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Wonwoo has always been the kind of cynic who wonders how comic book superheroes are able to keep their identity secret from everyone. Spiderman she kind of gets - his entire face is covered with his mask - but that's not the case with a lot of other superheroes. You're saying even close family and friends can't recognise features only marred by a strip of cloth over the eyes, or their loved one's voice?

But the thing is, when Wonwoo gets placed into that kind of situation, she doesn't suspect anything either at first. She sees news about a masked superhero in Seoul, a girl who has powers of flight and light manipulation who saves a kid from falling off the ceiling, and even with close-ups where only part of her face is covered by a mask hastily manufactured out of some orange fabric, Wonwoo doesn't think anything other than the craziness of it all and that she seems cute, maybe.

So she doesn't suspect anything until her best friend randomly asks her at lunch one time, "How would you feel if I suddenly became a supergirl?"

Mind you, Soonyoung asked this barely a week after the superhero was first sighted. Not very wise on her part.

"Are you a supergirl, Soonyoung?" Wonwoo asks pointedly, mostly teasing at this point but the way Soonyoung splutters is a bit too real.

"N-No, 'course not! I've just been thinking about it, you know, 'cause of the light girl and stuff!"

Not a terrible excuse. "Well. It would be hard on you, so I'd support you as much as I can."

"Ah," Soonyoung says, a smile on her face that's a little shaky. Then Wonwoo blinks when Soonyoung slowly sinks her head down onto the table. "You're...you're so nice, Wonwoo..."

"And you're saying that like it's the worst thing in the world?" Wonwoo questions, not sure of what's going on but she chalks it up to Soonyoung being in a weird mood today, so she rubs a comforting hand up and down her back. Although she's not sure if it's the right thing to have done when it makes Soonyoung let out the heaviest sigh known to man.

Wonwoo starts to get it after that - but she's still not as clueless as the comic books make people seem. When you have zero reason to believe that a superhero is someone you know, then it's likely that you don't think twice about it. But when you have a suspicion, even an unconscious one, that's when the threads should start to unravel. Easily.

Soonyoung goes to Japan for her cousin's wedding that weekend, after weeks of Soonyoung complaining about the fact that Wonwoo can't come with her and Wonwoo silently wishing she could come, too. She'll only be gone for a weekend but Wonwoo thinks about how she spends most of her weekends with Soonyoung, and wonders if they live in each other's pockets a bit too much.

It's when Wonwoo's pulling an all-nighter on Saturday that things really start to click. She goes to take a break after the words she's trying to read over in her essay start to blur, and heads to social media. Something in Japanese is trending worldwide.

She wakes up quick when she goes into the trend and sees the videos - all shaky shots of a superhero helping control traffic and save victims from cars that have skidded due to a large oil spill from a truck crash. And it's the light girl who was in Seoul just the other week. No doubt about it. She has the same hair, same build, same semblance of powers, same kind of quickly-made mask, but she's wearing a gorgeous dress. Somehow gorgeous even after over half of its skirt has been torn off, maybe to make it easier to move in, and one of the sleeves have been ravaged.

It's also a dress that Wonwoo slightly recognises. Because when Soonyoung was out dress-shopping with her mother for the wedding a little while ago, she video-called Wonwoo in the fitting rooms to ask her if the dress she was trying on looked good. Except the camera was a bit too close so all Wonwoo could see was the top half (still pretty, a simple design of merging sunset colours), and the call got cut short after her mother asked in disbelief, "Soonyoung, are you on the phone?"

So the light girl is just in an off-shoulder mini dress saving a town, seemingly using her light manipulation to red-light all of the nearest traffic signals and zipping around places quickly to help anyone who’s hurt or liable to get hurt. This happened hours ago by now and the road has officially been closed but Wonwoo, in a little bit of a trance, keeps looking for more videos as well as statements and news reports. There's one clip where the superhero lands really close to the person filming so Wonwoo can clearly see her face as she looks around, high on alert with her small eyebrows furrowed. Her hair bounces on her shoulders in a way Wonwoo's seen a million times, her eyes narrow in a way Wonwoo's seen even more times, and then she's soaring off, a trail of light following after her like a shooting star.

It's you, Wonwoo thinks, wide-eyed. Of course it's you, Soonyoung.

Hoshi. That's what the public and news are calling her, and also what the Japanese trend was saying.

Soonyoung doesn't seem to like that very much.

"What kind of name is 'Hoshi'? What even is that?" Soonyoung argues the same day she gets back from Japan. She's already in Wonwoo's apartment, pacing while she frowns at a news report playing on her phone. "I mean, 'Light Girl' was too simple but Hoshi? Let her choose her own name! Something like 'Supernova' would be much cooler-"

"Soonyoung, why are you so worked up about it?" Wonwoo asks, amused. She ended up accepting the fact that her best friend is most likely a superhero a bit too quickly, probably, but the shock just isn't there. Instead, Wonwoo feels awe. Respect. Satisfaction, because Soonyoung has always felt like a bright main character of a comic book to Wonwoo and this just lives up to that even more. Wonwoo has just always kind of thought that Soonyoung could do anything.

And she's read enough comics to know that Soonyoung's keeping it a secret from her to try to keep her safe. Wonwoo will live with that, because she doesn't want to stress Soonyoung out by telling her that she knows.

Soonyoung turns bright red at Wonwoo's question. "I'm just- empathising! If you were a superhero, you'd wanna be able to give yourself your own hero name, right?"

"I don't know, I'm not a superhero," Wonwoo says with a smile, pulling out a chair as Soonyoung trudges over huffily. "You know, in the DC universe, there's a superhero who has similar powers to you. She was activated by a higher being who shot her with energy from a star, giving her powers of light. She has the superhero name Doctor Light but her real name is Hoshi, and she's pretty cool. If you ever wanted to check her out."

"Wow," Soonyoung says, sat down now as she gives Wonwoo a grin that's playful, fond. "It's so hot when you say nerdy things to make me feel better."

Only Wonwoo's ears turn red, luckily. "What about when I say them in other contexts?"

Soonyoung hums. "Less hot. Still great, though. You think that's why people are calling me- her Hoshi?"

What an awful slip-up. "It could be. But didn't you see that Hoshi means 'star' in Japanese? It was the Japanese outlets that started calling her that, everyone else just adopted it."

Soonyoung goes suitably starry-eyed at that. "Oh...well...okay, maybe that's pretty nice..."

"It reminds me of something else, too," Wonwoo says casually as if she hasn't been thinking about this ever since Saturday, and Soonyoung stares at her in pure wonder and anticipation, like Wonwoo's word is gospel. A bit more than Wonwoo's ears go red at that.

She scribbles on her exercise book before pushing it over for Soonyoung to see. A simple tree diagram of the name split into two: 'Ho(호)' 'Shi(시)' with two words splitting off from them respectively: 'Tiger(호랑이)' and Gaze(시선)' (she draws flashy lines surrounding that part because she thinks Soonyoung would appreciate it). And Soonyoung stares, just stares and stares as she slowly brings a hand up to cover her mouth. The silence kind of unnerves Wonwoo, to the point that she decides to be silly and curl her hands at Soonyoung, saying a flat, "Rawr," and feeling smug when Soonyoung bursts out laughing.

"I kinda really love you, Jeon Wonwoo," Soonyoung sighs dreamily afterwards like she's just sank into the nicest bath. "Like you don't know. You don't even know how much."

Wonwoo would find that a lot weirder if she wasn't now 100% sure that Soonyoung was Hoshi, and if Soonyoung hadn't just had the longest weekend. Wonwoo's glad to be any kind of support to her, just like she said.

"That goes for the both of us."

Soonyoung nudges her under the table, teasing, "Shut up, I already know you love me soooooo much," and Wonwoo laughs even though yeah, she really hopes Soonyoung does know that.

It makes her choke on her coffee when the next time Hoshi is sighted, she's got an actual superhero outfit this time. Her mask is black but littered with a golden constellation of stars, and her shirt matches it, sleeveless and black with a golden star at her chest forming its neckline. It tapers into a tiger-print (yes, tiger-print) short circle skort, with a gold background instead of orange as black jagged stripes run across it. Bar from the mask, it doesn't really look like any kind of superhero outfit Wonwoo's seen in media - instead it looks like real fashion, the kind of quirky but stylish thing you see on a runway - and she looks...incredible. Wonwoo doesn't want to take her eyes off her.

