"A-Am I allowed to show you this?"

"Of course. I've seen them before."

"I don't know. I mean, it's not mine..."

"Just give it here."

Seulgi hesitated for a moment, but cautiously handed over Soojung's journal. Myungsoo, who was sitting next to her on a park's bench, casually took the item and flipped through it. He raised his eyebrows from time to time, nodding and frowning at certain parts.

"Well, she definitely got more thorough notes," Myungsoo murmured to himself. "This is going to be helpful."

"I know it's helpful. I just don't know how to read through it and use it," Seulgi said, sighing.

"Of course you don't. It's not your notes."

"I still don't think it's right for me to show you this," Seulgi said. She pouted.

"It's fine. I'm the one who encouraged Soojung to do this in middle school," he revealed.

Seulgi stared at Myungsoo for a minute. It was bizarre to think that Soojung had actually dated such a gentle and bright man. Not only did Myungsoo have a great personality, but he was extremely good looking. Women from all ages would glance at him with curious eyes. Their cheeks flushed as they felt some sort of attraction to his chisel features. His jaws were sharp, but his brown eyes were kind. Seulgi was't sure if it was the bangs or not, but there was something about him that made him mysterious.

He casually glanced up. Her heart skipped a beat, surprised. She turned red and looked away. He made a light chuckle, causing her heart to skip a beat again. If she wasn't in love with Jongin, she saw herself falling for Myungsoo in a heartbeat.

"H-How did you and Soojung meet?" Seulgi asked, trying to remind herself that the man sitting next to her was her mentor's ex-boyfriend.

"Middle school. Sooyeon was graduating from middle school and she mentioned how she had a very cute little sister. When I was in my third year in middle school, Soojung was a first year. For her, it was love at first sight."

"Love at first sight?" Seulgi looked at him. "She told you all this?"

"Well, no, but I could see it in her eyes." He smiled. "Much like how I can see that you really love Jongin."

Seulgi bit her bottom lip. "Is it obvious?"

"Yeah."

"Do you think he knows?"

"No," Myungsoo said. He didn't say anymore. He kept flipping through the book, taking mental notes. 

Seulgi's eyes wandered around a bit. She rubbed her cold hands, staring aimlessly at the clouds that covered the sky. She swung her feet back and forth a bit, hoping that she could keep herself just a bit warm.

Myungsoo glanced, then closed the book. He got up from his seat and quickly scanned the area. Then, he extended out his hand. Seulgi stared at him, confused.

"Give me your hand," he insisted. She cautiously handed over her pale fingers. He grabbed it gently and pulled her up from the bench. Then, he wrapped his warm hands over hers, and tucked it in one of his pockets.

Seulgi's eyes widened. She didn't except to be in such close proximity with him, especially since he wasn't someone she was close with. Myungsoo smiled again.

"You've never went on a date before, right?" Myungsoo asked. He tucked the journal in his other pocket, keeping it safe and secure. Seulgi only nodded to his words. "Well, let's practice."

"P-P-Practice?" Seulgi stuttered. Her eyes grew wide. "D-D-Date? With you? No, no! I can't!"

She tried to move away, but he grabbed her hands tighter and drew her closer. She yelped, but quickly remained silent when Myungsoo leaned close to her face.

He smiled again.

"You don't want Jongin to think you're an amateur, so come on. We'll do what couples do on a date. That way, you won't make a fool of yourself when the time comes," he told her.

She scrunched her nose. "I don't know. I don't really like this. It makes me feel like I'm just using you."

"Why? Are you scared that I'll develop feelings for you?" He leaned even closer. She tilted her head away. In a low voice, he whispered, "or do you think you'll fall for me?"

She whirled her head and stared at him. Her guts told her to not get involved with him. What used to be a mysterious aura around him now felt more like a creepy vibe. She opened to speak, but realized that she couldn't. His presence was overwhelming, and it caught her off guard. She bit her tongue and meekly looked away.

"I-I'll do it," she stuttered.

