prompt: perhaps your building going up in flames was a good thing?
word count: 1311
warnings: fire, mentions of death
a/n: is anyone else obsessed w the show 9-1-1. I just think San would look soo good in a casual fireman uniform…
you have two options.
1: stay inside, wait for the fire to get you. you burn to death.
2: you jump out of the window to escape the fire creeping in from under the door. you can either break a couple bones or... death.
with another look around, the smoke gets darker and darker, making it hard for you to scope out the area and making it even harder to wait and make a decision. you hesitate at the window, one foot out on the sill and the rest of your body starting to heat up. any longer and the fire will eat you alive.
you can stay or you can jump. but how do you want to go?
lucky for you, the beaming red lights of the firetruck and the ambulances blind you from below. you’re suddenly relieved, knowing fully well they won’t just leave you here if they’ve seen you.
“Help!” you yell, waving your arms at the crowd below, catching the eyes of a few people. and your chest relaxes a bit more when a few of the firemen begin to put extra gear on, some running into the building next door and the others aiming a water hose onto the blaze.
and within a few minutes, theres a man, dressed in dark blue from head to toe, hanging in front of your window. a shiny name tag on his jacket reads Choi.
“back away! i’m going to break the window!” he shouts, muffled behind his mask and helmet but you hear him just loud enough to step back and away from the glass, at just the right angle to avoid the heating floor. if you wait any longer, the ground is going to crumble away beneath you.
his feet come in first. they shatter the entire window with just one blow and his body comes crashing in, landing right on his two feet. he lowers himself to your level, asks if you’re okay and waits for your nod.
“okay,” his head turns, examining the area, damage and all before deciding on his plan in a matter of seconds. “there’s only one way out. same way i came in. is that okay?”
“i don’t have much of a choice if i want to live, do i?”
“no, i guess not” he chuckles. his hands reach out to tighten the holster around your waist meanwhile yours settle on his shoulders. and then his hands are wrapped around your thighs, lifting you off the ground and swiftly making his way back to the window.
“i need you to hold on tight, okay”?
reality hits fast with you in his arms and he doesn’t even wait for your approval before stepping on and out the window. your bodies fall and you feel it all in your stomach. your grip on him tightens and your face immediately hides itself in the nook of his neck.
but the ride ends as soon as it started and before you know it, you’re landing hard onto an inflatable landing mat.
“last one’s out cap!” you hear someone shout from the side, on ground level which can only mean you’re safe from the blaze still burning above you. and after, a “watch out!” prepares you for the roof that caves in, crashing down onto what once was your home. the man lying beside you removes the protective arm and leg around you, making sure that if any debris fell at you, he’d get the impact of it.
“oof,” he says, removing the helmet from his head and finally giving you a clear sight of your hero. “i hope you’re okay with staying at hotels.”
but you don’t even hear what he says because you’re distracted. his face is flawless, even with the streaks of smoke staining his cheek, he looks godlike. like the blaze is glowing on him, making him radiate next to you. “you okay?”
his lopsided smile breaks you out of the trance, making you quickly guess the words his lips formed and you nod. “alright, let’s get you checked out yeah?”
once he unbuckles you from him, you get through the embarrassing climb off the landing pad and both your feet are on the concrete. “we just wanna make sure you have no damage from all that smoke inhalation.”
“that’s okay, yeah.” you nod again, taking his outstretched hand and letting him lead you to the back of the ambulance. after the stethoscope to the chest, the blood pressure cuff and a flashlight into the eyes, you’re cleared to go. except you’re standing still watching the only place you have to go smoke up. all your possessions are stuck up there, probably heavily damaged by now.
all you had was your wallet, your phones and your keys though theres not much use to them if you no longer have a front door to open. you sigh, walking up to the curb and taking a seat on the cold ground.
“you good?”
he’s back again, helmet and jacket now off. and if you thought he was attractive before, this is definitely another great piece of proof to confirm he is. his tight blue shirt really accentuates the muscles that were hidden beneath the protective thick jacket he had on earlier.
“sure, i mean, i’m alive right?”
the corners of his mouth turn up, agreeing that, “yeah, you’re alive.”
“thank you. i really appreciate the swooping in and saving you did. very brave of you” your hand mimics the action he’d done earlier to break into your apartment to rescue you making him laugh.
“of course, it’s my job” he waves you off, taking a step closer to you. “my name is San by the way. Choi San.” his pale hand reaches down to you and you accept his handshake, not missing the way your hands remain holding even after the introductions.
“thank you for saving me, choi san.”
“so, y/n, where are you off to now?” both of you look up at the building, still smoking but no longer lit up. it seems only the top 3 floors had major damage and your apartment was right in the line of fire.
“honestly, i have no idea. i was planning on staying in tonight.”
he clicks his tongue, “what a shame you’d want to hide a face like that.”
your cheeks immediately go hot and you know it’s not from the fire. no, you’d cooled down once san got you out of the building; you’re blushing.
“what do you suggest i do with my face then?”
“hmm i don’t know, maybe go out for a drink with me?”
you hum back, trying hard not to break character and smile like an idiot because is this guy really flirting after saving you from your burning apartment building? “maybe, yeah. a drink sounds like a good idea considering...”
“Choi, you coming with us or not?”
san holds a thumb up at the other fireman before turning back to you. “i can give you my number if you wanna take me up on that offer?”
“i think i will actually. it’s like 9-1-1 or something right?”
san laughs again and it makes you smile through the embarrassment of your bad joke. “yeah, sure, you can reach me through there if you don’t mind getting yelled at by those crabby operators.”
you waste no time handing him your phone, shaky hands reach out to grab it back once he’s done. his fingers graze yours and the warmth of his hands brings you to a calm. “i’ll see you later, yeah?”
“of course. i owe you.”
the firetruck behind him honks twice, calling him back on. he walks backwards, eyes on you until he reaches the door and gets in, waving at you one last time.
needless to say, you don’t need to stay at a hotel later that night.
prompt: keep your friends close, your enemies closer, and your boyfriend the closest.
word count: 7k oops
warnings: violence/gore, serial killer/murder, mc deaths
note: this is pretty much just the scream movie retold as jeno and y/n... enjoy :) and this is day 1 to my halloween countdown series!!!! 3 more to go until halloween
The lawn is littered with news vans and reporters. Murmurs ring throughout the corridors and everyone is talking.
“Didn’t you hear?” Mona eyes you, eyebrows pulling in together, “Casey and Steve got murdered last night. Like inside out-gutted.”
Your stomach drops. Casey sat next to you in chemistry. Your lips part but you can’t speak. There’s nothing you can even think to say. Mona shakes her head as if to tell you there’s nothing you need to say and hooks an arm around your shoulders, pulling you in close to her as you head in.
Chills run up your spine at the sight of her empty chair and nausea takes over your body when your mind begins to wonder what happened, how it happened, why it happened. You wonder if they died at the same time or if one of them was killed a while before the other. Did they watch each other get murdered? Just what happened and why now?
Your moms death anniversary was in a few days and hearing about Casey and Steve was like it was happening all over again. In the middle of thinking who could have committed something like this, someone walks into your class, a yellow slip in their hand.
The teacher stands from her seat, slipping on her eye glasses to pick you out in the seats. “Y/n? Honey, it’s your turn now.”
The class quiets. Everyone watches your gather your notebooks and stand up from your desk. A few students send you smiles and the teacher looks at you like she’s sorry. Even at the principals office, stands two police officers and a psychologist you were familiar with. They all feel bad for you, extra cautious because they’re afraid this is going to trigger you in some way.
“Just let us know if you need to talk to someone.” Ms. Song places her hand over your shoulder and gives it a tight squeeze. So you nod and you gather your things again. Just when you thought things were getting normal again.
==
“And remember to go straight home today. The town has implemented a curfew for 5:30-” Ms. Song’s voice comes through the intercom system around the school, echoing to the outside. Mona is already at the fountain, waiting with Jaemin, Haechan and Jeno.
Upon spotting him, your nerves calm. You don’t even realize the smile growing on your face until you reach him and his lips hover over yours. Your lips don’t meet his properly, instead they make direct contact with your teeth and then your chin when you laugh, tilting your head up and away from him. His arms wrap around your thighs, pulling you in closer to him so he can try another kiss and he succeeds.
“They only asked the guys that because the way they were killed could only have been done by a guy. No way a girl could do that, let alone you.” Jaemin pops a grape into his mouth, blowing Mona a kiss to make her feel better directly after insulting her. You chose to ignore their conversation while Haechan and Jaemin argue about who could be the killer out of them 3.
“My dad isn’t coming back till Sunday. Do you want to come over?”
“I’ll probably be over by 7, latest. Sound good?” Mona blows a bubble with her gum, awaiting your response even though she knows you’ll agree. She’s grown accustomed to sleeping over or having you sleep over whenever your dad was away on his business trips.
“Aw, why don’t you want me over?” Jeno’s low voice vibrates in your ear. His chin is on your shoulder and out of earshot from the rest of your friends.
“i thought you had plans with your dad?”
“Oh. Yeah. I forgot.” His chin comes off you, and his eyes look down at his phone, ending the conversation at that. You don’t even push it, already knowing the relationship he has with his father.
“Alright, see you. I gotta get to work. Stay safe, love you.” Haechan salutes you, walking backwards from the fountain before jogging away.
“He’s right. We should get home now. I heard they’ll fine you if you get caught past sunset.” Mona rolls her eyes, having heard the news from her brother who works at the station. She extends her hand out for you to shake. “7pm on the dot, alright?”
Jeno sits back up, stretching up to get a better look at you under the bright sunlight. “Bye, baby” he mumbles, wrapping his hand around your neck and stroking the skin with his thumb.
“Bye guys.” You wave at them, and once your back is to them, you hear Jaemin giggle. “Bye baby” he mocks, deepening his voice to match that of Jeno’s. Jeno grumbles something back at him and even from this far you can hear the punch being delivered to his arm.
==
The phone ringing pierces your ears, bringing you out of your peaceful sleep. The television is still on, playing reruns of The Simpsons. With one eye open, you read the caller id, making out the blurred letters to be Mona’s name and answering immediately.
“Hey, babe, I’m gonna be a little bit late. I’m driving back from downtown and there’s major traffic.”
“That’s fine, just honk when you’re outside.”
“Got it. See you later.”
You hang up, placing the phone screen down onto the arm of the sofa. You figure you have more time to rest up as preparation to stay up late with Mona. But not even a full 10 minutes pass when the phone rings again. Your hand searches for your phone, grabbing it upside down and accepting the call, all with your eyes closed.
“Mona, just drive. I don’t care that you’re late as long as you-“
“Hello, y/n.”
Heat fills your cheeks at the sudden change in the receiver’s voice. Well, this isn’t Mona. “H-Hi. Who is this”?
You do your best to hide the embarrassment and get through the conversation as quickly as possible. Except you’re not really given the option. “Why don’t you go ahead and guess?”
The voice seems filtered and edited but it sounds sultry at the same time, making it difficult for you to match the voice with a name or face. “Well, I don’t really know, that’s why I’m asking you.”
“It’s been a scary day, hasn’t it? Don’t the murders make you feel like you’re in some horror movie or something?”
Your mind rushes for solutions. You can hang up or you can go with your gut and just safely assume that the only person who would do this is Haechan. He’d been going on about the latest hour movies on Netflix.
“Ha ha, whatever. Are you off work already?” Once your body eases, you get off the couch and turn the lamp on. The mood lightens.
“Do you like scary movies?”
“Sure, sometimes. You’ve asked this before.” Your socked feet pad against the hardwood floor, into the kitchen where you begin to pour water into a glass.
“What’s your favorite scary movie?” Haechan drawls the last word out, almost sounding a little bit creepy but you’re quick to remember he’s just playing around.
“I don’t really have one. They’re all the same. You already know this, Haechan.”
Theres a long pause, probably him figuring out what to say.
“What if I told you I wasn’t Haechan?”
“It obviously is. You’re the only one who still thinks prank calls are funny.” You suppress your laughter, getting ready to hear him break out of character and defend himself. But it doesn’t come. In fact, it gets worst and you’re really starting to get creeped out. He must have practiced very well.
“Did you know Casey received a call just like this before she died?”
“Cut it out, Haechan. I don’t want to play anymore.” The glass rim reaches your lips but you don’t drink, waiting cautiously.
“This isn’t Haechan. And this isn’t a game.” Your hand places the cup back onto the counter slowly, careful not to hit the glass on the marble so hard.
“Who are you then?”
“Wrong question.”
“What do you want?” You change it up, with no idea why you’re still playing along.
“Wrong.”
“Alright, well if you aren’t going to tell me, I’m hanging up. By-“
“If you hang up you’ll die just like your mother!”
Your body goes numb. This isn’t Haechan and he isn’t prank calling you.
“Do you want to die y/n? Your mother sure didn’t.”
