× mall

@c tzuyu Ω "Eila? That's a really pretty name, hi Eila," Sae smiled softly as she waved in greeting to the baby girl. She was really cute, and her mom was really pretty too. "My name is Sae, it's very nice to meet you both," she said, remembering her manners, she knew she probably should have left them alone but she wasn't ready to try to go back to studying and a distraction was nice from time to time. Granted she had ice cream, but sometimes real, human, interaction was necessary and she didn't exactly have any friends.

"How soon is she turning one? Should I get her a birthday present?" She asked with a smile, she was half joking, not wanting to intrude if Tzuyu had other things to do or was busy that day. Being a mother had never looked easy, and Sae had no way of knowing if Tzuyu was in it alone of if she had a partner, or the baby's father around and Sae didn't want to over step at all. Tzuyu just seemed nice and Sae was admittedly more lonely than she liked to let herself admit to.

@b baekhyun Ω "Did you forget me?" Taemin asked with a teasing smile, shaking his head a little bit in amusement at Baekhyun's response to seeing him again. Granted it had been a while since the last time they'd seen each other but Taemin was never one to forget, especially not someone as pretty as Baekhyun. Taemin had always admired Baekhyun, especially his hands. Hands were always so difficult to get right, and getting them to look slender and beautiful wasn't easy and even now Taemin always felt like his creations were lacking.

"I think your head was stuck in the clouds long before university," he said, laughing softly as he looked down at the bag that Baekhyun had dropped. "Traditional Japanese clay pot, for cooking?" He repeated, the amused smile never leaving his face as he spoke. "And what were you planning on cooking?" He asked, raising one eyebrow before he shrugged and flashed a smile. "I still do some painting, but I've moved into doll making and fashion design these days. I have my own shop now."

@b baekhyun Ω That morning, Juyeon had woken up rather excited for the day, or, to be more certain, for his day's trip to the city later on - to him, going out and roaming through the stores in the mall was something that couldn't happen too frequently or frequent enough, even. Never in his life could he imagine leaving the house without passing by his favorite stores. Juyeon had a passion for fashion, and before he'd let the opportunity to find a new favorite piece of clothing slip, he'd rather shoot himself in the foot.

Getting ready always took Juyeon quite a while. He really cared about his looks, but at some point, it also was part of his job to look presentable. After about two hours of getting ready, grabbing some makeup and drinking some coffee, Juyeon was ready to head out into the city. He chose to go by public transport, and oh was he glad when he finally got out of the bus - he hated the way that in a bus, it always smelled unpleasant since it was a public vehicle - and it was hard to get the stinging smell out of the seat covers - especially those that were made of fabric.
After a few more minutes of walking from the bus station to his destination, the mall, Juyeon internally cursed himself for not having brought a jacket or anything of that sort - it was quite chilly, but well, for the sake of being able to wear his favorite outfit, he just had to suffer through it just this once.
He let his gaze wander all over the different shops and stores as he entered the mall, however, Juyeon had a routine, and he knew exactly where to go - and what places to stay away from. His jaw nearly dropped when he recognized a familiar face at one of his absolute no-go stores. He looked so shocked, but honestly, he couldn't blame him, he was at least just as surprised to meet Baekhyun, a mere acquaintance he loved to bicker with in the club, here. "You must be kidding me", he muttered under his breath, however, he couldn't hold this small fit of laughter in for all too long; "What are you doing /here/? Come with me, I can't look at this." With those words, he turned around and looked back. "I can't believe you're buying your clothes /here/", he then whispered as if the other had just sinned.

@l juyeon β The entire week had felt gray. A concoction of gray clouds, gray streets and gray moods. The air had been humid, sticky like sickly sweet candy, damp in the lungs and pregnant with rain yet to fall. Baekhyun felt like he smelled like ashes, of cinder slowly fizzling out. It clung to his insides and his skin, swirling in his head like a storm trapped in a bottle, ready to burst. His mood wasn't sour, per se, but something in the air made him feel like he was made of smoked glass, the taste of cigarettes in the back of his head albeit it had been years since he last touched one. The memory felt vividly clear to him now, as he stood between racks of painstakingly sorted jackets, idly browsing through the display.

