#wen junhui fanfiction

[straylightdream]

so it goes…

𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐭: wen junhui x camgirl! f.reader

↳ Getting caught up in a moment. Lipstick on your face, so it goes. I'm yours to keep and I'm yours to lose.

𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: non idol au

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 5.6k

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: angst, camgirl reader, kind of anonymous camboy jun, smut warning below the cut

an: this was inspired by the song so it goes.. by taylor swift. This another one of my stories inspired by reputation songs. This can be read as a one shot but these guys and there friends are mention in a series of loosely connected stories called all for you

𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐬.

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: unprotected sex(mc is on birth control), camgirl reader, creampie, snowballing?? kind of anonymous camboy jun, dirty talk, oral (male rec), recording sexual acts, fingering & handjobs, thigh riding, masturbation, nicknames: (hers) baby, baby girl, (his) baby,

Long before you even met Junhui you heard about him frequently from your friend from college friend. You and her had grown closer in the last year when she took up being a cam girl just like you. Your life as a cam girl wasn’t planned but down on your luck you had heard plenty of girls talk about how they make bank off of it so you decided to give it a try. After a month and half of doing it you were making so much money you didn’t bother looking back. Your online persona “cherrybby” was something you tried to keep separate from your everyday life.

You weren’t ashamed of your career path by any means. You would prefer that close family don’t know and you don’t normally tell new friends about your job until you're comfortable. The only downside of your career is dating. You’ve been a cam girl for three years and hadn’t even been on one date. Your sex life consists of pleasuring yourself on camera. You don’t know the last time a man had touched you.

On a random Monday afternoon you were having lunch with your friend kitten who is now a cam girl. She telling you all about how her boyfriend Joshua gets off on being in the room while she films. You can’t help but be envious that she’s able to have a stable relationship and this career.

“Have you gone out with anyone recently?” She asked.

A soft chuckle passes your lips, “I haven’t had sex with a man once since I started this job.”

“Would you be interested in dating someone?” You know that she has a large group of friends and you’ve met a few of the boys and they’re all extremely good looking.

“I feel like if I go on a date with someone they need to know even before dating me about my job,” you sigh.

“I have a friend named Junhui. He’s like only one of my only friends I told about my job after Shua found out.”

“Have I met him before?” You’re trying to remember all the boys you met the one time you met her at the bar.

“No you haven’t. Junhui isn’t going to judge you for your job. He’s a really nice guy, he’s really hard working. He’s one of those nine to five guys who wears a suit to work everyday and works in an office.”

She was right he didn’t judge you for your career. Kitten managed to set you up with Junhui a week after you had lunch. He took you out to dinner and a movie. You asked him if he would be okay with your job and he told you he’s fine with it. He told you he respected you for how hard you worked to make money. The one downside to him was, he let you know he wasn't able to be in a super serious relationship but he definitely wanted to date. You took that as you were going to be together but you weren’t going to put a label on it right away.

-

It’s been four months and in your mind Junhui is your boyfriend even though you’ve never had the talk about labels. You learned very early on that Junhui has a thing for appearing in your videos but remaining anonymous. He often wears a face mask and makes sure you only see him from the neck down. He’s never taken his clothes off on camera. He has no problem fingering you until you’re practically screaming or playing with you or using toys on you.

He’s sitting on the edge of the bed with you straddling his strong thigh. He’s dressed in business attire coming over straight from work. He’s wearing tight slacks, and a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up showing the veins in his arms.

He always tries to see you before you go live. He made a joke about you riding his thigh and the next thing you knew he has you naked with your camera on. Your lips are painted a cherry color as your leave lipstick stains across the column of his neck. You grind your hips against this thigh getting the friction you desperately need.

It’s a blessing you live alone so you can be as loud as you need. Your fingers cling to his white dress shirt, rubbing yourself against his thigh harder.

“Fuck,” he softly moans. His hands grip your add helping you grind against him.

As you fall apart it takes everything not to moan his name. You instead opt for moaning, “baby” your name you only refer to him as on camera.

After you finish your stream you lay on your bed completely naked watching as Junhui stands next to the bed staring down at you. He’s fixing his tie that you had been holding on to as your orgasm washed over. “I wanted to suck the life out of you on camera.” You desperately want to give him head on camera or have him fuck you, but that’s against one of the only boundaries you have both set when it came to your streams. He wanted to remain fully anonymous and he didn’t want to be naked on your streaks.

He chuckles, “you can do it now off camera.”

“I thought you had to meet Seungcheol, Minghao, and Joshua at the bar?” You know he doesn’t have time for that.

“They can wait.” He unbuckles his belt.

“I shouldn’t make you late again,” you sit up slowly.

“Why don’t you come with me?” He pushes his dress pants and boxers down his strong thighs.

“It sounds like it’s a boys night.” He crawls onto the bed and strokes himself as he watches you crawl towards him.

He shakes his head, “it’s not, some of the boys are bringing their girlfriends. Shau is bringing Kitten, and Seungcheol is bringing Darling. Jihoon might also swing by and if he does his girlfriend might be with him.”

You lay on your stomach in front of him. You watch as he strokes his hardened length.

“Are you sure you want me to go?” You’re still always a little awkward when you go on outings with him.

“Yes I’m sure. Now are you going to suck me off like you desperately wanted to do?”

You can’t help but smile before you take over stroking him. He watched you with lust filled eyes. You slowly lick his sensitive head as you stroke him. “Are you going to tease me?” Hollowing your cheeks you take him into your mouth as far as he can go. The moans that pass his lips are absolutely intoxicating.

His fingers thread your hair pulling your hair away from your face.

“Fuck you’re so good at this,” he moans.

It doesn’t take long before he falls apart moaning your name. You hold him in your mouth swallowing every last drop of his release.

He pulls you up to him so you’re sitting on his lap. “I can’t get enough of you.” He crashes his lips into your not caring that he can taste his one cum on your tongue.

-

Leaning against the bar, he stares at you intently watching as you’re talking to Minghao and Kitten. You can feel his eyes burning into you. It’s intoxicating knowing that you’re the only thing he can focus on.

“You know I’ve never seen him so fascinated by a girl,” his roommate Minghao says.

“Seems like Junnie is down bad for you,” Kitten says smiling. He’s not the only one who is down bad. You’ve been seeing him for four months and it’s safe to say you are very in love with him. The problem is he hasn’t labeled your relationship and hasn’t mentioned being in love with you. “You know before you Junhui was so focused on work he never had time to date or go out. Since he started seeing you he's been more social again.”

“My dear roommate Junnie isn’t great with commitment. He never has been, he seems different with you.” You hope that means that he plans on defining your relationship soon.

“He’s the first guy I have dated in years and honestly I really love being with him. He’s kinda perfect for me.” Junhui is everything you’ve ever wanted in a partner. There is something special about the fact he’s so accepting about your career. Whatever you do Junhui doesn’t judge you.

“I’m lucky you introduced me to him,” you give Kitten a smile.

Joshua comes over wrapping his arms around her waist like pulling her back for a kiss.

Looking over at Junhui you give him a come hither look. Pushing himself off the bar he excuses himself from his conversation with Seungcheol. He comes over taking your hand in his. Placing a gentle kiss on the top of your hand. You lean in close to him and instantly feel a warmth take over you at being close to him.

“Can I spend the night at your place?” He asked.

“Of course.” You love when he spends the night. Your place gives you more privacy since you don’t have roommates.

You spend the night talking to Junhui friend’s who you now consider your own friends and when ten o’clock rolls around Junhui uses this as his opportunity to tell everyone he’s tired and needs to go to bed. Taking you by the hand he leads you out of the bar. The moment you’re in his car his hand is on your thigh telling you he can’t wait to have you naked.

The moment he walks into your apartments he drags you off to your room. With little effort he has you naked.

He has you on your side with your leg hooked over his arm as he stuffs your tight pussy full with each slow thrust from behind. Your hand reaches behind you, tangling your fingers in his hair. He leaves a trail of kisses across your shoulder. Definitely leaving bruises in his path. You adore how intimate this whole thing is between you. You don’t feel the need to try and come off as sexy. You can just be yourself and enjoy the way he’s making you feel.

“Baby-“ he moans in your ear.

He knows all the ways to make you fall apart.

“Rub your clit.”

Silently you follow his instructions. The coil in your stomach tightens as you’re close to falling apart.

As a white hot wave washes over you, you hold back desperately wanting to admit you love him.

-

It’s been two weeks since you went to the bar with Junhui and his friends. In those two weeks you’ve realized that you are indeed very much in love with him. He’s been super busy at work so you haven’t gotten to see him as much as normal. That doesn’t stop you from talking on the phone daily and even stealing a few minutes alone when you can.

You're making yourself a little snack before you go live. You’re already in your lingerie you plan on wearing. Dressed in a sheer blush colored bra that does nothing to cover your nipples and a pair of crotchless matching panties.

Your front door opens and you peek your head out of the kitchen to see Junhui walking in. He’s dressed in his normal business attire he wears to work. You didn’t plan on seeing him today. He had mentioned he had dinner plans with some of the boys.

“Hi baby,” he smiles, walking towards you. “I see I found you in your work clothes.”

“I was going to stream soon.”

“You look mouth watering,” he walks toward you. He backs you up until your butt hits the kitchen table. “Am I allowed to play with you before you go online?” If he’s asking to play with you off camera, you know that definitely means he wants to be naked with you. He just doesn’t want to toy with you while others watch.

You give him a playful pout, “you know I can’t say no to you.”

Without a word he picks you up, sitting you on the edge of the kitchen table. He stands between your legs. You tugs on his tie pulling him closer to you. “You didn’t go home after work?”

“Why would I?” He cocks his head to the side. “Especially when you’re walking around looking like this?”

“I thought you had dinner plans with Minghao, and Jeonghan?” You originally planned on streaming tonight, but you would much rather spend time with him.

“I told them something came up.”

“What came up?” Leaning forward you press your cherry painted lips against the collar of his crisp white shirt.

“I thought you might want me to stream with you.”

“Are you sure it’s just not because you wanted to see me?” You reply pulling back to look at him with doe eyes. Tugging on his tie pulling him closer to you. “can you tell me you missed me?”

“Baby I always miss you,” he smiles.

“I don’t want to go live I want you to fuck me instead.”

He doesn’t say anything, he just picks you up and carries you off to your bedroom. He tosses you on the bed with a smirk across his face.

“Baby did you want to film me fucking you?” He unbuttons his shirt.

“I thought you didn’t want to stream with your clothes off?”

“How about you film us and we can decide if you post it,” he reaches for your camera that’s sitting on your dresser.

“Okay,” you smiled.

Laying on the bed he sets up the camera and hits record. Sitting on your knees in the middle of the bed you watch as he slowly unbuttons his dress shirts. “You look so pretty sitting there watching me.”

“You’re just so pretty,” you smile.

Tossing his dress shirt on the floor he unbuckled his pants. “Can I take them off?” You asked?

“Anything you want pretty.” Crawling off the bed you move to your knees in front of him. You unbuttoned his pants and pushed them and his boxers down his strong thighs. His already hard cock slaps against his stomach. There is something thrilling about doing all this while you’re being recorded. You take him in your hands, bring his red tip to your lips. You kitten lick the tip earning a groan from him. “Are you going to tease me baby?” You don’t respond you look up him with doe eyes as you take him as far in your mouth as he can go. His fingers tangled in your hair holding it back from your face.

“Fuck I love you mouth,” he moans as you hollow your cheeks and bob your head. You’ve always found joy in giving him head. You love the noises he’s makes and you like that you can read him like a book when you have him like this.

“Baby I’m gonna cum in your mouth if you don’t stop right now.” Pulling off you release him with a pop.

He stares down at you for a moment looking like he’s on the brink of insanity. He reaches down, helping you stand up. He drags thumb across your bottom lip, swiping some of his precum and your spit. Parting your lips he places his thumb in your mouth. Sucking gently as you stare at him.

“How do you want me?” You asked.

“I want you to spread out for me.”

Laying the bed still dressed in your crotchless panties, he's sitting back on his knees. He’s running his cock through your fold. You gasp as his bulbous head nudges your sensitive clit. “You’re so wet.”

“It’s always for you-“

He pushes into you slowly. “Spread your legs for me more,” he sighs.

The whole time he’s thrusting into you, he kisses his way across your skin. He sucks on your nipple earning a wanton moan.

The whole time you're filming his eyes never leave yours. He watches you with this loving stare. This isn’t some lust filled haze he normally has. When he finally pushes you over the edge you don’t think you have ever cum that hard in your life.

“Where did you want me to finish?” He asked if his thrust started to grow sloppier.

“Inside,” you beg.

“I’m gonna fill you up,” he moans. He paints your walls white and he fills you with thick ropes of his cum. He stops moving and stares at you for a moment before saying “you’re so fucking perfect.”

He doesn’t realize that you think he’s your whole entire world.

-

Junhui finally has a day off and his one goal for the day was to spend time with you. He spent the night and loved being able to wake up in bed with you. You morning cuddle session turned into slow passionate morning sex where Junhui had you laying in your stomach with a pillow under your hips. He loved finding any position he can to fuck you from behind.

You’ve spent the day just enjoying each other's company. He planned on having a lazy night in, but forgot about the little gathering at Wonwoo and his girlfriend's place.

“Can you go with me to dinner at Wonwoo and honey’s place?” He says setting his phone down.

You glance up at him from your spot on the couch. “Sure who is all going?”

“Shau and kitten, Seungcheol and darling, Soonyoung and sweetie, Jihoon and ruby.”’ You realize instantly this is a dinner for most of the couples in the friend group.

“Hao and Hannie aren’t coming?”

“No, they are both busy.”

“Sure.”

Arriving at your friend's apartment you can’t help but feel a little strange that it’s all just couples. As the night goes on everyone is hanging out and you can’t help but focus on how each of the couples interact together. You’re reminded that from the outside looking in people must assume Junhui is your boyfriend. He’s spent most the night touching you in one way or another. Towards the end of the night you notice he’s kind of gone cold. He suddenly seems distant to everyone. He’s standing in the kitchen by himself getting a glass of wine water when you walk in.

“You okay Jun?”

He stares at you with his eyebrows knit together for a long moment before closing the distance between you. He cradles your face in his hands as he crashes his lips into yours.

“I want to get out of here,” he whispers against your lips.

“Okay we can leave.”

The car ride back to your place feels weird. Something seems off about him but you can’t figure out what.

Walking into your apartment the moment the door is shut he pushes you up against your wooden door. His finger tangles in your hair while he kisses you like he needs you to breathe. Pulling away from you for a moment he whispers your name before his hand roam your body. Pushing your dress off, he tugs on your underwear pulling them down your legs.

He seems like he’s desperate for you. Normally you would play along but you can’t figure out why this all feels so off.

His finger dip between your folds earning a moan. His eyes look empty as they stare at you for the first time. Suddenly it feels like a bucket of cold water has been dumped on you.

“Jun-“ you pause. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing- just- fuck-“ he seems destrought. He removes his hands from you and steps back. You pull your underwear backup as you wait for him to say more, but he doesn’t.

“Can I ask you something?” He doesn’t say anything he just stares at you. “What are we?” This question has been eating you alive for days.

“We’re dating,” he tilts his head to the side, his eyes still seeming empty.

“Are we exclusive?” You feel like you’re crazy for the fact you have to have this conversation almost five months in.

“Of course we are.”

“Are you my boyfriend?” You know this label was what was driving you insane.

“Why are we having this conversation tonight?” He sighs.

“Because something is wrong and I feel like we need to talk about what is bothering both of us.”

“This is what’s bothering you?” He seems void of emotions.

“Yeah. I don’t understand what we are. I want you to be my boyfriend,” you feel like you’re on the verge of crying.

“It’s complicated,” he sighs.

“It shouldn’t be. You act like my boyfriend. Hell we literally got invited to couples night with your friends.”

“I have so much going on in my life and I can’t fully commit to being your boyfriend. Work is so much right for me. I don’t have time to fully commit to you.” That’s bullshit. He’s constantly spending time with you. You see him at least three times a week.

“I’m not asking for much. I like what we have. I just want to call you my boyfriend and not feel crazy for being in love with you.” Telling him you love him like this feels wrong. It makes your chest burn. You always hoped to hear him say it first to you.

“You love me?” He looks completely caught off guard by your statement.

“Why do you sound shocked?”

“I don’t know,”

“I don’t think you love me, and that’s okay. But I think if you can’t commit to me more, for my own self preservation I need to stop this. This-“ you point between the two of you. “Is just going to break my heart.”

“I’m trying so hard not to break your heart.”

“But you aren’t really trying,” tears slowly start to slide down your cheek. “If you were actually trying to work with me. I wouldn’t feel like I’m going through a fucking maze trying to figure out what’s got you so upset.” You push away your tears. “I don’t know why you’re so guarded, because you won’t ever tell me why you’re like this. I feel like I know you, but at the same time there are so many things about yourself you keep hidden from me. But I have fully let you in. I showed you parts of myself I have been terrified to show other people. I never hid my job from you, you’re the first person I fully never trusted anyone to see that side of me.” He just stares at you with his eyes brimming with tears. “From the beginning I’ve never liked anyone like I like you. I’ve always been yours to keep, but at the same time yours to lose.” The silence in the room is screaming. “I think you should probably head out.” You reach on the floor picking up your dress that he peeled off you. You walk away from the door.

He nods and steps away from you. The moment the front door shuts you can’t help but sob. He made it very clear he doesn’t love you, and now you feel crazy for ever falling for him.

-

You haven’t spoken to him in two weeks, and in that time you’ve only gone live once. It wasn’t a normal long stream you would do for at least an hour. This one was short, and after one orgasm you needed the live. The whole time you were on camera you could only think of Junhui and it was breaking your heart. It didn’t help that the chat was asking where your mystery man you called “baby” was.

Getting over a one-sided breakup hurts. It doesn’t help that you don’t exactly have a ton of friends that live in the city. You could call Kitten but you felt weird since she’s friends with Junhui too.

Laying in bed looking through your phone you see the only sex tape that you and him had made together. You know he said you could post for subscribers only page behind a paywall, but you never intended for anyone to see this video other than the two of you. You know you should delete it or just store it in your hidden folder and move on but for some reason you watch it. The loving looking in his eyes as he slowly rolls his hips into yours over and over again. Before you reach the end of the video when you fall apart moaning his name, you close your phone. There is once again that ache in your chest.

-

There is a knock on the door and you have no clue who could be at your door. Opening the door you weren’t expecting to see Minghao of all people on the other side. You have no clue why Junhui's roommate is at your door.

“Hi?” You’re confused on why he’s here.

“You know Junnie won’t tell me anything, but he’s been sulking around the apartment for over two weeks and when I asked about you he looked like he was fighting back tears.” You step aside and Minghao walks in.

You don’t respond to his statement, you instead ask, “Would you like tea?”

“Please.”

He sits at your kitchen table as you make two cups of tea. You place a cup in front of him and sit down across from him.

“Are you going to tell me what happened with Junhui?” Minghao is probably the only of the few people in Junhui's friends that fully knows about your actual job.

“It’s complicated,” you sigh.

“I’m going to assume he’s the one that messed up,” he sighs before taking a sip of his tea.

“Hao, how would you explain to someone my relationship with him?” You’re curious to see what someone from the outside thinks of your relationship.

“You’re his girlfriend,” he raises an eyebrow.

“Turns out I wasn’t. Our relationship was odd. In my eyes he was my boyfriend, we were together all the time and he even took me on dates. Hell he even knew about my job and didn’t care.” You decided to leave out that he would film with you. “He would never fully commit though. He would dodge referring to me as his girlfriend. And when I asked him what we were, he just told me all the reasons he couldn’t be my boyfriend.”

Minghao takes a deep breath as he gives you a sympathetic look. “He got his heart broken really badly before you. She couldn’t take how busy he was with work. They dated for two years and one day she ended things saying that his job would always come first.”

“I don’t think he’s heartbroken this time. He made it clear he didn’t love me when I told him I loved him.”

He sets his cup down and has a confused look on his face. “What do you mean he doesn’t love you?”

“His response to my confession was, I’m trying really hard not to break your heart.”

“Fuck he’s dumb.”

“You know I let him see every part of me and never hid anything from him, and wouldn’t fully let me in.”

“Before you let go of him. Could you try talking to him one last time?”

“Minghao why? He’s not here trying to talk to me. You are?”

“Listen, he loves you and he wants more. He’s just scared.” He sighs. “He’s not as guarded as you think is.”

“You know he doesn’t talk about his family at all?”

“That’s because he’s has some issues with his family. It’s just him and his mom. His dad left when he was young. He works hard to help support his mom.”

“Why won’t he tell me this?” It hurts that he hasn’t tried to talk to you.

“I guess it’s his way of protecting himself.” He sighs standing up.

“He doesn’t have to protect himself when it comes to me.”

“You don’t have to do this, but maybe you should come by and see if he’ll talk to you.”

“He needs to come to me. I can’t put myself on the line anymore. I’m already hurt enough. If he wants to fix this he has to be the one to fix it.”

Minghao leaves, giving you a hug goodbye. You decide that night you need to let go of Wen Junhui.

-

Another week goes by before there is another knock on the door. You were getting ready to attempt to do a short stream. You threw on a robe fully covering your body.

Opening the door you’re surprised to see Junhui standing on the side. He’s dressed in his work clothes. He looks tired and there isn’t his normal light behind his eyes.

“Why are you here?” He opens his mouth to speak and nothing comes out before he sighs. “If you’re here to waste my time you can leave.”

“I’m not good at any of this stuff.”

“Clearly,” you retort.

“Can I come in so we can talk?”

Silently you step aside. He walks inside standing in the living room. You shut and lock the door. You can’t help but think about the last time you were together when he had you pressed up against it.

“It’s been a month,” you break the screaming silence.

“I know.”

“Junhui you broke my heart that day. What were you so in your head about that night. You seemed so cold at the party,” your eyes are already brimming with tears.

“I wish I could go back in time and change what happened that night.” He sighs leaning against the back of the couch.

“Why?”

“Because I fucked up and hurt you. I’m sorry I was so closed off and hurt you. That night I just watching us with all the couples confused me. I had always told myself I didn’t need a relationship like that that night just confused me. I thought I couldn’t give you what everyone else had.”

“I’ve felt like I did something wrong for an entire month. I thought that maybe the reason you’re so closed off is because of my job.” That little thought had been eating away at you for weeks.

He shakes his head. “Your job had nothing to do with this. It’s not your fault even the slightest. It’s not a good excuse but I got my heart broken by a girl I was with for years. She ended things because of how much I work. I know from the beginning you said you didn’t care that I was so busy, but I thought if I committed to more with you. That one day you would end it because I can’t always be there.”

You don’t say anything for a long moment. You step towards him. You stare at him for a long moment. You hate how sad he looks. “I’m not asking for you to be readily available to me twenty-four seven. I’m just asking for you to let yourself love me, and label what we have.” Reaching up, you rest your hand gently on his cheek. Your thumb slowly drags across his delicate skin. “I fell so incredibly hard for you, and you made me feel like I was insane for loving you.”

“You weren’t lying when you said you were mine to keep and mine to lose. I fell so hard for you too, and I was so scared that I was going to lose you.”

He looks like he’s about to cry. “I didn’t want to leave you. You pushed me away.”

“I don’t ever want to push you away again.”

“Let yourself love me then,” you sigh.

“I already do love you. I loved you when you kicked me out. I loved you every second we were apart. I still love you.”

