She scrolled through the queue list mindlessly with no intention to actually pick something since there was nothing that caught her eye. It was another one of those kicks, those I-Don’t-Wanna-Watch-Dramas types of kicks. Every once in awhile after a good drama series ended, there would be a void left over. A void that was difficult to fill up with the dramas that were coming out because they just weren’t…. Up to par in her tastes. There was always Running Man…. but then again, Running Man hasn’t really been the same since the changes.
What about anime? She shook her head and kept scrolling. Anime was something she watched with Sailynn because Sailynn had the best reactions and fangirl moments over the cheesiest and cringe worthy scenes. It was like watching a drama about Sail being ambushed by feels, and that’s something she would never get tired of watching.
The door clicked with the locks unlocking. Speaking of the devil, she thought, switching over to CrunchyRoll and opening up the queue list there.
“About time you got home, I’m bored,” she complained, peering over the couch to see her best friend standing in the doorway, pants drenched by the snow she probably jumped in, bright red face from the cold winds blowing into Seoul, and a large winter jacket that was bought several years before they had moved across the world, in preparations for the day they would actually move to Seoul.
“You look like a walking snowman,” she chuckled, watching her best friend slip off her snow boots.
“I feel like a dead one too. Jeezus it’s freezing outside! And here I am thinking I could bare with the winters here since I’m from the snow,” Sailynn giggled as she removed her jacket and the other multiple layers she had packed on. “Did you already finish the drama you started a couple days ago?”
A long sigh escaped from her mouth while she dropped her head back and closed her eyes to remember the exciting plot and wonderfully good-looking oppa. “Yeah, finished it when I got home yesterday.”
“Jeez Jojo, you finish dramas like I finish animes, and animes are shorter,” Sailynn grinned.
“Speaking of anime,” Jojo snapped her head back towards Sailynn, “Let’s watch something. What was the one you were boasting about the other day?”
“Oh.” Sailynn stopped midway between the living room and the hallway. “I can’t today dude, I gotta finish making plans.”
Jojo sat up and raised an eyebrow, “plans? What plans? Where are we going?” It had become a habit of them to venture off into South Korea for the day, discovering new places to eat, pick up books or awesome pieces for their Kpop collection. They had almost completely finished exploring Seoul and would have, if it wasn’t for their friends recommending places outside of Seoul to explore first.
Sailynn pressed her lips into a fine line, looking past Jojo to avoid her fierce gaze.
“Oh.” Jojo sat back into the couch. “I’m not invited huh?”
“It’s not that!” Sailynn quickly interjected. “It’s just that, it’d be a bit awkward if you went…”
Jojo flinched a tiny bit to the point where even Sailynn didn’t notice. “Why would it be awkward?” She pressed on.
Sailynn shuffled her weight on a different legs while carefully choosing her words.
“Because I’m going on a date….” She answered as softly as she could but she knew Jojo would pick up on it even if it was said from a mile away. The mentioning of the word ‘Date’ was an open invitation to the game of 21 Questions in their household. For scientific reasons of course.
“Date? With who? When? Why? How did it happen? Who did you charm this time? I thought you said you’d stop being a hoe? Oh my god, lemme guess!” Jojo’s infamous mischievous cat-like smirk spread across her face like the Chesire Cat getting exactly what he wanted.
“It’s not like that!” Sailynn put her hands up in a defensive response, effortlessly trying to rid herself of the evil karma creeping around her. “A friend of a friend asked a girl out on a date but that friend doesn’t wanna go alone because he doesn’t wanna make it awkward so he asked his friend to come along but that friend doesn’t wanna feel like a third wheel so he asked me to play the role of being his date so it’s less awkward!” She gasped for air at the end of the explanation.
“Sooo who’s the friend and the friend of a friend?” Jojo continued to poke at vulnerable panda in front of her.
“I can’t say…”
“Oh, so no we’re gonna keep secrets from each other?”
“You can’t guilt trip me into telling you! That’s not fair!”
“I’m not, I’m just trying to be persuasive,” Jojo teased.
“I’m not bargaining with the devil again. I rather take on Heechul at a battle of savage remarks.”
