ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤKISSES WITH ENHYPEN...

five minutes | l.m.h

pairing... bf!minho x gn!reader tags... established relationship, disgustingly fluffy, excessive references to soondoongdori, minho is a cat personified, soft mimo!

operation put your boyfriend to sleep in five minutes is a go.

wc... 1.4k words a/n... ah, yet another domestic fluff fic featuring softy minho. a star specialty! sorry guys this is kinda my fav thing to write ever r u sick of me 😁 anywayz this was inspired by this soft thought and this tiktok like i saw it and immediately thought : lee minho.

ALSO ALSO! HUGE THANK YOU FOR 1K FOLLOWERS! i never would've thought i'd reach this milestone and words couldnt express how incredibly grateful i am for each and every one of you who read and enjoy my works <3 i love you guys thank you so much!

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Minho turned the doorknob and pushed the front door open, greeting Soonie who stood by the entrance with a tilted head. Shutting the door, he hung his bag on the coat rack and bent down to pet his beloved cat’s chin.

“Hi, baby,” the cat nuzzled his head into Minho’s palm and circled around his arm, “where are your brothers, hm?”

Meow… Soonie walked off to the living room as if to answer Minho’s question. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he followed his cat toward the faint nose of your favorite series playing on the TV.

When he entered the room, Minho saw your figure strewn lazily across the couch. Dori was cuddled up against your chest and Soonie hopped up to join Doongie by your feet. His heart warmed at the sight of his loves all huddled together.

“Honey, I’m home,” Minho grabbed your attention with his gentle, sing-song tone, a cheeky smile plastered on his face.

You switched your attention from the screen in front of you to the man standing in the doorway, returning his smile and giving a small wave. “Hi, my love. How was your day?”

Minho padded over to you, scooped Dori up against his chest, and settled himself where the cat had previously taken solace in your arms.

“It was alright,” he said, scooching backward to press his back firm against your front. “Tiring, as usual, but it's fine.”

Though he couldn't see it, you nodded in acknowledgment and pressed a soft kiss to his head. You brought one hand up behind his ear to scratch at his scalp, something you had found he enjoyed.

“Do you want to go to bed already? It is pretty late.” From its place above the TV, the clock read 10:37 PM. “Maybe we should move our little cuddle session to the bedroom.”

Minho sighed and shook his head. “But, I'm already so comfy here. Plus, you wouldn't dare disturb the cats, would you?”

“Please, remember the last time we slept on the couch the whole night? I don’t think we want that happening again.”

“Y/n,” Minho called your name, dragging out the last syllable. “My back hurts so much! Remind me why we stayed on the couch again.”

“I told you we should have moved to the bed! But you wouldn’t listen to me,” you snickered at your boyfriend from the kitchen while you continued to whisk a couple of eggs for your breakfast.

You set the bowl down on the counter and walked over to Minho who was still lying on the couch. When you came into his sight, he made a show of stretching his arms and legs, akin to a cat, accompanied by a few exaggerated groans.

“I don’t think I can get up at all today. I should just call in sick,” Minho draped an arm over his face, letting the other fall limp over the edge of the cushion.

“Don’t you have an important meeting today? I doubt your boss would appreciate you missing that on account of an 'ouchy' back.”

“Well, maybe if you gave me more cuddles, I’d feel a bit better.” Minho peeked at you from under his arm, proposing this cute, yet slightly impractical, solution. “Unless you want me to miss work and stay at home with you today.”

“Alright, you big baby.” Rolling your eyes, you moved to straddle Minho’s lap, leaning forward to place a gentle kiss on his forehead. Now chest to chest, you wrapped an arm around his shoulders, letting the other one snake up his neck to play with the hairs at his nape.

The time you spent wrapped in each other’s warmth turned from seconds to minutes, the comfortable silence lulling you back to sleep. Minutes turned to hours, leaving Minho’s meeting unattended and the scrambled eggs forgotten on the kitchen counter.

“Ugh, at least give me five more minutes,” Minho offered as he continued to stroke Dori’s back, drawing a vibrating purr from the cat. “I don’t wanna get up yet.”

“Oh, come on, you have to brush your teeth anyways. Now get your lazy bum off the couch so we can cuddle on the bed.” You grabbed the throw pillow from behind your back and swung it at Minho’s side, accidentally startling Dori in the process. The cat jumped out of the man’s arms, causing him to throw a frown over his shoulder.

“Now look what you did! You’re scaring our babies.” Finally, Minho stood up, offering you his hand to pull you up as well. You met his hand with your own and anchored yourself up, giving him a sheepish smile.

“Oops.” You shrugged and skipped off to the bedroom, leaving your boyfriend with your three cats in the living room.

“Unbelievable.” Minho took a few steps towards the bathroom, paused, and turned back to look at his cats. “Well, are you coming with me or not?”

While your boyfriend finished his night routine, you lay on your shared bed and grinned to yourself. Operation Put Your Boyfriend to Sleep in Five Minutes was a go. You knew Minho was tired, and you wanted to send him off into a good night’s sleep in the most loving way you could.

The hallway light switched off as Minho opened the door to your bedroom, sporting a playful frown. It was time for Step One: Put him in a blanket.

“Come here, baby,” you peeled the duvet back and patted the space on the bed right next to you, beckoning your pouty boyfriend over to you. “Let’s get you to sleep, yeah?”

Trudging over to his side of the bed, Minho slid onto the mattress and pulled the heavy duvet over his body. Freshly washed, the warm, lavender-scented blanket immediately soothed his senses.

“You could’ve at least stayed with me while I brushed my teeth,” Minho continued to pout as he turned on his side to face you, “and, I don’t know, given me a back hug or something.”

Though his tone was playful, you recognized the look in Minho’s gaze. He yearned for your comfort, but he didn’t know how to ask for it. Reaching over, you cupped his face, gently caressing his cheek with your thumb. You peppered a few pecks on the corners of his mouth, kissing his pout away. Perfect timing for Step Two: Give reassuring pets.

“I’m here now, it’s okay.” His hair was soft in between your fingers as you threaded them through the fluffy locks. They smelled faintly of his coconut shampoo.

Tired, Minho let out a yawn, nose scrunched and eyelids shut. He leaned into your touch, humming contently.

Faintly, the door creaked open and you could hear light thuds on the carpeted floor, followed by a slightly louder thud on the bed as Doongie entered the bedroom and jumped up to join you. He stepped all over Minho’s body—drawing out a quiet yelp from the man beside you. You giggled as Doongie finally plopped down on Minho’s pillow, snuggling against the top of his head. This brought you to Step Three: Tuck him in.

With your boyfriend lying under the covers, you hooked one leg over him, moving your hand on his head to tuck it into your neck, cradling his body with no intent to stop any time soon.

For a second, the universe felt still. It was as though the ever-rotating hands on the clock had stopped moving, pausing to witness this intimate moment between you and Minho; as if even the angels in the skies above didn’t want this sweet gesture to end.

That was until Minho decided to take matters into his own hands and execute Step Four: Put one arm out for temperature regulation.

“It's too warm!” Minho whined into your neck, breaking the silence, and removed one arm from under the blanket, exposing it to the cold air. “Ah, that's better.”

He turned on his side and wrapped his now free arm around the small of your back, pulling you closer to him, if that were even physically possible.

Seeing your bodies pressed flush against each other, Soonie—who was previously lounging at the foot of the bed—crawled up the sheets and nuzzled into the barely-there gap between you and Minho, with Dori following suit.

Within five minutes of lying down, the night ended with your small family cuddled together on the warm, cozy bed, basking in each other’s comfort.

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taglist: @kflixnet @jinnixxn @elllisaaa @captainchrisstan @laylasbunbunny @starsandrqindrops @kittymaryam-thebrowniefairy @forlix @mires-empire @quesweebs

comments, reblogs, and feedback are appreciated! © like-a-diamondinthesky 2023

literally, why is it always in the middle of the night when I'll be finding these long beautiful fics to read 😭😭😭😭😭😭

oh brother i'm going to end it ALL

❣︎ ⎯⎯ what a tease .

