sixflame438

[sixflame438]

Yn doesnt cry but i do 😭😭😭😭

❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ❚ ONCE MORE TO SEE YOU kim chaewon x reader

❀ ͘ ⴰ previous chapters | richgirl ⭢ that girl (she’s delicious) ⭢ idon’t smoke ⭢ pretty when you cry ⭢ homesick ⭢ super rich kids ⭢ girl, so confusing ⭢ take your mask off ⭢ carmen ⭢ untitled ⭢ reflections

↳ warnings richgirl!yn, , angst, guilt, yearning and confusion ,more guilt, very focused in chaewon’s mind, dissociating

every human being is unique, there’s always something about them that sets them apart. it doesn’t matter whether they align with conventional beauty standards or not, nobody is truly ugly. there will always be someone who finds that one distinctive quality in them utterly captivating.

if there was one thing chaewon hated about yn, it was that she couldn’t find a single flaw in her, not in her face, not in anything. even now, just staring at her side profile, chaewon felt heat creeping up her neck and settling on her cheeks.

the whole thing felt unreal. yunjin would probably joke that her third eye had opened or something, but chaewon could never admit this out loud. it was humiliating.

why did she even say that? her mouth had moved faster than her brain, and of course yn was going to freak out. who wouldn’t? even chaewon would, if their positions were reversed.

if yn ever said those words to her…

honestly, she probably would’ve jumped straight into her arms, but that wasn’t the point.

two months ago, she would’ve freaked out too.

how could she be so stupid? in these past days of yn completely avoiding her, chaewon found herself regretting not just a moment, but the last three years of her career in lesserafim.

if she had welcomed yn with open arms, would yn be in hers right now? if she hadn’t let jealousy and pride get in the way, could she have called yn hers? if she hadn’t practically been the president of the yn hate club, would her chest hurt this much? if she just hadn’t been so cruel, could she have been what kazuha was to yn, the safe place no one else could be?

those questions spiraled endlessly, surreal and suffocating. for years, chaewon twisted every thought of yn into hatred, convinced herself it was easier that way. and yet, it was crazy how one small thing, a single sentence from yn telling her to see the truth instead of what she wanted to believe had unraveled it all.

but it hadn’t changed anything for yn.

the way yn looked at her, like chaewon had just insulted her, was all the proof she needed.

chaewon’s gaze lingered as yn spoke to the interviewer those captivating eyes, the perfectly styled hair, that flawless smile. her eyes trailed lower, landing on yn’s lips soft, delicate, unforgettable.

she would know.

if chaewon regretted anything, it was not kissing yn longer. she cursed herself for how easy she had it back then, before she shoved that fake hatred in yn’s face. yn used to laugh it off, thought it was a joke. chaewon had her so close, right within reach. and now? all she had was the fading memory of yn’s lips against hers.

oh, what she would give, just one more time, one more second of that.

oh my god. what’s happening to me? chaewon shook her head quickly, drawing a concerned glance from sakura.

the rest of the interview passed in a blur for chaewon. she barely spoke, and she knew the fans would notice but she couldn’t bring herself to care. with every passing hour, it felt like her chest sank deeper, the weight of it dragging her further down.

she hooked her arm through eunchae’s, eyes fixed on yn and kazuha walking ahead. when yn’s arm slipped around kazuha’s waist as they walked off set, chaewon squeezed her eyes shut. how could she ache for something she never even had?

“we should go out to eat,” eunchae said beside her. “I think we’ve earned it.”

but chaewon’s eyes stayed locked on yn, who was speaking with one of the staff. she looked fine too fine. but chaewon knew better. she had never seen yn explode like that before. it wasn’t like the sharp, threatening tone she’d used at her house. no, this time it was raw, charged with emotion, like chaewon had truly shaken her. like yn was forcing herself to hold back something that was dangerously close to spilling over.

“‘unnie?’ chaewon blinked out of her thoughts and turned to eunchae. “huh? oh yeah, we should definitely go out to eat.”

“are you okay?” concern was etched across eunchae’s face. “you look kinda sick.”

“yeah, yeah.” chaewon waved her off quickly. “I’m fine.”

she wasn’t fine. not even close. she had no idea how to control any of this.

chaewon pushed a piece of pork around her plate, barely listening to the girls’ chatter. yn didn’t join in either, which wasn’t unusual these days, but the silence still drew a worried glance from yunjin when chaewon didn’t even laugh at her joke.

sitting across from yn felt like both a blessing and a curse. yn hadn’t looked at her once since they’d sat down, not even by accident. all chaewon wanted was for her eyes anything, even a glare. just something to hold onto.

chaewon’s eyes traced the lines of yn’s face, so sharp, so impossibly pretty. she caught the way yn’s tongue brushed over her lips as she listened to kazuha ramble about a show.

from chaewon’s perspective, it was overwhelming. if anyone else could see yn the way she did, they’d be blinded by the radiance surrounding her, every feature drawn into focus as if the world itself had zoomed in on her alone, her face and more.

chaewon bit down lightly on her bottom lip as she watched yn rest her chin in her palm, nodding along to kazuha’s words. instinctively, her eyes drifted to yn’s lips, and she squeezed her eyes shut.

the memory hit her like a punch she grabs both sides of the girls face and smashes her lips onto yn’s, a surprised yelp escaping from the girl. for a millisecond she feels yn kiss back but she immediately pulls away

the sharp inhale that escaped chaewon dragged her back to the present. kazuha’s voice faltered, her gaze landing on chaewon with concern, silently asking, are you okay?

chaewon forced a quick nod before mumbling an excuse and slipping away to the washroom.

the rush of water from the tap filled the silence as chaewon splashed her face. this was bad so, so bad. what was wrong with her? she couldn’t even hold herself together at dinner, surrounded by everyone.

the door creaked open, snapping her head to the side. kazuha stepped in.

“are you okay?” the younger girl asked gently, moving toward the sink where chaewon stood. “you seem… off.”

“yeah, I’m fine.” chaewon brushed it off quickly, the same empty answer she’d given to everyone.

“oh. okay.” kazuha lingered, staring at her before letting out a small sigh. “well, I’m happy.”

chaewon managed a faint smile. “for what reason?”

“these past few months have been so tense with everything, but especially within the group. especially you and yn.” just hearing her name sent chaewon’s heart into overdrive.

“but lately, I feel like things are settling,” kazuha continued, her tone soft. “everyone’s easing up on yn. even you.”

silence settled heavy between them.

then kazuha gave a small laugh. “this sounds crazy, but… I used to think she had a crush on you.”

everything seemed to slow down. chaewon’s balance faltered, her thoughts crashing into each other. “what?” was all she managed, though her mind was racing.

“yeah,” kazuha sighed. “the way she looked at you… there was so much light in her eyes whenever she teased you, she always seemed more vulnerable when talking about you but… I guess I was wrong.”

chaewon had no idea why her eyes were stinging. she forced out a laugh, but it came out raw. “yeah… I guess you were.”

“well, I just wanted to check in.” kazuha stepped toward the door. “don’t stay in here too long. eunchae’s worried.”

once the door clicked shut, chaewon let out a sigh she hadn’t realized she was holding. yn… having a crush on her? the way she looked at her? light in her eyes? vulnerable? what? had she been reading everything wrong this whole time? she’d always assumed yn was just throwing her own energy back at her, laughing at her, mocking her.

she knew she’d hurt yn, god, she knew but the thought that yn might have harbored a crush on her during those darkest days made chaewon’s head spin.

she pressed a hand to her racing heart, leaning against the counter as she tried to steady her breathing.

she didn’t know what to do. she’d always been so strong minded , yet now she felt breakable, fragile in a way she never imagined.

chaewon lifted her gaze to the mirror, forcing herself to move. she stepped out of the washroom, heading back toward the table only for her eyes to catch on the one person who looked up.

yn.

it lasted only a second, brief and fleeting. but it was enough. it was what she’d been waiting for all day.

the sunlight spilled across the white sheets, and yn’s soft giggles pulled chaewon from sleep. her eyes fluttered open. “hm?”

“good morning,” yn said, voice sweet and playful. “you’ve been out for so long, I was starting to get bored.”

“oh yeah?” chaewon murmured, her voice still heavy with sleep.

“yeah.”

yn looked radiant in the morning light as she brushed chaewon’s messy hair away from her face, fingers lingering just a little too long. “good thing you’re awake,” she whispered, smiling. “now you can finally pay attention to me.

before chaewon could respond, yn leaned down slowly, her lips pressing against hers soft, warm, unhurried.

and then chaewon’s eyes flew open at the blare of her alarm. she groaned into her pillow. this was getting bad.

chaewon had been practicing alone for hours, throwing herself into the movements as if she could sweat yn out of her system.

she didn’t even notice the door open. with a heavy sigh, she leaned back, misjudging the distance, and winced when her head knocked hard against the glass mirror behind her.

“are you okay?”

her head snapped toward the voice. yn stood at the door, concern written all over her face, and before chaewon could even react, she was already walking over.

“you hit it pretty hard,” yn said softly, her gaze fixed not on chaewon’s eyes but on the side of her head.

chaewon winced again, the pounding in her skull making her words stumble. “uh… yeah… it just hurts a little.”

“you’re so not okay.” yn rolled her eyes, though her tone was gentle. her hand lifted, settling carefully on the spot where chaewon had hit herself. “does that hurt?”

chaewon’s pulse spiked. she hadn’t been this close to yn since that day, in this very room. her eyes fluttered shut, her breath uneven.

“uh… yeah, a little,” she murmured. “but for some reason, your hand makes it feel better.”

yn tilted her head. “oh? then I guess I’ll keep it there.” she shifted, lowering herself. “come on let’s sit.”

they slid down together, settling on the floor across from each other.

“do you think I have a concussion?” chaewon asked, her voice half serious, half hopeful just to keep yn’s attention.

“hopefully not,” yn replied lightly. “we’ve got a comeback.”

chaewon stared at her through hooded eyes, unable to stop herself from drinking her in. yn finally looked up, their gazes colliding.

chaewon’s chest tightened. her eyes drifted lower, traitorous, landing on yn’s lips.

yn leaned in just slightly, and chaewon’s heart stumbled. her breath hitched, uneven, as if her whole body was leaning in before she could stop it.

“chaewon?” yn whispered.

the sound of her name, so gentle, so unbearably kind, made chaewon groan softly, from both the ache in her head and the way it slipped past yn’s lips. yn, who never held grudges. yn, whose last outburst had shocked chaewon because it was so unlike her.

all chaewon could manage was a breathy sigh, eyes never leaving hers.

yn inched closer. chaewon leaned too.

“let’s get you up.” yn broke the moment, her hand sliding down to grip chaewon’s arm, pulling her gently to her feet.

chaewon’s eyes squeezed shut, more from the sting of disappointment than the dull ache in her head. for one reckless second, she’d truly thought yn was giving her a sign, a silent go ahead.

“oh,” was all she managed, pushing herself up. yn’s soft hands lingered, slipping from her arm to her hand, and chaewon almost hated how much warmth lingered in the touch.

they looked at each other for a second, hands still joined, until the buzz of yn’s phone in her sweatpants broke the moment. she pulled it out, glancing at the screen.

“oh, I have to take this. uh, sit back down if you feel dizzy.” with that, she slipped out of the room.

chaewon immediately pressed a hand to her chest, startled by how hard her heart was racing. her gaze stayed fixed on the empty space where yn had been only seconds ago. she couldn’t keep going like this.

chaewon had never been the type to hold back her thoughts, that was her curse. it was why she’d blurted out those words to yn so quickly, without a single thought of the consequences. sometimes it worked in her favor, but right now it was eating her alive.

she couldn’t bottle this up. not anymore.

she had to tell yn. she had to.

yn never came back to the practice room. three days had passed since then, and chaewon’s mind hadn’t stopped replaying it.

when she finally returned to the dorms that night, yn was already there but something was off. she looked wound up, like she was on the verge of breaking, before slipping out of the dorm altogether.

yunjin had brushed it off, saying she’d probably gone to the aespa dorms, yn had been missing them lately, with all the endless practice keeping her tied up. and maybe that was true.

but deep down, chaewon knew it wasn’t. it couldn’t be.

chaewon lingered in the corner, watching the room buzz with conversation. she adjusted the strap of her dress, still unable to understand events like these. what did the company even expect of them, network with brands, flatter millionaires?

her gaze inevitably found yn. unlike the rest of the group, yn wasn’t chasing anyone down. instead, people gravitated to her, eager to impress her. chaewon couldn’t help but think how much her family name was working overtime tonight.

she lifted her glass, taking a slow sip. she had to talk to yn tonight. she had to find a way. she couldn’t keep living like this so outside of herself, drowning in emotions she had no outlet for.

her breath caught when yn’s eyes flicked up, meeting hers across the room. panic jolted through her, and she quickly looked away. when she dared glance back, yn was already gone.

chaewon’s eyes narrowed in confusion as she scanned the room, searching for her but yn was nowhere to be found. pushing herself up, she made her way toward the exit.

the sharp click of heels and the heavy thud of the door closing drew her attention. through the glass, she caught sight of the downpour outside and a lone figure standing in it, a delicate white bow tied at the back of her head.

yn.

she held a phone to her ear, rain blurring her silhouette. before she could think twice, chaewon pushed the door open.

“yeah, yeah, I understand,” yn’s voice was low, edged with exhaustion. “jae, tell mom she can shove her little criticisms up her sorry, sorry. this family is just too much… yeah, I got it. shut up. bye.”

chaewon stood frozen, watching her. the storm seemed to frame yn like something out of a painting rain lashing around her, wind tugging at the white dress and the oversized bow that made her look impossibly hypnotic, like a siren pulled straight from the waves.

“yn?” chaewon’s voice finally broke through the rain.

yn spun at the sound, then let out a long, weary sigh. “I really can’t do this right now, chaewon.”

chaewon exhaled hard, her chest tight. “I know the timing’s shitty and I’m sorry, but if iI don’t say this, I’ll explode.” her voice

trembled, her heart slamming against her ribs as she watched yn shake her head. rain poured down over her like a blanket, soaking through her dress, and still god she looked breathtaking.

chaewon stepped forward into the storm. “I meant what I said a couple weeks ago. I wasn’t playing, I wasn’t confused. I can’t get you out of my head.”

yn turned away, her voice soft, breaking. “chaewon, please—”

“no!” chaewon’s voice cracked, louder than she intended. “I can’t just shut this off. I know it scared you it scared me too but this is real. you’ve been all I think about, every second, every day,”

yn shook her head hard, taking another step back. “you need to stop. there’s too much going on already, and I can’t I don’t need you doing this.” she pushed deeper into the rain, but chaewon followed, desperate.

“I can’t stop!” chaewon’s words spilled out like they’d been bottled too long. she caught yn’s arm, but yn ripped it away like she’d been burned.

“don’t touch me. do not touch me.” her voice was sharp, her eyes glassy. “you don’t get to do this.”

chaewon’s throat tightened. “but I have to. please, just listen to me,”

“no. no.” yn’s voice was breaking now, shaking her head again and again.

“you liked me,” chaewon burst out, almost pleading. “I saw it, the way your eyes lit up when you teased me. you were softer, more vulnerable, ”

yn froze, her lips parting. “…what?” her gaze darted away. “who told you that? because I know you. you’d never notice that on your own.”

“kazuha—” chaewon started.

“kazuha doesn’t know anything!” yn snapped, cutting her off. “because even if I did like you even if I still do, you treated me like shit.”

chaewon stepped forward, desperate, but yn recoiled instantly. “don’t.”

yn’s voice cracked open, raw. “how could I ever trust you? you made my life hell. if I let myself fall for you now, it’d only mean I don’t respect myself.”

chaewon pressed her hands into her hair, drenched and trembling. “I know. I know I hurt you. and I’m sorry, more than I’ve ever been sorry for anything. I just… I never thought this could happen. I never thought I’d feel like this.”

“you were so mean, chaewon!” yn’s voice rose, breaking apart as she threw her arms out in frustration. “and now what? because you suddenly ‘realize’ you want me, I’m just supposed to fall into your arms? are you serious?”

“yes!” chaewon’s voice cracked, her face twisted in anguish. “because I would treat you right now, better than anyone ever could. I swear I would.” she took another step closer.

“you’re insane!” yn stepped back like every inch closer burned her. “treat me good? you’ve treated me horribly. do you even hear yourself?” she wrapped her arms around her trembling frame, her voice fragile. “please, just leave me alone. this, this has to be some sick joke. it has to.”

chaewon reached toward her, but yn stumbled back, pointing a finger like a shield. “don’t. don’t touch me. don’t talk to me. don’t follow me. if you say one more thing, I swear I’ll cry.”

chaewon froze in place, the word please catching like glass in her throat. “please…” she whispered, but yn was already shaking her head, already turning away.

and then she was gone, disappearing around the corner of the building, swallowed by the storm.

chaewon didn’t follow. she couldn’t. she stood rooted to the spot, letting the rain soak her through, her chest aching, her heart clawing to break free.

her breaths came uneven, shallow, like she couldn’t pull enough air into her lungs. she walked without direction, feet dragging, until a broken groan tore from her throat. clutching her chest, she pressed her palm hard against the frantic beat of her heart, as if she could steady it.

without realizing it, her knees buckled into the wet grass. the garden around the building blurred, flowers bending in the rain, and still her hand stayed pressed over her chest like she could hold herself together.

and then she felt it warm, unmistakable slipping down her cheeks. not rain. tears.

