Enhypen Added Member - Blog Posts

LOVE & WAR

𓈒 ◯ 𓏸 ﹒ 🏹 ﹒ ⌣⌣

────   ꒰՞ ܸ. .ܸ՞꒱ mila and her men enter a new era with an old case of jealousy.

2023 ❪ dark blood ❫ ✶ poly!ot7엔하 x fem!member oc ୨୧ jealousy, possessiveness, suggestive themes, nud1ty & implied s3xual content ❪ between red text — skip if uncomfortable ❫ ; not proofread

TO APPRECIATE THE WORDS, “All is fair in love and war,” required an understanding of the simple but harsh truth that neither love nor war were ever fair.

It had been almost a year since Enhypen’s last comeback. It was a considerable break in an industry where artists were expected to release singles upon albums upon repackages every time the seasons changed, lest they lost the eye of the public. But even in that time where things should have come to a standstill, the world still spun, and life for the members continued to move forward: they held their very first world tour, they celebrated two years since the release of ‘Given-Taken,’ and they toasted to their beloved leader Jungwon’s coming-of-age.

They were in their era of milestones.

Then, they were in their era of ‘Dark Blood.’

When the comeback briefing had come and gone, Mila spent her days doing anything she could to think about it as little as possible. It was at that time that she learned what it was like to be consumed from inside-out, the same way rot would corrupt a once sweet fruit.

Everyone had gotten it wrong, Mila thought. Her heart was not gold, but was instead blackened by jealousy and possessiveness. And while it once hid itself behind the cage within her chest, it didn’t take much for it to be exposed for its true colours:

1) Her lovers would be dancing with other women ― hands on their waists, and chests to their partner’s backs.

2) Her lovers would be acting with other women, sharing tender moments and “I love you”s that were only meant to be reserved for each other.

If Mila from two years ago could see herself today, she would tell her: Perfect love does not envy.

But if Mila from today could see herself from two years ago, she would tell her: I’m only human. Nothing I do is perfect.

IT WAS WINTER. As the snow started to fall, Enhypen were on the rise with comeback preparations.

They would do their best to make this their best comeback they ever had, because they, their company, and most internally their fans, wouldn’t except any less. There was no excuse for them that could justify letting down their Engenes. That was what they agreed on.

But Mila was realising that all the talk she had done to prepare for this moment was useless when the time finally came.

“Heeseung-ssi and Yuri-ssi are getting really good now…”

Mila turned to the pair that her partner mentioned, eyes following their every movement as they rehearsed in front of the choreographer. She watched with thinly veiled surprise as Heeseung positioned himself with his partner. He didn’t have any hesitation in his movements or hers as they moved to the beat, executing their moves with a smoothness and synchrony that could only be described through their chemistry.

“Come to me again, tie me…”

His hand effortlessly found her waist, and in one smooth movement, she leant back for the sweep, with Heeseung strength clearly providing the needed support.

“If you are going to save me, just come kiss me and bite me… It’s you and me in this world…”

Mila watched as they then did the second part of the chorus, with Heeseung’s partner comfortably leaning back against his chest. 

“In this darkness light me… if you’ll give me a chance…”

Heeseung’s partner placed her hand under his chin, slowly raising him up, and while maintaining full eye contact with each other the whole time.

“Just come kiss me and bite me…”

Immediately after the music finished, there was a round of applause from the other dancers. Mila, on the other hand, remained frozen, unable to say a word, even as the others gave their own encouragement to the duo. A blank room took over where her mind was supposed to be. What was there to say? They were just… perfect.

So why was she so bitter?

Mila was barely listening as the choreographer began to praise Heeseung and his partner again, watching as the two shared a shy smile with each other. She blinked. But the image didn’t go away. They still had that look on their eyes. They looked satisfied, they looked comfortable ― they looked… close.

So that was chemistry between a dancer and their partner?

At that moment, Heeseung’s eyes broke away from his partner. Mila froze as they landed on her. His smile widened upon seeing her, his eyes glittering with mirth. And at times like this, she should return it with a smile of her own, right?

Mila did just that. But somehow, it didn’t feel as easy as it usually was. Heeseung must have thought the same, because his smile faltered a little bit, a flicker of worry appearing in the depth of his doe eyes. Mila didn’t know whether to be grateful or not that his partner had distracted him just then with a gentle pat on his arm, but she took advantage of it to turn away.

She couldn’t wait to get this over with.

Mila sighed as she leaned against the nearest wall. She slid down, mimicking the motion of a raindrop falling down a glass window, until she was sitting on the floor next to Riki. The room was cool, and the choreography was not exhaustive (it was definitely less of a workout than their previous title track, anyway), but her track pants and cropped hoodie drew the heat from her body, coating her skin in a thin layer of sweat.

She reached out for her bottle. It was too far. 

Mila whined in childish protest. Looking at the back of Jongseong’s head, who was closest to it, Mila called out to him a sweet tone reserved for her men. “Oppa~”

There was nothing unusual about it. The dancers quickly learned the mannerisms of the Enhypen members after spending so much time together in the dance rooms, Mila’s affectionate intonations included. No one would have bat an eye if it weren’t for the fact that, as well as Jongseong ― who was the only one of the hyung line left in the room ― Minjun, her dance partner, had also turned around upon hearing her call. 

“Yeah?” they asked in complete unison.

Jongseong’s head whipped towards Minjun so quickly that he could have almost dislocated it. His silence was louder than the crack of a whip. He squared his shoulder subconsciously, stood straighter, and raised his chin. Minjun exchanged a look with him, but didn’t seem to assess a threat, as he turned back to Mila with curious eyes.

Mila’s eyes darted between the two. Well, this was awkward. “Sorry,” she said, “I meant Jay-oppa…”

“Ah.” Minjun nodded understandingly.

He turned around without a second thought. But Jongseong was the opposite, opting to stare a little longer at his back, as if assessing a threat. Then he finally turned and looked back at Mila, his eyebrows furrowed. “What’s wrong?”

Mila pointed at her bottle, and Jongseong wordlessly grabbed it for her before passing it to her outstretched hand. She mouthed a small, ‘Sorry.’ A million questions were written all over Jongseong’s face, but he sighed and shook his head, not voicing any of them while there were still people around them. 

Riki, on the other hand, was far less subtle.

“‘Oppa’?” he repeated incredulously, his voice rising in tone. “‘Oppa’?”

Mila glared at him. Fortunately, the chatter of the other dancers covered their conversation from any ears that weren’t meant to hear them.

