𝗣𝗔𝗣𝗘𝗥 𝗖𝗨𝗧𝗦 .. ljn（✓）

→ thirty-eight

"okay, okay! this was a bad idea!" hyerim screeched in desperation as she tried to keep her balance, jeno's laughter drowning out the sound of her hurried praying.

the brunette had her legs frozen in the disney/anime school girl position, her knees slightly bend inwards, as she struggled to stand still on the skates. her unhelpful boyfriend was literally dragging her across the ice, his posture perfect, even as he leaned back at the sight of her hilarious stance.

the girl's cheeks pink glowed in humiliation, which may have honestly just been due to the cold. "stop laughing! it's not funny! what if i fall?"

jeno straightened after controlling his laughter, pulling the unmoving girl closer as he did so. "then i'll catch you."

a small, shy smile dawned on the younger's face as she took in his words, her hat sinking lower and partially covering his eyelids. "that's cute. it better not be a lie or i'm breaking up with yo—" hyerim cut herself off with a scream as her foot suddenly jutted sideways, taking the rest of her body with it.

before she could even get close to hitting the ice, two arms swooped her up and into a sturdy chest, jeno's heart beating audibly hard against his ribs. without thinking, hyerim wrapped her arms around her boyfriend, unknowingly gripping his back and shoulders as tightly as she could.

several seconds passed of the two holding each other, breathing steadily slowing back to normal. the brunette carefully unhooked her arms from the boy, swiping a wave over her shoulder as she pulled away.

jeno waited for an extra moment before removing his steel grip from his girlfriend's waist, moving his grasp to her gloved hand. hyerim didn't hesitate to hold his in return, a smile brushing across her dusted cheeks as she pulled her gaze away from their intertwined fingers.

"that was embarrassing," she mumbled, earning a faint chuckle from the boy beside her. "imagine how much worse it would have been if i wasn't here to whisk you away~"

the girl gave him her best attempt at an unamused eyebrow raise. "no one else is here."

the giggle-filled moment was rather short-lived, the clumsy brunette managing to trip over her own skate and flying forward, barely managing to catch herself with her hands.

instead of spewing words of concern or helping her up, jeno broke out into loud, amused laughs as his soulmate struggled to straighten herself. hyerim censored her curses as she bent into a squat before successfully rising to her feet. "stop laughing at me! it hurts."

"no it does not," the blue-haired boy gasped between laughs, calling her fib as he felt no pain anywhere.

the girl with wavy hair's eyes shot wide as she glanced down at her hands, the delicate skin now rough from the ice and painted with blooming drops of red blood. "look!" she cried, pushing her stinging palm in her boyfriend's face to prove her point.

the sight of the legitimate injury brought jeno's humor to an end, reaching forward to carefully examine her skinned hand.

"see. i told you."

to defend himself, the boy showed his own uninjured palm to his girlfriend, expression resembling that of a puppy. "it didn't hurt me though. sorry, rim."

the realization dawned slowly on the said girl, her eyes drawn on her own injured hand before flicking back towards jeno's. "woah... our bond must be getting really strong for the effects to be this dulled."

the discovery brought a look of shock to the older's features, his mouth frozen before gently tugging into an attentive smile. "honestly? i kind of miss the paper cut days..."

"why?" hyerim asked, brows drawing together in confusion.

"because thanks to you, even though it took us forever, i knew that there was someone out there who needed me. someone besides a team of high school hockey players or little sister." he paused, head slowly turning in the girl's direction, "someone i could care for and love and... and i'm so glad it was you."

hyerim was blushing so hard. it wasn't extremely often that jeno got soft and vulnerable like this, but it was always her favorite time spent with him.

"it sounds like we're getting married." she confessed in a small voice, shyly giving his hand a little squeeze. and now he was a flustered mess. "i-i just mean—"

without a warning, hyerim placed the soft, uninjured pads of her fingers to his cheek and kissed him, fingers slowly cupping his jaw. when she pulled away, her own cheeks were blazing a cotton candy pink.

"i..." she coyly raised her gaze just enough to meet her boyfriend's sparkling eyes. "i wanna marry you someday, lee jeno."

it was like her lips on his fueled the confidence inside of the boy, cause his own hands went to the sides of her face as he uttered his next words. "good. cause i wouldn't have it any other way, shin hyerim."

i know i said i never intended to make this fic 40 or more parts but... i can't live with 39