The first thing Jake registered was the dull ache behind his eyes, a leftover souvenir from last night's emotional rollercoaster.

He groaned, shifting under the covers, and pulled the blanket over his face like it could somehow block out the mess that was his current life. If he just ignored it long enough, maybe it would all disappear. But deep down, he knew that wasn't how it worked.

The memories hit him in disjointed flashes.

Heeseung.

The festival.

The ferris wheel.

The way Heeseung had looked at him—like Jake was the only person in the world. That soft smirk he'd flashed when they locked eyes, like he knew exactly how much he was making Jake's heart race.

The way Jake had looked back, heart pounding, breath caught in his throat.

Jake groaned again, flipping onto his stomach and smashing his face into the pillow, as if he could physically bury his thoughts away. If he pressed his face hard enough into the soft fabric, maybe, just maybe, it would smother the memories.

Why did he let himself get so caught up in it? Heeseung had always been affectionate, always had that stupidly soft voice and those stupidly pretty eyes, so why had last night felt so— so different?

The thought of it made his stomach churn, but it wasn't from dread—it was from the way it made him feel alive. It was the way Heeseung's gaze had made everything else fade into the background, leaving Jake with the distinct feeling that he was important. Special, even.

And worse—why was he still thinking about it? This was all just a stupid experiment, something that was supposed to be fun and lighthearted, and now... now it felt like he was in over his head.

It's fine. It's nothing.

He inhaled deeply, willing himself to calm down. But then another thought surfaced, one much, much worse.

Yesterday was just the beginning.

Five more dates. Five more days of this.

Jake exhaled slowly, staring at the ceiling. His mind was spiraling.

Who's next? He had no idea. The thought alone sent a fresh wave of stress washing over him. His own bandmates. His best friends. How was this his life? How had it gotten to this point?

If someone had told him a year ago—hell, even a month ago—that he'd be going on actual, genuine dates with his members, he would have laughed in their face. He would have thought they were insane.

Now, he just felt like crying.

With a reluctant sigh, he grabbed his phone off the nightstand, squinting against the brightness. The world felt too bright right now, too loud, too... real.

No new messages. No notifications about today's date.

Jake stared at the screen for a moment, rereading it just to be sure. Maybe... maybe he was safe for now. Maybe, just maybe, he'd been granted a reprieve.

He let his head fall back onto the pillow, closing his eyes for just a second. A break. He deserved a break, didn't he?

He could just stay here, wrapped in his blanket cocoon, and pretend the outside world didn't exist. Who would stop him?

But as the seconds ticked by, reality crept back in, gnawing at the edges of his thoughts. He had to get up. He had responsibilities.

Jake had to physically drag himself out of bed, limbs heavy, mind still groggy from sleep—and maybe, just maybe, still reeling from the mess that was his life. His body was protesting every step, each movement slow and deliberate, as if the universe itself was trying to keep him from facing the day.

He shuffled towards the bathroom with all the energy of a man who had seen too much, gripping his toothbrush like it was his last lifeline.

The moment he caught his reflection in the mirror, he paused.

Stared.

There it was. The look of a man on the brink of collapse. His hair was a mess, sticking up in places that didn't seem physically possible. His eyes were bloodshot, cheeks hollow, and his expression... well, it wasn't a good look.

His life had turned into an actual K-drama, and not even the fun kind. No, he was starring in the frustratingly slow-burn, angst-filled, emotionally-draining, who-will-he-choose kind of drama where the main character made stupid decisions and the audience screamed at their screen.

Gosh, I'm the idiot. Jake stared at his reflection, contemplating how the hell he had gotten here. He almost expected an imaginary camera crew to burst in and ask him for an emotional confession. If this were a drama, he'd definitely be the one the audience rolled their eyes at for making all the wrong decisions.

Jake sighed, brushing his teeth with all the enthusiasm of a man questioning every life choice that had led him here. What did I even get myself into?

I should just quit. Delete SoulMatch99. Disappear.

The thought was tempting—dangerously tempting. He could just vanish, make it all go away. Maybe fake his own death? Could he get away with that? It wasn't like he was some top-secret agent, but maybe he could make it work.

