#when Hongjoong left the studio my heart dropped🤧 i was like noooo he probably thought he lost to San😭🤧

[honey-lemon-goose]

"a major headache for the one remaining ATEEZ kindergarten employee." Sigh😮‍💨 poor momma Seonghwa🤧 gotta deal with a child acting up and an equally acting up dad, San started it though😶 "Wooyoung had spent an unreasonable amount of hours making quiche" Wooyoung best chef!🥹💛 "CHOI SAN!" Oop captain exploded🫡 "What are you? KOREAN BARBECUE?" Hhhhhh not the korean barbecue🫢😱"OH you mean how your thirsty ass is committing every form of social disrespect trying to get Y/N to notice you?" Oooooohhhhhh🤔🫢 "Ass?" Mingi was back in the game' "Yes, Mingi, they are fighting over ass, it's okay, it happens sometimes." Yunho rubbed his friend's back in a fatherly manner, patting it a couple of times for good measure as he nodded slowly.' AJSNSJNSJWNWJWNW LMAOOO WHY WAS THAT ADORABLE🤣🤭 "Get off my dick dude-" . . .😶 "All of this is so anti-bro code, shame shame." Yeosang continued' O too agree with Yeo😭 'As Hongjoong was stomping his way to the studio, he was blasting songs that he recalled you had mentioned to him in the little chats you had shared.' AHHH I LOVE DOING THIS! Y/N OMG I love you🥹💛 sharing music is a fullproof way into my heart🥰 ah the combination of an uplifting melody and kinda depressing lyrics that is 'Heaven knows I'm miserable now' I love the smiths!😌💛💛 'Hongjoong would be in the corner of your mind, his form - a canvas for your sketches.' AKSMSKSMKS Y/N YOU ARE ADORABLE🥹💛 'necause San had been nothing but friendly to you, and as a matter of fact, had been showering their captain with praise and practically giving you a Hongjoong sales pitch.' OOOOOOOHHHHH I SEE THE GAME SAN IS PLAYING!!!!👀👀👀 Damn🤦‍♀️ AHHH AGREED MCR ALL DAY EVERYDAY!!😱🥰 'the magpie man'. Twas all the trinkets doing🤭💛 Gotta love the trinkets man🥹 "Ah so it was kind of obvious..." psshh not to me oml🤦‍♀️ I fully thought we were going to have a child murder on our hands🫢 but that's just me being slow🤣🤧 "Oh yeah this was Woo's plan." AHHH OF COURSE IT WAS OMG😱🤦‍♀️"Now we're talking! See, San told you." Yunho, who was halfway through getting his makeup done but excused himself to hear the monumental tea' hehehe Yunho and I are alike🤭 can't help but love listening to tea!😌💋🤌 never in it or apart of the tea but love the thrill and the story of the tea!! OH HOW I WOULD KILL FOR HONGJOONG TO DO ANY MCR COVER!😱 He did a Linkin Park cover!🥹💛 and that blessed my heart in so many ways🥰 HONGNEQUIN🤣💀 "And you and I will have a long and intimate talk tomorrow. Prepare yourself, For I like to extend the fun."  I would've shit myself oml😭 or literally disintegrated on the spot like I got snapped by Thanos🤧 "Dressed in the matching suit that you had designed just for him, for your muse." Ajsnsjnwdj what a glamorous why to publicly announce a relationship🤭😌 NOTHING BUT THE BEST FOR OUR Y/N AND HONGJOONG!!💛���

Your fan, Hongjoong (part 2)

(part 1) (your fan ml)

👘 pairing: hongjoong x fashion designer!reader 👘 genre: romance, fluff, mutual pining 👘 summary: a bulletpoint-style wordstream of what it would be like if hongjoong was stanning you 👘 wordcount: 5.4k (hj okay i guess) 👘 warnings/tags: language, jealousy, bro code, hongjoong and san beef, seonghwa just wants to be part of woosan, yunho is a menace pt2, san using his 'imitation' practice, yeosang and jongho have a business, reader is confident, hj not so much, MCR is love <3, goth culture, goth rock & glam/punk/pop rock! 👘 taglist: @acciocriativity, @senpai-of-doom, @layzfeelit @jcngh0-hq 👘 a/n: Hello <3 Here is part 2 of Your Fan Hongjoong!! Time to measure the chaos levels once more; senpai-of-doom for the custom outfit gift musings <3 love you all, biggest hugs!! All asks, reblogs and likes welcome, love to hear from you <3

What is unfathomably more terrifying than ATEEZ playing mafia without supervision?

