Let’s begin this story with a clear disclaimer that no, Hitomi doesn’t actually distrust Chaewon and Minjoo. Sure, she has her share of distrust to the both Kims, but it’s not to the point she would raise a hashtag Wonyoung so brazenly started last year, in context of half of IZ*ONE thought of the two are dating.

 

Hitomi still remembers how betrayed they are.

 

Those times aren’t considered difficult if it’s compared to that three months of total black out, but it was quite difficult for Hitomi. It was the start of IZ*ONE losing more and more of their nearly nonexistent brain cells, leaving Hitomi in a difficult position—torn between wanting to surrender herself to the crazy line, or stay alone in the responsible line all by herself with the despicable (yet flattering) title of “Last Functioning Braincell of IZ*ONE”. She can’t leave her members to go on without functioning brain cells, can she?

 

Of course, there are Eunbi and Chaeyeon as the ichiban unnies but really, they are as chaotic as the others. Hitomi even dares to dub them as one of the most chaotic, though WIZ*ONE always seems to like to dub the title to Yena and Yujin. While the former is still a fact until now, she’s not sure Chaotic really fits Yujin’s image now.

 

If anything, it seems like Yujin has switched place with Chaewon. Hitomi truly wonders if it’s also the effect of them dating. Or it's just Yenafication taking place.

 

Hitomi allows a little smile to play on her lips, letting out an amused chuckle. Indeed, her most favorite unnie has grown even lively ever since she chose to room with Yena, shortly after her disappointment of her inability to room with her younger girlfriend. It’s something to celebrate, but also something to dread—because that means that currently, dorm 2 is filled with nothing but chaotic individuals. It sounds so ominous Hitomi always finds herself shuddering should they are required to switch dormmates.

 

She shifts to look at the little clock on the corner of her laptop screen. It’s still barely midnight, which explains why the group chat is as lively as ever. Moreover, tomorrow is Saturday. The start of their weekends, but it’s unlike them to stay idle during weekends. She isn’t, though if it’s Yuri then it’s a different case entirely. “I’m going to break my own sleeping record!” she would always say every Friday night, her eyes ablaze and fist clenching, on the last minute of their last schedule of the day, and then it would always be welcomed with encouragements coming from Yena and Wonyoung. More often than not, Wonyoung would join in, though a date invitation coming from the older members proved successful in dissuading their youngest from executing a basic how to destroy your body.

 

Hitomi shifts her eyes back again to the center of the laptop screen, focusing her senses on listening to every word the person on the screen says through their lips. She unconsciously repeats it loudly before jotting it down on her notepad, her hand not holding a pen copying the person’s movements, but immediately she stopped as she realized how silly she looked doing it without any appropriate tools on her hand.

 

 

At this rate, Hitomi thinks that WIZ*ONE really should officially crown Eunbi as the leader of Suspenderz and not just put their leader as an honorary member. Half of her own Vlives were deleted, after all, and if it’s not enough for WIZ*ONE to acknowledge her as one of Suspenderz, does Hitomi really needs to remind them that Eunbi deadass always experienced all sort of accidents on each of her vlive?

 

 

Hitomi is joking, if you couldn’t tell. Kakaotalk doesn’t really have the feature of word banning, does it? A shame really, but then if it does she’s pretty sure the first thing that get word-banned is Sakura’s rapidly infecting “lmao”. Done by none other than Eunbi. Or herself. Depends who is faster than who.

 

It’s not because “LMAO” is an inappropriate word for anyone’s standard. Far from it. Eunbi didn’t bat an eye when Sakura introduced it in the world of Korean-typing. It’s a bit of a discord, but they make it do as time passes. They make it do too well. Until the word “LMAO” becomes annoying because they unconsciously spam it most of the time. To this day, only Hitomi and Eunbi who stand by their word on not joining the Spamz Line (which is everyone but them), but Hitomi has to admit the temptation is too great.

 

Sighing to herself at the still rapidly coming messages (which is another spam of “LMAO”, much to her and Eunbi’s chagrin) from the group, she turns off the screen, gently putting it down beside her laptop sitting on the portable desk.

 

Her mind wanders off to what Minjoo said earlier, about okonomiyaki. She made her promise to cook her one, not sometime, but tomorrow. That or she’ll scheme a kidnapping scenario to take her out on a seafood date. She’s not sure which is better.

 

Maybe she could persuade Minjoo into forgetting the okonomiyaki for a while through a series of distractions, but it’s very unlike Minjoo to get distracted when she has already set her eyes on something. Minjoo wouldn’t dare to resort to drastic measures, but Hitomi is pretty sure she won’t like it when it comes to that.

