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stayarmytinyzenmoa-l · 1 year

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Prominence [WCh. 2.80]

Social Media AU ; Idol AU ; Added Unit AU CW/TW: Language, Sasaeng/Stalker Activity Genre: Comedy, Romance Pairing: NCT x Idol!Reader, Seonghwa x Reader Y/N Pronouns: Female (She/Her) Word Count: 7.2K

(80/80) [First] | [Previous] [NCT Masterlist] | [Other Groups Masterlist] | [Prominence S1 Masterlist] | [Prominence S2 Masterlist]

Notes: See you in the next one bitchesssss (affectionate) Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in these actions. The idols mentioned in this work are meant to be seen more as face claims rather than the actual idols themselves

Feedback is greatly appreciated!! Thank you for reading!

21 March 2022

Hamin's coming to South Korea? It's not that you didn't want to see your brothers, but at the same time you didn't think it was necessary for them to inconvenience themselves like this. It's not like it was that big a deal anyway, if anything, this visit would stress you out more than anything else. However you couldn't deny that it had been some time since all three of you were together, and part of you did want to spend time with them, but the other part of you knew that this couldn't have been more inconvenient for you.

You closed your messages app and walked back out to the main room. Haechan was passed out on the couch next to Taeyong, Hendery had been sent off to bed before he could hurt himself, Jaemin dragged Jeno back into the Dream dorms, Mark and Yangyang ran off before you could delegate cleaning duties to them, and that left you and Jihyun to pick up after them.

"Typical," you mumbled while collecting as many glass bottles as you could and tossed them into the recycling bin. "Those two are so going to hear it from me when I head over there," you muttered while wiping down the counters.

"Aw, I know you, honey, you're just mad that you didn't scram before they did," Jihyun laughs. She looks over at the couch. "Taeyong's going to freak out when he realizes he laid down on that thing."

"Oh I know," you snickered. "We need to replace that thing," you grimaced.

"(Y/N)!" Yangyang's hurried whisper somehow reached you from across the room.

"Well, well, well, look who decided to come help," you glared at him.

"No. Come to my room," he gestures for you to follow him.

"Go ahead, I've got it here," Jihyun nudges her head toward the door and you nodded.

Walking into the WayV dorm was almost jarring to see. Boxes and luggage had been strewn across as far as you can see and still, somehow, it felt so empty. You turned to Yangyang's room and pulled it open.

"What's all this?" You looked around, the room had been largely cleaned out to its bare bones now. It was almost saddening, actually, you'd had many memories in here and now it was just... empty. But, in the middle of the room, was a small table set up with a small cake and bottles of soju.

"We're having Yang's going away party!" Mark grins.

"Yup! Like hell I'd be leaving without having one last celebration with you guys," Yangyang hands you a bottle and your shoulders sank.

"Aw, geez, how is it that I'm the one being surprised here?" You sat down and Mark passed out the shot glasses.

"We kinda decided to do this last minute," Mark shrugs. "It's multipurpose too, Yangyang's going away, Kyungjae going to jail, your relationship's back, and things are just starting to look up in general, so… why not?” He pours soju into the shot glasses and picks his up. “So… uh… to us?”

“To us!” You and Yangyang repeated. The glasses clinked together and you took the shot.

"You know what, we should plan like... a day," you hummed. Tired and confused glances were what you received. "Let me finish, we should plan a day where we all call each other, you know? Like, we're all going to get really busy, so might as well reserve a day already," you shrugged.

"Yeah, let's do it," Mark opens up his calendar and visibly gulps. "Uh... I'm not too packed on Thursdays..."

"Every Thursday then?" You ask.

"Every Thursday is a bit hard," Yangyang looks up from his phone. "How about every other Thursday?"

"Every other works," Mark shrugs.

"Yeah," you agreed right as the door opened and Suho walks in. "Hey! The gang's all here!"

"I'm only here because Yangyang left this in the van," he places the duffle bag on the floor. "What are ou three up to?" He asks.

"Oh, just a mini celebration since Yangyang's getting exiled," you grinned.

"NCThree is never going to have another comeback." Yangyang cries into his hand.

"Huh? Exiled? Never having a comeback? What are you two talking about?" Suho's head tilts. "Yangyang's coming back."

"Yeah! For the year-end promotions!" Now you felt like crying. "My best friend is going to be an ocean away for a year," you took the soju bottle and just drank straight from it.

"No, (Y/N), uh..." Suho stutters while Mark comforts you.

"You will be missed, Yangyang, but your position is up for grabs," Mark jokes. Yangyang's face grows dead serious.

