Ever since that dinner, you felt like you were being watched. Now and then you noticed Chan staring at you a little too long and cautiously, as if he was expecting you to do something again. You even suspected he had asked Felix to keep an eye on you as well. Felix often seemed to pop out of nowhere when you were alone, finding all kinds of excuses to stick around and not leave you to yourself.
But neither of them were anything compared to Minho. Although, he seemed to be following you for an entirely different reason.
Just like Chan and Felix, he seemed to be secretly watching you, popping out of nowhere and lingering around you. However, compared to the slightly anxious and worried looks from Chan and Felix, which were making you uncomfortable and irritated, Minho had a completely different effect on you.
Whenever he was around you, you could feel a sense of eagerness and anticipation, but most of all ... wanting.
There was no inquisitive worry in his eyes, but something else entirely. His gaze reminded you of a predator looking at its prey. Now and then you caught him biting his bottom lip whenever you tucked your hair behind your ear or licking his bottom lip when you sucked on a popsicle.
He wanted you. Badly. And you knew it.
This position of power made you want to experiment, to tease him, and to see how far you could go until he snapped...
You would go out of your way to make Minho jealous. From cuddling the other guys, to sitting in their laps. You would look at Minho and bat your eyelashes at him sweetly. It was hard to hold back your grin whenever you saw him clench his jaw...
Your phone rang, the sound echoing through your quiet room. You stretched out your arms, tired from typing on your laptop all night, and answered your phone.
'Hi Adam,' you spoke, having seen his name on the display.
'Hey, y/n, how are you?' he asked politely, his standard way of picking up the phone.
'Good,' you said with a yawn and a stretch, 'Almost finished my homework for the weekend already.'
'Good thinking,' Adam said seriously. 'You don't wanna be studying while hungover.'
'Hungover?' you asked confused.
'Yeah, cuz of the party?' he said, sounding surprised. You slapped your hand on your forehead. The party! Of course! You had almost forgotten about it since Minho had pulled you away from Adam right in the middle of that conversation.
'E-Exactly!' you said quickly, trying to recover.
'Right, anyway, that's actually what I'm calling about,' Adam said with a more serious tone in his voice.
'What's up?' You asked, leaning back on your desk chair, listening.
'I know we never really discussed how you were going to get to the party, and I would've offered to pick you up, but my car broke down again,' he said, sounding grumpy. 'It's in the shop and I won't be able to get it back 'till next Wednesday,' he growled.
'Aw, man, that sucks,' you said empathetically. 'But don't you worry about me, I'll get one of my house-mates to drive me there.'
'You sure? I could ask my sister to-,' Adam began, but you cut him off.
'Adam, I'm a grown woman, I'm sure I can figure something out,' you chuckled.
'Right,' Adam laughed. 'Just wanted to make sure my wing woman would be there, you know.'
'Oh, I'll be there,' you assured him.
'Alright then, I'll text you the time and the address in a bit then, okay? See you tomorrow then!' he said cheerfully.
'See ya,' you said, smiling, even though he couldn't see you. The line beeped as Adam hung up and you stretched again. You were genuinely looking forward to the party. It had been quite a while since you had been to one, and you wondered how college parties would differ from high school ones.
A knock on the door drew you from your thoughts.
'Yea?' you asked. The door opened a bit and you could see Minho's face peaking around the corner. He was wearing one of your favorite outfits; a white oversized sleeveless shirt with a pair of oversized ripped jeans. His hair was messy and damp, a clear sign he had just come out of the shower. He looked so handsome like that.
'Want some strawberries?' he asked you, bringing up his hand. He was holding a small bowl of fresh strawberries in it.
'No, thanks, I'm good,' you said without thinking. You could see the disappointment in his eyes and regretted your words instantly.
He simply nodded, turned, and left your room.
You cursed yourself for not realizing his intentions immediately, and not saying or doing something sexy or witty. Of course, you wanted him too. But you wanted to tease him some more, make him beg for it like he made you before.
