The night is cold, like the world just enjoys seeing Miran suffer. She wonders what she did in her past life for this.

Sighing, Miran trudges forward two steps, out of the warmth of the building, and falls against the wall. She sighs again as she slides down, almost falling from crossing her legs oddly. Her backpack falls to the ground beside her, deflating as the air slips through the zippers.

For a while, she stays there, shivering, the only light a streetlamp that attracts bugs. The background music to this oh so depressing scene is a low symphony of passing cars and crickets chirping, with the occasional staccato of people talking and laughing.

Part of her is convinced that they’re mocking her, as if they know her.

Because here she is, former straight-A student who hadn’t had the money to pay rent and whose parents (who have been together since five years before she was born) are splitting. Getting a divorce. After more than two decades! Here she is, slumped against the wall of her old apartment building with a bag of belongings and a box of stuff. Here she is, and she must look pathetic.

Maybe two minutes has passed before she comes to her senses and realizes that she needs a place to stay for the night.

It’s too late to bother one of her friends… the bath house? People always stay there in dramas… which probably isn’t the best point of reference. Can she Google this? Google would probably judge her – as if Google can think for itself. She scoffs at herself and deflates at her own stupidity when a voice catches her attention, coming closer and closer to where she’s sitting.

“You’re totally screwed, Yeol.”

“Hey, I know.”

“What are you going to do?”

Wait, those voices sound familiar. She turns to hide her face.

Oh God, if it’s someone from her university she’ll die.

“I don’t know, Baek, what do you want me to do?”

Oh. She’s dead. Someone please kill her.

“I don’t know, run away? Get like a fake girlfriend or something. Your parents –“

“Miran?”

Kill her now.

Miran slowly turns to face Park Chanyeol and his best friend, Byun Baekhyun. Resident pranksters of their university, and very well known for that fact (especially among the teachers). “Hey,” she forces a smile.

“What are you doing here?” Chanyeol asks, brow furrowing in confusion.

If she wasn’t so panicked, she would’ve thought it was cute. Maybe. Just saying.

“Just, uh, thinking.” She looks away from Chanyeol only to see Baekhyun staring at her. “What?”

“Why are you out here this late at night with a backpack and a box? Are you moving?” She can’t tell if Baekhyun is serious or if he’s teasing because hello, box of stuff. “Do you need a place to stay for the night?” Right on target. It almost physically hurts.

She turns a very unflattering shade of red and ducks her head to hide.

“Baekhyun,” Chanyeol scolds, but he’s also a bit worried. “If you need a place to stay, you can crash with us.”

“Hey, just like that?” Baekhyun pouts, but Chanyeol shoots him a look and he crosses his arms and looks to the side.

“It’s no problem, one of our roommates is out on an exchange program, so we have an open room,” Chanyeol offers.

Miran hesitates. On one hand, she gets a place to stay the night. On the other, this is coming from an almost complete stranger (who is male, might she add). “Just like that?”

“It’s not like we can just leave you here on the street. And we have the room.”

“Wait,” Baekhyun interrupts. “Then will you come if you can o something for us in return?”

Miran nods hesitantly. “I think so?”

Baekhyun asks, “Do you know Kim Hyemi?”

“Yeah, she’s in my major.”

“She’s been going after Chanyeol,” Baekhyun starts, “and she’s been really annoying. But his parents like her so they’re trying to get him to go out with her, right? So their conditions are to date her, find a real girlfriend that they approve of, or be almost disowned.”

Miran’s eyes widen. “What kind of parents would disown their child for not dating someone?”

Chanyeol sighs. “It’s not that serious. They’ll just be really upset for a while and probably ignore me for a while unless it’s something really important. They’re just really childish like that.”

“So you’re asking me to be a fake girlfriend?” Miran’s actually considering it.

“Only on campus,” Baekhyun clarifies. “And only until she gives up.”

“And in return I can stay at your place until I find one of my own?”

“Yep.” Baekhyun grins. “What do you say?”

“I’ll do it.”

Chanyeol looks at her in surprise.

“On one condition,” Miran says. “Give me my own room with a lock and the key.”

“Done,” Baekhyun promises.

