Chapter Text
The One-Month Blueprint
The Midnight Algorithm (Yushi’s POV)
For Yushi, scrolling through TikTok had become a late night routine that always ended at the same destination which is Riku’s profile. Riku was a dancer whose effortless, fluid movements captured hundreds of thousands of views, but lately, he had started documenting his journey into martial arts.
The video that completely unraveled Yushi’s composure was simple. Riku dancing in a dimly lit studio, wearing nothing but loose grey sweatpants. As the camera caught the sharp contours of Riku’s physique, the fabric left very little to the imagination, revealing a prominent, distracting silhouette.
Turned on and completely captivated, Yushi began leaving semi frequent comments on every new upload, secretly hoping to stand out. He also noticed that in Riku's regular dance videos, Riku always wore a tight, compressed shirt to clearly monitor his dance lines. Every single time Riku raised his hands during a choreography drop, the hem would slide up, letting his navel and deep 11 line abs peak out.
The comment sections were constantly flooded with thousands of women praising his incredibly slim waist. Seeing the ocean of female fans, Yushi couldn't help but feel a sudden spike of jealousy. It made his comments stand out completely because it was rare for a guy to comment so consistently under those videos. In his head, Yushi was always thinking, 'Move away, everyone, that's my man.'
Yushi assumed Riku just ignored him. But deep down, his heart would beat frantically every time he stared at the screen, going back and forth on whether he should take a leap of faith. The final push came when Riku posted a TikTok story: “Looking for a martial arts sparring partner in Tokyo to help record content. Must have some rhythm or dance background. DM me. 🥋”
Yushi typed out a message, his fingers trembling over the screen. He kept writing and deleting it, totally stuck in his own head. Not until his close friend Sakuya came over.
Sakuya peeked at the draft, rolled his eyes at Yushi's hesitation, and playfully hit the send button for him.
Yushi nearly had a heart attack trying to grab the phone back, but the text had already flown into Riku's inbox.
DM Conversation :
To Yushi's absolute shock, the response came almost instantly, switching into comfortable Japanese:
The Secret Strategist (Riku’s POV)
What Yushi didn't know was that Riku had been completely hyper aware of him long before they start talking. Because every single time Yushi’s username popped up in his notifications, liking and commenting his posts, Riku’s heart would do a clumsy little flip. He would stare at his screen, giggling like a fool.
It was the sole reason Riku had shifted his content strategy in the first place.
He had spent hours secretly lurking on Yushi’s profile, completely mesmerized by Yushi’s sharp, fluid EXO dance covers. He had also dug through Yushi's "Repost" tab, realising Yushi liked a very specific mix of cute, sexy, and beautifully tan skin.
To be honest, Riku was normally like a "Doberman", as his whole vibe alone is always stoic, fiercely guarded, and barely reacting to anyone who tried to approach him.
But for Yushi, he threw all his rules out the window. He felt an intense wave of happiness knowing that his own naturally dark, tan skin was exactly the type Yushi admired.
To reel Yushi in, Riku had intentionally filmed that viral video dance wearing a low hanging grey sweatpants and the pouty, adorable expressions. The story looking for a sparring partner wasn't a random call out at all but it was a carefully calculated, as a hopeful trap designed specifically for Yushi.
The moment the DM notification flashed across his screen, Riku literally fell backward onto his bed, kicking his legs in absolute excitement. He immediately called his younger brother, Ryo to brag.
"Ryo! He actually fell for it! The strawberry haired guy DM'ed me!" Riku yelled into the phone, his cool exterior completely shattered. "I'm barely going to sleep tonight. I need to figure out what to wear to impress him."
Ryo laughed loudly through the speaker. "Knowing you, you're going to change your outfit fifty times and just end up wearing tiny athletic shorts anyway to show off your tan skin."
"Shut up, it works!" Riku shot back, his cheeks burning, though a massive grin was plastered across his face.
In The Span of One Month
Because of their packed schedules, the gap between that first message and their actual meeting date took exactly one full month. But during those four weeks, the formal business chat completely dissolved. They used the time to talk every single day, sharing everything from their favorite music to do dance cover to their late night thoughts.
Week 1:
The formal walls began to crack. Riku couldn't stop himself from watching Yushi's dance covers, and Yushi's TikTok analytics were doing all the talking..
As Riku was trying desperately to hide his inner Doberman excitement, Yushi always succeed maintained his cool, tsundere defense mechanism.
[Timestamp: 2:15 AM]
Riku: (Staring at his screen, biting his lip)
With every text, they found themselves falling deeper and deeper into each other's worlds.
Week 2: The Birth of "Yu-chan"
Riku decided to push Yushi’s buttons by testing out a new nickname.
[Timestamp: 11:48 PM]
They became so comfortable that the boundaries blurred entirely. Riku completely dropped the formalities, playfully assigning Yushi a soft, affectionate nickname.
Week 3:
With only one week left, the tension shifted from playful teasing to genuine, deep comfort. Riku become so clingy that he will call Yushi everytime he have worries.
[Timestamp: 12:30 AM]
On the other side of the screen, Yushi’s face would turn a violent shade of pink. But being a complete tsundere, he refused to let Riku know how much the nickname affected him. He would always try to act cold, maintaining his distance even though his heart was racing.
Week 4: The Boiling Point
A day before the shoot. The digital distance was becoming unbearable. Riku was secretly changing his outfits in his room, while Yushi couldn't stop thinking about the pictures Riku sent to him, almost drooling over his phone, admiring Riku's tan skin.
[Timestamp: 10:45 PM]
By the time the month ended, the digital buildup had reached a boiling point. They weren't just meeting to record a martial arts tutorial anymore; they were two people completely intoxicated by each other, counting down the seconds until they could finally close the physical distance.