“Hey babe.”

Taeyong’s lips curled up into a small smile as he heard her voice. “Hi,” he spoke, his voice was raspy since he had just woken up from a nightlong sleep.

“Still jet lagged?” Chungha asked him with a small chuckle, knowing he had just gotten back from LA.

“Yeah,” he responded and laid back on his bed, turning to the alarm clock on his bedside table. 17:47.

“There’s a party tonight,” he then commented. “Everyone from SM are invited.”

“That sounds fun,” she responded cheerfully, making another smile appear on his face.

“Yeah,” he trailed off. “I don’t think I’ll go though.”

“Why?” her tone turned into a concerning one but Taeyong kept his smile on his face.

“Because I’d rather see you tonight.”

Chungha snorted at his flirty tone and he could sense the eye roll from the other line before hearing her small giggle.

“I wish I could meet you tonight, but you know I’m busy preparing for my comeback. Besides, it’s not good if someone catches us together,” she reminded him and he turned to the left, averting his eyes to the white curtains that hung in front of the window.

“Right,” he mumbled, staring blankly at the curtains. “Is it better?” he then asked, implying on the amount of hate she had gotten since their dating scandal.

A small sigh was heard from the phone, “yeah,” she assured him. “A video of you and Seulgi at KTMF went viral. People were saying that you guys seemed to be on good terms after all and they went more easy on the whole ‘Taeyong is a cheater’ controversy. Which means I’ve been getting less death threats and comments stating that I am an easy .”

Taeyong remained silent, remembering that they stood beside each other and had glanced at the other one occasionally to make it seem like they were friends. They had to be professional during this situation after all.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I should’ve been more careful from the start.”

“You don’t have to apologize, Yong.”

Taeyong ran his fingers through his hair and felt that damn lump form in his throat again. He had been fighting it back since that night he argued with Seulgi. Now it suddenly felt harder to hold it in and his eyes would soon get watery. The tears were threatening to fall any minute now.

“But it’s my fault,” he claimed. “Everything is my fault. It’s my fault that I got caught outside your house. It’s my fault you’re receiving hate from my fans. It’s my fault for even getting involved in a fake dating scandal when I already had feelings for you.”

“Yong,” she pleaded.

“So yes I think I need to apologize,” he stated, feeling his cheek getting wet.

That stupid dating scandal. He did it all for nothing. Who in the right mind would even get involved in a dating scandal with a person they hated? Especially if it didn’t benefit themself? Sure, it would help the other girls to get recognition but- Still, why did he even agree to it? He could’ve convinced Lee Soo Man to choose Taeil instead.

The dating scandal made Seulgi feel worse. It made him feel guilty and sorry. The amount of hate that surfaced during the beginning was almost terrifying. Finally, after a while it all toned down and when he thought everything was going well, it just went downhill. He was caught in a ‘cheating scandal’. Another dating scandal. Fans begged him to leave NCT. They sent hate and death threats to Chungha. The misunderstanding between him and Seulgi...

Seulgi. Why did he even care about her in the first place? Why couldn’t he just have kept the hatred he once had for her? He could’ve just kept being professional and not let his or her emotions get in the way. That way everything would be easier, wouldn’t it? He just had to befriend her, no?

It had only been a few days since their fight and he had tried to forget about it. Wasn’t so easy though, since Youngho had bombed him with questions and in the end, he had to tell him every single detail. Every single word that was said.

“Do you want me to come over?” he heard Chungha ask him, suddenly not caring about her schedule or people catching her in public.

“Can you?” he asked, wiping away the other tear that fell from his eye. He hadn’t cried in years.

“I can make it work. I’ll be extra careful,” she ensured and he closed his eyes, longing for her embrace.

“Yes, please.”

———————————

Youngho exhaled sharply before moving his feet across the dance floor. Drunk, sober, tipsy… All kinds of states were shown on the dance floor and he tried his best not to bump into anyone as he carried the two full cups in his hands.

People didn’t seem to notice him as he took one step after the other. Of course they woul