1:43 Am And Touch Starved

gym rat boyfriend! sunghoon who decides to do his workout routine at home, incorporating you in it ♡

“HI PRETTY,” Sunghoon grins, his muscles tightening to avoid collapsing on you.

“Hi baby.” You reply with a small giggle, lying underneath him with his hands and arms parallel to your face. He lets out a breath, pushing himself up as he keeps his eyes on your pretty face. 

“Can't focus when you're under me like this, angel.” He says, but he doesn't ask you to move. He's enjoying this a little too much. 

“You aren't complaining, though.” You giggle, cupping his cheeks with a grin plastered across your face. He hums in response, giving your lips a small peck as he lowers himself closer to your body. 

Up, down, kiss. 

“Such a tease…” He whispers under his breath, doing a few more pushups and brushing his lips on yours before lowering himself completely—lips colliding messily, muffling your giggles. 

Your hands run down his chest as he kisses you, feeling his abs that he'd been working on. He chuckles, breaking the kiss. 

“You like them?” He says, taunting you. You nod eagerly in response, “I do, very much..” 

“Good. Been working on them just for you.” He replies, crashing his lips onto yours once more.

OFF MY FACE ( in love with you ) ⋆ lee heeseung

pairing : basketballer! heeseung x fem! reader

genre : strangers to lovers, romance, comedy if you squint, she fell first he fell harder, love at first kiss, literally no angst no problems they are in love with each other

synopsis : he’s talented, he’s smooth, he’s funny, he’s the popular basketball captain lee heeseung! when you find yourself saving him from a predicament, you muster up the courage to ask this long time crush of yours for a kiss in return. his mind tells him it’s just another kiss given, but why does his heart keep accelerating at the thought of you?

warnings : cursing, kys joke, mutual pining, sickening love that leaves singles ( me ) crying for one chance, heeseung comes so dangerously close you might faint imagining it, slight jealousy, suggestive? descriptions of making out, heeseung kisses another girl like twice ( booooo ), cucumbers

word count : 7.7k ( i have absolutely no vocab left in my head )

nella’s notes : long fics are so hard to write i am not fit for this?! kudos to those amazing amazing writers because how… again, not my best ( I’m past my peak ) so please please please give me feedback. i will read it when i stop being such a coward and face the fact that this is extremely mid.

for astrid : thank you so sososososo much for constantly hyping me up and cheering me on during the writing process. you were the first person i ever gave a spoiler to and you really make me feel like i’m floating whenever you say that you can’t wait for this very fic to come out ( i hope it lives up to at least half your standards )❤️‍🔥😻‼️

for rim : thank you cat woman, george, the cavity to my toothpaste for beta reading and helping me improve the flow of the whole fic ++ dealing with my dramatic ass cause told you not to text one too many times😈🕺🤨 this is the middest thing i’ve ever churned out but you actually read it so you’re literally on top☝️

important

part one of hylfab series :: series masterlist

LOVE is crazy and unpredictable, like the storm that comes after a sunny day. It washes you, drenching your whole body and soul in it. And some people decide to run, seeking for shelter desperately while others decide to dance in the shower of nature, accepting the love the earth blesses them with. But you, you were the type who waited for it with anticipation, crazily in love with the thought of love.

You feel a drop and then another. A kiss. A kiss. And then another kiss.

i. when your grassy lips touch mine

“With seconds left on the clock, Decelis’ Captain Lee Heeseung looks determined to score a tiebreaker, he’s driving towards the basket, and with a layup he-” You watch the boy whizz through the court, light on his feet as he dodges everyone in his way.

The way he moves is magnetic, you think, and he jumps easily tossing the ball into the basket.

“Scores!” And you’re on your feet, eyes wide and mouth agape as your scream blends into the cheers of your fellow schoolmates. “Lee Heeseung has done it once again, he’s led his team into the semifinals of the HYBE Basketball Tournament!”

The final whistle blows and you watch as the basketball team huddle together, specifically at a number 11, who was patting your good friend Jungwon on the back. The sweat from his temple rolls down to his chin as he pulls his jersey to wipe it, exposing the tiniest bit of skin that leaves you blushing.

“Would it hurt for you to look away once in a while?” Minjeong says, rolling her eyes, “I know you like him but god, get a change of scenery or you’ll get bored.”

The tips of your ears turn pink as you turn your head towards her, rebutting, “One, looking at him is a change of scenery from looking at you. Two, I was literally looking at Jungwon so that I could go congratulate him.” She scoffs, rolling her eyes at your pitiful attempt to explain yourself.

“Y/n! Minjeong!” Jungwon yells, capturing the attention of the both of you as you stop your bickering to congratulate him. As you walk down the steps, your eyes move to Heeseung, eyeing the way his tongue darts out to lick his lips as he listens to his coach.

You think he’s gorgeous, how his hands move to brush his hair back and how his skin glowed under the harsh lighting of the hall. His gaze shifts to meet yours for a split second before returning back, nodding at something his coach said.

“Congratulations Won, you were amazing!” Minjeong exclaims, giving him a big slap on the back. “Yeah Won, you’re the MVP of this game in my heart,” you add, passing him a water bottle like you always do after his matches. He holds back a laugh and you shoot him a sharp glare, cautioning him not to embarrass you in any way, especially when Heeseung was right beside him.

Before he can reply, Heeseung returns, patting Jungwon on the shoulder. “I have to get something for Coach Yoon, see you at the afterparty later?” Jungwon nods and he smiles, gaze darting from Jungwon to Minjeong to you before taking his leave.

“You’d think from the way you look right now, it’s the first time you’ve seen his face. But from the amount of times you’ve watched him from behind, I guess it actually is.” Minjeong jokes.

“Kill youself,” you reply, cursing her under your breath. It wasn’t the first time she’s teased you about your crush on Lee Heeseung. Just as you were about to call Minjeong out on the way she acted with her crush, your phone rings.

“Shit, sorry guys, I can’t hang out today. My brother just returned home yesterday, and he’s here to pick me up.” You apologise as you hurriedly grab your bag.

“Sunoo’s back? Tell him we said hi, and that we can’t wait to see him around school again!” Jungwon says, as the two of them wave goodbye to you.

The sky was turning a dark shade of blue as you finally breathed in some fresh air, starkly contrasting the musky smell of sweat that occupied the arena. Humming a song under your breath as you made your way across the empty hallway to the academy’s carpark.

“Hey, is anyone there?” The sound of rattling and thumping breaking the serene silence you were walking in. You turn, eyes at work, trying to find where the seemingly familiar voice was coming from. “Hello?” Your eyes dart to the equipment store.You walk towards the storage room, easily turning the knob on the door, opening it only to find Lee Heeseung, in all his glory, holding a door knob?

“Thank god, someone heard me,” he heaved a sigh of relief, hand moving up yet again to brush his hair back – which came to be useless as the strands of hair returned back to their places on his forehead. “Thank you so much, Jungwon’s friend,” he says, tossing the door knob into an empty basket.

“Jungwon’s friend?” You ask, head tilting in curiosity.

“Yeah, aren’t you Jungwon’s friend? I saw you with him just now. Thank you again for helping me.” He replies, meeting your gaze for the third time today and you feel a little faint.

