-

 

hirai momo is very much drained after another tiring day of dance rehearsals, vocal lessons, more ongoing promotions for their comeback, and the like. 

 

which is why instead of in her and yoo jeongyeon's shared room, she ended up sleeping on the couch. momo, especially when tired, is very difficult to wake up even if you tried. 

 

which is why no one tried to do so. 

 

after everyone's nightly routines, it was already late into the evening, they passed by the girl already clad in her pyjamas– since she was lucky enough to be first in queue in the bathroom– as she hugs sana's pillow she always leaves lying around. her head leaning on the backrest, mouth slightly parted with quiet snores leaving her lips. 

 

her roommate, jeongyeon, had tried shaking her awake so she can transfer to their shared bed but was scolded by jihyo, telling her to let momo be, patting the sleeping girl's head before going to bed. 

 

nayeon and the maknaes, after sharing bowls of cereal in the kitchen, passed by the living room on the way to their rooms. they also tried waking momo up but only to shift her into a comfortable lying position. momo only but mumbled some words but still complied, lying down on her back, chaeyoung putting her blanket (yeah, the one with son chaeyoung's face on it) over the girl and tucked her in. they gave her a quick goodnight, retreating to their respective rooms after. 

 

stepping out of the bathroom after a really short shower, sana almost threw a tantrum when she saw her pillow being squeezed in momo's arms. but didn't and instead went over to the couch, kneeled down on the floor, whispering to the sleeping girl: "oyasumi, amai yume, momo-chan." (goodnight, sweet dreams, momo-chan) before taking her leave to her shared room with jihyo, nayeon and mina. 

 

by the time it was almost midnight, barely any sound was heard inside the dorm. no sound of argument in the kitchen on who should get the last juice box. no sound of the water running inside the shower. no sound of nagging from either jeongyeon or jihyo to clean or maybe do what should be done. 

 

nothing. silent. with just the sound of the air conditioning in the dorm filling the spaces. just the ticking of the clock pinned to the wall and maybe the squeaks of the couch in the living room when momo rolls over to her side. 

 

hirai momo is very much still in dreamland. or so she's pretending to be. 

 

she woke up in the middle of the night when the need for a late snack came. however, just when she is just about to get off the couch and drag her feet along, trudging the way to the kitchen, the faint sound of footsteps came from the hallway leading to their rooms. 

 

not wanting another speech on how midnight snacks are bad for the health from anyone – which would most probably come from jeongyeon or jihyo – momo tugged the blanket up to her neck, shutting her eyes close and pretending to sleep. it could just be nayeon or sana for a quick night trip to the bathroom, or might be dahyun with her sleepwalking. 

 

but those it could just be's went out of the window when listening in, the footsteps were approaching the couch momo was lying down on. 

 

not daring to crack an eye open to have a look on who it is, momo held her breath for a full second before thinking twice about it since one might think she stopped breathing and died in her sleep. 

 

the sound of footsteps stopped just near and momo is so close to breaking and opening her eyes to see who it is because after then, there was only silence. the kind of silence that will make you dead curious why exactly it is so quiet. fortunately, before curiousity can even kill her (not that it could actually do but there is a possibilty depending on whoever it is that planned to walk around the dorm late at night for checks), faint scuffling somewhere near her made her ears perk up. 

 

just when she was about to throw her best sleeping act award out of the window and satiate her want to know who it is, momo felt a presence close and caught a whiff of a vaguely familiar scent. 

 

light, modern floral scent. almost like the smell of spring. 

 

she could recall those words from sana that one time she caught a member's scent and couldn't quite word or describe it. thus, the younger japanese girl did it for her. and ever since then, those words were used every time someone would ask what her favorite scent is. 

 

anyway, now she knows who it is– whoever had almost caught her in the act of sneaking to dahyun's safe haven of chocopies. 

