Catnaps | Jeon Wonwoo

catnaps | jeon wonwoo

SYNOPSIS. in which you volunteer at the local cat shelter with your crush. PAIRING. jeon wonwoo x gn!reader (ft. best friend!wen junhui) GENRE. more fluff than plot tbh, high school au, humour, slight angst, strangers/classmates to lovers, just two introverted cats having lil crushes on each other lol WARNINGS. reader is shorter than wonwoo, cursing bcuz it’s high school, mentions of stress/academic pressure, reader has some self-esteem issues and an unhealthy sleeping schedule, major feelings abt having a crush on someone WORD COUNT. 8689

notes: this is long n prob not flowy for no reason other than FLUFF. we’ll just pretend there’s a significant time skip between each section lmao. this is based a lil off this soft thought sent by my lovely moot @hannyoontify​ <3 it was too cute of an idea that I had to write it lol. also tagging @wqnwoos​ to bless her wonwoo brainrot hehe

another note: this fic is prob peak high school kdrama. I tried to make the reader relatable thru the normal experiences n struggles of high school + being a lil awkward, ordinary teenager having a crush <3 - coming from someone who was in that exact same position lmao. also anything abt cats here is mostly researched!

“And you are aware that you have to get in these hours by the end of the semester so you won’t risk the chance of losing your position as a member?”

“Y-Yes,” You reply nervously, stuttering out your words, wanting nothing more then to leave the absolutely suffocating air you are breathing being in your least favourite counsellor’s office. “I understand.”

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Volleyball for Dummies (In Love Edition) | L.MK SMAU

pairing: manager!Mark x fem!volleyball player!Reader

synopsis: Mark Lee has been called many things. Dedicated was one of them and that dedication lead him into joining NeoTech College's well coveted Women's Volleyball team, the NeoTech Tigers, as their manager in hopes of winning the infamous setter, Y/N's heart. But there was one problem, being academically inclined did not come with the extensive knowledge of anything related to the sport and to put it simply, Mark Lee doesn't know shit about Volleyball.

genre: college au, social media au (may contain written parts in the future. maybe), sports au, idiots to lovers, “he fell first, but she fell harder” kinda thing, fluff, comedy, crack treated seriously.

warnings: profanity, dirty/inappropriate/dark humor (dark as in 'kms' 'kys' jokes), may contain some inaccuracies of the sport, Mark is a disaster (more to be added).

featuring: NCT DREAM, aespa, LE SSERAFIM'S Yunjin and Chaewon. There will also be some random idol appearances.

status: on-going

update schedule: MWF 10PM (PHT)

taglist: NOW CLOSED.

started: June 5, 2023

completed: —

a/n: this was originally going to be written, but I eventually scrapped that idea and thought it'd be more fun in this format. If this is not your cup of tea, then feel free to click off! I have two written pieces for dream linked on my navigation if you'd like to read something else 💖 but for those who are interested, I hope you'll enjoy this one!

disclaimer: none of this is meant to represent anyone in real life. This is purely fictional and for entertainment purposes only.

PROFILES 1 | PROFILES 2

CHAPTER 1: 👉🏼👌🏼

CHAPTER 2: retirement plan: secured ✅

CHAPTER 3: not livin' la vida loca

CHAPTER 4: it’s the star sign 😎

CHAPTER 5: hoes (respectfully) before bros 🫡

CHAPTER 6: un-kys or wtvr

CHAPTER 7: absolutely no home training

CHAPTER 8: castrated ❎ neutered ✅

CHAPTER 9: bonking > fucking

CHAPTER 10: got my shit rocked (REAL)

© ddeonuism

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lily of the valley | xu minghao

pairing: non-idol!minghao (svt) x fem!reader

notes: meet-cutes, preschool teacher!reader (sorta), grumpy x sunshine (sorta), tooth-aching fluff, crack, established relationships, a series of flashbacks, hao doesn’t like cliché things! yet he’s the most romantic cliché ? loosely based on the song 은방울 lily of the valley by DANIEL

word count: 3.7k

summary: hao thought the idea of a meet-cute was corny, impossible even. however, when he recalls the first time he met you, he knew he had to swallow a few choice of words and his pride.

part of the to x, with love mini series

shuahoonie's masterlist | to x, with love masterlist

hao scoffs at the screen when the main lead from the movie that you two are watching meets for the first time, at the most ridiculous instance. the meet cute being: the guy practically throws himself to save the girl from a moving vehicle.

hao believes that is not cute.

his reaction caused you to look up at him with a glint in your eyes, ready to annoy your boyfriend even more.

“where is the hostility coming from, lovey?” you asked, sitting straight.

hao sighs, “i know that look.”

“what look?” you blinked innocently at him, knowing full well you’re going to pick on his hatred for romantic clichés.

minghao mutters a long string of words as he pulls you back in his chest, wrapping his arms around you.

you let out a chuckle, you knew what he was trying do. it’s cute, that your haohao would do anything to disassociate himself from romantic clichés, but the man was the most romantic person you’ve ever known. he was your romantic cliché.

“baby,” he practically whines “can we watch something else?”

“what do you mean? you promised you’d watch this with me,” you said as jennifer lopez’s the wedding planner played on the screen.

“you don’t even like this movie,” hao reasons out. “i don’t even know why you’re willing to sit through this.”

“it was included in the list of films that has the best meet cutes,” you said reading off your phone.

“are you still on that?” he dreads, you felt his chin rest on the top of your head.

“it’s because what we had was a meet cute!” you insisted. “don’t you remember?”

“oh, i remember alright,” hao mutters into your head.

it was a rainy friday afternoon, the sound of children were slowly starting to dissipate as the day goes longer.

“ms. ln,” min tugs on your skirt as you watched the rain pour harder than what was anticipated in the weather forecast. “do you have an umbrella?” her eyes practically sparkled as soon as the words left her mouth.

“why sweetie? do you need one?” you asked her, crouching down. “i don’t have one with me, but i can text miss lee if she has an extra one in her classroom that you can borrow.”

she shook her head no, her pigtails swinging along, making you smile. “my uncle is picking me up and i want to know if you’re getting home safely.” she says with a smile. liu xiaomin has always been looking out for her peers and it was no wonder that her warm-hearted nature reaches you. she is a bundle of sunshine and you're lucky enough to have her in your class.

“that’s so sweet of you min," you replied with a soft smile "but i think i'll just wait for the rain to stop."

"what if it doesn’t miss?” she asked with a pout.

“then i’ll just find a way to enjoy the rain,” you said, patting her head. or you can call a cab, but that doesn’t sound as romantic as enjoying the rain.

“okay,” she sighs, sitting at the front steps of the school. “i hope uncle haoi gets here soon.”

you glanced at your watch, it was 10 minutes past dismissal. although min’s uncle is not extremely late, she has been waiting for quite some time now. and with the non-stop pouring rain? it was bound that traffic is up on the horizons.

“do you want me to wait with you, min?” you asked her, feeling bad that she’s the only student left waiting for her ride. xiaomin nods eagerly as she scoots to the side, signalling you to sit next to her.

you two were quietly watching the rain hit the pavement when min asks suddenly, “miss ln, do you have a boyfriend?”

you practically choke on your spit at her question. how does a five-year old even know about that? “sweetie, how do you know about that?”

“i’m five years old, miss, i’m not a baby,” she said with a huff, making you laugh.

“of course,” you tried your best to rationalize, giving her a smile. “but no, i don’t have one.”

“oh, you should meet my uncle haoi then,” she smiles, satisfied with your answer.

you raised an eyebrow at her sudden interest. “and why’s that?”

“i keep hearing my mom tell uncle haoi to get a girlfriend.”

“okay…” you trailed off— you don’t really know how to respond. you barely know this uncle haoi that she keeps bringing up because you’ve only met min’s parents— both of whom usually take turns in picking and dropping her off.

“i think uncle haoi will like you because you’re pretty and you’re very kind and you like painting and you like painting your nails and you like clouds…”

as min went on an endless ramble about how her uncle haoi would like you immediately, you received a text from min’s mom, saying that min’s uncle will be a couple more minutes late.

you tried to suppress a sigh, knowing that you were going to stay a little longer. maybe it was the friday rush, but you were hoping to get home earlier so you can crash on your sofa, catch up on your shows, and be completely static for hours on end.

“miss ln?” min calls your name as you’ve spaced out for a bit. “i think that’s uncle haoi’s car,” min says as you two stared at the black suv that pulled up in front of the school.

“okay, sweetie, let’s just wait till your uncle introduces himself and picks you up personally from me, okay?”

min was more than happy to do so. “uncle haoi!” min calls his name as she waves her hand, practically jumping in excitement.

one look at min’s uncle and you knew exactly who he is. you’ve recognized that tall build that’s approaching you, especially with an umbrella in hand— umbrella man finally has a name.