PAIRING ! park sunghoon x reader // GENRE ! fluff // WC. ! 0.2k

PROMPT(S) ! 13. teasing each other good-naturedly ;; 30. laying their head on the other’s shoulder // requested by two lovely anons <3 // 2k followers event

A/N. ! second-last drabble for this event :’> it’s been fun y’all <3 ,, i hope you enjoy <3

the buzzing whitenoise that filled the car lulled you into a degree of drowsiness you weren’t expecting to experience at this point in the day, yet here you were, sitting beside your boyfriend, sunghoon, resting your head on his shoulder and nearly falling into slumber. but before you could pull yourself fully into dreamland, you heard an uncomfortable groan come from your boyfriend as you felt him slightly shrug his shoulder.

“what’s this heavy weight on my shoulder?” you heard him say.

you lifted your head up, looking at him with furrowed brows as you pouted and feigned anger to the best of your abilities. he couldn’t help but laugh.

“i’m just kidding,” he said.

“hmph,” you whipped your head away to face the window instead before laying your head against the wall of the car. “i didn’t want your shoulder anyway; too hard and uncomfortable.”

“yeah, y/n, it’s called muscle,” he told you in a playfully cocky tone.

you couldn’t hide the growing smile creeping to your lips, and of course, sunghoon just had to notice. but before he could say anything, you quickly moved your head back to rest on his shoulder, squeezing your eyes shut, pretending not to hear anything as you made a weak attempt at falling back asleep.

and all sunghoon did was chuckle jokingly in disbelief before you felt him lay his own head on top of yours just seconds later, falling asleep side by side, under one another’s touch.

A/N. ugh i hate him, but he’s cute ig so he’s forgiven 🙄 /lh ,, feedback and reblogs always put a big smile on my face <3 thanks for reading <3

2K EVENT MASTERLIST.

TAGLIST FORM.

LMAOOO I DO THIS TOO HWTAGWTQHETAH2TH HE'S SO CUTE WTF 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

cutest bedsheet fixer alive 🛌🏼

ღ 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐒𝐓 𝐊𝐈𝐒𝐒𝐄𝐒 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐄𝐍𝐇𝐘𝐏𝐄𝐍

genre: fluff | word count: 2k | masterlist

↬ Lee Heeseung (이희승)

You laughed as Heeseung finished telling you about his practice from earlier. Your head was resting on his arm as the two of you were sat down in a quiet library. It was late in the evening, so there were only two other people beside you in the building. His fingers that have been wrapped around yours felt so warm and comforting that you couldn't help but sigh in content.

Your eyelids started feeling heavy as the exhaustion from the whole day came crashing upon you.

"(Y/n)," Heeseung said quietly and you raised your head with a hum, gasping slightly when you noticed how closely his face was hovering above yours.

He tucked a strand of your hair behind your ear before leaning in. You felt your face warming up when the tip of his nose brushed over yours, heart almost beating out of your chest. You gulped, eyes darting up to notice that Heeseung was already looking at you with a smile.

"Can I?" He whispered, his warm breath fanning your skin.

You nodded your head sheepishly, eyes closing at the feeling of his soft lips meeting yours. Your hands slipped upwards to wrap around his neck and he draped his over your waist, pulling you to his chest. He left out drawn out kisses on your bottom lip, making you shiver despite the warmth in the room.

When he pulled away you found yourself breathless and flushed, and you gaped up at him. His long fingers caressed your cheeks softly.

"You okay?" He asked with a smile.

You nodded your head as you pulled him closer one more time. "Do you mind doing that again?"

↬ Jay Park (박종성)

You gasped in shock, joy rushing over your body when the final whistle echoed through the field. The loud cheers and screams erupted in the air when the crowd of college students started chanting your football team's name. You jumped out of your seat and quickly skipped down the stairs as the team walked away from the field.

Your eyes immediately found your boyfriend who was laughing and cheering with the rest of the guys. A crowd of people suddenly rushed down to congratulate them on the won finals as well and you waited couple minutes to safely make your way over to the gate.

Jay's face lit up with a wide smile the moment he spotted you. He jogged over to you, wrapping his arms around you tightly.

"That was amazing, Jay!" You shouted to his ear, trying to speak over the noise. He spun you around with a laugh and you wrapped your arms around his neck with a squeal. "You were-"

Your words were interrupted quickly when he set you back down on the ground and crashed his lips on yours. The kiss knocked the air out of your lungs and your body stiffened for a brief second before you came back to your right mind and moved your lips against his. He walked you backwards until your back met the iron fences.

Jay pulled away for a second before diving back for another kiss. Your hands slipped up to cup his cheeks and he pressed one last kiss to your red lips, leaning his forehead on yours.

"I'm so happy you came," he whispered and you giggled, pecking his lips one more time.

"I wouldn't miss it for life, baby."

↬ Jake Sim (심재윤)

You walked around the town hand in hand after Jake picked you up from school. It wasn't even that late yet but since it was middle of the winter it was already dark outside. Jake tossed his empty coffee cup into the trashcan near the sidewalk and turned his face to you. Smile immediately appeared on his lips as he took in your nose and cheeks flushed from cold, something about the weather making you look even cuter than usually.

"You're so pretty," he suddenly said causing you to look up at him, noticing that he stopped walking. You followed his lead and halted your steps as well, shifting slightly so you were facing him.

"You're so random," you chuckled, the sound falling sweetly on Jake's ears and making him smile too. "But that just makes me like you even more."

He draped his arms around your shoulders and pulled you closer to him, pressing his lips to your cheek. "That's not random. It's just facts."

His lips moved to your nose and then to your temple, warming up your skin pleasantly. Soon he was placing quick but sweet pecks all over your face, making you giggle at the sudden affection. Your laughter died down when his lips finally collided with yours. They were still sweet from the enormous amount of sugar he's put into his coffee before.

Your eyes fluttered close but with this being your first kiss, you weren't sure of what to do with your hands. Jake, as if reading your mind, took your hand in his one and placed it on his cheek, his bigger palm instantly covering yours. His lips were so warm and soft even in such cold weather and you caressed his cheek gently, loving the way he leaned into your touch.

Feeling breathless and lightheaded, Jake pulled away from you, though not without pecking you again.

"Let's get you home. It's getting cold."

↬ Park Sunghoon (박성훈)

Your arms fell to your sides, a disappointed look painting itself on your face and making Sunghoon laugh. You couldn't believe you lost to him for the fourth time in a row, only adding up to his already big ego. You groaned in frustration, head flying back on the armrest.

"Damn, never would've thought my girlfriend sucked so bad at Fifa," he teased, fingers digging into your sides playfully.

You only huffed at his comment, rolling your eyes and trying to hide your smile. "Oh, shut it. What kind of a lousy boyfriend abuses his girlfriend like this? I mean, twelve - zero? There's no way in hell you didn't cheat."

"How does it feel to be such a sore loser, please tell me," he continued. "I'm dying to know cause I've never been in your position before."

You scoffed at him and turned your face to the side. "I'm never playing with you again."

Sunghoon only laughed at your pouting face, your pursed lips looking so pretty to him at the moment. Not wanting you to be annoyed with him any longer, he leaned over and pressed his lips to yours, kissing the pout away. You gasped in surprise, melting into his touch when his hands cupped your neck. Your lips moved in a perfect harmony and you almost let out a disappointed whine when you felt him pull away.

"Wanna play one more game?" He asked, kissing the tip of your nose. "I promise I'll let you win."

↬ Kim Sunoo (김선우)

You couldn't stop the tears that cascaded down your cheeks as soon as everybody left the classroom. You felt so drained out of energy, the result of staying up till ungodly hours just to revise for all the exams you've had in the past week. And yet your grades were more than disappointing, considering how much time you spent on studying the stupid formulas and terms.

You put your face in your hands, trying to collect your breath and calm yourself down, knowing well you'd have to leave for the lunch break soon. You didn't notice when somebody else came into the classroom until you heard the familiar voice.

"Oh, what happened, angel?" Sunoo asked as he rushed over to you, tossing his backpack aside. "Why are you crying?"

You shook your head, tucking your face in his neck as soon as his arms wrapped around your body. His heart shuttered with every sniffle and sob that you let out, your tears quickly dampening the collar of his shirt. His hands rubbed your back softly and he felt lighter at soul when you noticeably calmed down.

After couple more minutes you pulled away from him, smiling weakly at his worried features.

"Thank you," you croaked out, clearing your throat that's been clogged up from all the crying. "I'm sorry you have to deal with this. I'm just- It's so frustrating! If I knew I'd get such lousy grades, I wouldn't study at all and the outcome would probably be the same!"