“no… no, no, no.” her voice cracked as she scrubbed at her face, but the rain only smeared everything, made the tears unending. “stop crying. you’re so stupid. why are you crying?”

but she knew why.

because she almost gave in.

she almost let herself do the one thing she swore she never would not after that day in the dorm, not after hearing those girls talk about her like she was nothing, right there in their own living room. she had promised herself she would never be that weak again.”

yet tonight, under the weight of chaewon’s voice, she almost ran straight into her arms.

yn’s throat burned. she hated chaewon.

and still she was crying because of her.

and yn doesn’t cry.

[sixflame438]

Me thinking that I'm funny was probably the first problem

[sixflame438]

Who let you cook omfg thats literally them 😭😭

stop playing now

[sixflame438]

The truth 😤

dont fight me bout it.

[sixflame438]

kat's out of the bag

summary: “who are they to you though?” daniela pressed further

sophia pursed her lips as she cleans the rice and sets it aside. “my spouse” her answer was met with silence.

“im sorry WHAT?” megan yelled bewildered, “you're married!?”

or when sophia finally tells them who you are.

Pairing: sophia laforteza x f1!reader

Tags: fluff, humor, slight angst, idol!sophia, f1!reader, slice of life, gn!reader, awkward!reader, slight mischaracterization of f1 and music industry. could be read as a standalone, this is just world building from sophia's perspective, you will appear later dont worry.

the humming of the coffee machine rings in her ears softly as she sits on the stool in front of the counter, a coffee cup warming both hands and her tablet with a replay of last night's race in front of her. You had to go back yesterday early morning after dinner but she was grateful that you still fell asleep next to her and woke her up before leaving. her mom stayed a little longer, before taking a flight last night back to the Philippines that it’s scheduled to arrive today midday, something about not letting the boys along with the dog, which she decided not to ask about further.

it was after 5 in the morning, she needed to be at the studio by 6 to start rehearsals for their real debut. she finished her coffee as she watched you overtake perez on lap 50 for second place in turn 16, right before crossing the finish line; she smiled and washed the cup on the sink before moving to her room. Letting the cool down lap announcement work as a background.

she entered her walk-in closet and picked up some black sweats, a graphic t-shirt of the monaco circuit and some softride puma shoes you got for her. she moved to her vanity and put on some light make-up, humming while applying her favorite lip gloss, she smiled admiring the final product. With a light pep on her step, she took her big owala water bottle from the fridge, her pre-organized gym bag, her car keys and house keycard; she took one last look in the mirror placed close to the entrance of her living room before going to the elevator and pressing button for the parking lot. 

she swung her keys around her index finder until she stood in front of her car, a black porsche panamera 4, picked by you because in your words “porsches are better looking”. she unlocked it with her keyfob and settled on the driver seat, throwing her bag on the passenger floor. checking her mirrors, she turned on the ignition and put her seatbelt on, she decided to wait a bit until her phone connected to the bluetooth before she settled for a playlist and drove to the studio.

sophia knew it was going to be a very long day the moment she entered the studio because she was looking straight at the cause; megan was fully staring at her frozen mid-stretch, which prompted yoonchae to smack her on the shoulder so she could snap out of it. sophia ignored megan's wail, and smiled at them

“good morning” she greeted, her voice slightly raspy for not being used the entire morning. 

“good morning unnie” yoonchae walked towards her and gave her a quick hug. “you were not in the dorm, are you okay?” sophia nodded as she fixed yoonchae’s fringe 

“yeah, i'm okay. my mom decided to stay a little longer so i stayed with her” she started her stretching exercise as well to not fall behind. 

“just your mom?” megan raised her eyebrow subjectively, sophia clicked her tongue and glared at her through the mirror, yoonchae squinted at them in suspicion but didn't say anything. 

“where is sohey?” she looked around as if he would be summoned just by asking, but lowkey she just wanted to change the subject.

yoonchae shrugged, but megan glared at her knowingly before responding anyway “officially, he's setting up with management.” she dropped to the floor like a starfish, deciding that she was done “unofficially, counting down the minutes daniela and lara are late, and by default manon”

sophia snorted “they're going to get her in so much trouble”

her eyes followed sohey silhouette through the glass door as he walked down and opened it with a smile. his turtle lense glasses dropping a little on the bridge of his nose making his eyes look a little smaller and more softer, she couldn't help but smile back.

“Good morning girls” he began entering the room, he received the greetings back at him “i know it's very early but that's show biz. our bodies take 21 days to form a routine so let's make it count” he clapped his hands, the sound echoing like thunder which made them jump.

right on cue, the triple threat ran to the glass door, its hinges protesting loudly at the force placed upon it. three guilty faces grimaced at the sound before they entered slowly, lara raising a tray full of iced coffee like a peace offering. sohey just shook his head like a disapproving father and took one which made them sighed in relief, shoulders dropping like puppets with their strings cut off. sophia moved to get the matcha latte when she caught manon's eyes who smirked at her, which she sidestepped with a flick in her wrist as she took her coffee. long day indeed.

“i can't feel my leeeggg” daniela moaned as she laid face down on the floor, manon pinched her thigh with her acrylic nails “coño manon, that hurts”

“language, dani” sophia chastised her as a reflex while she sat on the ground, legs spread with her bottle next to her.

“sorry” dani blurted out  before squinting at her “how'd you know what that means?”

“the tone speaks for itself, love” she noted while fixing her hair and took a sip from her water

“oh” daniela replied before she hid her face in her sweater, which caused the girls to cooed at her for being so cute “sTOP,” her voice cracked as she hid further into it.

lara repeated the word with the crack as well, which made megan copy her; and before you knew the word echoed around the room with laughs in between, it sounded a little delirious and it didn't make sense. but it was theirs and for a moment the tiredness of rehearsals dissolved, as they continued to poke fun at each other.

“okay, girls. this was a very productive day. let’s give ourselves a round of applause” sohey stopped the music, the girls clapped lightly as they took deep breaths to regulate their bodies from the exertion “we did a lot of progress today. we still need to work on the counting and facial expressions but nothing we can’t handle” he encouraged them with a nod and a reassuring smile “we’ll work them tomorrow with grant. drink your water, rest and we’ll see each other tomorrow”

the girls thanked sohey one by one,  before walking to the locker room where their bags are. Each one went to their cubby, megan and lara talking something about tiktok while explaining it to yoonchae which made her look more confused than how they started; manon and daniela were almost screaming to each other about… mochi flavors? sophia doesn’t know she stopped listening three flavors ago. she was pulled out of her thoughts by her phone vibrating in her bag, as she took it out and a soft smile appeared on her face when she saw it.

mahal <3: 2ND PLACE  WE DID ITT

mahal <3: *sent picture of you with a pirelli 2nd place cap drenched in champagne*

mahal <3: also the circuit smells like weed and i think charles got contact high

mahal <3: bailey cant bully me anymore i just got a podium!

mahal <3: good luck in rehearsals superstar ♥️ i’ll have this cap washed for your collection

“is that fyne shyte?” lara’s voice crashed  like a boulder as she read the last messages over her shoulder. sophia screeched in surprise and turned around to find her sly smile.

“wait, who is fyne shit?” dani asked as she raised her eyebrow intrigued 

“what is fine shyt?” yoonchae furrowed looking more lost than ever

“don’t repeat that” sophia’s voice cut through before megan could respond, who pouted and told yoonchae that she’ll tell her later which caused sophia to glare at her but megan raised her hand innocently in response.

lara just raised her eyebrow before nudging at sophia to get her attention, “that’s them right?” she probed lightly, sophia pursed her lips debating if she should tell them or not but decided to nod either way  “yes!” lara pumped her fist “so what are they? they have to be a lover. they lifted you up like a disney princes on saturday”

“wait what?” daniela squealed “sophia, do you have a boyfriend!?”

“ooohh” yoonchae said realization “that makes sense” she nodded almost in approval

“paused, what makes sense?” megan pulled up her bag over her shoulder 

“the flowers” yoonchae mentioned “the ones in seoul, they had a ro- rom-” she snapped her fingers in thought. 

“romantic, yoonchip” sophia suggested out with a smile as she organized her stuff. 

yooonchae smiled as she snapped her fingers this time in confirmation “yes, they had a romantic feel”

“you knew!?” megan furrowed her eyebrows in betrayal and yoonchae shrugged and said “they were pretty and smelled nice. i approve.” she gave a thumbs up towards sophia.and sophia would be lying if that approval didn’t take a small weight off her shoulders, one down four to go.

“how about” she said loudly taking the attention before another argument broke out in the middle of an echoing room “we go to my place, and i tell you” she compromised

“fine, but we have the right to ask questions,” daniela stated, a little bitter that she was left out.

“ten questions” sophia argued

lara raised her finger and asked “ten each?” 

sophia squinted “five.”

lara raised her hand placatingly “okay okay, lesson learned. oh fearless leader” megan flicked her ear “bitch i swear-” 

sophia turned to daniela “ you drove here right?”, daniela nodded and showed her keys which made sophia nod back in response “you take manon, i take yoonchae. megan can take lara”

“you drive?” manon asked in confusion “since when?”

sophia shrugged, “sixteen, i think” she watched as megan was still arguing with lara and a very entertained yoonchae “megan think you can follow me or would you like me to give you the address?”

“both, please” sophia went to the katesye groupchat and sent her address. the sound of various notifications rang across the room. megan looked at it first “holy- that's where you live?”

“let me see” lara took megans phone and read the address… then read it once more, before looking up at sophia “you've been holding back on us big time”

sophia made a dismissive hand gesture “I'll explain at my apartment” she picked up her bag and took her car keys “yoonchae you ready?” yoonchae made an affirmative sound, “let's go” she opened the door for the girls to exit first before turning off the lights and letting the door close behind her.

the wind brushed against her face as she stepped into the parking lot, from the corner of her eye she could see daniela's red mustang gt next to megan's bmw m3. she let the door open for the girls to come out, and then took yoonchae’s hand gently to guide her to her car, almost in synch you could hear the three cars unlocked, one sound a little louder than the others which almost made her chuckle. she pulled yoonchae in front of her and lightly moved her forward as she opened the passenger door for her.

“girl is that a porche!?”

“since when do you have a sports car?”

sophia smirked while she moved to the driver side, she met the surprised faces of megan and daniela as she opened the backseat door to drop her bag, “the faster we go to my house, the faster you'll get your answers, yeah?” she settled on the driver seat and closed the door before rolling down the window “don't make a food stop, im cooking” she shouted, and got delayed thumbs up in return.

sophia made sure that yoonchae had her seatbelt on before turning on the car and revving the engine once. she waited until she heard the engines of megan and daniela's car before driving out of the parking lot; she gave her phone to yoonchae who put some Dua Lipa. sophia started belting out with yoonchae while they drove down the street, laughing when they missed a beat or misheard the lyrics; she drove carefully but still a little fast for dani to keep up without telling her she drives like a grandma.

few minutes later, familiar streets started to show which let her know that she was close to home. she ¹ flashed her rear lights twice for dani and megan to be aware, she turned down the volume of the radio and stopped in front of a gated parking space, with the chip on her keyfob the doors opened to let her through; she went in first and stopped just a few inches before it for megan and dani to come through. when they did and stopped beside her right side, she closed the gate and she lowered her window when she saw Aiden, one of the security guards approach her car.

“hey Aiden” she grinned at him as she leaned back on her seat.

“hey, mrs y/ln. Long day?” he asked respectfully as he bowed by the waist to talk to her.

“like you wouldn't believe” she joked lightly and he chuckled in response. “those two cars are with me, can you give them their passes, please?”

“on it” he took his tablet and moved between megan and daniela's car to get their information more efficiently.

“mrs, y/ln?” yoonchae asked softly “like‐”

“-yeah yoon” she answered in the same way, eyes shining bright at the thought of you as she looked at the ring sitting on her finger while playing with it like it was always a part of her, and honestly it was for her. “since 2021, best two years of my life” yoonchae hummed contemplatingly.

“alright, mrs y/ln. they are good to go” she blinked as she snapped out of her thoughts and looked at Aiden who was in front of her once more. “passes on their windshields, told'em where visitors' spaces are. if you have any questions, you know my extension”

“thank you Aiden, have a good day” 

“you as well mrs y/ln, miss.” he tipped his hat towards her and yoonchae and tapped the ceiling of the car twice as he stepped away.

She drove down to her parking space close to the elevator and watched as dani and megan moved further up and parked close to each other. she turned off her car and reached behind her to take her bag and stepped out, yoonchae seconds behind her; she heard multiple cars' doors closed as well and walked towards the elevator where she waited for the other girls. when they arrived sophia swiped her access card on the elevator panel making the doors slid open; she blissfully ignored the impressed whistle, sidestepping for the girls to enter first before entering herself and pressing the 14th floor. she pressed her head on the wall, the cold feeling making her relax enough to take a deep breath.

“sooo, are you with a ceo or something?” lara  moved next to her, shoulders brushing against each other. 

“is that your first question?” she asked back, reminding them on their deal of 5 questions only as she smirked. 

“woah, hey. no” lara immediately protested. “that deal went out the window when you lead us to a multi-million dollar penthouse building in the middle of santa monica” 

sophia laughed at the absurdity of the situation because yeah, it was kinda crazy the life that she was living before and now. but still, if she has to reveal this part of herself, she deserves to do it with a little fun.

“i dont remember agreeing to that” sophia sassed back as she opened one eye to look at her.

lara scoffed as she crossed her arms “this food better be good because you have a lot to explain, laforteza” 

“then i hope you like dominican food” sophia crossed her arms too as she closed her eyes again.

“wait we're having dominican food?” daniela asked, her eyes shining in happiness and hope. sophia opened her eyes and smiled confused before nodding. “you know how to make dominican food?”

sophia shrugged “i do yeah, why? you've tried it before?”

“umm DUH” daniela replied like it was common knowledge “i went with my parents to the DR when i was little, their food is soo good. they share the same things with cuban but different variations”

“really? where did you go?” sophia engaged as the door opened on her floor but she barely acknowledged it giving her attention to daniela.

“we went to puerto plata, which was beautiful and santiago too” she started counting as she moved inside the apartment “also the capital” 

“gorgeous right?” she dropped her bag close to the couch as she leaned on the arm of her couch, she also took daniela's bag and put it next to her 

“oh for sure” she nodded before she titled her head “you've been?”

“yeah i-”

“daniela look at the ceiling” megan clapped them back to the reason why they are in sophia’s home in the first place.

daniela did in confusion, before her eyebrows raised “oh those are cool ceiling lights- woah” she halted as she truly observed the penthouse in full, specially the floor to ceiling windows, the L big couch in front of a big flat screen and behind her to the open kitchen. she looked back at sophia who was looking at her patiently, “you live here all by yourself?”

sophia stood and moved towards the kitchen “i’ve been here only for a year almost but yeah” she opened the fridge “please make yourselves at home, sit anywhere, take out your shoes though. anyone want something to drink or snack on before i start dinner?” she called out over her shoulder.

silence was her only answer, which made her look back and see the almost uncomfortable faces of her members, like they were afraid to break or damage something, she leaned on the counter which gave her a full view of the fidgeting girls in front of her.

“look, i know this is all new to you, believe me it is new to me as well” she tried to joke which caused a little giggle around the room that gave confidence to continue “it was not about hiding, it was about being private… my mom told me to be careful in this industry, and i took it to heart. i didn’t want to start telling you about all of…” she stalled as she looked around “this, until i was sure i could trust you not to sell it or expose it” she tried to explain “i’m really sorry and i promise to tell you anything you guys want to know, even after the five questions” the girls looked at each other before sitting on the stool in the counter.

“we forgive you, but this food better slap though” lara joked as she pointed at her accusingly, sophia nodded with a laugh

“slap? like-” yoonchae slapped her hands together in confusion which made the girls giggle as yoonchae blushed “don't laugh-” 

“no no baby, we're not laughing at you” manon tried to contain her giggles but she failed “you are so cute but she meant that the better takes good”

“oohhh yeah, then the food better slap unnie” yoonchae glared at her jokingly before breaking into a smile.

“yeah yeah, soo what drinks do y’all want?” she turned back to the fridge, receiving responses back. she served lemonade to megan and yoonchae, some pepsi to daniela, apple juice for manon, grape juice for lara and some guyabano juice for  her. 

