"Hyeri.." Sey nudged my arm gently.

"What?" I opened my eyes slowly.

"Get up. We have schedules."

"I got it." I said and sat on my bed slowly.

"Can you do the schedules today?" she asked worriedly.

"Of course I can." I stretched and got out of bed, heading to the bathroom.

"I really hope so.." Sey mumbled quietly.

~

After rehearsing in the morning we had "Inkigayo" broadcast. My head hurt, but I tried to ignore it. It's probably the lack of sleep..

In the rehearsal everything was fine and I was happy. We still had time until it was our turn to perform so me and Eun Hee used the time to explore the building a bit. We just reached the restrooms when we saw Sistar.

"Oh, it's you!" Soyou exclaimed happily when she noticed me.

"Hello." I greeted and bowed.

"Do you know them?" Dasom asked Soyou.

"I know Hyeri." Soyou smiled and pointed at me. "We did 'Running Man' together."

"I'm Hyeri and this is Eun Hee." I introduced me and Eun Hee. "We are in a girl group called Peppermint."

"Nice to meet you." Sistar bowed.

"So you finally debuted." Soyou smiled.

"Yes.." I said shyly.

"She's cute." Hyorin stated.

"Thank you." I blushed.

"Be careful of male idols you don't know. Not all of them have good intentions." Bora warned.

"Thank you." me and Eun Hee bowed.

"I think they are in good hands.." Soyou smiled.

"Why?" Dasom asked curiosuly.

"From what I saw, they have seniors that take really good care of them." she said and winked. I started to blush, knowing what she meant. At that time Yongguk really took good care of me.

"We should go.. Good luck promoting." Bora said. Sistar bowed and started to leave.

"Wait!" I called after them.

"What's wrong?" Soyou asked curiously.

"Can you please listen to our album? I'll be really happy if you'll give it a listen. You don't have to, it's just.." I started talking, embarrassed.

"Sure. But only if you'll sign it for me." she smiled warmly.

"Thank you." I said and quickly signed an album, dedicating it to them.

"Good luck." they greeted and we went on our separate ways.

"They are nice." Eun Hee commented.

"They are." I smiled. "I didn't think she'll remember me."

"Let's go in, it's our turn to perform soon." she said and we entered the restroom.

Inside, I felt a little dizzy. I took a deep breath, hoping it will help. When it didn't help I washed my face, trying to wake up. I can't be sick now.. I just have to endure it until we finish performing. I will be able to rest after that. Just a little bit longer..

"Are you alright? You are pale." Eun Hee asked.

"I'm fine." I smiled. "Let's go."

~

"Guys, it's the girls' turn to perform soon." Daehyun said and the boys gathered around him.

"Don't you think Hyeri is weird lately?" Youngjae suddenly asked.

"She is." Jongup said. "Yesterday when we practiced she did the wrong choreography. When I told her about it she had no idea what I was talking about.. I offered to take a break and when I came back after a few minutes she was already sleeping. I didn't have the heart to wake her up, so I just let her rest and we didn't practice at all."

"This is nothing. She asked me yesterday when I'm debuting." Daehyun exclaimed. The boys laughed, but the glare Yongguk gave them made them shut up.

"She called me Kibum two days ago." Zelo complained.

"We don't have any Kibum here.." Jongup mumbled.

"She has finally gone crazy.." Himchan joked and Yongguk hit his head.

"She is tired and under a lot of pressure. She is the only one that has other activities beside promoting, so it makes sense she is tired." Yongguk said, trying to justify Hyeri's behaviour.

"Hyung, I think there is something wrong with her." Youngjae said carefully.

"The girls are performing now." Daehyun announced and the boys diverted their attention to the TV, ending the discussion.

~

I still felt dizzy while going on stage, but I tried to ignore it. My hands felt sweaty and my body felt heavy. It was hard to stay focused since my vision was starting to get blurry as well. What is happening to me?

I should have read the signs when they were in front of me. The first sign something was wrong was when I did the acrobatics in the beginning of the song. I always land on my feet after doing a cartwheel.. I can even do it blindfolded. That was until today. This time I landed flat on my . It was so embarrassing. The crowd gasped and the girls looked worriedly at me. I tried not to cry and acted like everything was fine, standing up and smiling.