 

and another anyway, momo can feel the weight of the stare of the girl, that if she is correct, is infront of her. but it doesn't make her feel uneasy in any way. nothing the girl did made her feel not comfortable, after all. 

 

momo can make out a soft pair of brown eyes observing her in her "sleep" and she doesn't find it creepy in any way. 

 

it's oddly comforting and makes her feel warm inside. and yet again, momo is tempted to just open her eyes but now, to look and gaze into those eyes watching her, wanting nothing but get lost and drown in those emotions swimming in it just like how she does every time. 

 

silence, it was just silence around hirai momo and she swore she almost wouldn't believe someone is with her if not for her hearing the slow, steady breathing of the other and still the feeling the stare is giving momo. 

 

however, it didn't take quite long before momo felt a hand gently starting to her head. it's a very sweet gesture that she likes giving to the maknae line but, not being selfish or anything, momo likes receiving it more. it makes her feel good and when she needed, it assures her, just a simple pat on the head or a caress of the hair, it does wonders to her. 

 

but it does a lot more, considering on who is doing it to her. and add the fact, momo just can hear a soft murmur of a lullaby.

 

it really does wonders that momo can feel tiny bits of her consciousness leaving her, sleep taking over once again. 

 

if it was any day or if it was anyone, momo would have whined since she didn't want to sleep. she wants to eat some of nayeon's snacks or take a few bites from the pig's feet jeongyeon took home after their dinner in the restaurant by he dorm. 

 

well, she wanted to do so. but as she tried to open her heavy eyelids, instead of a small pout, momo only managed a small, sleepy smile at the sight that greeted her. 

 

myoui sharon mina, sat down on the floor cross-legged by momo's head and a miguin blanket (she designed it herself) wrapped around her body, is looking still unfairly beautiful even with her noticeable bed hair and parting widely as she let out a yawn. 

 

how can someone, even with the fact that it seemed like she just pushed herself off the bed late at night and wiped the drool off the side of , still be so attractive? 

 

mina seemed to be sporting a small smile but it widened a little, showing off her white teeth, when she saw momo trying to keep her eyes open. "i knew you were awake." oh god. here's the sleepy mina voice. 

 

trying to force out a chuckle amidst: 1) the immense calm and comfort that mina's touch is giving her which is bringing her closer and closer to the edge of sleeping and; 2) mina's absolutely y just-woke-up voice making her feel things, momo mumbled incoherent words that even she couldn't understand clearly. 

 

as expected, mina did not quite get the words she tried to say. with that, a soft giggle came out of the girl's lips and the corner of momo's lips turned slightly upward and she wanted to say something but nothing came out. 

 

mina shook her head and bend forwards, sliding to her knees, her hand not caressing momo's head supporting her weight as she leans down towards the lying girl on the couch. "go to sleep, momo-chan, " she whispered softly. 

 

another murmur of words from momo as her eyes fluttered, feeling the other girl's warm breath tickling her ear. 

 

mina hushed momo, giggling before leaning back and sweeping momo's bangs out of her face, exposing her forehead that she always made sure is covered by fringe. 

 

momo looked at the younger girl behind drooping eyelids, bothered because of the exposure of her forehead but she doesn't make a move to stop mina for she's close to entering the gates of dreamland. not that she would try stopping her, anyways. 

 

"goodnight." mina smiled down at her, seeing how bangless momo, in some onces' words, is really powerful if it does make a comeback. 

 

"hmm." momo hummed, snuggling more to her pillow, managing a small smile as her eyes flutter close while mina gets her bangs out of the way. "goodnight..." 

 

and there goes hirai momo finally giving in and sleeping... 

 

but even as she delves into dreamland, momo swore she felt a gentle kiss on her forehead and a mumble. 

 

"one. happy birthday, momoring." 

 

-

 

to say momo was in a good mood the moment she woke up that morning was an understatement. 

 

"good morning!" 

"surprise!" 

"happy birthday!" 