---

It hasn't been an hour and Miran is already starting to regret her decision. They had just gotten to the dorm after stopping by a corner store to get food for Baekhyun.

It turns out that they live in a pretty big condo in a high-end complex. There’s more than enough room for the four of them, and Miran is struck by how fancy everything is.

"This is where you live?" she asks in awe.

"Yeah, Yeol and I dorm here with Kyungsoo. You can take the last room on the left, Kyungsoo's beside you, I'm opposite." Baekhyun tells her, opening a pack of ramen.

Miran nods absently, looking down the corridor. "Thanks."

"Well I don't know who's doing the bigger favor here." Chanyeol interrupts, coming out of his room. "But I think it's you. Hungry?"

Miran considers this and replies hesitantly, "A bit."

"Well I'm starving. Is Kyungsoo in?" Chanyeol asks, looking to Baekhyun for an answer. Baekhyun just shrugs and turns back to the pot.

Chanyeol takes a breath and turns to look at Kyungsoo's room. "Kyungsoo? Kyungsoo-ah!"

"What do you want?" a very pissed voice yells back.

"Food!"

"Make it yourself!"

"But--!"

"Hey hyung!"

"Jongin?"

"Jongin!"

Miran is lost in the flow of the conversation, standing in the living room. Making sure to be quiet, she starts going to her room to leave them to shout to each other in peace.

It's slow going and, because this night has just been a party, Kyungsoo’s door opens just as she passes it.

"Cha-aanyeol." Kyungsoo from the music department falters in his steps. "Miran?"

"Hey Kyungsoo," she replies, just as surprised.

"What are you doing here?"

"Staying the night?" Miran offers. She barely stops herself from adding an “and you?"

"Why?"

"She's my guest," Chanyeol appears, armed with a smile and a packet of MSG. "I told her she could stay in Sehun's room."

Kyungsoo is silent, clearly lost, before giving up with a shrug. "What food do you want?"

"Kimchi spaghetti!" Chanyeol says, eyes bright like a puppy's.

"Kimchi spaghetti?" calls a voice from inside. He appears behind Kyungsoo, only half dressed. "Who's this?"

Miran bows, cheeks tinted red. "I'm Miran."

"Jongin," he replies cheerfully. "Kyungsoo's friend.”

"It's nice to meet you Jongin."

"Go put on a shirt," Kyungsoo sighs.

Jongin complies obediently. "Yeah, nice to meet you too!" he says, disappearing behind the half closed door.

"Um, I’m just going to go to sleep or something then," Miran says, fidgeting in her spot.

"Weren't you hungry though?" Chanyeol asks.

"You can get settled in first," Kyungsoo tells her. "I'll make kimchi spaghetti for you guys,"

“Thank you,” Miran bows her head respectfully.

Kyungsoo returns the gesture and walks out, Jongin rushing to catch up with him and Chanyeol yelling to Baekhyun.

It hasn't been two hours, but Miran's sure that she could get used to this.

---

The next morning finds Miran waking to the smell of food - she's too sleepy to place it though. Everyone's already seated at the table when she walks out to the dining room (unless Jongin had stayed the night, as they had stayed up pretty late) and they welcome her as warmly as lethargy gets.

"Morning," she mumbles back, still a bit awkward with their whole arrangement (her door was locked the whole night, and she tossed and the strange bed in the foreign room until three in the morning. It didn’t make for a very pleasant awakening).

Kyungsoo slides a plate of food over to a place at the table. "You can eat this."

"Oh," she says, taking a seat. "Thanks."

Kyungsoo gives her a smile of acknowledgment before putting the dirty pans in the sink. "I'm going to go wake Jongin. Clean up after yourselves and don't be late for school."

“We won’t,” Baekhyun and Chanyeol chorus.

Baekhyun’s scrolling down something on his phone and Chanyeol’s not fully awake yet either.

“Chanyeol?” Miran says after a moment. “What are we doing about the whole dating thing?”

Chanyeol blinks. “Hm? Oh. That’ll just be at school. Have you ever dated before?”

“Only once.”

“In high school? It’s pretty much the same though. I’ll be with you in between classes if our schedules match up.” Chanyeol shrugs.