His time with Seongwha had truly helped him getting over his fear of color and although his fingers hovered, something inside of him pulled him away from the soft pastels, still. He frowned, pulling a shirt from the rack, holding it up by the hanger as honeyed eyes traveled over the fabric. Soft, smelling faintly of cotton and the residue of oil used on the sewing machine, the fabric smooth like water as he ran his hand down the back of it, humming along to the radio playing overhead. Salmon, a hint of burnt copper, his skin almost white and appearing see-through against the softness of the colors. Just as he lowered the shirt, he caught something in his peripheral, his head snapping to the side as his foggy mind reeled to place the familiar face with a name and place.
Then, with a gasp that had fallen from his lips without permission, he clutched the shirt to his chest, the hangers of the things he had already picked out pressing uncomfortably against his chest, as one single word bubbled up in his throat. A word, kicking off so many possible scenarios, even though it was nothing but a simple: "You!"

Barbie never really frequented the mall but she liked walking around to get her exercise. She looked at all the store windows and kept trying to figure out if she wanted to buy something or not.

@m sae Ω Tzuyu sighed softly as she made her way through the mall. Eila was growing up too quickly. She was already up almost another size now. She pushed the stroller as she walked, looking at different stores to go into for Eila. There were so many things on her mind she was hardly paying attention to anything else. She let out another sigh, walking past the ice cream place.

She was moving towards a store she liked to buy clothes for Eila at. She didn't even notice Eila drop her pacifier. Tzuyu kept walking until she heard someone call out that a baby dropped a pacifier. She stopped walking and checked on Eila. "Oh... Oh my gosh... Thank you..." She said, smiling a little bit. She walked back towards the girl. "That could have been a disaster~ Luckily I always have a backup though." She dug another one out of the diaper bag and put it in Eila's mouth. "No dirty pacifiers for you, missy." She looked at the girl. "Thanks again~... I appreciate you picking that up. I'm Tzuyu... This is Eila. She's turning one soon."

@c tzuyu Ω It wasn't a proven fact that ice cream helped with focus, but it certainly lifted her mood. She pocketed the change and took a bite of the cold dessert, happy with the rich chocolate flavor as she prepared to head back to her table to keep reading through the material for her next class. It was fascinating, but her mind was over active and unfocused. She was having trouble keeping her eyes on the page and it was exactly that that prompted her to buy an ice cream and take a small break from trying and failing to force her mind to work with her.

It was as she was heading back to her table that she saw a young baby dropping a pacifier on the ground. "Oh, Miss," she called out, hurrying over to pick up the pacifier trying to catch up to the young woman. "Miss, your baby dropped this!" She called out a little louder, hoping to get her attention. She had no real experience with children, but she'd seen enough of them screech like tiny demons without their pacifier, and the mother seemed so young too.

@l taemin α At the sound of his own name, Baekhyun's spine pulled straight, his eyes widening as they traveled over the man now standing in front of him, his gaze flickering as he tried to fully summon the memory now lingering the back of his consciousness. "Tae-" He tried, squinting momentarily, before he blurted out: "Taemin? Oh. Wow!"
He breathed out, putting a hand onto his chest, right above his heart as he burst out into disbelieving laughter.
"Of all the people I could have bumped into! It's been a while, huh?"

Still laughing he patted one of his cheeks with his free hand, lifting one shoulder in a half-shrug that had the shards in his paper bag clinking noisily, making him wince. "Ah, well, some things never change and I think my head has been stuck in the clouds ever since we were in uni." He explained to the other, regarding the comment about his clumsiness, jostling the bag a little more with a little frown hiding in the corners of his mouth.
"That was actually a traditional Japanese clay pot. I've been trying a lot of cooking methods lately. Research and such." With a long, suffering sigh, he glanced down at the bag once more, before sending Taemin a small but brilliant smile. "It wasn't so expensive, don't worry. But what about you? It feels like it's been ages since we last saw each other. You still painting?" Gesturing to the art store he put emphasis on his words, head cocking to the side in curiosity.

@b baekhyun Ω The high of finishing a demanding project was always chased by that overwhelming drive to start a new one. Now that his latest doll was finished and he was done with the first line of her summer inspired clothing he found himself with far too much time on his hands. He wasn't ready yet for a new doll, had already had several new clothing designs in the works, but his muse wasn't in the realm of fabric and sewing at the moment. He wanted to return to his roots, do to a real colored pencil drawing. He needed a new set of pencils though, as his old ones had definitely seen better days.

