Chaeyoung enters the meeting room, and she doesn’t even get to greet the people in the room when she gets pounced on by Nayeon, the older girl immediately pushing her into a chair and shoving her phone into her face. “I told you to be careful, didn’t I?!”

She looks at the headlines on Nayeon’s phone and her eyes widen.

HOT NEWS: TM’s Chaeyoung and Red Velvet’s Yeri reportedly dating

During KCON Japan, the two were spotted being very chummy on stage, walking and waving to the fans together during the ending stage. They were also seen very close together backstage, hugging each other. They have also been spotted visiting each other at their companies, or having supper together frequently.

Reports claim that the pair has been dating for approximately half a year after meeting each other during the filming for Idol Olympics. The two idols/producers got closer after that and even worked on a song, “Spring Love” Together. SM Entertainment and JYP Entertainment has yet to release an official statement regarding the dating reports.

Chaeyoung’s jaws slack at all the photos in the article. There were photos of them on stage during KCON, walking around stage with their arms linked, photos of them hugging backstage that time when Yerim was comforting her, photos of them entering each other’s company and photos of them eating supper together at the ddeokbokki store near their companies. She has done all of that, remembers all of them vividly but they are really just friends.

“What the…” Chaeyoung almost swears as she pulls out her phone, instantly dialing Yerim. The phone is engaged and Chaeyoung lets out a grunt as she shoots a text to her friend, knowing the girl is probably busy explaining things to her real girlfriend.

Call me once you are free.

Their manager chooses this time to enter and before he can even ask Chaeyoung about it, she springs up and declares by herself, “It’s not true! I’m not dating Yerim. Tell the press, release a statement.”

He nods and takes a seat, too calm for Chaeyoung’s liking. “Okay I got it, take a seat first Chaeyoung-ah.”

“What are you doing? You should go and release a statement right now!” Chaeyoung rushes. It’s okay for her, but it’s not okay for Yerim who is already attached. She can only imagine how frustrated Yerim will be and how upset Saeron will be.

“That’s not what’s important right now,” he says and hands out papers to them, “This is what’s important right now.”

Chaeyoung takes the papers and read it, the plans dictating their Japanese debut on it. They already know of this long ago, the company pushing them to take more Japanese lessons and testing their popularity during KCON Japan. She puts it down. “Okay, we are debuting in Japan, so what?”

“It’s noise publicity.” Dahyun voices out and Chaeyoung’s blood runs cold. This isn’t the first time this is happening, she has seen it happen to other groups, but to experience it firsthand… The feeling isn’t great, that’s for sure.

“That’s right,” their manager confirms, “that is why, we are going to confirm it.”

“So you are saying, you are just going to confirm untrue reports just for TM’s publicity? Even if it concerns a person’s private life that has nothing to do with TM at all?” Chaeyoung seethes.

“Look at this.” Their manager pulls up the search engines rankings. Both of their names and their groups are on the rankings, and Chaeyoung knows this is the exact reason why both companies are going to confirm this ridiculous report. Because the noise marketing is working. “Do you think she doesn’t gain from this at all?”

“Ridiculous.” Her phone rings and she sees that it’s Yerim. She picks up the call as she storms out of the room. If she can’t get the company to release a statement, the least she can do is to apologize to Yerim for the ruckus.

--

BREAKING: TM’s Chaeyoung and Red Velvet’s Yeri confirms they are dating

TM’s Chaeyoung and Red Velvet’s Yeri have confirmed their relationship!

Following reports about the pair of good friends dating, SM Ent and JYP Ent confirmed the news and stated, “After checking with Chaeyoung and Yeri, they confirmed that after being close friends, the pair recently developed romantic feelings for one another and are dating well now.

Congratulations to the new couple!

Chaeyoung steps out of the van, the cameras flashing immediately and the reporters asking their questions relentlessly. They are on their way to the airport for their flight to Japan, and they have always been press and fans alike capturing them at the airport, but it seems like there are more today because of the dating news.

PLEASE TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH RED VELVET’S YERI.

DID YOU WRITE YOUR SONGS WITH YERI IN MIND?

Chaeyoung regrets not wearing her earphones and shifts uncomfortably on her spot. Nayeon links her arms with the younger girl, shooting a comforting smile at her. “Bear with it. It will be fine once we pass customs.”