“all right, question time while i make dinner, one at a time. no weird questions and i will answer questions about us, i won't tell you their personal details without them here” she gave some ground rules as she pulled her hair up. “and tell me any allergies that i need to know”

“cinnamon” megan raised her hand 

“strawberries” manon took a sip of her cool drink. sophia nodded as she reached for a pot in her cabinet 

“who are they?” lara asked 

“y/n y/ln, you can call them ‘skip’” she answered as she looked for her rice container, 

“who are they to you though?” daniela pressed further

sophia pursed her lips as she cleans the rice and sets it aside. “my spouse” her answer was met with silence.

“im sorry WHAT?” megan yelled bewildered, “you're married!?”

she took the meat out of the fridge and put it under hot water in the sink, as the pot full of water boiled on the stove with a pinch of salt and a tablespoon of oil. she raised her left hand, letting her wedding ring shine under the dropped ceiling lights “since i was 18” she responded before she took some green onions and a pot of seasoning out of her fridge.

“no fucking way” manon sweared, sophia didn't have it in her to chastise her for that.

“your parents were okay with that!?” daniela asked incredulously

“we eloped” sophia chuckled remembering her parents' reactions, they almost wanted to kill you and then her but they got over it, thankfully. “few months after graduation, they did asked permission from my parents to court me” she tried to softened the blow

“court you? oh my god you're such a princess” lara rubbed her face in stress,  “how long have you two known each other?”

sophia flushed as she smiled sheepishly but she was glad that her back was turned so they couldn't tease her about it. “since we were kids, we met at a boarding school in manila. we sat next to each other on the first day and never drifted apart,” Sophia reminisced as she cleaned her hands again and started preparing the meat with the seasoning after checking on the rice to make sure it didn't clump together. 

the girls teased her and cooed behind her in almost unison. “okay okay that's enough, next question please” sophia felt the blush move to her ears and prayed that they couldn't see it.

“where are they right now?” manon took another sip and filled her cup again with the small pitcher sophia left outside for refills.

“they are in abu dhabi right now”

“what the hell are they doing there?” megan furrowed her eyebrows 

“they race in formula 1 with porche” she explained as she took a green plantain and yellow one from the basket next to her stove and showed it to the girls “which one?” manon pointed the yellow one and daniela the green one which caused her to look towards the others who still looked confused to the point of believing of maybe this being a dream

“girl what?” lara blinked, waiting for either an answer or a hidden camera to tell her this was a prank, sophia couldn't tell.

“i’m doing both” she put the rice on a lower heat, and chopped the meat that was being marinated in the seasoning into small cubes that she later put on a frying pan with a little bit of brown sugar and tomato sauce to cook on medium heat. she took two of each and started it to prepare them to fry them later. “yeah, they are in formula 1. this is their second season with a big team, i'm really proud of them. to see them grow into the sport they love so much feels… overwhelming in the best way possible” the familiar rich smell of beef stew started to fill the place, sophia swears she can almost feel it on her tongue and by the faces of her members she can tell that they like what they are smelling too.

“have you been to a race in person?” daniela asked while resting her elbows and chest on the counter leaning forward

“once or twice back when they were in formula 2, since we lived in the uk at the time. silverstone circuit became very important for the both of us. it’s really popular over there, the town literally stops when race weekend comes” she laughed as she remembered how her teammates used to huddled up in the game room just to watch the f1 race.

“not gonna lie, this is  like the coolest thing you've ever told us” megan hit the counter lightly to make the point, sophia couldn't disagree on that so she just shrugged.

“but you came to da from the philippines?” yoonchae asked for the first time. sophia hummed in affirmation. “so that was not true?”

sophia felt her neck tense in discomfort but she cleared her throat “not really, i was in the philippines visiting my parents when i received the call about being accepted but before that we were living in summertown, uk” sophia explained as she monitored the stew to make sure it didn't burned and poured a glass of water to have more soup and tenderize the meat further. “college was closer and porsche had a development facility in the country, so it seemed good at the time. i just decided to omit that part” she looked guilty “i’m sorry” 

yoonchae shrugged in response, “that's okay.” she bit her lip in thought “formula 1, that was the thing you were talking to nayoung?” sophia nodded with a soft smile, “how do you remember all of it? it sounds hard”

sophia chuckled and said in solidarity “it does, doesn't it? i just wanted to understand their world, and how they do what they do, and so on. just like they tried theater for me back in school to know why i loved it so much”

“how did that go?” manon inquired

“they can't act for shit” sophia replied without hesitation, manon snorted and covered her mouth, daniela's eye widened and lara barked a laugh not expecting that direct response. “i love them but they forgot their lines so many times and has the line delivery of a debate official” she explained while turning off the beef stew and frying the plantains

“can they dance?” daniela followed up

“they have to, mama nicah would disown them otherwise”

“sing”

“on a good day” 

“play any instruments?”

“drums, most of the time. guitar when they're bored”

“cook?”

“my parents wouldn't let them be with me if they couldn't” she rolled her eyes as she finished to serve the food in bowls and big plates before putting them on the counter, “dinner is ready, let me take the plates”

“damn this looks so good” megan groaned before pointing at the stew, “what's that?”

“beef stew, caribbean style. fried plantains, rice, and some red beans if you want them, as well.”she pointed to each bowl and the big plate “i was feeling nostalgic and made it everybody's problem” she joked as she placed the plates in front of the girls, and put some cutlery next to it. “let's dig in. i'm so hungry and the smell is not helping”

and with that, sophia started to plate their food. groans of delight and nods were exchanged as they ate and got to know more about each other under sophia’s kitchen light. at some point, sophia put on some light r&b to serve as background noise while they continued to laugh and talked about their life before DA with more detail; sophia felt her heart grew as she saw them all together, she was relieved when they understood her reasoning and knowing that they knew about you made her feel a little bit more at ease. she rested her cheek on lara's shoulder as she listened to manon talk about her time in switzerland, maybe she could get used to nights like this.

this was supposed to be a short one and it developed into 4.6k words.... anyways, do we like it do we hate it? you will be appearing in the next installement and yes it's already on the works

gods help me

taglist: @goofymickeyr

[sixflame438]

they knew what they were doing with this mv.... 😭😭

[sixflame438]

hey cutie

Hey ☺️

[sixflame438]

DECIDE (pls and thank you)

there's more but rn these are the ones I want to write the most lol.

[sixflame438]

OMG THID WAS SO CUTEEEEEEE

flores

<<te estoy esperando, baby. Dime donde 

no lo pides, llevos flores

mereces flores.>>

summary: 5 times sophia received flowers during dream academy + 1 time she did after her debut

early spring 2022. santa monica

sophia was tired.

she liked to call herself resilient, she had harsh tutors before, vocal coaches that got in her face for not holding a note long enough; boarding school arts teachers with a grandeur complex interrupting her reciting time and time again because her voice wasn’t “soft” enough. she was used to it and found a misplaced type of comfort on it even. but if she hears “star quality” one more time, she would key one of those mirrors.

she threw a slight smile to the receptionist of her apartment complex. they threw her a tired smile back before tilting their hat her way.

“mrs. Y/Ln, good afternoon,” they reached under the desk and pulled a bouquet of flowers wrapped in brown paper. “this arrived for you, I spray them lightly to preserve them a little more”

warm grew on her chest, as she observed her gift more closely. Baby’s breath, pink camellias and red chrysanthemums. her smile turned softer. “thank you, alam. and how many times have i told you to call me sophia?” she chastised him lightly as she grinned.

a chuckled rumbled in his chest “i think you may need to remind me a couple of more times, mrs. y/ln” he winked.

sophia rolled her eyes before walking towards the elevator’s open doors, she swiped her keycard and pressed the 14th floor button. “see you later, alam” she waved as the door closed, he tilted his hat again as farewell.

the bag rustled against her hip as she fixed it on her shoulder to alleviate the weight. her fingers caressed the pink petals softly, the cold of the water spreading through them as she felt the soft, slightly grainy, texture. longing, that’s what they meant. she leaned down closer to the flowers, she inhaled deeply and closed her eyes, letting the sweet earthy smell run through her lungs as she felt the aftertaste of it on the back of her throat. i miss you too baby, she thought. A small heavy feeling sat on her chest, and she furrowed her eyebrows in discontent, the elevator door opened welcoming her back.

she dropped her bag on the couch, then she moved to the open kitchen, gently placing the flowers on the counter before looking for a vase. As the water filled the vase, a familiar tinkling sound echoed through the empty space; sophia moved the vase down and wiped her hand with urgency on the rag placed next to the sink, before taking the phone out of her sweats. Her heart jumped on her chest as she saw the familiar name and she smiled bright.

mahal <3: good afternoon, hermosa

mahal <3: i hope you liked the flowers

sophia bit her lip trying to contain the smile that was growing by the second to no avail. her thumbs moved faster than her brain could comprehend.

mi amor: i miss you too baby

mi amor: give me a call

barely a second passed, before her face appeared on her screen. She accepted with a sign of relief, the previous tiredness evolving into something much lighter.

2. september 2023, santa monica; after eliminations

her hands were tingling, it’s been two hours since they announced Adéla and Hinari’s elimination. she curved her fingers to ease the cramping feeling; she knew they were only six spots in the group, she read the contract enough time to memorize all its clauses- but, seeing it happen made it more real. and that’s scary. her place in the hands of thousands of people, outside of her trainers. her jaw clenched as she clasped her hands together; she has never been more glad to be back to her apartment; as much as she liked the girls, she needed to centralize again.

her breath stuttered as it left her chest, she pressed her forehead against the cold steel of the elevator to keep herself present. The instrumental flowing in the elevator felt slightly like a reset point in one of those videogames you insisted for her to play when you finally have time to yourselves after weeks of musical sheet studies, tire management charts and simulation reports.

the doors slid open, the smell of honey, lemon and cinnamon filled the space. she inhaled deeply, finally back home, she thought briefly. it was weird calling the states a home when just a year before she was living in a double home in summertown, ready to start another year in college. but still, she wouldn’t change this for anything, she passed down the hall dragging her feet before she noticed something in the corner of her eyes, she blinked.

gladiolus, irises… and salvia, blue.

she chuckled under her breath as she changed course and moved closer to the counters. they were already in a vase, filled halfway with water. she didn't touch them this time, her hands rested on each side of the vase, she reached for her phone, the screen glowing on her face as she tapped on the pinned chat on her whatsapp. “mahal <3”, she bit the inside of her cheek as she typed and retyped what to say before settling for a voice note.

“they are gorgeous baby, thank you” she smiled gently, “i love them, god knows i need strength right now” a chuckled escaped but it was brittle as her hip rested on the counter “i’m thinking about you, always… finish that double header and come back to me, champion. i love you” she sent it with a kiss before moving back to her room.

3. october, 2023 + mission 2 prep

she liked being in seoul more than she thought she would. even with all the cameras and hustle of being part of a survival show, it felt delightful to be back to the other side of the pond; and the authentic taste of asian food makes it even more sweeter. she missed the heat of a good buldak that sat on her tongue, as she chewed on the tender meat, she covered her mouth as she swallowed, nodded absentmindedly at something Lara was explaining about the latest drama on tiktok to the group.

“no because how can you make soo many restrictions and expect people to be at your wedding!" Lara dragged the ‘o’ as she moved her hands to explain her point. “she said casual backyard wedding, right? no dark colors, beige or white obviously” she counted with her thumb, index and middle finger “but then you send photos and stuff, and gets rehected every single one of them. at this point i would have shown up in my underwear” she rolled her eyes. A wave of gasps and chuckles rang around the table with sophia almost choking on a noodle before chastising ‘lara, jesus christ!’ “what? i was just joking” she smirked

The dorm door opened before sophia could change the subject, she didn't turn around already knowing that some of the girls went out to get some air and snacks; she raised a can of milkies to her lips, then she heard Yoonchae calling her name with a soft curious voice. Her eyes drifted to her with a raised eyebrow, but something else catched her sight, on Yoonchae’s hands was a handful of flowers.

“a guy was outside” yoonchae extended the flowers to her. “h-he said, it was for you” she stuttered lightly, but sophia gave her a smile and an encouraging nod.

“we thought it was a mistake, but he said your name and told us that your parents sent them” another voice cut through, emily continued “security cleared him, so we took them to give it to you”

a chorus of coos sang through the room, as the girls grinned at her and poked at her softly on the ribs in jest. as they surround her to get a better look. she took them out of yoonchae’s hand carefully, and a glint of recognition passed through her eyes, sophia grinned as she turned them slowly. a mixture of ppalgan jangmi (red korean roses), juhwang jangmi (orange koren roses) and bunhong jangmi (pink korean roses)

“thank you for doing that, i really appreciate it” she touched the petal of the ppalgan jangmi, “i'm gonna take this to my room, i think i'm turning in for the night” she walked down to her dorm room as she threw a ‘good night, girls’, receiving various answers and a couple of good nights back.

sophia closed the door behind her softly, glad that her roommate was still in the living room; so she can have a couple of minutes alone. she rested the flowers on her nightstand and unplugged her phone to see a text message from them. she played with the ring resting on a silver chain between her collarbones as she read.

mahal <3: can you believe him??? i talk with r&d to give suggestion for the new updates for OUR cars, i share my telemetry with him

mahal <3: throttle input!

mahal <3: y el bastardo has the gal to look at me and go,

mahal <3: that’s cute, bud. maybe next time

mahal <3: next time!? nuh HUH you alone in this lil bro

mahal <3: but enough about him, i dont want it in our chats

mahal <3: how u doin baby? did u eat? drink water? i watched your still into you performance again. and the practice blog for mission 2. gorgeous as always, can i kiss u 🥺?

mahal <3: you r my favorite, im cooking for you next time we see eo. ill make u your favorite. tito’s recipe

that was hours ago, she felt a burst of happiness warming through her body as it ran up to her face and felt the pleasant burn on her cheeks. that familiar and comforting feeling of talking to them, even if it’s through the phone made her feel motivated. both of you fulfilling your dreams, like you always talked about.

mi amor: i received your flowers.

mi amor: my parents… really?

her phone ranged and the face of her love filled the screen as she was requesting a call. sophia took her headphone and pair it with her phone before accepting the call

"in my defense” you grinned victoriously, happy that she received them "your parents were the one who had the address, as it was against the rules for somebody else to know it so i just made the design” you rested the phone on the small table in the hotel room in Qatar.

you looked comfortable in a porsche sweatshirt of their new collection, your hair tussled and lightly wet. A soft smile adorned your face, as your eyes gazed across her face like you’re trying to memorize every aspect of her, you rested your chin on your fist as your smile turned into a doped grin. sophia felt a warm pass through her cheeks from embarrassment.

“what” she laughed shily

“nothing” you shrugged “you look beautiful, that’s all”

she rolled her eyes, as she bit her lip to contain her smile. “your opinion is biased”

“but also very true. everytime i look at you, i wonder how you said yes to me”

“oh my god stop-”

you laughed “im just saying, i was a total loser when we first met”

“was?” she interrupted with a raised eyebrow jokingly, your jaw dropped dramatically and you put your hand to your chest, black ring with silver accent on your ring finger winking to the camera.

‘you’re such a bully, sophia laforteza”

“it’s sophia y/ln to you, idiot” she corrected you, and you smirked back at her. the scar on your lip stretching beautifully as you did so.

“hell yeah” you murmured sheepishly

you continued talking about anything and everything, she knew what happened in the previous races. she has her notifications on since she cannot watch live unless it’s a rest day but she loved hearing it from you anyways. in exchange she talked about how much she liked seoul, how different it was from summertown or la; she confessed about feeling tired after rehearsals, and how her body is still getting used to dance conditioning while singing; how breathy she was when dancing and how much she hated it because of how awkward it sounded afterwards. you listened patiently, and gave her space to explain her feelings. sophia let herself breathe with you on the other side, just like home.

4. early october 2023, + mission 3 prep, LA

being back in los angeles after korea and not able to go back to her apartment feel like torture. she felt exasperated, tired and confused. so many things have happened since the show aired and people keep wanting, and wanting, and wanting. they keep asking for more; missy keeps pushing. grant gives her some advice and then you have nikki telling her something completely different. and she’s exhausted, she has covid, her head hurts, her chest does too and her legs are starting to cramp.

she was in her doom room right now, she didn't want to call you because she knew you were busy, a triple header was coming up. your training was showing through this season, you were consistent, stable; she knew how important this was to you, to each other. she took a deep breath as she played with the ring resting on her chest, she stared at the twisted band in white gold as she felt the grove of the stones between her fingers, no big stone in the middle but smaller ones around the band, just like she wanted.

her alarm came through as a reminder of taking her meds, so she extended her hand to her first aid kit bag. just as she was drinking water to wash down her pills, her phone buzzed again. she furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and tapped the screen twice to check who was texting her.

mahal <3: open your door, there’s a care package for you

mahal <3: your specialist called me btw, we’ll talk later. be gentle with yourself please

mahal <3: i love you, mi amor

The doorbell rang twice, she stood up slowly before getting out of her room and down the hallway. her sock clad feet thumbing was the only sound echoing around the room. All of the girls were at the studio and she was given a rest day to come back tomorrow; which a part of her was grateful for, but the larger part was preoccupied with falling behind. she slid the door open, coming face to face with the security guard holding a small box and a bouquet of lavender, gerbera daisies and sage.

