Just as Jihoon finished ordering the extra portion of Korean beef, the waiter returned with a sizzling tray of meat—and almost as if perfectly timed, Jessica walked through the restaurant's entrance.
She still had that striking platinum blonde hair, tied loosely behind her shoulders, and wore a beige windbreaker over a fitted top, slim jeans, and a pair of sleek black heeled boots that clicked softly against the floor as she approached.
She looked effortlessly chic—like someone who just walked out of a fashion shoot and into a BBQ joint.
"Hey," she greeted, her voice smooth as ever, casting a brief glance around the table before her eyes landed on Jihoon.
Since Krystal and Sulli were already huddled together on one side, Jessica made her way around and casually slid into the empty seat next to Jihoon, who nearly choked on his water trying to act unaffected.
Krystal, ever the instigator, immediately leaned forward, her eyes gleaming with mischief.
"Unnie, do you know how biased Jihoon oppa is?"
"He only ordered pork belly for me and Sulli. But the moment he heard you were coming, he immediately added Korean beef."
"Isn't that suspicious?"
She said it loud enough for everyone to hear, and with a sparkle in her eye that screamed matchmaker in action.
Jihoon choked slightly on his drink.
He shot Krystal a look that clearly said, Really? Since when? But she just smiled innocently and took a slow sip of her soda, playing the part of the angelic troublemaker to perfection.
Despite being a year younger than Jieun, Krystal always gave off a more composed, quick-witted vibe.
It was moments like this—when she weaponized her maturity for teasing—that Jihoon felt he had to stay on his toes.
Jessica turned toward him, her brow raised, lips curling into a slow smirk. "Is that true?"
Her eyes scanned his face like she was solving a riddle.
Jihoon, now red-faced, struggled to find the right words.
He couldn't quite tell whether she was genuinely suspicious or just messing with him.
Lately, she had been giving off strange signals—hints, glances, lingering moments—but Jihoon was never quite sure if he was just imagining it.
"N-no! I mean," He took a big gulp of his drink and finally settled on, "I just thought you guys have been training really hard, so… some extra nutrition wouldn't hurt."
Jessica let out a skeptical hmmph, folding her arms and shifting her attention to the grill like she'd just caught him in a crime.
She wasn't convinced. A part of her had hoped maybe—maybe—he had finally caught on to her hints. But nope.
Jihoon was still Jihoon: sweet, thoughtful, and completely dense.
She gave the meat on the grill a fierce glare, imagining for a brief moment that it was Jihoon's clueless face, then stabbed it with her chopsticks and took a dramatic bite.
"You've been working really hard lately," Jihoon said, trying to change the subject. He noticed the faint dark circles under her eyes. "Look at you—you've barely slept."
He picked up a fresh pair of chopsticks, carefully flipped the meat on the grill, then transferred a perfectly seared slice onto Jessica's plate.
Krystal, who had been watching the whole thing, nearly exploded.
That was her meat.
The piece she had just placed on the grill, the one she had monitored like a hawk, was now sitting comfortably on her sister's plate, glistening with juices.
Her eye twitched.
Sulli leaned in just as Krystal lowered her head and whispered something in her ear.
Whatever it was made Sulli giggle, and Krystal, now plotting, loaded the grill with more meat while glaring at Jihoon like she was preparing for battle.
Jessica, meanwhile, had pulled out a small mirror from her bag. "Is it that obvious?" she sighed, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Since debut, it's been non-stop. Closed training, evaluations, image consulting… It's exhausting. I don't even remember what a weekend feels like."
Jihoon's brows furrowed with concern. "That's exactly why you need to eat more. If you burn out now, it'd be such a waste after everything you've worked for."
Seeing her plate running low, he once again moved to refill it—this time with the next round of grilled meat.
That was the final straw.
"Jihoon oppa!" Krystal shouted, dramatically slamming her chopsticks on the table. "Did you do that on purpose?! That meat was mine! I grilled it myself, I stared at it with love, and you just—gave it to unnie?!"
Jihoon froze mid-motion, chopsticks still in hand, looking like a deer caught in headlights.
Across the table, Sulli erupted into laughter, clutching her stomach as she nearly spilled her water. Jessica, meanwhile, bit the inside of her cheek to keep from grinning, clearly relishing the chaos her sister had stirred up.
"Who told you to stir the pot earlier?" Jihoon shot back, half-laughing as he tried to regain some control. "Keep running your mouth like that and you won't get any meat next time."
"Unnie!" Krystal turned to Jessica, dramatically appealing for backup. "Did you hear that? He's bullying me!"
Jessica chuckled softly, shaking her head. With graceful poise, she picked up some of the meat from her own plate and placed it onto Krystal's and Sulli's.
"Here," she said. "Let's not fight over meat."
Then, turning back to Jihoon, her expression shifted slightly—lighter, but more sincere. "I've been a trainee for over seven years," she began, her tone quieter now.
"By right, I was supposed to debut with my unnies, but the company had other plans."
"This new group… it's my one chance. If we don't succeed now, all those years might amount to nothing."
There was a pause around the table. Even Krystal stopped chewing.
Jessica continued, her eyes fixed on the glowing coals beneath the grill. "So yeah, I push myself. Hard. Because I have to."
"Because if not this… then what? I might as well get married off to some random guy and call it a day."
Jihoon blinked, taken off guard. "Why are you looking at me when you say that?" he teased, raising an eyebrow. "Just for the record, I'm not someone who can be married off casually."
Jessica snorted, hiding her flustered smile as she lowered her head and focused on her food. "Pft. You wish."
What she didn't say—what she couldn't say—was that she had tried, more than once, to tell Jihoon how she felt.
A glance here, a subtle hint there.
But either he was too dense to notice, or pretending not to.
And with debut looming, and company rules looming even larger, the timing just never felt right.
Jihoon, for his part, looked over at Jessica and mistook her silence for pressure.
He didn't know what to say. He wanted to lift her spirits, but his mind came up blank.
So instead, he just kept grilling meat, hoping the gesture said what his words couldn't.
After the meal, Jihoon suddenly felt no urge to return to SM with the others. Instead, he handed Jessica a small bag. "Can you give these to the girls? Just some things I brought from LA."
Jessica nodded, taking the bag gently.
Krystal and Sulli trailed behind her as they all stepped out of the restaurant and began walking back toward the company building.
Jihoon stood at the entrance, watching them go. For a moment, he just stood there, hands in his pockets, until something in him stirred.
"Sica!" he suddenly shouted.
The three girls turned in unison, startled. Jessica looked back, expecting he'd forgotten something.
But Jihoon was standing in the middle of the sidewalk, no bag in hand, no urgency on his face—just a boy, arms slightly raised like he wasn't sure how loud he had to be for her to hear what he really meant.
"Fighting!" he called out with a grin. "You're the best!"
Jessica blinked—then smiled.
It wasn't a big smile. It wasn't dramatic. But it was enough to light up her whole face, soft as spring, warm as hope.
[Author's Note: Heartfelt thanks to Wandererlithe, JiangXiu, Night_Adam, Daoist098135 and Daoistadj for bestowing the power stone!]