When Wonwoo actually hears Soonyoung yell in a video "TIGER'S GAZE!" before flying off, she giggles to herself. Is Soonyoung even trying to hide this from Wonwoo?

"Wow, I guess she had the same idea as you!" Soonyoung gasps at Wonwoo the next day, loud and clearly over-compensating. Wonwoo's smile is uncontrollable as she replies simply, "I guess she did."

The first time Wonwoo and Hoshi 'meet', it's hilarious. Wonwoo doesn't know if Soonyoung's actually this stupid or whether she's so comfortable around Wonwoo that she lets her guard down around her way too much. When she hasn't even been a superhero for a month...

One night, Wonwoo gets woken up by loud noises and scuffling inside her room, and she slowly blinks her eyes open. Without her glasses, it's blurry, but she can make out something bright coming through her window. Was her window ever even open?

She groggily reaches out for her glasses, and by the time she slips them on, Soonyoung in her superhero costume is pacing across Wonwoo's room and launching into a rant. No introduction or hello or anything.

"Apparently the government wants to issue a warrant for me or something like that," Soonyoung grumbles, arms flying about in her fervour, "and it can't be for anything good, right? They probably wanna interrogate me and do experiments on me and label me as a 'suspicious person' - I'm not a suspicious person! I'm a good person, or I'm trying to be!"

"’Course you’re a good person but slow down," Wonwoo tries, still half-asleep and trying her best to keep up. "Why are you-"

"You can't trust the government. Conspiracies! Who knows what they're doing behind closed doors! Those cookie things! They're watching us! And it's always superheroes against the government, right? Ugh, I should've seen this coming...you probably already knew this was coming, why didn't you warn-"

"How would you know that about me, Hoshi?"

After hearing her superhero name come out of Wonwoo's mouth (which Wonwoo said on purpose, seems like she can still do some critical thinking after having just woken up), Soonyoung freezes. She slowly turns her head to stare at Wonwoo, horror written all over her half-masked face, and Wonwoo sincerely wonders how Soonyoung is going to get herself out of this. In what world would a superhero break into some random person's place to rant at them?

"Ah, I know a friend of yours!" Soonyoung eventually says, eyes bright like a lightbulb went off in her brain, and Wonwoo raises an eyebrow.

"Which friend?"

"Oh, um, I can't tell you, but she helped me with my outfit." Then Soonyoung winces. "Fuck, that probably gave away too much, didn't it..."

It sort of didn't, since Wonwoo has about three friends who have an interest in sewing and fashion and that’s like thirty percent of her friends. For Soonyoung's sake, Wonwoo won't try to narrow it down. Soonyoung might be lying about this anyway even though she doesn't seem like it, because Wonwoo doesn't know whether being a superhero might have made Soonyoung a more effective liar already or not.

She hopes not. She really likes how honest Soonyoung is.

"So what are you doing here?"

Soonyoung looks stumped again. "Umm...I need somewhere to sleep tonight? And my friend said you might let me?"

Wow, this maybe-imaginary friend is making Wonwoo sound like a pushover. And Wonwoo would say yes to Soonyoung any day but she still tries to keep up the pretence: "I'm not sure about letting a stranger stay overnight...I have a roommate too and that'll complicate things..."

Soonyoung nods her head fiercely. "I won't leave your room! I'll be so quiet, too! And I'll sleep on the floor-"

"You don't have to do that. I'll go to the couch."

Soonyoung rushes over to Wonwoo, looking almost mad. "No way. What kind of superhero would let the prettiest girl they've ever seen sleep on a couch?"

Wonwoo bites back a smile. Is Soonyoung trying to get a flirty reputation as a superhero? Very signature.

"We'll figure that out in a minute. Concerning what you said earlier," Wonwoo says, reaching out for Soonyoung's arm and gently pulling her down to sit opposite her - it's probably too familiar, but Soonyoung doesn't seem to think much of it, just looking at Wonwoo in bright-eyed anticipation, "I don't want you to get into trouble."

Soonyoung hangs her head a little. "Well...being a superhero is all about getting into trouble, isn't it?"

"I know. But you can still try to be as careful as you can. While you save others, don't cut yourself down."

The laugh Soonyoung lets out in reply is unsteady. "Ahh, wow...you're saying such deep things...I've only been in this shit for a few weeks, you know?"

Wonwoo takes her hand, apologetic as she brushes a thumb across the back of it. Almost says 'I just care about you' before remembering their situation and realising she's probably gone a bit too far for a supposed almost-stranger.

She lets go quickly and clears her throat, elaborating, "Yeah, sorry, it's just advice. It's not like I'm really one to advise, anyway, I've obviously never been a superhero-"

"No, I think you know so much," Soonyoung tells her sincerely, revering. "You're so- my friend tells me you're so smart."

Ah, the 'friend' again. "Tell them I said thank you.”

Soonyoung smiles at her, wide and sweet, the most Soonyoung smile ever, before she heads back over to the window. Wonwoo tries not to laugh as she calls out, “Didn't you need to sleep here tonight?”

Soonyoung's shoulders jerk up like she’d forgotten about that until now. But then she looks back at Wonwoo over her shoulder and winks. “I've bothered you enough, pretty girl.”

That was awful but Wonwoo pretends to act like the epitome of a flustered fangirl as she hides her face with her blanket, and Soonyoung beams like she's immensely proud of herself. Then seconds later, she's gone.

“You're so nice, Wonwoo,” Soonyoung tells her the next day, unprompted. “Like you're genuinely the nicest person in the world.”

Wonwoo, who had just stolen one of Soonyoung's chips, slowly puts it back. “Am I now?”

“Yes, and I'm worried. Don't let people take advantage of it! Not even superheroes!”

Oh, Soonyoung really isn't trying to hide it from her. “Why superheroes in particular?”

“Because…they seem like the epitome of good, right? But they could have bad motives, too!” Soonyoung manages to think up quickly, so maybe she is getting better at dragging herself out of the holes that she digs on her own. “I'm serious, Wonwoo. Don't be super nice to everyone. You can be super nice to me, but be a little less nice to everyone else.”

Wonwoo flicks Soonyoung's forehead and Soonyoung whines. “I prefer when it's the other way round, though?”

That makes Soonyoung laugh instead of whine more, and Wonwoo’s always happy when she makes Soonyoung laugh so she ends up giving her some of her own chips.

The first time Wonwoo gets to witness Hoshi in action, she's walking home from uni when someone sprinting past her grabs her bag and runs off with it. Wonwoo seizes up, frozen to the spot, and she barely hears when moments later a familiar voice calls out, “Miss, are you alright?”

Wonwoo lifts her head, still in shock so she can’t really reply. But all Soonyoung needs to do is get a look at Wonwoo’s face before she flames up, eyes narrowing and hands clenching into fists right before she launches past Wonwoo and down the street. Wonwoo whizzes around almost a full circle like in those cartoons when something goes by really fast.

Once she’s gathered her wits again, she notices the sound of alarms going off. She picks her way through the crowd of people starting to gather in the streets and sees that it’s coming from a bank, clearly having just been breached, and from what she can gather from people’s whispers, superhero Hoshi had arrived in time and chased out the perpetrator. Is that who stole Wonwoo’s bag?

The crowd suddenly erupts into cheers, and Wonwoo snaps out of her reverie to focus on the flash of light barrelling her way towards them. Once Soonyoung skids to a stop with the robber in one arm and Wonwoo’s and another large bag in the other, she looks like she’s going to hurl the large bag back into the bank before she stops, eyeing it warily like she’s realised just how much money there is in it. She ends up very carefully handing the bag over to an awed bank worker.