“You guys have to go on dates though,” Baekhyun comments. “Oh, and be obvious, but also subtle at the same time. Can you do that?”

“That’s a contradiction, Baek.”

Miran shrugs. “So basically fake it. I think we can do it.”

Baekhyun pouts. “Fine. Just hang out like you would with a friend, but like hold hands then. It won’t be my fault if you aren’t convincing.”

“It’ll be fine, Baek,” Chanyeol comforts him.

They go to school together, Chanyeol driving and Miran sitting shotgun. Their arrival causes a little stir among the students, some of whom Miran recognizes, most unfamiliar. It makes her a bit self-conscious, and she steps closer to Chanyeol and Baekhyun.

“It’s okay. Where’s your first class?” Chanyeol leans down to whisper in her ear.

“I have history in the social sciences building.” Miran replies. “You?”

“Math,” Chanyeol pulls a face, making Miran smile. “It’s physically painful to have math first thing in the morning.”

“It’s nine-thirty,” Miran laughs. “We can go get coffee after class if you’re free then.”

“Yeah, sounds good,” Chanyeol agrees. “I’ll come by after my class ends.”

“See you later then,” Miran stops at the doorway to watch him go.

Chanyeol waves back, then he’s too far away and a body of students comes between them.

“So, Chanyeol, huh.” Miran’s friend nudges her inside the classroom with a raised brow. “Watch out for that Hyemi girl, you know how she likes him.”

“Hey, it’s not like you don’t have that Joonmyun guy,” Miran replies. She doesn’t know what to say about Hyemi. It’s still a bit weird to have Chanyeol described as her boyfriend anyway, considering the only feelings she has for him are platonic and developed more or less overnight.

---

One week into their fake relationship, Chanyeol asks why.

“Why didn’t you just call your parents to stay with them?”

Miran looks up from her laptop to see him staring at her curiously. They’re sitting across from each other in the living room, each on their own laptops. “My parents called me earlier in the week to tell me that they were getting a divorce,” she says. It’s just one sentence, laid out in the open. She doesn’t sound very affected.

“Oh. I’m sorry,” Chanyeol replies, voice soft.

“What, it’s not like they’re dead,” Miran says, shrugging. That’s the end of their conversation.

That night, she falls asleep holding a picture of her family, taken not too long ago, and they’re all smiling and happy. She has her jacket in her other hand, bunched up. It doesn’t smell like her home anymore, it doesn’t smell like anything. She’s gotten used to living here.

---

“Chanyeol.”

Hyemi is standing by their table in the library.

Chanyeol and Miran pause in their conversation, looking at her in surprise. “Hyemi.”

“Chanyeol, can I talk to you?”

This is the first time she’s confronted them since they started “dating.” Miran looks at Chanyeol, who only stares back.

Miran sighs and says, “You can talk to both of us.” Their smiles have left.

Hyemi is subdued, sitting down at their square table. “Thank you.”

“Yeah,” Miran smiles to reassure her. “What’s up?”

“I just want to say that you two look cute together,” Hyemi says. “And that, if you’re serious, I’ll give up on Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol looks at Hyemi in shock. “Really?”

She nods once, slowly.

“Why?” Miran can’t stop it. “Not that I’m complaining, but this is really sudden.”

“I,” Hyemi says that and trails off. “I don’t know, I just won’t go after someone else’s guy, especially if I don’t have a chance.”

Chanyeol and Miran have to stop themselves from smiling at each other.

“Hyemi,” Chanyeol says. “Thank you.”

Hyemi excuses herself politely, backing away (almost into a bookshelf, until they stop her) until she thinks she’s out of their sight. Then she turns and hurries off.

“That was odd,” Miran says after a moment. “But congrats. Baek’s idea actually worked.”

“Surprisingly,” Chanyeol chuckles. “But thankfully.”

“She seems so sweet though,” Miran sighs. “Oh, and one of my friends has an extra room I can stay in for a while. She says to give her a day or two, then I can move in.”

“Oh, that’s good,” Chanyeol comments.

“Looks like everything is just falling into place.”

“Yeah.”

