Mirrored Match // ATEEZ ✔

= 3 =

The three pairs of eyes are glued to the television screen and their bodies are huddled together, watching as the numbers flip from one to the other, producing a string of numbers. The numbers can be significant and insignificant to some, depending on the day. As the numbers stop spinning and produces a final product of '74812922', the three of them collectively groan before slamming the cards in their hands to the ground, tired of their continuous losses. Today, which seems like the thousandth time, the numbers on the television screen are insignificant to them and bear no match to the ones scratched on their cards.

"This sucks," Hongjoong enunciates.

"No, no, no. You don't understand what sucks. This sucks!" Mingi screeches as he picks up his scratched card again before showing it to his two housemates. "Look at the freaking numbers, mine is only a step down from the actual main prize!"

"Give me that." Hongjoong snatches the card from his younger, redheaded housemate and as they peer over his shoulders to look at it, sure enough, the numbers that Mingi had put in was '63701811'. "Mingi..." He is rendered speechless. "Just what did you do in your past life to always have this near-miss opportunities? We could have been 5 million chromas richer."

A low chuckle comes from their housemate, the youngest and the only girl. "That's why you need to show me a little respect, I got the consolation prize. Look at that," she points to the screen before moving her finger to the card that she had picked up, "my numbers hit the 50 chromas."

Mingi sticks out his tongue before mimicking her, "Then I'll go and buy lots of fried chicken with that money, stuff myself and realize that I've become broke again. All for my love of- ahh stop hitting me with the book, you're going to murder me! Kim Hongjoong, your sister is about to murder me!" He does an exaggerated cry only to have Hongjoong laughing in his face and joining in the fight.

"It's still money!" Danbi interjects as she provides one last knock to Mingi's head, causing the latter to lie flat on the floor in defeat.

Lying flat on the floor, Mingi puts a hand on his stomach before mumbling, "But am I wrong though? You're going to finish up that 50 chromas buying fried chicken. Then complain to us that you don't have enough money to buy more chicken."

"Be grateful that I still have the conscience to take care of my 'older brothers'," she puts up quotation marks before standing up and intending to switch off the television. When the advertisement for Bae Wonshik's campaign comes on, she stops, staring at the face a little bit too close to the screen.

Hongjoong pulls her away from the box television as Mingi lifts up his head from the floor, craning his neck to see as much as he could. "Stop ruining your eyes and looking at the television too close."

She doesn't hear as she sits absent-mindedly on the floor, staring at the foreign yet familiar face. When she stays quiet, Hongjoong glances at Mingi, who shrugs. Hongjoong bites his lip as he tries to shake her to her senses.

"Just because you think that you look somewhat similar to Bae Wonshik doesn't mean he's your biological father. Look, Mingi and I think that you don't even look like him except for maybe, I don't know, your nose. You look totally different from him. I think you're starting to feed yourself this idea because you're seeing his face too much. Look at something different, I don't know, those performance idols? Pretend you're the girlfriend to a handsome idol or something, but let go of the idea that Bae Wonshik might be your father. It's too much of a long shot."

"Oooh, I agree," Mingi tries to intervene, signalling to Hongjoong that he currently has no idea on what he's supposed to do. "There's this one new idol group called ATEEZ, the rappers are very hot. Talented too. The whole group is like dipped and spun in talent. Carved delicately."