«I don't think it went very well,» Yunho said when he saw Maya walking away from the pier alone. When she got closer they could tell she was upset. She avoided them, and went straight for the changing rooms where she had left her bag.
«Who's gonna go?» Mingi said, and they all looked at each other.
«I want to go,» Seonghwa quickly said, and no one protested. He was soon running after her.
«Woo, do you wanna go talk to Yeo? He might need a friend right now,» Hongjoong suggested.
«Yeah, I'll go. We'll both go.»
He grabbed San's hand, and they quickly moved towards the pier where they saw a figure slouching on a bench.
«Yeosangie,» San said as he sat down on one side of the man. Wooyoung couldn't speak, he just cried as he sat down on the other side of Yeo. «It'll be okay.»
«No, it won't. She hates me. I'm a horrible person, she's right!»
«No, that's not true, Yeo,» San said and put his arms around the crying man. Woo had already pulled him close. «You're a good guy, everyone knows that. We love you.»
«You shouldn't. I'm a monster.»
«Stop it!» Woo cried. «Stop that! I can't listen to you hating yourself. Please, just... we'll fix this. It'll be okay, I promise.»
«No, you can't fix me, Woo. I'm not worth it. She's right, it's in my core. I judged her from the very start. I never gave her a chance. I don't blame her for not giving me a chance now. I wouldn't believe me either.»
The three of them ended up just holding each other while crying. Yeo didn't feel better, but at least he wasn't alone. They didn't abandon him even though that might have been what he deserved.
«I need to go home.»
«Maya, what happened?» Seonghwa tried to take her hand to make her stand still, but she brushed it off.
«I'm gonna go home.»
«I'll come with you.»
«No,» she said strongly, finally looking at him. Dried streaks of tears decorated her cheeks. «No, you're going to finish. I'm not going to ruin your work.»
«We can postpone...»
«No! Please, don't put this on me. I can't take it right now. I need you to stay here and finish while I go back home.»
«Will you be in the dorm when we return?»
«Yes.»
«Promise?»
«Yes, I promise.»
«Fine, I'll arrange a car.»
He left the room and Maya stood for a second, just looking at herself in the mirror. She quickly turned away from the image that she had hated for so many years. It didn't matter how many people said they liked her, and even proved it. Everything she had built was quickly torn down when she experienced negativity like this. It his so close when it was someone she was close to, someone she had begun loving. She had known she shouldn't, he had been disgusted with her from the very beginning. She was so stupid to let her heart even go in this direction. She didn't need to. She had gotten so much from the others, she didn't need his love. So why did it hurt so badly?
Seonghwa followed her to the car, hugged her, and made her promise to text him as soon as she got back home.
«Please don't worry,» she smiled, but it wasn't reassuring whatsoever.
«I will, but as soon as I can, I'll be there. We can talk, or I can just hold you. Whatever you need.»
«Thank you, Hwa.»
«I love you, Maya.» He looked at her face as he said it. They had never used words like that before, nothing that implied commitment or anything like that. He knew the others loved her too, but he was the only one here right now. She smiled sadly.
«I love you too, Hwa. See you later.»
He wanted to kiss her so badly, but they weren't alone by any means. A hug had to be enough for now.
None of the members would say anything to the staff about why the mood had changed. They just did their best to finish the shoot as soon as possible. Yeosang didn't speak the whole way home. The entire group were silent, honestly. Back at the dorm, it was dark and quiet.
Seonghwa went to his room to get ready for the night. He had told the others he would be the one to spend the night with Maya, and no one questioned it, at least not out loud. He was surprised to find her sitting in the big chair in his room.
«Maya? Are you okay?»
«Mhm,» she mumbled.
He went over and kneeled in front of the chair. Her hands felt cold.
«Did you eat, love?»
«Yes, I knew you would ask. I ate some leftovers.»
Her voice was dull and she didn't look at his face.
«How about we take a shower and then we go to bed?»
She nodded and stood up. He led her to the bathroom and they undressed in silence. She didn't sneak a peek like she usually did, while giggling and teasing. She didn't even smile. She just went into the shower, turning on the water and hardly flinching at the first ice-cold droplets.
