Last Drink (Minho) 

“Where is everyone?” Suho wondered, glancing at his watch irritably. He and Minho were at the park early on Saturday morning, kicking a soccer ball around aimlessly and waiting for more guys to show up so that they could start a proper game. It had been nearly half an hour, but nobody besides the two of them had turned up.  

Minho was sitting on the grass, doing pull-ups lazily. He grunted and then stopped, arms still behind his head. “Where do you think? It’s a Saturday morning, those lazy asses are probably still in bed. Give them a call.”

“I told Xiumin to wake the others before I left…” Suho grumbled, as he pulled out his cell phone.

“Xiumin-hyung drank half the bar last night. He’s probably in bed too.”

Suho kicked the soccer ball gently so that it rolled and hit Minho’s side. He looked frustrated. “What should we do then, genius? I can’t sit around here all day. I have brunch with my girlfriend at 11. I need to leave by 10, or I won’t have time to shower.”

Minho made a face as he grunted and did another sit-up. “You guys do brunch?”

“Yeah, I mean… Chaeun likes it, so…”

“You’re such a push-over.”

Suho frowned. “Hey! Brunch isn’t bad! Who cares what they call it, it’s unlimited food and it puts Chaeun in a good mood. You should try it sometime. Take Jihye to brunch and see how she likes it. Maybe you guys can take another shot at a date, huh?”

“I’m never taking Jihye anywhere again.”

Suho rolled his eyes. “You’re just upset because you tried to start a drinking competition at Jonghyun’s birthday party and you passed out first. Look. Jihye can outdrink most guys. It’s fine, get over it-“

“Does it even make sense?” Minho demanded, sitting up with his eyes flashing as he remembered the incident. It had been two weeks, but some of the guys still laughed at him about it. “Girls don’t have that much of a capacity for alcohol! Don’t you watch dramas? Doesn’t the girl always get all drowsy after a handful of drinks? How can this female possibly drink more than me, it’s completely against all logic!”

“It’s against drama logic,” Suho pointed out lightly.

“Whatever. I happen to find a high drinking capacity unattractive in women,” Minho said dismissively.

“You just don’t want your girlfriend to be able to outdrink you.”

“Is that so wrong?”

“It’s a pity,” Suho replied simply. He picked up the soccer ball and bounced it against his knee absent-mindedly. “Because Jihye’s hot, and smart, and Chaeun says that she was genuinely interested in you. She was a catch and you lost your chance because she can drink more than you. How stupid can you get?”

Minho clenched his fists. “I’m fine. There are plenty of girls like Jihye out there. Ones who can drink less.”

“You’re an idiot.”

“Who are you talking to? You’re such a push-over, you do brunch with your girlfriend every Saturday-“

“If you were going to be like this, I wouldn’t have set Jihye up with you in the first place,” Suho grumbled. He sighed as he sat down on the grass. “I thought you two would get along because she seemed sporty. I should have set her up with Jonghyun instead. He was begging me to introduce Jihye to him, but I thought he was too much of a player and it would turn out badly.”

Minho frowned. “Jonghyun is a player.”

“At least he’s graceful about it, he wouldn’t have passed out in front of her at a birthday party and then refused to answer her calls after that.”

“What do you want from me?” Minho demanded, annoyed. “Should I apologize to her?”

“That would be a nice start-“

“Well, forget it. It’s not happening.”

There was a brief pause, and Suho blinked as he stared at something beyond Minho’s head. Minho raised an eyebrow and paused mid-pull-up, blinking at his friend. “What are you staring at? Did any of the guys turn up?”

Suho rubbed the back of his neck, looking a little pink. “Uh, no. But there’s a couple of schoolgirls staring at us.”

Minho craned his neck around to see a group of about three schoolgirls failing to hide behind a tree, giggling as they stared rather obviously at Suho and Minho. Minho winked at them and they all blushed, turning away and pretending to look elsewhere. He grinned to himself and turned back around.

“I see those girls all the time. They’re usually following me around when I’m jogging,” he said dismissively.

Suho sighed and frowned. “They look barely fifteen. They should be studying, not staring at strange older men in the park.”

Minho rolled his eyes. “Eh, loosen up. It’s harmless staring.”

“All the same, their parents should know where-“

“Don’t even think about calling up their parents over such a small thing,” Minho warned. He sighed and leaned back. “Look. The boys in their class are probably scrawny and pre-puberty. Why should we deny those girls the pleasure of a nice view? Let them stare all they want.” Minho grinned, and continued his pull-ups, now with the additional touch of flexing his muscular arms as he did it.

Suho blinked distastefully. “You really need a girlfriend if you’ve started to live off the attention of fourteen-year-old schoolgirls.” 

“My attempts to find one haven’t been going too well lately-“

“There was nothing wrong with Jihye!”

“If she’s so great, then you date her-“

“I have Chaeun! Who is actually mad at me, thanks to you! She thinks I set her friend up with a complete and she wanted to know what sort of guys I hang out with. You made me look really bad,” Suho whined. He kicked the ball over towards Minho again, this time making it hit his side even harder. “If Chaeun dumps me at brunch today, it’s completely your fault.”

Minho groaned. “Oh my God, you’re so whipped-“

He was cut off by the sound of muffled footsteps on the grass. Minho whirled around, hoping that Xiumin or Onew had finally turned up to pay football, but he was greeted with a group of unfamiliar faces. There was a group of about five or six middle-school boys. The one standing in front was holding a football in his hand as he glared at Minho and Suho.

“Are you here to play football?” the younger boy asked, raising an eyebrow.

Suho blinked. He gave them a polite smile and nodded. “Yeah. We were here first, but there’s a lot of space beyond that tree where you kids can play.”

The boy ignored him. he turned to look at his friends with a raised eyebrow. His tone was mocking. “These are the hyungs that Hana and Jisoo have a crush on? They’re not as good-looking as you made them sound, to be honest.”

Minho bristled, slowly standing up. “Excuse me?” he demanded.

“Here’s the deal.” The boy replied, turning around to face Minho. He had a cocky expression on his face as he rolled the ball between his hands. “We want to challenge you guys to a game of soccer. It might help our image if the girls watch us crush you to pieces. Maybe then they’ll realize you’re not so great.”

Minho scoffed. These bratty kids were getting to him. He could feel the familiar burning in his veins. “Are you serious? Listen, kid, that is not how you address your elders.” 

The boy raised an eyebrow. “Oh, I’m sorry. Should I call you ajhussi? Do your bones creak from old age? Defeating you should be easier, then,” he teased, and his friend all sniggered behind him. Minho clenched his fists. He’d never been so insulted by a group of fourteen-year olds before. He took a step forward, but Suho pulled him back.

