The Prodigy Series

"I like them," Ji-Hun whispered into my ear as the sound of my family chattering blurred into the background. Just having Ji-Hun lean into me made other things fade. I could myself smiling when he leaned away from me to answer a question Ava had thrown his way.

I watched as everyone daunted on Ji-Hun, asking him questions from left to right. In a regular setting a few months ago I would have been jealous, or I would have taken it as a sign that everyone was ignoring me, but right now I was just happy that everyone seemed to like my boyfriend. He was a great person and the fact that he was made me proud and pleased instead of intimidated and insecure. It was an improvement. I still had a long way to go in terms of self-confidence, but every little achievement made me feel happy.

"Are you staying over?" my mother asked, directing the question to Ji-Hun. He looked over at her, pausing his action of picking peas with the tip of his fork from the cream-colored ceramic plate in front of him.

"Yes," he mumbled with a nod of his head. I withheld a laugh at the awkward gesture as my cheeks colored at the thought of how adorable he was. I was glad that the only lights on were that of the dining room chandelier above us. I really wasn't ready for anyone to point out my blush.

My mum nodded at there, turning her attention to my dad to scold him about eating his piece of chicken with his hands instead of using cutlery. I turned my attention away from them to find Caleb chuckling as he sketched into his drawing pad. He tried to repress his laughter with a posed bored look, but my dad already noticed him and proceeded to scold him.

Dinner ended sometime later and Candice retired to the living room to watch anime, while Ava and my father headed to the art room to continue their work. My mother trapped me and Ji-Hun in the kitchen so she could talk to us. Her unnerving questions and obvious attempts to tease me in front of him almost made me pass out from embarrassment.

"You're staying in Wyatt's room, right?" She asked Ji-Hun, making me look over at him. He was at the kitchen sink with my mum. She was sponging the dishes while he rinsed and dried them.

"I guess," Ji-Hun stuttered, making my mum chuckle.

"Just be responsible—"

"Mum!" I cut in making her fall into a fit of chuckles as have dropped the plate she'd been sponging. I looked from her to Ji-Hun to give him an apologetic look. His face was red, and it seemed like he was waiting for the ground to open up and swallow him.

"I was just saying..." My mum got through her chuckles, making me hold on to my forehead in embarrassment.

What did I do to deserve this?

"We're going to practice, then maybe play a game afterward. That's it," I said in a firm tone as I watched my mum repress her chuckles behind her hand. She let go, a forced close-lipped smile that looked like it could break at any moment taking the place of her chuckles.

"He's going to be on your bed—"

"He's going to be on the inflatable bed," I countered as I felt my face heat up from her teasing. What was she even trying to imply? We were too young for that — not that I had an idea of what she was talking about.

"Okay, okay, it's fine," she chuckled, returning her attention to the dishes in the sink in front of her. She had to nudge Ji-Hun's hand with a wet plate to get him out of his temporary daze so he could take the plate from her to rinse and dry.

When the dishes were done I took Ji-Hun up to my room. I immediately turned to give him an apologetic look when he got in and headed to sit at the edge of my bed.

"I'm sorry about my mother," I sighed, watching as a small smile formed on his face.

"It's okay," he mumbled, looking around my room. "Where can I take a shower?" he asked. He'd brought the bag he'd packed upstairs before dinner started, so it was sitting on top my drawer at the corner.

"I share a bathroom with Caleb. It's down the hallways to the left," I tried to tell him as I gestured at which direction with my hand. I watched him nod as he got up from my bed and headed for his bag. He went through it before he brought out a pale green towel. I turned away sharply when I realized he was about to change in front of me. I bit my bottom lip, trying to put all my concentration on the wall in front of me as I heard him go about changing.

"Wyatt, what are you doing? I wrapped the towel around my waist first you know," I heard him laugh behind me, making me turn to face him with tinted cheeks.

"I know. I — never mind," I stuttered. He laughed at that, leaving the room before closing the door behind him. I stood there for a while after the door clicked shut before I made to change into a towel too. I could use Ava and Candice's bedroom since they were both busy at the moment.

I left their bathroom smelling like the flower-scented bathing gel and shampoo they used. I hated it, but it had been the only thing available.

Getting back to the room, I found Ji-Hun in only a pair of shorts, making me raise a brow as I closed the door behind me. He was sitting on the inflatable bed I'd set up beside my own. He was with his laptop that was resting on his t.h.i.g.hs. His drenched hair was clinging to the side of his face, his eyes roaming his laptop's screen as his fingers moved swiftly against its keyboard.

When I noticed that I'd been staring I mumbled inaudible nonsense under my breath before retreating to look through my drawer for something to wear. I was soon in loose PJ shorts and a loose plaid blue top. I climbed onto my bed, setting up my own laptop for a round of practicing.

We practiced for a while, a small smile making its way across my lips when I beat Ji-Hun for the first time in ten rounds. I looked over at him to find him pouting at me.

"You were just lucky," he said, making me laugh.