 

albeit almost having woken up with a start after jeongyeon practically jumped on top of her as a good morning with nayeon and sana joining in the pile, momo grunted, stretched her limbs after the girls got off of her and hugged the closest member she could. chaeyoung hugged her back, anyway, wrapping her arms around momo's neck as momo's wrapped around the small girl's waist since she was standing while momo was sitting on the couch. "thank you, guys~" 

 

jihyo, being the one holding the cake with numbered birthday candles on it saying "23" and having to swat nayeon's hand away, stepped forward and initiated the birthday song. but of course, dahyun had to step in to act like an orchestra conductor. "now, 1, 2, ready, sing! "

 

the members all grinned and started to sing. although expected to always be in tune and for them to hit the right notes, at times like this... no one really cared. "happy birthday to you! happy birthday to you! happy birthday, dear momoring~ happy birthday to... YOUUUU!" when the song was finished, nayeon insisted to do another one just so she could supply the beatbox ("mc rail in the house!") and dubchaeng could do some adlib rap parts ( "yo." "break it down, yo." "everybody clap your hands."). it's safe to say that they did more than two rounds. 

 

well, by the time they finished, jihyo was already shaking her head disbelievingly (but still suffering some aftershocks from laughing too much after sana started wheezing because of cackling) and peeled nayeon away from momo's lap while still protecting the cake. "okay, kids," she called out, making everyone turn to her. jihyo looked down at momo. "make a wish, momo-yah." 

 

all of them surrounded the birthday girl, momo, as jeongyeon lights up the candles for momo to blow out after her wish.

 

wish? 

 

 momo looked at all the members huddled up, surrounding her. from jihyo, the one holding the cake out to momo; jeongyeon and sana on either side of the leader; nayeon, dahyun and chaeyoung sat down on the couch with her; tzuyu behind the couch with... 

 

mina met momo's eyes and she smiled slightly at the birthday girl, urging her to go on. 

 

at that, momo turned back to the cake, closed her eyes and blew out the candles. 

 

nothing. she actually wished for nothing. she doesn't want or need anything more anyway. 

 

with that in mind, her face broke out into a grin before she opened her eyes. momo was taken by surprise when she immediately received the customary birthday kisses from each of the members on collective parts of her body. two she received on the cheeks, some on the arms and shoulders, one on the forehead, and one on the top of her head. 

 

the members gave her the kisses while they whisper their happy birthday's and i love you's before pulling away, never forgetting to beam at momo brightly. 

 

but having only received seven kisses (she counted), momo waited for the other one. when she did receive it, she felt it just below her right ear and heard a soft whisper, "two." 

 

-

 

twice had finished their birthday surprise for momo and they all ate the cake for breakfast. 

 

as it turns out, it was five in the morning when they woke the birthday girl up both for the surprise and also to have her get up and get all set for today. 

 

it was a slightly rainy day as the vans drive along the streets of korea to take the nine members to their destination, the first agenda for today. momo, nayeon, jihyo and mina are all in one van while in the other were jeongyeon, dahyun, chaeyoung, sana and tzuyu. 

 

momo doesn't know about the other members but a stilling silence envelops the four in the vehicle. with jihyo, a padded jacket warming her, looking out of the window, nayeon leaning against jihyo as she scrolls through her phone, every once in a while letting momo read a few messages onces left for her birthday. momo feels her heart warm at the words people gave her and nayeon beamed at her, patting her cheek and greeting her happy birthday again. 

 

momo smiled and shifted on her seat, tugging the blanket wrapped around her a little and snuggling a little closer to her human penguin pillow, letting her eyes flutter close. 

 

"nap," mina mumbles, directed to momo, squeezing her hand gently under the blanket. "i'll wake you up when we arrive." 

 

"hmm." 

 

a kiss on the top of momo's head. "three. sleep a little more, momo-chan." 