 

As if hearing her thoughts, her phone vibrates, this time not because of the chaotic and lively groupchat.

 

 

Hitomi thinks that the day went well.

 

Except the date didn’t, as it was unfortunately crashed by thirdwheelers that happened to be 10 other girls of their little band of chaos.

 

But at least Minjoo’s okonomiyaki was safe and sound and went inside Minjoo’s stomach as it was supposed to be.

 

Well, a small part of it.

 

“I don’t think it’s a disaster,” Minjoo blithely says, locking the door behind her as per Hitomi’s instruction and happily saunters over to sit at the edges of Hitomi’s bed. “I got my okonomiyaki and you got your seafood!”

 

“Except,” Hitomi squints her eyes at Minjoo, “that the girls raided half of my share, and only left you with a quarter of the original okonomiyaki.”

 

That is true, Minjoo nods, humming quietly to herself. But it’s not like she can devour the entire okonomiyaki by herself.

 

“That is true,” Minjoo begins quietly. “But it’s not new. I can still tell your okonomiyaki is pretty good.” She scoots back, pressing herself against the wall and eyes the slight pout forming on the younger girl’s expression. Minjoo can tell that she missed the point.

 

Minjoo clears . “What I mean is,” she starts, gently pulling at Hitomi’s short sleeve until the girl relents and climbs over to her position, “no matter what the amount, I can still feel it, Tomi,” Hitomi raises her chin to meet her eyes and Minjoo smiles, tapping Hitomi’s button nose.

 

“I can still feel your love,” Minjoo continues. She tucks an arm behind Hitomi’s smaller frame, pulling her closer until Hitomi has no choice but to melt to her embrace. “I’m okay for not eating much of it. What matters the most is your thoughtful act for cooking it for me. I don’t really care I didn’t eat too much of your godlike cooking as long as I know that you cooked it for me.”

 

“Only for you,” Hitomi shyly mumbles out, hiding her face on the crook of the taller girl’s neck. It’s not rare for Minjoo to tell her these heart-fluttering things whenever they are alone, or whenever Hitomi is too consumed with the thought of not enough and not even Nako’s or Chaeyeon’s comfort could soothe her. Yet, Hitomi can’t help but feel how special it is whenever it’s Minjoo who says all of those things.

 

It feels different. Not because Hitomi knows it’s genuine,

 

But because Minjoo is special in her own way.

 

“I’ll cook you something next time,” Minjoo promises. “I’ll ask Chaeyeon unnie or Eunbi unnie to teach me! Maybe Kkura-unnie too, and I’ll be sure to make Hyewon unnie my taster!”

 

“Please,” Hitomi giggles, shaking her head, “don’t destroy our foodie unnie’s tastebud.”

 

Minjoo feigns a pained gasp. She places one palm over her heart. “How can you tell me that? All I want is a little bit of trust on my cooking skill, Hii-chan—“

 

Hitomi hugs her tighter. It doesn’t effectively cut off Minjoo’s tantrum, so Hitomi resorts to drastic measure instead.

 

She pulls Minjoo by the front of her shirt and crashes their lips together. She feels Minjoo’s surprise, but it’s short-lived as the older girl’s eyes flutter close and starts to move her lips against her own, tilting her head to the side to deepen the kiss.

 

Hitomi melts.

 

They break the kiss once their lungs burn in extortion, their whole face flushing red resembling ripe tomatoes.

 

“That’s,” Minjoo enunciates between her labored breath, “cheating.”

 

“There is no rule about it,” Hitomi sings, crawling away to tuck herself under her blanket. Minjoo follows her quietly, also tucking herself underneath Hitomi’s blanket. Well, until she realizes she has yet to turn off the lights and proceeds to do so, bumping at everything on her way back.

 

“Still, that’s cheating in my rulebook,” Minjoo reasons again, arms quickly snaking around Hitomi’s slender waist, sighing when Hitomi scoots back to press her back against her front. She inhales on Hitomi’s hair, humming at the pleasant smell of the younger girl’s shampoo.

 

“You never let me took a peek, how am I supposed to know about it?” Hitomi easily argues, smirking when she hears Minjoo grumbles against her shoulder. “I take it it’s a point for me?”

 

Minjoo sighs. “Point for you. Good night, Tomi.”

 

Hitomi doesn’t immediately replies, preferring to take Minjoo’s hand up to her lips, planting a sweet kiss there before whispering to the darkness.

 

“Good night, Minjoo.”