Ateez Mingi - Blog Posts

full time baby

yes, sir ! • [song mingi]

i was just looking at you, picturing how good you would look naked with my dick buried deep inside of you and suddenly it became reality.

pairing: song mingi x fem!oc (sok yujin) genre: smut, established relationship, dom!mingi, sub!oc word count: 2.9 k warnings: oral sex (both receiving), fingering, biting, slight nipple play, marking, protected sex, dirty talk, manhandling, a dash of kinks (lmk if i forgot sth)

inspired by say my name (ateez), especially mingi's voice in the last chorus ...

Turning around on his chair, Mingi looked at the girl on his bed, letting his eyes wander up and down her petite body, examining every visible inch. She was sitting cross-legged on his wine red satin bedsheets, wearing black shorts that complimented the curve of her hips and accentuated the small waist of hers. Her upper body was partly covered by a slightly sheer, loose white crop top, hanging down from her narrow shoulders and hovering over her chiseled collarbones. Her chest was just the right size for the boy to find it appealing and her face showed a concentrated look, as she typed messages to whoever. Mingi let his tongue slip over his bottom lip, leaving them moist and glossy, as his eyes were stuck to the girl's neck. He wondered what it must feel like to drape his lips over her perfect skin, leaving a trail of lovebites and showing everyone she belonged to him. Swallowing hard, he ran his fingers through his black hair, exhaling quietly before leaning his head to one side.

»Yujin?«, he whispered and paused for a moment, feeling his cock pulse at the thought of her legs spread on the bed and her delicate fingers playing with her own wetness.

»Yujin?«, he asked out loud now and swallowed again, when she looked up from her phone and cocked her head to the opposite side.

»Yes?«

Her lips were slightly parted, covered by a sheen of saliva, reflecting the light of the ceiling lamps over their heads. The boy's eyes slowly wandered down from her mouth over her collarbones and chest, until they reached her thighs, gazing at them with burning lust. He licked his lips again, wondering about the way her juices must taste and how good she would look with his dick buried deep inside her.

»Mingi?«

She forced him back to reality, bringing his eyes back to meet hers as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

»Weren't you trying to say something?«

He quietly nodded and parted his lips as if he was about to say something, but he just eyed her in pure silence. The echoes of her voice saying his name ghosted through his mind, as he felt his cock pulse again at the thought of her moaning his name in high notes while he roughly pounded in and out of her, juices mixing and dripping on the bedsheets.

»You look angry... What are you thinking about?«

She carefully put her phone face down on the bedside table. A hint of concern laid on her face while she examined Mingi's figure.

His pitch-black hair, parted on one side and dramatically flipped over to create his signature "bad boy" hairstyle.

His thick eyebrows, narrowed and conveying an emotion she could not describe.

His dark eyes, blazing with a longing for something she was willing to find out.

His equally dark clothes, from the leather jacket he seemed to like a lot, to his unicolor shirt and jeans, that toned his muscular thighs.

She could see a hint of his trained chest muscles and his hard nipples peeking through the thin material of his top.

»I'm not angry«, he finally answered, releasing some of the tension that slowly started to fill the room.

»Then why do you keep staring at me like that?«

»I was just wondering ...«

She let out a whispered giggle and nodded as if to say "keep going" while looking at his wet lips with her deep brown eyes.

»I just wondered how you'd feel wrapped around my dick, your voice moaning into my ear and your fingernails scratching my back.«

Pushing herself off the bed, Yujin got up and slid, legs spread, onto the boy's lap, wrapping her arms around his neck.

»Why don't we try and see?«

Her soft whisper tickled Mingi's senses, as he rested his big hands on her waist, their lips less than an inch apart and their breaths warming each other's skin.

Without any second thought, she closed the gap between the two of them, feeling Mingi's saliva-covered lips on her own, receiving a first taste of what she was about to get. Roughly brushing their lips against each other, silent moans started filling the room, dancing with the tension that had risen over the past minutes in silence. Raking her fingers through Mingi's hair and therefore messing them up completely, Yujin let out a soft moan, while Mingi ghosted over her hip bones with his slender fingers. He splayed his hands over her ass, cupping each of her cheeks in one, pushing her up to have her covered slit rubbing over his erection.

»Can you feel this?«, he asked with his husky voice, his lips swollen and wet with saliva. »It's waiting for you.«

Yujin gulped at his words, resting her forehead against his, and got up from his lap while taking off her shirt.

»What are we waiting for then?«

Getting up on his feet, the boy almost knocked over the chair before practically ripping off her bra and pushing her onto his bed, legs spread over the edge. He hovered over her, tracing her features with his tongue while exploring the previously forbidden territory. His hands held hers on either side of her face while he left a wet trail of lovebites around her collarbones, occasionally biting the taut-drawn skin. A burning sensation of lust pulsed in both of them as Mingi started rubbing his hard dick between the girl's legs, earning her sweet moans in response.

»Mingi ~«, she exhaled and wrapped her legs around his waist, as her cunt clenched around nothing. The denim material of her pants heated up under Mingi's body and brought a sheen of sweat to her forehead.

More moans were released while the young man licked her nipples, gently tugging at them until they were hard as dried candy. Coming back up to her face, Mingi caressed Yujin's pink cheek before licking her lower lip and tugging on it with his teeth. He felt the desire sparking inside of him, as his heart pounded against his chest and his cock pulsed under his black jeans. The sweet taste of her lips intoxicated him and left him wanting more.

Needing more.

Sinful thoughts crossed the young boy's mind as his dark eyes locked with hers, and he tossed his leather jacket on the chair he had been sitting on before stripping his shirt off right after. Sizzling with need, he went down on his elbows on either side of Yujin's head and shoved his tongue into her mouth, swirling around hers. The girl laid breathlessly underneath him, burying her nails in his naked shoulders, leaving crescent moon-shaped marks on his sweaty skin. She could feel his biceps twitching and traced his toned chest muscles with the tips of her fingers, gently circulating her thumb over each of his nipples, making them harder than they already were.

He groaned in ecstasy at her soft fingers touching his hot skin before she fiddled with his belt and unbuckled it, pulling down his pants to relieve part of the torturous pressure on Mingi's dick. Kicking his pants off his legs, he helped Yujin get rid of her last pieces of clothing, tossing them onto the floor next to his own. Solely left with his underwear, he was panting like a maniac and his head spinning with a million ideas of things he could do to her. She laid naked on his bed, her arousal dripping onto the satin sheets as she tried to catch her breath.

»Show me«, he growled. »Show me how you do it while you think of me!«

Her eyes were fixed on his as she put two of her fingers between her lips, soaking them with her saliva and placing one of them on her clit. Gently circulating her finger on her sensitive area, she bit back a moan and raised her hip. Using her other hand to spread her folds, she inserted the other finger into her core and slowly moved it back out again. Spreading her wetness around, she used both fingers to massage the fleshy pink and purred a silent »Fuck«. Pushing both fingers back into her cunt, a soft moan of her watcher's name whimpered through her clenched teeth.

»Making yourself cum with my name in your mouth and on your mind I see.«

Mingi licked his lips and placed a kiss on her chin.

»Keep going, baby. Don't be afraid to let it all out.«

Picking up the speed Yujin pounded her fingers into her entrance, spreading her folds even more and feeling her walls clench around the filling sensation. Moving the second hand away, she started to rub her clit with her finger, before finding her sweet spot, repeatedly hitting it and crying out Mingi's name while she released her juices and slowly removed her fingers.

She held her hand out for Mingi to lick them clean and placed a kiss on his collarbones, softly tugging on the sensitive skin and placing a few lovebites around. He inhaled sharply when she reached her small hand to his erection, stroking over the last piece of fabric covering it and wetting her fingers with the pre-cum soaking through it. Staring straight into his eyes, Yujin brought her fingers to her lips and licked his essence off them.

»That's not the only thing you'll taste tonight«, the boy purred and kneeled on the floor, his face between the girl's thighs. He placed soft kisses on her sensitive skin, gently biting into and pulling at it with his teeth.

»I'll make you feel amazing tonight.«

Her fingers twirled his black locks as she cried out his name the moment he pushed his tongue into her entrance. Shoving her hips deeper into Mingi's face, she clasped the bedsheets tight in her hand while the boy flicked his tongue against her clit. He sipped on her juice, playing with it and spreading it around more while she tugged on his hair, purring his name like a mantra.

»You taste so good, baby girl«, he breathed with his head still between her far spread legs.

His tongue slipped back between her folds, sucking up every drop of her nectarous wetness and engulfing it like a delicacy.

»Cum for me again, I know you want to«, the black-haired boy teased and delved his tongue back into her core, hitting her sweet spot with ease.

Waves of electricity shook her body when she climaxed for the second time that night, her toes curling and her hand pulling at his hair.

»Fuck, Mingi!«, Yujin cried in ecstasy when he collected her juices and used them to insert the first finger while pressing the tip of his tongue against her clit and roughly moving it in circular motions.

»Oh God, fuck yes, sir!«

»Sir?«

His tongue stopped the pressure on her clit as he licked his lips and sucked on the sweaty skin of her lower tummy, leaving a trail of lovebites as his mark.

