I called my dad first thing in the morning. I'd been moving in and out of sleep for hours, listening to Seokjin's footsteps and voice from the front of the house. I was too tired to tune into his conversation until I was washed and dressed for the day. He spoke rapidly and in his native tongue. I couldn't make out a single word with the way each ran together, but quickly put together that he was speaking to his father by the tension in his shoulders and terse tone.

He lowered his voice, wrapping up the conversation as soon as I made enough noise to alert him of my presence. The smile he sent my way during the goodbye didn't quite reach his eyes and I couldn't be sure the one I returned did either.

"Good morning," his lips smacked against mine the way they did with every initial greeting, "we need to be at the hospital for discharge by three, but I figured you might want to get there a little earlier in case the doctor comes by. I've already made sure the pharmacy has his medications ready to be picked up on the way and put in a grocery order. The guest room closest to ours is ready for him. I'll cook so we can have one more dinner with Faye before her ride picks her up for the airport." He blustered, spouting off just a few of his preparations for the day.

Laughter bubbled over my lips at witnessing the doeish widening of his eyes and parting of his lips as if he were on the edge of continuing his rambling. He paused, mouth agog while I covered mine with a hand.

"Sorry, it's just, is this what I'm like?" I stifled another laugh.

"I wanted to make sure everything was ready. I wanted to figure everything out." He breathed, mouth suddenly desperate and coated in unease.

He understood that I didn't mean harm when I found humor in his behavior, just as I usually did in the aftermath of his teasing. Still, I caught his bottom lip between mine with a tender apology. "Did you, figure everything out?" I asked tentatively.

"Almost." He answered, his phone ringing with an interruption. I was surprised when he excused himself to take the call in another room. He rarely made a point to exclude me from being present during conversations, even when topics became personal.

I skipped breakfast, going for the largest coffee mug in the cabinet and taking the last swallow just as he stepped back into the room. I'd barely placed my mug in the dishwasher before I was being lifted off my feet. He spun me around, a stark contrast to his former display of neuroticism as he pressed repetitive kisses into my neck that made me squeal.

"Let's go." He exclaimed once my feet were on the ground again.

"You're not going to tell me what that phone call was about?" I held my hands against his chest to stop him from moving toward the door, eager to retrieve his keys. The patter of his heart could be felt underneath my palm, a flutter that I wasn't sure was an indicator of nerves or excitement.

He shook his head in disagreement, fingers trailing over my hips. "I still have a couple of things to work out. I'll tell you tonight."

The response sparked my own anticipation and I was itching to know, the slight lift at the corners of his mouth that couldn't be tamed making my heart thump with intrigue.

Faye and my dad seemed astonished by his upbeat demeanor when we arrived at the hospital after yesterday's news. He was at my dad's bedside immediately, checking in to see if he had any need and then whispering something into his ear that made my dad smile with delight.

"He's up to something." Faye wiggled her brows at me, nudging her head toward Seokjin. He and my dad spoke so lowly that it was a wonder they could hear each other.

"I know, he made me drive and wouldn't stop scribbling in that notebook on the way over." I observed him back at it, penning just as fast as they spoke.

Faye and I left them to touch base with my dad's care team, filing away more documents in a folder that detailed the medications he would need to take and instructions for care of his incision site.

A final assessment was conducted before discharge, Seokjin taking my place pushing the wheelchair once he'd pulled his car to the curbside. He was focused, narrating his checklist of stops aloud as we made each one. There were only a few, arrangements made so that we could pull into a park and wait to be served.

My dad was in high spirits, rolling down the window to breathe in a fresh gust of air every time we came to a stop. His attempt to help with the groceries was quickly cut down by Seokjin, the two bickering playfully as we returned home.

"I've been in bed for days. At least let me sit up." My dad protested against our attempts to get him settled in the guest room.

Seokjin stopped him from sinking down into the couch before he could place pillows to support his bottom and back, Faye and I watching them make quips at each other's stubbornness with amused smirks.

It continued when Seokjin moved on to cooking dinner, insistent that my dad rest but unable to stop him from coming to look over his shoulder anyway.

Faye and I were shooed off at Seokjin's request, finding a comfortable space in the theater. We were supposed to be streaming an episode of the show we'd been watching in tandem, finally together after nights of viewing while making commentary over the phone.

The screen was paused on a close up shot of the main actor, our conversation moving from Faye gushing over his attractiveness into tangents about her free flowing romantic life. She loved options, a man in each borough to meet her every need and desire.

Our conversation was lighthearted, filled with laughter that had me wiping at my eyes and clutching my stomach. When there was nothing left, we sat in silence until she spoke up again. She reached for my hand as she provided an affirmation, touching on the unspeakable.

"No matter what happens, I got you."