The world suddenly feels like it’s spinning a little quicker. There’s nothing you can say in that moment. Leaning up you crash your lips into his for a heated kiss. Your arms are wrapped around his neck pulling him closer to you.

With his lips ghosting yours he whispers, “I love you.”

Pulling back you can’t help but smile, “that’s good because I love you too.”

“I would like for you to be my girlfriend. I’m just asking that you’re patient with me.”

“I can be patient,” you can’t help the happy tears that are starting to fall.

“Work is going to be crazy for me sometime. But just know I might be busy, but I’m always thinking about you, and I’m going to try my hardest to make time for you.”

“All I’m asking for is for you to always try your hardest with me and I’ll do the same with you,” he pressed his lips gently to the side of your mouth.

“I’m assuming by your robe you were getting ready to film?” He gently tugs on the belt.

“Yeah but I can film tomorrow. Maybe tonight we could take a bath and just spend time together.”

“I would love that.”

You knew that things always wouldn’t be the easiest. But all that mattered was that he loved you, and you loved him with your whole heart. All the pieces feel like they’re all suddenly falling into place.

[ashonheavenscloud]

⋆｡𖦹°⭒˚｡⋆ ot13 seventeen: favourite places to kiss you <3

a/n: these got longer and increasingly sickeningly sweet as i went on JASBJDJD i hope you enjoy <3 comments and reblogs are greatly appreciated, but please do not repost :)

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☆ seungcheol:

Lips: he’s just so obsessed with kissing you omg and it makes him twice as happy if he gets to cradle your head close to his and watch your eyelids flutter shut before he kisses you. loves loves loves how you look dazed and flustered after he pulls away it’s literally his favourite thing in the world. if you’re in a rush, or busy with something- YOU’RE NOT TOO BUSY FOR HIS LIPS😠 he is actually incapable of quick pecks. 30 seconds max, and that’s only if you really insist you have to get to work in time.

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☆ jeonghan:

Cheeks: i think jeonghan would give you really sweet cheek kisses :( especially as a greeting. he’ll be sleepy in the morning and pad into the living room to where you’re sipping coffee/tea and gently kiss your cheek as good morning. or he’ll be sitting next to you in comfortable silence, reading or scrolling through his phone and when you say something that makes him smile, he just leans over and pecks your cheek. you also MUST reciprocate!! or he’ll get pouty and upset until you give him as many as he deems necessary to make up for it💔

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☆ joshua:

Cheeks/lips: imagine you’re casually chatting with Joshua and when you stop talking or pause to take a breath he softly laughs and kisses your cheek. HE CANT HELP IT it’s just his natural reaction to how endearing you are! no matter what, anytime you finish ranting to him, he has to kiss your cheek or lips. mostly because of how much it makes you smile, he would do anything to see you smile and blush. which is why kissing your lips is another favourite of his! he likes the dazed expression on your face when he pulls away, and the way he can feel your smile on his mouth as he’s kissing you. but be warned- kisses on the lips can never be short with this man. because the second he’s kissing you every other plan goes out the window. i guess you’re booked for the evening ;)

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☆ jun:

Nose/lips: he likes to kiss tip of your nose :( as well as silly little kisses on your lips. he just gets really excited easily and when he is, and he’s rambling to you or showing you something he found that he thought would make you smile or laugh, he’s pausing between every few sentences to peck you. usually his kisses flurry between your nose and lips before you pull him in for a real kiss and he MELTS and happily obliges to kissing you longer. ramble immediately over, he’s got all the time in the world when your lips are on his.

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☆ hoshi:

???: honestly… hoshi would just kiss you everywhere JAJSJSJ he isn’t picky!! he’ll squish your face between his palms and kiss all over your face, or come behind you and kiss the back of your head/neck. when he’s sleepy and you’re cuddled together he’ll hold your hands gently to his chest and lean down and press little kisses to your knuckles :((( he’s basically ALWAYS kissing you and if there’s a situation where for some reason he can’t sneak one in, he’s holding your hand in his and thinking of some way to pull you away for just oneeeeeee second-

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☆ wonwoo:

Hands/fingers: he totally kisses your fingers and the back of your hand i will die on this hill. mostly because i think wonwoo would just perpetually be holding your hand. it’s a casual way to stay connected with you, especially in comfortable silence. whether you’re both reading or napping or watching something on the tv, he keeps your hand intertwined with his, every once in a while bringing your knuckles to his lips to gently kiss them, maybe even several times. he likes that it makes you super flustered and smiley, and makes him quietly smile to himself too. it’s also a reassuring gesture that he’d use when you’re anxious or stressed, and subtle enough that he can lightly kiss your hand when you’re out in public and not get super shy about it

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☆ woozi:

Temples: woozi isn’t one for public displays of affection, and isn’t necessarily the clingy type but he does feel very protective of you. one way he shows that is by kissing your temples, especially when he knows you’re stressed. he’ll ease your furrowed brow with his hand, massaging away the tension with a gentle kiss on your temple and a warm smile that quietly reminds you he’s there, he’s on your side. if you did a similar thing to him, he’d honestly probably get really flustered and blushy, but he loves it even when he whines that he’s trying to work and you’re disturbing him! (please disturb him more often, you’re his breath of fresh air)

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☆ seokmin:

Cheeks/jawline: now i think seokmin is just perpetually kissing you anywhere, similar to hoshi, but while hoshi is straight up attacking you with affection LMAO seokmin tends to be gentler. which is why he especially likes to kiss your cheeks. it’s tender. it’s sweet. and he can do it anytime anywhere. he probably does this most when you’re working or busy doing something, just to remind you that he loves you :( if you’re not busy, though, he does not want to kiss you just once and ends up trailing a bunch of feathery kisses over your jawline. sometimes it escalates🫣 but it’s often just to tease and make you squirm cause he thinks it’s cute shhdhshsjdjf really his goal when kissing you is always to make you smile/giggle because happy you = happy seokmin!

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☆ mingyu:

Neck/lips: mingyu likes to come up behind you and give you bear hugs ALL THE TIMEEEE, and naturally that gives him the perfect excuse to bury his head in the crook of your neck and plant a couple kisses on your skin. he does this literally all the time, and they can be equal parts affectionate and sweet, as well as teasing and a lil spicy, depending on either of your moods <3 but also mingyu is just obsessed with kissing your lips, and when he does he cannot get enough. he’s got your lower lip trapped between his teeth and he’s making out with you for a good fifteen minutes before he realizes he actually came into the room to grab his charger NOT to kiss you… but who’s complaining really🤪

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☆ minghao:

Top of your head/forehead: like woozi, minghao is very protective of you. he has a very nurturing and attentive nature where all he wants to do is keep you happy and cared for. however, he equally appreciates that you both have independent hobbies and careers, so he really appreciates subtle acts of love that reminds each other that you’re thinking of the other even when you’re busy or doing your own things. kissing the top of your head/forehead is one of these subtle, but very meaningful actions minghao does regularly. when you greet him in the morning he greets you with coffee or tea and a lingering kiss on your head. as you’re getting ready for the day, he’ll briefly pause running around the house to gently kiss your forehead. he also often pairs his kiss with a few fingers affectionately running through your hair. you both find it calming, and if not anything else, minghao wants to be your safe place.

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☆ seungkwan:

Cheeks/lips: HE LOVESSSS KISSING YOUR CHEEKS he thinks you’re the cutest coolest person in the world and he likes that this small little offering of affection makes you smile. he especially uses this to show his gratitude to you- if you cooked dinner for him or offered to do a chore because he’s busy, or even when you’ve done nothing and he wants to remind you how thankful he feels to have you in his life🥺 and i had to add lips because at the end of the day, when he’s finished all his work, busy from his many schedules and hobbies etc. he comes home tired and spent, and kissing you lets him relax and let go of any stress. it makes him feel so content and at peace💔

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☆ vernon:

Forehead/temples: vernon is someone who appreciates the little things. he likes subtle, casual pieces of affection that are small thoughtful reminders that the other is thinking of them. for vernon, one of these small actions is light kisses on your temples or forehead. and he probably does this a lot- when you’re cuddling or waiting in line or watching a film/show. he pulls you close and gently kisses you, going back to whatever you were doing/talking about without blinking an eye. i think it’s similar to woozi and minghao, too, where vernon would feel very protective of his s/o and it’s something that he knows makes you feel safe and cared for.

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☆ chan:

Forehead/lips: okay i picked these specifically but i think chan would love to kiss all OVER your face because he just loves looking at you🥺 it makes his heart burst when you make eye contact with him and smile and he cannot help but want to flurry kisses all over you. however he knows there’s a time and place, so if you’re out in public or in the middle of something he generally settles for a lingering kiss on your forehead that’s both affectionate and fiercely protective. because what’s the point of his affection if not to preserve your smile? on the flip side i honestly i think he’d get SO excited if you kissed him first. he could just explode when you kiss him full on without without warning. will attempt to hide his fire red ears by returning the favour and kissing you for a lil bit. then at least if you do notice his blush, you’re even🤭

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[papermatisse]

False Pretenses || W.JH

♗ pairing: merchant!wen junhui x f!reader

♗ genre: angst, fluff, regency

♗ word count: 19.5k

♗ warnings: none (period piece, historical anecdotes)

♗ synopsis: Wen Junhui was the epitome of perfection. Tall, handsome, intelligent, kind, a gentleman, and the list goes on for miles on end. So it is only expected that this man of everyone's dreams was regrettably taken already, right? Betrothed to another, and so condemned from being pursued by any other? But what's to happen if he himself begins the pursuit with another?

♗ (a/n): lol surprise the reason I rewrote my regency beomgyu fic was bc I was reminded of it whilst writing this one lmao.

funny story: this was supposed to be 8k words lmao. but then I kept writing and here we are jskfjsjf. idk how or why but yeh I wrote. please enjoy!

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The symphony of strings filled the atmosphere with their delicate and transcendent melodies. Candle lit chandeliers dangled above the attendees beneath them, the lot waltzing together as one fluid mass. Plethora of shades and hues meshed together, blurring like a Monet to form this masterpiece of motion. Mirrors lined the walls, only adding to the grandiose image before her with its decadent lights and colors. Gold trimmings adorned the area they resided in, intricate carvings swirling and writhing together like vines as they stretched up to the ceiling above, revealing this scene of the heavens opened to gaze down upon the people basking in all of the splendor and extravagance of the scene.

A sight most would envy her for, a rarity amongst others yet something so incredibly common and recurrent in her life. The music was nice, yet felt tedious after some time. The people dancing, once a spectacle so wondrous to her as a child now a bore to gaze upon. Even the venue they resided in, a tribute to the baroque era and all of its grandeur, was yet another tacky and bothersome factor upon her life.

Perhaps it was because she had been trapped in this room, standing against the wall for the past hour or so, that she was filled with such spite. Or perhaps it was merely because life was beginning to feel repetitive and empty in its whole. Perhaps she was merely tired at the moment and it would all pass after a good night's rest.

Whatever may be the case, she desperately wanted out. Yet she remained rooted where she was, because her father was elsewhere speaking with the other gentleman at the party, her mother was prancing about socializing with every living thing she could find, and her brother was heavens knows where.

Her cold exterior was enough to ward off any prospective partners seeking a dance with her, and her unladylike stance against the wall had frightened any women from mingling with her. All she had to do was wait and she'd soon return to the comfort of her home.

"(y/n), dear!" Her mother's frantic shouts carried above the orchestra's next piece, drawing some onlookers who spared her a moment's glance before continuing with their own endeavors. "(y/n), my lovely (y/n)."

"Mother, what is it?" She huffed out as her mother had finally reached her, already tugging the girl into a standing position.

"There is a fine gentleman speaking to your brother right this moment." She rambled on as her hands darted to and fro, fixing her hair, adjusting her dress, smudging away any imperfections in her makeup. "Tall, young, handsome, and perfect for my beautiful daughter."

"And his name?" (y/n) raised a brow at the daft woman before her, who merely smoothed away the wrinkles in her daughter's irate expression before glancing back in the supposed direction of said man.

"That's for you to find out on your own once you go over and talk to him." Her mother's hands grasped at her shoulders, attempting to tug her away from the safety and comfort of her corner, but before she could make it even a foot away from her spot, (y/n) raised a hand to her mouth. With one exhale, a loud whistle expelled from her, briefly garnering the attention of passersby who glared her way for a second before returning to their party. The attention span of the average noble will never cease to amaze her.

Moments later, as her mother berated her for her indecent act in public, her brother came strolling over.

"You called?"

"Joshua, mother would like to know who your new acquaintance is."

"I just want to know if he's single or not." She sighed, seeing how she wasn't getting anywhere with her children's mannerisms. Joshua chuckled, rolling his eyes at the usual dilemma of his mother playing matchmaker for the two—an occurrence the two siblings were far too accustomed with.

"His name is Wen Junhui. He's a merchant who's just recently settled here in town for the time being. We've been discussing matters of supplies for father's business, and–"

"Oh, a merchant, (y/n), how splendid!" Her mother whispered enthusiastically.

"–he has a betrothed awaiting him back home." Joshua finished, biting back a grin as his mother's shoulders immediately slackened in defeat. (y/n) nodded with a smile, thanking her brother before he left to return to Mr. Wen.

"Don't be too saddened, mother." (y/n) began. "There's plenty of fish in the sea. I'm sure with your resilience, the next one will surely be the right one." She patted her back mockingly, earning a vexed scoff from her mother who grumbled to herself indignantly. (y/n) could only hear some utterances regarding her mother only wanting the best for her daughter, as well as silent curses for birthing problem children.

The tendency of her mother to scour the premises for prospective marriage partners was a habit that (y/n) had unfortunately gotten used to. Perhaps yet another reason to loathe parties, as it merely exists as another breeding ground of men (y/n) could potentially marry. Wen Junhui was yet another victim of mother's unabashed ogling, and yet another man on the ever growing list of disappointments in the marriage spectrum.

And so she was led to believe that the ordeal was done and over with, as were most of these marital occurrences that so frequently disrupted the stability of her life. That was until the day after said ball came to greet her, or more specifically a certain Wen Junhui strolling into her family's parlor in all of his elegant glory.

As described by her mother, he was quite the fair gentleman. Tall with broad shoulders and a slim waist, long legs that seemed to extend for days. His hair was light and blonde, sort of similar to the dusty yellow shade of one of the gowns tucked away in the back of her armoire. His features matched the rest of him, that being unrivaled beauty to any man she's ever seen. And to make matters worse, his manners were impeccable, already having her mother swooning by the first minute of his entry as he introduced himself to her.

"And over here we have the last of the family, my sister (y/n)." Joshua led the man over to where she rested.

"My lady, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." He bowed his head whilst extending his hand towards her, to which she slipped her own gloved one into his as response. He leant down further, pressing his lips against her knuckles momentarily before slowly standing to full height once more.

Though still considered proper etiquette, it was a rarity in their day to greet someone as such. So whilst her mother and father simply continued on with familiarizing themselves with their guest, (y/n) had quickly tucked her hand atop her lap once more, turning her head away in embarrassment at the action. She could feel the warmth of his touch still penetrating through the cloth of her gloves, sending tingles up her arm. Such an old fashioned, traditional practice that she herself was well aware of, yet it was the act of a handsome man performing such a deed that sent this delightful warmth coursing through her veins.

"Mr. Wen, please take a seat anywhere you'd like." (y/n)'s father insisted, gesturing to the many availabilities they had scattered about the room. Her brother seated himself in the chair to her right, and instead of taking the seat beside him, Junhui had planted himself at the other end of the chaise lounge chair that (y/n) was situated on. And like nothing ever happened, the lot continued their discussion, leaving (y/n) to simply deal with her own internal panic.

'He's married, he's married,' she repeated to herself in her head, a mantra which was meant to have quelled some of the nerves alight in her body, yet it had done little of the sort. Junhui's presence alone seemed to completely affect her in such a way that she had little to no knowledge on what else to do.

As if through the blessing of sibling telepathy, Joshua leant closer to (y/n) as Junhui regaled some traveling tale to their parents.

"Is everything alright?" He asked. She nodded, leaning closer to him to continue their silent conversation.

"Yes, though I feel slightly overheated and tired." He nodded, backing away and waiting for the next opportune moment before joining the discussion.

"My apologies for interrupting, but (y/n) isn't feeling too well, may I escort her to her room for the time being?"

"Why, of course," their father insisted. "Send a maid for some water, as well."

"Yes, father."

He helped his sister up, guiding her to the entry of the parlor. Before they could make their exit, however, (y/n) found herself turning to face Junhui once more, his eyes already trained on her as if having never left in the first place.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Wen."

"The pleasure is all mine, my lady."

"I apologize for having to cut our meeting so abruptly."

"No need for apologies. Please feel well soon."

She offered one last smile before allowing Joshua to guide her up to her room, summoning a maid for some water before retreating back downstairs. Through the thin walls of their estate, she could hear the resounding echoes of the company downstairs, more distinctly that of Junhui's voice carrying through the air and into her room. This low timbre, comforting and mesmerizing even through the obscured resonance from where she lay. It had that same warmth from before blooming in her chest, seeping into her body with this tranquil feeling alongside it.

A smile soon made its way unto her face, yet she chose to ignore it for the time being, burying herself further into her pillow to disregard the incessant flutter in her stomach.

"(y/n), are you okay today?" Juliet peered over from where she walked alongside the girl, pouting when she had blinked in confusion, as if having not listened to a word she was saying at all. "You're usually so attentive. I've already said about a dozen things that would have had you cackling in the most unladylike of ways, yet you haven't spared me anything more than a hum of acknowledgement. And even that feels generous to mention since I do not even think you actually are acknowledging me."

"I'm sorry, Juliet." She sighed, stopping in the middle of the trail they walked. Her friend solemnly gazed upon her, taking pity on the person who is usually so attentive and thorough.

"May I ask what has you so distracted on our outing?"

"Well," (y/n) nervously bit her lip, eyes darting about as if making sure no one were around to hear her admit her shame aloud. "There's this boy."

"A boy?" Juliet gasped, rushing towards (y/n) until she was face to face with her, barely any space between the two as she gaped in awe. "A boy has captured your attention? I didn't even think that was possible. You're usually so reserved no matter the person you talk to. Who could be so extraordinary enough to have won over your intrigue?"

"Well, that's the thing, you see." (y/n) brought her hand up, shielding her mouth as she leant into her friend's ear. "The man who I can't stop thinking about is married."

Juliet backed away, eyes blown wide from shock, yet an amused smirk settling in place.

"You have such an interesting set of standards. Why is it that the one thing you have ever desired is something not attainable?" (y/n) rolled her eyes, continuing with their walk and leaving Juliet to follow close behind. "Is it the fact that he truly is something you're not allowed to have? Like an impudent child who sets their eye on the most expensive of toys? Or perhaps it's the satisfaction you'll receive from having snatched away another person's treasure, like a seafaring pirate."

"Please, you're beginning to vex me with your nonsensical deliberation."

"Why, you can't blame me for being curious. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to tease the almighty lady of the Hong household." Juliet finally reached (y/n)'s side, linking her arm with hers as they continued on. "Or the lady of the Hong house currently, should I say?"

"Still harboring that crush on my brother, lady Juliet?" (y/n) rolled her eyes with a grin as her friend let out a childish squeal.

"Oh, you can't hold it against me. Joshua is the most handsome man I've ever seen in my life. And he's so polite and warmhearted and everything a girl can dream of." The girl sighed, tilting her head to rest on (y/n)'s shoulder. "I'll marry him one day, I swear upon it. And we can then be sisters. Isn't that exciting?"

(y/n) hummed in thought, resting her head against Juliet's as she faux considered for a second more.

"Perhaps it could be fun to have a sister such as yourself."

"You're such a coy thing." (y/n) laughed when she felt an elbow nudge into her side, earning a chuckle from the other girl in response.

The trail stretched on for a while more, the girls whispering and giggling in secrecy as they wasted away their day together.

For the past few days, Junhui had been all (y/n) could think about. Like a fresh wound, ever so slowly healing with its immediate pain and such, yet remaining even as the days stretched on; an irreversible scar meant to forever mar her skin. At least until she grows accustomed to the constant, that being the fact that Junhui truly does reside in her mind at all times, and she is to just grow used to this new presence.

She had begun presuming that her thoughts were manifesting themselves into some sort of self deluded hallucination when at one point, she saw a head of light blonde hair some distance away. Perhaps this withdrawal was assuming itself with consequences, such as imagining the man when he is nowhere in sight. Though that idea soon proved false when a head of black hair turned around, waving his hand upon spotting his sister.

"(y/n), oh heavens, it's Joshua." Juliet muttered, standing upright and separating herself from the girl. "Who is that beside him? Have I lost the battle in winning Joshua's affections?"

"No. You haven't." (y/n) responded, eyes not straying from said man as the two made their way towards them.

"How are you so sure?" Juliet asked, waving back to Joshua when she saw (y/n) frozen in place.

"Because Joshua's current company is already a married man."

It took only a second for Juliet to put the pieces together, head turning to stare at (y/n) in shock. Though she quickly schooled her expression once more when the boys had finally met with them.

"Good afternoon, ladies." Joshua began, bowing his head in acknowledgement to them. Juliet already had her hand extended before Joshua could offer his own, earning a chuckle out of him as he briefly held hers in greeting. "What brings you two all the way out here? I thought you said you'd be having a picnic with Juliet. I presume that would entail some sort of feast at her estate."

"We wanted to take a walk beforehand." (y/n) answered him, eyes glancing to Junhui every so often, only to find him staring back at her unabashedly. The attention flustered her greatly, and she found herself nervously opening up her parasol which had been previously dangling by her wrist. She hoped the contraption would at least shield her expression somewhat from the man's gaze, as she found it hard to hide how much he affected her at this point.

"Ah, I see." Joshua nodded in understanding. "We came to discuss some business matters with Juliet's father." (y/n) smiled at this, a subtle gesture of showing familiarity when not using proper titles towards people. Something the other two most likely didn't pick up on, but (y/n) knew her brother well. It was his way of showing his closeness to Juliet's family—his way of showing his closeness to Juliet. "Though we've arrived earlier than intended. I do enjoy being ahead of schedule, but it seems too early to be acceptable for our intended rendezvous, unfortunately."

"Then perhaps would you care to join us for our picnic?" Juliet asked, eyes brimming with anticipation. "For the time being, that is."

"Thank you for the invitation, Lady Juliet. We'd be delighted to accompany you two, if you'll have us."

"We'd be nothing short of honored to have you join us. Wouldn't you agree, (y/n)?" Juliet turned towards her friend, hopeful smile unwavering as she awaited her answer.

Truthfully so, (y/n) herself was conflicted.

On the one hand, there was the budding romance between her closest friend and her own brother. It was a relationship that felt both inevitable and yet so very impossible, purely for how oblivious the two were to one another's very real emotions for the other. Something so attainable, yet seemingly exhaustive in their efforts. A slight push in the right direction couldn't hurt anyone, (y/n) supposed.

Yet there was also the one concerning factor in the midst of all this; that being (y/n)'s own sprouting affections for a married man.

There really was no alternative to this. She could either stamp out her feelings entirely, or she could ignore them. Either way, she mustn't act upon them, as just the image of his doting wife awaiting her lover's return seemed to ground (y/n) into reality, forcing her to stray from those daydreams that seemed to occupy her consciousness on the daily.

Yet it felt so very uncomfortable to pursue that latter option. To simply push aside one's feelings as such felt so inhumane. It was upsetting how a simple infatuation could feel like such a taboo thing. But with everything considered, at this point it truly was.