He observed her for a minute. Then, smiling once more, he leaned away and stared straight ahead. 

"Okay. Let's go on a date!"

"W-W-Wait!" Seulgi exclaimed. "I-I'm not in…date-ful clothes."

"Date-ful?" Myungsoo repeated. He stared down at her outfit. It was true. The way she dressed didn't look very appealing. She had almost to no sense of style with how she was dressed. With baggy pants and a neon yellow jacket, she would attract her partner's attention for her tasteless style. "Okay. Let's go shopping and get you more 'date-ful' clothes."

"But I don't have any money on me—"

"I'll pay," he said, whipping out his credit card.

Seulgi's eyes went wide. "Oh, no! I couldn't—"

"Come on," he said. He tugged her closer to him and started to lead her to a mall.

Seulgi followed silently. The whole time she followed his lead, she wasn't sure why Soojung had such a bad relationship with him. He was kind, generous, and thoughtful. If anything, Soojung was the polar opposite of that. 

I thought opposites attracted, Seulgi thought sarcastically.

/ / / / /

Sehun yawned.

Hyeri gave him a quick glare.

"You can't possibly be that bored. We just got here," Hyeri said.

"I don't see why you needed to bring me out to this. Jongin is already here," Sehun complained. He watched her shift through the clothing racks. "Besides, he has a better sense of fashion than me. Shouldn't you ask him about what you should wear and stuff? Or even better, ask one of your friends."

"If you haven't noticed, I've been losing my friends because of Seulgi," Hyeri pointed out.

"You still have Suzy."

"She's busy."

"Doing what?"

Hyeri gave him a sharp look. "Why are you so curious? Do you like her?"

He snorted. "As if. Suzy never seemed to like hanging with us. She's always hanging around the teachers."

"Leave her alone. She's a good person."

"You know something, don't you?"

Hyeri didn't say anything. She pulled out a sweater and observed it for a second. Then, she placed it back until she heard a voice approaching next to her:

"Why'd you put that back? It looks nice."

Hyeri turned and saw Jongin approaching her with a jacket and sweater that he planned to try on in the dressing room. He only came up to the two to check on them, especially on Sehun. He knew that Sehun didn't really like shopping, but if it was for Hyeri, he'd tolerate it to a certain extent.

"It's too expensive," Hyeri said, shifting through more clothes. "Are you getting anything?"

"Maybe this jacket. I'm going try it on right now," Jongin said. He looked at Sehun. "You okay?"

"I'm bored," Sehun whined.

"You're always bored," Hyeri argued. She paused. "So how's work so far?"

"Work is boring, too," Sehun complained.

"I was talking to Jongin," she murmured.

"Work is good. It's slow, but that's because of the location," Jongin explained. "I suggested to Sooyeon that she should try moving her business to somewhere else, but she said that she liked where she was working at."

"Sooyeon?" Hyeri repeated.

"Soojung's older sister," Sehun told her.

"Oh." Hyeri frowned a bit. "I didn't know you were getting so close with Soojung."

Jongin's face turned red.

Hyeri noticed.

"I-It's not like there's anything going on," the shy boy said.

"Do you…like Sooyeon?" Hyeri asked slowly.

Jongin was about to refuse, but Sehun had already done it for him:

"No, he's into someone else."

Hyeri's eyes went wide. She felt her heart stop as she saw Jongin's unexpected reaction. Jongin, flustered, punched Sehun's arm, giving him a look to shut up. Sehun snickered, but stopped when he noticed how shocked Hyeri looked.

Oh, right. She still has a crush on him, Sehun remembered. Well, maybe she'll think that he has a crush on her. I didn't specify who his crush is or anything.

It's not me, was the first thought that came across Hyeri's mind. The person that Jongin likes is not me.

She could almost hear her heart break—if that was even possible.

"Hyeri? Is there something wrong?" Jongin asked.

Hyeri had to blink to keep her tears from blurring her vision. She quickly looked away from the boys and shifted through the clothes.

