n͟a͟t͟i͟o͟n͟a͟l͟i͟t͟y͟ ͟ ⋆ Filipino ! 🍄 a͟g͟e͟,͟ ͟y͟e͟a͟r͟ ͟&͟ ͟b͟i͟r͟t͟h͟d͟a͟y͟ ⋆ 8teen • 2007.11.08 n͟i͟c͟k͟n͟a͟m͟e͟s͟ ⋆ elo, loi, ise, sei, blub, heri, bread 🍞, mimi, or honestly anything you come up with ><. M͟B͟T͟I͟ ͟ ⋆ ENFP / INFP (your girl is an ambivert.).
ෆ´ 🧷 ` ° 🍅 • 𝒻𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐬 🍀 𝓁𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐬 !
f͟a͟v͟o͟r͟i͟t͟e͟ ͟t͟h͟i͟n͟g͟s͟ ͟t͟o͟ ͟d͟o͟ ͟⋆ drawing, talking with friends, making random things, writing letters to myself, creating stories even though my brain is slowly running out of ideas. t͟h͟i͟n͟g͟s͟ ͟I͟ ͟l͟i͟k͟e͟ ⋆ k-pop, cortis, enhypen, illit, newjeans, txt, music, food, money, juminocore, heisei retro, ocean, clothes, blue, pudding, my turtle, my dogs, my cat, stickers, and ... probably a hundred more things i forgot. t͟h͟i͟n͟g͟s͟ ͟i͟ ͟r͟a͟n͟d͟o͟m͟l͟y͟/͟i͟m͟m͟e͟d͟i͟a͟t͟e͟l͟y͟ ͟f͟o͟r͟g͟e͟t͟ ͟ ⋆ my age, my own likes, math equations, where i left my phone, lessons. and many more. o͟b͟s͟e͟s͟s͟e͟d͟ ͟w͟i͟t͟h͟ ⋆ Daniel Caesar, keshi, Wave to Earth, beabadoobee, laufey, mitski, Cortis & Enhypen !
ლ´ 🧷 ` ° 🍮 • 𝓉𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 i 𝒽𝐚𝐭𝐞 !
t͟h͟i͟n͟g͟s͟ ͟I͟ ͟h͟a͟t͟e͟ ⋆ roaches (flew into my face TWICE.), spiders, fake people, people talking behind my back, math (unless i actually understand it), low-key my own name ... , being broke, and ... more things i forgot.
𝒲𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢 𝒪𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝒲𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 ... :
fluff, angst, cutesy shi, & couple shi
sᴏᴄɪᴀʟs :
ɪɴsᴛᴀɢʀᴀᴍ ʀᴇʙʟᴏɢ ᴀᴄᴄ sᴇᴄᴏɴᴅ ᴀᴄᴄ
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💌 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐞𝐥𝐨 : that's all ! hope you enjoy reading my stories as much as i enjoy writing them ♡ making a masterlist soon, bye bye ! kisses >ᴗ<
☘︎ synopsis: After accidentally kicking a football straight into your face, Seonghyeon is prepared to spend the rest of the week apologizing. You meanwhile, discovered that being mildly injured comes with some surprisingly enjoyable perks.
☘︎ genre: classmate!seonghyeon x classmate!reader, highschool!au, SLOWBURN.., fluff, teasing, kissing, mutual pining, footballplayer!seonghyeon, shy!reader, jealousy, lots of yearning, a lil angst in there, protective!seonghyeon, shy girl & popular guy or wtv, some cringeworthy scenes, introverted reader x extroverted? seonghyeon
☘︎ wc: 17,6k MASTERLIST
If anyone asked later, you would insist you saw the football coming.
You didn’t.
Not until it was already flying toward you at an alarming speed.
Then- well. Getting hit in the face tends to interrupt a person’s train of thought.
The impact came fast and hard, sending a sharp sting across your cheek. Your eyes watered instantly as the ball bounced away somewhere across the field, but you barely noticed. All you could do was stand there, blinking in disbelief.
Seriously? Out of everyone on the field, it had to hit you?
A mixture of gasps and laughter erupted around you. Heat rushed to your face immediately, not from the pain, but from the sudden realization that half the football field was staring at you. Great.
Nothing was more humiliating than becoming the center of attention because a football had smacked you directly in the face. You pressed a hand against your cheek, hoping the ground would open up and swallow you whole.
A pair of hurried footsteps pounded across the grass, growing louder by the second. Before you could even recover, someone came to a stop right in front of you. “Oh my god.”
You looked up, it was Seonghyeon. His eyes were wide, his face pale. Judging by his expression, you’d think he just witnessed a murder.
“Are you okay?” he asked immediately. You opened your mouth to answer.
“I am so sorry.” Then closed it again.
“I wasn’t aiming anywhere near you, I swear. I don’t even know how that happened. Are you hurt? Does your head hurt? Can you see properly?”
The questions came so quickly that you barely had time to process them. You just stared at him. It wasn’t really because your head hurt, more so because Eom Seonghyeon, the same Seonghyeon who usually looked far too cool and confident for his own good, looked like he was seconds away from having a complete breakdown. Finally, you sighed.
“I got hit by a football, not hit by a truck’’
‘’Some would argue that that’s worse.’’
Despite yourself, a faint laugh escaped you. The tension in Seonghyeon’s shoulders eased immediately at the sound of your laugh. For some reason, that made your stomach do something strange.
“You laughed,” he said, narrowing his eyes slightly.
‘’Hm?’’
“It means you’re okay.”
You blinked at him. Then, before you could stop yourself you let out a quiet groan and pressed a hand to your forehead. Immediately, panic returned to his face. “Wait. What happened? Are you dizzy?”
“…Very.”
The reaction was instant.
“Oh god.”
You had to bite the inside of your cheek to keep from smiling. “Very” was apparently the wrong thing to say. Seonghyeon looked seconds away from calling an ambulance.
“I might die, it could be because of you.” you said dramatically.
“It’s that bad?!”
Then he sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
“Come on.”
“What?”
“I’m taking you to the nurse.”
You opened your mouth to protest, then closed it again. Actually…that didn’t sound so bad.
A few minutes later, you found yourself sitting on a chair in the nurse’s office while Seonghyeon hovered nearby like an anxious parent. The nurse had spent less than thirty seconds checking you over before declaring you completely fine. Unfortunately for Seonghyeon, he didn’t seem convinced.
“Are you sure?” he asked. The nurse looked mildly offended.
“Yes.”
“But the ball hit her pretty hard.”
“She’s fine.”
“How do you know?”
You looked away before either of them could see your smile. This was getting ridiculous. Yet you couldn’t remember the last time someone had worried about you this much. When the nurse finally sent you back out, Seonghyeon stayed beside you the entire walk down the hallway.
“You sure you’re okay? Do you want me to get you something? You’re not bruised, are you? Wait, let me check-” Before you could respond, Seonghyeon was already leaning closer, his eyes narrowing slightly as he examined your cheek. You froze for a second, suddenly very aware of how close he was. After a moment, he leaned back with a small frown.
“I think it’s going to bruise.”
A few days have gone by, and Seonghyeon had somehow managed to become your personal caretaker. At first, it had been small things.
A bottle of water placed on your desk every morning with a bright smile that had you not doubt why everyone was charmed by him. When you carried many books, he’d take them out of your hands without hesitation. Everytime he would walk past you, he’d ask you this question:
‘’How’s your head today?’’ as if you were recovering from a life threatening injury. You have never met someone so commited. At some point you stopped correcting him because everytime he checked on you, his face softened in a way you have never seen before.
Before what happened in the football field, Seonghyeon had been one of those people you only knew from a distance. The kind of person everyone seemed to recognize. He wasn’t loud or constantly trying to be noticed, he never really had to. People gravitated towards him naturally.
Teachers liked him. Students liked him. Heck, even the security guard near the front entrance seemed happy to see him every morning. You had always thought Seonghyeon was cold and intimidating, which is why you have never spoken to him before. You weren’t exactly the type to walk up to people.
While Seonghyeon seemed to move through school as if he belonged everywhere, you preferred blending into the background. You kept your circle small, avoided unecessary attention and spent most of your time in your own world. The idea of starting a conversation with someone like Seonghyeon had never even crossed your mind. You were pretty sure he didn’t know who you were, or at the very least never bothered to pay any attention to you. Then he kicked a football directly into your face, now he wouldn’t leave you alone.
You really should’ve kept your mouth shut. It had been a completely harmless comment, a passing observation. Something you’d mutter to your friend while packing up your things after class.
‘’I’m hungry’’
You hadn’t asked anyone to get you anything, and you certainly hadn’t been talking to Seonghyeon. Yet somehow a few minutes later, he came back with a recognizable sandwich from the school cafeteria. You looked up in confusion.
“So..”
Before you could finish your sentence, Seonghyeon handed you the sandwich.
“You said you were hungry”
You stared at him, then the sandwich, then back at him.
“..oh.”
Very articulate. His expression didn’t change.
“Eat.”
“I was going to buy one after class.”
“Now you don’t have to.”
You opened your mouth to argue, then closed it again. Because the problem wasn’t the sandwich. The problem was that half the classroom had suddenly become very interested in what was happening. You could practically feel the stares.
The girls sitting by the window had stopped talking. Someone behind you let out a suspiciously amused laugh. Your friend looked seconds away from exploding. She had many questions, the look upon her face says it all. Heat immediately rushed to your face.
‘’Tha..nks.’’ You mumbled, taking the sandwich quickly in your hand while lowering your head. Seonghyeon was completely unaware of the crisis unfolding internally.
‘’Your head okay?’’
‘’Yeah..’
‘’You sure?’’
‘’Yes.’’
‘’Good.’’
The conversation really should’ve ended there. Instead, Seonghyeon remained standing next to your desk. Your face grew warmer. Why is he still here? Finally, after a few seconds he spoke again.
‘’Let me know if it starts hurting.’’
Then, as casually as he’d arrived, turned and walked away. You turned to your friend, you already knew where this was going.
‘’Y/n-‘’
‘’No.’’
‘’There’s like-clearly something going on that you’re refusing to inform me about.’’
‘’Like what?’’
Her expression changed, as if it was obvious and self explanatory.
Choi Haejin was the complete opposite of you. You were reserved, she was sociable and open. You were in your own world and Haejin was in everybody else’s, gathering information to gossip about later. Somehow this dynamic worked extremely well. You needed a friend to do all the talking, and you really do enjoy it.
‘’Hello? Why is he practically working for you?’’
‘’There’s obviously something going on!’’
‘’WHAT IF HE POISONED THE SANDWICH?!’’
‘’It’s not reasonable for him to have any hatred towards you though..”
‘’How are you so calm?!’’
Yes, one of Choi Haejin’s many loveable qualities. Her overwhelmingly stacked questions.
Seonghyeon’s concern didn’t seem to fade with time. If anything, it had simply evolved. A week after the football incident, you found yourself stuck in a conversation you had absolutely no interest in being part of. You’d only been trying to get to class. That was it.
Somehow, somewhere between leaving the cafeteria and reaching the stairs, a girl from your year had stopped you. You knew who she was, but not well enough to have a ten minute conversation in the middle of the hallway. Yet here you were, smiling politely, nodding occasionally and secretly praying for an escape.
“-and then she literally posted about it!” the girl continued. “Really?” you replied.
You didn’t even know what you were saying “really” to anymore. The conversation had dragged on for so long that you’d completely lost the plot. You shifted your weight awkwardly, glancing toward the staircase. Your next class started in a few minutes, but cutting her off felt rude. Standing here forever also felt rude to yourself.
“So then I told her-‘’
“There you are.”
The familiar voice made you look up immediately. Seonghyeon. For a second, you just stared. He stopped beside you, one hand shoved casually into his pocket.
“Why are you still here?” he asked.
You blinked.
“What?”
“Class starts in like two minutes.”
Your eyes widened slightly.
It did?
Before you could check your phone, Seonghyeon looked over at the girl.
“Sorry,” he said easily. “I need her for something.”
Need you?
The girl glanced between the two of you.
“Oh.”
You felt your face heat up instantly.
“Oh.”
Seonghyeon, meanwhile, looked completely unaffected. The girl quickly stepped aside.
“Yeah, of course.”
And just like that, you were free. You followed Seonghyeon down the hallway, still trying to process what had happened. Neither of you spoke.
“You didn’t need me for anything.” You began.
“Nope.” You stared at him. He glanced over.
“You looked like you wanted to escape.” Your steps faltered slightly.
“Was it that obvious?”
“To me?” he shrugged. “A little.”
You looked away before he could see the smile threatening to appear. The strange thing was that you hadn’t even told him you were uncomfortable. You hadn’t said anything at all. And somehow, he’d noticed anyway.
The next day, by the time you reached your classroom, you were expecting everyone to already be inside. Instead, a small crowd had gathered outside the locked door.
A few students sat on the floor scrolling through their phones while others stood around complaining about the teacher being late. Relieved that you hadn’t actually missed anything, you slipped into an empty spot against the wall and pulled out your phone, hoping to blend into the background until the classroom opened. It was working for about thirty seconds, then a familiar voice spoke beside you.
“You’re late, It’s not because of your head is it?’’
You looked up to find Seonghyeon standing there. Before you could answer, someone walking down the hallway lifted a hand.
“Hey, Seonghyeon.”
“Hey.”
Another student nodded at him as they passed. A group farther down the hall called his name and he acknowledged them with a small wave. It was such a normal thing that he barely seemed to notice it. You did.
Before he acknowledged you, this was exactly how you’d always seen him, from a distance. Someone who seemed to know everyone and be known by everyone. Teachers greeted him. Students greeted him. Even people who weren’t in his friend group seemed comfortable walking up to him. Meanwhile, you were usually trying to avoid being perceived altogether.
“Well?” he asked.
You blinked.
“What?”
“Why are you late?” You immediately looked away because the answer was embarrassing.
“I couldn’t find a pen.” Seonghyeon stared at you.
“A pen.”
“Yes.”
“You were late because of a pen.”
“It was an important pen.”
The corner of his mouth twitched, you felt strangely defensive.
“It was.”
A laugh escaped him.
Not loud enough to draw attention, but enough that you looked up in surprise. You weren’t sure why the sound caught you off guard. Maybe because Seonghyeon always seemed so composed around everyone else. Maybe because you’d spent months assuming he was intimidating. Now he was laughing because you apparently make hilarious jokes.
The interaction hadn’t gone unnoticed, somehow you caught two girls nearby glancing over before quickly looking away. One of them whispered something to the other. Heat immediately crept up your neck.
For some reason, whenever Seonghyeon talked to you, it felt like everyone else suddenly became interested too. Seonghyeon either didn’t notice or didn’t care. A few minutes later, one of his friends appeared and nudged his shoulder.
“Come here for a sec.” You expected him to leave but instead he glanced over briefly. “I’ll be there in a minute, Keonho.’’ His friend looked between the two of you before smirking slightly. “Right.”
The second he walked away, you wanted to disappear. Seonghyeon meanwhile, looked completely oblivious. The conversation continued in small pieces after that. Nothing important. Complaints about homework. A teacher neither of you liked. The upcoming test everyone was stressing about. You still weren’t saying much but for the first time, the silences didn’t feel awkward.
That was what surprised you the most because before all of this, talking to Seonghyeon had never even seemed like a possibility. Now you found yourself hoping the teacher would stay late for a few more minutes.
If there was one thing you’d learned from being friends with Haejin, it was that she was incapable of making a quick decision. She was supposed to buy a game for her younger brother’s birthday.
You were only there because she’d insisted she needed a “second opinion”. According to Haejin, this was a very important responsibility. According to you, she just didn’t want to go alone. Twenty minutes later, your theory was proven to be correct.
“You’ve been staring at these three games for like ten minutes”
Haejin gasped dramatically. “This is a life changing decision.”
“…It’s a birthday gift?’’
‘’Exactly.’’
You sighed and glanced around the store.
The place was busier than you’d expected for a saturday afternoon. The game store was warm and slightly crowded, lined with shelves stacked with colorful game cases and collectibles. Bright lights reflected off display screens scattered throughout the store, while the faint sounds of racing games, button mashing, and excited conversations filled the air.
Groups of friends wandered between aisles, kids begged their parents to buy things and somewhere in the back of the store, a racing game played loudly through a set of speakers.
‘’Oh, what do i do? Haemin likes all of these.’’ At this point, you were mostly waiting for Haejin to decide which game she’d buy for her brother so you could both leave. Then a familiar voice drifted across the store.
‘’You can’t blame me for that.’’
For a second, you thought you’d imagined it but then another voice answered.
‘’Oh yes i can.’’
You turned your head slightly. Near the racing simulator setup stood two boys. One was sitting in the simulator, controller still in hand. The other stood beside him with his arms crossed. You recognized them immediately.
Seonghyeon and Keonho.
You simply stared. Not because seeing them was surprising, you’re sure many highschoolers come here.
Because seeing them like this was.
‘’You literally drove into me!’’ Keonho blamed.
‘’I didn’t-‘’
‘’You did.’’
‘’I barely touched you.’’
Keonho looked genuienly offended.
‘’You sent my car into a wall.’’
‘’Well you suck at this game anyway.’’
A laugh escaped Seonghyeon.
Even after becoming friends with him, most of your conversations had happened between classes, in hallways, or during lunch breaks.
School Seonghyeon was confident, calm, and seemingly unbothered by everything. This version felt more relaxed, warm. More real. Like the moment he stepped outside school, some invisible pressure disappeared.
Beside you, Haejin finally noticed where your attention had gone. She looked at the two boys.
“No way.”
You already knew that tone.
“Haejin.”
“No way.”
“Haejin.”
“That’s Seonghyeon- and Keonho.’’
“I can see that.”
She looked far too excited about this discovery. Fate apparently hated you because at that exact moment, Keonho looked up and spotted the two of you. His grin appeared instantly.
“Oh, this is interesting.”
Seonghyeon frowned.
“What?”
Keonho tilted his head toward the entrance. Slowly, Seonghyeon turned around. For a brief moment, surprise flashed across his face. His eyes met yours. The first thing he did was smile, a genuine smile. Suddenly, becoming very interested in the floor seemed like a fantastic idea. Haejin had other plans. Before you could stop her, she grabbed your wrist and started walking.
“Haejin.”
“Nope.”
“Haejin, come on-”
“We’re already committed.”
“We absolutely are not.”
Across the store, you could hear Keonho laughing which somehow made everything worse. By the time the two of you have reached them, your dignity had already left the building.
‘’Y/n,’’ Seonghyeon said.
The fact that he greeted you first did absolutely nothing to help.
‘’Hi.’’
Haejin meanwhile, had abandoned all subtlety.
‘’What happened to fourth place?’’
Keonho immediately pointed at her.
‘’THANK YOU.’’
Seonghyeon closed his eyes briefly. ‘’You are not helping.’’
‘’You came fourth?’’
You really couldn’t help asking. The look Seonghyeon gave you was almost enough to make you laugh, almost. Keonho looked delighted. Finally, someone was on his side. “You see?” he said, pointing at you. “Even y/n agrees.”
“I didn’t agree with anything,” you replied immediately.
“You asked the question.”
“That’s not the same thing.”
“It basically is.”
“It absolutely is not.”
Seonghyeon looked exhausted.
“You two are impossible.”
The comment earned matching offended expressions from both you and Keonho which, unfortunately, only made Haejin laugh.
