#sungho fluff

edging sungho right before he heads to a meeting just cause you felt like it

sweetly asking sungho "am i doing good?" looking at him with sweet eyes as he comes undone from your touch :3

riwoo.

there was only one way for riwoo to get you to get off your phone and pay attention to him!

too needyyyy :(

you wanted to make riwoo feel good

how riwoo rewards you after every date

taesan.

after a long day all taesan needs to do is come home and take all his frustrations out on his sweet girl

how taesan plays with you

taesan toying with you after all you did was tease him while on a date

making sure your pretty boy feels good by rewarding him

leehan.

leehan making out with your sloppy cunt to wake you up

the videos he sends you when he misses your pretty face (and the way you clench around him so nicely) :(

after you flirted with sungho to rile him up too often

myung jaehyun ♡s cheek kisses he was originally a sucker for kisses on the lips, but after seeing the smile that you give him every time he kisses you on the cheek, he couldn’t help but fall in love with kissing your cheek. don’t even get him started when you kiss him back, he basically crumbles every time you do. he loves it when the two of you are cuddling and he has his face oh so close to yours, he just can’t help himself and presses a swift kiss on your cheek. ♡ “baby i’m going to the mall,” you giggled, bag in hand as you stood at the front of the door. all jaehyun could do was smile as you looked so cute, he leaned his head against the wall as a little smile creeped up his lips. “you look really pretty,” he cooed, smirking like a dork as he walked towards you. “oh really?” you batted back, trying your best to look coy. “yes, how could i not think so!” he chuckled. “be safe, okay? make sure to call me if you need anything.” he hummed, pressing a quick kiss on your cheek. you nodded, turning the doorknob. “love you, jae” you sang, making him practically fall backwards.

park sungho ♡s wrist kisses sungho likes two things when it comes to physical touch, hand-holding and kissing your wrists. in his words “it’s way less awkward for me to kiss your wrists in public than kissing your lips,” even though it draws more attention than kissing, he wants to be “different”. it’s super cute when the two of you are outside and he clasps your hands in his—trying his hardest to warm your freezing hands, only for him to press his soft lips on your wrist. ♡ you were in the middle of trying out all of the cosmetics you bought from your local drug store, bottles of creams and oils scattered all over your bed. “what are you trying out now?” sungho hummed, curiosity all over his face. “i’m using this handcream, it’s vanilla scented and super smooth. honestly— it was worth it,” you rambled as you rubbed the cream in. sungho paid attention to each word you said as he stood in front of you. “come smell it” you cheered, raising your hand for him to hold. sungho bent his head down a bit to smell it, his eyes locked on yours with a cute smile on. “smells really nice, y’know i should buy it..” he said, holding your hand with such care. “it smells so good” he hums, pressing chaste kisses on your wrist before letting your arm fall down. “good, we can go back there and buy it together.”

lee riwoo ♡s hand kisses this man is like cornfield levels of corny, so don’t be surprised when he jokes about being a gentleman. at first, he would kiss the back of your hand as a “funny” joke, but little did he know he would actually enjoy kissing your hand. whenever you’d come home he would always kiss your hand with a stupid smile attached to his face, giggling to himself about how silly he was. as no surprise to you, you actually became fond of his little joke, even if it was 1000 days old. ♡ riwoo jumped for joy as you brought groceries home, smiling like a dork as he ran over to hold the bags. “i’m so thankful that you brought food home, i am starving!” he sighed in relief, placing the bags on the counter. “you’re welcome,” you chuckled, sliding your slippers off before walking to the kitchen. “soo, what do you wanna eat? we could honestly eat a snack, and then we can cook later.” you spoke up, hoping that your idea fancied him. “yeah sure, i can wait a few more hours before eating,” he smiled, his hands taking the food out of the bags before putting them away. you nodded. as you walked over to the sink to wash your hands, riwoo grabbed your hand softly, holding your fingers in his hand before kissing your hand. “ohmygod! riwoo, i didn’t wash my hand, do you know how gross that is…” you stared at him in shock, “well… if i get sick, you’ll take care of me, right?” you sighed, you knew damn well you would.

han taesan ♡s top of the head kisses lets cut to the chase. he is way taller than you, so it’s just so convenient to kiss you on the top of the head. that is the only reason he could come up with. plus, he can do it in public and no one would bat an eye cause he can just rest his head on top of yours after. he just loves how you don’t mind him doing that to you. he likes not feeling super embarrassed after kissing you, and you like how he touches you, so it clearly is a win-win situation. ♡ the two of you stood in the moving subway, holding onto the handle as you awaited your stop. taesan stood behind you, hand resting on your waist, holding you near him. you pulled your phone from your jacket pocket and opened the camera app to use it as your mirror. you stared at your phone as you fixed your shirt’s collar, making sure it popped the way you liked it. as you were busy fixing your outfit, taesan rested his chin on your head, watching you. you didn’t even realize he kissed your head multiple times. it just felt so natural, so you didn’t say anything and let him do it. taesan turned you around and mindlessly fixed your outfit—smoothning it out and helping you with your collar once and for all. “thank you, sannie” you whispered, making him smile. you turned around again and embraced his hand in yours. kim leehan ♡s thigh kisses this sounds really shocking, but truly hear me out. leehan likes any kiss in general, he will smother you in thousands of kisses. but something so intimate about kissing your thighs—it drives him wild. it isn’t even inherently sexual either, he just loves it when you let him kiss your thighs as it’s super rare for you to let him do it. he obviously cherishes the moment in his heart. ♡ a random show was playing as filler noise as you laid in your bed with leehan, scrolling through your phone as you wrapped your body around him. you turned your phone off after a bit of usage and placed it on your dresser. you turned to face your boyfriend again and smiled. leehan stared at you, his eyes lazy from sleep trying to take him. “ihan, you’re so cute” you muttered, kissing his nose. he giggled softly before yawning. you squeezed him with all of your strength. “you give me such bad cuteness aggression, what is your secret” you hummed, tracing your finger down his chest. “i’m not sure,” he whispered. you continued to squeeze him, the both of your bodies moving around in the bed. you finally let go after a bit and your leg was over his neck. “you’re crushing me with your leggg” he whined, moving you closer to him, making your thigh rest over his face. “and this isn’t crushing you?” you scoffed jokingly, shaking your head as a smug smile rested on his lips. without a word, a kiss landed on the back of your thigh, making you giggle. “do it again,” you laughed, and he complied, kissing you over and over again. 

kim woonhak ♡s lip kisses he’s new to relationships and very inexperienced when it comes to those kind of things. so, to keep it simple in his mind he just sticks to kissing your lips. besides, his lips are so kissable. who wouldn’t kiss him!? it could be cute pecks to making out with him, it doesn’t matter to him. as long as you kissed him he doesn’t care about anything else in the world. ♡ you sat on the bleachers as you watched woonhak play basketball, eyes glued onto him as he ran across the court, chasing the ball and trying his hardest to steal it from his opponent. you videoed him on your phone and tried your hardest to capture all the good moments of the match. as it reached the final minutes of the game and his team winning, you knew it was going to be alright. in a flash, woonhak stole the ball from the guy and ran to their net, “YES WOONHAK RUN!!!!!” you screamed, standing up and shouting at him to shoot. in no one’s surprise he shoots and scores, ending the game and winning for the team. you ran down the bleachers and without a doubt, woonhak ran over to you and hugged you, kissing you and squeezing your body with his. “i’m so freaking happy for you!” you cheered, making him smile like a dork. you kissed him once again and hugged him.

wrap his hand around your waist to guide you

"I'm sure I showed you yesterday, Sungho," you argue gently as you walk around a store, looking for a specific sweatshirt.

You really wanted to buy it for him, for no particular reason besides that it would look great on him, but he just couldn't remember what it looked like. He lets you, not having the heart to tell you it was nothing since this you were so invested.

You were making your way to the man's part when you took your phone out of your pocket without stopping in a corner.

"I'll find it quickly, wait," you muttered in your beard.

"Go on," his voice is soft at your focus state, and there's a sweet smile on his lips.

His hand wrapped immediately around your waist, bringing you a little closer to him as he guided you through the store. His pace slowed down and he became more conscious of his environment so you wouldn't accidentally bump into something or someone.

You're too focused to realize it at first, but when you finally show him your phone again, you can feel the firm grip he has on you and your heart skips a beat.

"Ah this one ! It's really pretty yeah, I'd love it actually," he smiled down to you, not realizing the effect he actually had on you one bit.

he's good with kids

Sungho was waiting for you to come out of the restroom with your half-cold coffee in hand before you two could go on with your shopping day. It’s been planned for a while now, but since he was really busy with uni, you had to wait some more.

He was scrolling on his phone before something moving in front of him caught his attention. Looking up, his eyes fell on a little girl walking around in front of the coffee shop next to him, holding on her red dress tightly as her eyes kept darting around too fast to seem normal. Frowning a little, to put his phone in his pocket as he takes the few steps separating him from her, before crouching down in front of her.

“Hey there, are you alone ? Where’s your mom ?” he asked gently, putting on a reassuring smile despite being worried.

She simply shook her head, her face suddenly turning into a deep frown before falling into his arms with tears in her eyes. Her small hands clinging to his shirt made his heart sink, as he held her without a second thought.

"You're alright, you're alright," he sooth gently, rubbing her back, hoping she'll stop crying.

“Sungho ?” Turning around as your worried voice reached his ears, he managed her weight with one arm so he wouldn’t spill your drink, and walked to you.

“She was walking alone so I checked but she lost her parents,” he explained quickly, giving you your coffee back before holding her properly.

Your heart skipped a beat when he held her tighter, pushing her hair away from her face while tilting his head lightly, checking on her silently. His voice was softer than you’ve ever heard and for a second, you couldn’t help but think he’ll be a great father.

“We should walk her to the security post and wait with her,” you said finally, ignoring the pounding of your heart at the sight of your boyfriend with a baby girl in his arms, stroking her cheek sweetly instead.

What you didn’t know was that it had the same effect on him.

Lee Sanghyuk – Riwoo

fix your jewelry

“I’m so anxious and for what, huh ?” you complained, trying to stay still in your seat as Riwoo drove you to work this morning. You wake up late to go with the bus, so he offered to drive you there so you didn’t have to rush.

“You have a big day in front of you, cut yourself some slack,” he tried to calm your nerves down by taking your hand, but it didn’t seem to work as well as both of you’d like.

Your whole day was planned with big meetings, with various investors so the brand you work for could extend itself on the market. You’re not even sure you’ll have time to eat and you had to wake up late on top of that ? You were cursed.

Parking in front of your company, you took a deep breath before turning towards him one last time, flashing him your best puppy eyes.

“Do I look ok ? Is my makeup fine ? Be honest, I can still fix it –”

He moved before you could finish your sentence. Slowly, he fixed your necklace that might have turned around in the rush, then placed a strand of hair behind your ear so the pretty pair of earrings you had on was now showing. Your heart stopped for a second, you were sure of it, and now your cheeks were burning under the thick layer of makeup. You couldn’t take your eyes off of him, your breath getting caught in your lungs as he smiled at you. Brushing his knuckles against your cheek on the way back, he flashed you a content smile.

“You look amazing, don’t be too hard on yourself today,” he mumbled before leaning in and leaving a kiss on your lips.

