Jaekyeom wasn’t the type to dwell.
At least, he never used to be.
But today? Today was different.
He sat in his office, fingers drumming idly against his desk, eyes trained on his phone screen as if staring hard enough would make a notification appear.
Nothing.
It wasn’t like he was waiting for Yue to text. He wasn’t.
(Okay, maybe he was. But just a little.)
He told himself it was fine. She was with her family—something she didn’t do often. If anything, she was probably uncomfortable, forced to navigate conversations she’d rather avoid. He shouldn’t expect her to check in with him.
And yet.
Yet the silence made his mind restless. Did she mention him? Did her family ask about them?
Would she even know what to say?
His phone buzzed.
Jaekyeom sat up so fast he nearly knocked over his coffee.
Yue: Just had dinner. Heading back soon.
A simple, normal message. One that shouldn’t make his chest feel light and stupidly warm.
He hovered over the keyboard, wondering if he should ask how it went, if he should say something lighthearted to make her laugh. But before he could type anything—
Yue: You ate?
Jaekyeom exhaled, shaking his head at himself. She always asked things like that, casual and straightforward. But now, after everything, it felt different.
Like a habit she was forming.
Jae: Yeah. Boring takeout. Not as good as your cooking, obviously.
A beat. Then—
Yue: I only cooked for you once.
Jae: And I’m still thinking about it. What does that say?
The typing bubble appeared, lingered, then disappeared.
Jaekyeom smirked to himself. Got her.
But before she could respond, another thought crashed into him out of nowhere.
One moment he was sitting there, feeling stupidly giddy over a text—the next, his mind jumped to marriage.
Not again.
He rubbed his temples, exhaling through his nose. It was ridiculous. Ridiculous.
They had barely crossed into the realm of being together, and here he was, already picturing things that had no place in their reality yet.
But it was hard to shake. Hard to ignore how natural the thought felt.
Maybe it wasn’t just the fact that she loved him. Maybe it was the way she was settling into his life, into his thoughts, into places he never realized were empty before.
Maybe it was the way she made everything—**even a simple ‘you ate?’ text—**feel like a piece of something bigger.
He leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling, letting out a groan.
He was so screwed.
Jaekyeom was still trying to shove the thought of marriage into the farthest corner of his brain when his phone buzzed again.
Yue: My mother asked about you.
His entire body went still.
What?
He sat up straighter, reading the message again.
Then again.
And again.
She wasn’t the type to bring up things like this casually. If she was telling him, it meant something.
Slowly, he typed back.
Jae: Oh? What did she say?
The typing bubble appeared, then disappeared.
Jaekyeom stared at his screen, his pulse a little quicker than before.
Yue: She just asked if I was dating someone. I said yes. Then she asked who.
Jaekyeom swallowed, suddenly feeling way too aware of himself.
Jae: And… what did you tell her?
Another pause.
Yue: That it’s you.
Jaekyeom exhaled through his nose, tension he didn’t even know he was holding loosening slightly.
It was such a simple thing. Of course she would say that—it was the truth. But somehow, hearing her say it (or text it, at least) still hit him in a way he wasn’t prepared for.
She told her family about him.
Jae: How did she react?
Another pause. He could picture her, debating how to phrase it.
Yue: She didn’t say much. Just nodded.
That made him huff a small laugh. Like mother, like daughter.
But then—
Yue: She did say one thing though.
Jaekyeom straightened.
Jae: What?
A longer pause this time. Then—
Yue: She said you must be patient.
Jaekyeom blinked.
Something warm settled in his chest—something fond, something unbearably tender.
He let out a soft chuckle, shaking his head. That sounds about right.
Jae: Smart woman.
Yue: She is.
Jaekyeom stared at the screen for a long moment, thumb hovering over the keyboard.
He could say a lot of things. Could joke, could tease, could dig deeper into what her mother meant.
But in the end, he just smiled to himself, typed out something simple, and sent it.
Jae: I don’t mind waiting.
Jaekyeom was still staring at his phone, rereading Yue’s last message about her mother’s remark when another text popped up.
Yue: She also told me to bring you next time.
Jaekyeom blinked.
Then he sat up straighter, the words hitting him way too hard for something so simple.
Bring him?
Meet her mother?
His grip tightened around his phone as a strange mix of emotions swirled inside him—surprise, curiosity, nervousness… and something dangerously close to excitement.
Yue never talked much about her family. He knew enough to understand they weren’t particularly close, that she didn’t visit often, and that she rarely opened up about them at all.
And yet—her mother asked to meet him.
It wasn’t something casual, not with Yue. Not with her mother, either, from the little he had gathered.
His heart thumped.
Slowly, he typed back.
Jae: Oh?
He erased it immediately. Too casual.
He tried again.
Jae: Wait, seriously?
That sounded like he was panicking. Which he kind of was.
Before he could overthink it further, another message came in.
Yue: You don’t have to.
Jaekyeom frowned.
Jae: Do you want me to?
A pause.
He imagined her staring at her screen, debating how to answer.
Yue: I don’t know.
Jaekyeom exhaled, running a hand through his hair. That was so Yue.
Jae: Well… if she wants to meet me, I don’t mind going.
Another pause.
Then—
Yue: Let’s talk about it later.
Jaekyeom huffed a quiet laugh. Deflecting, as usual.
But even as he let it go for now, something warm settled in his chest.
She told her mother about him.
And her mother wanted to meet him.
But for good.Jaekyeom put his phone down, but his mind refused to let go of it.
Meet her mother.
Meet Yue’s family.
It wasn’t just a simple visit. Not when it came to her.
Yue wasn’t the type to introduce people easily, and she definitely wasn’t the type to bring someone home just because she was dating them.
His fingers drummed against his desk.
Did she realize what that meant?
Probably not. Knowing Yue, she wasn’t thinking that far ahead. She was likely more unsettled by the idea of her mother acknowledging her relationship than anything else.
Jaekyeom let out a slow breath, leaning back in his chair.
She loves him. She had said it—finally said it—but her love wasn’t loud. It was quiet, cautious, something she was still getting used to.
And yet, here she was, letting her mother know about him.
It wasn’t an outright invitation, not yet, but… it was close enough.
His chest tightened.
Suddenly, the thought of marriage crept back into his mind, unwelcome and ridiculous.
But it didn’t feel as absurd as before.
Not when her mother had already acknowledged his presence. Not when Yue hadn’t completely shut down the idea.
Jaekyeom exhaled sharply. Damn it.
He was getting ahead of himself again.
Still… he couldn’t help but wonder—if someday, she’d be the one to ask him to come home with her.
Not just for a visit.