Sudden started laughing.
Everyone turned to look at him in surprise because Yomin had been seriously discussing what would happen after six days. In Busan, TBS concerts were always recorded, so the discussion had been completely serious until now.
Jeon.J shifted closer to Kim Joon, casually draping an arm across his shoulder.
Then he leaned forward, reading comments with Teahun.
"What happened? Why are you laughing?" Teahun looked at him, still reading the comments.
"You're reading comments, and you still don't know?" he said, trying to control his laughter.
"There's one fan of us commenting again and again."
Everyone leaned closer.
Teahun cleared his throat dramatically and read aloud,
"Yomin, first of all, you don't get married, and on top of that, you're so innocent and so serious. If you're going to show this much innocence, then tell us—is it really our fault? Fine then, we'll write it again… Yomin, marry me."
The whole room burst into laughter.
Yomin only smiled.
"Yomin, please don't smile," Hosu teased, looking straight at him. "Otherwise, I'll write to Yomin, marry me."
Yomin glared at him.
"Don't glare like that," Minjo immediately joined in, "or we'll be forced to write Yomin, marry me."
Yomin let out a long, deep sigh.
"Oof, that deep sigh," they all started teasing him at once. "Don't do that, Yomin, or we'll seriously fill the whole comment box writing Yomin marry me." Jinhun added.
Looking completely helpless, Yomin turned to Kim Joon, silently asking him to make everyone stop.
Kim Joon only shrugged.
"Now you're trying to show innocence? Not happening. Even our RAMY will start writing Yomin marry me."
He wasn't stepping back from teasing him either.
Meanwhile, Teahun kept scrolling through the comments when he suddenly laughed again.
"Look at this," he said between laughs. "The entire comment section is filled with exactly what all of you are saying—Yomin, marry
me. Yomin, marry me."
The living room was in complete chaos now, everyone laughing so hard they could barely breathe.
__________________________
ln living room
The living room had already burst into laughter again, the now-famous "Yomin, marry me" topic making its inevitable return.
"Give me my phone, I want to comment too!"
Hana quickly snatched the phone from his hand.
Then Zoya stepped into the living room.
Plate of spaghetti in hand.
She had expected—What, exactly?
She didn't know.
But it certainly hadn't been this.
Jeon.J was laughing.
Really laughing.
His head tilted back slightly as he said something that m Joon shove his shoulder.
The TBS live was in Korean, so she had no idea what they were saying, but… she watched a second later, he grinned and lightly smacked
Yomin's hand away from his food.
Completely at ease.
Completely unaffected.
As though nothing had passed between them at all.
As though her tears had never existed.
As though that silent exchange through the camera had meant absolutely nothing.
For a fleeting second, her chest tightened.
But her face revealed none of it.
She quietly took her seat beside the others.
"Why is Jeon.J suddenly so energetic?"
Minji glanced up.
"Maybe he finally found interesting comments to read."
Everyone chuckled.
Zoya said nothing.
She simply twirled her spaghetti around her fork and recited,
بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْم
Bismillāhir-Raḥmānir-Raḥīm
"In the name of Allah, the Most
Gracious, the Most Merciful."
and kept eating in silence.
Her eyes were fixed on the screen.
Watching him smile.
Watching him become the idol again.
And somewhere deep inside,
He could never belong to her, and she was slowly starting to accept that she could never belong to him either.
Zoya quietly twirled another forkful of spaghetti and brought it to her mouth.
A few seconds later, her eyes suddenly began to sting.
Moisture gathered along her lashes.
Then one drop slipped free.
Minji noticed immediately.
Her brows furrowed.
She turned sharply toward her.
"Zoya!"
Her voice came out half-scolding, half-concerned.
"You used spices, didn't you?"
Zoya did not stop her hand from eating.
In front of her, they were wrapping up the live stream.
A few final smiles, a light laugh, and then a cheerful goodbye before the screen slowly came to an end.
And just like that, it was over.
No dramatic answers.
No new turning point.
Not even a moment that could be called significant.
