Haoboutyou - Aiyu - Tumblr Blog

ok idk if you're sleeping BUT when you're available i would love to hear about ur latest skz concert experience <33

HI ok saur i’ve just washed up so let’s GO!!!!!

dominATE tour!!! i was so so lucky to get a good seat (cat 1 second row!) but my other concert buddies… were slightly further behind. i went alone but met up with other stays who also went alone, so we became a cute little group of 4! spent the time looking around and taking pictures together 🥺 they’re the cutest bunch ever. tbh it’s not my first time going alone (i.e skz maniac, cha eunwoo just one 10min) so i wasn’t that lost, but some of the other girls were so i became some sort of a mother duck weaving them through the crowds hahah !

i made little bracelets and gave them out as fansupport! was seated next to two j-stays and when i gave them, they went “kawaii!!” repeatedly; they’re so cute uGH

chan said he’s so happy to be able to kick off the start of the world tour in singapore 🫶 (in a later ment, he said he was jealous of stays who live here because it’s so pretty, and would love to spend more time here in the future :() he also made a lot of jokes about how it’s so “cold” here (haha :|) but ultimately said it’s hot because of stay 🥹

changbin did the chilli chilli crab crab dance again!! seungmin said they ate that yesterday, and that probably before their flight tomorrow they’ll eat pepper crab! changbin asked to share and seungmin said no because changbin eats 2 portions each time 😭😭 save my man please 😫

speaking of!!! changbin is my concert bias once again!!! idk man it’s just something about him that draws your eyes towards him… his stage presence is really no joke. he’s also super buff irl (please put me in a chokehold) (lovingly)

THE SOLOS1!!1!1!1! THEY’RE ALL SO AMAZING!!!!! seungmin was so angelic on the guitar! jisung and minho were so cute and fun to jump to! hyunjin!! such beautiful choreo!!!! the fact that they put chan’s and jeongin’s back to back is so criminal tho like how did they expect me to recover from shirtless chan to body-roll jeongin combo???? felix said his solo was based off beast’s pov from beauty and the beast! 🥺 of how life was so unfair for him 🥺🥺 and then when be the crowd was chanting “baby bread! baby bread!” seungmin then went on to say “nonono, he’s a man now” WHAT IF I CRIED!!!!!

they also played cult classics: miroh, district 9, MY PACE, back door, god’s menu, thunderous, case 143. i will never stop loving you, miroh.

at one point they were all just throwing water at stays and each other. they should’ve gone to waterbomb lmao i would’ve loved to see them with the water canons

omg as i was collecting confetti after the concert, a security aunty came up to me and was like “hi can i ask who was the one with the long hair?”

and i was like “oh the blond one?”

and she was like “yeah! the one with the half bun!”

so i was like “oh! that’s felix!”

“felix? like f-e-l-i-x?”

“yes, felix!”

“oh, he’s very handsome!”

“right??”

tbh i think last year’s maniac tour was better :/ maybe its because of the intimacy of the indoor stadium as compared to national? i also preferred last year’s setlist too T-T there’s no hellevator, haven, rock or yayaya 😪 they did have social path this year tho! and stray kids! lonely street and i like it too!! it’s the little wins 🥹

anyways 8/10 solid concert i love skz with all my heart and stays are so nice! it’s a blessing to be able to see my ults three times now 🥹 i’m p sure there’s more but i think i forgot haha will leave off with a message from chan:

boyfriend pic

Seventeen's reaction to their s/o being a people pleaser

Synopsis: How seventeen would react when they realise their s/o is a people pleaser. Pairing: Seventeen x gn! reader Genre: Angst, hurt/ comfort | sfw Word Count: 1.1k words Warnings: People pleasing, disregard for one’s self, low self-esteem (fear of not being good enough), boundaries being ignored, fear of confrontation, allusion to toxic relationships (friendship, familial, romantic) where reader has been used for other’s personal gain Disclaimer: i’m writing this scenario based on my own personal views and experience of being a people pleaser. Obviously, other people would have their own experiences and interpretations of how the svt members would react. Not proof read. A/n: requested by @haecien. Sorry it took so long, Cien Bien… i’m ngl, this isn’t really my best work and i’m really not the best person to write this because i’m a chronic people pleaser as well :((

.ᐟ.ᐟ He resolves to help you overcome your people pleasing tendencies.

Jeonghan, Joshua, Wonwoo, Woozi, Minghao, Seungkwan, Vernon

▸ He’s not surprised. He’s perceptive enough that he would have noticed your people pleasing tendencies a long time ago. Don’t think he doesn’t notice the way you always ask him what he prefers, the way you always capitulate to him regardless of what your preference was originally, or the way you always adjust your needs to his. And don’t think he doesn’t notice you fidgeting with your hands/ clothes, the soft sighs, small sheepish smiles and nods where the light doesn’t reach your eyes. He knows those are mannerisms you exhibit unconsciously when you are not completely comfortable doing something. 

▸ So yes, he’s not surprised at all, and he vows to help you overcome this tendency. He won’t completely cease to ask you to help him with things, nor would he forcefully insist that you both go along with your preferences because that might be counterproductive. People pleasers have a tendency to believe they did something wrong, that they let you down, or that you don’t need them anymore if you’re not asking them to do something anymore. It’s a very unhealthy, warped way of thinking which stems from them being used by others for personal gain in the past before being thrown aside when they are no longer of use. 

▸ Instead, he will try to phrase things differently and adjust to your needs as well. Communication is extremely important to him. He needs to show you that your opinion, your time, your energy, your feelings, and your boundaries are all valid and important. You need to prioritise your comfort over other people’s needs, including his own, by not just setting, but also enforcing your boundaries. And of course, he doesn’t need you to explain your boundaries to him. If you want to, great. If you don’t, that’s okay too. You don’t owe anyone an explanation as to why you are uncomfortable with something. 

▸ You’re an equal in this relationship with him. He’s going to respect your boundaries. He would never force you to do something you didn’t want to do, or go somewhere you didn’t want to go. He would make a conscious effort to observe your mannerisms to ensure you were comfortable, and he would ask you to verbally confirm your comfort levels. Plus, to get around your people pleasing tendencies, he would try to shift the focus of the conversation back onto you and to give you the choice. He might say things like “how about you? I know you’re okay with my choice of eating place for our date, but I made that decision last time. How about we go to that place you’ve been talking about?” And when it comes to asking you to do something, he would phrase things in a way which would always give you a way out. For example, “would it be okay if you help me with this? If you can’t, that’s perfectly fine. I can always ask one of my friends to help.” Not the best examples, but you get the point. 

.ᐟ.ᐟ He is torn… he doesn’t really know what to think, feel or do. 

Seungcheol, Jun, Soonyoung, Dokyeom, Mingyu, Dino

▸ He’s shocked, frustrated, and disappointed with everything and everyone when he finds out you’re a people pleaser. He wouldn’t have noticed you were a people pleaser for the longest time until someone pointed out how you were always doing things for him/ going to places he chose for dates. Listen, he’s observant enough, but he genuinely thought you were always giving into him/ helping him, because you were watching out for him. You were always telling him that he deserves to be spoiled a little or that you guys should go to where he wanted due to his busy schedule. And to be fair to him, it’s not like he was extremely demanding or the kind to insist he get his way all the time either. 

▸ He feels so much regret. How could he have been so blind that he didn’t notice you were always putting other people’s needs above your own. Like the time you stayed up late to help him with a project despite the fact you were already tired from your own day. Or the time you went with him to a new tourist attraction despite having mentioned that you were terrified of one particular part of it. He’s also angry. At himself for not noticing and inadvertently trampling over your boundaries. At you for not saying you were uncomfortable or for thinking he would love you any less if you didn’t give into him. At other people who he didn’t even know, the ones who might have treated you in some horrible way which led you to develop people pleasing tendencies in the first place.

▸ Unlike the group above, he would pull away completely and very suddenly. He would stop asking you for your help unless absolutely necessary, and he would insist you choose your destination for dates. He doesn’t want to put you in a tight spot where you feel like you are trapped and have to pander to his needs. But this probably would backfire on him because you would see his actions, though they were out of his consideration for you, as him withdrawing from you. It would make you feel like you weren’t needed anymore, like he didn’t want you anymore. Perhaps you did something to anger him and he didn’t want to tell you. Eventually, you both might get into an argument over it only to realise you were both being dumb and more communication was needed. 

▸ It’s a learning curve for both of you. You needed to learn how to establish boundaries, communicate them, and enforce them firmly. Ironically, you’ll have to be comfortable with being uncomfortable when you’re learning to put your foot down and say “no”. It is something he would help you along with though, as he becomes more aware of your mannerisms. As for him, he’ll need to learn to be able to distinguish when you were being a people pleaser, and when you were simply being his significant other. There will be times, many times, when you go out of your way to put his needs before yours because you love him and you’re doing things out of consideration for him. He needs to understand it isn’t you ignoring your boundaries, but in fact, you're working within your boundaries to ensure he is comfortable in your relationship as well. 

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SEVENTEEN (세븐틴) 12th Mini Album

Official Photo 𝗩𝗘𝗥.𝟮 𝗙𝗘𝗘𝗟 𝗬𝗢𝗨

🗣️ 2024.10.14 6PM (KST)

👂 2024.10.14 5AM (ET)

✨️Him✨️

Lando on Lewis and George withdrawing from media post race in Singapore for heatstroke symptoms

Lando: Toto Wolff issues health update on Hamilton and Russell? Fuckin hell! It's tough for everyone! Why do they think that they-

Fewtrell: What do you mean issues health update?

Lando: Everyone’s got heatstroke if they’ve got heatstroke.

"think about how happy we'll be when we meet again after living our lives well."

unrelated but it’s my first grand prix !!!

If You Want Me

Lee Jihoon x fem!Reader

Genre: fluff

Word Count: 1,881

Warnings: lots of crying. (y/n)’s not the sharpest tool.

[Established Relationship AU] You find a strange box in your boyfriend’s drawer and it brings forth a life-changing event.

You were buzzing with unburnt energy, itching for something – anything – to do.

It was just one of those days where you couldn’t sit still. It wasn’t that you hadn’t already done much: the standard 8-hour work day was already finished and you still felt like you needed to be useful. There was so much to do and you were excited to get to it.

It was a blur of productivity. The speakers filled the apartment with the melodies of a playlist Jihoon had once made for you (you had lost track of what he made the playlist for; he had simply made you so many) as you practically waltzed around, finishing chore after chore at near magical speeds: the dishes, the laundry, the windows, the curtains. You watered the plants and gave their big green leaves a good wipe-down.

Around 11 pm, a text chimed on your phone. It was Jihoon, a heart emoji proudly on display by his contact name. 

“Want anything to eat?” he asked, ever so thoughtful – or perhaps trying to avoid the awkwardness of eating alone.

You gladly replied to him, practically begging for your favourite noodle dish, and returned to organising your wardrobe. Even that task was done soon and you were once again left with a strange itch to just do something else. Literally any chore. But you had done them all already.

Well. Except Jihoon’s side of the wardrobe. 

The half-wrinkled black and white t-shirts on the shelves and a random pair of sandals shoved in there was an eyesore compared to your perfectly folded blouses. He wasn’t the messiest person you had met, but he rarely had time to actually keep his closet as neat as he or you would’ve liked.

Usually you left his side for him to deal with, but – you thought to yourself – there’s no harm in helping out.

