#illit reader

Then you froze.

It wasn't your group.

It was Enhypen.

And in front of you was Lee Heeseung, halfway buttoning up in a shirt, hair tossled, looking at you with confusion in his eyes. All the other members instinctively turned their heads toward you in unison and the room went deathly quiet.

You clenched your jaw as you swore under your breath and then bowed so hard, you nearly hit the floor with your hair. "I-I'm so sorry! Wrong room I swear! I'm not a sasaeng!" You stammered, face in your hands.

The boys just stared for a moment, a pause, until a quiet snicker from the back broke it.

Ni-ki leaned over from his chair, clearly amused. "Wait, you're from ILLIT, right? The one who said you were an Engene before their debut?"

You felt a sinking feeling in your gut. The iced americano felt suddenly much heavier.You didn't have to look up to know that Heeseung heard that. Ni-ki was grinning now, a glint of mischief in his eyes. "I saw your live once, yeah you said Heeseung was your bias, right?"

A strangled noise made its way out of your throat before you could stop yourself. "Oh my god." You mumbled something reminiscent of a dying noise and ran out of the room, muttering, "I'm so sorry!" once more before the door clicked shut behind you.

In the room Heeseung stood, blinking.

"...She said what?"

Ni-ki smirked. "She's your fan, hyung. Her ultimate bias. The clips are everywhere."

Heeseung stood there for a moment completely frozen before letting out a breathy laugh. He was blushing—his ears were slightly pink. "You're joking."

Ni-ki shrugged, fighting a smiling. "Guess you have a fan in the building."

Heeseung didn't say anything after that, but the corner of his mouth twitched before he shook his head, softly laughing to himself.

He ended up scrolling that night.

It wasn't intentional. He just got a little curious. He had searched up your name, thinking there wouldn't be anything that interesting. But not even 5 seconds later, he was deep into the algorithm and it was throwing everything in his direction; your clips from pre-debut, fan edits, random snippets from interviews. He was scrolling blankly until one video made him stop.

You were sitting cross-legged on the practice room floor; laughing partially, partially embarrassed when a voice was heard off the camera. "Are you still an Engene?"

"Of course,"  you'd said, the smile on your face too large for someone trying to play it cool. "But don't say anything, I'm serious about debuting."

Then the off-camera voice asked, a different trainee, "So... who's is your bias?"

You took an awkward, brief pause too long. "Uhm—Heeseung..." you admitted, cheeks flushing. "He's just, so perfect. His perfect stage presence, the vocals in his voice, how can that even be real?"

You covered your mouth with both hands, laughing into your palms. You whispered, in a low volume, barely audible, "I might literally lose my mind if I meet him. Or, even kiss him "accidentally", I don't know."

Heeseung froze, mid-scroll, as his eyes narrowed.

"Did she just...?" he mumbled, obscured expressions appearing all over his face as the camera swayed to catch your friends screaming in the background. The following clip was, in all honesty, worse. You rambled on about your whole album of photocards, pulling out one of him with that proud grin of yours. "This one's my favorite. Don't ask why." Your friends did not waste a second before asking why, as you laughed and mumbled something about.  "Because it's dangerous and expensive. He looks like a heartbreak in this one." Heeseung dragged a hand down his face, conflicted between embarrassment and entertainment. "You're joking," he chuckled quietly to you, but a small smile was tugging at his lips anyway. He also decided to check your age out of curiosity. You were born in the same year as him—he didn't have an excuse or guilt. "So she said that as an age-mate," he murmured to himself. "Great." He clicked on one of your more recent debut lives next. You seemed more at ease, yet still warm and charming—still cautious. As fans mentioned these old clips, he recalled you saying that it was nothing. "I was just a trainee with too much time and crush. Don't judge! You can tell I was a trainee I promise I'm not a sasaeng—just... inspired," you waved your hands with that grin. Heeseung chuckled softly, shaking his head. "Yeah," he said quietly. "Inspired. Right." He certainly did not mean to rewatch the part of the clip where you'd said accidentally kiss him, but he did. Twice. Just a few weeks later, the universe played another cruel prank on you. HYBE had announced a merge photoshoot — a 'HYBE Family Visual Project.' Every group would be paired up with another for a collaborative concept. At first, you said nothing about it. Then your manager came in with a smile that was way too big for comfort. "Guess who you are paired with?" she said as she waved the printed lineup sheet. You took it, and scanned it lazily, until your eyes caught the words that made your heart stop. Y/F/N Y/N (ILLIT) × LEE HEESEUNG (ENHYPEN) You blinked. Once. Twice. Then you stared at it like it just personally ruined your week. "No way," you muttered, voice barely a whisper. Your members immediately started screaming and giggling. Minju had to hold your shoulders because you looked like you were about to pass out. "This is not happening," you cried out, burying your face in your hands. "I literally confessed he was my bias before debut—how can I even look him in the eye?" "Breathe," Minju let out while she tried not to laugh. "It's just a photoshoot, not a wedding." "Same thing," you muttered back a second round of teasing giggles.