Jojo laughed. “Then just tell me and I’ll leave you alone.”
Sailynn held her breath. The moment she told Jojo, another game of 21 questions would start, hell, that’s if she survives the hell that she’ll start the moment she drops names. It was either get it done and over with, or live with a petty panther for the next several weeks. Their friendship was more savage than any Kpop group in the current industry…. Well, except for Pentagon. They were the only exception.
“Fine. But can you at least promise me not to give me hell?”
“Nope. That’s what I’m waiting for- wait. Is it someone I know?”
Sailynn froze. Sure, it may have been cold outside but not as cold as hell completely
freezing over. “Whaaa?” She squeaked.
“Oh my god it is isn’t it!? This just got 10x better! Who are you going on a date with Sail!?”
“A group date-”
“Same shit. Who is it!?” Jojo was clinging onto the couch for support as she stood on her knees and leaned over to hear the answer. This was wayyy better than any drama on DramaFever and there was no way Jojo would ever miss an opportunity to tease Sailynn about it later on.
Sailynn ran her hand through her hair as she caved with an extra dramatic sigh. “Fine, but you can’t tell anyone because we’d get our asses whipped big time.”
“Damnit just tell me who it is!” The curiosity was smothering Jojo and her nine lives.
“I’m going on a group date with BamBam an-”
“AND YUGYEOM!?” Jojo jumped ten feet in the air. “SEE! I TOLD YOU HE LIKED YOU!”
“Oh my god dude! Can you shut up! The neighbors will hear us!”
“I WANT FULL DETAILS NOW!” Jojo roared with laughter.
“It’s not like that!” Sailynn growled. “BamBam asked a girl out on a date but didn’t want whoever the chick is to feel too awkward so he asked Yugyeom to come with but Yugyeom didn’t want to be the awkward third wheel so he asked me to join them. It’s not an official date between us, we’re just chaperoning for Bam.”
Jojo grinned brightly. “Bitch, that reeks of a group date.”
Sailynn glared at the overly excited cat on the couch. “It’s not a date.”
“When is it?”
Sailynn went quiet again. The date was specifically picked for a special reason. There would be multiple couples out and about sightseeing all the lights and decorations so it would be easier to blend in into a crowd, and because it was so cold, covering their faces with masks wouldn’t seem so out of place. But it was that specific date that made it so special, especially in that society. “It’s on…. Christmas Eve….”
“SEE! IT’S SOO A DATE! CHRISTMAS IS A COUPLE HOLIDAY HERE!!” Jojo roared with laughter again before coming to a stop once it hit her. “Wait. You’re not gonna be here for Christmas Eve?”
Sailynn shook her head.
“Then what am I gonna do? Eat Christmas dinner by myself? It’s too expensive to fly out to America this far into the season.”
Sailynn playfully punched Jojo’s arm. “You’ll be fine. We don’t meet up until 8, and I’ll be here in the morning when you wake up.”
Jojo snorted, “yeah right. With you on a date with Yugyeom, I might not even see you all Christmas day.”
“IT’S NOT A DATE!” Sailynn repeated.
“Yeah? We’ll see.”
Sailynn forced a smile. “‘Kay, well Imma go get ready because we’re dragging BamBam clothes and gift shopping since he’s a nervous wreck right now.”
“We’re?” Jojo’s eyes glossed over with interest. “Who and who are you going with?”
“Oh my god, okay mom, chill.” Sailynn nagged instantly and took the opportunity to walk away before Jojo had time to sink another claw in.
“You need to tell me, I’m the adult here, I need to know where my maknae is at all times!” Jojo yelled playfully with a giggle mixed in.
The door to Sailynn’s bedroom clicked, leaving Jojo alone in the living room again, back to where she was several minutes ago, except this time, she was fully energized enough to tackle a new drama.
~~
There was a large ruckus outside before it burst through the door and in walked three 97ers with large bags under their arms.
“I’m home! And I brought troublemakers!” Sailynn sang, spotting her best friend still on the couch enjoying a romantic comedy and a bottle of her favorite wine opened on the coffee table.
“Hi noona!” The boys sang together, bowing politely at the presence of their senior.