»I like that name.«

His finger still caressed her inner walls, making her clench around it as she felt the world stuttering on its axis and her fingers tightened their grip on his hair.

»Don't be shy«, Mingi teased, adding a second finger while gradually increasing the speed of his motion. »Show me how good I am making you feel. Show me how you cum again.«

Yujin arched her back as her vision faded to black, and she dissolved into pleasure, finally releasing what she had built up again, while she drunkenly cried out her lover's name.

»Good girl«, he purred and gently removed his fingers, before licking her dripping essence off her thighs and core. He held his hand up to her face and traced her lower lip with his index finger.

»Now taste yourself, baby girl«, he commanded, shoving his fingers into her mouth, forcing her to lick away every drop of her own juice.

»It's your turn now, sir«, she panted and got up from the bed to get rid of Mingi's pre-cum soaked underwear, tossing it onto the pile of clothes on the wooden bedroom floor.

Kissing his tip, she dipped her tongue into his slit and used his dripping juice to coat his dick. She swirled her tongue up and down his shaft, earning low moans from the naked boy. He arched his back, forcing her to take him in as deep as possible and making her choke for a second. Her swollen lips kept moving around his cock, and she hollowed her cheeks, adding a bit of pressure to her game. Her hand massaged his balls before closing around his length and sloppily stroking him while he bit his lip and pleaded her name.

»Fuck yes, keep going, baby girl!«

She was engulfed in wet heat as she started to use her hands and lips together, making Mingi's cock twitch in her mouth. He shoved his hips into her face, fucking her mouth deeper and bringing himself a little closer to his own release, before pulling his dick out from between her lips and grabbing her waist. Switching positions again, Mingi pushed the girl onto the soft mattress and fiddled a condom from his bedside table drawer. He pinched the tip and rolled it on with a quick movement of his hands, before positioning himself between Yujin's legs again and pushing his entire length inside of her pussy.

Crying out his name once more, she arched her back, feeling his cock fill her up entirely. Slowly grinding his hips, Mingi set a pace and gently thrust into her core, releasing her sweet high notes. Yujin wrapped her legs around his waist, pushing him deeper and making him hit her sweet spot. Letting out a silent moan himself, he nibbled on her collarbone again, leaving it wet and burning, before pulling out of her and turning her around. Roughly pushing her face into the pillows, Mingi picked a faster rhythm and shoved his dick back into Yujin's dripping cunt.

»You take me so well, baby girl«, he groaned and bit her shoulder, tasting the saltiness of her skin and forcing her to cry out his name again.

»Make me all yours please«, Yujin begged needingly. »Fill me up! Fuck me, sir!«

Adrenaline rushed through Mingi's veins when he heard her dulcet voice call him that name, and he started thrusting harder and faster, making her cry out in pleasure.

»Fuck, baby girl, you're so tight«, he growled and shoved his hand between her legs, caressing her clit with his slender fingers again.

»Oh God, fuck yes!«

Intense moaning and the sound of their pounding hips filled the hazy bedroom, the dim light of the moon hiding behind some clouds danced in the air and bathed the lovers in a faint light, enhancing the sheen of sweat on either of them. Mingi's pace and thrusts were animalistic, the pleasure he gave Yujin out of this world, as she climaxed into his hand again and bit the corner of a pillow.

»Let me help you now«, she choked, drool running out of her mouth. »I want to make you feel good, sir.«

Mingi pulled out of her and sat with his back against the wall in straddle, allowing her to sit between his legs for a split moment before he lifted her back up and sank her down on his dick, burying it between her folds. She rested her forehead against his and felt his sweaty fingers tracing down her spine, chasing goosebumps over her whole back.

»You're so beautiful«, he whispered into her ear and helped her ride him with the same pace he had set earlier.

Her small breasts bounced as she worked him closer to his high, thigh muscles twitching and chests panting heavily.

»I love you«, she whispered and rolled her hips on Mingi's lap, exhaling into his neck as she pressed her lips onto his skin.

Moaning a mixture of curse words and Yujin's name, time seemed to stand still for Mingi, as sparks of adrenaline ignited the fire in his abdomen.

»Shit, baby«, he groaned and sank his teeth into her shoulder. »I'm close, keep going!«

Doing as he ordered, Yujin obediently kept moving her body on his cock, sinking down on him multiple times before he released his warm juice into the condom inside her.

»Cum one more time for me, I know you can!«

He started rubbing Yujin's nipples with his fingers, while hers went back to her clit, massaging it and pushing her over the edge again, as she tightened her walls around Mingi's dick and came once more, panting and resting her forehead on his shoulder.

»You did so well, baby girl«, the young boy whispered and wiped her long hair off her sweaty back, freeing her neck and letting it cool down, before gently laying her back down on the bed and pulling out of her.

He tossed the condom into the trash can and laid back next to her on the hot mattress, wrapping her into a tight hug and kissing the top of her head.

»Sleep tight, princess«, he whispered and pulled her sweaty body onto his equally sweaty chest. »You did so well.«

While he carefully pulled the blankets over them, Yujin sleepily cuddled closer into his chest.

»Thank you for tonight, sir«, she yawned and kissed Mingi's collarbone again. »I love you.«

»I love you«, he answered, softly stroking her naked back. »But we're back to Mingi now, darling.«

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

thank you so much for reading !! i hope you enjoyed it :) this is my 3rd time posting this bc for some reason tumblr keeps changing the post type from a text post into a chat ,,,,,,, if you find this same os in the orphan section on ao3 ... it's mine too, i just didn't want it in my feed anymore bc i chose to publish headcanons and one-shots here and stories with multiple chapters there. if you don't believe me, which i would totally understand bc anyone could say the same thing, i can show you screenshots of previous drafts from June 2020 to somewhen in 2021 ^^

taglist:

@ahgasearmyfan

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full masterlist

## ateez masterlist

S — smut F — fluff A — angst C — crack

nothing to see here ... yet

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OS

› fever kinktober ' 21 day 7 [S]

OS

› yes, sir! [S]

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Gluttony

This was a joke between me and @celestialweus . You know since there are seven deadly sins and six members of oneus they should bring Mingi. I know, comedy queens.

hello, im selling ateez fansign in Singapore pobs

if interested pls feel free to message me

each pob is $6 sgd

dm on tele @/yo0osang

The angel and the devil

sansang ff

synopsis:

Angel hybrids are mostly known for their unreal beauty along with the fact that they are fragile, gullible and most important of all, innocent. Often only used for their bodies. Meanwhile, dragon hybrids are often known to be heartless and cruel. They have high sex drive and can be very cunning, making others think they are the only ones that can warm up the cold dragon heart. What happens when a cunning and evil dragon meets a gullible and always-confused angel being protected by several other stronger hybrids.

dragon alpha san x angel omega yeosang

main masterlist

Seonghwa

nsfw #1

Hongjoong

Yunho

princess’s escape

trios don’t last

Yeosang

the angel and the devil

San

princess’s escape

perv san 

yandere!San

Mine (San Yandere)

the angel and the devil

Mingi

Wooyoung

Jongho

The Liar and His Lover. | 1

⤬ MOODBOARD + TEASER

⤬ PAIRING: song mingi x fem!reader

⤬ GENRE: fluff, crack, smut, nsfw, historical!au, joseondynasty!au, arranged marriage trop, enemies to lovers trope, slow burn fic, noble!reader, noble!mingi, assassin!mingi

⤬ CHAPTER WARNINGS: nsfw content, profanity, alcohol and tobacco use, arranged marriages, deceivance, mingi is two faced, tw: stabbing, war conflict, blood and gore descriptions. no smut in this, but def later on. if there’s more I’ll add on later

⤬ WORD COUNT: 11.2k (im such a clown, i said i wanted 7k to be the max fml)

⤬ SYNOPSIS: As the civil war rages, hellfire ensues from the people of Joseon. Revenge, greed, and lies tear apart the kingdom and its nobility. But this is not just a story of War. This is also the story about the Liar and his Lover.

⤬ OPENING TRACKS: — Days Without Tears by Kim Yuna • One More Hour by Tame Impala • Lonely Footsteps by Ryo Yoshimata • Will Be Back by Sunhae Im —

⤬GLOSSARY: Omija - traditional Korean magnolia berry tea. Orabeoni - the formal, endearing way of addressing an older brother by his younger sister. Hanok - a traditional Korean house. Hanbok - traditional korean dress/clothing.

ALL IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR.

At least, those were the words your grandmother always told you. She would make you repeat it to her, all the while sitting on her expensive silk cushions, the most extravagant jewels displayed on her hands, and smoking on her long tobacco pipe with a broken heart anyone could tell was left untreated.

Objectively, your grandmother didn’t know much about War, but she did know about Love. 

And while she died alone in her empty yet extravagant villa, spending her last few years as an aristocrat spinster, you always thought she was pretty badass. 

With not a single intention of experiencing the heartache you saw your grandmother had, Love was not a priority on your list. You decided, if anything, you were going to die like her too. 

—

“Do you perhaps know the meaning of a Willow tree?”