“Minho-yah, relax,” Suho said calmly. “Look, you kids better go home before I call your parents-“

 “Oh my God, will you shut up about calling parents?” Minho hissed, wondering why Suho had to be so embarrassing. These cocky kids weren’t going to care about something like that! Minho folded his broad arms across his chest and stepped closer to the boy so that he was looking down at him. “Tell you what, kid. The two of us will beat all six of you. And then, you can go home crying to your mothers. Understood?”

The boy smiled. “And if we win, you never come back to this park again.”

Suho bristled. “It’s a public park, we can come wherever-“

“Deal,” Minho replied, holding out a hand to shake on it.

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Jihye sat on the kitchen counter, lazily browsing the news on her phone. There had been a match on TV last night that she hadn’t been able to watch because she had to stay late at work, and she was reading through the highlights as she waited for the coffee machine to finish. It seemed to be taking forever, and she gave the overused machine an impatient pat to help it along.

“Don’t break that, we can’t afford a new one,” Chaeun muttered, entering the kitchen. She was fully dressed, wearing a pretty white blouse and a new skirt. Even her purse was in her hand. Jihye raised an eyebrow at her before looking down at her own clothes- shorts and an oversized soccer jersey.

“What are you dressed up for?” Jihye wondered. “Brunch with Suho again?”

“Yeah. Except he’s late, he should have been here 20 minutes ago,” Chaeun whined, as she pulled a carton of juice out of the fridge. “What is he doing? I’m starving hungry! He won’t even answer his phone! You know, he started off really sweet and caring but now I’m wondering if that was all true.”

Jihye scoffed. “Sounds familiar.”

Chaeun gave her a pitiful look. “Well, he’s not as bad as Minho. That jerk still hasn’t answered your calls? Since Jonghyun’s birthday party?”

Jihye rolled her eyes before tapping the coffee machine again, impatiently. She didn’t want to think about Choi Minho. The thought of his handsome smile and twinkling eyes still made her feel giddy. How could somebody so handsome and charming be such a jerk? “Please, you think I’m still calling him? I gave up ages ago. Why should I chase him around? If he doesn’t want to talk, he doesn’t want to talk. There are plenty of better guys than him around.”

Chaeun giggled at the memory. “It was kind of funny to watch him pass out.”

“It was, wasn’t it?” Jihye asked with a grin. “That’s the only good thing that came out of that. Seriously, though; I wonder how a guy like that is even friends with Suho. Your boyfriend is so sweet and self-sacrificing, he’d throw himself under a bus for you.”

Chaeun made a face. “Yeah. But he can’t pick me up for brunch on time.”

“Just wait. He’ll show up on the doorstep with a huge bunch of flowers and an expensive gift and a miserable puppy-dog expression and you’ll forgive him in less than five seconds flat-“ Jihye was cut off by the sound of her phone ringing. She glanced down at the unknown number and narrowed her eyes. Who could be calling her this early on a Saturday morning? Hopefully it wasn’t anyone from work.

“Hello?” Jihye answered, doubtfully.

“Hello, am I speaking to Miss Lee Jihye?”

Jihye blinked. “Yes.”

“Miss Jihye, I’m calling from Seoul Central Hospital. Your brother, Lee Il-sung, was brought in through the emergency ward a while ago, he seems to have fractured his wrist while playing sports. Would it be possible for you to come down to the hospital right now?”

Jihye froze. “What? Is he okay?”

“Yes. As I said, it’s only a wrist fracture. The doctor is looking at the x-rays right now.”

“I’m coming.”

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Jihye hurried through the hospital, worried. She was still dressed in her shorts and too-loose football jersey that drooped at the shoulders. She had to ask for her brother’s room number at the reception and then hurry into the elevator. She had no idea why the hospital had called her instead of her parents, but she had a feeling her brother was behind that. Whatever he had been pulling, he surely didn't want their parents to know. 

As Jihye walked down the corridor, looking for the right room number, she froze at the sight of two familiar faces. Suho and Minho were both sitting on plastic waiting chairs in the corridor, dressed in sportswear and looking tired. Jihye blinked at both of them, startled. She narrowed her eyes.

“What are you two…?” she trailed off.

Minho froze at the sight of her. Jihye had her arms folded across her chest, and was looking down at him with piercing eyes. It was the first time he’d seen her after the whole ‘incident’ at Jonghyun’s party. She looked really hot. Her long, smooth legs were accentuated by the shorts, and her plump lips were pressed together tightly as she stared down at them. Suho blinked and sat up.              

“Oh, Jihye-ssi,” Suho greeted awkwardly. “Uh-“

“Aren’t you supposed to be on a date with Chaeun?” she asked Suho, ignoring Minho completely. Minho felt a little offended. Sure, he’d gone on three dates with her and then stopped answering her calls, but was that any reason to ignore him completely? He sat silently, glaring up at the beautiful woman in front of him.

Suho’s eyes were wide. “Yes, but there was an incident, we were playing football in the park and-“

“You should call and explain that to Chaeun, not me,” Jihye replied coolly. Her eyes briefly flickered towards Minho and then looked away. She couldn’t stare at him too long or she would get lost in those charismatic eyes of his. She cleared . “Excuse me, I’m here to see someone.”

Jihye walked past them quickly, trying to slow down her racing heartbeat. She had to pause and mentally hit herself once. What was she doing? Choi Minho was a complete jerk. He’d taken her out on three amazing dates, completely charmed her, and just as she was falling for him hard, he’d stopped taking her calls and pretended she didn’t exist. All the same, he was still unbearably handsome and had eyes that made her want to melt.

Shut up. Your brother is injured, she told herself, bringing herself back down to earth. She was in the hospital for heaven’s sake, she needed to see what had happened to Il-sung. Pushing open the correct room number, she spotted her younger brother lying back on a white hospital bed, surrounded by a few of his friends. He sat up as soon as he saw her.

“Noona!” Il-sung called out pitifully.

His friends hurried to move out of the way, most of them gaping in awe. Il-sung’s hot noona was a common topic amongst themselves and seeing her in shorts probably made most of their day. Jihye ignored them. She wasn’t in the mood to pay attention to teenage boys.

“What the hell happened?” Jihye demanded, folding her arms across her chest and looking down at Il-sung. His arm was wrapped in a bandage and he was dressed in muddy soccer clothes.

Il-sung pouted, his expression miserable. Which was funny, because Jihye could have sworn she heard him laughing loudly just a few seconds ago from outside the door. “Noona, the doctor said I fractured my wrist. It hurts so much. Look- they bandaged it up and everything!” he gestured towards his injured hand as proof of his injury.