“Who is? Your partner?” Riki raised a questioning brow when Mila sheepishly avoided his gaze. He tilted his head in disbelief. “Wah. I didn’t know you were all buddy-buddy now…”

Mila opened her bottle cap. “It was supposed to help us build our chemistry,” she explained. “We agreed that it would feel less awkward if we spoke comfortably.”

Riki scoffed. “He must be really comfortable if he thought you were asking for him when you were calling for Jay-hyung.”

Mila swallowed a mouthful of water, elbowing Riki on the arm. “It was an honest mistake. It was my bad for not calling Jay-oppa by name ― I totally forgot we agreed to it.”

Riki shook his head. He took an aggressive shot of his water like it was a bottle of liquor, and he was drinking his sorrows away in a pub. “Do you need to use his name? Anyone would know from your tone. What made him think you would call him that sweetly?”

Mila scrunched her nose. “It’s not that big of a deal.”

“That’s what you think,” Riki stressed. “Just wait until the hyungs find out. They’ll have a field day with this.”

Capping her bottle again, Mila stared silently at Riki. Her eyes bore into the side of her face like a drill. But he ignored her gaze, turning his face away from her, even as she poked his side for his attention. Mila only laughed, not feeling offended by his cold shoulder treatment in the slightest. (He really was too cute when he was sulking.)

“Riki~” Mila sang softly as she leaned her chin on his shoulder, smiling when he allowed her to wrap her arms around his. “You’re so cute.” She nuzzled her cheek against his shoulder. When she received no response, she reached down to intertwine her hands with his and whispered teasingly, “Are you jealous?”

Riki scoffed. He turned to face her, his face just centimetres away from hers. “No,” he denied strongly, his features set in a stony expression. “Of him? Why would I be?”

Mila hummed. “Really? Okay. I got it.” She let go of Riki’s hand, ignoring his confused expression. “Then in that case, I should go see if Minjun-oppa wants to get extra practice in.”

Before Mila could stand up, Riki’s larger hand found hers and pulled her back down with a determined tug. She fell with an “oof,” her butt hitting the floor first. She gave Riki a questioning look, only to find that he was looking away from her. If she looks closely, however, she could see the reddish tint on his ears and the small pout on his lips.

“What’s the rush?” he asked gruffly. “You only just got on break. Don’t overdo it.”

A wide smile broke out on Mila’s face, and she giggled girlishly as she leaned into Riki’s side. It was hard not to pamper him when he was acting so adorably.

“Do you want bungeoppang on the way home?” Mila asked in a tone that resembled the way one would coo at a cute puppy. “I’ll buy some for you, okay?”  When he didn’t respond, she shook his arm. “Hm?” Again, he didn’t respond. She pouted. “Yahhh, don’t ignore me. I’ll be upset.”

Mila wouldn’t have lasted another second doing aegyo for anyone else without cringing at herself. But desperate times called for desperate measures. And if there was one thing she was good at, it was finding a way to put smiles on people’s faces.

Riki let out a loud laugh, unable to contain his amusement. “What are you doing?” he asked. He used his free hand to pinch her cheek teasingly, stretching it out like a marshmallow. On his face was that boyish smile of his that always made her giddy. “You’re so cheesy.”

Even so, Mila was acutely aware of the way his grip tightened on her hand. Mission: successful.

At that moment, Heeseung and Jaeyun walked into the room after returning from their bathroom break. (Why they felt the need to go to the bathroom together, she had no idea ― but she never asked.)

She made eye contact with Heeseung. She spared a small smile, and he gave on in return. She then lowered her head to play with Riki’s fingers in her lap.

Heeseung had always been good at handling his emotions, and expected the same from others ― especially in a professional setting. His favourite saying was to keep his personal life separate from work. It was better she didn’t get in his way with her unnecessary feelings of jealousy aimed at his partner like one of Cupid’s lead arrows.

It wasn’t that deep, she told herself. She would get over it.

MILA WAS A LOT OF THINGS. But alone wasn’t one of them ― and especially not in her feelings.

When Enhypen arrived back at the dorms from their dance rehearsal, Mila collapsed on the couch. Jungwon took a seat next to her head, giggling as he brushed away the strands of hair that fell across Mila’s face.

“You and your partner seemed to be getting along well,” Kiara said, taking a sip of her water from the kitchen. She and the others had watched from the back wall as Mila and Minjun practised during their breaks, observing the way his hand would wind its way towards her lower back without issue ― casually, even.

Jaeyun laughed dryly. “That’s one way of putting it…” He took a long sip of his water. During the rehearsal, he never once broke his gaze on the hand that was on Mila’s waist. It only darkened as Mila’s partner used his grip to hold her closer towards him, the intimacy of their stance only intensified when Mila’s hands went around his neck. He grumbled, “I’d say they’re really friendly now.”

“Are you guys speaking casually?” Sunghoon asked, his eyes on Mila’s languid figure, which was curled on the couch like a cat.

“They are,” Jongseong said, entering the conversation smoothly. The incident from before still ran through his mind ― the way Minjun had seemingly thought Mila was asking for him when she had called out, “Oppa,” ever so sweetly. He didn’t mention it to the others, but it was still very much playing on repeat in his head like a broken record.

“Mila said it’s to help them be less awkward,” Riki said.

“That’s right,” Mila agreed.

Sunoo hummed. He remembered the way Mila placed her hand under Minjun’s chin, maintaining complete eye contact with their faces not too far apart. “It definitely worked the way you wanted it to. Their chemistry is really good now compared to when we first started out. It’s amazing.”

Sunghoon’s hand clenched into a fist and unclenched again. He had found it difficult to even look in their direction as they rehearsed ― let alone discussing them in the comfort of their own home. Were they really going to talk so casually about their girl’s chemistry with another man? Because that was a conversation he would rather not have.

Jungwon didn’t say a word, opting to simply listen to his other members as he continued to play with Mila’s hair. At times like this, it was better for him to act as Jungwon, rather than the leader of Enhypen ― they didn’t need someone to bring down the hammer on them right now, they just needed an outlet to voice their feelings.

“Well the choreographer wanted that from all of us,” Mila pointed out.

“But it’s amazing how much you improved. Your chemistry is as good as Heeseungie and Yuri-ssi now.” Kiara glanced at the said male out of the corner of her eye. “Right?”

Heeseung’s eyes didn’t leave Mila’s figure on the couch, his arms crossed against his chest as he took a seat on one of the benches at the counter. “Is that right…?”

Mila had barely even looked in his direction for the majority of the day ― much less spoke to him. And while he could have ignored it if she were doing it out of professionalism, Mila had no trouble interacting with the others. He had been waiting to catch her when they were alone, but he had no luck because they were constantly surrounded by others throughout the whole day.

