vany.

“i never asked you to stay,” wonwoo muttered as you helped him clean up after the info session that your work had conducted for a group of students.

“this is ridiculous,” you sighed more so to yourself “there’s no way you could’ve done this by yourself.” you said while you held the blue recycling bin, gathering all of the leftover flyers and other papers that had writing on them. you also had a separate bin for the coffee lids and cup sleeves to put in the recycling as well.

“you could’ve just left,” wonwoo was watching you the entire time, making a mental note that you were serious about putting away your trash. “i know seokmin is waiting for you in the lobby.”

“it’s okay.” you replied, not even bothering to look him in the eye. instead, you gathered everything in a neat pile.

“you shouldn’t keep him waiting,” the words came out so harsh when he said it. even wonwoo was surprised, he wasn’t usually like this.

“he’ll be fine,” you said dismissively, not really in the mood to argue with him.

“yn,” wonwoo calls your name as if he hated doing it. “go.”

it took everything within you to stop yourself from yelling at him. “your anger will mean nothing,” seokmin’s words would ring in your ear. so you took a deep breath, dropped what you were doing and left without another word.

“oh, seok, i was ready to pounce him.” you grumbled, stabbing the lettuce on your salad a little too aggressively.

"what, like sexually?" seokmin realized it was a bad joke. the way you were practically throwing daggers at him made it painfully obvious that you were not in the mood to kid around. "i'm sorry, yn, but you really need to lighten up."

"if there's anyone who needs to lighten up, it's him," you argued, munching on your greens. "in fact, maybe i should light him up."

"i still don't understand how you two got off on the wrong foot," seokmin points out, hoping a proper explanation will emit from you.

you shrugged because you didn’t know what to tell your friend. the first time you properly met wonwoo was at your workplace. you even thought he was cute— quiet, had the nicest smile. your other coworkers were even raving about how polite and kind he was.

imagine your surprise when the ‘polite’ cutie from the editorial floor practically threw daggers at you as soon as you stepped into the office with the cerulean blue folders. this threw off wonwoo as he did the preparation for the meeting.

“in my defence, i saved both our asses when i replaced the folders during that important meeting with the new york office,” you grumbled.

unbeknownst to you, wonwoo kept a close track of your encounters. the first time wonwoo met you was through university.

you were the president of the school’s undergraduate publication journal and you were only in your second year. wonwoo was one of the new student recruits, he was a third year. he actually thought you were cute until you had assigned him to deal with international relations— wonwoo had applied for the editorial layout section. wonwoo was not happy.

you probably don’t remember him, wonwoo knew it. how could you? you were running around, trying to figure out the logistics, gather and have people review these submissions, edit and have it all printed before the next term starts. meanwhile, wonwoo was stuck somewhere, trying to solve things on his end. you only left notes on his work, you two barely met during meetings. you two had no direct contact.

once you were in your third year, you had to step down as president and become a casual editor instead. wonwoo became the publication journal’s president that year. you two still had no direct contact.

you unintentionally beat him for that librarian assistant position that wonwoo was gunning for as it'll boost his resume.

somehow, for wonwoo, you were always one step ahead of him and he doesn't like that one bit.

so the day you pranced into the office with your signature bright smile, wonwoo felt territorial over a place where he felt like he finally was one step ahead of you.

wonwoo didn't even like that seungcheol served you the last chocolate cake the day he stopped by at heaven's cloud cafe.

"how could you, cheol?" wonwoo huffed, his arms crossed, as cheol placed the iced americano and a slice of strawberry cake on wonwoo's table.

"it's just a slice, dude," seungcheol looked at him weirdly. "and you don't even like chocolate.”

“yeah, but i wanted a chocolate cake today.”

“jeon wonwoo, quit being weird and eat your cake,” jun comments as he appears behind seungcheol, dropping his things on the floor and sitting on the opposite of wonwoo.

while jun waits for his order to arrive, he worked on the monthly report that his boss has been pressuring him to do. as jun went on rambling about how much he hates his job, wonwoo is occupied with the idea of you. how you were always a step ahead of him.

from then, jeon wonwoo declared a one-sided competition against you.

your idea of jeon wonwoo was simple— he was the cute guy from the editorial team who hates your guts. why? surely, you don’t know.

one rainy afternoon, seokmin made sure to tell you that he won’t be able to give you a ride home, so he gave you the spare umbrella that he had.

“please be kind, ynnie, and let someone stand under your umbrella if they don’t have theirs,” seok reminded you.

“you know damn well i’m always kind,” you huffed with a pout— in which seok just gave you a pointed look before he handed you an umbrella and your lunch.

it seemed that your words had come to haunt you because here you were, walking under the rain using seok’s tiny umbrella, passing by wonwoo who was waiting in front of the office building— probably waiting for the rain to stop as he had no umbrella.

“he’d be waiting all night,” you thought to yourself. you had a long internal battle whether you’d just ignore him but seok’s words were ringing in your ear.

taking a deep breath, you asked “do you want to share an umbrella?”

wonwoo’s startled eyes looked at you and your umbrella. “i’m calling a cab,” he answered. wonwoo wasn’t exactly lying, he’s been trying to get one but the rain has made it extremely difficult to find one.

“well, you’d be calling all night. cabs are extremely hard to find especially at times like these,” you answered. wonwoo hated that you were right. again, always one step ahead of him. “subways are still running, do you want to walk together?”

wonwoo stared at you for what felt like an eternity before you rolled your eyes and pulled him under your umbrella. “we’re walking, stop overthinking it.”

you two were walking quietly in the rain. you’ve been coworkers for almost a year now and you can’t remember the time you and wonwoo had a proper conversation— one that you two didn’t end up bickering about senseless things. you didn’t even know why you two were always butting heads when you two were always working closely together. 

as you tried to squeeze the two of you under seok’s tiny umbrella, you noticed that his shoulder was practically soaking wet. of all the umbrellas that he’d give you, he had to choose the tiniest one he owned. this prompted you to hover the umbrella more on his side, allowing the rain to soak your exposed shoulder instead. 

wonwoo noticed how you moved the umbrella towards him, making him raise an eyebrow. you were wonwoo’s greatest puzzle— he can’t guess your next move and what’s worse is that you’re always one step ahead of him. “what are you doing?” he asked with furrowed brows. 

you looked up at him, suddenly aware of how tall he is. no wonder your arms were getting tired from holding that damn umbrella up. “what do you mean?” you asked, confused by his question.

wonwoo grabbed the umbrella from you— your hands touching for a brief moment. you ignored whatever was forming in the pit of your stomach. maybe you’re just hungry? wonwoo hovered the umbrella closer to you, fully aware of the fact that his shoulder was getting wet from the rain. “you’re getting soaked,” wonwoo replied curtly. 

“so are you,” you pointed out as you held the umbrella and tried to move it closer to him. however, wonwoo resisted it. 

“i’m fine,” he says. 

“whatever you say,” you huffed “it’s not like you intended to have annoyingly broad shoulders anyway,” you grumbled more to yourself, hoping he didn’t hear it. however, wonwoo heard your frustration over his shoulders and he couldn’t fight off the smile on his face. 

it was the first time he could openly admit to himself that you made him smile. it was also the first time you caught him smiling.

