[ 3:47 PM ] — jay looks at you as he rests on the passenger seat. you were silent which was so unlikely. jay feels uncomfortable with the silent tension, wanting to talk to you. but you were obviously giving him the cold shoulder, keeping your eyes on the road. jay doesn’t know how long you’re going to keep this up, but he also doesn’t know that you can’t resist him.
“what the hell were you thinking, jongseong?” you said, pretending to be mad, but you were just so worried for your poor boyfriend.
“…you?“ he softly chuckles and he sees your hand become whiter as you tighten your grip on the wheel. “i’m sorry, i don’t want you to break up with me?”
“why the hell would i break up with you?” you say.
“you seem to love cats so much, so i thought if you find out i’m allergic, you would get bored at me because i can’t take care of your cats with you, bring you to cat cafes, all cat related stuff!” jay says with a small frown on his lips.
stupid boyfriend, sigh.
stupid adorable boyfriend with such pure heart.
you asked jay if he can take care of your cat along with your dad’s cats with you. he said yes. unknown to you he was allergic as fuck and that he prepared his anti-allergies and more allergy medicines. he started to sneeze after an hour, running to your bathroom with his bag until one of the medicines fall off his bag and you saw.
“jay,” you softly sigh. “it doesn’t matter. i love you no matter what. it’s especially not worth it if you’re going to be hospitalized every damn time!”
“but—“
“no.”
jay frowns and you sigh. “i appreciate it, okay? i really do, jay. it’s the sweetest thing anyone has done for me, but don’t do it again, okay?” you say and jay sighs.
“you’re not breaking up with—“
“oh my god.” you say and he sheepishly chuckles. “nothing will ever make me breakup with you, okay?”
“okay.” he softly says. “i love you.”
“i love you, too.” you smile.
you really do.
— rbs, likes and feedback are highly appreciated !! drop a hi in my inbox if u want <3
pairing: boyfriend!skz (idol!skz) x gn!reader
genre: domestic fluff, just loads of fluff okay?
warnings: mentions of food, kissing, not proofread.
word count: 1.5k +
notes: i literally missed writing something like this so please reblog, leave your feedbacks and put tags alright? thank you very much love ♡
𝗕𝗔𝗡𝗚 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡 — notice your new hairstyle
you were waiting for chan to get off from work just inside the jyp café, one that he would always recommend for you to wait for him every time when it gets late. it was almost past nine in the evening as you were just scrolling on your phone when he just arrived and saw your familiar figure from the entrance. a smile of comfort and relief surfaced on his lips as he took his way towards the table when he realized you’ve done something with your hair today. he stopped for a minute and examined how different they were from the moment he left your shared apartment this morning—he just fell in love with you even more.
“hey gorgeous!” he beamed as you turned to face him.
“you’re here!” you said as his lips met your forehead for a kiss.
“did you style your hair?” he asked, taking the seat across from you.
“yeah, i did,” you said, nervous about his reaction. “do you like it?”
“of course love, you look so beautiful with it,” he smiled, which left you to be a blushing mess.
𝗟𝗘𝗘 𝗞𝗡𝗢𝗪 — let you sleep on his lap
minho was just scrolling through his phone while taking a rest from his dance practice—that’s the time you came inside the room after he texted you to come. he greeted you without taking his attention from the device lying on his hand, not until he felt a weight on the couch taking the space beside him. your boyfriend watched you execute some moves until your head fell on his lap to take a nap. he smirked at the sight of you, but given the response, he received from his texts, he knew you were tired too.
“sleepyhead,” he murmured, shaking his head.
“thank you,” you answered before kissing his thigh and proceeding to take a nap—leaving him smiling as he went back to his phone while trying to ease your tension with his fingers on your hair.
𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗚𝗕𝗜𝗡 — sending sweet messages before you sleep
due to the boys’ hectic schedule and their ongoing tour, you knew changbin wouldn’t be available as much as when he was still in seoul with you. but despite his messy and abrupt sessions, he always takes his time to do something for you. timezones suck but changbin always has a clock that determines the time when he is in another country, which he knows you miss him so badly. one time when you were just reading a book on your bed, a beep sound escalated from your phone on the nightstand. being distracted as you are, you were already expecting his messages.
“hey baby, i won’t be able to call you right now because we’re having a tight schedule today. but i will come back later, okay?”
“make sure to drink water and take care of yourself while i’m gone,”
“it’s already morning in here, i hope you’ll have a good night sleep,”
“take care baby, i love you,”
“good night,”
“i love you too,” you said, rereading his messages all over again—you’d indeed tackle him with cuddles when he comes back.
𝗛𝗬𝗨𝗡𝗝𝗜𝗡 — make you his lock screen & home screen
hyunjin is the type to make his paintings or sketches to be his phone display, but that changed until he met his muse, you. ever since the relationship started, you like accompanying him whenever he visited his studio where he paints and does all his masterpieces. you love his artworks as much as you love him and couldn’t help but take pictures of you whenever you are in awe of one of his works. other candid and formal shots were taken from your dates, others were made as his inspirations for his sketches. one time, he was trying to sketch something out of his imagination when you asked him if you could borrow his phone since yours went dead a few minutes ago. only a hum was given as a response so you made your way towards the couch to fetch it. that’s when you saw your picture being his lock screen—one that he captured when you were mesmerized by a painting in an art museum. a smile was formed on your face as you typed his password and only to be welcomed with a similar photo from before (the difference was only the angles)
“these are pretty,” you said when he already knew what you were talking about.
“can’t help it, you are just pretty as they are,” he smiled, not taking his attention from his sketch.
𝗛𝗔𝗡 𝗝𝗜𝗦𝗨𝗡𝗚 — kisses your neck at random times
your boyfriend is a sucker for kisses, especially when it is time for cuddles. it became a habit of his when he sees you standing with your back against his front. a pair of strong arms would wrap around your waist as he buries his face in the crook of your neck and leaves kisses on them, as well as on your nape. it goes around at random times, or whenever he feels like it. just like how he woke up after sleeping for an hour on the couch you shared a while ago—you were trying to cook food for dinner.
“baby, what are you doing?” he said, lazily making his way down towards the small kitchen.
“cooking,” you hummed in response. “you’re awake already?”
“yeah, you were gone by my side,” he responded with his arms hugging your waist as he rested his chin on your shoulder. “that smells good,” he added, kissing your neck for the compliment.
“y-yeah,” you said, trying to hide the blush on your cheeks by chuckling.
𝗙𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗫 — makes candlelight dinner for you
you know felix is always true to his word, he can’t even lie to save his life and after countless times of postponing dates due to his busy schedule—the tour is already fast approaching—he promised himself to make it up to you. being the most understanding partner you are, he didn’t have to push himself into it and you have also a job to take care of. yet your boyfriend takes it as a no. it was that one night when you just got off from work and arrived home before 9 in the evening—the lights were off the moment you entered the apartment you’ve shared with him, one that made you curious and anxious at the same time. by the time you had your phone’s flashlight on, you saw him lighting up a candle on the table with your favorite foods on it.
“it was supposed to be a surprise,” he chuckled, blowing a matchstick.
“i am surprised,” you said, amused at the sight of them. “this is so wonderful lix,”
“y/n, i keep my promise okay?” he said, taking you for a hug. “let’s just keep it this way for privacy and, since we can’t take a reservation because we’re both busy,”
“it doesn’t matter, okay?” you smiled, giving him a soft kiss on the lips. “thank you,”
“anything for you,” felix smiled.
𝗦𝗘𝗨𝗡𝗚𝗠𝗜𝗡 — holds your hand and kisses them
you know seungmin isn’t the type to be clingy unless he needed to. but there are times that he is overly affectionate with you, especially behind closed doors. yet one thing that makes your heart flutter is when he holds your hand out of the blue or whenever you are in public places—one that he wanted to secure you by his side or maybe he just wanted to interlock his fingers with yours to tell the world you are his. when he gets bold, he’d lift your hands to kiss your knuckles and smile at you. sometimes he’d take your hands inside his hoodie’s pockets to keep them warm under a cold weather and play with your fingers.
“someone seems bored,” you smirked as he chuckled lightly.
“i just love holding them you know?” he said, kissing your knuckles.
“and i love the one who holds them,” you winked which only made him laugh in response after being flattered.
𝗝𝗘𝗢𝗡𝗚𝗜𝗡 — share his ice cream with you
after acknowledging that you were having a bad day, your boyfriend immediately took you out on a date. being thankful as you are, you didn’t waste your time talking about how your classes went and that’s how he would just listen while eating his ice cream—letting you all rant about it. harsh sighs and disbelief, words came out like knives and rocks. you were stressed enough to do something related to school. whining at the fact that you have homework, jeongin pointed his ice cream at your face, it was already half-eaten but the melting cream was enough for you to devour. you didn’t hesitate to take some.
“thanks,” you said. “now the—”
“y/n, let’s just stop this okay? you need to rest and let me buy you ice cream,” he said, trying to calm you down. “you took a big bite, it’s the cone that is left now,”
“i hate you,” you retorted.
“i love you too,” he snickered. “but seriously, you want ice cream or not?”
“yes,” you smiled as placed a soft kiss on your lips before dragging you towards the ice cream parlor nearby.
[ 🌷 ] taglist : @wolfchanchan @inseonqt @soobin-chois @1-800-lixie @luvhyun3 @hanjiesgf @koovvie @lix-ables @starzzns @zoe8stay @gwynsapphire @cherryhanji @hwangsify @lixesque @seungly @sleepyleeji @h0neydewmoon @kim-seung-mo @ppiri-bahng @myjisung — lmk if you wanna be added or removed from my permanent taglist via ask ♡
bf!jake x yn x bf!sunghoon
warnings: established poly relationships (jake yn and hoon), pet names, kisses, lowcase written
synopsis: you might just realise how your boyfriend are going to be your forever and always and love you even more for your clingy side.
wc: 1.6k
a/n: if you know me then you know this was bound to happen. literally down bad for jakehoon and would legit be the perfect house wife for them both 🙏🏻 feedbacks are appreciated 🙂↕️ this was also inspired by a tiktok but i can’t find it anymore so yes well credit to them for inspiring me so badly for jakehoon fluff 🥹
sigh.
and sigh.
and sigh again.
as you sigh dramatically for the hundredth time, you nuzzle closer to jake, who’s giving you a mix of exasperation and amusement. you know he secretly enjoys it, even though he's acting all serious right now.
“yn, i swear to god,” jake mutters under his breath, trying to maintain his composure but failing. his eyes flicker with a hint of fondness that he can’t hide. “you’ve been doing this all morning. what’s going on?”
you pout, your hand reaching for his, intertwining your fingers as you snuggle into his side. “i need attention. and you’re not giving it to me,” you say in a slightly whiny tone, the words dripping with playful dramatics.
it’s jake’s turn to sigh this time, though it’s more out of defeat than annoyance. “i’m literally right next to you,” he grumbles, trying to seem unbothered, but his thumb starts tracing circles on the back of your hand.
“but where’s the fun in that?” you reply, eyes widening innocently as you look up at him. “i want you to pamper me.”
at that exact moment, sunghoon walks into the room, fresh from the shower, a towel lazily hanging from his neck as he shakes out his wet hair. his eyebrows raise as he observes the scene — you clinging to jake like a baby koala. “what’s all this about?” he asks, a teasing lilt in his voice as he notices your clinginess.
“yn in one of their moods,” jake says, rolling his eyes but smiling softly.
“mood?” you huff, now turning to sunghoon, your pout deepening as you shift away from Jake and towards him. “i’m just asking for a little love and attention! is that too much to ask?”
sunghoon chuckles, crouching down in front of the couch, his hand finding its way to your cheek, gently caressing it.
“a little love and attention, huh?” he repeats, his voice soft yet teasing. his eyes hold the same warmth that jake’s do, even if they’re both pretending to be put out by your antics.
you nod vigorously. “yes! both of you have been ignoring me all morning.”
jake snorts at that. “ignoring you? you’ve been between us the entire time of the night, and the day before and so on.”
“exactly,” sunghoon adds, now leaning closer, his lips brushing your forehead in a gentle kiss. “we’ve been right here.”
you let out another exaggerated sigh, though this one is more playful than frustrated. “it’s not enough. i need more,” you declare dramatically, your arms wrapping around sunghoon’s neck as you pull him into an embrace, leaning back into the couch cushions with him in your arms.
jake, seeing this, sighs as well and shifts closer to you on the other side. “you’re so clingy today,” he mutters, but there’s no bite in his tone. in fact, he sounds almost… happy.
and you know the truth — they secretly love when you’re like this. they’d never admit it outright, but the way jake’s hand sneaks around your waist to pull you back into him, and the way sunghoon’s arms tighten around your frame, tells you all you need to know.
you feel their warmth enveloping you, and for a moment, you bask in the quiet intimacy of it all. their steady breathing, the subtle beat of their hearts against you, it makes you feel safe — like you’re exactly where you belong.
“i know you guys secretly like it when i’m clingy,” you mumble, half into sunghoon’s chest and half into Jake’s shoulder.
jake huffs, his hand now rubbing soothing circles on your back. “you’re impossible.”
sunghoon laughs softly. “but we wouldn’t have it any other way,” he says quietly, pressing another kiss to your temple.
you smile, feeling the love from both of them surround you, the gentle touches, the warmth, and the way they’re both here, right where you need them.
“love you both,” you murmur contentedly.
jake presses a soft kiss to the top of your head. “we love you too, clinginess and all.”
sunghoon hums in agreement, his hand gently brushing through your hair. “always.”
you shift slightly in between your two boyfriends, the warmth of their bodies making you feel all soft inside. jake’s fingers continue to trail lazily along your back, and sunghoon is still playing with your hair, a quiet hum vibrating in his chest.
"so, what you're saying you need more attention, huh?" jake says, his voice dropping just a little as he tilts his head down, catching your eye. he has that playful smirk on his face that you know too well — the one that always makes your heart skip a beat.
you narrow your eyes at him, catching on to his teasing. "yes, exactly. i don't think you're giving me enough." you stick your tongue out a little, leaning more into sunghoon’s chest.
sunghoon chuckles, his hand moving from your hair to your waist, holding you a little tighter. "you sure about that? because it kinda looks like you're being spoiled right now." his voice is smooth, almost a whisper, and it sends a shiver down your spine, though his tone remains lighthearted.
“hmmm” you hum thoughtfully, biting your lip in a mock-thoughtful way. “spoiled? i think we can do better.”
"oh, is that right?" jake leans down even closer, his breath brushing your ear now, sending a tiny spark through you. his tone has a teasing edge as he adds, "maybe we should really show you what spoiled feels like."
you laugh, but it's nervous — playful nervous. "what are you guys planning?" you squirm slightly, trying to keep your cool, but the closeness of both of them has you feeling all warm and giddy inside.
"nothing." sunghoon’s voice is too innocent as he shifts, his lips brushing your cheek now. "unless you're asking for it."
you playfully push at sunghoon’s chest, giggling as jake nuzzles into the crook of your neck. "you two are so-" you start, but you're cut off by a soft kiss being pressed to your temple, this time from jake.
"what?" jake murmurs against your skin, a smile in his voice. “loving? affectionate?”
“clingy,” you tease, laughing when sunghoon pinches your waist gently.
“clingy?” sunghoon repeats, raising an eyebrow. “that’s rich, coming from you, love.”
you scrunch your nose, knowing you're definitely being the clingiest one right now, but also secretly loving how they're both so wrapped up in you.
“okay, okay, fine. maybe i’m being a little clingy today,” you admit, your voice softening as you look between them. “but i like it when we're like this.”
jake’s teasing smirk melts into something softer as he rests his chin on your shoulder, his lips brushing against your collarbone in the faintest kiss. "we like it too," he says, his voice lower but still full of affection.
sunghoon’s hand traces a slow path up and down your side as he leans in to press another kiss, this time to your forehead. "we always like it when you're close," he whispers.
a blush creeps up your neck as your heart flutters, feeling the intensity of their closeness but also the overwhelming sense of love in the moment. it’s not just about flirting or teasing - it's the connection, the warmth, the comfort they bring you.
you could spend the rest of the day tangled up between them like this, and it just wouldn't be enough.
you let out a soft, contented sigh, your heart swelling as you snuggle even closer. "you two are such softies," you mumble, trying to hide your smile as you close your eyes.
jake chuckles, his voice rumbling against your skin. "only for you."
"and only always," sunghoon adds, brushing his thumb over your cheek.
you smile at their words, feeling loved in every possible way. and even though they were teasing you just a minute ago, you know they're serious. they’d spoil you, hold you, love you forever if you asked them to.