On the day approaches for the shoot sooner than you anticipated. The studio was alive with activity—staff shouting directions, stylists running around, flashes from cameras already sparking. When ENHYPEN entered the studio, your body went rigid. You bowed with your members, and even though you love these guys so much, it came out incredibly polite. Heeseung's eyes caught your own as you bowed. His expression was unreadable for a second, then one corner of his mouth started to turn up into a grin. "You don't need to be so respectful," he said quietly when the others began talking. "We're the same age, right?" You blinked, caught off guard. "Barely. I'm older by a couple months." He hummed. "Then maybe I'll have to call you noona, huh?" His tone was playful and teasing—but it still made your heart race. "Not a chance," you muttered, trying your best to think about anything else as the photographer called your names. You knew how the shoot would go. You would be directed, forced to try and talk to each member, and asked to pose in a million different ways. Even though the brand had wanted you there, it didn't relieve the stress of talking to them, and because you had some interviewing experience in your past you knew how difficult it could be to have other interests in photos, or setting photos up. You took your place beside him for the shoot, sitting close together on the prop couch, just the right distance so the tension didn't get suffocated. The couch was, after all, propped against the wall also and was slightly tilted away, even adding to the entire situation. He leaned in ever so slightly, voice low just for your ears. "You don't get this nervous around people you've talked about online?"

You snapped your head towards him. "You—what?" He grinned. "It's Ni-ki's fault. He showed me some of the clips." "Oh my god," you exhaled, wanting the ground to open up and pull you under. "Relax," he said, his eyes sparkling, "it was... interesting. Cute even." "Interesting?" you deadpanned and he chuckled again, turning his head towards the camera as it flashed. Later as the shoot wrapped, you were busy pretending to scroll through your phone when you felt someone stop next to you. Heeseung. He was still in his styled out fit, jacket hung over one shoulder, hair disheveled from the gust from the fan. "You were good today," he said, casual, with a slight smile on his lips. "I thought you'd actually be able to look me in the eye after all that." You rolled your eyes. "You really don't have to keep bringing this up." "I don't have to," he said, tilting his head, "but it's fun to see you try not to die from embarrassment." You gave him a look and he just held out his phone, unlocked, so you could see the screen. "Here." "For?" "Your number." You hesitated and narrowed your eyes. "Professional purposes?" "Of course," he replied with a subtle grin, "if that's what's makes you sleep at night." You scoffed and took the phone nonetheless, entering the number as fast as you could before returning it. He glanced at the screen, then back at you, looking very entertained. "Come on, you didn't even save me as 'sunbaenim'? Pretty daring." "You told me not to be too polite," you retorted. He chuckled lightly. "I guess I did." And then leaned forward just a hair, so his voice was soft enough to graze your skin. "You're going to respond to my text, right?" You swallowed. "Maybe." He laughed as he walked by and waved on the way out. "You will." He anticipated you would certainly. Regardless of both of your busy calendars, you and Heeseung somehow managed to text every night—quick check-ins while you were at rehearsals, voice notes that went longer than they should have. He would always reply first, never leaving you on read for more than a few minutes. "We should hang out sometime" was quickly turned into a real plan. You were a total mess that morning—too nervous to even pick an outfit. Yunah and Minju were in your room styling you and picking out outfits like it was your first date, and just giving you a hard time the entire time. "Relax,  you've literally already talked about him for years," Yunah laughed, giving you a jacket. "Yeah, but I didn't expect to see him again in real life," you muttered, looking at yourself in the mirror for the tenth time. Once you were finally together, it was surprisingly easy. The tension from the shoot was gone, and he wasn't an idol to you in that moment, just a guy that couldn't stop laughing at your jokes and made you forget that you both were used to cameras following you. Then, the photoshoot was finally aired. As soon as the behind-the-scenes video was released, your notifications blew up. There were clips of you and Heeseung standing close together with huge smiles, laughing between scenes, and him sneaking glances your way. The world was buzzing. Your fans were editing all the footage and calling you their "power visual couple." And your own fandom lost it. "Her dream literally came true," read one comment underneath a fan post. "Remember when she said Heeseung was her ideal type? Look at them now 😭," read another. Even during your group's live stream, Yunah couldn't let the opportunity pass her by. "You're red again," she commented while she watched your ears go pink when reminded of Heeseung. Maybe she was right because you literally couldn't stop smiling when you saw his name pop up on your phone, despite your embarrassment.

ᝰ.ᐟ

One night, both of you ended up at a quiet little convenience store, tucked in-between apartment buildings, that no one paid much attention to—and Heeseung texted you, "You hungry?" and all of a sudden you were both sitting on the cold steps outside together, eating instant ramen like a couple of naive, college kids eating a midnight snack. You were bundled up in his massive hoodie, the sleeves hanging off your fingers. A cap and a mask concealed most of your face,  same as him—but his freshly dyed blonde hair still peeked out beneath his beanie. You laughed when you realized this, raising your hand up to fix it for him. He leaned down slightly and crinkled around the corners of his eyes the way he always did when he was teasing you. "You're always fixing me, huh?" he said playfully.

The night was quiet, only the sounds of the water lapping against the other side of the street and the soft hum of traffic from far away. You both ate slowly and quietly for a little bit, shoulders bumping and almost touching knees before looking up at the same time to say something to one another, and instead, he kissed you. Just like that. 

