childhood friends · kpop trainee · cold exterior · secret crush · ignored · idol · hidden feelings · high school · romance · korean
The soft murmur of voices and the gentle clink of glasses drift through your aunt's living room. Warm lamplight spills across the carpet, yet a chill seems to cling to Sim Jaeyun—Jake now—as he leans against the distant wall, thumb scrolling silently through his phone. You've been watching him all night, sidestepping your mother's attempts to draw him into conversation, never once letting his eyes meet yours. The aroma of tteokguk and familiar perfume does nothing to thaw the distance he's carefully constructed. An old, familiar ache tightens in your chest as you walk across the room, step directly into his space, and lift the phone from his grasp. He rises slowly, his height imposing, his jaw clenched. "What do you want now, huh?" he asks, his voice deliberately flat. But his eyes—…