"If someone wants to take my best friend spot they're going to have to kill me first," he says.

"NCThree!" Suho speaks up and all attention lands on him. "Yangyang is coming back next month! They all are!" Suho clarifies. You and Mark turned to Yangyang now, disappointed but not surprised.

"Oh," you stood up and dusted your pants off. "Wow, worried us for nothing, huh?" You playfully pushed Yangyang's head and he nearly falls off the chair.

"I'm only leaving for a month?!"

"You're only leaving for a month! You're just going there to film some content then you're coming right back! Who the hell told you you'd be staying in China?" Suho asks. Again, stares land on Yangyang.

"In my defense, I've never been the brightest in this group."

"Fucking hell, I'm going to bed," you stacked the cups and grouped the bottles together.

"Dang... so (Y/N) and I were getting all sad for no reason? That's cold, Yangyang," Mark shakes his head.

"Hey, I actually thought-"

"You're lucky though, Yangyang, you're going to miss my brothers," you yawned on your way out of the room. Yangyang blinks slowly before tumbling out into the hallway.

"You have brothers?!"

22 March 2022

"Ugh... it's too early for this," Yunho mutters, his eyes tired and his voice dragging.

"Then maybe you shouldn't have stayed up watching video games," their manager taunts. Collective groans filled the air, but one of the members was particularly in a good mood. Seonghwa couldn't keep still, he was practically rocking back and forth in his spot. There had been this looming presence over you and him since the whole fiasco months ago and now, finally, a chance for closure and a chance for new beginnings.

Plus, he was always excited to see you.

"Alright, I'm glad I have you all here!" Their CEO, as bright as ever, marches into the room. He stands before the group, who are all seated around the meeting table. "Now, I've gathered you all here today for a very important announcement. Following recent events, I've become very concerned with your security. From various people overstepping our boundaries, to people targeting those we love, I've decided to take action." Somehow, Seonghwa felt like he was being put on the spot here.

"You hired more security?" Hongjoong asks. Whatever exhaustion he had was easily hidden by his professionalism.

"Something like that," their CEO hums. "Please come in, sir, and introduce yourself to my boys," their CEO steps aside as another person enters the room.

And then Seonghwa felt his jaw drop.

Dressed in a suit and with a badge hanging around his neck, Seonghwa almost didn't recognize him. Actually, he didn't recognize him at all until he swept his hair out of the way and the scar across his cheek became apparent. He almost felt like he was overreacting, there should be no way that the stranger would recognize him, but, to Seonghwa's comfort, it seemed Hongjoong had been taken aback by the man's gruff appearance as much as he was.

"Hello, I'm Jung Kanghoon, I will be in charge of your personal security from now on," the man bows for a moment before straightening. "I hope we can get along well."

"There you have it then," their CEO beams. "Kanghoon here will be in charge of all eight of you, I've already provided your work phone numbers to him, and I'll be sending you his number sometime later today. If you have any questions or concerns, take it up with him," their CEO juts a thumb toward Kanghoon. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll just leave you all with him to get to know each other better, you'll be seeing him much more often from now on," their CEO gestures for their manager to follow him out. Kanghoon takes a seat at the head of the table. The room was silent for a few moments.

"I have a question," Wooyoung speaks up. Kanghoon looks at him. "Have you ever killed anyone?"

"Wooyoung!" Hongjoong gasps.

"You can't just ask people if they've ever killed someone!" Mingi shouts.

"What?! I'm curious! Just look at the guy!" Wooyoung gestures to Kanghoon with both hands. "Look at the scars on his hands, those are awesome!" He compliments him.

"... Do you really want to know the answer to that?" Kanghoon asks with a small smirk. Wooyoung matches his energy.

"Yeah, I do, actually."

"Not purposely, no," Kanghoon answers vaguely.

"I knew it," Wooyoung congratulates himself.

"How'd you get that scar?" Yeosang asks next. Kanghoon stares at him and Yeosang points to his cheek.

"How do you think?"

"Secret mission along the border, you tried to get out unscathed but you ran into someone you had tricked into being your brother in arms and, in his betrayed rage, he attacked," Yeosang answers.

"Interesting story, but no, I got it from my younger sister," Kanghoon answers. "She was playing with scissors."

"Oh..." Yeosang sinks into his chair.

"Aside from questions of my past, do any of you have any other more relevant questions?" Kanghoon's gaze lands on Seonghwa, who tries to avoid his look. "If not then, I'll give you my number. I'm officially starting next month," Kanghoon says.

