Ryujin was having a bad day.

No, screw that — Ryujin was having the absolute worst ing day of her entire life.

The actress even thought she was being overly dramatic for a second, listening to her mother's stern voice at the back of her head reminding her that there's always someone out there having it worse than you, but then her mind started going through all of the unfortunate events of the day and yeah, she had every right to be pissed.

First of all, there was no trace of food left inside of her freezer. And you couldn't really blame Ryujin for that.

The actress had barely spent time home since her new drama shooting started a week ago, keeping herself alive with nothing but the food coming from the tiny convenience store across the street her manager knew a bit too well. So yeah, no breakfast for Ryujin that morning.

Second, one of her co-workers kept hitting on her.

She was flattered at first, she really was. He seemed like a nice guy and kept his distance the first time she politely declined his offers and said she wasn't into boys. But the actor seemed to have shoved the information right up on his because he wouldn't stop bugging Ryujin and flirting with her in the most inappropriate moments.

Rumors says Ryujin kicked his right ankle so hard that the guy was unable to finish shooting his scenes because of the pain. But rumors are just rumors.

Third, she managed to spill hot coffee over her favorite shirt.

Not only did she absolutely up her precious black shirt — which has a huge I Hate Mondays in white letters written on it — but the actress also had threw her only chance to stay sane and awake out of the window.

Ryujin only felt at ease when her manager, noticing the girl was ready to murder the first person she sees with her own bare hands, decided to stop by a small restaurant and bought her a good, fulfilling meal. A real one this time, not some convenience store noodles who barely had any taste.

But the sudden peace was abruptly taken away from Ryujin the moment her manager received a mysterious call and did her best to not let the actress listen to anything that was being said, jumping out of the van when the rising star stubbornly came closer to her, trying to make something out of the hushed mumbles that were being exchanged.

Ryujin pouted and crossed her arms around her chest, looking a lot like an annoying child who was told she couldn't have her favorite candy for the first time in her life. The stress was obviously starting to get into her brain because usually she wouldn't give the slightest  about this kind of situation, but the conversation seemed so secretive and so about her that—

"We'll have to go to the agency now."

.

That's when Ryujin was sure that the world — her own private, little world — was about to end.

A fishy conversation and a we'll have to go to the agency now weren't exactly the best combination, Ryujin knew it from experience. The last time something like this happened her career was, quote, about to end, unquote, all because of some pictures dispatch took of her waiting for someone late at night at a park.

It was utterly embarrassing to explain that she was just waiting for Mina, her older stepsister who she missed a whole lot because yeah, she was a ing baby who ran away from her apartment at two in the morning because she was feeling like could use some of her favorite unnie's love and affection, and not because she was a reckless teenager — like the articles would say — looking for some troubling midnight adventures.

(Ryujin always wondered why dispatch always had to choose the most dramatic words to describe the most normal things. Like, they definitely could have just named it Actress Shin Ryujin alone at a park at two in the morning but, of course, troubling midnight adventures sounded more fitting to whoever was writing that article.)

Yet there she was again, with a coffee stained shirt sitting in the reunion room with the agency's CEO, — who looked uncharacteristically happy for a Monday afternoon — some other old dude she didn't know, her manager and a few familiar faces from the agency, who didn't look as pleased as the two men sharing secretive looks with each other. What the , are they dating each other or something? Gross.

After a few minutes of nothing but pure awkward silence, the glass door was open and holy ing , what is she even doing here?!

Ryujin knew the shy girl standing uncomfortably behind a taller woman — her manager, the actress supposes — and she was pretty sure there wasn't a single living soul in South Korea who didn't. Ryujin often hears people saying that even those who died before her boom knew about her, because that's just how famous the girl was.

, Ryujin thinks that even own her fame can't come close to what the girl standing in front of her has, so what exactly was South Korea's top singer Choi Jisu doing at the same building as her?

"Oh, great, you're finally here!" The man Ryujin still has no idea where he came out from exclaims excitedly, clasping his hands together.