“oh, how adorable,” mingyu grinned upon hearing the umbrella-sharing story from wonwoo. “and you said you weren’t one for office romances,” he teased earning a glare from wonwoo. 

"because i'm not," wonwoo rolled his eyes "and i don't like her," he said almost defensively.

mingyu snorted "yeah, as if i haven't heard that line before." he said while setting up the living room for a movie night between him, wonu, jun, and chan. jun and ichan were running a little late as they were buying drinks.

"well, it's true," wonwoo crossed his arms "there's something about her that makes me feel like..." wonwoo trailed off, finding the right words to say.

"like?" mingyu sat on the couch, turning towards wonwoo— clearly invested.

"like... fuck, i don't know..."

mingyu lets out a dramatic gasp. "dude," he stares at wonwoo in complete awe. "you swore..."

"and?"

"you never swear unless you're completely frustrated," mingyu pointed out, a teasing look glimmering in his eyes. "you like yn, huh?!"

before wonwoo could even answer, mingyu's doorbell rang. saved by the bell, wonwoo thought.

"oh, this is not over, jeon wonwoo." mingyu said with a smirk, making wonwoo groan.

"seok, quit looking at me like that," you whined as you hugged the pillow tighter, placing your chin on top of the pillow.

"what?" seok grinned "it's nice to know that your beef with your coworker is slowly coming to an end."

"he was probably thinking how ridiculous i sounded for mentioning his shoulders," you grumbled. "why did i even mention his shoulders?!" you groaned.

seokmin couldn't help but laugh at how adorable you were being. "oh my sweet, ynnie," he cooed, ruffling your hair.

"here you go, yn," vernon said as he handed you a pint of ice cream. you were hosting a sleepover with seok, vern, and kwan. you three were waiting for seungkwan to arrive with the rest of the snacks.

you initially thought that you'd have the ice cream later but vernon thought that you might need it sooner than later. "thanks, nonie," you smiled at him.

"for what it's worth ynnie, he finally smiled at what you said." vernon said before taking a bite of his ice cream.

"and now yn is acting up because she thought he was cute," seokmin said teasingly, making vernon laugh.

wonwoo believes that the universe is out to get him. he kept complaining that you were always one step ahead of him and now, the universe is starting to retaliate.

"take yn," his manager tells him, making wonwoo clutch tighter on his notebook.

"sir?" wonwoo must be hearing things. there's no way that his manager actually asked him to take yn, right?

"take yn ln," his manager stresses your name. "didn't you two work on the last summit?"

"yes, but sir—"

"then it's final," his manager dismisses wonwoo "you two did a wonderful job with the last summit, i'd like you two to work on this year's professional development sessions."

"you two make a wonderful team," was the final thing that his manager said. without another word, wonwoo left the office feeling defeated. how can wonwoo be one step ahead of you if the universe is making him walk alongside you?

it was no surprise that wonwoo was everyone's office crush in the editorial department. people would often turn their heads whenever he walked by. this time was no exception.

the people on your floor knew the budding tension between you two. so when wonwoo was walking towards your desk with two coffees and a bag of dessert in hand, heads definitely turned and people were bound to talk.

"here," wonwoo hands you an iced americano and a bag of what you assumed was a slice of chocolate cake, catching you off-guard. your desk computer was showing the available job listings in the other departments. "are you thinking of transferring?" he asked as he leaned closer to your monitor— closer to you. his cologne was easily filling your nostrils. you hate that he smells good. how are you supposed to despise a man who smells good?! you thought. wow, the bar is literally on the floor.

"i'm keeping my options open," you answered as you crossed your arms, snapping yourself to reality. "it's not like you're making my life any easier here," you muttered the latter sentence, though you did hope that he heard it.

it's been a month since you and wonwoo started working on the company's professional development sessions. it's also been a month of torture. you've gotten frequent migraines that you started looking up if taking tylenol frequently will kill you. you didn't like the results.

wonwoo heard the latter sentence. while the month has been torture for you, wonwoo didn't mind your company at all. sure you were butting heads most of the time, but he noticed how much you were willing to compromise just to settle a conclusion between you two. wonwoo liked pushing your buttons. he found you cute even if you wanted to bite his head off.

"is this a peace offering?" you motioned to the coffee and the cake that was sitting on your desk.

"for what?" wonwoo smirked, playing coy. "you agreed to the after-session event, fair and square."

"bitch?!" you stared at him as if he's gone mad "if anything, you made it your life's mission to annoy me into agreeing that going to an escape room is what we need after overloading our brains from the sessions."

"yn ln, you know i can go to HR because you cursed at me, right?"

"jeon wonwoo, you know we're banned from that floor unless there's a serious allegation," you said, massaging your temples. "now humour me, what's with the coffee and cake?"

"oh, i stopped by at heaven's cloud café earlier and jeonghan practically insisted that you have these," wonwoo said casually, looking away.

you stared at him suspiciously, "thanks, i guess." you haven't spoken to jeonghan in a while since you've always been swamped with work. but maybe that's why you got free coffee and desserts?

before you could even ask wonwoo another question, he quickly left without even looking back at you. deciding to ignore it, you snapped a quick picture of the coffee and the cake, shooting jeonghan a quick text, "thanks for the coffee & cake, hannie! miss u! ♡"

"jeon wonwoo, is there a reason why yn sent me a text earlier, thanking me for the coffee and cake that i didn't give her?" jeonghan asked wonwoo, who was busy typing away on his laptop. wonwoo stopped at jeonghan's place after work as their other friends will be dropping by later as well.

"i don't know what you're talking about," wonwoo mumbled, not looking at han in the eye.

jeonghan was having none of it. "i'm texting yn that you gave those things to her," he threatened, pulling out his phone.

knowing jeonghan is probably going to commit to it, wonwoo sighed and threw his hands in defeat. "fine."

“and so the plot thickens,” jeonghan smirked, crossing his arms. “so is there a reason why?"

"she was having a rough day," wonwoo explained, closing his laptop. that report will be dealt with tomorrow. "i felt bad."

jeonghan raised an eyebrow at him. "i thought you didn't like her?"

"i don't."

"funny, because that's an odd way of expressing how you dislike her," jeonghan said, making wonwoo roll his eyes.

“i can at least recognize all the work she’s been doing in planning the pd session,” wonwoo replied, defensive.

jeonghan smirked because he knew. he knew that wonwoo was walking on a thin line. in fact, jeonghan was 100% sure that his friend has gone soft for you. “okay, whatever you say.”

“ynnie!” seungcheol calls your name as he spots you, busy choosing what kind of juice you are going to buy. you decided to stop by at the grocery to grab a couple of things for the fridge.

you gave him a small wave, smiling. seungcheol, however, was eager to give you a hug. you, cheol, and han shared a couple of classes back when you three were in university. you were always supportive of their endeavours that’s why cheol & han always had a soft spot for you— they considered you like a little sister that they always had to take care of.

