Where the heck is Saki?

"What do you mean you're going on vacation to South Korea for five weeks?"

Dairyu Mugen — the resident heel of Hyper Impact Wrestling, known to the company's modest but devoted fanbase as the Limitless Great Dragon of Hate — stood in front of his boss's desk with the patience of a man who had rehearsed this conversation in his head at least a dozen times.

"I've been planning this for almost six months. I sent the time-off request seven months ago. With monthly reminders."

"I know that. I'm asking how you expect us to run without our top heel."

Dairyu shrugged. "Same way you did it last time I went on vacation. Use Dark Claw."

His boss opened his mouth to argue, then closed it again. "...Fair point." He sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose like the next five weeks were already giving him a headache. "Fine. See you in five to seven weeks. Don't get injured. And don't fall in love."

"Can't promise the first one." Dairyu was already halfway to the door.

"Definitely can't promise the second."

His boss rolled his eyes at the empty doorway.

Five days later.

Dairyu had just landed in Korea, dropped his bags at the hotel, and was now doing what any reasonable man does after a fourteen-hour flight: looking for a drink.

He was two sips into a Long Island iced tea, just loose enough to stop bracing his shoulders like he was still in a ring, when she walked in.

Short pink hair first. Then the eyes — big, dark, and currently aimed at him like she was deciding whether he was a threat or just an idiot.

She went with an idiot. Waved her over before his brain caught up to his hand.

She didn't move right away. Read him the way you'd read a stranger's dog — slow, sideways, checking for teeth. Then, against what was probably her better judgment, she crossed the room and sat down beside him.

"Hey, Kura," he said, easy as anything, like they'd known each other for years.

In the specific, lopsided way fame works, they kind of had.

She didn't return the warmth. "How do you know my name?"

"You're one of the most famous women on the planet. Everyone knows your name." He took another sip. "But if you're asking how I know it — I'm a pseudo-fan."

"A what?"

"I love your group. Every member. I just don't like the music." He held up a hand before she could bristle. "Not a talent thing. Production's flat, lyrics are weak. That's on the people behind the boards, not you."

"How can you like us but not the music?"

"Separate the art from the artist. Except backwards — the art's mediocre, the artists are great." He said it like this was a perfectly normal thing to tell a stranger in a bar.

Sakura stared at him for a long moment, visibly recalculating. "You're so weird."

"I get that a lot." He flagged the bartender without looking away from her.

"Let me buy your first drink."

"I usually drink alone."

"Same. Making an exception."

She scowled — but didn't leave. He took that as a yes, cracked his knuckles, rolled his neck, and told the bartender, "Whatever she wants."

"What's your name?" she asked, like she was still gathering evidence.

"Dairyu Mugen."

She turned it over. "That sounds familiar."

"Only if you watch mid-card pro wrestling. Or follow sumo."

Her eyes went wide. "Wait — you wrestle?"

"In America. Grappler, high flyer." He tilted his head. "Borrowed the name from a sumo wrestler I admired growing up. You used to wrestle too, I heard."

"I did." A pause. "How do you know that?"

"You're one of the most documented people alive, Kura. There's a Wikipedia page about your Wikipedia page."

That got something close to a laugh out of her — quick, almost reluctant, gone before she let it fully land. Her drink arrived; she took a sip like she needed the excuse to look away from him.

Dairyu watched her over the rim of his glass. "You're cuter in person."

The blush hit before she could stop it. "...Thank you."

By the time round two arrived, Sakura had stopped sizing Dairyu up and started, somewhat against her own better judgment, enjoying his company.

"So you wrestle," she said, turning her glass in slow circles. "But what else do you do?"

"Mostly video games. Card games, sometimes."

"Oh? Like what?"

"Out of the ones you've probably heard of — Persona, Monster Hunter, Kingdom Hearts."

Her eyes lit up. "Do you play Rise?"

In answer, he rolled up his sleeve and showed her the Malzeno tattoo inked along his forearm.

"That's really big," she said, staring.

"I guess so." He smirked.

Now that she'd confirmed he wasn't bluffing, Sakura got to the actual point. "Can you help me beat Sunbreak? I'm stuck."

"Which ones are giving you trouble?"

Her shoulders dropped. "Valstrax. And Astalos, mostly."

"Yeah, okay. I can help with that."

She blinked at him, caught off guard by how easy that was. "Great — can you help tonight?"

"Sure. But I think we should wait a bit first."

"Why?"

He gave her a flat look. "Let the drinks wear off before either of us drives."

"Funny and responsible. I like it," she said — and there was something looser in her voice, the consonants softening at the edges. Drunk Sakura. The other members had a name for her.

Saki.

Dairyu glanced over. She was smiling at him, slow and a little flirty. He nodded once, said nothing, and turned back to his drink — pointedly not making a thing of it, though the corner of his mouth gave him away.

Three hours later, they arrived at her apartment. Dairyu kept a hand near her elbow on the stairs, not quite touching, ready to catch her if the alcohol and the heels conspired against her.

"I only recently got this place," she said, fishing for her keys. "After Hybe finally let us off the leash."

"Sick. I guess all that spaghetti money paid off," Dairyu said, off the cuff.