Maybe he could get abducted by aliens? That wouldn't be too unrealistic, considering the way his life was going.

Or, even better—what if he suddenly discovered his long-lost family was actually part of a powerful mafia syndicate and now he had to disappear off the face of the earth? It was far-fetched, but not impossible. At this point, anything seemed possible.

Jake rinsed his mouth, narrowing his eyes at his reflection.

Honestly? At this point, he wouldn't even be surprised. But, unfortunately, none of those options were viable.

Because he was in too deep.

He groaned, letting his forehead thunk against the mirror, the cold glass soothing against his skin. I'm trapped.

And, worse, he didn't know how to get out.

Somewhere outside, the sounds of the dorm coming to life reached his ears. Jay and Jungwon were already bickering in the hallway.

"I'm older, I should go first!" Jay argued.

"That doesn't even make sense ," Jungwon shot back. "I literally woke up before you!"

"Yeah? And I have more hair to style."

"That's not even a real excuse!"

Jake exhaled through his nose, rubbing his temples. So much for a peaceful morning.

Meanwhile, in the living room, Ni-ki was face-down on the couch, absolutely unmoving. Dead to the world.

Jake watched him for a second, waiting to see if he'd show any signs of life. Nothing. The kid didn't even flinch when Jay stormed past, yelling something about Jungwon cheating.

Impressive.

With a sigh, he dragged himself to the kitchen, still rubbing sleep out of his eyes. The fridge door swung open with a loud creak as he rummaged around for something that resembled breakfast.

He wasn't quite awake enough to deal with the sugar-filled chaos of the day, but a little bit of cereal sounded safe enough.

Just as Jake was about to pour himself a bowl, he jumped out of his skin when he heard a voice behind him.

"Morning," Heeseung greeted, breezing into the kitchen like it was the most normal thing in the world, casually ruffling Jake's hair.

Jake froze, mouth halfway open, unsure of how to process the sudden proximity. Before he could do anything about it, the storm broke.

"Hey, hands off!" Jay shouted, from somewhere behind them, his voice dripping with mock indignation. "You already had him to yourself yesterday!"

"That's cheating! You're confusing him!" Sunoo piped up from across the room, arms flailing dramatically in protest.

Jake blinked as the protests came from multiple directions.

"Wow. Not even 9 AM and you're already causing drama," Ni-ki muttered, half asleep. Was he awake all this time?

Jake could only let out a long, exhausted sigh, his body leaning against the kitchen counter like it was his only source of stability in the madness. He tried to focus on the task at hand: pouring cereal into the bowl without making a mess. But honestly, who was he kidding?

For a moment, amidst the arguing, the teasing, and the general morning chaos, he allowed himself to think, Huh. Maybe today will be normal.

He should've known better.

Breakfast had started out normally enough . Well— as normal as it could be when you lived with six other guys who had apparently made it their life mission to ruin your peace.

Jake had barely gotten a few bites in before the teasing started.

"So," Jay leaned in, a slow smirk curling on his lips. "How was it?"

Jake blinked at him. "Huh?"

"Your date with Heeseung yesterday," Sunoo added, voice dripping with amusement.

Jake nearly choked on his cereal.

"Oh, right ," Jungwon said, tapping his chin. "You were gone for a long time."

"Wonder what could've happened," Jay said dramatically. "Alone. Together. Under the festival lights—"

Jake groaned, covering his face with his hands. "Can you not ?"

"Oh no, we absolutely can ," Sunoo grinned. "We must ."

"I set the bar pretty high, didn't I?" Heeseung finally spoke, stretching lazily as he leaned back in his chair, all smug amusement.

He turned to Jake, raising an eyebrow. "Admit it. The others won't compare."

Jake's mouth opened, then closed. Because—well.

Damn it.

He did. He really did. As much as he hated to admit it, Jake had never been this flustered in his entire life. Forget the 10 Months awkward dog-acting-panting fairy ending —this? A date with Heeseung? It had blown it all out of the water.