You folded his shirts properly, throwing a few stained ones to the laundry bin. You organised his jackets and sweaters by colour. You began organising his underwear drawer – the messiest of them all – when you found something curious. 

It was a box. A very small one, covered in a velvety material. You thought, perhaps in a tired daze, it looked like something a piece of jewellery might come in. Earrings? Or a ring perhaps? 

But why would he keep his rings in a box? He had a perfectly good jewellery tray on the nightstand – one you had handmade for him in a pottery class on a double date night. And the box couldn’t have been for you either – you rarely wore rings or jewellery of any kind and he knew that.

So what was in this box?

You tried so hard to fight the curiosity and just leave it be. You loved and trusted your boyfriend. You knew he wouldn’t hide things from you. Maybe it was a gift from someone. Maybe the box was empty and he had simply forgotten to throw it out.

But you had come this far and you were getting tired and you just had to find out. One little peek wouldn’t hurt, right? It surely couldn’t.

Against the warnings of your last rational braincells, you opened the box. Your jaw dropped in surprise. 

It was, indeed, a ring. A pretty one at that. With an intricate golden band and a heart-shaped ruby in the middle. You thought to yourself that even you wouldn’t mind wearing something as beautiful as this.

But it wasn’t your ring. And, frankly, you wondered if it was really his either. Suspicions and curiosity grew and when you snapped back to reality you had already sent a photo to your friends’ chat, asking what they thought it was.

The answer was immediate and loud: “??? THAT’S CLEARLY AN ENGAGEMENT RING, YOU IDIOT?!”

Your heart dropped. Your body felt hot all over. You worried you might faint from shock. 

Could it be? Was this really what they thought it was? Had you just accidentally ruined your boyfriend’s plans to propose? 

And even more importantly – you thought, brain fully going into overdrive now, not even caring that the box sharply closed on your thumb as you clutched it to your chest and sunk to sit on the floor, tears burning in your eyes –, your boyfriend was going to propose? He actually wanted to marry you? It wasn’t just a tired fantasy he joked about with you late at night, giggling and joking about growing old together. He had bought a ring – an engagement ring.

Overwhelmed by your joyous feelings and the guilt of ruining what was clearly meant to be a surprise, you began to cry. Tears blurred your vision, mascara you should’ve washed off hours ago was smudging off your lashes, snot ran down your nose – you were certain you looked absolutely horrendous but you had bigger things to worry about for now.

Practically sobbing, you didn’t hear the front door opening and closing or Jihoon calling out to you from the front door, his melodious voice so full of love as he greeted you. You didn’t notice the rustling of the takeout bag or tired footsteps echoing in the apartment, nearing your location.

He walked into the bedroom, expecting to find you soundly asleep or maybe scrolling on Tiktok, ready to show him some nonsensical meme again. Even if he made fun of you for showing them to him, he greatly cherished the fact that your first thought was to share these things with him. 

Instead he found you curled up in front of the closet, sobbing with a velvet box in hand. He froze. "Fuck."

Realising he’d come home, you scrambled to put the box back where you had found it and wiped your tears and runny mascara and apologised and hid your face and said, "Sorry. Don’t look at me. I’m a mess."

Jihoon only chuckled somewhat uneasily and slowly came closer, reaching out a hand to place it onto your shoulder before pulling you into a gentle hug. It was comforting. He was always comforting. 

“Why are you crying?” he asked as if he wasn’t fully aware already.

"I–"

"You found the ring, right?"

"How'd you know?" you worried, eyes wide. Was he upset with you? Was he disappointed? Angry? Sad? You couldn’t live with yourself if you had made him feel bad when he had put so much thought into a future with you.

"I saw you put it away,” he pointed out so calmly that it almost lulled you into a false sense of serenity.

"Oh. That was something else,” you lied horribly. You were never a great liar, at least not to him. “What ring? I don’t know about any ring–"

"I think I know what the box of the ring I had made for you looks like, baby," he told you with a slight laugh before reaching into the drawer with his free hand and taking out the very box. Hesitating for just a moment, he then held it out for you, nodding for you to take it.

With shaking hands, you did as told. "It's for me?"

"If you want it," he shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant but his bright red ears and oddly glimmering eyes say he's about five seconds away from a mental breakdown of his own. He coughed to clear his throat before adding, "If you want me."

"What?"

"I– This wasn't how I planned this but," Jihoon ran a hand through his hair, “but I guess the cat's out of the bag.”

He let out a nervous laugh – the one he always did when Soonyoung or Jeonghan convinced him to do something dumb or embarrassing – before dropping to one knee right there, in front of the closet, in front of you – his girlfriend who he thought looked like a sad panda in the best way possible. 

He closed his eyes and took a deep calming breath as you waited, holding your own breath. When he spoke again, his voice was hushed and gentle, as if he feared speaking any louder would give away how nervous he was feeling. 

“I know this is kind of sudden and you probably weren’t expecting it,” he started, voice wavering, “but I feel like I’ll go crazy if I avoid my feelings for much longer. When I first met you, I knew I’d want you in my life for a long time – whether as a friend or as something more I didn’t know yet.

“But now I know,” Jihoon had begun crying, wiping his tears between anxious giggles when he saw your tear-stained but bright smile – an encouragement –, “I want you as my home, as my everything, as my wife. I’d sooner go insane than live a single day without calling you mine and myself yours. So,” he took the ring in one hand and your hand in his other, “I'm asking you to make me the happiest man alive and accept this ring and marry me. Will you have me?"

There was not a single doubt or even an echo of one in your mind. 

“Yes. Yes!” 

Nodding rapidly, almost frantically even, you semi-patiently watched him smile the brightest you had seen him do in weeks and gently place the ring around your finger. Before he could even admire the jewellery on your hand, your arms were wrapped around him, lips reaching for his to kiss him as flustered and silly as he had made you with his words. 

“I love you,” you heard him whisper against your lips as he pulled you closer until there wasn’t even a molecule of air between the two of you.

You hummed and pulled back just enough to whisper back, “I love you too, future husband.”

He groaned at the words, a dumb grin on his face. “I can’t wait to marry you, seriously.”

“There’s a chapel down the street,” you half-joked (half- because you were so overcome with love for him that you wouldn’t have even mildly protested if he had gone along with the joke and made it a reality).

To your amusement, he was the one to protest, a grumpy frown taking over his previously bright and awestruck face. “I had an entire picnic planned with fairy lights and cake and live music and I even had Mingyu convinced to take photos for us, and instead  I ended up proposing to you,” he glanced around the room almost judgmentally, “crying in front of the closet in our apartment, with my underwear drawer open.” He forcefully shut the offending drawer, earning a chuckle from you, before letting out a firm loud hum of protest and pulling you back into a tight hug. “I’m not letting the same happen to our wedding. You deserve the world and I’ll give it to you.”

“... So we’re not eloping then?”

“Not a chance,” he insisted, face scrunching up as if the very idea was offensive, and pressed a kiss to your forehead. “We’re already missing out on engagement photos. Imagine how upset our moms will be if they don’t even get wedding photos.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” you chuckled, pausing before adding on, “future husband.”

He tensed for a moment. Then he spoke, “So about that chapel – do you think they take last minute walk-ins, or…?”

If the world ended and we were overrun by zombies, what would we do to one another? - Mingyu (Don't Lie: The Chaser #1)

SCOUPS Brisant

*in the bg* it just so happens that we're facing today for the first time...

— on love and cats | j.ww

genre; fluff, established relationship, gn! reader | tw; mentions of cat food? |a/n; oh, life would be better if i had a jeon wonwoo 😔

a giggle, a meow and the soft breeze of the autumn air fills your vicinity. a soft smile graces your lips, watching your lover play with a kitten.

the sun is slowly descending, leaving way for the moon to rise. the soft yellow fades into a muted grey, cascading the world in a serene silence at its beauty. a lone breeze tousles and plays with wonwoo's hair.

a loud laugh rumbles from his throat. he squats down, playing with the kitten. you watch the interaction with a smile on your own. he looks up at you, grinning.

he takes the little furball in his hands and walks towards you. you lean down, and coo at it. he introduces the kitten to you, waving it's hand at you. you do the same, waving back.

“she's the cutest,” he sighs, admiring the little life in his hands. you hum, echoing a 'she is' back to him.

yes, the cat is cute but you can't take your eyes of your boyfriend. the little quirk of his lips, the mirth dancing in his irises, the scrunch of his nose, his wind-tousled hair and the list goes on.

you step closer to him. he stays still. you step closer again. he doesn't move. you lean your head on his shoulder, and rub the kitten's head. it meows and closes it's eyes, content with all the attention.

“i give her food most of the times. she only eats expensive-ass tin food.” he whispers the latter part as if not to upset the kitten.

“yeah, i can see it.”

it lays on it's back, showing it's chubby stomach. you giggle and rub it's tummy. you're unable to contain your coos and laughter. you let your mind wander for a few seconds, wondering if this is how it'd be to start a family with him.

the thought urges you to tuck yourself closer to him. the warmth of his body repels the harsh cold of the autumn air. you circle your hands around his waist, as he lets down the kitten. it gleefully waddles across the street to it's mother.

wonwoo encloses you in a side hug, his hand coming to rest on your back. you watch the mother cat grooms the kitten and soon, a few more kittens come in view.

“and incase you're wondering why i decided to not buy the latest game i like, it's 'cause of this.”

he gestures towards the little cat family. warmth blooms in your chest, and it slowly grows vines, spreading throughout your body. the air messes your hair and caresses your face harshly. you don't feel your face, and hands. the cold autumn does not spare anyone, even lovers.

but wonwoo warms his hands and holds your face, pressing his palms on your cheeks. you giggle, leaning towards him. you do the same and hold his face. he leans his forehead on yours and you close your eyes, trying to engrave this moment in your head. this feeling, this warmth, wonwoo.

and you decide that you can forgive the world as long as it has jeon wonwoo in it.

ditching the taglist cuz literally no one tagged interacts much. hope you understand <3

S.COUPS 🍒

─ s/o's reaction to lollapalooza seungcheol and mingyu

scoups

if that’s how the “i want to show the sexiness of my 30s” is going to look like, then you need to invest in some good calming tea. when cheol came up on the stage with the jacket on, you were immediately like “hihi there’s my hottie” (aggressive lip biting). but then, BUT THEN HE DECIDED TO BE THE BIGGEST MENACE AND TAKE THE DAMN THING OFF AND YOU ASCENDED. your soul literally left your body and for the next minute or two you were just standing there, gawking at the big screens with your mouth wide open. you’d never screamed louder in your entire life and at one point, people that were standing around you moved to the back. cheol is officially in his dilf era.

mingyu

when mingyu first appeared in the big screens you started squealing (nothing new) and hitting your friends that were standing next to you (the most normal reaction) because come onnnnn. you’d never get used to how handsome and hot your boyfriend is. and him feeling himself on the stage is just so CKGXKHXMHXKJ. you took a note early on to tell him to keep the pearl necklace because it was chefs kiss. then, he of course had to take of the vest to mess with you even more 🙄 (not that you minded). but the last straw for you had to be during aju nice, when he went down to the crowd… he was literally glowing and you didn’t know wether you wanted to cry, to die, or to jump along to the music.

the hottest thing a man can do is be choi seungcheol

actor Jun strikes again (aka "the world should know that Wen Junhui's funny")

© hanra_archive / do not crop or edit

i desperately want to get a new piercing…

He's a lover not a fighter… most of the time | Kwon Soonyoung

Synopsis: Seungkwan doesn’t recall ever seeing Soonyoung angry or riled up, that is until you, his significant other, is injured by a patient’s relative. Because when it comes to you and your safety, all bets are off, and Soonyoung unleashes his inner tiger.  Pairing: Emergency Department Charge Nurse! Soonyoung x Organ donation coordinator fem! Reader (ft. Nurse! Seungkwan)  Genre: doctor au, established relationship, fluff Word Count: 2.8k words Warnings: food, petnames (Soonie, baby tiger), minor violence (patient’s brother injures y/n and Soonyoung gets a little physical), rude language (patient’s brother calls y/n a b*tch, stupid), objectification (patient’s brother makes a snide comment about y/n’s appearance), injury (minor bruises, but nothing serious), illnesses (liver failure, one mention of lice infestation) Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional. This fic contains incorrect medical information and is supposed to be taken as a work of fiction. A/n: There is a little nod to Hospital Playlist here, which is one of my favourite shows of all time. You can find the rest of the fics in the series here. 