When it was my turn to sing the high note my voice cracked. I practice on my singing for hours so it won’t happen. It's like everything that could go wrong went wrong this time. I tried to ignore it and pretend nothing happened. Everything is just fine. As much as I tried to convince myself everything is normal, it didn’t look like it. It was getting harder to stop my tears from falling.

As the song continued I found it harder to keep my eyes open and to stand straight. Everything just felt so heavy.. And I was getting sleepy. When it was Sumi's turn to sing I stood in my place at the back, using Sey as a support. My legs were shaking, so it was hard to keep my balance. Why is it so hard suddenly? And everything feels stuffy as well.. I need air.

I took a deep breath, convincing myself to keep going just until the song ends. I already made the most of it. Suddenly I felt dizzy again and my eyes closed no matter how much I tried to keep them open. That was when my body gave up on me.

~

"Oh, crap." Himchan cursed when Hyeri collapsed. She seemed off since their performance started but he thought she is just tired. He didn't expect this to happen.

"Yongguk." Zelo glared at the oldest male. "Your method of ignoring Hyeri's condition sure worked perfectly.." he mocked. "It's your fault she's like that now."

"Junhong." Yongguk said. He rarely uses Zelo's real name, so using it means Yongguk is mad.

"Everyone could tell she is overworked, but what did you do to help her? Nothing. Don't act like you care about her when you just let her condition get worse." Zelo continued rambling and Yongguk clenched his fists.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Yongguk raised his voice and Zelo fell silent.

Yongguk slowly stood up, glaring at the boys. His gaze stopped on Zelo.

"I know better than anyone here how overworked she is and how she feels at the moment." Yongguk started talking. "Do I care? Yes. Do I want to go there and beat the CEO up until he gets back to his senses? Yes. But I can't because there are things more important than that."

"Like what?" Zelo exclaimed.

"Like our group. As much I want to help Hyeri and believe me, I hate seeing her like this, the CEO told me that if I try to help her or get involved in their promotions it will affect our group. My work comes before my private life and I don't want to hurt you by helping her."

There was silence in the room as the boys tried to process Yongguk's words.

"Hyung.." Jongup said quietly.

"What did the CEO tell you?" Himchan asked.

"That he will delay or cancel our comeback if I get involved."

"He won't cancel it, he needs money." Daehyun reasoned.

"I didn't want to take the risk." Yongguk said.

"What if we delay the comeback?" Jongup asked.

"Yes.. We could have more time to practice." Youngjae said. "We haven't announced our comeback date yet, so it's easy to change it."

"Guys.." Yongguk mumbled.

"Hyeri is our friend. I know you care about us, but we are willing to sacrifice our comeback to help her. She needs our help." Zelo said.

"Let's vote about it." Himchan suggested.

It was an unanimous vote to delay the comeback and Yongguk felt happy, relieved and grateful.

"You didn't have to.." Yongguk mumbled, not knowing how to express his gratitude properly.

"I'm sorry for thinking you're an , but you had to tell us that beforehand so we could talk this out and we could have helped her sooner." Zelo said.

"We know you love her and we know you care about us, but Hyeri is like another mom to us." Youngjae said.

"What about me?" Himchan grumbled.

"No one is taking your place, hyung." Jongup said. "Hyeri is just an addition to our family."

"Please get sister-in-law back." Daehyun asked.

"We hate seeing you like this." Zelo said.

"Thank you." Yongguk said.

"Just go already. You know Hyeri will be in trouble for fainting.." Himchan goaded him.

~

When I opened my eyes I was in the waiting room. I was laying on a couch and people were running like crazy around me.

"You're up! You really scared us!" Sey exclaimed when she noticed I'm awake.

"Do you need anything?" Eun Hee asked.

"How are you feeling?" Yujin asked, worried.

"Drama queen. You just had to ruin our performance, didn't you?" Sumi muttered. "Are you happy now?"

"Leave her alone, you skunk." Sey glared at Sumi.

"How about you'll shower first before using that nickname on me?" Sumi retorted.