Your teeth grind against each other, holding back all your anger and frustration knowing you can’t do much about it. “Fuck you, you creep.”
You end the call immediately after, running to the door to lock it. Just when you think all is safe, you turn into the hallway to for your room only to run into a tall figure dressed in all black and a white mask, jumping out of the closet. You yell, dropping to the floor out of complete shock and fright even though you know you should run, fight, do something— anything to survive.
They’re yielding a shiny long knife, not like a knife you’d find in your kitchen or a utility knife that boys like Jeno like to carry in their pocket. And you’re quick to realize this knife is going to go straight into your body if you keep sitting like this. It all happens a lot quicker than it seems but you get up just as his arm swings down at you. You thrust your leg at him, getting in the best shot you could into his knee, knocking him down and giving you enough time to find an exit. You trip over your feet on your way into your bathroom, grabbing a hold of the door knob and closing yourself in. The person begins banging on the door, turning the door knob repeatedly to gain entry.
“Leave me alone!” You shout, hands in worst condition than they were minutes earlier. With no where else to go from here, you eye the window. Your best and only option to escape right now. But you’re so caught up with trying to get to the window that you haven’t noticed the banging stop until seconds later when the silence settles in.
You know you shouldn’t. You should just get out through the window now, hide out until you can get back in and call the police. You don’t even think about how Mona should be on her way and can call for safety before you realize your hand is on the lock. You turn it, clicking open. You grab the door handle, turning it very slowly until the door inches away from you, letting in a crack of light.
You press your face against the door in an attempt to see through the crack, get a better look at the hallway before finding it clear. The killer could literally just reappear from the around the corner and give it another try but for whatever reason, you hope for the best and step out of the bathroom. Your breath trembles and your body shakes. You make a break for your room across the bathroom, shutting the door as quietly as possible when a body slams itself into your open window.
You scream, not immediately recognizing the person trying to get in through the window is just Jeno.
“Y/n?”
A wave of relief washes over you when you process the voice and your numbed body manages to get it open all the way, allowing him to step in. Your arms wrap themselves around him tightly. Your body quivers against his, drenching his shoulder in your tears, completely ignoring his questions about if you’re okay.
“The killer, he was here. He tried to kill m-me, he-“
Jeno breaks free of your hold and does exactly as you did him. He holds you in his arms, stroking the back of your head to calm you down. In the midst of your hyperventilating, your mind begins to rack up thoughts and ideas.
“Wait, how did you- when did you get here?”
“Just now, I heard you screaming but the front door was locked.”
Your arms push his away from you and you take a few steps back. At the same time his mouth opens to add on -- defend himself-- you hear a car honk.
The timing between Jeno arriving to hearing you scream, trying the door and not seeing the killer leave the house nor running into him when he came in through the backyard makes you extremely suspicious. With one last look, you run for it. Jeno deciphers the look on your face almost right away and screams your name, running after you. You’re surprised to make it down the stairs in one piece, fumbling with the locks on the door and swinging it open.
“Mona!” You shout, hearing Jeno hot on your feet. He screams your name out again, voice faltering and fading out when you get inside the car.
“Oh my god, what, what’s wrong what happened”?
“Drive, Mona, drive please.” She does as said, no questions asked apart from the one everyone would be wondering right now.
“What happened, y/n?”
“The killer was in my house.”
“Killer? What- oh, you mean Jeno?” Her eyes glance at you every now and then, paying careful attention to the winding road to her house. Her tone is laced with confusion and concern, with an arm reaching out to hold your hand. You can tell by the tense look on her face that she doesn’t want to believe you; Who would?
“No. I don’t know. They were there at the same time. I don’t know.” You’re not even sure if it makes any sense until Mona nods and she hands your her phone.
“You need to call the police y/n.”
==
Mona’s brother guides you into the station, having you and Mona sit in one of the offices for questioning.
“They just found Jeno so, they’ll be bringing him in soon. I’ll make sure you don’t cross paths though. Sit tight until the sheriff comes in.” Scott grabs the string to the blinds and pulls it down, to give you some privacy. He stops short of closing the door, turning back around before signaling to his sister then to the lobby. She huffs, stomps away and lets you know she’ll wait for you out there before Scott finally closes the door.
Not even 5 minutes later, Sheriff Kay steps in, clipboard and folder in hand.
“We checked on your house. Found the back door open. He must have gotten in and out through there, made his way to your window after.”
“He usually sneaks in using the window” you say, really meaning “yeah it makes complete sense for him to know there’s a way inside through there.”
“No sign of anyone else still inside the house. We did find this though.” He opens a folder, a few photos come out of it, evidence they’ve found and then theres one, the same mask he’d been wearing except it’s thrown on the damp grass.
“Look familiar?”
“Not before today” you shiver, flashbacks of the dark figure hovering over you, ready to strike you with a knife. You wonder if the first hit would have killed you. And if Jeno could have done it.
“Well, we found him. He’s getting brought in for questioning. I just need you to fill out some things and then you can go. We’ll probably keep him in for the night until we can find something on him, you know the drill.”
You nod, wrapping the sweater tighter around you. “Thank you, sheriff.”
Back at her house, Mona waits for you to get dressed, already waiting for you in her room so you two can get some sleep.
“Do you really think it was Jeno?” She asks, fluffing a pillow before throwing it back onto the bed. You shrug, avoiding eye contact as you speak. you probably sound crazy and you’re sure if you were telling anyone else, they wouldn’t believe a word you’re saying. Hell, even Mona probably think’s you got spooked and your mom’s death triggered this.
“He was the only one there. It fits the time frame, I don’t know.” Knowing how unappealing this whole thing must be for you, she’s quick to end the conversation.
“Well, he was too perfect. He was bound to have a flaw.”
A few minutes later, the phone rings. Mona’s mom walks into the room, phone in hand and calls your name.
“It’s for you, sweetie.” She inches towards you, careful as if she moves any faster, you’ll crack.
“Is it my dad?”
“I don’t know. Maybe the sheriffs.” You mirror the same warm smile she gives to you as you take the phone and step out of the room.
“Hello?” You’re hopeful you’ll hear your dad’s voice. He’s the one person who make everything better. He hadn’t answered any phone calls from the sheriffs and there was no way to track him at his hotel. But at least now, you can talk to him.
“Hello, y/n” the voice drawls your name out, doing his best to sound intimidating. And it’s working. Your blood shoots cold throughout your entire body and every remaining thought in your head disappears. You’re paralyzed in place.
“Leave me alone” your voice rises, brining Mona and her mom out of the room running to you.
“Your poor little boyfriend, locked up when the real killer is out running free. You have a bad habit of putting innocent men in prison, don’t you.” He mocks you. A few people believe your mothers killer, the one rotting in prison right now, was innocent. They say you put an innocent man on death row.
“What do you want? Who are you?”
“Don’t worry, you’ll find out soon enough.” The line clicks and the dial tone buzzes into your ear. Mona grabs the phone from you, putting it against her ear and slamming it down once she clarifies the call is over.
Mona’s brother is already on the phone with the sheriff, catching him up on the phone call.
==
“Y/f/n y/l/n, who survived a violent attack in her own home last night, is the daughter of late Marie y/l/n. Marie was victim to a savage murder about a year ago. Her murdered, Cotton Weary, remains behind bars and is awaiting the death sentence according to reports-“
Scott takes a seat next to you, already dressed in his uniform. He’d been assigned to be by your side considering his connection to you and how you were already going to be around him anyway. He’s taking his job very seriously and you appreciate him for that. But it wasn’t really necessary.
“They released Jeno this morning. His dad came in with their lawyer, bailed him out early. So you’ll have to see him at school today, sorry about that” he winces, using a finger to scratch the hair by his temple. You know he has nothing to do with it; he was free because it wasn’t him. The phone call was enough to prove that.
You feel shitty at school, avoiding him in the hallway before classes start, afraid you’ll have to run into him again. You don’t know what you’d even say to him. “sorry I got you sent to jail. I thought you were trying to kill me.” How do you say that to your boyfriend. In your and everyone’s defense, Jeno wasn’t exactly the model citizen. He’d been known for trouble, just like his dad. And if this were a horror movie, he’d be the first suspect. But you can’t say that now that he’s been ruled out.
“I shouldn’t be here today.”
“You’re fine. Just meet me here right after, alright? We’ll go straight home.” Mona digs into her locker, Jaemin right at her side playing a game on his phone. He has no awareness of anything most of the time, you wonder how Mona has the capacity to put up with him considering how needy and possessive she can be sometimes.
You turn around, leaning against the lockers to wait until the bell rings when a thought pops up.
“Is Jeno mad at me?”
Jaemin scoffs, finally looking up from his phone to look at you incredulously. “No, y/n, he’s not mad that you branded him the Candyman. He’s just a little heartbroken maybe.”
Mona quickly reacts to smack Jaemin’s chest, mumbling something about not being an idiot today. You roll your eyes at his mocking tone; the sarcasm is the last thing you need right now. Two girls pass you, eyeing you up and down before whispering to each other. You can just guess what things people are saying about you. You’re not looking forward to today at all. Luckily, the bell rings. “I’ll see you later.”
The sound of hurried footsteps and banging on the lockers approaches you. Too people run by you, both wearing the same white mask from last night. The locks dig into your back when you flinch up against them, needing something to hold you up straight before you faint. Right before you can compose yourself, you walk right into the man of the hour.
“Jeno” you gasp, breathlessly. Your body reacts quicker than you can process, your feet taking a few steps back and away from him. As he’s forced to let you go, his jaw drops slightly. “Yo- you still think it’s me? y/n…“
“No. I don’t, I’m- someone tried to kill me last night and-“
“It wasn’t me, y/n.”
“I know. Someone called me again after. It couldn’t have been you.”
Jeno crosses his arms and stands up straight, suddenly making you feel small beneath him. The deep breath he takes makes you feel worst.
“Look, I know you’re still all…since- well, since your mothers death you’ve been really different. It’s been a year, y/n, maybe you should let it go.”
Your face contorts before he’s even done speaking, you don’t know why you let him finish. He’s thinking what everyone else is thinking: you’re all messed up from your mom’s death and now you’re either making things up for attention or you’re really going crazy. “My mother was killed, Jeno. This isn’t just something you can turn off.”
Jeno seems to sense your blood boiling when his hands go up defensively. “No, I just meant that-“
“No, you know what, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that my trauma is an inconvenience to you.”
“No one is saying that, y/n, please.”
He calls out for you, echoing in the now empty hallway. You ignore him the rest of the way, ignoring the staircase that leads you right to your classroom and instead making a right into the bathroom to muster up the energy before heading to your class.
The dirty mirror only accentuates the dark circles under your eyes, making you realize how tired you actually are. You must have not felt it with all the adrenaline of trying to survive, catching the killer and then having to go on the next day like nothing happened. Your ring finger rubs at the thin skin as if the purple will disappear and then you move onto your lips, applying moisturizer to your dry lips before you shake your hands under the water and flatten out your hair with it. It’s the best you can do and it’s all the effort you’re willing to put in.
==
“Yeah, I’ll ask her when she wakes up. But we’ll probably be there.”
“Ask me what?”
Mona jumps at the sound of your voice, putting the phone down to her shoulder. “Jaemin’s parents are out of town, he wants to have a little get together at his place to celebrate classes getting cancelled or some shit.”
A party isn’t going to solve your problems but you know by the look on Mona’s face, it’s already been decided. A party may not help you but it will certainly distract you and hopefully, do you some good.
Instead of answering her, your eyes glaze over and you lips begin mouthing the first thought that comes to mind. “If I was wrong about Jeno, then that must mean I was wrong about Cotton. The real killer’s still out there.”
“Oh, y/n. Stop freaking yourself out, okay? Let’s get ready, have some fun tonight.” As soon as you nod, sitting up and pushing the hair out of your face, Mona puts the phone back to her ear. “Okay. What do you want us to bring?”
She takes a few extra seconds to gather her things together before exiting the car, parked outside of Jaemin’s house. There’s a lot more people here than you thought there’d be and you can already feel the anxiety and panic rising, coursing through your blood. A few deep breaths aren’t enough but they do the job to get you walking forward.
Mona makes a beeline into the kitchen, filling the bottom shelf of the refrigerator with beer. It’s a bad habit to hover around her, waiting for her to finish before you can move onto the next room. You lack a sense of independence right now, feeling weak and vulnerable. So you muster up the courage and leave her to organize everything. Jaemin can keep her company while you look around.
There’s a few familiar faces waving at you, others are people you’d never seen before, hanging around. Most are gathered in the living room, all eyes are on the tv playing Halloween. Haechan sits right in the middle, leaned forward going on about the horror movie rules. You can’t find it in you to sit and listen in on what new information he has. The front door looks more inviting.
It’s already wide open, welcoming anyone to come in and out as they please. There’s a few cars already driving away, making use of their school-free week to hit up as many parties as they can before exhausting themselves out.
