Sometime in the beginning of September -

It had been inevitable.  Honestly, at this point he was just happy that he hadn’t been the first.

Despite being a long time coming, the realization still came as a bit of a shock.  He’d expected to have been a little more mentally prepared for such a noteworthy mistake.

Now here he found himself - on the cusp - hand hovering above the handle of the bedroom door, not entirely certain of what he’d find on the other side…

Choi Seunghyun had forgotten to do his homework.

Now he stood outside of the Punishment Studyroom (aka Teacher Park’s old bedroom), silently cursing himself for breaking his year to date longest streak of completing assignments on time - though at the same time secretly resenting Caden for being so unforgiving.

“Those who do not complete their assignments in a timely manner will spend the duration of the lesson completing their work in the Punishment Studyroom,” she’d recited upon hearing his mild plea for leniency, without so much as batting an eye. “No exceptions.”  

He scoffed resentfully, still loitering in the hallway.  Sure he had been smugly amused when the same thing had happened to the maknae a few weeks earlier… but he was fairly certain that his bandmate had little regard toward the language homework, and would easily disregard an assignment on mere whim, whereas Top had legitimately been so swamped with work that he had unintentionally forgotten about it.

He was currently in talks with several companies about a few possible movie roles - nothing concrete yet, they were still in the first stages of production.  Still, he had spent most of the previous day in and out of meetings, barely making it to class in the first place.  He’d then rushed to the other side of town for dinner with several colleges before all but passing out as soon as he’d stepped through his apartment door.

He sighed heavily, allowing himself just a moment to wallow in the injustice of it all.  From down the hall he could hear Caden resuming the day’s lesson for the two remaining students (Seungri, who had appeared far too smug to see him go, and Youngbae, who had actually seemed a bit sorry for his hyung).  She had sent him off armed only with his unfinished homework, a stack of books, and a pile of (punishment) review work.

He’d even been required to leave his phone in the living room with Caden to ‘prevent any possible distraction’.

He sighed once more, steeling himself before finally turning the door’s handle.

He hadn’t even stepped fully through the doorway when he let out a small cry of alarm and surprise.

“Oh Jesus Christ, that scared the out of me,” he mumbled, clutching his chest with one hand as he gazed around the room in horror (well, that wasn’t exactly what he said - but the phrase he’d muttered in Korean had about that feeling behind it).

He vaguely registered the living room falling momentarily silent before the three remaining occupants burst into laughter at his expense (Seungri the loudest and most obnoxious of all).

Top hadn’t really known what to expect from the Punishment Studyroom - endless grammar and pronunciation charts maybe? - but it certainly wasn’t what he found.

Nearly every surface of the room (including the ceiling) was covered with one or more lifesize images of a very cross looking Teacher Park.  These were combined with countless smaller, identical images scattered across every possible surface available.  There was even a body pillow of a frowning Teacher Park pointing her finger accusingly, which was strewn purposefully across the bed.

Top finally managed to shake himself from his wide-eyed, gaping reverie - a solid minute before Seungri managed to control his laughter out in the living room, it may be noted.

He hesitated for another moment, still hovering just inside the doorway when he heard Caden call out encouragingly,

“Try not to be too scared.  Take this time to finish up your work and think of ways to redeem yourself for your mistakes!”

Top sighed dramatically at this, trying not to reveal any amusement at her teasing.

Finally, begrudgingly, he marched inside.  The maknae piped up to add some unnecessary comment to the situation, but fortunately for Top, he had chosen that particular moment to shut the bedroom door firmly (not slam - shut firmly), thus muffling said remark enough to miss it entirely.

His eyes swept the room just once more, slowly shaking his head.  He was almost impressed by the sheer volume of disapproving Teacher Parks, though the most prevalent thought that came to mind was - why?  Who in their right mind would think of doing this?

‘No one in her right mind,’ he realized, grinning smugly at his own internal joke.

Finally, resigned, he sank to the floor and proceeded to spread his classwork out over the small study desk which sat on the floor between the double bed and the small closet.

He didn’t waste any time getting to work, having literally nothing else to distract him from the dozens of stares from Teacher Park and his own thoughts.

