*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

Jiyoung

"You're Jiyoung, right?" A girl approached me, her prominent SM lanyard deeply contrasted her loose ripped jeans and fitted blue t-shirt. She smiled at me as she spoke. "Ten asked me to bring you this."

She handed me a disposable takeaway cup, with steam escaping from the top, bringing it closer to my nose, I inhaled the calming scent of chamomile. 

"Thank you." I accepted and wrapped both hands around the warmth.

"I'm Ahn Hyeri. Trainee makeup artist." She stuck her hand out for me to shake. I took, unsure whether I could trust her after Minhee's entire tornado.

"Lee Jiyoung, concierge and creator of your timetable." 

Hyeri was the youngest person I had met so far, being only eighteen years old, and interning as part of her training.

"No way! You really made the timetable?" She gasped, shocked by my revelation, "That's incredible!"

"It's my area of expertise." I shrugged with a slight smile at her compliment, "Unlike you, I suck at any makeup past the bare minimum."

Despite my protests, she was unable to let go of the fact that I had managed to organise the schedule for these two weeks.

In return, I was unable to get over her prowess over makeup, making us equal.

What made her good company though was the way she didn't pass any visible judgement, although I was sure she had heard rumours about me.

"Is it true that your uncle owns the hotel?" Her eyes seemed to be constantly wide in awe or perhaps surprise.

I winced a little at the question, "Yeah. He does. But please don't think I get any special treatment."

"Oh no, I was going to ask if you've ever seen the fancy top floor suites." She giggled, blushing, "I've always wanted to know what they look like."

I nodded, making her squeal in delight. "Once I visited them when I was really little. Me and my cousin sneaked in during a stay in Los Angeles."

"What was it like?" At this point, I wasn't sure whether her eyes could get any rounder.

"It was huge, and so luxurious, it was one of the most beautiful rooms I've seen to date."

Hyeri was easily impressed by our whole conversation and kept a bright eager smile on her face the whole time. Her constant and light-hearted chatter kept my mind off anything else, and instantly uplifted me. Her company didn't require much energy and was actually quite delightful.

I hadn't expected her to stay, but after handing me my tea, she had asked me question after question, from her unexhaustive mental list, eventually taking a seat next to me, to continue.

She had barely left room in the conversation for me to ask her anything, though I had managed to scrounge a few details from her, such as her age, the fact that she was from Ulsan and in her excitement would occasionally slip into a slightly accented Korean, which I struggled to understand from time to time. She lived with her friend and her three dogs in Seoul where she had been studying for the past six months.

Another assistant stuck their head into the room, calling Hyeri back to her job. 

We both frowned in disappointment. 

"I'll see you around, Jiyoung!"  She called, leaving the room, allowing a quiet to fall over the room again.

The two other people in the room, who checked up on me every so often, were the only others in the room and were having a quiet conversation in their corner.

*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

Jiyoung

The door burst open, snapping all three of us out of our quiet reveries, and a man walked in, supporting Jisung at his side. His left step was heavily afflicted by a limp causing his face to scrunch up a little every time he put weight on it.

As he was set on a chair, I listened to the conversation between the medic and the staff member, learning that he had slipped in the final chorus and landed badly.

I peered over at them as the rolled up his trouser leg and carefully eased his boot off. 

"Noona?" Jisung questioned, having been turned to face me while they inspected his ankle, "What are you doing here?"

"I wasn't feeling well." I replied with a wan smile, "But what are you doing here?" I countered in worry.

"I landed badly during a jump, but I was able to finish the performance. It hurts like mad now though." He explained, sweat still shining on his temples and his breathing still slightly syncopated. He bit his lip as the woman bandaged it up and applied a compress to it.

"You came straight here from the stage?" I asked incredulously, "You really had to injure yourself on the last song, didn't you?"

"I didn't mean to." He pouted, though his features soon shifted into a pained expression as they applied a compress to his ankle. He drew in a sharp breath, but remined relatively passive.

I listened to the strict instructions the medic gave him once he was bound up and in less pain. He sighed at their words, but nodded compliantly, promising to not walk around too much.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, when the room emptied out, leaving only the original people and Jisung.

"Okay, I guess." He muttered, "Sucks to be injured when we're in such a nice place. Some of the hyungs are planning to go out tomorrow but I guess I won't be allowed to, now."

"Oh yeah. You have a free day tomorrow, don't you?" I remembered, having been present when Mrs Lee proposed the idea, "Did you have any plans for it?"

"Chenle wanted to go and see some famous area here, but he won't want to go alone."

"That's a shame." I sympathised, feeling bad that he would not be able to explore like he had originally planned to, because he was stuck on room arrest like I had been.

"Jisung!" Someone flung open the door with vigour, causing us both to get startled, "How bad is it?" Chenle hurried into the room, filled with concern.

"Jiyoung! You're here as well." He grinned when he saw me, "Are you injured as well?"