"guess i’ll just have to keep being clingy then," you say softly, opening your eyes just enough to see the way they both look at you — like you're their whole world.
jake’s lips quirk into a grin, and he leans in, his voice dropping just enough to make your heart flutter again. "we wouldn't want it any other way."
sunghoon hums in agreement, leaning in closer to plant one more soft kiss on your lips. “never.”
yoy smile, feeling warmth bloom in your chest as you snuggle closer to both of them. “good,” you whisper, pretending to be dramatic again. “because i’m not going anywhere. you’re stuck with me forever.”
jake chuckles, tightening his arms around you as he presses his forehead against yours. “forever sounds perfect.”
sunghoon grins, leaning his head on your shoulder. “you say that like it’s a threat, but we’re definitely winning here.”
you smirk, eyes still closed. “you sure? i’m a lot to handle.”
jake snorts. “please, you’re nothing compared to sunghoon’s weird obsession with collecting skincare samples.”
sunghoon gasps dramatically, pulling away just enough to look offended. “excuse me? my skin is flawless, thank you very much. you could learn a thing or two.”
you laugh, the warmth in your chest growing as their playful banter surrounds you, making you feel even more cherished. "fine, you two can keep bickering while i just enjoy all this attention."
jake grins, ruffling your hair with a soft chuckle. "our clingy queen deserves nothing less, and we’re at your service."
sunghoon leans in, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of your head. "forever at your service," he adds with a teasing smile.
you sigh contentedly, snuggling into both of them as you murmur, “forever sounds perfect.”
YUNKI PLSLSLSLSLSL GOT ME WHEEZING AT MIDNIGHT HWHSHWHSHHW
enhypen texts when you have plushies of another idol
this is for goofs - crack - 9 screenshots - funny haha - masterlist - i have a ton of these plushies so i thought this would be cute
*・゜゚・*:.。..。.:*・'(*゚▽゚*)'・*:.。. .。.:*・゜゚・*
jungwon- ˚✧₊⁎❝᷀ົཽ≀ˍ̮ ❝᷀ົཽ⁎⁺˳✧༚
open for the rest of the members (ᵔᴥᵔ)
heeseung- (๑>◡<๑)
jay-(-_-)zzz
jake-ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʕ•̫͡•ʔ•̫͡•ʔ
sunghoon-(°_°)
sunoo-٩( 'ω' )و
riki- ヾ(๑╹◡╹)ノ"
pairing: boyfriend!skz x gn!reader ︱ genre: fluff ︱word count: 0.7k︱ warning: may contain grammar errors, not proofread, someone got smacked on the face and someone fell off the bed
a/n: hello again!! i was overwhelmed with how many people liked my first post so here's another one. hope you like this one too!! (tho this is such a random idea?) if you also recognized this on ig, its me lol
Chan
The moment your eyes slowly opened, he was staring at you fondly while his lips curved into a small sweet smile.
he would be surprised but would ask how was your sleep
tucks you again because he knows you're still tired and he probably woke you up from the noise he made earlier
"You should've woken me up." you said, voice muffled and a bit raspy, Chan just smiled hugging you close to his body and chuckling
"I can't do that, it's like disturbing an angel sleeping"
Lee Know
would be frozen still while he's crouching from the floor, his head leaning on both hands, forming the flower pose
"Oh? You saw nothing, go back to sleep."
it would be dark and cold, but his face was hot and still getting hotter and redder once he heard you giggle behind him
would be very embarrassed that he's caught
you would enjoy teasing him about it and would teasingly ask how often he does that
"No, I don't do it often… I don't know."
Changbin
I think he would just chuckle, or straight up laugh because he's caught, the watching time is over
he would be actually a nervous wreck that you would think it's weird, especially when you asked him why he's doing that
" I'm not upset," you would chuckle, pulling his shirt lazily, "Just surprised that you would actually do that."
and when he's finally beside you, you'd give him a peck on his cheeks and he'd return it, hugging you close
"Of course I would, you're beautiful."
Hyunjin
"Hyuj-!!"
unintentionally covers your face with his large hand to prevent the embarrassment with another embarrassment move
"No, I Uhh… don't be mad at me."
then he would release his hands and you can finally breathe properly and laugh properly
he would be really fast on moving from the floor to his hand on your face
you would tell him it was fine, but he was already too embarrassed, I think he would bury his face on your pillow or on your neck.
"I arrived early, I swear, I lost track of time because you look soft, like an angel."
Han
very much surprised, falls off the bed
"I'm fine!" he'd shout from the floor, face completely red
he would the same as Hyunjin, both lost track of time staring at your sleeping face and getting fascinated by your features
he would not listen when you tell him to get up from the floor that you'd look at him, head popping out from the bed and teasing him about it and he'd just pout all day
"Shut up, it's a way of showing affection too!"
Felix
would give you the sweetest smile when you were about to open your eyes and still, you catch up on that smile.
"Too sweet Lix, what time is it?"
I think it would be somewhat normal to the both of you, occasionally watching each other sleep.
"10pm. Sleep more sunshine, I'll sleep too."
"Then you should've slept earlier if you're tired instead of watching me sleep, geez Lixie stop being perfect will yah?"
"I can't help it, you're too lovely."
Seungmin
"Nothing, sleep."
he would say that with the book he's reading now on his lap, would cover you with the blanket you two are sharing and keep it tight to calm himself down
"Kim Seungmin, I already saw you, it wasn't nothing and it's getting hot here!"
then that's when the blanket was off you and he's back to reading, but it was still obvious he's embarrassed
"What happened with the book is it boring?"
"Kind of, you moved so I looked at you but… I couldn't stop staring."
I.N
would almost fall off the bed but managed to pull himself together and sit up straight but would be covering his face with his hands
when he would hear you giggle cutely to that, he knows it safe and you're not mad
would be too shy that he'd change the subject to how was your sleep but eventually he would talk about it shyly
tucks you to bed too, moving close to you while he would slowly drift off to sleep beside you.
"It's the time you're that peaceful… it's mesmerizing, yeah you are."
I'm so single bye
☆ horrendously down bad! heeseung x fem! reader ☆ summary: absolutely no one would have expected the dark, brooding, and rough heeseung lee to be hopelessly head over heels in love with the sweet, oblivious you. especially you. even with the help of practically the entire year, it's almost pathetic the way heeseung struggles to utter three, simple words to you, let alone look you in the eye. ☆ genre: fluff!!! pining, SUPER WHIPPED HEESEUNG, high school! au, non-idol! au, a lot of 01 liner idols + the rest of enha make appearances, btw this follows the asian school system, SO MUCH FLIRTING OMG, heeseung is kinda pathetic and awk ☆ warning(s)? swearing and dumb characters lol, there is one SA scene, but it is not graphic + very minor violence ☆ word count: 10.8k ☆ this is extremely based off of "danger" by bts, especially the lyric "you're cute, and i'm pathetic" lol enjoy!
Heeseung Lee was stressed.
No. He was distraught.
Distraught about how fucking cute you looked today.
Ever since he was a kid, Heeseung loved Halloween, because he loved Trick-or-Treating with his older brother and cousins. However now, at the age of seventeen, he found himself resenting it. Not because there was any issue with the holiday, but because today was Halloween.
From across the classroom, Heeseung found himself staring, all dazed and empty-headed, at you, who was clad in your cute bunny costume. The way the fluffy, white ears stuck out from the top of your head, as well as the fluffy white coat draped around your shoulders, made you look so soft and cozy and adorable. The way your nose crinkled as you laughed with your friends, sweet sounds coming from your lips as you threw your head back.
Were you real? How could anyone be so goddamn beautiful and not be an actual angel sent from above? What country did Heeseung save in his past life in order to get to be in your presence in this life?
"Dude, you're staring," a new voice interjected.
"What?" Heeseung tore his eyes away from you. "I wasn't."
Beomgyu Choi was one of Heeseung's classmates. And, like everyone else in their year, Beomgyu knew how enamored Heeseung was with you. Other than yourself, of course.
"I'm tellin' you," Beomgyu plopped down onto his seat, which was beside Heeseung's. He slid his chair so that he would be closer to his classmate, before throwing an arm around Heeseung. "You need to make a move. Like, now."
Heeseung glanced over at his classmate. If he ignored the fake blood on Beomgyu's chin, as well as the fake, plastic vampire teeth and the god-awful Spirit Halloween Dracula cape, he'd know that Beomgyu was 100% correct.
Everyone (and seriously, everyone) knew that Heeseung Lee had the biggest, juiciest, most obnoxious crush on you. In fact, your own friends had even tasked themselves with the job of putting in a good word for Heeseung, saying things like "Isn't he so cool?" into your ear to hopefully guide you straight into his arms. It's such a well-known fact that some of your teachers have purposefully placed you and Heeseung next to or near each other in order to help him with his more-than-obvious crush.
With such a big, school-wide effort, it should be expected that at least some progress was made.
Wrong!
Not even a single stroke of progress has been made.
Probably because there was one teensy, weensy, eensy, problem: Heeseung was an absolute mess around you. Heeseung was known as this tall, blunt, and rough guy at school. When he wasn't silently judging everyone, he hung out with his group of friends, who had a reputation for being delinquents. Heeseung Lee, clad in his iconic black leather jacket, was intimidating, and usually had no problem speaking up for himself. But around you? Absolutely not.
If anyone thought that Heeseung Lee could easily speak to you, they were out of their goddamn mind. There were too many instances where your classmates would push Heeseung and you together, only for him to blow it because he was completely incapable of looking you in the eye without turning red.
In Heeseung's defense, you were the most beautiful person in the world— How is he not supposed to get nervous?
"You know I can't," Heeseung murmured, clenching his fists.
Beomgyu rolled his eyes. "Whatever, Hee. What happened to banger Heeseung Lee? Heeseung Lee that beats up kids? I didn't think you'd be scared of talking to girls."
"First of all," Heeseung frowned, "I'm not a banger and I don't beat up kids. And also, I'm not scared of talking to girls."
His classmate quirked a brow. "Really?" Heeseung nodded. "Because the last time I remember, you could barely get a word out in front of [Name]."
At the sound of your name, Heeseung jerked in his seat, reaching out to grasp Beomgyu's arm. "Shhhh, don't say her name so loud!" he hissed, eyes quivering over to where you were with your friends.
"What?" Beomgyu looked around indiscreetly. "It's not a secret to anyone how you feel about [Name]."
"Shhhh! Shut up!"
When the bell rang, everyone scurried to their seat, and class began. As Beomgyu tuned out the sound of the teacher's voice, he couldn't help but notice the way Heeseung's eyes were completely glued to you. It was almost laughable, the way the boy's eyes were wide, staring at you like you were some god.
Oh god, Heeseung Lee was hopeless.
"Heeseung-hyung, are you free tomorrow?"
It was lunch time. Heeseung and his friends liked to hang around the rooftop of the school, because it was always empty. And plus, no one wanted to be where Heeseung and his friends were— they were too scary!
Heeseung looked at his younger Australian friend, Jake Sim (or Jaeyun Sim, as his official documents stated), who had just asked that question. Heeseung took a bite of the instant ramen that they bought from the vending machine.
"Yeah, why?"
"Good. Because you have a date with [Name] tomorrow."
Heeseung choked. As he coughed, his other younger friend, Sunoo Kim, let out a whine.
"Hyuuunggg!" Sunoo pouted. "Why'd you tell him?"
"It was supposed to be a surprise!" Riki Nishimura, the group's Japanese foreign exchange student friend, added, elbowing Jake in the ribs.
"Whatever," Jake crossed his arms. When Riki nudged him again, Jake opened his mouth to holler, "Jay, back me up!"
Jongseong "Jay" Park was another one of Heeseung's friends, probably the closest person to him.
"You guys know Heeseung-hyung is going to fuck it up either way, right?" Jay said. "Remember last time?"
"Yeah," Sunghoon Park joined in. "No matter how much we prepared him, Heeseung-hyung still acted like a fucking idiot."
"I'm right here!" Heeseung shouted, still hitting his chest to dislodge the ramen that he choked on.
Jungwon Yang, the seventh person in their friend group, put a hand on the older boy's shoulder, his lips lifting up into a half-teasing grin, revealing sharp canine teeth, "Hyung, don't listen to them. I think you'll really impress [Name] tomorrow."
It was Heeseung's turn to elbow Jungwon in the ribs.
When Heeseung finally finished coughing up a storm, his friends were already onto another topic, making plans for the next weekend.
"Hey, hey!" Heeseung grumbled. "Aren't you guys going to explain this so-called 'date with [Name]'?"
"What's there to explain?" Riki said. "You're going on a date with [Name]. End of story."
The eldest of the group's face contorted. "What are you guys even saying—"
"Well, it's not technically a date," Sunghoon said, taking a sip of his juice box. "You're, like, hanging out with [Name] though."
That still didn't answer Heeseung's question.
"When? Where? What time?" he spluttered, eager for answers.
Jake huffed exasperatedly. "Do we have to explain to you everything? It's not that deep, man."
Jungwon rolled his eyes. "Hyung, [Name]'s friends are the presidents of the Environment and Ecology Club, and there's a social tomorrow. It's like birdhouse painting, or something. [Name] is attending to support her friend, so we signed you up, too."
"Birdhouse painting?!" Sunoo's features morphed into confusion. "I thought they were making bracelets?"
"No, I thought there were weaving baskets?" Riki frowned.
"Whatever it is, it sounds lame as hell," Jay remarked.
Jungwon rolled his eyes again, earning a punch on his arm. "Whatever it is, it'll be a great opportunity for you to talk to [Name]."
The younger boy offered Heeseung a reassuring smile, only to receive a pensive one in return.
When classes resumed, Heeseung felt light-headed and distracted the entire time as he processed the fact that he was going to be around you tomorrow.
Oh god, he sounded like a total loser. Did the mere thought of being in your presence make him nervous? Yes, yes it did. You were just so pretty and sweet, he had no idea what to do. Poor boy, his teeth dug into his bottom lip, clammy palms pressing into the underside of his desk. His knee bounced, and there was absolutely no way that he could even make out a single word the teacher was saying.
Heeseung was going to pass out.
"Hey, Heeseung?"
That's your voice. It was so pretty and nice on his ears. Was he in heaven? He wouldn't be surprised if your voice was the voice of an angel.
"Heeseung?"
Heeseung was convinced that he was in heaven now. What he wouldn't do to hear your voice every second of his life.
"Heeseung!" another voice interjected. That's what snapped Heeseung out of his daze. Too deep in his head, Heeseung hadn't noticed that the class period ended, and the short passing period had already begun.
At his desk stood Yunjin Huh, Minjeong "Winter" Kim, and... oh my god... you. The three of you had somewhat matching Halloween costumes: Yunjin was a gray mouse, Winter was a cat, and you were a bunny. And now that he looked at it, you all were holding a bag of candy.
While your two friends were giving him the"Are you serious?" looks, you looked at him with wide, kind eyes.
"Heeseung?" your beautiful voice said, fingers reaching into the candy bag that you were holding. "Would you like candy?"
He stared at you. You were giving out candy to everyone in class because it was Halloween... You're such an angel... What did the world do to deserve you...
Winter stepped on Heeseung's foot, snapping him out of his daze once again. The boy let out a small yelp in pain, and as the embarrassment settled in, he heard you let out a small giggle, lips raising up to show off your teeth.
Oh my god, he was going to die.
"Y-Yeah," he stammered out, cursing himself internally. Heeseung couldn't help but feel everyone in class's gaze glued to him. When you handed him a piece of candy, your hand brushed up against his. Heeseung could feel his ears becoming hot, the warmth rising to his neck.
You smiled at him, before saying in a sing-songy voice, "Happy Halloween!"
Heeseung had to force himself not to stare like an absolute fool.
He was really hopeless.
hee: jay i don't think i can do it tomorrow
It was 2AM when Heeseung texted Jay. He spent the entire night thinking about the "date" (probably the least necessary word at the moment), and he simply couldn't sleep.
Heeseung had embarrassed himself too many times in front of you. Like that one time you and him were on cleaning duty together, and he was so distracted by you that he tripped over a bucket of water. Or that one time he sat next to you for a few weeks and his shoes kept squeaking against the floor, making it look like he was farting. Or when he tried to look cool and suave in front of you at some social your friends invited him to only to rip a hole in his pants. And then what happened today... He could not embarrass himself again.
hee: like i think i'm going to die if she sits next to me tomorrow
It was only a matter of seconds when his friend texted back.
jay: you'll be fine trust
Heeseung frowned.
hee: stop lying to me
hee: you know how i am around her
jay: i believe in you
jay: like srsly
hee: that's blind faith
Jay typed for a little bit, before stopping altogether. Heeseung huffed. Did his friend just leave him on read? A few minutes later Jay sent a Wikihow article.
