The room had grown quieter than either of them realized.
What began as a casual visit was now wrapped in a tension so fragile it could shatter with a single breath.
Taeyeon shifted slightly on the sofa, only to find Jihoon's eyes already on her.
Their gazes locked—not dramatically, not like in the movies—but in a way that made the space between them feel suddenly, undeniably small.
She felt the warmth rise to her cheeks before she could stop it.
There was nothing overt, nothing said aloud… but something had changed.
Maybe it was the silence.
Maybe the way the afternoon light softened the air around them.
Or maybe it was just the simple realization that they were, for once, alone—truly alone.
She wasn't naive.
Being a trainee hadn't left her much room for normal things—like dating or crushes—but she wasn't clueless either.
She knew how moments like this could shift—how closeness, left unchecked, could quietly blur into something more.
After all, she'd seen scenes like this before—those late-night "parental guidance" movies Jessica and Sunny secretly watched in the dorm, thinking everyone was asleep.
Taeyeon had pretended not to watch, but she'd seen enough to recognize the pattern.
The glance, the stillness, the pause too long.
It always started innocently—maybe on a sofa like this, in the quiet of a shared silence—and by the end, it would fade into tangled limbs and heavy breaths on the bed.
Taeyeon's cheeks flushed, a soft pink rising across her face as the thought deepened. She quickly looked away, but not before Jihoon caught the flicker of panic behind her eyes.
It wasn't just shyness.
It was hesitation. A conflict between heart and circumstance.
Because in another life, maybe—just maybe—this moment would've meant something more.
But right now? It was too much. Too soon.
Her group was walking a tightrope of public opinion.
One wrong step could unravel everything. Her future, her teammates, her dreams.
She couldn't afford a mistake. Even if a part of her—just a small, quiet part—didn't want to call this a mistake at all.
Jihoon, for his part, hadn't moved. He just watched her, expression unreadable. But in his stillness, she could tell… he understood.
"Hello?" Jihoon voice was low, a little hoarse, touched with a quiet disappointment he didn't bother to hide.
A man's voice came through on the line. "Ah, hello. Is this Lee Jihoon-ssi? I'm Jung Soonjae, deputy director of the TV Programming Department at MBC."
There was a pause—just long enough to confirm that the timing really was bad.
"Yes, this is Jihoon," he replied, puzzled. "Deputy Jung… how can I help you?"
To his knowledge, there wasn't any current business or creative collaboration between his company and MBC.
No meetings, no proposals.
Nothing that would warrant a direct call.
Jung Soonjae cleared his throat on the other end, his voice polite but cautious. "Yes, well… I know this is very last-minute and somewhat inappropriate, but I'd like to formally invite you to produce an OST for one of our upcoming weekday dramas."
Jihoon raised an eyebrow, intrigued now. "Oh? And by 'last-minute,' how tight are we talking?"
There was a pause before Jung Soonjae replied, a note of guilt creeping into his voice. "The series begins airing early next year."
"Ideally, we'd need the final track delivered before the year ends—so… within the next twenty days."
Jihoon didn't respond immediately. Instead, he glanced at the calendar on the wall.
It was late December. That gave him—what? Nineteen days? Maybe less, depending on mixing, mastering, and coordination with the production team.
Still, he didn't say no.
Instead, he asked calmly, "Why are you only reaching out now? Most OSTs are planned months in advance, aren't they?"
A sheepish laugh came through the speaker. "You're absolutely right. The truth is… we'd intended to approach you months ago."
"But none of our current staff had worked with you before, and you were out of the country filming in LA for nearly six months."
"By the time you returned, our new team… well, they dropped the ball."
Jihoon blinked, waiting.
Jung Soonjae added, "It was actually our director—he's a big fan of Your Name—who realized you hadn't even been contacted. He personally asked me to reach out."
Jihoon leaned back in his chair, fingertips resting on his chin, eyes narrowing slightly in thought.
A project this rushed wasn't ideal. Less than three weeks to compose, produce, and polish an OST?
That was the kind of timeline that gave most producers ulcers.
But this wasn't just any project.
This was MBC.
