Chapter 30

Onew sat with Lex in the hospital.  She was waiting patiently as a nurse removed the last of her stitches from her forehead.  There had been a three inch gash, just along her hair line.  That had been what had caused her concussion in the first place and that had had no choice but to close it up with sutures.

Her studio had been furious, worried about scarring but Lex had just told them to cover it all up with make-up and they had quieted down. 

It didn’t look good for them to be yelling at an injured person anyway. 

“There we go.” The kind woman said lightly, inspecting her work.  She stepped back and took the pair in, “Now, it’s still going to be tender for a while and you still need to be careful about keeping it clean, especially with as close as it is to the hairline.  You may want to keep wearing a bandage for a couple of days but it’s up to you.”

She smiled gently as Lex thanked her and stood up, Onew already having her coat ready to help her with getting it on.  As she slid her gradually healing shoulder into place the woman added, “You two are a cute couple,” before leaving the room without another word.

Onew called, “Thank you…” after her and Lex snickered a little. 

The couple walked slowly back to the car waiting from SM.  The chill of winter was strong in the air and they were bundled up as soundly as they could manage. 

The couple had been largely ignoring reactions to them of any kind.  After the initial shock of the sasaengs people had started debating the relationship between their idol and a foreign woman.  The pair decided that they didn’t care what anyone else thought.  It was the same things that had been said when they first started filming together, but now people were saying them for real, and with more vigor. 

Their management companies were keeping an eye on it and that was all that they needed to know about the subject, or at least all they cared to know just now. 

SM had given Onew some time off to care for Lex.  They felt somewhat guilty that she had been hurt because of a relationship that she had with one of their talents so they felt it only right to allow them this time together. 

A sudden hiss shook Onew from his thoughts.

Lex had stopped next to him, mumbling, “Ow, ow, ow…” under her breath. 

“What’s wrong? Are you okay?” Onew panicked, “Should we go back in?” he asked, gesturing towards the hospital at the other end of the parking lot. 

Lex stared at him for a moment with growing incredulity.  “No…” be began walking again, shaking her head slightly at the man, “I just bumped it with my hand when I was adjusting my hat.” She pointed to the area that the stitches had just been removed from with a slight pout which Onew found adorable.

There was one good thing about having made their relationship public, Onew could kiss her whenever and wherever he wanted.  And right now, he wanted to kiss her here in the parking lot.  He pulled her close and laid his lips against hers, smiling when she returned it right away and curled a hand into his jacket. 

He pulled back and glanced up at her forehead at the offending wound.  “Want me to kiss it and make it better?”

Lex smirked and ducked her head a bit with a blush coloring her cheeks.

Not waiting for an answer, Onew gently touched his lips to the skin just under where the stitches had been.  “There,” he said softly, his voice deep with emotion, “I’ll make everything all better.”

Lex fell forward into a hug.  “I love you,” she whispered, so soft that Onew wasn’t even sure if she had really said it or if it had been some figment of his imagination.  They hadn’t actually said those words yet, not really.  Sure they had said them with the camera in front of them, prompted by the PDs and writers to make the fans gush, but on their own?  No, they had never said it to each other for real.

He knew that he did love her.  He knew that she seemed to fit perfectly into everything he thought that he had never wanted but had found that he had been desperate for.  She was the first thing on his mind in the morning and the last image before he was claimed by sleep at night.  Even in the realm of his dreams, she was a constant visitor and always welcomed.  She was the girl that he compared all others to.  For the first time in his life he could see himself marrying, for real, and that only made sense to him when Lex was the bride.  He could spend every day in her easy embrace, receiving her laughing smile, and he would never grow bored. 

Deciding to take the plunge and say it anyway, even if she hadn’t said it, he kissed the top of her head.  “I love you Alexandria Elizabeth Joan Green.” 

He had pronounced all of it properly, even the Zs.  He had made Key practice with him, since Key’s English pronunciation was the best in SHINee. 

He could feel Lex smiling against his coat.  “Even if my name is too long?”

Onew chuckled and nodded slightly, squeezing his arms around Lex just a little harder, “Despite even the length of your name, I’m still just calling you Lex though…”

“That’s good, I like that.”

He heard the distinct sound of sniffles and knew that Lex was crying.  For the first time though, he wasn’t worried for having made her cry.  He knew that these were happy tears, that she felt the same sense of belonging with him that he found with her. 

It was winter though, and tears and cold are a bad mix, so he moved them gently towards the car, allowing Lex to continue burying her face in his chest despite the awkwardness of gait that it created. 

“Come on, let’s go home.”