“how was the cake from earlier? you know i’ve been taking a lot of baking lessons recently,” cheol said with a proud smile.

“oh, it was great, cheol!” you said sincerely “i sent jeonghan a text earlier, saying thanks.”

“thanks for what?”

“for the cake…?” you trailed off, a bit off-guard by the confusion plastered on seungcheol’s face.

“why would you thank jeonghan?” seungcheol asked, even more confused.

“jeonghan wasn’t there?”

cheol shook his head no. “unless jeonghan told wonwoo, but i assumed wonwoo bought it for you. i was teasing him about it too, since he doesn’t like chocolate that much.”

“ah,” was all you could say as you felt your cheeks burning, surprised by cheol’s sudden information. is that why jeonghan hasn't replied to your text at all?

cheol suddenly felt like he just triggered a bomb. oh, he fucked up. as if on cue, his phone started ringing. mingyu was calling. "okay, i'm heading off, ynnie."

you just nodded and waved goodbye, feeling confused. it was a good thing that you won't be seeing wonwoo during the weekend otherwise you would've gone mad.

heaven's cloud café was buzzing with people when you came in.

you spent a lot of time debating if you had to improvise how you would spend your sunday morning. you would usually stop by the heaven's cloud café and spend a good chunk of your time there— reading or chatting with jeonghan and seungcheol.

however, knowing that wonwoo might stop by at the cafe, it left you questioning if you wanted to derail your usual sunday routine.

and yet, your pride got the best of you. no matter how much you didn't want to see wonwoo, you weren't going to derail your sunday routine especially if it involved coffee.

although the café was usually busy on the weekends, today was unusually busy— you wondered if there was a special promotion taking place. jeonghan hasn't even acknowledged your presence yet as han is busy manning the till while also preparing the drinks. cheol is probably in the kitchen, preparing food.

you settled on the last empty table at the very back— dropping off your things, deciding to order a bit later once the line from the till calms down.

while you were busy scrolling on your phone, someone placed a tall glass of iced americano and a slice of strawberry cake on your table.

"you should try this, it's a house favourite," someone with a deep voice said. you looked up and saw jeon wonwoo with slightly messy hair, wearing your favourite black specs and a white button-up, smiling at you. fuck, he looks good. is hell officially frozen?

"are you perhaps a twin of jeon wonwoo?" you asked, completely boggled.

"yn, what the hell?" wonwoo laughs at your incredulous take, making you even more confused. why is this wonwoo variant laughing and smiling at you? most of all, why are they bringing you food when you haven't even ordered?! "what made you say that?"

you reached out your hand and poked his cheek, making him laugh. "are you really wonwoo from sector17 press?"

"yn, seriously, what makes you think that it's not me?"

"why are you so smiley all of a sudden," you cried, weirded out. "and why are you serving me food?"

"my, do you like it when i give you a hard time?" wonwoo said, teasingly "is that a kink of yours?"

"you're fucking weird, jeon wonwoo," you smacked his arm. "i've never met the weekend version of wonwoo and i don't think i like it," you cried quietly to yourself.

"cute," wonwoo says quietly, still smiling at you. "i'll talk to you later, okay? i'm helping cheol and han for the day and i feel like they'll beat my ass if they see me slacking off." wonwoo gently ruffled your hair and walked away, leaving you flabbergasted.

you felt that familiar feeling in the pit of your stomach. oh god, what the fuck just happened?

the friday night that jeonghan found out that wonwoo used jeonghan’s good name to protect his image, was the same night that seungcheol bumped into you at the grocery store.

drinks were getting passed rather at a rapid speed. for them, this night was a gem among other nights. most of jeonghan’s friends were at his place, enjoying the night away.

“ya, wonwoo,” cheol suddenly calls wonwoo, who was barely drinking— as per cheol’s opinion. “i thought tonight was the night that you were going to get loose.”

wonwoo chuckled, “i’m pacing myself.”

jeonghan snorted. “cheol, you’re talking to the guy who still cannot admit his high school crush on our ynnie.”

this earned a couple of laughs from the group, mainly from mingyu and jun.

“yoon jeonghan, just because you’re in a happy relationship—” wonwoo threw a balled up napkin at him, obviously not knowing how to reply.

“oh, wons, that reminds me…” cheol started rubbing the back of his head “i told yn that it was you who gave her the food and not jeonghan.”

as soon as the words left cheol’s mouth, it’s as if wonwoo felt annoyingly sober. he downed the tall shot of bacardi that was supposed to be mingyu’s shot.

“i don’t get why you’re tiptoeing around your feelings for her,” mingyu pointed out, filling the shot glass again. “it’s not like there’s a company policy against dating your coworkers.”

“isn’t there?” joshua asked. wonwoo shook his head no. “lucky bastard.” shua muttered, taking mingyu’s shot.

“you guys, what’s the point of doing rounds when you’re taking the shots as you please?” mingyu whines.

“i thought you didn’t like yn?” jun asked wonwoo, taking a bite of the kimchi jeon. “or is that like a weird defence mechanism against your feelings?”

"oh please," mingyu rolled his eyes "wonwoo had a huge crush on yn ever since our uni days," he pointed out, prompting wonwoo to hit him.

"weren't you two in like a school publication together?" jeonghan asked, taking the shot from mingyu.

"oh, right! you had like a one-sided beef with yn," jun's eyes lit up briefly, then proceeded to smirk at wonwoo, "ya! is that how you show your affection?"

"obviously not," cheol grins "our wonwoo is the type to show his affection through actions, not words."

"what are the chances that they'd end up working under the same company though," joshua commented with a fond smile.

"and in the same department too," jeonghan added.

wonwoo groans, before taking a shot, "i hate all of you."

"you two have a deep history, have you two never talked?" joshua asked, now invested.

wonwoo shakes his head, "we only talk about work."

"if they talk about work," mingyu laughs, "all they do is argue."

"how do you know all of this, gyu?" cheol asked in disbelief, laughing, "you work at a different company."

"i work with seokmin," mingyu replied "and seok likes to tell stories about yn."

"ya, didn't we invite him tonight?" cheol suddenly remembers, looking at his phone to check his message thread with seok.

"he's probably with yn," wonwoo muttered before taking another shot. this gets attention from the rest of the group— a series of teasing smirks and playful looks being exchanged.

like a kid on christmas morning, a bright smile appears on mingyu's face. "won, are you perhaps jealous?" he teased, with the new-found information.

wonwoo scoffed but didn't answer the question. wonwoo swore he wasn't the jealous type. but for some reason, he can't get over the fact that his friend was closer to you.

wonwoo knew that there was nothing going on with you and seok.

however, seok was your person, wonwoo would always think. you felt happier around seok. if wonwoo didn't know any better, he would assume that you liked seok. maybe she does, wonwoo can't help but think.

"you know they're just friends, right?" mingyu reminded wonwoo.

wonwoo doesn't say anything. he was just waiting for his friends to butt into the conversation. wonwoo's eyes caught jeonghan's. jeonghan smiles, that mischievous smile of his, leaving wonwoo confused.