Seungkwan huffed in annoyance as he lifted yet another box of medical supplies into the Emergency Department’s supply closet. It was a tedious job, one that Soonyoung was supposed to be doing for that week. But no, it was Seungkwan’s turn again this week, though he couldn’t really complain. Soonyoung was merely collecting on a favour Seungkwan owed him after Soonyoung covered his shift the other Sunday so he could go on a date. Seungkwan sighed. He should have seen this task coming, Soonyoung thoroughly disliked being stuck in the supply closet sorting through the medical supplies. 

Speaking of Soonyoung, Seungkwan could hear his laughter all the way from the back of the ED where the supply closet was. Seungkwan peered over the cabinets, looking out of the glass wall and into the ED. From his position, he could see Soonyoung laughing jovially about something as he pushed a patient on a wheelchair out the ED’s main entrance. Seungkwan smiled slightly at the sight. Soonyoung was such a bundle of positive energy, which was just what a place like the ED needed. 

In all his years of knowing Soonyoung, Seungkwan couldn’t remember ever seeing a time when the elder was genuinely angry. Sure, Soonyoung was a handful to handle and really infuriating at times. Like the times when Soonyoung had nothing better to do but to push Seungkwan’s buttons, or the times when Soonyoung would get extremely a little riled up when their friend group was playing the mafia game. Then there was the fact that Soonyoung thought he was a tiger. But other than those times, Soonyoung was a lover not a fighter. 

Indeed, Seventeen Medical Center’s Emergency Department charge nurse, Kwon Soonyoung, was known to be a cheerful, kind, level headed, optimist. Regardless of how swamped with patients they were, how tough their days in the ED were, or how many times the new staff members messed up, Soonyoung was able to look at things positively. His firm but fair and understanding leadership style was one of the key reasons which kept the ED running so efficiently. Even the most senior doctors in the hospital, such as Dr. Jung Kyung Ho, Dr. Jo Jung Suk, Dr. Yoo Yeon Seok, Dr. Jeon Mido, and Dr. Kim Daemyung, respected Soonyoung for his work ethic. 

As Soonyoung waved at the patient, he looked down at his PDA before looking around the ED. When his eyes met Seungkwan’s, he walked over to the supply closet. 

Seungkwan watched Soonyoung walking over to him with a cheeky smile plastered across his face, “Are you here to gloat that you’ve escaped supply duty once again?”

Soonyoung shrugged, “What? It’s not my fault so many people, like yourself, owe me favours.”

“You’re abusing your position of power?”

“Keep that attitude up and I’ll show you what abusing a position of power looks like by putting you on lice duty.” 

Seungkwan rolled his eyes, “So why are you here?”

At Seungkwan’s question, Soonyoung perked up, “Right! I’ll be going to have lunch with Y/n now. I need you to take over the PDA.”

Seungkwan smirked, snatching the PDA out of Soonyoung’s hands, “I get to boss people around? Of course I’ll take over. Now shoo, go have fun with your girlfriend.”

--⌃⌄-💎-⌃⌄–

Where is he? He said he would be here in 5 minutes… 

You scanned the cafeteria once again, hoping to catch a glimpse of your boyfriend. You sighed when you didn’t see him. You puffed your cheeks, mindlessly poking at your food with your fork. 

“Baby tiger!!” 

Hearing Soonyoung’s loud voice, you perked up, smiling when you saw him bounding towards you. Soonyoung slid into the seat you saved for him, leaning forward to peck you on the cheek.

“Is that for me?” Soonyoung asked excitedly, pointing to a container of kimchi fried rice with a large serving of extra radish kimchi on the side.

You grinned, “Funny story actually. I think the cafeteria staff know how much you love their kimchi. Even before I opened my mouth to order, they immediately heaped the side dish full of extra kimchi.”

With his mouth already full of food and his cheeks looking extra chubby, Soonyoung replied almost incomprehensibly, “mm i’rrlll berrr sure to shthank thermhk.”

You giggled. Soonyoung saw himself as a tiger, but at this moment, he really did look like a chubby hamster. You pushed a glass of water towards him, before digging into your own food. 

About halfway through your meal, and just as Soonyoung was going to tell you about his bike ride at the river the previous night, your phone began to ding rapidly. You shared a confused look with Soonyoung as you watched messages from Seungkwan stream in. 

Apologising to Soonyoung, you unlocked your phone, your eyes widened at what you saw.

From Nurse Boo: One of the patients who is supposed to receive a liver tomorrow is in the ED. 

From Nurse Boo: Your case? Patient’s name is Alex.

From Nurse Boo: Jaundice, high fever, possible infection. 

From Nurse Boo: The patient’s brother is here. Wishes to speak to you. 

From Nurse Boo: Now. 

Soonyoung nudged your arms, having read Seungkwan’s messages from beside you. Soonyoung wordlessly closed the cover of both your food containers while you grabbed the used glasses and pushed in your chairs. 

You followed behind Soonyoung towards the Emergency Department. As one of the hospital’s transplant coordinators, you were used to dealing with distraught patients and their loved ones. It came with the territory. But for some reason, something about this case you were about to deal with was unnerving. 

When you arrived there, Seungkwan waved you and Soonyoung over to the nurses station to brief you. 

Seungkwan handed you the patient’s chart, “As you can see, the patient’s fever is almost up to 40 degrees. Dino drew some blood to be sent to the lab for a CBC, CMP, blood cultures, and a liver panel. But we think the patient has some sort of infection. They have end stage liver failure and was supposed to receive a liver transplant tomorrow. Unfortunately, as you know, having that serious of an infection is a contraindication for receiving the liver. We’ll have to wait for the labs. In the meantime, the patient’s brother demanded to speak to the transplant coordinator in charge of the case, which is you.”

You ran your eyes over the chart, sighing deeply. This new infection might definitely cause Alex to miss what might be their only chance to receive a new liver. Speaking to Alex and their brother was definitely going to be tough. It was never easy knowing that you or your loved ones were so close to getting a new lease on life only for it to be snatched away at the last minute due to circumstances you didn’t have control over. 

You took a deep breath, squaring your shoulders. Passing Soonyoung the chart, you approached the patient’s room, rapping the door gently before opening it. 

Stepping into the room, you saw Alex laying on the bed weakly with their brother seated next to him. You addressed both of them, “Alex? Hi, I’m Y/n L/n, the transplant coordinator…”

“I’m Arthur, Alex’s brother. Listen. I asked to speak to you when Alex was admitted two hours ago.” Alex’s brother spoke curtly, cutting you off. 

Although you were annoyed and put off by Arthur’s rude tone, you replied in a level voice, “I apologise you had to wait. However, I was just informed. I understand some tests needed to be done first.”

Arthur rolled his eyes, “Whatever. Look. Just tell us whether Alex can still receive the liver tomorrow?”

“Well, to be completely honest, I am not sure. As I’m sure the doctors have told you, having an infection is a contraindication to receiving the liver. It will be up to the transplant team to ascertain whether Alex’s condition is stable enough for him to receive the liver. We will have to wait and see what the labs say.”

Arthur exhaled deeply, pushing off his chair, making it skid into the wall with a “thud”. You jumped slightly at the harsh sound. 

“I don’t want your excuses. I want a definitive answer,” Arthur demanded. 

Putting on a brave face, you replied as firmly as you could, “I can’t imagine how frustrating this must be. But as I mentioned, it is the transplant team’s decision.”

Arthur cracked his neck, and began to stalk towards you, “Bitch I am done with all these stupid excuses. Do you know how long Alex has waited to get an organ? Three years. Three painful years. I said. I want a definitive answer.”

Instinctively, you took a step back. You knew you should call for security, but you felt frozen in fear, and although you tried to open your mouth no sound would come out. Gulping nervously, you did the only thing your brain could think of. You glanced out the door towards the nurse’s station where Soonyoung was. From his position, he wouldn’t have been able to see Arthur stalking towards you. Luckily for you, it appeared he had heard the sound of the chair hitting the wall, and was already watching the room like a hawk. Your pleading eyes, withdrawn and nervous demanour was enough to make Soonyoung know something was definitely wrong. The file he was working on was immediately abandoned and he began walking briskly towards you. 

Arthur continued to approach you aggressively, completely ignoring Alex’s weak plea to get Arthur to let it go. You shrank back further, inching closer towards the door that you (fortunately) had left open. If you were able to get out of the room and he followed you, Soonyoung and the security guards would be able to handle him.

Arthur chuckled darkly, having noticed you inching closer to the door. He grabbed an empty cup from the table, launching it in your direction harshly, “COME ON YOU STUPID BITCH. ANSWER ME.”

Despite you bringing your hands up to cover your head, you were a millisecond too late. You yelped in pain loudly at the hard impact of the cup as it hit your forehead. 

Your heart thumped wildly in your chest. You hurriedly stepped backwards out the door, but Arthur lunged at you with his fist raised. 

This was it. 

Just as Arthur’s fist was going to hit you, you felt someone pull you backwards, causing Arthur to miss and stumble forward. Turning to see who it was, you heaved a huge sigh of relief to see Seungkwan’s concerned face. He was gazing in your direction, but it was as if he was looking right through you to what was going on behind you. Following the direction of his stare, you saw Soonyoung standing protectively in front of you.

Soonyoung’s normally bright, happy energy had changed completely. Instead, you felt an angry and intimidating, almost menacing energy from him, one that matched Arthur’s. They were eyeing each other, sizing each other up, and neither wanted to back down. You had never seen Soonyoung like this before. You shivered slightly at the sight. Even now in the more open space of the ED’s main central room, the air felt suffocating as tensions continued to rise between Soonyoung and Arthur. 

Finally, Soonyoung spoke, his voice low and strained, as if it was taking everything in him not to yell at Arthur, “Leave. We understand you’re upset and angry at the situation. However, I will not have you acting aggressively and violently in my ED. I especially will not tolerate you injuring one of my staff members.”

Arthur jeered, “Boooooohoooooo, so I lost my temper. The bitch should have just given me a straight answer. Would’ve saved us a whole lot of trouble here.”

You could see Soonyoung’s fists curled into balls tightly. He warned, “Leave. Now. I will call security.”

