─── Five ───

    In a matter of a few days, my life completely changed. I woke up everyday excited now that I was doing what I wanted to do. Nari and I weren’t stuck in the backroom anymore. We were finally out there in the salon with our own stations and our own clients to work with. Every hour of the day, someone new sat in my chair and I had the opportunity to work so closely with them. The only downside was how busy Nari and I were. We always had schedule back-to-back, so even just a twenty-minute break was a blessing. For me, it was a small price to pay in exchange for living my dream. Here I was in Seoul, working as a celebrity makeup artist, but most importantly, as EXO’s makeup artist.  Just as our boss had said, we had a much greater responsibility to them than the rest of our clients. Whenever they booked us, the whole day would be cleared out for EXO and only EXO.

𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁

    “Guess who!” a voice said from behind me, poking me on my sides. I let out a yelp and whirled around to yell at Sehun before remembering Suho and their manager were there, too. It was Nari and I’s first schedule with EXO as their official beauty team, although it was only two members who needed us today. Louis Vuitton had invited Sehun and Suho to celebrate the release of their latest line so they needed us to make them look presentable for the cameras. I saw Louis Vuitton Korea’s official guest list for this event the other night and it was definitely going to be a star-studded event. Aside from them, celebrities like G-Dragon, IU, Hyuna, Dara, Gong Yoo, Kim Woobin, and Park Shinhye were going. In other words, the cameras would be focusing on a lot of different people, but I wanted them to focus the most on Sehun and Suho, and I intended on doing that by making them look absolutely flawless. I planned to keep their makeup natural, not much going on with eyeliner and eyeshadow, but I would make sure to enhance their natural beauty. That way, people will be left wondering why they look so handsome tonight and keep their eyes glued to them the whole event.

    “Did you miss me?” Sehun teased, settling into my makeup chair.

    “Not really,” I replied nonchalantly, applying a few pumps of primer directly to his face. I had over two hours with them today, so I took my time smoothing it out. Next, I grabbed the foundation bottle to start base makeup.

    “I really still can’t believe you went for beauty school. ” I let out a huff.

    “Yah, you always say that! Are you trying to say I don’t seem like the girly type?”

    “No, but last I heard you went for business. And then you switched to accounting. And then you dropped out of university and started taking voice lessons. And then you stopped to enroll into a dance studio. And then you went back to university for music producing. And then you dropped out again, and then finally you went to beauty school.” I could feel my face getting hot. He didn’t need to recite my whole university history!

    “You didn’t strike me as the indecisive type,” Suho commented. Nari chuckled from her station next to me, incorporating a heat protectant through his dark locks. She let it set for a few minutes before picking up the straightener.

    “To be fair, I was trying to rebel against my parents at the time, so I made a lot of impulsive decisions.”

    “How do you guys know each other so well?” Suho inquired.

    “Actually,” Nari piped up, “I’m curious, as well. You never told me anything, Jihae.” Sehun and I made eye contact in the mirror, almost like we were trying to decide which one of us should answer them.

    “We used to be neighbors when we were kids. We lived next-door to each other,” he abruptly said. 

    “Really? What was Jihae like as a kid?” Nari asked.

    “She was so much quieter when we were kids and now she’s so loud!” he exclaimed, shaking his head in disapproval. “When I  back then, she wouldn’t talk back like she does now. No respect for her oppa!”

    “You’re not that much older than me, it’s only two years!” I aggressively buffed the foundation into his skin to show how I disagreed strongly.

    “That’s still…uh…seven hundred-something days older than you!”

    “Seven hundred thirty, to be exact,” Suho added.

    “Aish, I didn’t ask!”
    “Look who’s disrespecting their elders now!” Soon, Sehun and Suho switched seats. I noted how much more calm and polite Suho was. He didn’t squirm as much as Sehun, so I could do his makeup quicker. I’m not complaining, though. This just shows how comfortable he felt with me even after all these years. After some more bickering between the four of us that left everyone, even their manager, laughing so hard, the time came for them to leave. I couldn’t take in any oxygen as I watched Sehun pull on his coat. The luxurious Louis Vuitton clothing did his broad shoulders and tall frame so well, and paired with my makeup and Nari’s hairstyle? Even a god would be jealous of how handsome Sehun was! Suddenly, I realized there was something I needed to do. I pried my eyes away from him and fished for my phone.

    “Let’s all exchange Kakaotalk IDs?” I suggested. Suho looked around the salon briefly, making sure it was only us, before nodding his head. I supposed their manager wouldn’t approve of them exchanging contact information like this. Following one more spritz of hairspray and setting spray, Nari and I sent them off to the event.

𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁

    I stared at Sehun’s contact on my screen, a thousand questions going through my head. Should I text him first? But that would make me look desperate. Should I wait for him to text me? But I’m way too impatient for that. I tapped on his name and let my thumbs fumble around the keyboard. What should my text be? A simple hi? A picture? A Ryan sticker? It’s been forever since I texted a guy!

    “Jihae! Were you listening?” Nari pulled me out of my thoughts. She was a bit annoyed, I could see it with her pout and slightly furrowed brows, but her face is so sweet, she can’t look anything except cute. 

    “You’re thinking of Sehun, aren’t you?” Her irritation was replaced by a giddy smile. “Well, you should’ve listened to what I was saying! I just saw previews from the Louis Vuitton event and everyone can’t get enough of Sehun and Suho! Tonight, they’re calling Suho a prince and Sehun a model. We did really good, huh?”

    “Wait, really? Let me see!” I exited Kakaotalk to check my SNS and indeed, Sehun and Suho were trending. I stared a bit too long at Sehun’s photo that I didn’t even notice our food arrive. Nari and I went to a restaurant nearby the salon not long after the two had left.

    “I know you like him.” I scowled at Nari from across the table, picking up my utensils to start eating.

    “No, I—!” I stared at my phone in disbelief. Sehun just texted me—I didn’t even need to worry about making the first move! My eyes scanned the message intensely. I prayed I wasn't misreading it.

𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁

what are you doing after work tomorrow?

nothing...why?  

meet me at this restaurant then, 19:00

𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁𐄙𐄁