"won, do you wanna know who she likes?" jeonghan instigates, leaning forward.

wonwoo waits, does he really wanna know?

jeonghan smiles, then says "you."

wonwoo didn't believe in signs— for him, every little decision a person makes is pulled by the desired outcome. however, you were his only exception.

"if ynnie stops by at the café on sunday, will you finally talk to her like civilized beings?" jeonghan's words rang loudly in wonwoo's ear.

"i don't believe in signs," wonwoo states simply.

"and you can't make an exception for yn?" jeonghan knew how to play the game. he's just waiting for wonwoo to swallow his pride and address his suppressed feelings.

"maybe." wonwoo answers, making jeonghan smile mischievously. and so, it begins, jeonghan thinks.

it was ridiculous— waiting for something to happen when he could've just started a conversation with you. but it's so hard when it's you. god, it's so hard for wonwoo when it's you because you make him feel things that he thought were only exaggerated by films.

wonwoo didn't know if jeonghan's revelation about you was a lie, but he'd be lying if he said that it didn't affect him— because it did. it felt like he was back in high school and he's not sure if that's something he liked.

jeonghan and seungcheol were very much aware of your routine. every now and then, you would visit the café every sunday— even during the morning rush. they were most definitely aware of what's waiting for you and wonwoo.

the two owners had tasked wonwoo to help with serving the orders as more people flooded the café. "make yourself useful while you wait for your girlfriend!" was all jeonghan said as he handed wonwoo an apron.

and so when you entered the café, wonwoo gathered all his strength to talk to you casually, even if it sent him through an overdrive.

while you were walking towards the washroom, you bumped into jeonghan who was grinning at you. you knew that man long enough to know that he's hiding something when he's smiling like that.

"ya," you pulled jeonghan to the side. "what are you hiding?"

"what do you mean?" han answers, blinking at you innocently.

"why is wonwoo being nice and smiley," you asked him with a huff, crossing your arms. wonwoo being smiley was something you didn't know would affect you this bad. "he's being too cute for my liking," you muttered the latter part.

jeonghan laughs at your dilemma. "isn't that what you wanted?"

"what do you mean—" you were confused with jeonghan's comment until it dawned on you. you remembered the time you went out for drinks with jeonghan and seungkwan. "yoon jeonghan!" you slapped his arm, making him yelp but he was still laughing.

"what?" he looks at you, acting confused as he rubs his arm. "i'm being supportive here!"

"you promised me you wouldn't tell him," you pouted.

"oh please, he was jealous of seok, i had to throw him something."

"so you told wonwoo about the time i got drunk with you and professed my undying feelings for him instead?!"

"no," jeonghan replies. his eyes moved past yours, looking past your shoulders, and smiled. "but i think you already did." jeonghan says, patting your shoulder before he left.

wonwoo was sitting across from you with a smile on his face. you've never seen this man smile at you this much, it was starting to freak you out.

"don't look at me like that," you grumbled, glaring at wonwoo.

"i can't help it," he looks at you almost tenderly. "you look adorable even when you're sulking like that."

you felt the familiar sensation in your stomach. how can jeon wonwoo just say things like these to you? does he not care about your well-being?! how you'd feel?

"that was a long time ago, by the way," you said in defence— as if the damage hadn't been done. wonwoo waits for you to continue your sentence. "you know, me having a crush on you," you continued, your tone getting quieter after each word.

"i'm sorry, what was that?" wonwoo leans closer, as if he didn't hear what you just said. you knew he was just teasing you as you noticed that he was trying to fight off a smirk.

"i don't like you, jeon wonwoo," you whispered, prompting wonwoo to only focus on your lips.

"that's too bad because," wonwoo paused briefly and leaned even more, "i like you."

his face was dangerously close to yours— wonwoo didn't care if half of his body was practically hovering over the table. he wanted to lean closer to you.

you felt frozen in your place. a part of you wanted to lean back and smack him, but there's also a part of you that just wanted to grab his stupid face and kiss it.

"ya!" jeonghan suddenly appeared beside your table "if you two are going to make out in my café, can you move to cheol's office? i'm planning to keep this place family-friendly," jeonghan snickered.

maybe you should just kiss wonwoo and smack jeonghan instead.

life hasn’t been extremely kind to you. first week in your new job and it has already made your life a living hell.

“i mean it’s only been a week,” you said over the phone, trying to appease yourself that maybe it’s just a bad day “maybe it’s just something that i need to get used to.”

you literally just clocked off work when joshua sent you a message, asking how your day was. always like an angel, always in perfect timing.

work was starting to get frustrating and you considered quitting too, but talking to joshua made it bearable for you.

he would send you messages in the morning, would try calling you during your lunch breaks. and if he has time, he would try to visit your place or he would ask you to come over to his.

and when you replied to his text with a sole sad smiley face, he immediately called you.

never in your life would you have expected for shua to be so patient when it came to you, even more so to the people he deeply cared about.

“i don’t know, love,” there are noises on the other side of his line “you’ve been having trouble sleeping.”

“is that yn? tell yn i miss her!” you can hear jeonghan yell on the other line, making you laugh.

“no, tell her yourself!” joshua whines childishly on the other line “it’s my time to be on the phone with her.”

“it’s always your time on the phone with her!” jeonghan whines back. there were a couple of indiscernible words before you heard the phone being passed. “yn!” jeonghan manages to steal the phone from joshua “i miss you! you don’t visit us anymore.”

“had a tough week, bub.” you say softly “i’ll make sure to visit when i have time.”

“how come joshua always gets to see you?” you could feel that han was pouting. “even when we have meetings that run late…” he mutters the latter part but you caught it loud and clear.

“he’s always checking up on me, han,” you whispered all of a sudden, feeling shy. “i actually don’t know how he does it.”

“i know how,” jeonghan says in a teasing manner before you heard the phone being snatched again.

“lovey,” joshua coos “do you want me to call you as soon as you get home?”

“you’ve been really fond of that nickname, huh,” you teased shua, but you could feel yourself turning red.

“only because we’re each other’s lovey,” he murmurs over the phone. “but do you?”

“it’s okay, lovey,” you said, fighting back a smile as you entered the busy subway. “i’m on the train now, i’ll talk to you later.”

“okay, text me when you get home,” joshua says on the other line. “love you.”

you hummed and said “love you too” softly before hanging up.

the train ride home was enough to make you feel numb— maybe it was the exhaustion or maybe it was a bustling friday night. whatever it was, it’s enough for you to forget about the resentment you felt from your job.

with your airpods in, you endured the ride home listening to the curated playlist that you and joshua curated.

you were aware of how your music taste differed from each other— so when home by one direction played, you were a little startled. it’s almost as if you accidentally added the song on the queue.

a small smile was practically tattooed on your face when you saw that it was joshua who added the song to the playlist.

you must’ve done something good in your past life because you can’t possibly think of a reason for you to have joshua hong in this life.

“love you?” jeonghan teases joshua, making him roll his eyes. “what’s the deal with you and yn again?”

