Yuna wakes up the morning after the big interview to roughly thirty-eight missed notifications and a screaming Mina waving a phone in her face.
"YOU'RE TRENDING!"
Yuna squints at the phone. "Oh god. Is it my eyebrows again?"
"No, Girl. You're trending as part of YUMIN. The ship name. You and J-Min. It's official. Welcome to hell."
Yuna groans and yanks the covers over her head. "No. Nope. Not today. Tell the internet I'm dead."
Mina yanks the blanket off. "Too late. ONARI has declared war."
"Who the hell is ONARI?"
"HWAON's official fan club! I mentioned that before!" Mina says, eyes shining. "They're a terrifying army of multi-lingual K-pop stans. Half of them love you. Half of them want to duel you with light sticks. It's the most beautiful chaos I've ever seen."
"Oh my god," Yuna moans. "I'm gonna have to change my name and move to Greenland."
Mina scrolls, reading out posts dramatically:
💖 "YUMIN is real and thriving. Look how he stares at her. MY HEART."
🔥 "This girl's just clout-chasing. Leave J-Min alone. He belongs to ONARI."
😂 "They're chaotic soulmates. Raejin's definitely the best man at the wedding."
Yuna buries her face in a pillow. "Raejin. Of course."
Mina pats her hair. "Brace yourself. Seo's calling."
The Ulcer That Is Seo
Five minutes later, Seo's face appears on Yuna's phone, looking like he hasn't slept since the dawn of recorded time.
"Yuna. Listen carefully," Seo says, pinching the bridge of his nose. "ONARI is currently split between worshipping you and threatening to deface your coffee shop. We need a united front."
"I didn't ask for a front!"
"Yes, well, you fell for a pop star and here we are," Seo snaps. "So today, you're going on a couple outing with J-Min. Be publicly adorable. Hold hands. Feed each other carbs. Make ONARI believe in love. My ulcer demands it."
"I can't just...fake a couple outing!"
Seo sighs. "Yuna. Please. I'm one more sleepless night away from joining a monastery."
Mina pops into frame behind Yuna. "She'll do it. She's a sucker for his arms."
"Mina!"
Seo brightens. "Excellent. Be ready in an hour. Wear something cute."
Ending the call.
Two hours later, Yuna's standing outside a trendy outdoor plaza, yanked into a cute pastel outfit by Mina and internally screaming.
"I feel like I'm about to do a fashion shoot for a donut chain," she hisses.
"That's the vibe!" Mina insists. "Sweet and hot and vaguely edible."
"Oh my god."
A shriek rises from the crowd as J-Min arrives, black jeans, white shirt, hair artfully tousled, sunglasses hanging from the front of his tee. He looks both casual and painfully, stupidly handsome.
ONARI fans cluster at a polite distance, cameras half-raised. Some wave little plushies of J-Min. Others glare at Yuna like they're prepping a contract hit.
J-Min beams when he sees her. "Hey."
"Hey," she mutters. "ONARI's going to kill me."
He leans closer. "They'll come around."
"Half of them want me exiled!"
"Half of them want you to marry me."
"That's not helping!"
He chuckles, eyes crinkling. "Come on. Let's go on a date."
Their first stop is an ice cream stall, a bright pink truck with neon signs. J-Min insists on ordering two towering cones of rainbow soft serve.
"Remember our first coffee accident?" he says, handing her a cone.
"Oh god. Don't remind me."
"I was sticky for hours."
"That's not my fault! You rammed into me!"
"You rammed into me," he corrects. "I was just standing there, being pretty."
She punches his arm. "You're impossible."
Nearby, a group of ONARI fans squeal. One girl shouts, "YUMIN! LOOK THIS WAY!"
J-Min grins and pulls Yuna closer. "Smile for the fans."
Before she can protest, he takes a selfie of them cheek-to-cheek, ice cream cones squished between them. The fans go wild.
Mina sidles over, snapping pictures. "THIS IS GOLD. You guys are giving 'adorable chaos couple' energy. Raejin's going to die."
Raejin Photobombs
Right on cue, a voice yells:
"YUNAAAA NOONA!!"
Raejin barrels into frame, wearing sunglasses with dollar signs on the lenses and a T-shirt that says "I'M WITH YUMIN."
