#nct johnny

Johnny simply shrugs his shoulders, moving past you but not before gently taking hold of the light blue duffle bag slung over your shoulder for you. “That’s what you get when you leave me in charge of booking hotels for our work trips.” 

He presses his pointer finger against the tip of your nose, then gives it a featherlight kiss. You’re not quite sure when that started, but it’s an endearing action he did after sex that he slowly started weaving into your daily interaction with him — and you didn’t mind it one bit.

“You don’t think it’ll look strange to Mr. Choi that we have one room booked with one bed?”

“That’s why I made sure to book one with a sofa bed. One, for plausible deniability and two, if we get tired of doing it on the bed, there’s also a couch.” Johnny interjects with a teasing wink. “Plus, do you really think Choi will go out of his way to look at finances for work trips? He barely goes out of his way to do his job. I think we’re good.” 

Your lips press into a tight line, still unsure of the arrangement but you choose to believe him anyway. The beauty of work trips with Johnny is that Mr. Choi trusts him to do what’s best and for this particular work trip a shared king size bed is what’s best for the both of you. 

It’s been a few weeks since you and Johnny started to secretly see each other romantically. A foreign concept to you, but an exciting one nonetheless. 

You’ve occasionally spent lunch in his car, albeit less eating and more making out with a few other things from time to time that give you a satisfied glow when you return to the office. He’s also taken a liking to how soft your mattress is and how central your apartment is to everything, refusing to leave on weekends and ultimately spending more time at your place than his own. 

Even your neighbor, Mrs. Kang has begun to mention Johnny in passing, labeling him as your ‘midnight friend’ and looking forward to his greeting when she sees him while she takes out her trash. Johnny, being the gentleman he is, is inclined to always throw it out for her when he sees her. There’s even a slight disappointment when you tell her he won’t be staying the night that week — though you’d like to believe it's because she enjoys his conversation and not because she doesn’t have to walk to the trash chute herself.

“Do you wanna shower first or should I?” You ask, stripping yourself from your knit cardigan and toeing off your sneakers.

“You can go first. In the meantime, I’ll order room service.” Taking a seat on the foot of the bed, he quickly removes his shoes. “Trust me to get you something you like?” He asks, intently watching the way you begin to remove bits of clothing off and neatly creating a pile of used clothes nearby. 

Making your way over to him, you kiss the top of his head. “Always. Just make sure—”

“Babe, I know your allergy list and your likes and dislikes like the back of my hand.” Johnny lets out, grabbing the take out pamphlet near the phone. “I got this.” 

With a smug expression painted on his face, you run your fingers through his hair before playfully tugging on his roots to guide his gaze up to yours. 

“That’s good to know. But I was gonna say, make sure to get utensils. You forgot to mention it last time.” 

“Right.” A nervous chuckle slipped from his lips, surprised and slightly turned on by your touch. “I will do that, too. Thanks for reminding me.” 

“You’re welcome,” you smile as you run your fingers through his hair once more. “I’ll be quick. Don’t miss me too much.” Your lip catches between your teeth, stifling a cheeky smile as you walk away. 

“Already do!” Johnny replies playfully, biting back a laugh while he watches you happily make your way towards the bathroom. 

❁❁❁❁❁

“Okay, how about this. Which fruit looks the most suspicious to you?” Johnny asks, leaning into the backing of his chair. He sips on his cup of water, ice already melting and creating water rings on the wooden patio table as the hours pass eating dinner while playing a game of random questions he’s made up. 

“Pineapples.” You quickly answer, stacking the empty dinner plates on top of each other. “First, it looks like it has spikes! A dead giveaway that we shouldn’t eat it but we do anyway. Also, nothing to do with looks, but fresh pineapples break down the proteins in your mouth…like what for? Other than to tell us to stop eating them, right?” 

Johnny chuckles at your unexpected enthusiasm to his question. “Its like it’s not meant to be eaten fresh.” 

“But fresh fruit is the best.” You counter, crossing your leg over the other as you take a sip of your water. “Okay, my turn.” You pause, foot shaking as you think of a ridiculous question. When you finally come up with one, you straighten your posture. “If pizza could speak, what accent would it have?”

“Is that a real question?” Johnny sighs disappointingly. “An Italian accent, of course. I mean, they originate from Italy so it only makes sense.” 

“So would a deep dish pizza have a Chicago accent?” You question, intrigued to hear his answer. 

“Well, duh!” Johnny smiles, grinning from ear to ear. He throws a wink in your direction. “Now you’re getting it, baby.” 

You quietly giggle, letting a beat of silence pass between you two. You stand to look over the balcony, watching people below you going about their night. Your mind eventually wanders to tomorrow’s client you and Johnny are meeting over dinner and a tight knot in your stomach begins to form. A hand slides over your waist and across your torso and Johnny nuzzles his nose into the crook of your neck. 

“Tomorrow night is gonna be fine.” Johnny quietly reassures, gently pulling you back to have you sit on his lap. You swing your legs over the arm rest of his chair and his arms securely hold you. 

You’ve learned to keep your emotions guarded, more for your sake than anyone else’s. It’s fitting that you’re in a career where vulnerability doesn’t rule with an iron fist. You never want a client to see you waver and showing anything other than confidence means you’ve already lost. It’s just unfortunate that hiding your vulnerability at work bled into hiding your vulnerability with everyone else.

But Johnny Suh is the exception. 

Kind of. 

You don’t really need to express your feelings, he just seems to get it. You’ve pondered the silly idea that he could possibly read minds, but you eventually settled on the idea that he’s someone who relies on patterns to guide him — and you aren’t the most lowkey when it comes to your tells as much as you’d like to think, at least in your personal life.

“Doyoung said Mr. Perez is really hard to impress.” You solemnly share, feeling your confidence slowly dwindling at the thought. “Even the best of the company couldn’t get them on board.” You give Johnny a knowing look, having heard his experience with this overseas client and Johnny’s inability to impress him from Doyoung.

“To be fair, I was inexperienced and working alone.” The tips of Johnny’s fingers move under the hem of your pajama shorts. “It’s always better with a partner. And the most important thing to remember is that you’re not me.” Johnny reassures, tucking your hair behind your ear before giving you a soft kiss on your cheek. 

“Mr. Choi says a lot is riding on this.” You share, sighing as the knot in your stomach tightens uncomfortably. You knew better than to listen to the words of the incompetent manager that’s been getting under your skin more times than Johnny has been in you — and that’s saying a lot. But if Mr. Choi is good at anything, it’s manipulation and picking at people’s insecurities and your insecurity, surprisingly, is the fear of not doing your job well.

“Of course he would.” Johnny rolls his eyes, annoyed with the idea his manager spoke to you without him present – not because of jealousy, but from concern that Mr. Choi would make you feel inadequate when it comes to doing your job, which he did and also has no problem doing, to anyone, Johnny included. Johnny’s hand cups the side of your head and pulls you to rest on his chest while his free hand strokes your mid back under your shirt. “Forget what Choi says, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. We’re a team. I’ll support you where you need it and you’ll do the same for me.” 

Nuzzling your face into the crook of his neck, his palm slides up and down your exposed thigh. You inhale the scent of the hotel body wash still lingering on his skin from his shower earlier and soak his heat that's keeping you warm against the cool night air. 

“Regardless how tomorrow night goes, we’ll celebrate.” Johnny reassures. “Don’t stress yourself out, baby. You’re amazing at what you do.” 

You mumble a thank you and press a kiss onto Johnny’s cheek. Without another word, Johnny engulfs you into a loving embrace — making you feel protected in ways you’d never thought you’d feel by a man. 

— The Not-So-Difficult Client & Whispered Praises.

Sitting at the foot of the bed putting on his ridiculously expensive watch, one he deems as his ‘lucky charm’ — aside from you, of course, Johnny does a double take when you walk back into the room and sees you in your silk champagne dress that hugged every part of your body beautifully. He’s breathless and completely enamoured by your presence, feeling the sudden urge to rip your dress off while also wanting to preserve how ethereal you look at his very moment by stopping time, forever. 

You don’t notice the way his lips part when his gaze scans your body or the way he needs to adjust his pants, suddenly feeling too tight in his groin area. However, you do notice the way he can’t keep his eyes off you. His low lidded gaze locks onto your body as you move around the room and stuff your purse with your necessities. 

“Johnny, honey, you’re catching flies.” You tease, gently lifting his chin to close his gaping mouth. His gulp is audible and his tongue darts between his lips before he clears his throat. A hand reaches for your hip, gently pulling your body into him. Johnny rests his chin against your sternum, his dark eyes looking up at you with adoration. “Do you like my dress?”

Johnny mindlessly nods, gulping down his saliva. His ears flush a deep red, a dead giveaway that his heart is also pounding in his chest and his hard cock is uncomfortably restricted by the fitted fabric around his waist. 

“Do you think I look hot?” You tease quietly, your voice dropping into a soft and silky tone. Your fingers gently brush the back of his neck, a small smile threatening to appear when you see Johnny’s eyes flutter close.

“So hot,” Johnny replies instantly. His eyelids slowly open, gaze softening and the innermost part of his eyebrows curving upward. “How badly do we need this client? He’s not that important, right?” 

You giggle softly, carefully fixing a stray hair that’s fallen out of place on his forehead. “I think you already know the answer to that.” Pulling away, you catch Johnny uncomfortably shifting in bed before ultimately jumping to his feet.

Johnny watches as you spritz your favorite perfume behind your ears, on your wrist, and behind your knees. In a pathetic attempt to soften his riled up cock, he nervously rubs the back of his neck and tries to take his mind off the way he’s throbbing between his legs. “Why do you, um, always spray your perfume behind your knees?” He asks, stumbling over his words like he’s talking to his crush for the first time. 

Sliding the travel size bottle into your purse, you flash a quick and dangerous grin at him. “You’ll get it when my legs are propped on your shoulders tonight.” 

“You’re killing me here,” Johnny desperately groans, squeezing his eyes shut and the image suddenly pops into his head. He braces himself on the nearby table, palms pressing into the table top and head hanging as he takes deep breaths to calm himself. 

The corners of your lips lift into a feline-like smile as you rub circles against his back. “It’s okay, baby.” You coo into his ear. “Do you need a minute?”

“Did you put on your lip gloss yet?” Johnny asks suddenly, the muscle in his jaw ticking as he keeps his head down.

“I forgot! Thanks for rem—” 

Your words are cut short when you feel Johnny’s fingers grabbing a hold of your jaw and pulling your lips to his, aching to feel yours. A smile stretches across your face and Johnny shakily exhales, his forehead pressed against yours. 

“That should hold me over until dinner is over.” Johnny happily sighs before the corner of his mouth ticks up into a sharp smirk. 

”Glad we’re on the same page.” You whisper against his lips before giving Johnny a final kiss, feeling his hand slide down the curve of your backside. Your eyes flick to the digital clock on the bedside table. “We don’t wanna be late. You can take this dress off me when we get back.” 

“Just know I’m holding you to that.” He says, bringing the back of your hand to his mouth for a kiss. “The sooner we get this done—”

“The sooner we can be alone.” You add, pressing a kiss on his cheek before you pull the door open. 

❁❁❁❁❁

“There he is.” Johnny quickly mumbles under his breath loud enough for you to hear. 

You paint a bright smile, watching the man and woman nearing the two of you. Decked out in designer clothes, Mr. Perez and his wife look like they walked straight out of a GQ Magazine cover.

“John! It's great to see you again after all these years.” The slightly shorter man, in comparison to Johnny, in his mid 50s with salt and pepper hair greets your co-worker with a cup of a hand to Johnny’s  shoulder. 

“Mr. Perez, it’s nice to see you again. I’d like to introduce you to my partner, Y/N.” Both Mr. Perez and his wife turn to look at you and they flash you a kind smile. 

“It’s nice to meet you both.” You give them a charming grin, providing them with small talk, while Johnny speaks with the host regarding the dinner reservation. Johnny quickly gestures three of you towards the entrance, the host preparing the menus before leading the four of you to a private room. 

Johnny pulls out your chair, then takes the seat next to you. 

“Always a gentleman,” Mr. Perez comments on Johnny’s gesture and looks at you with a chuckle. “I remember the first time I met him, we were at a restaurant, similar to this. It was pouring rain when we got done with our dinner. As I was getting into my car, there was this woman who was stuck on the sidewalk, not wanting to get wet. John gave her his umbrella before booking it to his car, completely drenched in rain as he fumbled for his car keys and I thought, wow how many young men would do that when no one is looking.” 

There’s a look of admiration in Mr. Perez’s eyes when he looks at Johnny who suddenly feels coy at the retelling of the story. 

“Honestly, one of the reasons why I’ve been keeping an eye on the company for so long is this man, right here.” Pointing to Johnny, you watch the way your partner humbly accepts the compliment with a shy ‘thank you, sir’ in return.