Grabbing his face more roughly than you intended, you kissed him again. “I love you,” you said against his lips before taking your bag and exiting the car, not without thanking him one last time.

rub his chin when he doesn’t understand something

Sitting on the couch next to him, you’ve been trying to explain to him how you build your character for the last 10min, but that didn’t seem to get through his skull. He was frowning at your phone like it told him to call a waiter, one of his hands holding his face frustratingly.

“I don’t get it,”, he said plainly as his fingers ran over his soft skin, rubbing his chin once again.

A bubbly giggle left your lips. “Yeah, I can tell. See, if you take this artifact…”

He asked you because he was curious and wanted to know more about this game you talked so much, so you did your best for him to understand what was going on, but he seemed so upset about it, it made your heart jump in your chest.

It was a whole, the fact that he clicks his tongue, how he rubs his chin over and over as he focuses on your fingers running around the screen, his frown deepening as he titles his head – god, he is gonna be the end of you.

“I can’t do this,” you say out of the blue, leaving your phone next to you before grabbing his face and kissing him deeply.

Pushing him down on the sofa with you, his breath hitched at first, but he didn't waste a second before his hands found your waist, kissing you with the same need you showed him.

“All of that ?” he asked sarcastically when you pulled away to catch your breath, making you blush.

“Shut it,” you cut him off, kissing him again, but he certainly wouldn’t argue with that.

remember details

You couldn’t hide your smile as Riwoo sat across from you at a restaurant. There wasn’t any occasion, you just mentioned being too tired to cook over the phone as you stepped out of work so he invited you for diner. It was nothing big, a casual restaurant the two of you go often, but it warmed your heart anyway.

“What is it ?” he asked, a little nervous as you kept on smiling.

“Nothing, I’m just happy to eat with you,” you said with a small shrug, waiting for your order.

The date goes smoothly, jumping topics between work and what is going on between your boss and his secretary, to his dance classes, or even what Taesan did last night to get him screaming over the phone. The wait between the courses is filled with small gasps and giggles, so neither of you bother the table behind you, but still enjoy your time together.

When your main course arrived, your eyes widened happily as you clapped your hands together and started eating without a second thought while coming back to your boss’ affair. You got cut by Riwoo picking his chopstick and removing the tomato from your plate without a word, still listening to you talking when he ate it before sitting back in his seat.

His eyes locked with yours as you stopped talking, so he gestured to you to go on with a quick nod, not knowing your heart just fluttered at how nonchalantly he just picked what you hate from your dish.

“Thank you,” you muttered, looking at your plate all flushed now as he giggled at your reaction.

“It’s not even the first time I do this,” he commented as he started eating himself.

You didn’t answer because he was right, it wasn’t, yet, it never fails to make your heart skip a beat and start beating faster.

Myung Jaehyun

Drive with one hand

Parking right in front of the store you work at, it doesn't take you more than a minute to get in the car, sighing deeply as you sit heavily next to him.

"Sorry I'm late," Jaehyun says, checking you from head to toe to see if you stayed too long under the rain or not.

"No it's fine, thanks for driving me home," you said quietly, feeling all the stress and tiredness falling on your shoulders.

"Always."

Laying deep into your seat, you watch the busy traffic with tired eyes. None of you talk, you rarely do when you clock out of work – too tired after spending the whole day forcing smiles. Jaehyun never minded, sometimes he filled the silence, sometimes not. Tonight he doesn't.

Instead, it’s the playlist he made for you that does, playing all the way back to your shared apartment and he simply hums along with it. His cheek is resting against his hand, laying on the edge of the window. He only had one hand on the wheel as he waited for the green light.

He seems bored, but who wouldn't be – he had a long day on his side too. You can't help but stare at him instead of the traffic, a dreamy smile on your face. Your confident boyfriend shatters under your gaze after he locks eyes with you, a shy smile creeping to his lips.

"What ?" he giggles nervously as he starts driving again.

"Nothing, you're just hot," you say without a second thought at first, then you feel your cheeks heat up.

"I'm not," he sighed but you can tell the compliment went straight to his heart.

You're both flustered, Jaehyun’s hiding his mouth with his free hand and you're back to look through the window, but with a happy smile on your lips.

arch a brow when he’s unimpressed

You didn’t know what was up with this guy, but you surely didn’t want to find out. You didn’t give him a second thought when you came to order two more drinks for you and Jaehyun so he didn’t have to leave the conversation he had going on, but maybe you wished he went instead. That guy was talking to you with a smirk tug on the corner of his lips, laying – supposedly – nonchalantly on the counter while you waited for your drinks, and you hated it. Not that you answered him even once, but he kept on pushing on your arm so you would give him the attention he was begging for.

Clicking your tongue, you were about to finally tell him to fuck off when a hand landed on your waist. Pulling you behind him without even opening his mouth, Jaehyun titled his head to the guy, his silent way to ask him what was going on. Your heart started racing in your chest at how protective he gets and so quickly. One of his hands was still extended toward you protectively, making your breath hitch but you hold back from holding it now.

“Who the fuck are you ? I was about to bring her home,” he clearly had one too many drinks and wasn’t impressive at all, making Jaehyun arch a brow.

“Sure, I’d like to see that happen,” he replied dangerously low, before turning around without another word for him.

Instead, his arm wrapped around you who were already holding both your drinks and walked you back to your table. A long sigh left his lips as he held you closer, leaning his head into yours.

“I’m going next time, hum ?” he almost pleaded in your ear.

You nodded, but honestly, you wouldn’t mind being flirted with if you get to see this hot side of him every time.

when his voice get deeper

Coming out of the shower, Jaehyun crashed on the bed next to you without a word but a deep sigh – you swore he just emptied his lungs. Leaving your phone to the side, you rolled closer to him.

“Tired baby ?” you asked softly, your hand finding his back to rub small circles on his soft, still hot from the shower skin.

“Yeah,” he sighed, his voice deep in fatigue, and your stomach did a flip.

You’re very much aware of the effect his deep voice has on you, and when he’s tired, he can’t really force his voice higher like he’s used to, making your heart beats faster. Moving swiftly after a second, you sat on his lower back with your hands already laying on his shoulders.

“How about a massage ?” you asked gently, pushing on the knot in his tensed shoulders, winning a deep, guttural groan.

“You’re an angel,” he commented breathy, relaxing under your touch.

You tried to ignore how deep any sounds coming from him are as you worked your fingers skillfully on his muscles, you really did but there’s so much you can take from him being topless under you – and making such noises at the same time.

Leaving a kiss between his shoulder blades, you sat back next to him while he lifted his face from the pillow, puzzled. He’s about to ask something when your hands grab his shoulders, turning him around quickly so he lays flat on his back.

“Babe ?” his voice is slightly higher, but it can’t be helped now as you sat on his pelvis.

“Maybe I can help you relax in another way now,” you offered, bending over until your lips brush against his without really kissing him.

A breath moaned left his lips before capturing yours for real, his hands already going up to grab the fat of your hips.

Han Dongmin – Taesan

gently manhandle you

"Careful baby," he whispered behind you as his hands grabbed your waist, pushing you gently to the side so he could open the drawer.

Your breath gets stuck in your throat as he moves you around so easily, making your heart beats faster. He barely had to put in the effort, too focus on making breakfast for the both of you as you prepared some coffee.

He wasn't even looking your way, still groggy about his early wake up but you couldn't help but stare longer than you realized. A smirk tugged on his lips as he stole a look at you.

"You're staring," he said nonchalantly, almost making you huff at him.

"It's nothing."

It wasn't really a lie, he does this all the time – it just works on you every time.

"If you say so," he shrugged casually, dressing the two plates. That's when you realized he knew very well what he was doing.

tilt his head and frown slightly when he doesn’t understand something

It's not unusual for the both of you to stay in the same room, doing your own things, without exchanging a word for hours. During that time, you can't help but stare at him from time to time and notice how tight his expression is when he's working.

When things don't go his way, he frowns lightly, knotting his eyebrows together tightly as he tilts his head to the side. Sometimes a deep sigh left his lips and you have to close your eyes because oh, how fucked you are.

"You're hot when you're troubled," you said absently, ignoring how down bad that sounds.

It took him out of his mind, straightening his back quickly. "What ?"

"You frown and tilt your head," you explained gently, imitating him as your eyes now locked with his. "That's hot."

He can't help the chuckle leaving his lips, nor the shy yet satisfied smile stretching on them as he shook his head.

"Thank you, I guess," he tries to sound nonchalant, but you can see the tip of his ears are red.

"You're welcome baby."

And you're very satisfied about it.

Leans in when he can’t hear you

The night was going well, he doesn't regret coming in the end, even though he wasn't really down to follow you at your friend's birthday at first. Talking with another guest that happened to have the same interests as him, Dongmin still makes sure to have an eye on you, being only a few steps away.

It was noisy, the rather small room was full of people walking around, talking and laughing at each other, so much he couldn't even hear the guy in front of him clearly.

He doesn't miss you when you make your way to him, a complicated look on his face. He's all ears within a second, dropping his conversation without a second thought to listen to you instead.

"Say, I really..." you started, but he can't figure what you're telling with the noises around.

Leaning in a little so you're closer to his ear, his hand finds your arm instinctively and your heart jumps in your chest. He's so tall compared to you, it actually surprised you to see him leaning in so much.

"Hum ?"

As your heart skipped a beat, you gulped hard to focus back on what you were saying, but your mind went blank for a second. So instead you shook your head and found your way in his arms, ignoring the guy's reaction as you hid your face in his chest.

"What baby ?" He chuckled, leaning in again so he talks to your ear. His hand now rests protectively on your waist.

"Nothing, I forgot. It wasn't important," you muttered, not over how down bad you are for him.

Lee Donghyun – Leehan

wet his lips

You've been looking at Donghyun for the last 10 minutes, and you were genuinely going nuts. He, without exaggeration, wet his lips at least 20 times and it was driving you crazy. You know he was just so busy, he didn’t notice he kept on doing it. You, on the other hand, couldn’t help but notice it.

It left a glossy finish on his lips, all you wanted to do was to kiss him. Whatever you were doing on your phone was long forgotten as you couldn’t focus on it anymore. Leaving it on your lap, you sat up and grabbed his face gently so he would look at you. Surprise is written all over his face when he looks at you, the fish video still playing on his phone.

“You need to stop doing that,” you warned playfully, now making him frown.

“Stop what ?”

“Wetting your lips all the time,” you answered quickly, your finger tapping his lips twice. “They’re gonna get dry.”

And you were gonna lose your mind.

“You need to be more careful,” you nagged gently before leaving a kiss on his lips, feeling them stretched into a smile against yours.

“You’re always sharing your lip balm with me, so I think I’m ok,” he replied proudly, now taping your lips to prove his point.

stare at you when you’re not looking

Leehan has been silent for what felt like too long now. Not that he was the especially talkative type in the first place, but when it's the two of you in his room, he can give you random information before coming back to his things without a second glance. This hasn't happened in a long time.

Lifting your eyes up from your computer, searching for him – you locked eyes with him as he was already staring at you. Your heart flutters at the focus look on his face, as if he was studying your face a second ago so he could answer any exams if he needed to. He does that a lot, and it never fails to make your heart beat faster, or hard to breathe for a second.

