Suji was clapping in tandem with others before she realised Jaemin had been missing for a solid five minutes. She glanced around, but was unable to see him.
She nudged Chenle, asking if he'd seen him. Chenle shrugged, and pointed to the back door. "Thanks," Suji said, heading out.
Jaemin was leaning out on the balcony, face in shadow above the streetlights. "Hey," she called. "You vanished on me. I panicked for a second."
Jaemin glanced over his shoulder. "Sorry," he said. "I got a text."
Suji ambled over, leaning on the railing beside him. "Yeah? From who?"
Jaemin didn't answer, merely flashed her his iPhone. There was a single message from the bottom, unanswered.
Will you be my date to Homecoming?
Suji tilted her head. "Well, aren't you the popular one? Who's it from?"
"Hyunji."
Suji sucked in a breath.
Jaemin wouldn't look at her. He dropped his hand, leaving Suji staring blankly into space. "Do you want to go with her?"
"No."
"Then why don't you tell her so?" Suju bristled. Jaemin didn't answer, but kept looking down. "You do want to go with her," Suji accused. "You do!"
"I don't."
"Is it because you want to get back together with her?"
"No."
"Or just because you don't want to go with m-"
Jaemin didn't let her finish. He turned and kissed her, soft and slow, scraping his teeth against her bottom lip.
"I do want to go with you," he murmured. "More than anything."
Suji's knees were going weak. She wound her hands around the back of his neck, leaning into him. "Then tell her so," she whispered.
Jaemin pulled back a fraction. "Park Suji, I-"
She kissed him this time, pressing all of her weight into him. He opened his mouth against her, putting one hand on the small of her back, the other tangling in her hair. She didn't stop until he was good and breathless.
"Not fair," he whined softly, as she pulled away.
"Why can't you just tell her no?"
Jaemin leaned his forehead against hers. "You know why," he said. "She's giving me an opportunity to save you."
Suji leaned away. "I don't think I need protection."
"No I mean – it's not just you. Suji, you know Hyunji like I do. You know she won't be satisfied until the enemy has crumbled at her feet. She's not just going to come after you or me – she's going to come after all of us." He glanced back at the door into the arcade. "And after hanging out with everyone tonight – I mean, Donghyuck's already so down. Saeron and Mark, they're so happy. Mia's finally talking like a normal person. And Jeno and Nari – I mean, they seem nice and I really like them. And I just – I can't run the risk of putting them all in Hyunji's way."
Suji felt her gaze soften. "Jae, you may be an ass, but you're a real hero."
He smiled wryly. "So I've been told."
"But this is where I have to be the villain." She placed both hands on his shoulders. "Jaemin, as your girlfriend, I refuse to let you sacrifice Homecoming to save the rest of us. We can handle ourselves. Besides, what happened to the plan of taking Hyunji down?"
Jaemin's smile grew a little more. "Pretty well. I'm not supposed to tell, but you're leading the votes for Homecoming Queen."
"Exactly, so-" Suji stopped. "I am?"
"People like you." Jaemin kissed her again. "I like you."
"Then your answer lies before you." Suji gestured to his phone. "Tell her no."
Jaemin raised his phone. He typed a quick No, followed by and leave me alone. Suji smiled in triumph.
"Good," she said. "And now that that's over with, let's talk about my dress so you know what tie colour to wear."
Jaemin groaned. "Ugh, I'd rather go play games."
Hyunji's phone lit up the dark room. She reached over and read the message, eyes bored. Hm. Exactly what she'd expected.
Well, she'd given Jaemin his chance. Now he had no reason to complain when everything with his precious little group of friends went wrong.
She glanced up at Hyuna, sitting in the chair across from her, hands folded tightly on her lap. "And you're sure?"
Hyuna nodded. "I saw the dress in her suitcase."
Hyunji's lips twisted into a tight smile. Perfect. Everything was going to come together. She had one week to make everything perfect – but Hyunji was a true schemer. She really only needed a day. Suji wasn't going to win Homecoming Queen, because she wasn't even going to make it to Homecoming.
She dialed a quick number on her phone. It picked up on the second ring. "Hi, Ara. Is everything prepared?"
"Good."
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