#jiu fluff

All ten fingers clawed at your own scalp, trying to soothe the tension between your temples. In a furious jumble they shuffled through the already disheveled hair, not only in a motion to squeeze more blood through the tiny pinch of grey matter that you were sure you had left somewhere, but also to shed with the frustration that had plagued you all week. It was your task to show what you had learned in computer science, explore new frontiers of knowledge, and write a dissertation, at the same time documenting your progress for the lecturer.

“So, a Monad does define two operations, but is not a type itself? How is that supposed to work?”

It was quite perplexing, learning about such abstract and high-level data structures in mathematics. All day you have been attempting your own explanation, and every single time you have produced a different answer. Frustratingly, none of them matched any of the myriad descriptions that could be found, be it from the study book both recommended and written by the professor himself, numerous instructional online sites which most likely copy from each other or even what the latest conversational artificial intelligence could synthesize up for you.

“You still didn’t finish with the abstract?” Your study partner asked in a bright and cheerful voice, as she returned with two hot mugs of mocha latte and set them on the table. Your mood changed instantly with the scent of chocolate that permeated through the room, with a strong note of her own essence. Before you could reach for a mug, she was already next to you and flicking through the study book looking for what she was about to explain. “It is actually quite simple, my dear. Think more abstract, a level of indirection above types. This is why we call them type classes.”

The ease of her words leaned cheerfully against a solid wall of the complicated concoctions that have been woven and tightened in your mind. You could only throw your head back, stretching yourself on the beanbag, hands returning to apply even more pressure on both sides. “Like an interface describing interfaces? Aarrgghh...”

“Interface to classes, if you go for programming terms,” she corrected your inaccuracy with a smirk, knowing your frustration was not going to subside so fast. She had seen the same troubles from fellow students. The wide frame of her glasses was not the only reason you had the impression that she was the more intelligent of the two of you. Her sharp mind complemented her neat appearance very well, neither ceasing to astonish you time after time. “A common error for beginners. My dear, nothing has been proven to be difficult in this field of math. You will be able to understand it once you internalize the basics.”

In practical terms, Minji basically lived here. The dormitories are small and cramped and not made for living, only sleeping. Those who wanted to keep their sanity would spend their time away from home, be it the library, a café or the clubs. She knew her way around your kitchen better than you knew your own desk. You woke up stumbling over her bag, her clothes interleaved in the forest of notes with the data structures and pens and your own all over the ground.

“And next you are going to tell me computer science is just applied mathematics… This is so much to learn,” you voiced out your exasperation. You caught yourself looking at her. Not like this was an issue, since Minji was used to you staring at her. In fact, she loved it when you admired her beautiful face, her fair and radiating skin and smooth cheeks. No spell had to be cast, yet you were possessed by her deep hazel eyes. She took a sip as if there was nothing troubling you, savoring the cocoa aroma and accidentally dipping her nose into the whipped cream. Your eyes were locked on nothing other than the spot dotting her nose as she put down her mug — she did notice you were following the white tip around. The smile she gave was a more effective balsam than your fingers had been. Your gaze remained fixed on her as she shuffled around behind your back, the smell of cocoa giving way to hers.

“Clear your head, my love,” said Minji with a very calm voice, turning your head forward. Her hands replaced yours as her fingers traced circles all around. The sense of clogged arteries started to dissipate at once. “Let Mommy-ji help you relax.”

Your mind followed her fingers around your scalp, feeling the pressure she applied and where it moved to. Your eyes lose the bind to any sense of perception, no track of focus, your brain only processing being grasped between her palms and her digits. The thoughts occupying your head dissolved just as the tension faded. Blood rushed from your head to other parts of your body, among others getting clogged in a certain appendage, building up pressure. You hope it will not be noticed by her, since you wanted to enjoy the moment with her undistracted.

The endearing name for her had been established for a long time already, a logical consequence given the dynamics of both your behavior. While your lazy bum was busy playing video games or otherwise slacking around, Minji was the one who took care of the house and your needs. She did the laundry and cooked for you just like your parents, even spoon-feeding you at times. Not every meal, of course, only some, but you appreciated those the most. One day you accidentally blurted it out and it stuck.

But the image of her captivating face lingered in your eyes, even though she was out of sight. Her sculpt combined an adorable and young face with the mature image of a grown woman. If you didn’t know better, the round shape of her face would have made you believe that she was younger than you. Long and well-groomed wavy black hair was just the icing on top of her enchanting face.

“Not the time to slack off, lazy boy,” she chuckled. Minji was right, this was a subject that needed to be learned and understood. No way around it. You needed to retort, to explain the break in your studies, albeit it happened at her instigation. Not that you would blame her, though.

“B-but mommy, I’m not procrastinating,” you managed to stammer out while you were under the spell of her fingers. “I’m just d-deferring the effort. You know, lazy evaluation.”

What a counter, Minji burst out in laughter. Holding off on work was a viable strategy in certain cases, being efficient by knowing what was needed, if at all, and in what quantity. But of course, not every part of you followed this idea.

“You may be a smart boy, but what you are clearly demonstrating is a stiff amount of premature optimization,” she whispered into your ear, her essence filling your nose completely and stunning you as she traced a hand down your body towards your crotch. “What a horny boy, forming a boner ahead-of-time.”

And she has not even teased you yet – the strong side-effect of her touch. You could not declare yourself to be pure in your function at all anymore. It was obvious every part of your body was thinking about her and her touch. “I-It’s warming up. For you.”

“For mommy? How nice~,” she said with a joyous voice while reaching out for the visible bulge in your pants. Her palm covered the manly mound in a cup, rubbing it, feeling it up. More blood flocked to her touch, its return to regular circulation clogged by its own formed tissue pouch. While it takes a mountain millions of years to rise, your tent was erected in mere minutes at full size.

“Please take a look, mommy,” you said, as she went down on you. “Watch how much your boy has grown.” You were happy with how your body reacted to her touch. The desire for Minji was burning strong, the steam driving your member boiling hot. The beacon of your passion is lit – your cock calls for its caretaker. She slowly removed your pants, watching your tent pole rise even higher as it was not being held back anymore.

Her hand traced the length up and down multiple times before wrapping her fingers around the shaft. “Always so excited to see me~.” It was like your cock throbbed in response, even though it was simply timing with her fingers. She moved up and down very slowly, for you to savor the feeling, moving blood and tissue around.

Minji barely sped up the pumping, instead opting for a regular rhythm at a steady pace. Like clockwork your mind settled into the flow, breathing in at the ebb and bracing yourself for the flow, when her hand reached the tip. Distant grumbling, thundering muttering from your mouth warned of the oncoming outbreak.

“My love, tell me what you are,” she asked, smirking in anticipation of your reply. Her hand went slower now. Thinking about what Minji wanted to hear, there could only be one answer. Not your name, nor that you are her fellow student and attended the same courses. Such returns would not yield an effect. And if your answer had no effect on her, the result might as well be useless. Slower and slower, slower towards the peak, even slower further away. Idle state. Tension.

 “Mommy’sh cude liddle cum fountain,” is the reply you give. That is all what you will ever need to be for her.

“Yes, you are, baby boy~,” Minji approved of you. She dragged her fingers upwards in a slow manner, the tight embrace shifting higher and higher. The alternating grooves and creases of her hand slid across your shaft before leaving your cock, before turning around to cup the shaft and press it against her soft cheeks. Time was nigh’, she demanded your produce. “Cum. I want you to scream.”

At her command, the floodgates of release opened. With intense pressure prostrate launched the stream of ejaculate up into the air. It erupted out in a way more akin to a volcano than a fountain, each spurt leaving with a wave that traveled together with a guttural groan along the entire length of your cock. Minji felt every throb of your member against her cheeks, the hardness thumping against her tender face with each explosion.

“So hard and strong,” Minji praised both your cock and the force of your discharge. “Beating so hard for me~,” she added. The ropes of cum coated her forehead, some getting caught by her eyebrows. Her disheveled hair also showed some wet streaks, collateral damage from the powerful blasts. “Too bad I couldn’t taste any of it,” she demanded more, alluding to the uncertainty principle. To observe how far cum could travel, one could not taste it at the same time.

“Mommy, I want to taste you, too,” you said. The worship of each other’s bodies was a mutual thing, neither of you had the intention to freeload the other’s goodwill. What she gave to you, you better return it many times back. Sensual stimulation is a commutative operation, and it would be a shame if it were performed one-sided only. In other words, love making is better when it is perfectly balanced, as all things should be.

You held her high, pulled her up into a kiss, connected your lips, tongues making out. Your fingers fumbled with the buttons on her delicate sheer blouse. You were quick to pull down her inner top and unclasp her bra, too, revealing her well-developed chest. One of you tripped over – or did someone push? – and again you laid on the ground. It was hard to escape gravity when your soul was weighed down by this radiating beauty and her delectable womanly mounds. All things come to those who wait, but there was no rest for the wicked. You took in everything she had to offer, her smell, her taste, the texture of her skin and how her flesh felt.

Like with any other part of her body, she loved her breasts to be worshipped. Her low hums guided your mouth between her mounds, but your tongue dictated the rhythm of her mellow purrs. The sensation of your devotion to her caused a wave of content pleasure to flood through her body, the current of tingles emanated from her brain surged across her chest, causing sparks to fly through her stomach, and swashed against her core to be forked into separate ripples coasting along her legs, before hitting her toes and causing them to curl.

Your hands did not remain idle. Just like your tongue they moved back and forth all over her body, feeling her up just like you are tasting her breasts. Minji reciprocated your attention by pulling in her lower wings and extending them again, her splendid thighs and heavenly shaped calves were roaming your body. You felt her everywhere, she made sure you got everything from her.

She shifted around, taking away your favorite baby-soother in the process, but instead putting a favorite meal of yours in its place – welcome to your dream world. The musk was strong, a mix of Minji’s own odor mixed with the pungent smell of the dripping wet juices it was coated in. The flavor was both sweet and sour, with a trace of the same taste you experienced on her chest and in her kiss. With every lick on her core, she nudged closer to her destined place on your face. With every fraction of an inch that she moved, she was closer to smothering you completely.

The darkness slowly engulfed you, not that you minded being trapped in the dream – between her voluminous thighs – if it was a good way to bring her pleasure. Plowing through the dampness and exploring the cave before you would be the only way out. A deep dive into her hole brought back a tongue covered in copious amounts of juices, which you deposited in your own mouth before swallowing. You rang her doorbell, asking for a free refill, announcing your return, before entering the cave again.

Minji meanwhile rested on low hills and even shallower grooves, but there was a noticeable pole in front of her. It was hard as steel, yet it was bouncy to her touch. She knew despite its shape it had volcanic properties, being capable of shooting jets of hot ejaculate through its main vent, its solid remains forming a fertile seed for future growth. In fact, she had observed it erupt violently before. A reasonable onlooker would have been cautious in their handling of the erect mast, but Minji was on cloud nine. Her hand was reaching for your shaft. It was as if her brain ran on someone else’s computer.

Minji played with your cock despite the assault on her core by your tongue. It wormed its way inside of her vagina, wriggling around before tracing her lower lips up and down, and drawing a ring around her nub before repeating the procedure. The counterattack to reclaim Wall Maria involved her own tongue tracing your cock up and down, before circling over the bulbous head. Not only did the mast of steel twitch slightly, but the attack stumbled.

Her thick lips now engulfed your shaft. She was out to tame the horny creature beneath her. One would be the tortoise in this hunt to the peak, and the other the hare. Together they would race around the vicious cycle of pleasure, getting each other closer, coming head-to-head on the edge and pulling away again, before entering the next cycle. One was going faster; one was going slower. Because the hornier one would choke on its ambitions, eventually even the tortoise would catch up to the hare. Minji devoured the hare’s tail all the way down, choking on it and feeling it throb and wriggle at the back of her throat. The hare did not relent, however, and instead intensified its attack, its head circling around her nub, unafraid of the secretions her cavern produced in defense, but now even more determined to continue. There would be only one way to break out of this recurring loop – they would have to both lose themselves to pleasure simultaneously.

No matter how hard she worked on it, the pole would not let itself be defused. But without air, there can be no fire. Minji would have to drown the volcano’s air vent, cutting it off from its oxygen supply. You pulled on her thighs, groping her butt, pushing her core further into your face as tight as possible. It was hard to tell who was struggling more, whether she was convulsing more under your assault, or your cock was throbbing harder in her mouth. Small gushes from her walls announced her own impending eruption, telling you to brace yourself for what is to come. But you lose control of yourself when the storm hits you, a downpour of juices bringing you the bliss you were looking for by flooding your mouth and nose. The spit covering the hot rod was not enough to extinguish it, so your cum could fill her throat unhindered.

Minji was gagging on your little volcano as it erupted once more, payback for setting off such a dangerous object. You meanwhile were groaning and choking on her juices while getting drenched by her geyser, locked helpless between her strong thighs. Hips were spasming with their orgasms. Sweaty bodies rubbing against each other, both squirting their fluids into one another.

It took a moment for you both to settle down, to catch your breath. Minji just kept laying on top of you, rubbing your still-hard shaft and thighs and butt. You did the same to her while under her, enjoying the feeling of her.

“I hope your balls are not exhausted yet,” she said with a smile, voice slightly hoarse.