'How to talk to your crush,' it was aptly named. Heeseung deadpanned.
hee: are you being fr right now
jay: give [name] your sexy heeseung charm and you'll be walking off into the sunset hand-in-hand with her in no time
jay: read the article btw
How was this guy an actual person?
hee: kill yourself
jay: give her that passionate, sexy, boiling hot, hotter-than-the-sun, steaming hot heeseung that makes her just want to come up to you and give you the fattest, juiciest kiss on the mouth, i know you can do it soldier
hee: DIE
Heeseung couldn't sleep all night.
At school, the entire day was just plagued with anxiety for what was to come. It didn't help that your friends kept turning around and giving him knowing looks throughout the day. When school finally let out, Heeseung went to the classroom where the birdhouse-painting-bracelet-making-basket-weaving social would be held. His friends told him to go there the moment that school ended, but when he came, there was literally no one there.
Until someone yanked him into the classroom.
"Hey!-" he yelped, before the door slammed. In front of him stood two people that he recognized: Sumin Bae and Sieun Park, two of your friends who also coincidentally were the co-presidents of the Environment and Ecology club.
Sumin cocked a brow at him, crossing her arms. "I hope you're not as hopeless as everyone says you are."
Heeseung opened his mouth to respond, but Sieun cut him off.
"Ugh, that doesn't matter," she pinched her nose-bridge. "We told [Name] to sit near the front, so you better sit there, too."
"Right-"
Sumin cut him off, too.
"[Name]'s favorite color is pink, and her favorite Sanrio character is Keroppi," Sumin asserted. "And she really likes things that are cute, so like fruit patterns, hearts, stars, yada yada."
Heeseung blinked at them. "And this is relevant how...?"
Sumin and Sieun shared a look.
"You are completely hopeless."
As it turned out, they were giving him details about design-elements that you liked, so that Heeseung could somehow impress you with his birdhouse painting abilities (Jungwon was right, it was birdhouse painting). After info-dumping on him, they kicked him out of the classroom to actually prepare for the social.
As Heeseung was pushed out of the classroom, he bumped into someone. Just as he was about to say, "Watch where you're going," he realized that it was you.
"Oh, hi, Heeseung!" you greet him cheerfully, your eyes pressing into thin slits as you smile.
Quick! What does he do? "Hi... [Name]."
"Are you here for the social, too?" The way your eyes gazed at him made him feel shy already.
"Y-Yeah...."
"I didn't know you were interested in the Environment and Ecology club..." You remarked, and Heeseung panicked— Was it obvious that he was here exclusively for you?— but what you said next made him sigh in relief. "That's great! I'm so happy that I finally have someone familiar with me here!"
He's going to faint.
When the social began, you invited him to sit next to you. Heeseung felt stiff as he sat beside you, watching the way that you happily painted your small, wooden birdhouse. Heeseung wanted to start a conversation with you, but each time he thought of something to say, his voice caught in his throat. Sumin and Sieun had given him two dirty looks already, so he needed to make a move now or their efforts would be in vain.
"W-What's that?" he finally stuttered out, pointing to the glob of green on your birdhouse.
You laugh airily, leaning closer to him so that he can see it better. "Can you guess?"
Heeseung tries to concentrate on guessing, but it's hard when you're close to him. Quick! What's green and something that you like?
"Is that... K-Keroppi?"
"Yeah!" Your face lit up, flashing him a cheeky grin. You nudged him with your elbow, raising your brows at him playfully. "Awww, Hee, you smarty pants! How'd you know?"
Hee?
OhmygodohmygodohmygodyoucalledhimHee.
You stopped laughing, pulling away from him. "Sorry, do you not like being called Hee? Beomgyu sometimes calls you that, so I thought-"
"No, I like it!" Heeseung blurted, a little louder than he wanted to, earning a few questioning looks from people around him. The boy felt abnormally warm, embarrassed at his outburst. "I-I'm okay with you calling me that..."
"Noted!" you said, before your lips curled upward. "Now... are you going to tell me how you could tell that this green blob was Keroppi?"
"Oh uhm..." Heeseung's lips were moving faster than his head, "Y-You dressed up as Keroppi last year for Halloween with Yunjin."
Almost like you were a cartoon character, you perked up at his statement. "You remember?"
Of course he did. How could he forget? You wore a cartoonishly-big red bow around your neck like Keroppi, and had a green Keroppi-style headband. You looked adorable, especially when you went around showing off a Keroppi keychain that you got at the Cinnamoroll Cafe in Hongdae to anyone that was willing to listen.
Heeseung found himself chuckling. "Of course I'd remember your massive red bow."
You stared at him for a few moments, before a bashful grin broke out on your face. You then buried your face in your hands, letting out a groan. "Ughhhh, that's so embarrassing!"
"How?"
It's going good so far, Heeseung thought. Just don't mess it up!
You pouted cutely, your bottom lip jutting out. In the light, he could see the gloss shining off of it so prettily. "My makeup was so fucked up last year, ughhh, it looked so bad."
You? Look bad? Impossible.
"What are you talking about?" Heeseung asked, his doe-like eyes scanning your embarrassed face. "I thought you looked cute."
You stared at him. It took a few pulses for Heeseung to realize what he just said. His face instantly turned three shades warmer and panic was evident in his expression.
"I-I mean— You jus—You were really—"
He shut his mouth when you began laughing. Laughing so hard that you clutched onto his knee, keeling over yourself. His cheeks burned.
You're laughing at him, aren't you? Did he fuck up?
When you noticed the sulky expression on his face, you stopped laughing.
"Sorry, Hee," you said, giving his knee a reassuring squeeze. "It's just... You look so intimidating, when you're really just a sweetheart."
If Heeseung was red before, he was quietly literally the color of a tomato. It was a wonder that the entire room’s temperature didn’t rise given the sheer amount of heat radiating off his person.
"A s-sweetheart?"
"Yeah!" you happily respond. "You're just the cutest, y'know? Like a little puppy."
As much as Heeseung wanted to die happily now that you called him cute, he needed to keep this conversation going. Sucking in a sharp breath, the boy looked at you in the eyes. "W-Well I think the same about you... [Name]."
You looked at him curiously, so he continued, his voice soft and sheepish, "I... also think that you're the cutest."
You blinked at him a few times, before the widest smile that he'd ever seen spread across your cheeks, stretching ear to ear. If only Heeseung wasn't too busy grappling with his shyness, he'd notice the way you let out a soft, bashful giggle, shaking your head and squeezing your eyes shut to keep yourself from being too visibly flustered. Slowly, with all the courage that you had left in you, you raised your hand and placed it on Heeseung's head. You ruffled his soft locks, gushing, "God, you're so cute, Heeseung!"
The rest of the social is filled with soft chatter between the two of you, but Heeseung was honestly too captivated by you to notice the time passing. With his heart on his sleeve, and a sloppily-painted birdhouse in his hands, Heeseung mentally high-fived himself.
Heeseung's friends never heard the end of it. The moment that he got home, Heeseung spammed their groupchat, giving them paragraphs and paragraphs of the events that ensued.
hee: and then she called me cute. like CUTE CUTE, not even like she was alluding it, she used the word CUTE
hee: oh my god i think i'm gonna faint
His friends don't have it in them to flame him. After all, this was progress.
Unbeknownst to him, you were feeling the same things. Everyone knew that Heeseung liked you, except yourself. You had the opposite case: you've had the biggest crush on Heeseung since middle school, but never told a single soul about it. You're a naturally expressive and sweet person, so it was so incredibly hard hiding your feelings for him.
After all, under that handsome and brooding outer shell, you saw his softness. This past year, you've had so many miscellaneous interactions (at least, it seemed miscellaneous-- everyone but you knew that those interactions were set up) with Heeseung. At the beginning of each interaction, he'd act all mysterious, but as time passed, he'd speak so softly and slowly unravel.
It was so, so cute. Heeseung was so cute. To say you wanted him would be an understatement. No words were sufficient to fully express the nights that you stayed awake thinking about him, or the makeup looks that you intricately practiced to impress him, or the sheer number of times that you had to hide the fact that you were staring at him.
Maybe you couldn't hide it any longer.
"Wait, what?!"
Heeseung's heart dropped to his stomach the moment he heard the words leave his friend's lips. Chenle Zhong was one of you and Heeseung's mutual friends, and according to him, someone had confessed to you via a letter today.
"Are you serious?" Heeseung asked, pulling his bottom lip into his teeth, chewing pensively. "Do you know who wrote it?"
"Nope, but I'll try to get more info on it," Chenle frowned. "Yunjin says that [Name] laughed at the letter."
When Heeseung didn't say anything, Chenle continued. "Hey, man, that could be a sign, y'know?"
When Heeseung's face morphed into a confused expression, his friend added, "Like, maybe [Name] thinks it's a joke? Maybe she doesn't care for it."
That's what Heeseung hoped for.
Later, Chenle texted him a screenshot of the love letter. To say that Heeseung was appalled would be an understatement. The letter read,
'To my dearest [Name], you're as beautiful as the plum blossoms in the spring. Your lips are soft like pillows, pillows that I would love to fall into an eternal in. I love you, I love you, I'll love you until this paper decomposes and becomes a part of the earth, and maybe then they will be able to force me to forget you. Love, your admirer.'
Heeseung immediately sent it to his groupchat.
jakey: yo who invited shakespeare???
hoon: i had a stroke reading that
sunoo: "your lips are soft like pillows" is crazyyy
hee: chenle gave me updates, apparently [name] knows who the sender is
jay: AND WHO IS THE SENDER??
hee: i don't know
hee: but minjeong says that it's someone from class 2
niki: class 2 is full of snobs
jungwon: i'm still in shock because of "i'll love you until this paper decomposes"
hoon: WHAT IF IT'S JUNGSU HYUNG
niki: oh it's SO over for you heeseung-hyung
As it turned out, it was not, in fact, Jungsu Kim from Class 2, thanks to your friends, who were quite wonderful info-brokers. But he still didn't know who it was.
Laying in bed, Heeseung felt weight on his chest. You laughed at the letter. While that could mean that it was a joke, it could also mean that you thought the person writing the letter was funny... which could mean that you liked them back. Just the mere thought of you with someone else made Heeseung frown deeply. This entire time he was worried about how to act around you, completely ignoring the fact that you yourself could be interested in someone else! God, he was so stupid.
Heeseung needed to know who it was that sent it, and more importantly, if you were romantically interested in them.
Fear makes man do crazy things.
Like walking one's crush to school.
Look, Heeseung was mulling over the situation as he walked to school, when he saw you across the street, walking in the same direction as him. In what could only be called an adrenaline-high, Heeseung ran across the street up to you.
"[Name]!" he called out.
"Heeseung?—Oh my god!"
Poor boy was breathless, flushed in the face. It took him a few moments to catch his breath. Flashing you a grin, Heeseung said, "Let's walk to school together, [Name]."
You're silent for a few moments, before you return the smile. "Of course."
The walk was silent, only the sound of early morning traffic, footsteps against the concrete sidewalk, and the occasional sniffle courtesy of you filling the cold air between the two of you. Speaking of which, your sniffles began to get louder and more frequent. Now out of adrenaline, Heeseung was back to being shy.
Clearing his throat, Heeseung forced his voice out. "Are you— Are you sick?"
You sniffled again, bringing your hand up to swipe your nose. The two of you were at an intersection now, so you pressed the pedestrian button. "No, I just get sniffly when it's cold."
That's. So. Cute. Was what Heeseung was thinking. The way you were rubbing your hands together made you look so adorable, he just wanted to put you in his pocket.
He must have been staring at you for a while, back in his you-loving daze, because Heeseung did not notice that the streetlight changed, and it was time for the pedestrians to pass.
Not to worry!
Heeseung was completely kicked out of his daze when your smaller hand grabbed his, pulling him along the street. His eyes were glued to the two of your hands, especially where they connected. For someone sniffly, your hands were warm. He liked the way that they fit in his.
Even in the cool morning air, Heeseung suddenly felt warm all over.
You were in the middle of the sidewalk when Heeseung stopped. Feeling bold, he dropped his schoolbag, and began slipping off his thick, black, leather jacket, before draping it over your shoulders.
When you looked up at him with those curious doe eyes, all his boldness went away.
"Y-You're cold aren't you?" He avoided looking you in the eyes. "Just... Just take it. Y-You can give it back later... or whatever."
You giggled, slipping your arms into the sleeves.
God, you looked so cute in his jacket. Heeseung was going to melt.
And he did melt, because you began doing cute twirls to show off the jacket, posing for him.
"How do I look?" you cheekily asked, popping your leg up.
Heeseung was speechless, his mouth just left agape. He had to force himself to speak.
"Cute..." he answered, barely audible.
A grin was growing on your face. "Sorry, I didn't hear you. How do I look?"
Heeseung squeezed his eyes shut, huffing. "I said you looked cute!"
The sight of Heeseung's pink cheeks and his cute little pout was enough for you to be satisfied. Before the boy could realize what he said, you picked up his school bag for him, shoving it into one of his hands, before snatching his free hand. You pulled him gently to continue walking, but Heeseung was frozen in place, eyes too busy on you.
"Heeeeee," you elongated your syllables. You squeezed his hand twice, tugging him again. "We can't be late to class, can we?"
Heeseung audibly gulped. "Y-Yeah. You're right.."
You guys began walking again, neither of you wanting to let each other’s hands go.
"And then she held my hand— Isn't that crazy?! She held my hand!"
"Heeseung-hyung, please, I am peeing right now."
It was the lunch period once again. As Heeseung and Sunghoon traversed the hallways to get to the stairwell, the older of two chatted about the events that morning.
"So you held her hand?" Sunghoon asked half-heartedly, barely listening. "And then what?"
Heeseung perked up. "And then we walked to class together, and then she—"
"That's cool and all," the younger friend was walking in front of him. Sunghoon turned over his shoulder. "But did you get any more information about the letter fiasco?"
Oh.
No, Heeseung didn't.
When they reached the rooftop, his friends gently nudged him to get more information about the letter.
"You don't want to have one of those 'too late' moments, right?" Jungwon said, chewing on his rice ball. "What if by the time you gather the courage to talk to her, [Name] is already walking off into the sunset hand-in-hand with her secret admirer?!"
"What's with you guys and walking off into the sunset..." Heeseung muttered, running a hand through his hair.
"I'm serious, hyung!"
"I second that," Jay said lazily.
"I second that," Riki mocked in a squeaky voice, earning him a soft smack at the back of his head.
"Well, what am I supposed to do?" Heeseung asked, frustrated. "I can talk to her or her friends later, but not right now."
Jake scoffed. "What's stopping you from going back inside and talking to [Name] right now?"
The eldest boy didn't have an answer. That's true. There wasn't anything stopping Heeseung from talking to you right now. All the boys were now watching him for an answer, ready to pounce on him for being a coward.
"I don't know!" Heeseung finally said. "I've used up all of my bravery today... I don't think I have it in me to talk to her!"
His friends stared at him questioningly, until the silence was broken by Sunoo taking a loud and very obviously fake phonecall.
"Hi! Yes! Mhm. He's right here. Yeah. Mhm. Thank you!"
Sunoo hung up loudly, and looked at Heeseung with a cocked brow. "I was just on the phone with Yunjin. She says you should probably go talk to [Name]."
Heeseung looked at Sunoo incredulously, but the expectant expressions on his friends' faces made him groan.
"Fine!"
As Heeseung creeped down the school hallway, he came to the classroom that you hung out in at lunch: your homeroom. Standing outside the door, the boy took a deep breath.
Relax, it's just [Name], he had to tell himself, as if that helped at all. What was he even going to say?
'Hey, are you dating the person that sent you that letter? If you aren't, do you want to get married to me? Haha.'
????
Just as Heeseung was about to slide the door open, he heard a very familiar laugh from inside. Of course he could recognize it. After all, it was you.
"Yuri is so cute!" he heard you giggle. "She wrote me that little letter as a joke, but I think I'm actually in love with her."
In.
Love.
With.
Her.
"Awww, Yuri, come here and give me a kiss!"
Come.
Give.
You.
A.
Kiss.
"I'm gonna marry you, Yuri!"
Marry.
You.
Yuri.