Yomin's "Marry me" once again remained unanswered, and Jinhun's turn still never came.
Like always, it stayed in the air—half-joke, half-question, with no real outcome.
Yet despite everything, the live stream had ended on a bright note.
A small, joyful moment shared between them and the fans.
As if nothing heavier had ever existed beneath it.
Minji set her plate down with a dramatic huff.
"I specifically told you to keep it light! But do you ever listen? No. Of course not."
She shook her head in frustration.
"Now look—your eyes are watering. Your throat's probably burning too."
The others chuckled softly at Minji's exasperated lecture.
To them, it was obvious.
The spices had done their job.
That had to be why Zoya's eyes were filled with tears.
And perhaps—
That was for the best.
Because only Zoya knew the truth.
These weren't tears brought on by spice.
There were tears for something slipping silently out of reach.
Tears for an ache she could neither explain nor confess.
Tears for a loss so undefined that even she couldn't name exactly what had been lost.
And strangely—
She was grateful for the spices.
Grateful that Minji was blaming them.
Grateful that no one was looking deeper.
It was easier this way.
Safer.
At Minji's scolding, Zoya simply smiled.
A small, quiet smile.
Then she lifted her gaze toward the screen.
Jeon.J was still seated beside Kim Joon now.
Composed.
Effortlessly at ease.
Meanwhile, Hana had shrunk the live screen and was enthusiastically reading fan comments aloud, making everyone laugh every few seconds.
Zoya watched him for a moment.
The easy smile.
The practised comfort.
The way he existed so naturally in that space—
as though he belonged to it entirely.
And then, deep inside herself, she whispered the truth she had finally accepted.
"I am ordinary. And ordinary is all I will ever be. Ordinary people disappear into crowds. They get pushed aside. Lost. Forgotten.
But idol… Idol never disappear in crowds. Crowds part for him. Crowds make way for him."
A sharp ache twisted quietly inside her.
She drew in a long, steady breath.
Then lowered her gaze back to her plate.
And this time—
She gave all her attention to her food.
As if focusing hard enough on finishing her spaghetti might somehow silence everything else she was trying so desperately not to feel.
______________
"Hana, if you don't get up right now, I swear we're leaving without you."
Sophia ground her teeth as she stormed into the room for the fifth time to wake Hana, who still showed no intention of getting out of bed.
"Sophia came to wake Hana with remarkable patience."
"Okay… okay, you go. I'm coming…"
Hana barely managed to crack her eyes open, her voice thick with sleep.
"No. Get up now."
Sophia yanked the blanket off her and tossed it aside before grabbing Hana by the arm and pulling her out of bed.
The moment her feet touched the floor, Hana collapsed dramatically onto it, curling up right there and shutting her eyes again as if she'd never been disturbed.
"HANAAA!"
Sophia's sharp yell echoed through the room.
Hana shot upright instantly, blinking innocently.
"What? I'm up, aren't I?"
Sophia folded her arms.
"If you're not fresh and outside in ten minutes, you're not getting breakfast. Your next meal will be in Busan."
She paused, her lips curling into a dangerous smile.
"And if you still want food before that, you'll make it yourself… and clean the entire kitchen afterward."
The threat worked like magic.
The second Hana heard clean the kitchen, she bolted toward the bathroom at lightning speed.
Sophia stared after her, laughing.
Of course.
Mention anything involving kitchen duty and Hana would move faster than a professional athlete. It was exactly why she preferred working as a waitress—far away from the kitchen area.
After quickly straightening the room, Sophia stepped outside.
"Hana's still not up?"
Ruhi asked, noticing Sophia had come alone.
She come after 10 minute.
The others were already scattered around the dining area, each having whatever breakfast they wanted.
Minji had filled her plate with fresh fruit.
Ruhi sat quietly with a glass of milk.
Sophia came from the kitchen carrying juice.
Zoya had grabbed toast and juice for herself.
A few minutes later, Hana finally appeared.
But the moment she entered, confusion spread across her face.
She had expected some grand breakfast setup—a long table neatly arranged with food.
