#herealwaysseries

It started with the occasional sneeze. She brushed it off as a simple allergy, not giving it a second thought as she wiped her nose and kept moving. But then came the shivers. During choreography practice, she found herself in a frustrating battle with her own skin; she was constantly pulling her zip-up hoodie on and ripping it off again. One moment she felt like she was standing in a freezer, and the next, she was burning up from the inside out.

The headaches followed soon after. Jiyeon didn't complain; she just ducked away to take a few pills and pushed through each gruelling day. As her complexion grew increasingly pale, Minho was the first to really take notice, “You okay?” 

When she caught his eye, she quickly assured him masking her discomfort with a tired smile, “Yeah, just a small headache.”

Minho didn't look convinced but didn’t push any further. He kept observing her quietly as she squinted and rubbed her temples every now and then. He later shared his concerns with Chan, “Channie-hyung, she doesn’t look to well does she?”  

Chan snuck a glance at her. She was squatting, head in between her arms trying to block out the light.

 “Yeah, she’s been telling everyone she’s fine so I don’t want to push her. I’m sure she’ll tell one of us if she’s too sick to push through.” Minho hummed and Chan added, “Let’s just keep an eye on her.”

But Jiyeon didn’t tell any of them.

She refused to be the reason for any delay in their preparations. She told herself she could handle it, so she kept pushing. The rest of the members began to notice the cracks in her facade, too, but they stayed quiet, observing her closely just in case her health took a turn for the worse over the next few days.

Today, Jiyeon woke up feeling truly awful. She squinted as soon as she opened her eyes, the morning light feeling far too bright against her sensitive vision. Her body felt heavy and sore, her nose was stuffed, and she could tell she was burning with a fever. Stubborn as ever, she just took another pill, pulled on a mask and a ball cap, and headed to work. As she left the room, she bumped into Felix, “Macy, are you okay? Why are you all covered up?”

She cleared her throat to hopefully mask her sore throat, “Oh, I just woke up very swollen and didn’t have time to make it go down.” He gave her a concerned look but before he could say anything else, she stepped forward, “We should get going.”

They had a long day ahead: dance practice, vocal recordings, and a meeting to finalize their upcoming comeback.

It was during their second hour of dance practice that her body finally decided it couldn’t function anymore. The guys had been throwing her concerned looks since they started, especially with the way a dry cough rattled her chest every few minutes. They were in the middle of their routine when Jiyeon’s vision suddenly spotted with black. She stumbled, her feet tangling as she messed up the formation. Her body gave up from sheer exhaustion, and she collapsed to the floor.

Everything went fuzzy.

Her hearing felt like she was underwater and her vision was a blur of movement. She felt someone grab her, gently sitting her upright and leaning her against their body for support. She felt the cold edge of a plastic bottle against her lips and realized someone was trying to give her water.

Once her vision cleared enough to see, she found herself surrounded by eight terrified, concerned faces. Realizing she was on the floor, she instinctively tried to scramble up, but Chan quickly stopped her, crouching down directly in front of her.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't get up," he commanded gently. "Don't get up."

She still tried to push herself up onto her hands and knees, her voice weak, "I'm fine."

"Macy," he said, his tone turning stern as he slipped into English—a sure sign he was serious, "You're not fine." He pressed the back of his hand against her forehead and sighed, "You're burning up. Why didn't you tell me or any of us you were sick?"

"I'm fine," she whispered stubbornly, "I was taking care of it."

Minho cut in, his voice sharp with worry, "Taking pills to numb the pain and discomfort while pushing yourself to the point of collapsing is not taking care of it."

"I’m really fine," she insisted, looking at Chan, "Let’s continue practicing for the comeback. I can't be the reason we have a delay. I can push through and then I'll rest."

"No," Chan said firmly. "You must be delirious if you think I'm going to let you continue in this state. You’re going home and you’re resting."

"But—"

"No buts. Minho, can you take her home and make sure she actually rests?"

Minho nodded immediately.

"We'll finish up here, record some vocals, and then I'll come by to check on you," Chan added. With Changbin’s help, Chan pulled her up from the floor. "Up we go, Ji."

Even as her legs shook beneath her, she tried to protest, almost pleading, "I'm really okay. We can finish dance practice. I won't fall again, I promise."

"Jiyeon," Chan’s stern tone finally silenced her. This wasn't her concerned best friend talking anymore; it was their leader. "Listen to me. You’re going home to rest. We'll finish here and I'll let management know. The sooner you recover, the better it will be for you."

The finality in his gaze left no room for argument. She gave a small, defeated nod, "Okay."

Minho had already gathered their things, stepping in to put a supportive arm around her shoulders. Before they left the room, Chan spoke one last time, "Hey, I'll come by your dorm later, okay?"

She nodded while Minho assured him, “I’ll make sure she stays in bed”.

Back at the dorm, Minho quietly helped her get settled. He told her he would draw her a bath so she could clean up, and while she did that, he would make her some remedy soup. He helped her to the bathroom before leaving her to herself.

Once she was done, Jiyeon slowly made her way to her room. She pulled on her loosest pyjamas and crawled under the covers. As her body finally relaxed, the sickness seemed to hit her tenfold. She felt truly awful.

A few minutes later, Minho pushed the door open with his shoulder, carrying a tray. He placed it on the bedside table and sat by her legs. He pressed his palm to her forehead—his skin felt heavenly and cool against her heat, and she closed her eyes in delight.

"You idiot," he muttered, "Why didn't you tell us you were sick?"

Blinking slowly, she gave him a tired smile, "I thought I could manage. I thought I'd get better without having to worry any of you."

"Well, you did a shit job," he sighed. "You promised you would talk to us when something was bothering you, that you wouldn't bottle it up and deal with it by yourself."

"I'm still working on that," she admitted softly.

He just sighed again, grabbing the bowl of soup and bringing a spoon to her lips, "Open."

She obeyed, letting him feed her until the bowl was empty. After handing her more medicine, he finally let her settle to rest.

Chan was finally on his way to the dorm later that night. He had finished working on some tracks and was exhausted, but his mind was on Jiyeon. He pulled out his phone to text Minho.

Chan sighed, locking his phone as he headed up to their dorm instead of his own.

Inside, Jiyeon was struggling. She tried to sleep—she really did—but the cold sweats were relentless, and her headache had returned with a vengeance. It was well past two a.m., she had heard the rest of the members return around 10 pm, but now the dorm was silent. She kept tossing and turning, feeling a sharp pain behind her eyes and sweat slicking her skin.

Just as she found a semi-comfortable position and closed her eyes, there was a soft knock. The door creaked open, and Chan stepped in, "Hey, how are you feeling?"

She slowly blinked her eyes open, looking up at him, "Slightly better... but still awful."

He chuckled softly before stepping fully into the room and closing the door behind him. He approached her bed and looked down at her, "Scoot over."

She moved to the side, though she wasn't sure how they would both fit on her single bed. Chan pushed the covers back and sat upright against the headboard, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. He pulled her closer until her head was resting against his chest, his fingers beginning to move in a soothing rhythm up and down her arm.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled against him.

His movements stopped briefly, "Why are you apologizing?"

"I messed up practice."

"No, no," he murmured, his fingers resuming their path. "You didn't mess anything up. We can always pick it back up. Your health is more important to me. I'm just disappointed you didn't trust me enough to tell me."

She tilted her head up to look at him, "I trust you, you know I do." She looked back down, hugging his torso. "I just didn't want you to worry. Not when we have so much to do for the comeback."

"Well, you did worry me," he countered gently. "You worried all of us when you collapsed. We can always postpone a comeback, Macy, but we can't postpone our health. Just tell me next time. Or tell any of the kids. Just don't keep it to yourself, okay?"

"Okay," she whispered.

She still looked like she was overthinking, and as if he could read her mind, Chan hugged her a bit tighter. "Don't worry about the comeback timeline. We'll record the rest of your vocals when you get better. Right now, I just want you to rest and get your strength back."

She hummed, already beginning to drift off into a much deeper sleep than before. Chan watched her as her breathing finally evened out. He leaned down and kissed the top of her head, "Sleep tight."

He stayed there with her, his fingers slowly tracing patterns on her arm until he, too, eventually fell asleep, the two of them curled together in the quiet of the night.

The next morning, the guys were walking around the dorm getting ready. It was Seungmin—currently brushing his teeth—who stopped in his tracks when he noticed Chan’s bag placed neatly by the sofa. He turned to search for one of the members, stopping Felix as he walked by. With a mouth full of toothpaste, he asked, “Did Chan-hyung forget his bag?”

Felix looked from Seungmin to the bag and back to Seungmin before shrugging. This was unusual; Chan never separated from his laptop, and he especially wouldn’t have left for work and left it behind. Seungmin quickly rushed to the bathroom to rinse his mouth as Felix quietly headed towards Jiyeon’s door.

Seungmin joined him just as Felix slowly and quietly cracked the door open. They were met with both of them still asleep, Jiyeon’s head tucked between his shoulder and chest, his arms wrapped around her as he leaned his head on hers, letting out even breaths.

Felix let out a quiet ‘aww’ while Seungmin just stared at them with a grin on his face, eyes glinting. Jeongin joined them soon after, confused at first why they were peeking into Jiyeon’s room, before he himself smiled at the sight of their oldest members sleeping soundly.

Minho stopped in his tracks, a confused look on his face when he saw the three of them huddled by the door, “What are you doing?”

They jumped, almost slamming the door shut and letting out a small scream. They froze, checking to see if they had woken either of them up, but luckily both were still fast asleep. Seungmin looked at Minho with a grin. “It’s hyung and noona, they’re cuddled together.”

Minho peeked in before pulling them away from the door and slowly closing it, “Leave them be. It’s time he got some sleep too.”

With that, they spread out, grabbing their things and heading out to the company. Felix was on his phone, smiling as he texted the group chat, for a moment forgetting that Jiyeon and Chan would later see that, but he just had to share what they had witnessed.

Little did they know that Chan had woken up when they got startled and almost slammed the door shut. But Minho was right. It was time he got some decent sleep too.

So just for today, he decided to come in later to work. He adjusted his position on the bed, pulling Jiyeon closer into him; she stirred but settled quickly, and he fell back into slumber.

With Jiyeon in his arms.

All nine members were gathered inside a classroom, but the eerie noises filtering in from outside had already put Jiyeon completely on edge. Honestly, they were all tense. Some more than others, constantly checking behind their shoulders as if a ghost might pop out at any second. Jiyeon stood glued between I.N and Felix, her arms wrapped tightly around herself for comfort as she stressed out.

“Whose idea was it to film here at night?” she whined.

Her question went unanswered as a staff member laid out several tangled, red jump ropes on the floor in front of them.

Jiyeon hesitantly asked, “What is that for?”

The staff quickly explained the theme of today’s episode. Since the group had been obsessed with Squid Game lately, today they would have to search the building to retrieve pieces of a puzzle.

“Do we just pick one?”

As they stared down at the red ropes, the staff explained the rules: they would each grab one handle of a jump rope. Whoever pulled the rope linked to theirs would be their partner for the day, and they would have to work together to create a sexy dance for the SKZ CODE teaser.

“We’ll have partners for the whole day, then,” Chan said, carefully sizing up the lines to see who he might get.

That sounded like a total nightmare to Hyunjin. “Can we not choose?”

“Can I just do it alone?” Changbin asked.

“I think this is kind of…” Chan trailed off, inspecting the knots. “This looks really well-tied. Should we all grab a handle and pull at the same time?”

“Wait,” Jiyeon said, counting heads. “There’s nine of us. Will someone actually have to do this alone?”

The staff replied with a simple, silent motion: Please pick a handle.

They each grabbed a handle and pulled on three. The massive knot didn't loosen at all; instead, the handles snapped cleanly away from the rope. While most of the guys were left holding just a plastic handle, Jiyeon was left holding a handle with half a rope still attached to it. The end wasn't jagged or frayed—it was a perfectly clean, deliberate cut. She had unfortunately chosen a half-rope from the start.

Jiyeon looked from the rope to the camera, then to the staff, and back again.

Changbin was the first to burst out laughing, pointing wildly at her terrible luck—completely forgetting that he had been the one asking to go solo just seconds ago.

Jiyeon slowly turned her head toward him, her right eye twitching. Sensing danger, every single member except Changbin took a synchronized step backward. Changbin kept laughing, completely none the wiser, until Jiyeon slowly grabbed the split end of the rope. Folding it against the handle, she pulled it tight and gave it a sharp tug. A loud, whip-like crack echoed through the classroom.

Changbin’s laughter cut off instantly. His eyes widened, and he slowly started backing away before breaking into a full sprint, screaming as Jiyeon chased him around the classroom, trying to spank his butt with the rope for laughing at her. The rest of the guys were absolutely losing their minds, laughing their asses off at the chaos.

When a pouting Jiyeon and a winded Changbin—who was defensively rubbing his side—finally came back in line, the production crew was ready to moving things along. Since the ropes hadn't untangled, the staff revealed that numbers were written inside their hollow handles to determine the pairs.

The members quickly matched up: Han was paired with I.N, Felix was with Lee Know, Seungmin got Hyunjin, and lastly, Changbin was paired with Chan.

Jiyeon, of course, was left entirely without a partner. She stood at the end of the line with her arms crossed, sporting a mock sour pout.

Next came the teaser dance, and the mandatory theme was "sexy." Felix and Lee Know went first, dancing to Surfin’. Seungmin and Hyunjin followed up with Back Door. When Changbin and Chan took their places in the center, Hyunjin instantly ruined the vibe by commenting, “Why are both your butts so big?”

Changbin defensively blamed it on the cut of his pants, but Hyunjin wasn't wrong—their builds were remarkably plump.

Jiyeon nodded in total agreement. “No, no, he’s right. They’re huge.” She then paused, turning her head over her shoulder to glance critically at her own backside, letting out a small frown. She didn't have a flat butt by any means, but somehow, the two of them still had her beat. Chan and Changbin then launched into their "sexy" version of Miroh, which, in Jiyeon's eyes, looked less like a seductive teaser and more like embarrassing dad moves at a wedding.

Then it was Han and I.N’s turn. The heavy, seductive beginning notes of Red Lights suddenly blasted through the speakers, and both of them instantly locked in. The members watched, highly amused. Changbin yelled out every time they hit a perfect beat, while Jiyeon let out a brief shriek, dropping into a dramatic crouch and covering her face—though she still peeked through her fingers. Meanwhile, Chan was clutching the classroom windowsill, looking utterly scandalized by the performance of the very song he had written.

Lastly, it was Jiyeon’s turn. She shuffled awkwardly toward the center of the room, one arm wrapped across her stomach to grip her opposite elbow in a defensive posture.

"Do I really have to do this alone? Ugh, this is gonna be so embarrassing," she whined playfully, making a face at the main camera.

Stepping into position, she dropped her arms, giving her hands and legs a quick, loose shake to release the tension. The speaker blasted the first beat of the music, and in a fraction of a second, her entire demeanor flipped. Her eyes sharpened, her posture shifting into pure, unadulterated confidence. Her assigned song was Wow from their IN LIFE album.

Her opening moves had the guys instantly hollering and cheering. She effortlessly mixed elements of the original choreography with her own sensual freestyle, at one point smoothly dropping into a sensual side split.

The guys went wild. I.N immediately covered his face, peeking through his fingers; Seungmin stood wide-eyed with his mouth hanging open; Chan literally covered his eyes, shaking his head as if trying to erase the image from his brain; while Lee Know just stood there, chuckling in approval. On any other show, they probably would have dramatically turned around to shield their eyes, but today they were just having fun.

With the dances finished, the production team briefly sent them out to record a fake teaser before bringing them all back into the classroom. Four double school desks had been pushed together, with a single desk placed right in the dead center. Jiyeon took her seat at the lonely middle desk, while the pairs sat around her.

Jiyeon could feel the tension creeping back into her shoulders. It was too quiet, and going into these horror games completely blind was terrifying. The staff finished setting up the equipment, and right before the last crew member exited, they called out, “One moment, please.”

Not even a second later, the lights slammed off.

The room instantly exploded into loud, chaotic screams. Jiyeon flinched, covering her ears and pulling her knees up to her chest, resting her feet on the chair as she squeezed her eyes shut. Beside her, she felt Felix frantically grab her arm, clutching her for dear life. While most of the members were terrified, Jiyeon knew Lee Know was thoroughly enjoying himself. He loved horror, and even in the pitch black, she could feel his unnervingly calm aura vibrating off him.

Jiyeon slowly lowered her hands from her ears as her eyes adjusted to the dark. Suddenly, a deeply distorted, mechanical voice boomed over the speakers, making her shriek at the sudden noise.

“From now on, you must do exactly as I say if you want to survive. If you don’t, you’ll never be able to leave this building.”

The guys kept yelling in fear, someone desperately using their smartwatch screen as a makeshift flashlight while the voice continued.

“You must gather 5 pieces of the puzzle. Remember this: Never turn your back. Never be alone.”

With a sharp click, the classroom lights flickered back on.

Seungmin blinked, looking around. “Was that Lee Know-hyung’s voice?”

“I didn't hear it properly,” Lee Know replied smoothly.

Hyunjin turned to the group, his brow furrowed, “Did it say, ‘Never turn your back’?”

“I really didn’t understand it,” Seungmin added, looking toward the staff. “Can you play it one more time?”

Jiyeon blinked, clearing her throat to get their attention. “I’m sorry,” she interrupted, the guys quieting down to look at her. “But can we focus on the most important part? Like, I don’t know, the fact that it literally just said, ‘Never be alone’? I don’t have a partner!”

Lee Know smirked at her. “Tough luck.”

Jiyeon sent him a lethal glare, while Han tried to offer some weak encouragement. “You can do it, Jiyeon.”

Out of everyone left in the room, Chan and Felix looked the most visibly terrified. Jiyeon was a ball of paranoid nerves, while Lee Know sat there like an oasis of calm, showing zero signs of fear.

Eerie, ambient music started to drift through the speakers before the lights cut out a second time.

“Bang Chan and Changbin. Tie your arms together and retrieve the puzzle piece from the science lab on the second floor.”

The first pair stood up very reluctantly, shuffling over to the staff at the door to get their instructions. Chan looked physically ill. Jiyeon let out a soft chuckle at his expression, though she was genuinely worried. “Channie, you okay? You look even paler than usual.”

He gave a tight nod, but his terrified expression didn't budge.

Han walked over to the door, pulling at the handle. “It’s locked.”

Jiyeon looked over from her desk. “Wrong side, Hannie.”

“It slides the other way,” Changbin laughed.

Han shifted, sliding it open and looking back at Changbin. “Oh, is this how it works?”

Changbin kept laughing. “That’s how it’s supposed to be.”

As the first duo reviewed their instructions one last time, Han started acting wild, hilariously trying to climb out the classroom window to escape. The staff replayed the audio cue, and Changbin and Chan finally accepted their slinky cuffs, reluctantly stepping out into the dark hallway.

“Why do we have to go first?!” Chan whined, his voice fading down the corridor.

With the first pair gone, the remaining members tried to pass the time by being silly. Jiyeon, realizing she was going to have to brave the darkness by herself, tried to extract some leverage from the staff.

“Do I also have to be cuffed?”

Silence.

“Maybe I could get a little hint? You know, since I’m completely by myself.”

Still no answer. Suddenly, a distant, blood-curdling scream echoed from upstairs, courtesy of Chan and Changbin. Everyone paused, whipping their heads toward the door. Taking advantage of the distraction, Hyunjin and Han decided to quickly run to the bathroom, leaving only Seungmin, Felix, Lee Know, and Jiyeon in the room.

Jiyeon turned back to the staff, trying again. “A flashlight?”

Nothing.

“Maybe I could just join another team?”

Zilch.

“Anything at all?”

Nada.

Suddenly, the front door burst open and Chan and Changbin came rushing back into the room, looking thoroughly rattled. Chan looked sheepishly at the staff. “Can we just live in here?”

Jiyeon immediately raised her hand, already lifting herself out of her chair. “I will gladly switch places with you.”

Chan shook his head vigorously, clinging tightly to Changbin’s arm.

From across the room, Lee Know yelled, “Just do it quickly and get back!”

Seungmin offered some words of encouragement, but as Chan and Changbin turned back toward the door to try again, Hyunjin and Han came rushing back from the bathroom. The sudden appearance startled both duos. In the utter chaos of everyone jumping, Chan accidentally bumped into Lee Know, sending Lee Know stepping heavily right onto Jiyeon’s foot.

Jiyeon squeezed her fists, throwing her mouth open to scream, but she was so startled that no sound came out. Lee Know quickly apologized, and as Chan and Changbin finally left the room for real, the remaining five members settled back into small talk to pass the time.

“If Yongbok faints up there, should I just drag him around by his legs or what?” Lee Know mused, trying to lighten the mood.

They all laughed, and Jiyeon immediately tried to leverage the moment to switch places with him, since he was clearly the least affected. But her attempts were instantly shot down by the staff. There were no takebacks, leaving her to pout at her desk.

Felix, trying to find a distraction, started rummaging through a nearby storage cabinet. He pulled out a stray package. “If we can’t get out of here, let’s just eat this.”

“I’ve actually kind of wanted to try an episode like this,” Han commented, leaning back.

Lee Know, casually fiddling with his smartwatch, agreed. “Me too! It looks fun!”

Jiyeon turned her head, leaning over her desk to glare at him. “You say that, but you still didn't try to swap with me.”

“Should have chosen a different jump rope,” he replied, flashing her a cheeky, cat-like smile.

Jiyeon’s eye twitched before she turned a completely dead-eyed stare directly into the camera lens.

Han kept the conversation going. “Back in the day, when you watched variety shows on TV, they’d always do stuff like this. Like a horror mission, or someone bringing a scary challenge to you, right?”

“Like Love Letter?” Seungmin added.

“But there are set rules,” Han suggested, eyes gleaming. “Before we have to go out there, let’s each tell a scary story.”

“I hate this,” Felix muttered.

“Let’s start with the classics,” Han said.

“The classics?” Lee Know wondered aloud. “Yongbok doesn’t know the classics.” He then turned his gaze to Jiyeon. “Do you know the classics?”

“I’ve heard a few,” she murmured.

“Right,” Lee Know started, leaning forward as his voice dropped into a dramatic whisper. “You go to school at night to find something you forgot, and suddenly, you hear this heavy banging sound…”

Felix was already leaning away from Lee Know, looking terrified. Jiyeon grimaced; she hadn't heard this particular Korean school legend, but just imagining it made her skin crawl.

“...You hide under the teacher’s desk,” Lee Know continued, “and you hold your breath. The exact moment you finally exhale, thinking the ghost has left, from right behind the desk—”

BANG!