To Heeseung, everyone was an enemy. No matter their gender or class, the moment that he heard that you got a love letter, everyone became a suspect. It all made sense now. Yuri Jo, the 'Yuri' that you were talking about and to, was from Class 2. He knew that you and her were friends, but he didn't know that you were romantically interested in her.
Jungwon was right. Now you were going to walk off into the sunset hand-in-hand with her!
hee: guys what if [name] is already taken :(
jakey: what are you on about this time
There was something scary about a 6-feet tall guy mulling around and sulking all day, so luckily no one got in Heeseung's way as he brooded. Unfortunately, he felt his heart hurt whenever he looked at you. Almost cartoonishly, he'd turn away, close his eyes in dramatic pain, and pout. Although he acted a little bit theatrical, it was no doubt that Heeseung felt sad. He really thought he had a chance with you, and now he felt stupid.
Except, he was stupid.
But for a different reason.
"Jesus Christ, you're actually hopeless, Heeseung."
After school, your friends cornered him, somewhere where you wouldn't see. His friends were somehow in close communication with your friends.
"I can't believe you thought me and [Name] were actually dating!"
Heeseung scowled, crossing his arms over his chest, as he leaned against a locker. Before him stood Yunjin, Winter, Yuri, along with a few other of your friends, Hitomi and Minju.
"I don't know!" Heeseung huffed. "Everyone is an enemy to me—” he glanced at Yuri— “Including Yuri.”
Yunjin scoffed in disbelief. "You're insane."
Soooo... You weren't in any romantic relationship with anyone. Yuri sent you that letter as a joke, and you were just really close to her. Good.
"I don't know how I feel about this guy getting with our [Name]," Winter muttered to Hitomi and Minju, but loud enough for Heeseung to hear.
"Hey!"
"I know, he's a total dumbass," Minju grumbled back.
"Dude, I'm right here!"
Hitomi rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Well, are you free on Friday after school?"
"Yeah, why?" They always asked Heeseung that question when they had some crazy plan up their sleeve. Not like he was any better.
"Wellll," Hitomi began in a sing-songy voice. "[Name] really wants to go to that Cinnamoroll Sweet Cafe in Hongdae on Friday, but none of us are available."
Heeseung nodded slowly.
"I think it'd be a good way for you to get closer to her, dontcha think?"
And that's how Heeseung scored his first (unofficial) date with you
When your friends told you that Heeseung would accompany you to Hongdae, you almost jumped for joy. Almost. Friday couldn't come any faster. The plan was that you'd meet Heeseung at the train station at 4:30PM, meaning that you had a bit of time to change and get ready. You didn't want to get too ahead of yourself and call it a date, but oh boy did you want to.
What were you going to wear? What if you were too formal? Should you go for a casual look or something more put-together? You needed to impress him!
When Friday came, you practically ran home to get ready. You perfected your makeup, and put on your prettiest outfit. Spraying yourself with your signature perfume, you looked in the mirror. Hopefully, he'll like how you look.
At the corner of your eye, you spot a black, leather jacket. His black, leather jacket. Without even thinking, you slinked toward it, slipping into the jacket. It smelled like him, the faint scent of his cologne lingering on the leather.
With a final glance in the mirror, you left for the train station.
On the other hand, to say that Heeseung was nervous for the date was an understatement. His heart was about to fall out of chest. He changed into something more casual, made sure to brush out his disheveled hair, and reapplied his cologne. He came to the train station 20 minutes early, just in case something went terribly wrong. He glanced at his phone. For the date, he managed to get a hold of your number, for “communication purposes.” He’d wanted to text you all week, but didn’t have the courage to.
“Hee?” your soft voice calling his name got his attention. Behold, you standing there before him, all dolled up and pretty. This must be the sight he’ll see when he enters heaven, he thought.
“Hi,” he said, his eyes glazing over your face. You were so pretty. Did you dress up for him? He didn’t want to get ahead of himself, but the idea that you wanted to look good for him made Heeseung’s heart skip a beat. “You look…”
He didn’t mean to say that. You smile bashfully. “I look…?”
“So pretty,” Heeseung breathed. “You look so pretty.”
“Thank you,” you smile. Your fingers reach for the hem of his shirt, playing with it, which sends his heart racing. “Well, I think you look handsome, Hee.”
“Th-Thanks.”
The two of you stare into each other’s eyes for a few moments, and Heeseung swears that you’re looking at his lips. You spoke up, breaking the silence. “You notice anything about me?”
Heeseung grasped the collar of his jacket gently with both hands. “My jacket.”
“I was going to give it back to you earlier,” you begin, eyes trained on his lips, “But I think I’ll keep it for today, yeah? Since I look so pretty in it.”
“Oh fuck,” Heeseung cursed under his breath, loud enough for you to hear it and giggle. “Yeah, you can keep it for as long as you want.”
“As long as I want?” you purred, taking a step closer to him. Although it wasn’t clear to anyone else, you were a mess inside. Your heart was palpitating so hard that you could hear it in your ears. Your throat felt dry, and your hands were shaking with mere anxiety and excitement. “What about forever?”
Heeseung cracked a grin. “Do whatever you want. You’re pretty.”
If it wasn’t for the train announcement, you thought you would have kissed his pretty lips right then and there. Taking Heeseung’s hand, you led him to your train cart.
“Let’s go, Hee.”
The train is much more packed than you expected, but it was the beginning of the weekend after all. The trip from Gyeonggi Province to Hongdae should take no less than an hour. Unfortunately, because of the amount of people in the train, you and Heeseung had to stand for the majority of the time. It should have been uncomfortable, but it simply wasn't. Because you were with Heeseung.
Standing only a few inches away from the boy, your chests almost pressed against each other. You could feel his breath fan your cheeks. The both of you held onto the pole, hands barely brushing against each other when the cart shook against the rails.
At some point, the shaking was a lot more aggressive than it had previously been. Instinctively, your hand reached for his broad shoulders for stability. Likewise, Heeseung reached for your waist, holding you in place. You and Heeseung shared a long, drawn-out look, eyes getting lost in one another's, before you both avert your gazes shyly, muttering, "sorry." Yet, neither of you moved your hands from their newfound positions.
As minutes passed on the train, your eyes were glued to Heeseung, at least when he wasn't watching.
You loved the reddish blush that naturally decorated his under-eyes, and the natural corally red at tinted the tip of his ears. His glossy eyes and heart-shaped lips had to be your favorite feature of his, if not for his large, yet delicate hands, so gentle and soft.
You were deep in thought when you suddenly felt a hand creeping on your leg. Nimble fingers from behind, brushing up against the hem of your dress. From the corner of your eye, you saw an older man. He looked unkempt and scruffy, like a delinquent– but nothing like Heeseung. Heeseung looked much better than him.
The man reeked of cigarettes and musk. A nasty grin spread across his face as he peered down at your exposed legs. His hands creeped toward them again, now slightly pushing your dress up. Your teeth sunk into your bottom lip, your entire body stiffening. Your heart began to pound in your chest, your cheeks and skin feeling hot.
Panic overtook your system. Your once soft breaths became much shorter and quicker, inhaling and exhaling shallow air.
You’ve never been in a situation like this; you’d never wished, thought, or even considered something like this happening to you– why would you? You had no idea what to do, and were not at all prepared for this. The train was packed to the brim, this man was much bigger and stronger than you, and you did not know how to fight.
The hand moved past your skirt, now under it and directly in contact with your skin. The hand felt dirty, brushing against you. A small frantic whimper escaped your lips when the man’s hand squeezed your bare thigh. It was a small sound, barely audible in the vast bustle of the subway. However, someone did hear it.
Heeseung, doe-eyed and lost in his own world, immediately darted his eyes over to you the moment he heard a sound of discomfort.
When your eyes met, you could only signal helplessly. Your gaze was wide, pupils dilated, with fear and panic. Heeseung’s eyes narrowed, staring into your eyes for a moment before analyzing your expression. The way you were extremely tense and overwrought casted a sense of suspicion in his head, and your eyes that were seemingly pleading him made him think.
Help, your eyes said.
Heeseung’s dark eyes flickered from your face, to your entire body language, and back to your face, before he spotted a few, foreign fingers creeping around your leg area.
Your shifty eyes kept moving from Heeseung’s to the side, but now that he looked at it, it was like they were pointing behind you. And lo and behold, behind you was a musky pervert, who was shamelessly touching you.
“[Name]…” he whispered. His fists clenched, teeth gritting. He sucked in a deep breath, feeling anger build up in his stomach. You whimpered again in response. He brought a hand to ghost over your shoulder, pushing you very, very, gently to the side. “Move.”
He wound up his fist and sent the hardest punch he could muster to the man square in the jaw.
The man lurched back immediately, his hand moving far, far, away from you. A groan left his lips, his head being thrown back in pain. The man’s fall had pushed a few other people down as well. Other bystanders watched on in shock. Some took out their phones to record and take pictures, others to tell their friends.
You just stood still, leaning into Heeseung, whose fist was a faint red color. With a very careful hand, he brushed the lifted hem of your dress down, which had been messed with earlier.
The man quickly got up once he noticed the new and tense silence over the subway cart.
“Hey!” he shouted, pushing himself up from his downtrodden position. “You little punk, who the fuck do you think you-”
The train announcer called for the stop. Heeseung, ignoring the man, took your arm, pulling you out the door. Before he himself left, Heeseung landed a kick to the man’s crotch, muttering, “Fucking bastard.”
"W-Wait, Hee-!"
Heeseung was silent as the train doors opened, only pulling you along with him. When the two of you were far from the train, he finally stopped, turning to you.
"Are you okay?" was all he asked. You shifted uncomfortably at the thought of what happened earlier.
"Y-Yeah..." you played with the hem of his jacket sheepishly. "Thanks for what you did back there."
Heeseung jolted up at the mention. He didn't love using violence, despite his 'delinquent' reputation, especially in front of you. His hands joined yours at the hem of his jacket, shyly brushing up against yours.
"Next time," he began, beginning to play with the zipper, "I'll fight every person on that train so that you can sit."
You smiled softly. "You don't have to do that, Hee."
Heeseung slowly zipped up his jacket on you, meeting your eyes, before straightening out your collar.
"But I want to," he breathed. You gazed at him. His hands were still on the collar of the jacket, close to your face. You noticed the red smudges on his knuckles from punching the man on the train. You took that hand, opening it up, and nuzzling your cheek into it. You took his other hand. To Heeseung's surprise, you pressed soft kisses on his knuckles, rubbing them with your thumb.
"What are you..." his breath hitched when your eyes flickered to his, holding steady eye-contact.
You pressed one last kiss on his palm. "Thank you, Hee. Really."
"Of course, [Name]," he finally whispered. "Anything for you."
And so, your first date with Heeseung began.
The sweet scent of cinnamon and pastries hit your noses the moment you guys stepped into the Cinnamoroll Cafe. When you were seated, you took a look at the menu. So far, the date was going smoothly. Other than the run-in at the beginning, the chemistry between the two of you was sparking. The conversation was flowing, and if that already wasn't a dream come true, you kept touching Heeseung. On your end, you were practically vibrating in your seat with the sheer amount of excitement you had bubbling in you. You couldn't believe you were on a date with the Heeseung Lee sharing a strawberry banana parfait.
"Hee," you said, motioning him to come closer to you. He did, so you cupped his cheek, bringing your thumb up to wipe a stray piece of the parfait from his cheek.
"Oh-" Heeseung's face reddened. How embarrassing! Did you think he was a slob now? You only giggled, bringing both hands up to hold his face. You squished the boy's cheeks, laughing at the way his brows cutely crashed into each other.
"You're so cute, Hee," you said, playing with his cheeks. "The cutest."
That's all you, he thought. You're going to drive him crazy.
Or, at least he thought he thought.
Did he just say that out loud? Heeseung groaned when you threw your head back laughing, hiding his own face in your palms. You chuckled.
Feeling bold, you cupped his cheeks again. You leaned closer, holding his face close to yours. You kissed a soft and chaste kiss on his nose. You couldn't help the heat that rose to your cheeks as the boy flopped over the table, hiding his face in his arms. You ran your fingers through his hair comfortingly, cooing at his cuteness.
"You can't do this to me," Heeseung murmured.
You laughed. It wouldn't hurt to tease him a little more, right? You leaned down, giving the boy another kiss. This time, though, you kissed the top of his head.
"Hee, baby, you're just the cutest, you know that right?"
Heeseung combusted.
After the Cafe, Heeseung and you walked around the Hongdae Festival Street. By now, it was beginning to get darker outside, the air cooling down. It was cold, but to Heeseung, it was perfect, because now he had an excuse to hold your hand. As the two of you walked and talked, you enjoyed the sight of the lights and bustling street.
Suddenly, a new voice interrupted the two of you's conversation. Turning around, you saw two guys who looked around your age. They were holding a camera and a microphone.
"Hi!" they said, smiling. "We're interviewing couples in Hongdae, would you guys like to be in it? We’ll blur your faces."
Heeseung glanced your joined hands, then back at the two guys, then back at your hands, "O-Oh, we're not a coupl—"
You cut him off. "Of course, we'd love to!"
You flashed Heeseung a grin, squeezing his hand twice, almost as if to say, 'Just go with it.' His ears began to burn, his neck prickling with warmth, before clearing his throat. "Y-Yeah..." he squeezed your hand, "We'd love to."
The two guys cheered, turning on their camera. "All right, first question. How did you guys meet?"
"We went to middle school together," you were quick to answer. "I thought he was really cute, but we didn't start talking until this year."
You didn't know what the fuck you were saying. Was it risky to be so truthful for an internet interview, right in front of your long-time crush? Absolutely. But your heart was pounding so hard in your chest, simply waiting for Heeseung's response.
On the other hand, Heeseung's mind was in complete shambles. Were you telling the truth? The way you answered so smoothly with absolutely no hesitation made it almost seem natural.
"And you?" the interviewer asked. "What did you think about her when you first met?"
"I—" Heeseung's breath hitched. "I thought she was the most beautiful person I'd ever seen."
The way you glanced at him made Heeseung's heart feel like it was about to fall out. "I.. I still think that."
Your expression was unreadable, your lips pressing into a thin line. Then, a huge smile broke out on your face.
"Awww, Heeeee! I didn't know you thought about me like that!" You squeezed his hand again, and he squeezed it back.
"How long have you guys been together?" the interviewer asked.
"We just started dating!" You answered enthusiastically, a weird, surprised sound coming from Heeseung.
The rest of the interview went smoothly, with you mostly answering the questions. You quietly thanked the interviewers, and you and Heeseung were on your way.
Your words kept ringing in Heeseung's head.
Especially your answer to the question, "Why did you like him?"
You answered, "Because he's so perfect."
Heeseung? Perfect? He couldn't believe his ears! Were you telling the truth?
A calm silence fell over you and Heeseung as you walked the bustling streets of Hongdae. That question lingered in his mind, and before he knew it, his mouth was moving faster than his mind.
"Did you mean anything you said?"
His voice seemed to reverberate against the night air, ringing in his ears. You chewed on your lip. Then, you sucked in a sharp breath.
"Of course, Hee," you finally answered. "If it's you, I mean everything."
Heeseung sucked his bottom lip into his teeth, biting down so hard he drew blood. Once again, his hands found home on the hem of his jacket draped over you.
"Good." He couldn't meet your eyes, not with the knowledge that you meant everything you said. He forced his attention onto the hem of the leather jacket that you were wearing, too shy to look at you.
Heeseung only looked up when he felt your thumb pressing against his lip, eyes widening.
"Don't bite your lip too hard, Hee," you said, a smile in your voice. You thumb swiped against his lip, wiping off the small blotch of blood on it. "You'll bleed, and I'll have to kiss it better."
Heeseung's tongue darted out to swipe over his bleeding lip, brushing against your thumb. "What if I want you to kiss it better?"
"Well, then you better not keep me waiting."
His eyes flickered to your lips. He wanted to kiss them so bad. They looked so soft. What would they taste like? You liked strawberries— maybe they'd taste like that. When he didn't say or do anything, you changed the topic, unable to hide the disappointment in your face.
"Did you mean it?" You asked. "When you said that I was the most beautiful person you'd ever seen?"
"Oh my god, yes," Heeseung said under his breath, eyes still trained on your lips. "Always."
Another silence fell of you two, simply getting lost in each other's eyes. Maybe it was something in the Hongdae air, but Heeseung felt brave. His hand slithered to your waist, bringing you closer to him. When you slid your hands up his chest, resting them on his shoulders, Heeseung audibly gulped. Your faces inched closer and closer, until you could feel his breath against your cheek. You wanted to lean in and close the gap so bad. And you could tell that he wanted to, too.