Sunoo nodded at your words, understanding your feelings all too well. Trying to make you feel somehow better, he leaned in close, lips brushing over yours tenderly. Your mouth overlapped with his and you closed your eyes with a sigh, hands running through his soft hair.

With his kisses you felt at peace and the ringing in your ears dulled everything else out, instantly making you forget about your worries.

↬ Yang Jungwon (양정원)

The two of you stopped at the sidewalk as you waited for you ride home. Jungwon insisted on taking the bus with you to make sure you made it home safely but after your stubborn refusal he settled on walking you to the bus stop instead. You were leaned over him with his arm thrown over your shoulders as you waited in a comfortable silence, still content with your almost complete date.

You nudged him with your head when you noticed your bus approaching and you slowly untangled yourself from his embrace.

"Next time the treat's on me," you said with a smile.

Jungwon smiled back and you shrugged off the sleeves of the jacket he gave you couple hours ago, only for him to stop your hands. "No, keep it. It's cold tonight. You can give it back to me some other day."

You smiled at his gesture, leaning up to kiss his cheek. "Thanks. See you tomorrow?"

"See you tomorrow."

With that Jungwon placed his lips upon yours in a quick peck, almost like a habit. You froze in your spot and not even a second later you felt him tensing up as well as he realized what he just did. He quickly retreated away from you with a flushed face.

"I'm so sorry! I don't know why I just did that," he apologized and you giggled at his sudden shyness.

"It's okay, seriously. I was just surprised," you said and hugged his waist to assure him it was really fine. "You can do it again if you want to?"

Jungwon looked down at you with hesitance but when he noticed your eyes sparkling up at him, he dived back down and kissed your lips again. You never noticed when all the people left the bus and it drove away from the both of you, being way too occupied with Jungwon's kisses to even care.

You felt him chuckle against your lips as he was probably the one to realize that fact, but he didn't dare to pull away from you even if that meant you'd have to wait another twenty minutes for the next bus.

↬ Nishimura Riki (西村 力)

You climbed up on the first step of the staircase to your apartment, turning around to Riki with a smile. His eyes were already planted on you and you felt butterflies tickling your stomach at the sight.

"Thanks for today," you said playing with the edge of your jacket. You didn't want to say goodbye to him yet. "I really had so much fun."

Riki's lips stretched with a wide smile as he stepped closer to you. You noticed that now you were almost the same height as him and you giggled at the weird thought since he was way taller than you and always teased you about it.

"Well, I'm glad you did then," he said, eyes sparkling as he moved so close that he could clearly see the tips of your ears turning red underneath your hair. "We should do it again soon."

You nodded your head and swallowed, brushing some stray hair away from your eyes.

"Yeah, that would be great."

Riki had to stifle his laugh at your nervous uttering and he slipped his hand in yours, entangling your fingers together.

"Can I kiss you?" He asked suddenly, noticing the way your breath caught in your throat.

"Y-yeah, yes please. Sure," you stuttered out and this time Riki couldn't contain his chuckle. He brushed his other hand over your jawline before finally closing the space between you two and nudging your soft lips with his.

A/n: is it just me or did the last line of jay's reaction highkey sounded like something from a james bond movie lol... but anyways, since the little dove is officially on a hiatus now, i somehow found the inspiration to finish this fic!! i have a couple more of these kept in my works in progress, so please look forward to them as well!! ❤️

© heeliopheelia 2022 // All rights reserved.

always beating dispatch

❣︎ ⎯⎯ your lips pressed deeply on to mine .

PAIRING ! park sunghoon x reader // GENRE ! fluff, slight angst, slight domestic!au // WC. ! 0.4k // WARNING(S) ! contains ,,,, some making out ,,, sjddjdj

PROMPT(S) ! 3. laying their hand on the other’s leg ;; 17. looking in each other’s eyes ;; 23. brushing strands of hair away ;; 28. pressing their foreheads together // requested by two lovely anons <3 // 2k followers event

A/N. ! before proceeding, let’s all just take a quick but deep breath tgt first ,,,,,, *inhales unsteadily* ok go read now :)))))

“hoon, why would you say that?!” you said loudly, eyes staring disagreeingly into your boyfriend’s sad ones.

“i told you; i don’t feel like i’m good enough,” he answered.

“how could you think that?” you asked, tone full of sadness.

he looked down to the floor, body hunched as he shrugged.

you rested your hands on his leg, taking a deep breath in and staring meaningfully into his eyes, even if his weren’t looking at you, “you have a huge role, hoon. without you, enhypen wouldn’t be enhypen. they need you. you’re not just talented at your job, but you’re also a friend—no, a brother. i, and millions of others, have so much love and admiration for you. you inspire people just by being you, and you never fail to put smiles on our faces and warm our hearts. hoon, you’re perfect, and i won’t stop telling you that—ever.”

it wasn’t until after you finished speaking, a brief silence filling the room, before sunghoon’s eyes made their way back to yours.

no words needed to be exchanged—only actions—as sunghoon dove in, immediately pressing his lips tenderly onto yours in a loving kiss. it was filled with a palette of feelings: sadness, love, belonging, gratitude, warmth…

his lips moved with yours in perfect harmony, only growing deeper as each second passed.

but eventually, you both pulled away, breaths slightly heavier than just moments before.

your eyes were locked onto one another’s, and sunghoon lifted one hand up before brushing strands of hair away from the front of your face. and after doing so, he pressed his forehead against yours, immediately placing his lips back onto yours, unable to hold back.

you melted under his touch, further than you already had, and your hands gripped the back of his neck, bringing him even closer.

after a few moments, he pulled away just slightly, foreheads pressed against one another and lips just centimetres apart.

his eyes were looking down, and you could tell he wasn’t finished yet.

“i- i don’t even know what i wanna say,” he started, voice slightly raspy and barely above a whisper. “i’m just falling deeper in love with you by the second. thanks for affirming me and helping me build back my confidence.”

a smile rose to your lips as you brought your hands to his cheeks, and as a response to his statement, you leaned back in, connecting your lips once more in a series of soft, intimate, tender kisses.

A/N. how am i supposed to go back to calling myself a jake stan after writing this 😀 guess i’ll be sleeping on the couch tonight 🥰🥰 anyways, hope you enjoyed <33

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TAGLIST FORM.

damn, made me feel all kinds of emotions 😭😭😭

⌗ 𝖬𝖸 𝖮𝖭𝖫𝖸 𝖫𝖮𝖵𝖤𝖲 …

SUMMARY. Confessions are made, bonds are mended, the past is left where it belongs — and at the end of it all, is the promise of a new beginning.

WARNINGS. drama ( it gets worse before it gets better ), a lot of talking, pretty long chapter, some angst ofc, and also keep in mind that things may not be resolved exactly the way you want them to

NOTES. so it’s finally here 🥺 you guys, it’s the end of the rmu series 😭 when i first started it, i never would have expected to grow so attached to it 🤧 thank you for staying up to this point and for all your love and support! without further ado, let’s go! 🩷 — includes: mila cover of “only” by lee hi request — “bold italics” speech is in chinese, but bold italics without speech marks are lyrics

PT. 1 | PT. 2 | PT. 3 | PT. 4 | PT. 5 | PT. 6 | PT. 7 | PT. 8

SO THIS WAS IT?

Mila found it somewhat hard to believe. On one hand, it was a long time coming — but on another hand, no one could have guessed that after weeks of pining and forlorn love sickness, Mila would finally see the end to the dark and seemingly endless tunnel of feelings.

She had spoken to the boys already — or rather, the four that she had made her relationship official with — and they all came to the same conclusion.

“We should tell the others…”

Mila hummed as she ran a hand through Niki’s hair, who laid his head on her lap. She was gathered in her room with Niki, Jake, Sunoo, and Sunghoon (since Kiara had mysteriously disappeared again), after the eventful past few days. That was when Jake suggested coming clean to the other members.

And surprisingly, the others agreed.

“The more of us there are,” Sunoo said, “the more difficult it is to sneak around. And I think it’s good if we tell them rather than let them walk in on one of us.”

Mila’s hand stopped running through Niki’s hair. Feeling that she halted her soothing movements, Niki looked up at her.

“I agree,” Mila said.

At that moment, Niki and Sunghoon both assumed that it was out of consideration. Because of the way they both stumbled upon Mila with one of the others. But little did they know that there was another layer to it.

And it was the fact that Mila understood what it was like — more than they could ever imagine.