"Here, give it to me, I'll send it to the others," Hongjoong approaches him first.

"Sure, whatever is easier," Kanghoon replied as Hongjoong handed him his phone. Kanghoon handed it back to him and stood up. "I look forward to working with you all." He leaves the room.

"Whoa, hyung, you're like, white as a sheet, are you okay?" Yunho waves his hand in front of Seonghwa's face.

"Uh... yeah, I'm fine," Seonghwa tugs at his collar. It's whatever, totally, it was just a coincidence if anything. Besides, he had a much more important event to look forward to tonight anyway, he'd deal with this when it came back later.

It was clear that you had a pep in your step all day today, and every member of NCT knew it. Especially when the ones who were hungover were the first ones to notice your behavior.

This morning, for example, you said good morning to Doyoung. Everyone knows that the two of you just don't click and still you acknowledged his presence? Who even are you? And even when Doyoung responded similarly, that didn't stop Johnny and Jungwoo from making immediate eye contact with each other.

Then, then, just a few moments later, you actually helped Chenle open a jam jar, and when he tried to crack a joke about your strength you just smiled and said that it was something you'd always had with you. What? No matter how much Chenle tried to tease you, you easily deflected it back on him.

Now, and it was an honest mistake, Jeno got a little carried away laughing and accidentally launched your phone across the room. The already shattered screen had shattered some more, it was a miracle that it still worked at this point. But, did you get mad? No.

"Don't worry, Jen, things happen," you grinned. You glanced at the clock. 5:00 pm. You picked your phone up from the ground and disappeared into the ANiMA dorms.

"Isn't she supposed to be sad right now?" Jeno asks.

"Nah, she found out Yangyang's only going to be gone a month," Hendery replies.

"Oh, shit, okay, but like... I'm glad she's happy and all after everything but like..."

"Yeah, I get it," Hendery shrugs. "You know, Jiaying said earlier that she was singing in the shower, she never does that."

"Really?" Jungwoo sits up. "You know what? I saw Jaemin accidentally spill coffee on her and she told him not to worry about it too," he says.

"It is kind of suspicious," Haechan says from behind the counter. "Last time I saw (Y/N) this happy was before she went on her first date with Seonghwa," he says with a knowing tone. Everyone turns to him and he continues to put the dishes away behind him. "I don't know, just a thought," he says. Before any more conversation to continue, you walked back out into the main room and across. You knocked on the WayV side of the dorms and Kun opened it.

"(Y/N), we've been over this, you can just enter, you don't need to knock," he says.

"Can you ask Ten to give me my steamer back?"

"Yeah, hold on," Kun looks over his shoulder, "Ten, give (Y/N) her steamer back." You hear a muffled response. "He says he still needs it."

"Tell him I need it now."

"She needs it now," he shouts over his shoulder. Another muffled response. "He's asking why."

"I have a date tonight."

"She has a- you have a date tonight?!" Kun does a quick double-take back to you and you nod. You hear doors opening in succession mixed with shuffles and things breaking behind you.

"You're going on a date?! With who?!" Jungwoo shouts while he practically hops on his feet. "When? Where? Do you need help? Please speak clearly into my left shoulder." You scrunched your eyebrows and blinked slowly.

"Yes, Seonghwa, tonight, I'm not sure yet, and no."

"You and Seonghwa were still talking?! I thought his psycho stalker like... ruined you two," Jeno chimes.

"That's what I'm saying! And his psycho friend almost ruined them again!" Yangyang follows Mark out.

"What were you two doing without me?" You eyed them suspiciously.

"Guy stuff," they answered vaguely.

"Huh, okay, well, yes, I'm going on a date tonight, and we're just going to talk about things, okay?" You explained just as Ten emerged with your steamer. "It's not a big deal, okay?" You took the steamer.

"Kun, tell the managers we will not be leaving tonight," Ten says with a straight expression. "I need to be here and present to see the outcome of this."

"I'm sure the grapevine will find a way to get to us," Kun tiredly looks back at all the luggages behind him. The WayV dorm had turned into a lawless land. "Dear god... this will be the longest six hours of my life," he mutters.

"Are you sure you'll be safe?" Johnny walks out now with a towel still wrapped around his head.

"Yes? Why wouldn't I be?"

"Like we need to answer that," Jaemin, rising from his nap on the couch, adds. "But, do whatever you want to do," he waves his hand.

