bad chemistry

forty

"So you think that John is not who he claims to be? No way."

Jisung shakes his head as he drinks some cola with Chenle as they watch the older hyungs take a shot of soju. They are all gathered at a pub nearby the station as Jeno is not present as well. Donghyuck shrugs his shoulders and rejects the theory, "I don't think he is that bad. Just a little mysterious."

Minhyung shakes his head as he takes another shot, "I know it sounds crazy. But ever since Jeno's accident at the station, I don't trust anyone who seems that suspicious."

Donghyuck scoffs quietly at his comment before replying back with an annoying tone, "You have a judgemental issue."

Jaemin shuts the two up as he takes the lead in talking as the temporary lead, "I agree with both sides. We shouldn't judge someone since they just arrived to the station as they are kind of mysterious. But we should also have our guards up because he is someone new and we should be aware of our surroundings."

Chenle and Jisung both shrug their shoulders as they know that they can't go against the older's words. Donghyuck sighs quietly as the others all then start to drink again as Renjun is just drinking without saying much. Renjun is almost knocked out to the point that Jaemin has to carry him on his back and call it the end of the night.

As Donghyuck pays for their food, Minhyung makes his way towards the restroom as he washes his hands silently. He remembers that the security cameras were all damaged when Jeno was attacked so that the face of the attacker wouldn't be seen. He decides to set up secret ones within the hallways and the office itself so that the other members are protected. He doesn't trust John entirely as he is well-aware that Jeno needs to also watch with what's happening in the office.

Jeno and Minju both end up waking up together on her bed as he ends up sleeping by her side after she complained about having nightmares. Minju rubs her eyes quietly as she turns her head up to stare at Jeno's complexion. She rests her chin on his chest as she smiles happily when Jeno starts to stir from his sleep. He has his arms wrapped around her sides as he starts to shift from his position as he lifts his arms up in the air to stretch. She slaps his arms gently as they leave her side as he turns his head towards the other with adoration.

The sunlight brightly hits the two as the curtains are gently blowing against the slightly open window. She feels more at ease now that the other is always next to her, and she can fully trust the other as he stays close by her side. He turns around to check the clock as he mumbles with a yawn, "Time for you to get ready-"

"Did you forget that they cancelled the shoot today?"

He turns around to face the other as she smiles brightly at the hint of finally getting a break. He immediately apologizes, "Sorry, I haven't gotten much sleep so this is the first time I actually got to."

"Well then, lucky for us."

Minju sits up slowly and faces the other as she gently wipes her finger against the other's cheek. She then stands up and walks towards the bathroom with excitement as she already planned out the whole day that they can go to. Jeno soon follows pursuit as he grabs his toothbrush and some toothpaste so that he can get ready as well as he brushes his teeth inside the living room. Minju watches the other with a laugh automatically being reflected as she finds that quite adorable.

Jeno faces the window as he smiles happily at the window as he continues to brush his teeth. He waits for Minju to finish in the bathroom as he heads over towards the opening door as she exits the bathroom so that she can get breakfast ready. Jeno smiles back before he closes the door to brush his teeth. Minju quickly searches on the internet as she tries to figure out how to make pancakes. She finds out a simple recipe as she starts to begin her cooking session so that she and Jeno can enjoy their breakfast together.

Jeno soon exits the bathroom with a refreshed feeling. He realizes that Minju is cooking in the kitchen as she is humming and busily flipping the pancakes. He tiptoes into her bedroom to reserve some tickets to something he was planning a few days back when he was watching Minju on set.

Minju finishes cooking right as Jeno leaves the bedroom as they both stare at each other excitingly. Trying to hide it, he walks close to her and stares at the pancakes that are decorated with bright colored fruits and whipped cream. His eyes widen as he asks curiously, "This looks so good."

Minju scratches the back of her neck as she replies nervously with a blush rising, "Not really.... I didn't taste it yet."

"I'm sure it is."

Jeno soon eats his own taste of medicine as the pancakes are slightly overcooked and burnt on the other side. Minju tries to make sure that Jeno's plate is full of fruits so that he can hopefully overlook it. But Jeno is obviously very blunt as he remarks quietly, "The aftertaste is interesting."

Minju's expression saddens as she knows that she messed up big time. She wants to improve her cooking so that the other can feel an emotion of excitement but she knows that Jeno is not able to realize that whatever he says can actually hurt someone. But Jeno soon adds to cheer her up, "But it's not too bad. A few more practices and this will be amazing."

Jeno starts to finish the pancakes without a single complaint as he also fills his stomach up with the fruits that she over-decorated the plate. Minju takes a few bites before she stares quietly at the other's beauty as she feels much better after he encouraged her. She musters up the courage to ask with a curious tone, "Did you want to go somewhere with me today?"

Jeno halts his chewing as he looks up to face her with a questioning look on his face which Minju is afraid that the other might refuse. But Jeno takes his phone out and clears his throat and replies back nervously, "I kind of already had tickets for ice skating at One Castle for us."

Minju widens her eyes with a gasp as she soon giggles without a thought as Jeno's expression turns perplexed. She takes out her phone as well with a bright smile as she replies with a laugh, "I also reserved One Castle for a lunch there."

They both end up laughing together at their similar tastes as the morning sun continues to shine warmly at the pair. It is something that they both never expected when Jeno usually doesn't go ice skate and Minju doesn't like being in crowded places when she eats. But it is for each other, and that's when Jeno noticed that his heart starts to race and beat against his chest. He understands it slowly...but he is surely realizing it.