Beomgyu turns to you, his silk draped hands clutching a small willow leaf that had fallen from your garden tree. Standing next to the koi fish-filled pond, your brother closes his eyes, letting the spring breeze brush against his smiling face, looking as if he has no care in the whole world. You face the older one, a playfulness in your tone as you speak. 

“Are you sentimental this morning because you got rejected by Lord Kim’s daughter again?” you question, smiling softly as his peaceful expression suddenly turned a little sour. “I think it’s time you give up on the young lady-”

Beomgyu clears his voice, looking at you in distaste.  “It’s fine,” he said, looking the opposite of his words. You can’t help but smile. 

“In fact, any young lady in Joseon would be thrilled to marry me-”

You’re the one to interject this time, sharply cutting off his banter to answer the question he asked before. “Willow tree’s stand for honesty,” you tell him. “Honesty and sincerity, which are two things you need, brother” you joked, smiling at his mouth hanging open in disbelief at your words.

Beomgyu ignores your comment, choosing to instead pick the plum blossom flower that you had tucked near your ears. You simply smiled, “There's no need to be embarrassed beomgyu, everyone in the town knows you’re a single, unwedded bachelor who probably won't settle for marriage until the next dynasty arrives” you laughed, skipping lightly near the flowers on the other side. 

In fact, Beomgyu was following the footsteps of your grandmother more than you were. 

Beomgyu picks the petals off the plum blossom in annoyance, mumbling something incoherent under his breath.

Chuckling, you bend down to pick a few flowers from your family garden, creating a small bouquet, and holding up each and every flower as delicately as possible. Beomgyu scoffs, a roll of his eyes and immediate disbelief.

“I’m the one who won’t settle for marriage?”. You spare him a glance before you shrug. “You do realize that you’ve gotten the fewest offers for your hand in marriage, in all of our family history?” Beomgyu tells you, causing a laugh to fall from your lips. “And by few, I mean none at all!” You’re about to protest before a voice interjects.

“My lady!” someone calls from behind you two, belonging to the Choi family housemaid named Bomie. You catch the slightest hint of nervousness spilling from her voice, making the both of you turn around.

The small lady called to you, her apron stained with coal and soot. “Your father calls for you. He says there are visitors” Bomie says, biting her thumbnail, looking as if something was eating her away from the inside. 

She confesses, looking up at you. “

There seems to be talks of marriage.” 

-

An uncomfortable lump hangs in your throat, swallowing it back along with your second sip of omija. The warmth of the tea glass you hold carefully in your hands soothes you a bit, as you refrain from catching another look from the boy who sits in front of you. Letting the afternoon sunlight bless your parent’s living quarters, you composedly sit in front of the so-called visitors as well as their son. Looking around your age, the quiet boy stared intensely at his untouched glass.

‘There's no way’ you tell yourself. 

“Your son has grown up very well, Lord Song. He's the spitting image of his great old man” your own father chuckles, creating small talk in the exhausting situation. 

The old lord smiles, approving the way your dad sucks up to Joseon’s Minister of National Defense, understanding that his role in the royal court is not one the regular noble folk overlook. “I should say the same to you, Lord Choi. Beomgyu seems to be getting more…”

Your mother, dripping in her jade rings and silk hanbok chimes in. “Handsome?” she asks, eyes lighting up as she speaks of her prized son.

“Manly?” your father adds. You roll your eyes, holding your tongue as you refrain from saying idiotic to the guests talking about your older brother.

“Charming.” Lord Song’s wife states, smiling artificially as she gives her husband a look that prevents him from talking more about the peculiar boy your brother was.

Lord Song catches it, clearing his throat before moving onto you. “And your daughter, Choi. Why, isn’t she a beauty?” 

You’re revolted from the situation. The sucking up, the forced compliments and just the way you sit there suffocated from the intense stare their son sends you. Why is he looking at you like that?

You cut in, clearing your voice as you put on your most sweetest and respectful tone towards the two married couples. “If I may, could I ask the reason for this meeting, father?”

A silence hangs in the room, the only sound coming from the robins that stand perched on the tree branches outside. Your mother looks to your father, giving him a look that already makes your stomach churn. He speaks first.

“Y/N, Mingi,” he addresses, his voice firm and looking at the boy in front of you whose name it apparently belonged to. Mingi looks up, eyes expectant and he carefully takes his first sip of the tea. 

“We have decided that the two of you should get married”

Mingi chokes on the omija, coughing and exasperating as he tries his very best to hide his surprise at the mentioned subject. You stare at the dim witted fellow you were now apparently to be wedded to, taking out a white cloth handkerchief of yours and offering it to the boy with a dripping chin.

“T-thank you my lady” the boy stutters, earning a small slap on the shoulder from Madame Song for his clumsiness.

“W-when exactly were you thinking?” you stuttered, taken aback at the topic. Deep down, you knew that this wasn’t a suggestion from the elders. It was an order. 

Your eyes wandered back to their son, still and as quiet as he could be. You stared as his chin was still dripping with droplets of the tea, staining his fine robes.

“Why, as soon as possible of course!” Lord Song cries, chuckling with your father. “I would expect the grandchildren to come right away” he comments, sparing a glance to his son. Mingi looked like the definition of uncomfortable right now. “We have a villa up north arranged for you two to settle in. Mingi would be assigned as a governor to the neighboring village of course” Lord Song boasts, speaking proudly. Your father also speaks, looking at you. “And you Y/N, would become the Noble Lady to a village governor”

I can’t do this marriage you say truthfully to yourself.

But something in you stops your refusal to the marriage, an instinct of obedience or some sort, somehow letting your mouth move but your heart to stand still. You don’t hold your tongue. 

“I don’t-” 

You let the two words hang in the air, letting all five pairs, including mingi’s eyes to settle on yourself. 

Shit, better finish that sentence quickly.

You glance over to your father who stares at you intently, a stern look on his face pushing you to finish your sentence before the guests feel disrespected.

You glance down when a hand comes to rest on your own, gripping it tightly and with a fierce grip. Your mother looks at you with a look you wish you never had to see again. A look of apology laces her eyes, before an immediate change washes over her features, and she's sending a look that screams ‘you better make the right choice’

Above all, Mingi looks at you with a look you’d never think a stranger would give to you before.

It was a look of apology. Maybe reassurance. You hope not pity. 

“If it is what the elders would wish for, I will accept it” you say, a rock feeling hitting you on the inside. 

You almost laugh at what you say, as if you would ever dare to have the right to oppose your own marriage. You don’t even know what you’re saying at this point. You knew that you had no say in choosing who you got married to, but were you really going to give up so easily like this? Not even some overthinking?

Mingi sighs so softly, that you have to look up at him to make sure you heard properly. 

Lord Song gives a big smile, opposite to his small crescent eyes that crease in relief. “Very well then! This marriage will be beneficial to both of our families, I can assure that.” your mother tells you, her true intentions showing.

“If only we had a daughter to pair with your son Beomgyu, Lord Choi” Madame Song chuckles, taking a small sip from the glass of omija your mother pours for her. The lady turns relaxed knowing she just sold off her son in an arranged marriage. 

“It’s such a shame you’ve only got five sons Madame” your father chuckles. 

The room roars in laughter, leaving the newly engaged couple in a stream of silence.

–

The weather that afternoon seemed to have understood perfectly the turn of events of the two noble families. With the sudden downpour of cold, heavy rain leading to the extended stay of the Song family, your mother insisted that Mingi and you spend time together to bond. Replacing the happy feelings a soon to be wedded couple should be getting, a galling absence and unbelievable tension filled your room, sighing at life as you sat near your open window. 

Really, you should be giving Mingi a tour of the Choi family residence, impressing the boy with your mediocre sewing skills, or priceless family heirlooms that have enough value to feed a starving Joseon village. But you despised that even more than this marriage already, which is why the two of you stay secluded in these four walls of your room.

Your head leaned against your wrist, watching silently as the faint raindrops spilled to the stone ground of your house, unaware that Mingi, sitting all the way across the room leaning against the wall, had his attention fixed on only you.

It was something he couldn’t put his finger on. Why exactly Lord Choi’s only daughter seemed to have stood out to him right now, when he didn’t even harbor any distinct receptive feelings, and definitely hardly any for love or infatuation. Most of all, why you had agreed so easily to this marriage. Did you like him? Did you want this marriage?

Mingi wasn’t afraid of speaking, but rather the preconceived judgements that would come when someone like you would hear him speak. This time, he took the chance.

“Do you like to read?” he quipped quietly, pulling your thoughts away from your shifted future. 

You turned your head, solemnly analyzing the way the boy sat with his legs crossed, hands on each knee and a hopeful look gleaming in those eyes of his. You catch his gaze falter from the stack of books and scribes you had placed on your desk earlier.

“No” you lied, your answer sharp and articulate, unfazed as you turned your head to back to admire the rain. Slowly but surely, you reached your hand out, feeling cool, wet drops hit your hand and drip down.

Your answer wasn’t one he was expecting, seeing how your disinterest closed off any other room for discussion or small talk. Instead, you asked him something far different than “how many horses and cattles do your family own?” or “which government branch are your brothers located at?” 