Jojo smiled and bowed her head back, “didn’t think you’d be back so early, I’m only on the 5th episode.”
“We would have taken all night but with combined effort, we managed to drag BamBam hyung out of the store at an appropriate time,” Yugyeom beamed brightly.
“I need to go back without them, they’re both so impatiently when it comes to shopping.” BamBam hissed shooting dirty looks.
“Well damn, it looks like you brought the entire store with you anyways,” Jojo chuckled.
“We all bought something, I bought you something too actually,” Sailynn winked playfully then quickly continued so Jojo wouldn’t bring up another round of 21 questions. “We’re gonna shove the bags in my room so BamBam can play runway model for us since the stores were closing. Don’t mind us!”
Jojo snickered and went back to watching her drama after turning up the volume a little bit more. One could only imagine what one 97er could do, let alone three or more in the same room. Jojo knew, but the horrors were too grand for her to even try to put to words.
She watched in between scenes and out of the corner of her eye as Sailynn and Yugyeom criticized the flamboyant outfits that BamBam would appear in.
“Next.”
“Mmm- yeah, next.”
“Try again Bam.”
“Don’t even walk out here with that, we can see you from a mile away with those pants.”
“You look like a billionaire, how are you gonna blend in like that?”
“I’m not feeling those shoes dude.”
“Keep the shirt, change the pants.”
“Wait, change the shoes too.”
“Better.”
“You fucked up Bam. Go back to the shirt.”
Jojo couldn’t help herself be amused with the entire situation, and it wasn’t over BamBam’s wardrobe malfunction, but over how close Yugyeom had gotten to Sailynn and her oblivious self had yet to notice the obvious signs of interest. At one point, Jojo had caught Yugyeom’s eye after he had taken a playful and innocent selfie with Sailynn, but Jojo knew all too well the maknae’s novice tricks. He had been playing with his phone after a while, showing Sailynn memes to make her laugh, only for him to build up the courage of actually taking a selfie. His foot kept shaking from side to side until he asked, but the moment Jojo caught his eye and she gave him knowing look, instantly wiping away his winning smile and replacing it with a fully flushed face.
“Alright, I think we’re done here,” BamBam mumbled.
“Aw, Bam, don’t be sad, it was fun!” Sailynn joked after the numerous outfits they had made BamBam go through so it wouldn’t be so obvious that he was an idol in public.
“You’ll thank us later, hyung,” Yugyeom assured his best friend with a wink.
“Noona, you’re coming too, right?” BamBam asked, taking a seat on the couch next to Jojo. “I need you in case of an emergency.”
Jojo’s eyes widen with confusion. “What? Why?”
“We need a chaperone in case we get caught. That way we can say we’re all there as friends.”
Jojo looked at Sailynn with a slight hint of satisfaction in her voice after capturing Sailynn in a white lie. “I thought Sail and Yugyeom were going to be your chaperones.”
Sailynn’s face drained of color as the words left Jojo’s lips.
“What? No, no one’s going to believe that. We're all going on a date and we need you to go, noona.” BamBam scooted closer and unleashed a full face of aegyo. “Please?”
“Well…. I'm not doing anything that day since Yugyeom is kidnapping Sail from me-” Yugyeom looked away and pretended to be on his phone. “So I’d be honored to BamBam. I’ll have an excuse ready to go in case we get caught in public,” Jojo answered the entire time while maintaining eye contact with Sailynn since Yugyeom was dodging the bullet.
The boys stayed a little longer to confirm dates and to help BamBam type out the perfect text message to his date, that is after Jojo had to take the phone from Sailynn who was making it too sappy and cheesy after BamBam had admitted he was drawing a complete blank on what to type. It was kept short, sweet, and to the point, regardless of the boos and disapproving faces Sailynn was giving her.
Poor Sail, Jojo thought as the guys waved goodbye. She had paused the drama and spied over the couch just in time to watch Yugyeom awkwardly stayed behind and go in for a goodbye hug for Sailynn once BamBam had already headed down the complex stairs.
As soon as the Sailynn closed the door though, she turned around to find a hungry looking panther piercing her with eyes that set of multiple alarms of panic through the panda’s body.