"How about you'll wash your mouth first? With poison." Sey didn't back down.

"My head hurts.." I mumbled, rubbing my temples. It's too moisy.

"Do you want water or something?" Sey asked quickly, ignoring Sumi.

"It's fine." I said.

"Hyeri.." Jinu entered the room."Are you okay?"

"I'm sorry.." I apologized quickly. "I ruined everything, didn't I?"

"Stop talking nonsense. Are you feeling okay? You really scared us." Jinu answered.

"I'm sorry."

"Eat." he brought me a hamburger.

"I'm on a diet."

"Diet doesn't mean to starve yourself. When was the last time you ate properly?"

"When I entered TS." I muttered and everyone laughed.

"You need to rest and eat properly." Jinu said. "Just eat. I promise I won't tell anyone." he winked.

"Thank you, oppa." I said and took the hamburger from him. I started eating and it tasted like heaven. I missed eating normal food since it was so long since I ate it.

"What about us?" Yujin pouted.

"I brought you hamburgers as well." Jinu smiled and a staff member entered the room with a few bags of food.

"You're the best!" Yujin exclaimed and hugged him tightly.

Everyone in the room started to eat, enjoying the food.

"Hyeri.." Jinu said while taking a bite from his hamburger.

"Hmm?"

"There are a lot of people outside.."

"What people?" I asked, confused. No one is supposed to look for me since I barely know people..

"Guys.."

~

Yongguk wanted to go to the CEO's office but the latter wasn't in the company so he had to wait until he comes back. In the meantime he and the boys were practicing for the comeback.

They were just taking a break when he got a text from DinDin. It was a picture of a long line of guys waiting outside a room. The picture was captioned: "I would be worried if I were you.. They are looking for Hyeri". Yongguk's mouth was hanging open from the surprise as anger took over him.

"Why do you look so shocked?" Himchan asked as he sat down next to Yongguk. Yongguk showed him the picture and Himchan looked confused.

"Is that a restroom line? Why are there so many guys there?" Himchan asked.

"It's outside of Peppermint's waiting room." Yongguk sighed.

"Oh, ." Himchan muttered. "Who knew princess is this popular.. What's wrong with guys these days?"

"Watch it." Yongguk glared at Himchan.

"I mean, I know they probably want to get into her pants, but they should have a bit of taste.. And self-awareness. Doesn't they know it's mission impossible since it's Hyeri? If you didn't make it, no one can." Himchan continued talking, to Yongguk's annoyance.

"Are you going to shut up on your own or do I have to shut you up by force?" Yongguk asked.

"Sorry.." Himchan trailed off. "Look at it positively.. They don't stand a chance with her even if they manage to talk to her."

"You're not helping."

"Who sent you this picture?" Himchan asked.

"DinDin."

"He knows Hyeri, right?"

"I guess you could say that.."

"I think I have an idea." Himchan smirked.

~

"They are still there." Eun Hee said after peeking through the door to the hallway.

"Oppa, can't you ask them to leave?" Yujin asked Jinu.

"I'll see what I can do." Jinu said as he stood up and opened the door.

"Hey, man." DinDin stood at the entrance.

"Oh, it's you." Jinu smiled. "How are you today?"

"Great. Tough day for you, huh?"

"Yes.." Jinu sighed.

"DinDin?" I asked when I recognized the voice.

"At your service." DinDin smiled and bowed exaggeratedly.

"I'm going to get rid of the idiots outside." Jinu said and left the room.

"Hello, ladies." DinDin greeted.

"Who is this cute guy?" Sumi asked Yujin.

"None of your business." Yujin said and walked away, approaching me and DinDin, who in the meantime made himself comfortable on one of the empty chairs.

"What are you doing here?" I asked. It was actually nice seeing a familiar face.

"I came to visit my favorite idol.."

"What favorite idol? We just met.." I scoffed. "There are idols more popular than me."

"Well, you have connections." he winked and crossed his legs.

"Tell your connections I'm not interested in it." I stuck my tongue out.

"You know, he misses you." DinDin stated.

"He doesn't miss me. I can't give him anything."