“Boo”
Jeno appears from out of nowhere, leaning against the doorway. Jaemin stumbles out of the kitchen to greet him. “Wow, Jeno. What are you doing here?”
He rubs at his chin, doing his best at making it seem like he didn’t invite Jeno but also making it very obvious that he’s here for a reason.
“I actually wanted to see if I could talk to y/n” Jeno responds and you can’t help but feel like they’ve rehearsed this.
“Interesting, well, if you need some place quiet and private, my parents’ room works well. For talking and stuff.” Jeno stares at Jaemin, cringing at the way he executes their plan. Whatever Jeno was going for, this was not it. But the idea that Jeno had planned something just to talk to you warms your heart a bit.
“‘Subtle’, Jaemin. Go look it up.” Jeno says, smacking his hand into Jaemin’s stomach.
“No, it’s fine. We do need to talk,” your hand stretches out to him, hoping he’d take it so you can get away from Jaemin. He’s reluctant to grab it but does and lets you lead him upstairs, first door on the right like Jaemin said.
You let Jeno close the door while you make yourself comfortable on the bed. You slide your jacket off and wait for him to sit down next to you before you start.
“I wanted to apologize,” he says, “I’ve been very selfish, especially with what I said earlier. I don’t understand how you feel at all and I should rush you to do anything you don’t want to.”
His words strike up another possible conversation from an earlier argument. He wanted to reach the next level of your relationship while you didn’t. Depression really kills any and all sexual needs and it seemed Jeno was on the suffering end of it. It explains why he’d been tense, more quiet and not spending as much time with you as usual. It hadn’t been a big deal to you and you’d never really put yourself in his position.
“No, you’re right. It’s been a year. My mom isn’t coming back and I should start accepting it.”
Jeno stays quiet, allowing you to affirm your words for yourself before he agrees with you, following with a slow nod. ”There’s just a few things I need to get through it. Only you can help with it.”
Your fingers run along the chain of his necklace, fiddling with the dog tag hanging from it. His crisp white t-shirt feels soft against your hand when you grab the bottom hem of it, pulling it up slightly so you can feel the warmth of his bare skin.
“Are you sure?”
“Of course.”
Jeno doesn’t hesitate to lean into you, comfortable with giving you kisses from the neck up. It’s when he reaches the base of your neck that his breaths get shaky. Your shirt is pulled off with one swift motion, thrown to the side while you continue to pull his up and off. He pushes you further up the bed, hovering over you. His chain hangs off his neck, tempting you to grab it and pull him in.
His hands are warm on you, creating hot friction with the way he keeps rubbing your thigh up and down, groping handfuls of your naked leg. You figure it’s best for you to kill two bird with one stone, get every issue with him out of the way now before dealing with real life tomorrow. At least when the next problem arises, he’ll be there for you as opposed to being against you.
“Who did you call?”
“Huh?” He looks up at you, putting his socks back onto his feet. His hair is pushed back and a few dark locks fall forward with the movement of his head. He’s quick to shake them out of his face.
“You get one call, right? I’m just curious about who you called.” The smile on your face falters, unsure of whether it should be there or not. It’s not really the ideal topic one has after getting intimate.
“My dad.”
“Oh. But I saw Sheriff Kay call your dad.” Jeno looks at you for a minute. His forehead creases when it hits him what you’re hinting at.
“Do you think- you don’t seriously still think it was me, do you?” Once he’s done lacing his shoes, he stands and walks over to you on the bed. He crouches down, meeting you at eye level so he can stare directly into them. His eyes search yours for something, possibly an explanation as to why you believe you have reason to fear him.
“What do I have to do to get you to believe that it wasn’t me?”
Just as he’d done speaking, the corner of your eye catches movement from behind him. The figure comes into frame, closing in on you and him and it’s only last minute that you realize who it is.
The masked killer strikes Jeno with the knife, just as you shout, “Jeno, watch out!” But it’s too late and Jeno is quickly covered in blood. You’re frozen, watching your boyfriend get stabbed once, twice, three times until he’s lying unconscious on the floor. You want to check on him but the masked killer steps closer to you, swinging his knife right into your shoulder once before you’re running out of the room.
It’s like running through a maze, going through door to door, window to window and not finding a way out. It seems he knows this place better than you do, always being one step ahead of you or somehow knowing your next move. Every door you slam close, he’s opening up another one behind you. For every hallway you go down, he’s appearing at the other end, charging at you. You can’t win and you’re scared this is the last chance for you to getaway. You gather all your strength to lift a window, quickly throwing one leg out before realizing there’s no real way down.
The door you’d closed breaks open with one big kick and he runs in, trying to pull you back in. Without thinking too hard about it, you pull your body away from his grip and your body flies. It’s not at all a soft landing on the covered up boat but it’s better than the hard concrete. The adrenaline pumping through your blood is enough to get you back up and moving. With one look up at the window, you see the killer is gone.
Just as you’re about to run off, you notice the garage door stuck open and a puddle of dark liquid forming under it. You wish you hadn’t looked.
Mona is hanging from the door, body crushed between it. Blood drips down her arm and head, leaving streaks of blood down to the puddle. A horrifying scream leaves your throat, shaking you so hard that you lose your balance and fall to the cold ground. The sound of a crash coming from inside the house awakens you, putting you back in flight mode.
The limp from your left leg does it’s best to get you as far as you can before you’re back at the front door, hoping to find a phone to call the police and then hopefully finding somewhere to hide while they’re on their way, provided you make it that far. The wound to your shoulder feels numb, the adrenaline working just enough.
However, you don’t expect to find Jeno at the bottom of the stairs, holding onto his side. His white t-shirt is bloodied, stiffening up from the sticky blood. “Jeno, oh my god.”
Your arms reach out for him, struggling to hold him up as he stumbles down the last few steps. Most, if not all, his weight is on you, pulling you down with him on your already hurt leg. “Jeno, we have to go. We have to get out of here.” You do your best to drag him with you towards the door, scanning the yard for any sign of the killer for a clear escape.
“Jeno, you need to help me out here. I know it hurts but we have to go.”
You pull more of his weight onto you, taking slow steps to the door when he appears standing in front of you, knife dripping in blood from his previous kills. It appears you completely missed the bodies lying on the porch as well: Haechan with a wound at his shoulder. He isn’t moving at all. And Scott is bleeding from his back, lying on the porch right beside him.
It’s at that moment that all the weight on your shoulders disappears. Jeno, who was relying entirely on you by his side to stay standing, is now standing tall, looking down at you with a small smile on his face. He’s no longer holding his side in pain, no longer limping and bleeding out. you can’t help but feel crazy, like you imagined him getting stabbed was all in your imagination by the way he stands tall, over you.
“Amazing work, Na. Almost had me scared.” Jeno chuckles, pushing his hair back out his face, showing zero pain with his movement. You eye him, stare him up at down to examine him. This makes no sense. He’d been stabbed 3 times right in front of you. He collapsed and stopped moving, he had to have bled to death by now. There’s just so much blood.
Jeno notices your face and lifts your chin up with his fingers. “Corn syrup. Same stuff they used in Carrie. Cool isn’t it?”
There’s no amount of time in the world to figure out what to say right now. Jeno was near death not a minute ago and now he’s completely fine. And he’s talking to the killer like they know each other? He’s still standing there, mask and robe on. His knife is at his side now, showing no intent on using it on either of you, at least right now.
“Sweet too” he says, stifled from behind the mask. You’re not too sure if it’s the mask that makes his voice sound like that or the fact that you’re about to lose your mind but the voice shocks you. It’s not at all like the way it sounds through the phone, rather, sounding very normal and very familiar. Before you can rack your brain for where you’ve heard the voice before, he reaches up to his mask and whips it off.
Jaemin stands in front of you, white teeth shining at you. “Hi, y/n.”
It takes everything in you to turn around and run but it wasn’t enough. Jeno catches you by the waist before you can get away, slamming his chest into your back and holding you tight.
“You can’t go yet, we were just getting to the best part.” His voice is breathless, right into your ear and it sends a chill down your spine. except this kind of chill is so much different from what you were used to with Jeno. This was no longer the boy you once knew.
He walks you into the kitchen where Jaemin stands at the sink, washing his hands with lots of soap. He’d always been particular about getting his hands dirty but you guess dead bodies are an exception.
“What are you doing?” Though you’re not really sure you want an answer, you still ask. There has to be some explanation behind this. You want them to laugh and tell you this is all a prank, that no one is actually dead, that the blood is all fake and that when you wake up, it’ll be like nothing happened. The only explanation you’re willing to accept is that this is a really bad dream.
But all hopes of that end when Jeno sits you down at one of the bar stools and takes a seat beside you. “Get this. We’re all victims, just like you. Except Jaemin and I will survive. Everyone else is dead and your father, your missing father, will suddenly reappear, covered in your blood and when the police arrive, guess what?”
He looks over to Jaemin, eyebrows raised. “Daddy takes one for the team. It’ll be like this: Your father has been angry that his wife was killed, goes on a killing rampage a year after her death. Unfortunately, in order for our story to work, you have to die too, y/n.” Jaemin claps his hands together, sealing the conversation and leaving you to put all the pieces together. Still, they don’t explain why they’ve done any of it.
“It works right? We got the motive down, the perfect crime scene, and the two survivors. And if you’re wondering how they’re going to pass us off as victims, it’s easy. Jaemin, take the knife.”
You’re forced to watch Jaemin drive his knife once into Jeno’s abdomen, making sure to avoid any vital organs. Jeno groans out in pain, similar to the way he faked it upstairs, except this time his face turns red when he doubles over. “Alright, give me the knife.”
Jaemin passes it over, reminding him not to cut too deep like they planned. Jeno bounces the knife in his hand before piercing Jaemin in the shoulder, not once but twice and then once in the stomach. Jaemin yelps out, jumping backwards out of Jeno’s reach. “We said once each, give me the knife. You owe me one.”
Jeno ignores him, keeping the knife by his side when he walks back over to you. He uses it, covered in blood, to touch your face, tracing the outline of your jawline with it and trailing it down to your chest. It pricks you for a second, drawing a small amount of blood but it’s nothing compared to the way Jaemin is bleeding over the counter right now. He hasn’t moved since Jeno injured him but you know he’s still alive from his loud groaning.
“Aren’t you wondering why we’re doing this”?
He’d been quick to notice your silence, unsatisfied with your lack of reaction. Truthfully, you’d gone numb a while ago. It’s the only thing helping you from passing out and giving them a green light to killing you that you don’t even bother to wonder why he’s doing this.
“‘Why?’ You ask. Well, when you get the chance, make sure to ask your whore of a mother why she felt it was okay to ruin a perfect family.”
A gasp escapes your lips, quickly getting offended by his choice of words. There were rumors that you mom cheated on your dad with different men, Cotton Weary being one of them, but it had never been confirmed. You’d always assumed those rumors were made up by people wanted a story deeper than just murder. But now, here Jeno was, adding fuel to the fire.
“What are you talking about?” It’s the first time you’ve spoken, your throat feels so dry and irritated, that you’re not surprised at how hoarse it sounds.
“Bet you didn’t know that, did you? Your mom had an affair with my dad and that’s why my mom left and abandoned me. She got what she deserved. And now, it’s your turn.”
The knife finds it way back to your neck when Jeno grabs you by the arm again, pulling you up off the chair. Jaemin limps his way over, following you out of the kitchen and into the hallway. “You’re going to love this, y/n” he says, leaning against the wall for leverage.
Jeno pushes you against the wall, your shoulder hits Jaemin and he groans in pain from the nudge. The closet door swings open and a body falls forward onto Jeno.
“Oh my god, dad” you want to reach out for him but Jaemin holds a hand up to you, weak fingers wrapped around a gun he must have grabbed off Scott.
Your dad is tied and taped up, with stained blood down his forehead and a black eye. Jeno pulls out a burner phone from his pocket, slide it into your dad’s jacket pocket and then a white box follows. He’d been missing because they kept him here, planning to use him as bait.
Jaemin begins to lose balance as fast as he’s losing blood. It’s risky but it’s the only change you have at saving you and your dad. You lunge forward, ripping the gun out of Jaemin’s weak grip allowing you to take it easily. But Jeno, even injured, is fast. He uses his forearm to shove you into the wall before he wraps his hand around your neck, squeezing harder and harder until the light begins to fade out around you.
The sound of Jaemin moaning and groaning from below you reminds you— Jaemin’s literally dying because Jeno stabbed him and Jaemin stabbed Jeno.
Your finger digs itself into Jeno’s wound, feeling the skin stretch around your finger. It covers your hand with his blood and you can even hear the sludge right before Jeno screams. It takes him both hands to apply pressure to the gash in an attempt to stop the bleeding. You’ve made it worst, more painful and at least now, he’s slowing down.