Heeseung knew exactly where to poke, where to prod, to make him squirm and blush like an idiot.

And judging by the smug smirk on Heeseung's face, he knew it too.

Jake groaned again. I hate this. I hate him.

Unfortunately, the others were not amused.

"Oh, please," Jay scoffed, rolling his eyes. "We could treat Jake so much better."

"We will treat him better," Sunoo corrected, chin held high like a real competitor had entered the race.

"Just wait for my turn," Ni-ki called out, still lounging on the couch, eyes closed, but his voice laced with far too much confidence for someone who wasn't even participating.

Jake looked between them, trying to think of anything to say before this turned into some kind of bizarre competition—because seriously , what even was his life right now?

But then— salvation arrived.

"Lunch," a calm voice said.

Jake turned to see Sunghoon standing in the doorway, hands casually stuffed in his pockets, his usual unreadable expression in place. He glanced directly at Jake, ignoring everyone else in the room, and for the first time that morning, things felt almost normal.

"With me. You're free."

The entire table went silent. Everyone's eyes snapped to Sunghoon.

"Wait, what?" Heeseung demanded, his voice rising in protest. "He didn't even get to answer the question!"

"That's not fair," Jay huffed, crossing his arms in mock offense.

Jake, still processing the madness around him, blinked. "What?"

"Lunch," Sunghoon repeated, looking at Jake like he was already done with everyone else. "You. Me. Let's go."

Jake, still half-asleep, still struggling to function as a human being, nodded automatically. "...Yeah, okay."

It was a completely normal request. Sunghoon and Jake ate lunch together all the time. Totally casual. No big deal.

Right?

Except... wait. The whole SoulMatch99 thing. This was supposed to be dates . And now Sunghoon was asking him to lunch? Jake felt his brain short-circuit.

Was this... was this Sunghoon's idea of a date?

He immediately shoved the thought aside. Nope. Not going there. Not overthinking. Not thinking at all.

It was just lunch. Just normal lunch.

...Right?

Jake sighed as he stepped into his room, rubbing his face with both hands.

Okay.

Lunch. With Sunghoon. No big deal.

He and Sunghoon ate together all the time. All the time. This wasn't weird.

Jake nodded to himself, trying to solidify the thought. Just two friends grabbing lunch. No reason to panic. No reason to start thinking too much —because that would lead to overthinking, which would lead to spiraling, which would lead to—

He groaned, flopping onto his bed.

Why am I even making this a big deal?

Maybe because the past few days had been a big deal. The festival with Heeseung, the stupid ferris wheel, the way he had felt way too much in such a short amount of time. Heeseung had been confident—smug even. He knew how to fluster Jake, and he enjoyed it.

Sunghoon, though...

Jake frowned at the ceiling. It was different. Compared to yesterday, compared to Heeseung— he felt comfortable. Like, actually comfortable.

No stomach-twisting nerves, no impending sense of doom. Was that weird ? Should that be alarming ?

Jake wasn't sure. But he'd just go with the flow.

Shaking off his thoughts, he pushed himself up and moved to his closet. Nothing fancy today. No overthinking. Just...what he normally wore.

Baggy jeans. A simple zip-up over a basic t-shirt. Easy, effortless.

He glanced at himself in the mirror. Yeah. This was fine.

Jake met Sunghoon outside, where he found the other boy leaning casually against the wall.

Sunghoon was dressed like he'd just stepped out of some effortlessly cool photoshoot—dark-wash jeans, a loose white sweater layered under a dark leather jacket. A simple silver chain peeked out, catching the light as he shifted slightly, his hair falling into his eyes in that effortlessly messy way that made it look intentional.

Jake exhaled a small laugh, shaking his head. Of course Sunghoon could make even the most casual outfit look way too good.

"You ready?" Sunghoon asked, glancing up from under his dark lashes, his hands tucked deep in his pockets.

Jake nodded, trying not to seem like he'd just gotten caught up in Sunghoon's too-perfect vibe. "Yeah."