"You're staring again," You said quietly, forgetting your laptop for a second.

"Hum, you're pretty," he answered mindlessly, his eyes falling to your lips for a second before locking up to you again.

"No, not right now," you chuckled unamused, pointing at your pajamas and messy hair.

"Yes right now," he argued, moving next to you in his bed. "I decide." He added, leaving a quick kiss on your lips, before crashing down next to you like a big cat.

talks about his interest

Sitting next to Leehan, your head rested on his shoulders as he pointed you at his fishes swimming around their tank. He was explaining to you the time it took for the aquarium to be ready, and you really tried your best to focus on that, but his voice was so slow and deep with fatigue, your mind kept drifting away.

Your eyes were fixed on his reflection on the glass of the tank instead of following his finger, drinking the words falling from his lips as your heart gets warmer. How did you manage to pull such a nerdy, yet hot boyfriend ? You ask yourself everyday what the Gods make.

His hair was falling on his face, hiding his eyes slightly, but he didn't move away as his head was resting on top of yours. A faint smile pushed the corner of your lips.

"You're really amazing," you muttered gently, nuzzling yourself in his neck.

"Am I?" he asked in a small chuckle.

"Hum, you know so much, i love listening to you," you confessed, still smiling but his way now as you looked up to him.

"You don't get bored?"

"Never," you shook your head. "It's hot."

You feel him tested under your touch.

"You think so ?" he asked then, a little hesitant but you could feel the smile in his voice.

You simply nodded, before encouraging him to go on, before he focused on it too much and made a comment that would make your heart explode.

Kim Woonhak

pock his cheek with his tongue when he’s focus

Pulling an all nighter to prepare for an exam the next morning wasn’t a first for you, in fact, it happened more than you’d like to admit, but it was a first with someone by your side. Your new boyfriend decided to stay with you through it this time, working on his own stuff on the other side of the room.

When 4 in the morning hit, your body was so tired, you couldn’t help but lay on your table for a second – doing your best from closing your eyes because you knew it was done if you did. Instead your eyes wandered around the room until they laid on Woonhak sitting on your couch, his laptop on his lap and his headset on. He didn’t move for the last hours as well, so focus on his laptop he didn’t even glance your way during this time. You checked.

Your mind slowed down as you took in every detail about his face. His hair almost falling in his eyes, the small acne scars forming a constellation on his cheek, how he pouted when he’s bothered – he was too cute to be true, even when he looked serious like this. That’s what you thought until his tongue poked the inside of his cheek before clinking it, and a deep sigh left his lips.

You must be more tired than you think because this made your stomach twist and woke you up like cold water. Your eyes widened and you had to clear your throat to keep you from staring. You suddenly moving around caught his attention and he moved one side of his headset to hear you.

“Tired baby ? You’re going to bed ?” his voice’s deep with tiredness but he doesn’t flinch, still focused on his work.

“No I’m fine,” you muttered before sitting up straight. “Just needed a small break.”

“Hum, ok. You’re doing great,” this time, he looked at you and smiled, he was so tired, it was written all over his face, and yet your cute thoughts about him vanished away with your fatigue.

Now you want to be done with your revision and get all his attention instead. That will wait for tomorrow.

run his hand through his hair

Woonhak doesn't like it when his hair starts getting too long. It keeps on falling in his eyes, annoying him to the point where if he doesn't go to the hairdresser within a week, he might just cut it himself in his bathroom with kitchen scissors.

You, on the other hand, really like it. Because he sounds extra hot when he's annoyed, and the way he keeps on running his hand through his hair really works on you.

"I'm so done with this," he groaned under his breath as he pushed it away again.

He fell dramatically on your laps with a deep sigh, his hand now covering his eyes. Gently, your hand started running through his hair in a hopeless attempt to make him change his mind.

"But it looks good on you," you coo, caressing his skin softly as well.

"It's so annoying, I really can't keep it like this," he goes on, shaking his head as he looks up to you with pleading eyes.

"You look hot though," you added quietly, hoping your arrow will land where you want it to.

His eyes widened slightly before he chuckled your comment away, hiding his face in your belly. Only then you noticed how red his ears got.

"Don't say stuff like that," he whispered, and you could feel the mess going on in his mind. "I might keep them like this."

A big smile stretched on your lips as you bent over to pepper his face with kisses.

"I would live for this."

whisper in your ear

The party was getting boring, and you hated your friend for leaving early because she had an exam next morning – as if she didn’t used to go to exams with two hours of sleep and the equivalent of her weight in alcohol in her system. Laying against the doorway between the living room and the kitchen, you were stuck staring at people playing spin the bottle as you refused to join since you were taken.

The music wasn’t loud enough, the beer tasted awful and you were hungry – it clearly won’t be your most memorable night. Or it would, but as the worst ever. Sipping on your beer anyway, you flinched when someone stopped next to you before catching the cologne you know too well. Leaning in, Woonhak lips brushed your ear, making your heart jump.

“Not enjoying it ?” he whispered in your ear, his arm wrapping around your waist as he does.

You shook your head, trying to ignore the warm feeling twisting your stomach into knots slowly as he leaned into your shoulder, his nose now brushing your hot skin. A chuckle left his lips as he held you close to his body, and that’s all you needed to know he was tipsy and bored.

“Wanna go home ?” he asked in your ear again, leaving a kiss on your temple. “I agree it kinda sucks.”

“Taesan won’t mind ?” you asked quietly, watching your common friend you came with kissing a girl around the circle.

“Who cares, he seems busy anyway,” he replied quietly, and for once, you don’t really mind leaving a friend behind.

“Dude, what the actual fuck—?!” Jaehyun gasps as he jumps out of his own skin, the wooden table under him still vibrating from the force of Sungho’s fork being stabbed into it. 

Sungho glares. He's been glaring for some time now, and not at Myung Jaehyun, but at the spot behind him—using the gap between his ear and his shoulder as a sniper scope. Straight at you. 

Jaehyun swivels around, following his line of sight.

He takes in the view of you silently eating your tray of food, slipping a piece of broccoli into your mouth as you read the book propped up next to it. When Jaehyun eventually turns around to look at Sungho, he's wearing a face of exasperation. “Not this again. Dude…”

“Number 2,” Sungho huffs out heavily, chest rising and falling in rapid fiery breaths. “I'm number two in my class…again.” 

“That's not bad.”

Sungho switches his maniacal glare towards him, making Jaehyun blanch like a ghost. He flails to fix his mistake but the blond is quicker to launch at his throat, “Not bad? …Not…Bad…???” He lets out a crazed laugh, one that won't sound out of place at a mental institution, making Jaehyun squirm in his place. “I have done everything right—I rewrote all my notes, I memorised the shit out of the additional readings… Hell, I even stopped showering for a week just to have more time to study for exams!” 

“Yeah, we needed to stage an intervention for that, remember?”

“I deserve that spot,” Sungho ignores him pointedly. “Why does she hoard it like a mole, can't she let up at least once?? It's been like ten years.”

“She’s more like a squirrel if anything, look at her,” Jaehyun gestures towards how you've been chewing the same thing for the past five minutes, cheeks all puffed out, too engrossed in your reading. “And, it's you that decided to go to the same university as her… Even when you got offers from literally all your top options.”

“That's—” Sungho’s words die on his tongue. He isn't going into the psychoanalysis of why he'd chosen to follow his sworn enemy into the battlefield again, after losing over and over for all of his school years. “I need to do something about this. I'm not gonna lose to her again.”

“Right.”

“I need a game plan.”

“Right.”

There's a menacing glint in Sungho’s narrowed cat-like eyes, duckling yellow hair falling across it to make him look like he's trying very hard and looking intimidating, and failing every bit of the way. But the resolve in his voice is sharp when he says, “L/N Y/N, you are going down.” 

Even if that means he might potentially be dragged down with you. 

SUNGHO'S FOOLPROOF STEPS TO CLIMB TO #1

Step 1: Find the target, then lock the fuck in. 

The clock ticks like a time-bomb about to explode any second, the hands on the dial moving with the pulse of his heart, his fingers tightly clasped within each other on the table. 

His eyes flicker between the wall and the door, maniacally—he’s early by thirty minutes and the waiting might just kill him before the looming disappointment of Rank 2 does. But this is all part of the plan. If he wants to finally shake off the jinx of the second spot (ugh, even thinking those words makes him want to punch a pillow), then he needs to follow through without making mistakes. 

The door finally clicks open and his heart finally soars, excitement building as your figure comes into view. 

You're the same as always: loose, plain clothes, the same half-open backpack hanging off a shoulder, hair a quick work of being pulled together by what appears to be just your fingers. A mess, he would say. Nothing like him. 

And it pisses him off, yeah. Because here is a disaster of a human being somehow doing better than him at what should be his forte. He's the one that spends hours poring over notes and utilising every resource he can get his hands on, going as far to hunt down the hard-to-access ones as well. He's the one that had a carpal tunnel for a month from non-stop typing. He's the one that has to hide his horrific eyebags under makeup in case he ends up spooking another child on the street into crying because they thought they'd seen a ghost. He's the one who works hard, who sticks to his regimen, who never crosses the lines he's drawn for himself, sticking within the confines of rules and propriety.

He's the one that cares. 

You—you don't give two shits about whether you do well or not, but you still somehow just win. 

And the worst thing is that you don't even seem like you're aware of this game you're playing. You're just swinging through life with no stress and still acing every bit of it. 

Sungho loathes it, but because he has ulterior motives (he's not evil, he swears), he plants the best and sugar-sweetest smile he can muster and calls for you. “Y/N, hey!” He grins, waving at you. “I saved you a spot.”

Your shoes scuff on the tiles as you stop walking to stare at him in confusion, a hint of a knot at your forehead. Then your eyes move from him to the empty space he's gesturing at next to him. “Huh?” 

“Come on!” he chimes happily (he's dying inside). “I won't bite.” (Oh yes he will, he so will.)

There's hesitation in your movements, but you've always been too shy to say no, he is aware of that and is shameless enough to monopolise on that fact. 

The second you sit down, you have stepped into the devil’s territory. Poor, poor you. Unaware of his clever schemes, totally clueless that you're about to hand over that first place as though under a spell. Because, guess what, Park Sungho, while the perfect student, is also a perfect campus heart-throb. He's shot many an unsuspecting passerby with the cupid's arrow, doing nothing but existing in all his angelic, golden haired (dye-job but it counts, okay?), feline-natured glory. 

He just has to distract you with his manly wiles until you forget how to study. That's the plan. 

“Oops,” he says as soon as you sit down to prepare for the class, checking your watch for when the professor will arrive. Other students have already started flocking in. “Ah, I think I dropped a pen,” Sungho feigns innocence, searching the floor for the pen he'd discreetly flung down a minute ago.

“Oh!” You’re immediately eager to help, shooting a hand down to scamper for his pen. 

But Sungho is clever; he does the same thing, and before your fingers can grab hold of the pen, his palm grazes yours, sending a tingle up your skin.

You slowly look up, and he does too, leading from the point where you touch to the gentle dips of your cheek, then to the sparkle in your eyes. 

Your eyes sparkle? That's new information... 

“Uh,” he whispers accidentally, but is quick to reel it back with a small cough and a polite smile. “Thanks.” He crinkles his eyes on purpose. 