“Are the police here yet?” Soonyoung calls, voice authoritative and level which makes Wonwoo’s heart beat a little fast, and it’s a couple minutes before sirens are heard and Soonyoung’s able to hand the robber over. The police seem scattered between trying to talk to witnesses, focusing on the robber, and wanting to take Soonyoung in for questioning, too, but Soonyoung doesn’t heed them any mind - instead she’s scanning the crowd intently, lifting Wonwoo’s bag in the air. Dumbly, Wonwoo wonders what she’s looking for at first, but then she clocks. She opens her mouth to yell out that she’s there, but everyone’s making so much noise…she doesn’t think she can be louder than them…

Still. When she tries - a simple yell of “Hoshi!” - Soonyoung perks up and snaps her head towards her almost immediately. Soonyoung’s eyes fill with relief before she flies over the crowd to get to Wonwoo; which is pretty dramatic, and gets them a lot of stares, but Soonyoung doesn’t seem to care as she holds out Wonwoo’s bag to her. “This is yours!”

“Thank you,” Wonwoo says, taking hold of it. Soonyoung scratches the back of her head afterwards, admitting shamefully, “I wasn’t, uh, super careful, so if something’s damaged, I’m so sorry…I’ll save up really hard to replace it, okay?”

Wonwoo smiles. “I’ll hold you to that.”

Soonyoung smiles back, breathless with wild hair and bright eyes like she’s just been through a rollercoaster rush, and Wonwoo finds her so pretty. But then through a megaphone, a policeman seems to be calling for Hoshi to return, and Soonyoung grimaces.

“Hey, I kind of need to get out here,” Soonyoung says, taking a step closer to Wonwoo. “Are you going home? I can fly you there.”

Wonwoo blinks many times. “...fly me?”

“It’ll be really fun, I promise!” Before Wonwoo knows it, Soonyoung’s already slipping her arms around Wonwoo and lifting her up in what feels like split-seconds. Wonwoo lets out a soft noise of surprise, wrapping her arms around Soonyoung’s neck and feeling…confused? Sure, Soonyoung’s strong from dancing and she’s been working out a lot more in recent years but Wonwoo did not know Soonyoung could do this. “Besides, beautiful girls deserve a superhero escort every now and then.”

“Do they?” Wonwoo chuckles, and since Soonyoung seems to be really hellbent on this playgirl superhero rep, Wonwoo decides to help her by leaning in and pressing a kiss to her cheek. Wonwoo didn’t predict a reaction, but it definitely wouldn’t have been Soonyoung turning bright red and faltering so much that her grip on Wonwoo loosens for a second. Chatter in the crowd increases with even some whistles thrown about, and it probably doesn't help when Wonwoo whispers in Soonyoung’s ear amusedly, “Please don’t drop me.”

“I'd never!” Soonyoung yelps, high-pitched and too loud, and then she’s shooting off into the sky. Wonwoo’s eyes widen at the sudden acceleration (even if Soonyoung’s embarrassed, she should’ve still warned Wonwoo to brace herself!) and she curls up, hiding her face in Soonyoung’s chest. That seems to make Soonyoung go slower, murmuring, “Shit, sorry,” into Wonwoo’s hair, and then? It's a pretty pleasant flight. Wonwoo feels weightless, the thought of gravity gone from her mind as the gentle rush of wind combs through her hair and kisses her skin. It sort of reminds Wonwoo of going on a Ferris wheel, but then there’s also the fact that Soonyoung’s the one holding her, never slipping up once now. Close, secure, safe. Wonwoo wants to melt into it.

They reach the roof of Wonwoo’s apartment building and Soonyoung lands, helping Wonwoo onto her feet. Once she’s situated, Soonyoung clutches the cheek that Wonwoo kissed earlier and insists with wide eyes, “I’m never going to wash my face again, you know.”

“I think you should,” Wonwoo snorts, not sure whether to feel shy or amused. Both? That’s usually her go-to when Soonyoung flirts, but she’s never been this shameless about it before.

Soonyoung pouts but also asks, “Would you do it again if I do?”

Wonwoo raises her eyebrows, grinning. “Any time you want.”

Soonyoung swoons dreamily in reply, to the point where she falls back and right off the roof. Wonwoo yells out in surprise, rushing to look over the edge, but it’s all fine as Soonyoung flies back up to her beaming. “Geez, Hoshi, you scared me…”

“Sorry,” Soonyoung giggles, not looking very sorry at all. “I got that from Aladdin.”

“Good for you.”

“Aladdin took Jasmine on the carpet ride after this part, though, right? And that’s when he got to kiss the girl…have I done this backwards?”

Wonwoo’s ears flash red, not sure where Soonyoung’s going with this. Should she just play along? “Well, you never kissed me.”

Soonyoung’s eyes widen. “R-Right. Um. I should probably go, huh?”

Now Wonwoo feels silly. “Oh, yes. Thank you for taking me home. Even though I don’t know how to get to my room from the roof, we’re not meant to have access here.”

Soonyoung blinks, then Wonwoo’s back in Soonyoung’s arms in a flash. “Wha- why didn’t you say so?! Damn, this is nothing like the movies.”

“Sorry,” Wonwoo jokes but Soonyoung tells her she should never apologise - how chivalrous - and gently floats her back to the ground. Wonwoo thought she was doing alright, but after Soonyoung leaves, Wonwoo feels a bit like she’s in a daze as she heads back to her apartment. A little drunk.

Only for the door to be opened when she’s barely put her key into the lock and she’s faced with a frenzied Mingyu. “Unnie, I just saw the news, did Hoshi fucking fly you somewhere?!”

Ah, shit. Is Wonwoo going to have to deal with the media, too?

Something a little strange happens the next day. When Wonwoo and Soonyoung find each other at lunch like usual, Soonyoung looks exhausted. Hair unbrushed, face worn, eyes droopy; Soonyoung’s been doing this superhero thing for quite a while now and maybe she looks a bit more tired these days, but never like this.

“Hey,” Wonwoo greets her, unable to hide the worry in her voice. “You okay?”

Soonyoung musters a smile and finger guns, so maybe she’s not too bad. Still, Wonwoo keeps a careful eye on her as they get their food and find a table.

“Wonwoo, um,” Soonyoung says quietly about ten minutes in, and Wonwoo listens. “Can I ask you something?”

“‘Course.”

“Do you…like Hoshi?”

Wonwoo smiles. Is Soonyoung fishing for compliments?

“Hoshi? You mean the superhero?”

Soonyoung nods. Well, if she needs compliments, since comic book superheroes are always the most insecure when they’re just starting out, then Wonwoo can give them to her.

“Of course. She’s helping a lot of people. Her powers are really cool and she seems to have a good grasp on them. And…she’s charming.”

Wonwoo expects Soonyoung to smile in reply, or at least brighten up a little. It blindsides her when Soonyoung does the complete opposite instead, drooping even more until she’s got her cheek squished against the table. “Oh…”

Wonwoo forgets about her lunch for a second and shuffles closer, resting a hand on Soonyoung’s back. “Soonyoung, did anything happen? You look like you’re going to turn into a puddle of goo.”

Soonyoung looks up at her, forlorn. “Would you want to date her?”

Huh?

Wonwoo’s first reaction is shock, of course, because that felt like it came out of nowhere. But then, her heart sinks. Is Soonyoung acting like this because she thinks Wonwoo is crushing on her after yesterday? For a moment, that makes her feel a surge of anger. Soonyoung was the one talking about kissing and whatnot yet now she’s looking like the heights of misery?

Wonwoo decides to act indifferent, for both their sakes. “What…oh. Have you seen the articles, too? Seriously, Soonyoung, it’s nothing like that.”

But that seems to make Soonyoung even more miserable as she hides her face in her arms, so now Wonwoo’s just confused as hell. In the end, the lunch is a little tense and it’s not long before they need to go their separate ways again. Well, hopefully the next time she sees Soonyoung will be a lot better than this.

But when it’s already been about a minute since Wonwoo leaves the canteen, she hears the sound of hurried footsteps, and someone takes her hand. “Wonwoo, I’m sorry, I- I’ve been really busy lately and I’ve been in a weird headspace and there are things I want to tell you that I can’t and it’s really grating on me because I usually tell you everything so it’s just not-”

Wonwoo turns around, and Soonyoung instantly shuts up, watching her with wide worried eyes like she’s just realised she shouldn’t have said any of that. And yeah, she probably shouldn’t have. Thing is, when your best friend tells you that they can’t tell you something, it’s hard not to immediately jump to the worst conclusions - drugs, shady business, just something criminal - and it’s hard not to immediately try to convince them to simply tell you.

