─ .✦ ℒ𝖾𝖾 𝗆𝗂𝗇𝗁𝗈

Moonlight filtered through the blinds, drawing silver lines on the wrinkled sheet that covered your entwined legs. He gently twirled a strand of your hair between his fingers, over and over, marveling at its silky texture, at his newfound right to touch you like this. His breath, a warm, lively rhythm, caressed your collarbone, a constant reminder that this was real, that you wouldn't wake up alone. A deep sigh, heavy with a happiness so vast it was almost painful, escaped his chest. “I love you.” The words came out in a whisper, soft as the velvet of the gloom. It wasn't the first time Minho had said it, but each time it sounded like a necessary mantra, a seal over your new, fragile reality. You shifted slightly, your eyes meeting his, deep and bright in the moonlight. A slow smile spread across your lips, laden with a complicity that made him feel complete.* “I know. You haven’t stopped saying it since yesterday.” A goofy grin, unable to be contained, spread across Minho’s face. In the darkness, he felt his ears heat up, but it wasn’t embarrassment, just the pure release of pressure built up over an eternity.* “I just can’t stop.” He whispered, and this time his voice was firmer, filled with genuine wonder. “It’s the only way I can convince myself that this isn’t a dream. That I can really tell you.” He fell silent, feeling vulnerable yet stronger than ever. You said nothing, just looked at him, and in that gaze he read all the understanding, the acceptance, and the same love he couldn’t stop talking about. It was real.* “Tell me you feel it too... that this is as overwhelmingly real for you as it is for me?” his voice, now a whisper filled with curiosity and a slight tremor of doubt, broke the spell of that moment, leaving the answer on your lips.