I went ahead to load another round when Ji-Hun did the same. We got tired of practicing when everything went silent outside. I squinted, looking at the corner of my laptop screen to find out that it was a little past 12 am. It was probably time we went to sleep.

"We should go to bed," I yawned, turning to find that Ji-Hun was already closing his laptop. I did the same, slipping it under my bed like I always did before getting out of bed to turn the lights off. I headed back to my bed in the dark, slipping under my duvet with a content sigh.

I tried to go to sleep but simply having Ji-Hun in the same room as me made me feel restless. I could hear him rolling on the inflatable bed, and he even let out a low sigh at a point.

Curiosity took the best of me and I ended up reaching for my phone on the bedside table before bending over the edge of my bed with my phone's flashlight. I almost yelped in surprise when I met Ji-Hun staring straight at me with his dark eyes and a huge grin on his face.

"Jesus Christ, Ji-Hun!" I gasped, scooting away before dropping my phone on the mattress. With the flashlight till glaring at his direction, I watched Ji-Hun sit up as he chuckled.

"I can't sleep, the bed is uncomfortable," he mumbled as he ran a hand through his hair. The frown I didn't even know I had on relaxed. I could relate since I hated the inflatable bed just as much. I bit my bottom lip as I tried to think up a solution. When I was younger I used to place tons of duvets on the bed so it would feel a lot more regular.

"Can I climb up and share your bed?"

Or that could work. I thought when Ji-Hun spoke up, bringing me out of my thoughts. My lips parted as I looked from my bed to his n.a.k.e.d c.h.e.s.t.

"I'll wear a shirt if you're uncomfortable," he quickly said.

"That's not necessary," I mumbled, feeling embarrassed that I'd looked on for so long that he took notice. I scooted more, pulling the duvet up before tapping the space I'd created. "You can come up."

I'd turned off my flashlight a while back so I couldn't see anything in the dark. I heard rustling at Ji-Hun's side before my bed sunk with the weight of an extra body. I held in a gasp as Ji-Hun moved close to me. I felt his hand on my waist and I was soon pulled into a spoon position. He pulled the cover over us with his free hand, before sighing in content.

"This is a lot more comfortable," he muttered into my shoulder. I didn't answer him, I just tried to block the fact that Ji-Hun was hugging me to himself so that I could resume breathing.

"Wyatt, are you okay? I'll let go if you're not comfortable. I'm sorry I didn't ask. I guess I just got excited." I heard him mumble as I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

"It's fine. It's just..." I trailed, trying to figure out what was off. I tapped Ji-Hun's hand a little, wanting to try something. "Loosen your grip, I want to move."

He let go of my waist, allowing me to turn and face him. I couldn't see him completely, but I could see the outline of his lips and his slender face. I could also see the twinkle in his eyes, and when I looked down I could make out the outline of his body and the hand he had dr.a.p.ed over my waist. I leaned forward, planting a kiss on his cheek before wrapping an arm around him. I felt him stiffen, but he soon relaxed into my hold as I rested my head on his shoulder.

"This is better... I was a little overwhelmed before," I confessed, balling my hand between my clothed c.h.e.s.t and his n.a.k.e.d one. I felt fl.u.s.tered at the feeling of his c.h.e.s.t. It was smooth, warm, and the raising and falling action of it assured me that I wasn't dreaming everything that was happening now up.

"I like this too," he muttered as he pulled away only to lean in to give me a full-on kiss. We pulled apart for a while to catch our breaths but we were back at it soon enough. It felt more intense than the one we were used to sharing. It was rougher — more exciting.

I let out the oddest whimper ever, making me pull away before muttering a string of apologies.

Yes, trust me to make the moment awkward.

"It's perfectly fine. I think it's cute," Ji-Hun laughed, pulling me back to himself to give me a toe tingling kiss.

"I love you Wyatt," he mumbled, making me stiffen up against him.

"I know it's really sudden, but I do, I really do," he said, kissing my forehead.

"I love you too," I muttered in a low shaky tone. I could feel my heart beat against my ribcage. I knew Ji-Hun more than liked me but having him say it out loud made my heart flutter.

"You're so cute," he laughed, running a smooth hand through my hair. "I love you so much."

I was happy that the lights were out and Ji-Hun couldn't really see my face or facial expressions. I was probably three times redder than a red pepper, and my face must have had the oddest expression that was a hybrid between the expressions happiness and embarrassment.

When we realized that we'd probably kissed to the extent that it was questionable, we stopped. Ji-Hun kissed my cheek one last time before pulling the long-forgotten duvet over us again. We drifted into sleep, but it took me a while due to the painfully wide smile that was plastered on my face, and the throbbing feeling in my c.h.e.s.t.

When I woke up in the middle of the morning hours I ran my hand through Ji-Hun's hair before I kissed the top of his nose. He wrinkled his nose, muttering something inaudible before relaxing against my hold.

I smiled, wondering how I ever thought I could hate him.