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The room was quiet, a rare occurrence for a small dorm full of young girls who never seem to run out of energy. The first signs of sunlight fought to get into the living room, slipping in from the blinds the youngest member had forgotten to close properly the night prior. In a few minutes, the full flare of the morning would come flashing through, yet the pair on the couch refused to move to close it, wanting to savor more of the moment they were in.
It was currently six in the morning, way too early for one girl to be awake, but she did anyway when she finds the empty space beside her. Wrapping the baby blue blanket around herself, she waddles out of the shared bedroom, rubbing her eyes that searched for the leader. She finds Jimin sitting on the couch, leaning on one side with her phone in her hand. Minjeong makes her way towards her and drops herself on Jimin’s lap, quickly snuggling face into the slender neck. They stay like that for a while; then a hand reaches to comb down the tousled blonde locks.
“You’re up early.”
“I didn’t want to,” Minjeong quietly whined. “But you weren’t there anymore.”
“If someone hadn’t moved around so much, I’d still be in bed.”
“Sorry,” A chaste kiss is planted on Jimin’s jaw. “Can we go back now?”
“Hmm, I’m still watching,” The leader says, eyes never leaving the screen of her phone that played a rerun of Amazing Saturday. “If we go back, it might wake the others.”
Minjeong lets out a huff and doesn’t move either, peeking at whatever she could see of their senior label mate who looked adorable with the Minnie Mouse headband. When the episode ends, she expects Jimin to get up, but her finger only presses on another video. Her whines are muffled into the exposed skin, making Jimin pull away slightly with a chuckle.
“One more episode, Mindeongie,” She promises.
It elicits a grumble and more whines, so Jimin brings her hand from Minjeong’s hair to her shoulders to rub on, hoping to silence her girlfriend. It works after a few seconds, Minjeong goes back to letting her soft breaths tickle the leader’s neck, but she starts to become antsy on her lap. By now, Jimin should’ve given her a morning kiss, cuddling, all the things they usually did in the mornings. Apparently, watching seven grown men in a classroom was worth more of Jimin’s attention at the moment, and Minjeong didn’t like that.
Without giving a second thought, her teeth sink on the skin for a soft bite, making Jimin yelp and drop the phone to the side. Minjeong sits up and pouts when Jimin finally spares her a glance, looking at her expectedly. Jimin sighs before breaking into a smile, adjusting the younger girl on her lap before taking hold of Minjeong’s face. Noticeably wet kisses pepper all everywhere except the pouting lips, and Minjeong struggles to lean away, but Jimin doesn’t let her.
“Unnie,” Minjeong whined. “You’re gross!”
“I thought you wanted my kisses?” Jimin asks, giving one more wet one on the tip of Minjeong’s nose. “You’re free to go if you won’t want anymore.”
“You know why I’m not leaving yet.”
This girl, Jimin thought, shaking her head and gives into her girlfriend’s silent demand. She leans up to plant a lingering kiss and feels the pout shift into a satisfied smile. When it was over, the hands on Minjeong’s face falls, but the younger girl is swift to take them to wrap around her waist.
“You’ve been so clingy these days.”
“I have not.”
“Yes, you have,” Jimin tightens her hold on the human burrito. “Like a little lost puppy.”
The smile falters, and Minjeong puffs her cheeks. She’s been called that multiple times yesterday, and it didn’t matter if they were getting their makeup done for the red carpet or if they had the camera on to record content for MYs.
“I’m not a puppy.”
“Right, you’re my little, clingy puppy,” Jimin continues to tease. “Always clinging to Unnie, hmm?
“I do not,” The younger girl scoffs and looks away. “If there’s anyone that’s clingy, it’s you, Unnie.”
“Oh, really?” Jimin feigns shock by holding a hand to her mouth. “Last time I checked, I was nearly strangled to death in my sleep. Who’s clingy now?”
“Not me.”
“Hmm, alright. Whatever you say then. But do you mind hopping off? I need to use the bathroom.”
“No,” Minjeong denies, resting all of her weight on Jimin’s lap.
“Minjeong-ah, I’m serious.”
After what felt like an infinity of narrow eyes staring into desperate ones, Minjeong cuts their staring contest short and begrudgingly slides off Jimin’s lap, the latter scurrying off to the bathroom.
/////
It was nearing noon, and Minjeong was deep in her thoughts. She will admit that she was a clingy person, more so to Jimin, but it was all unintentional. No one has ever explicitly told her that it was a problem. But assuming maybe their exchange this morning was Jimin’s way of telling her without hurting any feelings, Minjeong takes it upon herself to give the leader some space. Of course, after being together for so long, it was easier said than done.
They were currently taking a break from practicing for their performance stages. It was nothing serious, just some minor polishing here and there, meaning they still had a lot of energy left in them. Minjeong watches Jimin and Ningning goof off by the mirror, the maknae’s hearty laugh echoing around the room. She wanted to join in the fun, seeing as giving space didn’t mean to avoid, but she was afraid that she might succumb to her desire of Jimin’s attention on her.