But Wonwoo already knows what it is. Already promised herself that she’d be trying her best to help Soonyoung from the sidelines, even if the most she can do is be a friend who doesn’t question things.

“Just look after yourself,” Wonwoo tells her softly. That’s what finally makes Soonyoung brighten up. She looks ten times more alive as she gives Wonwoo eyes that drip with ‘I love you, I love you’, and Wonwoo’s mouth curls into a bashful smile. Soonyoung does love her, they’re best friends, and Wonwoo can’t forget that.

Her heart feels lighter when they part ways for the second time.

The time that Wonwoo normally spends with Soonyoung decreases quite a lot with the whole superhero business. They still grab lunch together, but it’s rare that they hang out long (or at all) after class anymore, and work takes up the rest of their time. But contrarily, the time that Wonwoo spends with Hoshi increases.

It’s not often that Wonwoo runs into her in action since she usually does actual danger patrols at night, so Wonwoo assumes that Soonyoung just changes into her hero costume on the spot if she sees anything happening during the day. It also means that the talk about Wonwoo and Hoshi dies down quick and just turns into people asking her every now and then what the superhero is like outside of saving people. Wonwoo tells them that they didn’t talk much but she’s cute, flirty and fetching, and that ramps up positive gossip. Soonyoung should thank Wonwoo for the free PR she’s giving her.

It definitely tends to be in the late hours when Soonyoung does most of her hero work, and she’s also made a habit out of slipping in through Wonwoo’s window and taking a small break with her every now and then. If this is the only way Wonwoo can support her through this crazy double life she’s living, she’ll take it.

“So do you do this every night?” Wonwoo asks one time as she comes back to her room with two mugs of hot chocolate to see Soonyoung sitting on her desk chair backwards, rolled over to the window so she can peer outside with narrowed poised eyes. ‘Tiger’s gaze’ might be pretty accurate. “Patrol the city?”

“Pretty much.” Soonyoung folds her arms on top of the back of the chair, resting her chin on them. “I stopped a lot of petty crime when I did it one night so I just ended up…doing it more.”

“Do you sleep?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Soonyoung dismisses, which Wonwoo doesn’t love. She goes over to hand Soonyoung a mug, and Soonyoung smiles up at her. Then Wonwoo goes back to her bed, and for a while, there’s a nice silence. The familiar kind that occurs when she’s with Soonyoung and they do separate things but together (that hasn’t happened in a while, actually). Then when Wonwoo’s drumming her fingers against her laptop, stuck at a point in her essay, Soonyoung shoots up.

“What the hell is that?”

Wonwoo barely looks up in time. “What-”

Wonwoo blinks when Soonyoung’s clambering out of Wonwoo’s window in a flash without even setting the mug down, yelling out “THANK YOU FOR THE HOT CHOCOLATE!” as she soars across the sky. Wonwoo watches after her with a shake of her head. Is Soonyoung planning to drink it even while she’s out fighting crime?

The next morning, there’s a new and badly wrapped mug on Wonwoo’s desk. Stuck to it is a note that says: ‘broke your mug…sorry…but this one is really cool! - hoshi. p.s. your hot choc is very nice ♡’. Wonwoo grins, and predicts even before she unwraps it that the mug is going to have a tiger on it. She’s right.

Wonwoo realises that she might let her guard down just as much as Soonyoung does. One night when Soonyoung crawls in through the window seeming particularly tired, she opts to sit on Wonwoo’s bed instead, and Wonwoo gradually gravitates towards her as time passes. It’s just easy and second nature because Wonwoo knows that this vibrant superhero is just Soonyoung, and Soonyoung also never hides how comfortable she is with Wonwoo even if she’s wearing the mask; so soon Wonwoo has Soonyoung leaning back into her chest as she hooks a chin over Soonyoung’s shoulder, her laptop on Soonyoung’s lap as Wonwoo reaches around her to type. Soonyoung feels like she’s melting into Wonwoo, seconds away from dozing off, but she hums every now and then like she’s trying to keep herself awake.

Wonwoo pauses, looking at her, and murmurs, “You can sleep.”

Soonyoung shakes her head, even as she burrows into Wonwoo a little more. “I shouldn’t…”

“It’s never been a given that Seoul has a superhero looking out for them every night. You can sleep.”

“But something might-”

“I told you to look after yourself,” Wonwoo persists, standing firm. But that’s a slip-up, because Wonwoo said that to Soonyoung at school, not to Hoshi during one of the many nights that they meet. But Soonyoung doesn’t seem to catch it. She just bites her lip and deflates like a balloon in Wonwoo’s arms as she sighs, “I can’t say no to you.”

“Good,” Wonwoo says, very pleased with that answer. Soonyoung elbows Wonwoo for some reason and then, without much fanfare because they’re both worn out, they fall asleep in the same bed.

Wonwoo expects Soonyoung to be gone when she wakes up. That seems typical of a superhero with a secret identity. But Wonwoo accidentally stirs awake a bit early, maybe around five am, and feels indescribable cosiness in the form of an arm fit snug around her waist and a face smushed into her chest. Wonwoo stares up at the ceiling for a moment, buzzing with warmth and something else, then almost jolts when Soonyoung slurs quietly, “Wonwoo…your boobs are like…the best…”

Wonwoo has to bite her fist to contain her surprised laughter. Not the first time Soonyoung’s said something like that, but in her sleep?

Wonwoo closes her eyes again with a smile, and when she wakes up for real to her blaring alarm, Soonyoung is gone this time.

Outside of Hoshi, Soonyoung’s been acting strange. Slower responses to texts, less texts in general, taking a rain check on more lunches saying that she’s getting some extra practice in at the dance studios. Then when she actually is there with Wonwoo, she seems on edge. She’s jumpy. Less touchy, even casually. Sometimes they’ll get into a conversation or Wonwoo will make Soonyoung laugh and it feels like they’re okay again, but then Soonyoung seems to remember something - what is it? - and scoots away if she deems herself too close to Wonwoo, or falls suddenly quiet if she’s being loud.

Something’s wrong, and the only thing Wonwoo can think of is that Soonyoung’s letting the fact that she’s hiding such a big secret from Wonwoo weigh on her.

Yes, Wonwoo’s so inspired and proud of what Soonyoung’s doing for the city. Yes, Wonwoo likes having a couple hours during most nights with her where things almost (almost) feel normal. But why can Soonyoung only be normal with her in a superhero costume? And why, after years of friendship where they became closer than Wonwoo ever thought she would be with someone, is Soonyoung letting their friendship dissolve like this? Wonwoo can’t be the only one holding on.

Yet even with all these thoughts plaguing his mind, Soonyoung does something amazing and very bizarre to make her forget it all. She turns up at Wonwoo's apartment, as her superhero alter ego, with a rose.

Wonwoo’s not even the one who opens the door for her, it’s Mingyu. Both of their mouths drop open as they stare at each other, and Soonyoung stammers out, “W-Wait, I don’t think I thought this through-”

“UNNIE!” Mingyu yells, not taking her wide eyes off of Soonyoung once and Soonyoung winces. “GET THE FUCK OVER HERE!”

Wonwoo slowly trudges out of her room, messy-haired and in pyjamas as she grumbles that she ‘literally just woke up from a nap two minutes ago’ but she freezes at the scene in front of her. Is this a dream?

“Hoshi,” Mingyu hisses in a way that Soonyoung can definitely still hear, even pointing at her, “is at our place.”

“I can see that,” Wonwoo says slowly, trying to comb her hair out a little bit with her fingers. Soonyoung’s never really seen her like this. But the way Soonyoung looks at her is the direct opposite of disgusted - kind of adoring, really - and she steps past Mingyu to hold out the rose.

“This is yours.”

Mingyu splutters in the background as Wonwoo raises her eyebrows, going over and gingerly taking the flower. “Thank you, but why…?”

