𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐂𝐊 | 𝘩𝘸𝘤

𝙭𝙫𝙞𝙞.

𝘅𝘃𝗶𝗶. 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗶 𝘀𝗮𝘆?

Jeonghan glided elegantly through the sea of partying people, never once losing sight of the girl in question. He remembered her name, however, for the sake of his curiosity, he needed to pretend not to.

He watched intently as she made her way to the most isolated of the snack tables. She didn't look exactly keen on really eating anything yet hovered over the food in an attempt to blend in with those around her.

The boy perfected his posture, reminding himself of his intent for the upcoming interaction. Well, if there would be anyone who could pull it off, it would be Jeonghan. His insanely good knack for white lying was something that he tended to use to his advantage in an industry like this.

Making his way next to her, he acted as if he too was eyeing the delicious deserts. Truthfully, had he not been doing this he would have stuffed his face however the girl next to him, whose eyes still seemed puffy, was nevertheless peaking his interest.

Noticing that she seemed sidetracked, Jeonghan positioned himself in a way in which she would "coincidentally" bump into him. And of course, it worked seamlessly.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Her voice was low and a bit stoic.

Jeonghan smiled. "Oh, it's no problem! Are you enjoying yourself?" He asked. Of course she wasn't however if he wanted to get anything out of her, he must start somewhere. These boring questions were going to be his best friend, and while Jeonghan wasn't enthusiastic about it, his urge to want answers was overshadowed.

"Oh um...not really to be honest." She chuckled. Jeonghan was surprised by the bluntness of her answer, yet a sense of relief washed over him. If she wasn't stubborn, this would be much easier for him.

His eyebrows furrowed as if he hadn't seen her previously crying her heart out. "Really? Me neither. All my friends left me." He explained.

Turning his head out of habit, the boy briefly caught sight of Jun looking at him from across the room, a questioning look on his face. Luckily for the trickster, the dancer chose not to press further as he was whisked away by some girl. Jeonghan sighed a sigh of pure relief.

"Same here. My date and I kinda got in a fight." Jeonghan's eyebrow raised before quickly concealing it with concern for the girl rather than the boy who seemingly was her date: Hansol.

He pouted, a sympathetic expression on his face. "Damn, you wanna talk about it? I don't think I really fit in with everyone else here. You're the first normal person I've met." The girl smirked, a glint of actual genuineness in her eyes, opposite of those from the man in front of her. Jeonghan was in fact a part of the group responsible for the hosting of this event, however, she had no need to know that.

"Non-celebrity too?" She asked. By this time the two had already maneuvered to the end of the elongated table full of snacks. They each only had one thing on either of their plates as they walked through the crowd of people. Nabi had no idea where they were headed yet the confidence in Jeonghan's walk made her feel like he knew this place much better than he let on.

The boy nodded at her previous question. "Yup. I'm Jeonghan, you?" If she couldn't recognize him as an idol then there was no way she would notice his name.

"Nabi." She smiled, reciprocated by Jeonghan who had led her to a more secluded part of the building. In front of the two was yet another archway, however, the fact it was hidden behind a windy staircase shielded it from the public view.

"You still up to talk? This place is like my little getaway since I keep getting invited. Figured I would just keep accepting and make the most of it." Nabi hesitated, her feet not moving any more steps forward. The fact that the area was completely hidden made the girl not exactly feel the most safe. She had just met Jeonghan for goodness sake, who knew what the guy was all about?

The vocalist turned to look back, a few feet in front of Nabi. "Sorry, this probably seems suspicious huh?" He chuckled, his slender fingers gently sliding away the curtain covering the entryway.

As if out of a fairytale, a garden full of luscious flowers, trees, and greenery accompanied by soft yellow lighting came into view. Nabi could have sworn that if neither one of them had spoken, she could have continued gazing forever.

Jeonghan smiled at her in amusement. "Pretty cool right?"

Still in awe, Nabi walked closer to the man. "Fucking amazing. How'd you find this?" She asked, following Jeonghan who had now begun his way into said area.

The further the two ventured on the stone path, Nabi noticed just how gorgeous the area truly was. It was like a secret garden of sorts, something completely out of place for being on the side of something like a party venue.

The vocalist stuffed his hands in his pockets. "I have my ways." Normally, a few alarms would have sounded in her head however Nabi truthfully was so caught up in the moment she could only follow Jeonghan closely as she took in everything around her.

"Now, what's up?" He asked, sitting himself on a bench placed not too far from the entrance yet slightly off to the left. The fairy lights gave enough illumination for the two to see each other and Nabi felt compelled to speak. There was some comfort for her in venting to a stranger.

She gently sighed. "Well...I dunno where to start really, but I've known one of the hosts for a few months." Jeonghan of course already knew this however chose to not disclose that.

"A member of Seventeen?"

"Yup. We're pretty good friends and I guess I kind of have a crush on the guy, to be honest. Anyways, we kissed out of like nowhere tonight and something about it was off."

Jeonghan's eyes widened, feeling satisfied in gaining the knowledge he set out to find. If anything, the boy wasn't trying to be malicious in any way, he was simply fueled by curiosity.

"How so?" He asked, dryly. Jeonghan didn't need to know anything else, but to leave now would be downright awkward.

Nabi paused for a moment, tucking hair behind her ears. "I just know for a fact that we won't work. Like as much as I truthfully wanted to kiss him again, he chooses to be upfront and public, and I'm anything but that. There are just so many risks with us even being friends and I know that if I was seen with him the public would fucking tear him apart. I can't do that to the guy, y'know?" She sighed, as if now that she was finally speaking her thoughts out loud, everything was truthfully sinking in.

The idol grinned. While he wasn't exactly happy with how Hansol seemingly felt after their whole balcony situation, it was undeniable that the fact someone had a crush on one of his younger members made him feel slightly sentimental.

"Well, do you like him?"

Nabi didn't even have to think twice. "Yeah."

Jeonghan chuckled. "Then I say go for it. If you guys feel ready to tell the company, then they have the resources to protect you. And of course, I'm sure his members would love to have a part in protecting as well. Seventeen are tight-knit. They would never let anything happen to not only each other but one another's partners." Nabi initially smiled at the advice but quickly grew confused.

"And how do you know that?" She asked, a giggle escaping her lips.

He shrugged his shoulders. "I'm a great observer, what can I say?"