“I helped you,” you repeated, processing his words, “well then, you owe me,” a lazy grin spreading on your face.

“What?” he says, slight shock evident in his voice, “what do you mean I owe you?”

You sigh exaggeratedly, “I was busy but I still helped you, and now I’m late for a meeting with a very important person. So, you owe me.”

“Okay,” he trails off, “so you want me to buy you lunch?”

“Lunch? Huh, is that how you ask out all of your side chicks,” you joke, having fun teasing the oblivious boy in front of you, “chuck them in a smelly room with you then tell them you’ll treat them for lunch?”

He scoffs, eyeing you for the first time. He thinks you’re pretty, how you were drowning in Jungwon’s oversized jersey with cheeks painted in streak of Decelis’ renowned navy blue and white. “No lunch then, so what exactly do you want, hm pretty girl?”

You look him up and down, and he’s intrigued. He’s used to girls falling to their knees for him. The kind with shy personas yet starkly contrasting gazes, as if they were going to eat him up. But he’s never really seen the look in your eyes, like you had him where he was supposed to be, and he was obliged to listen to your every beck and call.

“How about, “ you pause, thinking, “a kiss.”

“A kiss?” Heeseung’s taken aback. Never in his life has he been asked for a kiss this directly, especially not from such a pretty girl like you. He watches as you look up at him, doe eyes and glossy lips, and he thinks he’s gotten soft. “Sure,” he agrees cooly, keeping his composure.

You wonder where the surge of confidence had come from as you tilt your head up, gesturing to him to bend down before you move in.

He catches a whiff of your perfume before tasting the honeyed vanilla of your lips. It’s sweet yet subtle and he can’t help but yearn for more. His fingertips dance on your waist as he pulls you closer, hair softly brushing against his face as he drowns in the cream-like warmth of you.

He thinks paradise is between your lips and he’s in a dream. Like his heart is a stone that skims across the ocean of your skin, leaving dents of throbbing desire with every touch of your tongue with his.

But before he can go any further, you break the kiss, a frown etched on your face as you wipe your lips.

“Ugh, what is on your lips? Do you use some kind of olive oil lip balm? That’s disgusting,” you say, looking up to him appalled. “Don’t know if it’s you or the girl you kissed before the game, but whatever it is, it’s nauseating.”

Heeseung’s taken aback and wants to refute, but you were already walking out of the equipment room, the back of your hand trying to rub off the lingering taste of grass on your lips. He scoffs at your disappearing silhouette, ignoring the slight disappointment at the back of his mind.

It’s fine, he thinks, it’s just another kiss.

ii. stomach, meet butterflies

It’s been four days and Heeseung still can’t get you out of his mind. Suddenly you were everywhere, at basketball training, five people in front of him in line at the cafeteria ( he counted ), and his eyes constantly wandered, sifting through the different faces just to find a doe eyed girl with a sharp tongue and witty attitude.

The arm wrapped around his bicep tugs him down, bringing him for a kiss. It’s bitter and sour all at once, and he can taste it, the hint of the grass-tasting product on Sooji’s lips.

“Hey, what product do you use on your lips?” Heeseung asks her, curious of the disgusting flavour of the girl’s lip gloss.

“You like it that much, huh?” She purrs, shifting closer to Heeseung. “It’s actually cucumber, all natural as well, makes my lips softer. My mother actually bought it for me when she went to –” Heeseung nods, tuning out the girl’s annoyingly high pitched voice as he finds himself looking for you in the midst of the crowd of the cafeteria yet again.

To his surprise, he finds you already staring at him and he awkwardly shifts in his seat, moving away from Sooji. He doesn’t know why, but it suddenly feels wrong to be sitting so close to a girl, kissing and touching Sooji who he’s barely had five full conversations with when you were around. ( even if you were sitting across the cafeteria )

Heeseung can’t hear your soft voice that keeps replaying in his head, so he results to just watching as you break eye contact to wave your hand at Jungwon, who was walking towards your table. The way your eyes sparkle as Jungwon approaches you and your friends, and the grin plastered on your face as you call him out by his nickname irks Heeseung.

‘Won’, one simple syllabus and a silly nickname. So why is he feeling envious?

You’re just another girl he’s kissed, nothing more. He thinks, trying to console himself. It didn’t matter that you were confident, hilarious, or the prettiest person he’s ever met. Nor is it about how your lips felt so so soft against his, the taste of delicate vanilla that stayed on the tip of his tongue.

“Seungie, are you even listening to me?” a shrill voice interrupting his thoughts, and he turns back, annoyed at the fact that his line of sight was no longer you, but a cakey face of makeup paired along with a sickening amount of perfume. “What was I talking about?”

“Uh…cucumber lip balm?” He’s dazed, all his attention on you, not sparing a single glance at the girl leeched onto his arm. He can’t help but be mesmerised at how alive you were as you laughed along with your friends, the strong glare of the sun somehow cradled your figure, like a natural spotlight.

It’s like you have him wrapped around your finger, unknowingly tying up his heartlines like telephone cords. And he doesn’t know what to do.

So he results in asking Cupid. “I’ve retired Hee,” she says, “I’m not cupid anymore.” Her boyfriend Jay’s arm slung around her shoulder, as he twirls the ends of her hair.

“I’m not asking for matchmaking, I just don't know what to do next,” He mutters, slightly embarrassed. He’s Lee Heeseung, the basketball captain who led his team to the championships, the guy who could get any girl he liked, yet he finds himself stumbling over one small kiss with you.

Jay examines his friend’s expression, “if she really asked you for a kiss, then why are you the one chasing her around, following her like a lost puppy?” The girl beside him stifles a giggle, unable to fathom how the tables had finally turned. That after constantly teasing the both of them for following each other everywhere, it was finally his turn.

“Am not,” he argues, arms crossed and eyebrows furrowed.

The couple looks at him in disbelief, “you’ve literally been asking around about her, looking for her every second you’re free, or do you not remember?”

Heeseung remembers. How could he ever forget when all he does these days is stare at you.

“You’re down, bad.” Jay’s voice bringing him back to reality, “so? She liked the kiss, right?”

Heeseung sighs, not knowing how to answer. He enjoyed it, but did you? Most probably not. Not when his lips were smothered with Sooji’s all-natural cucumber balm ( they make your lips soft, but at what cost? ) “You promise not to laugh?” he casts knowing looks at the duo who loved making fun of him, “she said my lips taste like grass.”

He watches as Jay and his girlfriend hold back their laughter, looking at each other in amusement. “Oh god, she’s way out of your league,” he says, “we have to meet her.”

Heeseung groans, palms rubbing his face as he deliberates why he ever came in the first place, “just fucking tell me what I should do.”

iii. if i had two hearts, i would fall for you twice

You think it’s pathetic; you’re pathetic — as you watch the boy you’ve liked for a year bend down to kiss a different girl with his lips, as if nothing had ever happened just a few days ago. Maybe you were being dramatic, making a big deal out of such a normal act from Lee Heeseung, but you couldn’t help but frown at the thought of your unrequited feelings.

Though you were the one who broke the kiss up, you had to admit it was one of the best kisses you’ve ever received in your life. An intricate memory of your first kiss with your crush that should be stored in the treasure chest of your heart. You wished it could last forever. But tasting another girl’s gloss on his lips made you feel so worthless, like you were a side piece – even if he wasn’t really yours to begin with.

