“Unnie, let me go! I told you that I didn’t want to be here. Why can’t you just let me wait for you at the internet café across the street?” Yun Mi asked her older sister, trying to tug her arm out of her unnie’s grasp. Her sister just held on tighter, pushing Yun Mi onto the couch before rushing to her boyfriend’s room.  Rolling her eyes, Yun Mi sat down, crossing her arms in front of her chest as she huffed in annoyance.

“Yun Ae-ah!” Yun Mi heard someone call out and then a giggle, most likely from her sister, and took out her phone, playing a game she had just purchased recently.  As she was playing, she felt someone sit next to her, poking her cheek. Glancing up, she turned to glare at Dongho, who wasn’t intimidated under her heated look.

“What are you playing?” Dongho asked her curiously. Too annoyed to explain, she simply showed him the screen before resuming her paused game. Much to her surprise, Dongho didn’t go away like he usually would and simply started talking again, a smug tone in his voice. “I bet I could beat you.”

“No way.” Yun Mi was never one to back down from a challenge and even though Dongho and she had many differences, they both had a comparative streak to their personalities. With a sneaky smile, Donghae pulled the phone from Yun Mi’s grasp and ran off somewhere, his laughter filling the whole U-KISS dorm. “Yah! Give it back! Shin Dongho!”

Without a second thought, she took off after him, chasing him as she tried to get her phone back. Kevin and Yun Ae, who were both already used to their dongsaengs’ behavior, simply ignored them, content with being with each other’s company.

Eventually, Yun Mi caught Dongho and without a second thought, tackled him. He managed to take the impact despite being off balance but stumbled and fell forward, ending up pressed against Yun Mi, their lips barely touching. In a way that was uncharacteristic for her, she blushed and immediately started struggling underneath him. Once Dongho moved, she got up and grabbed her phone, which had been in Dongho’s hand and left the room, moving back to her previous position on the couch.

Dongho sat on the floor with dazed eyes, touching his lips with his fingertips as his heart gave an uneven thump, beating faster than usual. He could still remember the softness of her lips pressed against his own and the thought made his cheeks feel warm. Sighing, he decided to get up, knowing that he probably wouldn’t be able to decide what he was feeling inside.

- - -

After that day, Yun Ae came to visit Kevin everyday, sneaking in with Yun Mi in tow. Being Kevin’s secret girlfriend, Yun Ae often spent hours in the dorm at a time to avoid being caught by fans and much to Dongho’s delight, Yun Mi stayed with her sister as well, allowing him more time to have with her.

Even though he hadn’t talked to anyone else about his feelings, he concluded that what he was feeling was definitely something he had never experienced before. Every time they were close, his stomach would start getting butterflies and he would stutter, something he had never done before. He started noticing how Yun Mi’s eyes would shine when she was challenged to do something and how she would twirl a lock of her hair unconsciously. How had he never realized how beautiful the sister of his hyung’s girlfriend was before?

“Yah! Are you even paying attention to the game?” He was pulled out of his train of thought when he felt someone grab a hold of his shoulders and shake him. Blinking a couple times, he found himself face to face with Yun Mi, their faces only mere inches apart.

“W-what, yeah.” He forced his eyes to tear away from hers and glanced at the television screen, realizing that he had spaced off and was already losing the game. To avoid any more suspicion, he began pressing the buttons on his controller immediately, trying to win the game.

As he turned back to the game, Yun Mi looked at him with wary eyes, knowing something was wrong but knowing better than to ask him about it. Even if she acted as if she couldn’t care less on the outside, the truth was that she really did care about Dongho. Yun Ae would drag her to the U-KISS dorm practically every single day and if it weren’t for Dongho, she was sure that she wouldn’t have the patience to go with her each time. The truth was that she liked him for quite a while now but she had no idea what to say.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” She asked, pausing the game to look at him. She watched as he bit his lower lip nervously, looking anywhere but at her. The only reaction that she got from him was a slight nod of his head. Yun Mi sighed, placing her controller on the table and scooting closer to him. “Tell me about what’s wrong?”

“Yun Mi-ah, what do you do when you like someone and you want to tell them?” He asked after a moment of hesitation and her breath hitched. Did Dongho like someone else? Was she too late?

“You…you should tell that person before it’s too late.” Her voice cracked slightly and she started feeling pain in her heart.

“Do you think that it’s a good idea? What if she doesn’t feel the same way?” He sounded nervous and Yun Mi simply laughed.

“It’s better to get rejected than not get an answer at all.” Suddenly, she got up and grabbed her bag from beside her, heading toward the entrance of the dorm.

“Where are you going?” Dongho’s alarmed voice called out just before she managed to open the door.

“I forgot to do some homework. I need to go home and finish it. Tell Yun Ae that I’ll be at home.” She responded without looking back at him and it wasn’t until she heard the door close with a firm slam that the tears started falling down her cheeks, blurring her vision as she rushed back to her house.

It was already a few days after Dongho had the conversation with Yun Mi and since then, Yun Ae had showed up at their dorm daily but for some reason, her sister was not with her.

“Noona, where’s Yun Mi?” He questioned Yun Ae one day as she was watching a drama with Kevin, the two of them cuddling together on the love seat. She glanced at him momentarily to answer his question.

“She’s at home. She said that she hasn’t been feeling well lately.” She paused, as if she was unsure if she should go on. “I think she’s been crying but knowing Yun Mi, she would probably get mad if I asked her. I’m sure that she’s alright though!”

She had been crying, Dongho realized and without a goodbye to the two lovebirds, he rushed out of the dorm and towards the direction of the Kim residence.

When he reached Yun Mi’s home, the door was unlocked and because of the many times he had visited, he let himself in, walking into the living room to see Yun Mi sitting on the couch, eating a tub of ice cream and watching a movie. As he walked in, she turned around and her eyes widened as she scrambled to get up.

“What are you doing here?” She demanded immediately, wiping at her eyes. As he got closer, he realized that they were red. She had in fact been crying. “Shouldn’t you be confessing to that girl of yours?”

“Yun Mi-ah, what are you talking about?”

“You said that you were going to convince to some girl!”

“Why does it bother you?”  Dongho was confused. Why did she seem to care so much about this girl? Did she know who he was talking about?

“Because I like you, alright? I like you and I hate the fact that you like someone else!” She exclaimed angrily, glaring at him. She had finally confessed and to her, there seemed to be no way that he would ever feel the same. She looked down, the tears starting again as she waited for his response. Instead of hearing his rejection, she felt a finger tilt her chin up and suddenly, warm lips meeting hers in a soft kiss. After a moment, he leaned away, resting their foreheads together.

“Pabo…I was talking about you. You’re the girl I like.” He admitted and then, a blush started forming on her cheeks as his words processed in her mind. Instead of squealing like she was doing internally, she smacked his arm hard and frowned at him.

“Yah, Dongho! You had me crying over you!” Her words were slightly harsh but he could tell that she was happy because of the small smile on her face.

“Saranghae, Kim Yun Mi.” He whispered to her as he hugged her close, relishing in the warmth.

“Saranghae, Shin Dongho…”