“I want to ask you something. But I might need to make your roommate sign an NDA first,” Soonyoung sighs heavily, though Wonwoo reassures her, “She won’t tell anyone,” at the same time as Mingyu yelps in offence, “I won’t tell anyone!”

Soonyoung nods quickly. “Okay, then…Jeon Wonwoo. Prettiest girl in the world. Would you like to go on a date with me?”

Mingyu gasps. Wonwoo drops the rose. Instead of processing any of that, she decides to bend down to try to pick it up instead, but Soonyoung tells her she’ll do it, so Soonyoung’s hands end up over Wonwoo’s as they both crouch on the floor. So close. Wonwoo looks up, and so does Soonyoung, and Wonwoo thinks she can feel her breath. It’s pretty heavy breath. Did she run (or fly) here?

“Are you serious?” Wonwoo asks her, the lightest tremble in her voice. She scrutinises Soonyoung’s face for any kind of hint that this is a joke, but all she sees is sincerity. Warm eyes, solemn expression, determined and hopeful. Wonwoo’s so glad that she’s not standing because her legs feel like jelly.

“I’m serious,” Soonyoung confirms in words, though Wonwoo already knows. “Please go on a date with me.”

Wonwoo nods before she’s even aware that she’s nodding. Soonyoung lights up in an instant, the sweetest most triumphant smile spilling over her face, and Wonwoo can barely stay on her feet when Soonyoung helps pull her up. Before Wonwoo or even Mingyu can say anything, she’s sprinting back out, calling over her shoulder happily, “Saturday! Tomorrow! I’ll pick you up!” before she turns the corner and all traces that she was ever here are gone.

“Unnie,” Mingyu says lowly after a few moments of tense silence. “You have so much explaining to do.”

“She didn’t say what time the date was, did she?” Wonwoo asks distractedly, and Mingyu runs over to drag her to the sofa for questioning.

Wonwoo only has one class that day at 6pm, for her Renaissance Literature module, so after she tells Mingyu as much as she can - all she really says is that they started meeting more after that one time Hoshi carried her home and Mingyu squeals about it like she’s never been more excited in her life - she heads over to the campus. Once the class is over, she’s ready to go back home to her bed when she spots a couple she knows sitting at a study booth and huddling for warmth.

“Hey, guys,” Wonwoo says as she goes over, and Minghao looks up at her while Jeonghan’s head stays attached to Minghao’s shoulder but she still sends Wonwoo a sweet sleepy smile. “You look cosy.”

“I brought us dinner to eat here after Jeonghan’s last class but then we got too lazy to move,” Minghao chuckles. “We finished eating like an hour ago.”

“Minghao’s less lazy than me, though, she’s doing work,” Jeonghan marvels, and Minghao pecks her forehead. Wonwoo does note the things laid out over the desk in the booth, Minghao’s laptop and sketchbook and pages of fashion designs. Something suddenly pops into Wonwoo’s head.

“Um, Minghao,” Wonwoo starts shyly, and Minghao hums. “Could you help me with something tomorrow?”

“Sure, what is it?”

“I’ve got…a date.”

Both Minghao and Jeonghan finally come to life at that, perking up and sharing the most thrilled look. Wonwoo tries not to grimace when she’s suddenly being pulled down between them because she’s already had enough interrogating today, but Minghao and Jeonghan aren’t very intense people. They just tell her things like, “Isn’t this your first date, Wonungie? That’s so exciting,” and “Of course I’ll help, what do you need?” and Wonwoo thinks they’re so sweet. Maybe she should hang out with them whenever Soonyoung blows her off.

“I just need help getting ready, I guess?” Wonwoo explains, unsure. “I’ve never done this…and I don’t even know where we’re going so I don’t know what to dress for.”

“Dressy casual would probably be good for that, if they want to keep it a surprise,” Minghao says, unruffled. “I’ll go to your place tomorrow, yeah?”

“You’re going to leave me aloneee,” Jeonghan complains, and Minghao argues, “If Wonwoo lets you, you could come,” but Jeonghan answers immediately, “No. I will simply wither away in my bed missing you.”

“You two are always really something,” Wonwoo says in amusement and Jeonghan beams at her.

“Wanna stay and be lazy with us? We’ll protect you from the cold, too!”

Well, Wonwoo just wanted to be in the comfort of her bed, but being in a friend sandwich seems pretty comfy, too. And Wonwoo doesn’t really want to be alone right now, since Mingyu is over at Seokmin’s today and Soonyoung is…well, that speaks for itself.

“It is cold,” Wonwoo digresses, and Jeonghan laughs as she and Minghao crowd Wonwoo who closes her eyes and leans into their warmth, feeling quite content. First time in a while.

The next day, Wonwoo expects to have Minghao come over and pick some things out of her wardrobe, maybe help her with hair and make-up, too. This both is and isn't the case.

“Why are all three of you here?” Wonwoo sighs as Minghao, Mingyu, and Seokmin flit around her room that’s definitely not big enough for four people. “I only asked Minghao to help, you know…”

“Well, I'm your roommate who already knew about this date so there's no way I'm not joining in,” Mingyu explains like it's fact, and Minghao continues apologetically, “I couldn't stop Seokmin from coming when she found out what was going on.”

“You won't even notice me, unnie!” Seokmin insists even as she snaps a hundred pictures a minute, and Wonwoo tells her fondly, “You're the loudest person I know, Seokmin.”

To be fair, it makes Wonwoo feel more confident to have this much help. Mingyu brings some clothes and accessories from her own room, Minghao makes most of the executive decisions, and Seokmin's a loud sweet judge and enabler of what looks good and what fits.

“You're going on a date with Soonyoung, right?” Seokmin says at one point like it's nothing, and the room falls silent as Wonwoo stares at her in confusion. Seokmin blinks rapidly. “Um…am I wrong?”

“I thought it was Soonyoung, too,” Minghao says, and Mingyu follows with, “Yeah, it should be Soonyoung,” and Wonwoo takes a beat to process all of that before she stammers out, “W-Wait, why on earth are you all saying that?”

“Sorry, unnie, we’re not trying to butt into your love life or anything but you two have always felt a bit inevitable,” Minghao says as she drags a brush through Wonwoo's hair, and Wonwoo's mouth feels dry. Is this really what her friends think? They’re probably joking but Wonwoo’s feelings about Soonyoung have been too complicated lately for jokes.

“No, it's not- Soonyoung doesn't…she barely even talks to me these days.”

That makes Wonwoo's styling team pause in their tracks. Suddenly they're all crowding in front of Wonwoo for an impromptu vent session, but Wonwoo doesn't even know if she's up for telling them anything. “What d'you mean, unnie?”

Wonwoo shakes her head. “I don't want to make it a big deal. She's just busy, I think.”

“If it bothers you, it's important,” Minghao tells her, firm but kind. “You can talk to her about it. In fact, I think you should. It'll be better for the both of you.”

For a moment, Wonwoo stares at Minghao. Yes, Minghao has always been good at giving advice, but it also feels like there's a second layer to her words. In their gravitas and the pointedness of her tone or something.

I think you should. It’ll be better for the both of you, Minghao had said. Like she knows something. Like she’s on both sides.

It's not an imaginary friend.

“Uh, Minghao,” Wonwoo begins hopefully not too hastily, “can you help me with my make-up now? My make-up bag’s in the bathroom.”

“But I brought some-”

“The bathroom.”

Minghao seems taken aback by Wonwoo’s adamance, but she slowly nods. Wonwoo can hear Mingyu and Seokmin whispering to each other as they leave, but she heeds it no mind. She needs to get to the bottom of this.

“Minghao, you might think I'm crazy for asking this if it isn't true,” Wonwoo gets right to the point the instant the bathroom door is closed behind them and they’re shut off from the others, “but did you help Hoshi with her superhero costume?”

And Minghao doesn't even try to hide it. She smiles, crossing her arms as she says, “Was it really that obvious?”

“That's why it's so fashionable,” Wonwoo clocks, and Minghao giggles. “So you know her real identity, don't you?”

Now Minghao seems much more hesitant to reply, so Wonwoo adds, “So do I. I figured it out.”

