Work Text:
The preparation for the comeback has been taking so much of Nayeon's time. She shot her music video for a week, shot her interviews and promotions in LA for a week, did a photoshoot for a brand, and attended multiple dance rehearsals to perfect her performance. Nayeon has been tirelessly working to ensure that her comeback is a success, putting in long hours and dedication to every aspect to elevate her stage presence and overall performance. Nayeon shed every sweat for the fans who have been eagerly anticipating her return.
After a long day of work, she goes straight home and sleeps. What is good about just sleeping is her place. Nayeon lives in a building facing the Han River. Despite a beautiful apartment with a stunning view, Nayeon finds it boring every time she goes home. The apartment was always dark, noiseless, and lonely, with no one to share it with. Nayeon often finds herself longing for company.
That night, after she showers and gets ready for bed, Nayeon scrolls through her phone and taps the number she had been texting for the whole day.
Nayeon:
Hey?
Are you free?
I just got home from rehearsal
My bed is bigger without you :(
My love:
Hi, love.
How are you? Did you drink enough water?
I'm sorry. I'm hanging out with my brother right now.
I can go this weekend. Are you busy?
Nayeon:
I can't. Twice hangout, right?
My love:
Oh right. I forgot.
Sorry. Maybe next next week?
Nayeon:
Okay, weekend?
My love:
Sounds good, baby.
Nayeon:
Can't wait!
My love:
Me too. I miss you
But it's been a long day for you
Please go and rest well
Sorry, I can't be there with you
Nayeon:
It's okay, babe
Alright. I love you
My love:
I love you
Nayeon sighs as she throws her phone on the nightstand and plugs in the charger. It has been such a tiring week, and she knows she needs some extra peace. If we're talking about honesty, she misses her girlfriend, and she hadn't been with her for the last three weeks. Nayeon is clearly longing for comfort and warmth from a loved one.
A hangout with Twice is not going to be a hangout if there are no bottles of makgeolli and beers with barbeques and a rented place out of the city. Each member arrives in their expensive cars, and some arrive with bags of extra snacks and drinks to share. Once the deliveries are served and the barbeques are fired up in the backyard facing the mountains, laughter and chatter fill the air.
For a group of nine people, some have their own conversations, some are laughing on their phones, and some are dancing to the music playing in the background. The atmosphere is lively and full of energy, providing Nayeon with the comfort and warmth she was seeking. Nayeon is enjoying their presence, most definitely with Jeongyeon, because that friend always makes her laugh.
If Nayeon has Jeongyeon as one of the closest members on camera, a member that she thinks she's less connected with is Mina. Even the fans notice that they barely interact with each other, and the worst is that they barely look at each other. Nayeon feels like they have different personalities, plus Mina has always been quiet. Perhaps they need more time together on screen, so fans won't make fun of them being distant from each other or make a false story about them going on a date.
"Congratulation on your second mini album!"
Members cheer and clink their glasses together, celebrating Nayeon's upcoming achievement.
"Releasing when?" Jihyo asks with a big, proud smile on her face.
"June 14th." Nayeon responds confidently, feeling grateful for the support of her fellow members.
"Congratulation!" Sana chimes in, raising her glass.
"We can't wait for the fans to hear it!" Jeongyeon adds enthusiastically, making Nayeon feel even more excited for the release.
Another toast is made in honor of Nayeon's hard work and dedication to her music; actually, it is the nth time that they toast about it. The older member is about to get drunk while the younger ones are laughing at them.
Jeongyeon starts slurring her stories, Momo laughs at everything, Sana bugs everyone with her flirty touches, Jihyo starts arguing with a sober Mina about the best country to perform in, Dahyun is annoying everyone with her never-ending energy, Chaeyoung is singing along to the song in the background loudly, and Tzuyu, as usual, remains calm and collected, laughing at her unnies and sipping her countless makgeolli. Lastly, Nayeon is trying to keep her head in line because she easily gets drunk, and her loud laugh is present with her pushing and slapping arm. Despite the chaos, it's a good time for everyone, and there's endless laughter.
Jeongyeon begins to cheer again and shouts, "Cheers for Twice!"
"Cheers for Im Nayeon!" Jihyo adds again.
Each member drinks alcohol on that toast, even Dahyun and Mina, who usually prefer not to drink.
Nayeon is gulping another glass of beer, which makes her head spin. That's it, she's about to go over her limit. The laughs coming out won't stop, and her red cheeks will sting longer.
