The bookstore felt different that night.
Warmer. Quieter.
Like the walls themselves knew something had shifted.
Ji-Woo was still standing close enough to feel Min-Ho's breath against his skin.
He didn't move.
Didn't want to.
Min-Ho's hand lingered near Ji-Woo's jaw, not quite touching, like he was afraid Ji-Woo might break if he did.
"Why are you still here?" Ji-Woo whispered, voice soft, almost childlike.
Min-Ho's answer came without hesitation.
"Because I'd rather stay in the cold with you than be warm anywhere else."
---
Ji-Woo's chest tightened.
Something in him wanted to laugh. To cry. To push Min-Ho away and pull him closer all at once.
Instead, he asked:
"And if I can't be fixed?"
Min-Ho finally touched his cheek, gently. "Then I'll stay broken with you."
The words undid him.
---
For the first time, Ji-Woo leaned in.
Not for a kiss. Not yet.
But for something smaller.
He rested his forehead against Min-Ho's shoulder, letting himself collapse into the safety of it.
Min-Ho didn't move.
Didn't speak.
He just wrapped his arms around Ji-Woo, holding him like something worth protecting.
And in that quiet, the cold inside Ji-Woo began to melt — just a little.
The first thaw.