“Do you really want to marry me, Mingi?” 

He focuses on your blank face, your eyebrows unraised and light cherry painted lips in the slightest frown. “I want what is best for both our families my lady” he says, hesitant on what he should really even tell you. “And if it is to marry you, I shall” he decides to be his answer.

You scoff, highly skeptical of his answer. You suddenly pick up the scarce material of your hanbok, taking a few strides before you’re swiftly plopping yourself in front of Mingi as you peer profoundly into his eyes. You don’t even realize you’re close enough for your noses to almost be touching. “I won’t mind if you say that you’re unsatisfied with this engagement Mingi.” The boy gulps at your boldness. “Trust me, I’m not too keen on this proposal” you huff, bringing your head away from the boy's gaze.

“It’s far from what you’ve seemed to have told our parents, my lady.” withdrawn, and a hint of sarcasm dripping in his deep voice. Mingi makes an effort to repeat the last two words, slowly starting to piss you off now.

You shoot your head back up, furrowing your eyebrows as you look at the dumb boy. “How about you then? I'm not surprised your parents didn’t bother asking for your opinion about this marriage in the first place”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Mingi retorts, although his face wasn’t as contorted or frustrated looking than you, his hard eyes said it all. Suddenly you two changed to children arguing.

“Don’t you want to choose who to get married with y/n?” Mingi asks you, standing up in exasperation. You close your mouth, his sudden informality of using your name throwing you off for a second. The boy paced back and forth, taking rushed steps as he rubbed the back of his aching neck.

You simply look down to the hands in your lap, answering clearly as the jade ring your mother gave you gleams back at you almost menacingly. “It is not in my own interests to marry who I want to. I’m sure you know that I don’t have that sort of freedom or choice” you confess.

Mingi pauses, sighing as he opens your room door to leave. He looks at you, pity visible in his eyes. Was it towards you? 

“Everyone’s got a choice y/n, even if they think they don’t.”

You’re about to object, opening your mouth before his words beat you to it.

“What exactly is yours?”

The shut of the door leaves the room back to its silence again, the only sounds coming from the open window, and the roaring tears that fall from the sky. You sit there on your floorboards, intensely thinking back to his words that just hung in the air. 

What was your choice?

-

It’s two days later, when your maid bomie knocks on the door of your mothers tea room, eyes wide and frantic like they usually are, but a hushed tone as she asks for your appearance. 

Your mother pays no attention to the maid, but you get up from your seat to personally open the door for her, ignoring the scowl on your moms face since she insists that “maids shouldn’t even be in the tea room”

When you open the door to see the girl gasping for a breath, you calm her down, asking her what on earth made her rush over here this fast. The smell of lavender, lotuses, and korean red pine swarm Bomie’s nose, usually making her sigh and relish the scents, but she's got far more important news to deliver. 

“He’s here!” she whispers squeals, shushing herself when your mother eyes the two of you in suspicion. She goes back to sipping her tea, letting the teapot to ferment with the leaves you put in earlier. You glance back to the maid, furrowing your brows and whispering in the same tone. “Who is?”

“Master Song Mingi!” 

Your eyes widen in surprise. In all honesty, you didn’t think you’d see him again before the actual date of the wedding, since you’re familiar with these arranged marriages. 

The bride and groom don’t actually love each other. 

But you’re dying to know why he's here, which is why you take one look back to your mother, before slipping out of the room, telling Bomie to relay fake news of your ‘sudden headache’ that’s taken over.

So there you stood, in the back garden of your villa, resting against the infamous willow tree with hands in your skirt pockets, eyeing an intimidated Mingi up and down. The not so gentle giant as you liked to call him, looked down at his feet, avoiding your gaze with his hands behind his back. 

You’re thankful for the discreteness Bomie had given you, knowing that your mother would’ve asked the cooks to prepare a feast, and for your father to rush home at the news of your fiance's arrival. You didn’t think Mingi needed all that.

“You wanted to see me?” you say first, the spring breeze blowing small strands of your hair in your face. 

The boy sheepishly reveals a small bouquet of freshly picked baby’s breath, wrapped with a string and amulet that represented his family clan. You stare meekly at the gesture, surprised at Mingi doing something like this out of the blue. Maybe he's guilty for raising his voice at me in my room a few days ago

“I picked them on the way here.” he mumbled, watching as you took them carefully. “It-it reminded me of you” he stutters, making you wonder why he was so nervous. Mingi hopes you’ll be fooled with this stupid, shy boy persona he has on, all before he glances at the house and sees something that makes his gaze suddenly turn sharp. A shadowed figure listening to your conversation through the window. A glare begins to shoot from his eyes, but he doesn’t dare show it to you.

You're a fool, for the way the tiniest smile creeps upon your face from the peculiar gift, and of course for noticing the person eavesdropping. But you also don’t dare show your smile to Mingi either. You had no idea what that boy was planning in his head silently. It was the two bride and groom, hiding everything they could already.

“Thank you” you quietly reply. You inhale the fresh smell. You actually loved Baby’s Breath.

A simple silence follows, the only real sounds coming from the windchimes hung outside of your house, the robins chirping gleefully, and the bustling sounds of the village outside the villa. The shadow advances to you two in the corner of Mingi’s eyes. 

You're admiring the soft buds in your hand, all before a hand grasps your own and pulls you behind the large brute tree. 

You gasp, fighting your way as Mingi takes your hand so suddenly, away from the garden close to the villa. It makes you drop your precious flowers. 

Listen, Mingi’s a gentlemen (at least when he really wants to acts like it), so pulling the girl his whole family clan’s reputation depended on behind a willow tree was not the best idea, but letting a spy listen in on the conversation was a risk he didn’t want to take even more.

“M-Mingi please-” you interjected, resisting his pull as you didnt understand the once shy boy's sudden (and quite inappropriate) actions.

Song Mingi, though a rather timid and weak inarticulate little boy you had thought to be, turned out to be also a much sturdier one, as you couldn’t help but clash face first. Right into his chest as he pulled the two of you behind the willow tree. 

Without even looking, the collision of your head and his body caused quite the impact, a low quiet groan coming from his body as you bumped right into him. Immediately looking up at the person you came to actually despise so quickly in a mere number of moments, you glared ferociously at the man who was indeed, almost a head taller than you. “What are you-”

“Don’t move” he whispered urgently, holding onto your arms, hovering his hand just over to your sides to steady you from the contact. “Oh shut it Mingi-” you huffed, pushing his grip off before you halted just slightly.

The swift footsteps of your mother’s feet are heard, followed by the ones of her many “ladies in waiting” you like to call them, passing through the garden. 

“Now remember to alert the village officiant of the ceremony date,” your mother’s nagging voice filling the pathway through the other parts of the house. “And make sure Y/N’s wedding robes are properly hand sewn before the day as well. We must ensure she looks perfect for the in-laws” Your eyes widened, about to call out before Mingi looked at what you were doing, his massive hands coming to cover half your bottom face and mouth. 

Your muffled calls and yells were unheard, although Mingi struggled to shut you up.

“Please, my lady” a desperation and urgency in his voice. You glared menacingly at the brute, whining like a toddler and smacking his arms in protest. But he didn’t budge at all.

Looking into those eyes of the Song family’s middle child, and the man you were supposedly engaged to made you look carefully at who you were marrying. Well groomed eyebrows, a sharp nose, and those goddamn lips you hated so much made you at a loss for words, despising the current situation more than meeting him for the first time. And above all, the proximity between you two caused an instinctive warmth to form on the apples of your cheeks. The boy only continued to stare behind his shoulder, praying that your mother and her ladies would stop just standing there. It's only after a few seconds, before they leave out of sight completely.

As if on cue, your daze snaps you out, licking the palm of Mingi’s hand as he shrieked and immediately pushed you away like you wanted, looking in horror at his slobbered hand. 

You cough, out of breath as you kicked the boy in the shins for greater measure. Mingi yelps in pain.

“I understand my mother can be menacing,” you huff, chest heaving in exhales. “I know that just as well” 

“But is she really a reason to try to kill me?” you shout at the young master, who’s in shock of how such a noble young lady such as yourself, could be so foul. 

Mingi curses under his breath, rubbing his leg and wiping his hand on his robes, pointing an accusing finger at you. “Listen princess,” he scoffs, attitude completely changing from the ones you’ve always seen him as. 

“I apologize if it was a bit uncomfortable for you back there, but I hope you know that your entire family clan is one of the few people I cannot trust right now” he raises his voice back, towering over your height. “Why is it that everytime I’m in this villa, I catch a shadow or two staring at the back of my head, following me around, or listening in on my conversations” he confesses, watching your eyes widen in disbelief. 

“You’ve got no solid proof of that, my lord,” you accuse, fighting back. “How strange, coming from a gentleman who gifted me a bouquet of flowers just minutes before” you point out, causing Mingi to look away and curse at his slip up of persona. 

You put a sarcastic emphasis on ‘my lord’, the same as he did with ‘princess’. Primarily because you hated princesses.  

“Considering that our families are about to be wedded in a little over a week from now, you better get used to coming into my villa filled with spies, whether you like it or not” you banter, wiping your lips with the back of your sleeve. 

