#choi yeonjun x platonic reader

[taebinlvr]

— centimeters

summary : as your game night with the boys reached an unusual peak in boredom, huening kai suggests a few rounds of the pepero game to get the dopamine pumping. however, what kai didn't consider was the several-month long crush that you had on soobin, and what you didn't consider was the fact that soobin would choose you as his partner. at the end of the night, when the tension is suffocating you and your mind is swirling with "what-if's," soobin offers to give you a ride home. you accept, not realizing in the moment just how mutual that tension was. pairing : choi soobin x fem!reader genre: friends to lovers, mutual pining, non-idol au, smut, fluff wc : 7.8k warnings : pwp (like 50-50), unprotected sex, oral + fingering (f receiving), some pet names (baby, honey), multiple orgasms, creampie, both reader and soobin are really horny but especially soobin <3

a/n : i haven't written smut in literal years so this was purely driven by how whipped i am for choi soobin <3 inspired by txt playing the pepero game bc it's been on my mind ever since that vid dropped. never been so jealous in my life. txt masterlist .

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“how about the pepero game?” kai suggested, earning varying kinds of stares from the group.

for the last ten minutes or so, you and the boys had been bickering in kai’s living room about which game was next to tackle on your game night list.

you had already exhausted all the games kai had on his switch, as well as almost half the board games he found tucked away under his bed. you were on a roll, and had no means of stopping quite yet; but there was no remaining game that anyone could agree was exciting enough to satisfy your boredom.

that was until kai piped up amongst the chatter, anyway. taehyun gave him a blatantly disgusted look, his brows furrowed and his eyes widened slightly, while yeonjun and beomgyu immediately jumped at the idea with loud agreements and wide smiles. they had gotten a few drinks in them by now, it was only a matter of time before they got reckless.

you, however, were nervous. the point of the pepero game was to make the stick as short as possible, but the real reason people played it was just to see how close two people could get to kissing. that wasn’t exactly what made you so nervous, the thought of a near-kiss actually didn’t phase you. you saw your relationship with the guys as entirely platonic, nothing more than friends – at least, for all but one of them.

a few months ago you started developing some sort of feelings for soobin, a tall, handsome, and sweet character, and it’s only been growing and festering ever since. it started with small fleeting moments of adoration, just letting your gaze linger for an extra second or smiling softly when he entered a room.

you realized you might have felt something real for him when you anxiously wanted to be around him, even though your heart would pound if you got too close. eventually he became all you could think about, your thoughts filled with fantasies of what it would be like to feel his embrace, his lips on yours. to feel his one of his large hands on your hips, the other wrapped so firmly around your neck.

god. that’s why you were nervous – even with the slimmest chance that the two of you would be paired together, what would you even do? how were you supposed to control yourself?

you laughed along with the guys for now, but your gaze quietly shifted over to soobin, sitting quietly on the other side of the room.

your heart jumped.

your eyes met, and neither of you looked away.

at first, you were just testing him; trying to figure out if it was just a coincidence or you had caught him staring. you got your answer when his dark eyes didn’t flinch when you looked at him, his expression calm and composed even though you felt like your heart was about to leap right out of your chest.

you could only take so much before you looked away, turning your attention back to the rest of the group in a daze. why was he already staring at you? why did he look so calm? what was he thinking?

“then who wants to go first?”

yeonjun’s voice grounded you in reality again, your mind suddenly coming back into focus. you didn’t even notice how the some guys had joined you on the floor, sitting in a circle, or how kai had opened a couple of boxes of pepero, keeping one for the game while dispersing the others.

“we’ll go first.”

your eyes immediately flicked to soobin at the sound of his voice, your heart sinking deep into your chest as your eyes met once again. he took on of the sticks from kai’s hands, slowly standing from the couch and making his approach.

he chose you.

the loud cheers and and laughter that came from the rest of the group was drowned out by the onslaught of thoughts that came flooding into your mind. half of you was convinced that he would make it quick, only opting to have you as a partner since you were close, and probably more bearable to work with than anyone else.

at the same time, you couldn’t help but feel that nervousness settle back in. what you thought was a slim chance of happening was now becoming a reality, and you already felt the heat rising into your cheeks before he was even within two feet of you.

as he knelt down in front of you, his eyes never left yours. his expression was still serious at first, until his eyes flicked down to your cheeks. the corners of his lips tugged up into a small smile, and immediately you knew you were caught. you silently prayed that the other guys were too drunk to notice your embarrassed flush, too.

soobin lifted the stick in his hand to your mouth, his smile widening.

“here, take it.”

your heart fluttered, eyes never looking away from him as you silently obeyed. his hands reached out to gently grip your shoulders, his warm hands sliding ever so subtly up the sleeves of your t-shirt so that he was touching your skin.

“just go already. your score is gonna get beat anyway.” yeonjun chirped, but you were far to enveloped in soobin’s gaze to listen.

“i wanna take this seriously, actually. do you think i’m playing to lose?” soobin looked away from a moment, shooting a grin towards yeonjun before immediately turning back to you.

before anyone else could complain, soobin turned his head and slowly started biting down on the stick you were holding so tensely between your teeth, not being able to stop yourself from squeezing your eyes shut. you wished for something like this, maybe even dreamt about it.

his face mere centimeters away, large hands holding you still as he drew his lips closer to yours; but you didn’t want this. you wanted to be alone, to have him to yourself. you didn’t want anyone else to see how easily you lost yourself in his touch.

you felt the weight between your teeth become lighter and lighter, your heart pounding at the thought of just how close soobin would already be if you opened your eyes. but you kept them shut, hands clasped tightly in your lap as you desperately wished that you two were alone. you wished that he could stop being so polite and proper for the sake of the game, your desperation only getting worse as you felt soobin’s hot breath against your lips.

you thought maybe he would really do it, maybe he would close the distance and secretly wanted the same thing you did.

but you were sorely disappointed when his breath disappeared and he pulled away, your eyes opening wide as soon as he did. you watched as soobin held up the stick to the ruler in yeonjun’s hands, a proud expression washing over his features as he turned back towards you, hand shooting into the air.

“1.2 centimeters. not bad, right?” he beamed.

you agreed, suddenly breathless.

did he have any idea what he did to you?

that question haunted you for the rest of the night as the boys satisfied their dopamine craving with a couple more rounds of the pepero game, followed by a couple more rounds of drinks between yeonjun and beomgyu. it was only when they started getting out of hand that kai cut the night short, fearing for the cleanliness of his apartment, taehyun taking on the burden of driving them both home.

with taehyun now in charge of babysitting two drunk men and kai busy cleaning up the mess they left behind, you figured the best plan of action was just to call a taxi. you didn’t live far, so whatever the fee was wouldn’t be too much of a hassle to pay. as you stepped out of kai’s apartment building and into the street, however, a tall, familiar figure waited for you.

“y/n- you’re not actually gonna call a taxi, are you?” soobin’s eyes watched you carefully as they landed on you. the way you perceived those eyes, the way the looked at you and met yours so carefully, was utterly distorted now. all you could think of now when he looked at you was the way he stared you down earlier that night, holding the stick to your lips and shamelessly asking you to just take it.

“it’s no big deal, it’s not like i have to go that far.” even though you didn’t want to, you tore your eyes away from soobin, eyes searching the city streets instead.

“there’s not many drivers around at this hour, though. it’s cold, and it’s getting late.” you could feel soobin still watching you, the sound of his car keys jingling filling the otherwise quiet air.

“let me drive you home.”

you didn’t make any snappy movements. you didn’t flinch or flick your head up at the sound of his words. you just stared blankly at the other end of the street as your heart fluttered, head slowly turning up to finally look at him again.

“you don’t have to, really. you live in the other direction, anyway-”

“please. i insist.”

there was something different about the tone of his voice. something spilled out, something that was overflowing and threatening to unravel, even though he seemed to be doing such a good job with keeping it in check.

or maybe your delusions were getting the better of you. maybe your feelings for him were twisting reality, and you were starting to ignore the facts just to believe what you wanted.

logic was telling you that soobin had given you a ride home several times in the past, and this was just him worrying about you as your friend – but your feelings were telling you that this was a chance you couldn’t pass up.

“okay, okay.” you smiled, following him to his car. “let’s go.”

the first few minutes of the car ride were silent. not uncomfortably so, but part of you still felt tense, somehow. there was an inkling of a thought pacing back and forth in your head, making you wonder as you glanced over at soobin.

god, he was beautiful. the slight curve of his nose, his pouty lips, the pale glow on his skin. the way his jacket accentuated his shoulders, the way his hand so leisurely held the bottom of the steering wheel. if you focused hard enough, you could smell the faint scent of his cologne spreading through the air, filling your lungs and clouding your senses.

you wondered: were you really imagining things, or did he feel it too?

“i didn’t make you uncomfortable, did i?” soobin asked, glancing briefly at you. “during the pepero game.”

“no, not at all.” your mouth went a bit dry as you spoke, the question catching you off guard. “why do you ask?”

“you just seemed so tense. your cheeks were flushed and you were gripping your hands so tight your knuckles turned white. you know, you could’ve said no if you didn’t want to do it.” he chuckled lightly, but there was a sense of worry evident in his voice.

“oh, that?” you looked back out the window, mentally scolding yourself for making yourself so obvious. the worst part is that he interpreted your tension in the complete opposite way – you wanted it. in fact, you didn’t get nearly enough of it. if only the other guys weren’t watching it all happen, maybe you could have made that clearer.

“sorry, if that’s how it came across.” regaining your composure, you looked back over at soobin. “i was just nervous, that’s all. it kind of awkward doing that while everyone was watching, don’t you think?”

soobin grinned, letting out another light laugh, “definitely. but it was kind of fun, wasn’t it?”

you smiled to yourself, but couldn’t help but feel a sense of dread settle in your stomach. the way he talked about it was so casual, as if his breath against your lips and his hands so carefully holding your frame was a normal occurrence – but it wasn’t normal, not to you. didn’t he see that? didn’t he notice how hot he made you feel?

“soobin.” his name slipped out from your lips before you could even stop it. there was so much you wanted to say, and all the words you had been working so hard on keeping under wraps were threatening to burst right then and there.

he hummed in response, and from the corner of your eye you could see him periodically glancing over at you. he was waiting for you, like he was asking you to continue, and for some reason you wanted nothing more but to make it happen for him. you submit, each and every one of your secret thoughts beginning to spill out one by one, his gaze making you too weak to stop it.

“i was nervous, and it was because everyone was watching,” you paused, trying to swallow the dryness in your throat, “but i.. i wanted it, you know. i wanted to kiss you.”

the couple of seconds of silence that followed your words seemed to stretch out for hours. you could’ve sworn that you felt the air in the car shift, turning tense and heavy, the weight of it nearly suffocating you. your mouth opened as you rushed to reverse the damage, but the words died in your throat as soobin spoke up first.

“really?” he asked, though there was a certain softness to his words. there was a smile in his tone, and as you looked over at him, you could see how the corners of his mouth seemed to lift after your confession. it made your head spin.

“well-” originally, you were going to take it all back, snatch your words right out of the air and bury them somewhere not even you would remember; but that damn smile of his was urging you to keep going. “yeah, really. and you seemed so competitive that i thought maybe you would really do it, even if it was just for the game. but you pulled back last second.”

a few more seconds of silence, then soobin spoke again, “the guys wouldn’t have stopped talking about it if we did. i couldn’t do that to you.” he chuckled, and so did you. he had a point.

“but i was nervous, too. i think that’s why i ended up pulling back, it felt like my chest would explode if i didn’t. but i wanted it, too.”

..he wanted it, too?

the subtle beat of your heart started to pump harder within your chest, so excited by the mere words soobin was speaking that it flipped and turned every which way. your eyes didn’t turn away from him; they watched and studied his expression, and that’s when you caught it.

the pale red shade that rose into his cheeks, making him adjust himself in his seat and nervously fiddle with the steering wheel. he was just as nervous as you were.

your voice softened as you carefully tread the conversation, fearing that one wrong choice of words could shatter all the progress you’ve made.

“do you still want it?”

your eyes locked for a second, only a second, but that was enough to get a glance into him. you saw the way his eyes widened every so slightly, like he wasn’t expecting you to ask such a question. but with the way that rosey flush spread into his ears, his mouth shifting as he bit the inside of his cheek, you could tell he liked it.

the car came to a slow as soobin skillfully pulled in front of your apartment building, one hand pulling off the wheel to put the car in park. finally, he looked over at you properly. the nearby streetlight shone through the windshield, illuminating his features perfectly. you could finally look into his eyes again, watching his gaze soften and seem to sparkle slightly in the light.

“even if i say yes, how will i get it?”

his question made your heart skip a beat. there was a shift in his tone; it became a bit curious, a bit suggestive. his eyes glanced between your eyes and your lips, and he didn’t seem even slightly ashamed when you caught him. you even noticed how he seemed to lean in just a bit closer, the scent of his cologne stronger. he wanted a certain answer from you, even if he didn’t say it.

and you were going to give it to him.

“can you stay for a bit?”

the walk to your apartment floor felt like it lasted hours, the thick tension between you two palpable. you weren’t rushing to leave the elevator or to grab your keys out of your bag to unlock your door, even though you felt like that was more appropriate than slowly and silently strolling through the hallways.

it was starting to drive you crazy – but then again, you would rather do this than do anything rash. what if he pushed back, what if he was scared away?

you pushed open the door to your apartment, soobin hovering behind you as you slid off your shoes and shrugged your coat off your shoulders. that was until, suddenly, your coat was properly lifted off your frame, your head spinning around to see soobin had taken it in his hands. he hung it on the hooks you had near your door, next to his.

but he never looked away from you. he looked at you in a similar way to earlier, in a way that nearly made your legs buckle beneath you. slowly, he approached you. your head gradually tilted up to meet his eyes, as his tilted down to meet yours.

one of his hands gently took hold of your shoulder, and you wondered if he could feel the goosebumps on your skin as he traced down your arm. he took your hand in his, while his other hand reached up to your face, gently cupping your cheek. he held you so gently, as if holding you too tightly would shatter your skin.

“is this okay?” his voice whispered into the dark, silent air. you nodded, and in response his face slowly started to draw closer to yours. unlike earlier, you didn’t close your eyes. your muscles didn’t tense and you didn’t squeeze your hands into tight fists. you watched him come closer and closer, until he stopped mere centimeters away from your face.

“this is where i stopped, during the game.” you could see a small smile grow over his features, as if he was proud. “you really want this?”

you chuckled at the fact he was even asking you that. you could feel his hot breath against your lips. the scent of his cologne flooded your senses, clouding your thoughts and dizzying your mind. you felt extra sensitive to his touch, even the slightest movement from him sending a chill down your spine. he was driving you crazy, and he didn’t even know it. that’s what made his question so ridiculous.

“more than anything.” you whispered, and his smile widened. he must have been playing with you, or he wouldn’t have looked so smug as he closed the gap between the two of you.

the feeling of his lips pressing against yours was like a sweet release, a weight being lifted off of your chest. you had wanted this for months, although they felt like years, and it was beyond anything you could have possibly imagined.

the taste of his lips was sweet, intoxicating you and getting you hooked on the flavor. he felt soft, almost fragile. he kissed you carefully, memorizing the way your lips danced and paying close attention when the rhythm changed. he leaned deeper into you, and you leaned back. your tongue grazed his teeth, and he granted you permission to enter.

without quite realizing it, the small entryway of your apartment became hot with the warmth radiating from your bodies. you felt it in your face, where soobin’s hands were touching, and especially where you wished he was touching.

the gentle kiss you two started with devolved into something hungry. needy. the hand soobin had been using to so carefully hold your face was now on the small of your back, pulling you close until there was no distance left between you.

your hands reached up from where they had been resting on soobin’s chest to instead tangle themselves in his hair. he kept leaning into you until you had no choice but to stumble back against your wall, and for a moment he pulled away. his hands moving to snake down your sides until they hooked under your thighs, lifting you up so effortlessly it sent a wave of heat straight to your core.

“where’s your room?”

his question practically knocked the wind out of you as you breathlessly answered:

“door on your right- there.”

you pointed to the door just ahead of your entry way, soobin following where your finger guided him. as he shoved the already ajar door completely open with his shoulder, he continued pressing deep kisses into your lips, the breathing between you two getting heavy and ragged.

within seconds you were being laid down onto your sheets, one of soobin’s hands supporting your back as the other pressed into the mattress, caging you in. you were waiting for him to lean down and allow you to intoxicate yourself with the taste of his lips, but for a few moments, he didn’t move. he merely hovered over you with half-lidded eyes and his pouty lips agape, waiting for something to say.

“i wanna do more than just kiss you, y/n. i want so much more..” he confessed, butterflies swirling in your stomach at his words. you knew by the lustful glint in his eyes that his intentions were sinful, naughty; but the way he spoke so softly felt so pure.

you almost felt giddy – if only that giddiness wasn’t being so loudly overtaken by a burning desire.

“i won’t stop you.” you whispered, your arms snaking around his neck as your hands found their way back his tousled hair, “i want it, soobin. i want you.”

it was only after your words that a switch seemed to flip in him, like the mutual desire between you too was finally understood. he let out a shaky exhale and dived into you, placing a kiss onto your jaw before latching onto your neck. you gasped at the sensation of sweet, gentle kisses being pressed into your skin, your neck craning to give him more space to work with.

“you smell so sweet.” he muttered between kisses, making you smile, “it’s driving me crazy.”

as soobin nipped at your neck, you did something you had been waiting so long to do: just touch him. your hands left his hair as they traced down his chest, sneakily making their way down to his waist. he was wearing a white, perfectly loose t-shirt, which gave you the perfect opportunity to slip your hands under the fabric, the ghostly touch of your fingertips barely grazing his skin. you felt him shiver, catching him gasp right beneath your ear. 

but your movements didn’t stop him as his kisses got rougher, hungrier. devolving from soft and sweet pecks into starved sucking as he marked the space below your collarbone.

one of his hands slid down your waist, taking hold of the hem of your shirt and pulling it up.he pulled back, letting out a heavy breath as he pressed kisses on your chest, then your ribs, then your stomach – you were almost sure he would have been able to feel your heart pounding through his lips.

“soobin..” you mewled as you watched him lean back, eyes trained on your center as his fingers traced the waistline of your jeans.

you watched him undo the buttons and hook his thumbs around the waistline, pulling down your jeans in one single movement. his hands every so slightly pushed your thighs up, encouraging you to spread them open. you obeyed, although your cheeks burned with embarrassment at just the thought of how soaked you probably were.

“oh my god..” he practically groaned at the sight of you, his fingers laying flat against your pussy and sliding up. you whimpered in response, shocked at just how sensitive you felt to his touch. his eyes flicked up to you.

“you have no idea how bad i wanted this, baby.” his voice shifted into a husky tone as his body moved down, getting a pathetic whimper out of you. his arms hooked around your thighs as he pulled you to the edge of the bed, firm and decisive. his expression was almost desperate, his eyebrows turned up and his cheeks flushed, as if he was on his knees to start begging you for pleasure. it made your head spin.

as his hands grabbed and pulled at the hem of your panties, carefully yet quickly taking them off and discarding them, your legs practically shook with need. his hands held your thighs and spread you open, exposing you fully to him. mildly embarrassed, you turned away, averting your eyes from the lewd scene beneath you.

it was then you felt the warm, wet sensation of soobin’s tongue lick your slit from the bottom up, ending with a small peck against your sensitive clit. you breathed out a moan, your hands reaching up and taking hold of your sheets, as if to prepare for what was to come.

“eyes on me, honey.” he requested, and without even thinking you looked back at him, completely forgetting the bashfulness that overtook you a second ago. you nearly gasped at the view beneath you, how soobin’s gaze was wide and doe-eyed, staring so sweetly at you from between your thighs.

“there you go. want you to watch me, okay?” those words and the hint of his smile was enough to make you cum right then and there, but the dream of that was quickly cut off as soobin dove into you.

he tried to be patient, he really did. he started with shy licks and kisses, like he did on your neck, but it barely lasted a minute before he was sloppily lapping at your pussy. it was like he was thirsty for it, the way he thrusted his tongue between your folds and sucked at your clit.

“s-soobin, oh my god- fuck-“ you quickly unraveled into a moaning mess, knuckles turning white as you gripped the sheets and desperately tried to keep yourself still — but it was no use. you were squirming in his grasp, your hips shyly bucking into his face as the knot inside of you grew tighter.

“god- just like that, y/n. don’t stop.” soobin groaned into your cunt, as if he was getting off on it just as much as you were. using the brief moment of separation, two of his fingers brushed against your entrance before slowly sliding their way in. you both moaned at the sensation.

“you’re so tight-“ he practically whimpered, fingers thrusting at a steady pace right into a spot that made your back arch. “are you close, huh? you wanna cum all over my fingers, baby? can you do that for me?”

his senseless rambling into your cunt on in between his tongue lapping at your clit on top of his fingers keeping you full was making you see stars. this deep, burning desire that you had for soobin had been festering for so long, and the fact that it was finally being fulfilled was almost too much for you to handle. but even as your legs shook and you moaned shamelessly into the air, you wanted more. you needed more.

“i-i need-“ you gasped between your moans, your noise barely covering the sound of soobin sucking at your dripping cunt. your hips were moving completely on their own now, shame flying out the window as you slid up and down soobin’s tongue, “s-soobin, i’m gonna-“

“give it to me,” his groans sent vibrations up your body, making you tremble, “let it go baby, please. just give it to me.”

as if on command, the tight knot that had been stretching thin within your stomach snapped at his words, a blinding euphoria completely washing over your body. every limb, every muscle of yours shook with overwhelming pleasure, your entrance desperately tightening around soobin’s fingers as they slowed. he worked you carefully through your orgasm, pulling his mouth away to rub gentle circles on your clit.

“holy shit-” you breathed out, breathless as your eyes, previously squeezed shut, carefully opened. your vision gradually came into focus as a lightheadedness settled into your skull. you felt weak, your body limp against the mattress as you realized the sudden cramping in your fingers from so tightly holding onto your sheets. you had never experienced anything like that before.

but even as the orgasm soobin gave you with nothing but his mouth and fingers left you utterly stunned, your fantasies about him never stopped at foreplay. you needed more –  and not only did you know it, but you could feel it.

the second soobin’s fingers carefully left your entrance, it was already begging for them to come back. it clasped and twitched around nothing, burning and pleading as it longed to be filled again. to be filled by him.

“god- i can’t wait-”

you gathered the strength to prop yourself up on your elbows as you looked down at where soobin had been kneeling, only to find he was already up on his feet. you felt a heat rush down your spine and fester at your core at the sight of him.

“you have no idea how bad i need you-” his words came out in breaths, “d’you even know how hot that was?”

he had already taken his t-shirt off, the subtle definition of his body practically glowing in the dim moonlight. his hands, still stained with your slick, anxiously fiddled with the buttons of his jeans before undoing them. even through the tight material of his jeans, there was an extremely evident tent in the fabric.

you felt your breath catch in your throat as he pulled down both his jeans and his boxers in one swift movement, his long, thick erection springing free.

soobin climbed onto the bed and resumed his position where he hung over you before, one hand by your side while the other slowly pumped his cock. you couldn’t help but watch as his thumb circled his flushed tip, barely able to catch the glisten of the pre-cum that he spread over the top of his shaft.

but the sight of his face made you just as hot. you met his eyes, and in an instant you recognized that you were seeing a completely different side of soobin. his face was flushed, eyes drowsy and half-open as if he was in a trance. soft pants escaped his open mouth every so often, his lips wet with a mix of your juices and his saliva.

he was needy. just as needy as you.

“do you have any condoms? where are they?” the words rushed out of his mouth, like anything that wasn’t fucking you was just a waste of time. you would have laughed if your mind wasn’t so overridden by desire.

“just forget that-” your tone hinted at a whine as your hips wiggled beneath him, your legs moving up to loosely wrap around his waist. you barely pulled him in, but you could already feel the tip of his cock brushing against your clit. you shivered at the sensation.

“wait, y/n, are you-”

“it’s okay, i promise,” you felt your heart pound in your chest, your core tighten and squeeze. your hands moved up into his hair again, your hands tangling in his locks. “just put it in binnie, please? i can’t wait either..”

although he looked like he had something he wanted to say, his hips responded first. he pushed his length against the lips of your pussy, not to enter, but just to slide up and down the wetness of it. you whimpered at the action, a combination of both impatience and sensitivity from your orgasm making you dizzy with need.

“i’m not gonna go slow. i can’t.” he said, the words phrased as a rule. a non-negotiable. “you okay with me being rough? sure you can take it?”

you rapidly nodded, biting back the pathetic sounds you so desperately wanted to make at the feeling of his length against your heat.

“tell me, baby.” he whined, “can you take it?”

your throat went dry.

“yes,” you breathed, “i can take it.”

a dazed, lazy smile spread over his features.

soobin leaned back, his large hands sliding up the back of your thighs as he spread you open wider, his eyes glued to where the two of you met. his brows furrowed and his mouth let out soft breaths as he slid over your clit just a couple more times, before pushing firmly into the heat of your entrance.

you moan in unison as just a portion of your desires are finally met, and you swear for a moment you saw stars. you could feel how tight you were around him, the massive size of him making you unbelievably full.

“fuck..” soobin let out a drawn out moan as he bottomed out inside of you, fingers pressing deep into the soft skin of your thighs. he already started to grind into you, your walls sucking him in each time he dared pull back.

“you don’t know how bad i wanted this, y/n..” he said, your heart jumping at his words. for just a moment, you debated what he said. you were shocked at the implication that he wanted this for longer than just a moment, making you wonder just how long the two of you waited before satiating a now mutual hunger.

but you couldn’t think about that too deeply yet – not when you could barely speak, let alone think about anything else but the delicious feeling of soobin steadily pounding into your burning cunt. not when the only thing that left your mouth was high-pitched moans and needy whines, occasionally interrupted by whispered swears.

you had been waiting for, dreaming, of this moment, and you were going to lavish in it.

the steady pace that soobin started at rapidly devolved into fast, desperate movements. his hips would pull almost all the way back, leaving you with nothing but the head of his cock before slamming right back into you.

he moved at a relentless pace, the lewd, merciless sound of skin slapping against skin leaving no room in the air for silence. the only thing competing with its volume was the sound of your own moans, shameless and explicit.

and amidst it all, soobin’s eyes never left yours, his head tilted to the side as he watched you fall apart beneath him. watching as your hands reached out and pawed at the skin of his arms, studying how your eyes briefly rolled back every time he hit the sweetest part of you; but, strangely, it didn’t feel like you were just being observed. you were being admired. idolized. worshipped.

“you look so pretty like this.” soobin cooed breathlessly, “so so pretty.. and so wet for me- so wet and so fucking tight-“

“soobin-“ all you could think to do was cry out his name in response. while you both seemed utterly drunk on the feeling of each other, soobin had been mindlessly rambling ever since he got the chance to touch you, while you couldn’t put together a proper sentence for the life of you.

it felt so good, almost too good, as tears stung the corners of your eyes and that euphoric tension tightened inside of you again with a vengeance. it didn’t help that all the words you tried to say to convey that message only came spewing out as fucked-out nonsense.

“you okay, baby? not too much for you, right?” soobin suddenly asked, a hint of concern in his voice despite the reckless speed of his hips slamming against yours. it didn’t seem like he could stop, even if he wanted to.

you anxiously shook your head. “n-no, please, don’t stop-“ you managed to choke out, your fingers wrapping around his forearms and tugging him towards you. he understood, leaning down and pushing your knees close to your chest with his arms in order to close the gap between the two of you.

the new angle made you see stars, and if soobin hadn’t pressed his lips passionately into yours, you knew it would have enough to rip a cry out of you.

he shoved his tongue between your lips as he rushed to get a taste of you, the quiet murmur of your mutual moaning getting muffled by it. you surrendered completely to him, letting him bite at your lips and tangle his hands into your hair.

although you succumbed to him, however, your entire body remained tense. every muscle in your body squeezed tight, especially where it was wrapped around soobin’s length. your moans became more high-pitched and whiny, your breaths in-between more ragged. your hands had found their place on soobin’s back, desperately clawing and dragging against his skin.

“i-i’m gonna fucking cum, soobin-” you mewled as soobin pulled back, resuming his previous position to tower over you, your legs spread open so obediently for him. “don’t stop, don’t stop, don’t stop- please don’t stop-”

your hurried blabber only encouraged soobin, each one of his thrusts hitting the deepest parts of you with a fiery passion. each one told you that nothing would be better than this. that you were ruined for any other man. that you were his.

“go ahead, baby, ‘s okay..” he said, speaking with a softness, “let me see you fall apart all over me.”

at his request, your second orgasm of the night hit you like a freight train. it was twice as intense, euphoria repeatedly striking you directly at your core before sending shockwaves down your body. you threw your head back into the pillows, stars scattered across your vision as a lewd, pornographic moan ripped from your throat. the sensation of your orgasm rippled around soobin’s cock, forcing him to breath out a drawn out moan and string of whispered curses.

“just like that, honey,” soobin’s moaned from over you, “so good.. so, so good..”

while the orgasm itself hit you twice as hard, it felt like the aftermath exhausted you ten times as much. you couldn’t control the way your legs shook in soobin’s grasp, or the way your chest steadily rose and fell in an attempt to catch your breath.

but coming down from such a high proved impossible as soobin continued to hammer into you, his pace only slowing when your orgasm made it too difficult to move.

“s-soo.. bin- wait- ‘s too much!” you cried out to him, watching through the blurry lens of your vision as he so mercilessly pounded your sensitive cunt.

“i know baby, i know..” he panted, “‘m sorry, i can’t stop- til your pussy’s stuffed full, i can’t stop-”

you were so spent already. every inch of your skin was covered in a thin film of sweat, your heart thundered relentlessly in your chest, and there was a thick scent of sex filling the air of your room. your legs felt so limp that you could barely feel them at all, the sweet sting of where soobin had dug his fingers into being the only reminder. and your head – you could have sworn that you were dreaming based on how lightheaded the rapid sense of overstimulation made you.

but, despite that, you didn’t dare stop him. you didn’t push him away or beg for a break – you laid there and took it. you let tears gather in your eyes, overstimulation wracking your body as your limbs quivered and pussy ached around soobin’s cock.

your hands found their place in your sheets once more, tightening and gripping onto the fabric as if it was somehow going to save you. and your voice, raw and ruined, knew nothing but the feeling of soobin’s name being ripped from your throat.

and he fucking loved it.

“you’re so hot, y/n, so fucking beautiful. d’you even know what you do to me? how long i wanted to pound your pretty pussy like this?” as soobin rambled on, his voice gradually became more out of breath, more desperate. his moans became whiny, high-pitched.

“needed you so bad it was driving me crazy- but you needed it too, huh, baby? did’ya wanna get pounded like this?”

his words made your head spin, a fresh wave of desire washing over your body and sending heat rushing to all the right places. he loved how he took you apart piece by piece, and you loved seeing how drunk he got on it.

“i-i needed it so bad, you have no f- fucking idea-” you cried, “it f-feels so good-”

his thrusts started to get sloppy, losing the ruthless rhythm he had started with. he fell to his elbows, his hands snaking up your arms and peeling your fingers away from the bedsheets. his hands intertwined with yours, holding your shaking frame against the mattress. 

“y/n-” soobin’s lips hovered over yours, barely able to feel his hot breath against your skin, “lemme fill you up, huh? you want it? want me to fill you up nice ‘n full?”

“p-please- give it to me, binnie. want your cum-”

as if your permission was the trigger, soobin only lasted a few more thrusts before he bottomed out inside you with a high-pitched groan, the feeling of his warm seed instantly settling into your core. the feeling of it, however, was just as much of a trigger for you, your third orgasm of the night hitting you before you could even prepare for it – and all you could do was lay there and let it.

you pressed the knuckles of soobin’s hand – which were still intertwined with yours – against your lips, barely containing any of your pathetic whimpers and moans that your ruined orgasm forced out of you. your legs squeezed around soobin’s waist in an attempt to keep still, but there was no use against the sensitivity that overtook your body.

soobin, who had buried his face into the crook of your neck, breathed out a string of soft yet forceful moans, his stilled cock still twitching within your sensitive walls. every now and then his body shook, waves of pleasure shocking his body almost perfectly in sync with you, your orgasm no doubt heightening his own.

for a few moments, the two of you laid there; breathless, sensitive, unmoving. the silence that followed one of the loudest nights of your life was one of comfort. it wasn’t weird or awkward, like you almost expected it to be, but relaxing. like you finally felt a sense of relief after the past several months of undisturbed tension.

but the stillness of the room only lasted so long, soobin being the first to move. with a sharp wince he slowly pulled out of you, his cock carefully dragging through the walls of your throbbing pussy. even as spent as you were, you missed the full feeling.

he lifted his head up, but only enough to look you in the eyes again. he studied you carefully, his gaze scanning over every detail of your expression until you realized the way it made your heart pound. his hand reached up, and you didn’t dare move as his fingers so gently brushed some sweat-soaked strands of hair out of your face.

“i meant what i said. you’re so beautiful.” he said, his voice suddenly lowered to a whisper.

you laughed at his words, your voice coming out hoarse. “really?”

“really. seriously.”

you swallowed down the dry feeling in your throat, carefully picking out the words for a question you dreaded.

“did you mean it when you said you wanted me, too? when you said how long you wanted me for?” your voice shrank, “or did you just want sex?”

the question clearly caught soobin off guard as his eyes widened, the hand still intertwined with yours tightening slightly.

“what? y/n, are you serious?” a light chuckle escaped his lips, but he knew by reading your expression that the question was genuine. his free hand reached up and cupped your cheek, his thumb grazing your skin.

“i like you. and it’s for so many more reasons other than sex.” he confessed carefully, “for so long i wanted you all to myself – and i mean it, when i say it.”

you felt butterflies swarm your stomach at his words, unable to hide the smile that spread over your features. you lean into the touch of his hand, partially hiding your face in it at the sudden shyness that came over you.

but in response, soobin turned your face to look right back at him, emphasizing the impact of his words with yet another kiss. this one was similar to the way the night started, with soft presses and sweet touches. you felt him smile into the kiss, and you smiled back, a powerful wave of sheer joy swelling in your chest. you felt complete.

soobin’s gentle smile beamed down at you as he pulled back, shy giggles being shared between the two of you.

“so.. does this make us official?” you asked bashfully, to which soobin responded with the soft drag of his hand, his fingers tracing down your chest and to your waist.

“well i’d hope so.” he grinned, moving to press a kiss onto your neck, “no way am i letting you go to anyone else. you’re all mine.”

as soobin enveloped you in his touch, his arms pulling back to snake around your waist and pull you into a warm embrace, he moved to lay on his side, properly able to pull you into his chest. your arms wrapped around his neck, your hands rubbing gentle circles onto the marks you left in his back earlier, and you could feel him relax just as much.

“i thought it was a stupid idea at first, but it’s good kai picked the pepero game, huh?” soobin muttered against your shoulder.

you grinned, “yeah, but it was only a matter of time until i got you to myself. i would’ve gone crazy if i didn’t.”

soobin chuckled into your skin, pressing on another kiss, “me too.”

within moments, as if you two had been doing it all your lives, you settled into each others warmth. an intimate silence filled the air as you laid there, the tense centimeters of distance that you had dealt with just hours ago finally being absolved into nothing.

god- if you had known then that this was how a round of the pepero game would end, you would’ve played it way sooner.

[xylatox]

February 2025 Fic Recommendations!!

a/n : 2nd fic recs for the year!! February had so many good reads oh my goodness. As always, please support the authors and any of their other works by reblogging, liking and sharing a comment!! :)

My goal for March is to definitely consume more Seventeen and Ateez fics :3

☆ - series ♡ - one-shot

Tomorrow x Together

♡Seven Minutes In Heaven | @yunverie

w.c. - 3.9k

pairing - txt x afab!reader

♡The Slow Surrender | @dawngyu

w.c. - 24k

pairing - chaebol husband choi beomgyu x wife chaebol fem!reader

synopsis -The fear that you’re losing something you never truly had. Your own ring, now too heavy in your palm. A ring that should have meant forever. Your deepest fear. Your husband.

♡flamingo pink, sunrise boulevard | @bamgyuuuri

w.c. - 10.5k

pairing - stranger!yeonjun x fashiondesigner!reader

☆Criminal Conscious | @beomiracles ~ongoing

w.c. - 34.2k+

pairing - criminal!beomgyu x detective!reader

synopsis - moving rapidly through your career as one of the leading female investigators, you never once encountered a case you couldn't crack. though you never expected for your past mistakes to come back and haunt you in the form of an ex lover, accused of murder.

☆this is what slow dancing feels like; pt1, pt2 | @pagelets ~completed

w.c. - 10.2k + 10.6k

pairing - taehyun x reader

synopsis - Kang Taehyun had always dreamed of becoming a ballet dancer, but his conservative father never allowed him. On his 20th birthday, his mother gifts him with a flight ticket to Paris so he can pursue his dream of joining the Académie Internationale de Danse. Getting into the academy is already a challenge. Surviving in it is even harder. In an attempt to be cast in his favorite ballet production, Taehyun decides to bet all his chips on a rigid, and experienced ballerina— you. On a journey of self growth, not only as a dancer but also as a person, can Taehyun count on you? Or will his big chance slip through his fingers?

♡Kiss Of Death | @beomiracles

w.c. - 3k

pairing - reaper/entity!taehyun x gn!reader (written with fem in mind)

synopsis -“Can you grant me one more wish?” You don’t expect him to oblige, you don’t expect anything at all, in fact you would have been content with even a small twitch of his brow. But the man doesn’t say anything, instead he merely watches you, an almost expectant look striking his features.  You inhale, holding that last dying breath for a second before letting go. “Can you… Can you kiss me?”

♡For Lovers | @yeoningz

w.c. - 1.8k

pairing -kang taehyun x fem!reader

synopsis - you've never had to call out your safeword before, but during a rough punishment taehyun takes it too far. luckily, he's right there to pick up the pieces when you fall apart.

♡Just A Game? | @yunverie

w.c. - 9.5k

pairing - Elite Shooter! Choi Beomgyu x Elite Shooter! afab!reader

synopsis - a continuation of Beomgyu’s Seven Minutes In Heaven

♡A Slice of Temptation | @gyu-tori

w.c. - 5.6k

pairing - idol!taehyunx fem idol!reader

synopsis - What was supposed to be a fun, lighthearted filming for your idol segment quickly turns into something far more nerve-wracking when you're assigned to interview Taehyun for his birthday. But the real surprise comes after filming, when he invites you to his dorm to "celebrate properly." Alone. Tension lingers in the air, thick and undeniable, until he finally decides to break it—one taste of sweetness at a time.

♡checkmate! | @4nyangnyangz

w.c. - 4k

pairing - best friend!taehyun x fem reader

synopsis - it was supposed to be just a normal hangout for you and your best friend, Taehyun until the both of you decide to add a little twist to the game of chess that you were playing, uncovering hidden truths and removing a piece of clothing with each loss. the game leads to the both of you revealing unspoken desires and dealing with the suffocating tension between you. a certain turn of events causes the both of you to discover that your friendship may evolve beyond platonic boundaries.