“Wow,” she said. “I’ve never seen him lose an argument before.”
“I’m not losing.”
“You came fourth.”
“I came fourth because somebody doesn’t know how to drive.”
Keonho gasped.
The betrayal.
The audacity.
The complete disrespect.
For a second, the two of them resumed arguing while you stood there trying- and failing not to smile. It was strange. Before today, you’d never really seen Seonghyeon with his friends. Not properly.
At school, people always seemed drawn to him. There was always someone talking to him, waving at him, asking him something. But this felt different, like it was more real, less intimidating.
You followed his gaze. Haejin was holding up two game cases while Keonho looked like he was defending his thesis.
“Yeah.”
“They’ve been arguing about the same thing for like ten minutes.”
“You say that like you weren’t arguing over a racing game when I walked in.”
Seonghyeon looked over.
“That was different.”
“Was it?’’
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
Neither of you said anything for a moment. You found yourself looking around the store instead, eyes moving over shelves packed with games you knew nothing about. Then Seonghyeon pointed toward one.
“Have you played that before?”
You glanced at the cover.
“No.”
“What about that one?”
“No.”
He pointed at another.
“No.”
Another.
“No.”
Seonghyeon stared at you.
“Have you ever had fun before?”
You were slightly taken aback.
“Excuse me?”
“I’m trying to figure out why Haejin brought you to a game store.’’
“I’m here to supervise.”
To your surprise, he laughed.
Slowly, Your conversations started to flow naturally. It felt easier to talk to him. Maybe because it didn’t feel like talking to the cool guy everyone knew. Or the football player.
Just Seonghyeon.
Talking to him was becoming easier than talking to most people.
“You owe me.”
You looked up from your phone.
Across the lunch table, Haejin was staring at you expectantly.
“What?”
“You owe me.”
“..I don’t think I do.”
“You do.”
You narrowed your eyes, then Haejin leaned forward.
“Aren’t friends supposed to support each other’s interests?” She gave you a cheeky smile.
‘’Mm..that depends.’’
‘’On what?’’
“Whether those interests involve dragging me somewhere against my will.”
A look of betrayal crossed her face.
“Wow.”
“You still haven’t told me where we’re going.”
“Haejin.”
She grinned. “What?”
You gave her a knowing look before she finally decided to answer.
“There’s a football match after school.”
You stared at her.
“Seriously? No.”
The answer came so quickly that she looked offended.
“You didn’t even think about it.”
“I did.”
“You really didn’t.”
“I absolutely did.”
Haejin pointed at you.
“See? This is exactly why I didn’t tell you sooner.”
Unfortunately, that was how you found yourself sitting on the school bleachers three hours later, questioning every life decision that had led you to this moment. It seemed fun though.
The field was already crowded by the time you arrived.
Students filled up most of the seats, scattered in groups with friends, snacks and far more enthusiasm than you could ever relate to. The noise was conversations overlapping, people calling out to eachother, the occasional burst of laughter carrying across the field.
You adjusted your position on the bleachers and glanced around.
“This is way more people than I expected.”
“Obviously,” Haejin replied.
“Why obviously?”
She looked at you as if you’d asked something ridiculous.
“It’s the biggest match of the season.”
“Oh.”
“You didn’t know that either?”
“No.”
Haejin sighed. Sometimes you genuinely worried about her blood pressure whenever she talked to you. The teams began gathering on the field below. A few students immediately started cheering. Others waved at friends playing.
You found yourself mostly observing, until a familiar figure stepped onto the field. The annoying thing was that you recognized him immediately. Not because of the jersey, not because he was standing the closest, your eyes had simply found him automatically.
You hated that, a lot.
Before he hit you with the football, Seonghyeon would’ve blended into the crowd of players. Now he stood out immediately. The realization was embarrassing enough that you quickly had to look elsewhere.
When you looked back a few moments later, your eyes found him again. And again. And again. It was becoming a problem.
The whistle blew.
The game began.
At first, you paid attention out of politeness. Haejin had dragged you here, after all. The least you could do was pretend to care. A few minutes passed. Then ten. Then twenty. Somewhere along the way, you realized you were actually watching.
Not football.
Seonghyeon.
The thing was, you’d never seen him like this before. At school, Seonghyeon always seemed relaxed and comfortable. The type of person who could walk into any room and immediately belong there. On the field, however, there was something different about him. He moved with an ease that made everything look effortless. Even from a distance, you could tell people listened when he spoke.
Teammates glanced toward him constantly. A few times, he called something out and everyone immediately adjusted. It was strange. Not because you hadn’t known he played football. Because you’d never really thought about what that meant.
For the first time, you understood why so many people admired him. And for some reason, that realization made your stomach feel weird. Beside you, Haejin followed your gaze. Then smirked. You knew that smirk. It was never a good sign.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“Haejin.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“You’re thinking something.”
“I am.”
You groaned.
“Please don’t.”
The smirk only grew.
Thankfully, before she could speak, the crowd suddenly erupted around you. Cheers echoed across the bleachers. Students jumped to their feet. You blinked.
Apparently something had happened. Unfortunately, you’d been too busy arguing with Haejin to notice.
“What happened?”
Haejin stared at you, then at the field, then back at you.
“You weren’t watching.”
“I was.”
“You literally weren’t.”
“What happened?”
She pointed toward the field and you followed her gaze. Seonghyeon was jogging back toward the center, teammates crowding around him.
“Oh.”
“Oh?” Haejin repeated.
“He scored.”
“He scored.”
You nodded.
For some reason, a smile pulled at your lips. A small one. One you didn’t even notice until Haejin did. Her eyes widened immediately.
“Wow.’’
Your smile disappeared.
“What?”
“You smiled.”
“So?”
“You smiled because he scored.”
Heat immediately rose to your face. You felt your ears swell.
“No i didn’t.”
“You did.”
“I did not.”
“You absolutely did.”
You looked away before she could continue. You weren’t entirely sure she was wrong. That realization lingered for the rest of the match. Long after the cheering died down. Long after the game resumed. Long after you’d convinced yourself you were imagining things.
Because every time something happened on the field, your attention drifted toward the same person. Everytime he did something impressive, you felt strangely proud. As if you’d somehow earned the right.
Which was absurd.
You were still trying to convince yourself of that when the final whistle blew. The crowd immediately came alive. Students began standing, gathering their things, and making their way toward the exits. Some headed toward the field. Others were already talking excitedly about the game.
You stayed seated. Mostly because moving required effort. Partly because Haejin had disappeared five minutes ago after spotting someone she knew. You’d just pulled out your phone when a shadow fell across you. You assumed it was Haejin. Then a familiar voice spoke.
“I need an unbiased opinion.”
You looked up.
And immediately wished you hadn’t. Seonghyeon was standing there. Still wearing his uniform. Still slightly out of breath. His hair was damp from the game, falling messily across his forehead. For some reason, that bothered you.
Not because it looked bad, quite the opposite actually. Judging by the expression on his face, something had clearly bothered him.
“Hello to you too.”
“That can wait-‘’
You blinked.
“That’s sort of concerning.”
“I was robbed.”
A pause.
‘’Didn’t you guys win?’’
‘’That’s not the point.’’
‘’Feels like a pretty important point.’’
Seonghyeon looked genuinely frustrated, his breathing was heavier since the game had ended.
‘’The referee was seriously against me.’’
You stared at him for several seconds before you shifted in your seat.
‘’You’re one of those people?’’
‘’What?’’
‘’The people who blame the referee everytime something doesn’t go their way.’’
‘’It didn’t go my way.’’
‘’Well, you won.’’
‘’Of course i did.’’
You laughed, the reaction was immediate.
‘’You didn’t even pay attention.’’
‘’I was.’’
‘’No you weren’t’’
‘’How would you know?’’
‘’Because if you did, you’d be angry too.’’
‘’I’m not emotionally invested enough to be angry.’’
The look he gave you suggested this was the wrong answer.
“Okay, imagine this’’
‘’Oh-‘’
‘’I score.’’
‘’You score.’’
‘’A beautiful score.’’
‘’According to whom exactly?’’
‘’Everybody.’’
‘’Mm.’’
‘’Then the referee- who’s job is to observe accurately, calls it offside.’’
You considered this, then shrugged.
‘’Well- maybe it was offside.’’
The betrayal on his face creeped up fast.
‘’I swear it wasn’t.’’
‘’Were you the referee?’’
‘’No.’’
‘’Then how do you know?’’
For a moment, Seonghyeon simply stared at you, then he pointed accusingly.
‘’You’re terrible at this.’’
‘’At what?’’
‘’At being supportive.’’
‘’You wanted an unbiased opinion.’’
‘’I wanted you to agree with me.’’
‘’That’s not quite what unbiased means.’’
The corner of his mouth twitched. You knew he was competitive, he shot a football straight at you a few weeks ago.
‘’You know what? Nevermind.’’
You laughed again.
This time, Seonghyeon shook his head dramatically and dropped down to the bleacher seat in front of you. The field behind him remained crowded with players and students slowly making their way home. Voices carried across the evening air while coaches gathered equipment near the sidelines.
“You stayed for the whole match.”
The comment caught you off guard.
“What?”
“The whole thing.”
He leaned back slightly.
“I thought you’d get bored and leave.”
You narrowed your eyes.
“You have a very low opinion of me.”
“I watched you spend twenty minutes in a game store staring at absolutely nothing.”
“I was being supportive.”
“You were wandering.”
“I was observing.”
“You were probably lost.”
“I knew exactly where I was.”
“Sure.”
You hated how satisfied he looked, with a smile to follow up on. His smile was genuine, like you could argue about anything- and it would still feel like you won, simply because he gave you that smile.
Then again, you hated how often he made you laugh. Before either of you could continue, a voice called from somewhere behind him.
“Seonghyeon!”
You looked up automatically.
A girl was jogging across the field toward the two of you, a bottle of water in one hand. She couldn’t have been much older than you. She looked pretty, and confident. The type of person who seemed completely comfortable talking to anyone. The type of person you immediately disliked for absolutely no reason.
She stopped beside him and held out the bottle. “You left this.”
“Oh.” Seonghyeon took it.
“Thanks.”
The interaction was completely normal.
The girl smiled. “No problem.”
Then she started talking, and Seonghyeon talked back. Which again, was normal. Because why wouldn’t he? But as you stood there listening to their conversation, a strange feeling settled in your chest. One you didn’t particularly like. The girl seemed familiar with him, she was comfortable like this wasn’t the first time they’d spoken. Obviously it wasn’t, Seonghyeon knew everyone. You already knew that.
Still, you found yourself looking away. Suddenly very interested in fixing the strap of your bag.
“You coming to practice on monday?” the girl asked.
“Yeah.”
“Good.” She grinned.
“Coach would’ve killed you if you missed it.”
Seonghyeon laughed. The same laugh you’d spent the last few weeks becoming far too fond of. Hearing it now felt different, a little less special.
You’d never thought it was special. Not really. Right? The realization hit, maybe that was the problem. You had.
At some point, without noticing, you’d started treating every conversation with Seonghyeon like it meant something. When in reality this was just who he was. He was friendly, easy to talk to. He was comfortable around everyone.
The girl finally glanced toward you.
“Oh.”
For a second, she looked between the two of you then smiled politely.
“Hi.”
“Hi.”
The conversation lasted another minute or two.
You weren’t really paying attention anymore because the stupid feeling in your chest had only gotten worse. Thankfully, someone else called Seonghyeon’s name from across the field. A teammate this time.
“Seonghyeon!”
He looked over, then back at you.
“I should probably go.”
The words were simple and harmless, but for some reason they felt disappointing.
“Yeah,” you said.
“See you monday?”
You smiled, disingeniously.
“See you.”
The second he stood up and walked away, you knew something was wrong. Not with him, but with you. You spent the entire walk home thinking about a conversation that hadn’t even involved you. You replayed everything, the exchanged conversation, his gaze, his laughter. You replayed him.
The realization irritated you more than anything else. It wasn’t as if Seonghyeon had done something particularly memorable. He’d talked to a teammate, that’s all. The interaction had been completely normal, yet somehow your brain insisted on revisiting it every few hours like there was some hidden meaning you’d failed to uncover the first time around.
By monday morning, you’d become so annoyed with yourself that you’d practically banned yourself from thinking about him altogether. Unfortunately, that lasted less than a day.
School carried on as usual. Teachers assigned work, students complained about it, and Haejin continued collecting gossip the way other people collected hobbies, which was admirable really. Everything felt normal. At least until the end of third period.
Your teacher had been gathering her things when she suddenly bent down and picked something up from beside one of the desks near the front of the classroom. It was a dark grey hoodie, slightly oversized and folded in on itself as if somebody had shoved it underneath a chair and forgotten about it.
“Did someone leave this behind?” she asked, holding it up.
A few students glanced over before immediately losing interest, you looked up too and knew exactly who it belonged to.
The answer came so quickly that you didn’t even question it at first. Seonghyeon. There wasn’t a moment of hesitation, you simply looked at the hoodie and knew.
Maybe it was because you’d seen him wearing it countless times over the past few weeks. Maybe it was because it had become one of those things your brain automatically associated with him. Whatever the reason, the certainty came naturally enough that you barely thought twice about it.
Then somebody behind you spoke.
“Oh, that’s Seonghyeon’s.”
Somehow, it felt odd. It wasn’t because they’d confirmed it, it was more so because they hadn’t told you anything you didn’t already know.
The rest of the class moved on immediately. The teacher placed the hoodie on her desk, someone made a joke and within seconds everyone was talking about something else. Everyone except you.
For some reason, that insignificant moment refused to leave your head. You spent the next hour trying to convince yourself it meant nothing. It was just a hoodie. People recognized each other’s belongings all the time. There was really nothing strange about it.
The argument would’ve been much more convincing if you hadn’t immediately noticed he wasn’t wearing it during lunch. The realization hit you before you even saw his face.
Your eyes found him automatically across the cafeteria surrounded by Keonho, Martin, James and Juhoon, the same group of friends he was always with. The first thing your brain registered wasn’t the conversation he was having or the fact that Keonho was laughing at something.
It was the absence of the hoodie. That’s why he looks different. You seriously didn’t like this, you in fact hated it. Seonghyeon, whom you hadn’t bat an eye on two months ago had occupied your mind the past four days. It was torture, simply because you refused to accept the thoughts. You denied everything, you brushed everything off and went about your day.
The following morning started with a problem. Not a particularly serious one, nor one that should have occupied more than a few seconds of your time, yet somehow you found yourself standing in front of your bedroom mirror far longer than necessary. You’d already finished getting ready.
Your makeup was done, your uniform was on, your bag was packed and waiting by the door. By all accounts, you should’ve been downstairs eating breakfast. Instead, you were still there staring at your reflection as if it had personally offended you. Something felt wrong.
The frustrating part was that you couldn’t figure out what. Your hair looked fine, more than fine actually. You had spent enough time on it to ensure that. Yet your hand still reached up to smooth down a strand near your cheek before stepping back again.
A few seconds later you found yourself leaning toward the mirror adjusting something else, then immediately questioning whether it had looked better before. The cycle repeated itself often enough that by the time you finally checked the clock, nearly fifteen minutes had disappeared. You frowned. That couldn’t be right.
Normally, getting ready in the morning wasn’t something you thought much about. You liked looking presentable and usually put effort into your appearance, but there was a difference between effort and whatever this was. This felt suspiciously close to perfectionism, except there was nothing to perfect.
Every time you fixed one thing, your eyes immediately found something else to focus on. A different hairstyle. A little more lip tint. Maybe a different pair of earrings. None of the changes were dramatic enough for anyone else to notice, but you noticed them, and apparently that was enough to keep you rooted in front of the mirror like an idiot.
Moments later, your phone buzzed. Haejin was texting you.
HAEJIN
Overslept.
Can’t make it to first period.
Meet you second period😴
Haejin was a bit careless when it came to school. You don’t think it’s on purpose, she just doesn’t see the need to wake up at 7:30 AM for merely first period. She makes it so justifiable, so you guess you could see it from her perspective, however not today. Today, was an important day.
By the time first period began, you were already feeling self aware. Now, instead of sitting beside your best friend, you found yourself alone at your desk while the teacher droned on at the front of the classroom. The seat beside you remained empty, which felt strangely noticeable. Haejin had a way of filling every space she occupied, and without her there the morning seemed significantly quieter.
When the bell finally rang, you gathered your things and stepped into the hallway with no particular destination in mind. Your next class was on the opposite side of the building, leaving you with more than enough time to get there. Normally, you would have spent the break with Haejin. Today however, you found yourself wandering alone through the crowded hallways.
“Y/n, hey.’’
The familiar voice made you turn immediately.
Seonghyeon stood a few feet away, one strap of his backpack slung over his shoulder. For a moment, your brain supplied an extremely unhelpful thought.
Did he notice?
You hated yourself instantly.
Notice what?
Your hair?
Your makeup?
The fact that you’d spent half your morning acting like a love island contestant? Thankfully, Seonghyeon seemed completely unaware of the spiraling thoughts currently unfolding.
“Haejin’s late,” you explained before he could ask. Before you could think of a more logical answer, like a simple hey.
Seriously?
What does Haejin have to do with this?
Why would he care?
Seonghyeon almost surpressed his reaction.
‘’Oh- right.’’
He was confused. Did you think he approached you to talk to Haejin? He didn’t read much into it though.
However, he did notice something was different about you today.
At first, he couldn’t figure out what it was.
Maybe your hair looked different. Maybe your makeup. Whatever it was, it gave you a slightly softer appearance than usual. Not dramatically different, just enough to make him pause for a second longer than normal.
“You look tired” he said instead.
You stared at him. Of all the things he could’ve said.
“Tired?”
“Yeah.”
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
“Didn’t sleep?”
The betrayal you felt was immediate. You had spent an embarrassing amount of time getting ready this morning. An embarrassing amount. And somehow the only conclusion he’d reached was that you looked tired. For a brief moment, you considered pushing him down the nearest staircase.
“That’s offensive.”
His eyebrows lifted slightly.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“No, tell me.”
“I’m choosing peace.”
Seonghyeon laughed.
Unfortunately, the sound did absolutely nothing to improve your mood. If anything, it made it worse. Because now all you could think about was the twenty minutes you’d wasted staring at yourself in the mirror. The universe clearly had a sense of humor.
“You look fine, by the way.”
The comment was casual. So casual that he probably didn’t think twice about saying it. You however, nearly forgot how to function. Before you could respond, Martin called Seonghyeon’s name from farther down the hallway. He looked over his shoulder, then back at you.
“I’ll see you later.” And just like that, he was gone.
Leaving you standing in the middle of the hallway wondering why two completely harmless words had managed to ruin the rest of your morning. The rest of the day passed surprisingly quickly after that.
Haejin eventually arrived halfway through second period carrying the same energy she always did, immediately filling the empty space beside you with stories, complaints and dramatic retellings of how she had supposedly fallen victim to circumstances completely beyond her control.
According to her, the blame rested entirely on a combination of faulty alarms, unfair school schedules and a universe that seemed personally determined to make her suffer.
“I woke up and it was 9:12.”
“You start at 8:30.”
“Exactly.”
“That’s doesn’t quite help.” Haejin pouted.