“I get that you’re upset with this marriage, and I get that you are such a self-centered prick with trust-issues to only care about yourself, but that doesn’t give you the opportunity to suffocate my mouth like that asshole” you cry out. “or shove us behind a tree!”

Mingi stares stunned at your potty mouth, anger fuming from his ears. The two of you are pink in the face, chests heaving from the yelling, and you’re honestly not surprised if your mother, let alone the whole villa, ends up catching the both of you here together. 

Mingi is the first to break the intense staring between you two, clenching his fist as he closes his eyes to take a deep breath. He chastises himself for lashing out at you, hoping you don’t go telling everyone of his split personality. He has to persuade you, he thinks. Why not have a bit of fun as well? You’re going to marry him anyway.

Mingi lowers himself in front of you, coming down on one knee, before the other comes down as well, and he's kneeling in front of you, head hanging low. Your eyes widen at his gestures once again, suddenly breaking out of your intimidation stance.

“Mingi, what are you-”

“I’m asking for forgiveness my lady” he sighs, rubbing the back of his neck and seeming to regret his tone and words. Mingi looks embarrassed once again, and you think you’ve never seen a man go from an anger level of ten to one this quick. 

“I’ve been having trouble coming to the reality of this marriage, though I’ve also seemed to lack the ability to recognize how hard this sudden arrangement must’ve been on yourself. I apologize for my actions, and for the hurt I’ve caused you” he says sincerely, finally sounding like someone of noble birth and raising. 

“Oh,” you blurt, because what do you say to that?

“I-It wasn’t that bad, I guess” you say sheepishly, looking down at Mingi who looks like he's killed someone. “I wasn’t the nicest either'' you quip, holding your other arm. Mingi almost breaks character, smiling slightly at your voice but he holds his composure, head still handing down. He looks back to you, grasping onto the fabrics of your gown and suddenly diving his face into it, loud fake sobs muffled through the skirt. 

“I deserve to die!” Mingi dramatizes, back hunched over. “I don’t deserve this marriage!”

You're baffled, bewildered, and highly distasteful. Any term to describe how you feel about Mingi’s sudden breakdown. “I’m sorry my lady, please forgive” he sobs again.

Your heart pangs at the sight of him, but also lowkey cringing at the sight of a 6 foot tall giant keeling for your forgiveness and using your dress as a tissue. Not the ideal image you were looking for when you said you wanted Mingi to suffer. He should at least suffer without your expense.

“M-Mingi” you usher, patting his back when he suddenly cries even louder. You roll your eyes, thinking this was ridiculous.

“Death, Death is what I deserve, how dare I-” words keep spewing from his cries. 

“Mingi!” you say, catching his attention. The boy stops crying, face still in the fabric of your skirt.

“I-It’s alright I guess,” you say awkwardly. “We can reconcile, we’ll take this agreement slowly for the betterment of us and our families as well” you reason. “I forgive you, and I’m also quite sorry if I hurt you as well. That wasn’t nice of me” you say, giving in.

It's gone quiet for just a few seconds, before Mingi smirks through the fabric of your hanbok, letting it go, dusting his knees, and standing back up as if he didn’t just sob and guilt trip you tremendously.

“Lovely to know my lady, I’ll see that we have no hard feelings then” he smirks, realizing that you’ve been practically conned by the pity of a man. The bastard wasn’t even crying, as you looked at the dry fabric of your dress. He was just acting so that you’d overlook his actions, and forgive him so easily. Mingi sniffles fake tears, sarcastically sending you a smug grin. “Did I mention I was the middle child of four other brothers?” you blink, as the boy leans down to whisper at your level. “I’ve learned a few things here and there, my lady” 

You stare in disbelief. “Oh my god, that was all an act?” 

Mingi puts his hand behind his hips, walking freely and proudly about his accomplishment of calming your sudden temper down, smiling at the way you continue to get angry, but find no way to let it out.

“You did say you forgave me Y/N” Mingi smiles, finding the expression on your face actually cute.

“You liar!” you accuse, flabbergasted and in shock. You realized then that the Mingi you met in front of the elders that day, wasn’t the real Mingi at all. He was cunning, smart, and quite frankly, an excellent liar. 

He walks towards the doors of your villa, and you follow him all the way outside. Calling him out for his actions, telling him that he's scum, and that you won’t let him get away with this. All throughout the way. 

The two of you have already stepped out of the Choi family villa when your mother finally catches sight of the tall boy. “Mingi?” she gasps, viewing the two of you near the entrance. Her and her escapade of maids come down the steep stone steps, Mingi bowing courteously like the noble he fakes himself to be.

You gawk at the way Mingi greets your mother, kissing her hand as he asks how she has been, reassuring her that he had just visited to see his soon to be bride's face. You almost want to laugh when he gets to that part. 

“You should’ve still told your in-laws you were coming” your mother scolds, smiling happily at her soon to be son-in-law.

She looks at the state you’re in, hair still a little messy from the way Mingi oddly shoved your head into his chest to keep you quiet earlier. She chastises you, asking you if you greeted him in this state. 

The next thing Mingi does makes you almost want to barf directly onto him, only being able to stand in horror as he removes a stray hair from your face. “If you must know something about me mother, I cannot lie” he says, eyes glimmering as he stares at your own

“Y/N is simply the most beautiful girl in all of Joseon” 

You physically gag as your mother looks up at the taller boy and hugs him delightedly, holding his hand as she personally leads him out of the tall wooden doors. “My goodness, you’re quite the charmer after all, aren’t you” she giggles. 

Mingi links arms with the short woman, bent down slightly at her level the plans she had in mind. All before he looks back at you one last time, sending a wink that made you twist and turn horribly on the inside. 

_ 

“He’s cynical!” 

You’re pacing back and forth in your chambers now, a clear distaste for the man you’re supposed to be wedded to in less than a week. Seungkwan sits, staring at you as you stride back and forth. He made sure to keep his mouth shut or else he really thinks you’ll go crazy.

You whip towards him, head shaking in disbelief still. “That boy humiliated himself, only to then humiliate me!” you exclaim. Seungkwan furrows his eyebrows in confusion. “Didn’t he apologize sincerely to you?”

You stop in your tracks, looking at the boy in realization. “I-I guess he did..” you mutter, before going back to your protests. “But he was acting! He accused our family of having spies, people who were listening in on his conversations-” you exclaimed. 

Seungkwan sighed, stroking the fur of your petticoat he was cleaning in his hands. “The maids here are quite interested in the gossip and new marriage. Although I really do think the young master just likes you miss” he confesses. 

You turn your head, eyeing seungkwan in skepticality. “What makes you think that?” 

He gestures to the flowers on your dresser, displayed in a white marble vase. “He got you flowers, hugged you in his arms, and complimented your beauty” he shrugs, inspecting the fur in his hands.

You scoff, coming down to sit beside your friend. “One, he didn’t hug me, he suffocated me,” you remarked. “Two, the flowers and fake compliments are surely just so he can suck up to me so that I don’t tell his father who’s the ministry of defense” you said proudly about your observations.

Seungkwan sighs in disbelief, shaking his head. 

“Noble problems”

-

It's only two days after your first meeting with the Song clan, and wedding preparations are in full swing. From the chefs planning the array of traditional banquet foods, to the seamstresses designing the last touches to the bridal outfit you’ll wear. You don’t feel any better about this wedding, still worried about how you were going to live with a stranger, let alone a boy who you’ve realized is a total two-faced wacko. You often wondered if this arranged marriage could ever blossom into a real one, maybe becoming acquaintances with Mingi, even if you couldn’t be lovers.  

That all changes that rainy night, when you tell your servant boy, Seungkwan, that you’ll be making plans to visit the local market.

“B-but my lady! It’s raining astronomically out there! Must we really take the carriage to the market today?!” You send Seungkwan a look, already dressed in your outdoor coat, and a bamboo pencil case tucked under your armpit. “You shouldn’t be leaving the house for too long my lady. You’re supposed to be practicing your vows for your marriage ceremony soon,” Seungkwan worries.

“If you must really ask, yes, we do need to go today” you tell him, fixing your skirt once more. 

The boy looks in disbelief, scrunching his eyes in disapproval as he sighs and accepts your orders. “What on earth for?”

You turn around, already about to open your chamber doors before you shoot seungkwan a mischievous smile. 

“You’ll see Kwanie.” you say, laughing when you can already hear sounds of worry and irritation come from the poor boy's mouth.

You’re reminded why you should leave your family hanok more often. The rainy market streets of Joseon are less crowded than usual, but they are just as captivating seeing them through falling raindrops. Having the comfort of sitting in the intricately carved wooden palanquin, you leave your window slightly ajar, a way for you to get a glimpse of the humble life you always silently yearned for from afar. 

Too bad the chances will be completely gone out the window once you marry Mingi and become a stay at home nobleman's wife.

Vendors and street carts of a variety of businesses hurry to pack their items, last calls of discounted prices and newly imported goods from the neighboring capitals rolling in. Many rushed to cover their goods, finding refuge against the straw huts and villas, while others used their baskets and coats as makeshift umbrellas. 

