a/n: the dresses are based on the following images: Jihoon | Minghao | Junhui 

Jihoon huffs, arms crossed over her chest as Mingyu coos at her for the third time.

“I am not cute!” she huffs, almost stomping her foot.

“Noona, your hair now has pink streaks, I don't think you can talk,” Mingyu grins.

Jihoon sulks. “Why did I listen to you?” she turns to ask Junhui for the second time.

“Because it’s cuteeeee,” Mingyu coos, eyes twinkling.

Jihoon looks so ready to bite his head off, Seungcheol quickly reaches over to put a hand on her head, pulling her back just enough that she can’t reach Mingyu.

“Okay, calm down there, let's not kill Mingyu before he has his first kiss.”

Junhui turns to Mingyu in surprise, a smirk blooming on her face. “You haven't had your first kiss yet?” Junhui asks. Mingyu realises he should be just as scared of Junhui-noona as Jihoon-noona.

So he whines to Seungcheol instead. “Hyuuuuung, why'd you have to go and say that?”

Seungcheol raises an eyebrow at him. “Because I just saved your from getting beat by Jihoon. Again.”

The first time Jihoon met Mingyu, she gave him a blood nose. To be fair, Mingyu had called her little.

Mingyu had turned up to their soccer training, after an invitation from Seungcheol in their maths tutoring class in tenth grade. He had been surprised to see a brunette with blonde streaks in her hair standing amongst all the boys. Seungcheol had introduced her as Jihoon, and Mingyu had asked if she was his girlfriend. Jihoon had scoffed, Seungcheol had explained Jihoon was their goalkeeper, and Mingyu had replied with the fateful words:

“But hyung… she’s so… little!”

And so, Jihoon responded by throwing the soccer ball under her arm at his face.

Ever since, Mingyu has always been a little afraid of the short girl who always seemed to be by Seungcheol’s side. Like right now, she’s laughing hysterically next to him, like she takes pleasure in his fear.

So he takes the best revenge he can.

“Well you two took each other's first kiss!” he yells, pointing at the two of them.

And that shuts them up.

Junhui looks very amused at all the new information she's learning, especially taking in the two bright red faces of Seungcheol and Jihoon.

“It was an accident,” Jihoon mutters defensively. “Truth or dare in our final year of high school. I got dared to kiss his cheek, but the idiot turned to asked me something at the last second,”

“Accident,” Junhui echoes, glancing at Seungcheol, and smirking. “Suuuuuure.”

Jihoon is scowling. “The point of coming here today,” she grits out, “was to make sure you guys know the dress code for tonight,”

“Tonight?” Mingyu asks.

“The Spring Street Ball? It’s tonight,” Jihoon says. Mingyu’s mouth falls open and Jihoon sighs.

The Spring Street Ball was a fancy dinner for all the people who worked on the shopping strip on Spring Street. Jihoon worked part time at one of the cafes owed by a couple named Jisoo and Jeonghan, along with Junhui, and another girl called Minghao. Mingyu had laughed when he heard and said that Minghao must feel out of place to be the only one who didn’t have a name starting with J. Jihoon had been incredibly unimpressed and Junhui had rolled her eyes.

Seungcheol and Mingyu worked at the local sports store part time, a few stores down. Sometimes Jihoon could be seen waiting outside the store for Seungcheol to finish, so he could give her a ride home, even though it was within walking distance of their houses. (Once, Jihoon had walked home instead of waiting, and Seungcheol had thrown such a fit about safety and how it’s dangerous for her to walk alone at night, Jihoon had agreed not to do it again, simply because she “didn’t want to see Seungcheol more agitated than her mother”.)

“I thought they said there’s no theme,” Seungcheol says while Mingyu still seems to be grappling with the information that the ball is tonight.

Jihoon sighs. “Officially, there isn’t, but supposedly all the owners agreed that they’d do some ‘black and white’ thing - boys in black, girls in white.”

“What if I have a suit with a white shirt?” Seungcheol asks.

Jihoon shrugs. “Don’t know. Figure it out yourself, that’s what I was told. Just wanted to make sure you guys knew. We’re going to go get ready now.”

“It’s like.... three,” Mingyu states. The ball isn’t for another four hours.

Junhui smirks. “We’re girls. Don’t you know we have secret meetings while we get ready, hours beforehand?”

And with that, she puts her arm around Jihoon’s shoulder and steers her down the pathway again. Jihoon waves.

“What kind of meetings?!” Mingyu calls after them. Seungcheol hits him over the back of the head.

“Hey, Cheol. Have you seen Mingyu?”

Seungcheol turns around to answer Jihoon and takes such a sharp intake of breath, he almost feels dizzy.