“for miss laforteza” the guard extended it to her which she thanked him gently before closing the door after he bid her good morning.

she placed the basket on the dining table and opened it. The first thing she noticed was the smell of herbs, quickly recognizing the smell of guava leaves, calamansi leaves and blue ternatea; she also noticed a few packets of green tea, dragonfruit tea and flasks of malunggay, honey with a honey stick and pandan powder. she gasped as she took out the bag of ginger mints and a small container with butterscotch blondies, pouted slightly as she also found some chocolate bites, a couple of winasorb ultra and a small vicks vapor rub tub.

she quickly moved to the store and took a pot out of the cabinet, filled it with water and let it boil on the stove. her favorite mug was placed on the counter, with a packet of dragon fruit tea at the bottom, she darted back to her room, swiped her phone off the bed and moved back to the stove. After a minute or two, she turned it off and dropped the hot water in the mug; watching as the water turned into dark pink, she sweetened it with a few drops of honey. She took a cautious sip, the warmth of the tea calmed her throat and opened up her clogged nostrils.

mi amor: thank you

mi amor: i need that

mahal <3: just text me next time, please

mahal <3: let me take care of you corazon

5. october 2023 + mission 3 after elimination

The dorm feels emptier now with nayoung and ua gone; she missed their quiet conversations in korean while she watched f1 with airpods on in low volume. even sometimes nayoung would climb in her bunk and watch it with her, asking some questions that sophia was happy to answer. She always knew that someone would have to go, but she didn’t expect for it to feel so… unsettling.

this journey has left her bare, now that she thinks about it; like she gave a piece of herself, undressed it and left it there for the world to see. judge. admire. Being a performer has been her dream since she could remember, to make people dance, sing with her, be under the spotlight. Her mother told her how hard and isolating it could feel, in an industry that just wants more and more. so watching it first hand felt a little bit jarring.

her sheets rustled lightly as she moved to get more comfortable, she took her laptop and rested it on the mattress; she could hear your voice in the back of her mind scolding her for letting the laptop rest on a pillowy surface, but she’s too tired to care. Besides she knows you’ll do maintenance on it like it’s your job, ‘it is my job fia, no woman of mine is going to have a dusty laptop’ she swears she can hear your voice on her ear.

she stood up from the bed and took out a worn campos racing sweatshirt that was resting at the edge on the bunk bed. she put it on slowly, letting the comfortable texture drape over her like a second skin; she pulled the stretched sleeves up to her elbows to uncover her hands, and fixed her necklace to let it rest on top of the fabric . she placed her laptop in front of her and was ready to load up tangled when a knock and the small creak of an open door caught her attention.

“oh, hey” she smiled at lara, who stepped through with her hands behind her back and a small mischievous smile. “what did you do?” she deadpanned, already feeling tired.

lara’s jaw dropped facetiously as she gasped “how dare you? i come here to grace you with my presence” sophia raised her eyebrow which she ignored “baring gifts and this is how you repay me-”

she blinked in confusion “wait gift?”

lara smirked as she revealed what she was hiding. a small group of flowers wrapped in with a purple ribbon. she quickly recognized the fresh batch of lavender, heliotrope and red camelias, which made her look at the previous one that she received laying on her desk and how wilted they look. how did you know that hers was almost gone, she pursed her lips to contain her smile before looking back at lara who was staring at her knowingly which made her clear her throat in embarrassment and walked towards her to take the flowers.

“you know” lara stalled as she pressed the tongue against her cheek “as much as i love flowers i dont think hybe would appreciate you turning their dorm into a greenhouse”

sophia tsked at her and pinched lara’s hip in reply “OUCH!” she wailed as she threw herself into Sophia's bed, and rubbed the offended area with a pout as she murmured ‘you’re so mean’. sophia rolled her eyes dismissively and exchanged the lavenders, throwing the old ones in the trash can next to her small desk. she heard the rustling of the sheets behind her and she paid no mind as she hummed absentmindedly while fixing the placement of the flowers so they look prettier.

“i’ve just realised” lara tried to say nonchalantily, tried doing the heavy lifting, sophia’s humming stopped with let her know she was listening. “i’ve known you for a year and i’ve never heard you talk about boyfriends” sophia turned around and stared at her expectantly “girlfriends…?” she quirked her eyebrow “partner” a knowing smile tugged at the corner of her mouth

“what brought this on?” sophia inquired as she crossed her arms and leaned on the desk intrigued.

lara lowkey felt being stared down by a parent who caught her sneaking where she wasn’t supposed to be, but she continued. “well, emily asked you one time if you had a boyfriend once, and you said ‘not interested’, which fair” lara made air quotes, and sophia chuckled. “but then you received those korean roses and i looked up their meaning and, im sorry for saying things, but unless your family moves like that, ther-”

sophia’s amused expression dropped into horror and disgust as she quickly took the first thing closest to her, a cat plushie with a porsche hat, and threw it at her. “Lara what the FUCK” she screeched, her eyes widened in repulsion

“im sorry, im sorry” lara covered her face as the plushie bounced on her chest and dropped down her lap “i regretted it as soon as i said it, i promised” she took the plushie as hostage and shield “ pleasedon’tkillme” she blurted as she hid behind it.

“you’re such a menace, rajagopalan” she covered her eyes in distress, she swore in tagalog under her breath before looking at lara who stopped hiding and was looking at her with big doe eyes “c’mon watch tangled with me, i still have some dark chocolate bites and blondies for me” she took the small bag with said treats and jumped on the bed, subject changed and packed for later.

+1 november 17, 2023. santa monica

relief. pride.a huge fucking finally are the only thing she can think about when her name was called. to have five other girls at her side sharing her experience and living their dream together, it feels overwhelming in a good way. they were all huddled up on the side of the stage close to the exit, she felt lara’s hand on her waist,

with megan and yoonchae in front of her, megan slight puffy face and teary eyes on her as her hands were pressing down on her shoulders, to ground herself or her she doesn't know but she appreciates it either way; yoonchae is next to megan rubbing her shoulders to soothe her. sophia almost smirked but she managed to hold it down, the squeeze from lara’s hand let her know that she wasn't that successful.

“we did it” sophia’s hand was on megan's waist with the other holding yoonchae's “it's okay, meg. you're okay” she reassured her gently, before cupping megan's cheek and swiped her remaining tears away.

She felt another hand on the blade of her shoulder, and curly her in her peripheral vision. daniela hugged her by the waist, pressing her head on her shoulder on top of megan's hand, manon came closer and mirrored daniela's position on megan instead; sophia stretched her arms out and made grabby hands, obediently her girls went for a group hug and sophia let herself lean into the hug as well. an stagehand cleared their throat softly, reminding them that they are needed for the backdrop pictures before congratulating them.

the girls said their thank you's, moving back to their makeup station for a retouch and last touch ups. sophia stayed behind a few more seconds and followed them with sure steps. everything felt like a blur after that, between the flashes and meeting the hybe chairman once more; to flashes of the teary eyes of ezrela, emily, samara and marquise and their supportive hugs; to changing from her uniform to some comfy clothes, with her phone blowing up in her hand the same it did when she first got accepted into the program.

She blinked back into herself when she felt her mother's arm around her. she felt tears starting to pool and blurred her vision, she tried to blink them away but it only made them fall faster, her chest expanded, lungs filled with the bittersweet scent of her mother's perfume and a quick sob rattled in her ribs before she contained them and hugged her mother tighter. her mother's hand cradling the back of head as she murmured how proud she was in tagalog and how she knew she could do it time and time again, her embrace grounded her more than the floor of the parking lot ever could.

she pulled back lightly and pressed the tip of her fingers on her eyes to stop the tears and fanned herself to dry them a little more faster. her mother was soothing her, cupping her cheeks tilting her head down to press a loving kiss on the crown of it.

“I'm so proud of you,” her mother cooed at her, pressing light kisses on her cheek which made her laugh under her breath “my baby, part of a global girl group.” she clasped her hands together as she looked around “where are your other members, i need to know their parents” she started rambling about precautions for all the girls, a wet laugh came out as she was pulled by the wrist towards the blurry silhouette of lara, megan, manon and what it looks to be their parents. she was nodding at something megan was saying, when she felt a strong chest pressed on her back, the familiar scent of juniper berries, sandalwood and slightly burned rubber filled her nose as a big flower arrangement appeared in front of her.

“does that mean you're my bias now, or is that only for kpop?” you chuckled on her ear before she turned around and launched herself at you.

you laughed as you hold her closer to your body; her legs wrapped around your waist tightly, as her hands moved from your neck to your team cap which she held away to caress your soft curls. her face hidden in the crook of your neck as she breathed you in for the first time in almost months, your free hand going up and down her back in a soothing motion as she started to sob again. her nails scraping your head lightly and she clenched her fist, a small part of her convinced that if she held you tighter you won't dissappear, your kisses placed on her neck and covered shoulder as she burrowed closer as if it was even possible.

“mami c'mon don't cry or else I'll cry to” your voice quivered a bit at the end “that's a treat. weaponized tears if you will” she chuckled as she came out of her hiding place, she put the cap on and kissed your cheek twice leaving a glossy lip mark like a brand. she didn't let go of your waist though.

“what are you doing here?” her voice raised a little higher in surprise before pursing her lips “You're supposed to be in Las Vegas doing FP3?”

“it was over just as as the livestream was about to start” you bounced her up to your waist for a better grip, and raised the flowers which were a little crushed but still intact. “i took a jet here, so i could make it in an hour and surprise you” you smiled charmingly “surpriseee” you sang as you watched her bewildered face.

“pause.” she deadpanned as she let go of your waist and you let her down slowly “what do you mean you took a jet?” she took the flowers while she glare at you.

you took a wider stance to be more eye level with her with a charming grin “i beat max verstappen at poker so i pulled in my win” you shrugged like it was no big deal. “ ‘sides i wasn't going to miss your big day”

“you're crazy” she mumbled as she gazed at the flowers to avoid your puppy eyes

“por ti, hell yeah” you dropped a kiss to her forehead which made her lean on your lips before faceplating on your chest, you smiled victoriously as you crossed your arms around her.

your eyes looked up and met the shocked face of sophia’s new members which caused you to laugh. “yoo, congratulations girls, you guys did incredible on your missions” the reminder of her other members brought a blush to her face as she untangled from you to move at your side, your arm moving to her waist without a second thought as she leaned further into you, her free hand resting over yours. “im y/n, you can call me skip tho, everybody does” you extended your hand towards then

“ohh yeah, thank you” megan stuttered her name as she shook your hand, before she exchanged looks with lara and manon who also shook your hand. Manon pursing her lips to hold back a smirk, lara openly staring at you up and down pausing briefly on your hands before smirking at Sophia whose blushed intensified by the second.

“y/n!” Clara made her way over to you and affectionately tapped your cheek, before slapping said hand between your shoulder blades, “shrimp, y/n” she reprimanded you which you responded with a wistful ‘sorry’ as you fixed your posture. “girls, it was a pleasure meeting you, but we have to go now” she flicked her wrist to look at the time “we have a dinner to go to but you guys will be able to celebrate together tomorrow before you go back to the spotlight” she smiled at them as she gave the three girls cheek kisses and a maternal pinch on the other.

“sure” she pulled away from you, but not before you squeezed her hip lovingly and took the flowers from her so she could say goodbye to the girls freely.

she hugged each one of them goodbye until she got to lara who hugged her tighter and whispered “now i see why you were not interested”, she responded back with an embarrassed shut up as she pulled away. she strutted back to you with a loving smile and fixed the collar of your hoodie before taking your arm and draped around her shoulders, all while your eyes never strayed away from her except for looking back at the trio in farewell.

“where the fuck did they come from?” manon chortled when you were far away from earshot

“honestly” lara starred as you walked her and Clara back to a rented car which you opened the door for both of them before moving back to the driver seat. “if i had fine shyt like that i would keep her under lock and key too”

“oh my god” megan covered her face in embarrassment. “did i really sutter infront of them”

“yeah girl, twice”

“if you'll excuse I'll lay down in an upcoming traffic”

“good luck finding one in LA” manon snickered “people here move at 15 kph”

“shut UP”

thank you for reading, like, coments, screaming in my inbox all appreciate it. thank u so much <333, it's my first time showing my writing, if you have any request entries are open

[sixflame438]

NOOOO VOTE YOONCHAE EVERYONEEEE!!!!!!!

DECIDE (pls and thank you)

there's more but rn these are the ones I want to write the most lol.

[sixflame438]

─── Kiss? Denied

⌯» Pairing: Megan Skiendiel x Fem!Reader

⌯» Contains: popular!Megan, (kinda) nerd!reader, college au, reader is Kazuha's little sister, swearing, suggestive shit, alcohol, only a kiss, Dani filing her nails on people's beds, SLOW BURN, nothing happening for a while, pining and more!

⌯» Starring: Le Sserafim, Katseye, Jake from enhypen.

⌯» Synopsis: Dared to kiss 100 girls by the end of the school year after swearing to be a womanizer, Megan finds herself desperate when she starts catching feelings for the only girl who keeps rejecting her: you.

⌯» W.c.: 10k

⌯» a/n: First katseye fic and ofc it's about my amazing, show stopping, perfect Megan. This was supposed to be a Karina fic but I changed my mind, also it's inspired by The Kiss List which is a story on Episode(s). Kinda proof readed. Enjoyyyyy :D.

There is nothing better than waking up next to someone you met the night before – That was Megan’s life motto. 

Her memory from the night before was a blurry mess of scenes that could be straight out of a not so family friendly movie; a kiss that turned into a makeout session, hands touching everywhere and noises loud enough to warn everyone of what was going on in the room.

Check, check and again, check.

Megan felt awfully tired and hungover; her head was hurting as if she had gotten a concussion, not a “I hit my head on the table” type but the “I fell from the 4th floor and somehow survived” type.

Laying next to her were the culprits: a bottle of cherry vodka and a passed out, naked, blonde girl.

“What the…” 

Megan slowly sat up, the covers falling on her legs, she got a closer look at the girl who, from behind, resembled her friend Daniela way too much.

This wasn’t happening for real. 

She observed the stranger’s back like it could give her a clue – it didn’t – her body hesitantly leaned in, hand resting on the girl’s shoulder.

‘Alright Megan, this is NOT Daniela. Please let it not be Daniela.’

Her heart began to race from fear, anxiety crept up like a damned virus – If this was who she thought she was then Megan could say goodbye to her friendship with the latina.

When she mastered enough courage to turn the girl’s body towards her, Megan breathed a sigh of relief: it was just a random, blonde girl. 

‘Oh thank God, now let’s hope she doesn’t have any stds.’

With that knowledge the brunette could finally start her morning in peace. Usually her roommate would blast country music from the moment her eyes opened, not having Lara around from time to time was refreshing. 

Megan took in a deep breath and retrieved the glass bottle of cherry vodka which was now buried under the girl’s arm. She sipped what was left in it and stared at the blonde. Again.

Now another doubt popped into her mind: who was she?

The brunette swore she had never seen her around college and she knew almost everyone from her grade below – Maybe a senior? Nah, they rarely left their dorms anyway. Exams bit their asses for even breathing away from school books.

For a moment she wondered if she would end like that in the future – ‘Stop getting distracted, bro’ she thought, while shaking her head.

Another sip from the bottle. Megan furrowed her eyebrows, trying hard to figure out at least the name of the naked girl next to her.

‘Erika…No, Evelyn– Heather.’

Heather, like the musical girls. The blonde even joked about a chandelier or something.

A joke not worth remembering, after all that girl would soon wake up and leave. It became a routine for Megan. She didn’t remember how it started but all of a sudden her world consisted of hook ups, drinks, parties and maintaining the reputation of “cool kid”. 

Her parents were paying her college tuition for her education and there she was, trapped in a vicious cycle of fucking and walking away.

Not that she minded – Education wasn’t her top priority in those moments.

“What the fuck are you staring at?”

A groggy, annoyed and way too high pitched voice grabbed her attention by the balls – “Goodmorning to you too Heather.” She greeted with a polite tone, like they didn’t see each other naked the night before. 

“Save it for your whores, Skiendiel. I’ll grab my stuff and leave.”

‘A bitch. Good to know, you’re out of the “will fuck again” list, blonde chick.’

“Are you always this rude to the girls you sleep with?”

“No, I just hate you.”

“Enemies to lovers type shit.”

Silence. Heather looked up at Megan from the mattress with an expression that screamed disgust in every possible known language. The hawaiian grimaced – “I- I believe your clothes are on the ground. If you want to… go.”

She didn’t need to finish her sentence that the blonde was already on her feet, grabbing the first clothes she spotted on the ground and putting them on with such urgency that she almost tripped on her own feet. 