The wise thing would be to reject the offer. Insist that the picnic be kept between the two friends whilst the boys head over to the business meeting. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, so Juliet and Joshua would fair well. And it would allow her space from Junhui to sort out those pesky emotions that seemed to continuously provoke her. In this case, distance making the heart grow weaker. The juxtaposition made sense in her head for now, at the least.

She looked up at the company before her, taking in the expectant expressions of her brother and her friend. And then she looked to Junhui.

His eyes were so beautiful, just like the rest of him. Round with this innocent glint in them, merely observing her as he would a performance. Yet there was this indescribable quality deep in his gaze, reeling her into their warm depths whether she wanted to or not. Drowning in this dark, unending sea of ember. Perhaps that's what led her to subtly nod her head, locked in this stare down with Junhui, too preoccupied to see the pitifully concealed excitement of the two others.

"Lady Juliet, may I be your escort this afternoon?" Joshua held out his arm, to which Juliet gladly accepted, the two already making their way down the path the girls had just come from.

"My lady," (y/n) blinked away her stupor to see Junhui approaching her, lips tugged into this effortlessly attractive smile. He offered his arm to her, head tilting as his gaze softened. "May I escort you to our eating arrangements?"

"You may," She responded, tucking her free hand into the crook of his arm, her other still nervously gripping the parasol resting over her shoulder.

She hadn't been in close proximity to Junhui before, merely a brief distance away from one another during his prior visit to her abode. She was reminded of his gentle kiss on her hand, as well as the incredible display of power he held over her as she couldn't stop thinking of him since. Considering their former encounter together lasted what felt like no more than five minutes, she felt this current situation was no good for her feeble heart.

"I apologize if my question is rather frank, but Joshua and Juliet… They are courting one another?" (y/n) snorted at this before immediately gasping and covering her mouth, parasol balanced precariously between her arm and her bodice. She looked up at Junhui with a mortified expression, though this only caused him to also burst into laughter, this delightful titter that had his eyes crinkling from how wide his smile stretched. Soon, she herself bubbled into laughter, having to lean on the man beside her for support.

"Heavens, I apologize for that," She spoke between chuckles. "I did not intend to release such a discourteous sound before you."

"No, I quite enjoyed it, my lady. I hope I can hear more of it from you." Her gaze dropped to the path below them, hoping to conceal her perturbed facade from Junhui at his implication of there being more joyous moments like this between the two. Perhaps she was overthinking it. Perhaps he meant nothing more than hoping she continues feeling happy as such.

Though the thought still felt nice to explore. Of simpler times spent beside him, spending days such as this one walking together. He'd whisper sweet nothings in her ear, his breath tickling the thin skin of such an intimate area and spiraling her into another set of giggles for only him to hear. And he'd gladly accept her jovial antics with a heart full of unadulterated love for her and her alone.

What a silly fantasy. One she'd have to stow away for later in her delusional daydreams of the man.

"To answer your question, they have yet to officially court one another." They watched as the duo they spoke of strolled peacefully together, a picturesque romantic scene of two lovers enjoying themselves on such a sunny afternoon. It brought a smile to (y/n)'s face. "Though I presume it won't be long before it truly is official. They are meant to be, you see."

"I do. Indeed I agree with you, my lady." Junhui's voice had lowered, so quiet that only (y/n) could possibly hear him, creating this atmosphere of sorts where only they resided. "And on that note, wouldn't it be nice to perhaps speed up the process some."

"What do you have in mind, Mr. Wen?"

"Do you trust me?"

"Should I not?" Junhui chuckled at this, a deep rumble in his chest that (y/n) could feel on her arm pressed against his torso.

"My lady, I hold nothing but good intentions."

He slowed their pace some. It was barely detectable, though she was acutely aware of his actions at the moment, curious as to what he had in mind. Soon enough, Joshua and Juliet grew more faint in the distance, carrying on their conversation without having noticed the other two members of the party had severely lagged behind.

"As suspected." Junhui noted, turning his gaze back down to (y/n). "Now they can enjoy their picnic on their own."

"You are a schemeful man, Mr. Wen." (y/n) noted, though she couldn't even finish her sentence without a smile on her face.

"So I've been told before. Come, guide me around Lady Juliet's estate for the time being."

(y/n) found herself willingly doing just so, redirecting him off the main path and deeper into the scenery circling the manor. Lavish greenery surrounded them, a viridescent landscape which seemed to stretch on for miles. At some point, she had given up her parasol, closing it so to feel the warmth of the sun once more. Her heels dug into the earth with every step, giving her a clumsy gait as she ambled through the residence, though she didn't mind one bit. Not when Junhui was there, balancing her with a gentle hand along her back and a thunderous laugh to coincide with it.

At some point, she found the garden maze. It was quaint, serving more as a divider than any sort of complex labyrinth. It's common knowledge to her, yet should have been a cautionary sight for Junhui, yet he seemed to dive in just as eagerly as she, as if having put all of his faith into her as their navigator.

"You know, my mother would not approve of you right now." (y/n) spoke, allowing him to trail behind as she navigated through the hedges.

"I find that hard to believe." Junhui hummed in an amused tone. "I hear she's rather smitten with me." His presence suddenly grew nearer until he was only just behind her, mouth lowered to her ear. In a low voice, more breathy than anything, he continued. "Wants me to be her son-in-law."

(y/n) felt warmth surging to her face, scuttling forward quickly as she waved him off of her, earning more arrogant laughs from the man.

"Perhaps you're right. I presume Joshua and you have been talking matters outside of business?"

"A natural occurrence between friends, yes."

"Though I don't say this in regards to your character itself. You are undoubtedly a gentleman suitable for any mother-in-law."

"You flatter me, my lady."

"However," she started, glancing behind her to where Junhui watched her closely, soft gaze trained on her as (y/n) came to a halt. "Have you forgotten one of the cardinal rules of etiquette?"

"And pray tell what that could be?"

"A lady and a man should never be left alone in the same room?"

It was a simple jeer towards him. Both a means of teasing the supposed gentleman arc he carried, though also a way to test the waters. To take a gander into the mechanics behind his thought process. Catch him in a moment of weakness as he tried to explain why a married man was willingly, and in her honest opinion seemingly ambitious, to be left alone with someone like herself.

She had expected perhaps a flush to cross his features, shaky pupils attempting to find an answer somewhere in the depth of the brush they were plunged in, perhaps even a stumble in his cadence as he tried to explain himself and his intentions, yet she received nothing of the sort.

Junhui grinned, biting his lip to conceal the act, though not fully committed to such a deed. He lazily stepped closer until he stood before her once more, perhaps becoming far too comfortable in her personal space, making himself a home in the metaphorical bubble designated for her and her alone.

"Of course, you are correct, as always, my lady." He started, eyes slowly straying from her own to take in the rest of her features at the proximity they stood in. "Yet you seem to have forgotten one minor detail in such a rule." Her head tilted in curiosity, not knowing exactly where he was going with the conversation. He straightened his posture and gestured grandly about the area, as if the answer was somewhere in the air. "A man and woman should never be left alone unless they are in motion. And if I recall, we are indeed in motion as of right now."

She slapped a hand over her mouth as laughter ensued afterwards, her eyes falling shut at the sheer audacity of the man before her. Never before had she met a man with such gall. A man who strayed so far from the stereotypical gentleman trope yet at the same time clung to such an image. Most men around her showed some form of fear or arrogance, yet Junhui showed none of the above.

His arrogance wasn't rude or disrespectful, but more humorous and casual. The only fear he seemed to display in front of her was in regards to herself, the wary glint in his eye that seemed to mistakenly shine through his facade as she left prematurely upon their first meeting.

He was quick witted and audacious, yet unbearably considerate to those around him. And these were only mere observations upon first impressions within their ten minutes of alone time thus far.

"Ah, there's that lovely sound I've been yearning to hear for a second time." His hand rose to her face, brushing back a hair that had fallen from its place as her giggles had diluted some. "My lady, you should be more liberal with such glee. It looks absolutely splendid on you. I'd love to see it more often."

"I'll only show it when you've earned it." She remarked, turning around and continuing down the maze so as to hide the smile that still etched itself in her expression.

At the end of the brief maze, the hedges lowered in stature until they were merely shrubs, allowing them to look past what they once obscured from their sight. A garden with white stone paths, flowers littering the grounds in unorganized patterns. The speckles of color surrounded the marble decorations populating the scenery. A statue of a lady, the vines of the plants licking at her podium as they accepted her as one of their own. Fountains with cherubs pouring out of a pitcher, a seemingly endless supply of water that trickled down into the base of the structure, filling the air with the hypnotic murmurs of water. Dragonflies and butterflies flitted to and fro, flying past the two spectators as they pursued their next floral conquest.

And past the grandeur of the seemly garden was a river. It was narrow and shallow, allowing a person to safely wade in its waters without even getting their hair wet. (y/n) and Juliet would spend far too much time playing there when they were younger to the point that (y/n) could still remember the sensation of the cool stream numbing her skin, the feeling of the smooth rocks beneath her feet, even the exact spot where a root had plunged out of the ground and tripped Juliet, causing her to plunge her entire body into the water.

This entire place brought back fond memories, warming her heart and reminding her of simpler times. It was a place that was near sacred to her and her friend. So why did she so willingly bring Junhui here? He was practically a stranger, not a person deserving of such a nostalgic haven to her, yet she slid her hand back into the crook of his arm so easily and allowed him to guide her through the area.

It was quiet between them, this peaceful tranquility that soothed away the tensions in her heart. As if momentarily in this instance, in this little pocket of heaven away from the eyes of the world, everything was okay. That warm feeling in her chest, the way her heart beat so apparently, the undeniable comfort that came with being so close to Junhui. None of it was shameful.

She didn't flinch as his free hand rested on top of her own holding him, thumb softly brushing over her gloved fingers. Her head rested against his side, lips tugging up at the corners of her mouth as she embraced whatever fleeting contentment she could derive before the moment would eventually be revoked from her. Before she'd have to settle back into reality and accept that Junhui is not someone she should be doing any of this with.

She shouldn't be falling victim to her own fantasies, succumbing to the temptations conjured by her own psyche, betrayed by her own being as she fell for a man she was not allowed to pursue. A cruel and unfair jest on the universe's part, and one she'll forever hold a grudge against. Offering such a perfect man to her like a carrot on a stick which she'll never capture, only existing to desperately chase after.

And just like that, the day seemed to pass by as if in mere seconds, this warm orange glow settling in the sky as the sun dipped beyond the horizon. The once crystal blue river was now like molten honey as the day waned, and the only indicator she had was Junhui finally speaking.

"It seems it's gotten rather late, my lady." Surveying her surroundings, (y/n) nodded, shocked by how obvious the change had been and she hadn't been made aware at all. "Allow me to escort you home."

She held no form of protest, allowing Junhui to retrace their route and head to the carriage he and Joshua had arrived in.

"Would it not be rude to abandon Joshua here?" (y/n) asked, climbing into the body of the coach with the assistance of Junhui's hand in hers.

"We're merely granting him a viable excuse to spend even more of his time with Juliet. I'm failing to see the issue here."

Junhui was such pleasant company, silly in his mannerisms yet able to hold intelligent conversation for long periods of time. (y/n) was completely enamored by his intellect, a side she knew had to have existed with his merchant background, yet something she had failed to truly anticipate the extent of such information as he began discussing his business matters with her.

"You are well versed in this subject, my lady." He noted with a curious tilt of his head and a fond smile.

"Should I not be?" (y/n) riposted, a coy grin slipping past her facade as Junhui hummed in amusement.

"On the contrary, I find it to be refreshing." (y/n) met Junhui's genuine gaze, his intimidatingly honest eyes seemingly concentrated on (y/n) and (y/n) alone. "Many ladies are condemned from learning such proceedings. It's nice to share such discussions with someone outside of these matters; gain a perspective with no bias."

"I see." She tore her stare from him, instead opting to admire the passing surroundings as they neared her family's estate. The world was slowly growing darker, though there was just enough orange in the sky to make out minor details and simple silhouettes of the trees and buildings which they encountered. "Well as you've said, women are often condemned from learning such things. My parents have never outright forbade me from pursuing such knowledge, but I am keenly aware of the connotations of our day and age. However, I feel the library is just vague enough of a gray area that I can escape the gender restraints subjected unto us."

"So you've your library to thank for such intel?"

"Indeed. A grand library with shelves stretching to the ceiling, completely stocked with every variety of book. And what else is a lady to do in her spare time than to waste away her life reading everything she can get her hands on." Junhui smiled at this, teeth on display and his eyes crinkling as he listened to her speak.

"I'd ought to visit such a place one day." He inquired, voice lowering in volume as if sharing a secret with her. A secret of a married man insinuating a second rendezvous with a young lady he should not be affiliated with. (y/n) cleared her throat, fiddling with the embroidery of her gown as she attempted to bypass his lax mannerisms in speech.

"You must. I'm sure Joshua would be delighted to give you a tour of our home upon your next visit." The words felt as awkward as they sounded, her subtleties flying out the window as the day waned. She dare not look at Junhui for fear of his expression revealing his truth. Of yet another factor to add onto her already ever growing list of reasons to question her reality and everything she had grown to know. Though even with her futile attempts at avoiding his honest expression, she failed to take into account his equally honest intonation he used in every word he spoke.

"I'm sure he would, ever the gentleman he is." Junhui began, voice undeterred by her initial evasion. "Though I'd like someone with proven familiarity to show me about the library, wouldn't you agree? Someone who has shown their validity in this realm to me?"

Finally she met his gaze once more, flustered by how direct he has always been. And he hadn't an ounce of shame from his words, that same smile stretched across his face as if he hadn't a care in the world. As if asking his business associate's sister for a personal tour of their home was a matter that came so often and so common that there was no need for courtesies to be regarded.

But this was not what the world was like.

A man and a lady should always bear some decency in their actions. Unless they are courting one another, they should not be left in the same vicinity alone. A married man should not pursue a lady outside his matrimony in such a way that it can be mistaken for adultery. The two of them have delved into dangerous waters. They've foregone the initial area of concern and have instead been thriving in this forbidden area that they should have never passed in either of their states. And strangely enough, (y/n) felt to be the most victimized in the situation.

The misogynistic tendencies of news outlets to paint the mistress as the villain who broke a perfectly stable marriage, yet here she is thrust into the role of potential mistress with no means of escape. Every fiber of her being cried to run away, leave everything behind, abandon Junhui where he stood because he was no different from a devil tempting her in malicious ways and luring her into a sinful rapture.

Yet this idiotic part of her yearned for him. Desperately sought out his attention in any form he'd grant her. She could still feel the warmth of his body against hers when they had walked in the garden. She could hear his laugh playing repeatedly in her head, his voice serenading her as she thought about everything he's ever said to her. He was so kind and witty and funny. Everything a girl could dream of. And she soon understood the mistress in all of those articles, because she truly was on the brink of becoming one herself.

The carriage stopping was like a godsend, an answer to her prayers as she all but scrambled out, hopping down at a mind boggling speed that had Junhui leaping out of his seat to rescue her had she fallen. But instead, she merely brushed off her dress and turned back to Junhui, staring in awe at her after her sudden burst of movement.

"Thank you for today, Mr. Wen. I truly enjoyed our little walk and I appreciate what you've done in regards to my brother and my best friend's prospective marriage. I'd love to hear about how it's gone once my brother comes home, but you really must return to the estate, as I'm sure your business meeting is soon to start. Thank you again." Her words came out rushed and jumbled, sentences threading together with barely a moment's breath spared. Before Junhui could even respond, she was rushing into her home and up the stairs before anyone could question her and see how absolutely perturbed she had become in the past hour or so because of Mr. Wen Junhui.

When she had said she'd love to hear how the matters regarding the soon-to-be couple had gone once Joshua returns, she had intended it to be a sign to Junhui that rather than he tell her himself, her brother instead tells her, thereby cutting off any necessity for the two to ever speak again.

Yet Junhui in his spectacular ways of skirting around the issues of formalities and such had taken it upon himself to skew her words to his benefit.

His first letter had come quite literally the next day when her brother had gotten back, Joshua himself handing it to her before going off to do whatever he does in the day. It was a simple envelope, her name written in swirled ink at the front to show who its intended reader was meant to be. A red wax seal concealed its contents; a simple design of a cat pressed into the seal. From the looks of it alone, it seemed to be devoid of any nefarious purposes. Love letters tend to be doused in perfumes, blue seals with rose and heart imprints. Yet this one seems to lack any sense of personal touch, aside from the cat seal, which (y/n) could only assume was a mere preference on Junhui's part.

My lady,

I hope this letter gets to you swiftly. As swiftly as it takes Joshua to arrive home, as you had made clear to me.

As intended, the two seem to be smitten with one another. Joshua had almost forgotten his entire purpose for arriving at the manor had I not returned after our carriage ride. They seem closer than they originally were, and I believe we've achieved our goal! Though I expect nothing less from such a savvy and clever lady such as yourself. You truly must show me those business books of yours so I may learn from them as you've done.

Jun

Upon reading the first part of the letter, (y/n) couldn't help but to roll her eyes at Junhui's sarcasm, though slowly but surely, she ended the letter with a smile that she couldn't contain. And she made sure to note her distaste for such a letter in her reply, biting back her giggles as she wrote about how discourteous Junhui was and how he lacked in any sort of manners.

With a circular red wax seal, she handed the envelope to Joshua, asking him to deliver it to Junhui whenever he was able to. And what started out as a simple letter with a response became a full fledged exchange of letters on the daily, and perhaps the highlight of (y/n)'s day whenever Joshua would return home.

Junhui was as funny in writing as he was in person, chiding her for using a golden seal once as if he were a lady she was exchanging letters with. Though he forgave her once she changed from their usual formal red seal to a green one—an indicator of friendly relations between the two correspondents.

He also rather obviously insisted she begin referring to him as Jun, as indecent as it were. From his first letter merely ending with the name, 'Jun' slowly grew more and more apparent, from growing in size to becoming bolder compared to the other words to even taking up the entire bottom portion of the page once.

And (y/n) couldn't help but continue the exchange, as wrong as she knew it was. She reasoned it under two friends merely talking to one another, opting to forget the circumstances between them and instead revel in whatever form of Junhui her conscience would allow her to accept.

And for the most part, as stated, it truly was friendly relations. He'd ask what she'd done that day, discuss things he'd seen since his prior letter, even send doodles and newspaper clippings to her. The times he'd seemingly grow more coquettish were times she'd chastise him almost immediately, before then continuing on with where they left off. And it seemed she'd have to do the same thing now, as Junhui supposedly never learned from her admonishments.

"(y/n), dinner is being served." The family's maid announced from beyond the door.

"I'm on my way." Even though she responded, she could sense the woman still lingering in her spot.

"The madam also insists you make yourself presentable."

"For what purpose? Not like we have a guest over." Silence. (y/n) raised her brow, pushing back from her writing desk to finally open the door. The maid still stood there, offering an apologetic smile. "Who is here?"

"Supposedly a prospective marriage partner your mother has been eyeing for you."

(y/n) nodded at this, thanking and dismissing the woman before closing the door. Back in the sanctity of her room, she groaned aloud, begrudgingly making her way to her armoire.

Although (y/n) has been distracted with her internal battle revolving around Wen Junhui, her mother has seemingly long forgotten the disappointment of the failed courtship and has once more prowled for yet another eligible bachelor she could lure home in hopes of having her daughter wed. It was a common occurrence, though nevertheless uncomfortable every time she had to endure it.

Her eyes landed upon that same dusty yellow dress that Junhui's hair had reminded her of when they first met. It brought a smile to her face, at first gentle in nostalgia and remembrance, though then shifted into a sly smirk, opting to remove the gown from its hanger as her own personal gag. To wear a dress that reminds her of another whilst she rejects whoever resides downstairs.

Perhaps through spite alone, her energy came bounding forth when she made her way downstairs, excited to send home yet another man, until she entered the parlor and came face to face with none other than that same head of yellow that inspired her current look.

Junhui turned his head up to her, his grin stretching from ear to ear once she had come into view.

"My lady," he had stood up from his place, reaching for her gloved hand to place yet another kiss onto her knuckles. "You look as lovely as you did the day we met. Your beauty seems to be unwavering."

"Mr. Wen," (y/n) bowed her head, ignoring the rapid warmth seizing at her heart from where Junhui still held her hand in his. "It's a pleasure to meet you again."

"Mr. Wen? Have we not moved on from such formalities at this point in time?" Her eyes widened at his statement, glancing around in hopes that her mother wasn't around to hear of such nonsense. Though luckily it seemed the only other person in the room at this moment was Joshua, who laughed at his sister's reaction.

"Junhui, stop tormenting (y/n), you know how she is when it comes to holding proper etiquette."

This seemed to silence the imp of a man, though it hadn't stopped the mischievous glint in his eye as he continued to stare at her. Or more specifically, her dress, attempting to absorb as much as he could without blatantly gawking at her. Though still, it was enough to have her dismissing herself from the two boys, scurrying away to the kitchen where her mother was currently discussing meal plans with the chef.

"Mother," (y/n) muttered, shuffling to a closer proximity to her parent to keep her voice low, lest there be stray ears listening about.

"Oh, my dear, you look absolutely lovely." Her mother gushed, nodding to the chef one last time in confirmation before closing the distance between her and her daughter.

"I look this way because you urged me to dress as such."

"Yes, Mr. Wen is just in the other room. Go greet him, I'm sure he'd feel flattered to have such a pretty hostess."

"Mother, might I remind you that Mr. Wen is indeed a married man. Not only is he a married man, but you as well are a married woman. I suggest you cease with your blasted fawning before you manage to upset someone." Her mother sighed, eyes shifting up to the ceiling in consideration at the words spoken.

"I understand where you're coming from. However, he has not directly told me such. So I'd like to continue this potential courtship between you two until he says otherwise." (y/n) clenched her jaw. Not in anger at her mother's words, though rather also considering what she had just said.

It's true that Joshua is a reliable source, as he is their very own son and brother, but Junhui doesn't know Joshua told them. Her mother's reasons, though highly improbable and immature as they are, made some sense in the grand scheme of things, and (y/n) had nothing more to say but to nod at her mother and scamper out of the kitchen.

Luckily, the boys remained as they were in the parlor, laughing freely at whatever was being exchanged between the two. Junhui's voice always carried itself throughout the house, drifting in the air easily and reaching (y/n) where she stood. She wanted to go back in. She had grown more accustomed to Junhui through their letters, though meeting him again in person felt like an entirely different circumstance she wasn't fully prepared for.

Her mother's words remained in her head, the arrogance reminding her of the sole reason her and Junhui first exchanged letters. How the two parties both seemed to ignore implications in words and actions and instead pursued their own endeavors through sheer intended miscommunication. It was funny in a way, though still terribly irritating, especially when she sat at the table and realized how swimmingly the lot got along together.

Banter flowed easily, her mother and Junhui bonding well as they ate. Father was much more reserved, though still seemed rather taken with their guest. Joshua equally so, though as his friend, it was a given that he'd be invested in whatever Jun had to say.

And to (y/n), it felt like the obvious was just lingering in the air, dangling precariously above them all like the sword of Damocles. All it took was a mere mention of marriage for that thread to snap, to have the sword barreling down into mother's dreams of having Jun join the family through marital relations with (y/n). Yet no one dare mention it.