Your answer was to dive back in for a second serving. More of her was never enough. A lot of evenings had gone like this already, and yet you both came to each other for more. This was not the first time you had explored each other. And it won’t be the last time. Breath hitting the wet organs kept the heat in check. She gave you a series of hard squeezes trailing from your thighs to your groin, before getting up.

“I’ll be right back.” Minji went to get something from her bag and threw something on the table, something shiny and square and slightly convex, then she picked up a mug. “Come to me now, baby boy,” she said as she took a sip, but she did not swallow. Now it was her turn to pull you into a kiss. Your mouths connected once more, her tongue pushed through your lips, and you both got to taste the chocolate. Both your tongues danced and wrestled each other in the sweet bath, coating one another and cleansing it off again.

Your hands and arms battled with each other too, groping and guiding each other, pulling on clothes and undergarments to finally get rid of them, getting stuck on every nook and curve. The final piece of wear was her glasses, which she elevated into the air without destination before being catapulted towards the table without aim, bumping against one of the mugs. Another opportunity to trip and fall over, although this time it was you who landed on top of her, noses nearly bumping into each other.

“Minji, how can you be so beautiful,” you conjured up a smile on her face. You loved her beyond her appearance of course. The source of your affection for her was simple: Humans truly are most beautiful when they are just smiling and having fun. Minji could turn your mood around in seconds, and today was no different. Those mesmerizing hazel eyes of her could dissolve any stress you had. “Some days I do wonder why you spend so much time with me,” you whispered your thoughts.

“Midnight, close to you,” she said as she went through her own thoughts. Minji did not have to think a lot. It was easy.

“BEcause I love you.”

Minji launched herself high into another kiss, sucking out of your stomach what hundreds of butterflies had swirled up. It was clear that she appreciated you being there for her just as much as you felt empty without her. “I feel good around you,” she added. She was right. Not only did she spend a lot of time with you, but you went out of the way to be with her, to make her happy, to make her time with you worthwhile.

“I love you, too, mommy.”

Hearing and saying the three words lifted a lot off your mind. She embraced you tighter, your lips seeking out each other. The desire for each other burned strong. Moaning reverbed through each other's mouths. “Mommy, I want you so much,” you managed to say. Your cock was still standing proud, rubbing itself on her doorbell, waiting to be allowed inside.

“Take me as yours then, my chemical hype boy.” Her cheek brushed against yours when smiling. “But first tell me: Would you rather treasure me like a cherished pet or milk me like cattle?” Your logic is screaming: Yes.

Noses hovering over each other, heavy breathing brushing on cheeks and lips, eyes staring into eyes, strong thighs pressing into stronger thighs, one pair spread and the other bent.

“The pole train runs on whole grain!” You screamed, like how bungee jumpers or parachutists exclaim when they plunge boots first into hell. Your cock was racing to be inside of her faster than your thoughts. Like with a perfect equation ready to be solved, you substituted the emptiness in her longing core with the feeling of you. A substitution with the force of a mountain, the heat of a volcano. Minji opened her mouth in shock but in silence, the feeling of your penis spearing itself inside overwhelming her. You were sure she wanted to say something, but no voice came out of her.

Her breathing was labored, sudden gasps with each thrust. Her walls were tight, the cavern had to give way to the intrusive pole forcing its way inside. A ripple, this time physical, traveled from her butt cheeks up her body each time your hip crashed into hers, a wave of pressure making its way to the outlet between her other cheeks before finally venting.

Her tits were squeezed between her body and your chest, but that did not stop them from shaking around with the ripple passing through. Every woman was built different, felt different, thought different. But Minji had made it clear to you that she loved to be overwhelmed.

She had her eyelids closed, letting the waves of bliss wash over her and throughout her body. Her little boy could reach far deeper than your tongue ever could. And it was way bigger, stretching her wider. But Minji enjoyed her time with both – after all, each had their merits. A tongue could not just worm itself into unexplored areas, but also move and rub and push unlike a penis. For now, she just enjoyed her walls being parted in rhythm.

But a question still lingered in your mind. Perhaps now you were more receptive to understanding the concept.

“Minji, tell me again, how do monads work?”

Not a very romantic question, and especially not suitable for intercourse, but she was used to your constant babbling, an indication that your head was free and unoccupied – better hope that we are not going down a rabbit hole. Not that you ever stopped making fun of everything. At the same time, you were not the only one capable of making jokes.

“A monad is just a monoid in the category of endofunctors, what’s the problem?” she answered with a straight face. Your steady rhythm barely interrupted her voice, a strong display of her composure. You understood the words, but the sentence did not make any sense. Well, ok, maybe not even the words. You should admit that you did not understand anything.

“I could tell you a monad joke, but first... I would need to tell you jokes about functors and... applicatives,” she told another, smiling. Is this retribution for your own silly jokes? She was starting to pant between words. “What do you call... a verb that likes to apply... for jobs?” She was giggling. This one did not make any sense.

“Please, no, stop mommy,” you pleaded. She knew how to get you. You tried to muffle her with a kiss, but she managed to break free. “An applicative,” Minji laughed when telling you the answer. It was a pun, a word play, rather than a scientific joke. “I know some more~,” she chuckled.

“Let me come up with something, too.” It took you a moment, but an idea popped into your head. The missing piece to an equation that no one had been able to solve yet. You could just barely hold your laughter in anticipation. Let us start with the abstract: “Hey, mommy, let me ask you, what’s one plus one?”

Minji realized where this was going. This was simple math, albeit with an imaginary component. “Are you serious!? Three?”

“Well, let’s suppose, inside of your pussy. Penis goes in, penis and baby come out. Math does not check out, what’s missing?” Setting up the introduction for this joke with a central question, you tried to nudge an answer out of her. And the hint you gave Minji was to give her the mating press.

Minji growled. “Fucking sex-ed. That’s how biology works… silly boy.” She was not about to give in to the riddle you had posed. But the thrusts would not stop until the punchline had been served.

“Indeed, the female anatomy is something wonderful, creating new life from nothing more than a deftly deep dicking.” If only you were as smart with your studies instead of cracking terrible jokes. While this was not an exact science, the conclusion that making babies was a product made of thin air and the energy induced by the pounding is alluringly plausible, however inherently flawed.

“OMG fucking hurry up,” she shouted, having had enough of your nonsense. Slowly losing her composure, Minji tightened her embrace around you, closed her eyes, bit on her lips, pulling you in closer. She was close, you could hear it in how she alternated between moaning and squealing. It was also difficult for you to uphold the asymptotic behavior as your hammering approached the edge. It was clear that the limit was about to be reached.

“The most important secret sauce to make mommy a real mommy,” you panted. You were not far behind Minji in the race to the finish line, and you wanted to beat her. It only took you a few more thrusts until your hips began to buckle, starting to spasm – but not just yours. One last push would bring you both over the edge. Finally, content with the procedure so far, you proclaim the solution: “My cum!”

Once is happenstance. Twice is sincere lovemaking. Thrice is proving that Minji is going to get knocked up today. None of her attempts today to stop the volcano have borne any fruit. For one more time Mt. Priapus erupted with boiling hot fervor, sending a stream of molten cream blazing its way through the caverns behind mommy’s lavatory, leading into the chamber of secrets. A tide of secretion was launched against the current, it tried in vain to quench the heat. From the ashes of the hot liquid flooding her womb, a young new phoenix shall rise.

“Cum goes into the whole. Equation is complete. The sum of the ingredients is now empty. Q.E.D. Geddit?” Your cheeky joke was rewarded solely with your own laughter, and a pinch on the nose by her. In closing, this was nothing more than a silly mood booster. You stayed on top of a sweaty Minji, still embracing her tightly while she kept panting, smiling, showing her cheeks.

“What an astoundingly terrible scientific conclusion...” Minji did not know whether to groan or to laugh. Droplets of sweat were running down her face, body sticking to the floor, but she was visibly satisfied with what you had laid on the table. This is a contradiction with her reaction to your elaborate joke. “I think we should invite Yoo over for a peer review,” she suggested suggestively.

You tried to be respectful of her offer, but you were not ready yet. “I-I have barely anything written yet—” Another pinch on your nose cut you off. “I was talking about something else, innocent little—”

A sudden realization hit her. Did she forget something on the stove? Was Minji hatching a devious plan for your future endeavors? Were you too hasty? Would she be open to multiple inheritance with Yoo? The chocolate was getting cold. Glittering on the table. No, something was different this time. She put on a vicious smile that made you feel uneasy.

“Horny boy, when did I give you permission to not use protection?”

“you’re an idol though, we could have cute idol interactions and our fans could make cute montages of us…” you whined to which jiu shook her head.

“being a trainee was just as hard as being an idol, i wouldn’t want you to stress or cry over any sort of conflict you may have.” jiu wanted to protect you at all costs since she knew you could be quite the crybaby when it came to harsh comments on your abilities, hell, even she cried rivers when she was given feedback that sounded a little too harsh for her own good.

“fine.” you say with a pout, crossing your arms and letting out a sigh. jiu pat your head before receiving a text from her manager, telling her that the van is waiting for her outside.

“i have to go now, my schedule starts soon.” jiu said, placing a kiss on the top of your head, whispering an ‘i love you’ before leaving your apartment. you were sorta glad jiu kind of convinced you to not become a trainee, you couldn’t imagine a life where you were too busy to have your girlfriend over just because you had to stay at whatever company to practice for your trainee evaluation.

you sighed once more, rolling off the couch with a gentle plop to the floor where you laid there, staring at the ceiling until you had an idea.

“if i can’t be an actual idol then i’ll just pretend to be one.” you said with a mischievous grin as you got up off the floor, making your way to your bedroom.

once you got in your bedroom, you shut the door behind you before turning on the tv you had on there. after that, you went to youtube and searched up nmixx’s roller coaster dance practice. you enjoyed bubbly and happy songs that had fun choreography, you had always wanted to attempt to dance to roller coaster, but since jiu was around most of the time and you were too embarrassed to dance around her, you never had the chance to until now.

the video had started and you were easily following along. you didn’t know who to follow so you just did a little bit of everything, letting yourself get fully immersed into the song. the choreography was pretty easy to follow, it was just the jumps and footwork that messed you up a little stamina wise, but other than that you had fun.

the song ended and you were feeling great. wanting to dance to more songs, you started falling down a spiral of dance practices. bubble by stayc was another one of your favorites that you had enjoyed, but you were getting tired of the bubbly choreographies so you decided to switch things up a bit by dancing to a dreamcatcher song.

“what’s the craziest choreography they’ve done..” you asked yourself out loud as you cycled through all their dance practices. when you saw the demian special clip, you knew you had to dance to it. you remember jiu talking about how exhausting the choreography is and you thought the same when you had originally watched the special clip, but what was the harm in trying it for yourself.

you pressed play and got into jius position since what type of partner would you be if you didn’t do your girlfriends part? as soon as the music played, you quickly started realizing why jiu thought the choreography was so exhausting.

demian needed high stamina and jello bones especially during the body roll that quickly killed you. you gave mental props to sua as you continued dancing, attempting to catch your breath during the parts that you didn’t need to dance to. as the song came to a close, you were glad that you survived, but you were so exhausted that you had to lay on the floor. you were relieved to feel the cold hardwood floor, it was just what you needed after dancing to songs that required tons of jumping and whatever demian was.

you were snapped out of your hardwood floor solitude by someone clapping behind you and when you rolled over to see who it was, you saw a smiley jiu clapping her hands.

“i didn't think you’d survive that.” she said, walking over to you and squatting.

“how long have you been standing there?” you asked, unsure of how you didn’t hear her come into your apartment and open your bedroom door.

“not long, but are you ok? do you need any water?” jiu asked, moving the little hairs that stuck to your face due to sweat. you shook your head, taking one last deep breath of air to regulate your breathing before sitting up and staring into jius eyes.

“tell sua that i’m never dancing to another song she makes the choreography for ever again, that almost killed me.” you said, causing jiu to burst into laughter.

"I'll talk to the others tomorrow morning and see what I can do, okay?" She offers, bringing a hand up to rub the back of her neck. She looks tired, and a pang of guilt washes over you when you notice it.

"Okay. I'm sorry." Regret shines in your eyes, but it's quickly eased by the growing, sleepy smile on her face. 

"Don't worry about it," she reassures you, looping an arm with yours. The two of you fall in step together, heading back to the cabin. 

"I know it's difficult, after everything. But it's just a few hours. I'm sure you can survive that, no?" 

You shake your head, though you're grinning. 

"We'll have to see. I'm sure she'll make it hard." 

Y/BFFs/N slides her free hand along the polished oak handle of the porch's glass door, opening it for the two of you. 

"Just be civil and it'll all be fine. You don't even have to talk." 

The resulting glare you send her makes her laugh. 

Tonight will definitely be the death of you. 

–

Across the first floor, tucked away in the kitchen, Jiu is hard at work. She stands in a pair of shorts and an oversized sweatshirt, cleaning the grill she helped prepare dinner on earlier. A few strands of her hair have evaded the grasp of her ponytail holder, coming down to frame her face as she scrubs away. 

“Why don’t you just save that for the morning?” Someone unseen inquires, sounding half asleep. 