“He’s a wuss, he’s a coward,” Minjeong exclaims as the both of you sit on the bleachers of Decelis’ indoor sports hall, “he gets the kiss of his life, follows you around school like a bitchless loser, and when you finally look at him he kisses someone else?”

You slap your palms onto Minjeong’s mouth, nodding your head towards the hall full of basketballers practising. “Way to be secretive,” you groan, “but I guess it’s normal for him to kiss people. Plus, he does not follow me around, he’s always with Sooji.”

“We literally saw him outside our class just now, looking directly at you through the window,” she comments, “you’ve definitely caught his attention.”

You sigh, watching Heeseung as he bends down to catch a breather, body flushed like roses as he mouths something to his teammate. And you think it would take you more than a lifetime to get over the boy. He never needs to know how you replay your conversation with him in your head all the time. The way he smiled when you opened the door, the lovesick feeling that only he could give you.

“No, I-” you start, turning to face Minjeong, before you are interrupted by her furious tapping, “yeah, you did, because he’s on the way here right now.”

“Hey Y/N, hey Minjeong,” he greets, standing in front of you looking like a god. Your eyes widen in shock as your name rolls off his tongue and you’re buzzing, burning, flying.

“Hey guys,” Jungwon follows, hands reaching out to ruffle your hair and you scream.

“Won, it took me such a long time to do my hair today,” you complained, whining as you glare at him in anger, completely forgetting the fact that your crush was right in front of you at the thought of your messed up look, “and your palms are sweaty.”

“This is the one I told you about, the brat,” Jungwon explains to Heeseung, a playful glint in his eyes as he points towards you. Heeseung looks at you, an amused smirk forming on his lips.

“I know what she’s like,” he says, “we’ve talked before.” Your heart squirms around your chest under his gaze. We’ve kissed. You think, as you calm the throbbing heart of yours.

“So,” you start, attempting to change the topic at the price of your embarrassment, “what brings the almighty captain of our basketball team here? Doesn’t really seem like you’re in need of any saving.” You trail off, smiling at the thought of getting back at him.

“Of course not, pretty girl,” he challenges back, neither of you backing down, “but if you want, you can save me anytime.” You don’t know when he moved in, so close you shuffle back.

And you think that God was so unfair, that the universe hated everyone but Lee Heeseung. Because it was criminal, how he looked so good drenched in sweat with flushed cheeks and pretty eyes so powerful one gaze could easily knock a faint hearted out.

“Do I look that easy?” You tilt your head, the tips of your lips curving up forming a sly smile, “you might be smooth, Lee, but I don’t save just anybody.”

“Well, thank god I’m not just anybody,” he mutters before moving back, a cocky smirk plastered on his face, “so, would you come save me?”

Heeseung’s words bury itself in every layer of skin belonging to you, and he owns every feeling that blossoms in the pit of your stomach when you think of him. You hear him, and almost plead for him to save you as you stargaze at the opaque galaxies in his irises.

“Since you so earnestly begged,” you answer, catching a small falter in your voice. And he crushes you with his reply.

“You promised,” the creaminess of his voice wrapping around you as the shrill sound of his coach’s whistle cuts the tension between the both of you. “See you soon, pretty girl.”

He runs off, leaving you tongue tied, numb, as your heart falls again and again.

iv. language is so miserably insufficient when i talk about you

Heeseung makes lists in his head about what he wants in a lover, like brown hair and a sweet voice. Athletic, and maybe someone soft, gentle, and caring to him. And it’s all bullshit. Because people aren’t lists and the girl he’s staring at across the hallway is showing him that.

You’re different from the list in his head, equipped with a sharp mind and a sense of humour that actually makes people laugh like they mean it. And he finds you spilling into him, but for once he doesn’t care. His veins brimming, bones soft, and lungs inflated as his lips smiles at the remembrance of the imprint of your mouth on his.

He doesn’t know when it happened, barely catching himself slipping away from his past antics of having random cheerleaders on his arms or giving kisses because he felt like it. Now, he felt the need to save. To save his unlimited kisses for someone, you, who stood across the hallway with perfume that smelt like a fleeting dream.

“Bro’s too love struck to even look at us when we talk,” Jake says, eyeing the boy with hearts in his eyes.

“Just go for it,” Sunghoon pipes up, “how hard can it be to get a girl?”

Heeseung’s head whips back, eyes slitted as he glared hardly at him. “You wouldn’t even know, you’re too busy arguing with that neighbour of yours.”

“Just give her flowers and shit, girls like that.” Sunghoon rolls his eyes, unable to even imagine why his friends were all so infested with their love lives now.

Jay slaps Sunghoon on his back, face contorting into slight annoyance. “Not all girls like that, you have to get to know her, what she likes, and what she doesn’t. Don’t take advice from a idiot who shows his liking by being a nuisance to his crush.”

“I do not like her, she is the most annoying person in the universe.” Sunghoon refutes. And Heeseung stares at the scene — of two of his friends bickering.

He turns to Jake, gesturing as if asking him to tell Heeseung his thoughts and Jake sighs, “not me bro, I’m literally fake dating my crush and she thinks every gift or kiss i give her is fake. You should listen to Jay.”

So Heeseung turns to Jay, face with an expression ever so vulnerable; with the innocence of a love struck puppy and the wish to become a lover.

“I mean,” Jay starts, and Heeseung’s eyebrows furrow in concentration, wanting to capture every last detail of Jay’s love advice. “Do you like her?”

It’s a simple question but it wrings the life out of Heeseung. Liking someone is simple, but admitting it is not.

And he thinks back, to the time when he felt as if he kissed the garden of eden on the lips, tinted mosaic love, heart soft in soft hands, warm fingertips grazing warm skin. He smiles, and fuck, he likes you. A lot.

He opens his mouth, but is too overwhelmed by the enriching feeling washing him down. So he results in just nodding, and for once his eyes sparkle; so bright it puts the sun to shame.

“Then go talk to her, ask her out, find out what she likes to do, what she despises, and go for it.” Jay answers, reminiscent of the time he first felt the intense feeling of love, of crush.

Heeseung doesn’t need to be told twice as he makes a beeline to you. It’s not the first time he’s approaching you, yet his palms are sweaty and his breath is staggered when he reaches you at your locker.

You look up from your phone to the boy who stands in front of you, shadow casted onto the screen of your phone. “Lee Heeseung, fancy seeing you here. What’s up?”

Your voice is tranquil as it kisses his eyelids, that he can now no longer see anyone but you. His mind turns a blank sheet — the flower petal used to write you the sweetest letter erased.

“Uh, Friday?” He stutters, and he mentally kills himself for losing composure in front of you. “I mean,” he pauses, catching his breath, “hey, are you free Friday?”

You stifle a laugh at the poor boy’s lack of speech, his obnoxious confidence replaced with fragile dandelions at the tip of his tongue.

“Sure,” he’s cute, “see you Friday Heeseung.”

And he feels like he’s scored a winning basket.

v. my heart is so full of you, i can hardly call it my own

The devil works hard, but Lee Heeseung works harder. With his muscular arms crossed against his chest, body leaning against the metal frame of your locker as he waits, like he has for the past hour, scanning the crowd for you.