Sunghoon nodded.

“Then, let’s do it.”

Mila looked around at the living room, where everyone was starting to get settled down. That meant everyone — as in, all nine members of Enhypen gathered for this one moment that would change everything between them. And of those nine people, four of them had no idea of what had been happening under their roof the past few days.

On one side, there was Mila, Sunoo, Sunghoon, Jake and Niki.

And on the other side, there was Jay, Jungwon, Kiara… and Heeseung.

“Noona?” Jungwon asked as he took a seat next to Jay on the couch. “What did you want to talk about?”

Mila bit her lip. “Well…”

She fiddled nervously with her fingers, before a hand reached out from her right and enveloped hers, before squeezing it gently. She looked up to meet Sunoo’s reassuring smile as he mouthed, ‘It’s okay.’

He turned to face the others.

“We have something to tell you,” Sunoo said.

Jay raised an eyebrow as his gaze flickered to Sunoo and Mila’s hands. Jungwon furrowed his eyebrows before leaning forward, his elbows resting on his knees and his fingers laced together.

“‘We?’” Jay asked passively, not giving anything away as to what he was feeling inside.

Mila turned her head to look at Sunghoon, Jake and Niki, who sat in a consecutive line down the couch on her left side. Sunghoon reached out and placed a hand on her knee, before rubbing circles soothingly onto her bare skin, which was left exposed by the shorts she was wearing.

Mila didn’t miss the way that Jay, Jungwon and Heeseung all gave it a cursory glance. The youngest of tro began to bite the inside of his cheek, with Jay remaining stone-faced, and Heeseung staring intently at where his hand lay on her.

The tension in the air was becoming too thick, Mila was scared she would choke up on her words and run out of the room in fright.

But she couldn’t. Not from this.

Kiara cleared her throat. “So… what did you want to talk about?”

Mila bit her lip.

It was probably better to get it over with, right? No more stalling.

She took a deep breath.

“We’re dating,” she blurted out. And before the others could recover, she clarified by saying, “And by that, I mean that I’m dating Sunoo, Sunghoonie-oppa, Jake-oppa and Riki.”

It was dead silent.

For a second, Mila wondered if she had simply said the words in her imagination rather than out loud — but one look at Jay and Jungwon’s faces and she knew that wasn’t the case.

Jay’s eyebrows furrowed as he tried to wrap his head around Mila’s words. Mila could never be afraid of Jay. Never. But at that moment, she found herself fearing what he thought and what he would say. Because if there’s anything she wouldn’t be able to stand, it was to see his — or any of the boys’, for that matter — ire directed towards her.

“So you’re saying… that you’re dating all four of them?” Jay asked. He then looked at the boys in question. “And you’re all okay with it?”

Sunghoon shared a look with Jake and Niki before turning to Mila.

“Well, it wasn’t easy to accept at first — for me, at least,” Sunghoon admitted. “But we all agreed to try our best to make it work… the last thing we wanted was to regret anything.”

‘Regret.’ What a strong word that was.

Mila couldn’t help the way that her eyes drifted towards Heeseung. This would be the first time she was able to look straight at him since they’re disagreement in the kitchen, and because of that she only just got a clear look at him. 

He had dark circles and a distant look in his eyes, and the whole time they had been there he hadn’t said a word. He looked like someone who had lost a lost sleep. And the thought made Mila’s heart clench.

Was he really that affected by what she said that day? Would she really not regret cutting him off like that? 

She supposed she would have to find that out by herself.

Before Heeseung could catch her staring, Mila quickly looked at Jungwon. He bit the inside of his cheek as he looked across the row of them, from Sunoo down to Niki. And though Mila wasn’t a mind-reader, she could tell he wasn’t thinking anything good.

In his eyes, she could sense… Anger? Sadness? Betrayal?

“So you decided it together?” Jungwon asked. “All five of you?”

Mila felt herself shrink at his tone of voice. He was definitely not happy — and why would he be? Something this big was happening behind his back, when he was supposed to be the leader.

Mila felt a pit form in her stomach as she thought about the moment they shared together, when Jungwon had opened up to her and even went so far as to ask for a kiss. Would he go back to being distant with her? What if he never talked to her again? She already lost Heeseung… she didn’t think she could handle losing him, too.

In her desperation, Mila turned to Jay, her eyes hopeful. However, he didn’t seem that much better.

It would be one thing if he looked angry, the same way Jungwon did — but he didn’t seem to have a single emotion on his face, as if keeping them all locked behind an undeterred mask. Perhaps she was too spoiled… but it was not a look that she was used to seeing on him. Nor was it one she wanted to be used to.

“How long?” Jay asked, his disturbingly calm voice intimidating Mila more than any yelling ever could.

“I-it’s been a few days now,” Mila explained, her voice wobbling. “Um, around two to three days for Sunoo, Sunghoonie-oppa, and Jake…” Mila inhaled, “but Niki was just yesterday—”

“Okay, Noona, that’s enough,” Niki said, reaching over to place a comforting hand on her thigh. “It’s okay.”

“Let’s not make this an interrogation,” Jake said, equally concerned about Mila’s overwhelmed state. “We wanted to tell you first so we could avoid something like this.”

“Well, what did you think would happen?” Jay ask Jake, his jaw clenched. He inhaled deeply, finally giving away the frustration he felt. “It’s one thing if it was just one or two of you. And it’s another if you guys want to start something. But for all four of you to go ahead with something like this without saying anything, when you all knew—”

Jay stopped in the middle of his speech. He turned to look at Mila — as if just remembering she was there — before sighing. 

Mila’s eyebrows furrowed. “Knew what?”

There was another silence. And when Mila turned to the boys at her side to see them all avoiding eye contact with her, instead opting staring at each other down (Heeseung, Jay and Jungwon against Sunoo, Sunghoon, Jake and Niki), Mila realised there was a lot more to this than she thought.

Kiara sighed. She stood up before putting her hands together.

“It’s obvious that you guys have something to sort out among yourselves, so I don’t think me or Mila really need to be here right now.”

Before Mila could protest, Sunghoon interrupted her.

“You’re right,” he replied, though his eyes were still on Jay. (And for a moment, Mila could have sworn that his eyes flickered over to Heeseung.) “There is.”

Sunoo shook his head with a defeated sigh, before turning his attention to Mila.

“Do you mind giving us a second?” Sunoo asked quietly. “I promise it won’t be long.”

“Right,” Sunghoon said. He turned to her, before brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. “Just give us a little time to talk about it between us, hm? We’ll be done before you know it.”

There was a small scoff from Jungwon, as if to say he disagreed with that statement.

Mila frowned. But when she looked around the room again, she had a feeling nothing would progress if she stayed in the room. Kiara was right; it seemed that the boys did have something to sort out between them.

And whatever it was, it looked like they needed to sort it out quickly.

With a small nod, she relented. “Okay… I’ll go.”

And she did. She wordlessly followed Kiara to their shared room, but not without one last worried glance over her shoulder.

The last thing she saw was Jay standing from his seat, before Kiara closed the door behind them.

“OKAY, LET’S TALK.”

Jay crossed his arms over his chest as he looked at the four in front of him. Jungwon remained sitting, but gave them a similar disapproving look from behind Jay. Heeseung shifted, leaning forward in his seat and propping his elbows on his knees.

“What’s there to talk about?” Niki asked, his eyebrows furrowed in genuine confusion. “We already told you what happened.”

“That’s what. What you said right now is the problem,” Jay said heatedly. “It’s not even about the fact that the four of you are dating Mila now — it’s the fact that you knew we all had feelings for her. But none of you ever mentioned that you were going to pursue her, or that you were fine with an open relationship to begin with.”

“If you had known that we were,” Sunghoon interjected, “would you have done something? Even if she didn’t feel the same way?”

Jay nodded resolutely, leaving not a single doubt to be had.

“I would have. I would have tried anything at all to make her love me back. Because that’s who I am, I do whatever it takes to get what I want. But I didn’t. Because I knew that if I did, one of us was going to get hurt.” Jay laughed humorlessly and shook his head. “I thought you guys would have had the same consideration.”

There was a silence where no one dared to say anything. Jake hung his head and Niki bit his lip in thought. It was true: they all had a silent understanding of everyone’s feelings for Mila, but none of them voiced what they were going to do about it.

And in the great mess of emotions and impulses they acted upon in their desperateness to make some sort of progress in their relationship with her, they jumped at the chance to make her theirs. But they didn’t consider what it would be like for each other. 

