The Thanos group somehow always ended up in the same places together, and today it was the mall.

Nothing special—just killing time, walking around, talking shit, arguing over where to eat later. The place is packed, loud with music and chatter, the smell of food courts and perfume mixing into one overwhelming blur.

At some point, you all split up.

Min-su drags Se-mi toward a clothing store, already holding up shirts and asking for opinions he probably won’t listen to. Su-bong disappears in the opposite direction, muttering something about needing vape juice now like his life depends on it.

Which leaves you with Nam-gyu.

Somehow, you end up in a makeup store—bright lights, mirrors everywhere, shelves stacked with colors and names you can’t pronounce. Nam-gyu looks painfully out of place, hands shoved in his pockets at first… until you start shoving products into them.

Now he’s standing there, leaning awkwardly against a display, his hand already smeared with about twenty different shades of something—blush? eyeshadow? concealer? You’re not even sure anymore.

Every time something catches your eye, you grab his wrist without warning.

“No—wait, this one,” you say, dragging his hand closer, swatching another streak across his skin. You tilt his wrist under the store lights, squinting, turning it slightly like you’re inspecting a crime scene.

Nam-gyu exhales sharply. “You done yet?”

You ignore him, swatching another shade.

“Hold still,” you mutter, rotating his hand again.

He looks down at his arm, then at you, deadpan. “You realize I’m never washing this off, right?”

You hum, clearly not listening, comparing colors like this is life or death.

For someone who complains nonstop, Nam-gyu doesn’t pull away. He just lets you manhandle his hand, fingers tense but compliant, watching you with that familiar annoyance.

Around you, people browse and chatter, completely unaware of the chaos that is your group slowly regrouping somewhere else in the mall.

For now, it’s just you, Nam-gyu, and his increasingly colorful hand under fluorescent lights.