Arthur scoffed, “I’m not leaving my brother’s side. This never would have happened if the bitch just gave me a straight answer. Real stupid, that one. I don’t know why you keep her around. Though she is a looker, I’ll give you that.”

You averted your eyes, bringing your arms to wrap around yourself. Arthur’s comment was incredibly inappropriate and you felt so uncomfortable. 

As soon as the comment left Arthur’s mouth and Soonyoung sensed your discomfort, all bets were off. How dare this neanderthal hurt you, insult you, and then objectify you. He shouldn’t be doing it in the first place. But to do it to you? Soonyoung’s precious girlfriend? Oh he will pay.

Soonyoung aggressively lunged forward, gripping Arthur’s collar. He seethed, “If you won’t leave. I’ll just have to make you.”

Arthur struggled against Soonyoung’s iron grip,  “Get your hands off me.”

Ignoring Arthur, Soonyoung began dragging Arthur towards the ED entrance. Arthur tried to claw desperately at Soonyoung’s hands, but to no avail. Soonyoung was stronger than he was. Soonyoung disregarded the sting of Arthur’s fingers digging into his flesh. Once he managed to drag Arthur to the automatic doors, he pushed Arthur harshly. Arthur stumbled back, then tried to make one last ditch attempt to take a swing at Soonyoung. Alas, his attempt was futile. The security guards stationed at the entrance grabbed him and began to haul him away to the security office. 

Soonyoung dusted his hands, snubbed his nose at Arthur and walked back into the ED, ignoring the slew of expletives that fell out of Arthur’s mouth. He rubbed his hands absentmindedly. They were sore and would probably bruise later, but he paid it no mind. It was as if he had tunnel vision. His only concern right now was you, and whether you were okay. 

Spotting you with Seungkwan, Soonyoung bounded up to you, wailing, “MY BABY TIGERRRR!!!!!!!”

You had just enough time to brace yourself when Soonyoung crashed into you, wrapping you inside his arms. He pulled back momentarily, his eyes giving you a once over before he spotted the now forming bruise on your forehead. His eyes began to gloss over, his bottom lip quivering, “MY POOR BABY TIGER. WHAT DID THAT MONSTER DO TO YOU. I’M SORRY I SHOULD HAVE BEEN FASTER. I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN AS SOON AS I HEARD A CRASH. I SHOULD HAVE PROTECTED YOU. THIS IS ALL MY FAULT.”

You blinked, shocked at how Soonyoung’s mood suddenly changed 180 degrees in a blink of an eye. But you pushed that thought away, sniffing a little as the ordeal you just went through began to hit you. You buried your face in Soonyoung’s shoulder, saying weakly, “no it’s okay. I should have called for security faster. It’s not your fault, it’s mine. You got to me just in time.”

Soonyoung held you tighter, shaking his head. You both muttering “no, it’s my fault…” over and over again. 

Seungkwan stood off to the side awkwardly, watching as the two of you continued wailing in each other’s arms. Sighing, he pried the two of you apart, causing you and Soonyoung to look at him with quivering lips and wet, teary eyes. If the situation hadn’t been so scary, Seungkwan would have laughed at how your mannerisms were so similar to each other. 

Holding his tongue, Seungkwan told you and Soonyoung gently, “It’s neither of your faults. It’s that big oaf’s fault. Now, how about you both go to one of the treatment rooms. Apply some ointment on your bruises, get some rest. I’ll speak to Alex, and I can manage the ED for a while longer.”

You and Soonyoung nodded meekly. Still holding each other tightly, you and Soonyoung staggered your way to one of the treatment rooms, bumping into a push cart or table here and there.

Seungkwan watched as you both disappeared behind the room curtain. Letting out a huge breath and a soft “wwoooowww”, Seungkwan fanned himself using his hand to try and get over what he just witnessed.

Although he regularly witnessed patients’ relatives getting aggressive and needing to be escorted out, this was just something else. Seeing Soonyoung so genuinely riled up, furious, and outraged to the point he was physically aggressive, that was new, and a whole experience on its own that Seungkwan needed to process. 

When you were hurt, there was not a trace of the usual Soonyoung left. It was as if Soonyoung was a whole different person. Or perhaps that Soonyoung was always there, and it was that tiger part of Soonyoung he was always talking about. Whatever it was, Seungkwan hoped he would never have to see it again because it was one of the scariest, chilling things he ever had to see. Giving one last glance towards the room you and Soonyoung were in, Seungkwan only had one thought.

Soonyoung’s a lover not a fighter… most of the time. And damn, for how much I annoy him, I have never been more thankful for that.

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Fools in Love

Kim Mingyu x fem!Reader

Genre: strangers to lovers, fluff

Words: 10.5k

Warnings: adult language. mentions of stalking (no one’s actually stalked). reader has a lot of conflicting feelings and it takes her three to five business days to figure everything out.

[UNI AU] When Jeonghan made you declare a stranger in the library your new boyfriend, you had a very different outcome in your mind.

Note: for some reason, my bestie @luvlino really liked this fic as a WIP and I promised to finish it for her eventually, so here we are. anyways, we've been referring to this fic as "himbo!gyu" all this time

You should’ve known it wouldn’t end well. 

The first sign should have been the shiver up your spine when Jeonghan’s lips quirked into a smile that you knew far too well. The second sign should have definitely been your voice of reasons cursing and hatching ridiculously elaborate escape plans. 

He leaned forward against the table between you two, maintaining eye contact. “So what do you say?”

“Sorry,” you blinked and shook your head, “I wasn’t paying attention. What were you saying?”

Jeonghan clicked his tongue. “Of course you weren’t.”

“When is she ever?” Joshua half-joked, nose deep in an oddly specific magazine he’d picked up in a procrastination daze. He looked up briefly to give you a once over before humming to himself, “Honestly, it might be for the better.”

“As I was saying,” Jeonghan glared at Joshua before offering you a sickeningly sweet smile – and there was that shiver up your spine again –, “go up to pretty boy over there and tell him he’s your boyfriend now.”

“I don’t even like him,” you muttered, glancing at the boy as discreetly as you could. You almost bit your tongue at your hasty words because the slight furrow of his brow and his jawline had your heart screeching. You frowned, head whipping back to look at Jeonghan. “Wait, what’s in it for me?”

If his wide eyes were anything to go by, he was as clueless as you were. With a sheepish shrug, he offered, “I’ll buy you a candy bar? You like Snickers, right?”

You stared at him in wonder for a while but were soon interrupted by Joshua’s scandalised gasp. “Is it because Snickers is on sale at the convenience store this week?” 

Jeonghan blinked slowly. “Why else?”

Your gaze drifted back to the mysterious student sitting across the library, now scribbling notes in his iPad between puzzled head-scratches. The part of you that wanted to say ‘fuck it’ and go through with the dare was growing by the second.

But before you could agree, the dad friend of the group finally decided to speak up. Seungcheol placed a hand on your shoulder and looked you right in the eyes. “You do know that you don’t have to agree to every bet Jeonghan gives you, right? Please tell me that you know that.”

Seeing the worry in his eyes, you couldn’t help but wonder if maybe you were starting to develop a gambling problem with the help of Yoon Jeonghan. But what’s one more bet anyway?

“One Snickers bar?” you repeated back and Jeonghan nodded. Your eyes narrowed. “Make it three and a can of cola.”

He had the audacity to gasp. “That’s robbery!”

“Not if you’re the one paying,” Joshua pointed out rather off-handedly, still more focused on his magazine. (You took a moment to identify the issue in his hands as ‘Practical Sheep, Goats and Alpacas’ and once again wondered how you became friends with this gem of a human.)

Jeonghan grumbled, slumping in his seat. “Fine. Three Snickers bars and a can of cola, but you have to go up to him and tell him he’s your boyfriend now and then walk away like nothing happened.”

“Bet.”

Beside you, Seungcheol sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I should’ve just joined the Italians for that group project back in the first year. Why did I choose you idiots instead of the Italians?”

“You love us.” Jeonghan winked. He then slumped in his seat, a soft pout on his lips. “By the way, speaking of the Italians, I found one of the girls crying last night.”

“Crying? Why?” you wondered. “Was she okay?”

“Apparently her boyfriend broke up with her, over text no less,” Jeonghan sighed, filled with compassion as always. “She looked really heartbroken. I had to comfort her for hours.”

Joshua frowned. “So that’s where you were.”

“Did you find out who the jerk was?” Seungcheol asked. “You should’ve at least gone and given him a good slap upside the head.”

“Kim Mingyu. That’s the jerk’s name.”

Seungcheol grimaced. “That guy deserves even worse. I swear there seems to be another heartbreak with his name written all over it every three days.”

“Well, anyways!” Jeonghan cheered up again, clapping his hands together excitedly. “You get to be the heartbreaker today, oh my dear (Y/n).”

“When are you going up to him then?” Joshua wondered, setting his magazine aside as curiosity took over. For someone claiming to be well-mannered, he sure loved any implications of impending drama. “I’m not sure how long he’ll stay cooped up in here.”

You rolled your eyes and got up, grabbing your bag and phone. “I’m going now and leaving you guys behind.”

“Oh, right!” Seungcheol smiled. “You said you’re going plant shopping, right?”

“Plant shopping?!” screeched Jeonghan, clearly caught unaware. “Don’t you already have, like, three plants?”

“I don’t have a neon pothos yet,” you reasoned timidly. Joshua nodded in approval as Seungcheol watched you with a fond smile, much resembling a proud father. 

Jeonghan raised an eyebrow before turning to Seungcheol. “And you’re telling me that I am a bad influence on her?”

“I’m going!” you called out softly, slow steps leading you away from the four-seat table in the art section of the library. You watched warily as the boys argued between themselves. “Guys?”

“– and just the other day you told her to –” Seungcheol interrupted himself with a cough to offer you a bright smile, silently asking you what you needed.

“I’m leaving,” you whispered theatrically loudly and nodded towards the mysterious stranger in front of whom you were about to make a fool out of yourself. 

As always, Jeonghan was the first to catch on. He offered a wink. “Good luck, baby.”

You felt your lunch crawl up your throat at the nickname and the suddenly wide eyes of Joshua told you he felt the same way. You shook it off and headed towards the exit.

On the way out of the building, you took a deep breath and stopped in front of your victim’s desk. Feeling like a middle-schooler preparing to recite a poem by heart, you clasped your hands in front of your body and cleared your throat.

At the sudden interruption, the handsome man glanced up, eyes wide in surprise. He mirrored your smile, setting his pen aside as he waited for you to speak.

You didn’t need to look back to feel Jeonghan’s and Joshua’s curious stares on you. But you were nothing if not a good sport, so you forced your smile to brighten a little bit more before looking the man in his eyes and announcing, “As of right now, you are my boyfriend.”

If you hadn’t been the cause of it, the sudden drop of his jaw and the bulging of his eyes would have amused you beyond human comprehension. But unlike Jeonghan and Joshua, you did have an ounce of dignity and compassion, so you offered one last smile before scurrying out of the library.

As you set foot outside the library, you left behind a confused man and a half-hearted promise.

You spent the rest of the week praying and hoping and praying again that you wouldn’t run into the tall mysterious stranger who had become your friends’ newest inside joke. So far, you've been successful.

“Here,” Jeonghan slammed three Snickers bars down on your desk on Monday and sighed, “your payment.”

Your eyes naturally fell into a suspicious squint. “Where’s the cola?”