Sakura stopped and turned to look at him properly. "I gotta keep an eye on you."

He frowned. "...What?"

"You're smarter than you look."

"I'd normally say 'great' to that, but —" he tilted his head "— do I look dumb?"

She studied him, narrowing her eyes like she was reassessing the whole picture. "You look and sound dumb. But I'm starting to think I'm underestimating you."

"Wouldn't be the first time," Dairyu said.

Sakura smiled and let Dairyū into the apartment. He looked around and saw what could only be described as a war between a cute idol and a hardcore Otaku. Every Le Sserafim album lined one shelf, a few Illit ones beside them, the whole collection flanked on either side by anime figures — Gojo holding down one corner, Kakashi the other. The rest of the living room played out the same tug-of-war: bright pinks against cool navy tones, girly-girl and cool-girl aesthetics refusing to pick a side.

"Is everything okay?" Sakura asked, watching him take it all in.

"Yeah. Just orienting myself," Dairyu said, recovering.

She nodded, satisfied, and headed for her Switch.

That was when the bathroom door opened, and Chaewon stepped out.

"Unnie, I need help — " She stopped short. "Oh. Who's this?"

She hadn't expected to find Sakura with a man standing in her living room, looking, frankly, a little unremarkable. Maybe even a little dumb.

Sakura's whole demeanor shifted — from confident woman to supportive older sister in the space of a breath. "What's wrong?"

"Aki's going to a party."

"...Okay?" Sakura wasn't sure why that warranted a late-night visit.

"With Yunjin. I told him to go have fun and everything, but now I'm not sure that was the right call."

Sakura nodded, then turned to Dairyu. "Monster Hunter later. Right now, I have to be the responsible one."

He nodded and let her work.

"Aren't you the one who told him to go after Jen in the first place?" Sakura asked Chaewon.

"Yes, but — I don't know."

Dairyu's stomach picked that exact moment to growl. Sakura shot him a glare that softened the second she saw his sheepish face. Chaewon turned too, annoyed and confused in equal measure, until he spoke up.

"Sorry. You guys hungry? I'll make something."

"There's ramen in the cupboard," Sakura said. "Toppings in the fridge."

Dairyu nodded and got to work.

Sakura turned back to Chaewon. "So. Do you want Aki or not?"

"I want him. But then I see the chemistry he has with Jen, and it's just — how am I supposed to compete with that?"

From the kitchen, Dairyu — half-listening over the sound of boiling water — found himself repeating something his dad always said about relationships. "Relationships aren't really about chemistry, though. They're physics. It's less about reactivity, more about order and alignment. The question isn't 'do I react well with this person?' It's 'Can my relationship with this person sustain orbit around them long-term?' Do your goals line up? Your lifestyles? That kind of thing."

Both women turned to stare at him.

"How did you know that?" Chaewon asked.

"My dad's a marriage counselor and therapist. You live under that roof long enough, you pick things up."

"Huh. Okay." Chaewon considered this. "So what's your advice?"

"Go ask him outright. If he picks Jen over you, you move on. But I think you'll be surprised by his answer."

"Okay. Let's do that."

"But first — food." Dairyu set down two steaming bowls of ramyeon.

Chaewon grinned and turned to Sakura. "Unnie, you got a good one."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "He's helping me with Monster Hunter. That's it."

Chaewon rolled her eyes right back, and the three of them sat down to eat.

Partway through her bowl, Chaewon looked up with the particular gleam of someone about to cause trouble. "Unnie, if you don't want him — and if it doesn't work out with Aki — I'm taking him."

Sakura shot her a look that could curdle milk. Chaewon just laughed, unbothered, and the three of them finished eating.

Afterward, Dairyu washed every dish and put each one back exactly where he'd found it, which earned him a look of genuine surprise — and something warmer — from Sakura.

"Now go get your boy," he said.

"Fighting!" Sakura said, fist raised.

Chaewon glanced between them and grinned. "You're both coming with me. You're my good luck charms."

Sakura and Dairyu looked at the couch, then at each other, both clearly weighing whether refusal was an option. It wasn't. They sighed in perfect unison.

Chaewon cackled. "You two are too cute."

The trio arrived at Wonyoung's place, where the party was already in full swing. The bouncer at the door took one look at Dairyu — six-plus feet of him, built like he moonlit as furniture — and didn't move.

"He's my plus-one," Sakura said.

The bouncer looked from her to Dairyu and back, clearly doing some quick math on how much trouble this could possibly be. "...Okay." He stepped aside.

Inside, Dairyu scanned the crowd. "So what's Aki look like?"

"Dark eyes, dark hair," Chaewon offered.

Dairyu counted at least six guys who fit that description within view.

"Gonna need something more specific than that."

"His eyes are dark grey," Sakura added.

"Thanks, Kura." A beat. "Oh — there."

Without any visible windup, Dairyu scooped up both girls — one under each arm, like grocery bags — and started cutting through the crowd. Chaewon yelped. Sakura began swearing at him in rapid Japanese.

Across the room, Yunjin leaned toward you, eyes fixed on the approaching scene. "Is that... a linebacker carrying Kura-unnie and Chaewon-unnie?"