“Sorry for the long wait, Heeseung.” you say as you approach. Hearing his name come out from your lips made the hairs on the back of his neck stand. He’s never known a better sound than his name on your lips.

“No problem,” he replies, staring into the same eyes that got him hooked and he thinks, “she’s so pretty, I could cry,” a pretty girl, his pretty girl with pretty hair and pretty eyes. “I’ll always wait for you.”

You look away nonchalantly, but he’s observant enough to notice the blush forming on your cheeks. “Okay, loverboy, if that’s what you want to do.” And he laughs, fingertips sliding around your wrist as he pulls you out of school.

“Hey! Where are you taking me,” you exclaim at the sudden movement from the boy who opens suns in your heart, “this is so ungentlemanly of you! Is this how you take all your side chicks out? Manhandle them?”

Heeseung stops in his tracks, turning his body around before pulling you in by the wrist. His eyes etched onto yours, “stop being such a princess and just follow me.”

And with that he continues to lead you into the mall, a winner’s smile etched on his face at the thought of your shocked expression.

He pulls you into the mall, guiding you to the arcade situated on the ground floor, professionally swerving through the crowd of children to the basketball machines tucked in the corner of the bustling place.

“This? You want me to save you, the almighty basketball captain, from an arcade shooting game?” You say, a baffled expression on your face.

“I hold the highest score, sweetheart,” he replies cockily, as he watches you scoff at his arrogance.

“Oh, so this is a challenge?” You say as you jokingly stare him down, and he smiles. He smiles because he sees the warmth in your eyes, so intense he was sure you could read all of his thoughts, everything he felt and thought about you, written on his pupils.

“Yeah, whatever you wish,” he mumbled to himself, his heart swelling at the sight of you so adorably eager to win.

You turn to him, snapping him out of his thoughts, “play with me, Hee, I want to see your face when you lose.”

And he goes mad at the way your eyes morph into crescents when you laugh, stars glittering your smile and your face so colourful. He slowly finds that with you around, everything's a blur and time moves too quickly.

You laugh and he feels…relief. Relieved that you simply exist, and he’s privileged enough to exist with you in the same lifetime, in the same world, right beside you.

It’s an easy win for you, but only because he’s distracted by the pureness of your giggles, his eyes constantly moving away from the metal netting of the basketball hoop to you.

“Loser,” you exclaim, sticking your tongue out in sheer happiness. It wasn’t often that you would beat a captain of a basketball team in his sport after all, “now you have to treat me to ice cream.”

He’s about to refuse before he holds himself back, wanting to blurt out how it was you who caused him the loss. “Don't’ be a sore loser, Hee, not everyone can be blessed with such immaculate talents,” you teased.

You are not wrong. You are immaculately talented with the way you spin his heart dizzy, lightheaded, drunk on the tiniest of memories he has with you. You may not be the world, but you are everything that makes the world good. And now that Heeseung’s met you, he thinks all he’s done in his life was just existing, not living.

A soft tug snaps him out of his daydream of you, tiny fingers bunching the fabric of his shirt. “Excuse me, can you help me?”

Before he can register the unfamiliar voice, you’re already bending down, squealing over the cute boy, “Aww, you’re so adorable!”

You interact excitedly with the little boy, eyes practically shaped into hearts as you stare at him in adoration. “I’ll help you, let’s go! Don’t ask this sore loser, he’s still crying over how I absolutely trashed him in basketball!”

Heeseung bends down as he gasps, feigning hurt. “You wound me, princess,” a hand on his chest as he entertains the small boy in front of him.

“Hyung, why is your girlfriend so mean to you?” His eyes wide as he asks ever so innocently, scratching the side of his head in confusion.

“Ah, he’s not-”

“Yeah, why are you so mean to me, my girlfriend?” He sided with the little boy, turning to face you. He’s amused as you shoot him a warning look, mind racking for a response in your flustered state.

He wishes that he could hear about all the thoughts flying through your head at the moment. He wishes that inside, there’s a garden blooming just for him.

Do you think about him the way he thinks about you?

The question gnaws at him, because even though he knows that you have had a crush on him, he doesn’t know what it feels like.

But maybe now he does.

It’s like he’s hell bound and you’re heaven sent, and he’s never really believed in love at first sight ( or kiss ) till he met you. But there was no other explanation, of why his eyes looked for you in the midst of the crowd even when he barely knew your name and just the taste of your lips, or why his pulse would jump whenever he hears your name even though he’s at the other end of the hallway.

You haunt him, and he loses sleep as he stares at the countless stars in the sky, looking for one that’s shaped like the stars in your eyes.

Pouting, you try to explain yourself, “he’s mean to me first,” you say, putting the blame on Heeseung. But to your dismay, the little boy doesn’t believe you one bit.

“He literally looks at you like how a dog looks at a bone,” Heeseung’s laughter rings through your ear and into your heart as the tips of your ear blush red.

“You make it seem like he wants to eat me,” you say, hands moving up to soothe the heat of your ears.

“But he looks like he wants to kiss you so badly,” and Heeseung wonders how the little boy is so accurate in his observations. You’re stunned, and he takes the chance to dip down, finally tasting the sweet vanilla dripping from your lips again.

“Come on, I’ll help you,” Heeseung says as he stands up, grasping the tiny hand of the boy, “my girlfriend is a little preoccupied right now.”

vi. one boy, thousand feelings

You presume that you’ll never finish falling in love with Lee Heeseung now that he’s planted himself firmly in the garden of your life, conducting the butterflies in your stomach with how he waits for you after school at your locker, in the same leaning stance that has slowly become familiar after the past two weeks.

You remember when you asked him why he waited in that stance, with his arms crossed leaning against the locker coolly. And you remember calling him a hypocrite when he said it was the position he looked best in, because all he was in your eyes was a loser.

Or because he always looked his best in your eyes.

Even so, with his charming tactics and smooth ways, here you are; with a sour aftertaste in your mouth and a sunken heart as Minjeong asks you about the basketball game this evening.

“So he didn’t ask you to watch him at the basketball game?” She scoffs, “what a boyfriend he is.”

“He’s not my boyfriend,” you reply, bashful at the intimate label. “And maybe it’s because he knows I always go either way.”

“But still,” she reasons, “with the way he goes around proclaiming and calling you his girlfriend, he should’ve at least asked.”

You sigh. Maybe it’s a sign, you think, a sign that he doesn’t actually like you as much as he seems to, a wake up call that this will never be real, that it’ll forever stay a coin that you’ve thrown into the wishing well.

“Don’t worry Y/N,” Minjeong consoles, “we’ll be going together, matching in Jungwon’s jerseys! Who wants to match with Lee Heeseung when you can match with the Kim Minjeong instead?”

A small smile forms at the words of your best friend, “okay then, let’s go get ready, I can’t wait to match with the Kim Minjeong.”

She squeals, pulling you into her room, where two of Jungwon’s white jerseys hung. And you spend the afternoon with Minjeong, giggling and gossiping, as you dress up to watch the basketball game.

The both of you finally reach the indoor hall, seated at the usually second row of your school’s bleachers. Eyes scanning the crowd of boys on the basketball court, only to find Heeseung in the midst of the chaos.