Jeonghan offered a tight-lipped smile and a pat on your shoulder. “Jihoon needs it more than you do. Think of the children, Y/n.”

You failed to see how Lee Jihoon who had just three days ago publicly threatened to choke Kwon Soonyoung with his freshly broken guitar string could be considered a child, but you assumed there was a good reason. So you decided to let it slide just this once (or at least until Joshua would feel bad for you and buy you the cola himself).

Until then, you would take what you could get. 

Frankly, by this point, you were starting to forget about the library incident. It was just a bet like every other. This was no different from the time when Jeonghan dared you to guilt-trip Seungcheol into giving you his favourite hoodie. 

Except when you caught the eye of a handsome stranger as he walked into the classroom, you knew that was about to change. His lips slowly curved into a smile and you just knew that this was the end of your life as you knew it.

Instinctively, you shuffled around to make yourself seem as small and insignificant as possible. The ceiling looked far more attractive than ever before while you hoped that maybe this man had terrible eyesight and he’d mistake you for part of the furniture. Or maybe he’d at least buy into the idea that it had been a different girl who harassed him at the library.

“I knew I recognized you from somewhere,” the man spoke a bit too smugly as he approached the desk you and Jeonghan had chosen for the lecture. His smile brightened even more. “I guess I’m your boyfriend now.”

But before you could protest or even comprehend what was happening, he winked and headed further back into the classroom. When you glanced over your shoulder, you found him sitting next to Jeon Wonwoo, a smile on his face. He offered you one last (and, in your opinion, excessive) wink before turning back to his seatmate.

You turned to glare at Jeonghan who looked just as baffled as you felt. Under your threatening stare, his silence slowly turned into nervous laughter. “Well… That was not the outcome I expected…”

“Oh, it wasn’t?” you couldn’t help but bite back before groaning and hiding your face in your hands. “Has he been in this class this whole time?”

“I guess he always sits towards the back,” Jeonghan concluded slowly, “so we wouldn’t have seen him but he would have seen us.”

You wished he’d come to that conclusion a few days earlier. “You owe me that cola and then some more, Yoon.”

Sitting across from you at the little campus cafe, Joshua shared a glance with Seungcheol. The latter shrugged so he decided he had to be the one to take action. 

“So,” he started somewhat hesitantly, fully aware of what an angry you was capable of, “do you want to tell us what happened?”

“What do you mean?” you feigned ignorance all the while aggressively stirring your soup of the day. “Nothing interesting ever happens here.”

Thoroughly unconvinced, Seungcheol raised an eyebrow. “Sure.”

“I think something happened in class today,” Joshua elaborated slowly. It was only then that you remembered he had taken a fair share of psychology classes. “Do you want to talk about it? Was it Jeonghan again?”

As both a surprise and the expected outcome, you slammed your spoon on the table. “That jerk! Do you know what he did?”

Joshua’s almost failed attempt to swallow down a sarcastic comment could be seen by any bystander but you paid it no mind.

“Do you remember the guy from the library? You know, the one.”

“The tall guy?” Seungcheol wondered. You nodded. “I remember him.”

“Turns out he’s in our literature class!” You clapped your hands together in a fit of rage. “And now I have to spend the rest of the semester in the same room as him every Monday.”

Joshua blinked. “That doesn’t seem too bad.”

“He winked at me today. Twice. And he kept smiling at me too.”

“Oh.” Joshua tried to find a different word of comfort. He was out of words for the day. Perhaps his last psychology essay had really stolen half his personal dictionary. “That’s… rough, buddy.”

“Speaking of the devil,” Seungcheol whispered so faintly you barely heard. He glanced towards the door and surely enough, as if he’d heard your words in the wind, the man of the hour walked into the cafe. 

You almost swooned at the way his shirt rode up a little as he stretched his arms up and at the smile and friendly greeting he offered the cashier. His voice soon filled the cafe with a sense of warmth, like he belonged right there. 

“Busy day?” you heard him as the cashier as he made his way behind the counter. “Lots of customers today?”

The cashier chuckled. “Nothing more than usual. They’re your customers now though.”

You turned to Joshua and Seungcheol again, hiding your face behind your strategically placed menu. “He works here?!”

“Listen, I was not any wiser than you,” Joshua justified with wide and apologetic eyes. “Maybe he won’t recognize you.”

“I’m highly doubtful,” Seungcheol pointed out rather lazily, leaning his head against the cool glass of the window. “He’s recognized her once, what’s a few more times?”

You were deeply grateful for the silence that took over afterwards, happily ignoring the silent conversation of blinks and nudges your two friends were having. You lifted your hood up and stirred your soup a few more times before taking your first spoonful – the sooner you start, the sooner you finish, and the sooner you can leave this personal hell of yours to hide in your bedroom.

“Well, I think Cheol had a point in that,” Joshua suddenly whispered, nudging your leg under the table. For once, you had no intention to look up.

With a soft clink, a plate was placed on the table. You found a piece of the cake of the day in front of you and glanced up. The ‘boyfriend’ offered you a wide smile and nodded to your food. “Eat well. Cake’s on the house for you, sweetheart.”

Without another word, he shuffled back to the counter and resumed his task of re-organizing the cake display. 

“...Did that just happen?” Seungcheol wondered, eyeing your cake in a way that made you wary with good reason. “And can I please have a bite?”

You blinked and pushed the plate towards your friend. His smile lit up the room as he reached for a spoon and began munching away. When you glanced towards the counter again, you found your ‘boyfriend’ watching you with a sweet smile, a puzzled look in his eyes and a puppy-like curious tilt to his head. 

Promptly you made the decision to avoid this cafe at all costs.

The mysterious boy who hadn’t existed to you just a week ago suddenly seemed to be following you around like a shadow. He was everywhere you went. It almost felt like a bad dream.

He had already chewed you out of your favourite cafe and now he seemed determined to make it so there was nowhere you could go in peace.

You’d go to class, and 6 out of 10 times he was there too, already nose-deep in his notes at the back of the classroom. There was nowhere you could sit to hide from the glint of recognition in his eyes and the charmingly bright smile he directed your way each time.

You’d go to the grocery store and voila! He was there! Picking out watermelons like he knew exactly what he was doing (you were fairly sure he didn’t because, honestly, who even knows how to pick out watermelons?).

You’d go to the park across the street from the dorms and turn back on your heel because he was, once again, there, flexing his muscles as he warmed up for a run with his fratboy friends. 

“I honestly think you’re being a little bit overdramatic,” Jeonghan told you softly as you attempted to hide behind a bookshelf at the library. You paid him no mind.

The mysterious ‘boyfriend’ was here as well. You had almost betrayed yourself and squeaked when you recognized him reading a book synopsis right next to you.

“Maybe he’s stalking me. Maybe that’s why he’s always exactly where I am,” you theorised while watching him like a hawk from your hiding spot. Jeonghan leaned his head out of the shadows to take a good look at the boy but you harshly pulled him back to hiding by his collar. 

You glared at your friend before whispering, “You’ll get us caught like this, idiot!”

He raised an unimpressed brow. “Are you sure he’s the one stalking you and not the other way around?”

“I– That’s impossible! Who do you think I am?!” You so wished to curse him out but you still had some manners left. You scoffed. “Just shut up and let me suffer in peace.”

When you turned back to watch the mysterious guy, however, your soul almost left your body. He was right there –  right in front of you, leaning against the bookshelf – smiling at you like it was the most natural thing. 

“Hi,” he spoke. You wished his voice wasn’t so enjoyably husky. 

You offered a tight-lipped smile, hand already reaching for Jeonghan’s sleeve to drag him out of the library and give him another earful for putting you in this situation. “Hi.”

It was hard to tell which was worse: the adorable smile the stranger offered you at your reply or the judgmental glare of Jeonghan which told you that your voice had betrayed you once again. You were doomed either way.

“I just realised we see each other so often but I don’t even know your name,” the stranger spoke and he seemed almost shy with the way he fiddled with the string of his black hoodie. 

Before you could open your mouth to either tell him to leave or tell him a random name you came up with on the spot, Jeonghan jumped into the conversation a bit too enthusiastically, “I’m Jeonghan! This is my best friend, (Y/n). Please take good care of her for me. I have to go help my friend get his cat out of the oven.”

And just like that you had lost another friend. You’d be sure to tell Seungcheol about this to make his disappearance official. Traitors were not welcome in your group.

“Your name’s pretty,” the stranger told you softly, still fiddling and looking down at his sneakers. If you didn’t know any better, you would’ve thought he actually had a crush on you. “Pretty like you are.” He cleared his throat and looked at you once again, forcing a wide smile. “I’m Kim Mingyu.”

It took every ounce of muscle control and brain power you had left not to let your jaw drop. 

“What?!” Seungcheol screeched before glaring at Jeonghan like he’d just been caught in the act of murdering a beloved family pet. “You little– You set her up with a frat boy!”

Jeonghan saw no problem with it. “I’m pretty sure you almost became a frat boy, Cheol.”

“That’s different!” 

“And Joshua was literally in a frat until this year!”

Joshua did not appreciate his name being brought into this conversation. He rolled his eyes before offering you a look that told you that he blamed you for all of this. “You do realise I left the frat for a reason, right?”

“Yes, we know,” Jeonghan waved his protests away off-handedly, “you got caught making out with the president’s girl. Nothing to brag about.”

You could barely hold your laugh as Joshua’s jaw dropped, scandalised and exasperated. “Where did that rumour even come from?! Seriously! That is not what happened!”

“Eh, close enough.” Jeonghan shrugged. “Anyways, how was I supposed to know that guy was the Kim Mingyu? It’s not like he wears a name tag! None of you could recognize him either.”

A moment of realisation dawned on you. You let out a soft cry. “Dude, he sat with Jeon Wonwoo. Who else could he have been?”

“Wonwoo’s pretty okay though,” Joshua pointed out. “Not sure about Mingyu.”

“Didn’t Mingyu date like 30 girls just last semester? They say he’s sort of crazy about women or something. Falls in love too quickly.” Seungcheol sighed before glaring at Jeonghan. “You couldn’t have picked literally anyone else?”

“Who?” Jeonghan scoffed. “Joshua? You?”

“The fact that those are the only other options you saw is really concerning,” you mumbled while hiding your face in your hands.

Of course your luck had gotten you entangled in a situation with the university’s biggest womaniser. You were Screwed with a capital S.

“Just avoid him,” Seungcheol had drilled into your head that evening. “Avoid him and don’t look him in the eyes. Just walk in the opposite direction if you see him. Do not let him speak to you or you’ll fall into his trap.”

You leaned against the wall in front of the locked lecture hall door, lost in your thoughts. The laptop in your hands offered a nice grounding weight to remind you to not float too far away, but it didn’t seem to be enough.

Perhaps you should’ve found it amusing that your best friends were treating this guy as some sort of a mythical creature – a siren of some sort that could charm people into a relationship with a smile and two words. But you were more annoyed than anything.

How could this guy appear everywhere you went all the while offering you wide smiles! He seemed less harmful than a golden retriever puppy when he smiled and it annoyed you to no end. Perhaps you were more of a cat person… 

“Hi!” 

You almost jumped in your spot. Your lungs filled with air and your heart rate picked up immensely; it felt like you were coming back to life with the scare. With a wary tightening of your grip you made sure you hadn’t dropped your laptop. 