He probably would have been more upset if he didn’t realise why. 

“Does it make you that happy?” Jungwon asked, the kitten’s face scrunching up in displeasure. “It looks like you had a lot of fun with your partner…”

Mila pursed her lips. “It’s not that I think it’s fun… I just rather have fun with it than be stressed.” She smiled at them. “So don’t worry about it, okay? There’s nothing else to it other than work.”

“But what about you?” Jungwon pouted. “Aren’t you upset?”

Mila didn’t dare meet any of the stares directed at her. She didn’t know what to tell them.

Did they want to see her burn up in envy ― to become consumed by the flames of jealousy that wanted nothing more to consume and possess? She would rather not. Those who played with fire would only be burnt, and she would rather burn alone than to drag her loved ones into the fire with her.

“What’s there to be upset about? We’re just doing what we agreed to do ― our best.” Before anyone could say anything, Mila stood from the couch, taking advantage of an escape route before someone else blocked it off. “If no one else is going, I’ll use the shower first. Is that okay?”

There was a chorus of “okay” and “go ahead,” before Mila nodded and skipped away.

“She doesn’t look bothered at all,” Sunghoon said, crossing his arms over his chest. It was a rare sight to see their resident ‘Ice Prince’ sulking ― but Mila always did bring out new sides to them. He didn’t think that they would be the only ones struggling with their feelings this comeback. (And he was completely right, even if he didn’t know it.)

“That’s because you didn’t see her when you weren’t looking,” Sunoo stated with a knowing smile as he looked in the direction that Mila disappeared in. They could hear her faintly humming sound of their new title track as she entered the bathroom. “She would always look at us whenever we were practising alone with our partners and then sulk about it quietly before getting her partner to practise with her as a distraction. She is jealous. She just doesn’t want to make a big deal about it.”

The boys let the words sink in. They could always count on Sunoo to be able to read between the lines. Their girlfriend wasn’t a closed book, but she did have times where it became difficult to see what was going on inside her head. It just went to show that no matter how well they understood each other, there were bound to be some things that only they knew about themselves.

“Sunoo’s right,” Heeseung said, remembering their first real interaction during rehearsals today.

“Okay,” the choreographer said, clapping his hands. “Heeseung and Mila, you’re up.”

Heeseung got to his feet, walking towards the girl without wasting another second. Mila paused as she watched him approach. She had totally forgotten about their duet in the bridge ― it was just her luck that they would be having a duet together in the choreography as well. How awkward was that, considering she barely even looked his way?

“Why?” Heeseung asked with a smirk, seeing her stand like a deer in headlights. He leaned down to her face level as he passed by, eyes holding a teasing glint in them. “You don’t want me?” He leaned in closer. “Then should I call your partner over instead?”

Mila scrunched her nose, looking away with him with a pout. “I should be asking you that.” She crossed her arms. “Why don’t you ask if you can dance with your partner instead?”

Heeseung raised an eyebrow, surprised by Mila’s words. The light in his eyes flickered. They scanned her face, as if searching for something. Mila didn’t know what it was that he was looking for, but she did know that it was awfully hard to ignore him when every little part of her reacted to his mere presence. Like a compass searching for North, she always seemed to find herself seeking him out. This time, though, she was determined not to falter.

Heeseung chuckled in realisation, before reaching up and gently stroking her cheek. She always made it so difficult not to spoil her with affection, with how easily she endeared herself to him — even when trying to give him the cold shoulder. “What do I do with you?”

Mila’s eyes widened at the feeling of his palm on her face. She turned to him, shocked. But she didn’t get to utter a word before he casually stuffed his hands in his pockets and walked away.

She stared after his retreating figure. It wasn’t like him to show such affection at times like this, when they were required to be completely professional. Least of all in front of other people. So what had gotten into him all of a sudden?

Shaking her head, Mila joined Heeseung by his side as the choreographer explained their part together – but maintaining a small distance, like an invisible wall was standing between them. “Mila, you’re going to put your hand under his chin like you do during the chorus. Then you’ll walk to the centre here, with your hand on his shoulder. And during your line, ‘Please connect me again,’ you’ll run your hands down his chest from behind him. Do you understand?”

Mila blinked as he watched the choreographer’s demonstration. “Ah– Yes, I understand.”

But run her hands down his chest from behind? Mila turned to Heeseung, who was already staring at her, that same lopsided smirk on his face. She quickly looked away, walking over to her position as she avoided his gaze. They really knew what they were doing when they gave her that part with Heeseung of all people ― there was no doubt in Mila’s mind that he would take advantage of the choreography to fluster her as much as possible.

And she was right.

As the choreographer counted out the beats for them to follow, Mila did as she was told, placing her hand under Heeseung’s chin to prepare for their moment together. His eyes were on her from the moment they were across from each other, never once breaking their gaze, as if Mila had him under a spell. Captivated.

She swallowed thickly. As Mila reached around Heeseung from behind, his hands suddenly shot out to seize hers, capturing them in his grasp. Mila looked towards the mirror in surprise at the sudden action — silently questioning the older male. Her breath caught in her chest as she made eye contact with Heeseung through their reflection.

A beat.

After seeing that her eyes were solely focused on him, he threw his head back, eyes closed, while his hands guided hers.

Another beat.

Under the palms of his calloused hands, Mila’s slender fingers glided down the planes of his firm chest, the familiar feeling of his muscles mapped out under the tips of her fingers. She could feel his body heat through the thin fabric of his shirt, and her own skin became warm in return, as if the room was a heated sauna. 

Another beat.

Then all too soon, it was over. With one final, gentle squeeze, Heeseung loosened his grip on her hands, before moving onto the next part of the choreography flawlessly. Mila walked to her next position with her head in the clouds.

Actions often spoke louder than words, and Heeseung’s were clearer than ever: You’re the only one who gets to do this.

Why was Mila upset at him again? She suddenly couldn’t remember.

“Really?” Jaeyun asked, running a hand through his hair after tossing his cap onto the coffee table in front of him. He leaned back on the couch, staring at the ceiling in deep thought ― as if trying to revisit today, and see all the signs he missed. “I didn't notice it…”

“Of course you didn’t,” Kiara interjected with a knowing voice. She sounded like one of those pretentious students in a classroom who knew every answer to the teacher’s question, with the way she admonished Jaeyun for his own lack of awareness. “You were too busy glaring at her partner to see anything else.”

“Didn’t you see how close they were?” Jaeyun argued, as if offended that someone would hold as much accusation in their voice towards him as Kiara did. “This is my girl we’re talking about ― of course I’m going to glare at any guy who gets that close to her.”

Kiara rolled her eyes. “We were all close to our partners today. You guys are just overprotective.”