"Hyeri misses him as well." Sey said and I threw a pillow at her. She is not helping.

"Is that so?" DinDin looked at me, smirking.

"No. He already have someone else." I unconsciously looked at Sumi, who was looking at me and DinDin curiously from the other side of the room. DinDin followed my gaze and looked at Sumi as well.

"Do you seriously think she is better than you?" he asked.

"Yes." I admitted, biting my lower lip.

"Are you sure we are seeing the same thing?"

"Yes." I hugged the pillow to my chest.

"Hyeri, you're so dumb sometimes.." Sey sighed.

"Can we change the subject?" I asked.

"Sure." DinDin smiled. "I actually had another reason to come."

"What reason?" I asked curiously.

"Can you perform with me on Wednesday? I've talked to Narae as well, we will try to divide the days equally."

"Sure. Whenever you need." I smiled.

"You have the lyrics, right?"

"Yes."

"Great."

~

"What are you doing?" Daehyun sat next to Youngjae.

"Nothing." Youngjae shoved his phone to his pocket.

"Who were you texting?" Daehyun insisted.

"Solbin."

"I didn't know you have a good relationship outside of the show."

"We don't. She just asked for help with something." Youngjae shrugged.

"With what?" Daehyun inquired.

"She is trying to be a better host."

"She is trying to hit on you."

"No, she isn't." Youngjae exclaimed.

"You wouldn't know even if she confessed to you." Daehyun snorted.

"Anyways, I'm not interested."

"Does she know that?"

"Maybe?"

"You're hopeless." Daehyun sighed. "Just don't hurt innocent people with your indifference."

~

The broadcast finally ended. When it was the ending segment I stayed in the waiting room to rest.

When we reached the company Jinu told me the CEO wants to talk to me.

"Am I going to get scolded?" I asked.

"Probably.." he seemed apologetic.

"He is going to kick me out, isn't he?"

"Probably not. If he kicks you out after collapsing the media and the public will hunt him, so it's more reasonable to keep you here in order to avoid it."

"How do you know?"

"I know him long enough to know that." Jinu smiled. "He cares only about his bank account and the public's opinion."

"Good luck, Hyeri. We will wait for you here." Sey encouraged me before I entered the CEO's office.

"Thanks." I tried to smile.

"Hyeri.." Jinu called me. "Just apologize."

"Yes, oppa." I bowed and knocked on the door to the CEO'S office.

"Come in." the CEO said.

"Did you want to talk to me?" I asked.

"Yes." he said dryly and I entered the room, standing in front of his desk. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"What.. Do.. You.. Mean?" I stuttered.

"Do you know how bad it looks when you collapse during a performance? People will think I'm overworking you and mistreating you and the girls."

"I'm sorry." I bowed.

"Sorry doesn't help recover the company's image." he glared at me.

"What do you want me to do?"

"Write an apology and reassure your fans you are fine. And you are going to work harder from now on."

"Sir.."

"Are you still complaining?" if glares could kill I would have died from the glare he was giving me at the moment.

"I'm not feeling well. I need to rest."

"You are not a doctor and you don't get to decide what you do."

"I will collapse again if you keep overworking me."

"ARE YOU THREATENING ME RIGHT NOW?"

"No, sir." I shrank in my place. "I'm just not feeling well.."

"Stop looking for excuses to justify the fact you were slacking off."

"I'm not slacking off.." tears started forming in my eyes.

"Don't try your fake tears on me. Yongguk is the only person who buys that."

I wanted to say something, but a knock on the door stopped me.

"Come in." the CEO ordered and the door opened, Yongguk standing in the entrance. Just great..

"We were just talking about you." the CEO smirked. I quickly wiped my tears, hoping Yongguk won't see I'm crying.

"I need to talk to you." Yongguk said dryly without looking at me.

"I'm talking to your girlfriend at the moment."

"Tell her to leave." Yongguk ordered. I felt my heart sinking. He referred to me as 'Her'. No Hyeri, no babe, no nothing. Just 'Her'.. Like we are not related.

"Hyeri, get out." the CEO ordered. "And don't forget what we talked about. Do it again and you're out."

