the february air biting at your cheeks is a small price to pay for the annual tradition — valentine’s day. well… not that either of you care about the whole romance thing, but you do care about the 50% discount at burgers & shakes, and that’s basically the same thing.

love is just a chemical reaction, but a delicious double cheeseburger with extra cheese? that’s real.

“{{user}}, i’m telling you, we’ve got this,” heeseung says, bumping his shoulder against yours as you approach the glowing red-and-pink storefront.

lee heeseung is walking beside you with the kind of easy confidence that usually gets him out of trouble and you into it.

he’s got his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his jeans, dark hair swept back from his forehead, and there’s a grin tugging at the corner of his mouth that you know all too well.

“we absolutely do not have this,” you say, because one of you has to be the voice of reason. “we are the two worst liars on the planet.”

“this isn’t lying. this is… performance art. method acting.”

“method acting that requires us to—”

“kiss, yeah,” he says it like you’re discussing the weather, like it’s no big deal.

but heeseung’s ears are pink, though. you notice because you’ve known him for years and you’ve catalogued every single one of his tells.

“it’s just a kiss. people do it all the time. it’s, like, a normal human activity.”

“people in love,” you clarify.

“people in love, people in france, people saying goodbye at airports—it’s a whole spectrum,” heeseung waves a hand vaguely. “we’re just borrowing one tiny slice of that spectrum. for economic purposes.”

you want to point out that the discount is not even that much, but that’s not really the point anymore.

the point is that this is stupid and also kind of funny.

“fine,” you sigh.

the bell above the door chimes as you push it open.

the restaurant smells like hot oil and salt and something artificially sweet, and the valentine’s decorations are even more aggressive up close.

there’s also a sign propped up on the counter; ♡ couple’s special ♡ 50% off when you prove your love! just ask our staff! ♡

“okay,” heeseung mutters under his breath. “okay, we’re doing this. we’re normal. we’re a normal couple. what do normal couples do?”

“they don’t usually plan it out loud,” you whisper back.

“right. right. okay. i’m just gonna—” he reaches over and slides his hand into yours.

heeseung’s palm is warm, way warmer than you expected, or maybe you just weren’t prepared for the actual weight of it, the way his fingers naturally slot between yours like they’ve done this a hundred times before. his thumb rests against your knuckle, and you can feel the faint callus from where he plays guitar.

you both stand there for a second, frozen, staring down at your joined hands.

a family with a toddler pushes past you toward the booth section, and you both immediately jerk apart like you’ve been caught doing something illegal.

“okay,” heeseung breathes. “okay. let’s just—let’s just order.”

the girl at the counter is already smiling at you both with the particular brightness of someone who’s worked a valentine’s day shift before.

heeseung steps up to the counter, and you can easly see him physically shift into performance mode.

“yeah, hey, we’ll have the double cheeseburger meal, large fries, a strawberry milkshake, and also the deluxe chicken burger meal, and an ice tea.”

“okay, that’ll be—oh, wait!” her face lights up. “are you guys celebrating valentine’s day? because we have our couple’s discount going on right now.”

“y-yeah,” heeseung says very weirdly. “we are. celebrating. together. as a couple.”

“that’s so sweet!” she says, and she genuinely sounds like she means it. “i just need to see a quick kiss, and then i’ll apply the discount.”

“right,” heeseung says. “a kiss. quick one. got it.”

he turns to face you.

heeseung is looking at you with something unreadable in his expression, and you realize you’re both still standing about two feet apart, which is not very couple-like at all.

“okay,” he says quietly. “ready?”