Chapter 14

Living under the same roof with So Yi Jeong for a month, Ga Eul learned quite a few things about the man. First, that he was a clean freak. He was almost obsessively clean. She had seen him wipe a clean surface with a piece of cloth, trying to get rid of fingerprints that only he could see. The other thing that Ga Eul discovered was that Yi Jeong worked out daily. He had a gym in his flat and he loved to spend his time there. The third thing she learned was that he had the habit of humming to himself when engrossed in his work. The fourth thing that she learned about him, the one that annoyed Ga Eul the most, was that he was a perfectionist to the point of being OCD. Certain things were meant to be kept in a certain way otherwise they disturbed his rhythm. So if his cabinet had eight coffee mugs then at the end of the day, those eight cups had to be back in the closet or Yi Jeong could get completely ballistic.

But the most important thing that she had learned about him, one that she had kept to herself thus far, was that he was a deeply disturbed man. He was plagued by nightmares that caused him to thrash in his bed and sometimes, wake up drenched in sweat and panting. Once or twice, when he lashed around in his sleep, Ga Eul had almost wanted to hug him trying to console him but then something stalled her. Almost instinctively she knew that whatever it was that plagued him was very private and that he wouldn't appreciate her intervention. And so she would pull her hands back, despite wanting to calm him.

Living with him was … interesting for the lack of a better word. The two seemed to have perfected the art of ignoring each other. They had settled on a routine where Yi Jeong would get up before her and go to his gym. Ga Eul used his absence to get dressed. As she would enjoy her breakfast, Yi Jeong would finish showering, get dressed and come to have his breakfast. The two left for their work at the same time but never speaking to each other more than what was needed. The two came back at separate times and never waited for the other to have their dinner, which was prepared by the servants. Whoever reached home later would invariably find the other either working or sleeping.

It was perfect for Ga Eul, the two stayed out of each other's hair. But then occasionally something would happen that would reinforce the fact in Ga Eul's mind that Yi Jeong was the one man that she couldn't resist. There were the weekends where they couldn't go to work and that meant that they were forced to face each other. And then there were the times where he would come back from the gym early and wait on their bed for her to come out of the bathroom. It was in those times that things would inevitably heat up, leading to a make out session that would drive Ga Eul to the brink of insanity. Fortunately for her though, Yi Jeong always pulled back before things went too far and thus Ga Eul had sort of accepted it as a part and parcel of her current predicament.

But the thing that was the most awkward and the one that remained as the elephant in the room were the occasional mornings where the two would wake up entangled in each other's arms. By some unspoken law, the two never spoke of those occasions, ever. The two would quietly untangle themselves and go about their own ways without a word exchanged. Though Ga Eul would never admit it, even to herself, but she actually liked waking up in his arms.

The first time it had happened was ten days after their wedding. As per the contract, they shared a bed but till that day nothing untoward had happened. But that morning, Ga Eul woke up feeling extremely comfortable. Without opening her eyes, she snuggled into whatever it was that was providing her the warmth. It was only when something around her tightened that her eyes shot open. As surreptitiously as she could she looked up to find herself nuzzled against the crook of Yi Jeong's neck. Her head was resting on his shoulders and he had his arms around her. Her body was flush against his and their legs were tangled together. Yi Jeong seemed to be still asleep and Ga Eul suppressed the urge to scream and wake him up rather rudely. She lay there, completely still, admiring his perfect features when he stirred slightly. Almost instantly Ga Eul shot up from his arms, waking him up as well. The two of them shared a horrified look and almost flew off the bed and away from each other. Since then, the two of them had developed the routine of slipping into silence, ignoring the event when it occurred.

Living under the same roof with Chu Ga Eul for a month, Yi Jeong learned quite a few things about the woman. First was that she was scared, no terrified, no mortally petrified of anything that had more than four legs. Spiders especially rendered her catatonic. The first time Yi Jeong had seen her facing a spider was a scene that was seared in his memory forever. He had walked in to see her standing atop a chair, bug eyed, biting her lips, staring at something on the floor. Incredulity, confusion and a tad bit of concern had forced him to ask what was going on. In response she had jabbed the air with her outstretched finger frantically.

Yi Jeong was nonplussed. His expression must've screamed 'what the fuck' because the next thing she had done was scream 'SPIDER' at the top of her lungs. Mentally preparing himself to see a Black-Widow or a Tarantula, Yi Jeong had tiptoed to where she had been pointing at. Instead he found a miniscule eight-legged hairy thing sitting nonchalantly, minding its own business, oblivious to the cardiac arrest that the hundred times bigger human female was on the verge of having because of it. His laughter had started as a snort, to which Ga Eul had huffed. And then the volcano erupted and he couldn't stop for good ten minutes, despite a couple of punches from her.

The thing about her that annoyed him the most was that she had the habit of drumming her fingers on surfaces when trying to concentrate. His problem with it was twofold. First was the number of fingerprints that it invariably left and the second was that she always had long, manicured nails, which meant that her nails made an infuriating click-click noise that set his nerves on edge. The third thing he had learned, and it had come as a genuine surprise, was that the woman loved to eat. He hadn't pegged her for a foodie but Ga Eul had a healthy appetite and was unapologetic about it.

The fourth thing he had learned was that Ga Eul was a workaholic. She could work non-stop if left unchecked. Once Yi Jeong had let her work, not interrupting her, just to see how long she could carry on and she had been at it for forty-eight straight hours. Finally exhaustion had forced her to quit. It had been slightly disturbing to see her work like that, completely unaware of her surroundings.

There was another thing that drove him up the wall, but he guessed it wasn't so much a habit as it was a potent weapon. He had a strong suspicion that she did it deliberately, just to rile him. She would inevitably place things where they didn't belong. She would mess up the coffee mug sets, disorganize the spoons, change the order of glasses, and mix up his bookshelf and in the process drive Yi Jeong batty.