♡Sweatshirt Snuggles | @sxmmerberries

w.c. - 783

pairing - yeonjun x reader

synopsis - cuddling with your boyfriend, yeonjun, wearing his favourite panda sweatshirt to chase away your fever

♡The Great Valentine Heist | @gyutori

w.c. - 5.2k

pairing - highschooler!beomgyu x fem!reader

synopsis - On Valentine’s Day, Beomgyu hatches a plan to steal a box of chocolates from your locker, sparked by a bit of jealousy. But as his scheme unravels in a whirlwind of chaotic mishaps, including a mix-up with the chocolates and a series of awkward excuses, he’s forced to come clean about his true intentions.

☆In Between the Lines | @frozenmxngo ~ongoing

w.c. - 38.2k

pairing - beomgyu x selective mutism fem!reader

synopsis - y/n, a university student with selective mutism, finding solace in solitude. when beomgyu, a curious music student, starts noticing her, their paths cross, and he learns to navigate her silence.

♡blue hydrangeas | @bamgyuuuri

w.c. - 29.7k

pairing - academicrival!taehyun x fem!reader

synopsis - in a world where soulmates are tied by "soulblooms," flowers that manifest on the hand when touched by fate’s match, you have spent your life with an empty wrist and a guarded heart. but when a fleeting touch with taehyun—a boy you find insufferably perfect—awakens a blue hydrangea on your grasp, everything you thought you knew about fate, connection, and him, turned on its head.

♡Rain Lilies | @dawngyu

w.c. - 20k

pairing - soulmate idol choi beomgyu x soulmate fem!reader

synopsis - Sitting at parties surrounded by lovers, a silent third wheel at movie nights, the friend holding the camera at weddings—your hands are always... alone in the spaces where others are full. Were you an error in the grand scheme? An anomaly? A glitch in the unforgiving script? Or maybe, he simply doesn’t really… exist. That’s how you ended up here, standing beside your korean-pop-obsessed friend who practically dragged you out and swore you’d love the show. It all became a blur when your eyes met his. He’s on stage, gripping the mic impossibly still, staring down back at you like he feels it too. He shouldn’t be real.

♡Red Poppies | @gyutori

w.c. - 14.2k

pairing - florist!hueningkai x fem!reader

synopsis - When soulmates are found in dreams, your nights remain empty—until someone with a broken bond helps you search. As dreams clear, unexpected feelings emerge. Are soulmates really just predestined, or can fate change mid-course?

♡Daffodils | @yunverie

w.c. - 22k

pairing - bestfriend!choi soobin x afab!reader

synopsis - In your world, soulmates were bonded through a twisted trial of love and flowers. It was pretty simple, once the bond is awakened, fate chooses one of them to bear the roots of the flowers in their chest, while the other bore the mark of the same flower on their skin. The flower tattoo blooms with colour when the soulmates accept their bond, and petals in the lungs recoil, fading away. Soobin loved you—so fiercely, so tenderly—that it rewrote the boundaries of his existence. You made flowers bloom within him, vibrant and alive, yet laced with quiet devastation. As the petals took root, slowly consuming him, he clung to the beauty of it all, for what is love if not the sweetest kind of ruin?

♡The Archive | @dawngyu

w.c. - 13k

pairing - choi soobin x reader

synopsis - "Here. Please read each clause carefully dear."

The papers were handed in your hands, making your heart pound, each beat a hammer striking painfully inside your ribs. Your fingers tremble against the pen, gripping it so tightly your knuckles ache, but the pressure doesn’t help you—nothing ever will. Your eyes trace the final lines, the words smudging under the sting in your eyes.

You have given extensive thought behind your decision and give "Brighter Days Inc." the exclusive permission to remove this person completely from your memory:

☐ Yes ☐ No

♡casual (pt1) & guilty (pt2) | @bamgyuuuri

w.c. - 1.7k + 8.6k

pairing - choi yeonjun x reader

synopsis - When the lines between being casual or something more blur, what was simple now aches, and every touch feels like a promise neither of you can keep. as you try to leave, his silent pull drags you closer, and you’re both left questioning if you can ever walk away.

☆Waltz of Words | @yunverie ~ongoing

w.c. - 17.6k

pairing - Nobleman!Chou Beomgyu x Noblewoman!Afab!Reader

synopsis - Your heart and mind seek him for reasons no words could describe—an irony not lost on you, a writer, a weaver of words. And yet, when it comes to him, even you fail to stitch together the language to explain his existence in your life.

♡The Terrible Half-Truths of the Undead King | @hyukascampfire

w.c. - 15.5k

pairing - reverent!yeonjun x human!fem!reader

synopsis - The undead walk among the living for one reason, and one reason only. The Kingdom of Aethera is no stranger to this certainty, not unused to a world of whispered tales come true, and certainly not to the strange and wicked. But, there are none more wicked than The King Undead. Leader of The Wild Hunt and answering to none other than himself, what are you to do when Yeonjun’s curiosity lands on you?

♡Bound By Blood And Vengeance | @luvsicktyun

w.c. - 30.1k

pairing - witch hunter!heeseung x witch!reader

synopsis - In the kingdom of Aethera, the shadows whisper tales of revenge, betrayal, and forbidden magic. A cunning witch with a flair for deception, has spent years honing her craft for one purpose: avenging her parents’ deaths at the hands of the King. Disguised as a visiting princess from a distant realm, She charms her way into the castle, weaving lies and illusions to mask her true intent—murdering the king. Her plan is flawless, or so she believes, until she crosses paths with Heeseung, the brooding captain of the royal guard. Tasked with protecting the "princess," Heeseung finds her insufferable, too sharp-tongued and confident for his liking. But as they’re forced to spend time together, her wit begins to spark something deeper in him, despite his better judgment.

♡The Siren's Call | @thetxtdevil

w.c. - 4k

pairing - Siren!Soobin x Human/Fish!Reader

synopsis- The siren couldn’t do it, he latched onto your body with different intensities. His instincts wanted his talons to tear your soft flesh until the sapphire water turned into a murky red. However, something in his chest scorched every time his grip on you tightened with harm. The siren couldn’t commit to his kill.

♡with wings of wax and thread | @biteyoubiteme

w.c. - 19.6k

pairing - angel!huening kai x demon!fem!reader

synopsis - In the kingdom of Aethera, an angel is pushed from the heavens. Wings torn and feathers spilling, he finds himself in the den of a demon who wishes to have never been found. Long having lived with your own fall from grace, wingless and bloody just as he is now, you help stitch back up what once was. Can nurtured understanding be crueler than nature?

♡Of Snow And Shattered Wings | @beomiracles

w.c. - 14.1k

pairing - dragon!taehyun x human!reader (f)

synopsis - Foolish girl. You should know better than to wander up the snowy and cold mountains all by yourself. Yet you march onward, not caring for the biting frost as you draw your coat tighter around yourself. The tales told by your old grandfather had been enough to fuel your curiosity, to push the bounds of danger as you sought to see the dragons for yourself. — Perhaps you got more than you bargained for when you suddenly stumble across the one everyone thought to be extinct; the ice dragon. ⸝⸝

Enhypen

♡No Doubt | @jakesimfromstatefarm

w.c. - 23.7k

pairing - jake x f!reader

synopsis - struggling to balance a world tour, endless responsibilities, and...well, the sting of getting dumped by his girlfriend, jake finds peace & comfort confiding in you—one of his closest friends. what begins as lighthearted late-night phone calls while he's away on tour deepens into something more, quickly pulling you both into uncharted emotional territory. as your connection with jake intensifies, so does your inner turmoil—torn between the comfort of your easy relationship with him and the terrifying possibility of falling for someone you're not even sure you can have in the first place. but jake? jake has absolutely no doubt of what he wants—and spoiler alert? it's you.

♡The Dollmaker | @jjunbug

w.c. - 14.8k

pairing - park sunghoon x fem!reader

synopsis - you were sunghoon’s muse, his flawless, perfect wife that he dresses in frilly dresses and makes sure you always looked like the idealized woman. that much was evident from all the dolls he made of you that sat proudly throughout your home. but, when sunghoon isn’t there, the dolls move and show you things that would otherwise be hidden in the shadows. one day, they show you something so frightening, something completely sinister that you force yourself to believe that it isn’t real. your beloved husband wouldn’t do something like that, would he? you weren’t so sure about your answer anymore.

♡Bubblegum | @babeyun

w.c. - 11.9k

pairing - college student!yang jungwon x fem!candy shop attendant!reader

synopsis - from raspberry sour belts to strawberry crème filled chocolates, you know jungwon like the back of your hand...when it comes to candy. he's far deeper than meets the eye.

♡The Only Gift That Matters | @gyutori

w.c. - 6.4k

pairing -Pairing: idol!jungwonx fem!reader

synopsis -After his final tour performance, Jungwon expects a simple celebration—until he walks in and finds you waiting for him. With the help of his meddling members, you’ve flown across the world to surprise him on his birthday, turning an ordinary night into one he’ll never forget.

♡Symphony Of Us | @heartsriki

w.c. - 4.6k+

pairing - Jay x fem!reader

synopsis - As music majors in college, You and Jay have always been seatmates in class—passing notes, sharing playlists, and teasing each other between lectures. But when you get paired for the annual Valentine’s Open Mic Night, your usual banter turns into long practice sessions, late-night coffee runs, and a song that sounds a little too much like a love confession.

♡Cookie Cutter | @luvsicktyun

w.c. - 2.8k

pairing - jungwon x fem!reader

synopsis - making valentines day cookies for the members with Jungwon

♡loving you is forever | @hoonieyun

w.c. - 16.5k

pairing - lee heeseung x reader

synopsis - after a one night stand leaves you with a lasting memory of the boy you left behind in the name of your daughter, heejin. you finally decide that it was time to move back home to south korea after living abroad for the last 5 years. reuniting with your old friends was everything you could've wished for as they welcomed you and your daughter; but you don't think you could ever prepare yourself to face the father of your child.

☆the truth untold; pt1, pt2 | @just-nc-tea ~completed

w.c. - 31k + 36.8k

pairing - hockeyplayer!Jake x fem!reader

synopsis - Jake’s world takes a nosedive when he gets a wedding invitation from his high school ex—the same ex who cheated on him—with your ex. Desperate to avoid showing up alone Jake ropes you into a fake relationship, just for the evening. Originally. But if you’re going to sell the lie, you have to make it convincing. That means dates, inside jokes, learning the little details about each other that real couples would know. By the time the wedding arrives, neither of you are sure where the act ends and the truth begins.

♡To Fly or To Fall | @gyu-tori

w.c. - 16.4k

pairing - highschooler!heeseung x fem!reader

synopsis - You were the perfect student, always silent and disciplined, blending into the background where no one can see the weight of your father's expectations or the silence of your mother. When you're paired with Heeseung, a carefree troublemaker who seems to notice everything about you, your world escape from the suffocating cage you've been living in. But when your defiance leads to consequences you never expected, you must face a choice: stay in the cage, or take a chance on freedom, even if it means risking everything.

♡The Marriage Law | @enhaflixer

w.c. - 20.5k

pairing - Park Jongseong x Reader

synopsis - A Marriage Law was the last thing you expected to dictate your future, let alone shackle you to Park Jongseong. A pureblood heir, painfully composed, infuriatingly good at everything, and—unfortunately—now your husband. What starts as reluctant cohabitation, filled with awkward silences and sharp words, slowly unravels into something neither of you can ignore. Stolen glances, fleeting touches, and the illusion of normalcy turn into a dangerous game neither of you meant to play. Is it all for show? Or has the line between pretend and real already disappeared? But love alone isn’t enough to erase the past—or the law that forced you together. As the Ministry looms over your every move, and whispers of rebellion grow louder, you and Jay must decide: fight the law, or fight for each other.

♡Raspberry Stains | @biteyoubiteme

w.c. - 18.5k

pairing - vampire!sunghoon x fem!reader

synopsis - left alone on the streets of your small village you are offered the opportunity to trade your life for only a small price to pay. You are given to vampire prince sunghoon who has not had a taste for blood for almost a lifetime. Not because he does not feel hunger but because he has not found the one that temps him.

♡harvest of purity | @fangel

w.c. -29k

pairing - sunghoon x reader

synopsis - in which an innocent, shy, and faithful sunghoon takes a summer job as a farmhand. he’s never indulged on his desires until the farmer’s daughter shows him a taste of sin. although riddled with guilt, he cannot deny or escape the new rousing feelings that impurify him. especially when she's set on ruining him every chance she gets.

♡where bluebells meet | @rumoonstruckyet

w.c. - 31.2k

pairing - rivaltofriend!jungwon x fem!reader

synopsis - for years, you’ve been on a constant stream of debates with student council president yang jungwon. and although you didn’t exactly hate him, you weren’t fond of him either—especially of your teachers’ decision to team you up for two projects—in your graduating year, of all times. so as you started working, why were your arguments now reduced to an air of awkwardness and...a blossoming friendship?

♡When Cameras Stop Rolling | @gyu-tori

w.c. - 21.1k

pairing - actor!sunghoon x aspiringdirector!reader

synopsis - When the cameras stop rolling, the world still watches. You’ve spent years behind the scenes, dreaming of the day you’ll call the shots. Then there’s Sunghoon—an untouchable star, distant yet impossibly captivating. To him, you’re just another face in the crowd—until tension sparks and walls crack. When love and ambition collide, will either of you risk it all?

Seventeen

♡The Xu Minghao Dilemma | @shuaflix

w.c. - 20.6k

pairing - xu minghao x fem!reader

synopsis - like most film students, you find yourself experiencing the worst creative block of your life when you're tasked to film a documentary for your final project. enter: your old childhood best friend turned stranger, xu minghao—an (incredibly handsome) ex-dancer and barista who just might be the spark of inspiration you need to make the best film of your academic career. on the flip side, minghao needs this film to win him the scholarship that lets him dance again. despite all, your circumstances don't stop your old, repressed feelings for minghao from resurfacing.

☆the one where the stranger you fake date turns out to be your childhood friend; pt1, pt2 | @bitchlessdino

w.c. - 12.5k + 29.5k

pairing - office manager!seungcheol x childhood friend!fem!reader

synopsis - In a world where relationships mattered just as much as money or status did, Seungcheol found himself wrapped up with a person from twenty years ago. He didn't know how you remembered him, and frankly he didn't know how he remembered you, but the way you've reentered his life, like a gust of wind, he didn't think he'll ever forget you now.

♡Cinnamon | @daechwitatamic

w.c. - 19k

pairing - mingyu x fem!reader (nicknamed Sunny), reader x male oc for a while

synopsis - You finally decide to try and move on after years of waiting for Mingyu to return your feelings. But when you start bringing your new boyfriend around more often, things with Mingyu get... difficult.

♡Fake It Til You Make It | @diamonddaze01

w.c. - 18k

pairing - boo seungkwan x f!reader

synopsis - You could honestly throttle Seokmin right now. Of all the half-baked, caffeine-fueled ideas he’s ever had, convincing the entire office that you and Seungkwan—your sworn nemesis and parking spot thief—are madly in love might just take the cake.

♡muddled hearts | @haologram

w.c. - 24k

pairing - bartender!xu minghao x fem!waitress!reader

synopsis - things take a turn for the better when you finally find a roommate to escape your incredibly overpriced apartment, but you don't expect to ruin the only relationship that matters to you in the process.

♡Fires of Faith | @jakedustry

w.c. - 29.2k

pairing - Wonwoo x reader

synopsis - You can’t put out fire with fire. But you can combine them, and watch the place burn down in front of your eyes. The demon king realized that when he watched his son dethrone him. He should have never sent him on the mission in the first place. If he hadn’t, he could have kept his son’s fire under control. 

Ateez

☆mountebank chem | @jensthwa ~completed

w.c. - 64.5k

pairing - rich!yunho x afab!rich!reader.

synopsis - The first time you met Yunho, you knew he was going to be part of the biggest tragedy of your life: the loss of your freedom, of your free will. You didn't know why back then but what you did figure out is that you and Jeong Yunho were going to, eventually and very publicly, date each other at some point. Is that reason enough to hate his guts? Well, of course! Now, when the time comes to fulfill the prophecy, how the hell are you going to pull it off? And, most importantly, what do you need to do to not fall in love with him in the process?

[miupow]

𝑯𝑨𝑷𝑷𝒀 𝑩𝑰𝑹𝑻𝑯𝑫𝑨𝒀 , 𝑳𝑰𝑻𝑻𝑳𝑬 𝑭𝑶𝑿

[ ☁️ ] ── choi yeonjun x gn!reader ⸝⸝ hybrid au , fox hybrid!yeonjun , hybrid rescue mentions , owner!reader , tooth rotting fluff , kind of sad if you think about it too hard , cuddling , forehead kisses , could be read as platonic

a/n ⸝⸝ happy yeonjun day !! this was inspired by my rescue fox hybrid yeonjun hcs that i have with @mapofthemazeinthemirror ... just had to write something small and cute <3 hope you all enjoy!

♡ ⸝⸝ ꒰ 1. 0k words ꒱ ‧ ꒰ m. list ꒱ ‧ ꒰ reblogs and feedback appreciated! ꒱

yeonjun had never had a birthday before. he wasn’t even completely sure what a “birthday” even was— when you had asked him a few days after bringing him home when he was born, he shrugged his shoulders and told you that truthfully, he wasn’t sure. it didn’t matter much to him, anyway. he had other, more important things to worry about when he was fighting for survival every day in the woods. he didn’t understand why his answer seemed to upset you so much.

unbeknownst to him, you reached back out to the rescue that was his home for so many years, hoping that they had the answer you were looking for. they told you that they couldn’t be one hundred percent sure, since yeonjun was born in the wild, but they had calculated an approximate birth date based on his time in the shelter…

The thirteenth of September, 1999. just a mere four months after you had first brought him home.

You threw yourself into planning a surprise party, just for the two of you; you stocked up on all of yeonjun’s favorite foods, hiding them away from his prying eyes and keen nose. you ordered decorations for the apartment in all of his favorite colors, down to the wrapping paper you wrapped all of his gifts in. you worked tirelessly the night before while the fox hybrid slept, set everything up so perfectly for when your sweet boy wakes up…

you called out of work so you could stay with him all day, let him hog up every bit of attention he wanted from you. he hated when you had to leave him, and you felt terrible every time, but you had to go and make money so you could afford to take care of the both of you… yeonjun understood the best he could, but he still whined and pouted every morning while you got ready for your shift. you wanted to make sure his first ever birthday was as perfect for him as you could possibly make it.

“happy birthday, jjunie!” you shout when the hybrid steps out of his bedroom the next morning, arms out to hug him under all of the banners and ribbon. behind you his gifts were stacked high, nearly as tall as you were, and you began to worry if you had taken it a little too far as yeonjun stood still and his wide bewildered eyes darted around the living room to take everything in.

“what?” he asks, cocking his head like a puppy.

“it’s your birthday today!” you replied with a giggle, stepping forward to hug him yourself— yeonjun didn’t hug back, too distracted by all of the glittery decorations and presents, the food on the kitchen table. he was still getting used to your sometimes smothering affection anyway, so you didn’t let it bother you.

“it is?”

“yes, silly!” you pull back from the hug to study yeonjun’s face; his fluffy fox ears stood straight up amongst his messy bed hair, twitching in curiosity, his pouty lips open in surprise showing off his little bunny-like teeth. you resist the urge to coo at him, knowing how much he hates it when you baby him. “you didn’t know your birthday, so i asked the shelter, i hope that’s okay…”

after a few more moments of looking around in shock, yeonjun nodded slowly, his puffy tail swishing behind him. “what does my birthday mean?”

“it means you’re a year older than you were.” you giggle. “you were twenty four yesterday, now you’re twenty five today. do you feel any different?”

“not really. is all that food for me?”

yeonjun still didn’t seem to understand birthdays that much, even as you tried to explain it to him as he shoveled food into his mouth. you couldn’t blame him one bit, growing up feral and away from humans, never catching on to the human-centric customs that surround him now as an adult. it was one of the things that you loved about him the most, if you were being honest with yourself— his childlike curiosity about everything around him, the sincereness in his ignorance, the feral in him waning more and more every day as the two of you grow closer. you don’t want him to lose that part of himself, don’t want to erase what made him unique.

but as you watched him tear into his presents, the first presents he’s ever received in his life, you couldn’t help but grow excited to share with him even more of the human world. you kept the gifts simple, just clothes you thought he’d like and toys to keep his hybrid side happy and entertained; he thanks you after every one, his sweet toothy smile growing larger until it lights up his entire face. it dug deep into your heart, haunted you as you finished up the early celebrations and went on with your day. you wanted nothing more than to see yeonjun smile like that every day, especially after how much hardship he had been through before he came into your life… your sweet fox deserved the entire world, and you would do anything you could to make sure he had anything he could possibly want and more.

“thank you,” he whispers to you later that night, cuddled with you in bed because you couldn’t refuse his pouting. “i like birthdays. do i get another one next year?”

you can’t get a good look at his face because he has it pressed up against your chest, his pointy ears soft against your skin as they listen to your heartbeat. you tighten your arms around his shoulders, lean into his touch as he purrs quietly to himself, a deep rumble in his chest. he finds it embarrassing when he purrs; you’re pretty sure it’s your favorite sound.

“you’ll get one every year, jjun.” you answer, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead. “and there’s more than just birthdays. just wait until i tell you about christmas.”

[xliketoread]

bad habits

trigger warning: death of a major character, betrayal, murder, special guests, family issues, criminal activities.

genre: elite!college!au (where they are all seventeen, but taehyun and y/n younger by one year, yeonjun is near to 18, soobin is 18 actually)

matching: soobin x afab!reader (x taehyun - platonic -)

(inspired by TXT 'Good Boy Gone Bad [Japanese Ver.]' Official MV.)

You stared at the mirror where you guess the police were sitting and observing every move you made, how brave of you when you made eye contact with the prosecutor who looked at you already with an unreadable expression.

A ruthless, crazy defendant who kept a blank face at the picture of her victim's dead body.

Suddenly the door opened, revealing a woman with expensive clothes and jewelry furiously walking to the small table where your hands were handcuffed. Behind her were a bunch of black suit men and other police holding each other back.

The officer hesitantly stood up, "Mrs. Han, this is the restricted area-" your head turned sideways while your eyes widen at the sudden force that collided with your face, that hurt, like hell. Such a funny joke, a slimy lady like that made you feel the metallic taste on your tongue.

"You disgusting creature, how could you? after everything he has done for you, if only he had left you dead along with your drug addict mother at the whorehouse, he wouldn't have..."

Hearing her accusation, you caress your reddened cheek before walking to the middle-aged woman.

Seeing your glare, she took a step but too late. You spat out the blood in your mouth, tainting her luxurious layout, gasps and whispers were heard but you didn't care "Aren't you busy with sleeping around with your dead husband's colleagues?"

"You little bitch, how dare-" surprisingly, the police officers took the advantage of her shaken state, holding her back from lunging at you, and excused themself out of the room. Now there were only you and the quiet prosecutor in this cold room.

The young prosecutor stared blankly at the door where the chaos could still be known by the loud sound and thumping steps on the floor. He shook his head and sighed.

....

Soobin couldn't care much about the teacher blabbering his dying love for Shakespear and how his writings are gob-blessed. Bouncing his legs out of habit while his eyes were glued to the clock. He's gonna be late for his date with Miyeon.

one...two...three...four....

'RING RING RING RING' before his literature teacher could even react, choi soobin with his backpack was out of the classroom, running full speed to the yard to meet his future girlfriend and long time crush.

As a result of his recklessness, running across the busy hallway, he bumped into something or someone hard. It seemed like this person was holding their stuff and those kinds of stuff were now scattered all over the floor.

"Sorry. Oh my god. Here, i'm sorry." Trying his best to gather his victim's items, he hid his face and did not look at that person. "I'm sorry." Saying his last apology, he dashed away.

Seeing Miyeon's figure from afar, Soobin ran slower.

Fixing his clothes, he cleared his throat "Hi, Miyeon." The said girl turned to look at him, a smile was already on her face. "Hi, Soobin."

"You-you look beautiful today." Miyeon giggled at his unstable sentence, winking at his wandering eyes "of course, i always look great."

Miyeon couldn't make out what the taller boy mumbled under his breath but before she could ask, a voice startled the two of them "hey, you the tall guy, you dropped this!"

From a not so long distance, a girl ran toward them with her hands waving something on her hand.

Soobin recognized that it looked like his wallet, while he was checking his backpack and jacket, the girl had already arrived and handed out it to him.

"You ran so fast, i tried to call you but you didn't listen! Here." Soobin bowed down to thank the girl who bid them goodbye and went away with her friend waiting for her.

Miyeon with her arms folded in front of her chest, eyes followed the girl and saw her friend. She squinted her eyes to focus on the friend and the girl 'Isn't that-?'

Before she could remember the person's name, her vision was blocked by Soobin who moved right in front of where the girl and her friend stood "Should we go to the coffee now, Miyeon?" He said with his head tilted and a small smile.

"Sure. Let's go, shall we?" Miyeon masked her confusion with an identical smile that was fake. Soobin gestured the 'lady first' to Miyeon before going behind her. Soobin looked back one more time only to be greeted by no one at that spot.

....

"Stop eating the grape sour patch, we are at a party, tyun." You glared at the red haired boy. He shrugged it off, changing the subject "I thought you said you couldn't go. What changed?"

"Nothing changed. Suddenly, my schedule is clear tonight so i came here to spend time with you." You face crunched in disgust at the sight of two random people passed out near the toilet. "I regret it now, thanks." You sipped the fluid from the red cup he passed you and immediately spat it out.

"What the fuck is this unholy shit?" You looked at your friend in disbelief.

"That is alcohol, miss little teacher pet." That ignorant, cocky voice that was too familiar to you appeared right by your side. You took a step ahead to where Taehyun stood and turned to face the owner of the voice "That must be out of date or it is cheap alcohol."

"Hi, Yeonjun hyung." You watched as the two of them side-hugged, and proceed to gag at the wink the blonde hair sent to you.

"Where is my hug?" yeonjun pouted at you with his hands spreaded open, you ignored him and turned to taehyun "I will be upstair, okay?" You glared at yeonjun's smug face and retreated your hand from taehyun's shoulder, walking away.

"Why did she run away every time we met? Aren't I attractive? What?" Yeonjun put his hands up in the air when the younger male glared at him muttering "disgusting" under his breath.

Sliding through all those drunk and sweaty teenagers was something you wouldn't want to experience again. 'Now where is Manhoe?' You looked around the room, trying to find the boy.

"Ain't fucking no way." You said, facepalming yourself at the sight of the floral shirt boy who was the attention of the whole room, people circling around to make room for him and a fucking peacock. A fucking pink peacock.

"Here you see is a very rare statue of this beautiful creature! if only this weren't a gift, i would sell it- oh my god! my friend! You are here!" before he could reach you, you pretended to be deaf in front of those stares and backed away from the crowd.

You lowered your body, appearing smaller in comparison with others and disappearing from the room. You found yourself in the rather strange room, a garage? You asked yourself.

Boxes and trunks were placed all over the place "what the..?" You thought about how long had it been since Yeonjun moved to this neighborhood. Three months? No, the first time you met him in the campus was the beginning of this year.

It was weird for a person to not unpack their things after a year of living here. Knowing how Yeonjun technically lived off on partying and somehow barely passed the exam despite not going to school that much, he wasn't necessarily that busy. Hmm, weird.

You randomly opened a box but slammed it shut right away. There was money in the box, filling up the whole thing. You stood up. Then you saw a newspaper on the side of a table, reading the title out loud

"Beware of those whom you thought were innocent and young!!!

Bank robbers happened by the hands of youngsters!!!"

"Miyeon and Yeonjun?" you thought out loud, the picture on the paper was unrecognizable but somehow you could make out the blurry figure of Yeonjun and Miyeon.

'but what about Soobin? did he know?'

'Not my business tho' you sighed softly, putting the article down. You hesitantly looked out from the window and estimated the possibility of being caught sneaking around, tainting your reputation, or breaking your legs would harm you more.

Opening the window, 'okay, this won't break my legs.' you made your choice and took a deep breath.

'1....2...3....10' you jumped. Lucky for you, you landed on what seemed like a pillow? And that pillow knew how to whine, "shut up! you are a pillow. you can't speak or make noises. shush!"

"But why do you smell like Choi Soobin?" your hands moved to inspect the silk material, expensive and tone, a familiar smell caught up with your nose, caramel and coffee scent. Oh no.

Like a fast forward motion, you tore yourself off the human pillow and furiously flicked off the dust on your clothes. "What is this ridiculous day?" You glared at the male, and the urge of punching his smirk became more clear.

"Hey, what are you-" you dodged the hand that was trying to reach you but soobin didn't give up. After his hands were slapped away multiple times, soobin finally had enough, he held your head right in front of his face and stopped you from moving away.

"Jesus, y/n, there are leaves on your hair. Stop moving!" Accept your fate since his grip on you was strong and you were afraid he would rip your head off. Soobin was tall, so tall that when he could hide your entire body with his.

"Are you done now? Get off me!" You pushed him, well tried to, but he didn't budge and even brought your face closer to him. "You are stubborn, baby. Why don't you give me a smile and we get over this?" He must be playing with your now. And you blamed it on the high temperature you felt on your face.

"No. Why don't you run back to your girlfriend, Choi?" You finally could escape his grasp, leaving him standing with his hands in his pocket and his stupid grin.

"Hmm. First, are you jealous with her?" You leaned back as he lowered his face, taunting you with his height. You looked away as his intense gaze fell on you.

"Can I have your hand, baby?" You hated that he had this effect on you, but can't choose any options but gave him your hand. "Second, I like you not her." Your cheeks reddened with the kiss he left on the back of your hand. "Finally, Miyeon is not my girlfriend. That position is empty for you only, baby."

"Stop playing with me! Perv!" Soobin admired your flustered face under the moon light, if it weren't for this stupid mess his father did, he wouldn't have lived like this. "Am I making you nervous, baby?"

He tried to kiss your hand again, but you shooed his hand away since there was a person interrupting you two "Soobin ah, have you seen y/n?" That was Minho walking towards them with his peacock and floral shirt.

"So if you need the document, just ask for me through the teacher, okay?" He wanted to laugh at the way you fluttered your eyelashes at him, acting all innocent and naive.

"Sure. Mrs. Cha, right?" He played along.

"Oh, there you are, friend!" Minho seemed tipsy when he put his whole weight on you to hug you. "Minho, you smelled like rats getting drowned by cheap gin in the city sewer."

You were too focused on your drunk friend to notice the dirty looks Soobin sent to Minho. While you were fixing the purple nest on Minho's head, you almost tripped over because his body made you lean back too much, but luckily, soobin was there to save the day.

He grabbed the drunk boy's upper hand and pulled him away from you. Minho squinted his eyes, he nodded his head and his lips lifted to a smirk. He threw the pink statue at you, you luckily caught it without any harm.

"Are you jealous of her, beautiful?" Deja vu. You pinched your skin, holding your laugh in while Minho winked at Soobin while Soobin tried to escape his grasp.

"No no no. That position is empty for you only, baby" Minho was actually shorter than Soobin but it looked like he was stronger too. Well, seeing how Soobin couldn't get away convinced you more.

"What are you doing? Stop! Hey! Y/n! Don't leave, please! Ahhhhhhhhhhh" you felt a little sorry for Soobin but he would be fine, you thought.

Your hands held the statue as you pushed through the crowd to find the redhead. He was with Choi Yeonjun again, surprisingly they weren't drunk, sitting and talking on a sofa in the middle of chaos.

"Taehyun ah, I have to leave now." You tap his shoulder. "Hi y/n." you rolled your eyes and waved back at Yeonjun. "Hi again, unfortunately."

"Great, let me take you home." Taehyun reached for his keys but you stopped his hands and shook your head to indicate that you refuse his offer. "no, I need you to help Minho and um- someone in the garden. The both of them, okay?" taehyun nodded his head hesitantly "sure but how about you?"

"What about me?" you asked.

"It's dark and you came by taxi." he replied.

"I would be fine- let me take her home." Yeonjun interrupted you and Taehyun's conversation. "What with you guys and that look?" Yeonjun raised his eyebrows when you and Taehyun gave him the most untrusted look.

"Do I look like someone who would harm her? I'm a good citizen."

After a while, you nodded your head and Taehyun showed Yeonjun your address "Get home safely, tyun. And don't forget about Minho." you kissed his forehead and hugged him before following Yeonjun to go get his car.

"My princess, if you don't mind." you put on your best smile, well, you didn't want to get killed by misfortune. His car wasn't a sports car like you thought, "hm vintage" you commented, looking around the furniture of the car while sitting in the front passenger’s seat.

You regretted saying those words "don't." his grin was annoying, you don't know why he radiated the energy you just couldn't explain with words, and now you knew his secret, even more. He looked too familiar for his own good.

"I didn't say anything and yet you are trying to shut me up?"

"Put your seatbelt on, Yeonjun-ssi." you stopped him on track, and he blinked. "oh okay. I forgot."

The ride was deadly silent, not even Yeonjun tried to make conversation. You zoned out, watching the same green trees passing your eyes. It was cold, the blue-ish in the atmosphere didn't bother to hold back, it held animals at gunpoint due to its lasting time but put people to their true form, a complete piece to the cruelty of human world.

"This is not where I live, Yeonjun-ssi." you were looking at a bank?

"Do you have to withdraw your money or sth?" you scoffed, he still had that stupid grin on his face, but it didn't reach his eyes.

"Do I have to? I don't know, you saw those boxes, right?" he relaxed leaning against the chair, looking right back at you.

"What are you even talking about? What boxes?" you disguised your fear by acting annoyed with him, angry and tired eyes.

It didn't survive that long, you clenched your teeth at the screen which showed you in that garage room, sneaking around like a robber. You sat back, speechless by the evidence, "I was lost and I didn't touch your money."

"You saw the newspaper."

"Then what? It's just a paper about some random bank robbers. I don't even know you." you responded. "Are you trying to point out that you are the bank robber?"

Silence again. You and him staring at each other, one was suspicious and one was pretending.

"You see that?" You followed his hand to see the red light of the bank's camera directly looking back at you through the tinted glass. "If i got caught and people saw you in a robber's car in front of a bank, what do you think would happen?" you chewed the bottom of your lips, not caring about your hair being played between his fingers.

You gulped, he must have noticed how nervous and disadvantageous the position that you were in. He invaded your personal space by leaning closer to you, making himself look bigger.

"What exactly do you want, Yeonjun? Isn't messing with people like me would be too much of a trouble to you?" he chuckled at how you tried to appear confident and control the situation like you were talking with a child not a criminal.

He didn't like that a bit.

You saw he switched something near a radio, everything happened too fast, with you back being slammed to the side, hitting your hand repeatedly on his arms which were the reason why you suddenly felt hurt in the throat and hard to breath.

"Yeon-yeonjun-"

"No, you fucking listen to me. I could kill you and dump your corpse in the ocean where no one will or could try to find that useless body in the depth of the hell. Trust me, honey, you would die a painful death if you didn't keep your mouth shut. Are we clear now?" you felt pathetic, you always live as a girl who never back down and ready to take whatever life gave her.

All those year acting like a miss perfect in everyone's eyes frankly were a mere act. Your tears spilled like a kid who didn't get her milk because she knocked it off the table and now mommy got fed up, refusing to give her more as a punishment.

"yes." you were able to let out a whisper but that didn't satisfy his anger "Weirdly, i didn't hear anything. What? Can you say it again, hm?" he loosened his grip on your neck, barely enough for you to form a complete sentence. His other hand knocking on the side of your head.

"Yes, i will shut my mouth and follow your order, please don't hurt me, please I'm sorry, please i will be good, please, please." you plead. this caught him off guard and he realized he must have cross the line, he blamed it on the stress he had these days, the police sniffing their footsteps and Miyeon being a bitch, arguing and blabbering about how great the Soobin was and how he had to study from the rich brat.

How dare she? after everything he has done for her.

Upset and disappointment with Miyeon took the place of his sorry for you. He let you off the hook but didn't forget to shove you away from him and returned to his seat.

"Let's take a ride through the city before I drop you home, okay?"

...

You were near Mr.Choi's study when you heard a curling shriek from there. Taehyun? Hurrying your pace, you reached the wooden door where you thought you never would have to go in again.

You pushed the heavy door open, eyes widened when you saw Yeonjun slowly back off from the table and Teahyun sitting on the floor, his hands covering his mouth with a distressed expression on his face.

"oh my god." you muttered under your breath, Mr.Choi was dead with the vomit on his elegant suit, his eyes closed and his head hung low.

"We need to call 911." you said.

"No, I mean, fuck it can't be" yeonjun pacing around the room. you realized he couldn't be caught in here, not with what you had heard, you won't let him be a scapegoat this time.

You took a flight ticket from your bag and shoved it to his chest "go. go away from here. Call the first number on this phone when you get to the airport. Don't worry, Hayoon won't betray you like her. I promise."

You knew it was wrong of you to do this with him, though he would be fine, knowing nothing and living a good life like what you owed him.

"What? i-i don't understand, why do I have to run away when I didn't do anything? I wasn't a criminal anymore" you bit your tears back, remembering his dedicated features for the last time. You wanted to laugh at how stiff his body was when you hugged him, feeling nostalgia. To your surprise, his arms wrapped around you tightly "what's wrong? please tell me, y/n."

"We will meet again. It is not a promise, yeonjun. I will find you so please don't go back here and wait for me there."

Yeonjun didn't get to say anything when a group of men came in and pull him away. You looked away, ignoring his pleases and calls for you. Wiping the tears from the corner of your eyes, you took a deep breath before approaching Taehyun who was covering his ears and hiding away from you and his father's corpse.

"I-I didn't-didn't-didn't do that. He was dead when I saw him. How how could he disappear after everything?"

"Hey, it's okay, it's okay, shhhhh, breath, breath."

His eyes were glossing with tears, his face was red, and you shooed his back to calm him down. "Tyun, let's get out of here first, huh?" he nodded, you supported his side to walk away from the scene, you can't have him talking with police in this state yet. They would be here soon.

It had only been somewhat 20 minutes, taehyun was asleep after you calmed him down. You furrowed your eyebrows when you heard the ring of the doorbell. The police were investigating the scene now and you had gone back to your apartment with Taehyun after being diminished to wait until they found something.

You furrowed your eyebrows when you heard the ring of the doorbell and your phone ringing not long after. It was the one you had been calling from the time you got home.

'Choi Soobin😑 is calling'

You picked up your phone, and walked to the door while hitting the accept button "seriously soobin, where have you been? I have called you like hundred times!" There was no answer.

"hello?"

Should I continue this story?