Han slammed his hands down on the desk with a loud crash. Simultaneously, Lee Know threw his torso flat across the table, half his body hanging over the edge. Felix shrieked, jumping out of his skin, while the rest of the room erupted into laughter.

“My turn,” Jiyeon said, clearing her throat. “Since we’re talking about ghosts… back in Canada, there’s this massive, luxury five-star hotel downtown called The Fairmont Hotel. It’s famous for a spirit called the ‘Lady in Red.’ People say her name was Jennie Pearl Cox, a socialite in the 1940s who died in a violent car crash right outside the front doors. She used to stay on the 14th floor, and guests who get rooms there still swear they see her gliding in and out of the elevators.”

Felix’s eyebrows furrowed in deep worry, his hands gripping his desk tightly as the rest of the members listened attentively, entirely unfamiliar with Western urban legends.

“The most famous story happened to a Japanese family who checked in,” Jiyeon continued, lowering her voice. “They went up to their room, opened the door, and a beautiful woman in an elegant red gown was already standing there... smiling at them. They ran straight down to the front desk, complaining that their room had been double-booked. But when the manager went up to check… the room was completely empty.”

A few of the guys let out surprised, intrigued noises, while Felix let out a massive sigh of relief. “Ah, that’s not that scary.”

Just then, faint, echoing screams drifted down through the ceiling. All of them looked up.

“What’s going on upstairs?”

“What are they doing?”

“Why are they stomping around so much?”

“Oh, those two are easily the biggest cowards in the group,” Lee Know stated plainly.

With the distant screams providing a lovely background ambiance, their conversation shifted to whether zombies or ghosts were fundamentally scarier.

“I don’t think zombies are that scary. They’re just creepy,” Han argued.

Felix shook his head. “No, ghosts are definitely scarier.”

Then, out of nowhere, Han blurted, “People are the scariest.”

Lee Know immediately countered, “People can become zombies, and people can become ghosts. Keep your backbones, people! What would you actually choose? Zombies or ghosts?”

“Zombies wouldn’t be any fun,” Seungmin reasoned. “They’re too slow.”

“Okay, yeah,” Jiyeon cut in. “But there are different types of zombies. Like, would you rather encounter a traditional, slow zombie, or a zombie like the ones in The Blank of Blank? Because I find those to be terrifying, and some of them are incredibly fast.”

Lee Know smirked. “What if a track athlete became a zombie? Can you outrun it?”

Han shrugged. “I’ll just get bitten, then.”

“I’d rather be injected with zombie blood,” Hyunjin chimed in. “It’s better than having a horrific chunk missing from a bite wound somewhere.”

Jiyeon gave him a look. “You’re worried about your looks in a literal apocalypse? I’m starting to think these games are going to prove our actual survival skills.”

Lee Know chuckled. “You have very high hopes for us, then.”

Jiyeon playfully rolled her eyes, but Han seemed to agree with the sentiment. “I just think it would hurt way too much to get bitten. I hate the thought of getting bitten more than the thought of actually becoming a zombie.”

Not long after, the classroom doors slid open and Chan and Changbin walked in, carrying a small paper plate. Their terrified expressions from earlier were completely gone.

“That was literally nothing!” Changbin bragged, waving his hand. “Guys, come and eat.”

Chan approached the desks and placed a plate of hot popcorn chicken in front of them.

“Where did you even get that?” Jiyeon asked, instantly reaching out to pop a piece into her mouth.

“It was just sitting in the lab room,” Chan explained, shrugging his shoulders.

“Go up there and see what it’s like for yourselves,” Changbin urged the remaining pairs. “Honestly, it’s so scary.”

Han pointed a finger at the leader, “Look at Chan-hyung’s face, though. He looks totally lost.”

Chan did indeed look like he was having severe flashbacks, his complexion still a bit pale. But even though Changbin openly admitted it was terrifying, Chan quickly tried to deny it to save face.

Jiyeon tilted her head, putting on an overly sweet, high-pitched voice as if speaking to a toddler. “Channie, would you like to watch some cartoons to make you feel better?”

The room erupted into laughter before the staff guided Chan and Changbin out to the designated waiting room where the finished teams were being collected.

Left in the classroom, Hyunjin went right back to their previous conversation about paranormal phenomena. “Are ghosts just hallucinations? Do they biologically exist?”

“It’s a 50-50 chance. They either exist or they don’t,” Han summarized.

“It wasn't a full ghost, but I definitely saw a black figure once,” Hyunjin explained seriously. “After we finished filming the District 9 MV, I got really sick with norovirus. I was lying in bed at home, completely miserable, when a ghost opened the door. This solid black figure walked up to me and suddenly entered my body. I had to force myself to move my pinky finger, threw myself completely out of the bed, and finally woke up.”

“Is that back when I found you wandering in the kitchen in the middle of the night?” Jiyeon asked, the memory clicking. He definitely scared her that night.

Hyunjin nodded.

“You know, I think I experienced sleep paralysis once, too,” Jiyeon added.

“You did?” Han asked.

“Mhmm,” she nodded. “I just suddenly woke up one night, but I couldn’t move my body at all. I saw these weird, small glowing orbs floating around, and what looked like a dark figure standing right in front of me. It completely disappeared the second I was finally able to snap out of it and move. I couldn't go back to sleep for a long time after that.”

Right on cue, the eerie, ambient music started blaring through the speakers again.

Felix groaned, slamming his head on the desk. “Oh, seriously, please!”

“Lee Know and Felix. Tie your arms together and bring back the puzzle piece from the second-floor art room.”

Felix let out a desperate scream as Lee Know stood up with zero hesitation. “Let’s go! It’s in the art room!”

Felix kept protesting, dragging his feet, so Lee Know tried to cheer him up as he grabbed the slinky ties and the handheld camera. “Look at it this way, Yongbok-ah—it would be way scarier to be the absolute last ones left in this room.”

Hearing that, Jiyeon’s head dropped onto her desk with a loud whine. “Don’t say that. Don't remind me.”

“Bye! See you later!” Lee Know called out cheerfully.

Felix was practically velcroed to Lee Know’s side, turning back to look at the remaining three members with a look of pure betrayal. “Why do they make us do this?”

“I seriously hope Felix doesn’t faint,” Han laughed as they walked out.

“If Yongbok faints, just carry him back on your back, hyung!” Hyunjin yelled.

“Bye! Good luck!” Jiyeon waved.

Seungmin called out cheeckily, “At least you guys aren't alone!”

“Stop reminding me!” Jiyeon immediately narrowed her eyes at him. The guys laughed at Jiyeon as Felix and Lee Know disappeared into the hallway.

With the second duo gone, they went right back to telling scary stories to pass the time. Han was currently in the middle of a detailed tale about a creepy cabin in the woods, while Hyunjin and Jiyeon kept eating to finish off the plate of popcorn chicken, with I.N stealing a piece every now and then.

They kept conversing for a few minutes until the eerie music started up yet again. Jiyeon instantly perked up, her heart racing—this was it, her turn was finally here.

But as the voice spoke, her shoulders instantly deflated, and she shoved another piece of chicken into her pouty mouth in utter disappointment.

“Han and I.N. Get the puzzle from Grade Six, Class Four on the second floor.”

Now, it was just down to her and the final duo on who would be forced to go next. For the next several minutes, the remaining trio did absolutely anything to kill the suffocating silence. They played truth or dare, gossiped, and played random hand games. At one point, Seungmin left the room to fetch more snacks. Hyunjin immediately decided it was the perfect opportunity to pull a prank. He climbed precariously onto one of the school cabinets, crouching down and waiting silently until Seungmin walked back through the door.

Unfortunately, Hyunjin was completely unsuccessful; Seungmin didn't even flinch, leaving Hyunjin to miserably complain that his knees hurt from crouching up there for so long. Seungmin casually tossed a pack of sour gummies to Jiyeon, and her face instantly lit up.

“Thanks, Minnie!” She reached over and affectionately ruffled his hair. Seungmin immediately pulled away, making a hilarious whiny face to protect his styling.

They waited for a few more agonizing minutes. Just as Seungmin suggested they all tie their shoelaces extra tightly, the terrifying music began to wail.

The distorted voice boomed through the classroom, assigning the final missions simultaneously. Jiyeon, Seungmin, and Hyunjin were each handed small cameras.

“Hyunjin and Seungmin, tie your arms together and go get the puzzle from the dormitory outside. Jiyeon, follow Hyunjin and Seungmin outside and get the puzzle in the gym.”

Knowing she had to face the dark outside of the school entirely by herself, Jiyeon stuck close to Hyunjin and Seungmin. However, the moment they stepped outside the main school building, they had to separate to reach their respective locations.

Left entirely alone in the pitch black, Jiyeon’s survival instincts kicked in hard. Remembering the warning to 'never turn your back,' she stuck flat against the building’s concrete walls, sliding sideways so nothing could sneak up behind her. Whenever she had to cross an open space where there was no wall to press into, she constantly spun around, frantically looking over her shoulders at the empty air.

When she finally pushed open the heavy doors to the gymnasium, she was met with a deeply unsettling sight. The vast room was dimly lit, the floor illuminated only by scattered, flickering fake candles. Surrounding a central table were dozens of eerie mannequins dressed in pristine ballet tutus—some of which were heavily stained with gruesome splatters of fake red blood.

Jiyeon felt her stomach drop. “This is so creepily detailed,” she muttered to herself, her voice trembling slightly.

Summoning her courage, she forced her legs to move closer to the center. Resting on the main table was a securely locked box with a handwritten note taped to the top. It read: 'Arrange the mannequins to unlock the box.'

She muttered to herself in utter confusion, turning around to scan the dark room, barely able to see anything in the flickering candlelight. Suddenly, from the absolute corner of her eye, she caught a flash of movement.

She hastily whipped around, her heart rate spiking violently into the red zone, "Did that mannequin just move?"

She was completely stressed, terrified, and utterly alone. She frantically tried to figure out how to arrange the mannequins, but her mind was far too clouded with adrenaline and fear to think logically.

Meanwhile, back in the safe, fully lit waiting room, the members who had already completed their missions were huddled around a small live-feed monitor. They were loudly commenting on the intense setup.

“Woah,” Chan said, shaking his head as he looked at Jiyeon's feed. “That looks way scarier than the science lab.”

“I take back being able to do a mission by myself,” Changbin admitted earnestly. “That is seriously scary.”

Felix just looked worried looking at the set up, just the sheer thought of doing it by himself gave him goosebumps he couldn't imagine how Jiyeon must feel.

Back in the dim gym, Jiyeon was struggling. She frantically dragged a few of the mannequins around, but absolutely nothing made sense. Suddenly, she felt a freezing presence looming right behind her.

The moment she turned her head, she let out a piercing scream, losing her footing and dropping straight to the hardwood floor. She tightly covered her ears, screwing her eyes shut and begging out loud, “Please, please just leave me alone!”

It turned out that a horror actress was part of the set. She had been expertly dressed up to blend in perfectly with the static mannequins, but she was now limping toward Jiyeon with terrifying, broken, jerky movements. The actress gently nudged Jiyeon’s shoulder to get her attention.

Shaking from head to toe, Jiyeon slowly looked up. The actress silently extended her hand, offering a folded piece of paper. A clue!

The note revealed that there were exactly four specific mannequins she needed to position correctly based on their classic ballet poses.

Letting out a massive, shaky breath, Jiyeon forced herself to stand up. She carefully moved away from the twitching actress, though she still politely whispered, “Thank you for the clue,” before refocusing on the task.

She began hunting through the crowd for the four specific mannequins mentioned in the note. Upon finding the first one, she realized they were built on wheeled bases. She carefully rolled it into the center. The actress was still swaying creepily a few feet away, but Jiyeon’s brain had officially adapted; she figured the woman wouldn’t actively scare her anymore if she was giving out clues.

As she placed the first mannequin, Jiyeon glanced at the actress for confirmation. The actress gave nothing away. However, upon closer inspection, Jiyeon noticed a hidden number painted directly onto the mannequin's torso. Armed with this realization, she quickly hunted down the remaining three, rolling them into position and examining their numbers.

She still wasn't entirely sure what specific ballet positions they were supposed to be in, but they looked incredibly familiar. The numbers were clearly the combination for the lock, but she needed the correct sequence. After she fiddled with their placement a bit more, the actress subtly pointed toward another hidden note on the table. It was a second clue: 'A highly popular ballet performance.'

The note didn't specify the title, but Jiyeon stared between the paper, the creepy actress, and the specific tutus. Slowly, the pieces clicked in her mind. Swan Lake.

Analyzing the classic swan-like arm positions of the four mannequins, she carefully arranged them in the chronological order of the famous choreography. Each time she locked a wheeled mannequin into its final slot, she glanced at the actress, who gave her a slow, eerie nod of confirmation.

With all four correctly positioned, Jiyeon read the resulting sequence of numbers. She whipped around to the locked box, spun the dials to match the code, and pulled the latch.

Click.

The lock flew open. Deflating entirely, Jiyeon lifted the lid and pulled out a tiny, solitary puzzle piece.

Disappointed and thoroughly exhausted, she stared at it. "All of that... for this tiny little piece?"

She wasn't about to spend a single second longer in a gym full of bloody mannequins and a weeping actress. Clutching the puzzle piece tightly in her fist, she bolted for the exit and ran at a full sprint through the dark corridors, not stopping until she burst through the doors of the safe waiting room.

The staff quickly guided her back into the main classroom where the rest of the group was gathered. Jiyeon let out a massive, dramatic sigh of relief the moment she stepped into the bright, warm lights.

The members immediately gave her a loud round of applause as she tossed the hard-earned puzzle piece into Chan's hands, and promptly dropped flat onto the floor, her body still buzzing with adrenaline.

“That was so scary,” she groaned into the floorboards. “I am seriously going to have nightmares tonight.”

She rolled over onto her side, looking up at the live monitor which currently showed Hyunjin and Seungmin in the dark storage room. “What did they have to do anyway?”

Lee Know looked up from his seat, replying simply, “Dalgona.”

“What?!” Jiyeon squawked, pulling a highly offended face. That was incredibly easy and fundamentally less terrifying than a haunted ballet recital!

Before long, a triumphant Seungmin and Hyunjin slid the door open, proudly presenting the final puzzle piece. Chan quickly gathered everyone around the central desk to put the pieces together. The fragments formed a clear numerical code, but due to the stylized font, they couldn't tell if the final digits were 8119 or 6118.

Hyunjin leaned in closely, analyzing the lines. “Look, the bottom circle of the eight is much bigger. It’s definitely 6118.”

Nodding in agreement, they settled on that combination and filed out of the classroom, heading straight for the building's main front entrance. Just as they reached the doors, one of the horror actors jumped out, startling the entire group one last time. But Chan quickly entered 6118 into the lock. it clicked, the doors swung open, and the cool night air rushed in.

They could finally leave.

“Move, move, move! I don’t want to be here a single second longer than I have to!” Jiyeon yelled, humorously ushering the frantic members out into the courtyard.

But as the viewers would soon see, that wasn't the last time they would step foot into that building.

Cut to a few minutes later. They all had praised Jiyeon’s bravery beforehand, Hyunjin openly admitted that he never could have completed a mission entirely alone. This confession immediately sparked an idea among the staff, which is exactly how they all found themselves right back inside the monitoring room.

Now dressed in much comfier, cozy casual clothes, the members huddled happily around the screen, eating snacks and watching the live feed as Hyunjin was forced to go back inside to complete the art room mission completely solo.

His shrill, dramatic screams echoed loudly through the monitor, and the room was filled with the members' hysterical laughter. At one point, Hyunjin came rushing back into the room, gasping for air and claiming he absolutely couldn't do it, before the staff relentlessly pushed him back out to finish it. Not long after, Han, Lee Know, and Changbin slipped out of the room to pull a prank, and the remaining members heard Hyunjin’s ultimate, soul-crushing scream from the hallway. A moment later, he came bursting back into the room, collapsing flat onto the ground in a fit of exhausted laughter.

With the final spontaneous mission officially cleared, the group made their final walk out to the production cars, ready to go home.

Jiyeon turned around, pointing a strict finger directly at the main camera crew.

“Just for the record, and for your information,” she stated firmly, her voice echoing in the quiet night, “This is officially the first and the absolute last time I am ever doing a scary mission by myself. Next time, let someone else do it!”

With her playful warning hanging in the air, the members piled into their vans, leaving the 'haunted school' behind them. Season 2 of SKZCODE was officially underway, promising episodes filled with unparalleled chaos, unbreakable bonds, and—much to Jiyeon’s dismay—plenty more surprises.

She sat curled up on one of the couches—the one farthest from the guys—one ankle tucked under the other, phone resting loosely in her hands.  Her fingers fiddled with the device, but her attention was elsewhere—on the chaos unfolding in front of her.

Changbin was accusing Seungmin of cheating, his voice rising in mock outrage as the latter played all innocent. Felix, a witness to the whole ordeal, was laughing so hard he nearly fell off the floor cushion. Hyunjin was yelling something about rules, while Minho observed from the sidelines, expression unreadable and entirely unbothered. Jeongin was grinning, eyes crinkling, enjoying the chaos, and Han—well, Han was just looking at them with wide eyes, cheeks puffed and confusion written all over his face.

She smiled softly, the kind of smile that wasn’t for anyone else to see. It was for her. A quiet acknowledgment of how much she loved this. The noise, the laughter, the way they filled the room with life. It was chaos, pure and simple—but the kind that stitched memories into the quiet corners of her heart. They’d come a long way, yet those early days still felt close. Moments like this carried that same raw, unfiltered joy, and she cherished it.

The couch dipped slightly beside her, pulling her from her thoughts. She glanced up, and there he was, Chan, settling down with a sigh that spoke of exhaustion and contentment all at once. His hoodie was rumpled, hair slightly ruffled from the continuous running of his hands through it, and his shoulders slumped as if the weight of the day had finally loosened its grip.

“Taking a break?” she teased lightly, her voice soft enough that it didn’t cut through the laughter around them.

Chan chuckled, low and warm, rubbing the back of his neck. “Something like that,” he said, eyes flicking toward the group before landing back on her. “They’re… a lot.”

“They’re always a lot,” she replied, lips curving into a grin. “But we love it.”

He didn’t deny it. Just smiled, that soft smile that always tugged at something in her chest. For a while, they sat in silence—not awkward, not heavy, just… comfortable. The kind of silence that spoke louder than words, filled with the distant echoes of laughter and the soft hum of the TV playing something no one was really watching.

She shifted slightly, turning toward him, her knee brushing against his thigh as she adjusted her position. He glanced at her, curious, and she met his gaze with a softness that made his breath hitch just a little. Her eyes trailing over his features, they’d grown, yet something of those trainee years still lingered.

“I’m happy,” she said simply, voice barely above the chaos but somehow clear enough for him to hear. “That we’re all here. Together.”

Chan blinked, caught off guard by the sincerity in her tone. His lips parted, but no words came—not yet. She gave him a small smile, fingers fiddling with her phone before setting it aside on the couch. 

“And… thank you,” she added, leaning in just a fraction. “For everything. You’re doing such a great job, Chris.”

He looked away then, eyes dropping to his lap as color crept up his neck. His fingers curled loosely against his sweatpants, and he let out a breath that sounded almost like a laugh—soft, disbelieving.

“I’m not—” he started, but she cut him off gently, reaching out to cup his cheeks with both hands. Her touch was warm, grounding, and he froze momentarily, before leaning into her palm.

“Look at me,” she murmured, coaxing his gaze back to hers. “I know you. I know you don’t believe it half the time. But you should. Because it’s true.”

His throat worked as he swallowed, eyes searching hers like he was trying to find the right words. She brushed her thumbs lightly along his skin, offering a smile that held no judgment—only reassurance.

“You’re amazing,” she said softly. “And I’m so proud of you.”

For a moment, he just stared at her, something fragile and unspoken flickering in his eyes. Then, slowly, he reached for her hand—the one resting against his cheek—and guided it down to his lap, his fingers intertwining with hers. Her breath caught at the simple gesture, the warmth of his skin against hers, the way his grip was firm but gentle.

“I’m proud of you too,” he said finally, voice low and steady. “You’ve been incredible. And… I’m grateful for you. More than you know.”

Her heart stuttered, and she squeezed his hand lightly, brushing her fingers along his knuckles. “You don’t have to say that.”

“I do,” he insisted, a small smile tugging at his lips. “I couldn’t do this without you.”

She didn’t trust herself to speak, not right away. Instead, she let the silence settle again, this time heavier with meaning. Around them, the chaos continued,—shouts and laughter, the sound of something crashing followed by Han’s dramatic wail—but it all felt distant, like they were in their own little bubble.

Eventually, they both turned back to watch the others, hands still intertwined. The boys were a mess: Hyunjin had somehow ended up with a cushion on his face, Felix was filming everything for content, and Changbin looked ready to start a wrestling match. It was loud, ridiculous, and perfect.

She leaned in slowly, resting her head against Chan’s shoulder. He leaned his cheek on her head, one arm wrapped over her shoulders, the other on his lap—hands still intertwined—his thumb brushing absentmindedly over her hand. The warmth of him seeped into her, steady and comforting, and she closed her eyes for a moment, letting herself breathe it in.

Grateful. 

That was the word. She was grateful for this. This family, this chaos, this quiet corner of peace they’d carved out together. 

Grateful for him.

And as the laughter rose again, filling the room like music, she smiled—soft and sure—because she knew she wouldn’t trade this for anything.

The group trudged into a snowy clearing where a throne had been placed in the center, the pristine white slope forming a flawless backdrop. Today marked the filming of the first episode of their variety show: SZKCODE.

They were handed flags printed with their SKZOO faces. Jiyeon gasped, spreading out the fabric to get a better look. “SaJi, you’re so cute!”

Before she could show the others, the director approached. Each member would take a turn sitting on the throne for a shot in the episode’s introduction. One by one, they posed as the cameraman captured every angle.

Jiyeon leaned back against the throne, legs draped elegantly over the right armrest, left hand gripping the flagpole, chin lifted. She offered her best regal expression, each movement deliberate, almost theatrical under the scrutiny of the camera. They also took quick standing shots, showcasing their flags. When it was Jiyeon’s turn, she waved hers gently, letting the design flutter, then bent her right arm, curling her fingers like a claw.

“Grrr,” she growled playfully.

Once everyone finished, they gathered on either side of the throne. Facing the camera, they arranged themselves left to right: I.N, Seungmin, Changbin, Felix, Jiyeon, Hyunjin, Chan, Han, and Lee Know.