Aside from the occasional struggle over a few grammar points (which he dutifully marked down to review with Caden at a later date), he was fairly confident in his comprehension.  He had to admit (somewhat begrudgingly) - daily lessons were resulting in notable improvement.  In his case, slightly more in Japanese than English, but overall improvements nonetheless.

In time, he was able to finish not only his previously incomplete English homework that had sent him into the Punishment Studyroom, but also the Japanese assignment that would be collected the following evening.

Upon completion, he sat smugly for a while, feeling fairly proud of himself for managing to finish all of his outside work before class had even ended.  He had nothing left to do but wait for Caden to come collect him once the lesson had been completed.

After sitting there twiddling his thumbs for a while, he began to grow rather bored.  He didn’t happen to wear a watch that day and he didn’t see any clocks in the Punishment Studyroom at all.  He even checked behind a few of the Teacher Park pictures just to make sure.

Top instinctively went to check the time on his phone, before remembering that it had been previously confiscated.

He let out a noise of minor annoyance at this realization.  Ah well.  He knew he had to wait for Caden to come collect him either way.

Even if it felt that he had already been locked away for some time.  Though, he would admit that he had always been terrible at judging how much time had passed without a clock.  Plus, language lessons almost always felt long to him.

He shook off his impatience, proceeding to poke around amongst the shelves, dresser, and closet to distract himself and kill time while he waited.  Unfortunately, he didn’t find much of interest.  

There were a few of those learning aids he’d been expecting in several of the dresser drawers, plus some spare bed sheets and a comforter in the closet.

Giving up on trying to uncover any means of entertainment, he plopped down on the bed.

He stretched his arms out comfortably, leaning back on the mattress until his hand came in contact with the Teacher Park body pillow.

He grabbed it, pulling it before him so that he may examine it properly.  She was glaring daggers at him, pointing accusingly in her typical sweater/skirt/tennis shoes ‘teacher outfit’.

The pillow obviously wasn’t quite lifesize, but as far as he was concerned it was close enough to be rather shudder-inducing.  He squeezed the pillow in a way that made her face seem to fold in half, chuckling to himself before returning it to the far side of the bed - carefully positioning Teacher Park so that she faced the wall.

Righting himself once again, Top glanced down at his completed classwork on the nearby desk with a yawn.

He was glad that he was blessedly through with the day’s schedules after class ended.  And on top of that, now that he’d completed his coursework he would have nothing pressing to worry about until the following morning.

He mused peacefully about what he should do with his somewhat unexpected spare time once he made it back to his own room.  Relax and get some sleep were definitely two items on his To Do list.  Between all of the meetings he had been hustled around to over the past few days, somehow it felt like he’d been doing nothing but running.

He bounced slightly on the mattress where he sat, yawning again.

Even this bed was starting to feel rather welcoming.

He sat for a moment, staring at nothing in particular, wondering if it had taken him even less time than he thought to finish his work.  He had been having less trouble with it than usual…

Either way, he was sure the bedroom door would open at any moment to release him on his way…

On his way to trudge upstairs to sleep...

He’d be happy if he made it to his bed.

Or even just to his living room.

…

….

…

Top had no idea how long it had been when he was abruptly awoken from a nap he hadn’t realized he was taking.  He blinked slowly, finding that he had somehow managed to lay down and promptly pass out on the studyroom bed without his own knowledge.

He remembered sitting on the edge of the bed, then darkness, then this strange shrill sound.

That had been what woke him.

He listened carefully for a moment - yep, there it was.

It sounded like it could be coming from a person in distress, but he wasn’t sure.  Now that he acknowledged it though, it did sound like it was coming steadily closer…

Just as this thought crossed his mind, the studyroom door burst open, causing his to briefly shoot up in surprise, only to be all but tackled back onto the bed by a blur of pinkish blonde which was currently shrieking.

“-yyyyyyyyyyy god!” Caden cried in English, sounding incredibly frazzled, frantically hugging him with zeal. “I’msosorryI’msosorryI’msosorry!!”