Who in the hell–

“Damn it,” you cursed under your breath when you caught his eyes. By now you could recognize the chocolate-like shade of them anywhere. Remembering Seungcheol’s words, you quickly looked away and spoke no more.

Mingyu continued smiling at you – he always did – and spoke, “Did you sleep well last night? Have you had breakfast?”

A part of you felt bad for ignoring his caring questions. But feeling bad about this was better than getting scolded by Seungcheol… Mingyu could survive a one-sided conversation.

“Here,” he spoke again, his voice soon followed by plastic crinkling.

You felt the wrapper of a candy bar press against the back of your hand. It was impossible to ignore and so you opened your hand. A Snickers bar. 

Looking up at him was your next mistake. You swear your heart malfunctioned when his smile widened a little. The twinkle in his eyes showed how proud he was of himself before his words could. “I bought it for you. I saw your friend give you three of those, like, weeks ago, so I figured…” He shrugged and looked away shyly. “I figured you might like it.”

Speaking was your second mistake that day. “I do. Thank you.”

The wide smile he offered in return would be engraved into your memory for weeks to come. “So you do speak!” 

You realised your error then and there. Awkwardly clearing your throat, you looked up and down the hallway. “You thought I couldn’t?”

“Well, no,” Mingyu hummed. “It’s just that you’ve never spoken to me since that day at the library and I was getting worried.” He smiled again. “I like your voice. It suits you well.”

You nodded in acknowledgment, fingers grasping the candy bar and your laptop a bit tighter as you willed this interaction to end. Except a part of you – a stupid, dumb, hopelessly romantic part – didn’t want it to end yet. And so, you spoke again, “I didn’t realise you took this class too.”

“I had an annoying free slot in my timetable this semester, so I decided to sign up,” he told you easily, already moving to lean against the wall as well, positioning himself right next to you and just close enough for comfort. “It’s quite fun.”

“The professor’s great. Though the assignments–”

“Annoying, right?” he interjected with an annoyed groan and you couldn’t help but agree. “I mean, weekly reading diaries? 40 pages to read each week? Why?”

“The formatting is so dumb too,” you added. “It always takes me at least thirty minutes just to make sure it’s the correct format and reference style.”

Mingyu nodded enthusiastically. “I almost regret taking this class because of the stupid assignment formatting alone.” 

You weren’t prepared for how your heart skipped a small beat at his next words. 

“But seeing you here makes it a lot better.”

You decided to not tell your friends about the interaction. It was better this way. You could keep a secret from them. Easy-peasy. 

It had already been an entire day and they had no idea. You could easily do this forever.

“You’re hiding something from us,” Seungcheol concluded just thirty seconds after you sat down across from him at the library. You gulped. “I don’t like this.”

Abandoning his magazine, Joshua raised an eyebrow, eyeing Seungcheol weirdly between curious glances at you. “How do you know?”

“I know my friends very well,” the oldest replied – his voice a pitch lower than usual to prove a point – and leaned back in his chair, arms crossed over his chest, “and I know my friends would never ever lie to me or hide something from me.”

Jeonghan rolled his eyes, an arm wrapping around your anxiously shaky shoulders. “Does she look like a liar to you, Cheol? She’s not the lying type. Oh.” He offered you a worried look. “Are you cold? You’re shaking. Do want me to–”

“I knew it!” Seungcheol slammed his hands onto the table loudly enough to gain the attention of the entire student body at the library at that moment. You could not have felt more ashamed, but he seemed unbothered. 

He practically hissed at you. “What aren’t you telling us? What’s so bad that you can’t tell us about it?”

“Wait, you’re actually hiding something?” Joshua caught on, gasping. “Seriously?” He leaned forward immediately, chest pressed against wood as he practically lied on top of the desk, barely inches from your face. “What is it?”

“You can tell us, you know,” Jeonghan softly told you. It was in these rare moments that you remembered why Jeonghan was your best friend among these three. “We’re not gonna be mad.”

But oh how wrong he was.

“I–” You took a deep breath under their curious gazes. “I might have spoken to Mingyu yesterday.”

“Might have?” Joshua sighed softly and fell back into his chair in defeat. “Great. So in (Y/n) language that means you had a heart-to-heart in front of the anthropology lecture room.”

You were a little concerned that he could read you that well.

“It’s not that bad,” Jeonghan defended you, almost offended on your behalf. “Why would she–” His eyes narrowed at the candy wrapper still peeking out from your pocket. He sighed right after and almost broke his chair with how heavily he leaned back into it. “Did he give you food? You spoke to him in exchange for food?”

Seungcheol caught your eye and looked like he wanted to slam his head against the wall. “(Y/n), what did we talk about last time?”

“You told me to avoid him,” you whispered shamefully.

“Right. I did. Because men are wolves and Kim Mingyu is the worst of them all.” He rubbed the bridge of his nose, eyes crinkling shut. “You’re gonna get your heart broken so bad, my dear.”

“He honestly doesn’t seem so bad though,” you pointed out after a pause of silence. “He’s pretty nice.”

“That is–” Joshua sighed deeply before letting out a sound akin to a sob. “That is exactly the problem. He’s too nice. He’s nice to all the girls and they all fall for him and he falls for them and then the perfect daydream is crushed and they break up and he moves onto the next girl that catches his eye. You’re going to get your heart broken like this.”

Seungcheol had now leaned his face onto the desk, forehead pressed against his textbook. “I’d honestly rather you dated Wonwoo. That guy at least doesn’t have commitment issues.”

“Who has commitment issues?” a familiar husky voice spoke from the side. 

The four of you collectively jumped and stared at the source of the sound. Kim Mingyu, standing at the end of your four-seat desk with an awkward smile and a small pink bento box in hand. 

“You– What are you doing here?” Jeonghan sputtered, hand reaching for yours protectively under the desk – a subconscious attempt to ground and comfort you.

Mingyu held up the container in his hand before sliding it over to you. He gave you an affectionate pat on the head before telling you, “I made you lunch. Figured you might need it with all the studying you have planned for today. I’m cheering for you! You’ll nail this assignment!”

Without another word – but not without one last shy yet charming sweet smile on his way out after he almost tripped over the carpet – he left you be. The food container remained in front of you. 

Joshua stared at the box for a moment, mouth agape. “He brought you food?”

“How did he even know you’d be here?” Seungcheol wondered while scratching his head in thought. “Does he really stalk you?”

“No, but… I might have let it slip yesterday that I would be studying all day with you guys,” you mumbled and reached for the bento box somewhat sheepishly. 

You barely managed to reach to open it before Seungcheol slid it away from you and opened it himself. The smell of warm homemade food filled the room. 

Seungcheol glared at you when you tried to move to get your food back. He slid it further from your reach and picked up the chopsticks placed into the box. “I’m eating it. You don’t deserve to eat after what you’ve done.”

“He literally brought this for me though?” you grumbled but relented and leaned back into your seat. 

You watched enviously as Seungcheol fed a bite to Joshua and the latter moaned in delight. “Oh my god, this is amazing. Wow. Is this homemade?”

“It sure looks like it,” Seungcheol sighed and offered you another glare before sliding the box closer to you again. “You’re so lucky I love you.” 

You cheered quietly – you wouldn’t go hungry this time.

It seemed that Mingyu’s boldness dialled up by one notch every week. 

Gone were the days when you’d go to class on Mondays, fearing (read: hoping) he’d meet your eyes and smile at you as he walked to the back of the class. 

You came to the realisation as both you and Jeonghan stared at him on this Monday morning. 

Softly gasping for air but still carrying an air of nonchalant pride that seemed to follow him everywhere, Kim Mingyu slumped into the otherwise free seat on your other side. He let out a groan and leaned his head back, closing his eyes.

“God, I hate the stairs,” he eventually sighed before straightening up again and offering you a small smile. “Hi.”

You looked at him, glanced back at where Wonwoo was seated – nose deep in his Macbook, a little too deep in the day’s readings –, and back at him. Jeonghan did the same. You shared a look. Then, you turned to Mingyu and asked, “Are you okay?”

Both he and Jeonghan seemed baffled by your question. But whereas Jeonghan’s confusion could be described as “that is not what we discussed, girl??”, Mingyu's seemed to be more joyous.

His smile brightened just a bit. “Yeah,” he breathed out, “I’m just scared of elevators.”

Not what you had asked for, but you decided you’d take it.

“You climbed up the stairs?” Jeonghan wondered, eyes widening by the second. “Five floors?”

“The elevator is terrifying, okay?” Mingyu whined and rested his head on your shoulder. 

You barely noticed the gesture, instinctually leaning your head to rest on his. It was only Jeonghan’s disbelieving glare that seemed to snap you out of whatever Mingyu-induced daze you were in.

You startled back upright, surprising Mingyu who straightened up as well, head whipping around to find whatever had scared you so. When he found nothing even remotely threatening, he blinked in surprise. “What was that?”

Under Jeonghan’s amused stare, you cleared your throat and feigned nonchalance. “What was what?”

“That– You– I– You–” Mingyu stuttered almost frantically, unable to find the words. You decided he was rather cute after all. 

No, dumbass. You had made a promise to Seungcheol – no boyfriends, especially ones named Kim Mingyu. You shook your head to remind yourself of that when you almost drowned into the browns of his confused eyes. 

“I think the lack of oxygen is getting to you,” Jeonghan decided to save you this time. He leaned his head on his hand propped up on the desk. When you and your “boyfriend” looked at him weird, he shrugged. “He climbed up five floors. His poor brain’s probably on the verge of dying.”

While you thought it was ridiculous, the half-assed explanation seemed to fit Mingyu’s logic just fine.

“Well, there does tend to be less oxygen up high,” Mingyu agreed, eyes narrowing in thought and head nodding along. “Yeah, I guess that makes sense.”

It didn’t make sense but you weren’t in any mood to explain the modern wonder of air conditioning and ventilation to this poor guy yet. Maybe on your fifth date. 

Wait–

Before you could gather your thoughts, the professor cleared her throat and began the lecture. All eyes were on her – for the first two minutes anyway. 

But you were still perplexed. Had you just really considered – even in a roundabout way – actually dating Kim Mingyu? You glanced to your left; he sat right there, pretty brown eyes fully focused on the lecturer, his fingers tapping away at the keyboard… The warm lights of the lecture hall seemed to make him glow. 

Ethereal. Breathtaking. His jawline must’ve been sculpted by the gods themselves.

No wonder all the girls fell for him.

As you were about to shake that thought from your head, you felt Jeonghan lean closer to you. Your heart stopped as you felt his breath on your ear. He whispered, “Don’t let Seungcheol find out about your crush.”

Gritting your teeth, you considered your options: 

a) You could pretend you didn’t hear him – he’d never let you live it down though.

b) You could just shrug it off and act like he was dumb for even suggesting you’d have a crush on a heartbreaker like Kim Mingyu – but he knew you better than that and you’d be caught in a lie.

c) “He won’t find out if you don’t tell him,” you whispered back, glaring at him over your back. 

Jeonghan’s lips curved into an amused smirk, his brow quirking up. “Yeah? And how do you know I won’t tell him your little secret?”

“Because if you do, I’ll tell him it was you who’s been sneaking expensive drinks on our pub bills.”He paled immediately – option c: success.

As you walked to class on Thursday, you decided to stop acting like you disliked Mingyu. 

Coming to terms with your crush had taken a few mental breakdowns and a few too many crying-emoji-filled messages to Jeonghan over the last two days. It was a small price to pay.