“Glad to know your acts of kindness weren’t just an act.” You gently tease, giving Johnny’s knee a gentle squeeze under the table. 

“I may be a lot of things, but performative isn’t one of them.” He sends you a playful wink, grinning against his fist before clearing his throat and turns his attention to the waiter making his way towards the table.

When the waiter appears to take the table’s drink orders, he’s surprised to take everyone’s food orders right away. The client is impressed when you order one of his favorite dishes and compliments you on your exceptional taste in food. Truthfully, Johnny gave you a heads up to look up the restaurant’s menu online beforehand since the couple in front of you tend to do the same. The fact your choice of food is Mr. Perez’s favorite is from pure luck.

The waiter quickly leaves, leaving you and Johnny with the hardest client you need to impress. But just before you or Johnny could ease into the conversation, Mr. Perez looks at you with a confident smile.

“I hope this doesn’t sound too off putting, but I thought it’d be better to be transparent. I’ve heard a lot about you, Y/N, and I must say that you are a well-loved and highly respected employee.” Mr. Perez says, glancing over at his wife then back at you. “The uptick in revenue since you transferred is quite impressive. If I’m not mistaken, you’re essentially in charge of making changes to better a company, yes?”

You proudly nod. “Everything from strategy to marketing. When done right, work flow is smoother and more efficient.” 

Under the table, Johnny’s pinky carefully laces with yours. He gives you a light squeeze — a silent affirmation that he’s said to you many times before: I’m proud of you, baby.

Mr. Perez nods in understanding, then looks at Johnny. “What do you think, John? I’m eager to hear your thoughts on your partner and the changes she brought to the table.”

Johnny grins, straightening his posture. “She’s amazing. Aside from the spike in revenue, since she transferred the morale in the office has seen an improvement.”

“However,” you interject politely, “I can’t take all the credit. John has been a wonderful partner in helping bridge our companies together. We’re a great team.”

“Happier employees get the job done.” Mrs. Perez chirps. “We’ve also heard you transferred from one of the best companies in the country, is that correct?” 

“Yes,” you smile. 

Mr. Perez takes a sip of his water. “Good to know Choi has done something good by approving your transfer.” Your potential client chuckles at his back handed compliment towards the insufferable manager. “Last time I spoke with you, John, we pondered the idea of you gunning for the managerial position. Still thinking about it?”

“It’d be a lie if I said I didn’t,” Johnny laughs, “but as I’ve stated before that I’m not inclined to steal a job from another person. My work speaks for itself and when the right person notices, doors open. Until then, I’ll hold my cards close.” Johnny lifts the corner of his mouth into a smug grin, rightfully proud of himself. 

You hope the people in front of you don’t notice the glint of reverence in your eyes when you look at your coworker. You try not to let your stare linger, but Johnny’s hand on your knee underneath the table pulls you back to reality. You refocus on the flute glass placed in front of you by the waiter. 

“I admire loyal employees who still have heart for others.” He lifts his whiskey glass towards you and Johnny before taking a sip. 

“You say the company’s morale has gotten better. How’d you manage that?” This time, Mrs. Perez asks as she looks at you, intrigued by your answer. 

“It all comes down to listening to the team. Some employees expressed wanting to move departments while others felt they needed more support. With the new income flow, we’re able to hire more people in the departments that need it.” You lay out a general gist of the plan implemented, watching Mr. Perez’s head in approval.

“I also think the new mandatory vacation days also helps the team a lot.” Johnny adds, rubbing his palms against his pants. “It gives all of us time to decompress when we need it.”

“And that’s something you brought from your home company, right?” Mrs. Perez asks.

You proudly nod, sipping the champagne from your glass. You feel Johnny’s palm slide down your spine before casually retracting.  

“I’m going to be honest with you both.” Mr. Perez sighs, finger tapping on the whiskey glass he was presented with. “I’ve struggled partnering with this company because the revenue stream was completely unstable, to say the least.”

You nod, watching the couple exchange glances. Mrs. Perez gives her husband a small, quick nod as she takes a sip of her drink.

“But it does sound like the company has improved drastically. I am worried about the future after you leave, Y/N. I heard there’s another 6 months or so left of your contract?” 

You nod once more. The termination of your temporary contract isn’t a secret to Johnny, though neither of you delved that deep into what’s happening when it eventually comes. 

“I don’t think that’s something to worry about. John knows the strategy just as much as I do. He’ll be left in charge and we all know he’s just as capable as I am.” You reassure the client, feeling so close to closing the partnership you could practically taste it on your tongue. 

There’s a twinkle in Johnny’s light brown eyes when he looks at you and the couple in front of you notices how fond Johnny is of you. Mr. Perez grins, looking at Johnny before clearing his throat and catching Johnny’s attention.

“It finally sounds like a place I wouldn’t mind partnering with.” Mr. Perez states with confidence. Pulling out his phone, he opens his email. “The contracts were sent, yes? I remember having my lawyer look—ah, I found it.”

And in just a few minutes, your phone beeps and the signed contract sits in your email’s inbox. 

Johnny curls his fingers into a fist under the table and you do the same, giving each other a fist bump for a job well done in securing another client — especially one that the company has its eyes on for a few years now.

The waiter finally brings the food you ordered earlier, presenting it in front of all four of you. Mrs. Perez grins and clasps her hands together. ”Now that contracts are signed. I’d love to hear more about you two!”

❁❁❁❁❁

“Closing with a client before the main course arrived?” Johnny flashes you a grin and gives you a head nod of approval. “That’s very impressive…” He presses the elevator button and steps behind you, shielding you from the group of men and their wandering eyes. “…and so, so hot.” 

You carefully back into Johnny and feel his fingers gently brush against the fabric hugging your hips. “Hot?” You question with a quiet chuckle.

“Yes, hot. You know, synonymous with sexy, desirable, attractive.” Johnny whispers in your ear and goosebumps rise from your skin. “It took every muscle in my body not to jump you at the table.”

“You helped a lot, too. You deserve the recognition as well.” You tilt your head to look up at him. 

Just as he leans forward to give you a well-deserved kiss, the steel doors open and catch his attention instead. Johnny sticks his arm out as you step inside. Strangers begin to shuffle in, including the men with wandering eyes. Leaning onto Johnny’s side, he slings his arm over your shoulders and pulls you into his embrace to keep you close as bodies begin to fill the metal box you’re in.

“We make a great team, don’t we?” You softly say as you look up at him, your chin pressing into his chest. “Couldn’t have done this without you.”

Johnny gives you a gentle kiss to your forehead. His embrace is so warm and alluring, you don’t realize the men scanning your body but Johnny does. When he pulls away, a pout quickly forms on your lips. You watch him swiftly remove his dark suit jacket and sling it behind you to cover your backside. 

“They’re staring, aren’t they?” You quietly whisper into his ear when he pulls you back into his embrace. 

Johnny simply hums, relishing in the envy radiating off the men. The elevator stops on another floor and the elevator clears out, leaving only you and Johnny and the men that can’t seem to take their eyes off you. Taking the initiative, you lower one of Johnny’s hands to your rear. His palm lays flat on your ass before he realizes what you want him to do. A quick squeeze of your plush backside makes you giggle against his shirt and you earn a snicker from one of the men behind you. 

The elevator comes to a stop on your floor and Johnny gestures for you to walk out first, strutting out behind you with the confidence you love most about him. Though, he doesn’t stop himself from giving the men a smug look as he moves past them knowing they’d never get a chance to be with you like he is. 

A small beep from the card reader on your door is heard as you swipe your key card. It doesn’t take long until you’re pressed against the door with Johnny’s lips weaving with yours. 

“You’ve done so well, baby,” he whispers softly between kisses.

You smile against his mouth, fisting his linen shirt to pull him closer as you arch into him. “Thank you,” you quietly sigh. 

Your lips part and your eyes glaze over when Johnny’s lips brush down your jaw and trails kisses to your collarbone. Your fingers rake through his hair, silently encouraging him as his hand snakes behind you to slowly unzip your dress. 

The fabric falls to your feet and his mouth drags down your chest, gently pecking the skin filling out of your bra perfectly. His lips drag down your sternum and plants kisses just above your belly button. Johnny slowly lowers to his knees, as if you’re a temple he’s worshipping.

“So proud of you,” he murmurs against your skin, “let me reward you.” 

You sigh, letting his words soak into your bones while he trails lower between your thighs. Kissing the pretty fabric over your pelvis, Johnny looks up at you through his lashes watching the way your tongue peeks between your lips just before they slack open. 

Without a word spoken, you lift your leg over his broad shoulder and a sharp edged smile slices across his face. “My gorgeous girl, you’re so good for me.” 

You shudder at his praise and Johnny grazes his lips over the wetness pooling from anticipation. You let out a quiet whimper and your thighs begin to tremble as he kisses down the thin fabric over your slit that’s separating your pretty pussy from the endless pleasure his mouth gives. 

Pulling the pretty fabric aside, his pointed tongue licks a long strip between your slit and his tip swipes over your clit, making a soft moan escape from your lips. Parting your slick folds, he consumes your throbbing heat messily. Saliva runs down his chin and the sweet taste of you on his tongue. 

Your heart pounds against your chest a mile a minute and your fingers run through the roots of his hair, pulling him closer to your soaking heat. When his tongue circles around your entrance, your breath hitches in anticipation — feeling his smooth tongue muscle harden at its tip right before it penetrates you, fucking your hole while the pad of his thumb circles your bud of nerves. Your jaw drops and the back of your head presses into the door, hands desperately gripping onto the surface of the flattened wall in an attempt to ground yourself. 

Johnny looks up at you, eyes darkening and pupils blown out at the sight of your chest heaving and the whites of your eyes glazing over right before it flutters shut. His fingers replace his tongue, planting his lips glistening with your wetness on yours — tasting yourself with every slow and calculated movement of his swollen lips. A quiet moan slips from your lips and fills the empty space between your kisses when Johnny’s fingers meet your sweet spot. 

“Oh god,” you whine, wrapping your arms around Johnny and pulling his body impossibly close. His forehead presses into your shoulder before his tongue circles your skin and pulls it taut, leaving a discolored mark while you’re nothing but breathless pants and a moaning mess.

Your walls tighten around his fingers and your nails helplessly scrape the material covering his biceps, feeling the coil tighten in the pit of your stomach. When his lips find yours again, you're dizzy — lightheaded from bliss and ecstasy as he tickles the right spot that’s sure to bring you to your knees and he certainly won’t stop until you’re helplessly sobbing in pleasure. 

You succumb to pleasure, writhing at the mercy of the man in front of you. You choke out a sob, feeling the dam burst inside of you and releasing the floodgates of your pleasure. And just as he expected, your trembling thighs give in and you fall to the floor, desperately trying to press your knees together only to have your wrists pinned to the door while his fingers desperately fuck your pretty cunt until you’re coming on him again.

”Wanna be good for me, sweetheart?” Johnny whispers against your mouth. 

You rapidly nod, vision slowly blurring as your mind rattles and your body melts at his touch. 

“Then come for me again.” He softly growls, thrusting his digits until he’s knuckles deep inside you with every pump. “Come again and I promise I’ll fuck this pretty pussy just how you love it.”

Your wrists go limp as you feel another wave of pleasure hits you, back arching off the solid door behind you and knees pressing together instinctively. You whine out Johnny’s name as your body squirms, heart frantically pounding against your chest. When your eyes squeeze shut to stop the room from spinning, Johnny’s lips press against your temple.

“That’s it, baby.” Johnny coos, slowly releasing your wrists from his grasp and pulling his fingers out of your dripping hole. Gripping his wrist, you guide his fingers to your tongue, tasting your slick on his digits.

Pulling you off the floor, your fingers work diligently to undo the buttons of his shirt. His hands plant themselves onto your hips to pull your body close while his lips move between yours, soothing the tugs on your lower lip with a swipe of his tongue. Slipping the fabric of his shirt off his shoulders and down his arms, Johnny tosses his shirt across the room.

When the back of your knees meet the edge of the bed, you stumble onto the mattress, giggling against Johnny’s lips when he hovers over your body pressing a hand into the mattress. There’s an admiration in his eyes as he soaks in the sight of you — your hands bashfully covering your heated face, the curvature of your hips easily making his cock hard at the sight of them, and your knees pulled together with your feet pressed into the sheets to expose your aroused core that seemingly reverts Johnny back to a horny virgin desperate to fuck for the first time — only this time his stamina is out of this world. 

You watch as he carefully undoes his leather belt before his pants and boxer briefs are left in a pile near the bed. Your knees part when his hand strokes his shaft, tip leaking out his thick pre-cum. Johnny tilts your hips up and dips between your thighs, lining his throbbing cock with your entrance before pushing in. A breathy sigh escapes you, your walls quickly swallowing and adjusting to Johnny’s impressive size that easily fills you like no other man could. 