A topic her mother was so seemingly obsessed with was never uttered. Joshua and father likewise danced around the subject, avoiding it as if it were the plague. And funnily enough, (y/n) found herself doing the same. The words felt forbidden, like poison on the tip of her tongue. And when spoken, this entire fantasy concocted by her family would dissolve away before her eyes. For the time being, it felt alright to accept the delusions set up by them all.

Dinner soon came to an end, and by the time they had all finished eating, the sun had long set, the entire outside world blanketed in darkness with only the obscured half moon to offer some reprieve. Her parents deemed it right to invite Junhui to stay for the night, not wanting to cast out their guest on such a dark and dreary night. And as if it were a sign from the gods themselves, some time after Junhui had accepted their invitation, the heavens began releasing this dreadful onslaught of rain, heavy enough to have the roads flooded within minutes of it starting. As such, (y/n) herself couldn't even find any fault in their suggestion, thoughts of Junhui getting hurt and abandoned out in the rain keeping her from even jokingly casting him aside.

The thoughts remained long after she had retired for the night. Images of what could have happened had Junhui rejected their offer of staying for the night. Some righteous part of her brain insisted she'd take the role of some fictitious hero and brave the storm to save him herself. Another part of her brain attempted to rationalize that former statement, saying she'd have done the same had it been Juliet or Joshua out there. Yet that reasoning did nothing to quell the fact that had very well made itself known at this point—that Junhui had nestled himself comfortably in her heart right beside those who she held nearest and dearest.

Junhui was as dangerous a man as one could be. It was concerning how quickly (y/n) had grown so familiar with him in such a short span of time. It was unnerving how happy his letters made her and how she cherished every scrap of paper he sends her. She dotes upon his script as one would a lover, noting every detail of his writing and filing it away under Junhui. She brushes her fingers over his letters to the point that they seem already worn by the time she's done reading, as if she could feel that burning touch of his through the parchment he'd slave over, if his careful and intricate penmanship were any sign of the attention he puts into every message he sends her.

Eventually, it had grown rather late, to the point that she didn't even have to count the chimes of the grandfather clock, as a singular ding sounded through the house. It was futile to even attempt to continue pretending to sleep when all she could think of was everything Junhui. Whether it was one in the afternoon while she busied herself with books and household chores, or one in the morning when she was once more on her own with no other companion than that of the moon, Junhui seemed to remain a resolute entity in her thoughts. Even as she wandered outside her chambers, Junhui was still at the forefront of her mind, and she found that her feet had naturally taken her to the library.

It was indeed a grand archive of books and documents, and she must have read most of them by this point. With a candlestick in one hand, she held its light up to the shelves, browsing through the selections of novels at her disposal, all the while still with Junhui plaguing her thoughts, especially when she reached the business section, nestled in the corner right beside one of the windows of the room. It was a cozy area that offered seating on its large pane, and the angular bay window brought in the perfect amount of sunlight to read for the entire day. She was just about to sit at her usual reading area when she suddenly heard the door click open.

As quickly as she had fled the carriage beforehand, she leapt into the darkness away from the window, blowing out her candle and praying for the shadows to obscure her enough to stay hidden.

As if a cruel and sinister ploy on her part, the tall mahogany doors pushed open, unveiling the blonde newcomer as he padded into the library. His hair was tousled some, though still retaining the general shape of his usual styling. Gone was his coat and vest, instead displaying his flowy white undershirt, neckline untied and parted, revealing a rather generous portion of his collarbones to her eyes.

He looked near ethereal. The candle in his hand flickered with life, casting its warm honey glow across the planes of his face. And in the contrasting cerulean ambience of the moonlight seeping in through the window, Junhui stood there as the outlier. The eccentric oddity he has always been. And it seemed as if he were near beckoning her to emerge from her place of hiding, calling to her like a beacon to a mindless moth.

She couldn't tear her eyes from him, helplessly standing there in this futile battle with herself. He had caught her at her weakest point, after having been assaulted by thoughts of him and nothing else for what has felt like days on end, as well as with her weakened resolve at such a late hour. It was a miracle in itself that she still stood firmly where she resided and hadn't fallen victim to her own inhibitions, so desperately wanting to fall into his arms and let him embrace her. To hide away from the rest of the world, push aside those worries that had hung over her for so long, as if Junhui's hold would erase it all, protect her from the outlash she so feared.

He stood there like an angel, his mere presence enough to weaken her to the point that she shook from her restraint, though beneath this facade, he was more like a snake in her garden of Eden, tempting her into pursuing her personal transgressions.

His back was to her as he browsed the selection of books, fingers skimming the spines as he perused about. (y/n) was tentative with her steps as she mirrored him, ensuring she remained out of his sights. The closer he came to the window, the further she got. She had nearly reached the door when her foot pressed upon a weakened floorboard, the squeak which came from it near deafening in the otherwise silent room. She grimaced as Junhui had also come to a halt, too afraid to turn around and verify for herself.

"Is anyone there?" His voice was low and stoic, unflinchingly rigid, and whether it be from lack of use over the past few hours of nightfall or true hostility, she remained as is, too wary to find out for herself.

Perhaps if she stood as still as she possibly could, he'd dismiss it as the house settling and she'd be able to slip away without him ever noticing. Yet unfortunately, she underestimated Junhui and his perceptive abilities, as he had immediately rerouted to head in her direction. She had no hope from the very start.

She saw her silhouette slowly come to life as his candle grew nearer and nearer, until she was now facing a perfect outline of herself in an orange aura, and beside hers was Junhui's own shadow.

"My lady!" All initial signs of malice in his voice dissipated, replaced by that same saccharine timbre he has always used with her. It was enough to coax her into finally facing him, eyes trailing up to meet his unabashedly joyous smile upon seeing her. Who else would be as elated to see her if not Junhui, whose eyes darted to every feature of her face, cheeks warming and smile widening under the heat of the candle illuminating his expression. "My lady, what are you doing out here? It's far too late for you to be reading, and much too cold!" His free hand patted his chest, as if forgetting he came out of his room without his coat to offer her. His immediate regretful countenance brought a smile to (y/n)'s face, the tension in her body melting away the longer she gazed up at the boy in front of her.

"I'll be alright, though I thank thee for your concern nevertheless."

His expression was so unbearably tender. His soft eyes filled with mirth, dark like cocoa and ever so inviting. She was grounded in her spot, helpless under his gaze. It was as if she were staring directly into the universe held within those deep, brown orbs that seemed unwaveringly fond of no one else but her—as if she was his universe.

And it was frightening. How easily she found herself falling into this world made of only themselves. As if nothing else existed or mattered, as long as they were by one another's side. It was frightening how right it all felt.

It had taken every ounce of her being to tear her eyes from his, head turned to the door she was so close to slipping out of.

"I really must be on my way." She attempted to step away from him, but she froze. His hand wrapped around her own, gently tugging her back to him. His skin was warm against her own, and that heat seemed to slowly trail up her arm, keeping her rooted in her spot, effortlessly allowing him to reel her back to him.

"My lady, please forgive me for my indecent manners, but… Perhaps you may keep me some company?" Junhui's expression faltered some, eyes wavering as they flicked from her to the ground beneath them. "For a few minutes is all. I still have yet to see this business section we've been discussing."

How had he been reduced to such a vulnerable state in mere moments? His usual bravado, that could oftentimes be mistaken for arrogance and the like, seemingly vanished without a trace, instead leaving behind this boy who trembled under her touch, eyes glazed over with this pleading look that was near impossible to deny.

With a minute nod so subtle that it could have been missed if one had blinked, Junhui burst into that same smile that (y/n) found herself more enraptured by day after day. She shuffled ahead of him, softly towing him along behind her as his hand remained in hers, appearing to have no intention of slackening his grip any time soon.

She led him to the window sill, where adjacent to them stood the bookshelf of business and political books she had delved into the previous summer. Some were older classics with yellowed and torn pages while others were the latest edition of recently published novels. She took a seat at the window, knowing that with such a large collection, Junhui would be bound to browse the selection for some time.

Yet instead of the shelves before them, Junhui's attention remained on (y/n), sitting beside her immediately as to not disconnect their hands. At this, (y/n) looked to him, bewildered by his eagerness to remain attached to her.

A fool. There was no better word to describe the way he looked. Mouth agape in wonderment, breathing slowed and steady as if in a trance. Eyes hooded over and glassy, looking as if he were in desperate need of shut eye, yet refusing to close them for not even a second.

In any other circumstance, (y/n) would've corrected his posture and snapped him back into reality, but instead she remained as is, equally captivated by him and his close proximity. Her eyes traced along his features, greedily absorbing any and every detail she could before the moment passed. His candle sat behind him, the light long forgotten as his broad back blocked the glow from her eyes.

They sat there together, under the watchful gaze of the moonlight above them, completely and utterly and unashamedly taken by the other.

"My lady," Junhui whispered, volume dropped until he spoke in nothing more than a breath. He paused, allowing the words to stir in his mind before slipping out. "I truly do hope you aren't entirely irate upon my abrupt request. Especially since I had already questioned you as to why you were out of your chambers at such a late hour."

"You are forgiven." (y/n) responded with a smile, gaze descending to their conjoined hands resting together. It felt so right. It felt as if she were born for this very moment with how destined it seemed for them to be together. How her heart mended together in mere moments, and she hadn't even realized how fractured it had become on its own before meeting Junhui. Yet even with the stars aligning above them, nothing could prove this to be moral.

Not Junhui looking upon her as if she were his sun and his moon, with such earnest fondness pooling in his eyes the longer he's with her. Not the way his hands ceaselessly quake no matter how much restraint he believes he holds, holding her so desperately as if she'd disappear if he lets go, yet also hesitant, afraid of harming her in any way possible. Not the way her entire body seems to be betraying her code of ethics; heart pounding forlornly for him, arms itching to hold him and never let go, stomach fluttering with butterflies and flower blossoms as if spring had come early.

Because in the back of her mind, like an ink stain drenched into the rug, forever there no matter how many items you stack upon it to conceal it—Junhui has a beloved back at home, waiting patiently for his inevitable return.

"Perhaps now that you've found the books, you won't be needing me any longer." She laughed softly at her remark, hoping it would conceal the pain in her voice. The agony that she is the one that has to do what's right. She's the only one attempting to correct these wrongs that have transpired over Junhui's stay.

"Perhaps it's not the books I want." She stiffened at Junhui's words. No implications. No nuances. No underlying meanings at all. "Perhaps it's you that I want. Perhaps it's always been you." His thumb ran back and forth across her knuckles as he spoke, and she couldn't tear her eyes away from the sight, afraid of what honesty his expression held now. "Perhaps there will never be a time when I no longer need you."

Her mind was near throttling her, an internal frenzy taking place, demanding she run far away immediately. As far from him as she can. No good could come out of this. She'd be shunned as a mistress, her family would fall into disgrace because of her impulsive actions, Juliet would even be ridiculed by high society for even being associated with the likes of her. And instead of getting up and fleeing, instead of pushing back against Junhui and refusing his advances, she sat there.

She sat there, eyes glassy with unbridled emotion, lips trembling from the impending tears coming her way. Junhui had raised her hands up closer to his view, fingers interlocking almost naturally. The sight brought a smile to his face.

"I love the way your hands fit in mine. Don't you agree?" Silence on her part. Not that she could even speak if she wanted to with this lump in her throat from the cries she's holding back with all her might. Yet this didn't deter Junhui in the slightest as he continued on. "Ever since the first day we met, I've dreamt of this. Feeling your hands without any obstructions." He brought their intertwined hands to his face, pressing the back of hers to his cheek endearingly. "To feel your touch without those infernal gloves." He slowly dragged her hand down from the side of his face to his lips, shutting his eyes as he gently pressed a kiss to her knuckles. "To feel your skin against my lips." She wanted to yank her hand away, his touch so warm it practically burned into her nerves, yet it was near addicting. She was slowly becoming more and more obsessed with his touch, in any way she could get it.

He littered soft, mindless kisses all over her hand, having released his hold on her to cradle his face against her palm, lips pressing into the center in the most tender manner possible. The moment was tranquil and calm, everything she had ever dreamt of experiencing, and it was undeniable at this point how absolutely enamored she had become with Jun.

A harsh creak sounded through the library, startling the two who bounded up to their feet in moments. (y/n), who had wanted to run away like prey from a predator, was prevented from doing just so as Junhui grabbed her, spinning the two around and bringing her to his chest. His back faced the door, alert as ever as his arms kept (y/n) safely tucked away against him. And after some seconds passed and nothing came of the noise, they slowly relaxed, tension slipping away as they begrudgingly departed.

"Our house is rather old, it settles at times." (y/n) stated, eyes trained on Junhui's torso.

"Ah, makes sense. I just grew nervous. I didn't want you to be seen in your nightgown."

"Everyone in this house has seen me in my nightgown. I'm sure the only worry we had was you seeing me in my nightgown." She had chuckled at this, momentarily lowering her defenses and gazing up at Junhui. It had shocked her some to see that dazed look in his eyes still remaining. That warm, loving smile still etched into his face as he brushed back stray strands of hair from her face, his touch lingering with every stroke. And she savored every last bit of it she could, memorizing the way the pads of his fingers skimmed across her face, leaving behind undeniable heat in its wake like matches against a surface.

But eventually, it all had to end.

Junhui walked (y/n) back to her room, bidding her goodnight with a kiss to her hand and a charming smile alongside it. She closed her door, standing there for a moment more, still feeling his presence on the other side. That comfort that seemed to radiate off of Jun in waves, granting her one last reprieve of the night, because as soon as he had finally walked away, her reality quickly came back, settling upon her shoulders heavily. This burden that seemed to endlessly torment her wherever she resided.

Her chest grew tight, squeezing into her as if this insurmountable pressure was against her. Those tears she held back finally broke free, the first few drops cascading down her face before a broken sob finally caught up. And in this mind-numbing, monotonous like frenzy, she began moving about her room.

She grasped the letter that was meant to be delivered to him and tore it apart. The dress which reminded her of his golden locks was shoved under her bed, hopefully never to be seen again. The parasol from the day they walked in the garden together was tossed deep into her armoire, in hopes of it never resurfacing and bringing with it memories of him.

Though she finally collapsed in on herself as she reached her drawer of his letters, weak and numb whilst leaning against her desk for support. The beautiful words he'd write to her, the tedious flourishments in his calligraphy in a feeble attempt to impress her, his humor that translated into his writing so effortlessly.

Such minuscule sheets of paper felt like the world to her, clutching them to her chest like a remedy to her maladies.

Like the only piece of Junhui she could allow herself to keep.

The next day, she stayed in her room, long after Junhui had left. Under the guise of an illness, she was able to hide away for a few days more. Though when the doctor cleared her of any disease she could possibly have, she left the confines of her room, opting to remain within the borders of the estate.

Junhui would come occasionally, and she'd sneak off into her room before he spotted her, or she'd be at Juliet's when his visits were confirmed beforehand.

Joshua would hand her his letters. Everyday. Everyday without fail, Junhui wrote to her, neither discouraged nor put off by her lack of response. And as if routine at this point, she'd toss the unopened letter into her Junhui drawer.

It pained her to be so cruel to him. He's been nothing but caring and affectionate towards herself. Selflessly putting her before anyone else, proving she remains in his thoughts even if he's busy, pouring his heart out to her without any form of regret or denial in him. As much as she knew she loved him, she knew he loved her. But what else is she to do? Force him to divorce a lady to be with her? Commit blatant adultery in front of their friends and family as if nothing were askew? How would she feel if she were in that woman's shoes? Allowing her husband to go about traveling as a merchant, with only hopes and prayers that he'd return to her at the end of each visit.

To fall in love with Junhui truly was a divine privilege, an inevitability yet one that felt utterly sublime to delve into. He was as endearing as he was handsome, a dangerous combination to any weak-hearted imbecile out there. And to be loved back was just as much a delight as was loving him.

(y/n) couldn't ruin Mrs. Wen's marriage for her own selfish endeavors.

They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, and in her case, this proved far too correct for (y/n)'s liking as she accepted her fate.

She'd often find herself seated against her door, head leant against the wooden frame to hear Junhui's muted voice talking to her brother. She'd allow herself at times to be more vulnerable in front of Juliet, a rarity that neither of the girls expected from the likes of someone such as (y/n), yet nevertheless went along with it to allow her an outlet to freely yearn over Junhui. And at night, long after everyone had fallen asleep, (y/n) would lay beside her desk, thumbing through those letters, rereading his words, tracing his cursive, more often than not falling asleep with one cradled to her chest.

She longed for him, more than she ever had before. Her feelings hadn't waned in the slightest as she had initially believed them to do. They remained as is, with her heart tugging forward in hopes of searching for Jun and reuniting with him. Though she feared ever meeting him again. Feared what would come of her if she truly did have him once more in her grasp. She had exhausted all of her restraint in the library that day.

Twas better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all. She hoped this proved as true as the former statement. She hoped that upon Junhui's departure, she'd willingly let him go. Accept the heartache as growth, a cornerstone in her life to revisit when she was older and wiser. To perhaps laugh it off and tell it at teatime with the other ladies in town. About how smitten (y/n) had become for a married man. They'd all laugh about it, and so will (y/n). Ignore the pain that will linger in her heart for years to come and just laugh.

But how long will it take? How long does a broken heart take to recover? How many more nights of crying herself to sleep will it take for her to finally grow numb? For the wounds to cease its bleeding and begin healing? Is it more like a scar, forever residing there as a faded memory of what had once happened, or will it forever be chronic, something that will sting arbitrarily when she sees the color yellow or reads a business book?

Will Junhui think of her 10 years from now? Or will he continue on with life as is? Will he even remember the girl he had absolutely ruined with just his smile alone?

Will she be okay in the end?

Another ornate ballroom. Another orchestra entertaining the masses. Another night where (y/n) stands at the side, warding off anyone who dare approach with her usual cold stare.

She hadn't wanted to come. Her mother dragged her out, insisting she needed socialization after being in the house for so long. And just like every other party they attended, her mother disappeared to mingle, her father off to drink with the other men, and her brother gone to who knows where. Juliet was nowhere to be seen either, perhaps not even attending this banquet.

And so here she stood.

Alone.

Tired.

Dejected.

She felt an elbow suddenly nudge her arm, snapping her out of her daze.

"How can I help you, Joshua?" She asked, turning back to face the crowd after confirming the presence of her brother.

"I've come to ask you the same thing. You look absolutely miserable."

"Thank you. It is the new look I'm trying to achieve. I hear it's rather popular among the ladies of high society—"

"Will you cease with your sarcasm and be serious?" Joshua hissed, sliding into her vision to get her attention. "(y/n), do you not see how terribly worried we all are?" She didn't respond, averting her gaze so as to not feel swayed by the sincerity in his voice. "There's someone that wants to meet you. I'll go get him now."

"Oh, for the last time, Joshua, I am not interested in Soonyoung!" (y/n) huffed, the first emotion she's displayed in the night: complete and utter irritation. "He is a fine gentleman, but I feel nothing for him!"

"(y/n), that's not—"

"I am going to take a much needed breath of fresh air. Please give Soonyoung my best wishes. And with that, good day to you, Joshua. I will see you at home."

Upon finishing her speech, (y/n) stormed off, weaving through the throngs of party goers to slip out the back.

The outside was a stark contrast to whatever hell she had emerged from. The wind was cool with a gentle breeze flowing, picking up stray leaves and petals in its wake. The white stone staircase she found herself on descended into a grand garden, uniform and pristine as opposed to the more natural one she frequents at Juliet's manor. Vines were kept at bay, the grasses evened and trimmed. There wasn't a flower out of place nor a statue out of line.

It felt as miserable as she was.

Though brimming with flowers and the like, it felt lifeless. Every aspect of the garden felt staged, as if a mere facade for others instead of a reflection of its owner. She loathed it, grimacing at every gaudy decor she stumbled upon, at the statues that hadn't a sign of wear upon them, at the flowers that feared growing out of their beds lest the gardener trim those that cross the threshold.

It was perfect. The ideal garden. Not a flaw in sight. And yet she hated every aspect of it.

She collapsed onto the marble bench at the center of the garden. It resided beneath the grand fountain, the focal point of this horrid attraction. But it was the furthest resting point from the party, and it allowed her to finally drop her act of indifference.

Tears began slipping past her waterline, an occurrence which has become second nature to her. She didn't bother to wipe them away, as a fresh coat will only come to replace whatever she erases.

It had been a week since Junhui had departed. The life of a merchant was arduous, ever changing and mobile. And just as he's done for every town before them and every town after, he wrapped up his business and went on his way. The pain was constant, as if he had left town with her heart personally. She remembers sitting in her room, hearing his final goodbyes to Joshua before he left for good. While she knew it was for the better, she truly did feel regretful not saying goodbye to him. She lives with this fact, that she wasted her final chance of seeing Junhui by crying alone in her room. And yet even with the clear avoidance on her part, Junhui still never failed to think of her, as Joshua slipped Junhui's final letter to her.

One with a deep lapis blue wax seal.

Like the others, she tucked it away. Perhaps another day when she's gathered enough strength, she'll open them and read his final words to her. But she couldn't bear it in the state she was in now. She couldn't bear the reminder that she lost perhaps her one true love.

(y/n) could hear footfall nearing her. Her eyes rolled in annoyance, knowing Joshua had sent Soonyoung over anyway. Though I guess it made sense. To the others, Junhui was just another failed suitor, and it was time to move on to the next one.

Soonyoung was indeed kind and handsome, but he was incomparable to Junhui in her mind, as cruel as it may sound. Though the least she could do was amuse the boy one last time before dismissing him like the others.

She felt a coat suddenly drape across her shoulders as a presence descended unto the empty seat beside her, and she felt her heart plummet upon the realization.

"My lady, you shouldn't be out here on such a cold night."

"Junhui." (y/n) shot up onto her feet, backing away instantly as she clutched onto the coat resting along her back.

And there stood Wen Junhui in all of his glory. He looked like an angel having descended from the heavens. This image in white from head to toe with golden accents from the jewelry dangling along his body, his blonde hair gently parted at the center and framing his handsome face so immaculately. He looked as if he had just walked off his marble pedestal, standing before her like one of the many statues in this garden.

It had felt like an eternity since the last time she'd seen him, and the sight had ignited this burning sensation in her eyes. Her breaths came out in puffs of white, the condensed air obscuring her vision as it hid Junhui behind its wall of vapor. Perhaps that's why she couldn't truly take in his face until he had moved, standing in front of her with that same adoring, lovestruck gaze of his.

Her breathing was labored, heavy as if having run about the garden, and it only seemed to grow harsher once Junhui had offered her his hand.

"May I have this dance, my lady?" His voice was so soft, nothing more than a whisper into the night, but it held such unadulterated emotion. This lovingly yearning tone in his words as if on the brink of pleading. And at this point, every function of her body had shut down. That incessant turmoil in her that had resided since Junhui first entered her life suddenly silenced, this peace in her mind that she had seemed to forget was even achievable. With such a clear head, it made way for her body's natural intuition to kick in, and she found herself sliding her hand in his own, drawing nearer to him just as the orchestra's distant playing began a new song.

It was faint, drowned out by the murmur of the fountain before them, yet it was that soft tinkle of a tune that waded in the air around them that created such an alluring, tranquil atmosphere. Junhui twirled her about the area, the tap of their shoes against the stone pavement in unison as they melted into each other's embraces. Junhui's tentative touches that had traveled along her lower back, as if wanting to run his hands over as much as her as he could in their position, had given up their initial courtesy and instead dragged her against him, hands gripping her like his life depended on it. And his unwaveringly adoring stare had her entirely mesmerized by him. That sweet grin of his on display for her, eyes darting to and fro along her face, cheeks rounded from his delight at being reunited once more.