Minghao looks surprised only for a brief moment, her expression quickly melting into something knowing. “Of course you did. And I'm glad. When she first ended up telling me, she kept muttering to herself, ‘I’m sorry, Wonwoo, I’m so sorry I told someone else first’.”

That’s going to keep Wonwoo smiling for days. “Well…she doesn't know that I know.”

“I see. Seems like you're both keeping big secrets.”

“And you're bearing both of them,” Wonwoo points out, snickering when Minghao playfully pulls a long-suffering face. But then Minghao pats her shoulder and says softly, “I'm serious about talking to her, though. Not even about the superhero stuff, but just about how you're feeling. Maybe she'll have things to say, too.”

“That might be what I’m scared of, Minghao. What if she just…decides that she doesn’t have time for me anymore?”

Minghao’s eyebrows shoot up. “Woah. Do you really think that might happen?”

Well, no. Sort of. It’s hard to explain. Somehow, things would be easier if she just had Soonyoung spending less time with her or just had Hoshi spending nights with her and flirting at every opportunity instead of both. It would make things more black and white - it would make Wonwoo feel a lot more secure about however Soonyoung’s feeling right now.

She still hasn’t formed any kind of explanation for why she’d ask Wonwoo out on a date.

“I'll think about talking to her,” Wonwoo says wearily, knowing that Minghao's probably right even if she’s scared. “Thanks, Minghao. Really.”

Minghao still looks worried but she nods, tipping her head back to the door and the two of them return to the others. After a lot of fussing, Wonwoo ends up in a mid-length purple cocktail dress that she bought once because she loved it but never wore because she kept thinking it wouldn’t suit her - the others all think otherwise - with her hair in a long fishtail braid and a pair of Mingyu’s black heeled boots on her feet. Mingyu gives her a beige wrap and the moment Minghao finishes tying the belt around her waist into a bow, Seokmin’s ready with her camera and asks Wonwoo to spin. Like she’s damn Cinderella or something.

“Are you serious?”

“Your dress has the kind of skirt that will flow out, unnie, you’ll look so pretty!”

Wonwoo does not spin, and pinches Seokmin’s nose instead which makes the latter whine. But then Mingyu checks her phone and suddenly jumps to her feet. Wonwoo asks her what’s wrong and apparently: “The three of us were meant to go shoot hoops with some friends like ten minutes ago.”

“It’s already five?” Minghao asks in surprise as Seokmin gasps and hurries to gather her things. “Well, we can still go. Unnie, you’re good, right? I think you look great.”

“So great that you should come with us,” Mingyu says, a smirk on her face as she wiggles her eyebrows awfully at Wonwoo. “Because Soonyoung will be there.”

Wonwoo furrows her eyebrows. “Soonyoung doesn’t play basketball.”

“Yeah, but we were looking for people who wanted to play and she was down.” But isn’t down to hang out with Wonwoo, right? “You said she doesn’t talk to you much these days? Go and show her what she’s missing.”

Wonwoo scrunches up her face. “You’re making it sound like she’s my ex who just broke up with me…I’ve literally got a date today.”

“And? It’s just a first date,” Mingyu dismisses, linking an arm with Wonwoo’s and Seokmin takes her other one. “Soonyoung’s the one who’s been by your side since you met! Beat her up with your beauty, unnie.”

“You guys are ridiculous...”

But when even Minghao shrugs at her with a smile, Wonwoo feels like she doesn’t have much of a choice. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to see Soonyoung before the date, without the mask, the persona. Or it might hurt a lot depending on Soonyoung’s reaction, but she’ll burn that bridge when she gets there. She lets the others usher her outside and Seokmin and Mingyu happily swing their joined arms nearly the whole way like they’re kids going on a field trip. Wonwoo gives Minghao a judging look that says ‘would this be my life if I hung out with you three together more?’ and Minghao just giggles.

Now listen, Mingyu might’ve told Wonwoo to ‘beat Soonyoung up with her beauty’ but Wonwoo never actually wanted Soonyoung to get injured. Obviously. So when they reach the basketball courts and Wonwoo can see a few people already playing, including Soonyoung and Jeonghan, she stays quiet so that she doesn’t interfere with the game. She watches as Soonyoung calls out for the ball, waving her arms wildly in the air which is endearing - but then Mingyu’s the one who calls out excitedly, “SOONYOUNG!”

Soonyoung distractedly looks over, seeing Mingyu first before her eyes naturally shift to Wonwoo, and she pauses. Literally frozen in time, every inch of her stock still. Just when Wonwoo’s thinking about waving or doing something because she can’t really bear this, the ball hits Soonyoung smack bang in the face and she’s going down.

Wonwoo’s eyes grow wide, and gasps and yells fill the court, but Wonwoo’s the first one to make it to her as she runs over faster than she has in a long time.

“Soonyoung, what on earth, are you okay?” Wonwoo asks as she kneels down next to Soonyoung who looks up at her a little dizzily, but she manages to give Wonwoo a solid thumbs up. Wonwoo lets out a sigh of relief and she wonders why no-one is coming over, only to see in the corner of her eye that Minghao’s stopping anyone from getting closer. Maybe she’s trying to give the two of them some time.

“Y-You…you look…” Soonyoung breathes, so stuttery that Wonwoo gets worried again about a possible concussion. “Wow, you- are you going to play basketball with us looking like that?”

“Of course not,” Wonwoo chuckles. “And why are you here? I’ve never seen you play basketball in your life, you don’t even watch it.”

Soonyoung pouts. “I wanted to try! I’ve been trying a lot of new things lately.”

No doubt. “Good for you, then.”

“Why- why are you dressed up?”

“I’ve got a date, Soonyoung.”

Wonwoo really wonders how Soonyoung will react to that. Feigned surprise, or maybe she’ll pretend to get mad and demand why Wonwoo didn’t tell her about this? But nothing looks fake when Soonyoung’s mouth drops open and she looks over Wonwoo again in pure wonder, like she seriously can’t believe this is how Wonwoo’s dressed up for their date. It makes Wonwoo feel fuzzy inside.

“Is it now?”

Wonwoo smiles. “I don’t actually know what time it is, she never told me.”

Soonyoung flushes. “O-Oh…it’d probably be at, like, 6:30 or something. Right?”

So it’s at 6:30, got it. “Right.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Soonyoung does end up asking, and Wonwoo shrugs.

“You’re barely around, Soonyoung.”

Remorse fills Soonyoung’s eyes, and she looks away. “I know, I-”

“I miss you,” Wonwoo says, because it’s true. She misses stealing Soonyoung’s chips and walking home with her and just being her friend. And even with the time they spend together when Soonyoung’s masked, Soonyoung doesn’t know that Wonwoo knows that’s her, so she doesn’t want Soonyoung to believe that she’s not thinking about her. “Hope you’re doing okay.”

Soonyoung’s face crumples, and she reaches out to squeeze Wonwoo’s hand before Wonwoo helps her up and that’s probably cue for Wonwoo to leave. Once she turns around, though, arms suddenly wrap around her from behind and squeeze her tight.

“I hope you have a good date,” Soonyoung murmurs into Wonwoo’s back, and Wonwoo smiles as she pats Soonyoung’s hand.

“Me too.”

Later after Wonwoo’s returned home, there’s a knock on Wonwoo’s door almost at 6:30 on the dot, and Mingyu’s still out so Soonyoung must have left basketball early. Just out of spite, Wonwoo makes Soonyoung wait for a little bit - drinks some water, smoothes out her dress skirt, plays a game of Subway Surfers on her phone - and Soonyoung ends up knocking again before Wonwoo finally opens the door.

Soonyoung frowns, though her eyes sparkle a bit at the sight of Wonwoo. “You made me wait on purpose, didn’t you.”

Wonwoo bursts out laughing. Soonyoung knows her so well. “You’re the one who didn’t let me know when this date would be. Do you know how long I’ve been waiting?”

“Fuck, I’m sorry, I really am, I didn’t realise!” Soonyoung laments, smoothly taking Wonwoo’s hand and leading her away. Wonwoo almost stumbles but still manages to close her apartment door. “Next time, I’ll-”

Wonwoo’s heartbeat flounders at hearing ‘next time’, but Soonyoung cuts herself short. Wonwoo waits but she doesn’t speak again.