It takes him a minute to compose himself, letting the pain settle before he can stop you again but you’ve already grabbed your dad and dragged him away from harm. Your hurried hands pull down the layers of duct tape wrapped over his mouth. Tears run down your face and your breath trembles. “Dad, I’m so sorry.”
Movement from behind you heightens your awareness, pushing your dad further back and out onto the porch where you know he’ll be safe. The gun is heavy in your hands and the fact that you have no idea how to use it weighs it down even more. Jeno trips over his feet on his way to you, stumbling over Jaemin’s limp body who then groans again.
“safety-“ your dad can barely get a few words out before he coughs, “turn the safety off.”
This could be very useful advice, considering you knew where the safety was. But you don’t and you have no time left to look for it when Jeno reaches you, letting his full weight drop on you. He takes both of you down to the floor, slamming your head hard against the hardwood floor and the gun flies out of your hand. The knife, snug in his hand, hovers high above you and with a strong force, plunges into you.
Jeno aims for your chest but you’re quick to flinch and he hits your hand instead, grazing the palm of it.
“Fuck! You bitch!” He shouts, pulling the knife back to try again. The adrenaline running through your body is running low, making the pain feel 5x more intense than it would have earlier. It burns and even just the wind blowing on it makes you wince. It certainly doesn’t help that Jeno is straddling you, thighs keeping you in place and one hand holding down your left arm. Your right arm works hard to fight back, bloodied but working compared to the left shoulder that feels like it’s about to fall off any second now.
You close your eyes as soon as you see the knife in view, coming closer and closer. This is it. The last strike before you die. You can’t fight him off anymore and you have no weapon. This is it.
3 loud bangs pop in your ear, leaving a ringing sound to float around. It’s safe to assume he’d stabbed you again, possibly fatally wounding you and you’re now dying. But the pain isn’t any worst, you can move your body and when you open your eyes, you’re in the same spot. Jeno’s body is lying next to yours, eyes at level to yours. There’s a hole right between his eyes, blood trickling out of it and down to the floor beside your head. It makes you flinch, sliding away from him and into the corner of the wall. There, you get a perfect view of your dad, holding the gun he’d just fired into Jeno’s head, chest and stomach.
warnings: smoking, violence, manhandling (abuse mentions), it gets spicy towards the end
prompt: Seonghwa is used to being bad, but falling for you suddenly feels like the most dangerous thing he’s ever done.
word count: 4.9k
a/n: this is part of a series i’m gonna make (complete soon hopefully) w members of other groups like skz, tbz, and nct. they are all inspired by the movie Takers. for a little backstory in this story basically, the members are a part of heists and they rob banks/rich people which is how they get their income which means they come into contact with people who also do other illegal jobs like drug cartel members in and such. pls don’t read if you don’t like the topic of abuse!! theres no heavy abuse but reader gets manhandled and if you’re not comfortable with that, i recommend not reading :)
It pains Seonghwa to be here; physically pains him. His joints throb when he has to force his body out of his car and his chest aches when he takes one last look at his cigarettes lying snug in his cupholder. He knows he can’t take one now, Hongjoong has been in a bad mood all day and he would kill him for smelling like smoke — as if the other patrons weren’t going to be reeking of cigars in there — but he listens to his friend and closes the car door.
His feet drag under him, his body feels heavy and he knows it’s partly because he’s tired but mostly because he can’t see himself sitting down for a whole meal before he wants to run out of there and go back home, lay on his freshly washed sheets and watch that stupid reality show about strangers finding love on an island. He thinks he might run out early when he catches a conversation between a guest and a waiter, the snobby old man complaining about his drink being “too wet” and threatening the waiter, fully well knowing the waiter has no control over condensation. It makes Seonghwa cringe, crank his neck to the side as if it’s going to give him some will.
Hongjoong cuts his own conversation off to let Seonghwa sit down next to him. He doesn’t know why he couldn’t have asked Yunho or Mingi, or even Wooyoung to come along with him but for whatever reason, he’s the one sitting at the table, immediately tuning out the conversations around him as he patiently waits for his drink to come.
With an exasperated gasp, Seonghwa decides its time to tune back in but only to look around, skimming over the other guests’ tables and catching glimpses of a few familiar people. His eyes glance over one table, taking one look at the man that sits at the center of it: Lee Seonho. Last he heard of him, he was getting involved with drugs and weapon dealing, a dirty change from doing solely money laundering. He skips over the table but something tells him to take one more look, and he does.
His sight lands on you, another familiar face. He’s careful not to linger but with quick realization that you’d already been staring at him, he looks harder, locking his gaze with yours. But it doesn’t last long. Seonghwa does not have a death wish and if anyone caught him making eyes at you, he would be signing just that.
The short interaction brings a chill to run up his spine. He doesn’t quite know if it’s because of the fact that someone could’ve seen or the look you gave him. Either way, he’s finding it hard to look away now. From the corner of his eye, he sees Seonho wrap an arm around your shoulders at the very moment you tilt your head as if to let him know you know he’s still watching you. He turns his head the other direction, you’re out of sight and he hopes it’ll mean out of mind.
About an hour into dinner, a loud gasp and the screeching of a chair being thrown back rings throughout the restaurant. The clamor sounds from the same direction you had been seated in and low and behold, you are now standing, all eyes are on you and the waitress with drinks in her hands. You look angry, your green dress now stained a shade darker from the liquid that had spilled in front of you, while she looks apologetic but the longer he stares, the more he realizes she’s faking it.
Seonho stands up a few minutes later, after laughing, and wraps an arm around the waitress’s waist. He whispers something in her ear, slips her a bill and taps her bottom to get her away. Meanwhile, you’re desperate to dry the front of your dress and the exposed skin just above the neckline. He can’t help but admire how good you look despite getting a drink spilled on.
“Calm down, it was an accident.” He hears Seonho say, rolling his eyes at you who hasn’t sat back down.
“Whatever, I’m going home.” In a haste, you grab your coat and your bag, not bothering to push your chair back in and throwing the cloth napkins down onto the table.
“Come on! Just stay for a little bit longer don’t be so dramatic.” Seonho doesn’t even try to make it a private matter but you’re out of the door the moment he speaks the last word.
The restaurant quiets down again, leaving the clattering of utensils and murmurs of conversations to be heard around him. He’s made a small dent on the plate of food in front of him, completely different from the empty plates of the other’s at the table. He know he’s not going to finish eating, nor want anything else so instead, he excuses himself from the table, shakes Minho and Chan’s hands, tell’s Hongjoong to call him if he wants anything (though he probably won’t answer tonight), and leaves the restaurant.
==
His phone rings from the bedside table beside him. Actually, it blares like an emergency alert inside his head just went off. Without bothering to look at the contact, he answers it, “What do you want?”
“I need a ride home.” A giggle comes through the speaker, making Seonghwa push the phone away from his ear. He knows it’s Wooyoung and debates hanging up, leaving one of the other guys to deal with him this early in the morning. “I’m very drunk, Hwa, please.”
“Where are you?” He asks but doesn’t make any move to get off the bed.
“Mmm at the hotel on 6th” another giggle.
“Okay. Stay there, please. Don’t run off like you did last time, I swear Wooyoung.” It takes everything in him to turn right side up and push himself off the bed. He feels worst than he did yesterday and his body hurts even more today. He must be getting old.
The hotel is not hard to find. It’s huge, lined up with giant palm trees and 3 gold fountains all along the driveway up to the front doors. It’s also hard to miss the guards at the front and not assume he’s at the right place.
“I can take your car for you, Sir.”
He’s tempted to wave valet off, tell them he’s only here for a pick up but he’s known Wooyoung for too long to know he’s just to just walk out and get into the car. He’s going to have to go look for the guy and drag him in.
Just as expected, Wooyoung is nowhere near the exit of the lobby. Seonghwa drags himself further into the hotel, faced with floor to ceiling glass automatic doors that lead you right out to the pools. A lap pool to the right, aligned with cabanas and another pool equipped with 2 bars, a jacuzzi and a huge grotto, a waterfall and a slide attached. It’s extravagant and way over the top.
It takes him a few minutes to take it all in, theres just so much to look at that he doesn’t notice the figure walking up to him.
“He’s in the bathroom.”
Being trained to be prepared for anything, Seonghwa doesn’t flinch nor does his heart jump. Instead, his hand clenches into a tight fist and he stabilizes himself. It’s reflex he wishes he could shut off especially for moments like these when your innocent eyes question his stance.
“Your friend? He’s in the bathroom.”
Seonghwa relaxes immediately. You’re no harm to him, especially not in sandals and a blue bikini though that doesn’t mean he’s underestimating or discrediting the fact that he knows you can throw a punch or two. He’s seen it with his own two eyes just a few weeks ago when you smacked Seonho across the face.
“Oh,” he looks down at his feet, “thanks.”
Before he can turn to head back into the lobby, you stop him, a small manicured hand on his left shoulder. “It’s hot isn’t it?”
It definitely is. “Sure. Yeah.”
“You should join me. It’s a really nice day, to swim or whatever” you say, extending an arm to demonstrate the pool behind as if he hadn’t noticed them earlier.
“I’m just picking someone up. I’m not staying long.” He offers you a short smile, politely enough so you don’t think he’s being rude. From his position, a foot or two in front of you, he can smell the coconut off your dewy skin and it’s mesmerizing, finding it hard to keep his distance. But he manages, feeling your delicate hand slide off his body. The moment he thinks he’s safe, your hand comes up again, playing with a button on his blouse before moving up slightly, your fingernails tracing up his skin until they reach the silver chain hanging off his neck. Out of everything, that makes him flinch.
“That’s cute” you say, letting it drop against his tanned skin. Suddenly, his body and mind wake up and he’s thrown back into the reality of where he was. The very public place he was in.
“Stop.” It’s nearly inaudible and gets lost with a deep inhale, he’s not even sure if you heard him until you back away slightly. And instead of being offended or feeling rejected, you can only smile up at him. You know exactly what you’re doing and it terrifies Seonghwa.
“Tell Wooyoung I said hi.”
He hesitates to watch you walk away, knowing fully well any one of Lee Seonho’s people could have been taking note of the interaction, ready to throw him under the bus for making a pass at you. Because everyone knows who you belong to and it isn’t Seonghwa.
Within seconds, Wooyoung appears, arms open and already yelling his many thanks at Seonghwa from behind the glass doors.
“Let’s go.” Seonghwa drags him out.
==
Seonghwa finds himself having trouble sleeping and he can’t come up with a good enough reason why.
Yesterday’s mission went perfect and was easier than they had all anticipated. More than enough was taken out of the safe, no one got hurt and they got away without getting caught. There was no reason to feel nervous or anxious about it anymore; it was over and they were all $50 million richer.
Although, there is one thing or better yet, one person that his mind flashes to whenever he tries to close his eyes and it’s eating away at him. There was no reason to think about you and what was there to think about anyway?
He thought you had the prettiest eyes; shiny and mischievous all the time. There was no denying he found you attractive. A lot of people did. But that was not enough reason to stay up. It’s like his brain thinks just because you asked him to go swimming with you or because he caught you staring at him that he’s allowed to think about you? No, it doesn’t work that way, especially not for Seonghwa.
He can’t even remember the last time he felt an ounce of feelings for anyone. Not that he’s admitting he has some kind of feelings for you, nothing other than physical attraction at least...so far. And he knows you feel the same way about him. There was no denying that look in your eye you always gave him. But he was sure of one thing: neither of you were going to do a damn thing about it.
It does, however, start to make more sense when he finds out Seonho has been invited to Changbin’s club opening event. He doesn’t question it and it’s far too late to back out of it because he’s already seated at one of the booths when Seonho walks in with you on his arm.
The room basically clears for him, a few big guys pushing people out of the way to clear a path for you and him. Seonghwa likes to think they’re making way for you who looks like a goddess in the gold dress you’re wearing, skin radiant. You’d just come back from a trip to Italy and it shows in the way you glow even in the darkest lighting. There’s a part of him wishing he had been the one to go with you.
“Hey! I’m gonna get another round for the table, what do you want to drink?” San slaps a hand on Seonghwa’s shoulder, waking him up from his dangerous delusion. He’s once again reminded you’re very much taken and then man that gets to hold you tonight can have his head on a stick by the end of the day. He would think knowing that important piece of information would get him to back off, lay his eyes off of you and pay attention to his friends but he can’t; he just can’t get over how good you look and especially not after what he’s watching happen to you.
Seonho grabs you by your face, cupping your chin but anyone with a brain could see it’s rough, not kind or cute at all. Even the look in your eyes gives it away that he’s hurting you, that you’re shocked and whatever happened was not supposed to make him react this way. You reach a hand up to wrap around his wrist but no matter how much you tighten your grip, he doesn’t let go. His face is inches away from yours and he’s spitting angrily at you.