‘uncle haoi’ looks to be in the same case as you. as soon as his eyes landed on you, he recognized who exactly you were— the girl in the rain.

min makes a run for it and greets her uncle with a hug, making sure to stay under the umbrella. this makes hao melt a bit, lowering his guard down. his features soften at the sweet gesture of his niece.

“it’s you again,” hao mutters as he reaches you, noticing the familiar glint in your eyes.

“uncle haoi, i presume?”

“xu minghao,” hao clarifies curtly, “or just hao.”

“well, okay, hao,” you forced a smile. “here are min’s things.” you said as you handed him her things.

hao puts on min’s backpack and picks his niece up, settling her in his left arm as min clings onto him with a smile on her face.

“miss ln, did you bring your umbrella?” min asks as she whips her head to face you.

hao looks at you for an answer, he had an inkling of what your answer is going to be.

you gave her a forced smile, avoiding eye contact with minghao— his piercing stare was practically boring a hole in your skin. “i’ll just call for a cab, sweetie, don't worry about me."

"uncle haoi," min pouts at her uncle.

"yes, honey?" hao's expression softens upon hearing the soft call from his niece.

"can miss ln come with us?" her eyes practically twinkled as she gave hao the cutest puppy dog eyes she could muster.

hao was caught off-guard, this was the first time min expressed this kind of closeness towards her teachers.

the truth was, you were min's favourite teacher— or in this case, substitute teacher. you were only filling in for the last three months of the school year due to a teacher's personal emergency. but within the short amount of time you had with the students, they found a surprising pull towards you— a bond so tight that even surprised yourself.

unbeknownst to everyone, including min herself, min was playing matchmaker. since uncle haoi and miss ln were her favourites, it would only make sense to combine them together. right?

"um," hao turns to you, but you had an unreadable expression on your face. "i can drop you off at your place, if you want? it'll save you time, and the faire."

"thank you, but it's fine, you two go on ahead." you said, trying your best not to sound dismissive. hao, however, picked up on your tone and gave you a curt nod. "maybe next time, okay?"

"you promise, miss ln?" min asked with a pout. you gave her a nod, making her smile again— satisfied with your answer. "okay, bye miss ln!!" min enthusiastically waved goodbye.

you watched hao skillfully settle min onto her car seat as he tried his best not to get her soaked from the rain. you were about to order yourself a cab when hao approached you with an undiscernible look on his face.

"yes, mr. xu?" you looked up from your phone and blinked at him innocently.

with no other words, hao hands you his umbrella— the exact same way he did the first time he met you.

you just stared at his hand that was firmly grasping the handle of the umbrella as the rain poured down on him, effectively soaking his hair and the white cardigan he was wearing.

"just take it,” was all he said as he forced the umbrella on your hand and ran back to his car.

“okay, but that was not the first time we’ve met, lovey,” you said as you looked up from his chest. the movie was now forgotten.

“i know, but that was the first time jiejie teased me about you,” hao practically grumbles upon memory, his cheeks were turning red.

your eyes sparkled as soon as the words left his mouth. “how did i not know about this?” you practically squealed at the information.

“oh shut it, yn,” hao playfully puts his hand over your mouth, prompting you to bite it. “ya!”

“well, i’m waiting, lovey,” you practically sang.

“why are you soaking wet, hao?” minghao’s older sister asks as soon as hao and min entered the house "did you forget to bring an umbrella? today of all days? is minnie okay?"

hao sighs at the instantaneous nagging of his older sister. "min's fine. she didn't get wet, don't worry about it." xiaomin makes a run towards her mom, giving her a giant hug as soon as her shoes were off.

"okay," his sister sighs and hugs her daughter back, kissing the top of her head, before min runs to her playpen. "so why are you?"

"remember the girl i told you about before?" hao starts off, removing the soaked cardigan he was wearing. "the one from the heaven’s cloud café?"

"the one you practically bullied into accepting your umbrella because it was raining and she was just casually walking under the pouring rain?"

"yes..." hao frowned at his sister's overtly detailed description. "well, i met her again, jiejie. today. at minnie's school."

it took hao's sister a minute before she realized what minghao was implying. "you mean it was yn?!" a pleasant look of surprise takes over her face.

"that’s her name?" hao wonders out loud “you know, jiejie, minnie was surprisingly fond of her.”

“really?” hao’s sister almost looks relieved upon hearing hao say those words “she always had that charm, it’s no wonder that her students are enamoured by her.”

“you knew her?”

“yeah, university,” she smiles at hao.

“how come you’ve never mentioned her?” hao asks with a frown.

this piques her interest. “well, i haven’t talked to her in years since she moved away.” she says, watching her brother’s steady reaction “i only found out she’s back when word got out that min’s class were getting a sub. yn made sure to personally let the parents know about what’s going to happen.”

hao just hummed, taking all of the information in. hao’s sister uses this to her advantage. “you sure do ask a lot of questions about her.”

minghao scoffs at his sister’s implication. “i’m just making sure that minnie’s in good hands,” hao replies almost defensively.

“oh, she’s in great hands,” hao’s sister smirks “why, do you think yn’s pretty?”

“stop trying to play matchmaker, jiejie!” hao throws a pillow at his sister “it’s rubbing off on minnie!”

hao’s sister laughs “what do you mean?! i did not teach my daughter that!”

“well, she must have seen it somewhere! she asked me the if i thought ‘miss ln was pretty,’” hao pointed out, frustrated.

“uncle haoi?” minnie calls from the backseat.

“yes, honey?” he looks at the rearview mirror to check on his niece.

“do you think miss ln is pretty?” min asked innocently, making hao choke on his own spit.

“well,” hao’s sister grins “what did you say?”

hao’s silence and the fact that his face was turning red was enough of an answer for his jiejie.

“aw, lovey, you had a crush on me from the start?” you beamed at him, adjusting your position from the couch. you were still practically glued to his side, tucked under his arms, but now you were just looking at him— chin resting on his chest.

hao playfully scoffed at your implication “baby, i think it was the other way around.” his answer prompts you to smack his chest lightly. “i was always wondering why you kept taking my umbrellas.”

you gasped, appalled. “you wish, xu minghao!”

“i did,” hao smiles at you. “you know whenever it rained, i always wished that for some reason you would forget your umbrella— which i knew you would, i’ve come to learn that after the first 2 weeks of dating you.”

“i have like four umbrellas from you,” you muttered shyly. hao laughs at your timid confession, softly caressing your cheeks.

“i know, i kept buying new ones,” he replied with a soft smile. “and since i knew you were eventually going to forget to bring one with you, i started offering you a drive home.”

“aha! so that was your tactic of wooing me then,” you squinted your eyes at him.

“uh, no?!” hao was almost offended, making you laugh. “it was the lilies, remember?”

“uncle haoi,” min calls for her uncle’s name excitedly “look what i’m giving miss ln!”

hao looks back at the driver’s seat to find min waving a pink ‘happy birthday’ card. he smiles at his niece’s sweet gesture.

ever since hao’s jiejie started working back in the office, he’s been frequently dropping off and picking up his niece. his work schedule conveniently fits min’s school schedule so this means more encounters with yn.

it’s funny, hao thinks. he’s somehow formed an indescribable bond with you. the fifth time that hao was actively aware that you forgot your umbrella (again), he insisted that he can drive you home.

“what kind of teacher am i if my students knew that i willingly went inside a stranger’s car?!” you argued.

“the kind of teacher that accepts help from those who are willing to give it,” hao argues back. this was your what— fifth meeting? it was refreshing for hao to see this side of you. “and i’m not a stranger! you know my jiejie.”

“yes, but i don’t know you,” you crossed your arms, childishly.

this makes hao crack a smile. this was the first time you saw hao smile— or rather, the first time hao smiled because of you.

“xu minghao,” hao extends his hand “you can call me haohao.”

hao checks the time on his car’s dashboard, it was still quite early since they beat the morning traffic. “should we buy flowers to go with that card, minnie?” he asks his niece who nodded excitedly.

“okay, why did you get me lilies though?” you asked him.

“heaven’s cloud café,” hao answered simply. “you were carrying a bouquet of white lilies.”

“and you presumed i just liked them?” you were teasing, of course. you liked white lilies. after receiving the bouquet of white lilies from hao for the first time, you’ve come to love them. you even kept some of the dried lilies on a frame— something to remember by.

“well, i made sure that i asked the right source.”

“still don’t know how you’ve managed to know him.” you grumbled “i feel betrayed.”

“i keep telling you that i met them during our university days!” hao laughs.

“how come he’s never mentioned you?!”