How could they? Love was both selfless and selfish; something that made you want to give everything up… but also to keep all of it to yourself.

“It was my fault.”

Every head turned in Sunoo’s direction as he clenched his hands in his lap.

“What do you mean, hyung?” Jungwon asked, speaking for the first time since Mila left.

“I was the first one to make a move,” Sunoo admitted. “Mila was never going to do anything to begin with, but I convinced her to date me by saying I wouldn’t mind if she wanted you guys as well. That’s why she agreed to all of it. And then when Sunghoon-hyung walked in on us kissing—“

“You kissed?!” 

Jay, Jungwon and — surprisingly enough — Heeseung all yelled in unison.

“Yes,” Sunoo replied. “And I’m not going to apologise for it, because I’m not sorry that I kissed her.”

Sunoo had a fierce look in his eyes, full of burning determination. If there was any doubt of his strength, that one look disproved all of them.

“But think of it this way: if I never did anything when I found out that she liked us all equally — as in all seven of us — then none of us would have stood a chance,” Sunoo reasoned.

It was logical reasoning, too. What he said was true: if he hadn't gotten Mila to accept her feelings and open up to the prospect of dating more than one of the boys, none of them would be with her now. And they likely never would be. Because the chances were, Mila would never choose between them, and instead decide to wallow in self-resentment while keeping them all at arms-length to save the trouble.

If that happened, no one would be happy.

Everyone in the living room was starting to realise this as well.

“She likes all of us?” Jungwon asked quietly.

If one looked closely, they could see a spark of hope in his dark eyes. And if they looked at Jay, they would be able to see the same thing — a burning desire to act upon the feeling he had been withholding for so long.

“All of us,” Sunoo affirmed.

Jake sighed. “I get that you’re upset that we did all this behind your back… and I’m sorry we didn’t think of your feelings like you did with ours. But we can’t really take back what’s been done.”

Niki nodded. “Right. What’s done is done. There’s no use crying over spilled milk.”

In another situation, the boys might have smiled and teased their youngest for his improving Korean. But not this time. None of them particularly felt like joking around this time — even Niki himself.

“Niki’s right.” Jungwon sighed. “There’s nothing we can do about what’s happened.”

“So?” Sunghoon asked, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. “Since we can’t go back in time, let’s just focus on the future now. The four of us—” (Sunghoon raised his chin and notions towards himself, Sunoo, Niki and Jake.) “—have already made our decision.”

“Now it’s time for you guys to make yours,” Sunoo finished.

With that, all attention was focused towards them. Surprisingly enough, the first one to say anything was Jungwon.

“I want to be with her too,” he confessed. “More than anything.”

Sunoo, Niki and Jake all smiled at his confession. Sunghoon immediately looked at Jay, urging him to give his response. As if this was the final verdict on a trial, and there would be no turning back from whatever decision he made at this moment.

Now or never, his eyes seemed to say.

Jay sighed before lifting a hand to his forehead, massaging the skin there as if he were getting a headache.

“I don’t like how rushed this all was… but I’m not going to give up the chance to be with Mila.”

Sunghoon raised an eyebrow, sending there was a ‘but’ hidden somewhere. And he was right.

“But…”

For some reason, Jay looked over at where Heeseung was sitting. The eldest had his head bowed and was fidgeting tirelessly with his hands. At that moment, they realised that he had barely said a word throughout the whole conversation — something very out of character of him, considering he was usually the one who urged them to reach an understanding whenever there was a disagreement.

“Hyung?” Jungwon asked worriedly. “Why don’t you say something? This concerns you, too.”

Heeseung let out a dry chuckle. If only they knew just how much this issue really concerned him. Heeseung could sense the worried look that Jay was sending him, but Heeseung didn’t pay it any attention.

This was something he needed to do himself.

“I also have something I need to tell you,” Heeseung started, piquing the others’ curiosity. “It’s something I should have mentioned a long time ago…”

Jungwon and Niki shared equally confused looks. Jake, too, seemed like he had no idea of what was going on. But Sunoo and Sunghoon had looks of deep concentration, as if turning the cogs in their head. Jay, on the other hand… he knew exactly what was coming.

 “So?” Sunoo asked on behalf of the others. “What is it?”

Jungwon then asked, “Is it something to do with Mila? You know… about why you guys were being so distant around each other.”

All eyes turned to Heeseung, ranging from suspicion to curiosity. It seemed everyone there was aware of the rift that came between Heeseung and Mila, and Heeseung wasn’t sure how to feel about it. He knew things were far from good — but for everyone to be aware of it…

Heeseung sighed. He nodded.

“I never told you guys. Only Jay knows about this, because I told him the other day. But me and Kiara dated.”

“WHAT?!” Almost everyone exclaimed in unison.

“When?!”

“Why?!”

“How did we not notice anything?!”

As questions filled the air, voices overlapping each other in surprise, Heeseung sighed. He knew this wasn’t going to be easy — but he had to do it if he wanted the others to understand why things were the way they were.

“Before you say anything, can you hear me out first?” Heeseung asked. “I want you guys to get the full picture — but at this rate, we might be sitting here all day.”

There were some looks being exchanged, as if in silent communication. Another day. Heeseung might have felt pride swell in his chest at how clear the bond between his members was. But now, he was too tired — and too determined to power onwards while he could.

They all nodded, agreeing to let him speak.

So Heeseung did.

He told them everything from beginning to end: the arrangement between him and Kiara, the way Mila had stumbled upon them kissing, the confrontation that led to Mila essentially cutting ties to him… Everything.

Heeseung expected to feel shame, to feel embarrassed by what he was saying. And some part of him was. After all, how could he not? His actions had led to Mila’s heart being broken — the one they could all swear they loved. 

But more than anything, he just felt relief. Like he was breathing in air for the first time after having his head submerged in water. 

And by the end of it, all was silent. The end of a storm. No crashing waves, no chirping birds, just complete and utter silence.

The first to speak was Jake.

“What a mess,” he said.

And no one disagreed with him.

‘A mess’ was exactly what this — what all of this — was. A mess of Heeseung’s own making, whether he intended it or not. Heeseung looked at the others, waiting for them to unleash their anger, their frustration, their insults at him…

What he got was very different from his expectations.

“You know…” Sunghoon ran a hand through his hair, a dry chuckle leaving his lips. “When I first noticed that you and Mila were distant, I was happy.”

“Hyung!” Sunoo shouted.

“What?” Sunghoon asked. “I was. And don’t act like I wasn’t the only one. Who here can honestly say that weren’t jealous of Heeseung-hyung?”

The room was silent.

“See?” Sunghoon asked, having proved his point. “It’s sick, I know— but a twisted part of me was hoping that you guys would stay like that.”

“Sunghoon,” Jay warned. “That’s enough.”

Before Sunghoon could respond, someone else beat him to the punch.

“No.” To everyone’s surprise, Heeseung was the one who said this. “I want to hear what he has to say.”

After all — first it Mila’s feelings for him, then Mila’s relationship with four other men, now this? What other struggles of his members was he blind to this entire time? Heeseung needed to know.

“Well, you heard me,” Sunghoon said. “I was selfish and I wanted to keep you guys apart, because I thought that meant I could have Mila to myself.” After a moment, Sunghoon scoffed and lowered his head in shame. “…But that wasn’t how I should have thought of things.”

Sunoo smiled as he realised where Sunghoon was going, a feeling of pride bubbling in his chest as he watched the older male come to term with his faults. Sunghoon, as if sensing his gaze, looked up and shared a small smile with him.

“Thanks to Sunoo, I realised how wrong it was to think like that…” Sunghoon turned his head and looked at Heeseung. “Nothing matters more than making Mila happy — and as much as I hate to admit it… she’s happier when you’re together.”

The other members couldn’t help but watch in awe of the maturity that Sunghoon displayed when he spoke. But none more than Heeseung himself.

“Sunghoon…”

Sunghoon smiled. “I guess what I’m saying is… despite everything, I want you guys to fix things between you.”

Jay nodded at his friend’s words. “We all do,” he said.

“I mean— Who are we?” Niki asked coolly. “We’re Enhypen.”

To say Heeseung was shocked was an understatement.

“You’re not mad at me?”