The gradual beat of your heart suddenly accelerates. No, you were supposed to be upset that he didn’t invite you, get your act together, you think to yourself.

Curse him, curse Lee Heeseung, because with that face and skill, it was near impossible to look away. He dazzles on the court, easily manoeuvring past everyone, and you’re way too distracted by trying to keep your gaze off him you barely focus on the scores.

‘Jungwon, I’m here for Jungwon’ is the mantra you tell yourself as you fix your gaze on your other best friend, who was proclaimed to be the upcoming ace of Decelis’ basketball team.

And he proves it himself, with the way he catches the ball thrown to him by Heeseung, eyes focused as he shoots a clean three pointer.

You and Minjeong immediately stand up cheering, hollering like crazy fans. “Oh my gosh, with the way he’s playing, he’s definitely getting mvp tonight instead of Heeseung.” A wide smile on her face starkly contrasting yours, “looks like lover boy isn’t doing so well today.”

Turning to look at him, your heart squeezes, not only because of your deep feelings for the boy, but also due to how drained he looks. Face pale as sweat drips down his hair onto the court in droplets.

You hate yourself. For not paying attention, for being petty, for missing out on how his legs tremble ever so slightly as he struggles to stand straight.

He looked fine at a glance but the more you observed his actions you realise how much of a bad shape he was in. A huge sigh of relief exits you when the halftime whistle blows and you fly down the stands to the barrier, sourness replaced with worry.

“Heeseung,” you call, and amidst the bustle of the hall he hears you clearly, jogging to you with shining eyes.

“Hey my pretty girlfriend,” he says with a small frown as he examines your outfit, “why are you wearing Jungwon’s jersey?”

You ignore the boy’s envy laced comment, “Hee, are you feeling okay? You didn’t look too good on court today.”

He musters up a tired smile, “only because a pretty girl is watching me, makes me nervous.”

You sigh as your words enter his left ear and exit through his right, “I think you should sit out for the last half of the game,” your eyebrows furrow in worry, “don’t overwork yourself.”

You wonder if the boy in front of you is even registering your words when you see the dazed look in his eyes, as if he was ticked off by something on you.

“Lee Heeseung, are you listening to me?”

“Why are you wearing Jungwon’s jersey?” He repeats, this time in a stern tone that sends shivers down your spine. His voice raspy as he asks.

“I always do, you know that,” unaware of the situation you were in, “not like it matters.”

“It does,” he grunts, “how can my girlfriend wear another boy’s jersey to my game, cheering his name, and waving a sign for him.”

“You never gave me yours,” you mutter under your breath, not wanting to seem too dramatic in front of him, “and I’m not even your girlfriend.”

A string of curses leave his mouth under his breath, and he pauses for a moment, “yet,” he says, “you’re not my girlfriend yet.”

And you feel like you could look into his eyes forever, memorise the mesmerising patterns of his irises. More than that, maybe you could recognize him by his touch alone, by smell even; you would know him blind, by the rhythm of his breaths, the loudness of his footsteps.

The call of Heeseung’s name breaks your gaze from his, and you gesture to him to go back. But his eyes are etched to your face, as if you were an angel bestowed upon him.

“Hee,” you echo his teammate’s calls, “your teammates are calling.” And he snaps out of it at the sound of your voice, nodding before placing a soft kiss at the corner of your lips.

“Wait for me,” he says, expression serious. And you liked it, how it softened slightly when he looked at you. Like the way he looked at you differed from how he looked at anyone else.

Heeseung turns away but you pull him back, fingers encasing his wrists, cheeks sullied the colour of love, “don’t strain yourself out there, you’re always the best player to me.”

You don’t know how your reassurance melts him, thaws him down to his raw emotions and bones. You squeeze his wrists, offering him a comforting smile, and he thinks he’s fucked.

vii. i think i’ll call you love !

Heeseung thinks the universe must hate him, as he blows his nose into the nth tissue of the day. He had so much planned; to finally treat you to ice cream from your previous date, and to ask you to finally be his girlfriend. But he thinks it’s all ruined.

He doesn’t know the exact moment he fell for you, nor did he know that he would fall. But he thinks that’s the beauty in it, that he wasn’t even looking when he found you.

“We could get ice cream,” he suggests, voice low and stuffed as he sniffs. Watching the adorable way your face scrunches up in disbelief entertains Heeseung as you scold him for not taking care of himself properly.

“Ice cream? When you’re sick?” casting a stern glance at the tall boy, “do you want to die?”

He smiles at your cute expressions, and god he wants to kiss you so badly. There wasn’t a single word in the universe to describe how he felt about you.

There’s nothing in the world he’ll ever find more beautiful than you. Not the sun. Not the moon. Not even the galaxy compares to the light you radiate.

Yes, as long as the last thing he’d see was you. He wants to reply, but instead a few coarse coughs exit his throat as his hands fly up to cover his mouth.

“I think you should head home, Hee,” you say, anxious for him, “you’re burning up.” Your hands push his hair back gently as you gauge his temperature from your touch on his forehead. “I told you that you should’ve sat out from yesterday’s basketball game.”

“Guess I’m in need of saving again,” he mumbles, resting his forehead on your shoulder, nausea drifting away at the smell of your vanilla perfume.

Your hand caresses him back, softly asking him to stand up before pulling him to the direction of the nurse’s office.

“No,” he groans, “let’s go out.”

You tsked at Heeseung’s childish complaining, “stop being such a big baby and follow me.”

“I hate the smell of the nurse’s office,” he whines, “let’s go.”

And he pulls you, hands encasing your fingers as he walks out of school. “Where?” You ask, not even trying to persuade the boy to go back, as if he would listen to you.

“Home,” he says, pulling you across the road, passing a few houses before he stops.

“This is your house? I never knew you lived so close to school.”

“You don’t know where your boyfriend lives?” he teases, masking the dizzy feeling in his head, “and yet I know so much about you. Like how you like to dance, how you’re called the pretty girl of your year, how you devour strawberry covered chocolates like you’re starved.”

You’re blushing and Heeseung is proud. “Asking around about me now, Hee? Don’t make it so obvious, or else people might think you’re obsessed.”

Maybe he was. Obsessed with you. He sees you before he sees anything else in the room, vanilla was never his favourite scent till he smelt it on you, and he’s tangled, blurred into you.

He unlocks the door and welcomes you in, watching as you look around in awe, “Oh my god, you look so cute here!” You point towards a framed picture of a baby Heeseung placed on the top of a drawer.

He flushes, quickly moving to turn the photo down before awkwardly changing the topic. “How about we watch a movie?”

“Didn’t we come here so you could rest?” You say, “You should go to sleep Hee, I’ll let myself out.”

He shakes his head furiously, distasting the idea of missing precious time with you. “No, let’s watch a movie,” he insists.

“Fine,” you sigh at the stubborn boy, “just for a while then you go to sleep.”

Heeseung randomly chooses a movie, unable to focus as he flops back onto his sofa. He moves his head, laying it on your shoulder, shifting to find a comfortable position.

And it’s silent as the both of you watch the movie, with Heeseung’s head propped on your shoulder, curled up against you.

Heeseung, for once, feels at peace. His head is void of basketball strategies or maths equations, filled with just you. With the lovely silken murmur of your breath, like an angel clad in wings and the soothing feeling of strawberries, cherries, and kisses during spring.