“Um. I’m tired. I’m gonna go shower, bye.” In the two biggest steps Sailynn could take with her short legs, she was out of the living room and in the safety of her room.
“We’re not gonna talk about this elephant in the room!?” Jojo yelled down the hall, knowing all too well that Sailynn will dodge the hell out of her for a couple of days until Jojo had a chance to corner her and ambush.
The door to Sailynn’s room creaked open. “I’m sorry I lied. Please don’t attack,” she squeaked.
“Aww, you’re not gonna give me time to give you hell?” Jojo taunted.
“I rather not.”
Jojo continued to push forward. “You know he likes you, right?”
Once again, the door closed, but to Jojo, that was Sailynn’s way of admitting something she didn’t want to admit. She resumed her drama and took a sip of wine, leaning back into the couch for maximum relaxation, unaware of what a 97er was planning behind the noises of the television screen that muted her conversation on the phone….
~~~
There was no end to it. First it started with music at full volume while Sailynn sang her heart out in the shower, soaking up all the hot water and taking longer than a regular human being. But once Sailynn was blared music out of her room, Jojo knew she’d enter the ‘Getting-Ready’ phase. And to top it all, any time Jojo would poke her head out of her room to yell at Sailynn, Sailynn would manage to cut her off with, “Are you ready yet?” before Jojo had a chance to say anything.
“You know, I don’t think you’d be able to make it as an idol with how badly you sing Kpop songs,” Jojo teased, leaning against the bathroom doorframe to watch her best friend prep her face for make-up.
Sailynn grinned, “I don’t plan to thank you very much, my specialty is aegyo.” Sailynn turned around and shot Jojo with a heart, making Jojo cringe over how smooth and easily Sailynn was able to unleash the cheesy aegyo superpower.
“Ya! I said no aegyo without warning!” Jojo stuck her tongue out.
“Sorry, I needed a quick comeback to shut you up and aegyo usually always works,” Sailynn giggled as returned her focus back on applying a thin layer of moisturizer on her skin. It went quiet, Astro playing cheerful tones in the background. One girl coated her face evenly with cushion foundation, blending and blending until the foundation melted naturally into her skin. While the other girl only observed, wondering why and how she could stand the long and tiring process of putting on make-up as if it were any different from any other day she wore make up. The observant girl studied the slow and gentle hand motion of liquid eyeliner being applied on the top eyelids, then the procedure of curling the eyelashes with a metallic device was only followed up with the type of mascara that elongated her lashes.
“Aren’t you wearing too much make-up for one date?” Jojo asked, cocking her head to the side to see the Sailynn blend out bright red blush across the apples of her cheeks.
“Nope, just the basics.”
“But you’re taking forever, I need to pee.”
“I offered you the restroom before I started,” Sailynn pressed a brush dipped in red oil tint to the inside of her lips then dragged out the color with a finger for the ombre effect.
“But I didn’t want to pee then, I need to pee now,” Jojo whined.
With a bit of lip balm to set the color in, Sailynn turned to Jojo and smiled, cupping her face with her hands. “Ta-da! What do you think!?”
“You look the same as any other day you wear make-up. Now get out.”
Sailynn furrowed her eyebrows, “fine, but you have to finish getting ready soon. I just need to take the hair curlers out of my head and change.”
Jojo glanced at the bright yellow curl rollers in Sailynn’s head then snorted, “Are those the ones my mum recommended? They still make you look like a granny.”
“Shut up, they’re sturdy enough to hold up my thick ass hair, this granny is gonna slay!” Sailynn snapped her fingers in a Z formation then pretended to flick an invisible strand of hair back. Jojo took the opportunity to kick Sailynn out instead of replying.
20 minutes later of Jojo sitting on the counter to kill time by playing games on her phone, Sailynn knocks loudly on the door.
“Leaving in 30, YOU BETTER BE READY IN THERE!!”
Jojo springs up, “shit.” A bit of foundation to even out her skin tone, a bit of eyeliner, and mascara on her lashes, she walks out and smiles at the short panda in front of her. “Done!”
Sailynn blinked slowly, opened her mouth to complain about Jojo’s make-up being too simple but quickly closed her mouth and proceeded to force a not so friendly smile. “What about your hair?” She spoke through her teeth.