"Thank you, Jaemin, at least one person knows how to mind his own business," you shut the door behind you, leaving the muffled discussion behind you. You looked down at your phone, which was still open to the chat from your brothers. You sighed and slumped your shoulders, talk about a pain, you had enough to worry about already and now you had to worry about your brothers too.

"Oop, sorry, kiddo," Saeron nearly bumps into you but as soon as she sees your expression, she places the two suitcases in her hands down. "Is everything alright, (Y/N)?"

"Uh..." you glanced at your phone again, "well, to be honest, I'm a little stressed out," you said quietly. Saeron's expression softens and she leads you to the counter.

"Well, let's talk a little about it then, (Y/N), what's going on? Can unnie help in any way?" She asks. You flipped your phone face down on the counter.

"Just... well, everything. The whole Kyungjae situation finally processed in my head, then everything with Hwa is kind of unstable, my best friend is going back to China for who knows how long, my brothers are really worried about me, and... just, too much." Now that you had listed everything out, you felt a heavy weight being pushed down on you. With all these priorities and responsibilities on your plate you just didn't know what to do next.

"Hmm, well," Saeron takes a moment to gather her thoughts, "everything with Kyungjae has been handled, for the most part. At least he won't be near you anymore, that's what matters. And as for you and Seonghwa, well, I can't speak for his end, but you very clearly want to make that work, so have faith in that," she starts, she looks over toward the door for a moment, "to be honest, (Y/N), I don't think I can say much on you and Yangyang, but I don't think the distance will change anything especially if you value your friendship, so have faith in that as well. Your brothers, on the other hand, I'm sorry that I can't say much on that either, you know them better than I do, but I'm sure they do it from a place of love, just as I'm talking with you now," she says. She pats the suitcases lightly. "You know, when I get upset, I like to do my favorite hobby, and in this case it's organizing! Why don't you do something too?" She asks.

"I think I will, unnie! But, can I ask what exactly you're organizing?"

"The WayV dorm!" She smiles. "Those boys need a woman's touch, you know," she giggles. Jihyun, however, watches with wide eyes.

"Those poor boys," she mutters.

"What was that, dear?" Searon doesn't even turn her head.

"Nothing, my love," Jihyun turns a page in her book. "But... (Y/N), why don't you come with me to my room? I think I know exactly how you can relax before your date," Jihyun gestured for you to follow her and you did just that.

As soon as you walked in, Yeseul's eyes shone.

"Jie! You're a genius!" Yeseul's hands clasp over yours. "(Y/N), you're a lifesaver!"

"Hmm?" You look around and spot the music program open on Jihyun's desktop.

"(Y/N), please, please, please collaborate with me!" Yeseul begs. Before you could answer, Jihyun presses play and the backtrack fills the room.

"Oh?" You sit down on the bed and listen to the beat. "Oh."

"Yes! Jihyun and I have been wrapping our heads around what the song was missing and now I've got it! I should sing it with someone else!"

"Oh, unnie, you know I'm not the strongest-"

"Don't be ridiculous, you're plenty strong! In all aspects! Please say yes," she plead. Well, you couldn't deny that you liked the track a lot, and you'd known for a while now that Jihyun and Yeseul were working on the next NCTLab, but you didn't think they'd want you to be involved this much. "Come on, (Y/N)! Saeron is even writing the lyrics! Let's make it a family project!" She continues.

"... I'm in," you nodded your head curtly, "but I have to get ready for my date so let's just read through it once!"

Seonghwa looked at his watch while he waited at the bottom floor of the dorms. The bouquet of roses in his hands slowly grew heavier as the minute hand ticked on. He took a deep breath, the jitters in his chest becoming more and more apparent. It's not like this was your first date, he didn't understand why he was this nervous. Then, he heard the doors slide open, and you bounded out.

And just like that his heart stopped.

"Wow," he mumbles.

"Sorry, I got so caught up with the girls," you fixed your earrings just as you stood in front of him, "did I make you wait long?"

"For you, I'd wait however long I need to," he replies. A small smile rose on your face. "And these are for you," he hands you the bouquet and you accepted it carefully.

"They're beautiful, thank you," you played with the red ribbon that tied them together. "Ten! Bring these upstairs for me, please!" You called. Ten emerged from his hiding spot.

"You're good," his eyes narrow.

"And tell the others that there's nothing to worry about," you handed him the roses. Ten glared at Seonghwa, gesturing that he, and likely every member of NCT, was watching him carefully.

"Call off the operatives," Ten mutters under his breath.

"What was that?" You asked him.

"Nothing, (Y/N), just have fun! But not too much fun," he glares at Seonghwa.