Seonghwa washed her hair, and she did the same for him. Still no talking. They finished cleaning themselves and after drying off, he gave her a t-shirt to sleep in. She soon crawled into his bed and as soon as he joined her, she found her favorite spot, with her nose into the nook of his neck, where she could smell him, hear his heart and feel his body heat. He put his arms around her, pulled her close, and kissed her forehead.
Seonghwa had to get up early the following morning. Before he left his room, he kissed her goodbye and told her to sleep as long as she wanted. Which she did. Even after she woke up, she stayed in bed, enjoyed the scent of him from the bedding, and tried to not think. She played games, watched a stupid movie, and then watched hundreds of tik toks before finally getting out of bed. It was still early in the day, and to try to keep her mind off of things, she started to bake. She filled the freezer with bread and bagels, before starting to make a stupidly complicated chocolate caramel cake. It took forever, and she had to make the frosting twice, just to get it right.
«What are you doing?»
Maya looked surprised when Mingi and Yunho suddenly stood in the kitchen.
«Making a cake,» she said with a goofy smile. «What are you doing here?»
«We're done! It's almost midnight, why aren't you in bed?»
«I'm not tired, I slept far too much earlier today. Is everyone back?»
«Yeah, everyone is back,» Mingi said. «Can I have some cake?»
«Seriously, at midnight?» Yunho scoffed.
«No better time than the present,» Mingi the philosopher declared, and Maya shrugged.
«Why not?»
«Who wants cake?!» Mingi hollered down the hall, and it didn't take long until everyone came. Some were already in pajamas, others had started removing their makeup.
«Cake?» San said. «I love cake.»
«We all know you love cake,» Woo said, rolling his eyes.
«Your cake is the best,» San teased and pinched Wooyoung's ass. «But this will probably do tonight, I'm knackered.»
«Babe!» Woo scolded San, and the laughter made it easier.
Maya partially hid behind Mingi when she realized that Yeo was there too. Woo was handing out cake to everyone on paper plates, and Maya's eyes were trying to catch Seonghwa's. He wasn't looking at her.
Maya tried to sneak out of the kitchen, but Jongho grabbed her hand without a word. She tried to get out of his grip, but he was obviously too strong. With an eye roll, she pulled him along.
«I'm just going to bed,» she whispered when they were in the hall, far from the others.
«Are you okay?»
«Sure, I'm fine.»
«Yeah, I don't believe you. What do you need?»
Maya looked at him for a second, thinking she would just go to her own room, but his eyes were so kind, and his beautiful gummy smile...
«I need you,» she said, leaning in and quickly kissing him. He didn't object, in fact he just pulled her into his arms and their next kiss was a lot deeper.
«My room or your room?» he asked when they had to pause for some oxygen.
«Yours, please,» she answered, pulling him in the right direction while unbuttoning his shirt.
When the door to his room was closed and locked, he had to make sure.
«Are you sure...»
«Yes!» she said before he had finished his sentence.
«You're upset, maybe tonight isn't the best....»
«I just need to feel close to you, please. I know it won't fix how I feel, but I really just need you. I don't want to use you, Jongho, but...»
«You can use me,» he smiled. «Just making sure you know... what you're doing.»
«Very responsible of you,» she teased, and he grabbed her ass and squeezed it as revenge. She giggled and pulled him towards the bed.
Jongho was strong. He could pretty much do whatever he wanted to her, and she loved that. This was not the night for experimenting though. Jongho understood what she needed; confirmation and love. He gave her exactly that. It was valuable for him too. There was no hurry, no one else involved, just the two of them, touching, kissing, breathing together. He got to lick and suck her clit until she orgasmed, he had never done that before, and he loved it. She begged him for his cock in the end, and when he finally filled her, she clenched around him in the most delicious way. Feeling her orgasm around him made for a perfect release.
«I love you,» she whispered as she found her spot with her ear against his heart.
«Love you, sweetie,» he whispered back.
It was easy falling asleep in each other's arms.