The girl can only nod before bowing to everyone in the room, making Ryujin almost break her back in two because holy , Choi Jisu is right here and just bowed at me, what the is happening.

"Shall we start the reunion?" The CEO suggests, breaking Ryujin out of her panicked trance and making the actress (who was suddenly hit by a wave of self consciousness) sit straight on her chair, hands awkwardly landing over the table as she watches the singer take a sit beside her.

Only then Ryujin realizes that she's looking (and probably smelling too because, well, black coffee had a very strong and unique scent) like a ten-year-old child with her ruined shirt in front of the country's most popular singer but it is, unfortunately, too late for her to do anything about it.

(She still feels like throwing herself out of the transparent window next to her seat, though.)

"So, me and this gentleman right here," The CEO starts in a failed attempt to be funny and Ryujin feels like throwing up all the food she had earlier "Have decided to join forces and..."

They're definitely getting married.

"Make a deal between our agencies..."

Oh.

"And, maybe, release the most popular dating news of the year..."

Oh.

"Between singer Choi Jisu and actress Shin Ryujin."

Oh.

Wait.

What the actual —

"What?!" Ryujin and Jisu let out the scream in unison, unable to believe what they just heard.

"This is a joke, right? I know it is." Ryujin laughs nervously but gulps when no one else in the room follows her.

This can't be happening. No, no, no, hell no.

"It's an amazing idea!" The other man starts, clearing his throat to gain attention. "Think about it: Ryujin, the bad girl who's a reckless teenager," the actress nearly chokes at the unexpected mention of her previous scandal, and she's about to turn eighteen so she's not a reckless teenager for s sake "and the nation's little sister, Jisu, dating! The fans would go crazy and those who aren't would want to become one in the blink of an eye."

Ryujin is speechless, to say the least. She's about to get up and leave the room in a classic reckless teenager style when the girl sitting beside her slams her hands against the white table, making Ryujin freeze in place and focus completely on what she had to say.

"You want me to pretend i'm dating someone I barely know for money and publicity?"

The girl sounds angry — no, she sounds absolutely pissed, like she had been holding everything in for a long time and it makes Ryujin wonder if the singer had a day as bad as hers. Maybe even worse, because the actress swore she could see some tears starting to form at the brink of the girl's eyes and god help me, i'm not emotionally and physically ready to see an angel cry in front of me.

The room was dead silent and the girl took that as a chance to go on. "Yeah, whatever. Let's sign these papers. It's not like I was about to ask someone I really like to be my girlfriend, anyways."

Yeah, Choi Jisu was definitely having it worse than Shin Ryujin. I told you so, her mother's voice screams at the back of her head and Ryujin can only sigh.

"I'm sorry, Jisu—"

"Don't start," the singer cuts the man's words with a surprisingly low and stern tone and Ryujin wonders how much power Jisu holds inside of her agency. "Let's just sign the papers and end this stupid reunion already, i'm exhausted."

The awkward silence falls over the room again and the two old men extend the papers towards the two girls hesitantly, almost as if they were afraid they would create a scene and rip the contracts apart.

Well, after seeing how hurt the other girl was about this whole thing, Ryujin kind of considers the option. The only thing holding her back is the fear of being called a "reckless teenager" one more time by that weird men wearing a suit too tight for his body sitting on the other side of the table, awkwardly tapping his fingers against the thick glass. Ridiculous, Ryujin thinks as she scoffs and finally proceeds to read the contract placed in front of her.

• The stars have to meet at least once a week for the first six months.

Six months. Ryujin massages her forehead with her fingertips.

• The stars have to post at least three pictures with each other in every social media for the first month.

Three pictures in a month? Wow, they really want us to look like a cheesy couple who can't stay away from each other for a second.

• An article will be published after a picture of the stars kissing in a park at night is released by Dispatch.

A what? A kissing picture?! We have to kiss for a camera and act like our entire lives aren't about to change after that?

Bull.

