"Yes. Don't worry. I'll protect you, okay?" He took her other hand lacing their fingers together. "You'll be safe with me." He pressed another kiss to her cheek. He was sweet, her MinJae, and she couldn't imagine a life without him. She was so thankful that he came along in the end.
His voice switched into a cheery tune, his attempt to lift the mood. "Anyway, the guys asked if you wanted anything. Drinks? More food? Presents?"
She sighed. "Is it bad of me if I give them a huge list so that they'll take a little longer to get here?"
MinJae giggled. "Nope, it's not bad. You can ask for ridiculous things." He wrinkled his nose adorably. "I'm sure at this point, they would do anything for you. You could..." He beamed, his eyes shooting rainbows and sparkles at the thought. "Exploit them!"
"You're lying." He sounded a little too happy about this.
"I'm serious." MinJae nodded, tapping his chin. "We can ask them to get, say, that new barbecued chicken place with the special garlic butter sauce."
"That's a 3 hour drive from here!" Amber gaped at him.
He must be kidding. They couldn't possibly drive all the way there just for her right? Then her mind flashed with the memory of what Deok-Su did for Miri, sending her dumplings from Myeong-dong. On a second thought, soulmates could be crazy. In fact she wouldn't mind doing it, if it meant MinJae being happy.
"I'm not joking. They'll get it for you, if you want." MinJae nodded. "I wouldn't mind trying it. I read the news, they said it's really, really, seriously good. " His eyes sparkled at the thought as he grinned at her, his cheeks puffing up into adorable round balls of fat.
"Stop." Amber laughed. "You just want to eat fried chicken."
"Busted."
They shared a laugh and his words seemed to drive out the tension that inflicted her body. She relaxed into his touch, the stiffness in her muscles melting away with their heart-to-heart talk. The knock on the door however, sent her bolting under the covers. Why were they so fast? Fuck! Her lips twisted into a downward frown. MinJae rubbed her hand soothingly.
"Don't be scared, I promise to protect you." He said. "If you want, you could fake being angry for a bit to scare them off."
"Shhh, not so loud." She whispered back. "What if they hear you?"
He grinned. "You're so cute."
That was not the point! Damn it!
"MinJae...We're here." Casper's voice called from the door and MinJae glanced at her. She gave him a look mouthing the words, 'tell him to wait'. Her soulmate glanced at her, mouthing back 'you want to pretend to be angry?' To which she shook her head forcefully. She didn't want them to misunderstand and scare them away. She only wanted to buy herself some more time...Then MinJae turned to speak, raising his voice.
"Yeah, come in." MinJae called loudly, using his diaphragm for maximum effect. Fuck. Her heart began racing, pounding hard in her chest as her body went into overdrive. She glared at him and he gave her an apologetic smile. "You have to deal with it. You can't keep running." He explained. He was right of course so she sighed nodding, he squeezed her hand supportively.
"You're not just doing this because you're angry that I didn't force them to get the fried chicken are you?" She asked.
"Maybe." He replied with a shrug, sticking out his tongue again. That SNAKE!
"You...are going to get it from me." She whispered back.
"Oh, I'm so scared." He replied back mischievously, snuffling a giggle behind his palm. He was definitely, not scared at all. He waggled his eyebrows then licked his lips, mouthing the words 'punish me'. She blushed, turning red at the sight.
God, damn it.
MinJae was still giggling when the door clicked open, and the screech of the unoiled hinges was ominous in the room. She watched with bated breath as her soulmates peeked in nervously, hovering at the door.
It was kind of cute, the way they all surrounded the frame of the door, craning their necks in for a better look. It was also probably because Casper stood at the front of the team, tall and stiff as he openly stared at her. He was like a wall, blocking everyone's way and being obnoxiously big in his stance.
His handsome face was curious, tight with his worry, and emotions flickered through his foxy eyes. The one that caught her attention the most however, was that sheer unadulterated concern for her that glistened within those warm eyes.
Then someone shoved him forward, and he tripped over his clumsy feet. He was a mess of hands and feet as he toppled forward, his arms flailing wildly as he fell. Amber couldn't help letting the gasp of shock escape her lips. He almost landed face-first onto the floor, but his quick thinking gave him the ability to bounce dangerously on one leg to balance out his weight. He stomped his feet together firmly breaking his fall, grimacing. She winced. God, he almost smashed his nose into the tiles. That would not be good.
She couldn't help it really because her mouth opened before she could even stop herself. The concern she had for him coursing through her body.
"Are you okay?" She asked, feeling worry spill in her chest. "That didn't sound so good... Your feet." She pressed her lips together.
Casper blinked, his eyes widening at her words and the usually stoic guy blushed, turning a violent crimson that was oddly cute on his usually well-carried self. She was reminded of something from his actions. The way he fell made her feel as if she'd seen him before somewhere, especially with those foxy eyes...
"I'm fine. This happens all the time." He laughed awkwardly, looking highly embarrassed. "Uh, the question should be, are you okay?" He licked his lips nervously looking at her.
Then she noticed something about her entire group of boys as they streamed in to stand before her. The energy they exuded was nothing like what she had seen in their dormitory, the happy peals of laughter and the bubbly aura was what she was used to. Individually, she was more used to seeing the heat in their eyes and the sexual tension that they exuded when they approached her. There was something really off about her handsome soulmates. Her eyes darted over each face, flickering over their expressions as she looked at them for the first time in a couple of days.
They were actually seriously nervous.
Oliver was bouncing from one feet to the other in a corner as he watched her, his eyes were wide with his concern and yet he didn't make a move to approach her. Sieon seemed to be bursting with the need to run to her, biting at the insides of his cheeks. Knowing her soulmate, he couldn't keep his hands off her the minute he set sight on her person. Yet, he remained fumbling in his corner, pouting even as he watched her with his best imitation of puppy dog eyes.
Hikaru's brows were furrowed and he glanced back and forth at his members, seemingly unsure of what to do as he bit his fingernails, nibbling them viciously and Ezra? He looked a little constipated. The tick in his jaw was obvious as he gritted his teeth, his face paler than usual. Her eyes flickered over them again.
And no JieMi.