It was for this reason that Taemin had gone to his favorite art store, on a mission to pick up new supplies. He knew exactly what he needed and had intended to be in an out but as he was heading towards the counter to pay he noticed the discount shelves and decided to take a look at what was on sale in case there were any decent deals. He wasn't really paying attention to the people around him until someone bumped into him, the sound of something shattering following immediately after. Frowning in concern he looked down at the source of the noise, noticing a brown paper bag.

He certainly wasn't expecting the man straightening up with said bag to be so familiar and he blinked in surprise as it took him a few moments to place the face. "Baekhyun?" He asked, his expression breaking into a warm smile. "It's been forever since I've seen you, I thought you'd be a little less clumsy by now. That wasn't anything too expensive, was it?" He asked, though knowing the other male's hobbies and interests Taemin wouldn't have been surprised if it was some old piece of pottery that was worth far more money than it had any right to be for as ugly as it probably was.

@l taemin α The day was filled with leisure. It was a typical Saturday, hours filled with spending too much money to feel like he had accomplished something in his life. At least enough to not look at price tags while shopping. Sometimes it felt nice and sometimes it felt like he was committing an unforgivable crime. Spending money instead of saving it, but hey, you only live once, right? He adjusted his grip on the handle of the paper bag hiding his latest purchase, when his gaze was drawn to the neon sign above a store tucked away in a corner. The art store. It had been ages since he had painted and the art store felt like a hometown he had left ten years ago, never looking back.
But now he was drawn to it, eyes traveling over displays of discounted goods and flashy posters in the window.
He worried over his bottom lip in consideration, only to jerk to the side when he bumped shoulders with another man, a wave of alpha hormones crashing into him. The bag in his hand crashed to the floor, the content breaking noisily and he cursed, instantly bending down to pick up the bag and peer inside with a frown.
"Daw man.", he whispered at the sight of his traditional Japanese clay pot, now broken into three large pieces. Then his head shot up to look at the person he had bumped into, his mouth closing instantly. The male looked vaguely familiar and Baekhyun couldn't help but squint. "I'm sorry." he stated belatedly, hinting at an apologizing bow. "I wasn't watching where I'm going. I hope you didn't get hurt by me being distracted."

@p jimin β Seonghwa had never really liked the thought of ever being in the entertainment industry as an artist like Jimin. It was just way too much in his opinion and the lack of freedom would probably make him go a little crazy. He thought it was amazing that people like Jimin and other artists were able to do it, but it was far from the blond beta's ideal life. He relaxed a bit, not that he hadn't been relaxed already, just a bit confused more than anything else about the fact that someone like Jimin recognised him despite them never really having shared more than a fleeting look with one another under the dim lights of the club.

"Oh, yeah, it's a really nice shop. Lots of variety and plenty of clothes that can handle a performance," he smiled. He could sense how nervous the other was and immediately let out subtle calming pheromones in the space around them so the other beta wouldn't feel so tense. "You weren't interrupting me, don't worry," he reassured. I'm in no rush either since I don't have work tonight," he explained. He realised that they were practically the only ones in the store - given the time of day that it was, most people were at work, and it seemed like the presence of the bodyguard warded off other customers. "Well, since we're here... perhaps we could sort of... help one another shop?" he suggested.

@p seonghwa β Perhaps it had been a bit rude of him to impose himself on Seonghwa while he had been shopping. However.. Jimin really wished to befriend this dancer. He had seen how well he got along with certain club goers, people seemed to gravitate towards the blonde and if there was anything Jimin lacked— it was friends. Fame definitely has its drawbacks, and the idol knew the risk of speaking to this male alone was high.

Nevertheless the artist bares his teeth in a bright and pearly smile, dropping his hand back down. “Seonghwa.” He looks around with a simple nod, lips curled at the end to keep the little smile. “Yeah I am. This is one of my favorite shops actually, and I rarely get out to visit it so..” His fingers clasp behind himself nervously, the beta willing himself to relax and feel a bit more normal speaking with this man. “You clearly are here for that as well, sorry for interrupting with boring ole me. I just.. well I always wanted to say hello I suppose.”

@p jimin β Seonghwa had noticed that the shorter male was indeed with a couple other men who didn't exactly look like they'd be his friends. He was a bit confused by the whole scene that played out in front of him before the other lowered his mask and showed his face properly. The beta wasn't stupid or informed about Jimin. Though he didn't listen to the other's music a whole lot, he knew the other's face well enough to recognise it.