Dead silent dorms and intra-ATEEZ rivalry.

Ever since the shoot for the new retail collection for ARNURI, which marked the beginning of a prolonged collaboration between ATEEZ and your fashion brand, the tension between a certain two members was uncomfortably high.

Both Hongjoong and San had radically different ways of pushing each other into a rage mode headspace, which initially had been a source of light entertainment, but soon enough turned into a betting opportunity for some, and a major headache for the one remaining ATEEZ kindergarten employee.

Like how many times in one day can Hongjoong pull rank... how many times can San sneak in the dropping of honorifics and how many times can he start talking over Hongjoong JUST before he stops talking...

The list could go on. But it was a passive aggressive battlefield that made conversation between the members nearly impossible.

Take last night's dinner for example. After Wooyoung had spent an unreasonable amount of hours making quiche, with Seonghwa following his every move like a paper towel warrior, the members were hangry, tired, and in a mood to start drama.

The first minute, five, ten minutes... passed uneventfully, with the only outliers to the calm being Jongho tuning into a live football match on his phone and Mingi bobbing his head to something only he could hear in his head.

And then, the eleventh minute struck. And with it, Hongjoong's nerve.

"Right, guys, so we have another event with ARNURI tomorrow, and I don't know about you but-"

"-Do you guys think we should gift Y/N something? I mean, she has been so patient and so kind to us." San interjected, a sly grin on his face as he openly challenged the captain with his mischief.

"give me the won bills, my guy" Jongho mumbled, putting his elbow on the table and moving his arm so his palm was facing the ceiling, and as close to Yeosang as possible.

"not yet, needs to be three in a row for 'conversational edging' combo to be counted." he whispered back as-a-matter-of-factly, swatting the maknae's hand away by giving it a high five.

"Hold up are you bettin-" Mingi began, having left his musical trance once San and Hongjoong had started their episode, but was quickly interrupted by Yeosang's quick move to cover his mouth.

"Shh... you might get percentages." he warned and let Mingi come to his conclusions, and take up the business proposal.

"Ahem, as I was saying, okay I do have got to give it to San here, that is a really good idea and I am more than happy to pick out something for Y/N that I know she will like-"

"Oh and you know what, I think I already have the right gift for her so just leave it to me guys and we'll be sorted-"

"CHOI SAN!"

"Damn that was fast." Jongho cursed under his breath as he slid a crisp note to Yeosang under the table, who then motioned in cryptic body signals to Mingi that they will split it later. Maybe he understood, maybe he didn't, but the prospect of gaining something from the shitshow was encouraging enough.

"Yes?" San responded to the now vexed leader, totally unperturbed.

"Can you stop?"

"Stop what?"

"This shit."

"But you're unstoppable Hongjoong-ah." San quipped, grinning as gasps erupted around the table.

Seonghwa was beginning to get more and more concerned as he saw his roommate slowly lower his metal spoon and press it into the table, until it was nearly bending. He placed a nervous hand onto the captain's shoulder in an attempt to snap him out of whatever was about to happen.

But no chance. Hongjoong stood up, forcing Seonghwa away.

"Look. Choi San. I do not know what has gotten into you. Actually, I very much do. But why the fuck do you want to start beef all the time?"

"So what exactly-"

"What are you? KOREAN BARBECUE?"

That made San falter - an unusual response to the food, especially considering that upon hearing that, he glanced over at Wooyoung and Seonghwa. This made Hongjoong narrow his eyes, but as he was about to ask a question about whether there was some conspiracy he did not know about, San did end up mustering a response.

"I- I just think you are trying too hard and to no avail, bro."

"Trying to do what?"

"Oh we are talking about the same fine lady here, aren't we?"

"OH you mean how your thirsty ass is committing every form of social disrespect trying to get Y/N to notice you?"

"Excuse you, I am just making conversation unlike your mousy and terrified ass."

"Ass?" Mingi was back in the game, having zoned out for a couple of seconds.

"Yes, Mingi, they are fighting over ass, it's okay, it happens sometimes." Yunho rubbed his friend's back in a fatherly manner, patting it a couple of times for good measure as he nodded slowly.