“jun never mentioned you either!”

“what about that one,” you asked jun, pointing at the red velvet cake “oh no, but that bear-shaped tiramisu looks adorable.” you pouted as you continued to browse the dessert section of the café.

“yn, seriously, just pick one,” jun groans as he watched you struggle. “wonwoo’s going to bite our head off.”

“i heard that,” a deep voice appears behind you two.

“i heard that” you mocked your friend, earning a smack in the head from wonu. “ya! i’m telling!”

jun laughs at you two. you, jun, and wonu grew up together. for three people who spent most of their lives intertwined, it’s amazing how you three are not still sick of each other.

you three even made a pact to have a mandatory weekly meeting. if one person can’t make it, they have to pay for the next meeting. since you’re all stingy, you three have done your own ways of going through hell and back just so you couldn’t miss a meeting.

“just pick the red velvet, ynnie,” jun says without even looking up at you, totally engrossed on his phone. “ynnie, you still like lilies, right?”

“yeah…” you said, watching jun type furiously on his phone. “who are you texting?”

“no one,” jun says not-so-innocently. “so what are we doing today aside from giving our hard-earned money towards cheol & han?” jun’s sentiment makes you three laugh.

“you know i keep hearing good reviews from this place from my co-workers,” you said as you eyed the chocolate cake.

“seriously! have these two never heard of a friends and family discount?” jun wails even more, obviously not done.

“what’s all this yapping about?” someone emerges from the backroom, carrying a fresh case of cupcakes.

“jeonghannie!” jun greets him with a smile. “if we buy three slices of cakes, do we get the next one free?”

“no, you get it for an additional 20% of the price,” jeonghan says making you laugh. jeonghan spots you— a new, yet oddly, familiar face. “you must be yn!”

“hi hi, yes!” you smiled at him. you’ve only heard jeonghan through stories from your friends— wonu and junnie. as a matter of fact, you’ve yet to meet their gigantic friend group. “i’ve heard lovely things about your place!”

jeonghan smiles, pleased. “and because of that your entire order will be on the house today!” he beams, before he turns to wonu and jun “you two have to pay full price.”

“that’s not fair, we’ve been friends for years!” jun whines, making jeonghan laugh.

“oh, it’s fine, i’ll be happy to pay— no worries!” you say with a kind smile.

“okay, fine all of your orders are on the house,” jeonghan rolls his eyes playfully. “only because you’re sweet and hao just can’t get enough of you.”

you were about to say something when jun places his hand over your mouth. “thank you so much jeonghannie! i’ll make sure to put in a good word to my co-workers!” jun says in one breath, pushing you towards one of the empty booths.

“junnie,” you eyed him warily “what was jeonghan talking about?” you asked with your arms crossed.

“well, it’s a long story actually…” jun trailed off, scratching the back of his head.

“how does he know about minghao?”

jun was about to answer when wonu interrupts him as soon as he finished ordering for the rest of you. “we’re all friends, yn,” wonu starts off “it’s quite impossible for our circles not to cross.”

“okay, but that doesn’t explain what’s going on,” you said, confused. “and how come i’ve never heard of hao when i know literally everyone else.”

“yes, you do!” jun counters “it’s just sometimes we’re used to calling him his korean name.”

“he’s myungho?” you were flabbergasted, somehow the dots never aligned. “god, that man has so many names,” you muttered to yourself “then how—“

“university days,” wonu answers for you “you went to a different school, you even met hao’s sister.”

“you even moved out of town,” jun added, practically resting their case. besides, it’s not like you always kept tabs on who their friends were. however, the latter part of jeonghan’s sentence got you intrigued.

“okay…” you were unconvinced “but what about the other thing that jeonghan said?”

this makes jun smirk, using it to his advantage. “about what you being sweet?” jun asks innocently, making wonwoo laugh.

“wen junhui!” you smacked his arm playfully “i’m being serious here!”

“i’m serious too! i’m not too sure about you being sweet though,” jun says teasingly, making you roll your eyes at him “hao, however…”

wonu watches your reaction, he noticed your attention perked up— eyes practically dancing in anticipation. “aw, our little yn has a crush,” wonu says with a teasing smile.

“psh, me? having a crush? what am i, 5?” you were getting defensive, which means they were correct with their assumptions.

“aha, so you did have a crush on me!” hao exclaimed, pulling you closer to him— as if you could get any closer.

“yes,” you muttered through your teeth “however, you liked me first! you kept bringing me coffee every time you dropped off min at school.”

hao didn’t want to argue so he nodded, smiling softly at you. “yeah, i sure did.” his comment makes you melt into a puddle. one year of dating and he still manages to make your heart burst. “and i think if i had the chance to do it again, i wouldn’t change a thing.”

“you’d still give me your umbrella?”

“i’d still give you my umbrella,” hao murmurs before giving you a kiss on the lips.

hiyaa friends! we're almost halfway through the series and i alr want to start a new mini series 😭

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adore you | lee jihoon (masterlist)

☆.*+ seventeen social media au

★ synopsis: in which your lonely friend group tries to get into the christmas spirit by holding a secret santa party. to your surprise however, your special secret santa jihoon likes to give you gifts everyday until christmas.

★ taglist: to join the taglist, sign up with the google form!

★ genre: christmas!au, secretsanta!jihoon, fluff, comedy, crack, pining, slow burn, simp!jihoon, friends to lovers

★ pairings: lee jihoon x female reader

★ schedule: daily!

★ start: november 27th, 2021     ★ end: december 25th, 2021

☆.*+ profiles

★ profiles 1

★ profiles 2

★ profiles 3

☆.*+ chapters

★ prologue

★ one. santa claus is coming to town

★ two. rockin' around the christmas tree

★ three. jingle bells

★ four. sleigh ride

★ five. baby, it's cold outside

★ six. santa baby

★ seven. let it snow!

★ eight. white christmas

★ nine. you're a mean one, mr. grinch

★ ten. last christmas

★ eleven. frosty the snowman

★ twelve. the christmas waltz

★ thirteen. silver bells

★ fourteen. run rudolph run

★ fifteen. little drummer boy

★ sixteen. silent night

★ seventeen. i'll be home for christmas

★ eighteen. mistletoe

★ nineteen. carol of the bells

★ twenty. a holly jolly christmas

★ twenty-one. feliz navidad

★ twenty-two. we wish you a merry christmas

★ twenty-three. joy to the world

★ twenty-four. my favorite things

★ twenty-five. all I want for christmas is you

★ bonus! 10 things I hate about you

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nepo babies masterlist

paring — rich!yang jeongin x rich!f!reader

summary — yang jeongin is a bad influence—words that fell from your parents lips, almost as a warning. yet despite jeongin's behaviour, the yang family was well respected, and your father would have been foolish to refuse a business partnership with the multi-millionaires. the collaboration led to you attending school with jeongin, who mindlessly trailed after you wearing his infamous smirk as he attempted to pick you apart. phrases meant to send you crying falling from his lips as he slunk an arm over your shoulders, nose grazing your cheek as he muttered every rude word that came to his mind. eventually you graduated, as did jeongin—surprisingly. and as your classmates went into the world, you hoped jeongin would do just the same. you planned on staying in seoul for awhile, having recently gotten a modelling contract with laila magazine. but unfortunately for you, yang jeongin had other plans, ones involving: a yacht, champagne, and a midnight swim.

genre/warnings — smau // fluff , ‘enemies’ to lovers , (maybe) angst , mutual pining , slightly suggestive , fast paced(?) , fake dating

status — ongoing !

taglist — open ! send ask to be added !

navigation | stray kids masterlist

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

profiles 1! | profiles 2! | privs

001. youre ill

002. you rat

↳ 002.5 my first sober kiss (w)

003. this is actually disgusting

004. say less

↳ 004.5 it’s not a fight without snacks

005. your big baby?

006. hyunjin is majestic

007. why is he in the bath?

↳ 007.5 that man is whipped

008. idk why he refuses to smile

more to be added…

@uraverageatiny @lolob @akanexw @violetvoo @rubberduckieyourtheone @haewonluvr @jungwonismybias @hello-2-u-from-me @marcillfll @somsungiex @icedtealeaf

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Love Guard | Lee Chan

Description. Lifeguard Lee Chan is a pain in your ass, and you swear he's only picked up this job to ogle at girls in bikinis. Little did you know, the only girl he wants to look at is you — not that you'd ever let him tell you that though — Especially now that you're convinced he's in love with your co-worker.

Pairing. Lifeguard!Lee Chan x Lifeguard! Fem Reader

Warnings. Curse words, (Pretend) Drowning, Karina attempts to meddle, Fluff, Chan's so whipped, Swimming, E2L (One sided)

Word count. 9.2k (Oops?)