 

-

 

chaeyoung was the one to wake momo up after she was informed that jihyo already went out of the van with mina and nayeon. an umbrella was given to them by the manager and momo stepped out of the van, the clicking of cameras and fans greeting her. 

 

rubbing sleep out of her eyes, momo showed a wide smile to everyone as she waves at onces who waited for them despite the cold weather. some even greeted her a happy birthday and of course, momo bowed and mouthed a thank you to each and everyone who did. 

 

momo looked over at the other members to see dahyun holding up an umbrella for her and sana, nayeon and jeongyeon sharing one, tzuyu having one for herself and chaeyoung holding the umbrella for her and momo. her eyes lingered a little longer than planned on mina using an umbrella over her and jihyo. 

 

no one couldn't quite blame hirai momo for kinda checking out myoui mina. the younger girl had her blazer over her grey sweater and she wore an expensive-looking black pants. ankle-high black boots tied the whole look up but the way mina's hair is just flowing down her shoulders and back and she's looking effortlessly beautiful tied the whole look up. 

 

their eyes met so momo gave the girl a smile but mina seemed like she... smirked back? 

 

momo didn't quite catch it because after almost half an hour of clicking cameras, flashing smiles and waving to fans, their manager had finally decided to usher them into the building. 

 

she walked with chaeyoung, following behind nayeon and jeongyeon as they follow the manager. right behind them were sana and dahyun, and then tzuyu and at the very back are mina and jihyo. 

 

a good five minutes or so, after a conversation with son chaeyoung about the new music artist the younger girl is interested in, a man came up to them to get their umbrellas as they enter the building. the two bowed in gratitude to him as they give him the umbrella. 

 

momo straightened u and fixed her bangs. "that's very nice of hi–"

 

she was rudely cut off when she felt someone tackle her from behind, two someones at that. "j-line birthday group hug for momoring!" sana's voice came out muffled against her hair and momo felt vibrations of sana's laughter against her back. 

 

it was minatozaki sana and having a whiff of her favorite scent, she knew mina was squeezed in the hug too. 

 

being known as the hug monster she is, sana tightened her arns around momo and mina, almost as if she wants to crush the two other japanese girls. if you'd also listen to sana properly, she also seemed to be singing the birthday song in japanese. 

 

momo loves hugs, she won't deny that. especially sana's specialties (but she won't tell her that) which makes you feel really warm and comforted. but this hug here is another one of sana's specialties– kinda literally breathtaking and bone-crushing. 

 

just when she was about to wiggle out of minatozaki sana's grasp, she felt something hit her on her upper back, a grumble and then something warm and soft at the back of her neck. 

 

a kiss. 

 

right after that, she feels sana pulling away and finally letting go of mina and momo. turning around, she looked at a minatozaki sana grinning at her widely and a seemingly sulky myoui mina. 

 

"that's four," sana chirped, clinging to mina's arm. "happy birthday, momoring!" 

 

momo cocked her head, "eh?" 

 

mina looked at momo and opened to speak. "i–" 

 

"misamo! come on!" 

 

-

 

breakfast with najeongchae in dressing rooms is borderline between fun and no-jam. what with yoo jeongyeon and son chaeyoung present, it is deemed to be that way. im nayeon being present seemed to just add fuel to the fire, in a very good way, of course.

 

"what is a robot's favorite food?" chaeyoung asks the three as she puts a dumpling into . 

 

jeongyeon snickered. "bibimbap?" 

 

"very funny," nayeon says blankly but laughed a little when she saw jeongyeon loudly laughing with chaeyoung on their own joke. while momo... 

 

"eh?" 

 

chaeyoung looked over at the confused girl and giggled before shooting up of her seat as if she remembered something she had to do. "i have something for you, momo-unnie!" 

 

while the younger girl scrambles to get to her bag sitting on the salon chair, momo started to inquire jeongyeon and/or nayeon about the previously mentioned joke. 