It was a perfect reunion. One she had never imagined she'd ever receive, yet felt like her wildest dream nevertheless.

"How are you, my lady?" He finally spoke, his voice just as honeyed as the rest of his presence. His brows curved in absolute intrigue, as if she were the most interesting thing he'd ever come across. He practically dragged her closer to him in anticipation, if that were even possible.

"I've been well." Her voice had cracked at the beginning of her sentence, prompting her to clear her throat as unnoticeably as she could muster to hide whatever feelings he had begun stirring in her. "And you, Mr. Wen?"

His hold on her had stiffened momentarily, but he proceeded nevertheless.

"I'm… not so well."

"Oh? I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's quite alright, my lady. It's just been a rather curious past few days. You see, I met this woman." She spared him a hopeful glance, and his eyes hadn't strayed from hers for even a moment. "A fine woman. Intelligent. Thoughtful. Humorous. Fun to banter with." His gaze flickered down to her lips as his own twitched upwards at the corner. "This gorgeous smile that knocks the wind out of you, if you're ever given the privilege of seeing it." She couldn't help but to let out a helpless chortle at this, smiling widely at his words as tears began flooding her eyes. Junhui's dancing slowed some, his hand along her waist trailing up to lay along her face, thumb swiping away the moisture collecting at her waterline. "And I had fallen so terribly in love with her."

Her heart throbbed at his confession, and her head felt light as she stared into his wholly genuine gaze. It was frightening how terribly honest he was at almost all times of the day, yet it seemed even more daunting now with not a person in sight nor any motive aside from his own true feelings for her.

"However," he continued, eyes lowering away from her face as his eyebrows knitted together in thought, "I feared I may have lost her forever." His hand had retreated back to her waist, bringing her to him once more, as if a comforting action in the midst of his momentary distress. "Perhaps it had been due to my indecency one night where my feelings had gotten the better of me." He hesitatingly met her eyes once more, breath stuttering and pupils shaky. "Perhaps I've made her uncomfortable with my presence. Perhaps there's no redeeming myself. Nevertheless, I've wanted to apologize to her. Apologize if I've ever forced her into a situation she found to be miserable, or have made her discomfited in her own home. I'd like to apologize, and hope she finds it in her heart to forgive someone like myself?"

"I…"

It was strange. His words something she had to process for another minute to herself as she sorted through these weird circumstances. He had returned to her to apologize for the night in the library. A night she cherished as her final moment with Junhui, as well as the closest she'll ever come to living out her fantasy of being by his side.

It was both something he should apologize for, for giving her such a wondrous moment that she'll never truly be allowed to claim, as if giving her a taste of her favorite dessert before revoking it from her forever. Though it was also something he shouldn't feel obligated to apologize for. Because he truly did give her this wondrous night she'll never forget. Something she can look back upon fondly and remember better times. It felt almost unfair to apologize for giving her such happiness.

Yet in the grand scheme of things, he still hasn't apologized for the largest issue between the two. So with a resolute mind, (y/n) straightened her back, tilting her chin up assuredly as she pressed on.

"Do what you wish. Do whatever you believe feels right." This brought a smile to Junhui once more, his mouth opening as he was about to spew out his many sincere apologies to her, yet she continued on before he could. "However, I feel inclined to remind you to take into consideration not only you and this person, but perhaps someone else you've seemed to fail to consider." His mouth had shut immediately, brows furrowing as she spoke, as if completely and utterly lost, and this only served to irk (y/n) who held back an exaggerated roll of her eyes. "Perhaps someone awaiting you back at home."

"Pardon me?"

Those were his final words before the orchestra had ceased its playing and (y/n) stepped away from him.

"I thank you for this final dance, Mr. Wen. I pray you'll find your way home safely." She curtsied to him as he remained frozen in place, expression contorted into this forced stoicism, yet still riddled with absolute confusion. "I'll be off then. Do not feel pressured to escort me as you always do. I highly suggest roaming about the garden! It's lovely tonight."

And so she once more and for the final time fled from him, hiking up her dress once she was out of view from him to quicken her steps before her tears could fall. She had marched up the stairs at a surprisingly fast rate, garnering shocked looks from those around her who murmured at her indecency, yet she couldn't care less. No one approached her irascible self as she stormed her way through the party, finally spotting her mother towards the back of the room, conversing with her acquaintances.

"Mother, I'd like to return home now." The woman was about to laugh off her words, which was something she frequently heard from (y/n) at these sorts of events, that is until she had finally faced her daughter and saw the despair written across her face. The way her eyes glossed over with a sheen of tears, her lip quivering as she forced it into as straight a line as possible, and just overall barely composing herself whilst in this public setting. Her maternal instincts had finally settled in as she dismissed herself from the other ladies, wrapping an arm around her daughter whilst leading her through the party.

She had passed by Joshua and Juliet, the two looking to her filled with concern, though neither approaching, merely looking to her with this sense of disquietude in their eyes.

Her father had almost immediately summoned their coachmen the moment he'd seen his daughter in such distress, instructing the man to return (y/n) to the manor right away.

It was such a quick ordeal that she supposed Junhui was perhaps still standing there stunned in that garden. And the whole way home, she reminded herself this was for the better.

Though she had laughed at some point upon the idea of just tossing it all away and becoming a mistress to Junhui, it wasn't until she was there being offered that very role that she realized she couldn't find it in herself to be so selfish. It was something she was not in the slightest bit prepared for, in both the case of becoming this person who'd ruin the lives of everyone around her, but also in just the mere act of being granted such a tempting opportunity.

It was unfair that everything had to have resulted in such a way. That she couldn't have just loved Junhui the way she desired. That she couldn't accept his affections for her which had felt so genuine and wholesome. That so many obstacles stood in their way, and it was near impossible for them to have ever gotten their own happy ending.

She thought this as she stumbled out of the carriage and into the manor, lazily dragging her feet along the wooden floorboards as she drowned in her self pity. Yet her body had strayed from its designated route to her room, instead detouring until she found herself standing in the middle of the library. The library where Junhui had showered her in such caring love which haunted her for weeks. A love she'd never experience again.

This was the way life was. A bittersweet exchange. Happiness is a rarity, some being blessed to obtain it so frequently and others merely hoping to stumble upon it as they make their way through such a journey. Life can hold its own humor, able to devastate a person with the slightest of inconveniences or unforeseen circumstances. And (y/n) was merely a victim to life's trials.

It would eventually all pass away. Her torments would soon drift away with the wind as she persevered through it all. It was temporary, she insisted. It was something everyone went through. The loss of a first love. The first person to awaken something in her heart. To brighten her world and show her the vibrancy in everything. The warmth of his hands would forever haunt her own, the love in his eyes something forever ingrained in her memory. And with his absence, he'd take away with him a part of her. Something that will never be there again. Something only he can ever bring about in her.

She mourned the loss of her first love, and she mourned the loss of that part of herself that would forever lie dormant. But this was a chapter in her book she'd have to close. And though it may take some time to do so, it'd eventually happen.

Leaving the library felt more like leaving the book open on its final page, but it was a small step she needed to take. Allow her to stew over Junhui some more, bid him goodbye from her heart, and let bygones be bygones. Because while Junhui couldn't be her last love, he was her first. A position no one else could ever take from him. And while it hurt her, she nevertheless would accept it as such.

The next day came, and she found herself absentmindedly getting dressed. Her head was still hazy from slumber, eyes shutting on their own as she tugged on articles of clothing one after the other. It was early, the morning condensation still clinging to her window as the sun streamed through the droplets, casting warped shadows across her floor as she moved about. The birds sang to her scampering, as if reminding her that a new day was here and it would be a good one.

And it was a relieving omen as she finally exited her room, gloves in hand while she descended the stairs rapidly. She was going to visit Juliet and spend time with her dearest friend, and the sooner the better. Her gloves and bonnet could wait until she was in the carriage to be put on.

"Lady (y/n)." The maid called to her just as she reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Yes?" (y/n) asked, turning around to face the woman.

"You have a guest."

A guest? This early in the morning? As the sun was still stirring awake?

Her curiosity only grew as the maid halted her in her steps.

"Not in the parlor."

"If not in the parlor, then where would this guest have requested we meet?" (y/n) laughed it off at first, taking the time to start tugging on her gloves before she suddenly paused at the next words spoken.

"He requested you meet in the library."

She stopped, glove still dangling at the tips of her fingers as her laughter was replaced by a shocked expression. Junhui? Again?

There was a small part of her that was becoming irate at his constant reappearances every time she had prepared herself for nursing her heartbreak, though a greater portion of her that had already begun rushing to the library, heart leaping at the prospect of seeing him again.

When she had arrived at the doors, she had hesitated, breath stuttering as realization soon set in. What else could he have to say to her? She's already dismissed him as is. If she had to outright reject him directly to his face, she wouldn't be able to live with herself. Perhaps he was just here for a final goodbye—hopefully he was just here for a final goodbye.

The doors had felt heavier than they ever had as she pushed them open, sliding into the room through the generous gap offered before shutting them behind herself. She hoped for a moment to herself as she faced the closing doorway, but she had forgotten who she was dealing with for a second.

"My lady!" His excited voice sounded out from across the room, and the juxtaposition from the solemnity she had expected was quite jarring, enough to shake her from her stupor as she turned to him incredulously. And there he was, practically bounding to her with wide strides and a manic smile on his face. The sight was terrifying, prompting her to press her back to the flat surface behind her as Junhui finally stopped a foot before her.

"Mr. Wen." She responded, and this time, he didn't even flinch at the usage of his last name, merely extending his hand towards her one gloved hand. She tentatively slipped her own into his, and so began the journey back to that damned window sill, Junhui beginning to ramble the entirety of the way back.

"Good morning, my lady. I hope this wasn't too early a wake up call for you. I haven't been waiting long, if you were worried for that. I just wanted to speak with you once more." He had stopped speaking as he sat them both down, his eyes as eager as a retriever of sorts whilst waiting for her response. (y/n) had to have looked petrified, but this didn't deter him in the slightest.

"Good morning to you, too, Mr. Wen…" Her voice came out as tense as her body was, eyes darting about the room as if hoping for some sort of answers to come to her soon. Answers as to why Wen Junhui sat there so enthusiastically before her as if she hadn't already declined his feelings as subtly as she could. "I was actually already awake. You see, I plan to visit Juliet today. So I was already dressed and ready."

She hoped he'd get the message. That she already had plans and that this meeting should go as quickly as humanly possible, but yet again, he chose to pick his own story.

"Oh, how delightful!" He let out a breathy laugh, eyes still trailing across her face before finally some resolution settled in his features. "I wouldn't want to disturb your set plans, so I thank you for taking out some time from your day for me."

The guilt bit at her heart at his word choice, at how grateful he was for her having just sat down for him, but nevertheless she nodded and allowed him to continue on.

"I actually came here to continue our discussion from last night. I felt it hadn't ended the way I wanted it to."

(y/n) scoffed at this, almost amused at how arrogant his words were.

"Well, I'm sorry the conversation did not fit your standards of social expectations, but I feel it ended as well as it could regarding the circumstances." He lit up almost at the end of her sentence, smile coming back into place as she sat up.

"No, that's the thing. The circumstances you speak of are gravely misinterpreted."

"What ever could you mean?" She tilted her head at this, still failing to grasp what route Junhui could possibly be taking their meeting.

"Well, I'm afraid I haven't been entirely honest. That's not to say I've lied directly to you, but perhaps the lies I've spouted to others have finally come back to bite me." He pursed his lips into a thin line, eyes wandering up in thought, as if deliberating once more on these supposed lies he's gotten himself tangled in. With a shake of his head, he returned his attention to her. "Please, allow me to explain. I know I don't deserve a moment, but please spare me a moment to try and salvage what has transpired?"

She took a deep breath, shutting her eyes before nodding at his request. He scooted closer to her, back with that enthused smile on his face as he held her hand in his, thumb softly stroking the skin beneath the glove's seam.

"So as you know, I'm rather handsome."

She snorted at this, hand slapping against her mouth as he chuckled at her reaction.

"That's how you've decided to start this conversation?"

"Yes, now allow me to continue." (y/n) nodded, granting him permission to continue speaking, though this time more lighthearted as a smile fell upon her lips.

"Go on, Adonis."

"Anyways, I am burdened by my good looks, you see? Though it is something I must live with." She bit her lip, attempting to contain the laugh wanting to burst from her, but nodding again, indicating she was paying attention. "And so when I go to places, I'm often courted by many a fair lady. I'm sure your first impression of me was something along the lines of a potential marriage partner, was it not?"

"I'm afraid so." She answered, keeping her voice as steady as she could manage. "My mother was quite smitten when she first laid her eyes upon you."

Junhui laughed, thumb slipping further into her gloves until it rested at the base of her palm.

"As most are. I am something of a mother-in-law wrangler."

This time, she couldn't help but laugh aloud, leaning on Junhui for support as he also laughed, shoulders bouncing with glee where her head rested. When things had finally settled some, he continued with his plight.

"It was around the time I had first became a merchant that I realized this. I'd go to a different town, come to know the people, get a handful of marriage requests, and I'd have to reject each and every one." He pouted, slouching against the window behind him. "I don't like hurting people. I don't like breaking hearts. But it was something that became so frequent with my job." He glanced over at her to make sure she was still listening, and when he saw he had her undivided attention, he proceeded. "So I came up with a diversion of sorts. To already be betrothed before anyone asks me. So as to not outright reject anyone anymore, but also to easily ward off future marriage prospects."

(y/n) hummed at this, realizing it truly did work that first night at the ball. Her mother had looked so defeated and downtrodden as she came to terms with Junhui already being off the market, and hadn't pressured (y/n) to talk to him at all.

But once she finally processed his words, she felt her heart skip a beat. Her eyes widened and her hand clenched around his own, jaw falling slack at the information told to her.

He's not married.

Junhui's lips twitched up into a smile when he noticed her realization at his confession.

"My lady, I am very much so single and available."

That was all she needed before she had all but launched herself at him, laughter filling the air as she tossed her arms around him. Junhui easily caught her, pulling her into a warm, tight embrace as they reveled in one another's presence.

Tears pricked at her eyes, and her arms were beginning to feel sore from how tightly she held him, but she couldn't have been happier. She hugged him just as she always imagined she would. As greedily as she had always dreamt of being. She inhaled his scent as if breathing the open air for the first time in a millennia. She hadn't realized how restrained she truly did feel until her shackles had dissipated into nothing. How liberating it was to love as freely as she so desired.

(y/n) was the first to pull away, though not by far as she sat herself atop his lap, gently carding her fingers through his hair whilst taking in his features once more. Taking in the face that, presumably, now belonged to her very own soon to be betrothed. He smiled, this cat like, sated grin with his eyes shutting under her soft touch. And she was wholly endeared by such an expression, finding herself unconsciously leaning forward and pressing a kiss to the corner of his lips.

His eyes had fluttered open upon this, though he held no surprise in them. Merely curious wonder as he watched her with his wide, observant eyes. And (y/n) watched back, just as calm as ever.

Within the next moment, Junhui had reciprocated her action, tilting his head so to press his lips against her own.

A gentle, ever so loving kiss. One which held the weeks of yearning from the two of them, yet also the passion that blazed between them. This adoration that once sparked could not be tamed in any way. And it was almost humorous to think otherwise. That a love of their caliber could have been foregone had it not been for Junhui's clarification.

Her hands cupped his face, thumbs softly brushing against his cheeks bones as his hands reached up to her wrists, holding her closer to him as he spoke every silent utterance of his love for her through his kiss, hoping that whatever superfluous words he could have possibly ever managed to profess to her in some helpless way of describing what he feels for her would be able to be conveyed in this manner; felt rather than heard.

Once more, (y/n) was the first to separate, pulling away from his warmth after some few moments later. His eyes remained shut, though his lips had absentmindedly trailed after her own, dazed from such an ordeal that she couldn't help but giggle at his antics, snapping him free from his stupor.

Serene. That was how it felt. Being wrapped in Junhui's arms, feeling the warmth of his soft lips still lingering on her own, falling deep into his sweet, dark gaze, the honey-like embers in the chocolate of his eyes enough to have her drowning in that tender stare of his. And he seemed so tranquil from beneath her, as if having no worries in the world. As long as she was there, perhaps he'd never feel another ounce of anxiety ever again.

"I love you." He spoke first, timbre smooth and delicate as he spoke such fond words. His eyes seemed glassy with emotion, prompting (y/n) to kiss him once more.

They were words she had craved to hear him utter. Something she had dreamt of happening for days to come, and something which had felt even sweeter in person. And soon, all of the turmoil she'd gone through over the past few days seemed redundant. The efforts to hide Junhui from her memories futile as she now embraced him in hopes of him never leaving again. In hopes of forever reveling in this feeling for however long she could.

"I love you, too."

"The weather is divine today, don't you agree?" Junhui spoke as he led the two through Juliet's garden once more. The vines were overgrown, the flowers plentiful and random, and the attempts at achieving perfection had been missed greatly. But it couldn't have been a more beautiful sight, especially whilst beside her love, Junhui.

Things had fallen into place rather seamlessly, as if the flow of things had been momentarily obstructed, though now was able to move about freely with no hassles. Junhui had cleared away any and all misunderstandings rather quickly once (y/n) had accepted his intentions.

Supposedly it had actually been Juliet's father whom Junhui had begun the rumor with, as he has done in every town he ventured to: planting the seed and allowing it to grow and spread to others. It was he who told Joshua, who then told (y/n). Junhui hadn't expected news to travel as quickly as it had, as silly as it sounded. But nevertheless, all was clarified, and soon everyone knew (y/n) was Junhui's betrothed.

His prior betrothed had been promptly retired, though not before having caused a momentary raucous between the two lovers.

"How long have you been doing this betrothed charade?" (y/n) had asked one night as they sat alongside each other in her library. Junhui paused from his reading, humming in thought before answering her question.

"Five years."

"Five years?" (y/n) was taken aback, jaw dropping as she drew away from him to take in all of his person. "You've been dragging this poor girl as a false betrothed for half a decade?"

"No, no," Junhui placed his book down in a panic, pivoting to face (y/n) as he sensed a new misunderstanding to arise. "I've been dragging a poor girl's corpse as a false betrothed for half a decade."

His words, as they usually tended to do, caused even more of a misunderstanding between the two, but he had swiftly explained himself, having used an unmarked grave by his hometown as a name for his betrothed, so that if anyone had dared investigate his motives, they'd come across the grave of a widow's wife, and perhaps feel an ounce of guilt for having dug into Junhui's life.

Yes, he was quite the imbecile, though it was endearing to her, especially as he scrambled over his words moments after the two had confessed their love to one another in the library that day.

She was still seated in his lap as he had begun rambling nonsense.

"(y/n), I truly am madly in love with you. My affections are entirely genuine. Everything we've experienced, every encounter we've shared, has truly been moments with which I shall cherish with my entire being. Aside from this one fib of sorts, I have not hidden anything from the likes of you, nor shall I ever. You shall always be my top priority. I'll take care of you, I'll drop everything at your beck and call. I–"

"Jun." His name sounded so lovely coming from her, as if she spoke such vibrant life into that singular syllable, and it was enough to silence Junhui who stared up at her in awe at how in love he truly was with her. "My dear, you're rambling these promises to me, yet you haven't even verified whether I've accepted them or not." He could hear the tease in her voice, feel the way her heart beat for him from her pulse where his thumb rested over her wrist. But he always enjoyed a good game, especially if no matter the outcome, he'd win. And so he gathered her hands into his own, eyes sparkling with mirth as he gazed up at her.

"My love, though this may not be the most wondrous of locales we could have chosen, nor is it the inimitable romantic moment with which I had dreamt of asking you, but I can only hope you'll forgive my inopportune choice in time and consider me nevertheless. Consider whether you'll accept my affections as they are; truly and wholly genuine in every sense of the word. Though I may lack in etiquette at times, say strange things, conjure deranged ploys that no man on earth has considered nor executed, I still find myself yearning to be by your side, if you'll have me, as your betrothed?"

And how could she say no to such an eloquent proposal? Especially from someone as undoubtedly dashing and humorous as Junhui.

He filled her days with laughter, happiness practically radiating off (y/n) whenever they were together, and he showered her in all the love he could possibly offer a person.

With the security of their now stable relationship, she had also found the strength to open those letters she had stowed away, and it was as painful an experience as she thought it would be.

The first few letters had been vaguely casual, attempting to keep the air of normalcy that had been established in their frequent letter exchanges, but had soon been abandoned upon his realization that she was no longer responding. Desperation sprawled across pages as he tried so dearly to reach out to her. Hundreds of apologies, questions as to where she'd gone, pleads of her returning to him. And that final letter on the day he left—that letter sealed with its deep blue wax—was his attempt at confessing to her before leaving, never to see her again.

"Though strenuous, it is possible for me to hide my affections for you, as I have done through the entirety of our encounters, yet hiding the tenderness I feel for you is not as viable an option for me. I cannot hide the way I naturally care for you, my fondness which reveals itself whenever I am near you. I hide my love for you, yet it seems to seep out no matter how desperately I hold it back. I only wish I could've held on a little longer, perhaps not have frightened you off. I regret my actions dearly. I am left praying for a second chance, as I fear a life without you near."

Life has been terribly cruel to them. Not only had she gone through such hardships, dealing with a love she believed to be impossible to attain, but he had gone through a love he believed to be complex and unrequited.

Yet again, life is funny that way. Life has its humorous moments that seem terribly unfair and tragic, but in the end, it all works out. Perhaps not as smoothly as one would have intended it to, but she couldn't necessarily complain. After all, here she was standing side by side with her beloved Junhui as he regaled her with stories of his latest travels.

"My love, I really must take you on one of my trips with me. What do you say? Perhaps the next one? It's only some few hours from here, I believe." He looked at her hopefully, eyes shining with hope and adoration, the latter being a rather permanent fixture in his gaze whenever she resided in his sights. He was so sappy, yet so endearing. Continuing to send letters to her no matter where he was, surprising her with gifts and displays of his affections, already searching for a manor of their own in town for once they were wed.

He was right. It was impossible to hide his tenderness for her, long before they had even gotten together. He cherished (y/n), treating her as he would his most precious, coveted object. And she splendored in the love he rained down upon her, her only complaint being that she herself seemed to falter in this little game of love of theirs as she attempted to keep up with him. She was sure he'd grow tired of the many knitwear and cross stitch she'd gift him, but he hadn't shown even the smallest signs of growing weary of them, adorning his gloves in the winter and his embroidered handkerchief at meetings.

But the greatest gift they could have ever given each other was merely themselves. In an overgrown, messy garden on a windy day with the sun beaming above them, she couldn't have asked for a better moment.

"I'll go wherever you go, my dear." (y/n) responded, resting her head along his arm and shutting her eyes peacefully. Junhui hummed in delight at this, bringing her hand up to his mouth and pressing a kiss to her wrist, right along her vein where it pulsed against his lip.

"We could even bring Joshua and Juliet along as a double date of sorts. I'm sure they'd enjoy the scenery of the shoreline."