"Likewise," he nodded as he reached out to shake the other's hand, "My name is Seonghwa," he introduced and then let go of the other's hand. He remembered the jacket that was in his other hand and placed it over his arm instead since he did plan on trying it on. He had to admit that he was a bit taken aback by the sudden compliment. "Oh- um thank you," he responed with a sheepish smile. He looked around the shop, "I'm guessing you're here to buy clothes?" he asked. Though it was a silly question in hindsight, one could never really know what an idol was doing in a clothing store.

@p seonghwa β Jimin hadn’t been this close to the dancer in the time he had started to see the blonde in the VIP section. He was far more intimidatingly attractive in person, the idol having always been the introverted type rather than the person who could befriend just about anyone. Taking a glance around where they stood, the idol raised a hand to signal for his bodyguard. It took seconds for the large man to appear behind him, and with a little mumble he told the man to make sure nobody would see their little chat.

Offering a light laugh Jimin slid the black mask down from where it had been covering half of his face so that it rests just below his chin. The beta gives a genuine smile towards the dancer- not at all expecting for the male to recognize him or anything like that. He’d been meaning to speak with the man for a while actually— something about him really made the awkward male curious. “Hey. It’s nice to finally be face to face! My name is Jimin.”

Biting down on the inside of his lip he offers a dainty hand towards the other beta, his nail’s meticulously painted tips glittering in the bright store lighting. Their height difference was enough at the moment for the boy to feel a bit embarrassed, his face flushed just lightly pink. He really wasn’t good at the whole ‘small talk’ part of life- that was the only explanation for his next sentence. “You’re a lot more handsome under bright lights.”

@p jimin β Coming out to the mall during the day was something Seonghwa enjoyed. He basically had four places he frequented - his home, the club, the gym and the mall. He didn't have much reason to visit other places and he was fully content in keeping these places as the ones he came to during his time awake - or asleep in the case of his home. He didn't have work that night, so he had plenty of time to himself, though he would probably end up at the club, perhaps later than normal, just for a look around the place.

As he was browsing through one store, he noticed that there was another wolf around, though he knew there were plenty of them just hidden among the crowds of humans around the mall and the city in general. He just liked to make himself aware of his surroundings in case anything happened. He was looking at a couple jackets, same design but different colours when he noticed a masked figure making his way over to him out of the corner of his eye. He looked up when he was addressed and blinked a few times as he turned to him.

From this angle, the other male, seemed shorter than him by a fair bit. Though they probably did differ in height slightly, Seonghwa guessed that his heeled boots raised him up a bit more than usual. He pulled a somewhat confused expression at the question before getting a whiff of the other's scent, his eyes becoming wider for a moment as he smelled the beta scent, but also realised where he meant. His facial expression relaxed slightly as he cleared his throat. "Oh yes, um, I believe so. Sort of? I don't think we've spoken before," he responded, one hand still holding up a jacket in front of him.

@p seonghwa β To say that it was becoming a hassle to venture outside the safety of his home was an understatement. Jimin couldn’t even step out to the grocery store for some eggs without attracting a crowd. Even now as he sat in the back of his van as his manager pulled into the back garage of the mall, he was wearing baggy clothing with a beanie and a mask used to hide his features. It was very important to the singer that he be able to maintain at least some of his free will— whether he got mobbed or not. And so Jimin set out through the back halls of the mall, his manager and bodyguard at his side as he strides along. The three stop just outside of the back entrance to his favorite store as he is briefed on what to do if he is noticed by fans. Today... he was not in the best of moods.

“I know what to do. I’m not some rookie idol. Stop treating me like a child, I just want to buy some clothes.” His tone wasn’t the kindest it could be but at this moment he could honestly care less. Giving his manager a serious look he turns and enters through the back of the store, bowing to the employees and sliding into the main part of the store casually. Once inside it took him only a few minutes to push the annoyance to the back of his mind and actually start to enjoy himself.

It wasn’t until around halfway through his little shopping spree that he took notice of someone he had an itching feeling he’d seen before. He hadn’t caught a full glimpse of the males face yet but it was really giving him one hell of a sense of deja vu. As the idol rounds another corner with a shirt in hand he finally spots the boy’s face. Ah! He was a dancer, from the club he liked to frequent once or twice a month! Jimin hadn’t ever had the chance to speak with him, but that blonde hair and those striking features couldn’t be mistaken. Handing his shirt to his manager, Jimin asked for a moment of privacy before approaching the man. He steps round the clothing rack and gives a calm eye smile. “Excuse me? I know this is kind of weird, but I think we’ve met?”