if you happen to like both skz and ateez, please check out the link i have included in my community tab! it would really mean a lot to me <3

Chan was staring at the ceiling, feeling helplessly useless: he could've walked now if he wanted to; he knew that he could have, but who would've ever been able to make it all well understood by the stubbon ears of Mme Pomfrey?

The woman had not been of great company – dutiful, yes, and nice when she needed to – either, so he had been very grateful when she'd at last allowed visitors into the Hospital Wing: this way, he could at least have a talk with Woojin, and have other friends casually stop by.

He'd received visits from Hongjoon (and he did not see how this could've not happened, as he had told him back in September that if anything should go wrong, he would take his place as capitain), Seongwha, Soobin... even Lia had come to say hi.

But the visit that had shocked him the most, had definitely been that of sunday afternoon: his team had just left, reporting the news of the lost match. Though sad to receive them, Chan could not say that he was surprised – he was expecting it, truth be told, and especially with a new member being added three days before the match: what hope could they realistically have had?

But the team had seemed pretty positive about her performance: "She's really good; next year, when you leave, I definitely think she'll have a chance!" had said Hongjoon, and Y/n had blushed at those words.

Chan still felt quite uncomfortable around the girl, just as he knew he would feel if he was to meet that other Slytherin, Seungmin, around Hogwarts: being aware of the fact that they knew, that was something he still struggled to wrap his head around.

It's not that he had absolutely no faith in them, but if he'd kept it hidden from everyone there was a reason – and that was that it was not completely unusual for students (as he'd experienced himself through his years as a Prefect) to sometimes speak before thinking, and accidentally letting something theyreally weren't supposed to say slip.

So far, it seemed to all be good – Woojin had reassured him on that, also saying how the two had looked very committed to the keeping of the secret, but Chan still didn't feel too safe: three days were not a very long time span, and many things could happen in the future.

However hunting these thoughts were, he'd been happy to hear such great things about Y/n, and had been left in a very cheerful mood when the team had said farewell to go back to their dorms.

If was then unexpectedly, but not unhappily, that he had watched two of the people he least could have imagined would visit him on that sunday: Lee Minho and Hwang Yeji, who were making their way towards his position.

"Hi Chan!" exclaimed Minho, sitting onto the low bay-window seat next to his bed. He still held in his hands the small cup teams were given after winning ordinary matches – not the season-final ones – and looked radiant beyond his helping. "We thought we'd come and see how you were doing".

Chan smiled, and replied: "Thanks guys. Congrats on your win, I've been told you played really well!"

That much was true: Jongho, his Seeker, had described carefully all the faints and stunts Minho had done during that match, and how in the end he had caught the Snitch with an ease that had left him wondering if had known where it had been all along (to that, Chan had already found a strategy, and he had all the intentions to have Jongho follow Minho's gaze carefully the next time the two teams would face each other), and Yeji had been named numberless times because of the precision and quickness of her movements ("Their chasers are all pretty good", had explained Soobin, though with certain reluctance, "but that Yeji girl is not just pretty good; she's really good").

"Stop it", said Minho, faking a sweet tone and doing the pettiest hand gestures, "or I'm going to blush!"

Yeji elbowed him, though laughing. "C'mon Lee, we're not here to see you act like your dumb self".

"It just so happens that this dumb self just won the match–"

"His a hundred and fifty points would have never been enough had the chasers not got some other points beforehand!" snapped back Yeji, and at that Chan had to laugh.

"It's always to nice to see housemates support each other", he said sarcastically.

The two remained with him for more or less an hour, informing the Gryffindor on the lastest news of everything that had happened at Hogwarts – not that he was not already informed, but Chan figured it couldn't be bad to listen to many different points of view.

After both Minho and Yeji had both ran out of things to say, they got up to get back to their dorm.

"It's been a long day", stated Minho, yawning. "And I haven't eaten anything since breakfast. I swear I'm starving".

Yeji had got up as well, but once she and Minho had basically reached the Nursery's door she suddenly stopped: "I forgot my wand on the chair! Go ahead, I'll reach you later", she quickly told him.

Minho had raised an eyebrow, but made no objection. "Sure. See you in a bit, Yeji".

The girl awkwardly came back to Chan's bed – the Gryffindor had already taken his Herbology homework out (Seongwha had given it to him that morning), and with his quill he had started to sketch out the answer to the first question.

"Ahem" said the Slytherin, and Chan slightly raised his head.

"Yeji? Is everything okay?"

The girl rolled her eyes. "Of course, why do you even ask? I came back because I had forgotten to ask you how you're feeling".

Chan raised his right eyebrow. "Is it supposed to be a joke?"

"It is not, for your information".

The Gryffindor was taken aback by her reaction, and mostly by the sudden question: not only he was not expecting to receive it from Yeji, but he also had spent those past few days not even thinking about it.

Was he okay? All in all, he now felt less tired, and definitely stronger; he felt ready and excited to start his classes on monday, and definitely could not complain to be leaving the Hospital Wing in less than twenty-four hours.

But was that enough to say he was "okay"?

All the afforts that he'd done during those first months, all of the sleepless nights, all the anxiety that filled him as soon as he started to think off all the time he had wasted while injured, the remorse for having forgotten to take his werewolf potion, the knowledge that there were students at Hogwarts who knew about his secret, having lost the Quidditch match... it was a lot to handle.

Chan sighed. "Honestly Yeji, that's a very good question. I'd say I am, but also not. What would you make of that?"

Yeji laughed. "I'd make that you finally came to terms with being human. Humans are not perfect Chan, nor they need to be! It's in our nature to fail at times, but there's no use in being too hard on ourselves" she said, talking quickly and barely taking any breath in-between her words.

Chan looked at her in utmost shock, not talkig for sometimes after she finished. Yeji was really intelligent and supportive, and also really pretty. How was it that he had only now realized it?

~🤍~
okay so i really did make a thing 😳👉🏻👈🏻
it's a youtube video where i gave each stray kids member their ateez twin – or viceversa ;).

you can find the link in my community tab thingy (?), so if you wanna go check it out!

i already have another video up which is dressing w bts ib outfits for a week lol.

anyways, i'm so soft for chan & yeji and rlly happy to have made them a thing for my story🥰🥰

next chapter on thursday – it's woojin!

see you~

Vic🌙.