[ao3feed-ateez]

Player 1117

read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/Ex97M2F by peachesyeo after you transmigrated into an otome game, you try to survive as the villianess character. however, things were much different here than you have expected it to be. ateez ot8 & reader. txt is pure platonic relationship. i'm not a good writer, expect short updates. Words: 2382, Chapters: 2/?, Language: English Fandoms: ATEEZ (Band), TOMORROW X TOGETHER | TXT (Korea Band) Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Categories: F/M, Multi Characters: ATEEZ Ensemble, Kim Hongjoong, Park Seonghwa, Jeong Yunho (ATEEZ), Kang Yeosang, Choi San (ATEEZ), Song Mingi (ATEEZ), Jung Wooyoung (ATEEZ), Choi Jongho (ATEEZ), TOMORROW X TOGETHER Ensemble, Choi Soobin, Choi Yeonjun, Choi Beomgyu, Kang Taehyun, Huening Kai Relationships: ATEEZ Ensemble/Reader, Kim Hongjoong/Reader, Park Seonghwa/Reader, Jeong Yunho (ATEEZ)/Reader, Kang Yeosang/Reader, Choi San (ATEEZ)/Reader, Song Mingi/Reader, Jung Wooyoung (ATEEZ)/Reader, Choi Jongho (ATEEZ)/Reader Additional Tags: Dark Fantasy, Yandere, idk what other tags to put read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/Ex97M2F

[jaywisterias]

imagine being in a relationship, platonic or romantic, with one of the txt members and then going through a horrible breakup. it’s for the best, you had told yourself at the time, and maybe it was and maybe it wasn’t—but nonetheless it still hurt.

imagine having to be in his presence for half of your scheduled classes together everyday, pretending to not care. imagine watching him get up from his seat to turn something in and seeing him wear clothing you’ve never seen before and thinking are those new pants? when did he get those? they look comfortable—before realizing you can’t think that anymore, you have to stay neutral faced, can’t make a peep.

imagine going to a different lunch than him because you and him used to sit together constantly. imagine having to stay silent every time he speaks up during class because you can’t join in the discussion anymore. and now you have to take different pathways home, avoid his job place, avoid eye contact, avoid talking to him in groups, feel awkward whenever he’s brought up.

it’s for the best, you argue yet again. but it still hurt.

[yeonboy]

𝐧𝐨 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 ♡ choi yeonjun.

If you had known that a fun night out eating junk food with your best friend that you have always harbored a crush on would turn this sour because he misunderstood your words, you would have kept your mouth shut. Now Yeonjun has gone radio silent on you and if you want to salvage your friendship, you will have to get over your feelings first because he will never forgive you if he finds out. Right?

❧ choi yeonjun x f. reader | 16+ | college!au ♡ best friends to lovers!au ♡ angst ♡ humor ♡ fluff

❧ 7 k words

❧ warnings! inaccuracies wrt college sports/scouting/ice hockey, profanity, suggestive language, suggestive scenes, discussion and exhibition of puck bunny behavior, mentions of slut-shaming, misunderstandings, miscommunication, jealousy, some pining, yeonjun is stooooopiiiid, yn is also stooooopiiiid, one (1) singular heavy makeout sesh that gets a little out of hand hehe (:

❧ note! hi, world! this is a sideblog i created v v recently, but you won’t find links to my main anywhere bec i’ve decided to be a catfish on this one (: LOL jk, i just wanted a fresh start. i will be cutting back on the hoeing around i used to indulge in w my writing on that blog, and keep this place as sfw as i can - we’ll focus on tummy-aching angst instead! w a happy ending ofc bec ya girl is a softie 😔

leave me feedback if you like this! follow for more! (:

❧ masterlist | inbox ⁘

"Dude, this has gone so fucking soggy, it's like chewing leather. Please stop eating it."

Your words of disgust and grimace of distaste were, unsurprisingly, nothing to deter your best friend from munching on the cold fries he'd left for the last when he'd been too busy gobbling down his burgers. Stuffing a handful into his mouth like an actual ape, he in fact wiggles his eyebrows at you in a challenge.

"I feel like I've seen an orangutan eat exactly the way you just did, Choi Yeonjun. Please stop."

That makes him giggle and clear his mouth, finally raising his hands in surrender. "Kay, I give up. They do taste like leather."

"Not even gonna ask how you know that… But this is why you're supposed to have your fries with the burgers and not after it."

"But they mess up my palate!"

When he pouts like that, it's so hard for you to believe that he's the university’s senior ice hockey team’s ace, their Center, their captain, and that he’s looking to get scouted professionally, this year. When he pouts like that, he takes you back to the time you first met him on the first day of your high school, both clueless freshmen with wide, innocent eyes full of huge dreams about your future.

Dreams that you're both very, very close to making a reality, now – him as a professional hockey player, and you interning at the law firm of your dreams.

Damn. Time sure flies fast.

“What? Is there something on my face?” Yeonjun tilts his head and you blink away from your thoughts, averting your gaze from his to instead stare at his shitty, soggy fries.

“Yeah. Stupid. A lot of it.”

Yeonjun rolls his eyes and rips a tissue out of the dispenser on the table to dab around his mouth just in case, and that gives you room to breathe in and out and try to will away the heat you can feel in your cheeks.

See, now, the thing is – you don’t necessarily have romantic feelings for your platonic best friend of eight years. That’d just be absurd and kind of creepy. But you sure as heck have always harbored a crush on him.

It’s just impossible not to! 

Guy has always been literally the most gorgeous human being you’ve ever seen, even at the universally ugly age of fourteen. He’s a gentleman, always kind to every single person in his life, would probably cut a limb off for a friend in need, and ever since your sophomore year of college, he’s gotten into manically coloring his hair, which…is seriously injurious to the onlookers’ health because dear God, the dirty blonde of his hair with the dark roots peeking through from his middle part? Makes your heart literally pound.

And he isn’t even doing anything! Other than being gross with a tissue paper and inedible fries, which should absolutely turn you off from ever liking anything about him, but it does the opposite.

That is another thing about him – he’s too freaking smooth and sexy about every damn thing in his life. The day his hair turned from black to blue, nearly two years back, he developed all these flirty charms on top of his kind ones. Now he isn’t just an insanely handsome dude who’d hold your hand to help you cross the road, but he’d also freaking wink at you when you thank him for his kindness.

You as in a person, not – not you. He’d never wink at you, you're too friendzoned for that. And it's kind of a blessing because you’d probably run the risk of jumping back into oncoming traffic if he did.

Wow.

You can’t count on one hand the number of times you have had to tug on the reins of your heart when it’s tried to take a flight, jumping off the cliff of your very inconvenient crush and into the bottomless abyss of having actual romantic feelings for him. Because that would be catastrophic. And not just because you fear he'd reject you and you’d lose the one person who means the most to you in the world.

“Should I get more burgers?”

Your gaze snaps to him in surprise. He’s pouting again, this time looking at the greasy fingerprints laden menu card kept on your table. The anxiety that had started to churn in your stomach at the prospect of your very concerning crush turning into something more, suddenly leaves and you huff out a small laugh.

“You’ve had six in the past hour, Jjun. I’d say stop for the night, maybe?”

“Hey, I have a big appetite!” He scowls at you. “And it’s close to midnight, already! You know I begin my diet for the season from tomorrow!”

You groan. “Well, then, why did you ask?”

“To be encouraged, of course! To be comforted.” He widens his eyes and blinks at you. “Or did you forget I’m also supposed to be nursing a broken heart?”

The groan you release at that is loud, drawn out and filled with a year’s worth of exasperation. This is the other reason why you catching romantic feelings for him would be catastrophic. His emotional quotient is seriously questionable when it comes to the matters of heart. If he could love a partner half as much as he loves dogs, maybe he wouldn’t be ‘nursing a heartbreak’ because of the fifth person that has dumped him since your final year began. And you aren’t even done with your mid-sems yet.

But you don't tell him that, instead patting on his leather jacket clad forearm with a fake sympathetic expression. “Ah, yes, poor you. My deepest condolences to your heart.”

He knows you and your bullshit and you know he does, so the attack that his hands launch at your throat in the next two seconds doesn't surprise you, and your defensively raised shoulders don't surprise him.

You're both dissolving into giggles, then, having nothing short of a wrestling match across the small cafe table. "I really liked Lea, okay?"

"Oh yeah? You didn't even—oof, that tickles! You didn't even know she was Kai's sister!"

At that he lets go of you and slumps back in his seat with a scowl. "Please don't remind me. I still worry he's gonna stab me in my sleep someday…"

You place a palm over your mouth to stifle your laugh. "To be fair, Lea shouldn't have been indulging in puck bunny behavior if she didn't want to be treated like one."

"Don't say that wo~rd," Yeonjun whines with his whole head thrown back. "She's Kai's sister! And she's younger than me!"

"Just by four months! Stop being dramatic, Jjun. She's a junior at college – she knew what she was doing."

Yeonjun doesn't look convinced. "I mean… I don't think she was with me only because I'm hockey captain. She knows all of HK's friends personally."

You wonder why he is defending her. Did he actually, genuinely like the girl? Romantically? What are the odds of Yeonjun finally making an attempt to open his heart up to someone and them ending up dumping him? He doesn't really look that dumped, though, so you figure that this must be out of some misplaced protectiveness he feels for one of his best friend's sisters.

Man should've thought of that before he dated her. Sigh.

"Yeah, which makes it worse." You wince when he frowns. "Come on, Jjun. She's known you since middle school but decides to make a move now? Only to break it off in three weeks because others are 'slut-shaming' her”—you make air-quotes around the term, rolling your eyes—“when they call her out for wearing another guy's jersey in preseason when she's supposed to be dating you. Can't tell me that's not manipulative and experienced puck bunny behavior."

Yeonjun’s eyes are wide when you finish speaking. “What…?”

“She didn't have feelings for you, Jjun! I mean, you obviously didn't have any for her either, but I hope you keep it that way with these girls. I highly doubt Lea even tried to get to know you at all, given how busy she was posting pictures of y'all on all her socials." His expressions haven't changed much, so you try to conclude your point quickly. “All I'm saying is, it is actually a good thing you’ve never taken these relationships too seriously. There’s more business than emotion with these clout chasers, Jjun.”

Yeonjun is gaping at you now and you're a little confused as to how to take it. Is he surprised at the revelation about Lea? You doubt that to be the case when the entire tale of their romance had been broadcasted all over the campus this past week.

So then…is he surprised at your opinion of things? You sure hope he isn't about to pick a fight with you because you're in no mood to concede. Not about this. Not when you've died multiple deaths every minute that Lea has spent being a pick-me by your best friend's side.

"I… She did have feelings for me, Y/N. They—the girls that I date all have some feelings for me, come on." He gives a small chuckle that is so wry, it makes you fidget in discomfort. “I haven’t taken these relationships that casually. I'm – I’m not some vain playboy, sleeping my way around the college.”

Okay, hold on – what?

What?

How did he take that away from your rant? He's really defending himself when you never even attacked him? When you never would attack him?

"Yeonjun, no… That's not what I'm trying—"

"Let's – let's just drop this." He looks distressed, and the frown on his lips makes your heart hurt. More so because you are the one who put it there. "You won't get it, anyways."

Now that – gives you a pause. "I won't…get it?"

He gets up, unbothered and unabashed, and walks with his tray of empty wrappers and inedible fries to dump it into the trash can near the exit of the cafe. You wordlessly follow, tilting your head in an attempt to catch his eye, but Yeonjun's got some 5 inches on you so you can't really force him to look at you when he doesn't want to.

And now he's walking out of the cafeteria.

"Jjun?"

He sighs and stops, looking over his shoulder, straight into your eyes with a bored stare. "What?"

"What? You're, like, not even gonna explain that last sentence?" 

This time you're the one with the wry chuckle while Yeonjun fidgets in discomfort. 

"What won't I get, Yeonjun?"

"Look, it's… well. You’ve always subtly looked down upon all the girls I’ve dated in college, and that was fine. You’re my best friend, you’re allowed to be a critic.” He shrugs with a nonchalant look in his eyes, but his lips are still twisted sourly. “But… I never realized you thought I was the problem. Someone so vapid that my only appeal is the fame hockey gets me.”

No… literally when did you insinuate that?

You're rendered mute, taken aback by how badly Yeonjun seems to have interpreted your words. He exhales and it sounds very loaded. You don't miss the way he keeps avoiding your gaze; nor the disappointed frown that decorates his forehead.

“You won’t get it because you don’t want me, you’ve never wanted me – and that is absolutely cool! But just because you like to have me as a comedic relief character in your life doesn’t mean that no one sees any depth in me.”

“A… comedic relief character?” your voice comes out low and hoarse and almost tattered, a little shrilly from disbelief. You're not even gonna touch on his 'never wanted him' claim because the rest of his speech has your brain actually spinning. “What the hell are you talking about? This isn’t about you – it’s about these girls… You’re my best friend, Yeonjun!”

“And yet you can’t find one reason why these girls would like me beyond using me for clout.” He gives a shrug and finally meets your eyes again. But his stare is absolutely vacant and unreadable. “You don’t use me for clout, though, and yet you keep me around. You obviously don’t care about my opinions, or you wouldn't have exchanged numbers with Changbin when I told you he was bad news. What else is there to our friendship other than laughing together, then?”

His words are like death blows – each syllable laced with a different kind of poison. Every inhale you take from the air his words have contaminated seems to sear a painful path through your lungs. Breathing hurts. Looking at him hurts. Your eyes are filling up and your tummy is aching.

There’s so much wrong with everything he just said, so much misinterpretation, so many actual blatant untruths, that you don’t even know how to begin correcting them. 

How did you even get here?

You’d only been trying to warn him about girls that might use him. You were only trying to protect his heart.

How did that turn into him thinking you don’t value your friendship with him? That you don’t value him?

“Oh, and by the way,” he continues, pushing both hands into his leather jacket and looking into the distance, “Changbin’s probably gonna ask you to cheer for him this season, which is kind of a big deal because… you know, this out final session and there will be professional scouts present and all. So if you decide to say yes…” He pauses and turns to look at you again, gaze tired and eyes lidded. “If you say yes, I hope you know it’ll mean a lot more.”

Why is he bringing up Changbin again? You’d only exchanged numbers to get that guy's incessant ass off your back – you haven’t even responded to a single text he’s sent you in the past two months. Cheering for him? In a season as important to their careers as this one? 

Absolutely out of the question.

Does Yeonjun not know you at all?

You’re about to tell him that, when he suddenly pulls his phone out with a sigh. “I’m planning to hand my jersey over to Chaeyoung – you know, running for senior cheer captain? Thought I’d ask for your opinion, but… You’ve already made that pretty clear tonight.”

Angry tears blur your vision and your heart hurts as if it’s dying a slow death in your chest.

Chaeyoung, really? So he’s skipping seamlessly from Lea to Chaeyoung. 

Of course. 

Why did you even bother worrying about his heart when he clearly doesn’t even have one. How could you forget.

Maybe it’s a good thing you never let yourself fall for Yeonjun beyond a crush.

“For what it’s worth,” you finally manage to mutter, brows furrowed and gaze focused on your worn out sneakers, “I’m sorry. I was trying to look out for you, not – not hurt you. You’re the most important person in my life, Yeonjun. I could never hurt you.”

You don’t wanna wait around to hear his response, so you just wordlessly walk away. Your dorms are hardly half a mile from here; you can shut yourself in your room and sob into your pillow in less than twenty minutes from now.

The fact comforts you enough to make you walk faster.

And also helps you ignore the pain that runs across your entire body when Yeonjun doesn’t even attempt to stop you.

You haven’t checked your phone in a while now but it has to have been over six am currently because you can hear your roommate moving around. Stealthily, you pull the comforter down from your face to peer into the dark room, only to hear a loud sigh echo around the place.

“You’re seriously still up?” Yuqi’s disappointed voice calls out. “The crying sounds stopped sometime after four so I reckoned you fell asleep.”

You wince in guilt. “Fuck, Yuqi, I’m so sorry I kept you awake—”

“Woah, what?”

She turns the lights on, suddenly brightening the room. Your roommate’s dressed in her cheer outfit, probably on her way to early morning practice. She is running for captain as well and the voting concludes in five days.

Cheer captain… Chaeyoung…

You can feel another bout of tears coming on, the back of your raw eyes stinging anew. Your head is pounding like someone’s cracked your skull open, but it still doesn't hold a candle to the ache that originates from your heart and makes your entire chest cave in on itself.

“Oh my God, babe, you look worse than you sound!”

You click your tongue and rub at your eyes. “I… Ugh, it’s been a weird night, Yuqi.”

She kneels beside you on the floor, face drawn in concern. “Are you okay?”

“I will be.” You try to sit up with her help. “I guess?”

“Oh, babe…” Yuqi sits next to you and draws you in an embrace. “What happened?”

“Y–Yeonjun,” you can barely articulate his name before your throat closes up again.

“Ah, man. What’d the idiot do this time?”

Yuqi has been your roommate and your closest friend since freshman year. Needless to say, she knows all about your friendship with Yeonjun and more than a little about your crush on him. She believes he’s too oblivious and doesn’t particularly like him for that reason. More often than not, you’re batting for his defense against Yuqi.

Right now, though, you feel like you’re gonna agree with every colorful word she uses for the guy.

So you tell her exactly what happened – give her a play by play of all the words said and reactions given, receiving hisses and grunts of annoyance in response, until you mention what he said about Changbin and Yuqi breaks your narration with a gasp.

“What the fuck?”

You just sigh and shrug a shoulder. “And he’s picking Chaeyoung to to wear his jersey for the most important season of his life, so I guess it’s whatever.”

“You know, it seemed to me like he was upset and acted out defensively… which would have been okay to a certain point, a misunderstanding that could be cleared out – had he not pulled that Changbin card. Why would he ask you to go after a teammate?” Yuqi tugs at the end of her ponytail in frustration. “And Chaeyoung? Literally the enemy? Now he's just an asshole.”

That last bit makes a small chuckle tumble out of you. “How… how is she, though? As a person?”

It’s so stupid of you to still attempt to look out for Yeonjun when he just dismissed your whole friendship. But you cannot help it.

“She’s… not a bad person, to be honest. As much as it pains me to admit.” Yuqi sighs. “She’s friends with the entire cheer team, friendly with the players, never been a bully to anybody. Hence why she’s running for captain alongside me.”

Should that comfort you? You believe it should. You warned your best friend about girls that might try to use him – and Chaeyoung sounds like she might not be that kind of a person. That’s good news, right?

So why does your heart seem to ache even more?

“Everything just...hurts, Yuqi. So much.” You tip your head against her shoulder. “What do I do?”

“Admit to yourself that you don’t just have aa crush on Yeonjun, for starters?”

You turn to look at her with surprised wide eyes. “What?”

Yuqi just rolls her eyes. “Come on, Y/N. You can’t move on if you don’t admit to it first, can you?”

Move on…?

Is that what you have to do now? Maybe. 

If you want to attempt to salvage any bit of your bond with Yeonjun, it’s best if you at least get rid of the affection that permeates the boundaries of platonic friendship.

“And then maybe text Changbin back,” Yuqi continues. “He’s their goalie. I’ve talked to him a couple of times, he’s nice. Kinda cute? If nothing else, he'll help take your mind off of Yeonjun and Chaeyoung.

You just exhale a deep breath. “Maybe.”

16:37 | changbin (: congratulations to yuqi! tell her i knew she would make it :D

↪ Haha thanks! Will do!

soooo our first match’s three days away kinda wanted to ask u something before that meet me at the lockers after practice today lol?

↪ Oh it’s Monday already right? ↪ I’ll see you at the lockers, sure! ↪ How does around 7 sound?

perfect~~ just like your eyes >.<

“Ew, man, ewww…”

You press your phone to your chest with a gasp, turning to glare at Yuqi. “Hey! It’s rude to read over someone’s shoulder!”

“No, what’s ruder is you not telling me how cringey this guy is!” Yuqi is very close to rolling on the floor, and you really can’t blame her. 

You’ve been texting back and forth with this Changbin guy for over a week now. He’s definitely nice and definitely more than a little cute, Yuqi didn’t lie to you. 

But – the way this dude flirts? Good God. 

Cringe must be an understatement. You have permanent goosebumps at this point because of how often you experience full body shivers out of the absolute secondhand embarrassment he has made you live through, every single day.

On the other hand, there's been radio silence between you and… him. Your best friend. His name sends a painful pang through your chest, so you've been avoiding even thinking about him. And Changbin's been a great distraction on that front.

That is not to say it has helped any feelings to blossom in your heart for the guy. His sweet but cringey self is a friend, at best. Your heart…is obviously elsewhere.

Things became so much clearer once you let yourself think everything over without any pressure and pretense, and admit to what you feel for your best friend, like Yuqi suggested.

Turns out you were wrong, after all. You really haven't succeeded at managing to stop yourself from falling further than a harmless crush for Yeonjun, because this constant hurt that has made home in your chest ever since he stopped talking to you? The wave of gloom that overtakes you whenever you so much as think about him? Surely a lot more harmful than what a crush warrants and surely surpassing best friend territory; by a leap.

The next step was attempting to move on with the help of Changbin, but that clearly fell flat on its face.

Exhaling a tired breath, you send a blushing emoticon back to the guy, and wonder why you're responding to his flirting when you know you've already failed and this is gonna end in tragedy.

“He sends you congratulations for making captain, by the way," you inform Yuqi when she's finally stopped giggling.

“Aw, did he say that was cool? As cool as your hair, maybe?”

You just groan and roll your eyes. “I’m gonna go see him tonight. He’ll probably offer me his jersey…”

That sobers Yuqi up. “Oh. So it’s time, huh? What’re you gonna tell him?”

You give her a wry smile. “What do you think?”

Understanding flashes across her face as Yuqi pats your shoulder in comfort with a sympathetic smile. “Well… At least you tried, yeah?”

Yeah… and failed spectacularly.

And are now hopelessly in love and helplessly heartbroken.

The locker rooms are nearly empty when you get there by seven. According to Changbin's text, he'll be there in the next five minutes and you are to wait by the rows immediately opposite the entrance to the bathrooms.

For a men's locker, the place is fairly clean and pleasant smelling. 

You're in the middle of inhaling a chest full of some citrusy fragrance when the pitter-patter of a feet reaches you – and then abruptly stops. The small gasp that meets your ears before you've even fully turned around is enough for you to recognise him. 

Why're you bumping into him here of all places?

He's been a ghost around the campus, as absent from your shared classes and the cafeteria as he is from your inbox – your life. 

But here he shows up – to catch you waiting for a guy he's always warned you against and only told you to accept when he was mad at you.

You're beginning to regret this whole thing you began with Changbin even though you're here to end it tonight.

Swallowing, you swerve on your heels to come face to face with a freshly showered Yeonjun, dressed in a fluffy hoodie and a pair of sweatpants. Your heart hammers against your ribcage, head filling up with thoughts of burying yourself in his embrace. His hair isn't fully dried yet, with some of it sticking to his forehead, but…what draws your attention is how gaunt and tired his face looks. 

There are large purple bags beneath his eyes and permanent frown lines around his lips. You're willing to bet this is not all due to the season's stress, because the last time you saw Yeonjun with dark circles was when you came down with a bad flu in high school and were bedridden for a week. He stayed by your side the whole time, despite both your mothers warning him about catching the infection, and barely slept.

You know it's a little unfair of you to think this way when you're the one that hurt him first, even if unintentionally, but you can't help wondering whether Yeonjun would still care if you caught a flu now. Would he even bother checking up on you, now that he's made it clear that he believes you don't think much of him and your friendship.

Does he still value you and your bond, despite the conclusions he's drawn about your feelings?

"What are you… oh."

Those are his first words to you in over a week, and the absolute disappointment on his face kinda makes up for the lack of verbal cues.

Your fists tighten on your sides, hating the way his eyes fill up with nonchalance and the way his lips purse. Why's he acting like he doesn't care? He should care!

But at the same time, you don't want him to think of you even worse than he has been. So you clear your throat and try to explain, "I've… I'm gonna clear things out with Changbin. Tell him I'm not interested so that he doesn't – he doesn't hope for anything more."

Yeonjun raises an eyebrow up, setting his jaw and lowering his eyelids. "You're good at that, aren't you? Ensuring that people aren't living with false hopes?"

Hearing his voice after so long fills your heart up with an emotion you're probably too inarticulate to explain. But his words, as snidely delivered as they are, confuse you. "What…?"

Rolling his eyes as if explaining himself to you is a waste of time for him, Yeonjun waves a hand in dismissal. "Nothing at all. He'll be heartbroken, though. Was really counting on you cheering for him. Are you absolutely sure you're not interested?"

His patronizing tone is a little too much for you, and even the lower pitch of voice he's using – one that you have always secretly fawned over – isn't able to curb your frustration. "Yes, Yeonjun, I'm sure. He'll live, he'll find someone else." And because you're beginning to feel irritated and jealous, you add, "If his second choice isn't Chaeyoung, that is."

You see the way a vein pops in his forehead and a sense of satisfaction runs through you at having struck a nerve. "Oh, so you've got words to say about Chaeyoung too, then? I thought you'd let her pass because she's famous enough by herself. Cheer vice captain, and all."

He's throwing you bait to rile you up, you know that – but you can't help the fiery fury that overtakes your senses either way.

Stalking up to him, you push a finger against Yeonjun's chest and glare into his wide, surprised eyes. "If you really think she's interested in you for you, go ahead and date her. Don't goad me into giving an opinion when you won't even care about it."

He brings a large hand up to wrap around yours, holding it tight in obvious anger. "Like you care about mine?"

"I'm literally here to say no to Changbin, Jjun! What the hell is your problem?" you yell out, pushing at his chest with your free hand – but to no avail because he holds your other wrist with his other hand as well.

"My problem is that you're saying no because you think this is beneath you!" he yells back, leaning from his towering form to bring his face to the same level as yours. "You think my girlfriends, my lifestyle – everything's beneath you!"

Your mouth falls open in utter shock because once again – this was never about him! "Yeonjun – no! For the last time, no, I don't think that! I don't think you're vain or unlikable, or that anything you do is beneath me, I just – I just fear someone will break your heart if you're not careful!"

"Is that so? You're not judgemental of the girls I date? Didn't you call Lea a – a puck bunny?"

"I didn't mean it like that!" you scream back and lean towards him, leaving barely inches between both of your fuming, frowning faces. "I was just getting metaphorical and, hell, maybe I was jealous because you've never asked me to cheer for—fuck…"

Panicked, you pull away from Yeonjun's loosened grasp, looking away from his raised eyebrows and open mouth.

You did not mean to say that. Not like this, not now… maybe never.

Face heating up like a damn furnace, you stumble away from your frozen best friend in a hurry. If he thought you were sabotaging your friendship before, he's going to absolutely hate you for harboring feelings for him. It's a blatant breach of his trust.

Shit, you should've begun to distance yourself when you first felt the tender tendrils of affection for the cutest fourteen year old guy you'd ever seen. You shouldn't have let those feelings fester – you shouldn't have let them grown into this beast that now stands to swallow your years' long friendship.

Tears prick your eyes, but there's no time to mourn right now – you need to get back to your dorm and bury yourself beneath a pillow before that.

But you've barely made it to the gates to the locker room when a firm hand grips your upper arm from behind and twirls you around. Back pressing into the wall, a gasp is torn from your chest when Yeonjun's huge, twinkling eyes cage you in. His arms resting on the wall next to you are completely unnecessary; you'd stand still through an apocalypse if he pinned you with this gaze of his.

"What…what do you mean you were jealous I never asked you?" he breathlessly questions, literal stars sparkling through his dark irises at you.

Now. If you were not adept at reading your best friend like a book, maybe you would have wondered if coming clean right now would make his eyes brighter or dim them instead. Maybe you would have debated whether lying your way out of this situation and apologizing later would be a good idea. Maybe you would have ducked from under his arms and made a run for it.

But because you have known this boy for more than seven years now, have observed every single expression of happiness and excitement that his face is capable of producing, have admired how adorable hope and anticipation looks on him – because you've loved him since the time you could barely even understand what love meant…you have no reason to doubt.

"I mean I wanted you to ask me, Jjunie. I wanted to be the one that'd be by your side, wearing your jersey and cheering from the stands for you," your voice comes out as a hoarse whisper, but Yeonjun clings onto every single word, given the stutters you can hear in his breathing. "I… I wanted you to look at me when you scored, point at me and tell everyone around us that…"

Your gaze flickers down his face, running across his nose to land on his parted, plump pair of lips. They spread a little to allow an airy chuckle to pass, and then form a wispy, questioning: "That?"

He's moved incredibly close to you, nearly touching your foreheads together and leaving an inch of space between your mouths. You look up into his eyes and they are hooded, spilling happiness, adoration but also something sincere.

"That," you rasp quietly, slowly in the small space between you, "that I'm your girl."

Yeonjun's exhale of minty toothpaste breath washes over your face, forehead tipping over yours and nose sliding against yours. When he speaks next, his lips brush the corner of your mouth and your body grows taut like a bowstring, ready to snap at the barest flick of his hands.

"Are you my girl?"

His voice has gotten incredibly lower and guttural and you just bring your hands up to clench into the fabric of his hoodie to ground yourself. Your eyes slide shut against the intensity of his own, breaths coming shorter and faster.

"I'd – I'd like to be. If…you'd have me?"

"Of fuck, baby, don't you know you've always owned me?"

You barely get a moment to process the term of endearment and the acceptance, let alone the actual depth and true implication of his words, when the softest pairs of lips you have ever felt brush against yours. Tentatively, so lightly that they almost tickle. Gasping in an exhale, you part your eyelids to find Yeonjun looking at you through a similarly shuttered gaze.

"Can I kiss you?" 

Oh God, oh God, oh God—

“Yes, please.”

The words have barely exited you before Yeonjun is erasing any remaining space between you completely by pressing his mouth fully against yours. His lips feel even more softer than they look, molding against yours like a pair of clouds. Combined exhales of relief leave the two of you, breathing just as in sync as your bodies are. Your hands move from his jacket to run across his broad shoulders and your fingers wrap around the back of his neck, pulling him impossibly closer.

As if waiting for you to do just that, Yeojun guides both his hands to your waist, bringing you closer to him, before one of them detours to run past your waist and down your thigh to hook around your knee. His mouth opens against yours, then, teeth biting into the flesh of your bottom lip. With a shuddering gasp, you hold onto him tighter and allow him to lick into your mouth, lost in the taste and feel of him.

His hand grips onto your leg to lift it from the ground and wrap it around his thigh, allowing him to slot his hips against yours perfectly. You can feel yourself spiraling, unable to form coherent thoughts beyond the heady rush of electricity that zaps through you with every pull of Yeonjun's lips. When you begin to grow breathless, his lips detach from yours to slip down your chin and press against your throat.

A mixture of gasp and whine escapes you, making his grip on you tighten and his lips turn bolder in their exploration of your neck. You feel his teeth scraping over your collarbone and shivers run through you, causing your back to arch and press further into his body. He groans against your skin and runs his hand up your leg to caress the delicate skin of your thigh.

You realise this is getting kind of out of hand because you've just confessed your feelings and you're still in the damn locker room, but your eyes can't help but clench shut as your fingers tug on his silky soft hair, silently asking him to keep going. 

But Yeonjun is far more in control of the situation than you are, given the way he turns his kisses from hungry to chaste, slowly. Pressing a closed mouth peck to your cheek, he rearranges his grip on you to pick you up with his hands beneath your thighs, and carries you to a bench. He sits down and drapes your legs over his own to make you straddle him, holding you firmly but softly in place.

He plants a soft, sweet kiss to your lips and rests his forehead against yours. Your eyelids part to the blurry sight of his shining eyes. It takes you a moment to realise you have tears in your eyes – and that he does as well.

With the softest smile that you have ever seen on him, Yeonjun brings a thumb up to your face and flicks at the corner of your eye.

"I've liked you ever since high school, you know?"

Your lashes flutter in fascination. "Really? But you never… you always…"

His cheeks grow pink when you scrunch your nose up instead of finishing the sentence, and he shuts his eyes. "You just never really showed any interest… You never looked jealous or bothered by my love life."

"I was being a good friend!" You chuckle when he rolls his eyes. "Besides, I had plenty to say about the girls you dated?"

He tucks a piece of your hair behind your ear, still looking at you with a soft gaze, but his lips have twitched into a devastating smirk. "But you never said I could date you instead."

A blast of heat flushes your entire face at his words. Remember when you said he never flirted with you and you were grateful for that? Yeah, you still stand by that. Your heart's racing so fast, it's a wonder it hasn't malfunctioned yet. Yeonjun reads your face, too, and pecks your nose with a giggle .

"I'm so sorry it took me so long to figure it out, baby," he then whispers to you, sounding so forlorn that the sound of his voice, especially with that pet name, makes you wanna cry again. "I should've realized you were jealous…"

"I'm sorry, too, Jjun," you whisper back, hands coming up to play with the drawstrings of his hoodie that your eyes focus on as well, suddenly hesitant to meet his open gaze. "I wasn't careful about my words and hurt you. I was a bad friend."

He chuckles at that, which draws your eyes back to his own again. "To be honest, I was more hurt because your words made me conclude that you would never like me back. So you literally don't have to apologize at all."

A smile blooms on your face. "Can I kiss it better, then?"

"Oh, you can always kiss it better, baby." Teeth flashing and eyes squinting, Yeonjun nuzzles into your neck, full of giggles that you mirror as well.

Right then, a call of your name resounds across the locker rooms.

Wait…

Fuck.

Changbin!

Yeonjun's wide eyes look at you with questions. You just sigh and shrug your shoulders.

"Back here, Bin!"

"Bin?" Yeonjun raises an eyebrow with his eyes narrowed, making you stifle a giggle.

"Should I try Binnie, then?" 

He gasps in outrage, threatening to bite into your cheek, while you lean away to escape him, still suppressing your laughter.

Footsteps echo across the hall before a gasp is heard at the end of the aisle you're seated next to. Changbin stands rooted to his place, mouth agape and eyes wide. You've corrected yourself in your seat, but – your seat's still kinda Yeonjun's lap.

"I… um?"

You purse your lips in apology. "I'm sorry, Bin. I can't accept your jersey."

"I… can see that, I guess…"

To his credit, Changbin doesn't look a lot upset. Just very confused. You decide to try and help him.

"I can, however, get you Song Yuqi's number if you want?"

Instant fireworks explode in his eyes. "What? The – the cheer captain, Song Yuqi?"

"Mm hm. Cheer captain, my friend, my roommate. You know, the one."

"Wow, Y/N, that'd be so cool, man! Thank you!"

And then Changbin's hopping his way out of there without another word. Yeonjun breaks into laughter the moment he's out of sight.

"Poor guy kept asking me if it was okay to approach you and I kept saying we're just friends. He must be so confused, right now…"

You look at the boy who's still cradling you in his lap. "So. We're not just friends anymore, I hope."

He tightens his grip around your waist, eyes doing that thing where they switch from being rounded to suddenly narrowed and intense. "That depends. Do you kiss your just friends like that?"

You nudge his nose with your own, heart thumping at the intensity of his dark eyes and the reality of your changing dynamics with him. "Only the ones I intend to do more with."

Yeonjun's eyes widen in surprise and then narrow further with mischief. "Is that so, baby? Well, how about I take you to a nice dinner date tonight and then we can discuss what more can happen later, hm?"

"I'd like that very, very much." Swallowing past the lump of emotions that suddenly lodges in your throat, you bite your bottom lip and smile. 

He smiles back, but then brings a thumb up to tug your lip free. "Don't bite your lip, baby. You've got me to do that for you, now."

And then he kisses you again.

© yeonboy 2023 // do not steal, copy or repost. respect your local content creators, kaythanks.

[jungwnies]

syn ' kiss the prettiest one in the room, except it wasn't you he kissed genre ' sad/hurt, angst, headcanon req ' yes

gn!reader x bestfriend!soobin

word count ' ~0.5k warning ' angst, sad, a feeling of hurt

ur friends and you were sat in a circle playing the typical truth or dare game. besides you was your best friend, choi soobin.

there was tension between you two, everyone shipped you two, and everyone loved your chemistry. but it's never been more than that, it's never gone past the friendship stage.

"y/n, truth or dare?" one of ur friends asks snapping you out of your blank stare.

"uhhh, truth." you reply.

"what would you do if someone here kissed you right now?" she asked giggling.

you laughed, "i'd probably just be like, what the fuck, you know?"

she nods and passes on the truth or dare to someone else. the game goes on a little longer, and it finally landed on yeonjun, one of soobin's friends.

"soobin, truth or dare?" he asks as soobin looks at him in a contemplating manner.

"dare." he says smiling.

"kiss the prettiest person in this room." yeonjun dares with a smirk on his face.

yeonjun looked at you with a smug look on his face, expecting the same thing as you.

soobin moves in front of him leaning towards one of your close friends, kissing her.

yeonjun's smirk drops, and ur smile as well. your gulp and take a deep breath before smiling at soobin as he sat back down next to you.

needless to say, your heart sank. it sank to your fucking stomach.

the sigh of soobin kissing another girl sickened you.

i guess everyone was wrong.

your relationship with soobin was strictly platonic, and you were a fool to think otherwise.

the air got tense, everyone expected him to kiss you. they way he spoke about you, the way he was so, him, around you.

maybe he liked you, but you didn't find you attractive.

"i'm going to go get a glass of water, does anyone want anything?" you ask standing up, fighting tears.

not because it saddened you, well maybe a little, but because it just hurt. even though you always knew there was a chance he wouldn't like you, it still hurt. it was frustrating that you allowed yourself to fall for him.

yeonjun stands up, "i'll come with you."

the two of you walk away from the group and you go into the kitchen.

"are you okay?" yeonjun asks.

you keep your body turned away from him, but nod. "i'm fine, i just, i guess i was misled."

you hear footsteps into the kitchen and see soobin.

he speaks up, "you okay, you just kind of got up and left after that."

you take a deep breath and turn around smiling, "i was just thirsty." you tell him as you held the half empty cup of water in your hand swishing it around.

taglist : @sunghoonsluv , @leyss , @duolingofanaccount , @kendalllovestxt , @pshchives [ open - bolded could not be tagged ! ]

2022 © jungwnies

[pink-tea]

i'm in love

☆ pairing: choi beomgyu x gn! reader

☆ rating: sfw, fluff

☆ warnings: none, very cliche writing </3

☆ summary: silently agonizing over your feelings as beomgyu enjoys your platonic date

☆ drabble: 568 words

you're staring, you can't help the fact that you're staring. beomgyu's sitting across from you, dyed hair falling a little bit over his eyes as he looks down at his phone, typing and snickering at whatever conversation is going on in his groupchat. he's completely immersed in his own conversation, while you're immersed watching him.

you're daydreaming about a man that's already right in front of you, taking in the way your seat outside the quaint cafe lets you admire the way the natural lighting hits him. he's so gorgeous it could actually kill you. it's overwhelming, the way you feel when he does just the simplest things.

"soobin and yeonjun are still going shopping, yeonjun keeps complaining about his fashion sense," beomgyu chuckles, taking the time to update you on the current conversation before putting his phone away. his dark brown eyes flicker back up to meet yours, and you can't help but still under his gaze, swallowing a lump in your throat.

beomgyu notices your change in body language, tilting his head curiously. "you okay?" he asks, face twisted in concern as you break his gaze and try to look anywhere but him. falling in love with one of your best friends must be a curse.

"i'm fine," you insist, perking up at the sight of your waitress coming over with your drinks and a tray of cookies. you consider her your saving grace as you both give her a small thanks. you immediately take the straw of your drink into your mouth, thankful for any excuse that'll prevent you from talking.

"it's good!" beomgyu exclaims, eyes bright as he shows off one of the cookies he had ordered, the cute sight doing nothing good for your heart.