“we’re friends, han,” joshua says as he walks over to the other side of jeonghan’s place to grab his water bottle that he left on the kitchen counter.

jeonghan has been friends with joshua for years— he knows when joshua’s trying to avoid something.

“yeah, i know,” jeonghan says following joshua “i mean i’m friends with yn too, but i don’t text nor call her every day.”

“maybe because you just suck at using your phone,” joshua teased han, hoping that his friend would drop the conversation.

“says the guy that barely responds the group chat and has over 500 unread messages?” jeonghan shots back, amused at shua’s insinuation. “face it, shua, ynnie is—“

“she’s special,” shua finishes. “everything just feels lighter around her, you know.”

“ahuh,” jeonghan agrees in a low hum, watching joshua’s expression turn bright as he receives a text update from you. jeonghan knew what joshua felt about you, he’s just unsure if his friend knew it himself. “i know.”

you and joshua have been friends for a little while now— and your friendship with him had stood the test of time. it seemed like it was too good to be true, because he came to your life when everything felt hazy.

you moved to a new place all by yourself, not knowing anyone, trying not to cry as you dropped a piece of kimbap on the convenience store floor— then comes joshua, who happens to be at the very same convenience store and saw how you stared at the piece of kimbap on the floor for a while.

that night at the convenience store, what you needed was a friend or kimbap.

joshua, who was supposed to only buy a quick snack, unconsciously chose to sit and eat at the convenience store instead.

he sat a few chairs away from you, eating his ramen quietly while he watched you pick clean up the mess you made.

after you finished cleaning up— and quietly cursing the universe as today wasn’t going well— you sat back down, fighting back the tears from your eyes and continued to eat your lukewarm ramen.

joshua heard your quiet sniffles while you were eating. he didn’t want to be invasive and ask you if you were okay, but he could sense that you were having a rough day.

joshua has always had a knack when it comes to people— he would always get a sense of what they’re feeling.

he quietly slides you the extra kimbap that he bought for later and says, “i accidentally bought an extra one and i’ll probably forget about it in my fridge if i take it home.” a lie, of course.

as soon as your gaze reaches his, you bursted out crying— which definitely caught shua by surprise.

not knowing exactly what to do, he sat next to you and carefully patted your back every now and then.

“sorry,” you said in between tears, letting out an embarrassed laugh. “i don’t know what came over me.”

“hey, it’s okay,” joshua says comfortingly “you’re okay.”

you hurriedly wiped your tears with your hands, however, it seemed that your tears aren’t quite done yet.

“oh god, this is so embarrassing,” you said, tilting your head back— fanning yourself as you tried to stop yourself from crying. “it’s just a really rough day.”

“it’s okay, you’re safe here,” he gives you a reassuring smile “sometimes, we just really need to let it all out for everything to start making sense again.”

that night at the convenience store, what you needed was a friend or kimbap— the universe gave you both.

as soon as you got off the train station, a familiar physique was leaning against one of the pillars— arms crossed with a bright smile plastered on their face.

“what are you doing here?” you asked, surprised to see him at the station. “weren’t you supposed to be on a date?”

“we see each other at the office everyday,” he scoffed, easily grabbing your tote bag and casually puts on his shoulder. he’s so used to doing it, it’s feasible at this point. “and it’s just with jeonghan. he can live without me, so i left.”

“so, are you saying that i can’t live without you?” you raised an eyebrow at him and he laughs, almost pleased that of your insinuation.

“maybeee,” he practically sings. “c’mon, do you wanna get something to eat?”

“i thought you and jeonghan already ate?” you asked him, linking your arm with his.

“we had snacks,” joshua answers “what do you want to do, love? do you want to eat out or should we just get take out and eat at yours?”

“my place?!” you gasped “i thought we were going to your apartment this time?”

“you have a comfier couch,” joshua mumbles as he pulls away from your linked arms, quietly slipping his fingers in between yours instead. you can’t deny that physical touch brings you comfort— rather, joshua brings you comfort.

“then why did you get that ugly ass white couch then?”

“it’s cute and you know it,” joshua pouts “plus it works well with my living room interior.”

“babe, it’s solid as a rock.”

“so if we ever move in together, you’d force me to throw it out?!”

you practically choked on his statement. “move in?! who said anything about moving in?”

“i think it’s bound to happen anyway,” joshua says casually. “didn’t we make a pact when we were 23?”

“i thought that was just the alcohol talking,” you said quietly, feeling shy all of a sudden.

“i meant every word i said,” joshua smiles at you— the kind that makes your heart beat a little faster, the kind that makes your insides melt. “but i’m also more than happy to yield, if you’re retracting your statement.”

“if we’re 30, and have not found any significant others, should we just get married?” you asked shua after finishing your second bottle of soju.

“i thought you don’t believe in marriages,” shua teases, resting his chin on his dominant hand. his eyes were sparkling in anticipation.

“i don’t,” you smiled at him “but if it’s with you, what’s the worst thing that could happen?”

“okay,” joshua says softly “as long as you’re okay with it, then i’m happy to spend the rest of my life with you.”

you smiled upon hearing what joshua said. “yeah, you’re not getting rid of me that easily, joshua hong.”

“great because i’ve already pictured the perfect proposal.”

you and joshua were quietly eating dinner back at your place— sitting on the living room floor, backs pressed against the couch, with modern family playing in the background.

shua was watching you the whole time as you ate your tteokbokki with a mindless look on your face. he knew that you were checked out and he felt bad that nothing could lift up your spirits.

you were painfully exhausted that you can’t even enjoy your comfort food with your comfort show.

you caught joshua staring at you as you nibbled rice cake slowly. “what?”

“do you want to talk about it?” he asks you softly.

“talk about what?” you feigned innocence. to be fair, you weren’t in the mood to talk about work and the last thing you want was to pester shua with your work rants too.

“c’mon, yn,” he pats the space between you two, urging you to sit closer to him. “you know you can tell me anything, right?”

“mhm,” you hummed as you placed your chopsticks down and snuggled closer to shua— your head resting on the crook of his neck. “i’m just tired,” you say quietly.

“i know, my love,” he whispers, knowing that you weren’t just physically tired. shua knew that your new job was taking everything from you and you didn’t want to make it seem like it is. “i wish there’s something that i can do to make you feel better.”

you lifted your head to turn towards shua. “you’re already doing great, bub,” you said with a fond smile. “having you here with me is enough,” you hummed.

joshua returned the smile, pulling you closer to him— if it was even possible. you two sat in silence, tucked under shua’s embrace.

you’ve always found comfort within joshua hong. when people ask you what he is in your life, you would smile and tell them that he’s your comfort person.

“so, like the love of your life?” ichan asks with a confused look, not really understanding your answer.

“sure, something like that.”

“are you two dating then?” he asks as you two wait for your work computer to finish updating.

“nope.”

“but he’s always at your beck and call?” he clarifies and you nodded. “god, you two are confusing.” chan mutters, leaning back at the office chair.

you laughed. “babe, you’re just saying that because you haven’t met the person who makes you feel comfortable.”

chan playfully scoffs at your comment and says “well, i’m sorry if i haven’t met my soulmate at a convenience store.”

soulmates. maybe joshua hong is your soulmate.