At his table, Seonghwa can’t stop bouncing his leg as he watches. If he wasn’t sitting in the center of the booth, he would have already gotten up. But what would happen once he reached you? Saved you? Protected you from the most protected man in the room right now? He couldn’t touch Seonho even if he wanted to. Even with his team here, with Bang Chan’s crew, nothing would stop Seonho from releasing his wrath on him.
After a few minutes, Seonho releases you, throwing your head back with a push of his finger, making you stumble backwards as he walks away from you. Your expression changes quickly and instead of being the shocked girl you were a few seconds ago, you’re now more angry than anything. To Seonghwa’s pleasure, you flip Seonho off with two hands and then you grab a drink from the table and knock it back. You look unfazed and he doesn’t know if he should be happy for you or worried that you’re acting like this happens all the time.
He can’t stop thinking about you. It’s another sleepless night for him, full of worry and anxiety except tonight, he knows why. He can surely tell you that he’s thinking about you and how badly he wishes you were safe tonight. It’s not like last week when he was pulling at his hair in frustration.
While he shouldn’t be thinking too deep into it, he can’t help it. He’s overthinking when he shouldn’t be doing any thinking about you at all and now it’s 3:17 am and Seonghwa can’t stop wondering if you’re okay.
He also can’t telling himself this is okay, that being worried about you is normal, that any sane human would be concerned for the safety of something he thinks may be getting hurt behind closed doors. He saw it happen, he saw you get manhandled in public so who knows what's happening when you’re alone with him. He’s right to worry even if he barely knows anything about you.
===
“Lee Seonho asked about you.” Hongjoong isn’t looking up as he speaks so he doesn’t catch the way Seonghwa freezes at the mention of Seonho.
“What did he want?”
“I don’t know, just asked how you were and what you’ve been up to. Why? Did you do something wrong?” He chuckles as he asks, cluelessly accurate.
“Maybe you two can catch up tonight. I heard he might show up.”
Seonghwa doesn’t understand how criminals like them can be in the public spotlight so much. Always attending parties and events despite robbing banks or smuggling drugs and weapons. Though they are surrounded by people like them, he doesn’t see how this is keeping them out of trouble. They should be laying low, not flashing their money but he does have to admit, it’s fun and rewarding at times.
Not this time though. He’s avoiding Seonho like the plague; you on the other hand, he’s looking for intently. It’s like he has this sudden need to look out for you, protect you, make sure you’re okay and out of harm’s way -- or Seonho’s way. Because based on some of the latests interactions he’d seen with you and Seonho, it didn’t put the nicest idea in his head. It throbs in his head how he has nothing to do with you and should want nothing to do with you but his anxiety gets the better of him, instead, aiming at keeping his eye on you.
He spots you shortly after, leaning up against a wall with a full drink. You look bored out of your mind and even with the crowd in front of you, you’re staring off into nothing, eyes glazing over.
His leg twitches, like his brain is telling him to sit back down and mind his own business. His uneasy heart beat reminds him that you’re already being taken care of. But by the time he’s thought about it, he finds himself walking over to you. He’s smart enough to head over when you’re alone, standing with no one near you and with no one watching you either, meaning he’s safe.
It feels like your body had called his over, like you’re the other half to his magnet pulling him to you. You don’t even question when you notice the figure approaching you, clad in a gold silk button up. It even brings a smile to your face when you realize you’re practically matching.
“You look like you’re having fun.”
Seonghwa has now had enough of his liquid courage. He knows his boundaries and where to cross the line especially when it comes to you, but now that his blood is running hot in his veins, he doesn’t stop himself from matching energy with you. And this side of him though surprises you, attracts you more to him.
“Now that you’re here, yeah.” You bite your lip and Seonghwa pays heavy attention to how your tongue swipes over the spot right after. Your lips are still as glossy as they were earlier and he’s silently wondering what they would look like if you’d let him kiss you. He’s brave tonight but not that brave.
His eyes float up, landing on the balcony just above you and a smile breaks onto his face. His neck cranes down so his mouth is at ear level for you, making you hear him clearly when he says, “Can I show you something?”
The response you give him is one of you kicking your body off the wall and extending your hand out to his, letting him lead you to the back of the bar and up the stairs, ultimately entering the balcony area. It’s open and you can look out at the crowd on the first level but the seating area reminds you of a library, with full bookcases lining the walls. Apart from the LED lights from downstairs shining up at the ceiling and a small lamp at one of the side tables, there are no lights on. No one could see you up here unless they used a flashlight and looked really hard. But with a dimly lit lamp on, it’s also hard for you to see where Seonghwa is, only being able to make out the shape of his body.
“What’s this spot for?” You ask, taking a seat on the arm of the leather sofa.
“Meeting room. Hongjoong likes being here before the bar opens.” There’s no real reason he brought you up here, all it has to offer is the change of scenery and the privacy, truthfully, he brought you here to have you closer to him.
You hum in response, leaning your head forward to take another sight of the people gathered downstairs. Seonho has been sitting down for a while now, far too distracted with girls seated to his left and right to notice you’re gone from your spot. Not that he has to know where you are.
Seonghwa doesn’t miss your line of view, watching you carefully to make sure you’re okay once again. He likes having you up here too, away from him and his dirty hands. Though his own hands aren’t as clean, he knows he’d never touch you the way Seonho did and probably does on a regular basis. Your reaction was too calm for that to have been a one time thing and it unnerves Seonghwa. But he also knows you to be strong and to stand up for yourself, hoping that you’d use that to your advantage in times like those.
His leg begins to bounce again, anger settling in at the image of you being hurt. He would hate to have to intervene, hoping it would never come to that.
“Who’s books are these?” You’d looked away from Seonho a while ago, moving on to examine what you could of the room.
“Yunho’s mostly. Some I put in here, others are Hongjoong’s.”
“Do the others not like to read?”
“I’m not too sure they know how.”
His comment makes you laugh and his mind begins to race to find other funny things to say just to hear you laugh again and again.
“Is it bad if I say I know what you mean?” You wince, not hurt, just unsure of whether this will offend him or not. But the smile remains on his face and he shakes his head. “Not when I’m right.”
Your head turns the other way, to the wall without any bookcases instead decorated with pieces of art — Yeosang’s input. And silence takes over for a few minutes. Seonghwa loves silence, he likes being alone and taking time to himself. With no one around, he has no need to think or plan, just close your eyes and relax. But compared to that silence, with you in the room and the music and the crowd from downstairs, this silence is better. It’s comforting and enjoyable and he’s glad for the white noise otherwise, he’s sure you’d be able to hear his pounding heart.
He watches you as you look around, nearing the end of your own little tour when your eyes finally land back on him. “Do you think I can show you something now?”
The corner of his mouth twitches up, allowing him to only display a soft smile and handle the rest of his excitement elsewhere at another time. Right now, he has to keep his cool.
“Yeah, we can go out back.”
The balcony not only has a staircase going back down to the bar but a door, one you didn’t notice at first since it was black and blending in with the wall. You assume they wanted it to be obscure. The second he opens it, the music bleeds outside, fighting against the wind blowing on to your from the top of a metal staircase.
He has one hand on your lower back, guiding you down the steps, mindful of your attire. Once at the bottom, his hand retreats to his side, digging into his pocket for his car keys, already knowing that you were driven here and had no way home. But he stops a few steps ahead of you when he’d notice you were no longer walking with him.
“What happened?” He wonders if you’d forgotten something inside, worries that you regret coming with him and is scared that you’re going to go back inside to Seonho. But he also accepts his defeat; Seonho is wealthier than him, more powerful than him and he can provide you with a better, safer future than Seonghwa would. Maybe it’s better that you go back inside.
He meets with you at the bottom of the stairs, you just 2 steps higher than him, allowing you to meet eye to eye with him. Still, he keeps his distance. He respects you too much to take advantage of the proximity like that.
But that doesn’t mean you won’t.
Your fingers find themselves tangled in his chain, the same one you’d complimented weeks ago. It shines under the streetlights but it’s not blinding you the way it did under the sunlight at the hotel. His breathing picks up just slightly but he keeps himself composed.
“You know, I always found you really interesting. I used to think you were shy, mysterious, cold,” he finds himself back at the hotel with your fingers tickling the flesh of his chest, over his heart, except this time your hand moves up. Your finger trails along his jawline ending at his chin before you put a palm on his cheek, lowering it down to the back of his neck. There, your fingers play with the ends of his hair and it has him thinking he should have gotten a haircut yesterday like Yunho suggested. But your hand feels so good, soft tugs have him melting into you.
“You’re still super mysterious, but I don’t think you’re shy or cold anymore.” You close the remaining gap with a push to the back of his neck, catching his lips with yours.
It takes him a few seconds to register what was happening before his lips began to move in sync with yours.
Then his hands wake up and they place themselves on your hips, grabbing a handful of your curves before he finally puts himself in action. His hands slide down to the back of your thighs, latching themselves safely around your legs before he lifts you up, allowing you to wrap your legs around him. He uses the wall as leverage to adjust you, hoisting you up higher so he has a better angle and better access to you, your neck, your chest.
When his mouth reaches the neckline of your dress, he stops himself and pulls away.
“What? What’s wrong?” You’re out of breath and your lips look exactly how he’d imagined them to be. They still shine but only because they’d been wet with his saliva.
“You-I can’t-“
“Why? What happened?”
He still has you wrapped around him, against a wall with no intent to let go of you but the way he can’t make eye contact with you scares you.
“You’re with someone already,” he stutters, trying to continue his explanation but he can’t, allowing you to take over.
“Who?”
“Seonho. I can’t steal you from him. He’ll kill me.”
When his eyes finally catch yours, they’re wide, full of concern. A tap to his chest release his grip on you, lowering you to the ground softly.
“What do you mean? I’m not-he’s not my boyfriend, Seonghwa.”
“He doesn’t have to be your boyfriend to claim you.”
“Claim me?”
“Everyone knows you and him are a thing. No one can touch you, look at you or even think about you. You come and go together everywhere. It's not- I can’t mess around with you.”
His words insult you despite his intention to. You can’t understand what made him think this way, why he would even assume you and Seonho were together or a ‘thing’ but even more, you’re disgusted.
“Me and him?” You shudder. “No, he’s like my annoying older brother at most. Our dads are friends, they send us off to hang out but I don’t like him like that, he’s an asshole and I hate him.”
This seems to relieve Seonghwa a bit. You notice the way his shoulders deflate and how he takes a deep breath, nodding to process your words after a few moments of silence. He doesn’t want to question it more because he trusts you. it didn’t take a genius to notice your relationship with him wasn’t a good one. As bad as it sounds, he’s happy to hear you hate the guy, mentally agreeing with you. “Okay then.”
Your hands find themselves on his shoulders, rubbing them to relax him more in hopes you could continue what was going on earlier. Your touch sends a chill up his spine, an automatic response he’s learned only really happens with you.
Your lips press a soft kiss onto his cheek, “Take me home,” and then another kiss on his cold lips, still plump from earlier. You know he’s still hesitant so to wake him up and give him the green light, you take the bottom lip between your teeth ever so lightly pulling at it, “take me home so I can prove it to you.”
Just as you’d expected, Seonghwa’s eyes widen, hands immediately finding a hold on his keys again before he unlocks his car in the lot. Then he fumbles for a hold on yours. He has no thoughts in his head when he closes you in the door, speeding his way around to get into the drivers seat. And it’s only when you grab his hand in yours, caress the skin with your thumb that he realizes this is happening.
This is almost embarrassing for him, the rush and excitement of getting you home made him feel like a teenage boy finally scoring a date or a kiss with his long-time crush that had always been out of his league, which is still true to some extent. After months of passing encounters with you and being drawn to each other but not knowing or doing anything about it, you finally did.
You chose him, he chose you. And now it was only up to you whether you’d allow him to keep the promise he’d been wanting to make: to keep you safe.
But of course, let’s not forget the fact that you had something to prove to him.
He looks over to you, a twinkle in his eye that matches yours exactly. And then follows the smirk that has your toes curling. Oh how you couldn’t wait to get home.
additional a/n:
definitely listen to take me home by ateez duh
someone pls stop me from writing forbidden love/enemies to lovers/ bad boy! au stories :/
pairing: the boyz haknyeon x (f/long haired) reader
genre: slight thriller, fluff, friends to lovers
warnings: gun mentions, 1 very short mention of death, store robbery, very rushed im sry
word count: 3.2k
prompt: leave it to haknyeon to make everything about this horrible day to make you feel better
a/n: someone stop me from writing such dark stories. also my first friends to lovers how exciting. we all need a hak in our life, have you seen that boy’s smile like :((( give me one
It’s hard to prepare yourself for a long day at work, dreading customers, the labor and just the emotional fatigue that would come with faking a smile for strangers all day. But you did it? Every single day for the last 2 years. And you’d think that this day would go as uneventful as any other day has been.
When you’d come into work today, you’d been busy behind the register, watching the sun shy away from a sunset. Every now and then, the customers would walk in, purchase something and then leave just like they always did. Like you expected, a normal day.