Megan’s face fell. Eyes widened in shock, mouth opening and closing, eyebrows shot up – she was a replica of that one reaction pic guy from Unfriended: Dark Web.

A look that Heather missed thanks to her quick thinking – or survival instinct. 

Call it what you prefer.

She barely opened the door and flew out of the room like it was a damned crime scene, which it was in her opinion – Shortly after Megan’s roommate, Lara, made her return into the dorm, tears in her eyes from laughing too much and phone held up to show a picture she had taken moments earlier.

“It isn’t funny.”

Megan protested at the sight of the low quality picture of Heather sprinting down the hallway, hardly suppressing a smile.

“It is!” Lara turned the phone back towards her “You managed to scare off Heather Watson! She’s fearless, Megs!”

“Clearly that’s bullshit.” She retorted in a matter of factly way.

Meanwhile Lara’s laughter died down, she was zooming into the blob of pixels moving at high speed – “Is that my Valentino sweater?!”

“Huh? Let me see… Looks like it is, not gonna lie.”

“Did you not stop her?!” Lara snapped in anger and frustration like Megan handed the sweater to Heather on purpose – “That costs more than my entire tuition!”

“Why did you leave it on the floor then?” Megan crossed her arm, eyebrow raised and head tilted in a scolding manner.

Her eyes darted to the floor for a moment. Heather’s real sweater was right there at the foot of the bed, Lara’s heavy boots stepped on it and left imprints. An unintentional early revenge – the bright red sweater wasn’t cheap, its owner was loaded after all.

“Because we’re best friends and we take care of each other’s stuff, duh!”

Good point, but still they had a closet – just kidding. Both girls stuffed it full with clothes, the floor was the only available option.

“So this is my fault now?”

Here they go again. 

“If you didn’t fuck the first half naked girl that twerked on you my sweater would still be here!” 

Megan tried to speak but got interrupted by Lara who was still going on a rant about how ridiculous her tastes in girls were.

“And Heather? Out of all the girls in our school you chose to fuck the only one with the voice of a seagull and–”

A soft thud made the room go quiet. Megan’s head moved away from Lara, facing the still opened door.

“Hi again Heather!” The brunette’s tone was way too cheerful, mocking – This was going to be extremely funny.

Lara froze mid sentence and spun around, her boots caught on Heather’s sweater. She looked down, picked it up and held it like a peace offering.

“I believe that one is mine.” Heather pointed to the badly stained sweater.

“Yes!” Lara answered nervously with an unnaturally big smile on her face.  “I’m sor–” 

“Sure. Bye.”

Heather kept her head low but what made Megan crack wasn’t how her roommate just got exposed, but how the blonde forced a deeper voice. For a second time that day she saw her run away from her room, and this time it was the last. 

Actually.

Well at least the sweater trade happened before she went away. 

Lara was happier now, relieved, her precious baby didn’t get hurt in the slightest – it did smell like an expensive antique piece of art but she could handle it. What she couldn’t handle was the situation repeating again: it wasn’t the first time she had to deal with the consequences of Megan’s hookups.

She got mono twice because one of the many girls used her lipstick.

Mononucleosis. Twice. In 3 months.

The kidnapping of her sweater was the last straw. They had to have a serious talk.

It happened around an hour later when Megan finally cleaned the mess on the bed and got changed into actual clothes. The smell of alcohol and r-rated activities hung in the air but Lara ignored it and focused on her words while applying her make up, sitting in front of the vanity mirror.

“Megs, baby, you should stop fucking around.”

Her tone was different than usual and caught Megan’s attention more than her doomscrolling.

“You mean living my life at 360 degrees?”

“I’m serious. You have someone new in your bed every weekend, if not every day.” She adjusted her mascara, head leaning slightly more inward, towards the mirror. “You might get some illness.”

“Hmhm you’re right, it’s unhealthy.”

Now this was weird, why was she agreeing without putting up a fight?

Lara’s face shifted to a surprised one in a matter of seconds, even scaring herself since she was facing the mirror – Megan was agreeing with her?! Wild.

“So–”

“Unhealthy like your bitchlessness.”

“I’m sorry what?”

“You heard me correct.” The brunette put down her phone while it was playing an italian brainrot video that acted as background music. Not the best but acceptable. 

She then grinned before speaking – “You get no hoes, so now you’re telling me how to live my life. Real mature, Lara.”

“I’m looking out for you and your reputation.”

“My reputation is perfectly fine, what do you mean?”

“Megan, people place bets on who you’ll fuck next.”

“I know!” The raised voice was a dead give away that the girl had just found out about that. “People care about me so much–”

“God, you shouldn’t be proud of it!”

Lara snapped, now getting mad at her roommate’s reckless and unconscious behaviour. 

“Chill out, mate.” Megan replied with an eye roll and a thick, fake, british accent; her phone was back in her hand while she scrolled on tiktok.

Silence had fallen between the two yet again giving them time to think about what to say or do next.

“I still think you’re jealous though.”

“Think what you prefer, midget.”

The cafeteria was loud like any other wednesday morning – thuds of the trays hitting the wooden tables and students’ voices echoed in the most populated part of the school building. 

You were peacefully sitting between Kazuha, your older sister, and Eunchae, your best friend since forever. She entered your life out of the blue and swore to never leave no matter what; years later she’s still there to support your awful decisions and your coffee addiction.

Chatting with your sister was Sakura, a nerd who failed the last year of college two times because she’s not sure of what to do next – Sat on her sides were Chaewon and Yunjin, highschool sweethearts and soon to be married (in their dreams).

Sakura switches seats with you every week just to keep the lovebirds away from each other, otherwise they’ll make out in front of everyone. 

Not the best sight when you’re trying to enjoy the radioactive meal served by the lunch lady. 

Each of your friends is invested in their own conversation, you don’t bother trying to follow any of them but can hear some words like “party”, “next friday” and “studying”. 

You wish your eyes stayed fixated on your food, actually the white goo – that was supposed to be mac and cheese – could keep occupied anyone, anyone but you.

Chewing the gummy like pasta felt like torture but 2 hours of math awaited and you couldn’t follow with an empty stomach. 

On your third bite, your eyes drifted to the table next to yours.

Her table.

“Megan and friends” as you called it, not because you had eyes only for her, but because the first day of college hers was the name you heard everyday, no matter the time or place, she was constantly mentioned by someone.

You could be walking down the hall to your next class and hear some girl ranting about Megan’s new haircut, or how she helped the cheerleaders with their new choreography – somehow, everything was about Megan.

When you asked your sister about it you were met with a worried look. 

Kazuha seemed preoccupied with your reasons. Did she do something to you? Did something happen that she wasn’t aware of? Did she have to kill her and/or her group?

She was ready to fight a nonexistent war – you managed to calm her down quickly, assuring it was just curiosity. Still, her answer didn’t change your initial impression of Megan.

“She’s trouble. Unless you want mono, which I doubt, stay away from her.”

You’ve learned to avoid Megan from then on, you’ve spoken with her once or twice in total.

That didn’t stop her charm from attracting you. 

You found yourself always searching for her in crowds, stopping to think about what it would be like studying with her, recognizing and unintentionally focusing on her laugh despite being surrounded by hundreds of different noises. 

Like right now, she was giggling at something her friend said, the sound echoed in the cafeteria but you seemed to be the only one to have heard it.

Megan was effortlessly pretty, your eyes couldn’t dart away from her.

‘I’ll blink and look away. Easy.’

You did that, blinked and – ‘Shit, she caught me.’

Her brown eyes locked with yours right after they opened again. To make it worse, she smiled. 

Megan Skiendiel smiled at you.

It scared the crap out of your soul – A lump formed in your throat as you inhaled sharply, eyes widened and the heat engulfed your face, which became redder than a tomato.

‘What the fuck was that Y/n?!’

All the sounds were being drowned by your racing heart, worried someone might hear it, you began to eat again, purposely making the spoon collide with the plate after every bite.

That just attracted unwanted attention from your friends.

“You okay there, Y/n?” Eunchae’s questioning expression made you feel under pressure.

‘No. I made eye contact with Megan and almost collapsed when she smiled at me.’

Was what you wanted to answer. The image of her smile flashed before your eyes, frying your poor brain once again.

“Pretty.” Was all you managed to say.

The whole table stopped their conversations to look at you and your best friend, now she was smiling widely.

"Aww! You think I’m pretty!”

Eunchae hugged you tightly, and of course, you hugged her back.

‘I wonder how hugging Meg–’ 

‘No. Not now brain.’

Your head rested on her shoulder as the others were still looking. 

Chaewon analyzed your face like an artist does with a painting, she whispered something to Sakura’s ear and both of them turned to you with an evil grin.

They were plotting.

“So Y/n…” Chaewon’s tone was dangerously sweet “...What’s between you and Megan huh?”

Busted.

Thinking about it, she had a clear view of the both of you and probably witnessed the awkward interaction – “Nothing. I barely talk to her.”

“So you casually stared and just as casually stopped working when she smiled at you?”

“Chaewon, leave my sister alone.”

Kazuha defended you once again. “What? She’s not allowed to have a crush or something?”

Yunjin asked with a mocking tone that would make Zuha upset. 

“Not when it’s someone like Megan.”

“She’s not that bad…” You muttered to yourself, enough for the group to hear you.

Before any of the girls could talk a loud ‘boom’ made everyone turn to the entrance of the cafeteria. 

Right there stood Lara Raj. 

You glanced at Megan’s table once again and noticed that the spot besides the brunette was empty. Your brain was too focused on your not-crush-but-crush to register her absence before.

In all her bitchy might, the indian girl walked to her usual table clutching a piece of paper in her hands.

“I didn’t know she could write.” Yunjin whispered. “Last time I saw her holding a pen was in 3rd grade.” she added.

You saw her reach for Chaewon’s tray and eat one of her chips. 

Lara eventually made her way towards her friends but didn’t sit down right away, she knew that everyone’s attention was on her.

Everyone was curious about what caused her to make such an entrance. 

Even her other friends were staring confused at the scene, except Yoonchae who was unbothered by all the drama. 

She was hunched over her phone, playing videogames. The two girls causing chaos was normal for her.

Lara’s eyes shifted to Megan before her hand slammed the piece of paper right in front of her. 

The brunette jumped in her seat and cursed under her breath, she was quickly shushed as the girl started talking.

“Since you claim to be such a womanizer or whatever shit your brain delivered this morning. I made this to prove you wrong.”

Her voice was loud, echoing in the silent cafeteria. Even the lunch lady stopped serving food to watch Lara serve cunt.

“The kiss list?” Megan read carefully.

From your spot you could make out a few names and scribbled on the side were squares. 

“There’s 100 girls there, you have to kiss them all by the end of the school year.”

Lara explained as if it was the most natural thing ever. 

Kissing 100 girls sounded like hell to you – and it was incredibly unhygienic. 

“And if I refuse…” Megan now looked up at Lara’s smug expression, she was beaming with excitement.

“You have to admit you’re a fucking loser. On your insta.”

“For fuck’s sake, are you 5?”

“Watch your mouth next time.” She took a seat next to her upset roommate, she was still looking at the list, her face growing more shocked after each name she read.

“Why is your name here too?”

“Funsies. So are you in or not?”

Another glance at the list.

If she said no, Lara would think of something worse.

“I’m in, not the way I’d want tho.”

“Marveling!” 

By the end of the first week the whole school knew about Megan’s challenge.

Girls were manifesting their names to be on the list and even placing bets on who will be next.

Needless to say Megan’s already popular persona became even more popular. 

Walking around campus was like walking in a fangirl’s room. The obsessed one kind.

On the corkboard adorning the wall of the main entrance used to be posters for club activities, papers with exams scores and more school-related things.

Now there was a print of Megan’s face covering half of the papers with “Kissing Angel” written right below.

Girls whispered about the magical kiss they shared with the brunette in exaggerating details. 

The cherry on top of this woman-made mess was the school’s blog. The technology freaks built a whole system just to keep count of Megan’s progress.

Everytime a name was wiped off the list, a loud ‘ding’ accompanied the notification of the girl’s recent accomplishment. 

To make sure nobody felt left out the creators found a way to bypass the do not disturb.

How did they find out when it was the right time to update the counter? They had eyes everywhere, it wasn’t unknown.

So during the most tranquil days there was, a round of ‘ding’s were enough to break the peace and quiet. People erupted in laughter, cheers and such.

The principal tried reasoning with the owners of the blog, saying it was disruptive, but apparently they had “compromising information” about him so he let it go.

“This is so stupid.” You slumped on Kazuha’s bed while staring at the counter like it was mocking you. The pink glittery letters spelled “Girls kissed” and the number was already at 28. 

“Twenty eight girls in a week. That’s four girls a day!”

You lowered the arm holding the phone by your side, staring at the ceiling in search of a way to stop this logorating nonsense.

“I’m sorry to say this, sis, but Megan owes you nothing. She can kiss whoever she wants.”

“She owes herself some respect!”

“And absolutely nothing to you.” She deadpanned, not even glancing away from her computer.

“You’re twisting the knife deeper.”

“Maybe that will open your eyes about her.”

Kazuha is a sweet person but it’s extremely hard to change her mind. Plus, if she hates someone like she does with Megan, say bye to your chances of having a wholesome “My gf meets my family” scenario.

You chose to stay silent and stare daggers at your sister’s back. 

She ignored you. No way you were going to convince her that your crush was a saint when you were crashing out over what she was doing.

“I told you, she’s trouble. Stay away.”

“I tried, but her charm was calling my name.”

“That’s called schizophrenia–”

“Infatuation.” You corrected, matter of factly.

“Same thing.”

Kazuha stopped typing on her device. She spun on her chair and turned towards you, she grimaced at your dead fish state.

“What? Your bed is comfy!” The way you whined the words made your sister smile fondly, sure you had terrible tastes in women but she couldn't stay mad at you for long. 

Silence fell into the room, again, you were checking the blog’s kiss counter.

“Still the same. She’s behaving.” You announced proudly to Kazuha who rolled her eyes.

At this point she was desperate to make you stop catching even more feelings for the celebrity-like girl, before you fell too deep into the rabbit hole. 

“How did it start?” She questioned with a raised eyebrow, head slightly tilting to the side.

Her tone was genuine, not worried, not disappointed.

You closed your eyes and pressed two fingers against your temples, gathering every information about your interactions with Megan.

Once your eyes opened, your sister still had that puzzled look on her face “So?”

“She’s pretty and I saw her playing Dress To Impress on the school’s computer once.”

“Aren’t you in a different class?”

“After school, I was walking past the computer room and heard someone curse at the screen, looked inside and saw her playing. She arrived last, six times in a row.”

In your sister’s eyes you were starting to look like a mental hospital case. 

“So you stalked her.”

“No! I was curious about her hobbies…”

“Sure. But a Roblox game isn’t enough to make a person fall in love.”

“I’ve never said I was in love. It’s an infatuation.” The truth. You couldn’t say for sure if your feelings for Megan were real. After all the major interaction you had with her was that one time at the cafeteria.

“That’s it? You’re basing your feelings off her gaming skills.”

“Her poor gaming skills would attract bugs, the game she was playing did.”

“She had the VIP, didn’t she?”

“Not the point.”

“Why are you here in the first place? I thought you were going to study with Manchae.”

Kazuha turned her back to you, her chair spun and once again she was typing on her computer about boring physics laws that you didn’t care about.

“I needed time with my sister.” Your voice was lower as you rolled on your back to face the ceiling once again. 

The way your voice became less confident made Kazuha spin her chair towards you. No questions, arms crossed and a softer expression.

“Listen, I know you dislike Megan because of her reputation. I don’t know if I have feelings for her, serious ones, but I want you to understand that I might develop them.”

Voicing your thoughts made you feel lighter, like a weight was lifted off your chest. 

Still, Megan was out there kissing girls. It bothered you how your sister was right about one thing: she owed you nothing.

Kazuha was thinking about what to answer. Her protective instincts were screaming at her not to give in, Megan would eventually hurt you – Seeing how you were constantly checking your phone, despite the personalized notification that would come from the blog, made her come up with a question she wished she asked earlier.

“What if you’re on the list?”

“Me?”

“Yes. All the girls she has kissed are from your grade or hers, plus I think most of them had rarely interacted with Megan before.”

“But that makes it nearly impossible to complete in time, no one would kiss a stranger.”

“Exactly, Lara made sure her possibilities of winning the bets were high.” – “Keeping in mind all these factors there’s a 50% chance you’re on the list.”

Damn. Kazuha’s words made sense. Is this what physics does to people? Does it make them smart?

“The real question now is, will you let her kiss you?”

Your face twisted into a frown as you thought of the possible scenario. The possibility of being close to Megan made your heart race, at the same time, though, a feeling of sadness replaced the excitement.

You’d be just another name to tick off. 

It didn’t sit right with you. 

“I won’t let her.”

At that, your sister smiled. A content, proud smile – “You’re already getting better.”

“I’m preserving my peace and first kiss.”

“One step closer to your confused feelings vanishing.”