What a big baby. Jihye sighed and looked down at him. “I can see that. It’s just your wrist, right? You’re not injured anywhere else?” she wondered.

Il-sung looked offended. “What do you mean, anywhere else? Noona, I fractured my wrist! Can’t you see? Shouldn’t you be crying right now?” he demanded. Didn’t all sisters cry when their little brothers got injured? How could she frown at him this way when he was in such pain? The sight of him lying in a hospital bed should be enough to reduce her to tears, shouldn’t it?

Jihye sighed. She’d forgotten how annoying Il-sung could be. Ignoring him and the gaping looks from his friends, she went to get the attention of a nurse, who hurried over as soon as she saw Jihye.

“Ah- are you Lee Jihye-ssi?” the nurse asked, looking down at the chart. She gave her a calm smile. “The doctor just left. Your brother fractured his wrist, we’ve taken x-rays and bandaged it up already, so it doesn’t seem to be too serious. He can go home now as long as he comes back for regular check-ups. I’ll give you a prescription of the medication he’ll need to take until then- here it is- and he needs to be very careful not to physically exert himself for at least six to eight weeks.”

Jihye nodded, taking the prescription from the nurse. “Thank you so much, nurse.”

The nurse nodded, before glancing uncertainly at the group of boys and Il-sung on the bed. She tapped Jihye’s arm and said quietly. “May I speak to you in private, Jihye-ssi?” she asked carefully.

Jihye blinked and nodded. “Of course. Don’t move,” she added, in Il-sung’s direction sternly, before following the nurse to a corner of the hospital room and out of the earshot of the curious boys. “What is it?”

“It’s just… I want to be certain that this is an injury that occurred during soccer,” the nurse said quietly, looking doubtful. “You see, the men that brought him in here were, um, much larger and much older than these boys. From their slightly hostile behavior, it doesn’t seem like it was a friendly match. If you think that your brother was being bullied or harassed by these men, then you may wish to call the police and report his injury as an assault. The police will then deal with whether you want to press charges-”

Jihye cut her off, surprised. “Men? What men?”

“I asked them to wait outside until Il-sung’s guardian showed up. I’m not sure if you know them. I’ll ask them to come inside in a minute so you can talk to them.”

Jihye nodded, as the nurse disappeared. She went back to Il-sung’s bed, where he was still lying with a pout and the rest of his friends were huddled around. She folded her arms and sighed, looking down at them. “Who wants to tell me what happened?” she demanded of the boys.

None of them spoke.

“Well? Who are these men that supposedly brought you here?”  

“They were these men at the park,” Il-sung said slowly. He sat up and frowned. “They were playing soccer and we asked them to teach us, that’s all! It was a friendly match, until one of them completely fouled me and I fell and landed on my wrist and that’s how I fractured it!”

 One of Il-sung’s friends nodded. “It’s true, noona! That man was twice Il-sung’s size and he tackled him to the ground!”

“Those hyungs were really scary, I think they’re in a gang or something! Noona, we have to report it to the police, I heard the nurse saying earlier that this could be assault and that’s a crime!” another one pressed eagerly. Jihye raised an eyebrow. Clearly they were completely exaggerating the story. She’d spent enough time around her brother and his friends to know the kind of kids they were.

“You’re this little brat’s noona?” a voice demanded loudly, from behind her. Jihye recognized it instantly and she turned around, coming face-to-face with Suho and Minho, both of whom had just entered the hospital room. Suho looked surprised, but Minho’s gaze burned into hers as he stared at her and then scoffed. “What do you know? I thought the kid looked familiar.”

Jihye folded her arms across her chest and stared them both down. “And you two are the ones behind my brother’s injury? Is this what you do with your free time, then? Bullying innocent kids at the park?”

Minho was outraged. “Innocent? Give up the act, Jihye-ssi, I think we both know there’s nothing innocent about those boys over there. They were the ones who started the whole thing-“

Il-sung tugged at her shirt desperately. “Noona, do you know this guy?”

Jihye ignored him. “I don’t know, Minho-ssi. The nurse seems to think I should call the police, and to be honest, I’m contemplating pressing charges as well. My brother is the captain of the middle school’s football team and this injury is probably going to set back his career.”

Suho looked panicked. “Press charges? Jihye-ssi, what are you even talking about-“

“It was an accident! He tripped over my foot!” Minho insisted, eyes wide in anger. He looked like he was about to explode. “I wouldn’t have even been playing if those brats hadn’t provoked me!”

Jihye suppressed a smile. Damn it, why is he so hot when he’s angry? It was completely inappropriate, but Jihye found the way Minho’s eyes were flashing with controlled anger and the drops of sweat sliding down his bronze skin irresistibly attractive. His sleeveless jersey was showing his tense biceps. Jihye blinked. He’d worn long sleeves to all their previous dates, and this was the first time she was noticing just how glorious his arms were.

Jihye’s lips curved up into a small smirk. “Minho-ssi. You’re about ten years older than my brother and at least twice his size. I’m supposed to believe he provoked you? If I don’t buy that story, do you think the police will? I doubt it.”

Minho took a step forward angrily, but Suho pulled him back. The poor man looked panicked and helpless. “Jihye-ssi, you have to believe us,” Suho pleaded. “This was completely an accident. Come on- you know me, am I really the type of person who goes around hurting kids? We were playing football and he tripped. Please don’t press charges and complicate things.”

Jihye had to admit that she felt a little bad for Suho. “That’s true,” she admitted slowly. “I can vouch for your character, Suho-ssi. But I can’t be certain about Minho’s intentions. My experiences with him haven’t made him out to be the most trustworthy person.”

Minho scoffed. “Why? Because I dumped you? Is that what this is about?”

There was a collective gasp from the group of boys standing around Il-sung’s bed, all of whom were watching the exchange with hawk eyes. Jihye felt her cheeks flush red. Did he think it was funny to humiliate her in this setting? He wouldn’t get away with this so easily.

“Dumped?” she asked innocently, blinking her big eyes. “I don’t remember that. The last time I saw you, Minho-ssi, you were passed out on Jonghyun’s carpet in your own vomit because you couldn’t keep up with me while drinking. I’m certain we never even met after that, so I don’t know how I could have gotten dumped when we were never together.”

The boys behind them had started snickering and she could hear whispers of waah, Il-sung’s noona is daebak! And he couldn’t even drink as much as a girl? Minho’s face flushed red in anger and embarrassment and he clenched his fists. He opened his mouth to speak, but Suho had a firm grip on his arm and pinched him hard. He kept quiet, glaring at Jihye.

“Fine,” Minho spat out. “What do you want, then? You’re really going to call the police?”