"Chenle." Jisung muttered, disappointment lacing his tone, "Firstly, this is a quiet room, secondly, Jiyoung-noona said she's not feeling well, so she won't appreciate you shouting like this."

"Oh, I hope you feel better, Jiyoung. I just came to tell you that we're leaving in ten minutes, Jisung, but Manager Choi wants you to get to the car first, especially with all the people gathered outside."

Manager Choi in question, entered the room, visibly loosing the tension in his posture when he caught sight of Chenle here. I smiled, imagining what sort of chaos he had been causing by running off to check on Jisung.

"There are still people out there?" Jisung grumbled.

"Still? How long have they been there?" I asked.

"Most have been there since this morning." Chenle pulled a face.

"How nice." I said sarcastically.

Jisung hummed in agreement, "Isn't it! I'm so grateful the hotel has underground parking. Otherwise it would have been a nightmare."

"Good luck getting back to the hotel."

They both smiled grimly at the prospect of tackling the group of desperate people outside. Chenle helped Jisung to stand up, all his weight resting on his good leg, and I pitied them as Jisung leant on Manager Choi, and half hopped out of the room.

More than I was worried about his ankle, I worried how they would be against the crowd of desperate fans, hoping to grab the attention of their idols.

*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

Jiyoung

I wasn't needed today to help with the aftermath of the filming, so I was able to head home earlier than I had anticipated. On the way out, I passed Minwoo, the stagehand I had helped yesterday, he smiled at me, reaffirming that he was still forever in my debt as I walked past.

My car journey was shared with another member of staff, who I completely didn't recognise and who wasn't interested in making small talk. Something which was fine in my opinion since I was worn out mentally.

I realised I still had Kun's jacket with me and wondered whether he had forgotten about it. I carried it with me, deciding to give it back to him when I returned to the hotel.

Now, I was sitting in my room, his jacket placed delicately on the bed, considering how to return it to him. Even though I had his room number, I thought it would be too unexpected of me to turn up at his door, out of the blue.

Originally, I had planned to ask Mark to bring it back to him, but he was just about to enter a briefing, and it would probably last a long while. He hadn't elaborated the details of the brief, but my inside sources had predicted it was something to do with a sub-unit of NCT U.

That meant he was crossed off my list.

Maybe I could Hyuck, or Taeyong instead since they were second and third on my list.

Hyuckie🥰

JIYOUNG
I'M BOREDDD
AND I MISS YOU

His on cue message made my lips curl into a small smile.

Me

I literally saw you less than 24 hours ago...

Hyuckie🥰

That's such a long time
ANd you owe me 23 hours still

Me

Why don't we hang out for a bit then since Mark is in a briefing
AND CAN'T INTERRUPT US

Hyuckie🥰

Yay!
Where?

Me

I'll come and collect you from your floor
We can go to that balcony again
Especially since it's sunny

Hyuckie🥰

See you in five

Me

I'll be there in four

*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

Jiyoung

The lift opened on the idols' floor and I was greeted by Hyuck standing just outside.

"Hey." I waved and gestured for him to enter the lift.

He glanced around the empty hallway, before dashing inside and pressing the button to close the doors, multiple times.

"What are you doing?" I giggled.

"You never know who's watching." He muttered allusively.

I frowned, "Is there someone particular?"

"Jeno." He stated, "He's been teasing me since I said I was going out."

I rolled my eyes as the doors opened again, this time on the tenth floor. "I'm sure he has better things to do than spy on you." I added, "Like talk to his girlfriend."

"Oh my god, don't get me started," He grumbled, "This morning he was giggling like a lovesick idiot. Turns out Kyunghwa sent him a cute message."

"No way!" I gasped dramatically. He frowned at my exaggerated reaction. "Just wait until you fall in love, then you'll understand."

"No thanks, falling in love is overrated."

I faltered in my step, but hurriedly continued, trying to make the action look as smooth as possible. I knew I hadn't imagined the bitterness of his tone.

Mark had said to be careful with my feelings, but how could I, when I didn't know what I was dealing with.

"What's caused you to think that?" I asked casually, ignoring the dull ache in my chest from his words.

He glanced over at me, "That's for another time, Ji." His tone was very final, I understood better than to ask questions.

I pouted, accepting his brisk tone nonetheless, accepting that it wasn't directed at me.

While talking, we had arrived at the staff only door, for the second time this week. Unlike last time, it was still very much bright outside, giving a different atmosphere.

I still remembered my ugly crying from last time and hoped there would not be a repeat of that.

Entering the code, I led the way to the open air, peering around for the surveillance camera my uncle had mentioned before.

"Wait here." I whispered to Hyuck, who froze rather conspicuously in place the moment I said it.

"Why?" He lowered his voice to match mine, "And why are we whispering?"

"Cameras."

"Oh."

I caught sight of it on the left side of the door. I grabbed a blanket and draped it over the top, finishing off my actions with a smug grin and at the now covered camera.