She turns around to find one of your friend’s other invites moseying over to the center island, bottle of water in hand. Her face is scrunched up some, and the small bags under her eyes immediately remind Jiu of who she is.

It’s Sua, the person who pre-gamed too early and overexerted herself when the group first arrived at the cabin earlier this morning. She’s been nursing a headache for the past few hours as a result. 

The low groan that she lets out as she hauls herself onto the high-top chair makes Jiu giggle, but she stifles it to the best of her ability. The younger girl has managed to brighten everybody’s moods all day long despite feeling how she does; she's truly a gift. 

“I want to get it done so I can rest easy,” Jiu finally answers. 

Sua rolls her eyes. “Sleep now, clean later. This is a vacation for a reason, you know? We deserve to procrastinate.” She raises her bottle to her lips, taking a long drink. 

“You do that, I’ll clean,” Jiu resolves, nodding to herself. 

“Suit yourself, pabo.” 

Sua folds her arms on the countertop and lays her head down, yawning as she nuzzles her cheek against the soft material of her sweater. Jiu glances at her and smiles, amused. She appreciates her nonchalance likely more than anyone else on this trip; it’s distracted her from her worries.  

Namely, you: her biggest inconvenience. 

When news reached her of Y/BFFs/N’s plans for a week-long getaway, she was intrigued. Work had been a hassle, she was stressed, and all in all she just needed a break. So, she pulled some strings, got her shifts covered, and took the time off.

All was well for the first few hours, when everyone was at Y/BFFs/N’s house, readying up to make the long drive to the forest resort; but then you made a surprise appearance there, busting in and looking just as good as you did the last time Jiu saw you. 

Effectively, it ruined her mood.

You’d glanced at her, then, when you first walked through the door. She was the one closest to you, having been on her way to get a refill of the drink she had in hand. Truthfully, it felt like slow motion; for a second, it was like the two of you were back to where you had been all that time ago. 

When you were still together.

You crossed the threshold with an eager smile, luggage bags weighing heavy in your hands before you allowed them to slip off your fingertips and land on the ground with a soft noise of impact. She met your eye for a fleeting moment, and she unconsciously took a small step toward you. Her lips began to pull back in the soft grin that you always told her you loved, mimicking the happy expression on your face. For that foolish second, she was transfixed. Foolish.

It was as if you were looking through her; you hadn’t actually perceived her at all, really. She was a passing face as you searched for Y/BFFs/N’s, only caring to register hers. 

Just before Jiu could utter a word or reach you, a loud cheer rang out from behind her. The entirety of the group had picked up on your arrival, word spreading fast throughout the living room once one of them caught a glimpse of you. 

She cursed quietly and retreated a few steps, allowing the excited crowd to gather around you and visit. 

You happily shared the story of how your boss – who’s always regarded you with a distant indifference – finally showed her humanity and adjusted the schedules so that you could have some time off. Not the entire week, of course, but a few days to go and be with your friends. Everyone seemed genuinely happy to see you; even the ones who barely knew you, having only heard of your existence through the stories that Y/BFFs/N had told them. It all made Jiu feel like the odd one out.

But she could remember a time when just hearing your name made her heart flutter, too, so she couldn’t exactly fault them. 

From a distance, she watched you. How you moved. How your hands danced around as you explained your stories. The way your lips pouted and pursed with every syllable, almost taunting her. 

She thought she had gotten over you months ago, after things ended. She thought she was stronger than this; but clearly, moving on would be impossible with you around. That was to be done separate, no more strings attached. The idea of having to look at you, to hear your laugh, to be near you in such a way and pretend like everything was fine seemed unfathomable. With every trace of you gone, maybe, maybe then she could move on. 

Anything less destroyed even the chance of closure for her. But, she supposed, closure would just have to wait a week or so. 

—

25 Minutes Later

Put lightly, Jiu is avoiding you. 

After washing the grill and dishes, she took her time with leading a groggy Sua back to her room and making sure she got settled fine. She made some small talk with some of the other girls in passing, but nothing as serious as she was looking for.

She’d be happy to debate the meaning of life right now if it kept the two of you apart for a little longer.

But with lights out rapidly approaching and everyone dragging themselves to their respective rooms, she knows the chances of that are nearing zero. So, begrudgingly, she makes her way up to the suite. 

With every step she takes, she wonders what you’re doing in there. Are you already asleep? Reading? Watching television? Maybe you’re scrolling mindlessly on your phone. Maybe you’re not even in there at all. 

The questions pile up in her mind until she eventually gets fed up and decides to be unaffected for once. Or, at least, to appear that way. She shouldn’t care regardless, and she reminds herself of that fact. All the two of you have to do is make it through the night, and then something can be arranged so that you can stay far, far away from one another. Not so hard, right?

Wrong. Certifiably, absolutely, unequivocally wrong. 

When Jiu opens the bedroom door, she finds you fresh out of the shower. A lacy bra adorns your upper half, while a towel is wrapped around your waist; you’re bent over your suitcase in search of some shorts to wear.

She looks away quickly, but it’s too little too late; even as she shuts the door and turns around, pressing her forehead to the wooden surface, she can picture your body. 

She mentally curses the water droplets that run their paths down your chest and abdomen, free as they edge closer and closer to where the towel meets your waist. They touch you in a way that she never can again, and she hates that.

More specifically, she hates the fact that she wants to.

Your eyes land on her as you stand up, shorts in hand. A heavy feeling of embarrassment settles over you. 

“Uh, sorry,” you mumble, not knowing what to do. 

She turns back around to face you after a moment, but she refuses to meet your gaze. If she does, her resolve will surely falter and crumble.

“There should still be plenty of hot water left if you’d like to take a shower,” you offer, extending an olive branch of sorts. From the angle you have of her face, you can see relief spread across it. 

She wastes no time in sending you a quick thank you and slipping off to the safety of the bathroom, leaving you to question what the hell just happened.

Most of the time, she’s engaging and bold; her liveliness is one of the things that made you fall in love with her. Even at the end of your relationship, when things were falling apart, it was never like this; she never refused to look at you as many times as she had today, or been so weary anytime you entered a room. She never used to despise you so much, and as that sinks in you realize just how much it hurts.

Despite everything, you hate how unbothered she is. 

While you’ve watched her from afar all day, agonizing over the curl of her lip when someone said something witty or the sound of her easy banter with the other girls, she’s clearly been fine. Paying you no mind doesn’t seem to be a challenge for her anymore, and you dislike that more than you thought you would. 

Truth be told, you hadn’t prepared yourself for that. With the scope of your relationship and the lack of closure you received, it only made sense for you to assume she’d miss you as much as you miss her. To be just as affected now, by it all, as you have been. 

But that’s clearly not the case. 

—

Once she’s alone, Jiu takes the opportunity to steady herself. Her hands find their way to the cool marble countertop of the sink, and she draws in a deep breath. 

She can’t stand you. 

Now, from just that small interaction, all she can think about is you. The subdued lighting of the room only brought out your features more, leaving shadows to fall across the parts of you that were untouched by it. Your muscles pulled and strained as you sifted through your bag, parting clothes left and right in search of your shorts. She could see your face, too, looking just as kissable as always. 

She really can’t stand you. 

Defeatedly, she turns the water on. The cold streams down, unaccompanied by any real heat whatsoever; this will be a freezing shower, she’s decided. She doesn’t trust what she might do otherwise, alone in here with her thoughts of you and steam clouding her judgement. 

The subtle throb between her legs is enough to warn her; she knows she’ll do something stupid if she doesn’t stop herself now, before it has the chance to start. 

When she strips out of her clothes, she does her best to think of anything other than the way you used to undress her. How you sat on your knees before her, slowly inching her pants down as your warm lips left kisses in their wake. How you’d take your time with her panties afterward, holding eye contact with her and stopping your motions anytime she looked away. 

Even now, goosebumps rise to her skin at the memory. It was torture then, but for entirely different reasons. 

She was promised sweet release then, no matter how much you may have edged or tested her. Now she'd consider herself lucky to even be rewarded with a conversation. 

Shaking the thoughts from her head, she steps into the tub. The frigid water makes contact with her back, and she has to sink her teeth into her lower lip to keep from shouting. But if this is what it takes to keep you out of her mind, then so be it. 

–

The muscles of your neck and shoulders ache as you sit at the mahogany desk on the far side of the room, half-heartedly working on the report your boss asked you to start. It was what you had to give in order to take the time off, which is only reasonable. Even still, you're having a hard time staying focused. 

The desk faces one of the large bay windows of the room, overlooking the forest and mountains that surround you. Darkness completely envelops the land, save for the occasional house light far off in the distance. Moonbeams hit the treetops, coating them in a sparkle that contrasts with the midnight sky. 

Nearby, an electric fireplace crackles, reminding you of its presence. It's situated as the centerpiece of the lounge area of the suite, providing the room with some additional warmth and light from its place beneath the television. Faux flames waver within it, vibrant as they mingle with one another. Some burn brightly while others glow dimly; the wild versus the tamed.

Despite everything, maybe this trip will do you some good. Escaping the hustle and bustle of your life back home is always a plus, and being in nature never fails to ground you again. Some circumstances might be unsatisfactory, sure, but you're determined to not let that stop you from enjoying this time away. You deserve it, after all.

Just as you find the inspiration to start your reporting again, another one of your distractions makes herself known. 

From the bathroom, a pleasant humming fades in; it's Jiu, reciting the chorus to one of her favorite songs. She breaks into vocals occasionally, switching between the two. 

No matter how much you wish you could, you can't deny that it sounds perfect, coupled with the atmosphere that surrounds you. Given its range and ease, her voice has always been a comfort; getting sick of it is simply impossible. That fact annoys you, but at the same time you give up trying to fight it; you know there's no use.

It takes you back in more ways than you know how to handle, but you don’t complain. For now, you’ll bottle up this feeling and store it away for later, when you part ways and return to the chaos of your own lives. 

Maybe then you could open such a Pandora’s Box.

-

A few minutes later, she finally emerges from the bathroom; you attempt to ignore the urge to perk up. It's difficult, no doubt, after being left to your own devices for so long. Knowing she's so close and yet so unattainable doesn't help either. 

You don't turn around, just in case she isn't fully clothed.

It isn't anything you haven't seen before, but you're afraid you don't have that kind of permission anymore. The last thing you want to do is overstep.

Jiu wishes you'd look at her.

One thing she misses the most about you is your attention. You always paid it so freely – so willingly – rarely taking it off of her. It was ready for her anytime she wanted it, mainly because she had you so enraptured. 

Just the same as you’d always watched her, she watched you. She lived for the way your eyes lit up whenever she smiled or laughed, shining beautifully in a way they never did otherwise. She ached over how they darkened when she'd strip, parting her legs for you and putting herself on display. 

She was the art and you were the beholder. The only one she ever wanted to share herself with.

But now is a totally different time. You don't even so much as glance in her direction when she comes out, with her towel draped precariously around her body in a way that she was sure would drive you crazy.

It’s disheartening, but it doesn't make her want you any less. As she opens her bag and retrieves her clothes, slipping them on, she keeps an eye on you through the standing mirror in the corner of the room. 

Your legs spread as you readjust in the chair, making an attempt to rid your muscles of the tension within them. They're tight with the culmination of all the stress you've felt lately. 

When you allow your head to loll back, rolling from one side to the other, Jiu has to stop her wandering hands. The angle of the mirror allows her to see the way your brows knit together, pain and pleasure intermingling. She doesn't know how much longer she can stand this. 

One of your hands finds its way to your shoulder, rubbing a knot there, and Jiu gets an idea. Is it wise? Not in the slightest. But is she going to give in and go with it? Absolutely. 

What was it that Sua said earlier? This is a vacation for a reason. She can escape sound judgement and reason for now. Surely they'll return in full once you're out of the equation again, anyway.

She deserves to be a little reckless for once.

"Y/N," she calls, getting your attention. You wordlessly turn to look at her.

A bottle of lotion rests in her hands; she nervously toys with it.

"You can use some of this for your shoulders, if you want. It works pretty well." 

You consider her offer. "Thanks, but I'm alright," you declare, turning her down. "I can't reach what really hurts anyway." 

A beat passes before her eyebrows gently raise. "I can help you," she says, trying to keep the eager tone of her voice at bay. 

You pull a face. "Are you sure? You don't have to do that."

I want to, she thinks to herself.

"It's not a problem." She shakes her head, cementing her decision. "Just come here and lay down." 

You stand and relent with a soft noise of acceptance, almost imperceptibly. She takes notice of the way your eyes track down her body before dropping to the floor, lingering just a second too long for innocence. 

She dismisses the thought at once, not wanting to give herself hope.

When you cross in front of her and pause, though, slipping your shirt over your head with a subtle glance at her, it’s all she can do to restrain herself. The fading sunburn that you received earlier in the day, stretching across your nose and cheeks, looks like a natural blush from this close. 

She wants to kiss it.

“Thank you in advance,” you say over your shoulder, carefully laying down on your stomach. The fluffy comforter welcomes you in full, partially distracting and preventing you from overthinking what you’re about to experience.

She takes a steadying breath and releases it, glancing up at the ceiling like she’s pleading with a higher power. 

"Don't mention it," she dismisses, getting on the bed after you. 

