29.

The following week and a half went by in a flash.

Taehyung and Yuri did nothing but waste their time with each other for those eleven days, be it by binge watching TV shows and movies, or going for frequent walks on the beach, or just staying late in bed, cuddling with each other.

It was pure bliss for the two of them, and they couldn't have spent their time in a better way.

Each night, after long moonlight walks by the beach, they would either watch a movie together, or just directly go to bed, cuddling and communicating with each other.

This was something they had never wanted, but definitely needed.

Thanks to this, they both got a chance to get to know each other in a better, more personal way. They now knew things about each other, which most people didn't know, such as likes, dislikes and fears.

Yuri kept a distance, and refrained from asking Taehyung anything about his past, because she felt like she knew more than enough for the time being.

One late afternoon, after a delicious takeout lunch, they both decided to go for an early stroll on the beach. They had almost run out of things to do together; binge-watching TV shows and movies were fun, only up to a certain point.

However, it seemed as though they would never get tired of their countless walks on the beach. The ocean was mystifyingly alluring. It was mysterious, powerful, and extremely unpredictable.

The seas had their own mind, their own way of going about life, unconquerable by anyone.

They were calm and soothing one day, radiating peacefulness, quietly but compellingly giving solace to anyone who visited the edge of land and water.

On bad days, it was stormy and destructive, raging on and on, powerful and dangerous to everyone who dared to venture into their reign.

Today was one of its better days, because Taehyung and Yuri found the midday waves gently lapping on the shore, the sun shining moderately in the distance.

They held hands, and walked along the shore, the occasional waves going through their feet, causing Yuri to silently giggle due its ticklish feeling.

Suddenly, Yuri left Taehyung's hand, and ran away from him. By the time he caught up with her, he found her proudly holding up a pretty little seashell, shaped like a conch.

Upon further inspection, Taehyung found out why it had caught Yuri's attention; the outer covering of the shell was speckled with tiny pink and gold dots, though the latter was rare. It wasn't chipped like most seashells they came across, and looked untouched.

The shell was relatively big, just fitting on her palm. It looked very pretty, and royal.

"I'm keeping this," Yuri announced with finality. Taehyung laughed.

"It's yours," he agreed, "along with everything else on this part of the beach. All the shells, all the little crabs, every little grain of sand, it's all yours, darling."

The wide smile on Yuri's face gave Taehyung a dozen more reasons to keep her safely with him, spoiling her with everything she wanted.

He fondly stared as Yuri giggled childishly and went closer to the approaching wave of water.

However, his look of adoration became a look of indignation when she scooped up the water in her hands, throwing it on Taehyung.

"Hey!" Taehyung cried, dusting away the sand that had been mixed with the water, and attached themselves onto his pant.

He couldn't stay mad for long though; Yuri's childish smile and giggles were warm enough to melt even Elsa's frozen heart.

Taehyung quickly jumped back before Yuri's next water assault could reach him. Folding back his sleeves, he said, "Game on, baby."

He bent down too, making sure to only scoop up the water, and not the sand, before throwing it on Yuri's legs.

Yuri giggled again, the two of them playing childishly with the water.

However, when Yuri began aiming above his legs (or, more likely, just splashing aimlessly), causing his tee-shirt to get wet, he too began splashing water all over her.

Yuri screamed a little, instinctively jumping backwards, at the sudden coldness seeping through her clothes, which happened to be the pastel, summery frock she really liked.

"Tae!" She whined.

"What?" He whined back.

"No fair, don't splash water over my clothes!" She cried, pouting, pointing at the damp spots on her dress.

"I just did what you were doing, babe!" He pouted back at her, pointing at the damp spots on his tee-shirt, which happened to be much more than Yuri had anticipated.

She grimaced slightly, and said, "But I love this dress very much! Don't ruin it with the salty sea-water."

Taehyung smiled a bit, and walked closer. "I could buy a thousand other dresses like this, with just a snap of my finger," he said with a low voice, in her ear, "but, no amount of money can buy the time I'm spending with you right now."

Yuri was so touched, that she felt tears collect in her eyes. She mentally scolded herself for tearing up.

"You tell me, now, what is more precious and important." Taehyung straightened himself, moving backwards, a satisfied smile on his face.

However that smile was replaced by a loud 'oof', and a grimace of pain when he felt Yuri jump onto his back.

His hands automatically moved, gripping her thighs securely, while her hands loosely wrapped around his neck. "Woah there, tiger," he said, balancing himself.

"Tiger?" Yuri giggled.

"You pounced on me like a tiger, so the name slipped from my mouth."

"I like it," she hummed, placing a kiss on his cheek.

Taehyung smiled, and began running with Yuri on his back, causing her to let out a squeal at the sudden movement, her grip tightening slightly around his neck. But she made sure to not press too much.

They continued laughing and running like that, till they were back, in front of the beach house. Thankfully, she didn't weigh much, so Taehyung's back was still intact.

Taehyung suddenly spun Yuri, miraculously catching her in his arms again, now bridal-style. She let out a short scream, startled, which quickly became giggles of ecstasy.

He moved his head closer to hers, their foreheads touching. He stared deeply into her eyes, full of love for her. "I love you."

Yuri smiled widely, her eyes shining, mimicking the look in her love's eyes. "I love you more."

"I love you the most," Taehyung said within a heartbeat.

"I love you 3000," Yuri replied immediately, as if it was second nature to her, what with all the times they had the exact same conversation.

"I love you infinity." He laughed at the pouty face Yuri was making.

"Hey, you can't beat Iron Man," she protested.

"I just did; infinity is a lot more than three thousand."

Yuri opened her mouth to say something, but couldn't say it, because Taehyung's lips on hers, silenced her with efficiency.

Yuri kissed Taehyung back, a familiar, yet thrilling feeling of euphoria flooding in each cell of her body.

They pulled away from each other, bright and wide smiles on their faces. The sky was slowly getting darker, the sun sinking lower behind the huge beach house, which was their sign to get inside said house, and make themselves warm and comfortable for the rest of the night.

Both of them showered, separately, because Taehyung didn't want to make Yuri uncomfortable in any way, till she was fully ready to take that crucial step further in their relationship. This was something that Yuri appreciated very much.

After a delicious take-out dinner, both of them found themselves cuddled together in their bed earlier than they had ever been. All that running and playing on the beach had tired them out.

Taehyung silently played with Yuri's fingers, while she closed her eyes, listening to the waves of the sea hitting the shores, feeling peaceful.

"Babe?" Taehyung broke the silence, and got a soft hum in response. "Are you asleep yet?"

Yuri opened one eye, glancing at him. "Not yet. What happened?"

"Do you remember the first time we ever met?"

Yuri opened both of her eyes at his question, the little bit of sleep that was sinking into her abruptly disappearing, all her attention on Taehyung's random question.

She smiled a little, with melancholy, when she recalled the day that changed her entire life. "Of course," she said. "How can I forget it? It's a very special day for me."

"Tell me more," Taehyung said, a fond smile on his face.

"I thought I was going to die, when you came and saved me. Truthfully, I had thought that I was already dead and you were an angel sent down to carry me," Yuri admitted, chuckling softly.

Taehyung's smile became wider. "Now, where have I heard that before?"

Yuri rolled her eyes playfully.

"Jokes aside, why did you want to become a doctor? I'm very curious about what made you choose such a profession," he asked, eyes wide open with attentiveness.

She faltered slightly at the sudden question, which threatened to release unwanted memories to take over her consciousness. However, she managed to let out a meek,

"I-It's a long story. . ."

x x x

A / N

unedited
found this draft just sitting there so here y'all go :)