Taekwoon places the sweater over my shoulders, protecting me from the cooling air as we make our way out of the washroom.

“It doesn’t look too bad… but maybe you should go put some ice on it in the medical ward.”

I nod, “Okay.”

He’s wearing a white t-shirt and dark green khakis, his worn down combat boots on his feet and they make a soft thud when he moves across the stone floor and when we come to the second floor he begins to speak.

“I have some work to do with Ken…”

When I look up at him, he has a bit of a sad smile on his face and his fingers wrap around my wrist.

“Let’s meet for dinner later?”

I smile at him as his face searches mine and there is a moment of worry that crosses through his dark orbs. He averts my curious gaze by bowing his head for a moment, letting a cough erupt from his throat.

“Taekwoon?”

He shakes his head lightly at my question and then puts his lips on my nose briefly.

“We can talk later… But dinner?”

I laugh lightly, “Why do you think you have to ask?”

He smiles sweetly and I peck his lips. His hand leaves my wrist and he turns to the door of his office, waving at me once more before I turn to make my way to the medical ward once more.

Maybe he has the same fears as me… Loosing someone you’re close to. But he’s so open with me… Maybe there’s something else on his mind… Was he worried about Daehyun still?

I shake my head, pushing it to the back of my mind as I open the doors of the medical ward.

Whatever it was, I’m sure he would tell me… Well, if I didn’t ask first.

I breathe heavily and close the door behind me. As I look up to a cabinet Hongbin’s face is in my vision.

“Hongbin,” I say breathlessly, startled by him.

He nods to me, textbooks piled on the table.

“How’s the nose?” He asks.

I smirk at him, chuckling lightly.

“It could be worse… Want to check it over?”

He glances at me, putting the papers down near the textbooks as he does so.

“Have a seat.”

He pulls out a stool near him and I am quick to take it. He tilts my head upward a bit, his eyes roaming over the now bruising flesh. His thumb grazes over the bridge and I wince slightly.

“Hm, doesn’t feel broken,” he turns my head to the side before continuing, “There’s no bumps either, so just a bruise.”

I smile when his hands leave my face.

“Exactly what I was hoping for,” I tell him.

He smiles at me before turning back to his papers and books which leaves me sighing in frustration.

What do I say to him? Explain everything?

“Are you mad at me?” I ask quietly, my gaze on my twiddling fingers.

Hongbin places the papers down again, his fingers rapping against them softly.

“No.”

“Then what is it?”

“I was just… Am disappointed you didn’t listen.”

I scrunch my eyebrows in frustration, “But I care about him… I wouldn’t have with someone if I didn’t care about them."

“No, it’s not that you had , it’s just that I told you to protect yourself. You had to wait one day and you didn’t even listen to that.

“I’m not just your older brother, but I’m your doctor and what if you have gotten pregnant? There’s nothing we can do… More so it’s the fact you were irresponsible enough to do full aware of the risks.”

My brows furrow further and I let my gaze fall to the floor as guilt over takes me.

He is right… There is a possibility it could happen even if I had only had twice. Once with Daehyun and the other with Taekwoon… Should I tell him?

“Hongbin…”

I look up at him, my eyes somewhat watery as I make my decision. He is looking at me, his expression more worried than angry as I try to keep speaking.

“If I’m being honest – Wait patient to doctor confidentiality agreement first? Don’t say anything?”

He crooks his head, his eyes roaming up and down me once before nodding in agreement.

“Okay, I won’t say anything…”

“Well, you know how I was gone for all that time with Daehyun?”

He nods again, “Yes?”

“Well… We may have… We sort of had .”

“Sort of?”

“We had .”

Hongbin is at first awed but his face suddenly becomes angry, his hand rubbing his forehead.

“That little …” He breathes.

“It’s not entirely his fault,” I tell him.

“Well, did he use protection? He knows more about than you do.”

I scoff, “Yeah, I know… But, no he didn’t.”

Hongbin rolls his eyes, “Does Leo know?”

I nod. Although I haven’t out right said anything in detail, he seemed to pick up on Daehyun’s physical cues.

“In a month you’ll have to come back and I’m going to have to check to see if you’re pregnant. It will be harmful if I were to give you another shot if you were as well… Can you tell me these things in advance from now on?”

“Are you angry…?”