The rest of the day continued pretty much the same way. Haejin spent most of her time insisting she was being unfairly persecuted by the education system. By the final bell, you had almost forgotten about the awkward interaction from that morning. Almost. Unfortunately, while you were fully prepared to go home, Haejin apparently had other plans.
“I’ll be two minutes.”
“You said that fifteen minutes ago.”
“This time I mean it.”
“You also meant it last time.”
Ignoring you entirely, she disappeared back into the building after being stopped by a teacher regarding an assignment she had forgotten to submit. So you waited.
The afternoon air was cool, carrying the familiar sounds of students lingering around school grounds before heading home.
Groups gathered near the entrance, conversations overlapping as people delayed going home for as long as possible. You had been scrolling through your phone for several minutes when a football rolled across the pavement a few meters away. Your eyes followed it automatically.
Several members of the football team had gathered near the edge of the courtyard, passing time before practice. Some were kicking a ball around while others leaned against a nearby fence talking amongst themselves. The sight would’ve gone largely unnoticed if Haejin hadn’t finally emerged from the building at that exact moment.
“Oh.”
“What?”
Her eyes lit up. “Keonho’s here.”
Before you could stop her, she’d already started walking.
“Haejin.”
No response.
“Haejin.”
Still nothing.
Sometimes you genuinely believed she could hear only the things she wanted to hear. Unfortunately, Keonho seemed equally enthusiastic. A few minutes later, the two of them had somehow dragged everyone into the same conversation.
You weren’t entirely sure how it happened. One moment you were waiting for Haejin, the next you were standing in a loose circle listening to Keonho passionately argue that football players deserved special treatment during exam season.
“You kick a ball around.”
“That’s not all we do.”
“That’s literally what football is.” Seonghyeon let out a faint laugh. Keonho pointed at him immediately.
“See? He understands.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“Your silence supports me.”
The conversation drifted from one topic to another after that. Homework became complaints about teachers, which somehow turned into stories from middle school and then an argument over who had the worst attendance record. At some point, Keonho glanced toward Seonghyeon.
“Actually, speaking of people abandoning their friends.” Seonghyeon already looked tired.
“You spend more time talking to y/n than you do with me nowadays.”
The comment earned a laugh from Haejin. You wished it hadn’t, because now everyone was looking at the two of you. Seonghyeon meanwhile, seemed completely unaffected.
“You’re being dramatic.”
“I’m serious.”
For a second, Keonho gestured vaguely between the two of you as though presenting evidence to a jury. The response came easily. Without hesitation. Without even a second of thought.
“She’s just a friend.”
The following morning began with rain.
Not the kind that belonged in movies, where people stared moodily out of windows while life changing realizations unfolded in the background. This was ordinary rain. Annoying rain. The sort that turned sidewalks slippery and made umbrellas feel completely useless because somehow you still ended up getting wet anyway.
By the time you arrived at school, your shoes were damp, your patience was gone and Haejin was already waiting by the entrance looking personally offended by the weather. She immediately launched into a five minute rant about how rain should be illegal before eight in the morning, only pausing long enough to complain about an upcoming assignment and the fact that she had forgotten to study for a quiz she apparently hadn’t known existed until fifteen minutes ago.
The conversation continued all the way to class. Then through first period. Then through half of second period. That was one of the things you liked most about Haejin. Being around her left very little room for overthinking. Unfortunately not no room, just very little.
The thought arrived sometime during lunch. You were sitting across from Haejin while she attempted to convince three people that she deserved compensation for having to wake up before sunrise every day. Around you, the cafeteria buzzed with the usual noise of conversations, laughter and the occasional argument over stolen food. It was normal. Completely normal.
Yet for some reason, you found yourself looking up whenever the doors opened. The first time, you didn’t think much of it. The second time, you barely noticed. The third time however, you caught yourself doing it and immediately looked back down at your food. That was strange. You frowned slightly.
Because you knew exactly what you had been looking for. Or rather, who. The thought irritated you far more than it should have. The problem was that it happened automatically. You had not consciously wondered where Seonghyeon was. You hadn’t been sitting there waiting for him to appear. Your eyes had simply searched the room on their own before your brain had the chance to stop them. Annoying. Deeply annoying. Across from you, Haejin paused mid-sentence.
“…Why do you look angry?”
“I’m not angry.”
“You look like it.”
“I’m thinking.”
“That explains nothing.”
You stabbed a french fry with considerably more force than necessary. Haejin narrowed her eyes immediately. Never a good sign.
“What happened?”
“Nothing.”
“That’s a lie.”
“It isn’t.”
“It literally is.”
You sighed. The problem with having a best friend for years was that they became impossible to fool.
“You know,” Haejin continued, leaning back in her chair “most people don’t glare at potatoes unless something is bothering them.”
For a brief moment, you considered telling her. Not everything. Then immediately decided against it. Mostly because hearing your thoughts out loud would somehow make the situation significantly worse, and because deep down there was a part of you that already knew exactly what Haejin would say. The problem was that you weren’t entirely sure you wanted to hear it.
If someone had asked Seonghyeon whether anything had changed over the past couple of weeks, he probably would’ve said no.
Life looked exactly the same as it always had. Football practice continued to consume most of his afternoons and Keonho remained committed to making every situation at least twice as loud as necessary. The days blended together in the way school days often did. One class became another. One week became the next. Nothing particularly significant seemed to happen. At least, that was what he thought.
The realization didn’t arrive all at once. It wasn’t grand. It wasn’t even particularly noticeable at first. Instead, it appeared in small moments and then disappeared again before he could properly think about it. A hallway conversation that felt strangely short. An empty seat during lunch that shouldn’t have mattered. The first few times, he ignored it. By the tenth, it was becoming difficult to.
Thursday afternoon found him sitting through one of the most painfully boring lessons of the semester. Even the teacher seemed tired of listening to himself speak. Around the classroom, students had long since given up pretending to pay attention. Some were doodling in notebooks, others were staring blankly out windows, and James had somehow managed to fall asleep while sitting upright. Honestly, it was impressive.
Seonghyeon’s attention had drifted somewhere around twenty minutes earlier. His notebook remained open in front of him, untouched except for a few half finished notes written without much thought behind them. He wasn’t really looking at anything in particular when the teacher suddenly stopped speaking and sighed.
Immediately, several students sat up. The word easier had that effect.
The teacher began asking questions instead, pointing at different students around the room whenever he needed an answer. Most people responded with varying levels of enthusiasm. Some answered correctly. Others guessed. One student somehow managed to produce an answer so incorrect that the entire class burst out laughing. Including Seonghyeon. For some reason, the moment reminded him of y/n. The thought appeared so unexpectedly that he almost frowned.
It wasn’t even a specific memory. Just a vague association. Something about the expression she would’ve made if she’d heard the answer. The way she tried not to laugh when she found something funny. The way she usually looked away immediately afterward as if being caught smiling was somehow embarrassing. For a second, he found himself glancing toward the row she usually sat in. Then paused, because that was strange. He hadn’t spoken to y/n properly in what felt like ages. It didn’t make sense.
A few weeks ago, running into her had somehow become normal. Conversations before class. Conversations after class. Random interactions in hallways that stretched far longer than either of them intended. Nothing major. Just enough that he’d stopped noticing when they happened.
Now he was noticing when they didn’t. The thought lingered for the rest of the lesson. Then followed him into the hallway. Then all the way to lunch. By the time football practice started, he still hadn’t managed to shake it. People got busy, that was all. School happened, life happened. There was no reason to think about it this much.
Unfortunately, that explanation became slightly harder to believe when he realized he couldn’t remember the last actual conversation they’ve had.
Instead, he found himself standing on the edge of the football field staring at absolutely nothing while the rest of the team warmed up around him.
“Earth to Seonghyeon.”
Martin’s voice snapped him out of it.
“What?”
“You’ve been staring at the same patch of grass for thirty seconds.”
Seonghyeon blinked.
Had he? Apparently. Keonho narrowed his eyes immediately.
“What are you thinking about?”
“Nothing.”
“Liar.”
Seonghyeon didn’t understand why he had thought about it this much. He wasn’t the type to. He’d logically examine situations, come up with a logical answer and move on with his day. Somehow this was different, yet he couldn’t pinpoint why.
Keonho had never been the type of person to let things go. In fact, if Seonghyeon had to describe him using a single phrase, it would probably be incapable of minding his own business. The moment practice ended, Keonho’s attention returned to the subject with the determination of somebody investigating a crime.
At first, Seonghyeon didn’t even realize it was happening. The team had just finished collecting equipment, everyone moving around the field in various states of exhaustion while the sun slowly disappeared behind the school buildings. Conversations overlapped from every direction.
Somebody was complaining about the coach, somebody else was arguing about where to eat afterward and a football rolled across the grass before being kicked back toward a storage cart. Everything felt normal. Until Keonho appeared beside him. That wasn’t unusual. The fact that he remained there in complete silence however, definitely was.
For several seconds he simply walked beside him without saying anything. Coming from Keonho, that was concerning enough on its own. When Seonghyeon finally glanced over, he immediately regretted it. Keonho was already staring at him. “Why are you looking at me like that?” Seonghyeon asked.
“I’m thinking.”
A sigh escaped him. The evening air had turned noticeably cooler now, students gradually filtering away from the field in small groups as the noise around them slowly faded into the distance. For a brief moment it almost seemed like Keonho might finally drop the subject. Then he spoke again.
“You know what I think?”
“No.”
“I think you’re lying.”
Seonghyeon barely reacted. Mostly because this conversation happened at least three times a week.
“About what?”
“I don’t know yet.”
The answer was so stupid that a laugh almost escaped him.
“No, seriously.” Keonho adjusted the strap of his bag before continuing. “You’ve been zoning out lately.”
That got his attention. It wasn’t the first time he’d heard something similar. Over the past week different people had made almost identical observations often enough that it was becoming difficult to ignore. Martin had asked whether he was tired. His mother had asked whether something was bothering him. Even the coach had commented on him being distracted during practice yesterday.
At the time Seonghyeon had brushed all of it off. Now however, standing on the sidewalk outside the school while Keonho kicked absentmindedly at loose gravel beside him, he found himself wondering whether they all had a point.
The problem was that he couldn’t figure out what exactly was different. Or rather, he could. He just didn’t particularly like the answer. Because every time he started pulling at the loose thread of the thought, it somehow led back to the same place. The same person. The same question. When was the last time he’d actually talked to y/n?
Not seen her. Not waved at her from the other end of a hallway. Talked to her, a proper conversation. The answer should’ve come immediately. Instead, he found himself drawing a blank.
And for reasons he couldn’t explain, that really bothered him.
By the time he got home later that evening, dropped his bag beside the door and collapsed onto his bed, the thought was still there. Which was annoying, because he had homework to finish and football practice again tomorrow. He had significantly more important things to think about. Yet somehow, while staring at the ceiling of his room, his mind drifted back to the same thing. He dug deep into his thoughts.
The first time was almost laughably insignificant. Class had just ended, and students were spilling into the hallways at every direction. Seonghyeon had been halfway through putting his books away when he spotted y/n a little farther down the corridor.
She was standing beside her locker, listening to something Haejin was saying. Or rather, dramatically performing. Haejin’s hands were moving so aggressively that even from a distance it looked less like a conversation and more like an emergency press conference.
Without really thinking about it, Seonghyeon started heading that way.
Then suddenly y/n grabbed Haejin by the wrist and dragged her around the corner. Gone. Seonghyeon stopped walking, he had simply stared at the space where she’d been stadning.
‘’Why are you just standing there?’’
He looked over and Juhoon was staring at him.
‘’Nothing-‘’
Juhoon looked unconvinced.
The second time happened during lunch, Seonghyeon had just entered the cafeteria when he noticed y/n sitting at her usual table. For some reason, the sight made him smile.
He grabbed his tray and joined his friends. Halfway through James’s completely unecessary rant about him having to balance both the exams- since he’s a few years older, and football practice, Seonghyeon glanced across the cafeteria again.
The seat was empty, he frowned.
‘’How dare they stack up on exams the second football season gets serious? I can’t be expected to memorize biology and score goals.’’
Yeah that was just background noise for Seonghyeon.
The third time was when it had actually started bothering him. School had ended, and the campus was filled by students and chatter. Seonghyeon, Keonho, Juhoon, Martin and James stood in front of the school, talking while Martin shot the basketball into the hoop continuously.
Suddenly, he spotted y/n coming out of the main entrance. She was carrying a bag over her shoulder, already heading toward the front gate. He considered calling her name, the thought had appeared automatically. Then he paused. Because that would be weird, wouldn’t it? He wasn’t even sure what he would’ve said. Hey? Hello? Why have we apparently forgotten how to exist in the same space lately?
Before he could decide, a group of guys crossed between them. By the time they passed, she had already disappeared around the corner. That annoyed him.
He found himself looking for her the next day. Which felt ridiculous, that’s what he told himself while scanning the cafeteria without realizing he was doing it. He didn’t understand why it had bothered him so much.
Everytime he looked up, she seemed to walk the other way. He could’ve sworn she stood wherever he saw her, then poof she’s gone again. He missed talking to her. The more he thought about it, the more he realized y/n hadn’t actually disappeared. She was still around.
The strange thing about time was that it continued moving whether you wanted it to or not.
A few weeks ago, you’d convinced yourself that liking Seonghyeon was some life altering catastrophe. Every conversation felt important. Every interaction lingered longer than it should have. You’d spent an embarrassing amount of energy thinking about things that in hindsight, probably didn’t deserve nearly that much attention.
Now however, life had begun settling back into place. It wasn’t really because your feelings had disappeared, they hadn’t. You still liked him, that much obvious.
The difference was that it felt like your entire existence no longer revolved around it. Somehow, focusing on all ordinary frustrations had made everything else feel smaller. For the first time in a while, you felt like yourself again, which was probably why you agreed to help one of your teachers after class.
It seemed harmless enough at the time. It was just a simple favour, five minutes of your time. Unfortunately, teachers had a very different understanding of the word simple. Twenty minutes later, you found yourself carrying what felt like the entire contents of a storage room through one of the academic buildings.
A stack of folders was balanced precariously against your chest, several textbooks were tucked underneath one arm and a plastic container filled with miscellaneous classroom supplies kept threatening to slide out of your grasp every time you took a step.
You couldn’t see properly.
You couldn’t walk properly.
You were beginning to suspect your teacher had deliberately chosen you because you looked too polite to say no.
The hallway itself was mostly empty. Classes had ended nearly half an hour ago, leaving only the occasional student lingering behind for clubs, sports or whatever mysterious activities seemed to keep people at school long after everyone else had gone home. The combination of limited visibility and questionable balance meant you didn’t notice someone approaching from the opposite direction.
Not until it was too late.
The collision wasn’t dramatic, nobofy went flying across the hallway, well just the stack of folders that immediately tilted sideways, and the plastic container that slipped- oh and a pencil case launched itself onto the floor.
And before you could react, several sheets of paper had already escaped and scattered across the hallway like they were making a run for freedom. For one dreadful second, you simply stood there staring. Of course this was happening. Then a voice spoke.
“Whoa.”
You froze. Slowly, you looked up.
Seonghyeon looked just as surprised as you felt, then he looked down at the disaster surrounding your feet. Then back up at you. Then back down again. A smile appeared.
“Don’t.”
“I’m not saying anything.”
“You’re thinking something.”
“I am.”
You sighed.
“Great.”
The smile widened slightly.
Without another word, he crouched down and began gathering the papers scattered across the floor.
You hated how familiar the sight felt.
A few months ago, seeing Eom Seonghyeon kneeling on a hallway floor collecting your homework would’ve felt absurd. Now it barely registered as unusual. Together, the two of you began collecting the mess. Most of it in silence. The kind that had somehow become normal between you before either of you noticed.
The strange thing was that for the first time in weeks, you weren’t hyperaware of him. You weren’t overthinking every word, you weren’t wondering what something meant. You were simply trying to stop your papers from disappearing underneath a nearby vending machine.
“You know,” Seonghyeon said eventually, handing over another folder “for somebody who was late because of a pen, I feel like this tracks.”
You stared at him then immediately groaned.
“No.”
“Oh, yes.”
“That happened once.”
“You were defeated by a mere pen.”
“I wasn’t defeated.”
“You absolutely were.”
To your annoyance, a laugh escaped before you could stop it. The sound earned a grin from him. The folders had been restacked, the notebooks gathered and the loose papers that had scattered across half the hallway had been retrieved. Only one sheet remained. It had drifted farther than the others. The hallway itself had grown noticeably quieter during the few minutes.
You moved first, or atleast you thought you did. The second you stepped forward, Seonghyeon did too. The realization seemed to hit both of you simultaneously. You stopped, he stopped. The paper remained exactly where it was.
‘’Go ahead.’’
You looked up.
‘’What?’’
‘’You saw it first.’’
‘’No i didn’t’’
‘’You did.’’
‘’I was being polite.’’
‘’You’re never polite.’’
The response left his mouth so quickly that he seemed to realize what he had said only afterward. You stared at him, and he stared back. Then a smile appeared, it was small. The kind that always seemed to show up before he could stop it.
‘’You know what i mean.’’
‘’Do i?’’
‘’No.’’
You smiled- it was stupid. You loved the conversations, you missed them. Both of you moved at the same time again. The result was immediate. Your shoulders bumped together.
‘’Ow.’’
You immediately laughed in shock. He was being dramatic, it was a small bump.
The past few weeks suddenly seemed a little ridiculous. Seonghyeon spent so much time wondering why something felt off only to discover the answer was embarrassingly simple. He’d missed this aswell.
Haejin had never been particularly interested in making your life easier. The first sign of trouble appeared at exactly 5:34 PM on a Saturday.
Your phone buzzed.
Haejin
Can i come overrrr~
You stared at the message. Of course she could, rather it was weird she didn’t show up at your door to ask that.
You
obv
Three dots appeared almost immediately.
Haejin
keonho is coming too apparently
You
Oh
Why?
Haejin
because he’s annoying and won’t leave me alone
he just texted me
he’s already on the bus
Before you could gather your thoughts to respond, another message arrived.
Haejin
oh Seonghyeon’s coming too
You nearly dropped your phone.
The thirty minutes Haejin had promised turned into forty three. Not that you were counting. You absolutely weren’t. The problem was that once somebody informed you that Haejin, Keonho and more importantly- Seonghyeon would be entering your house, suddenly every insignificant detail became a problem.
The blanket draped over the couch looked wrong. The cushions looked wrong. The stack of books sitting on the coffee table looked wrong. Even the framed photo sitting on the shelf near the television somehow looked wrong despite having remained in the exact same position for nearly three years. You were in the middle of rearranging the cushions for the third time when a voice spoke from behind you.
‘’Is Haejin coming over?’’
Your mother stood in the doorway between the kitchen and living room. Her eyes moved from you to the perfectly arranged couch, then to the freshly folded blanket, then to the coffee table you’d wiped down approximately fifteen minutes ago.
You nodded, before following it up.
‘’And two other friends.’’
‘’That’s fine- Should i go make something? A snackplate? Cut up some fruits?’’
‘’No, that’s okay.’’
The doorbell rang. The sound practically echoed throughout the house. The second your hand touched the doorknob, you could swear your heart dropped, like seriously. The door opened, and Haejin immediately walked inside without waiting for an invitation.
‘’Hello to you too.’’ You said.
‘’Thank you.’’
‘’What?’’
Behind her came Keonho, then Seonghyeon.