She chuckled in delight at the reminder of her brother and her friend, the two courting one another soon after (y/n) and Junhui had themselves. Apparently they had gotten much closer when they were attempting to get them together, perhaps a much more complicated ordeal than it had been for Junhui and (y/n) to play matchmaker with them, as Junhui was believed to have been married at the time. Though it seemed to work nevertheless.

Joshua had managed to lure Junhui back and into (y/n)'s direction. He was even the one that had cornered him about his intentions with his sister whilst being married—and so enlightened Junhui of the situation at hand, as he then confronted (y/n) the very next day in the library, delighted to realize the misunderstanding occurring.

"I believe they'd like that very much." (y/n) agreed, turning her head to look up at Junhui once more. His golden hair was much longer, pulled back with a ribbon she had tied on him herself in their carriage. He was as handsome as ever, perhaps a beauty that would never fade, with soft, charming features that seemed timeless to her. Her face would heat up whenever his dark, warm eyes landed on her, and her skin would practically burn whenever he'd press his lips onto hers, reminding her of that ageless, apodictic love he held for her; a flame in the depths of his heart that seemed to never extinguish.

"I'd love to show you the ocean." He confessed, seating her alongside him on a bench under a flower archway. That gentle smile of his melted onto his face, a sigh of relief expelling from his nose as he took in his lovely (y/n) again and again. "It's indescribable. It stretches far beyond the eye can see. The waters are cool and the winds are refreshing under the sun." He brushed back a lock of hair from her face, fingers resting at the junction of her jaw where her ears resided. "I'd love to experience everything the world has to offer with you. If you'll allow me."

"That sounds wonderful to me."

Her poor heart couldn't possibly take such tenderness, such warm devotion on a daily basis. This incessant thudding in her chest whenever Junhui held her in his arms, he could quite possibly kill her one of these days from how fatal he was to her fragile heart. But she'd die happy. Knowing Junhui had become her first love, her last love, and her forever love.

[nixtape-foryou]

✿ SHOP COLUMBINES

Columbines symbolize lofty aspirations, endurance, risk-taking, and good fortune. It is often associated with The Fool tarot card, as they embody a life lived on the edge, while also representing faith and peace. Resilient in adverse conditions, these flowers encourage a leap of faith and embrace life's adventurous journey with their delicate beauty and symbolic meanings.

Bouquets = Series | Stems = Oneshots | Seeds = Drabbles | In Shipment = Ongoing

STEMS

Because I Love You by chocosvt (8.1k) || College AU, Secret Relationship to Lovers || You’re friends with junhui - but also, not really. it’s friends and a little bit more than that. it’s difficult keeping your relationship a secret, especially when you’ve never loved someone the way you love him.

Noodles by gamerwoo (6.0k) || Strangers to Lovers || Junhui’s the kind of person parents warn their daughters to stay away from but you’ve never had the inclination to go near him anyway. But it’s not until he comes into the animal shelter looking for a kitten named Noodles that you start to learn more about the mysterious Wen Junhui.

The Sea is Yours to Take by wavesmp3 (36.0k) ☆ || Royalty AU, Strangers to Slight Enemies to Lovers || The Seven Sins and the Seven Gifts of the Spirit are warriors, exceptionally skilled in fighting, and they’re all dead. That is, all except you, The Gift of Fortitude. It’s an uneasy time in the kingdom with eastern Lords and northern bandits threatening a rebellion. You feel that it’s your duty to try and maintain peace within the kingdom. But when the King sends you away for an act of treason, you aren’t sure how much you can do so far away from home. And it certainly doesn’t help that Jun, the southern Lord of the estate you’ve been sent to, seems to hate your guts.  

close as strangers by viastro (7.6k) || Spider-Man: No Way Home AU || In a world where everyone forgot who wen junhui is—you remembered.

Lovers & Friends by milfgyuu (3.2k) ★★★ || Mature, Friends with Benefits to Lovers || Blurred lines gain sudden clarity when you propose a little, experiment, with your lover’s best friend. 

What’s My Age Again? by milfgyuu (8.9k) || Mature, Coworkers to Lovers, Crack Humor || Wen Junhui is sort of a dumbass but he’s your dumbass and you’ve come to realize that you like him just the way he is.

[lazuli-writes]

Wake

summary: Jun is the only one who can handle seeing Vernon in the hospital.

pairing: Wen Junhui & Vernon Chwe

genre: angst / hopeful

estimated word count: 1000 words

a/n: I was initially gonna leave it with a sad ending but then I was like… nah. Remember folks, copying other people’s works is plagiarism and that’s illegal. Don’t be that kind of person. Anyways, hope you all enjoy it :)

©little-lazuli. Do not copy, repost, or translate without permission

“Good morning noni! How was your day today?” 

Jun kept the smile on his face despite getting no response. Putting down the bag of lunch for one. It was almost second nature for Jun to simply move past it. It shocked him how he could field staying here with Vernon the most out of the rest of Seventeen.

With some like Seungcheol, too emotionally unstable to the point of rage or worse, culpable breakdowns. Or on the other end of the spectrum like Chan, who could do nothing but stare, emotionally constipated—or in the case of Seungkwan and Mingyu, emotionless—A silent chasm always sitting between both youngest members of their group. 

“The menu today is Twix. And yes I know it’s only eight in the morning, but that seems to be the only thing this hospital has to offer that didn’t look too overbearing. Did you want one noni?”

Silence once again.

“Of course I made sure to get you two. You didn’t get the nickname Twix for no reason.”

Jun sighed, the semi-artificial smile on his lips and burdened eyes linger away from his brother into the small bag of goodies he bought for the day. Seven Twix bars, some ramen packs for lunch and some choco pies and pepero for dinner. The typical meal plan Jun had grown accustomed to during every visit to see Vernon. 

“Seokmin and Mingyu got into another argument. It was so hilarious. Guess what it was about?”

Jun sat down, opening a Twix bar, munching away after he put the two he got for Vernon with every visit in the once-used flower vase. A vase that was now almost completely full with Twix bars. The elder sighed as he eyed the vase, annoyed at how fast he felt the vase filled up.

“They got mad because someone dropped Seokmin’s toothbrush on the floor and didn’t pick it up. He unloaded on the last person who used the bathroom, which just so happened to be Mingyu.”

Jun paused for a response that never came, only continuing after swallowing the bite of his Twix that he took.

“Well, Mingyu was not having it. He went off. Mind you, this happened the other day, early in the morning, so their fight woke up the others. Cheollie-hyung was not happy. That whole morning was a shit-show to be honest. You’re lucky to have been able to escape. Hyung and Jihoon-ah was ruthless at practice that morning.”

Jun finished his Twix, quickly disposing of his trash before pulling out his phone.

“I know you can’t see what I’m about to show you, but I’m sure you can just hear in his voice how pissed Jihoon-ah was at that practice. And to have Cheol-hyung back him up on everything… was kinda afraid the others were about to mutiny.”

Jun played the video of that day in dance practice he had on his phone, laughing every now again at his favorite parts. And once it reached the point where even Soonyoung was getting snarky, Jihoon was quick with a sassy shutdown before starting the music again. Jun could only laugh, cause while everyone else in the group found the memory annoying, Jun loved how almost normal this seemed.

“Sometimes I wonder how so much sass could be contained in such a tiny body. Ain’t I right Twix?”

No response once again. Jun smiled, nodding his head in agreement. “You right noni, must be an age thing. Us hyungs must be getting better with our sass as we age, aren’t we?”

Silence. 

Jun sighed. Routine followed through as he pushed his hair back, leaning back in his chair to take a couple more deep breaths before returning his attention to the boy laying before him. 

“You know, hyung loves visiting you noni. But I really miss you”

Jun's smile cracked a bit, as he leaned against the bed where the maknae laid. His eyes began to water as the elder recited the same little monologue he did every visit.

“I miss seeing your eyes shine. I miss hearing your voice cheer and laugh…”

Jun tried each time he gave this speech, to hold back his tears. To stop the stone in his throat from strangling him from within. To halt the rush of sadness that sucked to swallow him whole everyday that passed with no news.

“I-“

Jun cleared the tears away from his eyes before taking one of Vernon’s slightly chilled hands. Positioning it so that Jun held it up in holding his own cheek. Jun leaned into the younger’s hand as it artificially caressed him. Trying in any way possible to transfer the strength and love he had for the younger to the maknae who laid there. Silent. And asleep.

“Please noni. I know I ask so much of you right now. And you might even have your reasons to not want to do this”

Jun wiped the last of his tears away as he re-solidified the steel in his mind, still gently keeping Vernon’s hand on his cheek. 

“But I need you to wake up. We need our noni back so badly. I miss you, we all miss you so much sollie. Please wake up.”

And for what felt like the hundredth time, Jun only received silence from his comatose brother. 

Jun refused the tears that threatened to spill once again, instead closing his eyes to enjoy the feeling of Vernon’s fingers. And for the slightest second, Jun dwelled in despair at another day enduring this torture alongside his brother. 

But those thoughts and designs of pain and anguish vanished when Jun felt a sudden pressure against his face. 

Eyes shooting open as Vernon’s finger shook and gripped ever so slightly on their own. Jun held his breath as he sat there, unable to move or speak as the feeling of movement by Vernon took hold of his consciousness. 

And with it, optimism flooded Jun’s heart and soul, with a crashing of waves so powerful, Jun released them in the form of new tears. Brighter and happier tears came rolling down the elder’s face in a never ending stream of hope.

[tinykittendelusion]

Seventeen and thigh riding(🔞)

a/n: inspiration strikes me again

triggers: sexual content, MINORS DNI

Scoups, Dino, Dokyeom , Joshua, Woozi and Mingyu

The thigh men who are obsessed with how desperate and turned on you look when you ride their thigh. Likes watching you get off by riding their thigh. Would even help you if you ask nicely. Just be pretty and keep those moans loud. It makes him kinda cocky if you orgasm just from riding his thigh cause that's why he goes to the gym.

Jeonghan , Wonwoo, Minghao and Vernon

These men make you ride their thigh as a punishment. I see them all to be at least slightly mean Doms who just love punishing you for being a bad girl. would even call you names like slut, whore while you ride his thigh. Loves how frustrated you get when he makes you stop just before your orgasm. Will make you ride his thigh for so long that his thigh is covered in your juices. But he'll let you cum if you beg nicely.

Jun, Hoshi and Seungkwan

Riding their thigh is a ritual between you both. Every time you dom him you like cumming at least once on his thigh when he begs you to help him. You love watching him all red and helpless as he watches you reach your release on his thigh when he'd rather you cum around his dick.

[honeyhae-svt]

.ೃ࿔⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅̩̩͙‧͙december with seventeen‧͙̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆

a/n: hey you! its december 15, 8 days before christmas ! updating this masterlist everyday for ot13 ig ! update starts tomorrow =]

warnings: none. just fluff in each chapter. so yeah ig anyone is allowed to read this :]

MASTERLIST SEVENTEEN X READER

c. seungcheol – snowman (sia)

tags: seungcheol x reader, seungcheol fluff, seventeen fanfiction, holiday au, snowman au, christmas love story, domestic fluff, bittersweet love, long distance relationship, happy ending, romance, reader insert, cozy vibes genre: fluff, romance, holiday au, slice of life warnings: mild emotional moments (bittersweet themes around distance), excessive cuteness and fluff (reader discretion advised), no major angst (just warm feelings and happy tears) wc: 2757 (heh)

y. jeonghan – last christmas (ariana grande)

tags: jeonghan x reader, jeonghan fluff, seventeen fanfiction, holiday au, ex au, christmas love story, fluff, bittersweet love, exes to lovers(?), happy ending, romance, reader insert, cozy vibes. kisses (mwuah) genre: romance, fluff, christmas, holiday au, slice of life, really mild angst warnings: none (it’s pretty wholesome, so unless you have themes of anxiety or past trauma you have with past relationships, there should be no need for any major warnings) wc: 3050 (xp)

h. joshua – mistletoe (justin bieber)

tags: joshua x reader, holiday au, christmas love story, snowball fight, mistletoe kiss, fluff, romance, cozy vibes, snow angels, warmth in the cold, friends to lovers, slow burn, winter vibes genre: romance, fluff, holiday/christmas au, friendship, humor warnings: none (this is a fluff-filled story with light teasing and playful moments) wc: 3702

w. junhui – baby it’s cold outside (michael bublé)

tags: jun x reader, snowstorm au, domestic vibes, movie night, pining, slow burn, fluffy ending, reader insert, cozy romance, winter love genre: fluff, romance warnings: none. just soft, wholesome vibes and playful banter wc: 2859

k. soonyoung – you make it feel like christmas (gwen stefani, blake shelton)

j. wonwoo – santa baby (ariana grande)

l. jihoon – i’ll be home for christmas (michael bublé)

l. seokmin – this christmas (chris brown)

k. mingyu – santa tell me (ariana grande)

x. minghao – santa doesn’t know you like i do (sabrina carpenter)

b. seungkwan – santa, can’t you hear me (kelly clarkson, ariana grande)

c. vernon – all i want for christmas is you (mariah carey)

l. chan – winter things (ariana grande)

a/n: it's a december event until the 24th! (christmas eve) exactly 8 days before christmas. (this is more like my countdown lol) i hope yall look forward to it :]

thank you and happy early christmas greetings mwuah. xoxo

[sweetiesicheng]

jun - sick

word count : 575

-

you and your boyfriend are both sick after taking a trip together. it's only the second day of you two being sick, but both of you still feel pretty bad. as you lay on the loveseat, you read the temperature on the thermometer before dropping it on the side table near you.

"it hasn't gone down," you say to jun, who lays on the couch.

"mine has," jun says, holding a thermometer in his hand. he looks over at you, "you should go rest in the room. i'll sleep in one of the guest rooms for the next few days," he suggests and sits up from where he is on the couch.

"no, you should. i'll sleep in the downstairs guest room. my head is spinning so much that i don't think i can walk upstairs," you say to him and manage to push yourself up and off the loveseat.

"it hurts that much?" jun asks. "the meds haven't kicked in yet?"

"no," you answer. "i'm gonna sleep for a bit," you say to him. "love you."

"love you more," jun replies as you walk out of the living room.

you head to the guest room and immediately fall onto the bed. you get under the covers and start taking a nap, wanting nothing more than to wake up with a clear head instead of a headache.

—

"y/n!"

you slowly open your eyes and look up to see jun in the doorway of the guest room.

"what?" you groggily speak.

"i ordered food. come eat," he says to you. "we haven't eaten all day," he reminds you.

"oh, you're right," you say to him and get up. you leave the room and go into the kitchen to see a bunch of food on the kitchen table.

when you sit down, you notice jun sitting in the living room with more food on the table in front of him.

"this is sad. we can't even sit near each other," you say to him and grab a pair of wooden chopsticks from one of the plastic bags.

"both of us need to get better quickly," jun replies. "i ordered a lot, so we can just heat everything up. we can eat it the next few days."

you smile at him, "thank you."

"of course, baby."

after you finish eating, you clean up and go into the living room to lay on the loveseat again. jun is still eating his dinner while watching something on his phone.

"jun," you call out to him.

"hm?"

"can i hug you?" you ask him.

jun looks over and raises an eyebrow at you. "did you forget that we're sick?" he asks.

"but i miss my boyfriend," you inform him, watching jun smile from your response. "my boyfriend doesn't love me," you say with a sigh.

"baby, we're sick."

"so? if we're sick, then we're sick," you reply.

jun shakes his head for a second. "one minute," he says and sits back to lean against the front of the couch. you get off of the couch and go over to him. you sit on his lap and hug him. "if i get worst than you, you better take care of me," he says to you while hugging you.

"i'll nurse you back to health. don't worry," you reply with a smile. "love you."

"love you more, baby."

—

"okay, it's been five minutes."

"two more minutes."

"we're never going to get better."

[hcuyk]

SYNOPSIS : jeonghan loves you. the happier ending to kidult

PAIRING : daycareworker!jeonghan x genderneutral!reader

GENRES : established relationship, daycare au, angst, fluff, features seventeen as children

WARNINGS : mentions of car accident and child neglect

TEASER WORD COUNT : 329

ESTIMATED WORD COUNT : 7-10k

ESTIMATED RELEASE DATE : within the next week. i lied its coming out when i get time cause why tf is my college doing sm

TAGLIST : lmk if you want to be added!

A/N : this is for kidult jeonghan reaching 1k notes. i love you all

K. COLLECTION [Y.JH] ONE | TWO

Tears began to stream down your face, unable to hold them back, and you were thankful Jeonghan missed it, but when you heard him apologize, you turned around and snapped at him.

“What the hell do you even want?”

“I want to talk to you.”

“You had two weeks to talk to me!” you yelled, fighting the loudness of the rain. The stream of tears ran faster down your cheeks as you brought a hand to your forehead, shielding the rain from getting into your eyes.

“I tried!”

“By knocking on my door for an hour straight at two in the fucking morning?! You could’ve called! You have a key!”

“Well it’s not like you tried either—”

“I got hit by a car!” you screamed, storming towards him as the sky reflected your mood. The thunder was just as loud as the pounding in your heart, and the rain poured just as much as your tears. You pushed Jeonghan, and behind him you saw a crack of lightning. Your vision started to blur as you didn’t hold back your sobs, wanting to show him the pain he’d inflicted on you ever since he left.

“I got hit by a car, Jeonghan! What about you? Were you hit by a car?! A truck? Perhaps a plane?” You forced out a manic laugh before continuing. “Wait, no, don’t tell me. Let me guess,-”

“Y/N—”

“-mauled by a bear?”

“I can explain-”

“Tell me I’m goddamn overreacting.” You took a step forward, and instead of pushing him again, you stared, making him look at the pain he created. “Tell me I’m overreacting, Hannie. Look me in my eyes and say it loud and clear.”

“I knew you’d be there for me.”

“I missed you, I needed you-”

“I know.”

“The day I lose you is the day I lose myself.”

“I don’t want you to wake up and realize I’m not the one for you. I don’t want that for us.”

hopefully the svt readers see this 😔

[lockburn-castle]

⋆ ✩‧₊˚ ꜱᴠᴛ ʀᴇᴄꜱ ˚₊‧✩༘⋆

LEGEND:

⇒ 『✓』 - 𝔠𝔬𝔪𝔭𝔩𝔢𝔱𝔢𝔡 (𝔞𝔩𝔰𝔬 𝔪𝔢𝔞𝔫𝔰 𝔦𝔱𝔰 𝔞 𝔰𝔢𝔯𝔦𝔢𝔰) ⇒ 『📱』 - 𝔰𝔪𝔞𝔲, 𝔰𝔬𝔠𝔦𝔞𝔩 𝔪𝔢𝔡𝔦𝔞 𝔞𝔲 ⇒ 『 ☁ 』 - 𝔣𝔩𝔲𝔣𝔣 ⇒ 『 🗣 』 - 𝔠𝔯𝔞𝔠𝔨, 𝔠𝔬𝔪𝔢𝔡𝔶, 𝔥𝔲𝔪𝔬𝔲𝔯 ⇒ 『 ⚠︎ 』 - 𝔞𝔫𝔤𝔰𝔱 ⇒ 『 ❣︎ 』 - 𝔢𝔫𝔢𝔪𝔦𝔢𝔰 𝔱𝔬 𝔩𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔯𝔰 ⇒ 『 18+ 』 - 𝔪𝔞𝔱𝔲𝔯𝔢 𝔠𝔬𝔫𝔱𝔢𝔫𝔱 ⇒ 『 ➳ 』 - 𝔬𝔫𝔢-𝔰𝔥𝔬𝔱𝔰 / 𝔰𝔠𝔢𝔫𝔞𝔯𝔦𝔬𝔰 ⇒ 『 🕰 』 - 𝔱𝔦𝔪𝔢 𝔰𝔱𝔞𝔪𝔭𝔰 ⇒ 『 ⚛ 』 - 𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔠𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰

𖠋 do remember to read the warnings before continuing to read the fanfics!!

🍒 choi seungcheol 🍒

' THE WAY BACK ' - by @suhnshinehaos {✓, 📱, ☁, ⚠︎, 🗣} Remind Me - by @milfgyuu {☁, 🗣} yours, but not yours - by @yuzukult {☁, ⚠︎, 🗣, 18+} get you - by @yoongiseesawmp3 {☁, 🗣} GAME DAY - by @escapewriter {✓, 📱, ☁, ⚠︎, 🗣} His Hoodie - by @drunk-on-dk {☁, 🗣, 18+}

one-shots/time stamps

arcade - by @sweetiesicheng {➳, ☁, 🗣}

👼🏻 yoon jeonghan 👼🏻

DESKMATES TO LOVERS? - by @http-mianhae { ❣︎ , ☁, ⚠︎, 🗣} my guardian demon sucks at his job (not clickbait) - by @shuaflix {☁, ⚠︎, 🗣, 18+}

one-shots/time stamps

such a flirt ! - by @amateurasterism {➳, ☁} Girls Talk Boys - by @drunk-on-dk {☁, 18+} to you - by @shuahoonie {➳, ☁, 🗣} [ 12:02am ] - by @slytherinshua {🕰, ☁} worst neighbor ever (or is he?) ! - by @amateurasterism {➳, ☁} waterproof - by @husbandhannie {➳, ☁, ⚠︎} [11:23 pm] - by @jjuniehao {➳, ☁}

🦌 hong joshua 🦌 one-shots/time stamps

my home - by @shuahoonie {➳, ☁, 🗣} about you - by @shuahoonie {➳, ☁, 🗣} Smitten - by @slytherinshua {➳, ☁}

🐱 wen junhui 🐱 one-shots/time stamps

[ 9:43pm ] - by @slytherinshua {🕰, ☁}

🐯 kwon soonyoung 🐯 one-shots/time stamps

Photoshoot - by @slytherinshua {➳, ☁} my things and yours - by @husbandhannie {➳, ☁} [8:06 AM] - by @thru-the-grapevine {🕰, ☁} just a moment with you - by @husbandhoshi {➳, ☁, 🗣} [02:09 pm] - by @jjuniehao {➳, ☁}

🦊 jeon wonwoo 🦊 one-shots/time stamps

『 tomorrow 』 - by @genezpen {➳, ☁} chocolate rum cookies - by @wonwoonlight {➳, ☁} the regular - by @trblsvt {➳, ☁}

🍚 lee jihoon 🍚 one-shots/time stamps

[02:14] - by @kwanisms {➳, ☁} bags - by @cheolsblackgf {➳, ☁} Half-Baked - by @thru-the-grapevine {➳, ☁}

⚔️ lee seokmin ⚔️

Missing Pieces - by @escapewriter {✓, 📱, ☁, ⚠︎, 🗣}

one-shots/time stamps

and tomorrow we’ll begin anew - by @noramoons {➳, ☁} [20:40] - by @gyu-effect {🕰, ☁}

🐶 kim mingyu 🐶 one-shots/time stamps

restless without you - by @duhnova {➳, ☁} ♡ KICK YOU OR KISS YOU - by @alohajun {➳, ☁}

🐸 xu minghao 🐸

now or never - by @heartkyeom {✓, ☁, 🗣, ⚠︎ } ❝ academic infatuation ❞ - by @berriesandjunnie {☁}

one-shots/time stamps

Hot pot, flowers and fireworks - by @hongnanglen-arina {➳, ☁}

🍊 boo seungkwan 🍊

one-shots/time stamps

Mission Possible - by @thepixelelf {➳, ☁} 𝐚 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 - by @sungbeam {➳, ☁} ☆ OUR LUNCHBOX - by @odxrilove {➳, ☁}

🐢 choi hansol 🐢

LIE AGAIN - by @escapewriter {✓, 📱, ☁, ⚠︎, 🗣}

one-shots/time stamps

[𝟏𝟏:𝟐𝟒𝐀𝐌] - by @sungbeam {🕰, ☁} The Valentine's Day Date - by @rubyreduji {➳, ☁} dropping you lunch at work - by @ssentimentals {➳, ☁}

🦖 lee chan 🦖

one-shots/time stamps

i like you - by @leejungchans {➳, ☁}

💎 ot13 💎

svt season's greetings - by @junkissed {➳, ☁} 𝐑𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 - by @heavenshoon {➳, ☁} long distance relationships - by @wooahaes {➳, ☁}

𖠋 to be regularly updated!

part 2 -> here !