"That is just rude, man what the-" Hongjoong diverted his attention to Mingi, who had already grasped the lever on his breakfast bar chair and started sliding downwards.

Not that it helped much, only making a previously stoic Yunho spin away to try compose himself, and Yeosang fold his hands in prayer and position them in the most magnificent 'boi' form.

"Oh, look at Hongjoong being a fucking white knight." a strong hit from San, using his opponent's momentary distraction to his advantage.

"That is an online term, you oaf." Yeosang corrected quietly, pointing his hands at the man, who had stood up to match Hongjoong.

"Get off my dick dude-"

Yeosang mimicked looking through a pair of binoculars in response to San's distressed whisper, making the man groan.

"All of this is so anti-bro code, shame shame." Yeosang continued, only this time a little louder, causing Hongjoong and San to roll their eyes. The former recovered a little quicker, and attempted to intercept, but San was fast on the comeback, not giving the older member any chances.

"Again-"

"SIMP~" San boomed, making a tube with his hands to amplify his shouting.

"DOUBLE KILL." Yunho joined in, covering his mouth to make his voice sound as close to the video games he had been playing as possible.

Wooyoung had fallen off his chair, and was currently becoming one with the carpet as he had reached the point of a laughing fit where one could no longer produce sound and had to resort to being a fish, flopping about in the drama.

"RIGHT! I cannot stand this childishness any longer. You have been the biggest pain for the last few days and I am DONE trying to handle it or to be the bigger person, OKAY? If you want no rules. You'll get no rules. Except now, don't expect me to go easy on you."

The room fell silent, aside from Wooyoung slapping the floor and wheezing, and a deep, exasperated sigh from Seonghwa, who was massaging his temples like a mother at a parent teacher conference.

Hongjoong stormed away from the group, nearly ripping his jacket off the coat hanger and shoving headphones into his ears, with an aggressive announcement that he was going to the studio.

Again. That same silence.

Wooyoung managed to fight off the rest of his giggles and stand up, leaning on San for support. As he wiped his tears away, he looked to the eldest member, who began to gather Hongjoong's cutlery and what was left over of the meal.

"Hwa, you good?" San tried, any trace of anger and rebellion having evaporated at an astonishing speed.

"Uh... don't you think that was a bit much?" Seonghwa looked up, concern etched on his face.

"But you know what I'm trying to do, don't you?"

"Yeah, and I still think it's a bit too much."

"Oh, just you wait. Hongjoong likes a challenge." Wooyoung added, wrapping an arm around San's neck while he snapped pictures of the nearly gone quiche as evidence that it had been, in fact, edible.

"So. Special ops unit 'flower umbrella', care to explain what the fuck are you guys plotting before I force the answers out of you?"

All eyes were on Jongho, who had put his phone face down, right in front of him on the table, and had intertwined his fingers in a 'plotting murder' manner. His unreadable expression made Wooyoung, San and Seonghwa uneasy, and they began to play the eye game of 'who is going to say it'.

--

As Hongjoong was stomping his way to the studio, he was blasting songs that he recalled you had mentioned to him in the little chats you had shared. Him being very music-driven, of course he had taken the chance to ask what you enjoyed listening to.

So that was how he had ended up embarking on the feels train listening to "Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now" by The Smiths. Not quite the best choice when he was ready to smash a fist through a wall, but alas, at least it reminded him of you, and how calm you could stay amidst chaos.

He wondered if San knew this information too. What had you been chatting about with him? He had seen you laughing a couple of times whilst with him. That sneaky bastard. Openly declaring war and then not... joking? Who did that guy think he was?

Hongjoong could not help but beat himself up inside. He really was a coward, wasn't he? Every time he talked to you he would just giggle like a stereotypical shy anime school girl, all while staring at you like a damn puppy. He could not help it.

Being around you had an inexplicably strong effect on him to the point where he struggled to even have the role of captain. Hell, he even missed instructions a couple of times if you were next to the photographer.

And of course "Be My Druidess" by Type O Negative had to start playing at that exact moment. He huffed, rushing into KQ and zooming past security. Studio, studio, studio. He needed to just be alone for a second.

Once he had arrived, and locked himself in, he turned off the music and left all his belongings by the mixing equipment. Then, he waddled over into the recording booth, cautiously shutting the door behind him.

He took a deep breath. Almost meditative. And then let out

the most FRUSTRATED SCREAM into the void that was the noise isolating foam and thick concrete walls.