Jihoon is dressed in a white dress, like everyone else, but why does she look so beautiful? (He smacks himself mentally.) It's short, only reaching mid-thigh, and the sleeves are long, like all those oversized sweaters she always wears. There’s material in a ‘x’ shape across her clavicles and she’s wearing a flower crown of little white flowers in her hair, a small sparkly silver purse in her hand that’s resting on his arm.

“Seungcheol?” she blinks at him and he thinks she’s so damn beautiful he could kiss her.

Where did that thought come from?!

“I, uh, what, sorry?” he splutters. She raises an eyebrow at him and that’s more like the Jihoon he knows, but gosh, he wonders what make-up she’s wearing, because she looks like a doll.

He hasn’t had enough alcohol to feel this dizzy.

“Mingyu, have you seen him? Didn’t he come with you?” she asks. He sees Minghao and Junhui appear behind her, Junhui in a short, almost daring white dress with thin straps, and Minghao in a dress with frills at the bottom and a pretty bow at her chest.

“No, he, uh, went home first,” he says, finally ceasing his gawking to look over her head to see if he can spot their giant friend. If Mingyu was here, Seungcheol would be able to spot his head towering over everyone else.

“Hey, I know I’m short, but you don’t have to remind me,” she mutters, shoving at his shoulder and he grins at her, finally noticing the small silver heels on her feet. Seungcheol is about to answer when the someone starts talking into the microphone, saying they’re going to start the speeches so that they can get the party started.

Seungcheol grins as he leans over to speak in her ear. “So long as you don’t step on me with those heels, we’re good,”

Jihoon shoves at his shoulder before turning her attention to the stage. Seungcheol gestures for Minghao and Junhui to go in front of him too - since he’s the guy and taller, though only by a little bit with their high heels.

Minghao beams brightly and Junhui gives him a smirk that he doesn’t understand, but they move to stand in front of him and Seungcheol stands behind the three of them, like some sort of bodyguard. He doesn’t mind though, just fixes a stray strand of Jihoon’s soft hair and looks to the stage when she turns to look at him.

After the speeches, the girls all go to the bathroom and Seungcheol stays to watch the table and to wait for Mingyu, because their friend is late, or lost, or both. Seungcheol sighs.

On the way back to their table, Minghao is giggling and spinning and twirling, making the material of her dress swish out.

“Really, ah, the dress,” she struggles for the words and Jihoon and Junhui wait patiently. “It’s so light,” she eventually says, giggling as she twirls, the skirt of her dress spinning out into a lovely circle. Junhui smiles warmly, and Jihoon beams.

“It really is flowy,” she says. “It really suits you.”

“Does it?” Minghao giggles as she twirls again, but Jihoon doesn’t even have time to cry out a warning, before Minghao crashes into someone and almost falls over, if not for large warm hands grabbing her arms to steady her.

“Whoa, careful there, you - ” and then he stops.

Minghao goes red and hastily pulls away to brush her hair from her face and bow in apology.

“Hao, are you okay?” Junhui asks immediately, grabbing her arm, steadying her.

“I, uhm,” Minghao blinks hurriedly. She nods, mumbles something to Junhui in Mandarin and then Junhui is pulling her away, the two of them disappearing into the crowd.

Jihoon stares after them both, barely comprehending what just happened, but then she turns to the guy.

“Hey, doofus, nice way to make an entry,” she says as she punches his arm.

“Ow, noona!” Mingyu protests, rubbing his arm and pouting.

“You’re late, you deserve that.”

“Noona, who was that?”

Jihoon tilts her head and stares at him. “Who?” she asks, because Mingyu has met Junhui. “You mean Minghao?”

Mingyu’s eyes are suddenly shining as he looks into the crowd where the two girls had disappeared. Jihoon recognises that look immediately.

“Oh, hell no,” she says as she steps on his foot, hard. She was kind enough to not use the heel part.

Mingyu yowls and gives her the kicked puppy look, but it’s been four years. Jihoon is immune.

“Noonaaaaaa,” he whines.

“No, Kim Mingyu. I know that look, and don’t you dare,”

“Noona, please, she’s so pretty, just let me talk to her,” Mingyu says, and Jihoon has her arms crossed over her chest and is glaring up at Mingyu from her short height.

“No, absolutely not.”

“Noona, come onnnnn, she’s so cute, I just want to talk to her - ”

“Just talk to her? Kim Mingyu, you will break her heart, and if you so much as go near her, I will roast you for dinner and serve you in slices,”

“Please don’t,” Seungcheol says, appearing behind Mingyu, “I don’t want to eat Mingyu, even if he’s roasted and in slices,”

Mingyu gapes at him while Jihoon snickers. “You guys are both crazy, no wonder you match,” he mutters. Jihoon beams innocently, like the flowers on her head, and Mingyu mutters curses under his breath.

Junhui appears behind Jihoon a moment later, leaning over to whisper in her ear before Minghao appears behind her. Minghao looks sheepish, both hands clasping Junhui’s arm, eyes never lifting to look a