“… I don’t know why, but I’m kind of sad.”

---

“But Chanyeol,” Miran whines, dragging out his name.

He forces down a sigh. “You have to study to get good grades, Miran. And you’re leaving in a few days, all of our time after that will be spent catching up since we won’t see each other twenty-four seven anymore.”

“But since I’m leaving in a few days, shouldn’t we be spending all this time talking instead?” she argues back, lifting her head off of her arms. They’re in the library again, this time after Chanyeol dragged them there.

“Nope. We’ve had all of the past month to talk and not study,” he says. “You have to get your grades up. I don’t know how you did it before since you never study apparently.”

“I do study,” she replies, indignant. “It just mostly happens at twelve in the morning. With a couple cups of coffee in my system. And after I’ve been procrastinating the whole day.” Her words have slowly gotten further apart and quieter, until she says, “Yeah, I don’t know how either. College is death.”

“Then you have to study now.” Chanyeol is triumphant and flips open one of her textbooks with a thud. “Besides, at least this way Baekhyun won’t be around with his distractions.”

Miran laughs. “Isn’t this always how you get rid of him? Tell him you’re studying.”

Chanyeol quirks a smile back. “How else? Now study.”

Miran’s head falls back onto her arms with a groan of despair.

---

“You can’t just leave just like that,” Baekhyun exclaims.

“Relax, Baek, we’ll still see each other at school. I just won’t live with you guys anymore,” Miran says in an attempt at comforting him.

“But what about Hyemi?”

“She says she’ll give up on him. Chanyeol and I will keep hanging out, but our relationship won’t have a label. It’s easier for everyone to just think we’re dating anyway.” The last box is taped shut and Chanyeol helps her pick it up. “It’s not like we’ll just stop being friends.”

“Calm down, Baek,” Kyungsoo always sounds five hundred percent done with his roommates and this time is no different. “Miran can still visit. You’re always welcome here.”

“Thanks guys.” They her to the door to say bye, Baekhyun pouting the whole way there.

“Keep making that face and maybe you’ll get a girlfriend of your own to come live with you,” Miran teases Baekhyun.

“You don’t seem like a girl though,” Baekhyun mutters.

“What, so are you gay then?” Miran retorts, rolling her eyes. “And also, thanks for that compliment to my masculinity.”

Baekhyun scoffs and sulks some more, but he’s waving bye to her as she leaves.

Chanyeol’s riding with her in the car to help with her stuff.

“Why does this feel so sad?” Miran ties to lighten the mood. “It’s like I’m moving to America or something. Yeol, we just spent the last four weeks living together as boyfriend-girlfriend, that’s not going to suddenly go away.”

“Yeah, I know,” Chanyeol tries to smile. “It’s just that I told my parents about a week ago.”

“About me?” Miran asks, surprised.

“Yeah. They want to meet you.” Chanyeol waits for her reaction. “At a formal dinner and everything.”

“Oh. Oh.” Miran is shocked silent. “Sounds… fun.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, don’t be. I just said that it wasn’t going to disappear just like that, right?”

“Thanks.” Chanyeol sighs and leans his head back against the headrest. He looks more tired than he has in all the time Miran has known him.

“Yeah. It’s fine.”

The worst part is that his smile has disappeared.

---

Baekhyun shows up at her apartment in his usual fashion. Thankfully, Miran’s roommate was out with her boyfriend, so she no one else had to witness Baekhyun being Baekhyun. Chanyeol walks in after him, with his smile back in place, Kyungsoo ending the line.

“Nice place you have here,” he comments.

“It’s not nearly as fancy as yours, but I like it,” Miran replies with a smile. “Hungry?”

“Did you get Kyungsoo to teach you how to make kimchi spaghetti?” Baekhyun demands.

Miran shakes her head with a laugh. “Sorry, but my cooking skills are still limited to eggs and ramen.”

“Then I’ll take a glass of water.” Baekhyun sighs dramatically.

Miran shrugs at his antics, moving to the kitchen to get him his glass. “What are you guys doing here anyway. At least call before you come next time.”

“Party’s tonight!” Baekhyun says from the couch. “We’re here to get you ready.”

