The next day, they held yet another episode for NCT Life. Jiwoo had been busy with Dream activities, and so there had been a lack of updates of her friends. Yet, arriving to the Korea House once again, in the spacious kitchen where the boys will be spending their time, there was still that off aura happening. Even when she scurried about the kitchen, secretly putting up talismans in hidden places and leaving grains of salt at the corners of the room for good luck, it didn't shake off the feeling that something was wrong.
Ever since Doyoung and WinWin had been eliminated the first round, they had been distributed as personal assistants for first place and runner up. (Jiwoo was very happy to see Jaehyun winning first.) But since Doyoung had his own individual activities, he couldn't be here, leaving Taeil alone to his work for the first half of the shooting.
Jiwoo kept an eye open on the group, trying to figure out more by just observing. Their special guest, Chef Kwon, had returned to teach the NCT boys how to make bibimbap. They were off to make their own, following his very directions. And while this happened, she went through the process of her interviewing the boys again, going from station to station to get their input for the current mission at hand.
She made sure to stay focused on one girl in particular.
Minah was back at it on bouncing back and forth from member to member, Yuta and Ten specifically, striking up conversation whenever they weren't the focus of the cameras. But... the older girl barely batted an eyelash in Taeyong's direction, purposely would pass by his station and straight to Taeil's. Jiwoo frowned at this phenomena before her.
Did they fight or something?
The fact this had lasted more than a day irritated Jiwoo. She didn't mind it the first shooting, but right now? It was a bit ridiculous.
She had tried to talk to Taeyong about the matter when the cameras weren't on him as he was making his own bibimbap. In his tone, the composer could instantly tell that he was defensive over the mere question. He said that they were fine, but the sound in his voice said otherwise. As she tried to pry a little more on the matter, Taeyong completely dismissed it and then offered if she wanted to try the spinach he delicately flavored with the spices he was supposed to add.
How could she decline?
After noting how good the vegetable was to her tastes, he bared the widest, most sunshine smile as he thanked her. Again, it caught her off guard and she hated that he had that kind of effect just because of how unbelievably handsome he was. She saved herself and moved on to another station.
That was until she was being called over by Ten.
Jiwoo quickly approached the Thai member when he was managing the mushrooms of the dish. It was actually before they started recording, she had come to Ten to discuss this weird distance between Minah and Taeyong. They had agreed that the lad would talk to the stylist, while as she spoke to NCT's leader. Jiwoo assumed that Ten was actually Minah's second closest guy friend out of the entirety of NCT, so it was a safe bet to let him in on her observations.
"Ten... did you get anything out of Minah?" Jiwoo whispered to the Thai boy. She stood close so they could have their desired conversation. Her eyes were glued to the ingredients he had for the dish... it was a bit worrisome to watch him cook with little to no experience... but who was she to judge?
Much to the brunette's bewilderment, Ten had an amused smirk on his face at her question. He turned to look at her, his hands full of the mushrooms. "Jiwoo-yah, we're Minah's best friends, aren't we?"
She held a confused expression but she merely nodded. "And Taeyong?..."
"Nope."
"What do you mean no?" Her eyebrows furrowed at the response. "You can't tell me they aren't best friends, I've seen them interact with each other--"
"They're not friends, Jiwoo-yah. I think it's about time someone else knew about this. I'm actually surprised noona haven't told you about this before, and I doubt she'd be angry if you knew."
Pursed lips, Jiwoo stared at him intensely, trying to wrap her mind around his words.
It all then clicked in an instant.
She gasped loudly at the realization, causing everyone in the room to turn to look at her. Jiwoo murmured out her apologies to the other boys and the staff for her disruptive actions.
Back to Ten, she gave him a knowing look: They're dating?
Ten nodded at this. "I guess call it a lover's quarrel. Taeyong apparently forgot their anniversary."
"Oh my god, are you serious?"
He nodded again. "So, Minah's way of showing her anger is ignoring him. The cold shoulder. And Taeyong hates it when she does that, so I guess that's why he's been trying to talk to you more so to make her jealous."
So, that's why.
"But I don't think Minah ever told Taeyong why she was angry. She's just the kind of person who would be angry and not explain," Ten said next. "All of us guys know and experienced this before, and usually, Noona would get over her anger after a day."
"It has been more than a day though," Jiwoo huffed. Her eyes trailing over to where her stylist friend was. She was chatting with Jaehyun and WinWin at the moment. Then her focus drifted to Taeyong, who peered over a couple times, sneakily and quick, but enough to see he was stealing glances. "Oh my god, they're both immature. If they keep this up, the fans are bound to notice it when this airs."
"That's what I mentioned, but I think now Minah-noona is avoiding me since I'm the only one who knows the situation."
"I can't believe this... I'm going to talk to her right now."
"Good luck."
Jiwoo bounded over to where her friend stood. She bared a grin in greeting to her crush and Chinese friend. "Sorry, I'm going to steal Minah for a moment, alright?"
Wait.
Why does Jaehyun look a bit annoyed right now too?