However when it was time to grab merchandise towards the end of the work day, you’d gone to the back of the store where storage was. All alone, you pray that you don’t fall off the ladder you’ve just opened to grab a box from the top shelf just when you hear the back door bang open.
You jump at the loud noise, stopping your search to stare at the direction it came from for a few seconds. It’s probably just Mia or Aisha taking the trash out, maybe the door wasn’t fully closed and it’s just Haknyeon fixing it. So you think nothing of it, letting your pounding heart settle down enough to stabilize yourself in such a high position. Carefully, you reach the ground floor again, the box heavy in your hands.
From just the other side of the wall, you can hear chattering from the rest of the employees on the sales floor. They laugh, joke around and you get excited to go back out, getting closer to closing time and eventually, going home.
As you turn the corner, headed to the door that separates you from them, you hear heavy steps, rushing at you. You have no time to turn around and find out who it is before they grab you, an arm around your neck pushing your back against their chest. And then, the very cold feeling of something metal on your temple.
The grip on the box tightens so much that you almost lose grip on it and it slips a little. Your quick movement to grab it before slamming down onto your toes must have shocked the man because he yells at you to stop moving. Him being so close to your ears makes it that much louder than he probably sounded. You want to shield your face, cover yourself and feel safe but you can’t with his hold on you. The gun presses harder against your temple and you’re sure it’s going to leave some kind of imprint on you, but you’re even more sure a shot fired this close to you would surely kill you. You worry more about the imprint to distract yourself from the second thought.
“You’re going to take me to the registers and you’re going to open them for me, alright? Then I’ll let you go and you can forget this ever happened. Sound good?”
You nod, holding the box tighter than ever against your chest. The merchandise rattles as you take the extra steps to the door, he reaches an arm out, the weapon in his hands and he uses his extra fingers to swing the door open.
From out of nowhere, another pair of footsteps rushes in from behind you both. The man with the gun to your head doesn’t move and let’s the second man go around him, also waving a gun around, dressed in black and a mask over his face. You assume this man must be dressed the same when you look down at his arm and see it covered with a black long sleeve. They were smart to avoid skin showing, possibly expose any marks that could be a dead giveaway to recognizing them.
But knowing this only scares you more. They’re smart, they’ll get away with this and probably even get away with killing you.
Your heart rattles against your chest, pounding for help. And with the door open, everyone from the sales floor is now getting yelled at to stay on the ground, only one person catches your gaze, the very same eyes you’d been searching for.
Haknyeon has his head tilted towards you, big brown eyes widened once he’d realize where you’d been this whole time. You look around to see the rest of the employees face down, and the few customers left curled into themselves. Haknyeon looks straight at you.
“Alright, it’s your time to shine.” The man shoves you behind the counter where all 4 registers sit. Lena, who had just been behind the counter gets pulled out, and thrown to the floor with the rest of them. You log into the first computer before your fingers freeze, completely having forgot that you don’t have access to the register. Out of fright, you’d completely agreed to let this man have the money without even thinking about it.
You lips tremble as you make an attempt to explain yourself but this only annoys the man who’s already frustrated that you’d stopped typing. “Hurry up, what’s the problem?”
“I-I don’t- I can’t unlock the register. Only managers can do that.”
The man huffs and releases his hold around you, the gun easing off your temple. “Who’s the manager here?” He yells, aiming his gun at the crowd on the floor. Everyone helps in surprise, shielding their face from the weapon.
“Me, I’ll do it.” Kevin raises his hand and from your spot you can tell just how scared he was. His entire body was shaking, telling you that he also had never prepared for a day like this. His keys jungle as he makes his way over to you, frozen in place. His eyes soften at the sight of you, and you give him a curt nod as if to say you’re okay. As scared as you were, You couldn’t make him even more scared right now.
The keyboard clacks under his fingers, pressing hard before one register flies open.
The second man hurries over, grabbing the bills from their slots and slams the drawer closed again, waiting for the next. “That’s it?” The guy mumbles, not knowing that Kevin was opening the register they prioritized for card transactions only. The second register he gets open, is the extra cash drawer, almost emptied from the rush of today. The man huffs again, scooping what little he’s offered.
Just as Kevin moves to the next drawer, the one Lena had just been on, he hesitates. “What? What’s wrong?”
Kevin looks up from behind his eyelashes, flashing a look at you, at the rest of his employees lying face down on the ground and then finally over them outside the window. It’s dark out and nearly no one is walking around anymore. Kevin shakes his head to respond to the man, continuing to type his pin and password into the two registers before they open with a slam.
The second guy, the one not holding you by your arm, pushes you out of the way and rushes towards the money, grabbing handfuls of whats in there. It’s not a lot, but you suppose it’s enough when you’re as desperate as they must be.
Kevin backs away to let them pick up all the money and just as he does so, the back door slams open. You look at him with wide eyes, scared out of your mind that they’ve called for backup and this is probably going to be the last time you see him, see anyone in this room. Immediately, your eyes search for Haknyeon’s again and it only takes a second for him to feel your eyes on him. He watches your eyes as they lower, down to the corner where a box cutter lies. He must know exactly what you’re thinking because then he shakes his head, small so he doesn’t get noticed but with enough consternation to tell you not even to think about it.
But you can’t. You have to save yourself, save him, save all these other people right now before you all get killed.
However, as soon as you decide now is the time to make a move, the masked men exchange looks. Your body twitches at their sudden yelling, asking each other what was going on or whether they closed the back door or not. The second guy hesitates to move but follows instructions, giving away that he was just an extra and not the leader, though they both seem to be bad at this.
Before the guy can fully enter the backroom, the door slams open again, and the guy reappears with a gun aimed straight at him. The gun appears slowly, inch by inch until the person holding it shows up from the doorway.
A few people yelp at the sight, not entirely sure what was happening but at the sight of the bulletproof vest and the badge. “Everyone, on the ground, hands out so we can see them!”
A few more police come up from behind him, prepared to help. One comes near you, gun aimed at the man holding you back from going on the ground or putting your hands up. And the gun he has is right on your temple again.
The only thing you can do is close your eyes, you can’t even think. You’re frozen, fully aware of what was going on but not being able to do much with the metal pressing into your. The grip on your arm tightens for a quick second before it loosens and slips off.
A moment later, you come back to earth, hearing the heavy shuffling of feet exit the room. A warm hand lands on your shoulder and the question, “Are you okay?”
Kevin’s voice is soft in your ear, waiting for you to nod, to say yes, anything to tell him you’re okay. And so you do, eyes still semi closed and only opening them fully when you see the two masked men out of the room. A policeman walks in and out of the store, asking Kevin to come with him for questions.
Kevin leaves you after giving your back a soft pat to move up and go with everyone else.
Lena can be see hugging another coworker of yours, crying into her shoulder as they hold each other. Everyone else is clearly shaken up, already on the phone with loved ones to update them about what just happened and telling them the good news. Others are in shock, waiting silently until they can get their brain and body working again so they can go home.
And then there’s Haknyeon, standing right in front of you, eyes locked on you.
You don’t even feel your body move towards his but before you know it, you’re enveloped in his arms. You can’t even cry when you put your forehead down onto his shoulder but his hold on you tightens, wrapping you up in his warmth, his will to be comforting and safe. “I’m so sorry” he whispers into the crown of your head, voice cracking towards the end.
His hands are shaking, as are yours but it doesn’t stop him from making you feel safe. His arms move up to keep your head close to him, letting your entire body tremble against his. And as soon as you’re ready to back away, he doesn’t let go of your waist.
He sticks right by you as the police ask their routine questions, wanting to know what you saw when the robbers had first come in. Haknyeon finally removes his arm only to take your hand into his and continuously rub his thumb along your knuckles. You look down at it, thinking about how earlier he tried running away from you for using glittered lotion and threatened to rub some onto his face. But now, it seems he either forgot or really doesn’t care. Still, it’s clear his priority is you right now and the idea of that runs through your head, down to your heart and settling in your stomach.
“I’m gonna take you home” he says once the police drive away, giving you the clear to go home. Kevin came up to you, talked to you and gave you the option to stay home for the rest of the week if you needed to. But you notice the small smile on his face when he looks down at your hand, fingers intertwined with Haknyeon’s.
“Make sure she gets home safe.” He aims at Haknyeon, pulling back the knowing smile he’d been fighting.
Haknyeon takes a deep breath once outside, standing at the door of his car. He still hasn’t let you go when he turns to face you.
“Are you okay? Really okay?” His free hand takes a strand of hair from your face and carefully tucks it behind your ear, flatting it the rest of the way down. You nod.
“This could be really traumatizing for you and I just want you to know if you ever need to talk to someone, I’m here. Everyone here is, okay? We all love you, so much and we never want you to go through anything alone.”
Your heart warms, your stomach does flips, and your breath hitches. “I know.”
“But most importantly, I will be here for you. I won’t let anything happen to you again. I promise I’ll keep you safe.”
The corners of your lips rise slowly, pushing your heated cheeks up. You’re lucky your in a parking lot and not inside where the lights would blast you like a spotlight.
“I hope you know I’ll hold you to that” a chuckle falls past your lips and he follows with a short laugh. Silence takes over shortly after, deep breaths breathing out clouds of white. Amused eyes lock gaze with yours, though you can’t entirely see the way his pupils dilate once you look back at him. His hand comes back up to view, taking another fallen strand of your hair but instead of tucking this one back, he plays with it for a bit, lying it back down your front. His hand trembles, possibly from the cold but also most likely from the adrenaline of what happened, but as soon as he tucks his fingers under your chin, he stabilizes.
A shaky breath leave his lips, which also tremble as he breathes out. He parts his lips, prepared to say something but just when he’s ready, the sound of another voice stops him.
“Just kiss already so I can win the bet!”
Both you and Haknyeon flick your heads to the front door where Lena and a few others have gathered. They’d all been watching you this whole time apparently, waiting for him to make a move.
To be honest, you had heard a word or two about Haknyeon’s liking for you but you’d always passed it off as him being friendly and loving towards everyone he met. Strangers liked him, his friends and family loved him and you were just someone among those people. But what you hadn’t told them was you were among those people and something more.
Finding out he would be working the same days as you made your heart race, seeing him smile only made your terrible days turn into ones full of sunshine, hearing his laugh made you laugh with him, sharing food and conversations was something you looked forward to every single day. They had no idea that every time they’d mention Haknyeon and his possible crush on you, your stomach was a professional Cirque du Soleil performer, flipping and turning for hours.
They had no idea you’d go home to your roommates and go on and on and on about Haknyeon and the little, trivial thing he’d done for you. How you’d gush about him until they got tired of it, until the next day you’d work with him.
Haknyeon removes a hand from your face to flip them and turns your body to lean against his car, his back to the peeping crowd.
“Your friends are such nosy people,” he rolls his eyes, giving you that antsy feeling you’d always get when he teased you like this. His hand comes back up to hold your cheek, stroking your warm skin with his thumb. You look over your shoulder to see Lena accepting money from others, confident that she was going to win this bet. And a part of you hopes she’s right.
You look back up at him. “Y/n, I like you.”
You want to make a joke, agree with him and use his words from earlier to confirm you knew that. But you’re at a loss for words. You feel like a teenager again, heart thumping so loud you swore if there wasn’t cars driving around, that he’d be able to hear it. Still self-conscious, you look down.
“I’ve liked you for a while now.” He begins to panic, his eyes searching back and forth between yours for an answer. You think he’s going to keep going but he doesn’t, too freaked out that he’d just confessed to you after so long. But the longer you stay quiet, the more he’s going to think you don’t feel the same so to answer him while also satisfying yourself, you lean in.
His lips are cold from having stood outside for so long. And yours are dry from the lack of water today but neither of you seem to mind. The soft kiss leads into a more passionate one, squishing your faces together as close as you could while also giving enough space to breath and not suffocate yourselves. You can feel yourself levitate, your feet going up on it’s toes when he takes your lips between his own.
From behind him, you can hear the cheers and whoops, a round of claps erupting and a very enthusiastic Lena.
“I’m kinda offended some of them bet against us ending up with each other, I thought I was making it super obvious.” He mumbles against your lips. You giggle, shrugging as if to pretend you had no idea either.
When you finally part, he takes your hand into his again and turns to face the others, lifting your arms above your heads as a symbol of triumph. You can’t help but laugh again, waving goodbye before you get into the car.
He takes one look at you, in his passenger seat where you’d sat plenty of times before, just now, it’s different. “Sorry, I just- this is like- I’ve been waiting for this to happen.”
He shakes his head like it’s unbelievable, meanwhile your heart and brain are doing the same thing only you are going to wait until you’re home to jump up and down, possibly celebrate with your friends over text. You truly couldn’t wait to tell them.