They had been briefed on the game and the rules to win, but Hyunjin still asked, “We’re picking the King, right?” Jiyeon fake-coughed, and Hyunjin shot her a side-eye, adding, “Or Queen.”

Changbin’s sudden booming voice made her grimace. “Who makes noise in front of the King?” Hyunjin had already planted himself on the throne, and Jiyeon’s shoulders slumped. “Guys, I know I’m the only girl, but come on.”

Her words went ignored. Chaos erupted. Lee Know approached Hyunjin, slipping the pole between his legs in a twist attempt, joined by Chan and Changbin, while Felix seemed intent on…pulling the throne down? Hyunjin eventually gave up defending himself and stood, giving Changbin the perfect opening to plop onto the throne. “The throne fits me perfectly!”

Jiyeon looked completely done, exasperation etched across her face. The camera captured every ounce of it.

Once the group settled slightly, Han spoke up. “How about we introduce ourselves?” Voices of agreement echoed, though Changbin—still perched on the throne, legs barely grazing the ground—asked, “What introduction?”

“I am ground! Introduce yourself!” Everyone began chanting before stating their names. Hyunjin forgot his own, prompting teasing, and Jiyeon wasn’t much better. “I’m Ma—Ji…Arryn.”

Each syllable faltered, and she realized she’d completely messed up. Han quipped, “We’re doing medieval, not industrial revolution,” which set everyone laughing. She took a small step toward him; he cowered behind Chan, muttering a series of “I’m sorry.”

The introductions quickly spiraled. Felix mispronounced his, struggling to wrestle his flag when the wind blew it into his face. Changbin’s name prompted teasing because it sounded like another word entirely. Seungmin’s name resembled a store chain, sparking food-related jokes. I.N. confused his entirely, and Han’s quip, “Like mother, like son,” set Jiyeon off.

“YAH! Han Jisung!” she exclaimed, advancing on him. He ducked behind Chan, apologizing profusely as Chan held Jiyeon’s arms, moving with her from side to side. Eventually, they all dissolved into laughter.

Back in her spot, Hyunjin remarked, “No one even knows the name of their own kingdom.”

“So, these aren’t individual names, but family names, right?” Chan asked, seeking confirmation. Everyone nodded. He elaborated, prompting Lee Know to realize his 'family name' was nonsense. He casually suggested the flagpole could double as a billiard cue—or a club—to beat them up. Typical Lee Know.

After the brief laughing fit subsided, Han spoke again. “So, we came to be kin—royals?” He quickly corrected himself. “We will compete with each other to take the throne through many games.” Shouts of agreement followed. “Everyone, please take this competition seriously. And I’ll be the referee.”

Their first quest was a physical fitness trial.

A small flag fluttered at the top of the slope, and they had to sprint up, grab it, and race back down. Each member would get a three-second head start—after Jiyeon protested that five seconds for her wouldn’t be fair to the guys—before everyone else was free to stop them. The shortest time would win the throne.

They unanimously chose Changbin to go first—without his input. He trudged to the start line, pulling in a breath. When the whistle shrilled, he bolted and nearly slipped immediately. Three seconds later, everyone scattered uphill like a defensive line. Snowballs started flying—wild, uneven, exploding into white puffs against his jacket. Just as he neared the finish line, Changbin’s feet went out from under him and he crashed down, the entire group erupting in laughter. Jiyeon bent at the knees, bracing herself with her gloved hands as she cackled.

Changbin stuck the flag in the ground and collapsed into a crouch, panting clouds into the cold air.

“I think I got it,” he huffed.

Someone called out, “What? Frostbite?”

“Hemorrhoids.”

Jiyeon snorted so hard she had to turn away from the camera, doubling over and leaning against the nearest warm body—it was Lee Know—as her shoulders shook. They lined back up as the crew announced his time: 42.33 seconds.

Changbin picked the next player: Seungmin. His start was smooth, but he slipped on the return trip, landing him at 44.22 seconds.

Han went next.

The whistle blew, and by the time three seconds passed, everyone dove for snow—but Han was shockingly quick. He tore downhill, hair flying back, and crossed the finish in 34.43 seconds.

It was time to choose again. Han approached Chan, but Changbin ordered him to pick Chan last. When Chan protested, Changbin declared, “He’s too fast! If he goes last he’ll be tired!”

Han settled on I.N.

I.N took off and Jiyeon giggled at his run, clapping lightly. “Aww, so cute.” Hyunjin hummed his agreement.

I.N finished in 37.31 seconds and chose Hyunjin next.

As he sprinted up the slope, Jiyeon stayed below, slightly out of breath already, legs braced wide and toes pointed outward for balance. Hyunjin slid his way back in at 32.67 seconds.

Seeing her condition, Hyunjin chose her next.

Jiyeon nodded, shaking out her arms, and moved to the invisible starting line. The whistle cut through the air, and she sprinted uphill, eyes locked on the flag. The boys gave chase, surprised shouts scattering around her.

“Yah! How is she so fast?”

“She’s light on her feet!”

She reached the top, snatched the flag with her left hand and scooped a handful of snow with her right. Turning sharply, she kicked into her descent. Snow crunched under Jiyeon’s boots as she zigzagged down the slope, dodging the members, heart pounding. A laugh bubbled up when she spotted Chan closing in—too close. Instinct took over; she flung a handful of snow, praying it hit its mark.

She crossed the line at 29.96 seconds—the best time so far.

While the camera focused on the others, she scanned the slope, found Chan heading towards her, and met him halfway. Softly, in English, she asked, “You okay?”

Chan looked up from brushing off snow, dimples cutting deep as he grinned. “Yeah.”

She frowned slightly, brushing the remaining snow from his sweater, then used the inside of her wrist to wipe a patch off his jaw. “I’m sorry.”

He shrugged, grin refusing to budge. “Anything to take the throne.”

She punched his shoulder lightly, and he dramatically staggered as if mortally wounded. Jiyeon laughed breathlessly, and they jogged back to line-up.

Jiyeon chose between the remaining members. She approached Lee Know, offering a low high-five. “Give ’em hell.”

Lee Know started up the hill—very slowly. The others didn’t bother chasing him, except Han. The rest gathered snow, except for Jiyeon, who simply laid onto her back in the snow, arms and legs spread like a lazy snow angel.

She lifted her head just in time to catch Lee Know grabbing the flag—checking its sharpness— launching himself at Han in a full sprint, only to slip down hard. Jiyeon dissolved into hysterics, laughter ripping out of her as she lay in the snow. Lee Know toppled onto her for a second—a brief weight across her ribs—before scrambling off again.

Lee Know had reached the finish line at 1 minute and 2 seconds.

Han let out a triumphant yell, then declared, “The ’98 liners are so aggressive!”

“What?!” Jiyeon protested. “No we’re not!”

Han gestured towards Chan. “Channie-hyung was almost blinded by snow.” Then pointed towards Lee Know. “And when Lee Know-hyung came down, he didn’t come down like everyone else. He came down like this—”

He mimicked a deranged charging posture. “I thought I would get killed if I dared block him.” Everyone dissolved into laughter again.

Felix went next. He screamed reflexively on the descent, pinwheeling his arms as he tried—and utterly failed—to slow down. He still finished in 30.88 seconds.

Jiyeon bounced on the balls of her feet, grinning. “That means I’m winning!”

Chan was the last one standing when the production team asked if the top spot could change. I.N immediately said no, while Lee Know confidently claimed he could do it in 20 seconds. Realization dawned on Jiyeon’s face—she could lose her lead. She absolutely knew Chan could beat her time but prayed he wouldn’t. The thought alone fueled her determination.

Of course, they had to tease Chan about his age before he even took his mark.

He crouched into position. The whistle blew, and he sprinted uphill. Most members took a few steps forwards, scooping snow to pelt him with—but Jiyeon didn’t move. Her gaze was locked on Chan’s silhouette as he grabbed the flag, her smile tight and determined. She shadowed his motions, anticipating his path.

He found an opening and tore down the right side. Jiyeon lunged upwards to intercept. He dodged, but she caught the hem of his jacket, dragging him just enough to slow him. He laughed, twisting around to look at her, but continued running, practically pulling her with him as she dug her heels into the snow. Her boots slipped; she toppled backwards and landed flat on the slope with an oof, staring at the sky.

Lee Know rushed over and helped her up, both of them groaning dramatically before trudging back to the others.

The results were announced: 23.76 seconds.

House of Christark claimed victory.

Chan received his WolfChan flag, and the crew declared it was time to pledge allegiance. They all had to kneel on one knee.

Jiyeon clicked her tongue. “Ah, jinjja?”

The group attempted half-hearted kneels—slouched, leaning, sprawled—before finally lowering onto one knee properly. Jiyeon sank down last and slowest, pure reluctance in every move.

Han immediately tried to turn the coronation into a deal —fried chicken for the group—earning Chan’s exaggerated complaint that he didn’t want to be king anymore.

But in the end, they all chanted, loud and proud, “Long Live King Christark!”

They rested for a few minutes before lining up again. The crew announced their next game to reclaim the throne. Chan visibly sighed. Hyunjin, meanwhile, looked fired up, certain he would win the next round.

Their second quest was sledding—with water. The rules were simple: each member had to ride a tube down the snowy slope while holding a 2-litre beaker. Whoever reached the bottom with the most water intact would win. Since Chan was the reigning king, he earned the right to choose the running order. He decided to mix it up from the first round—though he still picked Changbin to start.

While Changbin trudged to the top of the hill, everyone killed time their own way. Jiyeon dragged the toe of her boot through the snow, carefully spelling out their group name in tall letters, then doodling her SKZOO beneath it. Chan stood beside her, hands stuffed into his pockets, humming in approval.

“The font is not the same,” Jiyeon sighed, staring down at her handiwork.

“It’s pretty close,” Chan offered, nodding as if the movement added credibility.

“Is it?” Jiyeon arched a skeptical eyebrow.

“Yeah.”

It wasn’t convincing in the slightest—and she knew it. She jabbed her elbow into his side. “Liar.”

Chan burst out laughing.

Changbin yelled from the top, beaker raised high. The members—except Chan—plopped onto the inflatable tubes and watched as he pushed off. He swerved, sled veering sideways, water splashing over the rim. He nearly toppled twice, shrieks of laughter echoing from below. He hit the bottom with 1 litre saved.

Han immediately volunteered to go next, but Chan smirked and picked Seungmin instead. As the second-youngest headed uphill, Han randomly dropped to the ground to crank out push-ups—but froze at I.N’s deadpan warning. “Don’t do anything you don’t usually do.”

They watched Seungmin settle into the sled—only to tilt the beaker and pour water out. “Ahh, he’s thinking of taking the minimum amount to save all that’s left,” Han theorized, prompting disagreement from the rest as they gave their own input.

Seungmin slid down; the beaker sloshed wildly, but he arrived with 1.2 litres.

Next up was Jiyeon. She stretched her arms forward, Chan tugging her gently to her feet, her body hopping along with the momentum. Brushing imaginary dust from her thighs, she asked the crew, “There’s no rule except saving the most water, right? I can do it any way I want?”

The crew nodded—but Lee Know chimed in, “Two members did it before you, Jiyeon. Did you forget in your old age?”

“We’re the same age, pabo.”

Everyone laughed at their interaction as she finally left them to go up. Jiyeon climbed onto the sled, sitting low. The beaker—filled to the brim—was handed to her. Forgoing the strap of the sled, she gripped it with both hands: one firmly around the handle, the other supporting the base against her torso, the water angled inward.

She pushed off slowly, heels dragging, eyes glued to the waterline. At first, everything was perfect. Only a tiny splash rippled over the rim. The boys murmured in astonishment—barely any spilled.

Changbin hollered between laughter, “She’s cradling it like a baby!”

But halfway down, gravity betrayed her. The sled suddenly picked up speed, veering sideways toward the edge of the snowy track. Without the strap, she had no steering control.

“Nononononono!” she cried, slamming her heels down. Water surged forward, sloshing over the rim onto the sled.

She wrestled the tube back into the center lane and coasted the rest of the way, perfectly steady. At the end, she hopped off and marched triumphantly to the camera, beaker high up. She asked for tissues and set them into the sled to soak up the spillage.

Jiyeon saved 1.5 litres.

She walked to Chan and tilted her head up, waiting. He unclipped her helmet—then tugged her hat down over her eyes with a cheeky laugh, “Hey!”

Before she could retaliate, Chan called out, “Our Hannie who wanted to play so so much…” Han swaggered toward him. “So...not him.” He reversed in the exact same way, as Chan finished, “I choose Lee Know.”

Up at the top, Lee Know copied Seungmin and dumped out some water. Sliding down, his entire ride was a chaotic wobble—bouncing over bumpy snow, body jerking with the movement. Since he spilled water, he decided to scoop in handfuls of snow to fill the gap, and strutted to the camera. The staff told him to 'please remove the ice'. His smile vanished. His result: 0.9 litres.

As Chan removed the helmet from Lee Know, I.N raised a hand eagerly, “Now I want to do it!”

“I.N, you want to do it? If you want to do it then I’ll let you do it.” Chan didn't hesitate. Jiyeon and the others laughed—mostly at how easily I.N got permission, unlike Han.

I.N's take off was fast and surprisingly steady, but he toppled sideways at the bottom, splashing water. He waddled to the camera, helmet covering half his face, holding the beaker high like a trophy. 1.4 litres.

Chan told Felix and Han to settle next order with rock-paper-scissors. Han won. And Chan sent Felix instead, just to tease the latter.

Felix mirrored Jiyeon’s method—slowly and carefully—as I.N commented, “He’s smart. He followed what Jiyeon did, but he at least kept all the water.”

Jiyeon gasped, jaw dropping. The audacity. Chan rubbed her arms comfortingly, laughing at her wounded pride.

Felix saved 1.8 litres, taking the lead.

Next up was Hyunjin. While he made his way up, Han sulked. In his despair, he plopped his tube on a tiny mound of snow behind them, sat down, and sledded exactly one second. He stayed sprawled in the tube, giving an embarrassed laugh.

Jiyeon glanced back and spotted him pouting. She stood, walked over, grabbed the tube strap and ran, dragging him through the snow. Han let out a delighted scream, limbs splayed.

“What do you eat?!” she groaned as she strained, at one point running backward to keep pulling him. Han opened his mouth to respond, but she turned again—it was purely rhetorical.

She hauled him around the boys twice before dropping the strap. “Thanks Jiyeon!” Han beamed.

She collapsed back onto her tube, leaning half her weight against Chan’s lap, his palm absentmindedly rubbing her side.

Suddenly, Hyunjin shouted, drawing her attention as she lifted herself up back into a sitting position. He launched forward, speeding downhill with a scream, then hit a bump that sent his legs flailing and his sled tumbling. In the chaos, his water spilled, the beaker vanished, and he ended up sprawled on the snow—saving exactly zero litres of water.

He blindly walked towards them with his eyes hidden beneath his hat, helmet tilted awkwardly to the side. Chan removed the helmet and exclaimed, “Oh my, he’s soaked.”

He fixed Hyunjin’s hat, but Hyunjin, too embarrassed, yanked it back down—sending everyone into laughter.

Chan began to speak while Han bounced eagerly in his seat—finally, it was going to be his turn. But it wasn’t. Chan picked himself instead, leaving with a playful smile and helmet in hand. Han shot up, indignant yet laughing, blurting, “I can’t take this anymore!” as he kicked his foot out.

Jiyeon stretched her arms from her seat and called, “Come here, Hannie.” Hearing his name, Han turned and obediently dropped to his knees, wrapping his arms around her waist with a pout as she gently rocked him side to side.

The moment didn’t last long—she glanced up to see Chan at the top, stepping onto the sled like it was a snowboard. Quickly, she patted Han so she could stand and move into Chan’s line of sight. Cupping her hands around her mouth, she called out in a teasing yet worried tone, “Chan! You better not break your neck! I can’t deal with them by myself!” She gestured toward the rest of the members, who immediately protested at her remark.

She could only assume Chan was laughing as he flashed her a thumbs-up, but eventually he sat down properly. With a push, he sped off, the sled zigzagging wildly and sending water splashing everywhere. His screams had everyone in stitches—Jiyeon folded over, laughing.

When Chan finally crossed the finish line, he’d managed to save an impressive 0.8 litres of water.

He ran back to the group, and Jiyeon stepped forward, removing his helmet. “Why’d you do that up there? What if you actually slipped?”

Chan just chuckled, taking the helmet from her hands. “It’s cute that you worry.”

“I always worry.” He gave her a small, tender smile.

Finally, it was Han’s turn. As he headed up, Lee Know—mischievous as ever—told everyone to turn around and not watch. Han hadn’t even started yet and water was already spilling. The moment he pushed off, he didn’t bother braking with his feet; he flew down at full speed and didn’t stop at the bottom.

Changbin panicked, sprinting forwards and barely dodging as Han nearly barreled into him. Hyunjin and Chan instinctively grabbed Jiyeon by the arms to pull her back—she was too busy laughing at Han’s insane speed. When Han finally showed the camera his beaker, it held only a trace of water. Jiyeon guessed maybe less than 0.1 litres.

Han was buzzing with excitement after the ride, words tumbling out in a rush of adrenaline. Felix reenacted Han’s shaky arm from the descent, sending everyone into laughter.

The winner of the round turned out to be Felix—he proudly received his flag while Chan collapsed to his knees in mock agony, as if struck by a fatal blow. Felix, thrilled with his victory, shouted triumphantly, “ON YOUR KNEES!”

After a quick lunch break, they moved on to their third quest: swordsmanship. The goal was to defend their snowman—actually a balloon—while wielding their swords. After the mock duel, they had to spin around, and whoever popped the opponent’s snowman first would earn the title of Ruler. Felix was in charge of deciding the matchups for the remaining members before the final victor faced the House of Felly for the throne.

Felix scribbled the names on the board and held it up to the camera. “I just wrote down names without thinking,” he admitted.

The first matchup was Lee Know versus Seungmin. After plenty of playful teasing from everyone, the sword fight began with dramatic, cinematic moves. When they finished, Felix announced they had to spin 15 times before trying to pop the balloons. In the end, Lee Know won by default: he reached Seungmin’s balloon, though he didn’t pop it—it flew away. He sabotaged Seungmin, preventing him from popping Lee Know’s balloon.

Once the previous contestants had recovered, the next matchup was I.N versus Han. They kicked things off with a swordfight performance that looked straight out of an anime intro, complete with exaggerated slow-motion moves that had everyone laughing. After their dramatic display, they spun 10 times. Han finished spinning first, but I.N landed a perfect strike with the plastic sword, popping the balloon in one hit.

Next up were Changbin and Chan. Their swordfight quickly turned into a hilarious sports showcase, using their plastic swords as golf clubs, baseball bats, and even billiard cues. The members were thoroughly entertained, and Jiyeon’s cheeks ached from nonstop laughter. At Changbin’s request to 'consider their age', they made them do 20 spins. Chan finished first, staggering toward the balloon, while Changbin collapsed to the ground. Chan’s clever tactic of stepping on the string to keep the balloon in place secured his victory in this round.

Giggling, Jiyeon hurried over to Chan, who was still swaying, and grabbed his arms to steady him. She guided him down gently, “Okay, okay. Sit down for a moment.”

Chan’s feet slipped out from under him, and he plopped onto the ground, pulling Jiyeon down with him. His wide eyes stayed fixed on the white snow as he tried to recover.

Before long, it was finally Jiyeon’s turn to face Hyunjin. Somewhere between Chanbin and Chan’s recovery and the next match, the members gathered near the throne, goofing around. Changbin suddenly said, “I just thought of this—can’t all nine of us be Rulers?” Jiyeon’s response slipped out before she could stop herself. “You had a thought?”

She clapped a hand over her mouth—mostly to stifle her laughter—while the rest of the group burst out laughing at Changbin, who was struggling to hide the smile creeping onto his face.

Jiyeon and Hyunjin stepped into position. For her swordfight performance, Jiyeon tried to drop into a front split with her sword raised high, but her snow pants stopped her halfway, sending her tumbling onto her side. All the boys burst out laughing as Jiyeon shook with laughter and embarrassment. She stood up straight to try again, but Seungmin chimed in teasingly, “Ajumma, don’t do anything strenuous.”

Her head snapped toward him. “YAH! Seungmin-ah!” The boy snickered, joined by the rest. Jiyeon shook her head, lowered her stance, and curled her fingers in a ‘come here’ gesture, wearing her fiercest expression as she dared Hyunjin to attack. The guys erupted in a chorus of ‘ooh’s.’ Hyunjin played along, showing off—until Jiyeon moved. Then he dropped to his knees, hands shielding his head, muffled screams spilling out, “I yield! I yield! Spare me!”

Jiyeon snorted at his theatrics, shaking her head in amusement. “You're no fun, Jinnie.”

They took their positions again, but before starting, everyone turned to Jiyeon as she asked with a subtle mischievous smile, “Does it have to be an elephant spin? Can’t I just do a pirouette?”

The production team paused to consider, but before they could answer, Chan stepped forwards, pointing at her in mock outrage. “That’s cheating! You’d be spotting so you don’t get dizzy.”

Jiyeon’s shoulders slumped before she raised her hands in playful surrender. “Okay! Okay! You didn’t have to out me like that,” she said with a pout. In the end, they agreed on 10 spins.

Chan counted her spins, but the world kept whirling long after she stopped. Jiyeon staggered, knees buckling, then gave up on finding her balance and dropped to her hands and knees. Crawling was awkward, but at least it didn’t require the earth to stay still.

When she finally reached the balloon, she pushed herself upright, heart pounding and head spinning, and struck it with the plastic sword. Nothing. Another jab—still nothing. Frustrated, she gripped the sword with both hands and attacked aggressively, but the balloon only wobbled, its printed smiley snowman face seeming to mock her.

The guys were laughing until they erupted in cheers—Hyunjin had won. Jiyeon let the sword fall, stood up on shaky legs, vision still spinning, and pointed at the group—or maybe their doubles. “Alright, which one of you cursed me?”

Her question went unanswered. She squeezed her eyes shut, willing the world to stop spinning, when someone slipped an arm around her shoulders. Jiyeon leaned into them for support as she steadied herself.

The next round brought back the winners from the earlier eliminations: Lee Know versus I.N, and Chan versus Hyunjin. I.N and Chan emerged victorious.

Before facing the Final Boss—Felix—I.N and Chan battled one last time to decide the finalist. It looked like Chan would take the win, but I.N landed a perfect one-strike finish, claiming victory for the round.

The final Final Round was over in a flash. Felix seemed to have the upper hand—he reached the balloon first and swung his plastic sword—but instead of popping, the balloon drifted away with the wind. Once again, I.N delivered the decisive blow in a single strike.