“shuji,” you called his name softly, resting your chin on top of his shoulder.

“hm?” joshua hums as it prompts him to turn his head and look at you— the distance between your faces were unbearably close. “you know i hate that nickname right?”

“i know,” you answered, not moving from your position. “but you still let me call you that.” your chin planted on his shoulder as you practically bit every word that came out of your mouth.

joshua laughs because you’re right. he hates it when people call him that and yet, he doesn’t mind when you do it.

joshua’s attention was back to the tv, watching the modern family episode when mitch and cam got married.

you removed yourself from joshua’s embrace—propping your elbow on the table and resting your head against your hand. you couldn’t help but watch joshua— having him here next you was nothing new but you still can’t believe that someone like him would be so patient around you.

there’s definitely a sense of selfishness that boils inside you. you want joshua to stay in your life forever, but that’s not possible. especially if he finds a significant other.

“yn,” shua calls your name softly, eyes still glued at the tv. “is my face really that great to look at?” he asked teasingly. you scoffed, playfully rolling your eyes. “because ahjumma gave me extra fishcakes because of that.”

“and i thank you because of that,” you grinned.

joshua turns to you, mirroring your position as he props his elbow on the table and rests his head against his hand as well.

“what’s bothering you, my lovey?” shua asks as he tucks a stray piece of hair behind your ear.

“do you love me?” you asked joshua. a bold move on your part— but you only did it because he can either spin it as something strictly platonic or it can become something more.

he wasn’t even caught off-guard. instead, he smiles at your question— as if it was just a normal and casual thing to ask. “i do,” joshua answers because it’s true. “i think i love you a little too much.”

“how much?”

“like i would let you run the ac on full blast,” joshua mutters with a smile on his face, playing with the ends of your hair.

you let out a small gasp, “really?”

“really.”

“but you hate getting cold,” you pointed out.

“yeah, but you love the cold— like right now, it’s freezing here,” joshua laughs as he pulls the sleeves of his hoodie further.

“shit, i didn’t even notice—“ you were about to stand up to turn down the ac but shua pulls you back down.

“it’s okay,” he says softly, “c’mere." joshua pulls you closer to him, similar to the position you were in earlier. this time though, you're sitting between his legs— your back against his chest, his arms wrapped around you.

“shua, let me turn the ac down,” you said, trying to get up but he tightens his arms around you— briefly forgetting how big shua’s arms has gotten.

“no,” he whines childishly “just stay here with me,” he mumbles in your ear. “you’re very warm.”

“i think that’s why i feel hot all the time,” you said nestling in his arms.

“yeah,” joshua chuckles “but i also think you’re a very warm person, ynnie.”

“hm?”

“yeah, i mean you make every room brighter, ynnie. you make everything feel as if you’re the calm in this chaotic world. if i could keep you by my side at all times, i’d do it.”

you rolled your eyes playfully “now, you’re just making fun of me.”

“i’m not,” joshua rests his chin on the top of your head “why do you think jeonghan and seungkwannie kept asking for you?”

“i think it’s because i feed them,” you joked, making joshua snort.

“trust me yn, if i can keep you all to myself, i would.”

“so why don’t you?”

hao scoffs at the screen when the main lead from the movie that you two are watching meets for the first time, at the most ridiculous instance. the meet cute being: the guy practically throws himself to save the girl from a moving vehicle.

hao believes that is not cute.

his reaction caused you to look up at him with a glint in your eyes, ready to annoy your boyfriend even more.

“where is the hostility coming from, lovey?” you asked, sitting straight.

hao sighs, “i know that look.”

“what look?” you blinked innocently at him, knowing full well you’re going to pick on his hatred for romantic clichés.

minghao mutters a long string of words as he pulls you back in his chest, wrapping his arms around you.

you let out a chuckle, you knew what he was trying do. it’s cute, that your haohao would do anything to disassociate himself from romantic clichés, but the man was the most romantic person you’ve ever known. he was your romantic cliché.

“baby,” he practically whines “can we watch something else?”

“what do you mean? you promised you’d watch this with me,” you said as jennifer lopez’s the wedding planner played on the screen.

“you don’t even like this movie,” hao reasons out. “i don’t even know why you’re willing to sit through this.”

“it was included in the list of films that has the best meet cutes,” you said reading off your phone.

“are you still on that?” he dreads, you felt his chin rest on the top of your head.

“it’s because what we had was a meet cute!” you insisted. “don’t you remember?”

“oh, i remember alright,” hao mutters into your head.

it was a rainy friday afternoon, the sound of children were slowly starting to dissipate as the day goes longer.

“ms. ln,” min tugs on your skirt as you watched the rain pour harder than what was anticipated in the weather forecast. “do you have an umbrella?” her eyes practically sparkled as soon as the words left her mouth.

“why sweetie? do you need one?” you asked her, crouching down. “i don’t have one with me, but i can text miss lee if she has an extra one in her classroom that you can borrow.”

she shook her head no, her pigtails swinging along, making you smile. “my uncle is picking me up and i want to know if you’re getting home safely.” she says with a smile. liu xiaomin has always been looking out for her peers and it was no wonder that her warm-hearted nature reaches you. she is a bundle of sunshine and you're lucky enough to have her in your class.

“that’s so sweet of you min," you replied with a soft smile "but i think i'll just wait for the rain to stop."

"what if it doesn’t miss?” she asked with a pout.

“then i’ll just find a way to enjoy the rain,” you said, patting her head. or you can call a cab, but that doesn’t sound as romantic as enjoying the rain.

“okay,” she sighs, sitting at the front steps of the school. “i hope uncle haoi gets here soon.”

you glanced at your watch, it was 10 minutes past dismissal. although min’s uncle is not extremely late, she has been waiting for quite some time now. and with the non-stop pouring rain? it was bound that traffic is up on the horizons.

“do you want me to wait with you, min?” you asked her, feeling bad that she’s the only student left waiting for her ride. xiaomin nods eagerly as she scoots to the side, signalling you to sit next to her.

you two were quietly watching the rain hit the pavement when min asks suddenly, “miss ln, do you have a boyfriend?”

you practically choke on your spit at her question. how does a five-year old even know about that? “sweetie, how do you know about that?”

“i’m five years old, miss, i’m not a baby,” she said with a huff, making you laugh.

“of course,” you tried your best to rationalize, giving her a smile. “but no, i don’t have one.”

“oh, you should meet my uncle haoi then,” she smiles, satisfied with your answer.

you raised an eyebrow at her sudden interest. “and why’s that?”

“i keep hearing my mom tell uncle haoi to get a girlfriend.”

“okay…” you trailed off— you don’t really know how to respond. you barely know this uncle haoi that she keeps bringing up because you’ve only met min’s parents— both of whom usually take turns in picking and dropping her off.

“i think uncle haoi will like you because you’re pretty and you’re very kind and you like painting and you like painting your nails and you like clouds…”

as min went on an endless ramble about how her uncle haoi would like you immediately, you received a text from min’s mom, saying that min’s uncle will be a couple more minutes late.

you tried to suppress a sigh, knowing that you were going to stay a little longer. maybe it was the friday rush, but you were hoping to get home earlier so you can crash on your sofa, catch up on your shows, and be completely static for hours on end.