“I promise I’m normal about this. I won’t let the growing number get to my head.”

Famous last words. Right after you spoke, the familiar and ptsd inducing ‘ding’ echoed into the room.

You hurried to check the kiss counter on the blog and there it was, a big 29 dancing on your screen. The grip on your phone tightened.

This was not getting to your head. Not at all.

While you failed to have another silent mental breakdown, Kazuha had opened the page too, she stared at it, then glanced at you.

“Not bonkers.”

You were spending time in the library with Eunchae. She needed help with biology and after ditching her the day before you couldn’t tell her no.

Mitosis was the topic you were revising – Simple, basic biology lesson that even a toddler would understand.

Maybe not.

You two decided to sit away from everyone else, one of the secluded corners where people went to: A. make out, B. actually study in silence, C. make out 2.0, D. plan a murder.

Your best friend chose the spot for one of those reasons and another extra one, gossiping. Specifically about the “kissing rampage” situation.

Since the cafeteria incident she sensed something was wrong with you, and needed the tea to be spilled because it seemed boiling hot.

Which it was.

She was waiting for the right time to ask the question, focusing first on the cell division method you were carefully dumbifing for her.

The surroundings were only tall, full wooden bookshelves that looked fragile and antique, dusty particles could be visible thanks to sun rays entering from the windows and lightening the table you two were studying on. 

It made the atmosphere magical, if only it wasn't for the books and notes scattered around.

“So first the cell needs to duplicate its DNA so the ‘spare’ one can go to the daughter cells.”

You pointed to the very first part of the image in the book, the cell had filaments scattered around its insides, one string blue, the other red.

“The different colors are the two DNAs, one the og, one the copy.”

Eunchae nodded along – Interphase, Telophase, Emophase, all sounded and looked the same when tea awaited, getting hotter each minute.

You weren’t dumb, your friend’s distracted expression was easy to pin point. She just rested her chin on her palm and kept humming at whatever you said.

Worst thing is, you barely explained the process and she was already listening to other people's conversations more than yours. 

This was going to be a long study session.

To snap her out of it you handed her the biology book and asked her to answer the questions at the end of the page. She took the pencil in her right hand and scribbled down something, meanwhile you took your chance to check the blog. 32. Another 3 girls since the day started.

A hand swiftly took your phone away, holding it hostage – “Eunchae!”

Your voice raised, from the background someone shushed you for being too loud.

“Care to explain why you’re looking at your screen like that?”

“It’s nothing.” Her hand raised higher when you reached for your phone.

“Let me ask you a question, you didn’t call me pretty in the cafeteria, right?”

“I-” There was no point in lying “No. I do think you’re pretty, gorgeous even.”

“Flattery won’t distract me from the main reason we’re here.”

“Mitosis?”

“Gossip. Y/n. Gossip regarding a certain crush of yours.” 

She slammed the book shut and tilted her body towards yours. She had your full attention…now.

“I don’t have a crush on Megan.” You tried to explain in a panic making Eunchae laugh.

“I never said her name.”

“Touché.” – “Not a crush, though, just a ‘I think she’s pretty and/or hot but wouldn’t date’ thing.” 

While you were talking you spotted someone familiar from the corner of your eye. The pink bangs, flashy hoodie and nerd glasses that made her look so damned hot. 

Yep. It was her.

She was looking around, searching for something or someone, scribbled paper in hand – probably the list.

“Speaking of the devil.”

Eunchae smiles sheepishly, covering her mouth to contain the giggles that threatened to escape her.

Your gaze was stuck on Megan, analyzing her movements; you also caught a glimpse of the receptionist, an old woman in her sixties, pointing towards your table.

In a matter of seconds, the brunette was sprint-walking in your direction. 

You looked away, locking eyes with Eunchae.

“She’s coming here!” Her tone was a mix of excited and super excited.

“We’re on that list bro. Or at least one of us, stop looking so smiley! This is hell-” You were shaking her from the shoulders and stopped only when the reason for all your problems came to a halt in front of you two.

Her body blocked the sunrays, casting a glooming, dark shadow on the tables and the materials scattered there. (foreshadowing)

You looked up, hands still on your friend’s shoulders.

Megan glanced at her, then at you.

Unexpectedly her eyes stayed focused on your face. Maintaining eye contact wasn’t your specialty but this felt like a challenge, more to you than to her.

“I know this will sound awkward but ca-”

“No.”

Silence.

Eunchae watched the scene and wished a basket of popcorns would magically appear in her hands.

“You don’t even know what I was going to say!”

A few heads turned, whispering started. You stood up to be at eye level with Megan.

“That.” You pointed to the list, your finger pushing the paper against her chest “Is a huge giveaway.”

You don’t know where the confidence came from, but something about those names crossed, one by one, made your blood boil with jealousy.

This got to your head. It was inevitable.

Megan’s face was unreadable, you expected her to look mad, humiliated, annoyed. But none of that. 

She looked more speechless than anything else. 

“Not even-”

“No.”

“Fine. Okay.” Her hands raised in defeat, eyes avoiding yours, you swore her cheeks were dusted pink and not from her make up, but you let it go, sitting back down.

The brunette gave you a look of disappointment that you didn’t catch and walked away.

Once she was out of ear shot Eunchae let out a surprised yet proud scoff. “Dude you killed your chances with her.”

Your legs were shaking from the anxiety of being close to your not-crush-but-crush, furthermore rejecting her in front of other people. Guilt never failed to make you snap back to reality, panic rising as your previous actions settled in.

“Oh my god…” You muttered in disbelief.

“He won’t help you.”

“Do you think she hates me now?”

“Hate or not, she still needs that kiss. Use it to your advantage.” An evil plan you were ready to actuate.

As if on cue, you saw Megan again. She had a slim book in her hand and silently walked to the farthest end of the desk you and Eunchae were using. Some pens had rolled there but before you could move them away, she assured you it was fine and began reading the book.

The biology lesson between you and your best friend kept going, your tone became quieter as you acknowledged Megan’s presence.

When Eunchae answered questions in the book, you glanced at your side, pretending to look for something when in reality you were hoping Megan would look back or start a conversation.

Odd for someone who brutally rejected her minutes prior.

Failing to catch her attention, yours turned back to learning and explaining. 

In those moments her head lifted just slightly from the book and she would steal glances. It was different than kissing and walking away like she did the other thirtytwo times, she was working for it, and literally because the book she was reading was assigned as “homework” by her literature teacher.

Animal Farm, by George Orwell. 

A classic and also small, barely 70 pages. 

Not enough to keep her gaze away from your face – or what she could see in that moment.

She watched you explaining things so effortlessly to Eunchae that it made her wonder if you could be like that with her too. She believed you weren’t the fierce asshole from earlier.

Megan observed you longer than she read her book, your voice was a distraction and she swore she had read page 19 five times already. Her solution consisted of searching on her phone for flirting methods that would work on a smart girl, and nonchalantly flipping through the pages like a guy desperate for female attention.

During the research she asked herself why she was going above and beyond for a stupid kiss. She could find someone that looked like you and trick people into thinking she had won your heart or something.

It sounded like a good plan but she was ass at lying.

You stood up when Megan reached half of the book and her eyes were fighting to stay open. 

Gathering your things took you longer than Eunchae, she had flown away fast – ‘Just how difficult is biology?’ The brunette asked herself while you stuffed notes and books in your backpack, the wooden table becoming emptier.

Her eyes darted to you but, to her surprise, you were already looking. Eyes tired but still glaring – “Orwell?” You questioned.

“Yeah, homework, I don’t usually read this crap.” Megan tried to sound cool, maybe you were into that – Spoiler: you weren’t. She understood it from the way your face fell a little. 

“But if you like it then uhh… cool.”

She wanted to impress you, needed it, for the bet obviously.

“I’ve never read it before.” Your voice was softer.

“I’m trying, but books aren’t my best suit.”

Oversharing was something Megan did when she was nervous or with her friends, not with a random girl and certainly not with one that had rejected her.

The thought of asking for help popped up again. She watched you slide the black backpack over your shoulder and start walking away – “Wait!”

Stopping in your tracks you didn’t turn around, simply not wanting to deal with her; your walk to the exit began again.

She wasn’t going to chase you. It’s not in her nature, you’ve learned it by hearing the various stories told in the hallways. 

To say you were surprised after hearing the fast, heavy footsteps followed by a hand grabbing your wrist was an understatement. 

You turned around and tensed up in embarrassment: Megan’s face was right in front of yours, her expression a mirror of your red shocked one. Her hand was warm and didn’t let go right away, not that you stepped back either.

None of you didn’t dare to move or look away. Just two idiots standing way too close in the middle of a secluded corner in the library.

“Can you help me with the book? Pretty please?” Megan whispered, making the best non awkward smile she could manage. 

You could only nod and follow her to where she was before, taking a seat next to her and speaking – “You can let go now, I won’t run away.”

“Oh sorry.” Your wrist was free but you missed the warmth of her hand already. 

“What do you need help with?”

“Reading.”

She wouldn’t meet your eyes as she handed you the book, the cover was covered in a thin layer of dust and the pages were yellowing. Average library book, even though usually they were more destroyed.

“What? You want me to read this for you?”

“I know it sounds stupid but I can’t focus well, I read twenty pages since I sat down.”

“Maybe if you stopped staring-”

“I wasn’t staring.” Her tone turned defensive, slightly high pitched.

“My bad. If you stopped being a creep you-”

“I was yearning.” She interrupted huffing in annoyance but a sheepish smile was on her face the whole time.

“You were hoping I’d change my mind if you stared hard enough.” Now you opened the book, looking through the pages; some people had left notes in the pages, at least they were written in pencil.

“It worked, you’re here.” Her hand patted your shoulder. Touchy much.

“To help you, not kiss you.” 

A defeated groan escaped her mouth, she leaned all her weight onto the chair and covered her face with her hands to muffle a scream of frustration.

Megan was such a weirdo. It didn’t suit her popular persona at all; reason why the initial embarrassment faded away in an instant – “Why noooot? Am I not pretty enough?”

“I could be straight.”

“Not with that face you’re not.”

“Rude…”

She scooted closer to you, almost falling off her own chair. “You haven’t answered the question yet.”

You raised your head from the book to look at her – “You’re pretty. Pretty annoying.”

“Ouch, my ego.” She leaned back onto her chair, making it creak from the continuous movements. “I need it to win the bet.”

“Quite the dedication for it to be ‘only a bet’” You joked, making quotation marks with your fingers.

“I don’t want to admit I’m a loser! I have a reputation to maintain.”

“Right, better be known as a hoe than a loser.”

“Stoooopppp!” Her feet hit the floor repeatedly as she whined. Sentence by sentence her persona crumbled – You mentally compared the image Megan built of herself and the one she was showing now.

Two different people.

You didn’t know which one was the worst.

After she was done with her tantrum you flipped the pages .

“Pay attention alright?”

“Just don’t make it boring or else I’ll fall asleep.” The brunette told you. Not even a moment later she had her head on your shoulder. You slid the book between you two as a finger followed the words you were reading them.

Being close to Megan felt different than in your head, this wasn’t a scenario that crossed your mind. Meeting her at a party and making out seemed more possible than helping her with a decaying book.

It wasn’t until the sun started setting that you finished reading the whole thing. 

Megan’s breath became steadier and her sleeping body heavier as it relied on your shoulder to stay balanced. 

Both your phones buzzed with notifications, you silently checked yours and raised an eyebrow at the swarm of texts from the group chat and missed calls from your sister. She was going to scold you for days, but it didn’t matter. 

Spending time with Megan was worth every minute of it.

During the following months the kiss counter grew day by day. Megan skipped your name to focus on other girls but kept hanging out with you because she liked your company. Her friends were surprised at how whipped she was acting.

If she saw you walk down the hallway she would call your name just to say hi or wave. She texted you to ask for help for “smart people” related stuff – About that, Lara noticed the growing pile of books on Megan’s nightstand; what once resembled a mess made of rose colored powders and brushes became a spotless habitat for her new babies.

You became aware of it the first time she invited you over to her dorm to help her study. Knowing Megan, she was probably planning something fishy so you initially declined; she made promise after promise, swearing she wouldn’t try anything and that her roommate would be there.

In the end you accepted and managed to convince Kazuha to not call every two minutes (you settled for a call every hour). She was starting to accept your friendship with Megan, and you were starting to develop proper feelings. 

Somehow it came naturally.

On Megan’s end things were the same. Her feelings became stronger since that time at the library and she started yearning for you. For real this time. 

She wanted to get this kissing bullshit over with as soon as possible so she could focus her attention on you. 

The rush is what made her end up in this “awful” situation: seated on her roommate’s bed where Manon and Dani, all with a confused expression. 

Yoonchae was laying on Megan’s bed, right next to her, as she played Angry Birds 2 on her ipad; Lara was by the door, holding the list she made like it was radioactive.

“So which one of those books made you think that cheating was a bad idea?” From her body language alone one could understand she was extremely mad.

“I told you to make her take pictures as proof, no one agreed with me.” Manon replied, a bit offended that her idea was discarded seeing what happened.

“Because it wasn’t ethical.” Sophia’s voice came from the closet as she rummaged through it in search of something to wear later that day. 

“Nothing Megan does is ethical.” Daniela was filing her nails, unbothered by the negative aura but worried about her friend’s sudden change in behaviour.

“We’re lucky that girl didn’t stay quiet and told the blog about it.” Lara pinched the bridge of her nose and glared at Megan. She was quietly laying on half of her bed, debating on whether or not to tell the others why she cheated her way out of some kisses. 

The room was silent for a few moments until Yoonchae spoke up – “Megan likes Y/n.”

The brunette jolted upright at the sentence – “You- You promised to keep it a secret!” 

She looked around the room to see the girls’ reactions. Sophia, who had crouched by the closet and looked like a hot fem version of Gollum, was staring at Megan with clothes in her hands and an expression that yelled ‘No fucking way’.

Daniela stopped filing her nails and muttered “Called it.” before going back to what she was doing. 

Manon took some cash from her phone case and handed it to the latina, annoyed she had lost the bet so soon.

Yoonchae was still playing, the music from the game served as background; it made everything more comical.

Lara was frantically searching for your name on the list, when she found it her expression changed. “You haven’t kissed her yet?”

“She refused to.” Megan explained as her cheeks got red. Something that was happening often since she started hanging out with you.

“Pause.” Daniela said. “So you ask for the kiss, baby Nakamura rejects you, you hang out and now you’re in love, already?”

“Gay people move fast, you wouldn’t understand.” Lara answered, making her way to Megan’s bed, plopping down on it. “This is girl-talk material, drop everything ‘cause we need to talk.”

Everyone did as told and minutes later all six girls were forming a circle on the now conjoined beds. This happened all the times when they either performed a ritual or, like in this case, had a girl-talk.

“I’m not sure she’s into me like that.” Megan began, looking down while fidgeting with her hands. “Plus, I’m going around kissing other girls, she wouldn’t take me seriously if I confessed.”

“Don’t confess yet, first establish if she likes you.” Sophia’s tone was soft like usual, her hand reached for Megan’s and squeezed it. “We’re here if anything goes wrong.”

“I’m more surprised that she is still alive. Kazuha doesn’t let anyone go near her little sister.” Lara thought of all the times your sister glared at them for just smiling at you. She not only wasn’t fond of Megan, but of the entire clique.

“Please don’t remind me. We went to the movies once and she straight up threatened to kick my ass if I got too close to Y/n.” 

“Well did you at least hold her hand?” Manon leaned forward, expecting a positive answer that didn’t come.

“Nope. My hands were sweating so much. We shared pop corn though.”

“Share a kiss next time.” 

“Or a house– Wait, Lara can switch with Y/n’s roommate so they can share the dorm.”

“Talking about roommates, Yoonchae, don’t you share the dorm with Eunchae?”

All the girls turned towards the youngest, she let out a nervous laugh – the one she did when something was up but she couldn't tell.

“Yoonchae.” Megan narrowed her eyes in suspicion. 

“Yeah…?” The korean girl gulped. 

“You don’t happen to know something we don’t, right?”

“Maybe I do…”

“Mate no, are you shitting me right now?” Manon scoffed, slapping her own thigh in the process of imitating a thick british accent and being “mad”.

The girls were all talking one over the other, Dani didn’t know what to say anymore and began to file her nails again. Megan was desperate for information and basically hugged Yoonchae.

“Please talk!”

“It’s a secret!” The girl panicked.

“I’m your best friend!” 

“Everyone shut up!” 

All girls collectively stopped talking, understanding that Yoonchae might have gotten overwhelmed. Even Megan unglued herself and sat up straight; she was waiting patiently for the tea to be spilled.

“I don’t know the whole story but Eunchae went to Kazuha’s dorm for a group sleepover. While everyone was asleep she woke up and heard Y/n and her talk about something. She listened and turns out Y/n has feelings for Megan but thinks she hangs out with her only for the bet.” 

Yoonchae said everything in a single breath, she had never talked so fast in her life. And never will ever again.