While Jimin didn’t seem to notice Minjeong’s blatant attempt at holding herself back, Aer did, and she found it hilarious. She first lets Minjeong carry on with her displeased sighing, but when her teeth start to chew on her bottom lip, and her hands ball into fists, Aeri quickly saunters by.
“What are you waiting for? Go join them.”
The younger girl shakes her head.
“I’m fine,” Minjeong insists, but her words come out forced, and she’s back to chewing on her lip again.
Aeri turns to see what the vocalist was looking at and sighs in amusement. The other two had found themselves sitting on the floor, Ningning singing to their ballad song with exaggerated gestures with Jimin cooing at her, showering the maknae with praises.
“Aigoo, aespa’s baby is such a talented singer!” Her hands reach to pat on Ningning’s cheeks.
“I am, I am,” Ningning agrees with a laugh, and she goes back to singing.
Minjeong releases her lip to scowl and turns away, making Aeri chuckle beside her.
“You’ve been like this since earlier. What’s up with you?”
“Do you think I’m too clingy?”
The rapper looks at the younger girl in surprise; she wasn’t expecting that question. Her reaction must’ve given off a different meaning as Minjeong starts to look deflated on her chair.
“You are, but I can assure you it’s in a good way. Kind of like a puppy, you know, needing constant attention.”
“Why does everybody compare me to that?” Minjeong grumbles, crossing her arms with a huff.
“It’s the truth!” Aeri exclaims, earning a disapproved sound from the lead vocalist. “Anyway, is this what’s upsetting you? The whole clingy thing?”
“Yeah. Jimin-unnie teased me about it, and I don’t know, I started to take notice of it, too?”
“Like you said, she was just teasing,” Aeri lightly pats Minjeong on her head to comfort. “She tends to coddle us a lot, too, so that’s on her. But if it’s really bothering you, why don’t you ask her about it? I highly doubt she meant those words for you to be like this.”
“I don’t wanna.”
“So you’d rather sit here and sulk?”
“If Jimin-unnie needed me, then she’d tell me herself.”
“Suit yourself,” Aeri snorts. “From what I’m seeing, it’s you who needs her right now.”
Before Minjeong could utter her reply, their manager walks in with their lunch for the day. It was short ribs and lasagna, just as she ordered, and with her stomach rumbling at the aroma of hot food, she forgets her dilemma for a while. But a while could only last so long.
After gathering around their food, they immediately dig in. Their manager pops by and tells them that their vocal instructor was already waiting, and instead of hurrying up, Jimin decides to delay by feeding Ningning with her spoon. Okay, technically, they still had an hour before leaving, but the whole thing was just unnecessary. She tries to ignore the way Aeri was looking at her as she chewed on her meat.
No, Minjeong wasn’t needy. She didn’t need anyone before Jimin, so she could definitely do without her for a couple of hours. She didn’t need to hear Jimin’s praises of her singing, and she certainly didn’t need Jimin to spoon-feed her lunch.
“Minjeong-ah, you want some?”
The spoon hovers in front of her face, yet she leans back and shakes her head.
“No, thank you.”
“But it’s lasagna; you’re favorite!” Jimin waves the spoon a bit. “Come on, open up.”
“I said I don’t want any,” Minjeong replies, shoving in a spoonful of rice to prove her point.
She misses the confused look that was etched on Jimin’s face, the leader glancing at the rest of the members in concern.
“O…kay, then. Aeri, open up.”
//////
It was progress, not having Jimin’s attention on her all the time. She’s managed to survive the rest of their work hours by being at a safe distance away, but she had to admit, she missed the hand that held hers when they walked back to their dorm. They were walking side by side through the narrow hallway, hands brushing now and then, yet Jimin never initiated the act, and Minjeong tries to disregard the sinking feeling in her chest.
Once inside their dorm, Aeri calls dibs for the shower, leaving the rest of the group to wait their turn in the living room. Ningning decided she wanted to watch a movie, so the younger girl kneels in front of the TV while scrolling along the recommended list on Netflix. It takes a lot for Minjeong to not crawl towards Jimin’s lap; the girl that was on her phone was only an arm’s length away. She badly wanted to feel her close after being apart for most of the day.
Yet, she internally chides herself to stop from doing so. Yes, she was practically torturing herself but giving Jimin space the whole point. If Jimin wanted her close, she’d say so. Plus, Minjeong knew that she’d be in Jimin’s bed at night anyway, so maybe she could wait a little longer.
“Baby, come sit here.”
As if under a spell, Minjeong’s body automatically reacts to that line. She barely moves an inch when a body swiftly bumps into her arm, placing itself beside in between her and her girlfriend.
Oh.
Right.
Minjeong wasn’t the only baby around here. She shuffles back to her side of the couch, trying to avoid looking over at Ningning cuddled up to Jimin, the older girl resting an arm around her. The movie starts to play, and with it, an eerie, all-familiar soundtrack.
“Hold on, what is this?” Jimin asks, visibly shaken up by the screen spelling out the words The Conjuring.