As much as her heart aches at whatever he might be facing right now, she needs to take care of these problems one at a time. Jiwoo's hand grasped onto Minah's arm and dragged her off the set and out of the kitchens, they'll definitely need the privacy to talk about this absurd situation.
"Unnie," Jiwoo huffed out as they reach a secluded hallway with no one in sight. "I need for you to not lie to me."
"Jiwoo," the stylist frowned. "I would never lie to you."
"Good, now tell me the deal with you and Taeyong." Arms crossed, Jiwoo watched as Minah's once calm expression shifted. "I know."
"You know?... Did Ten tell you?" A nod. A sigh escaped the older girl and she gazed at Jiwoo with a solemn expression. "It's nothing to worry about..."
"Oh come on, Minah-unnie. I understand. Of course you should be angry that he forgot your anniversary..."
"He told you that too?"
"Yeah."
"For the love of god, Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul..." Minah pinched the bridge of her nose. "I was planning on telling you, Jiwoo... that we were together."
"No, I also understand the risks of dating. It was best to not have a lot of people know... how long have you and Taeyong been together?"
"It has been two years now."
Jiwoo blinked in surprise. She was honestly pleased to hear that they managed to have a relationship for so long. "That's amazing, unnie."
"Is it? It would've been nice if he had acknowledged that too." Minah puffed out her cheeks, an irritated look to her face. "And I know what he's trying to do acting extra sweet to you." This caused Jiwoo to stiffen. "He would do this sometimes to the older female staff members before whenever I talk to Yuta or Ten or Johnny too much--"
Johnny?...
"I always knew he was trying to get back at me. But I think it really does annoy me more with you because you're more our age, and you're my best friend," Minah admitted with a pout. "I know I shouldn't be mad at you about it, but for once he succeeded in making me jealous... I can't believe it."
Jiwoo reached over and placed her hand on the older's shoulder. "I'm sorry..."
"You shouldn't be."
"I am nonetheless. But honestly? You two really need to talk it out. I don't think Taeyong knows why you're avoiding him... A good relationship is made up of communication, unnie. Ten and I will legit force the two of you to talk if we have to."
"Please don't..."
"We will! How about after the break? That should be long enough to give your explanation. If Taeyong really likes you then he would do something about it. Don't have him in the dark the whole time."
Minah's resolve seemed to have vanished at Jiwoo's words. She reached over and tousled the brunette locks to show her appreciation of her. "Aish, what's with you giving me relationship advice, huh? Shouldn't I be the one giving you some pointers for you and Jaehyun?" She snapped her fingers at a random thought. "Oh right, you should apologize to him."
"I do? What did I do?"
"I guess I wasn't the only who was jealous over you being cute with Taeyong. Like him feeding you that samgyetang at the last shooting, we all have seen."
The thing she had dreaded the most... her face instantly fell at the news. "Jaehyun saw that?" Minah bobbed her head in reply, only furthering her heart into her gut. Jiwoo let out an exasperated groan. "Damn it, why?"
"Are we finally at the point that you two like each other but aren't doing shit about it?"
Jiwoo pursed her lips at the question and subconsciously, her fingers fiddled with the moon pendant of her choker. This was the question she had been asking herself everyday for two months. "Does he like me?--"
"Are you seriously asking me that question, Shim Jiwoo?"
"Is that a yes?"
"It is a definite yes. You shouldn't even be asking, that boy fallen so damn hard." It was hard to contain her smile. She bit down on her lip to refrain herself from doing so but failed anyway. Finally, some kind of confirmation. Minah had to smile with her. "Can we finally send you off to a date now? It's killing me."
"But the dating ban..."
"You just gotta try to control yourself in public, girl," Minah sighed. "And everyone kind of knows me as the flirty one, so people don't expect much more from me. You'll have try to have the least amount of people to know about the relationship... which in my case is my family, his family, Ten, and now you."
"Not all the boys know?"
A shake of her head. "Nope... I'm sure they've guessed by now, but they haven't said anything." The older tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, peering over at Jiwoo, who seemed lost at thought. "Jiwoo, I don't know about you, but we are at the time of our lives where we should freely love whoever the hell we want. The heart can't control itself, if you fall for someone, you just do. And if that same someone falls for you back, you take that chance and see where you go with it."
Minah grabbed her shoulders. "And I'm telling you this because you deserve some happiness and love in your life. After hearing some of the things that happened to you, you definitely deserve a break. I truly do think you're meant to be with us and with Jaehyun..."
Warmth evaded Jiwoo's cheeks.
She wants to be with Jaehyun.
She really does.
And the fact that Minah and Taeyong lasted this long gave her new hope for this to be possible now.
. . .
Second episode of NCT Life had come to a close with everyone completely finishing their bibimbap session. After a while of everyone enjoying their freshly made dish, Minah and Taeyong finally went off to discuss their dilemma. As this happened, Ten and Jiwoo stuck together, lowly conversing themselves about how things will turn out. It was honestly anxiety inducing. The two knew that missing an anniversary was no joke and they're hoping there was a misunderstanding.
As the secret couple arrived back to the scene, they both returned beaming, seemingly happier than before. At this, Ten and Jiwoo gave each other a thumbs up, knowing that the strange tension between them (and themselves) was over. No more Minah ignoring Taeyong... and no more of Taeyong using Jiwoo to make his girlfriend jealous.