The door was still slightly ajar and you sighed, getting up out of your seat to go and close it. You had barely taken a step when you suddenly stopped. Through your mirror you had spotted Minho, standing in his own doorway, still holding the bowl of strawberries and staring through the crack of your door, clearly trying to decide whether he was going to go back in or not. By the angle of the mirror and the direction he was staring, you knew he couldn't see you, or see that you had spotted him. A naughty idea crept up into your mind and you grinned cheekily to yourself.
You took another few steps, stopping before your bed, a position in which you were sure he could see you. You looked in the mirror and were happy to see him still standing there. His eyebrows had raised as soon as you had come into his view. You held back a grin, even though you were standing with your back to him. You stretched your arms once more and could see Minho taking a step towards your room again. Smiling to yourself, you grabbed the shoulders of your cardigan and let it slide down your arms. Through the mirror, you could see Minho freeze. He had seen you undress a thousand times before, but never had he reacted to it like this. Next, you grabbed the edge of your shirt and slowly raised it over your head, leaving you in your bra. Minho's jaw clenched. Very slowly you started to unbutton your jeans and lower them down your hips even slower, exposing your pink satin panties. Minho's eyes had become slightly lidded and he took another step forward.
Suddenly, loud footsteps and laughter startled both you and Minho, making him turn away from you as you quickly raised up your pants again.
'Oh Lino,' Seungmin's voice sounded, somewhat surprised.
'What?' Minho said, his voice sounding furiously cold. Seungmin clicked his tongue and a single pair of footsteps left the hallway and went down the stairs. You could see Minho leaving for his room, shutting the door behind him with a loud bang.
Another pair of footsteps came down the hall and Han peeked through your door. As soon as he spotted you, standing there in nothing but your bra and jeans, the corner of his mouth lifted slightly. He looked over his shoulder at the closed door of Minho's room before he entered yours and closed the door behind him as well.
'Y/n,' Han spoke your name softly, as he walked over to you. You could feel your cheeks flushing, knowing he caught you and feeling extremely embarrassed. He stopped in front of you, his hand going up to cup your face as his emerald-green eyes met yours. 'You shouldn't challenge him like this,' Han spoke softly. His words were unexpected and you looked at him in surprise. Han smiled softly at you. 'You have no idea how beautiful you are, do you? You have no idea what you do to us,' he chuckled. You blinked a few times. 'Don't tease him like this,' Han repeated shaking his head. Something defiant crept up inside of you, possibly ignited by your embarrassment.
'Why not?' you spoke stubbornly. 'He's had it coming, you know. He's been a real twat to me lately, he deserves it,' you argued. To your surprise, Han chuckled and shook his head. His thumb caressed your cheek as he looked at you oddly.
'I'm telling you, stop now. Give him what he wants, what you want,' he spoke softly, before bending close to you, his lips almost on your ear. 'Trust me, you'll regret it otherwise,' he said, his words tickling the shell of your ear and sending shivers down your spine. Han let go of you, turned around, and left your room, closing the door behind him.
Your heart was beating loudly in your chest. Your knees felt weak. The space between your legs felt like it was on fire.
You knew Han's warning should've scared you, but instead, all you could think about was Minho losing control...
You went to bed that night imagining Minho all over you and making you feel quite hot.
The next morning you were rudely awoken from your lovely dream by some loud banging coming from downstairs.
Feeling irritated from being woken up like you had, especially from such a fine dream, you quickly put on a robe and went downstairs.
'Are we moving?' you asked sarcastically when you spotted all the boxes, newspapers, and bubble wrap in the living room. You could see Minho, Felix, Changbin, and Hyunjin picking up all sorts of items around the living room and packing them up hastily.
'I wish they would,' Seungmin's annoyed and groggy morning voice sounded from behind you. You turned to see him sitting at the dining room table, coffee in his hand and messy hair clearly not yet combed. Apparently, he too had been woken up early by all the noise on his day off.
'What's going on?' you asked him as you went to stand beside him.
'Hyunjin has an art expo and for some reason, that means our living room needs to be redone,' Seungmin spoke before sipping his coffee stiffly. You watched the boys pack and noticed that they were indeed packing up paintings, statues, and other art-like decorations.