He’s expecting you to blush. Or flounder for words awkwardly or topple over with the shock of how pretty he is. 

Unfortunately, none of those scenarios happen. You actually shoot him a blinding smile and return right back to your seat, opening up your work. 

And…

Sungho is the one to sit there flabbergasted at the turn of events. Because he hadn't expected you to be nice like that.

Or for your smile to be so…pretty.

Ew, no—! No no no, he does not think your smile is pretty, he’d meant to think petty—that’s it! Ha ha… Yeah…

Ahem.

It doesn't end there, he hasn't forgotten his mission to capture your heart just yet. There are still steps and sub-steps to follow, and he will do just that. A momentary lapse of his brain is nothing that can hold him back. 

So he doubles down on the efforts in the coming days: he brings you an extra cup of coffee for the 8 AM lectures, he offers to hold your bag for you when he sees you roll your shoulders with a pained sigh, he even brings a hairclip for you on the days you forget to brush your hair and need to keep it out of your eyes. 

It's a little counterproductive maybe—your focus definitely improves when you're hydrated and taken care of—but he is playing the long game here. A tiny lift of your spirits before it eventually plummets into the depths of hell, right into his opportunistic hands. 

You don't blush still, but you smile a lot more. When he gets you a slice of strawberry cake as a sweet treat after a test, you return the favour by paying for lunch. You eat together now, Jaehyun needing to find a new eating buddy because Sungho cannot get distracted by his dumb jokes while he's seducing you into failing. He splits his free time into studying, drawing up new and exciting methods to befriend you even further, and then preparing for these mini hangouts he's orchestrated. 

Everything is going swimmingly well. 

Step 2: Do not—absolutely never ever—get sidetracked. 

The ice cream shop is a quaint building at the corner of campus, with white bricks for walls and vanilla circling the air. The ideal spot for a romantic endeavour.

And Sungho is deviously romantic, of course. He's still stuck below you on the rank sheet, but the gap isn't all that big. It doesn't hurt him the same anymore. Just makes him determined to knock you off your throne. 

“Hmm…which flavour?” you ask, blinking at the shiny glass display holding a trillion different shades of ice cream. 

Sungho has to be a gentleman. So he says, “Anything you choose,” and he does it with a soft smile and lovesick eyes. (He practiced that morning in the mirror and almost fell in love with himself; it's a guaranteed trap.)

Your face breaks out in a happy grin, hair loosely falling along your cheek. It's a nice view—he has to admit—for how long he's known you from afar all these years, it's strange to see you up this close, with a smile that's admittedly very beautiful in the objective, factual, scientific sense. He's only agreeing with the voice in his head because he is after all, a scientific man, not for any other reason. 

Eventually you settle on a rocky road (he'd predicted this to be honest, you've got a raging sweet tooth), and end up with a wonky cone with two scoops bulging out of it. 

“You really like it, huh?” he chuckles at the way you eat it like a little kid would, with stars in your eyes. 

You nod shyly, twirling it around in your hand. “It's yummy. I had it a lot while I used to pull all-nighters in high school.”

“Yeah? Is that why you'd show up in the morning looking like a bird made a nest in your hair?” he teases, and he's met with a pout that makes him laugh at your reaction. “Sorry, sorry, just kidding. It wasn't that bad.” He holds his hands up in surrender, still grinning. 

It's a slow morning. There aren't any classes until noon, and the air is thick with the scent of spring—birds singing up on treetops, the lawn plush and green with rose bushes lining the curbs. Perfect romantic weather for a romantic scheme. 

Sungho is savouring the cup of vanilla in his hand when he looks up to see a tiny spot of brown at the corner of your lips. 

You haven't noticed yet, too engrossed in your own ice cream, and well—he tells himself it's just the messiness of it that bothers him. Not the way it mars your nice lips, no way. And his hand just moves on its own because he's always had a good instinct for cleanliness, not because he wants to touch you. 

But your eyes widen just the tiniest amount when soft skin thumbs at your face, swiping away the sweetness there. He watches closely, watches every minor change in your expression—the soft blinks, the stillness of your breathing, the way you have a gentle pink running up your cheeks.

His brain wants to scream jackpot! It wants to celebrate the victory of getting you to blush, of finally tripping you over into his metaphoric claws. 

But…

But why the fuck is his own face also heating up like a furnace?! 

He feels like he has a fever, a terrible affliction that causes his heart to run a mile a minute and for his mouth to stop working. Was he dying? Was he going insane? 

His thoughts only come to a swerving stop when you regard him with a sunny smile and say, “Thanks.” 

Thanks for what, really? He wonders. But he's quick to bury those complicated musings in favour of changing a steady mantra of ‘remember the plan, the plan, the plan, the plan—’, until he tunnel-visions and sees nothing but the score sheet pinned up on the bulletin in front of the lecture hall. 

Sungho does not stop until he's back in the safety of his dorm, having faked a stomach ache to run here before his next class—until he's splattered water into his face and climbed into bed without even changing out of his outside clothes, like a madman. Today marks the first day he's ever skipped a class. 

But it’s of no help at all, because he still ends up having a nightmare of your face giddy with happiness, and he burns like a fire the whole time he dreams. 

Step 3: Sympathy is for losers. Do not ever take pity on your enemy; it's a trap. 

The score sheet flutters from the draft through the window, the pale sun cutting dull lines across your name, and his right below.

Sungho tightens his fist, his jaw clenched in fury. At himself, not at anyone else. He's tried to do it this time, really pushed himself beyond what he thought was even possible. But it's of no avail when you've managed to secure the top marks again. 

“Oh,” he hears your voice from behind him, a small sound that he only picks up through the ruckus of students from how often he spends listening to it these days. 

When he turns back, he expects you to smile at him, maybe even give him a victory hug the way you do these days. But all he sees is the thin line of your mouth and the empty void in your stare. And…tears? 

“Hey,” he begins, instinctively on edge from worry. He doesn't even make it to you before you've schooled your expression into apathy, a robotic reaction so different from what he'd just caught a glimpse of before. He pushes forward anyways. “Come with me,” he says softly, wrapping a hand around your wrist and getting you through the crowd. 

You follow him quietly until he's found an empty lecture room, closing the door behind him and leading you over to the elevated stage in front. 

“Look at me,” he coaxes, gently bringing your gaze to meet his, with a soft palm guiding your cheek. “What's up, hm?”

“Nothing.”

It's a typical answer he'd have expected from you maybe some months ago and wouldn't have back an eye at back then. But now—now it feels odd. Like you're hiding so much and he’s only learnt to read past your mask, still in the process of figuring the meaning behind your little quirks. 

He knows you fiddle with pencils when you're nervous, that you twirl your hair when you're shy, the way you sometimes space out into distances when you're pondering something, when you're digesting a paragraph before it makes sense to you. And now, there's a tension in your shoulder that he knows is none of those things. 

“You can tell me anything, I won't judge,” he says, and it sounds true to his own ears for once. For once, he isn't lying. 

You open your mouth to deny, but you must be holding a lot in that a sharp, pained gasp escapes instead, and years begin to well up past your waterline before you've readied yourself to fight it. 

“I—” you try, and it tapers off into a choked sound when Sungho’s palms hold you with even more tenderness. “I’m not…I don't deserve it,” you confess into the air like it's a secret you've kept forever.

It doesn’t make complete sense to Sungho, but the one thing that he can say with his whole heart now is that if there is anyone that deserves all the good things in the world, it’s you. He’s been looking your way forever now—how could he not see how much soul you pour into your work… How dedicated you are and how diligent you are. He’s been envious of that talent of yours to absorb material like you’ve breathed in all the details and then recollected every bit of it on a test paper, but right now, he can only admit that it doesn’t just sprout from nowhere—you’ve honed that skill to perfection by working hard. 

“You do,” he disagrees gently, brushing the corner of your lashes with his thumb. “You deserve all of it.”

“I don’t even know what I’m doing…I…” You sniffle. “I don’t want to complain, I feel like an ungrateful brat when I do.”

Sungho lets out a soft chuckle at your words. “You’re anything but that. You say sorry to furniture when you walk into them…and you always ask me questions more than you talk about yourself. Not an ungrateful bone in you, Y/N.”

“It’s just,” you suck in a breath, finally managing to stop the tears from flooding down your face, just for a second. “I keep working, over and over, day and night, but I don’t know why I do it…”

“Hm?”

“I just feel so…lost…sometimes.”

Oh. 

Oh… Sungho realises a lot at that moment. Most of all, how he’d really chalked you up to be this superheroic entity that couldn’t feel more than just happiness and apathy. After all, you’re just a person. You’re just like him. Someone who is wandering life without having figured it all out. 

“I try so hard but I never know what I’m doing it all for and…today I just…I don't know, it's so stupid,” you bite back your sobs,body quivering from how tightly you hold yourself together, afraid of breaking apart. “I don't even like seeing my name up there anymore. It just reminds me I’m faking it all.”

“Who cares?” 

Your eyes flicker up to meet his, a little shocked, somewhat confused. “Huh?” 

Sungho shakes his head at how cute you look, all red and puffy-cheeked. “Who cares if you're faking it or not? I'm proud of you for getting that top spot again, and you should be too. I like how smart you are and how capable you are and how you never let it get to your head,” he says softly, in a voice reserved just for you. “Couldn’t be me.”

His funny smirk pulls an unexpected laugh out of you, even though it's tinged with the remnants of your tears. “Hey, look at that, you're laughing!” he teases, pushing your hair out of the way to get a better look at your pout. “How could someone so smart be so cute… It's unfair, honestly.”

It's too late when he realises he's said the last part out. It only occurs to him when you reply with, “You're only saying that because you're my boyfriend.”

…

Sungho stops breathing. 

Huh…?

Boyfriend?

You're unaware of how wide his eyes have gotten and how he resembles a fish letting out bubbles through its mouth right now. “I actually have thought of giving up this whole thing y’know—drop out of school and waste everything I’ve worked towards, because sometimes it feels like a race with no end and I’m just moving because I have to…” You press your forehead against this chest, leaving wet splotches of tears on his shirt. “But seeing you study with so much ambition…it makes me want to try just as hard. I like that we're always together on the grade sheets. It's not as hard when I’m not alone.”

And fuck, oh fuck, Sungho is late to so many realisations today. For someone who prides himself on his brilliance, he is so, so stupid.

“I'm your boyfriend,” he says out loud, the factual truth of the universe. “You're my girlfriend.”

The sun rises in the east. It sets in the west. Myung Jaehyun is annoying. The outings you go on are not schemes—they’re dates—the very real kind. You are smart. You are his girlfriend. Objective truths that not even his mouth has an argument for. 

“Yeah,” you look up at him, all the wonders of the world shining in your eyes. God, you're so pretty. He's blushing like the embarrassment he is, completely ashamed that it's taken so long for him to figure this out. “Aren't we?” you ask.

Beyond all the shameful musings, Sungho is not one to let go of a good thing that's happened to him. He's not an ungrateful idiot, just an oblivious one. 

“We are,” he nods feverishly, matching the red of your skin. “I'm so happy that we are. I don't even care that you beat me to pulp on our exams anymore.”