“Hoshi?”

Soonyoung shakes her head, just giving Wonwoo a bright but evasive smile as they head out, and Wonwoo guesses she’s just going to have to let it go. She focuses on Soonyoung’s attire instead, because it’s not her usual superhero costume. Her mask is the same, but she’s wearing a cute yellow playsuit with ruffles at the hem, a matching bandana in her hair. It suits her so much. Wonwoo also doesn’t know how she’s not freezing, but she was just outside playing basketball, and maybe there’s also something about having light coursing through you because Soonyoung’s always been good at helping warm Wonwoo up whenever she’s cold.

“May I?” Soonyoung asks almost nervously as she holds her arms out once they’re outside. Wonwoo thinks she wants a hug which is a bit weird, but then she realises.

“You’re actually asking now?”

“I’m trying to be courteous!” Soonyoung insists, and Wonwoo stifles a laugh as she steps closer and places her hands on Soonyoung’s shoulders.

“You may.”

Soonyoung beams before she’s neatly lifting Wonwoo up bridal style again in seconds, and Wonwoo had forgotten how much it takes her breath away.

“You’re gorgeous, by the way,” Soonyoung whispers in her ear. “You always are, and right now…wow.”

Wonwoo bites down on a smile, ducking her head. “You look nice, too.”

So Wonwoo gets to go on another Soonyoung-manned flight in the sky, and she loves it. Steadier than the first time - Soonyoung must have had a lot of practice by now - and even gets high enough to fly them through a cloud. It makes Wonwoo gasp quietly, unable to see anything but white for a moment as a light refreshing rush of cold goes through her that makes her shiver. Soonyoung smiles down at her and holds her tighter.

It’s a typical superhero date that Soonyoung takes her on, the kind that Wonwoo’s read about. A beautiful flight leading to a picnic blanket laid out on the roof of a tall building all to themselves. It’s typical but that doesn’t mean Wonwoo’s heart doesn’t flutter, because she’s probably always had a secret dream to be taken on a date exactly like this. Not like she’d ever thought it would happen.

“Do you like it?” Soonyoung asks after she sets Wonwoo down on the blanket and sits next to her, leaning so close that Wonwoo goes cross-eyed and ends up shoving her away with a snort. She still answers sincerely, “I love it,” and Soonyoung grins, practically gleaming.

Soonyoung has a lovely spread ready inside a picnic basket, filled to the brim with food and drinks that Wonwoo likes. She seems adamant on feeding Wonwoo things so Wonwoo lets her, but then turns tomato red when Wonwoo tries to return the favour. It gets easier after she accidentally-on-purpose gets hummus on Soonyoung’s cheek and Soonyoung yelps, immediately tackling Wonwoo into a mini food fight.

“How do you know what food I like?” Wonwoo asks later when they’re leaning against each other and Soonyoung’s stroking possible crumbs out of Wonwoo’s hair - Wonwoo doesn’t think there are any but she likes the feeling too much to ask Soonyoung to stop - and Soonyoung freezes.

“Uhhh, my friend told me!”

“Minghao doesn’t know this much about me,” Wonwoo laughs, just because it’s true. But then Soonyoung seizes up next to her, and Wonwoo’s not sure why until Soonyoung says a bit shakily, “A-Ah. You found out it was Minghao?”

Wonwoo quickly raises a hand in surrender. “I wasn’t trying to. It just kind of…happened.”

Soonyoung furrows her eyebrows, confused. “What do you mean you weren’t trying to?”

“I didn’t want to stress you out by having too many links to you.”

Soonyoung sighs, knocking her head against Wonwoo’s shoulder. “Gosh, you’re even thinking about things like that? I don’t know why you’re so nice to me. Am I really that charming?”

“Isn’t that what you want to be?” Wonwoo teases, and Soonyoung nods in reply but she’s not even smiling. Just has a wistful sort of look on her face. “Well, you seem to like that I’m nice to you.”

“Hm?”

“‘Cause you asked me on a date. I still don’t know why.”

“Oh.” Soonyoung lifts her head, looking into the distance. “There’s like, a million reasons? But most of it was just impulse. I really really wanted to go on a date with you, like, it was consuming me.”

Wonwoo’s heartbeat picks up speed. Is that true?

She pokes at Soonyoung’s mask. “But it had to be with your identity hidden? I’ve heard that secrets are never a good start to a relationship.”

Soonyoung bites her lip. “Well, that’s just it, I- I knew I’d never be able to ask you without the mask. You’d never say yes, I’m waaaaay into the friendzone for that.”

You’re slipping up too much again, Soonyoung. “...but I don’t really know you in everyday life, do I?”

Soonyoung’s eyes grow wide. “Ah - but you kind of do! Minghao might tell you about me, and- and we’ve hung out together with other people around and…stuff…”

Absolutely awful cover-up. Wonwoo’s going to look so dumb if she pretends to buy it, but she does anyway. “I see.”

Soonyoung makes it pretty obvious how relieved she is, and Wonwoo hides her smile. But she doesn’t want to smile at all when Soonyoung continues, “I just wanted one date. One would be enough. I know I won’t be able to ask you on another one, it wouldn’t be fair to you if I keep my identity secret all the time, so…I just want to make tonight nice for you. Shit, I wasn’t even meant to tell you any of this until the end but-”

“Who says that’s fair?” Wonwoo interrupts, and Soonyoung stares at her, all kinds of confused. They’re already close, but Wonwoo can’t help but lean closer to ask, “What if I want another date with you, Hoshi?”

Soonyoung’s breath hitches, and then her eyes make the smallest flicker of movement towards Wonwoo’s lips and Wonwoo feels tingly all over. She expects Soonyoung to close the distance - at least, she wants her to - but just before she closes her eyes, Soonyoung turns her head away and says apologetically, “W-We can’t. I’m sorry.”

No. After all of this, and Soonyoung thinking that Wonwoo wouldn’t want to date her because she’s in the friendzone, Wonwoo can’t leave it like that.

“Do you remember when we first met?” Wonwoo asks, and Soonyoung blinks.

“When…I randomly broke in through your window a few months ago?”

Wonwoo shakes her head. “No. Three years ago. I had a theatre and stage module in one of the dance studios, and I stayed behind afterwards once to practise my lines. Then you came in and thought I was in one of your classes and struggling with the dance steps you had to learn so you decided to ‘help’ me.”

Soonyoung’s eyes clear in fond recognition. “Damn, of course. I was so embarrassed after you told me the truth, you know? I thought it was so weird and sweet that you went along with it, what’s wrong with you?”

“You were very personable, and it looked fun,” Wonwoo shrugs. “Besides, I didn’t have any friends back then and university was getting lonely. I just thought: cute dancey girl wants to teach me something, why not?”

There are hearts in Soonyoung’s eyes. “I thought you did so well.”

Wonwoo swats faux-shyly at Soonyoung’s arm, making Soonyoung laugh. “I didn’t but thank you.”

“You did for a non-dance-student, your hips seriously don’t lie. And why are you bringing that up now?”

“Because it’s a nice memory, and because, um...I’ve kind of wanted to kiss you ever since then. I just didn’t really admit it to myself.”

Wonwoo watches Soonyoung’s face cycle through all kinds of emotions. Blankness for a little while, then her whole face turns red, then comes the shock. The implications behind everything that Wonwoo just told her finally hitting. “Wait. Wait, holy shit, you kn-”

Soonyoung’s words morph into a squeak when Wonwoo moves just enough so that she can slip into Soonyoung’s lap, warmth flooding her when Soonyoung’s hands immediately find her waist. “Soonyoung, can I kiss you now?”

"Oh my God,” Soonyoung says weakly, more breath than voice. “You know it's me and you still want to kiss me?"

“Have you been listening?” Wonwoo laughs, bumping the tip of her nose against the bridge of Soonyoung’s. "That's basically the biggest reason why I want to kiss you."

