New Normal - Chapter 60

He nodded.

The sea was still swallowed in thick, impenetrable darkness. No sign of dawn on the horizon, no hint of the sun breaking through. But inside, Jisoo felt something quietly loosening. The cold sea breeze brushing against her cheeks began to feel softer, gentler.

“I got a call from my dad yesterday.”

The words slipped out. Chae Juwon silently looked down at her, waiting.

“My parents divorced when I was four.”

Juwon didn’t say anything, just kept his gaze steady, as if telling her to go on. Jisoo stopped for a moment, staring out at the dark horizon. She tightened her hold on his hand, biting her lip in the shadows, letting the words come like she was slowly releasing something she’d been holding in.

“My dad cheated. That’s why… we don’t talk much. He remarried and built another family. We’re not close, not even comfortable around each other.”

She took a slow breath before continuing.

“But he keeps pretending to care. That’s worse. Like he’s trying to make up for something—sending money, asking me how I’m doing in this formal, empty way. I don’t even need his money.”

Her voice was calm, but the emotions she’d pressed down for years were seeping through. Juwon’s eyes shifted, ever so slightly. He didn’t interrupt—just listened.

“You know what’s even more ridiculous? Even after those awkward, meaningless calls… I’m still messed up inside. I don’t know why I let it get to me. Why it still hurts.”

Juwon squeezed her hand gently.

“Because he’s family. That’s never simple.”

Jisoo bit her lip at his quiet comfort.

“He tries so hard to protect the family he chose after leaving us. I don’t get it—why couldn’t he try that hard for me and my mom?”

Her voice faded, pain clinging to the edges of her words. Juwon’s grip tightened.

“I… I didn’t want to live like my parents. They said they loved each other, but in the end, all they did was hurt each other and walk away. I’m scared I’ll end up repeating their mistakes, even though I saw it all happen with my own eyes.”

Her voice started to tremble, so she stopped. Juwon slowly pulled her into his arms, brushing her hair softly as he murmured in a low voice.

“You’re not your parents, Shin Jisoo.”

In his embrace, she let out a slow breath. The anxiety and hurt tangled deep inside her began to scatter like dust in the wind.

“That’s why… I love moments like this with you. But sometimes I’m scared. What if I’m doing something wrong again? What if it ends with me being abandoned all over again…?”

Her shoulders shook slightly, her lips pressed tight. Juwon held her closer, still stroking her hair.

“I like you, Shin Jisoo.”

She lifted her head. The unwavering certainty in his eyes made her swallow hard.

“I really like you. And I’m not leaving you.”

Her body moved before her mind caught up. She rose on her toes, grabbing his face with both hands. He was so much taller than her that she had to pull his lowered head toward her awkwardly.

Their lips collided.

She cupped his cheeks, not hesitating for a second. His lips were soft… and warm.

With her eyes shut tight, she brushed her lips against his—gentle at first, but filled with a quiet desperation. The second kiss was different. Deliberate.

Jisoo tilted her head. Juwon didn’t move, just stood there, letting her kiss him clumsily without returning it. But she didn’t back off. She pressed closer, tugging at him slightly.

Her heart was pounding so loud she could hear it in her ears. Heat spread where their lips met. Finally, she broke away, exhaling the breath she’d been holding.

“I like you.”

Her voice trembled, but her eyes stayed locked on his.

Juwon stayed silent. His dark brown eyes pierced through her, lips sealed tight.

She forced herself to say it—simple, raw, and honest.

“…I love you, Juwon.”

The words floated into the wind. Something shifted in his eyes. The air between them changed. His gaze darkened—heat flaring in the deep brown until it almost looked black.

The once-cool sea breeze felt thick, humid. In the next breath, his lips crashed against hers.

Jisoo’s eyes flew wide. This kiss was nothing like before—hungry, heated, breath-stealing. His lips pressed hard, mouth opening, taking, devouring.

His hands burned against her skin as they cupped her face. His tongue moved with unrestrained intensity, his breath mixing with hers until the world fell away. Jisoo felt the ground drop out beneath her, closing her eyes against the dizzying rush.

It was a kiss like a turning point in fate—sharp enough to leave her reeling.

When he finally pulled back, both of them were breathless. He leaned his forehead against hers, the heat of the kiss still lingering in the air between them.

Jisoo’s lashes lifted slowly. His eyes—still smoldering, darker than ever—held a faint smile that felt like a warning of what was coming next.

***

The air inside was thick, heavy with heat and humidity, and Jisoo’s vision swam.

“Ah… mm… ah… ngh—!”

In the damp, suffocating space of the car, the windows had long fogged over. Sprawled across the narrow backseat, Jisoo’s body trembled helplessly under the relentless force, her upper body finally giving out and collapsing forward.

She’d lost count. There was no sign of it stopping. The constant, unyielding rhythm had stripped her body of any willpower. Each time a fresh wave of pleasure stacked on top of the lingering heat in her body, her mind drifted further from control, drowning completely.

And then—again. The next climax came as naturally as breathing, crashing over her like a tide. With her face buried into the car seat, Jisoo shuddered like an animal, every muscle trembling. The movement between her legs slowed at last, almost reluctantly.

“Hhh… hahh…”

She let out ragged breaths that caught in her throat. Saliva dripped from the corner of her mouth, and her disheveled body was marked in ways she couldn’t even tell whose touch or heat it belonged to. The slick, messy feeling spreading under her made it clear what had happened.

“Aah… haah… Juwon… stop…”

“…No.”

Jisoo’s voice was barely a whisper—she didn’t even have the strength to lift her head—but Chae Juwon was unyielding. The obscene, wet sounds started up again as his arousal returned almost instantly. The solid weight of him pressed back into her, and she let out a sound that was half a sob.

“It’s… too much…”

Her eyes were unfocused as she managed to push herself halfway up, reaching out for anything to hold onto, like she was clinging to life itself. But his grip on her pulled her right back.

“Ahn—!”

“Ahhh…”

In a single thrust, he was deep inside again. His rough hands closed over her br3asts, making her twist and gasp. His heated breath grazed her ear, and that familiar, overwhelming pleasure welled up from deep inside, shaking her all over again.

Fisting a hand in her hair, Juwon’s lips grazed her neck in something between a bite and a kiss. His mouth trailed upward, warm lips and hot breath tracing the curve of her neck until he reached her ear, his touch making her flinch in a ticklish shiver. She instinctively turned her head toward him, and the sound that left her throat was swallowed by his mouth.

Tongue met tongue in a slow, messy tangle, heat spreading like wildfire through every nerve.

And in that moment, Jisoo wanted to give herself to him all over again.

The kiss by the ocean had already rattled her self-control. From the instant he’d pulled her into him like a hunter catching prey and shoved her into the car, the two of them had tangled together like they were erasing the line between them. Impatient hands had pushed clothes aside, roaming greedily, and before either of them realized it, their fevered bodies had been searching for each other first.