This garners a giggle from you; you probably think he's joking, but he's dead serious when he says it. He doesn't give two shits that the scheme has backfired and instead of making you fall for him, he's done the exact opposite. And maybe, maybe he's been in love for as long as he's known you—just that he'd taken his unending interest in you as spite and not what it really was. A crush. A stupid, one-sided crush he’d never managed to put out. 

“We haven't even had our first kiss though,” he ends up blurting out, watching you melt into his hands. 

You must be dead set on surprising him today, because even though he comments with no intention to coax you into one, you pull him closer to press your lips against his, a clumsy but sweet kiss landing against the corner of his mouth. It's so quick, but it still manages to pull a whimper out of him. 

“Now we have,” you reply, coy and soft.

“That was just a victory kiss. For demolishing the exams again,” he tosses back. “Give me another.”

“For what?”

“For buying you ice cream all the time, duh.”

He half expects you to push him away, but in a second, your lips are back on his, slower than before. He takes it as a sign to return the favour, and the classroom melts away in your peripheries. 

In his head, Sungho makes a correction to the principles he's lived by until now, scratching out his not-so-successful plan with an imaginary red pen—because Park Sungho is no longer just a man of routine, he's a man in love.

Step 3: Sympathy is for losers. Do not ever take pity on your enemy; it's a trap. 

And then, in its place, he makes a correction—a reminder for future-Sungho. Something like a promise. 

Step 3: Fall in love with your rival. Then ask her to marry you one day. 

He seals it with another kiss. 

a/n: hope this was a fun little read for everyone and that it warms your heart/made it laugh as much as it made me happy to write it. for everyone dealing with exams right now, remember to take it easy and know that things always end in happiness despite the road-bumps you may experience on the way. and for fae, i hope you don't stress yourself out too much because we're all rooting for you and will be there for you whenever you want to unload your worries <33

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There are exactly thirteen steps between the camping table set up for the submarine game and the bathroom. You know because you counted. You might have hesitated a bit between six and seven, giggling to yourself, but you did count thirteen by the time you reached the entrance hall through the corridor lit by fairy lights.

Okay, maybe give or take a few. You were a bit distracted by the music, the lights and trying not to stumble. There’s still a sway in your step when the bathroom door opens suddenly in front of you and you backtrack, the house slipper Jaehyun made everybody wear catching on the edge of a rug. Then the Earth turns on its axis and you feel your balance give out. But before you could spread out like a starfish on the ground and stare at the ceiling (which doesn’t sound half bad right now), a hand catches your elbow and pulls you back.

You blink slowly as the dizziness settles and look up at your savior only to come face-to-face with an angel.

“Are you okay?” She asks with a worried yelp while you’re busy staring. Even the shitty dim lighting of the bathroom that Haewon complained about earlier looks like a halo around her, framing her shoulder-length wavy blonde hair like it was her personal ring lamp. God really has some favourites, huh?

“Wow, you are really pretty!” You blurt out, your brain-to-mouth filter lost sometime after the second somaek you had to drink because you were hopelessly losing against Intak and Junghwan. Really, it’s just your luck that you managed to sink the soju glass twice in a row.

“Thanks?” Blondie shyly giggles and oh gosh, it’s so cute. That’s it, you will die in Jaehyun’s flat, right in the middle of the hall, staining it like a crime scene, all because of a pretty girl. “Uhm… were you about to…”

She trails off, pointing over her shoulders towards the bathroom and momentarily you’re distracted by the collarbone peeking out from under the wide neck tee. Yeah, maybe you did actually fall and hit your head because it feels a bit like heaven.

“Yeah, right,” you shake your head trying to recall why you came to the bathroom in the first place. Then you remember the amount of beer and soju you drank and the dryness of your lips. So you both do a little wiggle wiggle while sharing semi-awkward chuckles with the gorgeous blonde girl to switch places in the narrow space between the bathroom door and the coat hanger spilling over with jackets.

After a total 180 degrees turn, you’re still staring at the white flowers the fairy lights paint on the girl’s face until you realize it might be creepy and mutter thanks before turning towards the mirror. Squinting at the blinking silver glow that comes from the LED rod above the sink, you realize that Haewon was right about the shitty lighting. You try to switch on the ceiling lamp instead but then remember Jaehyun said that the bulb died like a week ago and he was so busy making sure there’s enough food and booze for the party that he forgot to change it. Typical guy behaviour.

“Actually…” You spin around, ignoring the dizziness that comes with it, in favour of catching your savior before she could actually leave. When she looks back in a mix of confusion and curiosity, you also notice that her top is cropped above her jeans. And that her shoulder-to-waist ratio is insane. You need to hold onto the sink behind you. Seriously, where was this hot girl hiding all this time?

“Can you help me?” You wave your purse between you as an indicator but she still looks a bit baffled when she eventually steps back into the bathroom. The door closes behind her with a soft click, leaving the two of you in semi-darkness. A hint of her perfume hits you then, a subtle woody scent, and suddenly you find it harder to breathe. It’s ironic that you have a bunch of guy friends who are popular on campus because of their looks but the only time you malfunction is near pretty girls.

After some struggle fishing it out, somehow you manage to give Blondie your phone with the torch function on and she directs the light towards the mirror wordlessly while you’re busy pulling out your lip products. It’s her who breaks the silence of the small space.

“So how do you know Jaehyun?” She asks, soft-spoken but there’s a lower huskiness in her voice that you find really attractive.

“He is in one of my classes, English Lit. You?” You answer after fixing up the edges with your lip liner.

“We used to live together,” the girl behind you replies matter-of-factly but it piques your interest more than it probably should. You glance at her figure half in the shadows through the mirror.

“Oh. Did you date?” You inquire as you switch to the balm. You hope it sounds like a casual follow-up question despite how sour it tastes in your mouth. Ridiculous. Who cares if they used to date?

“What? No! I… I like girls,” Blondie exclaims, her voice higher now, almost like she can’t believe you even came to that assumption. On the other hand, you’re quite pleased with the new bit of information. Especially because being openly queer is still not easy and her boldness encourages you to do the same.

“That’s cool! Me too! But I like guys too,” you tell her casually because it’s not even the wildest fact you have ever (over)shared in a bathroom. You tend to do that even without the influence of alcohol.

“What do you think?” You ask once you add the finishing touch with the lip gloss and smack your lips together, turning back around.

“It’s pretty,” Blondie says slowly, her cat-like eyes trained on your mouth and satisfaction pools in your stomach.

“Wanna try?” You offer boldly even though you can see the faint traces of something sparkling on her lips too already.

She blinks rapidly and makes a confused noise in the back of her throat but before she could actually articulate an answer, you stand on your tiptoes to match her height and briefly press your lips against her. It’s barely a peck but your lips tingle afterwards, begging for more.

“There,” you smile widely and tilt your head towards the door. “Dance with me?”

The girl seems speechless for a moment but then giggles again and follows you to a corner of the living room where most of the people mingle and do a very poor imitation of dancing to some 2010s throwback Jaehyun’s speakers play, so it’s a win. Faintly you hear Hanbin scolding somebody for smoking on the balcony and some cheers over a wild round of the APT game but none of that matters, not when you have the prettiest girl with you.

Under the flashing crimson and blue lights Blondie’s eyes shine. Or it might just be from her glittery eyeshadow. Either way you are mesmerized. When you sway closer, you could blame it on the alcohol but it wouldn’t be completely true nor would be claiming that resting a hand on her side is only for balance.

There’s a content smile on your lips when she shudders under your touch as your thumb caresses the sliver of bare skin not covered by her tee. When she calls your name, almost revered, as her own hands slide to the small of your back to hold you, you’re too tipsy and too affected to question when you told her what’s your name. You just hook your free hand’s index finger into the long necklace she’s wearing and give it a little tug to pull her closer. Your breath hitches when your lips graze after she stumbles and you bump into the couch behind you.

“Are you sure you’re sober enough?” She asks, her warm breath fanning over your mouth and her voice dropping lower. So sexy.

“Yes. Please,” you whisper, no hesitation, and sigh when your lips finally mold together. She tastes like cherries and you press closer like you’re trying to figure out whether it’s from her gloss or flavoured soju.

You get lost in it. Her earthy scent, the sweet taste of her lips, the way she kisses you like she means it. You have a hand on her nape, playing with the strands of her short blonde hair while she holds you like you are something precious. Time slows down and everything else dulls: the music, the lights, the alcohol in your veins.

“Get a room,” somebody yells at some point, breaking the spell as Blondie pulls back too much for your liking. You need a few long seconds to ground yourself, blinking up at the gorgeous girl in front of you. The gloss is smeared on her reddened lips and you’re sure you’re no better. You feel hot all over.

“Do you… do you wanna come over to mine?” You mutter, breathless, your fingers skimming down on her flat stomach from her ribcage all the way to the hem of her high waist jeans, implications clear and it has her suck in a breath.

Then suddenly, with the worst timing ever, nausea hits. All those soju shots are finally catching up to you.

“Wait… Fuck, I think I will throw up,” you barely get the words out before running back to the bathroom.

The rest of the night is a blur. You remember the cold of the bathroom floor tiles, somebody patting your back, glimpses of a taxi ride but the faces and events are smudged like ink under water. Somehow you manage to wake you up in your own bed, in changed clothes, alone.

“Had fun?” Kazuha teases when you crawl out of the room after noon to do something about your growling stomach. The curry she’s eating smells so good you would otherwise steal from that but right now you can’t even fathom swallowing something proper like that.

“Don’t even start. I made out with the hottest girl, then threw up in front of her and I don’t even know her name,” you whine with a pout, spreading cream cheese over your bread only to remember halfway through a glide that you forgot to toast it. It makes you ridiculously sad.

“That’s a pity. Though the guy who brought you back and asked me to make sure you’re good was cute too,” your flatmate says between two bites and it has you furrowing your brows.

“Who was it?”

“How would I know? I don’t know Myung Jaehyun’s friends. Only Sanghyuk and it wasn’t him,” Zuha shrugs and goes back to her lunch.

Her answer doesn’t really narrow down the list. Jaehyun is friends with like half the campus, so ruling out dance majors doesn’t get you anywhere. Maybe it was Hanbin or Euijoo, they are usually the most sober at these parties.

You take a bite from your soft bread as you sit down and open your unread notifications. You text back everybody who wonders whether you’re alive and like a few photos on social media. You totally don’t do it in hopes of catching sight of a certain blonde girl, so you’re totally not disappointed when you don’t see anyone like that tagged. You only have one new follow request from some guy with a pumpkin username. He’s wearing a football jersey in his profile picture, so you delete it without thinking. Jocks are not your type.

Alas life goes on and on Monday, you’re facing your next challenge: trying to not get rained on while carrying books that didn’t fit into your totebag next to your lunchbox and laptop. Or the even bigger challenge: opening one of those heavy glass doors while your hands are full to get into the Humanities building without getting rained on.

“Hey, Y/N! Let me…” Comes a voice from behind you and the umbrella that has been precariously balancing on your shoulder is now secured properly over your head. It gives you a free hand to push at the handle.

“Wow, you're a lifesaver, thanks!” You let out a relieved sigh as the door swings open.

“No worries,” says the guy who follows you inside and hands you your umbrella back. He has a grey hoodie over his head, drenched a little at the sleeves where his own umbrella didn’t cover him. A few strands of dyed hair peeks out from under the hood and his thin framed glasses are a bit fogged up now from the warmer temperature indoors. “How is your head?”