“Seems that everyone is closing up” seungkwan observes, clutching his soaking cloak over his head, squinting as the rain gets in his eyes. You look to the bamboo pencil container you held protectively in your lap, clutching it close before you feel the palanquin come to a halt.

“We’re here, my lady” seungkwan’s rain-covered voice tells you, opening the doors for you to come out of. Stepping onto the wet ground and holding your cloak closer over your head, you look up to see the place you’d been looking for.

“Hwan’s General Store” seungkwan read out loud, narrowing his eyes as he struggled to read what the other signs beside it said. 

“Are you sure about this?” the boy whined, disliking the sketchiness of everything, especially on a rainy night such as this one.

Ignoring his comment, you proceeded to go in. “Shall we?” you offered, letting seungkwan roll his eyes in skepticality as he opened the sliding wooden doors for you. You glance quickly before walking in, failing to notice the crimson red that’s slathered on the rocks outside. 

Hwan’s greets you with the smell of ancient herbal medicines, freshly made wooden brushes, and the warmth of a burning candle left on the table of his desk. As you stepped into the store, you brushed off your soaked cloak, handing it over to Seungkwan who tucked it carefully over his arms. Taking out the container you stored carefully in your pocket, you awaited for the man himself to come and see you.

“Wait outside for me please Seungkwan,” you order the boy behind you. Immediately he steps up, protesting against your request. “I can’t leave you here alone!,” he exasperates, eyes going wide. “Who knows what will happen to a young lady like yourself! I’ll just stand behind, protect you-”

“Seungkwan,” you say with a little more order in your voice. “I’m okay” you tell him gently, putting a hand on his shoulder to prevent him from getting ahead of himself. You reassure the anxious boy down, promising nothing will happen to you.

And so after much convincing, the boy leaves you. Saying he’ll be right near the doors under the shop roof, listening in to your “possible cries of distress” as he had stated.

“Hwan?” you called out to the empty front of the store.

You realize it immediately. It is a little too quiet once you're alone. 

The pitter patters of the raindrops against the wood echo throughout the store, letting your gaze fall upon the various items the general shop had to offer. The room feels chilly, even a candle burning away. From blank paper scrolls to small foreign sweets, there was nothing you couldn’t find at Hwan’s. Which is exactly why you were here.  

“Lady Choi?” you hear an old voice say, instantly recognizing the circular rimmed spectacles that came out from the dark back of the store and greeted you always. “Is that you?”

The old man squinted his eyes, though his age now affected his vision, still able to see that his most valuable customer was standing right there in his shop

“Hello Hwan” you bow gracefully, sending him a smile. The man looked surprised to see you, looking back at inventory shelves he had behind him before sending you a large smile. “What may I do for you miss?” you took note of his hiding hands, shying behind his body from you to see. A faint bruise seemed to form near his right eye.

You handed him the bamboo case, your voice turning to an automatic hush. “I just need you to look into these brushes I mentioned to you last week. The special ones that were imported” you told him, sending him a look that relayed the importance. Really, it was just the bamboo case that acted as a mere cover for the information you protected inside.

Mr. Hwan looked at your items, quickly taking your bamboo scroll in both his hands and bowing to you in courtesy. “Of course my lady, right away” he assured. 

It isn’t until a shift of movement is heard at the back that sets your attention away from the man.

The store turns silent, the only sounds being shallow breaths from the both of you.

Hwan immediately comes up with an excuse, fumbling with the item in his hands. “Must’ve been the wind. I’ll be right back with your brushes my lady” Hwan is clumsy sometimes, but the old man has never been anxious like this. 

“And please,” he says, turning back to you once more. “Stay right there.”

The store owner rushes to his office quarters, once again leaving just you and the dimly lit room, the wind howling and the rain pouring above. 

And of course, you don’t listen. 

You walk around the shop, eyeing the intricate objects and foreign posters brought from nations that crossed seas and mountains from Joseon. You smile, seeing a familiar book placed in a bookcase nearby, stepping forward to inspect it. It isn’t until you reach for the scribe, that you see a sopping wet cloak strewn across a chair adjacent from it, freshly drenched and droplets still dropping one by one to the wooden floors. You furrow your eyebrows, noting how Hwan is always alone, never making trips in weather like this either. 

Your eyes widen when the drops fall pink, not clear like water. It’s then that you see it from the corner of your eye, the swift movement.

You whip your head back, a chill running up your spine. You swear you saw it. The movement of a person. Your instincts kick in, rummaging your pockets for the small knife you always carried, before realizing that Seungkwan has it in your coat. You breathe, trying to stay calm.

Taking the small wax candle by its handle, you peered into the darkness of the store, squinting through the shelves of shadows. Hwan was known for his collection of books, shelves reaching until the very end of the place. Each step you took, your heart only beated faster, hoping that you’re likely mistaken than right about a possible intruder. The rain roars louder, almost as a warning for you to leave immediately. 

After staring at nothing but darkness for a few moments, you sighed, letting the candle down onto the edge of the table and relaxing your shoulders. “What were you thinking Y/N…'' you mumbled incoherently to yourself. 

You sigh, turning to call for Hwan before a stack of books fall to the ground, gasping as you look down at the floor of the first bookshelf. Covered in darkness from no light in the store, you grasp the candle nearby, shedding light only on the pair of shoes of the stranger that stood right in front of you. 

A loud shriek escapes your lips, a hand muffling your voice before you even have the chance to scream for help. Dropping the candle to the damp floor, the room becomes dark with only moonlight.

The embrace is familiar somehow, and you don’t know why, only knowing that your self defense tactics come right on the spot, thrashing against the strangers build.

You desperately call for help despite the muffled groans, all before a voice calls to you.

“You’re fine, It’s just me” the man says, your eyes widening in recognition of that familiar deep voice you grew to hate. The man spins you around, letting your back hit the bookcase so you’re facing each other. Both of your chests heave up and down, tongue becoming dry and words dying in your throat. Though no light or fire to properly show the individual, the slivers of moonlight shining through was enough to illuminate the outline of his nose, the shape of his jaw, and the look of worry on his face. You step back in disbelief.

“Mingi?” 

Your fiance sighs, looking down with irritation to see his bride to be catching him in the act of hiding. “What are you doing here Y/N” he stays sternly, his gruff and weak voice making you shocked. 

“I should be asking the same thing to you, what are you doing here? you protest, shaking off his grip on your wrists as you push him away. Mingi’s spine hits the next bookcase, a painful groan that he tried so hard to conceal, slipping past his lips. 

“What are you-”

It’s only then do your eyes dart to the dark stain that bleeds into Mingi’s right abdomen, staining his expensive and rain drenched robes.

You gasp, hands coming to cover your mouth at the gruesome sight, the fairly deep slashed skin peering through the cuts of fabric, losing more blood by the passing second.

His breaths are heavy, and you almost have the genuine urge to punch him for scaring you like that, but instead rush to help the injured man stand properly first. You instinctively press your hand on top of his own, trying to stop the bleeding though the boy hisses at the excruciating pressure. 

“Y/N, shit” he curses, voice dying through his groans. 

“Mingi, what on earth happened to you? Are you alright? You’re bleeding-”

Mingi shuts his eyes in frustration, wincing in pain as he tries to calm you and your raging questions down. He pushes your hand on top of his wound away. “I’m fine.” he grimaces, though visibly getting weaker from the amount of blood he's losing. “Just ran into some trouble in the market.”

You make eye contact with the boy, wondering what trouble Mingi really meant. 

Mingi seems to read your mind after seeing your skeptical expression. “A couple of goons jumped me,” he added. “Couldn’t get enough of me, really” flashing a grin at you even as he was slowly losing his life in this situation. 

You furrowed your eyebrows, shaking your head as you looked into his eyes. “Mingi, we can’t leave you here like this, you need to get this wound treated” you insisted urgently. 

Mingi looks down at you, clutching his abdomen as he's about to protest, before Hwan miraculously appears in the moment. The bamboo pencil case you brought with you in his hand as he slides a small piece of paper inside. It isn’t until he sees the evident darkness, the two of you beside each other, and Mingi’s blood staining his floors, that he shrieks in surprise. Hwan quickly lights a match, holding up a light that illuminates his eyes going wide with fear.

Mingi’s breathing is starting to become uneven, and you realize that now you’ve got to act fast, even as you ignore all the questions you had for him inside.

You pleaded, every second passing making your fiance become weaker. “We need medicine, Hwan. Can’t you let him stay here?”

The old man doesn’t answer your questions, too busy snatching his merchandise beside Mingi that was getting droplets of his blood on them. “Not the new paintings from the Ming Dynasty!” Hwan yelped. “These cannot get blood on them!” he insisted, though dying down when he saw the glare Mingi sends him even in his state. 

Mingi hunched over, grasping his wound as he threatened menacingly. “Don’t make me give you another black eye old man-”

Hwan pouts his lip, muttering under his breath as he transfers the fire to a candle. 

You overlook the fact that your fiance was going around punching people and getting stabbed, adamant on showing Hwan the scowl on your face. “Did you know he was here?” you ask the merchant, glaring at him when he refused to meet your eyes.