She nods weakly and Jeongyeon just pats her on the back as she stands on the other side of her. Jihyo and Dahyun just shoot concerned glances at their maknae. They stand in a line, letting the press take their photos before starting to make their way into the airport. The managers and staff try to keep the reporters as far away as they can from the members, but there is so much they can do with their little numbers. Microphones and cameras are still being shoved into their faces, especially Chaeyoung’s.

It’s only when they join the queue to get their passports checked that it gets better, the press being left behind in the airport area. The moment Chaeyoung enters the departure hall, she sighs. It is still so early in the morning and she is already totally drained out from the saga outside. She hopes this won’t be the case at Haneda Airport later.

--

“This is for TM’s successful debut in Japan!” Their head manager cheers out as he raises his cup of alcohol, and everyone in the room raises their drink for a toast. Chaeyoung grunts as she just sips on her drink, not really in the mood for a celebration.

“And of course, we have to thank our genius composer who is literally the backbone of TM, Chaeyoung! Without you, this Japanese debut wouldn’t be possible!” The head manager roars as he lifts his drink towards Chaeyoung, asking for a toast.

“It wouldn’t be possible because of my songs, or because of the dating scandal?” Chaeyoung jests. “Because I think we would have done well even without the dating scandal.”

The room suddenly drops a few degrees and Jihyo and Nayeon is frowning at her, obviously not approving of her attitude. She knows it’s not the staff’s fault, it’s the fault of the industry. There’s too many groups out there, and just so much time a person can devote to a group before finding the next new thing to obsess on. No news isn’t good news in this case; no news means you get pushed to the back, forgotten forever. Chaeyoung knows she’s too harsh on her manager, who only wants the best for them so she just lifts her drink and tips it towards their head manager before downing it.

“I’m going out for a breather.” Chaeyoung announces as she stands up, unable to listen to them blabber about the success of their Japanese debut anymore. She’s not sure if the product they are selling is their music, or themselves anymore (but if they were really selling their music, there would be no need to media play her relationship with Yerim, isn’t it?). The longer they do this, the further away she feels from music, which is and should be the sole basis of their group in the first place.

She sighs as she watches cars pass by in front of her, thanking the stars that no one is actually out smoking now, giving her some private time alone. It doesn’t last long though, because footsteps echo from behind her and stop beside her and the jasmine perfume tells her who it is without even looking. She really isn’t in the mood to deal with her, not sure what else she wants from her anymore. Chaeyoung thought their end would be at the airport, but they just keep crossing paths, fate having different plans in mind for them. 

“Please, just leave.” Chaeyoung begs, too tired to even pick a fight with her today.

Mina doesn’t budge. “I will just stay here until you feel better.”

Chaeyoung resists the urge to say something nasty and something she didn’t mean to the girl, choosing instead to sigh. “Why did you even come out?”

Mina seems to think through her answer, before settling with a safe, “I was worried for you. You are outside here alone.”

Chaeyoung snorts. Is this girl even serious? “I don’t think you would be of much help if anything were to really happen to me. But then again with you here, erts will want to take you instead of me.”

The underlying compliment didn’t escape Mina, the girl ducking her head a little as a blush begins to work its way onto her cheeks. “You are pretty cute yourself too!”

“But apparently I wasn’t cute enough for you to stay.” Chaeyoung has done it again. She didn’t mean to be so defensive, but it just slipped. She bites her lower lip as she looks away.

Thankfully, it doesn’t turn into a full-blown argument as Mina just shifts uncomfortably, her head bowing even lower than before. “I’m sorry.”

Chaeyoung turns back to look at the girl, and her heart wrenches. Even till this day, she’s so soft for Mina, unable to see her upset, especially if she was the cause of it. She sighs as she lifts Mina’s head up by her chin. She decides to listen to her leader’s advice and give Mina a chance, give herself a chance, give them a chance. “Explain. Explain why you left. Explain why you did what you did.”

--

She was in Korea on an exchange program with a dance school when she received the news that her parent’s company collapsed. She had wanted to quit Royal Ballet School and return back to Japan to help but her parents had insisted that she continue, not wanting to be the ones stopping their daughter from her dream. At first, it was bearable. She decided to persevere on, with her parents as her motivation.