"it looks good," you hum, leaning forward to take a bite out of the already bitten cookie as well. you try not to think about it as an indirect kiss; you've been friends with the boy too long for this to be special, and indirect kisses were something of middle school level maturity.

you'd much rather yearn for the real thing, you think, staring at beomgyu's lips subconsciously as you take another sip of your drink. noticing, the lips you've been staring at twist up into a smile. "is there something on my face?" he teases, tilting his head in a way that lets his bangs settle cutely over his forehead.

how is everything he does so endearing?

you startle just a little, popping your mouth off the straw to quickly try and find a cover-up for your staring. noticing something near his lips, you nod. "you do, actually," you laugh lightly, leaning over the small table once again to try and swipe a crumb off beomgyu's face.

your thumb swipes over the stray crumbs near the edge of his lips before pausing, suddenly realizing your position: leaning over a table, getting a little too close to your crush of who knows how many years, hand cradling his chin as your thumb trails near his lips.

beomgyu seems to notice your predicament as well, eyes going wide as he stares back at your equally panicked look. a tense moment passes before you swallow harshly, praying to whatever god that your hand doesn't start to shake.

"can i kiss you?" you ask, almost a whisper as you wait anxiously for his answer.

slowly he nods, the tips of his ears a pretty pink as he looks up at you.

"please."

[kynrki]

LOVE IS (NOT) EASY!

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PAIRING — idol!Nishimura Riki x shy!idol!fem!reader

GENRE — strangers to lovers, first love, fluff smau, mild angst, crack, 2 teenagers jus being in love.

SYPNOSIS — y/n has never been in love. craving the feeling to feel special and worthy to someone, she dreams about falling in love and having someone love her back. what happens when she bumps into a cute boy, and doesn’t realise he’s under the same company. not to mention he finds her cute too. but as they all say, love is (not) easy!

FEATURING: txt; yeonjun + soobin, straykids; hyunjin + felix.

WARNINGS — listed on each chapter!

STATUS — COMPLETED

TAGLIST — (closed!!)

A/N — my first post hello???? im hella excited for this smau even tho i dont have no clue/idea where its gonna go LMAO, i hope you guys enjoy my very first attempt to make a smau! LETS GET IT👎🏼

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000. PROFILES: lunarboys! | en— | extras

001. — kokonut headass😡

002. — oh- hes cute

003. — cute girl alert🚨

004. — who tf is enhyphany?

005. — are my eyes, eyeing like they should🤨

006. — cliffhanger irl💔

007. — nikis first W

008. — practice with the girl of my dreams😍

009. — he’s so sweet🥰

010. — date? as in day or-

011. — kaikno day🙌

012. — sexy back (yeah!)

013. — date moment👀

014. — stop stealing my gf😔

015. — hyunjin pressed as usual🤣‼️

016. — i think i might like him🤢

017. — ANOTHER DATE?!

018. — vibey vibes😋

019. — PERFORMANCE !!!!

020. — 😦😦😦😦

021. — day 1 of ignoring him👍🏼

022. — gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss

023. — God, niki’s not your strongest soldier

024. — planning..parties??

025. — on MF valentines day😢😢

026. — cool cool cool

027. — time to shine🤞🏼🤞🏼

028. — im in my slay era again😹

029. — (not so platonic) kisses <33

030. — yk? emotional damage

031. — yours, mine, ours!

032. — coming clean..

033. — in the moonlight🤍

034. — kaikno gf agenda??💪🏼

035. — love is (not) easy!

THE END.

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TAGLIST (closed) — @nishmrriki @diestheticu @tomorrowbymoa-together @ikasaeki @itzz-me-duh @hrtattcker @soobin-chois @yyunari @peachtsumu @maeumiluv @ahnneyong @certainyouthpeanut @bigtoewinwin @yvesismywife @emoworu @aachillies @alderiasamantha @karaxomb @enhaswab @deeznutsriki @rubysluvbot @suvgs @stayriki @omgjwon @shysakuno @chewychubchuu @pkjay @k1ttyl1x @duolingofanaccount @jwsflower @gardeniki @anik-4 @catecita @simpfortxt @xoxothatonesimp @rikisluv @lauvvai @afiaaaa19 @lovienikitty @angelchans @neozon3nha @artstaeh @prettysung @artypjmlbss @tsukkisboo @straydestiny @enhacolor @bookworm-0718 @myjellyboo @jayeonnature @m-arss @kai-maree

[venerex]

call

pairing: dino (seventeen) x f!reader, yeonjun (txt) x reader

word count: 810

contains: intercourse

a/n: watching lee chan and choi yeonjun dancing in the same video did things to me. i know i have no defense, but a lot of people encouraged me in this....behavior. thanks for proofreading @starlightjoong! hi @97-liners!

"hello"

chan's voice is unfairly stable as he hovers over you, his cock nestled in your throbbing cunt as he greets your friend. you wonder how you got in this situation.

actually, you know exactly how you got here. but let's recap.

you've known yeonjun for what feels like all your life, and he's been a good, and for the most part, platonic friend. the two of you got closer when you moved to seoul - you were a stressed college student and he was an even-more-stressed trainee. neither of you had the time, or frankly the bandwidth or need, for love. so you found a mutually beneficial way to help each other unwind - to fuck when the need arose, a routine that has lasted till now, even as he became a successful idol and you climbed the ranks of your company.

no, this is not a friends-with-benefits-who-are-in-love story. you're not in love with yeonjun, and he's not in love with you. you're good friends who fuck sometimes, that's it.

you've seen lee chan a few times while visiting yeonjun at his company, and you'd be lying if you said you didn't find him attractive. you're sure yeonjun knows about your infatuation, why else would he have the teasing look on his face when he told you he was going to film a tiktok with the man? you've never taken teasing lying down, so you told him to "hook you up" if he got the chance. you didn't think he'd take you seriously.

not that you're complaining.

chan texted you two nights ago if you wanted to have dinner, and you agreed - hoping that he's not actually looking for a relationship (it can be quite awkward to explain that you're just looking to fuck). your worries were assuaged when he made it clear in the first few minutes that he just wanted something physical, and would respect your wishes if you wanted otherwise.

oh, this was today. you had dinner with chan today. in your defense, a lot has happened since he pushed you on your bed.

one of the first things you noticed today about lee chan, is that he loves to give. from pushing his jacket on your shoulders to insisting on paying the bill to making you come twice before fucking you - he loves giving, and he loves seeing the effect it has.

he had been almost gentle in his actions until a few minutes ago, when you finally begged him ("fuck me like you mean it, chan"). he had snapped, increasing his pace almost instantly, fucking you like he hates you.

just the way you like it.

his finger had started rubbing your clit and you were getting close to your third orgasm of the night, spurred on by his praises in your ear. that's when your phone buzzed.

chan was going to put it away, until he saw the caller id. "it's yeonjun", he had said, "mind if i pick up? you can say no".

god, what a sinful idea. it's wrong, so wrong. watch chan talk to your friend while he's fucking you? watch him describe what you feel like? so wrong.

so ofcourse, you agreed. and chan picked up the call and greeted yeonjun.

"chan?", he's put the phone on speaker, you can hear yeonjun's voice loud and clear, "this isn't your phone. everything okay? she okay?"

if you were less fucked out, maybe your heart would warm more at yeonjun's worried tone.

"oh yeah, she's fine", chan thrusts in you shallowly, a wicked glint on his face, "why don't you tell him, baby?"

"y-yeonju", chan's finger presses your clit fleetingly, and you lose your train of thought.

"oh", you can hear realisation hit yeonjun, "oh pretty girl", he's cooing now, just like he does when you're under him, "is chan fucking you good? are you having fun?"

you nod, clenching around chan's cock.

"she's nodding", chan's chuckles mix with yeonjun's, "too fucked out to think. right, baby?"

"did she come?", yeonjun asks before you can form a coherent response to chan's question.

"yeah, twice", chan looks proud of himself.

and it's like you can see the future - you know exactly what's going to happen next.

"oh, she can take much more", yeonjun snickers, "let me know if you need any help".

chan stills for a second, his eyes narrowing slightly. his face then breaks into a smirk, a brow arching as his eyes meet yours.

"not required, thanks for the offer", he says coolly, "i'll see you at work, yeonjun".

he hangs up before yeonjun can respond, throwing the phone to the couch across the room. his finger touches your clit lightly, and he moves to kiss you softly. too softly.

"you should've told me you like it rough, baby", he pinches your clit, chuckling when you yelp, "i would've given it to you sooner".

[yakumoh]

FACE2FACE | CHOI YEONJUN X READER

☆ summary: being exes ended on good terms is great. yeonjun can still call for your help as a friend and you can rely on him for anything you need. your dynamic is great except yeonjun finds himself disliking the position of being just a friend and doesn’t quite know where the thin line of being platonic and romantic stands between the two of you. (wc: 3.8k)

☆ an: i don’t really write for kpop but this is kinda a gift to naya ◡̈ i’m super proud of all the work you’ve been putting in for exams and you’re gonna do so well!! i hope i’ve looked into yj enough to get his personality somewhat right :,) dt: @youta

“Can you come over please?” Yeonjun hummed on the other end of the line as you leant against the kitchen counter. “What’s wrong this time?” you sighed, gaze wandering over to the windowsill where the plants you and your ex boyfriend had ‘raised’ together sat facing the sun.

You and Yeonjun had broken up almost a month ago now and nothing bad came of it. It was a mutual decision and the two of you had agreed it was for the best seeing as your schedules were no longer compatible and the both of you struggled to make as much time for one another compared to when you had first started dating. You were friends first so there was no bitterness or bad blood in result of the split, but Yeonjun often found himself forgetting the two of you were no longer together which you found endearing, but you’d be lying if you said it didn’t sting just a little every time you had to remind him that he was no longer your boyfriend.

“My hair,” he replied. “It needs touching up and you always do it best.”. He wasn’t lying when he said that. You always took such great care of him both physically and mentally, he knew he could rely on you to keep him at his best and there wouldn’t be anyone else to take your place in that role so he was thrilled that nothing much had changed after you’d split. He could still rely on you the way you could rely on him, and he was grateful to still have that sense of security regardless of your relationship status with him. “I can swing by in half an hour, is that good?” you asked, slowly walking towards your bedroom to throw on some warmer clothes before leaving your apartment. “That’s great!” you could practically hear his smile on the other end of the line before you quickly bid goodbye and promised to be quick.

-

“Hey you.” Yeonjun smiled warmly as the door swung open, undertones of teasing laced in his voice. “Hey.” you grinned as you shuffled inside his apartment and made a beeline towards his bathroom. “No hello kiss?” he playfully gasped, door clicking shut behind him. “No kiss.” you snickered, leaning against the bathroom door frame nodding your head towards the inside of the bathroom to hurry him up. The man followed you inside with a boyish grin tugged on his lips before sitting down on the bathroom counter ready for you to help him out.

“The roots are growing out.” he muttered as you ran your fingers through his hair to get a better look at it. You hummed in acknowledgement after looking over what needed to be done. You grabbed the bleaching mix kept inside the idol's bathroom cabinet and put on a pair of plastic gloves.

Cringing slightly at the chemical smell of dye and bleach you huffed. “Don’t you have a stylist?”. Yeonjun hummed from below you as your hands worked the dye into his hair. “I do, but I prefer it when you do my hair.”. You laughed quietly before hopping off the bathroom counter and in front of Yeonjun. “Do you not like looking stupid in front of your stylists or something?” you teased as a dumbfounded look crossed his face. Ruined towel draped over his neck and an old t-shirt that had clearly seen better days adorned by him, you smiled as you took in the appearance of the self proclaimed fashionista among his group. “I never look stupid. I make this shirt look good, admit it.” He countered with a small smirk as you rolled your eyes. He did look good, but you weren’t going to let him know that.

“Leave it in for forty five minutes and wash it out and that’ll do. There’s no need for a second round of dyeing it, the roots weren’t too bad.” You grabbed your phone and keys off the side and made your way to the front door. “Whoa there! Are you not gonna help me wash it out?” Yeonjun asked, hands tugging on the sleeve of your sweater beckoning you to stay. “Can you not reach the shower head or something?” you teased as Yeonjun scoffed and muttered something inaudible about his height and how he was more than tall enough to reach whatever he wanted. Sighing, you glared down at the man who was pleading you to stay through his eyes and as always, you gave in.

Dropping your phone and keys back down on the side you groaned as Yeonjun hummed in satisfaction.

“I need you to stay in case something ends up wrong with it.” He insisted as you made your way into his kitchen. “And… to make dinner.” he spoke quietly as you gaped at the lack of contents in his fridge. Before you could scold him, Yeonjun waved his hands in defence for you to hear him out. “I was going to go shopping earlier but my hair…” you gave him a soft glare before marching over to gently slap his chest. “You’re lucky you have me.” you scolded before grabbing your phone and his wallet before heading towards the front door to run down to the grocery store nearby. Yeonjun didn’t get a chance to reply before you left, but he was lucky to have you, and he’d do whatever it took to keep you by him.

Five hours later, dinner had been cooked and eaten and Yeonjun’s hair had been washed out and dried properly. Being in his apartment felt so natural to the point where you’d consider it your second home and in some way it was. Countless items belonging to you had remained in his apartment even after the two of you broke up yet you couldn’t find yourself wanting or needing to collect them all and bring them back to your actual home.

You mindlessly looked over to a relaxed Yeonjun who looked more than content with his touched up hair and full stomach. You worried about him more than you’d like to admit, but you were glad he still felt comfortable enough to seek help and care from you despite breaking up and not giving each other the space to grow apart from one another.

Your eyes grew drowsy, yet you refused to let yourself fall asleep in his apartment, not because you feared of burdening him, but rather because the urge to crawl into bed beside him and fall asleep in the crook of his neck like you used to would be overpowering and you knew you’d be up all night fighting that urge back. You stood up and stretched as Yeonjun raised an eyebrow at your sudden movement. “You going?” he asked as he stood up after you, body towering over yours. “Yeah, I’ve gotta get back now I’ve got an errands to run tomorrow.”

Yeonjun hummed as you wandered over to the door, internally cursing yourself for forgetting to bring a jacket. You couldn’t be too mad at yourself though, you didn’t intend to stay so late but you should’ve known you would. Innocent favours and hang outs at each other's apartments always ended up like this and the two of you would end up spending way more time together than initially intended.

Your eyes flickered in surprise at the light weight of a jacket being draped over your shoulders and pat on your back. “So forgetful.” Yeojun teased as he grabbed his keys from the holder he kept near his door. “You’re walking me back?” you asked as the two of you stepped out of the apartment. “Don’t I always?” he shot back as he stuffed his hands into his pockets. “You do, but I thought you had to be up early too tomorrow.”. Smiling softly, Yeonjun’s arm brushed up against yours as the two of you walked out the apartment complex and onto the street lit up with dim street lights. “Making sure you get back home safely will help me sleep well.” he replied as the two of you continued down the street as a comfortable silence washed over the two of you.

It didn’t take you long to get back to your apartment as you sighed in relief upon reaching your front door. “Text me when you get in.” You told Yeonjun as he grinned. “I know.” he waved your worry off and gave your shoulder a quick squeeze. “Oh! Your jacket!” you remembered as you quickly shrugged it off to hand back to him only to have him refuse to take it. “Hold onto that one for me for a while.” he insisted, pushing the material back into your hands. “I just know the others are gonna dig through my closet the next time they’re over and I’d rather you keep this jacket safe for me than have any of them snatch it up.” he playfully frowned as you laughed and nodded.

“I’ll keep it safe for now then.”.

Turning back to offer you one last smile, Yeonjun made his way towards the elevator to take him down and out the complex and back to his own home. You waved and waited until he was out of sight before heading inside and clicking the door shut. You loved nights like this but you couldn’t deny they were getting harder and harder to end. You found yourself missing your ex more often lately, but he was doing so well for himself and you figured the relationship was only weighing him down and pressuring him to divide his time and attention towards things (you) that weren’t working.

Shrugging off the slight feeling of sadness you hung his jacket up and made your way into the bathroom to wash off the stress and mixed emotions of the day. You were going to be busy the next day and you wanted nothing more than to fall asleep as quickly as possible and wake up to a clean slate where conflicting feelings on your past relationship would be forgotten about for the time being.

-

Weeks passed and Yeonjun continued to request small favours from you which would either end up with you staying at his apartment late or him ending up half asleep at yours. You weren’t hating the frequent visits you’d make to each other yet you couldn’t remember spending this much time together whilst you were actually in a relationship. You didn’t think much of it though, you just figured that since his schedule had gotten busier he needed a little more help to manage a few favours here and there.

You’d lost count of how many days you’d been seeing each other until late into the night but it was nice to be in his company and you didn’t mind taking care of the man as you knew his workload was tiring.

Yeonjun on the other hand was loving it.

He loved how easy everything was with you. You were patient with him and always prepared to help him out no matter how trivial his issue was. He’d never be able to thank you enough for the assistance and company you always gave him, but he sometimes worried you thought he was hopeless and maybe even selfish for the amount of time he took off of you. You didn’t think that at all about him and he knew that, but he couldn’t help but feel a little bad for refusing to let you go.

Yeonjun didn’t mind being your friend, but he didn’t necessarily like it. Being your boyfriend was much better in his opinion and while he wouldn’t trade his occupation for the world, he wished his schedule had been a little more generous with spare time because then maybe you’d still be together.

He was the type to live in the moment though. There was no point in reminiscing over what could've been, he’d just have to focus on earning the position of your boyfriend again in the near future and when Yeonjun wanted something, he worked efficiently for it.

-

“What do you want from me this time?” you asked in amusement as Yeonjun hummed through the other end of the line. “For you to sleep over.” he stated bluntly as you coughed in surprise. “Why?” you croaked out, small frown gracing your features. “I need help packing for a short trip and a lot of my clothes are still in boxes from past shoots.” he answered, running a hand through his hair. “It’s almost midnight!” you groaned as you took a quick glance to your alarm clock. “Why didn’t you start packing earlier!” Yeonjun laughed slightly before answering. “Because I was busy with other areas of work and besides, I needed your help.”

You sighed before dragging yourself off the couch to grab your phone and keys and leave your apartment. You already had things suitable to stay over at Yeonjun’s place seeing as you had just left everything as it was as you visited regularly, staying over wasn’t something you’d done since you’d been together though and your heart rammed against your chest thinking about it.

Your thoughts raced around your head, holding your complete attention and you failed to notice a smiling Yeonjun leaning on the side of his car outside your complex. “No hi?” you jumped at the sound of your exes voice as you turned to face him and his car parked just outside the entrance. “Why are you here?” you gasped as Yeonjun guided you to the passenger seat and opened the door for you. “As if I’d let you walk alone late at night.” he replied as he got in the car beside you and took off for his apartment building.

Clothes were scattered across the surface of Yeonjun’s bed and on top of boxes he’d been too occupied to previously unpack. You observed the room and pinched the bridge of your nose. Either Yeonjun relied on you to help too much or he was just insane to leave packing for a trip this late but judging from the state of his room, you’d decided on the latter.

“How long are you going for?” you asked as you stepped inside the room ran your fingers over the fabric of the clothes he had laid out. “A week and a bit.” he shrugged as he followed you, eyes watching as you scanned over his clothes.

“A week and a bit of peace for me then.” you joked as Yeonjun pretended to scoff. “You’ll miss me.” he tutted as he began to fold the clothes laid out and place them into his suitcase. He was right though. You wouldn’t admit it out loud, but you were going to miss him and the casual visits you’d have throughout the week.

Joining him, you helped fold and place clothes into his suitcase as the two of you worked through the night to pack as quickly but properly as possible. Helping Yeonjun was enjoyable, he was amusing to be around and always kept you entertained no matter where you were or what you were doing, it was one of the many reasons you’d fallen for him in the first place. It had only taken you just over two hours to finish the last of packing, but it was enough to tire the both of you out.

Sighing in relief, Yeonjun pat the top of your head appreciatively as you stood and admired the packed suitcase and carry on you’d helped put together. You yawned in exhaustion and stretched your arms before turning to Yeonjun to bid him goodnight. You knew where the guest room was and didn’t need to be taken there, yet before you could tell Yeonjun you were going to sleep, he was already behind you prepared to guide you to the guest room despite the fact he knew you were aware of where it was. You shrugged it off as politeness and let him take you to the spare room.

Switching on the light to the guest room your jaw dropped slightly. “Seriously?” you gaped, eyes fixated on the bed with piles of clothes stacked up across the whole surface of the bed. “Oh… I forgot about those.” Yeonjun shook his head placing a hand on your shoulder. “You could always sleep in my room.” He suggested quickly, stupid grin on his face as you raised an eyebrow. “And you sleep on the floor? Not the night before a trip you’re not.”.

Yeonjun tilted his head slightly before speaking. “Why would I sleep on the floor? We can both fit in my bed, you know.” Your eyes widened at the man's words. Was he even aware you’d broken up? “That’s not…” You started but didn’t finish. “Come on, you never used to hesitate before getting into bed with me.” he whined. “That’s because we were together then! Things are different now.” “Hardly.” he replied casually, with a playful expression on his face. “In fact,” he tucked a stray hair behind your ear. “I don’t think we’ve ever been so close compared to how close we are now.”.

He was right.

You were now certain you’d spent more time with him whilst being separated than when you did when you were together.

“Fine.” you groaned as Yeonjun grinned and led you back into his room. You crawled under the covers and didn’t even bother to fight the heat rising to your face as the mattress dipped beside you as Yeonjun got in beside you. The light was switched off and the silence was heavy between you to the point where you thought he’d passed out immediately. You closed your eyes and forced yourself to drift off despite the hammering of your heart before a voice pulled you out of your trance.

“I didn’t mean for my schedule to get so hectic.” Yeonjun spoke quietly as your eyes lazily stared up at the ceiling. “I know.” you whispered. “I’m happy for you though, I like seeing you do something you love.” Another wave of silence washed over the two of you before Yeonjun spoke again. “I’m happy too… I’d be happier if you’d let me be your boyfriend again though.” You laughed softly, gaze still focused on the ceiling.

You didn’t know how to reply.

You still held a lot of love for him, but the thought of breaking up again and losing him for real at that point scared you. You missed him the way he missed you, but you thought you were content with what you had. After hearing his words though you decided that maybe that wasn’t the case. Maybe you weren’t content and maybe you wanted him back the way he wanted you, but you were scared.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.” he reassured, the slight panic in his voice made you smile fondly. “It just felt right. I like talking to you face to face like this, you’re easy to be around and you make me feel safe.” he confessed as butterflies set off in your stomach.

“You didn’t make me uncomfortable.” You replied gently, hand finding his under the covers to give it a quick squeeze. “I’m just scared.” you admitted as he turned his body to face you. “Of what? I’ll protect you from it.” “You.” Yeonjun gasped dramatically as you finally looked over to him, teasing look in your eyes. “Me?!” he cried out. “I’m far from scary! Are you indirectly calling me ugly or something?” You laughed out before turning to face him properly, an amused smile tugging at your lips. “I meant I’m scared of losing you… like actually losing you.” you confessed, eyes looking down and away from him as his hand cupped your jaw.

“As if I’d let you go,” he muttered. “You’re far too good to me and I’d be a lost cause without you.” you snickered and met his gaze once more. “You’re right about that.”. He gently pinched your cheek and frowned as you laughed before you strung out little apologies to get him off of you.

“Yeonjun,” you spoke, eyes looking directly into his as he nodded. “If we try this again let's do it properly this time okay?”

“Okay.” he answered, voice soft but definitive as his thumb grazed over your cheek.

Leaning in, His hot breath fanned over your lips before he gently pressed them to yours, the warm feeling you’d get when he’d kissed you before returning once again but this time it felt warmer. You’d missed this. The feeling of his lips pressed upon yours and lean arms keeping you in his hold. Being with Yeonjun made you feel secure and the feeling was most definitely mutual.

A few moments passed before you pulled away and rested your head against his chest. “You need to sleep, you’re travelling tomorrow.” Yeonjun was tempted to protest and insist he’d be fine but he knew better than to go against your judgement so he complied. Pressing a quick kiss at the top of your head, Yeonjun’s eyes fluttered shut as his heart rate began to slow down after the excitement of getting you back. “When I come back I’m all yours.” He promised as arms wrapped securely around your body. “Well, I still have to work but you know what I mean.” he quickly added as you laughed slightly before burying your head into the crook of his neck.

The familiar feeling of sleeping like this made you happy. Yeonjun made you happy and despite the fear of the unknown, you knew that no matter what you’d end up okay with someone like Yeonjun being entrusted with your heart and feelings. “I’ll be looking forward to it.” you whispered before placing a soft kiss to the skin against his neck as the exhaustion hit once more.

The two of you were far from perfect, but it didn’t matter. This time you’d make it work and not let excuses of incompatible schedules defy your relationship again. Yeonjun was right in the sense that nothing much had changed between the two of you after you broke up, but you’d be sure to make sure nothing changed to throw off the dynamic the two of you had. You kept each other happy and Yeonjun meant it when he said he’d never let you go whether that was as a partner or a friend. That still didn’t mean he liked being your friend though, he was certain he was made to be more than a friend to you, and he be damned before losing that position ever again.

-

“I put those clothes there before you came over by the way.” Yeonjun snickered just before you drifted off. Pinching his side, he yelped as you huffed. “I can’t stand you sometimes.”.

[ididntseeurbag]

ididntseeurbag's masterlist

hi, welcome to my masterlist :) it's still pretty empty because this blog is very slow, but i plan on updating as much as i can! i mostly write for kpop, but i also want to do works for other fandoms if i ever find the time and inspiration!

disclaimer: i only write fluff or platonic imagines, no smut or nsfw content :) (doesn't mean i don't enjoy reading it heh)

stray kids

- b-side | lee felix x idol!fem!reader

seventeen

~nothing yet!

tomorrow by together

- headaches and remedies | choi yeonjun x fem!idol!reader

enhypen

- kitchen fight | lee heeseung x fem!reader

- turning point | pt. 1 of lee heeseung x fem ilander!reader

- start over | pt. 2 of lee heeseung x ilander!reader

- butterfly | pt. 3 of lee heeseung x ilander!reader

- water fight | jay x fem!idol!reader

ateez

~nothing yet!

[yeombin]

part i.ii: one day, horns grew on my head

(prev - series masterlist - next)

pairing: beomgyu x fem!reader, soobin x fem!reader, platonic ot5 x fem! reader

genre: angst, fantasy, fluff - adaptation of an interpretation of the txt storyline

section one playlist: here

word count: ~25k (this was a monster of a part omg there was so much to include... it is slightly proofread but also slightly not haha)

chapter warnings: mentions of blood, @pastelsicheng​ commented “furry vibes” so there’s a little bit of that ig, y/n gaslights herself, bullying / mean, manipulation, mentions of food, mentions of an injury, physical fighting 

(if theres anything else that may be triggering that i missed, please let me know!)

a/n: endless thanks to @pastelsicheng​ whose help i couldn’t do this without ❤️ i love you tons

The morning consisted of screaming, sobbing, and bewilderment.

From inside his room, Yeonjun could hear his mother howling at the morning sun while his father stayed silent. Yeonjun didn’t know what to do; he was too shocked to cry and too confused to even attempt to solve the problem. So he listened

Their shadows peeked from under the doorway, revealing two silhouettes becoming one as his father tightly embraced his mother. “She didn’t warn us,” Mrs. Choi whimpered. “What do we do?”

At least, Yeonjun savours, I’m not the only one confused. His father’s silence screams, ringing throughout the house as a testament to his speechlessness. A rare state to witness any competent politician in.

Slowly, his door opened. “You’re going to stay home today, okay?” His father’s tone gave an illusion of choice. From Yeonjun’s place on his bed, his father appeared wary; as if Yeonjun was a puma that would attack at any sudden movement. Yeonjun wanted to cry; tell his father he’s the same person he was yesterday, that he didn’t have to fear him. But nothing came out.

After the door slammed shut, the last thing Yeonjun heard was, “We have to tell the others,” followed by the sound of a lock.

Usually, he begs for extra hours of sleep - especially if it means he doesn’t have to see Principal Kim in the mornings (who constantly holds Yeonjun to higher standards, despite the student in question doing nothing to deserve it except being the son of the mayor). However, he doesn’t usually wake up with horns.

Contrary to the calm blue sky peeking through his curtains, stress and anxiety plagued his mind. The clear sky reminded him of the whole day of solitude he must suffer through. What is happening to me? What will happen when my friends find out? Will they be afraid of me too

He threw his head back. Instead of feeling his skull hit the wall, the tips of his new horns collided against it. 

I’m a monster. 

His thoughts were shrieking, screaming and banging against his skull, begging and pleading to escape. Wailing, his mind lost any sense of peace. His thoughts are in a war zone, and he’s desperately trying to maneuver his way to safety. 

But he isn’t sure if he can.

Because, right now, he is the villain on the frontlines of the other side.

Miraculously, Soobin managed to fall back asleep after his sleep was interrupted by searing pain around his ears. 

However, now he was awoken by a plethora of sounds; the birds outside the window, the glide of his sister opening her cabinet, his brother humming. He even heard the sounds of the furnace’s fire consuming baked goods and his mother whispering to his father amongst the bustling crowd. He even heard it when covering his ears with his pillow. 

How can I hear all this?

Overwhelmed, Soobin couldn’t tell which sound he should - no, needs - to pay attention to. His previous unspoken question was soon answered by the sight of his reflection. It can’t be. 

What he saw resembled the fantasy books in the library about elves and goblins. Prominent, long, and sharp ears now have replaced his normal ears. This must be a dream. Soobin pinched his arm over and over, again and again, until he heard the footsteps he tried to muffle became louder. Then his door opened. 

Soobin could pretend to ignore the sight of his new ears, but he couldn’t pretend to ignore his parents’ screams. Will they still love me? His hands jumped to cover his ears as his father scurried out of his room. Even from downstairs, Soobin could hear their discussion, no matter how hard he tried to drown it out. 

“He looks crazy,” his father groaned from downstairs. What would my friends think? Soobin thought, burying his face into his pillow. What would Y/N say? 

His mother hummed, “He’s our son. He’s the same boy he was yesterday.” His father’s scoff followed. “He should stay home today. Maybe we can sort this out. Maybe we can contact…hm, what's her name again?” 

Each word, despite being said out of ear shot, sounded like it was within the same room. “That’s not even a question. He’s staying home today. We can’t let him out.”

In another Hybehead home, the smell of rust alerted Beomgyu - waking him from his not so peaceful slumber. 

The scent wasn’t there earlier in the night when an itch on his back refused to go away. His shoulder and the lower part of his hair felt wet as if he woke up in a sweat. Maybe this is puberty? Maybe I scratched it when I woke up earlier? 

However, the mere touch of his black hair left his skin stained red. Yeah, definitely not sweat or puberty. If it was, Beomgyu definitely had to go to an apothecary.  By touching his shoulder, the feeling of sharp and rugged rocks greeted his fingers, impaling the top layer of skin and making his fingers drip and drop blood.

He sat up slowly, now realising the numbness rippling from his shoulders. From his shoulders down, his back was littered with small ruptures of rock-looking…bone? Spikes? Thorns? What were they? In a way, they looked like the bones of wings that failed to emerge.

Beomgyu was frozen in his bed, believing this must be a fever dream. I was feeling sick, he reasoned. Closing his eyes, he fell back onto the bed. Unfortunately, the moment his back landed; he heard his blanket tearing. Okay, a really realistic dream. He turned over, lying down on his stomach. 

He didn’t see his parents when they entered, only heard their gasps. When they started to gently apply honey onto his lesions and tenderly wrap bandages, Beomgyu couldn’t deny the sting from the antibacterial remedy. No words were exchanged, even as Beomgyu continued to deny this reality by pretending to sleep. He doubted his parents fell for it. Nevertheless, he was grateful that they went along with it, ignoring his frequent flinches away from their tending hands.

“He needs to stay home today,” his mother sighed, now outside his room. Even without seeing her Beomgyu could hear the clear distress in her voice. “We can’t let him leave.” Whatever communication followed, Beomgyu couldn’t be sure as his thoughts ambushed him. What am I to do? What would my friends think? What would Y/N think? He now jolted up, standing to his feet as he started to fearfully approach his reflection in the mirror. Am I a monster? Am I evil? 

Beomgyu swore he felt his bones trembling from within his skin, begging to escape with the rest of the things on his back. 

Darkness. Taehyun awoke to darkness. 

What time is it? It must be night. But then he rubbed his eyes.

Like looking through frosted glass, his vision was blurred. Someone could hold a sign centimetres away from his face and he wouldn’t be able to read a single word. 

“Mom! Dad!” Taehyun called, his voice shaking as he tried to suppress the anxiety surging through his veins. “I can’t see!” From the sound of the door slamming open followed by a sudden shrill cry, Taehyun knew his parents entered.

“Honey, he’s scared and confused,” his mother hushed, “we shouldn’t scare him anymore than he already is.” He felt his mother’s warm hand touch his forehead, trailing downward. Her fingertips grazed down, closing his eyelids. Any light that broke through the haze was gone. “You stay right here, okay, darling?” Taehyun nodded, leaning into his mother’s warmth. Once she pulled away, the absence of the warmth made him as if he was outside during a heavy downpour. 

It was when he believed they left that he opened his eyes again. In a desperate attempt for something to happen, he continued to rub his eyes. While one side of his vision cleared up by a dismissable amount, he heard someone else come in: his sister. 

“Hi.” Her voice was soft, as if scared that any increase in volume would shatter every window in the vicinity. “Can I see?” 

Taehyun removed his hands from his eyes. He heard a gasp. “What is it?” 

“It’s a star.” Instead of his usual bright brown eyes, his right eye appears to be a dark abyss. His pupil, however, was replaced by an enchanting white star. “How did you do this?” Even if he could read all the dictionaries in the world, he wouldn’t find the words to fathom the situation or how he was feeling. 

Simply put, he felt alone in a blurred world. Literally.

His sister reached forward and held his hand. “Maybe I can try to tell your friends to come by,” she offered. And then he knew he wasn’t alone, with the comforting hand of his sister grounding him in place and the thoughts of his friends being there for him. “You’ll be okay,” she murmured, her comforting words loud enough for her younger brother to hear. “You have us.”

It wasn’t unusual to have long drawn conversations about dreams and powers with Kai. No matter what, Kai ends the conversation with how spectacular it would be to fly. However, when he dreams to glide through the air, he doesn't mean it like this.  

He was grateful that tonight, after waking up to the enormous back pain, he turned to sleep on his stomach - or else it would’ve been much worse. Not just for his back, but to make sure his bed didn’t break. Even in his groggy state, the new wings that sprouted from his back are the first thing he is aware of. Maybe because they tickled, or maybe from the pure white feather that fell onto his pillow side. 

This is one heck of a realistic dream. He grinned as he brushed his hands through the soft feathers. I could get used to this. 

Unfortunately, his reverie was disrupted by his siblings bursting open the door. “KAI!” he heard Bahiyyih scream. “DO YOU HAVE MY - Woah.” The sight of her brother made her freeze at the doorway. “Is this some sort of costume or prank you and your friends set up?” Kai shook his head with wide doe eyes. Frozen, Bahiyyih admired the white wings that seemingly emitted its own light. Her older brother stretched, ignoring her confusion. As he raised his arms, the wings stretched as well. The feeling felt like all the bones in his back just cracked, a truly euphoric sensation. 

“What’s going on?” Lea, who was getting ready for a few nights trip at Beliftam, came into the room. “What the -,” Lea couldn’t even finish her sentence. The two sisters stood beside each other, staring at their brother, who seemed so nonchalant. “Do you realise…?” 

“Of course, he realises!” Bahiyyih’s mouth is agape. How could he not? 

His parents heard the commotion from downstairs, hurrying to calm down their children. “What happened? Why are the two of you yelling?” Instead of a verbal answer, their two daughters just pointed at their son. Unfortunately, the sight they saw ended up freaking them out.

After the initial shock, the heavy silence was interrupted. “Well, he was always called an angel,” his father mumbled under his breath, earning a light slap to his side from his mother. 

“Sweetheart, you stay here,” his mother instructed, before shooing away his siblings and dragging everyone out of the room. “Stay here, okay?” she repeated, before locking the door.

You, in all honesty, noticed nothing. As you sat up in bed, you lazily glanced out the window, basking in the early morning sun creeping into the endless sky. Unfortunately, your head itches. As your hand reaches up, you suddenly… start bleeding? 

Your nails have never made you bleed before. 

You tried to find the reason for the wound, which you believed to be unexplainable. For one, you didn’t hit your head. Second, you didn’t have anything sharp on you… right? 

It didn’t take long, of course, because as soon as you looked at your hand, your heart sped up. Vines were growing from your forearm and wrapping around your wrist - spikes spread throughout with the sprouting leaves. It looked like you reached into a forbidden forest and got gifted a glove forged by mother nature.From the weight of it, your hand was forcibly lowered a few centimetres each time you lifted it. You felt the urge to call for help. You can’t just cut this off… Can you?

Before you could even call for your parents, you heard mumbles slip from the doorway. “I don’t think it could happen to her too, do you?” It was your mother, her voice hushed as if to not wake you up. 

“It happened to the others.” The others? Your mind immediately went to the boys. Is Beomgyu okay? How about Soobin? Taehyun? Kai? Yeonjun? 

Your mother’s anxieties were evident in her shaking voice. “Maybe it’s just the boys. Maybe it’s puberty, and it forced something to happen. Maybe-” She listed more ideas, more possibilities. 

“Love,” your father’s voice interrupted her as she spoke in circles. “We’ll only know once we open the door.” The idea of them entering the room made your heart pound so loud you swore they must’ve heard it. Would they still love me? You couldn’t properly process their entrance as you scrambled to hide your hands. However, once the door opened, your parents spotted you wrapped in your favourite star blanket, your hands sprawled out in front of you as you fumbled to hide them; too scared to tear your only comfort item.

A gasp followed. “Oh, my days!” Your mother sprinted over to you, taking your hand before immediately letting it go as the leaves pricked her skin. “Oh my Dae.” She teared up, wrapping her arms around your shoulders, careful to avoid your hands. 

“Good morning, darling.” Your father’s voice is thick with pity. “You stay here, okay? We’ll just call some people. You don’t need to go to school today.” You nodded, speechless, as your father plucked your mother from your side and left, leaving you to continue staring at your hands and worry. How are the others? Who are the others? How can I let my friends know?

Unlike the rest of you, who were dutifully listening to your parents (even Yeonjun), Kai was buzzing with energy. Maybe it’s from the wings promising new heights or from being full of unlimited energy, Kai just wanted to test out his new wings. Maybe I’m magical, he thought as he jumped up from his bed - immediately knocking a glass of water from his bedside table. All he knew for certain was that he wanted to see his five best friends without having to wait for mail to go through. 

Oops, he tried to close his wings. How does one close one’s wings? He asked, turning so his back was facing the mirror. Do I have to…forcibly push it? He tried to turn, but like a dog chasing a tail, it was a task with no end in sight. 

CRASH! Some of his favourite knick knacks on the table by his mirror landed onto the floor, a glass gift from Blacksmith Choi included. “Beomgyu is going to hold this against me for life,” Kai mumbled to himself, ready to brace Beomgyu’s teasing as he continued to solve the puzzle that is closing his wings to merely fit through the door. Can I just…will it close? He turned his thoughts to focus on the idea of wings closing. Wait, but could it…like go through my skin? If I close it, will it bury itself into my flesh? 

