Episode 2 – Something Feels Different
951 Words
Episode 2 – Something Feels Different
Morning practice had been canceled.
For the first time in days, the members had a free morning.
Jihoon immediately turned on the TV.
"Movie?"
"No," Youngjae replied without even looking up from his phone. "You'll make us watch the same action movie again."
"It's a masterpiece!"
Kyungmin laughed as the two started arguing.
Meanwhile, Hanjin walked into the kitchen.
"I'm going to make pancakes."
"Really?" Kyungmin's eyes lit up.
"Can you make extra?"
Hanjin smiled.
"Of course."
Dohoon, who had been sitting on the sofa, stood up.
"I'll help."
Hanjin looked surprised.
"Hyung, it's okay."
"It's faster with two people."
"...Alright."
The two disappeared into the kitchen.
From the living room, Shinyu could hear them talking.
"Is this enough flour?"
"A little more."
"Oh... like this?"
"Yes."
A few seconds later, Hanjin suddenly laughed.
"No, hyung! You put in way too much!"
"Did I?"
"Now we have to fix it."
Their laughter echoed through the dorm.
Shinyu looked toward the kitchen without thinking.
He couldn't even hear what they were saying clearly.
But for some reason...
He wanted to know why Hanjin was laughing like that.
"..."
He frowned slightly.
Why am I looking over there again?
Breakfast was finally ready.
Everyone gathered around the table.
"These look amazing," Jihoon said before taking a bite.
"Hanjin, you're seriously good at cooking."
"It wasn't just me," Hanjin said.
"Dohoon hyung helped."
Dohoon smiled.
"I only mixed the batter."
"You almost ruined it."
Everyone burst into laughter.
Even Dohoon laughed.
Looking at Hanjin's smiling face...
He felt strangely... comfortable.
It wasn't anything special.
He simply wanted to keep hearing that laugh.
The thought caught him off guard.
...Since when do I think like that?
He quietly looked down at his plate.
That afternoon, the members went for a walk near the company.
The weather was nice, and their manager thought it would be good for them to relax before the next schedule.
Jihoon and Kyungmin walked ahead, talking nonstop.
Youngjae followed behind them.
Dohoon slowed his pace when he noticed Hanjin looking at a small flower shop.
"You like flowers?"
Hanjin nodded.
"In China, my grandmother loved growing them."
"I used to help her water them."
His smile became softer.
"I kind of miss that."
Dohoon listened quietly.
He had never heard Hanjin talk about home like this before.
Without thinking, he said,
"One day, when we're free..."
"We should visit a flower garden."
Hanjin looked at him, surprised.
"...Really?"
"Yeah."
A bright smile appeared on Hanjin's face.
"I'd like that."
For some reason...
Seeing that smile made Dohoon's heart feel unusually light.
He blinked.
...What was that?
He had invited Hanjin without even thinking.
And somehow...
He was happier than he expected.
Not far behind them...
Shinyu had seen the entire conversation.
He didn't know what they had talked about.
But he noticed Hanjin smiling at Dohoon.
And Dohoon smiling back.
For a brief moment...
Something inside him felt uncomfortable.
He immediately looked away.
Seriously...
What's wrong with me these days?
He wasn't angry.
He wasn't upset.
So why did he feel... strange?
As the leader, he cared about every member equally.
At least...
That's what he had always believed.
Then why...
Why was he paying so much attention to Hanjin?
Why did every little thing Hanjin did catch his eye?
And why...
Did it bother him when someone else made Hanjin smile?
Shinyu didn't have an answer.
Neither did Dohoon.
The only thing they both knew...
Was that Hanjin had quietly become someone they noticed more than anyone else.
And neither of them had realized...
Their hearts had already begun to change.Dohoon lay on his bed after practice, one arm resting behind his head.
The dorm was unusually quiet.
Youngjae was taking a shower.
Jihoon and Kyungmin were playing games in the living room.
Shinyu hadn't returned from his meeting with the manager yet.
With nothing else to do, Dohoon unlocked his phone.
He absentmindedly opened his photo gallery.
Practice videos.
Random selfies.
Pictures of food.
Screenshots he had forgotten to delete.
His thumb kept scrolling lazily.
Then...
It stopped.
A photo filled the screen.
Hanjin.
It had been taken a few weeks ago during a backstage break.
Hanjin wasn't even looking at the camera.
He was sitting on a chair near the window, sunlight falling softly across his face while he smiled at something Jihoon had said.
His hair was slightly messy.
His smile looked... effortless.
Dohoon didn't remember taking the picture.
"..."
He stared at it.
One second.
Five seconds.
Then longer.
His thumb hovered above the screen, but he didn't scroll.
Instead...
He unconsciously zoomed in.
"..."
Why?
He wasn't even sure.
His eyes lingered on Hanjin's smile.
The warmth in his eyes.
The way the sunlight made everything look softer.
A small smile appeared on Dohoon's own face before he noticed it.
"...What am I doing?"
He quietly laughed at himself.
It was just a picture.
So why couldn't he look away?
His phone suddenly vibrated.
Jihoon: Dohoon hyung! Come help us! Kyungmin is cheating!
The notification snapped him back to reality.
"...Right."
He was about to lock his phone.
But before the screen turned off...
His eyes drifted to the photo one last time.
"..."
For some reason...
Deleting it never even crossed his mind.
Instead...
He quietly added it to his favorites.
The moment he tapped the little heart...
He froze.
"..."
His finger slowly pulled away from the screen.
"...Why did I do that?"
No one was there to answer him.
Only the photo remained on the screen.
And for the first time...
Dohoon began to wonder why one person could stay in his thoughts for so long.
- Writer