“It’s a really cool movie,” Ningning tells her, reaching out to poke Minjeong’s side for back-up. “Right, Minjeong-unnie?”
“Yep,” She nods. “It’s the greatest movie ever.”
There was no hiding that the older girls of the group weren’t fond of watching horror films. They’d sneak out after watching for five minutes, not sparing a minute longer despite the younger girls’ protests. But if that’s what it takes for Jimin to unwrap herself from Ningning, then Minjeong would gladly allow her to sneak off. Except, she doesn’t sneak off.
Minjeong had to put up with Jimin’s muffled screaming with Ningning holding her down from attempting to run, which eventually resulted in their leader staying still in the maknae’s death grip. She lightly scoffs at the sight. Sure, she wasn’t as strong as Ningning, but Jimin always gave a fight and won to get away from the ghosts on TV. A jealous coil starts to form in her stomach, and she forces herself to look elsewhere. Jimin should be in her arms, clinging onto her.
“What are you guys watching?” Aeri asks, wandering into the living room with a towel in her hands.
“The Conjuring,” Jimin replies, hiding behind Ningning’s hair.
“Yeah, it’s a no for me.”
“Aeri-unnie, please get us snacks!” Ningning demanded, and the rapper obliges, shielding her eyes from the TV, and wanders back to the kitchen.
When the bag of Doritos is dropped off, Aeri turns on her heel, ready to disappear, but she checks on Minjeong first. The poor girl was sulking into the couch.
“Still good?”
“Yeah.”
A sharp scream from the TV has all of them jumping, and Aeri quickly makes her exit. Minjeong could see Jimin try for hers, but Ningning throws herself over the girl, telling her it was the last twenty minutes of the movie. Surprisingly, they make it through without any more screaming and escape attempts, leading them to retire into their room the moment it ended.
The maknae was quick to announce her turn in the shower, and since Minjeong and Jimin were too tired to protest, they let her go. They find themselves in their respective beds, Minjeong lying flat on hers while Jimin propped up with her eyes glued on her phone once again.
It felt so odd for the younger girl to be on her bed again, it’s been too long since she’d last slept there by herself. She turns her head to the side, and Jimin is still immersed in whatever was on her phone. From what she could hear, it was Pororo the Little Penguin’s theme song, and she doesn’t hide the snicker escaping her.
Jimin turns to her with a small glare, and Minjeong sticks her tongue out in response. She turns her head back to the underside of Aeri’s bunk, catching its owner peeking at her from above. She gestures to the leader and quietly steps down the ladder to give the couple some privacy.
“Baby, come here.”
Minjeong glances back at her girlfriend, finding that she had discarded her phone to the side and was patting on the space beside her. She shakes her head, opening her arms instead, and the older girl happily skips over. Squeezing into the twin-sized bed, Jimin immediately pulls her close. Minjeong didn’t know why, but her stomach did flips, and her chest felt fuzzy. It was probably the excitement of finally being where she belonged.
She buries her face into Jimin’s chest, taking in the faint scent of laundry detergent and the perfume Jimin loved so much. Minjeong snakes an arm around her waist and starts to relax. She had survived her little experiment, not knowing who she wanted to prove with it, but it was over, and she never wanted to do it again.
“You know, I was starting to think you were going to ignore me the whole day.”
The vibrations of her voice against Minjeong’s forehead has the younger girl looking up, straight into those endearing eyes, the pout on her lips looking out of place.
“It was you who was ignoring me—“
“Excuse me?”
“Okay, fine, but I didn’t plan on ignoring you.”
“You actions said otherwise,” Jimin points out, jabbing a finger into Minjeong’s cheek. “How come, hmm? I need answers.”
“I...I wanted to give you some space.”
“Who said I needed that?”
“I thought about what you said this morning,” a blush starts to form on her face. “About being clingy, and, well, I wanted to tone it down.”
Jimin lets out a chuckle. “I don’t want you to tone it down. Don’t ever.”
“I don’t want to seem needy—“
“You are,” came her girlfriend’s blunt answer, causing Minjeong to look at her with a sullen expression. “And you’re supposed to be, silly. You need me the same way I need you, and there’s nothing wrong with that.”
“Are you sure about that? I’m not overbearing for you?”
“I can handle you perfectly fine on my own, Minjeong-ah,” Jimin presses a kiss to her forehead. “We’re allowed to need each other, okay?”
Minjeong nods, just as a gentle kiss lands on her lips. Jimin adjusts herself, getting on her elbows to cage the girl underneath her, angling her head to press a deeper kiss but pulling away when teeth graze along her bottom lip.
“My puppy really likes to bite.”
“Quit calling me that!”
“Why not? It’s cute.”
“Sure,” Minjeong huffs, rolling her eyes. “As long as I get to call you baby giraffe, then we’re even.”
“That was one time!” It was Jimin’s turn to whine, and Minjeong starts to giggle. “Don’t act like you’ve never tripped before!”
“Shh, just shut up and kiss me.”
“You’re so demanding, Minjeong-ah.”
“You love it!”