"Yes, sir." I bowed and left the room.

The girls and Jinu were waiting outside, worried.

"Why are you crying? Did he do something to you?" Sey asked, wiping my tears with her hands.

"He told me to stop slacking off and that I need to work harder. If I do something like this again he will kick me out."

"Son of a ." Sey muttered.

"Sey, don't curse." Jinu scolded.

"Sorry.." she apologized. "But he deserves it."

~

"What was so important that you had to interrupt my conversation with Hyeri?" the CEO asked, crossing his hands over his desk.

"Let Hyeri rest." Yongguk demanded.

"You really have a short memory.. I think I told you that if you get involved with the girls' promotions B.A.P will be affected."

"Go ahead. The boys agree with me." Yongguk smirked.

"It's sweet that you are trying to be the knight in shining armor, but the consequences can be grave."

"I'll take the risk."

"Are you sure that's what you want?" the CEO asked, staring intently at Yongguk.

"Yes."

"Fine. Your comeback is delayed until further notice. Now leave."

"Promise me you'll let Hyeri rest."

"She'll rest when she'll finish promoting."

"She needs to rest now." Yongguk glared at the CEO.

"She doesn't want to rest, so I'm not going to force her." the CEO claimed and Yongguk clenched his fists. Hyeri can be stubborn, but is she really that stupid?

"Let her rest." Yongguk repeated sternly.

"She can have one day of rest." the CEO said. "Now get lost before I change my mind."

"Yes, sir."

~

"Is that the only reason you're crying?" Sey asked when we reached the playroom.

"Yes." I lied.

"Why did Yongguk enter the CEO's office?"

"I don't know, the CEO told me to leave when he entered." I wiped a few tears from my face and laid on the couch, letting my head rest on one of the pillows.

"So you're not crying because of him?" she asked again and new tears formed in my eyes.

"He called me 'Her', okay?" I finally told her what bothered me.

"What are you talking about?" she seemed confused.

"In the CEO's office Yongguk asked me to leave so he could talk to the CEO. I was 'Her'. A third person. I was treated like a nuisance. It's like he doesn't care anymore."

"Is that why you're crying?" Sey sighed.

"Yes."

"I'm sure he didn't mean it." she tried to console me.

"He can't tell me he loves me and then treat me like I don't exist."

"Wait.. He told you he loves you?" Sey caught a new piece of information. Hyeri didn't tell her that..

"He didn't mean it." I shrugged.

"How do you know?" she insisted.

"I just do. We can't work out. He is too far for my reach."

"He is literally right in front of you, you just have to grab him."

"I'm not going to cling onto him after he let me go."

"You are an idiot. Only you will reject people who tells you they love you and do everything they can to show you they care about you because you're too scared to be with them."

"I'm tired of getting hurt, okay? And I don't want to hurt him either. If we date, one of us is bound to get hurt."

"So what? That's life. If you date you might live happily ever after, but you are too scared to take the chance."

"We already tried, it didn't work." I stated, wiping the new tears from my face.

"What is really going on?" she asked, staring intently at me. She knows me too well..

"I'm not good enough." I whispered, hugging the pillow in my lap tighter.

"Says who?" Sey exclaimed, annoyed.

"Me.. And Sumi."

"So because that idiot thinks you're not good enough you are going to believe her?" 

"I think that way as well."

"Well, he still likes you."

"How do you know?"

"I have eyes." she said and I hit her shoulder with the pillow in my hands.

"Look.." she took a deep breath before talking again. "He keeps leaving you those small gifts to make you happy and to take care of you. He is always looking at you and treating you like you are his precious treasure. He actually told you he loves you, but you pushed him away."

"You knew the gifts were from him?" I asked, surprised. So he was telling the truth.. I'm such an idiot.

"Everyone around you knew that. You are the only one that didn't notice."

"See? I'm too stupid to date him. He should date someone smart and not blind like me."

"Forget it. I give up." Sey sighed and stood up, preparing to leave.

"Where are you going?" I asked, bewildered. She can't leave me as well..

"You don't deserve an amazing boyfriend like Yongguk. He won't wait for you forever, you know.." she shrugged and left, leaving me flustered.

