The Professor's Son

New Flame - Part 25

Christmas was nearing and you and Jaehyun had finally moved in together after months of dating. As the end of year festivities approached you felt a sense of excitement at the thought of being able to spend more time with Jaehyun. Most importantly, you had found a new family. Jaehyun and his parents had accepted you with open arms, this year things would be different. You wouldn't have to spend the holidays alone in your room.

While you were sitting with Jaehyun in the local coffee shop your phone rang. You were startled by the sound and jumped, making the plates on the table rattle.

Without thinking you automatically picked up the phone, "Hey it's me Y/N."

Tears immediately started to well up in your eyes as you recognized the low and gentle tone, "Is that really you?" You covered your hand with your mouth in disbelief.

Jaehyun leaned forward, reaching his hand out to you with bated breath, waiting for your next move. You didn't notice his hand because you were so focused on the caller's voice. In return, Jaehyun gave you a pout.

"Yes it's really me! Sorry I haven't been able to call. Life has been pretty crazy."

"No, no," you said through sobs and tears, trying to sound calm, "This call was enough for me Mark."

Jaehyun's face grew pale at the mention of the other man's name.

"Ahh it's so good to hear your voice again Y/N, I've missed you so much." Mark chuckled lightly on the other end, his throat seemed to be choked up with tears too by the sound of his deep and raspy voice.

"I've missed you too Mark..." you sniffled.

"Hey! Hey? Are you crying?" Mark exclaimed in his usual high pitch voice.

"Maybe just a bit." you replied embarrassed, but pleased that he had noticed the subtle difference in your tone.

"Don't cry, there is nothing to cry about." Mark instructed.

You smiled into the phone, "It's alright, they're happy tears Mark Lee."

Jaehyun reclined deeper into his chair, confused and concerned about your disheveled state. He quietly took a sip of his Americano and waited for the call to be over before bombarding you with questions. Jaehyun played with his hands anxiously, cracking his knuckles and picking off the dead skin at his cuticles in an attempt to kill his nerves.

"Hey Y/N, how is Jaehyun?" Mark asked politely.

You were quite surprised by his question. For a second your eyes darted to Jaehyun's broad figure, sitting languidly on the couch across from you. His chestnut coloured hair was perfectly styled in a comb-over, his signature dimples sat proudly on his face despite there being no smile and his hands were folded over his lap, like a scholar ruminating over an ancient proverb.

"Oh he's terrific! We just moved in with each other not too long ago, we're still in the honeymoon period if you will." you smiled with glee talking about Jaehyun, after all he was your favourite topic.

Mark laughed, "I'm so pleased to hear that. On Christmas Day I'll be coming back to the city."

You jumped up to your feet like a madwoman, not caring about the other patrons of the café, "Are you serious?" you exclaimed.

"Yes I'm not kidding!" Mark laughed again, you could hear it was a hearty laugh, coming straight from his belly, "The only thing is, I need a place for me and my girlfriend to stay for the weekend."

You gulped silently at the mention of Mark's girlfriend. Had he moved on? How could he? Why did you suddenly feel an aching in your chest?

"All the hotels are booked during that time and there aren't that many options to pick from, so I was wondering if we could crash at your place?"

A moment later you thought of a decent reply "I'll have to talk it over with Jaehyun, but I'm sure it would be no problem at all."

Jaehyun sat up straight at the mention of his own name.

"Of course," Mark said in an empathetic tone, "We'll essentially be living together for 3 days or so, it's a lot to consider."

"I'm happy you understand," you tried to chuckle to create a lighter tone, but in the end managed only a huff as a reply, "I'll call you later okay Mark?"

"Yes, I'm sure you're very busy! Talk to you later Y/N."
With that the call ended and you were left standing in front of Jaehyun, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

You wiped the last remnants of your tears off your cheeks and took your seat across from your boyfriend. Jaehyun watched you intently, his stern gaze unfaltering as you took a delicate sip of your Cappuccino. He patiently waited for your signal, for you to initiate the conversation, knowing well, that you needed to collect and process your thoughts first before he could interrogate you. You gave him an easy grin, admiring Jaehyun's calm demeanour, despite how confused he must have been feeling.

"Mark asks if he can stay at our place for 3 days," You said, Jaehyun nodded in return.

"That's it?" Jaehyun replied, still on the edge of his seat.

"With his girlfriend too." You completed your sentence, letting the words sink in.

Jaehyun sighed and reclined further into his chair with a sense of peace and ease. You observed how the stress faded from his face.

"That sounds good to me. I think our apartment is just big enough to host them for the weekend."

You nodded your head in agreement. It seemed a silent agreement had been reached by the two of you. Unspoken words hung in the air, but there was a sense of trust.

"How do you feel about this Peach?" Jaehyun subtly inquired.

"Oh me? I'm positively happy about the whole thing. It would be lovely to have more people in the apartment during Christmas. We can have a proper dinner, drink wine, talk about life. Splendid!"

Jaehyun smirked, "You sound so cute." he chuckled.

"I'm just excited!" you replied nonchalantly. Deep down inside you were curious as to who Mark's new girlfriend was. But you were sure that the two of you would get along well. At least, that's what you hoped.