As the girls reached home, they parked the car and stepped out, kicking off their shoes and tossing them around without a second thought. Their mother, still watching TV with their father, turned to them with a sharp look.
"Girls! How many times have I told you? Put your shoes on the rack, or you'll be crying later that they're lost."
Their father chuckled. "You better listen to your mother, girls."
Nian and Xuanye collapsed onto the sofa, nodding lazily.
"Where did you both run off to so early in the morning?" their mother asked.
Nian grinned, "Ma~ we went to the airport for work!"
"For what?" she asked, confused.
Xuanye chimed in, "To take photos of Seventeen, Ma!"
Their mother's eyes widened. "But you girls already have walls full of their photos in your room. Why go to the airport? You should've just printed the ones you already had!"
The girls looked at her in disbelief. Their mouths dropped open.
Their father added with a laugh, "If you'd asked them, they'd probably have sent you a hundred more!"
Nian groaned. "Ma, it wasn't for us! Our department head assigned us to take photos for the news. It was our first work task."
Xuanye nodded, "Ma~ look! It's even airing now!"
Right then, the TV switched to a news headline: "Seventeen spotted at the airport at 7 AM." The girls saw clips of the boys waving to fans and walking confidently through the crowd. Their parents glanced at the screen.
Nian and Xuanye flipped their hair proudly.
"Look at that," Xuanye said smugly. "That's our first assignment. How did we do?"
Their mother smiled. "You girls really did a great job. I didn't know you were good photographers!"
The girls giggled, and their mother went off to prepare dinner.
---
Meanwhile, the boys had already eaten and were fast asleep—except DK, who was still glaring at his phone like it had committed a crime. Boo came out of the bathroom and spotted him sitting like a ghost.
"Yah! Dokyeom!" Boo yelped, clutching his chest in mock fear. "Why do you look like you haven't slept in a month?!"
DK gave an awkward smile. "It's been four hours and all I got was a message asking if I'd eaten... She didn't even call me."
Boo was ready to smack him but held back. "At least she messaged you! No one asks me if I've eaten. Meanwhile, you're sitting here acting like a heartbroken puppy. Seeing you makes me feel like I'll be single forever!"
DK tried to suppress a laugh, placing a hand over Boo's. "Boo~ did you eat? You just came out of the restroom… is your stomach okay?" He patted Boo's belly dramatically.
Boo glared at him and dramatically strangled him with a groan. "If I catch you staring at your phone again, I'm throwing it outside."
DK burst out laughing. "Why are you threatening me~" he said in his usual playful tone.
Boo shot him a bombastic side eye, then walked off, muttering to himself while DK chuckled, quickly returning to stare longingly at his phone.
---
Back at home, after dinner, the girls sat in their room on the bed. Nian held her phone and sighed.
"Xuanye… I'm going to call him now. He'll probably yell at me," she said with a chuckle.
Xuanye laughed. "I've never seen you scared of anyone. Now look at you, trembling just because he might yell?"
Nian laughed. "Loudie is like a baby. He switches from laughing to sulking in seconds. Half the time, I don't know if I should comfort him or laugh."
Xuanye rolled her eyes playfully and laid down to sleep.
Nian dialed.
---
DK's eyes lit up as soon as he saw her name on the screen. But instead of answering right away, he smirked and waited a few seconds to pretend he was upset.
Nian laughed, knowing exactly what he was doing.
Then DK finally answered, putting on a dramatic voice, "Huh~ who is this?"
Nian moved the phone away and laughed. Then she replied sweetly, "Is this the popular, supreme, majestic king DK?"
DK giggled, "Yeah~ who are you?"
"I'm his girlfriend," she said. "Is he free or still mad?"
DK laughed but still pouted, "You know I'm angry. Why didn't you call earlier? I've been waiting all night!"
"Haa~ Loudie, how many times do I have to tell you? We just finished dinner. I called you the very next second."
Xuanye whispered from her bed, "He really is a baby."
Nian laughed.
DK narrowed his eyes at the phone. "Yah! Who are you talking to—me or your sister?!"
"I'm listening~" Nian said sweetly.
"Mmm~ what are you doing now?"
"I'm talking to you," she replied.
DK closed his eyes, smiling, "Nian, you're making me blush."
Nian giggled. "So your anger's gone now?"
DK nodded, "Yes, all gone."
She smiled. "When will you reach?"
"Tomorrow morning. I'll message you once we land."
"Okay," Nian said. "I didn't expect the airport to be that chaotic. It was my first time seeing all of it in real life."
DK chuckled. "Do you know how painful those camera flashes are? It burns your eyes. Sometimes we tear up just from the light."
Nian's eyes softened. "Then wear sunglasses next time!"
DK sighed. "We can't. It's important to show our faces to the media."
Then his voice dropped. "Nian… what if our relationship gets discovered?"
She smiled gently. "If it does, we'll face it together. I'll be right there with you."
She added softly, "When you guys helped us stand up today, we were so nervous. I thought someone might take a picture and expose everything. But thank God your bodyguards covered us."
"Yeah… our bodyguards are like family. They're really supportive."
"And I've seen your dance challenges with them!" Nian teased. "They get so shy when you force them to dance."
DK laughed. "They try to escape, but I always drag them into it."
Then he fell silent, just listening to her laugh.
"Loudie~ Loudie~ are you listening?" she called out softly.
"I'm here," he whispered. "Now that I've heard your voice, I feel better… I missed hearing you call me Loudie."
Her heart fluttered.
"I missed your smile too," she said gently.
But halfway through her next sentence, DK had dozed off with his airpods still in.
Nian blinked. "Loudie… are you serious? You really fell asleep?! Am I your babysitter now?" She laughed, shaking her head.
From the other side of the room, Xuanye watched with a fond smile. "These two… babies. One baby is babysitting another baby, huh?"
And she giggled to herself before turning off the lights.