Work Text:
It went downhill ever since she started to realize what it is she truly feels.
And so it was exactly why Momo’s heart started beating so fast, it felt like it would burst out of her chest. Mina was laughing, leaning over Sana’s shoulder for support as Nayeon cracked another joke to tease Jeongyeon. It’s in moments like these that Momo liked her best, her quiet demeanor long gone, her smile no longer guarded but rather something genuine that makes the corners of her eyes crinkle with it. But soon enough her laughter died down, and Jihyo started shushing everyone by ushering each of them to their seats because she was about to play the movie. Mina’s eyes met hers, naturally, since she was the only one left standing. Her lips stretched into a smile, patting the only spot left: next to her on the couch.
It didn’t help to quiet down the beating of her heart, and she was starting to question whether she should lie about feeling sick just to avoid sitting next to the girl she has feelings for, when Jeongyeon started telling her to just sit so Jihyo could play the movie. She heard Sana said that she only couldn’t wait for the movie to start so Nayeon would stop pestering her as she made her way to the couch, briefly heard them started bickering again before her sole focus singled down to the girl scooching over to make more room for her. Momo wondered how she got here, pressed to Mina’s side as the other girl rested her head on her shoulder, when ever since the revelation, she had been able to avoid the younger girl. She thought it was how the universe decided to punish her after a week of playing chicken, but she soon realized avoiding Mina left her suffering more than being here with her ever does, with Mina’s hand interlaced with hers. So was the universe punishing her or was she punishing herself, for not being able to calm her erratic heart every time Mina so much as to laid her eyes on her?
“Missed you, Momoring,” she barely heard her say, whispered like a secret.
She felt a flip in her stomach, her heart started beating faster, and this is precisely why she’s been avoiding Mina. She was afraid the younger girl would be able to hear her heart racing, her blood rushing.
Perhaps thinking that Momo didn’t catch that, Mina shifted in her seat, looking up at her with her chin still perched on her shoulder. They were close, close enough that Momo could see her long lashes and how they fluttered every time she blinked. Mina’s eyes were searching her face, for what, Momo didn’t exactly know. She opened her mouth, as if to say something, when the loud volume of the opening scene of the movie playing on the screen startled them both. Other members started laughing, Tzuyu was the loudest among them all, as they both realized that the movie chosen was a horror one.
“Why would you all choose a horror movie?! None of us would be able to sleep tonight!” Momo glared at Jihyo, the only one with the final say in what they watch for movie night. She avoided Momo’s eyes, but a playful smile was playing on her lips.
“We wanted to see your reactions,” Nayeon said, cackling while pointing at both Mina and Momo.
“Oh, unnie, you’re acting tough when we all know you’d crawl into Jeongyeon unnie’s bed because you can’t sleep alone,” Tzuyu quipped, earning a throw of a pillow from Nayeon to which Tzuyu responded with another throw to the oldest way.
“Yah! I can’t watch anything with all these pillows flying around!” Chaeyoung whined, immediately ending the pillow fight but without sending each other one last glare.
The room fell back into silence, with a certain tension in the air as everyone cowered into a protective stance due to the movie playing. Momo huffed, almost forgetting Mina’s existence entirely now that she felt annoyed by the other girls. That is, of course, until she felt her shift before getting up entirely. No one said a thing as Mina started tip-toeing back to her room, probably too immersed into the movie as the first jumpscare played on-screen. Momo frowned, she should say something to Jihyo if the movie scared Mina that much right?
She was really about to say something when she caught a glimpse of the ghost behind the main character on-screen, so she shrieked instead, along with everyone else in the room. She realized then that she didn’t have anything to bury her head into, or anything to hide herself behind, so in a moment of panic she hugged her legs closer to her chest and buried her head between her knees. She didn’t dare lift her head, especially when the other girls started shrieking again and so Momo thought dejectedly that this was how she was going to spend the rest of the night.
She felt a hand on her shoulder, startling her. She must’ve flinched visibly because the next second she felt a body pressed against her and that familiar soothing voice said, “It’s okay, it’s just me.” before she felt something warm enveloping her body, just to realize that it was a blanket draped over her shoulder.
She looked up, then, to find Mina adjusting blanket over them both with pillows in her arms. It looked funny, Mina’s hand was struggling to hold all the pillows together as her other hand tried to adjust the blanket over her shoulder. So Momo found herself reaching out to help her, giggling as Mina looked over with a look of surprise that quickly shifted into a more fond one. The younger girl let Momo help her, watching as she took one pillow from her grasp to fluff it. She was about to put it on Mina’s lap when the quiet girl shook her head, a grin splitting her face.
“No, I took the pillows for you, Momo-chan.”
As if sensing that Momo was about to question her, Mina continued, “I know you’re gonna be scared so rather than hugging your legs and spending the night hunched over, I figured hiding behind these pillows would be more comfortable for you.”
“But you hate scary movies, too,” Momo frowned, but feeling her heart flutter at the simple gesture.
Mina shrugged, offering her a reassuring smile before averting her gaze back onto the screen. And despite having the pillows Mina brought over on her lap now, she found herself snuggling closer to Mina instead, looping her arm around the other girl’s before resting her head on her shoulder. She soon felt Mina leaning onto her head, a breathless giggle escaping her lips as her hand squeezed Momo’s, definitely aware of Momo feeling bad for hogging all the pillows. Her heartbeat quickened, warmth spread over her as she heard Mina say, “I’ll be okay, Momoring.”
It's moments like these that got Momo's heart swelling. Like the time when Mina immediately asked if both Momo and Nayeon were okay after the fireworks set off on stage, because she knew the both of them hated fireworks. Like the time when Mina sat up to retrieve a blanket for Momo on an award show, because she had short skirt on. Like the time when Mina pressed a bottle of water against her cheek after practice, even when both their chests were still heaving and both their shirts were drenched in sweat. Like the time when Mina offered her the first bite of her jokbal, because she knew it was Momo's favorite food. Like the time Mina crawled into her bed in the middle of the night, with a pint of ice cream, because she noticed that Momo got frustrated during practice. Each time, she would notice the way Mina's eyebrows would knit in concern, but especially her brilliant smile after Momo assured her that she was okay. Momo started falling for the girl who has so much love within herself, always readily sharing it with the world.
So, it’s in these moments, when Mina silently does little things to show her that she cares, that got Momo falling harder and harder every time.
(She really doesn’t think she’ll stop.)