Jojo grabbed her vibrant red hair quickly and wrapped it in a decent looking sloppy bun. The light emphasizing the natural red hues from the different parts of her long hair all meshed together. “Ta-da!” She sang, cupping her face like Sailynn had done earlier. “What do you think?”
Sailynn’s lips twitched, twitched with the urge to press into a thin line to show her disapproval but due to the oil lip tint she had used earlier, rubbing her lips in any way would only blend the ombre away from perfection. “I hate you.”
A sly grin tugged Jojo’s lips, “let me chang-”
“Oh hell no, I’M choosing your clothes.”
In a heartbeat, the two girls bolted for Jojo’s room, Sailynn managing to push Jojo into the wall in order to cut her off and successfully making it to the room and straight towards the closet.
“That hurt! Brat!”
“Aww,” Sailynn poked her head out of the closet, “do you want me to rub it better with love.”
“Ani. You just need to get out so I can change.”
“If I leave, you’re locking me out and not coming out until the very minute we have to leave so there’s no time for me to change your clothes.”
Jojo chuckled. “Wow, that sounds like a great plan. Sooo leave?”
“Fight me, bitch.”
Jojo scoffed, “excuse me, you’re in MY room.”
“And you’re going out in public in something OTHER than your pajamas.”
“What’s wrong with going out in pajamas?”
Sailynn spread a pair of black long johns bottoms and long sleeved shirt, followed by a pair of regular leggings, followed by lightweight black shirt, and Jojo’s cushioned black sneakers.
“Whoa, am I going to a funeral?” Jojo laughed.
“Yeah, after I murder you for only having black in your closet. Change while I go get your something.”
“My what?” Jojo called after Sailynn had walked out.
When she came back, Sailynn had a pale blue cotton scarf in one hand, and a large shopping bag from Zara in the other. “Here, one of your Christmas presents given to you a day early.” Sailynn smiled brightly, the excitement of Jojo opening her present vibrantly reflecting in her eyes.
Jojo pulled the tissue paper out from the bag and started at a black blob. “What is it?”
“You have to pull it out from the bag….”
Out of the bag, a knee length jacket uncoiled itself.
“I already have a jacket-”
“Goddamn, just put it on.” Sailynn zipped up Jojo then reached into Jojo’s pocket and pressed a small button that was hidden away. Instantly, the jacket began to warm itself up with built in heaters that were sewed in only the back and the front of the jacket.
“No way!”
“Now you can’t say no to anything during the winter because you’ll have a self heating jacket.” Sailynn giggled, then wrapped the scarf around Jojo’s neck.
“Where did you buy this?” Jojo asked.
“Oh you know, while I was out and about. There’s a store that’s like a grocery store but it’s specifically for clothes!”
Jojo rolled her eyes.
“Good. Imma finish getting ready, you sit there and play with your new toy.” She waltzed out of the room, taking out the hair curlers as she disappeared beyond the door.
Within minutes, Sailynn had combed her fingers through her hair, loosening the curls into softer waves that flowed down her back like golden strands. She slid into her own room and began to slip on black leggings, a burgundy red skirt, and cream colored long sleeve, then scurried over to the closet to pull out a pair of heels and a black jacket.
“You’re gonna freeze,” Jojo commented, stepping into Sailynn’s room to pick on her.
“It’s a risk I’m willing to take to look cute-” Sailynn’s phone started to ring. “Ah shit, we’re late! Let’s go!”
Neither of them had a chance to check themselves in the mirror as Sailynn shoved Jojo out of her room and out of the apartment after grabbing their phones and keys.
“We’re on our way, sorry!” Sailynn apologized.
“Sail was just trying to look cute for you!” Jojo yelled loud enough for Yugyeom to hear through the phone. When Jojo got a threatening look from Sailynn, she knew Yugyeom had heard what she said.
Once parking was secured, the girls weaved their way to a cafe that was within the same plaza of a huge Christmas tree that was surrounded by other couples and plenty of Christmas music.