And so, the ultimate victor of the War of Families was crowned: I.N of the House of Irell.

The rest of the members knelt before their king, pledging allegiance with a cheer. “Long live Baby Bread!”

For the last shot, the group gathered around the throne with I.N seated proudly at the center. When the crew called cut, Jiyeon stepped forwards and shouted, “Sled time!”

The guys erupted in excitement, grabbing sleds and tubes as they followed her up the slope. They raced down solo and in pairs, squeezing into blue plastic sleds. The rest of the day was filled with races, snowball fights, and endless laughter.

It was a day Jiyeon would never forget—one of her absolute favorites.

Jiyeon sat down in the chair, waving at the camera with both hands and a small, nervous smile. As she flipped over her card, her mouth popped into an ‘O’ shape.

“I’ll try my best,” she promised, peeking at the camera before pumping a determined fist to the camera  with a bright smile, “Fighting!”

Once they all gathered on the main set, they immediately locked into their characters. The camera captured a wide shot as it panned across the room, eventually moving in for individual shots of each member—footage that would later be edited to introduce the characters.

Jiyeon was slumped on a stool, her prop bag discarded at her feet. Her posture was the picture of exhaustion—shoulders hunched and a glazed, tired look in her eyes. Holding a coffee cup, she tilted her head back in a dramatic arc, desperately tapping the bottom of the empty cup as if praying for one last drop of caffeine. With a heavy sigh, she slid the cup across the counter toward the barista—played by Chan—her eyes pleading for a refill.

Suddenly, a booming voice echoed through the studio.

“Mafia committed a murder at SKZ Café. All of you are now suspects.”

While the others gasped and reacted with theatrical shock, Jiyeon bolted upright. A look of bewilderment crossed her face as she cried out, “Murder?!”

[Fourth suspect: Student Jiyeon]

A struggling, overworked college student and the estranged daughter from Mr. Cho’s previous marriage. Her father walked out on her and her mother when she was only fifteen. After a failed attempt to reconnect, she masks her crushing rejection with a facade of indifference.

The group migrated to the couches to begin the investigation. Jiyeon dropped onto the sofa to her left, wedging herself between Hyunjin and Han. As she let her heavy bag hit the floor with a dull, weighted thud, Han jumped, letting out a breathy laugh.

“What do you even have in that bag?!” he asked, startled.

“My student debt,” Jiyeon replied, her voice deadpan and devoid of emotion.

The room erupted in laughter, but the mood was quickly broken by the voiceover: “The café owner, President Cho, was murdered by the Mafia.”

“President Cho is dead?” Minho asked, his eyes wide. Jiyeon clutched her chest, her voice a fragile whisper, “Appa?”

“Over the next three days,” the voice continued, “the nine suspects must identify the Mafia through on-site verification and identification. If you fail to catch them, the Mafia wins, and you will all face the punishment they decide. The first day begins now. Please introduce yourselves.”

Chaos broke out instantly.

Felix began shouting, “Imposter!” at random intervals, while Lee Know started a bizarre tangent about eating jellies. When Hyunjin and Han began mimicking a shrill, annoying alarm sound, Jiyeon simply leaned back, propping her elbow on the backrest and rubbing her temples with her eyes closed. So much noise.

Changbin took charge, struggling slightly as he fished an ID card out of his pocket. As everyone leaned in to inspect it, Jiyeon squinted, remarking nonchalantly, “My fake ID looked more real than that.”

The members howled, pointing out the lack of resemblance between the photo and Changbin’s actual face. Changbin shoved the ID next to his cheek, insisting, “It’s identical!” He cleared his throat, trying to regain control. “Anyway, the victim is my friend. We went to university together.”

Jiyeon sat up, pointing a finger at him, “I don’t remember you!”

“We weren’t very close back then,” Changbin admitted, biting back a smile as he fought to stay in character. “But, until now—”

“That’s why you killed him! Because you weren’t close!” Lee Know blurted out.

While Felix continued to chant “Imposter!” at the top of his lungs, Changbin defended himself. “I’m a detective! I can’t be the Mafia. How could I do such a thing?”

Jiyeon leaned forward, elbows on her knees, giving him a look of pure skepticism. “For all we know, you could be a corrupt cop. Those exist too, you know.”

As she leaned back and crossed her legs with an air of I've-seen-it-all, the guys lost it. Lee Know topped it off by shouting, “Two job!”

Trying to hide his amusement, Changbin pressed on. “For my friend’s sake, I’m going to reveal the truth. Let’s introduce ourselves properly.”

“Okay!” Lee Know clapped his hands, “I am ground~!”

The rest of the group picked up the rhythm, starting the 'I Am Ground' intro song. Going from left to right, they began their introductions:

“I’m a detective, I’m handsome.”

“I’m Chef Lee, cookie brownie.”

 “I’m unemployed, I have a lot of money.”

 “I’m a dentist, I’m getting my braces.”

“I’m a doctor, I.N.”

“I’m Bangrista, I don’t like coffee.”

“I’m a kindergarten teacher, Hwang Hyunjin.”

“I’m a student... so much debt,” she muttered in a tone so defeated and soul-crushed that the members burst into a fresh fit of laughter.

“I am HANdol, world star.”

The second Han finished, Felix shrieked “Imposter!” and Jiyeon recoiled at his volume, blinking rapidly and sharing a 'is he for real?' look with Chan. Within seconds, the group turned to Han, demanding a performance. When he finally sat back down, Seungmin told him to take off his glasses.

The moment Han’s eyes were revealed, the members began screaming, shielding their eyes as if his "star power" was blinding.

“Actually, it turns out I’m a big fan!” I.N stood up, pulling out a photocard holder featuring Han, “HANdol! We finally met!”

Han played along instantly, “Are you the guy who kept sending me letters?”

Jiyeon turned her head away from the camera, her shoulders shaking with silent laughter as she completely broke character. Nothing was ever serious with this group.

Once the chaos settled, Han asked the group why they were at the café.

“I recently uploaded music to a music site,” Hyunjin explained.

“I uploaded the music!” Han interrupted. As everyone stared at his outburst, he added, “We became friends through fighting. That’s why we’re here.”

“Oh, so you two were meeting here?” Changbin asked.

When they both agreed, Lee Know narrow his eyes, “So you guys murdered him together! That’s why you’re here.”

Jiyeon’s eyes went wide as she looked between the "online friends." Pretending they were sudden danger, she hastily stood up and perched herself halfway on the armrest of the opposite couch.

“There’s more than one Mafia?!” Changbin yelled.

Hyunjin stood up to clarify. “We met on an internet forum. He wanted to meet me in person. He’s the one who chose this café.”

“Who? This guy?” Changbin pointed at Han.

After making Han take his glasses off one more time, Han defended himself with a sudden burst of song.

“I’m just someone who likes cafés! I was walking down the street and wanted to get away from the sun~!” He swayed side to side, his voice operatic. “So I came here. Then Bangrista handed me a latte. And I said, ‘No, no, no, no, I like Americano~!’”

Changbin ignored the singing, “How are you two related?”

“We’re married—oh, no we’re not,” Han blurted, instantly realizing his mistake—wrong episode. Laughter burst from the members as they leaned into the married-couple bit anyway, until Han quickly waved it off, “We’re just online friends.”

Changbin nodded, taking his role as the lead investigator seriously, “Who wants to speak next?”

Felix raised his hand tentatively, “I’m Chef Lee. I just wanted to…”

“Kill President Cho?”

Felix blinked, his face contorting into a look of pure shock. He fell into a frantic stutter as he tried to defend himself, “No, that’s not it!”

The members immediately pounced, the teasing reaching a fever pitch as Hyunjin suggestively mimicked cutting bread, implying Felix might have treated President Cho like a loaf of sourdough.

“Hear me out!” Felix pleaded, trying to get a word in over the chaos, “First of all, we didn’t have a good relationship. We didn’t even talk to each other.”

That set off immediate alarms. Suspicions rippled through the group as Felix continued his explanation, “I sell desserts in the same building. President Cho runs the café.”

“So you are rivals? How were your sales?”

“That’s why you killed him!”

Felix sat there, stunned and stuttering. “I’m not finished yet! I didn’t do anything, but he hated me anyway.”

“That’s because he didn’t love anyone but himself,” Jiyeon added nonchalantly.

Eight heads snapped around to look at her. She didn’t flinch, simply offering a casual shrug.

Hyunjin leaned in, asking Chef Lee to confirm if he hated the victim. Felix admitted the tension but insisted he hadn't laid a finger on him. Changbin, deciding he had heard enough, moved to make his first arrest. However, the "cool detective" vibe was ruined as he struggled to get the plastic cuffs out of his pocket, sending Hyunjin and Han into fits of laughter.

Trying to shift the focus, Felix pointed out his connection to Unemployed Lee, explaining that Lee Know was actually his landlord. Han, Hyunjin and I.N immediately began bowing to Lee Know in mock reverence of his wealth. Jiyeon watched the ridiculous display, shaking her head with a laugh. At this rate, they were never going to finish the episode.

Changbin moved on to his next suspect: Dr. Kim. It was revealed that Seungmin worked alongside Dr. Yang, prompting immediate accusations of a conspiracy. I.N quickly cleared the air, explaining that they simply ran separate clinics on the same floor.

Lee Know, however, wasn't letting Seungmin off the hook. “I saw Mister Cho at the dentist before he died,” he claimed wildly, “Dr. Kim took out the wrong tooth!”

Seungmin looked genuinely taken aback by the sudden improvisation. He let out a chuckle, shaking his head. “That’s just a rumor. This wasn’t even in the script!”

The focus shifted to Dr. Yang’s attire. “Your clothes are very stylish,” Hyunjin noted.

“I just like clothes,” I.N replied simply.

Jiyeon leaned over, pointing at the fabric of his shirt. “That actually looks expensive.” She bumped Chan’s shoulder with her elbow,  deliberately whispering loud enough for the mics to catch, “Do young doctors really earn that much?”

Chan just shrugged as Lee Know reached over, grabbing the hem of I.N’s white lab coat and pulling it back to reveal the designer shirt underneath, “Oh? Two job?”

I.N insisted he was just a surgeon with an interest in fashion, but Changbin saw an opportunity. “While we’re here... my Achilles tendon and the ligament next to it hurt. What condition could this be?”

I.N didn't miss a beat, “You just have short legs.”

The room erupted as Changbin reeled from the comeback. Once the laughter died down, the detective turned his gaze toward Chan. Chan explained his role as the "Bangrista" of SKZ Café. Naturally, a comment about his "advanced age" flew from one of the members.

Chan chuckled, playing along, “I’ve been working at this café for sixty years.”

Jiyeon, leaning into her character’s crush on the barista, gasped dramatically, “You’re old?!”

“Why are you a barista if you don’t like coffee?” Changbin questioned.

“I like giving coffee to people,” Chan replied.

“You don’t give it, you sell it,” Han corrected sharply, adding that the alibi made no sense.

Lee Know suddenly pointed a finger at Jiyeon. “She’s been getting her coffee for free every time she comes here!”

Jiyeon’s eyes went wide, a mix of surprise and confusion crossing her face as the guys began chanting, “Favoritism! Favoritism!”

“He told me it was on the house!” Jiyeon argued, pointing an accusing finger back at Chan.

Han let out a bitter scoff, “Yeah, you seem to be the only one getting it for free.”

Chan tried to steer the narrative back, explaining that President Cho had planned to open a second store and hand the keys over to him. The group immediately theorized that Chan killed him out of greed, wanting both stores for himself. Chan pointed out that with President Cho dead, the second store was no longer happening.

“Then he gets the first store!” someone shouted.

“That’s mine,” Lee Know cut in smoothly. “I own the building.”

Jiyeon burst out at that, her character’s frustration finally boiling over. “So everyone is getting buildings and shops from President Cho except his own daughter? You guys get everything, and I’m just left stranded!”

The room went silent for a split second before the accusations flipped instantly. “Wait, she has a motive!” Hyunjin yelled, pointing at her, “She killed him for the inheritance!”

“It’s the daughter!” Seungmin pointed at her and Felix joined in, shouting “Imposter!”

Lee Know leaned back, looking at her with a smirk. “Do you know how many people in Korea share the last name Cho? It doesn't prove anything.”

Jiyeon was about to retort back but Changbin interrupted, trying to maintain order. “Calm down,”

Jiyeon shot him a sharp glare. Han immediately stepped in, holding up his hands. “Woah, woah, detective. Never tell a lady to calm down.”

Changbin quickly bowed his head in apology before pivoting back to his interrogation. “What are you even doing at the café, anyway? Aren't you supposed to be in class?”

Jiyeon checked her bare wrist as if looking at a watch, “Free period.”

“Aren’t you too old to be a student?” Seungmin blurted out.

Jiyeon fixed him with a look of profound, ancient wisdom. “Knowledge has no age,” she replied, her tone shifting into a perfect imitation of Master Oogway from Kung Fu Panda.

She eventually dropped the bit to explain her true motive. She had started coming to the café in the hopes that President Cho would finally acknowledge her and offer a little help, but he was always too "busy" for his own daughter.

“And besides”, she added with a small shrug, “the free coffee was too good to pass up.”

Just as the tension hit its peak, the voice returned over the speakers:

“Night has fallen. Suspects, please move to the voting booth one by one and choose the person you most suspect of being the Mafia. During the voting process, you may continue your discussion.”

One by one, the members moved toward the voting seat. Han was the first to go. While he was away, the set slipped into a more relaxed atmosphere. Seizing the opportunity, Felix reached into his prop display and offered everyone a piece of his brownies.

They eagerly accepted, biting into the soft, gooey treats. Jiyeon closed her eyes, letting out a soft moan at the taste, “God, this is so good.”

She was just about to finish the second half of her brownie when she felt a sudden dampness on her fingertips. She looked down, only to find her hand empty. Chan was standing right next to her, his mouth full, looking back at her with a cheeky grin.

“I agree,” he muffled through a mouthful of chocolate, “It’s really good.”

Jiyeon looked between her empty fingers and Chan’s stuffed face. He burst out laughing at her bewildered expression, having to clap a hand over his mouth to keep from spitting crumbs everywhere. Offended, Jiyeon crossed her arms and turned her back to him.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Chan chuckled, reaching for another piece and holding it out to her. “Here, eat this one.”

“You going to steal this one, too?” she grumbled, snatching it from his hand. She stuffed the entire thing into her mouth in one go, just in case he tried another sneak attack.

Chan laughed at the sight of her puffed-out cheeks, quickly pulling out his phone. “Hold that!” He snapped a picture of her with her eyes shut tight, as she slowly chewed.

Han returned just then, pretending to greet a crowd of invisible fans. His back was turned to the actual filming crew as he waved grandly, “Sorry, sorry! I can’t shake hands right now!”

“The camera is over there,” Changbin pointed out dryly.

Hyunjin, who was still deeply invested in his brownie, nudged Jiyeon, “You go next, noona.”

Jiyeon stood up, but before heading to the booth, she leaned over and snatched the piece of brownie  out of Chan’s hand. She flashed him a mischievous, wide smile before disappearing from their view.

She sat down in the booth, wiping a few stray crumbs from her chin before leaning in close to the lens.

“I’m voting for I.N,” she whispered to the camera, “My reason? A young doctor like him should be drowning in student debt. There is no way he can afford a shirt like that unless he’s involved in some shady business.”

When she returned to the set, the next member took her place. While the voting continued, Jiyeon began to wander around the café set looking for "clues," though she quickly got distracted by a large mirror. She pulled out her phone and began taking mirror selfies—making silly faces, crouching for a "street style" pose, and pouting. Chan quickly swooped in to photobomb her, followed shortly by I.N, who popped up behind her with a peace sign.

Seungmin returned from his turn surprisingly quickly. When the others accused him of being a hasty Mafia, he shrugged, “It’s just a vote. Why would it take a long time?”

He then turned to Felix, “I voted for Felix because of the pill bottle.”

Felix’s face fell into a look of pure, heartbroken shock. He pouted in a way that made him look like a kicked puppy. “I would have explained the next day…” he mumbled sadly.

“Aw~,” Jiyeon cooed, her heart melting at the sight. She stepped over and gently pulled him into a hug, letting his head rest against her stomach as she patted his hair, “He would never do such a thing. Look at him!”

Lee Know returned even faster than Seungmin had, and Felix headed off to cast his vote next. Suddenly, a commotion broke out near the couch. Hyunjin and Han began pointing and yelling, catching Chan, Seungmin, and I.N red-handed. They were huddled together, reading through Changbin’s "detective" notepad.

Changbin only just noticed the security breach. He lunged forward, snatching the book out of Chan’s hands. “Wait, hang on! How much did you read?!”

The set dissolved into laughter at his panicked reaction. Not long after, Felix returned, and it was finally Changbin’s turn to be the last voter. As he stood up, he gave a pointed, heavy-eyed look to the three notepad-thieves, shoving the book deep into his pocket with an air of pure attitude.

While the detective finished the round, the rest of the members filled in their seats, waiting for his return. Once everyone was settled back in their places, the voice echoed once more:

“The voting is complete. Please sleep until morning.”

The members made themselves comfortable on the sofas, settling in to pretend to sleep. Jiyeon crossed her arms and squeezed her eyes shut, leaning into the "overworked student" vibe.

“I can sleep anywhere thanks to my experience undercover,” Changbin commented, his voice hushed and serious.

Jiyeon cracked one eye open to look at him, biting her lower lip to keep from laughing as Han immediately corrected him. “You can’t do that, right? What if you fall asleep during a stakeout?”

The group chuckled before the studio lights dimmed, plunging them into a staged slumber. Not even a minute later, the lights flared back to life.

“It’s the second day’s morning.”

Jiyeon groaned, stretching her limbs with the stiff, dramatic ache of a student who had barely slept. As Han sang a bright "Good Morning!" tune, the voiceover continued:

“The Mafia you selected on the first day is Dr. Kim.”

Seungmin looked at the others in pure disbelief while the voice instructed: “Detective Seo, please handcuff Dr. Kim. The handcuffs can be removed after one day.”

Hyunjin immediately put his wrists together as if being cuffed, swaying his hips provocatively. “And now, we will dance to Criminal.”

As Han started belting out the chorus to Taemin’s Criminal, Britney Spears’ version was the first thing that popped into Jiyeon’s head. She started singing the chorus along with them, but Han quickly cut her off.

“Hey, hey, hey, hey! I’m the singer here!” He finished in a ridiculous, over-the-top rendition of Britney Spears' Criminal that left the members howling.

Amidst the teasing, Changbin struggled to lock the plastic cuffs on Seungmin. Jiyeon watched the fumbling with a dry smirk. “How hard can it be to put plastic cuffs on?”

Ultimately, Seungmin had to adjust the cuffs himself because Changbin couldn’t get them secure. Once the "prisoner" was ready, the voice returned: “We will now begin investigating the crime scene.”

Everyone stood up to scramble for clues, but Seungmin held up his cuffed hands. “Wait, wait! Yongbok said he’d explain the pill bottle—so go ahead and explain it.”

“To put it simply, I eat a lot of sweets like cookies and brownies, so I take vitamins,” Felix explained earnestly.

“Yongbok wouldn’t poison anybody,” Lee Know stated firmly, stepping in as a shield.

Seungmin, however, remained unconvinced, “He poisoned President Cho.”

Lee Know wrapped a protective arm around Felix,  “My younger brother came back after living in Australia, so I opened a dessert shop next door so he could bake. But you know President Cho... he kept messing with our dear Chef Lee.”

Felix wrapped his arms around Lee Know’s waist, leaning into the brotherly skit while sneaking a glance at a cheat note. He read off it slightly, “And he kept... getting angry... at Bangrista.”

Jiyeon muffled her laugh with her hand, shaking her head at the blatant cue-card reading.

“We didn't want to get involved, so we let him go,” Lee Know added, quickly checking the card again before hiding it behind his back. “But apparently, he’d been behind on his rent for over a year. So, I’m pretty mad at him right now.”

“So you two have a grudge against President Cho?” Changbin questioned, pointing his notepad at them.

Before they could defend themselves, Hyunjin cut in. “I have something to confess. I actually used to take care of—”

Lee Know began singing a suspense tune, but Hyunjin quickly corrected the vibe, “Not like that! You know I’m a kindergarten teacher, right? One of the students who attends the school is President Cho’s daughter.”

The members pulled surprised faces at the new lore.

“Wait, wait,” Detective Changbin interrupted, looking confused, “Isn’t Student Jiyeon his daughter?”

Jiyeon rubbed her forehead, looking at him with utter disappointment, “For a detective, your comprehension skills are awful.”

The guys laughed at the burn as Hyunjin explained that President Cho had another daughter in kindergarten. “So I was so surprised to hear that President Cho is dead.”

The focus shifted again as HANdol suddenly brandished a letter, claiming Dr. Yang had sent it to him.

“Why are you announcing that here?” Changbin complained. “We’re trying to get to the truth of President Cho’s case right now!”

Ignoring him, HANdol began reading while I.N stood proudly beside him, holding up a Han photocard from their Levanter era like a prize.

“Okay,” Jiyeon clapped her hands, trying to get the group back on track. “Let’s find some actual evidence about this murder.”

The group spread out, poking around the set while Seungmin stood awkwardly cuffed to a metal fence. Jiyeon began prowling through the nooks and crannies of the café, eventually crouching down beside Chan. “Whatchu find?” she whispered.

But before he could answer, Changbin’s voice boomed across the room. “Wait, what’s that?!”

They turned their heads to see Changbin rushing toward Hyunjin, pointing at something tucked into his apron. “It’s a knife!”

“It’s not a knife!” Hyunjin backed away.

“It’s not a knife. It’s an eyebrow shaper,” Han added, inexplicably coming to Hyunjin's defense. He took the blade-like object and began demonstrating it near his own eyebrows, “It’s for my eyebrows.”

“Why would a kindergarten teacher carry a knife?” Seungmin asked from the fence.

“Because I’m a kindergarten teacher, I peel apples for the children. That’s why I have this—to peel apples for them!” Hyunjin insisted. He then raised his arm dramatically. “I have something to confess?”

The guys started humming the melody, handing Hyunjin random objects to use as props while Jiyeon cleared her throat.

“You have an awful lot to confess for a kindergarten teacher,” she noted, leaning forward with a suspicious squint. “You sure you’re not the Mafia? It’s always the ones you least expect.”

Suddenly, Changbin whirled around, “What are you doing?!”

Chan jumped slightly from his crouched position as Changbin pointed an accusing finger, “You’re hiding something from us!”

“I was looking for evidence!” Chan argued.

Changbin immediately pivoted his finger toward Jiyeon, “And you’ve been distracting us!”