He shivered at the thought and resigned, “I’ll…just do this”. Turning 90 degrees, he prepared to walk through the doorway sideways - watching the edge of his wings to make sure it doesn’t bump into anything else (especially the pot of flowers gifted by one of his friends’ families). Shimmying his way through the door, he had to step back and forth a few times - being closer than he would’ve liked to an extremely fragile antique. 

Once he successfully escaped, he let out the breath he’s been holding - as if his breath helped make his wings smaller. He was grateful his siblings already were shoved out the house, instructed “not to tell anyone” and to act like everything was normal (which…if that has to be said, it’s clear that everything is not normal). Unfortunately, the same people confining him to his room remain in the living room instead of work (where they normally would be at this time). With them is also the presence of a well-known face, pacing back and forth in the room. 

In hushed whispers, he heard them speak. He rushed to hide behind a wall.

“..and Soobin is also affected” Mayor Choi commented, Kai catching onto the last end of his sentence. “I have yet spoken to the others, but I would imagine the same happened to them.” So Soobin and Yeonjun must be affected, Kai deduced. “I know I think we definitely need to try and reach out to Dae again.” Who’s Dae? 

Kai’s mother, who has concealed her frustration with today as best as she could, started raising her voice. “She didn’t say anything about this, absolutely nothing. If we knew! We could have prepared for this!” From his blind spot, he could hear his father trying to calm his mother down through soft hums. He presumed, from the sound of his father’s feet shuffling, that he was standing beside her and rubbing her back. Despite that, he could hear his mother muttering exasperations.  

Kai’s father appeared to be the most put together. Maybe from shock or from resignation, but he was appearing more clear headed than the others in the living room. “I think we have to organise for all of us to meet,” he declared, “can you try to get, well, all the Choi’s together and we’ll call the others? We can meet maybe…” 

His parents have been together for a long time; evident in the way his mother finished his father’s sentence. “At the Choi’s bakery.” She seemed to gain her resolution, following her husband’s footsteps. “We can meet there. Knowing Hwa-Young, she’s probably stress-baking.” Mayor Choi’s hum confirmed her suspicion. Fair, Kai thought, Mrs Choi’s cooking really cures all wounds. He remembered the time he accidentally had broken his arm, and Mrs Choi brought over a platter of his favourite cookies.

“How can we contact Dae?” Mayor Choi asked hopelessly. Mayor Choi remembered the woman from over a decade ago; her ethereal and celestial beauty imprinted on his mind. He never believed in the old religion, but her presence made him believe. “She hasn’t appeared since, despite saying she would try to. Do you think she is…” He couldn’t say the word as easily as she had when warning him of her potential impending doom. 

Kai’s father rejected this. “We have to try.” Kai felt his legs going numb with how still he was trying to be. All he wanted to do now was sit down, but it was too late to go back inside his room. “She did help us in the beginning, do you remember the necklaces?” Wait, necklace? His hand instinctively went to his bare neck, still revelling in the cold feeling from the missing metal, could this be related? 

For a second, Kai was worried he said it out loud as his mother asked the same question. 

If it weren’t for his momentary panic and guilt, he would’ve begged to hear the answer. Instead, the Mayor brushed his mother off - disregarding her question. “We won’t know until we speak to Dae. We should call everyone, like you said.” The politician is slowly getting his act together. In his mind, Kai is praying that resolve was contagious, especially as he trembles with worry about his friends. Despite that, he mentally patted himself on the back. Any doubt he had about running away dissipated at the thought of uniting everyone when you all needed it the most. “Let’s meet in an hour.” He declared, and then the three of them immediately made their way out the door. As soon as the door slammed shut, Kai celebrated the fact that none of them thought about locking it. 

(This action, however, wasn’t immune to Kai’s criticisms; do they do this normally? People could come in and steal our stuff. Were they willing to let me get kidnapped?)

Soobin’s house was Kai’s first stop. Not only due to its proximity, but also because if their parents do bunker down there, it would be a lot harder to sneak Soobin out later. 

The sight of one of his closest friends with strange ears was surprising, but the sight wasn’t as shocking as the pair of wings that greeted the other. “How…have you hid that?” 

“Everyone is at school,” Kai shrugged, “but if an adult asks, I would just say we’re preparing for a costume event.” Who would believe that? The elder one silently scolds the rest of his village for being so oblivious. These wings look so real… and well, they are. Soobin even reached out to feel them. While Soobin is stuck staring at one of his best friends looking like a love child of a bird and a human, Kai is rummaging through his room - creating a huge mess with the expanse of his wings. 

So much for a discreet exit, Soobin knew that as soon as his parents saw the mess Kai was leaving behind; he’d be grounded. His friends always call his parents lovely, but they’ve never seen them after they saw a mess. Heck, his brother has married and his parents are still strict about his mess. 

Soon, a wool cap hit Soobin in the chest. “Wear this.” The cap had ear flaps and was one of Soobin’s most hated hats. Don’t get him wrong; Soobin loves his grandmother, but her cap-making skills leave much to be desired. Particularly, this cap made Soobin’s head look as flat as a table top. When he first got it, his older sister tried to balance a tea cup on his head. Nevertheless, Soobin reluctantly listened and slipped the awful hat on. “Now let’s get the others to run away,” Kai muttered to himself, already prepping his wings to squeeze through the window again. 

Taehyun was next. They needed a brain cell, and out of them all, Taehyun had the most functional ones (at least, when he wants to - Taehyun is no stranger to ridiculous behaviour). Unfortunately, it seemed like Kai’s parents had the same idea. Even from walking the short distance between their houses, Soobin could hear Kai’s parents talking to Taehyun’s. 

“Do you think it’ll get better naturally?” Soobin heard Taehyun’s father ask, harmonised with the creaking of the wooden floor. “Taehyun has lost his sight…. What if he never sees again?” From the eavesdropped information, Soobin let out a gasp. He turned to Kai, expecting a similar reaction - before remembering his new ears and consequent ability. Forgetting the cap currently hiding them, his hands quickly went to cover them. He couldn’t bear to look at Kai. 

Sure, he hasn’t been judgemental since he picked him up but…why did I get these evil ears and he got angelic wings? Is something wrong with me?  He thought about what Taehyun’s parents said and he started to question the permanence of this. Will I have these forever? Can I cut them off?

However, while wallowing in his thoughts, Kai started to take a few steps forward. “Oi, wait!” Soobin stuck his arm out, unshielding his (covered) ears to block Kai from advancing forwards. “Your parents are in there.” Kai felt a shiver run through his body. He was so close to being sent back home. All of this would have been for nothing. After a second, Soobin took Kai’s wrist.  “Let’s go…” Soobin dragged him to the bushes around Taehyun’s house, “here”. The spot was perfect for all intents and purposes; they could see the entrance, they could also theoretically climb up the wooden lattice to…wait

This time, Kai is letting Soobin do all the work. Theoretically, Kai could try to fly to the second storey but Soobin quickly shot the idea down, citing how they ‘don’t know if broken wings are like a broken arm’. Luckily, Soobin also has height on his side. 

Once he got onto the thatched surface underneath Taehyun’s window, he looked inside. Taehyun’s back was to them; he clearly hasn’t moved since he woke up, at least, that’s what the mat at the back of his head told him. Soobin peaked over the roof and gave Kai a thumbs up, before knocking on the window. Maybe Taehyun was safe, he thought, maybe he was just having a bit of morning blin-

His thoughts were interrupted by shock as Taehyun turned around, arms outstretched to feel his surroundings. Instead of Taehyun’s bright eyes that shone throughout the day, his right eye was blacked out as if someone poured ink in them. Instead of where his pupil normally is, a white bright star literally shone. Shine, Soobin remembered the teasing nickname you gave him for his beaming eyes. 

“Who is it?” He heard Taehyun call, and Soobin wanted to smash his head against the glass. Not so loudly, he wanted to scream, they could hear. Soobin tried to force the window open, he tried to speak in a whisper (so as to not alert their prison guards downstairs), and he continued to knock. Luckily, Taehyun stopped calling and started lowering his volume. Can I hear him because of my ears or would Kai be able to hear him if he was here? The eavesdropper started to wonder if he could speak slightly louder. 

So, he did. And he prayed to whatever entity is above them that his voice won’t be heard by the parents downstairs. 

After the miracle that is getting blind Taehyun downstairs (which was going to be down the lattice but as they started their descent, their parents left and ultimately it was safer for the blind Taehyun to walk down the stairs), they made their way to you. 

While most of your friend’s houses can be said to be linear from each other, your farm house was at a crossroads. At the two sides of the crossroads were Yeonjun’s place and Beomgyu’s. Kai’s plan was to decide who to get after you when the question comes, or divide and conquer. But Taehyun, after being briefed, realised that Yeonjun’s house is probably the best to hide out for now…to which Kai argued and said they could run away, but that suggestion was heavily ignored. 

Thanking whatever being out there, the trio was fortunate that your house was easier to enter; a blessing of your safe small town. As your family owns the local farm, your home was right next to the shop. Due to your family’s closeness with the village and your frequent in-and-out trips, your door was almost always left open. They were grateful today was also the case. 

Similar to Taehyun, they found you frozen in your bed. You were staring at your arms as if they were foreign entities that would threaten to curse you, your friends, and your whole family. On top of all that, you were wondering how on earth you could scratch the itch beneath the layers of greenery. Unlike Taehyun, however, you had your sight. 

The moment you laid eyes on them, you almost cried. Both from relief and sadness. Relief from being not alone, but sadness from your friends being cursed as well. Instinctively, you ran over to try and wrap your arms around Soobin, Taehyun, and Kai - but stopped yourself. “I don’t want to hurt you,” you mumbled under your breath, “are you guys all okay?” 

“Well I can’t see.” Taehyun was the first to answer, speaking matter of factly as if this was a regular stage of puberty. He couldn’t see how Soobin managed to wrap his arm to hover just above your shoulders and pull you close. If the thorns on your hand were digging into him, no one could tell.

Kai, after Taehyun’s statement, immediately took over. “Let’s run away, right? After picking up Gyu and Jun, let’s go and hide forever.” He unconsciously held his arms out, going to hold your hands as you two normally do, but your lack of reciprocation made him pull back. You just didn’t want to hurt him.

For you, the idea seemed great. You get to escape and be with your favourite people. For Taehyun, however, his realism was often irreplaceable. Normally, he’d bring up the logistics; what about food? Clean drinking water? 

Today, however, it seemed to be taken over by optimism. His newfound unwavering optimism that there will be a cure has been the only thing motivating everyone. The cynical realist was providing optimism, which hardly happens. Maybe it means that the cure is real, Soobin’s previous worries were being replaced by Taehyun’s hope. 

Beomgyu was the next to be ‘kidnapped’ (as Taehyun lovingly called it). Similar to yours, Beomgyu’s abode was connected to his father’s workplace. So while his front door was locked, the door that leads inside from his father’s workspace was unlocked. Kai was happy Taehyun was with him to help criticise how irresponsible your parents were amidst their crisis.

(“Is being bad with crises genetic?” Taehyun asked, directing his eyes towards Kai and Soobin to exaggerate who the comment was targeted to. 

“Shh, they do the best they can,” you excuse them, making Taehyun roll his eyes and Soobin to smile at you.

Even with your attempts to distance yourself, Soobin stuck to you like glue. You were certain he had been scratched at least once by the vines spread across your hands. “Which happens to not be great, but still!” Soobin pushed off of you, leaving to jokingly sulk a few feet apart.)

At this new distance, Kai (and Taehyun) immediately jumped to Soobin’s side as the three boys started to make their way into the home. You lagged behind, trying to see if you could spot any scratches on Soobin’s arm. You counted at least ten small ones. 

Taehyun, who was holding onto Kai’s arm with his life, screamed. “Gyu!” he called. “Come out!” The only confirmation Taehyun had that he was in the right location was his trust in you guys and muscle memory. 

You were the first to go up the stairs, quickly trying to get to his room. Why isn't he responding? You worried, is he out looking for you guys too?  A sudden sense of panic filled you as you touched the door knob. Before, you felt a bit of fear with relief from being together. Now, as you tighten your grip on the wooden door knob, you feel your knees buckle and your palms sweat. 

Why am I suddenly so scared? You felt debilitated. “What?” Taehyun, who had left Kai to fend for himself, was about to make a snarky comment, but then his hands landed on your unscathed elbow. He felt you quake with fear. “What’s wrong?” His voice was barely above a whisper, as to not raise the attention of Kai and Soobin (who are currently discussing if Kai would have to shampoo his wings). 

“I…I don’t know,” you croaked out, “I…just feel…terrified…alone…” Something was asking, no begging, you not to open the door. Why am I feeling like this? You feel as if that as soon as you open the door, you’ll feel ashamed. But why would I feel ashamed? “Tae…” your voice has never been so small, “I don’t think Beomgyu wants us to open the door.” Taehyun’s arm remains on your elbow, careful to not touch the intruding vines on your forearm, as he dragged you away from the door. 

With his usual excellent timing, Kai quite literally pushes you aside to open the door - trying to rush everyone so that you all can “escape faster” (to which Soobin scoffed). Once the door opened, you spotted Beomgyu. 

He was in the corner, his legs pulled to his chest. He no longer was pretending to sleep. Once he heard your voices, he wanted to hide - he even tried to hide under his bed. Desperately not wanting to face your reactions, he turned his head to face the wall. “Why are you guys here?” 

“Gyu, are you okay?” Everyone spoke at the same time, but Gyu paid attention to your voice above everyone else. He still refused to look back. Despite listening, he refused to answer but then he heard stumbling…and tripping… and then he felt someone’s hand on his shoulder. 

“You’re not alone.” It was Taehyun whose other hand was on your elbow. Beomgyu looked into his right eye, falling into its abyss, and his jaw dropped. 

It was your comment who took him out of it. “I would put my hand on your shoulder, but…” He spotted your hands and had to fight his urge to hold them, “I don’t think that’d be great for you.” Nevermind that, he thought. He wanted to hold your hand; he’d do absolutely anything just to do so. 

But he held back. 

He looked at Soobin and Kai. Based on Soobin’s most hated hat (one Soobin tried to pawn off to Yeonjun a few years back), Beomgyu can only assume that Soobin had something on his head. Kai’s wings, however, are the elephant in the room. Mine definitely aren’t wings then, he confirmed. In the last hour of being alone, he convinced himself that maybe he wasn’t a monster; his wings were just growing. But Kai’s wings grew so fast, it must not be the case for him. 

“Come on,” Taehyun, sans the snarkiness, reached for Beomgyu’s hands. “Kai’s commentary on every turn we make is starting to annoy me, and Y/N’s hands hurt. Can you guide me?” he asked with a dry chuckle, trying to lighten the already tense atmosphere. 

The fear that once plagued you soon turned into a sense of determination. Beomgyu quickly stood up and hooked Taehyun’s arm to wrap around his arm. 

After growing up with Beomgyu, you’d like to say you were fluent in reading Beomgyu and your friends …but there is no way you’re physically feeling what Beomgyu is feeling…right? You start to question it, purely based on Beomgyu’s change of expression that coincided with the feeling that seemed to accompany your actual feelings. That’s impossible, you thought, Kai can’t fly…I think. My hands wouldn’t give me powers either. Your suspicion was pushed aside as you followed Beomgyu and the group out. 

As you walked towards the familiar home, you were relieved. Our last stop, you thought - ready to hide away from the world with your saving graces. However, you felt an itching desire to leave - a feeling that is certainly not your own. You looked at Kai - the very person who's been proposing to run away for the millionth time this morning. He was bouncing in his step, happy that you are almost complete. Stop being ridiculous, you told yourself, I cannot physically feel someone else’s emotions. 

You turned to continue your conversation with Taehyun and Beomgyu, although words fell flat. What do you say in this situation? What can you talk about? It’s not like you can distract yourself from these physical manifestations, staring you straight in the face. Conversations consequently were limited while most of you eyed each other, trying to familiarise yourself with your friends’ new looks. 

Beomgyu especially was burning holes into your hand as he guided Taehyun.  He wanted to reach out and hold it, but you were holding your arms close to your chest; despite the obvious pain you felt from the pricks. Is it crossing the line to reach out? Holding your hand always calmed him down, but maybe he could finally calm you down for once. I’ll just hold it, it’s just a few pric-

Kai and Soobin, who finally caught up with you three, went to either side of you. While Kai kept his distance, Soobin carefully hooked his arm with yours and tugged you close. His shoulder was like a magnet to your head, letting it drop and rest onto his shoulder as you shivered in fear. Beomgyu has to admit - he’s noticed you’ve been skittish, jumping every once in a while. You’d constantly look around, frantic, as if trying to find a pin in a haystack. 

Sighing, Beomgyu moved forwards - now focusing on bringing the half-blind Taehyun forward. Maybe it is a good thing Soobin held her, he was reminded of the spikes on his shoulders that surely would’ve hurt you. He also couldn’t forget how Soobin’s shoulders remained tense throughout their time together; his eyes were frightful and wide. He needs more comforting than I. 

Within metres of the door, you fell onto your knees. Screams foreign to you soar through your brain. These screams were not your own. Monster, it called, monster. Your hands went to your brain - the thorns growing from your hands grazing against your scalp. He’s not okay. 

“We have to go inside.” The boys looked to turn to you, your voice panicked. “Now.” 

Beomgyu quickly followed your instructions, lunging forward and trying to turn the door. “It’s locked.” 

You shook your head wildly, desperate to get in. “It’s never locked. Check the key there.” You dragged your arm out of Soobin’s, scratching him in the process as you scurried to try and save Yeonjun from himself. The third potted plant to the right on the window sill, you reminded yourself. If they ever did lock their door, which was rare as Mrs Choi was always home, they’d leave their key there. Something you learnt when they had to take a day trip to Beliftham and you had to deliver milk.  It isn’t here. 

Hopelessness filled your soul. I need to get to Yeonjun, you were scanning the entryway. It must be somewhere. The group observed your breaths increasing rapidly. Before anyone else could react, Beomgyu grabbed your hands. You tried to flinch away, trying to protect him from you but he couldn’t care. He just cringed at the pain. Holding your hand was worth it. 

Soobin was quick to stare at your interaction. 

Kai sighed, stealing everyone’s attention. “Time to climb.” 

“How about someone try the backdoor or a window and then open the door?” Taehyun quickly suggested, “I seriously cannot climb like this.” He used his spare hand to motion at his eyes, which to him, revealed just blurred wood and figures moving. 

Soobin nodded as his lips became a straight line. “That’s probably a better idea.” 

“Stay here.” Beomgyu told you, letting go of your hand as your tremors returned. Your frustration was building up. Yeonjun wasn’t okay, every second you were spending here, you were wasting time. You nodded and immediately used your elbow to nudge towards Taehyun, providing him a source of support as Beomgyu left the both of you. 

Just a floor above them,  Yeonjun was standing centimetres from the mirror. Staring at himself in the mirror, as if once he looks away - his reflection would attack him. His hands went to feel the smooth surface of his horns that easily resembled the antlers of the many deers that roam the woods. Anger started bubbling in his stomach. I’m a monster. What is happening to me? Why me? 

Why me? Am I a monster? I’m a monster. 

Words flew around like ammunition, adding fuel to the fire. His grasp around the antlers tightened. This has to get off. Why me? Why me? With all the strength he was exerting, he started to shake wildly. The first tug didn’t work. I’m not strong enough.

He moved his right hand and left hand to focus on one side. The grip was too strong; the anger added adrenaline, giving him more strength than he thought he could have. Why me? With one tight squeeze that could suffocate someone in an instant, he heard something fall onto the floor. 

His hands were bleeding. But one horn was off. Well, most of it. His stained hands, continuing to leak blood, went to feel the lump that was left behind. I’m a monster. An animal. 

Before Yeonjun could begin to do this again on his other horn, his overwhelming emotions drowning him as a waterfall begged to spill from behind his eyes. 

SLAM! The door that once was locked was forced open by his five friends, Soobin flinching at the intense sound. Yeonjun looked up; mustering up the courage to face his friends. 

“What,” he sniffled, “a-are you doing here?” His voice was shaky, uncertain as he desperately tried to wipe the blood off of his hands on his pants. It was a side to Yeonjun they’ve never seen before.

“To visit our favourite grandpa.” Tae tried to lift the mood, obviously ignorant to the blood in front of him. Yeonjun’s shaky voice even let the blind one infer the troubled state of mind Yeonjun was in, although he couldn’t see to what extent.

You thought the sight of Yeonjun would comfort you, but even stepping foot into the familiar room that would normally bring warmth, you felt cold. Once more, you were brought down to your knees. You felt pain. 

Pain. Fear. Anger. Shame. Rejection. Hate. 

The feelings that surrounded Yeonjun; whose eyes were almost as red as his hands. 

You jumped up, quickly sprinting forward and wrapping your arms loosely around Yeonjun - careful to keep the spikes away from the already bleeding boy. “What did you do?” you croaked out, now spotting the broken antler on the floor. 

Following your action, the other four quickly surrounded him, taking him in their arms and holding them. The silence embraced the six of you as you all wept everything that goes unsaid.

As much as you tried to keep lighthearted on your journey here, it was a day full of emotional turmoil. Rejected by your families, feeling isolated and alone, having to escape from your own home - you wouldn’t wish these feelings on your worst enemy. 

Kai decided to break the silence, “Let’s run away.” He could tell the five of you were going to protest; he heard it from Soobin throughout your walk; to where, how about food, how do we survive, and what about our families? “No, no, before you say no, let’s run to the forest. We can grab enough food for now. There’s even food there. We can come back when it’s all gone.” 

“What if it never goes away?” Yeonjun sniffled, his voice sounding like broken glass. 

Taehyun stepped in; “It will. It has to.” 

The forest at night wasn’t foreign to them, but this was the first time they’ve seen the sky starless. Luckily enough, they were able to start a bonfire before it got too dark. 

Since arriving at the forest earlier, they have set up a little camp. Again, it wasn’t unfamiliar; they’ve been camping in the very same forest since they could remember. However, unlike last time, they moved further away from their usual spot; somewhere their parents couldn’t track them down. 

“Maybe it’s just starless because of our angle,” Soobin commented, trying to comfort the sudden nerves that trickled down everyone’s minds as they sat in darkness with only a flame keeping them company. It most definitely wasn’t a result of their angle; Yeonjun had just taken a walk around and couldn’t see anything. 

With all his brilliance, Taehyun normally corrects or informs his friends. However, this time - he decided maybe it’s best to believe the impossible. “What does the moon look like?” He asks, trying to see the world despite his half-blindness. If he couldn’t see, then he might as well imagine. Taehyun has always loved the moon, ever since the first time they camped. It was a core memory; the six of them playing around under the moonlight as their parents slept in the tents, either chasing each other or playing in the river. In fact, learning about the moon was one of the first times he fell in love with reading; the books about the moon cycle, teaching him that life is a cycle of changes; but there will always be a new day. 

You looked up at the sky, ready to answer his questions. Taehyun always doodled with you and he would always draw the moon stages, constantly reminding you of the names. “It’s a new…” you started before you could even process the sight - you wished you stopped yourself and told him the moon was clear in the sky, “... moon.” 

“So no moon, technically.” Taehyun snorted. A starless and moonless night. You were truly alone in this universe. 

“At least,” you thought out loud, almost never feeling the need to censor yourself around them, “we’re all exhausted.” Taehyun hummed. You wouldn’t have to feel alone for much longer as you’d wake up to the sun, and spend another day out in the forest with them. 

The day itself was quite enjoyable. Once the shock wore off, the emotional exhaustion was replaced with excitement (“It’ll be a non-planned camping trip!” Beomgyu cheered before turning to Yeonjun, “Sorry grandpa, I know this ruins your sleep schedule”). While all your eyes were tired and dreary with your bodies sore from both the physical changes and the adventure, the flowing water from the river seemed to revitalise you. It was a day full of swimming, chatting, discussing hypothetical scenarios, and so on. None of you mentioned the elephants in the room; even when Kai accidentally shook his wings so harshly that he sprayed everyone with water after they finally got dry. 

However, now you were faced with the consequences of your actions. Soobin could hear the animals within the forest wander, you have yet to be able to scratch the itch in your hand, Yeonjun’s horns and Kai’s wings made it hard for them to lie down, Taehyun was still unable to see - especially now through the dark where even light couldn’t pave the way, and Beomgyu - well, he just has to sleep on his stomach (something he could never do). 

“The best thing about this,” Beomgyu started, “is that Taehyun probably doesn’t need to close his eyes to sleep.” A few of you chuckled while Taehyun started to whine as a response. 

You, however, acted offended. “The best thing isn’t spending time with us? What a jerk move, Tae!” 

“I didn’t even say it!” As Taehyun defended himself, you made eye contact with Beomgyu, who - using his facial expressions - told you to ‘keep the act going’. “Beomgyu was! Get mad at him!” 

Beomgyu let out a dramatic sigh. “All I’m hearing is that our friend doesn’t appreciate our company.” He turned to Yeonjun, “don’t you agree? You have so many years of exp-'' He didn’t even have to finish his sentence - Yeonjun was already covering Beomgyu’s mouth and threatening him. Beomgyu squabbles, his voice muffled. 

“I will get you!” Yeonjun whispered, loud enough for everyone to hear. The air may have been tense, but the conversation and jokes right now lightened the load. It felt normal again as if nothing happened. “I will make it look like an accident too!” 

Soobin chuckled from his spot, “I’ll gladly help Yeonjun.” He stands up and walks toward the two fighting, ruffling whoever’s hair he could reach. “Don’t forget, Beomgyu, no one knows we’re here.” Soobin let out a fake maniacal laughter, before Beomgyu started fighting back. 

“Oh shoot…” You fell back onto the ground, falling away from the fire. “No one knows where we are.” Soobin’s comment hit you like a brick. Sure, it was a fact that you accepted at the beginning - but it never really dawned on you until now. “How do you think our parents are reacting?” 

Taehyun thinks of his sister, of his mother, of his father who were so supportive this morning. Yeonjun, Beomgyu, and Soobin would think of theirs - if it weren’t for the sudden chase Beomgyu started once he escaped their grasp. “I already miss Mrs Choi’s cookies.” 

Thoughtlessly, you grabbed a stick and drew in the ground - trying to stop yourself from reaching out to grab Taehyun. “I wonder who will do the deliveries tomorrow morning.” Regardless of your efforts, Taehyun reached forward to hook his arm with yours. His head fell onto your shoulders. 

“Don’t worry,” he soothed, “we got each other.”

Back in town, the group of parents were ignorant of their children’s whereabouts. Dae, with her celestial appearance, looked almost human. It’s been just over a decade since they have last seen her and she only appears to have two strands of white hair. Her skin, however, seemed to have lost it’s colour; as if she was being drained. Maybe it was from tiredness, exhaustion, or maybe it was from the darkness of the silent night. Otherwise, she barely changed. 

“It’s the necklaces,” she simply stated without hesitation, her omniscience knowing all. “The necklaces were made to contain their powers. Once they took it off, they were vulnerable to the physical manifestations.” 

Taehyun’s father blubbered, “They didn’t take it off though! At least Taehyun didn’t. He’s a good kid, he wouldn-” 

“It’s a necklace,” Soobin’s mother retorted. “They grew up. It’s a weird request, and for most children - it’s harmless to take off the necklace. It’s a simple mistake. We should’ve expected this.” 

Mayor Choi chimed in, “A mistake that could never happen again.” He turned to Dae, “How do we make the necklace’s effect more permanent?” 

“It’s impossible.” Dae’s voice, however, still could be distinguished as inhuman. It was whispered yet echoed around them, filling the space - entering their lungs - their thoughts - their entire being felt lifted by the voice. “Nothing is wrong with these physical manifestations, of course. If they were born in my time, it’d be normal. However, I understand magic is no longer mundane here.” 

Your mother decided to ask the next question, “How do we fix this?” 

“I found them.” Dae stated, no quiver in her voice. “However, I must warn you. These necklaces were supposed to muffle their powers. Now that they’ve had it off for a while now, they have revealed themselves; the deity who had killed their biological parents may be able to locate them.” 

The parents shivered in fear. Kill? Would he come after you? Taehyun’s mother voiced the question out loud, and unfortunately, Dae couldn’t be certain. While her omniscience allows her knowledge of all human activities, she could not track down Ki. To Ki, the only threat Dae posed was protecting those he aimed to find; be it corrupt presidents or these children. She has no knowledge of his current whereabouts or plans; but she can surely feel his presence in the world. It was why Gi and her created the necklaces; when the children were born, their energy as half-deities could be felt by all of them. They were uncertain of where it could lead, so Gi and her worked together to create something to suppress it; to help them live more normally among the mortals. “How could we protect them?” 

“We can’t keep them apart anymore.” Soobin’s mother sighed, “They love each other too much. It’ll be like separating them from us.” 

Dae’s silence flooded the room. She wishes Hye-Ji was here to help her know what to do, or Kwang was here to help comfort them despite their fears. If Jum was here, maybe he’d be able to take control of the situation. Or even if Won-Shik or Aera was here; they’d fill them up with hope and love that they could feel certain that everything would be okay. 

But Dae cannot promise certainty. She can only promise the truth. 

“There’s not much to do.” It was simple really. Ki would have felt their energy already. Dae felt it this morning and immediately went to search for the necklaces, to which she still has to repair the last one. Even if she repaired them immediately, she couldn’t have come down during the day to give them back - her power was weak, she couldn’t muster her human form until nightfall. “Keep them on the down low. Make sure they never remove the necklaces again. Hopefully, Ki hasn’t tracked them down to this village yet.” Her words were calculated - careful to prevent more panic, but that didn’t stop the fear trembling the room. “I will go now.” 

Her announcement was followed by her gliding to the other side of the room, facing the wall. She turned her head and announced, “Your children aren’t home. They are safe. I will tell them to go home tomorrow morning.” 

“Where are they?” Mayor Choi quickly demanded, raising his voice at a deity who didn’t even flinch. Her elegance and composure was as stable as ever. 

She smiled as her body started to disappear into the wind, her human form retreating as she turned into her spirit form; an orb of blue energy. “It is their secret to keep,” Dae was fully gone now, but her voice resonated throughout the room, “but they will return tomorrow.” 

Her departure left the parents in silence. Immediately, they went to comfort each other - after a bit of arguing, of course.

At the dead of the night, Soobin startled awake. Or was he awake? 

He couldn’t be certain. For one, the stars had returned. Instead of the empty sky, the moon was staring back at him. 

Soobin sat up and around him, everyone was asleep. Taehyun, who was previously holding Soobin’s arm, shuffled and reached over to Kai - his tight grasp an effort to find an anchor in the dark night. Kai’s other arm (the one not being held by Tae’s death grip) was splayed out in your direction, obviously trying to reach you. You, however, were facing Beomgyu who was facing you back. His legs were tucked tight to his chest, one arm wrapped around them and similar to Kai, his other arm reaching towards you. Yeonjun was at the end - he had chosen his spot as “the eldest male”, promising to protect you from anyone who may come across you all (“Everyone will see a monster, that’s great - at least they don’t know the monster is old and frail'' were Beomgyu’s last words before being tackled to the ground).

“You have to be careful,” A whisper seeped through the gust of wind. Soobin shivered, “He can find you now.” Soobin looks around; who's talking? Is it someone nearby? Is it my imagination? He looked back and forth, trying to find the source of the sound. “Go home. Make sure to never take it off again.” The noise must be from someone in the forest, right? He tried to think of any reason for there to be a voice from the forest or where it could be coming from. Trying to use logic, he can only think the voice was coming from the sky…but how? As he was trying to figure it all out, wiping the sleep away from his eyes...

It was morning again. The sky was a beautiful orange, the hue dawning on all of you - embracing you in its warmth. When Soobin woke up, he was certain that it was a dream. It had to be, he concluded. 

Nevertheless, it was a beautiful day. The smells of char from the bonfire, sure, was suffocating - but the fresh grass around them combined with the beautiful sunrise revitalised him. He could feel the soil beneath his fingers, taste the odd feeling of saliva from waking up, and he could hear…wait. He could no longer hear the river stream that kept him up for hours. Crickets and birds were merely faint background noises, not alarms ringing through his head. His hands quickly jumped to his ears and at his realisation; he felt all the weight on his shoulders vanish.

He sits up and looks around. If I am free of this curse, the others must be too, right? Yeonjun - the furthest away - no longer had his horns. There was not even a trace of it. The only physical remnant of yesterday was the dents in the dirt of where the horns collided. Other than that, there was no bone, no scarring, no blood. 

Beomgyu, next to him, no longer had his spikes. He was no longer sleeping on his side but comfortably on his back. He was free. 

From Soobin’s angle, he couldn’t see your hands - especially as they were covered by Beomgyu’s. It’s fine, Soobin ignored the gnawing at his heart - you always instinctively reached out for others during your camping trips, if I was in his place, she’d be reaching for me. However, his eyes gleamed at the sight; your hands were released from the thorn restraints. 

Kai’s lack of wings, however, was the most obvious disappearance of them all. Soobin expected to wake up in the morning and have to help Kai clean the dirt off the pure white feathers. The wings themselves seemed to emit their own brightness with how white they were. However, it didn’t pain him to look at Kai’s sleeping form - so either it’s really dug and hidden under the dirt or had completely disappeared. Based on Soobin’s previous observations, he knew it disappeared. 

He quickly looked to the one beside him. Unfortunately, Taehyun’s eyes were still closed; still in dreamland. 

So Soobin shuffled over, as quiet as possible (which admittedly wasn’t too quiet), and was immediately thankful that Taehyun has always been extremely easy to wake up. During his shuffling, Taehyun had already started to awaken; his eyes blinking through the haze of a morning blur. 

It’s not black. Surely enough, Taehyun’s eyes were shining - but not due to the star that temporarily found a home there, but from his wide doe eyes. Soobin had to hold himself from screaming, from celebrating loudly. But he was faced with a dilemma.

It wasn’t a dream or a shared delusion - our parents reacted, he reasoned, so what was it? Despite his overthinking mind, he relished in the silence he sorely missed yesterday. 

“Did you wake me up just to stare at me, creep?” Taehyun groggily asked, voice still heavy with sleep as he looked at Soobin. 

He must’ve not realised. “Taehyun…” Soobin trailed off, his grin uncontainable, “Can’t you see me?” 

Taehyun jumped up immediately. He was basked in the orange sunlight; he could see the trees around them. The sight of life made him want to crash right back onto his knees in relief. “I told you guys it’ll come back, I told you!” He almost cried, startling and waking everyone else. 

The moment all of you woke up, everyone (metaphorically) kissed the ground you walked on. You couldn’t care less for the spiders surrounding you, the lady bugs crawling up and down your arms, the fireflies flying around as they seek refuge from the daylight. All of you were overwhelmed with relief, with happiness, with freedom - your immediate reaction was to hug each other. You were finally free from the imprisonment that was your oddities. None of you had to worry about hurting the other with the touch of your thorny vines, Beomgyu’s spikes, or Yeonjun’s antlers getting in the way. 

With the profuse amount of blessings overflowing through your veins, a realisation sprung to mind. “I guess it’s time to go home then, huh?” Taehyun asked, scratching his head as he stepped back from the embrace. Despite being grateful for life to go back to normal, part of you will miss the idea of living with the boys. In the future, you reminded yourself of your promise to each other; living together in the same house here in Hybehead.

“We can leave after we eat all this.” Yeonjun motioned towards the food you bundled together for your escape from Yeonjun’s kitchens before you left (as well as the food Soobin and Taehyun were forced to buy for you guys, as the only two people with more discreet changes). Although the food was planned to last you at least a week, in hindsight it maybe could only last you two days or so. 

Beomgyu set up the blanket for the six of you to eat; “A celebratory feast!” he basically screamed as the rest of you got the paper plates out. “We can eat as much as we want!” 

As you all sat down, Taehyun remained just a few steps away; staring holes through Kai’s back. “You know,” he commented, “it’s great that we no longer have all of…that…but I wish I saw Kai’s wings.” You hummed in agreement. Out of you all, Kai was definitely the most happy - his wings were, well, angelic to be simply put. 

“You should’ve seen my back,” Beomgyu chewed loudly from beside you, “maybe you could’ve identified what they were.” You chuckled to yourself; smiling at Beomgyu absentmindedly. For someone who felt so much shame the day prior, he certainly seemed to be basking in pride now. He turned to look at you, and caught your stare, immediately flustering you both. Beomgyu, however, wore his reddening cheeks with a smirk. 

Yeonjun spoke up, humming as he ate his food, “I think they were thorns”. 

“It kind of looked like bones.” Kai contributed. You looked sadly at Yeonjun, who although was joining the discussion, had among the worst of you all. Unfortunately, due to his brash actions yesterday, his hands are still scarred from ripping the bone from his head. Shifting away from Beomgyu and closer to Yeonjun, you hook your arms with his non-dominant arm so as to prevent him from eating.

He screwed his eyes shut, squinting at you “What do you want?” he asked sceptically, pulling his plate back away from you as if you were going to steal some of his food. 

“I can’t just show my friend my appreciation through affection?” 

Yeonjun shrugs and continues eating, until he hears Beomgyu start whispering loudly. “Y/N, good job…” It was obviously a joke; Beomgyu pretending to have orchestrated a plot for you to distract Yeonjun while he does something evil. 

Yeonjun shrugged you off,  pretending to be sceptical of you now. “What did Beomgyu make you do?”

Beomgyu was quick to defend himself; “HEY! I was doing nothing.” Yeonjun aimed his intimidating glance towards Beomgyu, as if trying to silently get information from him. The younger one sighed, “I guess my friend’s don’t understand me now, huh?”. He looked at you and playfully glared, “Traitor.” 

As the offended boy playfully and roughly turned his head, he heard a CLINK. Confusion filled him, making him put his food down and find the clinking noise.

I thought this broke…

Beomgyu’s sudden silence grabbed everyone’s attention. “Wait, I have the same necklace,” Kai quickly commented, “but I lost it...” Kai looked down, only to spot the same necklace he swore he left behind. He took it out, showing it to everybody. 

One by one, everyone looked under their shirts to reveal the very same items they lost weeks ago. Each necklace was practically related to each other; while the chain and metal hook looks the same, the marbles the metal secures all differ. From the material itself, it is obvious that the marbles were not any that they have seen before. Not only that, but something about the touch of them, now after reuniting with it after so long, felt strange - powerful, almost reinvorigating as if you were restoring something deep inside of you. 

Firstly, Taehyun’s marble had the same chestnut colour of leather bound books, however, with golden stripes. Kai’s marble, on the other hand, looked like it contained the whole ocean with the variety of blues layered together. Similarly, Soobin’s marble’s colour and design could be likened to the allium flower, cascading over each other in different shades of purple. Yours was a royal green; beautiful and rich in colour with a series of lighter swirls wrapping around it. Beomgyu, with all his knowledge of different materials, could easily compare his own marble’s appearance with the one of an orange-red zircon. Lastly, while Yeonjun’s marble was the least vibrant of them all; ivory white, it still demanded attention as it appeared to catch light even if the light was nowhere near it. 

 “This has to be a coincidence,” Taehyun swore, not yet believing in magic despite the very same events he first hand experienced the day before. 