A groan parts Johnny’s lips, your warmth feeling like nothing short of acceptance. His hand snakes under you, smoothly unclipping your bra. Your mounds spill out as you pull off the fabric, tossing it away as Johnny’s tongue wastes no time rolling over your perky nipples and tugging it between his teeth. 

His hips move languidly, rocking back and forth as he pumps his shaft between your velvety walls. His lips hover over yours, a quiet gentle breath ghosting over your lips just before he tilts your chin and grips your jaw as his tongue slides over yours. He nips your lip softly, soothing it with a quick lap of his tongue then drags open mouth kisses against the side of your neck and collarbone. 

His movements are intoxicating, wanting to drink him in for as long as possible.

But your body burns with a feverish want: a want for more. A want for Johnny and his ability to make you feel breathless and overwhelmed and sexy and confident all with the thrust of his hips. 

Your legs wrap around his waist, desperately keeping him close and you hear a quiet grunt. He presses his forehead with yours, lips giving you the softest kisses laced with a breathtaking touch. His fingers fill the empty spaces between yours, pinning your hand into the sheets before caressing the back of your head with the other in preparation for what’s coming next. 

His hips move frantically, your thighs pushing against his thrusts and unraveling your hold on his waist. Your body jerks up and down while your mouth falls open in a silent moan, feeling the friction of your swollen clit rubbing against his skin. Your nails scrape down Johnny’s back, his quiet grunts in your ear. Heat paints across your chest and up your throat. Your hand drops to the sheets, fisting them as Johnny’s brutal hips snap into you.

“Don’t stop,” you plead, helplessly begging him as you quickly lose your composure with every slam Johnny fucks into you. 

Your forehead presses into his shoulder, managing to wrap your legs around his waist once more. You’re pathetically spiraling, despite how hard you’re trying to hold on. Your grip tightens around Johnny’s hand and he presses it deeper into the mattress. Your thighs tremble as they cling onto his hips weakly trying to keep him from pulling out completely. The unbearable rush of heat builds, builds, and builds — then snaps! Your voice breaks when you cry out his name, moaning helplessly through the pleasure. 

A groan deep from his chest rumbles in your ear when your walls flutter around his cock. He thrusts deeper instinctively, your hips lifting off the bed and fingers digging into your waist harshly. With one last powerful thrust and a strangled groan, hot spurts of his cum spill inside you — filling you up until you’re fully loaded with his seed.

You tilt his chin, bringing his lips to yours and pulling him closer with every kiss. “Are you okay?” You whisper, running your hands through his hair. 

Johnny quietly huffs out a laugh, slightly nodding as the tip of his nose rubs against yours. “I’m—” He confidently sighs with a smile, catching his breath while his palms slide up and down your soft skin. “—fucking great. I could do this forever with you.”

You breathe out a chuckle when Johnny buries his face into the crook of your neck. Running your fingers through the back of his hair, you allow yourself, just for a second, to wonder what forever would be like with him, too.

— The Fool & The Bodyguard.

The elevator doors slide open and you run into Johnny looking angelic with his fresh haircut and a lopsided smile upon seeing you. “Perfect! Choi wants to see us in his office.” Johnny lets out, stepping into the elevator next to you. 

“What for?” You ask, trying to hide the way your mind is starting to build the worst case scenario for this impromptu meeting. 

Johnny presses the intended floor number and waits for the metal doors to close. When it does, Johnny presses a reassuring kiss to your temple like he knows exactly what you’re thinking. “Don’t worry, boss. It’s about scoring Mr. Perez.” 

“That’s what he said?” Looking up at him, your eyes immediately fill with worry. 

“He didn’t have to.” Johnny cups the back of your head, stroking it to further comfort you. “There was a pep in his voice when he called. We’re fine, baby. I promise.” 

You nod, still hesitant, but Johnny’s confidence is enough to make you feel better. When you reach the designated floor, you closely follow Johnny as he weaves through the halls like he’s familiar; as if he belongs there. 

“Good morning, Nadine.” Johnny greets Mr. Choi’s secretary with a radiant smile. “Looking beautiful as always.”

The older woman in her late 50s smiles coyly, pushing her turtle shell glasses up her nose and quickly flattening the fly away hairs on her head. 

“Charming as usual, John.” Nadine quietly chuckles. “Mr. Choi is in his office, go right in.” 

You give Nadine a small nod as a thank you, the older woman mirroring your movements. When you’re finally out of earshot, you tug on Johnny’s bicep. 

“Are you always such a flirt?” You tease, an eyebrow quirking and the corner of your mouth threatening to lift.

“Her ex-husband left her for a younger woman,” Johnny whispers. “If a little reassurance helps her, I don’t mind giving it.” With a playful wink, he slides his long fingers into the pockets of his black slacks. “Plus she makes the best rice porridge and brings it from time to time for me and Doyoung, so I need to stay on her good side.” Johnny’s eyes crinkle when his lips curve into a honey-sweet grin. 

As each day passes, you find yourself completely enamored by Johnny. It’s the most beautiful and yet terrifying feeling wrapped into one. Aside from Johnny, there was only one guy you’ve ever felt this way for and it was your first college boyfriend — the only man that you couldn’t find the heart to hate because there was nothing to hate him for, even after the breakup when it ended amicably. 

“Ready to head in?” Johnny’s voice coaxes you back to where you are and you give him a nod, following right behind him. 

“My two favorite people!” Mr. Choi beams with a goofy smile and the most annoying kiss ass tone that makes you want to strangle him. “Come in, sit!” He gestures over to the chairs in front of his desk, but you and Johnny both opt to stand where you are — a silent and petty agreement that neither of you are willing to do anything Mr. Choi says, even something as simple as asking you to sit. 

“We’re fine here,” you state. “You wanted to speak with us?” 

“Yes!” Mr. Choi clasps his hands together. “I don’t know what you did to get Mr. Perez on board, but you two are magic! The board was impressed and I was thinking—” He moves closer to the two of you, eyes widening with a hint of crazy in them. “—the Evermore group!” 

“E-Excuse me?” You croak, looking at Johnny whose brows immediately furrow as he scoffs in disbelief. “What’s the Ever—”

“No. Absolutely not.” Johnny interjects, tone dripping in seriousness. “That’s the board’s responsibility to impress, not us.” 

Mr. Choi looks at you, then back at Johnny. “They thought it was their responsibility to get Perez but you two proved them wrong!” The manager exclaims. “Think about it! How great would it look for you two to win over the Evermore group!” 

“And how stupid we’d look when we don’t get them on board!” Johnny raises his voice. “What’s the real reason Choi? Wanna impress execs to get on the board, too? Is that it?”

Mr. Choi is taken aback, shaking his head. “Listen, I just figured you both wanted to prove yourselves.”

“We’be proven ourselves enough.” Johnny huffs, clearly seething at the comment. 

Mr. Choi looks at you, gears turning in his head and formulating a manipulation tactic that would get you on board. “And what do you think, Y/N? Think you’ve proven yourself enough?” He asks.

“She’s the reason why Perez even signed with us! Don’t you dare make her feel like she hasn’t proven herself.” Johnny warns, clenching his jaw. “She saved your job, Choi.” 

Johnny takes an intimidating step forward, towering over the manager. His hand forms a fist, veins protruding the back of his hand. It’s clear Johnny is seconds away from doing something he’ll regret. 

You clear your throat, stepping forward until you’re side by side with your partner. With a calming hand to Johnny’s back, you look at Mr. Choi. Straightening your posture, you conjure up your confidence. 

“Get the board’s approval and we’ll discuss it further.” You sternly say, holding eye contact with the man in front of you while Johnny takes the moment to pace back and forth — an attempt to calm himself down. 

Mr. Choi scoffs, running his hands over his mouth before he sniffs. “I already set up a meeting with the group.”

Your eyes widen, blood boiling in your veins. Johnny’s pacing comes to an abrupt halt, feeling his presence behind you. 

“I surely hope you mean with the executives and not with the Evermore group.” You warn through gritted teeth. “If it’s the latter, not only did you go against the higher-ups, but you fucked me and John over. So tell me, again, which group did you set up a meeting with, Choi.”

You and Johnny both hold your breaths, your hands clenching into fists ready to deck this stupid manager's face. 

“The Evermore group.” Mr. Choi pathetically shares, voice nearly trembling in fear though he tries to hide it. 

“Call them and cancel!” Johnny shouts, startling the man. You’re sure everyone outside his office can hear Johnny, but every fiber in your body wants to scream at the insufferable and irresponsible man, too.

“It’s not gonna look good for the company.” Mr. Choi argues, making his way behind his desk to put some distance between the taller man seething with anger. 

“I don’t care!” Johnny exclaims. “I swear to god Choi, I’ll break your face in.”

By the manager’s reaction, these screaming matches aren’t new, otherwise he’d call HR on Johnny the second the words slipped from his lips. And, unfortunately for the first time, Mr. Choi was right.

“A retraction will ruin the rapport.” You quietly say under your breath. “It’ll ruin credibility.” 

Johnny looks at you, watching the way you calculate the possible outcomes in your head. Johnny knows that you certainly know best when it comes to this problem — it’s essentially your job to clean up a company’s mess. But this? This is a lot of mess the company didn’t make, Mr. Choi did and dragged everyone else through the shit with him. 

“It’s your call, boss.” Johnny says looking at you, crossing his arms over his chest. 

“Well…” Mr. Choi sucks the air between his teeth, pulling his trousers higher up his waist. “I think you two should—” 

Both you and Johnny look up at Mr. Choi speaking, clearly assuming Johnny’s nickname for you was meant for him. 

“Not you!” Johnny snaps, frustration through the roof.

Mr. Choi’s face reddens in embarrassment. Nodding his head before taking a seat and burning a hole into you as he stares in anticipation, waiting for your decision. 

“We need to speak with Mina and Doyoung. They’re gonna be tangled up in this, too.” You inform Johnny who simply nods in agreement. Then you look at Mr. Choi. “You better hope and pray they’re on board. If they’re not, you’re absolutely screwed by the board.” 

“B-but you make the final decision, right?” Mr. Choi stutters as he stands before Johnny gives him the meanest scowl, having him settle back down in his chair. “I mean, you ultimately decide if you’ll take on the challenge?”

“Yes.” You firmly reply, palms pressing into his desk as you look at him dead in the eyes. “So do not fuck me over like this again. Is that clear?”

Mr. Choi nods, gulping down nervously. “Crystal clear.” 

Johnny holds the door open for you and this time you lead the way back to the elevator. Your mind frantically begins to rattle with a million things at once while your body shakes from the anger still coursing through you. When the doors slide close, Johnny’s large hand finds yours, keeping his sights set on the reflection in front of him — still clearly upset about the interaction, and needing to ground himself with your touch. 

“I’m here. Anything you need, I’m here.” Johnny reassures quietly, squeezing your hand in the process. “It’ll be okay.” 

You stay quiet, still reeling from outrage. But you give Johnny’s hand a reassuring squeeze, too, letting him know you’re holding his words close to your heart. 

❁❁❁❁❁

Later that evening, Johnny stopped by with an early dinner and stayed for dessert and a movie. The night ended with a back rub that turned into back shots to help the both of you take a break from tossing around ideas to win over the Evermore group. 

“I’m worried about you, Johnny.” You sigh as you’re wrapped in his arms and your legs tangled up with the sheets. 

A small chuckle parts Johnny’s lips. “Yeah? And why’s that, my love?” 

You relish in the nicknames Johnny gives you as he pulls you closer to his bare chest. His palm slides down your spine and stops at your plush rear, giving you a squeeze until your skin spills between his fingers. 

“Will you be able to handle the new intern while helping me prepare for the presentation?” You quietly question while you run your fingers over his defined abdomen area. “I wouldn’t want you to spread yourself thin.”

“I’ll figure it out,” Johnny says with his mouth pressed to your forehead. “I always do.” 

“Think you’ll make time for me?” You tease, hand teasingly tugging on the waistband of his boxers. Slipping it under the fabric, you feel his tip twitch when your fingers brush against his skin. 

Part of you didn’t mean for it to sound as serious, but a somber expression washes over Johnny’s features tells you that you struck a cord. 

“Does that genuinely worry you?” Johnny softly asks, gently busying your teasing hand when he laces his fingers between the spaces of yours. “That I won’t have time for us?”

If you’re honest — yes, it’s a looming feeling that’s dawned on you from time to time since talks about an intern shadowing Johnny came up. With an intern glued to his hip majority of the day for months, it’ll be nearly impossible to have alone time during work hours and the dread of him losing interest has reared its ugly head from time to time. 

“No,” you lie, forcing a huff of laughter. 

Johnny gives you a knowing look — one that’ll easily make you crumble until you tell him the truth. The look that you’ve done a good job at avoiding 80% of the time with lame and pathetic excuses that you’re sure Johnny chooses to look past. 