 

by the time jeongyeon sobered up after almost choking on a ball of rice and is just about to explain, chaeyoung runs over to momo on the floor and throws her arms around the girl, presenting a small box. "happy birthday, unnie!" 

 

"thank you, chae~" momo squeezed the small girl into a hug and kissed both her cheeks before pulling away. 

 

chaeyoung gave her a dimpled smile and patted her head like how the young girl does everytime. "i hope you like it, unnie," she says before pushing herself off the floor and plopping back down beside nayeon on the couch conveniently placed inside the dressing room. 

 

momo carefully shook the small box in her hands, guessing what it is. "what is inside, chaeng?" she heard jeongyeon ask, words coming out muffled as the girl chews her food. 

 

however, momo didn't get to hear the answer, if chaeyoung even had plans of saying it, when her phone on the table dinged and lit up, showing a message. 

 

from myoui mina: open the door. 

 

a smile had found its way to momo's lips and got off the floor, standing up and going over to the door, gone unnoticed by the other three inside the room. 

 

stopping right infront of the door and bringing her hand up to the knob, momo took a deep breath and blew it out as she twists the door open. 

 

seeing a penguin holding out a raccoon stuffed toy (like the ones you can get using a claw machine) on the other side of the door could just count as one of the cutest things in the world. 

 

"hi," momo smiled. 

 

mina did the same as she turned the stuffed toy over to the girl, glancing left and right before leaning close and giving momo a peck on the cheek, just near the corner of . 

 

lips lingering for a few seconds against momo's skin, mina pulled away and showed her gummy smile, seeing the older girl a bit flustered. "five." 

 

"min–" 

 

momo didn't get to even start her sentence yet mina already walked off. 

 

-

 

walking along the corridors with dahyun, momo bowed to other artists also here to pre-record their performances and to other staff that they passed by as well. 

 

the pair went to the restroom for a while and the other members were in the studio, rehearsing for the stage later. then, after going through the choreography and the directors have figured their adjustments and all those stuff, twice will go back to their respective dressing rooms to get ready with their hair, makeup and costumes. 

 

apparently, the bright-haired girl wasn't really planning to use the restroom. she tagged alongside momo just so she can give her birthday gift to the girl... in a bathroom. 

 

the place where kim dahyun decided to give the gift was a bit odd but momo thought it was really cute that the girl only wanted to give her gift personally and in private. 

 

"it's just a necklace, unnie. i had it customized to have a jokbal-shaped pendant. i hope you like it." and momo did, she likes it very much. not being that so good with words and knowing that all she can manage would be a "you know what i mean, right?" and her circle thing, momo gave dahyun a big hug. 

 

"thanks, dahyunie." 

 

now, on the way back, dahyun and momo linked arms while momo's free hand feels the cold metal around her neck, continuously telling the girl beside her that her gift is really cute like her. 

 

when they arrived back where the members were rehearsing, they seemed to be in a short water break and tzuyu came up to them, offering a water tumbler. momo shook her head. 

 

"it's an energy drink, unnie," the maknae said, as if remembering that the girl isn't particularly fond of water. 

 

"rehearsal again in two minutes!" 

 

momo glanced at jihyo when she made the announcement before turning her gaze back to the tall girl infront of her. "okay," she nodded and got the tumbler from tzuyu, chugging a fair amount of the drink. 

 

after finished drinking, momo beamed at the maknae. "thanks, tzuyu-ah." 

 

"don't thank me. this is mina-unnie's." eh? 

 

"positions, everyone!" jihyo called out. 

 

eyebrows furrowed in confusion, momo turned to dahyun to see sana and nayeon already beside the bright-haired girl. 

 

"minari!" mina, who seemed to be in a conversation with chaeyoung, snapped her head towards them when sana called her name. 

 

nayeon got the tumbler from momo and raised it. "moguri drank from the tumbler you drank from. that's an indirect. is that a six?" 

