Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"taliaaaa. . ."
beomgyu's sing-song voice echoed through the dorm, quickly followed by the unmistakable sound of a pillow being flung across the room and hitting the wall with a soft thud. talia's figure was sprawled across her bed like a starfish.
"she's not budging," huening kai whispered, peeking through the crack in the door. "should we trying the ice cube trick?"
yeonjun appeared behind him, crossing his arms as a mischievous grin spread across his face. "no, no. that's only for emergencies. we're not that desperate yet."
talia, fast asleep, was oblivious to the huddle of TXT members standing just outside her door, plotting their next move. her dark hair cascaded over her pillow in a silky mess, and her blanket, tangled around her legs, had clearly lost the battle of keeping her covered through the night.
the dorm was unusually quiet for a morning, save for the occasional giggle or murmur from the boys.
"let's try the gentle approach first," soobin suggested, looking at the others. as the leader, he was always the voice of reason—most of the time, at least.
beomgyu rolled his eyes dramatically. "come on, soobin. we've tried the 'gentle' approach five times now. she's basically glued to that bed."
"true, but you know how talia is," taehyun chimed in. "she's only a heavy sleeper when she wants to be. she'll wake up on her own terms."
the group exchanged amused looks. talia's sleeping habits had become something of a legend among them. she wasn't the kind of person to sleep through an earthquake, but when she was particularly tired—like after a long practice or an especially stressful week—getting her out of bed was a challenge of epic proportions.
"alright, let's give her one last chance," soobin said, walking into the room and standing next to her bed. "talia," he called softly, leaning over her. "it's morning. we've got practice in an hour."
there was no response from the sleeping figure, not even a twitch.
soobin sighed and glanced back at the others, shrugging in defeat. "i tried."
"move over, hyung," beomgyu said with determination, marching into the room like a man on a mission. he leaned in close to talia's ear and whispered, "t.t., we're going to eat without you."
still nothing.
"t.t., we're going to practice without you," beomgyu said, trying again, a little louder this time.
talia's brows furrowed ever so slightly, and she let out a soft groan, shifting in her sleep. "mmhm. . ."
the boys grinned at each other. progress.
"talia, we're going to get food," beomgyu continued, his voice dripping with fake disappointment. "delicious, hot, spicy food."
that did it. talia's eyelids fluttered open and she squinted up at beomgyu with a sleepy frown. "you're lying," she mumbled, her voice muffled by her pillow.
beomgyu grinned triumphantly. "am i? you'll never know if you stay in bed."
talia groaned again, rolling onto her back and blinking up at the ceiling. "i'm awake. . ." she muttered, though her eyes immediately closed again.
"uh-huh, sure," huening kai said, stepping into the room and nudging her foot. "that's what you said yesterday, and you fell back asleep for another hour."
"i was resting my eyes," talia mumbled, her voice half-sleepy, half-amused. she peeked one eye open at the sight of all five members gathered around her bed like concerned parents. "you guys. . . are so annoying."
"only because we care," yeonjun teased, sitting on the edge of her bed and poking her cheek. "if we didn't wake you up, you'd probably miss half the day."
talia swatted his hand away, yawning as she stretched her arms above her head. "i'm not that bad," she protested, though she knew they had a point. her semi-heavy sleeping habits had caused more than a few close calls when it came to early schedules.
but this wasn't how it always was. usually, she was the one up early making sure everyone else was getting up and ready for the day. sometimes, after exhausting weeks, she just need the whole day to sleep and relax.
"yes, you are," taehyun said matter-of-factly. "remember that one time we had an interview in the morning and you slept through four alarms?"
talia groaned, covering her face with her hands. "we were up until three in the morning the night before and had to be up at six!"
yeonjun chuckled, giving her a gentle pat on the shoulder. "it's okay."
"so, are you coming to breakfast, or are you going to stay here and. . . rest your eyes some more?" beomgyu teased, leaning over her with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
talia sighed, finally sitting up and rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "fine, fine. i'm up. but next time, just let me sleep in peace."
the boys exchanged amused looks. "we would," huening kai said with a grin, "but recently you've had a habit of sleeping through important things, remember."
"yeah, like that one time you almost missed our photoshoot," beomgyu added, raising an eyebrow.
talia rolled her eyes, though a smile tugged at the corner of her lips. "that was different. i was up and awake in the morning, i just took a nap at the venue we were at. anyway, we don't have to keep bringing this up."
"we wouldn't if it wasn't so funny," yeonjun quipped, standing up and offering her a hand. "come on. let's go before beomgyu eats everything."
beomgyu gasped dramatically. "excuse me! i do not eat everything."
"you definitely do," soobin countered with a smirk.
as talia finally got out of bed, stretching and yawning once more, she couldn't help but feel grateful for the lightheartedness that filled the dorm. even though her semi-heavy sleeping habits had become a running joke among the members, it was moments like these that reminded her how close they all were.
"alright, alright," she said, grabbing her phone from the nightstand and slipping on her slippers. "let's get breakfast, i'm starving."
the group laughed, and they all headed toward the kitchen, the morning sunlight now fully streaming through the windows, casting a golden glow over the room. talia felt her sleepiness gradually fade as the familiar warmth of her friends surrounded her.