In her mind, she debates the best way to go about this. Where should she sit? Overstepping the unspoken boundaries you've established isn't something she wants to do. 

Her fingertips play with the hook of your bra, sliding over the material. "Can I…" she trails off, both of you aware of what she's asking. 

"Go ahead," you permit.

She unclips the fastener and watches as the two sides fall down, fully exposing your back to her. Once you slip it off of your arms and toss it towards your suitcase, her fingertips ghost over your skin, tracing the gentle curve of your spine. 

She dons a musing smile when she notices goosebumps appearing in their wake. 

Perhaps she was wrong. Maybe all along, you've been the art and she the beholder. 

Her knees go to either side of your waist as she moves to straddle you, settling down onto you. Once she's sure you're comfortable, she retrieves the bottle of lotion from its place on the bed and squeezes some out onto her fingertips. 

It's smooth as it slides against them, medicated and cool. Her favorite brand makes it, and she never leaves the house without it. She'll be thanking her lucky stars endlessly for that habit after tonight.

Something crossed between a hiss and sigh fights past your lips when she makes contact for the first time, spreading the chilly cream across your shoulders. The attempt she made to warm it beforehand clearly didn't work as well as she thought, and she has to stifle a laugh at your reaction. 

Beneath her fingers, your muscles tense and jump; you do your best to relax them as she pushes harder, kneading them with care. She does so with a steady rhythm, using the base of her hands to loosen you up first before focusing her fingers on the more persistent knots. Every circle of her hands against you warms the lotion up more, convincing you to relax and give into the relief she’s able to provide.

You close your eyes, wanting to focus on her motions. 

What you failed to prepare yourself for, though, is the notion that she’s closer to you than ever. Only separated by the material of your shorts and hers, she sits atop you, her warm thighs trembling slightly with effort anytime she has to push herself up to reach you better. 

When she steadies herself on your lower back, splaying a hand across it, you can feel the subtle way her hips rut against your ass as she readjusts her position. 

Maybe you're just imagining it.

Serious work is put into leaving that idea behind, but at every opportunity she gets, Jiu seems to enjoy feeding your delusion. 

When she accidentally gets too much lotion at once, her solution comes in the form of leaning down and running her hands up your outstretched arms, reaching as far as she can to further spread it. In the process, her front presses against the length of your body; her breathing is shuddered, too, just like yours. 

Did she do that to show you it’s mutual?

If only you knew.

Her eager eyes rake over your body, pleased to have you like this in front of her. At her mercy, reacting to the faintest of touches. Possessing this kind of power again makes her feel brave in a dangerous way; should things continue like this unchecked, she might do something impulsive.

But, is she to be blamed? No; she rejects that. 

The subtle rock of your hips is far guiltier than her, adding fuel to the fire of her imagination. The way your hands fist in the sheets, fingers twisting in a show of pain and pleasure whenever she hits a particularly sensitive spot, are in the wrong; the sight makes her wonder, for a desperate second, how they would feel in her hair. 

Her motions – now more wanton, unafraid of touching you – grow a little more rough, shying away from demurity. They’ve arrived at your waist now; a risky place to be. 

She can tell that the appropriate amount of time for two exes to spend doing something like this is dwindling fast; the window of propriety will be closing soon, leaving any further contact between the two of you up for suspicion. She’s aware of that, and yet she has no desire to stop.

In this game of yours, she’s merely a pawn; that’s something she realizes when the sound of a guttural, appreciative moan from you makes her heart flutter wildly. 

She freezes in place, taking a cautious breath; she shouldn’t have enjoyed it as much as she did.

A few beats pass… one…. another…. before you ultimately take her stunned reaction as a sign of discomfort.

“Uh, thanks again,” you say quietly, suddenly feeling ten times too exposed and five hundred degrees too hot. A couple taps to her leg gives her the memo, and she climbs off of you.

Embarrassed and upset with yourself for doing such a thing, you refuse to even so much as make eye contact with her again. 

An apology from you fizzles into the air, but she’s still too overwhelmed to fully process what just transpired. It all happened too fast; she wants to go back and relive it, but it’s too late. You’re already slipping your shirt back on and burying yourself under the covers, humiliated. When you cover your face with the pillow, debating on smothering yourself, she spares you by reaching over and turning the lamp off. 

She lifts her side of the covers afterward, getting in beside you. You face away from one another, back to back, establishing distance once again.

This night is proving to be anything but predictable.

—

2:07 AM

Insects perform their songs outside, languidly calling to one another from high above – nestled in the leaves of the tree tops – and far below, amid the grassy trails and branching networks of hills. All is calm… until it isn’t.

Suddenly, the stillness of the night is interrupted by a recurring, unintelligible noise. 

The first time you hear it, you ignore it, opting instead to bury your head a little deeper into your pillow. It's probably just the house settling or something outside, you reason.

The second time, you're annoyed enough to pause your attempt at restful sleep with the hopes of discovering its source and stopping it.

It comes again a little later, but from somewhere you never would've expected. Rather, you suppose, someone.

Your name takes the shape of a mumble as it slips through Jiu's lips, altered slightly from how her cheek is pressed to her pillow. Any other time you might find it exciting to hear her say it, but here and now, you can't say you do. 

Warmth spreads to your cheeks as your sleepy mind recalls what happened just a few hours ago, making you relive your embarrassment.

The noise comes again, and a little louder this time; an irritated groan leaves you as you take one of the throw pillows and nudge her, attempting to quiet her. It seems to work for a minute, but just as you settle back down to rest again, something even worse happens.

"Y/N… ah," she moans, her voice breathy and ragged. 

Is she...?

Your eyes open wide when you realize what's taking place right beside you.

Jiu is totally having a sex dream about you.

What a revelation to have.

She writhes in search of relief, causing the covers to fall down her body and expose more of it. Her pajama top, too, has ridden up and ruffled in her pursuit of friction. 

She looks an absolute mess, you realize, as you roll over to look at her. Her hair splays across the pillow in every which way, her chest rises and falls at a faster rate than normal, and her thighs push together to lessen the throbbing between them. Your blood runs cold when you notice that she isn’t wearing her shorts anymore. Only a pair of lacy, white panties conceal her, gleaming in the moonlight with a softness that begs to be touched.

Hot and bothered is the only way to describe her.

"Please," she whines, desperation hanging heavy on the tones of her voice. 

Selfishly, you don’t wake her right away. Seeing her like this, so close and beautiful, is something you don’t want to give up again. At least not yet.

Her full lips part as her head pushes into the pillow, exposing her neck. Her muscles are pulled taut as she squirms; her hands fisted in the sheets at her sides. A thin sheen of sweat is visible on her forehead, showing just how affected she is. 

Maybe you should play nice and put an end to her suffering…

Her hips begin to rock, slowly at first; the motion draws a soft sigh from her as she finally gets some relief. Your body begs you to touch her in some way, feeling your own desire grow at the sight of her. 

Unconsciously – and to prevent you from reaching out to her – your fingers thread themselves in the cover that's thrown haphazardly over you. You bite your lip to keep it busy; otherwise you'd be tempted to wake her up with your mouth, as she's asked you to before.

Only when your own arousal becomes too much to bear do you decide to end this little game. 

She whimpers when you move in closer, still a world away. Her hand falls on your thigh, however, making you falter for a moment. It's warm and dangerously close to your center, trembling slightly against you. Her nails threaten to leave indentations, should she flex her fingers the right way.

Unable to deny yourself such a simple pleasure, you allow it to stay where it is. 

"Jiu." 

She doesn't stir. If anything, the sound of your voice only drags her further under. Her breath hitches in time with another stutter of her hips.

You'll have to try harder.

“Jiu, wake up,” you whisper, leaving a kiss on her cheek. Your lips hover nearby to utter her name again, should they need to.

Gently, you bring a hand to her shoulder and shake it, hoping to coax her out of her dream and back to reality. After a moment, your plan works; her eyes open gingerly, blinking a few times to adjust from her daze. 

“Y/N?” Confusion is prevalent in her voice, coupled with her drowsiness. It’s cute, really, and it takes you back to all the mornings you would wake up by her side. 

“It’s me; I'm here,” you reassure her, moving your hand to her hip. Now with your arm stretched across her body, you can feel the warmth radiating from her. It starkly contrasts with the chilly air of the room, making you want to hide away under the covers and pull her in close. 

But, of course, you refrain. That’s not something you can do anymore.

Her dark eyes shine in what little light the room has to offer, gazing up at you with a sweet innocence that you find endearing. She's vulnerable in this state, and yet by the way she shifts closer in your arms, she makes it known that she trusts you. 

You watch as her gaze travels down your arm, towards where your hand still rests against her hip. Momentarily, she looks as if she's questioning something within her mind – attempting to piece something together. 

"Y/N, did we…?" She trails off, unsure. 

"Did we what?" You push, testing the waters. You have an idea of what she wants to know, but hearing her say it would be so much better. 

Surprisingly, she puts her hand over yours, keeping it in place. 

"Did we have sex?" The question comes out in a husky whisper as she makes an effort to be quiet.

You shake your head in reply as a slightly humored smile works its way onto your lips. 

The movement draws her attention to them; they're a beautiful shade, with the moonlight hitting them just right. She can't find it in herself to look away. 

A few seconds pass before you speak again; her hand grips yours a little tighter. 

"It was just a dream. You–"

Your explanation is cut short by her lips as they press to your own in a swift kiss. 

Reckless. 

You pull away at once, almost like you've been burned. Why would she do that? 

Both of you pause, regarding one another. Your eyes work hard to decipher her intentions – what she wants – through the darkness of the room, as if they have such a gift. Hers do the same, searching your face for the answer she wants.

She gets it in another form, however, as your hand slides higher on her waist. Her heart lurches in her chest, its rate increasing somehow. Part of her is afraid you can feel it; but, truthfully, that's exactly what she wants. If you could feel how badly she needs you in this moment, maybe you'd show some mercy and help her. 

Maybe.

Tension hangs heavy in the air of the room as she slips her hand higher, too, moving it between your thighs. The heat that's come to pool there encourages her, compelling her to cup you through your clothes. 

You gasp, earning a smile from her. You clearly aren't as over her as you pretend to be. 

Empowered, she rolls you over, trading your positions. Now she hovers over you as you lie on your back, waiting with bated breath to see what she'll do. 

Her hand slides up and over the waistband of your shorts slowly, edging closer and closer to your center with only your panties separating her from you. Your eyes flutter closed in response.

"I'm going to kiss you again," she whispers, sounding more confident than ever. "If you want me to stop, tell me. Okay?" 

You nod, trying to stay still. Fighting the urge to rock your hips into her hand is easier said than done.

She leans into you, letting her body mold into yours as she shuffles closer. She replaces the hand between your thighs with a leg, giving you something to grind against. You thank her by slipping your hands beneath her top and pulling it over her head.

"Beautiful," you whisper against her lips, as she presses them to yours again. You take her into your arms in a safe embrace, sighing into her mouth when her bare chest rubs against you. The thin material of your shirt does little to obstruct the feeling. 

Though the shadows hide it, a deep, crimson blush warms her cheeks. She can taste the cinnamon toothpaste that you used earlier and smell the familiar scent of your hair products. You still use the same ones, she realizes. 

Her leg flexes instinctively as you cup her cheek and deepen the kiss, tilting your head to the side. As you raise your hips to meet hers, she slides a hand up to your chest to offer it some attention. A pitiful noise leaves you when she makes contact, cupping your breasts. She pulls away from your lips to admire you, wanting to see the effect she has.

“Such a pretty thing,” she compliments, feeling arrogant when you bite your lip to stifle a moan. She toys with you like a plaything, switching her movements every so often to garner different reactions. You’re restoring her confidence without even trying; such sweet oblivion.

What she doesn’t fully grasp in the moment, though, is that your arrangement is very much so a two way street. You demonstrate the power you still have over her as you take hold of her hips, pulling them down as you thrust up to meet them. 

Just as her thigh is between your legs, so is yours between hers; the mutual relief you receive at the motion entices you, making you repeat it.

She curses into your ear, the sound so full of raw desire that you nearly lose all sense of reason right then and there. Her head falls against your shoulder in ecstasy as she revels a little longer, enjoying the heat that spreads throughout her body the more you touch her.

It’s just like it used to be in so many ways, but somehow new. Still exciting. Still everything she hoped for.

Her lips find their way to your cheek in the darkness, leaving a trail of kisses downward, along your jawline and neck. They’re desperate and needy, accompanied by her shuddered breaths as she attempts to convey everything you’re making her feel. She can only cross her fingers and hope that it’s mutual.

“Come here,” you instruct, tapping her leg. She understands in an instant, wordlessly repositioning herself so that she’s straddling your waist now. The new angle is even more comfortable, and she sits back to give you a better look at her body as a way of expressing her gratitude. Her perky breasts are on full display, looking absolutely divine above the lines of her abs. You run a finger over the latter, tracing the hard-earned muscles in admiration. 

Subtly, her hips begin to gyrate. She wants the movement to be tortuous, starting slow and building up until you can’t take it anymore. It’s only fair to give you a taste of your own medicine after all this time. 

“Shit, Jiu,” you exhale, glancing down to where you’re joined. Her panties glisten as she writhes, displaying the wet spot that you’ve caused; when her grinding becomes a little sloppier, you can feel her slick spread to your abdomen. 