For some reason, seeing him standing on your doorstep felt stranger than seeing him anywhere else. Maybe because he’s become so firmly associated with school that your brain momentarily struggled to place him here. There was no football field, no hallway. Just your front porch, and Seonghyeon standing on it looking mildly uncomfortable beneath your scrunity. There was a long pause, it felt awkward.
‘’Hi.’’
Immediately, you wanted to throw yourself into traffic. It was a groundbreaking greeting, really. Thankfully, Seonghyeon wasn’t much better.
‘’Hi.’’
Behind him, Keonho sighed dramatically. ‘’This is painful.’’
The two of them stepped inside while Haejin continued acting like she had lived there for years. Almost immediately, your mother appeared from the kitchen.
‘’Hello, dear.’’
‘’Hi!’’
The response came so naturally that it sounded like a part of a routine they had performed hundreds of times before. Then your mother looked toward the boys. Before Seonghyeon could do anything, Keonho stepped forward.
‘’I’m Keonho,’’
‘’Nice to meet you.’’
‘’And that’s Seonghyeon.’’
A brief silence followed. Seonghyeon looked over, Keonho looked back.
‘’I can introduce myself.’’
‘’You were taking too long.’’
‘’You spoke first.’’
‘’Exactly.’’
Your mother laughed.
‘’It’s nice to meet both of you.’’
‘’Nice to meet you too.’’ Seonghyeon replied, then bowed out of respect, Keonho followed. Hearing him speak to your mother felt oddly surreal. Your mother smiled politely.
The second everyone made it upstairs, the energy somehow shifted.
Maybe it was because school had become such a permanent backdrop to all of your interactions that seeing those same people inside your house felt strangely unnatural. Haejin immediately made herself comfortable. Keonho wasn’t much better.
He wandered around without shame, examining random objects on your shelves with the confidence of somebody who had been granted permission despite the fact nobody had actually given him any. Meanwhile, you found yourself standing near your desk, suddenly hyperaware of everything around you.
The room wasn’t messy. That wasn’t the problem. The problem was that it was yours.
School only allowed people to know certain versions of each other. Hallway conversations. Lunch breaks. Shared classes. Small pieces. Nobody saw what happened outside of that. Nobody saw your room at midnight when you were studying for exams. Nobody saw the stuff lying on your vanity or the old concert tickets tucked into your mirror frame. Nobody saw the photos you had forgotten were hanging on the wall until this exact moment.
And Seonghyeon seemed to notice everything.
Not in an obvious way. He wasn’t walking around inspecting things. If anything, he seemed quieter than usual. While Keonho was busy making himself at home and Haejin was already flopped across your bed scrolling through her phone, Seonghyeon’s gaze occasionally drifted around the room before moving elsewhere again. Small observations. Brief glances. Yet somehow those felt worse. You couldn’t tell whether he was actually paying attention or whether your brain was simply inventing reasons to be nervous.
“You definitely cleaned.”
You immediately looked at Haejin.
“No.”
“Yes you did.”
“I didn’t.”
“You moved something.”
“I didn’t.”
Haejin’s eyes slowly travelled across the room.
“The cushions downstairs.”
You hated her.
The smile spreading across her face told you she’d won.
“Oh my god. You did move the cushions.”
“I hate talking to you.”
From somewhere beside the bookshelf, a laugh escaped Keonho.
“You cleaned for us?”
“It wasn’t for you.”
The room fell silent for half a second before Haejin started laughing because of Keonho’s reaction. The next hour passed surprisingly quickly. Conversations drifted from one topic to another without much direction. Somebody brought up an old teacher. That somehow became a discussion about embarrassing middle school memories. Then football. Then exams. Then an argument, nobody actually cared about the answer. The argument continued anyway.
At some point, somebody stole your blanket. At some point, Keonho and Haejin became invested in a debate so stupid that the original topic had long since been forgotten.
“You are fundamentally misunderstanding the point.”
“I understand it perfectly.”
“No, you don’t.”
“You’re just wrong.”
“I’m always right.”
“That’s not how opinions work.”
Watching them argue was a bit like watching two people accidentally start a fire and then continue pouring gasoline on it.
Eventually, they ended up sitting on the floor near your television, completely absorbed in whatever nonsense they were discussing now. For the first time all afternoon, the room became quieter. You were sitting near the edge of your bed, scrolling through your phone while the sound of Haejin and Keonho arguing faded into the background. Beside you, Seonghyeon sat comfortably against the wall. Neither of you were really speaking.
The silence wasn’t awkward. A few months ago, silence between you would’ve felt unbearable. Now it barely registered. You scrolled past an old photo without thinking, then immediately scrolled back. A small laugh escaped you.
“What?”
You glanced up.
“Nothing.”
“That’s never true.”
You looked back down at the screen.
“It was from middle school.”
“Let me see.”
Without thinking, you handed him your phone but the second you did, you regretted it. Because the photo was awful. Seonghyeon looked at the screen, then looked at you. He smiled.
“What?” His smile widened.
“You look twelve.”
“I was twelve.”
“You look younger than twelve.”
“Give it back.”
You reached for the phone. At the exact same moment he pulled it slightly away, your hand brushed against his. The movement was tiny, it was barely anything. Yet both of you froze for a second. The noise from the rest of the room suddenly felt strangely distant. You weren’t sure why, it was stupid. People accidentally touched hands all the time, nothing should’ve happened.
Then Seonghyeon handed the phone back.
And somewhere across the room, Haejin suddenly yelled:
“THAT’S LITERALLY NOT WHAT I SAID.”
Seonghyeon didn’t realize he was still thinking about it until he walked straight into his bedroom door. The impact wasn’t hard enough to hurt, but it was embarrassing enough that he immediately looked around despite being completely alone. A second later he let out a quiet groan and rubbed a hand over his face.
A few minutes later after showering and changing into comfortable clothes, he found himself sitting on the edge of his bed with a towel draped around his neck. His phone had been abandoned somewhere beside him. Downstairs, he could faintly hear the television playing. Everything felt normal. The day was over. There was absolutely no reason for him to still be thinking about it.
Nothing important had happened. They had gone to y/n’s house, wasted an entire afternoon doing nothing productive, listened to Keonho and Haejin argue about things neither of them cared enough to remember and eventually gone home. That was it. Yet every time Seonghyeon tried focusing on something else, his mind drifted right back there again.
The strangest part wasn’t that he had seen y/n’s room for the first time. It wasn’t even that he had spent several hours with her outside of school. It was the fact that every new thing he had learned about her somehow felt oddly expected. Not because he knew those things already, but because they fit.
The way everything looked slightly messy until you paid attention and realized there was a system behind it. Even the way she’d reacted whenever somebody pointed something out. Half embarrassed. Half annoyed. Like she wanted people to know her but only on her own terms.
A quiet laugh escaped him before he could stop it. He could already imagine how offended she’d be if she knew he was sitting here psychoanalyzing her bedroom.The thought should’ve ended there, instead another one immediately followed.
The look on her face when Haejin exposed the fact that she had obviously cleaned before they arrived. The way she tried denying it despite the evidence being painfully obvious. Then the laugh she’d let out later. Then the smile she’d been trying not to show when he teased her.
Seonghyeon dropped backward onto his mattress and stared at the ceiling. There it was again. That same problem. Every thought somehow led back to her. It was infuriating, it’s like his brain had no originality.
He had known y/n for what? A couple of months? Yet lately it felt like she kept appearing in places she wasn’t even supposed to be. In random thoughts, in conversations, in moments where he was supposed to be focusing on literally anything else. It was getting harder and harder to ignore. For the first time, Seonghyeon found himself staring directly at a possibility he had been avoiding for weeks. Not accepting it. Definitely not accepting it. Just looking at it from a safe distance. Then immediately backing away.
Nope, absolutely not.
For a long moment he simply layed there with one arm thrown across his face, feeling increasingly annoyed with himself. Because the more he thought about it, the worse his life defense became. Maybe there wasn’t some complicated explanation. Maybe the reason he had spent weeks looking for her in crowded hallways, noticing when she wasn’t around, and wondering why everything felt different lately wasn’t because something weird was happening.
Maybe the problem was much simpler than that, and that’s exactly why he didn’t wanna think about it, didn’t wanna consider it.
The problem started with a pencil.
Not because the pencil itself was important. It wasn’t. The pencil belonged to Keonho, who had somehow managed to drop it three separate times during a single class period. By the third time, the teacher looked ready to launch it out the nearest window.
A few people around the classroom were already trying and failing to hide their laughter, while Keonho seemed completely oblivious to the fact that he was seconds away from becoming someone’s least favorite student.
Normally, Seonghyeon would’ve found this entertaining. He probably would’ve made a comment. Maybe laughed. Maybe joined Martin in making fun of Keonho later. Instead, he was staring out the classroom window, his attention drifting somewhere beyond the teacher’s voice and the half finished notes sitting in front of him.
He wasn’t thinking about anything in particular. At least, that was what he told himself. The lesson had become background noise a long time ago, blending together with the scratching of pencils, turning pages and the occasional sigh from students who had already mentally checked out for the day.
Outside, students crossed the courtyard below in small groups. Some were heading back toward the academic building after lunch while others lingered near the benches despite the fact that the break had ended nearly ten minutes ago. From up here everyone looked smaller, moving through familiar routines without much urgency. It was the sort of thing he would’ve glanced at for a second before looking away.
Then movement caught his attention. Someone familiar stepped through the courtyard gate. Immediately, his eyes followed. Which would’ve been fine if he hadn’t recognized her from half a building away. That felt excessive.
The distance alone should’ve made it impossible. He couldn’t even properly see her face from here. Yet somehow he had known it was y/n before he consciously registered any actual details. Before he thought about it. Before he even realized he was paying attention.
She was walking beside somebody. Just some guy from their year that Seonghyeon vaguely recognized. For a moment, he found himself watching longer than necessary. Not because anything unusual was happening. The opposite, actually. They were just talking. The guy said something and y/n laughed before shaking her head slightly. Then the conversation continued as if nothing had happened.
Have they always been friends?
Worked on a project together?
Why was he even thinking about this?
Because he genuinely didn’t care. He shouldn’t, atleast. His eyes remained fixed on the courtyard for another moment before he finally looked away. The strange thing was that nothing about the situation actually bothered him. Y/n was allowed to talk to whoever she wanted. She was allowed to have other friends. The thought shouldn’t have occupied more than two seconds of his attention.
The thought lingered for the rest of the lesson. It followed him when the bell rang, when students immediately began shoving books into bags and when Keonho somehow dropped the same pencil again while standing up.
Seonghyeon barely heard Martin laughing about it beside him. His attention had drifted elsewhere. Not toward the courtyard anymore, but toward the uncomfortable realization itself. A few months ago, he wouldn’t have noticed.
A few months ago, y/n would’ve blended into the hundreds of students moving around campus every day. Not really because there was anything forgettable about her, but because she had never given people a reason to look twice. She wasn’t loud. She didn’t try to draw attention to herself. Half the time she seemed perfectly content existing just outside the center of things.
The weather was unusually good, good enough that nobody wanted to spend lunch indoors. The football field, basketball court and every bench around campus were crowded with students taking advantage of the rare sunshine. Conversations echoed across the courtyard.
Seonghyeon sat on a low concrete wall near the basketball court with Martin, Keonho, James and Juhoon. Or rather, everyone else was sitting. Martin had somehow convinced himself he was the next basketball prodigy and had spent the last ten minutes repeatedly shooting the same ball at the hoop missing every time.
“You know,” James said, watching another failed attempt, “at some point this becomes a public safety hazard.”
Martin caught the rebound.
“You people don’t understand greatness.”
“Stick to football, please.”
Martin looked offended.
Beside them, Keonho was lying dramatically across the wall as if he’d just survived a life threatening event.
“I’ve decided something.”
Nobody reacted.
“I’m serious.”
Still nothing.
“You guys never support me.”
Juhoon didn’t even look up from his phone. “That’s because your ideas are usually terrible.”
“See? Exactly what I’m talking about.”
James sighed.
“What realization have you had now?”
Keonho sat up immediately.
“I should get priority in the cafeteria queue.”
‘’Why?’’
‘’Because i’m an athlete.’’
‘’…and so are we.’’
‘’Yeaaaaah- whatever.’’ Keonho immediately leaned back again.
The bookstore had always felt different after sunset.
Because there were fewer people around, or because the street outside became quieter once the shops started closing for the evening. Whatever the reason, everything seemed softer at night. The warm yellow lights reflected against the shelves, the air smelled faintly of paper and old wood and somewhere near the front counter low music played quietly enough that it blended into the background. It was one of the reasons you came here so often. Nobody bothered you. You could spend an hour staring at the same shelf and nobody would question it.
Which was exactly what you had been doing for the last ten minutes. At least until a familiar voice drifted from somewhere deeper in the store. You didn’t react immediately. At first your brain simply registered the sound as familiar. Then a second passed. Then another. And suddenly your head snapped up.
For a brief moment you genuinely convinced yourself you were imagining things. The possibility would’ve been less embarrassing than the alternative. Slowly, you stepped around the end of a bookshelf and glanced down the next aisle. Immediately, your stomach betrayed you.
Because standing near the back of the store was Seonghyeon. Not somebody who looked like him. It was him. Seeing him here felt like spotting a teacher at the grocery store. Not wrong exactly, just unsettling enough to force your brain to restart.
He was standing beside a rolling cart filled with books, listening while the owner explained something. Every now and then he would nod before reaching over to place another book onto a shelf. Judging by how comfortably he moved around the store, this clearly wasn’t his first time here. Then the owner noticed you. His face brightened instantly. “Y/n.”
Oh great, Seonghyeon was turning around too. For a second, surprise crossed his face. Then he smiled. The same smile that had become increasingly dangerous for your emotional wellbeing over the past few months.
“Hey.’’
It still managed to make your heart forget how to function. The owner looked between the two of you before immediately deciding this was the most entertaining thing that had happened all week.
“You two know each other?”
The silence that followed felt unnecessarily heavy. Technically, the answer was simple. Still, none of you spoke immediately. Eventually Seonghyeon answered first. “We go to school together.”
The owner looked unconvinced. You understood why. Because there was something suspicious about the way Seonghyeon had smiled while saying it. As if the answer was technically true. Just not the entire truth.
The owner eventually disappeared toward the front of the store after receiving a late delivery, leaving the two of you alone with several half empty shelves and a cart stacked with books that apparently needed to be reorganized before closing. The task itself wasn’t particularly difficult, but the aisle he had assigned you to was.
It was narrow enough that every time one of you moved, the other had to adjust accordingly. At first neither of you paid much attention to it. The conversation flowed naturally. It should have felt normal. In theory, it was normal. Still, somewhere between reaching for the same stack of novels and arguing over whether a book belonged in the mystery section or literary fiction, you became increasingly aware of how little space actually existed between the two of you.
You noticed gradually rather than all at once. One moment you were focused on sorting books, the next you found yourself noticing things that shouldn’t have mattered. The sleeves of Seonghyeon’s hoodie were pushed up to his forearms. His hair kept falling into his eyes every few minutes. Every time it did, he would push it back before continuing whatever he was doing. It wasn’t remarkable.
It wasn’t even interesting. Yet for some reason, your attention kept returning to it. Across from you, Seonghyeon wasn’t doing much better. He had spent the last several weeks trying very hard not to think too deeply about certain things, only to discover that being alone with you outside school made that task significantly more difficult. At school there were distractions. Friends, classes, teachers, noise. Here there was only the soft hum of the bookstore, the occasional turning page from a customer somewhere in the distance, and you.
You reached for a book resting near the top shelf at the exact same moment Seonghyeon stepped forward to place another back in its place. Neither of you noticed the timing until it was already too late. The aisle was far too narrow for both movements to happen at once. One second you were focused entirely on the shelf in front of you, the next you found yourself stopping abruptly as Seonghyeon did the same. Far too close.
You hadn’t walked into him. Neither of you had. Yet somehow the distance between you had disappeared anyway. The narrow aisle had trapped both of you in the same small space and now neither of you could move without brushing past the other. Instinctively, you took a small step backward. Though, your shoulder bumped lightly against the bookshelf behind you, leaving nowhere else to go. The movement seemed to catch Seonghyeon’s attention. His eyes flickered toward you before immediately looking away again. Then back. That was worse.
Because now he was actually looking at you. Not casually. Not the way he normally did. The kind of look that lasted a second too long. The kind that made you suddenly aware of every inch separating you.
Neither of you moved. Somewhere outside, a car passed by. Somewhere inside, somebody turned a page. Neither sound felt real. Not compared to this. Not compared to the fact that Seonghyeon was standing close enough for you to notice details you never should have been able to notice. The faint scent of his cologne. The slight rise and fall of his breathing. The way his gaze kept dropping for the briefest moments before returning to your eyes again.
Seonghyeon wasn’t doing much better. A normal person would have stepped away by now. That was the logical thing to do. The obvious thing. Yet for some reason, neither of them seemed capable of being the first one to move. His hand was still resting against the shelf above your shoulder. Not touching you. Close enough that it felt like it.
Close enough that every rational thought in his head had abruptly stopped functioning. He couldn’t even remember what book he had been reaching for. Couldn’t remember what either of you had been talking about thirty seconds ago. All he knew was that you were looking up at him and that suddenly felt like a very torturous thing. The silence stretched. Your eyes dropped briefly, then lifted again.
Mistake.
Because the second your gaze met his again, something shifted. Neither of you moved, yet the distance felt smaller than before. Small enough that for one completely irrational second, the possibility crossed both of your minds at the same time. And judging by the way Seonghyeon’s breathing faltered, he knew it too.
The sound of a stack of books being dropped somewhere near the front counter shattered the moment instantly. Both of you stepped back so fast it almost hurt.
The rest of the evening felt strangely disconnected after that.
You had left the bookstore not long after, mumbling some excuse about needing to get home before it got too late. The owner had teased you for leaving earlier than usual, but you barely remembered what you had said in response. Your brain had been somewhere else entirely.
The walk home should’ve felt familiar. You had taken the same route hundreds of times before. The same streets. The same convenience store on the corner. The same traffic lights that always seemed determined to turn red at the worst possible moment. Yet everything felt slightly off, as if somebody had shifted the world half an inch to the left without telling you.
The problem was that your brain had apparently become incapable of behaving normally whenever he was involved. Every time you replayed the evening, you found yourself stopping at the same moment. Your thoughts kept drifting there on their own. The narrow aisle. The silence. The way neither of you had moved. The way you suddenly became aware of absurd things you never paid attention to before, like how close he was standing or how easy it would’ve been to reach out and touch him.
Meanwhile, Seonghyeon made it approximately twelve minutes before realizing he was completely screwed.
The bookstore owner had eventually returned to find him standing in the wrong aisle holding a book he had already shelved three separate times. Seonghyeon wasn’t usually the type to get distracted. If anything, one of the things people liked most about him was how calm he was under pressure. Football matches didn’t stress him out, presentations didn’t stress him out. Exams stressed him out a little, but not enough to make him lose sleep. One interaction with y/n had completely destroyed his ability to focus. The owner had asked him a question and Seonghyeon had stared at him for three seconds before realizing he had not heard a single word.