"I'll have her home by 11," Seonghwa just smiles. Ten disappears into the dorm, never once breaking eye contact.

"You'll have to excuse them," you chuckled.

"I don't blame them," Seonghwa digresses. He offers you his arm. "Shall we, then?" You looped your arm around his.

"We shall, take me away, love!"

The walk, surprisingly, wasn't as far as you thought it was. Sure, there was the occasional passerby who snapped a picture of the both of you, but for whatever reason you didn't seem to care. Even at the restaurant, when you felt every set of eyes land on you, you didn't care. No, instead you found comfort in yours and his hands which had so naturally found themselves together. You just looked forward to the wonderful night you had in store. Sure, you had to get the grueling details out of the way first, but what's a relationship without its hurdles?

"Table for two, correct?" The hostess asks. Seonghwa nods. "Let's see, Park Seonghwa... Park Seonghwa... Ah, here you are, reserved balcony seating, with Dinner Plan A please follow me," she sets off and the two of you are quick to follow.

The balcony was romantic, to say the least. It was a private area with the table in the middle, atop it was a charming candelabra and the dining set atop it was eye-catching. Even the decor that surrounded you seemed to set the mood so perfectly.

"You really planned it out, huh?" Seonghwa pulled the chair out for you and pushed it back in once you were settled. He swung his suit jacket over the back of the chair before taking his own seat.

"Too much?" He asks.

"Never," you replied. The waiter placed your appetizers in the middle of the table before pouring champagne into both of your glasses. Once he was gone, you folded your arms over the table. "So... Kyungjae."

"Right, the elephant in the room," Seonghwa leans on his chair. "It's true, we went to grade school together, but that was the extent of it. Even now, when I ran into him again, I didn't consider us friends at all. The fact that he did those horrible things to you, though, I will admit is my fault."

"Your fault? Hwa, you couldn't have known he was strange like that," you tipped the champagne glass to give it a taste. "But you going to his apartment, that was dangerous. You know as well as I do that as idols we can't do reckless things like that."

"I know, there's no excuse for our recklessness-"

"Our?!"

"... we may or may not have all been in on it."

"Oh god, Hwa, imagine the..." your voice trailed off and you took a calming bite of the tart in front of you. "Thank you. Even though it was reckless, who knows what Kyungjae would have done to me," you were genuine when you said it. "Not many people would've done that for me."

"Probably Yangyang."

"Probably Yangyang," you laughed, "but then we'd probably never see him again," you reasoned. The waiter returned and took the now empty plates and replaced them with the main entreé. As soon as he was out of earshot, you continued. "I still can't believe San didn't blab it all to me somehow," you hummed.

"Me too, and to be honest, there was another factor too," Seonghwa's eyes glanced up in thought. "Okay, first, let me say that it won't sound believable at all, but I promise it's true," he says cautiously. You lean in with your curiosity piqued. "There was someone who texted all of us and said we'd have insurance, and I think he was there at the apartment that day too," he said quietly. You blinked once.

"There are two things wrong with what you just told me, baby."

"I know," Seonghwa nods curtly. "We're going to deal with the whole phone thing tomorrow, but there was this oddly timed event when Kyungjae received a package right before I got caught, it couldn't have been a coincidence," Seonghwa continues.

"Huh, that is interesting," you mumbled. "Talk about luck."

"I know," Seonghwa whistles.

"Hey, um... since the mood is like this we'd might as well get it out of the way," you spoke up again, "was there anything else we should get out of the way?"

"Well," Seonghwa moved his food around with his fork. "Yes, actually. I think I owe you the full truth."

"You do."

"That day-"

"Excuse me!" You turned your head toward the man that had approached your table. "I'm sorry, I'm such a huge fan I had to ask for your autograph, but all I have is your photocard here," he opens his phone case.

"Oh, sure, do you have a," he cut you off by handing you a sharpie. "Sorry," you apologized to Seonghwa and scribbled your signature over your face and handed the card back to him.

"Thank you so much! Fighting! I can't wait to see your next project!" The fan bows his head and runs off.

"Anyway," you turned back to Seonghwa just in time to notice him writing his signature in a woman's notebook. He handed it back to her with a smile and she ran off. "So-"

"Would the two of you like to take a look at our wine menu?" The waiter seemingly appears next to your table and you cut into your meal a little too hard, the knife clanging against the plate harshly. You released the breath you'd been holding.

"No thank you, but could you make sure no one else walks out here?" Seonghwa answers for you.