Since Jojo was several inches taller than Sailynn, she managed to locate where the boys were faster and tug Sailynn towards them. When they got out of the cluster of bodies, Jojo waved to grab their attention. The moment they realized it was Jojo and Sailynn, Yugyeom took off, taking large strides to reach Sailynn and wrap his scarf around her.
“Aren’t you cold?” He asked, adjusting the scarf carefully.
“Nah, I was born in the winter. I can handle it,” Sailynn beamed.
His lips twitched at first, before they caved to mirror the bright same in front of him, “I just don’t want you catching a cold is all.” His fingers still lingering around the hem of the scarf.
Her smile dipped into a pout, “you shouldn’t be worrying about me catching a cold when you’re the one who can’t risk catching one with your comeback coming up soon.”
The corner of his eyes crinkled, “I won’t get sick as long as I have you to give me energy.”
“Oh my god you two, either get a room or take your cheese elsewhere!” Jojo shouted.
They both jumped, completely being brought back to the present instead of their own little world.
“Okay!” Sailynn and Yugyeom both chipped.
“Head over heels the maknae is,” BamBam commented, shaking his head in a very judgmental matter. “Noona, hyung will be arriving later to drive us home in case we drink too much eggnog so please keep an eye out for him. I’ll call you later to see when to meet up for the lighting of the star on midnight so we can watch it together.”
“Together? You think Sail and Yugyeom are gonna join?” Jojo gave a lopsided grin.
“They have to, I’m the one with the car keys,” BamBam laughed before taking his date’s hand and leading her into the gift shop next to the cafe.
Jojo turned to bug Sail, only to realize that the two maknaes probably split white she was taking to BamBam. “Well at least I don’t have to see the cheesy, thank god.”
She went into the cafe and ordered the largest and chocolatiest espresso the menu had to offer, believing that since it was only 9 at night and she was going to have to be there until past midnight, she might as well as satisfy her sweet tooth.
There was no point in pushing through the cluster of couples to get to the center of the tree because she was there alone. Instead, Jojo wandered through the shops, looking at the different ornaments and caving to buy a few for her collection back home. She sat down for a while and turned up the heat in the jacket so high that she could feel the sweat develop on her back. Though in the back of her mind she knew she shouldn’t be cranking up the heat so high when it was below freezing, but once a bit of wind started to kick up, fuck it- that’s why Sailynn had bought the jacket in the first place, right?
Jojo snickered to herself. Sailynn had been biasing Yugyeom for such a long time now, though at first she denied it because of Youngjae sweeping her off her feet when she was first introduced to Got7, but Jojo knew, she knew all too well that Yugyeom would just be a better fit for her own savage 97er. It was only a matter of time before Jojo would be able to corner Sailynn and get details out of her about her misadventures. And even if Jojo didn’t corner Sailynn, the little panda would come running with details eventually after a couple of days of the silent treatment.
Jojo stood up and dumped the empty paper cup in the trash, then continued walking around the plaza. She bought kimchi jeon, fish cakes, and other delicious street food that lined the outside of the plaza. With the jacket keeping her warm, there was more than enough time to enjoy herself and all of the delicious Korean delights, and finding herself a nice space under one of the balconies that was far away enough from the crowd meant she could people watch as much as she could without being detected.
“Jojo?”
She looked up from her food at the call of her name, halfway from biting into a jeon and basking in its warm and tingly flavors, only to be struck with horror by a tall and well built oppa behind her. It was ridiculous how he could be out in public without a scarf or a mask to help protect his identity- or at least to muddle down the heart attack she almost had at his presence appearing out of nowhere like a dark knight.
“I almost walked right past you,” the corners of his thin rosy lips quirked up while he chuckled, flashing a row of perfectly white teeth. “You blend in so well with all black but I don’t know if it was the fire hydrant blob on top of your head or the tiny bit of color in that scarf that made you stand out.”
Jojo kept chewing, slowly and carefully to avoid biting her tongue. “It’s usually the hair.”
He chuckled again. “Are you here with Sail? Where is my little panda?” He turned his head for side to side, almost hoping Sailynn would pop out of somewhere to scare him.
“She ditched me to go on a date with your dongsaeng,” Jojo kept eating, watching him closely.
