***

Seulgi could only seem to focus on the latter through the mirror than her own moving self when they carried on with their practices, her eyes tracing the curves of Irene. 

The last time when it was just the two of them practicing for anything, it was as far back as their training days before the rest of the girls came along. 

“Alright, that’s all for today!”

A voice broke her thoughts and they bowed to their instructors with heavy breaths. 

“This chemistry between you two never fails to amaze me.” 

They blushed simultaneously as they bowed their thanks once again before they were left alone in the dimmed but spacious dance studio. 

“Let’s keep practicing, yeah?”

Seulgi could only agree, not just because she knew that time was tight for this special stage that they had to prepare for in the midst of their comeback, but also because she would do anything just to spend more alone time with Irene. 

By the time they actually stopped for a proper rest, Irene was already looking completely drained.

The seriousness and dedication Irene put in during practices in order to showcase a perfect performance were captivating, and those were traits that Seulgi admired of her leader. 

Laying on her side unlike Irene who laid on her back, Seulgi propped an arm beneath her chin as she watched Irene’s heavy breath decelerated to normality. 

Gently, she reached out to brush away the small strands of Irene’s new bangs, dapping the beads of perspiration away with the sleeves of her plaid shirt. 

“You know,”

Irene casually started the conversation with her naturally calming voice.

“There was this comment with 1,900 upvotes, asking me to get rid of these bangs.”

Seulgi frowned when Irene frowned too. With her eyes full of concern, Irene looked seriously at Seulgi.

“Should I never let them down anymore?” 

Seulgi began to play with the bangs that she had just tucked away, an action that Irene noticed her doing a lot these days. 

“For me, you are cute either ways.” 

“Are you teasing me right now?”

Despite the light punch she gave Seulgi, Irene still giggled at the respond and scooped a little closer. 

“Okay, fine. Do you want a truthful answer?” 

“Yes.”

Their faces were merely inches apart and both could feel the heat emitting from themselves. 

“I like it better when you don’t have these bangs.”

Irene couldn’t deny that her heart did dropped a little, because Seulgi’s words matter a lot to her. 

“Because when you have no bangs, I can do this.”

Seulgi rested her free hand on Irene’s cheek, leaning in slowly to press her lips against the forehead. 

Irene could feel herself blushing hard at the warmth spreading across her face at the kiss Seulgi just gave her, mind paralysed, unsure of how she should react. 

Pressing their foreheads together while looking into Irene’s eyes, Seulgi wore a playful grin. 

“You like the kiss so much you can’t even speak now?”

“Shut-Shut up, Seulgi!”

Irene’s lips thinned into a line as she tried hard not to smile at the heart-fluttering gesture that she indeed enjoyed, though failed miserably at Seulgi’s comeback. 

“You can kiss me on the lips if you want me to shut up.” 

Their bodies were tangled in cuddles as loud laughter resounded through the dance studio with Irene dodging Seulgi’s attempts to get a kiss on the lips and they didn’t stop until Irene was out of breath from all the laughs she got from Seulgi’s tickles. 

“Doesn’t this remind you of our training days?”

Irene hummed a quiet yes, letting herself basked in the comfort of Seulgi’s. 

“When we were filming for Be Natural, you were still a cub.”

Irene nuzzled their noses and Seulgi loved that.

“Now my cub is a fully grown bear.” 

“This bear is still yours, though.” 

They mirrored the smile on each other’s faces, sharing a moment of silence before Seulgi spoke again. 

“Unnie, do you know what’s my dream?”

Irene pulled away, making a face at the latter.

“Don’t try to pull a IDOT scene on me right now, especially one that you did with someone else.” 

“You are so cute.” She earned herself a glare but she laughed anyways. “No, really, do you know what’s my dream?” 

“Collaboration with Beyonce?” 

“That isn’t wrong but I have a bigger dream that I hope would last for as long as it can be.” 

Letting Seulgi play with her fingers, Irene thought for a little longer, a little harder. 

“To always be on the stage?”

“My dream is to always be on stage, with you.” 

Tickling sensation rippled through Irene on the inside, butterflies in her stomach going wild. 

“I can be on the biggest stage and still feel empty without you, I can be on the smallest stage beside you and feel completed.”

Seulgi kissed their laced fingers.

“I hope it’s not too greedy of me to hope for us to be together regardless of what we do, forever.” 

When Irene said nothing, just closing the little gap between themselves and sealed Seulgi’s sincere smile with a kiss, Seulgi knew that the "greedy" dream was no longer just hers, but theirs. 

***

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I hope it's not too greedy of me to hope for OT5 to always be together. 💖💛💙💚💜

PS. #RedFlavour1stWin and SeulRene celebratory selfies make my heart so happy..!! ❤️🙌🏻