Note: Summer has been over but I couldn't help myself! Welcome to my first Seventeen fic! Not 100% sure if I like this one but feedback is always appreciated!

"Two weeks." You repeat to yourself, attempting to calm yourself by digging your fingers into the squishy material of the rescue tube you have strapped on. Only two weeks left until the local waterpark is closed for the year — and until you have to look for another job — but the point remains a positive one.

In exactly two weeks from now, you will be freed from your own personal hell in human form, otherwise known as Lee Chan. Even when he's not stationed at the same ride as you, he's always finding his way over in your general proximity, just like he is now.

He's chatting up a few girls who look gorgeous in their tight fighting bikini sets, and you just about scoff at how obvious he is. You and Karina are set at the wave pool right now, and you feel bad for whatever station Chan is supposed to be manning. Does he ever do his job?

Karina quirks her head, her long ponytail falling to her side. "I heard he was supposed to be with the flow rider."

Ah yes the flow rider, the stationary surfing machine that tiny children and older adults alike swear they can do. You've only had to operate it once, and let's just say you complained so much you never had to do it again. Just this once, you can understand why he wandered over to the other side of the park.

"Vernon probably took over and kicked him out." You shrug, knowing how serious the older male takes his job.

"I hope so." Your friend giggles, patting your shoulder as she walks away. You notice her hand on the whistle, she must've spotted a few kids running again, nothing out of the ordinary.

A few feet away, Chan is just about whining into these poor girls ears. He smirks at them. “Is she looking this way?”

The girl on his left — whose name Chan hasn't caught — glances over her shoulder and then turns back. “She’s not, she’s watching the pool.”

One of the other girls snorts. “Looks like she’s doing her job.”

"That makes one of us." Chan slumps dramatically before an idea pops into his head. (The girls swear they could see a lightbulb above his head in that moment).

Chan swivels into the water after he stood to his feet, the others awaiting his revelation. "Okay, I'm going to need one of you to pretend you're drowning."

"Drowning?!" The blonde girl's jaw drops. Chan doesn't see why he has to explain it though. They would simply pretend they were drowning, he'd jump in all heroic like, and save them. And in the process, you'd notice and commend him for being so cool.

Chan was a genius, he nodded to himself.

So after explaining the plan to girl's that he had just met today, well about twenty minutes ago, he's ready to get this show on the road. He's lucky the girls felt bad for him after he gave the typical sob story on how his crush hated him. Otherwise, they probably wouldn't have agreed.

The blonde girl submerges herself into the water, on purpose, as Chan prepares to take action. But first, he had to take his shirt off. Oh don't act so shocked, he's literally trying to get your attention! He's not above showing a little skin!

You don't even notice though, too preoccupied with watching some children jump on each other. You approach them and politely tell them to not attempt to kill each other under the water. You didn't even think that needs to be said but, this job surprised you every day.

However, the minute you turn around, you notice some arm's flailing around in the water. It was the area where Chan was just standing, but he's nowhere to be found now. Shit! You were going to have to act, and fast!

So you dive into the water, peeling your eyes open in the chlorine to find the girl. You reach her in record time, using your rescue buoy to grab her and pull her out. You lay her on the concrete, shaking her shoulders and gaining no response.

"Someone get me an AED!" You shout, preparing to begin CPR. Karina rushes to your side, asking any bystanders if they knew what happened and trying to gain more information about the situation. Thank goodness for her.

A crowd begins to form around you as you recall the CPR process in your head, ready to begin when you're abruptly shoved out of the way.

"I got it!" Chan explains, seemingly appearing out of nowhere. You're too stunned to reply so you just let him take the lead, watching his next moves in silence.

He barely starts to push on her chest when her eyes shoot open, and she begins coughing up imaginary water. You're a bit suspicious, but this was your first time dealing with an unconscious victim, guess you'd just been lucky so far.

She sits up as she starts talking, waving her hands around. "Don't call 9-1-1 or anything! I'm fine!"

Karina leans forward. "Are you sure?"

"Yes!" The girl replies, before easily standing to her feet as she rushes out, her friends following behind her. They didn't even have their shoes on?

Chan watches them in defeat as you and Karina silently gape at each other. The girl had run away steadily, no signs of being disoriented for someone who had just been unconscious. It did all happen so fast though, maybe you weren't seeing things right.

Karina is the first to stand. "What just happened?"

You shake your head, your now wet hair dripping on you. "I don't even know."

Chan doesn't look as confused as you two though, but never mind that, you had a bone to pick with him first.

"And where the hell were you?"

Chan barely registers you speaking to him, as he's mentally recounting how his plan went awry. "I was getting my CPR keychain."

You want to bang your head against the ground. "You didn't have it on you?"

Hey, give him a break. He's human too! He forgets things sometimes, it can't be that bad! However, if he was going to convincingly look like he was saving the girl earlier, he had to have his keychain on him. Which is why he ran off looking for it...

"I left it in my locker." He mutters, rubbing the back of his neck.

"God, just put a shirt on Lee." You stand to your feet. "And please do us all a favor and stay in your station."

"So you acknowledge that you checked me out?"

You deadpan. "I acknowledge that you make my job harder because an old woman almost slipped on the shirt you threw off!"

Had he really thrown his shirt? He didn't even notice, your wording had to be a bit exaggerated.

You cross your arms as you head back to the other side of the pool, back into your comfy life guard chair. And preferably, as far away from Lee Chan as possible.

..

"Then he shows up like some fucking hero and interferes with me doing my job!" You state sarcastically, slipping your sweatshirt on as you stand by your locker. Screwing the cap back onto your water bottle, you sigh.

Minghao, your close friend who you never managed to get stationed with, just listens in mild amusement. "But he saved the girl, right?"

You shake your head as you gather your things. "I don't know if you could call it saving. It was weird, she just up and ran off."

Minghao giggles. "Are you sure she was drowning?"

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say no." You admit, the jingling of a lanyard behind you catching your attention.

"Okay, I'm heading out." Karina says as she holds her bag over her shoulders. Your brain is too busy trying to configure how she looks so cute after a full day at work. You were sure you looked as worn-out as you felt.

"MIngyu's still around here somewhere. And Seungkwan and Chan are still in the back, I saw them fighting with the pool nets." Karina continues, referring to the long wands used to skim the pools for bugs and dirt. Or worse, fecal matter.

Thankfully, that's usually not the case. Nevertheless, you're grateful that wasn't your job today. You did have to lock up though, meaning that you had to get the aforementioned boys up and out.

"I'll get Minghao to yell at them." You nod, and Minghao just laughs.

Back at the pool, Chan is currently shuffling his brain for another plan, one that won't fail this time. Honestly, it probably made you more angry at him than anything. "I have two weeks Kwan."

Seungkwan rolls his eyes. "Oh God."

"Two weeks to make her mine." Chan repeats, rubbing his eyes.

"You're delusional." His friend replies, picking up his own pool stick and heading to the main area. "Why don't you start with something simple, like driving her home first."

Chan perks up at that. "Wait, that's actually a pretty good idea!"

"Actually?" Seungkwan starts, but Chan is already racing past him, pool cleaning long forgotten. Though the older male still shouts after him. "I always have great ideas!"

Chan mentally prepares himself on the way there, stopping by one of the outside mirrors in the kids splash area to check his hair. Looking good, he thought.

"Hey," Chan speaks, approaching you and Minghao as he tries not to give the latter a death stare. He could never figure out what kind of relationship the two of you had, and that made him uneasy. Not that you owed him an explanation or anything, but it'd be nice to get some clarification.

All he knew was that you and Minghao applied for this job together and you'd been friends for a while. Chan also knew you spent your lunch breaks together at the snack bar, courtesy of his friend Mingyu's spying, and he knew he took you home everyday.

But those could all just be friendly gestures, right?

You ignore Chan's presence as you turn to close up your locker, not bothering to acknowledge him. Minghao does though, "You heading home?"

"Yeah, actually." Chan responds, eyes never leaving your figure. He calls out your name, to which you roll your eyes to. "What?"

He stands up straight, slightly puffing his chest out in an attempt to appeal more to you. Was it working? Probably...Not. "Can I drive you home?"

"Not a chance." You shoot down immediately, not a hint of hesitance in your voice. Oh, that was fast. But Chan knew this wasn't gonna be easy after all.

"I'll buy you food on the way." He offers, clinging to his last ounce of self respect before he gets on the floor to start begging. He was not above that when it came to you.

You cross your arms. "Are you insinuating that I can't buy my own food?"

Of course things were going this way, "That's not what I-"

You put a hand up to stop him, smirking. "Because you're right, this stupid job doesn't pay me nearly as much as I'd like."