[straylightdream]

so it goes… | coming soon

𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐭: wen junhui x camgirl! f.reader

↳ Getting caught up in a moment. Lipstick on your face, so it goes. I'm yours to keep and I'm yours to lose.

𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: friends to lovers?? non idol au

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 5.2k

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: angst, unprotected sex(mc is on birth control), camgirl reader, kind of anonymous camboy jun, creampie, body worship, oral (male rec), recording sexual acts, fingering & handjobs, nipple play, thigh riding, masturbation, nicknames: (hers) baby, baby girl, cherry, (his) baby, baby boy

an: this was inspired by the song so it goes.. by taylor swift. This another one of my stories inspired by reputation songs. This can be read as a one shot but these guys and there friends are mention in a series of loosely connected stories called all for you

if you would like to be tagged please fill out this form.

PREVIEW

You learned very early on that Junhui has a thing for appearing in your videos but remaining anonymous. He often wears a face mask and makes sure you only see him from the neck down. He’s never taken his clothes off on camera. He has no problem fingering you until you’re practically screaming or playing with you or using toys on you.

He’s sitting on the edge of the bed with you straddling his strong thigh. He’s dressed in business attire coming over straight from work.

He always tries to see you before you go live. He made a joke about you riding his thigh and the next thing you knew he has you naked with your camera on. Your lips are painted a cherry color as your leave lipstick stains across the column of his neck. You grind your hips against this thigh getting the friction you desperately need.

It’s a blessing you live alone so you can be as loud as you need. Your fingers cling to his white dress shirt, rubbing yourself against his thigh harder.

“Fuck,” he softly moans.

As you fall apart it takes everything not to moan his name. You instead opt for moaning, “baby” your name you only refer to him as on camera.

After you finish your stream you lay on your bed completely naked watching as Junhui stands next to the bed staring down at you. “I wanted to suck the life out of you on camera.”

He chuckles, “you can do it now off camera.”

“I thought you had to meet Seungcheol, Minghao, and Joshua at the bar?” You know he doesn’t have time for that.

“They can wait.”

“I shouldn’t make you late again,” you sit up slowly.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

[lovjiwoong]

ON MY MIND - wen junhui social media au

𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂 ˚ ☆ ꙳ * ࣭

pairing: wen junhui x gender neutral reader

plot: you had always dreamt of opening a cafe with your cousin and best friend, joshua and when that dream comes true, it feels like everything falls into place. that is until you find out that your high school crush has opened a gaming cafe a few blocks down. seoul sees you as rivals due to having the same opening date but you just want to find some confidence to talk to him. unbeknownst to you, he may be having the same crisis.

genre: strangers to friendly rivals to lovers, non-idol, bakery au, angst, fluff, comedy, mutual idiotic pining

warnings: cursing, talk of a past break up, friendly insults

starring: members of seventeen

schedule updates: every one to three days.

status: not started yet

release date: september

note: if you’ve read my previous sm au: when our paths cross again, you’ll know that y/n and joshua had plans of owning their own bakery / coffee shop together. this will come to life in this sm au but the friendships will be different.

permanent taglist: @honeyhuii @soobin-chois @fylithia @enhacolor @ja4hyvn @maiverie @bambisgirl @its-madi @i05wook @yizhoutv @joonsytip @l33j3n8 @nar-nia @lightprincess-world

general on my mind taglist: @minhui896

𓈒 ﹒ ☆ 𓂂 ˚ ☆ ꙳ * ࣭

✏️ = written part

profiles: cuppa cove | moon's gaming cafe

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ten

eleven

twelve

thirteen

...more to come!

[animeniacss]

So Close Yet So Far - Mingyu x Reader - Chapter 16 - I Was Never Enough

Synopsis: Your college friend, Kim Mingyu, has had a grip on your heart since the first day you met. Over the past few years, as you acquired more friendships and memories, those feelings only grew. However, recently, Mingyu has seemed a bit more distant, at least when it comes to any ideas of romance. It only gets worse when rumors fly that he's off to Japan to receive a marriage proposal! Unsure what to do, you wonder how you can keep Mingyu by your side without jeopardizing your friendship or your growing feelings. You never expected that waking up one drunken morning next to two hot angels would be your ticket into Mingyu's heart.

Genre: Romance, College!AU, Modern Fantasy, Comedy, Angsty

Length: approx. 7k words

Chapter 16 - I Was Never Enough

"Why are they red?"

"Joshua..." you muttered, eyes darting right.

"I don't know!"

Your eyes darted left. "Jeonghan..."

"What does this mean?!" Joshua asked.

"I don't know!"

"GUYS!" The room went quiet, Joshua and Jeonghan looking over at you. "...My hands." When they looked down, they saw how tightly they were holding your hands, practically yanking you forward over the couch. The little markers above your hands continued flashing red until you pulled your hands back. "What does it mean if they're red?"

"It means we failed," Jeonghan said simply. You frowned.

"What? But that's not possible." You said. "Mingyu and I just-."

"Now you see why we're confused, I'm sure," Jeonghan said. He ran a hand through his hair. "Uhm. Well..."

You saw the panic in the duo's faces as they both started muttering to themselves about what they should do. "Don't worry." You said softly, and they finally looked back at you. "I think you guys need to calm down."

"...What?" they gasped.

"Mingyu and I just started this relationship." You said. "And we've agreed to take it a bit slow. Maybe it needs some time to reset. Or maybe it's because we haven't officially stated we're boyfriend and girlfriend yet. Maybe the red means 'stop', or something. Not that you failed." Neither of them looked convinced. "I'm just trying to help."

Joshua, aware that you were just as lost as them, let out a deep sigh. There was no use in also making you panic. He looked over at Jeonghan. "Maybe. Let's give it a day or two, and check again."

"And what if it doesn't work?" Jeonghan asked. "Should we call Seungcheol again?"

"And tell him what? He'll kill us!"

Jeonghan pursed his lips. "He'll kill you." He pointed out. Joshua plopped down on the couch again, clicking his tongue. You watched Jeonghan sit beside him, both of them quiet. You headed back to the suitcases, dragging them to your room.

"Don't worry. Mingyu and I are just fine. It's all going to work out." You said, before disappearing behind your bedroom door. As the door closed behind you, you fumbled for your phone in your back pocket, pressing it to your ears as it began to ring. Pick up, Mingyu. You thought to yourself. The phone rang and rang, that sound drilling into your head until you finally pulled it back from your ear.

No answer.

🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶So Close Yet So Far🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶

Mingyu felt his phone vibrate in his back pocket and went to answer almost immediately. However, his father stopped him. "Hand me the phone." He said. When Mingyu didn't listen, his father motioned to the side of the room. Like a ghost out of the shadows, Mr. Park, one of his assistants, popped up behind Mingyu, taking the phone out of his hands.

"Hey!" Mingyu glared at his father. The phone was set on the table, and Mingyu could see the photo of you flashing on the screen as it continued to vibrate. Mingyu felt his finger twitch with the desire to reach for it anyway, but he felt someone take it. He looked over and saw Mina's hand gently on top of his. She looked over.

"Let it ring." She said gently. Mingyu looked at the phone as your photo flashed away, his phone going dark as the call was ignored.

"Now." His father leaned back in his seat. "We have a lot of preparation for the wedding if we want to have it soon, right Mr. Myoui?"

"Absolutely." He agreed. "I think it'll be good, that way the duo and finish their studies right after, and then get right into working." Mingyu, once again, looked at Mina, who was watching her father talk with his own. He immediately sat beside her and leaned closer.

"What are you doing?" he made sure his voice was low enough to not alert their fathers. Mina looked over. She had long since stopped crying, but Mingyu noticed the marks of tear stains on her cheeks.

"I tried waiting patiently. I thought after I heard that on the balcony, things would kind of fix themselves in time. I was wrong. I don't want you to end up hurt, Mingyu..."

"What happened to wanting to be friends?"

"I do." She assured. "I think all of your friends are nice. But after all you did to plan for her birthday, all of that work, the first night there she drunkenly confesses her love to someone else? And out in the open where anyone could hear? She's shameless, and did not care about if you heard or not."

Mingyu looked down at his lap, lips pulled tightly together. "She wouldn't do that, and I've known her longer than you." Mina sighed.

"Like I said. You should ask your friends. Maybe even ask her directly. You deserve to know." Mina reached to take his hand once again, but Mingyu pulled them away, crossing them over their chest. "This is best for both of us. You never really thought the two of you would get together, did you?" she asked.

Mingyu blinked, no longer worried about the volume of his voice. "Yes! Yes, I very much did!" He snapped. "I kind of assume that we currently are!"

"Even despite her behavior at the beach house, she's not like us. She offers nothing to you in terms of your career. I do. I will be the wife someone like you, a future lawyer and runner of a major law firm, deserves. I promise." Mingyu shook his head.

"I cannot believe this." He said, turning away from her. "I thought I could trust you."

"I've made mistakes since coming here, but I don't think it's just me you should reconsider trusting." Mingyu looked out the window of his father's office, over the landscape of Seoul. He had to find a way to figure all of this out.

"Father-."

"I told you we are not having this discussion anymore."

"Father, I told you from the beginning of this entire marriage thing that I didn't want to keep doing it. I don't want to be with any of these women. I already know who I-."

"Right. You want to be with that girl from college. What was her name again?" Mingyu watched his father rise from his seat around the couches and return to his desk. He was rattling off names as he walked, hands behind his back. Mingyu felt his eyes narrow as his father made sure to get each attempt so close to correct, but messed up at the last syllable. As if it was not even worth his time to remember. He pulled open his drawer, pulling out a manila folder. Mingyu finally had enough and quickly uttered your name in its entirety. His father simply looked in his direction, nodding. "Right..." he said. With a flick of the wrist, the manila envelope soared onto Mingyu's lap, and he picked it up. Flipping it open, Mingyu's eyes widened.

Inside was a small stack of paperwork, each depicting a picture of each of Mingyu's friends: Seungkwan, Hoshi, Minnie, and even the friends with whom he played basketball. As he flipped through them, his eyes settled on the one marked up with a red marker, as if every single thing written on her form was the wrong answer to a test. You.

"What is this?" he asked, eyeing his father.

"Exactly what it looks like. I always made sure I knew your friends well. I want to make sure you're surrounded by respectable individuals." He nodded. "They all seem like fine friends. Good students, good people. I have no problems." He turned to his son, for once seeing his son crane his neck to see his father's stare. "But I always knew if they became a distraction for you; in your studies, in your future, then I would need to handle it."

"...What do you mean handle it?" Mingyu asked, frowning as he looked down at the papers again. His father reached forward, pulling out your form and dangling it in front of Mingyu's face. He stared at the photo of you, smiling sweetly for your campus ID. Mingyu would smile if he wasn't feeling such a heavy sense of dread.

"If your little fling continues to be a distraction, I will have her expelled from school so she can't bother you."

"You can't do that!" Mingyu said, hopping up from his seat and allowing the folder of papers to scatter on the floor.

"I absolutely can." His father said simply. "All I do for that school and you think it will take more than a phone call? If you think I'm kidding, go walk out of that door like you intended to before. Throw everything away for a girl who will give you nothing in return. From the looks of it-." he motioned to the photos of you and Joshua once again. "She's already begun."

Mingyu finally went quiet, settling back on the couch, and covered his mouth with his hand. His teeth caught his bottom lip, watching as his father finally returned to his chair at the end of both couches.

"Mr. Kim." Mr. Myoui finally piped up, staring directly at Mingyu. His eyes darted up, his mouth still covered to hide the forming scowl. "You're a smart man. You seem very passionate about the things in your life. I respect that. My daughter is very important to me, too. I want her to be happy in her future marriage." Mingyu, despite hearing positive comments from the man across the table, did not feel reassured. "You'll thank us in a few years when you have the company, a few kids, and important duties. You'll have a woman at your side that can handle that, and you'll see."

Without another word, his father stood up, taking Mingyu's phone and handing it to an assistant. "See that this is put away."

"Wha-?" Mingyu turned as the assistant bowed, exiting the room. "How am I supposed to call my friends?! Or do schoolwork. Or anything?"

"You can call them for the wedding invitations." His friend said simply. "But you'll be busy for the rest of the summer, no need for distractions." He motioned the group out. "Let's go discuss details over a nice lunch." Mingyu watched from his seat as the rest of them left him behind. Mina stood up as well, turning to Mingyu. He stayed put, glued to his seat. He rubbed his hands against his pants, exhaling a deep, labored, and pained breath. She felt her heart clench in her chest, pained to see Mingyu struggling.

"Mingyu?" she said gently. He looked away, his eyes pricking red as he covered his mouth with one of his hands, a curtain to cover a painful scene. She nodded her head. "I'll leave you to process everything. I'll have them save you a plate." She said gently, before exiting the room. Mingyu refused to look up at her as the door closed, leaving him feeling just as trapped in his father's study as in this situation.

It has been a week since then.

🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶So Close Yet So Far🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶

Mingyu was sitting on the patio in his father's mansion. He was sipping water, overlooking the vast landscape just beyond his father's land. He always loved admiring the landscape, the still yet beautiful image enough to calm him down. However, no matter how long he looked now, he felt anything other than calm. He set his water down, leaning back in his chair and running a hand through his hair. Not even the cool summer breeze was enough to calm him down.

I heard her tell Joshua that she loved him at the beach house.

"There's no way..." he thought to himself, grimacing at the thought. "There's no way I was wrong this entire time..." He thought back to your dinner together, the smile on your face, the tears in your eyes as you admired your gift. The genuine blush on your cheeks after your kiss in his car. "There's no way it was fake."

That notion became eclipsed by other thoughts. Joshua's eyes as they studied your frame, the same way Mingyu did. The way he clung to you, tight and protective. The way he stared down Mingyu in front of the library at the thought that Mingyu had wronged you in any way. What gave him the right, other than devoted love for someone else? Mingyu chewed on his lip, in the same spot he had been in for hours, he could feel the irritated skin in between his teeth but he did not care.

All that work we put into her birthday and she does that the first night. I'm sorry I should have told you sooner.

If she continues to prove as a distraction, I'll have her expelled.

Mingyu shook his head, leaning forward and continuing to stare at the landscape. "There's no way." He said again, hoping the repetition would convince him of the fact. "I have to ask her myself..." He finally stood up and walked back into the house. He put his hands in his pockets, strolling down the hall and into the second-floor common room, where he saw one of his father's workers. "Mr. Park?" he called, alerting the man's attention from his paperwork. "Can you pick someone up for me?" Mr. Park nodded.

"Your father's already sent for her..." He said simply. Mingyu felt his heart drop as Mr. Park headed down the hallway.

"Where is she?" he mumbled to himself.

You were currently sitting at the local sandwich shop with your friends, staring at your phone. A weird sense of déjà vu filled your chest. However, this time, Mingyu was a few-minute drive away, yet still no word from him since the both of you kissed goodbye in front of your apartment. You scrolled the long wave of text messages you sent him, the worry of double-texting and triple-texting long gone after the third or fourth time you did it. You tapped at each message, hoping maybe you missed a reply or a phone call from him, and all of this would be solved, chalked up to a miscommunication that you could both laugh about on your first anniversary. However, no new messages popped up in your feed, and your heart only sank further and further into your chest.

"What the hell is up with him?" Minnie huffed. "I know he sometimes gets busy but I mean come on!"

"I haven't gotten in touch with him, either," Seungkwan said. "Or Mina." Hoshi held his phone up as well, showing all messages to Mingyu both individually and in the group chat remaining unread.

"I hope Mingyu is okay." A cute pout curled on Hoshi's face. "Could his phone have broken?"

"With his money, I doubt that," Seungkwan stated. "But if he was busy to such a scale where he goes MIA right after a vacation like this, he would let us know."

"Yeah..." you said softly. You pressed your hand to your necklace, holding the pink heart gently in your hands. "I'm worried." While your worry was rooted in Mingyu's well-being, you also grew worried for the two angels sitting on either side of you. During this entire week, your contract seals had remained red, a painful color that the duo began hating to look at. They had no idea what to do; or how to solve the problem. You looked between them, seeing them stare at the others as they threw out ideas on how to solve the problem. While they listened, you reached out and took their hands in yours, finally causing them to look over.

"Eat," you said, nudging to their barely touched plates. When they didn't respond, you pushed their plates closer to them. "Eat," you repeated. Reluctantly, the duo began eating their food again, and you turned to your friends. "I'm going to go visit."

"Let us come too." Hoshi offered, leaning forward. "If we all go, then he can't turn us all away."

"They absolutely can," Seungkwan said, receiving a pout from Hoshi.

"But Hoshi's got the right idea." Minnie turned to you, smiling. "Why don't we meet at your house in 20 minutes?"

You arched an eyebrow at the suggestion. "Why my house? I'm not close to the bus station."

"Because you're his girlfriend so it only makes sense that we make your apartment home base in all things related to Mingyu." She pointed out. Your expression turned to that of disbelief at Minnie's ridiculous reason. It only made her smile a bit. "What?"

"That's the biggest reach I've ever heard." Despite this, however, you nodded. "But I guess we can meet at my house and all go together."

"Operation: Save Mingyu starts now!" Hoshi cheered, pumping his fist in the air in excitement. You smiled at the sight, hoping that this new wave of optimism would crash into you as well, making you feel just a little better. Your friends headed out of the shop, chatting to themselves. When you saw Joshua and Jeonghan get up to join, you took their arms, sitting them back down.

"What?" Jeonghan asked. You motioned to their plates.

"You're not done." You said. Your motherly quality caused the duo to smile a bit in amusement, the first time since panic started to set in for them. "Finish, then go get Jihoon. If we're going to visit Mingyu, we should all be there."

The group split up, heading to their houses to gather what they needed for their trip: snacks, games, and anything they could use to keep Mingyu with them when they went to visit. The more stuff they had to do, the longer they could all be together and hopefully get to the bottom of this. At least, you hoped. As you headed back to your apartment, you rested against the elevator wall as it rose each floor. The same elevator that held the both of you after your first date back from Jeju only a week ago, the same elevator that almost caught sight of your first kiss a few weeks before that. A deep sigh wrecked your body as you closed your eyes. "I hope you're okay, Mingyu." You whispered out loud, hoping your prayer reached the ears of the one person who could make it happen. The sound of the dinging elevator caused you to open your eyes, and stand up straight as you stepped onto the floor. Down the hall, your eyes locked on two people standing in front of your door. One waited patiently as the other knocked a few times. They were both dressed in nice suits, clean-shaven and seemed very stoic. You walked over, hand gripping your key tightly in your pocket as you did so. "Hello." You called. "Is there something I can help you with?"

One of the men coughed into his hand as he turned to you. "Are you friends with Mr. Kim Mingyu?" Hearing his name caused your heart to speed up in your chest, and you nodded. "We work for his father. We were told to come and get you, and bring you to the house. There's something he needs to speak with you about."

"Me?" you gasped in disbelief. "Are you sure?"

"You're Kim Mingyu's uh...." He paused for a second. "Friend, right?" When he uttered your name, you nodded again. "Then yes. You. If you'll please follow us, our car is parked right downstairs."

"Uhm." You watched as the duo walked past you, towards the elevator. For a second, you wondered if you should tell them of your plans to head to the house with the group. However, worried that sharing this would lead to conflict, you simply followed behind them. They led you to the car, one of them opening the back seat and allowing you inside. As the car started, you pulled up your phone and opened the group chat, the one that Jihoon was added to and Mingyu was taken out of since this entire thing started.

I'm going now. Wait at my apartment.

With that text sent, you set your phone in your pocket and looked out the window, watching the streets go by as you saw Mingyu inched closer and closer. You knew seeing Mingyu again after your last encounter would leave familiar butterflies fluttering in the pit of your stomach, but you never once thought that it would be feelings of anxiety rather than feelings of excitement as the butterflies tried to escape your body.

🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶So Close Yet So Far🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶

"They're red?" Jihoon's eyes widened as he looked at the two men. They didn't seem glad to repeat the entire story once again, simply nodding from across the table in Jihoon's little apartment. Jihoon whistled. "Damn."

"What do we do?" Joshua asked.

"Have you told anyone else?"

"No," Jeonghan said. "We thought it would fix itself. I mean, we saw the two of them get together."

"And our deal was to help the both of them get together," Joshua said. "We're going there now to see if we can talk to Mingyu and figure out what happened." Jihoon thought back to Mina's expressions and demeanor the last night at the beach house. How sullen and upset she looked seeing you and Mingyu together the entire weekend, and knowing she helped cause it. Jihoon, in a way, knew that feeling well.

I didn't get her anything. Mina's voice chimed in his ears.

"I have a feeling I know what happened," Jihoon said. "But I can't say for sure 'til we see Mingyu and clear everything up." Jeonghan and Joshua watched Jihoon rise from his chair. "Let's go, then." Just as the group was about to head to the rendezvous spot, Jihoon felt his phone vibrate. Looking down, he pulled it out, seeing your message pop up. "Huh. That's not good."

"What?" Joshua asked. Jihoon turned around and showed them the text you had sent in the back of Mingyu's car.

"If you two think you're going to be stuck here, invest in some phones. She's going there right now."

"...WHAT?!" The duo shouted.

🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶So Close Yet So Far🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶

"Right this way." You heard one of the workers say. You followed, eyes scanning the hall as you walked. The walls, high-vaulted and expensive, were filled with expensive photos and furniture. The expensive furniture held the expensive plants and picture frames. Everything felt...expensive. The price of one item cost more than your entire apartment, and there were about 500 of your apartments scattered throughout the enormous house. You had only been over to the house a few times since meeting Mingyu, finding that he mostly invited the guys over during downtime. You were led to a set of large, regal doors at the end of the hallway, right around the corner from a flight of stairs. The worker knocked, before a booming: "Come in!" Was heard on the other side. The doors were swung open, and the worker stepped aside, allowing you to step into the room.

You did so with a polite nod to the worker, stepping in. The sounds of the doors closing behind you startled you, and you suddenly felt like a small animal trapped in the lion's den. Dread tickled your insides just a bit at the feeling. You scanned the area for one moment before the sound of a chair creaking with someone's movement alerted your eyes. When you turned your head, there he was: the lion.

"Hello." Mr. Kim said sweetly. You bowed.

"Hello, Sir." You said quickly.

"Please, sit." When you looked up again, your eyes immediately fell to the couch opposite where you were motioned. You felt that tickling sense of dread sprout from your stomach and into your chest as you saw Mina and Mingyu sitting side by side. Mina was smiling at you. Mingyu had his head turned, elbow resting on the arm of the couch to cover his mouth. His eyes were staring directly out the large window that sat in the back of the room, painting Korea's skyline as a backdrop for the entire room. As you finally took a seat, Mina spoke up:

"Hi." She smiled. "I'm sorry I left so abruptly last week. I needed to attend to things as soon as I got back."