“How could we be?” Jungwon asked. “It’s not your fault. Yes, Mila was hurt, but… who’s to say you’re the only one capable of it? It could have been any of us that made the same mistake. It’s just that this time, it was you.”

“That’s right,” Jay said in agreement. “We all make mistakes. What matters now is what you’re going to do to fix it.”

Heeseung’s eyes scanned the expressions of the others in the room, his heart slowly freeing itself from its cage. He never would I have expected something like this — but he was all the more grateful. And for the first time after a long few days…

He felt hope.

“SO THIS IS IT, HUH?”

Mila turned to look at Kiara. As much as it was awkward between the two of them before, Mila couldn’t really stand to sit in silence. Not when the boys were making her anxious with their prologiend conversation (which still hadn’t ended by this point) and not when she wanted to be close to the older female again. The way they always have.

Kiara nodded. “I guess so… a lot has happened.”

Mila bit her lip. “Yeah.”

“I know it’s been kinda weird between us and all that. But just so you know…” Kiara turned to face Mila. “I missed talking to you like this.”

Mila smiled. “Me too.”

It was strange how easy that managed to get back on track. How easy it was to fall into conversation, as if everything that happened the last few days was nothing. But Mila supposed that’s how they always were: the two girls of the group, the two who always had each other’s backs.

They talked and talked, and suddenly, the anxiousness Mila felt about what the boys must be talking about was starting to fade away. And along the way, Mila even finally got to learn the reason why Kiara had been so consistently absent from the dorms recently.

“Youre dating Choi Yeonjun?” Mila let out a laugh. “You’re dating the legend, I’m dating four of our members… we came a long way from single teenage girls on I-Land.”

Kiara smiled. “You’re still a teenager, though.”

Both the girls giggled, before a comfortable silence overtook them. However, there was still an underlying question there, lingering between them —  one Kiara had been meaning to answer for a while.

“Are you still mad at Hee?” Kiara asked.

Mila was quiet.

Was she mad at Heeseung? She couldn’t really tell. Her emotions were a mess — one moment she was happy, the next moment she was sad, and then after that she felt too tired to feel anything. But nothing confused her more than Heeseung did.

Actually, no — nothing confused her more than the boys did.

She hadn’t met any people who challenged her heart and her thinking the way they did. The fact that seven distinct individuals, all so different in nature all had an equal hold over her heart was unimaginable. The Mila of a year ago never would have imagined it. It was hard to say what was what when nothing she had gone through was like anything she ever experienced before.

Mila hummed as she thought of Kiara’s question.

But before Mila could say anything, there was a knock at the door.

“Angel?”

Mila’s eyes widened. She immediately sat up on her bed, the action making her heart feel like it would fly out of her mouth. Mila shared a look with Kiara, before the latter quickly helped Mila fix her hair.

The boys were finished talking now? And that voice — it was Jay! Why was he here? What was happening?

“Just a second!” Mila yelled out panickedly, her heart beating rapidly against her chest. Once Kiara was done fixing her hair, she kept off the bed and flew towards the door.

She swung the door open.

And when she did, she almost choked on her spit.

“Heeseungie-oppa?!” she exclaimed in surprise.

“Sorry. I asked Jay for a hand.” Heeseung smiled awkwardly. “Can I come in?”

Mila swallowed nervously, unable to form words in her shocked state. She had just been mulling over how conflicted her feelings about him were — but now he had to show up at her door? What was she supposed to say?

That she hated him? That she didn’t want to see his face?

Or did she say that she loved him? That she didn’t want to go a single day longer pretending like he was a stranger?

“I— well— I mean—?”

But then there was a different matter: Jay was standing there, and she had no idea what to say to him either. Was he still mad? Was he mad at her? Did he—?

“I’ll leave you two to it.”

Mila’s eyes almost bulged out of their sockets when Jay brought Mila into his arms, his hand finding the back of her head and bringing it to the crook of his neck. She got a noseful of his scent, the strength of it making her weak in the knees, so she had to grasp onto the back of his shirt for support. They stayed there a little bit longer, with his hand stroking her hair. And then, as if that weren’t enough to send Mila’s senses into overdrive, he placed a soft kiss on her forehead.

“We’ll talk more soon,” he whispered.

“S-sure…?” Mila replied in a daze.

(At least she now knew he wasn’t mad at her —  but she wasn’t sure if her heart could handle whatever that was either.)

With that, Jay left. As if that weren’t enough to boggle Mila’s mind, Kiara suddenly stood up from the bed.

“Wel, I guess that’s my cue to go,” she declared. Before Mila could protest, she was already making her way out the door. “I’m going to visit Yeonjun-oppa. If you need anything — don’t call. You have seven other people in this house you can ask for help.”

“Wha— Eonnie?!” Mila protested. 

But it was too late. Kiara had left without so much as a glance over her shoulder.

And Mila was left alone with the man that both broke her heart and made it race.

Heeseung sighed, seeing Mila’s conflicted expression. 

“Milana,” he said softly. “I know we’re not on the best terms right now… but can we please just talk?” Heeseung pleaded. “I don’t care if you don’t want to say anything to me — just please listen to what I have to say? And if you still don’t want to hear what I have to say… I’ll leave you alone.”

Mila frowned. 

One on hand, she wanted to turn up her nose at him and kick him out the door. But on the other hand… she didn’t want to leave things as they were. Even if things were awkward, and even if things could never go back to how they were — at the very least, she wanted to end things with no regrets. She wanted them to say everything they had to say.

Mila nodded and sat down on the end of her bed. “Okay. You can talk.”

Heeseung sighed. For a few moments, he stood there, unsure of what to do. But then, he took her by surprise.

He got down on one knee, so that he was in front of Mila, looking up at her, his arms on either side of her legs.

Mila’s eyes widened. “What—?”

“I’m sorry.”

Mila’s heart became still. Did she just hear that right?

“I didn’t mean for you to get hurt,” Heeseung said. His eyes were wide and earnest as they gazed up at Mila, pleasing her to hear him out. “I made a mistake— I admit it. And because of it, you… your heart was broken.” 

Mila frowned. On one hand, he was apologising… but on another hand, what was it for? Mila could curse him out all she wanted as the bad guy, but the truth was he was anything but that. Frankly, Heeseung was free to make his own decisions. That meant kissing who he wanted, when he wanted, regardless of what Mila felt about it. She knew that. Deep inside, she knew it all too well.

But the heart wanted what it wanted. And Mila wanted him — so when she couldn’t have him… her heart convinced itself that she despised him for it. That it was his fault.

But it wasn’t. Not one bit. Deep inside, Mila knew this. And now it was time she accepted it too.

“Why are you sorry?” Mila asked quietly, her voice unnervingly calm. “Why would you be? You don’t really mean that, do you?” She furrowed her eyebrows. “I mean, you got to be with Kiara-eonnie. You should be happy—“

“No.” Heeseung's voice was firm in its denial. “No… she’s a good friend, yeah. But she doesn’t make me happy like you think she does. Not the same way you do.”

Mila’s heart skipped a bit. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying that I was an idiot,” Heeseung said. “You asked why I’m apologising? Because I was too stupid to realise that you’re the one I wanted all this time—“

“No!” Mila shot up from her bed. She couldn’t control the way her voice shook, despite her efforts to keep it stable. She shook her head as if trying to erase the words from her kind. “Don’t say that. Don’t ever say that again.”

She witnessed him kissing another woman with her own two eyes — and that broke her heart into bits. It took her forever to get to this point. To be able to talk to him without breaking down into tears. But he was going to tell her that she was the one he yearned for all this time? What sort of cruel, twisted joke was this?

“Say what?” Heeseung whispered gently. “The truth?”

“Lee Heeseung, you’re the worst!” she said, tears stinging her eyes.

“I know,” he replied, his voice soft as ever, despite Mila’s rising tone. “I’m the worst because I never realised how much you meant to me until it was too late.”

“You liar!” Mila exclaimed. “I don’t believe you!”

Heeseung stood, tilting his head down to look at Mila so that he was a breath’s width away from each other. His eyes were sad, his heartstrings tugging painfully at the sight of Mila denying his feelings for her. And why wouldn’t she? He has done nothing to give her reason to believe him, and he wanted to change that more than anything.

“What do I do to make you believe me?”

He lifted a hand, as if to sweep back Mila’s hair, but she took a step back to avoid his touch.

“Nothing!” she said. “Just— I—ugh— I don’t know! Okay? And I don’t care! I don’t want to see you!”

