Nayeon

Only a second passed after Nayeon knocked on the maknaes’ door before it opened.

Standing in front of her was Dahyun, who was yawning and rubbing her eyes. Naturally, the yawn stopped halfway and her hand paused in its rubbing. She widened her eyes, then glanced back towards the other two girls in the room repeatedly. “We’ll leave, then,” she murmured, her lips curving into a rather sympathetic smile. She gestured behind her before passing by Nayeon and into the living room. That gesture, as Nayeon found out, was meant for Tzuyu. The younger girl looked strangely worried, as explained by her whisper. “Chaeyoung seems really depressed. Please be kind to her.”

“Of course I will,” Nayeon assured her. She knew Tzuyu cared the most for Chaeyoung, and made a mental note to try and not use harsh words that would hurt Chaeyoung. Tzuyu nodded, immediately wrapping her arms around Nayeon in a surprising embrace. “I missed you,” she said softly, giving Nayeon a squeeze before quickly pulling away and hurrying after Dahyun. Surprising, indeed, for the youngest member never showed affection to Nayeon, Jihyo, or Sana.

Nayeon could think about that later. There was someone else she had to tend to.

She wordlessly stepped into the room, gently closing the door behind her. The sight before her wasn’t too shocking: Chaeyoung, curled up in a ball, on the bottom bunk of the bed she shared with Dahyun. She seemed to be motionless, but as soon as Nayeon cleared , she sprang to her feet...

...and didn’t say a word.

She kept her eyes lowered, her chin tucked to her chest. Nayeon could tell Chaeyoung felt ashamed, because Nayeon wanted to do the same thing. And it would’ve been a lie if she said she didn’t want Chaeyoung to start the conversation; Nayeon had no idea what to say at all.

Of course, she had to start the conversation. After all, she was the eldest, wasn’t she?

So naturally, she started by apologizing.

“Look, Chaeyoung,” Nayeon said, rather hesitantly. (She silently scolded herself for sounding so cautious; it wasn’t her.) She cleared and started again, her tone more bold. “That thing happening in the library. It shouldn’t have started, right? And I admit it’s my fault, at least partly. So I’m sorry.” She narrowed her eyes, turning an intense stare onto Chaeyoung, but quickly dialed the intensity down upon remembering Tzuyu’s words. “Alright? I’m sorry. Because I just added fuel to the fire.”

“...I’m sorry, too,” Chaeyoung muttered, finally looking up and meeting Nayeon’s eyes.  Chaeyoung’s were full of guilt – as Mina said – and regret, which must’ve been hidden somewhere in Nayeon’s eyes as well. “It was stupid. And yeah, partly my fault too. That shouldn’t have happened. If I hadn’t been such an idiot, it’d have stopped. I never...I never meant any of that.” Her voice became choked, and Nayeon saw tears start to well up in her eyes.

Nayeon didn’t want this to be a tear-fest, though.

“Great.” She nodded, crossing her arms and taking on the look of a serious young woman, which she knew would make Chaeyoung laugh. Indeed, Chaeyoung started laughing; the sight was far too amusing. And why wouldn’t it be? For Nayeon really never was serious, despite herself being the eldest.

Once Chaeyoung’s laughs had ceased, sighs of relief were exchanged. The tension in the air had completely disappeared after the apologies were said. Nayeon couldn’t help but feel a bit proud; she had managed to keep Chaeyoung from getting too upset, and heeded Tzuyu’s words.

Keep yourself humble, Im Nayeon. Before the whole thing starts all over again.

Nayeon figured it was time to go.

Apparently, it wasn’t.

Chaeyoung spoke up, her voice curious yet soft. “Nayeon...are you still, y’know, hurt...? Because of Minari?”

Oof.

Nayeon really would have preferred it if Chaeyoung never brought the topic up. Time had passed, but her wounds were still fresh. Chaeyoung just saying Mina’s nickname, the very nickname that slipped out of Nayeon’s mouth so easily back then, the nickname that would cause Mina to turn around and flash her gummy smile at Nayeon...it was like rubbing salt into those wounds.

She was living in denial. No matter what, she knew she’d be living in denial for quite a long time. It was part of the process of getting over Mina – it was truly how to cope. Coping was painful, not fun and easy like Nayeon tried to make it be. But she knew she had to get over it. One step at a time. And acknowledging it, especially to Chaeyoung, was a step forward.

So Nayeon took a deep breath.

And nodded.

“It’s hard,” she confessed, folding her hands together. “Really. I don’t blame Mina, but...it’s pretty hard, after what she did. I mean, she just...kind of threw it at my face in an indirect way. It still hurts. I can’t say that I’m not glad that my true feelings aren’t meant for Mina, though.”

The mischievious grin on Chaeyoung’s face made Nayeon realize exactly what had just escaped .

“A-anyways, I’m not against you and Mina!” she hastily added, hoping her earlier statement would go ignored. “I support you two. And you look cute...!”

The grin would not fade.

“Well, who is it? Jeongyeon or Momo?”