“No we’re not,” they replied in unison. But even they didn’t sound too convinced by their own words. 

Kiara raised an eyebrow. Still, she didn’t say a word. It was better to let them figure these things out themselves ― she couldn’t be the only one among them with a brain. Shaking her head, she excused herself to go to her and Mila’s shared room, leaving the boys to their own thoughts.

“By the way, Heeseung-hyung is really lucky,” Jungwon suddenly said. “He gets to have a duet with Noona ― and a really romantic one, too.”

“Rather than ‘romantic,’ I think ‘sensual’ is a better word for it,” Jongseong replied with an awkward laugh. When they observed the two during practice, the way Heeseung ran Mila’s hands down his chest evoked the image of a passionate tango worthy of a place in a Moulin Rouge production. (Then again, it was probably because Heeseung had a way of making even the most mundane things seem suggestive in nature. His concert clips were proof of that.)

Riki seemed to agree. “That’s because he always goes over the top with fanservice. Unless…” Riki turned to Heeseung. “Hyung, are you just always that horny on stage?”

The older males looked at their youngest with wide eyes. “Yah, who taught you that word?” Jaeyun asked incredulously. “It wasn’t me, was it?”

Riki rolled his eyes in exasperation. “I’m a minor, not a kid. Of course I know these things.”

Heeseung cleared his throat awkwardly. The tips of his ears reddened like he was some innocent schoolboy exposed to conversations about sexual intimacy for the first time. “That’s still not something you should ask that casually….”

Sunoo and Riki exchanged looks, finding joy at their matthyung’s expense.

“I think it’s because it’s Noona he’s paired with, he wanted to make it as authentic as possible,” Jungwon pointed out, coming to Heeseung’s defence. The young leader sighed. He leaned back on the couch, fiddling with the cushion in his lap like he was with Mila’s hair not long ago. “I wish I had a part with Noona… I want to have my moment with her too.”

Since he just became an adult, he had been eager for chances to prove himself as more than just another dongsaeng to her. Dark Blood seemed like the perfect opportunity, given the concept. It was just too bad he wasn’t able to get a duet.

“There are still the concept photos, though,” Jongseong pointed out, comforting his favourite dongsaeng with a stroke to the top of his fluffy head. “You could be paired up with her for one of the shoots.”

“And the trailer!” Sunoo added. “We still don’t know what exactly to expect for that.”

Riki, Sunghoon, and Jungwon had been training diligently for the past month, and everyone was getting prepared for their first day of filming for the trailer in a week. They were told they would receive more details about the trailer on the day, when the director would run through the scenes with them as they filmed. But Jaeyun rubbed his chin in thought. He could remember the words the director had given them about the trailer’s contents during their briefing.

“But Sunghoon will have a few scenes with the actress right?” Jaeyun pointed out. “And we will probably have some as well… Will Mila be okay with that?”

The boys went silent as they exchanged looks, the sound of Mila’s shower playlist being the only sound in the room.

That was a good question.

“Mimi-yah, are you awake?”

Mila poked her head out from under her blankets, where she was currently curled up into a ball, as if it would hide her from the world and her problems. She hadn’t come out of her room since she finished showering, and the others started to take turns in and out of the bathroom, leaving her to her lonesome under the assumption that she fell asleep. But of course, Sunoo ― who knew her better than perhaps she knew herself ― would be the one to know better.

Mila perked up instantly after hearing the familiar voice. “I’m awake. You can come in!”

The door opened slightly and Sunoo poked his head inside, eyes landing on Mila as she looked up at him from her bed. He giggled, slipping into the room and gently closing the door behind him. With a smile, he approached her bedside with the giddiness of a teenage girl in love. Mila lifted the blanket, wordlessly inviting him to join her.

“Jake-hyung saw your Mini-Yun on the couch,” Sunoo said as she slipped into Mila’s bed, smiling when she snuggled closer to him, nuzzling her nose into his neck.

“He deserves to sleep on the couch tonight.”

Mila would never tell one of the boys to sleep on the couch — and there was no need to, considering they didn’t share a bed with her. But placing their representative plushies was the equivalent of that. So when the puppy plush resembling Jaeyun (the ‘Mini-Yun’) appeared on the couch, the golden retriever-boy naturally sulked about it to the others.

“I kept telling him not to use my lotion,” Mila muttered.

Mila never understood why Jaeyun felt the need to use her skincare items, when he could care less about those things. Sunoo laughed. (Because he knew that the reason Jaeyun kept taking her moisturising products was that he had grown addicted to her scent — and especially when it was combined with his own. But what she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her, right?)

Sunoo raised a hand, before patting Mila on the back, much like one would do when putting a baby to sleep. Mila leaned over to place a kiss on his cheek, before laying her head back down on her pillow so that they were facing each other. Under the blanket, she rubbed circles into his lower back.

It was always like this when they were alone. As if they were two baby animals curling around each other to give warmth and comfort to ensure the night.

“Why are you upset?” Sunoo asked gently. “Is it because of the comeback?” 

“Not at the comeback itself. Just…” Mila sighed as she leaned her head on her pillow so she and Sunoo were staring into each other’s eyes. His eyes flickered to her pouting lips, his eyes lighting up at her unusual display of sulkiness. “I don’t get it. The group has two girls— why couldn’t one of us act as Sooha in the trailer?”

Sunoo hummed, signalling that he was listening. So she had been thinking about the concept trailer, after all…

“I mean— I’ve been praised for my acting before.”

Sunoo nodded in agreement. “Of course.”

“So, why not me?” Mila asked. “I’m sure I could do well if they gave me a chance! And me, you, Sunghoonie-oppa and the others are already close, so we don’t have to worry about awkwardness or chemistry on screen. Why else would you have girls in the group, if you’re not going to use them to save you the effort of hiring actresses?”

“That’s right,” Sunoo said with a nod, like the good boyfriend he was. “That makes more sense.”

“Exactly! I could have done a great job as Sooha! But instead, I’ll probably have to act like a villain.” Mila huffed, reaching up to play with Sunoo’s cheek, watching the soft skin bounce when she poked it, the image of a mochi ball in her mind overlapping with his face. “No one ever likes a villain.”

“That’s not true,” Sunoo refuted immediately. “Remember Strong Woman Namsoon? Everyone loves the villain in there! Oh— and the Tale of the Nine-tailed! Lee Rang was your favourite character!”

Mila sighed. “That’s different.” She scrunched her nose. “No one likes a female villain who gets in the way of the main character’s love story!” She flopped onto her back. “Just look at my character in Dark Moon! She’s the typical mean girl character. When has that ever worked out in Kdramas? Those second female leads always get dragged by watchers!”