"Oh my god," Yuna moans.
Raejin wedges himself between her and J-Min. "What's up, lovebirds? I'm your third wheel! Wanna...feed me ice cream too?"
J-Min tries to push him away. "Dude. Not now."
Raejin waves at ONARI fans. "YUMIN FOREVER! AND ALSO RAEJIN!"
Half the fans scream with laughter. The other half look ready to fight him for getting between their OTP.
Mina shoves Raejin away. "Get lost, chaos goblin!"
He pouts. "Noona. Let me be famous too."
"Not on my date!" Yuna snaps.
Raejin sighs, pretending to sob. "This is discrimination against sexy side characters!"
Mina threatens to bean him with a waffle cone.
A few yards away, ONARI fans are filming and debating passionately.
"Look how he smiles at her. That's true love!"
"She's stealing his focus. We need to protect HWAON."
"Raejin is the real hero here."
One fan yells, "YUMIN, DO A HEART!"
J-Min sighs. "Come on, Yuna."
"No."
"Please?"
"NO."
He takes her hand and forces it into a giant heart shape. The crowd screams. Raejin jumps in, sticking his head between them like a deranged photobomb.
After escaping the fans, Yuna and J-Min slip into a quiet bookstore café. Yuna practically collapses into a chair. J-Min sits across from her, face serious.
"You okay?" he asks.
"Do I look okay?! I'm a meme. I have enemies in a fan club. I'm pretty sure Raejin tried to unionize himself into our relationship."
J-Min chuckles but quickly sobers. "I'm sorry it's so crazy. It's just...part of all this. The fame. The fans. The noise."
She studies him. "Do you ever...hate it?"
He pauses. "Sometimes. I mean, I love music. I love performing. But...sometimes I wish I could just exist without it being news. Or love someone without wondering if it'll hurt them."
She swallows. "You're not hurting me."
He meets her eyes, serious and raw. "I don't want to be your biggest mistake."
Her chest tightens. "You're not. You're just...my biggest surprise."
He reaches for her hand. "Then let me be your best one too."
He leans closer, thumb brushing her cheek. Her heart is pounding. His eyes flick down to her lips.
"J-Min..."
He's close enough that she can feel his breath, coffee and sweet ice cream. The din of the café fades away. The neon world outside blurs.
He tilts his head, brushing the tip of his nose against hers. Her eyes flutter shut...
And suddenly Raejin yells:
"YUNAAAA NOONA!! THE INTERNET NEEDS A LIVE UPDATE. ARE YOU KISSING YET?!"
Yuna lets out a strangled shriek. "GO. AWAY."
Raejin's face squishes against the café window, hands spread. "I'm invested in your character arc!"
Hours later, back at Yuna's apartment, her parents video call again. Her mother's hair is in curlers. Her dad is holding a wrench for no reason.
"Yuna!" her mother yells. "We saw you on the news again!"
"It's not news, Mom!"
Her dad squints at the screen. "Are you sure this boy knows how to fix a sink?"
"Dad, STOP."
"He seems soft. Soft boys can't fix plumbing."
"STOP."
Mina waves into frame. "Hi Mr. and Mrs. Han! Yuna's thriving. Also, ONARI wants to fight her."
Her mother gasps. "Is that a gang?!"
"No, it's the fan club," Yuna says.
Her dad nods wisely. "Tell them I'm packing my wrench."
Later that night, Yuna's phone pings.
[From J-Min]
Sorry Raejin ruined our almost-kiss. Want to try again sometime...?
She stares at the screen, blushing so hard she might spontaneously combust.
[Yuna]
Only if we can tie him to a chair first.
[J-Min]
Kinky.
She squeals and buries her face in a pillow.
ONARI'S Verdict...
Scrolling social media, Yuna sees new posts flooding in under #Yumin:
"They're so real I'm SOBBING."
"He was going to kiss her. I SAW IT."
"I've decided to stan Yuna. She's a real one."
"Raejin is the hero we deserve."
For the first time, she laughs instead of wanting to hide.
Outside, the city sparkles in neon. Inside, her heart is an electric mess.
She might still be half terrified, but she's also half in love. And the other half of her...might be ready for Raejin to officiate the wedding.
Even if ONARI needs a few more days to accept it.