“miss ln?” min calls your name as you’ve spaced out for a bit. “i think that’s uncle haoi’s car,” min says as you two stared at the black suv that pulled up in front of the school.

“okay, sweetie, let’s just wait till your uncle introduces himself and picks you up personally from me, okay?”

min was more than happy to do so. “uncle haoi!” min calls his name as she waves her hand, practically jumping in excitement.

one look at min’s uncle and you knew exactly who he is. you’ve recognized that tall build that’s approaching you, especially with an umbrella in hand— umbrella man finally has a name.

‘uncle haoi’ looks to be in the same case as you. as soon as his eyes landed on you, he recognized who exactly you were— the girl in the rain.

min makes a run for it and greets her uncle with a hug, making sure to stay under the umbrella. this makes hao melt a bit, lowering his guard down. his features soften at the sweet gesture of his niece.

“it’s you again,” hao mutters as he reaches you, noticing the familiar glint in your eyes.

“uncle haoi, i presume?”

“xu minghao,” hao clarifies curtly, “or just hao.”

“well, okay, hao,” you forced a smile. “here are min’s things.” you said as you handed him her things.

hao puts on min’s backpack and picks his niece up, settling her in his left arm as min clings onto him with a smile on her face.

“miss ln, did you bring your umbrella?” min asks as she whips her head to face you.

hao looks at you for an answer, he had an inkling of what your answer is going to be.

you gave her a forced smile, avoiding eye contact with minghao— his piercing stare was practically boring a hole in your skin. “i’ll just call for a cab, sweetie, don't worry about me."

"uncle haoi," min pouts at her uncle.

"yes, honey?" hao's expression softens upon hearing the soft call from his niece.

"can miss ln come with us?" her eyes practically twinkled as she gave hao the cutest puppy dog eyes she could muster.

hao was caught off-guard, this was the first time min expressed this kind of closeness towards her teachers.

the truth was, you were min's favourite teacher— or in this case, substitute teacher. you were only filling in for the last three months of the school year due to a teacher's personal emergency. but within the short amount of time you had with the students, they found a surprising pull towards you— a bond so tight that even surprised yourself.

unbeknownst to everyone, including min herself, min was playing matchmaker. since uncle haoi and miss ln were her favourites, it would only make sense to combine them together. right?

"um," hao turns to you, but you had an unreadable expression on your face. "i can drop you off at your place, if you want? it'll save you time, and the faire."

"thank you, but it's fine, you two go on ahead." you said, trying your best not to sound dismissive. hao, however, picked up on your tone and gave you a curt nod. "maybe next time, okay?"

"you promise, miss ln?" min asked with a pout. you gave her a nod, making her smile again— satisfied with your answer. "okay, bye miss ln!!" min enthusiastically waved goodbye.

you watched hao skillfully settle min onto her car seat as he tried his best not to get her soaked from the rain. you were about to order yourself a cab when hao approached you with an undiscernible look on his face.

"yes, mr. xu?" you looked up from your phone and blinked at him innocently.

with no other words, hao hands you his umbrella— the exact same way he did the first time he met you.

you just stared at his hand that was firmly grasping the handle of the umbrella as the rain poured down on him, effectively soaking his hair and the white cardigan he was wearing.

"just take it,” was all he said as he forced the umbrella on your hand and ran back to his car.

“okay, but that was not the first time we’ve met, lovey,” you said as you looked up from his chest. the movie was now forgotten.

“i know, but that was the first time jiejie teased me about you,” hao practically grumbles upon memory, his cheeks were turning red.

your eyes sparkled as soon as the words left his mouth. “how did i not know about this?” you practically squealed at the information.

“oh shut it, yn,” hao playfully puts his hand over your mouth, prompting you to bite it. “ya!”

“well, i’m waiting, lovey,” you practically sang.

“why are you soaking wet, hao?” minghao’s older sister asks as soon as hao and min entered the house "did you forget to bring an umbrella? today of all days? is minnie okay?"

hao sighs at the instantaneous nagging of his older sister. "min's fine. she didn't get wet, don't worry about it." xiaomin makes a run towards her mom, giving her a giant hug as soon as her shoes were off.

"okay," his sister sighs and hugs her daughter back, kissing the top of her head, before min runs to her playpen. "so why are you?"

"remember the girl i told you about before?" hao starts off, removing the soaked cardigan he was wearing. "the one from the heaven’s cloud café?"

"the one you practically bullied into accepting your umbrella because it was raining and she was just casually walking under the pouring rain?"

"yes..." hao frowned at his sister's overtly detailed description. "well, i met her again, jiejie. today. at minnie's school."

it took hao's sister a minute before she realized what minghao was implying. "you mean it was yn?!" a pleasant look of surprise takes over her face.

"that’s her name?" hao wonders out loud “you know, jiejie, minnie was surprisingly fond of her.”

“really?” hao’s sister almost looks relieved upon hearing hao say those words “she always had that charm, it’s no wonder that her students are enamoured by her.”

“you knew her?”

“yeah, university,” she smiles at hao.

“how come you’ve never mentioned her?” hao asks with a frown.

this piques her interest. “well, i haven’t talked to her in years since she moved away.” she says, watching her brother’s steady reaction “i only found out she’s back when word got out that min’s class were getting a sub. yn made sure to personally let the parents know about what’s going to happen.”

hao just hummed, taking all of the information in. hao’s sister uses this to her advantage. “you sure do ask a lot of questions about her.”

minghao scoffs at his sister’s implication. “i’m just making sure that minnie’s in good hands,” hao replies almost defensively.

“oh, she’s in great hands,” hao’s sister smirks “why, do you think yn’s pretty?”

“stop trying to play matchmaker, jiejie!” hao throws a pillow at his sister “it’s rubbing off on minnie!”

hao’s sister laughs “what do you mean?! i did not teach my daughter that!”

“well, she must have seen it somewhere! she asked me the if i thought ‘miss ln was pretty,’” hao pointed out, frustrated.

“uncle haoi?” minnie calls from the backseat.

“yes, honey?” he looks at the rearview mirror to check on his niece.

“do you think miss ln is pretty?” min asked innocently, making hao choke on his own spit.

“well,” hao’s sister grins “what did you say?”

hao’s silence and the fact that his face was turning red was enough of an answer for his jiejie.

“aw, lovey, you had a crush on me from the start?” you beamed at him, adjusting your position from the couch. you were still practically glued to his side, tucked under his arms, but now you were just looking at him— chin resting on his chest.

hao playfully scoffed at your implication “baby, i think it was the other way around.” his answer prompts you to smack his chest lightly. “i was always wondering why you kept taking my umbrellas.”

you gasped, appalled. “you wish, xu minghao!”

“i did,” hao smiles at you. “you know whenever it rained, i always wished that for some reason you would forget your umbrella— which i knew you would, i’ve come to learn that after the first 2 weeks of dating you.”