Heeseung’s heart twisted as Mila edged away from him, until her back was against the wall, and her head was hung low. But there was no turning back now. No matter what Mila hurled at him, he was here to stay.

“Mila…”

“You’re a bastard, you know that?” Mila said, her voice shaking as tears fell down her face. “You kissed another woman in front of me and now you’re saying you love me and not her?” Mila let out a humourless laugh. “You’re crazy. I’ll never believe you.”

Mila was losing her mind. That much was clear. When Heeseung attempted to step closer to her, she grabbed one of the plushies on her bed and threw it at him. Heeseung caught it without batting an eye, before setting it down gently on the bed where it belonged.

“I can’t believe you—“

Another plushie thrown.

“You heartless—“

And another one.

“Inconsiderate—“

… And another one.

“Jerk!”

One by one, plushies were thrown. But each and every time, Heeseung would catch them and place them back on the bed until Mila had run out of both plushies and distance between herself and Heeseung. Before she could make a grab across the bed for more ammo, Heeseung pulled her into his chest and wrapped his arms around her.

“Where did you learn all those curse words from?” Heeseung whispered into the top of her head. “They don’t suit you.”

Mila ignored him. She weakly hit his chest, her sobs even more apparent.

“Let me go!” she said. 

Heeseung simply hugged her tighter. “I can’t. I don’t want to.”

He didn’t want to lose her. Never again.

“I—“ Mila hiccuped. “I hate you!”

A tear fell down Heeseung’s cheek. “I know.”

He buried his nose into the top of her head, as more and more tears started to build up. He had forgotten what it was like to hold her like this — to feel her heart so close to his and the warmth radiating from her figure, to feel the way she so perfectly fit in his arms. It was like coming home after a long trip away. It felt right.

“I said I hate you!” Mila sobbed.

Heeseung closed his eyes. “And I love you.”

Silence.

Heeseung sniffled as his eyes became flooded by tears, streaking down his face like rain down a window. His body shook slightly with each breath, causing him to hold Mila closer — if that was even possible.

“I don’t care how long it takes,” he said. “I don’t care if you end up hating me forever… I’m too selfish, and no matter what I do I can’t let you go.”

Heeseung tilted his head back so that he was looking down at Mila. Her eyes were all ready from crying and her cheek flushed from how much yelling she had done, but he couldn’t care less. There was nothing he found more beautiful than her, no matter what she looked like — whether she had just woken up, whether she had just finished crying, or whether she was looking at him like he was the worst of the worst. He loved every side of her that she could possibly show him. And he wasn’t going to give up because of a few insults.

“You can hate me and insult me all you want,” Heeseung said. “You can fight me too if it makes you feel better. Just whatever you do… please don’t push me away.”

Heeseung brought a hand up to wipe Mila’s cheeks, despite the fact that his own were wet too from crying.

“Please,” he whispered, as if in prayer. “Just let me stay like this with you.” He leaned forward so that his forehead was leaning against hers. “Please… my love, I’m begging you.”

For a few moments, Mila couldn’t say anything. Then, she sniffled, glaring weakly up at Heeseung. “I still hate you.”

“And I still love you.”

Silence.

And then…

“S-say it again,” Mila said weakly.

Heeseung inhaled. “I love you,” he croaked out.

“Again.”

Despite himself, Heeseung let out a laugh.

“I love you.”

And no matter how long it took for Mila to see it, he would never stop reminding her. And even after that… he would never stop saying it. It might take forever, but that was okay. He had time. Besides…

Any wait was worth it, if it was for her.

“WELCOME BACK.”

Mila and Heeseung had both just left her bedroom when she found all of the boys in the kitchen, waiting for them. She couldn’t help the way she rushed over, throwing herself at Jake, who had his arms wide open for her.

Jake chuckled and rubbed her back.

“We have something to ask you,” Jake said. 

Mila sniffled and pulled back from the hug to look at Jake questioningly. She then realised what was happening: the boys standing in a semicircle around her — with Heeseung joining them to stand at the end — while looking at her with smiles on their faces.

“Why are you all up to?” she asked sceptically.

At her question, Jake slowly let go of her before moving to stand in line. Mila, confused at why he was suddenly walking away, whined and followed after him, causing the others to chuckle fondly at her.

“No, no,” Jake said, smiling so wide his cheeks must hurt. He placed his hands on her shoulder and walked her back to the centre of the semi-circle. “Stay here.”

“Why?” Mila asked. “What’s happening?”

There was some more laughs, before Jungwon slowly walked up to Mila, his cheeks burning bright red.

“Wonnie?” she asked.

“We all decided he should be the one to ask you,” Jay said with a smile. “After all, he is the leader.”

Mila’s eyes widened. Her heart started to palpitate in anticipation, butterflies threatening to flow from her mouth as they flower around hysterically in the out of her stomach. She couldn’t believe this was happening — but at the same time, she very much wished she wasn’t dreaming.

“A-ask me what?” 

Jungwon went to stand in front of Mila, before clearing his throat. “Mila-noona.”

Mila blinked. “Yes?”

“I…” Jungwon started, his face serious, albeit very red from the blush on his cheeks. But after a few seconds, he started to giggle. “I had a whole script I was supposed to say… but now that you’re here, I forgot.”

The other boys laughed around the duo. “Ayeeeee.”

But Mila couldn’t help herself. Her eyes started to water — and nothing had even started yet. Perhaps she was jumping the gun a bit… but she couldn’t help the overwhelming wave of joy that swept over her.

“What is it?” Mila asked softly.

Jungwon but his lip, before reaching out to touch Mila’s arm. Then slowly, he dragged his fingers down, sending goosebumps across her skin, as his hands latched onto hers. He peered up at her through his eyelashes, eyes sparkling with unsaid emotion.

“I like you,” he whispered. “A lot.”

Mila’s knees felt weak at the sudden confession. But Jungwon wasn’t finished.

“We all do, actually,” Jungwon said. “We fell for you — harder than you realise.”

Mila’s eyes went across the room, observing the warm gazes in their eyes. There was no denying it; Jungwon was telling the truth. But then again, he was never one to lie about things like this — it was just that Mila had taken so long to realise what was in front of her.

But it was better late than never. And she was here now.

“I fell, too,” Mila confessed back. “For all of you.”

And it wasn’t easy, either. There were as many tears as there were smiles; as much pain as there was happiness. But it was worth it, Mila decided. They were worth it.

Jungwon smiled, his eyes holding a galaxy of stars within them.

“Then in that case… will you be willing to accept us — all of us — as yours?” Jungwon bit his lip before looking down shyly.

“I know we don’t have much at the moment,” Jay said. “If we could, we would have waited a bit so we can take you somewhere nice and then give you a gift—“

“No.” All eyes fell on Mila as she spoke. She swallowed, her eyes watering as a wide smile broke out on her face. “I don’t need any of that… all I need is you all with me.”

Sunoo stepped forward. “Well you do. You have us all — if you want us.”

Mila didn’t need to think twice.

“Of course I do!” Jungwon stumbled back in surprise when Mila suddenly threw her arms around him, but quickly caught himself in time and wrapped his arms around her in reciprocation. “Yes, yes, yes — a million times, yes!”

There was laughter. And then, one by one, all the boys gathered to hug her in the centre.

At that moment they knew, they were complete.

— 1 YEAR LATER —

“What’s this surprise you were talking about?”

Jay smiled as Mila tugged his sleeve, the other boys behind him as they followed her to the living room. It was April 21, 2022, marking a year since they all became official, and the moment the clock struck midnight, Mila was dragging them to the living room, claiming she had a special gift for them.

“Just wait and see!”

Mila softly pushed Jay onto the couch before rushing over to grab the TV remote. As she fiddled with a HDMI adapter cord to connect to her phone, the boys whispered among each other.

“What’s going on?” Jake asked. “Do any of you know what she planned?”

All eyes turned to Sunoo.

“Don’t look at me. I don’t know anything, either — I’m just as clueless as you.”

“Even Sunoo-hyung doesn’t know,” Niki said. “I guess she was serious when she wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Now I’m even more curious,” Jungwon said.

Before anyone else could say anything, Mila started to shush them, as she tapped away rapidly on the screen of her phone. “Okay!” she exclaimed. “Here it comes!”

At that moment, all eyes turned to the screen.

And what they saw shocked them.