Jiyeon looked offended, though in truth, her constant questioning had unknowingly steered everyone's attention away from Chan just as she was trying to solve the case herself.

“Why would I be helping him?” Jiyeon defended herself.

“It’s giving Bonnie and Clyde,” Han chimed in with a smile.

Jiyeon looked at him, “You know that story ended in a tragedy, right?”

His smile dropped.

Jiyeon had wandered away from the group, poking around the coffee machine for clues while Chan searched nearby. Her focus didn't last long, however; she soon found herself back in front of the mirror. She checked the frame for hidden compartments at first, but the detective work quickly devolved into her making cute faces at her own reflection. In the glass, she saw Chan passing behind her holding... is that the Sorting Hat?

“There’s a way to end all of this,” Chan announced, showing the members what was indeed a replica of the hat from Harry Potter. “Just put this on.”

Seungmin was getting restless, especially when Han approached him, snatched his wallet to check his ID, and promptly tried to steal his money—an act that earned Han a sharp smack.

“Hang on, everyone,” Lee Know interrupted, stepping forward with a bottle of champagne, “Let’s have an honest talk.”

The group immediately pivoted, pretending to be drunk to get the "truth" out of one another.

“We can find the Mafia with this, for sure,” someone slurred playfully.

“It’s a great way to get the truth out of someone.”

Lee Know eyed the bottle, “That’s quite expensive.”

“Since we’re talking about alcohol, I have something to say,” Bangrista started, looking around at the group. “As you all know, I always worked alone. President Cho fired everyone! Why? Because I was good at my job!”

“He fired everyone?” Hyunjin asked.

“Cut them off,” Chan emphasized.

Detective Seo took the phrasing a bit too literally. “Cut off their arms and legs?!”

“President Cho?!” the others gasped.

“I was cleaning until late at night; it was really rough,” Chan continued, ignoring the Detective's dramatics. “Just yesterday, a drunk person dumped out some water.”

Lee Know immediately began a physical reenactment of a staggering drunkard. Chan pointed at him as an example. “They just came in and dumped the water everywhere! But when I looked closely, that person...”

“Was my drunk dad?” Student Jiyeon finished, looking deeply embarrassed by the behavior of her "father."

“No,” Bangrista shook his head, pointing instead at the true culprit. “It was Doctor Kim.”

Everyone whirled to look at Seungmin. Lee Know grabbed the champagne bottle and vaulted over the back of the sofa, shouting, “You murderer!”

Han and Jiyeon burst out laughing at the sight of Lee Know’s parkour, but she quickly refocused on the interrogation. Detective Seo was questioning Bangrista. “So, what happened last night?”

“Last night, while drunk, he came into the café, threw away his water, and left,” Chan explained.

Seungmin began his defense, explaining that the owner, President Cho, had tried to borrow money from him. He mentioned the rumors that the owner hadn't been paying his rent, which was why he needed the loan. Then, he expertly shifted the target.

Seungmin claimed he had seen Student Jiyeon arguing intensely with President Cho earlier in the day. He suggested the argument looked so heated that she likely returned later to kill him. The group instantly turned their suspicion toward her. Changbin demanded to know why she hadn't mentioned being at the café or the argument.

“It’s no one’s business what we argued about,” Jiyeon replied, her voice tight and defensive. “That’s personal business.”

However, seeing the suspicious looks growing on their faces, she let out a frustrated huff. Since they were all so curious, she might as well give them the truth.

“If you must know, I was asking him for help with my tuition,” she admitted, her tone dripping with the exhaustion of a struggling student. “I’m working myself to the bone while he’s running a café, yet he told me he was ‘too busy’ to even talk to his own daughter. We argued because he’s never there when I actually need him. But having an argument doesn't make me a murderer!”

Seungmin pushed further. “Because of that situation, I wanted to see if he could be trusted.” He then explained that Teacher Hyunjin was also close to the victim.

“I have something to say,” Hyunjin started. “I went to the café first, then some doctor offered me a cutlet.”

Seungmin raised his hand, admitting it was him. Hyunjin continued, “So I went with him. I wanted some cutlet.”

Jiyeon cut in, unimpressed. “So what you’re saying is you’re easily bribed with food.”

Hyunjin shook his head vigorously, though he couldn't hide his smile. “I just wanted some cutlet!” He went on to explain that the doctor had taken him to the dentist instead. When he paused, Changbin asked if he’d had the wrong tooth pulled, but Hyunjin clarified he only got scaling and a mouthwash. Changbin immediately demanded the mouthwash be handed over as evidence. Lee Know then asked if Hyunjin just didn't brush his teeth often, making the "teacher" burst out laughing.

Before the scene could devolve into total chaos, Seungmin explained that he had used the "cutlet bribe" to get Teacher Hyunjin to find out if President Cho was actually trustworthy. Ultimately, Teacher Hyunjin admitted that Dr. Kim hadn't even followed through on buying the cutlet in the end.

The financial web grew even more tangled when Detective Seo admitted that President Cho had borrowed money from him, too—and never returned it. Then, Changbin made a tactical error: he accused Student Jiyeon of having the missing money, since she was the daughter.

Jiyeon, who was perched on the couch, leveled him with a terrifying death stare. Leaning her elbows on her knees, she deadpanned, “YAH! Do you think I’d be struggling like this if I had received any of that money?!”

She leaned back, crossing her arms and scoffing audibly. Changbin’s eyes widened, and he began profusely apologizing to her.

Everyone was so deep into their characters and the unraveling story that  they were losing focus. From the corner of her eye, Jiyeon saw a staff member gesturing to Chan.

“Time, time, time,” Chan said, clapping his hands to gather everyone's attention. “Detective Seo, I have a question. What’s with that laptop?”

“To watch Netflix,” Han blurted out.

Jiyeon closed her eyes, covering her face with her hands as she laughed silently.

“I thought maybe there’d be evidence on that laptop,” Chan suggested, steering the group back on track.

It was clear the production team had to drop a hint to move the investigation along; otherwise, the group's silly antics would have dragged the episode out for hours.

Lee Know snatched a set of cards laying across the laptop’s keyboard while Changbin poked at the trackpad, announcing that the device was password-protected. Chan, acting as the group’s unofficial guide, dropped a blatant hint. “The building owner knows the password.”

“It’s me. Hang on,” Unemployed Lee said, rifling through the cards.

“It’s either 0000 or 1234,” Han suggested jokingly.

Lee Know eventually cracked the code. As he scrolled through the files, he discovered that his "brother," Chef Lee, had a YouTube channel—and Mr. Cho had left a string of scathing negative comments on his videos.

“President Cho is so...”

“Awful? Deadbeat? Narcissistic? Not Father of the Year?” Jiyeon supplied. She was so lightning-fast with the insults regarding her "father" that the guys burst into laughter with every new addition to the list.

“We’re all feeling the same thing, right?” Chan asked.

Everyone nodded in solemn agreement. They stood up pretending to walk off, Chan bowed a quick farewell and walked out of the shot, only to return seconds later. The group shook off the laughter and locked back into their roles to finally solve the crime. Chan began pacing the set, reigniting their suspicions.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m looking for evidence,” he replied simply.

Han approached Seungmin, who was still tragically cuffed to the fence, and fished an ID out of the doctor's coat pocket. “I wanted to ask you something. It says you were born on September 22nd, 1990. How come your registration card was only issued on March 25th, 2018?”

Jiyeon had given up on active searching long ago. She was currently "chilling" on the couch, her elbow propped on the armrest and her head resting in her hand as she watched the chaos unfold. She was playing the role of the exhausted student a little too well. As the debate raged on, she watched Chan crouch in front of a low coffee table to rummage through the drawers.

“I already checked those,” she noted lazily.

Chan glanced at her but kept searching anyway. Suddenly, Lee Know pointed at Changbin. “Why are you even here? There's no reason for a detective to be here.”

As Changbin started to defend his presence, Lee Know cut him off with a shout. “WAIT, WAIT! Let me talk with President Cho!”

“He’s dead,” Han reminded him, adjusting his microphone.

The set dissolved into hysterics as Lee Know began a series of violent body shakes and jumps, pretending to be possessed by the dead man's spirit. Han fell back onto the couch, laughing so hard he almost landed on Jiyeon’s legs; she had to pull them away just in time to avoid being a human pillow.

Once they regained their composure, Changbin continued his backstory. Meanwhile, Chan reached for another brownie, offering a piece to Han before grabbing two more and sitting down beside Jiyeon. He offered her one, which she gladly took, immediately taking a large bite.

When Detective Seo mentioned that he was supposed to receive the café as collateral from President Cho, Jiyeon bolted upright. Brownie still stuffed in her mouth, she shouted, “WHAT?!” She quickly swallowed, “Why is everyone getting everything?! When is it my turn?!”

The guys howled at her indignation as Chan gently pulled her back down into her seat.

“I was a good detective who received many awards,” Changbin continued, “but the higher-ups didn’t like me, I guess.”

“You first have to be a good detective,” Student Jiyeon grumbled under her breath, arms crossed.

“So they framed me,” Changbin pushed on. “They gave me an impossible case. A hit-and-run.”

Han stood up abruptly. “Hold on.”

Months earlier, back when the group had recorded I.N’s graduation content, the staff had sat them down to choose occupations for a future Mafia game.

“Oh, wow,” Jiyeon had muttered, pursing her lips in thought. “What would I want to be?” She chuckled, rubbing her hands on her knees. “Maybe a dancer... or a college student.”

“A college student?” a staff member asked, writing it down.

“Yeah,” Jiyeon added with a mischievous glint in her eye. “But make her poor. Or struggling. Make it drama-worthy.”

“My parents passed away years ago in a hit-and-run accident!” Han cried out, pointing at Detective Seo. “Were you the detective in charge? Was it you?”

“That’s why I’m here now. I heard there was a witness.”

Jiyeon’s eyes darted between them as the plot thickened. Detective Seo revealed that the witness was HANdol, who had testified that the culprit had a distinct mole on their arm. They were finally closing in.

“Everyone, roll your sleeves up!”

Jiyeon watched the members begin to expose their forearms, then looked sideways at Chan as if to ask, Are they actually serious right now? Fortunately, Changbin pivoted. “No, that’s not it. That hit-and-run culprit isn’t actually a hit-and-run culprit.”

“I see. Sorry,” HANdol said, suddenly shy.

“Did you say it was on the arm, but that it spread to the buttocks?” Lee Know chimed in.

Jiyeon chuckled, pointing a finger at him. “What is it with you and butts?”

Lee Know pointed at himself with a look of mock confusion before wagging his eyebrows.

“No, that’s not what I mean!” Detective Seo yelled. “I saw that President Cho has a huge mole on his arm. I’ve been suspicious of him for a long time. As far as I was concerned, I had no choice but to come here.”

“So, is President Cho the culprit?”

Detective Seo nodded firmly. “He’s definitely the one. He’s the suspect I’ve been tracking—a prime suspect.”

“President Cho is a really bad person, aren’t they?” Hyunjin commented.

Student Jiyeon let out a long, heavy sigh. “Great. So I’m related to a criminal.”

“I saw his arm, you know. He had a mole,” Changbin continued. “Is there anyone else here who would hold a grudge against President Cho?”

Hyunjin stood up suddenly, looking at Han in shock. “Was it you?!”

Dr. Kim, still cuffed and observing from the sidelines, finally spoke up. “There’s someone in this room who has a major grudge against President Cho.”

Every head turned toward him. “Who?”

Seungmin paused for dramatic effect before pointing directly at Jiyeon. “His own daughter.”

“WHAT?!” Jiyeon shrieked.

Chan actually winced at the sheer volume as the two began to bicker.

“You were seen yelling at President Cho in this café!” Seungmin accused. “He didn't help you financially, but as his firstborn and oldest adult relative, the inheritance would be all yours. You have the motive to hold a grudge and kill him!”

“When did you get a law degree?!” Jiyeon snapped back. “I wanted to reconnect! You know nothing! You’re just a simple dentist who’s butting in, and all you’ve been doing is blaming others. You know who does that? Guilty people!”

The guys were losing it. Even Seungmin broke character, laughing at the sheer intensity of her rebuttal. Before the argument could escalate, Detective Seo cut in.

“Okay, okay! Let’s all take a breath. I’m only here to arrest the Mafia, and you guys are making it hard to figure out.”

Jiyeon deadpanned, “Blame your detective skills.”

The room was suddenly filled with the voice from the speaker: “Night has fallen. Suspects, please proceed to the voting area and choose the person you suspect the most of being the Mafia.”

One by one, they went to cast their votes. While it was Seungmin’s turn to vote, the guys broke into a spontaneous, made-up song about Eduwill, with Chan hitting a steady beat on a prop barrel. They eventually transitioned into a loud rendition of The Lion Sleeps Tonight. Jiyeon, laughing from her seat, began a silly, seated version of La Macarena that synced perfectly with their singing.

Once Seungmin returned, Changbin was the last to go. When he finally came back, he noticed Seungmin was no longer cuffed to the fence. Instead of Changbin cuffing him again, Seungmin calmly re-applied them himself. “Self-handcuffs,” he noted, his face perfectly serious.

Chan was currently laughing at Lee Know, Felix, I.N, and Changbin, who had all inexplicably squeezed onto a single couch together instead of using the other empty seats. Meanwhile, Han had leaned his head on Jiyeon’s shoulder, who in turn leaned hers on Chan’s. The lights dimmed, and they closed their eyes for a brief "night," opening them again when the voice boomed: “The morning has come.”

A collective groan echoed through the room. Han immediately burst into song again, but Jiyeon was faster—she grabbed her prop bag and gave it a light swing, hitting Han on the leg.

“Ow!” Han yelped, rubbing the spot and looking betrayed, “Do you actually have bricks in there?!”

“Would you like me to?” Jiyeon asked sweetly.

“No,” Han replied.

Jiyeon dropped the bag with a shrug. “Then no.”

Han side-eyed her, scooting away before cautiously peeking into her bag. There were no bricks, but the weight of the college textbooks was clearly a close second.

“The Mafia you all chose... is a tie,” the voice announced. A chorus of shocked gasps filled the room as they looked at each other in confusion. “Detective Seo, please grab another pair of handcuffs and put them on Handol and Student Jiyeon.”

“What?!”

Changbin returned with a second pair of cuffs, grabbing Jiyeon’s hand and tugging her toward the fence. Han pointed at himself, pulling a ridiculous face. “Do I look like Mafia to you?”

Jiyeon looked frantically between Lee Know and Chan. “Help me~!”

It was no use. Changbin handed her the cuffs to secure around her own wrist. Once she was locked to the fence, she looked at him with her best puppy-dog eyes. “Binnie~, I’m not Mafia. I’m a citizen.”

It changed nothing; she and Handol were stuck there until the next round. Jiyeon let out a pout, leaning her head against the cold metal of the fence while Seungmin—already a pro with the cuffs—helped Han get secured.

Han decided to continue his unfinished story from earlier, but no one was paying a bit of attention to him. Getting restless, Jiyeon started practicing some light ballet footwork and choreography to pass the time.

She hummed a song to herself, her gaze unfocused, while Han yelled in mock frustration at the members for ignoring him. Unfortunately, as he bent down to scream, he did it in Jiyeon’s direction. She winced, leaning away and smacking his arm to scold him.

Unemployed Lee Know finally caught the group’s attention. He was looking at the tablet and relayed information that Dr. Yang had revived Mafia. He immediately questioned if I.N was an accomplice.

 Dr. Yang began his defense but Detective Seo interrupted, insisting they listen to Handol first, before calling over Bangrista, who was still hunting for clues. Han explained that he had seen President Cho fighting with someone. When Seungmin cut in to say it was obviously Student Jiyeon, Han denied it. “It was Detective Seo.”

Changbin quickly explained that he had only confronted President Cho because he suspected him of the hit-and-run, but the owner hadn't taken the accusation lightly.

“That’s why you killed him,” Lee Know stated flatly.

As the detective denied it, Dr. Yang took his turn. He explained that he used to work at a major hospital, but he was fired after it was discovered he had treated several Mafia members for burns. Suspicion only grew when Hyunjin asked, “Don't people with burns go to the Emergency Room instead of Orthopedics?”

While the members debated medical logistics, Jiyeon fiddled with the cuff on the fence. Finding a loophole, she slipped her hand free. She was getting way too restless to wait around for them to solve the case. Han let out a breathy laugh when he saw her walking around. “Are we allowed to do that?”

Jiyeon just shrugged. When Chan saw her walking free, he raised a suspicious eyebrow. She simply raised her cuffed wrist in the air, “Let me be, I’m still technically cuffed.”

While Han decided to remain a ‘law-abiding’ prisoner, Seungmin focused everyone’s attention on a journal Bangrista had found. It revealed that before Chan was hired, there had been three other employees—meaning Chan was doing the work of three people for less than minimum wage. The journal noted that while the 2018 minimum wage was 7,530 won, Chan had signed a contract for only 5,000 won through 2021. The most damning evidence was a note written in red ink stating that Bangristahasn't had a single day off since starting at SKZ Café and admitting he really want that second branch.

The members began humming a plot-thickens melody. Lee Know, taking over for a struggling Changbin, began grilling Dr. Yang. When they tried to skip to a new topic, I.N insisted his story wasn't over yet, prompting the group to burst into a brief chorus of their own song Neverending Story.

Once I.N finished, they moved on to Teacher Hwang, who was clutching the tablet dramatically. He ran to the other side of the room before reading out a series of messages.

“Chan-hyung’s movements are suspicious,” Hyunjin concluded.

Chan whined in protest, his voice cracking, “What?!” He began wiggling his body weirdly before switching to a demonstration of JYP’s "basic dance" moves.

Jiyeon reached forward to grab a carton of pineapple juice. “Everyone is suspicious,” she said, pausing as her eyes landed on Felix. “Not Lixie, though.”

Felix beamed, while the rest of the group protested her favoritism.

“Shouldn’t you be cuffed to the fence?” Changbin asked her.

Without a second of hesitation, Jiyeon fired back, “Shouldn’t you solve this case?”

She took a slow sip of her juice, maintaining steady eye contact. Changbin was the first to look away, sheepishly rolling his shoulders as if to focus. Jiyeon just smirked, the straw gripped between her teeth.

It was finally time for the final search. As everyone spread out, Jiyeon approached Han, who was leaning his head against the fence with a massive pout. She chuckled, reaching out to loosen his plastic cuffs. “Hannie~, why didn’t you just free yourself?”

He simply shrugged, and the two joined the others. After a few more minutes of getting distracted by prop food and furniture, I.N let out a yell. He had found a flash drive.

They connected it to the laptop and found a folder with Seungmin’s name on it. It turned out Dr. Kim had forged his dental license.

“I forgot about that,” Seungmin stated simply.

Jiyeon narrowed her eyes at him, “You forgot you forged your license?”

He just hummed in response. They then found files linking Dr. Kim to a ‘Mafia House arson case’. The evidence was finally pointing to a culprit, but before they could dig deeper, the voice spoke one last time:

“The on-site investigation has concluded. We will now begin the final discussion. Today’s vote is the final one.”

The group returned to their seats for the final showdown. Han, leaning back with a smug grin, checked his imaginary watch. “I have another schedule, so please hurry up.” The members burst into laughter as he stood up and grabbed a microphone. “Now, everyone, please be quiet. I’ll give you a simple hint. First, it’s not me.”

Jiyeon chuckled at his sheer audacity as he continued, “That narrows it down to eight people, right? Now, find them.”

“Each person will have one final chance to defend themselves,” Hyunjin explained, gesturing toward the head of the couch. “Detective Seo, start us off!”

One by one, they gave their final pleas. When it was Jiyeon’s turn, she didn't mince words. “First of all, it’s not always the wife or daughter that are the killers, okay? And yes, I did try to reconnect with him so he could help me financially—especially after he left my mother and me stranded with no money to go off and start a new family—but it couldn't have been me. I was in my dorm.”

Once the defenses were rested, Han announced grandly, “We were all victims of President Cho, but because of our grudges, he met a tragic end.”

The atmosphere shifted as the voice boomed over the speakers: “Night has fallen. Suspects, please vote on the final Mafia.”

The voting began with Changbin, who immediately chose Chan. Felix followed, initially looking toward Lee Know—which made Jiyeon’s eyes widen in shock—before pivoting between Seungmin, Hyunjin, and Han. Ultimately, he settled on Han.

Lee Know chose Chan, followed by I.N, who cast his vote for Han.

When it came to Seungmin, he hesitated between Chan and Jiyeon. “I’m choosing Jiyeon,” he decided. “It’s too suspicious. After that screaming match I witnessed, Mr. Cho turns up dead? It adds up.”

Jiyeon opened her mouth to protest, but Han—playing the role of an overconfident idol to the hilt—pressed a finger to her lips. “Shhh,” he whispered. “The voting is still ongoing.”

Jiyeon leveled him with a glare so sharp he quickly pulled his hand away, offering a genuine, "Sorry!" under his breath.

Hyunjin followed the majority and chose Chan. Jiyeon shook her head, looking overwhelmed by their lack of logic. “You guys seriously don’t find Seungmin even slightly suspicious?”

“Jiyeon, I think you watch too many crime dramas,” Changbin dared to say. “Channie-hyung showed suspicious movements throughout the entire investigation, while the only suspicious thing about Seungmin was his forgery.”

When it was finally Jiyeon’s turn, she didn't hesitate for a second. “I choose Seungmin. He’s been blaming me this entire time. He’s guilty, so he’s going for the easiest solution in the book: ‘The family member did it.’ It’s Seungmin.”

Poor Chan didn't even get to vote; the majority had already buried him. He held out his hands for Changbin to cuff him, but the detective just gestured toward the fence. “Self-handcuffs.”

With Chan "arrested" and the choice locked in, a sudden wave of doubt washed over the group. As Changbin voiced his second thoughts aloud, Seungmin immediately went on the defensive. “Why do you say that now? You should’ve chosen earlier!”

That reaction was the final clue the members needed. A lightbulb seemed to go off in their heads as Seungmin began to smirk, unable to hide his satisfaction any longer. Before they could beg for a revote, I.N called for the game to end.

“Everyone, you picked Bangrista as the Mafia,” the voice announced. “Bangrista... is not the Mafia.”

Disbelief erupted on set as the realization sank in.

“The Mafia is... Dr. Kim.”

Seungmin triumphantly raised his sleeve, holding his hand high to show off his PuppyM temporary tattoos in victory. Jiyeon pointed a finger at Changbin, her voice flat. “You are an awful detective.”

“You should have looked at the evidence better!” Seungmin teased, telling them to check the laptop again. They finally realized that the file names themselves had been a coded map to the Mafia's identity.