But all of this did nothing to lessen his yearning for her. The occasions in which he woke up with her in his arms only added fuel to an already raging fire. One morning, ten days after their wedding, he had woken up to find her snuggled against him. Her sleeping face was close to his as she rested her head on his shoulders. Her arms were draped around him, her legs twined with his. Yi Jeong let out a shuddering breath as he tried to control the furious surge of lust that coursed through him. She was exactly where he had wanted her to be- on his bed and in his arms. The little devil on his shoulder insisted that this was his opportunity and he should grab it with both hands. He was on the verge of doing exactly that and let his hands gently travel over her when she burrowed deeper into him, inadvertently making tighten his embrace. That had woken her up and Yi Jeong had managed to close his eyes a nanosecond before hers opened.

She moved her head very little as if to see where she was and then, just when he expected her to scream or push him away, she lay in his arms, absolutely still. By not pushing her away, all that she had done was fan his ever increasing desire for her and his body had started to respond. It was a matter of seconds in which Ga Eul would feel his hardening cock. It was time he let go of her. He stirred and almost instantly she shot out of his arms. Following her cue he sat up on the bed and easily mirrored her look of horror. He waited for her to say something but she shot out of the bed in silence and he did the same. Since then they had woken up in each other's arms a few times and had always chosen to ignore it. Coupled with the times he had spotted her stepping out of the shower and the inevitable make-out session that followed, Yi Jeong knew that he was playing with fire. Someday soon, his control was going to snap and he was going to do something he shouldn't.

It was a rainy Saturday morning when Yi Jeong woke up feeling like he had eaten a bag-full of sand. His whole body hurt, as if someone had wrung him like a piece of wet cloth. His stomach churned like a mini tornado had taken residence there and it had sapped off all the energy in his body. His head pounded with vengeance and he shivered with a bone deep chill. He cranked open his eyes to find that the bed was empty. For once he regretted not having her next to him. He wanted to hold her, relish in the warmth of her in his arms. He needed something to warm him up and nothing warmed him like that woman, she set him on fire with a mere touch. As if summoned by his thought, Ga Eul walked into the bedroom with a steaming mug of coffee. Upon seeing him lying on the bed, she seemed a little surprised.

"Unlike you to be lazing," Ga Eul commented as she settled on the bed with a book and then placed the coffee on the side table. Without giving her a reply he grasped her wrist and pulled her next to him. "What the…," she started but he didn't let her speak as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Just lay still and be quiet," he ordered, wincing at the pain that shot through his throat.

Ga Eul looked at him quizzically, but he burrowed into her neck, not answering her unasked question.

What is he doing? Other than the odd mornings and the occasional post-shower make-out sessions, they always ignored each other and Ga Eul had just started to get comfortable with that idea. Why was he complicating things by doing this? He pulled her closer and Ga Eul felt tremors run through her body. One would think that after spending one month with him in closed confines, she'd have gotten used to his presence but that wasn't the case. Apparently the law of diminishing returns didn't work on So Yi Jeong.

His hot breath against the sensitive skin of her neck made her skin break into gooseflesh. His arms tightened around her and Ga Eul's resolve weakened. Surprisingly though, he made no further moves. He seemed quite content just to hold her next him. Just as she was about to ask him what was he doing, she felt him shiver.

"Yi Jeong," she asked tentatively, "Are you alright?"

"I think I'm coming down with the flu," he answered weakly.

Ga Eul sighed, "And you pull me next to you, just so that I can get it as well? Great idea! Now come on, we're going to the doctor."

"I don't want to," was his muffled reply, "I just want to stay here."

She rolled her eyes, "This is not for you but for me. You've infected me with your germs; I don't want to fall sick."

"So you go, take your preventive measures," he replied.

"You're coming with me!" she ordered, trying to get out of his embrace but he held her in place.

"No," was the short answer.

Ga Eul turned to face him, getting closer to him in the process and for a moment lost her train of thoughts. All she could think was how handsome he was and the train-wreck her control became as soon as he came near. Yi Jeong gently rubbed his nose on her temple and whispered, "Please Ga Eul. I don't want to go."

She took a deep breath and mentally counted to ten, trying to rein in her body's involuntary reaction to him, "Can I ask why?"

He mumbled something incoherently that she didn't catch, "What?"

He repeated his words in a louder voice that made Ga Eul stare at him. Her face was expressionless for a moment before she burst out laughing. Yi Jeong let out an inaudible curse and burrowed further into her but Ga Eul couldn't stop her giggles.

"I can't believe this," she said in between chuckles, "The mighty So Yi Jeong is scared of needles! Oh man, this is priceless!"

Yi Jeong looked up and scowled, "I'm not scared. They just make me… uncomfortable."

Ga Eul continued to laugh, "Face it you big baby, you're scared."

"You're going to taunt me about this forever, aren't you?"

Ga Eul looked up at his face that was merely inches away from hers, "You bet I am."

Yi Jeong smirked, "That's what I thought."

Without any further words Yi Jeong closed the gap and claimed her lips in a soft kiss. It was unlike any of the kisses they had shared till then. Mirroring the moment it was gentle, teasing and lazy. Ga Eul's eyes closed as she allowed herself to enjoy this rare moment. Much too soon for her he broke the kiss and smiled, "There, at least now you have valid reasons to go to the doctor other than plain paranoia."

Chuckling she smacked him on the forehead lightly, "Get up, get dressed. We're going to the doctor and no, you don't have an option."

"Tch, you don't even take bribes," he complained.

Ga Eul smiled sweetly, "Glad we cleared that out. Now let's go."

Finally he allowed her to get up from the bed and she dragged him along.