He can’t take it anymore, it’s killing him. He hates how nothing goes according to plan, how he couldn’t take you out today, tease you in front of the world and ask you to be his. But he guesses this is what love really is, not really showing you off, no. But more so the urgency to trace over the spots you last touched, a gentle graze, a pat on the shoulder, or even a simple hug. He feels you even when you’re not near, and your scent has perfectly settled into his senses.

“Be my girlfriend Y/n,” he blurts out, “my real girlfriend.”

You freeze up, in shock and he feels the need to explain, to confess, to cough up all the words that are stuck in his throat.

“I like you, so much I can’t put it into words. You’re stuck in my head, everywhere I go you’re the first person I’ve come to look for. Anytime someone looks at you, or speaks to you, I’m jealous. I want all your minutes and all your words. I want all of you, to myself, all the time. I-”

You cut him off, lips pressing against his. This is what it’s like to kiss Venus, he thinks. And he never thought a kiss could be such a dream. His heart intoxicated, his mind derailing into madness, anaesthetised bodies against each other as the both of you run wild like the fire in your veins.

Giving in and pulling away, taking it all in with smoke in the air, in the comfort of each other's arms and sedated beings. Just you and him.

“So, is that a yes?” He’s dazed and worried, worried that you would say no and he’d never be able to forget about you.

You crack a big grin, giggling at his stupid question. Your cheeks dusted in fairy red as you glow, “I guess you’re my real boyfriend now, Lee Heeseung.”

viii. i don’t know how you do it, but i’m forever ruined by you

Instead of the usual #04 on the back of your shirt, you’re donning a #01. Definitely because your boyfriend was a jealous brat, and not because you wanted to. ( Actually you instantly agreed when he asked you to )

It’s been two weeks and you’re absolutely sick. Sick of the butterfly galore fested in your stomach, and even more so of the handsome boy who owns it, constantly clinging onto you like he was right now.

“Babe, I can’t believe you’re not going to give me a good luck kiss, I’m literally going to faint right now.” He says, dramatically flopping into your arms.

“I know you’re weak Hee,” you say to the boy who looks extremely happy in your arms, “but I can’t be saving you all the time.”

“But you’re a hero. My hero.” He replies, his words working past the interlacing fingers of your ribs, there, into your heart. And you can and never will get enough of Heeseung, with his tall figure and messy hair, deep voice and words that come out of his mouth like waves you ride on into the ocean of love.

He says what he means and some people may mistake this for simplicity, but it doesn’t take a genius to cut into a heart. Especially with your boyfriend being a #01 idiot. ( your #01 idiot )

“Go to your teammates Hee, you’ve got a game to play.” You shoo him away, and his eyes widen, turning glossy as he crosses his arms at your words.

“Trying to get rid of me already? You hate me that much, huh babe?”

You huff, stepping into his embrace, hands snaking around his neck and his, your waist. You press a kiss onto his pillow lips, and you beg each other for warmth, till you’re rubicund flushed, till your lips and cheeks and sun-splotched.

He breaks the kiss, and both of you stay; forehead against forehead, your heavy breaths mixed with his. And he smiles, it’s sweet and easy, like milk, dribbling through your fingers in a laugh warm as the melting of a love scented candle. And it’s all the better for no one else to hear it. Because this is your loveline, this, you think, is living.

“Go kick their asses, boyfriend.”

bonus. somewhere far far away, in the land of eumpapas, nella presents ‘not so love letters’

Dear Y/n ( My Prettiest Hero ),

It’s been three years since we’ve started dating yet I’m still mad about you. This is the cheesiest shit I’m ever going to write so this is a warning to never use this as blackmail against me or show this to my family members when they ask you how I’ve been performing as a boyfriend. ( as if I’m not the best boyfriend in the world )

For the past three years, you’ve made my life so much easier to bear. My repetitive routines felt more lively, and you make my life better, all by just being you. In my long long life to come, it’s you, who will forever be the most special moment.

Though we may have argued over many petty things, especially during your senior year and my first year in uni, I wouldn’t change a thing. And I’ll choose you, over and over and over. Without a doubt, in a heartbeat, I’ll keep choosing you just like how you’ve chosen me.

Everything has a reason for falling, and I have you. I love you so much, I’m so glad heaven sent you to me.

Ps: stop laughing at my hair colours or I’ll replace your vanilla lip glosses with those cucumber ones you love.

A boy who's off his face, in love with you.

Lee Heeseung ( Your Hee )

exeunt. he kisses you even when the sun sleeps.

© eumpapas, 2023

i need a jay, man 😞

❅ — ww. day 18: pjs. ✦ ₊˚

day eighteen: ❝ going shopping with jay cause he loves spoiling ❞

⟢ pairing : jay x reader ➖ genre : fluff ➖ requested : no ➖ warnings : no prns used but it is implied that reader visits sephora

glancing around the mall, you looked for yet another clothing store. not that you wanted to spend all of your boyfriend’s money, you just needed a new winter coat.

speaking of him, jay had two bags on each arm as he followed close behind. he’d said he would carry your bags and buy everything you got while you were out today. including food.

and it’s not like you willingly took the offer. he insisted on the fact that he’d spoil you today.

“what’re you looking for, love?” he asked, bringing you out of your frantic glances.

“h&m.”

“h&m?”

“uh huh, i need a new coat.” you said, continuing your search.

he hummed, watching you do your thing.

“honey, i think it’s this way.” he said smiling slightly, pointing straight.

and he was right. there was the bright red ‘H&M’ logo.

“ah, you’re a lifesaver.” you turned, placing your hands on the sides of his face to give him a quick peck.

running towards the store with a smile on your face, you went straight for the coat rack and whatever else you liked.

jay eventually caught up, standing a few inches behind you. he still had a smile on his face, seeing you all excited about certain things made him happy. especially if it meant he could get them for you.

you looked in the store for about ten minutes after picking out the cutest coat you could find.

“is there anything else you want, baby? any other store you wanna go to before we leave?”

“umm.. no, but i do wanna check out sephora again.” you bit your lip, thinking of any other stores to visit but only choosing one.

“if that’s okay with you.”

“of course it’s okay, that’s why i asked.”

“jay, i don’t wanna be the reason you go bankrupt, you know i could spend hours in here.”

“i know. and i also don’t care,” he kissed the side of your head. “if i go bankrupt, at least it’s because of you.”

❅ ❅ ❅

milan’s note: short n sweet 😽

PERM. TAGLIST: @haechansbbg @contyynishimura @sasfransisco @kgneptun @m1ko-xu @keiipopped (message or comment to be added)

WW. TAGLIST: @keiipopped @luvjongseong (message or comment to be added)

© KAIROOT 2023 — please do not steal, translate, or repost my work.

winter wonderland masterlist

11:53pm | close to u

it’s late at night, nearly midnight when you hear your doorbell ring. shuffling over to your front door, you peer through the eyehole and see your boyfriend, waiting anxiously on the other side.

once you open the door you’re met with a soft smile on sunghoon’s lips as he mindlessly slips into your embrace. you smell the faint scent of his shampoo as he draws you closer, letting him lean against you. you can hear the door automatically lock when sunghoon lazily kicks it shut with his foot and you let out a light chuckle.