“I don’t blame her for doubting you.” Lara said, in response Sophia lightly slapped the back of her head. 

“What Lara wanted to say is that you should bring her on a date.”

“I will!” Megan says cheerfully, bouncing on her seat at the idea. Then she suddenly stopped and got all serious. “After I complete the kiss list.”

The bet was still her top priority. A red flag.

She wanted to complete it before committing to you. A somewhat green flag.

You could’ve chosen a better girl to crush on, to be honest.

May, the last month of school. Precisely, the last week in which Megan could act according to the list and kiss you. She didn’t.

The previous month she arrived at 99 kisses, you were the only one missing. A part of you felt special, the other was jealous and ready to stomp on each one of those girls – Some of them still were all over Megan and gushed at every word she spoke to them.

Fucking annoying.

And of course it happened when you two were out on “dates”, around campus, at the movies, at the restaurants, even in the middle of the damned street.

How did she react? Oddly. It wasn’t the flirty Megan you knew but a serious, almost cold version. She dismissed them quickly and dragged you away by your wrist.

During all the dates she never held your hands, claiming they were sweaty and it was really gross. You didn’t care but said nothing; it was easy to see through her lies but pushing it wasn’t going to make her talk.

The relationship was going in the right direction, so much that your sister accepted the fact that you and Megan were unofficially going out. 

The scariest part was the rumors; after the stunt she pulled with the fake kisses, the brunette was seen differently. She suddenly stopped having girls in her bed, studied more and didn’t attend certain parties – people reportedly saw her entering your dorm instead. 

Coincidence? Not really.

Now the whole institute focused on another aspect of Megan’s love life: you.

A picture of the two of you studying together in the library made tons of likes on the school’s blog. Random people that never bothered to notice you tried to engage in short conversations and inviting you to parties, when you declined they said the same thing: “Megan will be there, don’t worry.”

Is this what being her almost girlfriend was like? 

You became a celebrity overnight and it was overwhelming. How did she deal with the fame so constantly you didn’t know.

“Some people are built for it.” She would say, and you’d shrug while answering that you weren’t one of them.

You walked side by side to your dorm. Finals were over and Megan was ranting about the big ‘end of the year party’, your backpack was on her shoulder since she insisted on making you feel lighter. You were coming out of an important test, that was the least she could do. 

“We should go together now that studying isn’t a problem anymore.” She said casually.

“I don’t do parties.”

Megan turned to you with a sad, pleading expression, puppy dog eyes staring right at you. 

“Fine.” You sighed “A bit of fun won’t hurt.”

“Yes!” She cheered out loud. This was the very first time she convinced you to attend a party.

“But I’m not drinking any alcohol.”

“No need, I’ll do that for you.”

“I’ll take care of your drunk ass, just don’t throw up on me.”

“Noted.”

The rest of the walk consisted of small talks and Megan explaining how a party worked. The host was a guy named Jake, it wasn’t the first time you heard about him since he was involved in every school event.

Apparently he had rented a mansion for the occasion and invited the whole school. It was his last year so he wanted to make something special – He even convinced the owner to let him use the pool.

Drunk college students and alcohol is a bad combo.

The hallway was empty except for a few seniors emptying their lockers and packing their things. One day you’d be in their shoes but for now, you enjoyed your only problem being the girl by your side.

In the span of a few months you and her had become incredibly close, all because she had been a bitch to Lara. 

While thinking about all the shenanigans that happened during the school year, your brain fainted. You walked too close to Megan and your fingers touched hers for a brief moment. She pretended not to notice as she felt her heart racing. 

You had her on a chokehold at this point.

Unknowingly. 

Holding hands was something she never did with anyone. Now she had the chance to do it with you, her first proper crush. Her hands started to sweat once again, thoughts flooded her head.

Sensing the shift in the atmosphere and Megan’s nervousness you extended your pinky and interlocked it with hers. If she wasn’t ready for hand holding, you could start slowly, one thing at a time.

Her eyes immediately lit up, she looked down at your hands, then at you. Before she could speak you started talking– “The bet?”

“What about it?” The brunette asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

“You’re going to lose.” Your tone was teasing, testing her.

“I know.” Megan sighed, she stared straight ahead. “I figured if we became friends I had more chances to get the kiss, but life isn’t all about winning. I can still lose and be happy with what I have.”

You stared in awe. This was the same girl that talked in brainrot 24/7 – “Woah.” Your mouth hung open, Megan managed to make you speechless. 

“What’s up with that reaction?”

“Nothing, I’m just… flabbergasted.”

“I tend to have that effect on people.” The smug smile returned.

“Shut up.” You rolled your eyes

You came to a halt once the walk to your dorm ended – Megan watched you unlock the door with your keys, she noticed the My Melody keychain dangling from them. 

‘Cute’

Her pinky squeezed yours once you opened the door. 

“Stay over?” You asked, already knowing the answer.

“If I ever say no, shoot me.”

The mansion was blaring with loud music and bright multicolored lights, people having fun, making out and drinking like there was no tomorrow.

You stood next to Kazuha who held your hand tightly. In the end your group and Megan’s decided to unite and now you were all standing in line to enter the party. Two bodyguards were handling the crowd of people and checking everyone’s IDs.

When it was your sister’s turn she had to let go of your hand.

Megan saw it as an opportunity to sneak up behind you and pull you closer by the waist, the warmth of her hands on your exposed skin made you shiver. She insisted on you wearing something “cooler” for the occasion and you agreed, even if Kazuha thought you were showing too much skin.

“How are you feeling?” She whispered to your ear.

“Nervous.” You answered, hyperaware of the contact between you two. 

You watched Kazuha enter the mansion and the bodyguard asking for your ID – “She’s with me, Ross.”

Megan stepped up, now holding your hand; the man nodded towards the entrance of the building.

“Aurafarming.” Said Manon with her ID out, as she handed it to the security guy – “Down bad.” Added Yunjin while shaking her head.

“Oh hi, didn’t realize you were here too.” The sass in her voice made the korean mad.

“Let’s just go inside before your girls destroy something.”

“That only happened one time.”

They walked side by side searching for the rest of their friends, Kazuha was on the dance floor with Daniela and Sakura. All three having the time of their lives.

Yoonchae was with a group of freshmen collecting cash from all the fake IDs she made for them. Her roommate, Eunchae, had an ipad in her hands and was making sure the payments were correct and no one was trying to scam her friend.

By the bar were the rest: Sophia singing a song in tagalog to Lara, lipstick smudged all over her drink and a trail of empty, tiny glasses near her seat. The filipina always told the others not to drink but was the first to get wasted.

Chaewon was entertaining herself by watching you and Megan blatantly flirt, it was a painful show that she enjoyed. Until her girlfriend put an arm on her shoulder – “Everything’s ready?” 

“Yup, I left Manon to set up the fireworks outside.” Yunjin grinned, kissing the top of Chaewon’s head.

The girl smiled.

“Give them half an hour and they’ll be out of here.” 

And she was right.

A headache began torturing you, Megan noticed and led you outside despite you saying you were okay. She complimented herself for drinking less than usual and anticipating you’d need a breath of fresh hair.

The balcony was a place Yunjin told her about, claiming it was rarely crowded because people focused on the bar and the pool. 

It was empty when you two arrived. 

No disturbances.

Megan leaned onto the railing and you followed her by doing the same. The loud music was less audible now. 

“Feeling better?” Her hand caressed your back gently, nails ever so slightly scratching it.

“Yes, sorry for being a party pooper. You can go back if you want-”

“I’ll gladly stay here.”

“Okay…”

These moments of silence were normal occurrences for you and Megan, it wasn’t awkward, none of you knew what to say. That’s it.

You both gazed at the stars. 

“They’re beautiful.” It slipped from your mouth, you didn’t mean to say it out loud.

“Yeah, you are.” She replied.

Megan was admiring you with a lovesick expression.

“Hm?”

“You’re beautiful. You know, extremely pretty.”

“I know what beautiful means, dummy.” 

She smiled, you did too. 

“I wanted to win that bet so bad that I fell for you in the process.” Megan confessed out of nowhere. Her eyes were locked on yours, they widened at her words. 

You both stared at each other for a while before bursting into hysterical laughter, both for the same reason.

“That was so bad, Megs!” 

“I know but I tried!” She wheezed, clutching at her stomach “Fuck I even stayed up all night thinking about it.”

“You’re adorable.” There were tears in your eyes from how hard you were laughing; a sniffle left you as you wiped them away.

None of you realized how much closer you had gotten in the process, her own eyes were staring at your lips – you leaned in, unsure of what you were doing. Your brain was a mess, all you could think about was to feel her lips on yours.

Megan sighed when it finally happened. She had dreamed of this moment way too many times – her hands held your face gently and couldn’t help but smile into the kiss. It was genuine, better than you could’ve ever imagined.

It was really like they said, the noises drowned in the background like they were melting away, all you could feel was her presence. 

Kissing her felt heavenly.

As you both pulled away your cheeks were rosy and breath heavy, you rested your forehead against hers.

“I’m happy with you.” She whispered breathlessly.

“Me too. A lot.”

You were about to lean in when an explosion in the sky caught your attention – Megan’s hands left your face as she jumped from the sudden loud noise.

The fireworks were blue, forming a sentence in the sky. “Congratulations, it’s a boy- What the fuck?!” Her voice was loud, confused but in a good way. The hint of annoyance because you got interrupted was there, obviously.

Then another round of fireworks, they spelled a word only.

“Gays.” You read out loud, crossing your arms, an amused smirk crept up on your face.

“I have no idea what that was but will you be my girlfriend?” She was still looking up at the now fading lights. 

Two voices could be heard from the bushes near the balcony, like there were people yelling at one another. Meh. You didn’t give a fuck about them. At the moment Megan was more important.

“Yes. I’ll be your girlfriend. But I’m not ready for a baby yet.” You joked, punching her shoulder.

Bonus scene

The voices in the bushes were none other than Manon and Yunjin. 

The first girl almost lost a finger while setting the whole thing while the second girl almost lost her good hand (iykwim) during the liting up process.

Once the fireworks were in the sky, they heard Megan’s loud curse. 

Manon was supposed to order the custom “Gays” firework, easy, she went on an illegal website and everything for a cheap price.

Yunjin on the other hand had to go to a supermarket to get the “Congratulations” one. She had one job and failed.

She heard her friend tossing out of the way to search for the box of fireworks, she found it moments later and groaned. 

“Jen, it says “Congratulations, it's a boy” You got the wrong one!”

“Huh? Let me see- WHAT?! This thing cost 20 bucks!”

“Don’t say it like it’s my fault, you had literally the easiest job on the planet!”

Yunjin sighed, leaving the box to fall on the ground while she sat by the bush.

“Now I understand why the cashier asked if I was the father.”

“THE FATHER?!”

⟢ Katseye masterlist

[sixflame438]

「 Can't Stand it 」

s. megan x youtuber ! f reader ✎𓂃 You and Megan have a little quarrel, one of the ones where you can sleep on it and it'll get better… but then you get a brilliant idea for a video: ignore her for 24 hours.

word count ! 3.1 k

requested ! anon: Hi, can you do a story with Yoonchae? How would she react to a reader ignoring her for 24 hours? (If you can't do it with Yoonchae, then maybe with Megan?)

author's note ! guys i dont write for any minors at ANY capacity, but i defo wanted to do this one 😛 soooo something cute and simple for yall

Being the girlfriend of a global popstar wasn’t exactly easy—nor was being an influencer at the same time. Fortunately, at least eighty percent of Eyekons were supportive of you and Megan. Your fans had even taken a liking to your girlfriend, constantly asking for her in your YouTube comments.

That was something you were used to by now—your fans watching your videos not just for you, but also for the friendships you showcased to the public. Now, your virality might’ve been more recent, but you’d been a content creator for years.

You’d always loved being comedic, entertaining people, and hating to be taken seriously unless absolutely necessary. Back in the early 2010s, you fell in love with making skits, short-form videos, and random challenge clips. Platforms like Vine and Musical.ly were some of the biggest reasons you could live the life you had now.

Making connections, starting YouTube, and creating longer-form content came naturally—though it began slowly. That never worried you because you only wanted to make people smile and laugh, even if it was just a thousand of them.

The trajectory of your career shifted when a fellow influencer and friend offered to collaborate. It was Quen—aka Quenlin Blackwell—aka the funniest woman alive, in your opinion.

When Quen proposed having you on ‘Feeding Starving Celebrities,’ you literally cackled in her face. She’d asked over dinner, the two of you catching up after a year of not seeing each other at all.

“I’m not even famous, girl,” you giggled. Quen stabbed some chicken onto her fork, pointing it at you as her glasses slid low on her nose, looking like she was about to scold you.

“And that’s the gag, bitch~,” she said sternly yet joking, tilting her head hard to the side like you were the one sounding crazy. “Besides, you’re Vine famous—and that’s already a big deal.”

You nodded—fair point—but then she smacked her lips and rested her chin in her palm. 

“Imagine the two Vine girls who’ve been memed for years… together again.”

Instantly, you flashed back to Quen going viral for her crying videos, and you for that one infamous clip where you cried out of anger, punched a wall, and winced in pain without even making a dent. Clearly, you and Quen had something in common with crying and being relatable.

A month later, you filmed the video—and that’s when you went viral. Fast forward a year, and life was chaotic but totally enjoyable. You’d met huge celebs over the past few months… that included Katseye.

You started streaming on Twitch occasionally, playing games in your downtime and chatting with viewers. It was a way to connect with fans in real time—and they loved watching how bad you were at FPS games.

Whenever a hater in chat commented on your gameplay, you’d cackle and reply nonchalantly, “I’d like to think I’m pretty good for someone who touches grass every day.”

Those quick-witted one-liners ended up all over the internet—like it was Vine all over again.

With instant fame came the need for a team. Your agent eventually got an email from the artist d4vd, leading to a stream collab.

You expected it to be awkward—especially since you’d never streamed in person with someone before—but three hours of karaoke later, the friendship was locked in. From there, people started catching on to the Katseye references and edits sprinkled into your streams and videos. Like another creator before him, d4vd put you in contact with them—and soon you’d set up a YouTube video together.

There was a lot of brainstorming, but your thought was simple. If the pop girlies are coming back, why not do fashion since they made the trends happen back in the day?

Thus, the ‘Katseye as My Stylist’ video was born. You remembered it like it was yesterday. When they walked into your apartment, it felt like spotlights were on them. Your knees even buckled when they shook your hand… all caught on video as evidence by the way.

You all clicked instantly, and the vibe stayed easygoing—especially after you gave them a tour of your place.

The video was filmed in your bedroom. Each girl took a turn going into your walk-in closet with you, choosing an outfit while explaining their thought process. You wouldn’t try anything on until all the outfits were chosen, just for the surprise factor.

When it was Megan’s turn, she stepped through the double doors of your closet and marveled. She clearly hadn’t expected the scale of the room—and every time your cameraman panned to her, her eyes were wide and boba-like.

The way you interacted with her had fans screaming at their phone screens. The ship practically launched itself when you helped Megan climb a ladder to grab one of your purses from a higher shelf, steadying it with one hand and resting the other on her back as she climbed back down.

There were even moments in the video where you’d casually call her cute, and Megan would freeze, giggle, then hide behind her hands.

Unfortunately, she ended up losing the competition, since the girls had to vote for the best outfit and couldn’t pick their own. In the end, everyone voted for Lara, but when you noticed Megan zoning out, you just blurted, “I’d say Megan’s was my favorite, though.”

That line caught her so off guard that she literally stood from her seat, mouth agape, like she couldn’t believe it. As you wrapped filming, you couldn’t help noticing how often she’d stare at you before quickly looking away while you were chatting with the older members of the group.

Before they left, Megan realized she’d forgotten her headphones in your room, so you offered to grab them with her.

Once inside, you took the chance to ask for her number. From then on, she invited you to almost every event the girls had—and you always ended up hanging out with them the entire time.

Eventually, Megan invited you to Korea while they were promoting Gnarly. After their first performance on MCountdown, you took her out for a nice dinner and asked her to be your girlfriend right then and there.

When you posted a bunch of photos from the trip, people immediately started speculating—thanks to the “coincidental” timing of your visit lining up with the girls’ schedule, even when none of them were in the posts. Neither of you were exactly hiding it, but once fans saw you driving her somewhere and giving her a quick peck on the lips, the news spread like wildfire.

So now here you are, four months later, ridiculously happy with how life’s been going. You’d landed modeling gigs for smaller brands, scored stream sponsorships, and built more connections than ever before.

Oh—and not to forget your weird, but incredibly lovely, girlfriend.

Well… not so lovely at the moment.

The two of you had fought last night—over something stupid. You’d both been exhausted from a long day of work, ordered pizza so neither of you had to cook, and somewhere in the middle of watching a movie, you got into a heated argument… about the characters.

She’d mentioned someone on staff being really mean during their shoot, and emotions were already running high. You knew you’d be fine by morning. But when lying there in the pitch-dark room, Megan sleeping beside you, an idea hit.