“Who? Youngjae? Really!? They made up!?” His eyes lit up. “It’s been over a year-”
“Yugyeom, oppa. She’s here on a date with Yugyeom.”
He paused for several minutes before he roared with laughter, hunching over to hold onto his stomach. “You’re joking right?”
Jojo shook her head once.
His eyes went round like saucers, “oh my god, I’m telling the other members that this ship finally sailed.” He snickered at the pun.
Jojo only raised an eyebrow.
“Long story short, Yugyeom got drunk with Changsung and Wooyong, and told a little too many secrets. Every since then, we all give Yugyeom shit.” He kept laughing.
“Oppa, that’s not very nice,” Jojo replied, looking away to finish the last of the jeon.
“Like you don’t give Sail shit,” he leered back.
“That’s different, Sail and I have a contract for life.”
He flinched, “what, really?”
Jojo nodded then pointed to her rib cage, “it’s written in 3 hours of ruthless pain and swearing.” He stared at her with a blank expression. “A tattoo, oppa. Our matching tattoo is our contract.”
He chuckled. “Don’t know how that becomes a contract for giving each other a hard time but okay, I’ll leave it at that.” His eyes continued to gleam with curiosity. “So what’s up?”
Jojo’s lips twitched. It had been the first time in a VERY long time since she’s ever run into this particular oppa. Mainly because it hadn’t been long since he returned from the military and jumped back on producing an album and promotions, but also because there was no reason for her to talk to him. Instead, she rather not. He was too deadly, too handsome, and too far up her bias list that it scratched the bottom border line that separated him from the #1 spot on her list.
“Killing time.”
“Why?” he pressed on with a smile.
“Because everyone’s on a date and I was dragged out here by Sailynn and BamBam.”
“Why didn’t you want to come?”
“Because it’s cold out.”
“But you look so warm,” he grinned.
Jojo blinked a couple of times to make sure he wasn’t teasing her, but unfortunately, she know all too well that he was. “Minjun oppa, why are YOU here?”
“I’m the designated driver for the love birds,” Minjun simpered.
She stared at him for a second before remembering that the reason they were all there was because BamBam was having a date with a girl he had a crush on for a while. “Ah, that’s right.”
Minjun stepped to her side and sighed. “At least the lights are pretty, right?”
“Mmhmm.” Maybe if she kept it to short sentences, he’d get bored and leave, Jojo thought to herself and shoved her hands in her pocket to crank up the heat once more.
The conversation died, leaving them in a pool of silence other than the background chatter.
“Why aren’t you in the crowd closer to the tree? I bet it’s closer there.”
“I don’t like large events with large amounts of people.”
“Why not?”
She shrugged. “Dunno.”
It went silent once more.
“What do you think the children are doing right now?” He created a new topic.
“Sucking face.”
Minjun snickered. “On a first date?”
“You did with Sail that one night.”
Just when Jojo thought she had killed the conversation, Minjun spoke again.
“Yeah, I really shouldn’t have done that. Felt terrible for what Youngjae and Sail had going on. Every time I think about it, it hurts ya know? Like, I’m suppose to be looking out for my dongsaengs but instead, I fucked something up. Now that Sail has become more like a little sister to me, I only want to help mend the situation between them. But if she’s with Yugyeom, then I hope her and Youngjae will be able to set their differences aside for Yugyeom’s sake.”
Jojo pressed her lips into a thin line. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to stab him where it hurt. They were both stupid drunk when the kiss took place, and it was only a kiss, but it did screw over Youngjae’s feelings for Sailynn.
“I’m just trying to be a better person today than I was yesterday,” he added.
She kept quiet, letting the topic die down once more into silence.
“Jojo, can I ask you something?”
Jojo turned to him slowly, “what’s up oppa?”
“Do you think Yugyeom and Sail will work out?”
Jojo winced. “I don’t see a reason why it shouldn’t, why do you ask?”
Minjun shrugged. “I don’t know. The more I thought about them getting together, the more excited I felt for that young love to prosper into something beautiful. I think about why my relationships haven’t worked out and how the reason they failed was mainly because I didn’t devote myself to the girl as much as Yugyeom hangs out with Sail- though at first they just hanged out as friends, but at least it was a constant thing, you know?