For the first time since that fateful day at the library, you approached him first. You headed straight towards the lecture room, beelined straight for him – leaned against the wall, reading something off his phone –, and offered him a friendly smile. “Hi.”

He looked up immediately – with such force that you worried his neck would snap – and mirrored your smile. You had to hold back from swooning; god, he really did look like a golden retriever puppy. 

“Hi,” he replied and locked his phone, hiding it in his back pocket and reaching for your hand on instinct. Unfortunately, you hadn’t come to terms with your crush that much yet, and so you hid your hands behind your back. He seemed to take the hint just fine.

His smile never disappeared as he watched you, seeming to almost adore you just for standing in front of him. “Something feels different today,” he finally mentioned. “I like it.”

“Yeah?” You laughed.

“Yeah,” he nodded decisively, and you felt proud for doing something to brighten his day, only for your heart to skip a beat at his next words, “you should smile more often.”

“I– What?”

His grin widened. “You almost never smile at me. But you’re smiling today. I like that.”

If you hadn’t decided to just accept your new-found crush earlier, you sure would have now. 

His ears burned red – as you felt yours must have been – and he cleared his throat while bashfully looking at the ground. He bounced in his spot for a moment before asking, “Did you eat yet?”

“Had a granola bar on the way here,” you confessed shamefully after a moment of thought. “In my defence, I almost missed my bus.”

“Same here,” he laughed, glancing up again. He hesitated only for a moment before suggesting, “Do you want to come to the cafe with me after the class?” When you didn’t immediately answer – too busy trying to figure out if this was real or you had developed a very bad case of hallucinations – he softly added, "I could get you cheesecake for free.”

And just like that you were ready to marry this man. Seungcheol, Joshua and Jeonghan could eat dirt – they were probably just jealous that you were getting someone’s attention and they were sad unlovable loners. Yeah, that was definitely it. No other reason why they’d try to prevent you from falling in love with this wonderful guy who was promising you free cheesecake.

“I’d love that,” you replied with a bright smile. 

Exactly two hours later, you found yourself in a booth at the café you had previously sworn to boycott, sitting across from the very reason you had declared your boycott to begin with. Life is strange, you concluded, but found yourself unable to look away from him.

“Cheesecake for the lady,” Mingyu smiled proudly as he presented the plate to you. Seeing your thankful and excited smile, he winked, “I made sure to get you the biggest slice they had.”

You could’ve kissed him on the mouth for that comment alone.

“So,” he began as the two of you settled further into your seats, getting more comfortable, “what’s your major?”

You didn’t hesitate to answer his question before shooting back, “And you?”

“Graphic design,” he told you with a shrug. “It was either that or business.”

“Nice,” you nodded along though you were unable to find any further words. You silently cursed yourself for being so damn awkward with strangers. Did Mingyu even count as a stranger? Was he your friend? An acquaintance? Your boyfriend?

He seemed to sense your internal turmoil, reaching a hand over the table to hold yours. “Are you always this awkward with people?”

“Only at the beginning,” you confessed and felt his fingers tighten around yours in a comforting manner. “I promise I’m not usually this boring.”

“I mean,” he chuckled, “you seemed rather bold at the library that day. I thought that confidence carried over into other situations.”

“Only occasionally.”

But he didn’t seem to mind. “That’s okay. I like a challenge anyway.”

It was your turn to laugh. “Yeah? Then how come you’re not a challenge yourself?”

“What do you mean?” His ears burned a shameful red again. 

“Any normal guy would’ve acted like nothing happened,” you told him. “But you started getting me snacks and making small talk in front of the lecture hall.”

The red of his ears got darker by the second. But he cleared his throat and shrugged almost bashfully. “Can you blame me? It’s not every day a pretty girl tells me to be her boyfriend.”

Your breath hitched. “You think I’m pretty?”

“The prettiest,” he confessed with a shy smile and your heart was completely spoken for.

You had one single duty to your friends: to always tell the truth. As much as it pained you, you had to tell them about Mingyu. 

Because, for one, Seungcheol wouldn’t stop asking about him. 

And, for two, because you had learnt there was no use lying to them because they each seemed to have a built-in lie detector. 

But coming to terms with your inability to lie to your three friends came with horrible consequences.

And by consequences, you meant Seungcheol and Joshua grilling you about your relationship with Mingyu as if you had committed a crime most vile, complete with Jeonghan viewing the interrogation from the sofa with a bowl of popcorn.

“It wasn’t a date,” you tried to defend yourself. “We just went to the café after the lecture.”

“Yeah, the café,” Joshua emphasised as you stared at him dumbly, “the place where couples go on first dates.”

“It wasn’t a date,” you repeated yourself with a sigh. “It was just coffee and a slice of cake.”

Seungcheol paced around on the rug, already wearing holes into his dark socks. He ran a hand through his hair before pointing at Jeonghan. “You; you’re planning a first date with your crush. Where do you take them?”

Your head immediately snapped to glare at Jeonghan, daring him to say as much as a word – you knew exactly where this was going. He responded with a mischievous smile and you turned to scream into a cushion before he could even open his mouth.

Fortunately, Jeonghan was a nice friend and patiently waited for your screaming to stop before answering in a clear voice, “To the campus café to get coffee and a slice of their favourite cake.”

You threw the cushion right at his head. He only laughed.

Seungcheol, as if unaware of Jeonghan’s very clear plot against you, gestured widely before glaring at you. “Do you see my point?”

“It was not a date–”  you began again, perhaps hoping that repeating the sentence enough times would make the guys magically believe you and forget the argument. But your speech was interrupted by the unmistakable ringtone off your phone. 

You checked your pockets but it wasn’t there. Instead, to your horror, you found that Joshua had it right there, in the palm of his hand. He eyed it suspiciously before looking up to smirk at you. “Loverboy doesn’t seem to think so though.”

Your heart sank and soared at the same time. 

Mingyu said it was a date? Fuck. Now you had lost your only argument. 

On the other hand… Mingyu thought it was a date? Aw.

That latter thought seemed to betray you to Seungcheol. His glare hardened. “(Y/n)!”

“Okay, so it was a date!” you burst before sighing and curling into yourself on the armchair. “Is it a crime to date? Is it that bad that I like someone?”

Your question was met with a softening gaze. Whether it was your words or something else about your behaviour, the three seemed to suddenly become guilty and remorseful. 

“No, it’s– You– I–” Seungcheol stuttered to find the words. His posture had suddenly sunk from big and intimidating to tiny and slumped. He exchanged worried glances with your other two friends before letting out a soft whine and stumbling over the carpet to hug you to his chest. “It’s not bad that you like someone. Of course you can date whoever you want.”

“Just not Mingyu?” you scoffed but made no move to leave his embrace. His stubborn personality and overprotective nature be damned, but he gave the best and warmest hugs you had ever experienced. You doubted anyone could give better hugs. 

He sighed. “I– Don’t make me feel bad about this. God, I can’t do this–”

“We just don't want you to get hurt,” Joshua took over, reaching over to pat your head. “Mingyu kind of has a reputation.”

“I don't think he does it on purpose though,” you mumbled.

“I don’t either,” Joshua hummed, “but the fact is that he leaves a trail of broken hearts wherever he goes. He falls fast and hard but he loses interest just as quick. We don’t want you to be one of the broken girls he leaves behind.”

“Bet I can fix him,” you stubbornly joked and chuckled but you weren't fully convinced it was a joke anymore.

Joshua laughed. “I’m sure you can.”

“Can’t you guys just be a little more supportive?” you sighed, finally leaning out of Seungcheol’s embrace. “If he breaks my heart, so be it.”

“You don’t deserve your heart broken by a fratboy with commitment issues,” Joshua told you gently. “That’s the whole thing.”

You heard a scoff from over on the sofa. “She’s not in love with you, Shua.”

Joshua’s and Seungcheol’s heads snapped up immediately, one glaring at Jeonghan and the other at you.

“Me?!” 

“LOVE?! YOU’RE IN LOVE WITH HIM???”

You vowed that if you went to jail this year, it would be for the death of Yoon Jeonghan. You hoped your glare over Seungcheol’s shoulder was enough to convey your intentions.

“Fine, you can go on a second date with Mingyu,” Seungcheol had told you, much like a father lecturing his rebellious teenage daughter, “but only if we come along.”

And so, you went on your second date to the fair with Kim Mingyu, accompanied by one menacing bodyguard and your two mostly normal friends. And what a date it was.

Holding onto him tight as he all but cried into your shoulder, you wondered how this poor coward had even gotten this far in life. 

“It’s okay,” you told him, patting his head as you exited the haunted maze attraction. “See, we’re out already! You’re fine.”

The date had been so nice so far. He had paid for the tickets (all of them, which seemed to get him in Jeonghan’s good graces) and bought you a themed headband to wear. He had won you a bear plushie from a no-doubt rigged stand, only smiling proudly as the attendant glared and handed him the prize. The butterflies in your chest couldn’t have been more fluttery and excited than they had been this entire evening. The perfect date, 10/10, you understood why so many girls fell for the Kim Mingyu.

But then you had discovered your boyfriend’s fatal flaw: despite his imposing size and the visible definition of his muscles, he was an absolute coward. 

Though he had put on a confident act while waiting in the queue, it took him no less than two minutes to start screaming in fear and using you as a shield from the scare actors.

As you tried your hardest to comfort him, wiping the tears of fear from his cheeks and rubbing gentle circles into his back, Jeonghan was cackling behind you like a maniac, finding great joy in your boyfriend’s distress. “Are you scared of clowns, Kim Mingyu? Clowns?” 

“I’m scared of a lot of things, but clowns aren‘t one of them!” Mingyu bravely shouted at him, eyes blood-shot and throat sore from all the screaming and squealing he had done these past fifteen minutes, before his words dawned on him. “I meant–”

With a judgemental nose scrunch, Joshua nudged your side and scoffed out a short laugh before whispering, “You sure know how to pick them, huh?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” you growled at him but paid him no more attention as Mingyu grabbed onto your arm with yet another screech of fear.

“Dude,” Seungcheol sighed deeply, defeated and tired of your fair adventure, “that was just a pigeon.”

“Birds are scary,” Mingyu retorted immediately.

“Not pigeons,” Jeonghan told him with an equally exhausted sigh. “They’re about as harmful as you are. No one ever, in the history of this planet got physically attacked by a pigeon.”

“Well, actually–” Joshua began but was promptly cut off by your elbow between his ribs.

“Do you want to go somewhere else?” you asked Mingyu, squeezing his hand for comfort. “Maybe we could go eat? Or just walk around?”

He hesitated. “I was actually hoping we could– Nevermind. That’s stupid.”

“No, it’s not. Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s fun. What were you thinking?”

“... The ferris wheel?” He side-eyed your friends for the briefest moment before adding in a whisper, “Just the two of us?”

Without a moment to think about it (because god knows you’d be caught by Seungcheol), you tugged on his hand and began running towards the queue for the ferris wheel, glancing behind you to make sure they hadn’t followed you.

“What was that?” Mingyu giggled as you came to a stop. 

“You said you wanted to come, just the two of us,” you told him with a shrug and an award-winning smile. “Keep a low profile and they won’t find us.”

