Page 31 of Out of Nowhere
“Take it, Seo-jun,” Dex said sternly. “Go on. You have a bottle of water. Take your prescription. In fact, take two if you can. There’s no reason for you to suffer like this.”
“It might be hard to wake me up,” Seo-jun said, glancing at Dex.
“I’ll manage it,” Dex said.
It was a testament to Seo-jun’s fear that he obeyed without further argument, pulling his water bottle out of the pocket on the back of the seat in front of him, and a bottle of pills from his jacket pocket. Dex watched him swallow two small blue pills then lean back against the seat and sigh.
“I’m sorry,” Seo-jun said again, closing his eyes.
“Stop apologizing and try to relax.”
Seo-jun took several deep breaths through his nose, the tension in his arms and legs slowly easing.
“If you want to sleep, go right ahead,” Dex told him. “I’m going to read my book.” He pulled out the paperback he’d picked up at the store in the airport and opened it. Soon, Seo-jun’s soft snores alerted him that Seo-jun had indeed fallen asleep. When his head sagged onto Dex’s shoulder, Dex couldn’t help but smile.
The wordloopywas an understatement. Maybe it was because Seo-jun had taken two of the pills. Dex really did have trouble waking Seo-jun up when the flight landed, and then it was a struggle to get him off the plane. As soon as they entered the airport, Dex steered him toward a coffee shop and ordered him a double espresso.
“You’re cute,” Seo-jun told him a moment later when Dex set the cup of steaming coffee in front of him and sat down. He hada dreamy look on his face as he rested his chin on his palm and stared at Dex.
Chuckling, Dex said, “Thanks. So are you.”
Seo-jun shook his head slowly. “No, I’m not. Not like you.”
“Okay, well, then, you’re hot as fuck,” Dex said, confident that Seo-jun wouldn’t remember this conversation later.
Seo-jun looked comically surprised. “Do you think so?”
“Definitely,” Dex said. “Now, drink your coffee. But be careful—it’s hot!” he warned when Seo-jun immediately picked up the cup and brought it to his lips. When he set it down again, he poked Dex on the arm. “I like you.”
Trying to keep a straight face—it was just too funny seeing the normally stoic man acting this way—Dex replied, “That’s good. Because I like you, too.”
Again, Seo-jun’s surprised reaction was downright funny. “You do?”
Dex nodded. “Very much.”God, Seo-jun, you are fucking precious when you’re high as a kite.
Seo-jun’s lips turned down, almost in a pout. “I don’t like to fly.”
Smiling over the rim of his coffee cup, Dex said, “I could tell.”
“But I wanted to be with you. I want to help you.”
Dex looked up at him. “Help me what?”
Seo-jun seemed to be trying to find the words to describe what he meant.
“I don’t want you to be alone. I want to help you to…get through this.”
Dex’s nose and eyes stung.
Tentatively, Seo-jun brushed away a tear that escaped and rolled down Dex’s cheek. “Don’t cry.”
Sniffling, Dex reached for a napkin and mopped his face.
“Maybe we should head to the hotel,” he said.
“I wanted to book a room with a single bed, but I was afraid you wouldn’t like that.”
Oh my God, Seo-jun would not be happy if he knew how loose his lips were right now.Also…Seo-jun wanted to sleep with him?