Jihye smiled. Feeling triumphant, she folded her arms across her chest and leaned back on her heels coolly. “I was thinking about it. But to be honest, I think these poor young boys have been traumatized enough today. The last thing I want is to put them through the stress of being questioned by the police. So, I think I’ll let this one go with an apology.”

“Apology? To whom?” Minho demanded, eyes wide.

“To my brother, of course,” Jihye replied, gesturing coolly towards the boy on the bed. “As an example. We should teach the younger ones to always accept our mistakes and apologize for them, shouldn’t we, Minho-ssi? Don’t you feel you should be a good role model to your dongsaengs?”

“Some bloody dongsaengs they are-“

Suho elbowed him quickly. “Minho, shut up-“

“Why should I shut up? I’m not apologizing! I didn’t even do anything, she can’t blackmail us like this. Tell her to call the cops if she wants, I’ll tell them exactly what happened-“ Minho began ranting angrily. He glared at Jihye. “You weren’t like this before. When did you become such a ?”

Jihye smiled. “I treat people the way they treat me.”

Suho tugged at Minho’s arm and pulled him irritably. “Yah. Stop this now. Can you just set your ego aside and apologize quickly? I’m one hour late for brunch and if you keep doing this, we’re both going to end up in jail and I’m going to end up single.”

Minho glared at his friend and then closed his eyes for a moment. He had to take a deep breath to calm his raging temper, and then he opened them again. His fists were clenched as he turned and looked straight at Il-sung with a burning glare. The younger boy was smirking at him happily.

“We’re sorry you got hurt,” Minho said firmly, through gritted teeth. He turned and glanced at Jihye. “Are you satisfied now? Can we leave?”

“Please,” Jihye replied, gesturing towards the door with a pleasant smile.

Minho stormed out of the hospital room with Suho scurrying after him quickly. As soon as the two of them left, there was a brief silence and then the group of boys exploded in cheers and words of awe. They were all looking at Jihye as though she was their savior. Most of them couldn’t believe how she’d stood up to the terrifying Minho that was twice her size and forced him to render an apology. Jihye ignored them. She turned to her brother and narrowed her eyes at him calmly.

“You can wipe that smirk off your face and start thinking about what you’re going to say to Mom and Dad.”

Il-sung’s smile fell.

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“I’ve never seen you so worked up about a girl before, hyung.”

Taemin watched as Minho paced the living room back and forth, practically burning a path into the carpet between the television and the balcony door. Taemin was certain that if he checked that area later, there would be a long, straight burn mark on the floor. But he didn’t have the guts to tell Minho to stop; not when his eyes were blazing red.

Minho paced furiously. “She’s not a girl,” he hissed. “She’s a devil.”

“I don’t understand. Weren’t you saying last week that you really liked Jihye?” Key wondered absent-mindedly as he flipped through a magazine. “You said that she was really hot, and that you had a lot in common with her. Didn’t you two go to a sports bar for your first date? You said she even liked soccer.”

Minho paused. He was suddenly struck with the vision of Jihye at the hospital, her hair framing her face messily, and the loose soccer jersey that engulfed her small frame, with those tiny shorts that revealed her long, gorgeous legs. Clenching his fists, he shook the image out of his head. Jihye was attractive but that wasn’t going to deter him. “Who cares if she likes soccer? She’s a complete witch. I should have known the moment she said she was a Manchester United fan.”

Key raised an eyebrow. “What does that have to do with it?”

Minho ignored him. “She’s not going to get away with humiliating me like that. I don’t lose so easily. The next time I see her, I will win no matter what. And I’ll take that bratty little brother of hers down with me-“

“Oh, you mean Il-sung?” Taemin asked brightly, piping up. “I know Jihye-noona’s brother! He was my dongsaeng in school, we were both part of the dance club-“

Minho gave him a dark glare and Taemin shut up instantly. He cleared his throat and then pretended to check his phone to avoid Minho’s glare. Taemin sat up quickly as he noticed a new message that he had just received. “Oh! Jonghyun just texted me; he says that a bunch of them are going out to get drinks later, to celebrate Onew-hyung’s promotion.”

Key nodded. “Oh, yeah. Onew-hyung told me about that yesterday. Cool, right?”

Minho paused. “Nobody told me about it.”

“No kidding.”

“What does that mean?” Minho demanded.

“Don’t you remember? Jihye and Onew work for the same company,” Key explained. “They’re the ones who hooked Suho and Chaeun up in the first place. Everyone probably thought that considering the whole scene in the hospital today, it wouldn’t be smart to have both of you-“

“I can’t believe this!” Minho seethed. “First, she completely humiliates me and makes me apologize for something I didn’t even do, and now I can’t even hang out with my friends because she’s around? What is she trying to do, ruin my life?”

Taemin looked sympathetic. “Hyung, if you want, I won’t go either-“

“No. You have to go. I’m going too. Why can’t I celebrate Onew-hyung’s promotion?” Minho demanded. “He’s my friend too. I’ve known him for over nine years. I won’t let this stupid girl I met barely a month ago get in the way!”

Key and Taemin exchanged knowing looks.

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 “Can I ask you something?” Minho asked lightly, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. He was trying to keep his eyes on the road while driving, but it was difficult when Jihye was sitting in the passenger seat, humming lightly along with the music on the radio and tapping her fingers against the armrest. He cleared his throat. “I mean- I don’t want you to get offended or anything.”

Jihye turned and looked at him, amused. “Offended? Is it such a dangerous question? I’d think twice about asking then, Minho-ssi,” she teased lightly.

Minho chuckled. “It’s not that bad.”

Jihye turned a little in her seat to face him. There was something about the way his charming smile looked in the dim light that made her heartbeat pound. She didn’t want to admit it, but being alone in a car with Minho late at night, on almost-empty roads was extremely exciting. “Then just ask,” Jihye replied coolly.

“Why is a girl like you going on blind dates?” he wondered.

Jihye laughed. “A girl like me? What does that mean? Do only certain types of girls go on blind dates?”

Minho chuckled and shook his head. She was always teasing him; he liked the playful banter, liked how she could sense the mood and twist his words into a joke by teasing him. Conversations with her were always interesting; but often, she managed to avoid the question by teasing him and Minho wondered if it was intentional. “You’re good-looking,” he said simply. “You’re young, you have a great job. I mean… I didn’t really believe Suho and Chaeun when they said you’re a complete catch, but you are. Why are you meeting people on blind dates? Isn’t that more of a last resort kind of thing?”

Jihye flushed a little and looked away from him. “I’m a catch, huh?”