The question leaves you dumbfounded a bit but then you remember he even called your name, so now you’re racking your brain from where he could know you. He does seem vaguely familiar but you’re pretty sure there’s no guy like him in your classes but one can never be 100% certain. You’re not the most observant person anyways, you get distracted way too easily.

“Could be worse. Uhm you are…”

“Sungho. From the party?” The guy pushes the glasses back on his nose bridge, Thankfully he doesn’t look offended that you didn’t recognize him, rather just… shy?

“Sorry, things about the party are a bit… blurry. I shouldn’t have drunk so much,” you admit with an audible wince because that’s the issue, isn’t it? At the end of the day, it’s your fault that his name doesn’t ring a bell.

“No worries,” Sungho waves off your apology with a slightly awkward smile and points at the stack of  books under your arm. “Need help with those?”

“I’ll manage. Thanks though,” you smile and wish him a nice day before sprinting off towards the elevator. You really can’t wrap your head around why he seems familiar when you don’t remember anything about him.

It’s been five days and no signs of Blondie. You start to think that she was just the creation of your drunk mind. So it leaves you no choice: you have to go to the single source of truth, the only person you know who knows her.

“Jaehyun, hey!” You catch up to the boy before he could leave after your class together on Friday morning. “I need your help.”

“Sure, go on,” he turns to you, slipping his phone back into the pocket of his baggy jeans. He probably thinks you need help with the material or at least something academic-related, so you spare both of you the time by not keeping him guessing.

“At your housewarming party I kissed someone,” you tell him straightforwardly and you can see his neutral expression morph into a grin. The social butterfly he is, you're pretty sure matchmaking his friends is one of his favourite pastime activities.

“Not just anyone. The prettiest blonde girl ever,” you clarify because you need him to understand the gravity of the situation.

“Ah… huh?” Jaehyun blinks in confusion, probably because he doesn't understand what you need his help with. Or maybe he didn’t know you swing both ways? Anyways…

“Yeah. She said she used to live together with you. Could you maybe get me her contact?” You plead, even put your hands together to mimic praying and try your best puppy eyes.

“She?” The guy questions like he’s trying to make sure he heard that part right.

“Yes, she! She’s like this tall, has short blonde hair with bangs and she has really cute cat-like eyes,” you describe the girl of your dreams to him. But why are you over-explaning it? He couldn’t have had that many roommates to begin with. “How many girls have you lived with?”

“Not many,” Jaehyun laughs. “I will ask Yeppi first, okay?”

“Yeppi?”

“It’s a nickname,” he explains and you can't help but smile. It fits because she is pretty. Should you maybe call her that too instead of Blondie?

“Okay, yeah, of course, you should ask her first,” you nod, eagerly, giddy already because you’re one step closer to finding her.

Sungho’s day has been just peachy. He almost burned himself with the milk foam machine and has been yelled at for not using oat milk for a customer who did not even ask for it. Let’s not even talk about the fact that it’s day five of his crush ignoring him. Then Jaehyun waltzes through the café’s door like the world’s happiest labrador running up to its owner.

“Dude, you won’t believe it!” He yells over the chill lofi music and Sungho bows in apology towards the exactly three university students studying or at least pretending in front of their open laptops.

“Keep your voice down,” he hisses at his friend. It comes out a bit harsher than intended but he has been a bit moodier lately.

Lately as in ever since that run-in he had with you on campus when it became clear that you didn’t even remember kissing him. But it’s all good, he gets it, you were drunk but still… 

“So you don’t want to hear what I talked about with Y/N?” Jaehyun leans onto his elbows over the counter and Sungho can’t help but feel a little jab in the ribs at the mention of your name. Then he remembers how you touched him right there, lightly and playfully from one rib to another and he needs to suppress a shiver while he starts the espresso machine as nonchalantly as he can. It doesn’t deter Jaehyun from continuing in the kind of voice he uses when he excitedly describes movie plots he liked. “She just asked for my help to contact the prettiest blonde girl she has met. The one she made out with at my party.”

It’s like one ear in, one ear out. Sungho needs two business days to process what he heard because he understands the words and yet, they don’t make any sense. Were you kissing somebody else at the party? A girl no less? Not that he has any problem with that, you told him you like girls too and he’s a firm believer of love is love but… Did it mean that he wasn’t special at all? Were you just going around calling everybody pretty and kissing them?

“What?” He eventually gapes at Jaehyun who’s still grinning at him widely like it’s the best news ever. Argh, he really should have told Euijoo about his troubles instead, the older guy wouldn’t have made fun of him at least.

“She thinks you’re a girl, Sungho,” Jaehyun pokes him in the chest with a cheshire smile. “The girl you have a crush on has a crush on the girl version of you. Oh my god. This is golden.”

“Oh,” Sungho blinks, slowly, because if it’s true, if Jaehyun is right to be so sure that the girl in question is actually him, maybe the situation is not that dire. Sure, he is not a girl but you have also told him that you like guys too, so that shouldn’t be a problem… right? “Then I should just tell her it was me.”

It’s that simple, isn’t it? Sure, it might be a bit awkward, it might require him to dig out pictures Jaehyun took of him in makeup but if it makes you kiss him like that again, it would be worth it.

“I have a better idea,” his friend interjects, way too excited compared to the problem at hand.

“I don’t like your ideas,” Sungho frowns but still slides an iced americano in front of Jaehyun as a peace offering.

“My idea to put you in make up got Y/N kissing you,” Jaehyun raises a brow in challenge then takes a long slurping sip from the coffee before making the dramatic announcement. “Let’s make an instagram account for Sunghee.”

Now Sungho is utterly confused.

“Who?”

“Your girl version, come on, Sungho, keep up!” Jaehyun is snapping his fingers impatiently, then leans closer to lay out his plan. “You said she didn’t accept your follow request and kind of avoided you at uni, so if you suddenly approached her claiming you kissed her at the party she barely has any recollections of because of how drunk she was, she would think you’re a creep. I think you should start talking online and see if there’s anything beyond the initial sparks.”

“You want me to pretend to be a girl just to talk with my crush,” Sungho deadpans.

He can’t believe he’s actually considering this. Not after the last time he listened to Jaehyun, he lost a bet and ended up being styled against his own will. He really should have stopped doing that. Both listening to Jaehyun and making bets with him.

“Okay, maybe we can keep the gender thing ambiguous,” his best friend sighs almost like he’s the one giving in. “I have been telling you for years that you’re pretty like a girl. I wonder though, how she didn’t notice you’re as flat as a board."

Sungho feels himself flush but he isn’t sure it’s from embarrassment or exasperation.

“Of course I’m flat-chested, I’m a guy!”

“Maybe she likes her girls like that too,” Jaehyun has the audacity to grin while saying that. It only makes Sungho want to throw him out.

“Can we not talk about Y/N with other girls?” He groans and puts on his customer service smile when a mildly scared-looking girl approaches the counter.

Sungho remembers the first time he saw you clear as day. It happened in the coffee shop where he works part-time. Rain was pouring then too, relentlessly. (It’s a bit ironic that you only seem to go there when the weather’s shitty and you can’t be bothered to go to your favourite off campus café.) You probably don’t remember because he’s just one barista of the many you’ve encountered. You should have been just one customer of the many too. He usually has a hard time remembering even regulars, but something shifted inside of him that day.

And funnily enough, if anything, it was irritation at first sight.

You entered the coffee shop, your umbrella dripping rainwater all over the polished floors he had just mopped, and he had to close his eyes to stop himself from quitting right there. There was clearly an umbrella holder by the door outside, but he couldn’t even kindly point that out to you because instead of making your way to the counter, you walked up straight to a couple sitting by the window and slapped the guy right across the face. Sungho was too shocked to react. He just stood there with mouth agapé as you lectured that guy about cheating on your friend. It was like something out of a weekday soap opera, the unrealistic kind people get hooked on without meaning to and he was no better. He only remembered to act like a professional when you eventually did walk up to the counter to order a coffee for takeaway like nothing happened. He totally forgot about scolding you over the umbrella thing.

He has built some sort of quiet admiration after his co-worker Gaeul told him that the guy you slapped was an infamous player on campus, so it was well-deserved. Still, he thought you were a bit scary. (Which according to Jaehyun translated to him finding you hot.) Then the next time you visited the café during his shift you gave your umbrella to a stranger just because the girl had to go to a job interview while it was pouring outside. Right after, you complimented his latte art.

Needless to say, he has been falling steadily.

And then came the party and its aftermath.

He really can’t even make himself to blame you for not recognizing him. Every barista wears brand colored masks, aprons and baseball caps according to company policy and because Sungho hates it when his hair is in his eyes while working, he always neatly tucks them under the hat. Then there are the glasses he wears when the chances that somebody drunkenly knocks them off are low. So he gets it, the confusion, but… a girl? Really?

It's raining again when you walk in. He straightens his back when he notices and smoothes the wrinkles out on the front of his apron. He can immediately tell something is off though. There’s something sluggish in your movements and your eyes lack their usual spark and fire. You order a latte, hot like always on rainy days, and he rings your order up with all the usual textbook questions but he can’t help sneaking glances at you.

“Rough day?” He prompts gently as he hands you the buzzer. When you lift your gaze to him and your fingers touch, he swears his heart skips a beat.

“You could say that,” you sigh and start rambling about your pain in the ass of a landlord and your thesis consultant’s not too helpful comments on your drafted proposal while he’s starting on your coffee. It’s a slow day, so he doesn’t mind listening to you. He never does, but your company now feels especially good. When you add to your list of problems that you’re starting to think you’re unlucky when it comes to your crushes, he almost messes up the latte art. “Sorry, that was a long rant.”

“It’s okay. Just remember to take care of yourself,” he tells you and draws a little smiley onto your paper cup before handing it over. This time, when you take it, your fingers linger longer.

“Thanks… Sungho, right?” you smile at him sweetly, eyes crinkling and he feels his heart stutter in his chest.

You put the not even used buzzer down on the counter between you but don’t leave right away. You look at him intently, like you’re trying to figure out something and he can do nothing but stare back, his breath caught in his throat.

“Sorry, it might sound weird but…” You tilt your head and squint at him. “Your eyes are really familiar. Do you perhaps have a sister?”

Sungho exhales with a chuckle because you’re so close to getting it, to recognize him and yet, here you are face-to-face, searching for logical-sounding excuses for the familiarity. Now is his chance. He should just rip off the bandaid and spare you both the time and this awkward dance you’re doing because of a simple misunderstanding. He just didn’t imagine it happening at his workplace but better there than never.

“Uhm, no, no sister. Actually–”

The sound of your phone ringing echoes in the quiet space of the café. You fish it out and Sungho bites into his lip.

“Shit, sorry, I have to go,” you look back up with apologetic eyes and then you’re already running off with your coffee in your hand, leaving him standing there like a fool. Again.

So here it comes: desperate times, desperate measures.

Still, Sungho refuses to create fake accounts and such just to talk to you. Instead he changes his default KakaoTalk name to his initials and sets his profile picture to a photo of his family’s cat.