Instead, everyone was casually sitting around with their own plates and glasses.
"Where's my breakfast?" she asked.
Without even looking up, Minji lazily stretched out her arm and pointed toward the kitchen.
"There."
She finally glanced at Hana, a faintly amused expression on her face.
"The kitchen. Go in, grab whatever's left."
Then her tone sharpened.
"And make it quick. We leave in five minutes."
Hana froze.
Minji continued calmly,
"I already booked the cab to the restaurant location. Before it gets there, we need to head home, pack our bags, park the car, Then start our travel to Busan.
She to ok another bite of fruit before adding,
"That's why I booked it there. We'll walk from home to the restaurant."
Then she gave Hana a pointed look.
"Oh, and while standing there listening to me, you've already wasted another five minutes."
She smirked.
"The house is huge, but empty. You could've been in the kitchen making breakfast and listening to me."
Hana immediately pulled a pitiful face, looking utterly victimized.
But instead of sympathy, laughter erupted around the room.
Because everyone knew Minji's unexpectedly sweet sarcasm could hit like that sometimes—and Hana always fell for it.
______________
"…forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty."
The moment he finished the last push-up, Jeon.J collapsed flat onto the gym floor, chest rising and falling rapidly as he took long, heavy breaths.
"You okay? You actually finished in one take today."
Teahun chuckled, barely sparing him a glance as he continued his own workout.
Jeon.J let out another deep breath before speaking.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
He exhaled sharply and waved a tired hand.
"Leave it. Tell me, what's the plan for today? There's no practice, right? Workout's done too… so what now?"
Teahun grabbed the towel hanging around his neck and wiped the sweat from his face.
"I think there's probably a Run TBS shoot."
As he spoke, he dropped down beside Jeon.J on the floor.
Jeon.J immediately shook his head, eyes still closed.
"No way. Don't say that."
A faint smile tugged at his lips.
"Honestly, all I wanted today was to sleep like crazy… then wake up and go see Amma."
His voice softened.
"Eat proper food made by her hands."
After a pause, he added lazily,
"In fact… all of us should go."
Teahun let himself fall back beside him, staring up at the ceiling.
"Yeah…"
He sighed.
"It's strange, isn't it?"
"We're in our own city, yet meeting our parents like normal people still feels impossible."
Silence settled over the gym.
The cool hum of the air conditioner, the faint scent of sweat, the exhaustion after an intense workout—it all wrapped around them.
And before either of them realized it, both had drifted off to sleep right there on the gym floor.
______________
Wait… where exactly is the concert happening?"
Hana asked, finally looking up from her half-finished breakfast.
Minji glanced at her phone screen before answering.
"In Busan's Asiad district. The main concert arena is there."
Hana's eyes widened.
"That huge one?"
"Obviously," Minji replied dryly.
"It's their biggest stop this month. Did you seriously think they'd perform somewhere smaller?"
The others laughed softly.
Minji ignored them and kept scrolling through her phone.
"The gates open at six in the evening, but fan entry starts much earlier. Security's already been tightened since yesterday because of the crowd expected."
"What about TBS?"
Hana asked, suddenly more interested.
"Where are they staying?"
Minji looked up this time.
"The entire TBS production team, staff, and artists are booked at a private luxury hotel in Haeundae."
Ruhi looked up.
"Haeundae?"
Minji nodded.
"Yeah. The hotel's close enough for quick access to the arena but far enough from the main crowd to avoid chaos."
Ruhi leaned back in her cab seat.
"The top two floors have been reserved for them. Private elevators, separate security access, restricted entry… the usual celebrity treatment."
Hana let out an exaggerated sigh.
"Meanwhile, we're out here stressing over breakfast."
"That's because unlike them," Minji said without missing a beat,
"We still have to function like normal humans."
A wave of laughter spread through the cab.
She stayed silent.
Busan.
The concert.
The same city where he would be.
The thought alone made something stir uneasily inside her chest.
And in just a few hours, all of them would be there.
For the first time, the distance between her world and his no longer felt impossible.
To be continued...
Regards,
ZK💌