Minho grinned, noticing that the compliment seemed to have flustered her. “Why? You don’t think you are? I happen to think that I’m a catch too. Wouldn’t you agree?”

Jihye smiled to herself. “You’re certainly more of a catch than I expected.”

“What does that mean? You didn’t expect much?”

“Well, you’re buddies with Suho. He’s a great guy and all, don’t get me wrong. He treats Chaeun really well. But he’s kind of… wishy-washy? And a push-over? I thought you would be the same.”   

 Minho chuckled. “Wishy-washy?”

Jihye giggled. “Yeah. I mean, he gives in to almost anything Chaeun says, even when she’s being completely unreasonable. I get how some people might like such a self-sacrificing guy who bends to his girlfriend’s needs but I find headstrong guys more attractive.”

“I’m headstrong?” Minho wondered. “I don’t know if I like the sound of that….”

“I’m headstrong too,” Jihye replied simply. “Which brings us back to your question of why I went on a blind date with you. All through school, college and even now at work, guys have always found me… intimidating?” she wondered. “I never even realized this until I overheard some guys talking about me in college. Apparently I’m a little scary.”

Minho chuckled. “Scary? You?”

“I can see why they would feel that way,” Jihye admitted. “I was captain of the girls’ soccer team in school. Once, this boy was yelling out crude insults at the female players so I punched him and a rumor went around school that I beat him up.”

Minho glanced at her. “Hmm.”

“When I entered college, I was really dedicated,” Jihye continued thoughtfully. “I focused a lot on either soccer or my studies. Not to mentioned I participated in a couple of feminist protests and that’s almost sure to drive guys away. I guess I always gave people the impression that I wasn’t interested in dating and so guys rarely approached me. Again, I had this reputation as a really headstrong, no-nonsense person.”

“You don’t like this reputation?” Minho wondered.

“I understand it’s true to some extent. I’m the sort of person that doesn’t back down from a fight. But it’s upsetting to have a reputation that makes people scared of approaching you. I was really insecure about myself for a while. Am I unattractive? Why don’t guys approach me or see me the way they do other girls? I think that’s why I asked Chaeun and Suho to set me up on a blind date.”

Minho nodded in understanding. He could see where she was coming from. “So that you could meet someone who didn’t have a preconceived image of you in mind?” 

Jihye nodded, flushing. “Yeah. It felt like a fresh start. I could act like a girl around you without you getting shocked and asking what was wrong with me. I’ve honestly never had the chance to act cute or girly in my life. I think the last time I wore a girly dress to an office party, everyone thought it was weird because they just know me as the girl who can outdrink any of them and could probably hold her own in a bar fight,” she admitted with an embarrassed smile.

Minho blinked. “You can outdrink the men at your workplace?”

“You don’t believe me?” Jihye asked with a grin.

“Not really.”

Jihye shrugged lightly, just as Minho pulled the car into a parking space. They had reached the riverside and, and Jihye looked around. She had been so caught up talking to him that she hadn’t even realized where they were going.

“Han River?” she asked, unable to hold back a laugh as she unbuckled her seatbelt. “You want to walk along the river at night? This was your big idea for a third date?”

Minho grinned. “Why not? You said you wanted a girly, romantic date. Don’t tell me you’re disappointed.”

“Not in the least,” Jihye replied. She got out of the car along with Minho, and then pointed towards the simple flats that she was wearing on her feet. “You’re lucky I chose comfort over heels today, or your plan might have been a miserable failure.”  

“That’s a relief,” he said with a chuckle. He held his hand out to her and Jihye took it, feeling a little embarrassed. She could see his handsome features more clearly under the streetlights, and he used his warm hand to link their fingers together before starting to walk. He noticed the slight blush on her face and chuckled. How could she be so adorable? He poked her cheek lightly and smiled.

“I’m guessing you’ve never taken a romantic walk along the river before.”

“Not really.” Jihye bit her lip and looked up at him. “In fact… whatever I just told you about acting like a girl earlier, and that I’m embarrassed to do it because I’m afraid people will make fun of me… I’ve never shared that with anyone before. I’m not sure why I said it to you. Please don’t tell anyone? It’s really embarrassing.” 

Minho smiled. “Your secret’s safe with me.”

Jihye nodded and they walked along the riverside in silence for a few moments. She had to admit- the cool breeze, the dim lights and his warm hand entwined in hers was making her heartbeat thud. She forced herself to calm down and turned to look at him again with a smile. “So- what’s your secret, Minho-ssi-?”

“My secret?”

“Hmm. I told you why I went on a blind date with you- now I want to know why a handsome and charming guy like you even agreed to go on a blind date with me,” Jihye teased. “I can’t believe that you don’t have enough girls wanting to date you. Are you too picky?”

Minho shrugged. “I have a lot of faults.”

“Like?”

“Hmm. I’m competitive. I get jealous easily. Like you, I hate backing down from a fight,” Minho replied. He rubbed his chin. “Weirdly enough, these are things that girls find attractive in the beginning, but then slowly start to hate about you. None of my relationships ever lasted.”

“How does blind dating solve that?” Jihye wondered.

“I don’t know. I don’t do blind dates often, to be honest. You’re the first. Suho called me up and asked if I wanted to meet one of Chaeun’s hot friends who was really into soccer. I think I was pretty much sold at that point,” he joked.

Jihye laughed. “Men are too easily satisfied.”

“Maybe. But hey- you and I are on the third date already, so maybe my instincts were correct?”

“I hope they were,” she added quietly, as he gave her a big smile.

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Minho had never felt so unwelcome in his life.

“What are you doing here?” Suho demanded, wide-eyed as soon as he saw him enter the pub where they were all gathered. A bunch of tables had been joined together so that everyone could sit in one big group and there were a lot of familiar faces around. Minho narrowed his eyes, unconsciously searching for Jihye in the crowd when Suho yanked him aside. “Yah! There’s a reason I told you not to come, why don’t you listen to me?” Suho whined.

Minho raised an eyebrow. “Why shouldn’t I be here? I went to high-school with Onew-hyung too. Can’t I congratulate him on his promotion?”

Suho closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. He opened his eyes and looked at Minho calmly. “Minho-ah. Listen to me carefully. My relationship is hanging by a thread right now. A very, very small thread. That thread is so goddamn tiny, it’s invisible to the human eye, okay? If you walk in here and mess up, that thread will snap.”

Minho resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “You’re not serious.”