 

"everyone, positions!" 

 

-

 

by the time it was a good thirty minutes before their stage pre-recording, nayeon, tzuyu and sana had already 'dumped' their gifts inside momo's shared dressing room with chaeyoung. so far, the only gift momo was able to unwrap– since it wasn't wrapped, in the first place– was mina's raccoon stuffed toy and dahyun's jokbal pendant. the others were settled down on the salon chair, waiting to be opened. 

 

hirai momo also received a lot of fans' birthday gifts, one of the managers told her. she was told that all of it were waiting for her in the dorm. 

 

momo winced a little as she does a few adjustments to today's outfit so she could still be comfortable dancing in it. it's a bit difficult, looking good and at the same time, being comfortable performing for sometimes even the outfit is beautiful, while performing, wardrobe accidents can happen.

 

chaeyoung, fortunate for her, is all set and she said she would like to barge in tzuyu's dressing room. thus, leaving momo alone inside their own. 

 

"outfit problems?" 

 

"yeah," momo replied, not needing to look up to know who it is leaning against the doorframe, observing her. 

 

"need help?" 

 

looking up, momo let out a breath. "yes, please." 

 

mina giggled and walked over, closing the door behind her. "what's the matter?" she asked but momo knew it wasn't really a question waiting for an answer so she didn't speak and just watched mina skim her outfit for anything wrong. it was quite a sight, her tongue peeking out of as she looks at momo from top to bottom. "ah." she seemed to see the problem and momo watched as mina bent over to fiddle with the zipper on the side of her skirt. 

 

a few more moments of fixing and fiddling with it, mina straightened up and grinned, locking eyes with momo. "there."

 

"yeah," momo says absent-mindedly, getting lost into mina's eyes quicker than before. 

 

mina seemed to notice this and decides to do something to snap momo out of her trance. she leaned forward and pressed a kiss on momo's cheek, murmuring, "six." giving it a few seconds before pulling away, mina did the same on the other cheek. "seven." 

 

after, mina stepped back and looked at momo again, seeing her eyes slightly widened. "better?" 

 

momo shook her head a little and blinked a few times before managing out a response. "yeah, better..." 

 

"good." 

 

"i'll see you later, then." and yet again, even before momo can let out proper words, the sound of giggling and the door shutting close had already beat her to it. 

 

-

 

"hanaman seontaekae eoseo Yes or Yes" 

 

nayeon ended the song while everyone does the ending pose before the lights dimmed and the staff had ushered them backstage, telling them that the pre-recording is done. they also had finished their shoot of an introduction in the green room so all-in-all, they're all finished.

 

momo was handed a bottle of water by one of the staff and even though she doesn't like the taste (less) of water, she takes a drink as her and the other members go back to their dressing rooms. 

 

given an hour to rest, change out of their outfits and everything, momo and chaeyoung retreated to their shared room, the younger girl surprisingly winning a game of rock-paper-scissors on who should change with her usual first move, scissors. which brings momo sat down comfortably on the couch as chaeyoung changes out of her outfit. 

 

leaning back on the couch and relaxing her body, momo felt the urge to take a short nap until it's her turn to change. and she figured she will. 

 

getting cozy, momo hums and lets her eyes flutter close. "chaeng?" she called out. "i'm... just gonna take a nap here. wake me up... if you're done." 

 

momo falls asleep easily and it's not a surprise that she's already entering the gates of sweet cotton candy dreams when the door of the dressing room opened only slightly, someone peeking from outside. few seconds more and that someone opens the door completely and steps into the room, going over to the couch and planting a kiss on the top of momo's head. 

 

"eight. you did well today," that someone murmured. "as always." 

 

and right after that, mina walks out of the room and goes back to her own shared one with jihyo and sana, momo smiling in her sleep, still having felt and heard that. 