“But our Engenes love you!” Sunoo reassured her. It was a fact that Mila was adored by her fans. They went crazy whenever she breathed — there was no way they wouldn’t love her in the trailer. “They won’t hate you over a role. Knowing them, they would probably go crazy over you acting as a bad girl!”

Mila giggled. “I guess you’re right.” Sunoo hummed, clearly satisfied that he was able to comfort her. She looked up at him with bright eyes, turning to face him again. Her hands cupped his cheeks as if she were holding a national treasure. “You’re so cute.”

“I am, aren’t I?” The two smiled at each other, and Sunoo wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer to him. “What about the dance? How do you feel about that?”

Mila hummed thoughtfully. “Well, I think I’m slowly getting used to it... I can get over it — and it’s not like you guys don’t have to deal with watching me be close to other men.”

Mila paused. She then bit her lip, as if pondering whether or not she should say something. But before she could, Sunoo stopped her.

“Don’t.” Sunoo’s face was set in a serious expression, his eyes and voice firm. “Don’t compare us to that— it’s not the same. We chose to love you together, and we’ve learnt to make it work. That doesn’t mean you should feel bad about feeling jealous when we’re with other women.”

Mila frowned. “Still…” She sighed as she pressed her face into Sunoo’s neck. “If I can love more than one person, you should be able to as well. That’s what’s fair.”

Sunoo hummed. “Maybe. But we didn’t choose to make this relationship work because it’s ‘fair.’ We did it because we love you — no one else. We did it because we want you to be happy.”

“I want you to be happy,” Mila replied quietly.

“We already are.” Sunoo smiled. “You’re enough for us. So don’t sell yourself short.”

Mila pursed her lips. She nodded, closing her eyes as she breathed in Sunoo’s delicious scent as he continued to whisper sweet nothings into her ear. And maybe she didn’t believe everything he said, but if there was one thing she agreed with him on, it was that love wasn’t fair at all. Theirs, least of all.

WHEN IT CAME TIME TO SHOOT THE CONCEPT TRAILER, Mila shook like a leaf. Not just because of the nerves, but because of the cold. On days like this, the last thing she wanted to be doing was trekking through snow and ice. It was only by some ironic twist of fate that she found herself approaching a frozen lake overlain with flakes of falling snow.

One take turned into two, and two takes turned into three more. But every time she found herself on the ice, she only travelled one step further than the last attempt, before she was slipping and landing harshly on the solid ice.

By the time Mila successfully shot her scene, she was ready to kiss the next patch of dirt she saw. 

“Thank you for your work.” Mila bowed towards the director and staff. “And your patience.”

The director chuckled, patting Mila on the shoulder. “I should be thanking you. Because of your tenacity, we’ll have really good shots in the trailer. Good work.” He then turned to one of the staff. “Okay, let’s start moving back to the forest clearing. We’ll take the scenes between Sunghoon, Jiwon, and the others while the snow is still here.”

Mila pursed her lips. She turned, facing the girl she had been anxious to meet the past few days, offering a polite nod. “Thank you as well, Jiwon-ssi. I wish you the best of luck for the rest of your scenes.”

The actress bowed her head respectfully at Mila’s well-wishes, offering a gentle “thank you” in return. Mila took the gesture as an invitation to leave — and so she did, all but running from the girl like a criminal making a getaway from a crime scene.

Let there be no mistake. Mila could find no fault in her co-actress. Rather, the girl was like the snow that Mila struggled to make peace with for the entire day: pure, soft, and oh so pretty; yet altogether dangerous. Just staying in her presence was enough to make Mila think just a bit too much — of the role she would be playing, of the things she would be doing, of what that meant for Mila and the boys…

Mila sighed. Leaving was the best choice for everyone. Envy already dug its claws into her chest and seized a part of her heart. She had to guard the rest of it before it was completely lost to the green-eyed mosnter’s clutches.

But even as Mila ran, it seemed to catch up to her.

“How did the filming go for the others?” Mila asked her fellow female member as she entered the trailer. (The two of them shared a similar fate in the trailer as anigbuous side characters, who were neither part of the group, nor apart from them. And so, neither were needed in the group shots with the others.)

Kiara looked at her with a mixture of uncertainty. As if not sure whether to comfort her with lies, or to hurt her with the truth. So, she gave her the choice. “I took a video of the monitor, if you want to watch.”

Mila would later blame curiosity for killing the cat. But really, all she had to blame was herself. She shouldn’t have agreed to watch the video, should have continued to ignore what she knew would only upset her. Yet, she didn’t look away from the screen. Not once.

Not when Jay held another girl to his chest, and not when he was ‘bitten’ by her on the neck. Not when Sunghoon and her had been so close to having their lips meet. Not even when “My love,” was uttered from her lips. 

She sat there and watched it all like a masochist. Only when the video ended did she decide that she had enough.

She regretted it for the rest of the day.

Mila wanted to spend her night peacefully, but of course fate had different plans.

She just pressed play on her shower playlist when Sunghoon wordlessly invited himself inside the bathroom.

Mila blinked. She stepped aside for him to enter, hiding behind the door as Sunghoon walked in, his expression unreadable as worn script carved in eroding rock. She closed the door behind him, still clutching the towel to her body. But as he looked at her over his shoulder, their bodies pressed together in the small space of the bathroom, he could make out the familiar right of her red peony tattoo peeking just above her towel.

Mila turned around slowly after the lock clicked into place. A flush decorated her skin, reddened by the heat of the steam filling the room and the realisation of her exposed state before Sunghoon. (It wasn’t as if they hadn’t seen each other in less — but that didn’t make Mila any less shy now.) After a day of little to no interaction, they were now alone like this? What was she supposed to do?

“There’s no point waiting all night for you to finish using the bathroom. Let’s just shower together,” he said nonchalantly as he hung his towel on the rack.

“I wouldn’t have taken that long,” Mila muttered. But she didn’t refuse his request, earning a small smile from Sunghoon as he pulled the hem of his shirt up, revealing his toned abdomen, lined with muscle that bespoke hours of dedication to his discipline and the gym.

Mila turned her back to him, giving him some privacy as he undressed. (What privacy was there between two lovers in a bathroom, dressing down to their bare skin? Mila didn’t know. She didn’t know a lot of things, really, when she was left alone with Sunghoon — including how to think.) 

She opened the shower door, steam hitting her face as she reached a hand out to feel the temperature of the water. “It’s hot.”

Sunghoon hummed. “That’s fine.”