"Of course, sir," the waiter dismisses himself and leaves the two of you alone.

"Sometimes I forget we're popular," you drank more of your champagne. "Anyway, please continue. What do you mean by full truth?"

"I think I should tell you what exactly Juliet had on both of us. For you, it was what happened between you and Yangyang that night. For me-" the loud camera shutter startled both of you.

"Seriously? Have they no shame?" You pressed your lips together but kept your expression straight. You knew well enough that if you showed that you were annoyed you'd get an earful so, instead, you continued to eat.

"I'll wait until they're gone before I say, I don't want it getting misconstrued," Seonghwa cuts into his dinner while side-eyeing the paparazzi. He clears his throat. "Until then, though, how has your day been?"

"Hectic," your shoulders slumped. "First I found out my brothers are coming to visit, then I found out that Yangyang's not actually leaving for a whole ass year instead he'll be gone a month, and now I think I'm collaborating with Yeseul for an NCT Lab," you counted the events on your hand. Click, shutter, flash.

"Brothers? I thought you only had the one," Seonghwa asks.

"Oh, I have two, I'm the middle child. I'm a little excited though, I've been wanting to introduce you to them both!" You grinned. "But I said my bit, so how about you?"

"Hm, I had rehearsal earlier and... wait, actually, did you know San and Saeron were related?"

"Huh? Yeah, of course I did, you guys didn't?" Click, shutter, flash.

"He never mentioned it!"

"In his defense, they're not actually related, they're pretty distant if anything. They really only saw each other at, like, holiday parties and birthdays," you laughed and all Seonghwa could do was smile. And, you had to admit, you missed the warm feeling you always had when you saw it. The way it spread across your chest and to your face, it was such a comforting feeling. "What are you looking at?" Your hands rose to your face and you made sure there weren't any crumbs on it or anything. Click, shutter, flash.

"Just you, who else?" He chuckles. "You're radiant tonight," he says. Talk about a finishing move. No matter where you looked, nothing could hide the bashful expression you had. Click, shutter, flash.

"I missed this." Ah, who were you kidding? "I missed you."

"I missed you too," Seonghwa replied quietly, enough for you to hear and you alone. Click, shutter, flash.

"They're tenacious," you rolled your eyes with a smile.

"I wonder what the pictures will look like."

"Oh god, I hope they're getting my good side," your expression settles on your idol smile. Click, shutter, flash.

"Mine too," Seonghwa straightens his posture. Click, shutter, flash. "It's a shame though," he opens the camera app on his phone, "your good side is the one facing me," he snaps a quick candid picture of you and flips it so you could see.

"Wow, you always manage to get the best pictures of me!" You immediately thought of the album you had of the both of you. You were more of a candid picture and video kind of person, a lot of what you had on the two of you were pictures taken in the moment or some taken without him knowing.

"I mean..." Seonghwa slid his phone to you and you scrolled through the album. Click, shutter, flash.

"Oh god, if any of these got out I could kiss my image goodbye," you covered your mouth to hide your laugh. You stopped on one of the images. It was taken right at the perfect moment, you think. It was your last evening in Rome and the two of you had decided to spend it in the hotel room. Seated on the balcony with the sunset in front of you, the picture really only showed your silhouette and... "a ring?" You looked at him with wide eyes now. "I don't think..." you looked around, cameras were still pointed at you. Seonghwa glanced too and slid you a velvet box, and he did so behind the wine bottle such that the paparazzi couldn't intrude. Your hand rested on top of it now, your fingertips just barely brushing over his.

"I... uh..." Seonghwa swallows harshly. "I'm not asking you to marry me, not yet, there's still so much I want for us to do together before we can take that step together. But, after everything that's happened and after everything we've been through, I really thought about it." You opened the box. It was a silver ring with a ruby in the center. "(Y/N), I've had this ring since our first anniversary, I just didn't know how to give it to you, and I didn't know what to say. But I do now."

"Seonghwa, I..." you couldn't form words, or at least, you couldn't put them in order.

"I can't promise that we won't go through tough times and I can't promise that it will get any easier, but I can promise that I will stay with you throughout it all, no matter what, I promise that I will always choose you," he confesses. "If you'll have me, that is, you don't need to give me a response now, I know there are cameras on us and-" you stood up almost abruptly. "Wait, wait, what's wrong? I'm sorry, I know I should have timed it better!" He stood up too, ready to follow you out if anything, but his words fell on deaf ears, you just needed something to hold, anything.

"Ugh, this will do," you grabbed one of the empty plates and held it up to cover your face. "Hold this, please. I'm going to kiss you right now."