“I’m gonna get some water, want some?” You don’t bother to wait for an answer from him because your robe is on and you’re already making your way to your kitchen to fill up a glass cup. You brace yourself against your kitchen counter, sipping on your water as your train of thoughts derail and crash into uncharted territory. 

You hear Johnny’s footsteps before he rounds the corner of the hallway and into the kitchen. His hands slide across your hips and he kisses your forehead. “I’ll make time for us baby,” he says against your skin. “Don’t worry about it.”

— Meeting the New Intern.

“Good morning, ma chérie!” Mina greets in the lobby, eyes twinkling as she smiles at you. “Ready to meet the new interns today?” 

Pressing her slim finger against the elevator’s call button, both hands grip the straps of her handbag in front of her. You mindlessly nod as she spoke, blabbering on and on about her personal experience with an internship, how she’s utterly empathetic towards them, and how she tried convincing her point of contact to take on an intern but was adamantly shut down every time she brought it up. 

“…Doyoung refused and I tried to convince him it’d be a learning opportunity but he isn’t budging. He is one tough son of a gun, I’ll admit that.” Mina rambles, stepping into the elevator once it clears out. “I hear John’s taking one. That’s exciting right?”

You press a tight smile to your lips and nod, silently agreeing with her. 

You haven’t told Mina about your impromptu date nights with Johnny — both close to home and out of the city on work trips. She’d swoon over the fact that Johnny buys you flowers every week to replace the ones that are starting to whither. She’d adore the way Johnny calls you every night because he can’t fall asleep otherwise. In fact, she’d be elated to find out your weekends are spent with Johnny talking about anything and everything and not alone like she thinks it’s usually spent. 

Mina can’t help but see the distant look in your eyes as you stare off, clearly deep in thought. “Whoa, you’re so chatty this morning. Slow down, I can’t keep up.” Mina sarcastically says, quietly giggling to herself. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” you sigh and flash Mina a small reassuring smile, “just a lot going on in my mind. Between the Evermore group and the new interns, I’m a little overwhelmed.”

Cocking her head, a confused look washes over her soft features. “What do the interns have to do with this?” She asks, tucking her long black hair behind her ear. “Wouldn’t that be John’s problem, not yours?”

For a split second, you had wished you took on the intern and not him. Maybe then the brewing insecurities would have been kept at bay a little longer. 

“Yes, but with John being extra busy with her, it’s less time for—”

“You?” Mina mischievously grins, lips parting and her tongue peeking just between her glossy lips. 

“The presentation with Evermore.” You correct her, gently pushing her shoulder. You shake your head, but a tiny smile threatens your lips. “He has a lot on his plate. As much as John plays it cool, anyone can crumble under enough pressure. Plus, you heard Doyoung the other day. The group is known for ripping companies to shreds — nitpicking at everything presented. I just wish I wasn’t leading this.”

“Look on the bright side!” Mina’s cheshire grin tells you a smart ass comment is soon to follow. “You’re like our savior. No one else can do their job better than you can. And if you crash and burn, we will too! You won’t be alone. That’s comforting, right?” 

You give Mina a look, watching her features break into an unserious expression. “I get your stress, but Mr. Choi sending you two off to close a deal without consulting the execs is premature and highly irresponsible.” Mina reminds you, a comforting hand squeezing your shoulder. “If you close the deal, it’s because of you. If you don’t, it’s not because you suck at your job, it’s because Mr. Choi sucks at his. Your best is always what’s important — that’s literally what you tell everyone. Time to start taking your own advice.”

You give her a grateful look, silently telling her what she already knows: that she’s right. 

Before she could reply, the elevator comes to a stop and the doors open. You’re greeted by two familiar faces you see every morning; the dynamic duo as you like to refer to them. 

“Morning ladies.” Chenle greets casually before returning to his phone while Jisung flushes a pink hue, still not quite ready to drop the formalities and still adding the label ‘Miss’ in front of your name. 

“Morning guys!” Mina greets them happily and you give them a warm smile accompanied by a small wave. “Have the new interns arrived yet?” She asks, leaning over the reception desk. 

“They’re being briefed in the conference room,” Chenle replies, eyes flicking towards the nearby room. “They should be done soon.” 

“We should pop in!” Mina turns to you excitedly, gripping your wrist and already pulling you towards the room. As you and Mina turn the corner, you crash into the head of your IT department — Wonwoo Jeon. 

“Sorry Wonwoo!” Mina profusely apologizes, turning bright red in the face. 

Her office crush adjusts his thin rimmed glasses and offers her a polite smile. “It’s okay, Mina.” He says and you’re sure you feel her hand tighten around your wrist after he says her name. Then he looks at you. “Actually, I was just about to head to your office to find you. I need to update something on your laptop. Would it be okay if I take it for a bit?”

Mina drops your hand and steps aside, trying not to gawk at the handsome worker and making it painfully obvious of her infatuation with the quiet IT guy who always has his nose in a book during his downtime and the patience of a saint. 

You hand Wonwoo your company laptop you held against your chest and eye the way Mina gulps and looks down at her pointed heels after looking at the way his hands flexes.

“I’ll come by and drop it off when I’m done.” Wonwoo says and you nod, both you and Mina watching as he walks down the hallway and into his office nearby. 

Mina exhales the breath she didn’t know she was holding. Her petite shoulders drop and relax before she looks at you. Before she could get her words out to explain her sudden change in personality, you begin to quietly giggle.

“You have a thing for Wonwoo?” You whisper, watching her cheeks flush in embarrassment. 

“Shut up.” She threatens in a hushed tone. “If you will excuse me, I need to head into my office and calm down a bit. I’ll see you in our morning meeting.” 

Mina walks away, still giddy from her interaction. You turn on your heels and head in the opposite direction towards your office. A familiar voice says your name and you turn your attention towards Johnny, then at the shorter woman next to him. 

Her short dark brown hair is cut into a shoulder length bob and her wispy bangs end just under her eyebrows. She looks up at Johnny with her big brown eyes that sparkle under the office lights and her light poreless porcelain skin glows. She holds her laptop with both arms against her chest and a cute little handbag hanging off her petite shoulders. 

You can’t help but notice how stunning she looks and a sudden knot in your stomach forms and tightens the deeper you try to push the feeling down.

“Hey, I wanna introduce you to my new intern. This is Chaewon.” Johnny looks down at the girl next to him, sliding his hands into the pockets of his pants. “Chaewon, this is Y/N. The one I was telling you about.” 

“H-hi.” You stammer. “It’s so nice to meet you. Welcome to the team.” You force a smile, hoping no one notices the way the corners of your mouth slightly tremble. 

“You too!” Chaewon gleefully replies. “John says I’ll learn a lot just by being around you. He also says you slightly scare him, so I’m intrigued to see how you do it. Maybe I can use it on my brothers.” She jokingly says, beaming at Johnny with a radiant smile. 

Your chest tightens at the way Chaewon looks up at Johnny with her pretty brown eyes. The young and beautiful intern who beat out hundreds of applicants will be working closely with Johnny for the next couple of months and your heart squeezes at the thought before you could stop it.

❁❁❁❁❁

You never viewed other women as competitors. In a male-dominated field, women in the office were friends — confidants — that you’d gravitate to. And you’ll be damned if that mindset crumbled over some guy who didn’t even ask you to be your boyfriend in the months you were sleeping together. 

At least that’s what you kept telling yourself during your morning meaning with your team and Chaewon. 

Mina, the social butterfly she is, made Chaewon feel at ease as you ran through the meeting. Even Doyoung, the ever focused employee, got distracted by Chaewon’s ability to be one of the few applicants to beat out hundreds of people for this internship. Dare you say, there was a spark of admiration in Doyoung’s eyes hearing the competitiveness Chaewon had in her when she shared her many first place achievements for the sports she participated in on the side. Even Johnny was distracted by his intern, intrigued by her as the minutes passed. 

In your eyes, she’s the entire package — smart, athletic, attractive , ambitious, and talented. It’s like elementary school all over again — Chaewon is the new kid and everyone wants to be her friend. 

And you can’t help the pang of jealousy you tried to distance yourself from. 

“Any questions before we wrap up?” You say, feeling the entire room’s attention shift from Chaewon back to you. 

“No, but I was thinking…” Mina chirps, stacking her notebook onto her laptop. “The five of us should have lunch together! It’ll help Chae get acclimated to the environment with a little help.”

“That’d be great!” Chaewon cheers, happily looking around at everyone around her before her eyes land on you. “I’d like to get to know you all more, too.” 

Your lips twitch into a smile as your eyes land on Johnny, who looks at you with an apologetic expression knowing how you both would regularly spend your lunch breaks.

“Yeah, that’s a great idea.” You nod, slowly closing your laptop. “Does the café downstairs work?” 

The other four people nod in agreement. Quickly packing up to leave.

“Great!” You smile, propping the door open for everyone. “See you guys at lunch. Have a great day.” 

You quickly make your way to the office and lock yourself in there for the rest of the morning, burying yourself in preparation for the presentation and reports. That is, until Johnny’s name pops up on your phone.

❁❁❁❁❁

I’m sorry about lunch. Maybe we could have a late lunch together?

That won’t look good leaving your intern on her first day. You’re the only one she really trusts here, you can’t do that to her.

I’m sorry about the meeting, too. Everyone was distracted… Me included. Sorry baby. 

You’re good.

You’re upset.

I’m not.

You look upset. I can see directly into your office, remember?  Let me make it up to you. I’ll bring over dinner tonight and we can have our alone time like we intended. You’re smiling. Is that a yes?

Yes.  Now stop texting during work hours. You’re distracting me.

Good.  See you at lunch, boss.

— An Uncomfortable Conversation & A New Drawer.

If you had a dime for the amount of times you and Johnny were able to sneak away for alone time during work hours these past couple of weeks, you’d have 40 cents — 50 if you include the time he snuck you a kiss when he dropped off reports right before Chaewon came back from lunch with other interns from the program. 

Between the internship, separate meetings with clients, prepping a solid presentation for the Evermore group, and the promise Johnny made to his parents to see them more often, the time spent with him has dwindled significantly — both of you suddenly busier than ever.

But tonight, Johnny invited you over to his place for a spur of the moment date night in the middle of the week to make up for the loss of quality time spent between the two of you. 

“Absence makes the heart grow fonder, right?” Johnny says, popping open a glass of beer for you. 

“I don’t really like that quote,” you share, sipping on your drink.

Johnny chuckles, taking a seat in front of you. “And why’s that?” He smiles, intrigued by your sudden revelation. 

“Because there’s always something to make it sound worse after it.” You shrug. “For instance, one of the worst renditions of that quote I’ve possibly read was ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder but too much makes it wander.’ Distance quite literally—”

“Where do you get this from?” Johnny’s laughter spills out like sunlight peeking through the blinds. His head tilts slightly and his eyes look at you with fondness. 

“The Internet.” You shyly admit, taking a drawn out sip of your beer.

“Well, distance makes me miss you a lot despite what the internet says about it.” Johnny assures with a smile right before taking a swig of his drink.

“I miss you too,” you coyly admit, leaning back into your chair. “How are your parents? Do they love seeing you more often now that they’ve moved back home?” 

“Yeah, a little too much if I’m being honest.” Johnny sucks the air between his teeth. “They’ve been nagging me about settling down. Moments like this make me wish I had an older sibling so I don’t have to go through this.” 

The thought of settling down with Johnny crossed your mind every now and then, wondering what it’d be like to be with someone for the rest of your life. Though, you don’t dwell on the idea for too long because it’s always followed by the feeling of sadness. 

“…and the mere mention of Chaewon being an intern got their ideas—”

You’re paralyzed and completely speechless. “Oh…you mentioned Chaewon?” You ask, your grip around the amber colored bottle tightens before you could notice it and set it down, convinced you could break it if you didn’t. 

“Yeah. They asked how work was. I told them about the internship and me being one of the mentors.” Johnny’s obliviousness irritates you as he pokes his fork into the chicken he’s made. 

“I’m assuming you also told them about the Evermore group, too?” Your eyes drop to your untouched plate of food. Picking up your fork, you move the vegetables around as you wait for Johnny’s answer.

“No.” Johnny shakes his head. “Once I start about how Choi got us into that mess, I won’t be able to stop.” He huffs out a chuckle, sipping on his drink to help wash down his food. 

You shift uncomfortably in your seat, suddenly going quiet as you begin to take small bites of the food made for you. You nod as Johnny speaks, though your mind has already gone elsewhere. It isn’t until Johnny’s warm hand on yours brings you back to the conversation.

“Sorry, I must be boring you with all this internship talk. Let’s change the subject.” Johnny quickly says, holding your hand in his. “How’s the presentation going? I can take a look at it tomorrow if you’d like.”

When you pull your hand away, Johnny’s stomach twists uncomfortably. 

“If it’s okay with you, I’d like to not talk about work.” You quietly let out, avoiding eye contact with him. “I just…I don’t feel like talking about what’s stressing me out.” 

