Never had I been more grateful than this moment that the house was so old that it used the old ondol to heat the floors and not the newer pipe systems that ran in high rise apartments in the city nearby because there would be no warmth without power.
I sighed and then grabbed Mark and pulled him off the bark and onto the floor. He cooperated as much as he could. I knew he had to be insanely sore right now everywhere, all his muscles probably burned with exhaustion. And the blankets seemed like heaven.
But I realized that the blankets which were just slightly damp would only get worse if we both climbed into them in our wet clothes and I sucked in a breath.
"I am sorry, Mark. I am going to have to be inconsiderably rude to save you right now. And I am far too exhausted for etiquette. I bowed over him and reminded myself of how many people I have seen naked when working as a nurse.
He opened his eyes for a moment, nodded and closed them again.
'Was that his consent to do whatever I needed to? Ahh, whatever… It's just another body.' I told myself then leaned over him. I listened to his breathing, it was actually very steady, just a bit quiet and punctuated with shivering whimpers of discomfort here and there.
I reached out for the top button of his shirt. And slowly popped it open. I continued gently unbuttoning them all as slowly and calmly as I could so as not to disturb his sleeping.
I undid the last button and slowly pulled his shirt untucked from his pants. It slid across his skin and I gulped as I pulled open his shirt.
The fire outside my window where the pot for the ondol was flared and the light trickled in illuminating Mark's bare skin across his abs and chest.
I gulped and slowly pulled each arm free.
He shivered and I realized I may be stripping him to slowly.
I gulped.
"Ah, to hell with manners."
I unzipped his pants popped the button and started to tug his pants down.
Mark's head snapped up and he cursed.
"Ah, what are you!"
"I am sorry" I responded nervously, feeling both bad and embarrassed at the same time.
It's… It's, well, we are both cold and we need to get the wet clothes off of us and then we need to get into the blankets together. Otherwise, we are not going to heat up fast enough." I sputtered out like an idiot.
'Wait, why are you feeling bad you are just trying to save his sorry butt right now! I mean, how bad would it be if he died from hypothermia after you went and dragged him all the way up a hill.'
"I don't need hypothermia hitting you after I dragged you all the way here and saved you from sliding off a cliff to your death. Now wouldn't that just be the way to end your day." I retorted chiding him like he knew nothing.
He blinked slowly but then nodded his understanding and consent. I nodded and bent forward, grabbing both of the sides of his wet sticky jeans again and started to pull, he started to wiggle to help me pull them from his body.
His jeans pulled free with some effort and I pulled his socks off and then reached up for his boxers before halting awkwardly.
I flushed and thought better of it.
'One small pair of boxers isn't too much, I bet they are not even that wet.'
I reached into my own sweater and felt my bra to confirm my chain of thought and deductive reasoning, it was wet but not overly soaked.
I noticed him watching and I coughed, then turned away self consciously.
I cleared my throat. "I am just checking that I am not as soaked through from the rain as you are. It would hardly make sense if I made you colder now would it."
I reached back and pulled the blankets higher up his chest, watching from the corner of my eye. He said nothing and instead just wiggled as much as he could to help me, once the blanket came up and over. I tucked it under his chin, and he sighed with relief.
"Thanks." He croaked and closed his eyes again.
I quickly ripped off my shirt and pants, pulling them from my soaked body shivering as the cold air hit me. And I opened the covers as little as I could before clambering inside them and their measly bit of warmth they provided for my cold and clammy skin.
I pressed myself against him, reminding myself this was the only way and to swallow my etiquette and pride. Both our bodies were cold and slightly wet, I gulped my mouth turning with unpleasantness and looked up to see how he was doing.
And froze.
He stared into my eyes calmly. I blinked.
"This is the fastest… way." I gulped.
His mouth quirked upward in a small smirk and he grunted as he pulled his arm over the top of me. I tried to turn the opposite way so that we were not facing each other but his arm was stronger. Much stronger than I thought someone who had just gone through so much had the right to be, and he pressed me into his body naturally.
My pelvis pressed into his leg lightly and he slid one leg up in between my own legs.
For the second time in one night, I felt like my body had been electrocuted and a whole different set of shivers started. But this time emanating from my heart.
'Calm down, this is a natural response, you used to be a nurse, you know he is seeking the closest source of warmth for his own survival. You just happen to be it.'
He closed his eyes as if completely unaffected.
And I closed my eyes pretending not to be.
'Treat this as a regular Friday night, Mina... The primal source of warmth. You are warmth… Actually, the floor is warm… Oh, it's starting to work.' I thought, but that was all I could think clearly before the warmth from the floor started to seep into the thick blankets. I could feel my toes tingling and I wiggled them happily as the heat soaked into my weary skin and bones, I knew that tomorrow I would hurt… probably everywhere.
I told myself I needed to stay awake to wait for a car to pass or for the power to come back on. But my eyes were so heavy and the warmth just felt…
Oh… so very nice.
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