"What? I... okay," his glance slid to the plate and he grabbed the other end right as you let go of it to hold his face instead.

The kiss was like magic. The flashes of cameras were hidden behind that plate, and it truly felt like it was just you and him in that moment. Then, you heard him place the plate down, but neither of you pulled away, neither of you wanted to. His hand wrapped around yours and he pulled it down in front of his and your chests.

"Jung (Y/N), I love you," he slid the ring onto your finger.

"Park Seonghwa, I love you too, and I promise to stay by your side too," you swore this on everything you were just as he did.

What happened next was like an omen. The romantic moment was perturbed by both of your phones going off at the same time. Both of your gazes fell on your respective devices before settling on each other.

"Oh... that can't be good," you swallowed harshly, especially when you both turned your phones over and saw that your respective managers were calling you. It was now when you both became hyperaware of the whispers around you. You both sat back down to answer your blaring phones.

"(Y/N). Come back as soon as you can. There is an urgent meeting with the PR team right away."

"Right away? What's wrong? What happened?" You and Seonghwa looked at each other again across the table and you felt your heart drop. The expression on his face was one you'd never seen on him before. It was complete and utter distraught. You pulled your phone away to see the second call that was coming in. "I'll be in as soon as I can, I'm sorry, Suho, Yangyang's calling me."

"As long as you're in tonight," was the last thing Suho said before you switched to Yangyang.

"(Y/N), I know you do whatever the hell you want, but if you listen to me once then don't do anything, don't look at anything, hell, don't even say anything."

"What's going on?"

"Look, (Y/N), we're giving Seonghwa the benefit of the doubt, but holy fucking shit what he said was horrible. Look... just trust me, okay? I don't want you to be alone."

"Oh... okay," you looked at Seonghwa again and he just shook his head. Yangyang hung up the phone and you saw the flurry of texts on your phone. all of them checking in on you and all of them worried about you. You opened one of the messages from an unknown number, all it had was a link to a Twitter thread, and the link matched many others on your phone. One link that stood out was from your manager, it was attached to a short message that said 'I was instructed not to show you this until the meeting but... it's better you prepared yourself.' You opened the link and it opened to a series of videos from a user by the @/julesCT. The thumbnail was grainy, but it was clear that it was taken in one of the Music Bank waiting rooms. You played the video.

“Look, I don’t know about this.” It was clearly Seonghwa's voice. “Dating? Now? ATEEZ is going so well and ANiMA? Sheesh, I don’t even know where to start with that group…” You felt a pang in your chest from the tone in his voice. The two people in the video, although hard to make out, their hair colors stood out easily. If it really was Seonghwa talking, you could assume the video was from two years ago now based on their hair.

“I mean, do you want to date her?” Hongjoong, you knew his voice as well as Seonghwa's.

“I just don’t want any unnecessary drama. Can you imagine the scandal from this? Either way I look at it, it’s going to be worse. She’s a nice girl but the scandals following her? Even if most of them aren’t even her fault, it’s hard to not associate those with her.” There were parts of the audio that were garbled, but some of the messages were clear.

“I understand, why don’t you ask her yourself?”

“I heard that she's a really pretentious person. Maybe conceited? What if the rumors are true that she just plays around with different guys? I don’t want to be part of that.” You couldn't control your expression, and such must have been clear to your date in front of you.

"(Y/N), let me explain," Seonghwa says, you held your hand up.

“I just don’t want to be another name in her so-called "playbook,” you know? I hear people talk about it all the time." Seonghwa's voice concludes. You heard more muffled audio, probably a response from Hongjoong, but you couldn't tell. You were too hung up on that word, playbook. What the hell? Aside from Seonghwa you'd only dated one other person. Sure, you were talking to a couple of people before debut too, but never anything concrete. What the hell kind of playbook was going around?

There was a second video under it. You played it, whether out of curiosity or out of spite you didn't know.

“Whoa! Hyung! Got the NCT girl?” San too?

“We’re just trying things out, the first date went… rough.” Seonghwa's voice. Sure, your first date wasn't stellar, but to talk about it with that tone? Was it that bad?

“Dang, you’re about to make other idols pretty mad,” San laughed. “You know, a bunch of other guys have their eyes on her. Rumor has it she was a total catch back in university, guys were flocking over to her daily. I hear she slept around a lot too.” You almost gasped. Was that really how they thought of you at first? You were certain that they didn't think of you that way now, but just what kind of rumors went around about you? What did you do for them to start anyway?