“Understandable.” Johnny nods. “I-I’m sorry I brought it up.” 

“You’re good.” With a deep inhale, you muster up the courage to look at Johnny and paint a small smile across your lips. “Tell me more about your parents. What are they like?”

❁❁❁❁❁

“Okay, no peeking.” Johnny playfully warns as his hands press over your eyes. He guides you, from behind, down the hallway and into his bedroom. When you come to a stop, Johnny lowers his hands and you slowly open your eyes. 

“You got a new drawer.” You suspiciously state, confused with the surprise he said he got you. 

“Yes, but it’s actually for you. I thought it would be easier to have some of your stuff here than to always pack an overnight bag.” Johnny grins, clearly proud of himself. 

You don’t have the heart to bring up and remind him of the eventual termination of your contract, opting to not ruin the kind gesture and thought he put into this. 

“I hope it isn’t too forward of me to do this.” Johnny rubs the back of his neck, suddenly feeling self-conscious about his spur of the moment trip to IKEA. “I just want you to feel comfortable here. If you hate it—”

“I love it.” You gently correct, wrapping your arms around his waist and snuggling your cheek against his chest. “Thank you, it’s the sweetest thing anyone has done for me.” You feel his body relax at your words, cupping the back of your head endearingly. 

“Think you love it enough to want to stay the night?” Johnny bashfully asks. “I don’t expect us to do anything, of course. I just…I wanna be with you.” 

When you look up and your eyes meet his, you both smile, feeling a sense of relief wash over the both of you like you both were finally able to breathe again. You nod, brushing your lips over his. 

“I’d love to stay here with you.” 

— The Flirty Client & A Jealous Worker.

Chaewon sits in the back of the meeting room, observing the way you and Johnny work together to win over yet another partnership. Her eyes don’t stray away from you, completely fascinated with the way you eloquently speak with confidence and assurance. Jotting down her observations, she notices the way one particular member from the group can’t keep his eyes off you, too — the one who introduced himself as Jeonghan Yoon, from some company in the east coast. 

“Are there any questions?” You ask, a charming smile dancing against your lips.

The group look at each other, completely won over by you and Johnny’s teamwork. Shaking their head, they begin opening their complimentary folders, signing the contract placed in them.  

“Chaewon, would you collect the paperwork please?” Johnny asks and Chaewon eagerly gets up, nodding her head and circling the table. She watches the way you and Johnny move around each other — with fluidity and ease, clearly comfortable with one another. 

When Chaewon gathers the papers, she hands them to Johnny. “We’ll go ahead and make copies, then update the files.” Johnny tells his intern, stuffing the papers in a folder. Johnny then turns to you. “I’ll get you the updated list of clients by the end of today.”

“Great, thank you.” You smile.

“Could I meet with you sometime today?” Chaewon asks you, batting her lashes. “I think your presentation was amazing and I’d like to ask a few questions for my observation notes.” 

“Sure,” you chuckle. “I’ll come find you after my next meeting.” 

“She’s right, your presentation was amazing.” An unfamiliar voice interjects itself in the conversation. When you look up, you’re greeted by a good looking client. “I’m Jeonghan. You’re Y/N, right?”

From the peripheral, you see Johnny’s posture straighten to its full height. Chaewon notices too as her eyes flick back to Johnny and the new client. 

“Y-yeah, hi,” You smile politely. “Thank you for the compliment. It’s a skill that comes with the job.” 

“Sure,” Jeonghan grins, “but the way you do it is captivating.” 

“I agree. We’re glad she transferred here.” Johnny interrupts, clearing his throat. “She’s amazing at her job.”

“She really is!” Chaewon adds, voice dripping with admiration. 

You smile at Johnny, then Chaewon. Heat suddenly creeps up onto your face, feeling too aware of the eyes on you. 

“Well, I’m looking forward to working with you.” Jeonghan smirks, eyes lingering on you a little too long for Johnny’s liking before flicking to Johnny himself. “Both of you, of course.” 

You’re unaware of the breath you’re holding until Johnny places a gentle hand on your back. “Thank you all for your time,” Johnny says before proceeding to guide you out the door with Chaewon following closely behind the two of you.

“Oh my god, Mr. Yoon is so into you!” Chaewon quietly says to you, though her words don’t escape Johnny’s line of hearing. 

“Chaewon,” Johnny sternly snaps, easily halting the three of you. “That comment is inappropriate. This isn’t some school hallway for gossip.”

Chaewon’s cheeks blush red, clearly embarrassed that Johnny scolded her. “I-I’m sorry. You’re right, I—” Chaewon looks at you, blinking rapidly. “I’m so sorry, Y/N. That comment was out of line.” 

“You’re fine,” you quickly say, soothing her embarrassment the best you can. “It’s important to remember they’re clients in a professional setting. Sometimes politeness can be mistaken for flirtation. You’re learning, it’s okay.” 

You watch her nod as her eyes fall to the floor. “I’m sorry again. You’re right, he’s probably just really polite.” 

You knew better than to think Jeonghan was only being polite. He was flirting, that much is clear. 

With the way Johnny instinctively made himself appear taller earlier and how his hand tightly grips the folder he’s holding now, not to mention snapping at his intern the way he did, he knew Jeonghan was flirting, too. 

And he didn’t like it.

❁❁❁❁❁

Johnny’s text comes as a surprise while you’re compiling reports. 

Meet me in my car for lunch.

When you do, you find yourself in the backseat straddling Johnny’s lap as you’re frantically lip locking with him like old times. His fingers brush away the strands of hair that’s fallen out of your updo before cupping the side of your neck. 

“What’s gotten into you?” You giggle between kisses as Johnny chases your lips with his.

His hand slides down your back, hiking up your pencil skirt until the fabric bunches around your waist. His hand travels down to your ass to grip a handful of your skin until it spills between the spaces of his fingers.

“I hate seeing someone flirting with you so blatantly,” Johnny admits, forehead pressing against yours. There’s an edge to his voice that makes your insides tingle with excitement. “Especially in front of me.”

You try to bite back a smirk, feeling the bulge in his pants harden when your slick seeps through your panties as your hips rock back and forth. The friction against your covered slit causes a trembling sigh to escape from between your lips. 

“I need to know you’re mine.” Johnny breathes, lips hovering over yours. “Tell me, baby. Tell me no one else can steal you away from me.”

Your fingers desperately undo Johnny’s leather belt and the button of his slacks as you mindlessly nod while your swollen lips weave with Johnny’s. “I’m yours.” You whimper, hand slipping into his pants and tugging on his thick and hardened shaft. You repeat his words back to him as he lifts his hips and drops his pants down to his knees. 

Johnny reaches into his middle console, pulling out a condom wrapper from a well used open box of condoms that he keeps for moments like this. Ripping the foil wrapper with his teeth, he smoothly slides the protection over his throbbing cock then pulls the fabric of your underwear to the side before lifting his hips.

As you sink onto him, Johnny groans against your mouth and slides his tongue over yours. With a harsh thrust, your body is flushed against his and you breathe out a sigh of pleasure, enjoying the way he fits perfectly inside you. 

Your fingers work fast to unbutton your blouse, allowing the soft fabric to slip off your shoulders and down your arms. Johnny’s swollen lips brush against your collarbone then down your cleavage. He presses kisses onto your pillowy mounds that are nearly spilling out of your pretty lace bra. Pulling your skin between his teeth, the delicious sting mixes with the pleasure of his thrusts that’s leaving you panting and breathless.

His hands clutch your hips, holding you in place as he bucks up and into you mercilessly. Johnny huffs and his breath warms your skin as his brutal pace ignites a fire behind your bellybutton. The tip of his cock presses into the sweet and soft button that sends nothing but pleasure through your body. With the way your aroused clit rubs against the skin at the base of his shaft, your head falls back, and your nails dig into his shoulders. 

The heat begins fogging up the windows and every nerve in your body pulls tight until you finally snap — your entire body dissolving into pleasure right before it falls onto his chest. 

His hips begin to stutter and his balls tighten while you desperately whine into his ear, begging him to come. His cock twitches and his cum releases in sharp pulses, hand snaking around the back of your neck and yanking you down to his lips while his hips thrust deeper on instinct.

Johnny’s eyes screw shut and his brows draw tightly together, his lips hovering over yours as he intakes a sharp inhale. “God you’re absolutely perfect,” Johnny praises, pressing a smile against your lips. “I’m so fucking lucky.”

— The Comforting Fort.

You hate to admit the way you’ve kept your distance from Chaewon for the past month. It’s no secret that she thrives on your attention and it’s starting to feel less flattering and more annoying. Regardless, being around her makes your stomach twist and your anxiety rise. 

You’ve also been noticing the way Chaewon looks at Johnny, and as much as you tell yourself you’re looking too deep into it, there’s a glint in her eyes when she looks at him. You’re not sure if it’s from admiration or lust, maybe both, but it’s enough to make you feel sick to your stomach. And it certainly doesn’t help overhearing Chaewon’s friends, over lunch when they think you’re out of earshot, gush over how handsome Johnny is and how lucky Chaewon is to be around him all the time. Chaewon tries to shush them and change the subject, but the way she blushes is telling.

Johnny has also begun to stay later than usual, helping Chaewon with her internship observations and filling out the necessary paperwork that he doesn’t have time for throughout the day. 

What’s even worse is your mind has started to betray you, making you feel utterly insecure as the months go by despite trying your best to stay afloat. 

And you hate it. 

You hate the way it’s starting to seep into your life — affecting your sleep, your concentration, and more importantly your confidence is slowly beginning to wither away with comparisons to the young and beautiful intern that Johnny has spent so much time with. You also hate the way you’re scared to talk to Johnny about everything because you’re too afraid your vulnerability will equate to not being the confident person he wants. 

“You’re quiet tonight,” Johnny says, stroking your bare arm as you’re tangled up in your sheets with him. Your favorite movie plays idle in the background, serving as white noise while both you and Johnny still reel from back to back pleasure to make up for the lack of quality time spent between the two of you. “Is everything okay?” 

You nod, nuzzling into the crook of his neck. “Everything’s fine.” 

“Yeah? Then why don’t I believe you?” He quietly scolds and you give him a quiet chuckle, feeling him pull your naked body closer to his. “You’d tell me if something’s wrong, right?” Johnny asks, gently lacing his fingers between yours. “Like if I did something wrong, you’d tell me.” 

You nod again, watching the way he softly kisses each of your knuckles. Tilting your chin slightly, he presses a kiss to your lips. 

For a moment, everything feels right in the world and all of your worries disappear. Johnny has always been good at that, making you stay present and focusing on just him. 

A little too good, sometimes. 

But it certainly does feel nice. 

Johnny doesn’t say it but he senses your unwillingness to be around Chaewon. He notices the way you tense up around the mention of her, so he’s tried his best not to bring her up. But he finds it difficult when his work life and personal life weave seamlessly together. 

Like now, when Johnny’s work phone notification comes in and it’s from Chaewon. 

Your lungs tighten and the knot in your stomach tightens. The moment of peace you felt is shattered when Johnny makes it a point to reply to her message — letting you go in the process. A sting of rejection floods you and you try your best to bury it. It’s not Johnny’s fault; he’s being attentive, just not to you, and that isn’t a crime. 

“Is that Chaewon?” You quietly ask, pulling your blanket higher up your chest. “Is everything okay?” 

Johnny simply nods, eyes still glued to his work phone as his thumbs quickly reply to her message. “Just about tomorrow’s meeting. Nothing important.” 

“She’s doing well at the company. You think she’ll apply when the internship is over?” 

“Not sure.” Johnny sharply inhales, rereading the paragraph he typed out before sending it. “I hope so. She’s really hard working and the company could use someone as dedicated to work as she is.” Johnny silences his phone and places it on the nightstand, screen facing down. “She reminds me of you sometimes.” 

You’re sure Johnny didn’t mean for that comment to get under your skin, but it does. If Chaewon reminds him of you, there’s a possibility he could—

No. 

You stop your train of toxic thought, reminding yourself of Jaehyun’s words about his friend: loyal to a fault. 

Johnny is a loyal man. He would never. But then again he doesn’t owe you loyalty, you’re not officially dating. He’s not your boyfriend. 

Johnny’s arm snakes around your waist, pulling you into his warmth. “Hey,” he whispers, kissing your temple. “Where’d you go just now?”

“Huh?” You look up at him, dazed by his words as you’re suddenly brought back to the moment.

“You looked deep in thought. What’s going on in that beautiful mind of yours, baby?” 

“N-nothing.” Another small, tight smile paints your lips. “Just thinking about work.”

Johnny huffs in dissatisfaction. “That’s not good.”

“Why do you mean?”

“Thinking about work after I made you come three times means I didn’t do a good enough job at pleasing you like I thought I did.” 

Johnny drags his lips down your neck, nose outlining your jawline. Your knees part instinctively and Johnny lowers himself between your thighs, his tip already probing your slick and creamy entrance. 