Taking a couple more steadying breaths, he stepped out again, and crashed onto the spinning chair before him.

San was a little shit.

San did not know you like Hongjoong did.

Hongjoong missed you.

Hongjoong did NOT want you to be the one who got away even before you could get together.

He picked up his phone, fiddling with it a couple of times. Unlocking it and locking it again. He looked at the bracelet, the one you had complimented, still on his wrist. There was no other way. He had to do it. After a glance at the time on the screen, he deliberated once again - what if he came across as a creeper who was contacting a co-worker way outside of appropriate hours?

But he did have your number - you had given it to him on the first day, explaining that he was 'the lead figure of ATEEZ'. That had made his heart swell with pride. But also shit bricks because he had your number but did not text you a single time so you did not have his?

His mind was moving at lightning speed. Oh well, if he did not take this chance, there would never be another.

<Unknown Number> Hi! So sorry for the late hour, this is Hongjoong!

He bit his lip, doubting his use of exclamation points. Was he being desperate? Was this too much?

<you> Oh Hongjoong, hi!!! I was wondering when you'd text lol

<hongjoong> Yeah... so sorry about that, it's been really wild lately

<you> I get you :) hopefully the shoot and generally the collab isn't putting too much pressure on you? If it is just let me know and I'll tell the designers to back off for a bit!

<hongjoong> Nonono seriously it is the best part of my day!

<you> Wow well I am glad to hear it!

<hongjoong> You are amazing

He slapped himself across the face as he reread what he had accidentally sent. Now you were definitely going to beat any records of fastest time to block someone.

<you> haha right back at you :)

His heart swelled and he wiggled his legs, but quickly stopped himself and pondered whether this was genuinely because you thought he was amazing or because you were scared and thought he was mildly unhinged.

Well bold of him to assume one or the other, because in reality, you just found him adorable.

Out of all the ATEEZ members, as you had expected, he had gotten the energy of ARNURI straight away. There had been no hiccups with him, no miniature coaching sessions about how to properly pose in the clothing so that not only did it look good but also told a story.

He knew what you were trying to do without you having to explain it a million times (which sometimes even your own employees needed), and although he couldn't quite get his words out when he was talking with you, there was no particular need. PHANTASMOS had been second nature to him.

All you could think about was how the future ATEEZ x ARNURI collection was going to look on him. It would be the world's biggest lie if you were to say you had not been working on his selection of items the longest. As a matter of fact, long before the potential to collaborate had even appeared on the horizon.

It was only natural - you had seen him wear your items, and you had a good eye for fitting and guessing what styling would work on whom. So, he had turned into a vision, a muse for you. In the times when you could sit in your personal studio and hone your craft, create to your heart's content, Hongjoong would be in the corner of your mind, his form - a canvas for your sketches.

Though for the actual ATEEZ x ARNURI collection you had ended up preparing entirely new drafts since they had to match and 'speak' to the others', you did have a couple of samples done for Hongjoong's solo looks, simply to be displayed on a mannequin for you to admire and reminisce on your journey. One which this man had influenced in many ways.

And now he was right in your phone screen. You had no reason to give him your number, since the majority of business interactions were being handled by your PA, marketing and relationship management. But on a whim you did it anyways. You were kind of proud of how coolly you went about it too. Casually taking out a blank card, noting down the digits and passing them to him between two fingers.

Okay maybe a little cringey in retrospect but he was not one to judge - not from how you had noticed him smiling like an idiot as, after finishing the conversation and with you 'totally paying attention to what one of the makeup artists was saying', he had shuffled into a corner of the photo studio, behind some equipment, unclipped his phone case and slid the card safe inside.

Curiosity was getting the best of you - you were happy, yes, but there must be some reason why Hongjoong had spontaneously decided to get in contact with you.

<you> So what's got you burning the midnight oil?

After what felt to be a minute, Hongjoong replied:

<hongjoong> At the studio right now, kind of in the mood of wanting to compose but not knowing what.

<you> That makes two of us, just I'm in a fashion studio and wanting to sketch haha

<hongjoong> Now that sounds amazing! What kinds of clothes?

<you> Well I have been very much on the ATEEZ ship as of late, so most of my ideation is dedicated to that

<you> Actually, can we have a quick call? I want to run some ideas by you if it's okay :)

<hongjoong> Sure!!