He shakes his head.

“No, just be more careful.”

His hand finds its way to the top of my head and he ruffles my hair before smirking at me.

“Now, why don’t we study?”

I nod quickly but then remember the books I brought back with me.

“Oh, actually, I took some books from Mom and Dad’s house while I was gone.”

My feet plop to the floor and I stand waiting for him to guide me to my hidden clothing and bag.

“Oh, that’s great,” he moves towards one of the cabinets in room, throwing it open to various drawers where he in turn begins to pull out my canvas bag and ripped clothing.

I glance at the bloodied dress and feel melancholic for a moment.

“I guess we can throw that away, huh?”

He gives me a sad smile, “I just wanted to make sure it was okay.”

I nod and watch him as he throws the clothing into the garbage tin.

My mind suddenly jumps to Daehyun, and I don’t feel guilty but rather sad… I know I need to talk to him, but what about really? I had with Taekwoon and that I… Well, did I love him?

“Taylor?”

I’m broken out of my thoughts as Hongbin nods towards the table and I follow him in response. I push any thought of me being in love the back of my mind, knowing all well that it was too soon to be thinking things like that. Hell, it’s only been a few days…

The past few hours I had spent were filled with the smells of old parchment and leather bound books. I smile to myself because I find the smell oddly comforting, part of it so similar to Taekwoon’s scent.

I make my way up the stairs once more, finding the door to his office. There is no chit-chat coming from it so I push it open with ease.

He has just finished tying a string around a rolled map and when he hears my shuffling feet he glances at me.

He immediately smirks, putting the roll of papers in its rightful place before turning to me.

I wrap my arms around his waist as my face nuzzles its way into his chest. I can feel Taekwoon’s arms snake their way around my shoulders before he kisses the top of my head.

“How was the work?” I ask.

He nods, “Good… What did you do?”

“I studied with Hongbin… Luckily he’s not angry with me anymore.”

He chuckles softly, one of his hands leaving my back to play with a couple pieces of his hair.

“I didn’t think he would stay angry for long… I mean he needs to accept it.”

I perk my ears in interest at his words, my eyebrows rising as I make eye contact with him.

“Accept what, exactly?”

His cheeks flush a bright pink before his eyes roam over my face, stammering on his words as he opens his mouth.

“That… that we’re more… Well, we’re more than just physical.”

I can feel my heart pounding in my chest, his words hitting me like a pile of bricks. He brings his hand to my face, his thumb grazing my cheek bone softly.

“I mean… If you want it to be… I know for me it is, but maybe-”

“Yes,” I answer shakily, nodding hectically at his words, “I do.”

His cheeks are still highlighted a cherry colour but he still smiles at me.

“Exclusive… Just the two of us.”

I nod again, a smile on my face… I know it’s fast, only being together for a short amount of time and mostly in a physical sense, but I can’t help but feel as if this was right. Every part of me feels like it’s about to burst in complete jubilation. How could it be a few simple words that create a label could make me so happy?

“Just… You need to make sure you talk to Daehyun then.”

I nod more slowly this time, a sad smile on my face… I don’t want to hurt him.

“I will… I just don’t want to hurt him; he’s already been hurt a lot in his life so I just want to be careful about it…”

Taekwoon sighs quietly before nodding, “I trust you’ll tell him, just make sure you’re not always putting everyone’s feelings before your own.”

My smile brightens at his words and I can’t help myself as I press my lips against his quickly. I pull out of his embrace but let my hand clasp his, entwining my fingers with his.

“Just because you said it first, doesn’t mean I didn’t feel the same way… I guess you could say it was bound to happen?”

He lets a victorious smirk take over his features before letting me pull him towards the door, my hunger pangs now beginning to get the best of me.

“Now, shall we eat?” I ask, his office door quickly closing behind him as we wander into the hallway.

Taekwoon nods once more, his lips as the smell of food drifts from the kitchen to greet our noses once we ascend the stairs.

We keep our hands together as we stand in the entrance of the dining hall and my eyes roam over the tables to quickly find N and Hyuk sitting across from one another, enjoying a plate of food. I smirk to myself, halting my footsteps and in turn stopping Taekwoon as well.

“Wait, Taekwoonie.”

He gives me a questioning gaze when I look from him to the table we were heading toward.