“So this was what you were hiding, huh?” you scoffed, looking at the two men.

The older one sighed, moving a shelf behind you two, looking for something you couldn’t seem to care about at the moment. 

“I’m sorry my lady, I really didn’t mean to hide him from you!” he argued, opening shelves and rummaging through drawers. “I told the young master he couldn’t come in with his injuries like that, but he insisted so dearly, giving me this black eye and threatening that if-”

“The punch wasn’t even that hard!” Mingi groaned from the shelf behind, making you glare at both men from keeping this from you.

Hwan finally looks at you, finding a jar of herbal medicine in his inventory, and shoving the product in your hands, pushing the two of you towards the entrance.

“Forgive me my noble customers, but you have extended your stay for far too long” he stated with a shake of his head.

“Hwan, how are we supposed to-”

Opening the door, the owner shoves the two of you out, looking back to you one last time. 

“I apologize profusely my lady, but I cannot have a dead person in my store, not this time again” 

You gape with an open mouth and stare wide eyed at the man, making him sigh as he tells you one last thing. 

“That jar in your hand is the most prized herbal medicine that I’ve got. It’s used on wounds for them to heal faster. Once you strip the young master of his clothes and clean his wound, apply it directly for fast recovery”. You’re about to protest before a quick apology and the shut of the store door prevents you from finishing. 

The lights in Hwan’s general store finally go out, leaving you, your wounded fiance, and the staring moon to stand witness to the night's events. 

_

You knew you didn’t have time to waste. 

Mingi had already begun to fall in and out of his consciousness, breathing hard as he struggled to keep half of his body weight off from you. 

“y/n…”

“Stop speaking Mingi.” you cut him off. 

Wrapping his arm around your shoulder, you led him to the palanquin parked nearby, ignoring the high-pitched shriek that leaves Seungkwan’s mouth when he sees you two limp over. 

“My lady!” he gasps, rushing over with eyes wide as he first helps you lift Mingi up properly. “W-what happened?” 

You brush off the stares from the porters and Seungkwan himself, focused on getting Mingi into the vehicle and going to get help. 

“There's no time for an explanation now, Seungkwan. We have to bring Lord Song’s son back to his home. Contact the local physician to-”

A firm hand grasps your own, pulling you down so you’re faced with the wounded man inside.

Mingi’s eyes struggle to even open, but he nevertheless stares at you with an intense look you’ve never seen before. 

“Anywhere but my house” he grits, expression transforming into a look of warning and seriousness at your surprised face.

You argue back, “You’re crazy if you think we can go anywhere else right now, you’re going to die if we don’t-” Mingi grasps onto your hand as he pleads that you not go to his place. 

“I can’t go there” he warns you, staring into your eyes. “Please.”

A few agonizing seconds pass before you sigh and let go of his hand, untying the ribbon of your hanbok top. Mingi stares in silence, watching as you hurry to do so.

You wrap the fabric around his wound, tying a knot tight enough for him to curse profusely at the sharp pain, making you look up at his face and mumble a small apology.

Standing back up, you turn around to see a worried crowd staring back at you. You cut to the chase, holding the bamboo pencil case close in your arms.

“Back at our house,” you order, ignoring Seungkwan's protests. “Not a second to lose, so hurry up please.”. That’s all it takes for the ports to scurry in their positions, lifting the carriage back home.

When you’re outside your family villa, it’s a whole struggle trying to get past anyone that could witness the wounded stranger that's piggybacked on top of poor Seungkwan. Surprisingly enough, the three of you make it, with your best friend muttering how heavy Mingi was as he sets him down on your comforters.

“You’ve gotten herself into something again, haven't you?” Seungkwan pants, catching his breath. You continue to ignore him, asking to quickly get a few materials, a warm basin of water, and a bottle of alcohol. The servant boy can only sigh painfully before he dashes out the room.

The candle wick on your desk burns slowly, fluttering with every swift move you take to tend to Mingi’s needs. 

“Thank you,” Mingi admitted, looking at you when you turned around to face him in surprise. “You didn’t need to do all of this. You would have risked being caught by your parents.” 

You faltered, shaking your head as you told him firmly. “Listen, I don’t really like you that much, but I figured if i’m gonna be married to you, might as well have you alive first” you sighed, watching as Mingi slowly smiles at your comment, letting you take care of him. You for once, smile back, pushing down the small guilt concerning what’s inside the pencil case. 

First you rid him of his outerwear, taking his robes off to reveal his inner clothing stained all over with blood. You wince at the sight, wondering how on earth he's even come this far along. Now with the towels and warm water by your side, you begin to clean him up. “I’m gonna have to cut your robes” you tell him, swallowing hard as you prepare yourself.

What are you even preparing yourself for? you ask yourself. You feel stupid with how nervous you’re suddenly feeling. That you’re nervous about seeing your fiance’s bare body amongst all other dire things in this situation. You don’t even spare a glance at Mingi before you start tearing your ribbon and the fabric, revealing the fresh cut. Mingi bites his tongue. 

Just as you saw in the darkness of the store, it’s pretty deep. Flakes of dried blood surround the raw, injured area as it bleeds painfully onto the sheets. Nevermind them now. 

Mingi sucks in a breath of air, and you feel bad for what you’re about to do. You take a small handkerchief and fold it, telling Mingi to open his mouth. 

In the moment he simply obliges, but soon after a blood curdling scream is muffled through, as you place a towel damp with alcohol to disinfect the wound. You grimace at the groans coming from Mingi, looking away as you can’t seem to muster any courage to look at the expression on the poor boy's face. Seungkwan does the same, lips pursed in a thin line, though he tells him to quiet down for the sake of not getting caught.

After you try your very best to disinfect the wound, you proceed to wipe any other parts with water, blowing gently to let it receive some air. 

It's only up close when you see just how ripped Mingi is, and you almost choke on air. Christ, focus Y/N

“Hand me the bottle, Seungkwan” you say next, receiving the medicine Hwan promised you would help.

Mingi eyes the foreign substance that he hears sloshing around inside, gasping as he frightfully speaks. “W-What are you going to do to me now? Are you going to poison me?” he says, fear clearly going to his brain at the moment.

Seungkwan looks at him with an attitude, insisting that they were helping him not die, and that he should be more thankful.

You place your hand on top of Mingi’s scarred knuckles, reassuring him. 

“It’s gonna help you. Don’t worry”

And that’s all it takes for him to trust you, letting you apply the foreign liquid, clean up his wound, and bandage him up properly. 

Seungkwan just stared at the awkward, yet obvious romantic tension coming from the two of you when you bandaged Mingi’s bare body, deciding to not say a word in the process.

A glass of hot cinnamon tea is served, courtesy of Seungkwan’s amazing observation, seeing that the young lord needed something sweet for surviving all that pain just now. Mingi already seems to look better with some warm tea in his body, sitting up straight with only a loose, untied robe covering his muscular chest. With Seungkwan gone to fetch a new basin of water and dispose of the evidence discreetly, it leaves the two of you in a stream of silence. 

You focus on wrapping the extra bandages, not looking up to see his face.

He breaks the wall of silence first. “You’re good at bandaging.” he says, teacup warm in his right hand.

Mingi simply stares at you, and you can see him do it. 

You instinctively smirk, putting the last of the materials away. “I saved your life and now you’re nice, huh?” 

Mingi grins softly, eyelashes fluttering. “I gotta set my priorities straight after almost dying I guess” he shrugs. “I owe you one.”

You face him, the warm glow of the candles in your room lighting up the sides of his face, and suddenly making you unaware of any potential servants outside the room that could catch you two.

“So are you going to tell me why you have this wound?” you asked, raising a brow.

Mingi sighs, setting the teacup down.

“I told you, I was jumped.” he states, trying to solidify his point. “Those thieves stole my money and everything I owned.” he said through a sigh, running calloused fingers through his hair to keep it in place. 

You looked carefully at the boy, then pointed to his damaged robes left at the side. “Your coin pouch is still in there, and that ring is still on your finger” you point, looking at the expensive ruby ring that lo and behold, sits safely on his finger. No way someone wouldn’t rob that. 

Mingi lets his tongue poke the side of his mouth, staring you down, and even letting you stare back because he sees that you don’t want to lose. You’re very attentive, he observes. 

And he's right. Mingi is hiding something from you, and you know it. His whole facade of being his family’s dimwitted son is a cover, and you could tell from the last time near the willow tree, and tonight as well. Mingi is definitely smart and tactical. But he’s also a liar. 

He confesses finally after a few seconds. “I’ll stop with the whole dumb fool act, since you’re not buying it now.” 

You sit there in small shock, not thinking he’d start off like that. 

“You’ve guessed it by now, but I’m not as dumb and clumsy as you think I am-”

You interject. “No, I know you’re dumb and clumsy. It’s just that you’re also hiding something from me” you say, trying to humble him.

Mingi genuinely laughs at your comment, making you frown slightly because you actually meant it.

But then his smile fades and he leans closer to you, his robes opening to show his white bandaged torso that you did for him. You try to only stare at his face. “The country is in danger, Y/N.” he says in a low voice, as if someone else was listening. “We’ve had all our wars” you declared, not understanding what danger this was now.