“I’m so sorry, baby. Let me do better.” 

❁❁❁❁❁

It’s difficult to sleep when your mind runs a mile a minute thinking about everything going wrong in your life. Normally, Johnny sleeping next to you is enough to help you sleep through the night, but lately his presence hasn’t had that effect.

Carefully swinging your legs over the edge of the bed, you tip toe your way to the kitchen for a glass of water. The apartment is quiet and being alone with your thoughts are starting to make you feel lonelier than ever. 

As you make it back to the bedroom, you catch Johnny stirring in his sleep. His soft snores and the ticking of the analog clock perched just above the bed fills the room. You settle on a single seater armchair next to the window, quietly taking in the view of the neighborhood surrounding the apartment. Swinging your legs over the armrest, you try to quiet down your loud thoughts enough to realize how tired you are, hoping you’d be able to fall asleep right then and there.

But five minutes quickly turn into 40 and you’re still wide awake, holding the empty glass cup you finished 15 minutes ago. 

Johnny’s arm tries to sling over your body, only for it to fall flat onto the mattress. His eyes flutter open, realizing you aren’t next to him like he thought. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he spots you staring out the window so lost in thought even his sleepy voice isn’t enough to break you from your trance. 

Making his way over, he places a gentle hand on your shoulder. Your body jerks forward, startled by his touch before he profusely apologizes.

“Sorry baby. I didn’t mean to scare you.” He kneels to your eye level, tucking your hair behind your ear. “Are you having a hard time sleeping?” 

You nod, your gaze landing on the empty cup you’ve been circling the rim of. “Just a lot on my mind, but I’m okay.” You say, gently cupping your palm against his cheek. “You can go back to bed. I’ll be there in a bit.” 

Johnny scans your features, eyes quickly softening when he realizes how weary you look. You’ve never had the best sleeping schedule, always working into the early mornings, but Johnny could tell this type of exhaustion was different and he wished you could confide in him, but he didn’t want to push in fear of scaring you away. 

“Wait here.” Johnny quietly says. You watch as he gathers extra pillows and blankets and makes his way into the living room, unsure of what he’s doing. 

When you walk out of the bedroom to place the cup in the sink, you can’t help but notice the way Johnny uses the backing of chairs and the sofa to hold up the blankets. The coffee table in the middle of the room has been pushed to the side and it’s only when Johnny begins to throw the pillows under the makeshift ceiling made of blankets and comforters, you realize he made a fort big enough to fit the both of you — and in record breaking time. 

“Ta-da!” He proudly says, presenting his improvised shelter. “I used to make forts in my room when I was a kid and couldn’t sleep. I’d sleep on the floor and wake up with my parents asking why I’d choose the floor over my bed. I thought maybe it could help you fall asleep, too. You can sleep here alone or if you’d like me to join you, I could do that too. Whatever you want.”

The gesture makes you teary-eyed and you can’t verbally express how much it means to you that he cares enough to make you feel comfortable. Your arms wrap around his bare torso, feeling his hand endearingly cup the back of your head. 

“Thank you,” you murmur, “I’d love it if you could stay with me. I always sleep better when I’m with you.” 

Johnny smiles, taking your hand in his and leading you into the fort that suddenly feels like a separate world with just the two of you — a world where nothing can hurt you when you two are together.

— The Lie.

Johnny isn’t one to break promises. In fact, he rarely makes them in fear he won’t be able to uphold them and he won’t risk disappointing people — especially you. You’re not one to beg a guy for his time. If a man won’t make time for you, it’s no problem. You’ll find a man who will. 

But on this Friday night, somehow everything goes against what either of you normally do. 

Johnny broke a promise he was supposed to keep and you’re begging him to stay the night with you. Loneliness isn’t a foreign concept to you, in fact, you’ve come to differentiate between being alone and feeling lonely. Right now, you were both.

Your conversation with Johnny from earlier today replays in your head. Your laptop sits on your lap while papers filled with graphs and numbers are littered on the coffee table in front of you. An old series you’ve rewatched many times before serves as background noise while you try to get ahead of work.

“Don’t hate me. I know I said I’ll spend the weekend, but I completely forgot I made plans that I can’t skip.” Johnny whispers, a comforting hand resting on your arm. “I’ll make sure to call you tonight.”

You try to not let the disappointment show as Johnny speaks. “Would you be able to come over tomorrow instead? I…we haven’t been spending a lot of time together lately and—”

“I’m so sorry, baby. I’m staying with my parents this weekend. I must’ve forgotten to tell you.” He looks at you apologetically, before his eyes flick down to his watch. “Next weekend, I promise.” 

You didn’t press Johnny further, you just obediently nodded before he gave you a reassuring squeeze of your hand and walked out of your office. You buried yourself in work, like you always do, to numb yet another sting of rejection from Johnny who probably didn’t even realize how much weight his words carried. 

Your eyes flick to the digital numbers on the top right of your screen. 10:48 PM. By now, you’d be on the phone with Johnny and he’d be asking for you to recount the events of your day because he simply liked hearing the sound of your voice. You’d eventually hear the sleepiness in his voice, a deep and sexy rasp that would make your body flush with heat whenever he’d call you the pet name he’d settled on that day.

A big part of you wanted to give up on waiting for his call and call it a night, but a small part of you still held onto the hope he’d just show up and spend the weekend with you like he promised. As the minutes pass, the hope slowly dwindles and is replaced with another wave of disappointment.

Just as you’re about to call it a night, your phone rings and Johnny’s contact photo — the night taken at Yuta’s bar — pops up with his name on your screen. Your heart jumps in excitement as you reach for your phone. The excitement in your voice is palpable and you can already feel Johnny smiling on the other end.

”I hope I’m not too late. Think you could let me in? I’m outside.” As if planned, there’s a knock on your front door. “I come bearing gifts as well, if you’re up for it.”

You embarrassingly stumble on your feet as you leap off the couch. Your front door flies open and you’re greeted by a grinning Johnny who lowers his phone and lifts a white plastic bag filled with a takeout box from a restaurant near work that you frequent from time to time. 

Johnny doesn’t wait to be invited in as he steps in and carefully places your late night dinner on a nearby table before he swoops you into a bear hug and lifts you off the wooden floor in the process. 

“I’m sorry, I can’t stay.” He mumbles into your skin. “I wanted to stop by to bring you something to eat in case you ‘forgot’ to take a break and have dinner.” When he lowers you, he gently swipes away the little hairs sticking to your forehead before a kiss lands on your skin. “I also needed to see you before driving to my parents’ place—” His hands gently cups your cheeks and tilts your head up until your gazes meet. “—and tell you how much I miss you.”

There’s a bittersweet relief that washes over you; sadness knowing Johnny isn’t here to surprise you to stay the night like you wished, but knowing he missed you just as you did with him gives you hope that everything between you two are okay. 

He went out of his way to see you, that’s enough. Or at the very least, it should be enough.

And yet, a tiny part of you feels like it isn’t.

“I miss you, too.” You breathe as your gaze flicks between his irises. “Do you have to leave tonight? Can you—” 

You thought it wouldn’t hurt to ask one more time, thinking he’d change his mind, but his apologetic eyes give you the answer to the question you stopped yourself from fully asking. It did hurt and the squeeze of your heart proved that. Your eyes shamefully drop, along with your head, when you look away. 

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart.” Johnny quietly breathes, pulling you into his embrace. The tip of his nose nuzzles against your temple and you fist his shirt as if it’ll keep him here longer. “I promise I’ll text and call and give you updates. This weekend is…really important.”

You nod, feeling your eyes prickle before you bury your face in his chest in hopes he won’t see you cry and think you’re overreacting. “You’ll drive safely and text me when you get there?” You try to hide the tremble in your voice but the way Johnny hugs you tighter lets you know he heard it anyway. 

“I will.”

❁❁❁❁❁

The next morning, you wake up to a handful of texts from Johnny and you’re glad to know he kept the promises he made before leaving last night. He started his day early, a photo of his breakfast he sent you is time stamped at exactly 8 in the morning, followed by a series of messages and pin drops of locations you two should visit if you’re both in the area together. 

A smile tugs on your lips as Johnny continues to send you photos and updates while you prepare for your weekly debrief with Mina and your manager from your home company. As per usual, you and Mina are the first ones in the video call, waiting for your beloved manager, Tiffany, to join. 

“Did you get Tiff’s email about some good news?” Mina asks, sipping on her glass filled with her usual morning coffee. “What do you think it is?”

“A raise, I hope.” You scoff. “Or at the very least, hazard pay for dealing with Choi and his recklessness.” 

Mina grins as she uses her fingers to brush back the roots of her hair. “I think that’d only extend to you, ma chérie. Unless you can convince Tiffany, I don’t think that’s the good news she’s gonna share.”

”Hey, I’m very persuasive.” With a playful wink, both you and Mina giggle just before a doorbell goes off to let you know someone has joined the video conference. 

“Good morning, ladies.” Tiffany smiles. Her hair is pushed into a sleek bun and based on the attire you can see she’s wearing, she’s on her way to her Pilates class after this meeting. “Thank you so much for meeting with me this Saturday morning. Before we get started, I’d like to check in and see how things are that aren’t work related.” 

This is always Mina’s favorite part. You, not so much. She loves catching Tiffany up on the things you hear throughout the week and Tiffany loves it just as much. 

Your manager has always taken a liking to both you and Mina, always saying how you two are the breath of fresh air in a burning building. You still aren’t quite sure what that means exactly but you take the compliment anyway. 

When the attention turns to you, Tiffany can’t help but comment on how much you’ve physically changed the past couple of weeks — looking more exhausted and worn out despite your effort to look the opposite. “We have a client who gave me a gift card to a spa…” Tiffany trails off, quickly typing away. “Here it is! There’s a location near you. I’m sending you the link and you need to promise me you’ll use it, okay?”

”Always your favorite, huh?” Mina jokingly says, dramatically rolling her eyes at the camera. 

“You don’t need it seeing as you just got your nails done. A new set, I see. It’s pretty.” Tiffany laughs, watching the way Mina wiggles her fingers to show off her newly done nails.

”It’s a new place and I’m taking your favorite employee there next weekend!” Mina claps excitedly. “Y/N, clear your schedule because we’re spending some quality time together whether you like it or not.”

You surrender to Mina’s weightless threat, looking down at your phone when another one of Johnny’s updates comes through. When you look back at your screen, both women are waiting for your updates and you give a few tidbits, that didn’t involve sneaking around with Johnny, until they’re satisfied. 

“Tiff, if you don’t mind, can you please tell us what the ‘good news’ in your email is referring to?” Mina asks outright, clearly eager to know details.

Tiffany chuckles then nods. “I must preface by saying it’s only good news if you enjoy it there.” Your manager sharply inhales. “We’re extending your contracts for another six months and we’re also looking into possibly having an office there. I don’t want to go into the second part just yet but I did want it to be in your minds.”

You and Mina give each other a slightly disappointed look, hoping for more than telling you two that you’ll be doing work there a little longer. 

When your manager catches on, she giggles. “And yes, there is a big bonus when you complete the extension of your contract.” 

Mina squeals in excitement and the first thing that comes to mind is telling Johnny the good news. Both you and Mina eventually say your goodbyes to your manager and switch to a FaceTime call to work on weekly debriefing notes together to send Tiffany.

“Oh! By the way, where were you last night?” Mina pouts at the screen as she throws her long thick hair into a messy bun. “I know you’re a workaholic, but I’d at least like to think you’d take a break sometimes.”

“Last night? What was happening last night?” The confusion in your voice makes Mina confused. Adjusting her laptop screen, she maneuvers onto her stomach and a pillow rests under her chest. 

“The get together for the interns. The majority of the department came.” Mina shares. Her eyebrows pull tight and she cocks her head to the side. “Didn’t John tell you? He’s the one who organized it.”

Your heart stops and it crashes down into the deepest part of your stomach. You try to swallow the lump that’s made a home in your throat, feeling a sense of betrayal run through your entire body. 

“Ev-every intern was there?” You stammer as your chest tightens. Your mind runs a mile a minute, confused and hurt that Johnny not only lied to you, but purposefully left you out. 

“Yeah,” Mina nods, thinking back on last night’s events. “They were all there. John didn’t tell you?”

You so badly want to yell out the truth, to break down in front of Mina and have her comfort you in the way she knows how. But before you could, you’re covering for Johnny and you can't stop yourself. 

“N-no, he did.” You swallow, suddenly feeling lightheaded and dizzy. 

Your hands tremble as you silence your phone from Johnny’s notifications, feeling embarrassed that you’ve been the only one left out like no one wanted you there — like Johnny didn’t want you there. 

“I completely forgot. Work had me… tied up…with the Evermore presentation on Monday.”