Chan stays quiet, unsure of what to say next. Luckily, you continue for him, all in a condescending tone though. "Whatever Lee. Even though you're probably doing this just to feel better about yourself for being such an asshole all the time, I'll bite."

Minghao grimaces, had you always been this harsh? Well, he knows the younger male did you piss you off more than usual today. He knows in his rational brain that he probably shouldn't let this happen. But will he? Yeah.

Minghao gently grabs your arm. "Call me when you get home, okay?"

"Of course." You reply, and Chan watches you flash a smile reserved for your friends only. He knows that because never once had you directed that smile at him. This was soon to change, or so help him.

"You can go ahead, I'll get 'Kwan and lock up." Minghao nods and you thank him.

Chan's just about losing his mind though, Minghao was on a nickname basis with Seungkwan? What the hell? Did Seungkwan not know that Minghao was enemy number one ?! He had some words for him later.

Right now though, his main focus was you. Even in the horrible florescent lighting of the locker room, he thought you looked beautiful.

You, on the other hand, were getting the ick from seeing Kim Mingyu walk around with flip flops. That was going to be hard to move on from.

Just to be clear, you really weren't interested in relationships right now. And yes, you and Minghao were just friends, strictly platonic. However, with on slow days, you liked to occupy yourself with staring at Mingyu's prominent muscles. And honestly, who could blame you?

Chan redirects your attention to him. "So, where to?"

You roll your eyes. "You were the one who invited me out, and you don't know where we're going?"

He looks down. "McDonalds?"

So that's how you two end up in the drive-thru of the famous golden arches. Chan has a million thoughts running through his head, the main one being how he managed to get you in his car, willingly!

In another universe, Chan imagined that this would be your first date. He'd make you laugh, hold your hand, and maybe even get a kiss at the end of the night.

"Should I get a Coke or a Sprite?" You speak to yourself, pulling Chan out of his thoughts.

He straightens his posture. "Oh you should-"

"I wasn't actually asking." You roll your eyes, already mentally having decided in your head.

Chan shuts his mouth.

"You know, I'm really interested in hearing why you invited me out of a sudden." You say, leaning your head against his car window.

Chan's scrambling for the words. "I just wanted to talk."

"About?"

Chan breathes in, here goes nothing. "Well, we only have a few weeks left working at the park, and I kind of.. like this girl."

You narrow your eyes, knowing where this was going. "Oh lord, did you really drag me all this way to try to get me to set you up with Karina?"

Chan's eyes widen. What?! How did you get to that conclusion. Chan barely knew the other girl, much less liked her. In all honesty, he barely even paid her any mind, always too preoccupied with staring at you by her side. He rushes to deny it. "No-"

"You don't have to lie." You speak, rolling your eyes. "You took me here on a bribe so I could put in a good word with you."

Chan's so confused right now.

"Sorry but I think Karina's worth more than whatever you're getting me on the dollar menu." You spout sarcastically. "And anyways, why would I help set her up with you?"

Now, Chan has to speak up, because really? Was he that bad that you couldn't even imagine setting him up with a friend ? He's mildly offended, even if he could care less about her. It's more so that he's utterly infatuated with you, and he can't believe you don't see him as possible boyfriend material. "Huh? What's wrong with me?"

You narrow your eyes. "Well, for starters you're broke, lazy, and irresponsible. Oh, and stupid, immature, full of yourself-"

You were really laying it on thick, and Chan doesn't think he can take anymore stabs at his character without possibly jumping out of his car window. He interrupts, "Anything else?"

"I wasn't even done yet." You stop counting on your fingers. "Point is, you're not good enough for Karina."

He doesn't even care about who you're talking about anymore, he throws his hands up. "You don't even know that, you've never seen me on a date." Because you've never given me a chance, but he only speaks that last part in his head.

"I've seen your everyday character, that says more than enough."

Chans on the verge of ramming the car in front of him in line. "So what kind of guy would be good enough?"

You shrug. "Probably someone like Joshua."

"The manager?" Chan draws back, because were you referring to Karina's taste or yours? He was so lost right now. "He's like way too old."

You click your tongue. "I said someone like him. He's smart, soft-spoke, responsible, and he knows how to deal with conflict."

Chan grips his steering wheel. Yes, Joshua had his life together, but that's because he was older! Was that really what you were into? Chan might as well throw in the towel now. "It sounds like you want someone like Joshua."

"Maybe, I don't know."" You cross your arms in thought. "Well, he's kind of boring, can't be much fun dating someone like that."

So there is a drawback to perfectly stunning men like Joshua, or was he just saying that to make himself feel better? He'd have to ask Seungkwan for advice tomorrow. "Well-"

"Whenever you're ready." A voice takes over through the intercom. Chan hadn't realized he had already pulled up this far.

He didn't even know what he wanted, in fact this whole conversation made his stomach turn. Was he even hungry anymore?

However, you knew exactly what you wanted. But Chan's silent by the intercom so you do the only feasible thing to do, you unbuckle your seatbelt and lean over him. Climbing past the center console, you throw your body halfway out of the window and start reciting your order.

Unbeknownst to you, the male in the car with you was losing his mind. Why were you so close to him? Why did you smell so good? Why was your body basically on top of his (You aren't touching at all)? And Why did this feel so intimate?

You turn to him, still in the same position. "What do you want?"

Chan's face is red, and he's trying his best to stay cool, avoiding eye contact. "A burger."

"Which one?"

Poor guy can't think straight. "The normal one?"

You sigh, turning back towards the speaker. "And a Big Mac."

"I think Chan likes you." You speak, seeking refuge from the scorching hot summer sun under the tiny roof peeking out from the food stand.

Karina sips on her slushie, that's halfway melted, and grimaces. "No way."

You offer a tight lipped smile before shooting her glare. "Don't give me that look! Who wouldn't like you?"

Karina laughs. "It's not that I don't think he'd like me, it's that he doesn't."

"And how are you so sure?" You ask, adjusting the straw on your own slushie.

"Um, okay one, he's never held a conversation with me for longer than two minutes." She starts, placing her cup on the counter. Trying her best to stop the syrup from getting her hands all sticky.

You digress though. "That's because you make him nervous!"

"Two, we barely know each other."

"You haven't given him a chance." You tease, unaware of prying ears listening to your conversation. Give you a break though, honestly, it was too hot for all of this.

"Where did you even get this idea from?" She inquires in disbelief.

"Last night when he took me to McDonalds."

Karina's jaw goes slack. "You voluntarily went somewhere with him outside of work?"

Guess you had forgotten to mention that, oops. "He bribed me with food."

She narrows her eyes, suspicious but moving on anyways. "And then he told you he liked me?"

"No," You answer truthfully. "But he didn't deny it."

Karina shakes her head. "I think you're just desperate for some cute lifeguard-love-story to shake things up around here, and it's not going to work on me."

You giggle. "Whatever you say."

"You could have your own story if you just asked out Minghao already." She suggests meekly, despite knowing your constant insistence that there was nothing going on between you two.

"That's gross, I think I just threw up in my mouth."

"Yeah, I know." She teases before lowering her voice so only you can hear, and her eyes dart over to Mingyu making a hot dog. "But you could finally strike something up with mister beef cake over here."

You roll your eyes. "He's too hot for me, half the park wants him."

"He gives you free food."

You hush your friend. "He gives everyone free food!"

"You win this battle." Karina says, trashing her finished cherry drink. "But the war is far from over."

"Get back to your post, Yoo." You sigh, cleaning up the mess your melting treats made with a few napkins and discarding them.

Mingyu comes back to the front where you are after noticing you were alone, "Going back?"

You groan. "Unfortunately my break is over."

He offers a small chuckle, and all you think about is how good he looks. Especially since he's donning a sleeveless red shirt, matching the parks general colors, and you can see his arms in their full glory. No wonder you'd heard girls in passing giggle about how they wanted to take a bite out of the food stand guy, you saw the appeal.

Why couldn't he be a lifeguard? Just saying, it would be nice to see him without a pesky shirt sometimes. Oh you were so embarrassing.

"Have you seen Hao? I wanted to talk to him about something?" The male inquires but you shake your head.

"He called in today," You stand. "Said he felt sick, or some other kind of lie."

"He's not sick?"

"Judging by his Instagram stories on a boat?" You quirk your head. "I'd say no."

MIngyu laughs at your humor, and you're flashing that pretty smile again, and Mingyu's feeding right into it. Are you two flirting?!

Chan hates it!

Not your smile, no he could never hate your smile. But he hates how he's never once gotten to see it aimed at him. Yet here you were, chatting it up with Mingyu? Did the nuggets he bought you last night mean nothing? He thought they were a great symbol of his undying love for you!