But reality soon hit. She couldn’t afford the school fees and the money to buy new costumes and shoes. Initially, she took on odd jobs to gather money for her school fees and clothes, but the more she worked, the lesser time she spent dancing. She went from skipping morning lessons, to skipping a day of lessons, to skipping lessons for a week, and eventually she didn’t turn up for lessons for a whole month. She was paying for lessons she didn’t even attend, so she makes her mind up to quit the school.

Without the school fees, she could get by barely by working part time at convenience stores and chicken restaurants. But even then, she struggles to pay the rent and have enough to eat at the same time. It’s either a roof over her head, or a full stomach for a day. Eventually, a job offer comes along, to serve drinks at clubs. It’s iffy, but it pays well, so she grits through it. She gets d, hit on, but she just smiles them off as she serves them drinks. That month, she makes enough to pay the rent and eat decently. 

Her boss pulls her aside before work one day, telling her of a better job opportunity. An , he said. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to go there. Her boss told her about the pay. It was enough for her to survive and she could scrimp up the rest to remit back to her parents. That night, she finds herself in a skimpy black dress, pandering to old men.

Another job offer came. Acting. She doesn’t appear a lot on screen and it pays decently. But shooting is irregular, they have to wait hours for their scene and they have to be at the directors’ beck and call every time they need extras. She takes it on as an odd job, something she can do in the morning before her shift at the club. And that was the best decision she had ever made in recent months. Because she met her. 

“You showed me how it feels like to be loved again.” Mina confesses as tears spill down her face.

Chaeyoung just stares at her, dumbfounded. It all makes sense now, why she didn’t want to waive off the settlement fee, why she would make that decision to work as an and get a sugar daddy. She takes a step towards Mina, hesitating before wrapping her arms around the girl. “Why didn’t you tell me? I could have done something about it!”

“I owe you too much already.” Mina sniffs as she clutches onto Chaeyoung’s shirt.

“I’m the one who owes you. Have you forgotten about your settlement fee?” Chaeyoung jests. (She still hasn’t paid back the full amount till today.) Mina doesn’t say anything, just snuggles into the crook of the shorter girl’s neck. Unable to stop her curiosity, Chaeyoung asks gently, “So what happened after that?”

“What?” Mina asks, voice muffled.

“You know,” Chaeyoung huffs. “After you accepted the… deal.”

“It didn’t happen.”

“It didn’t happen?” Chaeyoung enquires.

Mina nods. “I was at the hotel when I met Sana. I couldn’t bring myself to continue on with it after that.”

“Then why didn’t you come back to me?”

“I was afraid the man would continue pestering me, so Sana and I both decided to leave Korea as soon as possible.” Mina reasons. “And also, I was afraid you would hate me.”

Chaeyoung pulls away from the hug, wiping off the tear streaks on Mina’s face with her thumbs. “Minari,” the nickname rolls off her tongue easily, “I can never hate you.”

She hates that Mina works as an , hates the fact that Mina left so easily and harshly, but she can never hate Mina herself. (No, she loves her too much to do that.)

Chaeyoung doesn’t know what triggers it, but Mina’s tears flow again and she doesn’t know what to do. She has never been good at handling people who are crying. So she just takes Mina back into her embrace, one hand running through her hair in an attempt to soothe her. “Why are you crying again? People will think I bullied you! Stop crying…”

It takes a while for Mina to calm down again, and by then Chaeyoung’s sleeve is totally drenched, but she’s not complaining. She pulls away and looks at Mina, and she just doesn’t get it. How does someone look so good even with puffy eyes and tear streaks on her face? “Should we head back in?”

Mina shakes her head cutely, and Chaeyoung resists the urge to just kiss the girl senselessly. “I want to stay here with you.”

There’s no way Chaeyoung is going to say no to that pout and puppy eyes. “Alright, just 5 more minutes, okay?”

She would stand there with her forever if she could. Chaeyoung is relieved to have taken Jihyo’s advice to hear Mina out, but at the same time she regrets taking this long for them to finally do this. If she hadn’t been so stubborn, they wouldn’t have wasted so much time, time they could use instead to love each other. So that is what she is going to do from now on. She’s going to love Myoui Mina with all her heart from now on, and nothing is going to stop her.

