, starting and stopping repeatedly. I sit quietly and finish the beer, expecting him to come out any moment but not wanting to interrupt him. 

The door bell buzzes once and I step over to the spot where the monitor is now laying near the table by the door. I look to the studio door which is open, the music is still playing. Suga doesn't come out. The doorbell rings again, still not a panicky ring, but a ring nonetheless. I pick up the monitor and press the button to answer. I see the security guard and I wave at him. He looks at me confused. I realize that he's never seen me without my mask.

"Hi, it's Mia,"  I remind him. 

"Oh Mia, I thought you left hours ago."  His words catch me off guard. 

"What do you mean, we can't leave. We haven't gotten tested yet," I say confused. 

"Oh no, they called that off. Mr. Kim said he didn't have contact with any of the neighbors in the last two weeks so they didn't send the medical crew after all."

I can't believe what I'm hearing. It doesn't make any sense. "When- when was this decided?" I ask cautiously. 

"I spoke to Min Yoongi a few hours ago." As he says the words, he must realize that he shouldn't be saying them and he grows quiet and offers no more details. 

"Right." I mull over what he's told me, thinking about the best way to respond. "What is it that you wanted?" I remember to ask. 

"Oh, just some paperwork that he needs to fill out regarding the brief lockdown. I can give him the papers later if he's busy." 

"Yes, he's in the studio," I say still deep in thought. He disconnects and leaves me alone to play through this in my head. 

Do I confront him and tell him I know he's keeping me here when he doesn't need to? Why would he even do that? How long was he planning on keeping up this charade? Then I ask myself the real questions; Would I have been happy to leave earlier? No. Would I have been really disappointed to have left before that first kiss? Definitely. I consider my options. 

I'm so busy assessing all of the thoughts racing through my head that I don't notice that he's come out of the studio and is staring at me as I stand near the door. He looks at me cautiously, I look back up at him and the sight of his wrinkled shirt, his beautiful face and dark eyes makes me smile. 

"Sorry for the delay. I just found the words to the song I was playing for you earlier," he explains. He steps up to me and takes my hands in his. He tries to meet my eyes. "Are you ok?"

"Yes?" I say and it comes out as a question. I fumble to recover. "Can I hear it?"

"Not just yet. I want you to hear it when it's got the proper vocals behind it. I think you'll really like it. You're the inspiration." He smiles and steps up to me, wrapping his arms around my waist. He looks so pleased with himself. I look back into his eyes unsure what to say, but I like to see his eyes smiling. It fills me with warmth.

He's still looking at me, as if waiting for permission. I smile broadly at him and he leans in and kisses me again. I don't think I want him to stop him just yet. His arms squeeze me closer to his body and I feel the wet of his kiss. 

"You didn't finish your dinner," I say pulling back. 

"I'm not hungry for dinner," he says in a very sultry voice. He kisses my neck, running his tongue over my skin and tickling me. I squirm in his arms. 

"Suga, can I ask you something?" 

"Mmmhmm," he moans as he kisses a line down my neck, stopping to leave kisses along my collarbone. 

"How long were you going to keep me here pretending we were waiting for the medical team?" I ask softly. He freezes in place, lips pursed against my neck. I feel his breath against my skin as he exhales slowly. He pulls back to look up into my eyes. His look is flushed with worry and embarrassment. I study his eyes and then I smile.

"It's ok, I don't mind. I just think you could have told me sooner, then maybe we could have gotten delivery instead of eating cup noodles," I laugh. I see the relief wash over his face as he grins. 

"I just didn't want you to leave before I got up the nerve to  kiss you." His hand runs through my hair as he holds me close. 

"Well, you know it's probably wise to quarantine anyway. Just to be on the safe side."

He looks at me surprised. "I agree. I think it might be best if you stay here for a while." He resumes kissing my neck. His hands sliding over my body. 

"Maybe we need to cancel some plans, classes, work?" I ask as he bends me backwards with his kiss.

"I'll take care of it. Just don't leave," he says, his lips pressed against my skin, pushing the collar of my shirt off my shoulder. 

"Even to get you Iced Americanos?" I ask, suddenly feeling dizzy with his kisses. He smiles against my warm skin and lifts me off the ground in one swoop.

"I have a machine for that," he says as he carries me through the doorway to his room. He lifts his large black boot up, and kicks the door shut behind us.