Mila could hear the sound of a zip coming undone just as she reached up to undo her towel. She took in a shaky breath as she pulled it away from her body, leaving her bare to the heat from the shower and the gaze that landed on her back. She stepped under the scalding water, sighing as it ran down her body.

“Is it nice?” Sunghoon’s voice came from the other side of the glass.

Mila hummed pleasantly, the sound reverberating off the walls of the bathroom along with the sound of running water. It was followed by the sound of the shower door opening as Mila reached for the bottle of shower gel to her right.

Sunghoon didn’t say a word as he walked up behind Mila, his chest to her back. The water that ran down from his head to the floor of the shower was hot against his skin, burning the coldness out of him. He sighed as he braced his arms on either side of her, caging her against the shower wall from behind. 

Mila giggled as she lathered shower gel onto her skin with a scrub, an explosion of bubbles bursting across her arms, shoulders and chest. “Aren’t you going to wash up?”

Sunghoon hummed. “Just let me stay like this for a bit… I barely got to see you today.” 

He closed his eyes as he leaned down, his head hovering over her shoulder, where the fragrance of strawberries and vanilla lingered on her skin. He practically inhaled it — getting high off the addicting scent that he had been missing all day long.

“Oppa,” Mila whined, looking over her shoulder, her cheeks bright as the strawberries she smelled like. “You’re supposed to be washing up, not smelling me.”

Sunghoon chuckled. He reached out to smooth a hand down her bare waist, smiling in content when she shuddered under his touch. “You didn’t miss me today?” he said in her ear, his thumb drawing circles on her hip bone.

Mila bit her lip, suppressing a sigh at his gentle, lingering touches. It took everything inside not to melt against his firm chest like ice cream, to stop her legs from turning into jelly. “You seemed fine on your own… I mean, it’s not like you didn’t have company.”

Sunghoon’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Mila huffed as she turned around to face him, a stern look on her face — and yet Sunghoon couldn’t help but think she looked adorable. A wry smirk tugged at his lips when she roughly poked his chest. It was like watching a bunny try to intimidate a snow leopard. But he indulged in her cute attempt at dominance, if only to admire the puff of her cheeks and her pouty lips for a little longer.

“You guys get along really well, don’t you?” Mila asked. Oh right, Sunghoon thought. They were in the middle of discussing why she was so distant today — but why was that, again? He got distracted. (It was Mila’s fault.) “I heard that the director even said you had the best chemistry together.”

Sunghoon let out a sound that sounded like a cross between a scoff and a laugh. He was both in disbelief and in amusement. So that was what had her so bothered that she didn’t spare her boyfriend so much as a smile for the whole day? Really?

“Is that what people are saying?” Sunghoon asked dryly.

Mila blinked, her gaze darting to somewhere behind Sunghoon. “I mean, you and her were pretty cosy together—”

The hand on Mila’s hip suddenly tightened its grip. Mila gasped as Sunghoon took a step forward, pressing her smaller body against the shower wall. Their bodies were flush together and they could feel every curve of each other — warm and wet from the running water.

Sunghoon leant down to rest his forehead against her, his back shielding her from the water running from the shower head. Without warning, he grasped her chin between his thumb and forefinger, forcing her avoidant eyes to meet his. His dark gaze travelled down her face. Pupils widened as they landed on her parted lips — soft and pink, like cherry blossom petals.

“Me and who, princess?”

Mila took in a deep, gasping breath at the dominance in his tone, her chest pressing against his. “You know who…”

Sunghoon clicked his tongue. “Doesn’t matter who.”

Sunghoon nuzzled his nose against her neck, pressing a kiss against the skin of her sweet spot — just behind her neck. Mila practically melted, her hands reaching out to grip his biceps for the support that her legs lacked. Sunghoon wrapped his strong arms around her waist, pulling her up so closely against him that their skin might as well be welded together. It was then that she felt something hot and hard pressing against her, causing her thighs to tremble. 

“She’s not the one who made me like this, is she?” Sunghoon asked roughly, his mouth gliding up her neck to her jaw. A gasp escaped Mila’s lips as heat began to unfurl in the pit of her stomach. Seeing her lack of response, Sunghoon nipped at her supple skin with his fangs — enough to leave a mark in its wake. His mark. “Answer me, princess.”

Mila whimpered. “N-no.”

“That’s right. Because you’re mine, and I’m yours. Isn’t that right?”

Mila gasped when Sunghoon suckled on her smooth flesh. “Ngh— yes!”

“Yes, what?” Sunghoon pressed.

“Yes, I’m yours—” Mila’s voice got quieter with her next words. “…And you’re mine…”

Sunghoon raised an eyebrow at the lack of conviction in her words — as if she didn’t believe they were the truth. “Baby doesn’t sound so sure.”

And that just wouldn’t do.

Sunghoon pulled back, looking into Mila’s eyes. She almost gasped at the sight of his eyes — consumed by his pupils. They were brimming with something dark, something primal.

“I think you need some reminding.”

“What’s taking Mila so long?” Riki asked, flopping around on his bed like a fish out of water. “She said we would cuddle…”

Jaeyun’s eyes flickered at the time displayed at the corner of the screen, where he was playing a game. The sound of Mila’s playlist and running water was the only thing the others could hear. Three songs had already finished, but they let her be, having  gotten used to the girls in their group spending far more time in the shower than they did.

“Has it been that long?” Jaeyun asked.

Riki nodded, though Jaeyun didn’t see it because of his hyperfocus on his game.

“You know her,” Sunoo muttered from his bunk bed, his phone centimetres away from his face. The sounds of his keyboard were loud as he typed furiously — most likely to one of his many friends. “She always becomes a turtle when she’s in the bathroom.”

Jaeyun kept his eyes on the television, a blank expression on his face as he aggressively mashed buttons on the controller. Jungwon looked up from his bed, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“I thought Sunghoonie-hyung was the one showering? I saw him go in there before…”

Jaeyun froze. “What—?”

[You died]

MILA HAD NEVER BEEN MORE EMBARRASSED. She could barely contain the guilt and shame she felt when she had to look into her clueless manager’s eyes and tell her that the limp that prevented Mila from attending her schedules yesterday was caused by an unfortunate fall. It only made it worse when she could spot Sunghoon in the background doing his best to stifle a laugh — as if amused by the fact that she was too sore to even walk. (‘Mini-Hoon’ slept on the couch that night, as it deserved.)

Because of that incident, Mila had been more determined than ever to put all her blood, sweat, and tears into perfecting everything for their comeback. She fully expected to do it on her own. But she didn’t think that her partner would be tenacious enough to join her.

The two sat side-by-side together against the wall across from the mirror, taking a much needed break. At this time, the others were enjoying lunch, leaving the both of them alone.