Every time he thought he had moved on, he would remember some tiny detail and immediately get distracted again. The way she looked up at him. The way she froze. The fact that neither of them had stepped away immediately. That part bothered him most. A normal person would’ve moved. A normal person would’ve laughed it off and continued shelving books. Instead, they had both just stood there staring at each other like complete idiots until somebody dropped books near the front counter and snapped them back to reality.
The days after the bookstore felt strangely normal on the surface and completely unbearable underneath. Y/n would be halfway through listening to Haejin before suddenly remembering the look on Seonghyeon’s face in that aisle and immediately losing track of the conversation. Seonghyeon wasn’t doing much better. Looking for y/n had somehow become a habit. Not a conscious one. His eyes just seemed to find her automatically now, and what bothered him most wasn’t seeing her. It was when he couldn’t.
By Thursday afternoon, students flooded out of their classrooms as the bell rang. Conversations echoed through the hallways while people pushed toward their next lesson. Seonghyeon was walking with his friends, half listening to whatever argument Keonho was currently having, when he spotted y/n a little ahead. She was walking through the crowd. He didn’t think about it. Not really. The words left his mouth before his brain had the opportunity to intervene.
‘’You coming this friday?’’ The second he said it, she turned around.
‘’What?’’
Seonghyeon blinked, for a moment neither spoke.
‘’Where?’’
And suddenly every functioning thought in Seonghyeon’s head disappeared. Apparently, he had skipped an entire conversation.
‘’You know..’’ He started. No, obviously she didn’t know.
‘’The game.’’ She stared. ‘’The football game?’’
‘’Yeah.’’ Only now did Seonghyeon realize how insane this looked. They had never actually discussed her coming. Not once. For some reason though, it had already become a possibility in his head.
‘’Oh.’’ The hallway suddenly felt far too crowded. ‘’You don’t have to.’’ The words came out faster than he intended and he immediately regretted them, because now it sounded like he didn’t care. Which wasn’t true. Not even remotely. ‘’You could- you-‘’ He paused, then looked at her. Actually looked at her. ‘’I’d like it if you did.’’
Y/n’s heart had stopped functioning. There was no reason that sentence should’ve affected her the way it did. It wasn’t a confession. It wasn’t even flirting. Yet standing there in the middle of a crowded hallway, it felt dangerously close to something else. And suddenly she realized he actually meant it.
He wanted her there. A smile threatened to appear, she fought it immediately and failed. ‘’Okay.’’ The answer came out softer than she had intended.
Something shifted in Seonghyeon’s expression. The tension in his shoulders eased and the smallest smile appeared.
By the time you arrived, most of the stadium was still empty. The match wasn’t starting for another hour, leaving the school caught in that strange period between preparation and chaos. Staff moved equipment across the field, a few students wandered through the entrance gates and somewhere deeper inside the athletic building, the football team was getting ready. You honestly hadn’t planned on coming this early. At least, that was what you kept telling yourself. The hallway leading toward the locker rooms was nearly deserted when you spotted him.
Seonghyeon was standing beside a row of lockers, already dressed in his uniform, one hand resting against the metal door while he searched through his bag for something. For a moment, you simply watched. It felt unfair how normal he looked. Like he hadn’t spent the last few weeks slowly becoming the cause of half your problems.
Maybe he felt you staring, because a second later he looked up and smiled. Not the polite smile. Not the one he gave teachers. The real one. The one that always seemed to appear before he could stop it.
“You know the game’s not starting for another hour, right?” The greeting caught you off guard.
“What, you’re kicking me out already?”
“No,” he said immediately, a little too quickly.
“I’m just trying to figure out why you’re here this early.”
You adjusted the strap of your bag. “Maybe I have nothing better to do.”
“That’s depressing.” You stared at him.
“You’re about to play an important match.”
“And you’re making fun of me.”
“I’m helping you stay humble.” A laugh escaped him, and for a moment neither of you said anything else. The conversation should’ve ended there. It didn’t. For some reason, Seonghyeon was still standing there. For some reason, you were too.
“You nervous?” you asked eventually.
“About the game?” You nodded.
“Unless you’re secretly taking a math exam afterwards.” His smile returned.
“A little.” The answer surprised you, it sounded genuine.
“You?” he asked. You frowned. “What?”
“Nervous.”
“Why would I be nervous?” Something shifted in his expression. “Good question.” The look he gave you made your stomach drop because suddenly it didn’t feel like you were talking about football anymore.
The silence that followed wasn’t awkward. That was the problem. It felt too easy. Too comfortable. The kind of silence that only happened when you genuinely liked being around someone. You looked away first, which immediately turned out to be a mistake because the second you did, you became aware of how close he was standing. Not close enough to be strange. Close enough to matter. When you looked back up, Seonghyeon was already looking at you.
Neither of you moved. Neither of you spoke. The hallway felt quieter than before, and you couldn’t remember what you had been about to say. His gaze dropped for the briefest second before lifting again. The movement was tiny. It still made your heart nearly stop. For the first time since you had met him, Seonghyeon looked completely thrown off, like he was realizing something at the exact same time you were.
The realization hung between you. Neither of you acknowledged it. Neither of you looked away. The distance somehow felt smaller now. A lot smaller. You weren’t sure whether one of you had stepped forward or if you had simply stopped paying attention to everything except him. Seonghyeon let out a quiet breath. His eyes flickered down again. This time neither of you pretended not to notice. The moment stretched. One second. Two. Three. Long enough for your pulse to start racing. Long enough for him to look like he’d completely forgotten where he was.
Long enough that if either of you moved even slightly-
“SEONGHYEON!”
The shout echoed through the hallway, making both of you jump apart so fast it was embarrassing. A teammate appeared around the corner. “Coach is looking for you.” Seonghyeon genuinely looked annoyed. Actually annoyed. Which somehow made everything worse.
“Yeah.” he muttered. The teammate disappeared again, leaving the two of you standing there in the aftermath of something neither of you seemed willing to acknowledge.
Then Seonghyeon rubbed the back of his neck and let out a short laugh. “I should probably go before he benches me.”
“Probably.”
Then he looked at you properly. Not past you. Not around you. At you.
‘’Stay until the game finishes.’’
You blinked.
‘’What?’’
‘’You came all the way here, it’d be rude to leave earlier.’’ The excuse was terrible, both of you knew it. You were smiling. You gave him a reassuring hum. His own smile softened.
The whistle blew before you were ready for it.
Almost immediately, the atmosphere shifted. The scattered conversations around the stadium disappeared beneath the sound of cheering as both teams surged forward. Whatever relaxed energy had existed before kickoff vanished entirely. Suddenly everything felt louder. Faster. More important. You tried focusing, you really did.
For the first few minutes, your attention stayed where it was supposed to. The ball moved rapidly across the field, players weaving around each other while the crowd reacted to every near miss and interception. It was impossible not to get caught up in it. Even people who barely cared about football seemed invested tonight.
Then your thoughts wandered. Without warning, your mind dragged you back to the hallway. To the silence. To the way Seonghyeon had looked at you. A collective groan erupted from the crowd. You blinked. Apparently you missed something.
“That would’ve been such a good goal!’’ Haejin complained beside you.
“Are you even watching?’’
‘’I am.’’
‘’You’re not!’’
Before you could argue, the game resumed and your attention returned to the field. This time it stayed there for a while.The match itself was good. Really good. Both teams were evenly matched which only made the atmosphere more intense. Every attack felt intense. Every mistake earned a reaction from the crowd. By the time twenty minutes had passed, even you had stopped pretending not to care. A player from the opposing team broke through the defense. The stadium collectively held its breath. The shot missed by centimeters and the entire crowd exploded. Students jumped to their feet.
And before you realized it, you were standing too. For a moment, you just stared then slowly sat back down.
Huh. Maybe football wasn’t completely boring.
The final minutes of the match passed in a blur. The score was tied. Every touch of the ball seemed to pull a reaction from the crowd, every mistake earning groans and every opportunity drawing people to the edge of their seats. Even students who barely cared about football were standing now. The atmosphere had become infectious. Somewhere beside you, Haejin had completely abandoned any attempt at acting normal. She was half standing, half leaning over the railing, reacting to every play as if her life depended on it.
The clock was running down when Seonghyeon received the ball near midfield. The crowd immediately reacted. Maybe it was because everybody trusted him. Whatever the reason, the second he moved forward thousands of eyes followed. Including yours. The play happened so quickly you barely had time to process it. A pass. A turn. Somebody shouting. Then suddenly the ball hit the back of the net. The stadium exploded, the noise that had erupted was unbelievable.
Students jumped to their feet. Teammates rushed across the field. People screamed loud enough to make your ears ring. Somewhere beside you, Haejin grabbed your shoulders and started shaking you like she had personally scored the goal herself. You laughed in surprise.
The first thing Seonghyeon did after his teammates swarmed him was lift his head and look at you. The distance between you was enormous. The field, the track, hundreds of people, yet he found you.
The final whistle blew moments later. The match was over. The celebration wasn’t. Students immediately flooded toward the exits, some heading for the field while others crowded around friends and teammates. The entire stadium seemed alive with movement. You lingered for a while, letting people pass before eventually gathering your things.
You weren’t entirely sure where you were going. Only that suddenly being surrounded by hundreds of people felt overwhelming. The night air was cooler outside the stadium. The noise became quieter with every step until it faded into the background completely. For the first time all evening, you were alone with your thoughts.
You had almost reached the corner of the building when you heard footsteps behind you. You turned around, it was Seonghyeon. He was still wearing his uniform, still slightly out of breath. He looked at you, the corners of Seonghyeon’s mouth lifted first.
“You were leaving.”
You laughed softly.
“Why does everybody keep accusing me of that?”
“Because you keep doing it.”
“I wasn’t.”
“You were.”
Maybe you would’ve argued. Maybe you would’ve defended yourself. You found yourself smiling instead. The noise from the stadium felt distant now. The world seemed smaller somehow. Reduced to the stretch of pavement between the two of you and the fact that neither of you seemed interested in leaving.
A group of students passed somewhere behind Seonghyeon still loud from the match, still arguing over goals and missed opportunities and who deserved credit for the win. One of them called his name. Normally he would’ve responded automatically. You had seen it happen a hundred times before. Yet he didn’t even turn around. His attention never left you. Something about that made your stomach flip.
For months, Seonghyeon had existed in constant motion. Surrounded by teammates, friends, conversations. There was always somebody looking for him. Always somewhere else he needed to be. Now, after one of the biggest matches of the season, after scoring the winning goal, after spending two hours being pulled in every direction, he was standing here looking at you like the rest of the world had become background noise.
The smile on Seonghyeon’s face faded slightly. Your pulse sped up immediately, you knew. Not what he was thinking, not exactly. However, you knew this moment mattered.
The distance between you felt ridiculous, like it was the only thing both of you could focus on. Every second stretched longer than it should have. Your heart was beating so hard, you became painfully aware of it.
Seonghyeon took a step forward. You hated how quickly your breath caught. You hated how your eyes immediately dropped before finding his again. You hated that he noticed. You were standing close enough to notice details you never should’ve noticed. The faint flush lingering across his cheeks from the match. The way his hair had fallen messily across his forehead. The fact that he looked just as overwhelmed as you felt.
Your hand found the sleeve of his jersey before you even realized what you were doing. The second your fingers curled around the fabric, Seonghyeon’s eyes dropped to your hand. Then back to you. Something in his expression completely softened. Then finally, after a dreadful amount of missed chances and interrupted moments and terrible timing,
Seonghyeon kissed you.
The football field, the crowd, the noise from the stadium, all of it disappeared into the background until there was nothing left except the overwhelming realization that this was actually happening. The kiss wasn’t rushed, it felt like both of you had spent so long circling around this moment that neither of you quite knew what to do once you had reached it. Your grip tightened slightly against his jersey without meaning to, and something about that made his hand find yours.
You had spent weeks turning Seonghyeon into a problem inside your head. Something complicated. Something impossible to ignore. Yet standing here now, there was nothing complicated about it.
Then, your lips crashed against his. Off-center at first, your nose bumping his jaw accidentally before you corrected. You were pulling him closer. Seonghyeon had reacted immediately, his hands reached to cup your face delicately. His lips were warm and softer than you had expected for a boy who felt so intimidating and cold at first. The contrast sent something sharp down your spine.
He shifted one of his hands to your waist, the touch light at first, like he was questioning if you’d pull away. You didn’t, you kissed him harder. He tilted his head, adjusting the angle, and suddenly the kiss fit differently, better, deeper. His chest was pressed against yours. Your heart was pounding, he could feel it. Or maybe it was his own heart.
His thumb was brushing along your cheekbone, tilting your face up to meet his more fully. He kissed you properly now, he matched your energy. He kissed you until his lips were numb, he kissed you with genuine love. He kissed you like he was trying to get inside your skin. He was a mess for you. He took over the pacing, guiding slowly through it.
At some point, neither of you seemed to care how long you had been standing there. When you finally pulled apart, it wasn’t because either of you wanted to. It was because breathing had become somewhat important. The distance between you barely existed. Seonghyeon’s hand remained at your waist, his forehead nearly brushing yours as both of you tried to remember how to function.
You simply looked at each other. Weirdly, after months of wondering and guessing and pretending not to notice, that felt like enough. For the first time since all of this started, neither of you had to question it anymore.
Seonghyeon liked you.
You liked Seonghyeon.
And after everything it had taken to get here, It felt so good.
The next morning felt strangely normal. The school building was still crowded. Students still dragged themselves through the hallways half awake. Somewhere down the corridor, Martin was already being unnecessarily loud before first period had even started.
He was greeting everyone with the biggest smile plastered across his face, he was way too happy at 8:30 in the morning. Not as happy as you though. Your cheeks hurt, genuienly hurt reaching the main building. Everytime you remembered yesterday, another smile appeared before you could stop it. You were very warm, you just hoped it wasn’t obvious externally.
‘’You look happy.’’
You looked up, Seonghyeon was standing beside your locker. Immediately your smile got worse, a strange feeling in your stomach had come from nowhere when you looked at him.
‘’Hi.’’
He smiled.
His hand found yours so naturally it almost sent shivers through your body. His fingers slipping through yours as though they’d belonged there since forever. The action sent a completely unreasonable amount of warmth through your chest.
the two of you started walking toward your classroom. The hallway buzzed with conversation around you, people moving in every direction. A few students greeted Seonghyeon as they passed. He greeted them back automatically. Everything felt familiar. Yet every few steps your attention drifted toward your joined hands again. It was such a small thing.
“You know,” Seonghyeon said after a moment, glancing sideways, “you look less tired today.” You immediately narrowed your eyes. “You said I looked tired.”
“I said you were tired.”
“No.’’
“I meant it differently.”
“Sure.”
You tried very hard not to smile. Failed immediately. Beside you, Seonghyeon looked equally hopeless. The two of you reached your classroom far too quickly. Students were already filtering inside. The bell would ring any minute now. Neither of you seemed particularly eager to acknowledge that. Eventually, Seonghyeon stopped outside the door.
“So.”
‘’So.’’
A smile appeared, and a matching one answered it. Then Seonghyeon sqeezed your hand once before letting you go.
Synopsis : In a reality where instead of being idols, Cortis is a group of friends who decided to start a YouTube channel, gaining popularity fast! Their newest video includes them baking a cake and doing the hear me out cake trend, but then it gets even more chaotic than it usually is..
Content : YouTuber! Cortis x content creator! User
Brother! Martin x Sister! User
Pairing: Keonho x f! user
wk; 500 ss: 5
navigation
The cake was…horrible to say the least. It looked more like another substance instead of a cake, especially because it had the imprint of a fist in the middle where James decided to punch it to see ‘if it was sturdy’
“Okay who’s first”
Martin said, everyone holding their little hear me out cutouts, each one stuck onto a toothpick. Martin and Keonho already couldn’t stop smiling, trying not to laugh and it hadn’t even started yet.
“I’ll go”
Juhoon said, putting on the nonchalant act as he walked up to the front.
“Hear me out, tres leches cake.”
Everyone looked at him for a second, before arguing almost immediately erupted but it was just everyone yelling out a comment.
“That’s food?!!-“
“That doesn’t even count”
“Okay Juhoon with his nonch ass”
“OKAY NEXT”
Martin blurted, hitting his hip against Juhoon’s to push him out the frame.
Juhoon had gone flying into James, making Seonghyeon burst out laughing.
“Okay hear me out..miss frizzle from the magic school bus”
“Whaaatt?” Keonho said with a brow raise
“No I get it bro” James said, dapping Martin.
“Okay I’m next, hi everyone it’s James and hear me-“
“You didn’t have to introduce yourself dumb fuck” Keonho said, a little sassy but clearly teasing given he was smiling ear to ear.
“Excuse me?” James said, already giving him a look that shut up Keonho.
“Sorry!-“
“Anyways, hear me out, the cat in the hat”
“Bro just say you’re into furries-“
The video cuts off with James about to punch Seonghyeon in the face.
“Hi we’re back.”
Juhoon says to the camera, before everyone comes back into frame with smiles that looked more forced, standing stiffly.
“Okay Seonghyeon your turn”
“Okay..hear me out.. um wait I forgot the name-“
“SEONGH-“
The scene cuts again
“Okay hear me out, Kamala Harris. Just hear me out.”
He said it with a serious look on his face as he looked back at everyone, which just made everyone laugh at him.
“Okay my turn!”
“Keonho looks way too giddy” Juhoon said while looking at Keonho move up to the front, puffing his chest out a little which just made him look giddier.
“Yeah what he smiling for”
“Can we ban the long one,”
“Hey!”
“Anyways hear me out..”
He said with a mischievous smile, slowly turning around the paper and putting it into the cake at the very front and center.
He hadn’t said the name, so everyone had stopped to get closer, squinting their eyes to see through the lens.
The realization set in at the same time for everyone while Keonho stood there smiling too proudly.
Juhoon’s eyes widened and he stepped back to laugh
James had immediately started cackling
Seonghyeon covered his mouth with his fist as he laughed
Martin’s eyes had widened as he started yelling
“THATS MY SISTER-“
A/n : Aaaand thats a wrap, my first oneshot!! Please ignore the dates and times lol but this oneshot is super cute and a little rushed since the idea just came to me randomly and I decided to do it, I hope people like this though !! And please send me any requests, I need ideas loll
장면: You wake up to an empty bed, only to find Seonghyeon standing in front of the bathroom mirror, toothbrush in his mouth and phone in hand, shamelessly taking a selfie in the middle of brushing his teeth. Teasing him turns into a playful morning routine, complete with sleepy hugs, stolen glances, and one promise he refuses to break...
No kisses until he finishes brushing.
𝟐,𝟓𝟒𝟕 / 𝟏𝟓,𝟏𝟗𝟒 ✶ 𝐛𝐨𝐲𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝!𝐬𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐡𝐲𝐞𝐨𝐧 x 𝐟!𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 ★ cool in selfies. hopeless around you.
𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 : fluff. established relationship. domestic mornings. bathroom mirror selfies. sleepy reader. playful teasing. cooking breakfast together. forehead touches. soft kisses. boyfriend seonghyeon. no plot, just two people hopelessly in love.
a/n : fun fact: this entire fic exists because i saw one picture of seonghyeon brushing his teeth. that's it. that's literally the origin story. i don't know either. kisses >ᴗ<
♫ playing ... 01. Best Part — H͟.͟E͟.͟R͟ ͟f͟t͟ ͟D͟a͟n͟i͟e͟l͟ ͟C͟a͟e͟s͟a͟r͟ ͟
✉️ 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐞𝐥𝐨 : if you want to request stories just ask me !