“Bro-” Kai appeared gobsmacked, “we woke up with literal fantasy novel stuff, how else can you explain it? It has to be magic.” At the mention of magic, Yeonjun started to chuckle - magic? Impossible. “No, seriously though. Soobin, Taehyun - you also have older siblings, did they experience this?” 

Soobin’s eyes were wide with fright. Magic can’t be real, he tried to reason with himself, if it is real - what else can be out there? He wanted to say yes to Kai, tell him that ‘yes it did happen to them’ to try and push back the idea of magic. If magic was real, then they didn’t know as much as they thought about the world around them. But he didn’t want to lie. Not to Kai. 

“Maybe it’s a delusion.” Taehyun simply shrugged. “Maybe we all imagined it.” 

Soobin, playing advocate for Kai, jumped in - despite the fear he held close to his heart of the unknown. “But our parents also saw it, like, they couldn’t have been deluded.” 

Beomgyu cut in, “Let’s listen to Kai and Soobin, they might be onto something.” You looked at Beomgyu, whose eyes had a glint to them. I don’t think he believes this, you thought, he might be just entertaining him. In an attempt to lock eyes with him, you nudged him with your foot to try and read his genuine reaction. Despite the many years you’ve known him, this expression was almost unreadable. The only thing confirming your suspicion was the small cocky smile playing at his lips. 

You, on the other hand, were conflicted. Yesterday’s circumstances certainly were odd and not mortally possible. But there have been no records of magic in the past…what makes us so special? It’s not like we’re the protagonists in one of those fantasy stories.

“I mean,” Soobin shyly glanced at you, “I don’t believe it, but hey - maybe.” He was stuttering, tripping over his words. “We have faced a lot of impossible things in the span of 24 hours so maybe magic could be real.” And it means there’s so much out there we don’t know, he stopped himself from adding before continuing to list some of his fears, monsters, villains, gods and goddesses, vampires, shapeshifters …what else? 

Kai took over once more, “All I’m saying is this cannot be explained by science, so something has to have done it.” In the corner of your vision, you can see Taehyun shake his head - although his usual unshaken expression wasn’t present. It was clear that the events of the catastrophe that was yesterday had changed his mind, altered his perspective. 

“Let’s just say,” Yeonjun said, trying to change the perspective, “it’s something weird and unexplainable.” He looked around at everyone’s face, who was nodding along - not wanting to start an argument or get too into the discussion. “We finally got rid of it, so let’s forget about it.” Soobin, however, was still biting at his lip. “What’s on your mind?” 

Soobin shook his head, refusing Yeonjun’s invitation to speak. Unfortunately, he was pushed forward - everyone knew his worried expression (after being so easily scared) and this surely meets the criteria; his arms unusually close to his body, his lips slightly parted, his usually innocent eyes plagued with worry as he searched for something to distract him. It was only when he reached towards your hand that he started to answer. 

“I overheard something last night,” he shared, “I’m not sure how serious or how real it was, but I don’t think we should take off our necklaces.” Kai was quick to agree, interrupting Soobin as he mentioned how he overheard his parents discussing it with Mayor Choi. “I really think it’s important for us to keep these necklaces on, we can hide them easily and it’s a small thing to be doing.” 

You agreed immediately. It truly is a simple thing to do, and you can tell the others agree by how everyone quickly nodded along. “Let’s all pinky promise?” you proposed. “Touch thumbs too.” Everyone held up their pinkies, reaching to whoever is on either side of them. Immediately after, you all started to pack up to go home - everyone was nervous about what awaits them with their parents.

“Hi kitty-kitty!” Yeonjun cooed, a black cat curling up by his feet. It was the same black cat that seemed to have captured the village’s heart by storm. Hybehead wasn’t a stranger to animals, often dealing with lots of foxes and forest animals, but this cat was distinctive in its nature. 

In the village, a household animal like a cat or dog is always accounted for. Stray kittens would quickly find their homes. However, everytime people try to offer this cat residence; it never stays. Odd. Due to this, the village has been holding up posters - even sending some to Beliftham - in search of their owner. Nevertheless, the cat remains distinctive for another quality - a quality that seemed to have captured Yeonjun. This cat had one blue eye and one green eye. Other than that, the cat seemed to have been pampered it’s whole life. 

It’s been a few months since the incident. When Yeonjun looks at this wonky-eyed cat, he thinks of his horns. As much as he tried to forget that day, he could never; the faint scar that remains on his palms are a constant reminder. This cat may think of itself a monster, he sighed sadly as he went to carry the cat to put onto his lap. It looks so sweet...so innocent. 

Mrs. Ho, a neighbour who tried to take care of the cat a few days back, walked by, “Wow Yeonjun”. The seventeen-year-old’s head shot up. He immediately smiled and was greeted by the town’s jeweller, Mrs. Ho, who has always been friendly to everyone in the village. “That small one really took a liking to you.” 

“Pardon?” Yeonjun politely asked. He always appreciated Mrs. Ho, especially after the one time he was grounded and forced outside. Mrs. Ho had helped him find games to play with his ‘punishment’ of tending to one of the town’s treasured statues. Sometimes, when Yeonjun would be grounded and only be allowed to ‘go to school and go home’, she would help Yeonjun evade his father’s strict eyes - often by asking for Yeonjun and his friends’ help at her shop. 

“This little one,” Mrs. Ho reaches out to pet the cat, only to receive a guttural snarl from the cat with two eye colours, “really doesn’t accept anything but food from people.” Yeonjun furrowed his eyebrows. Wouldn’t this cat want a home? He secretly took pride in being someone the cat took a liking to. “They like you.” 

He sadly looked at the cat on his lap, “I won’t be allowed to take them home though.” Still stroking the cat, who has shown no particular dislike for his touch, he explained to Mrs. Ho that his mother is allergic to cats. “Maybe I’ll ask one of my friends.” 

“How are your friends, my dear?” Mrs. Ho inquired, looking around for them. It was rare to see them without each other. “Are you grounded again?” Her tone immediately shifted to be more light-hearted, teasing him. 

Yeonjun immediately shook his head, laughing. “No, no, not at all.” He quickly cleared up, “My class ended early.” Mrs. Ho hums, implicitly asking him to elaborate further. However, Yeonjun also recognizes that tone from his father; ‘are you sure you’re not just skipping class?’ but he can’t be mad at Mrs. Ho. If Mrs. Ho learnt that he skipped class, she’d help him cover up. “Students in my career path were asked to volunteer to help prepare for the town anniversary event, but I already helped with that and well…” he motions towards the paper that is placed beside him on the wooden bench. 

His elder sits next to him. “Ah,” She murmured, “I must admit, I always look forward to your speeches.” Yeonjun turns to face her, a bit surprised. With speeches full of humour and youth, Yeonjun always manages to capture the younger audiences at the events; it’s why his father wanted him to start speaking. However, he was surprised to hear someone relatively older appreciates his speeches. “You are a natural-born leader, I can tell.” 

Yeonjun awkwardly chuckled, avoiding eye contact. Well, I don’t want my father to hear this. Choosing to pursue the civic path of schooling wasn’t his choice. Luckily, he only had to do one year worth of it; a consequence of the curriculum being implemented in the second to last year of his mandatory school years. To be frank, he wanted to pursue the minstrel or knight career. Now, a few months into the beginning of the year, he’d hate to admit to his dad he actually enjoyed the civic career. However, he’s certain his father has noticed his significant decrease in troublesome behaviour since the start of this year. 

“Well, thank you.” He smiled, now finally looking up. “If you’d like to see them, they’ll be here in a bit!” Mrs. Ho is no stranger to their talks, in fact, sometimes she makes them a bit more wilder. She was always one to pose hypothetical situations or strange ‘what would you rather do…’ questions to them when she bumps into them. 

She waved it off, dismissing herself. “It’s okay, I have to go to Beliftham to grab some materials for a new design I want to try.” Mrs. Ho excitedly explained the design; a necklace with a small pendant in the middle. “I want it to be a marble pendant, you know?” She motions with her hands to demonstrate how big she wants the marble to be, before explaining how a lot of metals can’t carry that weight for long (and Mrs. Ho always wants to guarantee long-life necklaces). Yeonjun’s hands immediately left the cat in his lap and went to the one around his neck. 

How was this made then? It was just around the same size she demonstrated and the necklace has yet to break in the last seventeen years. “Do you mean like this?” He released the necklace from the confines of his school shirt, lifting up to show Mrs. Ho the design. 

Both of them were ignorant of how quick the black cat looked up at Yeonjun and the necklace. 

“This is absolutely beautiful!” She immediately gushed, her hand quickly going to feel the material. “What is this made of?” Her question falls upon deaf ears; Yeonjun unsure himself. “It reminds me of moonstone. Is it?” The boy shakes his head and shrugs before admitting his ignorance. “But this is exactly what I mean! Do you know what metal was used? The weight of the marble? How long have you had it for?” She was shooting questions miles per minute.  

Yeonjun, of course, told her as much as he could…which really was only that he had it since he was born. “This is like magic.” She awed, continuing to closely observe the necklace. “Do you mind if I borrow it for today? To show at the shop?” Mrs. Ho took a step back, letting go of the necklace. 

Without thinking, Yeonjun lifted his arms to take it off until he remembered the day after the incident, the promise you all made. “Oh, I’m sorry. I would, but I really can’t.” Mrs. Ho nods understandably, although the disappointment was evident on her face. “The others have the same necklaces though. I bet you they’d be open to come by and stay with you while you create so you have a working model to base it on.” He always hated to disappoint his elders. 

The cat in his lap’s ears twitched, as if fine tuning the conversation. 

“That would be amazing!” She quickly exclaimed. “It’s also a great excuse to spend time with you guys again. Maybe get your free labour again?” She teased Yeonjun, both of them chuckling. 

“Of course, of course, we’d be happy to.” 

Mrs. Ho went to touch the necklace for the final time that day, trying to decipher what materials she should be on the lookout for in Beliftham. However, as she thumbs at the object - the cat lifted its paw and scratched her. 

She laughed while Yeonjun looked at the cat in shock. In the ten minutes he’s been sitting with the cat, it hasn’t demonstrated any of this behaviour towards him. “They were like this the whole time they stayed with me, which happened to be about ten minutes for food.” Mrs. Ho then gives Yeonjun a quick hug, despite the cat’s obvious protests, and leaves him to wait for his friends. 

Suddenly, the cat became much more…affectionate, if you can call it that. The cat’s small black paws start attacking the necklace around Yeonjun’s neck, although with how much force the cat puts into it - Yeonjun wasn’t sure if the cat has a personal vendetta against it…as if it was possible for that to happen. 

“Okay, okay,” Yeonjun chuckled, smiling softly - ignoring the rough feeling of the cat’s nails on his chest, “I’ll put it away.” He hummed as he snuck his necklace back down under his shirt, but the cat’s onslaught persisted. “Look kitty,” he started, trying to gently push the cat to be sitting down on his lap again, “I promised my friends and family I can’t take it off. I even almost got grounded last time, okay? If i could take it off to make you stop, I’ll gladly-” 

His one-way discussion came to a halt when he heard his name get called from down the street. He spotted Beomgyu leading the group, next to you who was looking back to talk to the other three. Yeonjun immediately lifted the cat and placed him on the bench; an action that cat sincerely didn’t appreciate with how it tried to sink their nails into Yeonjun as a feasible attempt to become physically attached to the hip. 

“Skipping class again, I see!” you called, gleefully skipping ahead to hug him. Yeonjun scoffs at the implication. 

Putting on a higher tone of voice, he emphasised his facial expressions, “Don’t you know, I’m a changed man.” 

“Don’t you mean grandpa?” Taehyun earned a light shove with that comment. 

Beomgyu, however, did his usual and started mocking Yeonjun. “Changed man,” he scrunched up his face as much as he could, “as if you don’t swear in front of us every ten minutes.” 

The eldest shrugged, “Because it’s you. How can someone…” Yeonjun reached over to pinch Beomgyu’s cheek aggressively, “not want to swear at you?” 

“Well, I can swear with you.” Soobin held out his pinky finger, immediately making Yeonjun snort. 

Kai immediately added onto teasing Yeonjun. “I drew you a good luck picture!” Today, for Kai, was a quiz for the sailing career path. They had to draw a series of fish and list the distinguishing qualities. Kai, ever the genius, finished early and grabbed an extra sheet of paper. Yeonjun took one look at the picture and wanted to strangle him. It was a drawing of a pedestal with ‘Kai’s portrait of Yeonjun’ (aka a circle for a face, some sort of hair, and then three dots; two for his eyes and one for his mouth). “A good prediction for your speech today!” Kai motioned towards the ‘audience’ (aka circles) who were ‘clapping’ for him. 

It was as if all of you ripped a page out of the ‘How to Annoy Yeonjun Handbook’, a book that Yeonjun swears would be written by Taehyun with the help of Beomgyu once Taehyun becomes an official scribe. “How can I hit all of you at once?” 

Almost as if planned, you and Soobin both smiled and wrapped your arms around Yeonjun - your arms clashing with each other in the process. “You can’t!” tou sung. Admittedly, you didn’t know what the plan was today - something evident in how you tried to step forward before realising you had no clue where you were going. 

As if reading your mind, Soobin posed the question for you. “Where are we going?” 

Everyone turned to Yeonjun. “I was thinking we could actually go around the preparation area for the event tonight, yeah?” Your interest was piqued at the mention, although you weren’t sure why. You were curious, for sure, but not interested. However, this feeling seemed to confirm your assumption from the last few weeks; Yeonjun is enjoying the civic duty path. Of course, for another reason you were uncertain of, the statement and idea was full of shame - so you’d never say it out loud. 

While everyone else blindlessly agreed, not thinking too much about it - Taehyun was always curious. However, his curiosity was also paired with intelligence - even emotional too. “What do we do there?” To Taehyun, he thought it was a genius question - one that could weasel out why Yeonjun wanted to go there without making him explicitly uncom-

“Stand around, I guess.” That definitely was what I wanted to hear, Taehyun silently laughed at himself, of course Yeonjun would be able to not fall for it. “Oh!” Yeonjun’s eyes widened as he remembered what he had to say, the six of them now commencing their walk towards their destination. “I told Mrs. Ho we’d stay in her shop for a bit, is that okay with you all?” 

Soobin grinned widely. “I love Mrs. Ho!” Mrs. Ho would always come to the bakery at varying times each day. Each time Soobin would be behind the counter during her visits, he’d be elated to see her. To him, Mrs. Ho brought an immediate sense of comfort; the words she’d say were always those of complete honesty or humour. Nevertheless, everything she says drips with affection. “I’d love to help her around the shop again.” 

“Why’d she ask?” Beomgyu asked, curious. While they do visit her from time to time, and always see her at big events (like today), it’s been a while since they spent a few hours at her shop. 

Yeonjun motions to his necklace. “She was saying this type of design was impossible to make, and I showed it to her.” 

Kai furrowed his eyebrows, “Are our necklaces not like…a secret thing?” Everyone looked at him - this was the first they heard of this. “LIke…why did we never mention our necklaces before? Why did we always wear it under our shirts?” Admittedly, most of you froze on the spot. Why did you? Was it just instinctive? 

Taehyun, however, dismissed these questions, “It’s just a necklace. Plus, we trust Mrs. Ho. If the necklaces were something we had to keep secret, Mrs. Ho wouldn’t be blurting it out to everyone.” 

Looking back, Yeonjun motioned to the cat, wanting to take the mick out of Yeonjun. “They also heard.” 

Immediately, Taehyun rolled his eyes. “Okay, tell me what a cat would want to do with our neckla-,” he interrupts himself, “no, no, tell me how a cat would spill the secret.” 

Not wanting to talk much about the cat longer, the black cat giving you a bad feeling - the weird invisible and inexplicable scratching feeling around your wrists, you changed the subject. “Will we see Mrs. Ho tonight?” 

Yeonjun nodded, and before he could open his mouth, Kai jumped in. “I’m so excited for the events of tonight. Can you believe it? It’s been a hundred years since our village was formed.” 

“I can’t believe that before that, this was part of a bigger city in a bigger kingdom.” Soobin sighs, remembering the story of the creation of Hybehead you’ve been taught since you were five. “Can you imagine how long a walk from one side of the city to the other was?” 

Due to the heavy rain earlier this morning, the dirt roads were still quite moldable. With your eyes set on the destination in front of you, the six of you left six pairs of footprints in the wide road towards the town centre. Creeping behind these footprints were a pair of paw prints, the wonky-eyed cat following behind.

While Taehyun severely missed being in the same class group as Kai, he knew from the moment he started the specialised curriculum that Kai would’ve hated being a scribe. Firstly, Taehyun’s classes are central about learning the pedantics; what type of paper for what type of story, what type of ink for the paper, what type of font, and so on. Secondly, most of his lessons were inside. 

On the other hand, Kai - pursuing the sailors' curriculum - would often be by the sea side or taking short trips to another port for the day. So while Taehyun may miss Kai, he was happy that Kai was happy - especially considering the long process it took him to decide choosing this curriculum. His father was happy, as he believed his son would be following his path, but Kai secretly had an ulterior motive; he wanted to leave Hybehead and sail as a merchant across the seven seas. Of course, he’d want to come back to Hybehead as his homebase - as, …well, who else will annoy his friends? 

Fortunately for them, there were days for their general classes and as the same age group, they were together. But those were once a week at most. 

In a village of maybe one thousand people and only 300 or so school-aged children, only seven people wanted to be scribes. Due to the amount of teachers actually available, this meant those pursuing the scribe curriculum all shared one class; no matter the age. 

This also meant Taehyun was the youngest in his class. 

It wasn’t a surprise to the administration, of course. What teenager would want to stay inside today, mostly practising their handwriting and reading books that can be as heavy as a farm animal? 

Moreover, as Taehyun was without his friends in this class, his more introverted tendencies would take over. Coming to class in the morning, after briefly meeting up with you all in the park you’d always eat lunch, he immediately started to practice what they learnt yesterday on spare paper. 

Calligraphy, his teacher called it - a text style to be used for poetry and fiction novels about magical worlds. The strokes were careful and calculated, yet expressed a melodious quality. If calligraphy was a person, Taehyun thought, it’d be manipulative - a liar as the harmonious font could say the most malicious words under disguise. Despite the font looking beautiful and free, it required a lot of skillful effort and expertise - upward strokes were to be-

His thoughts are interrupted as Professor Lim grabs the attention of the class. “Everyone, let’s welcome our new student Oh Ki-Hoon.” A monotonous chorus of ‘hello’s echoed throughout the small section of the village’s library. “Oh Ki-Hoon is new to town and moved here to be with…” The teacher turned to the new student, who quickly answered the question. 

“My grandmother.” Ki-Hoon, for someone who looks quite young, was full of confidence. He appeared to have no self doubt; no quiver in his voice, no double take - he held his head up high without hesitancy. 

Professor Lim tilted his head as he tried to think of anyone with the last name, “I didn’t know Oh -” 

Ki-Hoon was quick to interrupt, although his eyes remained trained onto the students; not caring about the teacher’s reaction. “My grandmother lives just outside the village, but she goes into Beliftham for work - not here.” The abrupt student took the teacher’s nod as a sign that he won’t push for more details.

Professor Lim scanned the room, “You can sit next to Taehyun.” Ki-Hoon silently was grateful he didn’t have to make a fuss in order to sit next to the boy in the back row, quietly scribbling away. “He’s in the same age group as you.”  

Taehyun’s head popped up with that comment. Yes! He silently celebrated. It wasn’t that Taehyun needed people, he does have some introverted qualities - however, he largely is an extrovert. If he wasn’t, he wouldn’t be able to deal with his five friends who brought all sorts of chaos everywhere they went. Everytime he thinks of this fact, he silently pities Soobin. 

“Hello!” Ki-Hoon quickly greeted, plopping down beside Taehyun. Taehyun was able to get a good look at the boy beside him. Nothing in particular shouted ‘look at me’ besides, maybe, his definitive and dark eyebrows, and…okay, definitely his eyes. 

Taehyun has heard about it before, only in stories. Heterochromia. A name with green origins. Hetero, or different, and chroma, color. While Ki-Hoon’s right eye was a dark brown that feels as deep as an abyss, his left eye was largely an electric blue with pieces of emerald floating through. Creeping in from the right side of his pupil was more brown. Partial heterochromia, if Taehyun remembers the term correctly, but it’s weird - he thought - I thought it’d only be two colours. In all reports he read about heterochromia, it was only two colours - not two and a bit of anoth-

Ki-Hoon motioned towards Taehyun’s practice sheet. “What is that called?” 

Pulling himself back into the moment, Taehyun smiled and introduced himself properly. “Oh sorry, I zoned out.” Ki-Hoon chuckled understandably, “it’s called calligraphy. We learned it yesterday.” Wait, he’s coming into the course a few weeks after…and he missed a year. “My name is Taehyun, by the way. It’s nice to have someone my age here.” 

“Taehyun,” It was as if Ki-hoon was tasting the name, ensuring to imprint every syllable in his memory, “it means great or honour.” Ki-Hoon motioned towards the sheet once more, “The greatness definitely shows up in your work.” 

The boy in question let out a chuckle, not denying the compliment. He has been working on his strokes since class yesterday. “Yeah, thank you.” He held up the piece of paper, holding it out to appreciate it from a distance. “Do you want me to help you catch up?” 

Through whispered conversations during class ‘silent times’ and spending lunch together, Taehyun learnt he and Ki-hoon had a lot in common. Both of their parents worked in journalism, Ki-Hoon aspires to be a part of the Hye-Ji association, and both love to swim (to which Taehyun invited him out to go to a nearby river rather than your secret spot). 

It was at the end of the school day where he decided and was determined to introduce Ki-Hoon to the rest of his friends. By now, all your schedules would be finished, meaning there were no longer any schedule conflicts preventing him from seeing you all. 

Turning to Ki-Hoon, Taehyun started to pack his stuff. “Do you want to meet my friends?” Taehyun was grinning wildly, excited to invite him into the group. He can imagine you all bonding well with Ki-Hoon to the point he can imagine the new kid being invited to your next camping trip. 

Ki-Hoon cunningly grinned.

When approaching the park where you meet up in the mornings, Taehyun could even hear the four of you bickering from a distance…to be fair, mostly Yeonjun and Soobin bickering. 

He turned around to face his new friend, “I promise you…they’re always like this -”. Part of Taehyun wishes you or Yeonjun or Soobin were there with him at that moment; you three were always amazing at reading even the blankest of reactions. Ki-Hoon was practically unreadable; no distinguishing features that highlighted any sense of emotion. No furrowed brows, no widened eyes, no grin. Just blank. “But they’re really not scary, they’re all super lovely.” 

The lack of emotion turned Taehyun into a leaking faucet, rambling and giving him brief introductions to you in advance. “Taehyun!” Soobin called as Taehyun was now just a few steps away, “Beomgyu and Yeonjun are saying a butt is one, but I think it’s two.” 

Taehyun turned to look at you, silently apologising for the plight of dealing with them alone. “This is Ki-Hoon,” he ignored the question, motioning to the boy beside him, “he’s new to town.” 

Everyone waved back, introducing themselves and eying him up and down. You, in particular, feel an itch crawl up your arm, as if a spider was crawling underneath your skin. “Your eyes look so cool,” Kai awed, before immediately bringing the conversation back up. “Now, what is your opinion, Ki-Hoon? One or two?” 

A full three weeks at Hybehead and Ki-Hoon has been settling in…well, adequately. To say that he got a good start off with your group was also questionable. 

One of your favourite activities was spending time with Yeonjun. Of course, you can say that about all of your friends, but you and everyone else in your group haven’t had alone time with Yeonjun in a long time, especially as he is preparing to enter the adult world next year. Not only that, but he has been putting a lot more effort into his civic duties as mayor’s son. 

It usually would be a group hangout, but after Ki-Hoon was introduced to you earlier today, you really didn’t want to spend time with everyone. 

You were lucky you had frequent alone time with Soobin due to bakery hours. During your shift today, you and Soobin spent the whole time talking about the odd aura that seemed to swarm Ki-Hoon. It was clear that Kai and Taehyun really liked him, Beomgyu was a bit sceptical in the beginning but started warming up to him towards the end once they started speaking about blacksmith-related things, but Yeonjun and Soobin were hard to read. 

The conversation you had with Soobin convinced you that it wasn’t just a feeling you experienced. Like Soobin, you’d consider Yeonjun amazing at reading people; you always were impressed with his instincts. Not unexpectedly, this was just your cover as a reason to get him to stop studying - your ulterior motive was to have alone time with one of your best friends. 

“No, you’re right,” Yeonjun hummed, agreeing with you. “He reminds me of those stories we read in books…you know the one with the shapeshifter?” You laughed at the allusion, especially when you remember the images drawn with the story. The story of the shapeshifter was a famous one in the village; it was told to children to teach them the importance of honesty…or the brilliance of creativity. It’s been so long since you last heard the story, you can’t be certain what the moral was anymore. 

In the story, Ki-young was an all powerful man with the ability to create illusions. He was a storyteller beloved by everyone. One day, his stories lost the interest of the town as a new storyteller came, one from another town, who told stories of monsters and creatures the town had never heard of. So, Ki-young started telling stories - or ‘prophecies’ as he called them - of creatures no one, not even the stranger, had seen before. Everyone believed the warnings, and believed the monsters would be coming. Ki-young wanted to bring it to them, to show them that his stories were the truth. So he shape-shifted into the creature no one has seen before. However, due to the stories, the town was prepared; they were able to trap him. Ki-young was never seen again.

“Are you saying we’ll never see Ki-hoon again? Because that’s the dream,” you joked, wanting nothing more than the icky feeling to disappear. “Talking about dreams…” You trailed off, and Yeonjun groaned - falling back onto his mattress as you sat on his desk chair. “You seem to be really enjoying civic duty.” 

Yeonjun covered his face with his hands, but you felt an overwhelming sense of pride. “I guess, yeah.” 

“Come on! You know you can trust me.” 

“Fine, but you can’t tell the others.” Not looking at you, he held his pinky finger up in the air. You took the signal and approached him, locking pinkies before falling onto your back beside him. “I really admire my father now.” You nodded. You gathered as much. 

Based on Yeonjun’s record - especially regarding how he chose a curriculum he tried to make you all believe he hated, you would have predicted he would be grounded every other day. Instead, he was the top of the class. He started doing extracurriculars, and most importantly, he seemed happier. 

“I really would like to be mayor one day. Not based on nepotism, of course, but a proper campaign.” The last you’ve heard Yeonjun speak so dreamily was when he told tales of unicorns and dragons. “Maybe even a larger city.” 

You smiled. His face lit up as he spoke of how he’d like to be a mayor; how he’d follow his father’s footsteps. The town he’d be a mayor of would be lucky. They’d have frequent community events, even more frequent town halls to submit issues and suggestions, and Yeonjun would make a personal effort to get to know everyone. 

“Why don’t you want to tell the others?” you inquired. All of you wanted to see each other happy, you know that - especially as seeing Yeonjun’s excitement made you feel elated. 

“Because what if the town for me isn’t Hybehead?” Yeonjun sighed, and you remembered the future plans you all discussed. “Because what if I can’t live with you guys?” 

Admittedly, the thought saddened you. “It won’t be the end of the world.” Your voice was a low murmur as you realised how close the future actually was. It felt like you waited your whole life to be an adult, but you weren’t even sure what being an adult even means. “We can visit each other, there’s boats and horses. We also can send mail.” 

Yeonjun nodded, “It won’t be the same.” 

“We’ll be adults.” You turned to look at him as he continued to stare at the ceiling. “Nothing will be the same. Can you imagine Kai as a merchant? Or Beomgyu running the blacksmith shop? Or Soobin creating new bakery dishes? Or Taehyun as the head scribe?” As you listed each job, you realised one thing. More than half of you may have to leave Hybehead. 

To be head scribe, you’d have to live in the country’s capital - and Hybehead is nowhere near that. Kai would frequently be on the seas, going port to port. Sure, he’ll be here for a day or two - but he can never be here for long. Afterall, Hybehead wasn’t a popular port. Most people just go to Beliftham. Now Yeonjun wants to be a mayor of a bigger town. Where does that leave you, and Beomgyu, and Soobin? The future was so uncertain but there’s so much you have yet to achieve, so much you want to achieve. 

“What about you then?” Yeonjun asked, dropping his head to return your stare. 

You shrugged. “Healer, I guess.” 

“You don’t sound too certain.” 

“Well, I’m not,” you chuckled. “But I rather not run the farm.” 

“I’m pretty sure you can’t stay in your family home then.” It was almost true. Hybehead only had one farm; right next to your family home. If it doesn’t go down to you, it’ll go to another family pursuing the farm life. 

“I think we can, actually,” you corrected him. “The house will just have a fence between the farm and the house.” 

“So you will have no rewards for the cow manure you smell on a daily basis?”  

You snorted. “I mean, I’m pretty sure I’m stuck with that smell for the rest of my life.”

He laughed, “Hey! We don’t know that. Ki-Hoon may eventually leave.” 

Your jaw dropped at his joke, immediately bursting out in laughter. 

Nevertheless, Ki-Hoon and Taehyun were getting along quite well, potentially a consequence of having essentially the exact same schedule. “So what does your grandmother do, if you don’t mind me asking?” 

Ki-Hoon quickly responded, “She weaves.” Almost as if planned, Kai came by. 

“Oh my mother does that too!” He cheered, excited to have something in common with the new kid - especially one that Taehyun has been getting super close to. If Taehyun is his friend, surely he’d be mine too! “Maybe they know each other?” 

One thing Taehyun noticed about Ki-Hoon is that he was either immediate with his answer, or super slow. No matter what, his words showed no sign of hesitation; never stuttering and certainly no pauses between thoughts. “She works at Beliftham.” 

“My mother goes there quite often for fabrics. Wow, how cool would it be if they knew each other?” Kai was oblivious to Ki-Hoon’s tone that was urging him to be quiet.

Taehyun, however, noticed it. “Where is everyone else?” he asked, inviting Kai to sit down next to them. Kai is first, he told himself, Ki-Hoon is no one to me compared to Kai. 

“Yeonjun and Y/N have their lunch period at one, and Beomgyu and Soobin had one earlier.” Kai answered - he was always on top of everything regarding where everyone is. He was the one who’d ask everyone for their schedules and try to memorise it. 

Taehyun smiled as his best friend got comfortable, unwrapping his lunch from his mother. “We haven’t spent much time together lately, huh?” Although disguised as a question, Taehyun said it more like a fact. And it was true. 

Since Ki-Hoon has been in his class, Taehyun has been spending much more time with him instead. Even in general classes, Ki-Hoon would save a seat for Taehyun and not for Kai so Kai hasn’t been spending time with him in those classes either. 

“Yeah, do you remember the last time it was just us?” As same-age-group friends, Kai and Taehyun had many memories with just the two of them - from class ‘quiet times’ to doing homework together (of course, after harassing you guys for the answers). 

Taehyun grinned at the memory. It was a few weeks ago, the week before Ki-Hoon came into their lives. To bask in the sunshine, Taehyun and Kai decided to ‘borrow’ some canvases from the scribe's storage room and paint the forest. With their canvases and paint brushes at hand, the two adventured to their secret spot and painted - quite terribly - the river and waterfall. Kai had even included their rope swing. 

As the two reminisced and caught up, Ki-Hoon was sitting in the background - smirking, plotting. “Do you remember the time we had exams?” The two burst out laughing. Kai was stressing out about mathematics, constantly rewriting his solutions. Taehyun, of course, was his saviour - but to get back at Yeonjun for not giving his old notes, helped Kai with a prank. 

“How are you finding sailing classes though?” Taehyun asked, genuinely curious to hear how the days are going. 

Kai smiled faintly, making Taehyun question if he was enjoying. “We’re having an immersion trip soon so we’ll be gone for three days, which will be weird.” Taehyun nodded, understanding how odd it must feel to be without his parents. “But it’s so far, mostly manual labour, some language learning - but only essentials. We’ll learn some cool stuff like financial trading later on, if you decide to specify merchants.” The youngest’s voice picked up as he spoke, making Taehyun happy. Kai deserves to be happy, he thought, he was really at a crossroads when coming to his decision. 

“Sounds quite simple, really,” Ki-Hoon butted in, shrugging nonchalantly. “Taehyun does a lot of detailed information, Yeonjun does a lot of political studies, Y/N does health and healing, Soobin is learning how to manage a culinary business, Beomgyu is learning how to forge…and you’re tying knots?” 

Kai felt an arrow go through his heart. Taehyun was confused - he’s never heard Ki-Hoon sound so cruel, especially to someone who definitely didn’t deserve it. “Well, more than that. We’re learning some languages and finances and -” 

“But not yet, right?” Ki-Hoon prompted, making Kai’s eyes go wide and mouth to shut. 

“Sienks neosu keml si mu.” Sounds quite simple to me, he said in Stauzic. 

“Yai'lo tiado kink dankulok da avail dlaovkk.” Sounds like you’re quite dumb, he said in Jisnada. 

"Cuiaftgn's a'an shunk shas naxfta Taehyun hat ftaan a'uugung xuia.” You didn’t even consider that maybe Taehyun was avoiding you this last week, he continued in Yummosa. 

Taehyun’s ears perked up. While he was knowledgeable and could read the languages, he was still behind in understanding spoken and modern languages. “I heard my name. What did he say?” 

“Nothing,” Kai interrupted, his smile gone as he tried to diffuse the situation. Just because he doesn’t like me doesn’t mean he’s not a good friend to Taehyun,“Nothing bad.” 

“That’s so cool though!” Taehyun expressed. “You guys can practice together.” 

Ki-Hoon continued, persistent to push forward - not caring that Taehyun was now curious about what he was saying. “Us guatn's taan ftuka xuia ha'a a lftatha un shut g'uial,” the new kid continued to speak in Yummosa, now saying ‘it doesn't seem like you have a place in this group’. 

“In ny ulunuun, xuia a'a huftgung a'a'xuna fouxu.” In my opinion, you are holding everyone back. 

Kai stuttered, packing up his meal to sit somewhere else. “I think I’ll sit somewhere else…um, I’ve made some friends in my curriculum and I see them…” He pointed to the distance, nowhere in particular, “over there.” 

“Wait, Kai-” Taehyun called for him, but he was already skipping to the other side of the courtyard. “Why was he in such a hurry?” 

Ki-Hoon shrugged, and when Taehyun looked away to try and find Kai in the courtyard, he smirked. One person down. 

Out of respect for the community, Mayor Choi had made a rule that most things will be closed on Sundays - save for some restaurants and of course, the mayor’s office. As a result, Sundays would often be used as family days. Similarly, one Sunday every month; your families all come together for a big feast. 

For your friend group, this means Sunday were the days where you often have dinners with your parents but lunches with each other. Your parents knew the drill; they’d pack small picnic items for you to bring.

Today, however, Kai didn’t particularly want to come. Something about feeling sick. When you all insisted on visiting him to help him take care of himself, he pleaded with you all to stay away and that his mother could help.

Consequently, instead of meeting at his place due to its proximity to your favourite picnic spot (a small greenspace by the port), you all decided to meet at Beomgyu’s. 

“Oh, so you told me an earlier time to get me alone?” you teased Beomgyu who was flushing red as the two of you wandered throughout the blacksmith’s shop. It wasn’t true at all, you chose to come early when Beomgyu gave you his available times. 

Beomgyu smirked back, ignoring the redness of his face. “More like you wanted to spend some alone time with me.” You rolled your eyes, lightly flicking his cheek. “I know, I’m just such a good sight to look at.” Not wrong, you thought despite you pretending to vomit. 

“I didn’t realise I'm friends with such a narcissist.” 

He responded by putting his fingers to his chin, as if stroking it in deep thought. “Didn’t Yeonjun come with a narcissist warning?” 

“You’re so lucky Yeonjun isn’t here to beat you,” you laughed. “You’d be six feet under.” 

Beomgyu flirtily smiled, “I wouldn’t mind being six feet under if it was with you.” 

Based on your face recoiling, Beomgyu froze. “You want me to die?” His eyes widened - oh shoot, I said something wrong. He was stuttering to fix his mistake, especially as you looked offended. It was after a minute of his useless apology that you started to laugh. “I’m kidding, of course I knew what you meant.” 

A sigh of relief never was so loud, at least in Beomgyu’s perspective. “You really fooled me, you kno-” Beomgyu tripped over his words as he tripped over a table leg.  

Your arm quickly reached forward, pulling him backwards. Unfortunately, the motion of pulling him forward harshly pushed you forwards. 

“Shot!” There is no doubt that there will be a mighty, ugly, deep purple bruise on your knee for the next few days. “I mean…” You looked up at Beomgyu, who was now leaning down to check your knee. “I guess you could say you fell for me?” From the strain in your voice, Beomgyu could tell it was painful. 

Not wrong at all, Beomgyu thought before continuing his onslaught of apologies. “I’m so sorry, I should’ve been more careful.” 

“Better me than you.” Lifting your arm up, you motioned for his help to drag you to your feet. “You do,” you grunt as he pulls you back to your feet, “have to stand up for longer hours than me anyway.” His strength was unexpected - something he probably earned from hours of blacksmith practice. Even he was surprised by it. 

The strength of his help dragged him for your face to be millimetres apart, making all the playful flirting you were doing earlier suddenly feel real. If you just lean in… that could change everything. The atmosphere around you felt heavy, like you could throw a coin into the air but it would immediately drop onto the floor. 

“My pabooooooo!” Yeonjun sang, swinging into the open-air workspace. Like a puppy, Soobin follows behind. “My pabo boyyyyyy Beomgyuuuuuu!” He continued to sing, forcing you and Beomgyu to jump apart - acting ‘nonchalantly’ as if nothing happened (which means he was whistling and you were staring at the…forge? Great ‘acting natural’). 

Instead of arguing back at the insult, Beomgyu just awkwardly coughed. “Okay, what happened?” Yeonjun asked, unsure why the younger one wasn’t fighting back at his insult. “What did you two do?” The eldest eyed you two suspiciously, as if you had ripped up Soobin’s forsaken hat. 

Locking eyes with Soobin, he immediately distracted Yeonjun’s narrowed focus. “What happened to your knee?” Eyes widening, Yeonjun bursted out laughing as he saw Beomgyu’s reaction to Soobin’s concern. 

“It was you, huh?” He asked throughout his cackles, “You caused Y/N to fall? That’s why you two were so weird?” He isn’t wrong, you thought - glancing at Beomgyu who seemed to be thinking the same thing. “Always so clumsy, maybe we should wrap you in cloth.” The eldest hooked his arm lightly around Beomgyu’s neck, rubbing his hair aggressively. 

Beomgyu shrieked, trying to escape his grasp, “Ow!” 

Still tending to your knee, Soobin was checking if anything was broken - as if you weren’t already standing. “You do realise I would know, right?” You teased, “I am the one studying medicine.” Sheepishly, he stood up and apologised. So endearing, you thought before chuckling and leaning against his tall frame. 

“I’m just saying, Beomgyu may need to get his eyesight checked.” Yeonjun argued, now holding his hands up as Beomgyu was freed; his hair a mess from Yeonjun’s attack. 

Reactively, Soobin turned around as if finding something in the distance. It was strange; it was as if he picked up on a noise no one else had heard. “Well, speak of the Ki-chul.” Coming around the corner, from an angle you couldn’t even see, Taehyun appears with Ki-Hoon. 