Vernon looks unimpressed. "Stare at him any longer and you might just burn a hole through him."

Chan narrows. "That's the plan"

Vernon's bored. "Okay, this is getting weird."

"I just don't get it, what does she even see in guys like Joshua? Or Mingyu?" Chan crosses his arms.

"Maybe because they do their job-" Vernon tries to get his station partners attention back.

But Chan's having none of it. "Yeah right, look at Mingyu! He's flirting on duty!"

"He just runs the food stand, in his defense. Half the time isn't he helping you spy on her and Minghao?"

"Well it seems like he's playing for the other team right now, standing there and talking to my girl!"

"Your girl." Vernon repeats, shaking his head in disbelief as he mocks the younger male. "You're ridiculous."

Chan stays rooted in his place. "I can't even believe-"

"Hey, Chan right?" A voice plucks him out of his plotting to kill Mingyu (Okay, maybe killing was extreme, but at the very least he was going to jump him. Eh, that might be a little too much as well, he was still technically Chan's friend. Maybe he could-)

Oh wait, someone was talking to him, and he should probably respond. "Yeah that's me."

"Oh, well I'm Karina." The girl introduces herself as Chan finally gets to take a look at her. He knew who she was, everyone did, but the two had rarely a few words to each other before now, if anything.

He adjusts his sunglasses, eyes barely moving from you and Mingyu. He had to make sure Mingyu didn't try anything. This was a matter of national security! "Nice to meet you, I guess"

"What's up Karina?" Vernon asks, trying to break up this weird tension as he saw how Chan effectively ignored you.

Karina places her hand on her hip. "I'll just be straight forward, someone told me that Chan had a little thing for me, but I know that's not the case, even though she's entirely convinced."

Chan's irritated. "What?"

"I'm not blind, Chan." Karina raises a brow. "I know you have a crush on her."

"Well yeah, could he be more obvious?" Vernon snidely remarks as Chan does his best to ignore his comment.

"So," Chan looks down, slightly dissapointed. "Did you come just to make fun of me?"

"No," She leans forward. "I've decided I'm gonna help you."

"Help?" Chan's taken back as he snaps his head up.

"Help?" Vernon parrots, though he sounds more confused.

She smiles. "Yup"

"Why?"

Karina stares at her perfectly manicured nails. "You're a decent guy. Good looking, nice enough, and I know you're trying your best."

Chan blinks, this was the complete opposite of what you had told him. Karina continues, "But mostly, it's because I can tell you really like her. And I think she deserves someone that'll treat her well for once."

"Well give it up," Chan sighs, wiping sweat from his brow. "Mingyu's about to propose to her anyways."

"Mingyu's not doing anything," Karina moves her hair. "He been standing there like a dweeb the whole time, completely oblivious to everyone around him."

"And she still likes him more than me."

Your friend glares at the male. "Well this isn't going to work if you're going to be so negative."

"Karina," He turns to her. "Honestly, what's the point? She wants nothing to do with me."

"Because she's blind, she can't see how much you like her."

"So, what should we do?" Vernon pipes in, surprisingly intently following the situation.

"We have to prove to her how much you like her!"

"And how can I do that?"

"Don't worry, I have that part covered."

...

"And then he threw up right next to the trashcan." Jeonghan — one of the new hires — finishes venting to you about one of the kids on the waterslide he was manning.

"Swear there should be some kind of law forbidding kids from eating four hotdogs and then getting on a ride that sends you spinning." You sympathize.

"Or people could just have more common sense." Jeonghan comments, before his eyes drift off somewhere else. "Is that Karina talking to Chan?"

Your eyes widen as you try to follow his line of sight. "What? Where?"

"Over there." Jeonghan points with his head, towards the bathrooms.

Sure enough, leaning on the bricks outside the bathrooms, was your friend talking to Lee Chan. Had he finally gained the courage to talk to her? And oh no, was she actually reciprocating?

"I didn't know they were friends." Jeonghan breaks the silence.

"They're not." You raise a brow. "I think he likes her."

Jeonghan looks at you like you've grown three heads. "You're joking right?"

You shrug, "Why would I be joking?"

"Everyone knows that he-" Your friend stops himself before waving you off. "Never mind, you wouldn't believe me anyways."

"Believe what?"

Jeonghan snickers. "Nothing."

You're eager to press on more about whatever he was talking about but the manager, Joshua, asks if you and Jeonghan can get showered already so you can all head out.

By the bathrooms, Chan's about to start throwing a fit. "She looked over here once!"

Karina pats his shoulder lightly. "We'll get her next time. For now, I'll just have to feed her a great narrative of you until she realizes she wants you for herself."

Chan looks down. "This is hopeless."

"Holy shit, where is Chan?" Minghao complains, but you show no sympathy as he was seemingly having the time of his life yesterday.

You shrug, adjusting the strap of the bathing suit you had just put on. "Don't know, don't care."

Your friend tsks. "At least we get out early today."

You shake your head. "Doesn't matter, Joshua's forcing us into that work bonding thing."

MInghao groans, resting his forehead against the steel locker. "I forgot about that, what's the point again? We've had plenty of time to bond already."

"It's mandatory if we want that last paycheck." You remind him and he sighs.

He grabs a bottle from his locker and uncaps it. "Can you put sunscreen on me?"

You nod, it was a normal occurrence, and usually no one batted an eye. Even as you rubbed it into his face, too close for it to be considered just friendly, you know it's all platonic.

Chan on the other hand, isn't so sure.

Him and Karina were walking up the gravel path and the scene hits him before he walks into the area. "H-He's rubbing sunscreen on her back!"

Karina tries to calm him. "They do that for each other all the time."

"Then why does it look so romantic!"

"You're overthinking!"

"Seungkwan rubs my sunscreen in! Why don't you do it for her?!"

"I always get here late!" She defends. "Anyways, this isn't about me, we need to get in there!"

You're instantly drawn to Karina and Chan loudly entering, and it seems the two have gotten close over the past few days.

"Hey guys," Minghao greets and they offer him a hello back before opening their lockers.

"Chan," Karina speaks louder than her normal volume as to draw your attention. "Could you help me put on sunscreen? Can't reach my back today."

Chan nods, grabbing the bottle from her hands and slowly helping her rub it in. He wants to make sure you looking too, and how he's one hundred percent sure he can do it better than Minghao can.

"Uh Rina," You speak before you all head out.

"Yes?" She responds, hoping for you to say something about Chan.

"You have a couple white streaks on your back." And you grimace at Chan's poor job of doing something as simple as rubbing sunscreen in. "Do you want me to-"

"No! No," Karina laughs at her outburst. "Um, I'm sure Chan can help me fix it."

You almost flinch.

"Right, Chan?" Your friend grits her teeth so the male could take the hint.

"Oh, right!" He catches on and then vigorously continues to rub the cream into her skin. He's a little too aggressive with it.

"Ow- um, okay!" She lets out. "I think I'm good now."

You stop, "Okay..."

Chan scurries off, and he realizes he actually needs to get his own swim trunks on, and for heavens sake, where is his first aid whistle?!

You two walk away, you picking at your nails as you dread the day ahead. Your friend needs to break the silence. "So, you're staying today?"

"I wish I had a choice." You grovel.

"I feel you."

You catch the time on one of the parks various clocks. "We open in five."

Your partner nods at the reminder, continuing to with you just out of the sight of the boys and any other listeners. "So, what do you think of Chan? Isn't he sweet?"

You're taken aback. "Is this you trying to get my approval?"

"No.."

"Because you could do way better."

She almost stops in her tracks. "What?! But Chan has lots of redeeming qualities."

You feel like this is a prank. "Like?"

"Well he's nice, a good listener, and-"

"Oh, you got it bad." You interrupt.

She's about to start swinging. "No, you know he's not my type."

You frown. "So you're leading him on?"

Karina deadpans. "We're just friends, but all I'm saying is, uh, he's not a bad guy!"

You almost stop walking. "Right..."

She speaks again, trying her best not to seem pushy. "You know, I think the two of you have a lot in common, you could be good friends."

Before you can even respond, someone is yelling your name across the park, and its too early in the morning for that.

Though your face softens when you realize its Mingyu beckoning you over. You tell Karina you'll meet her at your station and separate. She was acting kind of odd anyhow.

"Mingyu," You approach him, the shade now concealing your face as you take a seat on one of the chairs. You try to keep your eyes from wandering, mainly to his exposed arms. "What's up?"

He smiles' bashfully, leaning on the counter. "Well, I've been wanting to ask you this for some time,"

You can sense he's a little nervous, so you nod your head. "What is it?"

"Could I maybe..." He trails again, before closing his eyes in mental preparation. "Have Karina's number?"