Then he takes a deep breath and looks up the ID Jaehyun has sent him earlier, preceded by a bunch of smirking emojis. He types out a message, keeping it simple and straightforward. His fingers shake a bit when he presses Send.

psh: hi! jaehyun told me you’re looking for me

The answer is almost immediate. As if you have been waiting. He tries to not feel too hopeful and fails.

ynie: omg yeppi? psh: please don’t call me that ynie: why? you’re pretty

And that’s it, he’s already blushing.

ynie: but you can always tell me your name psh: nice try but you know my name actually ynie: i do? ynie: i’m sorry i don’t remember TT ynie: i hope i didn’t scare you off at the party! and that i didn’t come off as too strong! i usually don’t invite people over so fast psh: don’t worry about it. it’s probably better we didn’t go further though

He only means it because of how drunk you were and because of the gender confusion thing but only when there’s a pause between messages does he realize that it came out wrong.

psh: not that i didn’t want to! it’s just that i would prefer to go slow. if that’s okay?

How do you tell someone you have been crushing on for a while that you would like them at least to know you’re a guy before you go anywhere near a bed, a crash course by Park Sungho. Argh, he would like to scream into his pillow like those dramatic characters in dramas but he has more dignity than that. At least he would like to think he does. That’s why he thinks it’s important to clarify he didn’t text to hook up. His heart wasn’t built for one night stands.

ynie: of course. i would like to get to know you anyways

So that’s how it starts, the texting, the twenty and more questions, and somehow his name or gender are forgotten. Like they are not even important. At least not as important as the cat in his profile picture or your thesis topic, his favourite movies and songs, your guilty pleasure dessert and how you’ve been wanting to dye your hair for a while but never got around to do it.

Some days it’s like this:

ynie: wait did you just get on a metro near campus? psh: yeah why? ynie: i think i saw you! from across the platform before the metro pulled up ynie: omg i can’t believe it. we were so close ynie: big fan of your androgynous style btw

Well, that’s one way to put it. It’s just a white tank top with an overshirt paired with jeans.

psh: i can’t believe you recognized me from afar

That’s what he types and what he means is: I can’t believe you don’t recognize me when I’m in front of you.

ynie: well your hair stands out and your shoulder-waist ratio has driven me crazy that night, so…

Now, Sungho is the one going insane.

Another day he gets two notifications at the same time. One from you with a bunch of exclamation marks and an ominous one from Jaehyun.

menace: don’t kill me psh: what did you do now? menace: i might have sent a picture of you to y/n menace: the one with the braided pigtails wig

Sungho takes three deep breaths, blocks his best friend and throws his phone onto the bed. By the time he picks it up again (barely 5 minutes later because he lacks self-control when it comes to you), your chat is filled with reaction pictures and uppercase messages.

ynie: you look pretty with long dark hair too!!

He kind of wants to dig himself a hole.

These days you come to his workplace even on sunny days. You make small talk by the counter while you wait for your drink. One day, you slide a flyer about a book club onto the counter and invite him. Most days, you study by the window and he gets away with staring more than he should. Gaeul clicks her tongue disapprovingly whenever she notices but doesn’t say anything. When you send him pictures of the art on your coffee via KakaoTalk not knowing it was his own work, his heart somersaults in his chest.

Then it happens. It doesn’t necessarily come as a surprise. There has been a build up. You have been talking for a while, things are good, Sungho’s crush is bigger than ever and it has been slow enough. It’s no surprise that you have had enough of waiting around.

ynie: want to study together this weekend? we can meet at the campus library psh: i would love to psh: but i need you to know that i don’t usually look the way i do at the party ynie: duh i didn’t expect you to wear glitters to the library psh: not just that psh: just promise me you won’t freak out? ynie: pinky swear. it’s a date then!

You’re spinning a pen around your fingers and occasionally tap it against the open but empty notebook you have in front of you. Your laptop has long gone to sleep mode since you sat down in a quiet section of the library. Every few seconds you glance down at the row of bookshelves, then check the time only to realize again that you’re being way too early. Who is to blame you though?

Somehow you still manage to miss when somebody walks up to your desk and stops by its corner. You drop the pen when you look up, smiling at the familiar face with a little wave.

“Hi, Sungho!”

He’s wearing the same hoodie he did when you met the week after the party and there’s some unease in his soft eyes behind his glasses as he puts his bag down next to the chair across from you. He glances as you like he’s expecting you to tell him he can’t.

“Hi. So uhm…” He clears his throat, now clearly anxious, then he just starts undressing in the middle of the library.

Okay, maybe undressing is not the right word but he hooks the black mask off his ears, so it doesn’t cover his features. Then takes off his glasses too, putting them down on the table carefully before grabbing the hem of his hoodie and pulls it over his head. The movement messes up his blonde hair and he reaches up to brush his usually parted fringe into proper bangs. Some strands fall into his eyes that seem darker now without the reflection of the glasses on them. He nibbles on his lower lip absentmindedly and only then do you notice the shiny gloss covering them. He’s also wearing the same white crop top from the party.

It has you gasping audibly.

“It’s you. Really,” you whisper, trying to take it all in. His broad shoulders filling out the tee. The bright white overhead lighting highlighting his biceps you have failed to notice before despite how securely he held you. The way his Adam’s apple moves with a nervous gulp.

“You promised not to freak out,” he reminds you almost pleadingly and there’s something tense in his voice that has you look straight into his eyes, dark and almost feline, filled with something warm, something like hope.

“I’m not. It’s just…” You trail off, glancing once again at the bare skin peeking out from under the top and the way a pout sits on his pink lips, blonde strands of hair framing his face gracefully despite being ruffled up. It’s almost unfair. “Gender envy is real.”

You don’t even try to keep awe out of your voice and Sungho looks so, so confused.

“Are you not… angry?”

“Why would I be?” You tilt your head, matching his confusion with furrowed brows.

“I’m not a girl,” he says very seriously and very quietly like it’s some grave confession and the corner of your mouth twitches.

“Yes, I can see that. You’re still very pretty though,” you say with a smile that’s both amused and coy and if his widened eyes are anything to go by, that’s when he realizes.

“You knew!” He raises his voice like it’s an accusation and it has you giggle. 

“Yeah, for a while. But it’s sweet that you put on gloss and a crop top for me today,” you smile wider.

In all honesty, it was a pretty embarrassing realization to come to in the middle of a busy metro station but better late than never. You don’t really care if he’s a girl or a guy, so you guess the whole ordeal stressed out Sungho more than you.

“So… is the date still on?” He asks tentatively as he lowers himself onto the chair.

“Yes, of course,” you beam at him even though you aren’t sure you will be able to focus on the study material when there’s something much more interesting in front of you.

You can’t be blamed for not at least trying but eventually you give up after an hour and suggest getting coffee. Sungho agrees easily and while you walk, you talk a bit about how the entire misunderstanding unfolded. He tells you how he wouldn’t have known you thought he was a girl if it wasn’t for Jaehyun’s big mouth and shares his friend’s crazy idea about ‘Sunghee’. You tell him how invested Jaehyun was whenever he has asked for updates and in the middle of semi-embarrassed laughter the topic turns into something lighter. When you stop to let a group of freshmen through, you slide your hand against Sungho’s palm. At first, he seems surprised, looking down at your fingers pressing against his like he can’t quite believe it but then he’s the one intertwining them. This time, you don’t even try to hide your smile.

Coffee turns into a much longer affair because both of you are pretty reluctant to leave. But midterm exams are coming up, you actually need to study, so it’s the sensible thing to do to call it a day when the sky starts darkening outside. When Sungho offers to walk you home, it makes you giddy but you spend the entire metro ride and 5-minute walk turning the same question over in your head. It slips out the moment you reach your apartment door.

“So… just to be on the same page, you’re my boyfriend now, right?”

It’s not the most romantic way to address the matter but you don’t care much about being romanced. Sungho seems a bit taken aback by the sudden question though and you wonder how long it will take for him to figure you out so well to not get startled by your directness. You hope it will be a very long time. Especially because he doesn’t seem to mind it.

“I’m whatever you want me to be,” he says eventually and you would call him out on being so cheesy if it wasn’t such a swoonworthy line.

“Good,” you smile and peck him on his lips, smearing the remnants of gloss on his mouth. It’s a bit like deja vu, repeating the past. Sungho blinks slowly under the corridor’s dim lighting. Your heart rate picks up when he leans back in, almost dazed, but you stop him with a hand over his chest.

“How slow do you want to go?” You ask, partly to be a tease about his earlier request and partly to be considerate. Sungho is not having it though, not this time.

He’s caressing your cheek with one hand and puts the other onto yours as he diminishes the remaining distance between you. You feel the door’s keypad dig into your back but still smile against his lips as he kisses you properly. It’s more coordinated now that you aren’t drunk but there’s something endearingly awkward in it as your nose bumps into his glasses. It’s just perfect.

Until the door opens behind your back.

You’re a bit too preoccupied and fail to recognize the familiar buzzing of the electric door lock in time. The only reason why you don’t fall is Sungho’s hand on the small of your back keeping you in place.

“Oh my god, can you not do that in public places?” Kazuha sighs and you scramble to stand properly beside your newly acquired pretty boyfriend, ready to introduce them. Your roommate however waves in his direction like it’s not their first time meeting.

You furrow your brows and glance from one of them to the other. “You two know each other?”

“He’s the guy who brought you back that night, after the party,” your flatmate explains.

“He’s the hot girl I made out with,” you counter, which leaves her wide-eyed and dumbfounded.

“What?”

“Long story.”

You’re in the middle of class assignment discussion after your English Literature class when you phone pings with a new message. You stand up right away when you see the contact name.

“Sorry, I’ve gotta go, my girlfriend’s waiting.”

“Wait, what?!” Jaehyun lets out a way too loud shriek in pure shock. “Are you and Sungho in an open relationship or something?”

You snort. 

“God, no,” you shake your head. You honestly don't think you could share Sungho with anybody and no matter how corny it sounds, he really is all you need. “It’s just… when I asked him to be my boyfriend, he said he would be my anything, so once in a while I like to change things up."

It's good that Sungho is secure enough in his identity that such things don’t bother him. He knows you know (now) that he’s a guy and you love him regardless of gender. But that past misunderstanding is like an inner joke between you, like a funny anecdote you like to revisit. You once jokingly called him unnie just to see how he reacts. He tripped over his own feet and laughed in that part shy, part shocked way he usually reacts to being called yeppi too.

Dating Sungho is really the best thing that happened to you. He’s sweet and silly, he doesn’t care that you can be brash sometimes. He joins the book club and takes you out on coffee dates, movie dates, gallery dates. You do skincare together when you stay over, he helps you maintain your hair when you bleach it and he lets you put gloss on him when you go out to parties. But at the end of the day, he’s such a guy.

He leaves the toilet seat up, plays video games and forgets to eat while at it, manhandles you during play fighting just because he can and once a week he plays football with his friends which leaves him all sweaty and tired. You’re still not a big fan of the sport because it bores you but if it’s him playing you turn into the best cheerleader the world has ever seen. You practically run up to him when you see him waiting for you at your usual place near his workplace.

“Hi, baby. Good session?” You press a kiss over his shoulder that’s bared by the black tank top he has on and snuggle to his side. Now that you’re allowed, you can’t seem to keep your hands off him.