“Why are they here with us anyway?” he wondered before quickly correcting himself, “Not that I think they’re bad or annoying or something– It’s just that–”

You laughed and glanced through the growing crowd at where your trio of friends were looking around nearly frantically, like a pack of guard dogs trying to figure out where the sound had come from. “They’re overprotective and think you’re bad news.”

“Me?” Lips pursing into a small pout, he seemed a little dejected at the thought. “Do you?”

“Do I what?”

“Do you think I’m bad news? That I’m not good for you?”

The sadness in his beautiful brown eyes made you weak inside. You were ready to spill every truth and lie and everything in between just to make him happy again. But before you could, the staff member in charge of the wheel greeted you with a tired smile and asked for your tickets and, before you knew it, you were seated in the gondola.

You had read enough romance novels to know where this would lead.

Or so you thought, until the wheel was three metres off the ground and Mingyu was the palest you had ever seen him, eyes wide with fear as he looked at anything but the windows. 

“You good?” you asked him carefully, reaching your hand across the gondola to squeeze his knee. He didn’t answer. And then it dawned on you – the very same realization from just twenty minutes ago – your boyfriend was the dictionary definition of a coward. “... Don’t tell me you’re afraid of heights.”

Shaking a little from the fear travelling through his veins, he took a sharp breath. “I won’t.”

“But are you?”

“Yes. Deathly.”

You wanted to laugh at the irony. “You were the one that suggested we come on the ferris wheel!”

“I didn’t think it would be this bad if you’re with me!” he practically whined, eyes squeezed shut, his hand searching for yours for comfort. “I just wanted this date to be romantic for you. What good date doesn’t end with a ferris wheel ride?!”

Why was your stupid cowardly boyfriend making your heart flutter again like this? Just a few simple words that he probably hadn’t even thought through and you were melting all over again.

“Is there anything I can do to make this easier for you?” you offered. 

He shook his head. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

“No, it’s not. All you’ve done today is comfort me and tell me it’s fine but, really, you must think I’m a coward and an idiot.”

Well, he wasn’t completely wrong. But it’s not like you were ever going to tell him.

“Actually, can you just tell me when we’re going down again?” he added soon after, voice cracking. He paused. “Or, well, actually don’t do that because you must already think I’m pathetic and I don’t want to ruin this for you and–”

You weren’t sure why or how, but you found yourself pressing your lips to his. His rambling cut off with a noise of surprise and before long, he leaned closer to you, still squeezing your hand with his, and nearly melted into the kiss.

When you pulled away, nose still brushing against his, he let out a shaky breath that sounded just a little bit like a laugh. “What was that for?”

“I– You–” you stuttered, unable to believe your own actions. You leaned further away from him, clearing your throat as the gondola came to a stop at the bottom of the wheel, the staff fumbling with the door to let you out. “We’re back on the ground.”

“We are?” he breathed out and finally opened his (admittedly hazy) eyes. “Oh. I guess we are.”

As you stepped out of the gondola and began on your way back towards the front gate, he linked your arms, playing with your fingers. “That wasn’t so bad.”

“You were almost crying,” you told him with a good-hearted laugh and a nudge. “Please do us both a favour and never take your date to a haunted maze or to the ferris wheel ever again.”

“Yeah, that’s probably for the best,” he laughed, sheepish.

“There you two are!” Jeonghan’s voice sounded from behind you. You turned to offer him a smile. He replied with a sarcastic one of his own before yelling as loud as he could (which, admittedly, was not very loud at all), “Cheol! Shua! I found the fools in love!”

As your trio of friends slowly gathered, you were still focused on Mingyu. The fairy lights had no right to make him look so beautiful. You were certain you would dream of him tonight. 

“The haunted maze aside,” you started, voice low as to not let your friends hear, “I enjoyed this date.”

He grinned brightly. “Me too. But I suppose everything’s just better with you.”

“Same time next week?” you half-joked. “I’ll do the planning this time though.”

“Only if you promise there won’t be any more haunted mazes,” he mumbled to cover up the fact that you had him wrapped around your fingers, wound so tight he could never think of letting go.

“It’s a date,” you laughed and kissed his cheek just as Seungcheol walked over to drag you away by your arm. “Hey!”

“It’s past your curfew,” he deadpanned while Jeonghan and Joshua snickered behind you. 

You scoffed. “I’m an adult?!”

“You snuck away with your boyfriend!” he accused, looking almost actually offended by your actions. “What adult does that? And with a frat boy of all things?”

“I think they’re cute,” Joshua argued with a kind smile, having always been the most hopeless romantic of the bunch. “He’s like a golden retriever in love.”

“Golden retriever?" Seungcheol scoffed. “He towers over all of us. He’s a great dane if anything.”

As if to prove your friends’ point, the sound of rapid footsteps echoed from the pavement. 

Always the most brave of the three, Jeonghan turned his head to take a look. He let out a disbelieving laugh. “(Y/n), your puppy’s coming with us.”

“My what?” you wondered, brows furrowing as you turned to see whatever it was he had noticed. Your heart fluttered at the sight of Mingyu running up to you with a bashful smile. 

“I–” he gasped out, struggling to breathe. 

Your friends and you were equally breathless, mostly from shock.

He took one more deep breath – all the while glaring at the starry sky as if to curse the gods for giving him such a poor lung capacity – and then turned to smile at you again, “What kind of a date would I be if I didn’t walk you to your front door?”

“One without a death wish,” you swore you heard Seungcheol mumble under his breath. But you weren’t too worried about him (he couldn’t hurt a fly even if he wanted to), especially when you had a whole Kim Mingyu running to you.

“You don’t have to–” you started.

But he shook his head and smiled a little prouder before offering his arm. “Here, I’ll keep you safe.”

“What are we? Just random street rats?” Jeonghan wondered while looking awfully amused. “You think one of you can protect her better than three of us?”

While Mingyu looked like he wanted the ground to swallow him whole, red ears and all, you came to his defence with a discerning stare directed at your three friends. You shrugged. “I certainly feel safer with him.”

With a pained groan and a hand to his chest as if to will his heart to stop hurting, Jeonghan grabbed Seungcheol by the arm. “C’mon, great dane, he’s clearly got it covered.”

Seungcheol blinked at him, baffled. “You’re not seriously thinking of– Jeonghan! We can’t just leave them!”

You gave your best friend a begging look. As much as you could never admit it to Seungcheol, you longed for more time with Mingyu. And if it was just the two of you? You were giddy at just the prospect of it.

“I’ll pay for your pizza,” Jeonghan offered begrudgingly, sending you one last warning glare before practically dragging Seungcheol away. Joshua – much to your joy – was happier to leave you with your new boyfriend, only giving you one last hug and a wave goodbye before following the others and joining in their banter.

You looked up to find Mingyu staring after them in utter surprise. “They actually left us alone? Willingly?”

“I guess so,” you feigned coyness. “So, you’re walking me home then?”

“Most happily,” he agreed before shrugging off his jacket and – to the detriment of your poor fluttering heart – draped it over your shoulders. “There, now you’ll be warm.”

“You didn’t have to–”

“I wanted to,” he interrupted with a sweet smile before offering you his arm again.

You swallowed the butterflies threatening to break out and linked your arm with his with a shy smile. And so, side by side, you walked to your home. The conversation was almost nonexistent as you simply enjoyed each other’s presence in the silence of the night. 

“Can I ask something?” Mingyu suddenly broke the blissful quiet air.

You hummed in agreement.

He took a deep calming breath before blurting, “Why me?”

“... What?”

“Why me?” he repeated himself a little more certainly. “Why would you choose me as your boyfriend? 

There was another moment of silence. How could one tell someone as loving and sweet as Mingyu that you were dating him only because of a stupid joke? A small bet that was never meant to go further than a sentence of a prank and five minutes of confusion? You feared you’d shatter his heart.

But still you had to come clean eventually. 

It was funny really, you thought, that a week or two ago, you wouldn’t have hesitated to answer at all. You would’ve laughed it off and told him it was just a silly joke and to not take it so seriously. You would’ve texted the group chat telling Jeonghan he owed you another Snickers bar for the humiliation of having to explain yourself to a fratboy.

And today your heart hurt at the idea of breaking his.

Mirroring his earlier preparations, you took a deep breath to ease your nerves and calm your heart before answering, “It was Jeonghan who picked you.”

“For you to date?” Mingyu wondered, brows furrowing in confusion. “That’s a little odd, I suppose, but–”

“No, it was– It was a bet. At first.” You didn’t dare to look at him as you spoke. (And if you had, you would’ve seen his facade of confidence crack just a little.) “We were just at the library and Jeonghan bet me a coke and a Snickers bar to tell you… what I told you that day. I wasn’t– You– We weren’t ever supposed to meet again. Well, maybe as a passing glance in the hallway or something, but not like this. It wasn’t meant to be serious.”

“Oh.” You didn’t need to look at him to know how dejected he must have felt.

“But!” you rushed to mend his heart, “But then I got to know you and you made me lunch and you smiled at me all pretty and you spoke to me even when I was being weird and mean– Look,” you stopped mid-step and grabbed his wrist to stop him as well, forcing him to face you before you spoke with as much conviction as you could muster up, “this whole thing might have started because Jeonghan offered me candy, but I swear on everything that I hold dear that… that I really like you. I’ve come to really like you so much, Mingyu. 

“I can’t imagine a day without you anymore. When you miss our lectures, I spend all day worrying something happened to you. When you don’t smile, I want to go and kick whoever made you sad or mad. I just really love you a lot – even if it wasn’t so at first. Okay?”

“Okay,” he whispered, nodding slowly, his eyes glimmering a little. “I mean… I always guessed you didn’t say those things because you actually felt something for me and–” He paused, eyes clearing, brows furrowing, ears tinting red. “Did you just say you love me?”

“I– You– What? No,” you laughed and felt nervous all of a sudden. 

You couldn’t have!? 

… Could you?

His dejected puppy-eyes became cheerful half-moons as he grinned widely. “You did! You love me!”

You weren’t sure you had enough proof to argue, so you kept quiet and prayed he wouldn’t see right through you. You hadn’t meant to let those words slip so early. You hadn’t meant to even feel this way. But you couldn’t lie and argue.

“Hey, if it makes you feel better,” Mingyu leaned closer to speak softly, “I’ve been thinking about how I love you too.” He let out a sheepish laugh. “Really, I was worried I’d be too forward and scare you away if I told you that already. I mean, it’s only our – what? – second date?”

“You really do fall hard and fast, huh?” you wondered out loud. 

He scoffed. “Who told you that?”

“My friends.”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ll have you know that you’re the first I’ve felt this way about.

“Yeah?” You pursed your lips in thought. “If that’s true, then you should kiss me right now.”

Mingyu chuckled and shook his head. “I fear that might be a little too forward.”

“Really?” You quirked a brow. “And a  love confession on the second date isn’t?”

“You’re the one who started it! Besides,” he linked your arms and led you to keep walking towards your home, “I’m a little scared of your friends and I’m pretty sure the one with big muscles will kick my ass if I don’t take you on at least two more dates before I kiss you.”

You weren’t entirely sure he was joking.

“Fine,” you sighed, defeated in the game of love. “But those two dates better be great. I’m speaking five-star restaurant, dinner and a concert by the seaside, watching The Titanic in the moonlight kind of romantic.”

“I’ve got it, don’t worry, baby,” he assured you and gave you a quick kiss on the cheek.

Baby. You had to physically hold back from smiling and blushing all giddy.