'I heard that,' Hyunjin said, walking past, ducking just in time as Minho let a heavy-looking blue vase soar over his head. 'Hey, watch where you're flying that stuff,' Hyunjin rounded on Minho.
'It's levitating not flying, but sorry,' Minho grinned, not looking sorry at all.
'Coming through!' Felix called out, as he carried a large marble statue of a person past you, the one that they used as a clothing rack.
'Make sure they don't see you outside!' Changbin called after him. Felix made a noise to indicate he understood.
Deciding there was not much for you to do, you decided to sit down next to Seungmin and watch the guys pack. About twenty minutes later, Jeongin arrived together with Han.
'We're back!' both of them called out simultaneously.
'Yeez, are you guys still not done?' Han asked, watching Changbin struggle with the tape that kept sticking to his fingers.
'Almost! Just a few more pieces,' Hyunjin said, not looking up as he delicately wrapped a painting with bubble wrap.
'I never really realized how much art we actually have in our living room,' Jeongin said, looking around at the empty spots around the room. You could see Hyunjin smile as he taped off the corners of the bubble wrap. 'Oh, also, I got the chocolate fudge you wanted for that client of your's Hyung,' Jeongin said, lifting the grocery bags in his hands.
'Oh, thanks man,' Hyunjin said, looking at him happily. It was clear the two had finally, and truly, made peace now.
As the four continued to pack, Jeongin and Han started to unload the groceries and cook breakfast. By the time the food was served, the boys were done and the living room looked empty.
The four guys were just about to sit down and dig in when Changbin's pager rang. He grumbled angrily, gave you a pat on your head, and waved goodbye to the boys as he quickly ran off to whatever emergency the fire station needed him for.
'Where's Chan?' you noted, the two empty seats at the table more noticeable now that the living room looked so soulless.
'Didn't come home last night,' Jeongin said with his mouth full of rice. You instantly looked at Felix but he didn't seem too concerned about it as he continued to gratefully eat his breakfast. You knew it wasn't unusual for Chan not to come home from work now and then. But still, it always worried you.
As soon as his plate was empty, Hyunjin left as well, but not before thanking Felix and Minho gratefully and planting a quick kiss on your cheek before running out as well.
The afternoon was a lazy one. Jeongin and Minho played video games on the television while Han and Seungmin did some gardening on the balcony. Felix went together with you to the basement to do the laundry and together you chatted about this and that. He didn't say anything about your powers or Chan's warning and it seemed like he trusted you to not try that again.
After dinner, it was time for you to go upstairs and ready yourself for Adam's party. You had a hard time finding the right outfit, but eventually decided on a basic little black dress with knee-high boots.
By the time you re-entered the living room, there was only one person left. Minho was sitting on the couch, watching a show on tv. He looked up when you came in. A muscle in his jaw tensed when he saw you, and you could see his eyes scanning you from top to bottom.
'What are you wearing?' he asked, his voice back to that cold, arrogant, and judgemental tone. You thought that after the moment when he defended you against Chan, the two of you were good again. But apparently, you thought wrong. Why did he have to be like this? Why did he always manage to poke you where it annoyed you the most? You balled your fist.
'My party outfit,' you said coolly.
'Your what?' he repeated, raising a handsome brow. You ignored his question and scanned the room again as if you were hoping any of the other guys were hiding somewhere you hadn't spotted yet.
'Where's Felix?' you asked, not looking at Minho.
'Out for emergency surgery,' Minho answered back instantly.
'Hyunjin?' you asked.
'Not back yet,' Minho answered shortly. 'Nor Chan or Changbin,' he added. Not that you would ever ask either of those overprotective men to drive you to a college party anyway.
'Han? Or Seungmin?' you asked, your eyes darting back at Minho, who wasn't looking at you, but was back to watching his tv program. He simply shrugged.
A door opened and closed and Jeongin came walking into the room, wearing his bartender's uniform.
'Innie!' you said jumping at him, happy to see someone else was still here. He looked surprised but pleased with your enthusiastic greeting. 'Innie,' you said in a whiny voice, grabbing his arm and batting your eyelashes at him, 'can you pretty please drive me to my friend's party?' You pouted like a child asking a parent to buy them a new expensive toy.