Top - still barely awake - found himself somewhat overwhelmed by this sudden outburst.  He instinctively wrapped a comforting arm around the girl, hoping to calm her even as she began fussing over him incessantly, still in English that was far too fast and jumbled for him to have any hope of understanding.

In the same instant that he realized that she was unlikely to be slowing down anytime soon, he also became aware of the somewhat compromising nature of their position.

“Caden…” he said calmly.  The contrast of his low, calm tone to her frazzled, panicky one was enough to stop her intense stream of words at last.

She glanced down at him curiously until he looked pointedly down at their intertwined limbs, their bodies all but horizontal with her practically on top of him.  She followed his gaze before returning her eyes to his face, which also happened to be quite close to her own.

He raised his eyebrows, prompting her face to redden slightly.  She hurriedly untangled herself from him, allowing Top to sit up, until they were seated a comfortable distance from one another on the edge of the bed.

Top had to work to suppress an amused grin as they sat in silence for a few moments.

After almost a full minute of staring wordlessly ahead, she looked over at him - studying him seriously for a moment before reaching over and slapping him lightly on one cheek.

“Who do you think you are calling me by just my name?” she demanded calmly as Top’s hand flew to his face in mild shock.

“I’m older,” he sputtered, throwing out the first excuse that came to mind as he attempted to regain his composure. “You said before that you weren’t the oldest among us, so I must be older!”

Caden pursed her lips, glaring down her nose at him disapprovingly.

“You think that matters?” she chided. “I’m still your teacher, aren’t I?”

“True, but the scenario felt intimate enough to drop such formalities,” he teased, blatantly attempting to ruffle her feathers over what had just happened.

This time she appeared unimpressed.

“Where did you even learn that line?” she demanded flatly. “You sound like a player.”

Top chuckled, momentarily defeated.  She sniffed haughtily, trying hard not to reveal any hint of amusement.

“Still, that was quite an entrance,” he pointed out after a moment. “What are you sorry about?”

Caden’s expression immediately fell as she suddenly remembered what had brought her careening into the room in the first place.  She offered him the most sorrowful and pathetic look she could muster, which startled Top to say the least.

“What’s that look for?” he inquired skeptically. “Did something bad happen?”

Caden at least had the good grace to appear embarrassed.

“I forgot you…” she said in a small voice.

“What was that?” he asked carefully, not sure that he’d heard her properly.  She appeared somewhat stricken at the prospect of explaining herself, but finally she took a deep breath and let it out.

“After you left and everything calmed down, the lesson became so mellow and productive, then Youngbae had to leave right after and Seungri stayed behind to ask a few questions and the next thing I knew I was shooing him out and it was so quiet and I didn’t even think twice,” she said all in a rush, looking everywhere but his face.

Top opened his mouth to find he was at a complete loss for words, so he closed it again.  Seeing this, Caden finally met his gaze, expression full of regret.

“I’m really really sorry that I forgot you,” she assured him apologetically with surprising sincerity that didn’t manage to stop him from feeling a twinge of annoyance at her wording.

“I’m just saying, I’m pretty memorable,” he muttered to himself with a slight grimace, looking away from her now.  Her look of contrition quickly turned to one mild scorn.

“Why didn’t you ever come out anyway?” she demanded with a tone of mild accusation. “I know you wouldn’t just sit here obediently for that long-”

“Just how long has it been?” Top snapped back.  Caden sputtered for a moment, unintentionally outing herself.

“That’s- that’s beside the point,” she announced, flustered. “So what were you-”

“Sleeping,” he interrupted flatly, gazing over at her sardonically. “I fell asleep waiting for you to come release me and you just left me here for - how long exactly?  Be honest.”

“Almost two hours,” she responded quietly, all repentant and apologetic once more.

“And you thought the best form of action was to try to blame me for your mistake?” he continued, feigning serious disappointment.

“Yes.  I was wrong.  I deeply apologize,” she replied ultra politely, bowing her head toward him before peaking over to gauge his anger.

He sighed heavily in an attempt to cover a chuckle.

“You’re just lucky that I didn’t happen to have any prior engagements this evening,” he chastised mildly.

“Yes sir, right you are,” Caden agreed in the most overzealous manner, head still bowed deeply.