“Tonight?” Miran asks, alarmed.

“Excited?”

“Very,” Miran responds, lackluster. “What time does it start?”

“Six-thirty,” Chanyeol says. “We’ll leave here at six. Or would you prefer to do it at our place?”

“You guys are already here so,” Miran trails off, absent minded. “But it’s only one right now.”

“The more time we have to work, the more time there is to fix mistakes,” Baekhyun says cheerfully. “I’ll go get the stuff from the car. Kyungsoo?”

“Yeah, coming.” Kyungsoo responds. “Hey, Miran.”

“Oh, Kyungsoo.” Before long, they’re both out, leaving Miran and Chanyeol together.

“It’s been a while,” Miran says.

“Yeah, about a day,” Chanyeol replies cheekily.

Miran rolls her eyes. “Since the last time we were alone like this, I mean. I missed it.”

“Yeah. Thanks for doing this, I owe you so much more than just letting you stay over.”

“It wasn’t any trouble. And it’s easier to do this than to spend time actually dating when we want to focus on studying, right? You said that once before.” Miran’s on the verge of babbling, this is strange. Something’s changed between them and it’s scary because she doesn’t know what.

“I have make-up, Kyungsoo’s doing hair,” Baekhyun, once again, announces his arrival. “Clothes were picked out by Sehun over video chat. Jongin wanted to help, but he was busy and honestly has no sense of female fashion.”

“We’ll do hair first,” Kyungsoo says. “Where’s the bathroom?”

Miran sighs and leads the way.

---

A few hours later, and Miran is surprised at how she looks. She knew that Baekhyun and Kyungsoo were both good with what they did, but not to this extent.

“You guys should drop out of school and open a salon,” she says immediately. “Just do it.”

“Why, thank you, miss.” Baekhyun performs an extravagant bow, only to have Kyungsoo hit his head.

“Thanks, Miran.”

“You look good,” Chanyeol comments, looking up from his phone. “I think they’ll like you.”

“You think?” Baekhyun scoffs. “This is a masterpiece. We have to show Sehun.”

“Am I a ‘this’ now?” Miran asks, pretending to be offended. “But you guys really did do a great job.”

“And now we need to make sure it doesn’t mess up in the next hour. You’re not allowed to eat, drinking is fine as long as you’re careful, and try to keep in mind that you’re dressed up really fancily. It’ll make you more careful,” Baekhyun tells her.

“Yes sir,” Miran salutes and proceeds to sit down carefully, picking her phone up from the table.

“Oh, the gift!” Baekhyun stands up again, after having just sat down. “I’ll be right back.”

Miran and Chanyeol watch him go, Kyungsoo staying on his own phone.

Moments later, Baekhyun is back with a box. “Courtesy of the Byun-Park-Do-Oh-Kim family.”

Miran takes the box carefully. “For me?”

“No, for your cat, yes for you.” Baekhyun says impatiently.

They all watch her intently as she takes her time lifting the lid. Inside is a small handbag that matches her style for the night perfectly, in its elegant simplicity.

“You guys.” Miran is left speechless. “This is beautiful. Thank you.” She looks up at them with shining eyes and a spreading smile. “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. This is to thank you, too, and also because you deserve it.” Chanyeol grins at her.

“Plus isn’t it just perfect for your outfit tonight?” Baekhyun does a small happy dance. “Get a picture for Sehun! Where’s my phone?”

The first picture is of her standing up, and it’s blurry. The second catches her by surprise, and it’s a bit blurry too, but it’s still kept. The third she’s ready for with a smile. The fourth is perfect by a professional standard, but Chanyeol likes the third one the best anyway.

---

Miran’s quiet. Chanyeol’s quiet.

Chanyeol’s parents, on the other hand…

“Remember the first time you came to such a fancy place,” his mother asks his father with a laugh. “You looked like she does now.”

Miran keeps her gaze down.

“Mother,” Chanyeol says.

“What, it’s not meant to be offensive. It’s cute. She’s clearly not used to eating at such places.” His mother sounds so elegant in her speech, it makes Miran even more hesitant to talk.

“She’s my guest, please treat her well,” Chanyeol sighs.

