if it's meant to be | ni-ki

jungwon tapped niki's shoulder, his voice breaking through the classroom noise. "hey, can i come over today? you got those good games."

niki, who had been zoning out, looked up at his friend. his expression was blank, but there was a hint of amusement in his eyes as he met jungwon's eager gaze. "yeah, sure," he replied, his tone casual. "come over after school."

jungwon's face lit up, and he quickly gave a thumbs-up before turning back to face the front. "i'll bring snacks, too."

niki smirked slightly, adjusting his headphones. "whatever, just don't make too much noise."

the conversation faded into the background as the teacher began talking again, but niki's mind wandered to the rest of the day.

                                        ★

as niki and jungwon walked into the house, jungwon immediately bowed to niki's mom, greeting her politely before heading toward niki's room. but as they passed the living room, they froze, spotting yejin and hana sitting on the couch, both intensely focused on the gaming console.

"what are you guys doing?" niki asked, raising an eyebrow as he crossed his arms, his voice dripping with annoyance. "get out."

yejin glanced up at him, momentarily startled, but quickly regained her composure. "we're playing," she replied, her tone casual, though there was a slight edge to it as if she wasn't going to let niki boss her around.

hana, on the other hand, just grinned. "you always say that," she teased, clearly enjoying the situation. "maybe we just wanted to try out your games for once."

niki rolled his eyes and stepped into the room. "this isn't a gaming lounge," he muttered under his breath, his irritation growing. he gestured toward the door. "out. i told you i was having friends over."

jungwon, standing beside him, was trying to hold back a laugh at the scene, but he knew better than to get involved in niki's sibling drama. instead, he leaned against the doorframe, casually watching.

"come on, niki, let them play," jungwon interjected, giving niki a teasing look. "it's not like they're ruining anything. just let them have their fun."

niki glared at jungwon but didn't say anything more. he turned his attention back to yejin and hana, silently waiting for them to leave. but yejin, ever the stubborn one, simply shrugged.

"fine," she said, standing up and handing the controller to hana. "we'll go." she glanced over at niki with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

as niki and jungwon were engrossed in their game, the sound of the door opening made niki glance over his shoulder. his mom walked in, carrying a basket of freshly folded laundry. "niki, here's your laundry," she said, placing it on the chair near his desk.

niki muttered a quick, "thanks," but his attention shifted the moment his eyes caught something in the pile. nestled between a couple of shirts was one of his 18+ rated games. his stomach dropped.

jungwon, oblivious, continued playing. "dude, focus. we're losing!"

niki quickly leaned over, snatching the game before his mom could notice. thinking fast, he shoved it into a backpack lying near his desk. the backpack wasn't even his—it was hana's, likely forgotten from one of her random visits to his room. he zipped it shut hastily, his heart racing a little.

his mom, meanwhile, was busy straightening up the room. "you should keep this place cleaner, niki. and don't let your friends make a mess," she said, giving jungwon a polite smile.

"yeah, yeah," niki replied quickly, hoping she wouldn't notice how flustered he was.

jungwon glanced over, finally sensing something was up. "what's with you? you're acting weird."