“N and Bree… I think they’re doing it,” I whisper to him, my lips grazing his ear.

He snorts at my words before looking at me with a raised eyebrow.

“Doing what?” He laughs.

“They were in his office, on the desk... You know exactly what I mean.”

My cheeks flush lightly and Taekwoon doesn’t hesitate to laugh at my embarrassment.

“No really, what?”

I bat his chest once, “Stop teasing, you know what I’m implying.”

He slowly shakes his head as his eyes sparkle with mischief although the rest of his face is expressionless. My cheeks redden more, my fingers twitching in nervousness.

“You know… the dirty?” I whisper while rubbing the back of my neck with my free hand.

“The dirty? Like dirty laundry?” He questions.

Wait… was he being serious? It’s so hard to tell with his poker face.

“Taekwoonie,” I breathe, “They had... …”

He snickers at me and I give him a doe-eyed expression.

“I get it, darling… I just wanted to see how explicit I could make you.”

I hit my hand against his chest again, a small smirk playing on my lips before he continues speaking.

“You’re cute when you’re embarrassed…”

His lips press against my cheek before he pulls me towards the table.

“Sit down while I grab us some food,” Taekwoon orders.

“Okay… No meat though for me, please?”

He nods again, eyeing N with a smirk as he walks to the piles of food. Hyuk is sitting next to me, the empty spot on my other side saved for Taekwoon.

N gives Taekwoon a bit of a strange look before turning to me with a mischievous grin gracing his mouth.

“So, how’s that going little sis?” N inquires as he glances backward to Taekwoon.

He really knew how to tease me…But now it was my turn.

Hyuk scoffs at his question as he shovels a pile of potatoes into his mouth, waiting for me to answer. Taekwoon takes his spot beside me, putting a plate of food in front of either of us. He grabs two forks from the cup in the middle and places it on the table near me.

What should be my answer? Do I start bugging him right off the bat…? I mean why the hell not, he did it to everyone else.

“Better than your situation,” I answer with a grin.

N’s face takes on a quizzical expression as Hyuk snorts with laughter. I’m about to further the conversation when a female voice interrupts my own.

“Hey guys!”           

When I look over my shoulder, Bree is walking past the table to get some food and instead of my gaze following her, I let my eyes come into contact with N’s. I smile at him with pure delight and Hyuk follows suit although he is filled with chuckles. Suddenly his expression becomes one of pure horror and before he can say anything Bree is taking a spot beside him. Taekwoon is also smirking at him and N only gives him an awkward smile.

“What’s so funny?” Bree asks, taking a fork from the cup in the middle of our table.

“Taylor, Hyuk-” N tries to interject with but I can’t help but further my teasing. Usually being the end of everyone’s jokes, it was nice to have the power in a situation.

“So, I hear things have been getting busy for you Bree?” I ask with a giggle.

Hyuk chuckles and I take note of Taekwoon’s silly smirk.

She takes on a quizzical expression, “Not really? Today N and I just went over some maps.”

“Over maps?” Hyuk questions, raising his eyebrows at N for a moment, “Little difficult to do that when it’s on the floor.”

Bree stares at Hyuk with a wide eyed expression, “Wait… what?”

I laugh a bit before nudging Hyuk’s side.

“Oh, right… The map wasn’t on the floor but everything else was.”

Taekwoon places his fork on his plate, his head hanging in laughter while N stares at me with a ridiculous expression.

“Taylor-”

“I would suggest you stop talking,” Bree suddenly orders to both Hyuk and I.

Hyuk nods slowly, an uneasy smile on his face as he begins to shovel food back into his mouth.

“I agree,” N breathes, his fork now planted on the table.

For some reason I feel anger boil inside of me when I look over at N… How can he tease me constantly and not expect it in return? It was just a joke… More so, how can he instantly agree with Bree placing orders on me?

“Excuse me?” I ask through gritted teeth.

“Taylor-”

“I don’t want you talking about this, so drop it,” Bree snaps.

I glance at her before letting my gaze fall back on N as he shakes his head at me. He leans over, whispering into Bree’s ear but I can’t make out what he is saying.

Why is he agreeing with her…? I know she might not understand but he didn’t have to let her snap at me… I mean, he’s my brother… Isn’t he supposed to stick up for me?