Nayeon wasn’t too surprised. Chaeyoung, not to mention everyone else, knew Nayeon spent the most time with Jeongyeon and Momo. Nor was Nayeon surprised hearing the way Chaeyoung said Momo’s name, dragging it out and wiggling her eyebrows. Of course she’d think Nayeon liked Momo; the two would always cuddle whenever possible and make flirtatious jokes. Nayeon would always go to Momo first whenever something happened, for comfort.

But that didn’t necessarily mean she liked Momo.

“It’s Jeongyeon.”

The shocked look on Chaeyoung’s face was absolutely priceless.

(Nayeon wished she had taken a picture.)

“See, I might still be hung up over Mina,” Nayeon explained, meeting Chaeyoung’s widened eyes with an unwavering gaze. “But, kind of like how she lost her feelings for me, I did, too. The fact that I’m hurt because of her might prove that yeah, I still do like her a bit. But I did realize, like she did, that she’s not the one. And when I did some thinking, I knew it was Jeongyeon.”

Nayeon now knew that the person Mina was talking about may as well have been Jeongyeon.

How badly she hoped it was true.

Before Chaeyoung could speak, Nayeon hurriedly added one last thing. “I know it seems really stupid. Even to you. I mean, Mina stopped liking me and loved you, even while we were dating. I stopped liking Mina and now I love Jeongyeon. But...it’s how the heart works, isn’t it?” She smiled sadly and shrugged. “It’s twisted, it’s cruel, it’s absolutely terrible. But we can’t help it. We’re dominated by our heart, and our heart makes its own decisions.”

Silence. A thoughtful silence, in which Nayeon pondered over Jeongyeon and Mina, and Chaeyoung most likely pondered over Nayeon, Mina, and herself.

The silence was broken after two minutes. Chaeyoung pulled Nayeon into a sudden hug, surprising Nayeon much like how Tzuyu did because of the same exact action. “Good luck, then,” Chaeyoung whispered, patting Nayeon’s back once, twice, thrice, before stepping back. Her eyes shone with genuine happiness and even a hint of guilt, but Nayeon could understand that, for she felt the same way. “And I’m sorry.”

“Enough with the apologies!” Nayeon said sternly, resuming her serious impression before softening and giving Chaeyoung a smile. “I am too. But seriously. Are we going to move on, or what? Everything happened, everything’s done with. Let’s leave now.”

Chaeyoung agreed.

They walked out into the living room, where all the other members were situated as well. Mina and Jihyo sat on the sofa, Sana sat on the large “massage” seat with Dahyun on her lap, and Tzuyu sat in between Momo and Jeongyeon on the floor. Nayeon exchanged one last grin with Chaeyoung, and the two headed to their respective areas. Naturally, Chaeyoung sat beside Mina, and Nayeon sat beside Jeongyeon.

For some odd reason, Nayeon’s heart felt light when she saw Mina rest her head on Chaeyoung’s shoulder, a broad smile full of happiness adorning her face.

And Nayeon’s heart only felt lighter when she looked at Jeongyeon, who looked back at her, her lips curved into a rather shy smile.

A few minutes passed before the members lapsed into silence, looking at each other. Of course, Jihyo spoke first. Nayeon didn’t have to turn around to see the smirk on her face. “So! Nayeon! Would you like to tell us what happened while we were gone? I’m sure you all had fun, and we’d like to hear about it.”

Jihyo knew very well what had happened. So had the other members.

Nayeon was just getting a taste of her own medicine, wasn’t she?

She didn’t mind.

As she stood up and positioned herself in front of the T.V., her gaze sweeping over the members, she thought back to what she said to Chaeyoung.

It’s how the heart works, isn’t it?

It’s twisted, it’s cruel, it’s absolutely terrible. But we can’t help it.

We’re dominated by our heart, and our heart makes its own decisions.

A gentle smile towards Mina.

A mischievious grin towards Chaeyoung.

And to Jeongyeon...

Well, the eyes full of those recurring emotions, love and happiness, that looked back out at Nayeon was all she needed.

It had been quite a rollercoaster. Ups and downs, particularly that extreme down near the end of the ride.

But throughout it, Nayeon, Mina, and Chaeyoung had all learned one thing, that was for sure.

Even though their decisions regarding love may have been stupid and childish, they all worked out in the end, didn’t they?

So they had to trust their hearts. No matter how ugly the outcome would seem, they had to listen to their hearts.

They did so, and if they didn’t, they wouldn’t be where they were presently, which was the situation they had dreamed of being in.

Nayeon felt like her heart had flown away, on wings, free to do whatever it wanted.

So she took a deep breath.

She grinned widely.

“Well, I found out that Mina’s been Chaeting!”

END

it's the end of yet another century! first i finished lost, now i've finished this. it's been a year and a month since i started this story -- it's practically my baby since it was my very first story -- and it's been one hell of a rollercoaster writing it. plot changes, hiatuses, etc etc..but i definitely had fun writing this. fluffy michaeng is the bane of my existence. i'm so grateful for all of you who have stayed with me for this whole journey, and i'm so happy you guys enjoyed. i'm thinking of doing one or two bonus chapters featuring jeongmo and the other members, only if you guys want me to. but until then, this is it! once again, thank you so much.

til next time,

chaeyvungs