“I am. Chaeun doesn’t see you as ‘Minho’, she sees you as ‘Suho’s-friend-who-dumped-her-roommate’. Your actions reflect on me. So before you do anything, try and remember the last six years of friendship that we’ve had, and all the times I comforted you in your time of need-“

“Where are the drinks?” Minho asked, cutting him off. He spotted the bartender and hurried over to acquire himself a beer, leaving Suho red-faced. Once Minho had a cold beer in his hands, he took a few sips and then went to find Onew. The older man was looking a little flushed and pleased at all the attention; a number of people had gathered around him to congratulate him on his promotion. Onew grinned and waved at Minho.

“Oh- Minho-yah! You came! Suho was telling me you wouldn’t be able to make it!”

The sneak, he just didn’t want me here. Minho gave Onew a big grin and a congratulatory hug. “Of course I came, hyung, I was so happy for you when I heard about the promotion. You’ve been waiting for this for a while, right?”

Onew nodded, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “Yeah. I wish everyone wouldn’t make such a big deal of it, though. This whole party is kind of unnecessary. I was trying to tell Jihye not to make it too big of a thing but she invited a lot of people…”

“Yeah, well. She’s the type to make things bigger than they need to be,” Minho scoffed.

Onew shook his head, surprised. “No, Jihye’s really great to work with. She’s going to be reporting to me now that I’ve been promoted-“

“Oh, so that’s what all this is? She’s up to her new boss? Should have known.”

Onew was prevented from replying by a couple more people coming up to congratulate him, and he nearly banged into one of the tables in his flustered state. Minho moved out of the accident-prone area, keeping a firm grip on his beer and hoping nobody would hit him. He was just looking around when he spotted a familiar figure; Jihye was looking at him.

Minho stared at Jihye for a few seconds, his mind feeling blissfully blank. She was wearing a simple blue dress that exposed her shoulders, and her long dark hair was let loose. Her lips were painted pink and they fell open for a moment at the sight of him, before pressing together tightly. Jihye moved away from the group of females she was talking to, and narrowed her sharp eyes at Minho.

“I see you’re here,” she said coolly.

Minho raised an eyebrow. He had been struck dumb by her appearance for a few seconds, but he quickly recollected himself. “Onew-hyung might be your boss, but I’ll have you know that I’ve been close to him for over nine years, since high school.”

Jihye was amused. Did he really have to turn everything into a competition? Why was who knew Onew longer even something to be concerned about? She wondered how somebody who seemed so manly could behave in such a childish manner. “I never denied that,” Jihye said lightly.

Minho frowned at her. “You left me out of the invitations on purpose, right? That’s pretty low of you.”

Jihye shrugged simply. “Sorry. I didn’t have your number; I deleted it.”

“Liar.”

Determined to prove it, Minho pulled out his cellphone and instantly called her number. Jihye’s phone was in her hand and it lit up instantly, revealing a picture of his face that they’d jokingly clicked on their second date and his name. He grinned triumphantly. “See. You still have my number.”

“And you still have mine,” Jihye replied, her eyes challenging him silently. She held up her phone and let out a small smile. “Nice of you to finally return my calls, though. Took you long enough. Let me guess… you were busy playing soccer with middle-school kids?”

Minho rolled his eyes. “You’re unbelievable.”

“So are you,” Jihye replied simply, turning away from him. She paused for a moment and glanced back, casually eyeing his beer and giving him a cheeky smile. “Careful with that. You wouldn’t want to pass out too soon and miss all the fun.”

Minho clenched his fists as she walked away, her hips swaying lightly. Something about this woman made his blood boil like crazy. His sharp eyes stayed fixed on her as she moved away to talk to a different group of people. His eyes followed her around the room, watching her laugh and interact with people as though she had no care in the world. He clenched his teeth tightly when somebody came up behind him.

“Minho-yah! I wasn’t expecting to see you here. Suho said you weren’t coming,” Jonghyun said with a loud laugh, clapping Minho on the back. Minho had to quickly steady his beer before it spilled all over the floor. Wow, Suho was pretty determined to keep me away from here. He looked at Jonghyun, who seemed a little drunk already. “I heard you beat up Jihye’s little brother,” Jonghyun added.  

Minho seethed. “Is that what she’s telling everyone?”

Jonghyun shrugged “That’s what Chaeun said. Anyway- since you and Jihye aren’t seeing each other anymore, you don’t mind if I make a move, right? I think I can talk her into sleeping with me.”

Minho wasn’t sure why, but the thought of Jihye sleeping with Jonghyun made him feel nauseous. Jonghyun treated women like tissues to be used and thrown. He gritted his teeth together and tried to sound causal. “Jihye’s not the one night stand type,” he said. Minho still remembered their conversations; she had shyly admitted during their walk along the Han River that she didn’t have much experience with men- at least not in that sense. “I don’t think she’ll agree to a one-night stand.”

Jonghyun laughed. “That’s the beauty of it. They don’t know it’s a one-night stand until it’s over, genius.”

 Disgusting. “I still think you should find someone else. Jihye’s not your type. She’s not that experienced.”

Jonghyun rolled his eyes. “Please. Look at her. No woman that pretty and who walks with so much confidence can possibly be inexperienced, okay? She’s like a walking y-librarian fantasy. Not to mention the way she outdrank you at my birthday party was kind of hot.”

Minho resisted the urge to punch him. “There was nothing hot about that.“

Jonghyun frowned. “Yah. What’s your problem? Is there still something going on between you and her? If there is, just tell me. I don’t make moves on my friends’ women, okay? I’ll back off if you still like her.”

“Like her? No way,” Minho said quickly.

Jonghyun grinned. “Great. I’ll catch you later, then. Got any tips for me?”

“Sure. She hates Manchester United.”

“Great.”

He hurried away to find Jihye and Minho standing silently, still seething. Part of him desperately wanted to go and stop Jonghyun from making his move on Jihye, but he held back. Why did he care, anyway? So what if they hooked up? It was none of his business. It wasn’t as though he and Jihye had slept together anyway, the furthest they’d gone was innocent pecks on the cheek. Minho suppressed the jealousy and tried to relax. He didn’t care. He didn’t care.

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“I need your help.”

Minho rolled his eyes, cradling his third beer. He had stayed on the fringes of Onew’s promotion party, only talking to people when they approached him and content to just watch. His sharp eyes were mostly following Jihye around the room. She knew he was watching her; every now and then she would glance at him and then turn away, looking a little flustered. Minho smiled to himself. Jihye was more innocent than she looked. She might act all confident, but his constant attention on her had her flustered and she was clearly affected by it.

“My help?” Minho wondered, tearing his eyes away from Jihye to turn to Suho. He raised his eyebrows at his so-called ‘friend’, who looked desperate. “Why should I help you? From what I can tell, you went to great lengths to keep me away from this party.”

Suho looked apologetic. “Okay, I’m sorry. I was wrong. We have a bigger problem, now.”