"I think so," you said, with no real conviction that this was a normal thing to be witnessing.

Dairyu arrived and set both girls down with the careful precision of a man returning library books. Chaewon was fighting back laughter. Sakura was still hitting him, muttering "Yabai yatsu" — you brute — under her breath.

"Thanks, Dairyu," Chaewon said, smoothing her hair before turning to you and Yunjin.

Dairyu, apparently satisfied that his job here was done, gave the group a thumbs-up, smiled, and walked off with Sakura, who was still scolding him in two languages. You and Yunjin watched the entire exchange with no idea what they'd just seen.

"...Who was that?" You finally asked.

Chaewon beamed. "Sakura's boyfriend."

Yunjin's head whipped around. "Boyfriend? I have never seen him before in my life."

"Yeah, but I can already tell. They're into each other."

You and Yunjin both had follow-up questions. Several. Chaewon didn't give you or Yunjin the chance — she grabbed your wrist and pulled you away from the noise, down a hallway, into the first quiet room she found, and kissed you.

The whiplash of the last ten minutes finally caught up to you all at once. You pulled back. "Chaewon — what the hell?"

She read the confusion on his face and didn't flinch. "I like you. Okay? I have for a while."

"You told me to ask out Jen."

"I know. That was me being scared. I'm not scared anymore."

"So what do I tell her?"

"Did you two hit it off tonight?"

"Yeah. Just — not like that."

"Why not?"

"Because the whole time, all I could think was I'd rather be with Chae."

Chaewon's smile broke wide open, and she pulled you in for a second kiss — this one slower, like she finally believed it was real. You groaned as she leaned in closer. Her body is becoming flush with yours. You break the kiss and stare into her eyes. They are sparkling as she looks at you.

"Chae," you gasp before bringing her in for another deep kiss.

You smile as the kiss intensifies. Her hands find yours as the two of you fall into an empty bedroom away from prying eyes. She locks the door when the two of you get in before she takes her top off.

You drool over Chaewon’s perky breasts while she bashfully stares at you.

“Could you take your clothes off?”

She asks shyly.

You race to do so. Soon you’re standing in front of Chaewon completely naked. She takes off her pants and walks towards you. The two of you kiss again, and Chaewon breaks it with a smile. Can I ride you now?”

“Sure,” you say. Chaewon smiles and pushes you down to the floor.

She lines herself up with you before taking you to the hilt.

“Fuck!” Chaewon groans before looking down at you. She smiles, then adds, “You’re perfect for me.”

You smile as you caress her face illuminated by the moonlight filtering into the room.

“I love you, Chae,” you say.

She blushes and says, “Don’t say those things without warning.”

You chuckle and say, “Why?”

Chaewon rolls her hips and says, “Because it’s unfair.”

You moan and say, “fuck okay Chae,”

Chaewon smiles, then she starts riding you.

She’s a perfect fit for you.

As she takes you, she smiles and says, “You feel so good inside me.”

The pleasure gets to you, and you thrust inside of her. Chaewon moans and says, “Yes, Aki!”

You groan as she begins twerking on you. She yelps and moans in pleasure while trying to coax you to orgasm.

“Fill me, please, Aki. I need it. I need you,” Chaewon groans as she keeps bouncing on you.

You groan and grab her waist to steady yourself,

“Fuck Chae,”

“Yes fuck me,” she affirms.

You feel her begin to tighten around you, and she says, “We are gonna fuck so much now.”

You laugh and say, “Whatever you want, Chae.”

She laughs with you, but her orgasm hits her hard as a brick through a window.

You wince, then moan as her walls constrict you like a snake. You continue thrusting into her as she moans.

You groan as her walls continue to suck you in deeper until you crash into your own release.

Chaewon moans, happy to feel you spill inside her.

She calms down after you finish inside her.

“Okay, let’s tell Jen we are together,” you say,

Chaewon nods relaxed and says, “Yeah”

You and Chaewon get dressed while trying not to laugh like a couple of blushing teenagers at prom.

The two of us walk out to look for Yunjin and Sakura. Your eyes scan the party, and thankfully, it's easy to make out Dairyu, and next to him, Sakura and Yunjin are sitting together, talking.

"Found them," You say to Chaewon.

You begin to walk towards them when you notice Chaewon hasn't followed you. You turn back to her and she opens her arms and says, "Carry me"

You turn to her and say, "I am not Sakura's boyfriend,"

"No you are mine, now carry me," Chaewon teases.

You roll your eyes and piggyback Chaewon to Yunjin, Sakura, and Dairyu.

The three of them look at you two as you arrive and you set Chaewon down.

Dairyu gives Chaewon a double thumbs-up, which causes Yunjin and Chaewon to laugh together.

You look at Sakura and shrug she shakes her head and says, "I am taking him home, enjoy the party,"

"Will do, " Chaewon and Yunjin say, while you watch Sakura get up and leave with Dairyu.

After they leave you ask, "Okay who was that guy?"

Yunjin laughs as she says, "A wrestler who met Kura unnie tonight, he's a pseudo Fearnot,"

"What the heck is a pseudo Fearnot?"