As the boys went to their studio, the manager was still shocked. The boys sat on the floor and were discussing the schedule. Vernon lifted his head while talking to the boys and started laughing. The members saw him laughing and Wonwoo asked, "Vernon, what are you looking at and smiling?"
Vernon told them to look at the manager. The boys turned their heads and saw the manager looking like he was possessed. The boys laughed, and Woozi called out to their manager. He shook his head, saw them laughing at him, smirked, and walked towards them.
The boys told him to sit, and Woozi asked, "Zhang, are you still thinking about that ad?" He giggled.
The manager shot him a bombastic side-eye and said, "Guys... you are really unbelievable. Even in an ad, you can't be obedient, right?"
The boys smiled proudly.
Vernon asked, "Zhang, what are you doing here? Didn't you say you finished your work?"
He nodded and said, "Guys, I forgot to tell this in your chaos."
Jun asked him what it was.
He said, "The performance team already knows this — there will be a world tour after the New Year, right?"
The performance team nodded their heads.
He continued, "So, it's confirmed. There will be a world tour in the first week. We'll depart next Saturday, guys."
The members were stunned. Scoups asked, "But Zhang, we just got free time and now there's another concert in the first week of the new year, huh?" He pouted.
The members patted him and Joshua said, "Scoups, don't worry. Like Vernon said, it's just another world tour."
He nodded his head, and Hoshi asked, "Manager, how many months will it take?"
He replied, "Two to three months, guys. To tell you correctly, it'll be two months."
The members were happy because it was just two months — not a whole year. But DK and Minghao looked worried. The boys and the manager noticed it.
Dino said, "DK, Minghao, don't worry. We have time to meet them. Before departure, we'll meet them and even go to the airport." He raised his brow playfully.
DK and Minghao smiled and nodded.
The manager looked at them smiling and thought, How can these boys be mature and still so naughty at the same time?
---
On the other hand, Nian and Xuanye wore warm clothes and were standing outside to play in the snow. The girls looked at the snow and laughed like villains.
Xuanye looked at her and said, "Nian, can we start?" She smirked.
Nian nodded happily. They didn't just play — they fell on the snow, feeling the chill and fluffiness against their backs.
Their mother and father looked at them with a smile.
"These girls... if anyone sees them, they'll think they're children," their mother said.
Their father chuckled. "To us, they are our children."
His wife looked at him and laughed.
Her husband placed his hand under her chin and said dramatically, "Wifey~ you're also my child, you know."
She couldn't hold her laughter. "Zhang! What happened? Why are you being romantic all of a sudden, huh?"
He chuckled and shook his head with a smile.
---
Meanwhile, Nian and Xuanye were lying on the snow, pressing their bodies against it. Nian sat up and started making a snowman.
Xuanye looked at her while still lying down. "Nian, instead of making a snowman, shall we make the boys out of snow?"
Nian laughed. "Ye, how will you create them from this snow?"
Xuanye smirked. "Just watch. I'll do it."
She stood up, made a snowball, and asked Nian to hand her a stick.
Nian laughed, fetched a stick, and gave it to her.
Xuanye started drawing on the snowball. When she finished, she showed it to Nian. "Tell me, Nian, who is this?"
Nian squinted. "Ye~ First of all, what have you drawn? It looks like Thomas the Tank Engine."
Xuanye laughed. "You found out, huh?"
Nian was confused. "What does that have to do with the boys?"
She chuckled. "It's Boo."
Nian looked at her in disbelief and burst into laughter. "Ye~ if Boo saw this, he would yell at you."
"He won't," Xuanye smirked. "Come on, Nian, let's make the other members too."
The girls giggled as they made snow versions of all the boys.
When they finished, they sat back and laughed.
Nian said, laughing, "Xuanye, we've made them into a mess."
Xuanye pointed at Hoshi. "Look, Nian, what have you done to him? He looks like a rat."
Nian chuckled. "Yay~ it's supposed to be a hamster! But it kind of looks like a rat."
They both laughed hard.
Xuanye caught her breath and looked at the snow. "Nian, even these snow figures... they feel like them, right?"
Nian went quiet. She picked up DK's snow character and said softly, "Yes, Xuanye. Look at him... he's even smiling through the snow. That's how I know he's my Loudie."
Xuanye looked at her and said, "Nian... Minghao told me they'd be going on a world tour after the New Year."
Nian was stunned. She froze for a few seconds. "What... world tour?"
Xuanye nodded. "He told me only the performance team knows for now. The rest of the members don't even know yet."
Nian's eyes widened as she looked at the snow figures. "Xuanye, even during New Year, they can't be free... and world tours take 2 to 3 months." Her face turned pale.
Xuanye looked at her gently. "Nian, do you know when I heard this from Minghao... my heart got nervous. I thought—will I be able to not see him until he returns? Will our bond fade? What if someone finds out about our relationship?
"I had all these thoughts, though they weren't even connected. But I didn't show that to him. I just told him I would wait.
"I know Hao must be worried inside too. But he didn't want to burden me. So, I smiled."
She patted Minghao's snow figure and gave a faint smile.
Nian patted her back. "You're right, Xuanye. These boys don't want us to worry, so they try their best to keep us happy. And we—us girls—are doing the same. We're holding ourselves together so they feel relieved."
She looked at DK's snow figure. "Even if they go on a world tour, our bond will only grow stronger. I'll wait for them. We'll both wait."
Nian and Xuanye gazed at the boys' snow figures with a smile.
The snow kept falling, gently blanketing their love in white.