"You like that, baby?" She muses, breathing heavy. You nod vehemently, not quite trusting your voice enough to speak yet. 

You splay a hand across her pelvis, using your thumb to tease her clit. 

She shakes as a surprised, broken moan slips out of her mouth. It’s louder than either of you expected it to be, and you find yourselves wanting to laugh for a moment.

“Play fair,” she warns, glaring at you. “...unless you want to wake everyone in the house up?” It’s posed as a question rather than a statement. 

“I wouldn’t be–” you pause, exhaling when she presses into you a little harder, cocking a brow, “...opposed to that, necessarily.” 

A sexy smile plays on her lips, making them look more kissable than ever. “No?” Something dangerous shines in her eyes.

“Try me.”

She bites her lip, weighing her options. You asked for it.

Her voice is whiny when she speaks again, and about five times louder than necessary at that. “I need you, Y/N. Please…” her hands thread into her hair exaggeratedly, playing into the show she’s giving. “Fuck me–”

You sit up at once, clasping a hand over her mouth and using the length of your body to push her backwards and pin her down against the bed. Adrenaline surges through your veins as you remain deathly still for a few tense seconds, trying to make sure her little stunt didn’t actually wake anybody up. 

You didn’t really think she’d do it.

The sound of distant footsteps fills the hall, a series of padding and waiting, before the latch of a bedroom door clicks. The floorboards creak… someone's weight shifting from one foot to the other as they peek into the hall. 

Jiu smiles against your palm, feeling every thump of your nervous heart. 

When she wraps her legs around your waist and slips a hand between your bodies, your eyes screw tightly shut. 

"Stop," you whisper, the noise like harsh wind on a calm night. 

Her wanting eyes peer up at you, observing. The situation is delicate, so that's exactly how she'll treat it. 

Slowly, she places her free hand beside her head on the bed and glances at it, inviting you to hold it. Upon hesitantly removing your own from her mouth, you thread your fingers with hers as you pin it down.

Innocently, she kisses your neck again, just above your pulse point. Her warm breath tickles your skin, only further stirring the fire within you. 

"Do you really want me to?" She asks, voice sinful and rich. Her lips still, full and tempting, awaiting your answer.

Another door opens somewhere else in the house, followed by heavy footsteps. Someone trekking to the kitchen, it seems. Your mouth runs dry.

Her fingers toy with the hem of your shorts, edging them down little by little. "Say it again and I will," she promises. "Tell me you don't want me and I'll stop." 

You sigh as she pulls your panties to the side, finally slipping her hand past the material. She finds your clit easily, with no real effort necessary; she knows your body now just the same as she did before. 

"I…" you start, fighting back a stutter. Two of her fingers dip down to your entrance, gathering up some of your wetness. "...I can't." 

"You can't what, Y/N?" She moves her fingers left and right, teasing. 

"I can't say I don't want you," you groan, annoyance bubbling up within you. 

"Why not?" You can tell she's smirking just by the sound of her voice. 

"Because I'm sick of lying," you admit. "I've always wanted you." 

Her cocky attitude falters. 

A beat passes.

All footsteps outside retreat back into their respective rooms, and closing doors resound shortly after. 

Effectively, the two of you are alone again.

Silence prevails following your confession – an eternal moment unbroken by any words of reciprocation from her. It lends your mind to chaos, filling it with worry.

You shouldn't have said anything. This was a mistake. 

Embarrassed, you sit up and remove yourself from Jiu, moving towards the edge of the bed. She reaches out for you, though you don't see it. 

"I'm sorry," your head shakes, discontent. "I shouldn't have–"

"Shush," she commands, surprising you. She refuses to let this end like before, with you retreating and shutting her out.

Your eyebrows raise as you turn to look at her; she still lays where you left her, only now she's propped up on her elbows. 

"Don't say you regret it. Please." Her voice sounds small. 

"But I thought…" 

Her eyes remain on you as she sits up, carefully moving to sit next to you on her knees. 

"I never stopped either, Y/N. I just couldn't believe you've felt the same all this time." She explains, not wanting you to misinterpret her silence any longer. 

Your fingers toy at your thighs, still jittery with nerves. She notices, and lays a comforting hand on top of them.

"I've missed you," she adds. Softly, quietly. So as to not disturb this process. Together, you're beginning to pick up the pieces of what you let slip through your fingers before. 

"Me too," you reassure her, bringing a hand up to caress her cheek. She leans into your touch, letting her eyes fall shut. 

The walls she so adamantly built around her heart are lowering, little by little, and the notion scares her. If she gives herself to you tonight and you end up walking away, she doesn’t know if she’ll be able to recover. 

“I’ve got you." The phrase sounds like a promise from your heart to hers; it’s as if you read her mind. “I won’t let things get in the way like before.”

She looks at you again, peeking her eyes open. The earnest look on your face is sincere enough to convince her of anything. “I’ll spend however long it takes proving it to you, Jiu.”

Her eyes shine with unshed tears. “I believe that.”

“Good,” you say, releasing a small breath of anticipation you hadn’t realized you were holding in.

She squeezes your hand three times, reminding you of the past. 

Nostalgia befalls you, both in good ways and bad. So much regret exists between the two of you, centering around the breakup that neither of you really wanted in the first place. Life got in the way, then, and you were both too naive to fight against what you thought were fate’s currents. 

It was decided that if you couldn’t be together, you’d have to settle for the ghost of one another. 

Jiu found you in midnight moonlight, shining brightly amid the darkest of hours. You ruled from high above, with your impact spanning further than you ever realized. 

She found you in the sound of laughter – the kind that starts by surprise, bubbling up from within and spilling out in a way that couldn’t not be contagious. The kind that everyone appreciates when they tell a joke with their fingers crossed, hoping it lands. 

In warm tea and fireside reading you resided; a comforting hug on winter’s coldest day.

But traces of you were left behind in unwanted places, too, like fingerprints on a window. No matter how many cycles of washing and drying her sheets went through, they still smelled like you. 

Her skin still remembered the way you touched her, igniting a fire that only you could put out. Her lips remembered your taste, knowing nothing could compare. She tried, for a time, to replace the imprints you left behind; but her efforts were in vain. 

You were her mirage in the desert; a distant, elusive dream. Glimmering with untapped potential, waiting to be caught. She ebbed, you flowed. That’s how you would be, then and forever.

Or so she thought.

Had she known that she was the Sun to you, perhaps her hope would’ve been restored. 

Or maybe she would have laughed, knowing that you found her in the strangest of places. Like seatbelts, for instance, and napkins; always necessary, and always staving off the bad that the world had to offer. 

She was the chilly blast of air provided by the AC on summer’s most humid day, greeting you at the door of every shop you entered. 

She was the sleepy delirium you slipped into on your days off, all pleasant dreams and comfortable positions.

The flowers and blossoms of the world were all her kisses, like a goddess’s gift to the Earth. Elegant, sweet, perfect. Being showered in them was a good luck charm; they rode the air currents on spring days, fluttering greetings on their way.

Coming home. To you, that was her. The familiarity of the floorboards, knowing where to step to avoid them creaking; the refrigerator light against a pitch-black kitchen, its crescent shape holding the darkness at bay; the support of your bed, offering relief to the parts of you that needed it most.

Truth be told, both of you found each other in everything. Bits and pieces, all fragments far too small to equate to the immensity of what you shared. Glimpses would never do in the long run, and you knew that. But what else were you to do?

Perhaps that silent hope that you held out, all daydreams and utterances of what if, swayed the universe into this. Into giving you an in; an opportunity to right your wrongs. A chance to hold tighter, this time, and accept trials and tribulations as signs of growth to be handled together – not reasons to give up. 

You feel yourself smiling before you realize you’re even doing it. Her presence has a whole new meaning now, a whole slew of possible outcomes. Wherever the two of you decide to take things is up to you again; there’s nothing holding you back anymore. 

She brings a hand up to your cheek, brushing her thumb across your soft skin. Even just holding you like this, so simply, is something she’s been longing for. Since the day you walked into her life, you’ve ruled her world without even knowing it. Sweet oblivion, yet again.

“Kiss me,” she says, after a moment. It draws you from the hold of her spell, bringing you back down to Earth. 

You obey with a smile, but just before your lips meet hers, she stops you. She didn’t mean there.

“Here,” she corrects, as her hand guides yours back between her thighs. She’s wetter now than she was before, somehow, and you moan against her at the feeling. She muffles the noise with a kiss of her own, knowing how badly you need it. 

She bites your lip as she pulls away. “We’re not leaving this bed until you’ve made up for every night we’ve been apart. Do you understand me?”

You sigh, half-amused. “I’m fairly certain that the group is going hiking in the morning,” you inform, “...so I think it’s important that you’re still able to walk for that.”

“Who says we have to join them?” She raises a brow, pushing you down onto the bed and moving to straddle you again. 

You pull a face, feigning concern. “You wouldn’t want to be improper, now would you?” 

Her shoulders rise and fall in a shrug, accepting no blame. “What happens is up to you. Take me now or forever hold your peace.” She declares it proudly, posing herself before you. 

The view of her on top of you – nearly naked, her body humming with want, waiting for your touch – dispels any and all remnants of humor. Your shared desire wins out, filling the air of the room; she’s aware of her power over you, but she’d be a liar to act as if watching your eyes darken didn’t make her stomach flip just like it did the first time you ever took her. 

With a hushed curse, you capture her lips in a searing kiss. She gasps into it when you roughly pull her panties down, showing little care in being gentle now. Her response comes in a similar form, with her hastily tugging your shirt over your head; once you’re exposed to her, she can’t help but stare. She admires every curve like it’s the first time she’s seen it; every line like it’s her last. It’s adoration and desperation, all at once; appreciating it all is important to her, but so too is relearning it. 

Luckily for you, she happens to be best at a hands-on approach.

Her nails drag across your abdomen on their way downward, leaving faint marks on your sensitive skin; she can’t wait to see how many she can leave on you. It’s always been one of her favorite things to do.

In one fluid motion you flip her over, cradling her close in the process. Her hands cup your cheeks as she kisses you, and you hurriedly remove any remaining clothes from your bodies. 

She spreads her legs for you as you begin to slide down her body, leaving one final kiss to her lips. 

Her hands hold your hair up as you explore her abdomen, painting her fair skin with an array of love bites. Her nails dig into your scalp when her impatience hits a high, making you smile against her despite the sting. 

She hums appreciatively when you finally slide your hand down, ready to prepare her for what she wants most. She’s absolutely soaked, and by the whine that she lets out when you press your palm to her clit, it’s safe to say that she’ll only get worse. The bed sheets below her have already received some of her slick, proudly displaying a wet spot for you to bear witness to. 

“Enough teasing, jagi,” she groans, breathless and tired of your games. With shut eyes and furrowed brows, she pushes her head back into her pillow and takes up the writhing again that she had become so good at earlier. Her hands fall to your shoulders, pushing you down further.

You settle her thighs on your shoulders, basking in how smooth and warm they are around you. She’s perfection in human form; divinity personified.

“Keep it down, Jiu,” you command, taking control. “If you pull another stunt like earlier, I’m stopping altogether.”

She nods feverishly, lacking the desire to be a brat anymore. If playing nice is what it takes to have you, then so be it. That promise of release is finally back again, after all this time, and she can let herself get lost in you. 

These four walls – what she once loathed – are creating an oasis.

Her personal utopia.

—

The Next Morning

Overzealous birds work as your alarm clock of sorts, claiming the prize of waking you up. You blink the sleep from your eyes and stretch, feeling a pleasant soreness in parts of your body it hadn’t been before last night. The ache reminds you of everything you did just a few hours ago, and you find yourself smiling like an idiot as you roll over to greet the resident sadist next to you.

When your hand meets the cold, empty expanse of the bed instead, your expression sours.

The bedside table is void of any note or message, too, you discover, though your phone sits atop it, charging. At some point this morning she must’ve plugged it in for you. Sweet, but not enough. You wanted to wake up in her arms, or at the very least next to her. 

Grumbling, you sit up and head to the bathroom to get cleaned up.

You have no idea what the day will hold for the two of you.

–

Clean and dressed, you take a seat on the bed. Your fingertips mindlessly press to the hickey on your neck – one of the many, many that you discovered as you got ready – rubbing patterns against the abused skin there.

You unplug your phone and turn it on, mentally crossing your fingers as you scan through your message notifications for her name. 

Your pursuit proves fruitless. Not even a text.

You huff like a child, rolling your eyes. So much for a vacation; now you’re stressed all over again. 

When staring a hole into your phone doesn’t result in her notification magically popping up, you decide to give it a rest.

Standing up, you slip it into your back pocket and head for the door, ready to track Y/BFFs/N down and tell her everything.

However those plans, too, come to a screeching halt right before your eyes as you swing the door open to reveal a shocked Jiu. Your timing truly is impeccable.

“AHHH!” She shrieks, frightened. 

She hastily scrambles to keep the large tray in her hands upright and off of the floor. 

Spilling the spread of foods she just finished preparing for the two of you doesn’t sound too appealing to her, after all.

Immediately, you spring into action and successfully help steady it. Some fruits fell out of their separate containers and a bit of milk spilled over the side of its jar, but all of that is easily fixable. Jiu releases a tense breath as she realizes that the worst case scenario was avoided, but she glares at you as she pushes her way into the room.