Bree’s expression suddenly changes before I let my anger get the best of me.

“Make me,” I challenge, my eyes falling on her.

I can instantly feel regret as she smirks at me. Her fingers slowly put the fork on the table and she gets to her feet.

Why am I doing this again? This wasn’t a good idea…

I’ve forgotten how tall she is as I stand on my own two feet; my eyes staring up at her from my five foot two frame.

Taekwoon’s hand wraps around my wrist but I ignore it as N watches me… Why isn’t he doing anything? Isn’t he supposed to protect me in these situations?

N wraps his hand around Bree’s forearm, his eyes not leaving my face.

“Taylor, that’s enough. You’ve gone too far.”

I feel hurt by his words suddenly and my frustration doesn’t leave me. Wasn’t she also taking this too far? How was this completely my fault?

“N, it’s-” Taekwoon tries to say but my harsh words interrupt him.

“Screw you,” I hiss at N through tight lips.

I can hear Hyuk cough at my words and Bree takes on a bit of a shocked expression. N’s mouth forms a hard line and a moment of rage flashes through his irises before they become unreadable. He opens his mouth and I can already guess what he’s going to say.

“I already know what you’re going to tell me,” I begin with, making my way over the bench as I turn my back to him, “So, I’m already gone.”

I give Taekwoon a melancolic smile before I leave, whispering to him to finish his dinner before finding me in my room. He nods in return, his fingers squeezing my arm reassuringly before he lets it go.

I walk through the entrance not bothering to look back at the table.

After a few minutes of angry thoughts in an empty hallway, I finally make it to my room and I plop myself on the bed in a frustrated state. Although I am angry, there’s a part of me that already is regretting my earlier outburst… I mean I understood that Bree probably didn’t understand the humour in it, but N didn’t have to give me the complete blame for the situation.

I fall backward onto the bed, my head resting on the pillow as I wait for Taekwoon… I wonder what N is going to say to him?

I sigh loudly, hoping for the best as I let myself be consumed with my thoughts.

Why did I have to be so snappy towards some of them? I mean, maybe I just misunderstood the situation… Part of me still feels the necessity to close myself off from the boys as well. Maybe the cheekiness was just a front? Did I want to get any closer than I already was?

Of course I did… They five of them are my brothers while the other was now my boyfriend. As much as I am scared of losing them, I don’t want to miss out on never having known them at all.

My thoughts are broken when the door creaks open and I eye the figure that has now entered my room.

“How much trouble am I in?” I ask Taekwoon.

He closes the door and makes his way to my side, wrapping an arm around my waist to hold me against him. I rest my head against his chest while his lips kiss the top of my head.

“Enough,” he breathes into my hair.

I sigh as my hands rest against his stomach, my fingers playing with the fabric of his t-shirt.

“He’s going to find me tomorrow isn’t he?”

“Yes, he is.”

“He didn’t have to get so angry with me though,” I confess to Taekwoon, feeling oddly guilty as I think of my eldest brother and commander.

“He wasn’t… it was a big misunderstanding, darling.”

He chuckles and I scrunch my eyebrows in confusion.

“What?”

“Bree didn’t realise you were joking… N told her, but when she stood up to challenge you, it was her way of joking around.”

I smirk to myself; now that I can understand.

“N was trying to dispute it, although with his actions, it made it seem like he was choosing sides.”

“…” I breathe as I realize what I did, “I didn’t think of that…”

Taekwoon chuckles again, “You can deal with it tomorrow, but for now I would like your thoughts to be only of me.”

I smile, “They usually are.”

“Only usually?” He asks incredulously.

I bob my head in response and soon find myself flat on my back as his fingers drag up and down my waist. I can’t help but burst into a fit of laughter.

“Taekwoonie,” I yelp as he presses his weight onto me.

His lips are on my neck and I smile in pleasure as he trails kisses along it.

I seem to forget my earlier mishap as I concentrate on him. He takes his hands from my sides and plants them on the mattress on either of side of my head. He plants one more kiss before lifting his face away from my neck to stare down at me with a sweet smile.

“Sleep here?” I ask, biting my bottom lip with a smirk.

Taekwoon smiles in response, “Why do you think you have to ask?”

He presses his lips against mine and I let my frustrated thoughts slip away as Taekwoon preoccupies my mind for the night.