play pretend | lty [IN PROGRESS]

xxxiii | y'all ruin everything [january, 2019]

ii | y'all ruin everything
[ JANUARY, 2019 ]

11:02 pm

"well that's quite the story," lily says, leaning back in her chair. "how long ago did they cart yuchan away?"

"literally minutes before you and hyomin showed up, it's been a wild couple of months," i reply, rubbing my temples.

truthfully, i'm exhausted. it feels like i've been go, go, go since meeting taeyong and rekindling my friendship with mark. i haven't had an actual break. i haven't posted any youtube videos, or adressed everything that's happening with yuchan yet. my subscribers are constantly asking if i'm going to address it all, however i haven't had enough time to collect myself and my thoughts on the whole thing.

"it definitely sounds like it," she smiles, "i think what you need now is a little bit of a break, yeah?"

"you just read my mind," i smile back, and she nods.

"okay, so, i'm going to stick around for a few days, and we're going to just relax, okay? no posting, no working, just existing."

"that sounds magically lily,"

"good, so it's settled. i'll head to my hotel, and in the morning you and i are going to plan what to do, okay?"

"okay,"

she stands up, presses a kiss to my forehead and heads downstairs. i sit there for a few more minutes. i just need a breather. i know they're all going to have so many questions for me, and i need to be ready.

"hey," comes taeyong's soft voice.

i look up away from the wall and catch sight of the time. it's 11:52. i sit up and he crosses the small room, to take lily's spot in sid's office chair. i smile softly at him.

"how are you feeling?"

"okay, i suppose." i reply, it's so easy to be honest with him. "well, actually, i don't know."

"that's valid," he replies, shimmying the chair closer to me. "your aunt seems nice,"

"she is, but she can be incredibly intense." i laugh, reaching for his hand.

he easily allows me to take it between my own. his presence is soothing. i'll be sad when he begins his schedules up again, and i'll have to go without him for a few weeks. i enjoy him just hanging around.

"i don't know if now is really a good time, but i'm really hoping you'll let me take you to dinner after my schedules are over." he laces our fingers together, and gives my hand a light squeeze.

"that sounds nice," i hum, not fully comprehending what he's saying, what he's attempting to ask me.

"grace?"

"hmm?" i finally look back up at him again, his face completely serious.

"i'm asking you out, you get that right?" he says, and i nod.

"i would love that," i answer truthfully. "i want this. us."

"i sense a but coming,"

"but," i pause, and he smiles softly. "i need a little time. i need to just take a litte time to breath, be just grace for a while."

"i understand, i don't want to push you into anything you're not one hundred percent ready for."

"i don't deserve you," i laugh, "promise me that in a few months we'll revisit this conversation. because i do, wholeheartedly want this. want us."

"for you? i'd wait forever grace," taeyong says, and pauses, checking his watch for the time. "it's 12:00,"

"happy new year tae," i say, smiling, giving his hand a soft squeeze.

"happy new year grace," he says, returning my smile, and hand squeeze.

i look down at our interlaced fingers, and the back up to him. "would it be too much to ask you to be my new years kiss?"

he takes a second to think, mostly to mess with me, and then he sighs, trying to keep his lips from pulling up into a smirk, "i think i can swing that,"

he pulls my chair even closer, his left hand coming up to rest on my cheek, as he leans in. he's impossibly close, i can almost taste the beer on his breath, and then our lips meet. butterflies erupt in my stomach. i lean into him, the fingers on my free hand lacing into his hair, pulling him even closer. a low whistle has us both jump, and pull apart at the speed of light. we turn to see sid, mark, doyoung, sora and edward standing in the doorway.

"it's about fucking time," sid says, and sora winks at me giving me a double thumbs up.

all of us start laughing, taeyong included, as i flip them off. i lean my forehead on taeyong's shoulder, embarrassment flooding my system.

"y'all ruin everything,"