“What; is it Chaeun again?”

“It’s Jonghyun. He’s determined to get Jihye into bed with him, but you and I both know he’s not a long-term-relationship guy. He won’t call her the next day and Jihye will tell Chaeun about what an he is. Then Chaeun’s belief that all my friends are pieces of trash who don’t know how to treat girls will be affirmed.”

“What is Chaeun’s obsession with your friends-“

“Chaeun believes that the people you keep company with reflect who you are, and so far, you and Jonghyun are dragging me into the gutter with you. I can’t let Jonghyun sleep with Jihye. Chaeun will hate me forever. Our one-year anniversary is coming up. I made reservations for this fancy French restaurant and I’d rather not be dumped over a plate of escargots.”

Minho rolled his eyes. “None of this is my problem.”

Suho raised an eyebrow. “Really? So you’re completely okay with the idea of Jonghyun and Jihye sleeping together?” he gestured towards the other side of the room, where Jonghyun was talking to Jihye with a sleazy smile on his face and an arm not-so-subtly wrapping around her shoulder. “You’re fine with that? That’s why you’ve been standing near the wall and moping around when you’re usually the life of the party?”

“Who’s moping around? I’m not-“

“Who are you lying to? Listen. You like her. You went on three dates with her and you did sappy, romantic things likes walking on the beach and going to the park together. I saw the necklace you bought to ask her to be your girlfriend. I get that you were humiliated at Jonghyun’s party but are you seriously going to let your pride destroy what could possibly be a really good relationship?” Suho demanded.

Minho felt his cheeks flush red. “Necklace? What neckla-“

“It was lying on your bedside table, idiot, and it had her name on the box so don’t even think of pulling anything with me right now.” Suho snapped. He pointed a finger at Minho’s face and narrowed his eyes. “Here’s what’s going to happen. I am going to save both of our relationships and you’re going to help me.”

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“-weren’t you just so relieved when Man-United got crushed last week?” Jonghyun was rattling on, his arm awkwardly situated around Jihye’s shoulder. There were a lot of people around, but he was still relentlessly flirting with her in public. Jihye kept subtly shifting so that his arm would slide off, but he would shamelessly put it back. “But I mean, they’ve been on a streak of miserable losses since forever, so we should have seen it coming, right?”

Jihye pressed her lips together tightly, wondering if this man seriously detested Manchester United or if he was just trying to annoy her. She took a sip of her drink and made eye contact with Minho. He was listening to their conversation and there was amusement twinkling in Minho’s eyes. She narrowed her eyes at him. You’re behind this, aren’t you? she wondered silently.

Minho merely shot her an innocent look in response. He didn’t even need to interfere, Jonghyun was making a fine mess by himself. “What do you think about it, Jihye-ssi? What’s your favorite team?” Jonghyun asked with a grin.

“Manchester United,” Jihye replied dully.

Minho let out a chuckle at the shocked expression on Jonghyun’s face. Jonghyun was stumped for a few moments, and Suho butted in, taking the chance to interject. He was determined to make Jonghyun look bad no matter what.

“What a pity. Jonghyun’s not really into soccer, are you Jonghyun? Looks like you and Jihye won’t click that well after all,” Suho said lightly, glancing hopefully at Chaeun. He wanted her to know that he wasn’t encouraging this particular pairing.

Jonghyun recovered from the blow and shrugged, a cheeky smile on his face. “Why do you say that? Having similar interests isn’t that important, what’s important is chemistry,” he insisted, adjusting his arm moving higher on Jihye’s shoulder. “Wouldn’t you agree with me, Jihye-ssi? It’s the spark that keeps things going, right?”

Jihye shrugged. “I don’t know. Things like sparks are just physical attraction.”

Minho took a sip of his beer coolly. Jihye kept glancing at him, and he could tell that she was feeling uncomfortable. She clearly didn’t like Jonghyun’s brashness. Minho, a little smug, piped up. “I think what’s important is how comfortable you feel around the person,” he said. “For example, you might feel comfortable enough to tell some people your deepest secrets, while you don’t even want to tell other your address.”

“That’s true,” Suho put in. “Sharing your insecurities and being understanding of them is important in a relationship.”

Jonghyun turned and smiled at Jihye. “Insecurities? I don’t know about that. Personally, I’ve always found confident and headstrong women extremely attractive. I think it’s great when a woman takes charge and is no-nonsense.”

Jihye shifted uncomfortably. “That’s not…”

“Isn’t it?” Minho cut her off. He turned and gave Jihye a pointed look. “But I think most women who seem confident and headstrong are actually really soft inside. Maybe they’re hiding the urge to be girly, they just don’t know how to go about it. Maybe they secretly want someone to be romantic and act cute with.”

Jihye stiffened. She could see Minho smirking at her, and she felt her cheeks turn red in humiliation. She’d told him that in confidence. It was something that had been extremely embarrassing and difficult to talk about and now he was using it against her in public. Jihye clenched her fists and took a deep breath to calm herself down. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said firmly. “That sounds like nonsense to me.”

“Really?” Minho smirked. “I don’t know. I think all girls love cheesy things like walking along the river and dressing up before a date-“

Chaeun laughed. “I don’t know about other girls, but Jihye isn’t like that at all. She’s really practical about such things, she doesn’t care much for acting cute and girly,” she piped in. “Right, Jihye? She’s way too mature and level-headed to want silly, romantic gestures.”

Jihye was silent.

Suho cleared his throat. “There’s nothing wrong with acting cute and girly-“

“But Jihye-ssi doesn’t care much for it. Apparently she’s too headstrong for such things. Have you never wanted to act cute or girly to get a guy’s attention, Jihye-ssi?” Minho pressed knowingly.

Jihye turned and glared at him, her eyes flashing briefly.  

“No, I haven’t. If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to the bathroom.”

She turned and walked away, her heels clacking loudly on the floor. Jonghyun looked surprised at her sudden departure, but Minho swiftly put his beer on the table and followed her out. She had walked in exactly the opposite direction of the bathrooms and he founded her exiting the pub. She had almost reached the parking lot when Minho finally caught up to her and grabbed her hand, pulling her back.

“Where are you going? You’re going to leave without telling anyone?” he demanded.

Jihye whirled around and glared at him. “I can’t stand to be around you anymore.”

She tried to pull her hand away from him but Minho only moved closer, wrapping one arm around her waist so that he could hold her in place. He looked down at her, his dark eyes staring at her with desire. Jihye felt her heartbeat thud in her chest. His hand was splayed out on her back and she could feel the warmth of his large hand through the material of her dress.

“Did it make you angry?” he wondered. “That I was revealing your insecurities in front of everyone?”