'Oh,' Jeongin's face fell, 'I'm sorry princess but I can't. I'm already late and I really don't want to get fired,' he said, his face painfully apologetic.
'Oh, that's alright,' you said, your voice letting out far more disappointment than you had wanted to, and letting go of his arm.
'I'm sorry princess, I'll make it up to you, okay?' he said, sadly smiling at you. You nodded at him and he quickly kissed you on the forehead before rushing off.
You heard the sound of the door closing behind him, echoing through the room.
There was no other choice. It was either a taxi, which you didn't really have the money for, or Minho. You tightened your jaw, turning around and looking at Minho, who was still watching tv, but now with a little smirk on his face.
'Lino,' you began, trying to sound sweet, but sounding more like you had a toothache. 'Could you please maybe drop me off at the party?'
Minho didn't respond but stared at the television. You waited, trying to search his face for a clue but finding nothing. It felt like an eternity and he didn't budge.
Just when you were at your limit and felt like yelling at him for ignoring you and stomping away, he suddenly got up.
'Come on then,' he said, his voice soft and low, and his eyes not meeting yours. Surprised, but happy, you followed him silently as he put on his coat and led you to the car.
You quickly put your phone in the holder of the car, putting on the navigation to the address Adam had sent you. It was further away than you had expected it to be, so you were happy you weren't forced to call a cab.
After minutes of a silent drive, where neither of you looked at the other, you softly mumbled, 'Thank you,' at Minho. He didn't respond for a moment, waiting in front of a red light.
'Why do you want to go to this party anyway?' he asked out of nowhere.
'What?' you said surprised, not expecting a question like that.
'Why are you going to this party?' he repeated.
'Erm, 'cause it's fun?' you answered him back, feeling dumbfounded by his odd question. You stared at him incredulously, but he didn't say anything for a while. You folded your arms and stared out the window for a few minutes.
'Will he be there?' Minho asked suddenly. You looked over at him. He still wasn't looking at you, his eyes fixed on the road.
'Who?' You asked, knowing very well who he had meant, but playing dumb just to annoy him as much as he did you.
'You know, that guy,' Minho said somewhat annoyed.
'I know a lot of guys, please elaborate,' you said stiffly.
'The western guy, the guy you hang out with at school, the one with the scar,' Minho said truly annoyed now.
'Oh, you mean Adam,' you said, knowing very well Minho knew his name. Minho grunted, and you took your time to answer.
'Yes, Adam will be there too,' you spoke. Minho didn't react and you looked away from him again, watching the streetlights pass by and feeling fed up with everything.
'He likes you,' Minho said suddenly after a long silence. It wasn't a question.
'He used to,' you bit back, not looking at Minho, but seeing your pouting reflection in the mirror.
'Sure,' Minho grumbled, sounding obviously insincere. You rolled your eyes and it was silent for a while again.
'You care for him?' Minho asked abruptly, surprising you once more. You huffed and looked over at him.
'Yeah of course I do,' you said feeling insulted. Minho's jaw clenched and the knuckles of his hands went white around the steering wheel.
'I thought you only cared for us,' he spoke, almost accusingly.
'Excuse me?' you said, barely able to believe what you were hearing. 'I-What? I mean, come on-well,' you stammered incredulously. 'You guys don't own me, you know!?' you huffed angrily.
The car stopped abruptly and the seatbelt cut hard into your chest.
'You have arrived at your destination,' the cool woman's voice of the navigation app sounded through your phone. For a moment you looked furiously at Minho, wanting to start an argument with the man who still wasn't looking at you. Then, in a split second, you decided you had had enough, opening the door and jumping out of the car angrily. You were just turning around to smash the door closed when your eyes met Minho's.
'No, you own us,' he said softly. The door slipped out of your hand and fell shut. The engine roared and the car drove off into the night.
The look on his face seemed to be imprinted into your mind. The same look he adorned so often lately. One of adoration, longing, and pain.