` 𓍼🌻 𝐞𝐥𝐨'𝐬 𝐲𝐚𝐩 "What is the thought process of writers who write romance stories but are single?" idk man. I'm the only single person in our cof 💔
The first thing you noticed when you woke up was the empty space beside you.
Your hand instinctively reached across the mattress, fingertips brushing over cool sheets instead of the familiar warmth you were expecting.
"...Hm."
You blinked a few times, still too sleepy to fully process it.
Seonghyeon was usually the one who woke up first, but he almost never left the bed without pulling you a little closer first. If anything, he'd stay there for another ten minutes just because you were still asleep beside him.
Today, though...
Nothing.
You slowly pushed yourself upright, rubbing one eye with the sleeve of your oversized shirt before looking around the bedroom.
The curtains were only halfway open, letting soft morning sunlight spill across the wooden floor. The apartment was unusually quiet, save for the faint hum of the air conditioner.
"...Seonghyeon?"
No answer.
You stretched lazily before sliding off the bed, dragging your feet across the floor as you wandered out of the bedroom.
The kitchen was empty.
No breakfast.
No coffee.
Not even the sound of the kettle.
"...Where did he go?"
You frowned.
It wasn't like him to leave without saying anything.
As you continued down the hallway, a faint sound finally reached your ears.
A quiet electric buzzing.
Followed by running water.
"...Bathroom?"
You padded toward the slightly opened door, curiosity getting the better of you.
The moment you peeked inside...
"..."
"...Seriously?"
There he was.
Standing in front of the bathroom mirror with his hair still messy from sleep, an oversized white shirt hanging loosely over gray sweatpants.
A toothbrush rested between his lips.
Instead of brushing...
He was holding his phone up with one hand, angling it just enough to catch the morning light pouring through the small frosted window.
Tap.
Another picture.
He tilted his head slightly.
Tap.
"..."
You leaned against the doorframe, watching in complete silence.
Tap.
"...Seonghyeon."
He froze.
Slowly, his eyes lifted from the screen until they met yours through the mirror.
Neither of you said anything.
Then...
Without taking the toothbrush out of his mouth...
He gave you an awkward little wave.
You couldn't hold it in anymore.
A laugh slipped out almost immediately.
"Did you seriously stop brushing your teeth just to take selfies?"
He blinked once before casually shrugging.
Like it wasn't strange at all.
You walked into the bathroom, folding your arms across your chest.
"I leave you alone for five minutes and you're having a photoshoot?"
He looked back at the mirror, studying the picture on his screen before turning it toward you.
The angle actually wasn't bad.
"...Not terrible," you admitted.
His eyes noticeably brightened.
Then, finally pulling the toothbrush from his mouth, he spoke.
"I wanted to send you one."
"You..."
You stared at him.
"...Wanted to send me a picture?"
He nodded as though the answer was obvious.
"You were sleeping."
"So?"
"I didn't want to wake you."
"...So instead..."
"I took a selfie."
"...While brushing your teeth."
"...Yeah."
A laugh escaped you again.
"You are unbelievable."
He only smiled before slipping the toothbrush back into his mouth, continuing to brush as if the conversation had never happened.
You watched him for another moment.
Even half-awake, standing there with toothpaste foam at the corner of his lips and his hair sticking up in every direction...
He somehow still looked ridiculously handsome.
Which was honestly unfair.
"You know..." you mumbled.
He glanced over.
"...Most people finish brushing first."
"Hm?"
"Then take the selfie."
He considered it for exactly two seconds before shaking his head.
"No."
"No?"
"The lighting changes."
"..."
"...You're impossible."
He gave you an innocent smile through the mirror.
You rolled your eyes, though the smile tugging at your own lips completely betrayed you.
Crossing the small distance between you, you stopped just behind him.
For a second, neither of you spoke.
You simply looked at his reflection.
He looked at yours.
Then, almost without thinking, you wrapped your arms loosely around his waist.
The movement caught him slightly off guard.
His brushing slowed.
"...Morning," you mumbled against his back.
A soft sound escaped him.
More of a hum than a reply.
His free hand instinctively settled over yours, thumb lazily tracing the back of your fingers while he continued brushing with the other.
No teasing.
No dramatic reaction.
Just quiet comfort.
You rested your cheek against the back of his shoulder, eyes slowly drifting closed again.
"...You're warm."
His shoulders bounced slightly with a silent chuckle.
Still brushing.
Still holding your hand.
The apartment remained peaceful.
Only the soft brushing sounds, the occasional drip from the faucet, and the steady rhythm of both your breathing filled the room.
It wasn't exciting.
Nothing extraordinary was happening.
Yet somehow...
These quiet mornings always became your favorite part of the day.
Because moments like this reminded you that love didn't always have to be grand gestures or elaborate dates.
Sometimes...
It looked like your boyfriend brushing his teeth while letting you cling to him from behind.
And somehow...
That was more than enough.
Eventually, Seonghyeon reached over to the sink, rinsing the toothbrush before setting it back in its holder.
He splashed a handful of cold water onto his face, blinking a few times as droplets rolled down his jaw.
You stayed exactly where you were.
Your arms were still loosely wrapped around his waist.
"...Comfortable?" he asked, grabbing a towel.
"Mhm."
"You've been using me as a pillow for five minutes."
"You smell nice."
He paused mid-motion.
"...I smell like toothpaste."
"And?"
"...Mint."
"I like mint."
A quiet laugh escaped him as he patted his face dry.
"You have strange standards."
"You've known that."
"I have."
He hung the towel back on its hook before turning around to face you.
The moment he did, your arms naturally slid from around his waist to rest around his neck instead.
Neither of you moved.
You simply looked at each other.
His damp hair curled slightly over his forehead from the water he'd splashed on himself, and tiny droplets still clung to the ends.
Without thinking, you reached up and brushed one away with your thumb.
"There."
"...Thanks."
You smiled.
"So..."
He tilted his head.
"What?"
"You interrupted my very important photoshoot."
You stared at him in disbelief.
"...You're serious?"
"I got two good pictures."
"Only two?"
"I deleted the other eight."
"You took ten?"
"Twelve."
"..."
"...One had bad lighting."
You burst into laughter.
"Twelve selfies before eight in the morning?"
"I was experimenting."
"With what?"
"Angles."
"You've lost it."
He shrugged.
"I was bored."
"You literally have me."
"I know."
"So why are you taking mirror selfies?"
He looked at you for a second before unlocking his phone.
Without saying anything, he held the screen toward you.
There it was.
A chat window.
Your chat window.
Unsurprisingly, there were dozens of pictures you'd both sent each other over the past few months.
Random sunsets.
Funny stickers.
Your failed attempts at making pancakes.
His gym selfies.
Your grocery haul.
A blurry picture of the two of you laughing so hard the camera couldn't focus.
Then...
The newest photo.
The one he'd just taken.
He tapped "send."
Your phone buzzed in your pocket almost immediately.
You pulled it out.
Seonghyeon
«good morning :)»
You looked back up at him.
"...You could've just walked into the bedroom."
"I could've."
"And said good morning."
"I could've."
"...Instead you texted me from the bathroom."
"I did."
"..."
"...I think it's cute."
You stared at him for another second before shaking your head with a smile.
"You're unbelievable."
"But you smiled."
"..."
"...That's not the point."
"It kind of is."
You couldn't even argue.
Because he was right.
You had smiled.
"You're lucky you're handsome."
"I know."
"Wow."
"I'm kidding."
"You better be."
"I am."
His grin softened as he slipped his phone into his pocket.
"So..."
"What?"
"Breakfast?"
Your stomach answered before you could.
A loud growl echoed through the bathroom.
You immediately covered your face.
"...Pretend you didn't hear that."
"I definitely heard that."
"It wasn't me."
"Oh?"
"It was... the pipes."
"The pipes?"
"Mhm."
"In your stomach?"
"Exactly."
He laughed so hard he had to lean against the sink.
"You are terrible at lying."
"I tried."
"You really did."
Still laughing quietly, he reached for your hand.
His fingers slipped between yours so naturally that neither of you acknowledged it anymore.
It had become second nature.
"Come on."
"Where?"
"I'm making breakfast."
"You?"
"You sound surprised."
"You almost burned toast last week."
"That was one time."
"You burned instant noodles."
"..."
"...That wasn't my fault."
"It absolutely was."
"I got distracted."
"By what?"
"You."
You blinked.
"...Me?"
"You called."
"So?"
"I wanted to answer."
"You were boiling noodles."
"I know."
"And forgot."
"I know."
"..."
"...Worth it."
You sighed dramatically.
"I should probably cook."
"You don't trust me?"
"I trust you."
"...Just not around the stove."
He gasped.
"I'm offended."
"You'll survive."
"I don't know..."
He squeezed your hand with the most pitiful expression he could manage.
"...Maybe I need compensation."
"Compensation?"
"Mhm."
"For emotional damage."
You narrowed your eyes.
"What exactly are you asking for?"
A tiny smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
"You know."
"I actually don't."
"You do."
"I don't."
He leaned forward ever so slightly.
"So you really don't know?"
You pretended to think about it.
"Hmm..."
"No idea."
He sighed dramatically, shoulders slumping in fake defeat.
"...I was hoping for a good morning kiss."
You instinctively leaned closer.
Only for him to raise a finger between your lips with a quiet chuckle.
"Ah-ah."
"What?"
He smiled.
"I just brushed my teeth..."
His eyes flickered toward the sink.
"...Well..."
He rubbed the back of his neck, looking almost sheepish.
"I still taste like toothpaste."
He looked back at you with that familiar gentle smile.
"...Morning kiss after the mint wears off?"
You stared at him for a moment before narrowing your eyes.
"...You're making me wait?"
"I am."
"You've made me wait long enough."
"It'll only be a minute."
"You said five minutes earlier."
"I brushed faster."
"You still made me wait."
"I know."
You dramatically let go of his hand.
"I'm filing a complaint."
"Already?"
"Mhm."
"What for?"
"False advertising."
His brows knitted together in confusion.
"I woke up expecting a good morning kiss."
"And?"
"I got a toothbrush."
He couldn't help but laugh.
"I think that's worse."
"It is."
"I'll make it up to you."
"You better."
He smiled before gently nudging your shoulder toward the kitchen.
"Breakfast first."
"...Fine."
You followed him out of the bathroom, though not without pretending to grumble under your breath.
"I can't believe my own boyfriend rejected me."
"I didn't reject you."
"You kind of did."
"I postponed it."
"Still counts."
"It doesn't."
"It does."
"It doesn't."
"It absolutely does."
He only laughed, opening the refrigerator while you leaned against the counter with your arms folded.
"What are we making?"
"What do you want?"
"Hm..."
You pretended to think.
"Pancakes."
"Pancakes?"
"Mhm."
"You remember what happened last time?"
"You burned one."
"It was one pancake."
"It was black."
"It had... character."
"It looked like charcoal."
"It was edible."
"You didn't even eat it."
"..."
"...Moving on."
You giggled as he pulled ingredients from the refrigerator.
Despite insisting he could cook, he still looked over every few seconds.
"Flour?"
"Top cabinet."
"Milk?"
"Already on the counter."
"The spatula?"
"Drawer."
"You've memorized this kitchen."
"I practically live here."
"...True."
A comfortable silence settled between you again.
The kind that never felt awkward.
The kind that came from simply knowing each other.
You watched him whisk the batter with careful movements, occasionally stealing little glances your way whenever he thought you weren't looking.
Unfortunately for him...
You noticed every single one.
"You keep staring."
"I wasn't."
"You were."
"I was checking if you were hungry."
"You looked at me."
"I can do both."
"...Smooth."
"I try."
You smiled, resting your chin in your palm.
"You know..."
"Hm?"
"I like mornings with you."
He looked up.
"...Even this one?"
"Especially this one."
"You've spent half of it making fun of me."
"You deserved it."
"For taking a selfie?"
"For stopping mid-brush to take one."
"...Fair."
The pancakes were soon stacked neatly on two plates, topped with strawberries and a generous drizzle of syrup.
You both settled onto the couch instead of the dining table, knees brushing together as a random morning show played quietly in the background.
Halfway through breakfast, Seonghyeon noticed a tiny streak of syrup at the corner of your lips.
"...Hold still."
"Hm?"
He reached over instinctively, wiping it away with his thumb.
"There."
You blinked.
"...Thanks."
For a second, neither of you looked away.
The apartment felt unusually quiet again.
Sunlight spilled across the living room floor.
The coffee table was cluttered with breakfast plates.
Your phone buzzed somewhere beside you, neither of you bothering to check it.
It was peaceful.
"...The mint's gone."
You looked up.
"What?"
He smiled to himself before setting his fork down.
"The toothpaste."
"...Oh?"
"It's gone."
A tiny laugh escaped you.
"So..."
"So..."
He stood first before walking around the coffee table.
Stopping directly in front of you.
You tilted your head.
"What?"
"I believe..."
He gently offered you his hand.
"...Someone's been waiting very patiently."
You slipped your hand into his without another word.
He carefully pulled you to your feet until there was barely any space left between you.
"You know," he murmured.
"I almost forgot."
"You liar."
"I did."
"You absolutely did not."
"I didn't."
"I knew it."
"I wanted to hear you complain a little longer."
"You are unbelievable."
"And yet..."
His hands found your waist with practiced ease.
"...You still stayed."
You laughed quietly, shaking your head.
"I always will."
Something softened in his expression.
Not the teasing smile he'd been wearing all morning.
Something gentler.
Warmer.
Like hearing those three words without you actually saying them.
He brushed a loose strand of hair behind your ear before resting his forehead lightly against yours.
"...Ready?"
"For what?"
His smile returned.
"The thing you've been asking for since you woke up."
Your heart skipped.
"...Finally."
"Finally."
He closed the small distance between you, pressing a slow, lingering kiss against your lips.
No teasing.
No dodging.
No toothpaste.
Just a quiet good morning that somehow said everything neither of you needed to put into words.
When he pulled away, you couldn't help smiling.
"...Worth the wait."
"I told you."
"You were right."
"I usually am."
"Don't push it."
He laughed softly before stealing one more quick peck.
"That one was free."
"You charged me for the first one?"
"It was delayed shipping."
You groaned, hiding your face against his shoulder as he wrapped both arms around you.
"So cheesy."
"You love it."
"...Maybe."
"I heard that."
"I know."
His heartbeat was steady beneath your cheek.
Outside, the city was already beginning to wake.
Cars passed.
Neighbors chatted.
Someone walked their dog across the street.
The world kept moving.
But for just a little while longer...
Neither of you felt any rush to leave the warmth of each other's arms.
Because if every morning started like this—
With sleepy smiles, playful teasing, and a kiss that was well worth waiting for—
Then maybe waking up early wasn't so bad after all..
England lost, Heeseung left, f1 a mess, sunoo hiatus, messi still alive, newjeans gone, im constipated, tell me one good reason why I shouldn’t kill myself
๑ ° • ` 장면: Keonho may not bark, but he definitely follows you around, waits by the door, gets excited every time you come home, and thinks every problem can be solved with a hug.
𝟏,𝟑𝟏𝟕 / 𝟕,𝟓𝟖𝟒 ✶ 𝐛𝐨𝐲𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝!𝐊𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐡𝐨 𝐱 𝐟!𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 ★ if lost. return to girlfriend.
𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 : fluff. established relationship. golden retriever boyfriend. clingy keonho. domestic moments. physical touch. kisses. sleepy cuddles. lots of giggling. cavities.
𝐚/𝐧 : i fear i accidentally made him even more clingy than intended... not complaining tho. someone please find me a keonho before i start barking too. yeah hope u guys enjoy ts. kisses >ᴗ<
♫ playing ... Glue Song — B͟e͟a͟b͟a͟d͟o͟o͟b͟e͟e͟ ͟
✉️ 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐞𝐥𝐨 : no puppies were harmed while writing this. only my standards.
` 𓍼 🪼 𝐞𝐥𝐨'𝐬 𝐲𝐚𝐩 i genuinely believe keonho would follow his girlfriend into another room just to ask what she's doing.
🐶 puppy!keonho who somehow always ends up following you around without realizing he's doing it. You get up to refill your water bottle, and before you even make it to the kitchen, he's already standing beside you.
"...Did you need something?"
"Hm?"
"You followed me."
He blinks before looking around the kitchen.
"...Oh."
A pause.
"...I guess I did."
He genuinely has no idea when it happened. His feet just naturally decide that wherever you are is where he should be too.
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who never misses the chance to hold your hand.
Walking through the mall?
Hand.
Crossing the street?
Hand.
Standing in line at the convenience store?
Hand.
Even when you're sitting beside each other watching a movie, his fingers somehow find yours underneath the blanket.
Sometimes he doesn't even realize he's doing it until you softly laugh.
"What?"
"You've been holding my hand for twenty minutes."
"...Have I?"
"You have."
"...Oh."
He smiles sheepishly.
"...Can I keep holding it?"
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who absolutely melts whenever you praise him.
"You did so well today."
"...Really?"
His eyes light up immediately.
He tries so hard to play it cool, scratching the back of his neck while looking away, but the smile spreading across his face gives him away every single time.
"You're so cute."
"...Stop."
"But you like it."
"...Maybe."
The compliment stays in his head for the rest of the week.
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who greets you like you've been gone for months.
You leave the apartment for fifteen minutes to grab snacks from the convenience store.
The second the front door opens again—
"There you are."
He's already standing in the hallway waiting.
"...Keonho."
"What?"
"I literally left fifteen minutes ago."
"I know."
"..."
"...Missed you."
You can't even argue because he's already wrapping his arms around your waist.
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who unconsciously rests against you.
His head on your shoulder.
His arm around your waist.
His knee touching yours under the table.
He just likes knowing you're there.
If you move away for even a second—
"Where're you going?"
"The bathroom."
"...Oh."
"...I'll wait."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who becomes suspiciously quiet whenever you're playing with his hair.
His eyes slowly close.
His shoulders relax.
The conversation completely stops.
"...Keonho?"
"Hm?"
"You fell asleep, didn't you?"
"...No."
"You literally snored."
"...I was... resting my eyes."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who somehow always steals your hoodies.
"You have your own."
"I know."
"So why are you wearing mine?"
"...It smells like you."
"..."
"...I'm keeping it."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who gets offended whenever you choose homework over cuddling.
"I have to finish this assignment."
"...Now?"
"It's due tomorrow."
"...But I'm here."
"I know."
"So..."
"So... I still have homework."
He sighs dramatically before carefully laying his head across your lap anyway.
"Fine."
"I'll suffer quietly."
Five minutes later—
"Babe."
"Hm?"
"...Can I at least hold your hand while you study?"
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who always saves the last bite of his favorite food for you.
"You can have it."
"No, it's yours."
"I want you to try it."
"...But you love this."
"I love you more."
"..."
"...You're making it really hard to say no."
"I know."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who can't stay mad at you for longer than five minutes.
He'll cross his arms dramatically.
Look away.
Pretend he's upset.
Then quietly scoot closer.
"..."
"..."
"...Can I hug you now?"
"You said you were mad."
"...I changed my mind."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who always reaches for you in his sleep.
Some mornings you wake up practically trapped.
One arm around your waist.
One leg thrown over yours.
His face buried against your neck.