“hoon?” you say and he responds with a simple hum. “i thought you were staying at the dorms tonight?”

“had trouble sleeping without you.” his words are slightly muffled due to his face being shoved into your shoulder, but your heart swells at his words.

once sunghoon finally lets you go, he presses a small kiss at the top of your head and lets you take his hand as you lead him to your bedroom.

when the short journey to your room is complete, sunghoon flops onto your bed as if its his own and small sigh of satisfaction escapes his lips. you watch him as you go around to the other side of the bed, picking up any discarded pillows on the way.

once the both of you are under the sheets, sunghoon’s arms find their way around your waist, dragging you close to his chest. your legs are already entangled with each others as he brings one of his hands to cup the back of your head and play with strands of your hair.

“i love to be close to you, y/n.” his voice is a couple octaves deeper and you can’t help but notice it. you let yourself lose time in him, relaxing every muscle, knowing he’ll be right at your side when morning comes. “me too. good night, hoon.”

“good night, y/n.”

a/n: clingly hoon🫶🫶

ENHYPEN REACTION.

. . to making tiktoks with you

req — hello! how about doing tiktoks with enhypen imagine?

listen to replay by shinee

「 heeseung 」

that apple bottom jeans dance trend

it definitely takes him like five seconds to learn and then he gets mildly frustrated when you keep messing up. and he’s like ?? y/n?? you move your arms and then i move mine and we’re done. like c’mon. and you’re like: it’s harder than it looks okay mr. professional dancer 😠😠 and tbh you have a itty bitty tiny fight about it, but the tik tok is filmed and heeseung feels bad for making you feel bad.

“i’m really sorry for saying that you weren’t trying hard enough,” he pulls his cutest puppy eyed look to make you forgive him. “you’re honestly not that bad of a dancer. ow! okay, okay, okay, a great dancer!”

「 jay 」

giving your boyfriend your hand to see what they do with it

holding the camera in one hand, you reach out the other one towards your boyfriend. jay is on his phone, trying to figure out the chords to a song he’s learning, but he looks up, finally noticing the hand you’re holding out and immediately his brow furrows in confusion.

“what?” he asks, laughing at little. “what am i supposed to do with this?”

and he just picks up your hand and shakes it around a little. you don’t say anything, trying not to laugh. he’d probably smack you with your own hand.

「 jake 」

calling your boyfriend by their first name instead of a pet name

“hey, jake? can you bring me my water bottle?”

“yeah, sur—,” he’s like half way out of his seat when he pumps the breaks and hits you with a look that’s like half 🤨 and half 🥺.

and you’re like: what?? 😇

and he goes: what did you just call me 🙂

you: your name?

jake: never again. i like my nicknames 😠

「 sunghoon 」

rating your boyfriend throughout the day (this audio)

he literally is just minding is business and you’re following him around with your phone for the entire day. it goes something like this.

stretching before practice. 2/10 great self care but where is the attention for me??? 😠

dance practice 🕺🎶 10/10 you’re doing amazing sweetie 😚

buying me food after practice 1000/10 we love a man who knows his place 😌

mildly frustrated with me for filming his every move. tried to take phone away. -50/10 😒

gave me kisses and agreed to watch the addams family with me in bed. 1000000/10

「 sunoo 」

texting your boyfriend, “my boyfriend is gone, you can come over.”

he’s immediately confused and also concerned. like i just know this poor baby would one hundred percent fall for this, hook, line, and sinker. i mean we all saw him during that one live with jay and that whole you can’t breathe through your nose with your mouth open thing LMAO the dude is gullible.

y/n, 3:54 pm: hey, my bf just left. wanna come over?

sunoo, 3:54 pm: y/n???

sunoo, 3:54 pm: what are you talking about

sunoo, 3:54 pm: who was that supposed to be for

sunoo, 3:55 pm: Y/N

sunoo, 3:58 pm: *missed call*

“sunoo, i was just kidding!” you admit after he calls you for the second time. “it’s a tik tok trend.”

“…”

“please don’t ever do that to me again.”

「 jungwon 」

telling your boyfriend he has to hide because your “boyfriend” is coming over

you rush into your room, grabbing jungwon by the arm and pulling him over towards your closet. “dude, you have to hide!”

jungwon is immediately so confused, but he kind of goes along with it, letting you push him into the closet without much resistance. “what? why? y/n, what’s going on?”

“my boyfriend is coming! you have to hide!” you stifle a giggle as you shut the door on him and wait.

it takes a couple of seconds to fully hit him but suddenly jungwon pushes the door open, poking his head out in confusion. “wait, who’s coming?”

「 ni-ki 」

giving your bf a spoonful of your cooking, but you put a bunch of salt in the spoon first

“hey, ni-ki, try this for me,” you hold out a spoonful of the soup you’re making (the weather is extra cold today, perfect for a nice, warm bowl of soup). “i can’t tell if i’ve seasoned it enough.”

ni-ki’s entire face scrunches up when he tastes the spoonful of soup, which is so salty he actually starts coughing. “i think that’s enough!”

he doesn’t notice anything is off until you start laughing and then he realizes that you were just messing with him and laughs too. but know that he is definitely plotting his revenge.

thinking about sleepy boyfriend jungwon; cuddling in bed with him after a long, tiring day, and simply basking in one another’s presence. he has an arm wrapped around your waist, his body curled close to yours— and in the close proximity, you can see the way his eyelids lightly flutter close at occasional moments, cheeks slightly puffy as they’re smooshed against the silky pillow; his hairs disheveled and messy, but in the most endearing of ways possible— and his lips are ever so slightly parted in an attempt to stay awake throughout the conversation.

and when you gaze up to meet his eyes, you’re met with, what has to be, the cutest sight that you’ve ever seen— he’s nodding ever so lightly to absolute silence, and it strikes you as obvious that he’s trying his best to keep his eyes open; “baby, you look beyond exhausted.. how about we pause here for tonight?” you’d ask, only to hear the softest “mm-mm”, his body snuggling closer to your embrace— “you can keep going, i’m not at all tired, baby”, he’d mumble, head buried in the crook of your neck.

before you’d know it, he’d be knocked-out asleep in the next three minutes, soft, hushed snores falling from his lips as he continues to drape an arm around your build.

CRUSH (ushijima wakatoshi x reader)

summary: wakatoshi has a crush.

word count: 720

warnings: fem!reader, its all just fluff

tags: @keiva1000

Ushijima knows he has fans. He might be simple-minded and a little oblivious, but he’s not stupid.

He knows girls stare at him from the balcony during practice. And he can hear their giggling when he passes them in the halls. Tendou often calls him Shiratorizawa’s Golden Boy, which Ushijima wholeheartedly disagrees with, but never voices out loud. Tendou often says strange things. He doesn’t mind.

Ushijima doesn’t understand his popularity. Sure, he is a good player. The best ace in the prefecture. But most of these girls have no understanding of volleyball. So why are they spending hours upon hours in the stands, watching him play?

“They’re not watching the match, Wakatoshi-kun. They are watching you.”

Hm. Strange. His play is very consistent. Watching him do the same thing over and over has to get boring, especially when they aren’t watching for the sake of the game.

But then he sees you for the first time.