And what Minah told Jiwoo once they returned to the set, it was that Taeyong didn't forget their anniversary. In fact, they were thinking of two different anniversaries. While as Minah had the anniversary of when they started dating in mind, Taeyong had the day they first met as their anniversary, because evidently, it was just a week apart. So the two will be having their little celebration of it the upcoming weekend, both now past their silly fight.
"You guys are idiots, I swear to god," Jiwoo grumbled to the couple before her. She stood along with them and Ten, the two 96-liners judging heavily. "I can't believe this."
"I'm both thankful and sorry to you, Jiwoo-yah," Taeyong replied, patting her shoulder appreciatively. "I hope you can forgive me."
"Of course I can, Taeyong," she nodded. "Just... please, both of you, talk it out next time. Or Ten and I will be on you like hawks."
"Right!" The Thai boy agreed.
Both Taeyong and Minah nodded in understanding, much to the composer's delight. The older girl then leaned over to Jiwoo, giving her a look. "By the way, Jiwoo-yah, you like coffee, don't you?" She asked out of the blue.
Confused by the sudden question, Jiwoo still answered. "I do, why?"
"There's a really great coffee place that stays open until after midnight, I think you should try it out whenever you can," Minah continued on, the smirk tugging at her lips smug. She glanced over at her boyfriend, giving her a look.
Taeyong blinked in realization, his lips formed an O. He turned towards Jiwoo. "There's also a lot of these delicious cakes and desserts you can have there," he added on. "It's called Queen Kona's. A lot of our sunbaes like going there for coffee."
"Omo, really?" Jiwoo mused. "I wonder if Onew-oppa have been there--"
"Jiwoo, seriously?" Minah's brows furrowed, taken aback on the response they gotten.
"Sorry, SHINee's coming back in two days, can you blame me?" The younger girl frowned, glancing over at each person. "Ten, c'mon, back me up here."
The boy chimed in to defend her, "Don't worry, Jiwoo-yah, I'm excited too."
"But anyway, you should go there sometime," Minah pressed on, gaining back her attention. Her gaze on Jiwoo was tense. "You know, you can possibly go there by yourself... or with someone."
"With someone--Oh." Finally getting the clue, Jiwoo's eyes trailed over to where her crush stood. He was currently chatting with the recently arrived Doyoung. Her stomach was already flipping at the thought of dating Jaehyun... but for it to be initiated and to happen? Her body was on overdrive.
She didn't think she would like someone so much.
Jiwoo could always compare the feeling of liking Jaehyun to her liking Onew. A sort of thrill and there was always a kind of adoration, but it was different.
Onew, to her, was someone of a dream. With a voice that reminded her of a day with sprinkling rain, clouds thin and there's streams of sunlight for warmth. She respected him, admired him, looked up to him... but he was always someone of fantasies. Unattainable and unreachable. He was a bias she loved... but that was it. He was an idol to her.
But with Jaehyun? It was a whole new feeling.
Who knows if it's because she had spent so much time with him and developed so much feelings. Jaehyun reminded her of the night sky. He was calm and relaxing to her. She could fall asleep and feel at peace with his presence. He absolutely dazzled like the moon and stars, the main attraction of the darkness above. Secure and serene, that was what he was to her. She found herself leaning on him for support, in which he was readily prepared to give whenever needed.
While she was thankful to have met NCT and Minah, Jaehyun was the one she had to be the most thankful for. It must be a sudden stroke of luck to have met him. She had progressed more of her life in a matter of months, compared to the past five years in which her heart had been heavy with guilt and self-loathing. But she's finally breaking away from that past.
With everything happened in the past month, she could finally see the end of her suffering.
Jiwoo couldn't help but think that he must be her own good luck charm.
However, before she could get the chance to talk to Jaehyun, the break had ended and the boys had to get back to NCT Life, their new mission to make their own specialized bibimbap. So, maybe, a text will do for now. Besides, if she were to confess right to his face right at this moment, she will becoming a babbling mess, and she wasn't going to risk having the other boys (or Seokju) overhearing.
Pushing away her fears, Jiwoo finally sent him a message, asking about his schedule for the rest of the day. She watched from the back of the room while Jaehyun discreetly took out his phone from his jean pocket. He must've seen it, as his eyes had scanned the room just to land on Jiwoo herself. She mouthed that he answer her whenever he could.
Trying not to be so obvious, he sent a message back. With a small buzz, she quickly read that they, miraculously, did have some free time after the shooting.
Right.
She will ask him to go with her for coffee.
And finally, she can confess.
A/n: Here's what their lil convo would've looked like:
We learned that Minah and Taeyong are actually a couple in this chapter. I already noticed some of y'all guessing and stuff, I wanted to drop hints here and there but I didn't want to be obvious. Idk if I did that well .
And if we refer back to the Paju chapters, yes, they did watch the sunrise together that morning.
BUT ANYWAY, NEXT CHAPTER HYPE 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 CONFESSION TIME~~
WILL IT FINALLY HAPPEN?