You try moving—
"No..."
His grip tightens.
"...Stay."
He's still asleep.
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who gets so excited whenever you come to his games or performances that everyone notices.
He's supposed to be warming up.
Instead...
His eyes are busy scanning the audience.
The second he spots you waving from your seat—
There it is.
That ridiculously bright smile.
His teammates don't even have to ask anymore.
"Your girlfriend's here, isn't she?"
"...Yeah."
"We can tell."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who genuinely believes every problem can be solved with a hug.
Bad day?
Hug.
Stress?
Hug.
Crying?
Two hugs.
No reason at all?
Still a hug.
"Come here."
"...Why?"
"I think you need one."
"I literally just had one."
"...You deserve another."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who smiles the biggest whenever he catches you looking at him.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"You were staring."
"I was admiring."
"...That's even worse."
"Worse?"
"My heart can't handle that."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who, if anyone ever asked what his favorite place in the world was, wouldn't say a country, a city, or a beach.
He'd simply smile.
Walk over to you.
Slip his hand into yours.
"...Here."
Because to him, home has never been a place.
It's always been you.
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who absolutely refuses to wake you up.
You'll sleep through three alarms.
Four missed calls.
Your roommate knocking on the bedroom door.
Meanwhile, Keonho is sitting quietly on the edge of the bed with your phone in his hand.
"...She looks comfortable."
When you finally wake up thirty minutes later—
"...Why didn't you wake me?!"
"You looked peaceful."
"I'M LATE."
"...Worth it?"
"...No."
"...Okay, maybe a little."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who somehow remembers every tiny thing you mention.
"I kinda miss those strawberry candies my grandma used to buy."
You don't think much of it.
Three weeks later, he walks into your apartment carrying a tiny convenience store bag.
"I FOUND THEM."
"..."
"...You remembered?"
"You said you missed them."
"...That was weeks ago."
"I know."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who always volunteers to carry everything.
Your tote bag.
Shopping bags.
Your jacket.
Your umbrella.
At one point you're literally just holding your phone.
"...Keonho."
"Hm?"
"You look like a pack mule."
"I know."
"...Give me one bag."
"No."
"I have two functioning arms."
"So do I."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who gets ridiculously competitive...
...only when you're involved.
You're playing Mario Kart together.
"I'll go easy on you."
"Oh?"
"You've never beaten me."
"...Bold of you to assume."
Ten minutes later—
"NO WAY."
You quietly place your controller down.
"I won."
"..."
"...Best two out of three?"
"You said you'd go easy on me."
"I lied."
"You little—"
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who loves taking candid pictures of you.
Not posed ones.
Not the perfectly planned photos.
He likes the ones where you're laughing so hard your eyes disappear.
The ones where you're reading without realizing he's watching.
The ones where you're tying your hair up while complaining about the heat.
His camera roll is full of them.
When you ask why—
"'Cause that's my favorite version of you."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who gets excited whenever someone compliments you.
"Your girlfriend's really pretty."
His entire face lights up.
"I KNOW."
"..."
"...She's amazing."
He talks about you like he personally won the lottery.
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who can't lie to save his life.
"Did you eat the cookies?"
"..."
"..."
"...Maybe."
"You've got chocolate on your face."
"...Oh."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho whose laugh is somehow contagious.
He starts giggling over the dumbest video imaginable.
You haven't even seen it yet.
But somehow...
You're already laughing too.
"Why're you laughing?"
"I don't know."
"You don't even know what's funny."
"I know."
"But your laugh is."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who unconsciously mirrors you.
You cross your legs.
A few seconds later...
So does he.
You sip your drink.
He reaches for his.
You lean against the couch.
Without thinking, he shifts into almost the exact same position.
"..."
"...Keonho."
"Hm?"
"...You're copying me."
"...I am?"
Neither of you noticed until you were sitting like twins.
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who always looks for your reaction first.
He gets a new haircut.
Everyone compliments him.
His friends whistle.
His mom says it suits him.
But none of that matters until he sees you.
"...Well?"
You smile.
"I like it."
"...Really?"
"It makes you look handsome."
He smiles so hard his cheeks hurt.
That was the only opinion he was waiting for.
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who absolutely loves lazy Sundays with you.
No dates.
No plans.
No dressing up.
Just staying in oversized pajamas, sharing snacks, arguing over what movie to watch, and accidentally falling asleep halfway through.
"Should we do something productive today?"
"..."
He looks over at you, already curled up against his side.
"...Nah."
"This is productive."
"How?"
"I'm spending time with my favorite person."
He says it so casually that it takes your brain a second to process.
"...You're so cheesy."
"You still smiled."
"...Shut up."
"I win."
—
🐶 puppy!keonho who never realizes how loved he is until you tell him.
"You know you're my favorite person, right?"
He pauses.
"...Really?"
You blink.
"Of course."
"I just..."
He scratches the back of his neck with a shy smile.
"...I like hearing you say it."
So you say it again.
And again.
Because if there's one thing you've learned about Keonho...
It's that no matter how much love you give him, he'll always look at you like it's the very first time he's ever received it.
ෆ ° • ` 장면: Martin acts all tough and swaggy around everyone else, but the second he's with you? He's all pouty, clingy, asking for kisses, and refusing to let go.
𝟐,𝟐𝟑𝟏 / 𝟏𝟑,𝟐𝟖𝟑 ✶ 𝐛𝐨𝐲𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝!𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧 × 𝐟!𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 ★ swag in public. clingy loser in private.
𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 : sweetness overload . public displays of affection . martin being a golden retriever disguised as the school's most intimidating senior . everyone suffering except the happy couple . lots of giggling . lots of hugging . lots of "one more minute." . cavities.
𝐚/𝐧 : first martin ff kinda nervous ... i haven't written a story in a while and i genuinely missed it. we're finally back tho YIPPEE!! i hope you guys enjoy sweet boy <3 kisses >ᴗ<
♫ playing ... Sweet Boy — M͟a͟l͟c͟o͟l͟m͟ ͟T͟o͟d͟d͟ ͟
✉️ 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐞𝐥𝐨 : the song has absolutely nothing to do with this fic (╥﹏╥) i literally looked at the title and said, "yup, martin."
` 𓍼 🍰 𝐞𝐥𝐨'𝐬 𝐲𝐚𝐩 forever yearning to have a boyfriend like martin cause I'll never have someone like him
A sharp yawn escaped your lips just as the final bell echoed through the school hallways.
The once quiet corridors immediately filled with students rushing out of their classrooms, conversations blending together into a familiar afternoon buzz. Lockers slammed shut one after another, teachers reminded everyone about Monday's assignments, and somewhere down the hall someone had already started playing music from a portable speaker.
You shoved your notebook into your bag with a tired sigh.
It had been one of those weeks.
Too many quizzes.
Too many assignments.
Too little sleep.
All you wanted now was to go home, shower, and spend the rest of the evening doing absolutely nothing.
You slipped your backpack over one shoulder before making your way outside, weaving through the crowd until you reached the school gates.
The warm afternoon breeze greeted you immediately.
Without really thinking about it, your eyes searched the crowd.
And there he was.
Martin.
He was standing a few meters away with one hand buried inside the pocket of his hoodie, lazily scrolling through his phone while waiting for his friends to finish talking. His expression was the same as always—calm, unreadable, almost bored. A few underclassmen walked past him, immediately lowering their voices the second they noticed him.
You couldn't help smiling.
People always reacted like that.
Nobody had actually seen Martin get angry before, but somehow he'd earned the reputation of being one of the most intimidating seniors in school.
Maybe it was the way he rarely smiled.
Maybe it was because he answered everything with a lazy "yeah" or "nah."
Or maybe it was because he always looked like he'd rather be anywhere else.
Whatever the reason was...
They couldn't have been more wrong.
Martin looked up from his phone.
The second his eyes found yours, something softened almost instantly.
The bored expression disappeared.
The corners of his lips lifted into the tiniest smile.
Then, without another thought, he started walking toward you.
Well...
Walking wasn't exactly the right word.
More like dragging his feet dramatically across the pavement.
By the time he reached you, he had already opened his arms.
"Babyyyy."
The word came out as one long whine before he wrapped both arms around your waist without the slightest bit of embarrassment.
You laughed, nearly losing your balance.
"Martin."
"Hm?"
"It's literally been six hours."
"I know."
He buried his face against your shoulder anyway.
"That's a long time."
You let out another laugh, gently poking his side.
"You saw me this morning."
"Still."
"You've been hugging me for..." You glanced at your watch dramatically. "...about fifteen seconds."
"Mhm."
"...Are you planning on letting go?"
"No."
"You've got guitar practice."
"I know."
"You'll be late."
"I know."
"...Martin."
"I know."
"So?"
"So..." He finally looked up at you, resting his chin on your shoulder instead. "Can I stay like this for another minute?"
His eyes met yours.
Those stupid puppy eyes.
You sighed dramatically.
"I hate when you do that."
"What?"
"The face."
"What face?"
"The one that makes me feel guilty."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"You absolutely do."
He smiled.
Not the tiny polite smile everyone else got.
Not the awkward smile teachers somehow managed to pull out of him.
A real one.
Bright enough that it made your chest feel warm.
"...Okay," you mumbled.
"You can hug me for another minute."
His smile somehow got even bigger.
"I knew you loved me."
"I never said that."
"You didn't have to."
"You are unbelievably confident."
"You make me confident."
You rolled your eyes, trying very hard not to smile.
"...That was smooth."
"I know."
"...Don't get used to it."
"I already am."
A loud whistle suddenly echoed from somewhere behind him.
"Ew."
Martin didn't even flinch.
Another voice joined in almost immediately.
"Can you two do this somewhere else? Some of us are trying to walk."
Martin lazily turned his head just enough to see his friends standing a few feet away.
Seonghyeon was trying—and failing—not to laugh.
Keonho looked like he'd witnessed the most embarrassing thing imaginable.
"You've been standing there for like two minutes," Keonho complained. "Move."
Martin looked at him blankly.
"No."
"You have practice."
"No."
"The teacher's literally waiting."
"No."
Keonho stared at him for a long second.
Then he looked at you.
"...Can you tell your boyfriend he's insufferable?"
You smiled innocently.
"I've been trying."
Martin immediately hugged you tighter.
"I'm being attacked."
"You deserve it."
"No, I don't."
"You absolutely do."
"I came here to love my girlfriend."
"You've been doing that for five minutes."
"I need more."
Keonho physically gagged.
"Oh my God."
Seonghyeon shook his head with a quiet laugh.
"I keep forgetting he acts like this around you."
You tilted your head.
"...Like what?"
"Like..." He searched for the right word before pointing at Martin, who was still clinging to you without shame.
"...That."
Martin frowned.
"What's wrong with that?"
"Nothing."
"There better not be."
"You literally looked like you were about to cry because she said you had to go to practice."
"I wasn't crying."
"You were pouting."
"I wasn't."
"You absolutely were."
Martin looked at you.
"...Was I pouting?"
You bit the inside of your cheek.
"...Maybe a little."
"A little?"
"Mhm."
He gasped dramatically.
"You betrayed me."
"I answered honestly."
"I thought we were a team."
"We are."
"So why'd you expose me?"
"Because it was funny."
"...Wow."
You laughed again, reaching up to fix a few strands of his messy hair that had fallen over his eyes during all the dramatic hugging.
The moment your fingers brushed against his forehead, Martin went completely still.
His eyes never left yours.
"What?"
He smiled softly.
"...Nothing."
"You keep saying that."
"I just like when you do that."
"Do what?"
"This."
He gently took your hand before pressing it against his cheek for a second.
Your heart nearly gave out.
"Martin..."
"Hm?"
"...Your friends are literally watching."
"I know."
"Aren't you embarrassed?"
He looked genuinely confused.
"Why would I be?"
"Because they're staring."
"They'll survive."
Keonho sighed loudly from behind him.
"I won't."
"I'm losing years off my life."
Seonghyeon chuckled.
"I told you."
"Told me what?"
"That he'd forget we existed the second he saw her."
Martin finally looked over his shoulder.
"Oh."
"...You guys are still here?"
Keonho blinked.
"...Still here?"
"I forgot."
"You forgot your own friends?"
Martin shrugged casually.
"I was busy."
"Doing what?"
He looked back at you before answering as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"...Looking at my girlfriend."
Keonho stared at him in complete disbelief.
"I actually can't stand you."
"You'll live."
"I hope guitar practice is miserable."
"It won't be."
"I hope you break a string."
Martin immediately frowned.
"...That's too far."
"You deserve it."
"No, I don't."
"Yes, you do."
You couldn't stop laughing.
Every single day it was the same thing.
The quiet, "too cool to care" Martin everyone knew somehow disappeared the second you were around.
And honestly...
You didn't think anyone would believe you if you told them.
Keonho looked like he was one sarcastic comment away from walking home by himself.
"I've seen enough," he muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Can we please leave before they start kissing in front of the school?"
"We're not kissing," you said, laughing.
Martin looked down at you.
"...Can we?"
Your eyes widened.
"...Martin."
"What?"
"...No."
"Oh."
He sounded genuinely disappointed.
From somewhere behind the group came a snort.
James had just walked out of the school building with his backpack slung over one shoulder, headphones hanging around his neck. He took one look at Martin practically glued to your side before bursting into laughter.
"There he goes."
Juhoon appeared beside him a second later, carrying two guitar cases.
"I knew we'd find him exactly like this."
James pointed dramatically at Martin.
"This is the guy people are scared of?"
Martin didn't even spare him a glance.
"I'm busy."
"You've been busy for ten minutes."
"I'm still busy."
James turned to you with the most serious expression imaginable.
"Does he...ever let go?"
You looked down at Martin's hand, still intertwined with yours.
"...Not really."
James slowly nodded.
"Wow."
"I know."
"He even texts me during lunch asking where you are."
Martin finally looked up.
"I do not."
"You literally sent me 'Have you seen my girlfriend?'"
"Because you were in the library."
"You thought I kidnapped her?"
"I didn't know."
James threw both hands into the air.
"See?!"
Juhoon laughed quietly before adjusting the guitar case on his shoulder.
"I still think my favorite was when he almost skipped rehearsal because she caught a cold."
Martin frowned.
"She was sick."
"It was a runny nose," Juhoon corrected.
"You were acting like she had six months left to live," James added.
Martin looked completely unashamed.
"She sneezed."
"...Everybody sneezes."
"She sneezed twice."
James stared at him.
"...You're unbelievable."
Martin simply shrugged.
"I care."
"I know you care," James replied. "I'm saying you care too much."
Martin tilted his head.
"I don't think that's possible."
Keonho immediately pointed at him.
"That sentence right there."
"Exactly!" James agreed.
Juhoon couldn't stop smiling.
"You know what's funny?"
"What?" you asked.
"The entire first semester..." He looked at you before chuckling to himself. "Martin swore he'd never date anyone."
James laughed.
"Oh my God, I forgot."
"You what?" you asked, raising an eyebrow.
Juhoon nodded.
"He kept saying relationships were distracting."
"'Too much effort,'" James quoted dramatically.
"'Waste of time,'" Keonho added.
"'I'm never becoming one of those clingy couples,'" Juhoon finished.
The three of them slowly turned toward Martin.
Who was...
Still holding your hand.
Still standing close enough that your shoulders touched.
Still absentmindedly tracing little circles across the back of your hand with his thumb.
James couldn't hold it in anymore.
"You lasted, what...?"
He pretended to think.
"...Two weeks?"
Martin sighed.
"I changed my mind."
"You changed your entire personality."
"I did not."
"You absolutely did."
James looked at you.
"Please tell me he wasn't this clingy when you first started dating."
You smiled.
"...Actually..."
Martin suddenly looked nervous.
"...Don't."
You glanced at him.
"You sure?"
He already knew where this was going.
"...Babyyyy."
"Nope."
James' eyes lit up immediately.
"Oh, this is gonna be good."
You tried not to laugh.
"The first time we held hands..."
Martin covered his face with one hand.
"...Please."
"...He wouldn't let go."
James gasped dramatically.
"No way."
"Even after I got on my bus."
Juhoon blinked.
"...Seriously?"
"He literally walked beside the bus window while we were waiting for it to leave."
Keonho bent over laughing.
"I REMEMBER THAT!"
"You do?" James asked.
"I thought he was saying goodbye normally."
Keonho pointed at Martin.
"He stood there looking like someone had just divorced him."
Martin groaned.
"It wasn't that bad."
"It was worse," Juhoon laughed.
"You looked like a lost puppy."
James wiped an imaginary tear from his eye.
"This is beautiful."
"It's embarrassing," Martin corrected.
"It is," James agreed. "For you."
Martin finally looked at you, cheeks faintly pink.
"...You're all making fun of me."
You smiled sweetly.
"A little."
"I thought you were on my side."
"I am."
"Then defend me."
"Hm..."
You pretended to think for a moment before smiling again.
"...No."
James immediately high-fived you.
"I like her."
"I liked her first," Martin mumbled.
"You don't own her."
"I know."
"...But she's my girlfriend."
The words came out so naturally that everyone went quiet for a second.
Martin didn't even seem to notice.
He just smiled to himself, giving your hand another gentle squeeze as if saying it out loud was enough to make him happy all over again.
James looked between the two of you before dramatically clutching his chest.
"I can't do this anymore."
Juhoon laughed.
"What now?"
"I'm happy for them."
"That's a good thing."
"No, it's making me feel lonely."
Keonho nodded in agreement.
"I've been third-wheeling these two since they started dating."
James sighed.
"One day..."
He pointed toward the sky.
"...I'll find someone who looks at me the way Martin looks at her."
Juhoon glanced at Martin, who was already looking at you again with that same soft expression.
synopsis: your father absolutely refuses to give martin his blessing for him to marry you, but fails to consider that martin just might marry you anyway.
word count: 3.0k
info+warnings: inspired by Rude, delinquent!martin, fluff, mild angst?, young marriage, sneaking around, climbing through windows, strict father, defiance, kissing
Martin should have known better than to believe that the man who hated his entire existence would suddenly change his mind.
"You must be out of your damn mind if you think I'd let you marry my daughter."
The words still rang in his ears as he walked away from your porch, the door slamming shut between him and your father's scowling face.
He couldn't blame the man, really. Martin knew what kind of person he was: a teenage delinquent that only gets himself into trouble, and would likely drag you straight into it sooner or later.
He himself still couldn't quite understand what about him had actually managed to win you over initially. You were everything he was not: a rule follower, an academic, someone with a much more promising future than the one Martin possessed. So how you found him to be anything other than a walking red flag was a mystery that kept him up at night.
He remembered the first time you'd spoken to him behind the gym in your second year of high school, his knuckles were bloody and his temper was still running hot. You'd appeared out of nowhere, holding out a crumpled napkin from the cafeteria.
"You're bleeding," you'd said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Not your problem," he'd muttered, trying to brush past you.
But you'd grabbed his wrist before he could fully turn the corner and pressed the napkin into his palm. "Just clean it up," you'd said. "You'll get blood on your shirt."
You then walked away, leaving him standing there with a bloody napkin and a strange feeling in his chest that he'd never quite managed to shake.
Martin had tried to push you away at first. He knew what people said about him: the troublemaker, the burnout, the kid who'd end up in juvie before graduation. He'd heard your father's warnings from across the street, loud enough to carry, "Stay away from that boy, Y/N. He's nothing but trouble."
