Seohyun sat as still as possible in her chair as the stylist noonas swarmed around her like fleas, some doing her makeup, some doing her hair, and some adding accessories to her outfit. It had taken her a while to deal with all the attention and hands touching her face, but she had gotten used to it over the years. When the stylist noona doing her eye makeup told her to open her eyes again, she stared at herself in the mirror, lost in her thoughts.

 

A handful of SM idols had been selected to do a photoshoot for W Live Magazine, including Seohyun and her unnie Yoona from SNSD.

 

And of course, Luhan from EXO.

 

Seohyun couldn’t help but be nervous. This would be her first time appearing with him in the public eye, whether it was for work or not. All she could think about was exposure, something she didn’t want in a thousand years. She knew the management at SM would flip out, demanding they break up to save her innocent maknae reputation and his newly debuted one. And although she knew she was being selfish, she wasn’t ready to give up the peace and quiet they had together, when they sat together in the practice room, her head resting comfortably on his shoulder, his arm wrapped around her shoulders. That was a new feeling, but it was one of the best feelings Seohyun had ever experienced.

 

The stylist noonas finally finished their job, and Seohyun walked out onto the set, half praying she wouldn’t have to do any shoots with Luhan, half begging to see him again.

 

She stood next to Yoona and they talked for a little bit, then the photographer called out that it was time to shoot.

 

Seohyun looked up from her conversation and saw no one other than Luhan, Kai, and Sehun from EXO making their way to the set.

 

Her heart seemed to soar in happiness and plunge in anxiety at the same time.

 

She avoided Luhan’s eyes as much as she could as the shooting began, trying to focus on posing for the camera.

 

"Ah, now, Seohyun-ssi, please move closer to Luhan-ssi,” the photographer suddenly announced after several shots.

 

Seohyun wanted to curse herself for her bad luck. She finally met Luhan’s eyes after trying to avoid them as much as possible, and he kept his expression neutral, although Seohyun swore she could see the same volatile mixture of happiness and nervousness in his beautiful eyes that she knew was in hers.

 

Seohyun came to Luhan’s side, posing as the photographer took a few more shots. “Okay, now Seohyun-ssi, please lean with one arm on Luhan-ssi’s shoulder.”

 

Seohyun gulped. Why did this have to happen to her, of all people? But she kept her cool, knowing she was the sunbae in this situation, moving to place her right arm casually on Luhan’s left shoulder. As soon as she made contact with him, she could almost feel her heart in jump in fear, as if even looking at him would reveal their relationship to the whole world.

 

"Okay, perfect!” the photographer told them, then continued to take pictures. Seohyun relaxed, knowing she was just being paranoid, and she could almost feel Luhan relax after a while too.

 

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity but was probably just five minutes, the photographer announced “Rest!”. Seohyun instantly disconnected from Luhan, even though part of her wanted to stay like that forever.

 

After saying some things to the video camera filming the entire ordeal, Seohyun released a breath she didn’t know she was holding in and made her way back to the dressing room to get some water, Yoona going to her own room. As she sat down on a chair, Seohyun suddenly heard a knock on her door.

 

Wondering if it was her manager, Seohyun went to open the door.

 

It was a nervous-looking Luhan, hands stuffed in pockets. “Hey.”

 

Seohyun reacted quickly, poking her head out the doorway to see if anyone had seen him knock on her door, then pulled him into the room, shutting the door behind them. “Are you crazy? Someone could have seen you!”

 

"Hey, calm down,” Luhan whispered, grabbing onto her arms. “Lower your voice.”

 

Seohyun sighed, feeling warm from his grasp on her. “I’m sorry, I just-”

 

"It's okay,” Luhan cut her off instantly. “I’ll be more careful, I promise. I just wanted to see you.”

 

Seohyun looked up. Luhan smiled at her, his arms moving to wrap around her waist. “You look beautiful.”

 

Seohyun couldn’t help but blush like a high school girl. “You look handsome too.”

 

Luhan grinned. “You’re cute when you’re embarrassed.”

 

"Yah! Stop it,” Seohyun blushed even harder. God, what was this boy doing to her? “You should probably go before they start to look for you,” she said, trying but failing to hide the disappointment in her voice.

 

Luhan's smile faded a little bit as well. “You’re right,” he admitted, not wanting to risk their privacy as well. His arms slid off Seohyun’s waist, and she immediately felt cold, like she was missing something.

 

"I’ll see you soon.” Luhan smiled at just the thought of seeing her again. Leaning down, he gave her a gentle kiss on her cheek, and then he was gone, the door shutting behind him, leaving a furiously blushing Seohyun alone in her dressing room.