Lost in your lens - NewJeans' Minji x M!Reader

Ch. 10 - Time Zones

The email arrived on a Tuesday afternoon, turning our usual café table into an island of uncertainty.

"National Photography Prize..." Minji read aloud, her voice barely a whisper. "Semi-finalist... Two-month residency in New York..."

The words hung in the air between us, heavy with possibility and something that felt a lot like fear. Her hand found mine under the table, gripping tightly.

"This is amazing," I said, meaning it completely despite the way my heart was doing complicated things in my chest. "Your festival exhibition portfolio actually did it."

She nodded, still staring at her phone screen like the words might rearrange themselves if she looked long enough. "Two months though..."

"When?"

"January to March." Her voice caught slightly. "Right after winter break."

The timing hit like a gentle punch to the gut. I'd be starting my final semester of exchange, and she'd be...

"You have to accept," I said firmly, squeezing her hand. "This is huge, Minji."

"But-"

"No buts." I pulled her closer, pressing a kiss to her temple. "You've worked so hard for this. Your photos deserve to be seen."

She leaned into me, her camera sitting unusually silent in her lap. "I just... we just figured this out, you know? Us. And now..."

"Hey," I turned her face toward mine gently. "Remember what you wrote in that album? About some moments being better experienced than photographed?"

A small smile played at her lips. "Yeah?"

"This is one of those moments. One we have to live through, not try to freeze in time."

From across the café, I caught Hyein watching us with poorly concealed concern. News traveled fast in our little family.

---

"TWO MONTHS?" Hyein's voice carried across Danielle's entire apartment later that night. "But that's like... SO MANY DAYS!"

"Sixty-one, actually," Haerin supplied quietly, already working on something in her notebook.

"NOT HELPING!"

Minji was curled into my side on the couch, her ever-present camera finally set aside. "I haven't accepted yet."

"Yes, you have," I corrected. "You just haven't sent the email."

"But-"

"No buts!" Hyein interrupted. "This is your DREAM! Your photos! In NEW YORK! Being seen by ACTUAL FAMOUS PEOPLE!"

"Stop yelling-" Danielle started, emerging from the kitchen with what appeared to be stress-baked brownies.

"This NEEDS to be yelled! This is a CRISIS!"

Haerin looked up from her notebook. "It doesn't have to be."

We all turned to her. She had that look – the one that meant she'd been quietly figuring things out while the rest of us were panicking.

"Time difference is fourteen hours," she continued calmly. "So when it's morning there, it's night here. Perfect for calls before bed. And," she turned her notebook around, revealing a carefully drawn calendar, "if we account for weekends and holidays..."

Slowly, methodically, Haerin laid out a plan that made two months feel less like an eternity and more like a series of manageable moments. Video calls during Minji's morning walks to the studio (my evening coffee time). Her weekend gallery visits matching my Sunday study sessions. Regular updates in the group chat, carefully timed to catch both time zones.