The small noise Soonyoung lets out in reply is partly pathetic, mostly relieved, and so happy. Wonwoo’s smile is unmanageable even as she leans down and finally closes the distance. It’s just a brush of lips - a test kiss, maybe, because Wonwoo hasn’t kissed many people and she doesn’t want to go all in just to burn herself. But it’s still soft, warm, like dipping your toes into a heated pool, and Soonyoung pressing up to deepen it just a little has Wonwoo breathless in a split-second. Then they open their eyes to look at each other, Soonyoung says a loud and resounding, “Fuck,”, before she’s gathering Wonwoo up into her arms and making seriously quick work of taking Wonwoo back home. Doesn’t even take the picnic with her.

Mingyu’s not in the living area, thank God, so it’s easy for them to make their way to Wonwoo’s room once they get to her apartment. They roll messily onto her bed, a myriad of limbs and gasps and laughs as they end up with Wonwoo on top of Soonyoung who looks up at her like she’s seeing heaven. And when Wonwoo looks at her, glowing and alight with joy, it’s like she’s seeing right into a supernova.

“Of course you know,” Soonyoung breathes as she hastily tries to get Wonwoo’s wrap off. “You know me better than anyone and I’ve probably been doing a terrible job of hiding it from you because you’re you but still, how the fuck- how long have you even-”

“Soonyoung-”

“Wonwoo, I’ve been going through a whole lot lately because I end up harnessing these crazy powers after a meteorite almost fucking bodies me and then I end up saving someone the same night - that was noooot as easy as the media made it seem but I mean, I’m grateful! - and then I decide to really invest in the whole superhero thing and then I figure out that I’m head over heels for my best friend literally just because she kisses me on the cheek and then I get depressed because I think that she likes my superhero alter ego but not me but I still try to go pursue that path even though I know it can’t end well but then I find out that you really do like me-”

“Soonyoung, you’re making my head hurt,” Wonwoo protests, wincing because that was so much (important!) information at once and she probably didn’t even catch it all. Soonyoung nods quickly, apologising, “Sorry, just- come here,” and Wonwoo finds it much nicer to just be kissed dizzy again. Soonyoung’s hands curve over her back, warm and sure, and her fingers tug at the bow tied at the back of her dress.

“I still can’t believe you wore this today,” Soonyoung says in awe. “I’ve seen it in your wardrobe and always wondered how you’d look in it.”

“I would’ve put it on if you asked,” Wonwoo says honestly and Soonyoung’s grip on her tightens.

“God, don’t say those kinds of things.”

“Hey...Soonyoung, was that really why? You’ve been avoiding me because you figured out you like me and all that stuff you said?”

Soonyoung shifts guiltily. “Yeah. It got to the point where I didn’t know how to face you without the mask anymore because I was literally drowning in my love for you but I didn’t think you’d look twice at me romantically unless I was, well, a cool flirty superhero.”

“Dramatic,” Wonwoo dotes, and Soonyoung squints when Wonwoo reaches out to take Soonyoung’s mask off her face. “You’re more dramatic than any of the plays I’ve studied over my entire course.”

“Even the Shakespeare ones?” Soonyoung asks shamefully and Wonwoo grins, nodding.

“Even the Shakespeare ones.”

They spend the rest of the weekend together, which is all Wonwoo’s wanted for so long. They talk about everything in length, but they also make out, and cuddle, and obviously get interrogated by Mingyu which leads to pretty much all their friends turning up to the apartment in quick succession (‘lazy’ Jeonghan is actually the first one to arrive and congratulate them with party poppers). When Minghao gets there, Soonyoung squeezes her and Wonwoo into a group huddle and tells them firmly, “You are now the only people who know my secret. I kinda don’t really trust myself to keep it from the others for like longer than a year, but for now! You guys are my ride or die.”

Minghao and Wonwoo share an amused look. “Sure.”

Soonyoung tells Wonwoo that she wants to figure out how she got these powers if she can. That it might mean that she’d have to go to the dreaded government to see if there are any recorded instances like this, or scour the world for anyone with similar powers, but she has the meteorite at home so maybe they can start there.

“If I’m being romantic, I’d like to think you’ve always had these light powers in you somewhere. You’re always glowing to me,” Wonwoo tells her, and Soonyoung kisses her hand. “But I’ll help you as much as I can.”

“Thanks, babe. Ugh, we are super romantic, aren’t we? Like, someone who's obsessed with comic book superheroes falling for a real-life one?”

“Or,” Wonwoo adds, “someone who falls in love with her best friend?”

Soonyoung fizzles happily, clasping Wonwoo’s face. “Both.”

The sad thing is, unless Soonyoung and Wonwoo want to keep their relationship private (which they don’t), it’s Hoshi and Wonwoo who need to keep things under wraps. No dramatic swoon-worthy kisses where Soonyoung dips Wonwoo to the ground in front of a crowd of cheering people right after she just saved the city - Soonyoung is loudly upset about that while Wonwoo is quietly upset about it - but Soonyoung still sneaks into her window at night, still takes her for romantic flights over town, and then lands them on roofs of tall buildings so she can press Wonwoo down and kiss her as much as she wants where no-one will see them.

“Soonyoung, we can just do this in one of our rooms, you know? I’m worried you’ll get cold in just your costume,” Wonwoo says in amusement after Soonyoung’s probably taken her to every skyscraper in Seoul, but Soonyoung shakes her head stubbornly.

“Beautiful girls deserve an extravagant make-out session every now and then.”

Wonwoo laughs, tipping her head back as Soonyoung nuzzles her neck. “Do they?”

Soonyoung nods again. “And I’m never cold with you! But I’m also never cold in general. It feels like I’ve got a burning core inside me.”

“It’s like you’re a literal star, Hoshi.”

Soonyoung wriggles like a happy worm in reply to that and Wonwoo smiles, pecking the top of her head. They haven’t got close to figuring out the origin of Soonyoung’s powers yet, but they’ll get there. They have time.

“Hey, when you went all superhero mode in Japan,” Wonwoo remembers, “didn’t your family realise that something was up? Your dress was literally massacred.”

“Nope. It was after the wedding and I had a different dress for the reception the next day so I just threw that one away and made sure that no-one looked inside my suitcase.”

“Soonyoung, just to warn you. You’re smart sometimes but you can also be the slowest person ever,” Wonwoo chides in the voice of a kindergarten teacher, and Soonyoung pretends to wipe away tears. “You gave me so many accidental hints that you and Hoshi were the same person, so there’s a chance that they might know.”

Soonyoung smiles at her a little ruefully. “Wonwoo. I think you should know that I slipped up around you so much half because I’m so comfortable with you and half because I literally could not think straight around you back then.”

Wonwoo’s ears pinken. “Because…of your feelings?”

“Because I realised I wanted to propose to you every time I saw you, yeah, exactly,” Soonyoung says like it’s nothing and Wonwoo wants to hide her face. “But since you ended up figuring out I was Hoshi, I kind of wish I told you from the start. I think- I know I would’ve felt a hundred times better if I had you figuring things out with me.”

Wonwoo frowns. She wonders, how hard it must have been for Soonyoung to deal with this alone at the very beginning, and she’s just glad that she ended up telling Minghao and that Wonwoo didn’t keep her own knowledge secret for very long. “I’m here now.”

Soonyoung smiles dearly at her, leaning in to kiss her long and slow. That makes Wonwoo feel weightless just as much as flying does. “You were always there. Even when I was being stupid and lovesick, you were still so good to me.”

Well, that’s just because Wonwoo’s stupid and lovesick, too. But knowing she was able to give Soonyoung any support means the world to her.

Wonwoo smacks Soonyoung’s arm with a sweater-pawed hand. “Seriously, though. I’m freezing. Take me home.”

Soonyoung bursts into bright laughter but does exactly what Wonwoo asks, and when she drops Wonwoo off, she blows Wonwoo a kiss that actually forms a heart made out of a trail of light in the air. Wonwoo watches it in awe, blinking when it drifts over to touch her nose and it feels like a stroke of warmth.

“How long did you practise that for?” Wonwoo calls out after Soonyoung who’s already shooting off, and her cheeks hurt from smiling after Soonyoung calls back, “WEEKS!”