“Pabo,” she mutters, striding over to the bed. The slight limp in her step makes you smile inwardly, proud of yourself.

Once the food is safely laid down and she cleans up what spilled, she turns to look at you. 

“Sorry,” you mitigate, grimacing. When you approach her and look at everything she put together, your annoyance from before gives way to guilt. A plethora of your favorite foods decorates the tray, assembled with love.

She regards you for a moment, pretending to be angry. When her eyes land on one of the darkening marks on your neck, pleased mischief comes to gleam in them.

“You’re lucky I like you,” she threatens, pointing a finger at you.

Playfully, you bite the tip of it. 

“I’m aware, jagi.”

Cautiously, you ease your arms around her waist, ready to pull away if need be. Although her lips still rest in an unamused pout, she doesn’t stop you. 

The jackhammering of her heart has eased now, and you can feel its pace returning to normal as you draw her into your arms. She loops hers around your neck and sweetly presses her cheek to yours, content with staying like that for a bit.

You sway gently, rocking from side to side. This definitely makes up for the rude awakening you received earlier.

Once you’re satisfied, you pull away enough to look at her. Your fingertips brush a few stray strands of hair out of her face, tucking them behind her ear. She leans in, finally kissing you good morning.

“Ready to eat?”

Your lips purse in mock contemplation as you scan the food again. 

"Mmm, five more minutes?" You suggest, leaning forward to kiss her again. She laughs into the embrace lightly, returning the gesture. 

Her lips taste of the strawberries and cherries that she stole bites of earlier, as she cooked. It's addicting, you find, when she deepens the kiss and wraps herself around you, melting into your arms. You hold her close, just like she wants. 

"Does this mean…" she mumbles between kisses, "we're still gonna room together?" 

You pause to laugh. "Yeah, jagi. We're still roommates. No getting rid of me now." 

She replaces her lips on yours, kissing them again and again as you attempt to control the growing smile on your face. She sweetly cups your cheeks, rubbing her thumbs across them as you continue.

Abruptly, jarring clapping resounds from the doorway. Fake sniffling can also be heard, and so the two of you look up to investigate. 

It's none other than Sua and Y/BFFs/N, standing side by side with their hands clasped tightly together like proud parents. 

"I told you it would happen," Sua wails, dabbing fake tears from the corner of her eye. Y/BFFs/N agrees, nodding enthusiastically. 

“Mission accomplished,” she quips, looking straight at you. 

It seems as though they had been playing Cupid all along…

Walking down the halls, you could already hear the chaos coming from the dorm. You wondered how they’d never had a noise complaint during their time living there, preparing yourself for the ear piercing squeals that were bound to come as you entered. “Y/N!!!!” Bora yelled, rushing towards you. She gave you a warm hug, tapping your but as she pulled away to let the others have at you.

“I come bearing gifts,” you held up the bags of snacks and drinks in your hands. This earned another round of cheers from the girls, who were quick to pull the items from your hands, scurrying off to the living room. Minji lingered by the door, watching your interactions with them made her smile. She was thankful that you had fit so well into their dynamic.

“Hey, Baby,” you wrapped your arms around her neck. “Hey,” she whispered back, pecking your lips. “Yahh, stop kissing and come watch the movie!” Yoohyeon yelled at the two of you. Seeing the pout on Minji’s face made you chuckle, leaning in, you kissed her once more, effectively wiping the pout off her face.

She smiled brightly, pulling you in for a hug, then happily skipping over to her members. You stared after her, a toothy grin on your face. “Quit staring, you look like a lovesick fool” Handong said, suddenly appearing beside you. “I wasn’t,” you tried to deny, but she only gave you a knowing smile, dragging you towards the others.

“Y/n, sit next to me,” Siyeon spoke in a cute voice, patting the place beside her. “No, sit next to me!” Bora shouted. “Mine,” Minji growled, pulling you down to sit on her lap. Her grip was tight, not giving you any other option but to stay, not that you were complaining. This left Bora and Siyeon both frowning, instead opting to cuddle each other for the duration of the movie.

You leaned back into Minji, back resting against her chest. Her hand that was resting on your thigh drew nonsensical patterns. About half an hour into the movies, her hands moved higher, applying a bit more pressure. You squirmed in her hold, wiggling around on her lap. It continued like this for the next fifteen minutes, neither of you paying any attention to the movies in front of you.

Minji eventually halted her movement, ending your suffering. “Can we go to your place after this?” She whispered in your ear, taking the earlobe between her teeth. You found yourself automatically nodding along, excitement coursing through your veins.

You looked around the room, checking to see if anyone was looking. Thinking you were in the clear, you angle your head slightly. You connected your lips subtly, her tongue slipping into your mouth. It was sweet, yet sensual. She took your bottom lip between her teeth, then pulled back slightly. You sighed, opening your eyes to meet her gaze, eyes darkened.

“Really? Right in front of my salad,” Gahyeon complained from next to you, snapping you back to reality. You turned to see all six girls staring at the two of you, amusement clear in their eyes. You groaned to yourself, burying your head into the crook of Minji’s neck. She patted you back, knowing there was no avoiding what was to come. Knowing the rest of the night was bound to be filled with merciless teasing from the members.

Unaware of the devious acts to occur, you stare at the bright, full moon in front of you.

They were supposed to arrive fifteen minutes ago. What’s keeping them so busy?

You rub your arms to keep yourself warm as the cold breeze of the night wraps around you.

Maybe they had to work late?

You breathe out a puff of warm air as you contemplate where your girlfriends might be. The three of you were supposed to go out for dinner tonight, and you were waiting outside of your home for them to pick you up.

Another shiver runs across your back, and you curse yourself for not wearing a heavier jacket.

I can just run inside and grab another jacket. It won’t take me that long.

You turn around, only to see two sets of glowing eyes staring back at you.

“I’m sorry, but I think you have the wrong house.” You brush them off as you try to walk into your home.

One of the vampires step in front of you, and they push you back.

“No, we’re exactly where we’re supposed to be.” One chuckles while the other smirks proudly.

You notice the all too familiar pointy front teeth, and you gasp before covering your mouth.

“The act’s up, I guess. It’s time to have our little snack, don’t you think?” With their fangs pointed out, they both approach you slowly.

You carefully step backwards, making sure that your eyes are locked on them the whole time.

I… don’t know what to do. If I run, I’m dead, but if I stay still, I’m also dead.

Luckily, a howl cuts through the nighttime air. The two vampires stare at each other in confusion before one of them screams in terror.

A wolf quickly runs past you as she tackles one of the vampires to the ground. The other steps away from the werewolf, but not before grabbing you.

“Listen, I don’t know who the hell you are or why you’re associated with that mutt, but I won’t hesitate to kill you now.” The vampire pulls you close and bares their teeth.

Against your better judgement, your scream and wiggling against their iron grip on you.

“The food’s a bit feisty today. I wonder if-”

“Get the hell away from them before I kill you.” Another vampire appears in the distance, with her blonde hair shining in the moonlight.

“Handong, it’s so nice to see you.” The vampire backs their teeth away from your neck.

“You heard me. Scream for mercy before JiU turns you into ground beef like your friend.” Handong folds her arms while standing only a few feet away from you.

“You wouldn’t-”

The three of you look over to the wolf as she slowly approaches you. Her pace is slow, but her eyes are filled with pure rage.

“Fine,” The vampire pushes you away, “but don’t think that this is the last time that we’ll come for them.”

The wolf growls, which causes the vampire to quickly retreat into the darkness surrounding your house.

“Are you alright?” Handong asks softly as she approaches you.

You shudder at the thought of that vampire’s teeth in your neck.

“I’m as ok as someone should be in this scenario.”

“Let’s get you inside.” Handong wraps an arm around you as she guides you into your home.

“What about the dinner reservations?”

“Don’t worry about it, Y/N. I already took care of everything.”

~

The soft sound of water crashing against your bathtub dulls your beating heart. You quietly listen to the comforting sound of rain as JiU showers in the room next to you.

Your eyes scan the TV in front of you.

Is there really nothing good on at this time?

After scrolling through a few more channels, you spot your favorite movie playing. You quickly select the channel and settle into the blanket that Dongie has wrapped around you.

“Did you find something to watch?” Handong asks as she leaves your kitchen.

A mug of your favorite drink plus a tray of your favorite snacks is in her hands. You excitedly reach for them, and she laughs in response.

“You’re so cute~” She teases you for a moment before setting the food into your hands.

Handong grabs a coaster and sets the mug on the table before sitting next to you.

You happily eat the snacks with one of your hands, as the other sneaks into Handong’s hand.

The two of you sit in a comfortable silence until JiU walks out of your bathroom.

“Ugh, you still smell awful.” Handong gags for a moment before pinching her nose shut.

“That enhanced sense of smell is really working out for you, Dongie.” JiU teases Handong before looking in your direction.

JiU’s hair is damply pressed against her neck and scalp. Her clothes loosely hang around her still-wet form.

God, she’s stunning.

You smile at JiU as she approaches you.

“At least someone seems happy to see me.”

Handong scoffs before silently rolling her eyes.

JiU wraps her arms around you in a warm hug before settling on the other side of you. Handong quickly grabs the plate from your lap as JiU pulls herself closer to you.

“You’re so warm, love.” JiU happily mumbles as she closes her eyes.

“I know.” You mumble back.

You can feel sleep approaching, but you fight it off until Handong returns from the kitchen.

She carefully wraps an arm around you before nuzzling her head into your back.

“I love you so much, darling, and I’m glad that you’re safe.” Handong says at a barely audible tone.

They say that art is a thing that needs time to develop and grow. It is time, that add colors and depth to your works. For Kim Minji, she literally had all the time in the world to be absorbed and devoted to perfecting her art. She has sold a good number of paintings since she started her journey to perfection but alas, having to change identities just as you were getting famous can’t help but put you in a slightly poor state. Her love for art however never stopped no matter what condition she was in. She had once lived in a mansion where she covered the walls with canvases until she found her muse then did her art blossom each time with a portrait she did of them. Through her art, she found love for her subjects and that was one thing that never changed. Moving through the different cities through time, her collection of portraits slowly grew, but living forever meant watching your love die, with the only thing remaining being memories and a portrait.

Time honestly passed her by with just a blink of an eye, art meant so many things through the eras. Yet Minji still stayed true to her medium and chose to open up a roadside shop to sell her works to the general public. It was interesting to draw inspiration from every fresh face that was nice enough to stop by to have a nice chat and occasionally bring a cup of warm coffee along. She didn’t exactly earn much through it when it came to monetary terms, but she heard the stories of lives in exchange to fuel her paintings even more so.

That was how she first took notice of you. It had been a calm morning as she sat in front of a blank canvas, eyeing the tubes of paints in their respective labeled containers. It pained her heart when none of the colors called out to her the way it usually would until she caught a flash of a disastrous mixture of colors that could put the memory of an old friend's fashion sense to shame. Quickly flicking her gaze up to watch the fading figure running further, her fingers twitched. Her hands moved to pick up paints to apply onto the palette even before her eyes finally left the empty streets of the park and onto her mixture of colors. Huffing as she found the same unpleasant shades staring back at her again, she pouted and pick up her brush to let inspiration do its job and let the strokes of the brush be directed as her soul desired.

It wasn’t until the sun’s rays heated her skin uncomfortably and she felt a set of eyes staring did she tear her attention away from the canvas. Setting her palette down, she gently stretched her arms and back and casually looked around. Her curiosity was sated with a cautious gaze that snapped away the moment eyes met and she turned herself away from her work. With a soft smile, she waited for you to give in to the temptation to look towards her again before giving you a gentle wave over. Looking around the place, you hesitantly approached the artist when you realized you were the only person that was admiring her art from a distance while everyone else rushed around through the park to get to their lunch destinations. Shuffling around on your spot under her attention, you redirected it back to her work. “That’s an interesting choice of colors that you are using.” You watched as her eyes darted from the canvas over to you and down your clothing as if checking you out, but her giggle and radiant smile lowered your guard slightly. 

“I could say the same for you.”

Stunned, you opened your mouth, wanting to give a comeback but ended up chuckling and smiling along with her when you looked down at your dressing. Raising your full hands up in mock surrender, and shrugged.

“To be fair, I was running late for work this morning. I just grabbed whatever I could get my hands on.”

Nodding understandingly yet with that mischievous smile on her face, you couldn’t help but play banter along with her with a soft stomp of your feet. Bursting out in laughter at your reaction, she stood up from her stool and put a hand out between the two of you. Glancing down at her hand and back up to meet her eyes, you transferred your bag of pastries to the hand holding your coffee and slid your free hand into a handshake with hers as she introduced herself. 

“It’s nice to meet you, I usually go by Jiu but you can call me Minji. I hope to see you around more often?”

After that faithful morning, you had changed your route to and from work slightly just so you could stop by daily to have a chat with Minji before, and after work, and even have time to get a few extra sweet treats to have lunch with the artist after you found out how much she loved them after offering to share one with her during your lunch break. You also learned that she had been painting for as long as she could remember and that she usually doesn’t stay too long before moving to search the world to perfect her art. Hearing that got you a little down when you understood that Minji would probably be moving off whenever but she noticed and reassured you that it wouldn’t be anytime soon. 