And there you were, two workaholics in your respective studios, showing each other around and talking for what had ended up being a little over four hours. You had indeed showed him some of the ideas you had, including a couple of iterations for chain harnesses that could be used to complete looks for some of the members.

Needless to say, you could make him blush and exhibit obvious jealous undertones at your command, and at the same time, make him look like the happiest man on the planet just by a couple of well-timed words. He seemed to have a particularly sharp reaction to when you mentioned San, and a choker that you had prepared.

You were not sure what the story there was, because San had been nothing but friendly to you, and as a matter of fact, had been showering their captain with praise and practically giving you a Hongjoong sales pitch. But you decided to not press the matter further. ATEEZ will be ATEEZ.

When he had played a couple of songs for you and explained how he had been working on them, you decided to go into a compliment monologue. You wished you could translate his shy laughter into a design. How could one recreate Kim Hongjoong in an article of clothing? In an outfit? It would be lifetimes before that could be achieved. So for the time being, you were content with cradling your phone screen as you listened to Hongjoong.

Somehow, the conversation turned into My Chemical Romance appreciation, as you divulged that yes, you may be goth, but that did not somehow limit you nor did it mean you were to look down upon anything else. Quite the opposite, the culture you followed had given you nothing but love, and all you wanted was to share it. And a part of this love was given to the band, who you enjoyed blasting while working, while commuting, and simply just because you wanted to sit there, head empty, and listen to them.

While you were rambling away about The Black Parade album, the songs you liked from it such as the classic - Teenagers, and about MCR's legendary comeback, Hongjoong was slammed full force by a EUREKA moment, and discreetly he noted it down on a stray post-it note. He knew exactly what he would gift to you that would beat anything and everything. At least he hoped it would.

Once the call had ended, he did not go home. In fact, he had gone to the photoshoot directly from the studio, much to the discontent of his manager and the concern of his members. But did he give a shit? No. He had spent the entire night talking, and creating for his love. He was not going to lie about it anymore. It was true. He was not a fan. He wanted so much more. And he was going to fight for it.

Fight me. Choi San. I dare you.

Such calls became a regular occurrence, since conveniently enough both of you were night owls (to the point where it was confusing what time zone you actually lived in). They had also served to lighten up his mood, to the point where after a couple of days he had stopped giving San the silent treatment (aside from captain's orders) and promoted the member back to acquaintanceship status.

The members noticed that you and him had become much closer in regular, in person interactions too, and as the days went on, you would spend a lot longer in one another's company. To the point where San could not keep up his game any more. Not that he had any opportunity to, since as soon as he was to make a beeline for you, Hongjoong would be right there, with a question, a joke, a random comment, or a small gift.

He had taken to discussing clothing modification with you, bringing some of his projects with him a couple of times, which you were more than happy to feedback on and even wreak havoc together with him. With the various trinkets that he was giving you, thanks to Wooyoung's creativity, some of the members had taken to calling Hongjoong 'the magpie man'.

But weeks passed, the shoots and collaborative design sessions were being wrapped up, and Hongjoong had settled into some kind of odd routine with you - one which you began to be dissatisfied with. It was as though he had started decelerating. As you watched the ATEEZ members being prepared for another, now video shoot for a series of promotions for the ATEEZ x ARNURI collection (the designs of which had been finalised ahead of schedule thanks to a certain captain helping you catch the essence of his group), you wondered if there was something that had influenced Hongjoong's firey pursuit in the first place...

Whilst observing their interactions, your eyes finally settled on him. None other than Choi San. The one member other than Hongjoong who had been extra friendly with you, but recently also stepped off the gas. Were they competing in some way? But San was literally talking about the other member most of the time-

Oh.

Oh. Now it made sense. You could not help but smile. Oh this was elaborate. In true ATEEZ fashion. All you needed was confirmation.

"Sannie? Could you come here for a moment?" purposefully using his nickname to highlight how you guys were 'so close', you called for his attention. Thus calling the attention of every other member too.

He seemed to catch the drift, or at least the not-so-gentle shove from Wooyoung helped, as he called back with a nickname and sauntered right to you, resembling a cat on the prowl. You caught Hongjoong's glare darting from you to him. Soon enough, he was glowering.

"Alright, San," you beckoned him closer to you, to which he obliged, "tell me about your plan regarding Hongjoong, will you?"