“Oh, babe, I’m so sorry.” Mina looks at you empathetically like everything suddenly made sense. “You were probably cooped up stressing over everything. I should’ve called, but I assumed when I brought it up to John and he said you were busy working…” she sighs, beating herself up for her lack of attention. “…you were working on reports, not the presentation.”

You feel like the air has been knocked out of you with how the room suddenly begins to shift. Your eyes screw shut and a disgusted feeling overwhelms you when you think about Johnny stopping by last night. Your mind begins to play a cruel trick on you, filling your brain with images of Johnny and Chaewon together — sneaking away from the crowd, finding a dark corner of the bar to be alone, and even presenting you with the image of the two of them alone in his bed. 

Bile rises up your throat and you beeline it to the toilet, dropping your computer in the process. You can barely hear Mina’s concerned voice over your retching and sobs. The ringing in your ears won’t stop and every time you shut your eyes for a moment of peace, you’re introduced to another painful image your mind has created for you that makes you sob harder. 

“I’m on my way!” You manage to hear Mina say. 

“No!” You force yourself to yell out, voice raspy and hoarse. “I-I’m okay. I’ll call you back.” Crawling to your laptop, you end the call abruptly before curling yourself into a ball on your bed. 

Every excuse you try to give Johnny to explain away his behavior flies out the window because he lied to you. He didn’t want you there and you don’t understand why.

— The Worn Out Transfer & The Downfall.

Your body is completely spent and not in a good way. 

You managed to dodge Mina’s line of questions long enough to finish the debriefing notes, blaming your actions and low energy on eating something that disagreed with your stomach and the stress of the presentation. You’re not sure if Mina believed you, but you’ve just added it to the bottom of the long list of things you’re worried about. 

You’ve also been dodging Johnny’s texts and calls, unable to stomach the thought of being lied to by him for a reason you’re unsure of. His worried texts were scattered throughout the day and you managed quick messages that told him you were away from your phone or you had fallen asleep. Unlike Mina, Johnny didn’t believe you but you opted for simply screening his calls than to explain what’s wrong before a huge client meeting.

After a restless night, you spent your morning depuffing your face and soothing your swollen eyes until they were back to its normal state, or at the very least, resembled its normal state. You tried your best to do your makeup, but the made up images of Johnny with Chaewon continued to flash through your mind over and over again until you simply just gave up. 

After all, Johnny isn’t above office romances and you knew that all too well.

The elevator dings on your floor and the metal doors smoothly slide open. When they do, you see your normal morning crew lingering by the reception desk.

“Morn—oh…” Mina’s face drops into a deep frown. “Hey…are you okay?”

Both Jisung and Chenle look up at you, brows rising in surprise just before it furrows with concern. 

“You don’t look so good, Y/N.” Chenle says, quickly regretting his words when Jisung pinches his arm. 

“Have a little more tact.” Jisung warns through gritted teeth. “That’s the last thing she wants to hear.” 

Brushing off his friend, Chenle looks at you and catches the way you look away in embarrassment. Your usual no make up day doesn’t give you this much attention until now and it’s making you self-conscious. “I mean, she looks sick.” Chenle reiterates, looking at Mina who nods in agreement. “Maybe you should take the day—”

“The Evermore group is coming today.” You quietly say, arms gripping tight around the laptop pressed against your chest. “I need to be here for the presentation.”

“Yeah, but—” Mina is cleanly cut off when Johnny calls your name, all eyes on him now. 

When you look up to see him, Johnny freezes as his eyes scan over your entire body. His eyes quickly fill with worry at the sight of you. The way your eyes drop low just before you look away completely to avoid eye contact doesn’t go unnoticed by Johnny and neither does the way your cheeks lack your usual blush color or how you’re desperately trying to stop your hands from trembling. 

“Hey, can I speak with you?” Johnny gently asks, trying to hide the urgency in his voice as if any other tone would shatter you into pieces. 

You brush past him without a word and unlock your office door. The natural morning light spills through the huge windows and you don’t have the energy to flick on the overhead lights after dropping your belongings onto your desk.

“Are you okay?” Johnny asks, carefully tugging on your arm to look at him. He cups your cheeks and tilts your head up to meet your exhausted eyes. “You haven’t answered any of my calls or texts.” 

“I’m fine, John.” You softly reply, breaking eye contact with him as you push his hands away from you. “I had a lot to do. I didn’t mean to make you worry.” 

“It’s—” he pauses, watching the way you move around your office with unease. There’s a squeeze to his chest that tells him there’s more to what you’re telling him, but lately there always seems to be more than what you’ve been saying these past few months. 

“John, I need to get some work done. What did you want to talk about?” 

There’s an iciness to your tone that makes Johnny want to crawl out of his skin. A tone that he’s never heard from you before. His lips part to say something but nothing comes out, feeling like a fool for standing there completely dumbfounded at your words. 

“I—” Johnny stammers, “—just wanted to see that you were okay. That we’re okay.” 

Every fiber in your body wants to scream out, to reach for Johnny for comfort. But you can’t. Not here at the office and especially not on the day you need to win over one of the most difficult and demanding groups of clients you’ve ever encountered. You could feel the bagel you nibbled on this morning coming back up with the way your stomach churned at his words. 

You nod, avoiding Johnny’s eyes. “I’ll see you at the meeting.” Taking a seat, you refocus on your computer, hyper aware of every move you make as you type in your computer’s password. Your lungs constrict as you hold your breath, feeling Johnny’s hesitation to leave. 

But you don’t dare to look at him because if you do you’ll break down in tears and you won’t be able to stop. 

❁❁❁❁❁

“Good luck, Miss Y/N.” Jisung quickly calls out as you pass the reception desk and head towards the conference room.

You give the young man the first genuine smile you could muster before mouthing a ‘thank you’ towards him. In return, he gives you two thumbs up with a smile that helps you forget, even for a short moment, that you’re walking into a shark tank.

As you linger outside the conference room, you take a second to brace yourself to see Johnny — who you expect to be in the front of the room setting up the presentation, and Chaewon — sitting in the back of the room either taking notes or completing a task the program she’s in, requires. 

As expected, Johnny looks at you when you enter, mumbling a quiet greeting but there’s no Chaewon in sight. However, that guilt of quick relief is pushed aside when she walks in, bright eyed and eager to see what takes place in the conference room that isn’t meetings with Mina and Doyoung. 

Chaewon greets you cheerfully, offering to help with passing out folders for the clients. Handing her the stack of folders, you thank her, watching her effortlessly circle the conference table with grace.

There’s a sudden feeling of unwantedness that hits you when you realize you feel out of place in a room that you’re usually the most confident in. You pull out the notes you meticulously organized and printed, placing a copy next to Johnny’s laptop and another next to Chaewon’s belongings. A dizzy spell hits you and you’re quickly regretting not eating something substantial before this.

Chaewon feels the tension in the room, watching the way you and Johnny move around each other like neither of you want to step on each other’s toes. When she places the last folder, she paints on a pretty smile and looks at you. 

“How was your weekend, Y/N?” Chaewon asks, cutting through the tense silence between you and Johnny. 

“Fine.” You hesitantly respond, forcing a smile to your lips. “How was yours?” You grab the back of a chair to keep you upright as you wait for the lightheadedness to pass. 

“Great!” Chaewon beams. She rambles as she recounts what she and her friends did — the club, a friendship picnic, and visiting the museum. “Oh, by the way, we missed you Friday night! John said you couldn’t make it to the party because you were working late.” 

This time when you look at Johnny, he sharply inhales and you see the muscle in his jaw tick. 

And for the first time, he doesn’t look back at you. 

Your eyes begin to sting as your tears threaten to brim your waterline. “Y-yeah,” you sharply inhale, trying to patch up your squeezing heart to get you through this. “I usually, um, work late on Fridays. I’m so sorry I missed it.” 

“It’s okay!” Chaewon smiles, taking a seat in the back of the room. “I’m sure there’ll be more opportunities. It was fun to get to know everyone outside of work and how different they are when alcohol is involved.”

Your sights flick to Johnny who tugs on his collar like the tie he has on is suffocating him. He doesn’t bother to look at you, clearly unable to focus on anything else but the notes in front of him. You fight the way your brain tries to remind you how flirty Johnny gets when he’s drunk and that Chaewon knows about it first hand, too. 

“Hey, are you okay?” Chaewon softly asks, watching the way you shut your eyes and begin rubbing your temple. 

Johnny’s eyes flick up into your direction, making sure you’re okay knowing how worried he’s been since seeing you this morning. 

“Yeah, I’m fine.” You nod. “I just didn’t get enough sleep last night.” 

A knock on the door catches the attention of the three of you and the group you’re expecting begin to fill up the chairs surrounding the large conference table.

Johnny’s quick reaction has him greeting the group, inviting them in and introducing them to both you and Chaewon. He doesn’t miss a beat, starting off the presentation exactly how you two rehearsed. When you begin presenting your portion of the presentation, explaining the company’s growth and the strategy set in place, you think you’ll be able to get through this. 

But that moment is short lived when you begin to feel lightheaded again, this time worse than before. 

You lose track of your thought process and Johnny looks at you concerned, smoothly swooping in to pick up where you left off. Johnny’s words begin to blur together and as you try to refocus, the entire room spins and the chattering begins to overlap. 

Your vision blurs, but when you close your eyes for a second of relief, the darkness greets you with a cruel image of Johnny sneaking away with Chaewon – her fingers raking through his hair and his hands on her hips, shoving their tongues down each other’s throat. 

Johnny gently calls out your name, ripping you away from the image in your head. He looks at you with deep worry and his eyes drop down to your trembling hands. 

When you look at the group of people staring back at you, you already see one of them shake their head disapprovingly. You try to say something — the lines you rehearsed, the part of the script you’ve perfectly curated for this moment, an apology, anything. But instead, your face turns hot and clammy and beads of sweat slowly start to form on the back of your neck. 

Chaewon stands, face full of worry and you suddenly feel Johnny’s hand press against your lower back to keep you from stumbling backwards, but his touch feels foreign and unwanted. 

Your stomach twists and the contents you tried to hold down are starting to come back up. 

Fast.

“I-I’m sor—” That’s all anyone in the room can make out before your hand flies to your mouth and you rush out of the room. 

The bathroom door flies open, hitting the tiled wall with a slam before you drop to your knees in front of the toilet. Hot tears fall from your eyes and your throat burns, clutching your abdomen and silently praying to make it all stop.

“Oh my god!” You hear Mina’s voice behind you, followed by a separate gasp. “Hey,” Mina coos, palm circling against your back. “You’re okay.” 

“I’ll get some water for her.” The voice, belonging to Chaewon, says frantically before scurrying off to the break room. 

You lean against the wall of the bathroom stall, this time tears helplessly streaming down your face. “I fucked up.” You sobbed through gasps, hand pressed to your chest as Mina stands to grab a paper towel from its dispenser, wetting it a little before helping you wipe the tears streaking your cheeks and handing it to you to wipe around your mouth. 

Chaewon returns with an unopened water bottle, squatting next to Mina. “You looked like you were about to pass out,” Chaewon shares, gently moving a piece of hair from your forehead. 

“I-I gotta get back in there—” you frantically say, standing up too quickly and needing to use the wall behind you to steady yourself. “We can’t lose—”

Chaewon presses her hands into your arms, forcing your focus onto her. “John is covering for you. He said you weren’t feeling well and you thought you could get through it. They’re gonna discuss rescheduling after Mina and Doyoung’s presentation.” 

“This isn’t your fault.” Mina rubs a palm on your back, sorrow dripping from her aura knowing how hard on yourself you’ll be. “It’ll be okay.” 

You want so badly to tell her it is your fault. It’s your fault for hooking up with Johnny. Your fault for continuing it. It's your fault for getting jealous and you allowed it to get to you, nearly losing a deal with important clients. 

It is your fault for letting your professional and personal life blur. 

“Maybe you should take the rest of the day off.” Mina gently recommends as she watches you take little sips of the water bottle. “You can’t be on top of your game if you’re not taking care of yourself.”

You look at Chaewon, then at Mina before you ultimately surrender. “Yeah,” you nod, “I do just need some rest. A day or two will help.”

“I can walk you to your car, just in case.” Chaewon offers and the sincerity in her voice makes you feel all kinds of guilt for not being as open to her as everyone else has been. 

“And I’ll talk to John.” Mina reassures. “He’s probably really worried. He nearly rushed into the bathroom before he stopped himself  realizing it was the woman’s restroom. I had to remind him to tend to the group.” 

Your mind is a mess and it’s Chaewon who brings you back. “Grab your things. I’ll meet you by the elevator.”

When you meet with Chaewon, the elevator door opens right on time. Stepping in, you clutch your stomach as you watch the young girl’s manicured nail press the lobby button. Just you look up, you catch a glimpse of Johnny and the worried look on his face just as the elevator doors close.

— The Fallout.

Your phone has been going off with messages from Mina checking in and assuring you that the Evermore group is looking forward to meeting you and Johnny again when you’re feeling better. 