"Wow. Did Mina drink for Nayeon?" Jihyo is the first one to notice Mina's red cheeks.
Nayeon giggles as she sees Mina with a half cup of makgeolli while others nod their heads and tease Mina about it, which also drags Dahyun into the teasing that ended up with two of them drinking another half cup of makgeolli each.
"Mina did that for you, Nayeon," Momo comments with her signature loud cackle.
Nayeon looks at Mina, who is giggling with Momo nonchalantly, which is the usual thing she does. Mina looks at her and winks even though she couldn’t wink, causing Nayeon to blush and look away, feeling a warm flutter in her chest because Mina looks cute.
"It's for her new comeback, I mean, I'm just happy and celebrating it for her," Mina replies, trying to avoid the teasing and attention on her.
Nayeon smiles softly. "Thank you, Mina."
"Wow!" Chaeyoung claps her hands and nudges Sana. "Is this Minayeon finally happening?"
Sana giggles and nudges her back. "Finally seeing them interacting again after what happened."
"What happened?" Nayeon asks, unfamiliar with the event about which they are talking.
"You know, when you kissed her in an interview," Sana explains, causing Nayeon's eyes to widen in surprise.
"Oh, that." Nayeon chuckles nervously, feeling a blend of embarrassment and amusement at the memory.
"We notice you didn't interact more than usual after that interview," Chaeyoung teases, raising an eyebrow playfully.
A couple of years ago, she might have kissed Mina in an interview mistakenly. The incident had caused quite a stir among fans and been the talk on Twitter because the kiss wasn't fully shot. Nayeon's back was facing the camera, so the kiss wasn't really seen in the interview, but it got Mina blushing, and in one of their hangouts, Mina admitted that their lips brushed, which made the group tease them and for her to feel awkward towards Nayeon. Nonetheless, Nayeon and Mina had managed to laugh it off and move past it. Now, with Chaeyoung and Sana teasing them about it, Nayeon couldn't help but blush at the memory.
"It wasn't really a kiss." Nayeon rolls her eyes and sniggers.
"Speaking of Minayeon, I saw this tweet that you were both seen entering a sushi restaurant." Chaeyoung wiggles her eyebrows with a teasing grin.
"We did?" Nayeon chuckles while glancing at Mina.
Mina giggles and shakes her head. "You know where I am the whole week, Chae."
"Do I?" Chaeyoung smirks with a teasing gaze. "Where are you?"
"I was hanging out with my brother and building legos. No sushi dates for me," Mina replies with a calm tone.
"Yeah," Nayeon cuts the teasing. "I'm in rehearsal the whole week. No time for sushi dates, unfortunately," she pouts a little.
The group awes sadly.
"So, you're telling me the fans have been happy for nothing?" Sana jokes, causing the group to burst into laughter.
"They were so happy about it, and now they'll be disappointed when they know," Jihyo adds, joining in on the laughter.
Nayeon giggles at them and ignores their teasing. She is aware that the fans really adore their pairing, but that date didn't happen at all. Nayeon sips on her beer despite being drunk.
"Should we tell them?" Jihyo asks with a sheepish grin. "I'll tell them on bubble."
"Why tell when we can make it happen?" Nayeon bluntly says, obviously drunk with her half-eyed open.
The group says 'ohh' in response. On a normal day, Nayeon will just laugh it off and push Jihyo, then get over it. Mina, as usual, will be quiet about it, observing the situation with a knowing smile. The group exchanges mischievous glances, silently preparing their next move.
"You two together alone?" Jeongyeon teases, raising an eyebrow. "You can't even look at each other."
"I love sushi." Mina shrugs, her makgeolli finally kicking in, and the blush is not because of the alcohol.
The group cheers again because Mina doesn't usually respond.
"Do you like to go on a sushi date with me on Tuesday?" Nayeon asks, her head practically spinning, maintaining eye contact with Mina. That's drunk Nayeon talking right now.
Mina blushes even more, but her smile is genuine as she nods. "Yes, sure. I'd love that."
The rest of the group erupts in cheers and playful teasing, happy to see the two finally making a connection. Nayeon winks at Mina, promising a fun time ahead on their sushi date.
"I bet 1,000,000 won, this will not carry on," Jihyo says with an urging smile.
"I bet you 1,000,000 won, they will go on a sushi date!" Jeongyeon challenges, laughing along with the rest of the group.
Nayeon and Mina exchange shy glances as the whole group laughs at the two friends arguing over a bet on a date. The playful banter continues as Nayeon and Mina build a genuine, tickling smile for each other that's becoming a little flirtier.