“The way he smiles when she’s around, I’ve never seen it up close but the members and his members have all described it as something pure and addictive to watch. While it gives me a warm feeling inside because they’re both wonderful individuals, at the same time, I hope I can have that one day too. Have the constant reason on why I should keep aiming to be a better man.”
Jojo simply nodded, how else does she respond that something like that?
“I didn’t expect to find you here tonight, Jojo. But I’m glad I did. Just like Sail said, you’re really easy to talk to.”
“I am?” Jojo asked, taken aback by the compliment from Sailynn.
Minjun grinned, “Yeah, you are. We should hang out more after this.”
She nodded again with a simple “okay,” as her only response.
The quietness had taken over yet again, but this time it wasn’t awkward, it was actually a bit more soothing since Jojo had let her guard down after settling on the fact that Minjun was only dangerous if he opened his mouth to sing, not to be a dork like he was. Yet from the corner of her eyes, she could see him shivering without trying to be too obvious.
She contemplated for a second whether she should offer to go inside a building but quickly shot the idea down when a beam of light quickly flashed past them, revealing that he was still too damn noticeable to be seen in the light of the public at a place full of couples.
In the far distance, she spotted BamBam in the crowd with his date, both of them sharing a large scarf that brought them to a close embrace. Ah, but if she let Minjun borrow her scarf, Sailynn would only tease her about it…. But then again, that was nothing compared to the details of her date.
Jojo uncoiled the scarf around her neck, “here oppa, use this to keep you warm. I can’t have you getting sick since you’re in the middle of promotions.”
Minjun’s lips twitched, “but don’t you have a terrible immune system?”
“Yes, but you’re an idol. I can risk getting a cold but you can’t,” she explained, handing him the pale blue scarf.
He wrapped it around himself and tucked it into his jacket, “it’s warm, thank you.”
Jojo bowed her head respectfully, but as she dipped her head, a soft melody she knew all too well began to play that sent strong shivers down her spine.
“See, you’re already cold, come here.” Minjun reached out and wrapped an arm around Jojo to pull her close. But before Jojo could say anything, he had started to sway, “I knew this beat sounded all too familiar.” Minjun chuckled and began softly singing his own song, low enough for only Jojo to hear.
“No matter what.... you make me wanna be a better man,”
She froze. Her body completely shut down to enjoy the beautiful sound coming out of this man’s mouth while her head sounded alarms that were instantly silenced by his singing voice. He began to sway gently from side to side without picking up their feet, only to the gentle pace of the song that he had produced so many years ago. So many years that she could remember the first time she had heard the song online and how it completely pierced her heart with emotions she wouldn’t dare explain.
His voice hit the octave in a perfect soft whisper, making her flush brighter than the shade of red her hair naturally produced. When the song ended, he chuckled and pulled back to look at her, only to have her watch the smile dissolve from his face and his eyes expand into saucers.
“Oh crap, why are you so red!?” He cupped her face, instantly flinching by how hot Jojo’s skin was to his touch. “Are you okay!?” he gasped.
Jojo could only nod at this point since her brain had been scrambled by his smooth, sweet voice shutting down the rest of her body. His face was only inches from hers, she could make out the almost non-existing pores along his slender nose bridge- the way his bottom eyelashes curled into themselves, or the barely visible veins that were the reason his lips looked so rosy, so soft….
She closed her eyes, and lifted herself on the balls of her feet to close the gap between their lips, only to be met with an equal amount of desire from Minjun, his hands on her face holding her steady as they both deepened the kiss before-
Jojo pushed back, her hand covering her mouth as only her eyes could reflect the terrible decision she had made in a moment of weakness.
“I-I can’t,” she whispered. His eyes searching her face for any strand of hope he could latch onto. “I-I’m sorry oppa.”
She took a step back from him, his hand hanging in mid air from where he had previously held her for a faction of sweet bliss. Another step turned into a third, until she turned around, hand still covering her mouth, and left. Heading directly into the crowd to weave through to the opposite side where she parked to leave for home. To get as far away as possible in the small time frame her brain had to stop her from making a grander mistake she’s learned to never repeat ever again.
Fin.
Taglist~
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