--

Dahyun pulls away from Sana, panting. “Chaeyoung-“

Sana doesn’t let her finish her sentence as she kisses her again. “Shhh. Leave Chaeyoung to Mina.”

She was supposed to leave the room to find Chaeyoung, but Sana stopped her, making Mina go in her place. She feels like a bad person, leaving the duty of taking care of her friend to someone else instead. But then again, there’s no way she can resist the temptation that is Sana, so she just indulges in it for a while more before pulling away again.

“Let’s go and find Chaeyoung and Mina.” Dahyun says, leaning in again to peck Sana before she can disagree.

Sana just juts out her lips. “One more.”

Dahyun rolls her eyes at her greedy girlfriend, but she leans in to please her girlfriend anyway.

--  

Mina buries herself back in Chaeyoung’s embrace, and they just stand there, contended to be in each other’s embrace. “Can I ask you something?” Mina breaks the silence first, and Chaeyoung just hums. The former puts some distance between the two of them, and Chaeyoung almost whines at the loss of contact.

“Are you really dating Yerim?”

Chaeyoung just grins. Someone is jealous. She pulls Mina into a hug again. “What do you think?”

“Well, I’m asking you because I don’t know!” Mina whines at Chaeyoung’s ambiguous answer.

“Would I be hugging you like this if I’m dating someone?”

“You were dating someone else when we were together.” Mina deadpans as she pulls away again and Chaeyoung nods her head in acknowledgment, unable to refute that fact.

“That may be true, but I broke up with her. For you.” Chaeyoung says smugly.

“What!” Mina knows she has kept some things secret from Chaeyoung, but she didn’t expect the girl to have a few secrets herself too.

Chaeyoung nods, as if confirming what she said. “She’s in a happy relationship with someone better now, so it turned out for the better.”

“And also, I just want to tell you that even if I’m dating Yerim, I will totally ditch her for you. I will always choose you, in any alternate universe.” Chaeyoung declares while staring sincerely at Mina and the latter just blushes. “You have become so good with your words.”

“Perks of being a songwriter, I guess.” Chaeyoung shrugs.

Mina thinks about all the songs Chaeyoung has wrote, and how it’s all written with her in mind and a sense of pride swells up in her chest. “What did I do to deserve you…”

“I’m glad you know.” Chaeyoung hums as she leans in closer to Mina, eyes glued onto her lips. Mina seems to understand her intentions, her gaze falling to Chaeyoung’s lips too.

Chaeyoung can feel Mina’s breaths hitting against her lips and it causes her senses to go into overdrive. It’s not their first kiss together, but it certainly feels like one, the butterflies in her stomach going insane as Mina leans closer. She expects to hear the fireworks go off as their lips touch, but she can only hear a loud boom and two people tumbling towards the floor as the door gives way.

Mina pulls away quickly, blushing beet red at having been caught in such an intimate position and attempting such intimate behavior but Chaeyoung just glares at the two intruders, not amused that their moment is ruined.

“It’s not what it looks like!” Sana immediately voices out in her shrill voice.

“YEAH!” Dahyun agrees too enthusiastically.

“We were just looking for the toilet and got lost, right Dahyunie?” Sana tries to save their asses from this.

“YEAH! We are totally not like… eavesdropping or anything!” Dahyun beams as she announces and Sana just squeezes her eyes together. Lord help her with her idiotic girlfriend.

“Anyway we will just embark on our quest for the toilet again, so please continue with whatever you are doing!” Sana grins awkwardly as she pulls Dahyun up from the ground.

“YEAH!” Dahyun raises her eyebrows while puckering her lips suggestively.

The two disappear into the restaurant again and Mina almost dies from embarrassment. Chaeyoung, who is used to Dahyun’s antics, just feels annoyed at having their moment ruined. Of course things wouldn’t go that well, she shouldn’t have expected any less. She stuffs her hands into her pocket, grumbling, “Let’s just head back in.”

This time, Mina doesn’t disagree, hands on her cheeks trying to calm her blush down.

--

a/n: now that we got everything out of the way, it's fluff time :)))))) get your diabetes medicine ready y'all