Chan, still cuffed to the fence, began beckoning them over with his fingers. The guys scrambled toward him, but Jiyeon took her sweet time. She approached just enough to be out of reach, tempting fate. Chan leveled her with a look, his arm extended, gesturing for her to get closer, but she simply slid her heavy bag off her shoulder and handed it to him.

“Here,” she said with a smirk. “Keep yourself busy.”

She stepped back as Chan began screaming after her, “Jiyeon-ah! Come back here!”

Giggling, she walked backward away from the fence, waving a hand at him. “Byyee!”

She ducked out of frame for a second before hopping back in to tease him one last time, singing a familiar tune: “You’ve been hit by—you’ve been struck by—a smooth criminal!”

Chan let out a yell of mock desperation. Jiyeon laughed, her head tilting back and her eyes crinkling with genuine joy before she looked at him with a soft smile. “C’mon, take them off. I’ll wait for you.”

She left him with one last look, before finding a place to get comfortable, scrolling on her phone as she waited for Chan to leave the set and meet her. Before long, she felt her cheek being poked. Looking away from her phone, she saw Chan, his finger touching her cheek repeatedly while he had a silly look on his face.

She huffed a laugh, pushing his finger away before getting up. “Let’s go, you Mafia Lord.”

Chan groaned, looking at the ceiling, and she laughed at his reaction.

The mystery of the SKZ Café was finally solved, the roles were discarded, and the costumes were taken off. Stray Kids continued on with their schedules, with less mystery but the same friendly bickering—proving that, Mafia or not, nothing was ever truly serious when the nine of them were together.

When Jiyeon looked down, she noticed their SKZOO faces printed on the mat, then glanced around and realised the layout resembled Monopoly. “Are we playing a human-sized Monopoly?”

“Blue Marble.” Jiyeon looked at Lee Know, her eyebrows slightly furrowed, “It’s the Korean version. Same gameplay but slightly different rules.”

She nodded at his explanation when he suddenly blurted, “SKZ Marble, marble, marble.”

She huffed a laugh as Chan began speaking. “Are we going to play a fun game today?”

Changbin chimed in, “Wow, sounds fun.” “He’s stepping there intentionally,” Lee Know pointed out.

Sometime between Chan’s question and Lee Know’s commentary, Chan had drifted from Hyunjin and ended up standing squarely on Han’s printed SKZOO face. Han spotted Chan’s own character — WolfChan — and started punching the spot on the mat where it was printed.

And that was how all the members started stepping on each other’s SKZOOs.

Before anyone could reach SaJi, Jiyeon threw herself across the floor — shielding her own SKZOO from the approaching menaces. She caught Chan stomping on Leebit’s face just before his gaze snapped to hers. A mischievous grin spread across his face as he started toward her.

She lifted a hand, already laughing, “Stop right there.”

He didn’t listen.

Grinning wide, he dropped down and lay on top of her. He supported most of his weight with his arms, but Jiyeon could still feel enough of it to gasp for air between laughs, “Get off me you, you idiot."

Chan let out a cheeky snigger, completely unbothered by her protests. He stayed there just long enough to laugh at how she tried—and failed— to push him off.

He finally stood, pulling her up with him, and they returned to their places.

“Oh, hey Hyunjin.”

They watched as Changbin crouched by Jiniret’s face and pretended to flick the mole, “Have to get rid of the watermelon seed.”

That made everyone laugh as Hyunjin followed the invisible seed with his eyes. Eventually, they focused back on the camera and Hyunjin spoke.

“Right, everyone, we’re here to play a board game.”

Shouts of agreement resounded, and Hyunjin continued, “So what do we do? We divide into teams.”

“So shall we divide into teams?”

Jiyeon looked at him, stunned, as he repeated himself.

Wasn’t he a professional MC?

Han asked, “How do we divide into teams?”

Chan pointed in front of them. “Looking over there, there are four different colours,” he pointed behind him, and everyone’s gaze followed, “and there are four playing pieces.”

Production soon announced they’d be dividing into four teams: three pairs and one group of three.

Chan looked at his members. “So I thought of a new game. There’s ‘one, two, three, four,’" he pointed at some flags, "so when everyone shows a number, the people with the same number team up.”

The members nodded along, but Jiyeon clicked her tongue, eyebrows pinched, “Channie, you’re overcomplicating a simple game of rock, paper, scissors.”

He shot her a tight‑lipped look, and she raised both hands in surrender, “Okay, we’ll do it your way.”

Chan counted down and everyone flashed their numbers —most held up three. Changbin, however… showed a finger heart?

Han and Hyunjin both picked four, making them the first team of two, visibly thrilled to partner up. Hard to believe they used to hate each other.

In the next round, Felix and Seungmin both showed one, becoming the first pair to match and forming a team. The rest matched too, but too many shared the same numbers—and Changbin flashed paper—prompting Jiyeon to mutter to Chan, “See? I told you, you overcomplicated it.”

Everyone kept choosing identical numbers, while Changbin continued tossing out rock‑paper‑scissors gestures, so they abandoned the idea entirely and switched to real rock‑paper‑scissors. The first two winners would pair up; the remaining three would form the last team. Changbin and I.N won, leaving the older members grouped together.

Jiyeon sighed, “You guys suck at this.”

Lee Know pinched her side, “You’re no better.”

She stuck her tongue out at him, the two laughing as their shoulders bumped.

Hyunjin walked over with coloured flags in hand, “Everyone, pick a colour.”

“These look like something cats would love,” Lee Know said, eyeing the flags with suspicion.

Chanbin stepped forward first, choosing yellow, “We’ll go with yellow.”

Felix and Seungmin picked blue, Han and Hyunjin chose green, which left the pink flag for the eldest trio. Chan and Lee Know pursed their lips — the embarrassment obvious.

As Hyunjin blurted, “Our piggy bank.”

“Turn the cameras off please,” Lee Know announced, marching toward him while Hyunjin backed away.

Jiyeon twirled the pink flag between her fingers. “What? You don’t like pink?” She glanced down at the fabric, unimpressed by their expressions. “We could pull it off. I know I can.”

Before either of them could protest, she lifted one foot behind her, arms curving overhead with practiced ease as she hummed a soft childhood melody. She held the pose, then added a clean, effortless spin, landing neatly on both feet as though weightless.

Chan let out a quiet laugh, shoulders relaxing instantly. Lee Know squinted at her, but the small upward twitch of his mouth betrayed him, “Don’t do that again.”

Once everyone settled, Chan checked on the teams. “Did you think about a team name?” He pointed at Changbin and I.N. “Let’s start from that end.”

He caught them off guard; I.N laughed awkwardly while Changbin echoed, “Team name?” Chan nodded, and I.N slung an arm around his teammate and made a Korean pun. “We are… we are horses. I am horse.” It took a beat, then realization hit Changbin. “Oh! Okay! Okay!” Together they introduced themselves: “We Are Horses.”

Jiyeon chortled, covering her mouth as she turned away for a second, while Chan clarified, “So it’s: We Are Horses, W.A.H. Just go with WAH.”

Felix was the one to introduce the team’s name, “We are Daeng-nyang.” Seungmin chimed in, “We’ve been a team for a long time.”

Hyunjin immediately protested the name—calling it basic—and Han shimmied his whole body dramatically, whining, “Choose a different name.”

Everyone burst into laughter, especially Chan, who laughed so hard he tilted his head back. Jiyeon’s eyes widened, but she chuckled and placed a steadying hand on his back before he tipped over. To Han’s plea, Seungmin simply replied, “We have to stick to our basics.”

Han and Hyunjin were still undecided when Seungmin threw out another idea. “Rap better, dance better.”

Jiyeon laughed at that one, but both rejected it for being too simple. Hyunjin suggested they go with something trendy, but Han abruptly declared, “One who denies reality.” 현실 부정한. HyunHan for short.

Chan looked at his teammates, “We are—”

“Elderly, elderly!” I.N shouted. The three older ones just smiled through the teasing, as Hyunjin dragged the words out, “Elderly, eldest of the group.”

Jiyeon bit her lip in thought, her fingers tapping her thigh. She was pulled from her thoughts when Chan suddenly blurted out, “195.”

She and Lee Know turned to him, confused, both asking in unison, “What’s 195?”

They shared a look at their synchrony as Chan explained, “Because I was born in ’97 and you guys were born in ’98, so add the two and it’s 195.”

“Ooh.” Now it made sense. Changbin groaned, “Ugh! Even the name sounds old!” Everyone booed dramatically.

“Generation gap!”

Jiyeon fixed Changbin with a stare, her eye twitching—but a tiny smile tugged through anyway. Chan cleared his throat and looked at his two teammates. They shared a silent exchange before turning back to the others.

“We’ll just go with LeeJiBang.”

They all took a seat on the cushioned floor as production explained the game to them. They would advance according to the roll of the dice; if they succeeded on the chosen mission, they could build a building on that property. Whichever team built more buildings would win. First place would receive an award—the losing team would face a punishment.

“What’s the punishment?” Jiyeon asked. Production refused to reveal it, and she pushed her lips into a pout. Lee Know nudged her shoulder, and she let the motion carry her into Chan, nudging him in turn and making him chuckle.

“So, shall we decide the order?” he said, glancing around. “Let’s do it like this.” He reached for the big red plush dice, “We have a dice—”

“Highest number?” Hyunjin interrupted, and Chan nodded. “Yes, in order of the number that comes up when you roll the dice.”

He rolled the dice in his hands, cheeks faintly puffed as a breathy hiss escaped through his parted lips.

He spun it a few more times, and when it landed briefly on a corner, he tapped it with his foot. They ‘rolled’ a six.

“Jisung-ah, don’t be a cheat,” Jiyeon scolded as Changbin snatched it and handed it back to Han, “Do it again.”

Han threw it properly this time; it bounced, rolled, and came to a stop on two—the lowest number so far. He passed it to team WAH. I.N puffed up confidently. “I’ll show you how to do it.” He tossed it with flair… and it landed on one. Changbin let out a dramatic wail as everyone burst into laughter.

Chan reached for the dice and offered it to his teammates, but both Jiyeon and Lee Know grabbed for it at the same time. They exchanged a look, immediately launching into rock‑paper‑scissors. Lee Know won, so he did the honours, “Easy now.”

He lightly threw the dice—and it also landed on one. Jiyeon laughed, “Why are you all so bad at this?”

“As if you could do better,” Lee Know said slyly before laughing, leaving Jiyeon with her jaw dropped, a huff of disbelief passing through her lips.

Seungmin picked up the dice next. He tossed it upward using both forearms, and it bounced twice before revealing a six.

Daeng‑nyang took the win, so Seungmin set the order: LeeJiBang team would start first, then one-who-denies-reality team, followed by Daeng-nyang team, and lastly WAH team.

“Shall we start then?” Chan said as he stood to grab the dice. Jiyeon shifted to sit on her knees just as Changbin asked, “What number are you… do you like number— no, which number do you want to come out?”

Han burst into laughter at the jumble of words, “Why are you stuttering so much?”

Changbin waved him off and focused on LeeJiBang. “So which number do you want?”

“Three!”

“They want a three,” Changbin relayed, and Hyunjin immediately shouted, “Samba!” turning the number into a pun. Chan threw the dice high, and as it was falling, Lee Know hit it. Jiyeon protested as it moved sideways into Hyunjin, who tapped it.

“Why did you hit it!” Lee Know exclaimed, annoyed, as it rolled to a stop—landing on three. Exactly the number they’d asked for. Hyunjin countered, “Do it over then!”

Lee Know quickly backpedaled, shaking his head, but Changbin stepped in, “We won’t count it.”

He turned to Hyunjin, “Hyunjin, don’t touch the dice.”

He handed the dice back to LeeJiBang. This time, Jiyeon threw it and as it dropped, Lee Know spiked it hard. It skidded close to the edge of the mat before stopping on a six. Jiyeon yelled triumphantly, raising both arms as she high‑fived Lee Know with both hands.

The trio got up. Jiyeon’s knees gave a soft pop as she rose, and Chan grabbed their flag, hopping six spaces. Their first mission was a TMI Quiz.

Jiyeon plucked a folded paper from the pile, unfolding it delicately and holding it out toward the camera. Chan read it aloud while she glanced down to read it upside‑down herself.

“What is the name of the Castella cake from Seungmin’s favourite Parisian bakery?”

Jiyeon’s mind went blank; her lips parted uselessly. Chan gasped. “We just had this yesterday! I can’t remember the name.”

Jiyeon twisted at the waist, looking softly toward Seungmin with clasped hands, “Seungminnie~, please give us a hint.”

He reminded the eldest trio, “I told you in the practice room five times, ‘Ah, I really want to eat this, I really want to eat this!’”

So maybe Jiyeon wasn't fully listening to yesterday's conversation, which is why she completely forgot the name. She bit her lip in thought as Lee Know stated, “How do we know what he likes?”

Chan tapped Jiyeon’s shoulder, asking both of them as if they held the answers, “What is it? What is it?”

He looked to the group, “Isn’t it just Castella?”

Jiyeon shook her head, “Mm-mm. That’s just the type of cake.”

“We had ‘Honey-something’ yesterday.” Lee Know added.

“Milk Castella?” Chan proposed. Jiyeon hesitated, parting her lips, “Was it… dèlicatesse? Honey dèlicatesse?”

“Oh! Oh!” both men exclaimed, though neither seemed certain—it only sounded right. The others shouted random names to confuse them, but the trio still tried to piece it together. “Honey… cream…”

“No, it wasn’t cream. It didn’t have any.”

Jiyeon sighed, scolding herself for not paying more attention yesterday. As the three scrambled for the name, I.N casually murmured, “Green Tea Bon Delicious?” directed at Seungmin.

Jiyeon’s head snapped toward him. That sounded suspiciously close to her own guess. The three huddled together, and Chan whispered, “I have no idea what the name is. Should we just go with Honey Castella?”

“No, no,” Jiyeon shook her head, meeting Chan’s eyes. “I think it was Deli‑something.” Lee Know shrugged. “I think it was Honey.”

“Okay, so it’s settled,” Chan said confidently. They shared one last look. Jiyeon’s eyes clearly said she wasn’t sold—but Chan turned to the camera anyway, “Well then, we’ll give it a try.”

“One, two, three, Honey Castella!”

All eyes turned to Seungmin, who smiled. “Wrong!”

Jiyeon sighed, shoulders slumped as Seungmin announced, “It’s Green Tea Bon Délicieux.”

“That’s so hard!” said Lee Know as Chan gently pulled the folded paper from Jiyeon’s fingers to discard it while she let out a soft huff. Hyunjin boasted proudly that he’d at least gotten part of it right.

It was Han and Hyunjin’s turn. Han picked up the plush dice and started batting it upward, tapping it clumsily but gently to keep it in the air. As he finally let it fall, Hyunjin flicked his foot out, nudging the dice and sending it rolling to a five.

“Agh! I was going for a four!”

Hyunjin stepped toward the board. “What’s number four?”

Han joined him, checking the fourth space: 5‑star Michelin.

They would do anything for food, so Hyunjin screamed in despair, but picked their flag up. Han quickly joined him.

The group watched as they deliberately counted the start line as part of their steps—adding up to five and placing themselves right on the five‑star Michelin space. “Here, that’s five!”

They kept insisting, both proud and shameless, while the others laughed. Jiyeon clapped lightly at their logic, smiling, “That’s clever. Now move one more.” She nodded at the actual space. After a bit of playful resistance, they finally stepped to the correct spot.

They crouched down, picking up a card. Han questioned, “Chance to reject? What is this?”

It was a chance card— one-time use only. It could be used during heart-fluttering and balance quizzes. Hyunjin said, “I think if someone chooses me to do something, I can use this card to reject them.” He grabbed the card, going back to their seat. “Meaning, it’s probably useless!”

Once they sat down, it was Daeng-nyang’s turn.

Felix lifted the dice as Changbin leaned forward, “Apparently, you get bonus points depending on how you roll the dice.”

Jiyeon leaned in too, giving Changbin a suspicious side‑eye. He flashed a mischievous smile, nodding slightly—a subtle 'just go with it.'

Felix tossed the dice, hitting it once before Seungmin tapped it again, sending it rolling across the floor. Hyunjin screamed “Five!” as it fell, and sure enough, it landed on five. Han shouted in triumph, shaking his fist in the air. Daeng‑nyang picked up their flag, moved five spaces, and received a one‑time‑use Tool Chance for the 5‑star Michelin challenge.

Finally, WAH stepped up. Confident as ever, they announced, “We don’t need a chance card.” “All we need is a building!”

I.N threw the dice, and it rolled a six. Changbin yelled in victory. Their space was another TMI quiz. They read the question aloud:

“What character did Seungmin use in his diary last year?”

Seungmin blinked, surprised to be the subject again, and Jiyeon teased, “Seungminnie, did you put the questions there yourself?”

She leaned over to ruffle his hair, but he swatted her hand away lightly, turning his head, “No.”

Then to WAH, “There’s no way you can’t guess this.”

I.N bounced on his toes. “I remember it, but I can’t remember the name. It was yellow.”

Lee Know began listing random words and Chan thought they were actual hints, “Why are we helping them?”

Jiyeon chewed on her lip, deep in thought, before she suddenly inhaled sharply, startling the two men beside her. She turned toward Seungmin, mouthing, “Pochacco, right?”

At the same moment, Felix whispered in Seungmin’s ear. Seungmin nodded at both, confirming the answer. Jiyeon grinned, biting her lip as she pulled her arm in with a clenched fist—a quiet yes!

WAH, however, were still struggling while the members counted down from ten. With no time left, they blurted the first thing that came to mind.

“LION! LION!”

Everyone turned to Seungmin as he gave the real answer. “The answer is… Pochacco!”

“What is Pochacco?” Lee Know asked. “A cute puppy,” Seungmin replied.

Lee Know nodded, then leaned toward Jiyeon and whispered, “Is he talking about himself?”

She tilted her head back as she laughed, shaking it in disbelief—but before she could respond, it was LeeJiBang’s turn.

They stood up, forming in a loose triangle, so Jiyeon didn’t need to move from her spot. Lee Know grabbed the dice and tossed it high, letting it bounce off his outstretched leg like a football. It skimmed past his head before he passed it to Chan, who dribbled it with practiced ease and sent it to Jiyeon. She tracked it with her eyes, ready to kick— but it landed perfectly between her shin and foot, balancing there as if it were deliberate. A chorus of surprised shouts erupted as she flicked it upward again, letting it roll to their number: a four.

Chan scooped up their flag and hopped four spaces forward. Their challenge was Fruits, fruits: peel a fruit in one continuous strip without breaking it. One team representative would compete. Chan puffed himself up confidently, “I think I can do this!”

They approached the low table where an apple and butterknife waited. Crouching down, Chan asked, “Are you good at peeling fruit?”

Jiyeon grimaced, giving a doubtful hum. Lee Know replied, “I just bite into my apple.”

“I’ll give it a try!” Chan declared, starting the challenge. Lee Know and Jiyeon watched closely as Chan began peeling, Lee Know offering occasional advice. Jiyeon held her breath, watching his hand guide the knife in careful rotations. Her gaze lingered too long on his graceful hands before she noticed the peel thinning. She pointed sharply, “Go slow, go slow. Be careful.”

“That’s right, really thick!” Lee Know agreed, then joked, “Can I ask my mum? Can I use Mum Chance? She’ll be here soon.”

Jiyeon snorted at that, bracing herself with her hands so she wouldn’t topple into Chan and ruin the attempt. The others chimed in with comments, and Chan wasn’t even halfway when he muttered, “Oh, it’s taking longer than I expected.”

“Moremoremoremoremore thick,” Lee Know recited the moment the peel thinned again.

Suddenly, Jiyeon sensed someone behind her. Tilting her head back, she realized everyone had gotten up—creeping closer with the clear intention of distracting Chan. Changbin leaned over him and ran a heat pack across his hand, insisting he looked cold. Lee Know scolded him immediately.

“YAH!” Jiyeon yelled, half-laughing as she surged to her feet, pointing at all of them in mock threat, “Back up or I’m going to sabotage you too!”

Chan panicked. The peel wavered on the edge of breaking, but he saved it at the last second. Jiyeon returned her focus, fists held to her chest in a desperate, prayer‑like gesture, teeth catching her lower lip. The rest kept chiming in until at last —just before Chan finished— the peel snapped.

Everyone screamed in celebration of his failure. Chan froze, stunned. Jiyeon collapsed to her knees in dramatic despair before straightening and complaining in English as she smacked Chan’s arm with soft, rapid punches, “What did you do?!”

He only laughed, still staring at the nearly‑successful apple before placing it back on the plate in defeated silence.

They returned to their seats. Jiyeon sat cross‑legged, swaying side to side as her shoulders bumped Lee Know and Chan. She directed her question at Chan, “Why did you rush at the end?”

“I didn’t,” he insisted through a breathy laugh. She narrowed her eyes skeptically before letting it go. The gentle shoulder bumps soon evolved into a small battle —though Jiyeon ended up the victim, squeezed between Lee Know and Chan as they gleefully bumped her from both sides.

Han and Hyunjin were up next. Han started tapping the plush dice upward over and over, nearly smacking Hyunjin in the face, and when it finally fell, it rolled to a three. They moved their flag to the thump‑thump space: a heart‑fluttering challenge.

One representative member from the team competes and chooses one opponent from the six members of the other. If they endure one minute of heart-pounding attacks without the cat ears moving for more than 30 seconds, they succeed.

Han chose to wear the cat ears. Hyunjin helped him put them on, and Lee Know double‑checked, “The ears have to move more than 30 seconds to win?”

Production confirmed, and he elbowed Jiyeon, tilting his head toward Han, silently urging her to say something to make him flustered. She grinned at Lee Know and called Han softly. “Han‑ah.”

He turned at the sound of his name, and she sent him a wink— exactly what was needed to make him blush and set the ears off. Everyone burst into laughter at how easily he flustered while Hyunjin stomped toward them dramatically. “YAH!” Then he spun toward the production team, “That doesn’t count, right?”

“Choose a person who’s least likely to excite you,” I.N told Han.

“Who’s least likely to excite me?”

Han scanned each member carefully before pointing. “Let’s go with Kim Seungmin! Let’s make some funny memes.”

Before they even began, the ears twitched again, making everyone laugh.

“Why are they moving? Stay still, Han! Stay still,” he muttered to himself.

Seungmin stood in front of him as the others started their countdown. Han stared at him with a tight‑lipped expression. Seungmin placed a hand on his shoulder, then winked —just enough to make the ears flick. Everyone watched closely. At Changbin's suggestion to do something exciting, Seungmin reached down behind Han and gave his butt a squeeze. Han went instantly flustered, his eyes widening and his cheeks hollowing in pure shock.

