Starting Over •JJK• ✔️

Twelve

I sat back so I could fully take in the sight of him before me. My hands fell back into my lap but I no longer felt the urge to fidget with my sleeves. I was calm now. I never imagined that one small kiss could bring me so much peace.

"Months." JK laced his fingers with mine. "I've been wanting to kiss you for a couple of months now. But I didn't want to tamper with our friendship. Plus, I wasn't entirely sure how you would feel about it, so I tried to push those feelings away."

So I wasn't going crazy. He felt the same way about me as I did about him. That's probably why Joon wanted to get together and talk that night. That's why he kept urging me to take a chance. Because he knew that JK and I were both fighting against the same thing.

I slightly tilted my head. "Did you talk to Joonie about this?"

The corner of JK's mouth curled up. "Maybe."

I chuckled and shook my head. "No wonder he wanted to have a beer and talk to me. He wanted to see where my head was. That sneaky bastard."

"I may have asked him to talk to you." JK scratched the side of his head and his face flushed with embarrassment.

My eyes widened. "Seriously? Why didn't you just come and talk to me?"

"Because like I said, I didn't want anything to impact our friendship." JK sighed. "I didn't want to make it weird."

I reached forward to grab his face, and it was my turn to kiss him. I smiled when I pulled back and lightly shrugged. My hands remained on his cheeks. "I could have come and talked to you too, but I guess none of that matters anymore."

JK sat back against the couch and slid his arm around me to pull me against him. I curled up at his side and laid my head on his shoulder with my hand resting on his chest. Although we've snuggled up like this plenty of times before during our scary movie nights, it was nice to not have a million thoughts and feelings running through my head like I did the last time. Now I could simply enjoy it. And enjoy him.

I smiled up at him. "So, a couple of months, huh?"

He snickered and nodded. "It was the day that you and Jin were play-fighting in our living room." JK's fingers found their way into my hair again. "He'd been picking on you all afternoon and you'd finally had enough, so you'd smack his arm every time he'd go near you."

I laughed, remembering it clearly. "It was a slap fight that escalated very quickly."

"He tossed you onto his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and you never saw it coming." JK threw his head back and laughed. "He just stood there holding you while you kicked and flailed, threatening to beat his ass."

I pointed my finger up at his face. "Yeah, and none of you jerks tried to help me. You all just sat there and laughed and watched it happen."

"It wasn't our fight to interfere in." He wrapped his hand around my finger and set it back onto his chest. "You squealed so loud when he dropped you onto the couch and started tickling you. He knew that was the only way he'd win."

"He wouldn't stop unless I said that he is the most handsome man who will ever walk the planet." I shook my head. "I only gave in because I couldn't breathe from laughing so damn hard."

JK chuckled. "You put up a good fight." He moved his head down to rest it on top of mine. "But there was this one moment where you let out this belly laugh that made all of us crack up. And for some reason, that flipped a switch somewhere in me. I can't explain it. Just watching you have fun and be silly like that...and that laugh." He kissed the top of my head. "It's like I became fully aware of the fact that it wasn't me who was making you laugh that way. And suddenly I wanted to be." He paused. "I feel like all of this sounds super dumb outside of my head."

"No, it doesn't." I shifted beside him so I could look over at him. "It doesn't have to be some earth-shattering moment. For me, it was just one of the times you randomly showed up with a coffee for me. You'd done that a dozen times before, but that one time was different. Your hug felt different. Your smile was different to me. Something shifted somewhere and I can't pinpoint how or why. I just remember being really happy to see you, even more than usual."

JK pressed his lips together in a grin. "Well, I did bring you coffee the day after that tickle fight."

I froze, thinking back on it. "Holy shit. You did."

He laughed and ran a hand over the back of my head. "You were in meetings all day that day and I was hoping you'd be home when I came by. I just really wanted to see you. And when you opened the door, everything that I'd felt the night before was still there."

His words gave me butterflies. It all happened at the same time for the both of us and neither of us had any idea.

I grabbed his wrist to look at his watch. "Damn, it's late. I know you have to be up early, so you should probably head up to bed." I stood up with a stretch. "And I have a meeting at 9am."

JK stood up with me. "Do you want me to stay?"

I did. I really, really did.

"No, I'll be fine." My hand rubbed his forearm. "You guys all have to be up before the sun. Go get some sleep."

JK raised an eyebrow. "You've had a rough night. I know how your brain works and I don't want you to sit here alone after having to relive all of those terrible things." He took my hand into his. "Come stay with me, then. I'd sleep a whole lot better if I knew you were okay."

He was right. He knew that because his brain works the same way.

I gave in and nodded. I'd rather go with him instead of running the risk of him oversleeping here. "Just let me change out of these jeans."

"I have comfy clothes." He playfully tugged me towards the door. "Come on. It's late, remember?"

I laughed and scooped up my keys and phone. I locked the door behind us and we ventured down the hall towards the elevator. His hand found mine again, and as we waited for the doors to open, he hooked his pinky finger with mine.

Everything was different now. And for the first time in a long time, everything felt right.