They set off toward the subway station, the bustling city around them humming with its usual energy. It felt like any normal day—quiet, no expectations, just the rhythm of the world moving around them. And for once, Jake felt... relaxed. Almost.

That was, until they actually stepped onto the subway.

Jake froze as the sliding doors shut behind them, and his stomach dropped. Wait.

He reached up instinctively for his mask, and then realized with growing horror—he'd forgotten it.

A brief moment of panic washed over him before he noticed the shifting looks from the people nearby. Whispers started, followed by stares, and, predictably, a few phones were already creeping into the air.

The murmur of excitement started rising, and Jake's cheeks instantly heated. Of course this would happen now.

Sunghoon seemed to sense the sudden shift. Without a word, he exhaled sharply, reaching up to pull his cap lower over his face. His gaze flicked to Jake's, eyes narrowing just slightly, then before Jake could even process what was going on, Sunghoon's hand was on his wrist, pulling him closer.

"Wha—" Jake didn't even have time to finish his thought before Sunghoon turned his body slightly, pressing Jake into his chest.

Wait. What?

Jake felt the warmth of Sunghoon's body—solid and comforting—and the arm wrapping around his back as Sunghoon pulled him in even closer. His other hand settled firmly on Jake's shoulder, shielding him from the growing crowd of people, their whispers growing louder.

Jake stood there, frozen. His breath caught in his throat.

"Oh," he muttered, his voice muffled by the fabric of Sunghoon's sweater.

Sunghoon chuckled softly, his voice low and casual, like it was the most normal thing in the world. "You forgot your mask."

Right. Jake's brain was still catching up to what was happening. This was—well, this was normal. He would do this for Sunghoon. Right? He'd do anything for his friends, especially to avoid the chaos of their fans. He took a deep breath, letting the moment settle.

"This is... normal," Jake mumbled, his hands awkwardly hovering by his sides. He looked up at Sunghoon, trying to steady himself. "I'd do this for you too."

A beat of silence passed. Then—

Sunghoon laughed softly, a quiet, breathy sound that made something flutter in Jake's chest.

"Okay," he said, his voice smooth and teasing, like he could see right through Jake.

Jake didn't know why, but something in the way Sunghoon said that made his heart stutter. He cursed inwardly, trying to push the feeling away. He had to focus on something else. Anything else.

The subway rumbled beneath them as it pulled away from the station, the noise of the world outside slipping into the background. Sunghoon kept his hold on Jake, his grip steady and warm, like he was in no rush to let go.

The warmth of Sunghoon's body against his was undeniable, and it felt... right . The slight pressure of Sunghoon's fingers against his shoulder grounded him, and the rhythm of the train felt oddly soothing.

This was normal. Jake tried to tell himself it was. There was no reason for this to feel different.

Sunghoon shifted slightly, brushing his breath against Jake's hair. "You good?" he asked, his voice softer now.

Jake swallowed. Damn it . He should've been more composed. He should've been cool, not getting all flustered over something so... simple.

"Yeah," Jake said, his voice coming out a little breathier than he intended. "Just—don't let go of me."

Sunghoon let out a quiet snort, clearly amused. "I'm not that mean."

Jake let out a small laugh, relieved that he didn't sound as ridiculous as he felt. Maybe it wasn't so bad. Maybe this wasn't a huge deal. Just two... friends ... sharing space, keeping each other out of the spotlight.

They stayed like that as the subway rattled on, the steady motion carrying them toward their destination. The heat of Sunghoon's hand on his shoulder felt comforting, almost familiar, and Jake let himself relax just a little more, his mind wandering back to the last few days.

His life had felt like it was moving faster than he could keep up with, but right now, in this moment, everything felt... simple.

And maybe that was exactly what he needed.

Still, even with the comfort of the routine, something nagged at the back of Jake's mind, tugging at him. Why did this feel so different? Why was he so aware of Sunghoon's proximity? He couldn't shake the fluttering in his chest, the nervous little flutters that refused to settle.

Okay, Jake thought, squeezing his eyes shut briefly. I'm overthinking this.

It was just lunch. He repeated the words in his mind, hoping