You catch the first couple of words in Johnny’s text: I’m outside. Johnny’s name was the last person you expected to see, or maybe it was the one person you wanted to see. Trudging your way towards the front door, you crack it open and spot an apologetic Johnny holding a small brown paper bag in one hand and a white plastic bag in the other. 

“What’re you doing here?” You quietly ask, feeling a wave of exhaustion so bad you feel it in your bones. 

Crying all afternoon wasn’t what you intended to do, but the emotions you’ve bottled up spilled out all at once the second you walked through your front door. 

“I wanted to bring you something…” he holds up what he has in his hands. “…with an explanation and apology, too.” 

For a split second, you’re tempted to tell him to leave and slam the door shut, but you can’t find it in your heart to do it when Johnny patiently waits, holding his breath in anticipation, for your decision. As you pull the door wider, you step aside to let Johnny in. 

Setting down the white plastic bag that contains some sort of take-out soup, Johnny hands you the brown paper bag. His hands slide into his pockets and his shoulders shrugging until it reaches his ears. “Mina said you weren’t feeling well, so I stopped by to get you something warm…and, uh—”

Opening up the bag, your brows shoot up. 

“A pregnancy test?” You quirk a brow. “I’m not…” shaking your head, you shove the test back into the bag. 

“Mina said you were throwing up a-and you looked sick.” Johnny explains as he nervously swallows. “With our track record, I just thought it’d give you a peace of mind. I know it’d give me a little relief if you aren’t—”

“I’m not pregnant. I’m on birth control, remember?” 

“I know, but sometimes it fails and—”

You lift your palm to stop him in the middle of his sentence. “You said you also came with an explanation and apology.” 

The color drains from Johnny’s face, a shiver running down his spine as your words slice through him. For someone so tall, he sure does feel small at this very moment. 

“What Chaewon said about Friday night,” Johnny gulps. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

Your heart cracks, hearing him finally admit it. You look down at your bare feet, feeling your entire world shift on its axis. You hoped for a better excuse, one you didn’t think of, but the truth is: there isn’t anything he could say that would make you feel better about what he did. 

And you wondered what other things your mind was right about. 

“I see the way you tense around Chaewon, how distant you’ve become since she started her internship and I connected the dots. I figured you wouldn’t wanna go.” Johnny sighs, regret dripping from his words. “I should’ve told you anyway. I’m sorry. I thought I was sparing your feelings by not mentioning it. Plus, it wasn’t anything special, just a get together to get the interns to mingle with everyone.”

You stay silent, arms crossing over your stomach to hug yourself in a pathetic attempt to somehow protect yourself from any other kind of pain that might arise. 

“I realize it was a dumb decision, but I did it anyway. I’m so sorry, baby. I promise it won’t happen ever again.” 

Johnny steps toward you, desperately wanting to pull you into a hug to make sure everything is okay — to tell himself that he didn’t completely fuck up with the woman he’d do anything for. But his world comes crashing when you take a step back, refusing to look up at him. 

“Did something happen between you two?” 

Your words are barely a whisper, but it strikes Johnny in his gut. 

“Is that why you came afterwards? Did you even go to see your parents or was that a lie too?” 

His lungs constrict, forgetting how to breathe. Every question felt like an accusation and every accusation felt like another stab to his chest. With the way you look up at him, tears brimming with hot salty tears when he doesn’t answer, he realizes his silence sounds like admission.

“N-no.” He shakes his head profusely. “No, nothing happened. Nothing happened with anyone. I swear! I came to see you afterwards because I did miss you and I missed you all weekend. How could you—” he stops himself, suddenly realizing he’s shifting the blame. “W-why would you think that?” 

You go quiet again, feeling a pang of heartache at his question. You don’t know how to tell him how you’ve been feeling — he’s a pro at communication and you’re not. So you don’t. Instead, you do what you do best: burying it away and throwing away the key. 

“I could never do that to you,” Johnny’s voice slightly trembles. “Please, you have to believe me. I-I know how this looks like, but I swear to god, nothing has ever happened and nothing ever will.”

“Y-you’re right.” You swallow, eyes feeling relief when the hot tears finally streak down your cheeks. “Nothing will happen. Not anymore. I-I can’t do this anymore, Johnny.” 

You push through the lump in your throat.

“It made me sick to my stomach to think about you and Chaewon today, so much so I fucked up today’s client meeting because I felt like I was losing y—” 

Your voice cracks and your hand reaches for your throat, feeling like your own words are suffocating you as you try to push them out. 

Johnny sees the way you struggle, instinctively reaching for your hand only to have you pull away, again. The whites of his eyes have reddened over the past couple of minutes, clearly holding back the tears he desperately wants to let go of. 

“You were never losing me,” Johnny reassures, voice quieter than expected. “I’m so sorry I ever made you feel that way.” 

“It doesn’t matter. Not anymore,” you gulp, using the sleeve of your sweater to wipe your cheeks. “We can’t do this. I can’t separate my emotions without it affecting my work. I-I don’t know how to. I’m sorry.”

You’ve rendered Johnny speechless before, but not like this.

Not in the way where it feels like you ripped out his heart and squeezed it until it shattered into a million pieces in your hand. It all happened too quickly for him to process the fact you’re ending everything. 

His body must have gone into autopilot from the shock that one mistake made him lose you. The next thing he knows is he’s standing outside your apartment and handing you the spare key you wanted back, then he’s staring at your apartment number hanging on your front door. 

He stands there for a long moment in silence, using your front door to brace himself. With his back pressed into the wooden material, he slides down onto your welcome mat needing to take a minute to process everything that just happened. His head gently rests against your door and when he looks down, he catches your shadow under the crack of the door.

Pulling your knees to your chest, you try to quiet your sobs, but it’s no use. Johnny hears you, desperately wishing he could hold you and undo everything that he did to hurt you. It’s quiet, but you hear Johnny’s voice on the other side of the door. 

“I’m really sorry.” He starts, eyes already stinging as he bites back his tears. “If you need space, I’ll give you space. If you need a friend, I’ll be here. If you need to forget about me…” he sharply inhales, not bothering to finish his sentence. “Whatever you need me to do, I’ll do it. I’ll do anything for you. Even if that means nothing to you, it means everything to me.”

A beat of silence passes and you wonder if he left, but you hear his voice again — though the thick piece of wood between the two of you drowns out the way his words quiver as he finally lets his tears fall.

“You mean everything to me. Please don’t forget that.” 

You sob harder into the bend of your arm, feeling the door move slightly to tell you Johnny’s no longer on the other side of the door. 

Another painful reminder that you’re alone. 

Again.

❁ disclaimer | do not copy, repost, translate, or modify any of my writing. do not share my work on other platforms without my explicit permission.

He tried. He put in the effort. He wanted things to work with someone else. But it was as if he were a piece of a puzzle that only fit yours. No one else’s.

Your relationships hadn’t fared any better over the past decade. It almost felt like fate: the two of you suffering through other loves, only to find your way back to each other in the end—because you worked together and had a group trip planned.

And you weren’t even supposed to be in Johnny’s room.

But there had been a mix-up with the reservation, which ended with him calmly asking:

— Do you want to share a room?

And you answering, just as solemnly:

— Of course. Why not?

The funniest part was that it had been a rhetorical question. You knew exactly why not. You knew your body would go on high alert, that you’d feel the weight of his gaze on you, that you’d look back… and that maybe—

— It looks cute on you.

You laughed as you stepped out of the bathroom. You had never handled diminutives well—you always felt like Johnny said things like that just to please you. But it was either that or sleep in a suit, and as comfortable as your outfits were during conferences, they were far from cozy.

— Johnny, this is basically a tent.

— It’s not my fault you’re tiny… is it politically correct to say that?

— It’s not my fault you have gigantism.

— I think in adults it’s called acromegaly.

— Can you stop being annoyingly smart?

Johnny smiled, and for a moment, it felt like time had rewound. That light, teasing dynamic—just like when you were younger. When he would mess with you, but it always ended with kisses on your bed, in your parents’ house. When you’d take pictures in every photo booth you found because you were obsessed with them—and always had to pay twice so each of you could keep a copy.

— Come here.

He asked, and you nodded, a little unsure. You bit your lower lip as your messy bun came undone, strands of hair falling like cascades over your shoulders.

Johnny had always liked that.

And he liked it even more when you sat beside him.

There were differences between the twenty-year-old girl and the woman before him now. Your hair color had changed, there were a few tattoos scattered here and there… maybe he could discover more if he lifted the fabric of the shirt just a little—

— I think I still like you.

The touch of his hand against your face almost made your heart stop. You had longed for it so much you could barely breathe. He caressed your cheek, leaning closer as your eyes darted between his and his lips.

— They say you never forget your first love.

— I’m thinking I want you to be my first, my last, and my only.

You smiled—and suddenly, all the embarrassment was gone. It felt like giving him permission. Johnny kissed you, pulled you onto his lap, touching your skin with a familiarity that time hadn’t erased. His fingers found that specific spot on your waist, and he gently bit your neck, drawing out that same soft laugh from you.

— Stop that! Let me talk too! — you said, laughing.

Johnny knew every one of your weaknesses. And no one had ever dared—or managed—to take his place.

— Go ahead.

You took a deep breath, looking at him.

— I think I still love you.

Johnny smiled, pressing a soft kiss to your cheek.

— Good, — he murmured. — because I’m sure of it.

Ele tentou. Se esforçou. Quis que desse certo com outras pessoas. Mas era como se fosse uma peça de um quebra-cabeça que só encaixava no seu. Com mais ninguém.

Seus relacionamentos também tinham sido um desastre na última década. Quase parecia destino: vocês dois sofrerem por outros amores, só para, no fim, voltarem um para o outro — porque trabalhavam juntos e tinham uma viagem em grupo marcada.

E nem era para você estar no quarto de Johnny.

Mas houve uma confusão com a reserva, que terminou com ele perguntando calmamente:

— Quer dividir um quarto?

E você respondendo, solene:

— É claro. Por que não?

O mais engraçado é que aquilo era uma pergunta retórica. Você sabia exatamente por que não. Sabia que seu corpo ficaria em alerta, que sentiria o peso do olhar dele sobre você, que retribuiria… e que talvez—

— Ficou bonitinho em você.

Você riu ao sair do banheiro. Nunca lidou bem com o diminutivo — sempre achava que Johnny falava assim só para agradar. Mas era aquilo ou dormir de terninho, e apesar de elegantes em palestras, seus terninhos estavam longe de serem confortáveis.

— Johnny, isso é praticamente uma tenda.

— Não é culpa minha se você é uma anã… é politicamente correto falar anã?

— Não é culpa minha você ter gigantismo.

— Acho que em adultos é acromegalia.

— Dá pra parar de ser tesudamente inteligente?

Johnny sorriu, e por um instante pareceu que o tempo tinha voltado. Aquela dinâmica leve, provocativa — como quando eram mais jovens. Quando ele implicava com você, mas acabavam aos beijos na sua cama, na casa dos seus pais. Quando vocês tiravam fotos em toda cabine que encontravam, porque você era fissurada por aquilo — e sempre pagavam duas vezes, para que cada um ficasse com uma cópia.

— Vem aqui.

Ele pediu, e você assentiu, meio incerta. Mordeu o lábio inferior enquanto o coque improvisado se desfazia, deixando as mechas caírem como cascatas pelos ombros.

Johnny sempre gostou disso.

E gostou ainda mais quando você se sentou ao lado dele.

Havia diferenças entre a garota de vinte anos e a mulher diante dele agora. A cor do cabelo tinha mudado, havia algumas tatuagens espalhadas aqui e ali… talvez ele pudesse descobrir mais, se erguesse o tecido da camisa só um pouco—

— Acho que eu ainda gosto de você.

O toque dele no seu rosto quase fez seu coração parar. Você ansiava tanto por aquilo que mal conseguia respirar. Ele acariciou sua bochecha, aproximando-se, enquanto seus olhos corriam inquietos entre os dele e seus lábios.

— Dizem que você nunca esquece o primeiro amor.

— Tô pensando que quero que você seja o primeiro, o último e o único.

Você sorriu — e, de repente, toda a vergonha desapareceu. Foi como dar a ele permissão. Johnny te beijou, te puxou para o colo, tocando sua pele com uma familiaridade que nenhum tempo conseguiu apagar. Seus dedos encontraram aquele ponto específico na sua cintura, e ele mordeu de leve seu pescoço, arrancando o mesmo risinho de sempre.

— Para com isso! Me deixa falar também! — você pediu, rindo.

Johnny conhecia cada fraqueza sua. E ninguém jamais ousou — ou conseguiu — ocupar o lugar dele.

— Vai em frente.

Você respirou fundo, olhando para ele.

— Acho que ainda te amo.

Johnny sorriu, depositando um beijo suave na sua bochecha.

— Que bom — murmurou. — Porque eu tenho certeza disso.