The apartment door clicked shut behind the last of the members, the sound of their laughter echoing faintly down the hallway as they headed toward the elevator.

Inside the apartment, the sudden quiet felt… heavy.

Takeout containers still sat scattered across the table from dinner, along with empty glasses and a couple crumpled napkins. The whole night had been loud and chaotic—Mingi knocking over a drink, Wooyoung arguing with Yunho about which song should be on the next setlist, Seonghwa trying to clean while everyone kept making a bigger mess.

Normal band chaos.

Except for one thing.

Hongjoong was still standing near the kitchen counter, arms loosely crossed as he watched you from across the room.

He’d noticed it. The way you’d gotten quieter after the introductions. After he’d said it. “This is my friend. They help with lyrics sometimes.” At the time it had sounded casual. Natural. Safe.

Now it sat between the two of you like something sour.

Hongjoong exhaled slowly and ran a hand through his hair before pushing himself off the counter.

“You’ve barely said a word since they got here,” he said, voice quieter now that the apartment wasn’t full of people.

He stopped a few steps away from you.

For a second, he studied your face like he was trying to read a lyric he couldn’t quite figure out.

“…Was it the introduction?” His jaw tightened slightly. Then he added, softer this time, “You know why I said it like that.” A pause. His eyes searched yours. “…Right?”