“If it helps in any way, my roommates are a big fan of you.” You let him know of the conversations you’d had of him to them, omitting the way you’d bring him up in almost every single conversation or how you’d never stop complimenting him. He smiles the whole way to your home, clearly enjoying this too much. Though you know his ego can use a little boost right now.
And once you’re outside, his car rumbling low, you look at him, preparing yourself to say goodbye and leave the warmth and comfort of him. One look at your apartment building remind you of the cold brick walls and how you’d have to stack up an extra blanket tonight, unless-
“Can you stay with me?”
Haknyeon is already smiling wide at you, like he’d expected this but you say nothing about it.
here is the the boyz and stray kids versions if you’re interested ! <3
genre: fluff
warnings: none hopefully (dont hesitate to lmk if you find something)
word count: 480
|◁ II ▷|
seonghwa:
seonghwa is very shy. but he promises he likes kissing you. so basically your favorite kisses are any kisses bc he smiles into them and it usually means his teeth will smack into yours but seeing him happy makes you happy
hongjoong:
his kisses are rushed bc he always finds himself busy but it’s the fact that he will always spare the 2 seconds it takes to lean over, cup your chin and kiss you that make these kisses your favorite. it’s the sweet reminder that he loves you, truly
yunho:
his giant hands have so much space on them that you find yourself grabbing them whenever they’re in reach and after you massage them a little, you kiss over the skin, around and onto the inner side of his wrists
yeosang:
your favorite kisses w yeosang are the ones given to him without his knowledge. usually on his forehead or the top of his nose when he’s in the middle of a deep sleep. sometimes he pretends he’s asleep just to get those extra kisses from you
san:
the kisses right before bed are your favorite. it’s like you’re sealing the night with a kiss but also bc he tastes like mint and whatever lip moisturizer he’s picked tonight, sometimes he makes you guess the scents which keeps you up an extra 30 minutes and then he has to kiss you goodnight again
mingi:
he comes up from behind you, wraps his arms around your waist and kisses the side of your neck just below your ear. it’s become a habit of yours to just turn your head and kiss him on the lips which gives him a 2 in 1 deal making them both your favorite kind of kisses
wooyoung:
we know how wooyoung gets excited and rambles very loudly right? well there are times when he starts yelling about something, stops himself, leans over and steals a kiss, and returns to telling his story. it catches you off guard every single time but you’ve come to like them a lot
jongho:
he doesn’t like pda so he won’t kiss you in front of other often but when he does, theyre quick pecks on the cheek or the lips. theyre really cute and you appreciate the effort and he always makes it up for it when you’re in alone together anyway by giving you more confident jongho-kisses
pairing: stray kids’ fratboy!jisung x sorority!reader
genre: angst, ex-fwb to lovers, very little fluff, slow-burn????
warnings: cheesy and cliche, alcohol, swear words, suggestive themes, jisung being an idiot, mention of a (fake) cult/ religion, fear of deep water, thoughts about strangling
prompt: the world works in mysterious ways. you just really wish it would stop making you weak for han jisung’s smile.
word count: ~5200
a/n: this has been in the works for a WHILE (since early december 2020) and is now being completed. hope you all like this one, i’ve written it w my blood sweat and tears and love... any talk about religion or cults is not meant to be offensive, i wrote everything under the purpose of being fiction!!!
+ if you’ve seen this before, no you haven’t. i had to repost bc of technical issues on my end...
networks: @straykidsland @destinyverse
|◁ II ▷|
College had taught you three things.
1: Naps were important. and there was never a nap-time-limit -- don’t let anyone judge you for taking 4 hour naps especially when they’re well deserved.
2: Flashcards were more useful than you think they’d be. A quick little flashcard session the night before could work wonders when studying for a test.
And 3: Don’t bother with Han Jisung.
Here’s the thing with that last piece of advice: avoiding Han Jisung was damn near impossible. Not only was he in the brother frat to your sorority (meaning you’d see him at every event) but he lived a few houses down from you on Greek Row. And if that wasn’t hard enough, you two had a past.
But whatever had been going on between the two of you ended quick and on good terms and lucky for you, Han Jisung was going to be around at all times meaning, complete awkwardness was not allowed. Nothing was ever made official between you two but it had definitely gotten quite serious, enough for you to get jealous of the other girls he’d allowed to throw themselves at him. And instead of continuing to get jealous you’d called it quits, claiming you “wanted to focus on more important things at the moment” and he understood because not even a week later, you’d watched him make out with a girl right on his porch at a party.
You’d be lying if you said you weren’t hurt by it. Not that the heartbreak lasted long. He had been through numerous talking stages with other girls all at the same time and karma was finally catching up to him, much to your pleasure. A while ago you heard one of them stormed into the library and slapped him hard across the face. And not too long ago it was a girl throwing her drink at him at one of his own parties. It was a gratifying experience.
Safe to say, you, along with the others who have fallen for his games, were tired of him and his behavior. While you’d expect reactions like throwing drinks at douchebags or crying over men who didn’t deserve it, you had never heard of a “get drunk and chant for the downfall of Han Jisung” party yet that was exactly what you had walked into.
In your defense, you were disoriented from the alcohol and just trying to look for Lia’s phone which she claims to have left upstairs in the room to the left of the hallway. But apparently there was two rooms and one was being hosted by a cult. And they were quick to drag you into it. Almost immediately, one began handing you her drink and pulling you into their circle which you expected to have pictures of him crossed out with candles surrounding them but instead, you were met with a crying girl on the floor.
“He invited her to the party and just ditched her here, can you believe him?” one of the girls there wraps an arm around your shoulders, pulling you in so you can hear her over the loud music.
“Who?” you question, distracted by the girl on the floor now being comforted by another 2 girls.
“Han Jisung. Men are trash, I swear, when are they going to learn!” Everything clicks at that moment. She must have felt very similar to the way you felt and your heart hurts for her. it’s true. Men are trash and Han Jisung was the biggest piece of it. Despite the fact that he had been in your close friend circle for the last 3 years, there was no defending his actions. He would have to keep paying for them.
Before you can ask another question, the girl on the floor begins standing up, drink in hand and completely drunk out of her mind. But she’s still sober enough to repeat the words her friend begins telling her to repeat. From what you hear, it sounds a lot like-
“Fuck Han Jisung!”
Yup. That’s exactly it.
You’re tempted to tell Lia and Minnie about your newfound religious awakening of hating Jisung but you know they would never believe you nor would they probably listen -- you vowed to not talk about Jisung after he’d easily let you go and replaced you years ago. Also, they’re drunk and one’s busy losing at Mario Kart while the other is singing along to karaoke like she’s Beyonce; you’ll have to ask her about her past life when you’re all sober.
Change of plans.
You’re too hungover to want to speak and you can’t quite remember a lot of what happened yesterday let alone remember to ask Lia a random question. But you do remember walking into some sisterhood of Anti-Jisung agenda pushers. At least, you think it happened, it could have possibly just been a weird dream that came from the jungle juice you couldn’t stop drinking.
“Did anyone encounter a cult last night or was that just me?” you ask the girls over a bowl of cereal, not the average breakfast conversation. Lia looks at Minnie who looks at Lia and both of them shake their head, confused.
“I don’t know what to do with her anymore. She needs help” Lia whispers fully aware you’re in earshot and are staring at them talking.
“No, we did not. Why? Did you?”
You shrug because you’re actually not too sure if it did happen or not, as real as it felt. You pass it as your deepest, darkest, secret desire coming alive as a dream.
==
When the sorority has events, they’re usually in joint with the matching fraternity. It helps with fundraising and it means the after parties are going to be even greater. They’re usually nights to remember or in most cases, nights you forget because you pass out by 2 am. Okay, so maybe just you so far but there are other people who leave by now. You don’t remember getting to your bed but you wake up on it, safe and tucked in, possibly at the hand of Lia or Felix, who hates when people pass out all over the furniture.
Getting down the stairs is a task in it’s own sober and half asleep-you really struggles to see which step is which but nonetheless, you make it down unscathed. You’re surprised to see the party still alive and while you’d like to continue your night as a messy drunk, all you want is water.
You’re forced to squeeze your way into the dimly lit kitchen which is a complete mess. The idea of having to clean it up tomorrow morning causes a shiver to run down your back but a sudden warmth soothes it. It takes you a few seconds to realize it’s someone’s hand, along with a greeting that you recognize. And it’s not just anyone’s, it’s Jisung’s.
An audible groan leaves your lips as you scoot away from him. “You okay?” he asks, retreating his hand, a smile fading away. You almost feel bad for flinching away from him.
“No, I’m looking for water.”
You see him search the counters alongside you before reaching over and grabbing a glass which he fills with water. “Here you go, be careful.”
And as if the universe decides it wants to mock you, a person behind you shoves their way into the kitchen and spills the water right out of your cup, which miraculously survived. Both you and Jisung stare at the puddle, shining underneath the decorative purple LED lighting, with dropped jaws. Neither of you want to nor are going to clean this up.
You lunge forward to make a quick escape out of the kitchen space and back to your room but Jisung wraps an arm around your waist and with his advantage of being stronger, pulls you back. “Hey, hey, hey. I don’t want anyone blaming me for this mess.”
“Then you better run away before anyone suspects you.” Your eyes grow wide, half delirious from the alcohol still in your system and from the possible dehydration.
You know better than to allow Jisung back into your life this easily after the way he treated you and continues to treat others but you blame the adrenaline for grabbing his hand and pulling him behind you, up to your room. You swear it’s only to hide from the accusatory fingers blaming you for the slip-hazard and having to clean it up.
With the door now closed behind the both of you, Jisung stands at the doorway, inspecting your room with just a lamp lighting up the space. “You’ve changed a lot since the last time I was in here.”
He lifts a few trinkets off your desk and examines them, smiling and putting them back down before making his way to the window seat.
“Yeah, that was like 3 years ago. We’ve grown up since then.”
“Oh, so taking your One Direction pictures down and replacing them with- who is that?- Nam Joohyuk is ‘growing up’?“ he offers a pair of air quotes to you which you return with an eye roll.
“Nam Joohyuk is sexy, sorry that you’re jealous your body will never look half as good as his.”
Now it’s his turn to roll his eyes though you can’t see him with your eyes closed.
“If you’re tired I can leave. I’ll let you sleep.” You hear the bench under him creak when he stands up, footsteps headed to the door.
“You can stay. You don’t want cleaning duty today do you?” He shakes his head, this you see with one eye open.
You know better, you know better. But you’re not exactly thinking and before you know it, your hand reaches for the comforter on your bed and your other hand pats the free space next to you. If you’re going to hide him out for the mess you made, the least you could do is provide him with a comfortable space. But another look at him reminds you of all he’s done and the possibility of strangling him in his sleep crosses your mind. If you weren’t so tired, you’d think it was the perfect plan except he would probably enjoy it. Bad idea.
Jisung gets in after a few moments, possibly thinking over the decision to lie in bed next to you. Possibly knowing this wasn’t the right choice for you to do too. But neither of you say anything and within minutes, you’re asleep, missing the way Jisung admires your face.
==
The universe likes to mock you. Almost as much as Minnie liked to mock you (she did it subconsciously and you really couldn’t blame her, it was funny most times).
You know Jisung made it out of your room and out of your house without being seeing so there was no reason for Minnie or Lia to come questioning and scolding you for giving him very valuable you-time. And just to be safer, you avoid Jisung the days following it. You weren’t going to let him back in that easy, not after the trouble you went through after trying to get over him. You were drunk, sleep-deprived and feeling kind, there was no other possible reason you let him into your room. You honestly hadn’t even planned for him to fall asleep in there, it just happened. It was totally without your knowledge and you were not to blame for that. What happened, happened and what mattered was that he was now far away from you.
But as you said, the universe likes to mock you. it does so in ways such as running out of your favorite cereal after craving it during long hours of class to the devil himself showing up at the cafe with a girl attached to him. At first, you want to run out of there and forget the drink you ordered but you paid $4 for it and you’re not waiting in line for another at some other time. So you stay and just pretend you didn’t see him. Chalk art is actually very interesting now that you stare at it this long.
A part of you wants to hide away, tuck yourself into the corner of the cafe and pray he doesn’t see you. But another part, the realistic, smart part, reminds you that Jisung most likely does not have a care in the world for your presence right now. He looks rather distracted and is not going to be bothered to notice you. You have nothing to worry about. Just grab your drink and make your way out.
“Passion iced tea for Y/N!” the sound of your name being called basically echoes into the small building and you cringe at it.
“Y/N?” you’re not imagining a second call of your name, in fact you know the exact owner of the voice but you’re sticking to your plan. You grab your drink and go.
==
It’s 4 am. You never thought you’d ever stay up this late studying for a test but you had accidentally fallen asleep at 9 pm after promising to take a 15 minute power nap. But remember, flashcards are your friends and you have plenty of them. Now if only you could understand what they were trying to teach you in your state.