"It's safe now." I giggled.

He chuckled at my words and brought himself into the warmth of the sunshine. I sat down in one of the sun loungers in the sun, and lay back, gesturing at him to do the same. He closed his eyes to enjoy the heat.

Seizing the opportunity, I observed him from where I lay. He had a genuine half smile on his face, and his muscles were completely relaxed.

It was the small matching scars just under his eyebrow, and the contrast of his dark eye lashes against his skin, that made my heart beat all the more erratic than a moment prior.

I swallowed and placed a hand on my chest, managing to tear my eyes away from his form, remembering that I actually needed to breathe. He clearly wasn't open to my increasing crush on him. However, he was making it hard for me to ignore it.

I chided myself silently for being so easy. After all, it had only been a week since I had met him, I couldn't seriously be falling for him so soon. Maybe it was just an infatuation. But Sofia had said to go for it.

I was caught in my own net of confusing thoughts.

*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

Jiyoung

"That's not fair, you cheated." I complained as he smirked at me.

"Fair play isn't in my vocabulary, princess."

"Hyuck..." I glared at him, not in actual annoyance though, "Why do you still call me princess?"

"You chose the name," He said offhandedly, "It's a joke, you know, if it offends you, I can stop."

"I-"

I found myself in a dilemma, would I admit to liking the nickname and embarrassing myself and potentially revealing my crush, or would I lie and say I didn't like it, and have him never call me princess ever again.

Fortunately, or rather unfortunately, I didn't have to make that decision myself as he picked up on my internal debate.

"Admit you like it, Ji." He grinned mischievously at me, "Don't be shy. I know you like the nickname."

"Lee Haechan." I cried out, mortified.

His eyes, held no malice, but were pure evil, "Oh, so you don't like it?"

"NO." I burst out a little too loudly, "I mean- I- I- don't hate it, no-" I stumbled verbally, cheeks flaming and eyes shaking, "I-"

It was ridiculous, there was no reason for me to be feeling this anxious, so afraid of judgement. I knew he was joking, but somehow, I couldn't accept it. It felt like a personal attack.

I felt the familiar tightening sensation around my throat, a hand squeezing this time.

Claws out, and ready for blood.

Fuck. This was the worst timing ever, surely, he hadn't made me feel overwhelmed.

Tears sprung to my eyes, in terror, in shame. Because this was so pathetic of me.

I hated how it would come in the moment, out of nowhere. I hated feeling so desperate and weak in the face of it.

"Princess." Hyuck's steady tone interwove its way between the tight grip.

"I'm here. You're alright. I'm here with you."

Liquid gold.

The hand retreated, in fear of his metallic aura.

In the face of confidence, bravery and reassurance, the hand was nothing. It couldn't control me whatsoever.

Because I was safe.

"Hyuck?" I mumbled.

"You're safe." He whispered, into my ear.

Somehow, he had managed to close the distance to wrap both arms around me. His grip was different. Secure and protective, not harsh, and unmerciful.

"I am so sorry," I gulped anxiously, feeling reservoir of tears building up, the dam weakening its resolve under his kind words.

"Don't be. You have nothing to be sorry for."

"But I am," I began, so quietly, in order to hide the crack in my weak voice, "For this, at least." I bit out the words as the dam shattered and the tears flooded out.

(A/N: my girl's harbouring a lot of feelings. Don't hate. I promise not all of their interactions will end in tears...)

*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

Donghyuck

Holding her in my arms, I could feel the trembling coating her like a blanket. Her hands were freezing against mine, but she was warm.

And right there and then, I realised that she may be breaking the resolve I had engrained into myself. Even though I had sworn myself off ever falling for someone again, I couldn't help it. I couldn't control it. Somehow, Lee Jiyoung had weakened me, with her cute giggles and bright personality.

She made me want to protect her. The unwavering light in her eyes attracted me to her. Despite everything, she was completely unselfish. She was so dedicated and loving.

In that single moment, I understood why Mark cared for her so. I understood why Chenle and Jisung had returned from seeing her, unable to stop chattering about every second they had spent with her. I understood why Taeyong had wanted to establish that friendship.

I understood why every member in her path had instantly fallen for her charms.

Because I had fallen as well.

*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*

A/N: Gosh I nearly didn't have time to upload :o... And?? Hyuck?? recognising?? his?? feelings?? WHat is this sorcery?!

Its been such a busy week! And my man turned 22 so haps bro <3 BTS are having a comeback in two days and I will definitely be waking up at 5am, despite having a physics exam on that day, to watch yet to come. And to top off my week, Jisung has been severely bias wrecking me since beatbox came out and I really do not appreciate the attack. 

A lil fun fact: Hyeri only got her name about twenty minutes before I uploaded. 

Hope your week is going well <33 and I'm actually so eternally grateful for 3k reads.

- cj (i cannot for my life locate the squiggle dash on my laptop keyboard 😭and I apologise for the all over the place A/N today.)