“Um, about two weeks. Put me down, quickly. Okay?”

Kang Hyun, still holding Ji-an, flopped down on the sofa.
Despite feeling physically fine, Kang Hyun’s flushed cheeks twitched as he awkwardly held Ji-an, who was restless.

Finally reassured, Ji-an let out a small sigh.

“How about going on a trip?”

Kang Hyun, with his arms wrapped around Ji-an’s waist, sitting on his thighs, drew her closer.

“A trip? I came to take care of you.”

“What about our house in Jeju Island? You’d like it, wouldn’t you?”

Kang Hyun quickly corrected his slip of the tongue.

“Let’s go there when you’re fully recovered.”

“What will we do tomorrow? If there’s something you want to do or have in mind, feel free to tell me. It can be stifling to just stay home, so let’s go out.”

Ji-an was perplexed by his insistence on going out when she had come to stay in.

“How about a hotel the day after tomorrow? We could enjoy good food and swimming. The next day, let’s go to a movie theater, and then a theme park or zoo. You like those places, right?”

Ji-an, watching his reddened ears and lips, nodded robotically, speechless at the sight of Kang Hyun’s upturned eyes.

Was she behaving like this because she was so happy to be here?

“Did you eat dinner? Have you taken your medicine?”

“Not yet.”

“I knew it. It’s late, and you still haven’t taken your medicine. Take it first.”

“Just a bit more.”

Preventing Ji-an from getting up, Kang Hyun softly kissed her wrinkled nose.

“It’s addictive.”

“What can I do about it?”

“You’re not used to expressing yourself, right?”

Embarrassed by Kang Hyun’s straightforwardness, Ji-an grumbled.

She doubted his claim about having problems expressing emotions. It seemed more like a deep-rooted self-loathing, where he labeled himself as abnormal.

“I’ll try harder.”

“You’re already doing much better than I am.”

Kang Hyun’s lips then touched her blushing cheek.

“If you keep kissing me all the time…”

Kang Hyun showered her with kisses, eventually leading to their lips locking. Ji-an, slightly retreating, shook her head.

“No kissing. Medicine first.”

“Stress caused this illness.”

“So?”

“The real cure is a kiss.”

Kang Hyun, finding a plausible reason, released her waist and helped her off with her coat.

“Why are you taking off my clothes?”

“You’ll need to undress to stay here, right?”

“Oh, right.”

Kang Hyun lightly bumped his forehead against Ji-an’s, then rubbed their noses together, laughing.

“Now give me the medicine.”

Ji-an, blushing intensely as if contemplating something, finally agreed.

“All right.”

Deciding, Ji-an wrapped her arms around Kang Hyun’s neck and initiated a kiss.

As she opened her mouth slightly, Kang Hyun gently entered, savoring the softness within.
Kang Hyun didn’t hide his sticky desire as he rummaged through Ji-an’s mouth.

Ji-an’s palm, clenched into a fist behind his neck, became as damp as her lips.

“Haa…”

While Ji-an gasped for air as their lips parted, Kang Hyun leisurely wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling their bodies close enough for their abdomens to touch.

Their hot skins entwined again in the heated space.

Busy catching Kang Hyun’s breath, Ji-an felt something hard pressing against her lower abdomen. Just then, a large hand invaded her knit top.

Ji-an’s eyelashes fluttered in response.

Until now, Kang Hyun had only deeply locked lips without seeking more. Occasionally, he would massage her nape or stroke her back outside her clothes.

But now, his palm, craving bare skin, glided up her spine to touch the area near her shoulder blades.

Ji-an’s breath quickened.

The thought of the hand moving to the front soon made her heart race, almost causing hyperventilation.

Sensing her rapid breathing, Kang Hyun moved his lips down to bite the tip of Ji-an’s chin gently, then shifted to the exposed ear amidst her hair.

As Ji-an’s entire body tensed up due to his skilled actions, Kang Hyun nibbled her red earlobe, removed his hand from inside the knit, and whispered into her ear.

“Relax. I’ll only go this far.”

Her shoulders immediately slumped as if his words released some restraint, and Ji-an let out a long sigh of relief.