Chapter 19: A Plan Not Meant to Be
The warm glow of the afternoon sun filtered through the Eclipse house as Hana flipped open her notebook, eyes scanning over her latest setlist ideas. The reunion with her and Soyeon's parents had brought a wave of peace, but now her focus had shifted—one that made her giggle like a little cupid on a mission.
"Unnie," she whispered to herself, glancing toward the hallway, "you're going to thank me for this."
She had noticed how Soyeon's eyes lingered on Taehyun a little longer lately, how her voice softened slightly when she said his name. And even though Taehyun was still his usual emotionally distant self, Hana had caught him watching Soyeon from the corner of his eye during meals.
Perfect ingredients for a love story—if only the characters would cooperate.
So Hana planned. A little cooking task here, a shared errand there. She arranged for them to be on the same team during practice games and even made sure Taehyun's favorite snacks magically appeared in the kitchen when Soyeon was around.
But Taehyun, oblivious as ever, kept messing it up.
"You're supposed to give her the apron, not toss it across the room like it's a basketball pass," Hana muttered one day, hiding behind the counter as she watched him completely miss another opportunity.
Soyeon didn't help either. She kept her usual cool, professional demeanor. Every time Hana tried to push them closer, Soyeon would either walk away or act like nothing had happened.
That evening, after another failed "accidental movie night pairing," Soyeon entered Hana's room and flopped down on the bed beside her.
"Hana, stop trying. It's not going to work," she said bluntly.
Hana sat up, lips pursed. "What do you mean? You like him, don't you?"
"Even if I do," Soyeon sighed, "he's not someone who opens his heart easily. I've known idols like him. He has his walls. And I already did too much damage acting out of jealousy before... I don't want to make things worse."
Unbeknownst to them, Minjun had just walked past Hana's room on his way to grab his charger. Hearing voices, he paused. The door was slightly open, and the name Taehyun caught his ear.
He heard everything.
His brows lifted as the realization sank in. Soyeon and Taehyun? Hana's trying to set them up? Wait... they're sisters?
Minjun stepped back silently, mind reeling. He had always found the group dynamics strange since Hana came in—Taehyun acting colder than usual, Soyeon being weirdly defensive