“i have like four umbrellas from you,” you muttered shyly. hao laughs at your timid confession, softly caressing your cheeks.

“i know, i kept buying new ones,” he replied with a soft smile. “and since i knew you were eventually going to forget to bring one with you, i started offering you a drive home.”

“aha! so that was your tactic of wooing me then,” you squinted your eyes at him.

“uh, no?!” hao was almost offended, making you laugh. “it was the lilies, remember?”

“uncle haoi,” min calls for her uncle’s name excitedly “look what i’m giving miss ln!”

hao looks back at the driver’s seat to find min waving a pink ‘happy birthday’ card. he smiles at his niece’s sweet gesture.

ever since hao’s jiejie started working back in the office, he’s been frequently dropping off and picking up his niece. his work schedule conveniently fits min’s school schedule so this means more encounters with yn.

it’s funny, hao thinks. he’s somehow formed an indescribable bond with you. the fifth time that hao was actively aware that you forgot your umbrella (again), he insisted that he can drive you home.

“what kind of teacher am i if my students knew that i willingly went inside a stranger’s car?!” you argued.

“the kind of teacher that accepts help from those who are willing to give it,” hao argues back. this was your what— fifth meeting? it was refreshing for hao to see this side of you. “and i’m not a stranger! you know my jiejie.”

“yes, but i don’t know you,” you crossed your arms, childishly.

this makes hao crack a smile. this was the first time you saw hao smile— or rather, the first time hao smiled because of you.

“xu minghao,” hao extends his hand “you can call me haohao.”

hao checks the time on his car’s dashboard, it was still quite early since they beat the morning traffic. “should we buy flowers to go with that card, minnie?” he asks his niece who nodded excitedly.

“okay, why did you get me lilies though?” you asked him.

“heaven’s cloud café,” hao answered simply. “you were carrying a bouquet of white lilies.”

“and you presumed i just liked them?” you were teasing, of course. you liked white lilies. after receiving the bouquet of white lilies from hao for the first time, you’ve come to love them. you even kept some of the dried lilies on a frame— something to remember by.

“well, i made sure that i asked the right source.”

“still don’t know how you’ve managed to know him.” you grumbled “i feel betrayed.”

“i keep telling you that i met them during our university days!” hao laughs.

“how come he’s never mentioned you?!”

“jun never mentioned you either!”

“what about that one,” you asked jun, pointing at the red velvet cake “oh no, but that bear-shaped tiramisu looks adorable.” you pouted as you continued to browse the dessert section of the café.

“yn, seriously, just pick one,” jun groans as he watched you struggle. “wonwoo’s going to bite our head off.”

“i heard that,” a deep voice appears behind you two.

“i heard that” you mocked your friend, earning a smack in the head from wonu. “ya! i’m telling!”

jun laughs at you two. you, jun, and wonu grew up together. for three people who spent most of their lives intertwined, it’s amazing how you three are not still sick of each other.

you three even made a pact to have a mandatory weekly meeting. if one person can’t make it, they have to pay for the next meeting. since you’re all stingy, you three have done your own ways of going through hell and back just so you couldn’t miss a meeting.

“just pick the red velvet, ynnie,” jun says without even looking up at you, totally engrossed on his phone. “ynnie, you still like lilies, right?”

“yeah…” you said, watching jun type furiously on his phone. “who are you texting?”

“no one,” jun says not-so-innocently. “so what are we doing today aside from giving our hard-earned money towards cheol & han?” jun’s sentiment makes you three laugh.

“you know i keep hearing good reviews from this place from my co-workers,” you said as you eyed the chocolate cake.

“seriously! have these two never heard of a friends and family discount?” jun wails even more, obviously not done.

“what’s all this yapping about?” someone emerges from the backroom, carrying a fresh case of cupcakes.

“jeonghannie!” jun greets him with a smile. “if we buy three slices of cakes, do we get the next one free?”

“no, you get it for an additional 20% of the price,” jeonghan says making you laugh. jeonghan spots you— a new, yet oddly, familiar face. “you must be yn!”

“hi hi, yes!” you smiled at him. you’ve only heard jeonghan through stories from your friends— wonu and junnie. as a matter of fact, you’ve yet to meet their gigantic friend group. “i’ve heard lovely things about your place!”

jeonghan smiles, pleased. “and because of that your entire order will be on the house today!” he beams, before he turns to wonu and jun “you two have to pay full price.”

“that’s not fair, we’ve been friends for years!” jun whines, making jeonghan laugh.

“oh, it’s fine, i’ll be happy to pay— no worries!” you say with a kind smile.

“okay, fine all of your orders are on the house,” jeonghan rolls his eyes playfully. “only because you’re sweet and hao just can’t get enough of you.”

you were about to say something when jun places his hand over your mouth. “thank you so much jeonghannie! i’ll make sure to put in a good word to my co-workers!” jun says in one breath, pushing you towards one of the empty booths.

“junnie,” you eyed him warily “what was jeonghan talking about?” you asked with your arms crossed.

“well, it’s a long story actually…” jun trailed off, scratching the back of his head.

“how does he know about minghao?”

jun was about to answer when wonu interrupts him as soon as he finished ordering for the rest of you. “we’re all friends, yn,” wonu starts off “it’s quite impossible for our circles not to cross.”

“okay, but that doesn’t explain what’s going on,” you said, confused. “and how come i’ve never heard of hao when i know literally everyone else.”

“yes, you do!” jun counters “it’s just sometimes we’re used to calling him his korean name.”

“he’s myungho?” you were flabbergasted, somehow the dots never aligned. “god, that man has so many names,” you muttered to yourself “then how—“

“university days,” wonu answers for you “you went to a different school, you even met hao’s sister.”

“you even moved out of town,” jun added, practically resting their case. besides, it’s not like you always kept tabs on who their friends were. however, the latter part of jeonghan’s sentence got you intrigued.

“okay…” you were unconvinced “but what about the other thing that jeonghan said?”

this makes jun smirk, using it to his advantage. “about what you being sweet?” jun asks innocently, making wonwoo laugh.

“wen junhui!” you smacked his arm playfully “i’m being serious here!”

“i’m serious too! i’m not too sure about you being sweet though,” jun says teasingly, making you roll your eyes at him “hao, however…”

wonu watches your reaction, he noticed your attention perked up— eyes practically dancing in anticipation. “aw, our little yn has a crush,” wonu says with a teasing smile.

“psh, me? having a crush? what am i, 5?” you were getting defensive, which means they were correct with their assumptions.

“aha, so you did have a crush on me!” hao exclaimed, pulling you closer to him— as if you could get any closer.

“yes,” you muttered through your teeth “however, you liked me first! you kept bringing me coffee every time you dropped off min at school.”

hao didn’t want to argue so he nodded, smiling softly at you. “yeah, i sure did.” his comment makes you melt into a puddle. one year of dating and he still manages to make your heart burst. “and i think if i had the chance to do it again, i wouldn’t change a thing.”

“you’d still give me your umbrella?”

“i’d still give you my umbrella,” hao murmurs before giving you a kiss on the lips.