----- July 17 -----

"We're on in five minutes," the MTV host told Boyfriend who were waiting on the interview chairs in the studio. "Just make yourself comfortable while I go use the bathroom."

The Boyfriend members nodded.

"Wait, I have to pee, too!" Youngmin got up and followed the host.

"Youngmin, we're supposed to be bathroom buddies!" Minwoo followed Youngmin.

"Anyways..." Jeongmin laughed. "I wonder what we're going to talk about in this interview."

"Promotions ended and nothing special happened to us in the past few days." Donghyun thought out loud.

"Maybe we're here to talk about Kwangmin and Minji's duet?" Hyunseong suggested.

"No, then they would only be interviewing Kwangmin. Why would they want all of us here?" Donghyun shot down the suggestion.

Kwangmin's leg vibrated when he received a text.

"Minji?" Hyunseong asked.

Kwangmin pulled out his cell phone and opened the message. He smiled. "She just wanted to thank me for our date last night."

"What did you guys do anyways?"

"We just walked around the mall with disguises on." Kwangmin said as he replied to Minji's message.

The host sat down in his special spinny chair once he came back from the bathroom. "I'm sorry but please don't text while we're interviewing."

"Oh, sorry." Kwangmin sent the text and turned off his phone. "I turned it off."

"Who were texting?" Minwoo asked as he and Youngmin sat down.

Donghyun, Hyunseong, Jeongmin, Youngmin, and Kwangmin shot him a look that warned him to be quiet.

"Oh!" Minwoo looked down, guilty.

The interviewer eyed them suspiciously.

"5... 4... 3... 2... 1..." The red light went on.

"I'm here with not-so-rookie-group Boyfriend. Thank you all for agreeing to do this interview." The interviewer introduced. "Promotions for 'I'll Be There' ended a couple of week ago." The interviewer noted. "What have you all been up to since then?"

Donghyun answered on behalf of the group. "Kwangmin has been very busy with duet activities lately while the rest of us -"

"Oh, yes." The interviewer interrupted and turned to Kwangmin. "I heard you and Minji will be having a special duet stage tonight on M Countdown. What happened to the duet with Kwon Sara?"

"Creative differences," Kwangmin answered cooly. "Sara and I aren't compatible."

"Ah, that's right. She used Minji's dance practice tape to gain popularity. That must've upset you. You and Minji are really close, right?"

Kwangmin blushed. "She's a great person. I love being around her."

"He spends more time with her than he does with us." Minwoo commented.

"Yeah!" The other members chimed in.

"Still her number 1 fan, huh?" The interviewer chuckled. Kwangmin nodded. "What do you like about her?"

"She's really cute, I love her personality, and she takes care of me. She puts me before other people. She's always by my side. She's also really humble." Kwangmin chuckled. "Yesterday, we went to the mall and walked around with a disguise. She tried on some clothes but instead of buying the expensive brand names, she went to the discount rack and bought a couple of shirts. She's really smart, too. Oh!" He continued to rant. "Also, we were arguing about where to eat for dinner last night but she gave in and agreed to go where ever I wanted to eat." He let out a happy sigh. "She's the best."

The Boyfriend members gaped at Kwangmin. He practically exposed the entire relationship.

The interviewer raised an eyebrow."You two went on a date?"

Kwangmin's eyes widened when he realized what he just said.

"Was that your first date?" The interviewer asked when Kwangmin didn't reply.

Kwangmin slowly shook his head. "We-we eat dinner at a particular restaurant a lot. No one notices us and the workers respect our privacy."

"Seem like you two go to that restaurant often. The waiters refused to tell me a thing about your, supposedly, secret dates when I asked them recently."

Kwangmin started fidgeting. He's knows about me and Minji.. "I-I."

"Just admit that you're dating." Youngmin whispered in Kwangmin's ear.

Kwangmin looked at all of the members with a worried expression. If anything goes wrong, like upset fans, they'll get hurt, too. Is it worth it to risk their hardwork just so I can go public with Minji? They all nodded. They wanted Kwangmin to be happy. It was worth it.

"Are you sure?" Kwangmin asked, still hesitant. This was a big decision.

"Kwangmin has a secret to tell!" Jeongmin childishly blurted out.

Hyunseong laughed and gave him a high five.

"Really?" The interviewer asked, sarcastically.

Kwangmin swallowed hard. "M-Minji and I aren't just friends."

"You don't say?" The interviewer mocked again. "Go on."

Kwangmin took a deep breath and gained more confidence. "I really like Lee Minji. And we're dating."

-----

"Welcome!" IU introduced. "Today we have the new and improved K-Pop Princess, Lee Minji, my little dongsaeng. And Mr. Ahn, an expert in the music industry." IU clapped. "Now, I'm going to get straight to business. Mr. Ahn, would you like to make some polite comments and analyze our little talented Princess here?"

"Please, don't call me 'Princess.' I'm Minji. Just Minji." She laughed awkwardly.

Mr. Ahn looked at her with a straight face. She shifted in her seat. "There are tons of young idols now a days. They bring youth and raw talent to the stage. But." Her heart raced at the dramatic silence. "Even if they debuted at a young age, a pro ought to be a pro." She gulped and Mr. Ahn continued. "Especially if they pass the age of twenty, the industry and the fans both have higher standards, and if the stars do not constantly concentrate on improving their skills, they could die out." Mr. Ahn snapped his fingers. "Just like that."

IU interrupted. "Mr. Ahn, I understand that you're an expert but don't you think that was harsh to say? She's just a teenager." IU nudged Minji's arm and Minji gave a weary smile. "Let teenagers be teenagers."