"It's okay..." you said softly. When your eyes darted to Mingyu, he didn't move. "We were all just thinking of stopping by to see you. We were worried when you weren't messaging us."

"...I don't have my phone." Was all he muttered under his hand. Your next statement was blocked by Mr. Kim as he spoke up.

"It's a good thing we brought you here, then. There's some news we want to share with you." He said. Just then, Mina leaned forward, pushing a small white envelope in your direction. You seemed confused as to what it meant, and what you were expected to do with it. Mr. Kim motioned his hands to it. "Open it." Your eyes cast to Mingyu momentarily, hoping for some explanation. However, he didn't respond, eyes still staring at the skyline. Finally, you picked up the envelope, opened it, and pulled out a beautifully created card. As your eyes scanned the contents, you felt your heart drop in your chest, swallowed up by that growing pit in your stomach.

Kim Mingyu and Myoui Mina Engagement Party

August 27th

As you scanned the details, your fingers wrapped around the paper in shock. Your eyes shot up to Mina, who smiled.

"We've gotten engaged." She said softly. "We'll be married by the end of the year. That way we can finish our studies, and have a lovely Christmas wedding." She smiled at the idea, the picture-perfect wedding with the picture-perfect couple.

I will end as Mingyu's wife.

Mina's sentence read more like a threat in this new context, and you felt your breath hitch.

"Mingyu-." You called. You could see Mingyu's lip behind his hand just slightly as he chewed on it, biting back his pain as your voice cracked.

"I hate to inform you this way, as you seem shocked." Mr. Kim chimed in, and you looked over to him. "You've been a wonderful friend to my son. I can tell. However, with his college education coming to an end soon, he needs to focus on his role as a lawyer in our firm. He needs to focus on his responsibilities, including his future marriage." You watched him motion to Mina. "Mina is someone we have considered for him for a short time, but it has proven that she is the...best fit for him in achieving these goals." You looked over at Mina, feeling your eyes well with tears.

"Mina..." you said softly. "I thought-."

"I'm sorry it had to happen this way." She said, and it hurt you more seeing that she seemed pretty genuine about it.

Once again, your eyes darted to Mingyu. "Are you going to say anything?" you asked. Mingyu's eyes shook, his hand gripping his jaw as he continued to stay silent.

"Mingyu is still adjusting to the entire thing. It happened very quickly, in light of new information as well. We made the decision right as you all returned from your trip." You looked down at the card in your hands, which was starting to bend under your ever-tightening grip.

"Sir, I'm sorry." You said softly. Mr. Kim tilted his head. "Mingyu and I, that weekend in Jeju, we-."

"I know." He said. "I know you two had a little fling together." The word 'fling' stung as it pierced your ears, and they began ringing as he continued. "But, to put it simply, there are many reasons you were not chosen to remain in a relationship with my son. You don't have anything that will provide my son with the support he needs as a future lawyer. You and my son come from two different worlds, which is fine when it comes to friendship. However, that is all it is...friendship. It can't go beyond that." You hoped that your breath, which threatened to pick up and get more labored, would remain slow and steady. Mr. Kim simply continued. "Also, I have learned a lot of different things about you. In a short time, I will admit. However, I just don't see this fit working in the long run. You're not...enough."

That comment, along with Mingyu finally snapping his eyes at his father to yell at him to stop, burned into your brain. You looked down at the card one last time, the father and son argument happening beside you feeling more like white noise at this point.

I just want to be with you. Whatever that means, I'll do it.

You immediately folded the paper up, sticking it in your bag, and stood up. Mingyu and his father looked in your direction. You offered one more look at Mingyu, nodding your head. "Congratulations." You said gently.

"No." Mingyu rose from his spot as you bowed to his father. Fixing the strap of your purse, you headed out the door. Mingyu watched, letting out a ragged breath as his heartbeat started to slow down. He sank onto the couch, running a hand through his hair. He looked at his father. "I told you I wouldn't take over the company." He said immediately, hoping and praying his previous threat would once again hold water. His father looked completely uninterested.

"You would have left already." He said simply. "Mingyu, you need to face the truth. You're a lawyer at heart." He said simply. "And her leaving just now, is all the evidence we both needed to know that she does not really care about you. At least, not in the way that you thought. She'll probably go cry in that other young man's arms, and we will all move on to better things."

🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶So Close Yet So Far🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶

As you walked down the hallway, you felt numb. You couldn't hear your feet clacking on the hard floor, or your heart beating, or your eyes and throat burning. You couldn't feel your phone vibrating in your pocket, or the chill of your necklace on your skin. When you reached up to touch it, your pace finally slowed. You stood at the top of the stairs leading to the front door when you heard your name being called. Turning around, you saw Mina hurry in your direction. As she slowed her pace, she took a deep breath.

"Please don't leave angry." She begged.

"What?" you asked, feeling the burning in your eyes start to blur your vision. "You made me sit through that, then ask me not to leave angry? You're really more selfish than I thought. Were you planning this from the beginning?"

"No." she gasped. "I didn't want to resort to this. I mean that." She sighed. "But Mingyu's father never would have allowed you two to be together. You're both just too different. You're not the type of person to watch as Mingyu suffers."

"He's suffering right now. Didn't you see him?" you asked. Mina stepped closer to you.

"I know he's hurting right now because I know how much you mean to him. But this, in the long run, is the best bet for all of us. You two can stay friends, and Mingyu will live a happy comfortable life. I still want that. I want us all to be friends and spend time together. Like we talked about in Jeju."

"After this? Are you crazy, Mina?!" You snapped, wiping the few tears trickling down your cheeks. "Or are you really just that mean to ask me such a thing? I thought we were friends. I thought you had gotten over this."

Mina only shook her head. "I love him too. I'll fight for him until the end." She said simply. You watched as Mina tucked some hair behind her ear, admiring her beautiful and delicate features. She really did look like the bride of a successful and rich lawyer. "Besides, there are plenty of fish in the sea. You of all people should know that." You scoffed.

"What is that supposed to mean?" you asked.

Mina only added: "All of you are invited to the engagement party. Maybe you can go with Joshua on your arm." She smiled, and for the first time, you could have sworn you felt a hint of her deep-rooted jealousy bubbling behind those beautiful lips. "He totally is in love with you, after all." You finally managed to yank your arms away, tears unable to stop themselves now. Mina sighed nodding her head. "I understand you want to leave now. I'll go." Without another word, she headed back to the office, leaving you in stunned silence. Just as she left your view, Mingyu entered it. You felt time freeze, legs unable to move as he hurried over to you. He called your name, though you had no intention of leaving.

"Please don't go." He said.

"What's going on?" you asked. Another question shot through your brain, and you felt your eyes water more. "What did I do?"

Mingyu's eyes widened as he reached out, taking your arms into his hands, hoping the gentleness of his touch you soothe your trembling body. You looked down, but Mingyu tried to lower his head so he could still catch your eyes. "Nothing!" he gasped. "I swear. I was not made aware of this entire plot until I got home...."

"Why have you ignored me for an entire week?"

"I've been fighting for an entire week to fix this." He said quickly. "Do you really think I'm happy about this?!" When Mingyu saw you sniffle, he reached out to wipe your eyes, but you pushed them away.

"What could have possibly changed in a week?" you asked, finally looking up at him. Mingyu simply stared at your tear-stricken face, knowing from his previous failed attempt he was forbidden to touch and comfort you the way he wanted. "I don't understand!"

Just as Mingyu was about to speak, a familiar threat tickled his brain like poisonous snake venom, keeping him frozen in place. If your little fling continues to be a distraction, I will have her expelled from school so she can't bother you. His father's words burned in the back of his mind, the silence only making you growmore anxious. You studied his eyes in hopes of finding an answer, but none came.

"If I didn't do anything....why are you looking at me like that, Mingyu?" You sniffled. Mingyu blinked, stepped back a bit, and pursed his lips together. You sniffled. "I did do something, what happened? Please tell me..."

Mingyu blinked, a shaky breath escaping. "...Did you tell Joshua-Hyung you loved him at the beach house?" he asked softly. Your eyes widened; your mouth stuck in a slack-jawed state. It took a second to process what he said, but that minute of your stunned expression caused Mingyu's confused eyes to avoid yours. "I heard you did. The first night."

Sadness turned into anger in a matter of seconds. "From who? Mina?!" You gasped. Mingyu said nothing, and you exhaled a deep shaky breath that shook your heart violently. "I...I thought it was you I was talking to." Mingyu watched as you finally allowed yourself to wipe your eyes. He studied the expression on your face as if it would reveal the truth to him.

"We don't look anything alike..." he said softly.

"I was drunk, it was dark, and I was half-asleep..." you said simply. "You know how drunk we all got that night...." Mingyu pursed his lips together. You felt your shoulders drop; your throat close as you covered your mouth with your hands. "Mingyu," you said again, the sadness in your voice hitting him like a bullet.

"...I don't...I don't think I fully believe you." He said, the words seeming to pain him to say just as much as they pained you to hear.

You felt your entire world come to a screeching fault as those comments parked in your brain. "What?"

"I thought about it the entire week after I heard. Why don't you ever stop him....when he flirts with you right in front of me?" He asked.

"Mingyu." You stressed again. "Are you serious?"

" I thought it was all in good fun at first. But I see how he looks at you. I actually don't think you realize it yourself fully, which I think makes it worse." he said. "Doeshe love you?" When you went quiet, an image of Joshua collapsing among the fireworks flashed in your brain, along with Jihoon's comments.

He's starting to experience more intense feelings of jealousy, anger, and lust.

Mingyu scoffed, and when you looked at him, he avoided your gaze, his lips brushing over his lips briefly as he tried to find his next words. "I figured."

"Mingyu, you need to trust me," you begged. "This is not what you think it is. I promise." Mingyu looked at you again, nodding his head.

"Then what is it?" he asked curiously. "I'm asking because I genuinely want to know."'

"I don't know," you said softly. "I can only speak for myself. Not him." Mingyu simply nodded his head, waiting for you to do so. "I don't have feelings for Joshua the way you think I do."

"Mmm..." Mingyu's soft hum to indicate he was listening hurt more than any of the other accusations he threw your way. You frowned, nodding your head.

"But, if you've chosen to believe Mina and make up your mind, then fine..." You reached your hands up, Mingyu's eyes following as you fumbled with the chain on the back of your neck. When the hook unlocked, you pulled it forward, dangling it in front of him. "Here. Consider it a wedding present."

Mingyu's hand stretched out to grab it just in time for your fingers to release it, feeling the cool metal pool in his hand. When he looked up, you were already descending down the stairs and heading out the door.

When Mina called him from down the hall, he couldn't look, he could only make his way down the hallway and towards his room.

🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶So Close Yet So Far🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶

The ride home was long... too long. You arrived home to your door propped open just a bit, seemingly forgotten about as more and more people filed in. The entire cab ride home, the world had felt like a buzz. You had long since stopped crying, but it was probably because you physically couldn't anymore. Maybe it was because of the looks the cab driver was giving you from the rearview. Tears were drained from your body, and whenever you even thought that you had more to shed, a violent cough coursed through your body instead, your eyes strained and blurry. Muffled voices were heard as you got closer and closer to the door.

"I hope everything is getting sorted out." That was Hoshi.

"I still think we should go, too," Minnie said.

"No. It's not our battle to fight. Not if they asked for her specifically." That was Jihoon. You stood by the door for a second, looking down at your hands. You couldn't see it, but those red flashing symbols phased into your consciousness, and for a moment you felt that you were also someone cast out of heaven. The crime, you were unsure, but the punishment was severe and there was no way to fix it. You rested your head against the wall, your body finally feeling one sensation after what felt like hours: heaviness.

"When will she be back?" Seungkwan asked.

"Hopefully soon," Joshua said gently. When the conversations inside began to overlap, you took another deep breath. Pushing yourself off the wall, you walked into the apartment. The propped open door swung all the way open and alerted the attention of everyone. You couldn't really tell by their expression since your eyes were completely unfocused and most likely disassociating, but the vibe grew tense.

"W-what the hell happened?!" You heard Hoshi ask."Did you get drunk?"

"Heh, I wish. Oh, uhm...." You stepped into the apartment, closing the door behind you. The force of the door closing caused you to lose your balance, falling back against it. You sank to the floor, legs spread out in front of you as your head rested against the door. Footsteps approached you, and when you looked up, Joshua and Jeonghan were squatting down beside you. The red symbols flashed in your mind again, and that was when you realized your body still had more tears to shed.

"Hold on." You felt Joshua's hands reach out to you, pressing against you in the way they always do when he is attempting to calm you. However, this time, no warm glow coursed through your body, even a little. You sniffled, covering your eyes as the sobs only got harder and louder, echoing throughout the tiny apartment. Joshua looked at Jeonghan in shock. "It's not working." He whispered. You immediately reached forward, shoving Joshua backward. In his squatting position, the suddenness of your shove caused him to stumble back. "H-hey! What's wrong?!"

You looked at him for a minute, sniffling as veils of tears behind your eyes, the pressure and force of your attempts to breathe once again causing you to cough into your hand. Jeonghan immediately nestled next to you, allowing Joshua time to regain his balance. Watching Joshua's confused face as he studied you, hand extended just briefly in case you needed it, guilt washed over you. "Sorry," you said, voice hoarse and strained. Joshua simply sat beside you as you rubbed your face with your hands.

"You need to calm down at tell us what happened," Joshua begged softly, no hint of malice in his face, a hand finding itself on your back. He rubbed it, hoping the sensation would soothe you in a way his powers no longer could. Jeonghan used his free hand to get a tissue from Minnie, waiting for a chance to clean your face up of its dried tears. You coughed again, body shaking from the force of the cough.

"You can't keep crying and coughing or you'll throw up. Calm down, now." Jeonghan warned gently. You wiped your eyes, looking up at the two of them. They both watched as you shook your head, more tears falling as you muttered:

"I'm sorry. I just wasn't good enough." Before the tears finally began flowing once again. 

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[deluwoo]

2:00:00 AM

pairing ▸ partner!wen junhui x gn!reader genre ▸ drabble, domestic fluff, fluff, slight suggestive (?? idk man) warnings ▸ none !! [lmk if there are ] wc ▸ 485

eunhae's notes ▸ domestic fluff or nothing at all 🤌 ANYWYS !! ty for all the love :(( done w exams and i shall be giving more content asap 💔

A figure peeks into the bedroom. The only light in the room is the light of the clock, ticking it’s digital numbers into the night.

”Honey?” Jun whispers into the darkness in which silence replies. You keep your mouth shut, not replying to make it seem you are asleep. A few seconds pass before he closes the door.

Okay, you don’t have a problem or something, in fact you adored sleep. It just eventually became a habit of yours to wait until Jun arrives home to actually close your eyes. Despite other people’s comments and even Jun himself telling you not to.

”I love you, but no need.” He had said with a smile one day. A silent nudge to tell you to get some damn sleep.

Tonight, like any other one, just as you hear the door knob click and the footsteps of Jun quietly going to the bathroom, your eyelids instantly feel heavier and sleepiness start to take over your body. Fluffing your pillow and snuggling closer into the warmth of the bed you slowly drift off to dreamland.

The clock strikes 2 AM when the mattress dips from his weight. Work those days had been weighing him down and he rarely gets to see you. His heart honestly did flutter at your gesture to wait for him before sleeping but he knew it wasn’t good for you. The way you found ways of still showing him affection despite his hard career, he loved so much!

Jun, hair damp, chest bare, shifts on the cold bedsheets. His quiet breathing fill the dark room as he lays on his side, a delicate hand tracing the folds of your pillowcase. He rests a light kiss on your cheekbone, his soft lips leaving a stamp of love on your skin. Your eyes slightly flutter at the sudden movement on the bed and you slowly gain consciousness. His low chuckle sent chills down your spine.

“Let’s be honest, my love.” He intertwines your hands with his and kissed each of your knuckles. “Your sleeping act isn’t the best.”

A sleepy hum of protest answers him as you bury your face on the bed.

“If I go home early tomorrow, you’ll sleep early, deal?”

“Watch She’s Dating A Gangster with me then?” You whisper.

He sends out a hum of agreement, “Whatever your wish.” He kisses your forehead, in between your eyebrows.

8/10 times do you get to have these moments, a little key highlight of your nights. It calmed you– knowing he came through the front door alive and well, being able to survive another day. That’s what lulled you to sleep and comforted you on hectic nights.

NETWORK : @kflixnet TAGLIST : none yet (dont be scared to send an ask !)

reblog for a kiss from jun 😱 ©eunhae (edited formally from my old blog wonieweb. sunghoon -> junhui HEHE) © DELUWOO – 𝐝𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭, 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞.

[jun-of-love]

Hiii can I pls request reader taking care of Jun when he’s sick and calls her in the middle of the night to come over and help him (like maybe he has a migraine or something) ❓💖

Such a cute prompt wow! Thanks a lot for sending in a request :) I'm gonna be honest I thought so much about this but I couldn't find an appropriate (and interesting!) way to write this for a long time. This is what I've come up with, I hope you like it <3

It’s 12 a.m.

You stare at your phone screen for the hundredth time this night. Your “good night <3” message has been left on delivered for 2 hours now. Granted, he didn’t have to reply- you were not dating or anything- just hanging out, or ‘in a situationship’, if you may. It’s been six months since you met him, as a creative director for his solo comeback. Ever since then you had been seeing each other, work and outside of it- and your best friend was of the opinion that your relationship should have been exclusive by now. She had a point, but relationships in the showbiz industry didn’t have the same rules as ordinary life, and even though it hurt you, you didn’t want to lose him. Your thoughts slowed down and felt yourself drifting off to sleep, your grip still tight on the phone, careful of any movement.

You were enjoying the bliss of your meaningless dreams when your phone suddenly started buzzing endlessly. It was 2 a.m., what kind of lunatic wanted to talk to you at this hour?

It was Wen Junhui.

You huddled up, clearing your throat as much as possible to bring out your most attractive sleepy voice ever. “Hello?” you whispered, imagining him clutching his heart and kicking his legs in excitement because you picked up the phone.

“Um, hello? Y/n?” You blushed, his hoarse voice sounded so sexy!

Wait, his voice was too hoarse…almost like he was sick?!

“Hey Jun, are you okay? You don’t sound too well.” You made no effort to hide how worried you were.

“Y/n I- I’m sorry I didn’t reply to your message-” He was concerned about that? “-I’m just down with terrible migraine and I can’t bear to look at screens.”

“Okay, it’s totally fine, you don’t even need to apologize for that,” you hear a groan from his side. Wow, he had to be in a lot of pain. “I’m coming over.” You declared, already packing up necessities. He didn’t have to say it, you already knew why he had called.

“I’ll see you then.” Hah, you thought, he was too sick to even politely decline as a courtesy. Not that you minded, but still.

You reach his place, pushing in his passcode like its everyday for you. It was pretty common for you to be at his place, but the context was totally different then.

“What happened to my little Junnie?” you hoped the joke would land, even if your audience member was writhing in pain right now.

Jun chuckled a little, turning towards you, wincing in the process. “I even canceled my late night practice today, this bitch of a migraine is not letting me live.”

You let out a laugh. This man is still in his jeans- how does he expect to feel better? “Did you take any medicine?”

“No.”

“Heat pads?”

“No.”

“Did you at least eat?”

“No.”

“You are stupid.” You sigh. “But you’re so lucky to have me.” You add sarcastically. “Change your clothes till the time I heat the porridge I’ve got you. You eat it and then take the medicine I give you okay?” Jun simply nodded, smiling slightly.

By the time you come back with his porridge and medicine, Jun had changed into his comfy pajamas. You avoided looking at him because if this guy got any cuter, you’ll probably buy him a ring and pop the question. You preferred to stay silent as he ate, because sound usually worsened his migraines, and you were not sure if your relationship was of the kind that your voice would be an exception to this.

“Why are you not talking?” Jun mumbled, his mouth full of porridge. You smiled, wiping a bit of porridge from the corner of his lips. “I know you prefer silence when you have migraines. Sounds make it worse right?”

“Yeah, but your voice is not a sound- it’s a voice and I like it- it is soothing and…..and, it makes me feel better.” He pouted.

Ah, why would he say that now?

“You’re sick, you should probably lie down now,” you try to change the subject, clearing up his bowl and water. You make him lie down, putting a cooling eye mask on his eyes. “This will make you feel better, I know your eyes hurt whenever you get migraines.”

The atmosphere was suddenly uncomfortable, it seemed like he had also grasped the meaning of what he had said. Did he regret it? Did he not mean it? You felt foolish, running around for someone in the middle of the night to take care of them, only to realize you probably like them way more than they like you.

“Y/n.”

“Hmm?”

“Thank you for not making me say it.”

“Say what?”

“That I wanted you to come over.” Jun whispers. “I wouldn’t have been able to ask you if you didn’t take the initiative.”

Why did that feel like a punch to the gut? “Uhm, you’re welcome I guess?” Your disappointment somehow made its way to your tone. You could tell, because he took his eye-mask off and sat upright.

“I’ve just been taking you so much for granted lately, I don’t think I would’ve had the conscience to ask you to do such a favor for me.” He took your hand in his. You tried to keep your face straight despite your nerves tingling hopelessly.

“It’s not a favo-”

“But you knew I won’t be able to ask this of you and you came here to take care of me, ” he cuts you off. “You’re such a lovely person y/n, I wish I had met you sooner.”

You don’t know what to say. You open and close your mouth, closely resembling a fish, but he doesn’t seem to notice it. “I like you Y/n.”

What’s that now?

“I like you so so much.” He continued. You felt a blush creeping up your neck towards your face. Jun looked at you hopefully. He brought up both of your hands and kissed them softly. “I’m sorry to bring it up in a moment like this, when there’s a literal shit-orchestra playing in my head, its 3.30 in the morning and I’m looking like a frazzled orangutan but this question cannot be delayed anymore,” He took a deep breath, “will you be my girlfriend?”

He was so dramatic, wow. You giggled a little, trying to hide how taken aback you were. “Sure, it will be my pleasure.” Jun’s face lit up as if Christmas had come early. He pulled you in for a big hug, burying his head in your neck. “You don’t know how long I’ve waited to ask you this, but my perfect moment never seemed to come.”

You laugh, “Am I supposed to say something corny like, every moment is perfect with you?” You hear his chuckle. You pull away, making him lie down on the bed, putting his eye-mask back on. “C’mon you need to sleep now.” You say in your sternest voice possible.

“Wow, you’re so sexy,” he mumbles softly, “is it too early to say that I love you?”

“Shut up!”

[tinykittendelusion]

Wonwoo as a Dad

a/n: I've been Mia for a long time lol

triggers: none

Girl dad 101

He cries tears of joy when he finds out you're pregnant

The children's favourite storyteller. He uses different voices and accents while telling them stories

Learns to cook for his children and masters their favourite dishes

Was incharge of diaper changing when the kids were younger

Would take his kids out on daddy children dates very often

Calm dad chaotic child trope

Plays video games with his children

But also dresses up as a fairy for their tea party

The parent who helps with homework but the children end up helping him with basics

He drives his kids and their friends everywhere

Would love doing his daughters hair

When his kids first start school he seemed okay but as soon as the kids went in he started crying

Loves fake crying to annoy his kids

Cried when their children graduated and when they got their first job

Loves celebrating even the smallest of their achievements

Your children would have his first alcohol with him

When your children are much older they'd randomly meet him up for beer and games

Overall a chill fun parent