Ryujin groans and glances at the girl sitting beside her, looking as cold as a freezer as she signs every page, making the actress wonder if she had even read the rules before doing so. She seems to have accepted her awful fate pretty fast, Ryujin thinks before she continues the painful reading of the stupid words written on that piece paper and what in the world do they mean by making lots of fan service? Are they in some idol group now? Did she ignore that part of the paper?

Yeah, her day couldn't get any worse.

—

Ryujin is finally back to the comfort of her apartment after listening to countless hours of instructions and exchanging numbers with Jisu — her new girlfriend now, it seems — and to be honest there was nothing else she wanted more than to sleep for twelve hours straight and—

Beep. Beep. The phone screen lights up.

Who was messaging her at 10pm? She was pretty sure her friends would be all sleeping now, or making out with each other — absolutely gross —, or studying for an upcoming test in the ever so sweet and innocent Yuna's case. In one way or another, they were all too busy with their own lives to be texting Ryujin at night.

Only if—

amazing singer who's now my fake girlfriend 
hey! i'm sorry to text you out of nowhere haha 
are you up? :)

Ryujin almost lets her phone fly out of her hand when she reads the message, trying to get her together as quick as possible so she can start typing out a reply for the girl.

ryujin 
no problem haha 
yeah i'm pretty awake :))

Ryujin cringes internally because one, she never uses haha and typing the awkward laugh made her want to crawl under the covers and two, why did she have to say i'm pretty awake when she could've just replied with a simple yes? Or would that make her come out as too cold and unreachable? Her texting crisis is interrupted by the loud beep coming from the phone in her hands.

amazing singer who's now my fake girlfriend 
would you like to meet up? i mean if you're okay with that, i totally understand if you don't want to see me 
but you're kind of the only person who understand the situation i'm in and i would like to vent about it haha :/ 
but really it's okay if you're tired don't feel pressured or anything 
and i'm talking too much

Ryujin smiles at the screen, feeling something warm bloom inside of her chest as she reads the singer's small rant over and over again. The girl seemed to be pretty cute and friendly at least, and Ryujin was ridiculously aware of the amount of time they would have to spend together from now on so why not make a new friend through this hot mess she was shoved into?

Then she realizes it's been at least three minutes since she started spacing out and that probably it was making the other girl overthink and regret all of her life choices, so she blinks twice in an attempt get her together and starts typing.

ryujin 
oh yeah i'd really like to!! this whole thing is pretty ed up tbh ://

She already knows that, you moron. And you just  sweared in front of her. Not exactly in front of her but— . I have to stop  swearing or else i'll never get rid of the reckless teenager image.

ryujin 
where should we meet? anywhere you want is fine for me, i can get there p fast with my motorcycle

amazing singer who's now my fake girlfriend 
oh, so you're really a bad girl who rides motorcycles at dawn and everything? i really hit jackpot huh

Ryujin blushes.

ryujin 
ohhhh shut uppp

amazing singer who's now my fake girlfriend 
lmao 
you know that one coffee shop who stays pretty close to my agency? just beside a school?

ryujin 
been there a few times

amazing singer who's now my fake girlfriend 
cool! we can meet there then :) 
be careful and don't forget to use your helmet 
i don't want my girlfriend to die before the world even knows we're dating

Ryujin blushes again. Harder this time.

ryujin 
oh stopppp!!!!

Yes, the great Shin Ryujin who has a legion of loyal fans (mostly girls, which she is extremely grateful for) screaming her name everywhere she goes is nothing but a useless lesbian in front of pretty girls. Specially the flirty, pretty girls who sing like and look like angels. Ryujin really couldn't keep her strong facade in front of those.

Jisu sends one last message saying she's leaving her house and Ryujin decides to do the same, throwing her favorite leather jacket over her back before leaving the apartment with a smirk plastered on her face.

—

Ryujin parks her motorcycle in front of the coffee Jisu talked about fifteen minutes later, kind of irritated because of the unnecessary traffic she had to face on her way there. But all the stress melts away when she sees Jisu, wearing a mask to hide her face and a light blue dress who falls perfectly over her delicate body.