Or so they thought.

In the distance, a pair of dark eyes followed the duo’s interactions with close attention. As if he were a cat slinking about in the shadows of the night, Jungwon found himself lingering at the doorway of the practice room.

He didn’t mean to hover. He had only come back to retrieve his phone that he left behind by accident. But he just couldn’t help but be curious, seeing his girlfriend smile so brightly at the older male. Before he knew it, he was following the two around from a distance — an outside observer absorbing every interaction like a sponge.

Jungwon frowned as Minjun nudged Mila, the way close friends would when teasing each other. A palpable tension rolled off him in waves. He crossed his arms over this chest as if to contain it, but the displeasure and discontentment written on his face were plain for everyone to see. He bit the inside of his cheek in annoyance when Minjun’s hand hovered on her lower back, as if debating whether to place it there or not — all while distracting her by showing something on his phone.

Their heads were almost touching as they leant over the screen, and Mila giggled at the sight of whatever it was they were so invested in on the screen. Jungwon simply stared at them. He furrowed his eyebrows, silently willing the pair to move apart.

By some divine intervention, Minjun suddenly stood to his feet, excusing himself to answer a call. Jungwon let out a breath that he wasn’t even aware he was holding in, forcing a smile as the older male noticed him. Minjun nodded his head in acknowledgement before disappearing into the hallway.

Mila still didn’t notice him. She sat unmoving in front of the mirror, oblivious to the cloud of tension that spread from Jungwon all the way throughout the venue like a AOE attack.  

Jungwon pounced. 

“You guys are close.”

Mila almost jumped out of her skin at the sudden sound of Jungwon’s voice at the doorway. She whipped around, mouth parted in a gasp. “Jungwon!” she exclaimed. “You scared me!” 

Jungwon? The said boy frowned at the lack of an affectionate nickname. He understood it was because they were on set, but that didn’t mean that it didn’t sting to hear her call him so distantly. 

Jungwon’s expression didn’t change. Mila had a hand over her heart as she observed him, sensing that something was different in his aura. She looked into his eyes earnestly and stood to her feet to meet his level. “Minjun-oppa and I aren’t really that close. He was just being friendly.”

Jungwon bit the inside of his cheek. “Almost holding your waist is being friendly?”

Mila blinked. “What?”

A sense of exasperation filled Jungwon’s chest. He pursed his lips, a sigh filtering through his nose — one that felt too heavy to belong to someone who was only nineteen years old. “When you weren’t looking, his hand was on your back. It was like this.”

Jungwon suddenly took a step forward, breaching the distance between him and Mila with one stride. Her wide eyes were almost comical, truly resembling her representative Pokémon Jigglypuff as they took up a wide portion of her face in surprise. It was almost enough to make Jungwon smile. But then he remembered the reason he had gotten this close to Mila in the first place, and that warm feeling was immediately snuffed out like a candle. 

Jungwon knew better than to act too boldly in the company building of all places. But in that moment, all he cared about was making his girlfriend aware of what happened when her back was (literally and figuratively) turned.

His hand slid down her spine in one smooth movement, landing on the small of her back. Mila subconsciously arched into the touch, her lips parting in a surprised gasp at Jungwon’s sudden actions. Red rushed to her face like a ripe tomato about to burst.

Later. Jungwon would blame his jealousy for taking control of all his common sense. But rather than stopping there, he took it one step further. With one strong tug, Mila was pulled right into him. They stood chest to chest, their faces just close enough to see every lash framing each other’s eyes.

Mila was stunned. Jungwon was stunned. But he couldn’t deny that the flustered look on her face — how she had gone speechless, unable to utter a single word at his actions — was so satisfying to see, he almost forgot the reason he had pulled such an uncharacteristic stunt in the first place.

“W-what are you…?” Mila tripped on her words. At that moment, Jungwon realised that her hands were clenched tightly against her chest, as if she were a Victorian woman clutching her pearls. “Wonie?”

Her voice came out as a squeak, causing Jungwon to snap out of his daze. He had been so busy taking in the sight of her flushed cheeks and dazed expression that he was distracted. He cleared his throat, loosening his grip on the girl’s waist.

“Anyway,” he said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his burning neck, “he was super close…”

Mila made an ‘oh’ shape with her mouth. A short silence fell over them, causing Jungwon to glance curiously at Mila. Her eyes were still on him, but were shining as if reflecting light. She whispered something, but Jungwon wasn’t able to hear what she had said.

He furrowed his eyebrows. “What was that?” 

Mila hit her lip. She repeated herself softly, but loud enough for Jungwon to hear her words without mistake. “I said, ‘But he doesn’t make me feel like that.’”

“What do you mean by that?”

Mila laughed. “Like this.”

Jungwon jolted in surprise when Mila suddenly seized his hand, before placing it directly over her chest. It was his turn to sport a raging blush — until he realised why she had done it. Beating against his palm was her heart, which beat with all the strength and speed of a racehorse galloping down a track.

“Don’t be jealous, okay?” Mila said gently, her hand squeezing his. “I’m not won over that easily — not when I have you.”

Jungwon couldn’t remember how long he had stood there looking into her eyes. All he could remember was the look of her flustered expression when Minjun suddenly returned to the room, as if she was just caught doing something she shouldn’t have.

Jungwon smiled to himself. 

So that was the effect he had on her?

Suddenly, he didn’t feel so bad anymore.

“Are they still practising?”

Jaeyun looked over his shoulder to see Jongseong staring past him, into the practise room where Mila and her partner were dancing to the chorus of Bite Me with incredible execution. They were the only ones left at the company of the Enhypen, meaning that they were also the only audience to this private performance.

“They’re good,” the older muttered absently.

If they were an ignited match before, then now they were a forest flame. Even a day without practice wasn’t enough to quell the fire they brought with their performance. And this was only during practice. How much more would they give during an actual performance?

Jaeyun felt an uncomfortable weight in his stomach, as if an anchor had been dropped inside it. His mind became a jumble of words — all different meanings but following the same stream of logic: Unfair. 

Everything about this whole idea was unfair.

The outro of Bite Me began to play, signalling the end of the song was here. All Jaeyun could think of at that moment was, Finally. He really didn’t know what he would end up doing if he had to watch them dance together so sensually for any longer than he already did. If it wasn’t torture, he didn’t know what was. And the worst part was, he couldn’t do a thing about it.

“Oh, you guys were here?” 

Jongseong frowned as he took in Mila’s appearance. He could help but notice that she looked particularly worn out — as expected, considering she barely gave herself any breaks. The way she stood, with her hands on her hips and her shoulders dropping forward, showed everything Jongseong needed to know about her condition.