"A-Ah…Can you believe that this store has nothing for me? Like, really? Nothing here looks cute!" she exclaimed.

"We can go to another store. Let me just try this real quick—"

"You know what? I think I'm hungry!" Hyeri declared. She cleared . "I-I'm going to go and grab something from the food court."

"Wait, we'll go with you—"

"You take your time here," Hyeri told him. "I also need to use the restroom."

Aw, crap. I feel awful, Sehun thought. A pang of guilt stabbed through his chest as he watched Hyeri excuse herself and leave the store. Jongin, confused, frowned and looked at his best friend.

"Is she okay?" Jongin asked.

"She…She's just mad that she couldn't find anything and because I kept complaining," Sehun lied.

"Come on, Sehun. Not cool," Jongin scolded.

Sehun just sighed. "Hurry up and try on your clothes. I'll wait for you."

"You should chase after Hyeri."

"Into the girl's bathroom?"

"You can wait for her outside."

"It's fine. It's not that far," Sehun insisted. Jongin only nodded and went to find the dressing room.

When he was alone, Sehun pulled out his phone and began to play a game. He was fiddling with his phone for a few minutes until he looked up. Upon gazing up from his device, he saw Seulgi in a bright neon jacket enter the store.

His heart skipped a beat.

Unknown to him, he started to smile. However, when he noticed that she was following behind Myungsoo, his smile faded. He made a small frown as he watched the two stand behind a row of clothing rack. Seulgi looked quite embarrassed while Myungsoo casually started a conversation with an employee. Sehun observed the two, watching Myungsoo's mouth move as Seulgi looked away. The employee smiled and guided the two to a different section in the store. As the three walked, Sehun caught a glimpse of Myungsoo holding onto Seulgi's hands.

Sehun felt his heart stop. His eyes widened as his brown orbs followed the two. He looked around, checking to see if Jongin was coming soon. Then, he quietly walked over to Myungsoo and Seulgi, following them as the employee started to pull out a few outfits.

"Please follow me!" was the only thing Sehun managed to hear as the employee gestured Seulgi to follow. She hesitated, but when Myungsoo gestured her to go, she did as she was told. 

Sehun frowned. What was she doing with Myungsoo? She knew that Myungsoo was Soojung's ex-boyfriend, right? Where was Soojung? Did the two come alone?

Myungsoo turned and locked eyes with Sehun. Sehun jolted and planned on escaping, but he found himself fixed to the floor. Myungsoo gave a brief look of amusement before giving him a soft smile.

"Hey, you're Sehun, right? From BLANC & ECLARE?" Myungsoo asked.

"Yes," Sehun murmured. He slowly walked over to Myungsoo. "Um, are you shopping for clothes?"

"Oh, no. I'm here with Seulgi."

Sehun waited for Myungsoo to explain, but he never continued. Myungsoo just smiled at him. Even though he had a very charming smile, Sehun knew that there was something…off.

"You're here with Seulgi? So is she shopping for clothes?" Sehun asked.

"Mm… Sort of? We're kind of in the middle of a date."

Sehun froze.

Date? Seulgi was dating?

"You…and Seulgi…are dating right now?" Sehun stammered. No, there's something wrong. There's definitely something wrong.

"Yeah." Myungsoo grinned. "She's cute, right?"

I don't get it. What's he trying to achieve? Why is he being so ambiguous with me? Sehun wondered. "Seulgi? Cute? She's more annoying, if you ask me."

"Really? I think she's cute."

That ticked Sehun off, but he made sure that he didn't show it. All Sehun knew at this moment was that Myungsoo was trying to provoke him. Provoke him to do what? That's what Sehun didn't know.

"S-So how long has it been since you two started dating?" Sehun asked, crossing his arms.

"A few hours?" Myungsoo asked.

"And you confessed?"

"Kind of."

"Kind of?"

"That's between me and Seulgi," Myungsoo said, putting his index finger over his lips.

I don't get it. What's he after? Sehun asked himself.