We dried our eyes an hour later, enticed by the overpowering smell of food drifting through the house. My dad had been tasked with the lighter duty of table setting, placing the last plate on the smaller dinner table just as we reemerged from downstairs.

I took over for him, helping to bring over platters of meat and noodles so good that the only sounds filling the room over dinner were those of chewing and slurping.

Faye gave high praise to her entire experience since landing in Rochester, complimenting everything from the food to the beautiful view outside. We were only minutes away from her ride pulling up, Seokjin gathering her bags while she embraced my dad and I.

Seokjin thanked her, waiting for a hug until bright headlights showed in the driveway and her bags were deposited in the trunk.

"We've got room whenever you want to visit or if you'd rather stay," he nodded, "for as long as you want." He'd been watching us give our final hug. I'd stopped counting the amount of times we clung to each other after the fifth.

She leaned into the door of the car, leaving her clammy fingers between mine. "Tempting, but I can't leave behind my five boroughs just yet." She winked at me, so sly that Seokjin may have missed the gesture that indicated her attachment toward the men she cared for rather than her location.

My dad was wiped, nearly asleep on the couch when we returned. Seokjin slung an arm around him, chuckling at his incoherent words on the way to the guest bedroom. I busied myself with cleaning the kitchen and dining area, sneaking in for a final goodnight before he fell asleep.

Seokjin waited for me against the doorframe, leading me through our bedroom to the master bath. It took him two clicks of the buttons next to the bathtub to have water running at my preferred temperature. He did everything, making sure there were plenty of bubbles and that the room was filled with a crisp peppermint scent, softened by subtle hints of lavender. He went as far as removing every item of clothing I wore, kissing newly uncovered parts of my body with each.

I noticed that he didn't move to undress himself once I sank into the water, clouded with heat. "You're not getting in?" He chuckled at the pouty tone of my question.

"I'm keeping an ear out in case he needs anything." He nudged his head toward the open door. Instead he sat on the floor next to the tub, positioning himself so that we faced each other and letting his fingers skim across the top of the water. "I spoke to Dr. Ahn."

I was tempted to sink deeper into the bath, resisting to let him continue.

"He came up with a plan where I can do treatments once a month until the trial begins."

While I was elated with the revelation that he was choosing to participate in the trial, I didn't respond yet, able to tell there was more by his lesser reposition. He found one of my hands, pulling it to his lips as I exhaled with ease to rain faint pecks over the backs of my fingers.

"I'll have new scans and assessments every quarter to make sure everything is stable. Dr. Ahn will work out locations for treatment and follow-ups once I can give him an itinerary for when we'll be traveling." He explained, picking up on the slight tension that reappeared in my jaw. I only relaxed when he released my hand to brush his fingertips along it, meeting me with softness and understanding. "What is it?"

I shook my head at first, attempting to dismiss my concern until he used the same fingers to angle my gaze to him, an insistence that I speak honestly. "Can you do scans more often?" I was hesitant to ask, aware that he was already making a compromise that would put him in the medical settings he was longing to escape.

His answering nod was immediate. "Every two months, done." He granted, interrupted by the creak of a bed in the distance, my dad's snoring replaced by a slight cough. "I've got it."

It didn't completely erase the feeling, but his decision helped ease some of the fear I carried. Seokjin returned moments later, noting that my dad was only turning over in his sleep and balancing items for me in both hands.

He placed a freshly filled glass of wine next to the tub along with the bottle, another click of a button rewarming the water to keep it at my desired heat. I couldn't take my eyes off the small notebook he'd been writing in sporadically, a mystery tucked under his arm.

The knowing smirk he adorned told me he was keen to my curiosity.

"It's not finished," he set it on the farthest edge of the rim next to where he sat, "but it's the next year. Everywhere I want us to travel, everything I want us to do."

He hadn't appeared on edge since the morning but there was a nervousness about the way he kept from looking at me as if I'd reject any suggestion. He attended to drying my hands with the small towel he pulled from a nearby shelf before handing me the notebook. I could have leaned into the rush, scanned every bullet point in seconds. Alternatively, I took my time, reading through each to honor the emotion I felt in anticipation of the memories we'd make.

There were some that had my blood flowing with the adrenaline of an upcoming adventure, cities I couldn't wait to explore, and sexual escapades that would be new for both of us. It was a collection of things he'd never done, all annotated so that I knew he had intentions of experiencing every moment with me.

By the time I read the last he'd rolled up his pants to bunch at the knees, slipping his feet and calves into the water next to mine. Butterflies flitted in my stomach because I would have accepted anything he'd written down. Any doubt he felt was mitigated in my response, spiraled pages discarded on the floor so that I could pull him to meet my mouth. With my affirmation he abandoned all sense, capturing my giggling with his lips to join me fully clothed in celebration of everything to come.