"Ah so it was kind of obvious..." he rubbed the back of his neck, looking off to the side.

"Evidently not, since I am only bringing this up now."

"But yeah. Okay. Long story short - he likes you. A lot. And that has only gotten more intense, so we decided to give him a couple of nudges."

"We?"

"Oh yeah this was Woo's plan." he pointed in his friend's direction, who appeared to have been ready, all this time, to make a cute pose and wave at you.

"Right."

"And then Hwa kind of improved it so it's more natural."

"Unexpected, but okay I see it."

"And then... um. Basically something happened and the rest of the guys are on the cheer squad."

"This is unbelievable." you stated, keeping your voice intentionally monotone.

"I'm really sorry. I know this is probably really silly and-"

"I want in."

"You- what now? Hold up can you back track."

"Well I think the main point to address is that, yes, I do indeed like Hongjoong too. A lot. And I am disappointed that he is a bit to comfortable right now."

"Now we're talking! See, San told you." Yunho, who was halfway through getting his makeup done but excused himself to hear the monumental tea, had appeared beside you, and soon enough you three had formed a huddle.

"Yunho, it wasn't too hard to guess I recall explicitly telling you I thought Hongjoong to be handsome."

"Yeah but who knows... maybe it was a fashion thing. I was judging more from the body language. And some other stuff but that's a company secret." Yunho explained, and winked.

"Dang, well. Nice. So, I think we sort of understand each other?"

"We all want Hongjoong to stop being a little bitch and confess?" San asked, making your eyes widen, as you were nonplussed at the choice of words.

"Precisely," Yunho agreed, entirely not phased, "which is why I propose operation 'Jealous Joong'. Even though he is like a tired dad most of the time, hate to break it to you, he has this sort of switch. If he really wants something, he will do anything to get it. And I think the same applies if it is someone we are talking about."

"You are more devious than I thought." you praised him, slowly clapping your hands together at the fun facts you had just been given.

"Never trust the innocent-looking ones." San warned you in a light-hearted tone.

"Noted, mister 'I will burn through the camera with my sultry gaze'."

"I'll take it. Now, my lady, let's go give Joongie some hell."

"Let's get this show on the road!"

And oh boy, was this quite the show. San's demeanour towards you had changed almost fully. He amped up the touchiness, requested that it was you who would be finalising his looks, making you float around him, and him alone.

This was riling up Hongjoong until his blood was boiling. He felt cheated. At the same time, Yunho, Wooyoung and Seonghwa kept on trying to grab his attention, while simultaneously making not so pleasant comments about what they were seeing between you and San. Feeding Hongjoong's turbulent emotions.

And San kept it up, right until the end of the shoot for the say, when Hongjoong, after saying a curt thanks, bolted out of the building, not caring for the staff that had ended up having to chase after him. Initially you thought that what you had agreed to do might have been to much, but Seonghwa, with two thumbs up, had reassured you that what was achieved was the optimum.

Sure enough, it did not take too long for Hongjoong to make an appearance. At one twenty-three. In the morning. Somehow managing to sneak into ARNURI, and right up to the door to your office, where you were still sat, enjoying the pleasures of filtering through massive email chains.

A couple of knocks on the door made you take a decorative bird skull in your hand, before attempting to not stutter as you said 'come in'. But there he was. As promised. A disheveled and determined Hongjoong, holding something tightly in his hand.

"Hi. Yeah. I am back. So. Sorry. For this afternoon. I don't know what had gotten into me. But. I just. I just want to share something with you. It's been something I have been working on the last couple of weeks, and well, uhm, I guess before you make any decisions or anything like that I just wanted to... gift it to you? Sorry, I know it is probably ridiculous but-"

"I'd love to listen to it, Joongie. Is it on a memory stick?" you pointed at his fist as he nodded vigorously and approached to pass it to you.

Promptly, you plugged it into your computer, and in a matter of a minute, the air was filled with Hongjoong's incredible cover of 'Teenagers', with him having added a well-matched, self-composed rap verse. His nerve. His energy. They were incomparable to anything you had heard.

And to think you had begun to doubt that he liked you and was getting cold... on the contrary, his feelings only got deeper. When the song finished, and you two were in quietude once more, Hongjoong began to fill the silence with his worries:

"So yeah. That was that. I just wanted to play this for you because you know, you like the original a lot. And I am sorry for causing you the trouble you probably did not want to be disturbed and here I am-"

"I loved it, Hongjoong. Seriously."