Just as you were about to, however, the sound of a car honking and tires screeching interrupted you. Heeseung instinctively pulled away, his head whipping around to look at the commotion.
Oh hell no.
You were not going to let that stop you.
You snatched Heeseung's hand, before pulling him with you. You don't know how much you ran, or for how long, but you ran and ran until you found an empty alleyway.
You pushed him against the hard, concrete wall, a bit harsher than you expected too. Holding him by his shoulders, you put all your weight on him, caging him against the wall.
"You'd let me kiss you, right?" you rasped, out of breath.
Heeseung, also breathless, stared at you, lips parted.
"I thought I already said," he breathed, "Do whatever you want. You're pretty."
With that, you crashed your lips onto his. His lips were soft, a little chapped. It felt so surreal. The scent of his cologne made you feel dizzy. When you pulled away, it was evident that he was feeling the same as you were.
It was a chaste kiss, but the tension was so thick in the air. Somehow, that made it even more intimate.
"Wow..." was all Heeseung could utter. Under the moonlight, with you pressed up against him, you looked so goddamn pretty. Your face was illuminated with the pale light, making you look like an angel. Was he in heaven? Did he die yet? He wouldn't mind if he died right then and there, now that you (you!) kissed him. "Fuck, you're gonna kill me, [Name]."
"But you'd like it, right? Because I'm so pretty." The teasing tone in your voice would normally make Heeseung melt, but all he could do was grin.
"You know I would."
The rest of the night, you and Heeseung don't kiss anymore. Not because you guys didn't want to kiss, but because the adrenaline wore off, and now the both of you were shy. It was almost comical, the way both of you completely reverted back to your bashful and sheepish selves, barely able to make eye-contact with each other.
"Thank you for tonight, Hee," you hummed, as you and Heeseung walked to the train station, hand-in-hand. "I had a lot of fun."
He scanned your face. The slight curve on your lips (oh god, your lips, the way the corner of your lip had a smudge of lipstick from kissing him earlier —how badly he wanted to kiss them again) was contagious. "Of course. I had a lot of fun, too."
The train ride back was quiet. You eventually began dozing off, resting your head on his shoulder.
"You did what?!" was the collective reaction of both you and Heeseung's friends. After that Friday together, you called together all of your friends to your house, to spill the beans. Likewise, Heeseung forced every single one of his friends into his living room.
"Ouuu, you little flirt!" Yunjin exclaimed. Currently, Yunjin, Winter, Hitomi, Yuri, and Minju were seated on your bedroom floor, while you dramatically flopped around on your bed.
It was now that you explained to your friends your long-time crush on Heeseung, much to their pleasant surprise.
"And then what happened?" Minju asked, filing her finger-nails. "Did you profess your undying love for him?"
You groaned into your pillow. "I can't!"
"Why not?" Winter quirked a brow. "You guys literally kissed."
You let out another groan. "What if he doesn't like me like that?"
Your friends deadpanned.
Heeseung Lee didn't like you. He loved you. They would know better than anyone.
"[Name], honey, you're overthinking it," Yuri nudged you with her foot. "He gave you his jacket. I think that says enough."
"Well, what if I'm just getting ahead of myself and he's just being nice?"
"Girl..."
Heeseung had a similar reaction.
All of his friends stared at him like he just punched their grandmothers.
"You can't be serious right now, hyung..." Sunghoon said, pinching his nose-bridge.
All of his friends were piled onto one couch, while Heeseung laid out on the one across from them, almost like they were in a therapy session.
"What if she just thinks I'm a good friend?" Heeseung used his hands to speak, theatrically moving them.
"What makes you think that?" Sunoo asked incredulously.
Heeseung groaned. "[Name] tells Yuri Jo that she wants to marry her and they're good friends."
"Okay, and?"
"Well," Heeseung huffed. "What if [Name] kissed me because she sees me the same way that she sees Yuri?"
"Well, I'm good friends with Jungwon-hyung and I don't kiss him," Riki said matter-of-factly.
"Right..." Jungwon nodded his head slowly. "Hyung, do you really think a good friend would pin you against a wall and kiss you?"
"Do you think a good friend would kiss you three times and then call you cute like a bajillion other times?!" Jake chimed in.
"Let alone choose to keep your jacket?!" Jay sounded tired.
Heeseung clasped his hands together, thinking for a few moments.
"Yes."
All of his friends groaned in defeat.
"You're hopeless."
After a lot of urging and cross-communication between friend-groups, both of your friends managed to convince both you and Heeseung to confess to each other the next Monday.
"What if I faint the moment she says my name?" Heeseung catastrophized to Jay in the school bathroom.
"Uh, I doubt that, hyung."
Heeseung texted you to meet him under the stairwell, and that was when he was going to confess. On your end, the moment that he texted that, you decided that you'd confess to him then.
When the time came, Heeseung headed out to the stairwell. His hands were clammy, and even when he wiped him on his uniform pants, he couldn't stop the trembling of his hands. What if everyone was instilling false hope in him? Gosh, Heeseung thought he was going to throw up. His stomach was churning, he was going to collapse if he saw you right now—
"Hee?" Your voice broke him out of his internal spiral. Seemingly, there was a halo around you, a light so bright that Heeseung was blinded.
"H-Hi," he stammered, straightening out his posture and clearing his throat.
Your hands were clasped behind your back, leaning forward toward him. "You wanted to talk to me, yeah?"
Heeseung couldn't bring himself to meet your gaze, his shoes suddenly becoming interesting. "Y-Yeah..."
The hallway where the stairwell was located was beginning to feel stuffy. Heeseung had never felt so nervous in his life. He was light-headed, barely able to even balance himself.
"Hee," you reached out to touch his arm, noticing his discomfort. "Let's go outside, okay?"
Going outside should have helped him cool down, but when you shrugged on his leather jacket to combat the cool air, Heeseung realized that there was no way in hell that he was going to get through this confession without dropping dead.
The two of you walked around the school yard for a few minutes in silence.
How should he start this confession? He had Sunghoon and Jake write out a script for him, and he spent the entire night memorizing it, but now in your presence he couldn't remember a single word. Should he have written a letter like Yuri Jo? Heeseung couldn't possibly contain himself.
"Hee," you finally said, disrupting the silence. "I have something to tell you."
Heeseung's mind wandered to the worst case scenario.
You're going to tell him that you're moving across the world to marry the love of your life, aren't you? You're going to say that he's a great friend and that you just got a boyfriend, right?
No, he needed to tell you his feelings first! If he didn't now, he'd never, and he'd burst into a million pieces!
"M-Me too!" he blurted, stopping in his tracks.
You blinked at him, then smiled.
Oh, no! It's actually happening!
He could already hear your voice saying, "Hi, Heeseung, my boyfriend just proposed to me and you're invited to the wedding."
You sucked in a breath, parting your lips to speak.
He needed to tell you first! The little demons in his head kept replaying the scene of you asking him to be your groom of honor at your wedding with the love of your life next Saturday. He could hear the marriage officiant announcing, “I now pronounce you husband and wife” at your wedding, and he imagined himself sitting in that little wedding venue holding back tears.
Oh my god, he needed to say it now, or he'll never say it ever!
"Hee, I really--"
Heeseung cut you off. He squeezed his eyes shut, hands balling into fists.
"I like you, [Name]!" he yelled.
.
.
.
You stared at him in disbelief. Or were you flustered? Heeseung couldn't tell. With too much adrenaline in his veins, Heeseung threw away all the preparation and drafted scripts he and his friends made for this very moment.
"I-I.. I like you so much, I'm scared that I'm going to explode!" Heeseung continued shouting at you. He had no idea what he was saying. All he was doing was telling you the thoughts he'd had about you all this time. "You're so, so, so pretty and I can't believe that you're an actual, real, physical, person, and you make me feel so fucking stupid, I can't take it."
Your eyes were bulging out of your head at this point, your jaw dropped.
"I've never liked anyone like I've liked you, a-and I just wanted to tell you this before you... you go off with someone else!"
Heeseung kept his eyes shut when he was done confessing, letting out a labored breath. There was no way that he could face you. The silence that fell over the two of you made Heeseung's heart sink to the bottom of his stomach. He squeezed his eyes in embarrassment. He gripped the hem of his shirt to relieve the bubbling anxiety inside him. Gosh, he was going to puke.
After a few moments, nothing happened. You didn't say a word. Did you just leave him there standing? Of course, you did. You were probably too kind and angelic to outright reject him. He was a fool to think that he had a chance with you—
Heeseung heard footsteps, and before he could react, he felt a pair of lips on his.
His eyes shot open.
You.
Were.
Kissing.
Him.
!!!
After he confessed!
Poor boy was so stiff, eyes wide.
Did that mean you liked him back?
You pulled away.
Usually, you had a reassuring smile on your face by default. Even during times where you were embarrassed, you almost never showed it on your face.
But this time, your entire face was painted with a flustered expression. Your cute lips jutted out in a mini pout, while your eyes were glued to the ground, avoiding his gaze.
A few pulses passed.
"I... I like you, too... by the way," you murmured.
Another few pulses passed.
You. Liked. Him.
Nonononono wait, was he dreaming?
You.
YOU.
The beautiful, angelic you.
Liked him.
Without thinking, Heeseung stepped forward, gently grabbing your face.
"You're real, right?" he breathed. When glossy eyes stared back at him, Heeseung felt warmth spread across his chest. Your lips looked so appealing right now, he was craving them again. "I'm not dreaming, yeah?"
You blinked at him a few times. The corners of your lips quirked upward.
"Why, because I'm 'so pretty that you can't believe I'm real?' " your voice had a teasing tone in it, referencing his earlier confession. Heeseung chuckled, letting go of your face so that he could slide his hands to where they belonged: around your waist.
"Just kiss me," he mumbled, looking at you with lidded eyes.
You grinned. "Gladly."
With that, you smashed your lips onto his. Instead of the chaste, soft, kisses that you shared earlier, this one was different. You shoved your tongue into Heeseung's mouth, exploring all its crevices. Poor boy was so surprised that he squeezed your waist, letting out a small whine. The feeling of you smirking against his lips gave him butterflies.
You finally pulled away breathless, but gave him no time to breathe. You grasped his chin, giving you easy control.
"You drive me so crazy," he murmured against the shell of your ear.
You pressed a kiss at the juncture between his neck and ear. "I drive you crazy?" you cocked your brow.
"You," you muttered. You began pressing kisses down his jaw.
“Drive.”
Kiss.
“Me.”
Kiss.
“So-”
Kiss.
"Fucking-"
Kiss.
"Crazy."
Before you could pounce on him with more kisses, Heeseung, red in the face, flopped over you, hiding his face in the crook of your neck. He let out a cute groan.
"What, are you getting shy on me?" you teased him, running your fingers through his hair. He shook his head against your shoulder, making you coo.
"I can't believe you like me back, that's all," he mumbled, muffled by your shoulder.
You laughed. "How? I feel like I was so obvious."
Heeseung looked up at you with pink cheeks, frowning. "You don't even want to know how hopelessly in love with you I was."
You quirked a brow at him.
"Yeah?" You pecked his forehead. "Try me."
Heeseung let out a breathy chuckle. He attacked your lips.
"How about I show you?"
FIN.
likes, comments, and reblogs are appreciated :)
pairing: minho x reader genre/warnings: established relationship, (tooth-rotting) fluff; even tho it's unedited this is still one of my favorite things that i've written on this blog so far !!! gaaaaaaah word count: 1.1k listen to 🎧: lover - taylor swift
as always, i’d appreciate any thoughts or comments you may have, and please drop a like and/or reblog if you enjoy reading ♡
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nobody thought jeongin would be the next one to get married, but alas, here you are, at the reception of your friend's wedding, nursing a glass of champagne.
"come on," minho says, snatching the glass away from you and finishing the rest of it in one gulp, before he takes you by the hand and tugs you forward. "let’s go dance."
you can't even be annoyed that he basically just stole your drink. instead, you just laugh, and let the love of your life drag you to the dance floor.
he guides you to move in a slow rhythm, matching the tempo of the song that's playing in the background. it's a song that you would usually think is overrated and has been played to hell and back, but in the moment, drunk on the cozy atmosphere, you think it's nice. you briefly wonder what song you would choose for your first dance at your own wedding.
it's just a fleeting thought. you've been having those all day.
jeongin's wedding was beautiful. everything was done to perfection, and you have no doubt that most of it was overseen by his girlfriend.
nope, correction: she's his wife now.
nevertheless, you've been imagining yourself and minho in a similar setting. you in a stunning white dress. him, dashing in a classy suit. the two of you exchanging vows with teary eyes in front of your friends and families. the cats as ring bearers. sealing forever with a deep kiss and fond smiles.
as you continue to sway along to the music, you wrap your arms around minho's neck and pull him closer. there's something in the way that he's been treating you all day that makes you melt even more than it usually does. he's been more touchy; there's not a single moment where his hands aren't on your body in any way, whether it be a hand on your knee, on the small of your back, or an arm around your waist. minho isn't often overt with his affection like that; he tends to dote on you in the privacy of your own loving bubble, away from anyone and everyone.
then, there's the softness that he's looking at you with in his chocolate brown eyes. it's warm, saccharine; it makes you feel like you two are the only people left in the room even though this is supposed to be someone else's big day.
"i love you," he says suddenly, brushing his nose against yours before leaning in just a tad closer to your lips, "you mean the world to me."
it's rare for minho to say things like this out of the blue. he's a man of few words after all.
he's full of surprises today, it seems.
"what's the occasion?" you ask with a coy smile.
"no occasion. just wanted to tell you that."
you close the distance, pressing your lips against his as his arms wrap themselves tighter around your body. "i love you too," you smile against him.
he mirrors your smile, and kisses you deeper. he's so sweet today, so openly loving with you even as your friends around you watch on.
you have an inkling that maybe, just maybe, he's been thinking the same things as you.
you stay in each other's arms until the song ends, then another one, then a couple more, just basking in soothing glow of love that's covering the air tonight. minutes pass with kisses shared, until it's finally time for the bouquet toss.
minho reluctantly lets you leave his side for the first time since the morning. his eyes follow you as you move to the front of the room, standing a comfortable distance away from the bride. you've never really been interested in this kind of things anyway; you're just doing it for the sake of participation.
everyone else is engrossed in what's about to happen, their eyes fixed on the bride and the peonies in her hands, but minho is only focused on you. you, who's trying to blend in with the group of people and undoubtedly praying that the bouquet doesn't make its way into your hands. you, whom he thinks looks so beautiful, all dolled up for the special occasion. you, who made his heart stutter when you walked into the room in your pretty dress and flashed him a bashful smile. (but who is he kidding? you make his heart want to give out and run away every single morning when he wakes up and sees you peacefully sleeping in his arms.)
just you. always only you.
you, you, you.
you don't hang in the moon in the sky. you are the moon, you are the stars.
minho watches you watch the bride as she counts down from 3, then flings the bouquet up in the air while everyone waits with bated breath. it's a mess of flailing arms from what he can tell, a couple of the bridesmaids practically fighting each other to try and grab the damn thing.
you try to make yourself smaller, to duck lower so that the others could have the honor instead of you. but when the flowers come hurling toward you, you have no choice but to raise your hands and catch it, lest you want to be lobbed in the face with a bouquet of peonies.
some of the people around you sigh frustratedly, but most of the guys around minho suddenly burst into loud cheers. they clap him on the back and shake him by the shoulders but still, he remains transfixed on you and your adorable wide-eyed expression. your parted lips and doe eyes blinking fast as a rosy flush creeps up your skin.
your eyes find him in an instant, and you both just stare at each other for a moment. he reckons that you're trying to gauge his reaction, because the room is now filled with excited squeals of congratulations and half-hearted jokes of how you and minho are going to be the next ones to get hitched.
you look uncertain, still frozen in place with your hands clutching the peonies.
but then he just smiles, and it makes you smile too, your body immediately relaxing as you give him a wave using the bouquet, your shoulders slumping slightly when you release a sigh.
to minho, it doesn't matter whether you caught the flowers or not; neither of you believes in that kind of stuff anyway. it doesn't matter because he's always known that he was going to marry you, that there's no one else he would rather spend the rest of his life with.
it doesn't matter because unbeknownst to you, he's already got a velvet box hidden somewhere in your shared home, with a gorgeous diamond ring inside just waiting for the day it can be put on your finger.