 

-

 

momo would have thought their manager and their van driver had formed an alliance to kidnap twice, seeing how after leaving the music station, they seemed to be driving in a different route than the one they always take going back home. she would have thought that they were if jeongyeon, sana and tzuyu, being in the same van as hers, weren't so calm and even looked really excited. 

 

after having been able to take a nap awhile ago, only waking up after chaeyoung shook her awake, momo did not fall asleep on tzuyu's shoulder as they drive along the streets of seoul as the sky starts to darken both as night approaches and because of the weather. unlike before, she can now look out, watching as raindrops roll along the other side of the window. 

 

looking front, momo sees her favorite restaurant ahead and couldn't quite hide the twinkle in her eyes when the manager told the driver to stop there. he seemed to notice momo's expression, causing him to laugh. "yes, momo-yah, we're going to eat here." 

 

of course, momo couldn't get out of the van any faster. some of the members couldn't control their laughter when momo grabbed the manager's wrist, pulling him into the restaurant, the eight members following behind. 

 

"it's really your treat, manager oppa?" momo asks as her eyes scan the menu the waitress gave her upon sitting down at a table. 

 

the manager nodded. "yes. it's your birthday. so it's my treat to you." 

 

the others approached the table and when jihyo sat down beside momo, started enumerating all the delicious foods she wants to order to the leader. 

 

sana turned to mina as they all sat down. "please make her stop ranting about foods." then to the others. "someone make momo stop." 

 

mina glanced over at momo beside her, giggling– "you should really try their japchae here, it's amazing"– as she pecks the girl by the very corner of her lips as an attempt to stop with her word vomit about food. 

 

which definitely worked. "nine." 

 

"it worked. it actually worked," sana mused. 

 

-

 

to say momo is anything but listening to the chatter that broke out right after a happy birthday song to the birthday girl when the food they ordered came is pretty accurate. 

 

meat, rice, kimchi and everything nice. 

 

momo is enjoying her favorite foods in her favorite restaurant too much that she didn't notice mayonnaise just by her chin. not like she would even bother wiping it off. 

 

but someone has to do it for her, right? 

 

so mina did. glancing to see if anyone was looking, she went closer to momo and kissed the mayonnaise off her, sticking out her tongue slightly to any remaining bit. "ten." 

 

when she pulled away, she saw momo had stopped eating and looking at mina who acted like nothing happened. "you had something on your chin." 

 

-

 

mina excused herself to the restroom while momo was piling up her third plate of food. 

 

oddly, she found the urge to stand up and follow. and so she did, delaying her food restocking and excusing herself, as well. 

 

momo turned a corner she knew leads to the bathroom and almost jumped when a beaming mina had blocked her path. "hey," the girl greeted momo. 

 

"hi." 

 

mina giggled and took the opportunity to steal a peck on momo's lips, once again taking the girl by surprise. 

 

"eleven." 

 

and once again, mina walks past momo and goes back to the table where the other members are. 

 

let's just say hirai momo sat through the dinner, flustered. 

 

-

 

"rest well, girls. another busy day tomorrow," says the manager as the girls step out of the van one by one. "and momo-yah, happy birthday again." 

 

momo lets a small smile grace her lips as she bows thankfully. "thank you, manager oppa." 

 

"i'll see you tomorrow?" the twice members nodded and the man smiled at them one last time before going out of the door, leaving the girls in the dorm with an unspoken argument of having jihyo as the one in charge. 

 

"bye~"

 

"who's up for a snack?" dahyun asks. 

 

three guesses who decided to say yes. hirai momo, correct, even though she just ate. they all just did.

 

yet momo was later found in the kitchen with dahyun and nayeon while jeongyeon and chaeyoung went out of the house for a walk, and the others are in the living room probably watching a tv drama or something except sana who just stepped into the shower and probably wouldn't be back until after 20 minutes. 

 

the trio were having a peaceful snack until mina decided to walk into the kitchen, looking like the most beautiful girl in the world with her hair pulled up into a messy bun. she was also wearing sana's specs that adds up to her look. 

