After that little incident.
Laughter, clapping, and the echo of off-key voices filled the booth.
Then, after finishing her song, Jinkyung turned to me with a mischievous grin.
"Seojin, it's your turn now."
"Me? Oh… okay." I scratched the back of my neck, standing up as the mic was handed over.
"What song should I choose?"
I flipped through the thick karaoke songbook, my fingers brushing over countless titles until my eyes landed on one.
Seems to Fall in Love by Yoon Do Hyun.
Without hesitation, I punched in the number.
As the intro played, I took a small breath, lifting the mic.
"I didn't know, I didn't realize… the way my heart keeps chasing after you…~"
The room went quiet.
One by one, everyone stopped what they were doing hands frozen mid-clap, drinks forgotten on the table.
Their eyes all fixed on me, shocked expressions filling their faces, as if they were hearing me for the first time.
Even Seolhyo, who had been trying to ignore Jinkyung teasing glances, slowly looked up her cheeks-tinged pink, eyes wide, lips slightly parted.
The song kept flowing, my voice steady, filling the small booth. By the time the chorus hit, some of the guys' jaws were practically on the floor.
Park Dong was the first to break the silence.
"Wait, what the hell you were this good at singing?!"
Jisung slapped the table with both hands, his face twisted in disbelief.
"Fuck, this is cheating! Is there nothing he can't do?!"
Suwon leaned back with a sigh, rubbing his face.
"This is so unfair. Does he collect talents like Pokémon or something?"
Jinkyung leaned toward Seolhyo with a teasing smirk and said in a low voice.
"Seolhyo, your boyfriend was basically an idol."
She tried to hide her expression by covering her mouth with her hand, but her eyes stayed glued on me the whole time.
Her heart thumped so hard it felt like it might leap out of her chest.
When the last note faded, the room erupted.
As the last note faded, the room went completely still just a beat of stunned silence hanging in the air.
I lowered the mic, catching my breath, and turned toward them.
Then-
"WOOOOAAAH!!!"
The room exploded.
Irina shot up from the couch, eyes wide. "WHAT THE!! Seojin! Did you implant a golden vocal cord or something?!"
Park Dong slapped his thigh, laughing. "This guy… he really knows when to surprise us."
Off in the corner, Jisung sat hunched over, muttering bitterly to himself.
"What else did the world bless him..."
Daegyu clapped loudly. "Your singing's insanely good, Seojin! Are you secretly trying to become an idol?"
Their voices piled up on top of each other, the room buzzing with disbelief and excitement. Heat crept up the back of my neck.
"Geez, I'm not that good," I muttered, rubbing the back of my head. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom for a bit."
I glanced at Seolhyo and gave a small nod toward the hallway before heading to the door.
She hesitated for a second, then stood up casually. "I'll retouch my makeup," she said, trying to sound natural.
No one paid attention Park Dong had just started singing again, and everyone was too busy covering their ears to care.
Outside, I leaned against the wall, waiting.
A few seconds later, the door opened and Seolhyo stepped out.
Before she could say anything, I gently took her wrist.
She looked up at me, a little startled. "I didn't know you were that good at singing," she said teasingly.
I let out a small laugh. "Hey, don't hype me up too much. It's already getting to my head."
She chuckled, shaking her head. "I'm not kidding. You were seriously good. So… why did you call me out?"
I took both of her hands, feeling her tense slightly before relaxing. "Let's tell them now."
Seolhyo's eyes softened.
She inhaled deeply, then nodded.
Still holding hands, we turned toward the door.
She squeezed my fingers once steadying herself and I pushed it open.
Everyone's heads turn toward us immediately.
"Oh! Seojin, hurry, sing again! Park Dong is actually killing my ear-" Irina started, but froze mid-sentence.
Her eyes dropped to our hands.
Her jaw dropped.
The rest followed her stare.
We walked further in, still holding hands, stopping right in front of them.
The room stayed dead silent.
I cleared my throat, lifted our intertwined hands a little higher, and said casually,
"Ah… so, Seolhyo and I are dating."
The room froze for a heartbeat.
Seolhyo immediately ducked her head, her face red to the ears as she tried to hide behind her hair.
"You two are what…?" Irina's jaw dropped so hard it might've hit the floor.
Park Dong blinked slowly, gears visibly turning in his head.
Then he remembered what Yang Jinsu told him before confessing to Seolhyo.
"…So from the start you didn't have a chance, huh, Jinsu…" he muttered to himself, crossing his arms and letting out a exhausted sigh.
Jisung, already in a bitter mood for the night, threw his hands up. "What do you expect? Good-looking people always end up with good-looking people too! This world is cruel!"
Daegyu burst out laughing, leaning back on the couch.
"WOAH since when?! Congrats you two!!"
Irina jabbed both hands toward Seolhyo like she was accusing a criminal on live TV, her eyes practically glowing.
"WOOAAAH SEOLHYO! HOW COULD YOU BETRAY ME?! After all that talk about friendship?! now look at you?!"
Seolhyo squeaked, face burning red all the way to her ears.
She slapped her hands over her ears and shake her head.
"Aaaah I can't hear you, I can't hear you!" she mumbled, shaking her head side to side.
Suwon stared at us for a moment our hands still intertwined.
They look so good together… damn, I wish I could get a girlfriend too…
But out loud, he broke into a wide grin and shot us a thumbs-up.
"Woaaah seriously? Congrats, you two!"
Seolhyo and I slipped into our seats, still hand-in-hand for a second before we quietly let go.
The others were far from done.
Park Dong wiggled his eyebrows at us. "Ayy, look at them acting all innocent now."
Irina leaned forward over the table, grinning like she had just discovered treasure. "You two are seriously so cute, it's disgusting."
Daegyu chuckle. "haha, stop teasing them, you're gonna make Seolhyo melt into the floor."
Jisung, still sulking, let out a dramatic sigh. "I can't believe this. I really can't believe this. Why did I even come today…"
Seolhyo tries to ignore them, her cheeks bright pink. I just rubbed the back of my neck and tried not to laugh.
All of them burst out laughing.
After leaving the karaoke, we split ways me with Park Dong, Jiseong, Suwon, and Daegyu, while Seolhyo's group headed in the opposite direction.
We waved goodbye to each other, the night air cool against our skin.
Seolhyo, Irina, and Jinkyung walked down the quiet street together.
Irina stretched her arms with a satisfied sigh. "This was so fun. If I didn't have a curfew, I'd hang out even longer."
Jinkyung nodded with a small smile. "Yeah… finally did something fun after so long."
Irina turned to her. "Right? It's such a shame we had to end early."
Meanwhile, Seolhyo was staring at her phone, thumbs tapping quickly. "Mm. The others looked like they were having fun too,"
Jinkyung let out a soft laugh. "Especially Suwon. I didn't know he was that close with everyone he was having the time of his life."
Irina giggled, then shot Seolhyo a teasing sideways look. "Sooo… when are you going to tell us what happened between you and Seojin?"
Seolhyo's eyes flicked up for a second. "Why do you even want to know?"
"Because I'm your friend," Irina said, nudging her lightly. "And you didn't tell us anything! We knew you liked Seojin, so did you confess? Or did he confess? Come on, tell us!"
Jinkyung added casually, "Honestly, before we went to karaoke… I saw the two of them kissing in the PC Bang."
Seolhyo's face exploded red. "Y-you! Shut up!!"
Irina gasped, covering her mouth with a single hand."Oh my god. I didn't know you were that bold, Seolhyo."
Seolhyo groaned loudly, pressing her hands to her forehead as the other two cackled beside her.