“It’s affecting the people. The farmers don’t even have rice to feed themselves, and villages are going hungry. Men are selling themselves to the war, only to return back dead. The royal family doesn’t care about its people. Only themselves, and the greed of winning that blinds them”

You listen carefully, thinking back to the conversations your parents would have without you and Beomgyu. Your father coming home with a hunched back and dark circles because of the work at the palace government. Was this what he was concerned about?

“But there's hope, isn’t there? These men will receive compensation and work for the good of our country” you say, staring at Mingi who sighs at your innocence and leans back in your comforters.

“It’s not like that y/n. When have we cared for the people as the nobility? That’s why this country is like this.”

You take in what he tells you. “Then how does this apply to you being stabbed? What dangerous work are you putting yourself in if you’re not even a soldier or officer, then what are you? A reb-”

Your words die down, eyes widening in realization at what that leaves Mingi with. He only blinks once towards your direction, looking away after.

“You’re a part of the rebellion, aren't you?”

Mingi doesn’t deny or confirm, letting you sit back in your seat. 

You’ve heard of them. The people who defy the rulings of the nobility and royal family. The people who plot the revenge and death of King Choi. The farthest cousin from you in your Choi family clan. You thought back to the times when your father would praise the leader of your country for being distantly related to you. Someone who was killing and murdering your country, was the same person who shared blood with your very self. 

“There was a run-in with spies coming from the Palace walls,” he says. “They’re planning to wipe out any people with alliances of plotting against King Choi. I barely escaped when they raided our hideout, seeking refuge in Hwan’s.” he told you. 

His words hang in the air, the candles flickering on your table. 

“Then the act of being stupid…” you mutter, the puzzle pieces coming together.

Mingi says what you're thinking. “A dumb son is safer than a smart son to my father” he whispers, looking down at his lap.

“You didn’t go home because of your father possibly finding out.” you whispered.

Mingi nods. A minute seems to pass by.

“And you trust me with all this?” you finally ask, looking up at your fiance. You feel like you have to stop calling him that, even though he is your fiance. 

“Why not? You did save me.” he smiles, sincerely showing his gratitude for the first time since you met him. “Without you, I would’ve not made it.”

He leans in towards you, letting his body rest as he perches his arm. “I’ve even told you my secret. Now you’ve got to tell me what’s in that pencil case of yours” he smirked, nodding towards the important information that sat on your dresser. 

You look to where he speaks of, turning around and letting out a sigh. 

“Come on, I bet it doesn’t compare with what I’ve told you” he smiles to himself.

“I was trying to get into contact with this merchant…'' You confessed quietly. Mingi looks at you with a raise of his eyebrows. “For what?”

“To try and run away.” you answer.You look up, finally revealing the last part you’ve been saving this entire time. “And the contact of a hitman who’d offer to take you out…”

Mingi chokes on air, eyes widening as he immediately leans away from you, staring in horror as you sheepishly smile with guilt, trying to defend yourself. 

“Listen, after you pulling off that show-” 

“You really don’t want to get married to me, do you?” Mingi says quietly, watching your face. 

You sighed, regretting your irrational decision, knowing you couldn’t possibly kill someone just to not get married. Even finding a boat to the Ming dynasty was far fetched, even for a noble young girl like you.

“I’ll get married if I sincerely have to survive. But I just don’t think forcing myself to be with a stranger like that will be considered ‘living’ for me” you say. You really hope you’re not confusing Mingi right now, and you thank God when he actually seems to understand.

Something in Mingi’s heart pulls his strings. Maybe it’s because of how kind you’ve actually treated him, and the way you’re somehow the only person to know about his deepest secret. You’re the only one that has accepted him like this. 

You’ve suddenly got a grasp on him, he thinks. You’re so close to seeing his true identity and real self that it’s starting to scare him.

He simply rests his hand on yours, saying something you’d never thought he’d say.

“Let’s not get married.”

You try to comprehend what you just heard. “What?”

“I’ll try to convince my father. This marriage is going to be a waste for you and me, and I’d rather have both of us get our way instead of our parents' way.” 

“Mingi, that’ll be almost impossible, the wedding preparations and time-”

He cuts you off with a shake of his head. “That’s our decision. We should have a choice, not just them.” 

Mingi tells you one last thing, placing his hand on your own. You grasp it tightly.

“I’ll do it for you. I promise.”

The room is quiet, and as you lean in closer to Mingi, you try to forget all about the fact that your two worlds are collapsing. The war that rages, the people who suffer, the whole insecurity and distrust of it all. All you see is Mingi, shuffling closer, swallowing hard as you guess who’ll make the first move…

“Y/N, darling. Are you asleep?” your mother’s voice outside the door snapping the both of you out, making you gasp in realization. Her knocking on the door rings throughout the room.

Mingi’s lips stop puckering, and instead his eyes widen, scurrying to gather his things and erase any trace of his existence. He still groans a bit when he moves too suddenly.

“What do we do now?!” he whispers frantically, staring at you as you grip your hair in distress.

You’re frantically looking around. Seeing your large window and balcony, you quickly push the tall giant towards it. “Through the window!” you exclaim, covering the blood stains he left with your untainted comforters. 

Turns out, Mingi is more clumsy than you’d think he is, for the way he completely falls out of the window and lands right in your backyard. 

You gasp, hands coming to cover your mouth. 

“Y/N Darling, are you alright? I’ve got some wedding details to discuss with you!” your mom persists, growing more impatient and suspicious by the second. You assure her you're fine, telling her to give you a second as you rush to the window.

“Mingi?”

“I-I’m good” the boy replies meekly, frankly sounding the opposite, but already getting up and walking away on the grass like he knows your house.

“Front gate is that way” you whisper loudly, gesturing to the opposite direction he was turned in.

Mingi hurriedly strides to the other door, flashing you a sheepish smile that you have to admit is pretty cute if it weren’t for the urgency of the moment.

“Y/N!!!” your mother’s agonizing voice calls out again, snapping you from your daze.

“Coming!” 

You glace one last time to the boy disappearing through the night, pacing to reach the handles of your door. 

He’ll be fine. 

You take a deep breath, trying to forget about the boy who doesn’t know it yet, but has already won your heart over. 

You open the doors, putting up a fake smile.

!no distribution or translation of yunlvr’s work!

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author's note: It's finally here! thank you so much for those who have patiently waited and supported me for this series. You have no idea how much feedback and reblogs help my blog out, so don't forget to do those if you can! Sorry if I wasn’t able to tag you bc of the limit, but I will post separately where to find it! Not really sure specifically when part two will come out, but we'll see! happy reading my little monsters^^

the hair the hair THE HAIR

ჷⴜ ׁ ⍺ 𝗅𝗈𝘴𝘦𝗋 𝗌𝗍𝗎𝘤𝘬 𝗂𝘯 ⍺ 𝘩𝘰𝘵 𝖻𝗈𝘥𝘺 TT

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨ ☆ ୧⋆ ˚｡⋆ hongjoong moodboard 💭🎧

like or reblog ★

for twitter packs 🤍

✰ 🎶 ˚ ༘ ✶💭. ࣪☆ hongjoong layouts ｡* 🐿️ ✧.˚˖

like or reblog!

✰ 🕯 ˚ ༘ ✶💭. ࣪☆ yuyu moodboard ｡*♡✧.˚˖

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berry joong 🫐 ✧ . 𖦹 ˖ ࣪ ☆ ˚

✰ 🎧 ˚ ༘ ✶🥣. ࣪☆ seonghwa requested moodboard ｡*♡✧.˚˖

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@hwadior 🫙

can you do a moodboards of hanse viction , hongjoong ateez, renjun nct dream messy/grunge or blue thanks you <3 (like only one mb with all the boys)

✶💭. ࣪☆ hongjoong + renjun + hanse moodboard ♡✧.˚˖

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💭🥑🎧 kpop green random moodboard ✧.˚˖ ་

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💧💭🥣 mingi layouts ✧.˚˖ ་ 🌐

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✧.˚˖ ་ mingi green moodboard 🗯🌿🍏📗🐉🍵

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🧋🕯 ✧.˚˖ ་ ♡ wooyoung moodboard 🎧💭

like or reblog ♡!

✧.˚˖ ་ log_1DAY VLOG in the US #MINGI twitter packs 💭

like or reblog >_<

♡₍ᐢ.  ̫.ᐢ₎  SAN layouts! 📼🕯🗯️

like or reblog ^^

✧.˚˖ ་ seonghwa layouts 💭🎱🧷

like or reblog <3

✧.˚˖ ་ mingi packs 💭🎱🧷

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pause because why is ateez going on another tour when they just wrapped one up? and there’s almost no break between each leg. kq what are we doing?

— 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘺𝘢

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀➛⠀🌐̤̫⻨꯭⻰⠀゛ꗃ⠀(𝑡.)umblr﹗ネジ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀♡̶⠀完꯭璧꯭な 、mingi dark icons ੭⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀◖⠀⻩阘꯭⻡⻨꯭⻝꯭⺛⠀✮⠀゛🚈⠀༄⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌

Babe🩵