Despite all of that you kept appearing.
You showed up at the diner where he worked, sitting in his section and ordering coffee you barely touched, just so you could talk to him during his break. You showed up at the auto shop, claiming your car needed an oil change, even though it was perfectly fine. You showed up at his apartment after he got suspended the second time, bringing takeout and a stubborn expression that said you wouldn’t leave under any circumstance.
"Why?" He’d finally asked you, exhausted and confused. "Why do you keep doing this? You know what I am. You've heard what everyone says."
You'd looked at him then, really looked, and said, "I see something they don't."
"What?"
"Someone who's trying."
And that was it. That was the moment Martin knew he was a goner.
It hadn't taken long for your father to work out that you had ignored all his prior warnings, though truly he should have realised it sooner.
You had been staying out much later than before, coming home with an almost lovesick grin. Your father knew you were in love—that wasn't hard to tell. Just in his own mind, the thought of you falling in love with the one boy he had forbidden you from even talking to was a concept so foreign, so utterly incomprehensible, that he simply refused to entertain it.
But the signs were all there. You'd rush through dinner just to get to your room and stare at your phone, waiting for a message whilst also deflecting his questions about your day with vague answers and quick subject changes.
It was only when your father found the crumpled napkin in your laundry with Martin's name scrawled on it in your handwriting, surrounded by tiny hearts, that the truth finally crashed down on him.
He'd confronted you that night, voice shaking with barely contained fury.
"Are you seeing that Martin boy?"
You'd looked at him, and for a moment, he only saw defiance in your gaze. "Yes," you'd said quietly. "I am."
The argument that followed was the worst you'd ever had. Your father had shouted until his voice went hoarse, listing every reason why Martin was wrong for you: his record, his reputation, his lack of prospects. You'd shouted back, defending him with a passion that only made your father angrier.
"He's not who you think he is, Dad. He's trying so hard. He's working two jobs, he's studying for school as best he can, he's—"
"He's a delinquent, Y/N. He's always been a delinquent, and he always will be. I won't let you throw your life away for someone like him."
"He's not a delinquent. He's just... he's just someone who never had anyone believe in him. Until me."
Your father had gone silent at that. Not because he agreed, but because he realised something crucial: you were in too deep. No amount of arguing would change your mind.
So he'd done the only thing he could think of. He'd banned you from seeing Martin, forbade you from leaving the house except for school and work, and took your phone, your laptop, everything that connected you to the outside world.
For a few weeks, it seemed to work. You and Martin had never shared a class at school, so he didn’t need to worry about that. Additionally, with so much surveillance surrounding you, you had practically given up even thinking of trying to find a way around it.
That was until one night a few weeks later when you were laying under the covers of your bed, staring at the ceiling with not a thought on your mind when the sound of something knocking on your window echoed through the room.
You sat up, heart pounding, and stared at the window. The blinds were drawn, but through the slats, you could make out a familiar silhouette you knew all too well crouched on the fire escape.
You scrambled out of bed, nearly tripping over the blanket tangled around your ankles, and yanked the blinds open. There he was—grinning like an idiot, dirt smudged on his cheek, a small bag of takeout dangling from one hand. He was wearing that worn leather jacket you loved with the torn sleeve he refused to sew back together.
"Hey, princess," he whispered through the glass. "You miss me?"
You fumbled with the lock, pushing the window open as quietly as you could. Cold night air rushed in, carrying the scent of rain and city streets.
"What are you doing here?" You hissed. "My dad could hear you!"
"Your dad's probably knocked out asleep right now." He climbed through the window with practiced ease, landing silently on your bedroom floor.
You threw your arms around him, burying your face in his jacket. "I thought I'd never see you again," you whispered, your voice cracking.
"Hey." He pulled back, cupping your face in his hands. "I told you. Nothing's keeping me away from you. Not your dad, not the cops, not anyone."
"Martin—"
"Three weeks, Y/N. I spent three weeks without you and I was going insane." He pressed his forehead against yours, his voice dropping to something raw and vulnerable. "I thought about calling your house, but I knew your dad would just make it worse. I had to wait until I could figure out a way to see you."
"You figured out the fire escape."
"I figured out the fire escape." He grinned, but there was something softer underneath it. "Took me two days to find the right route. Nearly fell off the third-floor landing, but hey—" He shrugged. "Worth it."
You laughed, a wet, shaky sound. "You're insane."
"Only for you." He pressed a kiss to your forehead, then pulled back to hold up the takeout bag. "I brought food. Your favourite dumpling place with the spicy sauce you like. Figured you probably haven't been eating much."
You hadn't. The past three weeks had been a blur of forced dinners and silent meals, your father's disapproving gaze boring into you from across the table. You'd lost weight, and Martin had noticed it the moment he climbed through your window.
"You're too good to me," you said.
"Not possible." He set the bag on your desk and pulled you over to sit on the bed. "Now eat. I'll keep watch."
You sat together in the darkness, sharing dumplings and whispered conversations.
"One day," he said, "I'm going to have a real place with a good job and be something your dad can't complain about."
"I don't care about any of that."
"I know." He smiled, but there was something serious in his eyes. "That's why I want to give it to you anyway. You deserve the world, Y/N. I'm going to figure out how to give it to you."
"I just want you," you said softly.
"Good." He leaned in, his lips brushing yours. "Because you've got me. For as long as you want me."
It was reckless and dangerous and every time you heard a floorboard creak, your heart stopped. But as you sat there in the dark, wrapped in Martin's arms, you couldn't bring yourself to care.
Your father never caught the two of you, and gradually he granted you back your privileges, though that also stemmed from your absolute refusal to even look at him until he did so.
A part of you secretly knew that your father had probably worked out you were still seeing Martin. He wasn't stupid—he'd raised you, after all. He knew the stubborn set of your jaw, the defiant glint in your eyes when you were hiding something. He'd seen the way you'd started leaving your window unlocked again, the way you'd come downstairs with pillow creases on your cheek and a sleepy smile that had nothing to do with a good night's rest.
But he never said anything and you remained in this strange stalemate situation for the following couple of years.
It was an unspoken agreement, really. Your father pretended not to notice the faint smell of motor oil that sometimes clung to your clothes in the morning. He pretended not to hear the soft thud of footsteps on the fire escape at midnight. He pretended not to see the way your eyes lit up whenever your phone buzzed. And you, in turn, pretended not to notice the way your father started leaving the back door unlocked, or the way he'd conveniently be in the living room with the TV turned up too loud whenever Martin was climbing the fire escape.
It was a strange kind of peace. Fragile, particularly tenuous. But it was peace nonetheless.
Then, finally, graduation day arrived.
You walked across the stage in your cap and gown, your father watching from the front row with a carefully neutral expression. Martin was a few students behind you, wearing his best clothes underneath the gown that you had bought for his birthday, his grin so wide it looked like it might split his face.
After the ceremony, you found him in the parking lot, still in your gown, your diploma clutched in your hands.
"We did it," you said, laughing. "We actually did it."
"We did." He pulled you into his arms, spinning you around. "High school graduates. Can you believe it?"
"I can't believe you didn't drop out."
"Me neither." He set you down, his hands still on your waist. "But I had a good reason to stay."
"And what was that?"
He leaned in, his lips brushing your ear. "You."
You and Martin had separated before your father emerged between the cars with the promise of seeing each other tomorrow, however you failed to fully notice the strange glint in Martin’s eyes as he parted with you
The next morning, Martin showed up at your door, his hands shaking as he knocked.
You answered, still in your pajamas, your hair a mess. "Martin? What are you—"
"I'm here to ask your father for permission to marry you."
You stared at him for a few seconds. "Now? At eight in the morning?"
"Time's ticking." He tried to smile, but it came out nervous. "I've waited long enough. Three years. I'm not waiting anymore."
Your father appeared behind you, coffee mug in hand. He looked at Martin, then at the suit, then at the determined set of Martin's jaw.
"Y/N, go to your room," he said, his voice flat as you gave Martin a wary look before retreating, "you again."
"Yes, sir." Martin straightened his spine, watching you disappear into the background. "I'm here to ask for your daughter's hand in marriage."
Your father set down his coffee mug, and for a long moment he just looked at Martin. "You must be out of your damn mind," he said slowly, "if you think I'd let you marry my daughter."
"Sir, I know I'm not what you wanted for her. I know I've made mistakes. I know I don't have much—"
"You've barely got a diploma, an unsecure job at an auto shop, and a reputation that makes me want to lock my daughter in her room until she's thirty-five."
"I know, sir. But I love her. I've loved her since I was fifteen, and I'm going to spend the rest of my life taking care of her."
"You think that's enough?" Your father's voice was rising. "You think love is enough? You have no future, no prospects, no—"
"I'm going to marry her anyway."
Your father stopped mid-sentence. "What?"
"I said I'm going to marry her anyway." Martin lifted his chin, his voice steady. "With or without your blessing. With or without your approval. I love her, and she loves me, and we're getting married. I'm just sorry you won't be there to see it."
"Get out." Your father's voice was ice. "Get out of my house before I call the cops."
Martin nodded slowly. He'd expected this. He'd prepared for this. It still stung. He turned and walked down the steps, the door slamming behind him.
Five hours later, Martin stood in front of you at the courthouse, him having snuck you out of your room through the very window he had spent years crawling through.
You'd changed into a simple white dress that you had worn a few times in the summer. Martin was in his navy suit from the graduation, his eyes bright with unshed tears.
"Dearly beloved," the officiant droned, "we are gathered here today to join this man and this woman in holy matrimony..."
Martin barely heard the words. He was too busy memorising the way you were looking at him like he was the only person in the world.
"Martin," you whispered, "you're crying."
"Am not."
"You totally are."
"It's allergies."
"You're such a liar."
He laughed, wiping at his eyes with the back of his hand. "Fine, maybe I'm a little emotional. You're marrying me, Y/N. Me. The guy who couldn't even pass English without your help."
"I think you're pretty great," you said softly. "I always have."
The officiant cleared his throat. "The rings?"
Martin fumbled in his pocket, pulling out the simple silver bands he'd saved up for. He slid one onto your finger—it was a little too big, but you didn't seem to care, you just stared at it like it was the most expensive piece of jewelry in the world.
"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."
Martin’s lips were on yours before you could fully process the words.
He kissed you like he was drowning and you were air. He was savouring the reality of this, you in his arms finally calling yourself his. Gradually it deepened, the years of longing and wanting pouring into every second your mouth remained on his.
When he pulled back, you were both breathless and grinning like idiots.
"I love you," he whispered, his voice rough and cracking. "I know I don't say it enough, but I do. I love you more than anything. More than I ever thought I could love anyone."
You cupped his face in your hands, your thumbs tracing the sharp lines of his jaw. "I love you too. Even though you're insane."
A wet laugh escaped him, his shoulders shaking. "Especially because I'm insane?"
"Especially then." You smiled, soft and radiant.
He kissed you again, softer this time, because he felt he had all the time in the world, and, really, he did. Nothing else mattered to him except the way your lips moved against his, the way your fingers tangled in his hair, the way your heartbeat matched his own.
When he finally pulled back, he was grinning like an idiot, tears still tracking down his cheeks. "Mrs. Edwards," he said, testing the words. "That has a nice ring to it."
You laughed, bright and beautiful. "Mr. L/N. That would have an even nicer ring to it."
"Hey." He poked your side. "I proposed first, that means you take my name."
"Fine." You rolled your eyes, but you were smiling. "But only because I love you."
"That's the only reason I need."
The courthouse was small and dingy, the officiant was already shuffling papers, clearly eager to leave, the neon sign outside flickered and buzzed. It wasn't the wedding either of you had dreamed of. There were no flowers, no guests, no white dress with a long train.
But it was yours.
And as Martin pulled you into his arms, his lips pressed against your temple, he knew he'd never regret a single moment of it. "I'm going to give you everything," he whispered against your skin. "I don't have much now, but I will. A home, a future, a life you can be proud of. I promise."
"I already have everything I need," you whispered back. "I have you."
He pulled back, just enough to look at you. His eyes were red-rimmed, his smile shaky, his heart laid bare on his sleeve. "You really mean that?"
"Every word."
He kissed you one last time: deep, slow, full of all the promises he'd spend the rest of his life keeping.
Your father was going to be absolutely livid when he found out, though Martin didn't care.
☆.ㅤ SYN. ㅤ ㅤ──ㅤㅤ your usually shy boyfriend gets drunk for the first time and becomes way too clingy.
ᯓ ࣪ ˖ ִ ★ pairing ── eom seonghyeon , f reader.
needy seonghyeon (?) ⋆.˚
wc: 1,5k
a/n : heyyy guys, this was in my drafts for a while but whatever <𝟑 .ᐟ also keep in mind that i do not support or encourage underage drinking, it may reflect situations that many teenagers are familiar with in real life, but here they are only used for storytelling purposes and should not be taken as encouragement or promotion. thanks. kisses >⩊<
Your room was warm and quiet, lit only by the small lamp beside your bed while the rest of the apartment stayed dark and still around you. You had been half asleep for almost twenty minutes already, curled comfortably under your blanket with your phone abandoned somewhere near your pillow, your eyes barely able to stay open anymore.
Then suddenly, loud knocking echoed through the apartment.
You flinched awake immediately, heart jumping as the sound repeated again, louder this time. For a second you just stared at the ceiling in confusion before slowly pushing the blanket off yourself and getting out of bed.
Who even knocks like that this late at night?
You dragged your feet toward the door sleepily, fixing your oversized shirt a little before unlocking it.
The moment the door opened, Martin almost stumbled inside first.
“Oh thank god,” he sighed dramatically.
Then you saw Seonghyeon beside him.
And immediately froze.
His hair was completely messy, falling over his eyes unevenly like someone had been running their hands through it all night, and his hoodie hung off one shoulder slightly while he stood there swaying just enough for you to notice. His cheeks were flushed pink, eyes half lidded and unfocused, and the second he looked at you, his entire expression softened instantly.
You blinked in surprise. “Is he drunk?”
“Very,” Martin answered instantly.
Seonghyeon frowned slightly beside him. “I’m not that drunk.”
“You almost cried because they changed the music,” Martin deadpanned.
“I liked that song.”
Martin rolled his eyes before looking back at you.
“He would not shut up about wanting to come see you.” He pointed toward Seonghyeon with complete exhaustion. “Like genuinely. Every five seconds it was your name over and over again.”
Your eyes moved back to Seonghyeon automatically and he just stared at you quietly, blinking slowly.
“He missed you,” Martin added teasingly.
Seonghyeon immediately hid part of his face inside his sleeve and you could not help smiling a little.
Martin sighed dramatically again before carefully grabbing Seonghyeon by the shoulders and moving him toward you.
“Here. He’s your problem now.”
The second Seonghyeon reached you, he leaned against you almost instantly, his weight warm and heavy against your shoulder.
Martin pointed at him seriously.
“Do not let him drink again because he’s either gonna ruin the party or start confessing his feelings to random furniture.”
“I was not talking to furniture,” Seonghyeon mumbled.
“You thanked a lamp.”
“That’s because it looked nice.”
You laughed quietly before Martin started walking backward toward the elevator again.
“Good luck,” he called out. “And seriously, keep him alive.”
Then he disappeared.
Leaving you alone with your extremely drunk boyfriend clinging to your shoulder.
For a moment Seonghyeon just stayed there quietly, arms loosely around your waist while his forehead rested against the side of your head.
“You smell nice,” he murmured suddenly.
You smiled despite yourself. “Thank you.”
His grip tightened slightly like he was making sure you were real.
“Missed you.”
The words came out so soft and honest that your chest hurt a little.
“You saw me this morning,” you whispered.
“Still missed you.”
God.
You carefully guided him inside before closing the door behind you, and the second you did, he immediately followed you around the apartment like a lost puppy while you prepared things for him.
You grabbed comfortable clothes from your drawer, placing them neatly inside the bathroom before turning the shower on slightly so the water could warm up.
“You need to shower first,” you told him gently.
Seonghyeon stood beside the sink watching you quietly, looking impossibly tired and clingy at the same time.
Then suddenly he moved closer.
Enough that you had to tilt your head up to look at him properly because of the obvious height difference between you two. Even drunk, he somehow still carried that naturally soft presence around you, except now it felt less controlled.
Needier.
His arms slid around your waist slowly before he leaned down and rested his chin on your shoulder, practically folding himself against you.
You immediately wrapped your arms around the back of his neck carefully, fingers brushing softly through the messy hair at the nape of it.
“It’s okay, babe,” you whispered. “You’re okay.”
He made a quiet sound against your shoulder, almost like a hum.
You smiled slightly. “Was this your first time drinking?”
After a small pause, he nodded.
That made your smile grow instantly.
Of course it was.
Everything suddenly made sense now. The clinginess. The nonstop honesty.
You gently rubbed circles against the back of his neck while he stayed there holding you silently.
Then after a few seconds, he spoke again.
“Babe.”
“Hm?”
He lifted his head slightly just enough to look at you properly, eyes heavy and unfocused but still impossibly soft.
“I love you so much.”
Your heart almost stopped.
Before you could even answer, he leaned down and kissed you.
Harder than usual.
Desperate in a way that completely caught you off guard because Seonghyeon was normally shy with affection, always hesitating before kisses, always getting embarrassed after holding your hand for too long.
But now he kissed you like he could not help himself.
Like every thought in his head had disappeared except you.
You could taste the alcohol faintly against his lips, sweet and bitter at the same time, but you barely noticed because of how tightly he held you.
One of his hands moved up your back slowly while he kissed you again, deeper this time, and your fingers tightened instinctively behind his neck as your breathing started getting uneven.
When he finally pulled back slightly for air, his forehead rested against yours for barely a second before he leaned in again immediately.
Another kiss.
Then another.
Your brain felt completely scrambled by the sudden affection.
“Babe,” you murmured breathlessly against his lips, barely managing to speak between kisses. “Calm down.”
The second the words left your mouth, he stopped immediately.
His eyes widened slightly like he just realized what he was doing.
“Sorry,” he whispered instantly.
You blinked up at him, still breathless.
He looked genuinely flustered now despite being drunk, his cheeks flushed deeper pink than before.
“You just…” He swallowed softly. “You drive me crazy.”
Your stomach flipped painfully.
A small laugh escaped you before you could stop it and you shook your head slightly, still holding onto him.
“I think you’re really drunk.”
“I know.”
But he clearly did not care.
Instead he just hugged you closer again, hiding his face against your shoulder like he suddenly got shy all over again after saying too much.
Which somehow made the whole thing even cuter.
Eventually, after a lot of convincing and helping him not trip over literally nothing, you managed to get him showered and into clean clothes.
By the time you both finally crawled into bed, the apartment had gone completely silent again.
Seonghyeon immediately moved toward you the second he laid down, arms wrapping around your waist while he pulled you close against his chest like he physically could not sleep otherwise.
His face buried itself into your neck comfortably, warm breaths brushing softly against your skin while one of his legs tangled lazily with yours under the blanket.
You smiled quietly in the darkness, fingers brushing gently through his damp hair.
“Better?” you whispered.
He nodded sleepily against your shoulder.
Then after a few seconds, his voice came out soft and tired.
“Still love you.”
Your chest hurt again in the best way possible.
You pressed a small kiss against his forehead before cuddling closer into him, listening to his breathing slowly even out as exhaustion finally took over both of you.