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all rights reserved © withleeknow. reposting, translating and/or modifying is not permitted by any means. [posted 08.01.2024]
me when
description: jungwon x reader (very soft physical affection, jungwon's relationship with reader is up for interpretation)
i wrote this for the people who have had a troubled past and the idea of jungwon being your safe haven makes you want to *sob*
his presence was like a fresh load of laundry on a warm spring day. his smile, his laugh, jungwon coming into your life saved you from yourself.
with his hoodie over his head and his favorite plaid pajama pants on, there really wasn’t a sight comparable to this one.
it was strange to be so engulfed by a spirit so light and bright but it was more comfortable than it is foreign.
he places his hand softly on yours and tugs you gently towards himself, “come here” he touches you in the way you need it and pours his love into each in every movement. you feel his affection through the pads of his finger tips and the soft grip of his hand. jungwon is your safe place, being someone so frightened by physicality, he makes it feel natural.
his hands roam all over your arms and shoulders, looking you up and down to make sure you’re okay like he always does. he pulls you into a hug and you feel yourself melt into him all over again. he’s warm and his body is firm but his aura is so soft and gentle it feels healing in a way. he lowers himself against the couch so that you can lay on his chest just like that, with his arms still wrapped around your lower back.
you can hear his heart beating, and feel his chest moving up and down with every breath, and you are reminded all over again that you are in the right place. he traces circles through your clothes and it sends shivers up your spine. it feels so good to be here, it feels so good to be on jungwon.
you take a peek up at him, with the tv screen flashing colors on his face in the dark room, he’s beautiful as ever. he’s handsome with his hair undone and a lazy outfit on, he’s jungwon and jungwon to the core.
closing your eyes, you lower your head on his chest again, rubbing against it a bit with the side of your face.
he notices you getting comfortable and takes it as a sign that you’re ready to fall asleep. he smiles softly, gazing at your presence and holding you just a bit tighter than he was before.
after a few minutes of soaking in all your facial features with his eyes, he brings his head down to kiss your forehead gently, before going back to watch the tv.
you’ve never slept better.
⪩.⪨ — KITTY LOVE! ҂ lee minho oneshot
SYNOPSIS! there's this craze about puppy love that everyone seems to enjoy. however, you find that you don't quite get what the fuss is all about. you are way more interested in your cat-like neighbour who seems cold and kind of annoying. the boy who acts like everyone's existence burdens him to no end but quietly takes care of the elderly lady on your block, helps children back to their feet when they fall, and holds the elevator door so it doesn't close on you.
PAIRING! lee minho x fem!reader
GENRES! boy next door au, strangers to (very brief and one-sided) enemies to lovers, fluff, some angst, minho is a tease but he can get away with it bc he's cute.
WARNINGS! swearing, brief mentions of reader being a bit insecure about dating, suggestive themes but no smut, minho turns eggs into an innuendo, i think i got the gender of minho's cats right??? but i could be wrong, so sry about that if that's the case fkfjskshsj. please do tell me if i missed any!
WORD COUNT! 11k
A.N! if you see me reposting this bc it didn't show up in the tags when i first posted it and as the attention whore that i am i can't have that no you didn't :_) as always, english is not my first language so i apologise if there are any mistakes! i hope you enjoy it!
“and when are you going to get a boyfriend, dear?”
you sigh in an attempt to keep your cool and not lash out to your mom. you know she means good; she always does, especially when it comes to you. but it's like older relatives never know how tiring this whole “you should get a boyfriend” conversation is. why do you need a boyfriend anyway? sure, you've had a fair share of crushes growing up, but they were never serious enough for you to want to do anything about them. and it has been enough for you, it just has. what's so difficult to understand about a person being completely okay with being single?
“i've already told you, mom. whenever it happens, it happens. and until then i'm not going to force myself to find someone.”
“i know, i know.” you hear your mom sigh at the other end of the line. she clearly doesn't agree with your position on this, but she always respects your decisions. you are glad for that. “it's just that i feel like you won't be able to meet anyone in that new place of yours.” you know exactly what she means by that.
it's been a month since you moved to your current apartment. your previous one was a shabby, tiny thing that was overpriced with the excuse of it being placed right on the city centre. your new place, on the other hand, is on the outskirts of the city, but it's much more spacious, and it's not falling apart by the moment. you don't mind putting up with long bus rides to get to your workplace. in fact, you enjoy the peace and quiet, the time it gives you to organise your thoughts on your way to work or wherever you may be going. and there's a supermarket relatively near your place, so you can't complain about that. it's safe to say that you're a lot happier with your new home, but your mom just can't see that. she's too busy thinking about when you're going to bring a son-in-law for her and your dad to meet or when you're going to give them grandchildren, even if you consider yourself far too young to even be considering marriage or children. that's why she liked your old place. it was near all the popular clubs and bars, giving you the perfect chance to mingle; a chance you never took in all the time you lived there.
you think something's not right. like, you know something is definitely wrong in your life when your mom is hinting at you that you should spend more time partying at questionable places in order to get laid.
and you wish this was a “your mom” thing, but your friends have similar opinions to hers. sure, they don't want to rush you into marriage and children at every chance they have, but they have told you several times that a relationship would probably add happiness to your life. that it's strange how they've never seen you head over heels for anyone ever since they've known you.
your feet softly thud against the wooden flooring of your living room as you walk to your window, feeling like you need the pretty view to calm yourself enough to get through this call. as you move the curtain to get a better view of the park that's a couple of blocks away, you catch sight of your neighbour walking along the street, heading to your block, presumably getting back home from somewhere. you recognise him from a time you were just getting to your place and he suddenly came out of his, rushing down the stairs.
suddenly, a child appears running down the street and trips right beside him. you see him help the little boy back to his feet, dust off the dirt from his knees and ruffle his hair with a smile before resuming his walk back home. you smile.
you blame your mom and your friends when what you've just seen makes you say:
“i don't know mom, love happens at unexpected times and places.” that's unlike you, you aren't that much of a romantic. you know that much, and you know that your mom knows that much, so you don't give her a chance to say anything. “look, i have to get some work done, but i'll call you again tomorrow. love, you, mom! bye!” and you hang up on her.
love? sure, your neighbour is cute, and he seems pretty nice, but you don't even know the guy's name. you don't even know why you mentioned love in the first place.
famous last words.
a few days later, you're on cleaning duty around your apartment. you've got some dusting and sweeping and mopping to do, as well as some windows to clean. some meaning all. not to mention the good scrubbing that the tub needs. well, “needs” is a bit of a strong word; you could probably go for a few days more without doing anything, but you're a bit of a clean freak, so your place has to be spotless all the time for you to be happy. which means that you're properly attired to get this shit done with the most worn-out pyjamas that you own, some crappy flip flops and an unidentifiable hairstyle that does the job of keeping your hair out of your face but probably makes you look like birds live on top of your head. and cleaning day means something else.
you have music blasting through your whole house.
you think it's a good thing that your neighbours haven't told you off so far; you assume they don't mind the occasional loud music from you, or they would have done so in the month that you've already been living here. they haven't complained about you singing at the top of your lungs either, so either they're cool about it, or they meet each week to plan your murder. whatever the case, you're here for a good time, not a long time, so you will take the chance of giving a mini concert for yourself while you clean while you can.
except, the “for yourself” part doesn't actually exist. it's just an illusion created by your senses, a scam, a fallacy. you just don't know it yet.
you're currently standing on top of a chair in the tiny balcony of your living room, and to any outsider it might look like you have a death wish against the poor glass doors with how furiously you're wiping them.
your next door neighbour, lee minho, certainly thinks it must look like that to anyone who isn't within hearing range as he is. he himself would have thought so too if it weren't for the way you're cheerfully singing along 22 by taylor swift. minho's house is structured the exact same way as yours, and his living room has a tiny balcony of its own, which is where he's watching you from with a mug of coffee in his hand and an amused grin adorning his features. you're so entranced with your current task at hand, the song you're singing to or both that you don't even notice the boy in the balcony next to yours. he doesn't want to be a creep though, he just decided to stand there a moment longer because you two haven't actually crossed paths yet and he knows you've been living in the block for a while, so he was curious about you.
and he sure is pleased with how... interesting of a neighbour you seem to be. so he just lets his gaze linger for a moment longer and goes back inside to save him the accusation of being a stalker and you the embarrassment of knowing someone is hearing you when this clearly looks like a one person activity.
the image of you stays with minho for a good part of the day, and each time he remembers a smile threatens to take over his face.
however, another week goes by before you actually see each other.
you're going back to your place in the unbearable heat of mid-july and carrying three very heavy bags with your groceries. you consider getting your groceries delivered to your place next time, and then you feel guilty for whoever you'd be putting through this hell for a shitty salary. you give up on having groceries without suffering the heat, but right now you have more pressing matters at hands. you still have a few minutes to your house and you don't trust your abilities to get there without melting into a puddle on your way. if it's any indication, your underboob is already sweating. you hate it here.
by some divine working, you get to your block in one piece, and the sound of relief you let out when you get through the main door is ungodly. you think this hell of a ride is over until you catch sight of the elevator.
oh hell no.
cute neighbour guy is inside idly looking at his phone and the doors are starting to close. now, you don't have much to complain about your flat or your block in general. but the elevator, the damn elevator, is slower than a university's administration office when you desperately need a reply from them. which means you'll be stuck out of your home for longer if you don't get on that damn thing within the next few seconds. and like, you know this isn't a big deal. you know. how much longer can you possibly have to wait to get home if you don't make it to the elevator? 5 to 10 minutes at most? that's not long.
you know.
and yet you're at a point in this adventure that going grocery shopping in july is where every minor inconvenience will either infuriate you or reduce you to tears without a good reason. you guess that's what spending the morning doing your least favourite activity in your least favourite conditions does to you.
your neighbour must hear the rustling of your bags because he lifts his head from the screen of his phone and the two of you make eye contact for a second. oh he sure is handsome. you're about to get swayed by his pretty eyes, his fluffy dark hair, the perfect curve of his nose, his perfect-looking face in general. and for the love of beyoncé, this man has some pretty thick thighs. his overall proportions just seem godly, and you're looking at him from a distance. you're about to make heart eyes at this fine-looking man when-
wait.
did he just roll his eyes at you?
you blink and huff in a sort of angry confusion, and next thing you know, he's sticking his hand between the elevator doors, keeping them from closing. as they open again, he calls out to you.
“oi, neighbour! you getting in or what?” you blink again.
are you tired enough to get irritated by everything or is he being low-key rude at you right now? dude just held an elevator door for you and yes, you're grateful that he's saved you a longer wait, but why is he acting like he unwillingly donated one of his kidneys to his worst enemy?
“yeah?” you answer, but it sounds more like a question. you move towards the elevator again, struggling with the damn bags. “yeah, i am.” you repeat, firmer this time. “thanks for that.” he just nods at you in acknowledgement.
“third floor, right?” he asks. you say yes, slightly surprised that he seems to know you live right next door to him. but then again, you knew before talking to him too.
hold on. oh fuck.
is he being rude to you because he's pissed at you playing loud music and singing? are the weekly meetings to plan your murder a thing after all? oh shit. that would actually make sense. do you apologise? or would that be weird? you haven't even introduced yourselves, it would definitely be weird. you take a deep breath. okay, okay. you got this. let's do this step by step.
“my name is y/n. we're actually next door neighbours.” you give him a polite smile.
he snorts. he has the audacity to snort at you.
“i know.” you think that's going to be it, but at least he has the decency to introduce himself as well. “i'm minho.” he offers his hand for you to shake as if you weren't holding three giant bags, and by the teasing glint in his eyes you know that it's not an innocent mistake. “right.” he smirks, looking down to your bags and back to your face as if to let you know that yes, he in fact did that on purpose, and then the elevator reaches your floor.
you can't believe you ever thought this guy was nice. in your defense, you think most people would have been fooled with the way he treated that kid that time you caught a glimpse of him through your window. but you’re still pissed to learn this. why does he have to be this hot if he's going to be an asshole?
you make up your mind to just go on with your day, get into your house, forget that this ever happened and avoid having to talk to this guy for longer. the bags on your hands suddenly feel lighter when you practically jump off the elevator and sprint to your door.
apparently, this minho guy has other plans.
“i'll see you around, neighbour.” he calls behind your back. you know he's still smirking even before you turn to look at him working his front door open. “nice singing, by the way.” he raises an eyebrow at you before he gets in and closes the door behind him.
you actually drop your bags at that. you knew there was a good chance he'd been able to hear you all this time, and in every other situation it wouldn't have phased you. but when it seems like he's mocking you after how rude he's managed to be to you in the span of a couple of minutes? now you're both flustered and pissed.
“oh shit.” you scramble to get your bags again, suddenly remembering that you've bought a dozen of eggs. if even a single one of them has cracked because of this guy...
turns out only one egg survived, as you'd soon discovered with a quick glance at your bag and upon closer inspection later after you got inside your house. but you're convinced that it was minho's fault. and so, you're set on holding him accountable for it.
so you are ringing his doorbell next day.
“hey, neighbour.” an unsuspecting lee minho directs an amused grin at you when he answers the door and what he finds is you. he notices how your arms are crossed and how you're sporting a frown that makes you look, in his humble opinion, more adorable than intimidating.
he has no idea what this is about, but he's here for it.
“hi, minho.” your tone is flatter than a table when you greet him. “i need some eggs.”
he blinks at you once, twice, and for a moment you think it's endearing how he looks like a confused cat. nope, nope, you need to stop right there. we must stay focused, brothers.
“you need eggs.” he repeats after you.
“yes. you startled me when you got into your house yesterday and i dropped my bags.” he raises an eyebrow at you like he did yesterday. does he have to look that hot while doing it? you continue through gritted teeth. “i had my groceries there, and the eggs i bought cracked.”
“really?” he tilts his head to the side and blinks exaggeratedly at you. you nod. “my bad, neighbour.” he doesn't sound a bit sorry.
“my name is y/n.” you were bothered before, but now you're getting pissed.
“i know, you told me yesterday.” on his end, minho is having the time of his life. you are so cute trying to stay calm. in your current stance, you're only missing an irritated tapping of one of your feet to look like thumper from bambi. perhaps he can push you enough to get you to do that, he bets you'd look adorable. ah, he must be losing his mind.
“you keep calling me neighbour.” you point out. minho gives you a very sweet, very charming smile, and you mentally curse at how it actually kind of works.
so much for staying focused.
“aren't we neighbours though?” you sigh.
“whatever. do you have eggs?”
“the question isn't whether i can give you my eggs or not, the question is: are we at that point of our relationship already? we might be going too fast here, neighbour.” he teases. is he making an innuendo out of eggs now?
you take a deep breath.
“look-” you start, but he cuts you off.
“wait, i'll be right back.” he saunters inside his house leaving there, dumbfounded. can this guy get any more irritating?
you're still standing there, probably looking like you're trying to catch flies with your mouth when you hear a soft meow below you, and you find a cat stretching right by your feet. so your annoying neighbour is a hot guy with a cat. why did the universe put the man of your dreams right next door only to make him an asshole? still, you waste no time in getting down and presenting your hand to the kitty.
“oh hi, baby. when did you get here?” you softly call, and when it not only gets closer to you but nuzzles its face against your palm as well, you gasp in delighted awe.
“dori likes you already, huh?” you look up to find minho smiling at you, and this time it's more of a fond smile than a shit-eating grin. the cat goes back to its owner and nuzzles against his legs this time, and you get back to your feet. “here.”
minho shoves two cartons of eggs into your arms. two whole cartons, which is twice what you bought yesterday. he might have gotten on your nerves the couple of times that you've talked to him, but you came here intending to go back with maybe a couple of eggs out of pettiness more than anything, so it feels wrong to take this much from him.
“wait, minho, this is too much. it's more than-” he cuts you off again with a dismissive wave of his hand.
“take them. it was my fault and i bought too many anyway. or is that more eggs than you can take, neighbour?”
well, bye-bye cute, smiley, kind of not that annoying-looking minho, welcome back shit-eating grin, irritating asshole.
“thanks, minho.” as he goes back to annoying, your tone goes back to flat.
“don't mention it. let me know what you think about my eggs next time, neighbour.” he wiggles his eyebrows at you, and with that, closes his door on your face.
you feel your blood boiling as you go back to your house.
unbeknownst to you, minho saw what happened yesterday in the split second he caught sight of you dropping your bags as he was closing his door and actually felt guilty about it, so he bought the eggs to bring them to you later on that day.
he's glad you've come to him before he had the chance to do so, though. it's been way more fun like this.
the next time you see minho, you find him helping an elderly lady go down the stairs to your floor.
you're locking your door behind you, ready to go hang out at one of your friend's place, when you hear his voice behind you.