"Hey, Sehun! There you are!" Jongin shouted, walking over to him. He had a bag in his hand, showing that he had made his purchase already. "Come on, let's go. Hyeri is waiting—" He stopped himself as he met eyes with Myungsoo. Myungsoo grinned and waved. "O-Oh. Soojung's ex…"

"My name is Myungsoo," Myungsoo said, introducing himself. "Kim Myungsoo. You're Jongin, right?"

"What brings you here today?" Jongin asked.

"I'm on a date," Myungsoo told them.

The corner of Sehun's mouth twitched.

Jongin seemed genuinely surprised. "Date? With who?"

"Sir, how does she look?" the employee's voice asked. The three boys looked, noticing that Seulgi was standing next to the employee, who was holding onto her old clothes.

Seulgi was dressed in a chic winter fashion: black leggings with a gray turtleneck sweater, which was covered with a long black winter coat. She was wearing a pair of heels and had her hair tied up in a bun. She seemed quite cold, but she bit her tongue to keep herself from shivering too much.

Sehun felt his heart race. He had only seen her wearing her school uniform or her work clothes or other kinds of clothes for special occasions. This was the first time he had seen her wearing casual clothes. He didn't think that seeing her dress sophisticatedly would make him flustered.

"She's perfect," Myungsoo said. He kept her eyes on her as he handed the card to the employee. "I'll pay with card. Can we take off the tags so that she can wear this right now?"

"As you wish," the employee said, taking the card. She disappeared for a moment to make the purchase.

"Are you sure this is okay?" Seulgi asked. She looked embarrassed. "I'm not comfortable with wearing all this…"

"You're right. You're missing something," Myungsoo agreed. He took off his scarf and wrapped it around her. She could instantly feel his warmth wrapped around her neck. He leaned quite close and smiled. "Now it's perfect."

Sehun had never felt so confused in his life. What was going on? Were they really dating? They definitely looked like they were dating. Was there something that Sehun wasn't aware of? Well, clearly there was, but what was it?

He looked over to see Jongin's expression. Jongin, too, seemed shocked to see Myungsoo and Seulgi acting close. At first, Jongin stared at the two in a skeptical manner. Then, he took a step forward and pushed Myungsoo away from Seulgi. Seulgi blinked as Jongin stepped in between the two. Her heart squeezed with glee while Myungsoo gave the high school boy a confused look while Jongin glared.

"You're too close," Jongin said in a warning tone. "I don't think it's a good idea for you to be so close to a girl."

It'll hurt Soojung's feelings if she sees this, was Jongin's first thought. Myungsoo grinned to himself.

"Why? I think it's normal for me to be close with the girl I'm dating," Myungsoo said.

Jongin stared. "Dating?"

Seulgi turned white. Oh god. No. No, no! 

Jongin looked at her. "You're dating…Myungsoo? Soojung's ex-boyfriend?"

That's what I want to know, Sehun thought. He gave her a hard stare as Seulgi opened to speak.

However, before she could say anything, Myungsoo grabbed her hand and pulled her behind him. He gazed down at the two boys, who frowned at him.

"You know, for two boys who didn't show any interest in Seulgi, this is kind of interesting," Myungsoo blurted.

Seulgi paused for a second. It was true. If anything, this was probably the first time Jongin was sincerely interested in Seulgi's life. Did the idea of her being taken and not single appeal to Jongin? She hoped this was true.

Little to her knowledge, Jongin didn't really care about Seulgi's life. It was Sehun who was more interested in Myungsoo's and Seulgi's relationship. For Jongin, he was more concerned that their relationship would hurt Soojung's feelings. The last thing he wanted was to see Soojung hurt, broken, and in despair. If she became miserable after discovering that her friend was dating her ex, Jongin would never forgive himself.

"Sir, the purchase has been completed," the employee told him. She returned with his card and a pair of scissors. 

"Perfect. Come on, Seulgi. Let's go and cut off these tags," Myungsoo suggested. Seulgi wasn't able to say anything. She just nodded and walked away with Myungsoo, leaving the two boys speechless.