“Let’s be sure this doesn’t happen again,” he chirped, barely managing to hide his impending grin.

“Of course, sir.  Never again, sir.  My sincerest apologies,” she somehow managed with a completely straight face, still frozen in position.

They sat in silence for a moment.

He gazed down at the back of her head with an evil gleam, finally allowing his long repressed grin loose.

“I could get used to this,” he announced casually. “I think this might be your best angle.”

Caden’s head snapped up so fast he was surprised she hadn’t hurt herself and she instantly lunged for him.  Fortunately for Top, he had somewhat expected a reaction like this one and had braced himself accordingly.

He was slammed back on the bed as Caden loomed over him.  Without a thought, she reared one hand back - gripping the front of his shirt with the other - nails bared as if preparing to claw out his eyes before she seemed to snap back to her senses.

Top lay there smirking at her, clearly incredibly proud of himself.

Caden peered down at him, pulse pumping, before sighing deeply - half in annoyance at what he’d said, half at herself for being so easily goaded.

“Hmmm, but it seems that you prefer this angle,” he mused, knowing he was utterly pushing his luck, smirk still firmly in place. “And right in front of Teacher Park.  How shameless…”

Caden’s raised hand twitched and Top had to actively stop his eyes from squeezing themselves protectively shut.

There was a brief pause that seemed to last an eternity.  Suddenly Caden dropped her clawed hand onto his chest, expression turning inexplicably pleasant.

Top felt his stomach drop as real fear gripped him in that moment.  Before he had a chance to formulate a response, Caden smiled sweetly.

“Do you think she’d mind?” Caden inquired brightly. “Let’s find out!”

In a flash, she’d grabbed the Teacher Park pillow and shoved it onto his face, all but smothering him.  He struggled, slightly at first, then harder when it became clear that she wasn’t giving up.

“Alright.  Alright!  I was wrong, but I don’t deserve death!” he cried, still somewhat muffled as he attempted to fight his way out from under the pillow.

“I beg to differ,” she muttered through gritted teeth, swatting at him as he managed to avoid suffocation.

“Okay, okay, okay!  I’m sorry!  I apologize!  I’ll never do it again, I was wrong!” he announced hastily, still fighting off death.

“What else?” Caden demanded, reverting to just smacking him with the pillow now.

When Top didn’t immediately respond, she raised the thing high over her head to bring the death blow.

“Wait!” he cried, attempting to protect his face with his arms. “I was thinking…  I’m sorry for provoking you by talking about the back of your head! … I like seeming from below just as much-”

With a final cry of frustration, Caden brought the body pillow whistling down smack onto his face and leaving it there.

She promptly crawled off of him for the second time that evening, returning to her seat at the edge of the bed, and crossing her arms with a huff.

“Is this your way of punishing me for forgetting about you?” she complained poutily.

“If it is, you do deserve it,” he replied cheerfully, removing the pillow and propping himself up on his elbow comfortably.

Caden stayed quiet for a moment before looking over at him thoughtfully.

“You’re the only only brave - or stupid - enough to talk to me this way,” she informed him, tilting her head slightly as she looked him over, appearing as one trying to solve some sort of puzzle.  “Even Seungri… none of the others even come close to making such blatantly suggestive comments the way you do.”

Top considered this for a moment.

“The way I see it, it’s all about context,” he announced brightly. “Have you been in bed with any of the other members?”

This caused Caden to roll her eyes so hard it looked like she might have hurt herself.

“You really never know when to quit,” she declared, shaking her head in apparent defeat.

‘So she finally figured out how to say it,’ Top thought vaguely, with a small smile, remembering Caden’s initial excitement at learning new phrases. ‘I’ll bet she was thrilled.’

“Anyway, the thing is - I don’t know if that’s entirely true…” she continued somewhat breezily. “Your answer I mean.  I kind of think the main reason you say things like that is because you tricked me into revealing my bias, and now you enjoy trying to use my fandom against me to get the upper hand in our teasing.”

“That sounds like something I might do,” Top admitted with a smile, sounding equally as casual.

Caden stared at him for a moment before sighing heavily.