“aish, we've talked about this, mrs park. you need to take the elevator.”
you turn around and sure enough, this lady you assume to be one of your neighbours from one of the upper floors is gripping minho's arm with one of her hands and holding a cane with the other as they descend the stairs. with much difficulty on her end, you note.
“don't lecture me, young man.” this mrs park lady spits at him. minho straightens his posture next to her.
“yes, ma'am.” you like this woman already. there's this feeling of satisfaction in seeing minho getting told off that has you quietly snickering.
the sound must reach his ears as his gaze automatically travels to where you're standing. you think he's going to be embarrassed that you just witnessed someone else having the upper hand in a conversation, but he just gives you a lopsided grin.
“hey, neighbour.” you don't bother hiding how you roll your eyes into the next world.
before you can say anything, mrs park speaks up.
“and who is this young lady, min-min?” your eyebrows shoot up at that, and you don't miss the way minho's ears turn red at the nickname. oh, so this is what makes him shy. you take note of it. “did you finally get a girlfriend?”
well, now you are the one feeling a blush creep up your cheeks. you fear minho is, in fact, very capable of telling her that you are actually his girlfriend just to get a reaction out of you, so you walk towards the two of them before he can answer.
“my name's y/n. mrs park, right?” she smiles at you while nodding and she looks like the cutest grandma while doing so. you've been around this lady for a few minutes at most and you'd already do anything for her. maybe it has to do with her scolding minho, you think.
“that's right, dear.”
“i actually moved next to minho a couple of months ago.” you explain, mirroring her smile. you're about to shake her hand, but you notice that it might not be the most comfortable thing for her in her current predicament. “you know what? let me help you get the rest of the way down too.” you tell her, and you offer one of your arms for her to hold like she's doing with minho's, as well as a hand to hold her cane for her. she gladly takes you up on your offer.
“oh, aren't i lucky to have such kind kids as neighbours? thank you, deary. i'll bring you cookies next time. after all, i couldn't properly welcome you when you moved because i didn't know you had.” yep, you would most definitely risk it all for this woman.
“don't even worry about it, mrs park! it's not your fault, and i wouldn't want to inconvenience you.” you tell her as the three of you make your way down the stairs. she doesn't have that many steps left, but her pace is slow, and she hisses in pain with each one she goes down. you understand why minho was ushering her to take the elevator.
“nonsense, dear. it's no inconvenience, i'll get you those cookies soon.” she insists. you'd feel bad if you refuse her too much, so you accept.
“well, in that case, thank you so much. i'm sure they'll be delicious.”
“do i get cookies too, mrs park? yours are the best.” minho butts in, and you catch yourself finding him cute again in the way his eyes sparkle with hopeful joy at the notion of the homemade pastries.
“you know i can't say no to you, min-min, but learn some manners from this young lady.” she tells minho, but both of you can tell she's joking. you assumed as much already, but they must be close with each other.
“yes!” he pumps a fist in the air in victory. “thank you, mrs park.” he smiles the prettiest smile you've ever seen at her as the three of you get down the last step and you think for a moment that you want him to smile at you like that too.
“let me get the elevator for you, mrs park.” you let go of her and give her cane back, already moving to call the elevator. “i know it's slow, and i'd love to help you all the way down, but i think it might be more comfortable for you like this.”
“she's right, mrs park. we can't have you tripping down the stairs again.” minho intervenes.
“again?!” you ask, horrified. you are not letting this woman walk down a single step more, not on your watch.
“that's right, mrs park here tripped down the stairs last year and fractured her hipbone. she gave the whole block quite a scare.”
“oh my god.”
“you make it sound so dramatic. besides, i'm completely recovered now.” mrs park complains, but as much as minho annoys you, you agree with him on this one.
“mrs park, i get what you mean, but minho is looking out for you. there's no harm in using the elevator, right?”
mrs park looks back and forth between minho and you a couple of times and both of you smile the most innocent smiles you can manage at her. she sighs in defeat.
“okay, okay. i'll take the damn thing.” the elevator doors open right then. “now you children get back to whatever you were doing, i've already taken more than enough of your time.” she waves at the two of you as she steps into the elevator.
“will do! it was nice meeting you, mrs park!” you wave back at her with a smile, and so does minho.
“see you, mrs park. i'm looking forward to those cookies.” the elevator doors close, and you're left alone with minho.
“well, that leaves just the two of us, neighbour.” the corners of his mouth tug upwards, and you already fear what he's about to say next. “but pray tell, wouldn't it have been easier for you to get in the elevator with mrs park?” your eyes widen and your jaw goes slack. you can’t believe this man.
“couldn't you have said so before the doors closed?” you ask incredulously, and then you realise “wait, but you didn't get in either, you missed it too.” one of his hands flies to the nape of his neck and he lightly scratches it.
“ah, i actually didn't. i only came out because i heard mrs park and i couldn't let her walk those steps alone.” his smile gets wider, and he shrugs his shoulders. “sorry to disappoint, but you're on your own on this one.”
“i-” this time, it's actually a good thing he cuts you off, because you have no idea what to say, caught between trying to process how surprisingly sweet of minho is to take care of mrs park like that and how exasperated you feel at him right now.
“i'll see you around, neighbour.”
“and is this neighbour of yours handsome, dear?”
you don't know why you even bother at this point.
“mom, for the love of god!” you settle for the softer option of the words that were about to come out of your mouth. “i've barely seen the guy twice and you're already throwing me into his arms.” you exasperatedly munch on one of mrs park's cookies, the sweet treat is very much needed to get you through this phone call. minho was right though; her cookies are the best you've ever had.
“do you want to be thrown into his arms?” she throws at you, and you sputter. what has gotten into your mom?
“this is pointless, i'm hanging up.” you deadpan. your mom laughs at the other end of the line.
“aw, come on. i'm just joking, sweetie. but would it kill you to try to look at him in that light? or anyone for that matter?” see, this is what your mom doesn't know.
the fucking thing is, you see him in that light.
you don't know why your mom is so set in getting you to consider if minho is handsome or not, but the fact is that you very well know he is. you've seen him just a couple of times, but you're too well aware of how attractive your neighbour is. he has it all too: cute, hot, sexy, endearing, you name it. you aren't that sure about his personality because you don't get just why he has to tease you each time he sees you nor do you enjoy being mocked each time he opens his mouth, but he definitely has the looks. you'd be either too blind or too ignorant to even try to deny it.
“mom, i don't think i'd even say we're friends. just because he looks around my age doesn't make it any weirder than if you were trying to set me up with a man old enough to be dad.” you hear some rustling on the other end and then your father is speaking to you. your mom always puts everyone on speaker, so this is no surprise.
“i've been summoned. what's up, petal?”
“dad, tell mom to stop trying to set me up with my neighbour.” you take another bite of your cookie, chewing quickly to continue speaking. “tell her to stop trying to set me up with anyone for that matter.” your dad makes no effort to do such thing.
“your neighbour? what neighbour? who is this young man trying to seduce my baby?”
“dad, you're missing the whole point. no one is being seduce-”
“if you're seeing someone, you better bring him home for me to meet him, young lady.” you silently face-palm.
by the end of the call, both your parents are somehow convinced that you like minho, that he likes you or that you're dating him, you're not sure which one. perhaps all three. well, it's not like you care. no matter how good-looking you think he is you can't picture yourself dating minho, that would be-
wait, why are you imagining what it would be like to date him? you groan. see? this is what talking to your parents does to you.
you take the last bite of the last cookie you have left from the batch that mrs park made for you. you're thinking about how much of a sweet person she seems to be when you're startled by the sound of your doorbell. you make your way to the front door, to find none other than minho on the other side, with his characteristic cocky smile.
“hey, neighbour.”
“uh... hi. can i help you?” you don't know why you find this situation so awkward, but there's something about minho actively looking for you that seems uncharacteristic of him.
“you can, actually. i have a friend over and he's making brownies, but we ran out of sugar.”
“so?” you ask. you have no problem with giving him sugar, but you want to make things a bit difficult for him because he always makes things difficult for you.
“so,” he echoes you. “i was hoping you'd take pity on us and give us some. i think about a cup is all he's missing.”
“mrs park would be disappointed in you, minho.” you feign a disappointed sigh of your own accompanied by a disapproving shake of your head, and when minho looks at you with pure confusion in his eyes you think you're getting good at his little game. “she did tell you to learn some manners, didn't she? and you can't even say please when asking for something.”
minho mutters an “ahh” while nodding his head in understanding before he gets back to the smug smile.
that's not good.
“my dearest, most favourite neighbour.” he dramatically begins, leaning his back to your doorframe and putting a hand to his forehead as if he were about to faint. “would you be oh so gracious with these two fools who didn't properly measure their sugar so as to bestow upon them the immense generosity of sparing some of your own, m'lady?”
at that, he gets down on one knee and delicately takes one of your hands in his own, bringing it to his lips to plant a soft kiss on the back of it without taking his eyes off yours for a single second.
you blink repeatedly.
you stare at minho.
he grins at you from below.
your eyes widen.
you blush.
you yank your hand from his hold as if it burned you to touch him. it somehow feels like that may very well be a possibility.
“h-huh?” you can hear the whistling sound of water boiling in a teapot in your ears if you focus hard enough.
“sugar, neighbour. i asked you if you can please give me some.” he repeats. “your pretty head surely knows what sugar is, right?”
your what now?
at this point, minho is grinning wider than the cheshire cat. he likes annoyed you, but he thinks he prefers flustered you because there's less risk of you actually getting angry at him. and there's the added benefit of seeing you blush, that's cute. so cute, minho finds himself wanting to make you blush more. wanting to kiss the redness on your cheeks. he's definitely losing his mind.
“of course i know what sugar is.” is all you can muster once you're able to somewhat compose yourself. minho finally gets up and dusts his pants off, still smiling at you.
“glad to know, you had me worried for a second there.”
“i'll be right back.” you run away into your house and minho patiently waits at your door.
you want to get this over with as quickly as possible because you don't like not knowing what to do about the frantic pounding of your heart. and most importantly, you can't be bothered to measure one cup, so once you get the sugar, you bring him the whole packet. besides, he did give you too many eggs last time, so it's only fair that you give him extra too.
“here.” in a similar fashion to him, you shove the thing into his chest and he scrambles to take a hold of it. you notice that he is about to protest , so you speak before he does. “you gave me extra eggs last time, so take it. i'll survive without it, i promise.” at that, minho's face lights up again.
“oh, that's right. you never told me what you thought about my eggs, neighbour.” his hand comes up to hold the doorframe as he leans forward, towards you, with that teasing smile of his.
so he's back at it again. however, this time you're set on being the one who gets a reaction out of him. so, not only do you play along whatever this egg innuendo is, but you also try something you've been thinking about for a while now.
you lean forward as well, your faces inches apart. minho doesn't bat an eye at first, and it almost seems like his smile gets even bigger. but that changes once you whisper:
“your eggs were delicious, min-min.” the combination of the nickname, the sultry tone you've used with him, and the way you bite your lip would be bound to end anyone else. but minho is a strong man, so he's just rendered speechless.
this time, it's his eyes getting wide for a change, and they wander to your lips for a split second. even his mouth falls open a little bit. you see the tips of his ears getting red as they did that day when mrs park called him the same nickname and you are pleased with his reaction, guessing that this is the most you can get out of him. mission accomplished, you think to yourself.
and you close the door on his face.
this one goes to you, but the sense of victory is dulled by the fact that all you could think of when getting that close to him was how easy it would be to close the remaining distance and kiss him.
the next morning, you find that a piece of paper has been slid through your front door.
“hey neighbour,
my friend and i ended up making too many brownies, and it's only fair that you get to have some. we couldn't have made them without your stellar support, after all.
swing by whenever you want today and let's have them over a movie :)
- min”
you read and re-read the note. the faces of three cats are doodled right next to his name, and you can't help but feel giddy at the thought that a boy has written you a note inviting you over and has even taken the time to doodle on it. it's the simplest thing, but you find it charming in the most adorable way. guess you are easy to please.
you suddenly freeze in where you're standing.
wait, is this just a friendly hangout between neighbours? or does he want it to be a date? do you want it to be a date? oh god, you want it to be a date. that must make you some sort of masochist, because why else would you voluntarily accept what sounds like an invitation for him to tease you for the whole duration of whatever movie you end up watching? yep, you must be out of your mind. but that doesn't take from the fact you do want this to be a date, so you think it's time to admit that you might have developed a teeny tiny crush on minho.
okay, so you must be into degradation.
that's all you can gather from this newfound piece of information and you guess there's something new to learn every day.
whatever, you don't want to think about this too much. you've had crushes before and they've never gone anywhere, so why would this be any different? thinking about the prospect of liking or dating someone always makes you wonder if the reason you've been single all your life is somehow your fault, and you don't want to get depressive thinking about that.
so you just make up your mind to drop by minho's house in the afternoon and go on with your day until then. you work out, take a shower, have breakfast, do your chores, prepare lunch and laze around until you get hungry enough to have the meal you prepared.
5 pm arrives faster than you expected, and you guess that that's is a decent time to go to minho's house, so you quickly prepare some iced coffee to have with the brownies, change into a comfy outfit and take your keys to exit your house. you kind of walk the short walk from your door to minho's in autopilot, getting suddenly nervous at the prospect of spending that much time alone with him, and you ring his doorbell with a slightly shaky hand.
when minho gets the door, he does a quick once over of your appearance today, which doesn't go unnoticed. he grins that lopsided grin that you've come to like in these few times you've seen each other, and for once, this sight of him makes you smile too. he does his little confused blinking again, but his smile stays, and you swear his voice sounds softer when he greets you with his usual:
“hey, neighbour.”
“hi, i brought coffee.” you lift the bag where you've brought the beverage and minho makes a gesture for you to hand it to him. you try not to think about how warm his hand feels when it brushes against yours. minho ushers you inside with his other hand.
into degradation and touch starved. you keep learning today, it seems.
“come on in.” you follow him inside and try to make the way you're curiously looking around not too obvious. “make sure you close the door behind you, please. wouldn't want the babies to run out.”
“the babies?” you echo his words, making sure that the door is properly closed behind you as he has requested.
“that's right.” you continue following him like a lost puppy until you reach his kitchen. “this is cold, right?” he asks, patting the bag.
you nod at him, and he gets the two cups inside the bag to transfer them to his fridge.
“all set.” he smiles again. “come meet my babies.” you follow him to the living room and he asks you to stay there as he walks along a long corridor that you're guessing leads to the rooms and the bathrooms as it does in your place. you hear the sound of a door being opened and the soft padding of paws against the floor, and before you know it three cats come rushing at you and start meowing at you for attention. have you died and gone to heaven?
“you already know dori,” minho comes closer to where you're crouching to pet the three kitties. “and these are soonie and doongie.” he points at each one and you nod.
you feel like this might be imposing, but you're too overwhelmed with this much cuteness around you, so you can't help but ask:
“do you think they'll want to rip my eyes out if i try picking one of them up?” minho chuckles at that.
he doesn't usually like other people around his cats aside from his family and closest friends, but with the way you're looking at them with starry eyes and the slightest pout on your lips, he knows his babies are in good hands with you.
“try your luck, neighbour. they may not stay still, but they won't lash out. maybe try dori.” he advises. “it's not that much of a difference, but she has already seen you once.”
you nod and focus all your attention on the grey cat. when you gently scoop her up in your arms and she doesn't protest, you feel like you might cry tears of joy. she even lets you scratch her chin and... is that purring you're hearing? oh no, this is bad. you might be in love.
“she doesn't hate me!” you whisper-shout at minho. he chuckles again at your excitement.
“looks like it.”
“she's purring, minho.” he nods.
“i can hear that.”
“she's the cutest thing i've ever seen.” minho bites his tongue to stop himself from saying that you are the cutest thing he's ever seen.
“she takes after her owner.” is what he says instead. you're so entranced that your answer is automatic, unfiltered.
“she does.” you say with a smile. minho freezes as he feels a familiar heat at the tips of his ears, and you seem to notice what you've just said a moment later. you go stiff, and dori is startled enough to jump from your arms. “i mean!” you suddenly find minho's wooden floor, which is identical to yours, to be the most interesting thing in the world. “you do these little things sometimes that are kind of cat-like, you know?” you mumble.
minho gets giddy at the subtle implication that you've been paying attention to him.
“like what?” he asks while crouching to pet soonie, and surprisingly enough, his tone isn't teasing this time, just curious.