"Thanks..." he trailed off, not being able to meet you as you stood up from your desk.

"Let me show you something in return. Follow me."

You led him through a side door in your office and into your personal studio. Once you turned on one of the floor lamps, you asked Hongjoong to inspect one of the mannequins. The mannequin. Hongnequin.

Hongjoong was speechless as he gaped at the intricate needlework, the hints of shimmer in just the right places, like deep space collected in a suit. He turned to you about to sing praises, but became even more floored as you said to him:

"This is yours."

"Huh?"

"Hopefully I got the size right."

"Wait... when? How?"

"It's... been a while. Care to make a poor designer happy and give them a little try on?"

As you asked that, suddenly, Hongjoong got bold and came close to you, so your faces were mere inches away. He studied you, and tentatively placed his hands on your waist. As you made not move to reject him, he pulled you a little closer:

"You actually made this for me... it is so beautiful. You really are a star."

"And what's your wish upon a star?"

"Can the star be mine?"

"Finally."

And you closed the gap between you with a sweet kiss, resting your arms around his neck and shoulders, relishing in the sensation.

Once you broke away, gleaming and with you giggling at the fact that Hongjoong whispered to himself that 'you were actually his girlfriend now wow', you couldn't help but want to make the moment even more delightful, perhaps just for yourself.

"I should definitely thank San and the gang for this."

"Excuse you?"

"Yeah, apparently if they had not provoked you... who knows..."

The group was in for an interesting night, as once Hongjoong was back, he announced his presence by yelling out a loving

"SEONGHWA YOU TRAITOR!"

"DON'T TALK TO HIM LIKE THAT HE MADE FOOD TONIGHT!" Wooyoung shouted back across the apartment, making some of the already sleeping members cuss him out from within their rooms.

"Uh, hi? Hongjoong? Back from studio?" Seonghwa was peering out from their shared room, an oversized hood covering the majority of his face as he tried to wake up.

"No, back from visiting my girlfriend who kindly revealed to me that I live with a bunch of rats????"

"WEE WOO WEE WOO LADS HONGJOONG HAS ACQUIRED A GOTH GF ALL IS GOOD IN THE WORLD!" Wooyoung sounded like a megaphone, racing out of his room and almost smashing the door open to San's, but the later was ready, for he immediately joined in by chanting:

"goth gf goth gf gotH GF GOTH GF-"

"I will end all of you. Now HWA??? HOW DID THOSE TWO DEMON CHILDREN FIND ANYTHING OUT IN THE FIRST PLACE? WHERE, INFO, WHEN?"

"You know the restaurant I showed you a bit of time back?" the eldest recounted.

"Yeah the one with A5 grade beef."

"Well... they took me there. In exchange for a Hongjoong info drop."

"You know what? I can't even be mad. Plus, I am too happy to do anything right now. You got lucky. Now let's sleep, I have a date tomorrow!" Hongjoong squealed, hopping to the room much to the amusement of the members who had been bothered to sacrifice their beauty sleep.

But as he walked past a smiling San, his smile had instantly turned demonic, as he tilted his head and whispered:

"And you and I will have a long and intimate talk tomorrow. Prepare yourself, For I like to extend the fun."

Although San was not looking forward to it, he gave himself a pat on the back. This was what the real bro code was.

--

After the launch of the collaborative line and the promotions, ARNURI's sales went through the roof. Some items had sold out instantly, others already had long pre-order lists. You were being invited to shows rather than having to fight tooth and nail for it. You had scheduled participations in official weeks, mid-season events and more. Again, all thanks to your inspiration, your muse, your partner, Kim Hongjoong.

As the collaboration had been close enough, you two could easily hide your relationship from the public. But after what had come to be a little over a year of you flying solo on the media, you had chosen to reveal your relationship in as an extravagant way possible.

Camera flashes. Journalists. Designers. Models. VIPs. At Seoul Fashion Week, there was no place were there were no people. Crowds of enthusiastic fashionistas combatted with the press to get a closer glimpse at those on the red carpet, and went wild as you stepped out. Dressed in a gorgeous onyx ARNURI gown, hugging you in just the right places. Hongjoong immediately followed, and joined you, with his hand on the small of your back to protect his star. Dressed in the matching suit that you had designed just for him, for your muse.