"That's my point." Mr. Ahn turned to Minji and she instantly dropped her smiled. "Kids need to be warned early on so they won't be shocked and disappointed later on in their career. If they manage to make it that far. Fame dies down fast."

IU gasped. "I think that's enough. You shouldn't be saying those things."

"No, it's ok." Minji smiled, unphased. "He's right. Fame does die quickly But I'm ready to prevent that from happening. I will try my best to give it my all."

Mr. Ahn nodded. "After becoming a star at a young age, if even temporarily, they start losing popularity, there are instances where they will stray majorly. Sound familiar to you? Princess?" He mocked.

"I'm Minji. Not a Princess." Minji took a deep breath. "Yes, it does sound familiar to me. I strayed not too long ago. I let the fame get to my head and I almost lost everthing I worked hard for. But. I climbed back up, didn't I?" She smirked.

"Yes, you did." Mr. Ahn admitted. "It takes a lot of strength to pull yourself back up. Not all stars who fell have managed to climb back up. It shows you have determination. Determination is important. But it doesn't make you special or better than others. Passion. Talent. Experience. That's what makes people rise above the rest. You've got two of the three. To prevent a detour from success, both the stars and the recording company must do their best to develop their emotional growth. Emotional growth and experience is what you lack."

"I-" Minji tried to interrupt.

"I had my eye on you since your debut, Princess." Mr. Ahn continued.

"Minji." She insisted.

"Okay, 'Minji.' You had a lot of potential and your amazing talents spread like wild fire. By the way, I request for you to come out with a completely acoustic album. It would sound great," Mr. Ahn genuinely smiled. "My point it, you lack feelings behind your songs. Heartbreak, new love, pure happiness, all of that crap. That's the one reason I wouldn't produce your album. Lack of experience." Mr. Ahn made a heart with his hands. "Love. You've never fallen in love before, have you?"

Kwangmin.

"You said you've never had a boyfriend nor had a crush on a boy. You can't know what love is if you haven't felt it first hand. Knowing without experiencing and having to perform those feelings to millions on stage? Mission impossible. But now a days, you're changing. Have you been watching more Korean dramas?" Mr. Ahn mocked her.

"No." Minji smiled back innocently. "It's true that when I was in America, I lacked experience. I was sheltered. Although, that changed when I came to Korea. I because famous despite my innocence."

"Innocence isn't going to take you very far. At your age, you need to explore, experience, then portray it all through music."

"You truly are an expert." Minji's compliment surprised Mr. Ahn. "For these past three weeks, I've been doing as you said. Exploring and experiencing. I will work hard to portray what I've learned into my next single. Should I let JYP know that you have expressed interest in producing it?"

"'For these past three week'?" Mr. Ahn ignored the last comment. "Do you have a boyfriend, Minji?"

"Oh, um, I don't think I should continue with this topic." Minji retreated.

Mr. Ahn chuckled. "Good job. JYP taught you well about keeping your fans on edge. What else has he been teaching you? Definitely not about being a teenager and having fun. He must be a y CEO."

Minji clenched her fist. "I don't mind you saying mean things to me, but JYP doesn't deserve being verbally abused by some music 'expert.'" She forced a smiled. "JYP gives me tons of freedom and he makes being an idol nothing but fun. Before false rumors start, please research a bit more."

Mr. Ahn clapped. "Wow, JYP did a great job in training you. He taught you how to lie to make him look good. If he's such a great person than why are you being ailed about being a failure as a teenager?"

"Because the so-called 'expert' didn't research properly before saying stupid things." She scowled, forgetting that she was on camera. IU shrunk into her chair, not sure what to do. "If you really were an expert you would know that I have a boyfriend."

"Jo Kwangmin, right?" Mr. Ahn smiled. "I knew all along, I just wanted you to tell your fans the truth." He gestured to the camera. "They deserve the truth, don't they?" Minji nodded. "Also, I hope you and Kwangmin can enjoy your dates without disguises."

Minji gasped. "You knew?"

"Knew about what?" IU jumped in.

"About yesterday's date with the boyfriend?" Mr. Ahn nodded.

"You went on a date?" IU jumped in again.

Mr. Ahn ignored her. IU puffed her cheeks and slumped in her chair. "By the way, he looks horrible with fake tattoos. Don't let him do that ever again."

Minji giggled. "I won't."

"Also, I'm a big fan of yours. Can I get an autograph?"

-----

Minji walked into the M Countdown dressing room, fully dressed for the special duet stage. Kwangmin was already in the dressing, fully dressed as well. They made eye contact and awkwardly went to warm up their vocals and stretch.

"I like your outfit." Kwangmin quickly commented as he fixed his ear piece. How do I tell her that I revealed our relationship?

Minji looked down at her blue dress which cutely matched Kwangmin blue button down shirt. Again with the matching blue outfits. "Thanks." She looked at him. "I like your hair." Should I tell him that our relationship will most likely be at the top of the charts soon?

He touched his hair. "Thanks."

Awkward silence.

"Minji-ah." "Kwangmin-ah." They said at the same time.

"You go first." She laughed.

"No, ladies first." She replied.

Awkward silence.

"I exposed our relationship." They said, again, in unison. "What?" They smiled at each other.

"I guess I was worried for nothing." She sighed.

"Same here." He patted her head. "I was worried that you would get mad at me for telling. You're really scary when you're mad."

She slapped his arm. "I'm not scary when I'm mad!" She stuck her tongue out and hugged his waist. "But what about the fans?"

He hugged her shoulders. "If they really are our fans, they'll support us no matter what."

"You're right." She hugged him tighter. "Looks like we don't need to wear disguises anymore."

"Too bad," Kwangmin pouted. "I was going to suggest we gender switch on our next date. I bought the perfect blonde wig."

She flicked his forehead. "Weirdo."