"(Y/N), please," Seonghwa, the real one now, tried to cut into your thoughts. His voice was quiet, but you could clearly hear him over the video and over the whispers. You didn't stop the video, however.

“Oh, come on, those are just rumors. You have the same ones.”

“Aren’t you curious though?” San seemingly asked with a teasing tone. You could barely make out the two figures in the video, but one of them seemed to shake their head. “You’re lying~” The video cut off. You turned your phone off and placed it face down on the table. You couldn't bring yourself to look up.

"(Y/N)," Seongwha's voice was quiet in front of you.

"They're... they're not real, are they?" You asked. The restaurant had fallen into a tense silence. Everyone was listening in on your conversation. Out of consideration, the waiters closed the door to the balcony, giving the two of you the privacy you should've already had.

"Not... not entirely," Seonghwa answers.

"But they're real?" You asked. You, of all people, knew how easy it was to modify evidence and to pick videos apart to make someone seem worse than they really were. You, of all people, knew how ruthless netizens could be. But even with context, you struggled to understand how it could mediate the situation. This whole time, you still couldn't bring yourself to raise your head. You saw Seonghwa's hands fold on top of each other, and you saw the way they trembled.

"Yes, they're actually conversations I've had," he confirms, you covered your mouth now, holding back a sob. The cold metal of the ring rested against your lip, and it just made the whole thing harder. "But... they're not the full conversations, there are parts of them edited out," he says. You figured as much, there were parts of the audio that had awkward cuts, and then there were the muffled responses despite the other ones having been heard clearly before. "I... I was going to tell you right before our managers called." You couldn't blame him for that, at every opportunity he had, it became too clear that someone unwanted was listening.

"I see," you replied. You looked up now and you felt your heart twist. The last time you saw him like this, looking like someone who had realized he fucked up, was just a few months ago. And now, again, your relationship, and your patience, are being tested. Tears pricked at the side of your eyes. "Edited or not, Seonghwa, the fact that you said those things about me is something I can't overlook. I know, I know you said these before we got to know each other better, but... I'm sorry, some of those things you and the others said... those are hard to forgive," your voice grew weaker with every word. Seonghwa said nothing throughout this. Instead, his head hung low. He couldn't deny the facts, he couldn't deny that it really was him in both of those videos. You started to play with the ring on your finger now, and Seonghwa's breath hitched.

"I am so sorry, (Y/N)," he apologizes. "You're right. I said those things before I knew you, and so did San, and so did Hongjoong. But none of us were in any place to make assumptions like that. If I could show you the unedited videos, I would, believe me. But I can't, so please, just take my word for it. I don't believe any of those things we said now, and I know better." You looked away from him.

"I know that," you nodded your head. "It's just... sorry, I know, I really do believe you, Hwa, but fuck how could anyone say anything like that? That's not fair," you shook your head slowly. You grabbed your things. "I... I'm going home, I have a meeting about this. Thank you for telling me, I'll relay it to the PR team and... we'll," you looked into the restaurant and saw all the prying eyes turn their heads quickly, "we'll talk about this later, okay? I'm not mad, I'm just... really disappointed that I had to find out this way," you explained. You looked into the restaurant again, the way to the exit suddenly seeming much longer than before. Again, you played with the ring on your finger. You turned back around to Seonghwa, who was still looking at you. His hand was on the back of his chair and he looked as if he was about to get up and follow you.

"(Y/N), I'm sorry, I really did try to tell you," he says.

"I know," you nodded curtly. "And you also promised... that we'd deal with our troubles together," you said. "And I'm planning on keeping my promises, I always do, so..." you took a deep breath. "Let's face this together then, this is just another hurdle we have to go through together," you held your hand out to him. Seonghwa took a steadying breath now, and he accepted your hand.

"Together, then," he says. He pulls his coat from the back of his chair and wraps it around your shoulders. You opened the balcony doors and, right as questions started flying and cameras started recording, you and Seonghwa pushed through the crowd silently, finding security only in your hands that held onto each other so tightly.

Prominence will return for its third and final season soon.

General Tag List: @stopeatread @bat-shark-repellant @raeincitizen @umbralhelwolf @yangsrose @kazooms @sadcoffeecritic

NCT Tag List: @cherrylovr @minjiville @resonantcherry

Prominence: @leesalts @jcngh0-hq @kpopslittles1ut @marsophilia @zwiehe @uzumakioden @mythicalamphitrite @w4yh0me @dear-dreamie @samsemsame @lune1897 @billboard-singer @cookiechristie

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