You are in his third year English class. In his three years of high school, Ushijima is sure he has never seen you before. Because if he had, there was no way he would forget you.

He is curious. And a little enamored by you.

You are, by all means, a regular girl. You sit on the same chair every day, bring your own bento instead of eating from the cafeteria. It is always wrapped in a pretty multicolored patterned cloth, done up in a knot on top. You have a small stuffed cat chain on the zipper of your backpack. And you wear your hair differently every day. Some days it is tied up, some days it is let down. And some days it is half-up and half-down. You have one pink bunny hairclip that you wear maybe once every two or three days that Ushijima thinks is very cute. Your uniform is always immaculate.

There are so many tiny details about you that Ushijima has learned, and he finally understands why girls would stay hanging over the gym balcony to watch him for hours, because he could watch you for hours too.

You are very smart, he could tell. You always answer correctly when the teacher would call on you, and he has glimpsed at your notes. Simple, but neat and easy to understand, just the way he likes it. There are no crazy colors and highlighters, and your handwriting is neat and beautiful, just like the rest of you.

You are also quiet. You have a select group of friends that you talk to, and while you are nice to anyone who interacts with you, you don't go out of your way to stand out. Again, Ushijima loves that. It seems he loved everything about you. All the minor details that make you a little bit more unique to everyone else.

When you show up at his game, he nearly loses his focus.

It in’t an important game by any means, just a practice match with another local university team. So why are you here? Have your friends dragged you along? Or are you here by your own volition? Ushijima feels how sweaty his palms are when he clenches his fists, and it surprises him.

Is he….. nervous?

Why? Because you are watching? How ridiculous. Ushijima has never once doubted his own strength, or his ability to win. How could your presence alter that? The thought annoys him, and he is determined to prove that you being here would not be a hindrance to his play.

Turns out, he needn't have worried. It seems your presence had sharpened his senses more than ever. Shiratorizawa won in straight sets, and of the 50 points they scored, 39 had been from Ushijima’s hand.

“You were on fire today, Wakatoshi-kun.” Tendou comments as the final whistle rings. Ushijima unintentionally glances at you in the stands, cheering for the team. Cheering for him.

His heart is beating a mile a minute, and he doesn’t think it is because of the game he had just played. He hears Tendou let out a dreamy sigh.

“Ah, the miracles of having a crush.”

He feels his lips tick up in a tiny smile as he throws a towel over his shoulders. Tendou is wrong. Ushijima doesn’t think he has a crush.

He thinks he is in love.

ok, but like.. why can Jin Bu Yeon (Naksu) see when she transferred back to her original body? If Mudeok couldn't see when she was in that body, why is it different when they switched back? Is it because of the powers that Jin Buyeon obtained as Naksu or what 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Alchemy of Souls: Naksu's Memories of Her Father Being Killed Were Actually Mu Deok's Memories

Memories can be distorted in a variety of ways. They can also be used by someone like Jin Mu to carry out his nefarious plans.

So let's start with the story of two little girls, Mu Deok and Jin Bu Yeon whose souls were swapped by evil Jin Mu when they were children.

Mu Deok's Memories

Since you all wanted to know Mu Deok's backstory. Here it is! And no she's not Jin Bu Yeon.

Mu Deok was the constellation mage's daughter. One night, her maid found her and hid her in the a shed and told her to stay away from her father. She witnessed her father change into a soul shifter. Following this, she saw the four families kill her father. She was alone and scared, but a nice man approached her. His face looked kind so she decided to grab his hand and follow him.

Mu Deok lived in a shack by herself in Danhyaggot for years until one day the man with the nice face brought her a blind friend. The next thing she remembered she woke up and she couldn't see anymore. She was confused and didn't know where she was. When she asked around, people told her she was in Sari Village. She couldn't find the man with the nice face because she was blind now.

Later on, someone mentioned to her that her blindfold had the Jin family crest on it. She had remember that name. They were one of the four families that killed her dad. She thought it would be best to stay far away from these four families because they were scary (or Jin Mu fed Mu Deok some sort of lie that made her stay away). In the meantime, she decided to use the blindfold with the family crest to earn a living.

There you go folks. That is Mu Deok's story. This how Mu Deok was used in Jin Mu's plan. As sad as it may be, her soul was nothing special. You see if Mu Deok was Jin Bu Yeon, she would've have asked around for someone to take her back to the Jin family residence. People would've noticed the Jin family crest and be willing to help her because they knew the Jin's would've paid a nice reward for whoever returned their daughter. Except she didn't. She stayed away. This meant Mu Deok's soul was stuck in another person's body (Jin Bu Yeon's body).

Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu's Memories

What Jin Mu did to Jin Bu Yeon was much worse than what he did to Mu Deok. Jin Mu used Mu Deok's story to brainwash Jin Bu Yeon. He convinced Jin Bu Yeon she had a father who was a constellation mage and he was killed by the four families for no good reason. Jin Mu gave Jin Bu Yeon enough information to believe it was true, but left out important parts (i.e father was a soul shifter) so he could use her to carry out his evil plans (i.e killing the four families).

[Side note: Jin Mu either brainwashed Jin Bu Yeon or she developed amnesia after she fell off the boat.]

Jin Mu (or Fake Queen Choi) gave Jin Bu Yeon a new body/face so that no one could recognize her from the outside (i.e soul swap with Mu Deok). The last step to transform Jin Bu Yeon into the best assassin was to give her a new name and identity. This name was Naksu, the shadow assassin who made mages' head roll.

What Jin Mu did not account for is that Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu would cast the Alchemy of Souls spell the 2nd time thereby returning her to her original body.

How Jin Mu Ensured His Identity Remained a Secret

Out of the two girls (Jin Bu Yeon and Mu Deok), Mu Deok was the only one who saw Jin Mu's face. She was also the only one that saw her father turn into a soul shifter. Given this, Jin Mu had to make sure she would never recognize him or be able to find him. He accomplished this by swapping Mu Deok's soul into a blind girl's body (Jin Bu Yeon's body). This guaranteed that Mu Deok would never be able to find him because she couldn't see anymore.

On the other hand, Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu didn't know what Jin Mu looked like before the swap because she was blind. After he swapped Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu's soul into Mu Deok's body, he wore a black cloak when he was around her. He made sure she would never know what he looked like.

How Jin Mu's Lies Started to Be Uncovered

Despite Jin Mu's best effort to prevent Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu from finding out what he looked like, she eventually did. After Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu swapped back to her original body, she saw Gil Joo at the bidding house. Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu had recognized Gil Joo and followed him and this is how she discovered what Jin Mu looked like. Recall that Mu Deok was the only one who had seen Jin Mu's face when she was a child. Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu never saw Jin Mu's face.

In Ep 8, Gil Joo once again helped revealed more of Jin Mu's lies to Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu. Gil Joo had told her that her "father" was a soul shifter. This piece of information was something Jin Mu left out on purpose during Jin Bu Yeon's brainwashing story time. Remember that Mu Deok was the only one who saw her father turn into a soul shifter. Had Jin Bu Yeon/Naksu really been Mu Deok, she would've already known this fact since she saw it with her eyes and therefore would not be surprised.

HELLO?????

... just learned that hashtags here don't work like on twt where it automatically becomes a tag 🥲