You gape like a fish out of water, doing your best to conceal your light disappointment. "K-Karinas number?"

"Well yeah, I'm interested in her. Unless she's seeing someone." He stumbles on his words.

You tilt your head. "Not sure, maybe you should ask Chan."

"Chan?" Mingyu almost laughs. "He doesn't like her like that."

You grimace at that. Had Chan been telling everyone that he didn't like Karina, when clearly he had been acting the opposite? Sure, she didn't like him back but, for him to be saying things like that was a low blow. "Did he tell you that?"

"Huh, what?" Mingyu looks confused. "Well, not directly. Though, It wouldn't make sense because he already likes someone."

You wave him off. "Doesn't matter, either way, you should ask her yourself. I really can't give you her number on my behalf." You explain, feeling kind of bad, but keeping a peppy voice.

"You think she'd give it to me?"

You smile. "You'll never know if you don't try."

Watching, once again, a few feet await is Lee Chan. He's using all his self control not to rip the foam tube in his hands apart, but Vernon brings him back to earth, or more like back to helping him tie up the obstacle course in one of the pools.

Even as he's experiencing red-hot jealously from watching you interact with his friend, he can't help but admire how pretty you were. You somehow managed to make that stupid visor look cute. And trust me, Chan thought no one could make that hat look cute.

If Chan was anyone else, he probably would've given up on his painful crush by now, but Chan wasn't anyone. He's not sure where his liking for you started, maybe it was that first day you joined. Looking all pretty as you stood next to Minghao and introduced yourself. Chan had overheard from Joshua that you had impressive swim skills, and you had a crazy dedication for your job.

It was a few weeks before he even got to interact with you. You were pretty much attached at your friends hip, taking a minute to warm up to the others. You had gotten partnered with Karina for a ride once and she helped you get along with the rest of the staff pretty well.

That's not how you first knew of Chan though.

No, that was a while later. One hot day a few years ago, when Chan was still scrawny and more awkward with girls. He had finally had a chance to grab a slushie, opting for the purple mystery flavor that rested in the machines. (Chan thinks it was a result of a machine that hadn't been cleaned, so it really just tasted like a mixture of all the flavors.) Anyways, he happened to be in a hurry due to him chatting with Mingyu for well over his break.

Which meant he booked it to the other side of the park.

Which consequentially meant that he wasn't watching where he was going. This meant that his slushie met an unfortunate end on your lifeguard bathing suit. And all over the floor.

Now, you were testing patience at the time. This was a new job, plus it was an accident, you could forgive the guy. You also didn't mind that he was pretty cute.

That was until he ran.

Look, in Chan's defense, you made him so nervous. You were so much prettier up close! He stood there frozen for a few minutes, stuttering and thinking of ways to apologize. So he did the only viable thing to do, he ran to the bathrooms to fetch napkins!

Only, he didn't say a word so you thought he literally just ran off to avoid conflict - which wasn't even happening in the first place!

After that, you dubbed Lee Chan someone to avoid. He obviously left you in a mean spirited haste, a deep purple stain blotched all on the front of your uniform. You figured he had a good laugh about it too!

Chan regrets it everyday, why didn't he just act like a normal human?! Why did he have to make things harder for himself?!

By the time Chan had returned, you were long gone. You had ran to the bathroom on the verge of tears, basically abandoning your post and leaving Minghao to run after you.

So if anyone asked, you'd say that your distaste for Lee Chan was completely valid.

...

"Great work today team." Joshua addresses you all, clapping his hands together before placing them on his hips. "I'm really proud of you all today."

"Which is why you should let us go home." Jeonghan pipes up from behind you in the cluster of a group, smiling hopefully.

Joshua laughs sarcastically. "But then you'd miss all the fun!"

The smile dies on Jeonghans face as Joshua starts recanting the same little group seminar tips he gave last year. And the year before that.

Then he waves a hand out. "I've noticed that there's been some tension on the team lately, so we're going to heal that with some bonding time!"

Karina stiffens beside you, leaning in to whisper. "I'm already bored."

You giggle a bit as Joshua starts pairing up teams for an obstacle course through the park. Normally, you wouldn't care, that was until Joshua cited a twenty five dollar Starbucks gift card awarded to the winner. Oh, he had your attention now.

"Karina, I know you don't talk to Jeonghan a lot so you're with him!" Joshua says esthetically, while you sigh at losing two possible partners. Well, there was still Hao.

"Minghao and Vernon."

Well there goes that.

You finally are graced with the call of your name but are immediately shot back down to earth when the accompanying name leaves your managers lips. "..And Chan."

You immediately step up in protest. "Are we allowed to switch partners?"

Chan frowns but regains a bit of hope as Joshua shakes his head. "Nope, sorry but I have to be firm with this. In fact, you two are the tension I was referring to earlier."

"Are you kidding?"

Joshua narrows his eyes, gripping his clipboard. "Do I look like I'm kidding?"

"Joshua, with all due respect, there is no tension! It's just Chan being an idiot!" You complain, widening your eyes.

Ouch, Chan thinks. That went straight to his ego.

Though your boss stands his ground. "I would just like you two to work together for once."

You scoff, muttering a string of curses under your breath which Joshua pretends not to hear, Chan does as well. For the sake of his pride.

Your manager finishes reading the names off of the paper and announces the commencement of the challenge, which you could be less than excited about.

"For this activity, one of you is going to be blindfolded. This will help strengthen the trust you two have in each other."

Trust? You and Chan just looked at each other after you were handed the blindfold. You didn't even know what the objective of the game was yet.

"Part of this activity is deciding who will be blindfolded amongst yourselves." Joshua continues, rubbing salt into the wound.

"Well-" You begin, about to start arguing when Chan holds his hand out. He can see that you're definitely uncomfortable with the idea.

"I'll be blindfolded." He states.

"What?" He wasn't even going to fight you on it? "Really?"

He shrugs, trying to will his face from not turning red. "I trust you."

You blankly stare for a minute, trying to read a hint of humor or anything of that sort in his eyes. But you come up empty, his expression dead serious. You just handed him the blindfold, leaving him to fend for himself as he tied it around his eyes.

What did he mean he trusted you?

Karina finishes tying Jeonghan's when she turns back to your boss. "Now what?"

"You're going to lead them through the water course," Joshua smiles, although it seems a bit mischievous. He had to be getting a kick out of this. "The ones that come out first, and the most dry, win."

You gape, you were supposed to lead this grown ass man through the water course and not let him fall in?

"Lead your partner to the starting position, and then we'll begin."

You do a steady job at pushing at Chan's back to the finish line. You're less than enthusiastic about it though.

You line up among the others, knowing you'll probably come out of this ordeal soaking wet, and that's less than desirable.

The course is simple, lined up floating fuzzy blocks paced in a pathway like structure. Then you have to follow up a little climb of inflatable stairs. Then back down to the finish line. Easy enough right?

Chan's shaking right now, he's not looking forward to falling in and possibly being left to drown — as if he's not in the prescence of a group of lifeguards right now — as if he's not one himself.

He's still scared though, give him a break, he can't see!

He hears the sound of a whistle and you begin pushing at his back, leading him onto the first block. The weight of you two displaces the block, and you can feel the other block getting further.

"Okay, move about two inches onto the next block, don't fall." You instruct him and he follows, waving his foot around until he feels the safety of the makeshift ground.

You jump onto it after him, "The next one is directly in front."

And you're pleased as he lands right on it. The two of you are ahead of some of the others as well, Seungkwan already having fallen into the water, and Vernon still on the first block as Minghao tries to encourage him to move already!

"The next one is far, so I'm going to go ahead of you. I'll grab your hand after and pull you, alright?" You explain and Chan nods.

You do as you said and then hold your hand out, grabbing his palm and pulling him so the blocks float closer together. He carefully makes the step and you cheer a little in your head.

You only had one more block, then the stairs, and you were home free. You could practically taste your drink now.

Well, maybe if Chan hadn't almost fell over.

You grab both of his arms in an attempt to stop him, and you catch him just in time. He winces at the prospect of falling, and you squeeze him. "I'm not going to let you fall, okay? I've got you."

Chan's glad he can't see you, because then he'd bear witness to you noticing the growing redness of his face. And if he had to acknowledge it, then he'd jump into the water himself.

You two successful make it to the last block and you cheer, the others having more trouble with their team work behind you. The others seem to be having a hard time due to lack of trust in their guiders.

You notice that Chan had trusted completely in everything you had said, even though you knew he didn't want to splash in the pool.

You stare at him for a minute, and he starts talking. "Uhh, aren't we supposed to keep moving"

You shake your thoughts from your head. "Up the stairs now, I'll lead you, just hold my hand."

