Hyunjin was sprawled on the couch in the practice room, scrolling through his phone between breaks, when the new MV for ILLIT’s Tick-Tack dropped.

He stopped mid-scroll, eyes narrowing. “Wait… is that…?”

The camera panned to a silhouette labeled as Jiji’s crush. The shape—tall, lanky, familiar—looked eerily like Felix.

He shook his head. “Nah… it’s probably just casting, right? They could make it look like anyone… totally random.”

But a few days later, when the behind-the-scenes clips were released showing each member choosing what their crush looked like, fans started buzzing nonstop. Screenshots of Jiji selecting a silhouette that matched Felix went viral.

Hyunjin felt his chest tighten, heat rising to his cheeks. Could it really be him? Ever since trainee days—the late-night practices, the teasing, the lingering glances—he had always wondered.

Later, during a short break in rehearsals, he spotted Jiji leaning against the studio window, sipping water.

“Hey,” he said casually, trying to mask the nervous flutter in his stomach.

She looked up, a faint pink on her cheeks. “…Hey,” she replied softly.

“So… I saw the MV,” he said, careful to keep his voice steady. “The silhouette… that was… um…”

Jiji fiddled with her bracelet, avoiding his gaze for a moment. “Yeah,” she whispered.

“…Yeah?” His heart skipped.

She nodded, biting her lip. “I picked… someone I like.”

Hyunjin’s breath caught. “…Wait. That’s… me?”

Her small, shy nod made him grin, a little disbelief in his expression. “I… like you too,” he admitted, voice low but warm.

Her smile widened, shy but genuine. “Really?”

“Really,” he said, stepping closer, lowering his voice so it was just for them. “Guess we’ve been keeping this secret for too long.”

And in that quiet, fleeting moment, years of unspoken feelings finally found a way to bloom—between shared smiles, nervous glances, and the knowledge that neither had to hide anymore.