After showing me around the dorm and giving a few instructions, Manager Park was suddenly called away on urgent business.
Left alone in the room, I took advantage of the quiet before the members came back to unpack. Most of Eunwoo's stuff was still here anyway, so all I had to bring were sanitary pads, medicine, and a few necessities for this absurd masquerade of mine.
I shoved the pads into my suitcase and kicked it under the bed. Just as I pushed it all the way in, the dorm door swung open, followed by bursts of laughter and chatter.
No matter how much I had practiced beforehand, theory was very different from reality. My body froze stiff, and for a moment I could not summon the courage to turn my head and face the four young men who would be my roommates for the next three months.
"Oh, look who's back from vacation."
A teasing voice rang out, and then a solid arm wrapped around my shoulders. A sweat-soaked chest pressed against my back, the heady scent of testosterone and exertion enveloping me until my skin burned hot.
I forced a mechanical smile and turned to look at the young man with dyed red hair clinging to me.
Crap. Who is this again?
My brain short-circuited, blanking out everything I had memorized.
"Y-you're back." I stammered, faking a laugh as I tried to shrug off the heavy arm and turned toward the other three entering the room.
"Did you have fun, Eunwoo?" Asked a handsome man with jet-black hair and a gentle smile. He radiated big-brother energy—had to be Sihoon, the eldest.
With nothing else to cling to, I leaned on deduction.
"Yes, I had a great time." My voice came out stiffly polite, bowing to honorifics.
"Hyung, where's my gift?" A boy with striking blue eyes dashed over to me, face lit with excitement.
His features and eye color were distinctly non-Asian. This had to be Jax, the maknae from overseas.
I slipped into an easy tone. "Sorry, I forgot."
Jax pouted instantly. "But you promised to bring back something from home."
Awkward chuckles tumbled out of me, unable to adapt to the atmosphere. Everyone was drenched in sweat, probably straight from practice.
Another member, head shaved close and dyed silver, looked rough around the edges as he grabbed a towel. He turned toward Jax with a sharp but soft-spined rebuke.
"Jax, Eunwoo went home to visit family, not on vacation."
The stern voice, the steady gaze yet with an undertone of gentleness. This had to be Zero, the leader.
Which left the redhead beside me, now frowning at me with eyes far too sharp. That had to be Daeho, the one Eunwoo was closest with, and my worst nightmare right now.
He was studying me too closely, suspicion flickering in his gaze.
"How was practice?" I asked, feigning casualness while sidestepping out of his line of sight.
Sihoon chuckled. "The same as always. We trained until our arms could barely move."
With that, he tugged his shirt over his head. A flawless six-pack gleamed with sweat right before my eyes.
I jerked my head away, desperate for distraction. "Hyung—"
But the words died in my throat. My blood surged to my skull, threatening to explode.
Because right there, in full nonchalance, Zero had dropped his pants, leaving only a pair of boxers. Elephant print. Complete with a massive trunk.
My fists clenched. My whole body went rigid as I battled the boiling blood flooding my face. Eunwoo wasn't gay. Eunwoo would never blush at the sight of a man's body.
"You guys must be tired. Go shower and rest." I blurted, fleeing into the kitchen to escape this cursed scene.
Stay any longer and I'd witness horrors no nun should ever see.
I rushed to the sink, intending to splash water on my burning face. Instead, I was greeted by a mountain of dirty dishes stacked like a crime scene.
"Ah, leave it to me, Eunwoo." Sihoon peeked in through the doorway, catching me staring blankly at the sink before stepping inside.
With that bare, sculpted chest of his—please, stay out of my sight.
"I'll do it. You've trained enough already." I slipped on gloves, turned on the faucet, and got to work.
"Well, well. Looks like someone's been taught a thing or two over the past two weeks." Zero sauntered in, grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge, his ridiculous elephant trunk still wagging smugly as he nodded approval.
I glued my eyes to the dishes, refusing to let them stray. Amitabha. Om mani padme hum. Begone, you demonic temptations.
In over twenty years of life, I hadn't so much as held a man's hand, let alone stared at… that.
As I furiously scrubbed dishes, a mop of red hair appeared through the kitchen pass-through.
"You look different, Eunwoo."
Daeho. His eyes had been fixed on me all along, scanning my every move like a lie detector.
My throat tightened. "Different how?"
He stepped away from the window and into the cramped kitchen. Heat radiated off his post-practice body as he loomed behind me.
"Different how, hyung?" Jax piped up, poking his head through the pass-through, taking Daeho's place.
I held my breath, terrified he'd somehow sniff out the femininity clinging to me.
I had been careful, cologne and all. Impossible. Unless Daeho was so attuned to my brother that even a sliver of difference stood out.
But what could be different between me and Eunwoo?
I had even video-called our parents as him, and they could not tell the difference. No stranger should be able to.
A bead of sweat rolled down my temple, heavy with dread. From the corner of my eye, I caught Daeho's gaze still boring into me.
"You…" He began.
I swallowed hard, my voice trembling. "What about me?"
"You got taller?"
"…"
"Yeah, he did!" Jax exclaimed, bounding into the kitchen to compare heights. "Before, hyung barely came up to my eyebrows. Now we're the same height!"
"…"
Then Daeho grabbed my arm, inspecting it seriously. "You've gotten bulkier too. What, been secretly working out at home?"
"In just two weeks? Impossible. Hyung, what's your secret?" Jax chimed in, scrutinizing my biceps with eager curiosity.
And me? I had died the moment Daeho claimed I'd grown taller.
I'd already stood at one-eighty. Maybe the new training regimen had stretched me a bit more.
But this wasn't something to celebrate.
What girl in her right mind would be happy standing over one-eighty centimeters tall?
Someone, anyone—please drag me out of here!
***