Before you know it, the two of you had made it to the end. You take off Chan's blindfold as you announce your victory. Throwing your arms around Chan as you celebrate. "We won! We beat those suckers."

"Those suckers are right here!" Karina says, panting as she comes down the stairs. She's wet, pulling a much dryer Jeonghan behind her.

You keep your hands around Chan as Karina explains. "He stepped back on the block and basically pushed me off on accident."

You giggle at that, face on a few inches from Chan as he tries not to combust. Lord, he was so in love with you. Your pretty eyes as they crinkled while you let out the prettiest laugh.

Karina notices and she lets out a smile. He really did like you, anyone could see it in his eyes.

You don't notice though, sliding your hands off of Chan as you jokingly tease Karina. "I won the card! I won the card."

Jeonghan pulls off his blindfold just in time for you to see him roll his eyes. "Yeah, yeah."

Chan insisted you made a night of spending the card together. You didn't mind, telling him you'd meet him there after your much needed shower.

So here you sat in the Starbucks lobby, awaiting Chan as you had the card and he had already passed you his order. You tapped away on your phone as you hear the chime of the door and you hear someone sitting across from you.

You don't mind his presence, weirdly, you felt he was really vulnerable with you today. While it likely didn't mean much to him, it had you overthinking everything.

"Here's your drink, it just came out." You speak first, pushing the cup towards him.

Chan thanks you and drums his fingers on the side of the cup. "You know, I think this is the longest we've been together without you saying you hate me or something."

You shrug. "It's hard to be mad in a Starbucks. Place smells like heaven, plus you showed out in the game today."

He waves you off. "It's easy to trust you, we've known each other for long."

You snort. "More like you've bothered me for so long."

"Oh, admit it. I make your job more interesting. If it wasn't for me constantly causing a scene then you'd be bored out of your mind."

"I guess you have a point." You reluctantly agree as you sip your drink.

He smirks. "I know."

You purse your lips. "So, any updates with Karina? I know you two have been spending time together lately. Seems I was wrong."

Chan sighs. "No, I'm not into her in that way."

Brows raised, you chuckle, asking a question you already knew the answer to. "She's not interested or?"

"No, and neither was I." He states, eyes meeting yours. "She was never the one I liked."

You don't know why but you stutter a bit. "S-She wasn't?"

Chan looks away. "If it had been her and I out there today, I would've fell into the water."

"What do you mean by that, Chan?"

"You know what I mean by that."

...

You'd been avoiding Chan for the past two days, even constantly buttering up Joshua so you could be on the opposite side of wherever Chan was. It was wrong, you know, but you couldn't help it.

You were a coward, you couldn't even think about acknowledging any feelings Chan had for you. You only had a week left until the end of Summer anyways. Maybe if you ignored it you could move on.

You couldn't like Chan, not after the years you spent disliking him. Sure, had he done anything else to make you increasingly upset? Well, no. And he did usually brighten up slow days with his presence. And he did leave random water bottles by your chair when he knew you were too busy to go get one yourself. (He didn't know you knew, you figured this was his way of trying to get on your good side after the ordeal, but you never forgave him)

That was another thing too, how could he say he liked you after purposefully trying to embarrass you? Sure, it was a while ago, but you never forgot.

You're brought back from your thoughts when Jeonghan speaks, "I'm sorry, your child is not tall enough to ride this ride. It's regulation."

In front of you was an increasingly stubborn woman and what seemed to be her child as she whined about rules you had nothing to do with. "This is ridiculous!"

"It's regulated by the city, ma'am." Jeonghan shrugs. "You can leave a comment card up front if you have a complaint."

She just scoffs and storms off, stomping loudly down the stairs with her child in tow. You'd never understand some people.

Jeonghan turns to you. "Been here the whole summer and I'm still not used to it."

"You never get used to it, trust me."

He laughs in response, before changing the subject. "It's quiet up here, usually Chan's in the general vicinity by now."

You stiffen at the name. "He must be busy."

"He's never too busy for you." Jeonghan crosses his arms.

You bite the inside of your cheek. "Too busy to bother me?"

He suddenly turns serious. "I don't understand, Chan is nothing but nice to you and yet you're always ratting on him like he's a pest."

"You don't get it." You say, hoping he'll drop it.

He doesn't though. "Sure, he's a little overbearing at times but it's only because he really likes you."

"Don't say that."

"Say what?"

"Say that he likes me."

"Are you stupid?" Jeonghan spouts, and you're shocked at his tone. "The poor guy looks at you like you hung the stars yourself and you always just brush him off like he's a nuisance! But you know what? Even after all the mean things you do, he does nothing but talk greatly about you. About how you're the kindest soul, about how your smile lights up his day. How you're the prettiest girl he's ever laid eyes on."

You stay quiet, holding back tears.

"He thinks you're the greatest girl in the world, you've just never given him a chance to tell you." He finishes, leaning against the railing.

"I don't believe you."

Jeonghan turns away. "Then you'll have to ask him yourself."

You open your mouth to speak, but it's as if your friend reads your mind. "I-"

"Go," He interrupts, jutting his chin in that direction. "Before it's too late. He's with Vernon at the flow rider."

You nod and take off down the stairs, mindful of the puddles of water on the floor, but your urgency remains the same. You had to know, you had to hear it from him. You need to know why.

It's not too far in the afternoon that there's a huge line, only a couple people standing around but Vernon's helping them. Chan stands to the side looking unoccupied, now was your chance.

Wading through the people, your heart beating against your chest, you find yourself standing in front of Chan.

He averts his eyes, unsure of how to start the conversation. He had gotten the message from your avoidance, you had made your point. "You want to, um, ride the flow rider or..?"

You clear your throat. "Do you like me?"

He leans back at the question. "I thought it was obvious."

"And this isn't a prank?"

He wipes his palms on his pants. "W-Why would it be a prank?"

"I don't know! How am I supposed to believe you after that slushie?" You say, genuinely distraught.

"What slushie?"

"The one you spilled on when I first got hired here! What kind of joke was that?" You ask, finally glad to let it out into the air after holding it in for so long.

"What do you mean? I ran off to get napkins and when I came back you were gone!" Chan answered, confused on why you even remembered that.

"You could've told me! I thought you had ran off to laugh at me!" You argued.

He stands, ignoring the attention you two had drawn from others. "I would've said something but I clammed up and didn't know what to say, you were just so pretty-"

You straighten up. "Chan, you're a moron."

He stills. "I know."

"I thought you were cute before then too. But I felt so embarrassed after that, I even had to pay for a new one because Joshua said someone took the spare."

Chans eyes soften. "I grabbed it for you, but as we know, I never got to give it to you."

You look down at the new information. "Oh."

"I like you, I really do." He begins. "I like a lot of things about you. Like your perseverance, your passion for this job, your love for your friends. Just one of these days I wished you would've talked to me long enough without ripping me apart."

"I'm a bit harsh, aren't I?"

"It's one of the things I like about you, you're not scared to put anyone in their place." He admits, and it was true. Chan liked all of you, not just your better qualities.

"This whole time I thought you were the jerk when really it was me." You remark, eyes on your shoes and the floor beneath you.

"I don't blame you, I'd hate me too." Chan chuckles.

You shake your head. "I don't hate you. In fact, these past few days have been so draining. As much as I complained, you gave me something to look forward too. Knowing I'd see you do something to get my attention, just didn't know why you wanted it so bad."

"Now you know." He steps forward. "And between you and I, I've done a lot of embarrassing things to get you to look my way."

"Oh, you did them on purpose?" You tease.

He playfully rolls his eyes. "Obviously."

You assured him that you believed him as you smiled. He grabs your hand in his, the two of you standing in the sweltering heat of the park. He rubs his thumb over your palm. "So what now?"

"Take me on a date."

"You want to?"

"I wouldn't say it if I didn't." You respond. "I want to give us a chance."

"You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that."

BONUS:

"That bastard really did it." Seungkwan remarks, eyes bulging out of their sockets as he watches you and Chan flirt by the lockers before closing.

Karina stares on as well. "They're so cute that I want to throw up."

"Give them a break." Minghao butts in. "Today is the last day."

"Thank the Lord." Vernon approaches the others. "As if he couldn't get more annoying about her, I've had to hear him recount every date they've had so far."

Minghao cringes. "She's the same way."

Karina agrees. "I'm not even that bad."

Seungkwan looks over at her. "So how are thing with Mingyu anyways?"

Karina put her hands up. "Oblivious as always."

Shrugging, Minghao leans on the wall. "Should we just ditch them here and go?"

"But we haven't finished cleaning-" Jeonghan, who appeared out of nowhere starts before his voice dies down. "Yeah, lets go."

"They'll definitely be too in love to notice us leaving."

"For sure."

---