"An offer?"

Minjeong blurted while staring at the pop-up immensely. It looked like Jimin was in deep thought as she had the same gaze as the shorter. Could she be thinking about the offer? Minjeong wondered what it was about, asking her the question once more.

"Jimin, are you really not a player?"

Jimin furrowed her brows, "I'm not."

"But all of this doesn't make any sense." Minjeong held her forehead, "My window is popping up from your command... and the Goddess Ent's offer. Are you, perhaps, hiding something from me?"

"...You trust me, right?"

"With all my heart."

"Then, believe me. I'm not a player, and I'm not hiding anything from you. Well, not yet, anyway."

"Not yet?" Minjeong raised a brow, "The offer— don't tell me the system offered you to become a player...?"

Jimin unwittingly hid her hands behind her back, "It did..."

Minjeong held her breath for a second, "Jimin, as someone who suffered so much from it... I don't recommend it."

"Tch, I'm still mad at you for not telling me."

"I know. And I'll say sorry as much as you want, just until you forgive me."

Minjeong stood up from the bed to face Jimin. Then, cupping the taller's cheeks, she locked eyes with her and began apologizing repeatedly. That lasted for five seconds before Jimin gave in, released a long sigh, and pulled her for a tight hug.

"Don't you really not care about the competition anymore? Because of me...?"

Knowing how Jimin couldn't care less about the said competition anymore. This caused Minjeong to feel slightly responsible and guilty. Like everyone else in the competition, they've been sacrificing a lot of things solely to compete for the chance of winning and debuting.

Wasn't this Jimin's dream? Wasn't that the reason she joined in the first place? Like a puppy ditched by its owner in the middle of nowhere, Minjeong felt the anxiety rising from her stomach to her chest and clenched her fists.

"I just... just..." The shorter swallowed her spit, "Don't want you to worry about me. You know so much, and I'm unsure what to do with it. I had my train on the rails running smoothly until you came into the picture— You were a distraction that I wanted to push away. But I couldn't."

Jimin's hug got tighter, "Why?"

"You make me feel good... I love you too." Minjeong eventually wrapped her arms around the latter's waist, "So, even if it's so tempting. Can you please not accept it? The system is dangerous, and I don't want you getting involved with it."

Despite the situation, Jimin slipped into a faint smile and snuggled into the embrace.

"Okay, I won't. But starting today, you have to tell me everything."

"Alright."

[ !!!The Goddess of Ent. is enraged!!! ]

Upon seeing the pop-up, Minjeong rolled her eyes and buried her face into the taller's neck.

Shut up.

[ The Goddess of Affinity is laughing in delight ]

✩

The next day, Minjeong and Jimin woke up early at five to prepare for episode three's filming. The location was set to a private mansion in Chuncheon-si, and the meeting place would be the apartment building the program used for episode one, as there would be vehicles waiting for the participants to arrive.

"I feel like I'm forgetting something even though there's nothing."

Minjeong said while scratching her cheek. She looked around the bedroom again, only to find out she was all set for departure. Jimin giggled when noticing this and closed her luggage as soon as she finished.

Today's plan was to take a taxi toward the meeting location to avoid getting attention if Jimin were to take her convertible.

She wouldn't want the people to know her wealth yet as that could cause a ruckus in the tabloids— which could result in comments such as giving a chance to the other contestants.

It was true that Jimin wouldn't care about losing if it was for Minjeong since she could always try again to debut. However, it's still a huge opportunity as being in the same girl group as the shorter would be at risk.

Now, Jimin genuinely wants to win a position.

"Gre, are we all set?" Minjeong looked at the husky who sat under the doorway, "I want to make sure."

In response, Gre nodded his head with a few barks, and Minjeong sighed in relief. Then with the snap of her fingers, she commanded the fluff to return to the realm he came from and gazed at the taller, who was done tidying her bed.

"Ready to go?"

Stretching her arms, Jimin shook her head. "Not yet."

Minjeong slightly tilted her head, "What's more?" she asked as she saw Jimin suddenly walking toward her with a yawn.

They only had five hours of sleep, thanks to what happened last night. It was bugging them, especially Minjeong, who couldn't help but feel worried about the thought the system offered Jimin becoming a player.

The system was already the very cause of why she was standing here; unbearably, it's more complicated than Einstein's brain. It hurts a lot too. If one were to ask a forbidden question accidentally or go beyond its rules— inevitable pain would be on its way.

Minjeong couldn't even count the times she screamed at the top of her lungs and buried her face into a pillow while enduring them. And it's a wonder how Jimin witnessed one of them in the bathroom.

Nonetheless, Jimin was staring at her beloved with affectionate eyes, and Minjeong merely smiled in confusion.

"Jimin, hey?"

Jimin smiled back, "Hey." and leaned in to kiss the latter.

Minjeong was instantly shocked because of the gesture, though she returned the touch and closed her eyes. The taller tasted like strawberries, and it was getting too steamy to the point