“Which is fine,” she allowed, seeming just a bit put-upon. “Teasing is absolutely fine.  I’m all for teasing among friends and workmates.  It’s just…  I just need to make sure…”  She paused, appearing somewhat reluctant to complete the question.  Top waited, not wanted to spook her.  Finally, with a small but resigned sigh, she asked,

“That’s all it is right?  There’s no way you could actually be interested in acting on your teasing, right?”

Top gave her a surprised look which she promptly misread.

“There’s no need to look like that - I’m not suggesting that you’re secretly interested in dating me of anything,” she assured him only somewhat jokingly, continuing before he could even comment, “I’m only asking because… ugh… I hate to even admit this.  There was a time, especially in the beginning before I got used to you - or wait, before I got to know you - when your teasing did have the power to affect me quite easily…”

She paused, considering the situation briefly before glancing over at him with some embarrassment.

“Look - you have no idea how it is… meeting your favorite unexpectedly… and having them pretend to hit on you for fun…  Usually that kind of thing wouldn’t affect me at all!  I see through it in an instant - that’s why it doesn’t work for the other boys!  But when you’ve suddenly got someone unattainable shamelessly teasing you to your face, it’s different!  Jeez, I don’t know…”

“‘Shamelessly’,” Top muttered when she finally paused long enough for him to get a word in - not entirely sure whether he felt more amused by her ‘admission’ or affronted.  He tsked at her under his breath before he’d even realized that he’d done it.

Caden looked at him with a joking scoff.

“Are you tsking at me now?” she demanded, feigning sincerity. “What are you, an ahjumma?”

Surprised at being called out, he became momentarily flustered.

“No! I just - I didn’t… Because you…” he sputtered, before trailing off feebly.  She shot him an amused grin, apparently regaining her confidence through his loss of composure.

“Anyway, as I was trying to explain before I started babbling,” she continued with a small smile, “as much as I hate to admit it, I can be a little weak to your teasing - as you well know and unfortunately like to exploit.”

She paused to allow him a chance to argue, but he just eyed at her blankly as he waited for her to finish.  Caden sighed with a somewhat put-upon chuckle,

“-and because of that… especially in these awkward and unusual scenarios we somehow find ourselves in from time to time,” she explained, gesturing around at the bed and various Teacher Parks, “I just needed to double check that there isn’t anything… deeper.  Just spell it out for me.  You’re not interested in doing the thing you sometimes hint about are you?  In real life?”

“And what sort of hints have I been dropping exactly?” Top asked, feigning confusion with an entirely straight face.  Caden scoffed loudly.

“Hey, do you wanna die or something?” she demanded breezily, but Top was already grinning widely in acknowledgement.

“No, I’m sorry.  You’re right,” he apologized casually, chuckling in amusement. “I’ll admit that I purposely use your awkwardness toward me to my advantage.” Caden shot him a look, which he easily batted down with a smile. “Hey - I used the weapons at my disposal, just like you!  It’s not my fault you’re so quick.  And you’re not even fluent in Korean, jeez…  What choice do I have?”

Although it may not technically have been a compliment, she couldn’t help but appear a bit proud of herself at this comment.

“But you’re right,” he continued nonchalantly, “since we’re becoming closer as time goes on - as teacher and student - and because we’ve been physically closer tonight several times as man and woman-” Caden shot him a withering look that he easily ignored, “-I can see that we’ve gotten to a place where we might have to start becoming more transparent about these things.  So let’s clear the air - No, I do not have any plans to follow through with my teasing comments.  And that isn’t to say that you aren’t an attractive foreigner, or that you aren’t worthy of such interest-”

Again Caden rolled her eyes with notable intensity.

“-but as you said, our relationship is professional, and my interest in you is entirely friendly.”  He looked over at her, smiling brightly.

“If that ever changes, I’ll be sure to let you know,” he concluded, using an amusingly professional flight attendant sort of tone.

Caden shook her head with a laugh, but her response was sincere.

“I’m glad to hear it.  I’m happy we could clear that up,” she said with a grin. “Now I can deal with your strange y teasing much more easily.”

“I can’t decide if that’s a good thing,” he joked.