Your phone dings, breaking you out of your sleepy spell. It’s a bad idea to pick it up and check it. You’ll get distracted and you won’t get anything done before 10 am. But it’s like a signal from the gods above when a second ding comes in. Whatever it is, it must be urgent and now you have to check it.
han jisung SKZ: hey
han jisung SKZ: u up?
Nope.
You throw your phone face down onto your bed, fully decided that studying is more important than whatever sign the gods had brought to you. Again, the universe is mocking you. You let Jisung sleep in your room once and suddenly, escaping him is becoming hopeless. As if you didn’t think it was hard enough having him in near proximity already.
“7 stages of development. Infancy, early childhood, middle childhood-”
Ding!
han jisung SKZ: i can see ur light on
His contact name had changed from Han, which you called him affectionately, to his full name and the frat he belonged to, very passive aggressive but very necessary. The first step in getting over someone is deleting their contact or completely changing their contact name but something about seeing his full name now scared you.
You’re tempted to turn the light off and lie, tell him you’re about to sleep but it’s too late and also, a bad idea because then you’re only going to actually fall asleep when you should be getting busy.
you: yeah
you: why
Perfect! One-wording is always the trick to getting someone to leave you alone.
han jisung SKZ: im bored
Your fingers prepare to send response along the lines of “i dont care” but he beats you to it before you can.
han jisung SKZ: come with me somewhere
Lia would murder you if you went against the rules and followed Jisung anywhere. She would repeat the words you vowed to her on the last day you were upset over him and practically ground you for disobeying yourself because as she quotes, “you’re better than that. He watches dubbed anime anyway.”
You decide not to reply and leave him hanging, hoping he’d get the hint but as you stare at your flashcards, you’re quick to realize you won’t be getting anywhere any time soon. You could reward yourself with a refresher, the cool air and a walk outside would help a lot but only if you returned and studied right away.
han jisung SKZ: i’ll be outside in 5
And just as promised, Jisung stands outside of your house, hands in his hoodie pockets while he waits for you. You hesitate to even get off your floor, surrounded by whats more important than wasting time with some kid you have wanted to strangle plenty of times before.
It’s not a good idea. It’s a terrible idea and it’s not just because you’re going with Jisung. You should be studying to pass this dreadful test you were so worried about.
“Why do you have the keys to the pool?” You look around you checking for any campus patrol vehicles. The last thing you wanted was for you to get caught sneaking into the pool way after hours. This was very illegal.
“I did the custodian a favor. All I have to do is make sure no one knows I have them, so please don’t tell anyone or I will have to kill you” he deadpans but your face has no change and you look just as done with him as you did minutes ago.
“This is where you go when you’re bored? You didn’t even bring swimming clothes. Plus it’s like 40 degrees.”
Jisung stays quiet as he unlocks the doors and stands back to let you go in first. He tells you to look up to which you do and you find out why he must like being in here. The ceiling is entirely made up of glass, allowing any and all natural lighting from the moon at the moment. You can see the stars extremely clear and even the few clouds in the darkness of the sky. You even swear you see a shooting star.
“The pool is heated if you want to get in.” He offers the idea, taking his shoes and socks off to put his feet into the water, careful not to let the it touch the ends of his sweats. It’s tempting honestly, the idea of being inside warms you up inside and you bet it’s much better than freezing out here.
“I didn’t know we were coming here or I would’ve brought the appropriate clothes.” Instead, you look up at the stars again, taking in the clear view. Jisung rustles from beside you and right when you turn to look, you wish you hadn’t.
“Why are you getting naked?!” you shield your eyes from his bare legs. You remember when you had first seen his legs and made fun of him for having chicken legs, you even told him your legs must have been thicker than his but 2 years later, he’s got you beat. Each muscle glistens in the moonlight and you find yourself having a hard time looking away. But just when you thought he couldn’t have changed more, he takes his shirt off and exposes the body of someone completely different. This was not the Han Jisung you once liked to fool around with. if you thought he was hot then, he was wall-poster worthy now.
“Here, you can wear my shirt.” He hands you the black material before jumping into the water, completely disregarding the fact that you were still there and hadn’t fully made up your mind on whether you wanted to get in or not. Considering you were wet now, there was no choice. Below you, he paddles around, waving his arms up and down to float while he waits for you.
“Turn around.”
“Come on. It’s nothing I haven’t seen before” he scoffs meanwhile, your stomach does a flip. You can’t tell if its disgust or something else.
“Just turn around, you pervert.”
The sight of his back muscles distracts you for longer than you want but you quickly peel your clothes off to replace it with his shirt. A shiver runs through your spine when the breeze blows in, reminding you that you’re only going to get colder the longer you stand out here.
He hands out an arm for you to make it easier when you get in and you willingly accept it only you wish you hadn’t. He pulls you under the water, cutting off your plan of a safe entry. You panic for a few seconds, resurfacing and inhaling deeply before you reach out and hit him over the head a few times, throwing punches at his arm and back. It was deeper than you thought. “DON’T do that!”
His laugh echoes around you and the waves you’ve created in the water decrease, leaving only the small ripple sounds of both of you trying to stay afloat above the water. With you being shorter than him by a few inches, you struggle more. He has an advantage over you and watching him back away into the much more deeper part of the pool scares you. As far as pools go, you’d only consider yourself comfortable in water deep enough where your head could still be above surface. Meaning, definitely not in 9 feet of water.
“You’re not coming?”
You shake your head, reaching out for the ledge in front of you, “It’s too deep. I’m scared.”
He paddles back over to you and reaches an arm out again. You blink at him, almost asking if he expects you to trust him after the stunt he just pulled. “I’m not going to drag you under, dude. I’m not that mean, especially now that I know you’re scared. I’ll hold you, come on.”
His words are meaningless. He’s just being kind and you know it, but why? Why now? Why not when he had you in his grip, wrapped around his finger, almost in love with him. But that was just it. Jisung had always been kindhearted. it was the very reason why you and all the other people hurt by him had fallen for his games. He was sweet, smart and good looking and it was like falling into a trap.
It explains all those times you’ve thought twice about ending things with him. All those smiles he’d send your way even after, how he’d ask about you to your friends when you weren’t around, when he’d offer you food. Little things you wouldn’t do if you didn’t want someone in your life. But with Jisung, it was different because the only result he’d get out of treating girls like that was to get into their pants. It’d worked on you before and you wouldn’t allow it to work again. He was a selfish man.
His skin is smooth upon contact due to the water. With one hand attached to his and the other still hanging onto the ledge, you inch yourself away from it, hesitant and wavering. A soft giggle softens the fear beating at you and with one last deep breath you let go of the ledge completely, even going as far as to wrap an arm around Jisung’s neck. He’s closer than you expect him to be and closer than you want him to be but he can’t leave you or you’d sink and drown. You deal with having him inches away as opposed to dying in a place you shouldn’t even be in.
“It’s okay. Just hold on.”
The moment he looses feeling of the floor, his head dips a bit and with the weight of you now on him, it’s harder to paddle but he manages to make it to the other end of the pool, handing you off to the ladder for leverage. At this point, he’d think you’d let go but your arm remains around him, his is still around your waist and he can feel your leg begin to raise and hang off his hip for added anchorage. You’re too terrified to let go and the look in your glistening eyes tells him so.
His eyes wander around and you wonder if he can see the way your chest is rising and falling dramatically. If you weren’t as scared as you were, you’d be embarrassed. But it’s life or death at the moment and you plan on taking him down with you if it comes to the latter.
“You okay?” his voice is low and it’s barely audible over the small splashes you’re creating with your free hand. You nod. The look in his eyes is soft, he looks at you almost lovingly, like he actually truly cares for your safety and whether you’re okay. And then he smiles and you think you’re about to lose it. Avoiding Han Jisung was damn near impossible and it was because of this: him. All of him -- any of him.
As much as you wanted to hate him and hate his absolute fuck-boy behavior, he found a way to make it hard for you. He had his chance, he knows that, you know that, everyone who knows you knows it. He didn’t want to love when you he very well could have, he couldn’t even like you enough to not talk to other girls while talking to you. Could it be that he was starting to grow on you because it really could not be the worst timing.
He takes this opportunity to grab onto the ladder behind you and removes the arm around your waist. You think he’s about to let you fall into the water and let it all consume you. Right as you push yourself backward onto the wall to you adjust yourself in case you were about to drown, his fingers tickle over the skin of your cheek. It’s out of nowhere and you flinch at his touch. Your mouth opens to question him, possibly start an argument about not being allowed to touch people without their consent but he moves his fingers again and tucks the wet strands of your hand behind your ear. The brushing of his finger tips over your face causes a chill to run through your body, goosebumps rise on your skin.
You’re complete frozen in place and your heart continues to beat but it’s no longer out of fear.
No.
His face inches closer to yours, nose reaches yours, and with a slight angle, his lips are on yours. His breath rushes into your mouth, hot and heavy that it feels suffocating but you don’t let go. The hand on the back of your neck trails down your arm, down to your waist and lands itself on the thigh you have wrapped around his. With a slight push of the t-shirt, he gets his hand higher and he grips the skin tight. The pain brings you back to reality and you throw your head back, hand on his chest to push him away too, just quick enough to see his face-- eyes closed, lips red and full.
“What are you doing?” you ask completely out of breath and shocked, as if you weren’t just kissing him back.
“Why did we stop talking?”
No. No.
“Are you kidding me?” His silence is enough of an answer. “All you do is lead girls on, Jisung. I’m not doing this with you.”
This isn’t what was supposed to happen.
“All anyone ever says about you is how much of an idiot you are. You literally just use girls for your own entertainment.” You make sure to leave out how you were just one of the many that were left hurting.
You’re out of the pool quicker than you remember, and though you’re soaking wet, you put your pants on and change out of the t-shirt.
He’s still floating in the water, taken aback and with no plans to counter your words. You’re right and he knows it. You don’t bite back your last words to him only to hope and make sure they stick, leaving him in the company of the moonlight.
“You’re an asshole, Han. You shouldn’t treat people like this.”
==
Jisung’s phone dings 3 times, 3 text notifications coming in but the excitement of hearing those text tones was fully absent. He didn’t even feel a rush for the opportunity of deflection for the way he was feeling right now. Not that he could even tell you what he was feeling, all he knew is he felt somewhat empty. Like he felt bad but he couldn’t tell exactly why.
He was an asshole, he got that part down when girls starting slapping him or throwing drinks at his face. He knew he was an idiot the moment he’d kissed you and you had pushed him away but the one thing he was stuck on was how to avoid leading girls on. He’d been like this for as a long as he could remember and no one had outright complained.
The issue with that was simple for him: he had a reputation and if you were to get involved with him, you had to have known about this reputation.
He knew you tried to hurt him because deep down, you were the one hurting but there was a lot of other things he didn’t understand was happening to him. For one, there was this empty void in his entire body that even the girls he’d been talking to weren’t helping lately. And even when he’d force himself to think about them, for some reason, all he could hear was you calling him out. But when he looked pass you being angry, he calmed down. If he was going to be honest here, he couldn’t ignore the way you looked having the higher ground.
This was the asshole-idiot-loser or whatever else you wanted to call him part you were talking about. He couldn’t think about anything other than the way your skin practically glowed under the moonlight and how jealous he was of the water that glided down your bare legs. He couldn’t forget the touch of your skin under his hand and how smooth you were. But among that there was another thing. Yeah, you just happened to look beautiful at the poolside too but Jisung had always thought you were perfect.
He knew how smart you were. He knows you hate gummy candy and that you only drink fruity alcohol. He liked the way you shied behind your friends but in reality you were just as creative, funny and loud as them. He thought your idea of growing up was hilarious but also adorable. He even remembered the way your eyebrows moved when you were excited and how your nose would scrunch when you were upset. All these things he’d picked up since knowing you and only now is he realizing how much he actually knows about you. And then reality hits him.
He knows these things about you. He’s always been interested in you and who you are. And you have never been just another one of his conquests like the other girls were. You’d always had a special place in his heart, whether he knew it or not. Now he knows it.
A knock cuts his thoughts off. He’s forgotten about the texts and the possibility that they could've been from Felix or Sam reminding him about getting lunch together. “We’re leaving, you ready?”
“Yeah I’ll be down right now.” But Jisung doesn't move and stares at his ceiling instead, contemplating, trying to make sense of all his thinking. It’s difficult but at the end of it, he’s sure.
==
In his 3 years of college, He’d learned these things:
1: Anime was a gift sent from the gods. It solved almost all of his problems. Keyword: almost.
2: There was always room for mistakes. He was young, everyone else around him was young and nothing was set in stone yet. Hey, he’d made it this long.
Changbin is the type of bf to always want to lie down on you. Sometimes it’s his head on your shoulder or stomach other times it’s on your thighs, no matter how busy you are, he’ll want to rest on you but it’s the perfect excuse to play w his hair until he falls asleep and then at least you can sneak cute pictures of sleeping w his cute pouty lips
