Waking up before the sun had a chance to rise, I gently remove Jimin's arm from around my waist and slip off of the bed. Grabbing his sweater from last night, I pull it over my head, happy that it reaches just past my ass, and tip-toe out of the bedroom with one last look at the sweet man still sleeping soundly with his pink pouted lips and disheveled bleach blonde hair.

Last night, Jimin was with me every step of the way. From standing up for me without hesitation in front of Cameron to holding me close to him in the middle of his living room floor while I sobbed like there was no tomorrow, he is part of the reason why I have the strength to pull myself out of bed.

We had even both stated that we'd like to kiss each other the other night, therefore admitting we like each other more than just friends, but he still wasn't anything short of a gentleman when he helped me get ready for bed last night and that's something I couldn't say for a lot of men. He may be younger than me but maturity isn't limited to a certain age range.

While the water warms up on the stove to make a hot cup of tea, I pull out the small box of memorabilia from one of my suitcases that were still placed in the hallway from last night. Upon opening it, my eyes tear up at all of the seemingly happy memories that don't mean shit now. It feels like I wasted half of a decade of my life and part of my youth.

Though I'm still young at only twenty-eight years of age, I wonder how different my life would be if I hadn't been glued to a man who obviously didn't love me as much as he said he did. And maybe at one point in time, he truly believed he was in love with me. I can't deny the happy moments and the good memories, especially when they're staring back at me in the form of printed photographs.

Would I have stayed in Paris if Cameron and I hadn't gotten married? Probably but would I have still been single? Would I have even met Jimin, perhaps? Possibly even had fallen in love with him instead?

With the way things have been going with us, the easy conversations, the lingering looks, the small touches, and the incredible support system he's been, I definitely could see myself falling for a man like him. A man that makes me feel safe and constantly proves himself to be of good moral character.

Grabbing the baby blue plush blanket from his sofa, I wrap it around my shoulders and take hold of the mug filled with Earl Grey tea stemming up from the brim. Stepping out onto the balcony so that I don't risk waking him up, I set the decorated shoebox on the small round table and glance at the Eiffel Tower still sparkling with lights despite the sky slowly brightening up from the sun rising over the horizon. Pulling out one of the pictures of Cameron and I dressed up in formalwear at one of my company's parties, I take a deep breath and cut it in half before cutting it into fourths.

This feels good! It's as if I'm physically releasing the chains on my life and I suck in a deep breath of much-needed oxygen as I grab hold of another previously cherished memory to do the same. Even though tears are still shed from my eyes, it's healing to my soul and a small laugh even resounds as I cut up yet another picture.

Not before long, I have almost every photo, all of the old ticket stubs, and pressed flowers torn into bits that rest in a pile on the table. Looking at the last photo that I'm about to cut up as well, the rumble of the sliding door catches my attention and I look back at Jimin with leftover tears in my eyes that I hope he doesn't notice, but I know he will.

"Hey, why didn't you wake me up?" he asks, stepping out and shivering at the cool morning breeze as he rubs his arms. "I would have woken up with you."

"I got up very early. Didn't want to disturb you," I sweetly state as he takes the seat next to me. "Are you about to go for your morning run?"

Shaking his head, he takes hold of the corner of the blanket and scoots in closer so that we can share it. "No, I'm devoting my day to you. Wanna tell me what all of this is?"

Nodding my head towards the pile of torn-up papers, ripped photos, and a plethora of other items, I let out a small chuckle before placing my head on his shoulder. "That? That's letting go of the past."

Glancing at the last photo I had left to rip into shreds, he observes how happy I appear and I know that, for at least that moment in my life, I truly was.

"Are you sure you want to get rid of all of these memories? They look like they were some good times in your life," he questions as he picks it up and sees the frozen memory back when Cameron and I were still dating. The photo shows me smiling brightly in front of Cinderella's castle at Disneyland with Minnie Mouse ears adorning my head and Cameron standing next to me with his arm around my shoulder.

Plucking the photo from his fingertips, I rip it into four pieces without a second thought before tossing it onto the table with the others. "A lie of a relationship shouldn't be cherished and neither should its memories."

I place my head on his shoulder once again and he wraps his arms around me to bring me closer. Based on the small tug onto the sweater, I know that he notices I'm wearing his clothing from last night and he takes a deep breath before placing a kiss on the top of my head. It's an action he's done a lot in the last few days and the sweet sincerity of it tugs at my heartstrings each time. But I can't continue to pretend to live in this safety bubble forever.

"I'll try to find an apartment and get out of here as soon as I can," I suddenly state, and his eyes widen.

"What?" Jimin pulls back so that he can look at me. "Why do you want to leave as soon as possible?"

Shyly fiddling with a loose string at the end of the blanket, I refuse to look at him as I take a deep breath. "Now that I know I won't be going back to Cameron, I don't know... I figured you'd want your personal space back."