Everyone exploded in laughter as Han looked toward production, still being relentlessly flustered by Seungmin following whatever suggestions the members threw at him. Production announced that the minute was up. Han was sure he had lost, but the ears had only moved for under 30 seconds. He yelled in victory and high‑fived Hyunjin. Since they cleared the challenge, they were allowed to add a building.

Next up was Daeng‑nyang team. They spread out a little as Felix tossed the dice, volleying it like a ball. It didn’t quite reach Seungmin, forcing him to stretch forward and drop to his knees, his fists barely grazing the dice before it hit the floor and landed on a six. Their challenge was a five‑star Michelin: one team member would be blindfolded and taste food from five different brands, then guess all five correctly.

Felix volunteered to be the taste tester for the carbonated drinks arranged on the table. Before he sat down and put on the blindfold, Chan warned, “We’ll mix up the order after you put on the blindfold, just in case you may see the color.”

Chan stood to help, and Changbin joined him. While Chan adjusted Felix’s lavalier mic, Changbin literally shuffled the drinks by switching the straws —earning a loud protest from Seungmin, who scolded him as Changbin pretended innocence. Everyone stood to watch as Felix tried the first drink. The members fired off random brand names to confuse him, while Seungmin attempted to keep him focused.

Jiyeon glanced at the drinks, then leaned toward Lee Know and whispered, “If it wasn’t for the brands, I would just say colored sparkling water and get it over with.” But the mic still picked up the words.

Lee Know laughed, eyes crinkling, and high‑fived her, “That’s such a great idea.”

Chan had been eyeing them and leaned in with a teasing smile, “What are you two plotting now?”

The two exchanged a look, then turned back to him in perfect unison. “Nothing.”

Felix struggled with the guesses and ultimately failed, so no building for them.

WAH team was up next. I.N threw the dice toward Changbin, who was facing the camera with his hands clasped and hips angled dramatically —and completely failed to hit the plush dice. Based on I.N’s throw, they rolled a one.

“I told you to throw it with your hips!” Changbin complained about their miss.

I.N shot back, “That’s because your legs are short.” He darted away, and Changbin froze mid‑movement as if deciding whether to chase him.

I.N moved their flag to the move with your body space. It was essentially a game of Charades —with a twist. A SKZOO version. They were only allowed to make their own SKZOO character’s sound while acting out the keyword. If they answered all five within one minute, they would succeed.

Jiyeon volunteered to flip the keyword pages as the WAH team took their positions. Changbin was tasked with reenacting the words while I.N guessed. For the first word, Changbin drew a heart in the air with his fingers, repeating kkulchong over and over. Jiyeon was laughing so hard she almost turned red, fanning herself with a large notebook to cool off. Finally, after Changbin moved his hand as if he were holding a lightstick, I.N guessed the keyword: STAY.

When Jiyeon flipped to the next page, everyone laughed at Changbin’s stunned expression. He tried a series of actions to explain the word before switching to a serious expression, straightening his body and looking ahead. Somehow, that was enough for I.N to guess the second word: Identification Photo.

On the third page, Changbin pointed at Lee Know and held up three fingers, but I.N kept guessing wrong. Changbin held both hands above his head with playful ear-like gestures while cutely saying kkulchong, but the bell rang before I.N could get it right.

LeeJiBang was next. After rolling the dice, they held hands and skipped to the sixth space: the A or B Balance Quiz. Lee Know acted as the representative and looked around at the members to see who was least similar to him. Someone suggested Seungmin, but Lee Know went with Changbin instead. The question was:

If you had to give up one thing before a fansign event: A. Washing your face; or B. Brushing your teeth?

They both thought for a moment before choosing. Everyone peeked at their answers, Jiyeon closing her eyes with a grimace. They both chose A. Lee Know turned around to check Changbin’s choice and shouted, “No! Why did you give up on washing your face?!”

Changbin looked confused, “What? Why? Did I win?”

“Yes, you won."

Lee Know went back to his seat as both Chan and Jiyeon scolded him for not winning. Jiyeon grabbed Lee Know by the shoulders and began to jostle him as he let out a series of cut-off, lighthearted screams.

Han and Hyunjin rolled a two, moving their flag to Fruits, Fruits. Just like the previous team, one of them had to peel a fruit in one long strand. It was a pear this time, and Hyunjin was up for the task. Everyone gathered around as he began to peel, and he was definitely faster. Jiyeon looked at Chan with raised eyebrows, and he immediately understood her silent question. Shrugging, he said, “The pear is bigger. He’s lucky.”

They both laughed at the ridiculousness because they knew Hyunjin was just better at peeling—though maybe there was a little luck involved.

Hyunjin finished with a nice long peel. Chan acted as the judge, counting it as a pass, and Han was happy as he crouched to cut up the pear, “Let’s build a building!”

He stabbed a slice of pear with the knife and gave the first one to Hyunjin before doing the same for himself. Still with it in his mouth, he said, “You guys serve yourselves.” Jiyeon shook her head at his manners but still laughed as Chan cut up the rest to hand out.

Chan offered a piece to Jiyeon, and her eyes widened as she took a bite. A soft moan escaped her at the sweetness, “It’s so good! Here, try it.”

After he’d already turned down a piece from Seungmin, she held a slice directly to his lips. “Say ‘Aahh.’” Slipping into his five-year-old persona, Chan mimicked her and took the bite.

Without thinking—purely out of habit—Jiyeon reached out to wipe a stray drop of juice from the corner of his mouth with her thumb. Then, she brought that same thumb to her own lips.

The air in the room seemed to shift instantly for them. Chan froze mid-chew, his eyes rounding as a deep crimson flooded his ears. He caught Lee Know’s gaze—who was already shaking with a mischievous laugh—before his eyes darted briefly toward the lens of the nearest camera.

Daeng-nyang was up next. Seungmin threw the dice and Felix kicked it to roll a four. Felix picked up their flag, landing on the thump-thump space. Seungmin picked Felix for the challenge, leaving him surprised, “Me?!”

“Lix is going to do it? I think Lix will get excited easily!” Chan said with a smile. Seungmin replied, “I have a hard time holding back laughter.”

“Does it mean we make your heart flutter or what?” Hyunjin asked. Seungmin looked at him with wide eyes and his mouth agape as he processed the question before bashfully laughing, “No, that’s not—”

Felix was finally ready with the electronic cat ears, happiness all over his face, “I mean, I feel like everyone is making my heart flutter.” Han and Changbin took that as a compliment and commented that he was making their hearts flutter, too. One by one, Felix met each of their gazes. However, as he got to Jiyeon—who was sweetly smiling and fluttering her eyelashes at him—he quickly avoided her gaze, making straight eye contact with Lee Know instead.

Lee Know shut his eyes with a laugh, “He looked at me! He looked right at me!”

Jiyeon slowly blinked as she processed being skipped, turning her head to look at Chan, whose eyes crinkled as he laughed at both her expression and Lee Know’s reaction.

Lee Know approached Felix, and when Chan called out 'start', Lee Know went straight to tickle him. Felix hollowed his cheeks to avoid laughing and making the ears move, backing away from the tickles. When that failed, Lee Know said there was nothing to do, and Changbin proposed he do aegyo. Lee Know let out a cute sound to no avail, laughing out loud at his own failure. He then began to tickle Felix’s neck, which finally got a reaction and made the ears move. Everyone shouted in surprise as it worked. Lee Know continued to softly tickle him, but the timer went off. The ears had only moved for six seconds, meaning Felix won and Daeng-nyang could build their building.

WAH team was up next. I.N threw the dice, and Changbin tried to playfully dribble it with his feet, but he nearly kicked Lee Know right in the face. Lee Know’s fast reflexes saved him as he leaned back just in time. Jiyeon’s eyes went wide before she asked through a huffed laugh, “Are you okay?”

Lee Know nodded, though he threw a menacing stare at Changbin, who quickly bowed in apology. Changbin then retrieved the dice, which had landed on a one. It was the Heart Fluttering challenge again, and I.N moved their flag to the thump-thump space.

Chan made an observation, “Oh, but there’s already a building there?”

“We can steal the building, right?” Changbin asked the production team. Since the rules allowed it, they had a chance to snatch the building from the current owners if they succeeded.

As I.N put on the electronic cat ears, Jiyeon cooed, “Ooh! He looks so cute!”

She leaned her head against Chan’s shoulder, adding, “Our little fox.” Chan chuckled as she shook her head, clearly overwhelmed by the maknae's cuteness.

“Okay, I choose…” I.N paused, keeping everyone in suspense for a beat before announcing, “…my roommate Han!”

However, Han immediately held up the chance card they had won in the first round, “I don’t have the confidence to flatter you, so I’ll refuse.”

“That’s why I chose you,” I.N said boldly, but with his original plan foiled, he looked at the members again. He finally settled on Seungmin, who had been smiling and pointing at himself.

Once the bell rang, Seungmin went straight for the attack. He started tickling I.N, who didn’t even have a chance to recover. His ears moved briefly, and then Seungmin followed Changbin’s suggestion to do a 'sexy dance'. As Seungmin moved his hips and butt from side to side, I.N finally crumbled. He turned his face away with an embarrassed smile as the ears twitched. Fortunately, the bell rang just in time—the ears had only moved for 24 seconds.

WAH team was thrilled to build their building, but there was a twist. The rules stated that if a team lands on an occupied space and succeeds in their mission, the two teams must face off in a Say Anything Debate. The winners, decided by the other two teams, would get the building. To win, WAH had to beat HyunHan in a debate.

The topic: Butt Hunter Lee Know: must be banned VS must be accepted.

HyunHan argued for the ban, while WAH argued to accept it. Han kicked things off with a hypothetical: they are at a major event and Lee Know walks up, touches someone’s butt, and just cracks up. What would they do then?

Changbin didn’t see the issue and fired back with his own argument. Hearing this, Hyunjin reiterated the point: “You’re on stage in the spotlight.” He sat up on his knees, miming holding a microphone, “And he approaches and grabs your butt. How would you react?”

Changbin laughed but stayed firm, “I’m okay with that. Why? Because I’m so absorbed in my performance, who cares if someone is touching my butt?”

The argument was so convincing the other members let out an impressed 'OH!' Changbin kept going, “Why do you think Lee Know-hyung touches our butts?” He and I.N stood up together, “It’s because our butts are that appealing!”

I.N agreed, turning toward HyunHan and popping his hips back, sliding his hands up his bum to show it off.

“Lee Know’s butt grabbing is serious! You guys just don’t know,” Lee Know added.

The debate took a sudden turn when HyunHan made a comment about touching I.N’s butt. The youngest paused, a look of sudden realization crossing his face.

“Wait a minute,” he said, immediately walking over to join HyunHan’s side, “This has to be banned.”

Jiyeon just laughed at the escalating banter; it was pure chaos. Hyunjin brought up Show Me the Money to bait Changbin, who immediately protested, while Han wandered off to play a guitar he’d discovered in the back. Jiyeon looked toward the production team, managing a serious face despite her smile as the camera zoomed in, “Can we have some popcorn?”

That sparked another wave of laughter while the other two teams doubled down on their debate. After Hyunjin presented another hypothetical, Changbin asked with wide eyes, “Someone touched my butt and I messed up my rap?!”

HyunHan thought they had him cornered, but Changbin stood his ground, “I won’t make a mistake if someone touches my butt. If Lee Know-hyung touches me during a tense moment, it actually helps me loosen up.”

By this point, Jiyeon was flat on her back, her hand muffled over her mouth and her shoulders shaking with laughter until tears started to fall. Finally calming down, she let out a long sigh and stretched her arms out, tapping her teammates' arms, “Help me up, please.”

Each of them grabbed an arm and pulled her to her feet with exaggerated groans. Jiyeon wiped the corners of her eyes, clearing away the happy tears. Chan tilted his head, pointing to a spot on her face, “You have a little…”

“Shit, did I ruin my makeup?” she muttered.

A makeup artist rushed over to fix the smudge. Jiyeon looked at them apologetically, whispering, “I’m sorry.”

The artist assured her it was fine, finished quickly, and hurried back behind the scenes.

Once she was ready, they resumed. They likely could have argued forever just for the sake of comedy, but the production team decided to wrap it up. Chan spoke up first, “Okay, I think we’ve heard enough.”

Jiyeon looked at him, “No, we didn—”

She was cut off as Chan pressed his hand over her mouth. The rest of the members completely ignored the gesture as they huddled up to reach a verdict.

“I’ll follow Lee Know-hyung’s decision,” Seungmin announced. Everyone nodded, and Chan added, “I think that’s a good idea, since it’s about Lee Know, after all.”

“I believe…” Lee Know began, pausing for dramatic effect.

“He’s going to accept it,” Hyunjin muttered, already losing hope.

“It should be accepted!”

HyunHan erupted in protest.

“Obviously!”

“Obviously, because he’s the one doing the touching!”

More chaos unraveled, and Lee Know’s attempts to explain himself were drowned out. When things finally settled, HyunHan—especially Han—refused to accept the verdict. “Let’s decide by vote,” Han insisted.

“What vote? It’s already been decided,” Chan and Lee Know countered.

Seungmin stood firm on his choice to follow Lee Know, and Felix chimed in, “Me too.”

Finally, everyone turned to Jiyeon. She hesitated; Han was pouting so hard she was starting to crack. Lee Know bumped her shoulder with a small laugh, reminding her, “You’re supposed to be on our side.”

Knowing her vote wouldn't change the outcome anyway, she simply shrugged with an apologetic face, she told them, “I’m sorry.”

The WAH team wasted no time sprinting over to kick HyunHan’s building away and replace it with their own. While HyunHan still had one building left, LeeJiBang was still sitting at zero. Chan turned to his teammates with newfound determination, “Come on, we’d better build a building.”

“We would have if you hadn’t rushed with the apple,” Jiyeon shot back. Chan caught her teasing grin and poked his cheek with his tongue, shaking his head. Lee Know backed him up, adding, “That’s right, they should just let us have one.”

“Okay then, it’s our turn next!” The three of them scrambled to their feet. Chan threw the dice, and Lee Know—using a pillow he’d grabbed as a makeshift bat—swung at it. He nearly hit Jiyeon flat on her face, but her reflexes saved her; she managed to hit the dice away mid-air just in time.

“What were you even trying to do?!” she cried out.

“Sorry,” Minho apologized quickly. They checked the dice to find it had landed on a one.

“Oh, we reached a chance space.” They gathered around as Chan drew a card, “We got an escape chance. It’s for when you reach the Desert Island so you don’t get stuck.”

“But now you don’t get to go to the Desert Island anyway,” Han teased, pointing toward the end of the board and laughing, “It ends right here.”

The trio looked from the Desert Island space to Han, then back to the finish line. Jiyeon shrugged, “We could always sell it or trade with another team.”

“That’s not how it works, noona,” Hyunjin stated firmly as he and Han moved to take their turn.

As LeeJiBang sat back down, Han prepared his throw. Standing back-to-back with Hyunjin, he tossed the dice; Hyunjin bounced it off his knee and then his foot before it settled on a two. Han let out a cry of despair the moment he realized where they’d landed: the Desert Island.

Han immediately turned to Jiyeon with his best puppy-dog eyes, “Noona, can we have the card, please?”

She looked between Minho and Chan, the three of them holding a silent conversation until Hyunjin’s voice broke in, “We will do anything!”

Han was practically begging on his knees while the other teams doubled over in laughter.

Before she could respond, Minho leaned close to her ear, shielding his mouth with his hand to whisper a plan. Jiyeon giggled and nodded. While Minho passed the secret plan to Chan behind her, Jiyeon addressed the begging pair, “Act cute for the camera. Show me how much you really want this card.”

Defeated, they looked at the floor for a second before launching into their best aegyo for the viewers. When they finished, they reached out eagerly for the card.

“Aw, so cute!” Jiyeon cooed, slowly picking up the card. Their hands reached closer, but she suddenly paused, “But... that’s not how it works.”

Using Hyunjin’s exact words from moments before, she flashed a teasing smile and pointed toward the Desert Island, “Off to the island you go.”

Hyunjin’s jaw dropped, and Han wailed in despair again as the room erupted. Eventually, Han crawled toward the space with Hyunjin trailing behind.

“They’d better stay on that island!” Minho shouted after them.

Despite being the one to seal their fate, Jiyeon turned to the staff, “How long are they stuck there?”

The production team held up one finger. Chan asked to confirm, “It’s only one turn?”

While HyunHan continued their 'stranded' antics in the background, Daeng-nyang stepped up. Seungmin started by headbutting the dice, and Felix leaned in to do the same but missed entirely. The dice landed on a three.

They moved to the thump-thump space, and this time, Seungmin donned the cat ears. They started twitching almost instantly.

“Now, is there anyone Seungmin would like to choose?” Chan asked. Seungmin scanned the room before landing on his target, “I choose Binnie-hyung.”

Changbin stood up with a confident stride, “I’m going to teach him a lesson.”

He squared up in front of Seungmin, waiting for the signal, but before he could even move a muscle, the cat ears were already flapping wildly, “Why do they keep moving? Why are they moving already?!”

Chan gave the signal to start, and Changbin slowly approached Seungmin. The room erupted in laughter—Chan’s being the loudest—as Changbin began making ridiculous faces. Despite Seungmin’s best efforts to keep a stoic expression, the cat ears betrayed him, moving even as he tried to mimic Changbin’s antics. When the minute was up, production delivered the verdict: the ears had moved for a total of 47 seconds.Daeng-nyang had failed their mission and couldn't build.

WAH team was next. They took their positions, and I.N threw the dice to Changbin, who tried to receive it with his chest but fell to his knees. Jiyeon noticed that all the boys seemed to throw or receive the dice like it was a ball sport —and they were failing miserably. Maybe it was because the dice was square, or maybe the boys were just bad at ball sports overall. Regardless of the shape of the ball, she decided it was definitely the latter.

WAH rolled a two, landing on a new challenge: Forbidden Word UNLOCK.

The rules were simple: one team representative would participate, and the other seven members would discuss and select the banned word. While the members tried to lead the player into saying the word, if the player didn’t say it within two minutes, they succeeded.

“If we choose the word out of ‘no, but, really,’ he will absolutely fail,” Seungmin told the others. They gathered around to discuss and eventually settled on choosing one out of the three.

“Out of ‘no, but, really’ we should choose…”

“We really do say that a lot.”

“If you’re Korean, you’re bound to say it.”

“So it’s settled. The word is ‘no,’” Chan stated quietly.

They all spread out as Chan announced, louder this time, “We have made our decision.”

Hyunjin grabbed a marker and wrote the word on the small card attached to the headband on Changbin’s head. Changbin looked a bit tense but tried to play it off, “Do you think you can beat me?”

I.N was allowed to see the word but remained a silent observer as the others began firing questions at Changbin. He was doing a decent job of deflecting—or so he thought.

“He thinks the word is ‘really,’ so he keeps saying ‘very’ instead,” Han pointed out, laughing.

They kept luring him, waiting for a slip-up. Chan leaned in with a clever question, “You already know the word we’re talking about, right?”

“I don’t know…”

Chan and Lee Know immediately began mocking him, repeating 'I don’t know!' in high-pitched voices until the production team called a halt to the game. Changbin had already lost.

Curious, Jiyeon asked, “What do you think the word was?”

Changbin bit the tip of his finger, deep in thought. Seungmin offered a hint, “Koreans say this word constantly.”

When Minho started singing a verse from their song 아니 Any, Changbin finally blurted it out, “No, no!”

He looked at the staff, confused, “Did I say ‘no’?”

“I think you said it out of habit.”

Production confirmed it: when Chan and Lee Know were teasing him, he had unconsciously snapped, “No, I’m getting really upset!”

I.N let out a dramatic, fake wail over the failed mission while Changbin pulled off the headband, staring at the word in genuine disappointment. To cheer him up, the members patted his back, reassuring him that he’d still done a good job avoiding his other suspected words.

Now it was time for LeeJiBang.

They formed a loose triangle, with Jiyeon standing opposite Chan. She tossed the dice to Lee Know, who caught it with extended arms before passing it to Chan. Chan, however, attempted a flashy receive with his leg—but the dice barely grazed his foot before rolling away.

Jiyeon threw her hands up in exasperation, “Channie! What was that?!”

“What?” he laughed, shrugging as he walked over to the dice. He pointed at it triumphantly, “Look, we rolled a six!”

Jiyeon shook her head, a small smile tugging at her lips despite herself. She retrieved their flag and placed it on the Fruits, Fruits space. Since Daeng-nyang already had a building there, a successful mission would trigger another debate.

Chan and Lee Know hauled the table over. Before Chan could even suggest who should peel the fruit, Jiyeon and Lee Know shared a knowing look. Jiyeon cracked her knuckles, stretching her arms, “Staring contest or rock, paper, scissors?”

“Yah, why do you guys always have to do this?” Changbin protested in the background, but his question was entirely ignored. The ’98 liners settled it with a quick round of rock, paper, scissors. Lee Know emerged victorious.

“You’ll do the next one,” he offered, trying to comfort her. Jiyeon crossed her arms playfully, “If we even have a next one.”

HyunHan began chanting for a watermelon, and at first glance, the team thought they’d been handed a lemon. Once they sat down, they realized it was actually a mango.

“Wait, wait,” Lee Know said, turning to Han to try and strike a bargain, “If your team gives us a building, I’ll peel this nicely and give it to you.”

“I don’t want it,” Han replied bluntly, drawing a laugh from everyone at the failed negotiation.

Chan suggested with his finger how to peel it while Jiyeon tilted her head, trying to figure it out. Maybe if he—?

Lee Know leaned forward on the table in thought, “We only need the mango flesh, right?”

He turned to Chan, making eye contact, before looking at Jiyeon —a silent conversation passing between them.

Jiyeon nodded, “Do it.”

Chan glanced anxiously between the two as Lee Know explained, “I just need to make sure it doesn’t break off.”

He made the first cut —a vertical line down the length of the mango— grumbling about the knife's sharpness, before carefully prying the skin away. Jiyeon watched with bated breath; when the peel started to snag, she let out a tiny squeak of nerves. Luckily, Lee Know saved it, successfully removing the peel in one piece.

With the mission complete, they were handed their debate topic against Daeng-nyang:

If you remove the ‘sung’ from Han Jisung, is it Han Ji or Jisung?

Jiyeon furrowed her brows, then giggled as the wordplay clicked. Funny, she thought. Using the Korean word for ‘surname’ and removing it from the name made both options literal—depending on which part you removed. But which one was correct?