Holy , she's pretty. Too pretty.

Ryujin decides to stop making a fool of herself in public and hops off her motorcycle, shaking her head in an attempt to fix her hair in a very movie-like movement, black helmet still firm on her hands.

"Oh, you really do look like a bad girl. I can't really blame the articles about you." Jisu says as she comes closer to Ryujin, laughing at the way the actress's nose crunched up in disapproval at the mention of the numerous fishy articles going around about her personality.

"Who said i'm not?" Ryujin asked nonchalantly as they made their way inside the shop.

Jisu raised an eyebrow at the question, silently opting for not answering it. "Dating a bad girl. Sounds a lot like a middle school fantasy."

Ryujin thanks the heavens above she already has her mask on by the time Jisu says those words because she's sure as hell her face is red as a tomato for the nth time that night. Was Jisu really that flirty or did she just think it's funny to do that to the actress because they're "girlfriends" now? Ryujin doesn't know the answer to that question yet, but she's more than eager to find out.

They order and Ryujin writes a mental note that says Choi Jisu has a sweet tooth. You know, for future occasions, nothing else.

The two girls sit as far away from the other tables as possible, even though the shop was close to empty, just to be safe. The place is cozy and is decorated with tiny white lights who reminds Ryujin a lot of christmas, making her smile fondly at the happy old memories overflowing her mind and damn, she really was a baby. She feels the urge to text Mina, but decides she shouldn't wake up her hardworking sister just to be a whiny baby and say she misses her. For the hundredth time that week. Not that she's counting or anything.

And, of course, Jisu is sitting in front of her right now, sipping cutely on her coffee and the actress remembers she has something a little bit more important to do than crying because she misses her older sister.

(She could go back to do that later, maybe when it's three in the morning. Yeah, definitely when it's three in the morning.)

"So, tell me about it." Ryujin starts, finally taking a sip of her bitter coffee. Jisu furrows her forehead in confusion. "About the girl you like. Tell me."

The singer's face falls visibly and Ryujin almost regrets mentioning it, but then she remembers the reason she had left her apartment a few minutes ago was because the older girl needed to rant, and Ryujin was willing to listen for as long as the girl might need.

"Yeah, that," Jisu starts, playing with the straw inside of the half empty coffee cup. "Do you know Jeon Somi, the singer?"

Ryujin almost chokes on her drink and she thanks god her grip on the cup is firm enough because she would lose her mind if she ended up having burning black coffee all over chest. Again.

"I do, she has nice songs," Ryujin answers in a calm voice, trying to cover the fact she almost had a heart attack because yes, pretty girls are indeed always surrounded by other pretty girls. The fact Choi Jisu had a fling with Jeon Somi was enough to prove the accuracy of that theory.

Jisu nods, smiling fondly and something inside of Ryujin's chest aches at the view in front of her. "We know each other for quite a long time and we were supposed to debut together in a girl group. Crazy, isn't it?"

The smile in Jisu's lips doesn't reach her eyes and Ryujin has to look away for a while, nodding her head slowly as she glances at the plastic cup placed in front of her. "As you can see, destiny had other plans for us and today we're both soloists. We had always been close, but during these past few months something... sparkled between us? It was clear that we liked each other as more than friends."

Ryujin nods again, taking a long sip of her drink this time.

"I was going to ask her to be my girlfriend next week," Jisu bites her bottom lip anxiously. "But things didn't quite go as I planned."

The actress's heart was broken. Jisu seemed to really like Somi, and knowing she had to give up on her own happiness and on the girl she likes for a stupid contract her agency shoved down was infuriating. And even when everything in her life seemed to be falling down, she still found a way to be nice to Ryujin. Would Ryujin do the same if she was on her shoes? To be honest, she doesn't know — but she wholeheartedly admires Jisu for it. She sure had a lot to learn from the singer.

"I'm so sorry."

Ryujin feels stupid for saying those words. She feels like she should say more, say that Jisu was incredible and th