You turned to Soobin, silently asking him how he knew they were coming. He just shrugged, his lips slightly parted. You couldn’t hear them? He thought to himself, wondering how on earth he was able to.

“I hope you don’t mind that I brought Ki-Hoon!” Taehyun gleefully announced. Well…you did mind, but Taehyun was too happy with his new friend and you didn’t want to intrude on his happiness. Ki-Hoon remained silent, just lifting his hand up for a silent wave. 

Until his eyes trained on you. His gaze made you smaller; he was a hunter, and you were the prey. 

Beomgyu didn’t fail to see you shrivel up under Ki-Hoon’s stare. Soobin wrapped his arm around yours. Yeonjun glared at Ki-Hoon. 

“Let’s head out?” Yeonjun asked, trying to ease the tense situation and get you in an open space. Grabbing the basket Soobin had given him on the way there, he motioned for everyone to follow him. Admittedly, the pain in your knee started going away quite quickly - disappearing like a rock dropped into a pond. 

While Yeonjun’s plan was to get you into a larger space to distance yourself, Ki-Hoon didn’t get the hint. As Taehyun trailed ahead to talk to Yeonjun, Ki-Hoon lagged behind to stay around you - like how flies hover around honey. 

“So Y/N,” He looked you up and down, “you look so amazing today.” Something about his voice wasn’t like the way he usually spoke, it wasn’t straightforward or uptight. In fact, he even deepened his voice. “It must’ve taken you all morning.” 

Both you and Soobin seemed to draw back. Glancing at each other, you both pulled your faces - trying to contain your laugh. In a silent exchange, it was clear both you and Soobin were asking the same question; was that supposed to be a compliment? 

“When I first met you, I didn’t think that I’d find you attractive at all.” Despite the fact you had to hide your laughter from his…what you can assume was a terrible attempt at flirting, it stung. It stung real deep. “Especially as Taehyun called you one of the boys. But you know what? You’re actually quite attractive.” 

You continued to avoid his eyes, continuously staring at Soobin as if he was your lifeboat. “Thank you?” 

“Obviously none of the boys here like you,” Ouch, you weren’t sure what hurt more; Soobin’s grip tightening on your arm or the sting that came with the comment. “So I think you’d be really lucky to go out with me.” 

Looking around you, trying to see if anyone else is hearing what he was saying, you spot Beomgyu lagging behind. His stare was directed at the back of Ki-Hoon’s head. Unaware of the smirk on Ki-Hoon’s face, you were certain from Beomgyu’s clenched jaw that it was a good thing Beomgyu couldn’t see the intruder’s face. 

“I think our first date will have to be-” He was persistent, you’ll give him that. You started to tune him out; this is just Ki-Hoon being annoying, no one else. Unfortunately, the spider underneath your skin - crawling up and down your bones had returned. All you wanted to do was leave; especially once it started feeling like an even larger colony of bugs started infesting your body. 

Despite always providing warmth and comfort, your friends were unable to make you feel safe in his presence - even with Beomgyu’s watchful eye and Soobin’s tight grip, even with Soobin silently asking for permission to defend you. 

“Hey guys!” You called, trying to keep your voice from trembling. “I think I’ll head home, I’m not feeling too well.” The excuse felt filthy on your lips; but it wasn’t wrong. Ki-Hoon was making you feel sick, your stomach threatening to vomit up whatever you had in the morning.

You rather leave and have Taehyun enjoy his time with his new friend. He’ll have his whole lifetime with me, you decided, but how long will Ki-Hoon be here? You have been friends with Taehyun for your whole lifetime, and if you had the choice - many lifetimes more. One afternoon won’t harm that. 

“Are you sure?” Soobin asked, his eyes looking deep into your soul as if digging for how you were feeling. 

You nodded. In hindsight, if you could go back to this moment, you would’ve said ‘no, it’s not okay for Ki-Hoon to come’ or ‘let’s cancel this whole thing and meet later’. 

What you actually said was, “Yeah, go on without me.” 

“So, Soobin…” Ki-Hoon started, startling Soobin. In all the time he’s known Ki-Hoon (which admittedly isn’t long), he hasn’t shown any interest in getting to know Soobin. Parasitic, that’s what Soobin heard you and Yeonjun call Ki-Hoon; latching onto Taehyun and never letting go. Unfortunately, that meant today, during Soobin’s lunch with Taehyun, Ki-Hoon joined. “You and Y/N, huh?” 

Confused, Soobin stared at Ki-Hoon with his lips slightly agape. Didn’t he…flirt with Y/N in front of me? Where was this coming from? “What?” 

Taehyun chuckled awkwardly, unsure of if Ki-Hoon was teasing or teasing. At the sight of Soobin’s annoyed expression, he stopped. “No, they’re not dating,” Taehyun answered for Soobin, who started to suck in his cheeks - a habit he developed whenever he was annoyed.

The question wasn’t out of nowhere, per say - it was more that everything Ki-Hoon had said prior to that moment insinuated he didn’t think any of them were in a relationship. Specifically, you had dropped him off between classes - especially as your last classes were beside each other. When dropping him off at the table, you would’ve preferred to stick by for a minute  or two, but the moment you saw Ki-Hoon sitting there you instead gave a quick hug to Taehyun and Soobin before sprinting off. 

Looking back, the benefit of having classes near each other means waiting for each other between them. Soobin now sees a downside is that someone might make that assumption. 

Ki-Hoon groaned, “Can you understand English?” He started speaking slower, “How is your relationship with Y/N?” After each word, he nodded as if making sure Soobin understood each and every syllable. 

Taehyun chuckled awkwardly, unsure of if Ki-Hoon was teasing or teasing. At the sight of Soobin’s annoyed expression, he stopped. “No, they’re not dating,” Taehyun answered for Soobin, who started to suck in his cheeks - a habit he developed whenever he was annoyed.

“Yeah, that makes sense,” Ki-Hoon agreed far too quickly. What is with this boy? Soobin asked himself. It was as if he would swap ideas every ten seconds, like he was a match. He’d change his mind and opinions, constantly counteract himself. 

Stifling another awkward chuckle, Taehyun’s eyes went wide as he looked at Ki-Hoon. Soobin was too confused to speak…what is he on about? “What do you mean by that?” The younger one coughed, Soobin still sitting silently with his meal wondering what on earth is going through his mind. One moment he says this, the next…that? 

“Just that Y/N is way above Soobin’s league.” The instigator shrugged it off, as if it was a fact everyone should know. “I can see her dating someone like Beomgyu, or me, of course.” Remembering how tense you were under Ki-Hoon’s critical gaze, Soobin felt angered by his insinuation - but Ki Hoon moved on swiftly. “Are she and Beomgyu dating? 

Taehyun quickly turned to Soobin. He may be bad at reading people, but Soobin wasn’t exactly subtle with his affections - especially considering Taehyun saw the change in behaviour towards you firsthand. “No, they aren’t dating either. Y/N’s single.” 

The smirk tugging on Ki-Hoon’s lips didn’t go unnoticed; it was sinister. “So I’m free to ask her out?” 

“You think she’ll say yes?” Normally, Soobin had a great filter - he would think things through before saying them out loud, even the most corniest of jokes. He doesn’t know why he said that, the words leaving his mouth snappy. 

Ki-Hoon turned to look at Soobin, glanced him up and down, and then turned around as if dismissing him. “It’s not like I have much competition.” The troublemaker starts grinning cockily, as if he was better than Soobin. Gritting his teeth, Soobin’s anger wasn’t unnoticeable to even the most oblivious person. However, Ki-Hoon is attentive; he knew he was mad from Soobin’s tightening grip on his meal. “Why are you mad?” His voice slithered into Soobin’s ears. “It’s not like you had a chance. You’re too much of a coward.” 

“Ki-Hoon!” Taehyun yelled, appalled at his so-called friend. 

“Why would she like you?” he continued, ignoring Taehyun's persistent protests. Ki-Hoon now rose to his feet, attempting to tower the tallest boy in all of school. “You’re lanky, you’re just someone she leans on for support. Do you think she actually cares about you?” 

Not wanting to be idly standing by, Taehyun stood up. “Stop!” He knew perfectly well Soobin could defend himself, but he seemed frozen in place - as if the words Ki-Hoon was spitting out were a paralysing toxin. The younger one turned around to check on Soobin, his arms outstretched as if his palm was the one thing keeping Ki-Hoon’s mouth shut. 

One can dream. 

“What?” Ki-Hoon scoffed as Taehyun continued to interject, now putting his arm down as the ‘power’ proved inexistent. “I’m just speaking the truth. Tell me, do any of you actually care about him?” Taehyun tried to protest, tried to overtake Ki-Hoon who spoke louder with every word - who spoke faster than he could understand. “Soobin is just Y/N’s little toy, huh? You all keep him around for the jokes?” 

Taehyun shook his head wildly, refuting every point. But the words had been said. And he couldn’t take it back, as much as he wished. He only wished he sensed this was going to happen. He would’ve never introduced Ki-Hoon to his friends. 

Silencing Taehyun, Soobin’s usual smile was gone. “I’m not hungry.” Without even packing up his plate, Soobin walks off. Even from behind, Taehyun sees Soobin’s head hanging - his slower steps. 

“Good job,” Taehyun glared. “Do me a favour and never talk to me or my friends ever again.” While Taehyun hates seeing Soobin dejected, he thanked the stars that Soobin was walking slowly - it made it significantly easier to catch up. 

None of what Ki-Hoon said was true, Taehyun knew, and it’s important for Soobin remembers that. 

Remaining, Ki-Hoon sits at the table and grins at the ground. His body energises itself; the power he once had is returning. 

Scribe classes used to be his favourite thing about school, especially as Kai had become more distant - even avoiding him during general knowledge lessons. While he enjoyed it before Ki-Hoon crawled into their lives, Ki-Hoon made scribe classes more exciting; shared jokes, someone to discuss content with. He enjoyed the practice that came with tutoring Ki-Hoon. 

But now? After watching his “friend” harass his family? No, that’s never okay. 

Luckily, today’s lesson was in a new room; a larger room. I can be free of being next to him, Taehyun savoured as if that was his lifeline. If he were to sit next to Ki-Hoon, he didn’t know how he could focus on class. There were so many unsaid words weighing heavy on his tongue; words he wanted to shout, to scream, to yell at Ki-Hoon. In fact, the weight of the words made him tremor with anger; even as he saw Ki-Hoon saunter into the classroom like nothing was wrong. 

Unfortunately, Ki-Hoon didn’t get the message. Instead, he sat beside Taehyun and turned around; an ever present smirk tugging at his lips. With his presence, Taehyun immediately groaned and stood up to move. 

“Taehyun!” Professor Lim called, “Please sit down. Class is about to start.” Taehyun nods, and starts to turn around to sit at the empty table. “And you will have to work in pairs.” Begrudgingly, Taehyun sat back down; planting himself in his seat. 

“You’re stuck with me.” 

The snigger leering on Ki-Hoon’s face infuriated Taehyun with all of him. This is just a game to him, Taehyun realised. He wonders if Ki-Hoon had many friends at his old school, or if anything he told him was true. “Only for today.” Taehyun retorted, denying the reality that his professor pairs them together all the time. 

Ki-hoon suppressed a laugh, “I was only telling the truth.” From the unimpressed look on Taehyun’s face, it was clear he disagreed, a result of Ki-Hoon’s statements being untrue. “Soobin has a hopeless crush on Y/N.” The newfound enemy was aware Taehyun had no clue what he and Kai had exchanged the other day, and hid it behind, “and your friends obviously see you as a know-it-all, not in a good way though.” 

Taehyun turned his head, as if prompting Ki-Hoon to speak more. It can’t be true, he thought, he doesn’t talk to anyone else but me. “You act like you’re so smart, but I wonder - why do you hide behind all these facts? Don’t you see how annoying it is?” Ki-Hoon then snorted, “you’re not even that smart.”

The conversation was under his breath, just loud enough for Taehyun to hear while the Professor started to speak. Taehyun didn’t even want to speak; once the Professor turns around and sees Ki-hoon speaking - Ki-Hoon would get in trouble and I won’t. “I’ve seen better than you since day one, I just wanted to give you a chance.” 

Taehyun fought the urge to roll his eyes, preventing the words of protest from leaving his mouth. He just wants a reaction, it’ll give him power. So Taehyun bit his tongue. 

“I don’t think they’ve ever even trusted you, have they?” Ki-Hoon continued endlessly. Even when the Professor turned around, it seemed as if he didn’t notice…how? Taehyun wondered, it’s so silent here… Am I the only one who can hear? 

Admittedly, Taehyun questions if he’s going insane. 

Nevertheless, he dealt with the class full of cruel words being thrown at him, aimed straight for his insides. At the beginning, the words broke through the shield he put up. 

Towards the end, he managed to tolerate it. Because now he knows Ki-Hoon’s character, and this means he knows he can’t trust a single word that leaves his mouth - no matter how much it hurts. 

“Kai!” Beomgyu called, chasing after his younger (yet taller…the world truly is unfair, he thought) friend throughout the courtyard. “Kai! Wait up!” It’s been a while since Beomgyu spoke to Kai, just the two of them - but he knows you’ve been checking in on him. Especially since he’s started avoiding group hangouts. Of course, Beomgyu wanted to talk to Kai about other things - what’s going on in his life, how sailing is going, and about general news. 

But his father was discussing starting an arrangement between him and a family from another village, Jin-young’s Port. At age seventeen, Beomgyu’s parents were anxious about his future relationships. They wanted him to have a wife, to have a family that he loves, and to thrive. Unfortunately, Beomgyu was also hesitant to explain his feelings to them - especially as he had already expressed his interest in you. Did they think it wasn’t going to work? He thought, or did they think I’d never ask? 

Why would they try to set me up when dad knows I have interest in Y/N? 

Beomgyu finally caught up, which honestly - he was impressed by (especially as Kai had started walking fast the other way, making it extra difficult for Beomgyu to catch up with Kai’s long legs). “What?” Kai was exasperated; that was clear through his breathy voice and his shoulders dropping. 

“I need your advice, please.” Kai didn’t have anything special in his eyes. What happened? Beomgyu thought, as he remembered Kai from months ago, who would look at all of them so warmly. Now it feels cold. So Beomgyu mentioned Kai’s soft spot. “For Y/N.” 

Kai sighed and nodded, following Beomgyu to the closest yet most discreet table. “Are you finally asking her permission to court her?” 

The elder nodded. “I really would like to court her. And soon.” 

Even Kai felt constrained. He wanted nothing more to do than celebrate; to hug Beomgyu, and to run up to you to tell you to get ready. Kai wanted to be involved in the planning, in the celebration - he wanted to be involved. However, Ki-Hoon’s words haunted him every second - especially when surrounded by any of you. I’m not good enough. “It’s about time.” Kai settled on that response, leaving it with a breathy chuckle. 

“What do you suggest I do?” Beomgyu asked, “Do I create a song for her? Do I serenade her in public? Do I bring her flowers? Do I give her the ring,” he takes out an enchanting black ring, “immediately or after a few courtings?” 

Kai interrupted Beomgyu’s incessant rambling, “You know, Y/N is always Y/N. It doesn’t matter if-” 

“Oh hello!” Before even motioning to the seat or asking for an invitation, Ki-Hoon sat down in between them. “What’s that?” Frankly, Beomgyu has always (mostly) gotten a bad feeling around Ki-Hoon, especially when having to observe him flirting with you. Similarly, Beomgyu has no expectations for Ki-Hoon to be kind or polite. However, the way Ki-Hoon’s focus solely shifted onto the ring made Beomgyu unsettled. 

He quickly put it in his pocket. 

“What was that?” Ki-Hoon insisted, his voice becoming as rough as an uncut gem. 

Ki-Hoon’s presence meant it’s time for Kai to leave, at least in Kai’s perspective. “Nothing.” Kai brushed off, before standing up immediately, “I’ll talk to you later, Beomgyu. But you can do this.” Before Beomgyu could even respond, Kai skittered off into the distance. 

“You can do what?” Beomgyu didn’t respond, and that’s how Ki-Hoon knew exactly what they were talking about. To him, it was obvious. “Y/N doesn’t like you. She is interested in Soobin, not you.” Menacing. If Beomgyu were to describe Ki-Hoon’s disposition, he’d describe it as menacing. This description never applied more to a moment than this, Beomgyu decided. 

As someone who usually knows how to sarcastically retort, Beomgyu was uncharacteristically quiet. He often fought back, sure, especially if it was a friend who was teasing. But with Ki-Hoon? He was unsure if he was friend or foe. “Is that ring for her?” Ki-Hoon’s eyes narrowed down into the pocket he saw Beomgyu slip the ring in. Immediately, Beomgyu covered the pocket with his hand. “She’d never appreciate it.” 

But Kai is right, Beomgyu thought, Y/N is Y/N. She’d appreciate anything that was thought out. Ki-Hoon’s words meant to dissuade him seemed to push him more. She would love this. 

“Unless it came from Soobin.” Shattered into a million broken pieces, the invisible shield protecting Beomgyu from Ki-Hoon’s voice was now rendered useless. “Why do you think they spend so much time together? Do you think she really wanted to work at the bakery? Beomgyu, really think. I know it’s hard for you, but you need to.” 

He dropped his hand from the pocket, and Ki-Hoon felt some hope. For the first time in Ki-Hoon’s life, he wasn’t the one who had all the cards. Beomgyu had them too. 

“So give me the ring. I’ll make good use of it. I’ll pay you…100 nato.” 

Beomgyu shook his head. While he was uncertain about your feelings for him, he was certain in two things. One, you were his friend. You’d appreciate this ring as a friendly gesture, unaware of the romantic intentions behind them. Secondly, he made that ring and he loves it. He would never give it to Ki. Out of all the work he’s made, even the more recent ones that were created with more skill and expertise than the ring, it could never compare to the ring. 

Something about it seemed to make Beomgyu feel whole. It felt like a missing piece to a puzzle that he didn’t even know he had. “I made it. 100 nato won’t be enough.” 

“Money isn’t an issue.” Ki-Hoon smirked, huffing as he tried to convince Beomgyu. This normally always works, he thought, why isn’t this working? 

“And I can say the same.” Beomgyu’s expression was unreadable as he forced his gaze upon Ki-Hoon. Taking Ki-hoon’s introspective silence as a cue to leave, Beomgyu walked off as Ki-Hoon stared at him. 

Ki-Hoon wasn’t sure if he was completely successful in this case. Sure, he angered Beomgyu - he caused these frantic and chaotic feelings to emerge from inside him. However, he can also argue they’ve been there for a while. The ring was definitely a source of insecurity and chaos for him, so Ki-Hoon was left wondering a variety of questions. 

What did Beomgyu have? Why was he able to resist my persuasion? And most importantly, would the ring be better in his hands? 

The ring he made a year ago was burning a hole in his pocket at this rate. In his defence, Beomgyu never found the right time. He couldn’t just do it in front of all your friends; not only can that add unnecessary pressure onto you, force you into saying yes - the side of him that makes rings for those he was…fond of… was something he wanted to keep private from everyone else. 

“You know,” a meek voice started, “you should just tell her.” Beomgyu flinched at the voice, not expecting Kai to come see him now. 

“When did you get here?”

Kai pulled back his smile, shrugging limply. “I guess I’m always at the right place at the right time.” He motioned towards you, who was about to have lunch. “You should ask her now.” 

“Now!?” Beomgyu exclaimed, “Why now?!” 

Kai didn’t let Beomgyu’s obvious panic get to him. In fact, he acted like his suggestion was just normal advice like ‘oh we should go on a walk now’ or ‘you should drink some milk with that’. He made a face, emphasising the fact that he thinks this is no big deal (while Beomgyu feels the world shaking underneath him). “It feels like a good time, you know.” 

Beomgyu scrunched up his face, “Define ‘good time’ because this feels like the opposite.” 

The younger one didn’t elaborate, instead just stared. Is he even paying attention? Beomgyu asked himself as Kai remained unfazed. It took him everything to not wave his hand wildly in front of Kai’s face to regain his attention. “Oh look! She’s coming!” Kai warned. 

Locking eyes, Beomgyu regrets turning around to face your direction. You waved. He freaked out. 

Turning around, he tried to find Kai - who had seemingly disappeared. Perfect. 

What can he do? Run away. Beomgyu was determined to run away. Y/N will just think I have class, it’s all okay. I just got to go-

“Oi!” You called, jogging slightly to get to Beomgyu faster. “Why are you avoiding me? Have I suddenly become Ki-tae?” 

The story of Ki-tae was another folktale that was lost throughout time as more stories populated the town. While the story has been long forgotten, Ki-tae has become a popular saying. Simply put, Ki-tae responds when you call to grant a wish. Sometimes, his wishes come true - but most of the time, he puts an evil twist to the stories; wreaking havoc on everyone involved. 

The loverboy’s eyes couldn’t look at you; his eyes darted back and forth from the ground, a pillar, a classroom door, and…oh look! Is that a pigeon? 

“Hey,” You chuckled at his failed attention, “we haven’t seen each other in ages.” Following his constantly moving line of sight, you bent - trying to be constantly what he was looking at. “What,” - you moved upwards, following the directions of his pupils - “is” - now downwards - “up” - to the right - “with” - to the left - “you?” 

Frustrated, Beomgyu wanted to chuckle at your actions. He wanted to lean forward and pinch your cheeks or give you the biggest hug. How can someone be so beautiful? So sweet? So cute? His questions went unasked as he tried to find his lifeline. “I have to get to class.” 

As simply as you could, you called him out for lying; “Wrong.” Over the last few weeks, you reached out to two of Beomgyu’s friends from Hybehead who also take the blacksmith curriculum. Specifically, Yang Jeong-in and Lim Jimin have told you about Beomgyu in class as well as their schedules. You were actually waiting for this week; you were able to figure out that this is your first coinciding lunch time in a while…or at least, that you managed to find out about. “I.N. and Jimin told me about class.” 

Huffing, Beomgyu makes a mental reminder to get mad at them. They know about his feelings for you, they better not have told you that much. 

“And,” you continued, “they told me everything about how you are in class. Like how you finish exams significantly early and how you are acing everything? You can miss five minutes.” 

If Taehyun had heard you say that, Beomgyu was certain there’d be an argument. “You’re lucky Tae wasn’t here.” 

You rolled your eyes, chuckling at the thought of Taehyun being (not seriously) upset with you. “If you’re really in a rush to get to class, explain yourself to me.” Dropping your hands to your side, you felt a weight simultaneously lift off and then add to your chest now. Lift off, as you’re finally able to confront him. The new anxiety? Because you’re finally able to confront him. What would he say? To urge him to speak, you spoke up once more. “The faster you tell me, the faster I’ll let you go.” You knew Beomgyu and his ability to avoid things forever, so if you didn’t do this now - it may never happen. 

The boy in front of you physically stooped. From his heavy breath and downtrodden eyes, you felt both fear and relief. Relief, purely, from the fact it is evident that Beomgyu will tell you why he has been keeping away from you. However, the fear is in finally knowing why. Does he not want to be friends anymore? What changed?

The silence was thick; resting upon your shoulders and engulfed you. So heavy, you felt the urge to curl up into the fetal position. “Right, okay, so I like you…like, like-like you but I know you have feelings for Soobin-” Beomgyu was speaking almost too fast for you to process, but even then - the information being given to you was also a bit difficult to process. “-and I was planning to court you with this ring I made but Ki-Hoon was telling me how you like Soobin-” Part of you was glad Beomgyu wasn’t a scribe; you wouldn’t know if he’d ever end a sentence. 

“Stop.” You held your hands out, placing them on his shoulders to make sure he heard you. “First of all, Ki-Hoon?” Ki-Hoon was the least trustworthy person in your eyes, especially after you heard what he’s said to some of the others. Moreover, Taehyun - his closest friend - had even stopped hanging out with him now. “You know I don’t like him. Why would I tell him who I want to be courted by? He doesn’t know anything about me.” 

Oh. Right. Beomgyu flushed red, embarrassed. Where was my rational thinking? 

“Oh, and for your information,” You dropped your hands from his shoulders, putting them into your pocket. It’s now or never, “I am interested in you too, pabo.” In all honesty, you weren’t sure what you were expecting but it definitely wasn’t silence. 

Beomgyu’s eyes bore into you, making you feel smaller. You want to leave. “Don’t you have class?” Any confidence that you had seconds ago disappeared. Leave, you wanted to tell Beomgyu - I’ll talk to you once I’m no longer embarrassed. “I’ll go and let you-”

“You are interested in me?” Beomgyu’s voice was full of surprise. 

“Wasn’t it obvious?” 

“No!” He exclaimed, incredulously. 

Should I be happy about that? It’s good that you weren’t obvious. Yet, certainly, if your interest was more obvious from the beginning -  all the drama and uncertainty that came from the thoughts of an unrequited romantic interest and Beomgyu avoiding you might’ve never happened. 

“Let me court you. Officially.” Beomgyu proposes. “We’ll go to the forest by ourselves, we’ll have a picnic, I’ll serenade you - do I have permission to court you?” 

You raised an eyebrow teasingly. “Don’t you usually have to ask my parents for permission?” 

His hand waved at the air, as if wiping away the question from the universe. “Do I have permission to ask them for permission?” 

Bubbles and butterflies filled your stomach as you envisioned the future. “You always had it.” Beomgyu bit his lip before reaching out to hold your hands. At his mere touch, you swatted him. “Now go to class! I am having lunch with Soobin, not you.”

None of you saw Soobin in the cloisters, not too far away but not too close either. Yet your conversation ran through his head and smothered him. It was always Beomgyu, wasn’t it? Making his way towards the opposite direction, he looked down at the ground; trying his best to hold back his tears. Maybe Ki-Hoon was right. 

The eldest of the group was never one to have a direct mission. Often, he would find longer and more enjoyable ways to reach the goal. Consequently, it grabbed everyone’s attention when Yeonjun practically marched forward with rage - his eyes set on one thing and one thing only. 

“Hey!” He called, making multiple students turn their heads around. Yeonjun in general didn’t get mad - often playfully with his friends, but never truly mad. Everyone in town knew him for being so friendly, so his gruff tone was a sinister stranger in Hybehead. “Hey!” His angry calls bounced back and forth against the walls and swerving through the trees. The town seemed to shiver.

“Oh Ki-Hoon, you levereter!” Yeonjun growled, now in front of the boy in question. “What on earth do you think you’re doing?” People who use ‘all bark, no bite’ to describe those who are harmless have never seen Yeonjun right now.

Ki-Hoon tried to play innocent, he really did, but his pride wanted the spotlight. “I have no clue what you’re talking about.” Plastered all over his face was a smile that screamed ‘so what?’, one that challenged Yeonjun. Yeonjun clasped at the younger’s collar, tightening his grip as he tugged him forward. 

“You have ruined my friends.” The eldest snarled, “you have made Taehyun and Kai ghosts of who they were. You broke up my family.” Each thing he listed made Ki-Hoon more proud, smiling smugly. While Yeonjun was fuelled with anger, Ki-Hoon felt pride. Chaos, he fed on it 

“Are you sure it wasn’t you?” Ki-Hoon’s voice dripped venom, slithering through Yeonjun’s ears. “Are you sure it wasn’t your lack of leadership? Weren’t you the one who got them in trouble all the time?” 

Yeonjun felt guilt tug at him. What Ki-Hoon was saying was true, but they were happy. “That doesn’t matter! They were happy. Can they say the-?” 

Ki-Hoon’s grin only widened. “Are you sure about that?” His eyes flickered over to the other side of the courtyard where Beomgyu had just arrived outside your classroom door. “Did that happen when you two were there? Maybe I unveiled the truth,” Ki-Hoon leaned forward, leaning into Yeonjun’s chokehold, “Maybe they never needed you.” 

Yeonjun showed his teeth, “You’re just a kid. You don’t know anything.” He let go and turned around, wanting to leave. His smirk; it was painted in Yeonjun’s head. He wanted to wipe that smirk right off, stomp on it, and bury it deep into the ground. He had no right. We welcomed him. 

The angry fox started to march away, retreating to his next class. Eyes still followed him like magnets.  “What are you then?” Ki-Hoon called back, making Yeonjun stop in his tracks. “Impulsive, for sure. Unrespectable.” Yeonjun’s fists tightened by his side, “Definitely not leader quality.” It was as if Ki-Hoon was reading his mind, fishing for all his bad thoughts and bringing them to the front. “Definitely not good enough for your friends, your family, or a town.” I can walk away, Yeonjun reminded himself, I can walk away and leave. He isn’t worth my time. 

“You know, Taehyun and Kai and Y/N-” Yeonjun ran back as Ki-Hoon cockily and smugly sung his words, trying to instigate Yeonjun. He tried so hard to hold back, but he couldn’t now. 

“Get their names out of your dirty mouth.” He seethed, hands back onto Ki-Hoon’s collar. “You do not even get to speak their names.” 

Ki-Hoon snarled, “Oh, and you’re so high and mighty?” Ki-hoon practically spat at Yeonjun, “Look at your record, dimwit.” A smirk soon took over Ki-Hoon’s scowl, “Oh, wait, I have to respect my elders right?” 

Yeonjun wanted to retaliate, he wanted to scream back. “How can I respect you? There is nothing good about you but your last name. The only reason you’ve made it this far is from being Mayor Choi’s perfect son, but that’s not true - is it? It couldn’t be further from the truth.”

 Every word was vicious in nature, perfectly calculated yet careful in it’s aim. Coming out fluidly, it was almost as if he rehearsed this; as if the words were a part of a malicious melody. His friendly disposition was all a disguise, Yeonjun settled.

“You corrupted your friends - I didn’t ruin them. It was all you.” Yeonjun’s grasp tightened even more. From their distance apart, Yeonjun could feel Ki-Hoon’s spit against his cheek as if it was burning his skin. “Just like how you have been ruining your father’s reputation from the day he adopted you. Do you think he signed up for that? For you to ruin his reputation? He worked so Jum-hard for his spot, only to have you mess up all the time?” 

It wasn’t that which was Yeonjun’s final straw, in fact - he could barely process what he fully said. Jum-hard? He’s never heard that saying before. But it was Ki-Hoon’s next sentence that threw Yeonjun off a cliff, forcing him to lose all his restraint and self control. 

“Your father must regret having you. An imbecile to follow him. Maybe he’s a terrible leader himself.” 

He didn’t know what happened next; it all happened so fast. Soon, Ki-Hoon was on the ground, nose bleeding as students around him gasped. 

“Yeonjun!” Footsteps quickly came to Yeonjun’s side, quicker than Yeonjun could even process what he even did. “Yeonjun, what are you doing?” Beomgyu asked, slipping between the two of them - blocking the elder’s view of Ki-hoon. 

Ki-Hoon was attracting the attention of students and teachers, holding his nose and crying. But you saw the smirk he hid under his hand and you certainly saw the glint in his eyes that screamed ‘I won’. 

Yeonjun couldn’t hear or see it though; all he could hear was ringing while his vision was pure red. 

Yeonjun didn’t process you picking up his fist, wiping away (Ki-Hoon’s) blood from his knuckles. 

“Yeonjun-hyung,” You tried to grab his attention, but Yeonjun was filled with rage, anger, regret. It isn’t true, he had to repeat internally, what he said isn’t true. But then he internally resigned. If it is true, it’s better safe than to be sorry. 

Yeonjun shrugged you both off. “Leave me alone.” He’s never spoken to you that way. You froze as lee left the two of you, surrounded by the new taunting laughter of Ki-Hoon.

Later that day, as he entered his home, all he heard was his parents’ disappointment through a hushed discussion. “I don’t know what he was doing.” 

“It sounded like he was defending you and his friends.” 

Mayor Choi’s head fell onto the table, “he was doing so well…so well. What happened?” Yeonjun could hear his father grasping for hope, as if this was his final straw. “I thought he could lead after me, the whole town loves him…but can he? If he gets so angry over ill-intended words?” 

His mother sighed, “He’s your son, he can do it.” 

“But is he my son?” 

Yeonjun quietly made his way up the stairs, locking the door behind him as he fell onto his bed - hoping it would swallow him whole. 

It’s been a few weeks since Yeonjun punched Ki-Hoon. With the blessing that was Ki-Hoon suddenly disappearing from the town (to which piqued Taehyun’s interest but frankly he couldn't care about him anymore), there was the curse of Yeonjun becoming distant. The curse, unfortunately, was especially prominent at this very moment. 

You, Taehyun, and Soobin luckily all had the same lunch period today. Yeonjun did too. A few weeks ago, he would sit beside you guys and joke around, start a debate, or just discuss what has been going on. Now, from your usual seats, you waved over to Yeonjun - who immediately looked the other way. 

“Whatever Ki-Hoon said to Yeonjun…” You trailed off, trying to imagine what could have been said to shake who you have always perceived as unshakable. Yeonjun, like all of your friends, was a source of comfort. You greatly admired his unquestionable sense of what is just and not. It was his support and advice that calmed you down. Unfortunately, you couldn’t prove the same - as much as you wanted to - as Yeonjun was determined to shut you out. 

Apparently, he shut everyone out. 

Before, if he couldn’t sit with you due to schedule conflicts, he often sat with his other friends like Wooyoung. Today, even Wooyoung wasn’t beside him. 

Taehyun drops his head low, “Not just Yeonjun, but also Kai.” At the ripe age of sixteen, Taehyun already faces his biggest regret; letting Ki-Hoon infiltrate his friends. Why did I offer to help him? The same night he met Ki-Hoon, he dreamt of an evil force with mismatched eyes. A coincidence that Taehyun then rationalised it as dreams being influenced from his experiences.

Maybe it was a forewarning, he now realised. A cynic potentially becoming a believer, he couldn’t help but be wary of the dream he had of Beomgyu a few nights ago; his brown eyes were like ponds with ripples of blue and green corrupting and infecting the pools of brown. “Beomgyu also doesn’t seem to want to hang out anymore.” You didn’t notice that Soobin stopped his mindless humming. 

Your attempts to get Beomgyu to rejoin the group were futile. He’d always back out and insist you stay with him, on top of trying to persuade you to quit the bakery. As a friend, Beomgyu was never possessive so you question what changed his personality. Was it because of you he was so possessive? Is his isolation your fault? 

Instinctively, you started to fiddle with the ring on your finger. Since Beomgyu gifted it to you after a few dates, it has become one of your comfort items. Luckily, unlike your blanket, you can take it everywhere. You wonder how long it took him to make it. It was clear something was special about the material ever since he found it on the cliff. Magnetic then, but in the ring - it seemed to contain a million universes. 

“We could try and ask Mrs. Ho if she still needs us around?” you suggested.

Soobin quickly shook his head. “I went by the other day. Yeonjun went on his own already.” 

Taehyun let his head fall onto the table, “I’m sorry.”

Both you and Soobin spun around as if he just revealed that he’s failing class. “What for?” 

“For introducing you all to Ki-Hoon, this wouldn’t have happened without it.” You felt a surge of pity from the amount of guilt he must be feeling, especially if he’s blaming himself for another’s actions. “I feel so terrible about it all, like, life feels so weird.” 

Soobin was quick to jump in, essentially stealing the words from your mouth. “You didn’t know. He could’ve been an amazing friend.” You nodded along, trying to comfort Taehyun. “We all fell for it.” 

You were so tempted to say ‘not me’, you really - 

“Not her though.” Taehyun sighed into his arms, holding back his tears. 

Well, you were trying not to say it so that he won’t feel worse, but you guess self-sabotage is a necessity to be in your friend group. “Yeah, but that’s because he was flirting with me.” At least, that’s what you think gave you the bad feeling. Honestly, you couldn’t pinpoint it; you felt it the moment you laid eyes on him. “You wouldn’t have known, unless he was flirting with you too.” 

Like Yeonjun, Taehyun was unshakeable. It’s not to say that he didn’t get insecure, but he was always confident in his knowledge and his actions. To him, every action is carefully planned and thought out. Even his most impulsive actions had a short pros and cons list before it was enacted. “I guess.” 

Seeing Taehyun like this and seeing your little chosen family broken up - you wanted nothing more than to hurt Ki-Hoon. You’ve never felt this amount of rage for anyone. Now, you understood Yeonjun’s actions - you understood the urge to send a fist straight into that cocky face, wipe that evil smirk off his face, and never see him again. At least the last part is true, you relished. 

You placed your chin on his back, wrapping your arms around him as you tried to comfort him. Soobin jumped in, holding Taehyun’s hand and hugging the arm closest to him. Let it out, you wanted to say, it’s okay to cry - but the school bell rang. 

Taehyun, at the sound, jumped up. If it wasn’t for his puffy eyes, it appeared as if nothing happened. “What classes do you guys have today? I have publishing.” 

A part of the school curriculum means different classes every day. At the beginning of each week, the advisor of your curriculum will hand out schedules for the week. It was purely to make sure you advance in the career path, a decision that the school justified with wanting to ‘ease students into adulthood’. 

“Shoot,” you sighed as you thought of taking off your comfort item, “gardening is today.” You didn’t want to lose the ring in the sea of dirt. Over the last few months, you’ve learnt to identify each plant from one another and to distinguish their healing properties. Now, you must learn the best conditions to plant it. “Tae, I think we’re in the same direction. Should we walk together?” Taehyun nodded, before turning to Soobin to silently ask for his answer. 

Soobin jumped off the table, “I have finance keeping.” Unfortunately, there was no specific baking curriculum, so he took the combined culinary and business curriculum. “Are you in the greenhouse?” 

You looked up as you slipped your ring into the bag. You stood up once the ring was securely placed, stretching your arms to hug Soobin to say goodbye. “I’ll see you later - I think we’re in different dir-”

“HEY!” Beomgyu’s voice rang loud and clear. Even without seeing him, you felt a wave of terror crawl down your spine. A hand wrapped around your upper arm, pulling you back and making you crash into another person; Kai. In front of you, you now see Beomgyu corner Soobin against the wooden table.

“What in the universe are you doing?” Beomgyu pushed Soobin back, making Soobin flinch and hold his hands up. 

“Nothing!” Soobin quickly exclaimed, Taehyun stepping forward to try and intervene until he saw your frightened eyes. 

“Then why is my girlfriend taking off her ring? Why is she hugging you?” Your heart dropped. All this because you wanted to protect the ring? 

“Gyu -,”  You tried to stop this from escalating, but Beomgyu brushed you off by continuing to yell at one of his best friends. 

“Why were you flirting with my girlfriend, you puterelle?” 

“Gyu-” you tried to get him to stop. 

“I wasn’t!” Soobin defended, and you nodded - trying to show Beomgyu that what Soobin was saying was correct, even if he wasn’t letting you speak. Suddenly, you felt dizzy with…anger? Confusion? Even the dizziness was preventing you from thinking clearly. As you lost your balance, you had to thank whatever was out there for Kai; he’s the one thing keeping you on your feet.  

“I know your intentions,” Beomgyu seethed, still cornering Soobin into the table. They’ve been this close before, but only when Beomgyu would tackle Soobin into a hug. Now, he’s tackling him to fight. “I thought we were friends.” 