She sighed, leaning back on her hands, glancing over at him with mild remorse.

“I still feel quite bad for forgetting you in here,” she said thoughtfully.

“As you should,” he replied honestly.  She shot him an annoyed look, before continuing.

“Since it was all my fault, let’s come up with a good way for me to make it up to you.”

Without missing a beat, Top instantly reverted to his provocative teasing.

“Hmm, like a favor?” he asked, allowing the question to come out like a purr. “Do I get to pick?”

He spread his arms over the bed below them as if in silent indication, and finished off with a cheeky grin.

He expected her to laugh… or at least get mad at him.

Instead, after the slightest of pauses, she looked over at him from beneath her eyelashes, drawing her leg up onto the bed and turning her body toward him.

“If that’s what it will take to be forgiven,” she began with a silky tone and a mischievous grin, artfully leaning her face in closer. “Whatever you decide, I’ll have no choice but to make it happen.”

There was a distinct pause this time.

“Oh?” was all he could say as he attempted to overcome his surprise.

“Mmhmm,” Caden breathed, leaning in further before firmly headbutting him square in the forehead.

She jumped up with a victorious laugh - while Top held his aching skull - dancing around in gleeful amusement at her own trick.

“That’s what you get, punk!” she teased happily. “You thought you were the only one who could play like that?  Now you finally know how it feels!”

“I don’t recall ever assaulting you,” he managed somewhat sullenly. “I suddenly regret admitting to being insincere…”

“Shut up,” Caden ordered cheerfully, prancing over to the bedroom door. “Come on, I’ll treat you to an apology dinner.  I’ll even let you decide where we go.”

“Who says I don’t have plans?” Top griped, still rubbing his forehead while standing obediently at the same time.

“You did, loser,” Caden crooned happily, grinning as he shuffled over to her rather pathetically. “You were just saying earlier that I was lucky you didn’t have somewhere to be.”

“Hmm, I hardly remember now - it feels so long ago,” he said pointedly, looming over her.  She only grinned knowingly with a roll of her eyes.

“Oh come here then,” she sighed, still smiling as she gestured for him to bring his wound to her for inspection.

He did so, if somewhat apprehensively.  Caden took his face between her hands, looking him over for signs of bruising or redness before patting the spot lightly, promptly releasing him with a breezy,

“You’re fine- you’ll live.”

“Is that your professional opinion, Teacher?” he asked sarcastically.  Caden grinned, ignoring the question.

“Come on, let’s go before I decide you’re not worth apologizing to,” she pronounced, turning to flounce out of the room.

Top followed with a sigh and eyeroll of his own.

“As much fun as that was, let’s go back to normal starting tomorrow,” she pointed out jokingly. “No more time alone in the bedroom.  Just no more bedroom jokes in general probably…”  She paused, thinking for a moment before shooting him an accusatory look over her shoulder.

“In fact, let’s never speak of this.  I don’t want you mentioning any of this to the other members at all.  You can tell them I forgot you - that I deserve - but nothing else, got it?”

“Fine,” Top agreed easily. “You know how I enjoy holding things like this against you.”

Caden stopped short in the middle of the hallway, causing him to collide with her softly.  She turned dramatically, shooting him a glare so fierce it actually made him laugh out loud.

She sighed, clearly fed up with his nonsense.

“I’m seriously going to kill you,” she muttered with a frustrated chuckle, starting toward the living room once more.

“For some reason, I’m quite happy to hear that,” Top joked, notably reinvigorated by his small victory.

Caden only groaned, proceeding to the front room to collect their things before ushering him hurriedly out the door.

==============================================================

A/N

Heyyyyy guys!  Back at it again with the updating ^^  Look at me!  Don't pay attention to the fact that the next chapter is not yet completed so I don't have a time frame on that haHAha! *awkward smile*

Lol

I hope you enjoyed this chapter.  T.O.P in the house~ Ah, messing with Caden is such fun ^^

The next chapter should be BB member focused as well.  Then we'll sprinkle in some OC love on and off.

Let me know what you think!  I hope you enjoy!  Let me know your predictions below, if you have them ^^

Have a great day!