“You’ve practised enough for today,” Jongseong said. “You should get some rest.”

Mila nodded.

“I was planning to…”  A sense of relief filled Jongseong’s chest at the girl’s assurance, only to fade with her next question. “But what did you think? Did we do good? We were planning on staying behind longer—“

“You guys were good!” Jaeyun’s voice cut Mila’s sentence off like a blade, a sharp tension to it that only Jongseong and Mila could sense. Despite his smile, there was no humour in his eyes. “You guys were great. I don’t think you even need to practise anymore.”

Minjun blinked in astonishment. “Really? Wah… Thank you.”

Mila glanced at her partner out of the corner of her eye, as if trying to measure his reaction to the words. She was glad that he didn’t seem to pick up on the urgency on Jaeyun’s voice — or if he did, that he didn’t mention anything about it.

Jongseong nudged the blonde male with an elbow to the side. Jaeyun flinched, looking at the elder with an offended look, as if wondering why he didn’t feel the same.

But of course Jongseong wasn’t immune to the poison known as envy. What man would be fine, after seeing their girlfriend be held by the waist and touched intimately by someone other than him? There was such a strain in the muscles of his jaw that it ached when he chewed on his lunch today — all because of the number of times he had clenched it in response to the things he had observed between Mila and her partner.

He had to remind himself that it was purely physical. That there was nothing else beyond the touches that were worth the seeds of jealousy being planted in his heart. But even he had to admit that what his brain told him, his heart refused to listen to. (And what his heart screamed at him, his mind would always echo.)

“You guys are good,” he assured, looking at the two earnestly. “You got the point choreography down and… your chemistry has improved a lot, too.”

He didn’t know why it was so difficult to admit.

“Really? I’m so glad…” Mila sighed in relief, seeing the sincerity in his words. Her fatigue was washed from her features by the glow of her smile.

At the very least, Jongseong could be proud that he was the one that put that smile on her face — even if it wasn’t much, even if half of it was because of the man standing next to her…

“Thank you for working so hard today,” Mila said to her partner. “I’m grateful.”

Minjun shook his head. “No, it’s okay. It ended up pushing me to give more to my performance. I’m glad we ended up getting what we needed.”

“And in timing, too,” Jaeyun added. He turned to Mila. “Your manager asked us to come and tell you we’re leaving. If you’re not staying behind for extra practice, make sure to tell her.”

Mila nodded. “Okay. I’ll head down with you.”

Jaeyun nodded. He and Jongseong stood patiently as Mila gathered her items. By the time Mila had thrown her bag over her shoulder and said her goodbyes to her partner, her smile had only grown wider. Even before she said it, it was clear that she was the most excited of the three to leave.

“Let’s go!” Mila sang. She jumped between them, linking her arms in theirs. A wistful sigh fell from her lips.“I just want to go home~”

Jaeyun and Jongseong shared a look over her head. They walked out of the room with Mila, and their wide smiles on their faces.

“By the way… were you jealous earlier?” Mila asked as they arrived at the dorms. “You sounded really annoyed. But I didn’t know if it was just you being moody.”

Jaeyun rolled his eyes as Mila giggled at her own jab. “Is this funny?” Jaeyun threw an arm around her shoulder. “I bet you wouldn’t be laughing if it was the other way around. Weren’t you the one who ignored Hoon and Heeseung because you got jealous?”

Mila blushed furiously at the reminder. “You guys already teased me about it enough! Let me have a chance for once.”

It didn’t take long for the other members to find out the truth behind Mila’s avoidant behaviours the past few days. Sunghoon had always been the type to love putting her business on blast, like a neighbourhood gossip who couldn’t keep any news about her to himself. Heeseung — who liked to indulge in a bit of mean-spirited fun — followed his example. And before Mila knew it, she had seven boys teasing her for her jealous antics.

Jongseong laughed. Wrapping one of his arms around Mila’s shoulders, he pressed his lips to her temple in a consoling kiss. “How about we lay off the teasing for now, hm?” he asked. “We were jealous, but we’re working on it. There’s no shame in that.”

Mila hummed as she crossed her arms over chest. “I’ll think about it.”

She then marched into the elevator, which opened just in time to receive them.

The two males exchanged looks over her head before laughing. They knew there was no way — Mila was simply too petty to give up on the chance. They might as well get some more playful teasing in while they could.

“Oh, and next time you shower, don’t let Sunghoon inside with you.”

Mila went cherry-red at Jaeyun’s comment, a gasp parting her lips in shock. The mortification was clear on her face as she rounded on the blond male. Jawyun simply chuckled at her reaction. He leaned towards her so that his lips brushed agaistn her cheek, an arm reaching up to pin her against the elevator wall. 

“Or next time,” he whispered into her ear, “invite me inside with you.”

Mila almost exploded right then and there at the suggestion, her mind filled with images that it shouldn’t be having. Jay clicked his tongue and pushed Jake’s shoulder, though not with any significant force. It was clear that he was simply playing good cop for the sake of having one — but that he was just as bad as Jaeyun.

“Stop teasing her,” he said, though his eyes betrayed his words.

“Hmmm. Why not? She can handle it.” Jaeyun’s lips brushed the corner of her mouth in a teasing kiss. “Can’t you, baby?”

Mila turned to Jay with pleading eyes. “Oppa,” she whined.

The eldest chuckled, with his nose buried into her head. Hearing the tone of her voice, he couldn’t help but wanted to tease her just a little. He brought his lips to her cheek. Brushing her hair to the side, he placed a trail of kisses down her jaw to her neck. “What’s wrong, angel?”

Mila froze.

The elevator door opened, saving her just in time before she exploded. She stormed out of the elevator as soon as it went to their floor, followed by her men and their string of melodic laughter.

She accepted a long time ago that she was fighting a losing battle when it came to love. After all, who could ever win a battle against their own heart?

“I’m home!”

When Mila walked through the doors to her home, the others who had arrived in separate cars were already there, filling it with the usual sound of laughter and playful banter. She smiled. It was a fond smile, following the realisation that no matter who they were with or what they did, in the end, they would always come home to each other.

“Welcome home, cheater.”

Mila rounded on Riki, who was sitting on the couch with crossed arms and a raised eyebrow. “What did you say?”

꒰୨୧◞ 。NOTES⠀.ᐟ this chapter felt different from usual for some reason but i can’t place why that is. but anyway, this was more of a episodic fic than one with a particular plot — it was more so to explore the sides of jealousy as a theme. I don’t know how I feel about the end, but I just rlly wanted o get this done so I could focus on uni, so hopefully you guys enjoyed it 🩷🩷

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