It was a YouTube video — and not just any, either. It was a newly uploaded video on their channel that they were only now just seeing. And on the thumbnail was Mila, holding a microphone.

And judging by the title, was a video of Mila doing a cover of ‘Only’ by Lee Hi.

“What’s this?” Heeseung asked, his voice soft with awe.

Mila smiled as the boys all turned to her with questioning looks.

“I secretly asked the company to let me record this… because I wanted to give you something special for our anniversary.”

Without letting the boys ask anything else, she played the video.

Immediately, soft piano began to play… followed by Mila’s voice, sweet and soothing as she sang the words to the song, her eyes conveying every emotion that she felt.

No one would know. They wouldn’t know the song was for the boys, that the ones she was singing about were those in front of her right now. But the boys did. They knew. And they couldn’t tear their eyes away from the screen as they watched their girl give her heart and soul through her performance.

The reactions were varied. But none conveyed anything less than unconditional love.

On rainy nights…

Heeseung swallowed, realising just how far he — how far they all — had come with Mila. But especially after what happened between them… he didn’t know if he’d ever have the chance to witness such a beautiful moment like this. But here he was.

Or on lonely daytimes…

Jay smiled, as he reminisced all the feelings he felt the day that they came together as one. He remembered his desperation, the heartache he felt when he first thought he no longer stood a chance with her — all replaced by the gratitude he felt for having her now.

Please colour me with your shiny light…

Jake couldn’t help the giddiness in his stomach, as he thought of the words that Mila was saying in the song — and what he would give to hear them all the time. To always be with her, whenever he could. To be able to wake up to her smile and fall asleep with her in his arms.

I’ll do better…. 

Sunghoon lowered his head with a soft smile, as he realised the things that brought them all together, were one of the things he was lost grateful for. And despite his initial reservations, he couldn’t be more happy that they were all in this together.

When you promise we will stay together…

Sunoo teared up as his mind conjured all the memories that they had made together — and the prospect of all the memories they had yet to make, in their bright future together, wherever it was that future would take them.

Now I believe…

Niki bit his lip, as he thought of just how much had changed since he came to Korea. From that young, brash kid, trying to make his way in the world — to the young man he was now, who finally knew where he belonged.

With the one I was desperately looking for…

Jungwon inhaled deeply, his eyes watering, as he was unable to contain the feeling of pride for his members — and for himself. For how far they all came not only as individuals, but a group. How they all grew, because of the simple, but complicated, thing that was love.

My oh, my oh, my oh, my love…

Mila looked at all the boys, whose eyes were fixed on the screen, a tear falling down her cheek as she realised just how lucky she was to be with them in this life. How grateful she was that she got to meet them — got to love them.

Be my only love…

At that moment, they all — one by one — turned to face her. A smile crossed Mila’s face, before running over to them. Without a word shared, they came together in a hug not unlike the one they shared one year ago.

Every step we take, it’s like a dance we perform together…

But if one looked closely enough, they would notice that they held each other tighter, and closer than they did before. A testament to how strong their bond had gotten.

My oh, my oh, my oh, my love…

It wasn’t easy — but nothing worth doing ever was. They would have their highs and their lows; there would be the good times and the bad. They would cry, they would laugh; they would fall and they would fly. But no matter what it was that came at them, they would get through it — the same way they always had.

Together.

Be my only love.

— THE END… FOR NOW —

taglist: @lanamoonroh @3amstarlight @nikitopia @nee-issaire @one16core @onlyuyu @xinikons @clar-iii @shinrjj @curly-fr13s @euniceruiz11 @dearyjw ( couldn’t be tagged )

ok I'm back while in the middle of rewatching S2 HAHEHQJWYSJ WHY AM I SO INTO THIS BYE⁉️

Anyway, let me just get this straight.. the faces are what mainly confuses me, so.. Go Younjung is Cho‐yeong/Mu‐deok, while Jung Somin is Jin Buyeon/Naksu ??? 😭😭😭 (these are the actresses of the two characs btw, the answers to these will probably help me a lot in S2 more since "Naksu's" face was now used for Jin Buyeon

Alchemy of Souls: Naksu's Memories of Her Father Being Killed Were Actually Mu Deok's Memories

Memories can be distorted in a variety of ways. They can also be used by someone like Jin Mu to carry out his nefarious plans.

So let's start with the story of two little girls, Mu Deok and Jin Bu Yeon whose souls were swapped by evil Jin Mu when they were children.

Mu Deok's Memories

Since you all wanted to know Mu Deok's backstory. Here it is! And no she's not Jin Bu Yeon.

Mu Deok was the constellation mage's daughter. One night, her maid found her and hid her in the a shed and told her to stay away from her father. She witnessed her father change into a soul shifter. Following this, she saw the four families kill her father. She was alone and scared, but a nice man approached her. His face looked kind so she decided to grab his hand and follow him.

Mu Deok lived in a shack by herself in Danhyaggot for years until one day the man with the nice face brought her a blind friend. The next thing she remembered she woke up and she couldn't see anymore. She was confused and didn't know where she was. When she asked around, people told her she was in Sari Village. She couldn't find the man with the nice face because she was blind now.

Later on, someone mentioned to her that her blindfold had the Jin family crest on it. She had remember that name. They were one of the four families that killed her dad. She thought it would be best to stay far away from these four families because they were scary (or Jin Mu fed Mu Deok some sort of lie that made her stay away). In the meantime, she decided to use the blindfold with the family crest to earn a living.

There you go folks. That is Mu Deok's story. This how Mu Deok was used in Jin Mu's plan. As sad as it may be, her soul was nothing special. You see if Mu Deok was Jin Bu Yeon, she would've have asked around for someone to take her back to the Jin family residence. People would've noticed the Jin family crest and be willing to help her because they knew the Jin's would've paid a nice reward for whoever returned their daughter. Except she didn't. She stayed away. This meant Mu Deok's soul was stuck in another person's body (Jin Bu Yeon's body).

Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu's Memories

What Jin Mu did to Jin Bu Yeon was much worse than what he did to Mu Deok. Jin Mu used Mu Deok's story to brainwash Jin Bu Yeon. He convinced Jin Bu Yeon she had a father who was a constellation mage and he was killed by the four families for no good reason. Jin Mu gave Jin Bu Yeon enough information to believe it was true, but left out important parts (i.e father was a soul shifter) so he could use her to carry out his evil plans (i.e killing the four families).

[Side note: Jin Mu either brainwashed Jin Bu Yeon or she developed amnesia after she fell off the boat.]

Jin Mu (or Fake Queen Choi) gave Jin Bu Yeon a new body/face so that no one could recognize her from the outside (i.e soul swap with Mu Deok). The last step to transform Jin Bu Yeon into the best assassin was to give her a new name and identity. This name was Naksu, the shadow assassin who made mages' head roll.

What Jin Mu did not account for is that Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu would cast the Alchemy of Souls spell the 2nd time thereby returning her to her original body.

How Jin Mu Ensured His Identity Remained a Secret

Out of the two girls (Jin Bu Yeon and Mu Deok), Mu Deok was the only one who saw Jin Mu's face. She was also the only one that saw her father turn into a soul shifter. Given this, Jin Mu had to make sure she would never recognize him or be able to find him. He accomplished this by swapping Mu Deok's soul into a blind girl's body (Jin Bu Yeon's body). This guaranteed that Mu Deok would never be able to find him because she couldn't see anymore.

On the other hand, Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu didn't know what Jin Mu looked like before the swap because she was blind. After he swapped Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu's soul into Mu Deok's body, he wore a black cloak when he was around her. He made sure she would never know what he looked like.

How Jin Mu's Lies Started to Be Uncovered

Despite Jin Mu's best effort to prevent Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu from finding out what he looked like, she eventually did. After Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu swapped back to her original body, she saw Gil Joo at the bidding house. Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu had recognized Gil Joo and followed him and this is how she discovered what Jin Mu looked like. Recall that Mu Deok was the only one who had seen Jin Mu's face when she was a child. Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu never saw Jin Mu's face.

In Ep 8, Gil Joo once again helped revealed more of Jin Mu's lies to Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu. Gil Joo had told her that her "father" was a soul shifter. This piece of information was something Jin Mu left out on purpose during Jin Bu Yeon's brainwashing story time. Remember that Mu Deok was the only one who saw her father turn into a soul shifter. Had Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu really been Mu Deok, she would've already known this fact since she saw it with her eyes and therefore would not be surprised.