For once, you woke up earlier than her. Quietly slipping out of bed, you grabbed your vlogging camera and padded to your office space, shutting the door gently behind you.

Holding the camera up, you clicked record—the red light blinking.

“Hi guys! Welcome back to my channel. It’s currently 7:43 a.m.,” you whispered close to the lens, flashing your phone screen to show the time, “and Megan has no idea she’s about to be ignored.”

You smirked. “This is part petty revenge for last night’s fiasco, part because you guys have been begging me for a prank video. I’m gonna ignore her for 24 hours because that’s what ya’ll want. We’ll see what happens.” 

The editing of the video had captions that said ‘no, we did not,’ with a dog that looks offended.

Leaning closer to the camera, you lowered your voice. “Knowing her, she’s either gonna get real clingy… or go completely feral on me. And if she starts pulling weird stunts to get my attention?”

You grinned, a flicker of concern in your eyes. “Pray for me.”

After the intro, you set your larger camera on your desk and move through the house like a ninja. You rush around in silence with the help of your fuzzy socks, giving you a speed boost while moving without a sound.

You set your small vlogging cameras on the bookshelf in the living room, angled toward the couch and open kitchen. Another was wedged between two potted plants in the kitchen. The last one sat half-hidden on a corner shelf in the hallway—just in case she tried to corner you, because you knew she would if she had to.

Each was positioned so it wouldn’t be obvious. She had grown used to seeing your cameras in random places, and they can be EXTREMELY random. When she found one for the first time after you two started dating, the small cam was facing the shower in your bathroom while hidden in the cabinet behind the mirror.

You had explained that you often forgot to put them back in your office, which led you to buy a couple more, so your head wouldn’t come off from looking at where you put some of them the last time.

So Megan wasn’t exactly weirded out about the cameras anymore, but you didn’t want her catching on early.

By the time you tiptoed back to the kitchen, you had made a small breakfast for two and some mugs of coffee. You decided to do it because you’re a good girlfriend, but also because it would confuse her more.

You plated up some scrambled eggs, two slices of toast, and strawberries on the side. Even setting it up at her usual spot at the kitchen island, coffee mug beside it.

She wandered in a few minutes later, hair messy, hoodie hanging off one shoulder.

“Morning,” she yawned, sliding onto the stool. She blinked at the plate, since you often cooked lunch and dinner, but never breakfast in the morning. “Wait… did you make this?”

You glanced at her, gave the tiniest smile, and went back to buttering your own toast without saying a word.

She tilted her head. “Okay… chef, I see you.” She took a bite, still watching you like she was trying to solve a puzzle.

“So… uh… thanks?” she said, leaning over the counter to see your face. You took a sip of coffee instead of answering.

Her brows furrowed. “Alright, are we still mad about the thing last night? Because I can confidently say—”

You calmly got up, rinsed your plate, and walked out without a word. From the corner of your eye, you caught her staring after you, toast halfway to her mouth.

To make sure you weren’t speaking to her, you did your best to avoid her for some hours. After breakfast, the people watching see a time-lapse of you working in your office, having three meetings, signing papers, and talking to your assistant about your schedule for the next couple of days.

So when you finally came out, Megan was curled up on the couch, watching TV, while you started making a protein shake for the gym.

You could feel her eyes sneaking glances at you every few seconds—while you rinsed fruit, while you sliced it, even while the blender was on and loud. The silence between you two was so bad it felt like it might eat her alive. You had to bite the inside of your cheek to keep from laughing at her cute, confused little frown.

“What are your pla—”

Before she could even finish the sentence, you turned and left the room, heading to change. You deliberately took your time—layering on moisturizer, tying your hair up, packing your bag—because you knew if you sat next to her for too long, you’d crack and talk to her.

So instead of holing up inside, you threw on a matching gym set, slung your duffel bag over your shoulder, and decided to use the apartment’s gym. When you stepped out of your room, Megan clocked the outfit immediately. Her eyes peeked over the back of the couch, a YouTube video playing faintly from the TV.

“Gonna work out? Can I co—”

It gutted you, but you kept moving. Slipping out the door mid-question and letting it slam shut behind you. The second it clicked closed, you found yourself jogging toward the elevator in case she decided to follow.

Once the coast was clear, you lifted your main camera and whispered into it. “I knew this would be hard, but damn,” you said, stepping into the empty elevator. “When I slammed the door, I wanted to rush back in and say sorry.”

The gym was blissfully empty, which was perfect for filming. You set up your vlogging camera on a tripod in the corner, occasionally grabbing your phone to get quick close-up shots. The session lasted about an hour—mostly weights and a little bit of treadmill—peppered with you grinning into the camera after each set, whispering updates like you were in some top-secret mission.

Afterward, you left the building and walked to a poke bowl spot just down the block—close enough to be convenient, but not close enough to give away your exact place. You ordered your usual, sat by the window, and ate while scrolling through your phone, half-watching cars pass outside. By the time you finished and tossed your trash, you felt almost… recharged.

When you finally made it back upstairs, you slipped into your bedroom and found Megan sitting cross-legged on your bed, controller in hand, locked into a video game. She didn’t notice you at first—which was honestly perfect. Without saying a word, you grabbed fresh clothes, ducked into the bathroom, and headed straight for the shower.

Once finished and you're fully clothed, you head back into your room after getting a book from your office.

Megan had settled at your PC, headset on, voice low as she called out directions to her teammates.

Normally, this would be your cue to wander beside her, leaning over her shoulder for a quick kiss, and pull up the other chair so you could watch her play. Instead, you passed behind without a glance, a book tucked under your arm, heading straight for the bed.

You could feel her eyes on your back for a second before you nuzzle into the pillow.

It wasn’t long before she turned the entire chair to look, headset hanging loose around her neck. “You’re not gonna come sit?” she asked, half-curious, half-expecting you to say you’d come in a bit.

Instead, you just adjusted against the pillows and opened your book.

She lingered a moment, shifting her weight from one arm to the other. “Usually, you’d… I don’t know, at least give me a kiss. Or… something.”

You heard it clearly—how sad she was just from the sound of your voice.

“Right,” she murmured, almost to herself. She gave a quick nod, the kind people do when they’re trying to brush something off, then turned to head back toward the office.

You caught the soft sound of her chair rolling back as she sat down again, her voice returning to the headset — lighter now, but not quite as bright as before.

Later, you dozed off while reading. You honestly faded in and out of an unplanned nap and almost didn’t care for the video, but luckily, Megan is a great yapper.

When you half-woke, Megan was at the desk in the corner of the bedroom, laptop open, voice low. “Yeah, I don’t know what’s up with her today,” she whispered. “She’s been so quiet. Do you think I did something?”

A nervous laugh. “We were fine last night, except for the thing… but she’s not mad-mad, right?”

The bookshelf camera caught it all. Later, you’d keep only a short, harmless snippet for the video—and with her permission, of course.

You made pasta for dinner, plating hers and leaving it on the counter before heading back to bed while she still played, likely trying to get her mind off it.

By 9 p.m., you were under the covers, forcing yourself to stay put until morning. Because any more silence from you would have you spazzing out.

She came in an hour later after eating the dinner you made, scrolling TikTok under the warm glow of the nightstand lamp. Every so often, she glanced at you. Once or twice, her thumb stilled like she was about to say something, but she stayed quiet.

It was past midnight before she finally set her phone down and closed her eyes, falling into a deep slumber.

You slipped out quietly, whispering to your handheld camera. “It’ll officially be twenty-four hours when we wake up. I’m not a monster, and to make sure she isn’t mad at me, we’re making breakfast in bed in the morning.”

Your body clock wakes you up at seven in the morning, and you film yourself making the array of food. The viewers watch the time-lapse of you making chocolate chip pancakes, a bowl of berries, a scrambled egg, and two strips of bacon. To top it all off, you even made her some tea that should seal the deal.

When you walked in with a wooden tray in hand, she was just waking up. Her eyes went wide when she saw you. “You’re talking to me?”

“Yeah,” you smiled, setting the tray on her lap. “I’m sorry, love. You didn’t do anything wrong. Just wanted to mess with you.”

Her laugh wobbled with the tears in her eyes. “I seriously thought I messed up.”

“Not even close,” you said. “Now eat before it gets cold.”

One bite of the pancakes, and she was grinning as you filmed the reaction. “Okay… you’re forgiven. But only because these are perfect.”

She leans in, kissing you on the cheek, where your video ends with you saying, “I’ll take it.”

Rando#1 y/n u lasted way longer than i would’ve… i would’ve caved the moment she looked at me all confused

Rando#2 megan calling the girls like a secret agent while y/n was fake napping had me WHEEZING 😭

Rando#3 this whole vid was so unserious until the breakfast-in-bed apology, and then i’m sitting here kicking my feet

Rando#4 get me a girl who’ll cook in bed for me pls and thx

Rando#5 nah bc if my gf ignored me like that i’d cry myself… but id forgive her if its Y/n :)

[sixflame438]

Crashing out over music > sleeping

The first song killed me already 😭😭😭

[sixflame438]

BRING THE SHOW BACKKK

Madi singing Unsaid Emily in the year of 2025 is craaaaazyyyyy like

[sixflame438]

hating is fun but sometimes you see someone only ever be a hater and never a lover and it's like. ok well do you like anything at all or do you only see the world in shades of bad to worse

[sixflame438]

To have a hug from yunjin ✊😔

⋆˚꩜｡ NO TEARS LEFT TO CRY ⋆˚꩜｡

synopsis you thought the silence after heartbreak would last forever but then she appeared. a spark of light in the abyss - showing you that even in the loudest places, there’s a way back to color, to hope and maybe to love.

tags mentions of breakup emotional distress mild angst fluff

pairing huh yunjin x fem!reader

wc 1.5k

💿: no tears left to cry by ariana grande ᴠᴏʟᴜᴍᴇ : ▮▮▮▮▮▮▯▯▯

the city had stopped speaking to you. not in the literal sense - people still talked, traffic still blared, café doors still chimed - but everything felt muted, like you were listening to life through a thick pane of glass. days passed in neat, gray lines. work. home. sleep. repeat. your breakup had been three months ago. the day he left, you didn’t cry. you’d expected to. you’d even prepared for it, tissues on the counter, a playlist ready to break you open. but instead you’d just sat there, staring at the dent in the couch cushion where he used to sit, waiting for some kind of wave to hit you. it never came.

what came instead was…numbness.

the days after blurred into each other. the air in your apartment felt heavier, like the walls were absorbing every word you didn’t say. the coffee tasted weaker. the sky never seemed to shift from that dull, dirty grey. you stopped checking your phone for his name. you still went on with your life. you smiled at the right moments when people spoke to you and nodded at the right cues. nobody noticed that you were operating on muscle memory, that the inside of your chest felt scraped out and hollow.

the worst part wasn’t the loss - it was the fact that you didn’t even feel like you anymore. you were just the leftover pieces, stitched together to keep walking and breathing until… until what? some nights, you’d lie awake replaying conversations from when things were good. the way he looked at you across a crowded room, the way his voice could break you into laughter without trying. those memories felt dangerous now, like glass you could cut yourself onto them too tight.

you’d convinced yourself this was your life now - no dramatic pain, just the low hum of existing. a version of you who didn’t expect joy anymore.

the library was the only place that didn’t feel too loud lately.

not that you were here to read. you’d been wandering between the aisles for nearly twenty minutes, letting your fingers skim the spines without registering a single title. it was just somewhere to exist without anyone asking you to smile.

your feet carried you into the far back, where the overhead lights were softer and the air smelled faintly of old paper and dust. you paused at a random shelf, pulling out a book you didn’t plan to read, flipping through pages that blurred.

“good choice,” a voice said behind you.

you turned.

she was leaning casually against the shelf across from you, a book cradled in her hands like it was something precious. her hair fell over one shoulder, and her eyes were bright in a way that made the dim light seem warmer.

you glanced down at the book in your hands. “i haven’t even looked at the title.”

she smiled, just a little. “still a good choice. sometimes we pick things before we know why.”

you weren’t sure how to respond so you tucked the book back into its place. she didn’t move away and didn’t fill the silence with awkwardness. instead, she stepped forward and slipped a small paperback into the gap where your book had been.

“try this one,” she offered.

you hesitated before taking it. the cover was an open field under an impossible sky - the golden sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky in hues of orange and violet.

“you’ll like it,” she added and there was something in her tone that made you believe her for no reason at all.

before you could thank her, she was already walking away, disappearing around the corner of the aisle. when you turned the book over in your hands, you noticed something strange - there was no barcode and no library sticker. when you flipped it open, the pages weren’t even printed with words. they were blank, except for one sentence written in neat, small handwriting:

meet me here tomorrow. same time.

beneath it: yunjin.

you almost didn’t come back.

the note could’ve been a joke. a prank. a strange moment from a pretty stranger you’d never see again. but all day, you kept finding your thoughts drifting back to her - the warmth in her smile, the way she spoke to you like she already knew you.

so here you were, standing in the same aisle as yesterday, pretending to browse while your heart thudded too loudly in your chest.

“right on time,” her silvery voice whispered behind you.

you turned to see her leaning against the shelf, a coffee cup in one hand. she looked…different today. not in her clothes or her hair, but in the way she seemed brighter than the light above her.

“i wasn’t sure you’d actually come.” you admitted.

“i knew you would,” she handed you the coffee without asking if you wanted it. it was exactly the way you liked it. you tried not to show your surprise. “if you want we could like…go on a walk together?”

the corners of your mouth lifted, creating an awkward, but genuine smile. a slight nod was all it took for yunjin to bring you to (the most overwhelming place) time square.

“maybe this place wasn't the greatest idea.” yunjin chirped, over the emphatic sounds of chatter and traffic. you looked around, the neon signs screaming from every direction, people brushing past you like a constant tide. it was too much - too loud, too bright, too alive.

“i feel like my brain’s about to overheat,” you muttered.

yunjin chuckled, but didn’t move. she was taking it all in - the blur of headlights, the swell of chatter, the billboards flashing stories you’d never know. “you know,” she said, “it’s overwhelming because everything’s alive at once. every person here’s got a story, a memory, a moment they’ll never get back.”

you gave her a skeptical look. “That’s cool i guess but it’s still a lot of noise.”

“noise is just life without your permission,” she replied. “and maybe that’s not such a bad thing. maybe it’s a reminder that the world doesn’t stop, even when you want it to.”

you fell quiet, the weight of her words pressing against your throat but also your chest.

“look,” she continued, turning to face you fully. “i don’t know what you’ve been through. I can tell it hurt. i can also tell it left you feeling…smaller than you are. but if you hide from the noise, you miss the music inside it.” she gestured around you -to the rush of strangers, the glowing screens, the sharp winter air on your skin. “you don’t have to be ready to listen yet. just… stand here. breathe it in. let the world remind you it’s still here for you.”

and for the first time in months, you actually listened. you heard the layered voices, the distant music, the hum of engines, the laughter of someone you didn’t know. it was messy, loud and imperfect - but it was alive.

and maybe you could be too.

yunjin smiled like she could see that thought forming in your mind. “see? it’s not so scary. things in life doesn’t ask if you’re ready. it just shows up,”

your eyes soften, body fully relaxing after feeling like it's been holding up all your problems on its back. it physically felt like a weight had been lifted off your shoulders. yunjin’s eyes glistened under the mighty lights of the billboards, towering over you both. her eyes found yours; they never left yours for a single second that day.

“you just have to be ready when it does.” yunjin crooned.

yunjin’s gaze lingered on you for a moment longer before she stepped closer. “you’re doing better than you think,” she said quietly.

you blinked, thrown off. “what makes you say that?”

“because you’re still here,” she replied simply. “and you didn’t run from this. that’s a start.”

before you could respond, she opened her arms in a way that felt like an invitation. you didn’t hesitate.

her hug was warm - not the kind of quick, polite squeeze you gave acquaintances, but the kind that lingered. the kind that lets you lean, just a little, without worrying if you were doing too much. you felt her steady breathing against your cheek, her hand resting lightly between your shoulder blades.

and something in you unclenched.

for months, the breakup had been a boulder crushing you down; a quiet and constant ache that blurred the edges of everything. you’d convinced yourself you were stuck there, in that grayscale, forever.

but here, in yunjin’s arms, you felt lighter. not fixed. not magically healed. but lighter. like the world had tilted back just enough for the sun to touch your face again.

maybe I’m not broken, you thought. maybe I’m just finding a new way to be whole. to feel again.

and maybe - just maybe - yunjin was the reason you’d started believing that was possible.

she pulled back slightly, still close enough that you could see the reflection of the neon lights in her eyes. “you okay?”

you nodded, a small smirk tugging at your lips. “yeah. i think I will be.”

a/n~ thank you ariana for giving me inspo and creating such a good song 😛✌️

[sixflame438]

Crazy how you can feel and be so much of one thing then the world stops u like “i dont think so ✋”