It was about a month after you included Minji in your daily routine did a sudden change shocked you. It had been a habit to wake up earlier now just so you could share a coffee and a few minutes of conversation in with Minji before going off to work. Or at least that was what you expected that morning but standing in front of the closed pushcart store in confusion, you looked around the park in hopes that the artist was just running late. Anxiously watching as time ticked down, you sighed and shot her a text asking if everything was alright and that you were going into work first. There were just a mere few hours before your lunch break but you couldn’t help but constantly check your phone for a reply that never came.

You might have let your thoughts drift when the last half hour came about before your break and you have yet to receive a reply from your artist friend. Was she okay? Did something happen? Did she leave without saying goodbye?

As the seconds tick down, you jolted out of your workspace the moment you could and rushed out of your office. Checking your phone yet again, you frowned when you see that Minji has yet to even read the messages you sent. Worry and concern soon took its hold around you as you skipped your usual routine of grabbing two sets of lunch and beelined straight to the usual hangout.

You couldn’t explain the relief you felt when you spot her slowly setting up her shop at a snail’s pace and it was only until you got closer did you notice the blank somber look on her face. Worry started creeping up again as you slowed in your steps to watch how lifeless she was. Softly calling her name as you neared, she jumped in her spot and slowly turned over to you. Her eyes were puffy as she tried to give you a small smile, and her voice cracked as she greeted you. Stepping forward to help her set up her store, you sat her down on her usual stool and pulled the extra seat she kept in the storage for clients but was mostly occupied by you.

Through a shaky and weak voice, she tells you that she went home yesterday to find that her small apartment had been broken into. It took a whole night at the station before they told her that they couldn’t help with a safer place to stay and that she would either have to head back to her apartment without a lock or spend to stay somewhere else. Minji chose neither and instead spent the rest of the night till dawn wandering around. When questioned on why she didn’t contact you, she sheepishly told you that she didn’t want to disturb your rest and that when morning came around, her phone had run out of battery. Huffing you nagged at her for always putting everyone else before herself even in such a desperate situation as she fiddled and peeled the drying paint on her easel.

“So what’s your plan now? Do you have anywhere to stay?”

Her silence told you everything you needed to know and before you can comment on it, Minji looked back at you with a small smile. “I’ll be fine, I’ll just rent a small place for now.”

Frowning, you weren’t convinced with her words. “With what money? You told me that you just bought groceries for the week and you were running low yesterday.”

Caught in her lie, her eyes widened as she attempted to find an excuse.

“I have a spare room, it needs to be cleaned up a little but I think that’s better than roaming the streets.”

At the start of the sounds of her protesting the thought of you offering up a room, you reached your hand out to take hers away from the constant motion of scratching at the easel.

“How about this, you paint me, and I’ll take that as rent for a room at my place. This way you don’t have to feel bad about anything. At least I know that you’ll have a safe place to return to.”

You could almost hear the cogs in her head turn before she nodded. Looking at your phone to gauge the time, you told her to wait for you before bolting off and running back with a bag full of food for her. Panting as you pass the bag over to her, you can’t help but feel your heart melt as she gave you a smile that rivaled the sun’s brightness. You explained the plan that you would come to her after your work so you could accompany her to her place to take whatever essentials that she needed for at least the first night and bring her up to your place before saying your quick goodbye and running back to your workplace. You went hungry for the rest of the day until you went to pick Minji up where she held up a convenience store rice ball for you to hold off the hunger stating that she realized you didn’t get time to have lunch. That was worth it.

You didn’t realize how much materials were needed as an artist but helping Minji with her move brought everything to light. It was a simple routine that you both fell into every day. On the weekdays after dinner, you would be seated near the hallways leading to the rooms, and on the weekends when you were both free, Minji would have you seated at noon right after cooking you a nice lunch all the while she sat across you with that canvas. You had pestered her a couple of times to let you take a peek at the progress but each time she reassured you that the reveal of the completed work was much more satisfying to see. Of course, that would earn her a whine each time and you would both share laughter at the joke you shared with one another. It was honestly awkward at the start, having someone stare so intently at you while you try to busy your mind with random thoughts to stop yourself from fidgeting, but you grew to relax around Minji’s gaze. In fact there were times you caught yourself staring right back, tracing each of her features with your eyes.

It happened once as a passing thought. Then again and again till each time she looked away from her canvas while she studies your face, Minji would find her thoughts drifting. You were quite literally the perfect muse to be etched into a painting for the rest of history. A piece of art, to be preserved, to be in a place more than just her heart. Wait. Her heart.

Hearing you call her name, she shook out the thoughts in her head before focusing on you, prompting you to continue with a hum of acknowledgment. “Are you okay? You’ve just been staring and not...” Gesturing slightly with your hand, you continued. “And not painting. We don’t have to do this every day, you know. I’m sure you’re tired too.”

Shaking her head, she gave you a soft, reassuring smile and went back to painting. Every day you would get some breakfast with her and then walk together to her store before going off to your workplace, and pick her up after work for dinner. It was almost like the perfect domestic scenario Minji once had in her long life that got her yearning for a connection yet again.

With each stroke of paint, her feelings for you grew more than just a friend, and although she knew not of your own growing feelings, she reasoned with herself that you were both mature enough to talk things out if anything were to go wrong.

It wasn’t long before the portrait was completed. Before Minji was willing to show it to you, she had requested for you to follow her into her room. Standing outside her door, you watched as she nervously fiddled with the door handle, a habit you learned to know if there was something on her mind. You had always given the artist her privacy, not touching any of the painting covers even when you helped her move into the room and never entering it after, trusting for her to be able to clean up well so when she took a deep breath before swinging the room door open, you weren’t sure what to expect.

On the walls, held up by the removable hooks were gorgeous portraits of what seemed like a walk back through time. Each canvas was roughly about the same size, but the medium was slightly different to match the era the subject was in. You weren’t too sure what you were supposed to be looking at, nor did Minji say anything when you looked over back at her before looking at the paintings yet again until you noticed a small detail. At the corner of each delicately detailed painting was a small signature, not of a name but a sunflower and a heart, and date under it. Hearing footsteps go out of the room, you quickly sorted out the dates in your head and pieced together the timeline of all the works before Minji stepped back into the room and called for your attention.

“I like you.”

Taking another deep breath, she continued. “But before you say anything else, please listen to me.” 

Nodding at her to continue, you took a few deep breaths as you set aside your assumptions and waited for her. “I am an immortal.” Minji paused to observe your reactions and when you gave none, she cautiously turned the canvas of your portrait in her hands to face you and continued. “As you can guess by now, these are all paintings done by me though my time alive.”

Your eyes were caught by the painting and how Minji captured and brought out every single essence of detail of you through her style. It was one thing to take a photo of yourself, but it was another to have a portrait done where you see yourself through the eyes of someone else and you could tell that every stroke was painted with heart. Flicking your eyes back up to Minji, you started to think through the implications of her telling you the information.

Through simple deduction, you could guess that the portraits were of her lovers through time and that she outlived all of them. Mortality was a topic you wouldn’t have thought much of, knowing you had a whole life ahead of you and knowing that everyone eventually would meet their end sooner or later but immortality would mean that there was no such end. That you would have long faded into a faint memory even before Minji would come budging under the weight of time. Yet you couldn’t deny the pull you had to the artist from the start. You understood the risk Minji was taking, knowing she would have to watch as wrinkles crowd your face and how your hair would turn white before you eventually move on from this life; as she loses yet another person she would come to love but would it be too much of you if you were to want the same as she does?

“I don’t have much to offer in this life, while you have forever, but can I be selfish to call you mine for the rest of my lifetime?”

“You don’t give up easily.” You stiffened, startled. No matter how many horrors you encountered, this voice always made you freeze.

“Jiu.” Almost without making a sound, the girl stood slightly behind you. Always keeping her distance while overpowering you effortlessly.

“I could have seen it coming. You seemed pretty shaken after the scene in the cafeteria.”

Her tone didn’t betray a single emotion. There was no way to guess what was going through her mind. You risked a quick glance in her direction. Her eyes were focused on Yoohyeon’s still form. Her hair turned black and one part was cut shorter. Only her expression didn’t change a bit. Still the same enigmatic and beautiful features.

“You don’t talk much.” Jiu’s gaze switched to you, taking you by surprise. What was even more unusual was the fact that you didn’t feel endangered like during every other conversation. Yes, it felt like she was reading your deepest thoughts, but her demeanor didn’t seem openly threatening.

“Don’t know what to say.” Maintaining eye contact was overwhelming, so you opted for watching Yoohyeon. “Everything happened so suddenly.”

“From your perspective at least.” You waited for some kind of continuation, but nothing came. Jiu always liked speaking in puzzles. Asking her directly wouldn’t get you anywhere and also seemed to be unreasonable. You had some kind of unspoken respect for Jiu. If she didn’t tell you, you wouldn’t ask.

You stood in silence and for some reason it felt right. It was a cathartic experience to stand in such close proximity to Jiu without planning an escape route. In other setting, her presence could be even considered soothing.

“Don’t worry. I won’t tell her.”

This was unexpected. You looked at her again in question.

“If you’re talking about Chaeyoung, she’s not a part of this anymore.” You knew she was aware of the involvement of the short girl. Clarification on that matter could keep your friend safe. Even if you two weren’t exactly on speaking terms.

“Not her.” She turned her head in your direction. “Handong.”

“Oh.” Of course Handong made sure to let everyone know you weren’t welcome in Dreamworld. “Thank you, that’s very nice of-“

You didn’t get to finish expressing your gratitude. You looked at your phone and checked the time. Still an hour left, you could sleep a bit more and maybe even talk to Jiu. Fortunately, you fell asleep as soon as you closed your eyes. What you weren’t expecting was to wake up after an hour of dreamless sleep.

 Looking like a creepy stalker was the last thing you cared about. You couldn’t stop observing Jiu, who was standing by her locker and talking with Sua. None of the girls seemed to notice your burning gaze or they were ignoring your whole existence. It’s been two days since your last visit in Dreamworld and it drove you insane. It was obvious that while Jiu assured that she won’t tell Handong, she also made sure to block you from entering their dimension in any way.

“It wasn’t always like this.”

You looked around to find the source of the voice, but no one was even looking in your direction. Maybe you accidently overheard someone’s conversation. Or you were going crazy from inability to learn more about Yoohyeon’s situation. What the hell happened to her?

“It was an accident.”

Again, searching for the person speaking was fruitless. Maybe you really were insane.

“She didn’t mean to.”

“Who is she? And what did she do?” you muttered under your breath to avoid weird looks. No one answered. Of course, you were imagining things again. And you couldn’t even seek for answers in Dreamworld.

“No one is safe.”

You knew that voice.

“Time is running out.”

You knew it too well.

“Run.”

Of course.

“Run.”

You turned your gaze up and bravely locked eyes with Jiu.

“Tik tok.”

Someone slammed their locker door and you jumped at the sudden noise. When you calmed down, Jiu and Sua were gone and Chaeyoung stood next to their previous spot with a frown on her face. You composed yourself and made your way towards the classroom. After you were sure Chaeyoung couldn’t see you anymore, you changed track and bolted to the exit. You had a mission to accomplish.

The sole idea of being alone in the mansion should seem repulsive. But truth be told, you didn’t feel scared anymore. Sure, the hallways were dark and kind of eerie looking. Even though you couldn’t help but remember everything that happened in the last couple weeks. You’ve been through so much because of this place. You came here for answers and you will get them. No matter what happens. You just had to avoid the girls and not get into trouble. Simple.

Finding Dong-hyuk’s working room took you less time than before. Unfortunately, a big part of his evidence was taken by Chaeyoung last time you were here and there was no way in hell or heaven that you would ask her for these notes. You had to work with whatever was left. The first thing that caught your attention was a stack of old looking papers, so you approached it without much hope. To be honest, research was never your strong point. You were much less organized than Chaeyoung and could never make notes as neat as hers. Of course, you were able to do some basic review of gathered information, but it required much focus.

“Damn!” you yelped after the books you accidentally knocked from the table hit the floor with a loud thud. You kneeled down to pick them up, cursing your clumsiness. When you were standing back up, you got startled again. Handong’s face appeared in the mirror and her eyes scanned the room.

“Y/N?” her tone made you wince. It was clear she was dead serious and nothing could redeem you if she noticed you were here. Disregarding her warnings would shatter the fragile bit of trust she offered you, which would ruin the progress you made in your case. So you slid behind an armchair without standing up to stay away from her vision.

“Y/N, I know you’re here.” Handong didn’t sound irritated, more exhausted. “Please just go home. It’s not safe for you.”

You felt a pang of guilt. As much as you kept stating that her concern was just a plan to make you let your guard down, you couldn’t push away the feeling of attachment. It probably meant you were setting yourself for a heartbreak, but Handong just had this effect on you.

“As long as we have each other.”

That was NOT Handong’s voice. It resonated in your head like a secret message meant only for your ears. Not as much as by the lockers when you could swear Jiu was the one messing with you.

“This is not a game.”