LeeJiBang chose 'Han Ji' leaving 'Jisung' to Daeng-nyang.

When the debate began, Lee Know immediately took the lead, throwing strong —albeit ridiculous— arguments. Seungmin argued back, though it sounded like he was applying the logic to their usual daily situations.

Lee Know countered quickly, “That may be possible. But if we’re in another country and we ask them to remove ‘sung,’ what would they remove?”

He abruptly turned to his teammates for support, “What would they remove?”

The sudden question left Jiyeon stunned; she just stared back, her mouth moving like a fish out of water as she searched for an answer. Lee Know didn't wait—he just kept rolling. However, Felix eventually stepped in with a logical argument so sound it nearly ended the debate right there. The rest of the members erupted in impressed shouts.

While Lee Know led the charge, Jiyeon and Chan chimed in with supporting points. Felix tried to shut him down, declaring, “No, no. This round is over!”

Seungmin explained their side, “When we call Han, we don’t call him ‘Han Ji.’”

“I actually call him that way,” Lee Know said before turning to his left, “Han Ji.”

“Yes?” Han lifted his head and looked in their direction, accidentally strengthening their argument. Soon, the room was a mess of members calling each other by half-names.

WAH and HyunHan huddled to judge. Hyunjin tried to summarize the debate question but twisted it until it made no sense at all.

Finally, Changbin looked at the mat, “The blue blocks are Seungmin’s team, right? There are two of them.”

“Yes, that’s right,” Hyunjin confirmed.

“Then I think Chan-hyung’s team won!”

“I also think Chan-hyung’s team won.”

“Yes, Han Ji is better.”

To add fuel to the fire, Han looked directly into the camera, “I am Han Ji.”

LeeJiBang celebrated while Chan teasingly rubbed it in, “This was a win from the start.”

“Han, you also think it’s ‘Han Ji’?” Seungmin asked, still not fully accepting the verdict and hoping it might somehow change.

Han’s answer wasn’t what he wanted. “I think it’s Han Ji.”

“You really want to give a building to the elderly?”

“Yah! Kim Seungmin!” Jiyeon shouted as Chan removed the blue block and replaced it with their pink one, “Show some respect.”

Seungmin only smiled at her irritation. She never truly took his 'old' jokes to heart —but it still bruised their egos a little.

Since HyunHan was still 'stranded' on the island and had to sit out the round, the dice passed to Daeng-nyang. They rolled a three, landing on 5-Star Michelin. This time, the challenge was hamburgers.

Production set out five different halves at the front, and Chan smoothly shifted back into MC mode. “Alright, the burgers are ready!”

The members stared at the spread, practically salivating, “Wow, they look incredible.”

Seungmin was ready with their chance card, so Chan asked, “Are you going to use the tool card?” Seungmin confirmed he was. Thanks to the card, he was allowed to forgo the blindfold for the taste test. Despite some light-hearted grumbling from the others about how much easier that made it, Seungmin proceeded with his eyes wide open.

They all crowded around him. Felix and Chan crouched on the floor on either side, while Jiyeon stood right behind Chan. Her legs were nearly framing him as she rested her hands on his shoulders—absentmindedly tapping them or running her fingers through his hair as she watched.

Just by looking at the burgers, the members could already identify the different chains. Seungmin picked up the first one, “This looks like it tastes the best, so I’ll start here.”

The others watched in pure jealousy as he took a bite. Seungmin clearly knew the brand immediately but kept them in suspense. He moved through the other four, naming them one by one until only the last remained.

“I’m really sorry, but I actually don't know the name of this burger,” he said with total confidence.

“Then you fail,” Chan replied flatly.

Seungmin just pulled off his gloves, surprising everyone. He admitted he hadn’t planned to guess it properly in the first place, while the rest teased him for basically having a full meal.

Since the official tasting was over, everyone scrambled to grab a piece—everyone except Jiyeon. Chan turned to her, offering her a bite of his. She hesitated, her eyes flicking briefly toward the production cameras before she gave a small shake of her head, “I’m good.”

He took notice of her silent hesitation but wasn''t going to accept that for an answer. Pushing the burger closer to her lips, he said through a mouthful, “It’s good. Just take a bite.”

Jiyeon looked down at the burger before meeting his eyes again, noticing how they had softened with a look that said he wasn't going to let it go. Before she could try to decline again, Lee Know spoke up. “Jiyeon-ah, just eat the damn burger.”

She caught Lee Know’s pointed look, then looked back at Chan, who gave her a small, encouraging nod. With a sigh, she finally took the half from him and bit into it. Chan flashed a satisfied smile as she nodded at the taste.

As they finished eating, the game resumed. Chan began a tally of the buildings while Lee Know started swaying to music only he could hear. When Lee Know bumped into Jiyeon, she gave him a side-eye, but that only encouraged him to sway even closer with a goofy grin. She bit her lip to hide a laugh and just let him have his fun.

“One-who-denies-reality has three buildings,” Han announced, pointing at their blocks and naming each neighborhood.

Chan, being Chan, replied flatly, “Wow. We didn’t really ask.”

He turned to his right. “Now, Daeng-nyang. How many buildings do you have?”

“We simply have one building.”

Chan glanced at the board. “Team WAH? They have two.”

LeeJiBang also had one.

They sat back down as WAH team prepared for their turn. Changbin boosted their morale, “If we make it this round, we win!”

I.N threw the dice, and Changbin tried to bounce it back to the maknae with his chest —even exclaiming “Chest trapping!”— but immediately fell to his knees. The dice rolled a one.

Changbin cheered, “Hey! Hey! Super Star SKZ!”

“What’s Super Star SKZ? It’s a new one.”

The game was simple: one member from the team would play. If they completed one Stray Kids song in the SuperStar JYP game without failing, they succeeded.

HyunHan immediately requested, “Make them play Boxer on the hardest level!”

“No, no! Please!” I.N protested instantly, “That’s impossible! We can’t do it!”

He sat down with the phone, which was hooked up to a monitor. Luckily for them, the game was set to "Normal." Lee Know, however, was in the mood for chaos, “Normal is too easy. Play the hard version of Hellevator.”

Jiyeon gave Lee Know a light nudge in the ribs, a smile tugging at her lips as she leaned forward to see the screen better. Suddenly, she felt hands on her waist pulling her back into the center of the group. She’d know those giggles anywhere. She lightly slapped at the hands and scooted forward again, only to feel herself being hauled back a second time.

Turning her head toward Chan, she whined, “Stop.”

He found it amusing but obeyed, letting her move forward.

They all watched as I.N followed the beat, his thumbs darting across the screen in quick, rhythmic bursts. Everyone was hooked, gasping when the life bar dropped dangerously low —only for him to recover it.

Not for long, though.

A string of mistakes followed, and the life bar finally depleted, resulting in their failure.

LeeJiBang was up again. Jiyeon caught Lee Know by surprise by leaping onto his back, nearly toppling him as they got into position to receive the dice.

“Throw it high, Channie!”

Chan threw it in their direction, but Jiyeon wasn’t prepared for what happened next. Lee Know leaped into the air—with her still clinging to his back—sending her into a panic. She fumbled her hit, and the dice plummeted, rolling a three.

Sliding off his back, the trio went to retrieve their flag. Lee Know picked it up and moved three spaces, but he let out a scream of pure despair when he saw the challenge: Fruits, Fruits. Then, the realization hit—there was a green block on that space. If they won this, they could seize first place. Lee Know turned to Jiyeon with a grin, “Jiyeon-ah, you wanted Fruits, Fruits earlier. Now’s your chance.”

“I changed my mind,” she muttered.

Ignoring her, he grabbed her hand and dragged her forward. Jiyeon squeezed her eyes shut, pressing her palms together as she looked toward the ceiling, “Please, please, let it be something easy.”

HyunHan, who had been looking defeated, suddenly erupted in cheers as they caught sight of the fruit first. Jiyeon looked over, and her jaw dropped.

A pineapple.

She turned to the production team while her teammates stood frozen in shock. “This is a joke, right?”

It was no joke; this was the final fruit challenge.

Reluctantly, Jiyeon knelt down and pulled on the gloves. “I hate this. I really hate this,” she grumbled, eyeing her teammates, “Don’t blame me if we fail.”

She stared at the pineapple for a long beat, trying to calculate the best way to peel it without the whole thing falling apart.

Chan leaned down and whispered a tip into her ear. She shot him a look but exhaled deeply, “Okay.”

She drove the knife into the top, struggling with the tough skin but eventually cutting through. Lee Know playfully squeezed her bicep, letting out an impressed 'Oh!'.

“Don’t make me laugh,” she warned, glaring at him through her breathless chuckles. The rest of the members watched in awe as she finished the top, already looking a bit winded.

“Just the bottom left,” Chan encouraged. Jiyeon flipped the fruit and carefully drove the knife through the base.

“It’s going to work, right?” Lee Know asked, glancing at Chan.

“Hopefully,” Jiyeon strained out.

“I don’t think it’ll match the other side,” Chan added innocently.

That was enough to make her freeze mid-motion and shoot him a sharp glare. The boys burst into laughter, and Changbin added, “Chan-hyung, don’t make her angry when she’s holding a knife!”

Finally, the top and bottom were off. Now came the hard part: pushing out the core. Jiyeon pressed her thumbs into the center, trying to lift the rind while pushing the center down. She struggled. Her hands were starting to ache, “Ugh, I can’t!”

HyunHan began a premature victory dance, but LeeJiBang wasn't finished. Jiyeon pushed harder, then suddenly snapped. Chan reached out to help, but he stopped dead when Jiyeon slammed the pineapple onto its side and started aggressively punching at the core. The room exploded into hysterical laughter.

Switching tactics, she used her fingers to shove the core through. It finally popped loose.

She screamed in triumph, throwing her hands up. Lee Know immediately tackled her into a hug, and Chan had to steady both of them so they wouldn't go down. Despite the fruit looking a little butchered, Hyunjin was the first to dive in for a piece, followed by everyone else.

They settled back down for the final showdown. They had won the mission, but the Say Anything Debate would decide the ultimate winner.

The topic: Dwaekki is a pig vs. a bunny.

LeeJiBang took the side of the 'bunny', leaving the 'pig' argument to HyunHan. Han opened his mouth but blanked. Lee Know seized the gap to clarify, "The question is about Dwaekki, not Changbin. It’s not Changbin.”

Han tried again, pointing at the printed Dwaekki on the corner of the mat, “Look at Dwaekki. It’s a mix of pig and rabbit colors, right? But if you look closely, the pig color has a higher percentage.” He began counting on his fingers, “Tail, nose, color!”

“You’re really good at this,” Changbin complimented Han’s argumentative skills, but Chan quickly countered, “Newborn rabbits are pink too.”

“That’s true, but Dwaekki isn’t just born, right? Look at his size!”

“Exactly! Look at his size,” Jiyeon chimed in, gesturing between the drawing and Changbin with a mischievous glint in her eyes, “He might as well have just been born.”

Since it was a Say Anything debate, Jiyeon figured she might as well take a playful jab at Changbin—all in good fun, of course. Lee Know and Chan doubled over at her joke while Changbin glanced at the cameras with a flustered, embarrassed grin.

The arguments flew back and forth. At one point, Lee Know claimed that since he was a bunny, he could sense Dwaekki’s 'cognate' scent, proving the character was more rabbit than swine. Jiyeon jumped back in to support him, “The reason we’re saying bunny is because Dwaekki’s innocent look resembles a rabbit more.”

“Exactly. Innocent, like the bunnies hopping through the woods,” Lee Know added helpfully.

HyunHan wasn't buying it.

“Wait a second. So if a pig starts hopping around, does that suddenly make it a rabbit?”

LeeJiBang just hummed in confident, unified agreement. Finally, Changbin decided to settle the matter himself, “I’ll straighten this out. Dwaekki is neither pig nor rabbit—it’s a pig-rabbit. But there are percentages.”

Everyone leaned in as he continued with total seriousness, “Dwaekki is ninety-nine percent bunny and one percent pig.”

That did it.

Han collapsed onto the floor in a fit of laughter, with Hyunjin chuckling beside him, while LeeJiBang lost all composure. Jiyeon frantically fanned her eyes to keep her makeup from smudging again, her stomach aching from the force of her laughter.

“Hey! Hey!” Changbin stood up, feigning offense, “Just tear everything down! Tear it all down!”

Seeing their reactions, he quickly backtracked, “Bunny is fifty-one percent and pig is forty-nine. Just tear down the green building!”

“Whoo!”

Jiyeon cheered, high-fiving her teammates. Lee Know sprinted over to kick HyunHan’s building away and replace it with their pink one. He hurried back and dropped down beside them, adding casually, “But Dwaekki definitely feels more like a pig.”

The room exploded at the immediate betrayal, but it didn't matter—LeeJiBang had officially secured first place.

Chan began the closing remarks, “So, this was our journey of SKZ Marble. Looking at the results…” He turned to his team, “What are the final thoughts?”

“I’ve beaten Seungmin at a radio show before, and today I beat him again!” Lee Know boasted. Seungmin, too exhausted to fight back, simply apologized, which triggered another wave of laughs. Chan finished the placements, offering some playful consolation to Daeng-nyang for coming in last while HyunHan and WAH tied for second.

Then, as if the math had just clicked, Chan exclaimed, “We have three buildings!”

Jiyeon clapped brightly. “Yay! One for each of us.”

After the final congratulations, Chan called for the wrap-up, “Okay everyone, let’s say our goodbyes!”

“Bye!” the group chorused, waving at the cameras as the official filming ended.

Jiyeon stood up and let out a long, deep stretch. As she extended her legs, her hips popped with an audible crack. “Oh! That was satisfying.”

Chan stared at her with a look of pure horror. “You should really get that checked,” he teased.

She immediately lunged at him, hitting him repeatedly while he laughed and dodged her. Eventually, she gave up and wandered over to the SuperStar JYP station. Lee Know joined her moments later, dramatically scrolling through the song list and insisting she tackle the hardest level.

The familiar intro filled the room again, the others lingering instead of leaving, gathering around to watch. Jiyeon narrowed her eyes at the screen, thumbs poised in determination.

And as the beat dropped and her fingers began flying across the screen, the studio once again filled with chaos, laughter, and loud commentary —the cameras technically off, but the energy unchanged.

Somehow, even after the game had ended, they were still exactly the same: loud, competitive, and unwilling to stop playing.

Jiyeon stood at the counter, sleeves pushed up, chopping vegetables while Minho hovered beside her, pretending he wasn’t just there to steal pieces when she wasn’t looking.

“You didn’t have to do all this,” he said, reaching for a cucumber slice.

She smacked his hand away, but he still managed to steal one. “We all can’t survive on fried chicken alone.”

“Watch us.”

Still, he stayed, helping rinse greens while the others moved around the living room—setting the table, arguing about where to sit, Chan quietly reorganizing plates so everything was neatly aligned and fit on the table.

By the time they all sat down, food crowded every inch of the table. Conversation flowed easily, overlapping and loud, until Changbin mentioned music to Chan between bites.

“Channie-hyung, I’m stuck on this one part of the song and I could use some help.”

Chan nodded as he reached for food, and Jiyeon let out a gasp, “Am I finally going to hear a new 3RACHA song?”

She leaned in closer, a mischievous smile on her face. “Are you going to re-record old 3RACHA songs?”

“No and no.”

She pulled a displeased face before taking a bite of her food. Chan and Changbin talked about how the production of the song was going, asking the other members for input. Jiyeon listened, switching between one conversation and another happening around the table. Somehow, the discussion steered toward their early discography.

Reaching out with her chopsticks for more food, she asked casually, “So, I’ve always been curious.” A few hums resounded around the table. “Who’s the noona that inspired ‘Wow’?”

A sudden silence fell.

All eyes shifted between Jiyeon and the three members of 3RACHA. Jisung froze mid-chew, cheeks puffed like a hamster. Changbin’s mouth hung open, chopsticks suspended in the air. Chan didn’t flinch—at least not outwardly—but his grip on the glass tightened.

Hyunjin was the one to break the silence. Unfortunately, it only put the other three even more on the spot. With a mischievous smile, he said, “Yeah, who’s the noona, guys?”

Chan was the first to recover, nonchalantly shrugging his shoulders as he brought the glass to his lips and took a sip. “No one really. We were just… experimenting.”

Changbin finally bit into his food and nodded along. After swallowing, he added, “Yeah, like Channie-hyung said, we were just experimenting." He looked at Jiyeon, "We still don’t understand how you can like that song that much.”

Changbin and Chan exchanged subtle looks, hoping that would distract her enough to avoid answering the question—for their own good.

Jiyeon sat up straighter, parting her lips to begin her defense of the song, but Seungmin spoke up before she could, his head tilted, voice dripping with amusement, “Jisung is awfully quiet.”

All eyes turned to him.

Jisung had his head supported by his hand, almost covering his entire face as he stuffed his mouth with food. Slowly, he peeked up—only to find every gaze locked on him. He glanced frantically between Chan and Changbin, begging for help, his eyes darting back to Jiyeon as if having a silent conversation, trying to ease his internal panic—the way his foot bounced under the table, the way his eyes flicked briefly to Chan, then Changbin, then away.

Jiyeon noticed his frantic movements. “What? Was it about someone I know?”

Jisung’s eyes widened, his face turning an even deeper shade of red. Chan and Changbin immediately tried to steer the conversation elsewhere, overlapping each other, voices too quick, too obvious.

Jiyeon blinked, then laughed. “Wait, seriously?” She thought for a moment and started dropping names—half serious, half teasing—until finally, with a laugh, she said, jokingly pointing, “Well, it can’t be me, right?”

That was the breaking point.

Jisung literally slid down his chair in horror, pulling the hood of his hoodie over his head. Once he reached the floor, he crawled away in pure embarrassment, stopping only when he reached the wall, where he sat facing it like a punished child. Changbin let out a high-pitched squeak, his ears turning red and his expression sheepish, while Chan simply rubbed his earlobe, eyes wide beneath raised brows.

Someone—it was hard to tell who over the laughter—teased that Jisung must have had a crush on Jiyeon back then. Jiyeon sat stunned for a moment, lips pursed in thought, before she smiled to herself, shaking her head as a soft huff of laughter escaped her. She never imagined she could actually be the noona from the song.

Seeing Jisung curled into a ball by the wall, she stood up, chuckling as she called his name softly, “Jisung-ah~.”

The rest of the members—except Changbin and Chan—were having a fit over the situation, but she ignored them and approached him. She crouched down, gently placing a hand on his shoulder, “Hannie.”

He tugged at his hood to cover his face even more.

“Hey,” she said softly, “don’t be embarrassed.”

He turned away from her touch, unable to face her now. His thoughts spiraled wildly—he was leaving the group and going back to Malaysia. He felt like he couldn’t be in Stray Kids after this.

Sensing he was beginning to spiral, Jiyeon reassured him, “You know, I’m flattered.”

He slowly turned toward her. She glanced over her shoulder at the other two equally embarrassed members of 3RACHA before continuing, a teasing smile on her face. “What was it in the chorus again?”

She quoted, “‘Wow, she’s hot,’ right?”

Chan let out a loud groan, dropping his head onto his crossed arms on the table. “Please, stop,” he muffled into his sleeves, while Changbin stared up at the ceiling, dead-eyed, posture slouched.

Jiyeon laughed, patting Jisung’s hooded head. “I think it’s a masterpiece now. Knowing I was the muse? I’m never letting you guys live this down.”

She stood up, grabbing Jisung’s hands. “C’mon. Let’s finish dinner.”

Jisung stood with her help but dragged his feet as they walked back to the table. They sat down, the guys teasing Jisung a little more, and Jiyeon glanced beside her, smiling teasingly as she poked Chan’s cheek and switched to English. “You had a crush on me, too?”

“Nah.” He took a sip, eyes darting as he shrugged. “I wrote my verse about someone else.”

The corners of her lips dropped subtly, but she composed herself quickly and joked, “I wasn’t pretty enough for you, huh?”

She dropped it so casually and went back to eating as if nothing had happened that Chan was stunned for a moment, his eyes trailing her profile. Before he could say anything, she continued, “Well, it’s not like I had a crush on you.”

Not entirely true.

Seungmin perked up. “You had a crush on who?”

Oh, she stepped right into that one, didn’t she?

She was about to shut it down quickly, but Jisung seemed relieved he wasn’t the topic of conversation anymore. She took a bite of food, pointing her chopsticks at Seungmin in mock threat. “Why are you listening to conversations that don’t concern you?”

The attention shifted to her. Hyunjin looked between them before asking Seungmin, “What doesn’t concern you?”

“The crush.”

“Whose crush?” He really was such a gossip girl.

“Jiyeon’s crush.”

And just like that, everyone wanted to know about this so-called crush. Voices overlapped as Jiyeon looked at Chan, her eyes flicking between him and the group, silently telling him, They’re your kids. Make them stop.

But he raised his hands in mock surrender and shook his head as if to say, Not this time. They’re yours too.

She dropped her head in defeat, still trying to steer the conversation away. “No one important.”

The protests grew louder. “You can’t just drop that you had a crush and not tell us who it was!”

Someone chimed in, “Or is.”

She looked up at the ceiling, eyes closed, composing herself and gathering her thoughts before gazing at the biggest gossipers she knew. “It was just some guy I saw on the street, okay?”

She barely had time to breathe before—

“Not true.”

Everyone turned toward the voice. Jiyeon stared at him with wide eyes. “It was Young K.”

That was only partially true, but still—Minho, you little shit.

Chaos erupted. A chorus of gasps, laughter, and 'No way!' filled the room. Seungmin’s mouth fell open in disbelief, Hyunjin doubled over laughing, Felix and Jeongin covered their mouths, eyes crinkling in amusement, while the rest blinked in stunned silence.

Jiyeon narrowed her eyes at the culprit of this chaos, “Lee Minho, you better sleep with one eye open tonight.”

Minho’s lips tugged into a sly grin, eyes sparkling with quiet triumph. Jiyeon met his gaze, unspoken gratitude reflected in her eyes, which he returned with a subtle nod.

The teasing didn’t stop after that. If anything, it only intensified. Jiyeon took it all in stride, firing back comments just as easily, laughter bubbling out of her as naturally as her breath.

Jisung eventually relaxed too, embarrassment fading as he rejoined the conversation, joking along with the others like nothing had ever happened. His old crush became just another story, another thing they’d tease him about for years to come.

Dinner stretched on, plates slowly emptying, voices warm and familiar. Jiyeon leaned back in her chair, looking around at them—her boys—bickering, laughing, existing together in comfortable chaos.

And she smiled, knowing she’d survive anything, endure anything, just to be right here with them.