“Yeah, I’m starving though,” he says with a little whine in his voice which always makes you a little feral with cuteness aggression.

You start listing off options as you start walking hand in hand, the spring breeze sweetening the air around you. You’re just like any other campus couple but when people ask about your love story, you have a favourite version to tell:

“It all started because I kissed a girl…”

END NOTES. the blond sungho effect is real

of course  jaehyun had to be the enabler

the braided long hair is a reference to this one

header pic from this IG post for Sungho's cover

☆ BOYNEXTDOOR masterlist

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𓍯 sungho likes to do actions that you couldn’t help but assign meanings to these little things. he would give you a bite of his food in between laughter and throw tiny comments such as “i thought about you the other day.” the way he laughs at your jokes, recalls small details you mention, and checks up on you in between classes makes you question if he does the same with other people. if you didn't witness him opening doors for people, helping classmates with their homework, and giving the same endearing smile to anyone in need, it would be quite easy to convince yourself that the things he did to you meant something.

𓍯 when you mention being cold, he casually throws his hoodie over your shoulders and says, "just give it back whenever." yet it stays with you for days and he doesn't bring it up either, as if sharing his hoodie has become a relationship between you two. but when you decide to give it back, your heart aches to see another girl wearing his hoodie.

𓍯 the combination of highs and unanswered questions would be thrilling, and his charm would entice you to return for more. but the question “what am i to you” hangs in the open air because then, if you really meant something to him, he wouldn’t have treated others the same way he did to you.

𓍯 was it mutual at some point? maybe, or maybe not.

riwoo

“i know it’s casual but i look for you in a room full of people”

𓍯 likes having alone time with you. plans a hang out with your friends to watch a movie but the truth is he didn't invite anyone else just so he could watch the movie and spend time alone together. at the end of the movie, you'd just be wiping off your lips because you spent the whole time making out.

𓍯 situationship with riwoo is almost like a secret. he knows how to pull you towards him, and the relationship has you on chokehold. most of the time, he makes moves that make you question the very foundation of your relationship. he acts like he likes you. but does he actually do?

𓍯 during a chill drinking celebration at your friends' house, both of you always find a reason to text each other even if you're literally in the same room. that one time when you were seated a little too far from him, he pulls out his phone, typing under the table making sure no one gets a peak of his message, he would send you, "you're too far from me :(" it seems as though the thread that binds you is stronger than everything else, and every communication feels like a secret that only the two of you know. you'd look up from your phone to give him a glance and he gives you a subtle look—the look that even when you try to look away, you could feel his eyes settled on you.

𓍯 his red flag would probably be saying things like, "would you be jealous if i went out with someone else?" or talking about his ex. but right when he gives you enough reasons that he's not good for you, he pulls the "what would it take for us to stop pretending this isn’t more than casual?" card.

jaehyun

“you say we’re just friends but why do you look at me like that when no one’s around?”

𓍯 when you clearly don’t look like you’re just friends but it’s becoming a running joke now–jaehyun responds without skipping a beat whenever someone arches an eyebrow and asks if there is more going on between you and him. he casually replies, “we’re just friends.” and each time you force a smile that falls short of your eyes, you nod along.

𓍯 jaehyun has this habit of leaning towards you whenever he laughs, sometimes his head falls on your shoulder for a moment which kinda makes you flinch during the first few times but now that you’re used to it, you let your heads touch each other when you laugh together.

𓍯 when he spots you alone leaning outside the glass door at a party, you feel his presence slowly approaching you and then he simply stands there in comforting silence, staring at you in that familiar way, without saying anything at first. when you told him that you get more comfortable attending parties because he’s around, he’d flash a smirk, and his eyes return to the expression he always gives you when no one else is there. jaehyun looks intensely at your face as if he’s searching for something–searching for a sign.

𓍯 you can’t resist yourself to ask him a question if he’s sure about it. “sure about what?” his tone is gentle, and the corner of his mouth twitches as if he clearly understands what you are saying. “sure that we’re just friends…” you replied. jaehyun pauses before responding. he just looks at you, his eyes darting to your lips and back to your eyes, a spark there that he tries to conceal but can't quite get rid of. he lets out a tense and nervous laugh. “yeah, we’re just friends.” but his words were laced with hesitation and uncertainty. and there you thought, maybe the look he gives you is enough, for now.

taesan

“you treat me like this because you know you're my weakness.”

𓍯 taesan knows how flustered you get when he touches you. during lunchtime with your other friends, you tried to ignore how he sat closer to you than usual. when your friends make a joke and others laugh along, you try so hard to focus but you just can’t seem to grasp the fact that his knees and yours were touching. then, his fingertips lightly touched your leg, so gentle at first that you nearly questioned whether it was an accident. however, taesan’s hand becomes steady and warm, and you can only sense his calm presence. you attempt to maintain a neutral appearance on the outside as your heart twitches and your mind attempts to process the unexpected sensation. his smile is as laid-back as ever, and he continues to laugh with the group as if this is nothing unusual.

𓍯 situationship with taesan can be a little frustrating. he likes to give you mixed signals. he’s mostly all about you most of the time and he holds eye contact like you’re the only person he could see. but then the next day, he barely acknowledges your presence. he’s quiet and doesn’t speak to you. but you know what’s bad for you? the fact that you'd fold immediately bcs he really just knows how to give you butterflies right when you think he’s not interested. taesan would come up behind you, whispering to your ear saying, “i missed you today.” and you would quickly fold like you didn't just question everything about him.

𓍯 at some point, the feelings were mutual. but you got tired of going around in circles waiting for nothing to happen, so you just decided to move on and bury your feelings just to keep the friendship.

leehan

“teach me how to not care about these feelings that keep me up at night for nothing.”

𓍯 you don’t talk everyday but that’s what makes everything thrilling. and when you do talk, texting usually lasts until 3am. although you can feel the weight of your eyelids by this time, you try to stay awake just to converse with him. conversations with leehan are almost raw, something about each message is intimate—one you probably wouldn’t hear in the daylight. the thought that he actually also stays up with you makes you wonder how much he’s also feeling.

𓍯 leehan has the subtlest way of making you laugh. he’s nonchalant but he’s the type to make you intrigued without fully committing. with that being said, he knows when to pull back when he thinks you’re getting a little too attached over a situationship even if he's the one responsible for making you feel that way

𓍯 after dates, goodbyes often linger in the air. both of you enjoyed too much to actually walk away and go back home. when he stands close enough to hug you, you could feel his hand linger on your back like he’s in no rush to go back home. both of you stood there quiet, glancing at each other, enough to decipher by the look of your eyes that there are still unsaid words. “i’ll text you when i get back home.” he holds both of your hands as they slightly brush away from yours whenever he takes a step back. you know yourself you want something more from this situationship which causes your heart to ache.

𓍯 leehan is still not letting go of your hand even at the point where your fingertips are only touching each other. “let’s do that next time.” he says and adds, “sleep over.”

𓍯 and when he actually gets back home, you don't receive a text from him at all, and talked again the following days like nothing happened.

woonhak

"why does it feel like we’re both waiting for the other to make the first move?"

𓍯 it’s painfully obvious that both of you like each other. neither of you just couldn’t bring yourself up to confess. there’s always this tension that hangs heavy in the air when you’re with him. you're lounging on his couch while watching a film. with his shoulder almost touching yours, he is closer than friends should be. the couch's modest size is a flimsy excuse, but you both know there's more to it. woonhak’s arm occasionally moves, grazing yours and giving you a shiver, but he doesn't pull away. both of you are dancing around that invisible line, on the brink. his hand is getting closer and closer till your fingers would touch if you both moved even a little.

𓍯 every time you're together, you experience this torturous pulling, waiting for the other to finally release the tension that has been building for weeks. his hand moves next to yours, his fingers flexing as though he wants to grab you but isn't quite brave enough. and you can't help but wonder whether you're both simply waiting for a sign, anything that would eventually allow one of you to cross that line.

𓍯 woonhak constantly teases you, looking for excuses to rub your hair or bump into your shoulder, and he enjoys seeing how you respond to his pranks. he says something, though, that takes you entirely by surprise just when you think it's all a friendly act.

𓍯 “i feel like we’re both good at being complicated.” he chuckles. you can sense that you're both still holding back and skirting the truth because you're afraid of altering something that feels so near-perfect. but when you meet his eyes, you can see that this isn't the end of it because of the little warmth that remains in his smile.

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Riwoo (이상혁)

You’d planned to introduce Riwoo to your best friend today—and also planned the prank with her. He’s a little nervous, fussing over his hair and shirt, quietly thinking, what if she doesn’t like me? But his thoughts screech to a halt when you suddenly say, «So, this is Riwoo—my current boyfriend.» His eyes widen. «Uh… that’s me. Riwoo. Yeah. The current boyfriend.» He’s so awkward you can’t help but hug him right there. «Baby, it was a prank! I just wanted to lighten the mood.» He exhales like he’s been holding his breath for hours, a shaky laugh slipping out. «Oh… wow. Okay. That… worked, I guess.»

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Jaehyun (명재현)

You’ve seen this prank all over your FYP but weren’t sure how Jaehyun would react. Still, you try it. You pull him close, smiling into the camera. «Hi besties! So this is Jaehyun, my current boyfriend, and—» you catch the way his smile fades in the screen’s reflection. You keep going, «—he’s happy to meet you, right? Say something?» He just stares. «Babe? Say something!» you urge, suppressing laughter. «Ah… now I’m ‘babe’? Weren’t I ‘current boyfriend’ two seconds ago?». Even after you confess it’s a prank, he mopes like a kicked puppy for the rest of the night—maybe even the next day—until his pride finally recovers.

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Taesan (한태산)

«Another TikTok?» Taesan asks, watching you open the app. He knows your videos get plenty of views now. «Yeah. Want to be in it?» you grin, already plotting. You hold up your phone. «Hi everyone, I’m here with my current boyfriend—» You hear a sharp «tsk» and suddenly your phone is out of your hands. «Current? When does my contract expire?» he says flatly. You smirk. «Well… you are my current boyfriend.» He steps closer, eyes locked on yours. «I’m not.» Your breath hitches. «Then what are you?» you whisper. His lips twitch. «Your last.»

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Leehan (김이한)

«Leehanie, can I post our photo on my story?» you ask after snapping a cute selfie together. He nods happily, watching as you scroll through filters. You type the caption: with my current boyfriend. A quiet «oh…» reaches your ear. You turn to see him pouting, eyes downcast. «Oh, love, it’s just a prank—please don’t get sad,» you say quickly, cupping his face and peppering it with kisses. He mumbles into your hands, «Don’t ever do it again.»

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Woonhak (김운학)

You’ve been waiting days to try this on Woonhak. Finally, with him beside you, you start filming. He leans in curiously. «Oh, what’s this?» — «Oh, nothing, just sending this to my friend. Hi besties, this is Woonhak—my current boyfriend!» His eyes widen instantly. «Hiii! Oh—what? Current boyfriend??» His pupils dart, he licks his lips, repeating, «Current? Current boyfriend?» while you’re already doubled over laughing. «Why are you laughing? What’s so funny? I’m current?? Who’s next—let me meet him.» You gasp for breath. «Hakie, it was a prank!» He crosses his arms, muttering, «Well, no one laughed. Redo it.»

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