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"Why are you alone?" Yunah asked, her confusion morphing into genuine annoyance. "Where's your brother? Didn't you wake him up?"
"I did," Noah lied, his voice pitch-perfect with just a hint of a stammer to make it believable. "But he... he said he wasn't in the mood for a hike. He went back to sleep."
"Useless. Everyone is absolutely useless," Yunah muttered, her blood boiling. She marched toward the van, grabbing a water bottle and firing up the portable stove. If she was going to be the only one awake, she was at least going to have hot tea at the summit.
Noah approached her slowly, his shadow stretching long under the moonlight. He watched her annoyed movements with a faint, knowing smile. "Don't be mad, Di," he said, his voice dropping into a teasing, rhythmic hum. "At least you have me. I'll never abandon you."
Yunah didn't look up, focused on pouring the boiling tea into a flask. "Don't start with me, Noah. I'm not in the—" She hissed as the liquid splashed, a few drops of scalding tea landing directly on the back of her hand.
"Careful!" Noah reacted with predatory speed. He snatched the flask from her hand, setting it aside before she could drop it, and gripped her wrist."Why are you so careless?" he murmured. He didn't wait for an answer; he brought her hand up to his lips, blowing a cool, steady breath over the reddening skin.
Yunah froze. The physical contact sent a swarm of butterflies through her stomach, and her heart began to skip in a frantic, abnormal rhythm. She tried to pull back, but Noah's grip was firm—gentle, but absolute. He reached into the first-aid kit, grabbed the ointment, and began applying it with a tenderness that felt almost worshipful.
Yunah stared at his face, completely lost in the moment. In her world, she was the protector. She was the one who looked after her mother, her younger brother, and her friends. No one had ever been this attentive to her. No one had ever looked at a tiny burn on her hand as if it were a mortal wound. It made her heart melt in a way that terrified her.
"Why do you have to be younger than me?" she whispered, the thought slipping out before she could catch it.
Noah paused, the ointment still on his fingertips. He looked up, his dark eyes searching hers. "Huh? Did you say something, Di?"
The question snapped the spell. Yunah bit her lip, her face flushing a deep crimson in the dark. She couldn't believe she had almost said that out loud. "I... I said are you done? Are you finished with the medicine?"
Noah lingered for a second, sensing the shift in the air, then slowly let go of her hand. "Yeah," he nodded, packing away the kit. "All done."
"Then let's go. Don't forget the flask," Yunah said, her voice a bit too fast as she shoved some sweetbuns into her bag and hurried away from his proximity.
"I've got it," Noah said, his voice full of a dark, quiet excitement. He tucked the flask and cups into his bag and followed her into the shadows of the trail.
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They finally began the ascent in silence, the world around them slowly waking up. Yunah led the way, her shoe rhythmically hitting the stone stairs as the sun began its slow crawl toward the horizon, bleeding gold into the sky. The morning breeze carried the scent of pine and damp earth, and the first birdcalls echoed through the trees.
By the time they reached the first steep incline, Yunah's breathing had grown heavy. Behind her, Noah moved with a terrifyingly calm grace, his breath steady as if the climb were nothing more than a stroll through a garden. He watched the way her shoulders slumped, and without asking, he reached forward to take her bag.
"Give it to me, Di. I'll carry it," he said, his fingers already brushing the straps.
"No... I'm fine," Yunah panted, pulling away and clutching the bag tighter. "I can handle my own weight."
Noah didn't argue with words. Instead, he stepped into her personal space, his large frame towering over her. Yunah instinctively leaned back, her hands flying to her chest as he loomed closer. In the growing light, his face was mere inches from hers—sharp, determined, and breathtakingly handsome. Her heart gave a violent jolt, thudding against her ribs like a trapped bird.
Before she could protest again, Noah deftly unhooked the bag from her shoulders and swung it over his own. He didn't even look at her flushed, stunned expression; he simply turned and started up the next set of stairs.
"Let's go," he said, his voice steady.
Yunah stood frozen for a second, her face burning, before she hurried after him. They were only halfway there.
After almost fifteen minutes of climbing again, Yunah stripped off her jacket drenched in sweat and tied it around her waist, her chest heaving.
Noah stopped, pulling a water bottle from the bag and handing it to her. His eyes were narrowed with a mix of concern and something darker—possessiveness.
"If it's this hard for you, why did you insist on coming?" he asked softly.
Yunah took a long, desperate gulp of water before collapsing onto a stone step. "Because it's worth it," she managed, pointing toward the distant railing of the viewpoint, now visible against the sky. "You have no idea how beautiful the world looks from up there." She stood up, her legs trembling slightly, and forced a cheerful smile. "Come on. We're almost there."
As she started the final, steepest climb, she felt a sudden, firm pressure against the small of her back. Noah's large hand had moved to her waist, his palm warm and steady as he effortlessly pushed her upward, taking the strain off her legs. She stiffened, glancing back at him. He wasn't struggling at all. He was carrying both bags and pushing her along, yet his face held nothing but a serene, genuine happiness. He looked like a man who had finally found exactly where he belonged.
Yunah didn't push him away this time. She let him guide her, his strength flowing into her until they finally crested the summit.
The scene before them was celestial. The sun had broken over the peaks, turning the mist below into a sea of liquid fire. Yunah ran to the railing, her exhaustion forgotten as she gasped at the view. Noah followed at a slower pace, his eyes never once flickering toward the horizon.
He stood beside her, but he wasn't watching the sun. He was watching her. To Noah, the sunrise was nothing compared to the way the morning light caught the stray hairs blowing across her face or the way her eyes glistened with wonder. She was his sun; she was the only treasure he had ever truly yearned for.
"Wow!" Yunah gasped, the wind whipping her hair around her face. "It's... it's so beautiful. Isn't it?" She turned to him, her face glowing with joy.
Noah didn't look away. His gaze remained locked on her face, heavy with a yearning that made the air between them feel thick.
"Yes," he whispered, his voice vibrating with a truth she wasn't yet ready to hear. "It's beautiful."