“Beomgyu!” Taehyun tried to intervene, now noticing how Kai was your pillar of support. “Nothing was happening. But look at-” 

In all your years of friendship, you’ve never seen Beomgyu like this. He was visibly shaking with fury. “How does it feel, huh? Trying to steal your friend’s girlfriend? Are you happy?” Beomgyu was in Soobin’s face and he pushed him one more time. 

That push hurt, the table’s wooden splinters poking into his back. “Do that again and you’ll regret it.” Soobin scowled as he pushed back, although not to the same amount of strength as Beomgyu was exerting onto Soobin. 

“If you do that again,” your boyfriend motioned towards the ring in your bag, “you’ll regret it.” He pushed. And it set Soobin off. 

Soobin exerted his full force in pushing Beomgyu off of him. You became speechless. You can’t sense the words coming. You wanted to look away as Soobin and Beomgyu glared at each other, both of them balling up their fists. With the new positions, Taehyun quickly went over to you - supporting your other side. 

Kai, however, took that as a sign to get involved. He jumped in the middle, “You guys stop!” 

“You don’t know anything, Kai,” Beomgyu growled, “You’re just a kid. And you’re not realising how much of a traitor your friend is.” 

“Nothing was happening!” Soobin insisted, stepping forward to try and make Beomgyu flinch. He didn’t flinch, not at all. Taehyun was still observing, trying to provide you support. It surely won’t get more physical than this, he was certain. These two boys were best friends; they spent endless time together before. 

They’ve shared pillows during camping trips and stole midnight snacks from the bakery during sleepovers. Both of them were like brothers from another mother; consistently helping each other, supporting each other, and challenging each other. Of course, these challenges were friendly - but this can’t be said about the fight in front of them. 

But then Beomgyu threw a punch, making Soobin shell-shocked as he held his cheek. 

“SOOBIN!” you called, about to jump in and stop the fight - but Taehyun held you back. 

“Beomgyu, nothing was happening!” Taehyun emphasised, “He was going in the opposite direction! We were going to class!”

Beomgyu gritted his teeth before glaring at Soobin’s, “Are you sure Soobin wasn’t going to go and try to get with her?” Soobin’s jaw was now clenched, his fists were clenched even tighter. 

“I told you, nothing happened,” Soobin snarled. “Why don’t you believe me?” 

“Believe you?” Beomgyu scoffed, before dryly chuckling. You felt air escaping your lungs; you were scared, angry, regretful, confused, conflicted - you were feeling everything and anything. “How can I believe you?” 

“Then believe Taehyun, or you know, listen to your girlfriend!” 

“Don’t get him involved too,” Beomgyu cautioned, approaching Soobin again. “You already got enough of us involved.”

Now directly in front of each, Soobin’s height almost towered over Beomgyu’s. Soobin glanced at Kai, who like you and Taehyun, was unsure what to do. “You’re the one who brought Kai.”

“That’s a different story.” 

Soobin let out a dry chuckle, his anger conquering his love for the boy in front of him. “No, it’s not. And, if you even care about Y/N, you’d listen to-” 

“Don’t question if I care about her!” Beomgyu pushed Soobin again. Beomgyu is never violent, and that was a fact that all of you were thinking. He didn’t even like to hurt a fly. Once a bug flew onto his forehead and he refused to move until it did, not wanting to injure it and prevent it from going home to his family. “I’m her boyfriend. You’re nothi-” 

“What is going on here?” Yeonjun’s voice, despite being cold and distant, was a warm embrace right now as he stepped in the middle of the two. “What ridiculous nonsense are you guys on?” While his voice was a welcoming sound to you, it was sharp like a knife for Beomgyu and Soobin. “Answer me.” Yeonjun demanded. Both of them scrambled to answer, overlapping each other. Bits and pieces could be heard, but ultimately - Yeonjun needed a clearer answer. 

He turned to you, knowing he can trust you. “Y/N.” His voice cut through their blabbering, creating another silent tension as you tried to catch your breath. You’ve had anxiety before - especially before tests, but never like this. It felt too suffocating, as if you were feeling everything at once. 

Taehyun and Kai, both by your side, helped you with your breathing - rubbing your back calmly and counting your breathing. Now that the attention was all on you, both boys looked at you with their eyes wide; shoot. They caused you to feel this way. This was my fault, both of them blamed themselves. The two of them reached forward, but Soobin stepped back once he saw Beomgyu leap towards you - not wanting to instigate anything further. Unfortunately, Taehyun and Kai stopped Beomgyu before he could get too close to protect you from his new found violent tendencies.  

“I was putting my ring into my bag because I have gardening class and I didn’t want to lose it or dirty it.” Despite finally having your breath back, you were still gasping for air - the feelings now crashing like a fading wave onto sand. “So, I put it in my bag…and because….” You were repeating yourself, trying to understand what happened while speaking, “...Soobin was going the other direction, I was giving him a hug to say goodbye.” 

Yeonjun furrowed his brow. “So what started this fight?” 

The two boys cowered under his gaze, something you’ve never seen them do before. 

Taehyun stepped in. “Beomgyu came in and accused Y/N of cheating.”

Beomgyu was quick to defend himself, “Not Y/N, but Soobin! I know he has feelings for her.” You turned to look at Soobin, who was staring at the ground - refusing to look you in the eye. He has a crush on me? 

The eldest sighed. “Do you not trust them, Choi Beomgyu?” Beomgyu shivered.

“I do, I do, but -” 

“There’s no buts.” Yeonjun, despite the annoyed facade he was putting on, was confused. Beomgyu was anything but violent. Sure, he can be impulsive - but he’s trusting and he’s kind and he’s attentive. “Just go to class, or lunch, or whatever.” 

Silence followed. The six of you stared at each other like strangers, not like people you know like the back of your hands. But then Kai left to sit at another lunch table, not wanting to be here any longer. Soobin left next, after silently asking you for permission through a soft glance, wary of Beomgyu’s next move. You, Yeonjun, Taehyun, and Beomgyu remained. Taehyun’s sole purpose, however, was to support you and see if you will still walk to class together. 

“Y/N,” Yeonjun’s voice was quiet, as if unsure of his own voice, “I’m not sure if you will listen to me,” Of course I will, you thought, “but you need to be careful and wise.” Yeonjun decided to whisper the next part, “It may be wise to not let them spend time together.” 

Your heart shattered. You wanted to yell at him; he already left you guys, now he wants you all to leave each other? Before you could contest, Yeonjun walked off - itching to leave. 

Taehyun noticed your downridden expression. It was clear you didn’t want to be here. “Y/N, let’s go.” The younger one nudged and you were grateful he was still holding you up. 

“Tae, wait,” Beomgyu stopped him, making Taehyun turn around and stare at Beomgyu. How dare he call me my nickname now? Analytically, Taehyun looked at him as if he was an opponent; someone aiming to harm his loved ones. “Can I…talk to Y/N?” 

“No.” Your pillar of support was ready to bring you somewhere he knew you’d be safe. He couldn’t be certain of your safety around Beomgyu anymore. 

“It’s fine. I’ll talk to him. You go to class.” 

A silent glance asking are you sure? 

Followed by a subtle nod, yes. 

The moment Taehyun disappeared, Beomgyu wrapped his arms around you tight. His warmth, despite the frosty behaviour minutes ago, surrounded you. Like a summer following winter, Beomgyu was back to his old self.  “I’m so sorry,” he practically cried, “I do trust you, I don’t know what came over me.” His words came out quickly, unfiltered. “You mean the world to me and the idea of Soobin stealing you away from me-” 

“He won’t steal me away, I’m not property.” You sighed, pulling away- heart heavy from the events of today. Beomgyu looked sheepish, but you chuckled - trying to hide your disappointment in his actions. “I’m with you, okay?” 

His voice was meek as he hesitantly asked you his next question, “May I walk you to class?” Like a whisper from a prey to it’s repenting predator, you agreed. Beomgyu’s heart shattered at the docile sound. “I didn’t mean to-”

You turned to him, your eyes scolding him for what he did. Maybe it was never Ki-Hoon, you thought, maybe it was us. “What did you mean, then?” Your question seemed to be squeezed out of your vocal chords. 

“I…I just don’t want you to leave.” Two hearts - one sentiment, yet you don’t know if leaving is maybe what’s best. You want to be with him with all your heart - and you can tell Beomgyu feels the same from his doe eyes and rapid heartbeat. But does being with him mean losing the rest of your chosen family? 

Interlocking your hands, you smiled. You and your harrowing guilt can drown in your sorrows later. For now, Beomgyu is here. With you. And you want to hold his hand, and tell him you’ll never let go - even when the stars explode. 

After classes ended, Soobin waited by your usual meeting spot. He waited and waited, until an hour passed and he was late. Maybe you were already there, he hoped - only for your absence to scream at him as he entered the bakery. 

His mother and father were quick to swarm him, asking what happened to his face - but he brushed it off. He didn’t mention Beomgyu’s name once. ‘I fell on my way to class’, he said. His mother understood he didn’t want to indulge any further tonight, so she changed topics. 

“Where’s Y/N?” Soobin wanted to know the answer, he really did - but he didn’t even know the answer. Throughout the night, Mrs. Choi spotted him continuously staring out the window between customers, waiting for something, well, more like someone.

Knowing her son, Mrs. Choi knew he’d deny that he was waiting for you. 

He certainly wasn’t waiting for anyone else.

taglist: @de0nu @pastelsicheng @kpopworldwide​ @rebsmoonn​ | send a message to be notified of updates! 

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Other Groups Masterlist

Last Updated: 9 October 2023

Mini Key:

Fluff = [F] Angst = [A] Smut = [S] Comedy/Crack = [C] Drama = [D] 🔏 = Completed Series 🖋 = On-Going ⏱ = On Hiatus ╳ = Discontinued ♀︎ = Female Pronouns ♂︎ = Male Pronouns ⚧ = Gender Neutral/Non Binary Pronouns  ⚲ = No Pronouns Used * = Just Added as of last update

Please refer to #crys updates tag to see if I’m currently working on the series you’re reading! As my priority changes monthly and I often ask my followers at the end of the month to see what they would like me to prioritize for the upcoming month!

[NCT Masterlist] | [Timestamp Masterlist] | [AMMs Masterlist]

Reactions/Scenarios/Headcanons/Imagines

♀︎ Scenario - Reader comes back injured from a mission | {Mafia AU} (Platonic!All Members ft. implied Bang Chan) [A]

♀︎ Scenario - Reader is on a first-anniversary date with Mafia Leader!Bang Chan and ATEEZ unknowingly crashes | {Mafia AU} (Platonic!All Members ft. Bang Chan x Reader) [C]

♀︎ Headcanons - How they announced you two were in a relationship | {Idol ATEEZ; Non-Idol Reader} (All Members) [F]

♀︎♂︎ Headcanons - You’re an Idol and you get injured on an Awards Stage | {Idol AU} (All Members) [F, A]

♀︎ Scenario - You’re FWB with Seonghwa and he’s catching feelings | {Friends with Benefits AU; Non-Idol AU} (Seonghwa x Reader) [S]

⚲ Scenario - Wooyoung tries to convince you to watch Barbie Life in the Dream House with him | {Idol AU} (Wooyoung x Reader) [C, F]

⚲ Headcanons - ATEEZ as Characters from Finding Dory | [C]

⚲ Scenario - Vigilante!San and Vigilante!Reader Meeting for the First Time | {Without a Trace AU ; Vigilante AU} (San x Reader) [F]

♀︎ Scenario - Cakes and Vacations | {Prominence AU ; Idol AU ; NCT Added Unit AU} (Seonghwa x Reader) [F]

♀︎ Scenario - Idol!Reader sneaks in her dog Mars to Schedule, but he escapes and runs to Seonghwa | {Prominence AU ; Idol AU ; NCT Added Unit AU} (Seonghwa x Reader) [F]

♀︎ Scenario - When Schedules Align |  {Prominence AU ; Idol AU ; NCT Added Unit AU} (Seonghwa x Reader) [S] ♀︎ Headcanons - YNSH being the K-Pop It Couple Even When Away from Each Other | {Prominence AU ; Idol AU ; NCT Added Unit AU} (Seonghwa x Reader) [F]

One-Shots/Drabbles

One Shot - ♀︎ A Party Gone Awry | {Mafia AU} (Bang Chan x Reader ft. Platonic!ATEEZ) [F, A] | In which you’re a spy for the ATEEZ mafia and in some twist of fate you found yourself in the arms of the rival mafia’s leader Chan.

Drabble - ⚲ Once More, in Harmony | {Idol AU, Soulmate AU} (Choi Jongho x Reader) [F]

One Shot - ♀︎ Hey, Mickey | {University AU} (Choi San x Reader) [S] | In which you just can’t stop seeing your ex-boyfriend

*Drabble - ⚲ “Of all the idiots in the realm, I’m stuck with you” | {Medieval AU} (Jung Wooyoung x Reader)

Series

♀︎╳ A Tricky Game of Fate | {Reincarnation AU} (Park Seonghwa x Reader ft. Choi Yeonjun) [F, A] | In which you, Seonghwa, and Yeonjun become the playthings of Fate, Time, and Death involving reincarnation.

♀︎⏱ Fate’s Gamble | {Reincarnation AU} (Park Seonghwa x Reader ft. Choi Yeonjun) [A, D] *Rewrite of A Tricky Game of Fate* | In which Seonghwa reaches out to the Fabled Three for a chance at redemption.

♀︎🔏 Prominence Season 1 | {Social Media AU; Idol AU; Added NCT Unit AU} (NCT x Reader; Park Seonghwa x Reader)  [C, F, A] | In which you’re part of a new NCT unit and you try to navigate the confusing and fast-paced career of being an idol, and you juggle a relationship with Park Seonghwa on top of  it.

♀︎🔏 Prominence Season 2 | {Social Media AU; Idol AU; Added NCT Unit AU} (NCT x Reader; Park Seonghwa x Reader)  [C, F, A] | In which you continue to question your career choices, but, hey, at least you’re having fun!

⚲🔏 Without a Trace | {Vigilante AU} (ATEEZ x Reader) [D, A, C] | In which you’re a disgraced vigilante and, when a new enemy arises, you and other disgraced vigilantes alongside some retired ones decide to work together to kick ass and save the day.

Reactions/Scenarios/Headcanons/Imagines

♂︎Headcanonos - Male!Crush is also famous but not an Idol | {Idol BTS; Famous Male Reader} (All Members) [F, A]

⚧MTL - To Date a Sarcastic Person | {No Specified AU} (All Members) [F, C]

One-Shots/Drabbles

None Yet

Series

None Yet

Reactions/Scenarios/Headcanons/Imagines

♀︎Scenario - You’re studying for finals and Baekhyun wants to help you relax | {College AU} (Baekhyun x Reader) [S]

♀︎Scenario - You’re a single parent and you take your daughter to Baekhyun’s Candy Shop | {Single Parent AU} (Candy Shop Worker!Baekhyun x Single Parent!Reader) [F]

♂︎^ Male (Y/N) Version

♀︎^ Part 2 - It’s your daughter, Yoona’s, birthday! And you drastically underestimated how much candy you needed, good thing you’re good friends with a candy shop worker | {Single Parent AU} (Candy Shop Worker!Baekhyun x Single Parent!Reader) [F]

♀︎Scenario - Make Up Sex with Chanyeol | {Non-Idol AU} (Chanyeol x Reader) [S]

♀︎Scenario - Literally just car sex with Chanyeol | {Established Relationship AU} (Chanyeol x Reader) [S]

♀︎Scenario - You have a vibrator, Yixing has the remote, and you’re both currently out with the other EXO Members | {Idol EXO; Non-Idol Reader} (Yixing x Reader) [S]

One-Shots/Drabbles

None Yet

Series

None Yet

Reactions/Scenarios/Headcanons/Imagines

⚲Scenario - You and Chan are best friends but don’t know that you’re both in the mafia | {Mafia AU} (Best Friend!Bang Chan x Reader) [A]

⚲Scenario - You’re always busy and the Stray Kids boys try to come up with excuses to get you to spend more time with them | {Mafia AU} (Stray Kids x Reader) [C]

♀︎Scenario - Reader is on a first-anniversary date with Mafia Leader!Bang Chan and ATEEZ unknowingly crashes | {Mafia AU} (Bang Chan x Reader ft. Platonic!ATEEZ) [A part of the A Party Gone Awry universe] [C]

♀︎Scenario - Hyunjin stepping in that during the Zombie Apocalypse | {Zombie Apocalypse AU} (Hyunjin x Reader) [C]

♀︎Scenario - SKZ taking care of an injured Reader | {Mafia AU} (Stray Kids x Reader) [C, A]

One-Shots/Drabbles

♀︎A Party Gone Awry | {Mafia AU} (Bang Chan x Reader ft. Platonic!ATEEZ) [F, A] | In which you’re a spy for the ATEEZ mafia and in some twist of fate you found yourself in the arms of the rival mafia’s leader Chan.

Series

None Yet

Reactions/Scenarios/Headcanons/Imagines

♀︎Scenario - You’re studying for finals and Baekhyun wants to help you relax | {College AU} (Baekhyun x Reader) [S]

♀︎Scenario - You’re a single parent and you take your daughter to Baekhyun’s Candy Shop | {Single Parent AU} (Candy Shop Worker!Baekhyun x Single Parent!Reader) [F]

♂︎^ Male (Y/N) Version

♀︎^ Part 2 - It’s your daughter, Yoona’s, birthday! And you drastically underestimated how much candy you needed, good thing you’re good friends with a candy shop worker | {Single Parent AU} (Candy Shop Worker!Baekhyun x Single Parent!Reader) [F]

♀︎Scenario - You knew there would be some negative aspects to dating an Idol, but it never really got to you until now, good thing your boyfriend is one of the most caring Idols out there | {Idol AU} (Idol!Taeyong x Non-Idol!Reader) [A, F]

One-Shots/Drabbles

None Yet

Series

Reactions/Scenarios/Headcanons/Imagines

⚲Reactions - You’re an Idol and you get injured on an Awards Stage | {Idol AU} (All Members) [F, A]

⚧Scenario - Idol!Taehyun when his SelectivelyMute!Reader tells him that they love him | {Idol AU} (Taehyun x Reader) [F]

⚲Reactions - Finding out that their S/O’s a mermaid | {Mermaid AU} (All Members) [F]

⚲ Scenario - Soobin and (Y/N) taking care of their kids | {Parent AU} (Soobin x Reader) [F]

One-Shots/Drabbles

⚲ From Black Coffee to Strawberry Tea | {No Specified AU} (Choi Yeonjun x Reader ft. Jaemin) [A, F] | In which you used to date Jaemin and have since moved on to Yeonjun

⚲ Hug-a-Boo | {University AU} (Choi Soobin x Reader) [F, C] | In which your semester long crush finally interacts with you

Series

⚲⏱ One Dream | {Non-Idol AU} (All Members; Choose Your Ending) [ORIGINALLY WRITTEN BY @fandom-meanderer​​] [F] | In which you slowly come to realize how thin the veil between dream and reality is.

♀︎╳ A Tricky Game of Fate | {Reincarnation AU} (Park Seonghwa x Reader ft. Choi Yeonjun) [F, A] | In which you, Seonghwa, and Yeonjun become the playthings of Fate, Time, and Death involving reincarnation.♀︎

⏱ Fate’s Gamble | {Reincarnation AU} (Park Seonghwa x Reader ft. Choi Yeonjun) [A, D] *Rewrite of A Tricky Game of Fate* | In which Seonghwa reaches out to the Fabled Three for a chance at redemption.

Other

*♀︎ And That’s Okay | {University AU} (Jeon Somi x Reader) [A, R] | In which you realize you like women

[fluffi]

SARCOLINE SUNSET I: WELCOME HOME, OUTSIDER :: SOOBIN

pairing: soobin x gn!reader, platonic!ot5 x gn!reader genre: fluff, some subjective angst, bits of humor, enemies-to-lovers, childhood friends word count: 4002 event: #summerscape for @kpopscape credit: @enha-woodzies​ for making the gfx for this series! show her some love <3 author’s note: i accidentally deleted this post so here is a rushed reupload. it might not be as good as the original because it isnt proof read as well but i still hope the algorithm picks it up, maybe this’ll be good for the post. Also, the second part will be coming out in 15 days. warnings: people disappearing, mentions of burning and fire (further warnings will be released in the next parts as the story gets darker)

THIS STORY IS PURELY A WORK OF FICTION AND DOES NOT DICTATE JAY OR NI-KI’S PERSONAL LIVES AND/OR FAMILY.

part two ->

The blonde stared up at an intricately designed structure in awe, walking forward to touch the sides of it and running his calloused hands up and down its rusted carved wedges. It seemed oddly cliche and unrealistic, but he could feel its story. Every touch of the ceramic pillar provided him with emotion that he couldn’t bring himself to explain.

The sun hadn’t set yet, but he could make out the faint reflection of it settling in the background. The huge pine trees around him were making conversation with each other; their faint whispers and rustles providing peace to his veins.

So entranced in the scenery of such a mystical place, he forgot to watch out for his younger peer. Kicking back into his senses, he nervously called out, “Riki! You there?” His voice, usually strong and boisterous, laced fear today.

“Don’t worry about me Jay, I’m right behind you. Just climbing this fence..and..there!” Riki let out a grunt as he jumped onto the soft grass, looking at his older friend with an innocent grin.

At the sight of his buddy, Jay visibly loosened. It was clear that he didn’t feel safe in this environment, yet felt entranced to it in some way. Riki caught up to him in a quick jog before standing next to Jay, in awe at the magnificent view that they were spectating for the first and possibly last time.

“Is this…the place you were talking about?” Riki was out of breath from running after his peer. He pats the grassy patch below him before slumping onto it, crossing his legs afterward.

Jay took a seat next to him, setting his canvas satchel and leather jacket next to him. “According to the maps and books, this is the right spot. I just want to see if the myth is true.”

Riki clapped his hands in excitement and turned to face Jay. “We’re staying till the sun sets right? I want to see what the carousel looks like at night! This structure is so fascinating. It must be beautiful out here at night.”

“No, we’re walking back as soon as the sun goes down. I do not want to risk being out here at night. People have disappeared from staying too long and I wouldn’t want to worry your mother.”

Riki visibly slumped and turned back in time to see the last drop of orange dip. It was quiet for a while. The singing birds stopped humming their soulful tunes, yet the whispering trees grew louder, their inaudible gossip echoing in the ears of the two boys.

At nine at night, Riki’s mother would call Jay, heeding no response. She would do the same for his parents and his friends. The only piece of information they could provide was that Jay had brought Riki, in his words, to “a magical place”. With no other vital details they could draw from their son’s peers, Jay and Riki’s family agree to call the local police, reporting two missing people: two minors, one last seen in a brown leather jacket, and a taller one tailing alongside him. Both their hairs were dyed in a striking shade of blonde.

Summer’s heat-blasted onto your skin as soon as you stepped out of your sleek white Toyota. It was good to be back, you supposed. Although it was something that not many people would fawn over, you were ecstatic to be home in town.

Leaving at the mere age of sixteen wasn’t easy. After your parents decided that you were too good for a mediocre high school where people cared more about their body count than grade count, they immediately sent you off to a prestigious boarding school in the big city. You were given three days to pack and say goodbye to your friends, the rest of your family, your world. As excited as you were to study in the evolutionary epicenter of technology, you didn’t like how you had almost no say in this decision.

You didn’t return home from high school even after four years of studying at that mentally draining institution. It wasn’t like you didn’t want to come back, you were just so accustomed to life in the big city that it seemed pointless to return to square one. With the rest of the world finally in your grip (or so you thought), you enrolled in a highly expensive university and received a full-ride scholarship.

Perhaps that was your breaking point. Piles of work that could never be cleared must’ve got to your head. No one out there seemed to care about your mental health and well-being. The only reason you were allowed to take a break from the university and return was because of your constant breakdowns that your lecturers called “distracting” and “unethical”. You were hoping that this drop-by in town would give you a physical and mental cleanse.

There was no place as hot as home, from where you had been. The blazing sun scorched onto the road. Carrying baggage by itself was already hard enough, but this heat was immensely torturing. You struggled to carry your belongings while trying to close the car boot at the same time. Oh, a pity. You had just returned home and you were slowly turning into a bundle of disorganization, unlike your previous methodical attitude.

“Need a hand?” A familiar suede voice behind your shoulder sounded like music to your ears as you dropped all of your luggage and turned back to see…

“Taehyun!” Child best friend number one. You were looking at a once-innocent boy with doe eyes who had matured into a fine young man. His hair was dyed platinum blonde and, although younger than you, possessed a flair that was completely unlike his past self. His facial features were more prominent than ever and you wondered if all of your friends had developed as well as he had.

You locked your arms around his neck and embraced him as he took your baggage from you.

“You’re so tall now!” You gasped in awe and looked him up and down.

“Of course I am! A boy has to grow, doesn’t he?”

Speak of the devil(s), four people tagged behind Taehyun, waiting for you to notice their presence. All of them were just as tall (if not taller) than your blonde friend and stood out like a sore thumb. It wasn’t just the height, their hair was also in very...exciting colors.

“Can’t believe you forgot about us just for Taehyun.” Ah, that nasal voice was so recognizable. Choi Yeonjun, second-best friend. You cherished him like he was your secret weapon, a power waiting to be unleashed into your industrial world. Although older than Taehyun, they seemed to be the same height now. You couldn’t tell because his new neon pink hair was waxed slick and puffy which made him look a teensy bit taller than his younger friend. You had seen him around on social media and he was a hair-changing chameleon.

Alongside Yeonjun was Hueningkai, better known as Kai in the friend group. He was the youngest one, constantly babied and spoiled, you could say. He was probably influenced by the rest of his friends too, his hair now in a mossy shade of blonde. 

Poor Yeonjun, you completely disregarded his existence and dashed over to Kai instead, eagerly standing next to him to compare heights. The kid had grown so much, you couldn’t tell if you were contented that he was now taller than you or dejected that you had missed so much when you weren’t around.

“Hey, wait up!” Someone from behind called. With Hueningkai and Yeonjun blocking your view you couldn’t see who that one person walking next to Choi Beomgyu was.

Beomgyu, the last friend who joined the friend group. He was always a comedian and never failed to make your day. Although, he didn’t seem so smiley anymore. You figured that it was school stress and adulting getting the best of him. We all had those days; you regrettably knew them like you knew the back of your hand . Unlike the rest of his friends, Beomgyu’s hair was kept in a natural shade of ivory brown. He had never been swayed by the rest of the crowd.

There were so many things to do, so many people to see. You had missed out on most of your growing: having fun with friends, staying up late at night just to watch the stars, dancing on your balcony. You had missed the people too. The town felt different from when you had left it.

“Soobin! Don’t just stand behind, meet our friend! They just returned from the city, right?” Beomgyu ran over to you before giving you a little squeeze.

Who’s Soobin?

“Hey, I’m Choi Soobin. Twenty-one this year. I moved here a few years ago. You must have left before I showed up.” A simple and concise introduction from the blue-haired man. Maybe he was the root of this hair-dyeing trend in town (pun very much intended), as well as the height trend since he was just as tall, if not taller than the rest of the boys.

You briefly introduced yourself but that was about it. You didn’t know how to create small talk, nonetheless with someone completely unfamiliar to you.

Later that day, you wondered if he had replaced you, become another guardian in the friend group. As one of the oldest, you and Yeonjun were always known as the parents of your three “kids”, but Soobin seemed to take care of them equally well. Throughout the day, you watched his every action, how he helped Beomgyu with homework, how he styled Kai’s hair, how he treated Taehyun to his favorite meal, exactly like what you did when you were still around. For once, you felt like the outsider.

Marshmallow Night had always been a tradition here. It was a five-of-you kind of thing, well, the six-of-you now. It had always been the go-to celebration whenever one of you hit a milestone, or was just held for fun. The days of joy where the only thing you had to worry about was whether your smores were burnt.

It had changed a lot over the years, you guys would add some new events to it and remove the ones you guys outgrew, like hopscotch.

You had missed most of its evolution.

Instead of being the main catalyst for today’s event, you resorted to sitting at the side as Soobin took the lead, carrying tables back and forth as well as setting up the fire in a method that the five of you had never used.

Oh, how much you loathed him. You hated his innocent-looking face that spurred out words of authority and boastfulness. You couldn’t stand how he looked so obnoxious with his bright blue hair, his dark brown eyes that held an impeccable gleam. He looked so cheeky, so mean, and worst of all, he had made all of your friends convert to mini spawns of him. Even Yeonjun, the oldest member, no longer felt like the Choi Yeonjun you once knew.

If you could, you would throw him out of your hometown, except that you seemed to be the outsider here. Anyone who walked past would see five people sitting on a huge log, helping each other light marshmallows and biscuits. They would barely notice the one person hunched over on the other side, sitting on the ground, eyes dazed and uninterested.

Occasionally one of the boys would call out to you, either hand you a s’more or ask if you were alright, to which you responded, “I’m alright! Don’t worry about me, I’m having fun.”

Anyone could also see that you weren’t in the zone, but you didn’t want to ruin the moment and be a party pooper. You ended up spending most of the time scrolling on your phone, checking school emails, and such. It didn’t feel like you were back home, it felt like you were on a vacation, on your own.

The commotion had died down, for the most part. Everyone else was either discussing school gossip in hushed voices or making the most of use of their electronic device. You were tempted to join the little heated conversation that Soobin and Beomgyu were having, but you didn’t know who this ‘Chaeyeon’ girl was and either way, you wouldn’t want to voluntarily speak to Choi Soobin.

It wasn’t long before both of them went to do something else, the only sound prevalent being the wood crackling from the bonfire and the occasional chirp of evening birds.

It was a loud, sucked-in breath that drew the attention of everyone, eyes pinned onto the instigator.

Choi Soobin, once again disrupting the peace of this curated environment. He ducked his head in apology and you were about to return to your world when Kai’s curiosity got the best of him.

“Why did you just do that?” His booming voice resounded over everyone else.

You weren’t going to lie, you were curious too. It wasn’t every day you heard a gasp like that.

Soobin looked back up, eyes wide and awake. He was excited about something but seemed to be masking it for the sake of..suspense?

“Okay. You guys know Yongsam Park right?” He put his phone down and tapped his hands on his thighs in a state of urgency.

Now that statement got everyone’s attention. “It’s the flower place outside our town, everyone passes it when they enter. Of course we would know where the place is. Why are you so adamant about it?” Taehyun inquired.

“Well, have any of you gone inside the park? Or near the landmark in general?”

“No. Why would we? There’s nothing to do there than to take pictures of boring flower statues.” You stated.

“See. You guys don’t know anything about the place.” He smirked tilting his head upwards and proudly crossing his arms.

“Could you cut to the chase and tell us what it is already?” Thank Yeonjun for his smart, impatient mouth.

Soobin didn’t answer and merely flipped his phone so you could see whatever was on it. The only words you could make out were “Yongsam...missing...carnival” and something related to the park before he turned it back, away from your view.

“You can’t just say that we don’t know anything about this place then proceed to give us nothing about it.” You rolled your eyes, disinterested in the conversation once again.

“Fine. I’ll send it to you.” Soobin rolled his eyes back as four of the other boys snickered. They loved seeing the two of you bicker.

In courtesy of Beomgyu who gave Soobin your number (without your consent), you received a news article and skimmed through it with eager eyes:

[WHAT’S THE HYBE?]

YONGSAM PARK CURRENTLY UNDER INVESTIGATION, AUTHORITIES SAY 3 days ago

What’s the deal with Yongsam Park? Insiders say that, although bland and boring, Yongsam Park is currently under high-level investigation for the disappearance of a few citizens. The flower-decorated park is the perfect place to take Instagram-worthy pictures and is quite harmless in itself, so visitors were shocked to arrive at the park only to find it surrounded by heaps of yellow tape.

Yongsam Park was developed by Kim Yongsam, director of My Flowers, a multi-million florist franchise that has now spread to Japan and Taiwan. In a 2015 Interview with the millionaire, he mentioned that he had created the park in the inspiration of the rising ootd picture trend, also known as the outfit-of-the-day trend, which he had initially discovered from his teen daughter. 

“I wanted to create a welcoming park for people of all ages, but I couldn’t find a suitable place to do it without the budget being drastically high. In the end, my team and I found an abandoned site and decided to build a simple structure with lower costs up there. Props to my team for the discovery of this landmark. The scenery there, especially in the evening, is stunning .” He stated in the 2015 interview with Soup Magazine.

What’s the abandoned site? With the evidence that is still standing, Yongsam Park is rumored to have previously been a carnival. Said evidence is a worn-down carousel in the back of the park, along with piles of other burnt carnival decoration and equipment. With research, Yongsam Park’s site may have once been an abandoned carnival that perished from an unknown wildfire. This may have been the primary cause of the drought that ensued in the 80s, leaving only a carousel and ashes behind. When questioned, Mr. Kim said that he had decided to leave the carousel standing behind the park due because he felt ‘drawn by its alluring glow’, as quoted.

Investigators and the local police have only enclosed the flower section of Yongsam Park because that was where the victims were spotted. They believe that disappearances took place there and are currently trying to find evidence to back up their stance. Most of this new information is not known to the public, however, Kim and his team are trying to keep it that way. The current disappearance count is seven people, the most recent case being two high-schoolers.

The carousel is still open and does not require a visitor ticket, but visitors are advised to take precautions and leave before the sun sets.

RELATED

TWO MORE BOYS HAVE DISAPPEARED AT THE NOW INFAMOUS YONGSAM PARK 5 days ago

FAMILY OF TOURISTS DISAPPEAR AT YONGSAM PARK, INSIDERS SAY THIS IS THE SECOND CASE OF DISAPPEARANCE HERE 2 weeks ago

JAPANESE COUPLE DISAPPEAR AT FLOWER PARK, NETIZENS CALL THE NEWS A POLITICAL DISTRACTION 3 weeks ago

“Are you seriously...telling us...that we should visit a place where people have been kidnapped?” Yeonjun gawked. “Dude, that’s so stupid. What if we die or something?”

“Don’t say that! I was just curious if you guys wanted to go since it’s so near and since your old friend is back home.”

“It’s a dumb move. I’m not risking my life just so I can celebrate the return of my friend. Not worth it.” Beomgyu huffed.

“Hey! You’re worth it, right?” Soobin glanced at you, waiting for a response.

He was...defending you? His ulterior motives were questionable and you weren’t sure if he was protecting you because he cared about you (cue the puking) or solely because he wanted to go to Yongsam Park that bad.

You didn’t reply and chose to drown out the wailing and chaos that ensued with your friends. You clicked on a related article below, curious to learn more about this lesser-known part of the park.

[WHAT’S THE HYBE?]

TWO MORE BOYS HAVE DISAPPEARED AT THE NOW INFAMOUS YONGSAM PARK 5 days ago

Park Jongseong (20) and Nishimura Riki (15) mentioned to their friends that they would be heading to ‘a magical place’, before disappearing for around a week. They were last spotted walking through Yongsam Park, according to anonymous witnesses. This is the third case of disappearances at the park and both teens are the sixth and seventh people to go missing.

Both families reported their children missing just two days after their disappearance. With this case being the last straw, local authorities forcibly shut down Yongsam Park despite protests from staff and management.

Parents of the two minors refused to respond when called for an interview and HYBE reporters resorted to interviewing the victims’ friends instead.

“Jay’s never been a bad kid. Yeah, he might be late here and there, but he wouldn’t skip class or fly across the country for vacation during school. I just don’t understand why he’s not here with us. He wouldn’t voluntarily disappear.” Park Sunghoon (19), a friend and classmate of Jongseong (who is better known as Jay among his friends) said.

“Although I’m not close with Jay, I know Riki personally and I know for a fact that both of them wouldn’t run away like that. Why, Riki was gearing up for a dance competition that he’s been excited about all year, and now he’s just gone? Like that? Riki has always been like my little brother, and he’ll always be. I just want him back at my side.” A teary-eyed Lee Heeseung (20) says.

Netizens have been complaining about the lack of coverage on this issue.

“Maybe Mr. Kim spent all his money on covering this story up from the mainstream public. That’s why he had to build the stupid park on an abandoned sketchy site.” An anonymous netizen commented.

Regardless, we’ll be keeping our prayers for Jongseong and Riki, as well as the five other victims, to return home soon.

“...you guys are such wimps.” That was the first thing you heard Soobin say when you tuned in to the conversation again.

How dare he say that? How dare he have the courage to call you, someone who moved out on your own at 16 to live in the big, scary world, a..wimp?

“Look, Choi Soobin. I may be a lot of things, but I’m not a wimp. I didn’t say that I wasn’t interested on this trip.” You stand up and blurt out without thinking twice.

The rest of the boys are gawking at you, their mouths open wide in awe and shock. Yes, you weren’t a wimp, that was for sure, but they had known you all their life as someone who could not stand going out into the wilderness. Maybe the big city had really changed you.

“At least someone wants to go! Perfect. We can leave tomorrow at noon, bring your camping stuff!” Soobin grabbed his things and began walking away.

“Camping?” The five of you exclaimed in unison.

Taehyun, the rational member, gasped. “I, personally, wouldn’t mind going to the carousel thing..or whatever it is, but I am not staying the night. Dude, are you nuts?” The rest of you nodded your heads in agreement.

“It says in the article that we are advised to leave before the sun sets.” You point out, trying to keep your voice as steady as possible in fear of breaking this mask of false confidence, when in reality, you were terrified of this place.

Soobin turned back and eyed you down disinterestedly. “Conclusion is that we’ll bring a small backpack, or whatever you guys want to pack, and we’ll stay there until eight. Deal?”

“Seven.” Hueningkai timidly said.

“Whatever you guys want.”

You hadn’t been able to sleep last night. It wasn’t due to fear of the place you were going, rather, you weren’t too excited about having to spend half of your day around Soobin.

What were you going to say to him? You were definitely overthinking at this point.

You know, they always say that the person one hates the most is the one that they also love most. And when Soobin flipped his blue hair back or cheekily smiled, showing his endearing dimples, you couldn’t help but…

No! You loathe Choi Soobin. You couldn’t stand his smile, or his hair, or his height. That evil moonwitch.

“Hey, you ready to go?” Speak of the devil (or moonwitch), you spotted a fluff of blue hair in your peripheral vision.

You couldn’t even muster up the courage to look back at him, merely nodding your head while staring at the white wall.

“Why aren’t you looking at me? Are you...scared?” You could see him wiggle his eyebrows as he made that statement.

That was it. You turned back at him. “Yes I am. I’m absolute terrified. I can’t stand the fact that I have to forcibly spend my precious time around you. It’s like I’m about to voluntarily live a nightmare.”

Woah there, calm down. You had smoke spurting out of your ears at this point.

Soobin’s once excited face fell into one of disappointment. “Yeah, it’s a nightmare having to be around you too. Gosh, the immaturity.” He left the room in haste as your eyes shot lasers through his well-toned back.

Maybe you had gone too far with the insult. He hadn’t been mean to you at all, really.

Then again, he had been mean. He took your place when you weren’t around. Suddenly, you were determined to get it back.

“Hop on the magic school bus!”

“Shut up, Yeonjun.” You deadpanned before leaning your head on his shoulder. The two of you were finally falling back into routine and you couldn’t help but bask in this nostalgia.

You also couldn’t help but notice how Soobin kept on looking through the rearview mirror at the both of you, pupils darting away once you locked eyes with him.

Man, this was going to be a long ride.

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