Miran wishes Baekhyun was here too.

Speaking of, it’d been a surprise for Chanyeol to come out of the bathroom after being dragged in by Baekhyun with make-up on his face.

It’d been an even bigger surprise to discover that Chanyeol looks good in make-up.

Very, very good.

(But that is also the point of make-up, to make people look better than they do.)

Miran glances at Chanyeol, seated upright in his chair, sitting beside her. He’s more awkward with his parents than she had expected.

“Chanyeol, have you talked to Hyemi recently?”

“No, not for the past week or so,” Chanyeol replies. He doesn’t know why he thought Hyemi wouldn’t be brought up. She’s a personal favorite of his parents.

“Oh?” His parents share a look, and Chanyeol knows what that means.

“What did you do?”

“Oh, Chanyeol, she’s coming to eat with us tonight,” his mother says. “She’s a bit late, though, I told her seven so that we could have a bit of time to talk with Miran first. It’s already past that, do you think something happened?”

“Relax, not everyone can be perfectly on time to everything,” Chanyeol mutters. He stabs at his food a bit, mixing it around.

“But Hyemi is usually right on time,” she frets, looking towards the entrance.

As if she was called by magic, Hyemi appears at the entrance, scanning the tables for their party.

From there, the night only goes downhill.

---

“Sorry for dragging you into this,” Chanyeol apologizes once they’re safely back at Miran’s house.

“It’s fine,” Miran shrugs. “I don’t mind too much.”

Chanyeol just sighs. “I’m going to go to sleep.”

“Without washing off the make-up?” Miran asks, concerned (but that’s more about him than for his make-up). “Take the room on the left. Down that hall, no, that’s the bathroom. There. Good.”

Chanyeol still manages to bump into the doorframe, but he makes it safely inside without breaking anything and Miran can hear him landing with a thump on the bed.

“Should I call Baekhyun over to take him home?” she wonders out loud, checking on Chanyeol before going to the bathroom to get off her own heavy make-up. He’s sleeping peacefully, though (somehow knocked out in seconds) and she’ll be fine on the sofa for one night.

Before she goes to sleep herself, she pulls the blanket out from under Chanyeol and sets it to lie on top of him instead, giving him warmth for the night. He curls up under it, and Miran smiles as she leaves the room, looking fondly at him. “Sleep well.”

She gets another blanket out from her closet to cover herself on the couch, careful not to disturb Chanyeol, and is quiet bringing it to the living room.

Both of them twist and turn in their sleep that night.

---

The morning is quiet, except for the sound of food on the pan.

“Thanks for letting me stay over,” Chanyeol says.

Miran gives him a reassuring smile. “Anytime.”

Chanyeol sighs heavily. “Maybe I should just date her.”

Miran looks at him, surprised. “What? Why?”

“It would just be easier for all of us, right?” he reasons.

“No, not for you,” she argues back.

“Miran…”

“Okay, that’s it. I’m calling Baekhyun and Kyungsoo over,” Miran announces. “And we’ll get to Hyemi and your parents another time. This whole thing is getting out of hand.”

Chanyeol is shocked into silence, giving Miran the time to make the call. “Wait, but-“

“They’re on their way.” Miran is stubborn about doing this. “If you won’t get your life together, we’ll do it for you. That’s how we got to know each other anyway, isn’t it?” After a moment, she softens up. “Come on, Chanyeol. You need to smile for us again and be our happy virus.” She walks over to him, enveloping him in a warm hug.

Chanyeol hesitates, but the warmth is too tempting and his arms wrap around Miran to return her gesture.

---

A week later, and everything is settled. More or less. Chanyeol and his parents still have things to talk about, Chanyeol and Miran still have things to talk about.

“So,” Chanyeol says.

“So,” Miran echoes.

“This feels weird.”

“Agreed.”

They’re sitting across from each other at a fancy restaurant, not unlike the first one Miran had gone to with Chanyeol to meet his parents.

Except this dinner marks the start of a new beginning. And also the pair finally realizing (after all they’ve been through) that maybe a real romantic relationship between them might actually work.

---

And end.

Sighs. writing is ty.

Pardon my tongue.