~

"How did it go?" Himchan asked when Yongguk returned to the practice room. All the boys looked at him curiosuly.

"Our comeback is delayed until further notice and he is still not willing to let Hyeri rest. I had to argue with him to let her rest for a day."

"What an .." Daehyun muttered.

"So what do we do with practice?" Jongup asked.

"He needs money and since the girls are not doing well he has to lean on us.." Youngjae reasoned.

"Let's take a break for today." Himchan declared. "It was a long day.."

"Wanna go watch a movie or something?" Zelo offered.

"Let's do that." Jongup agreed immediately.

"I'm choosing the movie!" Daehyun exclaimed happily.

"Not a cooking show." Youngjae glared at him.

"Of course not." Daehyun smiled innocently.

"How about we watch 'Sausage Party'?" Jongup offered.

"Yongguk suffers enough as it is.." Himchan teased and Yongguk glared at him.

"You see? Jongup was the one offering something related to food!" Daehyun exclaimed happily.

"We are not watching this." Youngjae declared.

"How about 'Suicide Squad'?" Zelo offered.

"Let's watch that!" the boys agreed immediately.

~

"Hyeri, there is an article about you." Yujin said when we were on the way to "Kiss The Radio (Sukira)".

"How bad is it?" I asked, already expecting the worse.

"The comments are actually supportive this time.."

"Let me see." I asked and she gave me her phone.

1. [+250, -138] What a lame method to get popular.. It only worked for G-Friend.

2. [+222, -21] She looked sick in the last couple of days. Stay healthy, Hyeri!

3. [+199, -87] It only shows you how hard it is being an idol. Imagine how overwoked she was to get to this point..

4. [+172, -17] Get well soon <3

5. [+166, -87] I don't get their company. She obviously looked sick, why did they let her perform like that?

- Because their group won't survive without her.

6. [+143, -67] Please rest and don't overwork yourself.

7. [+101, -32] Scary.. I was really shocked when she collapsed.

8. [+87, -15] You worked hard today. Hyeri, fighting!

9. [+55, -21] Since people are already talking about them, please listen to their album. It's good.

10. [+12, -3] Another attention seeker.. Sighs.

Well, it was better than I expected.

"Thanks." I returned Yujin's phone to her.

"Hyeri, did you write an apology?" Jinu asked.

"I forgot.." I admitted, embarrassed. How could I forget that?

"Do it now." he ordered.

"Yes, oppa." I said and took out a piece of paper from my bag and a pen. I started scribbling down an apology:

"My dear refresheners and people who worried about me.

I'm sorry for making you worry. I was working hard because I wanted to show you a great performance and I didn't realize I was overworking myself. I didn't take enough rest and I didn't eat properly so my body became weaker until he couldn't handle it anymore and I collapsed.

I'm sorry for being irresponsible. I only wanted to show you a good side of me but I ended up showing you a bad one..

I rested and I am fine now. I promise to take care of my body better in the future so this kind of things won't happen again. I'm sorry for worrying you and I'm thankful for all the support I'm getting from you. You are the reason I want to work harder.

I love you <3

Hyeri."

I took a picture and uploaded it along with my apology.

"I did it." I informed Jinu.

"Good." he smiled. "It looks weird if the company updates the fans about your condition but you stay quiet.."

"Oppa.. What are we doing tomorrow?" I asked.

"You are resting, and the girls have two fansigns."

"I want to go too." I pouted.

"You have to rest."

"We will do a video chat with you so you could be there with us." Eun Hee offered, hugging me.

"Can't I go only for the fansigns?" I asked. "I'll rest after that."

"No. That's the CEO's decision."

"Can't you talk to him?" I pleaded. "I really want to go."

"I'll see what I can do."

~

When the radio show ended I could finally get some well needed rest. My eyes closed the moment my head landed on my pillow. Too bad the only thing I saw in my dreams was Yongguk making out with Sumi..

Author's Note:

Surprise :D

I had muse, so I decided to spoil you with another chapter before I get busy with school.

I hope you'll enjoy it :)

Thanks for reading, commenting, etc. I really appreciate it <3

M.