Shaking his head, he tucks some of my hair gently behind my ear causing me to finally meet his concerned gaze before he speaks, "I can't force you to stay but I can ask you to. I'd really like it if you did."

The corners of my mouth begin to turn up as I lean my cheek into the palm of his hand. "Yeah? I'm not crowding your space?"

He smiles back at me, "Never. Come on. Let's get back inside. It's chilly out here and we need to get you all unpacked."

My bottom lip gets trapped between my teeth as I nod joyfully at his request. Scooping up all of the scraps from the table, he follows me back into his apartment and tosses the scraps in the trash before wrapping his arm around my shoulder.

"Are you okay?" Jimin questions while we each grab the handle of a suitcase.

"No," I give that same forced smile that I've practiced using for so many years, "but I think I will be."

"That's what I like to hear," he says with a small rub on my back before he opens the bedroom door and gestures for me to go inside first.

Jimin heads into his closet where he starts rearranging some things to give an entire side to me while I start to unload my 'unmentionables' into the drawers. Even though he saw my panties when I allowed him to undress me last night, the entire situation was more caring than sensual so I still try to modestly tuck them away without him seeing them. Especially since quite a few of them are rather sexy and a large amount of them haven't even been worn yet. I had bought a bunch of new lingerie to try to get Cameron to take notice but was never even given the opportunity to make that happen. I guess it's for the best. At least I won't have to burn and replace expensive undergarments that would have had memories attached to them as well.

I feel a set of eyes lingering on me while I pull open the next drawer to start loading in my sleep sets and turn my head ever so slightly to catch the way Jimin keeps looking in my direction as he carefully places my work clothes and fancier attire onto hangers. Only then does it dawn on me that I'm still in only his sweater and my panties. Thank God I haven't had to bend over!

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I was so distracted this morning with everything that I... um... I'll just go put these on." The embarrassment is more than evident in my tone and on my face as I hold up a pair of sweatpants and a random tee to show him.

Smirking, he nods and hangs the pencil skirt onto the bar. "You can if you want. I wasn't complaining, though." My face catches on fire at his words. Walking past him, I keep my head down and my lips tucked into my mouth to try to hold back my little grin but before I can make it past the closet, he grabs my wrist and tugs me back towards him. "Is that a genuine smile I see?"

He tucks my hair behind my ear and I let out a dumb little giggle when I can't force myself to keep a straight face any longer. Nodding as if I even really needed to answer him, he fondly looks at me as if I was the most precious thing. To be honest, I'm not sure if I've ever been looked at this way before. My heart constricts and my breathing becomes unsteady the longer our eyes stay locked onto one another. It's so easy to get lost in those deep brown eyes.

"I always want to make you smile, Mia," he says without even a hint of flirtation, only unfiltered sincerity.

And as much as I'd like to believe him, my mind immediately travels to all of those sweet-nothings that Cameron used to tell me at first, too. Empty promises that went absolutely nowhere almost the moment we tied the knot.

"There will probably be a day where you hurt me or I hurt you," I state and watch the line faintly form between his brows, "so as much as I love the fact that you would want to always make me smile, I don't think that's entirely possible."

"Maybe not," he agrees while he removes his hand from around my wrist to lace his fingers with mine, "but I'd want to try."

Pulling my hand up to his mouth with his eyes staying locked onto mine, he presses his soft lips to the back of my hand and I stop breathing as electricity runs through every single inch of my body. Another kiss is placed once again before he wraps both of my arms around his neck and he takes a small step forward. His forehead presses against mine and the feeling of his minty breath tickles my lips. Strong hands slowly glide onto my waist as he gently nudges my head to turn with the tip of his nose and I oblige only to feel those tender kisses be pressed on my cheek over and over again.

"You're so mesmerizing," he whispers and my eyes fall shut at the entrancing sound of his voice. "It's so hard holding back from you but I want you to want me just as much. I want you to be sure."

"When I'm sure, you'll definitely know," I breathily reply and smirk as he pulls back just enough to look at me with a lust-clouded gaze.

Taking a step back, his fingers ever so slightly dig into my waist and pull up the hem of the sweater before he lets me slip away. Turning around, I pause when he speaks up one more time.

"I'd treat you how you deserve to be treated, Mia." Turning my head, I can see him staring at me and not just my body, indicating he's not speaking only about sexually. "I'd make sure you knew what you mean to me."

Turning to look at him again, I stare at his ethereal face for a bit longer before reaching up and cupping his jaw with my hand, noticing the way he immediately leans into my touch. "You're already doing that."

Caressing his bottom lip with my thumb, I fight the urge to kiss him knowing it'd be out of sheer vulnerability and need. No, if I kiss Park Jimin, it will be because I am certain of my feelings towards him.

I can't risk hurting him just because I'm a mess.