Nayeon books a private sushi place no matter how busy her schedule is. She apparently can't wait for it to happen because she can't sleep at night. She was thinking about how she would talk to Mina or how she would make the date special. After her rehearsal, she rushes to meet Mina, excited for their upcoming sushi date.
In Nayeon's surprise—not really because she texted Mina she'd be late because of her rehearsal—Mina is already there, looking lovely in simple jeans and her usual buttoned shirt, which they match because Nayeon wears baggy jeans and a fitted shirt.
"I'm sorry, I'm late," Nayeon apologizes as she approaches Mina. "I took a quick shower because I don't want to be stinky on our date."
Mina stands up as she notices the small bouquet of flowers on Nayeon's hand. She grins and teases, "Is it the shower or the flowers that made you late?"
"It's the flowers, of course," Nayeon laughs in guilt, handing them to Mina. "I wanted to make our sushi date even more special."
Mina's eyes light up as she takes the flowers and hugs Nayeon. "Thank you, Nayeon."
"You're welcome, Mina." Nayeon kisses Mina's cheek.
Maybe they're closer than the group thinks.
"I wish I had prepared you a gift as well," Mina says, feeling a bit guilty, her lips pouting as she stares at the gorgeous flowers.
"It's okay, Mina. Your presence is the best gift I could ask for," Nayeon reassures her, squeezing her hand affectionately.
"Oh, really?" Mina tilts her head with a playful smile.
"I finally had a private date with you. It's about time we spend some quality time together," Nayeon chuckles, pulling Mina by her waist.
"You missed me?" Mina places the bouquet on the table and wraps her arms around Nayeon's neck, leaning in for a soft kiss.
"More than you know," Nayeon whispers, returning the kiss with longing.
Nayeon's lips are moving slowly, taking their time to own Mina's lips between hers. Mina responds very gently, her pace matching Nayeon's, and her little teasing nibble on Nayeon's lower lip makes Nayeon smile and pull her closer. It takes them a moment before their genuine kiss turns into something smoking and hungry. Mina gets Nayeon's mouth open with her nibbling, earning a soft moan and deepening the kiss as their bodies press closer together.
Fortunately, Nayeon reserved a private place. She wouldn't be sucking Mina's face if anyone could see them. Plus, she had been wanting to have Mina—her girlfriend—by her side after all the work she had been doing. She understands that Mina wants to spend time with her family too during their break, but she needs some quality time alone to recharge. Nonetheless, she is happy to finally have a date with her and not wait until the weekend for it.
The one to break off the kiss is Mina, with her toothless smile.
"So, when are we going to tell the girls about us?"
Mina has always had a crush on Nayeon, ever since Sixteen. She had been vocal about it during their first interviews. The accidental kiss in that specific interview started it all. Nayeon apologized a couple of nights after the interview, but Mina told Nayeon that she was feeling things after the kiss and that she couldn't stop thinking about it. Despite Nayeon's initial shock, she couldn't deny the spark she felt towards Mina. They started to connect and took it slowly, keeping their relationship private. Eventually, they confessed their love and made their relationship official without anyone knowing, not even their best friends.
...
Nayeon feels Mina's hand shaking her shoulder, and the faint buzzing sound turns into a reality.
"Love, your phone is ringing," Mina whines softly.
Nayeon reaches out and answers her phone without opening her eyes.
"What?"
"Tell me, did you go on a sushi date with Mina or not?"
Of course, it's Jeongyeon.
Nayeon hears murmurs and laughter in the background. She groans and says, "What the hell, Jeongyeon?"
"I'm at the gym with Jihyo and Chaeyoung. This cub saw a tweet saying you two went on a date, and I want confirmation." Jeongyeon blurs out too fast.
"Y'all are annoying!" Nayeon groans loudly, eyebrows crossing.
"Did you go or not?" Jihyo almost screams.
"Yes, we did. Now can you stop interrupting my sleep? I have a rehearsal later!" Nayeon continues to argue.
There are giggles and shouts behind the call, which makes Nayeon frown in curiosity, and Mina turns to the other side and continues her sleep.
"Jihyo! You owe me 1,000,000 won! Get back here!"
Nayeon ends the call. How come billionaire idols fight over 1,000,000 won? Nayeon thinks her best friends are childish and immature. She rolls to her side and pulls Mina closer for a cuddle.
Suddenly, Nayeon realizes that they need to tell the members soon that Minayeon is not an awkward ship but a real couple.