There was no hesitation or no suspense; it was soft, almost tentative, leaving you frozen in your uncertainty, stuck in disbelief and warmth. After that night, it just... happened. You started dating, quietly. No labels, no announcements, really just an understanding that whatever you shared between you, it was real. You texted the same as before and met up when you could. But now, there were longer goodbyes, softer smiles, and the way he'd pull your hood up whenever you walked past someone. Then, there was the picture.

Somehow, a fan managed to take an unnoticeably blurry picture of the two of you walking down the street. It wasn't much, just your backs with your hands in your pockets, but Heeseung's hoodie and that same beanie gave you both away. His blonde hair was visible just enough for people to notice. Within hours, the internet was swarming. There was no statement, no denial. Just silence.

ᝰ.ᐟ

The company eventually discovered the relationship—which honestly was no surprise. You and Heeseung were not careful at all while with HYBE. The subtle glances from across the hall turned into small smiles on breaks, with the occasional midnight "studio session" that maybe just went a little too long. When Heeseung started to work on his solo mixtape, he didn't think that a lot of it would leak out yet. One day though, during a casual conversation, his manager simply suggested, "Why not make a collab with her? You guys have the chemistry anyways." That one comment totally changed everything. At first, you both joked about it—until Heeseung texted you that night, hee: What if we actually did it? you: You're crazy. hee: yeah, but imagine how good it would sound baby.  So you agreed. For weeks, you both were living in the studio. Every night it was the same lighting, the same smell of coffee, and the sound of him getting the mic stand adjusted for you. He would sit back in the chair, rocking back and forth, signaling you over from the table with that half of a smile. "Come here," he would say, patting his leg, "I can't see the screen when you're all the way over there."

You gave a playful eye roll, still making yourself comfortable on his lap, tucked your legs perfectly against his desk. His hand rested at your waist gently and he was scrolling through beats. "What about this one?" He clicked play to the sound of a low thumping bass, smooth and low. You tilted your head to listen. "Hmm, not bad, but it feels too much like someone's playing it too safe." He grinned at your comment and said "Safe? You trying to imply that I am boring?!" "Only sometimes, only sometimes...,"  you said with a wink, earning a soft chuckle from him again before leaning in to whisper quietly near your ear. "Good thing you're here to make me sound better." You blushed at his words, unsure how to reply to his choice of words. Whenever you recorded your sections and parts, he was so focused and watching you, it made you lose your lyrics halfway through the moment. Then one night he said, "Your tone and delivery in that verse and section... it's a perfect fit. I think I wrote that for you." You laughed softly, "You did write that for me." And he didn't even pretend to deny it, "Yeah, guess I did."  When the song came out, everyone lost it. Your fans immediately analyzed the lyrics, studying every line, every word that was clearly not "creative writing." Lines like "addicted to the way you taste" and "you fit right in my arms like you were made for it" circulated timelines in less than ten minutes.

There were edits of the two of you laughing in the studio with lyrics to match the behind-the-scenes clips. Some slowed down the part where Heeseung's voice dropped while he sang, "you make bad days feel like something I'd still choose." Even your own fans couldn't keep denying it then—the chemistry was too obvious. Every harmony sounded like a confession, and every beat carried that quiet tension that neither of you were able to disguise.

The interview was supposed to be casual—a little talk about the song making, a few laughs, perhaps some cheeky questions. But once the camera started rolling, you could tell it was done. You and Heeseung were smiling at one another like fools. It was bleeding obvious the whole time.

"So," the interviewer started with a smirk, flipping through her cue cards. "This collaboration—congrats, by the way—has been everywhere. People can't get over your lyrics. Especially one line, anyways..." she looked up, smiling. "Heeseung, when you said, 'addicted to the way you taste,' what did you mean by that?"

Heeseung laughed, running a hand through his hair, "Ah—well, you know, it's just a metaphor," referring to you with his eyes while speaking.

"A metaphor?" you repeated, trying not to laugh.

He shrugged, with that same grin on his lips. "Maybe. Or maybe not."

The interviewer's grin grew bigger. "And, Y/n, yours was...'sink my teeth into your jaw just to prove you're mine.' Quite a lot of fans went nuts over that part."

You glanced downward, feeling your cheeks heat, and mumbled into the microphone, "I really didn't think that one was going to blow up."

Heeseung moved just a little closer, his voice dropped slightly when he said, "You didn't deny it."

The interviewer raised up her eyebrows. "Wow the tension in this room is so thick. Should we just leave you two alone?"

You both laugh together, pretending to brush it off, but you could feel his hand pressed up against your thigh, under the table.

Once the interview was released, fans went wild over it. The clip of you both giggling, and glancing at one another, gained millions of views in just hours. The comments were full of the following:

"They're so clearly together, it's crazy 😭"

"HEESEUNG'S EYES. THE LOOK. I REPEAT, THE LOOK."

Then the next day, confirming what people were claiming, a blurry photo dropped on Twitter of you and Heeseung, in a back lot, pressed up against his car, his hands on your waist, your lips on his.