“I told you those things in confidence,” Jihye hissed furiously. “It’s not easy for me to admit things like that to people. If you’re going to make fun of me in public because of something I told you in trust, then that just shows what the depths you would go to win-“

“That’s right.” Minho’s fingers grasped the material of her dress at the back, and he tilted his head down closer to hers. “I like winning. I’m competitive and I’m jealous, the sight of Jonghyun touching you nearly drove me insane. I wanted to punch him, because he would have slept with you and then never called you again.”

Jihye stared up at him. Her voice was quiet. “That’s better than what you did.”

“What? When did I-“

“Jonghyun would have just slept with me, but you made me fall for you and you never called me again.” Her face was red, but Minho couldn’t tell whether she was angry or embarrassed. Her voice became quiet. “Between you and Jonghyun, you’re worse.”

There was a long silence. Jihye blinked up at him, noticing the way his fiery eyes suddenly softened and the way he was staring at her; his lips were pressed together tightly. Minho slowly released his grip on her arm and slid his hand down so that he could entwine his fingers with her instead.

“Do you mean that? You fell for me?” he asked quietly. Jihye opened to respond, but she couldn’t. Minho had bent forward and captured her lips between his, his mouth covering hers hotly. Jihye was shocked. She recoiled and squirmed, pulling out of his strong grip. Her heartbeat raced as she looked up at his dark eyes, her head spinning and lips tingling from his kiss.

“What are you-“

“I fell for you too,” Minho replied quietly, pressing their foreheads together. His warm breath mingled with hers and Jihye could smell his familiar cologne along with the beer he’d been sipping all evening. “I didn’t call you after Jonghyun’s birthday because I felt humiliated. I thought you would see me as less of a man because I couldn’t hold my alcohol. Not to mention, I passed out in such an embarrassing way.”

Jihye’s head was spinning and she had to blink a few times at him. “You were embarrassed?” she clarified.

Minho bit his lip and nodded reluctantly. “Hmm. Sorry.”

“Is that supposed to be an apology?”

“Yeah.”

Jihye blinked at him silently, and Minho tightened his grip around her and leaned down to kiss her again. He parted her lips silently, caressing them with his and letting his hot hands roam the back of her dress. Jihye’s head spun again. But she let herself go this time, and wrapped her own arms around him. Minho let out a low, sensual groan as she let one hand grasp his broad shoulders and the other slid into his soft, perfect hair. He pulled away for a moment eyes shining as they looked down at hers briefly. Her skin was flushed pink and her eyes wide.

“Stop it,” Jihye mumbled as he leaned down for another kiss. “I can’t think straight when you do that.”

“You’re not meant to be thinking,” Minho mumbled, pressing his lips to hers briefly again.

“What am I meant to be doing?”

Minho gave her a small smile; one that made Jihye’s heart flutter slightly as he retracted one arm from around her to flag down a passing taxi. It stopped in front of them and Minho opened the door, whispering in her ear,

“Just come with me.”

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“You’re smoother than I thought, Minho-ssi.”

Minho blinked his eyes open, the sharp sunlight directly in his face. He felt familiar sheets against his bare skin and he slowly pushed the blankets off himself. It was hot. He tried to ignore the pounding in his head as he sat up slowly.

“W-what?”

“It’s quite classy. I like your taste. Are the stones real?”

Minho took a few seconds to clear his head. Jihye was lying next to him in bed, her long hair spread over the pillow and her bare shoulders peeking out above the blanket that was wrapped around her. He stared at her for a few moments, watching her pink lips turn up into a small smirk, before the previous night came back to him.

“How long have you been awake?” he asked groggily. Jihye’s long hair was a mess about the pillow and he lifted a hand to move it out of her face, letting his warm fingers caress her cheeks. He traced the outline of her face gently with his hands. “You should have woken me up.” 

“I was having fun,” Jihye replied simply, with a smirk.

“Fun?”

She nodded, before reaching over to his bedside table and picking up a familiar-looking box. Minho’s face flushed red at the sight of it, but Jihye was smiling. “I found the necklace. So you weren’t lying last night, huh? Part of me was worried that you were just being sweet to get me in bed.”

“I did want to get you in bed. Desperately,” he admitted, leaning over to pull her closer to him. He slid his arm under the blanket to get around her waist, and then placed a soft kiss on her bare shoulder. “In fact, I want to do it again. And again. And again. Every day.”

Jihye smiled, closing her eyes as he trailed soft kisses up her shoulder and her neck. Minho’s kisses were gentle, yet firm and they sent tingles up her spine every time his lips met her skin. She bit her lip and looked down at him. “For how long?” she wondered quietly.

“As long as you’ll let me.”

“I never even forgave you, you know. You didn’t answer my calls for an entire week,” she muttered, as his lips reached her chin. Minho hummed quietly, bringing his other hand up to slide it through her loose hair as he kissed along her jawline. Jihye bit her lip. “Shouldn’t you get my forgiveness before you start planning other things?”

Minho looked at her for a moment, his eyes twinkling playfully.

“The necklace isn’t enough? Those stones are real.”

“The necklace predates your offence,” Jihye replied simply. “It’s beautiful, but it doesn’t count as an apology.”

“What should I do to apologize, then?” he asked, cocking his head to the side and smiling at her sweetly.

“What are you willing to do?”

“Anything you want.”

Jihye giggled. “Really? Nothing is beyond Choi Minho’s dignity? You’ll do absolutely anything to get me to forgive you? Are you sure about that?”

Minho narrowed his eyes at her, frowning. He didn’t like the sneaky expression that she had on her face. “What? How bad can it be? You want me to go out onto the streets ? I’ll do it!” As if to prove his point, he lifted an arm and flexed it proudly, showing her his biceps.

“You’d enjoy that too much, you ert,” she said with a giggle, though she couldn’t resist the urge to reach out and touch his arm. She then moved closer to him, sliding a hand up his neck and pulling his face closer so their lips were inches apart. Minho felt shivers up his spine at the lustful way Jihye was watching him and her fingers caressing his neck. “No, I have a very different kind of apology in mind.”

Minho closed his eyes as he felt her lips gently brush his. “Hmm? What’s that?”

“Take my brother to his hospital appointment today.”

There was a long, pregnant pause.

“Jihye-ah, let’s break up.”  

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A/N - Sorry this one's kind of all over the place. I usually start my one-shots with a clear structure, but I just started this one without a plan in mind so it just went where it wanted to. I hope you all still enjoyed it. If you did, check out my other EXO/OC one-shots! I'll be writing more EXO and SHINee soon!
If you want me to do a particular EXO or SHINee member next, then let me know in the comments!