POV — VXN
The living room was tense.
Jaemin was standing in the middle of it with his hands out like a man trying to stop traffic.
"Look — I'm sorry," he started. "I was trying to explain to you guys about her but you all shut me out—"
"So explain," Sungjae said flatly from the couch.
"Leah is a really nice girl," Jaemin said. "There is nothing between us. And she doesn't even know I am one of VXN — like I lied to her about that and I don't even know how to face her now—"
"What are you even saying."
Taejun's voice.
He stood up slowly from his chair and looked at Jaemin with an expression that had nothing calm about it.
"Why are you defending your slot?"
The room went very still.
Jaemin's head snapped up.
"Slot?" His voice dropped dangerously low. "What did you just call her?"
"Leah," Taejun said. "You must be crazy to—"
"You must be crazy," Jaemin cut him off — stepping forward, jaw tight, every word landing carefully and deliberately. "To say something like that about her. Look — I don't even know her like that. I found out about her two days ago . So she is NOT a slot." He looked at Taejun for one long hard moment. "Don't ever say that again."
He walked out of the room.
Sungjae watched him go.
Then he turned slowly to Taejun.
"That was totally wrong of you," he said quietly. "Accusing an innocent girl like that. You don't even know her." A pause. "You were out of line bro."
He stood up and followed Jaemin.
POV — Taejun
I stood in the empty living room and said nothing.
What is going on with me.
I didn't understand it. I couldn't explain it. From the moment I had seen her walk into that room last night — her face, her body, the way she moved — something had shifted inside me that I had no rational framework for.
I won't deny it.
I already have feelings for this girl.
But the moment I saw her with Daniel and Jaemin — standing between them, comfortable, — something dark and irrational had moved through me so fast I hadn't been able to stop what came out of my mouth.
I had called her a slot.
I pressed both hands over my face.
God. What have I done.
The doorbell rang.
Their manager walked in with the particular brisk energy of a man who had seventeen things on his mind and intended to get through all of them before anyone had a chance to object.
"Where are the rest?" he said.
A few minutes later all three of them were sitting in the living room — Jaemin on one end, Sungjae in the middle, Taejun on the other end with the silence between him and Jaemin thick enough to cut through.
Their manager looked around at all three of them.
"I just want you all to know," he said, "that I will be employing someone to cook for you and assist when you need anything. She will be available whenever you need her. The spare room will be arranged by the weekend." He looked at each of them in turn. "Now — Taejun, your modelling audition is confirmed. Jaemin your movie role has been finalised — go and prepare. Sungjae the ads company is already waiting." He stood up. "All of you — prepare."
He left.
The living room was quiet again.
Taejun stared at the wall.
And thought about a girl whose name he had called something unforgivable.
POV — Leah
The knock came at my door.
I stirred. Blinked. Turned over slowly.
Everything ached.
I had gotten home late — later than I should have — and fallen into bed thinking about what Taejun says to me and why jaemin also lied to me from the very beginning thinking about the party
I wasn't ready to think about that yet.
The knock came again.
I pulled myself up and went to the door and opened it.
Sarah.
Standing on my step with her arms folded and her eyebrows raised and the expression of someone who had been up for hours and had opinions about people who hadn't been.
"Hey," I said. "No work today — it's not time yet time
Sarah burst out laughing.
Not a small laugh. A proper one.
"Are you crazy?" she said. "Leah it is almost noon."
I stared at her.
"What?"
"Almost. Noon." She said it slowly. Like I needed help processing it.
I turned and looked back into my room — at the light coming through the curtain, at the angle of it, at the particular brightness that had nothing to do with early morning — and felt my stomach drop completely.
I was already moving before I finished the thought.
Back into the room. Grabbing clothes — whatever was closest, whatever was clean — pulling them on fast without even thinking about a bath because there was no time for a bath and Sarah was still standing in the doorway saying something I wasn't fully hearing.
I grabbed my bag.
"Leah—" Sarah started.
"I'm late—" I was already past her, already through the door, already moving down the front path with my bag on my shoulder and my shoes only half properly on.
"Hey — careful—" Sarah called after me.
But I was already gone.