 

mina seemed to notice momo's stare on her as she walked over to the fridge but as the girl tries to meet her eyes, momo looked away quick and tried to focus on what nayeon is storytelling. 

 

cue word, tried. 

 

-

 

momo was last in queue in line for the showers, unfortunately. 

 

therefore, she was able to go to her and jeongyeon's shared room already late into the night. with sana taking very long in the shower, jihyo refusing to leave her tv drama, and other delaying things. they also had to corner momo and sing her another round of happy birthday, some giving her birthday kisses and others giving their gifts to the birthday girl. 

 

however, when momo finished changing into her pajamas and lied down beside an already passed out yoo jeongyeon, momo couldn't quite get herself to sleep and her gut seems to be telling her to go to the living room and do something there. 

 

momo groaned and pushed herself off the bed, standing up and walking out of the room, making her way along the dark, quiet hallway. she passed by the maknae line's room and hears some faint murmuring but shrugs it off, continuing to walk to the living room. 

 

and of course, myoui mina just had to be there. she just had to be. 

 

momo went around the couch and sat down beside mina who looked almost like a dumpling or a burrito all wrapped with her blanket while she watches... Pingu? 

 

"don't laugh. it's cute," mina muttered, scooting closer to momo, leaning her head on the girl's shoulder. "penguins are cute. pingu is not an exception. " 

 

momo chuckled. "i know." 

 

minutes passed and momo found herself in the same blanket as mina's while they go through a series of episodes of the cute little penguin. 

 

she was laughing at something mina said about pingu when the laughter died out of her upon feeling a soft pair of lips against her jaw. "twelve." and then another on her neck. "thirteen." and then one under her chin. "fourteen." and another and another. "fifteen. sixteen." 

 

"minari," momo whispered, trying to focus her eyes on pingu catching a fish from the lake. 

 

mina nuzzled against momo's neck and sighed, momo feeling the warm breath against her skin. "you turned twenty-two today–

 

"twenty-three." 

 

"–and i wanted to give you twenty-two birthday kisses, as well."

 

momo smiled and had mina straighten up while she shifted on her position to face the younger girl. "okay." she closed her eyes, grinning. "what number are you in now again?" 

 

there was a beat of silence and momo could have opened her eyes if she didn't feel warm hands wrap around hers too. 

 

"seventeen." a kiss against the back of momo's left hand. "eighteen." on the back of her right hand. 

 

momo pouted when she felt the comforting warmth wrapped around her hands leave her but the smile came back when she felt her bangs being swept off of her forehead. feeling a sweet and soft kiss pressed on her exposed forehead, mina whispering quietly ( "nineteen"), momo had to bite her bottom lip to refrain from smiling widely like an idiot. 

 

the twentieth and twenty-first next was on both of her cheeks and you could say momo leaned into the touch of mina's lips against her skin. 

 

when mina pulled away, momo has this very high expectation for the twenty-second birthday kiss promised to her. but that went out of the window when she only but felt a kiss on the tip of her nose. "twenty-two." momo opened her eyes and looked at mina. "done." 

 

"all twenty-two birthday kisses," mina grinned, raising a brow when momo pouted. 

 

"but..." momo trailed off and huffed, turning her attention back to the tv, instead. she figured it's done and no kiss on the lips or whatnot. 

 

or so she thought. "but... you're twenty-three in korean age." 

 

momo turned her head to the side and was met with mina's mouth covering hers. at first, she was surprised and her eyes were wide but of course, she melts into the kiss and moved her lips against mina's. 

 

she couldn't keep herself from smiling into the kiss when mina mumbled, "twenty-three." 

 

-

 

"you know, you can keep kissing me in other place– ow! what was that for?" 

 

"i said, twenty-three. and it's all done. no more kisses." 

 

"no more?" 

 

"maybe next year. stop pouting, come here."