between the spolight - purinz ✧

the hunt for truth.

yunjin's pov —

the first few days after we went public, i felt an almost surreal calm. chaewon and i had expected backlash, but i was ready to face it, to stand by her side as we weathered the inevitable storm. we'd chosen this path, and for a brief moment, i believed we could handle anything as long as we were together.

but the cracks started to show faster than i expected.

at first, it was the fans. messages started flooding my inbox—some supportive, but others colder, questioning if we'd betrayed their trust by keeping things hidden. words like "selfish" and "careless" seemed to linger in the air, sharp as glass. even though i'd known not everyone would understand, it stung to see some of our most devoted fans turning on us, questioning our loyalty to them, our focus on our careers. and they weren't just disappointed; they were angry.

and then, the industry whispers began. one of my regular contacts called to tell me a producer had pulled out from a project, saying they needed "someone more focused." i tried to brush it off, but when another collaboration slipped through my fingers, i knew something was wrong. it felt deliberate, a string of subtle rejections that were hard to explain. i couldn't shake the feeling that someone was out there, stirring the pot and making sure our names weren't welcome in certain circles.

chaewon and i talked about it, our late-night conversations filled with worry we didn't want to admit to each other. she stayed strong, reassuring me that we'd overcome this. but i could see the tension in her eyes, the weight we both carried silently. being with her was the one thing keeping me grounded, but it seemed like the world was working against us, trying to pull us apart bit by bit.

one night, as i was scrolling through the fan boards, i came across a post that made my stomach drop. it was an anonymous message, claiming that our decision to go public hadn't been mutual, that one of us had pressured the other. the message was vague but suggested just enough to plant seeds of doubt. fans were speculating, dissecting our relationship, twisting every detail to fit this narrative that we weren't as solid as we appeared. even the smallest things—photos, interactions, words taken out of context—were suddenly up for interpretation, painted in a sinister light.

that post haunted me. it was the first time i started to wonder if maybe, just maybe, we had taken a step too far. if maybe this decision, brave as it was, was beginning to fracture us from the inside.

but no—this was exactly what someone wanted. i could feel it. the more i thought about it, the clearer it became that this wasn't just a natural backlash. someone was out there, pulling the strings. someone who knew us well enough to know exactly where to push, how to exploit our vulnerabilities.

and in my gut, i knew it had to be giselle.

the signs were all there, if i really thought about it. the sudden, well-placed rumors, the "insider" posts that seemed just a little too pointed. she'd always had a talent for reading people, for knowing exactly where to apply pressure. i'd seen it before, with others. it was a quiet manipulation, an invisible hand that guided everything in just the right direction.

but confronting her wasn't an option, at least not yet. if i came at her without proof, it would just be my word against hers—and giselle was good at staying hidden. i knew how she worked; she was calculated, patient, the type who'd wait in the shadows until the time was right to strike.

i couldn't sit back and watch her tear us down, but i couldn't go straight to her, either. i had to outsmart her, expose her without giving her any room to deny it. it was a risky plan, and i'd have to move carefully, but i was done letting her toy with our lives from behind the scenes.