A major broadcaster in Korea.
A favor now could become a valuable chip later. And in this world, leverage can be more useful than cash.
Especially when the people he cared about—Jieun, whose debut was hanging on a delicate thread, and Taeyeon, still weathering the aftermath of a controversy with her group—might need exactly that kind of backup someday.
So Jihoon asked, his tone cool but pointed, "can I choose the singer for the OST?"
There was a pause—brief, but enough to feel it. Then Jung Soonjae answered quickly, almost with relief,
"That won't be a problem at all. You'll have full creative control."
Jihoon nodded to himself. That was the answer he'd hoped for.
"Please thank your director for his trust. I'll need the script, synopsis, character breakdowns, and rough cuts if you have any. Just send them to my email. I'll begin working on it immediately."
"Absolutely! I'll arrange for everything to be sent to you right away," Jung Soonjae said, clearly grateful. "Thank you again, Jihoon-ssi. We really appreciate this."
And with that, the call ended.
Silence crept back in like a familiar shadow—only this time, it wasn't charged with unspoken tension.
It was just… awkward.
Jihoon looked up from his phone to find Taeyeon still curled on the couch, a pillow now pulled over half her face, leaving only her eyes visible.
She was watching him like a child peeking out from behind a blanket—half amused, half embarrassed.
Jihoon scratched the back of his neck, suddenly feeling uncharacteristically shy.
That easy composure he always carried when speaking to Taeyeon seemed to have slipped through his fingers during the call.
He cleared his throat, breaking the lingering silence. "So… that was MBC."
Taeyeon, still half-buried in the couch pillow, mumbled, "I figured."
Her voice was muffled, but the small twitch of her brows gave her amusement away.
Jihoon chuckled, trying to ease the strange tension in the air. "They want me to produce an OST for their new weekday drama."
That got her attention. She peeked out from behind the pillow, curiosity lighting up her eyes. "Really? That's huge."
He nodded. "Yeah. And the best part? I get to pick the singer."
Taeyeon blinked. "Wait—seriously?"
Jihoon gave her a crooked grin, raising an eyebrow. "You interested?"
She lowered the pillow, her expression shifting to mock suspicion. "Depends. Is it a ballad?"
"I don't know yet," he admitted. "But if it is, I need someone who can pour emotion into every line."
Taeyeon narrowed her eyes playfully. "Not like you've got many options. It's either me or Sica, let's be honest."
Jihoon laughed. "Getting cocky, aren't we?"
"That's right. You better remember who helped carry your last OST to the charts."
Jihoon didn't say a word. He just smiled—that quiet, mischievous kind of smile that made Taeyeon's heart skip a beat.
Without a word, he began leading her toward the bedroom.
Startled by his action, Taeyeon let out a soft, breathy, "Jihoon-ah…"
Her steps hesitated, fingers curling slightly around his in a quiet moment of uncertainty.
Her heart fluttered, caught off guard by the unexpected closeness.
The hallway they walked through felt longer than usual, quieter—like the world had momentarily hushed to make room for something delicate and unspoken.
Her mind wandered ahead, painting scenes she wasn't ready to face aloud.
The possibilities stirred her imagination, sending her heart racing, each beat thudding faster as anticipation danced at the edge of her thoughts.
Mustering a bit of courage, she spoke in a soft voice. "What… are you doing?" she asked, half flustered, half confused.
Her free hand lightly grazed his arm—a touch of uncertainty, yet familiar—as she muttered shyly,
"Now's… not the time. I mean, I didn't even, no... I mean, you didn't even prepare any protection…" Her words stumbled out in a soft stammer, tinted with hesitation and confusion.
Then, silence.
A warm blush bloomed across her cheeks, rising like a tide she couldn't quite suppress.
She wasn't exactly scared—just swept up in the quiet intimacy, caught in a moment she hadn't fully prepared for, her heart tangled in emotions that hovered somewhere between uncertainty and longing.
[Author's Note: Heartfelt thanks to Wandererlithe, JiangXiu, Divine_Cheese, Daoist098135 and Daoistadj for bestowing the power stone!]