“Can’t argue with that.” You thought and started looking for a way out. Waiting for Handong to go away could take a lot of time and you couldn’t waste any more minutes. Then you noticed that another mirror was right behind you. You didn’t know how long would it take for Handong to move from one mirror to another, but covering as many as you could was the safest bet. You took your jacket off quietly and placed in on the object.

“Time is running out.”

“Yeah, I can imagine.” Maybe talking to the nonexistent voice bordered on insanity, but it couldn’t be that bad if you did it inside your head.

You risked a peek from behind the armchair. Handong was still there looking around like a hawk. You had to make her change position. So you decided to use your biggest strength – destruction. Moving to the left, you nudged a tall flowerpot to make it fall. A loud crash of shattered ceramic startled the girl in the mirror.

“Y/N?!” she inquired and tried to take a better look. You got ready behind the armchair and waited. Finally, she disappeared and you could hear a confused gasp from another side of the room. That was your cue to run. You bolted out of the room and sprinted down the hallway, trying to avoid any reflective surfaces.

“Running won’t save you.”

She was probably right, but that didn’t make you stop.

“Why would you do that?”

That or getting scolded by an angry, attractive nightmare lady. Wasn’t hard to choose.

“I’m sorry.”

What?

“I couldn’t protect you.”

What was she talking about?

”I’ll wait for you.”

Was she even talking to you?

“I’ll fight for you.”

Probably not.

“Get out.”

That was some serious case of mixed signals.

“GET OUT!”

No.

“Leave us alone!”

Too late for that.

“Fine.”

Fine.

…

And then she turned silent. You stopped and leaned against the wall panting. Your mind was racing and heart pounding way to fast. Putting the pieces of your mind conversation gave you a headache. It didn’t seem like the person was talking to you. She seemed angry, frustrated and miserable. But also her words had some kind of vulnerability to them. Maybe even remorse.

“Are you in here?” you tried to contact the voice with your thoughts, but it didn’t work. To be honest, you didn’t expect it to.

Quick observation let you know that you were currently near the main staircase, right above the big door. If anything happened, you had an easy way out. There weren’t any mirrors nearby, so Handong couldn’t get you. The downside was that you had no way to go back to the research room and get the notes or your jacket before leaving. There had to be some other-

“Where are you?”

You turned around and saw a girl standing right next to the you and looking down on the ground floor. Wait.. not any girl.

“Yoohyeon?” the words left your mouth without a second thought, but she didn’t seem to hear them. She hurried down the stairs and you had no other option than to follow her.

It was jarring to see her like this, smiling brightly and dressed in a colorful outfit after witnessing her in the catatonic state with no discernible face expression. Yoohyeon skipped through the rooms and you couldn’t help, but notice the change in your surroundings. There was no sign of passed time on any furniture. The sun was shining through the colorful curtains, covering everything with a warm hue. You followed the carefree girl and tried to remember as many details as possible. The manor didn’t seem chilling anymore. It felt like home.

Yoohyeon stopped in front of another girl, dressed in a matching outfit. A uniform maybe? The girl turned to her with a flip of red hair and your breath stopped for a moment. It was Jiu, but at the same time not Jiu at all. You knew her as a powerful, mysterious leader of the nightmare bunch. In front of you however was a bright girl, looking at her friend with sparkling eyes.

“Come on!” Yoohyeon rushed her playfully. “Bora made lunch.” She took Jiu’s hand and ran away with her. It took you a while to get over the bizarre sight. Were you in an alternative universe or something? There was no other explanation for what just happened. Jiu’s laughter, one of the most beautiful sounds you’ve ever heard by the way, echoed through the hallway. You watched her disappear around the corner and headed in that direction.

The table in the dining room was laid for seven people and two seats were already occupied. You saw Handong talking to a girl you didn’t recognize. Their voices were quiet, but that didn’t seem out of character for either of them and the soft smiles let you know that they cared for each other deeply.

“Coming through!” A small, cute girl crashed into someone you recognized as Siyeon. It was hard to identify her without a piercing stare and that dangerous smirk of hers. Her eyes turned into narrow creases when she smiled at her friend giving her a back hug. The scene was so heartwarming and weird at the same time. What was going on here?

“Singnie cuddle pile!” an all too familiar voice cheered right next to your ear and Bora darted past you to jump on Siyeon from the front. The girl grunted and tried to look displeased, but her grin betrayed her. Jiu leaned her chin on the top of Handong’s head and a warm smile spread on her face. She looked so peaceful. But wait-

“Y/N!”

Where was Yoohyeon?

“Y/N!” Jiu dragged you by the hand and ran through the halls. You blinked a couple times in confusion. She wasn’t in her uniform anymore and her hair was black again.

“Jiu?” Dumb question, of course it was her. “What is going on?”

“Run!” she called and picked up her pace. You had to admit, she was fast for someone running in a chic suit. Only Jiu can probably pull that off.

She led you through the corridors without stopping even once. Surprisingly, that didn’t bother you at all. Maybe you got fit? No, you probably never left the Dreamworld in the first place. More probable. But how could that happen? Did this place had layers or something? Or like different dimensions? You should have seen that coming probably, but it didn’t change the fact that it was weird to experience it firsthand.

Jiu turned suddenly and almost made you lose your balance. You stumbled a bit, struggling to keep up with her. Especially, that she clearly knew where she was going and you had no idea how to navigate through the dark halls. Somehow, everything got even more shadowy. Or maybe it was just the contrast with previous setting. You were already starting to miss the happy Jiu. She was so bright and looking like sunshine embodied. This Jiu had this dark aura that made you intimidated, but also was extremely captivating. She was like a black blooming rose-

And then she smashed the mirror.

“Don’t stop!” she commanded and continued running. Trying not to trip on the broken glass, you followed her slightly taken aback. Why did she break it?

Another crash could be heard as Jiu slammed her fist into the next mirror, slowing down only a bit. She did that a couple times more and it made you a bit concerned. Could that hurt her? It was a dream, but did that matter? And what about Handong? What if she was in the mirror in that moment?

“Why are you doing this?” you winced after another smash. “Is this about Handong?”

Jiu let out a little dry chuckle and stopped.

“Handong is not a problem, Y/N.” she looked around and her eyes narrowed. “Go downstairs.”

“What about you?”

“Just go.” She ordered and resumed her sprint. You wouldn’t dare disobeying her, so you descended the stairs and moved forwards. What were you supposed to do now? Leave the building? Get help? Stay there?

You decided to keep moving and think later. Maybe some inspiration would strike you without any warning. Hopefully, only inspiration.

The mansion was back to its unwelcoming nature. But you could swear that it seemed even more hostile and dark than before. It seemed like whatever was going on with Yoohyeon, made everything go deeper into the nightmare. And Jiu was probably trying to stop that. At least you hoped so.

You passed the dining room and looked at the table. It looked horrible without the happy crowd surrounding it. The absence of girls made this place void of any happiness and colors. The only thing left was emptiness. Hollow and dark silence that couldn’t be filled with anything. Not wanting to get into a funk, you turned around only to notice Yoohyeon walking through the corridor. You looked back at the table. None of the girls seemed to notice her absence, all caught up in their carefree world. Yoohyeon cast a quick glance behind and started walking faster.

You followed her back to the place when she found Jiu. She was kneeling in front of a jar and looking at it with curiosity. After a close look, you noticed a white spider sitting in the glass container. Yoohyeon tapped the wall a little and looked in the direction of others again. No one went after her.

“Why did you do that?”

The voice took you by surprise, but didn’t make you take your eyes off Yoohyeon. Something seemed wrong and you wanted to know what was she going to do.

“It all started here.”

A smirk ghosted Yoohyeon’s face, but it didn’t look like her previous smile. It was more mischievous than cheerful. She looked like a child wanting to cause some trouble.

“Such a small thing.”

She took the magnifying glass from behind her back and put it up, turning it to find the best angle. Was she trying to… No it was impossible. Right?

“It was a mistake”

A small cloud of smoke started rising from the jar as the sun rays illuminated the spider. Yoohyeon’s smile grew wider as the small creature burned in its glass prison.

“We still pay the price.”

After finishing her job, Yoohyeon got up and hid the magnifying glass in one of the drawers. Then she turned towards the dining room with the same weird smile. It lasted only for a second before fading back to her bright grin.

“Help us.”

You were staring at the table in stunned silence. Everything was back to normal. There was no jar, no Yoohyeon, no spider. Just an old piece of furniture.

“So now you know.” Even though you should have expected her, you still jumped a bit.

“Did you show me this?” you asked and turned to face her. Jiu nodded.

“You deserve to know the truth. And you were determined to learn it no matter the consequences.”

She had a point. Still, the fact that Jiu made effort to help you learn this vital piece of information was astonishing. Almost like two made some progress together.

“That’s why Yoohyeon is… like that.” The girl sighed and looked at the table. Pain ghosted her face as she nodded.

“The curse, our curse started here.” She explained. “When Yoohyeon burned my spider.”

That made some sense. Yoohyeon didn’t look like herself at that moment. She could have been possessed and started this whole mess that you got tangled in for some reason. And now she was immobilized in the mansion.

“You wanted me to come here?” you had to know. “I heard your voice in school. It sounded like a call for help.

Jiu looked conflicted. As if she was judging whether to trust you or not. The slight hesitation made her seem a little bit more human. She was afraid of making a mistake. She couldn’t let anything happen again.

“Y/N, the Dreamworld is a very complex place.” She started and you nodded slowly. “You encountered me three times today.”

“Was all of them you?” that sounded a bit odd, but there was no other way to word it. Jiu seemed to understand your intention.

“The first one was just a memory. A shadow of the past, sealed in the passed time. You couldn’t change anything there, it’s just a projection.”

“Like a flashback?” Something similar to approval shone in Jiu’s eyes. It made you feel warm inside.

“Exactly. Then we were in Dreamworld.”

“Running through the hallways.” You interrupted. “But something wasn’t right. It didn’t feel the same way like before.”

You didn’t mention that “before” meant the times where she chased you through the same mansion you were in now. It seemed like eternity passed since these days. Back then it was just a strange dream that kept returning.

“Our first encounter was in your dream.” Jiu tapped her fingers on the small table. “I just entered it like we do with many people.”

“Why?” It may have been an insensitive question, but you really wanted to understand. Jiu smiled a little.

“It’s what we do, Y/N. That’s just who we are.”

“That the point!” you exclaimed and quickly calmed down. “Who are you?

The girl glanced away from you. The conflicted expression returned to her features. You prayed she would actually explain everything.

“We are nightmares.” You knew that part already, but you didn’t interrupt. “When Yoohyeon killed an innocent creature… we all had to pay for that. It’s our curse.”

“But you are here. So you have to be mortal right?”

Jiu tilted her head a bit.

“Kind of.” She sighed. “We don’t have the time for details, Y/N and it’s better for you not to know too much.”

Of course. All of this again. Everyone had to protect the poor, little Y/N from evil. Well, it was too late for that. You were in this, whether they wanted it or not. And you weren’t going to give up.

“How can I help you if I don’t know what’s wrong?”

“You can’t help us.” Jiu tried to sound firm, but her voice shook a little. This whole situation was a huge weight for her. “Just like I couldn’t help her.”

That was when you got it. Jiu felt guilty. For not stopping Yoohyeon, not protecting her, not stopping the curse and becoming a nightmare. She wanted to fix this, to save everyone and finally forgive herself.

“But I want to.” You looked her in the eye. “I want to help you, Jiu. All of you.”

She looked at you without any ice in her glare. She seemed as exhausted and terrified as you, but was way better at hiding it. The girls needed your help and you wanted to solve this case and bring them peace. Finish something that Dong-hyuk couldn’t.

“Oh, one more thing.” You added. “What happened to that investigator.”

Jiu’s gaze hardened and you stiffened a bit.

“He wanted to learn about our curse and make us disappear for his own benefit.” She spat. “But it was a huge mistake on his part. He caused us a lot of trouble, though. Capturing Sua, sending those freaks after Siyeon and Yoohyeon.”

“He did all of this?” you were shocked. Suddenly it felt wrong to compare yourself to that guy. He was ruthless and only wanted to gain something from the girls’ tragedy.

“Yes. But we got rid of him pretty quickly.” She smiled. “And gained enough power to switch places with him.”

You didn’t want to ask for details now, but made a mental note to keep this question for later.

“Can I take his papers?” you asked carefully. “It could save me a lot of work.”

Jiu raised her brows subtly.

“I thought your friend took everything.”

Mentioning Chaeyoung made your heart sting a little. You still had to make things right with her and it was eating you from the inside. Jiu noticed that and motioned for you to go and collect whatever you needed.

You entered the room and quickly gathered everything and put it in your backpack. Nothing was left and the room looked much better without the papers laying around. On your way out, you noticed the jacket draped across the mirror. Thankfully, Handong wasn’t waiting under it to give you a piece of her mind.

Jiu was still in the hallway when you came back. She was looking through a window at the setting sun. You stood next to her, not sure what to do.

“Did you get everything?” she asked without looking at you. You patted your packed bag.

“I think so.” You were once again left together in silence and for some reason it felt right. Maybe Jiu was warming up a little. “I want to help you, Jiu, I really-

“Minji.” She interrupted and turned her eyes to you.

“Excuse me?” you whispered in surprise. Your heart started fluttering under her gaze.

“My name is Minji.” She repeated and moved her eyes back at the window.