“like...” you slowly let you gaze meet his again “like when you blink slowly and many times when you're confused. or the way you sometimes tilt your head to the side. or the way i thought you were kind of an asshole at first but you actually look like you care a lot around the people around you.” you throw in.
that last one is a bit of a reach because you don't really know him that well yet, but you want to know what he has to say about it. fortunately, he doesn't seem offended when he huffs a laugh at you.
“why would you think i was an asshole?” he stands up again. you know he hasn't just asked you that.
“you were rude when we met on the elevator!”
“how was i rude?”
“you're either messing with me right now or you're too dense. you acted like you hated my guts! and you keep making fun of me since then.” you acuse, crossing your arms. minho winces a bit. he does see how he could have come across that way.
“i'm sorry it seemed like that, i'm just not the best at meeting new people.” he explains. “i guess that kind of makes a bit like a cat, huh? but for the record, i've never once made fun of you.” he says, completely serious.
“allow me to disagree.”
“it's true! friendly banter? maybe. a bit of teasing? perhaps. some flirting? definitely, if you hadn't noticed.” he says nonchalantly, and you freeze for a moment again. “but i would never make fun of you.”
“that's good to know.” is all you manage to squeak, and you want to get paid for all the times you blush around this man, because it's happening too often. minho goes back to smiling.
“good. now that that's settled, shall we watch a movie, neighbour?”
the little details were already hinting at it, but minho turns out to be a big softie. you are sitting on opposite ends of his couch so that both of you can have your legs stretched on top of it. his movie of choice is tangled, and you can tell he must have seen it at least as many times as you have to know every song by heart. he incredulously asks you if you aren't going to sing with him during the first one as if that was a given.
“you belt out taylor swift at ungodly hours in the morning but you can't take singing a couple of songs with me, neighbour?” he challenges. of course, you sing every damn song with him.
and it turns out to be a blast. you can't remember when was the last time you had this much fun watching a movie. but then again, neither of you you aren't as focused in the movie as you are in dramatically repeating some of the lines and singing the songs. you try not to think about how your heart speeds up when a more romantic song comes up or every time minho replaces flynn calling rapunzel “blondie” with his trademark “neighbour”.
halfway through the movie, minho takes out the brownies and the coffee.
“here. lix makes the best brownies, but i hope you'll still like my eggs better.” he winks at you. you find yourself smiling for the first time at that joke too.
“again with the eggs? why does it feel like you're using them as codeword for something else?” you tease as he hands you your plate and your cup. you place both on the table in front of the couch, and he does the same when he comes back with his.
“and what do you think they might be codeword for, neighbour?” you just shrug your shoulders. “well, whatever they are, they've been in your mouth” he wiggles his eyebrows at you like he did last time, and you take one of the cushions on the couch to playfully hit him with it.
“pervert.” you acuse.
he takes the cushion from your hands smirking and looks behind for his cats before chucking it without a care as they aren't there.
“maybe i am.” the two of you are left in very close proximity, and you start feeling that familiar heat on your face when your eyes seem to have a mind of their own and automatically dart to his lips. you really need to get paid for blushing around him.
“let's try those brownies.” you back away with a racing heart and pray that you won't drop your food or spill your drink with how shaky you get when you're nervous in the slightest. thankfully you manage to get through without incidents.
minho is right about those brownies being the best, as he was about mrs park's cookies.
“your eggs are definitely in danger after this, minho.” you joke around. “is your friend a pastry chef or something?” his eyes get wide and bright as they did when he asked mrs park if she would bring him cookies.
“he should be one, right? i've told him so hundreds of times!” the two of you practically inhale your brownies as you speak.
“i mean, he should definitely give it a try if it's something he enjoys, he's clearly good at it.” you say, taking another bite.
“good enough to make you forget about my eggs.” he pouts. “you wound me, neighbour. i'm gonna have to wine and dine you to win my rightful first place in your heart back.”
“are you asking me out, min-min?” you throw the nickname at him, not wanting to be the only flustered one in this room.
the usual redness appears on his ears, but he's not as flushed as the other times and there's no doubt in his voice when he says:
“damn right i am. what do you say?”
what do you say? that's a stupid question.
“sure, but are you sure you can top these?” you point at your now empty plate, moving on to what's left of your coffee. minho's lips quiver as if he's trying to contain a smile.
“topping is my favourite thing to do, neighbour.”
you almost spit out your coffee, but you don't have anything to hit him with within reach anymore, so you let it go this time.
you discuss when you'll meet for dinner, the movie long forgotten. minho apologetically tells you that his job is actually keeping him busy for the next couple of weeks or so, and that he won't have the time to cook you the five star course he's promised you until then. he offers to hang out some other day for movies like this if you want though, as he's free during afternoons for the most part. you, of course, say yes.
some other day turns out to be almost every day. minho and you exchanged numbers the day he asked you out to that dinner date, so you guys have been texting as well. there's a lot of your usual bickering and a big amount of flirting, your conversations becoming dangerously close to inappropriate sometimes. but for the most part, you just talk about more wholesome stuff.
he sends you lots of selfies using weird filters to make you laugh, and there's this one time when you nearly lose your shit when you receive one in your workplace. you learn he hates coriander with a passion, and it might make you a bit cruel, but you make a mental note to hide some in his food sometime to see the face he makes, just once. he tells you that he has seven friends who are dying to meet you, including the brownie boy. you also find out that he's a graduate on computer science and he works as a computer hardware engineer. you're not entirely sure what that is about, but you know that you need big brain energy to be working in something like that. his true passion, however, is actually his favourite hobby: dancing. so this man has got the looks, the brains, as you're quickly discovering the personality too, and he is a dancer. why does he keep getting more charming by the moment?
you have multiple chances to ask yourself this question in the span of the two weeks that you spend coming to his place to watch movies. you learn that soonie had been abandoned when he adopted him, that he got doongie from a friend's cat who had given birth, and that he got dori from an abandoned cat website too, and this fact tugs at your heartstrings. he just loves his cats so much, and it's obvious that they love him too. they are a little family, and you find them to be the absolute loveliest when they're together.
you just find minho to be the absolute loveliest in general. you realise now why you thought he was an asshole at first; it's because he doesn't feel the need to make a show out of how he cares for others. he never expects anything in return for the little things he does for people, nor does he shove it in anyone's faces that he's doing something for them. in fact, he does things for others almost secretly, you learn when he confesses what actually went down with the eggs. that was the problem all along: the first few times you saw minho, you were too focused on how he talked to you, which you easily mistook for the wrong thing when you didn't pay attention to the nice things he was pairing it with.
you don't think he's nice like you did that first time you saw him through your window though. you now think he's one of the sweetest people you know. some point along this couple of weeks, much to your friends' delight, you've found yourself telling them about your growing crush on your neighbour, and you have promised to ask him to meet them sometime soon. who knows? if things go well, maybe your friends can meet his. you still want to wait to tell your parents though, you don't want them jumping right to marriage at the news that you've found someone you like, that you're getting to know him, and that he seems to like you as well.
on his end, minho finds himself more infatuated with you by the second. it's all about the little things, he thinks. it's how you bring treats for his cats too when you bring snacks for the two of you, or how they curl both around and on top of you if you fall asleep on his couch like they've already done twice. it's how he wishes he could lie down with you too when that happens, how he wishes to hold you close to him too often these days. it's the way you look out for mrs park as if she was your own grandma ever since you met her just like he does. it's the way you feel more comfortable as time passes to match his teasing. it's the way your eyes have been softening lately and your smiles have been getting bigger each time you look at him.
and so, when the friday of your awaited dinner date rolls around, both of you are buzzing with excitement. you manage to get through half of the day without excitement turning into nerves, but when the afternoon arrives, your stomach starts to churn anxiously. you know there's no reason why you should be this nervous to see minho, but you can't help it. the possible outcomes of this date scare you. what if he decides he doesn't like you like that and doesn't want to have more dates with you or even invite you over for movies anymore? and what if he does want to keep on going on dates with you? you're old enough to treat the concept of dating with maturity, but it's still so new to you that you can't help but worry about whether you are enough to be considered dating material. and copious amounts of stress only mean one thing for you.
it's cleaning time.
you don't care if you'll soon have to start getting ready, you need this.
you're butchering half of celine dion's discography this time, which means minho must be having the time of his life back at his place, and that lots of teasing surely await you when you see him later tonight. or so you think.
you go around your house dusting the rooms and scrubbing the kitchen counters, and once you get that done you decide to finish off with something relatively quick and clean the windows and the balcony doors.
you finish off the windows in no time, and you have stepped out to your balcony with only one foot when soft meowing startles you. your eyes threaten to bulge out of their sockets when you lower your gaze.
doongie stands in your balcony, looking like he doesn't have a care in the world, and he's curiously looking at the streets below, his tail slowly swishing side to side as he sticks half of his body through the metal bars. you panic at the sight. this isn't good. you know that minho's cats never leave the house unless it is for a vet appointment, so doongie being out here in the open is completely unpredictable.
and you live on a third floor.
“doongie.” you softly call. “doongie, sweetie, come here” you try. doongie is uninterested. “pspsps. here, baby. here, have a treat, hmm?” you coax, and that grabs his attention.
he steps back and meows at you again, as if ushering you to give him what you've promised. that leaves you enough room to scoop him up into your arms. you take a quick glance at minho's balcony and find the doors closed, so you go back inside your place, lock the doors to your balcony and head straight for minho's house. you waste no time in ringing his doorbell, as you've done countless times now.
minho opens up soon after, and he looks more distressed than you've ever seen him. you can guess why.
“look, y/n, this might not be the best moment.” he tells you, looking guilty to be kicking you out before you've even stepped into his place.
it's shocking enough for you to hear him use your name instead of his usual “neighbour” with you. and as much as you hated it at first, you'd give anything to hear him say it now, because that would mean that he's feeling good enough to joke around with you.
“doongie is at my place.” you say. he looks at you with eyes wide as saucers and it seems like he doesn't fully process your words, so you repeat them. “doongie is at my place.”
when the words finally register in his head, he slumps and he lowers his head, his forehead landing on your shoulder. his hands grip your waist, holding onto you for dear life.
“thank god. oh, thank god.” he mumbles, muffled against you, but you still hear the shakiness in his tone. you stroke his hair softly. his hands move from your hips and then he's hugging you in the tightest hug anyone has ever given you. “thank you, thank you, thank you.” he repeats over and over against you, and you swear you can hear sniffling.
you wait until he's calmed down a bit to tell him that he can go get doongie, which he quickly and gladly accepts. he holds his cat right as he sees him, peppering the kitty's face with kisses.
“i was worried sick.” he tells him. “my baby, i'm so sorry. you have a dummy of an owner, right?” he apologises, scratching his chin. doongie doesn't look like he cares that much about it. in your eyes, he just looks happy to see minho as usual, as meows at him and proceeds to rub his face against him, purring loudly.
you watch the two fondly, and walk them the short way from your house to minho's when he says he's going back to get things ready for later.
you didn't notice when you came to get minho, but his place looks like a tornado went through it.
“do you need help with... that?” you ask from his front door, pointing inside. although you don't know exactly what to point at, everything looks like a mess.
minho tells you that he started looking everywhere once he noticed that doongie was missing and that's why his house looks like that. he tries to politely refuse your offer, telling you that he'll have his place looking like it usually does in no time and then he'll make dinner for the two of you. nice try, but you're not having any of that
“bullshit.” you deadpan. “i'm helping you and you don't get to say no. i brought doongie back to you, so you owe me one.”
“and you're deciding that i owe you... letting you clean and tidy up a mess that you didn't make?”
“you got a problem with that?” you ask with an eyebrow raised at him. minho straightens up.
“no, ma'am.”
“thought so.”
the two of you get to work, and even with an extra pair of hands to help, it takes longer than minho had expected to get his place back to normal.
minho looks dejectedly at the kitchen counter where he had already set a few of the ingredients he was going to use and bites his lip. it's probably too late to make what he had in mind now, so he will have to settle for something quicker.
“make yourself at home, i'll get started with dinner.” he says.
you yank the back of his collar to pull him back to you.
“no, you won't.”
“what is it with you bossing me around today?” he complains, turning to face you.
“minho, you were scared shitless for doongie just a while back and i can tell you're still unsettled by the whole thing, so just sit back and rest for a little, okay?”minho doesn't look fully convinced.
“but what about dinner?”
“it's fine, minho, don't worry about it. we can order some takeout and you'll cook for me next time.”
you see the signs of how he hasn't fully recovered from the shock just yet as he frantically looks at doongie every now and then. as if he were going to disappear any second, and for good this time. his voice hasn't lost that shakiness you noticed earlier, and his lips have been pursed in a straight line while his eyes have looked suspiciously watery. it breaks your heart to see him this shaken up.
“no, i-i promised. it was the whole point of the date, and-”
screw this, he needs to shut up.
for the first time since you've known each other, it's you who interrupts minho.
crushing your lips against his.
it takes him by surprise and he goes stiff for a moment, but you keep it short either way.
“minho,” you cup his cheeks softly and look him in the eyes. “do you really think you need to cook for me to get me to like you, or to go on more dates with you, or whatever it is that your equally hot and stupid brain is thinking right now?” he looks speechless.
“huh?” oh how the tables have turned. not long ago, you were the one stunned to silence in each of your conversations, and now it's him who can't find the words to answer you.
“i'm saying i already like you, you cute idiot. i don't care about dinner, i'm here for the time i get to spend with you.”
minho looks like he's on the verge of tears, but even as he lightly sniffles, he smiles and says:
“and here i thought you only wanted me to be your trophy husband.” you smile at him, lacing your hands together behind his neck.
“idiot.” he shrugs his shoulders, not losing the smile. you never want him to lose the smile.
“it's part of my charm.”
“it actually is.” you admit.
and this time, it's him who's diving in to kiss you. his lips move slowly against yours, soft and tender at first, and a few moments later they become firmer, more passionate. you match his pace eagerly, and you think that you could kiss this boy for a whole lifetime as a pleasant shiver runs down your spine and you feel goosebumps rising on your skin. the two of you feel breathless when you pull apart, but he still steals another peck before resting his forehead against yours with a smile. one of his hands comes up to cup your face, his thumb caressing your cheek in slow motions.
“hey, neighbour.” he whispers.
your lips stretch in the biggest, happiest smile your face is capable of, and minho doesn't need to see it. he feels it, and he knows he will do whatever it takes to have you smiling like that as often as possible.
“hi.”
after that, he finally yields to you, letting you order some takeout as you cuddle on his couch. minho is laying his head on your chest and has his eyes closed while you thread your fingers through his hair. soonie is sleeping by your feet, doongie is laying on your chest right next to minho's face and dori is curled up on top of your belly. you could get used to this.
“date me.” minho suddenly mumbles, half asleep.
“huh?”
“i said date me.” he repeats, a bit louder this time.
“i heard you. but haven't we been going on dates this whole time? i thought the movies were dates.” your voice goes somewhat quieter and you bite your lip at that last part, afraid that you might have misunderstood the situation. minho huffs and opens his eyes to look at you, but makes no effort to move from his current position.
“you can be so dense sometimes. yes, those were dates. but i mean date me. as in, be my girlfriend, neighbour.”
minho feels you tense under him, and he watches at your eyes dart from one place to another. he can hear your heart picking up its pace from where his head is placed, and he smiles at the adorable blush already creeping up your cheeks.
“sure, min-min.” you throw the nickname at him, as you do every time you want him to feel even a fraction of the bashfulness you feel.
and it works, like it does every time. minho rolls his eyes at you, but he somehow does so lovingly, and then closes them again.
“hey neighbour?” he quietly calls out to you. you hum for him to continue as your fingers keep moving slowly through his hair.
his eyes remain closed as the corners of his lips lift.
“did you order something with eggs?”
HES SO ⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️ bike rider college bf UGSHSGAHGWGSGS
[240720]
© Aegis1208 (On Twitter)
It's so endearing to watch Sang Yan and Yifan being giddy in love because obviously so many years have passed since they were in high school but even so it's like time - their time - froze back then and now the clock has finally started ticking again.
And I think about how this is possible only because Sang Yan never let go of the string that tied them together.
Not those "red string of fate" kind of things, more like that one post I once read on here, the one that goes: "No, we're not soulmates. This is not divine intervention. And this is most certainly not chance. I willed this. I knit the threads of fate myself until they spelled your name. I love you intentionally. I love you with every bit of conscience I was born with."
Sang Yan knit that thread since the very first moment, keeping it alive even when Yifan had cut it off, and after they reunited slowly knit it stronger and stronger until it was strong enough to bind the two of them together again.
Sang Yan truly willed their connection, with every fiber of his being.